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Nature 


x 


A     WEEKLY 


ILLUSTRATED   JOURNAL   OF    SCIENCE 


V  7H 


VOLUME  XLiI 

NOVEMBER     1889     to     APRIL     1890 

C 


^Si 


**  To  the  solid  ground 
Of  Nature  trusts  the  mind  ivhidi  builds  for  aye" — Wordsworth 


yonbon  anb  g^to  gork 

MACMILLAN    AND    CO. 

1890 


Q 


H7^ 

v.4( 


Richard  Clav  and  Sons,  Limited, 
london  and  bungay. 


Nature,  May  22,  iSgo] 


INDEX 


Abbe  (Prof.  Cleveland),  the  "Rollers"  of  Ascension  and  St. 

Helena,  585 
Abel  (Sir  Frederick,  F.R.S.),  Smokeless  Explosives,  328,  352 
Abercromby  (Hon.  John),  a  Trip  through  the  Eastern  Caucasus, 

391 
Abercromby  (Hon.  R.),  the  Motion  of  Dust,  406 
Abney  (Captain  W.  de  W.,  F.  R.S.),  Photo-nephograph,  491 
Abnormal  Shoots  of  Ivy,  W.  F.  R.  Weldon,  464 
Aborigine,  a  Surviving  Tasmanian,  Hy.  Ling  Roth,  105 
Acetic  Acid  Solutions,  Vapour-pressure  of,  Raoult  and  Kecoura, 

431 

Accumulations  of  Capital  in  the  United  Kingdom  in  1875-85, 
Robert  Giffen,  211 

Achlya,  Prof.  Marcus  M.  Hartog,  298 

Acoustics ;  Melde's  Vibrating  Strings,  Rev,  W.  Sidgreaves, 
355  ;  Propagation  of  Sound,  Violle  and  Vautier,  359 ;  the 
Testing  of  Tuning-forks,  Dr.  Lehmann,  383 

Acquired  Characters,  Palaeontological  Evidence  for  the  Trans- 
mission of,  Henry  Fairfield  Osborn,  227 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation  :  the  Duke  of 
Argyll,  F.R.S.,  173,  294,  366;  W.  T.  Thiselton  Dyer, 
F.R.S.,  315;  F.  V.  Dickins,  316;  Right  Rev.  Bishop  R. 
Courtenay,  367  ;  Dr.  J.  Cowper,  368  ;  Herbert  Spencer,  414  ; 
Prof.  E.  Kay  Lankester,  F.R.S.,  415.     See  also  Panmixia 

Actinometric  Observations  at  Kiev,  1888-89,  ^-  Savelief,  359 

Acworth  (W.  M.)  :  Railways  of  England,  434;  Railways  of 
Scotland,  434 

Adams  (Prof.  J.  C,  F.R. S.),  on  certain  Approximate  Formulae 
for  Calculating  the  Trajectories  of  Shot,  258 

Adamson  (Daniel)  :   Death  of,  256  ;  Obituary  Notice  of,  279 

Advancement  of  Science,  Australasian  Association  for  the,  Prof. 
Orme  Masson,  441 

Africa  :  H.  M.  Stanley's  Exploration  of,  20,  73  ;  Reported 
Massacre  of  Dr.  Peters's  Party,  21  ;  South  African  Gold-fields, 
the,  G.  D.  Cocorda,  164  ;  the  Land  of  an  African  Sultan, 
Walter  B.  Harris,  270  ;  East  Africa  and  its  Big  Game,  Cap- 
tain Sir  J.  Willoughby,  298  ;  African  Monkeys  in  the  West 
Indies,  Dr.  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S.,  368;  Meteorology  of 
the  Gold  and  Slave  Coast,  Dr.  Danckelmann,  479 

Agriculture  :  Sheep  Farming  in  Australia,  Prof  Wallace,  1 13  ; 
Practical  Observations  on  Agricultural  Grasses  and  other 
Pasture  Plants,  William  Wilson,  196  ;  Field  Experiments  on 
Wheat  in  Italy,  Prof.  Giglioli,  404 

Ahrens's  Polarizing  Binocular  Microscope,  93 

Aitken  (John,  F.R.S.),  On  the  Number  of  Dust  Particles  in 
the  Atmosphere  of  Certain  Places  in  Great  Britain  and  on 
the  Continent,  with  remarks  on  the  relation  between  the 
Amount  of  Dust  and  Meteorological  Phenomena,  382,  394 

Aitkens  (Sir  William),  Animal  Alkaloids,  Second  Edition,  161 

Aka  Expedition  of  1883,  Colonel  Woodthorpe,  86 

Algse,  a  New  Atlas  of.  Dr.  J,  Reinke,  127 

Algebra :  an  Elementary  Text-book  for  the  Higher  Classes  of 
Secondary  Schools  and  for  Colleges,  Prof  G.  Chrystal,  338 

Algebraic  Equations,  Roots  of,  Prof.  A.  Cayley,  F.R.S.,  335 

Algeria,  Earthquake  in,  113 

Algol,  Satellite  of,  W.  H.  S.  Monck,  198 

Algol,  Spectroscopic  Observations  of.  Prof.  Vogel,  164,  285 

Alpine  Chain,  a  Geological  Map  of  the,  Prof.  T.  G.  Bonney, 
F.R.S.,  483 


Alpine  Expeditions  of  Dr.  Emil  Zsigmondy,  291 

Aluminium  and  Nitric  Acid,  A.  Ditte,  599 

Amber,  Mexican,  G-  F.  Kunz,  372 

America  :  Sir  Daniel  Wilson  on  the  Recent  Toronto  Meeting  of 
the  American  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  17  ; 
European  Weeds  in,  18  ;  American  Journal  of  Mathematics,  71, 
332,  525  ;  American  Resorts,  with  Notes  upon  their  Climate, 
Dr.  Bushrod  W.  James,  79 ;  American  Journal  of  Science, 
46,  92,  309,  405,  500,  598  ;  American  Meteorological  Journal, 
92,  357)  501  ;  American  Meteorological  Society,  324  ;  Ameri- 
can Ethnological  Reports,  J.  W.  Powell,  99  ;  American 
Philosophical  Society,  Philadelphia,  136;  American  Naturalist, 

231 

Among  Cannibals,  Carl  Lumholtz,  200 

Amsterdam,  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  24,  96,  216,  383,  552, 
600 

Analytical  Tables,  Coloured,  H.  W.  Hake,  29 

Anatomy  :  a  Glossary  of  Anatomical,  Physiological,  and  Bio- 
logical Terms,  T.  Dunman,  173;  a  Text-book  of  Human 
Anatomy,  Prof.  Alex.  MacAlister,  F.  R.S.,  269 

Anchovies  on  the  South  Coast  of  England,  J.  T,  Cunningham, 
230 

Anderson  (Joseph),  Sugar  losing  its  Attractions  for  Lepidoptera, 

349 

Andre  (Ch.),  Jupiter's  Satellites,  94 

Anemometers,  W.  H.  Dines,  212 

Angot  (Alfred) :  Wind-Velocity  at  Top  of  Eiffel  Tower,  48,  67  ; 
the  Observations  of  Temperature  on  Top  of  Eiffel  Tower, 
167  ;  on  the  Eiffel  Tower  Observations,  i8i  ;  Diurnal  Range 
of  Barometer,  449 

Animal  Life,  Glimpses  of,  W.  Jones,  409 

Animals  and  Plants,  Distribution  of,  by  Ocean  Currents, 
Rev.  Paul  Camboue,  103 

Animals,  Effects  of  Music  on,  A.  E.  C.  Stearns,  470 

Animaux,  Les  Industries  des,  F.  Houssay,  409 

Annuario  Meteorologico  of  the  Italian  Meteorological  Society, 
231 

Anomalies,  Temperature,  Dr.  R.  Spitaler,  303 

Anoura,  the  Metamorphosis  of,  E.  Bataillon,  23 

Anthropology  :  the  Malay  People,  Dr.  B.  Hagen,  21  ;  the  Last 
Living  Aboriginal  of  Tasmania,  43  ;  Prehistoric  Burial-ground 
discovered  in  Caucasus  by  Beyern,  43 ;  Anthropological 
Institute,  119,  256,  406  ;  Journal  of  the  Anthropological  In- 
stitute, 594 ;  Inheritance  of  Acquired  Mental  Peculiarity, 
Handtmann,  209  ;  L' Anthropologic,  300 ;  the  Veddahs  of 
Ceylon,  Dr.  Arthur  Thomson,  303  ;  Classification  of  Races, 
Based  on  Physical  Characters  only,  M.  Denniker,  332  ; 
Modern  Crania  in  Montpellier,  De  Lapouge,  357  ;  the 
Cephalic  Index  of  Corsican  Population,  Dr.  A.  Fallot,  357  ; 
the  Chin  Tribes  of  North  Burma,  G.  B.  Sacchiero,  375  ; 
Characteristic  Survivals  of  Celts  in  Hampshire,  T.  W.  Shore, 
406  ;  Charlotte  Corday's  Skull,  Dr.  Topinard,  500  ;  Jacques 
Bertillon  on  the  Identification  of  Criminals  by  Measurement, 
592 

Anthropometry,  Cambridge  :  Dr.  John  Venn,  F.R.S.,  450,  560  ; 
Francis  Galton,  F.R.S.,  454 

Antilles,  the  Lesser,  Owen  17.  Bulkeley,  268 

Antiparallel,  the  Use  of  the  Word,  W.  J.  James,  10  ;  E.  M. 
Langley,  104 

b  ' 


VI 


INDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890' 


Apex  of  the  Sun's  Way,  Lewis  Boss,  548 

Aplin  (O,  v.),  the  Birds  of  Oxfordshire,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe, 
169 

Aquaria,  the  Management  of,  W.  P.  Seal,  18 

Arc  Light,  Joseph  McGrath,  154 

Archaeology  :  Interesting  Remains  discovered  in  Hamburg,  21  ; 
Archaeological  Congress  at  Moscow,  283  ;  Cambridge  Archreo- 
logical  Museum,  324 ;  Proposed  Archaeological  Survey  of 
Ceylon,  372  ;  Vaphio  (Morea)  Rock- Sepulchre,  S.  Reinach, 
500;  Archaeology  and  Ethnology  of  Easter  Island,  Walter 
Hough,  569 

Arctic  Ice  Cap,  is  Greenland  our,  S.  E.  Peal,  58 

Arctic  (North  Pole)  Expedition,  Dr.  Nansen's  Plan  for,  374 

Arctic  Voyagers,  Cause  of  Change  of  Skin- Colour  in.  Prof. 
Holmgren,  546 

Area  of  the  Land  and  Depths  of  the  Oceans  in  Former  Periods, 
T.  Mellard  Reade,  103 

Argentina,  Dr.  Hermann  Burmeister  on  the  Fossil  Horses  and 
other  Mammals  of,  82 

Argentine  Ornithology,  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S.;  and  W.  H. 
Hudson,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  7 

Argyll  (the  Duke  of,  F.  R.  S.):  Acquired  Characters  and  Con- 
genital Variation,  173,  294,  366;  and  the  Neo-Darwinians, 
W.  T.  Thiselton  Dyer,  F.R.S.,  247 

Arloing  (M.),  Diastases  Secreted  by  J3aciUus heminecrobiophilus, 

143 
Armenia,  the  Catastrophe  of  Kantzorik,  F.  M,  Corpi,  190 
Armstrong  (Prof.  H.  E.,  F.R.S.),  Constitution  of  Tri-derivatives 

of  Naphthalene,  454 
Amaud,  Digitaline  and  Tanghinine,  48 
Arrest's  (D'),  Comet,  G.  Leveau,  596 
Ascension,  the  "Rollers"  of,  Prof.  Cleveland  Abbe,  585 
Ascidians  and  Crabs,  Prof.  W.  A.  Herdman,  344 
Asia,  Central  :  Colonel   Roborovski's  Expedition  in,   234;  the 

Russian  Expeditions  in,  352 
Asia  Minor,  Prof.  Bornmiiller's  Botanical  Tour  through,  136 
Asiatic  Cholera,  Bacteria  of,  Dr.  E.  Klein,  F.  R.  S.,  509 
Assaying,  Text- book  of,  C.  Beringer  and  J.  J.  Beringer,  Thomas 

Gibb,  245 
Assmann(Dr.) :  Aspiration  Thermometers,  239  ;  Climatological 

Considerations  about  Influenza,  325 
Association  for  Improvement  of  Geometrical  Teaching,  207,  282 
Association  of  Public  Sanitary  Inspectors,  324 
Assyrian  Sculptured  Group,  Explanation  of.  Dr.    E.  B.  Tylor, 

F.R.S.,  283 
Asteroid,  a  New,  450 

Asteroids,  Discovery  of,  Dr.  Palisa,  522  ;  M.  Charlois,  522 
Aitronomy  :  Our  Astronomical  Column,  19,  44,  68,  87,  114, 
138,  163,  210,  232,  256,  285,  304,  326,  350,  374,  402,  428, 
449,  472,  496,  521,  548,  571,  595  ;  Stellar  Parallax  by  means  of 
Photography,  Prof  Pritchard,  19  ;  Measurements  of  Double 
Stars,  S.  W.  Burnham,  19;  Barnard's  Comet,  1888-89,  19; 
Biographical  Note  on  J.  C.  Houzeau,  M.  A.  Lancaster,  20  ; 
Karlsruhe  Observatory,  20;  Objects  for  the  Spectroscope,  A. 
Fowler,  20,  44,  68,  87,  114,  138,  163,  183,  210,  232,  256, 
285,  304,  326,  350,  374,  402,  428,  449,  472,  496,  521,  548, 
57 '>  595  j  Large  Scale  Charts  of  the  Constellations,  Arthur 
Cottam,  45  ;  Barnard's  Comet,  II.  1889,  March  31,  45  ;  the 
Structure  of  Jupiter's  Belt  3,  III.,  Dr.  Terby,  45  ;  Hand-book 
of  Descriptive  and  Practical  Astronomy,  G,  F.  Chambers, 
49 ;  Ancient  Chinese  Astronomical  Instruments,  66  ;  the 
Minimum  Sun-spot  Period,  M.  Bruguiere,  68  ;  Return 
of  Brorsen's  Comet,  Dr.  E.  Lamp,  69  ;  the  Companion 
of  i\  Pegasi,  69  ;  General  Bibliography  of  Astronomy,  69  ;  J. 
C.  Houzeau's  Vade  Mecum,  69  ;  a  New  Comet  discovered 
by  Lewis  Swift,  69  ;  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886,  88  ;  Palermo 
Observatory,  88 ;  Variable  Star  Y  Cygni,  88 ;  Paramatta 
Observatory,  88  ;  Minor  Planet,  282  (Clorinde),  88  ;  Comet 
Davidson  {e  1889),  88  ;  New  Variable  Star  in  Hydra,  88  ; 
Rev.  S.  J.  Perry,  F.R.S.,  on  Sun-spots  in  High  Southern 
Latitudes,  88  ;  Origin  of  Shooting- Stars,  92 ;  M.  H. 
Faye  on  the  Orbit  of  Winnecke's  Periodical  Comet,  94  ; 
Jupiter's  Satellites,  Ch.  Andre,  94 ;  Star  Distances, 
Miss  A.  M.  Gierke,  8i  ;  Sun-spot  of  June,  July,  and 
August  1889,  115;  Photographic  Star  Spectra,  115; 
Comet  Brooks  {d  1889,  July  6),  Dr.  Knopf,  115  ;  Comet 
Swift  (/  1889,  November  17),  Dr.  Zelbr,  115;  S  Cassio- 
peize,  Rev.  T.  E.  Espin,  115  ;  New  Double  Stars,  Miss  A. 
M.  Gierke,  132  ;  Brazilian  Honours  to  French  Astronomers, 
135  ;  Photometric  Intensity  of  Coronal  Light,  139  ;  Corona  of 
January   i,    1889,     Prof.    Tacchini,    139  ;    Minor  Planet     12 


(Victoria),  139;  Comet  Swift  (/1889,  November  17),  Dr.  R. 
Schorr,  139  ;  Periodic  Comets,  139  ;  the  Eclipse  Parties, 
139;  Period  of  U  Coronae,  S.  C.  Chandler,  163;  Identity  of 
Brooks's  Comet  {d  1889)  with  Lexell's  Comet,  S.  C.  Chand- 
ler, 163  ;  some  Photographic  Star  Spectra,  163;  Magnitude 
and  Colour  of  77  Argus,  164  ;  Orbit  of  Barnard's  Comet, 
1884  II.,  164;  Spectrum  of  Algol,  164;  the  Newall  Tele-, 
scope  for  the  University  of  Cambridge,  166  ;  Variable  Star 
in  Cluster  G.C.  3636,  Prof.  Pickering,  183 ;  Changes  in 
Lunar  Craters,  Prof.  Thury,  183  ;  the  Satellite  of  Algol,  W. 
H.  S.  Monck,  198  ;  Recent  Observations  of  Jupiter,  W.  F. 
Denning,  206  ;  Dr.  Peters's  Star  Catalogue,  210  ;  Longitude 
of  Mount  Hamilton,  211  ;  Comet  Borelly  {g  1889,  December 
12),  211  ;  Comet  Brooks  (d  1889,  July  6),  211  ;  the  Solar 
Eclipse,  211  ;  Identity  of  Comet  Vico  (1844)  with  Brooks's 
(1889),  233  ;  Observations  of  some  Suspected  Variables,  Rev. 
John  G.  Hagen,  233  ;  Spectrum  of  a  Metallic  Prominence, 
233;  Comet  Swift  (/ 1889,  November  17),  Dr.  Zelbr,  Dr. 
Lamp,  233  ;  Solar  Spots  and  Prominences,  Prof.  Tacchini,  233 ; 
Meteor,  Rev.  T.  W.  Morton,  249  ;  the  Temperature  of  the 
Moon,  Prof.  Langley,  257  ;  on  the  Orbit  of  Struve  228,  J. 
E.  Gore,  257  ;  Orbit  of  Swift's  Comet  (V.  1880),  257  ;  on 
the  Variability  of  R  Vulpeculas,  257  ;  on  the  Rotation  of 
Mercury,  257  ;  the  Cluster  G.C.  1420,  and  the  Nebula 
N.G.C.  2237,  Dr.  Lewis  Swift,  285;  on  the  Spectrum  of 
C  Ursae  Majoris,  Prof  Pickering,  285  ;  Spectroscopic  Obser- 
vations of  Algol,  Prof  Vogel,  286;  the  Meteorite  of  Mighei, 
J.  Rutherford  Hill,  298  ;  Total  Eclipse  of  January  i,  1889, 
Prof.  Holden,  305  ;  Orbits  of  the  Companions  of  Brooks's 
Comet  (1889,  v.,  July  6),  305  ;  Greenwich  Observatory,  305  ; 
Star  Land,  Sir  Robert  S.  Ball,  F.R.S.,  315  ;  Eight  Rainbows 
seen  at  the  same  time.  Sir  William  Thomson,  F.R.S.,  316; 
Dr.  Percival  Frost,  F.R.S.,  316;  Annuaire  du  Bureau  des 
Longitudes,  1890,  327  ;  Annuaire  de  I'Observatoire  Royal  de 
Bruxelles,  1890,  327;  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  327; 
Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886,  Dr.  Schuster,  F.R.S.,  327; 
Solar  Halos  and  Parhelia,  330  ;  a  Photographic  Method  for 
Determining  Variability  in  Stars,  Isaac  Roberts,  332 ;  Earth 
Tremors  from  Trains,  and  their  EtTects  on  Astronomical  In- 
struments, H.  H.  Turner,  344  ;  the  Nuclei  of  Great  Comet 
II.  of  1882,  F.  Tisserand,  358  ;  Spectrum  of  the  Zodiacal 
Light,  Maxwell  Hall,  351  ;  Solar  and  Stellar  Motions,  Prof. 
J.  R.  Eastman,  351  ;  Dun  Echt  Observatory,  351  ;  Transit 
Observations  at  Melbourne  Observatory,  351  ;  the  Maintaining 
and  Working  of  the  Great  Newall  Telescope,  357  ;  Is  the 
Copernican  System  of  Astronomy  True  ?  W.  S.  Cassedy,  366  ; 
Progress  of  Astronomy  in  1886,  Prof.  Winlock,  374;  Maximum 
Light  Intensity  of  the  Solar  Spectrum,  Dr.  Mengarini,  374  ; 
Spectrum  of  Borelly's  Comet  (^  1889),  374;  Spectra  of  Sand /i 
Centauri,  374 ;  on  the  Star  System  |  Scorpii,  374  ;  the  Total 
Eclipse,  Prof.  David  P.  Todd,  379 ;  Scenery  of  the  Heavens, 
by  J.  E.  Gore,  391  ;  the  Distance  of  the  Stars,  Dr.  W.  H.  S. 
Monck,  392  ;  Ephemeris  of  Brooks's  Comet  {d  1889),  403  ; 
New  Short  Period  Variable  in  Ophiuchus,  403  ;  Observations 
of  the  Magnitude  of  lapetus,  403  ;  Observations  of  C  Ursae 
Majoris  and  ;8  Aurigae,  403  ;  the  Movement  of  Planets,  F. 
Tisserand,  406;  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  December  22,  1889, 
M.  A.  De  La  Baume  Pluvinel,  428  ;  Comets  and  Asteroids 
discovered  in  1889,  428  ;  Mass  of  Saturn,  Asaph  Hall,  429 ; 
the  Astronomical  Observatory  of  Harvard  College,  446  ;  the 
Solar  and  the  Lunar  Spectrum,  Prof.  Langley,  450 ;  the 
Corona  of  1889,  December  22,  W.  II.  Wesley,  450  ;  Nebular 
Hypothesis,  Herbert  Spencer,  450 ;  Nebula,  General  Cata- 
logue No.  4795,  W.  E.  Jackson,  450  ;  a  New  Asteroid,  450  ; 
Hues's  Treatise  on  the  Globes  (1592),  459;  Astronomy  with 
an  Opera  Glass,  Garrett  P.  Serviss,  462  ;  Megueia  Meteorite, 
Prof.  Simaschko,  472 ;  Velocity  of  the  Propagation  of 
Gravitation,  J.  Van  Hepperger,  472  ;  Vatican  Observatory, 
472  ;  Double-Star  Observations,  S.  W.  Burnham,  472  ;  Sun- 
spot  in  High  Latitudes,  G.  Dierckx,  472  ;  the  Elements  of 
Astronomy,  Prof  C.  A.Young,  485  ;  Death  and  Obituary  Notice 
of.  Prof.  C.  M.  V.  Montigny.,  479  ;  Observatory  at  Madagascar, 
497  ;  the  Great  Comet  of  1882,  522  ;  Melbourne  Star  Cata- 
logue, 522 ;  Brooks's  Comet  {a  1890),  522  ;  Discovery  of 
Asteroids,  522  ;  Solar  Activity  in  1889,  522  ;  New  Light  from 
Solar  Eclipses,  William  M.  Page,  William  E.  Plummer,  529  \ 
the  Apex  of  the  Sun's  Way,  Lewis  Boss,  548  ;  Stability  of  the 
Rings  of  Saturn,  O.  Callandreau,  548 ;  Brooks's  Comet  {a  1890), 
549  ;  Bright  Lines  in  Stellar  Spectra,  Rev.  J.  E.  Espin, 
549 ;  the  Moon  in  London,  Rev.  T.  R.  R.  Stebbing,  586  y 
the  Effect  of  Railways  on  Instruments  in  Observatories,  592  ^ 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


Vll 


Mathematical  Study  of  Solar  Corona,  Prof.  F.  H.  Bigelow, 
595  ;  Solar  Observations  at  Rome,  Prof.  Tacchini,  595  ; 
D' Arrest's  Comet,  G,  Lcveau,  596  ;  Astronomical  Society 
of  France,  596  ;  Observations  of  Sun-spots  made  at  Lyons 
Observatory  in  1889,  by  Em.   Marchand,  599 

Atacama,  on  the  Supposed  Enormous  Showers  of  Meteorites  in 
the  Desert  of,  108 

Atlantic,  Waterspout  in,  470 

Atlantic,  North,  Pilot  Chart  of,  February  1890,  401 

Atlantic  Ocean,  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North,  85 

Atlas,  Facsimile,  to  the  Early  History  of  Cartography,  by  A.  E. 
Nordenskiold,  558 

Atlas  of  Algae,  a  New,  Dr.  J.  Reinke,  127 

Atlas  of  the  World,  Library  Reference,  John  Bartholomew,  413 

Atmosphere,  General  Circulation  of.  Dr.  Pernter,  325 

Atmospheric  Circulation,  A.  Buchan,  363 

Atmospheric  Dust,  Dr.  William  Marcet,  F.R.S.,  358,  473 

Atomic  Volumes  of  Elements  Present  in  Iron  and  their  Influence 
on  its  Molecular  Structure,  the  Relation  between,  Prof.  W.  C. 
Roberts- Austen,  F.R.S.,  420 

Attention,  Psychology  of,  Th.   Ribot,  460 

Auger  (V.),  a  New  Class  of  Diacetones,  215 
Vustralia :  Australasian  Association  for  the  Advancement  of 
Science,  400 ;  Prof.  Orme  Masson,  441  ;  Decrease  of 
Kangaroos,  43  ;  Exploration  of  the  Musgrave  Ranges,  86  ; 
Sheep  Farming  in.  Prof.  Wallace,  113  ;  the  Useful  Plants  of, 
J.  H.  Maiden,  194 ;  Among  Canibals,  Carl  Lumholtz,  200  ; 
Tietkens's  Explorations  in  Central,  286  ;  Australia  Twice 
Traversed,  Ernest  Giles,  341  ;  Report  on  the  Meteorology  of 
Australia,  C.  L.  Wragge,  348  ;  A.  J.  Campbell's  Collections 
of  Bird  Skins  and  Eggs  from  Western  Australia,  593 

Austria  (H.I. H.  the  late  Prince  Rudolph  of).  Notes  on  Sport 
and  Ornithology,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  169 

Aveling  (Rev.  F.  W.),  Light  and  Heat,  558 

Avian  Anatomy,  Dr.  R.  \V.  Shufeldt  on,  594 

Ayrton  (Prof.  W.  E.,  F.R.S.),  Galvanometers,  310,  381 


/3-Inosite,  Maquenne,  215 

Babylonian  Metrical  System,  the.  Dr.  Lehmann,  167 

Bacillus  heminecrobiophilus,    Diastases  Secreted   by,    Arloing, 

143 
Backhouse  (T.  W.),  Luminous  Clouds,  297 
Bacteria:  of  Asiatic  Cholera,    Dr.     E.    Klein,   F.R.S.,    509; 

Biology  of  Anaerobic  Bacteria,    Dr.    Weyl,    359  ;  Luminous 

and  Plastic  Food  of  Phosphorescent  Bacteria,  Dr.  Beyerinck, 

552  ;  Bacteriological  Laboratory,  Poona,  469 
Bailey    (G.    H.),    Behaviour   of  more   Stable   Oxides  at  High 

Temperatures,  502 
Baker  (T.  W.),  a  Meteor,  418 
Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caernarvonshire  and  Associated  Rocks  ; 

being  the  Sedgwick  Prize  Essay  for  i888,  Alfred  Harker,  414 
Ball  (John,  F.R.S.),  Botanical  Bequest,  17 
Ball  (Sir  Robert  S.,  F.R.S.)  :  "  Time  and  Tide,  a  Romance  of 

the  Moon,"  30  ;  "  Star  Land,"  315 
Ball  (V.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.),  Tavernier's  Travels  in  India,  313 
Ballarat  School  of  Mines,  Melbourne,  593 
Balloon,  Asbestos  Hot-air,  in  India,  Successful  Use  of,  Percival 

Spencer,  325 
Ballot  (Christoforus  Henricus  Diederlcus  Buys),  Obituary  Notice 

of,  371 
Banana  Disease  in  Fiji,  Sea-water  Cure  for,  19 
Bar,  New  Method  of  Measuring  small  Elongations  of  a,  Signor 

Cardani,  427 
Barbados  Monkey,  the.  Colonel  H.  W.  Feilden,  349 
Barber  (Thos.  Walter),  the  Engineer's  Sketch  Book,  52 
Barclay  (H.  G.),  Bird-preservation  in  the  Fame  Islands,  112 
Barillot  (Ernest),  Manuel  de  1' Analyse  des  Vins,  510 
Barnard  (E.  E.)  :   Measurements  of  Double  Stars,  19;  Comet 

1888-89,   20 ;   Comet   II.    1889,    March  31,   45  ;   Comet  b 

18S9,  Comet  c  1889,  discovered  by,  428 
Barnard  (James),  the  Last  Living  Aboriginal  of  Tasmania,  43 
Barometer,  Diurnal  Range  of,  A.  Angot,  449 
Barrows  (W.  IL),  the  Food  of  Crows,  137 
Bartholomew  (John),  Library  Reference  Atlas  of  the  World,  413 
Barus  (Carl),  the  Molecular  Stability  of  Metals,  particularly  of 

Iron  and  Steel,  369 
Bashore  (H.  B.),  [.\merican]  Indian  Pipe,  303 
Basset  (A.  B.,  F.R.S.)  :  Extension  and  Flexure  of  Cylindrical 

and  Spherical  Thin  Elastic  Shells,  238 ;  on  the  Effect  of  Oil 

on  Disturbed  Water,  297 


Bassot  (M. ),  Difference  of  Longitude  between  Paris  and  Leyden 
215 

Basutoland,  Sir  Marshall  Clarke  on  Education  in,  86 

Bataillon  (E.),  the  Metamorphosis  of  Anoura,  23 

Batoum,  Curious  Marine  Phenomenon  at,  426 

Bears  and  Wolves  in  Bosnia,  325 

Bebber  (Dr.  Van) :  Loomis  on  Rainfall  of  the  Earth,  43;  De- 
pendence of  the  Force  of  Winds  upon  Surface  over  which 
they  blow,  372 

Beck  (C.  R.),  Crystalline  Substances  obtained  from  Fruits  of 
various  Species  of  Citrus,  527 

Becker  (G.  F.),  Geology  of  the  Quicksilver  Dep3sits  of  the 
Pacific  Slope,  532 

Beddard  (Frank  E.),  the  Pigment  of  the  Touraco  and  the  Tree 
Porcupine,  152 

Bedford  College,  London,  Physical  and  Chemical  Laboratorie? 
at,  160,  279 

Bee,  Wax  Organs  of,  G.  Carlet,  407 

Beetle  Settlement  in  Disused  Gasom<;ter,  T.  H.  Hall,  520 

Beevor  (C.  E.,  M.D.),  Arrangement  of  Excitable  Fibres  of 
Internal  Capsules  of  Bonnet  Monkey,  l66 

Before  and  After  Darwin,  Prof.  G.  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  524 

Behal  (A.),  a  New  Class  of  Diacetones,  215 

Bellati(Prof.  M. ),  the  Absorption  of  Hydrogen  by  Iron,  380 

Belt,  Fighting  for  the,  F.  C.  Constable,  199 

Ben  Nevis  (Observatory  Report  for  January  1890,  348 

Benda  (Dr.),  the  Coiled  Glands  in  the  Skin,  24 

Beneden  (P.  J.  Van),  Histoire  Naturelle  des  Cetaces  des  Mers 
d' Europe,  223 

Benedikt  (Dr.  K.)  and  Dr.  E.  Knecht,  Chemistry  of  the  Coal 
Tar  Colours,  8 

Bengal,  Technical  Education  in,  65 

Benham  (W.  B. ),  Earthworms  from  Pennsylvania,  560 

Bennett  (Alfred  W.) :  Fossil  Rhizocarps,  154  ;  the  Revised  Ter- 
minology in  Cryptogamic  Botany,  225 

Benzoic  Acid,  New  Form  of,  594 

Berget  (Alphonse),  Relation  between  Electric  and  Thermal 
Conductivities  of  Metals,  287 

Beringer  (C.)  and  J.  J.  Beringer,  Text-book  of  Assaying, 
Thomas  Gibb,  245 

Berlin:  Physiological  Society,  23,  95,  119,  288,  359,  407,479, 
504,  528,  599  ;  Berlin  Academy  of  Sciences,  Money  Grants, 
42;  Research  Grants,  426;  Physical  Society,  95,  167,  215, 
239,  263,  383,  407,  480,  504,  551  ;  the  Proposed  Berlin  In- 
ternational Horticultural  Exhibition,  283  ;  Berlin  Nachtigall 
Gesellschaft,  426  ;  Meteorological  Society  of,  9^,  215,  383, 
479,  504;  Berlin  Natural  Science  Museum,  Opening  of,  112 

"  Bermuda  Islands,"  the,  Angelo  Heilprin,  Dr.   H.  B.  Guppy, 

193 
Bermuda  Islands,  Proposed  Meteorological  Station  at  the,  85 
Bernoulli  on  the  St.  Petersburg  Problem,  165 
Bernthsen  (A.),  a  Text-book  of  Organic  Chemistry,  172 
Berry  (David),  Bequest  of  ;^IOO,000  to  the  University  of  St. 

Andrews  by,  41 
Berthelot   (M.)  :  Animal   Heat,    119;    the  Carbon  Graphites, 

311  ;  Formation  of  Nitrates  in  Plants,  311  ;  Berthelot  and  P. 

Petit  on  Animal  Heat  and  the  Combustion  of  Urea,  94 
Bertillon   (Jacques) :    Application  of  Photography  to  Study  of 

Physical  Peculiarities  engendered    by  different  Occupations, 

230  ;  on  the  Identification  of  Criminals  by  Measurement,  592 
Bertrand  (J.),  Calcul  des  Probabilites,  6 
Bertrand's  Refractometer,  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson,  526 
Berlrand's  Idiocyclophanous  Prism,  Prof  S.  P.  Thompson,  574 
Berwickshire,  the  Birds  of,  Geo.  Muirhead,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe, 

169 
Besson   (M.)  :    Combination   of   Ammonia  and  Phosphoretted 

Hydrogen  with  Dichloride  and  Dibromide  of  Silicon,    359  ; 

Combination     of    Gaseous    Phosphoretted    Hydrogen    with 

Boron  and  Silicium  Fluorides,  287 
Bethnal  Green  Free  Library,  Proposed  Enlargement  of,  349 
Betts  (Benjamin),  a  New  Logical  Machine,  79 
Bevan  (E.  J.):  Acetylation  of  Cellulose,  142;  the  Constituents 

of  Flax,  143 
Beyerinck  (Dr.),  Luminous  and  Plastic  Food  of  Phosphorescent 

Bacteria,  552 
Beyern,  Prehistoric  Burial  Ground  in  Caucasus  discovered  by, 

43 
Beynon  (Richard),  Effect  of  Oil  on  Disturbed  Water,  205 
Bezold  (Prof,  von),  on  the  Production  of  Clouds,  95 
Bible,  the  Religion  of  the  Semites,  Prof.  W.  Robertson  Smith, 

337 


Vlll 


INDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Bibliography  of  Astronomy,  General,  69 

Bibliotheque  Photographique,  P.  Moessard,  224 

Biddulph,  Lieut. -General  Sir  Robert,  Cyprus,  45 

Bidschof  (Dr.),  Comet  Brooks  {a  1890),  571 

Bidwell  (Shelford,  F.R.S.),  Electrification  of  Steam,  213 

Big  Game,  East  Africa  and  its.  Captain  Sir  John  C.  Willoughby, 

298 
Bigelow   (Prof.  F.  H.),  Mathematical   Study  of  Solar  Corona, 

.595 

Biology  :  Proposed  Lacustrine  Station  on  Lake  Plon,  18  ;  Prof. 
Weismann's  Essays,  Dr.  St.  George  Mivart,  F.R.  S.,  38; 
Marine  Biology,  the  Puffin  Island  Station,  304  ;  Biology  of 
Anaerobic  Bacteria,  Dr.  Weyl,  359  ;  the  Botanical  Institute 
and  Marine  Station  at  Kiel,  397 

Bionomics,  "  Like  to  Like,"  a  Fundamental  Principle  in,  Prof. 
Geo.  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  535  ;  John  T.  Gulick,  535 

Bird-pr<rservation  in  the  Fame  Islands,  H.  G.  Barclay,  112 

Birds  of  Berwickshire,  Geo.  Muirhead,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe, 
169 

Birds  :  Count  Salvadori  on  the  Birds  of  New  Guinea  and  the 
Molucca  Islands,  85 

Birds,  Dr.  R.  W.  Shufeldt  on  Avian  Anatomy,  594 

Birds  of  India,  Vol.  I.,  E.  W.  Gates,  388 

Birds  in  My  Garden,  W.  T.  Greene,   R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  169 

Birds  of  Oxfordshire,  O.  V.  Aplin,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  169 

Birds,  Sea,  the  Wanton  Destruction  of,  G.  W.  Lamplugh,  490 

Black  Sea  :  Proposed  Scientific  Investigation  of,  348  ;  the  Level 
of  the,  356 

Bladder  in  Fishes,  the,  Prof  Liebreich,  359 

Blanchard  (Prof  Raphael)  :  Discovery  of  Caroline  Pigment  in 
Alpine  Lake  Crustacean,  325  ;  a  Colouring-maiter  from 
Diaptomus  analogous  to  Carotin,  383 

Blanford (Dr.,  F.R. S.),  Presidential  Address  to  the  Geological 
Society,  455 

Blind  Species,  Cave  Fauna  of  North  America,  with  Remarks 
on  the  Anatomy  of  the  Brain  and  Origin  of  the,  A.  S. 
Packard,  507 

Blumentritt  (Dr.  F.),  Ethnology  of  Philippine  Islands,  327 

Blunfield  (R.  W.),  Alexandrian  Garden  Pest,  l8l 

Boat,  Submarine,  Periscope  for  Navigating,  349 

Bodmer  (G.  R.),  Hydraulic  Motors,  Turbines  and  Pressure 
Engines,  27 

Bogdanovitch  (M.),  in  Central  Asia,  352 

Boguski  (J.  J.),  Variations  of  Electric  Resistance  of  Nitric 
Peroxide  at  various  Temperatures,  119 

Boilers,  Marine  and  Land,  T.  W.  Traill,  486 

Boilers,  the  Evaporative  Efficiency  of,  C.  E.  Stromeyer,  516 

Boisbaudran  (Lecoq  de),  some  New  Fluorescent  Materials,  287 

Bollettino  of  Italian  Geographical  Society,  164 

Bonavia  (Dr.  E.),  the  Cultivated  Oranges  and  Lemons  of  India 
and  Ceylon,  C.  B.  Clarke,  F.R.S.,  579 

Bone  and  Dentine,  the  Longevity  of  Textural  Elements,  par- 
ticularly in,  John  Cleland,  392 

Bonn,  Earthquake  at,  470 

Bonney  (Prof  T.  G.,  F.R.S.):  Crystalline  Schists  and  their 
Relations  to  Mesozoic  Rocks  in  Lepontine  Alps,  333  ;  a  Geo- 
logical Map  of  the  Alpine  Chain,  483 

Bonsdorf  (A.  B.),  the  Secular  Upheaval  of  the  Coasts  of  Fin- 
land, 348 

Boole  (Mary),  a  New  Logical  Machine,  79 

Borelly's  Comet  ig  1889,  December  12),  211,  374,  429 

Borneo  (British  North),  Gold  Exploration  in,  182 

Bort  (Teisserenc  de).  Barometric  Gradients,  161 

Bosnia:  Earthquakes  in,  136  ;  Bears  and  Wolves  in,  325 

Boss  (Lewis),  Apex  of  the  Sun's  Way,  548 

Botany  :  On  a  New  Application  of  Photography  to  the  De- 
monstration of  Physiological  Processes  in  Plants,  Walter 
Gardiner,  16;  Foreign  Botanical  Appointments,  17,  136; 
Russian  Botanical  Appointments,  42 ;  John  Ball  Bequest, 
17;  European  Weeds  in  America,  18;  Sea-water  Cure  for 
the  Banana  Disease,  19 ;  some  Proven9al  Tree  Hybrids,  G. 
de  Saporta,  23  ;  Retarded  Germination,  31  ;  the  African 
Oil  Palm  in  Labuan,  42 ;  Street  Plants  in  Manchester,  42  ; 
Enumeratio  Specierum  Varietatumque  Generis  Dianthus,  F. 
N.  Williams,  51 ;  Morphology  and  Biology  of  Oidiian  albicans, 
Linossier  and  Roux,  72  ;  the  Flora  of  Derbyshire,  by  the  Rev. 
W.  H.  Painter,  77 ;  Pinks  of  Western  Europe,  by  F.  N. 
Williams,  78  ;  Curious  Dwarf  Japanese  Tree,  Thuja  obtusa, 
86 ;  Herr  Kny,  on  Trees  Growing  in  an  Inverted  Position, 
86  ;  How  Plants  maintain  themselves  in  the  Struggle  for 
Existence,  Prof.  Walter  Gardiner,  90  ;  the  Botanical  Gazette, 


92  ;  Journal  of  Botany,  92  ;  Nuova  Giomale  Botanico  Italiano, 
92  ;  Cool  Cultivation  of  Tropical,  &c..  Plants,  Thiselton  Dyer, 
136  ;  Botanical  Tour  through  Asia  Minor,  Prof  Bornmiiller's, 
136  ;  Tubercles  on  Roots  of  Leguminous  Plants,  Prof.  H. 
Marshall  Ward,  F.R. S.,  140;  the  Flora  of  Suffolk,  by  Dr. 
W.  M.  Hind,  149  ;  Noxious  Grass,  Lalang,  at  Singapore, 
182;  the  Useful  Plants  of  Australia,  J.  H.  Maiden,  194; 
Index  of  British  Plants,  Robert  Turnbull,  196  ;  Hand-book  of 
Practical  Botany  for  the  Botanical  Laboratory  and  Private 
Student,  E.  Strasburger,  223  ;  the  Revised  Terminology  in 
Cryptogamic  Botany,  Alfred  W.  Bennett,  225  ;  Flower- Land, 
an  Introduction  to  Botany,  Robert  Fisher,  247  ;  the  Coco  de 
Mer,  256  ;  Malayan  Plants  in  Calcutta  Herbarium,  283  ;  the 
Weather  Plant  {Abrus  precatorius),  Dr.  Francis  Oliver,  283  ; 
St.  Louis,  the  Shaw  Bequest  for  the  Endowment  of  Botanic 
Garden  at,  324  ;  the  Kew  Bulletin,  325,  426  ;  Sweet-scented 
Fern,  349  ;  Das  australische  Florenelement  in  Europa,  Dr. 
Constantin  Freiherr  von  Ettingshausen,  365  ;  Effects  of  Fog 
on  Plants  under  Glass,  372  ;  Melilotus  alba  (Bokhara  Clover) 
as  a  Weed  in  Western  States  of  America,  372  ;  Germination 
of  Castor-oil  Plant  Seed,  J.  R.  Green,  380 ;  Die  Arten  der 
Gattung  Ephedra,  von  Dr.  Otto  Stapf,  390 ;  the  Botanical 
Institute  and  Marine  Station  at  Kiel,  397  ;  Hygrometric  Club 
Moss  from  Mexico,  401  ;  Botanical  Gazette,  405  ;  Diseases  of 
Plants,  Prof  H.  Marshall  Ward,  F.R.S.,  436  ;  the  Botanical 
Laboratory  in  the  Royal  Gardens,  Peradeniya,  Ceylon,  445  ; 
Haudleiding  tot  de  Kennis  der  Flora  van  Nederlandsch  Indie, 
461  ;  Abnormal  Shoots  of  Ivy,  W.  F.  R.  Weldon,  464;  Seed- 
ing of  Sugar-Cane,  D.  Morris,  478  ;  True  Nature  of  Callus, 
Spencer  Moore,  478  ;  the  Dispersal  of  Plants,  as  Illustrated  by 
the  Flora  of  the  Keeling  Islands,  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy,  492  ; 
Salad-plants,  H.  de  Vilmorin,  494 ;  the  Native  Ebony  of  St. 
Helena,  Morris,  519  ;  Self-colonization  of  Coco-nut  Palm,  W. 
B.  Hemsley,  537  ;  Suggestion  for  Facilitating  the  Study  of 
Botany  in  India,  G.  Carstensen,  546  ;  Self-colonization  of 
Coco-nut  Palm,  Captain  W.  J.  L.  Wharton,  F.R.S.,  585; 
Organization  of  Fossil  Plants  of  Coal-measures,  Prof  William- 
son, F.R.S.,  572;  Botanical  Condition  of  German  Ocean, 
Major  Reinhold,  569  ;  a  Blue  Primrose,  569  ;  Threatened  Ex- 
tinction of  Cyclamen  in  Savoy,  569  ;  How  to  know  Grasses 
by  their  Leaves,  A.  N.  M'Alpine,  Prof.  John  Wrightson,  557 
Bottomley  (J.  T.,  F.R.S.),  Four-Figure  Mathematical  Tables, 

510 
Bouchard  (Ch.),  Mechanism   of  the  Local  Lesion  in  Infectious 

Diseases,  48 
Bourdon's    Pressure-Gauge :    Prof    A.    M.    Worthington,  296 ; 

Prof  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  517 
Bournemouth  Industrial  and  Loan  Exhibition,  Science  Exhibits 

in,  545 
Boussingault  (M.),  Proposed  Statue  to  the  late,  207,  348 
Boutzoureano  (M.),  on  a  New  Series  of  Salts  of  Selenite,  87 
Bower  (J.  A.),  Science  of  Every-day  Life,  78 
Boys  (C.  v.,  F.R.S.),  on  the  Cavendish  Experiment,  155 
Brande  (Dr. ),  Taxine,  a  New  Alkaloid  from  Yew  Leaves,  &c. , 

496 
Brandis    (Sir   D.,    F.R.S.),    a    Manual  of    Forestry,    William 

Schlich,  121 
Brassart  Brothers'  New  Seismoscopes,  137 

Brazil,  Dr.  Lund's  Exploration  of  the  Limestone  Caverns  of,  26 
Brazilian  Honours  to  French  Astronomers,  135 
Breal  (M.),  Fixation  of  Nitrogen  of  the  Leguminosse,  23 
Breathing,  Thought  and  :  R.  Barrett  Pope,  297  ;  Prof.  F.  Max 

Miiller,  317  ;  Rev.  W.  Clement  Ley,  317  ;  Mrs.  J.  C.  Murray- 

Aynsley,  441 
Brewery  and  Malt-House,  the  Microscope  in  the,   Chas.  Geo. 

Mathews  and  Francis  Edw.  Lolt,  246 
Brezina    (A.),    Die    Meteoritensammiung  des   k.k.    mineralog. 

Hofkabinetes  in  Wien,  127 
Brezina  (A.)  and  E.  Cohen,  Die  Structur  und  Zusammensetzung 

der  Meteoreisen  erlautert  durch  photographische  Abbildungen 

geatzter  Schnittflachen,  127 
Brick  Buildings,  Magnetism  in.  R.  W.  Wilson,  405 
Bridge  across  the  Bosphonis,  Proposed,  568 
Bridge,  Chenab,  Testing  of,  372 

Bridge,  Testing  of  the  New  Forth,  281  ;  Opening  of  the,  429 
Bright  Lines  in  Stellar  Spectra,  Rev.  J.  E.  Espin,  549 
Brinton  (Dr.  D.  G.)  :  Ethnologic  Affinity  of  Ancient  Etruscans, 

66  ;  Etruscans  a  Libyan    Offihoot,  448  ;  the  Cradle  of  the 

Semites,  569 
British  Association,  Second  Report  of  the  Committee  on  Teach- 
ing Chemistry,  160 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


IX 


British  Earthquakes,   Record  of,  Charles  Davison,  9  ;  William 

"White,  202 
British  Guiana,  the  Journal  Timehri,  549 
British  Journal  Photographic  Almanac,  1890,  510 
British  Museum  :   Reading  Room,    199  ;  Electric  Light  at  the, 

301  ;  Catalogue  of  the  Fossil  Reptilia  and  Amphibia  in  the, 

Richard  Lydekker,  534 
British  Plants,  Index  of,  Robert  Turnbull,  196 
Brodhun  (Dr.),  New  Contrast-Photometer,  552 
Brook  and  its  Banks,  the,  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood,  53 
Brooks  (W.)  :  Comet  a  18S9,  Comet  d  1889,  discovered  by,  428  ; 

Comet  [d  1889,  July  6)  Dr.  Knopf,  115,  211  ;  Brooks's  Comet 

(1889),  Identity  of  Comet   Vico  (1844)  with,  233  ;  Orbits  of 

the  Companions  of,  305  ;  Brooks's  Comet  (a  1890),  522,  549  ; 

Dr.  Bidschof,  571 
Brorsen's  Comet,  Return  of,  Dr.  E.  Lamp,  69 
Brown  (Arthur),  Mirages,  225 
Brown  (A.  B.),  the  Steering  of  Steam-ships,  516 
Brown  (Prof.  Crum),  a  New  Synthesis  of  Dibasic  Organic  Acids, 

431 

Brown  (H.  T.,  F.R.  S.),  Identity  of  Cerebrose  and  Galactose, 
262 

Browne  (Montagu),  the  Vertebrate  Animals  of  Leicestershire 
and  Rutland,  220 

Bruce  (E.  S.),  an  Optical  Feature  of  Lightning  Flashes,  406 

Bruguiere  (M.),  Minimum  Sun-spot  Period,  68 

Brush-Turkeys  on  the   Smaller  Islands  north  of  Celebes,  Dr. 
A.  B.  Meyer,  514 

Bryan  (G.  H.),  Stability  of  Rotating  Spheroid  of  Perfect  Liquid, 
526 

Bryce's  (Prof.  J. )  Speech  on  Presentation  of  A.  R.  Wallace  for 
Degree  of  D.C.L.  at  Oxford,  112 

Buchan  (A.),  Atmospheric  Circulation,  363 

Buchan  (Dr.),  Influenza  and  Weather,  596 

Buffalo  in  Northern  Australia,  Increase  of,  18 

Bulk  of  Ocean  Water,  Is  the,  a  Fixed  Quantity,  A.  J.  Jukes- 
Browne,  130 

Bulk  of  Ocean  Water,  Does  the.  Increase,  T.  Mellard  Reade, 
175;  Rev.  Osmond  Fisher,  197 

Bulkeley  (Owen  T. ),  the  Lesser  Antilles,  268 

Bulletin  de  1' Academic  Royal  de  Belgique,  212,  237 

Bulletin  de  la  Societe  d' Anthropologic,  332 

Bulletin  de  la  Societe  Imperiale  des  Naturalistes  de  Moscou,  92 

Bummelen  (Van),   Composition  of  Tobacco-growing    Soils   in 
Deli  and  Java,  384 

Burder  (Geo.  F.),  Self-luminous  Clouds,  198 

Burmah,  a  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant  in  the  Shan  States, 
Holt  S.  Hallett,  265 

Burmeister  (Dr.   Hermann),  on  the  Fossil  Horses  and   other 
Mammals  of  Argentina,  82 

Burnham  (S.  W.)  :  Measurementsof  Double  Stars,  19;  Double- 
Star  Observations,  472 

Burton  (C.  V.),  a  Physical  Basis  for  the  Theory  of  Errors,  47 

Burton  (F.  M. ),  Chiff-Chafif  Singing  in  September,  298 

Burton  (Prof.  W.  K.),  Electrical  Cloud  Phenomena,  10 

Buschan  (Herr),  Prehistoric  Textiles,  182 

Butter,  Cocoa-Nut,  162,  284 

Butterflies,  Maltese,  George  Eraser,  199 

Buys-Ballot  (Prof.  C.  H.  D.),  Death  of,  324 


Caballero  (Dr.  E.),  Remarkable  Meteor  at  Pontevedra,  303 

Caelum,  New  Variable  in.  Prof.  Pickering,  571 

Caernarvonshire,  Volcanic  Rocks  of,  Alfred  Harker,  414- 

Calculus  of  Probabilities,  J.  Bertrand,  6 

California,  Spread  of  the  Australian  Ladybird  in,  J.  R.  Dobbins, 
161 

Callandreau  (O.),  Stability  of  the  Rings  of  Saturn,  548 

Calorimeter,  the  Steam,  J.  Joly,  212 

Camboue  (Rev.  Paul),  Distribution  of  Animals  and  Plants  by 
Ocean  Currents,  103 

Cambrian  and  Silurian,  Sedgwick  and  Murchison,  Prof.  James 
D.  Dana,  421 

Cambridge  :  University  of,  Appointment  of  Examiners,  23 ; 
the  Mechanical  Workshops  at,  23  ;  the  John  Lucas  Walker 
Fund,  23  ;  Election  of  Fellows  at  St.  John's  College,  23  ; 
Science  and  the  Indian  Civil  Service,  25  ;  Physiology  at,  41  ; 
the  Newall  Telescope,  166  ;  Archaeological  Museum,  324  ; 
University  Natural  Science  Club  Conversazione,  371  ;  An- 
thropometry at,  560  ;  Dr.  John  Venn,  F.R.S.,  450  ;  Francis 
Galton,  F.R.S.,  454 


Campbell  (A.  J.),  Collections  of  Western  Australian  Birds>kins 

and  Eggs,  593 
Canada,  Mining  and  Mineral  Statistics  of,  87 
Canary,  Effects  of  Musical  Sounds  on  a,  593 
Cannibals,  Among,  Carl  Lumholtz,  200 

Capacity,  Specific  Inductive,  Piof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.,  30 
Capital,  Accumulations  of,  in  the  United  Kingdom  in  1875-85, 

Robert  Giffen,  2U 
Capital,  the  Growth  of,  Robert  Giffen,  553 
Carbutt  (Mrs.   E.  H.),  Five  Months'  Fine  Weather  in  Canada, 

Western  United  States,  and  Mexico,  247 
Cardani  (Signer),  New  Method  of  measuring  Small  Elongations 

of  a  Bar,  427 
Carinthia,  Earthquake  in,  284 
Carlet  (G.),  Wax  Organs  of  Bees,  407 
Carlier  (E.  W.),  Note  on  a  Probable  Nervous  AfTection  observed 

in  an  Insect,  197 
Carnelley   (Prof.)  :   the    Relation  of   Physiological    Action    to 

Atomic  Weight,    189  ;  Attempt  to  express   Periodic   Law  of 

Chemical  Elements  by  Algebraic  Formula,  304 
Carotine  Pigment  in  Alpine  Lake  Crustacean,  Discovery  of,  by 

Prof.  Raphael  Blanchard,  325,  383 
Carruthers  (G.  T.),  Locusts  in  the  Red  Sea,  153 
Carstensen  (G.),  Suggestion  for  Facilitating  Study  of  Botany  in 

India,  546 
Cartailhac  (Emile),  La  France  Prehistorique,  102 
Carter  (Brudenell),  Vision-Testing  for  Practical  Purposes,  302 
Cartography,  Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of,  A.  E. 

Nordenskiold,  558 
Cams- Wilson  (Charles  A.) :  Behaviour  of  Steel  under  Mechanical 

Stress,   213  ;  the  Rupture  of  Steel  by  Longitudinal  Stress, 

574 
Cashmere,  North- West,  Dauvergne  s  Journey  in,  165 
Cassedy  ( W.  S.),  Is  the  Copernican  System  of  Astronomy  True  ?, 

366 
Cassiopeire,  S,  Rev.  T.  E.  Espin,  115 
Catalogue  of  the  Fossil  Reptilia  and  Amphibia  in  the  British 

Museum  (Natural  History),  Richard  Lydekker,  534 
Cattle-poisoning  by  Ergotized  Lolium,  569 
Caucasus,  Prehistoric  llurial  Ground  in,  Beyern,  43 
Caucasus,  Search  and  Travel  in  the,  D.  W.  Freshfield,  351 
Caucasus,  a  Trip  through  the  Eastern,  Hon.  John  Abercromby, 

391 
Causes  of  Variation,  E,  D.    Cope  on,  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester, 

F.R.S.,  128 
Cave  Dwelling  in  New  Zealand,  Discovery  of,  H.  O.  Forbes 

209 
Cave  Fauna  of  North  America,  with  Remarks  on  the  Anatomy 

of  the  Brain  and  Origin  of  the  Blind  Species,  A.  S.  Packard, 

507 
Cavendish  Experiment,  C.  V.  Boys,  F.R.S.,  on  the,  155 
Cayley  (Prof.  A.,   F.R.S.),  Roots  of  an  Algebraic  Equation, 

335.  359 
Celebes  Photographs,  Dr.  A.  B.   Meyer,  471  ;  Brush-Turkeys 

on  the  Smaller  Islands  north  of.  Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer,  514 
Celts  in  Hampshire,  Characteristic  Survivals  of,  T.  W.  Shore, 

406 
Centauri,  Spectra  of  5  and  /*,  374 

Cetacea,  Rorqual  musculus  stranded  in  Medoc  District,  113 
Cetaces  des  Mers  d'Europe,  Histoire  Naturelle  des,  P.  J.  Van 

Beneden,  223 
Ceylon  :  Geodetical  Survey  of,  86  ;  the  Veddahs  of.  Dr.  Arthur 

Thomson,  303  ;  Asiatic  Society,  349  ;  Proposed  Archaeological 

Survey  of,  372 
Chabrie  (M.)  :  the  Chlorides  of  Selenium,  284;  Gas  obtained 

by  Heating  Silver  Fluoride  with  Chloroform  in  Sealed  Tube, 

521 

Chaffinch,  the,  E.  J.  Lowe,  F.R.S.,  394 

Challenger  Expedition  :  Report  on  the  Magnetical  Results  of  the 
Voyage  of  H. M.S.,  E.  W.  Creak,  F.R.S.,  105  ;  Zoological 
Results  of  the,  217;  Report  on  the  Scientific  Results  of  the 
Exploring  Voyage  of  H.M.S.,  361  ;  Meteorological  Report 
of  the,  443 

Chambers  (G.  F.),  Hand-book  of  Descriptive  and  Practical 
Astronomy,  49 

Chandler  (S.  C.)  :  Period  of  U  Coronae,  163 ;  Identity  of 
Brooks's  Comet  (d  1889)  with  Lexell's  Comet  (1770).   '63 

Characters,  Acquired  :  and  Congenital  Variation,  the  Duke  of 
Argyll,  F.R.S.,  173,  294;  Palaeontological  Evidence  for  the 
Transmission  of,  Henry  Fairfield  Osborn,  227  ;  Congenital 
Variation,    the   Duke  of  Argyll,  F.  R.  S.,  366  ;  Right  Rev. 


ilSiDEX 


{Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Bishop  R.  Courlenay,  367 ;  Dr.  J.  Cowper,  368  ;  Inheritance 
of,  Herbert  Spencer,  414  ;  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R. S., 
415  ;  Transmission  of.  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.S.,  486 
Charlois  (M.),  Discovery  of  Asteroids,  522 
Charts  of  the  Constellations,  Large  Scale,  Arthur  Cottam,  45 
Chatelier  (II.  Le),  Electrical  Resistance  of  Iron  Alloys  at  High 

Temperatures,  383 
Chelmsford,  Earthquake  at,  256 
Chelmsford,    Supposed  Earthquake   at,    on   January    7,    Chas. 

Davison,  369 
Chemistry:  Chemistry  of  the  Coal-tar  Colours,  Dr.  R.  Benedikt 
and  Dr.  E.  Knecht,  8  ;  Experiments  upon  Simultaneous  Pro- 
duction of  Pure  Crystals  of  Sodium  Carbonate  and  Chlorine 
Gas  from  Common  Salt,  Dr.  Hempel,  19  ;  the  Microscope  as 
Applied  to  Physiological  Chemisti-y,  Prof.  Kossel,  23  ;  Sorbite, 
Vincent   and  Delachanal  on,  23  ;    Double  Nitrites  of  Ruth- 
enium  and    Potassium,    Joly   and   Vezes,    23  ;    Agricultural 
Chemistry,    Fixation   of  Nitrogen  by  the   Leguminosse,    M. 
Breal,  23  ;  Air  in    the    Soil,    Th.    Schloesing,    fils,    23  ;  the 
Exhaustion  of  Soils  Cultivated  without  Manure,  and  the  Value 
of  Organic  Matter  in   Soil,   P.  P.   Deherain,  119  ;  the  Fer- 
mentation of  Stable  Manure,  Th.  Schloesing,  143  ;  Composi- 
tion   of    Tobacco-growing    Soils    in    Deli    and    Java,    Van 
Bummelen,   384  ;   Absorption  of  Atmospheric  Ammonia  by 
Soils,  H.  Schloesing,  479  ;  Redetermination  of  Atomic  Weight 
of    Palladium,  Dr.    E.    H.    Reiser,   44  ;    Nitrosochloride   of 
Pinol,  a  new  Isomer  of  Camphor,  44  ;  Researches  on  Digit a- 
line   and    Tanghinine,    Arnaud,    48 ;    Phenyl-thiophene,    A. 
Renard,  48 ;  the  Composition  of  the  Chemical  Elements,  A. 
M.   Stapley,   56 ;  New  Mode  of  Preparing  Manganes^e,  Dr. 
Glatzel,  67  ;  Laboratory  at  Stalybridge  Mechanics'  Institute, 
85  ;  a  Case  of  Chemical  Equilibrium,    W.    H.    Pendlebury, 
104  ;    a  New  Method  of   Preparing  Fluorine,  M.  Moissan, 
117;    Perfected    Mode   of    Preparation   of    Fluorine,    Henri 
Moissan,  138;  the  Anhydrous  Platinous  Fluoride,  H.  Moissan, 
119  ;  Introduction  to  Chemical  Science,  R,  P.  Williams  and 
B.  P.  Lascelles,  128  ;  Chemical  Society,  142,  191,  262,  335, 
468,  502,  519;  Isolation  of  Tetrahydrate  of  Sulphuric  Acid 
existing  in  Solution,  S.  U.  Pickering,  142  ;  Magnetic  Rotation 
of  Nitric  Acid,  &c..  Dr.  W.  H.  Perkin,  F.R.S.,  142  ;  Phos- 
phorus Oxyfluoride,  Method  of  making,  Thorpe  and  Hambly, 
142  ;  Acetylation  of  Cellulose,  Cross  and  Bevan,  142  ;  Action 
of  Light  on  Moist  Oxygen,   Dr.   A.   Richardson,    142  ;  o-)3- 
Dibenzoylstyrolene  and  Zinin's  Lepiden  Derivatives,  Japp  and 
Klingemann,  142  ;  Oxyamidosulphonates  and  their  Conversion 
into  Hyponitrites,   Divers  and  Haga,    143  ;  Constituents   of 
Flax,  Cross  and  Bevan,  143  ;  a  Text-book  of  Organic  Chemis- 
try,  A.   Bernthsen,    172;  Synoptical  Tables  of  Organic  and 
Inorganic  Chemistry,  Clement  J.  Leaper,  510  ;  Compounds  of 
Phenanthraquinone   with   Metallic    Salts,    Japp  and  Turner, 
191  ;  jS-Inosite,  Maquenne,  215  ;  a  New  Class  of  Diacetones, 
Belial  and  Auger, '215  ;  Examination  of  Mighei  (June  9,  1889) 
Meteorite,   Stanislas  Meunier,  232  ;    Frangulin,  Thorpe  and 
Robinson,  262;  Arabinon,  C.  O.  Sullivan,  F.R.S.,  262;  the 
Identity   of  Cerebrose   and    Galactose,    Brown   and    Morris, 
262  ;  Action  of  Chloroform  and  Alcoholic  Potash  on  Hydra- 
zines, Dr.  S.  Ruhemann,  263  ;  Refracting  Powers  of  Simple 
Salts  in  Solution,  E.  Doumer,  263  ;  the  Chlorides  of  Selenium, 
Chabrie,  284  ;  Combinations  of  Gaseous  Phosphoretted  Hydro- 
gen with   Boron  and   Silicium  Fluorides,  Besson,   287  ;    the 
Story    of    Chemistry,     Harold    Picton,     F.R.S.,    292;    the 
Chemistry  of  Photography,   R.  Meldola,   F.R.S.,    293;  At- 
tempt  to   express  Periodic  Law  of  Elements   hy  Algebraic 
Formula,   Prof.   Carnelley,  304;  the  Physical  and  Chemical 
Characteristics  of  Meteorites  as  throwing  Light  upon  their 
Past  History,  J.  Norman  Lockyer,  F.R.S.,  305  ;  the  Carbon 
Graphites,   Berthelot  and  Petit,  311;  Formation  of  Nitrates 
in  Plants,  Ber:helot,  311  ;  Refracting  Power  of  Double  Salts 
in  Solution,  E.  Doumer,  312  ;  New  Method  of  Synthesizing 
Indigo,  Dr.   Flimm,   326  ;  New  Method  of  Estimating  Oxy 
^  gen    Dissolved    in   Water,    Dr.    Thresh,    335 ;    Phosphorus 
Trifluoride,    M.    Moissan,    349  ;  Combinations   of  Ammonia 
and    Phosphuretted     Hydrogen    with    Dichloride    and     Di- 
bromide   of   Silicon,  Besson,   359  ;  Report  on  the  Scientific 
Results    of  the  Exploring    Voyage   of  H.M.S.    Challenger, 
361  ;    Two   Gaseous   Fluorides   of    Carbon,    Moissan,    373  ; 
the  Absorption  of  Hydrogen  by  Iron,  Bellati  and  Lussana, 
380 ;    New    Estimates   of  Molecular   Distance,  Dr.    Peddie, 
382 ;    a  Dictionary   of  Applied  Chemistry  by  Prof.    T.    E. 
Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  Vol.  I.,  Sir  H.  E.   Roscoe,  M.P.,   F.R.S., 
387  ;    New    Compounds    of    Ilydroxylamine   with   Metallic 


Chlorides,  Crisner,  401  ;  Diethyline  Diamine,  Dr.  J. 
Sieber,  428  ;  Analysis  of  Carcote  (Chili)  Meteorite,  Drs.  Will 
and  Pinnow,  428  ;  Prof  C'um  Brown  on  a  New  Synthesis  of 
Dibasic  Organic  Acids,  431  ;  the  Vapour-pressure  of  Acetic 
Acid  Solutions,  Raoultand  Recoura,  431  ;  Volumetric  Estima- 
tion of  Copper,  Etard  and  Lebeau,  431  ;  Crystalline  Allotropic 
Forms  of  Sulphur,  Dr.  Mutbmann,  449  ;  Nitrous  Anhydride 
and  Nitric  Peroxide,  Prof.  Ramsay,  F.R.S. ,454;  Constitu- 
tion of  Tri-derivatives  of  Naphthalene,  Armstrong  and  Wynne, 
454  ;  Estimation  of  Free  Halogens  and  Iodides  in  presence 
of  Chlorine  and  Bromine,  P.  Lebeau,  479  ;  a  New  Alkaloid 
(Taxine)  from  Leaves,  &c.,  of  Yew  Tree,  Drs.  Hilger  and 
IBrande,  496 ;  Behaviour  of  more  Stable  Oxides  at  High 
Temperatures,  Dr.  G.  H.  Bailey  and  W.  B.  Hopkins,  502 ; 
Influence  of  Different  Oxides  on  Decomposition  of  Potassium 
Chlorate,  Fowler  and  Grant,  502  ;  Ammonium  Hypochlorite, 
Cross  and  Bevan,  502  ;  the  Production  of  Ozone  by  Flames, 
J.  T,  Cundall,  502  ;  Action  of  Sulphuric  Acid  on  Aluminium, 
A.  Ditte,  503  ;  the  a  Dextro-  and  Lasvo- rotatory  Borneol 
Camphorates,  A.  Haller,  503  ;  Isolation  of  Fluoroform,  M. 
Meslans,  521  ;  Gas  obtained  by  heating  Silver  Fluoride  with 
Chloroform  in  Sealed  Tube,  M.  Chabrie,  521 ;  the  Glow  of  Phos- 
phorus, Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  523  ;  Apparatus  for  Dis- 
tilling Mercury  in  Vacuum,  Prof.  Dunstan,  526  ;  Thecry  of 
Osmotic  Pressure,  Prof.  S.  U.  Pickering,  526  ;  Crystalline  Sub- 
stances obtained  from  Fruits  of  various  Species  of  Citrus,  Prof, 
W,  A.  Tilden,  F.R.S.,  and  C.  R.  Beck,  527  ;  Studies  on  Iso- 
meric Change,  IV.  ;  Halogen  Derivatives  of  Quinone,  A.  R. 
Ling,  527  ;  Hydrazine,  Drs.  Curtius  and  Jay,  547  ;  Crystals  of 
Lime,  H.  A.  Miers,  560;  a  Nitrosop'atinichloride,  M.  Vezes, 
576  ;  Glycollic  Nitrile  and  Direct  Synthesis  of  Glycollic  Acid, 
Louis  Henry,  57^5  Nessler's  Ammonia  Test  as  a  Micro- 
Chemical  Reagent  for  Tannin,  Spencer  Moore,  585  ;  New 
Form  of  Benzoic  Acid,  594 
Chenab  Bridge,  Testing  of,  372 
Chiff-Chafif  Singing  in   September,   F.  M.  Burton,  298  ;    Rev. 

W.  Clement  Ley,  317 
Chin  Tribes,  North  Burma,  the,  G.  B.  Sacchiero,  375 
China,  Flora  of,  46 

China,  Increasing  Coldness  of  Climate  in,  570 
China,  Scientific  Education  in,  the  Question  of  Language,  162 
Chinese  Astronomical  Instruments,  Ancient,  66 
Chloroform,  the  Hyderabad  Commission,  154,  289 
Cholera,  Bacteria  of  Asiatic,  Dr.  E.  Klein,  F.R.S.,  509 
Cholera  Epidemics,  the  Suspected  Connection  between  Influenza 

and.  Dr.  Smolensk!,  282 
Chree  (C),  Effects  of  Pressure  on  Magnetization  of  Cobalt,  237 
Chrystal  (Prof.  G.),  Algebra,  an  Elementary  Text-book  for  the 
Higher  Classes  of  Secondary  Schools  and  for  Colleges,  II., 

338 
Cicadidce,  Oriental,  W.  L.  Distant  s  Monograph  on,  161 
Cingalese  Manuscripts,  Ancient,  349 
City  and  Guilds  of  London  Institute,  160 
City  of  Paris,  the  Accident  to  the  Engines  of,  592 
Civil  Service  Examinations,  the  Future  Indian,  265 
Civilization,  Early  Egyptian,  W.  M.  Flinders-Petrie,  109 
Clarke  (Sir  Marshall)  on  Education  in  Basutoland,  86 
Cleland  (John),  the  Longevity  of  Textural  Elements,  particularly 

in  Dentine  and  Bone,  392 
Gierke  (Miss  A.  M.):  Star  Distances,  81  ;  New  Double  Stars, 

132 
Climate,   Dr.   Bushrod  W.  James  on  American   Resorts,  with 

Notes  on  their,  79 
Climate  in  China,  Increasing  Coldness  of,  570 
Clorinde,  New  Minor  Planet,  88 

Cloud  Phenomena,  Electrical,  Prof  W.  K.  Burton,  10 
Clouds  :  Prof,  von  Bezold  on  the  Production  of,  95  ;  Luminous 

Night,   Evan  McLennan,    131  ;  Self-luminous  Clouds,   Geo. 

F.  Burder,  198  ;  C.  E.    Stromeyer,   225  ;  T.  W.  Backhouse, 

297 ;  Joseph   John  Murphy,    298 ;  Robert   B.   White,    369  ; 

Photographs  of  Luminous,  O.  Jesse,  592 
Clover,   Bokhara,  as  a  Weed  in  Western  States  of  America, 

372  . 

Clupea  harengus,  some  Stages  in  Development  of  Bram  of,  E. 

W.  L.  Holt,  525 
Cluster  G.C.  3636,  Variable  Star  in.  Prof.  Pickering,  183 
Cluster  G.C.   1420  and  the  Nebula  N.G.C.   2237,  Dr.  Lewis 

Swift,  285 
Coal-tar  Colours,  Chemistry  of  the.  Dr.  R.  Benedikt  and   Dr. 

E.  Knecht,  8 
Coal :  Discovery  of,  in   Kent,   400  ;  Prof.  W.  Boyd  Dawkins, 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XI 


F.R.  S.,  418  ;  Spontaneous  Combustion  of,  in  Ships,  Prof.  V. 
Lewes,  517  ;  Organization  of  Fossil  Plants  of  Coal-measures, 
Prof.  W.  C.  Williamson,  F.R.S.,  572 

Coasts  of  Finland,  the  Secular  Upheaval  of,  348 

Cobalt,  Effects  of  Pressure  on  Magnetization  of,  C.  Chree,  237  . 

Cockburn  (J.),  a  Brilliant  Meteor,  81 

Cockerell  (T.  D.  A.):  Galls,  344,  559;  a  Greenish  Meteor, 
369  ;  some  Notes  on  Dr.  A.  R.  Wallace's  "Darwinism,"  393 

Coco  de  Mer,  the,  256 

Coco-nut  Palm,  Self-fertilization  of,  W.  B.  Hemsley,  F.R.S., 
537  ;  Captain  W.  J.  L.  Wharton,  F.R.S.,  585 

Cocoa-nut  Butter,  162,  284 

Cocorda  (G.  D.),  the  South  African  Gold-fields,  164 

Code,  Technical  Education  in  the  New  Education,  505 

Coldstream  (William),  Illustrations  of  some  of  the  Grasses  of 
the  Southern  Punjab,  being  Photo-lithographs  of  some  of  the 
Principal  Grasse-;  found  at  Hissar,  533 

Coleman  (A.  P.),  Glories,  154 

Collins  (F.  Howard)  :  an  Epitome  of  the  Synthetic  Philosophy, 
340  ;  Heredity  and  the  Effects  of  Use  and  Disuse,  559 

Colomb  (Admiral),  Rule  of  the  Road  at  Sea,  515 

Coloration,  Protective,  of  Eggs,  Dr.  Alfred  R.  Wallace,  53  ; 
Rev.  Fred  F.  Grensted,  53  ;  E.  B.  Titchener,  129 

Colour-blind  Engine  Drivers,  325 

Colour-blindness  in  the  Mercantile  Marine,  494 

Colour-blindness,  the  Committee  on,  568 

Coloured  Analytical  Tables,  H.  W.  Hake,  29 

Colouring-matter,  a  New  Green  Vegetable,  C.  Michie  Smith, 
573 

Colours,  Chemistry  of  the  Coal-tar,  Dr.  R.  Benedikt  and  Dr. 
E.  Knecht,  8 

Combustion,  Spontaneous,  in  Coal  Ships,  Prof.  V.  Lewes,  517 

Comets:  Barnard's  Comet,  1888-89,  20;  Barnard's  Comet,  H. 
1889,  March  31,  45  ;  Comet  Borelly  {g  1889,  December  12), 
211;  Spectrum  of,  374;  Brooks's  {d  1889,  July  6),  Dr. 
Knopf,  115,  211  ;  Identity  of  Brooks's  Comet  \d  1889)  with 
Lexell's  (1770),  S.  C.  Chandler,  163  ;  Orbit  of  Barnard's 
Comet  (1884,  II-)»  164;  a  New  Comet,  164;  Identity  of 
Comet  Vico  (1844)  with  Brooks's  (1889),  233;  Ephemeris 
of  Brooks's  Comet  {d  1889),  403  ;  Orbits  of  the  Companions 
of<  305  ;  Comets  and  Asteroids  discovered  in  1889 — Comet  a 
1889,  W.  Brooks,  428;  Comet  b  1889,  E.  E.  Barnard,  428  ; 
Comet  c  1889,  E.  E.  Barnard,  428  ;  Comet  d  1889,  W. 
Brooks,  428  ;  Comet  ^  1889,  Davidson,  429;  Comet/ 1889, 
Lewis  Swifc,  429  ;  Comet  g  1889,  M.  Borelly,  429;  Brooks's 
Comet  [a  1890)  522,  549  ;  Dr.  Bidschof,  571  ;  Return  of 
Brorsen's  Comet,  Dr.  E.  Lamp,  69 ;  Comet  Davidson  {e 
1S89),  88  ;  D' Arrest's  Comet,  G.  Leveau,  596  ;  a  New  Comet 
(/1889,  November  17)  discovered  by  Lewis  Swift,  69;  Dr. 
Zelbr,  115,  233;  Dr.  R.  Schorr,  139;  Dr.  Lamp,  233; 
Orbit  of  Swift's  Comet  (V.  1880),  257  ;  Nuclei  of  Great 
Comet  (II.  1882),  F.  Ti>;serand,  358,  522  ;  Periodic  Comets, 
139;  the  Orbit  of  Winnecke's  Periodical  Comet,  M.  H.  Faye, 

94 
Compass  on  Board,  the,  412 
Conductivity  in  Flinis,  a  Natural   Evidence  of  High  Thermal, 

Prof.  A.  S.  Herschel,  F.R.S.,  175 
Congenital  Variation,    Acquired  Characters  and  :  the  Duke  of 

Argyll,    F.R.S.,    173,    294,    366;    W.    T.    Thisehon    Dyer, 

F.R.S.,  315;  F.    V.   Dickins,   316;  Right  Rev.    Bishop   R. 

Courtenay,  367  ;  Dr.  J.  Cowper,  368  ;  Herbert  Spencer,  414 ; 

Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.S.,  415 
Congress,  Moscow  Archaeological,  283 
Conroy  (Sir  John),  Luminous  and  Non- Luminous  Radiation  of 

Gas-Flame,  357 
Constable  (F.  C),  Fighting  for  the  Belt,  199 
Constellations,  Large  Scale  Charts  of  the,  Arthur  Cottam,  45 
Continents   and   Oceans,    the     Permanence    of,   Joseph  John 

Murphy,  175 
Cook  (Charles  S. ),  Spectrum  of  Aqueous  Vapour,  598 
Cooke  (M.  C  ),  Toilers  in  the  Sea',  409 
Cope  (Prof.    E.    D.)  :   Lamarck  versus  Weismann,  79;  on  the 

Causes  of  Variation,  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.  R.  S.,  128 
Copenhagen,  the  Lund  Museum  in  the  University  of,  26 
Copernican  System  of  Astronomy,  is  it  True?  W.  S.  Cassedy, 

366 
Copper,  the  Spectrum  of  Subchloride  of,  Prof.  A.  S.  Herschel, 

F.R.S.,  513 
Copper,  Volumetric  Estimation  of,  Etard  and  Lebeau,  431 
Coral  Reefs,  Examination  of  the  Structure  of,  Angelo  Heilprin, 

Dr.  II.  B.  Guppy,  193 


Coral  Reefs  of  the  Java  Sea  and  its  Vicinity,  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy, 

300 
Coral  Reefs  in  Recent  Seas,  Dr.  John  Murray,  167 
Corday's  (Charlotte)  Skull,  Dr.  Topinard,  500 
Cormorant,  Pallas's,  373 

Cornish  (Thos.),  the  Old  English  Black  Rat  in  Cornwall,  161 
Corona  of  January  i,  1889,  Prof.  Tacchini,  139 
Corona  of  1889,  December  22,  W.  H.  Wesley,  450 
Coronal  Light,  Photometric  Intensity  of.  Prof.  Thorpe,  139 
Corpi  (F.  M.),  the  Catastrophe  of  Kantzorik,  Armenia,  190 
Corsican  Population,  Cephalic  Index  of,  Dr.  A.  Fallot,  357 
,Cory  (Dr.  Robert),  History  and   Pathology  of  Vaccination,   E. 

M.  Crookshank,  486 
Cosson  (M.),  Death  of,  230 
Costa  Rica,    Meteorology   of,    Boletin  Trimestral  of  San  Jose 

Observatory,  427 
Cotes  (E.  C),  Locusts  in  India,  403 

Cottam  (Arthur)  Large  .'^cale  Charts  of  the  Constellations,  45 
Courtenay  (Right  Rev.   Bishop  R.),   Acquired  Characters  and 

Congenital  Variation,  367 
Cowper  (Dr.  J.),   Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Varia- 
tion, 368 
Crabs,   Foreign    Substances    attached  to :    Francis  P.   Pa=coe, 

176  ;  F.  Ernest  Weiss,  272  ;  Alfred  O.  Walker,  296  ;  Captain 

David  Wilson-Barker,   297;   Dr.   R.   von  Lendenfeld,   317; 

Prof.    W.    A.    Herdman,    344;  Walter  Garstang,  417,  490, 

538  ;  Ernest  W.  L.  Holt,  463,  515,  586 
Cradle  of  the  Aryans,  the,  Gerald  II.  Kendall,  128 
Craig  (Thoma'-),  a  Treatise  on  Linear  Differential  Equations,  508 
Craters,  Changes  in  Lunar,  Prof.  Thury,  183 
Creak  (E.  W.,  F.  R.S.),   Report  on  the  Magnetical  Results   of 

the  Voyage  of  H.M.S.  Challenger,  105 
Creation  and  Physical  Structure  of  the  Earth,  J.  T.  Harrison, 

'SI 
Criminals,  Identification  of,  by  Measurement,  Jacques  Bertillon, 

Crismer  (M.),  New  Compound  of  Hydroxylamine  with  Metallic 
Chlorides,  401 

Croft  (W.  B.),  Electrical  Figures,  132 

Croll  (Dr.  James,  F.R.S.),  Former  Glacial  Periods,  441 

Crookshank  (E.  M. ),  History  and  Pathology  of  Vaccination, 
Dr.  Robert  Cory,  486 

Cross  (C.  J.),  Acetylation  of  Cellulose,  142;  the  Constituents 
of  Flax,  193 

Crosthwaite  (R.  J.),  Wanton  Destruction  of  Forests  in  India, 
210 

Crows,  the  Food  of,  W.  B.  Barrows,  137 

Crustaceans,  Discovery  by  Prof.  Giard  of  Micro-organism  con- 
ferring Phosphorescence  on,  137 

Cryptogamic  Botany,  the  Revised  Terminology  in,  Alfred  W. 
Bennett,  225 

Crystal  Palace,  International  Exhibition  of  Mining  and  Metal- 
lurgy, 592 

Crystals  of  Lime,  H.  A.  Miers,  515 

Cundall  (J.  T. ),  Production  of  Ozone  by  Flames,  502 

Cunningham  (J.  T.),  Anchovies  on  South  Coast  of  England, 
230 

Curtius  (Dr.),  Hydrazine,  547 

Cyclamen  in  Savoy,  Threatened  Extinction  of,  569 

Cygni,  Y,  Variable  Star,  88 

Cyprus,  Lieut. -General  Sir  Robert  Biddulph,  45 


Daffodils,  Double  Varieties  of,  593 

Daily  Graphic,  the,  66 

Dalmatia,  Earthquakes  in,  136 

Dana  (Prof.  James  D.),   Sedgwick  and  Murchison,   Cambrian 

and  Silurian,  421 
Danckelmann  (Dr.  von) :  Meteorology  of  Gold  and  Slave  Coast, 

479  ;  Climate  of  German  Togoland,  545 
Danish  Expedition  to  East  Coast  of  Greenland,  the  Proposed, 

545 
Darwin  (Prof,  G.  H.,  F.R.S.),   Microseismic  Vibration  of  the 

Earth's  Crust,  248 
Darwin,  Before  and  After,  Prof.  G.  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  524 
Darwin's    and    Lamarck's    Theories    as    to    Transmission    of 

Acquired  Characters,  Prof.  E.  R.  Lankester,  F. R.S.,  486 
Darwin's  Voyage  of  a  Naturalist,  New  Edition,  495 
Darwinian  Theory,  and  Acquired   Characters  and  Congenital 
Variation,  368  ;  Herbert  Spencer,  414  ;  Prof.   E.   Ray  Lan- 
kester, F.R.S.,  415 


xn 


INDEX 


\Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Darwinian  Theory  and  Evolution,  Rev.  John  T.  Guhck,  309 
Darwinians,  Neo-,  the  Duke  of  Argyll  and  the,    W.   T.  Thisel- 

ton  Dyer,  F.R.S.,  247 
Darwinism  :  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.  S.,  9;  Prof.  Geo.  J. 

Romanes,  F.R.  S.,  59  ;  some  Notes  on  Dr,  A.  R,  Wallace's, 

by  T.  D.  A.   Cockerell,  393 ;  and  Panmixia,  Prof.   Geo.  J. 

Romanes,  F.R.S.,  437 
Daubree  (M. ),  Analogy  of  South  African  Diamantiferous  Matrix 

to  Meteorites,  263 
Dauvergne's  Journey  in  North- West  Cashmere,  165 
Davidson's  Comet  {e  1889),  429 

Davis  (John),  a  Life  of,  Clements  R.  Markham,  F.R.S.,  52 
Davison    (Chas.),    Supposed    Earthquake    at    Chelmsford    on 

January  7,  369 
Dawkins  (Prof.  W.  Boyd,   F.  R.  S.),   Discovery  of   Coal   near 

Dover,  418 
Dawson  (Sir  J.   W.,  F.R.S.):  Fossil  Rhizocarps,  10;  Certain 

Devonian  Plants  from  Scotland,  537 
Day  (Francis),  Fishes,  lOl 
Deformation  of  an  Elastic  Shell,  Prof.  Horace  Lamb,  F.R.S., 

549 
Deherain  (P.  P.),   the  Exhaustion  of  Soils  cultivated  without 

Manure,  and  Value  of  Organic  Matter  in  Soil,  119 
Delachanal,  Vincent  and.  Sorbite,  23 
Demography  and  Hygiene,  Congress  on,  401 
Denniker    (M.),    Classification    of  Races,    based   on   Physical 

Characters  only,  332 
Denning  (W.  F.),  Recent  Observations  of  Jupiter,  206 
Dentine  and  Bone,  the  Longevity  of  Textural  Elements,  parti- 
cularly in,  John  Cleland,  392 
Dentition,  a  Milk,  in  Orycteropus,  O.  Thomas,  309 
Derbyshire,  the  Flora  of,  by  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Painter,  77 
Descartes  and  his  School,  Prof.  Kuno  Fisher,  171 
Desert  of  Atacama,   on  the   Supposed    Enormous    Showers  of 

Meteorites  in  the,  108 
Deslandres  (H.) :  Fundamental  Common  Property  of  Two  Kinds 

of  Spectra,  Lines  and  Bands  ;  Distinct  Characteristics  of  each 

of  the  Classes  ;  Perfodic  Variations  to  Three  Parameters,  576 
Deslongchamps  (M.    Eugene),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of, 

207 
Deutschen  Seewarte]:  Annual  Report   of,    85  ;   Meteorological 

Observations,  231 
Dewar's  (D.)  Weather  and  Tidal  Forecasts  for  1890,  546 
Diamine  (Diethyline),  Dr.  J.  Sieber,  428 
Diamonds,  the  Formation  of,  M.  Daubree,  263 
Dianthus,  Enumeratio  Specierum  Varietatumque  Generis,  F.  N. 

Williams,  51 
Dianthus,   Notes  on  the  Pinks  of  Western  Europe,  by  F.  N. 

Williams,  78 
Dibasic  Organic  Acids,  a  New  Synthesis  of.  Prof.  Crum  Brown, 

431 
Dickins  (F.  V.),  Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation, 

316 
Dickinson  (W.  L.),  Local  Paralysis  of  Peripheral  Ganglia  and 

Connection  of  Nerve-fibres  with  them,  118 
Dierckx  (G.),  Sun-spot  in  High  Latitudes,  472 
Differential  Equations,  a  Treatise  on  Linear,  Thomas  Craig, 

508 
Differential  Equations,  a  Treatise  on  Ordinary  and  Partial,  Prof. 

W.  W.  Johnson,  270 
Digestions,  a  Comparative  Study  of  Natural  and  Artificial,  A. 

S.  Lea,  430 
Dines  (W.  H.),  Anemometers,  212 

Diseases  of  Plants,  Prof.  H.  Marshall  Ward,  F.R.S.,  436 
Diseases,   Tropical,  the   Relation   of  the   Soil   to,    A.    Ernest 

Roberts,  31 
Distant  (W.  L.),  Monograph  on  Oriental  Cicadidce,  161 
Disturbed  Water,  on  the  Effect  of  Oil  on,  A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S., 

297 
Ditte  (A.),  Action  of  Sulphuric  Acid  on  Aluminium,  503 
Divers  (Dr.  E.,  F.R. S. ),  Oxyamido-sulphonates  and  their  Con- 
version into  Hyponitrites,  143 
Dobbins  (J.  R.),  Spread  of  the  Australian  Ladybird  in  California, 

161 
Dog,  the,  M.  de  Mortillet,  332 
Dogs  and  Music,  372 
Double-star  Observations :    S.    W.   Burnham,    19,  472 ;    E.   E. 

Barnard,  19 
Double  Stars,  New,  Miss  A.  M.  Gierke,  132 
Doumer  (E. ),  Refracting  Powers  of  Simple  Salts  in  Solution, 

263 


Doumer  (E.),  Refracting  Powers  of  Double  Salts  in  Solution, 

312 
Dover,  Discovery  of  Coal  near.  Prof.  W.  Boyd  Dawkins,  F.R.S., 

418 
Dreams,  Dr.  Julius  Nelson,  546 
Du  Chaillu  (Paul  B.),  the  Viking  Age,  173 
Duchayla's  Proof,  Prof.  J.  D.  Everett,  F.R.S.,  198 
Dumont  (M.),  Natality  of  Paimpol,  332 
Dun  Echt  Observatory,  351 
Dundee  Technical  Education  Association,  113 
Dunman   (T.),   a   Glossary  of  Anatomical,    Physiological,  and 

Biological  Terms,  173 
Dunn  (J.),  a  Remarkable  Meteor,  560 

Dunstan  (Prof.),  Apparatus  for  distilling  mercury  in  vacuo,  526 
Dust,  Atmospheric,  Dr.  Marcet,  358,  473 
Dust,  the  Motion  of,  Hon.  Ralph  Abercromby,  406 
Dust  Particles,  the  Number  of,  in  the  Atmosphere  of  certain 

Places  in  Great  Britain  and  the  Continent,  with  Remarks  on 

the  Relation  between  the  Amount  of  Dust  and  Meteorological 

Phenomena,  John  Aitken,  F.R. S.,  394 
Dutch  East  Indies,  Science  in,  547 
Dutch  India,  Flora  of,  461 
Dwight  (Jonathan,  Jun.),  Birds  that  have  struck  the   Statue  of 

Liberty  in  New  York  Harbour,  181 
Dyer  (W.  T.  Thiselton,  F.R.S.)  :  the  Duke  of  Argyll  and  the 

Neo-Darwinians,  247 ;  Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital 

Variation,  315 
Dynamics,  Elementary,  of  Particles  and  Solids,  W.  M.  Hicks, 

F.R.S.,  534 


Earl  (A.  G.),  Elements  of  Laboratory  Work,  461 

Earth  and  its  Story,  edited  by  Dr.  Robert  Brown,  341 

Earth,   on  the  Creation  and  Physical  Structure  of  the,  J.  T. 

Harrison,  151 
Earth's   Crust,   Microseismic   Vibration    of   the.    Prof.    G.    H. 

Darwin,  F.R.S. ,  248 
Earth-currents  and  the  Occurrence  of  Gold,  Geo.  Sutherland, 

464 
Earth-tremors  from  Trains,  H.  H.  Turner,  344 
Earthquakes  :  Record  of  British  Earthquakes,  Charles  Davison, 
9  ;    at    St.    Louis,     18 ;    Earthquake    of  July  28,    1889,    at 
Kiushiu,   J.    Wada,    23  ;  Relation  of  certain  Magnetic  Per- 
turbations to  Earthquakes,  M.  Mascart,  23  ;  the  Earthquake 
of  Tokio,  April  18,  1889,  Prof.  Cargill  G.  Knott,  32  ;  Earth- 
quakes in  Algeria  and  Servia,  113;  in  Italy,  Dalmatia,  Bos- 
nia,  and  Herzegovina,  136,    181  ;  at  Granada,    161  ;  British 
Earthquakes,  William  White,  202  ;  Earthquakes  in  Turkes- 
tan,   230;    the  Earthquake    of  July    12  at  Lake  Issyk-kul, 
230 ;    Earthquakes   at  Chelmsford    and  in  Perthshire,   256 ; 
Chas.   Davison,   369  ;  in  Carinthia,   284  ;    at   Rome  and  in 
Portugal,  401  ;  at  Bonn  and  Malaga,  470  ;  at  Trieste,  519  ; 
in  the  United  States,  569  ;  in  the  Tyrol,  569 
Earthworms  from  Pennsylvania,  W.  B.  Benham,  560 
Easter  Island,  Archaeology  and  Ethnology  of,  Walter  Hough, 

569 
Eastman  (Prof.  J.  R.),  on  Solar  and  Stellar  Motions,  351,  392 
Eclipses:  Eclipse  Parties,  139  ;  Total  Solar,   of  1886,  Rev.  S. 

J.    Perry,   F.R.S.,  88;    H.   H.    Turner,    88;  Dr.    Schuster, 

F.R.S.,    327;  Total  Eclipse   of  December  22,   1889,    229; 

M.  A.  De  La  Baume  Pluvinel,  428  ;  Total  Eclipse  of  January  i, 

1889,  Prof.  Holden,  305 
Eder  (Dr.  J.  M.),  La  Photographic  a  la  Lumiere  du  Magnesium, 

584 

Edinburgh  International  Exhibition,  85 

Edinburgh  Royal  Society,  167,  214,  335,  358,  382,  431,  478,  575 

Edison  Phonograph,  Use  of,  in  Preserving  American  Indian 
Languages,  J.  W.  Fewkes,  560 

Education  :  Physiology  of  Education,  Mary  Putnam  Jacobi,  28  ; 
Lord  Salisbury  on  Free  Education,  84  ;  Education  in  Basuto- 
land.  Sir  Marshall  Clarke  on,  86  ;  Scientific  Education  in 
China,  the  Question  of  Language,  162  ;  the  Need  for  Vital 
Improvements  in  English  Education,  Sir  Lyon  Playfair,  180: 
Association  for  Improvement  of  Geometrical  Teaching,  207  ; 
Polytechnics  for  London,  242  ;  Necessity  of  a  School  for 
Modern  Oriental  Studies,  Prof.  Max  Midler,  255  ;  the  New 
Codes,  English  and  Scotch,  385  ;  Land  Grants  to  Educational 
Institutions  in  U.S.A.,  448;  the  Revised  Instructions  to 
Inspectors  of  Elementary  Education,  577  ;  Mathematical 
Teaching  at  Sorhonne,  Prof.  Ch.  Hermite,  597  ;  Technical 
Education  in  New  South  Wales  and  Bengal,  66  ;  Conference  at 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XUl 


Manchester  on  Technical  Education,  84  ;  Dundee  Technical 
Education  Association,  113;  the  City  Guilds  and  Technical 
Education,  Sir  H.  E.  Roscoe,  M.P.,  F.R.S.,  160 ;  on  the 
Future  of  our  Technical  Education,  Sir  Henry  E.  Roscoe, 
M.P,,  F.R.  S.,  183;  Technical  Education  in  Elementary 
Schools,  356  ;  Technical  Education  in  Central  India,  470  ;  a 
South  London  Polytechnic,  481  ;  Technical  Education  Bill, 
Sir  H,  E.    Roscoe,  493  ;  Technical  Education  in  the  Code, 

505 

Eggs,   Protective  Coloration  of,    E.    B.   Titchener,    129 ;   Dr. 
Alfred  R.  Wallace,  53  ;  Rev.  Fred,  F.  Grensted,  53 

Egypt,  Vandalism  in,  447 

Egyptian  Civilization,  Early,  W.  M.  Flinders  Petrie,  109 

Eissler  (M.),  a  Hand-book  of  Modern  Explosives,  224 

Elastic  After- Strain,  on    a    Certain  Theory  of,   Prof.  ^Horace 
Lamb,  F.R.S.,  463 

Elastic  Shell,  Deformation  of  an,  Prof.  Horace  Lamb,  F.R.S., 
549 

Elastical  Researches  of  Barre  de   Saint-Venant,  Prof.   A.   G. 
Greenhill,  F,R.S.,  458 

Electricity  :  Modern  Views  of  Electricity,  Dr.  Oliver  J.  Lodge, 
F.R.S.,  5,  80;  Electrical  Cloud  Phenomena,  Prof,  W.  K. 
Burton,  10  ;  New  Method  of  Measuring  Differences  of  Poten- 
tial of  Contact,  Prof.  Righi,  18  ;  Institution  of  Electrical 
Engineers,  21  ;  Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Andrew  Jamieson, 
30 ;  Specific  Inductive  Capacity,  Prof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge, 
F.  R.S.,  30;  Siegsfeld's  Electric  Thermometer,  43;  a 
Method  of  driving  Tuning-Forks  Electrically,  W.  G. 
Gregory,  47  ;  a  New  Electric  Radiation  Meter,  W.  G. 
Gregory,  47  ;  Electrifications  due  to  Contact  of  Gases  and 
Liquids,  J.  Enright,  47 ;  Proceedings  of  the  National 
Electric  Light  Association  at  its  Ninth  Convention,  50 ; 
Electric  Light  at  the  British  Museum,  301  ;  the  National 
Electric  Light  Association,  302  ;  Magnetism  and  Electricity, 
Arthur  W.  Poyser,  52  ;  a  Proposed  Gilbert  Club,  84  ;  the 
Edinburgh  International  Exhibition,  85  ;  Variations  of  Electric 
Resistance  of  Nitric  Peroxide  at  Various  Temperatures,  J. 
J.  Boguski,  119;  Electrical  Figures,  W.  B.  Croft,  132;  the 
Arc  Light,  Joseph  McGrath,  154  ;  Effect  of  Repeated  Heat- 
ing and  Cooling  on  Electrical  Coefficient  of  Annealed  Iron, 
Herbert  Tomlinson,  F.R.S.,  166;  Electrification  due  to 
Contact  of  Gases  with  Liquids,  Enright,  166  ;  Electrification 
of  a  Steam  Jet,  Shelford  Bidwell,  F.R.S.,  213;  Develop- 
ment of  Electricity  and  Heat  in  Dilute  Electrolytic  Solutions, 
Prof.  Planck,  215;  the  Peltier  Effect  and  Contact  E.M.F., 
Prof,  Oliver  J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.,  224;  Electric  Currents  in  Skin 
from  Mental  Excitation,  Herr  Tarchenoff,  232 ;  Electrical 
Negative  Variation  of  Heart  accompanying  Pulse,  Dr.  Aug. 
Waller,  288  ;  Electric  Splashes,  Dr.  S.  P.  Thompson,  309  ; 
on  Galvanometers,  Ayrton,  Mather,  and  Simpson,  310,  381  ; 
Electrostatic  Stress,  Sir  W.  Thomson,  F.R. S.,  358;  Easy 
Lecture  Experiment  in  Electric  Resonance,  Prof.  Oliver  J. 
Lodge,  F.R.S.,  368  ;  Determination  of  Coefficient  of  Dynamic 
and  Electromotor  Produce,  P.  Guzzi,  380 ;  Electrical  Resis- 
tance of  Iron  Alloys  at  High  Temperatures,  H.  Le  Chatelier, 
383  ;  Electrical  Resistance,  Measurement  of.  Dr.  Feussner, 
407  ;  Electrical  Oscillations  in  Rarefied  Air,  M.  James  Moser, 
431  ;  Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Prof.  Jamieson,  461  ;  Elec- 
trical Radiation  from  Conducting  Spheres,  an  Electric  Eye 
and  a  Suggestion  Regarding  Vision,  Prof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge, 
F.R.S.,  462;  Use  of  Bolometer  for  Observing  Electrical 
Radiations  of  Hertz,  Dr.  Rubens,  504 ;  Short  Lectures  to 
Electrical  Artisans,  J.  A,  Fleming,  561  ;  Absolute  Measure- 
ments in  Electricity  and  Magnetism,  Andrew  Gray,  561  ; 
Electricity  in  Modern  Life,  G.  W.  de  Tunzelmann,  561  ; 
Samples  of  Current,  Electrical  Literature,  561  ;  Shape  of 
Movable  Coils  used  in.  Electrical  Measuring  Instruments, 
T,    Mather,  574 ;  Prof.    Strieker's  New   Electrical  Lantern, 

593 
Elementary  Physics,  M.  R,  Wright,  78 
Elementary  Schools,  Technical  Education  in,  356 
Elephant  Skeleton,  Large  Indian,  66 
Ellis  (Thos.  S. ),  the  Human  Foot,  365 
Ellis  (Wm.),  Relative  Prevalence  of  North-East  and  South- West 

Winds,  586 
Emerson  (P.  H.),  Naturalistic  Photography,  366 
Encyclopsedie  der  Wissenschaften,  87 
Engine  Drivers,  Colour-blind,  325 
Engineer's  Sketch-book,  Thomas  Walter  Barber,  52 
Engineers,  Institution  of  Electrical,  21 
Engines,  Compound  Locomotives,  331 


England,  Railways  of,  W,  M.  Acworth,  434 

Enright  (J.),  Electrification  due  to  Contact  of  Gases  and  Liquids, 
47.  166 

Entomology :  the  Metamorphosis  of  Anoura,  E.  Bataillon, 
23 ;  Entomological  Society,  93,  191,  382,  503,  575  ;  Pre- 
sidential Address  by  Lord  Walsingham,  334  ;  Entomologist's 
Monthly  Magazine,  New  Series,  161  ;  Spread  of  the  Australian 
Ladybird  in  California,  J.  R.  Dobbins,  i6r  ;  Extraordinary 
Abundance  of  Agrotis  spina  in  New  South  Wales  in  October, 
A.  S.  Olliff,  161  ;  Alexandria  Garden  Pest,  R,  W,  Blunfield, 
181  ;  Temperature  Experiments  on  Lepidoptera,  F.  Merrifield, 
191  ;  the  Gizzard  in  Scolopendridse,  Victor  Willem,  237  ; 
Sugar  Losing  its  Attractions  for  Lepidoptera,  Joseph  Ander- 
son, 349  ;  Sugar-cane  Pests  at  St.  Vincent,  372  ;  Wax  Organs 
of  the  Bee,  G.  Carlet,  407 ;  Beetle-settlement  in  Disused 
Gasometers,  T.  H.  Hall,  520 ;  Introduction  into  California  of 
Australian  Natural  Enemies  of  the  Fluted  Scale  {fcerya 
purchasi),  569 

Ephedra  die  Arten  der  Gattung,  von  Dr,  Otto  Stapf,  390 

Epidemic  of  Influenza,  145 

Equation,  Roots  of  Algebraic,  Prof.  A.  Cayley,  359 

Equations,  a  Treatise  on  Linear  Differential,  Thomas  Craig,  508 

Equilibrium,  a  Case  of  Chemical,  W.  H.  Pendlebury,  104 

Ergot,  Cattle-poisoning  by,  569 

Eschenhagen  (Dr.),  Potsdam  Magnetic  Observatory,  479 

Espin  (Rev.  T,  E.)  :  S  Cassiopeise,  115;  Bright  Lines  in 
Stellar  Spectra,  549 

Estuary,  the  Mersey,  Effects  of  Training  Walls  in,  L,  F,  V^ 
Harcourt,  380 

Estuary,  the  Thames,  Captain  Tizard,  R.N.,  539 

Etheridge  (R.,  Jun.),  the  Murrumbidgee  Limestone,  67 

Ethnology  :  the  Leyden  Ethnographical  Collection,  180  ;  Ethno- 
graphy of  Venezuela,  Pre-Columbian,  Dr,  Marcano,  332  ; 
Ethnologic  Affinity  of  Ancient  Etruscans,  Dr.  Brinton,  66, 
448  ;  Sixth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology  to  the 
Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  1884-85,  J.  W. 
Powell,  99 ;  Ethnology  of  the  Philippine  Islands,  Dr.  F. 
Blumentritt,  327  ;  German  Contributions  to  Ethnology,  433  ; 
Archaeology  and  Ethnology  of  Easter  Island,  Walter  Hough, 
569  ;    Internationale  Archiv  fiir  Ethnographic,  594 

Eton,  Science  at,  Lieut, -General  Tennant,  F.R.S.,  587 

Etruscans,  Ethnologic  Affinity  of  Ancient,  66,  448 

Ettingshausen  (Dr.  Constantin  Freiherr  von).  Das  Australische 
Florenelement  in  Europa,  365 

Euclid,  the  Study  of,  80 

Everett  (Prof.  J.  D.,  F.R.S.):  Duchayla's  Proof,  198;  Traite 
d'Optique,  M.  E.  Mascart,  224 

Every-day  Life,  Science  of,  J.  A.  Bower,  78 

Evolution  and  the  Darwinian  Theory,  Rev.  JohnT,  Gulick,  309 

Evolution  of  Sex  :  M.  S.  Pembrey,  199  ;  Dr.  A.  B,  Meyer,  272  ; 
Prof.  Patrick  Geddes  and  Arthur  Thomson,  531 

Ewart  (Prof.  J.  C):  Sardines  in  Moray  Firth,  282;  Cranial 
Nerves  of  Torpedo,  477  ;  Development  of  Ciliary  Ganglion, 
501 

Exact  Thermometry  :  Herbert  Tomlinson,  F.R.S.,  198  ;  Dr. 
Sydney  Young,  271 

Exhibition  illustrating  Application  of  Photography  and  Meteoro- 
logy, Proposed,  301 

Exhibition,  Bournemouth  Industrial  and  Loan,  Science  Exhibits 

in.  545 
Exhibition  of  Mining  and  Metallurgy,  Proposed  International, 

447 
Exhibition,    Paris:    English  Men    of    Science   decorated,   17; 

French  Native  Colonists  in,  427 
Exhibition,  the  Proposed  Berlin  International  Horticultural,  283 
Explosives,  a  Hand-book  of  Modern,  M.  Eissler,  224 
Explosives,  Smokeless,  Sir  Frederick  Abel,  F.R.S.,  328,  352 
Exton  (Dr.  H.),  Geology  of  Witwatersrand  Gqld-fields,  190 
Eye,  the,  Cortical  Visual  Areas,  Prof.  Munk,  407 

Fall  of  Miner  down  a  100-Metre  Shaft  without  being  Killed,  M. 

Reumeaux,  471 
Fallot  (Dr.  A.),  Cephalic  Index  of  Corsican  Population,  357 
Fame  Islands,  Bird-Preservation  in  the,  H.  G.  Barclay,  112 
Fauna  of  British  India,  including  Ceylon  and  Burmah,  lOl 
Fauna  of  Mergui  and  its  Archipelago,  556 
Faye  (M.  H. ),  the  Orbit  of  Winnecke's  Periodical  Comet,  94 
Feilden  (Col.  H.  W.),  the  Barbados  Monkey,  349 
Fermentation,  the  Micro-organisms  of,  practically  considered, 

Alfred  Jorgensen,  Prof,  Percy  F.  Frankland,  339 


XIV 


INDEX 


[Nalure,  May  22,  1890 


Fern,  Sweet-scented,  349 

Ferrel  (William),  a  Popular  Treatise  on  the  Winds,  124 
Feussner  (Dr.),  Measurement  of  Electrical  Resistance,  407 
^Fewkes   (J.   W.),    Use  of  Edison   Phonograph  in   Preserving 

American  Indian  Languages,  560 
Fichte  (Johann  Gottlieb),  the  Popular  Works  of,  294 
Field  Experiments  on  Wheat  in  Italy,  Prof.  Giglioli,  404 
Field  laid  down  to  Permanent  Grass,  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes,  F.  R.  S., 

229 
Fievez  (Ch. ),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  400 
Fighting  for  the  Belt,  F.  C.  Constable,  199 
Fiji,  Sea- water  Cure  for  Banana  Disease  in,  19 
Finland,  the  Secular  Upheaval  of  Coasts  of,  348 
Fire-damp,   Explosions   in   Mines   in  Relation  to  Cosmic  and 

Meteorological  Conditions,  Dr.  Wagner,  504 
Fischer- Sigwart  (Ilerr),  Snake  and  Fish,  162 
Fisher  (Prof.  Kuno),  History  of  Modern  Philosophy,  Descartes 

and  his  School,  171 
Fisher  (Rev.  Osmond)  :  on  the  Physics  of  the  Sub-Oceanic  Crust, 

A.  J.  Jukes-Browne,  54  ;  Does  the   Bulk  of  Ocean  Water 

Increase,  197 
Fisher  (Robert),  Flower-Land,  an  Introduction  to  Botany,  247 
Fisheries,  Foreign,  Administration  of.  Prof.  W.   C.   Mcintosh, 

F.R.S.,  497 
Fishery  Industries  of  the  United  States,  George  Brown  Goode, 

178 
Fishes :    the  Habits  of  the    Salmon,   Major  John  P.  Traherne, 

74  ;  Dr.  Rene  du  Bois  Reymond  on  the  Striated  Muscles  of 

Tench,  95  ;  Prof.  Fritsch  on  the  Sensory  Organs  of  the  Skin 

of  Fishes,  95  ;    Fishes,    Francis  Day,    loi  ;   the  Bladder  in 

Fishes,  Prof.  Liebreich,  359 
Fitzgerald  (Captain  C.  C.  P.,  R.N.),   Leak-stopping  in  Steel 

Ships,  516 
Fitzgerald  (Prof.  Geo.  Fras.),  Multiple  Resonance  obtained  in 

Hertz's  Vibrators,  295 
Five  Months'  Fine  Weather  in  Canada,  Western  U.S.,   and 

Mexico,  Mrs.  E.  H.  Carbutt,  247 
Fleming  (J.  A.),  Short  Lectures  to  Electrical  Artisans,  561 
Fletcher  (Thos. ),  Coal  Gas  as  a  Fuel,  471 
Flimm  (Dr.),  New  Method  of  Synthesizing  Indigo,  326 
Flint  Remains  in  Kolaba  District,  W.  E.  Sinclair,  114 
Flints,  a  Natural  Evidence  of  High  Thermal  Conductibility  in. 

Prof.  A.  S.  Herschel,  F.R.S.,  175 
Flora  of  China,  46 

Flora  of  Derbyshire,  Rev.  W.  H.  Painter,  77 
Flora  of  Keeling  Islands,  W.  B.  Hemsley,  F.R.S.,  492 
Flora  of  the  Malayan  Peninsula,  Materials  for  a.  Dr.   George 

King,  F.R.S.,  437 
Flora  of  Suffolk,  Dr.  W.  M.  Hind,  149 
Flow  of  Water  in  Rivers  and  other  Channels,  a  General  Formula 

for  the  Uniform,  E.  Ganguillet  and  W.  R.  Kutter,  411 
Flower  (Prof.  W.  H.,  F.R.S.) :  Who  Discovered  the  Teeth  in 

Ornithorhynchus  ?,  30,  151  ;    Suggestions  for  the  Formation 

and  Arrangement  of  a  Museum  of  Natural  History  in  Connec- 
tion with  a  Public  School,  177 
Flower-Land,  an  Introduction  to  Botany,  Robert  Fisher,  247 
Fluorine:    a  New  Method  of  Preparing,  Henri  Moissan,  117, 

138;  Colour  and  Spectrum  of,  Henri  Moissan,  214 
Fluoroform,  Isolation  of,  M.  Meslans,  521 
Fog,  Effects  of,  on  Plants  under  Glass,  372 
Folk-Lore,  Customs  of  the  Akas,  86 
Foot,  the  Human,  Thos.  S.  Ellis,  365 
Foot-Pounds,  298;  Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  317 
Forbes  (H.  O.),  Discovery  of  Maori  Cave-dwellings,  209 
Forces  Proof  of  the  Parallelogram  of,    W.   E.  Tohnson,  \(,Xx 

Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  298 
Forecasting,  Weather,  278 
Foreign    Substances   Attached  to   Crabs  :  Francis  P.    Pascoe, 

176  ;  F.  Ernest  Weiss,  272  ;  Alfred  O.  Walker,  296  ;  Captain 

David  Wilson-Barker,   297;  Dr.   R.   von  Lendenfeld,   317; 

Prof.    W.    A.    Herdman,   344;  Walter  Garstang,  417,    490, 

538 ;  Ernest  W.  L.  Holt,  463,  515,  586 
Foreshadowing  of  the  Periodic  Law,  a  First,  P.  J.  Hartog,  186 
Forest  Surveys  of  India,  140 
Forestry  in  India,  Dr.  Schlich,  470 
Forestry  in  Singapore,  Noxious  Grass,  Lalang,  182 
Forestry,  Major-General  Michael,  348 
Forestry,  a  Manual  of,  William  Schlich,  SirD.  Brandis,  F.R.S., 

121 

Forestry,  Punjab  Forest  Administration  Report,  520 

Forests  in  India,  Wanton  Destruction  of,  R.  J.  Crosthwaite,  210 


Fort  William  Meteorological  Observatory,  518 

Forth  Bridge  :  Testing  of  the  New,  281  ;  Opening  of  the,  429 

Fossil  Plants  of  Coal- Measures,  Organization  of.  Prof.  W.  C. 
Williamson,  F.R.S.,  593 

FossilRhizocarps  :  Sir  J.  Wm.  Dawson,  F.R.S. ,  10;  Alfred 
W.  Bennett,  154 

Fowler  (A.):  Karlsruhe  Observatory,  20;  Objects  for  the 
Spectroscope,  20,  44,  68,  87,  114,  138,  163,  183,  210,  232, 
256,  285,  304,  326,  350,  374,  402,  428,  449,  472,  496,  521, 
S48,  571,  595  ;  Note  on  the  Zodiacal  Light,  402 

Fowler  (G.  J.),  Influence  of  Different  Oxides  on  Decomposition 
of  Potassium  Chlorides,  502 

France :  Travels  in,  Arthur  Young,  294 ;  La  France  Prehisto- 
rique,  Emile  Cartailhac,  102  ;  Ikazilian  Honours  to  French 
Astronomers,  135  ;  French  Meteorological  Society,  161  ; 
French  Scientific  Missions  under  the  Old  Monarchy,  Dr. 
Hamy,  427 

Frankland  (Prof.  Percy  F.),  the  Micro-Organisms  of  Fermenta- 
tion practically  considered,  Alfred  Jorgensen,  339 

Eraser  (George),  Maltese  Butterflies,  199 

Free  Education,  Lord  Salisbury  on,  84 

Freshfield  (Douglas  W.),  Search  and  Travel  in  the  Caucasus, 

351 
Fritsch  (Prof.)  :  on  the  Sensory  Organs  of  the  Skin  of  Fishes,  95  ; 

Anatomy  of  Torpedo  marmorata,  263 
Frost  (Dr.  Percival,  F.R.S.),  Eight  Rainbows  seen  at  the  same 

Time,  316 
Future  of  our  Technical  Education,  on  the.  Sir  Henry  Roscoe, 

M.P.,  F.R.S.,  183 
Future  Indian  Civil  Service  Examinations,  265 


Gairdner  (W.  T.),  the  Physician  as  Naturalist,  436 

Galls:  Prof.  G.  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  on,  80,  174,  369;  R. 
McLachlan,  F.R.S.,  131  ;  D.  Wetterhan,  131  ;  W.  Ainslie 
HoUis,  131,  272;  Dr.  St.  George  Mivart,  F.R.S.,  174;  T. 
D.  A.  Cockerel!,  344,  559 

Galton  (Francis,  F.R.S.),  Cambridge  Anthropometry,  454 

Galvanometers  :  Ayrton,  Mather,  and  Sumpner,  310,  381  ;  Re- 
flecting, Geometrical  Construction  of  Direct-reading  Scales 
for,  A.  P.  Trotter,  478 

Ganguillet  (E.)  and  W.  R.  Kutter,  a  General  Formula  for  the 
Uniform  Flow  of  Water  in  Rivers  and  other  Channels,  411 

Garden,  the  Birds  in  my,  W.  T.  Greene,  R.  Bowdler-Sharpe, 
169 

Gardiner  (Prof.  Walter) :  on  a  New  Application  of  Photography 
to  the  Demonstration  of  Physiological  Processes  in  Plants, 
16  ;  how  Plants  maintain  themselves  in  the  Struggle  for  Exist- 
ence, 90 

Gardner  (J.  Starkie),  Physics  of  the  Sub-oceanic  Crust,  103 

Garrett  (T.  A.)  and  W.  Lucas,  Wimshurst  Machine  and  Hertz's 
Vibrator,  515 

Garstang  (Walter),  Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs,  417, 

490,  538 
Gas-flame,  Luminous  and  Non-luminous  Radiation  of.  Sir  John 

Conroy,  357 
Gas  Measurement,  Improved  Apparatus  for.  Prof.  Lunge,  471 
Gauge,  Bourdon's  Pressure,  Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  517 
Gauthier-Villars   (H.),    Eder's  Photographic   a  la  Lumiere  du 

Magnesium,  translated  by,  584 
Geddes  (Prof.  Patrick)  and  Arthur  Thomson,  Evolution  of  Sex, 

531 

Geodesy  :  a  Bibliography  of,  J.  Howard  Gore,  9 ;  the  Measure- 
ment of  the  Peruvian  Arc,  E.  D.  Preston,  309;  Geodetic 
Surveys  of  India,  14") 

Geography:  Geographical  Notes,  20,45,  164,  234,  286,  327, 
351,  374,  403,  472,  571  ;  Geographical  Results  of  Stanley's 
Expedition,  20,  73,  iii  ;  the  North  Coast  of  New  Guinea, 
Admiral  von  Schleinitz,  21  ;  Reported  Massacre  of  Dr. 
Peters's  Party,  21  ;  Cyprus,  Lt. -General  Sir  Robert  Biddulph, 
45  ;  Physics  of  the  Sub-oceanic  Crust,  Rev.  Osmond  Fisher, 
A.  J.  Jukes-Browne,  53  ;  Teacher's  Manual  of  Geography, 
J.  W.  Redway,  78  ;  Exploration  of  the  Musgrave  Ranges, 
Australia,  86  ;  Death  of  Major  P.  E.  Warburton,  164  ;  Death 
of  Cardinal  Massaja,  164  ;  the  Ascent  of  Kilimanjaro,  Meyer 
and  Purtscheller,  164  ;  the  South  African  Gold-fields,  G.  D. 
Cocorda,  164  ;  Arrival  of  Captain  Trivier  at  Mozambique, 
165  ;  M.  Thoroddsen's  Explorations  in  Iceland,  165  ;  Dau- 
vergne's  Journey  in  N.  W.  Cashmere,  165  ;  Geography  in 
Russia,  Baron  Kaulbars,  208  ;  Colonel  Roborovski's  Expedi- 
tion in  Central  Asia,  234 ;  Prof.  Kuekenlhal's  Researches  in 


Nature,  May  22,  1890} 


INDEX 


XV 


King  Charles  Land,  234  ;  a  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant 
in  the  Shan  States,  Holt  S.  Hallett,  265  ;  the  Lesser  Antilles, 
by  Owen  T.  Bulkeley,  268  ;  Tietkens's  Explorations  in  Central 
Australia,  286  ;  Tavernier's  Travels  in  India,  translated  by 
V.  Ball,  F.R.S.,  313  ;  Area  of  Austro-Hungarian  Empire, 
Dr.  Penck,  325  ;  Discovery  of  Pass  from  Nia  to  Tibet  by 
Colonel  Pevtsoff  and  M.  Roborovsky,  327 ;  Search  and 
Travel  in  the  Caucacus,  Douglas  W.  Freshfield,  351  ;  the 
Russian  Expeditions  in  Central  Asia,  352  ;  Dr.  Nansen's 
Plan  for  a  North  Polar  Expedition,  374  ;  SirWm.  McGregor's 
Explorations  in  New  Guinea,  374 ;  a  Trip  through  the 
Eastern  Caucasus,  by  the  Hon.  John  Abercromby,  391  ; 
Further  Explorations  of  Solomon  Islands,  C.  M.  Woodford, 
403 ;  proposed  Danish  Exploration  of  Greenland,  403  ; 
Geographical  Society  of  Vienna,  403  ;  Bartholomew's  Library 
Reference  Atlas  of  the  World,  413  ;  Hues's  Treatise  on  the 
Globes  (1592),  459  ;  Limits  of  Ever- frozen  Soil  in  Siberia, 
Yatchevsky,  472  ;  Diminution  in  Population  of  Iceland,  473  ; 
Climate  of  German  Togoland,  Dr.  von  Danckelmann,  545  ; 
Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of  Cartography,   by  A. 

E.  Nordenskiold,  558 ;  Dr.  Hans  Meyer's  Ascent  of  Kilima- 
Njaro,  572  ;  Modigliani's  Exploration  of  Nias  Island,  Prof. 
Giglioli,  587  ;  a  Naturalist  among  the  Head-hunters,  C.  M. 
Woodford,  582 

Geology  :  Indian  Geological  Survey,  Death  of  E.  J.  Jones,  41  ; 
Geological  Survey  of  India,  140 ;  Formation  of  the  Earth's 
Crust,  Le  Conte,  46  ;  Chemical  and  Physical  Studies  in  the 
Metamorphism  of  Rocks,  Rev.  A.  Irving,  49  ;  the  Murrum- 
bidgee  Limestone,  R.  Etheridge,  Jun.,  67  ;  an  Elementary 
Text-book  of,  by  W.  Jerome  Harrison,  Prof,  A.   H.  Green, 

F.  R.  S.,  75  ;  Dr.  Hermann  Burmeister  on  the  Fossil  Horses 
and  other  Mammals  of  Argentina,  82  ;  Geological  Society, 
94,  190,  238,  310,  333,  382,  502,  527,  550;  Medals  awarded 
by  the  Geological  Society,  301  ;  Presidential  Address  at  the 
Geological  Society,  Dr.  Blanford,  F.R.S.,  455  ;  Physics  of 
the  Sub-oceanic  Crust,  J.  Starkie  Gardner,  103 ;  Geological 
Excursion  to  the  Active  and  Extinct  Volcanoes  of  Southern 
Italy,  133  ;  Dr.  W.  Hind  on  the  Geology  of  Suffolk,  149  ;  on 
the  Creation  and  Physical  Structure  of  the  Earth,  by  J.  T. 
Harrison,  151  ;  Glaciation  of  Valleys  in  Kashmir  Himalayas, 
Captain  Stiffe,  190  ;  Geology  of  Witwatersrand  Gold-fields, 
Dr.  II.  Exton,  190  ;  the  South  American  Pampas  Formation, 
Herr  Roth,  231  ;  Occurrence  of  Girvanella  Genus,  and  on 
Oolitic  Structure,  E.  Wethered,  238  ;  Relation  of  Pebbly 
Sands  of  Suffolk  to  those  of  Norfolk,  Parts  II.  and  HI.,  Prof. 
Joseph  Prestwich,  F.R.  S.,  238,  502  ;  H.  S.  Williams  on  the 
Devonian  System,  309  ;  some  British  Jurassic  Fish  Remains, 
A.  S.  Woodward,  310  ;  the  Pebidian  Volcanic  Series  of  St. 
David,  Prof.  C.  L.  Morgan,  311;  Terraced  Hill  Slopes  of 
the  Midlands,  E.  A.  Walford,  325  ;  Crystalline  Schists  and 
their  Relations  to  Mesozoic  Rocks  in  Lepontine  Alps,  Prof. 
T,  G.  Bonney,  F.R.S.,  333;  Geological  Mechanism,  by  J. 
Spottiswoode  Wilson,  390  ;  Sedgwick  and  Murchison,  Cam- 
brian and  Silurian,  Prof.  James  D.  Dana,  421  ;  Former  Glacial 
Periods,  Dr.  James  Croll,  F. R. S-,  441  ;  Mica  in  Mourne 
Mountain  Granite  Geodes,  Prof.  SoUas,  F.  R.  S.,  469;  Geo- 
logische  Uebersichtskarte  der  Alpen,  Dr.  Franz  Noe's,  Prof. 
T.  G.  Bonney,  F.  R.  S.,  483  ;  a  Geological  Map  of  the  Alpine 
Chain,  Prof.  T.  G.  Bonney,  F.  R.S.,  483  ;  a  Deep  Channel  of 
Drift  in  the  Valley  of  the  Cam,  Essex,  W.  Whitaker,  527  ; 
Geology  of  the  Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the  Pacific  Slope,  G. 
F.  Becker,  532  ;  certain  Devonian  Plants  from  Scotland,  Sir 
J.  W.  Dawson,  F.  R.  S.,  537;  Composite  Spherulites  in  Ob- 
sidian from  Hot  Springs  near  Little  Lake,  California,  Frank 
Rutley,  551  ;  Magnetic  Surveys  of  Special  Districts  in  the 
British  Isles,  Profs.  A.  W.  Rucker,  F.R.S.,  and  T.  E.  Thorpe, 
F.R.S.,  598 

Geometry  :  How  not  to  Teach  Geometry,  Herbert  J.  Woodall, 
60  ;  Geometrical  Teaching,  80  ;  Association  for  the  Improve- 
ment of  Geometrical  Teaching,  207;  Oxford  "Pass"  Geo- 
metry, 467 

Geophilus  maritimns,  Edward  Parfitt,  153 

German  Chemical  Society^  468 

German  Contributions  to  Ethnology,  433 

Germany,  Zoogeography,  Wolves,  &c.,  in.  Dr.  Lampert,  182 

Germination,  Retarded,  31 

Gernez  (D.),  Malic  Acid  and  its  Compounds,  94 

Giard  (Prof.),  Discovery  of  Micro-organism  conferring  Phos- 
phorescence oh  Crustaceans,  137 

Gibb  (Thomas),  Text-book  of  Assaying,  C.  Beringer  and  J.  J. 
Beringer,  245 


Giffen  (Robert)  :  Accumulations  of  Capital  in  the  United  King- 
dom in  1875-85,  211  ;  the  Growth  of  Capital,  553 

Giglioli  (Prof.)  :  Field  Experiments  on  Wheat  in  Italy,  404; 
Modigliani's  Exploration  of  Nias  Island,  587 

Gilbert  Club,  Proposed,  84,  112 

Giles  (Ernest),  Australia  Twice  Traversed,  341 

Gill  (Dr.),  Minor  Planet  (12),  Victoria,  139 

•Girard  (Jules),  Recherches  sur  les  Tremblements  de  Terre,  583 

Glacial  Periods,  Former,  Dr.  James  Croll,  F.R.S.,  441 

Glaciation  of  Valleys  in  the  Kashmir  Himalayas,  Captain  Stifle, 
190 

Glaisher  (J.  W.  L.,  F.R.S.),  the  Method  of  Quarter  Squares,  9 

Glatzel  (Dr.),  New  Mode  of  Preparing  Manganese,  67 

Glimpses  of  Animal  Life,  W.  Jones,  409 

Globes,  Hues's  Treatise  on  the  (1592),  459 

Globular  and  other  Forms  of  Lightning,  Reuben  Phillips,  58 

Glories,  A.  P.  Coleman,  154 

Glossary  of  Anatomical,  Physiological,  and  Biological  Terms, 
T.  Dunman,  173 

Glow  of  Phosphorus,  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  523 

Gold,  Earth-currents  and  the  Occurrence  of,  Geo.  Sutherland, 
464 

Gold  Exploration  in  British  North  Borneo,  182 

Gold  in  Suspension,  Fungoid  Growths  in,  96 

Goldscheider(Dr.),  Sensitiveness  of  Articular  Surfaces  of  Joints, 
528 

Goode  (George  Brown),  Fishery  Industries  of  the  United  States, 
178 

Gore  (J.  E. ),  Scenery  of  the  Heavens,  391 

Gottingen  Royal  Society  of  Sciences,  600 

Graham  (Robert  H.),  Newton  in  Perspective,  439 

Granada,  Earthquake  at,  161 

Grant  (J.),  Influence  of  Different  Oxides  on  Decomposition  of 
Potassium  Chlorides,  502 

Grass,  a  Field  laid  down  to  Permanent,  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes, 
F.R.S.,  229 

Grasses,  How  to  Know,  by  their  Leaves,  A.  N.  M' Alpine,  Prof. 
John  Wrightson,  557 

Grasses  of  the  Southern  Punjab,  Illustrations  of  some  of  the, 
being  Photo-lithographs  of  some  of  the  Principal  Grasses 
found  at  Hissar,  William  Coldstream,  533 

Gravitation:  the  Constant  of,  C.  V.  Boys,  F.R.S.,  155  ;  Re- 
sonance Method  of  measuring  Constant  of,  J.  Joly,  256 

Gravitation,  Velocity  of  the  Propagation  of,  J.  Van  Hepperger, 

472 

Gray  (Andrew),  Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity  and  Mag- 
netism, 561 

Gray  (Dr.  Asa),  Scientific  Papers  of,  W.  Botting  Hemsley, 
F.R.S.,  221 

Greatheed  (W.),  Influenza,  270 

Greely  (General),  Bibliography  of  Meteorology,  303 

Green  Vegetable  Colouring- matter,  a  New,  C.  Michie  Smith, 

573 
Green  (Prof.  A.  H.,  F.R.S.)  :  an   Elementary   Text-book  of 

Geology,  W.  Jerome  Harrison,  75 
Green  (J.  R.),  Germination  of  Castor-oil  Plant  Seed,  380 
Greene  (W.  T.),  the  Birds  in  my  Garden,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe, 

169 
Greenhill  (Prof.  A.  G.,  F.R.S.):  the  Parallelogram  of  Forces, 

298  ;  Foot-pounds,  317  ;  the  Life  and  Work  of  G.  A.  Him, 

323 ;    the  Elastical    Researches  of  Barre    de  Saint-Venant, 

458  ;  Bourdon's  Pressure  Gauge,  517 
Greenish  Meteor,  a,  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell,  369 
Greenland,  is  it  our  Arctic  Ice  Cap?,  S.  E.  Peal,  58 
Greenland,  the  Proposed  Danish  Expedition  to  the  East  Coast 

of,  403,545 
Greenwich   Observatory,  305  ;  Meteorological  Observations  for 

1887  at,  570 
Gregory  (W.  G.)  :    a  New    Electric  Radiation  Meter,  47;   a 

Method  of  Driving  Tuning-forks  Electrically,  47 
Grensted  (Rev,  Fred.  F.),  Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs,  53 
Griffiths  (Dr.  A.  B.),  Manures  and  their  Uses,  222,  272 
Grombchevsky  (Colonel),  in  Central  Asia,  352 
Ground-movements,  Periodic,  Plantamour,  373 
Groves  (Chas.  E.,  F.R.S.),  Systems  of  "Russian   Translitera- 
tion," 534 
Growth  of  Capital,  Robert  Giffen,  553 
Guillaume  (Ch.  Ed.),  Traite  pratique  de  la  Thermometrie  de 

precision.  Dr.  Edmund  J.  Mills,  F.R.S.,   100 
Guillemard  (Dr.  F.   H.   H.),  a  Naturalist  in   North  Celebes. 

Sydney  Hickson,  457 


XVI 


INDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Gulia  (Dr.),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  302 

Gulick  (Rev.  John  T.) :  Evolution  and  the  Darwinian  Theory, 
309  ;  "  Like  to  Like,"  a  Fundamental  Principle  in  Bionomics, 
536 

Gull  (Sir  William),  Death  of,  324 

Guppy  (Dr.  H.  B.)  :  a  Contribution  to  the  Physical  History 
and  Zoology  of  the  Somers  Archipelago,  with  an  Examination 
of  the  Structure  of  Coral  Reefs,  Angelo  Heilprin,  193  ;  Coral 
Reefs  of  the  Java  Sea  and  its  Vicinity,  300  ;  the  Dispersal 
of  Plants,  as  Illustrated  by  the  Flora  of  the  Keeling  Islands, 
492 

Gurney  (Henry  Palin),  Science  and  the  India  Civil  Service 
Examinations,  53 

Guzzi  (P. ),  Determination  of  Coefficient  of  Dynamic  and  Elec- 
tromotor Produce,  380 


Haga  (T.),    Oxyamidosulphonates   and    their  Conversion   into 

Hyponitrites,  143 
Hagen  (Dr.  B.),  the  Malay  Peoples,  21 
Hagen    (Rev.    John    G.),    Observations    of    some    Suspected 

Variables,  233 
Hailstones  :  Remarkable,  at  Philadelphia,  Prof.  E.  J,  Houston, 

43;  Remarkable,  G.  J.  Symons,  F.R.S.,  134 
Hailstorms  in  Northern  India,  S.  A.  Hill,  236 
Hake  (H.  W.),  Coloured  Analytical  Tables,  29 
Hall  (Asaph),  Mass  of  Saturn,  429 

Hall  (Maxwell),  on  the  Spectrum  of  the  Zodiacal  Light,  351,  402 
Hall  (T.  H.),  Beetle  Settlement  in  Disused  Gasometers,  520 
Haller  (A. ),  the  o  Dextro-  and  Lsevo-rotatory  Borneol  Camphor- 

ates,  503 
Hallett  (Holt  S.),   a  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant  in  the 

Shan  States,  265 
Halos,  Solar,  and  Parhelia,  J.  Lovell,  560 
Hamburg  :  Interesting   Remains  Discovered  in,   21  ;  Ground- 
water Variations  and  the  Typhus  Epidemic,  570 
Hampshire,  Characteristic  Survivals  of  Celts  in,  T,  W.  Shore, 

406 
Hamy  (Dr.),  French  Scientific  Missions  under  Old  Monarchy,  427 
Handtmann    (Pastor),    Inheritance  of  Acquired  Mental  Pecu- 
liarity, 209 
Harcourt(L.  F.  V.),  Effects  of  Training  Walls  in  Mersey  Estuary, 

380 
Hardening  and   Tempering  of  Steel,    Prof.    W.    C.    Roberts- 
Austen,  F.R.S.,  on  the,  il,  32 
Harding  (Chas.) :   Weather  in  January,   425;  on  the  Cold  in 

March  1890,  598 
Harker  (Alfred),  the  Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caernarvonshire 
and  Associated  Rocks,  being  the  Sedgwick  Prize  Essay  for 
1888,  414 
Harris  (P.  A.),  Brilliant  Meteors,  105 
Harris  (Walter  B.),  the  Land  of  an  African  Sultan,  270 
Harrison  (J.  T,),  on  the  Creation  and  Physical  Structure  of  the 

Earth,  151 
Harrison  (W.  Jerome),  an  Elementary  Text-book  of  Geology, 

Prof  A.  H.  Green,  F.R.S.,  75 
Hartog  (Prof.  Marcus  M. ),  Achlya,  298 

Hartog  (P.  J.),  a  First  Foreshadowing  of  the  Periodic  Law,  186 
Harvard  College,  the  Astronomical  Observatory  of,  446 
Harvey  (Augustus),  Influenza,  270 
Hauck  (Dr.  F.),  Death  of,  256 

Hawes  (F.  B.),   Carbon  Deposit    in  Blake  Telephone  Trans- 
mitter, 477 
Haycraft  (Dr.  J.  B.),  Voluntary  Muscular  Contraction,  495 
Haze,  the  Causes  and  Character  of,  Hon.  F,  A.  R.  Russell,  60 
Hazen  (Prof  H.  A.),  Use  of  "  Sling"  Thermometer  in  Predic- 
tion of  Frosts,  501 
Head-hunters,  a  Naturalist  among  the,  C.  W.  Woodford,  582 
Health,  Hygiene  or  Public,  Louis  C.  Parkes,  290 
Heat,  Animal,  M.  Berthelot,  119 
Heat  and  Light,  Rev.  F.  W.  Aveling,  558 
Heavens,  Scenery  of  the,  J.  E.  Gore,  391 
Hebert  (M.),  Funeral  of,  545 

Heilprin  (Angelo),  a  Contribution  to  the  Physical  History  and 
Zoology  of  the  Somers  Archipelago,  with  an  Examination  of 
the  Structure  of  the  Coral  Reefs,  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy,  193 
Helmholtz  (Prof. ),  on  the  Production  of  Waves,  95 
Helsingfors  University,  400 

Hempel  (Dr. ),  Experiments  upon  Simultaneous  Production  of 
Pure  Crystals  of  Sodium  Carbonate  and  Chlorine  from  Common 
Salt   16 


Hemsley(W.  Botting,   F.R.S.)  :   Scientific  Papers  of  Dr.  Asa 

Gray,  221  ;  Flora  of  Keeling  Islands,  492  ;  Self-Colonization 

of  Coco-Nut  Palm,  537 
Henry  (Louis),  Glycollic  Nitrile  and  direct  Synthesis  of  Glycollic 

Acid,  576 
Henry  (Paul  and  Prosper),  Suppression  of  Halos  in  Photographic 

Plates,  576 
Hepperger  (J.  Van),  Velocity  of  the  Propagation  of  Gravitation, 

472  ^    ^ 

Herdman    (Prof    W.     A.)  :    Les    Animaux   et   les   Vegetaux 

Lumineux,   Henri  Gadeau  de  Kerville,    293  ;  Foreign  Sub- 
stances attached  to  Crabs,  344 
Heredity  and  Effects  of  Use  and  Disuse,  F.  H.  Collins,  559 
Heredity,  Theory  of.  Prof  A.  Weismann,  317,  373,  439 
Hermite  (Prof  Ch.),  Mathematical  Teaching  at  Sorbonne,  597 
Herring,  the  Zuyder  Zee,  Dr.  Hoek,  216 
Herschel  (Prof  A.  S.,  F.R.S.)  :  a  Natural  Evidence  of  High 

Thermal  Conductivity  in  Flints,  175  ;  the  Spectrum  of  Sub- 
chloride  of  Copper,  513 
Hertz's  Vibrator,  Wimshurst  Machine  and,  T.  A.  Garrett  and 

W.  Lucas,  515 
Hertz's  Vibrators,  Multiple  Resonance  obtained  in.  Prof   Geo. 

Eras.  Fitzgerald,  295  ;  Fred  T.  Trouton,  295 
Herzegovina,  Earthquakes  in,  136 
Hess  (Carl),  the  Eye  of  the  Mole,  373 
Heymans  (Dr.),  MyeUn,  528 
Hicks  (W.  M.,  F.R.S.),  Elementary  Dynamics  of  Particles  and 

Solids,  534 
Hickson  (Sydney  J.),  a  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes,  Dr.  F.  H. 

H.  Guillemard,  457 
High  Latitudes,  Sun-spot  in,  G.  Dierckx,  472 
Hilger  (Dr.),  Taxine,   a  New  Alkaloid  from  Yew  Leaves,  &c., 

496 
Hill  (J.  Rutherford),  the  Meteorite  of  Mighe'i,  298 
Hill  (S.  A.),  Hailstorms  in  Northern  India,  236 
Himalayas,  Glaciation  of  Valleys  in  Kashmir,   Captain  Stiffe, 

190 
Hind  (Dr.  W.  M.,),  the  Flora  of  Suffolk,  149 
Hind  (Dr.  Wheelton),  on  the  Geology  of  Suffolk,  149 
Hiorns  (Arthur  H.),  Iron  and  Steel  Manufacture,  159 
Hirn  (Gustave  Adolphe)  :  Death  of,  281  ;  the  Life  and  Work 

of.  Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  323 
Hissar,  Illustrations  of  some   of  the  Grasses  of  the  Southern 

Punjab,  being  Photographs  of  some  of  the  Principal  Grasses 

found  at,  William  Coldstream,  533 
History  of  Modern  Philosophy,  Descartes  and  his  School,  Prof 

Kuno  Fisher,  171 
Holden  (Prof),  Total  Eclipse  of  January  i,  1889,  305 
Hollis  (W.  Ainslie),  Galls,  131,  274 
Holmgren  (Prof),  Cause  of  Change  of  Skin-colour  in  Arctic 

Voyagers,  546 
Holt  (Ernest  W.  L.)  :  Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs, 

463,    5i5>   586;    some  Stages  in  Development  of  Brain  of 

Clupea  harengus,  525 
Hopkins  (George  M.),  Experimental  Science,  102 
Hopkins  (W.  B.),  Behaviour  of  more  Stable  Oxides  at  High 

Temperatures,  502 
Hopkinson  (Dr.  J.,  F.R.S,):  Magnetism,   249,   273;  Physical 

Properties  of  Nickel  Steel,  332 
Horny  Sponges,  Robert  von  Lendenfeld,  146 
Horses,  Fossil,  of  Argentina,  Dr.  Hermann  Burmeister,  82 
Horsley  (Victor,  F.R.S.),  Arrangement  of  Excitable  Fibres  of 

Internal  Capsules  of  Bonnet  Monkey,  166 
Horticultural  Exhibition,  the  Proposed  Berlin  International,  283 
Horticulture,  the  Cultivated  Oranges  and  Lemons  of  India  and 

Ceylon,  Dr.  E.  Bonavia,  C.  B.  Clarke,  F.R.S.,  579 
Hough  (Walter),  Archaeology  and  Ethnology  of  Easter  Island, 

569 
Houssay  (F.),  Les  Industries  des  Animaux,  409 
Houston  (Prof  E.  J.),  Remarkable  Hailstones  at  Philadelphia,  43 
Houzeau  (J.  C.)  :  Biographical  Note  on,  A.  Lancaster,  20,  69  ; 

Vade  Mecum,  69 
Hudson  (Dr.  C.  T.,  F.R.S.),  on  some  Needless  Difficulties  in 

the  Study  of  Natural  History,  375 
Hudson  ( W.  H. ),  Argentine  Ornithology,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  7 
Hues's  (Robert),  Treatise  on  the  Globes  (1592),  459 
Hughes  (Mrs.  Watts),  Voice  Figures,  42 
Hulme  (F.  Edward),  Wayside  Sketches,  270 
Human   Anatomy,    a  Text-book   of,    Prof.    Alex.     Macalister, 

F.R.S.,  269 
Human  Foot,  the,  Thos.  S.  Ellis,  365 


Nature^  May  22,  18 90 J 


INDEX 


XVI 1 


Hume  (Allan  O.),  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  Vol,  I., 

388 
Humphry  (Geo.  M.,  M.D.,  F.R.S.),  Old  Age,  484 
Hyderabad  Chloroform  Commission,  154,  289 
Hydra,  New  Variable  Star  in,  88 
Hydraulic  Motors,  Turbines  and  Pressure  Engines,  G.  R.  Bod- 

mer,  27 
Hydrazine,  Drs.  Curtius  and  Jay,  547 
Hydrobromic  Acid,  the  Preparation  of,  A.  Recoura,  599 
Hydrophobia,  the  New  Muzzling  Regulation,  241 
Hydrostatics,  Stability  of  Rotating  Spheroid  of  Perfect  Liquid, 

E.  H.  Bryan,  526 
Hydroxylamine  with  Metallic  Chlorides,  New  Compounds  of, 

Crismer,  401 
Hygiene  and  Demography,  Congress  on,  401 
Hygiene  of  French  Native  Colonists  in  Paris,  427 
Hygiene  or  Public  Health,  Louis  C.  Parkes,  290 
Hypnotic  Subjects  and  the  Eye,  94 
Hypothesis,  Nebular,  Herbert  Spencer,  450 


lapetus,  Observations  of  the  Magnitude  of,  403 

Ice  Forms,  Peculiar,  Prof.  J.  G.  MacGregor,  463 

Iceland  :  Diminution  in  Population  of,  473  ;  M.  Thoroddsen's 

Explorations  in,  165 
Ichthyology  :  the  Spiracle  Gill  of  Selachians,  Dr.  Virchow,  119  ; 
the  Zuyder  Zee  Herring,  Dr.  Hoek,  216  ;  Anchovies  on  South 
Coast  of  England,  J,  T.  Cunningham,  230 ;  Drumming  Fish 
{Balisies  aculeatus),    263  ;    Anatomy  of  Torpedo  marmorata, 
Prof.    Fritsch,   264;  Sardines  in  Moray  Firth,  Prof,  Ewart, 
282  ;  the    Bladder  in  Fishes,  Prof.    Liebreich,  359 ;  Cranial 
Nerves  of  Torpedo,  Dr.  J.  C.  Ewart,  477  ;  Marine  Fisheries 
Society  of  Great  Grimsby,  520 ;  some  Stages  in  Development 
of  Brain  of  Clupea  harengus,  E,  W.  L.  Holt,  525 
Identity  of  Comet  Vice  (1844)  with  Brooks's  (1889),  233 
Idylls  of  the  Field,  Francis  A,  Knight,  79 
Im  Hochgebirge,  Wanderungen  von  Dr,  Emil  Zsigmondy,  291 
Images,  Visualized,  Produced  by  Music,  Geo.  E.  Newton,  41 7 
Index  of  British  Plants,  Robert  TurnbuU,  196 
Index    Generum    Avium,    F.     H.    Waterhouse,    R.    Bowdler 

Sharpe,  169 
Index  :  a  Suggested  Subject-index  to  the  Royal  Society's  Cata- 
logue of  Scientific  Papers,  342,  391 
Index  of  the  Papers  of  the  London  Mathematical  Society,  594 
India  :  Science  and  the  Indian  Civil  Service  Examinations,  25, 
265  ;  Henry  Palin  Gurney,  53  ;  Indian  Geological  Survey, 
Death  of  Mr.  E.  J.  Jones,  41  ;  Recent  Indian  Surveys,  139, 
230  ;  Fauna  of  British  India,  including  Ceylon  and  Burma,  loi  ; 
Wanton  Destruction  of  Forests  in  India,  R.  J.  Crosthwaite, 
210;  Dr.  Schlich,  470;  Northern,  Hailstorms  in  India,  S.  A. 
Hill,  236  ;  Olive  Cultivation  in  India,  303  ;  Travels  in  India, 
Jean  Baptiste  Tavernier,  313  ;  the  Birds  of  India,  E.  W. 
Oates,  388 ;  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  Allan 
O,  Hume,  388  ;  Locusts  in  India,  E.  C.  Cotes,  403,  491  ; 
Technical  Education  in  Central,  470 ;  Suggestion  for  Facili- 
tating the  Study  of  Botany  in,  G.  Carstensen,  546  ;  Provincial 
Index  of  Minerals  of,  Dr.  W.  King,  546 ;  Native  Indian 
Scientific  Literature,  569  ;  the  Cultivated  Oranges  and  Lemons 
of  India  and  Ceylon,  Dr.  E.  Bonavia  and  C.  B.  Clarke,  F.R.  S., 
579  ;  Catalogue  of  the  Library  of  Indian  Museum,  594 
Indian,   American,   Languages,   Use  of  Edison  Phonograph  in 

Preserving,  J.  W.  Fewkes,  560 
Indian,  American,  Pipe,  H.  B.  Bashore,  303 
Indigo,  New  Method  of  Synthesizing,  Dr.  Flimm,  326 
Inductive  Capacity,   Specific :   W.  A,  Rudge,  10  ;  Prof,  Oliver 

J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.,  30 
Influenza  :  the  Epidemic  of,  145  ;  W.  Greatheed,  270 ;  Augustus 
Harvey,  270  ;  the  Suspected  Connection  between  Influenza 
and  Cholera  Epidemics,  Dr.  Smolenski,  282  ;  Climatological 
Considerations  about  Influenza,  Dr.  Assmann,  325  ;  Children's 
Growth   in   Weight  checked  by  Influenza,    471  ;    Supposed 
Chinese  Source  of  Russian   Influenza,   593 ;    Influenza   and 
Weather,  Mitchell  and  Buchan,  596 
Inheritance  of  Acquired  Characters  :  the  Duke  of  Argyll,  F.R.S., 
173,  294,  366;  W.  T.  Thiselton  Dyer,   F.R.S.,  315  ;  F.  V. 
Dickins,  316;  Right  Rev.  Bishop  R.  Courtenay,  367;  Dr.  J. 
Cowper,  368  ;  Herbert  Spencer,  414 ;  Prof,  E.  Ray  Lankester, 
F.  R.  S.,  415.     See  also  Panmixia 
Inheritance  of  Acquired  Mental  Peculiarity,  Handtmann,  209 
Inherited   Characters  and  Panmixia,  Prof.   Geo,   J.  Romanes, 
F.R.S.,  437 


Insect,  Note  on  a  Probable  Nervous  Affection  observed  in  an, 

E.  W.  earlier,  197 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  229 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  21 
Institution  of  Mechanical  Engineers,  331  ;  Anniversary  Meeting, 

591 
Institution  of  Naval  Architects,  494,  515 
Internationales  Archiv  fiir  Ethnographie,  209,  372 
Iron  and  Steel  Institute,  Visit  to  America  of,  469 
Iron  and  Steel  Manufacture,  Arthur  H.  Hiorns,  150 
Iron  and  Steel,    Molecular  Stability  of  Metals,  particularly  of, 

Carl  Barus,  369 
Iron,    the    Relation    between    Atomic    Volumes  of   Elements 

present  in,  and  their  Influence  on  its  Molecular  Structure, 

Prof.  W.  C.  Roberts- Austen,  F.R.S.,  420 
Iron,    the    Villari    Critical    Points    in    Nickel    and,    Herbert 

Tomlinson,  F.R. S. ,  574 
Irving  (Rev.  A.),  Chemical  and  Physical  Studies  in  the  Meta- 

morphism  of  Rocks,  49 
Isefiord,  Denmark,  Zoological  Floating  Station  at,  569 
Italy,  Southern,  Geological  Excursion  to  the  Active  and  Extinct 

Volcanoes  of,  133 
Italy:  Earthquake  in,  136;  Activity  of  Queccia  de  Salsa,  181 
Ivy,  Abnormal  Shoots  of,  \V.  F,  R.  Weldon,  464 
Izvestia  of  the  Russian  Geographical  Society,  352 

Jackson  (W.  E.),  Nebula,  General  Catalogue  No.  4795,  450 

Jacobi  (Mary  Putnam),  Physiological  Notes  on  Primary  Educa- 
tion and  the  Study  of  Language,  28 

James  (Dr.  Bushrod  W.),  American  Resorts,  with  Notes  upon 
their  Climate,  79 

James  (W.  J.),  the  Use  of  the  Word  Antiparallel,  lo 

Jamieson  (Prof),  Magnetism  and  Electricity,  461 

Januarv,  Weather  in,  Chas.  Harding,  425 

Japan  :  Cyclone  of  September  11- 12,  1889,  in,^M,  Wada,  208  ; 
Great  Volcanic  Eruption  in,  400 ;  Meteorology  in  1887, 
M.  Wada,  400  ;  Japanese  Dwarf  Tree  {Thuja  obtusa),  86 

Japp  (Prof.  F.  R.,  F.R.S.) :  o-j3-Dibenzoylstyrolene  and  Zinin's 
Lepiden  Derivatives,  142  ;  Compounds  of  Phenanthraquinone 
with  Metallic  Salts,  191 

Jastrow  (Prof. ),  the  Cradle  of  the  Semites,  569 

Java  Sea,  Coral  Reefs  of  the,  and  its  Vicinity,  Dr.  H.  B. 
Guppy,  300 

Jay  (Dr.),  Hydrazine,  547 

Jenkins  (Prof,  P,),  the  Strength  of  Ships,  515 

Jerusalem,  Troglodytic  Remains  in,  Herr  Schick,  284 

Jesse  (O.),  Photographs  of  Luminous  Night  Clouds,  592 

Johns  Hopkins  University,  448 

Johnson  (W.  E.),  Proof  of  the  Parallelogram  of  Forces,  153 

Johnson  (Prof.  W.  W.),  a  Treatise  on  Ordinary  and  Partial 
Differential  Equations,  270 

Johnston  (Miss  E.  J.),  the  Relation  of  Physiological  Action  to 
Atomic  Weight,  189 

Johnston  (R.  M.),  Variability  of  Tasmanian  Unio,  303 

Joly  (A. ),  Double  Nitrites  of  Ruthenium  and  Potassium,  23 

Joly  (J.)  :  the  Steam  Calorimeter,  212  ;  Resonance  Method  of 
Measuring  Constants  of  Gravitation,  256 

Jones  (E.  J.),  Death  of,  41 

Jones  (W.),  Glimpses  of  Animal  Life,  409 

Jorgensen  (Alfred),  the  Micro-organisms  of  Fermentation  prac- 
tically considered.  Prof.  Percy  F.  Frankland,  339 

Joule  (Prof.  J.  P.),  Proposed  Memorial  to,  89,  160,  281 

Journal  of  Botany,  405 

Jukes-Browne  (A.  J.)  :  Physics  of  the  Sub-oceanic  Crust,  53; 
Is  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  a  Fixed  Quantity?,  130 

Jungfrau  Railway,  Proposed,  Herr  Trautweiler,  303 

Jupiter,  Recent  Observations  of,  W.  F.  Denning,  206 

Jupiter's  Belt  3,  HI.,  the  Structure  of.  Dr.  Terby,  45 

Jupiter's  Satellites,  Ch.  Andre,  94 

Kane  (Sir  Robert,  F.R.S.):  Death  of,  371  ;  Obituary  Notice 

of,  398 
Kangaroos,  Decrease  of,  43 
Karlsruhe  Observatory,  A.  Fowler,  20 
Kater  Pendulum,  Shuckburgh  Scale,  O.  H.  Tittmann,  538 
Katzenstein  (Dr.),  Experiments  on  Influence  of  Bodily  Labour 

on  Metabolism  of  Man,  479 
Kaulbars  (Baron),  Geography  in  Russia,  208 
Keeling  Islands,  Flora  of,  Dr.  H,  B,  Guppy,  W.  B.  Hemsley, 

F.R.S.,  492 


XVlll 


INDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Keiser  (Dr.  E.  H.),  Redetermination  of  Atomic  Weight  of  Pal- 
ladium, 44 
Kent,  Discovery  of  Coal  in,  400 
Kerville    (Henri  Gadeau  de),   Les   Animaux   et   les    Vegetaux 

Lumineux,  Prof    W.  A.   Herdman,   293 
Kew  Bulletin,  42,  136,  283,  325,  448,  569 
Kew  Observatory  Report,  208 
Key  to  the  Royal  Society  Catalogue,  James  C.  McConnel,  342, 

391,  418  _  ^ 
Khurbet  'Ajlan,  Excavations  at,  592 
Kiel,  the  Botanical  Institute  and  Marine  Station  at,  397 
Kiev,  Actinometric  Observations  (1888-89)  at,  R.  Savelief,  359 
Kilima-Njaro,  the  Ascent  of,  Dr.  Hans  Meyer  and  Purtscheller, 

164,  572 
King  Charles  Land,  Prof  Kuekenthal's  Researches  in,  234 
King    (Dr.    George,   F.  R.  S. ),   Materials    for    a    Flora   of  the 

Malayan  Peninsula,  437 
King  (Dr.  W.),  Provincial  Index  of  Minerals  of  India,  546 
Kirby  (W.  F.),  Systems  of  "  Russian  Transliteration,"  534 
Kirschbaum  (Madame  Rosa),  First  Lady  Physician  admitted  to 

Medical  Practice  in  Austria,  509 
Klein  (Dr.  E.,  F.  R.S.),  the  Bacteria  of  Asiatic  Cholera,  509 
Klingemann  (Dr.  F.),  o-y3-Dibenzoyltyrolene  and  Zinin's  Lepiden 

Derivatives,   142 
Knight  (Francis  A.),  Idylls  of  the  Field,  79 
Knopf  (Dr.),  Comet  Brooks  {d  1889,  July  6),  115 
Knott  (Prof.  Cargill  G.),  the  Earthquake  of  Tokio,  April  18, 

1889,  32 
Kny  (Herr),  on  Trees  Growing  in  an  Inverted  Position,  86 
Kolaba  District,  Flint  Remains  in,  W.  E.  Sinclair,  114 
Kossel  (Prof),  Microscope  as  applied  to  Physiological  Chemis- 
try, 23 
Krakatab,   the  Period   of  the  Long    Sea- waves  of,    James  C. 

McConnel,  392 
Kremser  (Dr.),  Frequency  of  Mist,  215 
Kubary  (J.   S.),   Ethnographische  Beitriige  zur  Kenntniss    des 

Karolinen  Archipels,  433 
Klichenmeister  (Dr.  Gottlob  Friederich  H.),  Death  of,  592 
Kuekenthal's  (Prof.),  Researches  in  King  Charles  Land,  234 
Kunz  (G.  F.),  Mexican  Amber,  372 

Kutter(W.  R.)  and  E.  Ganguillet,  a  General  Formula  for  the 
Uniform  Flow  of  Water  in  Rivers  and  other  Channels,  411 

Laboratories  of  Bedford  College,  London,  279 

Laboratory,    Botanical,    in    the    Royal    Gardens,    Peradeniya, 

Ceylon,  445 
Laboratory,  New  Marine,  at  St.-Wast-la-Hougue,  160 
Laboratory,  the  Poona  Bacteriological,  469 
Laboratory  Work,  Elements  of,  A.  G.  Earl,  461 
Labuan,  the  African  Oil  Palm  in,  42 
Laccadive  Islands,  Rat-plague  in,  303 
Ladybird,    Australian,    in    California,    Spread   of    the,   J.    R. 

Dobbins,  161 
Lagrange  (Dr.  Fernand),  Physiology  of  Bodily  Exercise,  485 
Lake-dwelling  near  Milan,  Discovery  of,  67 
Lalang,  Noxious  Grass  at  Singapore,  182 
Lamarck  versus  Weismann,  Prof.  E.  D.  Cope,  79 
Lamarck's  and  Darwin's  Theories  as  to  Transmission  of  Acquired 

Characters,  Prof.  E.  R.  Lankester,  F.R.S.,  486 
Lamb  (Prof.  Horace,  F.R.S.):  on  a  Certain  Theory  of  Elastic 

After-strain,  463  ;  on  the  Deformation  of  an  Elastic  Shell,  549 
Lamp  (Dr.  E.)  :  Return  of  Brorsen's  Comet,  69;  Comet  Swift 
.    (/1889,  November  17),  233 

Lampert  (Dr.),  Zoogeography,  Wolves,  &c.,  in  Germany,  182 
Lamplugh  (G.  W.),  the  Wanton  Destruction  of  Sea-birds,  490 
Lancaster  (M.  A.),  Biographical  Note  on,  J.  C.  Houzeau,  20 
Land,  Area  of  the,  and  Depths  of  the  Oceans  in  Former  Periods, 

T.  Mellard  Reade,  103 
Langley  (E.  M.),  the  Use  of  the  Word  Antiparallel,  104 
Langley  (J.  N.,  F.R.S.),  Local  Paralysis  of  Peripheral  Ganglia 

and  Connection  of  Nerve-Fibres  with  them,  118 
Langley  (Prof.),  the  Solar  and  the  Lunar  Spectrum,  450 
Language,  Study  of  Physiological  Notes  on  Primary  Education 

and  the,  Mary  Putnam  Jacob),  28 
Languages,   American   Indian,    Use  of  Edison  Phonograph  "in 

Preserving,  J.  W.  Fewkes,  560 
Lankester  (Prof,  E.  Ray,  F.R.S.) :  Darwinism,  9  ;  E.  D.  Cope 

on  the  Causes  of  Variation,  128  ;  the  Inheritance  of  Acquired 

Characters,  415  ;  Transmission  of  Acquired  Characters  and 

Panmixia,  486 ;  Panmixia,  558 


Lapouge  (M.  de).  Modern  Crania  in  Montpellier,  357 
Larden  (W.),  Mirage  in  the  South  American  Pampas,  69 
Lascelles  (B.  P.)  and  R.  P.  Williams,  Introduction  to  Chemical 

Science,  128 
Latitude,  Redetermination  of,  in  Tokio,  Watanabe,  427 
Latter  (Prof,  Oswald  H.),  Who  Discovered  the  Teeth  in  Omi- 

thorhynchus  ?,  130,  174 
Law,  Science  and,  399 
Lawes  (Sir  J.   B.,   F.  R.  S.),  a  Field  laid  down  to  Permanent 

Grass,  229 
Lea  (A.   S. ),  a  Comparative  Study  of  Natural   and  Artificial 

Digestions,  430 
Leak-stopping   in    Steel    Ships,    Captain  C.   C.    P.  Fitzgerald, 

R.N.,  516 
Lean  (Wm.  Scarnell),  a  Brilliant  Meteor,  60 
Leaper  (Clement  J.),  Synoptical  Tables  of  Organic  and  Inorganic 

Chemistry,  510 
Least  Squares,  Theory  of,  a  Formula  in  the,  D.  Wetterhan,  394 
Lebeau  (P.) :  Volumetric  Estimation  of  Copper,  431  ;  Estimation 

of  Free  Halogen  and  Iodides  in   Presence  of  Chlorine  and 

Bromine,  479 
Le  Conte,  Formation  of  the  Earth's  Crust,  46 
Lefroy  (Sir  John  FL,  F.R.S.),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of, 

568 
Lehmann  (Dr.):  the   Babylonian   Metrical    System,    167;   the 

Testing  of  Tuning-forks,  383 
Leicester  Museum  Grounds,  on  a  Mite  of  the  Genus  Tetranychus 

found  Infesting  Lime  Trees  in  the,  F.  R.  Rowley,  31 
Leicestershire  and  Rutland,  the  Vertebrate  Animals  of,  Montagu 

Browne,  220 
Lendenfeld  (Dr.    Robert  von) :    a  Monograph    of   the    Horny 

Sponges,    146 ;    Physiology  of  Sponges,    570 ;  Foreign   .Sub- 
stances attached  to  Crabs,  317 
Lepidoptera,  Sugar  losing  its  Attractions  for,  Joseph  Anderson,. 

349 
Lepidoptera,  Temperature  Experiments  on,  F.  Merrifield,  191 
Lesquereux  (Prof),  Death  of,  135 
Lesser  Antilles,  the,  Owen  T.  Bulkeley,  268 
Leumann  (Prof. ),  Influence  of  Blood-Circulation  and  Breathing 

on  Mind-Life,  209 
Leveau  (G. ),  D'Arrest's  Comet,  596 
Lewes  (Prof.  V.),  the  Ignition  of  Coal  Cargoes,  517 
Lewis  (Prof.  H.  C),  the  late,  Wm.  Upham,  256 
Ley  (Rev.  W.   Clement)  :  Thought  and  Breathing,   317;  Chifif- 

Chaff  singing  in  September,  317 
Leyden  Ethnographical  Collection,  the,  180 
Libraries,  Free,  the  Manchester,  181 

Library,  Bethnal  Green  Free,  Proposed  Enlargement  of,  349 
Library,  Proposed  Free,  at  Whitechapel,  16  r 
Library  Reference  Atlas  of  the  World,  John  Bartholomew,  413 
Liebreich  (Prof),  the  Bladder  in  Fishes,  359 
Life,  Animal,  Glimpses  of,  W.  Jones,  409 
Light,  Coronal,  Photometric  Intensity  of,  Prof.  Thorpe,  139 
Light  and  Heat,  Rev.  F.  W.  Aveling,  558 
Light,  New,  from   Solar  Eclipses,  William   M.   Page,   William 

E.  Plummer,  529 
Light-Waves,  Measurement  by,  A.  A.  Michelson,  405 
Lightning,  Effects  of,  10 

Lightning.  Globular  and  other  Forms  of,  Reuben  Phillips,  58 
Like  to  Like,  a  Fundamental  Principle  in  Bionomics,  Prof.  Geo. 

J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  535  ;  John  T.  Gulick,  535 
Lime,  Crystals  of,  H.  A.  Miers,  515,  560 
Lime  Trees  in  Leicester  Museum  Grounds,  on  a  Mite  of  the 

Genus  Tetranychus  found  Infesting,  F.  R.  Rowley,  31 
Linear  Differential  Equations,   a  Treatise  on,   Thomas  Craig, 

508 
Ling  (A.  R.),  Studies  on  Isomeric  Change,  IV.,    Halogen  De- 
rivatives of  Quinone,  527 
Linnean  Society,  143,  191,  239,  334,  405,  431,  478,  527,  599 
Linnean  Socielyof  New  South  Wales,  161,  284 
Linossier  (G.),  Morphology  and  Biology  of  Oidium  albicans,  72 
Liquid  Surfaces,  Tension  of  Recently-formed,    Lord  Rayleigh, 

566 
Liquids,  Determination,  by  Measurement  of  Ripples,  of  Surface 

Tensions  of,  Prof  C.  Michie  Smith,  575 
Lissa  (Baron  de),  the  Pioneer  Plants  of  British  North  Borneo, 

494 
Liverpool  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society,  471 
Liverpool  Physical  Society,  135 
Lizard  of  South- West  United  States,  Heloderma  suspectum,  the 

Poisonous,  Craniology  of,  R.  W.  Shufeldt,  181 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XIX 


Lobley  (J.  Logan),  Mount  Vesuvius,  195 

Lockyer  (J.  Norman,  F.R.S.)  :  the  Physical  and  Chemical 
Characteristics  of  Meteorites  as  throwing  Light  upon  their 
Past  History,  305  ;  on  the  Zodiacal  Light,  402 

Locomotive,  the  Latest  Express  Compound,  448 

Locusts  in  India,  E.  C.  Cotes,  403,  491 

Locusts  in  the  Red  Sea,  G.  T.  Carruthers,  153 

Lodge  ( Prof.  Dr.  Oliver  J. ,  F.  R.  S. ) :  Modern  Views  of  Electricity, 
5,  80  ;  Specific  Inductive  Capacity,  30  ;  the  Peltier  Effect  and 
Contact  E.  M.F.,  224;  Easy  Lecture  Experiment  in  Electric 
Resonance,  368  ;  Electrical  Radiation  from  Conducting 
Spheres,  an  Electric  Eye  and  a  Suggestion  regarding  Vision, 
462 

Loewig  (Dr.  K.  J.),  Death  of,  545 

Logical  Machine,  a  New,  Mary  Boole,  79 

London  Geological  Field  Class,  519 

London  Mathematical  Society,  594 

London,  the  Moon  in.  Rev.  T.  R.  R.  Stebbing,  586 

London  Polytechnic,  a  South,  481 

London,  Polytechnics  for,  242 

London  University,  the  Proposed  Reconstitution  of,  28?,  348 

Longitude  of  Mount  Hamilton,  211 

Longitude  between  Paris   and  Leyden,   Difference  of,  Bassot, 

215 

Longitudes,  Annuaire  du  Bureau  des,  327 

Loochoo  Islands,  Proposed  Meteorological  Observatory  in,  401 

Loomis  on  Rainfall  of  Earth,  Dr.  van  Bebber,  43 

Lott  (Francis  Edw.)  and  Chas.  Geo.  Mathews,  the  Microscope 

in  the  Brewery  and  Malt-house,  246 
Lovell  {].),  S  >lar  Halos  and  Parhelia,  560 
Lowe  (E.  J.,  F.R.S.),  the  Chaffinch,  394 
Lucas  (W.)  and  T.  A.  Garrett,  Wimshurst  Machine  and  Hertz's 

Vibrator,  515 
Ludwigshafen,  Antediluvian  Remains  Discovered  at,  520 
Lumholtz  (Carl),  Among  Cannibals,  200 
Luminous   Clouds :    T.    W.    Backhouse,    297 ;     Joseph    John 

Murphy,  298 
Luminous  Night  Clouds,  Evan  McLennan,  131 
Luminous  Organisms,  Henri  Gadeau  de  Kerville,  Prof.  W.  A. 

Herdman,  293 
Lummer    (Dr.),   Abbe's    Apparatus   for  Testing    Transparent 

Films  with  Plane  Parallel  Surfaces,  552 
Lunar  Craters,  Changes  in.  Prof.  Thury,  183 
Lund  Museum  in  the  University  of  Copenhagen,  26 
Lunge  (Prof.),  Improved  Apparatus  for  Gas  Measurements,  471 
Lupton  (Sydney),  the  St.  Petersburg  Problem,  165 
Lussana  (S.),  the  Absorption  of  Hydrogen  by  Iron,  380 
Lydekker    (Richard),    Catalogue   of    the    Fossil    Reptilia   and 

Amphibia  in  the  British  Museum  (Natural  History),  534 
Lynn  (W.  T.),  Obituary  Notice  of  Lorenzo  Respighi,  254 


Macalister     (Prof.    Alex.,    F.R.S.),    a   Text-book   of    Human 

Anatomy,  269 
M'Alpine  (A.  N,),  How  to  know  Grasses  by  their  Leaves,  Prof. 

John  Wrightson,  557 
McConnnel  (James   C.)  :   the   Period  of  the  Long  Sea- Waves 

of  Krakatab,  392  ;  Key  to  the  Royal  Society  Catalogue,  342, 

391,  418 
McGrath  (Joseph),  the  Arc  Light,  154 
MacGregor  (Prof.  J.  G.),  Peculiar  Ice  Forms,  463 
McGregor  (Sir  W. ),  Explorations  in  New  Guinea,  374 
Mcintosh  (Prof.  W.  C,  F.R.S.),  the  Administration  of  Foreign 

Fisheries,  497 
McLachlan  (R.,  F.R.S.),  Galls,  131 
McLennan  (Evan),  Luminous  Night  Clouds,  131 
Macmahon  (Major  P.  A.,  R.A.) :  a  New  Theory  of  Symmetric 

Functions,    II.,    71  ;     Symmetrical    Functions   of    Roots    of 

Systems  of  Equation^,  380 
McNab  (Dr.  William  Ramsay) :  Death  of,  112  ;  Obituary  Notice 

of,  159  ;  Proposed  Memorial  to,  347 
Madagascar,  Astronomical  Observatory  at,  497 
Magnetic  Observatory,  Potsdam,  Dr.  Eschenhagen,  479 
Magnetic  Surveys  of  Special  Districts  in  the  British  Isles,  Profs. 

A.  W.  Riicker,  F.R.S.,  and  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  598 
Magnetical    Results   of    the    Voyage    of    H. M.S.    Challenger, 

Report  on  the,  Commander  E.  W.  Creak,  F.R.S.,  105,  363, 
Magnetism  in  Brick  Buildings,  R.  W.  WiUson,  405 
Magnetism,  Dr.  J.  Hopkinson,  F.R.S.,  249.  273 
Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Arthur  W.  Poyser,  52 
Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Prof.  Andrew  Jamieson,  30,  461 


Magnetism,  a  Proposed  Gilbert  Club,  84 

Magnetization  of  Cobalt,  Effects  of  Pressure  on,  C.  Chree,  237 

Maiden  (J.  IL),  the  Useful  Plants  of  Australia,  194 

Malaga,  Earthquake  at,  470 

Malay  Peoples,  the.  Dr.  B.  Hagen,  21 

Malayan  Peninsula,  Materials  for  a  Flora  of  the,  Dr.  Geo.  King, 

F.R.S.,  437 

Malic  Acid  and  its  Compounds,  D.  Gemez,  94 

Maltese  Butterflies,  George  Eraser,  199 

Mammalian  Molars,  Primitive  Types  of,  465 

Mammoth  Skeleton  in  Russia,  Discovery  of,  448 

Manchester  Conference  on  the  Technical  Instruction  Act,  97 

Manchester  Field  Naturalists'  Society,  593 

Manchester  Free  Libraries,  the,  181 

Manchester  Literary  and  Philosophical   .Society,   373  ;  Annual 
Report  of,  137 

Manchester,  Proposed  Planting  of  Evergreen  Shrubs  in,  401 

Manchester,  Street  Plants  in,  42 

Manganese,  New  Mode  of  Preparing,  Dr.  Glatzel,  67 

Manure,  Stable,  the  Fermentation  of,  Th.  Schloesing,  143 

Manures  and  their  Uses,  Dr.  A.  B.  Griffiths,  222,  272 

Manuscripts,  Ancient  Cingalese,  349 

Manx  Geological  Society,  208 

Maori  Cave-dwelling,  Discovery  of,  H.  O.  Forbes,  209 

Maps :  Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of  Cartography, 
A.  E.  Nordenskidld,  558 

Maquenne  (M.),  j8-Inosite,  215 

Marcet  (Dr.),  Atmospheric  Dust,  358,  473 

Marchand  (Em.),  Observations    on  Sun-spots  made  at  Lyons 
Observatory  in  1889,  599 

Marine  Fisheries  Society  of  Great  Grimsby,  520 

Marine  Laboratory,  New,  at  St.-WaU-la-Hau^jue,  160 

Marine  Millipede,  a,  104;  Edward  Pa'^fiit,  153;  R.  I.  Pocock, 
176 

Mnr  ne  Phenomenon  at  Batoum,  Curious,  426 

Marine  Station  at  Kiel,  397 

Marine  Survey  of  India,  140 

Markham  (Clements  R.,  F.R.S.),  a  Life  of  John  Davis,  52 

Marlborough  College  Natural  History  Society,  545 

Marriott  (William),  Royal  Meteorological  Society's  Exhibition, 
491 

Mascart  (M.),   Relation  of  certain    Magnetic   Perturbations  to 
Earthquakes,  23 

Mascart  (M.  E.),  Traite  d'Optique,  J.  D.  Everett,  224 

Mass  of  Saturn,  Asaph  Hall,  429 

Massaja  (Cardinal  G.),  Dc:ath  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  164 

Masson  (Prof.  Orme),  Australasian  Association  for  the  Advance- 
ment of  Science,  441 

Matabele  Land  and  the  Victoria  Falls,  Frank  Oates,  R.  Bowdler 
Sharpe,  169 

Mathematics :  Calcul  des  Probabilit^s,  J.  Bertrand,  6 ;  the 
Method  of  Quarter  Squares,  J.  W.  L.  Glaisher,  F.R.S.,  9; 
the  Use  of  the  Word  Antiparallel,  W.  J.  James,  10  ;  a  Phy- 
sical Basis  for  the  Theory  of  Errors,  C.  V.  Burton,  47  ;  a 
NewTheory  of  Symmetric  Functions  (II.),  Major  MacMahon, 
71  ;  a  New  Logical  Machine,  Mary  Boole,  79  ;  Geometrical 
Teaching,  80;  Mathematical  Society,  94,  214,  287,  503,  575, 
594;  W.  E.  Johnson  on  the  Proof  of  the  Parallelogram  of 
Forces,  153  ;  the  St.  Petersburg  Problem,  Sydney  Lupton, 
165  ;  Glissette  of  Hyperbola,  Prof.  Tait,  214  ;  the  Extension 
and  Flexure  of  Cylindrical  aid  Spherical  Thin  Elastic  Shells, 
A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S.,  238;  a  Treatise  on  Ordinary  and 
Partial  Differential  Equations,  Prof.  W.  W.  Johnson,  270 ; 
the  Parallelogram  of  Forces,  Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S., 
298 ;  Roots  of  an  Algebraic  Equation,  Prof.  A.  Cayley, 
F.R.S.,  335,  359;  B.  A.  Muirhead  on  Ten  and  Tenth  Nota- 
tion, 344  ;  Determination  of  Regulated  Harmonic  Surfaces, 
L.  Raffy,  359  ;  Symmetrical  Functions  of  Roots  of  Systems 
of  Equations,  Major  P.  A.  MacMahon,  R.A.,  380;  Unit  of 
Length  of  Sir  G.  Shuckburgh's  Standard  Scale,  General  J. 
T.  Walker,  R.E,,  F.R.S.,  381  ;  the  Exponential  Function, 
Stieltjes,  382  ;  a  Formula  in  the  Theory  of  Least  Squares, 
D.  Wetterhan,  394 ;  Newton  in  Perspective,  Robert  H. 
Graham,  439  ;  the  Elaslical  Researches  of  Barre  de  Saint- 
Venant,  Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  458  ;  on  a  Certain 
Theory  of  Elastic  After-Strain,  Prof.  Horace  Lamb,  F.R.S., 
463;  Oxford  "Pass"  Geometry,  467;  a  Treatise  on  Linear 
Differential  Equations,  Thos.  Craig,  508  ;  Four-Figure 
Mathematical  Tables,  J.  T.  Bottomley,  F.R.S.,  5ro;  Equa- 
tions aux  derivees  partielles  de  la  Physique  Mathematique, 
Poincare,  525  ;  the  Shuckburgh  Scale  and  Kater  Pendulum, 


XX 


INDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890 


O.  H.  Tittmann,  538  ;  Deformation  of  an  Elastic  Shell,  Prof. 

Horace  Lamb,   F.R.S.,  549;    Index  of   the  Papers  of  the 

London  Mathematical  Society,  594  ;  Mathematical  Teaching 

at  Sorbonne,  Prof.  Ch.  Hermite,  597 
Mather  (T.) :    Galvanometers,   310,   381  ;    Shape  of    Movable 

Coils  used  in  Electrical  Measuring  Instruments,  574 
Mathew?s  (Chas.  Geo.)  and  Francis  Edw.  Lott,  the  Microscope 

in  the  Brewery  and  Malt-house,  246 
Maximum  Light-Intensity  of  the  Solar  Spectrum,  Dr.  Mengarini, 

374 
Mechanical  Engineers,  Institution  of,  331 
Mechanics,   the  Behaviour  of   Twisted  Strips,  Prof.  J.   Perry, 

F.R.S.,47 
Mechanics,  Parallel  Motion  suitable  for  Recording  Instruments, 

A.  P.  Trotter,  478 
Mediterranean  Sea,  Greatest  Depths  in,  86 
Megueia  Meteorite,  the,  Prof.  Simaschko,  472 
Melbourne  Observatory  :  Transit  Observations    at,   351  ;    Star 

Catalogue,  522 
Melbourne,  the  Ballarat  School  of  Mines,  593 
Melicerta  ringens.  Dr.  C.  T.  Hudson,  F.R.S.,  on,  377 
Melde's  Vibrating  Strings,  Rev.  W.  Sidgreaves,  355 
Meldola  (R.,  F.R.S. ),  the  Chemistry  of  Photography,  293 
Mengarini    (Dr.),    Maximum     Light-Intensity    of    the     Solar 

Spectrum,  374 
Merchant  Service,  Colour-Blindness  in  the,  494 
Mercury,  on  the  Rotation  of,  Signor  Schiaparelli,  257 
Mercury  in  vacuo.  Apparatus  for  Distilling,  Prof.  Dunstan,  526 
Mergui  and  its  Archipelago,  Fauna  of,  556 
Meriam  (Dr.),  Pheasant  Culture  on  Pacific  Coast,  137 
Merriam    (Dr.    C.    Hart)  :  Who   discovered  the  Teeth    in  the 

Ornithorhynchus ?,  11  ;  Prof.  W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.,  151 
Merrifield    (F.),    Temperature    Experiments    on   Lepidoptera, 

191 
Mersey  Estuary,  Effects  of  Training  Walls  in,  L.  F.  V.  Har- 

court,  380 
Meslans  (M.),  Isolation  of  Fluoroform,  521 
Metallic  Prominence,  Spectrum  of  a,  233 

Metallurgy :  on  the  Hardening  and  Tempering  of  Steel,  Prof. 
W,  C.  Roberts-Austen,  F.R.S.,  11,  32;  Iron  and  Steel 
Manufacture,  by  Arthur  H.  Hiorns,  150;  Physical  Properties 
of  Nickel  Steel,  Dr.  J.  Hopkinson,  F.R.S.,  332  ;  the  Rupture 
of  Steel  by  Longitudinal  Stress,  C.  A.  Carus-Wilson,  574; 
the  Villari  Critical  Point  in  Nickel  and  Iron,  Herbert  Tom- 
linson,  F.R.S.,  574  ;  International  Exhibition  of  Metallurgy 
and  Mining  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  592 
Metals  :  Molecular  Stability  of,  particularly  of  Iron  and  Steel, 
Carl  Barus,  369  ;  Relation  between  Electric  and  Thermal 
Conductivities  of,  Alph.  Berget,  387 
Metamorphism  of  Rocks,  Chennical  and  Physical  Studies  in  the. 

Rev.  A.  Irving,  49 
Meteorology :  Electrical  Cloud  Phenomena,  Prof.  W.  K. 
Burton,  10  ;  Quarterly  Weather  Report  for  1880,  18  ;  Loomis 
on  the  Rainfall  of  the  Earth,  Dr.  van  Bebber,  43  ;  Remark- 
able Hailstones  at  Philadelphia,  Prof.  E.  J.  Houston,  43  ; 
the  Causes  and  Character  of  Haze,  Hon.  F.  A.  R.  Russell, 
60 ;  Dr.  Bushrod  W.  James's  American  Resorts,  with  Notes 
on  their  Climate,  79  ;  Proposed  Meteorological  Station  at 
the  Bermuda  Islands,  85  ;  Annual  Report  of  the  Deutsche 
Seewarte,  85  ;  Berlin  Meteorological  Society,  96  ;  Deutsche 
Seewarte  Observations,  231  ;  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North  Atlantic 
Ocean,  85,  161,  401  ;  Rainfall  of  Germany  during  1876-85, 
Dr.  H.  Meyer,  85  ;  American  Meteorological  Journal,  92  ; 
Thunderstorms  in  England  and  Wales,  93  ;  Prof,  von  Bezold 
on  the  Production  of  Clouds,  95  ;  Meteorological  Society,  see 
Royal;  Meteorology  of  New  South  Wales,  H.  C.  Russell,  113; 
Meteorology  of  the  Straits  Settlements,  1 14 ;  a  Popular  Treatise 
on  the  Winds,  William  Ferrel,  124;  Luminous  Night 
Clouds,  Evan  McLennan,  131  ;  Meteorology  of  Suffolk,  149  ; 
Barometric  Gradients,  Teisserenc  de  Bort,  161  ;  the  Observa- 
tions of  Temperature  on  top  of  Eiffel  Tower,  Alfred  Angot, 
167,  181  ;  Meteorological  Institute  of  Roumania,  181  ; 
Cyclone  of  September  H-12,  1889,  in  Japan,  M.  Wada, 
208  ;  Meteorological  Institute  of  the  Netherlands,  208  ; 
Anemometers,  W.  H,  Dines,  212  ;  Frequency  of  Mist,  Dr. 
Kremser,  215  ;  Self-luminous  Clouds,  C.  E.  Stromeyer,  225  ; 
Remarkable  Electrical  Phenomena  seen  at  the  Santis  Obser- 
vatory, 231  ;  Meteorology  in  the  United  States,  231  ;  Me- 
teorology of  Mexico  for  Twelve  Years  ending  1888,  256  ; 
Rainbow  due  to  Sunlight  reflected  from  the  Sea,  Sir  William 
Thomson,  F.R.S.,  271  ;  William  ScouUer,  271  ;  Exact  Ther- 


mometry, Dr.  Sydney  Young,  271  ;  Weather  Forecasting, 
278  ;  Meteorology  of  the  North  Atlantic  for  December 
1889,  284 ;  Luminous  Clouds,  T.  W.  Backhouse,  297 ; 
Joseph  John  Murphy,  298  ;  Proposed  Exhibition  illustrating 
Application  of  Photography  to  Meteorology,  301  ;  Tem- 
perature "Anomalies,"  303;  Bibliography  of  Meteorology, 
General  Greely,  303  ;  Report  on  the  Meteorology  of  Austra- 
lia, C.  L.  Wragge,  348  ;  the  Ben  Nevis  Observatory  Report 
for  January  1890,  348  ;  Atmospheric  Dust,  Dr.  Marcet,  358  ; 
Atmospheric  Circulation,  A.  Buchan,  363  ;  Shining  Night 
Clouds,  Robert  B.  White,  369;  Dependence  of  Force  of  Winds 
upon  Surface  over  which  they  blow,  Dr.  van  Bebber,  372  ; 
Behaviour  of  Water  in  Soil,  Dr.  Wagner,  383  ;  Sun-spots  in 

1889,  Prof.  Sporer,  383  ;  on  the  Number  of  Dust  Particles  in 
the  Atmosphere  of  Certain  Places  in  Great  Britain  and  on  the 
Continent,  with  Remarks  on  the  Relation  between  the 
Amount  of  Dust  and  Meteorological  Phenomena,  John  Aitken, 
F.R.S.,  382,  394;  Meteorology  in  Japan,  1887,  M.  Wada, 
400 ;  Proposed  Meteorological  Observatory  in  Loochoo 
Islands,  401  ;  the  Motion  of  Dust,  Hon.  Ralph  Abercromby, 
406  ;  an  Optical  Feature  of  Lightning  Flashes,  406  ;  Weather 
in  January,  Chas.  Harding,  425  ;  Meteorology  of  Central 
America,  Boletin  Trimestral  of  San  Jose  (Costa  Rica)  Ob- 
servatory, 427  ;  Meteorological  Report  of  the  Challenger 
Expedition,  443  ;  Diurnal  Range  of  Barometer,  A.  Angot, 
449  ;  Waterspout  in  Atlantic,  470  ;  Preponderance  of  North- 
East  Wind  during  past  Five  Years,  C.  L.  Prince,  470  ; 
Meteorology  of  the  Gold  and  Slave  Coast,  Dr.  Danckel- 
mann,  479 ;  Royal  Meteorological  Society's  Exhibition, 
William  Marriott,  491  ;  Captain  Abney's  Photo-Nephograph, 
491  ;  Pickering's  Pole-star  Recorder,  491  ;  Photo-Nepho- 
graph, Captain  Abney's,  491  ;  Report  of  the  Meteorological 
Council  for  Year  ending  March  31,  1889,  495  ;  Use  of 
"  Sling  "  Thermometer  in  Prediction  of  Frosts,  Prof.  H.  A. 
Hazen,  501  ;  Photography  in  Relation  to  Meteorological 
Work,  G.  M.  Whipple,  503  ;  Fire-damp  Explosions  in  Mines 
in  Relationship  to  Cosmic  and  Meteorological  Conditions, 
504  ;  Meteorological  Observatory  at  Fort  William,  518  ;  D. 
De  war's  Weather  and  Tidal  Forecasts  for  1890,  546  ;  Varia- 
bility of  Temperature  of  British  Isles  (1859-83),  R.  H.  Scott, 
F.R.S.,  550;  Solar  Halos  and  Parhelia,  J.  Lovell,  560; 
New  Way  of  giving  Information  as  to  Weather  on  Coasts, 
568 ;  Meteorological  Observations  for  1887  at  Greenwich 
Observatory,  570 :  Increase  of  Coldness  in  China,  570 ; 
U.S.A.  Signal  Service  Monthly  Weather  Review  for  January 

1890,  570  ;  Relative  Prevalence  of  North- East  and  South- West 
Winds,  William  Ellis,  586  ;  Influenza  and  Weather,  Mitchell 
and  Buchan,  596  ;  C.  Harding  on  the  Cold  in  March  1890,  598 

Meteors  :  a  Brilliant,  Paul  A.  Cobbold,  32  ;  Remarkable  Meteor 
at  Pontevedra,  Dr.  E.  Caballero,  303  ;  a  Brilliant  Meteor,  Wm. 
Scarnell  Lean,  60  ;  a  Brilliant,  J.  Cockburn,  81  ;  Brilliant 
Meteors,  P.  A.  Harris,  105 ;  R.  H.  Tiddeman,  105  ;  Rev.  T.  W. 
Morton,  249  ;  a  Greenish  Meteor,  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell,  369  ;  a 
Meteor,  T.  W.  Baker,  418  ;  a  Remarkable  Meteor,  J.  Dunn, 
560  ;  Meteorites  of  Mexico,  M.  Daubree,  71  ;  on  the  Supposed 
Enormous  Showers  of  Meteorites  in  the  Desert  of  Atacama, 
108 ;  DieMikroskopischeBeschaffenheitderMeteoritenerlautert 
durch  photographische  Abbildungen,  G.  Tschermak,  127  ; 
Die  Structur  und  Zusammensetzung  der  Meteoreisen  erlautert 
durch  photographische  Abbildungen  Geatzter  Schnittflachen, 
A.  Brezina  und  E.  Cohen,  127  ;  Die  Meteoritensammlung  des 
k.k.  Mineralog.  Hofkabinetes  in  Wien,  A.  Brezina,  127  ; 
Examination  of  the  Mighei,  of  June  9,  1889,  Stanislas  Meunier, 
232 ;  J.  Rutherford  Hill,  298 ;  Prof.  Simaschko,  472 ; 
Analogy  of  South  African  Diamantiferous  Matrix  to  Meteorites, 
M.  Daubree,  263  ;  the  Physical  and  Chemical  Characteristics  of 
Meteorites,  as  throwing  Light  upon  their  Past  History,  J. 
Norman  Lockyer,  F.R.S.,  305 
Metric  System  of  Weights  and  Measures,  Thuillier  and  Water- 
house's  Conversion  Tables,  66 
Metrical  System,  the  Babylonian,  Dr.  Lehmann,  167 
Meunier   (Stanislas),    Examination   of   Mighei   (June  9,    1889) 

Meteorite,  232 
Mexican  Amber,  G.  F.  Kunz,  372 

Mexico  for  Twelve  Years  ending  1888,  Meteorology  of,  256 
Mexico,  Hygrometric  Club  Moss  from  Mexico,  401 
Mexico,  the  Eruption  of  the  Volcano  Popocatepetl,  592 
Meyer  (Dr.  A.  B.)  :    Evolution   of  Sex,    272;    Celebes  Photo- 
graphs, 471  ;  Brush-Turkeys  on  the  Smaller  Islands  north  of 
Celebes,  514 
Meyer  (Dr.  H.),  Rainfall  of  Germany  1876-85,  85 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XXI 


Meyer  (Dr.  Hans),  the  Ascent  of  Kilimanjaro,  164,  572 

Meyrick  (E.)  :   Osteolepidse,  342  ;  Dr.  J.  A.  H.  Murray,  343 

Mica  in  Mourne  Mountain  Granite  Geodes,  Prof.  Sollas,  F.R.S., 
469 

Michael  (Major-General),  Forestry,  348 

Michelson  (A.  A.),  Measurement  by  Light-Waves,  405 

Micro-organism  conferring  Phosphorence  on  Crustaceans,  Dis- 
covery by  Prof.  Giard  of,  137 

Micro-organisms  of  Fermentation  practically  considered,  Alfred 
Jorgensen,  Prof.  Percy  F.  Frankland,  339 

Microscopy :  the  Microscope  as  applied  to  Physiological  Che- 
mistry, Prof.  Kossel,  23  ;  Royal  Microscopical  Society,  93  ; 
Ahrens's  Polarizing  Binocular  Microscope,  93  ;  Formation  of 
Scottish  and  Italian  Microscopical  Societies,  180  ;  the  Micro- 
scope in  the  Brewery  and  Malt-house,  Chas.  Geo.  Mathews  and 
Francis  Edw.  Lott,  246 ;  Tercentenary  of  the  Invention  of 
the  Compound  Microscope,  256  ;  Zeiss's  New  Apochromatic 
Objective  Microscope,  494  ;  Microseismic  Vibration  of  the 
Earth's  Crust,  Prof.  G.  H.  Darwin,  F.R.S.,  248 

Middlesex  Natural  History  and  Scientific  Society,  138 

Miers  (H.  A.),  Crystals  of  Lime,  515,  560 

Mighei,  the  Meteorite  of,  Stanilas  Meunier,  232  ;  J.  Rutherford 
Hill,  298 

Milan,  Discovery  of  Lake-Dwelling  near,  67 

Millipede,  a  Marine,  104;  Edward  Parfitt,  153  ;  R.  I.  Pocock, 
176 

Mills  (Dr.  Edmund  J.,  F.R.S.),  Traite  pratique  de  la  Thermo- 
metrie  de  precision,  Ch.  Ed.  Guillaume,  loo ;  Exact  Thermo- 
metry, 227,  538 

Mills  (John)  and  Barker  North,  Introductory  Lessons  in  Quanti- 
tative Analysis,  197 

Miner,  Fall  of  a,  without  being  killed,  down  a  lOO-metre  Shaft, 
M.  Reumeaux,  471 

Mineralogy  t  Mineralogical  Magazine,  67  ;  Statistics  of  Minera- 
logy in  Canada,  87  ;  Great  Find  of  Rare  Minerals  of  Yttrium 
and  Thorium  Groups  in  Texas,  162  ;  Provincial  Index  of  the 
Minerals  of  India,  Dr.  W.  King,  546 ;  Mines  at  Bendigo, 
Victoria,  Report  of  School  of,  209 ;  Mining  and  Metallurgy, 
Proposed  International  Exhibition  of,  447  ;  Mining  and 
Metallurgy,  International  Exhibition  of,  at  the  Crystal  Palace, 
592 

Minimum  Sun-spot  Period,  M.  Bruguiere,  68 

Minor  Planet  (12),  Victoria,  Dr.  Gill,  139 

Minor  Planets,  Clorinde,  88 

Mint,  Royal,  the  New  Assistant  Secretary  at,  T.  Rose  Kirke,  493 

Mirage  in  the  South  American  Pampas,  W.  Larden,  69 

Mirages,  Arthur  E.  Brown,  225 

Missouri  Botanical  Garden,  209 

Mist,  Frequency  of.  Dr.  Kremser,  215 

Mitchell  (Sir  Arthur),  Influenza  and  the  Weather,  596 

Mite  of  the  Genus  Tetranychus  found  infesting  Lime  Trees  in 
the  Leicester  Museum  Grounds,  on  the,  F.  R.  Rowley,  31 

Mivart  (Dr.  St.  George,  F.R.S.),  Prof.  Weismann's  Essays, 
38;  Galls,  174 

Modern  Views  of  Electricity,  102 

Modigliani's  Exploration  of  Nias  Island,  Prof.  Giglioli,  587 

Moebius  (Prof.),  Drumming  Fish  {Balistes  aculeatus),  263 

Moissan  (Henri)  :  a  New  Method  of  Preparing  Fluorine,  117  ; 
the  Anhydrous  Platinous  Fluorine,  119;  Perfected  Mode  of 
Preparing  Fluorine,  138  ;  Colour  and  Spectrum  of  Fluorine, 
214 ;  Phosphorus  Trifluoride,  349  ;  Two  Gaseous  Fluorides  of 
Carbon,  373 

Mole,  the  Eye  of  the,  Carl  Hess,  373 

Molecular  Stability  of  Metals,  particularly  of  Iron  and  Steel, 
Carl  Barus,  369 

Molecular  Structure,  the  Relation  between  Atomic  Volumes  of 
Elements  present  in  Iron,  and  their  Influence  on  its,  Prof. 
W.  C.  Roberts- Austen,  F.R.S.,  420 

Molucca  Islands,  Count  Salvadori  on  the  Birds  of,  85 

Monck  (Dr.  W.  H.  S.)  :  Satellite  of  Algol,  198;  the  Distances 
of  the  Stars,  392 

Monkey,  the  Barbados,  Colonel  H.  W.  Feilden,  349 

Monkey,  Bonnet,  Arrangement  of  Excitable  Fibres  of  Internal 
Capsule  of,  Beevor  and  Horsley,  166 

Monkeys,  African,  in  the  West  Indies,  Dr.  P.  L.  Sclater, 
F.R.S.,  368 

Montigny  (Prof.  C.  M.  V.),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  497 

Montpellier  University,  Proposed  Commemoration  of  Founding 
of,  447 

Montsouris  Observatory,  the  Effect  of  Railways  on  Instruments 
in,  592 


Moon  in  London,  the.  Rev.  T.  R.  R.  Slebbing,  586 

Moore  (John  Murray),  New  Zealand  for  the  Emigrant,  Invalid, 

and  Tourist,  342 
Moore   (Spencer) :     True   Nature    of    Callus,   478 ;    Nessler's 

Ammonia  Test   as   a   Micro-chemical  Reagent   for  Tannin, 

Morea,  Rock -sepulchre  at  Vaphio,  S.  Remach,  500 

Morgan  (Prof.    C.    LI.),  the  Pebidian   Volcanic  Series  of  St. 

David's,  311 
Morley  Memorial  College  and  the  Royal  Victoria  Hall,  343 
Morocco,  Travels  in,  Walter  B.  Harris,  270 
Morris  (D.) :  Seeding  of  Sugar-cane,  478  ;  the  Native  Ebony  of 

St.  Helena,  519 
Morris   (Dr.    G.    H.),    Identity   of  Cerebrose  and  Galactose, 

262 
Mortillet  (M.  de),  the  Dog,  332 
Morton  (Rev.  T.  W.),  Meteor,  249 
Moscow  Archaeological  Congress,  283 
Moser  (James),  Electrical  Oscillations  in  Rarefied  Air,  431 
Moss  (F.  J.),  Through  Atolls  and  Islands  in  the  Great  South 

Sea,  151 
Moss,  Hygrometric  Club,  from  Mexico,  401 
Mount  Hamilton,  Longitude  of,  211 
Mount  Vesuvius,  J.  Logan  Lobley,  195 
Mouse- Hunt,  a  Kind  of  Weasel,  E.  B.  Titchener,  394 
Mozambique,  Arrival  of  Captain  Trivier  at,  165 
Muirhead  (B.  A.),  Ten  and  Tenth  Notation,  344 
Muirhead(Geo.),  the  Birds  of  Berwickshire,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe, 

169 
MUller  (Prof.  Max) :  Necessity  of  a  School  for  Modem  Oriental 

Studies,  255  ;  Thought  and  Breathing,  317 
Multiple  Resonance  obtained  in  Hertz's  Vibrators,  Prof.  Geo. 

Eras.  Fitzgerald,  295  ;  Fred  T.  Trouton,  295 
Munk  (Dr.) :  Absorption  of  Fats  and  Fatty  Acids  in  Absence  of 

Bile    in   Intestine,    119;    the    Cortical    Visual    Areas,  407; 

Fat  the  only  Food  leaving  Intestines  by  Lacteals,  504 
Munro's  Wind-measuring  Instruments,  492 
Murchison,  Sedgwick  and,  Cambrian  and  Silurian,  Prof.  James 

D.  Dana,  421 
Murphy  (Joseph  John) :    the    Permanence  of  Continents   and 

Oceans,  175;  Luminous  Clouds,  298 
Murray  (Dr.  John),  Coral  Reefs  in  Recent  Seas,  167 
Murray-Aynsley  (Mrs.  J.  C),  Thought  and  Breathing,  441 
Museums:    Opening   of  the    Berlin    National    Science,    112; 

Suofgestions  for  the  Formation  and  Arrangement  of  a  Museum 

of  Natural  History  in  Connection  with  a  Public  School,  Prof. 

W.    H.  Flower,   F.R.S.,     177;    Cambridge  Archaeological, 

324;  Annual  Meeting  of  Museums  Association,  591 
Music  on  Animals,  Effect  of,  R.  E.  C.  Stearns,  470 
Music,  Dogs  and,  372 

Music,  Visualized  Images  produced  by,  Geo.  E.  Newton,  417 
Musical  Sounds,  the  Effect  of,  on  Animals,  R.  E.  C.  Stearns, 

593 
Muthmann  (Dr.),  Crystalline  Allotropic  Forms  of  Sulphur,  449 
Muzzling  Regulations,  the  New,  241 


Nansen's  (Dr.)  Plan  for  North  Pole  Expedition,  374 

Naphthalene,  Constitution  of  Tri-derivatives  of,  Armstrong  and 
Wynne,  454 

Natality  of  Paimpol,  M.  Dumont,  332 

National  Union  of  Teachers,  545 

Native  Colonists,  French,  in  Paris,  427 

Natural  Evidence  of  High  Thermal  Conductivity  in  Flints,  Prof. 
A.  S.  Herschel,  F.R.S.,  175 

Natural  History  :  Suggestions  for  the  Formation  and  Arrange- 
ment of  a  Museum  of  Natural  History  in  connection  with  a 
Public  School,  Prof.  W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.,  177  ;  Catalogue 
of  the  Fossil  Reptilia  and  Amphibia  in  the  British  Museum, 
Richard  Lydekker,  534  ;  on  some  Needless  Difficulties  in  the 
Study  of  Natural  History,  Dr.  C.  T.  Hudson,  F.R.S.,  375  'r 
Glimpses  of  Animal  Life,  W.  Jones,  409  ;  Toilers  in  the  Sea, 
M.  C.  Cooke,  409  ;  Les  Industries  des  Animaux,  F.  Houssay, 
409  ;  Natural  Selection,  Lamarck  versus  Weismann,  Prof.  £. 
D.  Cope,  79;  Prof.  G.  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  on  the  Forma- 
tion of  Galls,  80  ;  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes,  Sydney  J. 
Hickson,  Dr.  F.  H.  H.  Guillemard,  457  ;  the  Physician  as 
Naturalist,  W.  T.  Gairdner,  436  ;  Naturalistic  Photography, 
P.  H.  Emerson,  366 

Naturf,  Progress  of,  during  Twenty  Years,  I 

Navigation,  der  Kompass  an  Bord,  Dr.  Neumayer,  412 


xxi: 


2NDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Nebula  N.G.C,  2237,   the  Cluster  G.C.   1420  and,  Dr.   Lewis 

Swift,  285 
Nebula,  General  Catalogue  No.  4795,  W.  E.  Jackson,  450 
Nebular  Hypothesis,  Herbert  Spencer,  450 
Neo-Darwinians,  Duke  of  Argyll  and  the,    W.    T.    Thiselton- 

Dyer,  F.R.S.,  247 
Nessler's   Ammonia    Test  as    a    Micro-chemical    Reagent    for 

Tannin,  Spencer  Moore,  585 
Nervous  Affection  observed  in  an  Insect,  Note  on  a  Probable, 

E.  W.  earlier,  197 
Netanson  (Ladislas),  the  Characteristic  Temperatures,  Pressure^, 

and  Volumes  of  Bodies,  167 
Neumayer  (Dr.),  der  Kompass  an  Bord,  412 
Neumayr  (Prof ),  Death  of,  324 
New  Light  from  Solar  Eclipses,  William  M.  Page,  William  E. 

Plummer,  529 
New   Guinea,     Kaiser    Wilhelmsland,     the    North    Coast    of. 

Admiral  von  Schleinitz,  21 
New  Guinea  and  the  Molucca  Islands,  Count  Salvadori  on  the 

Birds  of,  85 
New  Guinea,  Sir  Wm.  McGregor's  Explorations  in,  374 
New  South  Wales  :  Technical  Education  in,  66 ;  Royal  Society 

of,  96  ;  Meteorology  of,  H.  C.  Russell,  113 
New  Zealand,  Discovery  of  Cave-Dwelling  in,  H.  O.  Forbes,  209 
New  Zealand  for  the  Emigrant,   Invalid,    and    Tourist,   John 

Murray  Moore,  342 
Newall  Telescope  for  the  University  of  Cambridge,   166 ;  the 

Maintaining  and  Working  of  the,  357 
Newcastle  Learned  Societies'  Annual  Gathering,  519 
Newton  (Geo.  E. ),  Visualized  Images  produced  by  Music,  417 
Newton  in  Perspective,  Robert  H.  Graham,  439 
Nias  Island,  Modigliani's  Exploration  of,  Prof.  Giglioli,  587 
Nickel  and  Iron,  the  Villari  Critical  Points  in,  Herbert  Tomlin- 

son,  F.R.S.,  574 
Night-Clouds,  Luminous  :  Evan  McLennan,  131  ;  Photographs 

of,  O.  Jesse,  592 
Nitrogen  in  Soils,  Sources  of.  Prof.  John  Wrightson,  286 
Niven  (W.  D.,  F.R.S.),  on  certain  Approximate  Formulae  for 

Calculating  the  Trajectories  of  Shot,  Prof.  J.  C.  Adams,  258 
Noe's  (Dr.  Franz)  Geologische  Uebersichtskarte  der  Alpen,  Prof. 

T.  G.  Bonney,  F.R.S.,  483 
Nordenskiold  (A.  E.),  Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of 

Cartography,  558 
Norfolk  and  Norwich  Naturalists'  Society,  519 
North  America,  Cave  Fauna  of,  with  Remarks  on  the  Anatomy 

of  the  Brain  and  Origin  of  the  Blind  Species,  A .  S.  Packard,  507 
North  (Barker)  and  John  Mills,  Introductory  Lessons  in  Quan- 
titative Analysis,  197 
North  Celebes,  a  Naturalist  in,  Sydney  J.  Hickson,  Dr.  F.  H. 

H.  Guillemard,  457 
Northwich,  Subsidence  at,  230 
Nuovo  Giornale  Botanico  Italiano,  405 


'Oates  (E.  W.),  Ornithology  of  India,  Vol.  I.,  388 
•Oates   (Frank),     Matabele    Land    and   the  Victoria   Falls,  R. 
Bowdler  Sharpe,  169 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope,  A.  Fowler,  20,  44,  68,  87,  114, 
138,  163,  183,  210,  232,  257,  285,  304,  326,  350,  374,  402, 
428,  449,  472,  521,  548,  571,  595 
•Observatories:  Karlsruhe  Observatory,  A.  Fowler,  20;  Palermo, 
88  ;  Paramatta,  88  ;  Greenwich,  305  ;  Dun  Echt,  351  ;  Mel- 
bourne, 351  ;  Astronomical  Observatory  of  Harvard  College, 
446  ;  Vatican,  472  ;  Madagascar,  497  ;  the  Effect  of  Railways 
on  Instruments  in,  592 

Observatory  :  Proposed  Meteorological,  in  Loochoo  Islands,  401  ; 
Fort  William  Meteorological,  518 

Ocean  Currents,  Distribution  of  Animals  and  Plants  by,  Rev. 
Paul  Camboue,  103 

Ocean,  German,  Botanical  Condition  of,  Major  Reinhold,  569 

Ocean  Water,  is  the  Bulk  of,  a  Fixed  Quantity,  A.  J.  Jukes- 
Browne,  130;  T.  Mellard  Reade,  175  ;  Rev.  O.  Fisher,  197' 

Oceans,  Area  of  the  Land  and  Depths  of  the,  in  Former  Periods, 
T.  Mellard  Reade,  103 

Oceans,  the  Permanence  of  Continents  and,  Joseph  John 
Murphy,  175 

Odontology  :  Who  Discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  ? 
Dr.  C.  Hart  Merriam,  11,  151  ;  Prof.  W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S., 
30,  151  ;  Prof.  Oswald  H.  Latter,  30,  174 

Oil  on  Disturbed  Water,  Effect  of,  Richard  Beynon,  205  ;  A.  B. 
Basset,  F.R.S.,  297 


Old  Age,  Dr.  Geo.  M.  Humphry,  F.R.S.,  484 

Olfactometer,  Dr.  Zwardemaaker,  349 

Olive  Cultivation  in  India,  303 

Oliver  (Dr.   Francis),    the  Weather  Plant  {Abrns  precatorhis), 

283 
Olliff  (A.    S.),    Extraordinary   Abundance    of    Noctuid  Moth 

{J gratis  spina)  in  New  South  Wales  in  October,  161 
Oology  :  the  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  by  Allan  O.  Hume, 

Vol.  I.,  388  ;  A.  J.  Campbell's  Collection  of  Eggs  in  Western 

Australia,  593.     See  also  Eggs 
Opera  Glass,  Astronomy  with  an,  Garrett  P.  Serviss,  462 
Ophiuchus,  New  Short  Period  Variable  in,  403 
Opossum  in  Tasmania,  Destruction  of,  304 
Optics:    Geometrical,    Notes  on  (II. ),  Prof  S.  P.   Thompson, 

213  ;  Traite  d'Optique,  M.   E.   Mascart,  Prof.  J.  D.   Everett, 

F.R.S.,  224;  Vision-Testing  for  Practical  Purposes,  Brudenell 

Carter,  302  ;  Measurement  by  Light-Waves,  A.  A.  Michelson, 

405  :  Abbe's  Apparatus  for  Testing  Transparent  Films  with 

Plane  Parallel  Surfaces,  Dr.  Lummer,  552 
Oranges  and  Lemons  of  India  and  Ceylon,  the  Cultivated,  Dr. 

E.  Bonavia,  C.  B.  Clarke,  F.R.S.,  579 
Orbit  of  Swift's  Comet  (V.  1880),  257 
Orbits  of  the  Companions  of  Brooks's  Comet  (1889  V.,  July  6), 

305 
Ornithology:  Argentine  Ornithology,  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S., 
and  W.  H.  Hudson,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  7  ;  Count  Salvadori 
on  the  Birds  of  New  Guinea  and  the  Molucca  Islands,  85  ; 
Pheasant-Culture  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  Dr.  Meriam,  137  ;  the 
Food  of  Crows,  W.  B.  Barrows,  137  ;  Notes  on  Sport  and 
Ornithology,  H.I.H.  the  late  Prince  Rudolph  of  Austria, 
169  ;  Matabele  Land  and  the  Victoria  Falls,  Frank  Oates, 
169  ;  Index  Generum  Avium,  F.  H.  Waterhouse,  169  ;  Birds 
of  Oxfordshire,  O.  V.  Aplin,  169;  the  Birds  of  Berwickshire, 
Geo.  Muirhead,  169  ;  the  Birds  in  my  Garden,  W.  T.  Greene, 
•  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  169  ;  Birds  that  have  struck  the  Statue 
of  Liberty  in  New  York  Harbour,  Jonathan  Dwight,  Junior, 
181  ;  Chiff- Chaff  Singing  in  September,  298  ;  Rev.  W. 
Clement  Ley,  317  ;  Pallas's  Cormorant,  373  ;  Oates's 
Ornithology  of  India,  Vol.  L,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  388  ;  the 
Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  by  Allan  O.  Hume,  Vol.  I., 
edited  by  E.  W.  Oates,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  388 ;  the 
Chaffinch,  E.  J.  Lowe,  F.R.S.,  394;  A.  J.  Campbell's  Col- 
lections of  Western  Australian  Bird- Skins  and  Eggs,  593  ; 
Effects  of  Music  on  a  Canary,  593  ;  Dr.  R.  W.  Shufeldt  on 
Avian  Anatomy,  594 

Ornithorhynchus,  Who  discovered  the  Teeth  in  the,  Dr.  C. 
Hart  Merriam,  11,  151;  Prof  W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.,  30, 
151  ;  Prof  Oswald  H.  Latter,  30,  174 

Orycteropus,  a  Milk  Dentition  in,  O.  Thomas,  309 

Osborn  (H.  Leslie),  a  Preservative  for  Animal  Tissues,  199 

Osborn  (Henry  Fairfield),  Palaeontological  Evidence  for  the 
Transmission  of  Acquired  Characters,  227 

Osteolepidse,  271,  342  ;  E.  Meyrick,  342 

O'Sullivan  (C,  F.R.S.),  Arabinon,  262 

Oudemans  (Prof.  J.  A.  C.)  on  Star  Distances,  81 

Oxford  "Pass"  Geometry,  467 

Oxfordshire,  the  Birds  of,  O,  V.  Aplin,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe, 
169 

Ozone,  Production  by  Flames  of,  J.  T.  Cundall,  502 

Pacific  Coast,  Pheasant  Culture  on.  Dr.  Meriam,  137 

Pacific,  Notes  on  a  Recent  Volcanic  Island  in  the.  Captain  W. 

J.  L.  Wharton,  F.R.S.,  276 
Pacific  Slope,  Geology  of  the  Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the,  G. 

F.  Becker,  532 
Packard  (A.  S.),  Cave  Fauna  of  North  America,  with  Remarks 

on  the  Anatomy  of  the  Brain  and  Origin  of  the  Blind  Species, 

507 
Page  (William  M.),  New  Light  from   Solar  Eclipses,  William 

E.  Plummer,  529 

Paimpol,  Natality  of,  M.  Dumont,  332 

Painter  (Rev.  W.  H.),  the  Flora  of  Derbyshire,  77 

Palaeontology:    Fossil    Rhizocarps,    10,    154;    Gigantic  Fossil 

Elephant's  Tusk  discovered  in  Italy,  66  ;  Dr.    H.  Burmeister 

on  the  Fossil  Horses  and  other  Mammals  of  Argentina,  82  ; 

Palseontological  Evidence  for  the  Transmission  of  Acquired 

Characters,  Henry  Fairfield  Osborn,  227  ;  Primitive  Types  of 

Mammalian  Molars,  465  ;  Antediluvian   Remains  discovered 

at  Ludwigshafen,  520 

Palermo  Observatory,  88 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XXlll 


Palestine  Exploration  Fund,  284  ;  Excavation  of  Khiirbet  'Ajlan, 

592 
Palisa  (Dr.),  Discovery  of  Asteroids,  522 
Palladium,  Kedetermination  of  Atomic  Weight  of,   Dr.  E,  H. 

Keiser,  44 
Palm  in  Labuan,  the  African  Oil,  42 
Palmieri  (Prof.),  Vesuvius  in  1889,  i8 
Pampas,  Mirage  in  the  South  American,  W.  Larden,  69 
Pampas  Formation,  the  South  American,  Herr  Roth,  231 
Panmixia :    Palaeontological  Evidence  for  the  Transmission  of 

Acquired  Characters,  Plenry  Fairfield  Osborn,  227  ;  Acquired 

Characters  and  Congenital  Variations,  the  Duke  of  Argyll, 

F.R.S.,  173,  294,  366;  Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital 

Variations,    W.    T.    Thiselton-Dyer,    F.R.S.,    315;    F.    V. 

Dickins,    316;    Prof.    E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.S.,  415,   4S6, 

558  ;  Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variations,  Right 

Rev.    Bishop    R.    Courtenay,    367  ;     Dr.    J.    Cowper,    368 ; 

Herbert  Spencer,  414  ;  Prof.  Geo.  J.  Romanes,  F.  R.S.,  437, 

511,  584  ;  Herbert  Spencer,  511  ;  R.  Haig  Thomas,  585 
Parallelogram  of  Forces,   Proof  of  the,  W.  E.  Johnson,  153  : 

Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  298 
Paramatta  Observatory,  88 
Parfitt  (Edward),  a  Marine  Millipede,  153 
Parhelia  and  Solar  Halos,  330  ;  J.  Lovell,  560 
Parinaud  (H.),  Strabismus,  72 
Paris  Academy  of  Sciences,  23,  48,  71,  94,  119,  143,  167,  214, 

263,  287,  311,  335,  358,  382,  406,  431,  455,  479,  503,  528, 

551.  575.  599;  Prizes  239 
Paris,  the  Effect  of  Railways  on  Instruments  in  the  Observatory 

at  Montsouris,  592 
Paris  Exhibition,  English  Men  of  Science  decorated  at,  17 
Paris,  Foreign  Students  in,  520 
Paris  from  the  Hygienic  Point  of  View,  French  Native  Colonists 

in,  427 
Parkes  (Louis  C),  Hygiene  or  Public  Health,  290 
Particles  and  Solids,  Elementary  Dynamics  of,  W.  M.  Hicks, 

F.R.S.,  534 
Pascoe  (Francis  P.),  Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs,  176 
Pasteur  Institute,  66 
Pasture  Plants,  Practical  Observations  on  Agricultural  Grasses 

and  other,  William  Wilson,  196 
Peal  (S.  E.),  Is  Greenland  our  Arctic  Ice  Cap?,  58 
Peculiar  Ice  Forms,  Prof.  J.  G.  MacGregor,  463 
Peddie  (Dr.),  New  Estimates  of  Molecular  Distance,  382 
Pegasi  (tj),  the  Companion  of,  69 
Pelew  Islands,  433 
Peltier,  Effect    and  Contact  E.M.F.,   Prof.   Oliver  T-   Lodge, 

F.R.S.,  224  J  S  > 

Pembrey  (M.  S.),  the  Evolution  of  Sex,  199 
Penck  (Dr.),  Area  of  Austro-Hungarian  Empire,  325 
Pendlebury  (W.  H.),  a  Case  of  Chemical  Equilibrium,  104 
Pendulum    (Kater),   Shuckburgh   Scale    and,   O.   H.    Tittman, 

538 
Pennyslvania,  Earthworms  from,  W.  B.  Benham,  560 
Peradeniya,  Ceylon,  Botanical  Laboratory  in  the  Royal  Gardens, 

445 
Periodic  Comets,  139 
Periodic  Law,  a  First  Foreshadowing  of  the,   P.  G.   Hartog, 

186 
Periscope  for  Navigating  Submarine  Boat,  349 
Perkin  (Dr.  W.  H.,  F.R.S.),  Magnetic  Rotation  of  Nitric  Acid, 

&c.,  142 
Permanence  of  Continents  and  Oceans,  Joseph  John  Murphy, 

175 

Permanent  Grass,  a  Field  laid  down  to.  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes, 
F.R.S.,  229 

Pemter  (Dr.),  General  Circulation  of  Atmosphere,  325 

Perry  (Prof.,  F.R.S.),  the  Behaviour  of  Twisted  Strips,  47 

Perry  (Rev.  S.  J.,  F.R.S.):  Sun-spots  in  High  Southern  Lati- 
tudes, 88  ;  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886,  88  ;  Obituary  Notice 
of,  279  ;  Last  Days  of.  Father  Strickland,  S.J.,  301 

Perspective,  Newton  in,  Robert  H.  Graham,  439 

Perthshire,  Earthquake  in,  256 

Peruvian  Arc,  the  Measurement  of,  E.  D.  Preston,  309 

Peters  (Dr.),  Reported  Massacre  of,  21 

Peters  (Dr.),  Star  Catalogue,  210 

Petit  (P.),  the  Carbon  Graphites,  31 1 

Petrie  (W.  M.  Flinders),  Early  Egyptian  Civilization,  109 

Pevtsoff  (Colonel),  Discovery  of  New  Pass  from  Nia  to  Tibet  by, 

327 
Pheasant-Culture  on  Pacific  Coast,  Dr.  Meriam,  137 


Phenanthraquinone  with  Metallic  Salts,  Compounds  of,  Japp  and 
Turner,  191 

Philadelphia,  American  Philosophical  Society,  136 

Philippine  Islands,  Ethnology  of  the,  Dr.  F.  Blumentritt,  327 

Phillips  (Reuben),  Globular  and  other  Forms  of  Lightning,  58 

Philology,  a  Uniform  System  of  Russian  Transliteration,  396  ; 
Chas.  E.  Groves,  F.R.S.,  534;  W.  F.  Kirhy,  535 

Philosophical  Institute  of  Canterbury,  N.Z.,  209 

Philosophy,  Synthetic,  F.  Howard  Collins,  340 

Phonograph,  the  Edison,  Use  in  Preserving  American  [Indian 
Languages,  J.  W.  Fewkes,  560 

Phosphorus,  Glow  of.  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  523 

Phosphorus  Trifluoride,  M.  Moissan,  349 

Photography  :  on  a  New  Application  of  Photography  to  the 
Demonstration  of  Certain  Physiological  Processes  in  Plants, 
Walter  Gardiner,  16  ;  Stellar  Parallax  by  Means  of  Photo- 
graphy, Prof.  Pritchard,  F.R.S.,  19;  Photography  of  the 
Red  End  of  Spectrum,  Colonel  J.  Waterhouse,  67  ;  Photo- 
graphic Star  Spectra,  115  ;  Die  mikroskopische  Beschaffenheit 
der  Meteoriten  erlautert  durch  photographische  Abbildungen, 
G.  Tschermak,  127  ;  Die  Structur  und  Zusammensetzung  der 
Meteoreisen  erlautert  durch  photographische  Abbildungen 
geatzter  Schnittflachen,  A.  Brezina  and  E.  Cohen,  127  ;  the 
Photographic  Society,  208  ;  Bihliotheque  Photographique,  P. 
Moessard,  224  ;  Application  of  Photography  to  the  Study  of 
Physical  Peculiarities  engendered  by  Different  Occupations,  M. 
Bertillon,  230;  the  Chemistry  of  Photography,  R.  Meldola, 
P\R.S.,  293  ;  Proposed  Exhibition  Illustrating  the  Applica- 
tion to  Meteorology  of  Photography,  301  ;  French  Wtrks  on 
Photography,  326;  Year-book  of  Photography,  1890,  326  ; 
Naturalistic  Photography,  P.  H.  Emerson,  366  ;  the  Camera. 
Club,  494  ;  Photographs  of  North  Celebes,  Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer, 
471  ;  Photographing  in  Natural  Colours,  Verescz's  Discovery 
as  to,  469  ;  Photography  in  Relation  to  Meteorological  Work, 
G.  M.  Whipple,  503  ;  British  Journal  Photographic  Almanac, 
1890,  510;  Suppression  of  Halos  in  Photographic  Plates, 
Paul  and  Prosper  Henry,  576  ;  La  Photographic  a  la  Lumiere 
du  Magnesium,  Dr.  J.  M.  Eder,  translated  by  H.  Gauthier- 
Villars,  584  ;  Photographic  Quarterly,  594 

Photo-lithographs  of  some  of  the  Principal  Grasses  found  at 
Hissar,  being  Illustrations  of  some  of  the  Grasses  of  the  Southern 
Punjab,  William  Coldstream,  533 

Photometer,  New  Contrast,  Dr.  Brodhun,  552 

Photometer,  a  New  Wedge,  E.  J.  Spitta,  287 

Photometric  Intensity  of  Coronal  Light,  Prof.  Thorpe,  F.R.S., 

139 
Phthisis,  Pulmonary,  Dr.  Weigert's  Treatment  of,  Prof.  Visconti, 

380 
Physician  admitted  to  Medical  Practice  in  Austria,  First  Lady, 

569 

Physician  as  Naturalist,  W.  T.  Gairdner,  436 

Physics :  Specific  Inductive  Capacity,  W.  A.  Rudge,  10 ; 
Physical  Society,  47,  166,  213,  309,  381,  477,  526,  574  ; 
Physics  of  the  Sub  oceanic  Crust,  Rev.  Osmond  Fisher,  A.  J. 
Jukes-Browne,  53  ;  ].  Starkie  Gardner,  103  ;  Elementary 
Physics,  by  M.  R.  Wright,  78  ;  Physical  Society  of  Beriin,  95  ; 
the  Characteristic  Temperatures,  Pressures,  and  Volumes  of 
Bodies,  Ladislas  Netanson,  167;  the  Relation  of  Physiological 
Action  to  Atomic  Weights,  Miss  Johnston  and  Prof.  Carnelley, 
189;  Behaviour  of  Steel  under  Mechanical  Stress,  C.  H. 
Carus- Wilson,  213  ;  Resonance  Method  of  Measuring  Constant 
of  Gravitation,  J.  Joly,  256  ;  Physical  and  Chemical  Charac- 
teristics of  Meteorites  as  throwing  Light  upon  their  Past 
History,  J.  Norman  Lockyer,  F.  R.S.,  305;  Physics  and 
Chemistry  of  the  Challenger  Expedition,  361  ;  Physical  Pro- 
perties of  Water,  Prof.  P,  G.  Tait,  416 ;  Prof.  Arthur  W. 
Riicker,  F.R.S.,  416;  Tension  of  Recently  Formed  Liquid 
Surfaces,  Lord  Rayleigh,  566 

Physiology :  on  a  New  Application  of  Photography  to  the  Demon- 
stration of  Physiological  Processes  in  Plants,  Walter  Gardiner, 
16  ;  the  Coiled  Glands  in  the  Skin,  Dr.  Benda,  24  ;  Iron  in  the 
Animal  Organism,  Dr.  Schneider,  24 ;  Physiological  Notes^ 
on  Primary  Education  and  the  Study  of  Language,  Mary 
Putnam  Jacobi,  28  ;  Physiology  at  the  University  of  Cam- 
bridge, 41  ;  Mechanism  of  Local  Lesion  in  Infectious  Diseases, 
Ch.  Bouchard,  48  ;  Local  Paralysis  of  Peripheral  Ganglia 
and  Connection  of  Nerve-fibres  with  them,  Langley  and 
Dickinson,  118  ;  on  the  Absorption  of  Fats  and  Fatty  Acids- 
in  the  Absence  of  Bile  in  the  Intestine,  Dr.  J.  Munk,  I19  ; 
on  Diastases  secreted  by  Bacillus  heminccrobiophilus,  M. 
Arloing,  143  ;  the  Influence  of  Blood-Circulation  and  Breath- 


XXIV 


INDEX 


[Nature,  May  22,  1890 


ing  on  Mind-Life,  Prof.  Leumann,  209 ;  Electrical  Negative 
Variation  of  Heart  accompanying  Pulse,  Dr.  Aug.  Waller, 
288  ;  Outlying  Nerve-Cells  in  Mammalian  Spinal  Cord,  C.  S. 
Sherrington,  388  ;  the  Cortical  Visual  Areas,  Dr.  J.  Munk, 
407  ;  Influence  of  Bodily  Labour  on  Metabolism  of  Man,  Dr. 
Katzenstein's  Experiments,  479  ;  Physiology  of  Bodily  Exer- 
cise, Dr.  Fernand  Lagrange,  485  ;  Voluntary  Muscular 
Contraction,  Dr.  Haycraft,  495  ;  Development  of  Ciliary 
Ganglion,  Dr.  J.  C.  Ewart,  501  ;  Fat  the  only  Food  leaving 
Intestines  by  Lacteals,  Dr.  J.  Munk,  504 ;  Myelin,  Dr. 
Heymans,  528  ;  Sensitiveness  of  Articular  Surfaces  of  Joints, 
Dr.  Goldscheider,  528  ;  Physiology  of  Sponges,  Dr.  Lenden- 
feld,  570 

Pickering  (Prof.  E.  C),  Variable  Star  in  Cluster  G.C.  3636, 
183  ;  on  the  Spectrum  of  C  Ursse  Majoris,  285  ;  on  C  Ursse 
Majoris  and  /3  Aurigse,  403  ;  Pole-Star  Recorder,  491  ; 
New  Variable  in  Caelum,  571 

Pickering  (Prof.  S.  U.),  Isolation  of  Tetrahydrate  of  Sulphuric 
Acid  existing  in  Solution,  142  ;  Theory  of  Osmotic  Pressure, 
526 

Picton  (Harold,  F.R.S.),  the  Story  of  Chemistry,  292 

Pietra  Papale,  La,  Dr.  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S.,  31 

Pigment,  Carotine,  in  Alpine  Lake  Crustacean,  Discovery  by 
Prof.  Raphael  Blanchard  of,  325 

Pigment  of  the  Touraco  and  the  Tree  Porcupine,  Frank  E, 
Beddard,  152 

Pilot  Chart  of  North  Atlantic,  284 

Pinks  of  Western  Europe,  F.  N.  Williams,  78 

Pinnow  (Dr.),  Analysis  of  Carcote  (Chili)  Meteorite,  428 

Pinol,  Nitrosochloride  of,  a  New  Isomer  of  Camphor,  44 

Pipe,  Interesting  American  Indian,  H.  B.  Bashore,  303 

Pisciculture  :  Change  in  Character  of  Salmon  Acclimatized  in 
Tasmania,  43 ;  the  Habits  of  the  Salmon,  Major  John  P. 
Traherne,  74 

Planck  (Prof.),  Development  of  Electricity  and  Heat  in  Dilute 
Electrolytic  Solutions,  215 

Planet,  Minor  (12),  Victoria,  Dr.  Gill,  139 

Planets,  the  Movement  of,  F.  Tisserand,  406 

Plantamour  (M. ),  Periodic  Ground-movements,  373 

Plants,  Diseases  of.  Prof.  H.  Marshall  Ward,  F.R.S.,  436 

Plants,  Fossil,  of  Coal- Measures,  Organization  of,  Prof.  W.  C. 
Williamson,  F.R.S.,  573 

Plants,  on  a  New  Application  of  Photography  to  the  Demonstra- 
tion of  certain  Physiological  Processes  in,  Walter  Gardiner, 
16 

Plants,  Prof.  Walter  Gardiner  on  how  they  maintain  themselves 
in  the  Struggle  for  Existence,  90 

Piatt  (Margaret)  and  the  Chemical  Laboratory  at  Stalybridge 
Mechanics'  Institute,  85 

Playfair  (Sir  Lyon,  F.  R.  S. ),  the  Need  for  Vital  Improvements  in 
English  Education,  180 

Plummer  (William  E.),  New  Light  from  Solar  Eclipses,  William 
M.  Page,  529 

Pluvinel  (M.  A.  De  La  Baume),  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  December 
22,  1889,  428 

Pocock  (R.  I.),  ,a  Marine  Millipede,  176 

Poincare  (M.),  Equations  aux  Derivees  Partielles  de  la  Physique 
Mathematique,  525 

Politics,  Elements  of  Historical  and  Practical,  Woodrow  Wilson, 
196 

Polynesia,  Through  Atolls  and  Islands  in  the  Great  South  Sea, 
F.  T.  Moss,  151 

Polytechnic,  a  South  London,  481 

Polytechnics  for  London,  242 

Pontevedra,  Remarkable  Meteor  at,  Dr.  E.  Caballero,  303 

Poona  Bacteriological  Laboratory,  469 

Pope  (R.  Barrett),  Thought  and  Breathing,  297 

Popocatepetl,  the  Eruption  of  the  Volcano,  592 

Porcupine,  Tree,  the  Pigment  of  the,  Frank  E.  Beddard, 
152 

Portugal,  Earthquake  in,  401 

Potsdam  Magnetic  Observatory,  Dr.  Eschenhagen,  479 

Powell  (J.  W.),  Sixth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethno- 
logy to  the  Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  1884-85, 

99 
Prehistoric  Textiles,  Herr  Buschan,  182 
Preservative,  a,  for  Animal  Tissues,  H.  Leslie  Osborn,  199 
Pressure-Gauge,   Bourdon's :  Prof.   A.   M.   Worthington,   296  ; 

Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  517 
Preston  (E.  D. ),  Measurement  of  the  Peruvian  Arc,  309 
Prestwich  (Prof.  Joseph,  F.R.S.) :  Relation  of  Westleton  Beds 


of  Suffolk  and  Norfolk,  238  ;  Relation  of  "  Pebbly  Sands  "  of 

Suffolk  to  those  of  Norfolk,  Part  iii.,  502 
Primitive  Types  of  Mammalian  Molars,  465 
Primrose,  a  Blue,  569 
Prince  (C.    L.),    Preponderance  of  North- East   Winds  during 

Past  Five  Years,  470 
Pringsheim  (Dr.  E.),  Kirchoffs  Law  and  Gaseous  Radiation, 

480 
Prism,   Bertrand's  Idiocyclophanous,    Prof.    S.    P.   Thompson, 

574 
Pritchard  (Prof.,  F.R.S.),  Stellar  Parallax  by  Means  of  Photo- 
graphy, 19 
Probabilities,  Calculus  of,  J.  Bertrand,  6 
Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  114 
Prominences,  Solar  Spots  and,  Prof.  Tacchini,  233 
Propagation  of  Gravitation,  Velocity  of  the,  J.  Van  Hepperger, 

472 
Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs  :    Dr.   Alfred  R.    Wallace,   53  ; 

Rev.  Fred.  F.  Grensted,  53  ;  E.  B.  Titchener,  129 
Prussia,  Wapiti  Acclimatized  in,  546 
Przewalsky's  (N.  M. )  Zoological  Discoveries,  468 
Psychology  of  Attention,  Th.  Ribot,  460 
Psychology:  the  Society  for  Psychical  Research,  17 
Public  School,  Suggestions  for  the  Formation  and  Arrangement 

of  a  Museum  of  Natural   History  in  connection  with  a.  Prof. 

W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.,  177 
Puffin  Island  Marine  Biological  Station,  304 
Pulsion  Mechanical  Telephone,  65 
Punjab  Forest  Administration  Report,  520 
Purtscheller  (Prof.),  the  Ascent  of  Kilimanjaro,  164 


Quantitative  Analysis,  Introductory  Lessons  in,  John  Mills  and 

Barker  North,  197 
Quarter  Squares,  the  Method  of,  J.  W.  L.  Glaisher,  F.R.S.,  9 
Quarterly  Journal  of  Microscopical  Science,  549 
Quenstedt  (Prof,  von).  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  400 
Quesneville  (Dr.),  Death  of,  84 
Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the  Pacific  Slope,  Geology  of  the,  G.  F. 

Becker,  532 


Radiation  by   Gas-Flame,  Luminous    and  Non-Luminous,    Sir 

John  Conroy,  357 
Rafify  (L.),  Determination  of  Regulated  Harmonic  Surfaces,  359 
Railway,  North-Eastern  :  the  Latest  Express  Compound  Loco- 
motive, 448 
Railway,  Proposed  Jungfrau,  Herr  Trautweiler,  303 
Railways,  the  Effect  of,  on  Instruments  in  Observatories,  592 
Railways  of  England  and  Scotland,  W^.  M.  Acworth,  434 
Rainbow  due   to   Sunlight   Reflected  from   the   Sea,    Sir  W. 

Thomson,  F.R.S.,  271  ;  W.  Scouller,  271 
Rainbows,  Eight,  seen  at  the  same  time.  Sir  William  Thomson, 

F.R.S.,  316  ;  Dr.  Percival  Frost,  F.R.S.,  316 
Rainfall  in  America,  92 

Rainfall  of  the  Earth,  by  late  Prof.  Loomis,  Dr.  van  Bebber,  43 
Rainfall  of  Germany  1876  -85,  Dr.  H.  Meyer,  85 
Ramsay  (Prof.  William,  F.R.S.):  Compounds  of  Selenium,  343; 

Nitrous  Anhydride  and  Nitric  Peroxide,  454 
Raoult  (F.  M.),  Vapour-pressure  of  Acetic  Acid  Solutions,  431 
Rat,  the  Old  English  Black,  in  Cornwall,  Thos.  Cornish,  161 
Rat  Plague  in  Laccadive  Islands,  303 
Raven,  the  Anatomy  of  the.  Dr.  R,  W.  Shufeldt,  594 
Rayleigh  (Lord,  F.  R.  S. ),  Tension  of  Recently  Formed  Liquid 

Surfaces,  566 
Reade  (T.  Mellard) :  Does  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  Increase  ? 

175  ;  Area  of  the  Land  and  Depths  of  the  Oceans  in  Former 

Periods,  103 
Reading  Room,  British  Museum,  Ventilation  of,  199 
Recoura  (A.),  Vapour- pressure  of  Acetic  Acid  Solutions,  431 
Red  Sea,  Locusts  in  the,  G.  T.  Carruthers,  153 
Redway  (J.  W.),  Teacher's  Manual  of  Geography,  78 
Refractometer,  Bertrand's,  Dr.  S.  P.  Thompson,  526 
Reinach  (S.),  Rock-Sepulchre  at  Vaphio,  Morea,  500 
Reinhold  (Major),  Botanical  Condition  of  German  Ocean,  569 
Reinke  (Dr.  J.)  :  a  New  Atlas   of  Algas,    127  ;  the   Botanical 

Institute  and  Marine  Station  at  Kiel,  397 
Religion  of  the  Semites,  Lectures  on  the,  Prof.   W.    Robertson 

Si^ith,  337 
Renard   (Prof.   A.):  Phenyl-Thiophene,   48;    Rock- Specimens 

collected  on  Oceanic  Islands,  363 


Nature,  May  2Z,  1890] 


INDEX 


XXV 


Rendiconti  del  Reale  Istituto  Lombardo,  212,  380 

Resonance,  Electric,  Easy  Lecture  Experiment  in.  Prof.  Oliver 

J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.,  368 
Respighi  (Prof.  Lorenzo) :  Death  of,   160  ;  Obituary  Notice  of, 

W.  T.  Lynn,  254 
Reumeaux  (M.),  Fall  of  Miner  down  loo-metre  Shaft  without 

being  killed,  471 
Review,  New  Russian  Natural  Science,  409 

Reviews  and  Our  Book  Shelf  :— 

Modern    Views    of    Electricity,    Prof.    Oliver    J.     Lodge, 

F.R.S.,5 
Calcul  des  Probabilites,  J-  Bertrand,  6 
Argentine  Ornithology,  P.   L.    Sclater,   F.R  S.,  and  W.  H. 

Hudson,  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe,  7 
Chemistry  of  the  Coal-Tar  Colours,  Dr.  R.  Benedikt,  8 
Bibliography  of  Geodesy,  J.  Howard  Gore,  9 
Lund  Museum  in  the  University  of  Copenhagen,  26 
Hydraulic  Motors,  Turbines    and  Pressure  Engines,  G.   R. 

Bodmer,  27 
Physiological  Notes  on  Primary  Education  and  the  Study  of 

Language,  Mary  Putnam  Jacobi,  28 
Steam- Engine  Design,  Jay  M.  Whitham,  29 
Coloured  Analytical  Tables,  H.  W.  Hake,  29 
Story  of  a  Tinder- Box,  Chas.  M.  Tidy,  30 
Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Andrew  Jamieson,  30 
Time  and  Tide,  a  Romance  of  the  Moon,  Sir  Robert  S.  Ball, 

F.R.S.,  30 
Chemical    and  Physical    Studies    in    the    Metamorphism    of 

Rocks,  based  on  the  Thesis  written  for  the  D.Sc.  Degree 

in  the  University  of  London,  1888,  Rev.  A.  Irving,  49 
Hand-book  of  Descriptive  and  Practical  Astronomy,  G.   F. 

Chambers,  49 
Proceedings  of  the  National  Electric  Light  Association  at  its 

Ninth  Convention,  1889,  50 
Enumeratio  Specierum  Varietatumque  Generis  Dianthus,  F. 

N.  Williams,  51 
Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Arthur  W.  Poyser,  52 
Engineer's  Sketch-Book,  Thos.  Walter  Barber,  52 
Life  of  John  Davis,  Clements  R.  Markham,  53 
Brook  and  its  Banks,  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood,  53 
The  Zoo,  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood,  53 

The  Habits  of  the  Salmon,  by  Major  John  P.  Traherne,  74 
An  Elementary  Text-book  of  Geology,  by  W.  Jerome  Harri- 
son, 75 
A  Contribution  to  the  Flora  of  Derbyshire,  by  the  Rev,  W. 

H.  Painter,  77 
Science  of  Every-day  Life,  by  J.  A.  Bower,  78 
Elementary  Physics,  by  M.  R.  Wright,  78 
Teacher's  Manual  of  Geography,  by  J.  W.  Redway,  78 
Notes  on  Pinks  of  Western  Europe,  by  F.  N.  Williams,  78 
American  Resorts,  with  Notes  upon  their  Climate,  iB,  W. 

James,  79 
Idylls  of  the  Field,  by  Francis  A.  Knight,  79 
Sixth   Annual    Report   of  the  Bureau  of   Ethnology    to  the 

Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  1884-85,  99 
Traite  pratique  de  la  Thermometrie  de  Precision,  Ch.    Ed. 

Guillaume,  Dr.  Edmund  J.  Mills,  F.R.S.,  100 
Fauna  of  British  India,  including  Ceylon  and  Burma,  loi 
La  France  Prehistorique,  Emile  Cartailhac,  102 
Experimental  Science,  Geo.  M.  Hopkins,  102 
A  Manual   of  Forestry,    William    Schlich,   Sir  D.   Brandis, 

F.R.S.,  121 
A  Popular  Treatise  on  the  Winds,  William  Ferrel,  124 
Atlas  deutscher  Meeresalgen,  Dr.  J.  Reinke,  127 
Die  mikroskopische  Beschaffenheit  der  Meteoriten  erlautert 

durch  photographische  Abbildungen,  G.  Tschermak,  127 
Die  Structur  und  Zusammensetzung  der  Meteoreisen  erlautert 

durch     photographische     Abbildungen     geatzter    Schnitt- 

flachen,  A.  Brezina  and  E,  Cohen,  127 
Die  Meteoritensammlung  des  k.k.  mineralog.  Hofkabinetes  in 

Wien,  A.  Brezina,  127 
Introduction  to  Chemical  Science,  R.  P.  Williams  and  B.  P. 

I  ^sccllcs    1 2o 
The  Cradle' of  the  Aryans,  Gerald  H.  Rendall,  128 
A  Monograph  of  the  Horny  Sponges,  by  Robert  von  Lenden- 

feld,  146 
The  Flora  of  Suffolk,  by  Dr.  W.  M.  Hind,  149 
Iron  and  Steel  Manufacture,  by  Arthur  H.  Hiorns,  150 
On  the  Creation  and  Physical  Structure  of  the  Earth,  by  J.  T. 

Harrison,  151 


Through  Atolls  and  Islands  in  the  Great  South  Sea,  by  F.  J. 

Moss,  151 
Notes  on  Sport  and  Ornithology,  H.I.H.  the  late  Crown 

Prince  Rudolph  of  Austria,  169 
Matabele  Land  and  the  Victoria  Falls,  Frank  Oates,  169 
Index  Generum  Avium,  F.  W.  Waterhouse,  169 
The  Birds  of  Oxfordshire,  O.  V.  Aplin,  169 
The  Birds  of  Berwickshire,  Geo.  Muirhead,  169 
The  Birds  in  My  Garden,  W.  T.  Greene,  169 
The  Viking  Age,  Paul  B.  Du  Chaillu,  173 
A   Glossary  of   Anatomical,   Physiological,    and    Biologica) 

Terms,  T.  Dunman,  173 
A  Contribution  to  the  Physical  History  and  Zoolc^  of  the 

Somers  Archipelago,  with  an  Examination  of  the  Structure 

of  Coral  Reefs,  Angelo  Heilprin,  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy,  193 
The  Useful  Plants  of  Australia,  J.  H.  Maiden,  194 
Mount  Vesuvius,  J.  Logan  Lobley,  195 
Index  of  British  Plants,  Robert  Tumbull,  196 
Practical   Observations    on   Agricultural   Grasses  and   other 

Pasture  Plants,  William  Wilson,  196 
The    State,    Elements  of  Historical  and  Practical  Politics, 

Woodrow  Wilson,  196 
Introductory  Lessons  in  Quantitative   Analysis,  John   Mills 

and  Barker  North,  197 
Report  on  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Voyage  of  H.M.S. 

Challenger  during  the  Years  1873-76,  under  the  Command 

of  Captain  George  S.  Nares,  F.R.S.,  and  the  late  Captain 

Frank  T.  Thomson,  217 
Vertebrate  Animals  of  Leicestershire  and  Rutland,  Montagu 

Browne,  220 
Scientific  Papers  of  Asa  Gray,  W.  Bolting  Hemsley,  F.R.S., 

221 
Manures  and  their  Uses,  Dr.  A.  B.  Griffiths,  222 
Histoire   Naturelle  des   Cetaces  des   Mers  d'Europe,  P.   J. 

Van  Beneden,  223 
Hand-book  of  Practical  Botany  for  the  Botanical  Laboratory 

and  Private  Student,  E.  Strasburger,  223 
Traite  d'Optique,  M.  E.  Mascart,  J.  D.  Everett,  224 
Bibliotheque  Photographique,  P.  Moessard,  224 
Hand-book  of  Modern  Explosives,  M.  Eissler,  224 
Text-book  of  Assaying,    C.    Beringer  and  J.   J.   Beringer, 

Thomas  Gibb,  245 
The  Microscope  in  the  Brewery  and  Malt-house,  Chas.  Geo. 

Mathews  and  Francis  Edw.  Lott,  246 
Flower- Land,  an  Introduction  to  Botany,  Robert  Fisher,  247 
Five  Months'  Fine  Weather  in  Canada,  Western  U.S.,  and 

Mexico,  Mrs.  E.  H.  Carbutt,  247 
A  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant  in  the  Shan  States,  Holt 

S.  Hallett,  265 
The  Lesser  Antilles,  Owen  J.  Bulkeley,  268 
A  Text-book  of  Human  Anatomy,  Prof.   Alex.  Macalister, 

F.R.S.,  269 
A  Treatise  on  Ordinary  and  Partial  Differential  Equations, 

W.  W.  Johnson,  270 
The  Land  of  an  African  Sultan,  Travels  in  Morocco,  1887- 

88-89,  W.  B.  Harris,  270 
Wayside  Sketches,  F.  Edward  Hulme,  270 
Hygiene,  or  Public  Health,  Louis  C.  Parkes,  290 
Im   Hochgebirge,  Wanderungen  von  Dr.   Emil  Zsigmondy, 

291 
The  Story  of  Chemistry,  Harold  Picton,  F.R.S.,  292 
Les  Animaux  et  les  Vegetaux  Lumineux,  Henri  Gadeau  de 

Kerville,  W.  A.  Herdman,  293 
Chemistry  of  Photography,  R.  Meldola,  F.R.S.,  293 
The  Popular  Works  of  Johann  Gottlieb  Fichte,  294 
Travels  in  France,  Arthur  Young,  294 
East  Africa  and  its  Big  Game,  Captain  Sir  John  C.  Willoughby, 

298 
Einiges  uber  die  Enstehung  der  Korallenriffe  in  der  Javasee 

und  Branntweinsbai,  und   liber  neue  Korallenbildung   bei 

Krakatau,  Dr.  C.  Ph.  Sluiter,  303 
Lectures  on  the  Religion  of  the  Semites,  the  Fundamental 

Institutions,  W.  Robertson  Smith,  337 
Algebra  :  an  Elementary  Text-book  for  the  Higher  Classes 

of  Secondary  Schools  and  for  Colleges,  G.  Chrystal,  338 
The  Micro-organisms  of  Fermentation  practically  considered, 

Alfred  Jorgensen,  Prof.  Percy  F.  Frankland,  339 
An  Epitome  of  the  Synthetic  Philosophy,  F.  Howard  Collins, 

340 
The  Earth  and  its  Story,  edited  1  y  Dr.  Robert  Broun,  34X 
Steam,  William  Ripper,  341 


XXVI 


INDEX 


'{Nature,  May  22,  1890 


Australia  Twice  Traversed,  Ernest  Giles,  341 

New  Zealand  for  the  Emigrant,  Invalid,  and  Tourist,  John 

Murray  Moore,  342 
Report  on  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Exploring  Voyage  of 

H.M.S.  Challenger,  361 
The  Human  Foot,  Thos.  S.  Ellis,  365 
Das  australische  Florenelement  in  Europa,   Dr.    Constantin 

Freiherr  von  Ettingshausen,  365 
Is    the    Copernican    System    of  Astronomy    True?,    W.   S. 

Cassedy,  366 
Naturalistic  Photography,  P.  H.  Emerson,  366 
A   Dictionary  of   Applied  Chemistry,    Prof^    T.   E.    Thorpe, 

F.R.S.,  Vol.  I.,  387 
Oates's  Ornithology  of  India,  388 

The  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  by  Allan  O.  Hume,  388 
Die  Arten  der  Gattung  Ephedra,  by  Dr.  Otto  Slapf,  390 
Geological  Mechanism,  by  J.  Spottiswoode  Wilson,  390 
The  Scenery  of  the  Heavens,  by  J.  E.  Gore,  391 
A  Trip  to  the  Eastern  Caucasus,  by  the   Hon.  John  Aber- 

cromby,  391 
Gimpses  of  Animal  Life,  W.  Jones,  409 
Toilers  in  the  Sea,  M.  C.  Cooke,  409 
Les  Industries  des  Animaux,  F.  Houssay,  409 
A  General  Formula  for  the  Uniform  Flow  of  Water  in  Rivers 

and  other  Channels,  E.  Ganguillet  and  W.  R.  Kutter,  411 
Der  Kompass  an  Bor.i,  Dr.  Neumayer,  412 
Library  Reference  Atlas  of  the  World,  John  Bartholomew,  413 
The  Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caernarvonshire  and  Associated 

Rocks ;  being  the  Sedgwick  Prize  Essay  for  1888,  Alfred 

Harker,  414 
Ethnographische  Beitrage  zur  Kenntniss  des  Karolinen  Archi- 

pels,  J.  S.  Kubary,  433 
Railways  of  England,  Railways  of  Scotland,  W.  M.  Acworth, 

434 
Diseases  of  Plants,  Prof.  H.  Marshall  Ward,  F.R.S.,  436 
The  Physician  as  Naturalist,  W.  T.  Gairdner,  436 
Materials  for  a  Flora  of  the  Malayan  Peninsula,   Dr.  Geo. 

King,  F.R.S.,  437 
Report  of  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Voyage  of  H.M.S. 

Challenger  during  the  Years  1873-76,  443 
A  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes,    Sydney  J.  Hickson,  Dr.  F. 

H.  H.  Guillemard,  457 
The  Elastical  Researches  of  Barre  de  Saint-Venant,  Prof.  A. 

G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  458 
Hues's  Treatise  on  the  Globes  (1592),  459 
The  Psychology  of  Attention,  Th.  Ribot,  460 
Handleiding  tot  de  Kennis  der  Flora  van  Nederlandsch  Indie, 

461 
The  Elements  of  Laboratory  Work,  A.  G.  Earl,  461 
Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Prof.  Jamieson,  461 
Astronomy  with  an  Opera  Glass,  Garrett  P.  Serviss,  462 
Wissenschaftliche  Resultate  der  von  N.  M.  Przewalski  nach 

Central- Asien  unternommenen  Reisen,  468 
Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer's  Celebes  Photographs,  471 
Geologische  Uebersichtskarte    der   Alpen,    Dr.    Franz   Noe, 

Prof.  T.  G.  Bonney,  F.R.S.,  483 
Old  Age,  Geo.  M.  Plumphrey,  484 
Elements  of  Astronomy,  Prof.  C.  A.  Young,  485 
Physiology  of  Bodily  Exercise,  Dr.  Fernand  Lagrange,  485 
Boilers,  Marine  and  Land,  T.  W.  Traill,  486 
History  and  Pathology  of  Vaccination,    E.   M.  Crookshank, 

Dr.  Robert  Cory,  486 
Cave    Fauna   of    North    America,    with    Remarks    on    the 
Anatomy  of  the  Brain,  and  Origin  of  Blind  Species,  A.  S. 
Packard,  507 
A  Treatise  on  Linear  Differential  Equations,  Thomas  Craig, 

508 
Bacteria  of  Asiatic  Cholera,  Dr.  E.  Klein,  509 
Manuel  de  I'Analyse  des  Vins,  Ernest  Barillot,  510 
British  Journal  Photographic  Almanac,  1890,  510 
Four- Figure  Mathematical  Tables,  J.   T.  Bottomley,  F.R.S., 

510 
New  Lights  from  Solar  Eclipses,  William  M.  Page,  William 

E.  Plummer,  529 

The  Evolution  of  Sex,  Prof.   Patrick  Geddes  and  J.   Arthur 

Thomson,  531 
Geology  of  the  Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the  Pacific  Slope,  G. 

F.  Becker,  532 

Illustrations  of  some  of  the  Grasses  of  the  Southern  Punjab, 
being  Photo-lithographs  of  some  of  the  Principal  Grasses 
found  at  Hissar,  William  Coldstream,  533 


Elementary  Dynamics  of  Particles  and  Solids,  W,  M.  Hicks, 

F.R.S.,  534 
Catalogue  of  the  Fossil  Reptilia  and  Amphibia  in  British 

Museum  (Natural  History),  Richard  Lydekker,  534 
The  Growth  of  Capital,  by  Robert  Giffen,  553 
Contributions  to  the  Fauna  of  Mergui  and  its  Archipelago, 

556 

How  to  know  Grasses  by  their  Leaves,  by  A.  N.  M' Alpine, 

557 
Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of  Cartography,  with 
Reproductions  of  the  most  Important  Maps  printed  in  the 
Fifteenth  and  Sixteenth  Centuries,  by  A.  E.  Nordenskiold, 

558 
Light  and  Heat,  by  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Aveling,  558 
Warren's  Table    and    Formula    Book,   by   the    Rev.    Isaac 

Warren,  558 
Short  Lectures  to  Electrical  Artisans,  J.  A.  Fleming,  561 
Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity  and  Magnetism,  Andrew 

Gray,  561 
Theory  and  Practice  of  Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity 

and  Magnetism,  Andrew  Gray,  561 
Electricity  in  Modern  Life,  G.  W.  de  Tunzelmann,  561 
Cultivated  Oranges  and  Lemons  of  India  and  Ceylon,   Dr. 

E.  Bonavia,  C.  B.  Clarke,  F.R.S.,  579 
A   Naturalist  among  the  Head-hunters,   C.    M.    Woodford, 

582 
Recherches  sur  les  Tremblements  de  Terre,  Jules  Girard,  583 
La  Photographic  a  la  Lumiere  du  Magnesium,    Dr.   J,  M. 

Eder,  translated  by  H.  Gauthier-Villars,  584 
Un  Viaggio  a  Nias,  Elio  Modigliani,  Prof.  Giglioli,  587 

Revue  d'Anthropologie,  357 

Revue  Generale  des  Sciences  Pureset  Appliquees,  160 

Reymond  (Dr.  Rene  du  Bois),  on  the  Striated  Muscles  ot  the 
Tench,  95 

Rhizocarps,  Fossil:  Sir  J.  Wm.  Dawson,  F.R.S.,  10;  Alfred 
W.  Bennett,  154 

Ribot  (Th.),  Psychology  of  Attention,  460 

Ricco  (Prof.),  Sun-Spot  of  June,  July,  and  August,  1889,  115 

Richardson  (Dr.  A.),  Action  of  Light  on  Moist  Oxygen,  142 

Righi  (Prof.),  New  Method  of  Measuring  Differences  of  Poten- 
tial of  Contact,  18 

Rings  of  Saturn,  Stability  of  the,  O.  Callandreau,  548 

Ripper  (William),  Steam,  341 

Rivista  Scientifico-Industriale,  380 

Road  at  Sea,  Rule  of  the.  Admiral  Colomb,  515 

Roberts  (A.  Ernest),  the  Relation  of  the  Soil  to  Tropical 
Diseases,  31 

Roberts  (Isaac),  a  Photographic  Method  for  Determining  Varia- 
bility in  Stars,   332 

Roberts-Austen  (Prof.  W.  C,  F.R.S.)  :  on  the  Hardening  and 
Tempering  of  Steel,  11,32;  the  Relation  between  Atomic 
Volumes  of  Elements  present  in  Iron  and  their  Influence  on 
its  Molecular  Structure,  420 

Robinson  (H.  H.),  Frangulin,  262 

Roborovsky  (Colonel),  Expedition  in  Central  Asia,  234  ;  Dis- 
covery of  New  Pass  from  Nia  to  Tibet  by,  327 

Rock- Sepulchre  in  Morea,  Vaphio,  S.  Reinach,  500 

Rock- Specimens  Collected  in  Oceanic  Islands,  Prof.  A.  Renard, 

363 

Rocks,  the  Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caernarvonshire  and  Asso- 
ciated, being  the  Sedgwick  Prize  Essay  for  1888,  Alfred 
Harker,  414 

Rocks,  Chemical  and  Physical  Studies  in  the  Metamorphism  of, 
Rev.  A.  Irving,  49 

"Rollers,"  the,  of  Ascension  and  St.  Helena,  Prof.  Cleveland 
Abbe,  585 

Romanes   (Prof.  Geo.  J.,  F.R.S.):  Darwinism,  59  ;  Galls,  80, 

■  174,  369  ;  Panmixia,  437,  511,  585;  Before  and  After  Darwin, 
524  ;  Like  to  Like,  a  Fundamental  Principle  in   Bionomics, 

535  ^    , 

Rome :    Earthquake  at,    401  ;     Solar    Observations    at.    Prof. 

Tacchini,  595 

Rorqual  musculus  Stranded  in  Medoc  District,  113 

Roscoe    (Sir    Henry,    M.P.,    F.R.S.):    the  City  Guilds   and 

Technical  Education,  160 ;  on  the  Future  of  our  Technical 

Education,  183;  Technical  Education  Bill,  493  ;  a  Dictionary 

of  Applied  Chemistry  by  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.  R.S.,  Vol.  I., 

387 
Rose  (T.  Kirke),  the  New  Assistant  Surveyor  at  Royal  Mint, 

493 
Rosenberger  (Otto),  Death  of,  324 


Nature^  May  22,  1890J 


INDEX 


XXVll 


Rotation  of  Mercury,  on  the,  Signer  Schiaparelli,  257 

Roth  (Ily.  Ling)  :  a  Surviving  Tasmanian  Aborigine,   105 

Roth  (Herr),  on  the  South  American  Pampas  Formation,  231 

Roumania,  Meteorological  Institute  of,  181 

Roux  (G.),  Morphology  and  Biology  of  OiJium  albicans,  72 

Rowley   (F.  R. ),   on  a  Mite  of  the  Genus  Telranychus  found 

Infesting  Lime-trees  in  the  Leicester  Museum  Grounds,  31 
Royal  Botanic  Society,  448,  494 

Royal  Geographical  Society,  351  ;  Honours  for  1890,  571 
Royal  Horticultural  Society,  182,  282 
Royal  Institution  Lecture  Arrangements,    136,  181,  256,  426, 

519,  545 
Royal  Irish  Academy,  469 
Royal  Meteorological  Society,  93,  212,  301,  358,  406,  503,  598; 

Exhibition  of  the,  491 
Royal  Microscopical  Society,  93,  191,  263,  335,  371,  550 
Royal  Society,    17,  118,  140,  166,  189,  212,  237,  287,  309,332, 

357,  380,430,  477,   501,  525,  550,   573.    598;    Medals,  41  ; 

Anniversary   Meeting.    84,    1 16,    234;    Election   of   Foreign 

Members   of,    135  ;    Key    to    the  Royal    Society  Catalogue, 

James   McConnel,  342,  391,  418  ;    the  Government  Grant, 

347  ;  the  Royal  Society  Proceedings,  400 
Royal  Society  of  New  South  Wales,   311;   Prizes  offered  by, 

349 
Royal  Society  of  Tasmania,  43 

Royal  Victoria  Hall  and  Morley  Memorial  College,  343 
Rubens  (Dr.),  Use  of  Bolometer  for  Observing  Electrical  Radia- 
tions of  Hertz,  504 
Riicker  (Prof.   Arthur   W.,    F.R.S.)  :    Physical    Properties   of 
Water,  416;   and   Prof.   T.   E.   Thorpe,   F.R.S.,    Magnetic 
Surveys  of  Special  Districts  in  the  British  Isles,  598 
Rudge  (W.  A.),  Specific  Inductive  Capacity,  10 
Ruhemann  (Dr.  S.),  Action  of  Chloroform  and  Alcoholic  Potash 

on  Hydrazines,  263 
Rule  of  the  Road  at  Sea,  Admiral  Colomb,  515 
Russell  (Hon.  F.  A.  R. ),  the  Causes  and  Character  of  Haze,  60 
Russell  (H,  C),  Meteorology  of  New  South  Wales,  113 
Russia  :    Russian  Botanical   Appointments,  42  ;    Geography  in 
Russia,  Baron  Kaulbars,  208 ;  Russian  Geographical  Society, 
and  the  Black  Sea,  348  ;  Russian  Academy  of  Sciences,  302  ; 
Eighth    Congress   of   Russian  Naturalists,    356 ;    a  Uniform 
System  of  Russian  Transliteration,  396  ;    Chas.    E.   Groves, 
F.R.S.,    534;    W.    F.    Kirby,  535;    Mammoth   Skeleton  in 
Russia,  448  ;  New  Russian  Natural  Science  Review,  469 
Rutley  (Frank),  Composite  Spheruiites  in  Obsidian  from  Hot 
Springs  near  Little  Lake,  California,  551 


Sacchiero  (G.  B.),  the  Chin  Tribes,  North  Burma,  375 

St.  Andrews,  Bequest  of  ;i^ioo,ooo  to  the  University  of,  41 

St.  Helena  :  the  Native  Ebony  of,  Morris,  519  ;  the  "  Rollers" 

of,  Prof.  Cleveland  Abbe,  585 
St.   Louis  Botanic  Garden,  the  Shaw  Bequest  for  the  Endow- 
ment of  the,  324 
St.  Louis,  Earthquake  at,  18 
St.  Petersburg  Academy  of  Sciences,  495 
St.  Petersbuig  Problem,  the,  Sydney  Lupton,  165 
Saint-Venant  (Barre  de),  the  Elastical   Researches  of,  Prof.  A. 

G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  458 
Salad-Plants,  H.  de  Vilmorin,  494 
Salet  (G.),  the  Blue  Flame  of  Common  Salt,  383 
Salisbury  (the  Marquis  of)  :  on  Electrical  Science,  21  ;  on  Free 

Education,  84 
Salmon,  the  Habits  of  the.  Major  John  P.  Traherne,  74 
Salmon  in  Tasmania,  Acclimatized,  43 
Salt,  Common,  Experiments  upon  Simultaneous  Production  of 

Pure  Crystals  of  Sodium  Carbonate  and  Chlorine  from,  Dr. 

Ilempel,  19 
Salvador!  (Count),  Agguinte  alia  Ornitologia  della  Papuasia  e 

delle  Molucche,  85 
Sanitary  Assurance  Association,  136,  401 
Sanitary  Institute,  302 

Saporta  (G.  de),  some  Proven9al  Tree-Hybrids,  23 
Sardines  in  Moray  Firth,  Prof.  Ewart,  282 
Satellite  of  Algol,  W.  H.  S.  Monck,  198 
Saturn  :  Mass  of,  Asaph  Hall,  429 ;  Stability  of  the  Rings  of, 

O.  Callandreau,  548 
Savelief  (R. ),  Actinometric  Observations  (1888-89)  at,  359 
Scale  :    Sir  G.   Shuckburgh's  Unit  of  Length  of  a  Standard, 

General  J.  T.  Walker,  R.E.,  F.R.S.,  381  ;  Shuckburgh  Scale 

and  Kater  Pendulum,  O.  H.  Tittmann,  538 


Scenery  of  the  Heavens,  J.  E.  Gore,  391 
Schafhaull  (Dr,  von),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  448 
Schevner  (Dr. ),  }ome  Photographic  Star  Spectra,  163 
Schiaparelli  (Signer),  on  the  Rotation  of  Mercury,  2>7 
Schick  (Herr),  Troglodytic  Remains  in  Jerusalem,  284 
Schleinitz  (Admiral  von),  the  North  Coast  of  New  Guinea,  21 
Schlich  (Dr.  William)  :  a  Manual  of  Forestry,  Sir  D.  Brandis,. 

F.R.S.,  121  ;  Forestry  in  India,  470 
Schloesing,  Fils  (Th.) :  Air  in  the  Soil,  23  ;  the  Fermentation  of 

Stable  Manure,  143  ;  Absorption  of  Atmospheric  Ammonia 

of  Soils,  479 
Schneider  (Dr.),  Iron  in  the  Animal  Organism,  24 
Schools,  Technical  Education  in  Elementary,  356 
Schorr  (Dr.  R.)  :  Comet  Swift  (/1889,  November  17),  139;  oa 

the  Star  System  |  Scorpii,  374 
Schuster  (Dr.,  F.R.S.),  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886,  327 
Science,  Australasian  Association  for  the  Advancement  of,  Prof. 

Orme  Masson,  441 
Science  Collections  at  South  Kensington,  the  Housing  of  the, 

399,  409 

Science  in  Dutch  East  Indies,  547 

Science  at  Eton,  Lieut. -General  Tennant,  F.R.S.,  587 

Science  of  Every-day  Life,  J.  A.  Bower,  78 

Science,  Experimental,  George  M.  Hopkins,  102 

Science  and  the  Future  Indian  Civil  Service  ExamiDations,  25  ; 
Henry  Palin  Gurney,  53 

Science  and  Law,  399 

Science  and  the  New  English  and  Scotch  Codes,  385 

Scientific  Education  in  China,  the  Question  of  Language,  I62 

Scientific  Literature,  Native  Indian,  569 

Scientific  Missions,  French,  under  the  Old  Monarchy,  Dr. 
Hamy,  427 

Sclater  (Dr.  P.  L.,  F.R.S.):  Argentine  Ornithology,  R. 
Bowdler  Sharpe,  7  ;  la  Pietra  Papale,  31  ;  African  Monkeys 
in  the  West  Indies,  368 

Scorpii,  on  the  Star  System  f.  Dr.  Schorr,  374 

Scoiland  :  Railways  of,  W.  M.  Acworth,  434  ;  certain  Devonian 
Plants  from.  Sir  J.  W.  Dawson,  F.R.S.,  537 

Scott  (R.  H.,  F.R.S.),  Variability  of  Temperature  of  British 
Isles,  1859-83,  550 

Scottish  Journal  of  Natural  History,  373 

Scottish  Meteorological  Society,  518 

ScouUer  (William),  Rainbow  due  to  Sunlight  reflected  from  the 
Sea,  271 

Sea,  Rainbow  due  to  Sunlight  reflected  from  the,  Sir  William 
Thomson,  F.R.S.,  271  ;  William  ScouUer,  271 

Sea,  Rule  of  the  Road  at.  Admiral  Colomb,  515 

Sea,  Toilers  in  the,  M.  C.  Cooke,  409 

Seal  (W.  P.),  the  Management  of  Aquaria,  18 

Sedgwick  and  Murchison,  Cambrian  and  Silurian,  Prof.  James 
D.  Dana,  421 

Sedgwick  Prize  Essay  for  1 888,  414 

Seismology  :  Record  of  British  Earthquakes,  Charles  Davison, 
9  ;  the  Earthquake  of  Tokio,  April  18,  1889,  Prof.  Cargill 
G.  Knott,  32  ;  Earthquake  in  Servia,  113  ;  Brassart  Brothers' 
New  Seismoscopes,  137  ;  British  Earthquakes,  William  White, 
202,  248 ;  Atmospheric  Circulation,  A.  Buchan,  363  ;  Re- 
cherches  sur  les  Tremblements  de  Terre,  Jules  Girard,  583 

Selenite,  Salts  of,  M.  Boutzoureano  on,  87 

Selenium  :  the  Chlorides  of,  M.  Chabrie,  284  ;  Compounds  of. 
Prof.  William  Ramsay,  F.R.S.,  343 

Self-luminous  Clouds :  Geo.  F.  Burder,  198 ;  C.  E.  Stromeyer, 
225 

Semites,  the  Cradle  of  the,  Dr.  Brinton,  Prof.  Jastrow,  569 

Semites,  Lectures  on  the  Religion  of  the.  Prof.  W.  Robertson 
Smith,  337 

September,  Chiff-Chaff  Singing  in,  F.  M.  Burton,  298 

Severn  Valley  Field  Club,  86 

Servia,  Earthquake  in,  113 

Serviss  (Garrett  P.),  Astronomy  with  an  Opera  Glass,  462 

Sex,  the  Evolution  of:  M.  S.  Pembrey,  199  ;  Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer, 
272  ;  Prof.  Patrick  Geddes  and  Arthur  Thomson,  531 

Shan  States,  a  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant  in.  Holt  S. 
Hallett,  265 

Sharp  (Dr.  Davis)  appointed  Curator  in  Zoology  at  Cambridge, 
324 

Sharpe  (R.  Bowdler) :  Argentine  Ornithology,  P.  L.  Sclater, 
F.R.S.,  and  W.  H.  Hudson,  7  ;  Notes  on  Sport  and  Ornitho- 
logy, H.I.H.  Prince  Rudolph  of  Austria,  169;  Matabele 
Land  and  the  Victoria  Falls,  Frank  Gates,  169  ;  Index  Gene- 
rum  Avium,  F.  H.  Waterhouse,    169 ;  the  Birds  of  Oxford- 


XXVIU 


INDEX 


\NatM-e,  May  22,  1890 


shire,  O.   V.   Aplin,    169  ;  the  Birds  of  Berwickshire,  Geo. 

Muirhead,    169  ;    the  Birds  in  my  Garden,  W.   T.   Greene, 

169  ;    Oates's  Ornithology  of   India,    Vol.    I.,  388 ;  Hume's 

Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  Vol.  I.,  388 
Shaw  Bequest  for  Endowment  of  St.  Louis  Botanic  Garden,  324 
Sheep-farming  in  Australia,  Prof.  Wallace,  113 
Shell,  Deformation  of  an  Elastic,  Prof.  Horace  Lamb,  F.  R.  S. , 

549 
Sherrington  (C.  S.),  Outlying  Nerve-cells  in  Mammalian  Spinal 

Cord,  358 
Shining  Night  Clouds,  Robert  B.  White,  369 
Ships,    Steel,   Leak-stopping  in.   Captain  C.  C.  P.  Fitzgerald, 

R.N.,  516 
Ships,  the  Strength  of.  Prof.  P.  Jenkins,  515 
Shooting-stars,  the  Origin  of,  92 
Shore  (T.  W.),  Characteristic  Survivals  of  Celts  in  Hampshire, 

406 
Shot,  on  certain  Approximate    Formulae    for    Calculating  the 

Trajectories  of.  Prof.  J.  C.  Adams,  258 
Shrubs,  Evergreen,  in  Manchester,  Proposed  Planting  of,  401 
Shuckburgh  Scale  and  Kater  Pendulum,  O.  H.  Tittmann,  538 
Shufeldt    (R.   W.),    Craniology   of  Heloderma   suspectum,   the 

Poisonous  Lizard  of  South- West  United  States,  181 
Shufeldt  (Dr.  R.  W. ),  Work  on  Avian  Anatomy,  594 
Siam,  Life  in,  265 

Siberia,  Limits  of  Ever-frozen  Soil  in,  Yatchevsky,  472 
Sidgreaves  (Rev.  W.),  Melde's  Vibrating  Strings,  355 
Sieber  (Dr.  J. ),  Diethylene  Diamine,  428 
Simaschko  (Prof.),  the  Megueia  Meteorite,  472 
Sinclair  (W.  E.),  Flint  Remains  in  Kolaba  District,  114 
Singapore,  Noxious  Grass  (Lalang)  at,   182 
Skin-Colour  in  Arctic  Voyagers,  Causes  of  Change  of,  Holm- 
gren, 546 
Skin,    Electric    Currents    from    Mental    Excitation  in,    Herr 

TarchenofF,  232 
Sluiter  (Dr.  C.   Ph.),  the  Coral  Reefs  of  the  Java  Sea  and  its 

Vicinity,  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy,  300 
Smith  (Prof.   C.   Michie) :   the  Green  Flash  at  Sunset,  538  ;  a 

New  Green  Vegetable  Colouring- Matter,  573  ;  Determination, 

by  Measurement  of  Ripples,  of  Surface  Tensions  of  Liquids, 

575 
Smith  (Prof.  W.  Robertson),  Lectures  on  the  Religion  of  the 

Semites,  337 
Smokeless  Explosives,  Sir  Frederic  Abel,  F.R.S.,  328,  352 
Smolenski  (Dr.),  the  Suspected  Connection  between  Influenza 

and  Cholera  Epidemics,  282 
Smyth  (Robert  Brough),  Death  of,  1 12 
Snake  and  Fish,  Herr  Fischer-Sigwart,  162 
Snake-bite  in  Ratnagherry  District,  Mortality  from,  ^Vidal,  325 
Society  of  Arts,  42 
Society  for  Psychical  Research,  17 
Sohncke  (Prof.),  Cause  of  Blue-Green  Flame  Phenomenon  of 

Sunset  at  Sea,  495 
Soil,  the  Relation  of   the,   to   Tropical   Diseases,    A.   Ernest 

Roberts,  31 
Soils,  Sources  of  Nitrogen  in,  Prof.  John  Wrightson,  286 
Solar  Activity  in  1889,  522 
Solar  Corona,  Mathematical  Study  of  the.  Prof.  F.  H.  Bigelow, 

595 
Solar  Eclipse  of  1886,  Total,  88;  Dr.  Schuster,  F.R.S.,  327 
Solar  Eclipse,   Total,   of  December  22,    1889,  M.   A.  De  La 

Baume  Pluvinel,  428 
Solar  Eclipses,  New  Light  from,   William  M.  Page,  William 

E.  Plummer,  529 
Solar  Halos  and  Parhelia,  330  ;  J.  Lovell,  560 
Solar  and  the  Lunar  Spectrum,  the.  Prof.  Langley,  450 
Solar  Observations  at  Rome,  Prof.  Tacchini,  595 
Solar  Spots  and  Prominences,  Prof.  Tacchini,  233 
Solar  Spectrum,   Maximum  Light-Intensity  of  the.   Dr.   Men- 

garini,  374 
Solar  and  Stellar  Motions,  Prof.  J.  R.  Eastman,  351,  392.     See 

also  Sun 
Sollas  (Prof.,  F.R.S.),  Mica  in  Mourne  Mountain  Geodes,  469 
Solomon  Islands :  Further  Explorations  of,   C.   M.  Woodford, 

403  ;  a  Naturalist  among  the  Head-hunters,  C.  M.  Woodford, 

582 
Sorbite,  Vincent  and  Delachanal,  23 

Sorbonne,  Mathematical  Teaching  at.  Prof.  Ch.  Hermite,  597 
Sorby(H.  C,  F.R.S.),  on  Meteorites,  307 
Sormani  (Prof.  G. ),  Antidotes  and  Treatment  of  Tetanus,  212 
Sound,  Propagation  of,  MM.  Violle  and  Vautier,  359 


South  American  Pampas,  Mirage  in  the,  W.  Larden,  69 
South  Kensington,  Science  Collections  at,  the  Housing  of  the, 

399,  409 
South  Sea,  Through  Atolls  and  Islands  in  the,  F.  J.  Moss,  151 
Souza  (J.  A.  de).  Death  of,  135 
Specific  Inductive  Capacity  :   W.  A.  Rudge,    10 ;  Prof.   Oliver 

J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.,  30 
Spectrum  Analysis  :  Objects  for  the  Spectroscope,  44,  68,  87, 
114,  138,  163,  183,  210,  232,  257,  285,  304,  326,  350,  374, 
402,  428,  449,  472,  496,  521,  548,  571,  595  ;  Photography 
of  the  Red  End  of  the  Spectrum,  Colonel  J.  Waterhouse,  67  ; 
some  Photographic  Star  Spectra,  Dr.  Scheiner,  163  ;  Spec- 
trum of  Algol,  Prof.  Vogel,  164 ;  Colour  Spectrum  of 
Fluorine,  H.  Moissan,  214  ;  Spectrum  of  a  Metallic  Promi- 
nence, 233 ;  Spectrum  of  f  Ursas  Majoris,  on  the.  Prof. 
Pickering,  285  ;  Spectroscopic  Observations  of  Algol,  Prof. 
Vogel,  285  ;  New  Fluorescent  Materials,  Lecoq  de  Boisbau- 
dran,  287  ;  Maxwell  Hall  on  the  Spectrum  of  the  Zodiacal 
Light,  351,  402;  Spectrum  of  Borelly's  Comet  {g  1889),  374  ; 
Maximum  Light-Intensity  of  the  Solar  Spectrum,  Dr.  Men- 
garini,  374  ;  Spectra  of  5  and  /x  Centauri,  374  ;  Blue  Flame 
of  Common  Salt,  G.  Salet,  383  ;  Spectroscopic  Observations 
of  the  Zodiacal  Light,  A.  Fowler,  402 ;  the  Solar  and  the 
Lunar  Spectrum,  Prof.  Langley,  450  ;  Kirchoffs  Law  and 
Gaseous  Radiation,  Dr.  E.  Pringsheim,  480 ;  the  Spectrum 
of  Subchloride  of  Copper,  Prof.  A.  S.  Herschel,  F.R.S., 
513  ;  Bright  Lines  in  Stellar  Spectra,  Rev.  J.  E.  Espin,  549  ; 
Fundamental  Common  Property  of  two  Kinds  of  Spectra, 
Lines  and  Bands,  Distinct  Characteristics  of  each  of  the 
Classes,  Periodic  Variations  to  Three  Parameters,  H.  Des- 
landres,  576;  Spectrum  of  Aqueous  Vapour,  Chas.  S.  Cook, 
598 
Spencer  (Herbert)  :  Inheritance  of  Acquired  Characters,  414  ; 

Nebular  Hypothesis,  450  ;  Panmixia,  511 
Spencer  (Perceval),  Successful  Use  of  Asbestos  Hot-air  Balloon 

in  India,  325 
Spitaler  (Dr.  R.),  Temperature  "  Anomalies,"  303 
Spitta  (E.  J.),  a  New  Wedge  Photometer,  287 
Sponges :    Discovery  of   Sponge-bank  near    Lampedusa,   284  ; 
the  Horny  Sponges,  Robert  von   Lendenfeld,  146  ;  Sponges 
attached  to  Crabs,  Dr.  R.  von  Lendenfeld,  317  ;  Physiology 
of  Sponges,  Dr.  Lendenfeld,  570 
Sporer  (Prof.),  Sun-spots  in  1889,  383 
Spots,  Solar,  and  Prominences,  Prof.  Tacchini,  233 
Stability  of  the  Rings  of  Saturn,  O.  Callandreau,  548 
Stalactite  Cave  discovered  in  Westphalia,  113 
Stalybridge  Mechanics'  Institute,  Chemical  Laboratory  at,  85 
Stanley  (H.  M. ),  his  Explorations  in  Africa,  20,  73,  ill 
Stapf  (Dr.  Otto),  Die  Arten  der  Gattung  Ephedra,  390 
Stapley  (A.  M.),  the  Composition  of  the  Chemical  Elements,  56 
Stars :  Double,    Measurements  of  S.  W.   Burnham,  E.  E.  Bar- 
nard, 19  ;   New  Double  Stars,  Miss  A.  M.  Gierke,  132  ;  Star 
Distances,  Miss  A.   M.   Gierke,   81  ;  New  Variable  Stars  in 
Hydra,   88 ;    Y    Cygni,    88  ;  Period    of   U  Coronse,   S.   C. 
Chandler,  163  ;  in  Cluster  G.C.  3636,  Prof.  Pickering,  183  ; 
Observations  of    some  Suspected    Variables,    Rev.    John  G. 
Hagen,  233  ;  New  Short-period  Variable  in  Ophiuchus,  403  ; 
New  Variable  in  Caelum,  571  ;  the  Origin  of  Shooting-stars, 
92;  Photographic  Star  Spectra,  115  ;  Dr.  Peters's  Catalogue, 
2IO  ;    Star-Land,    Sir  Robert    S,    Ball,   F.R.S.,    315;    Star 
System  |  Scorpii,  Dr.  Schorr,  374  ;  the  Distance  of  the  Stars, 
Dr.  W.  H.  S.  Monck,  392  ;  Observations  of  C  Ursae  Majoris 
and  ;8  Aurigge,   403  ;  Melbourne  Star  Catalogue,   522  ;  Dis- 
covery of  Asteroids,  Dr.  Palisa,  522  ;  M.  Charlois,  522 
State,  the.  Elements  of  Historical  and  Practical  Politics,  Wood- 
row  Wilson,  196 
Steam,  Electrification  of,  Shelford  Bid  well,  F.R.S.,  213 
Steam,  William  Ripper,  341 
Steam-engine  Design,  Jay  M.  Whitham,  29 
Steam-ships,  the  Steering  of,  A.  B.  Brown,  516 
Stearns  (R.   E.   C.)  :  Effect  of  Music  on  Animals,  470 ;  on  a 

Canary,  593 
Stebbing  (Rev.  T.  R.  R.),  the  Moon  in  London,  586 
Steel :   on   the   Hardening    and    Tempering    of.  Prof.   W.    C, 
Roberts- Austen,    F.R.S.,    II,   32  ;  Behaviour  of,  under  Me- 
chanical Stress,  C.  H.  Carus- Wilson,  213  ;  Physical   Proper- 
ties of  Nickel  Steel,    Dr.   J.    Hopkinson,    F.R.S.,    332;  the 
Rupture  by  Longitudinal  Stress  of,  C.  A.  Carus- Wilson,  574  ; 
Steel  and  Iron  Manufacture,  Arthur  H.  Hiorns,  150 
Stellar  Parallax  by  Means  of  Photography,  Prof.  Pritchard,  19 
Stellar  Spectra,  Bright  Lines  in.  Rev.  J.  E.  Espin,  549 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XXIX 


Stieltjes  (M.)>  the  Exponential  Function,  382 

Stiffe  (Captain),  Glaciation  of  Valleys  in   Kashmir  Himalayas, 

190 
Stockholm,  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  24,  168,  192,  288,  408, 

576,  600 
Story,  the  Earth  and  its,  edited  by  Dr.  Robert  Brown,  341 
Story  of  a  Tinder-Box,  Chas.  M.  Tidy,  30 
Strabismus,  H.  Parinaud,  72 
Straits  Settlements,  Meteorology  of,  114 
Strasburger  (E. ),  Hand-book  of  Practical  Botany  for  the  Botanical 

Laboratory  and  Private  Student,  223 
Strieker  (Prof.),  New  Electrical  Lantern,  593 
Strickland  (Father,  S.J.),  Last  Days  of  Father  Perry,  F.R.S.,  301 
Strings,  Vibrating,  Melde's,  Rev.  W.  Sidgieaves,  355 
Strips,  the  Behaviour  of  Twisted,  Prof.  J.  Perry,  F.  R.  S.,  47 
Stromeyer  (C.  E. )  :  Self-luminous  Clouds,  225  ;  the  Evaporative 

Efficiency  of  Boilers,  516  ;  Structure  of  Jupiter's  Belt  3,  IIL, 

Dr.  Terby,  45 
Struggle  for  Existence  in  Plants,  Prof.  Walter  Gardiner,  90 
Stuart  (Prof.),  Proposed  Address  to,  on  his  Resignation,  426 
Students,  Foreign,  in  Paris,  520 
Subchloride  of  Copper,  the  Spectrum  of.  Prof.  A.  S.  Herschel, 

F.R.S.,513 
Sub-oceanic   Crust,  Physics  of  the.  Rev.  Osmond  Fisher,  A.  J. 

Jukes-Browne,  53  ;  J.  Starkie  Gardner,  103 
Subsidence  at  Northwich,  230 
Suffolk :  Flora  of,   by  Dr.  W.    M.   Hind,   149  ;  Dr.  Wheelton 

Hind  on  the  Geology  of,  149 
Sugar  losing  its  Attractions  for  Lepidoptera,  Joseph  Anderson, 

349 

Sugar-Cane:  Disease  at  St.  Vincent,  372  ;  Seeding  of,  D.  Morris, 
478 

Sulphur,  Crystalline  Allotropic  Forms  of,  Dr.  Muthmann,  449 

Sumpner  (Dr.  W.  E.),  Galvanometers,  310,  381 

Sun's  Way,  Apex  of  the,  Lewis  Boss,  548 

Sunlight  reflected  from  the  Sea,  Rainbow  due  to.  Sir  William 
Thomson,  F.R.S.,  271  ;  W.  Scouller,  271 

Sunset,  the  Green  Flash  at,  C.  Michie  Smith,  538 

Sunset  at  Sea,  Cause  of  Blue-green  Flame  Phenomenon  of, 
Prof.  Sohncke,  495 

Sun-spots :  Minimum  Sun-spot  Period,  M.  Bruguiere,  68  ;  Sun- 
spot  of  June,  July,  and  August,  1889,  Prof,  Ricco,  115  ;  Sun- 
spots  and  Prominences,  Prof.  Tacchini,  233  ;  Sun-spot  in 
High  Latitudes,  G.  Dierckx,  472 ;  Sun-spots  in  High 
Southern  Latitudes,  Rev.  S.  J.  Perry,  F.  R.  S. ,  88  ;  Observa- 
tions of  Sun-spots  made  at  Lyons  Observatory  in  1889,  Em. 
Marchand,  599.     See  also  Solar 

Survey,  the  Indian,  230 

Sutherland  (Geo,),  Earth-Currents  and  the  Occurrence  of  Gold, 
464 

Swift  (Dr.  Lewis)  :  a  New  Comet  discovered  by,  69  ;  Comet 
Swift  (/  1889,  November  17),  Dr.  Zelbr,  115,  233  ;  Dr.  R. 
Schorr,  139  ;  Dr.  Lamp,  233,  429  ;  Swift's  Comet  (V.  1880), 
Orbit  of,  257  ;  the  Cluster  G.C.  1420  and  the  Nebula  N.G.C. 
2237,  285 

Sydney,  Royal  Society  of  New  South  Wales,  96 

Symons  (G.  J.,  F.  R.S. ),  Remarkable  Hailstones,  134 

Synoptical  Tables  of  Organic  and  Inorganic  Chemistry,  Clement 
J.  Leaper,  510 

Synthetic  Philosophy,  an  Epitome  of  the,  F.  Howard  Collins, 
340 

Systems  of  Russian  Transliteration,  Chas.  E.  Groves,  F.R.S., 
534  ;  W.  F.  Kirby,  535 


Table  and  Formula  Book,  Rev.  Isaac  Warren,  558 

Tacchini  (Prof.) :  Corona  of  January  i,  1889,  139  ;  Solar  Spots 
and  Prominences,  233  ;  Solar  Observations  at  Rome,  595 

Taczanowski  (Dr.  L. ),  Death  of,  324 

Tait  (Prof.  P.  G.):  Portrait  Memorial  of,  135;  Glissette  of 
Hyperbola,  214  ;  .  Compressibility  of  Water,  361  ;  Physical 
Properties  of  Water,  416 

Tannin,  Nessler's  Ammonia  Test  as  a  Micro-Chemical  Reagent 
for,  Spencer  Moore,  585 

Tarchenoff  (Herr),  Electric  Currents  in  Skin  from  Mental 
Excitation,  232 

Tasmania  :  Change  in  Character  of  Acclimatized  Salmon  in,  43  ; 
the  Last  Living  Aboriginal  of,  James  Barnard,  43  ;  Destruc- 
tion of  Opposum  in,  304 ;  a  Surviving  Tasmanian  Aborigine, 
Hy,  Ling  Roth,  105 

Taste,  Sense  of,  Dr.  Goldscheider's  Researches  on,  600 


Tavernier  (Jean  Baptiste),  Travels  in  India,  313 

Taxine,  a  New  Alkaloid  from  Leaves,  &c.,'of  Yew  Tree, 
Drs.  Hilger  and  Brande,  496 

Teacher's  Manual  of  Geography,  J.  W.  Redway,  78 

Technical  Education :  Conference  on,  at  Manchester,  84 ; 
Dundee  Association,  113;  on  the  Future  of  our  Technical 
Education,  Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  MP.,  F.R.S.,  183  ;  Technical 
Education  in  Elementary  Schools,  356  ;  the  New  Codes, 
English  and  Scotch,  385,  505  ;  Technical  Education  in  Central 
India,  470 

Teeth  in  the  Ornithorhynchus,  Who  Discovered  the,  C.  Hart 
Merriam,  11,  151  ;  Prof.  W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.,  30,  151  ; 
Prof.  Oswald  H.  Latter,  30,  174 

Telephone,  the  Pulsion  Mechanical,  65 

Telephone  Transmitter,  Carbon  Deposit  in  Blake,  F.  B.  Hawes, 

477 
Telescope,  the  Maintaining  and  Working  of  the  Great  Newall, 

357 

Temperature  "Anomalies,"  Dr.  R.  Spitaler,  303 

Tempering  of  Steel,  on  the  Hardening  and.  Prof.  W.  C.  Roberts- 
Austen,  F.R.S.,  II,  32 

Ten  and  Tenth  Notation,  B.  A.  Muirhead,  344 

Tench,  the  Striated  Muscles  of,  Dr,  Rene  du  Bois-Reymond  on, 

95 

Tennant  (Lieut, -General,  F.R.S,),  Science  at  Eton,  587 

Tension  of  Recently  Formed  Liquid  Surfaces,  Lord  Rayleigh, 
566 

Terby  (Dr.),  the  Structure  of  Jupiter's  Belt  3,  III.,  45 

Terminology,  the  Revised,  in  Cryptogamic  Botany,  Alfred  W. 
Bennett,  225 

Tetanus,  Antidote  and  Treatment  of.  Prof.  G.  Sormani,  212 

Tetranychus,  on  a  Mite  of  the  Genus,  found  Infesting  Lime 
Trees  in  the  Leicester  Museum  Grounds,  F.  R.  Rowley,  31 

Texas,  Great  Find  of  Rare  Minerals  of  Yttrium  and  Thorium 
Groups  in,  162 

Textiles,  Prehistoric,  Herr  Buschan,  182 

Textural  Elements,  the  Longevity  of,  particularly  in  Dentine 
and  Bone,  John  Cleland,  392 

Thames  Estuary,  the.  Captain  Tizard,  R.N.,  539 

Theory  of  Least  Squares,  a  Formula  in  the,  D.  Wetterhan,  394 

Thermal  Conductivity  in  Flints,  a  Natural  Evidence  of  High, 
Prof.  A.   S.  Herschel,  F.R.S.,  175 

Thermometer,  Electric,  Herr  Siegefeld,  43 

Thermometers,  Aspiration,  Dr.  Assmann's,  239 

Thermometry,  Exact :  Dr.  Sydney  Young,  152,  271,488;  Her- 
bert Tomlinson,  F.R.S,,  198  ;  Dr.  Edmund  J.  Mills,  F.R.S., 
227,   538  ,  . 

Thermometry  :  Traite  pratique  de  la  Thermometrie .  de  Pre- 
cision, Ch.  Ed.  Guillaume,  Dr.  Edmund  J.  Mills,  F.R.S., 
100 

Thomas  (Oldfield),  a  Milk  Dentition  in  Orycteropus,  309 

Thomas  (R.  Haig),  Panmixia,  585 

Thompson  (Prof.  Silvanus  P.) :  Geometrical  Optics,  II.,  213  ; 
Electric  Splashes,  309  ;  Bertrand's  Refractometer,  526 ; 
Bertrand's  Idiocyclophanous  Prism,  574 

Thomson  (Dr.  Arthur)  :  the  Veddahs  of  Ceylon,  303  ;  Prof. 
Patrick  Geddes  and.  Evolution  of  Sex,  531 

Thomson  (Sir  William,  F.R.S.):  Rainbow  due  to  Sunlight 
reflected  from  the  Sea,  271  ;  Eight  Rainbows  seen  at  the 
same  time,  316  ;  Electrostatic  Stress,  358 

Thoroddsen's  Explorations  in  Iceland,  165 

Thorpe  (Prof.  T.  E.,  F.R.S.) :  Photometric  Intensity  of  Coronal 
Light,  139  ;  Frangulin,  262  ;  a  Dictionary  of  Applied  Che- 
mistry, Vol.  I.,  Sir  H.  E.  Roscoe,  M,P.,  F.R.S.,  387  ;  the 
Glow  of  Phosphorus,  523  ;  and  Prof.  A.  W,  Riicker,  F.R.S., 
on  Magnetic  Surveys  of  Special  Districts  in  the  British  Isles, 

598 
Thought  and  Breathing  :  R.  Barrett  Pope,  297  ;  Prof.  F.  Max 

Miiller,    317;    Rev.  W.   Clement    Ley,    317;    Mrs.    J.   C. 

Murray-Aynsley,  441 
Thresh  (Dr.),  New  Method  of  Estimating  Oxygen  dissolved  in 

Water,  335 
Thuillier    and    Waterhouse's    Conversion    Tables     for    Metric 

System,  66 
Thunderstorms  in  England  and  Wales,  93 
Thury  (Prof,),  Changes  in  Lunar  Craters,  183 
Tibet,  Discovery  by  Colonel  Pevtsoff  and  M,  Roborovsky  of  New 

Pass  from  Nia  to,  327 
Tidal  and  Levelling  Operations  in  India,  140 
Tiddemann  (R.  H.),  Brilliant  Meteors,  105 
Tidy  (Chas,  M.),  the  Story  of  a  Tinder-box,  30 


XXX 


INDEX 


\Nalure,  May  22,  1890 


Tietkens's  Explorations  in  Central  Australia,  286 

Tilden  (Prof.  W.  A.,  F.R.S.),  Crystalline  Substances  obtained 

from  Fruits  of  various  Species  of  Citrus,  527 
Time  and  Tide,  a  Romance  of  the  Moon,  Sir  Robert   S.  Ball, 

F.R.S.,  30 
Timehri,  Journal  of  Royal  Agricultm-al  and  Commercial  Society 

of  British  Guiana,  549 
Tinder-box,  the  Story  of  a,  Chas.  M.  Tidy,  30 
Ti^serand  (F.)  :  Nuclei  of  Great  Comet  II.  of  1882,  358;  the 

Great  Comet  of  1882,  522  ;  the  Movement  of  Planets,  406 
Titanotherium  in  the  British  Museum,  346 
Titchener  (E.    B.)  :    Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs,    129;  the 

Cape  Weasel,  394 
Tittmann  (O.   H.),   Shuckburgh  Scale  and  Kater  Pendulum, 

538 
Tizard  (Captain,  R.N. ),  the  Thames  Estuary,  539 
Todd  (Prof.  David  P.),  Total  Eclipse,  379 
Togoland,  German,  Climate  of,  Dr.  von  Dauckelman,  545 
Toilers  in  the  Sea,  M.  C.  Cooke,  409 
Tokio:  the  Earthquake  of,   April   18,    1889,    Prof.   Cargill  G. 

Knott,    32 ;    Redetermination   of    Latitude    in,     Watanabe, 

427 
Tomlinson  (Herbert,  F.R.  S.) :  Effect  of  Repeated  Heating  and 

Cooling   on  Electrical  Coefficient  of   Annealed    Iron,    166  ; 

Exact   Thermometiy,     198 ;    the   Villari    Critical    Points    in 

Nickel  and  Iron,  574 
Topinard  (Dr.),  Charlotte  Corday's  Skull,  500 
Topographical  Survey  of  India,  140 
Toronto  University,  Burning  of,  371 
Torpedo,  Cranial  Nerves  of,  J.  C.  Ewart,  477 
Total  Eclipse  of  January  i,    1889,  Prof.  Holden,  305 
Total  Eclipse  of  December  22,  1889,  229  ;  M,  A.  DeLaBaume 

Pluvinel,  428 
Total  Eclipse,  Prof.  David  P.  Todd,  379 
Touraco,  the  Pigment  of  the,  and  the  Tree  Porcupine,  Frank  E. 

Beddard,  152 
Traherne  (Major  John  P.),  the  Habits  of  the  Salmon,  74 
Traill  (T.  W.),  Boilers,  Marine  and  Land,  486 
Trains,  Earth- Tremors  from,  H.  H.  Turner,  344 
Trajectories    of  Shot,    on  Certain  Approximate    Formulae  for 

Calculating  the.  Prof.  J.  C.  Adams,  258 
Transliteration,  a  Uniform   System  of  Russian,  396 ;  Chas.  E. 

Groves,  F.R.S.,  534  ;  W.  Y.  Kirby,  535 
Trautweiler  (Herr),  Proposed  Jungfrau  Railway,  303 
Travels  in  France,  Arthur  Young,  294 
Travels  in  India  of  Jean  Baptiste  Tavernier,  Baron  of  Aubonne, 

translated  by  Dr.  V.  Ball,  F.R.S.,  313 
Tree  Porcupine,  the  Pigment  of  the,  Frank  E.  Beddard,  152 
Trees  growling  in  an  Inverted  Position,  Herr  Kny,  86 
Trichosanthes  palmata,    a    New    Green    Vegetable    Colouring 

Matter,  C.  Michie  Smith,  573 
Trieste,  Earthquake  at,  519 

Trivier  (Captain),  Arrival  at  Mozambique  of,  165 
Troglodytic  Remains  in  Jerusalem,  Herr  Schick,  284 
Tropical   Diseases,    the    Relation  of    the  Soil    to,    A.    Ernest 

Roberts,  31 
Trotter  (A.  B.):  Geometrical  Construction  of  Direct-Reading 

Scales  for  Reflecting  Galvanometers,  478  ;  Parallel  Motion 

suitable  for  Recording  Instruments,  478 
Trouton  (Fred.    T.),   Multiple  Resonance  obtained  in  Hertz's 

Vibrators,  295 
Tschermak  (G.),  Die  mikroskopische  Beschaffenheit  der  Meteor- 

iten  erlautert  durch  photographische  Abbildungen,  127 
Tuning-Forks  :    a   Method    of   Driving,    Electrically,    W.     G. 

Gregory,  47  ;  the  Testing  of.  Dr.  Lehmann,  383 
Tunzelmann  (G.  W.  de).  Electricity  in  Modern  Life,  561 
Turacin,  Solubility  of,  in  Pure  Water,  Frank  E.  Beddard,  152 
Turkestan,  Earthquakes  in,  230 
Turkeys,  Brush-,  on  the  smaller  Islands  North  of  Celebes,  Dr. 

A.  B.  Meyer,  514 
TurnbuU  (Robert),  Index  of  British  Plants,  196 
Turner  (A.  E.),  CompoundsofPhenanthraquinones  with  Metallic 

Saks,  191 
Turner   (H.    H.)  :    Total    Solar    Eclipse  of    1886,   88;    Earth 

Tremors  from  Trains,  344 
Twenty  Years,  Progress  of  Nature  during,  i 
Tylor  (Dr.  E.  B.,  F.R. S.),  Explanation  of  Assyrian  Sculptured 

Group,  283 
Typhus  and  Ground-water  Variations,  the  Hamburg  Epidemic, 

570 
Tyrol,  Earthquakes  in  the,  569 


Ungulates,  the  Titanotherium  in  the  British  Museum,  346 

Unio,  Tasmanian,  Variability  of,  R.  M.  Johnston,  303 

United  States  :  Fishery  Industries  of  the,  George  Brown  Goode 
178  ;  Meteorology  in,  231  ;  Land  Grants  to  Educational  In- 
stitutions in,  448  ;  Earthquakes  in,  569 

University,  Burning  of  Toronto,  371 

University  Extension  Journal,  325 

University,  Helsingfors,  400 

University  Intelligence,  23,  92,  140,  166,  212,  332,  357 

University,  Johns  Hopkins,  448 

University,  Montpellier,  Proposed  Commemoration  of  Founding 
of,  447 

University,  the  Proposed  Reconstitution  of  London,  282,  348 

University  of  St.  Andrews,  ;,^ioo,ooo  Bequest  to,  41 

Upham  (Wm.),  the  late  Prof.  H.  C.  Lewis,  255 

Urea,  on  Animal  Heat  and  the  Combustion  of,  Berthelot  and 
P.  Petit,  94 

Ursse  Majoris,  on  the  Spectrum  of  ^,  Prof.  Pickering,  285 


Vaccination,  History  and  Pathology  of,  E.  M.  Crookshank, 
Dr.  Robert  Cory,  486 

Vade  Mecum,  J.  C.  Houzeau,  69 

Vandalism  in  Egypt,  447 

Variable  Stars  :  Y  Cygni,  88  ;  New,  in  Hydra,  88  ;  Period  of 
U  Coronse,  S.  C.  Chandler,  163  ;  Variable  Star  in  Cluster 
G.C.  3636,  Prof.  Pickering,  183  ;  Observations  of  some  Sus- 
pected, Rev.  John  G.  Ha,gen,  233  ;  Variability  of  R  Vul- 
pecuiDC,  257 ;  New  Variable  Star  in  Caelum,  571  ;  Prof. 
Pickering,  571 

Variation,  Causes  of,  E.  D,  Cope  on  the,  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lan- 
kester,  F.R.S.,  128 

Vatican  Observatory,  472 

Vautier  (M.),  Propagation  of  Sound,  359 

Vegetable  Colouring-matter,  a  New  Green,  C.  Michie  Smith, 

573 
Velocity  of  the  Propagation  of  Gravitation,  J.  Van  Hepperger, 

472 
Venn  (Dr.  John,  F.R.S.),  Cambridge  Anthropometry,  450 
Venus  (Dr.  K.  E.),  Death  of,  207 
Verescz's  Discovery  as  to  Photographing  in  Natural  Colours, 

469 
Vertebrate  Animals  of    Leicestershire   and  Rutland,   Montagu 

Browne,  220 
Vesuvius  in  1889,  Prof.  Palmieri,  18 
Vesuvius,  Mount,  J.  Logan  Lobley,  195 
Vezes  (M.)  :  Double  Nitrites  of  Ruthenium  and  Potassium,  23  ; 

a  Nitrosoplatinichloride,  576 
Vibrating  Strings,  Melde's,  Rev.  W.  Sidgreaves,  355 
Vibration,   Microseismic,  of  the    Earth's    Crust,    Prof.   G.  H. 

Darwin,  F.R.S.,  248 
Vico  (1884),  Identity  of  Comet,  with  Brooks's  (1889),  233 
Victoria  Falls,  Matabele  Land  and  the,  Frank  Oates,  R.  Bowdler 

Sharpe,  169 
Victoria  Hall  and  Morley  Memorial  College,  343 
Victoria,  Minor  Planet  (12),  Dr.  Gill,  139 
Victoria,  Report  of  Bendigo  School  of  Mines,  209 
Vidal  (Mr.),  Mortality  from  Snake-bite  in  Ratnagherry  District, 

325 
Vidal  (M.  Sebastien),  Death  of,  348 
Viking  Age,  the,  Paul  B.  Du  Chailiu,  173 

Villari  Ciitical  Points  in  Nickel  and  Iron,  the,  Herbert  Tomlin- 
son, F.R.S.,  574 
Vilmorin  (H.  de),  Salad  Plants,  494 
Vincent  and  Delachanal,  Sorbite,  23 
Vines  (Dr.    Sydney  H.,    F.R.S.),    and  Prof.   A.    Weismann's 

Theory  of  Heredity,  317,  373,  439 
Vins,  Manuel  de  1' Analyse  des,  Ernest  Barillot,  510 
Violle  (M.),  Propagation  of  Sound,  359 
Virchow  (Dr.),  the  Spiracle  Gill  of  Selachians,  119 
Vision,    Electrical    Radiation    from    Conducting     Spheres,    an 

Electric  Eye,  and  a  Suggestion  Regarding,   Prof.   Oliver  J. 

Lodge,  F.R.S.,  462 
Vision,  Testing  for  Practical  Purposes,  Brudenell  Carter,  302 
Visualized  I.rages  Produced  by  Music,  Geo.  E.  Newton,  417 
Viticulture,  Congress  for,  at  Rome,  426 
Vogel  (Prof),  Spectroscopic  Observations  of  Algol,  285 
Voice  Figures,  Mrs.  Watts  Hughes,  42 
Volcanoes  :  Great  Eruption  in  Japan,  400  ;  Notes  on  a  Recent 

Volcanic  Island  in  the  Pacific,   Captain  W.  J.  L.  Wharton, 

F.  R.S.,   276;    Volcanic  Rocks  of  Caernarvonshire,   Alfred 


Nature,  May  22,  1890] 


INDEX 


XXXI 


j";  Marker,  414  ;  Vesuvius  in  1889,  Prof.  Palmieri,  18  ;  Geo- 
logical Excursion  to  the  Active  and  Extinct  Volcanoes  of 
Southern  Italy,  133  ;  Activity  of  Queccia  de  Salsa,  181  ;  the 
Catastrophe  of  Kantzorik,  Armenia,  F.  M.  Corpi,  190;  the 
Mount  Bandai  (Japan)  Eruption,  348  ;  the  Period  of  the  Long 
Sea-Waves  of  Krakatab,  James  C.  McConnell,  392  ;  the 
Eruption  of  Popocatepetl,  592 

Vulpeculse,  R,  Variability  of,  257 

lyestnTk  Estesivoznaniya,  New  Russian  Natural  Science  Re- 
view, 469 


Wada  (J.) :    Earthquake   of  July    28,    1889,   at  Kiushiu,   23  ; 

Cyclone  of  September  II-12,  1889,  in  Japan,  208  ;  Meteoro- 
logy in  Japan,  1887,  400 
Wagner  (Dr.) :  Behaviour  of  Water  in  Soil,   383  ;  Fire-damp 

Explosions  in  Mines  in   Relationship  to  Cosmic  and  Meteoro- 
logical Conditions,  504 
Walford  (E.  A.\  Terraced  Hill  Slopes  of  the  Midlands,  325 
Walker  (Alfred   O.),   Foreign  Substances   attached  to  Crabs, 

296 
Walker  (General  J.  T.,  R.E.,  F.R.S.),  Unit  of  Length  of  Sir 

G.  Shuckburgh's  Standard  Scale,  381 
Wallace  (Dr.   Alfred  R.)  :  Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs,  53  ; 

Degree  of  D.C.L.  Conferred  on,  at  Oxford,  84  ;  for  Degree  of 

D.C.L.,  Prof.  J.   Bryce's  Speech    on  Presentation  of,   112; 

some  Notes  on  his  "Darwinism,"  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell,  393 
Wallace  (Prof.),  Sheep  Farming  in  Australia,  113 
Waller  (Dr.  Aug.),  Electrical  Negative  Variation  of  Heart  ac- 
companying Pulse,  288 
Walls,  Training,  in  Mersey  Estuary,  EfTects  of,  L.  F.  V.  Har- 

court,  380 
Walsingham  (Lord),  Presidential  Address  to  the  Entomological 

Society,  334 
Wapiti  Acclimatized  in  Russia,  546 

Warburton  (Major  P.  E.),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  164 
Ward  (Prof.   H.    Marshall,    F.R.S.):    Tubercles    on  Roots  of 

Leguminous  Plants,  140  ;  Diseases  of  Plants,  436 
Warren  (Rev.  Isaac),  Table  and  Formula  Book,  558 
Watanabe  (M.),  Redetermination  of  Longitude  in  Tokio,  427 
Water,  Compressibility  of,  Prof.  Tait,  361 
Water,  Effect  of  Oil  on  Disturbed,  Richard  Beynon,  205 
Water,  a  General  Formula  for  the  Uniform  Flow  of,  in   Rivers 

and  other  Channels,  E.  Ganguillet  and  W.  R.  Kutter,  411 
Water,   Physical  Properties  of,   Prof.    P.   G.   Tait,  416 ;  Prof. 

Arthur  W.  Riicker,  F.R.S.,  416 
Waterhouse  (F.   H.),  Index    Generum    Avium,    R.    Bowdler 

Sharpe,  169 
Waterhouse  (Colonel  J.),  Photography  of  Red  End  of  Spectrum, 

67 
Waterhouse  and  Thuiller's  Conversion  Tables  for  Metric  System, 

65 
Waterspout  in  Atlantic,  470 
Watt  (James),  Proposed  Memorial  to,  160 
Waves,  the  Production  of.  Prof,  von  Helmhol'.z  on,  95 
Wayside  Sketches,  F.  Edward  Hulme,  270 
Weasel,  the  Cape,  E.  B.  Titchener,  394 
Weather  Forecasting,  278 

Weather,  Influenza  and,  Mitchell  and  Buchan,  596 
Weather  in  January,  Chas.  Harding,  425 
Weather  and  Tidal  Forecasts  for  1893,  D.  Dewar's,  546 
Weeds,  European,  in  America,  18 
Weigert's    (Dr.),    Treatment   of   Pulmonary     Phthisis,     Prof. 

Visconti,  380 
Weismann's  (Prof.)  Essays,  Dr.  St.  George  Mivart,  F. R.S.,  38 
Weismann  versus  Lamarck,  Prof.  E.  D.  Cope,  79 
Weismann  (Prof.  A.)  :  Theory  of  Heredity,  317,  373,  439  ;  and 

the  Theory  of  Panmixia,  437 
Weiss   (F.    Ernest),   Foreign   Substances   Attached   to   Crabs, 

272 
Weldon  (W.  F.  R. ),  Abnormal  Shoots  of  Ivy,  464 
Wesley  (W.  H.),  the  Corona  of  1889  December  22,  450 
West   Indies,    African   Monkeys    in   the.  Dr.    P.    L.   Sclater, 

F.R.S,368 
Westphalia,  Stalactite  Cave  discovered  in,  113 
Wethered  (E. ),  Occurrence  of  Girvanella  Genus,  and  on  Oolitic 

Structure,  238 
Wetterhan  (D.) :  Galls,  131  ;  a  Formula  in  the  Theory  of  Least 

Squares,  394 
Weyl  (Dr.,  Biology  of  Anaerobic  Bacteria,  359 
Whales,  Time  they  can  remain  under  Water,  66 


Wharton  (Captain  W.  J.  L,,  F.R.S.) :  Notes  on  a  Recent  Vol- 
canic Island  in  the  Pacific,  276;  Self-Colonization  of  Coco- 
nut Palm,  585 
Wheat,  Field  Experiments  on,  in  Italy,  Prof.  Giglioli,  404 
Whipple  (G.  M.),  Photography  in  Relation  to  Meteorological 

Work,  503 
Whitaker  (W.),  a  Deep  Channel  of  Drift  in  the  Valley  of  the 

Cam,  Essex,  527 
While  (Robert  B.),  Shining  Night-CIoods,  369 
White  (William),  British  Earthquakes,  202 
Whitechapel,  Proposed  Free  Library  at,  161 
Whitham  (Jay  M.),  Steam-Engine  Design,  29 
Will  (Dr.),  Analysis  of  Carcote,  Chili,  Meteorite,  428 
Willem  (Victor),  the  Gizzard  in  Scolopendridse,  237 
Williams    (F.    N.)  :     Enumeratio     Specierum    Varietatumque 
Generis    Dianthus,    51  ;    Notes    on  the    Pinks   of  Western 
Europe,  78 
Williams  (R.  P.)  and  B.  P.  Lascelles,  Introduction  to  Chemical 

Science,  128 
Williamson  (Prof.   W.   C,    F.R.S.) :  Organization   of  Fossil 

Plants  of  Coal-Measures,  573 
Willoughby  (Captain  Sir  John  C),  Africa  and  its  Big  Game, , 

298 
Wilson   (Sir  Daniel),  on  the  Recent  Toronto  Meeting  of  the 

American  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  .Science,  17 
Wilson  (J.  Spottiswoode),  Geological  Mechanism,  390 
Wilson  (R.  W.),  Magnetism  in  Brick  Buildings,  405 
Wilson  (William),  Practical  Observations  on  Agricultural  Grasses 

and  other  Pasture  Plants,  196 
Wilson  (Woodrow),  the  State,  Elements  of  Historical  and  Prac- 
tical Politics,  196 
Wilson-Barker  (Captain  David),   Foreign  Substances  attached 

to  Crabs,  297 
Wimshurst   Machine  and  Hertz's  Vibrator,  T.  A.  Garrett  and 

W,  Lucas,  515 
Wind,   Preponderance  of  North-East  Wind  during  past  Five 

Years,  C.  L.  Prince,  470 
Wind  at  Summit  of  Eiffel  Tower,  Mean  Hourly  Velocity  of, 

A.  Angot,  67 
Wind-velocity  at  top  of  Eiffel  Tower,  Angot,  48 
Winds,  Dependence  of  Force  of,  upon  Surface  over  which  they 

blow,  Dr.  Van  Bebber,  372 
Winds,  a  Popular  Treatise  on  the,  William  Ferrel,  124 
Winds,   Relative  Prevalence  of   North-East  and    South- West, 

William  Ellis,  586 
Winlock  (Prof.),  Progress  of  Astronomy  in  1886,  374 
Winnecke's  Periodical  Comet,  the  Orbit  of,  M.  H.  Faye,  94 
Wolves  and  Bears  in  Bosnia,  325 
Wolves,  &c.,  in  Germany,  Dr.  Lampert,  182 
Wood  (Rev.  J.  G.),  the  Brook  and  its  Banks,  53  ;  the  Zoo,  53 
Woodall  (Herbert  J.),  How  not  to  Teach  Geometry,  60 
Woodford  (C.  M.)  :  Further  Explorations  of  Solomon  Islands, 

403  ;  a  Naturalist  among  the  Head-hunters,  582 
Woodthorpe  (Colonel),   the  Aka  Expedition  of  1883,  86 
Woodward  (A.  S.),  some  British  Jurassic  Fish-remains,  310 
World,  Library  Reference  Atlas  of  the,  John  Bartholomew,  413 
Worthington  (Prof.  A.  M.),  Bourdon's  Pressure-Gauge,  296,  517 
Wright  (M.  R.),  Elementary  Physics,  78 

Wrightson  (Prof.  John)  :  Sources  of  Nitrogen  in  Soils,   286 ; 
How  to  know  Grasses  by  their  Leaves,   by  A.   N.  M'Alpine, 

557 
Wynne  (W.  P.),  Constitution  of  Tri-derivatives  of  Naphthalene, 

454 


Yatchevsky  (M. ),  Limits  of  Ever-frozen  Soil  in  Siberia,  472 
Yeast,  Fermentation  with  Pure,  Prof.  Percy  F.  Frankland,  339 
Young  (Arthur),  Travels  in  France,  294 
Young  (Prof.  C.  A.),  the  Elements  of  Astronomy,  485 
Young  (Dr.  Sydney),  Exact  Thermometry,  152,  271,  488 
Yule  (Sir  Henry),  Death  of,  207 


Zeiss's  New  Apochromatic  Microscope  Objective,  494 
Zelbr  (Dr.),  Comet  Swift  (/1889,  November  17),  115,  233 
Zepharovich  (Ritter  von),  Death  and  Obituary  Notice  of,  448 
Zodiacal  Light,  Maxwell  Hall  on  the  Spectrum  of  the,  351,  402 
Zodiacal  Light,  J.  Norman  Lockyer,  F.R.S.,  on,  402 
Zoo,  the.  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood,  53 

Zoogeography  :  Wolves,  &c. ,  in  Germany,  Dr.  Lampert,  182 
Zoological  Discoveries,  N.  M.  Przewalsky's,  468 


XXXll 


INDEX 


[Nattu-e,  May  22,  1890 


Zoological  Floating  Station  at  Isefiord,  Denmark,  569 
Zoological  Gardens,  Additions  to,  44,68,   87,    114,    138,    163, 
210,  232,  256,  284,  304,  326,  349,  402,   449,  472,   496,   521, 

548,  571,  595 
Zoological  Society,  94,  143,  335,  382,  406,  478,  550,  575,  599 
Zoological  Results  of  the  C/za&w^^r  Expedition,  217 
Zoology  :  Who  Discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  ?,  C. 

Hart  Merriam,  11,  151 ;  Prof.  W.  H.  Flower,  F.  R.S.,  30  151  ; 

Prof.   Oswald  H.   Latter,   30,   174;  the  Old  English  Black 


Rat  in  Cornwall,  Thos.  Cornish,  161  ;  Snake  and  Fish,  Herr 
Fischer- Sigwart,  162  ;  Arrangement  of  Excitable  Fibres  of 
Internal  Capsules  of  Bonnet  Monkey,  Beevor  and  Horsley, 
166  ;  Heloderma  suspectutn,  the  Poisonous  Lizard  of  South- 
West  United  States,  the  Craniology  of,  R.  W.  Shufeldt,  181  ; 
a  Milk  Dentition  in  Orycteropus,  O.  Thomas,  309  ;  the  Cata- 
logue of  the  Indian  Museum,  594 

Zsigmondy  (Dr.  Emil),  his  Alpine  Expeditions,  291 

Zwardmaaker  (Dr.),  Olfactometer,  349 


A    WEEKLY    ILLUSTRATED    JOURNAL    OF    SCIENCE. 

"  To  the  solid  ground 
Of  Nature  trusts  the  mind  which  builds  for  aye." — WORDSWORTH. 


THURSDAY,  NOVEMBER  7,  il 


TWENTY  YEARS. 

A  REMINDER  that  to-day  is  the  twentieth  anni- 
^^  versary  of  the  first  issue  of  Nature,  will  not, 
perhaps,  be  without  interest  to  our  readers,  and  certainly 
affords  food  for  reflection  to  those  who  in  various  capaci- 
ties have  been  more  or  less  closely  connected  with  this 
journal  from  the  first. 

"When  another  half-century  has  passed,"  said  Prof. 
Huxley  in  our  first  number,  "  curious  readers  of  the  back 
numbers  of  Nature  will  probably  look  on  our  best  '  not 
without  a  smile.' " 

It  will  probably  be  so,  but  though  twenty  years  is 
hardly  a  sufficient  interval  to  make  our  smiles  at  our 
earlier  efforts  supercilious,  it  is  enough  to  test  whether 
progress  has  been  made,  and  whether  the  forward  path 
is  pursued  with  growing  or  with  waning  force. 

As  regards  this  journal  itself,  we  may  claim  that  it  has 
not  disappointed  the  hopes  of  its  founders,  nor  failed  in 
the  task  it  undertook ;  and  we  make  this  claim  all  the 
more  emphatically  because  we  feel  that  what  has  been 
accomplished  has  not  been  due  to  our  own  efforts  so 
much  as  to  the  unfailing  help  we  have  always  received 
from  the  leaders  in  all  branches  of  natural  science.  This 
help  has  not  been  limited  to  their  contributions  to  our 
columns,  but  has  consisted  also  of  advice  and  suggestions 
which  have  been  freely  asked  and  as  freely  given.  Not 
the  least  part  of  our  duty,  and  even  privilege,  to-day  is 
to  state  openly  how  small  our  own  part  has  been,  and 
to  render  grateful  thanks  to  those  to  whom  it  is  chiefly 
due  that  Nature  has  a  recognized  place  in  the  machinery 
of  science,  and  has  secured  an  audience  in  all  parts  of  the 
civilized  world. 

We  do  not  wish,  however,  to  narrow  our  retrospect  of 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1045. 


the  last  twenty  years  by  confining  our  attention  to  the 
measure  of  success  which  these  pages  have  won.  It  has 
been  attained,  as  we  have  shown,  by  the  aid  of  nearly  all 
the  best-known  scientific  writers  and  workers.not  in  Britain 
only  but  in  many  countries  old  and  new  ;  and  we  cannot 
believe  that  they  would  thus  have  banded  themselves 
together  if  evidence  had  not  been  given  of  an  honest 
desire  for  the  good  of  science  and  for  the  "  promotion  of 
natural  knowledge,"  or  if  the  attainment  of  these  objects 
had  not  been  regarded  by  us  as  of  more  importance  than 
a  journalistic  success.  Thus,  on  its  twentieth  birthday, 
we  would  think  not  so  much  of  the  growth  of  Nature 
as  of  the  advance  which  in  the  last  twenty  years  it  has 
chronicled. 

A  formal  history  of  science  for  that  period  would  be  a 
formidable  task,  but  it  is  already  possible  to  discern  what 
will  probably  appear  to  posterity  to  be  the  most  salient 
characteristics  of  the  last  two  decades. 

In  the  physical  sciences,  the  enormous  development 
of  the  atomic  theory,  and  the  establishment  of  a  con- 
nection between  the  theories  of  electricity  and  light,  are 
perhaps  the  two  main  achievements  of  the  years  we  are 
considering.  Methods  of  accomplishing  the  at  first 
sight  impossible  task  of  measuring  atomic  magnitudes 
have  been  devised.  Our  own  volumes  contain  some  of 
the  most  interesting  papers  of  Sir  William  Thomson  on 
this  subject,  and  the  close  agreement  in  the  results 
attained  by  very  different  methods  is  sufficient  proof  that, 
if  only  approximations,  they  are  approximations  we  mny 
trust.  The  brilliant  vortex  atom  theory  of  Sir  William 
Thomson  has  not  as  yet  achieved  the  position  of  a  proved 
hypothesis,  but  has  stimulated  mathematical  inquiry.  A 
number  of  very  powerful  researches  have  added  to  our 
knowledge  of  a  most  difficult  branch  of  mathematics, 
which  may  yet  furnish  the  basis  of  a  theory  which  shall 
deduce  the  nature  of  matter  and  the  phenomena  of 
radiation  from  a  single  group  of  assumptions. 

The  theory  of  gases  has  been  extended  in  both  direc- 


NATURE 


[Nov.  7,  1889 


tions.  The  able  attempt  of  Van  der  Waals  to  bring  both 
yapour  and  liquid  within  the  grasp  of  a  single  theory  is 
complementary  to  the  extension  by  Crookes,  Hittorf,  and 
Osborne  Reynolds  of  our  knowledge  of  phenomena  which 
are  best  studied  in  gases  of  great  tenuity. 

The  gradual  expansion  of  thermodynamics,  and  in 
general  of  the  domain  of  dynamics  from  molar  to  mole- 
cular phenomena,  has  been  carried  on  by  Willard  Gibbs, 
J.  J.  Thomson,  and  others,  until,  in  many  cases,  theory 
seems  to  have  outrun  not  only  our  present  experimental 
powers,  but  almost  any  conceivable  extension  which  they 
may  hereafter  undergo. 

The  pregnant  suggestion  of  Maxwell  that  light  is 
an  electro-magnetic  phenomenon  has  borne  good  fruit. 
Gradually  the  theory  is  taking  form  and  shape,  and  the 
epoch-making  experiments  of  Hertz,  together  with  the 
recent  work  of  Lodge,  J.  J.  Thomson,  and  Glazebrook, 
furnish  a  complete  proof  of  its  fundamental  hypotheses. 
The  great  development  of  the  technical  applications  of 
electricity  has  stimulated  the  public  interest  in  this  science, 
and  has  necessitated  a  more  detailed  study  of  magnetism 
and  of  the  laws  of  periodic  currents.  The  telephone  and  the 
microphone  have  echpsed  the  wonders  of  the  telegraph,  and 
furnish  new  means  of  wresting  fresh  secrets  from  Nature. 
Science  has  become  more  than  ever  cosmopolitan, 
owing  chiefly  to  the  imperative  necessity  for  an  early 
agreement  as  to  the  values  of  various  units  for  a  com- 
mon nomenclature,  and  for  simultaneous  observations  in 
widely  separated  localities.  International  Conferences 
are  the  order  of  the  day,  and  the  new  units  which  they 
have  defined  are  based  upon  experiments  by  many  first- 
rate  observers  in  many  lands,  amongst  whom  the  name  o 
Lord  Rayleigh  stands  second  to  none. 

On  the  side  of  chemistry  the  periodic  law  of  Mendeleeff 
has  become  established  as  a  generalization  of  the  first 
importance,  and  the  extraordinary  feat  of  foretelling  the 
physical  properties  of  an  as  yet  undiscovered  element  has 
attracted  to  it  the  attention  of  the  whole  scientific  world. 
The  once  permanent  gases  are  permanent  no  more. 
Dulong  and  Petit's  law  has  found  a  complement  in  the 
methods  of  Raoult.  The  old  doctrine  of  valency  is  giving 
way  to  more  elastic  hypotheses.  The  extraordinary  pro- 
gress of  organic  chemistry,  which  originated  in  the  work 
and  influence  of  Liebig  and  the  Giessen  school,  has  con- 
tinued at  an  accelerated  rate.  The  practical  value  of  even 
the  most  recondite  investigations  of  pure  science  has  again 
been  exemplified  by  the  enormous  development  of  the 
coal-tar  industry,  and  by  the  numerous  syntheses  of 
organic  products  which  have  added  to  the  material  re- 
sources of  the  community. 

The  increase  of  our  knowledge  of  the  sun  by  means  of 
localized  spectroscopic  observation  :  the  application  of 
photography  to  astronomy,  and  more  recently  still  the 
extension  and  generalization  of  the  nebular  hypothesis 
are  perhaps  the  most  remarkable  developments  of  those 


branches  of  science  which  relate  to  astronomy.  Stars 
which  no  human  eye  will  ever  see  are  now  known  to'us  as 
surely  as  those  which  are  clearly  visible.  The  efforts 
to  reduce  nebulfe,  comets,  and  stars  under  one  common 
law,  as  various  cases  of  the  collision  or  aggregation 
of  meteoritic  swarms,  and  the  striking  investigations  of 
Prof.  Darwin  on  the  effects  of  tidal  action,  and  on  the 
application  of  the  laws  of  gases  to  a  meteoritic  plenum, 
give  promise  of  a  fuller  knowledge  of  the  birth  and 
death  of  worlds. 

In  the  biological  sciences,  the  progress  during  the  last 
twenty  years  has  consisted  chiefly  in  the  firm  establish- 
ment of  the  Darwinian  doctrine,  and  the  application  of 
it  and  its  subordinate  conceptions  in  a  variety  of  fields  of 
investigation.  The  progress  of  experimental  physiology 
has  been  marked  by  increasing  exactitude  in  the  appli- 
cation of  physical  methods  to  the  study  of  the  properties 
of  living  bodies,  but  it  has  not  as  yet  benefited,  as 
have  other  branches  of  biology,  from  the  fecundating 
influence  of  Darwin's  writings  :  hence  there  is  no  very 
prominent  physiological  discovery  to  be  recorded.  The 
generation  of  scientific  men  which  is  now  coming  to 
middle  age  has  been  brought  up  in  familiarity  with  Mr. 
Darwin's  teaching,  and  is  not  affected  by  anything  like 
hostility  or  a  priori  antagonism  to  such  views.  The 
result  is  seen  in  the  vast  number  of  embryological  re- 
searches (stimulated  by  the  theory  that  the  development 
of  the  individual  is  an  epitome  of  the  development  of  the 
race)  which  these  twenty  years  have  produced,  and  in  the 
daily  increasing  attention  to  that  study  of  the  organism  as 
a  living  thing  definitely  related  to  its  conditions  which 
)arwin  himself  set  on  foot.  The  marine  laboratories 
of  Naples,  Newport,  Beaufort,  and  Plymouth,  have  come 
into  existence  (as  in  earlier  years  their  forerunners  on 
the  coast  of  France),  and  served  to  organize  and  facili- 
tate the  study  of  living  plants  and  animals.  The 
Challenger  and  other  deep-sea  exploring  expeditions 
have  sailed  forth  and  returned  with  their  booty,  which 
has  been  described  with  a  detail  and  precision  unknown 
in  former  times.  The  precise  methods  of  microscopic 
study  by  means  of  section-cutting — due  originally  to 
Strieker,  of  Vienna — have  within  these  twenty  years  made 
the  study  of  cell-structure  and  cell-activity  as  essential  a 
part  of  morphology  as  it  had  already  become  of  physio- 
logy. These,  and  the  frank  adoption  of  the  theory  of 
descent,  have  swept  away  old  ideas  of  classification  and 
affinities,  and  have  relegated  the  Ascidian  ",'polyps  "  of 
old  days  to  the  group  of  Vertebrata,  and  the  Sponges  to 
the  Coelenterates.  The  nucleus  of  the  protoplasmic  cell 
— which  twenty  years  ago  had  fallen  from  the  high 
position  of  importance  accorded  to  it  by  Schwann — 
has,  through  the  researches  of  Biitschli,  Flemming,  and 
Van  Beneden,  been  reinstated,  and  is  now  shown  to  be 
the  seat  of  all-important  activities  in  connection  with  cell- 
division  and  the  fertilization  of  the  Q'gg.     The  discovery  of 


Nov.  7,  18S9] 


NATURE 


the  phenomena  of  karyokinesis  and  their  relation  to  fer- 
tiUzation  will  be  reckoned  hereafter  as  one  of  the  most,  if 
not  the  most,  important  of  the  biological  discoveries  of 
the  past  twenty  years. 

Apart  from  Darwinism,  the  most  remarkable  deve- 
lopment of  biological  studies  during  these  "twice  ten 
tedious  years  "  is  undoubtedly  the  sudden  rise  and 
gigantic  progress  of  our  knowledge  of  the  Bacteria. 
Though  the  foundations  were  laid  fifty  years  ago  by 
Schwann  and  Henle,  and  great  advances  were  made 
by  Pasteur  and  by  Lister  just  before  our  period,  yet 
it  is  within  this  span  that  the  microscope  and  precise 
methods  of  culture  have  been  applied  to  the  study  of  the 
""  vibrions,"  or  "  microbes,"  and  the  so-called  "  bacterio- 
logy "  established.  We  now  know,  through  the  labours 
of  Toussaint,  Chauveau,  Pasteur,  and  Koch,  of  a  num- 
ber of  diseases  which  are  definitely  caused  by  Bac- 
teria. We  also  have  learnt  from  Pasteur  how  to  control 
the  attack  of  some  of  these  dangerous  parasites.  Within 
these  twenty  years  the  antiseptic  surgery  founded  by 
Sir  Joseph  Lister  has  received  its  full  measure  of 
trial  and  confirmation,  whilst  his  opportunities  and 
those  of  his  fellow-countrymen  for  making  further  dis- 
covery of  a  like  kind  have  been  ignorantly  destroyed  by 
an  Act  of  Parliament. 

To  particularize  some  of  the  more  striking  zoological 
discoveries  which  come  within  our  twenty  years,  we  may 
cite— the  Dipnoous  fish-like  creature  Ccratodus  of  the 
Queensland  rivers,  discovered  by  Krefft ;  the  jumping 
wheel-animalcule  Pedalion,  of  Hudson  ;  the  development 
and  the  anatomy  of  the  archaic  Arthropod  Peripatus 
worked  out  by  Moseley,  Balfour,  and  Sedgwick ;  the 
Hydrocorallinae  of  Moseley,  an  entirely  new  group  of 
compound  animals  ;  the  fresh-water  jelly-fish  Limiio- 
codium  of  the  Regent's  Park  lily-tank ;  the  Silurian 
scorpion  of  Gotland  and  Lanarkshire ;  the  protozoon 
Chlamydomyxa  discovered  by  Archer  in  the  Irish  bogs  ; 
the  Odontornithes  and  the  Dinocerata  of  the  American 
palaeontologists  ;  the  intracellular  digestion  obtaining 
in  animals  higher  than  Protozoa,  and  the  significance  of 
the  "  diapedesis  "of  blood-corpuscles  in  inflammation, and 
the  general  theory  of  phagocytes  due  to  Mecznikow  ;  the 
establishment  of  the  principle  of  degeneration  as  of  equal 
generality  with  that  of  progressive  development,  by  Anton 
Uohrn  ;  the  demonstration  by  Weismann  and  others  that 
we  have  no  right  to  mix  our  Darwinism  with  Larmarckism, 
since  no  one  has  been  able  to  bring  forward  a  single  case 
of  the  transmission  of  acquired  characters.  Perhaps  the 
attempt  to  purify  the  Darwinian  doctrine  from  Lamarckian 
assumption  will  hereafter  be  regarded — whether  it  be 
successful  or  not — as  the  most  characteristic  feature  of 
biological  movement  at  the  end  of  our  double  decade 
Its  earlier  portion  was  distinguished  by  the  f  ub'.ication 
of  some  of  Darwin's  later  works.  Its  greatest  event  was 
his  death. 


In  botany,  twenty  years  ago,  the  teaching  in  our  Uni- 
versities was  practically  sterile.     In  one  of  our  earliest 
numbers,  Prof.  James  Stewart  defended  with  some  vigour 
the  propriety  of  intrusting  botany  to  a  lecturer  at  Cam- 
bridge who  was  also  charged  with  the  duty  of  lecturing 
on  electricity  and  magnetism.     It  is  startling  to  compare 
a  past,  in  which  botany  was  regarded  as  a  subject  which 
might  be  tacked  on  anywhere,  with  its  present  condition, 
in   which   there   is  scarcely  a  seat   of    learning  in   the 
three  kingdoms  which  is  not  turning  out  serious  work. 
The   younger   English  school   would  be  ungrateful  if  it 
did   not   acknowledge   its  debt  to  the  eminent   German 
teachers   from    whom    it    has  derived  so   much    in    the 
tradition  and  method  of  investigation.     Sachs  and   De 
Bary    have    left    an    indelible    mark    on    our    younger 
Professors.      But   it    would    be    a    mistake   to    suppose 
that  English  modern  botany  has  simply  derived    from 
Germany.     It  has  developed  a  character  of  its  own,  in 
which  the  indirect  influence  of  Darwin's  later  work  can 
be  not  indistinctly  traced.     There  has  been  a  gradual  re- 
volt in  England,  the  ultimate  consequences  of  which  have 
still  to  be  developed,  against  the  too  physical  conception 
of  the  phenomena  of  plant  life  which  has  been  prevalent 
on  the  Continent.     Darwin,  by  his  researches  on  insecti- 
vorous plants  and  plant  movements  from  a  purely  bio- 
logical point  of  view,  prepared  the  way  for  this  ;  Gar- 
diner followed   with   a   masterly  demonstration    of  the 
physical  continuity  of  protoplasm  in  plant  tissues.     This 
has  thrown  a  new  light  on   the   phenomena  studied  by 
Darwin,  and  we  need   not,  therefore,  be  surprised  that 
his  son,  F.  Darwin,  has  started  what  is  virtually  a  new 
conception  of  the  process  of  growth,  by  showing  that  its 
controlling  element  is  to  be  sought  in  the  living  proto- 
plasm of  the  cell,  rather  than  in  the  investing  cell-wall. 
On  the  whole,  English  botanists  have  shown  a  marked 
disposition  to  see  in  the  study  of  protoplasm  the  real  key 
to  the  interpretation  of  the  phenomena  of  plant  life.     The 
complete  analogy  between  the  processes  of  secretion  in 
animals  and  vegetables,  established  by  Gardiner,  and  the 
essential  part  played  by  ferments  in  vegetable  nutrition, 
illustrated  by   Green,  are  examples  of  the  results  of  this 
line  of  inquiry.     To  Germany  we  owe  a  flood  of  informa- 
tion  as  to  the  function  of  the  cell-nucleus,  which  it  is 
singular  has    met   with    general   acceptance    but    little 
detailed  corroboration  in  this  country. 

In  morphology  a  review  would  be  ineffective  which  did 
not  go  somewhat  deeply  into  detail.  The  splendid  hypo- 
thesis of  Schwendener,  of  the  composite  nature  of  lichens 
as  a  commensal  union  of  Algte  and  Fungi,  has  gradually 
won  its  way  into  acceptance.  In  England  there  is  little 
of  the  first  rank  which  calls  for  note  except  the  re- 
searches of  Bower  on  the  production  of  sexual  organs  on 
the  leafy  plant  in  ferns  without  the  intervention  of  an 
intermediate  generation. 

In  vegetable   physiology    there   seems    a   pause ;   the 


NATURE 


{Nov.  7,  1S89 


purely  physical  line  of  inquiry,  as  already  suggested, 
seems  to  have  yielded  its  utmost.  The  more  biological 
line  of  inquiry  has  only  yet  begun  to  yield  a  foretaste 
of  the  results  which  will  undoubtedly  ultimately  flow 
from  it. 

Something  must  be  added  as  to  systematic  and  geo- 
graphical botany.  The  "  Genera  Plantarum  "  of  Bentham 
and  Hooker,  the  work  of  a  quarter  of  a  century  at  Kew, 
affords  a  complete  review  of  the  higher  vegetation  of  the 
world,  and  has  been  accepted  generally  as  a  standard 
authority.  To  Bentham  also  we  owe  the  completion  of 
the  "  Flora  Australiensis,"  the  first  complete  account  of  the 
flora  of  any  great   continent. 

In  geographical  botany,  perhaps  the  most  interesting 
results  have  been  the  gradual  elaboration  of  a  theory  as 
to  the  distribution  of  plants  in  Africa,  and  the  botanical 
exploration  of  China,  of  the  vegetable  productions  of 
which,  twenty  years  ago,  almost  nothing  was  known. 

In  the  classification  of  the  lower  plants,  perhaps  the 
most  interesting  result  has  been  the  happy  observations 
of  Lankester  upon  a  coloured  Bacterium,  which  enabled 
him  to  show  that  many  forms  previously  believed  to  be 
distinct  might  be  phases  of  the  same  life-history. 

In  geology  probably  the  greatest  advance  has  been  in 
the  application  of  the  microscope  to  the  investigation  of 
rock  structure,  which  has  given  rise  to  a  really  rational 
petrology.  All  except  the  coarser-grained  rocks  were 
only  capable  of  being  described  in  vague  terms  ;  with 
modern  methods  their  crystalline  constituents  are  deter- 
minable, however  minute,  and  the  conditions  under  which 
they  were  formed  can  be  inferred. 

It  is  impossible,  even  in  a  brief  review  of  this  kind, 
to  think  only  of  what  has  been  won,  and  to  ignore 
the  loss  of  leaders  who  were  once  foremost  in  the  fray. 
I  n  England  three  names  which  will  never  be  forgotten  have 
been  removed  from  the  muster-roll.  Darwin,  Joule,  and 
Maxwell  can  hardly  be  at  once  replaced  by  successors  of 
equal  eminence.  As  the  need  arises,  however,  men  will 
no  doubt  be  found  adequate  to  the  emergency,  and  it  is 
at  least  satisfactory  to  know  that  they  will  appeal  to  a 
public  more  capable  than  heretofore  of  appreciating  their 
efforts. 

The  support  afforded  by  the  Governments  of  Western 
Europe  to  scientific  investigation  has  been  markedly  in- 
creased within  the  period  which  we  survey.  France  has 
largely  extended  her  subsidies  to  scientific  research,  whilst 
Germany  has  made  use  of  a  large  part  of  her  increased 
Imperial  revenue  to  improve  the  arrangements  for  similar 
objects  existing  in  her  Universities.  The  British  Govern- 
ment has  shown  a  decided  inclination  in  the  same  direc- 
tion :  the  grant  to  the  Royal  Society  for  the  promotion  of 
scientific  research  has  been  increased  from  ;^ioc)0  to 
^4000  a  year  ;  whilst  subsidies  have  been  voted  to  the 
Marine  Laboratory  at  Plymouth,  to  the  Committee  on  Solar 
Physics,  to  the  Meteorological  Council,  and  quite  recently 


to  the  University  Colleges  throughout  the  country,  of 
which  last  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  a  fair  proportion  will  be 
devoted  to  the  promotion  of  research  rather  than  to  the 
reduction  of  class  fees. 

Twenty  years  ago  England  was  in  the  birth-throes  of  a 
national  system  of  primary  instruction.  This  year  has 
seen  the  State  recognition  of  the  necessity  of  a  secondary 
and  essentially  a  scientific  system  of  education,  and  the 
Technical  Instruction  Act  marks  an  era  in  the  scientific 
annals  of  the  nation. 

The  extension  of  scientific  teaching  has  gone  on  rapidly 
within  and  without  our  Universities.  Twenty  years  ago 
the  Clarendon  Laboratory  at  Oxford  was  approaching 
completion,  and  was  the  only  laboratory  in  the  country 
which  was  specially  designed  for  physical  work.  Now,  not 
only  has  Cambridge  also  its  Cavendish  Laboratory,  but 
both  Universities  have  rebuilt  their  chemical  laboratories, 
both  have  erected  buildings  devoted  to  the  study  of  biology, 
and  the  instruction  of  students  in  both  zoology  and  botany 
has  taken  a  characteristic  practical  form  which  we  owe 
to  the  system  of  concentrating  attention  on  a  series  of 
selected  "  types  "  introduced  by  Rolleston  and  by  Huxley. 
Oxford  has  been  furnished  with  an  astronomical  obser- 
vatory by  the  liberality  of  Warren  De  la  Rue,  and 
Cambridge  has  accepted  the  noble  gift  of  the  Newall 
telescope.  Nor  have  such  proofs  of  the  vitality  of  science 
been  confined  to  the  Universities. 

Twenty  years  ago  the  Owens  College  was  a  unique 
institution:  now, united  with  two  thriving  Colleges  in  Leeds 
and  Liverpool,  it  forms  the  Victoria  University ;  while 
science  is  studied  in  appropriate  buildings  in  Birmingham, 
Newcastle,  Nottingham,  and  half  a  dozen  towns  beside. 

A  race  is  thus  springing  up  which  has  sufficient 
knowledge  of  science  to  enforce  due  recognition  of  its 
importance,  and  public  opinion  can  now,  far  more  than  in 
the  past,  be  relied  on  to  support  its  demands.  Fortunately, 
too,  these  can  be  authoritatively  expressed.  The  Royal 
Society  wields,  if  it  chooses  to  exercise  it,  an  enormous 
power  for  good.  Admitted  on  all  hands  to  be  the  su- 
preme scientific  authority  in  this  country,  its  decisions 
are  accepted  with  a  deference  which  can  spring  only  from 
respect  for  the  knowledge  and  scrupulous  fairness  by  which 
they  are  dictated.  If  sometimes  it  moves  slowly,  pur  se 
muove,  and  it  is  delightful  to  turn  from  the  babble  of  the 
politicians  to  the  study  of  an  institution  which  does  its 
work  well,  and  perhaps  too  noiselessly.  But  even  the 
House  of  Commons,  hitherto  ignorant  and  therefore  apa- 
thetic in  matters  scientific,  is  awakening  to  the  fact  that 
there  are  forces  to  be  reckoned  with  and  impulses  to 
be  stimulated  and  controlled  which  are  of  more  endur- 
ing import  to  the  national  welfare  than  mere  party 
politics.  And  the  people,  too,  are  beginning  to  see  that 
it  is  to  the  economic  working  of  these  forces,  and  to 
the  right  direction  of  these  impulses,  that  their  repre- 
sentatives are  bound  to  give  attention.     True  it  is  that 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE  4Z 


another  generation  may  possibly  pass  away  before  either 
the  House  of  Commons  or  even  Ministers  are  sufficiently 
instructed  in  science  to  recognize  fully  their  responsibility 
in  this  direction. 

Whatever,  then,  the  future  may  bring,  the  last  twenty 
years  have  been  characterized  by  progress  both  steady 
and  rapid.  The  tide  flows  on  with  no  sign  of  check, 
and  we  accept  the  success  of  Nature  in  no  spirit  of 
self-gratulation,  but  as  a  straw  by  which  the  speed  of  the 
current  may  be  gauged. 


MODERN  VIEWS  OF  ELECTRICITY. 
^Todern  Views  of  ElectHcity.     By  Oliver  J.  Lodge,  D.Sc, 

LL.D,  F.R.S.  (London:  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 
T  N  this  interesting  book  Prof.  Lodge  gives  a  very  lively 
-»-  and  graphic  account  of  many  of  the  most  recent 
speculations  about  the  nature  of  electrical  phenomena. 
A  work  with  this  object  was  urgently  needed,  as"  the 
method  of  regarding  these  phenomena  given  in  popular 
treatises  on  electricity  is  totally  different  from  that  used 
by  those  engaged  in  developing  the  subject. 

The  attention  called  by  Faraday  and  Maxwell  to  the 
effects  produced  by  and  in  the  medium  separating  electri- 
fied bodies  has  had  the  effect  of  diverting  attention  from 
the  condition  of  the  charged  bodies  in  the  electric  field 
to  that  of  the  medium  separating  them,  and  it  is  perhaps 
open  to  question  whether  this  of  late  years  has  not  been 
too  much  the  case.  To  explain  the  effects  observed  in 
the  electric  field  we  should  require  to  know  the  condition 
not  only  of  the  ether,  but  also  of  the  conductors  and  in- 
sulators present  in  it ;  just  as  a  complete  theory  of  light 
would  include  the  state  of  the  luminous  bodies  as  well  as 
of  the  ether  transmitting  the  radiations  excited  by  them. 
Since  matter  is  more  amenable  to  experiment  than  the 
ether,  it  seems  most  probable  that  we  shall  first  gain  an 
insight  into  the  nature  of  electricity  from  a  study  of 
those  cases  where  matter  seems  to  play  the  chief  part — 
such  as  in  the  electric  discharge  through  gases,  and 
the  phenomena  of  electrolysis — rather  than  from  specula- 
tions, however  interesting,  as  to  what  takes  place  in  the 
ether  when  it  is  transmitting  electrical  vibrations.  Prof. 
Lodge,  however,  in  the  work  under  consideration,  devotes 
most  of  his  space  to  the  consideration  of  the  ether.  In 
his  preface  he  says,  "  Few  things  in  physical  science 
appear  to  me  more  certain  than  that  what  has  so  long 
been  called  electricity  is  a  form,  or  rather  a  mode,  of 
manifestation  of  the  ether ; "  and  he  proceeds  to  give 
precision  to  this  somewhat  vague  statement  by  developing 
a  theory  that  electricity  is  a  fluid,  and  a  constituent  of  a 
very  complex  ether.  In  the  first  few  chapters  he  sup- 
poses that  all  insulators,  including  the  ether,  have  a 
cellular  structure  the  cells  being  filled  with  a  fluid  which 
is  electricity,  and  which  is  not  able  to  get  from  one  cell 
to  another  unless  the  walls  of  the  cells  are  broken  down  ; 
in  conductors,  however,  there  are  channels  between  the 
cells,  so  that  the  electricity  is  able  to  flow  more  or  less 
freely  through  them.  A  flow  of  this  fluid  is  an  electric 
current.  But  if  this  is  the  case,  anything  which  sets  the 
ether  in  motion  will  produce  an  electric  current.  Now, 
Fizeau's  experiments  show  that  moving  bodies  carry  the 
ether  with  them  to  an  extent  depending  on  their  index 


of  refraction  ;  so  that  a  disk  made  of  glass  or  other 
refracting  substance,  if  set  in  rapid  rotation  about  an 
axis  through  its  centre,  and  at  right  angles  to  its  plane, 
ought  to  act  as  if  currents  were  circulating  in  the  disk, 
and  produce  a  magnetic  field  around  it.  In  order  to 
avoid  the  allied  difficulty  that  nothing  has  ever  been 
observed  which  indicates  that  a  magnet  or  a  current 
flowing  through  a  coil  possesses  gyroscopic  properties, 
Prof.  Lodge  assumes,  in  subsequent  chapters,  that  the 
fluid  in  the  cells  of  the  ether  is  a  mixture  of  two  fluids, 
and  that  these  two  fluids  are  positive  and  negative  elec- 
tricity :  and  that,  in  order  to  exhibit  any  electrical  effect, 
the  compound  fluid  has  first  to  be  decomposed  into  posi- 
tive and  negative  electricity  by  the  application  of  an 
electromotive  force.  A  current  of  electricity,  on  this  view, 
consists  of  the  flow  of  equal  quantities  of  positive  and 
negative  electricity  in  opposite  directions.  Thus  this,  the 
most  "  modern  view  of  electricity,"  is  in  its  most  im- 
portant features  almost  identical  with  the  old  two-fluid 
theory  published  by  Symmer  in  1759.  We  confess  we  do 
not  think  the  theory  in  its  present  form  advances  the 
science  of  electricity  much  :  it  does  not  suggest  new  phe- 
nomena, nor  does  it  lend  itself  readily  to  explain  the 
action  of  matter  in  modifying  electrical  phenomena;  it 
demands,  too,  a  very  artificial  ether.  It  would  seem  that 
the  first  steps  required  to  make  a  theory  of  this  kind  a 
real  advance  on  the  old  two-fluid  theory  would  be  the  dis- 
covery of  a  structure  for  the  ether,  which  would  possess 
the  same  kind  of  properties  as  the  mixture  of  the  two 
electricities  on  that  theory.  A  great  deal,  too,  is  left 
indefinite  in  the  theory :  thus,  for  example,  we  are  not 
told  whether  for  a  given  current  these  streams  are  moving 
slowly  or  with  prodigious  velocities.  In  fact,  there  is 
throughout  the  book  rather  a  want  of  definite  conclusions, 
and  this  is  rather  hidden  by  the  vigorous  style  in  which 
Prof  Lodge  writes  :  he  develops  his  ideas  in  such  an 
enthusiastic  and  interesting  way  that  on  the  first  reading 
they  seem  to  be  a  good  deal  more  definite  than  they  prove 
to  be  on  calmer  reflection. 

But  whatever  may  be  thought  of  Prof  Lodge's  theory 
of  electricity,  there  can  be,  we  think,  no  two  opinions  of 
the  value  of  the  numerous  models  illustrating  the  proper- 
ties of  electrical  systems  which  he  has  invented.  These 
must  prove  of  the  greatest  assistance  in  enabling  the 
student  to  gain  a  clear  and  vivid  idea  of  electrical  pro- 
cesses, and  ought  to  be  largely  employed  by  all  teachers 
of  electricity. 

In  a  work  dealing  so  briefly  with  such  a  multitude  of 
different  and  difficult  subjects  it  is  natural  that  there 
should  be  many  statements  to  which  exception  might  be 
taken.  Prof  Lodge  disarms  criticism  by  his  frank  ad- 
mission of  this  ;  sometimes,  also,  by  an  amusing  vagueness 
of  statement :  thus,  on  p.  206,  in  speaking  of  the  condi- 
tion of  the  ether  in>icie  a  strongly-magnetizable  substance, 
he  says  :  "  Perhaps  it  is  that  the  atoms  themselves  revolve 
with  the  electricity  ;  perhaps  it  is  something  quite  differ- 
ent." There  are,  however,  some  statements  of  a  less 
theoretical  kind  which  seem  to  us  likely  to  mislead  the 
student.  Thus  it  is  stated  that  the  amount  of  the  Peltier 
effect  shows  that  the  difference  of  potential  between  zinc 
and  copper  is  only  a  few  micro-volts.  The  Peltier  effect, 
however,  without  further  assumption,  cannot  tell  us  any- 
thing about  the  absolute  magnitude  of  the  difference  of 


NA  TURE 


\_Ncv.  7,  1889 


potential  between  the  metals  ;  it  can  only  give  us  the 
value  of  the  temperature  coefficient,  which  is  equal  to  the 
Peltier  effect  divided  by  the  absolute  temperature.  Then, 
again,  the  pyro-electricity  of  tourmaline  is  explained  by 
the  unilateral  conductivity  of  a  tourmaline  crystal  whose 
temperature  is  changing,  discovered  by  the  author  and 
Prof.  Silvanus  Thompson.  If  this  unilateral  conduc- 
tivity is  regarded  as  proving  the  existence  of  an  electro- 
motive force  in  a  crystal  which  is  increasing  or  decreasing 
in  temperature,  the  explanation  is  valid,  but  in  the  text 
nothing  is  said  about  an  electromotive  force,  and  the 
student  might  be  led  to  infer  that  a  mere  difference  in 
resistance  could  explain  pyro-electricity.  The  way  in 
Avhich  a  current  flows  past  an  insulating  obstacle,  the  lines 
of  flow  closing  in  on  the  obstacle,  and  leaving  nothing 
corresponding  to  "  dead  water  "  behind  it,  is  given  as  a 
proof  that  the  electric  current  has  no  mechanical  mo- 
mentum ;  but  unless  the  corners  of  the  obstacle  were 
infinitely  sharp,  a  slowly-moving  fluid  might  flow  in  the 
same  way  as  electricity,  even  though  it  possessed  inertia, 
so  that  the  proof  is  not  conclusive.  It  is  also  stated  that 
the  effects  on  light  produced  by  a  magnetized  body,  dis- 
covered by  Dr.  Kerr,  of  Glasgow,  have  been  deduced  by 
Prof.  Fitzgerald  from  Maxwell's  theory  of  light.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  however,  the  results  deduced  from  this 
theory  by  Fitzgerald  do  not  coincide  with  those  observed 
by  Dr.  Kerr  and  Prof.  Kundt.  The  production  in  an 
unequally-heated  conductor  of  an  electromotive  force  is 
explained  by  supposing  the  atoms  in  such  a  body  to  be 
moving  faster  in  one  direction  than  the  opposite,  and 
therefore,  since  they  are  supposed  to  drag  the  ether  with 
them,  producing  a  flow  of  ether  in  the  direction  in  which 
they  are  moving  fastest ;  but,  on  the  dualistic  theory  of 
electricity  adopted  in  this  book,  this  ether  stream  would 
consist  of  equal  quantities  of  positive  and  negative  elec- 
tricity moving  in  the  sa?ne  direction,  and  this  would  not 
produce  any  electrical  effect. 

At  the  end  of  the  book  are  three  popular  lectures  de. 
livered  by  Prof.  Lodge,  the  first  on  the  relation  between 
electricity  and  light,  the  second  on  the  ether  and  its 
functions,  and  the  third  his  admirable  one  at  the  Royal 
Institution,  on  the  discharge  of  a  Leyden  jar,  which  is  a 
model  of  what  such  a  lecture  ought  to  be. 

Taken  as  a  whole,  we  think  that  the  book  is  one  which 
ought  to  be  read  by  all  advanced  students  of  electricity  ; 
they  will  get  from  it  many  of  the  views  which  are  guiding 
those  who  are  endeavouring  to  advance  that  science,  and 
it  is  so  stimulating  that  no  one  can  read  it  without  being 
inspired  with  a  desire  to  work  at  the  subject  to  which  it 
is  devoted. 


THE  CALCULUS  OF  PROBABILITIES. 

Calcul   des    Probabilith.      Par    J.    Bertrand.      (Paris : 
Gauthier-Villars,  1 889.) 

"  T^  VERYBODY  makes  errors  in  Probabilities  at  times^ 
-L^  and  big  ones,"  writes  De  Morgan  to  Sir  William 
Hamilton.  M.  Bertrand  appears  to  form  an  exception 
to  this  dictum,  or  at  least  to  its  severer  clause.  He 
avoids  those  slips  in  the  philosophical  part  of  the  subject 
into  which  the  greatest  of  his  mathematical  predecessors 
have  fallen.     Thus  he  points  out  that,  in  investigating  the 


"  causes  "  of  an  observed  event,  or  the  ways  in  which  it 
might  have  happened,  by  means  of  the  calculus  of  prob- 
abilities, it  is  usual  to  make  certain  unwarranted  assump- 
tions concerning  the  so-called  a /rz'w/ probability  of  those 
causes.  Suppose  that  a  number  of  black  and  white  balls 
have  been  drawn  at  random  from  an  urn,  and  from  this 
datum  let  us  seek  to  determine  the  proportion  of  black 
and  white  balls  in  the  urn.  It  is  usual  to  assume,  without 
sufficient  grounds,  that  a  priori  one  proportion  of  balls, 
one  constitution  of  the  urn,  is  as  likely  as  another.  Or 
suppose  a  coin  has  been  tossed  up  a  number  of  times,  and 
from  the  observed  proportion  of  heads  and  tails  let  it  be 
required  to  determine  whether  and  in  what  degree  the 
coin  is  loaded.  Some  assumption  must  be  made  as  to 
the  probability  which,  prior  to,  or  abstracting  from,  our 
observations,  attaches  to  different  degrees  of  loading.  The 
assumptions  which  are  usually  made  have  a  fallacious 
character  of  precision. 

Again,  M.  Bertrand  points  out  that  the  analogy  of  urns 
and  dice  has  been  employed  somewhat  recklessly  by- 
Laplace  and  Poisson.  It  is  true  that  the  ratio  of  male  to- 
female  births  has  a  constancy  such  as  the  statistics  of 
games  of  chance  present.  But,  before  we  compare  boys 
and  girls  to  black  and  white  balls  taken  out  at  random 
from  an  urn,  we  must  attend  not  only  to  the  average  pro- 
portion of  m.ale  to  female  births,  but  also  to  the  deviations 
from  that  average  which  from  time  to  time  or  from  place 
to  place  may  be  observed.  The  analogy  of  urns  and  balls 
is  more  decidedly  inappropriate  when  it  is  applied  to 
determine  the  probable  correctness  of  judicial  decisions. 
The  independence  of  the  judges  or  jurymen  which  the 
theory  supposes  does  not  exist. 

"  Quand  un  juge  se  trompe  il  y  a  pour  cela  des  raisons  r 
il  n'a  pas  reellement  mis  la  main  dans  une  urne  ou  le 
hazard  I'a  mal  servi.  II  a  ajoute  foi  a  une  faux  te- 
moignage,  le  concours  fortuit  de  plusieurs  circonstances  a 
eveille  a  tort  sa  defiance,  un  avocat  trop  habile  I'a  emu, 
de  hautes  influences  peutetre  I'ont  ebranle.  Ses  collegues 
ont  entendu  les  memes  temoins,  on  les  a  instruits  des- 
memes  circonstances,  le  meme  avocat  a  plaide  devant 
eux,  on  a  tentc  sur  eux  la  meme  pression." 

With  equal  force  does  M.  Bertrand  expose  the  futility 
of  the  received  reasoning  by  which  it  is  pretended  to  deter- 
mine the  probability  that  the  sun  will  rise  to-morrow  from 
the  fact  that  it  has  risen  so  many  days  in  the  past. 

These  reflections  are  just  and  important  ;  but  their 
value  is  somewhat  diminished  by  the  fact  that  they  have 
been,  for  the  most  part,  made  by  previous  writers  with 
whom  our  author  seems  unacquainted.  Thus  Prof. 
Lexis  has  more  carefully  considered  the  extent  of  the 
error  committed  by  Laplace  and  Poisson  in  applying  to 
male  and  female  births  and  other  statistics  rules  derived 
from  games  of  chance.  The  fundamental  principles  of 
Probabilities  have  been  more  fully  explored  by  Dr.  Venn. 
M.  Bertrand,  like  Laplace,  starts  by  defining  the  prob- 
ability of  an  event  as  the  ratio  of  the  number  of  favour- 
able cases  to  the  number  of  possible  cases.  He  does  not 
explain  what  constitutes  a  "favourable  case  " — that,  when 
a  die  is  thrown,  the  probability  of  obtaining  the  3  or 
4  is  one- sixth,  because  as  a  matter  of  fact  each  side  in 
the  long  run  turns  up  once  out  of  six  times.  Accordingly,, 
when  he  argues  that  in  a  great  number  of  trials  each 
event  is  most  likely  to  occur  with  a  frequency  correspond- 


Nov.  7.  1889] 


NATURE 


ing  to  its  probability,  he  lays  himself  open  to  the  charge 
of  circularity  which  Dr.  Venn  has  brought  against  Ber- 
nouilli's  theorem.  Without  pronouncing  on  this  delicate 
■question,  we  may  safely  say,  with  respect  to  the  first 
principles  of  the  subject,  that  no  point  which  has  been 
left  obscure  by  Dr.  Venn  has  been  cleared  up  by  M. 
Bertrand. 

It  is  with  respect  to  the  purely  mathematical  portion  of 
the  calculus,  or  that  part  of  its  metaphysics  which  is 
inextricably  mixed  with  mathematics,  that  we  expected 
and  have  found  most  assistance  from  M.  Bertrand. 
Hitherto  the  study  of  Probabilities  has  been  barred  by 
the  dilemma  which  M.  Bertrand  thus  states: — 

"  On  ne  peut  bien  connaitre  le  calcul  des  probabilit^s 
sans  avoir  lu  le  livre  de  Laplace  ;  on  ne  peut  lire  le  livre 
de  Laplace  sans  s'y  preparer  par  les  Etudes  mathdmatiques 
les  plus  profondes." 

Much  of  Laplace's  analysis  which  must  have  affected 
many  eager  students  like  stickjaw  has  been  simplified 
by  M.  Bertrand.  He  is  in  general  more  readable  than 
Poisson.  Several  of  the  theorems  which  he  gives  seem 
to  be  new.  His  methods  of  determining  from  a  given  set 
of  observations  the  characteristic,  or  modulus,  appertain- 
ing to  the  source  of  error  are  specially  interesting. 

M.  Bertrand's  mathematical  power  enables  him  to  carry 
the  torch  of  common-sense  to  those  perplexed  parts  of  the 
subject  where  less  qualified  critics,  awed  by  the  imposing 
mass  of  symbols,  have  hesitated  to  differ  from  Laplace  or 
Poisson,  Of  this  kind  is  the  simultaneous  determination 
of  several  quantities  from  a  great  number  of  equations. 
When  Laplace  computes  that  the  odds  are  a  million  to 
one  against  the  occurrence  of  an  error  of  assigned  magni- 
tude in  the  determination  of  Jupiter's  mass,  M.  Bertrand 
shows  reasons  for  suspecting  the  accuracy  of  such  com- 
putations. In  fact,  he  carries  out  Poinsot's  witty  direction  ; 

"  Apr^s  avoir  calcule  la  probability  d'une  erreur  il 
faudrait  calculer  la  probabilitd  d'une  erreur  dans  le 
calcul." 

The  true  import  and  proper  application  of  the  theory  of 
errors  of  observation  are  thus  well  expressed  : — 

"  On  peut  accepter  sans  crainte  le  rdsultat,  mais  il  est 
temdraire  d'dvaluer  en  chiffres  la  confiance  qu'il  doit 
inspirer." 

M.  Bertrand  teaches  with  authority — and  not  like  those 
who  have  not  followed  the  higher  mathematical  reason- 
ings of  the  calculus — in  what  spirit  its  conclusions  should 
be  accepted. 

Still,  even  with  regard  to  those  parts  of  the  subject 
where  a  first-rate  mathematician  has  so  great  an  advant- 
age, we  venture  to  think  that  the  work  would  have  been 
much  more  valuable  if  the  writer  had  taken  the  trouble  to 
acquaint  himself  more  fully  with  what  his  predecessors 
had  done.  For  example,  in  discussing  the  reasons  for  taking 
the  arithmetic  mean  of  a  set  of  observations  (presumed  to 
be  equally  good)  relating  to  a  single  quantity,  M.  Bertrand 
does  not  dwell  on  the  argument  that  the  probability-curve 
— with  which  the  arithmetic  mean  is  specially  corre- 
lated— is  apt  to  represent  the  grouping  of  errors  for  this 
reason,  that  an  error  may  be  regarded  as  a  function  of  a 
great  number  of  elements  each  obeying  some  definite  law 
of  facility,  and  that  the  values  of  such  a  function  conform 
to  the  probability-curve.     It  is  true  that   Laplace,  from 


whom  this  argument  may  be  derived,  has  not  himself 
used  it  very  directly.  But  in  a  writer  on  the  method  of 
least  squares  we  may  expect  some  conversance  with  more 
recent  works,  in  particular  with  Mr.  Glaisher's  classical 
paper  in  the  Memoirs  of  the  Astronomical  Society 
(London).  Moreover,  Laplace  does  employ  the  mathe- 
matical theorem  which  we  have  indicated,  not  indeed  to 
prove  that  the  law  of  facility  for  errors  of  observation  in 
general  is  the  probability-curve,  but  that,  whatever  that 
law  of  facility  be,  the  most  advantageous  combination  is  a 
certain  linear  function,  A  treatise  in  which  this  celebrated 
argument  is  not  discussed  cannot  be  regarded  as  exhaust- 
ive. But  it  is  remarkable  that  with  respect  to  the  com- 
bination of  observations,  M.  Bertrand  seems  to  defer 
more  to  Gauss  than  to  his  own  eminent  countryman. 

M.  I^ertrand  has  indeed  slipped  in  a  doctrine  for  which 
the  authority  of  Laplace  may  be  quoted,  that  in  choosing 
the  best  combination  of  a  set  of  observations  "there  is 
an  essential  difference  between  the  most  probable 
value  of  a  quantity  and  the  value  which  it  is  best  to 
adopt"  (Bertrand,  Art.  138)  ;  the  latter  being  the  mean 
(first  power)  of  the  observations  (Art.  155)— which  M. 
Bertrand  rather  awkwardly  terms  "  la  valeur  probable.'' 
M.  Bertrand  does  not  seem  to  realize  the  gravity  of  the 
assumption  which  is  contained  in  the  latter  clause.  Later 
on  he  employs  Gauss's  criterion  of  erroneousness — namely, 
the  mean  square  of  error.  But  the  ground,  nature,  and 
relation  of  these  two  principles  are  not  very  clearly 
explained  by  the  writer.  With  respect  to  the  philosophical 
foundation  of  the  method  of  least  squares  he  has  not 
superseded  the  necessity  of  studying  Laplace. 

With  these  reservations,  M.  Bertrand's  work  may  be 
regarded  as  one  of  the  most  complete  treatises  on  the 
subject.  Nowhere  else  are  the  two  elements  so  pecu- 
liarly combined  in  the  science  of  Probabilities — common- 
sense  and  mathematical  reasoning — to  be  found  existing 
together  in  such  abundance.  F.  Y.  E. 


ARGENTINE   ORNITHOLOGY. 

Argentine  Ornithology.  By  P.  L.  Sclater,  Ph.D.,  F.R.S.^ 
and  W.  H.  Hudson,  C.M.Z.S.  Vol.11.  (London  :  W, 
H.  Porter,  1889.) 

THE  completion  of  this  important  work  is  an  event 
of  considerable  importance  to  every  lover  of  neo- 
tropical zoology,  and  the  authors  have  both  performed 
their  parts  well,  while  the  ten  plates  by  Mr.  Keulemans 
are  beautifully  drawn  and  admirably  coloured.  Among 
the  increasing  number  of  Englishmen  who  settle  in  the 
Argentine  Republic,  there  are  sure  to  be  many  who  will 
pursue  natural  history  studies,  and  to  all  such  a  well-exe- 
cuted book  like  the  present  will  be  invaluable.  The  joint 
authors  of  the  work  are  happy  in  their  association,  for 
while  Dr.  Sclater  brings  to  the  work  a  vast  experience, 
and  a  sound  scientific  knowledge  of  his  subject,  it  is 
certain  that  never  was  there  a  better  describer  of  the 
habits  of  birds  than  Mr.  Hudson.  Although  of  English 
parentage,  he  is  a  native-born  Argentine,  and  he  has 
grown  up  among  the  birds  whose  life  and  history  he  so 
well  knows  how  to  portray.  In  turning  over  the  pages 
of  this  volume,  we  have  found  many  interesting  extra:ts 
which  we  should  have  liked  to  present  to  our  readers* 


NATURE 


\Nov.  7,  1889 


and  we  feel  that  we  should  not  be  doing  justice  to  Mr. 
Hudson  if  we  did  not  quote  for  their  benefit  one  speci- 
men of  this  naturalist's  writing.  He  is  describing  the 
habits  of  the  Carancho  {Polyborus  tharus) : — 

"  When  several  of  these  birds  combine  they  are  very 
bold.  A  friend  told  me  that  while  voyaging  on  the 
Parand.  River  a  black-necked  Swan  flew  past  him  hotly 
pursued  by  three  Caranchos  ;  and  I  also  witnessed  an  attack 
by  four  birds  on  a  widely  different  species.  I  was  standing 
on  the  bank  of  a  stream  on  the  Pampas  watching  a  great 
concourse  of  birds  of  several  kinds  on  the  opposite  shore, 
where  the  carcass  of  a  horse,  from  which  the  hide  had 
been  stripped,  lay  at  the  edge  of  the  water.  One  or  two 
hundred  Hooded  Gulls  and  about  a  dozen  Chimangos  were 
gathered  about  the  carcass,  and  close  to  them  a  very  large 
flock  of  Glossy  Ibises  were  wading  about  in  the  water, 
while  amongst  these,  standing  motionless  in  the  water, 
was  one  solitary  white  Egret.  Presently  four  Caranchos 
appeared,  two  adults  and  two  young  birds  in  brown 
plumage,  and  alighted  on  the  ground  near  the  carcass. 
The  young  birds  advanced  at  once  and  began  tearing  at 
the  flesh  ;  while  the  two  old  birds  stayed  where  they  had 
alighted,  as  if  disinclined  to  feed  on  half-putrid  meat. 
Presently  one  of  them  sprang  into  the  air  and  made  a 
dash  at  the  birds  in  the  water,  and  instantly  all  the  birds 
in  the  place  rose  into  the  air  screaming  loudly,  the  two 
young  brown  Caranchos  only  remaining  on  the  ground. 
For  a  few  moments  I  was  in  ignorance  of  the  meaning  of 
all  this  turmoil,  when,  suddenly,  out  of  the  confused  black 
and  white  cloud  of  birds  the  Egret  appeared,  mounting 
vertically  upwards  with  vigorous  measured  strokes.  A 
moment  later,  and  first  one,  then  the  other,  Carancho  also 
emerged  from  the  cloud,  evidently  pursuing  the  Egret,  and 
only  then  the  two  brown  birds  sprang  into  the  air  and  joined 
in  the  chase.  For  some  minutes  I  watched  the  four  birds 
toiling  upwards  with  a  wild  zigzag  flight,  while  the  Egret, 
still  rising  vertically,  seemed  to  leave  them  hopelessly  far 
behind.  But  before  long  they  reached  and  passed  it,  and 
each  bird  as  he  did  so  would  turn  and  rush  downwards,  strik- 
ing at  the  Egret  with  his  claws,  and  while  one  descended  the 
others  were  rising,  bird  following  bird  with  the  greatest 
regularity.  In  this  way  they  continued  toiling  upwards 
until  the  egret  appeared  a  mere  white  speck  in  the  sky, 
about  which  the  four  hateful  black  spots  were  still 
revolving.  I  had  watched  them  from  the  first  with  the 
greatest  excitement,  and  now  began  to  fear  that  thej'^ 
would  pass  from  sight  and  leave  me  in  ignorance  of  the 
result ;  but  at  length  they  began  to  descend,  and  then  it 
looked  as  if  the  Egret  had  lost  all  hope,  for  it  was  drop- 
ping very  rapidly,  while  the  four  birds  were  all  close  to  it 
striking  at  it  every  three  or  four  seconds.  The  descent 
for  the  last  half  of  the  distance  was  exceedingly  rapid, 
and  the  birds  would  have  come  down  almost  at  the  very 
spot  they  started  from,  which  was  about  forty  yards  from 
where  I  stood,  but  the  Egret  was  driven  aside,  and  sloping 
rapidly  down  struck  the  earth  at  a  distance  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  yards  from  the  starting  point.  Scarcely 
had  it  touched  the  ground  before  the  hungry  quartette 
were  tearing  it  with  their  beaks.  They  were  all  equally 
hungry  no  doubt,  and  perhaps  the  old  birds  were  even 
hungrier  than  their  young  ;  and  I  am  quite  sure  that  if 
the  flesh  of  the  dead  horse  had  not  been  so  far  advanced 
towards  putrefaction  they  would  not  have  attempted  the 
conquest  of  the  Egret.  I  have  so  frequently  seen  a  pure 
white  bird  singled  out  for  attack  in  this  way,  that  it  has 
always  been  a  great  subject  of  wonder  to  me  how  the  two 
common  species  of  snow-white  Herons  in  South  America 
are  able  to  maintain  their  existence  ;  for  their  whiteness 
exceeds  that  of  other  white  waterfowl,  while,  compared 
with  Swans,  Storks,  and  the  Wood-ibis,  they  are  small 
and  feeble.  I  am  sure  that  if  these  four  Caranchos  had 
..attacked  a  Glossy  Ibis  they  would  have  found  it  an  easier 


conquest ;  yet  they  singled  out  the  egret,  purely,  I  believe^ 
on  account  of  its  shining  while  conspicuous  plumage." 

In  his  introduction  Dr.  Sclater  gives  a  resume  ol  the 
number  of  genera  and  species  inhabiting  the  Argentine 
Republic,  and  shows  that  the  avifauna  of  that  portion  of 
South  America  belongs  to  the  Patagonian  sub-region.  A 
little  sketch-map  would  have  been  useful,  to  show  the 
configuration  of  the  country  and  the  proportions  of  the 
mountain-ranges,  as  it  is  evident  that  a  district  which  can 
boast  of  a  Dipper,  and  be  at  the  same  time  the  home  of 
two  Cariamas,  must  possess  elements  of  two  very  different 
avifauuce.  Some  day,  no  doubt,  an  exact  exploration,  such 
as  that  now  being  undertaken  in  Mexico  by  Messrs. 
Salvin  and  Godman,  will  trace  the  limits  of  the  avifaunae 
of  the  Pampas  and  the  mountain  regions.  If  Mr.  Hudson 
could  only  be  induced  to  resume  his  work  of  exploration 
and  visit  the  interior  of  the  Argentine  RepubHc,  the 
results  would  be,  we  venture  to  say,  of  the  first  importance 
to  science. 

Dr.  Sclater,  we  notice,  draws  his  comparisons  of  the 
different  orders  of  Argentine  birds  from  the  "  Nomenclator 
Avium  Neotropicalium  "  of  1873,  which  is  rather  ancient 
history.  The  statistics  of  American  birds  must  have 
altered  considerably  since  that  date,  if  we  may  judge 
from  the  Tanagers  alone,  which  numbered  302  species  in 
1873,  and  in  1886  had  reached  377  in  number,  according 
to  Dr.  Sclater's  own  estimate.  In  dividing  the  Neotropical 
Region  into  the  sub-regions  he  adopts  the  conclusions  of 
Prof.  Newton  in  the  "  Encyclopaedia  Britannica,"  but  the 
names  of  one  or  two  of  them  are  changed.  The  bound- 
aries seem  to  be  extremely  natural,  according  to  our 
present  state  of  knowledge,  though  we  would  scarcely 
consider  the  Central  American  sub-region  (or  the  Trans- 
panamic  sub-region,  as  Dr.  Sclater  renames  it)  to  be 
bounded  on  the  north  by  Tehuantepec  !  The  author 
probably  intended  to  give  only  a  general  outline,  for  the 
northern  boundaries  of  the  Central  American  sub-region 
are  much  more  elaborately  defined  in  fact. 

R.  BOWDLER  SHARPE. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

The  Chemistry  of  the  Coal-tar  Colojirs.  From  the  Ger- 
man of  Dr.  R.  Benedikt.  Translated,  with  Additions, 
by  Dr.  E.  Knecht.  Second  Edition.  (London  :  George 
Bell  and  Sons,  1889.) 
Dr.  Benedikt's  little  book  is  a  standard  treatise  in 
Germany,  where  the  literature  of  the  coal-tar  colours  is 
fast  becoming  a  most  important  branch  of  the  general 
literature  of  applied  chemistry ;  and  Dr.  Knecht  has 
done  excellent  service  in  making  the  work  more  gener- 
ally known  to  English  readers  by  means  of  his  transla- 
tion. It  is  remarkable  that,  although  England  may  be 
said  to  have  originated  the  coal-tar  colour  industry,  she 
has  contributed  comparatively  little  to  the  general  hter- 
ature  of  the  subject.  Practically,  all  the  systematized 
information  we  possess  has  come  to  us  through  the 
medium  of  French  and  German  manuals.  A  number 
of  our  chemists  could  be  named  who  have  communicated 
original  memoirs  on  the  constitution  of  organic  colouring- 
matters  to  the  recognized  organs  of  chemical  research, 
but  their  work  is  very  special  in  its  character,  and  ap- 
peals rather  to  the  pure  chemist  than  to  the  technologist, 
and  hence  is  seldom  read  by  the  latter.  The  want  of  a 
good,  sound,  and  comprehensive  treatise  on  the  subject 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


of  the  coal-tar  colour  industry  has,  we  think,  not  been 
without  its  influence  on  the  development  of  this  branch 
of  applied  organic  chemistry  in  this  country.  Dr. 
Knecht's  translation  merits  a  place  on  the  bookshelf  of 
every  person  engaged  in  the  manufacture  and  use  of  the 
so-called  coal-tar  colours. 

A  Bibliography  of  Geodesy.  By  J.  Howard  Gore,  B.S., 
Ph.D.  (Washington  :  Government  Printing  Office, 
1889.) 

This  valuable  work  forms  Appendix  No.  16  to  the  1887 
Report  of  the  United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey, 
and  is  another  example  of  the  disinterested  energy  dis- 
played by  our  Transatlantic  cousins  in  scientific  matters. 
With  great  perseverance,  and  at  the  cost  of  much  time 
and  trouble,  Mr.  Gore  personally  explored  thirty-four  of  the 
principal  libraries  of  America  and  Europe,  and  numerous 
minor  libraries  by  proxy  ;  and,  in  addition,  he  checked 
and  completed  many  of  his  references  by  correspondence 
with  the  living  authors  of  both  continents.  The  extent  of 
his  labours  is  shown  by  the  four  hundred  columns  of 
references,  and  short  remarks  where  the  title  alone  is  not 
sufficiently  explanatory.  An  alphabetical  arrangement  is 
adopted,  and  this  includes  authors,  abbreviations,  and 
subjects. 

It  is  gratifying  to  note  that  our  own  country,  besides 
the  assistance  rendered  by  its  libraries,  lends  its  aid  to 
such  an  important  work  in  the  shape  of  a  manuscript 
supplement  by  Colonel  Herschel  to  his  pendulum  biblio- 
graphy, which  was  placed  unreservedly  at  Mr.  Gore's 
disposal,  through  the  courtesy  of  the  Royal  Society. 
After  the  offers  of  publication  made  by  various  institu- 
tions, including  the  International  Geodetic  Association  at 
Berlin,  no  further  testimony  to  Mr.  Gore's  fitness  for  the 
work  is  needed,  and  the  compiler  is  justly  proud  "to  see 
the  results  of  his  labours  issuing  from  an  institution  of  his 
own  country,  which  throughout  the  worldis  the  recognized 
advance  guard  in  geodetic  science." 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

{^Tht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  oj  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  ] 

The  Method  of  Quarter  Squares. 

I  OMITTED  any  reference  to  Leslie  in  my  review  of  Mr. 
Blater's  table  (Nature,  vol.  xl.  p.  573),  as  ]  have  never  sup- 
posed that  he  was  an  independent  discoverer  of  the  method,  or 
an  independent  calculator  of  a  table,  of  quarter  squares.  I  have 
eferred  to  his  table  in  my  Report  on  Mathematical  Tables 
Brit.  Assoc.  Report,  1873,  p.  23) ;  and  the  passage  quoted  by 
Prof.  Carey  Foster  (p.  593)  is  given  in  full  in  the  preface  to  Mr. 
Blater's  table.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  words  in  question — 
"  This  application  of  a  table  of  quarter  squares,  as  it  is  derived 
from  the  simplest  principles,  might  have  readily  occurred  to  a 
mathematician  ;  yet  I  have  nowhere  seen  it  brought  into  prac- 
tical use  till,  last  summer,  I  met  with,  at  Paris,  a  small  book  by 
Antoine  Voisin,  printed  in  1817  " — do  not  indicate  an  inde- 
pendent discovery  ;  and  this  view  is  confirmed  by  the  fact  that, 
in  the  first  edition  of  the  "  Philosophy  of  Arithmetic"  (1817), 
Leslie  makes  no  mention  of  quarter  squares.  It  was  only  in 
the  second  edition  (1820),  after  having  seen  Voisin's  work  in  the 
previous  year,  that  he  added,  at  the  end  of  the  volume,  an  ac- 
count of  the  method,  and  a  table  extending  to  2000.  The  table 
was  copied,  I  presume,  from  Voisin,  as  Leslie  does  not  claim  it 
as  the  result  of  his  own  calculation.  In  the  British  Association 
Report  I  have  described  it  as  "reprinted  from  Voisin,"  and 
have  pointed  out  that  it  did  not  appear  in  the  first  edition.  In 
the  preface  to  Mr.  Blater's  letter  it  is  described  as  "an  extract 
from  Voisin's  table."     Although  we  may,  I  think,  infer,  almost 


with   certainty,  that    the    table  is  only  a  reprint,^  it  is  to  be 
regretted  that  Leslie  did  not  say  so  explicitly. 

J.  W.  L.  Glaisher. 
Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  October  26. 


Darwinism. 

Mr.  Romanes  states  that  it  is  "absurd"  to  call  his  essay  on 
physiological  selection  an  elaborate  (I  said  "laborious")  attack 
upon  Mr.  Darwin's  theory  of  the  origin  of  species.  In  that 
essay  I  find  these  words  (p.  345),  "  the  theory  of  natural  selection 
has  been  misnamed  :  it  is  not  strictly  speaking  a  theory  of  the 
origin  of  species"  ;  and  on  p.  403,  "  the  theory  of  physiological 
selection  [i.e.  Dr.  Romanes's  theory]  has  this  advantage  over 
every  other  theory  that  has  ever  been  propounded  on  the  origin 
of  species"  ;  and  again,  "the  problem  of  the  origin  of  species 
which,  as  shown  in  the  preceding  paper  [viz.  the  laboiious  essay], 
his  [Mr.  Darwin's]  theory  of  natural  selection  serves  only  in 
small  part  to  explain." 

On  the  other  hand,  Mr.  Darwin  entitled  his  great  work,  "The 
Origin  of  Species  by  means  of  Natural  Selection,  or  the  preserva- 
tion of  favoured  races  in  the  struggle  for  life."  He  considered 
his  theory  of  natural  selection  to  be  a  theory  of  the  origin  of 
species.  Mr.  Romanes  says  it  is  not.  I  say  that  this  is  an  attack 
on  Mr.  Darwin's  theory,  and  about  as  simple  and  direct  an  attack 
as  possible.  Why  Mr.  Romanes  wishes  us  to  believe  that  he 
did  not  attack  Mr.  Darwin's  theory  it  is  difficult  to  conceive. 
That  he  should  hope  to  persuade  anyone  that  it  is  absurd  to  call 
his  essay  an  attack  on  Mr.  Darwin's  theory  when  this  is  what  it 
distinctly  professes  to  be  is  curious.  I  trust  you  will  not  permit 
an  empty  discussion  on  this  matter,  but  leave  it  to  your  readers 
to  find  out  by  reference  to  the  Proc.  Linn.  Soc,  vol.  xix.,  where 
the  absurdity  exists.  E.  Ray  Lankester. 

42  Half-moon  Street,  November  i. 


Record  of  British  Earthquakes. 

Will  you  allow  me  to  ask  your  readers  to  help  me  in  com- 
piling notes  of  the  earthquakes  felt  in  this  country  during  the 
present  and  following  years? 

Mr.  Mallet's  great  Catalogue  of  all  recorded  earthquakes  ends, 
as  is  well  known,  with  the  year  1842.  Previously  to  this,  Mr. 
David  Milne  had  published  a  series  of  papers  on  the  earthquakes 
of  Great  Britain  in  the  Edinburgh  New  Philosophical  Journal 
(vols.  xxxi.  to  xxxvi.  for  the  years  1841-44).  These  papers, 
which  are  of  very  great  value,  bring  down  our  record  to  the  end 
of  August  1843.  In  recent  years  we  have  had  the  Catalogues 
of  Prof.  J.  P.  O'Reilly  (Trans.  Roy.  Irish  Acad.,  vol.  xxviii. 
pp.  285-316  and  489-708)  and  the  late  Mr.  W.  Roper  (published 
by  T.  Bell,  Observer  Office,  Lancaster).  The  latter  is  a  useful 
chronological  list  of  shocks  felt  during  the  Christian  era,  down 
to  February  10,  1889  ;  but,  except  in  a  few  cases,  it  is  little 
more  than  a  list.  Prof.  O'Reilly's  important  catalogues  are 
arranged  alphabetically  according  to  the  localities  affected,  and 
do  not  pretend  to  give  detailed  information  with  reference  to  the 
shocks  themselves. 

To  make  our  seismic  record  more  complete,  I  propose,  there- 
fore, to  compile  a  descriptive  list  of  British  shocks  noticed  in 
newspapers  and  scientific  journals  from  the  time  at  which  Mr. 
Milne's  Catalogue  closes  down  to  the  end  of  the  year  1888  ;  and 
I  should  be  very  grateful  if  your  readers  can  in  any  way  help 
me  in  this  work. 

What  I  wish  particularly  to  ask  for,  however,  is  information 
relating  to  the  shocks  of  the  present  and  future  years.  For  our 
knowledge  of  British  earthquakes  we  must  at  present  rely  to  a 
great  extent  on  newspaper  accounts  ;  and  these  accounts,  which 
for  some  points  are  fairly  trustworthy,  become  difficult  of  access 
in  after  years.  If  any  of  your  readers  are  willing  to  assist  me 
in  preserving  these  notices  in  a  convenient  and  systematic  form, 
may  I  ask  if  they  would  be  good  enough  to  send,  to  the  address 
below,  the  names  and  dates  of  newspapers,  and  more  especially 
local  ones,  in  which  any  descriptions,  however  short,  are  given  of 
British  shocks  ?  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  any  other  notes, 
communicated  by  those  who  have  felt  the  shocks  or  observed 
their  effects,  would  be  of  great  value,  and  would  be  most  thank- 
fully received. 

The  days  are  past  for  compiling  earthquake  catalogues  for  the 

*  After  quoting  the  full  title  of  Voisin's  table,  Leslie  refers  to  his  own 
table  as  "the  specimen  which  I  have  given." 


lO 


NATURE 


[Nov.  7,  1889 


>*hole  surface  of  the  earth,  and  the  value  of  an  attemp '■.  at  such 
^  task  would  now  be  extremely  doubtful.  But  fjr  limited  dis- 
tricts, like  this  country,  the  case  is  very  different.  It  would 
indeed  be  difficult  to  over-estimate  the  value  of  a  seismic  record 
Vhich  can  claim  any  approach  to  completeness  for  a  definite 
Earthquake  area,  however  feeble  the  shocks  which  visit  it  may  ba. 

I  may  add  that  I  hope  shortly  to  publish  some  notes  or  direc- 
tions for  the  study  of  earthquakes,  with  spscial  reference  to  those 
which  occur  in  this  country.  Charles  Davison. 

38  Charlotte  Road,  Birmingham,  October  10. 


Effects  of  Lightning. 

I  HAVE  known  of  the  following  case  since  July  last,  but  owing 
to  absence  from  this  place  have  only  been  able  to  get  particulars 
during  the  last  few  days. 

During  the  terrific  sto'-m  of  the  12th  of  July  last,  a  labourer's 
cottage  was  struck  by  lightning  at  Leagrave,  near  here.  The 
lightning  descended,  according  to  an  eye-witness's  report,  like  a 
"spout  of  fire,"  and  struck  and  descended  the  chimney,  which  it 
destroyed.  In  the  room  below  there  was  an  old  shepherd,  an 
invalid  woman,  a  child,  and  a  shepherd's  dog.  The  shepherd 
was  sitting  in  a  chair  leaning  on  a  stick,  a  kettle  was  l)oiling  on 
the  fire,  and  the  door  was  open.  The  lightning  entered  the  room 
simultaneously  by  the  chimney  and  an  adjoining  window.  The 
window  was  utterly  destroyed,  and  the  kettle  was  thrown  from 
the  fire  across  the  room,  the  stick  on  which  the  shepherd  was 
leaning  was  torn  from  his  hand  and  also  thrown  across  the  room, 
the  lightning  entered  a  cupboard  containing  glass  and  crockery 
and  destroyed  every  article,  and  plaster  was  torn  from  the  walls. 
The  man  and  woman  remained  unhurt,  but  the  child  was  thrown 
down  and  its  knees  stiffened.  The  dog  was  struck  perfectly  stiff, 
"like  a  log  of  wood,"  and  was  considered  dead.  The  room 
seemed  full  of  fire,  water,  and  sulphur,  and  the  occupants  said 
the  smell  of  sulphur  was  so  strong  that  they  would  certainly  have 
been  suffocated  had  it  not  been  for  the  open  door.  After  the 
storm  had  abated,  the  dog,  with  all  its  limbs  stiff,  was  laid  in  a 
barn,  where  it  very  slowly  and  partially  recovered.  It  long  re- 
mained both  deaf  and  blind,  anJ  was  entirely  dependent  upon 
smell  for  its  recognition  of  persons  and  things.  To  the  present 
day  it  has  not  entirely  recovered  its  injured  senses. 

Dunstable.  W.  G.  S. 


Electrical  Cloud  Phenomenon. 

A  SHORT  description  of  a  curious  cloud  appearance  observed 
by  me  this  summer  may  be  of  interest  to  your  readers.  It  was 
noticed  in  Kiushu,  the  southernmost  of  the  three  great  islands  of 
Japan,  early  in  July,  at  a  distance  of  ten  or  twelve  miles  from 
the  sea. 

The  season  had  been,  and  was,  after  the  time  of  the  observa- 
tion, an  exceptionally  rainy  one,  severe  floods  being  produced  in 
almost  all  parts  of  the  country,  but  it  was  not  raining  in  the  place 
where  I  made  the  observation  at  that  particular  time.  Time  shortly 
after  midday,  thermometer  about  Sj"  F. 

The  sky  was  clear  overhead,  but  there  was  a  great  bank  of 
heavy  "  thunderous "  looking  clouds  to  the  south.  It  is  most 
difficult  to  judge  even  approximately  of  the  distance  of  clouds, 
but  these  might  b;;  from  one  to  two  miles  off;  the  lower  edge 
was  represented  by  a  very  nearly  straight  line,  and  there  was  an 
amount  of  blue  sky  visible  under  the  clouds  that  would  perhaps 
subtend  from  ic°  to  15°. 

My  attention  was  attracted  to  a  sort  of  "tail"  of  cloud 
stretching  itself  downwards  from  the  straight  under  side  of  the 
cloud-bank.  It  gradually  extended  till  it  reached  some  two- 
thirds  of  the  distance  from  the  cloud  to  the  earth.  It  remained 
of  about  constant  length  for  a  little  over  ten  minutes,  the  lower 
end  continually  waving  about  in  a  most  curious  way,  giving  the 
impression  almost  that  it  was  feeling  for  something. 

Quite  suddenly  the  filament  of  cloud  straightened  itself  out, 
and  extended  itself  towards  the  earth.  The  lower  end  became  so 
very  thin  that,  from  the  distance,  it  was  impossible  to  see  whether 
it  actually  made  contact  with  the  earth  or  not,  but  I  have  not  the 
smallest  doubt  that  it  did,  and  that  a  silent  discharge  took  place 
at  the  tioie.  There  was  certainly  no  sound  heard.  Immediately 
after  the  contact  the  filament  rapidly  drew  itself  up  to  the  cloud, 
and  was  incorporated  with  it.  Almost  immediately  after  this, 
whether  as  a  mere  coincidence  or  not  I  cannot  tell,  the  cloud 
discharged  a  great  amount  of  rain.  VV.  K.  Burton. 

Imperial  University,  Tokio,  Japan. 


P.  S. — The  appearance  was  not  unlike  the  illustrations  o^^ 
"water-spouts"  that  I  have  seen,  but  there  was  no  whirling 
motion  such  as  is  always  described  as  accompanying  these,  nor, 
indeed,  was  there  any  evidence  of  violent  disturbance  of  any 
kind  at  all. 


The  Use  of  the  Word  Antiparallel. 

The  following  note  on  the  use  of  the  word  antiparallel  may 
prove  of  interest  to  tiie  readers  of  Nature. 

In  the  second  edition  of  "  A  New  Mathematical  Dictionary" 
by  E.  Stone,  F. R.S.  (London,  1743),  appears  a  short  article  on 
antiparallels,  the  whole  of  which  I  will  quote  : — 

"  Antiparallels,  are  those  lines,  as  FE,  BC,  that  make  the 
same  angles  AFE,  ACB,  with  the  two  lines  AB,  AC,  cutting 
them,  but  contrary  ways,  as  parallel  lines  that  cut  them.  But 
Mr.  Leibnitz,  in  the  Acta  Erudit.,  An.  1691,  p.  279,  calls 
antiparallels  those  lines  (see  Fig.  2)  as  EF,  GH,  which  cut  two 
parallels  AB,  CD  ;  so  that  the  outward  angle  AIF,  together 
with  the  inward  one  AK.M,  is  equal  t3    a  right  angle.     When 


E         a 


the  sides  AB,  AC,  of  a  triangle,  as  ABC  (Fig.  i),  are  cut  by 
a  line  EF  antiparallel  to  the  base  BC,  the  sa^d  sides  are 
cut  reciprocally  proportional  by  the  said  line  EF  ;  that  is, 
AF  :  BF  :  :  EC  :  AE,  the  triangles  AFE,  ABC  being  similar  or 
equiangular." 

The  error  in  regard  to  the  ratios  of  the  segments  of  the 
sides  is  the  same  as  the  one  noted  in  Mutton's  "Miscellanea 
Mathematica,"  as  quoted  by  Mr.  Langley.  I  have  no  doubt  that 
earlier  instances  of  the  use  of  this  word  can  be  found,  and  I 
would  like  to  know  whether  the  word  is  used  in  the  first  editio.i 
of  "Stone's  Dictionary."  W.  J.  James. 

Wesleyan  University,  Middletown, 
Conn.  U.S.A.,  October  15. 


Fossil  Rhizocarps. 

In  Bennet  and  Murray's  "Cryptogamic  Botany,"  at  p.  115, 
I  am  surprised  to  find  in  a  reference  to  my  paper  on  "  Fossil 
Rhizocarps  "  (in  Bull.  Ac.  Sciences,  Chicago)  the  statement,  with 
reference  to  the  macrospores  of  Protosilvinia,  that  "inasmuch 
as  they  are  borne  on  LepidodenJron  scales  this  reference  is  in- 
admissible." Now  no  such  fact  has  come  to  my  knowledge, 
and  on  the  contrary  these  bodies  are  found  inclosed  in  cellular 
sporocarps  like  those  of  Salvinia,  and  are  so  described  in  the 
paper  in  question.  If  anyone  has  found  them  on  "  scales  of 
Lepidodendron,"  the  authority  should  have  been  stated. 

Montreal,  October  15.  J.  Wm.  Dawson. 


Specific  Inductive  Capacity. 

On  p.  669  of  Ganot's  "Physics"  (eleventh  edition)  the 
following  statement  is  found:— "At  a  fixed  distance  above  a 
gold-leaf  electroscope,  let  an  electrified  sphere  be  placed,  by 
which  a  certain  divergence  of  the  leaves  is  produced.  If  now, 
the  charges  remaining  the  same,  a  disk  of  sulphur  or  of  shellac 
be  interposed,  the  divergence  increases,  shoving  that  inductive 
action  takes  place  through  the  sulphur  to  a  greater  extent  than 
through  a  layer  of  air  of  the  same  thickness." 

If  this  statement  were  correct,  there  should  be  less  electric 
action  on  the  side  of  the  ball  furthest  from  the  electroscope  when 
the  dielectric  is  interposed.  To  test  this  I  arranged  an  experi- 
ment as  follows  : — 

The  knob  of  a  charged  Leyden  jar  was  placed  midway 
between  two  insulated  plates  of  metal,  each  plate  being  in 
connection  with  an  electroscope.  The  leaves  of  each  electro- 
scope now  diverged  to  an  equal  extent. 

A  plate  of  ebonite  was  now  placed  between  the  knob  of  the 
jar  and  one  of  the  plates.     If  the  statement  above  quoted  is 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


1 1 


correct,  the  leaves  of  the  electroscope  in  connection  with  this 
plate  should  show  an  increa'-ed  divergence,  but  the  reverse  effect 
was  observed.  The  leaves  partially  c-dlapsed.  In  all  experi- 
menls  that  I  have  made  by  inserting  dielectrics  between  a  charged 
body  and  an  electroscope,  less  electric  action  has  been  the  result. 
If  while  the  charged  ball  be  near  the  electroscope  the  plate  of 
it  be  touched  with  the  finger,  the  leaves  collapse,  and  on  removing 
the  finger  and  then  the  charged  ball  they  again  diverge. 

Now  let  a  dielectric  be  placed  between  the  ball  and  the 
electroscope,  touch  the  latter,  and  remove  the  finger  and  ball  as 
before,  and  much  greater  divergence  will  be  produced.  In  both 
cases  the  electroscope  is  charged  by  induction.  Without  putting 
the  electroscope  to  earth,  1  fail  to  see  theoretically  why  any 
greater  divergence  should  occur.  I  suppose  someone  must  have 
made  the  experiment  as  quoted,  but  if  a  greater  effect  was 
produced  it  must  have  been  caused  by  the  substance  used  for  a 
dielectric  being  charged  itself  I  have  found  very  great  difficulty 
in  preventing  plates  of  ebonite,  paraffin,  sulphur,  &c.,  becoming 
electrified  when  placed  near  a  charged  body. 

I  should  like  to  know  if  anyone  has  experimented  in  this 
direction,  because  either  the  text-books  or  myself  must  be  wrong. 

In  Guthrie's  book  (p.  lOi)  there  is  a  statement  similar  to 
Ganot's.  W.  A.  Rudge. 

Who  discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  .' 

On  returning  from  Central  Arizona,  where  I  have  been  engaged 
in  biological  explorations,  I  find  upon  my  desk  an  important 
paper  entitled  "  On  the  Dentition  of  Ornithorhynchus,"  by  my 
friend  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas,  Curator  of  Mammals  in  the 
British  Museum  (see  Proc.  Royal  Soc,  vol.  xlvi  ,  1889,  126-131, 
pi.  2). 

The  opening  sentence  of  this  paper  is  as  follows  :  "At  the 
meeting  of  the  9th  of  February,  1888,  Mr.  E.  B.  Poulton  com- 
municated to  this  Society  the  first  discovery  of  the  presence  of 
teeth  in  Omitho>Jiynchus,  a  discovery  which  naturally  awakened 
extreme  interest  throughout  the  scientific  world."  A  few  lines 
further  on  Mr.  Thomas  continues  :  "  The  grand  fact  of  the  pre- 
sence of  teeth  in  Monotremes,  and  their  mammalian  nature,  are 
discoveries  on  which  Mr.  Poulton  may  well  be  congratulated." 

From  the  above  I  infer  that  consideiable  stir  has  been  made 
by  the  assumed  new  ' '  discovery  "  that  the  young  Ornithorhynchus 
has  teeth. 

If  my  British  colleagues  will  turn  to  the  masterly  work  of 
their  illustrious  countryman.  Sir  Everard  Home,  they  will  find 
in  the  second  volume  of  his  "lectures  on  Comparative 
Anatomy"  (published  in  1814),  no  less  than  three  beautifully 
engraved  plates,  containing  eight  figures,  of  the  skull  and  mouth 
parts  of  Ornithorhynchus.  Four  of  these  figures  show  the  teeth 
— two  on  each  side  of  each  jaw.  The  explanation  accompany- 
ing Fig.  I,  Tab.  lix.,  is  as  follows:  "A  view  of  the  upper  jaw  and 
palate,  to  show  that  there  are  two  grinding  teeth  on  each  side." 
¥\g.  2  is  "a  similar  view  of  the  under  jaw." 

Washington,  D.C.,  October  12.  C.  Hart  Merriam. 


ON  THE  HARDENING  AND   TEMPERING  OF 
STEEL} 

I. 

THE  fact  that  the  British  Association  meets  this  year 
at  Newcastle  no  doubt  suggested  to  the  Council 
that  it  would  be  well  to  provide,  for  the  first  time  since 
1848,  a  lecture  on  a  metallurgical  subject.  In  that  year 
a  discourse  was  delivered  at  Swansea  by  Dr.  Percy,  one 
of  the  most  learned  metallurgists  of  our  time,  who  has 
recently  passed  away,  after  having  almost  created  an 
English  literature  of  metallurgy  by  the  publication  of  his 
well-known  treatises,  without  which  it  would  have  been 
comparatively  barren.  It  was  to  him  that  the  country 
turned  in  1851  when  it  became  evident  that  our  metal- 
lurgists must  receive  scientific  training. 

1  know  that  it  has  occurred  to  many  that  the  various 
problems  involved  in  the  "  hardening  and  tempering  of 
steel "  must  be  incapable  of  adequate  treatment  in  the 
brief  limits  of  a  discourse  like  this,  while  others  will  think 

'  A  Lecture  delivered  on"  September  13,  by  Prof.  W.  C.  Roberts-.\usten, 
F.R.S.,  before  the  members  of  the  British  Association. 


that  the  details  of  the  process,  which  is  practised  daily  in 
thousands  of  workshops,  are  so  well  known  that  it  is  un- 
necessary to  devote  a  lecture  to  the  subject.  It  seemed 
to  me  that  the  entire  question  was  the  most  important  I 
could  choose,  partly  because  it  will  enable  a  large  number 
of  people  who  are  engaged  in  industrial  work,  and  who 
are  not  expected  to  think  about  it  in  a  scientific  way,  to 
know  how  such  facts  as  we  shall  have  to  examine  have 
been  dealt  with  by  scientific  investigators ;  while  those  of 
our  members  who  do  not  consider  that  their  thoughts  or 
work  are  scientific  in  its  strictest  sense,  may  perhaps  be 
interested  to  see  how  absolutely  industrial  progress  de- 
pends upon  the  advancement  of  science.  This  consider- 
ation has  led  me  to  deal  with  the  subject  in  a  somewhat 
comprehensive  way.  The  treatment  of  iron  in  its  several 
forms  is  the  thing  that  we  as  a  nation  do  well.  If  it  be 
true  that  national  virtues  are  manifestly  expressed  in  the 
industrial  art  of  a  people,  we  may  recall  the  sentence  in 
Mr.  Ruskin's  "  Crown  of  Wild  Olive"  in  which  he  says, 
"  You  have  at  present  in  England  only  one  art  of  any  con- 
sequence—that is,  iron-working,"  adding,  with  reference 
to  the  manufacture  of  armour-plate,  "  Do  you  think,  on 
those  iron  plates  your  courage  and  endurance  are  not 
written  for  ever,  not  merely  with  an  iron  pen,  but  on  iron 
parchment  ?  "  It  may  be  well,  therefore,  to  consider  what 
properties  iron  possesses  which  entitle  its  application  to 
industrial  use  to  specially  represent  the  skill  and  patience 
of  the  nation. 

In  1863,  Lord  Armstrong,  in  his  address  as  President 
of  this  Association,  expressed  the  hope  "  that  when  the 
time  again  comes  round  to  receive  the  British  Association 
in  this  town,  its  members  will  find  the  interval  to  have 
been  as  fruitful  as  the  corresponding  period,"  since  the 
previous  meeting  in  1838,  "on  which  they  were  then 
looking  back."  In  one  way  at  least  this  hope  has  been 
realized,  for  the  efforts  of  the  last  twenty  years  have  re- 
sulted in  the  development  of  an  "  age  of  steel."  When 
the  Association  last  met  here,  steel  was  still  an  expensive 
material,  although  Bessemer  had,  seven  years  before, 
communicated  his  great  invention  to  the  world  through 
the  British  Association  at  its  Cheltenham  meeting.  The 
great  future  in  store  for  Siemens's  regenerative  furnace, 
which  plays  so  important  a  part  in  the  manufacture  of 
steel,  was  confidently  predicted  in  his  Presidential  address 
by  Lord  Armstrong,  than  whom  no  one  was  better  able  to 
judge,  for  no  one  had  done  more  to  develop  the  use  ot 
steel  of  all  kinds. 

Steel,  we  shall  see,  is  modified  iron.  The  name  iron  is 
in  fact  a  comprehensive  one,  for  the  mechanical  behaviour 
of  the  metal  is  so  singularly  changed  by  influences  acting 
from  within  and  without  its  mass,  as  to  lead  many  to 
think,  with  Paracelsus,  that  iron  and  steel  must  be  two 
distinct  metals,  their  properties  being  so  different.  Pure 
iron  maybe  prepared  in  a  form  as  pliable  and  soft  as  copper, 
steel  can  readily  be  made  sufficiently  hard  to  cut  glass, 
and  notwithstanding  this  extraordinary  variance  in  the 
physical  properties  of  iron  and  certain  kinds  of  steel,  the 
chemical  difference  between  them  is  comparatively  very 
small,  and  would  hardly  secure  attention  if  it  were  not  for 
the  importance  of  the  results  to  which  it  gives  rise.  We 
have  to  consider  the  nature  of  the  transformations  which 
iron  can  sustain,  and  to  see  how  it  differs  from  steel,  of 
which  an  old  writer  has  said,i  "  Its  most  useful  and  ad- 
vantageous property  is  that  of  becoming  extremely  hard 
when  ignited  and  plunged  into  cold  water,  the  hardness 
produced  being  greater  in  proportion  as  the  steel  is  hotter 
and  the  water  colder.  The  colours  which  appear  on  the 
surface  of  steel  slowly  heated  direct  the  artist  m  teinper- 
ing  or  reducing  the  hardness  of  steel  to  any  determmate 
standard."  There  is  still  so  much  confusion  between  the 
words  " temper,"  "tempering,"  and  "  hardening,"  m  the 
writings  of  even  very  eminent  authorities,  that  it  is  well 

'  "  The  First  PrincipIeE  of  Chemistry,"  ly  V  .  Nicholson,  p.  3'2  (London, 
1790). 


12 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  7,  1889 


to  keep  these  old  definitions  carefully  in  mind.  I  shall 
employ  the  word  tempering  in  the  sense  of  softening,  as 
Falstaff  uses  it  when  he  says  of  Shallow  : — ■ 

"I  have  him  already  tempering  between  my  finger  and  my 
thumb,  and  shortly  will  I  seal  with  him."  ^ 

softening,  that  is,  as  brittle  wax  does  by  the  application 
of  gentle  heat.  Hardening,  then,  is  the  result  of  rapidly 
cooling  a  strongly  heated  mass  of  steel.  Tempering  con- 
sists in  re-heating  the  hardened  steel  to  a  temperature  far 
short  of  that  to  which  it  was  raised  before  hardening :  this 
heating  may  or  may  not  be  followed  by  rapid  cooling. 
Annealing  consists  in  heating  the  mass  to  a  temperature 
higher  than  that  used  for  tempering,  and  allowing  it  to 
cool  slowly. 

First,  let  the  prominent  facts  be  demonstrated  experi- 
mentally. 

[Three  sword-blades  of  identical  quality,  made  by  an 
eminent  sword- smith,  Mr.  Wilkinson,  were  taken.  It 
was  shown  by  bending  one  that  it  was  soft  ;  this  was 
heated  to  redness  and  plunged  into  cold  water,  when  it 
became  so  hard  that  it  broke  on  the  attempt  to  bend  it. 
Another  was  bent  into  a  bow,  the  arc  of  which  was  four 
inches  shorter  than  the  sword  itself,  a  common  test  for 
"  temper,"  and  it  sprang  back  to  a  straight  line  when  the 
bending  force  was  removed  ;  this  had  been  tempered.  A 
third,  which  had  been  softened  by  being  cooled  slowly, 
bent  easily  and  remained  distorted  ] 

The  metal  has  been  singularly  altered  in  its  properties 
by  comparatively  simple  treatment,  and  all  these  changes 
it  must  be  remembered  have  been  produced  in  a  solid 
metal  to  which  nothing  has  been  added,  and  from  which 
nothing  material  has  been  taken.  The  theory  of  this 
operation  which  I  have  just  conducted  has  been 
laboriously  built  up,  and  its  consideration  introduces 
many  questions  of  great  interest  both  in  the  history  of 
science,  and  in  our  knowledge  of  molecular  physics. 
First  as  regards  the  history  of  the  subject.  The  know- 
ledge that  steel  might  be  hardened  must  have  come  to  us 
from  remote  antiquity.  Copper  hardened  with  tin  was  its 
only  predecessor,  and  it  continued  to  be  used  very  long 
after  it  was  known  that  steel  might  be  hardened.  It 
would,  moreover,  appear  that  a  desire  to  appreciate  the 
difficulties  of  a  people  to  whom  cutting  instruments  of 
hard  steel  were  unknown,  seems  to  have  induced 
experimenters  in  quite  recent  times  to  fashion  imple- 
ments of  bronze,  and  a  trustworthy  authority  tells  us  that 
"  Sir  Francis  Chantry  formed  an  alloy  containing  about 
16  parts  of  copper,  i\  of  zinc,  and  ■i\  of  tin,  of  which 
he  had  a  razor  made,  and  I  believe  even  shaved  with  it.'  ^ 
The  Greek  alchemical  manuscripts  which  have  been  so 
carefully  examined  by  M.  Berthelot  give  various  receipts 
from  which  it  is  evident  that  in  the  early  days  the  nature 
of  the  quenching  fluid  was  considered  to  be  all-important. 
There  were  certain  rivers  the  waters  of  which  were 
supposed  to  be  specially  efficacious.  Pliny,  who  says 
that  the  difference  between  waters  of  various  rivers  can 
be  recognized  by  workers  in  steel,  also  knew  that  oil  might 
be  used  with  advantage  for  hardening  certain  varieties 
of  the  metal.  It  is  sad  to  think  how  many  of  the  old 
receipts  for  hardening  and  tempering  have  been  lost. 
What  would  we  not  give,  for  instance,  for  the  records  of 
the  Gallic  prototype  of  our  Iron  and  Steel  Institute,  the 
"  Collegium  Fabrorum  Ferrariorum^'^di  guild  with  similar 
aims,  formed  in  the  time  of  the  Roman  Republic,  for  the 
advancement  of  knowledge,  for  the  good  of  the  State,  and 
not  for  that  of  its  individual  members  ?  The  belief,  how- 
ever, in  the  efficacy  of  curious  nostrums  and  solutions  for 
hardening  steel  could  hardly  have  been  firmer  at  any 
period  than  in  the  sixteenth  century  of  our  era,     Shake- 

'  King  Henry  IV  ,  Part  II.,  Act  iv.,  Scene  3. 

^  "  Engines  of  War,"  by  H.  Wilkinson,  p.  194  (1841). 

3  "  La  Ferronnerie,"  par  F.  Liger,  t.  ii.  p.  147  (Paris,  1875). 


speare  suggests  that  Othello's  sword  "  of  Spain  "  had  been 
hardened  in  a  cold  stream  for  he  says  it  had 
"  the  ice  brook's  temper  "  ; 

but  cold  water  "was  far  too  simple  a  material  for  many  a 
sixteenth  century  artificer  to  employ,  as  is  shown  by  the 
quaint  recipes  contained  in  one  of  the  earliest  books 
of  trade  secrets,  which,  by  its  title,  showed  the  existence 
of  the  belief  that  the  "  right  use  of  alchemy  "  was  to  bring 
chemical  knowledge  to  bear  upon  industry.  The  earliest 
edition  was  published  in  1531,^  and  the  first  EngHsh 
translation^  in  1583,  from  which  the  following  extracts 
may  be  of  interest.  "  Take  snayles,  and  first  drawne  water 
of  a  red  die  of  which  water  being  taken  in  the  two  firste 
moneths  of  haruest  when  it  raynes,"  boil  it  with  the 
snails,  "  then  heate  your  iron  red  bote  and  quench  it  therein 
and  it  shall  be  hard  as  Steele."  "  Ye  may  do  the  like  with 
the  blood  of  a  man  of  xxx  yeres  of  age,  and  of  sanguine 
complexion,  being  of  a  merry  nature  and  pleasaunt  .... 
distilled  in  the  middst  of  May."  This  may  seem  trivial 
enough,  but  the  belief  in  the  efficacy  of  such  solutions 
survived  into  the  present  century,  for  I  find  in  a  work 
published  in  18 10  that  the  artist  is  prettily  directed^  "  to 
take  the  root  of  blue  lilies,  infuse  it  in  wine  and  quench 
the  steel  in  it,"  and  the  steel  will  be  hard  ;  on  the  other 
hand,  he  is  told  that  if  he  "  takes  the  juice  or  water  of 
common  beans  and  quenches  iron  or  steel  in  it,  it  will  be 
soft  as  lead."  I  am  at  a  loss  to  explain  the  confusion 
which  has  arisen  from  this  source.  As  must  always  be 
the  case  when  the  practice  of  an  art  is  purely  empirical, 
such  procedure  was  often  fantastic,  but  it  is  by  no  means 
obsolete,  for  probably  at  the  present  day  there  is  hardly  a 
workshop  in  which  some  artificer  could  not  be  found  with 
a  claim  to  possess  a  quaint  nostrum  for  hardening  steel. 
Even  the  use  of  absurdly  compounded  baths,  to  which  I 
have  referred,  was  supported  by  theoretical  views.  Otto 
Tachen,"*  for  instance,  writing  of  steel  in  about  the  year 
1666,  says  that  steel  when  it  is  "quenched  in  water 
acquires  strength  because  the  light  alcaly  in  the  water  is 
a  true  comforter  of  the  light  acid  in  the  iron,  and  cutlers 
do  strengthen  it  with  the  alcaly  of  animals,"  hence  the 
use  of  snails.  Again,  Lemery  •''  explains  in  much  the  same 
way  the  production  of  steel  by  heating  iron  in  the  presence 
of  horns  of  animals. 

I  have  dwelt  so  long  on  these  points  in  order  to  bring 
out  clearly  the  fact  that  the  early  workers  attached  great 
importance  to  the  nature  of  the  fluid  in  which  hot  steel 
was  quenched,  and  they  were  right,  though  their  theories 
may  have  been  wrong.  The  degree  of  rapidity  with 
which  heat  is  abstracted  from  the  steel  during  the  opera- 
tion of  hardening  is  as  important  at  the  present  day  as  it 
ever  was.  Roughly  speaking,  if  steel  has  to  be  made 
glass-hard,  ice-cold  water,  brine,  or  mercury,  is  used  ;  if  it 
has  only  to  be  made  slightly  hard,  hot  water  or  oil  may  be 
employed  ;  while,  as  Thomas  Gill  ^  suggested  in  1818, 
both  "  hardening  "  and  "  tempering  "  may  be  united  in  a 
single  operation  by  plunging  the  hot  metal  in  a  bath  of 
molten  lead  or  other  suitable  metal,  which  will  of  course 
abstract  the  heat  more  slowly. 

We  must  now  trace  the  development  of  theories  relating 
to  the  internal  constitution  of  steel.  The  advent  of  the 
phlogistic  school  with  the  teaching  of  Becher  and  Stahl 
led  to  the  view  that  iron  gained  phlogiston  during  its  con- 
version into  steel.  By  phlogiston  we  know  that  the  early 
chemists  really  meant  energy,  but  to  them  phlogiston  was 
represented  to  be  a  kind  of  soul  possessed  by  all  metals, 

'  "Rechter  Gebrauch  d.  Alchimei,"  1531.  There  were  many  English 
editions. 

^  "  A  profitable  boke  declaring  dyuers  approoued  remedies,"  &c.  (London, 
1583).  See  Prof.  Ferguson's  learned  paper  "On  some  Early  Treatises  on 
Techno'ogical  Chemistry,"  Phil.  Soc,  Glasgow,  January  1886. 

3  "  The  Laboratory  or  School  of  Arts,"  6th  edition,  1799,  p.  228.  There 
is  a  later  edition  of  1810. 

4  "  His  Key  to  the  Ancient  Hippocratical  Learning,"  p.  68  (London, 
1690). 

5  "  A  Course  of  Chemistry,"  ind  edition,  168'i,  p.  131. 

6  Thomson's  Annals  of  Philo  ophy,  xii.,  i8i8,  p.  58. 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


13 


which  they  could  lose  by  burning  and  regain  by  the  pro- 
cess they  called  "  revivification."  "  Hardness  [in  metals] 
is  caused  by  the  jeiunenese  of  the  spirit  and  their  imparity 
with  the  tangible  parts,"  said  Francis  Bacon  ; '  while, 
according  to  Stahl,'-  steel  was  merely  iron  possessing,  in 
virtue  of  its  phlogiston,  the  characteristics  of  a  metal  in  a 
higher  degree  ;  and  this  view  prevails  in  the  writings 
of  Henckel,  Newmann,  Cramer,  Gellert,  Rinman,  and 
Macquer.  This  opinion  survived  with  wonderful  per- 
sistence, but  it  did  not  influence  the  teaching  of  Rdau- 
niur,"*  who,  in  1722,  was,  so  far  as  I  know,  the  first  to 
suggest  a  physical  theory  which  has  been  in  any  way 
justified  by  modern  research.  He  assumed  that  when 
steel  was  heated  "sulphurs  and  salts"  were  driven  out 
from  the  molecules,  which  he  represents  diagram- 
matically,  into  the  interstitial  space  between  them.  The 
quenching  of  the  steel  and  its  sudden  cooling  prevented 
the  sulphurs  and  salts  from  returning  into  the  molecules, 
which  were  thus  firmly  cemented  by  the  matter  between 
them,  and  hard  rigid  steel  was  the  result.  In  tempering, 
the  sulphurs  and  salts  partially  returned  into  the  mole- 
cules, and  the  metal  became  proportionately  soft.  I  have 
elsewhere  shown  ^  that  he  used  the  Torricellian  vacuum  to 
demonstrate  that  the  hardening  of  steel  is  not  accom- 
panied by  the  evolution  of  gas,  and  he  concluded  that 
"  since  the  hardening  of  steel  is  neither  due  to  the 
intervention  of  a  new  substance  nor  to  the  expulsion  of 
air,  it  only  remains  to  seek  its  cause  in  the  changes 
occurring  in  its  structure."  Notwithstanding  this,  the 
phlogistic  school  were  not  daunted,  and  this  brings  me 
to  the  work  of  Torbern  Bergman,  the  great  Professor  at 
the  University  of  Upsala,  who  in  1781  showed''  that  steel 
mainly  differs  from  iron  by  containing  about  ^-^  per  cent, 
of  plumbago,  while  iron  does  not.  Read  in  connec- 
tion with  modern  research,  his  work  seems  wonderfully 
advanced.  He  was  so  forcibly  impressed  by  the  fact  that 
the  great  difference  in  the  mechanical  properties  of  different 
specimens  of  iron  is  due  to  the  presence  of  small  quantities 
of  impurity,  and  that  the  properties  of  iron  do  not  vary,  as 
he  says,  unless  by  chance  the  iron  has  gathered  foreign 
matter,  "  tiist  forte  peregrimein  paiillo  iibcrius  itihcerat 
metallian."  We  find,  even,  the  dawn  of  the  view  that  under 
the  influence  of  small  quantities  of  foreign  matter  iron  is, 
as  he  calls  it,  polymorphous,  and  plays  the  part  of  many 
metals.  "  Adeo  ui  Jure  did  qiieat,  polymorphuDi  ferrum 
pluriidu  simtil  inctalloruni  vices  sustinere"  ^  Unfortun- 
ately he  confounded  the  plumbago  or  carbon  he  had 
isolated  with  phlogiston,  as  did  Rinman  in  1782,  which 
was  strange,  because,  in  1774,  the  latter  physicist  had 
shown  that  a  drop  of  nitric  acid  simply  whitens  wrought 
iron,  but  leaves  a  black  stain  on  steel.  Bergman  tenaciously 
held  to  the  phlogistic  theory  in  relation  to  steel  ;  it  was 
inevitable  that  he  should.  The  true  nature  of  oxidation 
had  been  explained  ;  no  wonder  that  the  defenders  of  the 
phlogistic  theory  shotild  seek  to  support  their  case  by 
appealing  to  the  subtle  and  obscure  changes  produced  in 
iron  by  such  apparently  slight  causes.  Bergman's  view 
was,  however,  combated  by  Vandermonde,  Berthollet,  and 
Monge,^  who  showed  in  a  report  communicated  to  the 
Acaddmie  des  Sciences,  in  1786,  that  the  difference  be- 
tween the  main  varieties  of  iron  is  determined  by  varia- 
tion in  the  amount  of  carbon,  and  further  that  steel  must 
contain  a  certain  quantity  of  carbon  in  order  that  it  might 
possess  definite  qualities.  Bergman  died  in  1784,  and  the 
report  to  which  1  have  referred  is  full  of  respect  for  "  this 

'  "  Sylva  Sylvarum,"  2ncl  edition,  1628,  p.  215. 

2  ■'  Fundamenta  Chemise,"  Part  3,  p.  451,  quoted  by  Guyton  de  Morveau 
in  the  article  "Acier,"'"  Encyo.   Mdthodique,"  p.  421   (Paris,  1786). 

3  "  L'art  de  convertir  le  fer  forge  en  acier,"  p.  321  et  seq.  (Paris,  1722). 

4  Proc.  Inst.  Mech.  Engineers,  October  i88i,  p.  706. 

5  "  Opuscula  Physica  et  Chemica,"  vol.  iii.     "  De  Analyst  Ferri  "  (Upsala, 
1783).    A  dissertation  delivered  June  9,  1781. 

6  -'De  Analysi  Ferri,"  p.  4. 
^  "  Histoire  de  I'Academie  R05 

'32- 


•jyale  des  Sciences,"  1786  (printed  1788),  p. 


grand  chemist,"  as  its  authors  call  him,  "whom  science 
had  lost  too  soon." 

Kirwan's  essay  on  phlogiston,'  in  which  Bergman's 
views  were  defended,  elicited  a  reply  from  Lavoisier  him- 
self, and  brought  down  the  French  school  in  strength  to 
contest  almost  the  last  position  occupied  by  the  believers 
in  phlogiston."-* 

An  entire  lecture  might  be  profitably  devoted  to 
Bergman's  work.  His  was  almost  the  first  calorimetric  re- 
search, and  is  specially  interesting  when  taken  in  connec- 
tion with  the  calorimetric  investigations  of  Lavoisier  and 
Laplace  in  1780,  and  it  is  impossible  to  read  it  without 
feeling  that  in  paying  the  just  tribute  to  Lavoisier's  genius 
Bergman  has  been  overlooked.  He  desired  to  ascertain 
whether  pure  iron,  steel,  and  cast  iron  contain  the  same 
amount  of  heat.  He  therefore  attacked  the  materials  with 
a  solvent,  and  noted  the  heat  evolved.  He  says  the 
solvent  breaks  up  the  assemblage  of  the  aggregation  of 
molecules  and  forms  other  unions.  If  the  new  body 
demands  more  heat  than  the  body  which  has  been  dis- 
united, then  the  thermometer  will  fall.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  degree  of  heat  required  is  less,  the  environ- 
ment will  be  heated,  which  will  result  in  the  rise  of  the 
thermometer.  The  modern  development  is  that,  when  a 
chemical  compound  is  formed,  heat  is  evolved  and  energy 
is  lost,  but  if  one  substance,  say  a  metal,  simply  dissolves 
another,  the  solution  is  attended  with  absorption  of  heat, 
and  the  product  when  attacked  by  a  suitable  solvent 
should  evolve  practically  the  same  amount  of  heat,  but 
certainly  not  less  than  would  be  evolved  by  the  individual 
metals  present  in  solution.''  This  is  specially  interesting 
from  its  relation  to  the  calorimetric  work  of  Lavoisier 
and  Laplace  in  1780  and  of  Lavoisier  in  1782,  which  led 
the  latter  to  explain  the  nature  of  oxidation,  and  to  show 
that  a  metal  could  be  as  truly  "calcined"  or  oxidized 
by  the  action  of  a  solution  as  by  the  action  of  air  at  an 
elevated  temperature.  Now  that  the  importance  of  thermo- 
chemistry is  beginning  to  be  recognized  in  relation  to 
industrial  chemistry  and  metallurgy,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that 
Bergman's  merits  will  be  more  fully  considered.  We  are, 
however,  mainly  concerned  with  the  fact  that  he  taught 
us  that  the  difference  between  iron  and  steel  consists  in 
the  ,-77  to  \\,  per  cent,  of  carbon  which  steel  contains.  It 
was  only  natural  that  Black,  writing  in  1796,  should  have 
attributed  the  hardening  of  steel  to  the  "extrication  of 
latent  heat "  ;  "  the  abatement  of  the  hardness  by  the 
temper"  being  due,  he  says,  "to  the  restoration  of  a  part 
of  that  heat."'  Black  failed  to  see  that  the  work  of 
Bergman  had  entirely  changed  the  situation.  The  next 
step  was  made  in  France.  It  was  considered  necessary 
to  establish  the  fact  that  carbon  is  really  the  element 
which  gives  steel  ii;s  characteristic  properties,  and  with 
this  object  in  view,  Clouet,-^  in  1798,  melted  a  little 
crucible  of  iron,  weighing  57 '8  grammes,  containing  a 
diamond,  weighing  0907  gramme,  and  obtained  a  fused 
mass  of  steel  (Fig.  i). 

His  experiment  was  repeated  by  many  observers,  but 
the  results  were  open  to  doubt  from  the  fact  that  furnace 
gases  could  always  obtain  access  to  the  iron,  and  might, 
as  well  as  the  diamond,  have  yielded  carbon  to  the  metal. 

'  R.  Kirwan,  "  Essay  on  Phlogiston  and  the  Constitution  of  Acids," 
p.  134(1787). 

^  "  Essni  surle  Phlogistique,"  traduit  de  TAnglois  de  M.  Kirwan,  avec  des 
notes  de  MM.  de  Morveati,  Lavois.er,  de  la  Place,  Monge,  Berthollet,  et  de 
Fourcroy  (Paris,  1788). 

3  See  French  translation  of  Bergman's  work  (Paris,  1783),  p.  72.  The 
question  is,  however,  so  imp-^rtant  that  I  append  the  original  Latin  text  : — 
"  Menstruo  laxatur  compages  molecul.irum,  et  nova  f  ^rmantur  c  ;r.nubi.i, 
quae,  si  majorem,  quam  diruta,  figimt  materia-  caloris  quantitatem,  in  vicinia 
calor  ad  rcstituendum  sequilibriura  diminuatur  oportet,  et  thcrrnometri 
hydrargyrum  ideo  subsidet  :  si  minorem,  differentia  liberatur  et  vicinlam 
calefacit,  undeetiam  adscendit  thermometri  liquor;  si  denique  mva  conniibia 
eamdem  pra;cise  quantitatem  rostulait,  (luod  raro  acc.dit,  nulla  in  thermo- 
metro  videbiiur  variatio." — Torberni  Bergman,  _"  Opuscula  Physica  et 
Chemica,"  vol.  iii.  p.  58,  1783  ("  Oe  Analysi    p'erri  ''). 

■4  •' Lectures  on  the  Elements  of  Chemistry,"  vol.  ii   p.  505  (1803). 

S  Experiment  de.scribed  by  Guyt;n  de  Mcrveau,  Ann.  de  Chim.,  xxxi. 
'799.  P-  328. 


H 


NATURE 


[Nov.  7,  1889 


The  carbon  might  have  been  presented  to  the  iron  in  the 
form  of  a  gas  capable  of  yielding  carbon,  and  this  element 
would  as  surely  have  found  its  way  into  the  steel. 

Margueritte,^  for  instance,  in  1865,  repeated  Clouet's 
experiment,  and  showed  that,  although  carburization  can 
be  effected  by  simple  contact  of  iron  and  carbon,  it  is 
nevertheless  true  that  in  the  ordinary  process  of  cementa- 
tion the  gas  carbonic  oxide  plays  an  important  part, 
which  had  until  then  been  overlooked.  The  discovery  by 
Graham,'*  in  1866,  of  the  occlusion  of  carbonic  oxide  by 


Fig.  I.— Plan  of  iron  rrucible  and  diamcnd  from  the  drawing  in  Guyton 
de  Mcrveau's  paper.  In  the  original,  the  d.amcnd  and  the  crucible  are 
drawn,  in  plan,  separately. 

iron,  gave  additional  support  to  this  theory.     I   am  glad 
to  remember  that  he  intrusted  the  experiments  to  me. 

The  question,  however,  of  the  direct  carburization  of 
iron  by  the  diamond  has  never  been  doubted  since  1815, 
when  a  working  cutler,  Mr.  Pepys,^  heated  iron  wire 
and  diamond  dust  together  and  obtained  steel,  the  heat 
being  afforded  by  a  powerful  electric  battery.  I  am 
anxious  to  make  this  absorption  of  carbon  in  the  diamond 
form  clear  by  this  diagram  (Fig.  2). 


Fig.  2  represents  a  glass  vessel  which  may  either  be  rendered  vacuous  or 
may  be  filled  with  an  atmosphere  of  gas  through  the  tube  d.  An  iron  wire, 
b,  placed  between  the  terminals  of  a  battery,  c,  c',  is  heated  to  redness,  and 
remains  glowing  until  it  is  touched  by  pure  diamond  dust,  which  is 
effected  by  raising  the  cup  a.  The  iron  combines  with  the  diamond  dust 
and  fuses. 

Do  not  think  for  a  moment  that  the  steel  owes  its 
hardness  to  the  passage  of  diamond  into  the  iron,  as 
diamond.  I  have  repeated  Margueritte's  form  of  Clouet's 
experiment,  using,  however,  a  vacuum  instead  of  an  atmo- 

'  "Sur  I'acieration,"  Ann.  Chitn.  et  Pkys.,  t.  vi.  [4],  1865. 

2  Phil.  Tians.  Roy.  Soc,  1866,  pp.  399-439. 

3  Ibid.,  1815,  p.  371. 


sphere  of  gas,  and  employing  the  form  of  apparatus  showr> 
in  this  diagram  (Fig.  3).  [The  carburized  iron  which  M'as 
the  result  of  the  experiment  was  thrown  upon  the  screen.] 
The  diamond  by  union  with  iron  has  passed  partially  at 
least  to  the  other  form  of  carbon,  graphite,  while  treatment 
with  a  solvent  which  removes  the  iron  shows  that  carbon 
has  entered  into  intimate  association  with  the  iron,  a  fact 
which  leads  us  to  the  next  step  in  the  study  of  the  relations 
between  carbon  and  iron. 

Hempel  ^  has  shown  that,  in  an  atmosphere  of  nitrogen, 
iron  appears  to  assimilate  the  diamond  form  of  carbon 
more  readily  than  either  the  graphitic  or  the  amorphous 


Fig.  3  represents  an  arrangement  for  heating  the  diamond  and  iron  /« 
vacuo.  A  strip  of  pure  iron,  b,  is  placed  between  two  terminals,  c,  c' .  which 
are  connected  with  a  dynamo  The  vessel  (of  gla^s)  is  rendered  vacucns 
by  connecting  the  tube  (/with  a  Sprengelpump.  1  he  iron  is  then  heated 
by  the  dynamo,  and  maintained  glowing  until  all  occluded  gas  is  e.xpelled 
from  the  iron,  which  is  then  allowed  to  cool  in  vacv.o.  Small  pure 
diamonds,  a,  a ,  a",  are  then  placed  on  the  strip  of  iron  through  the 
orifice  into  which  the  tube  d  fits.  The  vessel  is  rendered  vacuous,  and 
when  the  iron  is  again  heated  in  contact  with  the  diamonds  it  fuses  and 
combines  with  them. 


forms,  but  directly  carbon  is  associated  with  molten  iron  it 
behaves  like  the  protean  element  it  is,  and  the  state  which 
this  carbon  assumes  is  influenced  by  the  rate  of  cooling 
of  the  molten  mass,  or  even  by  the  thermal  treatment  to 
which  the  solidified  mass  is  subjected.  Let  me  repeat, 
all  are  familiar  with  carbon  in  the  distinct  forms  of 
diamond,  graphite,  and  soot :  all  are  alike  carbon.  It 
need  not  be  considered  strange,  then,  that  carbon  should 
be  capable  of  being  present  in  intimate  association  with 
iron,  but  in  very  varied  forms. 

Now  the  mode  of  existence  of  carbon  in  soft  annealed 
steel  is  very  different  from  that  in  which  it  occurs  in  hard 
steel.  I  believe  that  Karsten  was  the  first  to  isolate,  in  1 827, 
from  soft  steel  a  true  compound  of  iron  and  carbon. 
Berthier^  also  separated  from  soft  steel  a  carbide  of  iron, 
to  which  he  assigned  the  formula  FeC  ;  but  to  attempt 
to  trace  the  history  of  the  work  in  this  direction  would 
demand  an  entire  lecture.  I  will  only  add  that  within  the 
last  few  years  Sir  F.  Abel  has  given  much  experimental 
evidence  in  favour  of  the  existence  in  soft  cold  rolled  steel 
of  a  carbide,  FcgC,  which  he  isolated  by  the  slow  solvent 
action  of  a  chromic  acid  solution.  His  work  has  been 
generally  accepted  as  conclusive,  and  has  been  the  starting- 
point  of  much  that  has  followed. 

It  will  occur  to  you  that  the  microscope  should  reveal 
wide  differences  between  the  structure  of  various  kinds  of 
iron  and  steel,  and  I  am  happy  to  be  able  to  give  you  en- 
larged diagrams  made  from  the  drawings  of  Mr.  Sorby, 
the  eminent  microscopist,  which  illustrated  his  very 
delicate  investigations  into  the  structure  of  steel. ^ 

The  point  I  am  mainly  concerned  with  is  the  existence 
of  a  substance  which  Sorby  called  the  "  pearly  constituent" 
in  soft  steel.  This  pearly  constituent  is  closely  related  to 
the  carbide  of  iron,  P^egC  of  Abel,*  and  is  probably  a 
mixture  of  FCaC  and  pure  iron.  I  have  diagrammatical!/ 
indicated  its  presence  in  Fig.  4,  which  will  enable  me 
to  summarize  the  work  of  many  experimenters.  The 
diagram  (Fig.  4)  will  serve,  for  the  purpose  of  illustration, 

'  Ber.  der  deutsch.  chem.  Gesellschaft,  vol.  xvlii.  p.  998. 
^  Ann.  des  Mines,  t.  iii.,  1833,  p.  229. 

3  The  reader  must  refer  to  the  Journal  of  the  Iron  and   Steel  Institute, 
No.  i.,  18S7,  255. 
"•  Proc.  Inst.  Mech.  Engineers,  January  1883. 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NA  TURE 


15 


to  indicate  the  appearance  when  soft,  hardened,  and 
itempered  steel  are  respectively  treated  with  a  solvent 
■which  acts  gently  on  the  mass. 

IRON  AND  CARBON. 


(02  TO  1-5  PER  CEaT  OF  CARBON.) 


Heated  to  bright  redness 

I -• n 


SLOWLY  COOLED 
.       I 

SOFT" 


QUICKLY  COOLED 

"HARD" 


CONTAINS 

CAR8IDE-CAR60N 

fe  jC  ^ 

MEOHADICALiy  MIXED 


APPEARANCE  OF  METAL  WHEN 
ETCHED  WITH  A  SOLVENT 

CHANGE  OF  CARBON 

TAKES  PLACE 

RAPIDIY. 

> 


CONTAms 
tURDENING-CARBON' 


TEMPERATURES  VARYING      /  ^S"       y 
FROM  200 'C.  TO  400  "C.  /  «J<„  X-^ 

TEMPERED" ,//// 


m  ANNFALEO  STEEL  THE 

CAhdiOt  IS  IN  GP.ey, 

SCALES 


TEMPERED  AT  40P  C. 
THECAitBlOE  IS  FINELV  OlVIDEO. 


Fig.  4. 


A  Study  of  the  above  diagram  and  of  the  admir- 
able work  of  Ledebur"^  will  show  how  complex  the 
relations  of  carbon  and  iron  really  are,  but,  for  the 
purposes  of  the  present  inquiry  it  may  fairly  be  asked, 
Does  a  change  in  the  "  mode  of  existence"  of  carbon  in 
•iron  sufficiently  explain  the  main  facts  of  hardening  and 
tempering?  It  does  not.  It  is  possible  to  obtain  by  rapid 
-cooling  from  a  certain  temperature  steel  which  is  per- 
fectly soft,  although  analysis  proves  that  the  carbon  is 
present  in  the  form  which  we  have  recognized  as 
^'  hardening  carbon."  No  doubt  in  the  hardening  of  steel 
the  carbon  changes  its  mode  of  existence,  but  we  must 
seek  some  other  theory  to  explain  all  the  facts,  and  in 
order  to  do  this  we  will  turn  to  the  behaviour  of  the  iron 
itself. 

In  approaching  this  portion  of  the  subject  a  few  elemen- 
tary facts  relative  to  the  constitution  of  matter  must  be 
recalled,  and  in  doing  so  I  must  again  appeal  briefly  to 
history.  It  is  universally  accepted  that  metals,  like  all 
elements,  are  composed  of  atoms  of  definite  weights 
and  volumes  grouped  in  molecules.  In  order  actually 
to  transmute  one  metal  into  another  it  would  be 
necessary  to  discover  a  method  of  attacking  not  the 
molecule  but  the  atom,  and  of  changing  it,  and  this,  so 
far  as  is  known,  has  not  yet  been  done  ;  but  it  is  possible, 
by  influences  which  often  appeir  to  be  very  slight,  to 
change  the  relations  of  the  molecules  to  each  other,  and 
to  alter  the  arrangements  or  distribution  of  the  atoms 
within  the  molecules,  and  by  varying  in  this  sense  the 
molecular  arrangement  of  certain  elements,  they  may  be 
made  to  pass  into  forms  which  are  very  different  from 
those  in  which  we  ordinarily  know  them.  Carbon,  for 
instance,  when  free,  or  when  associated  with  iron,  m.\y 
readily  be  changed  from  the  diamond  to  the  grapiitic 

'  Stahl  nnd  Eisen,  vol.  viii,,  1888,  p.  742)1 


form,  though  the  converse  change  has  not  as  yet  been 
effected. 

Sulphur,  again,  with  which  you  are  familiar  as  a  hard, 
brittle,  yellow  solid,  may  be  prepared  and  maintained  for 
a  little  time  in  the  form  of  this  brown  viscous  mass,  but 
this  latter  form  of  sulphur  soon  passes  spontaneously  and 
slowly  at  the  ordinary  temperature,  and  instantaneously 
at  100",  to  the  solid  octahedral  yellow  modification  with 
evolution  of  heat.  The  viscous  form  of  sulphur  is  an 
allotropic  modification  of  that  element.  A  few  cases  of 
allotropy  in  metals  have  already  been  established,  and 
when  they  do  occur  they  give  rise  to  problems  of  vast 
industrial  importance.  Such  molecular  changes  in  metals 
are  usually  produced  by  the  addition  of  a  smill  quantity 
of  foreign  matter,  and  I  have  elsewhere  tried  to  show  that 
the  molecular  change  produced  by  the  action  of  traces 
upon  masses  is  a  wide-spread  principle  of  nature,  and  one 
which  was  recognized  at  the  dawn  of  the  science  of 
chemistry,  even  in  the  seventh  century,  although  distorted 
explanations  were  given  of  well-known  facts,  and  gave  rise 
to  entirely  false  hopes.  But  it  is  the  same  story  now  as 
in  mediaeval  times  :  the  single  grain  of  powder  which 
Raymond  Lully  said  would  transmute  millions  of  its 
weight  of  lead  into  gold— the  single  grain  of  stone  that 
Solomon  Trismosin  thought  would  secure  perpetual 
youth — had  their  analogues  in  the  small  amount  of 
plumbago  which,  to  Bergman's  astonishment  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  converted  iron  into  steel.  By  his 
time  it  was  recognized  that  the  right  use  of  alchemy  con- 
sisted in  the  application  of  its  methods  to  industry,  and  . 
we  still  wonder  at  the  minuteness  of  the  quantity  of  \ 
certain  elements  which  can  profoundly  affect  the  proper- 
ties of  metals.  The  statements  are  true,  and  are  not 
derived  from  poetical  literature,  early  or  late.  Even  in 
the  moral  world  the  significance  of  the  action  of  traces 
upon  masses  has  been  recognized,  and  the  method  of 
the  alchemist  survives  in  the  administration  of  the  small 
quantity  of  powder  which,  in  the  imagination  of  Robert 
Louis  Stevenson,  will  produce  the  malevolent  Hyde 
modification  of  the  benevolent  Dr.  Jekyll.  In  thus 
borrowing  an  illustration  from  one  of  the,  most  refined 
and  subtle  writers  of  our  time,  I  do  not  fear  the  taunt  of 
Francis  Bacon,^  that  "  sottishly  do  the  chymics  appro- 
priate the  fancies  and  delights  of  poets  in  the  transforma- 
tion of  bodies  to  the  experiments  of  their  furnaces  ;  "  for, 
although  it  may  not  be  possible  to  transmute  metals,  it  is 
easy  so  to  transform  them,  by  very  slight  influences,  that 
as  regards  special  service  required  from  them  they  may 
behave  either  usefully  or  entirely  prejudicially. 

In  attempting  to  illustrate  this  part  of  the  subject  I 
cannot  take  the  most  striking  cases,  as  it  is  difficult  to 
demonstrate  them  in  the  time  at  my  disposal.  The 
following  experiment,  which  does  not,  however,  depend 
upon  the  action  of  a  trace  upon  a  mass,  will  enable  me 
to  lead  up  to  the  point  I  wish  to  insist  upon.  It  consists 
in  the  release  of  goll  from  its  alloy  with  potassium. 
When  the  alloy  is  treated  with  water,  the  gold  comes 
down  in  a  finely  divided,  dark  brown,  chemically  active 
state.     [Experiment  shown  on  the  screen.] 

I  have  chosen  this  experiment  because  it  was  a  similar 
one  that  first  roused  suspicion  that  pure  iron  could  exist 
in  more  than  one  form. 

The  question  at  once  suggests  itself,  Can  iron  behave 
in  a  similar  manner  :  is  an  allotropic  form  of  iron  known  1 
Joule  afforded  experimental  evidence  for  an  affirmative 
answer  to  this  question  nearly  forty  years  ago  by 
communicating  to  the  British  Association  in  1850  a 
paper  on  some  amalgams.  The  result  of  his  experiments, 
published  in  detail  later,-  in  a  paper  which  has  been 
sadly  neglected,  showed  that  iron  released  from  its 
amalgam  with  mercury  is  chemically  active,  as  it  com- 

«  Preface  to  th;  "  Wisdom  of  the  Ancients."  .     ,    ?'     , 

=  "0.1  sons  .\n%l3ani,"  M;m..Li.t.  P.iil.  bo:.  M n;h;st;r,  v jL  lu  [3I 

p.  115. 


i6 


NATURE 


\Nov.  7,  1889 


bines  readily  with  the  oxygen  of  the  air  at  the  ordinary 
temperature,  and  he  claims  that  the  iron  so  set  free  is 
allotropic  ;  but  Joule  did  much  more  than  this.  Magnus 
had  shown  (1851)  that  the  thermo-electric  properties  of 
hard  and  soft  steel  and  iron  differ.  Joule,  in  a  paper  on 
some  thermo-electric  properties  of  solids,  incidentally 
shows  that  the  generation  of  a  thermo-electric  current 
affords  a  method  of  ascertaining  the  degree  of  carburiza- 
tion  of  iron,  and  he  appeals  to  the  "  thermo-electricity  of 
iron  in  different  states  "  as  presenting  a  "fresh  illustration 
of  the  extraordinary  physical  changes  produced  in  iron  by 
its  conversion  into  steel,"  and  he  adds  the  expression  of 
the  belief  "  that  the  excellence  of  the  latter  metal  might 
be  tested  by  ascertaining  the  amount  of  change  in 
thermo-electric  condition  which  can  be  produced  by  the 
process  of  hardening."  ^  It  is  by  a  thermo-electric  method 
that  the  views  as  to  the  existence  of  iron  in  allotropic 
forms  has  been  confirmed.  Jullien  seems  to  have  inclined 
to  the  view  that  iron  is  allotropic  in  his  "'  Theorie  de  la 
Trempe,"  ^  published  in  1 865,  but  he  cannot  be  said  to  have 
added  much  to  our  knowledge,  although  he  certainly 
directed  attention  to  the  importance  of  hardening  and 
tempering  steel. 

The  next  step  v/as  made  in  Russia,  in  1868.  Chernoff, 
who  has  found  an  admirable  exponent  to  English  readers 
in  Mr.  W.  Anderson,  President  of  Section  G,  showed  that 
steel  could  not  be  hardened  by  rapid  cooling  until  it  had 
been  heated  to  a  definite  temperature — to  a  degree  of 
redness  which  he  called  a.  Then  in  1873,  Prof  Tait^ 
used  this  expression  in  a  Rede  Lecture  delivered  at 
Cambridge  :  "  It  seems  as  if  iron  becomes,  as  it  were,  a 
different  metal  on  being  raised  above  a  certain  tempera- 
ture ;  this  may  possibly  have  some  connection  with  the 
ferricum  and  ferrosum  of  the  chemists."  He  also 
published  his  now  well-known  "  first  approximation  to  a 
thermo-electric  diagram,"  which  is  of  great  interest  in 
view  of  recent  work.  At  about  this  time  those  specially 
interested  in  this  question  remembered  that  Gore^  had 
shown  that  a  curious  molecular  change  could  be  produced 
by  heating  an  iron  wire,  which  sustains  a  momentary 
elongation  on  cooling.  Barrett  repeated  Gore's  experi- 
ment, and  discovered  that  as  an  iron  wire  cools  down 
it  suddenly  glows,  a  phenomenon  to  which  he  gave  the 
name  recalescence^  and  these  investigations  have  been 
pursued  and  developed  in  other  directions  by  many  skil- 
ful experimenters.''"  In  1879,  Wrightson**  called  attention 
to  the  abnormal  expansion  of  carburized  iron  at  high 
temperatures. 

The  next  point  of  special  importance  seems  to  me  to 
be  that  recorded  by  Barus,  who,  by  a  thermo-electric 
method,  showed,  in  an  elaborate  paper  published  in  1879,^ 
that  "  the  hardness  of  steel  does  not  increase  continuously 
with  its  temperature  at  the  moment  of  sudden  cooling,  but 
at  a  point  lying  in  the  dark-red  heat  the  glass-hard  state  " 
may  suddenly  be  attained  by  rapid  coohng.  I  shall  have 
again  to  refer  to  the  remarkable  series  of  papers  published 
by  Barus  and  Strouhal,^  embodying  the  results  of  laborious 

'  Phil.  Trans.,  cxlix.,  1859,  P   P'- 

2  "  Annexe  au  traite  de  la  Metallurgie  du  Fer,"  1865. 
^  Nature,  viii.,  1873,  pp.  86,  122;  and  Trans.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  xxvii., 
1873,  p.  125. 

4  Proc  Roy.  Soc  ,  xvii.,  1869,  p.  260. 

5  G.  Forbes,  Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  viii.,  1874,  363  ;  Norris,  Proc.  Roy. 
Soc,  xxvi.,  1B77,  127  ;  Tomlinson,  Phil.  Mag.,  xxiv.,  1887,  256;  xxv.,pp.45, 
103,  and  372  ;  xxvi.  p.  18  ;  Newall,  Phil,  Mag.,  xxiv.,  1887,  435  ;  xxv  ,  1888,, 
p.  510. 

6  Journ.  Iron  and  Steel  Inst.,  No.  ii.  1879  ;  No.  i.  1880. 
''  Barus,  Phil.  Mag .  viii.,  1879.  p.  341. 

**  "  Hardness  (Temper),  its  Electrical  and  other  Characteristics," 
Barus,/"////.  Mag.,  viii  p.  341,  1879;  ^'cd.  Ann.,  vii.  p.  383,  1S79  ; 
Strouhal  and  Barus,  VVied.  Ann.,  xi.  p.  930.  1880;  ibid.,  xx.  p.  525,  1883. 
''Hardness  and  Magneiization,"  IVied.  Ann.,  xx.  pp.  537,  662.  1883. 
"Density  and  (Internal)  Structure  of  Hard  Steel  and  of  Quenched  Glass," 
Barus  and  Strouhal,  American  Journ.,  xxxi.  p.  386,  1886;  ibid.,  p.  439  ; 
ibid.,  xxxi.  p.  181,  1886.  "Temper  and  Chemical  Composition,"  Ant. 
Joiim.,  xxxii.  p.  276,  1886  "Temper  and  Viscosity,"  Am.  Journ.,  xxxii. 
p.  444,  1886  ;  tbid.,  xxxiii.  p.  20,  1887 ;  Barus,  ibid.,  xxxiv.  p.  i,  1887 ;  ibid., 
xxxiv.  p.  175,  1887.  These  paper.;,  systematically  discussed  and  enlarged, 
are  embodied  with  new  matter  in  the  Bulletins  of  the  United  States  Geo- 
logicaf  Survey,  viz.  : — Bull.,  No.  14,  pp.  1-226,  1885;  Bull,  No.  27,  pp. 
^0-61,  1886;  Bull.,  No.  35,  pp.  ii-6o,  i836  ;  Bull.,  N0.42,  pp.  98-131,  1887. 


investigations,  to  which,  in  the  Hmited  space  of  this  lec- 
ture, I  can  do  but  scanty  justice  ;  and  finally,  within  the 
last  few  years,  Pionchon  ^  showed  that  at  a  temperature  of 
700°  the  specific  heat  of  iron  is  altogether  exceptional,  and 
Le  Chatelier  -  has  detected  that  at  the  same  temperature  a 
change  occurs  in  the  curve  representing  the  electromotive 
force  of  iron — both  experimenters  concluding  that  they  had 
obtained  evidence  of  the  passage  of  iron  into  an  allotropic 
state. 

Osmond,^  in  France,  then  made  the  observations  of 
Gore  and  Barrett  the  starting-point  of  a  fresh  inquiry, 
which  will  now  be  considered  at  some  length,  -as 
Osmond  has  arrived  at  conclusions  of  much  interest  and 
importance. 

{To  be  conttmted.) 


ON  A  NEW  APPLICA  PI  ON  OF  PHO  TOGRAPHY 
TO  THE  DEMONSTRATION  OF  CERTAIN 
PHYSIOLOGICAL  PROCESSES  IN  PLANTS. 

TWrR.  WALTER  GARDINER,  Lecturer  on  Botany  in 
-'■*-•■  the  University  of  Cambridge,  who  delivered  the 
evening  address  at  Newcastle  on  "  How  Plants  maintain 
themselves  in  the  Struggle  for  Existence,"  has  discovered 
a  new  method  of  printing  photographic  negatives,  employ- 
ing living  leaves  in  place  of  sensitive  paper.  Mr.  Gardiner 
read  a  paper  on  the  subject  before  the  British  Association. 
Before  dealing  with  the  immediate  subject  of  his  paper,  the 
author  described  how  prints  may  be  obtained  from  Proto- 
cocci,  or  the  free-swimming  swarm-spores  of  many  green 
Algae.  It  is  possible  to  take  advantage  of  their  sensitive- 
ness to  light.  Into  one  end  of  a  watertight  box,  a  thin 
glass  plate  is  securely  fitted.  The  negative  to  be  printed 
is  then  placed  next  the  glass,  film  side  nearest.  The  box 
is  filled  with  water  containing  a  fairly  large  quantity  of 
swarm-spores.  The  lid  is  shut  down,  and  the  whole  is 
exposed  to  diffused  light.  In  the  case  of  a  strong  and 
well-developed  negative,  the  swarm-spores  swim  towards 
the  most  highly-illuminated  parts,  and  there  in  the 
greatest  numbers  come  to  rest,  and  settle  upon  the 
glass,  so  that,  after  some  four  or  six  hours,  on  pouring 
out  the  water  and  removing  the  negative,  a  print  in  green 
swarm-spores  can  be  obtained.  The  print  may  be  dried,, 
fixed  with  albumen,  stained,  and  varnished.  The  author 
then  dwelt  upon  the  well-known  fact  that  the  whole  of  the 
animal  life  upon  the  globe  depends  directly  or  indirectly 
upon  the  wonderful  synthetic  formation  of  proteid  and 
protoplasm  which  takes  place  in  the  living  tissue  of 
plants  containing  chlorophyll,  i.e.  green  plants,  or,  to  be 
more  exact,  in  the  green  chlorophyll  corpuscles.  He 
stated  that,  whatever  is  the  exact  chemical  nature  of  the 
process,  this  is  at  least  clear,  that  the  first  visible  product 
of  the  assimilatory  activity  is  starch,  which,  moreover,  is 
found  in  the  chlorophyll  grains.  The  presence  of  this 
starch  can  be  made  manifest  by  treating  a  decolorized 
leaf  with  a  water  solution  of  iodine  dissolved  in  potassic 
iodide.  This  formation  of  starch  only  takes  place  under 
the  influence  of  light  ;  the  radiant  energy  of  the  sun  pro- 
viding the  means  of  executing  the  profound  synthetic 
chemical  change,  and  building  up  proteid  from  the  car- 
bonic acid  of  the  air  which  is  taken  up  by  the  leaves  and 
the  salts  and  water  of  the  soil  absorbed  by  the  roots.  If 
a  plant  (and  preferably  a  plant  with  thin  leaves)  be  placed 
in  the  dark  over-night,  and  then  brought  out  into  the 
light  next  morning,  the  desired  leaves  being  covered  with 
a  sharp  and  well-developed   negative,  starch  is  formed 

'  Comptes  rendus,  cii.,  1886,  pp.  675  and  1454,  ciii.  p.  1122. 

2  Ibid.,  cii   p   819. 

3  The  reader  will  find  the  principal  part  of  Osmond's  work  in  the  following 
papers:  Osmond  et  Werth,  "The  rie  Cellulaire  des  Proprieies  de  I'Acier," 
Ann.  des  Mines,  vii'.,  1885.  p.  5  ; ,"  Transformations  du  Feret  du  Carbone," 
Paris,  Baudoin  et  Cie.,  1888;  "Etudes  M^tallurgiques,"  Ann.  des  Mines, 
Juillet-Aout,  1888.  There  is  also  a  very  interesting  paper,  "  Sur  le& 
Nouveaux  Precedes  de  Trempe,"  which  he  communicated  to  the  Mining  and 
Metallurgical  Congress,  Paris,  1889. 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


17 


when  light  is  transmitted,  and  in  greatest  quantity  in  the 
brightest  areas.  Thus  a  positive  in  starch  is  produced 
which  can  be  developed  by  suitable  treatment  with 
iodine.  [A  leaf  was  then  developed,  and  handed  round 
to  the  audience  for  inspection.]  The  author  showed  that 
it  might  be  possible  to  obtain  a  permanent  print  by  suit- 
able washing  and  treatment  with  a  soluble  silver  salt, 
silver  iodide  being  formed.  The  author  regards  this  dis- 
covery as  a  most  striking  illustration  of  the  way  in  which 
plants  are  working  for  themselves,  and  so  for  all  living 
things,  and  points  out  that  the  e.xtraordinary  manner  in 
which  the  green  parts  of  plants  (so  to  speak)  catch  the 
radiant  energy  of  the  sun,  and  employ  it  for  analytical 
and  synthetical  chemical  processes,  may  be  easily  and 
clearly  demonstrated. 


NOTES. 

We  understand  that  the  late  Mr.  John  Ball,  F.R.  S.,  has 
bequeathed  his  botanical  library  and  herbarium  to  Sir  Joseph 
Hooker,  to  the  Director  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Gardens  at  Kew  for 
the  time  being,  and  to  the  President  of  the  Royal  Society  for  the 
time  being,  requesting  them  to  give  the  same  to  such  person  or 
persons  or  public  institution  in  this  country,  the  British  colonies, 
or  elsewhere  in  the  world,  as  they  or  any  two  of  them  may 
select,  with  the  sole  object  of  promoting  the  knowledge  of 
natural  science.  Right  is,  however,  reserved  for  Kew  to  select 
previously  such  specimens  or  books  as  it  may  want. 

The  following  is  the  list  of  names  recommended  by  the  Pre- 
sident and  Council  of  the  Royal  Society  for  election  into  the 
Council  for  the  year  1890,  at  the  forthcoming  anniversary  meet, 
ing  on  the  30th  inst.  : — President :  Sir  George  Gabriel  Stokes, 
I5art.  Treasurer  :  Dr.  John  Evans.  Secretaries  :  Prof.  Michael 
Foster,  the  Lord  Rayleigh.  Foreign  Secretary  :  Dr.  Archibald 
Geikie.  Other  Members  of  the  Council  :  Prof.  Henry  Edward 
Armstrong,  Prof.  William  Edward  Ayrton,  Charles  Baron 
Clarke,  Prof  W.  Boyd  Dawkins,  Dr.  Edward  Emanuel  Klein, 
Prof  E.  Ray  Lankester,  Dr.  Hugo  Miiller,  Prof  Alfred 
Newton,  Captain  Andrew  Noble,  C.B.,  Rev.  Stephen  Joseph 
Perry,  Sir  Henry  E.  Roscoe,  Dr.  Edward  John  Routh,  William 
Scovell  Savory,  Prof  Joseph  John  Thomson,  Prof  Alexander 
William  Williamson,  Colonel  Sir  Charles  William  Wilson, 
R.E. 

In  the  list  of  Englishmen  decorated  in  connection  with  the 
British  Section  of  the  Paris  Exhibition,  the  names  of  the  follow- 
ing men  of  science  are  included  : — Grand  Officer  of  the  Legion 
of  Honour:  Sir  Wdliam  Thomson,  F. R.S.  Officeis  of  the 
Legion  of  Honour:  Sir  Douglas  Galton,  K.C.B.,  Sir  Henry 
Roscoe,  M.P.,  F.R.S.,  Mr.  W.  H.  Preece,  F.R.S.  Cbevalieis 
of  the  Legion  of  Honour  :  Prof  Francis  Elgar,  Prof  W.  Roberts- 
Austen,  F  R.S.,  Dr.  C.  Le  Neve  Foster.  Officer  of  Public  In- 
struction :  Mr.  C.  V.  Boys,  F.R.S. 

The  Naturforschende  Gesellschafc  at  Emden  is  to  celebrate  its 
seventy-fifth  anniversary  on  December  29  next.  The  Society  was 
founded  in  1814  by  twenty-four  burgesses  of  Emden.  The 
festivities  in  December  will  consist  of  a  general  meeting  of  the 
Society  and  the  Society's  correspondents  at  noon  in  the  Museum, 
and  a  Festessen  at  four  o'clock. 

A  REPORT  of  the  proceedings  of  the  International  Zoological 
Congress,  held  in  Paris  two  months  ago,  will  be  published 
shortly. 

A  French  translation  of  Dr.  Wallace's  "Darwini^m"  will 
be  published  next  year. 

The  greater  part  of  the  ethnographical  collection  sent  to 
the  Paris  Exhibition  is  to  remain  iu  Paiis,  in  the  Colonial 
Museum, 


The  following  botanical  appointments  are  announced: — The- 
Directorship  of  the  Botanic  Garden  at  Berlin,  vacant  by  the 
death  of  Dr.  Eichler,  having  been  conferred  on  Prof.  Engler,  of 
Breslau,  Prof  Urban  becomes  Second  Director  of  the  Berlin. 
Botanic  Garden  ;  and  Prof  PrantI,  of  Aschaffenburg,  succeeds- 
Prof  Engler  as  Director  of  the  Botanic  Garden  at  Breslau. 
Prof  Sadebeck,  of  Hamburg,  is  appointed  Director  of  the 
Botanic  Garden  in  that  town,  in  the  place  of  the  late  Dr. 
Reichenbach.  Dr.  G.  von  Lagerheim  vacates  the  Professor- 
ship at  Lisbon,  to  which  he  was  lately  appointed,  and  goes  ta 
Ecuador  as  Professor  of  Botany  and  Director  of  the  Botanic 
Garden  at  Quito.  Dr.  H.  Molisch,  of  Vienna,  takes  the  Chair 
of  the  late  Dr.  Leitgeb  in  the  Polytechnic  at  Gratz.  Dr.  F. 
Hueppe  is  appointed  Professor  of  Bacteriology  at  the  University 
of  Prague,  and  is  succeeded  in  the  same  Chair  at  Wiesbaden  by 
Dr.  G.  P'rank,  of  Berlin.  The  venerable  Professor  von  Naegeli 
retires  from  the  Directorship  of  the  Botanic  Garden  at  Munich. 
Mr.  F.  S.  Earle,  Prof.  E.  S.  Goff,  and  Prof.  L.  R.  Taft  have 
been  appointed  special  agents  in  the  Section  of  Vegetable 
Pathology  of  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 
Mr.  H.  H.  Rusby  has  been  appointed  Professor  of  Botany  and 
Materia  Medica  in  the  New  York  College  of  Pharmacy. 

The  Economic  Museum,  Calcutta,  has  completed  and  de- 
spatched the  first  instalment^of  important  Indian  fibres  required 
by  the  India  Office  for  presentation  to  the  Museums  of  the 
Royal  Botanical  Gardens  at  Kew  and  Edinburgh,  and  to  the 
Chambers  of  Commerce  at  Dundee  and  Manchester. 

A  I'RIZE  of  about  £10  is  offered  by  the  Geographical  Societies 
of  Dresden  and  Leipzig,  for  "  a  physicogeographical  description 
of  the  course  of  the  Elbe  between  Bodenbach  and  its  entrance 
on  the  flat  country,  with  special  reference  to  depth,  quantity  of 
water  and  its  variations,  ice,  and  changes  in  the  form  of  the 
banks."     The  date  is  the  end  of  1890. 

In  his  address  at  the  opening  of  the  winter  session  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  'i'oronto.  Sir  Daniel  Wilson,  the  President  of  the 
University,  referred  to  the  recent  Toronto  meeting  of  the 
American  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science. 
"Everything  available  for  the  special  requirements  of  the 
Association,"  he  said,  "was  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  Sec- 
tions ;  and  we  are  gratified  by  the  assurance  that,  at  the  close  of 
a  highly  successful  meeting,  our  visitors  carried  away  with  them 
pleasant  memories  of  their  reception  here. "  The  meeting  of  the 
representatives  of  science  in  the  buildings  of  the  Toronto  Uni- 
versity was  in  some  respects,  as  the  President  pointed  out^ 
peculiarly  opportune.  "The  long-felt  need  of  adequately 
furnished  and  equipped  laboratories  and  lecture-rooms  for  our 
scientific  staff  was  anew  brought  into  prominence  by  the  restora- 
tion to  the  University  of  its  Medical  Faculty  ;  and  we  now  enter 
on  the  work  of  another  year  provided  with  buildings  admirably 
adapted  for  biological  and  physiological  study  and  research. 
Plans,  moreover,  have  been  approved  of,  which,  when  carried 
out  to  their  full  extent,  will  furnish  equally  satisfactory  accom* 
modation  for  the  departments  of  botany,  chemistry,  geology^ 
and  palaontology,  along  with  laboratories,  work-rooms,  museum, 
and  other  requisites  for  efficient  instruction  in  the  various 
branches  of  science." 

The  thirty-fourth  general  meeting  of  the  Society  for  Psychical 
Research  was  held  on  Friday  afternoon,  October  25,  at  the 
Westminster  Town  Hall.  The  President  (Prof.  Sidgwick)  gave 
an  account  of  the  International  Congress  of  Experimental 
Psychology  held  in  Paris  last  August.  The  Congress  had 
adopted  the  scheme  of  a  census  of  hallucinations,  already  set 
on  foot  by  the  Society  for  Psychical  Research  in  England, 
France,  and  the  United  States,  and  it  was  hoped  that  the  col- 
lection of  statistics  might  gradually  be  extended  to  other  Euro- 
pean countries.      Much  matter  valuable   to   psychologists  was- 


NA  TURE 


[Nov.  7,  18S9 


'thus  being  collected  ;  and  he  trusted  that  fresh  light  would  be 
thrown  on  the  subject  of  coincidental  or  veridical  hallucinations, 
•which  specially  interested  their  Society.  He  would  be  glad  to 
supply  information  in  reply  to  letters  addressed  to  him  at  Hill 
Side,  Cambridge.  A  paper  on  recent  telepathic  experiences 
•was  also  read. 

We  learn  from  Humboldt  that  the  project  of  a  lacustrine  bio- 
logical station  on  Lake  Plon,  in  East  Holstein,  is  likely  to  be 
soon  carried  out,  thanks  to  the  energy  of  Dr.  Otto  Zacharias, 
and  the  liberality  of  the  Bohemian  Baron  Bela  Dertcheni.  This 
station  is  to  afford  Prof.  Anton  Fritsch,  of  Prague,  and  his 
assistants,  constant  opportunities  of  research  on  fresh-water 
fauna.  The  scheme  finds  a  good  deal  of  favour  in  Berlin,  and 
it  is  hoped  that  the  researches  at  the  station  may  prove  of 
■considerable  benefit  to  fisheries. 

We  send  to  America  some  return  for  the  Colorado  beetle  and 
the  Canadian  water-weed.  The  "weed-law"  of  the  State  of 
Wisconsin  requires  from  farmers,  under  penalties,  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  following  weeds  : — Cnicus  arvensis,  Arctium  Lappa, 
■Chrysanthemum  Leiicanthemum,  Sonchus  arvensis,  Xanthium 
strutnariiun,  Linaria  vulgaris,  and  Rumex  crispus.  Only  one  of 
these  is  a  native  of  the  United  States  ;  all  the  rest  being  natural- 
ized importations  from  Europe,  and  common  wild  plants  in  this 
country. 

Prof.  Righi  showed,  last  year,  that  ultra-violet  radiations 
reduce  to  the  same  potential  two  conductors,  a  plate  and  a  piece 
of  netting,  applied  to  each  other,  the  rays  being  thrown  on  the 
netting-side.  He  now  points  out  {Riv.  Sci.  Ind.,  July-August) 
that  this  suggests  a  very  simple  and  convenient  way  of  measuring 
differences  of  potential  of  contact.  One  notes  the  deflection  of 
an  electrometer  connected  with  the  plate  (the  netting  being 
permanently  connected  with  earth)  ;  then,  having  connected  the 
electrometer  for  an  instant  with  earth,  makes  the  radiations  act  a 
sufficient  time.  He  used  a  zinc  electric  lamp,  and  the  metals 
examined  were  placed  in  some  cases  in  a  bell  jar,  to  which  some 
gas  or  vapour  was  admitted.  From  measurements  of  different 
plates  with  the  same  metallic  net  (copper,  zinc,  or  platinum), 
the  differences  of  potential  of  pairs  of  metals  could  be  deduced. 
Prof  Righi  found  the  differences  sensibly  the  same  in  dry  and 
moist  air  and  in  carbonic  anhydride;  but  with  hydrogen,  very 
-different  values  (from  those  in  air)  appeared,  where  one  of  the 
metals  examined  was  platinum,  palladium,  nickel,  or  iron 
(doubtless  owing  to  absorption).  In  ammonia  all  the  metals, 
examined  with  zinc  net,  seemed  to  have  become  less  oxidizable  ; 
^nd  in  coal  gas,  carbon  and  platinum  behaved  like  more 
oxidizable  metals.  A  memoir  on  the  subject  will  shortly 
appear. 

In  an  interesting  paper  on  the  management  of  aquaria,  printed 
in  the  Bulletin  of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission,  Mr.  W. 
P.  Seal  points  out  that,  in  the  feeding  of  the  fish,  care  must  be 
taken  to  introduce  no  more  food  than  they  can  eat  in  a  short 
time,  as  what  is  not  eaten  will  soon  decompose  and  make  the 
water  cloudy,  and  generate  noxious  gases  as  well.  If  due  care 
is  observed  in  regard  to  quantity,  it  does  not  matter  how  often 
fish  are  fed,  except  that  if  fed  abundantly  they  will  grow  rapidly, 
which  is  not  generally  desired.  Fish  may  be  fed  every  day,  or 
but  two  or  three  times  a  week,  with  equally  good  results  appar- 
ently. They  will  always  find  a  small  amount  of  food  in  the 
aquarium  in  the  vegetation.  Where  they  are  not  fed  sufficiently, 
•they  are  apt  to  strip  the  plants  of  their  leaves.  In  a  natural 
•condition  fish  are  feeding  continually  and  grow  very  rapidly. 

On  November  2  a  slight  shock  of  earthquake  was  felt  in  St. 
Louis,  U.S.A.,  and  the  vicinity. 

The  following  summary  of  the  phases  of  Vesuvius  during  the 
ipast  year  has  been  supplied  by  Prof.  Palmieri,  of  the  Vesuvian 


Observatory  of  the  University  of  Naples,  to  the  British  Consul 
there,  and  is  appended  by  the  latter  to  his  last  Report.  Mount 
Vesuvius,  during  the  past  year,  has  continued  its  moderately 
eruptive  activity,  which  began  in  the  month  of  December  1875. 
There  were  various  emissions  of  small  lava  stream^,  which  did 
not  reach  further  than  the  base  of  the  cone.  An  additional  cone 
was  gradually  formed,  caused  by  the  activity  of  the  motive  power 
of  the  crater  which,  towards  the  end  of  the  year,  had  reached  a 
height  of  100  metres  (equal  to  328  feet)  above  its  original  level. 
On  various  occasions  the  detonations  and  the  red-hot  projectiles 
thrown  up  with  the  large  quantities  of  smoke  indicated  greater 
eruptive  power.  During  the  whole  year  no  ashes  were  thrown 
up,  and  consequently  the  crops  in  the  surrounding  country  were 
not  destroyed.  The  sublimations  on  the  smoke  issues  were 
relatively  scarce,  and  did  not  present  any  product  that  called 
for  attention.  The  seismographic  instruments  at  the  Observa- 
tory did  not  show  an  activity  proportionate  to  that  of  the 
volcano.  All  the  lava  streams  that  issued  during  the  year 
flowed  towards  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  mountain. 

The  Meteorological  Council  have  published  Part  I.  of  the 
Quarterly  Weather  Report  for  1880.  The  work  is  (as  before) 
divided  into  three  sections  :  (i)  a  general  summary  of  the  chief 
features  of  the  weather  for  the  quarter ;  (2)  tables  showing  the 
movements  and  peculiarities  of  the  principal  cyclonic  and  anti- 
cyclonic  systems  ;  and  (3)  remarks  on  the  distribution  of  the 
various  elements  for  each  month,  illustrated  by  charts.  An 
appendix  contains  tables  and  diagrams  illustrating  the  diurnal 
range  of  the  barometer  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  during  the 
years  1876-80,  by  F.  C.  Bayard.  The  data  used  are  the  hourly 
observations  at  seven  Observatories  in  connection  with  the 
Meteorological  Office,  and  at  Greenwich  and  Liverpool  Observa- 
tories. The  paper  shows  that,  even  in  these  high  latitudes,  the 
daily  range  is  well  marked  during  all  months,  notwithstanding 
the  interference  caused  by  non-periodic  changes.  Important 
seasonal  differences  are  shown,  the  morning  maximum  being 
distinctly  higher  than  the  evening  maximum  in  winter,  while  in 
summer  the  evening  maximum  is  the  higher  of  the  two.  The 
values  exhibit  the  influence  of  locality  on  the  amplitude  and 
epoch  of  the  diurnal  inequalities,  and  furnish  material  for  more 
minute  inquiry. 

It  is  interesting  to  read  of  a  part  of  the  world  where  the  buffalo 
is  not  dying  out,  but  increasing  in  numbers.  A  journal  of  Perth, 
in  Western  Australia,  says  that  few  Australians  are  aware  that 
certain  parts  of  Northern  Australia  have  vast  herds  of  the  wild 
buffalo  {Bos  bubalus)  careering  over  its  plains  and  wallowing  in 
its  shady  pools.  The  Sydney  Mail  states  that  the  animals  are 
massive  and  heavy,  with  splendid  horns,  and  afford  sport  of  a 
sufficiently  dangerous  nature  to  possess  charms  for  the  most 
daring  hunter,  a  wounded  buffalo  being  one  of  the  most  dangerous 
animals  known,  his  great  weight,  prominent  horns,  and  splendid 
CDurage,  making  him  as  well  respected  as  sought  after.  The  first 
buffaloes  were  landed  at  Port  Essington,  North  Australia,  about 
the  year  1829. 

The  Naturalisf s  Gazette  has  issued  an  excellent  series  of 
what  it  calls  "label  lists."  On  one  sheet  there  is  a  list  of  British 
birds'  eggs  ;  on  another,  a  list  of  dragon-flies  ;  on  another,  a  list 
of  British  butterflies  ;  and  so  on.  The  names  are  printed  in 
suitable  type  on  gummed  paper,  and  collectors,  in  labelling 
their  specimens,  will  find  the  lists  of  considerable  service. 

The  next  volume  of  Messrs.  Ward,  Lock,  and  Co.'s  "Minerva 
Library  of  Famous  Books  "  will  be  "  Travels  on  the  Amazon 
and  Rio  Negro,"  by  Dr.  Alfred  Russel  Wallace. 

F.  A.  Brockhaus,  16  Querstrasse,  Leipzig,  has  issued  a 
catalogue,  in  four  parts,  containing  lists  of  works  relating  to 
various  branches  of  botany. 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


19 


The  Colonies  and  India  states  that  a  discovery  has  recently 
been  made  on  a  Fiji  plantation,  which  will  probably  prove 
extremely  valuable  in  all  tropical  countries  where  the  cultivation 
of  bananas  is  regarded  as  a  settled  industry.  The  banana  disease 
had  for  some  time  been  causing  much  havoc  on  a  plantation  on 
Vanua  Levu,  and  it  appears  that  the  discovery  of  an  antidote 
was  due  to  an  accidental  occurrence.  On  a  flat  near  the  sea- 
shore there  was  a  patch  of  bananas  much  diseased,  and  some 
time  ago  the  sea  swept  into  it  and  remained  on  it  for  about  an 
hour.  All  the  plants  were  killed  as  far  as  the  standing  stems 
were  concerned,  but  vigorous  young  shoots  came  up  freely  from 
the  roots,  and  were  not  only  quite  free  from  disease,  but  soon 
began  to  bear  much  larger  bunches  of  fruit  than  the  parent 
plants  ever  did.  Upon  noting  this  effect  the  planters  deter- 
mined to  try  the  experiment  upon  a  number  of  badly  diseased 
plants  which  the  sea  had  not  reached.  They  cut  down  the 
diseased  plants,  and,  having  stirred  the  ground  about  them, 
poured  from  one  to  four  buckets  of  seawater  over  each.  The 
result  was  that,  while  the  parent  stems  withered,  vigorous  young 
shoots  came  freely  away,  without  a  sign  of  disease. 

A  SERIES  of  successful  experiments  upon  the  simultaneous 
production  of  pure  crystals  of  sodium  carbonate  and  chlorine  gas 
from  common  salt  are  described  by  Dr.  Hempel  in  the  current 
number  of  the  Berichte.  The  experiments  simply  consisted  in 
passing  a  current  of  carbon  dioxide  gas  through  a  solution  of 
salt  contained  in  a  special  form  of  electrolytic  cell,  through 
which  an  electric  current  from  a  few  Bunsen's  cells  or  a  small 
dynamo  was  circulated.  The  kathode  found  mist  convenient 
consisted  of  a  plate  of  iron  or  carbon  perforated  with  numerous 
holes  about  4  millimetres  in  diam2ter,  bored  obliquely,  so  that 
bubbles  of  gas  couM  readily  escape  upwards.  For  anode  a 
similar  plate  of  thin  perforated  carbon  was  employed.  Both  elec- 
trodes were  circular  in  shape,  and  between  them  was  placed  a 
diaphragm  of  thick  asbestos  paper,  which  was  directly  squeezed 
between  the  two  plates.  This  arrangement  was  found  to  possess 
the  double  advantage  of  bringing  the  two  electrodes  within 
I  millimetre  of  each  other,  and  so  greatly  diminishing  the 
internal  resistance,  and  of  affording  such  excellent  support  to 
the  asbestos  diaphragm  that  any  rupture  of  the  latter  was 
entirely  prevented.  The  electrodes  and  their  enclosed  dia- 
phragm were  supported  in  a  circular  glass  cell  in  such  a  manner 
that  they  divided  the  cell  into  two  distinct  chambers.  To  the 
glass  wall  of  the  cell  on  the  positive  or  anode  side  was  fitted  a 
wide  side  tube,  through  which  the  salt  was  supplied  as  often  as 
necessary  in  solid  pieces,  a  little  water  being  also  from  time  to 
time  added  to  replace  that  taken  up  in  the  crystallization  of  the 
sodium  carbonate.  A  delivery  tube  was  also  attached  to  the 
upper  portion  of  the  anode  chamber  in  order  to  conduct  away 
the  liberated  chlorine  gas.  The  negative  or  kathode  chamber 
was  supplied  at  its  upper  end  with  an  opening  serving  on  the 
one  hand  to  introduce  the  carbon  dioxide  delivery  tube,  and  on 
the  other  to  extract  the  crystals  of  sodium  carbonate.  The 
apparatus  was  thus  found  to  work  continuously  for  weeks  to- 
gether, the  asbestos  diaphragm  withstanding  the  pressure  very 
satisfactorily.  The  separation  of  the  soda  crystals  is  readily 
explained  by  the  well-known  fact  of  the  difficult  solubility  of 
sodium  carbonate  in  solutions  of  sodium  chloride  ;  as  fast  as  the 
electric  current  decomposes  the  sodium  chloride  into  chlorine 
and  sodium,  the  carbon  dioxide  converts  the  sodium  hydrate 
formed  by  the  reaction  of  the  sodium  upon  water  into  the  normal 
carbonate,  which,  in  presence  of  the  constantly  replenished  com- 
mon salt,  at  once  separates  in  the  usual  monoclinic  form  of 
NaoCOg  .  loH.^O.  The  total  resistance  of  the  cell  is  only  about 
five  and  a  half  volts,  which  may  be  still  further  reduced  by 
constructing  both  electrodes  of  carbon.  Using  a  small  dynamo- 
electric  machine,  64'S  grams  of  chlorine  and  259 '8  grams  of 
NaaCO^.  10H2O  per  horse-power  of  680  volt-amperes  were  pro- 


duced per  hour,  so  that  the  experiments,  in  addition  to  their 
interest  from  a  purely  chemical  point  of  view,  may  turn  out  to 
bear  fruit  technically.  The  soda  produced  is  stated  to  be 
chemically  pure,  and  the  chlorine  to  contain  but  a  verj-  small 
admixture  with  other  gases. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Scciety's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Patas  Monkey  {Ccrcopithecus  fatas  i  > 
from  West  Africa,  presented  by  the  Rev.  James  Vernall ;  a 
Cheetah  {Cymslunts  jubatiis  i)  from  South  Africa,  presented 
by  Captain  M.  P.  Webster,  s.s.  Koslin  Castle ;  a  Ring-tailed' 
Coati  {Nasua  rufa  9  )  from  South  America,  presented  by  Mr. 
J.  A.  Martin  ;  two  Short-toed  Larks  {Calandrella  brachydactyla) 
from  Devonshire,  presented  by  Commander  W.  N.  Latham, 
R.N.,  F.Z.S.  ;  a  Sharp-nosed  Crocodile  [Crocodihis acitlus)  from 
Jamaica,  presented  by  the  Jamaica  Institute ;  two  Tuatera 
Lizards  {Sphenodon  ftmctatus)  from  New  Zealand,  presented  by 
Rear- Admiral  Henry  Fairfax,  R.N.,  C.B.,  F.Z.S.  ;  a  Smooth- 
headed  Capuchin  (Cf^i^i-  vionachtis  (J )  from  Brazil,  deposited  ; 
a  Collared  Peccary  {Dicotyles  tajacu  ?  ),  four  Rosy-billed  Ducks^ 
{Metoplana  peposaca   <?  d  ?  9  )  from  South  America  ;  two  Grey 

Squirrels   {Scitirus  cinereus)  from   North   America  ;  four   

Finches  ( Munia  nana)  from  Madagascar,  purchased. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Stellar  Parallax  by  Means  of  Photography.— Prof. 
Pritchard  has  sent  us  his  eminently  successful  "  Researches  m 
Stellar  Parallax  "  by  the  aid  of  photography,  from  observations 
made  at  the  Oxford  University  Observatory.  The  advantage  in 
point  of  convenience  and  rapidity  in  the  multiplication  ol 
oVjservations  which  this  method  possesses  over  all  others  is  in- 
calculable, and  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  the  case  of  61, 
Cygni  the  parallax  obtained  was  o"'4294  ±  o"-oi62,  and  that 
Bessel's  probable  error  is  practically  identical  with  this  here 
stated.  Hence,  as  far  as  the  present  results  are  concerned,, 
photographic  and  heliometric  measures  of  parallax  may  be 
regarded  as  possessing  an  equality  of  accuracy. 

The  following  list  contains  the  stars  whose  parallax  has  beer> 
determined  by  this  novel  method,  and  some  of  the  results- 
obtained  : — 


6I1  Cygni      . 
61.,      ,, 

yct  Cassiopeire 

Polaris 

a  Cassiopeias 

y         "  . 
a  Cephci 


-f  o'429  ±  o  016 

-f  0*432  ±  0019 

+   0021  db  0*023 

-t-  0"052  ±  O'OII 

-f  o  035  ±  o  024 

-f  o"i57  ±  0-036 

-  0*032  ±  0"026 

+  0*073  ±  0031 


The  almost  identical  parallax  of  the  two  components  of  6r 
Cygni  is  worthy  of  note.  The  average  of  eight  determinations 
gives  a  value  o"*437,  which  is  a  close  approximation  to  Dr. 
Belopolsky's  value  of  0*50  as  the  absolute  parallax  of  6i  Cygni. 

Bessel  determined  a  small  negative  parallax  for  \x  Cassiopeia?, 
but  Dr.  Struve  ^assigned  it  a  value  -t-  o"*342.  The  very  small 
positive  parallax  given  by  Prof.  Pritchard  may  be  explanatory  of 
Bessel's  negative  determination. 

The  small  negative  parallax  found  for  7  Cassiopeia:  would 
indicate  that  it  and  the  comparison  stars  are  in  the  same  gronp» 
although  its  bright  line  spectrum  points  to  a  constitution  different 
from  that  of  other  stars  in  this  constellation. 

Even  a  cursory  examination  of  the  summary  of  results  renders 
it  evident  that  no  relation  exists  between  the  lustre  and  parallax 
of  stars,  and  indeed,  since  we  probably  view  bodies  which  are 
still  in  various  stages  of  condensation,  we  should  hardly  expect 
to  find  any  such  relation. 

Measurements  of  Double  ^iKY.?,.—AstrofiomischeNach- 
richten,  Nos.  2929-30,  contain  a  series  of  double  star  observa- 
tions made  with  the  36-inch  refractor  of  the  Lick  Observatory 
by  Mr.  S.  W.  Burnham.  The  discovery  is  claimed  of  two  very 
faint  stars  in  the  trapezium  of  Orion,  an<l  an  excessively  faint 
double  has  also  been  detected  by  Mr.  E.  E.  Barnard  just  outside 
and  preceding  the  trapezium.  The  observers  believe  that,  in: 
spite  of  the  numerous  alleged  discoveries  of  faint  stars  in  this- 


20 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  7,  1889 


region,  it  is  impossible  to  see  such  as  these  now  found  with  an 
aperture  much  less  than  that  of  the  Lick  telescope.  A  list  is 
therefore  given  of  the  principal  communications  to  astronomical 
periodicals  relating  to  the  alleged  discovery  of  faint  stars  in  the 
trapezium  of  Orion. 

Barnard's  Comet,  1888-89. — Comptes  rendus.  No,  17, 
October  21,  1889,  contains  some  observations  made  by  MM. 
Rayet  and  Courty  of  the  motion  of  Barnard's  comet,  the  posi- 
tions of  the  comparison  stars  being  also  given.  The  series  of 
observations  extend  from  September  11,  1888,  to  September  27, 
1889. 

Biographical  Note  on  J.  C.  Houzeau.— M.  A.  Lan- 
caster, the  collaborator  with  Houzeau  of  the  most  comprehensive 
bibliography  extant,  has  proved  himself,  in  this  note,  to  be 
the  most  capable  of  writing  his  deceased  friend's  biography. 
Houzeau's  scientific  and  literary  labours  cover  an  extensive 
field  :  astronomy  and  geodesy,  mathematics  and  meteorology, 
geology  and  geography,  are  all  represented  in  his  works  ;  and 
when  but  a  young  man,  he  directed  the  triangulation  of  his 
country.  In  politics  Houzeau  was  an  enthusiast,  and  whilst  in 
America,  about  1861-69,  he  gave  a  considerable  amount  of  atten- 
tion to  the  subject  of  the  emancipation  of  the  slaves,  and  wrote 
numerous  and  important  articles  upon  it.  In  1875,  Houzeau 
completed  a  series  of  astronomical  and  meteorological  observa- 
tions made  at  Jamaica,  and  in  the  following  year  was  appointed 
Director  of  the  Brussels  Observatory.  His  crowning  work — the 
"Vade  Mecum  of  Astronomy,"  was  finished  in  1882.  It  repre- 
sented the  work  of  a  lifetime,  and  as  a  guide  to  astronomers  is 
invaluable.  Such  a  compilation,  however,  calls  for  continual 
additions,  and  a  general  bibliography  was  published  in  1887, 
■with  the  assistance  of  M.  A.  Lancaster.  This  was  Houzeau's 
last  work,  but  before  his  death,  on  July  12,  1888,  he  earnestly 
expressed  the  wish  that  it  should  be  carried  on  by  his  colla- 
borator. Houzeau's  life  was  full  of  vicissitudes,  and  his  biography 
is  most  interesting. 

The  Karlsruhe  Observatory.— The  third  volume  of  the 
Publications  of  the  Grand-Ducal  Observatory  of  Karlsruhe  has 
recently  been  published  by  Dr.  W:  Valentiner,  the  Director. 
The  bulk  of  the  volume  is  by  Dr.  E.  von  Rebeur-Paschwitz,  and 
■consists,  first,  of  a  series  of  measures  with  the  6-inch  refractor  of 
the  two  star-clusters  M.  35  and  M.  25  ;  secondly,  of  a  discussion 
of  the  orbit  of  Comet  Wells,  1882  I.,  and  the  derivation  of 
definitive  elements  ;  and  lastly^  of  auxiliary  tables  for  the  com- 
putation of  parallax  for  169  different  observatories. 

Dr.  Boy  Mattheissen  adds  a  short  paper  on  the  orbit  of  Comet 
Denning,  1881  V. 

The  volume  contains  three  plates,  the  first  two  being  maps  of 
the  star-clusters  under  observation.rwhilst  the  third  gives  photo- 
graphs of  the  same  two  clusters  as  taken  by  Dr.  E.  von  Gothard 
at  Hereny. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 


Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich,  at  10  p.m.  November  7  =  ih.  9m.  9s. 


Name. 

Mag 

Coloi;r. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

iSgo'o. 

i89o'o. 

<i)  Nebula  in  Andromeda 

Greenish-white. 

h.  m.  s. 
0  35     4 

-f  40  3o'i4 

(2)  y  Cassiopeiae      

2 

Bluish-white. 

0  50     I 

-1-60    7 

(3)  47  Piscium 

5 

Yell.jwish-red. 

0  42  58 

-t-  6  59'2 

■<4)'t,eti     

3 

Yellowish-white. 

0  13  48 

-   9  26 

(5)  v  Pegasi       

3 

White. 

0     7  34 

-I-14  34 

■(6)D.M.  -|-34°56' 

8 

Deep  red. 

0  21    42 

-1-34  5'5 

<7)  T  Herculis 

Var. 

Reddish. 

18     4  56 

-f-31    0 

Remarks. 

(i)  Dr.  Huggins  notes  that  the  spectrum  ends  abruptly  in  the 
orange.  Maxima  of  brightness  have  since  been  recorded  by 
myself  at,  approximately,  468-474,  517,  and  546,  and  the  latter 
two  have  also  been  confirmed  by  Mr.  Taylor.  Further  con- 
firmation is  required.  For  comparison,  a  Bunsen  or  spirit-lamp 
flame  will  be  found  convenient  for  the  first  two,  and  the  brightest 
fluting  seen  when  lead  chloride  is  introduced  into  the  flame  for 
the  third.  Mr.  Lockyer  suggests  that  since  the  central  conHen- 
sation  is  probably  at  a  higher  temperature  than  the  surrounding 
portions  of  the  nebula,  different  parts  of  the  nebula  should  show 
differences  in  their  spectra.  Observing  with  Mr.  Lockyer's  30- 
•inch  reflector  at  Westgate-on-Sea,  on  October  20,  I  suspected 


some  change  in  the  spectrum  away  from  the  nucleus,  but  was 
unable  to  complete  the  observation  on  account  of  clouds,  and 
have  not  since  had  an  opportunity  of  repeating  it. 

(2)  The  bright  lines  most  constantly  seen  in  the  spectrum  of 
this  star  are  C,  F,  and  D3,  but  their  appearance  is  somewhat 
irregular.  Continuous  observations,  with  special  reference  to 
the  relative  intensities  of  the  lines,  are  suggested.  The  lines  are 
well  seen  in  a  lo-inch  equatorial  with  a  Maclean  spectroscopic 
eye-piece.  Bright  fluting-^  of  carbon  have  also  been  suspected, 
and  comparisons  should  be  made  with  the  Bunsen  or  spirit- 
lamp  to  confirm  these.  The  continuous  spectrum  should  also  be 
carefully  examined  for  maxima,  b,  D,  and  other  absorption- 
lines,  have  also  been  recorded. 

(3)  This  is  a  star  which  gives  a  spectrum  of  dark  flutings 
fading  away  towards  the  red.  Duner  records  bands  2  to  9,  and 
describes  the  spectrum  as  superb.  Band  3,  near  D,  is  of  extra- 
ordinary width.  The  spectra  of  this  type  have  been  explained 
as  mixed  metallic  fluting  absorption  and  carbon  fluting  radiation. 
The  carbon  flutings  probably  present  are  5 1 7  and  468-474,  which 
again  may  be  determined  by  comparison  with  the  spirit-lamp, 
517  being  the  brightest  green  fluting. 

Duner's  notation  and  mean  wave-lengths  of  the  dark  bands 
are  as  follows  :— (i)  648-666,  (2)  616-2-629 "8,  (3)  5^6  7-596-8, 
(4)  559-8-564 -9.  (5)545"2-55i'5.  (6)  524-3-528t,  (7)  5i6-8- 
522-2,  (8)495-9-503-0,  (9)  476-0-483-0,  (10)  460-7-473.  The 
bright  spaces  between  7  and  8,  and  9  and  10  are  probably  due 
to  carbon. 

(4)  This  is  a  star  of  Class  II. a,  which  is  now  divided  into  two 
groups,  one  having  spectra  of  the  type  of  a  Tauri  (Group  HI.), 
and  the  other  of  the  sun  (Group  V.).  The  lines  should  be  care- 
fully observed,  and  differences  from  the  solar  spectrum,  if  any, 
noted,  so  that  the  star  can  be  classed  in  one  group  or  the  other. 
The  principal  criteria  so  far  determined  for  Group  HI.  are 
strong  lines  at  4C9  and  540,  568  and  579.  The  line  at  540 
forms  with  E  (5268),  and  the  iron  line  at  5327  (both  solar  lines), 
an  equi- distant  trio.  The  difference  between  the  two  groups 
may  perhaps  best  be  observed  by  a  comparison  of  Aldebaran 
and  Capella. 

(5)  The  spectrum  of  this  star  is  Class  \.a  (Group  IV.).  The 
relative  intensities  of  the  hydrogen  and  metallic  lines  should  be 
noted,  in  order  that  the  star  may  be  arranged  with  others  in 
order  of  temperature. 

(6)  Duner  gives  the  spectrum  of  this  star  as  Class  \\\.b  (Group 
VI.),  in  which  the  main  features  are  three  dark  carbon  flutings 
fading  away  towards  the  blue.  Other  absorptions,  if  any,  should 
be  carefully  observed,  and  their  relative  intensities  recorded. 

(7)  This  is  a  variable  star,  which  reached  its  maximum  on 
November  6.  The  magnitude  at  maximum  is  given  by  Gore  as 
6-9-8 '3,  and  the  period  as  165-1  days.  The  spectrum  has  not 
yet,  so  far  as  I  know,  been  recorded.  A.   Fowler. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

The  telegrams  in  the  papers  of  Monday  and  Tuesday  from 
Mr.  Stanley  are  of  the  most  suggestive  and  interesting  character. 
For  one  thing,  Emin,  Casati,  and  others  who  have  been  holding 
out,  are  safe,  though  the  brave  Pasha  has  evidently  been  deserted 
by  most  of  his  men.  That  Mr.  Stanley's  expedition  was  needed 
the  result  has  proved.  He  reached  the  Albert  Nyanza  for  the 
third  time,  not  a  moment  too  soon  to  rescue  the  retreating 
party.  We  need  not  dwell  on  the  sacrifices  that  have  been  en- 
tailed ;  they  might  to  some  extent  have  been  avoided,  but  per- 
sonally Mr.  Stanley  is  not  to  blame.  The  geographical  results 
of  the  expedition,  as  shadowed  in  the  too  brief  telegram  in 
Tuesday's  papers,  are  evidently  of  the  highest  interest.  There 
is  now  no  doubt  that  there  is  a  southern  Albert  Lake,  Muta 
Nzige,  which  Mr.  Stanley  has  named  Lake  Albert  Edward. 
From  the  time  when  he  himself  discovered  what  he  called  Beatrice 
Gulf  until  the  present,  no  one  had  seen  this  lake.  At  first  it 
was  thought  to  be  a  part  of  the  northern  lake,  Albert  Nyanza,  but 
that  idea  had  to  be  given  up.  Now  it  is  clear  that  it  is  connected 
with  that  lake  by  the  River  Sempliki.  The  southern  lake  is 
900  feel  higher  than  the  northern,  and  so  is  about  3200  feet 
above  sea-level,  and  450  feet  above  Lake  Tanganyika,  with 
which  it  is  unlikely  to  have  any  connection.  Mr.  Stanley  skirted 
the  snowy  mountain  range  referred  to  in  his  letters  of  six  months 
ago,  and  found  that  they  send  down  fifty  streams  to  feed  the 

'  Roy.  Soc.  Proc,  vol.  xlv.  pp.  380-392. 


Nov.  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


21 


Sempliki.  Awamba,  Usongora,  Toro,  Ahaiyaina,  Unyampaka, 
and  Anhori,  are  all  districts  around  the  west,  north,  and  east 
shores  of  the  Lake  Albert  Edward,  three  sides  of  which  Mr. 
Stanley  says  he  has  traversed — probably  the  east,  west,  and  north 
sides,  though  it  is  possible  he  may  have  gone  round  the  south 
side.  It  is  probable  that  the  lake  as  laid  down  on  our  maps  is 
much  too  large,  and  that  it  is  comparatively  small  Mr.  Stanley 
found  it  to  be  15  miles  wide  at  Beatrice  Gulf.  From  the  lake 
he  struck  south-east  to  Karagwe  and  Uzinze,  on  the  south-west 
and  south  of  Victoria  Nyanza,  and  no  doubt  found  at  Mslala  the 
stores  which  have  been  accumulating  for  many  months.  Thus 
it  will  be  seen  Mr.  Stanley  has  solved  one  of  the  few  remaining 
problems  of  African  geography.  He  has  found  the  south-west 
source  of  the  Nile,  and  established  the  true  relations  which  exist 
\  among  the  great  lakes  of  Central  Africa.  He  has  filled  up  an 
important  blank  in  our  maps,  and  collected  observations  which 
will  enable  us  to  understand  the  physical  geography  of  one  of 
the  most  interesting  regions  on  the  continent.  Probably  he 
will  be  able  to  tell  us  what  has  become  of  the  Alexandra  Lake 
of  his  former  expedition.  It  may  be  as  well  to  state  that  the 
telegram  of  Monday  was  in  effect  the  first  part  of  that  of  Tuesday, 
and  therefore  Emin's  safety  was  not  again  referred  to  in  the 
latter. 

The  Zanzibar  Correspondent  of  the  Times  telegraphed  on 
November  5  that  authentic  news  had  reached  Lamu  that  Dr. 
Peters  and  the  whole  of  his  party  had  been  massacred,  except 
one  European  and  one  Somali,  wounded,  who  are  at  Ngao. 
vSome  say  they  were  killed  by  Masais,  and  some  by  Somalis. 

From  the  Journal  of  the  Anthropological  Society  in  Vienna, 
we  take  the  following  conclusions  of  Dr.  B.  Hagen,  respecting 
the  Malay  peoples  : — Their  great  predilection  for  the  sea, 
which  makes  them  pray  to  Allah  that  they  may  die  on  sea, 
seems  to  render  the  Malay  race  adapted  for  the  Polynesian 
and  Further  Indian  Archipelago.  The  centre  from  which 
they  migrated  is  to  be  sought  in  the  highlands  of  West 
Sumatra,  particularly  in  the  old  kingdom  of  Menang-Kabau. 
Thence  the  peoples  extended  slowly  eastwards ;  at  first  prob- 
ably the  races  now  to  be  found  only  in  the  interior  of  the 
great  islands  (the  Battas  in  Sumatra,  the  Sundanese  in  Java, 
the  Dayaks  in  Borneo,  the  Alfurus  in  Celebes,  &c.).  These 
"aborigines"  of  the  islands  crushed  out  a  population  already 
in  possession,  as  remains  of  which  the  Negritos  may  be  taken. 
The  Malays  in  the  narrower  sense  occupying  Sumatra,  Malacca, 
and  North  Borneo,  are  to  be  regarded  as  the  last  emigration 
from  the  centre  referred  to,  occurring  from  the  twelfth  to 
the  fifteenth  century  a.d.  With  the  Indians  and  Chinese, 
who  have  been  long  in  intercourse  with  the  archipelago,  arose 
mixtures  and  crosses,  in  less  measure  also  with  the  Arabs. 
One  must  not  therefore  expect  the  pure  racial  type,  especially  in 
the  coast  population.  The  crania  of  the  anthropological  collections 
are  too  im)  erfectly  determined  in  respect  of  their  locale  to  be 
of  any  service  for  a  judgment  of  the  Malay  peoples.  Of 
more  value  are  the  measurements  of  the  living  begun  by 
Dr.  Weisbach  and  executed  by  Dr.  Hagen  in  400  cases. 
The  latter's  conclusions  are: — (i)  The  peoples  in  the  interior 
of  Sumatra — the  Battas,  the  Alias,  and  the  Malays  of  Menang- 
Kabau — compose  a  closely  allied  group  always  in  direct  contrast 
with  the  hither-Indian  peoples,  and  yet  showing  just  as  little 
community  with  the  Chinese.  We  must  therefore  take  them  for 
the  pure  original  type,  characterizable  as  follows  : — Small,  com- 
pact, vigorous  figure  of  less  than  1600  mm.  average  size  ;  long 
arms ;  very  short  legs ;  very  long  and  broad  mesocephalous 
skull  of  very  great  compass,  with  high  forehead  ;  a  prognathous 
face  10  per  cent,  broader  than  long,  with  large  mouth,  and  uncom- 
monly short,  flat,  and  broad  nose  with  large  round  nostrils  opening 
mostly  frontwise,  and  with  broad  nasal  root.  (2)  The  Malays  of 
the  east  coast  of  Sumatra  and  those  of  the  coasts  of  Malacca 
indicate  a  much  greater  affinity  to  the  Indians  than  to  their 
tribal  peoples  of  Menang-Kabau.  They  are  plainly  therefore 
thoroughly  mixed  with  Indian  blood.  (3)  The  Javanese  peoples 
stand  much  nearer  to  the  original  type  of  the  Sumatrans  than 
to  the  Malays  just  mentioned.  They  show  therefore  less  mixture 
with  Indian,  but  on  the  other  hand  more  mixture  with  Chinese, 
blood,  and  the  Javanese  more  so  than  the  Sundanese. 

The  second  number  of  this  year's  "  Information  respect- 
ing Kaiser  Wilhelmsland  and  the  Bismarck  Archipelago," 
issued  by  the  Qerman  New  Guinea  Company,  contains  a  de- 
scription   of   the    north    coast    of   New    Guinea,    from    Cape 


Cretin  to  the  Legoarant  Islands,  by  the  former  Governor,  Vice- 
Admiral  Freiherr  von  Schleinitz,  with  a  map  designed  by 
him.  According  to  this  account,  Kaiser  Wilhelm>land  is  sub- 
ject to  the  south-east  trade  wind.  This  is,  however,  occasionally 
relieved  by  the  opposite  wind,  when,  viz.,  the  sun  in  southing 
imparts  to  the  Australian  continent  a  temperature  higher  than 
that  of  New  Guinea.  The  temperature,  averaging  26°  to  27°  C, 
is  not  so  high  as  might  be  inferred  from  the  equatorial  situation 
of  the  land,  a  fact  due  in  part  to  the  prevalence  of  the  trade 
wind,  which  also  brings  with  it  a  cooling  sea- current  to  the 
coast,  and  in  part  to  the  considerable  elevation  of  most  of  the 
island.  The  north-west,  blowing  especially  from  January  to 
April,  comes  on  the  whole  with  greater  force  than  the  south- 
east. Calms  often  occur  from  March  to  May  and  from  October 
to  December.  Precipitation  is  on  the  whole  copious,  but  there 
are  many  differences  according  to  the  local  variations  in  the 
configuration  of  the  land.  The  navigation  of  the  coast  offers  no 
particular  dangers  and  difficulties,  either  for  steamers  or  sailing- 
vessels.  Serious  storms  are  extremely  rare,  nor  are  there  any 
reefs  in  the  channel  proper.  Sea  currents  do  not  strike  direct 
on  the  coast,  and  they  are  not  generally  very  strong.  The  tides 
are  inconsiderable,  the  spring  floods  keeping  under  i  metre. 

Some  interesting  remains  have  been  found  in  Hamburg  on 
the  site  of  the  new  Rathhaus.  At  a  depth  of  o  to  07  metre 
the  ground  was  covered  to  a  height  of  10  to  15  centimetres 
with  dams  of  thin  willow  twigs  (Salixfragilis),  in  many  places 
two,  sometimes  even  three,  layers  above  one  another,  and 
separated  from  one  another  by  equally  thick  earth  layers. 
The  building  rests  on  clay,  i.e.  submerged  ground,  which  con- 
tained heaps  of  freshwater  shells,  e.g.  Valvata  piscinalis, 
Bythinia  ientaculata,  &c,,  as  also  Cardium  edule,  Tellina  baltica, 
Mactra  solida,  &c.  When  therefore  the  dam  was  made,  the 
water  must  have  been  strongly  brackish.  The  interest  in  this 
discovery  was  heightened  when  there  was  found,  under  St. 
Anne's  Bridge,  at  a  depth  of  05  metre,  a  regularly  paved  street 
of  small  boulders,  such  as  were  still  used  for  stone  pavement 
in  all  North  German  towns  in  the  last  century.  The  stone  dam 
was  about  5  metres  broad,  and  encased  on  both  sides  by  thick 
wooden  planks,  in  order,  in  the  swampy  ground,  to  prevent 
the  slipping  out  of  the  stones  sideways.  The  ascertained 
changes  in  the  level  of  the  North  Sea  give  no  positive  clue 
to  the  age  of  the  Hamburg  finds. 


THE  INSTITUTION  OF  ELECTRICAL 
ENGINEERS. 

/^N  Monday  evening  the  first  annual  dinner  of  the  Institution 
^^  of  Electrical  Engineers  took  place  at  the  Criterion  Re- 
staurant, Sir  William  Thomson,  the  President,  occupying  the 
chair.  Many  different  branches  of  science  were  represented  on 
the  occasion,  and  some  of  the  after-dinner  speeches  rose  to  a 
high  level  of  excellence. 

Due  honour  having  been  done  to  the  usual  loyal  toasts,  and 
Major  Webber  and  Captain  Wharton  having  responded  for  the 
Army  and  Navy,  the  Chairman  proposed  "  Her  Majesty's 
Ministers  "     Lord  Salisbury  said,  in  response  : — 

Sir  William  Thomson  and  Gentlemen, — I  have  to  thank  you 
on  behalf  of  my  colleagues  in  the  Goverment  and  myself  for  the 
exceedingly  kind  reception  you  have  given  to  the  kind  words  in 
which  Sir  William  Thomson  has  proposed  this  toast.  I  do  not 
feel  that  I  can  accept  the  guise  in  which  he  put  my  name  forward. 
On  the  contrary,  though  recognizing,  as  every  individual  must 
do,  and  as  I  have  especial  reason  to  do,  the  enormous  benefits 
which  electrical  science  confers  upon  mankind,  I  feel  that  I  have 
reason  rather  to  apologize  for  my  appearance  in  this  assembly. 
When  I  look  round  on  so  many  learned  and  distinguished  men,  I 
feel  rather  in  the  position  of  a  profane  person  who  has  got  inside 
the  Eleusinian  mysteries.  But  1  have  an  excuse.  The  gallant 
gentlemen  who  replied  for  the  Army  and  Navy  were  able  to  show 
many  particulars  in  which  their  special  professional  vocation  was 
sustained  and  pushed  forward  by  the  discoveries  of  electrical 
science.  But  I  will  venture  to  say  that  there  is  no  department 
under  the  Government  so  profoundly  indebted  10  the  discoveries 
of  those  who  have  made  this  science  as  the  Foreign  Office,  with 
which  I  have  the  honour  to  be  connected.  I  may  say  that  we 
positively  exist  by  virtue  of  the  electric  telegraph.     The  whole 


22 


NATURE 


[Nov.  7,  1889 


■work  of  all  the  Chancelleries  in  Europe  is  now  practically  con- 
ducted by  the  light  of  that  great  science,  which  is  not  so  old  as 
the  century  in  which  we  live.     And  there  is  a  strange  feeling  that 
you  have  in  communicating  constantly  and  frequently  day  by  day 
with  men  whose  inmost  thoughts  you  know  by  the  telegraph,  but 
whose  faces  you  have  never  seen.     It  is  something  more  than  a 
mere  departmental  effect  which  these  great  discoveries  have  had 
upon  the  government  of  the  world.     I  have  often  thought  that  if 
history   were   more    philosophically  written,  instead    of  being 
divided   according   to   the   domination    of    particular  dynasties 
or  the  supremacy  of  particular  races,   it  would  be  cut  off  into 
the   compartments    indicated    by   the    influence    of    particular 
discoveries  upon  the  destinies  of  mankind.     Speaking  only  of 
these   modern   times,    you   would   have  the  epoch  marked  by 
the   discovery  of  gunpowder,   the  epoch    marked  by    the   dis- 
covery of  the  printing-pres«,   and  you   would  have  the  epoch 
marked    by   the   discovery   of  the  steam-engine.      And   those 
discoveries  have  had  an  influence  infinitely  more  powerful,  not 
only   upon   the   large   collective   destinies,   but  upon  the  daily 
life  and  experience  of  multitudes  of  human  beings,   than  even 
the  careers  of  the  greatest  conquerors   or   the  devices  of  the 
greatest  statesmen.      In  that  list  which  our  ignorance  of  ancient 
history  in  its  essential  character  forbids  us  to  make  as  long  as  no 
doubt   it  might  be   made,   the  last    competitor  for  notice  and 
not  the  least  would  be  the  science  of  electricity.     I  think  the 
historian  of  the  future  when  he  looks  back  will  recognize  that 
there  has  been  a  larger  influence  upon  the  destinies  of  mankind 
exercised  by  this  strange  and   fascinating   discovery  than  even 
in  the    discovery  of   the  steam-engine  itself,    because   it    is    a 
discovery  which  operates  so  immediately  upon  the    moral  and 
intellectual  nature  and  action  of  mankind.     The  electric  tele- 
graph has  achieved  this  great  and  paradoxical  result,  that  it  has, 
as  it  were,  assembled  all  mankind  upon  one  great  plane  where 
they  can  see  everything  that  is  done,  and  hear  everything  that  is 
said,   and  judge  of  every  policy  that  is  pursued   at  the    very 
moment  when  those  events  take  place  ;  and  you  have  by  the 
action  of  the  electric  telegraph,  combine!  together  almost  at 
one  moment,  and  acting  at  one  moment  upon  the  agencies  which 
govern  mankind,  the  influences  of  the  whole  intelligent  world 
with  respect  to  everything  that  is  passing  at  that  time  on  the 
face  of  the  globe.     It  is  a  phenomenon  to  which  nothing  in  the 
history  of  our  planet  up  to  this  time  presents  anything  which  is 
equal  or  similar,  and  it  is  an  effect  and  operation  of  which  the 
intensity  and  power  increases  year  by  year.     When  you  ask 
what  is  the  effect  of  the  electric  telegraph  upon  the  condition 
of  mankind,    I  would  ask  you  to  think  of  what  is  the  most 
conspicuous    feature    in    the    politics    of    our    time,    the    one 
which  occupies    the   thoughts   of  every   statesman,    .-xnd   which 
places  the  whole  future  of  the  whole  civilized  world  in  a  con- 
dition   of  doubt   and   question.     It   is   the   existence   of    those 
gigantic  armies  held  in  leash  by  the  various  Governments  of  the 
world,  whose  tremendous  power  may  be  a  guarantee  for  the 
happiness  of  mankind  and  the  maintenance  of  civilization,  but 
who,  on  the  other  hand,  hold  in  their  hands  powers  of  destruc- 
tion which  are  almost  equal  to  the  task  of  levelling  civilization 
to  the  ground.     What  gives  these  armies  their   power?     What 
enables  them  to  exist  ?     By  what  power  is  it  that  one  single  will 
can  control  these  vast  millions  of  men  and  direct  their  destructive 
energies  at  one  moment  on  one  point  ?    What  is  the  condition  of 
simultaneous  direction  and  action  which  alone  gives  to  these  vast 
armies  this  tremendous  power  ?  It  is  nothing  less  than  the  electric 
telegraph.     And  it  is  from  that  small  discovery,  worked  out  by 
a  few  distinguished  men  in  their  laboratories  upon  experiments 
of  an  apparently  trivial  character,   on  matter  and  instruments 
not,  in  the  first  instance,  of  a  very  recondite  description — -it  is 
on  that  discovery  that  the  huge  belligerent  power  of  modern 
States,  which  marks  off  our  epoch  of  history  from  all  that  have 
gone  before,  must  be  held,  by  anyone  who  investigates  into  the 
causes  of  things,  absolutely  to  depend.    I  would  venture  to  hope 
that  this  is  not  all,  in  its  great  effect  upon  the  history  and  govern- 
ment of  our  race,  that  electricity  may  achieve.     Whether  it  so 
far  is  good  or  evil  in  the  main,  it  must  be  for  the  future  to  deter- 
mine.    We  only  know  that  the  effect,  whatever  it  is,  will  be 
gigantic.     But  in  the  latter  half  of  the  short  life  of  this  young 
science  another  aspect  of  it  has  been  developed — an  aspect  which 
I  cannot  help  hoping  may  be  connected  with  great  benefits  to  the 
vast  community  of  industrious  and  labouring  men — I  mean  that 
facility  for   the  distribution  of  pover  of  which  electricity  has 
given  such  a  splendid  instance.     The  event  of  the  last  century 
was  the  discovery  of  the  steam-engine.     But  the  steam-engine 


was  such  that  the  forces  which  it  produced  could  only  act  in 
its  own  immediate  neighbourhood,  and  therefore  those  who  were 
to  utilize  its  forces  and  translate  them  into  practical  work  were 
compelled  to  gather  round  the  steam-engine  in  vast  factories,  in 
great  manufacturing  towns,  and  in  great  establishments  where 
men  were  collected  together  in  unnatural,  and  often  unwhole- 
some, aggregation.  Now  an  agent  has  been  di-:covered,  by 
which  the  forces  of  the  steam-engine,  stiff,  confined  to  its  own 
centre,  can  be  carried  along,  far  away  from  its  original  sources, 
to  distances  which  are  already  great,  and  which  science  promises 
to  make  more  considerable  still.  I  do  not  despair  of  the  result 
that  this  distribution  of  forces  may  scatter  those  aggregations  of 
humanity,  which  I  think  it  is  not  one  of  the  highest  merits  of 
the  discovery  of  the  steam-engine  to  have  produced.  If  it  ever 
does  happen  that  in  the  house  of  the  artisan  you  can  turn  on 
power  as  now  you  can  turn  on  gas — and  there  is  nothing  in  the 
essence  of  the  problem,  nothing  in  the  facts  of  the  science,  as 
we  know  them,  that  should  prevent  such  a  consummation  from 
taking  place — if  ever  that  distribution  of  power  should  be  so 
organized,  you  will  then  see  men  and  women  able  to  pursue  in 
their  own  homes  many  of  the  industries  which  now  require  the 
aggregation  at  the  factory.  You  may,  above  all,  see  women 
and  children  pursue  these  industries  without  that  disruption  of 
families  which  is  one  of  the  most  unhappy  results  of  the  present 
requirements  of  industry.  And  if  ever  that  result  should  come 
from  the  discoveries  of  Oersted  and  Faraday,  you  may  say  that 
they  have  done  more  than  merely  to  add  to  the  physical  forces  of 
mankind.  They  will  have  done  much  to  sustain  that  unity,  that 
integrity  of  the  family,  upon  which  rest  the  moral  hopes  of  our 
race  and  the  strength  of  the  community  to  which  we  belong. 
These  are  some  of  the  thoughts  which  electricity  suggests  to  one 
of  my  trade.  Pardon  me  if  I  have  wandered  into  what  may 
seem  to  be  speculative  and  unfamiliar  fields.  But,  after  all,  the 
point  of  view  from  which  we  must  admire  the  splendid  additions 
to  our  knowledge  which  the  scientific  men  of  the  world,  and 
especially  of  England,  during  this  century  have  made,  i«,  that 
they  have  enabled  mankind  to  be  more  happy,  to  be  more  con- 
tented, and  therefore  to  be  more  moral. 

vSir  Frederick  Abel  proposed,  and  Sir  George  Gabriel  Stokes 
responded  for,  "The  Learned  Societies"  ;  and  Sir  John  Coode 
responded  for  the  toast  of  "The  Professional  Societies,"  which 
was  proposed  by  Mr.  Latimer  Clark.  The  toast  of  "  The  In- 
stitution of  Electrical  Engineers  "  was  then  proposed  by  Lord 
Salisbury.  In  the  course  of  his  response,  S!r  William  Thomson 
said : — 

One  very  renarkable    piece    of  work  they  should  think  of 
especially  this  year,  and  during  the  last  few  weeks,  when  they 
deplored  the  loss  of  one  of  the  greatest  workers  in   electrical 
science  and  its  practical  application  that  the  world  had  ever  seen 
— Joule.      The  great  scientific  discoveries   of    Faraday,  which 
were  prepared  almost  deliberately  for  the  purpose  of  allowing 
others  to  turn  them  to  account  for  the  good  of  man,  had  been 
going  on  for  about  fifteen  years,  when  a  young  man  took  up  the 
subject  with  a  profound  dnd  penetrating  genius  most  rare  in  any 
branch  of  human  study,  and  perceived  relitions  with  mechanical 
pDwer  which  had  never  been  suspected   before.     Joule  saw  the 
relations  between  electricity  and  force,  and  his  very  first  deter- 
mination of  the  mechanic  1 1  equivalent  was  an  electrical  measure- 
ment.    His  communication  to  the  British  Association,  when  it 
met  in  Cork  in  the  year  1841,   pointed  out  for  the  first  time  the 
distinct   mechanical    relation    between  electric  phenomena  and 
mechanical  force.     Joule  was  not  a  mere  visionary  who  saw  and 
admired  something  in  the  air,  but  he  pursued  what  he  saw  to  the 
very  utmost  practical  point  of  work,  and  he  it  was  who  deter- 
mined   the    mechanical    equivalent    of    heat.     Afterwards    he 
thoroughly  confirmed  the  principle  of  his  first  determination  of 
the   mechanical    equivalent   of  heat.     Both  in    electricity   and 
mechanical  action  he  laid  the  foundation  of  the  great  develop- 
ment of  thermodynamics,    which  would    be'  looked    upon  in 
future  generations  as  the  crowning  scientific  work  of  the  present 
century.     It  was  not  all  due  to  Joule,  but  he  had  achieved  one 
of  the  very  greatest  monuments  of  scientific  work  in  the  present 
century.     For   an    Institution   of  Electrical    Engineers    it    was 
interesting  to  think  that  the  error  relating  to   one  of  the  most 
important  electrical  elements,  the  unit  of  resistance  (now  called 
the  ohm),  as  determined  electrically  in  the  first  place  by  a  Com- 
mittee  of    the    British    Association,    and    by   purely    electrical 
method,  was  first  discovered  by  Joule's  mechanical  measurement. 
It  was  Joule's  mechanical  measurement  which  first  corrected  the 
British  Association  unit,  and  gave  the  true  ohm. 


Nov,  7,  1889] 


NATURE 


23 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 
Cambridge. — The  following  examiners  have  been  appointed  : 
Natural  Sciences  Tripos  :  Physics,  Prof.  Carey  Foster  and  W. 
N.  Shaw  ;  Chemistry,   Prof.  W.  A.  Tilden  and  Prof.  Liveing  ; 
Mineralogy,    Prof.     Lewis    and    L.    Fletcher;  Geology,    Prof. 
Green   and  \V.    W.   Watts  ;    Botany,  F.  Darwin   and    D.   H. 
Scott ;  Zoology,  Prof.   Lankester  and  S.    F.    Ilarmer  ;  Human 
Anatomy,   Drs.    Hill  and  Windle ;    Physiology,   Prof.   Stirling 
and  C.  S.  Sherrington. 

First  M.B.  and  Special  B.A.  :  in  Elementary  Physics,  S.  I.. 
Hart  and  H.  F.  Newall  ;  Elementary  Chemistry,  F.  H.  Neville 
and  S.  Kuhemann  ;  Elementary  Biology,  S.  Y.  Harmer  and 
Prof.  H.  M.  Ward  ;  Special  B.  A.  in  Geology,  Prof.  Green  and 
W.  W.  Watts  ;  in  Pharmaceutical  Chemistry  for  Second  M.B., 
M.  M.  Pattison  Muir  and  H.  Robinson. 

The  following  are  Moderators  (Mathematical  Tripos)  for  the 
year  beginning  May  i,    1890  :—W^    W.    R.    Ball    and  A.   J. 
Wallis.     Examiners  in  Part   I.,  W.   L.   MoUison    and    E.   G. 
Gallop ;    in    Part    H.,    Prof.    Darwin,   J.     Larmor,    and    R. 
Lachlan. 
I      W.  B.    Hardy,   of  Gonville   and   Caius   College,    has   been 
I  appointed  lunior  Demonstrator  of  Physiology. 
i      L.  R.  Wilberforce,  M.A.,  of  Trinity  College,  is  approved  as 
a  Teacher  of  Physics  for  M.  B.  lectures. 

There  has  been  a  serious  discussion  of  the  financial  manage- 
ment and  prospects  of  the  mechanical  workshops  at  Cambridge. 
Whatever  be  the  merits  of  the  points  in  dispute,  such  division  of 
opinion  and  feeling  is  very  unfortunate,  and  much  to  be  deplored 
in  the  interests  of  mechanical  science  and  engineering  in  the 
University.  It  was  unfortunate  that  the  University  declined  to 
establish  an  advanced  examination  or  Tripos  in  engineering  sub- 
jects ;  and  it  is  calamitous  that  the  Museums  work  should  not 
be  given  to  the  Department  located  within  their  own  borders. 
W^e  trust  a  cordial  understanding  may  soon  be  re-established  ; 
for  this  division  is  very  unlike  the  strong  action  by  which,  even 
when  opinions  have  been  divided,  scientific  teaching  has  steadily 
progressed  of  late  years  at  Cambridge. 

The  managers  of  the  John  Lucas  Walker  Fund,  have  made  the 
following  grants  in  aid  of  original  research  in  pathology  :^ 
;^I4  2s.  3(/.  to  J.  G.  Adami,  Demonstrator  of  Pathology,  for  ex- 
penses of  his  investigations  on  the  pathology  of  the  heart  ;  ^35 
to  William  Hunter,  M.D.  Edin.,  John  Lucas  Walker  Student, 
to  defray  expenses  incurred  in  his  research  on  the  pathology  of 
the  blood  ;  ;^3o  to  E.  Hanbury  Hankin,  to  defray  expenses 
of  his  research  on  the  nature  of  immunity  from  infectious  diseases. 
Mr.  J.  W.  Clark  has  been  re- elected  President  of  the 
Philosophical  Society. 

St.  John's  College.— At  the  annual  election  of  Fellows,  on 
Nov.  4,  the  choice  of  the  Council  fell  upon  the  following  members 
of  the  College  :  John  Parker,  Seventh  Wrangler,  1882,  well 
known  as  the  author  of  numerous  papers,  in  the  Philosophical 
Magazine  and  elsewhere,  on  thermodynamics  and  electricity  ; 
Humphry  Davy  Rolleston,  First  Class  Natural  Sciences  Tripos 
(Human  Anatomy  and  Physiology),  1886,  who  has  been  Uni- 
versity Demonstrator  in  Patholo;,'y,  in  Human  Anatomy,  and  in 
Physiology,  author  of  memoirs  on  endocardiac  pressure  and  on 
other  anatomical,  physiological,  and  pharmacological  subjects, 
now  one  of  the  Assistant  Demonstratos  of  Anatomy  at  St. 
Bartholomew's  Hospital  ;  Alfred  William  Flux,  bracketed 
Senior  Wrangler,  1887,  and  First  Class  (Division  i)  Mathe- 
matical Tripos,  Part  H.,  1888,  Marshall  Prrizeman  in  Political 
Economy,  1889,  author  of  papers  on  physical  optics.  Mr. 
Rolleston  is  the  .son  of  the  late  Prof.  Rolleston,  of  Oxford.  The 
success  of  students  of  physical  and  biological  science  at  this 
College  is  striking. 

SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

Paris. 
Academy  of  Sciences,  October  28.— M.  Des  Cloizeaux, 
President,  in  the  chair. — M.  Bertrand  presented  a  volume 
entitled  "  Lectures  on  the  Mathematical  Theory  of  Electricity, 
delivered  at  the  College  of  France." — On  some  hybrids  observed 
recently  in  Provence,  by  M.  G.  De  Saporta.  Three  are  de- 
scribed :  (i)  between  Pimis  halepensis,  Mill.,  and  F.  pinaster, 
L.  ;  (2)  between  Quercus  Mirbcckii  and  Q.  pubesccns.  Wild.  ;  (3) 
between  Tilia  platyphylla.  Scop.,  and  T.  argcntea,  Desf.  ;  in 
each  case,  the  pollen  of  a  preponderating  species  acting  on  that 
of  a  subordinate  one,   or  one  accidentally   introduced,    being 


carried  by  wind  or  insect.*,  w  bile  the  agency  of  man,  birds,  or 
wind,  disseminated  the  hybrid  seeds,— On  the  relation  of  certait> 
magnetic  perturbations  to  earthquake?,  by  M.   Mascart.     The^ 
former,  in  the  Park  of  St.   Maur,  and  the  latter,  at  Gallipoli, 
seem  to  have  occurred  simultaneously  at  11.35  P-ii'  en  October 
25.     The  suspended  copper  bar  was  not  in  the  least  deflected, 
and  the  magnetic  disturbance  cannot  be  attributed  to  mechanicaV 
transmission  of  the  shock.— On  certain  harmonic  linear  elements,, 
by  M.   Rafiy.  — On  a  formula  connecting  vapour-pressure  with 
temperature,   by  M.  N.  de  SalofT.— On   the  equilibrium  of  dis- 
tribution between  chorine  and  oxygen,  by  M.  IL  Le  Chatelier. 
He  shows  that  the  value  of  all  the  coefficients  may  be  calcu- 
lated a  priori,   and  supplies  the  required  formulje.  — On   some- 
double  nitrites  of  ruthenium  and  potassium,  by  MM.   A.   Joly 
and  M,   Vezes.      In  contact   with  alkaline  nitrites,  the  brown 
sesquichloride   of  ruthenium  is   transformed   into   a    red    salt. 
According   to   the    temperature,    and   according  as  the   nitrite 
or  the  red  chloride  predominate,  a  deposit  is  formed  either  oF 
yellow     crystalline   powder,    sparingly   soluble   in    cold    water,, 
or  of  large,  very  soluble  orange-red  crjstals.     These  two  sub- 
stances are  double  nitrites  of  potassium  and  ruthenium.     The 
formula  obtained  do  not  at    all    agree  with   those  for  similar 
compounds    obtained    by    Claus.  —  P"ixation    of   nitrogen    by 
the    Leguminosse,    by  M.   Breal.      Having   before    found    that 
nodosities    full  of  Bacteria  could   be   easily  produced   en   the 
roots  of  a  leguminous  plant,  by  pricking  with  a  needle  previously 
inserted  in  a  nodosity,  he  here  shows  that  such  plants,  will* 
nodosities,  flourish  on  soil  poor  in  azotized  matter  ;  yielding  crops^ 
rich  in  nitrogen,  and  fixing  this  element  in  the  soil  by  their  roots. 
—  On    air   in  the   soil,   by  M.    Th.    Schloesing,  fits.    Ploughed 
land  was  found  to  contain  a  relatively  large  amount  of  oxygen 
at  least  to  the  depth  of  50  or  60  cm.     The  carbonic  acid  gener- 
ally increased   with  the  depth  ;   but  in  two  cases  the  reverse 
occurred,  when  high  wind  (renovating  the  upper  layer)  had  beeO' 
followed  by  hot  and  calm  weather,  and  more  CO.^  was  generated 
in  the   soil   than  in   the   sub-soil.     In    sloping   pastures,    most 
CO2  was  found  at  the  bottom.     The  mobility  of  air  in  the  soil 
should  be  taken  into  account. — On  sorbite,  by  MM     Vincent 
and   Delachanal.       This    substance    very   frequently  occurs   ir». 
nature;    it  is  found  in  all  fruits  ofRcsacese,   and  is  especially 
abundant  in  ]  e.irs  (8  grammes  per  kilogramme),  cherries  and 
prunes    (7    grammes).  Acted  en   by   hjdricdic    acid    it  yields- 
)8-hexylene    and    other   products    (the   same   as    are    thus    ob- 
tained  from   mannite).      The   fcimation   of  a   hexacetyl    deri- 
vative  from    sorbite   proves   that    it   is   a    hexatomic    alcfhol. 
The  formula  of  anhjdrous  sorbite  is  C6H8(OH)6.  —  Researches^ 
on  crystallized  digitaline,  by  M.  Arnaud.     He  regards  it  as  a 
definite  chemical  species  ;  and  it  appears  lo   be  the  type  of  a 
whole  series,  including  tanghinine  (one  of  the  active  principles 
of  the    tanguin.  —  Experimental    researches  on   the  metamor- 
phosis   of  Anoura,    by    M.    T'.    Bataillon.      He   finds   acceler- 
ation   of   the    rhythm    of    respiration    (65    to    120),    and    re- 
tardation of  that  of  the  heart  (70  to  45)  during  metamorphosis. 
Before  appearance  of  the  fore-legs,  the  two  movements  were 
nearly  synchronous.     At  the  stage  of  this  appearance,  further, 
the  production  of  carbonic  acid  was  found  to  have  dinrinished 
considerably,  and  lhe|curve  rose  suddenly  when  aerial  respiratioi> 
was  established. — On  the  earthquake  of  July  28,  1889,  in  the 
island  of  Kiushiu,  in  Japan,  by  M.  J.  Wada.     This   was   pre- 
ceded by  exceptional  rains  during  July.     The  longer  axis  of  the 
ellipse  of  land  affected  was  north-east  to  south-west,  and  cut  in 
the  middle,  at  right  angles,  the  line  joining  two  volcanoes,   ico- 
kilometres  apart. 

Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  October  18. — Prof.  duBois-Rcymond^ 
President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  Kossel  spoke  on  the  application 
of  the  microscope  in  connection  with  physiological  chemistry. 
It  has  long  been  the  practice  to  seek  for  and  identify  any  minute 
crystals  in  tissues  which  occur  either  naturally  or  as  the  result  of 
treatment  with  reagents,  in  order  to  arrive  at  a  qualitative  deter- 
mination of  the  localized  distribution  of  certain  well-known 
substances  in  the  organism.  To  identify  a  crystal  by  measure- 
ment of  its  angles  is  a  laborious  process,  and  to  determine  it  by  mere- 
comparison  of  its  appearance  with  drawings  of  known  crystals  is 
insuflficient.  The  optical  properties  of  crystals  are  extremely 
well  adapted  to  assist  in  their  identification  ;  this  is  exemplified 
in  the  case  of  determinii  g  the  plane  of  vibration  of  the  ordinary 
and  extraordinary  rays  when  crystals  are  examined  belweeiv 
crossed  Nicols.  To  carry  out  the  determination  by  this  menns,. 
the  field  of  view  of  the  microscope  is  provided  with  cross-wires^ 


24 


NATURE 


{Nov.  7,  1889 


■whose  directions  are  parallel  to  the  principal  planes  of  the  two 
Nicols.     The  crystal  under  examination  is  then  placad  with  one 
edge  under  one  of  the  cross-wires  ;  if  the  field  of  vision  remains 
•dark,  then  the  planes  of  vibration  in  the  crystal  are  known  to 
cirrespond  to  the  chief  planes  of  the  two  Nicols.     If,  however, 
the  field  of  vision  becomes  bright  the  crystal  must  be  rotated,  by 
means  of  a  graduated, object-carrier  until  it  is  again  dark.     The 
angle  through  which  the  carrier  has  been  rotated  is  a  measure  of 
the  angular  inclination  of  the  planes  of  vibration  to  the  edges  of 
the  crystal.   When  convergent  polarized  light  is  used,  the  majority 
•of  crystals   of  organic   substances,    which    are   mostly   biaxial, 
exhibit  a  lemniscate  whose  poles  are  at  varying  distances  apart 
for   various    crystals.     The  distance  between  the  poles  of  the 
lemniscate  may  be  measured  by  suitable  methods,  is  extremely 
■characteristic   for   those   crystals   of  greatest    physiological   im- 
portance, and  may  be  used,  in  conjunction  with  the  measurement 
■of  the  planes  of  vibration,  as  a  very  certain  means  of  determining 
the  crystal.     The  pleochromatism  of  n^any  crystals  is  itself  in 
many  cases  sufficiently  characteristic. — Dr.   Virchow  described 
the  distribution  of  blood-vessels  in  the  eye  of  Selachians,  and 
the  several  types  according  to  which  the  vessels  are  developed  in 
the  eyes  of  various  classes  of  animals. — Dr.  Benda  made  a  com- 
munication to  the  effect  that  the  coiled  glands  which  are  so  widely 
distributed  as  sweat-glands  in  the  skin  when  they  exhibit  an 
enlarged  secretory  part,  and  a  more   complicated  structure,  are 
known   as   cerumenous   and   as   mammary   glands.      They   are 
•characterized  specially  by  the  fact  that  during  secretion  there  is 
no  destruction  of  their  epithelium.     These  modifications  of  the 
typical  coiled  glands  have  been  found   by  Dr.  Benda  in  large 
numbers  and  widely  spread   in  the  skin  of  Protopterus. — Dr. 
Schneider  spoke  on  the  distribution  and  significance  of  iron  in 
the  animal  organism.    He  was  able  to  find  iron  in  greater  or  less 
quantity  in   the   cell  protoplasm  and   nucleus  of  all  classes  of 
animals,   the  liver  and   spleen   being   the   organs   in  which  its 
occurrence  was  most  marked.   The  connective  tissues  were  very 
rich  in  iron,  and  it  was  found  with  similar  constancy  in  the  cuticular 
layers  and  quite  constantly  in  the  extreme  tips  of  fishes'  teeth. 
The  more  he  extended  his  investigations  over  the  most  widely 
differing  classes  of  animals,  whether  on  land,  or  in  fresh-water,  or 
in  the  sea,  and  the  more  widely   different  were  the  organs  he 
examined,  by  so  much  the  more  was  it  seen  that  iron  is  universally 
present  in  the  animal  organism.    Its  importance  is  preeminently 
physiological. 

Amsterdam. 
Roy  1  Academy  of  Sciences,  September  28. — Prof,  van 
■der  Staals  in  the  chair. — M,  Suringar  dealt  with  the  Melocacti 
•of  Aruba,  stating  what  he  had  himself  observed  concerning  the  de- 
velopment of  those  plants  from  seed  and  their  subsequent  growth. 
He  spoke  also  of  the  manner  in  which  the  Melocacti  might  be 
classified  according  to  their  natural  affinities,  and  sketched  a 
pedigree  of  the  species. — M.  Schoute  spoke  of  tetrahedra, 
bounded  by  similar  triangles,  and  described  a  new  species  with 
pairs  of  opposite  edges  i  and  r^,  r  and  r,  r"^  and  r-. 

Stockholm. 
Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  Octob3r  9. — Musci  Asize 
Borealis  (second  part)  :  feather  mosses,  by  the  late  Prof.  S.  O. 
Lindberg,  of  Helsingfors,  and  Dr.  H.  W.  Arnell.— On  the  per- 
manent committee  for  a  photographic  map  of  the  heavens  and 
its  work,  by  one  of  its  members,  Prof.  Duner.— On  the  Metre 
Congress  in  Paris,  September  14-28,  this  year,  and  on  the 
prototypes  of  the  metre  and  the  kilogramme,  by  Prof.  Thalen.— 
Emanuel  Swedenborg  as  a  mathematician,  by  Dr.  G.  Enestrom. 
—On  naphtoe  acids,  by  Dr.  A.  G.  Ekstrand.— Chemical  investi- 
gation of  some  minerals  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Langesund, 
by  Herr  H.  Biickstrom. — An  attempt  to  determine  the  velocity 
of  light  from  observations  on  variable  stars,  by  Dr.  C.  Charlier. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  November  7. 

LiNMBAN  Society,  at  8.— On  a  Collection  of  Dried  Plants  chiefly  from  the 
bouthern  Shan  States,  Upper  Burma  :  Colonel  H.  CoUett  and  W  Bottin'^ 
Hemsley,  F.R.S.  ° 

Chemical  Societv,  at  8.— The  Isolation  of  a  New  Hydrate  of  Sulphuric 
Acid  existing  in  Solution  :  S.  U.  Pickering.— Further  Observations  on  the 
Magnetic  Rotation  of  Nitric  Acid,  of  Hydrogen  Chloride,  Bromide  and 
Iodide  in  Solution:  Dr.  W.  H.  Perkin,  F.R  S.— On  Phosphoryl  Tri- 
fluoride  :  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  and  F.  T.  Hambly.— On  the  Acetyla- 
tion  of  Cellulose  :  C.  F.  Cross  and  E.  Bevan.— On  the  Action  of  Light  on 
Moist  Oxygen:  A.  Richardson.— Anhydracetophenonebenzil  and  the 
Constitution  of  Linius  lepideus  :  Drs.  Japp,  F.R.S.,  and  Klingsman. 


FRIDAY,  November  8. 
Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  8. 

MONDAY,  Nove.'viber  ii. 
Royal    Geographical  Society,  at   8.30.— Cyprus :    Lieut. -General    Sir 
Robert  Biddulph,  GC.M.G. 

TUESDAY,  November  12. 
AvTHROPOLOGiCAL  INSTITUTE,  at    8.30. — Observations    on    the   Natiira 

Colour  of  the  Skin  in  certain   Oriental    Races:   Dr.  J.  BedJoe,  F.R.S.— 

Manners,  Customs,  Superstitions,  and  Religions  of  South  African  Tribes : 

Rev.  James  Macdonald. 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8.— Inaugural  Address  of  Sir  John 

Coode,_  K.C.M.G.,   President,  and  Presentation  of  Medals,   Premiums, 

and  Prizes  awarded  during  Last  Session. 

WEDNESDAY,  November  13. 
Royal  Microscopical  Society,  at  8. 

THURSDAY,  November  14. 
Mathematical  Society,  at  8.— Isoscelian  Hexagrams :  R.  Tucker.— On 
Euler's  ^-Function  :  H.  F.  Baker. 

FRIDAY,  November  is. 

Physical  Society,  at  5.- On  the  Electrification  due  to  the  Contact  of 
Gases  and  Liquids  :  J.  Enright.— On  the  Effect  of  Repeated  Heating  and 
Cooling  on  the  Eiectrical  Resistance  and  Temperature  Coefficient  of 
Annealed  Iron  :  H.  Tomlinson,  F.R.S. — Notes  on  Geometrical  Optics, 
Part  II.:  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson. 

IvsriTUTiON  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— The  New  Harbour  and 
Breakwater  at  Boulogne-sur-Mer  :  S.  C.  Bailey. 

BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

A  Popular  Treatise  on  the  Winds  :  W.  Ferrel  (Macmillan).— South  African 
Butterflies;  vol.  iii.,  Papilionidje  and  Hesperidas  :  R.  Trimen  and  J.  H. 
Bowker  (Trubner).— Light.  2nd  edition  :  P.  G.  Tait  (Edinburgh,  Black).— 
The  Vertebrate  Animals  of  Leicestershire  and  Rutland  :  M.  Browne  (Birm- 
ingham, M.  E.  C.).— Sitzungsberichte  der  k.  b  Gesellschaft  der  Wis?en- 
schaften  Math.-Naturw.  Classe,  1889,  i.  (Pra?).— Outlines  of  a  Course  of 
Lectures  on  Human  Physiology:  E.  A.  Parkyn  (Allman). -Flower- Land: 
R.  Fisher  (Bemrose).— Potential  and  its  Application  to  the  Explanation  of 
Electrical  Phenomena:  R.  Tumlirz.  translated  by  D.  Robertson  (Riviiig- 
tons).— Index  Catalogue  of  the  Library  of  the  Surgeon-General's  Office, 
United  States  Army,  vol.  x.  (Washington).- The  Birds  of  Berwickshire,  vol. 
i.  :  G.  Muirhead  (Edinburgh,  Douglas).— Idylls  of  the  Field  :  F.  A.  Knight 
(E.  Stock). — Atti  della  Reale  Accademia  delle  Scienze  Fisiche  e  Matema- 
tische,  serie  seconda.  vol.  iii.  (Napoli).  —  Ferneries  and  Aquaria:  G.  Eggett 
(Dean).— Traite  Encyclopedique  dePhotograph.e,  15  Octr.  (Paris). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Twenty  Years i 

Modern  Views  of  Electricity 5 

The  Calculus  of  Probabilities.     By  F.  Y.  E 6 

Argentine  Ornithology.     By  R.  Bowdler  Sharpe  ...  7 
Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Benedikt  and  Knecht :   "The  Chemistry  of  the  Coa!- 

Tar  Colours." 8 

Gore:  "  A  Bibliography  of  Geodesy  " 9 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

The  Method  of  Quarter- Squares. — ^J.  W.  L.  Glaisher, 

F.R.S 9 

Darwinism. — Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.S.     .    .  9 

Record  of  British  Earthquakes. — Charles  Davison   .  9 

Effects  of  Lightning.— W.  G.  S 10 

Electrical  Cloud  Phenomena. — Prof.  W.  K.  Burton  10 
The  Use  of  the  Word  Antiparallel.     (  With  Diagrams.) 

— W.  J.  James 10 

Fossil  Rhizocarps. — Sir  J.  Wm.  Dawson,  F.R.S.     .  10 

Specific  Inductive  Capacity. — W.  A.  Rudge    ....  10 
Who  discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  ? — Dr. 

C.  Hart  Merriam . 11 

On  the  Hardening  and  Tempering  of  Steel,     (illus- 
trated.)    By  Prof.  \A^.  C.  Roberts- Austen,  F.R.S.     .  n 
On  a  New  Application  of  Photography  to  the  Demon- 
stration   of    Certain    Physiological    Processes   in 

Plants 16 

Notes 17 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Stellar  Parallax  by  Means  of  Photography 19 

Measurements  of  Double  Stars 19 

Barnard's  Comet,  1888-89 20 

Biographical  Note  on  J.  C.  Houzeau 20 

The  Karlsruhe  Observatory 20 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope 20 

Geographical  Notes 20 

The  Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers 21 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 23 

Societies  and  Academies 23 

Diary  of  Societies .    .  24 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 24 


NA TURE 


25 


SCIENCE  AND    THE   FUTURE  INDIAN  CIVIL 
SERVICE  EXAMINATIONS. 

THE  following  memorial,  signed  by  a  numerous  and 
highly-distinguished  body  of  resident  graduates  of 
the  University  of  Cambridge,  has  been  presented  to  the 
Civil  Service  Commissioners  : — 

"  We,  the  undersigned  resident  graduates  of  the 
University  of  Cambridge  interested  in  the  study  of 
natural  science,  understanding  that  a  reorganization  of 
the  open  competitive  examination  for  the  Civil  Service  of 
India  is  under  the  consideration  of  the  Civil  Service 
Commissioners,  beg  respectfully  to  urge  on  the  Com- 
missioners the  desirability  of  widening  the  range  of  the 
examination  so  as  to  include  the  several  branches  of 
natural  science.  We  think  it  especially  important  that 
the  maximum  number  of  marks  obtainable  by  a  candi- 
date in  natural  science  in  the  examination  should  be  the 
same  as  that  obtainable  by  a  candidate  in  classics  or 
in  mathematics.  In  support  of  this  opinion  we  venture 
to  point  out  that  the  Natural  Sciences  Tripos,  both  from 
its  numbers  and  from  the  rewards  assigned  by  the  Col- 
leges to  those  of  their  members  who  distinguish  them- 
selves therein,  is  now  of  equal  importance  with  the 
Classical  or  Mathematical  Tripos. 

"  W^e  have  the  honour  to  append  a  statement  of  the 
numbers  who  have  during  the  last  five  years  taken 
honours  in  natural  science,  classics,  and  mathematics. 
We  inclose  a  copy  of  the  Cambridge  University  Reporter 
of  June  12,  1888,  containing  a  report  to  the  Senate  and  a 
schedule  of  the  numbers  examined  in  each  branch  of 
natural  science  in  the  years  1883-87. 

"  We  would  desire  to  call  attention  to  the  acknowledged 
educational  value  of  the  study  of  natural  science,  and  to 
point  out  that  the  training  which  it  affords,  combining  as 
it  does  both  theory  and  practice,  is  such  as  peculiarly  to 
fit  a  student  for  the  pursuits  of  practical  Hfe. 

"  We  beg  to  state  that  a  deputation  would  be  happy  to 
wait  on  the  Commissioners  to  explain  more  fully  our 
views  on  the  subject  should  it  be  their  pleasure  to  receive 
them." 

This  memorial  is  signed,  among  others,  by  two  Heads 
of  Houses,  I  thirteen  Professors,  and  twenty  Fellows. 
The  memorialists,  as  will  be  seen,  urge  that  in  future 
competitions  the  position  of  a  candidate  offering  natural 
science  shall  be  not  less  favourable  than  that  of  those 
who  offer  classics  or  mathematics.  And  in  a  highly 
instructive  schedule  they  show  how  important  a  place 
the  study  of  the  natural  sciences  has  now  attained  in  the 
University  of  Cambridge. 

It  may  be  unknown  to  many  of  our  readers  that  the 
subject  to  which  this  memorial  relates  has  lately  become 
one  of  great  importance,  in  consequence  of  a  proposed  re- 
organization of  the  higher  branches  of  the  public  services 
in  India.  A  Commission,  which  we  believe  sat  in  India, 
known  as  the  Public  Service  Commission,  has  advised 
that  the  following  changes  should  be  made  with  the  object 
of  admitting  natives  of  India  to  higher  and  more  extensive 
employment  in  the  public  services  : — 

(i)  That  the  strength  of  the  Covenanted  Civil  Service 
should  be  reduced  to  what  is  necessary  to  fill  the  chief 
administrative  appointments  of  the  Government,  and  such 
a  proportion  of  smaller  appointments  as  will  secure  a 
complete  course  of  training  for  junior  Civilians.  This 
Vol.  xLi. — No.  1046, 


branch  of  the  service  to  continue  to  be  recruited  by 
means  of  open  competitions  in  England,  at  which  natives 
of  India  should  be  allowed  to  compete  unreservedly,  and 
for  which  the  maximum  age  of  the  Native  candidates,  and 
therefore  presumably  of  the  English  candidates,  should 
be  raised  to  twenty-three  years. 

(2)  That  a  certain  number  of  appointments  should  be 
transferred  from  the  Covenanted  Civil  Service  to  a  local 
Civil  Service,  which  is  to  be  recruited,  locally,  from 
Natives  and  resident  Europeans  who  satisfy  certain 
prescribed  preliminary  conditions. 

We  do  not  know  how  far  these  proposals  have  been 
adopted  by  the  home  authorities,  though  we  understand 
that  they  have  received  the  general  approval  of  the 
Indian  Government.  We  will  therefore  only  say,  in 
passing,  that  they  appear  to  be  open  to  two  serious 
objections. 

First,  that  it  seems  a  dangerous  thing  to  select  so 
limited  a  number  of  young  men  for  the  higher  branch 
of  the  service  by  open  competition,  since  doing  so  will 
give  to  each  one  of  those  who  succeed  almost  the  certainty 
of  the  reversion  of  one  of  the  prizes  of  the  public  ser- 
vices. Under  such  a  condition  there  will  be  far  too  little 
inducement  for  zeal  in  the  service,  and  too  little  oppor- 
tunity for  selection  and  rejection  when  age  and  experience 
have  developed  the  administrative  powers  of  the  selected 
men. 

Secondly,  unless  care  be  taken  to  regulate  the  previous 
training  of  the  candidates,  as,  for  example,  by  requiring 
that  every  candidate  shall  have  taken  a  University 
degree  in  England  or  India  before  presenting  himself  at 
the  competitive  examination,  it  is  likely  that  well-taught 
rather  than  well-educated  men  will  be  selected,  and  that 
an  inferior  order  of  men  will  offer  themselves,  since  many 
of  the  ablest  men  would  be  unable  to  submit  to  some 
years  of  private  tuition,  and  to  give  up,  as  they  would 
probably  have  to  do,  a  University  education  for  the 
chance  of  obtaining  an  appointment  in  India. 

Whatever  decision  may  have  been  made,  however,  it 
is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  representatives  of 
Cambridge  who  have  addressed  themselves  to  the  Civil 
Service  Commissioners  should  be  supported  in  every  pos- 
sible way,  and  at  once,  by  all  those  who  have  the  interest 
of  science  and  education  at  heart.  For  there  is  reason  to 
fear  that  the  Commissioners  have  contemplated  the  com- 
plete withdrawal  of  science  from  these  examinations  ; 
and  unfortunately  many  of  the  various  regulations  for  the 
Army  examinations  which  have  been  brought  forward 
with  their  sanction  in  recent  years  give  an  air  of 
probability  to  this  suggestion.  This  is  in  no  way 
weakened  when  we  consider  the  extremely  unfortunate 
position  that  science  candidates  for  the  Indian  Civil 
Service  have  occupied  under  the  administration  of  the 
Commissioners  for  many  years  past.  This  position,  it 
should  be  said,  has  been  due,  not  so  much  to  the  marks 
allotted  to  science  in  the  present  scheme,  as  to  the 
methods  adopted  by  the  Commissioners  in  conducting 
their  examinations,  which  have  long  caused  it  to  be 
recognized  by  those  who  are  engaged  in  the  instruction 
of  Civil  Service  candidates  that,  as  a  rule,  only  thqse 
candidates  who  are  excellent  either  in  classics  or  mathe- 
matics, or  those  who  are  distinctly  good  in  both,  nave  a 
really  good  chance  of  success. 

c 


26 


NATURE 


\Nov.  14,  1889 


But  though  all  these  facts  give  reason  for  regarding 
the  rumour  we  refer  to  as  very  possibly  correct,  they 
need  by  no  means  prevent  those  who  are  interested 
in  the  question  from  entertaining  strong  hopes  of  avert- 
ing such  a  national  disaster  as  that  which  we  fear. 
We  have  only  to  remind  them  of  the  very  consider- 
able degree  of  success  that  followed  the  efforts  recently 
made  by  Sir  Henry  Roscoe  and  other  leaders  in  science 
in  the  case  of  the  examinations  for  admission  to  the  Royal 
Military  Academy  at  Woolwich.  These  efforts,  we  may 
remind  our  readers,  not  only  resulted  in  an  advantageous 
revision  of  the  Woolwich  examinations,  but  brought 
about  satisfactory  changes  in  the  case  of  the  Sandhurst 
competitions.  In  connection  with  this  result  it  is  satis- 
factory to  observe,  in  the  Report  of  the  Civil  Service 
Commission  for  1888,  that  the  Commission,  in  a  letter 
directed  to  the  Director-General  of  Military  Education  on 
July  10  in  that  year,  have  described  the  changes  that  had 
been  submitted  to  them  as  likely  to  influence  beneficially 
the  education  of  officers  in  the  army  before  they  begin 
their  professional  studies. 

Whatever  difficulties  there  may  be  in  the  way  of  ob- 
taining just  treatment  for  science  candidates  under  the 
new  scheme  for  the  selection  of  Indian  civil  servants,  it 
has,  we  fear,  become  again  imperative  that  men  of  science 
should  unite  to  protest  against  the  assumption  that 
natural  science  studies  are  in  themselves  inferior  as  a 
mental  training  to  the  classical  languages  and  mathe- 
matics, and  to  insist,  so  far  as  they  may,  upon  such 
studies  being  placed  upon  a  proper  footing  in  this  particular 
examination.  This  should  be  done  in  the  interests  of 
education,  and  still  more  of  our  Indian  fellow-subjects, 
whose  administrators  should  be  men  of  as  wide  and 
liberal  an  education  as  possible,  as  has,  indeed,  been 
recognized  in  more  than  one  public  investigation  of  the 
regulations  for  these  appointments. 


THE  LUND  MUSEUM  IN  THE   UNIVERSITY 
OF  COPENHAGEN. 

E  Museo  Ltindit :  En  Samlmg  af  Afhandlinger  om  de  i 
det  indre  Brasiliens  Kalkstenshiiler  af  Professor  P.  V. 
Lund  udgravede  Dyre-og  Menneskeknogler.  Udgivet 
af  Dr.  Liitken.     (Kjobenhavn  :  H.  Hagerup,  1888.) 

THIS  work,  as  its  title  indicates,  consists  of  various 
monographs,  descriptive  of  the  collections  made  by 
Dr.  Lund  in  his  interesting  exploration  of  the  limestone 
caverns  in  the  interior  of  Brazil.  These  important  finds 
are  the  fruits  of  nearly  ten  years'  unremitting  labour  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Lagoa  Santa,  on  the  Rio  das 
Velhas,  in  the  province  of  Minas  Geraes,  where  Dr.  Lund 
prosecuted  his  researches  from  1835  to  1844.  On  the 
completion  of  his  cave  explorations  he  presented  the 
whole  of  his  incomparable  collections  to  the  Danish 
nation.  The  gift  has  been  duly  appreciated,  and  now 
constitutes,  under  the  name  of  the  "  Lund  Museum," 
one  of  the  most  important  palasontological  sections  of  the 
Zoological  Museum  in  the  University  of  Copenhagen. 

Dr.  Lund  inspected  as  many  as  800  of  the  Brazilian 
lapas,, or  bone-caves,  of  which  he  had  discovered  1000. 
Of  these  only  sixty  yielded  any  very  interesting  results, 
while  scarcely   half  that  number  contained   a  sufficient 


quantity  of  bones  to  demand  any  very  prolonged  investi- 
gation. In  some  instances,  on  the  other  hand,  the  mass 
of  broken  bones  was  so  enormous  that  from  the  earth 
collected  in  a  packing-case  whose  dimensions  did  not 
exceed  half  a  cubic  foot,  he  extracted  400  half  jaw-bones 
of  a  marsupial  and  2000  belonging  to  different  rodents, 
besides  the  remains  of  innumerable  bats  and  small  birds. 
This  discovery  led  to  further  research,  and,  after  fifteen 
weeks'  continued  exploration, he  found  that  one  cave,  which 
he  had  at  first  estimated  to  be  about  25  feet  deep,  had  a 
depth  of  nearly  70  feet,  and  was  so  densely  packed  with 
bones  that  the  yield  of  6500  barrels,  of  the  size  of  an 
ordinary  bulter-firkin,  justified  the  assumption  that  this 
special  lapa  contained  the  remains  of  seven  and  a  half 
millions  of  animals,  belonging  for  the  most  part  to  Cavia, 
Hystrix,  and  small  rodents  and  marsupials,  the  estimate 
being  based  on  the  numbers  of  half  jaw-bones  extracted 
from  the  mould. 

In  these  enormous  cave  deposits  we  have,  according  to 
Dr.  Lund,  and  his  biographer  Dr.  Reinhardt,  a  prehis- 
toric ornithological  kokken  inodding,  birds  of  prey  havmg 
resorted  to  the  lapas  of  Brazil  as  suitable  retreats  in 
which  to  devour  their  innumerable  victims,  whose  frac- 
tured bones,  belonging  in  almost  equal  proportions  to 
extinct  and  living  animals,  have  revealed  to  us  many 
long-hidden  secrets  in  the  history  of  the  changes  which 
the  Brazilian  fauna  has  experienced  in  the  course  of  ages. 
Comparatively  few  remains  of  the  larger  living  mammals 
have  been  found,  three  caves  only  having  yielded  evidence 
of  the  presence  of  bears,  of  which,  moreover,  the  bones 
of  only  five  individuals  were  recovered.  But  while  various 
groups,  as  e.g.  the  Ungulata,  were  sparsely  represented,, 
several  families  among  the  Edentata  have  contributed  so 
largely  to  the  bone  remains  of  the  Brazilian  lapas  that  this 
order  would  appear  to  have  constituted  the  most  im- 
portant section  of  the  local  fauna,  both  in  past  and  recent 
times.  Among  the  cave  armadillos,  Lund  recognized 
several  forms,  differing  only  by  their  larger  size  from 
Dasypus  puiictatus,  and  D.  sulcatus j  but  besides  these 
he  found  one  of  colossal  dimensions,  which,  with  a  body 
of  the  size  of  an  ox,  and  a  tail  5  feet  in  length,  ex- 
hibited differences  of  dentition  which  induced  him  to 
assign  it  to  a  special  genus,  to  which  he  gave  the  name 
Chlamydotherium.  A  peculiar  characteristic  of  this  fossil 
animal,  whose  food  he  believes  was  leaves,  and  not 
insects,  was  the  fusion  or  overlapping  of  several  of  the 
vertebra;  into  nodes,  or  tangles.  In  this  respect  it 
resembles  the  still  more  remarkable  armadillo,  of  whose 
scales  and  bones  he  found  enormous  quantities,  and 
which  he  described  under  the  name  of  Hoplophorus.  This 
animal,  of  which  the  different  species  varied  from  the  size 
of  a  hog  to  that  of  a  rhinoceros,  was  described  about  the 
same  time  by  Prof.  Owen,  to  whom  various  specimens  of 
its  bones  had  been  sent  from  La  Plata,  and  who  estab- 
lished a  new  species  for  its  reception,  to  which  he  gave 
the  name  of  Glyptodon.  The  extraordinary  rigidity  of 
the  shields  of  some  of  the  Brazilian  armadillos,  the 
apparent  immobility  of  the  head,  and  the  interlock- 
ing of  the  vertebral  bones,  make  it  difficult  to  under- 
stand how  these  unwieldy  animals  could  have  obtained 
their  food.  The  most  probable  solution  of  the  problem 
seems  to  be  supplied  by  a  study  of  the  short  massive 
hind  legs,  which,  with  their  sharp  and  powerful   claws, 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


27 


may  have  served  to  grub  up  roots  and  tubers,  and 
tear  off  the  branches  of  traihng  plants.  There  is  no 
evidence  that  our  living  tardigrades  had  appeared  among 
the  cave  fauna  of  Brazil,  where  their  place  was  supplied 
by  gigantic  gravigrades,  resembling  the  Megatherium. 

The  results  yielded  by  a  careful  study  of  the  enormous 
and  varied  materials  obtained  by  Dr.  Lund  in  his  explora- 
tions would  appear,  generally,  to  indicate  that  in  post- 
Pliocene  ages  the  Mammalian  fauna  of  Brazil  was  richer 
than  in  recent  times,  entire  families  and  sub-orders  having 
become  extinct  in  the  intervening  ages,  or  at  all  events 
greatly  reduced  as  to  the  numbers  of  their  genera  and 
species.  This  is  more  especially  the  case  in  regard  to 
the  Edentata,  Ungulata,  Pachydermata,  and  Carnivora, 
which  still  continue  to  be  characteristic  representatives 
of  the  South  American  fauna.  In  two  cases  only  there' 
is  evidence  that  species  which  are  now  exclusively 
limited  to  the  Old  World  once  inhabited  the  American 
continent.  A  far  more  marked  difference  between  extinct 
and  living  animals  is  to  be  observed  in  the  western 
than  in  the  eastern  hemisphere.  Thus  while  the  existing 
Brazilian  fauna  comprises  very  few  large  animals,  the 
predominant  forms  being  almost  dwarf-like  when  com- 
pared with  their  Eastern  analogues,  the  post-Pliocene 
Brazilian  Mastodons,  Macrauchenians,  Toxodons,  and 
gigantic  armadillos  and  tardigrades,  may  rank  in  size 
with  the  elephant,  rhinoceros,  and  hippopotamus,  which 
were  their  contemporaries  in  Europe  at  that  period  of  the 
world's  history. 

There  is  no  ground  for  assuming  that  the  change  in 
the  South  American  fauna  was  due  to  .any  natural 
cataclysm,  and  it  would  rather  seem  to  be  the  result  of 
some  regular  and  slow  geological  changes,  which,  by 
affecting  the  then  existing  climatic  relations,  may  have 
■disturbed  the  conditions  of  animal  life,  and  thus  brought 
■about  the  destruction,  or  deterioration,  of  the  larger 
mammals,  which,  according  to  Owen,  succumb  where 
the  smaller  ones  adapt  themselves  to  altered  conditions. 

It  was  not  till  near  the  close  of  his  explorations  that 
Dr.  Lund  succeeded  in  finding  human  bones  in  such 
association  with  fossil  remains  as  to  justify  the  conclu- 
sion that  man  had  been  the  contemporary  in  Brazil  of 
animals  long  since  extinct  in  South  America.  Only 
seven  of  the  800  lapas  examined  by  him  contained  any 
9iuman  bones,  and  in  several  instances  these  were  either 
not  associated  directly  with  fossil  bones,  or  there  were 
:grounds  for  suspecting  that  they  might  have  been  carried 
■into  the  caves  in  comparatively  recent  ages  with  the 
streams  that  traverse  them.  In  one  of  these,  however, 
the  Sumidouro  Lapa,  remains  of  as  many  as  thirty  indi- 
•viduals  of  all  ages  were  found  so  intermingled  with  the 
bones  of  the  gigantic  cave  jaguar,  Fclis  prof opant her,  and 
the  monster  Cavia,  Hydrochccrus  sulcidens,  together  with 
several  extinct  ungulates,  that  whatever  may  have  been 
the  reason  of  their  presence,  there  seems  to  be  no  ground 
for  doubting  that  primaeval  man  was  contemporaneous 
with  these  animals. 

The  crania,  of  which  admirably  drawn  illustrations  are 
given,  are  of  a  dolichocephalic  type,  characterized  by 
strongly-marked  prognathism,  and  remarkable  for  the 
excessive  thickness  of  the  cranial  walls.  The  first  com- 
munication by  Lund  of  his  discovery  of  human  remains 
in  the  Lapa  di  Lagoa  do  Sumidouro  was  made  (in  1840) 


in  a  letter  addressed  to  Prof.  Rafn,  in  which  his  fear  of 
being  accused  of  recklessness  in  attaching  too  high  an 
antiquity  to  man  in  Brazil  is  shown  by  the  pains  he  takes 
to  indicate  every  possible  means  by  which  these  bones 
might  have  found  their  way  into  the  cave.  Thus  it  re- 
mained for  his  annotator,  the  late  Dr.  Reinhardt,  whose 
descriptive  history  of  the  caves  and  their  exploration  has 
added  largely  to  the  interest  of  the  volume  before  us,  to 
be  the  first  to  accept  without  reservation  the  co-existence 
of  man  with  extinct  animals  which,  according  to  Lund 
himself,  occupied  parts  of  South  America  more  than  5000 
years  ago. 

The  monograph  treating  of  the  human  remains  found 
by  Lund  is  from  the  pen  of  Dr.  Liitken,  the  editor 
of  the  present  work,  who  also  supplies  a  rcsumk  in 
French  of  the  treatises  contributed  by  his  colleagues, 
Drs.  O.  Winge  and  H.  Winge,  the  former  of  whom 
writes  on  the  birds  of  the  Brazilian  lapas,  and  the 
latter  on  the  living  and  extinct  rodents  of  the  Minas 
Geraes  district.  Besides  these  important  contributions 
to  the  work,  the  reader  is  indebted  to  the  late  Dr.  Rein- 
hardt for  a  detailed  description  of  the  situation  and 
geological  character  of  the  Brazilian  bone-caves,  and  for 
an  interesting  biographical  notice  of  Dr.  Lund. 

We  learn  from  the  preface  that  this  collection  of  mono- 
graphs owes,  if  not  its  publication,  at  any  rate  the  com- 
plete and  elegant  form  in  which  it  has  been  produced, 
to  the  liberality  of  the  directors  of  the  Carlsberg  Trust,  at 
whose  cost,  with  the  sanction  of  the  Danish  Royal  Society, 
it  now  forms  one  of  those  editions  de  luxe  which  have  of 
late  years  so  largely  enriched  the  scientific  literature  of 
Denmark.  The  objection  that  may  be  advanced  against 
this,  as  well  as  others  of  the  series,  is  that  the  writers 
appear  to  be  moved  by  an  uncalled-for  impulse  to  write 
down  to  the  level  of  the  general  reader,  and  to  explain 
the  origin  and  progress  of  each  special  branch  of  natural 
history  they  are  concerned  with.  Such  efforts  to  popularize 
the, subject  lead  only  to  an  inconvenient  addition  to  the 
bulk  of  the  volumes,  and  are  wholly  at  variance  with  the 
scientific  aim  and  object  of  such  publications. 

HYDRAULIC  MOTORS. 
Hydraulic  Motors  :  Turbines  and  Pressure  Engines.     By 
G.  R.  Bodmer,  A.M.I.C.E.     "  The  Specialist's  Series." 
(London  :  Whittaker  and  Co.,  1889.) 

THE  essential  detail  which  lifts  the  mere  water-wheel 
to  the  rank  of  a  turbine  consists,  according  to  the 
author,  in  some  arrangement  for  directing  the  water  over 
the  buckets  in  the  most  advantageous  manner,  instead  of 
allowing  the  water  merely  to  follow  its  own  course.  Again, 
in  a  water-wheel  only  a  small  part  of  the  wheel  is  really 
at  work  at  a  time,  the  buckets  of  the  remaining  part 
being  empty  ;  while  a  turbine  is  arranged,  as  a  rule,  with 
a  vertical  axis,  and  all  parts  of  the  wheel  are  simultane- 
ously taking  their  fair  share  of  the  work.  In  this  respect 
there  is  a  great  resemblance  and  analogy  to  the  distinction 
between  the  two  chief  instruments  of  ship  propulsion  by 
steam— the  paddle-wheel  and  the  screw  propeller.  In  the 
paddle-wheel  only  a  few  of  the  floats  act  on  the  water  at 
a  time  ;  while  in  the  screw  propeller,  completely  sub- 
merged, all  parts  are  equally  at  work,  implying  a  great 
saving   of   weight    in   the   propelling  instrument.      Mr. 


28 


NATURE 


{Nov.  14,  1880     J 


Thornycroft,  with  his  turbine  propeller,  is  able  to  em- 
phasize this  economy  of  weight  still  further,  and,  but  for 
difficulties  of  going  astern  not  yet  surmounted,  would  be 
able  to  save  considerable  weight  and  space  in  sea-going 
steamers  with  this  contrivance. 

As  regards  their  construction,  turbines  are  divided  into 
three  classes  (p.  24) — the  radial,  axial,  and  mixed-flow — 
according  to  the  mode  in  which  the  water  enters  and 
passes  through  the  turbine  ;  but  as  regards  the  dynamical 
principle  on  which  the  turbines  work,  they  are  divided 
into  two  classes  (p.  25),  the  reaction  and  the  impulse 
turbine. 

In  the  reaction  or  Jonval  turbine,  described  in  chap- 
ters iii.  to  vi.,  the  passages  are  completely  filled  with 
water,  and  the  changes  of  pressure  play  an  important 
part  in  the  work  performed.  This  turbine  possesses  the 
advantage  of  being  able  to  work  when  drowned  by  the 
tail  race,  or  when  elevated  above  the  tail  water  to  a  height 
anything  less  than  the  height  of  the  water  barometer,  a 
suction  tube  of  properly  adjusted  shape  being  fitted  below 
the  turbine  to  carry  off  the  water  at  pressure  gradually 
increasing  downwards  to  the  atmospheric  pressure. 
Against  this  are  the  disadvantages  of  imperfect  regula- 
tion for  varying  load,  and  that  with  a  high  fall  this  turbine 
must  be  made  so  small  and  must  run  so  fast  as  rapidly  to 
wear  out,  as  in  the  Fourneyron  turbines  at  St.  Blaise 
(p.  422)  ;  but  this  disadvantage  the  author  professes  (p. 
263)  to  avoid  by  compounding  the  turbine,  just  as  we 
compound  the  steam-engine  with  high-pressure  steam. 

The  impulse  or  Girard  turbine,  on  the  other  hand 
(chapters  vii.  and  viii.),  derives  its  power  entirely  from 
the  change  of  momentum  of  the  water  without  change 
of  pressure ;  the  buckets  are  freely  ventilated,  and 
consequently  this  turbine  can  only  work  in  communica- 
tion with  the  surrounding  air.  It  possesses,  too,  the 
great  advantage  of  complete  regulation  of  power  by 
merely  altering  the  supply  of  water.  Girard  turbines  are 
divided  into  outward  flow  (Fourneyron)  turbines,  and 
inward  flow  (James  Thomson)  ;  the  latter,  although  more 
weighty  and  costly,  possessing  the  advantage  of  greater 
stability  of  motion. 

In  their  difference  of  action  we  may  compare  the 
Jonval  turbine  with  the  screw  propeller,  which  works 
entirely  immersed,  and  derives  its  reaction  partly  from 
the  change  of  pressure  in  the  water  ;  while  the  Girard 
turbine  resembles  the  paddle-wheel  in  working  at  the 
surface  of  separation  of  the  water  and  air,  so  that  no 
appreciable  change  of  pressure  is  manifest.  Against  this 
analogy,  however,  we  find  thq  screw  propeller  far  less 
susceptible  to  changes  of  immersion  than  the  paddle- 
wheel,  whence  the  manifest  superiority  of  the  screw  for 
long  voyages. 

In  chapters  ix.  to  xi.  the  author  gives  a  very  valuable 
collection  of  numerical  applications  of  his  theories  to 
actual  turbines  on  a  large  scale.  In  designing  a  turbine 
to  utilize  a  fall,  the  first  important  measurement  is  that  of 
the  quantity  of  the  stream  of  water ;  the  speed  of  the 
turbine  is  next  determined  from  the  consideration  that 
the  best  theoretical  speed  is  half  (or  a  little  more  than 
half)  the  speed  at  which  the  turbine  would  run  if  un- 
loaded ;  and  then  various  practical  considerations  inter- 
vene in  deciding  whether  the  turbine  should  be  reaction 
or  impulse,  outward,  inward,  or  mixed  flow. 


At  Holyoke,  Mass.,  the  Water-Power  Company,  under 
Mr.  James  B.  Francis,  controlling  the  falls  of  the 
Connecticut,  undertake  the  commercial  testing  of 
turbines  submitted  to  them,  and  have  checked  to  some 
extent  the  wild  claims  of  efficiency,  reaching  and  even 
exceeding  100  per  cent.,  which  American  turbine  makers 
are  said  to  have  claimed  in  their  advertisements.  There 
is  still,  however,  an  efficiency  claimed  for  American 
turbines  which  has  not  been  rivalled  in  Europe  :  this 
cannot  be  attributed  to  defect  in  our  designs,  and  the 
author  thinks  must  be  attributed  to  the  less  care  bestowed 
in  America  on  the  measurement  of  the  quantity  of  water 
consumed.  It  is  noticeable  that  the  American  turbines 
are  generally  of  the  reaction  Jonval  type,  which  is  more 
suitable  for  their  unlimited  supplies  of  water  by  reason  of 
its  smaller  weight  and  cost ;  here  in  Europe,  where  water 
is  scarcer,  the  impulse  Girard  turbine  is  more  in  favour. 

For  mining  purposes,  especially  in  California,  with 
great  falls  of  400  or  500  feet  and  small  quantities  of 
water,  the  hurdy-gurdy  or  Pelton  wheel  (p.  419)  is  a 
favourite,  and  in  a  paper  by  Mr.  Hamilton  Smith,  Jun., 
of  the  American  Society  of  Civdl  Engineers,  the  efficiency 
of  this  wheel  and  its  practical  advantages  are  declared  to 
be  very  high.  Similar  small  impulse  turbines  seem  likely 
to  come  into  general  domestic  use. 

The  author  concludes  (chapter  xiii.)  with  a  description 
of  the  various  hydraulic  pressure  engines  and  motors  of 
Armstrong,  Rigg,  and  others.  These  engines  act  by 
pressure  only,  like  the  steam-engine,  with  the  disadvant- 
age of  using  the  same  quantity  of  water  whether  working 
at  high  or  low  power,  except  in  the  case  of  Mr.  Rigg's 
motor.  Such  motors  are,  however,  coming  into  great 
use  on  ships,  not  only  for  working  the  guns,  but  for 
steering,  loading,  and  discharging  cargo. 

Although  designed,  and  amply  fulfilling  its  purpose,  as 
a  practical  treatise  on  hydraulic  motors,  this  book  will 
provide  the  pure  theorist  with  some  of  the  most  elegant 
applications  of  relative  velocity,  aberration,  dynamical 
principles,  and  of  hydromechanics ;  and  it  is  instructive 
to  notice  that,  as  in  all  practical  mechanical  treatises, 
gravitation  units  of  force  only  are  employed,  even  in  the 
hydrodynamical  equations  of  Borda  and  Carnot,  or  of 
Bernoulli,  as  we  think  they  should  be  called.  All  this 
is  in  direct  opposition  to  the  theoretical  text-books ; 
theorist  or  practical  man,  which  is  to  give  way  ? 

A.  G.  G. 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  EDUCATION. 

Physiological  Notes  on  Primary  Education  and  the 
Study  of  Language.  By  Mary  Putnam  Jacobi,  M.D. 
(New  York  and  London  :  G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  1889.) 

THIS  is  a  remarkable  book.  The  authoress  is  an 
original  thinker  who  knows  how  to  express  her 
thoughts  clearly  and  strongly.  It  is  worthy  of  being  read 
by  all  interested  in  the  science  of  education,  though  few 
perhaps  even  of  the  advocates  of  the  present  educational 
renaissance  would  be  prepared  to  receive  every  one  of 
her  conclusions. 

The  work  consists  of  four  distinct  essays.  The  first 
two  are  entitled  "An  Experiment  in  Primary  Education," 
and  describe  the  way  in  which  Dr.  Mary  Jacobi  taught 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


29 


her  own  little  girl.     She  commences  the  account  with 
some  very  valuable  remarks  on  the  right  order  of  studies. 

"  The  first  intellectual  faculties  to  be  trained  are  per- 
ception and  memory.  The  subjects  of  the  child's  first 
studies  should  therefore  be  selected,  not  on  account  of 
their  ultimate  utility,  but  on  account  of  their  influence 
upon  the  development  of  these  faculties.  What  sense  is 
there  then  in  beginning  education  with  instruction  in  the 
arts  of  reading  and  writing  ?  .  .  .  From  the  modern  stand- 
point, that  education  means  such  an  unfolding  of  the 
faculties  as  shall  put  the  mind  into  the  widest  and  most 
effective  relation  with  the  entire  world  of  things — spiritual 
and  material, — there  is  an  exquisite  absurdity  in  the  time- 
honoured  method.  To  study  words  before  things  tends 
to  impress  the  mind  with  a  fatal  belief  in  their  superior 
importance." 

As  forms  and  colours  are  the  elements  of  all  visual 
impressions.  Dr.  Jacobi  began  to  teach  her  child  geome- 
trical forms  before  she  was  four  years  of  age.  At  four 
and  a  half  the  little  girl  began  elementary  colours.  After- 
wards she  made  acquaintance  with  the  points  of  the 
compass,  the  main  ideas  of  perspective,  and  then  maps 
and  geography.  The  study  of  number,  of  course  by 
concrete  illustrations,  followed  that  of  form  and  outline. 
The  observation  of  natural  objects,  especially  that  of 
plants  and  plant-life,  was  then  commenced.  The  growth  of 
beans  and  hyacinths  was  carefully  watched,  and  the  daily 
observations  made  by  the  child  were  written  down  by 
the  mother,  till  she  attempted  them  herself,  and  became 
gradually  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  writing.  This 
led  her  on  easily  to  the  art  of  reading  when  she  was  about 
six  years  of  age.  The  progress  of  the  child's  mental 
development  during  these  early  years  is  fully  described, 
with  many  pleasant  recollections  of  her  sayings. 

The  third  part  consists  merely  of  a  criticism  of  Miss 
Youman's  views  on  the  teaching  of  botany,  and  an 
argument  in  favour  of  commencing  in  a  child's  education 
with  the  flower  rather  than  the  leaf 

Half  the  book,  however,  is  occupied  by  the  fourth  essay, 
in  which  the  authoress  treats  of  "  The  Place  for  the  Study 
of  Language  in  a  Curriculum  of  Education."  Of  course  she 
places  it  after  the  mind  has  been  trained  to  deal  with  sense 
perceptions  of  external  objects  ;  but  she  contends  earnestly 
for  the  importance  of  the  study  of  words,  especially  for 
the  power  it  possesses  of  enabling  the  child  to  form 
abstract  conceptions.  The  authoress  enters  largely  into 
the  brain  action  involved  in  the  use  of  verbal  signs  or 
complex  ideas,  and  illustrates  her  views  of  the  matter  by 
means  of  physiological  diagrams.  She  also  describes  a 
little  device  for  the  comparison  of  verbal  roots,  which  she 
terms  "  language  tetrahedrons,"  and  which  are  intended 
to  show  the  relation  between  Latin,  French,  German,  and 
English,  She  would  devote  to  literary  studies,  including 
English,  the  best  part  of  the  time  between  the  Kinder- 
garten training  and  the  age  of  fourteen. 

"  To  the  study  of  words  may  be  brought  the  scientific 
methods  used  in  the  study  of  things — observation,  analysis, 
comparison,  classification  ;  and  the  child  may  thus  begin 
to  be  trained  for  physical  science  at  a  time  when 
the  pursuit  of  most  physical  sciences  is  impossible." 

It  may  be  that  Dr.  Mary  Jacobi  claims  too  much  time 
for  the  study  of  language,  but  the  old-fashioned  education- 
alists will  get  little  consolation  from  her  concessions  ;  for 
she  not  only  places  the  study  of  words  after  that  of  things, 


but  she  would  have  several  forms  of  Aryan  speech 
studied  simultaneously,  and  she  would  postpone  the 
study  of  grammar  till  two  years  after  the  serious  study 
of  language  has  commenced.  She  believes  that  the 
power  of  abstraction  and  the  general  mental  training 
gained  by  these  philological  studies  will  enable  the  young 
person  at  an  early  age  to  enter  upon  more  serious  matters 
of  study  or  those  of  more  immediate  practical  utility. 

J.  H.  G. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Steam-Engine  Design.  By  Jay  M.  Whitham,  Professor  of 
Engineering,  Arkansas  Industrial  University.  (London  : 
Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 

In  this  work  the  author  treats  of  the  application  of  the 
principles  of  mechanics  to  the  design  of  the  parts  of  a 
steam-engine  of  any  type  or  for  any  duty.  He  acknow- 
ledges that  he  has  culled  as  much  information  as  he  has 
required  from  well-known  sources,  both  English  and 
American  ;  and  he  has  embodied,  as  a  sort  of  foundation 
for  his  work,  a  course  of  lectures  given  to  his  class  at  the 
United  States  Naval  Academy  by  P.A.  Engineer  John  C. 
Kafer,  U.S.N. 

After  careful  study,  we  can  say  that  the  book  appears 
to  be  well  suited  for  its  purpose.  The  arrangement  of 
information,  both  principles  and  details,  is  much  the 
same  as  that  in  Mr.  A.  E.  Seaton's  excellent  work  on 
marine  engineering ;  but  the  field  covered  is  of  far  less 
extent,  and  the  boiler  and  its  accessories  are  not  included. 
The  author  being  a  Professor  of  Engineering  in  an 
American  University,  we  expected  to  find  some  variations 
from  our  own  practice  in  steam-engine  design.  In  this, 
however,  we  were  disappointed.  A  few  of  the  woodcuts 
represent  parts  of  engines  differing  in  insignificent  details 
from  those  used  in  this  country,  but  the  main  design  is 
practically  the  same.  It  is  gratifying  to  find  many  of  our 
own  engineers  quoted  as  authorities  in  the  volume — viz. 
D.  K.  Clark,  A.  E.  Seaton,  R.  Sennett,  and  many  other 
well-known  English  authorities. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  there  is  no  original  work 
in  this  book.  Chapters  ii.  and  iii.  for  instance,  on  the 
design  of  slide  valves  and  reversing  gears,  are  ample 
evidence  of  hard  work  on  the  part  of  the  author :  his 
descriptions  and  diagrams  of  the  various  motions  are 
excellent.  Chapter  iv.  deals  with  the  general  design  and 
proportions  of  the  steam-chest,  valves  with  their  various 
connections.  Chapters  v.  and  vi.  are  on  compound  and 
triple-expansion  engines,  and  contain  also  a  theoretical 
treatment  of  indicator  diagrams  of  a  compound  engine. 
These  chapters  are  well  written,  and  contain  much  useful 
information,  but  as  a  whole  they  do  not  teach  anything 
new.  To  chapters  vii.  and  viii.,  written  by  P.A.  En- 
gineer Asa  M.  Mattice,  U.S.N.,  the  same  remarks  will 
apply.  The  remaining  chapters  deal  with  the  design  of 
the  various  other  parts  of  a  steam-engine.  The  methods 
used  are  those  well  understood  in  every  drawing-office 
worthy  of  the  name,  and  they  need  not  be  further  noticed 
here. 

Taken  as  a  whole,  the  book  deserves  praise  for  good 
and  careful  work  ;  and  we  may  especially  call  attention  to 
the  theoretical  considerations,  which  are  always  clearly 
expressed.  Although  published  by  Messrs.  Macmillan, 
the  work  is  from  an  American  press,  that  of  Messrs. 
Ferris  Bros.,  New  York.  The  printing  and  woodcuts  are 
excellent — far  better,  as  usual,  than  English  work  of  the 
same  class.  N.  J.  L. 

Coloured  Analytical  Tables.  By  H.  W.  Hake,  Ph.D., 
F.I.C.,  F.C.S.  (London  :  George  Phillip  and  Son,  1889.) 

Novelties  in  text-books  of  elementary  qualitative  ana- 
lysis are  usually  conspicuous  by  their  absence,  but  the 


NATURE 


{Nov,  14,  1889 


book  before  us  takes  an  entirely  new  departure.  The 
idea  of  representing  the  various  coloured  reactions  by 
tinted  imitations  is,  so  far  as  we  know,  quite  new.  Apart 
from  this,  the  usual  well-worn  paths  are  followed.  The 
tables  are  of  the  simplest  character,  and  are  only  sufficient 
for  the  detection  of  common  bases  in  salts  or  oxides, 
no  attempt  being  made  to  separate  the  members  of  the 
various  groups.  The  second  part  is  devoted  to  reactions 
for  the  detection  of  a  few  acids  and  organic  substances. 

The  book  is  apparently  primarily  intended  for  the  use 
of  students  preparing  for  the  preliminary  examination  of 
the  Conjoint  Board  of  the  Royal  College  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons,  but  it  will  no  doubt  have  a  much  wider 
field  of  usefulness  if  it  survives  the  test  of  experience. 
The  new  method  of  representation  seems  excellently 
adapted  for  young  students,  and  certainly  no  harm  can 
be  done  by  giving  it  a  fair  trial. 

The  reactions  illustrated  include  precipitates,  charcoal 
reactions,  borax  beads,  and  flame  colorations,  most  of 
which  are  fairly  well  represented. 

The  Story  of  a  Tinder  Box.  By  Charles  M.  Tidy,  M.  B.  M.  S., 
F.C.S.,  &c.  (London  :  Society  for  Promoting  Chris- 
tian Knowledge,  1889.) 
Popular  lecturers  have  discovered  for  some  time  that  the 
history  of  the  methods  that  have  been  used  for  obtain- 
ing a  light  is  an  excellent  subject  wherewith  to  please 
the  public  mind,  and  this  book  contains  the  reports  of 
three  such  lectures  delivered  to  a  juvenile  auditory  last 
Christmas.  An  attempt  has  also  been  made  to  describe 
the  experimental  portion  of  the  lectures,  and  the  author 
has  not  committed  the  common  error  of  giving  a  mul- 
tiplicity of  pretty  but  irrelevant  experiments  conveying 
a  paucity  of  information.  In  fact,  in  some  parts  the  reverse 
seems  the  case,  for  we  must  confess  our  inability  to 
discover  why  a  consideration  of  the  allotropic  modifica- 
tions of  carbon  should  necessitate  a  detailed  description 
of  the  manufacture  of  black  lead  pencils.  This  digres- 
sion, however,  does  not  detract  from  the  interest  and 
general  merit  of  the  work,  which  certainly  contains  the 
explanation  in  simple  language  of  some  elementary 
physical  and  chemical  phenomena. 

Magnetism  and  Electricity.     Part    I.    Magnetism.      By 

Andrew  Jamieson,  M.I.C.E.     (London;    Griffin   and 

Co.,  1889.) 
Although  elementary  text-books  of  physics  continue  to 
increase  in  number,  there  is  still  room  for  one  of  such 
general  excellence  as  Prof.  Jamieson's  elementary  manual. 
The  book  is  specially  arranged  for  the  use  of  first  year 
Science  and  Art  Department  and  other  electrical  students. 
Numerous  questions  and  specimen  answers  are  distributed 
throughout  the  book,  and  though  this  may  be  rather 
suggestive  of  cram,  there  is  nothing  in  the  text  to  justify 
such  a  suggestion.  It  is  unnecessary  to  go  into  details, 
but  it  may  be  stated  that  the  arrangement  of  subjects  is 
as  good  as  it  well  can  be,  and  on  the  whole  the  descrip- 
tions are  very  clear.  The  numerous  diagrams  are  also 
excellent,  those  of  the  mariner's  compass  being  especially 
good  ;  indeed,  the  whole  chapter  on  terrestrial  magnetism 
is  the  best  elementary  account  of  the  subject  which  has 
come  under  our  notice. 

The  subject  is  throughout  considered  as  an  essentially 
practical  one,  and  very  clear  instructions  are  given  for 
the  making  of  magnets,  and  compass  and  dipping  needles. 

If  the  succeeding  parts  of  the  book  confirm  the  good 
opinion  created  by  the  first,  teachers  of  the  subject  are  to 
be  congratulated  on  having  such  a  thoroughly  trustworthy 
text-book  at  their  disposal. 

Time  and  Tide  :  A  Romance  of  the  Moon.     By  Sir  Robert 

S.  Ball,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.    (London:  Society  for  Promoting 

Christian  Knowledge,  1889.) 

The  ability  of  the  author  of  this  work  to  give  a  lucid 

exposition  of  nn  abstruse  subject  is  a  matter  of  common 


knowledge  ;  and  hence  the  fact  that  the  book  contains  two 
of  his  lectures  delivered  at  the  London  Institution  last 
November  is  in  itself  sufficient  commendation.  However, 
be  this  as  it  may,  we  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  there 
could  hardly  be  a  clearer  explanation  of  Prof.  George 
Darwin's  theory  of  tidal  evolution  than  that  contained  in 
the  work  before  us.  The  hypothesis  being  accepted,  every 
feature  of  the  past  and  future  condition  of  our  satellite 
is  described  in  a  most  comprehensive  manner.  It  is  first 
shown  how,  when  the  earth  was  rotating  on  its  axis  with 
an  enormous  velocity,  the  tidal  action  set  up  by  the 
sun  caused  a  portion  to  become  detached  and  form  our 
satellite.  The  employment  of  the  term  "  conservation 
of  spin  "  facilitates  considerably  the  demonstration  of 
the  fact  that  as  by  tidal  action  the  spin  of  the  earth 
decreases — as  our  day  lengthens — so  must  the  dimensions 
of  the  moon's  orbit  be  increased,  and  the  length  of  the 
month  therefore  become  proportionally  greater.  The  ap- 
plication of  Prof.  Darwin's  theory  to  other  members  of 
our  system  is  also  inquired  into  ;  and  although  the  author 
does  not  attempt  to  go  back  to  the  first  stage  in  the 
evolution  of  celestial  species,  he  shows  that  tidal  evolution 
is  an  extension  of  the  hypothesis  that  does  so.  Indeed, 
the  book  is  replete  with  information,  and  by  the  general 
scientific  reader  will  be  found  exceedingly  interesting. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  Tht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex  - 
pressed  by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertaki 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  0/  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.^ 

Specific  Inductive  Capacity. 

Perhaps  a  better  mode  of  performing  the  experiment  quoted 
by  Mr.  Rudge  (p.  10)  is  to  have  two  insulated  parallel  metal 
plates,  one  connected  with  an  electroscope,  the  other  with  a 
slightly-charged  Leyden-jar.  On  now  interposing  a  thick  slab 
of  paraffin  or  ebonite  (recently  passed  through  a  flame)  between 
the  plates,  a  very  decided  increase  of  divergence  will  be  per- 
ceived. Unless,  indeed,  the  electroscope  should  happen  to 
have  overflowed  to  earth  during  the  charging  of  the  jar,  in  which 
case  it  will  be  opoositely  charged  and  a  decreased  divergence 
will  be  caused.  To  interpose  the  slab  is,  in  fact,  virtually  to 
diminish  the  distance  between  the  plates,  and  its  effect  is  there- 
fore the  same  as  that  of  pushing  the  plates  closer  together. 

The  advantage  of  the  Leyden-jar  is  that  it  keeps  the  potential 
practically  constant.  If  an  isolated  plate  or  sphere  is  used  as 
the  charged  body,  the  circumstances  are  not  so  simple,  for  the 
insertion  of  the  slab  reduces  the  potential  and  slightly  increases 
the  charge  on  the  near  face  of  the  plate,  so  that,  whether  the 
divergence  of  the  leaves  is  increased  or  diminished  depends  on 
several  unimportant  considerations,  of  which  the  size  of  the  slab 
may  be  one.  A  slab  of  area  comparable  to  that  of  the  plates 
between  which  it  is  put  would  in  this  ca>e  be  the  most  suitable  ; 
and  in  any  case  it  should  be  supported  by  a  long  insulator,  so 
that  the  operator's  arm,  as  it  approaches,  shall  not  complicate 
and  mask  the  effect.  Oliver  J.  Lodge. 

University  College,  Liverpool,  November  9. 


"  La  Pietra  Papale." 

Above  Stresa,  on  the  western  bank  of  Lago  Maggiore,  there  is 
an  enormous  granite  boulder,  which  deserves  the  attention  of 
geologists.  It  lies  on  the  left  slope  of  an  old  moraine,  near  the 
little  village  of  Gignese,  and  not  far  from  the  Hotel  Alpino,  at 
an  elevation  of  about  2500  feet  above  the  sea-level.  It  is  roughly 
oblong  in  shape,  and  measures  some  75  feet  in  length,  and 
perhaps  half  as  much  in  breadth  and  thickness.  The  projected 
mountain  railway  from  Stresa  to  the  summit  of  Monte  Motterone 
will  pass  close  to  the  spot  where  it  lies,  and  the  masons  are 
already  engaged  in  converting  the  smaller  boulders  into  building- 
stones.  It  is  to  be  hoped,  however,  that  la  pietra  papale^ 
ns    this    splendid    example   of   the    carryinc;    powers    of   ice    i<> 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


31 


called  by  the  villagers,  will  not  sufTer  the  like  fate.  The  Italian 
Alpine  Club,  will,  we  may  trust,  interest  themselves  ia  this 
matter.  P.  L.  Sclater. 

Hotel  du  Pare,  Lugano,  October  21. 


Who  discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  .' 

As  Dr.  Hart  Merriam's  letter  on  the  above  subject  in  your 
issue  of  the  7th  inst.  (p.  11)  will  be  read  by  many  who  have  not 
access  to  Sir  Everard  Home's  "  Lectures  on  Comparative 
Anatomy,"  allow  me  to  point  out  that  the  description  and  figures 
in  that  work  referred  to  by  Dr.  Merriam  have  no  bearing  whatever 
upon  the  very  interesting  discoveries  recently  made.  They 
represent,  not  the  real  teeth  of  the  young  animal  discovered  by 
Mr.  Poulton,  and  fully  described  by  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas,  but 
the  well-known  horny  plates  which  functionally  take  their  place 
in  the  adult,  and  which  are  called  "grinding  teeth"  by  Sir 
Everard  only  in  a  very  general  sense.  W.  H.  Flower, 

British  Museum  (Natural  History),  November  9. 


The  account  of  the  teeth  of  Ornithorhynchus,  given  by  Sir 
Everard  Home  in  "Lectures  on  Comparative  Anatomy,"  vol.  i. 
p,  305,  explanatory  of  Tab.  lix.  vol.  ii.,  referred  to  by  Mr.  Hart 
Merriam  in  your  last  issue  (p.  11),  shows,  even  more  clearly 
than  the  figures,  that  the  true  teeth  had  not  been  noticed  at  that 
time  (1814).  The  passage  is  as  follows: — "In  the  posterior 
portion  of  the  mouth,  both  in  the  upper  and  lower  jaw,  are 
placed  grinding  teeth  with  broad  flattened  crowns,  four  in  num- 
ber, one  on  each  side  of  each  jaw.  They  art  composed  of  a  horny 
substance  (the  italics  are  my  own),  only  embedded  in  the  gum, 
to  which  they  are  connected  by  an  irregular  surface  in  the  place 
of  fangs.  When  cut  through,  the  substance  appears  fibrous, 
like  that  of  nail  ;  the  direction  of  the  fibres  being  perpendicular 
to  the  crown,  similar  to  that  of  the  horny  crust  of  the  gizzard. 
The  teeth  in  the  young  animal  are  smaller,  and  two  on  each 
side,  so  that  the  first  teeth  are  probably  shed,  and  the  two  small 
ones  replaced  by  one  large  one." 

It  is  perfectly  evident  that  here  no  reference  is  made  to  the 
trite  teeth,  and,  moreover,  the  figure  of  the  two  smaller  "teeth  " 
of  young  specimens  represents  merely  the  immature  horny 
plates.  The  honours,  therefore,  still  remain  with  Mr.  Poulton 
and  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas.  Oswald  H.  Latter. 

Anatomical  Department,  The  Museum,  Oxford, 
November  8. 


On  a  Mite  of   the  Genus   Tetranychus  found  infesting 
Lime-trees  in  the  Leicester  Museum  Grounds. 

About  the  13th  of  last  September  my  attention  was  called  to 
the  strange  appearance  of  a  row  of  lime-trees  .standing  in  front 
of  the  School  of  Art  buildings  in  Hastings  Street.  On  examina- 
tion I  found  that  the  whole  row,  with,  I  think,  only  one  excep- 
tion, were  almost  entirely  devoid  of  leaves,  the  trunks  and 
branches  being  covered  with  a  fine  web,  very  closely  spun, 
giving  them  the  appearance  of  being  coated  with  a  thin  layer  of 
ice,  this  glazed  look  being  specially  noticeable  when  standing  in 
such  a  position  as  to  catch  the  reflected  rays  of  the  sun.  At  first 
sight  I  imagined  that  I  was  examining  the  work  of  a  spider, 
though  I  was  unable  to  recollect  any  whose  webs  would  accord 
with  the  character  of  those  under  observation.  However,  a 
close  inspection  revealed  the  webs  to  be  tenanted  by  an  in- 
numerable number  of  yellowish  or  orange-coloured  mites  which 
were  in  some  places  associated  together  in  dense  masses  or 
clusters,  and  more  or  less  abundant  over  the  whole  of  the  trunks 
and  branches. 

These  mites  appeared,  on  being  subjected  to  a  careful 
microscopical  examination,  to  be  identical  with  Tetranychus 
tiliariim.  Mull.,  a  species  which  it  seems  that  Claparede  con- 
siders to  be  only  a  variety  of  T.  telaritis,  the  common  "red 
spider."  However  that  may  be,  they  are  at  any  rate  closely 
allied  forms — members  of  the  family  Trombidiida:,  which  pos- 
sess, as  one  of  their  distinguishing  characteristics,  a  pedipalpus 
with  a  claw  and  a  lobe-like  appendage.  In  the  genus 
Tetranychus  the  palpi  are  chelate,  the  mouth  is  furnished  with  a 
barbed  sucking  apparatus  for  the  extraction  of  plant  juices,  and 
spinning  organs  are  usually  present.  It  is  needless  to  comment 
upon  their  destructiveness  to  vegetation,  for  most  keepers  of 
gardens  and  hothouses  are  familiar  with  their  ravages  in  one 


direction  or  another,  and  the  difficulty  experienced  in  thoroughly 
extirpating  them. 

In  connection  with  the  species  which  forms  the  subject  of  the 
present  communication,  I  notice  that  Murray,  in  his  work  on 
the  "  Apt  era,"  says  :  "It  occasionally  occurs  in  such  numbers 
as  almost  to  denude  the  trees  of  their  foliage  ;  and  it  has  been 
noted  that  the  stems  and  branches  of  such  trees  feemed  covered 
with  a  bright  glaze.  Can  this  be  a  fine  web  ?  "  It  was  so,  most 
certainly,  in  the  present  instance,  which  afforded  me  a  most 
favourable  opportunity  for  examination.  Again,  it  appears  that 
the  mites  are  normally  found  on  the  under-surface  of  the  leaves, 
which  they  cover  with  a  fine  web  of  silk,  on  which  (to  again 
quote  Murray)  "they  are  sometimes  crowded  together  in  vast 
numbers  ;  for  example,  we  have  seen  them  so  thick  on  the  leaves 
that  they  looked  as  if  they  were  not  merely  sprinkled  with  a  yellow 
orange  coloured  powder,  but  as  if  it  was  actually  in  parts  heaped 
up  on  them,  so  that  none  of  the  green  colour  of  the  leaf  was  visible." 
Their  presence  is  of  course  highly  injurious,  causing  the  leaves 
to  shrivel  and  drop  ;  and  it  seems  to  me  that  the  fact  of  their 
occurrence  on  the  bare  bark  of  the  trunks  was  attributable  to  the 
death  of  the  leaves  causing  them  to  retreat  to  that  position, 
uncongenial  though  it  would  seem  to  be.  Such  trees  as  pre- 
served their  foliage  presented  no  abnormal  appearance  on  the 
branches,  &c.,  notwithstanding  which,  in  one  or  two  instances, 
I  believe  the  parasites  were  present  on  the  leaves,  though  seem- 
ingly not  in  such  extraordinary  profusion. 

Duges,  writing  of  7'.  telaritis,  states  his  belief  that  that  species 
passes  the  winter  under  .stones,  and  instances  the  finding  of 
several  active  individuals  so  situated  in  a  garden  near  Paris  in 
the  month  of  October.  Regarding  this  point  I  may  say  that  my 
specimens  of  T.  tiliarum,  which  I  placed  in  a  box  immediately 
after  removal  from  the  trees,  speedily  ensconced  themselves 
in  the  most  convenient  nooks  and  crannies,  in  which  they  spun 
fine  webs.  It  may  be  worth  noting  that  the  days  on  which  my 
observations  were  made  were  warm  and  damp,  with  scarcely 
any  wind,  quite  typical  early  autumn  days  in  fact. 

F.  R.  Rowley. 

Leicester  Museum. 


Retarded  Germination. 

I  shall  be  much  obliged  to  any  of  your  readers  who  can  give 
an  explanation  of  the  probable  cause  of  the  above  phenomenon, 
which  I  have  remarked  this  year.  I  sowed  a  number  of  patches 
of  seeds  of  various  hardy  annuals  in  the  garden  in  the  last  week 
of  April  ;  about  half  of  them  came  up  after  the  usual  interval, 
strongly  and  regularly.  Such  were  Calendula  Pongei,  Con- 
volvulus minor,  Lavatera  iriniestris,  Collinsia  bicolor,  Ibens 
white  and  red,  Specularia  speculum,  Linum  rubrum,  &c.,  &c. 
Then  there  were  some  of  which  a  few  scattered  seedlings  made 
their  appearance  at  this  time,  and  after  an  interval  of  about  six 
weeks  the  greater  part  of  them  also  came  up  ;  among  these  were 
Eiitoca  viscida,  Nigdla  damasccna,  Sphenogyne,  and  Clarkia 
pulchella.  Thirdly,  there  were  some  of  which  I  quite  despaired  ; 
mignonette,  however,  appeared  thinly  about  the  end  of  June, 
and  at  intervals  till  August  ;  and  in  the  middle  of  June  a  few 
plants  (in  proportion  to  the  seed  sown,  a  few)  of  Linaria  bipartita. 
Madia  elegans,  and  Xerantheinum  came  up — one  consequence 
being  that  the  last  named  has  not  yet  flowered.  Some  of  the 
seeds  were  obtained  this  spring  from  seedsmen,  some  were  my 
own  collection  of  the  last  year  or  two — of  the  latter  were 
Calendula,  Lavatera,  Convolvulus,  Specularia,  Eutoca,  Ni^ella, 
Sphenogyne,  and  mignonette — so  that  cannot  be  said  to  give  any 
clue.  The  conditions  for  germination  and  growth  were  favour- 
able, and  the  season  also.  I  have  never  remarked  before  any 
annuals  so  long  in  appearing  above  ground  ;  though  in  some 
herbaceous  plants  I  have  noticed  it,  e.g.  Gaillardia,  Myosotis 
alpestris,  and  Anemone  coronaria.  E.  A. 

Herefordshire,  September  19. 


The  Relation  of  the  Soil  to  Tropical  Diseases. 

As  a  humble  subscriber  to  and  student  of  Nature,  will  you 
bear  with  me  while  I  ask  your  help,  as  shortly  and  plainly  as  I 
can  ?  I  am  in  a  very  secluded  corner  of  one  of  the  Native  States 
of  Rajpootana,  and  I  am  collecting  facts  and  making  observa- 
tions on  the  relation  of  the  jmV  to  tropical  diseases  ;  my  ambition 
being  to  discuss  it  not  so  much  from  a  statistical  and  geographical 
standpoint,  as  from  the  geological,  in  its  chemical  and  biological 


32 


NATURE 


\Nov.  14,  1889 


aspects  ;  though,  as  I  conceive,  the  geographical,  climatological, 
and  geological  elements  in  the  problem  are  not  to  be  arbitrarily 
distinguished.  Now  I  am  far  away  from  all  books  of  reference, 
and  it  is  of  course  essential  that  I  make  myself  acquainted  with 
what  has  already  been  done  in  these  subjects,  and  I  venture  to 
ask  for  any  hints  as  to  the  bibliography  of  them.  Can  you  tell  me  if 
anyone  has  done  for  geology  what  Hirsch,  of  Berlin,  has  done  fo-- 
geography  (in  his  work  on  the  distribution  of  disease)  ?  Is  there 
any  authority  on  the  chemistry  of  soils,  and  what  I  roughly  call 
their  physiology  and  pathology,  their  structural  and  functional 
changes  under  influences — climate  notably — and  their  own  in- 
trinsic, and  the  deeper  geological  interactions  ? 

A.  Ernest  Roberts. 
Meywar  Bheel  Corps,  Kherwara,  Central  India, 
September  9. 


The  Earthquake  of  Tokio,   April  18,   1889. 

Dr.  von  Rebeur-Paschwitz's  letter,  which  appeared  in 
Nature,  vol.  xl.  p.  294,  is  of  special  interest  to  us  in  Japan, 
countenancing  as  it  does  the  conjecture  that  the  very  peculiar 
earthquake  felt  and  registered  here  on  April  18  was  the  result  of 
a  disturbance  of  unusual  magnitude.  It  was  my  good  fortune 
on  the  day  in  question  to  be  engaged  in  conversation  with  Prof. 
Sekiya  in  the  Seismological  Laboratory  at  the  very  instant  the 
earthquake  occurred.  We  at  once  rushed  to  the  room  where 
the  self-recording  instruments  lay,  and  there,  for  the  first  time  in 
our  experience,  had  the  delight  of  viewing  the  pointers  mark 
their  sinuous  curves  on  the  revolving  plates  and  cylinders.  At 
first  sight  it  seemed  as  if  the  pointers  had  gone  mad,  tracing  out 
sinuosities  of  amplitudes  five  or  six  times  greater  than  the 
greatest  that  had  ever  before  been  recorded  in  Tokio.  There 
was  not  much  sensation  of  an  earthquake  ;  indeed,  after  the 
first  slight  tremor  that  attracted  our  attention,  we  felt  nothing 
at  all,  although  in  the  irregular  oscillations  of  the  seismograph 
pointers  we  had  evidence  enough  that  an  earthquake  was 
passing.  Very  few  in  Tokio  were  aware  that  there  had  been 
an  earthquake  till  they  read  the  report  of  it  in  the  next  day's 
papers.  Thus  the  motion,  though  large,  was  too  slow  to  cause 
any  of  the  usual  sensations  that  accompany  earthquakes,  and 
suggested  a  distant  origin  and  a  large  disturbance,  with  a  con- 
sequent wide  extension  of  seismic  effect.  Excepting  the  slight 
tremors  recorded  at  Potsdam  and  Wilhelmshaven,  there  has 
been,  so  far,  no  evidence  of  any  such  far-reaching  action. 

My  object  in  writing  this  note,  however,  is  to  correct  an  error 
of  calculation  which  Dr.  von  Rebeur-Paschwitz  has  unwittingly 
made.  He  has  assumed  that  Tokio  standard  time  is  mean  local 
time.  On  the  contrary,  the  standard  time  for  all  Japan  is  the 
mean  solar  time  for  longitude  135°  E., — that  is,  nine  hours  in 
advance  of  Greenwich  mean  time.  Hence,  instead  of  the  Tokio 
earthquake  having  preceded  the  German  disturbance  by  ih. 
4'3m.  it  preceded  it  by  only  4Sm.  This  correction  increases  the 
velocity  of  transmission  to  3060  metres  per  second.  We  must 
assume,  then,  either  that  large  disturbances  in  the  heart  of  the 
earth  travel  with  exceptionally  high  speeds,  or  that  the  origin  of 
the  disturbance  was  a  considerable  distance  from  Tokio.  The 
latter  assumption  seems  sufficiently  satisfactory,  if  in  other 
respects  Dr.  von  Rebeur-Paschwitz's  views  meet  with  approval. 

Cargill  G.  Knott. 

Imperial  University,  Tokio,  Japan,  September  25. 


A  Brilliant  Meteor. 

Yesterday  evening,  November  4,  at  7.55  p.m.,  I  was  for- 
tunate enough  to  observe  a  very  brilliant  meteor.  It  became 
visible  almost  exactly  at  the  zenith,  or  a  little  west  of  it,  and 
moved,  as  nearly  as  I  could  judge,  due  east,  magnetic ;  it  re- 
mained visible  for  about  from  one  to  two  seconds,  disappearing, 
finally,  rather  low  down  on  the  eastern  horizon.  For  the  first 
half  of  its  journey  it  was  of  a  dazzling  white  brightness,  and  then 
it  suddenly  became  a  dull  red  spark.  The  light  emitted  from  it 
when  brightest  reminded  me  of  the  light  from  an  arc  lamp,  and 
was  very  much  brighter  than  any  of  the  fixed  stars. 

As  it  was  so  short  a  time  in  view,  and  there  were  no  stars 
visible,  I  could  only  approximately  estimate  its  point  of  appear- 
ance and  path.  There  were  a  few  clouds  about,  mostly  in  the 
west,  and  the  moon  was  behind  them.        Paul  A.  Cobbold. 

Warwick  School,  November  5. 


ON  THE  HARDENING  AND  TEMPERING  OF 
STEEL} 

II. 

'T^HE  following  considerations  appear  to  have  guided 
■■■  Osmond  in  beginning  his  investigations  (see  ante, 
p.  16).  Bearing  in  mind  the  fact  that  molecular  change  in  a 
body  is  always  accompanied  by  evolution  or  absorption  of 
heat,  which  is,  indeed,  the  surest  indication  of  the  occur- 
rence of  molecular  change,  he  studied  with  the  aid  of  a 
chronograph  what  takes  place  during  the  slow  cooling 
and  the  slow  heating  of  masses  of  iron  or  steel,  using,  as 
a  thermometer  to  measure  the  temperature  of  the  mass,  a 
thermo-electric  couple  of  platinum  and  of  platinum  con- 
taining 10  per  cent,  of  rhodium,  converting  the  indica- 
tions of  the  galvanometer  into  temperatures  by  Tait's 
formulae. 


Fig.  5. 


--© 


Fig.  6. 


Figs.  5and6show  the  actual  mode  of  conducting  the  experiments.  F(Fig.  5)  is 
apiece  of  steel  into  which  a  platinum  and  platinum-rhodium  couple,  t,  i\ 
is  fixed.  It  is  inclosed  in  a  glazed  porcelain  tube  and  heated  to  bright 
redness  in  the  furnace,  s  (Fig.  6).  This  tube,  t,  may  be  filled  with  any 
gaseous  atmosphere,  c  is  a  bulb  filled  with  chloride  of  calcium.  The 
metal  under  examination  is  slowly  cooled  down.  The  wires  from  the 
thermo-couple  pass  to  the  galvanometer,  g.  The  rate  of  cooling  of  the 
mass  is  indicated  by  the  movement  of  a  spot  of  light  from  the  galvano- 
meter mirror  at  }n,  on  the  screen,  R,  and  is  recorded  by  a  chronograph. 
The  source  of  light  is  shown  at  l  ;  m  is  a  reflector. 


In  the  next  diagram  (Fig.  7)  temperatures  through  which 
a  slowly-cooling  mass  of  iron  or  steel  passes,  are  arranged 
along  the  horizontal  line,  and  the  intervals  of  time  during 
which  the  mass  falls  through  a  definite  number  (6'6)  of 
degrees  of  temperature  are  shown  vertically  by  ordinates. 
See  what  happens  while  a  mass  of  electro-deposited  iron 
(shown  by  a  dotted  line),  which  is  as  pure  as  any  iron  can 
be,  slowly  cools  down.  From  2000°  to  870°  it  falls  uni- 
formly at  the  rate  of  about  2  "2°  a  second,  and  the  intervals 
of  temperature  are  plotted  as  dots  at  the  middle  of  the 
successive  points  of  the  intervals.  When  the  temperature 
falls  down  to  858°,  there  is  a  sudden  arrest  in  the  fall  of 
temperature,  the  indicating  spot  of  light,  instead  of  falling 
at  a  uniform  rate  of  about  2°  a  second,  suddenly  takes  26 

'  A  Lecture  delivered  on  September  13,  by  Prof.  W.  C.  Roberts- Austen, 
F.R.S.,  before  the  members  of  the  British  Association.  Continued  from 
p.  16. 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


33 


seconds  to  fall  through  an  interval  of  temperature  which 
hitherto  and  subsequently  only  occupies  about  6  seconds. 
Turn  to  the  diagram,  and  see  what  actually  happens  when 
the  iron  contains  carbon  in  the  proportion  required  to 
constitute  it  mild  steel  (shown  by  thin  continuous  line, 
Fig'  7)  ;  there  is  not  one,  but  there  are  two  such  breaks  in 
the  cooling,  and  both  breaks  occur  at  a  different  tempera- 
ture from  that  at  which  the  break  in  pure  iron  occurred. 


As  the  proportion  of  carbon  increases  in  steel,  the  first 
break  in  cooling  travels  more  and  more  to  the  right,'']and 
gradually  becomes  confounded  with  the  second  break, 
which,  in  steel  containing  much  carbon,  is  of  long  dura- 
tion, lasting  as  much  as  76  seconds  in  the  case  of  steel 
containing  V2^  per  cent,  of  carbon  (thick  i_continuous 
line,  (Fig.  7). 

[In  the  experiments  shown  to  the  audience  the'spot  of 


0 

TIME 

IN  SECONDS 

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30 
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HiANGA 

4!:.?3. 

STEE 

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O    *^*"^ 

1 

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1    „    1    „     1  =     1  '.      '   «     1  =      1  .      1  „      1         1  .      1         '  .      1  .""   1        'I  .  ■  1  .      1  .    1", 

2000°  1150      1100°  1050°    1000°   950      900°     850°    800°     750°    700°    650°    600°      550°    500    450      400    350 

TEMPERATURE. 

Fig.  7. — The  curves  in  this  diagram  show  ho*  the  rate  of  inovcmeiit  of  the  spot  of  light  varies  with  different  samples  of  steel.     The  stoppage  of 
the  movement  of  the  spot  of  light  of  course  indicates  the  evolution  of  heat  from  the  coaling  mass  of  steel,  f  (Fig.  5). 


light  moved  slowly  and  uniformly  along  a  screen  ten  feet 
in  length.  It  halted  for  a  few  seconds  as  the  temperature 
of  the  cooling  mass  of  steel  fell  to  about  850'  C,  and 
when  the  metal  was  at  dull  redness,  the  spot  of  light 
remained  stationary  for  68  seconds,  and  then  resumed  its 
course.] 

Now,  it  may  be  urged,  evidently  the  presence  of  carbon 
has  an  influence  on  the  cooling  of  steel  when  left  to  itself : 
may  it  not  affect  molecular  behaviour  during  the  rapid  cool- 
ing which  is  essential  to  the  operation  of  hardening?  We 
know  that  the  carbon,  during  rapid  cooling,  passes  from 
the  state  in  which  it  is  combined  with  the  iron  into  a  state 
in  which  it  is  dissolved  in  the  iron  ;  we  also  know  that, 
during  slow  cooling,  this  dissolved  carbon  can  re-enter 
into  combination  with  the  iron  so  as  to  assume  the  form 
in  which  it  occurs  in  soft  steel.  Osmond  claims  that  this 
second  arrestation  in  the  fall  of  the  thermometer  corre- 
sponds to  the  recalescence  of  Barrett,  and  is  caused  by 
the  re-heating  of  the  wire  by  the  heat  evolved  when 
carbon  leaves  its  state  of  solution  and  truly  combines  with 
the  iron. 

If  it  is  hoped  to  harden  steel,  it  must  be  rapidly  cooled 
before  the  temperature  has  fallen  to  a  definite  point,  not 
lower  than  650^,  or  the  presence  of  carbon  will  be  un- 
availing. But  what  does  the  first  break  in  the  curves 
mean?  You  will  see  that  a  break  occurs  in  electro- 
type iron  which  is  free  from  carbon  (thin  dotted 
line,  Fig.  7)  ;  it  must  then  indicate  some  molecular 
change  in  iron  itself,  accompanied  with  evolution  of 
heat — a  change  with  which  carbon  has  nothing  what- 
ever to  do,  for  no  carbon  is  present  ;  and  Osmond 
argues  thus  : — There  are  two  kinds  oiuon,  the  atoms  of 
which  are  respectively  arranged  in  the  molecules  so  as  to 
constitute  hard  and  soft  iron,  quite  apart  from  the 
presence  or  absence  of  carbon.  In  red-hot  iron  the  mass 
may  be  soft  but  the  molecules  are  hard— let  us  call  this 


/3  iron  ;  cool  such  red-hot  pure  iron,  whether  quickly  or 
slowly,  and  it  becomes  soft  ;  it  passes  to  the  a  soft  modi- 
fication— there  is  nothing  to  prevent  its  doing  so.  It 
appears,  however,  that  if  carbon  is  present,  and  the  metal 
be  rapidly  cooled,  the  following  result  is  obtained :  a 
certain  proportion  of  the  molecules  are  retained  in  the 
form  in  which  they  existed  at  a  high  temperature—the 
hard  form,  the  3  modification — and  hard  j/^(?/ is  the  result. 


a.  OR  SOFT 
IRON 


IRON. 


WHEN/^IRON  COOLS 
DOWN  FROM  BRIGHT 
REDNESS  TO  855°  C. 
IT  CHANCES  TO<X  IRON 
< 


/S:  OR  HARD 
IRON 


PURE  IRON  AT  TEMPERATURES 
BELOW 855°C,  AND  IRON 
CONTAINING  CERTAIN  OTHER 
ELEMENTS  IF  COOLED  SLOWLY. 

Esmond) 


IRON  AT  HIGH  TEMPERATURES 

OR,  IF  CERTAIN  OTHER 

ELEMENTS  BE  PRESENT, 

AFTER  BEING  RAPIDLY  COOLED. 

(pSMONO) 


Fig.  8. 


The  main  facts  of  the  case  may,  perhaps,  be  made  clearer 
by  the  aid  of  this  diagram  (Fig.  8)  which  shows  the  relation 
between  a  and  /3  iron.  This  molecular  change  from  ^ 
iron  to  a  iron  during  the  slow  cooling  of  a  mass  of  iron  or 
steel  is,  according  to  Osmond's  theory,  indicated  by  the 
first  break  in  the  curve,  representing  the  slow  cooling  of 
iron,  as  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  it  occurs  alone  in  electro- 
iron,  A  second  break,  usually  one  of  much  longer  dura- 
tion, marks  the  point  at  which  carbon  itself  changes  from 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  14,  1889 


'he  dissolved  or  hardeninof  carbon  to  the  combined 
carbide-carbon.  It  follows  that,  if  steel  be  quickly  cooled 
after  the  change  from  fi  to  o.  has  taken  place  but  before 
the  carbon  has  altered  its  state — that  is,  before  the  change 
indicated  by  the  second  break  in  the  curve  has  been 
reached — then  the  iron  should  be  soft,  but  the  carbon, 
hardening  carbon  ;  and  as  such,  the  action  of  a  solvent 
should  show  that  it  cannot  be  released  from  iron  in  the 
black  carbide  form.  This  proves  to  be  the  case,  and 
affords  strong  incidental  proof  of  the  correctness  of  the 
view  that  two  modifications  of  iron  can  exist. 

It  will  be  seen,  therefore,  that,  although  the  presence  of 
carbon  is  essential  to  the  hardening  of  steel,  the  change 
in  the  mode  of  existence  of  the  carbon  is  less  important 
than  has  hitherto  been  supposed. 

The  a  modification  of  iron  may  be  converted  into  the  /3 
form  by  stress  applied  to  the  metal  at  temperatures  below 
a  dull  red  heat,  provided  the  stress  produces  permanent 
deformation  of  the  iron,^  but  the  consideration  of  this 
question  would  demand  a  lecture  to  itself.  I  am  anxious 
to  show  you  an  experiment  which  will  help  to  illustrate 
the  existence  of  molecular  change  in  iron. 

Here  is  a  long  bar  of  steel  containing  much  carbon. 
In  such  a  variety  of  steel,  the  molecular  change  of  the  iron 
itself,  and  the  change  in  the  relations  between  the  carbon 
and  the  iron,  would  occur  at  nearly  the  same  moment.  It 
is  now  being  heated  to  redness,  but  if  you  will  look  at 
this  diagram  (Fig.  9),  you  will  be  prepared  for  what  I  want 


shown  by  Spring,  even  at  the  ordinary  temperature,  while, 
in  the  case  of  steel,  it  must  take  place  far  below  incipient 
fluidity — indeed,  at  a  comparatively  low  temperature,  as  is 
shown  by  the  following  experiment  on  the  welding  of  steel. 
Every  smith  knows  how  difficult  it  is  to  weld  highly 
carburized  hard  tool-steel,  but  if  the  ends  of  a  newly- 
fractured  f^-inch  square  steel  rod,  a  (Fig.   10),  are  placed 


Fig.  9. — The  bar  of  steel,  a,  i  inch  in  section  and  i8  inches  Ion?;,  heated  to 
bright-redness  and  firmly  fixed  in  a  vice  or  other  supp  )rt  at  b.  A  weight 
of  about  2  pounds  is  rapidly  hung  on  to  ihe  free  end.  and  a  light 
pointer,  c,  is  added  to  magnify  the  motion  ot  the  bir.  It  remains  per- 
fectly rigid  for  a  per.od  varying  from  33  to  40  seconds,  and  then,  when 
the  bar  has  cooled  down  to  very  dull  redness,  it  suddenly  bends,  the 
pointer  falling  from  6  to  8  inches  to  the  position  C. 

you  to  see  in  the  actual  experiment.  One  end  of  the  red- 
hot  bar  a  will  be  firmly  fixed  at  b,  a  weight  not  sufficient  to 
bendit  is  slung  to  the  free  end,  which  is  lengthened  by  the 
addition  of  a  reed,  <:,  to  magnify  any  motion  that  may  take 
place.  Now  remember  that  as  the  bar  will  be  red-hot  it 
ought  to  be  at  its  softest,  you  would  think,  when  it  is  freshly 
withdrawn  from  the  furnace  and  if  the  weight  was  ever  to 
have  power  to  bend  it,  it  would  be  then  ;  but,  in  spite  of  the 
rapidity  with  which  such  a  thin  bar  cools  down  in  the  air 
and  becomes  rigid,  points  of  molecular  weakness  come 
when  the  iron  changes  from  3  to  a,  and  the  carbon  passes 
from  hardening  carbon  to  carbide-carbon  ;  at  that  moment, 
at  a  temperature  much  below  that  at  which  it  is  withdrawn 
from  the  furnace,  the  bar  will  begin  to  bend,  as  is  shown 
by  the  dotted  lines  a',  c'.  It  has  been  found  experimentally 
ihat  this  bend  occurs  at  the  point  at  which,  according  to 
Osmond's  theory,  molecular  change  takes  place.  Mr. 
Coffin  takes  advantage  of  this  fact  to  straighten  distorted 
steel  axles. 2 

There  is  a  sentence  in  the  address  which  has  just  been 
delivered  before  Section  G,  by  Mr.  Anderson,  which  has 
direct  reference  to  molecular  change  in  iron.     He  says  : — 

"When,  by  the  agency  of  heat,  molecular  motion  is  raised  to 
a  pitch  at  which  incipient  fluidity  is  obtained,  the  particles  of 
two  pieces  brought  into  contact  will  interpenetrate  or  diffuse 
into  each  other,  the  two  pieces  will  unite  into  a  homogeneous 
whole,  and  we  can  thus  grasp  the  fall  meaning  of  the  operation 
known  as  '  welding.'  " 

It  is,  however,  possible  to  obtain  evidence  of  inter- 
change of  molecular  motion,  as  has  been  so  abundantly 

^  "  Etudes  Metallurgiques,"  par  Osmond,  p.  6  (Pans  :  Dunod,  1888.) 
^  Trans.  American  Soc.  Civil  Engineers,  xvi.,  1887,  p.  324. 


Fig.   10. 

together  and  covered  with  platinum  foil,  b,  so  as  to  exclude 
the  air,  and  if  the  junction  is  heated  in  the  flame  of  a 
Bunsen  burner,  f,  the  metal  will  weld,  without  pressure, 
so  firmly  that  it  is  difficult  to  break  it  with  the  fingers, 
although  the  steel  has  not  attained  a  red-heat.' 

The  question  now  arises.  What  is  the  effect  of  the 
presence  of  other  metals  in  steel,  of  which  much  has  been 
heard  recently  ?  (i)  Manganese.  Osmond  has  shown  that 
this  metal  enables  steel  to  harden  very  energetically,  as  is 
well  known.  If  much  of  it  be  present,  1 2  to  20  per  cent.,  in 
iron,  no  break  whatever  is  observed  in  the  curve  which  re- 
presents slow  cooling  (see  line  marked  "  manganese  steel" 
(Fig.  7).  That  is,  the  iron  never  shows  such  a  change  as 
that  which  occurs  in  other  cooling  masses  of  iron.  Then 
you  will  say  such  a  material  should  be  hard  however  it  is 
cooled.  So  it  is.  There  is  one  other  important  point  of 
evidence  as  to  molecular  change  connected  with  the 
addition  of  manganese  to  submit  to  you.  Red-hot  iron 
is  not  magnetic.  Hopkinson- has  shown  that  the  tem- 
perature of  recalescence  is  that  at  which  iron  ceases  to  be 
magnetic.  It  may  be  urged  that  /S  iron  cannot  therefore 
be  magnetized.  Steel  containing  much  manganese  cannot 
be  magnetized,  and  it  is  therefore  fair  to  assume  that  the 
iron  present  is  in  the  /3  form.  Hadfield^  has  given 
metallurgists  wonderful  alloys  of  iron  and  manganese  in 
proportions  varying  from  7  to  20  per  cent,  of  manganese. 
This  core  of  iron  round  which  a  current  is  passing, 
attracts  the  sphere  of  iron,  but  if  nothing  is  changed, 
except  by  replacing  the  core  of  iron  with  a  core  of 
Hadfield's  steel,  it  is  impossible  to  make  a  magnet  of  it. 
[Experiment  shown.] 

Prof.  Ewing,  who  has  specially  worked  on  this  subject, 
concludes  that,  "  no  magnetizing  force  to  which  the 
metal  is  likely  to  be  subjected  in  any  of  its  practical 
applications  would  produce  more  than  the  most  infini- 
tesimal degree  of  magnetization  "    in  this    material. 

It  has  been  seen  that  quantities  of  manganese  above  7 
per  cent,  appear  to  prevent  the  passage  of  {-i  iron  into  the 
a  form.  In  smaller  quantities  manganese  seems  merely 
to  retard  the  conversion,  and  to  bring  the  two  loops  of 
the  diagram  nearer  together. 

Time  will  not  permit  me  to  deal  with  the  effect  of 
other  elements  on  steel.  I  will  only  add  that  tungsten 
possesses  the  same  property  as  manganese,  but  in  a 
more  marked  degree.  Chromium  has  exactly  the  re- 
verse effect,  as  it  enables  the  change  of  hard  \-i  iron 
to  a  soft  iron  to  take  place  at  a  higher  temperature 
than  would  otherwise  be  the  case,  and  this  may  explain 
the  extreme  hardness  of  chromium  steels  when  hardened 
in  the  same  way  as  ordinary  steels. 

There  are  a  few  considerations  relative  to  the  actual 
working  of  steel  with  which  I  can  deal  but  briefly,  notwith- 
standing their  industrial  importance.  The  points  a  and 
b,  adopted  in  the  celebrated  memoir  of  Chernoff  to  which 

'  Trans.  American  Society  Mechanical  Engineers,  ix.,  iS88,  p.  155. 

'^  Prcc.  Roy.  Soc,  xlv.,  1889,  pp   318,  445,  and  457. 

3  Proc.  Inst.  Civil  Engineers,  xciii.  Part  iii.,  1888.  » 


Nov,  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


35 


I  have  referred  already,  change  in  position  with  the 
degree  of  carburization  of  the  metal.  It  is  useless  to 
attempt  to  harden  steel  by  rapid  cooling  if  it  has  fallen  in 
temperature  below  the  point  (in  the  red)  «,  and  this  is  the 
point  of  "  recalescence  "  at  which  the  carbon  combines 
with  the  iron  to  form  carbide-carbon  :  it  is  called  V  by 
Brinell.  In  highly  carburized  steel,  it  corresponds  exactly 
with  the  point  at  which  Osmond  considers  that  iron,  in 
cooling  slowly,  passes  from  the  ^  to  the  o  modification. 
Now  with  regard  to  the  point  b  of  Chernoff.  If  steel 
be  heated  to  a  temperature  above  a,  but  below  b,  it 
remains  fine  grained  however  slowly  it  is  cooled.  If  the 
steel  be  heated  above  b,  and  cooled,  it  assumes  a  crystal- 
line granular  structure  whatever  the  rate  of  cooling  may 
be.  The  size  of  the  crystals,  however,  increases  with  the 
temperature  to  which  the  steel  has  been  raised. 

Now  the  crystalline  structure,  which  is  unfavourable  to 
the  steel  from  the  point  of  view  of  its  industrial  use,  may 
be  broken  up  by  the  mechanical  work  of  forging  the  hot 


Fig.  II  shows  the  way  in  which  the  tenacity  of  steel  containing  varying 
amounts  of  carbon  is  increased  by  oil  hardening,'  while  at  the  same  lime 
the  elongation  rapidly  diminishes. 

mass  ;  and  the  investigations  of  Abel,  of  Maitland,  and  of 
Noble,  have  shown  how  important  "  work"  on  the  metal  is. 
When  small  masses  of  hot  steel  are  quenched  in  oil,  they 
are  hardened  just  as  they  would  be  if  water  were  used  as 
a  cooling  fluid.  With  large  masses,  the  effect  of  quench- 
ing in  oil  is  different.      Such  cooling  of  large  hot  masses 

'  This  was  well  shown  in  Prof.  Akerman's  celebrated  paper  on  "  Harden- 
ing Iron  and  Steel,"  Joum.  Iron  and  Steel  Institute.  1879.  Part  ii.  p.  501. 


appears  to  break  up  this  crystalline  structure  in  a  manner 
analogous  to  mechanical  working.  If  the  mass  of  metal 
is  very  large,  such  as  a  propeller  shaft,  or  tube  of  a  large 
gun,  the  change  in  the  relations  between  the  carbon  and 
the  iron,  or  true  "hardening"  produced  by  sutrh  oil 
treatment  is  only  effected  superficially — that  is,  the 
hardened  layer  does  not  penetrate  to  any  considerable 
depth,  but  the  innermost  parts  are  cooled  more  quickly 
than  they  otherwise  would  have  been,  and  the  develop- 
ment of  the  crystals,  which  would  have  assumed  serious 
proportions  during  slow  cooling,  is  arrested.  It  depends 
on  the  size  of  the  quenched  mass,  whether  the  tenacity  of 
the  metal  is  or  is  not  increased,  but  its  power  of  being 
elongated  is  considerably  augmented.  This  prevention 
of  crystallization  I  believe  to  be  the  great  merit  of  oil 
quenching,  which,  as  regards  large  masses  of  metal,  is 
certainly  not  a  true  hardening  process. 

There  has  been  much  divergence  of  view  as  to  the 
relative  advantages  of  work  on  the  metal,  and  of  oil- 
hardening,  but  I  believe  it  will  be  possible  to  reconcile 
these  views,  if  the  facts  I  have  so  briefly  stated  be 
considered. 

The  effect  of  annealing  remains  to  be  dealt  with.  In  a 
very  compUcated  steel  casting,  the  cast  metal  probably 
contains  much  of  its  carbon  as  hardening  carbon,  and  the 
mass  which  has  necessarily  been  poured  into  the  mould 
at  a  high  temperature  is  crystalline.  The  effect  of  an- 
nealing is  to  permit  the  carbon  to  pass  from  the  "  harden- 
ing" to  the  "  carbide  "  form,  and,  incidentally,  to  break 
up  the  crystalline  stucture,  and  to  enable  it  to  become 
minutely  crystalline.  The  result  is  that  the  annealed 
casting  is  far  stronger  and  more  extensible  than  the 
original  casting.  The  carbide-carbon  is  probably  inter- 
spersed in  the  iron  in  fine  crystalline  plates,  and  not  in  a 
finely  divided  state.  It  would  obviously  be  impossible  to 
"  work"— thatis,to hammer— complicated  castings,and  the 
extreme  importance  of  obtaining  a  fine  crystalline  struc- 
ture by  annealing,  with  the  strength  which  results  from 
such  a  structure,  has  been  abundantly  demonstrated  by 
Mr.  J.  W.  Spencer,  whose  name  is  so  well  known  to  you 
all  in  Newcastle. 

The  effect  of  annealing  and  tempering  is  in  fact  very 
complicated,  and  I  can  only  again  express  my  wish  that  it 
were  possible  to  do  justice  to  the  long  series  of  researches 
which  Barus  and  Strouhal  have  conducted  in  recent 
years.  They  consider  that,  annealing  is  demonstrably 
accompanied  by  chemical  change,  even  at  temperatures 
slightly  above  the  mean  atmospheric  temperature,  and 
that  the  "  molecular  configuration  of  glass-hard  steel  is 
always  in  a  state  of  incipient  change,  ...  a  part  of 
which  change  must  be  of  a  permanent  kind."  Barus 
says  "  that  during  the  small  interval  of  time  within  which 
appreciable  annealing  occurs,  a  glass-hard  steel  rod  sud- 
denly heated  to  300°  is  almost  a  viscous  fluid."  ^  Barus 
considers  that  glass-hard  steel  is  constantly  being 
spontaneously  "tempered"  at  the  ordinary  temperature, 
which,  he  says,  "  acting  on  freshly  quenched  [that  is 
hardened]  steel  for  a  period  of  years,  produces  a  diminu- 
tion of  hardness  about  equal  to  that  of  100^  C,  acting  for 
a  period  of  hours." 

The  nature  of  the  molecular  change  is  well  indicated  in 
the  long  series  of  researches  which  led  them  to  conclude 
that  in  steel  "  there  is  a  limited  interchange  of  atoms 
between  molecules  under  stress,  which  must  be  a  property 
common  to  solids,  if,  according  to  Maxwell's  conception, 
solids  are  made  up  of  configurations  in  all  degrees  of 
molecular  stability.'' 

Barus  and  Strouhal  attach  but  little  importance  to  the 
change  in  the  relations  between  the  carbon  and  the  iron 
during  the  tempering  and  annealing  of  hard  steel.  They 
consider  that  in  hardening  steel  the  "  strain  once  applied 
to    steel  is  locked  up    in  the    metal  in  virtue  of   its 

Fhtl.  Mag ,  xxvi.,  1888,  p.  209. 


36 


NATURE 


[Nov.  14,  1889 


viscosity"  ;   tempering  is  the  release  of  this  molecular 
strain  by  heat. 

Highly  carburized  steels  harden  very  energetically  by 
very  slight  modifications  in  thermal  treatment,  and  it  will 
be  evident  that  a  very  hard  material  is  unsuitable  for 
industrial  use  if  the  conditions  of  its  employment  are  such 
as  to  render  it  desirable  that  the  material  should  stretch. 
To  turn  to  very  "  mild "  steel  which  does  not  harden,  it 
is  certain  that,  although  wrought  iron  passes  almost 
insensibly  into  steel,  there  can  be  no  question  that  not 
merely  the  structural  but  the  molecular  aggregation  of 
even  steel  containing  only  j-g  per  cent,  of  carbon  is 
profoundly  different  from  that  of  wrought  iron.  Formerly, 
as  Sir  F.  Bramwell  pointed  out  in  a  lecture  delivered  at 
the  Royal  Institution  in  1877,  "by  the  year  1830  .  .  .  from 
small  beginnings  in  Staffordshire  and  at  Birkenhead 
sprang  a  wonderful  wrought-iron  navy,  but  steel  was  a 
luxury :  it  was  made  in  small  portions  sold  at  high  prices, 
as  much  as  a  shilling  or  eighteenpence  a  pound.  It  was 
employed  for  swords,  cutlery,  and  tools,  needles  and  other 
purposes  where  the  quantity  used  was  but  trifling,  and 
where  the  importance  of  the  superior  material  was  such 
as  to  justify  the  large  expenditure  incurred.  It  was  felt 
in  those  days  that  steel  was  worth  paying  for  because  it 
was  trusted  ;  indeed  its  trustworthiness  had  passed  into 
a  proverb  " — "  as  true  as  steel." 

The  class  of  steel  which  was  formerly  employed,  as  I 
have  just  indicated,  for  weapons  and  tools  belonged  to 
the  highly  carburized,  readily-hardening  class.  It  was 
the  "  mild  steel "  containing  but  little  carbon  which  was 
destined  to  replace  wrought  iron,  and  when  attempts  were 
made  to  effect  the  general  substitution  of  steel  for  iron, 
fears  as  to  its  character  and  trustworthiness  unfortu- 
nately soon  arose,  so  that  from  about  the  year  i860 
until  1877  steel  was  viewed  with  suspicion.  We  can  now 
explain  this.  Doubts  as  to  the  fidelity  of  steel,  even  when 
it  was  obtained  free  from  entangled  cinder,  arose  from 
ignorance  of  the  fact  that,  on  either  side  of  a  com- 
paratively narrow  thermal  boundary,  the  iron  in  steel  can 
practically  exist  in  two  distinct  modifications.  The  steel 
was  true  enough,  but  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  special 
duties  to  be  intrusted  to  it,  its  fidelity  depended  on  which 
modification  of  iron  had  to  be  called  to  the  front. 
Artificers  attempted  to  forge  steel  after  it  had  cooled 
down  below  the  point  a  of  Chernoff,  at  which  recal- 
escence  occurs,  and  they  often  attempted  to  work  highly 
carburized  steel  at  temperatures  which  were  not  sufficiently 
low. 

Steels  may  be  classified  from  the  point  of  view  of  their 
industrial  use  according  to  the  amount  of  carbon  they 
contain,  and  I  have  attempted  to  arrange  in  this  trophy 
certain  typical  articles,  grouped  under  certain  definite 
percentages  of  carbon  ranging  from  ^^^  to  \\  per  cent. 
[This  was  a  trophy  18  feet  square,  with  various  typical 
articles  of  steel  arranged  in  order  according  to  the 
amount  of  carbon  they  contained.  I  am  greatly  indebted 
to  Mr.  J.  W.  Spencer,  of  Newcastle,  who  kindly  lent  me 
the  fine  series  of  specimens  of  which  the  "trophy"  is 
built  up.]  Each  class  merges  into  the  other,  but  the 
members  at  either  end  of  the  series  vary  very  greatly. 
It  would  be  impossible  to  make  a  razor  which  would  cut 
from  boiler  plate  ;  and  conversely,  a  boiler  made  of  razor 
steel  would  possibly  fracture  at  once  if  it  were  super- 
heated and  subjected  to  any  sudden  pressure  of  steam. 
Speaking  generally,  if  the  steel  contains,  in  addition  to 
carbon,  y©  per  cent,  of  manganese,  each  class  of  steel,  as 
at  present  arranged,  would  have  to  be  shifted  a  class 
backwards  towards  the  left  of  the  trophy. 

At  the  present  day,  instead  of  steel  being  manufactured 
and  used  in  small  quantities,  about  4,000,000  tons  are 
annually  employed  in  this  country.  Let  us  see  how  it  is 
used.  A  steel  fleet,  the  finest  fleet  in  the  world,  has 
recently  assembled  at  Spithead.  The  material  of  which 
it  was  made  contained  y'jfjj  to  ^  per  cent,  of  carbon,  and 


when  steel  faces  are  used  for  the  armour  plates,  the 
material  contains  f^j  to  ^^^  per  cent,  of  carbon. 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  the  crews  of  the  fleet  at 
Spithead  numbered  no  less  than  21,107  men.  This  it  has 
been  shown  is  "  a  remarkable  figure,  considering  the  great 
economy  in  men  which  prevails  in  a  modern  navy  as  com- 
pared with  the  navy  of  Nelson's  day.  A  hundred  years 
ago  the  normal  requirements  of  a  fleet  were  one  man  to 
a  little  over  four  tons,  but  now,  thanks  to  the  part  played 
by  steel  and  hydraulic  power,  we  require  but  one  man  to 
every  seventeen  tons.  Thus  it  may  roughly  be  said  that  an 
aggregate  of  20,000  men  at  the  present  day  corresponds 
to  an  aggregate  of  80,000  men  in  the  days  of  Nelson.'' 
The  latest  type  of  battle-ship  weighs,  fully  equipped,  about 
10,000  tons,  there  being  about  3400  tons  of  steel  in  the 
hull,  apart  from  her  armour,  which,  with  its  backing,  will 
weigh  a  further  2800  tons.^ 

From  the  use  of  steel  in  the  Royal  Navy  and  in  the 
mercantile  marine,  let  us  pass  on  to  its  most  notable  use 
in  construction.  If  the  President  of  the  French  Republic 
was  justified  in  appealing,  in  a  recent  speech,  to  the  Eiffel 
Tower  as  "  a  monument  of  audacity  and  science,"  ^  what 
are  we  to  say  of  the  Forth  Bridge,  the  wonders  of  which 
will  be  described  by  Mr.  Baker  on  Saturday  ?  By  his 
kindness  I  am  able  to  place  in  the  position  in  the  trophy 
justified  by  the  carbon  it  contains,  a  plate  from  the  Forth 
Bridge,  which  fell  from  a  height  of  some  350  feet,  and, 
being  of  excellent  quality,  doubled  itself  on  the  rocks 
below.  A  single  span  of  the  Forth  Bridge  is  nearly  as 
long  as  two  Eiffel  Towers  turned  horizontally  and  tied 
together  in  the  middle,  and  the  whole  forms  a  complicated 
steel  structure  weighing  15,000  tons,  erected  without  the 
possibility  of  any  intermediate  support,  the  lace-like  fabric 
of  the  bridge  soaring  as  high  as  the  top  of  St.  Paul's. 
The  steel  of  which  the  compression  members  of  the 
structure  are  composed  contains  f>;"jj  per  cent,  of  carbon 
and  -{•§xi  per  cent,  of  manganese.  The  parts  subjected  to 
extension  do  not  contain  more  than  ^^j^  per  cent,  of 
carbon.^ 

Time  will  not  permit  me  to  pass  the  members  of  each 
class  in  review.  I  can  only  refer  to  very  few.  Steel  for 
the  manufacture  of  pens  contains  about  ^',7  per  qqnt.  of 
carbon,  and  16  to  18  tons  of  steel  are  every  week  let 
loose  on  an  unoffending  world  in  the  shape  of  steel 
pens. 

Steel  rails  contain  from  ■,%  to  y^^  per  cent,  of  carbon, 
and,  in  this  class,  slight  variations  in  the  amount  of  car- 
bon are  of  vital  importance.  An  eminent  authority,  Mr. 
Sandberg,  tells  us  that  in  certain  climates  a  variation  of 
y\j  per  cent,  in  the  amount  of  carbon  may  be  very  serious. 
The  great  benefit  which  has  accrued  to  the  country  from 
the  substitution  of  more  durable  steel  rails  for  the  old 
wrought-iron  ones  may  be  gathered  from  the  figures 
which  Mr.  Webb,  of  Crewe,  has  given  me,  which  show 
that  "the  quantity  of  steel  removed  from  the  rails 
throughout  the  London  and  North-Western  system  by 
wear  and  oxidation  is  about  15  cwt.  an  hour,  or  18  tons 
a  day." 

Gun-steel  contains  f|j  to  {\  per  cent,  of  carbon,  and  it 
may  contain  ^'^^  per  cent,  of  manganese.  It  is  in  relation 
to  gun-steel  that  oil-hardening  becomes  very  important. 
The  oil-tank  of  the  St.  Chamond  Works  (on  the  Loire) 
is  72  feet  deep,  and  contains  44,000  gallons  of  oil,  which 
is  kept  in  circulation  by  rotary  pumps,  to  prevent  the  oil 
being  unduly  heated  locally  when  the  heated  mass  of 
steel  is  plunged  into  it. 

Now  with  regard  to  projectiles.  To  quote  some  recent 
remarks  of  Lord  Armstrong,'*  "  the  heaviest  shot  used  in 
the  Victory  was  68  pounds,  while  in  the  Victoria  it  will 
be  1800  pounds;  and,  while  the  broadside-fire  from  the 

*  Address  by  Mr.  Baker,  Section  G,  British  Association  Report,  1885, 
p.  1182. 

^   Tunes,  August  19,  1889. 

3   lournal  of  the  Iron  and  Steel  Institute,  1888,  ii;  p.  94. 

■*  Times,  August  3,  1889. 


Nov.  14,  1689] 


NATURE 


37 


Victory  consumed  only  325  pounds  of  powder,  that  from 
the  Victoria  will  consume  3000  pounds.  The  most  for- 
midable projectiles  belong  to  the  highly  carburized  class 
of  steel.  Shells  contain  o"8  to  094  per  cent,  of  carbon, 
and,  in  addition,  some  of  these  have  0*94  to  2  per  cent, 
of  chromium.  The  firm  of  Holtzer  shows,  in  the  Paris 
Exhibition,  a  shell  which  pierced  a  steel  plate  10  inches 
thick,  and  was  found,  nearly  8co  yards  from  the  plate, 
entire  and  without  flaw,  its  point  alone  being  slightly  dis- 
torted. Compound  armour-plate  with  steel  face,  which 
face  contains  o"8  per  cent,  of  carbon,  is,  however,  more 
difficult  to  pierce  than  a  simple  plate  of  steel. 

[A  prominent  feature  in  the  "  trophy,"  among  the  class 
of  highly  carburized  steels  which  contain  over  ^"jj  per 
cent,  of  carbon,  was  a  fine  suspended  wire  y%^^  of  an 
inch  diameter,  of  remarkable  strength,  supporting  a  weight 
of  i\  cwt.,  or  a  load  of  nearly  160  tons  to  the  square 
inch.  The  strength  of  the  same  steel  undrawn^  would 
not  exceed  50  tons  to  the  square  inch.  A  similar  wire 
manufactured  by  the  steel  company  of  Firminy  attracted 
much  attention  in  the  Paris  Exhibition  by  supporting  a 
shell  weighing  i8co  lbs.,  or  a  load  of  158  tons  per  square 
inch.] 

Lastly,  I  will  refer  to  the  highly  carburized  steel  used 
for  the  manufacture  of  dies.  Such  a  steel  should  contain 
0"8  to  I  per  cent,  of  carbon,  and  no  manganese.  It  is 
usual  to  water-harden  and  temper  them  to  a  straw  colour, 
and  a  really  good  die  will  strike  40,000  coins  of  average 
dimensions  without  being  fractured  or  deformed ;  but  I 
am  safe  in  saying  that  if  the  steel  contained  y\j  percent, 
too  much  carbon,  it  would  not  strike  100  pieces  without 
cracking,  and  if  it  contained  ,-5  per  cent,  too  little  carbon, 
it  would  probably  be  hopelessly  distorted,  and  its  engraved 
surface  destroyed,  in  the  attempt  to  strike  a  single  coin. 

The  above  examples  will  be  sufficient  to  show  how 
diverse  are  the  properties  which  carbon  confers  upon  iron, 
but  as  Faraday  said,  in  1822,  "  It  is  not  improbable  that 
there  may  be  other  bodies  besides  charcoal  capable  of 
giving  to  iron  the  properties  of  steel."  The  strange  thing  is 
that  we  do  not  know  with  any  certainty  whether,  in  the 
absence  of  carbon,  other  elements  do  play  the  part  of 
that  metalloid,  in  enabling  iron  to  be  hardened  by  rapid 
cooling.  Take  the  case  of  chromium,  for  instance  : 
chromium-carbon  steels  can,  as  is  well  known,  be  ener- 
getically hardened,  but  Busek  ^  has  recently  asserted  that 
the  addition  of  chromium  to  iron  in  the  absence  of  car- 
bon does  not  enable  the  iron  to  be  hardened  by  rapid 
cooling.  So  far  as  I  can  see,  it  is  only  by  employing  the 
electrical  method  of  Pepys  that  a  decision  can  be  arrived 
at  as  to  the  hardening  properties  of  elements  other  than 
carbon. 

A  few  words  must  be  devoted  to  the  consideration  of  the 
colours  which,  as  I  said  (see  attte,  p.  11),  direct  the  artist 
in  tempering  or  reducing  the  hardness  of  steel  to  any  deter- 
minate standard.  The  technical  treatises  usually  give — 
not  always  accurately,  as  Reiser  ^  has  shown — a  scale  of 
temperature  ranging  from  220"  to  330"^,  at  which  various 
tints  appear,  passing  from  very  pale  yellow  to  brown  yellow, 
purples,  and  blues,  to  blue  tinged  with  green,  and  finally  to 
grey.  Barus  and  StrouhaF  point  out  that  it  is  possible 
that  the  colour  of  the  oxide  film  may  afford  an  indication 
of  the  temper  of  steel  of  far  greater  critical  sensitiveness 
than  has  hitherto  been  supposed.  It  is,  however,  at 
present  uncertain  how  far  time,  temperature,  and  colour 
are  correlated,  but  the  question  is  being  investigated  by 
Mr.  Turner,  formerly  one  of  my  own  students  at  the 
School  of  Mines. 

That  the  colours  produced  are  really  due  to  oxidation 
was  shown  by  Sir  Humphry  Davy  in  i8i3,'»  but  the  nature 

'  Stahl  und  Eisen,  ix.  1889,  p.  728. 

^  "Das  Harten  des  Stahles,"  p.  78  (Leipzig,  1881).  See  also  Loewenherz, 
Zeitschrift  fiir  Instruinentenknnde,  ix.,  1889,  p.  322. 

3  Bull.  U.S .  Ceo.  Survey,  No.  27,  18S6,  p.  51. 

^  Sir  Humphry  Davey,  Thomson's  Ann.  Phil.,  i.,  1813,  p.  131  ;  quoted 
by  Turner,  Proc.  Phil.  Soc,  Birmingham,  vi.,  1889,  part  2. 


of  the  film  has  been  the  subject  of  much  controversy. 
Barus  points  out  that  "the  oxygen  molecule  does  not 
penetrate  deeper  than  a  few  thousand  times  its  own 
dimensions,^  and  that  it  probably  passes  through  the  film 
by  a  process  allied  to  liquid  diffusion.  The  permeable 
depth  increases  rapidly  with  the  temperature,  until  at  an 
incipient  red  heat  the  film  is  sufficiently  thick  to  be 
brittle  and  liable  to  rupture,  whereupon  the  present  phe- 
nomenon ceases,  or  is  repeated  in  irregular  succession. 

Looking  back  over  all  the  facts  we  have  dealt  with,  it 
will  be  evident  that  two  sets  of  considerations  are  of 
special  importance :  (i)  those  which  belong  to  the  rela- 
tions of  carbon  and  iron,  and  (2)  those  which  contem- 
plate molecular  change  in  the  iron  itself.  The  first  ot 
these  has  been  deliberately  subordinated  to  the  second, 
although  it  would  have  been  possible  to  have  written 
much  in  support  of  the  view  that  carburized  iron  is  an 
alloy  of  carbon  and  iron,  and  to  have  traced  with  Guthrie 
the  analogies  which  alloys,  in  cooling,  present  to  cooling 
masses  of  igneous  rocks,  such  as  granite,  which,  as  the 
temperature  of  the  mass  falls,  throws  off  "  atomically 
definite  "  -  bodies,  leaving  behind  a  fluid  mass  of  indefi 
nite  composition,  from  which  the  quartz  and  feldspar 
solidify  before  the  mica.  This  view  has  been  developed 
with  much  ability  in  relation  to  carburized  iron  by  Prof 
Howe,  of  Boston,  who  even  suggests  mineralogical 
names,  such  as  "  cementite,"  "  perlite,"  and  "  ferrite,"  for 
the  various  associations  of  carbon  and  iron. 

I  am  far  from  wishing  to  ignore  the  interest  presented 
by  such  analogies,  but  I  believe  that  the  possibility  of  mole- 
cular change  in  the  iron  itself,  which  results  in  its  passage 
into  a  distinctive  form  of  iron,  is  at  present  the  more  im- 
portant subject  for  consideration,  not  merely  in  relation 
to  iron,  but  as  regards  the  wider  question  of  allotropy  in 
metals  generally. 

Many  facts  noted  in  spectroscopic  work  will  have,  as 
Lockyer  has  shown,  indicated  the  high  probability  that 
the  molecular  structure  of  a  metal  like  iron  is  gradually 
simplified  as  higher  temperatures  are  employed.  These 
various  simplifications  may  be  regarded  as  allotropic 
modifications. 

The  question  of  molecular  change  in  solid  metals 
urgently  demands  continued  and  rigorous  investigation. 
Every  chemist  knows  how  much  his  science  has 
gained,  and  what  important  discoveries  have  been  made 
in  it,  by  the  recognition  of  the  fact  that  the  elements 
act  on  each  other  in  accordance  with  the  great  law  of 
Mendeleeff  which  states  that  the  properties  of  the  elements 
are  periodic  functions  of  their  atomic  weights.  I  firmly 
believe  that  it  will  be  shown  that  the  relation  between 
small  quantities  of  elements  and  the  masses  in  which  they 
are  hidden  is  not  at  variance  with  the  same  law.  I  have 
elsewhere  tried  to  show  ■'  that  this  may  be  true,  by  exa- 
mining the  effect  of  small  quantities  of  impurity  on  the 
tenacity  of  gold. 

In  the  case  of  iron,  it  is  difficult  to  say  what  property 
of  the  metal  will  be  most  affected  by  the  added  matter. 
Possibly  the  direct  connection  with  the  periodic  law  will 
be  traced  by  the  effect  of  a  given  element  in  retarding  or 
promoting  the  passage  of  ordinary  iron  to  an  allotropic 
state  ;  but  "  the  future  of  steel  "  will  depend  on  the  care 
with  which  we  investigate  the  nature  of  the  influence 
exerted  by  various  elements  on  iron,  and  on  the  thermal 
treatment  to  which  it  may  most  suitably  be  subjected. 

Is  it  not  strange  that  so  many  researches  should  have 
been  devoted  to  the  relations  between  carbon,  hydrogen, 
and  oxygen  in  organic  compounds,  so  few  to  the  relations 
of  iron  and  carbon,  and  hardly  any  to  iron  in  association 
with  other  elements  ?  I  think  that  the  reason  for  the  com- 
parative neglect  of  metals  as  subjects  of  research  arises 

'  Bull.  U.S.  Geo.  Sun>ey,  No.  35* "^886,  p.  51. 

2  Phil.  Mag.,  June  1884,  p.  462. 

3  Phil.  Trans.  Roy.  Sbc.,  clxxi.t.,  i8«^,  p.  339- 


38 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  14,  1889 


from  the  belief  that  methods  which  involve  working  at 
high  temperatures  are  necessarily  inaccurate  ;  but  the 
school  of  Ste.  Claire-Deville  has  shown  that  they  are  not, 
and  there  are  signs  among  us  that  our  traditional  love  for 
the  study  of  metals  is  reviving.  Of  course  it  cannot  be 
that  chemists  and  physicists  are  afraid  "that  science  will 
be  degraded  by  being  applied  to  any  purpose  of  vulgar 
utihty/'  for  I  trust  that  I  shall  at  least  have  shown  that 
the  empire  over  matter,  and  the  true  advancement  of 
science,  which  I  suppose  is  the  object  of  all  research,  may 
be  as  certainly  secured  in  the  field  of  metallurgy  as  in 
any  other. 


PROF.   WEISMANN'S  "  ESSA  YS." 

■pROF.  WEISMANN'S  suggestions  are,  with  reason, 
-*■  universally  recognized  as  being  most  important  and 
valuable  ;  nevertheless  certain  questions  treated  of  by  him 
seem  to  me  to  require  further  solution,  and  at  present  to 
constitute  difficulties  which  oppose  themselves  to  an 
entire  acceptance  of  his  hypotheses. 

Death  in  the  Metazoa  is,  according  to  him,  due  (new 
translation.  Clarendon  Press,  p.  21)  to  the  cells  of  their 
tissues  having  ceased  to  be  able  to  reproduce  themselves — 
in  "  the  limitation  of  their  powers  of  reproduction."  Such 
a  cessation  may  be  an  inevitable  result  of  an  excessive 
amount  of  work  or  efficiency  on  their  part,  and  "the 
advantages  gained  by  the  whole  organism  "  might,  as  he 
says  (p.  61),  "  more  than  compensate  for  the  disadvantages 
which  follow  from  the  disappearance  of  single  cells." 

But  granting  all  this,  how  did  such  a  process  begin  1 
Some  Metazoon  must  have  been  the  first  to  die  through 
this  failure  of  reproduction  in  its  component  tissue-cells. 
Yet  if  the  Protozoa  were,  and  are  (as  Prof.  Weismann  re- 
presents), naturally  immortal,  the  first  Metazoa  must  have 
been  entirely  composed  of  immortal  cells,  and  therefore 
themselves  potentially  immortal.  Granted  that  cell- 
aggregations  become  every  now  and  then  accidentally 
dissolved,  that  would  be  "  accidental  death."  Why  should 
natural  death  arise,  and,  if  it  did,  what  advantage  could 
ensue  from  the  failure  of  cell-reproduction  .''  It  could  not 
benefit  the  race,  because  as  yet  there  was  no  race,  but 
only  individual  clusters  of  naturally  immortal  cells  which 
had  happened  to  divide  imperfectly.  The  Professor  tells 
us  (p.  29)  it  is  "  conceivable  that  all  cells  may  possess  the 
power  of  refusing  to  absorb  nutriment,  and  therefore  of 
ceasing  to  undergo  further  division."'  But  how  and  why 
should  a  cell  begin,  for  the  very  first  time,  to  practice  this 
abstinence  ?  That  it  should  do  so,  is,  of  course,  like 
many  other  things  "  conceivable,"  but  to  my  judgment  it 
does  not  appear  credible.  Of  course  when  once  we  have 
a  race  of  mortal  organisms  propagating  by  germ  cells,  it 
is  easy  enough  to  understand  how  such  a  race  would  be 
benefited  by  the  death  of  the  "  useless  mouths  "  belong- 
ing to  it,  and  therefore  by  the  cessation  of  the  tissue- 
reproduction  which  leads  to  such  death.  The  difficulty 
lies  in  the  natural  death  of  the  very  first  Metazoa  which 
ever  lived.  Here,  as  in  so  many  cases,  it  is  "  the  first 
step  "  which  tries  us.  How,  from  this  perennial  race  of 
microscopic  immortals,  are  we  to  obtain  our  first  Metazoon 
naturally  mortal  ? 

By  the  hypothesis,  each  component  cell  consists  of  a 
form  of  protoplasm  which  has  the  power  of  growing  and 
dividing.  It  is  not  easy  to  see  how  the  mere  coalescence 
of  such  cells  can  lead  any  one,  or  any  set,  of  such  cells 
to  acquire  an  altogether  new  power — that  of  reproducing 
the  whole  complex  organism  of  which  it  has  come  to  be 
a  part?  The  Professor  tells  us  (p.  27)  that  probably 
"  these  units  soon  lost  their  primitive  homogeneity.  As 
the  result  of  mere  relative  position,  some  of  the  cells 
were  especially  fitted  to  provide  for  the  nutrition  of  the 
colony,  while  others  undertook  the  work  of  reproduction." 
Referring  to   M agosphcpra  planuln,   he  snys  (p.  75) : — 


"  Division  of  labour  would  produce  a  differentiation  of  the 
single  cells  in  such  a  colony  :  thus  certain  cells  would  be  set 
apart  for  obtaining  food  and  for  locomotion,  while  certain 
other  cells  would  be  exclusively  reproductive."  But  how 
can  the  fact  of  a  cell  happening  to  fall  into  a  position 
"especially  fitted"  for  the  performance  of  a  certain  func- 
tion, lead  to  its  performing  this  function  ?  Supposing 
that  the  physical  influences  of  the  environment  have 
modified  the  arrangement,  or  cohesion,  size,  or  number  of 
molecules  in  a  cell,  or  modified  their  molecular  motions, 
how  can  such  influences  give  it  a  power,  not  of  repro- 
ducing its  thus  "  acquired  "  characters,  or  the  characters 
of  the  cell  before  it  becomes  thus  differentiated,  but  of 
reproducing  the  whole  organism  whereof  it  forms  a  part 't 
Is  it  credible  that  any  impacts  and  reactions  thus  occa- 
sioned should  produce  so  marvellous  a  result  .^  I  do  not 
know  any  phenomena  in  Nature  which  could  warrant  us 
in  entertaining  such  a  belief. 

Of  course,  if  we  were  dealing  with  races  of  creatures 
sexually  reproduced,  it  is  conceivable  enough  that,  out  of 
multitudinous,  indefinite,  minute  accidental  changes  in  the 
arrangements  of  the  molecules  of  their  germs,  favourable 
arrangements  might  be  selected  in  the  struggle  for  life. 
But  we  are  here  concerned  with  nothing  of  the  kind,  but 
with  the  first  appearance  of  the  earliest  Metazoa  repro 
duced.  If  we  meditate  on  the  conditions  affirmed  by  the 
Professor  to  have  produced  that  origin,  it  will,  I  think, 
be  clear  that  no  hypothesis  suggested  by  him  will  answei 
the  question  how  any  of  the  cells  of  the  first  coherent 
colonies  came  to  reproduce,  not  such  cells  as  their  ances- 
tors (or,  rather,  the  earlier  living  portions  of  their  very 
selves)  had  by  countless  processes  of  fission  produced, 
but  a  whole  "  cell-colony,"  such  as  that  whereof  they  had, 
by  the  hypothesis,  for  the  first  time  come  to  form  a  part. 

With  respect  to  the  immortality  of  Monoplastides  and 
the  question  of  death  generally,  he  (the  Professor)  makes 
various  remarks  which  do  not  appear  to  be  satisfactory. 
The  process  of  spontaneous  fission,  he  says  (p.  25), 
"  cannot  be  truly  called  death.  .  .  Nothing  dies,  the  body 
of  the  animal  only  divides  into  two  similar  parts  possessing 
the  same  constitution."  Where  such  a  perfect  similarit\ 
exists  we  n;ay  say  not  only  that  there  is  no  death,  but  also 
that  there  is  no  birth.  In  some  of  the  Monoplastides,  how 
ever,  the  relationship  between  parent  and  offspring  does 
exist,  but  this,  of  course,  need  not  necessarily  involve 
death  ;  as  we  see  in  higher  species  and  in  our  own.  But 
the  fact  that  death  does  not  take  place  during,  or  soon 
after,  fission,  does  not  prove  that  death  never  naturally 
occurs  at  all,  and  that  the  cell  can  balance  its  metabolism 
indefinitely.  Very  likely  it  may  be  able  so  to  do,  but  this 
can  hardly  be  affirmed  to  be  an  absolute  certainty.  What 
may  be  certainly  affirmed  is  that  reproduction  by  fission 
does  not  entail  death  to  the  degree  that  sexual  reproduction 
entails  it.  But  reproduction  by  gemmation  may  equally 
fail  to  entail  death  ;  as  we  see  in  the  parthenogenetic 
Aphis  and  many  Hydrozoa. 

In  Eiig/ypha  we  can,  as  Prof.  Weismann  admits  (p.  64), 
recognize  the  daughter  cell  (which  is  for  a  time  without  a 
nucleus,  and  we  also  find  a  very  marked  distinction 
between  the  segments  of  transversely  dividing  Infusorians  ; 
where  one  has  to  form  a  new  mouth  and  the  other  a 
new  anus. 

After  all  that  can  be  urged,  then,  in  contrasting  the 
multiphcation  by  fission  of  Monoplastides  with  reproduc- 
tion in  the  life- cycle  of  Polyplastides,  there  seems  to  me 
to  be  more  of  a  true  reproductive  process  in  the  former 
than  the  Professor  is  disposed  to  allow.  In  some  Heliozoa 
and  Ciliata  we  have  all  the  complexity  of  indirect  nucleus 
division  by  karyokinesis,  while  in  Euglypha  we  have  cell 
division  without  any  antecedent  separation  of  the  nucleus- 
into  two  parts.  Of  course  it  is  easy  enough  to  understand 
how  a  mere  augmentation  in  bulk  may  overcome  cohesion,, 
how  internal  molecular  arrangement  may  cause  cleavage 
along  definite  lines,  and,  perhaps,  even  how  such  cleavage- 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


39 


may  be  insured  through  an  increase  of  mass  in  proportion 
to  a  relatively  diminishing  surface  nutrition.  But  such  a 
division  would  be  much  simpler  than  a  process  of  karyo- 
kinesis,  and  certainly  than  the  formation  of  a  new  mouth 
and  a  new  anus.  Here  there  is  no  question  of  a  part  (p.  73) 
growing  "  to  resemble  the  whole,"  comparable  to  the  re- 
growth,  by  crystallization,  to  replace  a  fragment  broken 
irom  a  crystal.  We  have  a  whole  which  divides  itself  in 
such  a  way  as  to  initiate  and  carry  out  a  progressively 
increasing  difference— 2i  difference  between  the  two  parts 
dividing,  and  a  difference  (but  a  different  kind  of  difference) 
between  each  such  part  and  the  previously  existing 
whole. 

Passing  from  the  consideration  of  the  immortality  of 
Monoplastides  to  the  mortality  of  Polyplastides,  I  cannot 
see  my  way  to  accept  the  Professor's  definition  (p.  114) 
of  death  :  "  An  arrest  of  life,  from  which  no  lengthened 
revival,  either  of  the  whole  or  any  of  its  parts,  can  take 
place,''  nor  can  I  agree  to  his  assertion  {loc.  cit.)  that 
death  '•'  depends  upon  the  fact  that  the  death  of  the  cells 
and  tissues  follows  upon  the  cessation  of  the  vital  func- 
tions .as  a  whole."  If  we  cut  up  a  Begonia  plant  or  a 
Hydra  into  small  parts,  such  an  individual  Hydra  or 
Begonia  cannot  surely  be  considered  as  still  alive,  because 
fresh  Hydrce  or  Begonice  may  spring  from  such  frag- 
ments. Similarly  with  higher  organisms,  it  would  be  pre- 
posterous to  say  that  a  man  was  not  dead  because  a 
post-viorteni,  inferior  kind  of  life — such  as  can  alone  be 
manifested  in  very  lowly  structures — was  still  persisting 
in  the  cells  of  his  tissues  ! 

No  doubt,  as  the  Professor  says,  we  cannot  have  death 
without  a  corpse,  but  the  tissues  and  cells  of  the  corpse 
may  still  retain  a  certain  sort  of  life  without  the  corpse 
being  any  the  less  a  corpse  on  account  of  that  cir- 
cumstance. 

But  if  life  of  some  sort  may  be,  as  we  agree,  affirmed 
of  such  cells,  can  we  deny  it  absolutely  (since  no  one 
comprehends  it)  even  to  the  molecules  of  the  cells  ?  But 
body-tissues  of  lower  Vertebrates  may  retain  such  life  for 
a  very  long  time.  If,  then,  such  a  Vertebrate  be  devoured 
by  another  animal,  who  would  venture  to  affirm  that  it  is 
impossible  that  some  of  the  micellae  or  tagmat?.,  or  at  least 
the  molecules  of  some  of  the  cells  of  the  creature  devoured 
may  not  pass,  while  still  retaining  a  sort  of  life,  into  the 
tissues  of  the  devourer.''  Even  tagmata  must  be  small 
enough  to  traverse  the  tissues,  and  can  the  possibility  that 
they  may  enter  into  their  composition  while  still  living  be 
dogmatically  denied .'  May  we  not  affirm  the  certainty 
of  the  death  of  the  animal  devoured  till  we  are  sure  of 
the  impossibility  of  the  survival  of  any  of  the  molecules 
of  its  cells  ? 

No  doubt  the  Professor  would  refer  us  to  MagosphcEra 
as  presenting  phenomena  (so  far  as  regards  its  cells) 
which  support  his  view.  He  says  (p.  126)  : — "The  dis- 
solution of  a  cell  colony,  with  its  component  living 
elements,  can  only  be  death  in  the  most  figurative  sense, 
and  can  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  real  death  of 
the  individuals  ;  it  only  consists  of  a  change  from  a 
higher  to  a  lower  stage  of  individuality.  .  .  .  Nothing 
concrete  dies  in  the  dissolution  of  Magosphcera ;  there  is 
no  death  of  a  cell  colony,  but  only  of  a  conception."  But 
surely  it  cannot  be  the  same  thing  "  to  exist  in  a  coherent 
interrelated  mass  bound  together  by  a  common  jelly,"  and 
"to  exist  in  separate  parts,  living  independently  without 
interrelations,  and  not  bound  together  by  a  common 
jelly."  If  there  is  here  "death  of  a  conception,"  there 
must  be  an  external  objective  death  corresponding  there- 
with. Magosphcera  is  a  very  lowly  organism,  and  its  life 
can  be  very  little  better  than  that  of  a  Monoplastid, 
because  its  structure  is  very  little  more  complex.  It  is 
not  wonderful,  then,  that  there  is  very  little  difference 
between  its  existence  and  the  existence  of  its  post-mortem 
surviving  cells.  Yet  the  difference  must  be  allowed  to 
■be,  however  diverse  in  degree,  like  that  in  the  higher 


animals.  Let  us  suppose  that  half  a  dozen  higher  animals 
could  be  so  divided  that  no  two  cells  remained  in  con- 
tiguity, yet  that  every  cell  could  retain  2. post-mortem  life 
such  that  by  reuniting  they  could  build  up  other  indi- 
viduals. Would  it  be  reasonable  to  affirm  that  the  higher 
animals  thus  segmented  had  not  been  killed,  or  that  when 
their  cells  had  reunited — possibly  in  very  different  com- 
binations— the  individual  animals  were  the  same  ones  as 
before?  An  extreme  illustration  often  best  seems  to  bring 
out  the  force  and  significance  of  a  principle. 

The  Ortho?iectides,\-ti&rre(\.  to  (p.  126)  by  the  Professor 
in  controversy  with  Gotte,  hardly  illustrate  the  question 
here  discussed,  but  we  note  with  much  interest  and  satisfac- 
tion that  he  is  inclined  to  regard  them  as  arrested  larvJE, 
Leuckart  having  found  them  ^  greatly  to  resemble  the 
new-born  young  of  Distoina,  as  Gegenbaur  has  found 
that  the  Dicyemids  are  like  a  stage  in  the  development 
of  the  Platyhelminthes.  If  this  interpretation  is,  as  it 
probably  is,  correct,  we  have  here  an  interesting  example 
of  what  we  find  in  such  Batrachians  as  Axolotl  and 
Triton  a/pestris.  1  am  inclined  to  look  at  illenobratichus, 
Proteus,  and  Siren  as  larval  forms  which  have  now  alto- 
gether ceased  to  assume  what  was  once  the  adult  stage 
of  their  existence- 
Prof.  Weismann's  hypothesis  concerning  heredity  is 
certainly  the  best  which  has  yet  been  proposed,  but  I 
have  not  met  with  any  reference  to  that  proposed  by  Sir 
Richard  Owen  forty  years  ago.*  It  is  now  out  of  date, 
and  his  references  are  not  of  course  expressly  to  "germ- 
plasm,"  but  to  the  contents  of  germ-cells.  Nevertheless, 
there  is  an  undeniable  resemblance  between  the  two  hypo- 
theses, and  any  interested  in  Prof.  Weismann's  would  do 
well  to  read  over  Owen's  small  volume  on  the  same 
problem. 

But  the  complexity  of  Prof.  Weismann's  hypothesis  is 
such  as  to  approach,  if  it  does  not  even  exceed,  that  of 
pangenesis  itself 

He  tells  us  (p.  191):  "Every  detail  of  the  whole  organism 
must  be  represented  in  the  germ-plasm  by  its  own  special 
and  peculiar  arrangement  of  the  groups  of  molecules,' 
and  (p.  146)  that  "  the  number  of  generations  of  somatic 
cells  which  can  succeed  one  another  in  the  course  of  a 
single  life,  is  predetermined  in  the  germ.''  Moreover 
none  of  these  circumstances  can  be  explained  by  any 
difference  of  quality,'*  but  must  be  exclusively  due  to  the 
size,  number,  and  arrangement  of  the  component  parts. 
Now,  if  we  consider  what  must  be  the  complexity  of  con- 
ditions requisite  to  determine  once  for  all  in  the  germ  the 
precise  number  of  all  the  succeeding  cells  of  epithelial 
tissue,  including  every  one  of  the  rapidly  succeeding  cells 
of  glandular  epithelium,  and  every  blood  corpuscle  of  the 
whole  of  life  ;  to  necessitate  also  every  modification  of 
structure  which  may  successively  appear  in  polymorphic 
organisms,  which  change  again  and  again  profoundly 
between  the  &gg  and  the  imago  ;  to  arrange,  at  starting, 
the  successive  very  complex  changes  of  arrangement 
which  must  be  necessary  to  build  up  reflex  mechanisms 

I  "Zur  Entwicklungsgeschichte  des  Leberegels,"  .^f>o/.  Anzci£;er,  1881, 

P-  99- 

'  In  this  connection  may  be  noted  a  pa^^sage  which  occurs  on  p.  26*5  of 
Prof.  A.  C.  riaddon's  excellent  introduction  to  the  study  of  embyology. 
Sollas  is  there  quoted  as  saying  that  a  longer  mature  life  is  possessed  by 
those  forms  which  are  "  saved  from  the  drudgery  of  a  larval  ex.stence."  It 
would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  Rana  opisthodon  is  longer  lived  than 
its  congeners,  s  nee  it  has  nj  tadpole  stage  of  life. 

3  See  his  work  "On  Parthenogenesis"  (Van  Voorst,  1849).  There  we 
read: — "Not  all  the  progeny  of  the  primary  impregnated  germ-cell  are 
required  for  the  formation  of  the  body  in  all  animals.  Certain  of  its  deriva- 
tive germ-cells  may  remain  unchanged  and  become  included  in  the  body 
which  has  been  composed  of  their  metamorphosed  and  diversely  combined  or 
confluent  brethren  ;  so  included,  any  derivative  germ-cell  or  the  nucleus  of 
such  may  commence  and  repeat  the  same  processes,"  &c.  (p.  5).  At  p.  68  he 
speaks  of  "  ihe  retention  of  some  of  the  primary  germ-vesicles  "  Finally,  on 
p.  72,  he  says  : — "'  Ho*  the  retained  spermatic  force  operates  in  the  formation 
of  a  new  germ-process  from  a  ^econdary,  tertiary,  or  quaternary  derivative 
germ-cell  or  nucieiis,  1  do  not  profess  to  explain  ;  neither  is  it  known  how  it 
operates  in  developing  the  primary  germ  mass  Irom  the  impregnated  germ- 
vesicle  of  the  ovum.  In  both  we  witness  centres  of  repulsion  and  of  attraction 
antagoQ  z'ng  to  produce  a  definite  result." 

4  P.  loi,  where  the  existence  of  "quality"  is  denied. 


40 


NATURE 


{Nov.  14,  1889 


capable,  not  only  of  compelling  complex  instinctive 
actions  occurring  at  one  time  of  life,  but  of  so  successively 
changing  as  to  be  able  successively  to  make  necessary 
the  successively  occurring  very  different  instinctive  actions 
of  different  periods  of  life,  as  e.g.  in  Sitaris.  But  this  is  by 
no  means  all.  The  arrangement  of  the  molecules  must  be 
such  as  not  only  to  effect  all  this,  but  also  all  the  consti- 
tutional pathological  inherited  modifications  which  are  to 
arise  at  different  periods  of  life,  and  all  the  capabilities 
of  reaction  upon  stimuli  of  every  cell,  of  every  tissue, 
and  every  predisposition  an  organism  may  possess — 
"predisposition"  and  "capacity"  being  nothing  more 
than  names  for  a  certain  collocation  of  particles  so  built 
up  as  inevitably  to  fall  down  into  other  collocations — upon 
shock  and  impact — the  original  collocation  again  being 
such  as  to  insure  not  only  that  the  first  ensuing  collocation 
from  impact  shall  be  of  an  appropriately  definite  kind,  but 
that  its  definiteness  shall  be  such  as  to  insure  that  all  the 
succeeding  varied  collocations  from  successive  impacts 
shall  also  be  appropriately  definite.  I  confess  I  do  not 
believe  that  such  a  collocation  of  particles  is  possible.^ 

This,  however,  is,  after  all,  only  a  portion  of  the  difficulty 
from  complication,  necessarily  involved  in  Prof.  Weis- 
mann's  hypothesis  of  germ-plasm.  For  we  have  to  consider 
the  modifying  effect  on  the  germ-plasm  produced  by  its 
effecting  those  developmental  changes  which  it  is  its 
own  business  to  effect.  After  speaking  of  the  great 
complexity  of  the  germ-plasm  in  higher  animals,  he  goes 
on  (p.  191)  to  say: — "This  complexity  must  gradually 
diminish  during  ontogeny,  as  the  structures  still  to  be 
formed  from  any  cell,  and  therefore  represented  in 
the  molecular  constitution  of  the  nucleoplasm,  become 
less  in  numbers ;  .  .  .  the  complexity  of  the  molecular 
structure  decreases  as  the  potentiality  for  further  deve- 
lopment also  decreases,  such  potentiality  being  repre- 
sented in  the  molecular  structure  of  the  nucleus." 

According  to  the  hypothesis,  the  whole  organism  at 
every  stage  of  its  existence  is  but  a  collocation  of  mole- 
cules of  different  sizes  most  complexly  arranged.  Amongst 
them,  during  development,  are  the  portions  of  germ- 
plasm,  everywhere  building  up  the  increasingly  complex 
structures  of  the  developing  body,  while  they  themselves 
are  simultaneously  decreasing  in  complexity  of  compo- 
sition. Now,  it  seems  somewhat  difficult  to  conceive  of 
such  a  mass,  which  may  thus  be  said  to  both  decrease 
and  increase  simultaneously  in  complexity,  both  centri- 
petally  and  centrifugally,  and  yet  to  preserve  its  com- 
plexity both  centrally  and  sporadically,  as  must  be  the 
case  in  order  to  effect  sexual  reproduction  and  such  repair 
of  tissues  after  injury,  as  the  organism  may  be  capable  of 
Prof  Weismann  continues  : — "  The  development  of  the 
nucleoplasm  during  ontogeny  may  be,  to  some  extent, 
compared  to  an  army  composed  of  corps  which  are  made 
up  of  divisions,  and  these  of  brigades,  and  so  on.  The 
whole  army  may  be  taken  to  represent  the  nuceloplasm  of 
the  germ-cell :  the  earliest  cell-division  (as  into  the  first 
cells  of  the  ectoderm  and  endoderm)  may  be  represented 
by  the  separation  of  the  two  corps,  similarly  formed,  but 
with  different  duties  :  and  the  following  cell-divisions  by 
the  successive  detachment  of  divisions,  brigades,  regi- 
ments, battalions,  companies,  &c.  ;  and  as  the  groups 
become  simpler  so  does  their  sphere  of  action  become 
limited.  It  must  be  admitted  that  this  metaphor  is  im- 
perfect in  two  respects  :  first,  because  the  quantity  of  the 
nucleoplasm  is  not  diminished,  but  only  its  complexity  ; 
and,  secondly,  because  the  strength  of  an  army  chiefly 
depends  upon  its  numbers,  not  on  the  complexity  of  its 

'  Prof.  Weismann  sees  clearly  enough  the  fatal  complexity  of  the  parallel 
hypothesis  of  Nageli,  who  would  explain  all  this  by  "conditions  of  tension 
and  movement."  "  How  many  different  conditions  of  tension,"  our  author 
remarks  (p.  182),  "  ought  to  be  possessed  by  one  and  the  same  idioplasm,  in 
order  to  correspond  to  the  thousand  different  structures  and  differentiations 
of  cells  in  one  of  the  higher  organisms?  In  fact,  it  would  be  hardly  pos- 
sible to  form  even  an  approximate  conception  of  an  explanation  based  upon 
mere  conditions  of  tension  and  movement." 


constitution."  A  better  illustration  of  the  Professor's  con- 
ception would  seem  to  be  that  of  an  army  very  complexly 
organized  sending  off  successively  regiments  of  different 
kinds,  but  always  retaining  in  the  centre  a  few  men  of 
all  arms,  and  always  being  recruited  by  rustics  (the  food 
of  the  germ-plasm),  who  become  organized  by  the  central 
reserve  of  all  arms  retained  for  that  purpose. 

But  how,  according  to  this  or  any  other  conceivable 
illustration,  are  we  to  understand  the  germ-plasm  becom- 
ing simplified  by  forming  tissues  and  organs,  and  then 
regaining  its  complexity  so  as  to  be  able  to  effect  the 
various  reparative  growths  which  constantly  take  place 
after  non-fatal  injuries  ?  Or  if  we  are  to  deem  that  the 
germ-plasm  only  regains  a  portion  of  its  complexity — one 
portion  in  one  place,  another  in  another — how  can  we 
conceive  of  the  germ-plasm  being  so  divided  that  each 
part  of  the  body  has  just  that  portion  of  germ-plasm 
which  is  needed  for  its  reproduction,  in  spite  of  that  being 
the  very  portion  which  we  might  expect  to  have  been 
exhausted,  since  it  is  it  which  has  built  up  that  part  of 
the  body. 

Moreover,  all  these  processes  of  succession,  'pro- 
gression, simplification,  and  possible  recomplication,  of 
the  germ-plasm  itself,  must,  according  to  the  hypothesis, 
have  been  laid  down  and  necessitated  in  the  first  original 
collocation  of  the  molecules  of  the  germ.  This  seems  to 
me  to  exceed  the  bounds  of  credibility.^ 

But  if  the  hypothesis  of  germ-plasm  be  deemed  one 
involving  too  much  complexity  for  belief— that  is,  if  the 
conditions  supposed  by  it  are  deemed  inadequate  to  explain 
the  results  of  sexual  ontogeny — the  hypothesis  seems  yet 
more  unsatisfactory  with  respect  to  processes  of  repara- 
tive growth  and  reproduction  by  gemmation.  This  is  a 
subject  the  Professor  has  not  yet  expressly  treated,  and 
therefore  some  suggestions  with  respect  to  its  dif^culties 
may  be  welcome  to  him,  as  showing  what  elucidations 
some  minds  seem  to  require.  He,  however,  tells  us  (pp. 
197,  211,  and  322)  that  such  processes  of  growth  are  due 
to  the  presence  of  germ-plasm,  and  of  course  not  so  to 
hold  would  be  to  abandon  his  hypothesis.  It  is,  however, 
difficult  to  understand  how  we  can  thus  account  for  the 
reproduction  of  a  human  elbow  with  a  joint  structurally 
and  functionally  much  as  the  old  one  (see  "  On  Truth," 
pp.  170-17 1).  Are  we  to  understand  that  germ-plasm  in 
all  its  complexity  was  there  ?  If  so,  is  it  universally  dif- 
fused through  the  organism  as  well  as  present  in  the  sexual 
glands,  and  why  does  it  not  produce  rather  an  embryo 
than  an  elbow-joint  ?  linof,  how  comes  it  that  the  germ- 
plasm  present  happened  to  have  the  complexity  needed 
to  effect  that  which  was,  anatomically  and  physiologic- 
ally, effected  ?  With  respect  to  germination  generally,  the 
Professor  says  (p.  322)  :— "  The  germ-plasm  which  passes 
on  into  a  budding  individual,  consists,  not  only  of  the 
unchanged  idioplasm  of  the  first  ontogenetic  stage  (germ- 
plasm),  but  of  this  substance  altered  so  far  as  to  corre- 
spond with  the  altered  structure  of  the  individual  which 
arises  from  it,  viz.  the  rootless  shoot  which  springs  from  the 
stem  or  branches.  The  alteration  must  be  very  shght, 
and  perhaps  quite  insignificant,  for  it  is  possible  that  the 
difference  between  the  secondary  shoots  and  the  primary 
plant  may  chiefly  depend  upon  the  changed  conditions  of 
development,^  which  takes  place  beneath  the  earth  in  the 
latter  case  and  in  the  tissues  of  the  plant  in  the  former." 

'  The  term  "  Zielstrebig,"  as  one  used  to  denote  a  practically  teleological 
process  which  is  not  really  teleological,  is  a  remarkable  example  of  the  mode  in 
which  we  are  led  to  regard  the  invention  of  a  new  name  as  an  explanation. 

2  The  remarkable  readiness  with  which  the  fertile  mind  of  Prof.  Weismann 
excogitates  hypotheses  on  hypotheses  to  explain  away  difficuhies  is  rather 
remarkably  shown  by  the  way  in  which  he  tries  to  obviate  the  objection  to 
his  view  as  to  parthenogenesis,  which  arises  from  the  fact  that  in  the  bee  the 
same  egg  will  develop  into  a  drone  or  not.  according  as  it  has  or  ha3  not 
been  fertilized.  This  would  seem  to  emphatically  contradict  his  doctrine,  that 
the  one  cause  of  parthenogenesis  is  the  greater  amount  of  germ-plasm  which 
exists  in  parthenogenetic  eggs  than  in  ordinary  ones.  He  meets  this  by  sug- 
gesting (p.  237)  that  if  the  spermatozoon  reaches  the  egg  it  may,  iinder  the 
stimulus  of  internal  causes,  grow  to  double  its  size,  thus  obtaining  the 
dimensions  of  the  segmentation  nucleus."    What  may  not  be  thus  explained? 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NA  TURE 


41 


Surely  this  is  a  very  inadequate  and  even  misleading  state- 
ment of  the  matter.  It  is  surely  inconceivable  that  a  por- 
tion of  protoplasm  should  be  affected  in  these  diverse  but 
most  definitely  diverse  ways  by  the  environment  of  earth 
and  plant-tissues  respectively.  The  radicle  and  plumule 
are  formed  {e.g.  in  the  bean)  while  still  surrounded  by  the 
tissues  of  the  parent  plant,  but  no  radicle  is  formed  in  a 
growth  by  gemmation.  Even  if  in  all  cases  a  radicle  was 
formed,  which  radicle  became  largely  developed  under 
the  stimulus  of  earth-environment,  it  would  be  difficult  to 
understand  why  it  should  atrophy  or  metamorphose  itself 
within  those  very  plant-tissues  under  the  influence  of 
which  it  was  itself  first  formed. 

Again,  as  regards  the  Begonia  leaf,  if  it  is  such  germ- 
plasm  as  Prof.  Weismann  conceives  of,  which  determines 
the  development  of  such  a  leaf  into  a  plant,  what  can  be  sup- 
posed to  make  it  different  from  the  germ-plasm  of  the  seed  ? 
However  complex  may  be  the  germ-plasm  of  Begonia, 
it  must  be  a  definite  complexity.  The  germ-plasm  cannot 
be  simultaneously  built  up  in  two  different  ways.  But  a 
molecular  arrangement  which  compels  growth  from  a 
seed  cannot  possibly  be  the  same  as  a  molecular  arrange- 
ment which  compels  growth  from  a  leaf.  The  initial 
stages  of  the  two  processes  are  quite  different. 

Certainly  the  influence  of  the  environment  is  sometimes 
very  surprising  ;  but  these  surprising  results  hardly,  at 
least  at  first  sight,  seem  to  harmonize  with  Prof.  Weis- 
mann's  views.  Thus  the  effect  of  the  movements  of 
the  young  of  Cynips.  newly  hatched  from  an  &g'g  de- 
posited in  the  tissues  of  a  plant  (p.  302),  is  to  cause  it  to 
produce  a  gall — a  result  "  advantageous  to  the  larva  but 
not  to  the  plant."  It  causes  "  an  active  growth  of  cells  " 
around  the  larva,  much  to  that  larva's  advantage.  Now 
surely  it  is  too  much  to  ask  us  to  believe  that  the  germ- 
plasm  of  the  plant,  in  the  first  instance,  before  even,  say, 
:i  single  Cynips  had  visited  it,  had  in  the  complex  collo- 
cation of  its  molecules,  an  arrangement  such  as  would 
compel  the  plant  which  was  to  grow  from  it,  to  grow 
these  cells  and  form  a  gall  as  just  mentioned.^  However 
this  may  be,  the  production  of  the  gall  is  certainly  a 
curious  effect  of  the  action  of  the  environment  on  an 
outgrowth  from  germ-plasm,  conceived  of  as  Prof. 
Weismann  conceives  of  it. 

But  the  question  of  the  actual  or  possible  influence  of 
the  environment  suggests  some  further  difficulties  which 
can  hardly  fail  to  occur  to  any  critical  reader  of  what 
Prof.  Weismann  says  concerning  the  inheritance  of 
acquired  characters.  Although  he  absolutely  denies  that 
changes  induced  in  the  soma  by  the  action  of  the  environ- 
ment, can  be  transmitted  to  a  succeeding  generation,  he 
yet  allows  (p.  98)  that  the  germ-plasm  itself  may  be 
modified  through  the  action  of  the  environment  on  the 
soma  increasing  its  nutrition,  and  such  modifications,  on 
his  hypothesis,  would  be  inherited.  But  if  it  is  true,  as 
stated,  that  oysters  transported  to  the  Mediterranean 
become  rapidly  modified,  that  the  Saturnia  imported  to 
Switzerland  from  Texas  become  modified  so  as  to  trans- 
mit new  characters  in  one  generation,  and  that  cats  in 
Mombas,  turkeys  in  India,  and  greyhounds  in  Mexico, 
have  also  been  modified,  their  modifications  being  trans- 
missible, it  is  very  difficult  to  understand  how  such 
changed  climatic  conditions,  or  increased  or  diminished 
nutrition,  could  change  the  molecular  structure  of  the 
germ-plasm  in  such  a  way  as  to  compel  the  production  in 
a  second  generation  of  modifications  either  so  induced  in 
the  soma  of  ^the  first,  or  of  a  nature  appropriate  to  the 
conditions  presented  by  a  changed  environment. 

That  the  wild  pansy  does  not  change  at  once  when 
planted  in  garden  soil,  and  yet  in  the  course  of  genera- 

'  It  would  be  very  interesting  to  know  how  |'  natural  selection  "  (to  the 
action  of  which,  as  everybody  knows,  Prof.  Weismann  constantly  appeals) 
could  have  caused  this  plant  to  perform  actions  which,  if  not  self-sacrificing 
(and  there  must  be  some  expenditure  of  energy),  are  at  least  so  disinterested. 
No  doubt  the  Professor  has  an  hypothesis  to  produce,  though  he  only  says 
(p.  302)  here  that  "  it  would  be  out  of  place  to  discuss  here  the  question." 


tions  gains  new  characters  which  are  propagated  by  seed^ 
he  explains  (p.  433)  by  a  modification  of  germ-plasm  thus 
induced.  But  such  an  admission  is  enough  to  satisfy 
much  of  what  is  demanded  by  those  who  assert  the 
inheritance  of  acquired  characters.  After  all,  such  an 
inheritance  must  be  due  to  the  soma,  since  it  is  only 
through  it  that  the  germ-plasm  can  be  modified. 

If  this  effect  on  the  germ-plasm  itself  is  thus  cumulative, 
may  it  not  be  partly  due  to  a  cumulative  effect  on  the 
soma  which  transmits  to  the  germ-plasm  the  actions  which 
modify  the  latter?  Can  this  be  declared  to  be  abso- 
lutely impossible  ?  Anyhow,  it  is  plain  that  effects  of  the 
environment  on  Polyplastides  may  be  transmitted  to  suc- 
ceeding generations.  There  are,  however,  still  more 
striking  phenomena  amongst  mammals  which  do  not 
seem  to  accord  with  Prof.  Weismann's  theories.  I  refer 
to  the  production  of  offspring  which  resemble  not  their 
father,  but  the  father  of  preceding  offspring — as  in  the 
well-known  case  of  Lord  Zetland's  brood  mare,  and  the 
puppies  of  thoroughbred  bitches  which  have  once  been 
coupled  with  a  mongrel.  How  can  the  germ-plasm  of 
the  first  father  have  been  acquired  by  the  offspring  of  a 
subsequent  father.'*  I  have  ventured  to  propose  these 
questions,  which  must  of  course  have  occurred  to  many 
other  naturalists,  feeling  sure  that  Prof.  Weismann  will 
be  glad  to  have  his  attention  drawn  to  a  few  points,  a 
further  explanation  of  which  seems  necessary  for  the 
acceptance  of  his  most  interesting  hypotheses. 

September  2.  St.  George  Mivart. 


NOTES. 

The  Medals  of  the  Royal  Society  have  this  year  been  awarded 
as  follows  : — The  Copley  Medal  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Salmon, 
F.R.S.,  for  his  various  papers  on  subjects  of  pure  mathematics, 
and  for  the  valuable  mathematical  treatises  of  which  he  is  the 
author;  a  Royal  Medal  to  Dr.  W.  H.  Gaskell,  F.R.S.,  for  his 
researches  inXcardiac  physiology,  and  his  important  discoveries 
in  the  anatomy  and  physiology  of  the  sympathetic  nervous 
system;  a  Royal  Medal  to  Prof.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  for  his  re- 
searches on  fluorine  compounds,  and  his  determination  of  the 
atomic  weights  of  titanium  and  gold  ;  and  the  Davy  Medal  to 
Dr.  W.  H.  Perkin,  F.R.S.,  for  his  researches  on  magnetic  rota- 
tion in  relation  to  chemical  constitution.  Intimation  has  been 
received  at  the  offices  of  the  Royal  Society  that  the  Queen 
approves  the  award  of  the  Royal  Medals. 

We  regret  to  learn  that  another  officer  of  the  Geological 
Survey  of  India  has  fallen  a  victim  to  the  Indian  climate.  Mr. 
E.  J.  Jones,  who  'joined  the  Survey  in  1883,  died  of  dysentery 
at  Darjiling  on  October  15,  at  the  age  of  thirty.  Mr.  Jones  was 
an  Associate  of  the  Royal  School  of  Mines,  and  having  also 
studied  chemistry  at  Zurich  and  Wilrzburg,  he  was  a  valuable 
member  of  the  Survey,  to  the  publications  of  which  he  contri- 
buted several  geological  and  chemical  papers. 

To  add  to  the  many  obligations  under  which  he  has  laid  Cam- 
bridge University,  Prof.  Sidgwick  has  offered  to  give  ^C'S^o 
towards  the  completion  of  the  new  buildings  urgently  required 
for  physiology,  on  condition  that  the  work  is  undertaken  forth- 
with. The  Financial  Board  has  accordingly  recommended  a 
scheme  by  which  this  can  be  effected.  The  alliance  between 
mental  science  and  physiology  which  this  gift  represents  is  a 
bright  feature  of  Cambridge  studies  at  present. 

The  University  of  St.  Andrews  is  to  be  congratulated  on  an 
extraordinary  piece  of  good  fortune.  The  sum  of  ;^ioo,ooo  has 
been  bequeathed  to  it  by  Mr.  David  Berry,  who  died  last  Sep- 
tember. Mr.  Berry  was  a  native  of  Cupar,  Fife,  and  in  1836 
went  to  Australia,  where  he  ultimately  inherited  the  estate  ot 
his   brother,   Dr.    Alexander  Berry.      The    latter   had  been  a 


42 


NATURE 


\Nov.  14,  1889 


student  of  the  St.  Andrews  University,  and  at  the  time  of  his 
death  it  was  understood  that  he  had  left  an  unsigned  will  be- 
queathing a  quarter  of  a  million  to  his  alma  mater,  but  giving 
permission  to  his  brother  David  to  carry  out  the  provisions  as  he 
might  think  proper.  The  legacy  will  not  come  into  the  pos- 
session of  the  University  until  1894. 

In  addition  to  the  botanical  appointments  named  last  week, 
the  following  are  announced  from  Russia  : — Prof.  Faraintzin 
having  resigned  his  post  of  Professor  of  Botany  in  the 
University  of  St.  Petersburg.  Prof.  Borodin  has  been  ap- 
pointed in  his  place.  M.  W.  Palladin  succeeds  the  late 
Prof.  Pitra  as  Professor  of  Botanical  Anatomy  and  Physiology 
in  the  University  of  Charkow  ;  and  is  himself  succeeded  in  the 
Botanical  Chair  in  the  Agricultural  Academy  at  No  wo- Alexandria 
by  M.  Chmielewski.  M.  W.  Rothert  has  been  appointed 
Lecturer  on  Botanical  Anatomy  and  Physiology  at  the  University 
of  Kasan. 

In  the  November  number  of  the  Kew  Bulletin  a  curious 
correspondence  is  printed  which  illustrates  very  well  the  nature 
of  some  of  the  duties  undertaken  by  the  Kew  officials.  Towards 
the  end  of  December  1876,  Dr.  Hooker  received  from  the 
Colonial  Office  a  letter  inclosing  a  despatch  in  which  the 
Governor  of  Labuan  suggested  that  it  might  be  well  to  pro- 
mote in  Labuan  the  cultivation  of  the  African  oil  palm.  A 
long  correspondence  followed,  the  result  of  which  was  that  full 
and  accurate  information  as  to  the  palm  oil  industry  was  ob- 
tained from  the  Gold  Coast,  and  transmitted  to  Labuan.  Palm 
oil  nuts  were  also  obtained,  and  in  due  time  planted  in  the 
fertile  island  of  Daat,  where  no  fewer  than  700  healthy  trees 
were  soon  raised.  It  recently  occurred  to  Mr.  Thiselton 
Dyer  to  make  inquiry  as  to  the  later  history  of  this  inter- 
esting experiment.  A  despatch  from  the  Acting  Governor 
of  Labuan  to  the  Colonial  Office,  dated  August  i,  1889,  and 
forwarded  to  Kew,  closes  the  correspondence.  It  is  as  fol- 
lows: — "As  reported  in  Mr.  Treacher's  despatch  No.  72,  of 
August,  26,  1878,  it  appears  that  700  of  these  palms  were 
raised  in  the  island  of  Daat,  and  in  due  time  produced  nuts. 
No  attempt,  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  was  ever  made  to  manufac- 
ture any  oil  from  the  nuts,  and  last  year  the  palms  were  all 
removed  to  make  room  for  cocoa-  nut  trees.  Daat,  a  depend- 
ency of  this  colony,  is  private  property,  and  I  venture  to 
suggest  that,  should  any  further  information  be  required  by  Mr. 
Thiselton  Dyer,  he  should  apply  to  the  owner,  Dr.  Peter  Leys, 
who  is  now  in  England,  and  who  would  no  doubt  be  glad  to 
supply  it.  The  experiment,  so  far  as  I  am'  in  a  position  to 
judge,  was  a  success." 

The  authorities  of  the  Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  are  always  glad 
to  aid  any  dependency  of  the  Empire  in  introducing  and 
establishing  any  new  plant  which  promises  to  serve  as  the 
foundation  of  a  new  industry.  The  documents  relating  to  the 
oil  palm  in  Labuan  show  how  much  work  may  be  involved  in 
the  carrying  out  even  of  a  simple  scheme  of  this  nature,  and 
how  disappointing  the  results  may  be.  "  The  enterprise,"  says 
the  Bulletin,  "  is  suggested  ;  it  is  considered  ;  a  plan  for  carry- 
ing it  out  has  to  be  matured  ;  all  the  necessary  incidental  infor- 
mation has  to  be  collected  ;  and  then  the  plan  is  carried  into 
execution.  Sometimes  it  fails  the  first  time,  and  then  a  second 
attenipt  has  to  be  made,  and  so  on  till  success  is  secured.  All 
that  then  remains  is  to  wait  for  the  result  ;  and  this,  in  any 
appreciable  shape,  will  in  most  cases  not  be  reached  for  years. 
But  in  the  interval  Governors  and  officials  change.  It  may  be, 
though  it  is  not  always  so,  that  the  ardour  with  which  the 
experiment  was  launched  evaporates  with  the  individual  whom 
it  inspired.  A  new  Colonial  Government  rigime  may  regard 
with  apathy  and  even  hostility  the  work  of  its  predecessor,  and 
the  whole  enterprise  may  fall   into  oblivion  till  some  chance 


inquiry  on  the  same  subject  leads  to  the  digging  out  of  the  file 
of  papers  containing  its  record  from  the  Kew  archives." 

The  remaining  contents  of  the  Kew  Bulletin  relate  to  Phyl- 
loxera regulations  at  the  Cape,  Ramie  or  Rhea,  and  the 
collecting  and  preserving  of  fleshy  Fungi. 

The  Manchester  Field  Naturalists'  Society  has  formed  a 
special  committee,  with  Mr.  Leo  Grindon,  the  President  of  the 
Society,  as  botanical  referee,  and  Mr.  C.  J.  Oglesby,  as  con- 
vener, for  the  purpose  of  determining  which  trees,  shrubs,  and 
flowers  will  succeed  in  the  squares  and  streets  of  the  city.  The 
opinion  prevails  that,  notwithstanding  the  unfavourable  climatic 
conditions,  several  forest  trees,  climbers,  and  hardy  plants  would 
grow  if  special  care  were  taken  in  planting  and  tending  them. 
The  planting  of  the  quadrangle  at  Owens  College,  of  the  in- 
firmary esplanade  (in  the  centre  of  the  town),  and  of  several 
churchyards,  has  been  attended  with  success. 

The  following  money-grants  have  been  lately  made  by  the 
Berlin  Academy  of  Sciences  : — ^75  to  Prof.  Brieger,  for  con- 
tinuation of  his  researches  on  the  ptomaines ;  £(iO  to  Dr. 
Krabbe,  for  investigation  of  the  Cladoniacese  of  the  Hartz  ; 
;,^30  to  Dr.  von  Dankelmann,  for  utilization  of  meteorological 
observations  at  Finschhaven  in  New  Guinea ;  £20  to  Dr. 
Assmann,  for  measurements  of  air-temperature  on  the  Santis  ; 
^100  for  publication  of  Prof.  G.  Finsch's  work  on  Torpedinece  ; 
;^50  for  publication  of  a  memoir  by  Dr.  Heiden,  on  the  deve- 
lopment o{  Hydrophibis  piceiis ;  £100  to  Dr.  Strehlmann,  in 
Zanzibar,  for  prosecution  of  his  faunistic  researches  in  East 
Africa;  £\2S  to  Prof.  Lepsius,  of  Darmstadt,  for  preparation 
of  his  geological  map  of  Attica ;  £$0  to  Prof.  Conwentz,  for 
investigation  of  silicified  wood  in  the  island  of  Schonen  ;  ;i^75 
to  Dr.  Fleischmann,  of  Erlangen,  for  researches  in  development  ; 
and  the  same  to  Dr.  Zacharias  (Silesia),  for  micro-faunistic 
studies. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  one  hundred  and  thirty-sixth  session  of 
the  Society  of  Arts  will  be  held  on  Wednesday,  November  20, 
when  the  opening  address  will  be  delivered  by  the  Duke  of 
Abercorn,  Chairman  of  the  Council.  Before  ^Christmas  there 
will  be  four  ordinary  meetings,  in  addition  to  the  opening 
meeting.  The  following  arrangements  have  been  made  : — 
November  27,  Dr.  J.  Hall  Gladstone,  F.R.S.,  "Scientific  and 
Technical  Instruction  in  Elementary  Schools  "  ;  December  4,  Dr. 
Armand  Ruffer,  "  Rabies  and  its  Prevention";  December  11, 
Mr.  H.  Trueman  Wood,  "  The  Paris  Exhibition  "  ;  December 
18,  Sir  Robert  Rawlinson,  "London  Sewage." 

A  NOVEL  and  interesting  application  of  science  to  art  may 
now  be  seen  at  the  Arts  and  Crafts  Exhibition,  where  Mrs. 
Watts  Hughes  shows  specimens  of  what  she  calls  "  voice 
figures  "  (Catalogue,  No.  723).  These  are  practically  Chladni's 
figures  produced  in  a  viscid  medium.  Semi-fluid  paste  is  spread 
on  an  elastic  membrane  stretched  over  the  mouth  of  a  receiver. 
A  single  note  "  steadily  and  accurately  sung  "  into  the  receiver 
throws  the  paste  into  waves  and  curves.  The  patterns  formed 
are  either  photographed  immediately  after  production,  or  are 
transferred  as  water-colour  impressions  while  the  membrane  is 
still  vibrating.  Fanciful  names,  e.g.  "wave,  line,  flower,  tree, 
fern,"  are  given  to  these  ;  the  effect,  especially  in  transparencies, 
is  very  beautiful.  Some  of  the  forms  would  repay  the  study  of 
physicists  as  well  as  of  artists ;  the  most  interesting  are  perhaps  the 
"daisy  forms,"  in  which  we  are  told  that  "  the  number  of  petals 
increases  as  the  pitch  of  the  note  which  produces  them  rises." 
The  apparatus  employed  is  not  exhibited,  and  the  descriptive 
label  is  not  very  clear,  but  we  understand  that  Mrs.  Hughes 
would  be  most  pleased  to  explain  the  matter  to  anyone  scienti- 
fically interested  in  it :  her  address  is  19  Barnsbury  Park,  N. 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


For  determination  of  the  air-temperature  at  great  heights, 
the  Berlin  Society  for  Ballooning  (we  learn  from  Htanboldt)  is 
going  to  try  a  method  of  Herr  Siegsfeld,  who  uses  a  thermo- 
meter, which,  by  closure  of  an  electric  circuit  when  certain  tem- 
peratures are  reached,  gives  a  light-signal.  Small  balloons, 
each  containing  such  a  thermometer,  will  be  sent  up  by  night, 
and  the  light  will  affect  photographically  a  so-called  "  photo- 
theodolite,"  while  the  height  then  attained  will  be  indicated  in 
a  mechanical  way.  It  is  hoped  that  more  exact  formulae  for  the 
decrease  of  temperature  with  height  may  thus  be  obtained. 

The  rapid  decrease  in  the  number  of  kangaroos  is  beginning 
to  attract  the  attention  of  scientific  Societies  in  Australia.  From 
the  collective  reports  of  the  various  stock  inspectors  it  was 
estimated  that  in  1887  there  were  1,881,510  kangaroos.  In  1888 
the  number  fell  to  1,170,380,  a  decrease  of  711,130.  The  chief 
obstacle  to  the  adoption  of  measures  for  the  effectual  protection 
of  the  kangaroo  is  his  vigorous  appetite.  One  full-grown 
kangaroo  eats  as  much  grass  as  six  sheep  ;  and  graziers — who  as 
a  class  are  not,  it  is  to  be  feared,  readily  accessible  to  the  in- 
fluence of  sentiment— find  that  the  food  eaten  by  this  interest- 
ing animal  might  be  more  profitably  utilized  otherwise.  In  a 
communication  on  the  subject,  lately  submitted  to  the  Linnean 
Society  of  New  South  Wales,  Mr.  Trebeck  suggested  that  the 
National  Park  might  be  used  for  the  preservation  not  only  of 
kangaroos  but  of  very  many  members  of  the  Australian  fauna 
and  flora. 

At  the  monthly  meeting  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Tasmania  on 
September  9,  the  President  (His  Excellency  Sir  Robert  G.  C. 
Hamilton)  said  he  desired  to  bring  before  the  Society  a  matter 
relating  to  the  young  salmon  at  the  Salmon  Ponds.  These  were 
the  undoubted  product  of  the  ova  brought  out  by  Sir  Thomas 
Brady,  which  had  been  stripped  from  the  male  and  female  fish 
and  artificially  fertilized,  and  the  utmost  care  had  been  taken  to 
keep  them  apart  from  any  other  fish  bred  in  the  ponds.  He  re- 
cently visited  the  ponds,  accompanied  by  the  Chairman  of  the 
Fisheiies  Board,  the  Secretary,  and  two  of  the  members,  when 
they  carefully  examined  a  number  of  the  young  salmon,  among 
which  they  were  surprised  to  find  marked  differences  existing, 
not  only  in  size,  but  in  their  characteristics.  It  has  often  been 
held  that  the  Salmonidic  caught  in  Tasmanian  waters  cannot 
be  true  Salmo  salar  because  so  many  of  them  have  spots  on  the 
dorsal  fin,  and  a  tinge  of  yellow  or  orange  on  the  adipose  fin,  but 
nearly  half  of  the  young  salmon  they  examined,  which  had  never 
left  the  ponds,  had  these  characteristics.  Again,  many  of  them 
were  almost  "bull-headed"  in  appearance — another  character- 
istic which  is  not  supposed  to  distinguish  the  true  Salmo  salar. 
He  would  suggest  to  the  Chairman  of  the  Fisheries  Board,  whom 
he  saw  -present,  that  the  Secretary  should  be  asked  to  make  a 
formal  report  of  the  result  of  this  visit,  and  to  obtain  some  speci- 
mens of  the  young  fish,  which  could  be  preserved  in  spirits,  and 
perhaps  sent  to  Sir  Thomas  Brady  to  be  submitted  for  the 
consideration  and  opinion  of  naturalists  at  home. 

At  the  same  meeting  of  the  Tasmanian  Royal  Society,  Mr, 
James  Barnard  read  a  remarkably  interesting  paper  on  the  last 
living  aboriginal  of  Tasmania.  It  has  hitherto  been  generally 
believed  that  the  aboriginal  Tasmanians  are  extinct.  Mr. 
Barnard,  however,  contends  that  there  is  still  one  survivor — 
Fanny  Cochrane  Smith,  of  Port  Cygnet,  the  mother  of  six  sons 
and  five  daughters,  all  of  whom  are  living.  "She  is  now  about 
fifty-five  years  of  age.  Fanny's  claims  to  the  honour  of  being  a 
pure  representative  of  the  ancient  race  have  been  disputed,  but 
Mr.  Barnard  makes  out  a  good  case  in  her  favour.  He  himself 
remembers  her  as  she  was  forty  years  ago,  when  there  were  still 
about  thirty  or  forty  natives  at  Oyster  Cave  ;  "and  certainly  at 
that  time,"  he  says,  "  I  never  heard  a  doubt  expressed  of  her  not 
being  a  true  aboriginal." 


The  Caucasus  is  a  region  of  great  interest  in  the  study  of  pre- 
historic times,  and  a  fresh  impulse  was  lately  given  to  its  ex- 
ploration, by  Beyern's  discovery  of  an  extensive  burial-ground 
south  of  Kura  (in  the  district  of  the  Anticaucasus).  At  the 
recent  annual  meeting  of  the  German  Anthropological  Society, 
Dr.  Virchow  gave  some  account  of  this  bed  (which  Beyern  has 
named  after  General  Repkin).  The  region  is  rich  in  ores,  but 
bronze  articles  are  absent ;  for,  while  copper  is  plentiful,  there  is 
no  tin.  On  the  other  hand,  various  ornaments  of  pure  antimony 
have  been  met  with  ;  also  antimony  buttons  (or  knobs),  like 
those  of  Beni-Hassan  in  Egypt.  The  ground  is  largely  of 
volcanic  nature,  and  many  articles  of  obsidian  (chiefly  knives 
and  arrow-heads)  have  been  found  in  the  graves.  One  curious 
find  was  that  of  a  skeleton  having  an  arrow-head  of  obsidian 
in  one  of  the  leg-bones,  partly  overgrown  by  a  callus.  The 
metallic  girdles  in  this  burial-ground  have  figures  of  animals 
engraved  on  them  ;  in  the  Koban  ground,  such  figures  are  con- 
fined to  the  clasp,  but  this,  in  the  Repkin  ground,  is  wanting. 

Prof.  Edwin  J.  Houston  contributes  to  the  November 
number  of  the  Journal  of  the  Franklin  Institute  a  short  paper 
on  a  bail-storm  at  Philadelphia,  October  i,  1889.  After  noting 
various  points  common  to  most  hailstones,  he  refers  to  a  charac- 
teristic which  he  had  never  before  observed.  "On  some  of  the 
hailstones,"  he  says,  "  though  not  in  the  majority  of  them,  well- 
marked  crystals  of  clear  transparent  ice  projected  from  their 
outer  surfaces  for  distances  ranging  from  an  eighth  to  a  quarter 
of  an  inch.  These  crystals,  as  well  as  I  could  observe  from  the 
evanescent  nature  of  the  material,  were  hexagonal  prisms  with 
clearly-cut  terminal  facets.  They  resembled  the  projecting 
crystals  that  form  so  common  a  lining  in  geodic  masses,  in 
which  they  have  formed  by  gradual  crystallization  from  the 
mother-liquor.  They  differed,  however,  of  course,  in  being  on 
the  outer  surface  of  the  spherules." 

In  Das  Wetter  for  October,  Dr.  \V.  J.  van  Bebber  discusses 
a  paper,  by  the  late  Prof.  Loomis,  on  the  rainfall  of  the  earth. 
The  following  are  noted  as  some  of  the  conditions  favourable  to 
rain:  (i)  an  unsettled  state  of  the  atmosphere,  caused  by 
unusually  high  temperature,  with  great  humidity,  a  condition 
which  occurs  when  the  pressure  is  below  the  average  value  ; 
(2)  cold  northerly  or  westerly  winds  on  the  west  side  of  a 
depression,  by  which  the  winds  on  the  east  side  receive  a  stronger 
impulse  ;  (3)  proximity  to  mountains,  the  ocean  or  large  lakes  ; 
(4)  deep  depressions  of  small  area  and  steep  gradients.  With 
regard  to  the  rainfall  which  accompanies  barometric  depressions, 
it  is  found  that  in  the  United  States,  south  of  latitude  36°  N., 
a  rainfall  of  2 "5  inches  occurs  oftener  on  the  east  side  than  on 
the  west  side  of  a  depression  in  the  ratio  of  2'6  :  i  ;  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  a  rainfall  of  9  inches  occuiS 
more  frequently  on  the  east  than  on  the  west  of  a  barometric 
minimum,  in  the  ratio  of  6"2  :  i.  In  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean, 
the  ratios  of  large  rain  areas  on  the  east  and  west  sides  of  a 
depression  areas  2'6  :  i  ;  while  in  Europe  a  rainfall  of  2"5  inches 
in  twenty-four  hours  on  the  east  and  west  sides  of  a  depression 
occurs  in  the  ratio  of  2  :  i.  The  rainfall  with  a  falling  or  rising 
barometer  is  also  investigated. 

We  have  received  the  fifth  and  last  part  of  vol.  i.  of  M. 
Fabre's  comprehensive  "  Traite  Encyclopedique  de  Photo- 
graphie "  (Paris :  Gauthier-Villars,  1889).  The  subject  of 
lenses  is  considered  in  great  detail,  and  the  theory  and  use  of 
diaphragms  are  fully  gone  into.  The  relation  of  the  time  of 
exposure  to  the  subject  and  lens  employed  is  also  considered, 
and  studios,  dark  rooms,  and  their  various  accessories  are  fully 
described  and  illustrated.  From  both  the  theoretical  and  prac- 
tical point  of  view  the  work  still  bears  out  its  original  promise 
of  becoming  the  most  complete  one  on  the  subject. 


44 


NATURE 


{Nov.  14,  1889 


A  SECOND  edition  of  Prof.  Tait's  "  Light "  (A.  and  C.  Black) 
has  been  issued.  The  author  says  that  in  revising  the  work  he 
has  made  use  of  various  notes  jotted  down  from  time  to  time  on 
his  own  copy,  mainly  as  the  result  of  questions  asked,  or  of 
difficulties  pointed  out,  by  students  who  were  reading  the  book 
with  care.  Suggestions  of  this  kind  he  has  found  to  be  almost 
always  of  value,  as  they  tend  to  make  the  book  better  suited  to 
the  wants  of  the  class  of  readers  for  whom  in  particular  it  was 
designed. 

Persons  interested  in  ferneries  and  aquaria  will  find  much 
to  attract  them  in  a  little  volume  entitled  "Ferneries  and 
Aquaria  :  a  Complete  Guide  to  their  Formation,  Construction, 
and  Management,"  by  George  Eggett,  Sen.  This  is  one  of  a 
series  of  "  practical  guide-books  "  issued  by  Messrs.  Dean  and 
Son. 

The  third  volume  (new  series)  of  the  Reliquary  (Bemrose  and 
Sons)  has  been  issued.  It  opens  with  an  interesting  illustrated 
article  on  two  Assyro-Phoenician  shields  from  Crete,  by  the  Rev. 
Joseph  Hirst.  Mr.  John  Ward  contributes  three  illustrated 
papers  of  scientific  value — on  Rains  Cave,  Longcliffe,  Derby- 
shire ;  on  relics  of  the  Roman  occupation.  Little  Chester, 
Derby ;  and  on  recent  diggings  at  Harborough  Rocks, 
Derbyshire. 

Messrs.  Dulau  and  Co.  have  sent  us  a  "Catalogue  of  Zoo- 
logical and  Palseontological  Works."  It  includes  works  on 
Reptilia  and  Amphibia,  and  on  Pisces. 

The  atomic  weight  of  palladium  has  been  redetermined  by 
Dr.  E.  H.  Reiser  {Amer.  Chem.  Journ.).  Among  all  the 
atomic  weights  at  present  adopted  by  chemists,  that  of  palladium 
has  been  one  of  the  most  imperfectly  determined,  for  the  dis- 
crepancy between  the  results  of  the  various  previous  investiga- 
tions is  most  unsatisfactory.  In  1826,  Berzelius  obtained  the 
value  1 13 '63  from  a  consideration  of  the  proportion  in  which 
palladium  combines  with  sulphur.  Two  years  later,  the 'same 
distinguished  chemist  derived  a  much  lower  value  from  analyses 
of  potassium  palladious  chloride,  2KCI  .  PdClg  ;  known  quan- 
tities of  this  salt  were  heated  in  a  current  of  hydrogen,  and  the 
residuary  potassium  chloride  and  reduced  palladium  weighed. 
Recalculated  by  Profs.  Meyer  and  Seubert,  utilizing  all  the  re- 
fined corrections  of  the  present  day,  these  analyses  yield  the 
value  106 -2 — a  number  which  is  almost  identical  with  the  atomic 
weight  obtained  by  Dr.  Reiser.  In  1847,  however,  Quintus 
Icilius  also  investigated  the  subject,  and,  from  determinations  of 
the  loss  in  weight  which  potassium  palladious  chloride  under- 
goes when  heated  in  a  current  of  hydrogen,  obtained  the  value 
III '88.  No  other  determinations  having  since  been  attempted, 
and  the  number  112  or  113  being  certainly  too  high  from  con- 
siderations of  the  position  of  palladium  among  the  metals,  the 
number  106  "2  obtained  from  Berzelius's  second  analysis  recalcu- 
lated by  Meyer  and  Seubert  has  been  universally  adopted.  To 
place  the  subject  out  of  all  doubt.  Dr.  Reiser  has  re-examined 
it  from  a  totally  different  standpoint.  The  double  chlorides 
of  palladium  and  the  alkalies,  such  as  2K:C1  .  PdCla  and 
2NH4CI  .  PdClj,  are  found  to  be  unsuitable  for  atomic  weight 
determinations  ;  they  retain  water  of  decrepitation  with  great 
tenacity,  and,  after  drying,  are  too  hygroscopic  for  accurate 
weighing.  On  the  other  hand,  .  the  yellow  crystalline 
salt,  palladammonium  chloride,  P'd(NH3)2Cl2,  is  a  much 
more  suitable  substance.  It  is  eminently  stable,  can  be 
obtained  in  a  state  of  practically  perfect  purity,  contains  no 
water  of  crystallization,  does  not  retain  water  after  drying  in  a 
desiccator,  and  the  dried  salt  is  not  hygroscopic.  Weighed 
quantities  of  it  contained  in  a  platinum  boat  were  introduced  into 
a  combustion  tube  and  heated  in  a  stream  of  pure  hydrogen. 
The  hydrogen  was  rapidly  absorbed,  changing  the  bright  yellow 
colour  into  black,  metallic  palladium  and  ammonium  chloride 


being  formed.  The  absorption  of  hydrogen  occurred  so  readily 
that  it  was  only  necessary  to  warm  one  end  of  the  boat  when  the 
heat  of  the  reaction  was  found  sufficient  to  complete  the  reduc- 
tion of  the  whole.  Pd(NH3)2Cl2  -f  Hj  =  Pd  -^  2NH4CI.  Af  er 
raising  the  temperature  so  as  to  volatilize  the  ammonium 
chloride,  the  finely  divided  palladium  adhered  together  in  the 
form  of  a  porous  bar  having  the  shape  of  the  boat.  It  was 
allowed  to  cool  before  weighing  until  just  below  a  red  heat  in  the 
current  of  hydrogen  so  as  to  prevent  oxidation,  and  afterwards 
the  hydrogen  was  displaced  by  dry  air  to  prevent  its  occlusion. 
Two  series  of  determinations  were  made,  the  salt  for  the  second 
series  being  prepared  from  the  reduced  palladium  of  the  first. 
The  mean  of  eleven  experiments  in  the  first  series  gave  the  num- 
ber 106 "352,  and  of  eight  in  the  second  series  106 "350.  The 
maximum  value  obtained  was  106 '459,  and  the  minimum 
106  •286.  The  mean  result  106*35  practically  confirms  thai 
obtained  by  recalculating  the  results  of  Berzelius's  second 
analyses. 

In  our  note  in  these  columns  three  weeks  ago  (vol.  xl.  p.  655), 
upon  pinol,  the  new  isomer  of  camphor,  it  was  pointed  out  that  the 
nitrosochloride  of  pinol  forms  with  j8-naphthylamine  an  interest- 
ing base,  C2i,H24N202,  isomeric  with  quinine.  This  base,  how- 
ever, is  not  the  first  isomer  of  quinine  which  has  been  prepared, 
for  an  artificially  prepared  base  of  the  same  empirical  formula 
was  described  by  Dr.  Rohn,  of  University  College,  Liverpool,  in 
the  Journal  of  the  Chemical  Society  for  1886,  p.  500. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  three  Rhesus  Monkeys  {Afacacus  rhesus 
$6  6)  from  India,  presented  respectively  by  Colonel  Cuthbert 
Larking,  Mr.  James  T.  Wilson,  and  Mrs.  Charles  Sainsbury  ; 
a  Hairy-rumped  K^ovX\{Dasypi'octa prymnolopha)  from  Guiana, 
presented  by  Mr.  Henry  E.  Blandford  ;  a  Common  Polecat 
{Mustela  pzitorius)  from  Norfolk,  presented  by  the  Earl  of 
Romney  ;  a  Northern  Mocking  Bird  {Mimus  polyglottis)  from 
North  America,  presented  by  Miss  E.  Breton ;  two  White 
Pelicans  {Pelecanus  onocrotalus),  a  Crested  Pelican  (Pelecanus 
crispics)  from  Roumania,  a  Common  Boa  {Boa  constrictor), 
a  Neck-marked  Snake  {Geoptyas  coUaris)  from  Panama,  a 
Mocassin  Snake  ( Tropidonotus  fasciatus)  from  North  America, 
deposited  ;  two  Common  Siskins  {Chrysomitris  spinus),  two 
Twites  {Linota  Jlavirostris),  two  Lesser  Redpoles  {Linota 
rufescens),  four  Snow  Buntings  {Plectrophanes  nivalis),  two 
Knots  ( Tringa  canutus),  a  Bar-tailed  Godwit  {Limosa  lapponica), 
British,  a  Rosy-billed  Duck  {Metopiana  peposaca  6  )  from  South 
America,  purchased. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope, 
Sidereal  Time  at  lo  p.m.  at  Greenwich,  November  14  =  ih. 
36m.  45s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A. 

1890. 

Decl. 

1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

,.  (G.  C.  38s      

^'^  IG.  C.  386      

— 

~ 

I  35  30 

-1-5050 

— 

— 

I  36  29 

-1-50  51 '5 

(2)     57Ceti   

6 

Yellowish-red. 

I  54  36 

-21  16 

(3)     CCeti     

3 

Yellow. 

I  45  32 

-10  55 

(4)      &  Cassiopeiae 

3 

Bluish-white. 

I  18  36 

+59  40 

(5)      7Schj 

7-0 

Reddish-yellow. 

I  10    s 

+25  II 

(6)      R  Pegasi       

Var. 

Red. 

23     I     7 

+  9  57 

(7)      VTauri         

Var. 

Reddish. 

4  45  50 

+  17  21 

Remarks. 

(i)  This  is  one   of  Herschel's  double  nebulas.     Dr.  Huggins 

notes  that  both  components  give  a  gaseous  spectrum,  but  could 

only  be  certain  of  the  presence  of  the  chief  nebula  line  near  500, 

although  495  was  strongly  suspected.      He  notes,  also,  that  there 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


45 


is  a  faint  continuous  spectrum  at  the  preceding  edge  of  No.  386. 
The  point  chiefly  requiring  attention  at  present  is  the  character 
of  the  line  near  500.  Many  recorded  observations  describe  this 
line  as  having  a  fringe  of  light  on  the  more  refrangible  side, 
whilst  others  state  that  it  is  perfectly  sharp  on  both  edges.  Low 
dispersion  only  should  be  employed  in  making  this  observation. 
The  observation  of  continuous  spectrum  in  a  special  part  of  the 
nebula  386  is  also  worthy  of  attention  ;  the  spectrum  should  be 
examined  for  maxima  of  brightness,  as  in  the  case  of  the  nebula 
in  Andromeda. 

(2)  Duncr  records  this  as  a  star  of  Group  II.  (see  below),  but 
states  that  the  spectrum  is  very  feebly  developed.  The  star  is 
probably,  therefore,  either  just  condensing  into  a  fully-deveioped 
star  of  Group  II.,  or  is  just  passing  into  Group  III.  If  the 
former,  there  will  practically  be  nothing  but  very  narrow  bands, 
and  if  the  latter,  absorption  lines  will  accompany  the  bands.  In 
the  earlier  stages  of  this  group,  the  bands  in  the  blue  are 
strongest,  whilst  in  the  later  stages  red  bands  are  strongest, 
and  this  point  should  also  receive  attention.  As  a  check,  the 
colour  of  the  star  should  be  noted  at  the  time  of  observation. 

(3)  This  star  belongs  to  either  Group  III.  or  to  Group  V., 
and  the  criteria  (see  p.  20)  should  be  observed  in  order  to 
determine  which. 

(4)  According  to  Vogel,  the  spectrum  of  this  star  is  of  the 
same  type  as  a  Lyrge,  i.e.  Group  IV.  The  relative  intensities  of 
the  metallic  lines  and  those  of  hydrogen,  which  vary  from  star 
to  star,  should  be  noted  for  future  classification  of  the  stars  of 
this  group  according  to  temperature. 

(5)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  VI.  Duner  describes  the  spectrum 
as  consisting  of  four  zones,  the  zones  being  the  bright  spaces 
between  the  dark  carbon  flutings.  The  presence  of  slight  traces 
of  carbon  absorption  in  the  solar  spectrum  indicates  that  stars  of 
this  group  only  differ  in  temperature  from  stars  like  the  sun. 
The  passage  from  one  group  to  the  other  will  probably  be  found 
to  be  very  gradual,  and  the  widths  of  the  carbon  flutings  and 
the  presence  or  absence  of  other  absorptions  should  therefore  be 
noted. 

(6)  Period  given  by  Gore  as  382  days,  and  magnitude  at 
maximum  (November  13)  as  6 "9-7 7.  The  spectrum  has  not 
yet  been  recorded,  and  the  present  maximum  may,  therefore, 
conveniently  be  taken  advantage  of. 

(7)  Period  given  by  Gore  as  168  days,  and  magnitude  at 
maximum  (November  15)  as  8*3-9.     Spectrum  not  yet  recorded. 

iVi;/^.— -Lockyer's  classification  will,  in  future,  be  exclusively 
used,  so  that  there  will  be  no  necessity  for  a  double  reference. 
The  relation  of  this  to  Vogel's  classification  is  shown  in  the 
following  diagram  : — 

Group  IV.  (Cl.^ss  \.d). 


Group  III. 
(Class  1 1,  a). 


Group  1 1. 
(Class  Ill.a) 


Group  I. 
(Classes  I  a 
and  W.b,  and 

nebulae). 


Group  V. 
(Class  11.  a). 


Group  VI. 
(Class  HI./') 


Group  VII. 


Lockyer's  Temperature  Curve. 


The  temperature  increases  from  Group  I.  to  Group  IV.,  and 
then  decreases  to  Group  V,  On  the  ascending  side  of  the 
"temperature  curve"  we  have  probably  to  deal  with  con- 
densing meteoritic  swarms  ;  and,  on  the  descending  side,  with 
gradually  condensing  masses  of  meteoritic  vapours. 

A.  Fowler. 

Large- Scale  Charts  of  the  Constellations. — Mr. 
Arthur  Cottam  has  projected  a  series  of  thirty-six  most  excellent 
charts  of  the  constellations  from  the  North  Pole  to  between  35° 
and  40°  of  south  declination,  and  showing  stars  in  half  mag- 
nitudes down  to  6i  by  disks  of  various  sizes.  Although  the 
primary  object  in  constructing  these  charts  was  to  make  them 
companions  to  Webb's  "Celestial  Objects  for  Common  Tele- 
scopes" and  Smyth's  "Cycle  of  Celestial  Objects,"  their  scope 
has  been  considerably  enlarged,  and  a  number  of  double,  mul- 
tiple, and  variable  stars  have  been  laid  down  which  are  not 
included  in  either  of  the  above-mentioned  works.  The  Earl  of 
Crawford's  (Dun  Echt)  sununaiy  of  F.  G,  W.  Struve's  Dorpat 


Catalc^ue  included  2248  double  and  multiple  stars,  and  of  them, 
2130  are  shown  upon  these  charts.  In  addition  to  this,  275  of 
the  double  stars  discovered  by  Mr.  S.  W.  Burnham  have  been 
mapped,  this  being  the  whole  of  those  included  in  his  first  four 
catalogues,  and  a  selection  from  his  other  catalogues.  The  maps 
have  been  drawn  to  a  scale  of  one-third  of  an  inch  to  a  degree, 
which  is  a  much  larger  scale  than  any  hitherto  published,  and 
as  each  map  includes  but  a  small  portion  of  the  heavens,  there 
is  practically  no  distortion,  whilst  the  epoch  being  1890, 
the  positions  will  hold  good,  without  any  serious  errors,  for 
fifteen  or  twenty  years  beyond  that  date.  The  projection  is 
conical,  or,  in  those  charts  which  extend  any  distance  both  north 
and  south  of  the  equator,  cylindrical.  Hence  it  will  be  easy  to 
lay  down  any  additional  objects  that  may  be  required.  There 
is  no  doubt  that  these  charts  will  be  eminently  useful,  one  of 
their  great  advantages  being  that  they  will  enable  possessors  of 
telescopes  mounted  on  altazimuth  stands  or  without  circles  to 
find  with  ease  a  large  number  of  interesting  objects,  and  thus 
will  help  to  extend  the  knowledge  of  the  heavenly  bodies  and  to 
popularize  the  most  fascinating  of  sciences.  We  may  say  that 
the  publisher  of  these  charts  is  Edward  Stanford,  Cockspur 
Street,  S.  VV.,  and  that  the  first  issue  is  limited  to  200  sets, 
many  of  which  have  been  already  subscribed  for. 

Barnard's  Comet,   II.   1889,  March  31. — The  following 
ephemeris  is  given  in  Astronomisclie  Nachricklen,  No,  2931  : — 


18S9. 

Nov.  6  .. 
7  ■• 
8.. 

9.- 

10  .. 

11  .. 

12  .. 

13  •• 

14.. 

15  •• 

16.. 

17.. 
18., 
19.. 

20  ., 

21  . 

22  . 


R.A. 
h.  m.    s. 
I     854 

5  49 
249 

05953 

•     57    I 

■     54  13 

51  29 


DecL 

o  / 

- 16  30-2 

-1637-2 

— 16  43  6 

-  16  49-5 

-  16  54-9 
-1659-8 
-17    4-1 


4850  ...  -17    8-1 


Dec. 


46  15  ...  -  17  II-6 

43  44  •••  -17  14-8 

41  17  ...  -17  17-4 

3855  ...  -17  197 

3636  ...  -17  21-5 

34  21  ...  -  17  22*9 
32  II  ...  -  17  24"0 
30    5  ...  -17249 

28     2  ...    -17  25-4 

The  Structure  of  Jupiter's  Belt  3,  III. — This  dark 
band  appears  under  ordinary  conditions  to  be  made  up  of  two 
parallel  bands,  but  Dr.  Terby  {Astroiioniische  Nacliricliten,  No. 
2928)  says  this  appearance  of  parallelism  is  the  result  of  the 
special  structure  represented  in   the  accompanying  figure,  and 


Nov.  22  , 

23. 

24. 

2^  . 

26, 

27. 

28. 

29, 

30. 
I 

2  . 
3. 
4. 
5' 
6 

7 


2  ... 
3-- 


R.A. 
h.  m.   s. 
,028 
,      26 

24     «... 

22  17  ... 

20  29    .. 

I8  45-. 
,  17  5- 
.     15  28  .. 

•  I3  55-- 
12  25  ... 
1058... 

9  34--- 
.  813... 
.       656... 

■  5  4I-- 
429... 
320... 


Decl. 

-  17  2S-4 
-1725  7 
-1725-6 

-  17  25'2 

-  17  247 
-17  23-9 

-  17  228 

- 17  2r6 

-  17  20-0 

-17  18-3 
-17  16-3 
-17  i4"3 

-  17  12"0 

-17  97 
-17    7-1 

4 '4 
15 


•17 
17 


Structure  of  Jupiter, 
that,  therefore,  the  band  3,  III.,  is  composed  of  a  lot  of  dark 
bands  inclined  in  the  same  direction.  The  circular  parts  A  are 
distinguished  by  Dr.  Terby  as  emitting  a  sort  of  diffused  light  of 
an  entirely  different  character  from  the  white  equatorial  spots, 
properly  so  called  ;  these  luminous  balls  seem  always  to  occur  at 
the  interval  between  two  of  the  inclined  bands,  and  touching 
what  is  generally  their  darkest  part,  B.  The  brilliant  white 
spots  D  also  appear  at  the  dissolution  of  two  successive  bands, 
and  occupy  by  preference  their  northern  extremities.  When  the 
definition  was  very  good.  Dr.  Terby  observed  that  the  interval 
between  two  of  these  fragmentary  bands  had  the  appearance 
of  a  series  of  globules,  as  shown  in  the  figure.  The  structure 
appears  so  general  and  regular  that  it  may  be  the  means  of 
adding  considerably  to  our  knowledge  of  the  physical  constitution 
of  this  planet. 

GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

At  the  first  meeting  of  the  session  of  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society,  the  paper  was  on  Cyprus,  by  Lieut. -General  Sir  Robert 
Biddulph,  G.C.M.G.,  C.B.  The  island  of  Cyprus  is  the  third 
largest  in  the  Mediterranean,  being  inferior  in  size  only  to  Sicily 
and  Sardinia.     Its   area  is   3584  square  miles.     Its  principal 


4t 


NATURE 


[Nov.  14,  1889 


features  are  two  mountain  ranges,  running  pretty  well  parallel  to 
each  other  from  east  to  west.  The  northernmost  of  these  two 
ranges  extends  almost  the  whole  length  of  the  island  from  Cape 
Kormakiti  on  the  north-west  to  Cape  St.  Andrea  at  the  end  of 
the  horn-like  promontory  which  stretches  for  40  miles  from  the 
north-east  of  the  island.  This  promontory  is  called  the  Carpas, 
and  the  low  mountain  chain  running  through  it  is  called  the 
Carpas  range.  The  westernmost  and  higher  portion  of  the 
northern  range  is  called  the  Kyrenia  range,  and  rises  to  an 
altitude  of  3340  feet.  This  range  is  of  a  remarkably  picturesque 
outline,  in  some  parts  extremely  rugged.  It  is  mostly  a  single 
ridge  without  any  remarkable  spurs,  and  its  summit  is  about  two 
miles  from  the  northern  coast.  It  can  be  crossed  in  many  places. 
The  chief  mountain  peaks  of  this  range  are  Kornos,  3105  feet  ; 
Buffavento,  3140  ;  and  Pentedaktylos,  2400.  The  last  named  is 
a  remarkably  shaped  rock  in  the  centre  of  the  Kyrenian  range, 
owing  its  name  to  its  shape,  the  word  Pentedaktylos  signifying 
in  Greek  "five-fingered."  Beneath  this  rock  there  rushes  out 
southward  from  the  mountain  side,  at  an  altitude  of  870  feet, 
a  torrent  of  water,  which  never  ceases  to  flow  summer  or 
winter,  and  which,  descending  into  the  great  plain  in  the  centre 
■of  the  island,  carries  its  fertilizing  streams  to  the  lands  of  several 
villages,  its  course  marked  by  mills,  gardens,  and  trees,  until  its 
water  is  exhausted  by  various  irrigating  channels.  A  similar 
stream  of  water  gushes  from  the  northern  side,  about  12  miles 
west  of  the  Kyrenia  Pass.  Smaller  streams  descend  on  either 
side  of  the  range  at  various  places  ;  their  waters  are  used  for 
irrigation  in  the  valleys.  The  southern  range  of  mountains  is 
of  a  much  more  extensive  nature  than  the  northern  range.  The 
■easternmost  point  of  this  range  is  the  mountain  of  Santa  Croce, 
so  called  from  the  church  of  the  Holy  Cross  which  stands  on  its 
summit.  This  mountain,  which  is  2260  feet  in  height,  is  of  a 
peculiar  shape.  Beginning  then  from  this  point  the  southern 
range  rapidly  rises  to  considerable  altitudes,  finally  culminating 
in  Mount  Troodos,  the  highest  point  in  Cyprus,  being  6406  feet 
above  the  sea-level.  The  other  chief  peaks  in  the  southern  range, 
are  Adelphe,  5305  feet  ;  and  Machera,  4674  feet.  But  it  is  not 
only  in  altitude  that  the  Troodos  range  is  distinguished ;  numerous 
spurs  run  down  to  the  north  and  south,  and  as  we  proceed  further 
west  these  radiate  out?to  greater  distances,  so  that  half  way  be- 
tween Troodos  and  the  sea,  the  mountain  range  is  not  less  than 
20  miles  wide.  Here  there  are  very  considerable  forests,  many 
miles  in  extent,  rarely  visited  save  by  wandering  flocks  and  by 
wood-cutters,  and  affording  shelter  to  the  moufflon,  or  wild  sheep 
of  Europe,  some  200  or  300  of  which  still  roam  over  these  hills. 
On  the  map  it  will  be  seen  that  numerous  rivers  descend  from 
both  sides  of  the  southern  range.  These  are  mostly  dry  in 
summer,  but  after  rain  their  waters  descend  with  violence,  filling 
up  the  river-beds  in  the  plains,  carryiny  away  trees  and  cultivated 
patches,  and  often  rushing  in  a  turbid  stream  into  the  bays  of 
Famagusta  and  Morphou.  Between  the  two  mountain  ranges 
there  lies  a  great  plain  called  the  Mesaorea,  which  is  the  most 
fertile  part  of  Cyprus,  growing  large  crops  of  wheat,  barley,  and 
•cotton.  It  was  evidently  once  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  for  in 
many  parts  are  large  beds  of  marine  shells — gigantic  oysters  and 
•others — all  clustered  in  masses.  A  noticeable  feature  of  this 
plain  is  the  number  of  flat-topped  plateaux  of  various  sizes, 
where  the  rock  seems  to  have  resisted  the  action  of  the  water. 
The  tops  of  these  plateaux  are  clothed  with  short  herbage,  afford- 
ing a  scanty  provision  for  flocks,  and  are  usually  from  100  to  200 
feet  above  the  plain.  The  rivers  which  descend  from  the  hills 
carry  down  large  quantities  of  alluvial  soil,  and  this  f  jrms  in  the 
eastern  part  of  the  Mesaorea  a  rich  deposit,  something  similar  to 
the  Delta  of  the  Nile.  The  two  rivers  which  mainly  contribute 
to  this  plain  are  the  Pediseus  and  the  Idalia,  the  former  taking 
its  rise  from  the  northern  slopes  of  Mount  Machera,  and  the 
latter  from  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  same  mountain.  The  beds 
of  these  rivers  have,  however,  become  so  choked  up  with  alluvial 
deposit  towards  the  end  of  their  course,  that  their  waters  over- 
flow the  plain  and  mingle  together,  so  that  their  separate  mouths 
can  with  difficulty  be  distinguished.  The  normal  condition  of 
these  rivers  is  to  be  without  water,  but  whenever  there  is  a  heavy 
rainfall  in  the  mountains,  the  river  "comes  down,"  as  it  is 
called,  and  runs  for  one,  two,  or  more  da\-s.  It  occasionally 
happens  that  the  water  descends  with  great  suddenness  and 
violence,  causing  disastrous  floods.  Considerable  supplies  of 
water  for  irrigation  purposes  are  obtained  by  sinking  wells.  A 
long  chain  of  wells  are  sunk  at  distances  of  five  or  six  yards 
apart,  and  being  connected  by  underground  galleries,  a  channel 
is  thus  formed  which  conveys  the  water  to  a  reservoir  constructed 


at  the  foot  of  the  last  well,  and  it  is  thence  raised  to  the  surface 
by  a  water-wheel ;  or  in  some  cases  the  level  of  the  ground 
admits  of  the  channel  being  brought  out  on  the  surface.  In  this 
way  the  town  of  Nicosia  is  supplied  with  excellent  water,  which 
is  brought  in  two  aqueducts  from  a  distance  of  some  miles. 
Larnaca  and  Famagusta  and  other  towns  have  similar  aqueducts. 
Closely  connected  with  the  water  supply  is  the  forest  question. 
Sir  Robert  Biddulph  then  entered  into  detail  with  reference  to 
the  denudation  of  Cyprus  of  its  forests,  and  the  great  locust- 
plagues  which  have  been  so  successfully  treated  since  the  British 
occupation. 


THE  FLORA  OF  CHINA} 

CINCE  the  last  meeting  of  the  British  Association,  two  addi- 
*^  tional  parts  of  the  "Index  Florae  Sinensis"  have  been 
published,  bringing  the  enumeration  of  known,  and  the  descrip- 
tion of  new,  species  as  far  as  the  Loganiacecv.  The  Committee 
now,  therefore,  look  forward  with  some  confidence  to  the  com- 
pletion of  their  labours  at  no  distant  date. 

Further  extensive  and  valuable  collections  have  been  received 
from  China  in  aid  of  the  work,  more  especially  from  Dr.  Augus- 
tine Henry,  late  of  Ichang.  The  novelty  and  richness  of  the 
material  obtained  by  this  indefatigable  botanist  far  exceeds  any 
expectations  the  Committee  could  have  formed.  It  is  to  be  re- 
gretted that  his  duties  as  an  officer  of  the  Chinese  Imperial 
Maritime  Customs  have  necessitated  his  removal  to  Hainan.  It 
is  probable,  however,  that  he  had  practically  exhausted  the  im- 
mediate neighbourhood  of  Ichang,  and  that  without  opportuni- 
ties of  travelling  over  a  wider  radius,  which  the  Committtee 
regret  they  were  unable  to  procure  for  him,  he  would  not  have 
been  able  to  add  much  of  material  novelty  to  the  large  collec- 
tions already  transmitted  by  hiai  to  Kew, 

The  Committee  have  met  with  the  kindest  sympathy  and 
assistance  in  their  labours  from  Dr.  C.  J.  de  Maximovvicz,  of 
the  Academic  Imperiale  of  St.  Petersburg,  who  has  long  been 
engaged  on  the  elaboration  of  the  collections  made  by  Russian 
travellers  in  China,  and  from  M.  Franchet,  of  the  Museum 
d'Histoire  Naturelle  at  Paris,  who  is  describing  and  publishing 
the  extremely  rich  collections  made  by  the  French  missionaries 
in  Yunnan, 

The  Committee  have  received  striking  proofs  of  the  apprecia- 
tion of  their  labours  by  botanists  of  all  countries.  They  permit 
themselves  to  quote  the  following  passage  from  a  letter  received 
early  in  the  present  year  from  Baron  Richthofen,  than  whom  no 
one  is  more  competent  to  estimate  the  value  of  work  connected 
with  the  scientific  exploration  of  China:  — 

"  It  is  of  great  value  to  have,  now,  a  Flora  of  China,  embody- 
ing all  the  species  known  from  that  country.  You  have  evi- 
dently succeeded  at  Kew  in  getting  a  very  complete  collection. 
At  the  same  time,  in  looking  over  the  localities  mentioned  in 
the  book,  it  strikes  me  that  large  portions  of  China  are  still 
unexplored  botanically.  There  remains  a  splendid  field  for  a 
good  collector  in  the  Tsingling  Mountains,  the  province  of 
Sz'chuen,  and  chiefly  its  elevated  region  west  of  Ching-tu-fu. 
Work  in  those  parts  will  be  greatly  facilitated  by  the  solid 
foundation  laid  through  the  work  of  Forbes  and  Hemsley." 

Tne  Committee  derive  an  independent  existence  as  a  Sub- 
Committee  of  the  Government  Grant  Committee  of  the  Royal 
Society.  They  are  at  present  in  possession  of  sufficient  funds 
to  enable  them  to  carry  on  the  work.  They  do  not  therefore 
ask  for  their  reappointment  at  the  hands  of  the  British  Associa- 
tion. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  Jjurnal  of  Science,  October. — Assuming  that  the 
earth's  crust  rests  on  a  layer  of  liquid  as  a  floating  body,  Mr.  Le 
Conte  here  off'ers  an  explanation  of  normal  faults.  The  crust  is 
supposed  to  be  raised  into  an  arch,  by  intumescence  of  the 
liquid,  caused  by  steam  or  hydrostatic  pressure  ;  it  is  thus  broken 
by  long  more    or   less    parallel  fissures  into    oblong    prismatic 

'  Third  Reoort  of  the  Com-n!ttee,  consisting  of  Mr.  Thiselton-Dyer 
(Secretary),  Mr.  Carruthers,  Mr.  Ball,  Prjf.  Oliver  and  Mr.  Forbes,  ap- 
pointed for  the  purpose  of  continuing  the  preparation  of  a  Report  on  our 
present  knowledge  of  the  Flora  of  China. 


I 


Nov.  14,  1889] 


NATURE 


47 


blocks,  which,  on  relief  of  the  tension  by  escape  of  lava  or 
vapour,  are  readjusted  by  gravity,  in  new  positions.  The  blocks 
may  be  rectangular  in  section,  but  are  more  likely  to  be  rhom- 
boidal  or  wedge-shaped  ;  giving  level  tables  with  fault  cliffs  (as 
in  the  plateau  region)  in  the  one  case,  and  tilted  blocks  with 
normal  faults  (as  in  the  basin  region)  in  the  other.  The  author 
considers  the  Sierra  and  Wahsatch  to  have  been  formed  by 
lateral  crushing  and  folding  ;  and  the  region  between  to  have 
been  arched,  broken,  and  readjusted,  as  described,  in  the  end  of 
the  Tertiary. — Two  determinations  of  the  ratio  of  the  electro- 
magnetic to  the  electrostatic  unit  arefurnished  from  the  Johns  Hop- 
kins University  ;  one  made  this  year,  by  Mr.  Rosa,  by  Maxwell's 
method  of  measuring  a  resistance,  the  other  ten  years  ago,  by 
Messrs.  Rowland,  Hall,  and  Fletcher,  by  measuring  a  quantity 
of  electricity  electrostatically,  and  then  measuring  it  electro- 
magnetically  with  a  galvanometer.  The  former  gives  v  = 
2*9993  X  lo^"  centimetres  per  second  ;  the  latter,  2'98i5  x  10^" 
centimetres.  It  seems  certain,  according  to  Mr.  Rosa,  that  v  is 
within  a  tenth  per  cent,  of  300  million  metres  per  second. — M  r 
Long  continues  his  account  of  the  circular  polarization  of  certain 
tartrate  solutions  ;  and  his  experiments  point  to  a  law  that  the 
rotation  of  a  double  tartrate  may  be  made  to  approach  that  of  a 
neutral  tartrate  of  either  of  the  metals  present,  by  addition  of  a 
salt  of  that  metal  (the  effects  being  apparently  explained  by 
substitution). — Mr.  Eldridge  proposes  a  new  grouping  and 
nomenclature  for  the  middle  Cretaceous  in  America. — There  are 
also  papers  on  the  gustatory  organs  of  the  American  hare  (Mr. 
Tuckerman)  ;  on  the  output  of  the  non-condensing  engine,  as  a 
function  of  speed  and  pressure  (Mr.  Nipher) ;  and  on  some 
Florida  Miocene  (Mr.  Langdon). 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Physical  Society,  November  i. — Prof.  Reinold,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
read  : — On  a  new  electric-radiation  meter,  by  Mr.W.  G.  Gregory. 
The  meter  consists  of  a  long  fine  platinum  wire  attached  to  a 
delicate  magnifying  spring  of  the  Aryton  and  Perry  type,  and 
stretched  within  a  compound  tube  of  glass  and  brass.  At  the 
junction  between  the  wire  and  spring  a  small  mirror  is  fixed. 
When  the  tube  is  placed  parallel  to  a  Hertz's  oscillator  in  action, 
the  mirror  is  turned  in  a  direction  indicating  an  extension  of  the 
wire.  The  arrangement  is  so  sensitive  that  an  elongation  of 
•juoVou  of  a  mm.  can  be  detected,  and  when  placed  at  a  dis- 
tance ,of  4  metres  from  the  oscillator  the  apparent  extension  is 
such  as  would  correspond  to  a  change  of  temperature  of  o°'oo3  C. 
By  its  aid  the  author  has  roughly  verified  Hertz's  statements 
that  at  considerable  distances  the  intensity  of  radiation  varies  as 
the  inverse  distance  ;  but  before  he  can  proceed  further  it  is 
necessary  to  greatly  increase  the  sensibility  of  the  apparatus  ; 
and  with  a  view  of  obtaining  some  suggestions  in  this  direction, 
he  exhibited  it  before  the  Society.  Prof  Perry  asked  if  the 
E.M.F.  required  to  produce  the  observed  results  had  been  cal- 
culated ;  he  also  believed  that  the  sensibility  might  be  increased 
by  using  copper  instead  of  platinum  wire,  and  replacing  the  spring 
by  a  twisted  strip.  Mr.  Blakesley  inquired  whether  the  effect 
of  increasing  the  capacity  of  the  ends  of  the  wire  had  been  tried. 
Mr.  Boys  ^aid  that  if  the  observed  effect  was  due  to  rise  of 
temperature  he  would  like  to  see  it  measured  thermally.  He 
also  thought  the  effect  might  be  due  to  extension  caused  by 
rapid  electric  oscillations  in  some  such  way  as  the  elongation  of 
an  iron  bar  caused  by  magnetization.  In  answer  to  this,  Prof. 
S.  P.  Thompson  said  the  matter  had  been  investigated  experi- 
mentally, but  with  negative  results.  Prof.  Herschel  suggested 
the  use  of  a  compound  spring  such  as  is  used  in  Breguet's 
metallic  thermometers.  In  reply,  Mr.  Gregory  said  he  had 
estimated  the  E.M.F.  by  observing  that  a  Leclanche  cell 
through  50  ohms  produced  about  the  same  result.  No  improve- 
ment in  sensitiveness  was  obtained  by  using  copper  wire  or  by 
increasing  its  capacity,  and  attempts  to  measure  the  rise  of 
temperature  by  an  air  thermometer  had  been  given  up  as  hope- 
less. The  President,  in  thanking  the  author  lor  his  paper,  con- 
gratulated him  on  the  ingenuity  and  courage  displayed  in  pro- 
ducing an  apparatus  to  measure  such  microscopic  quantities  as 
are  here  involved. — On  a  method  of  driving  tuning-forks 
electrically,  by  Mr.  Gregory.  In  order  to  give  the  impulses 
about  the  middle  of  the  stroke,  the  fork  is   arranged  to   make 


and  break  the  primary  circuit  of  a  small  transformer,  the 
secondary  circuit  of  which  is  completed  through  the  electro- 
magnet actuating  the  fork.  The  prongs  of  the  fork  are  magnet  - 
ized  and  receive  two  impulses  in  each  period.  Another  device- 
was  suggested,  where  the  prongs  respectively  operate  contacts 
which  successively  charge  and  discharge  a  condenser  througI< 
the  coils  of  the  actuating  magnet.  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson  saiti' 
the  methods,  if  perfect,  would  be  of  great  service,  and  suggested 
that  a  fork  so  driven  be  tested  optically  by  comparison  with  a 
freely  vibrating  one.  He  regarded  the  mercury  contacts  used 
as  objectionable,  for  their  capillarity  and  adhesion  would 
probably  cause  the  impulses  to  lag  behind  the  appointed  epochs. 
Prof.  McLeod  remarked  that  Lissajous'  figures  gave  a  satis- 
factory method  of  testing  the  constancy  of  period,  and  could  be 
readily  observed  without  using  lenses,  and  in  reference  to  liquid 
condensers  suggested  by  the  author  for  his  second  device,  said 
that  platinum  plates  in  sulphuric  acid  were  found  to  disintegrate 
when  used  for  this  purpose.  He  thought  lead  plates  would 
prove  suitable.  Prol'.  Jones,  who  read  a  paper  on  a  similar 
subject  in  March  last,  said  he  now  used  bowed  forks,  with  which 
to  synchronize  the  speed  of  the  disk  there  described,  and  the 
frequency  is  determined  by  causing  the  disk  to  complete  tht- 
circuit  of  his  Morse  receiver  once  each  revolution. — On  n 
physical  basis  for  the  theory  of  errors,  by  Mr.  C.  V.  Burton. 
After  pointing  out  that  the  law  of  error  for  any  particular 
measurement  depends  on  the  nature  of  the  conditions  governing: 
such  measurement,  the  author  considers  several  simple  cases,  and 
deduces  their  curves  of  error.  A  kinematic  method  of  combin- 
ing two  or  more  independent  errors,  each  following  known  laws, 
is  then  described  and  applied,  and  the  general  formula  obtained 
leads  to  Laplace's  law  of  error  in  the  case  of  an  infinite  num- 
ber of  similar  errors.  Referring  to  Most  Advantageous  Com- 
binations of  measures,  it  is  shown  that  the  method  of  least 
squares  is  only  a  particular  solution  of  the  general  equation,, 
and  is  derived  by  assuming  the  individual  errors  to  conform  to 
Laplace's  law.  Subjective  errors  are  next  considered,  and  ir 
conclusion  the  author  says  that  "the  law  of  error  in  a  set  of 
observations  depends  on  the  nature  of  each  special  case,  and 
what  may  be  called  the  probable  law  of  error  is  determined  by 
our  knowledge  of  the  conditions.  The  combination  of  three  or 
more  sources  of  error  of  comparable  importance  gives  in  general 
a  law  not  seriously  differing  from  that  of  Laplace,  so  that  the 
method  of  least  squares  will  be  practically  the  most  advantage- 
ous, except  where  a  single  source  of  error  with  a  very  different 
law  is  predominant  above  all  the  rest." — A  note  on  the- 
behaviour  of  twisted  strips,  by  Prof.  J.  Perry,  F. R.S.,  had 
been  prematurely  announced  by  mistake,  and  he  accordingly 
gave  only  a  brief  outline  of  the  paper.  In  a  previous  com- 
munication, Prof.  Ayrton  and  the  author  enunciated  a  working, 
hypothesis  in  which  the  strips  were  imagined  to  be  split  up  into 
pairs  of  filaments,  each  pair  acting  as  a  bifilar  suspension.  The 
resulting  formula  for  the  rotation  produced  by  a  given  load  did 
not  agree  with  experiment,  and  quite  recently  the  author  had 
recognized  why  the  formula  was  incorrect.  The  bifilar  law  they 
had  assumed  was  only  true  for  small  twists,  but  he  now  saw 
another  method  of  treatment  by  which  he  hoped  to  verify  the 
formula  derived  from  experiment  before  the  next  meeting.  Prof. 
Fitzgerald  reminded  Prof.  Perry  of  a  method  of  attacking  the 
problem  suggested  by  the  speaker  some  time  ago,  in  which  each 
filament  was  supposed  to  be  wrapped  round  a  smooth  cylinder  ;. 
and  said  that  on  working  it  out  the  formula  was  found  to  be 
very  complicated.  Mr.  Trotter  thought  the  pairs  of  strips 
might  be  regarded  as  twisted  ladders,  and  Mr.  Gregory  said  this 
suggestion  reduced  the  problem  to  a  series  of  bifilar  suspensions- 
which  had  already  been  worked  out. — On  electrifications  due  to- 
contact  of  gases  and  liquids,  by  Mr.  J.  Enright.  For  som& 
time  past  the  author  has  been  studying  the  electrical  phenomena 
attending  solution,  by  connecting  an  insulated  vessel  in  which 
the  solution  takes  place  with  an  electrometer.  As  a  general  rule, 
no  effect  is  observed  if  nothing  leaves  the  vessel,  but  when 
gases  are  produced  and  allowed  to  escape  the  vessel  become.s 
charged  with  -}-  or  -  electricity,  depending  on  the  nature  of  the 
liquid  from  which  the  gas  passes  into  the  air.  As  an  example, 
when  zinc  is  placed  in  hydrochloric  acid,  the  deflection  of  the 
electrometer  is  in  one  direction  whilst  the  liquid  is  chiefly  acid, 
but  decreases  and  reverses  as  more  and  more  zinc  chloride  i-; 
produced.  From  such  observations  the  author  hopes  to  obtain 
some  information  relating  to  atomic  charges.  Owing  to  the 
lateness  of  the  hour,  the  latter  portion  of  the  paper  and  the 
discussion  on  it  were  postponed  until  next  meeting. 


48 


NATURE 


\Nov.  14,  1889 


Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  Nov.  4. — M.  Des  Cloizeaux,  Presi- 
dent, in  the  chair. — Instrument  for  measuring  the  coefficient  of 
elasticity  of  metals,  by  Mr.  Phillips.  This  is  a  large  spiral  spring 
and  balance  wheel,  the  former  made  of  the  metal  to  be  examined. 
■ — Role  and  mechanism  of  the  local  lesion  in  infectious  diseases,  by 
M.  Ch.  Bouchard.  Whereas  in  absolute  immunity,  there  is,  after 
inoculation,  neither  general  infection  nor  local  lesion,  and  in 
total  absence  of  immunity,  general  infection,  often  without  local 
lesion,  in  relative,  normal,  immunity  there  is  local  lesion  mostly 
without  general  infection  ;  in  the  last  case,  as  experiment  shows, 
it  is  not  the  local  lesion  that  causes  the  immunity,  but  vice 
versa.  Inoculating  vaccinated  and  unvaccinated  rabbits  with 
pyocyanic  Bacillus,  the  author  found,  in  the  former,  rapid  appear- 
ance of  leucocytes,  all  having  many  Bacteria,  which  were  soon 
resolved  into  granulations,  and  in  sixteen  hours  were  quite  gone  ; 
while  the  free  Bacteria  soon  decreased  in  number.  In  the  other 
animals,  few  leucocytes,  no  Bacilli  in  them,  and  free  Bacteria 
multiplying. — Statistics  of  preventive  treatment  of  rabies,  from 
February  9,  1888,  to  September  15,  1889,  at  the  Pasteur  In- 
stitute of  Rio  de  Janeiro  (Dr.  Ferreira  dos  Santos),  by  the 
Emperor  of  Brazil.  Of  156  who  underwent  full  treatment,  only 
one  died,  and  not  certainly  from  rabies  ;  this  gives  a  mortality  of 

0  64  per  cent. — On  the  velocity  of  wind  at  the  top  of  the  Eiffel 
Tower,  by  M,  A.  Angot.  Three  months'  observations  give  a 
mean  of  7*05  m.  as  compared  with  2*24  m.  at  the  Central 
Meteorological  Office  (21  m.  from  the  ground).  While  at  low 
stations   there   is  a  minimum  at    sunrise    and   a  maximum    at 

1  p.m.,  the  Eiffel  (like  mountains)  showed  a  minimum  about 
10  a.m.  and  a  maximum  at  11  p.m.  (while  at  midday  there  was 
but  a  slight  upward  bend  of  the  curve). — On  phenyl-thiophene, 
by  M.  A.  Renard.     This  is  prepared  by  passing  through  an  iron 
tube,  heated  to  dark  redness,  vapours  of  toluene  and  of  sulphur, 
and  distilling  the  condensed  product.    Analysis  gave  the  formula 
CjsHg — C4H3S.     With  bromine,  nitric  acid,  and  sulphuric  acid, 
substitution  products  are  obtained.  — Researches  on    digitaline 
and  tanghinine,    by  M.   Arnaud.      By  heating  digitaline  with 
baryta- water  to  180°  for  several  hours,  it  combines  with  water 
yielding   the   compound   C31H52O11,    from   which    the    formula 
CsjHsqOjo  is  deduced  for  digitaline.     The  formula  of  tanghinine, 
similarly  deduced,  is  Q,^-\\^^0^.     This  formula  differs  from  that 
of    Schmiedeberg   for    digitaline,    viz.   C.21H32O7. — Studies    on 
the    embryology    of    the    axolotl,    by    M.    F.    Houssay.      He 
describes  the  mechanics  of  segmentation,  the    origin    and    de- 
velopment of  the  peripheral  nervous  system,  and  the  morpho- 
logy  of   the    head. — On   the    cytoplasm    and   the    nucleus    in 
Noctiluci,  by  M.   G.  Pouchet.      Flemming's  chromatine  seems 
to  be  formed  of  two  substances,  chromatoplasm  and  hyaloplasm  ; 
and  the  proportion  of  the  former  increases  as  gemmation  pro- 
ceeds ;   hence   the   more   and   more  lively   colour   of  the   seg- 
mented  nuclei. — On  the  parasitic    castration  of  Typhlocyba  by 
•a  Hymenopterous   larva    {Aphelopus    melaleuctis,  Dalm. ),    and 
a  Dipterous  larva  {Atelenevra  spuria,  Meig.),  by  M.   A.  Giard, 
In     T.    hippocastani,    the    weight    terminal    branches    of    the 
penis   are  reduced  to   six,   four,    or  three.     A  pair  of  curious 
invaginations    on    the    ventral   surface    of  the    body    are   also 
shortened. —  Action  of  serum  of  diseased  or  vaccinated  animals 
on  pathogenic  microbes,  by  MM.  Charrin  and  Roger.     Operat- 
ing with  the  pyocyanic  Bacillus  and  rabbits,   they   found   the 
serum  of  vaccinated  animals  more  adverse   to   growth   of  the 
Bacillus  than   normal  serum,  but  somewhat  less  than    that    of 
the  diseased  animals. — Contribution  to  the   semeiological   and 
pathogenic  study  of  rabies,   by  M.   G.  Ferre.     Inoculating  by 
trepanation,  and  with  stronger  virus  than  before,  they  found  that 
the  respiratory  acceleration  appeared  on  the  fourth  instead  of  the 
fifth  day ;  the  respiratory  centres  being  invaded  correspondingly 
sooner.     The  symptoms   could   not   be   attributed    to   thermal 
elevation,  the  maximum  of  this  occurring  later. — Statistics   of 
preventive  inoculations  against  yellow  fever,  by  Dr.   Domingos 
Freire.     From  1883  to  1889,  there  were  10,524  persons  inocu- 
lated in  Brazil  ;  and  the  mortality  was  0*4  per  cent.    The  deaths 
of  non-vaccinated  during  the  four  epidemics  were  over  6500. — On 
the  modifications  in  normal  gaseous  exchanges  of  plants  by  the 
presence  of  organic  acids,  by  M.  L.  Mangin.    He  injected  malic, 
citric,  and  tartaric  acids  into  leaves  of  Japanese  prick-wood,  bay 
rose,  and  lilac,  and  found  these  leaves  to  behave  like  Cacteae  and 
Crassulacese.     In  the  dark,  the  volume  of  carbonic  acid  liberated 
is  greater  than  that  of  oxygen  absorbed  ;  and  in  the  light,  there 
is  emission  of  oxygen  without  correlative  absorption  of  carbonic 
acid. — On  the  existence  of  1  numerous  zeoliths  in  the  gneissic 
rocks  of  Upper  Ariege,  by  M.  A.  Lacroix. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London, 

THURSDAY,  November  14. 

Mathematical  Society,  at  8. — Isoscelian  Hexagrams  :  R. ^Tucker. — On 
Euler's  ^-Function  :  H.  F.  Baker. — On  the  E.xtension  and  Flexure  of  a 
Thin  Elastic  Plate  :  A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — On  the  Lighting  of  the 
Melbourne  Centennial  International  Exhibition  :  K.  L.  Murray. 
FRIDAY,  November  15. 

Physical  Society,  at '5. — On  the  Electrification  due  to  the  Contact  of 
Gases  and  Liquids  :  J.  Enright. — On  the  Effect  of  Repeated  Heating  and 
Cooling  on  the  Electrical  Resistance  and  Temperature  Coefficient  of 
Annealed  Iron  :  H.  Tomlinson,  F.R.S. — Notes  on  Geometrical  Optics, 
Part  II.:   Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — The  New  Harbour  and 
Breakwater  at  Boulogne-sur-Mer  :  S.  C.  Bailey. 

MONDAY,  November  18. 

Aristotelian  Society,  at  8. — Scepticism  :  S.  Alexander. 
TUESDAY,  November    19. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — Water-Tube  Steam-Boilers  for 
Marine  Engines  :  John  I.  Thornycrofc. 

Royal  Statistical  Society,  at  7.45. — Opening  Address  by  the  President, 
Dr.  T.  Graham  Balfour,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  November  20. 

Geological  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Occurrence  of  the  Striped  Hysena  in 
the  Tertiary  of  the  Val  d'Arno  :  R.  Lydekker. — The  Catastrophe  of 
Kantzorik,  Armenia:  M.  F.  M.  Corpi.  Communicated  by  W.  H.  Hudle- 
ston,  F.R.S. — On  a  New  Genus  of  Siliceous  Sponges  from  the  Lower 
Calcareous  Grit  of  Yorkshire  :  Dr.  J.  G.  Hinde. 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  at  7. — Second  Report  of  the  Thunder- 
storm Committee — Distribution  of  Thunderstorms  over  England  and 
Wale":,  1871-87  :  William  Marriott. — On  the  Change  of  Temperature 
which  accompanies  Thunderstorms  in  Southern  England  :  G.  M.  W'hipple. 
— Note  on  the  Appearance  of  St.  Elmo's  Fire  at  Wakon-onthe-Naze, 
September  3,  1889  :  W.  H.  Dines. — Notes  on  Cirrus  Formation  :  H.  Helm 
Clayton. — A  Comparison  between  the  Jordan  and  the  Campbell-Stokes 
Sunshine  Recorders  :  F.  C.  Bayard. — Sunshine :  A.  B.  MacDowall  — 
On  Climatological  Observations  at  Ballyboley,  Co.  Antrim  :  Prof.  S.  A- 
Hdl. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Opening  Address  by  the  Chairman,  the  Duke  of 
Abercorn,  C.B. 

University  College  Chemical  and  Physical  Society,  at  4.30. — 
Pyridine  and  the  Alkaloids:   Dr.  N.  Collie. 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Science   and   the  Future  Indian  Civil  Service  Exa- 
minations     25 

The  Lund    Museum    in   the    University   of   Copen- 
hagen     26 

Hydraulic  Motors.     By  A.  G.  G 27 

Physiology  of  Education.     By  J.  H.  G 28 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Whitham  :   "Steam-Engine  Design," — N.J.  L,  .    .    .    29 

Hake:  "  Coloured  Analytical  Tables  " 29 

Tidy:   "  The  Story  of  a  Tinder  Box  " 30 

Jamieson  :   ' '  Magnetism  and  Electricity  " 30 

Ball :   "  Time  and  Tide  ;  a  Romance  of  the  Moon  "  .    .    30 
Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Specific  Inductive  Capacity, — Prof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge, 

F.R.S 30 

Who  discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  ? — Prof, 

W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.  ;  Oswald  H.  Latter    .    .    30 
"LaPietraPapale."— Dr.  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S.      .    31 
On  a  Mite  of  the  Genus   Tetranychus  found    infesting 
Lime-trees   in  Leicester  Museum  Grounds. — F.  R. 

Rowley 31 

Retarded  Germination.— E.  A 31 

The   Relation   of   the    Soil    to    Tropical    Diseases. — 

Surgeon  A.  Ernest  Roberts .    31 

The  Earthquake   of    Tokio,  April  18,     1889.— Prof. 

Cargill  G.  Knott 3^ 

A  Brilliant  Meteor. — Paul  A.  Cobbold " 

On   the    Hardening   and   Tempering    of   Steel,     XL 
{Illustrated.)      By    Prof,     W,     C.     Roberts-Austen, 

F.R.S 32 

Prof.   Weismann's    "Essays,"     By  Dr,   St,   George 

Mivart,  F.R.S 38 

Notes 41 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope.     {With  Diagram.)— K. 

Fowler 44 

Large- Scale  Charts  of  the  Constellations 45 

Barnard's  Comet,  II.  1889,  March  31 45 

The  Structure  of  Jupiter's  Belt  3,  III,     {^Illustrated.)    .    45 

Geographical  Notes 45 

The  Flora  of  China 46 

Scientific  Serials 46 

Societies  and  Academies •    •    47 

Diary  of  Societies •   •    .48 


NA TURE 


49 


ROCK  METAMORPHISM. 
Chemical  and  Physical  Studies  in  the  Metamorphism  of 
Rocks,  based  on  the  Thesis  written  for  the  D.Sc.  Degree 
in  the  University  of  London,  1 888.  By  the  Rev.  A. 
Irving,  D.Sc.Lond.,  B.A.,  F.G.S.  (London:  Longmans, 
Green,  and  Co.  1889.) 

DR.  IRVING  is  well  known  as  a  writer  on  Bagshot 
beds.  He  appears  in  a  new  light  as  the  pro- 
pounder  of  theories  dealing  with  the  metamorphism  of 
rocks.  His  ideas  on  this  subject  are  classified  under 
three  heads :  paramorphism,  metatropy,  and  metataxis. 
Paramorphisni,  according  to  the  author,  includes  those 
^changes  within  in  the  rock-mass,  involving  changes  in  the 
chemical  composition  of  the  original  minerals  and  the 
formation  of  new  minerals  ;  metatropy  denotes  changes 
in  the  physical  character  of  rock-masses  ;  and  metataxis, 
mechanical  changes,  such  as  the  development  of  cleavage. 
Changes  brought  about  by  the  introduction  of  a  new,  or 
the  removal  of  an  old  mineral  {e.g.  dolomitization)  are 
treated  under  the  head  of  hyperphoric  change. 

The  author  writes,  he  tells  us,  for  those  who  are  willing 
:o  look  at  geological  phenomena  "  in  the  light  of  physical 
ind  chemical  ideas."  To  all  others  his  dissertation 
■  must  read  rather  like  romance  than  sober  science." 
1  Ic  is  not  far  wrong  when  he  complains  that  the  chemical 
mlIc  of  geology  has  been  neglected  since  the  time  of 
r.iscliof.  The  reason  for  this  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact 
hat  geologists  have  been  too  busily  engaged  in  reaping 
golden  harvests  in  the  demesnes  of  palaeontology  and 
stratigraphy  to  be  much  tempted  by  the  allurements  of 
:hemical  geology.  With  the  resuscitation  of  petrology, 
lowever,  the  chemical  constitution  of  rocks  begins  again 

0  present  problems  of  great  interest  and   importance. 
'■ 't   the   author  turns  his  chemical  knowledge   to   bad 

unt,  we  think,  in  applying  it  to  the  elaboration  of 
M  eping  generalizations.  The  views  he  puts  forward 
nay  or  may  not  be  founded  on  sound  chemical  and 
)hysical  axioms  ;  but  mere  test-tube  reactions  will  not 
uftice  to  explain  the  operations  of  Nature  in  the  vast 
iboratory  of  the  universe.  The  phenomena  of  meta- 
iKirphism  represent  the  net  result  of  numerous  and  often 
antagonistic  forces  ;  and  are  not  always  simple  reactions 
hat  may  be  expressed  by  a  neat  chemical  equation. 

Dr.  Irving  appears  to  be  highly  gifted  with  what  he 
cniis  a  "scientific  imagination,"  the  meteoric  flights  of 
vhich  carry  him  far  above  the  solid  |;round  of  fact  or 
;vcn  justifiable  theory.  An  instance  of  this  faculty  of  the 
uithor's  will  be  found  on  p.  66,  where  he  seeks  to  explain 
he  origin  of  foliation  in  Archaean  rocks  by  the  influence 
>f  "  solar  and  lunar  tides  upon  the  non-consolidated 
niL^ma  in  the  Archaean  and  pre- Archaean  {sic)  stages  of  the 
11  th's  evolution."     He  proceeds  : — 

'■  In  such  an  unequally  viscous  mass  there  would  be 
ion,  contortion,  and  shearing  to  any  extent  during 
idal  pulsations  which  the  magma  was  suffering.  .  .  . 

I  lions  already  solidified,  or  nearly  so,  by  segregation 

1  otherwise,  as  time  went  on,  would  by  their  vis  inerticE 
ncsent  obstacles  around  which  a  fluxion  structure  would 
e\  clop  itself  in  the  contiguous  portions  of  the  yielding 
la^^ma,  giving  us  perhaps  in  some  cases  '  Augengneiss.' 
he   local   tension  of  parts  of  the  viscous  lithosphere, 

Vol.  xli. — No.  1047. 


especially  near  the  crests  of  the  waves,  would  imply 
stretching  and  consequent  lowering  of  temperature,  a 
circumstance  favourable  to  local  solidification.  Who 
shall  say  that  in  the  later  and  feebler  struggles  of  this 
kind,  as  secular  cooling  went  on,  and  the  magma 
approached  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  conditions  required 
for  consolidation,  some  of  these  tidal  waves  may  not 
have  become  in  situ  sufficiently  rigid  to  outline  some 
of  the  earliest  lines  of  elevation  ? " 

This  is  speculative  enough  in  all  conscience.  On 
p.  29,  the  author  discusses  the  influence  of  the  salts 
dissolved  in  sea-water  on  submarine  lava-flows,  and 
suggests  that  serpentinization  and  the  conversion  of 
orthoclase  into  albite  are  the  result  of  some  process  of 
"  submarine  paramorphism "  effected  by  this  agency. 
This,  again,  is  pure  hypothesis,  there  being  no  facts  to 
support  such  a  view. 

There  is  a  flavour  of  pedantry  in  the  use  of  such 
expressions  as  "  burnt  hydrogen  "  for  water  (p.  64),  or  in 
such  sentences  as  "  orthoclase  is  probably  the  embryonic 
silicate  of  the  terrestrial  lithosphere"  (p.  67).  As  the  old 
lady  is  said  to  have  remarked  of  the  word  Mesopotamia, 
there  is  something  especially  comforting  and  satisfying 
about  this  last  sentence. 

The  pages  bristle  with  "  hard  words,"  some  of  which 
are  new  to  science.  "Vitreosity"  has  an  uncanny 
sound  ;  "  apophytic  "  is  curious  ;  and  "  dehydrodevitrifica- 
tion  "  is  as  inelegant  as  it  is  long.  Indeed,  so  technical  is 
the  author's  language  that  a  clear  understanding  of  his 
meaning  involves  constant  reference  to  his  definitions. 
Unfortunately  such  reference  is  rendered  impracticable 
by  the  absence  of  an  index. 

The  book  bears  witness  to  Dr.  Irving's  extensive 
acquaintance  with  foreign  chemical  and  geological 
literature  ;  references  to  foreign  sources  being  abundant, 
sometimes  superfluous.  Indeed,  there  is  more  evidence 
of  the  author's  acquaintance  with  literature  than  with 
facts  derived  from  original  observation.  Good  ideas 
may  here  and  there  be  picked  out ;  and  the  work  no 
doubt  contains  some  plausible  explanations  of  geological 
phenomena  ;  but  of  this  we  are  assured,  that  the  science 
of  geology  will  not  be  advanced  by  those  who  spend 
their  time  in  manufacturing  wide-reaching  generaliza- 
tions or  attractive  theories  in  the  library,  but  rather  by 
those  who  are  content  to  labour,  with  the  hammer  in  the 
field,  the  microscope  in  the  cabinet,  and  the  balance 
in  the  laboratory  at  the  ofttimes  wearisome  task  of 
unravelling  details. 

This  book  may  be  placed  in  the  same  category  as 
Sterry  Hunt's  "  Chemical  and  Geological  Essays."  Such 
books  can  be  recommended  to  those  with  a  taste  for 
speculation  and  rumination.  To  others  they  may  be 
productive  of  mental  confusion  and  headache. 


HAND-BOOK  OF  DESCRIPTIVE  AND 
PRACTICAL  ASTRONOMY. 
Hand-book  of  Descriptive  and  Practical  Astronomy.     By 
G.  F.  Chambers,  F.R.A.S.      Part  I.  The  Sun,  Planets, 
and  Comets.     (Oxford:  Clarendon  Press,  1889.) 

THE  avowed  aim  of  the  author  of  this  work,  since  the 
publication  of  the  first  edition  in  1861,  has  been  to 
keep  its  pages  up  to  date— to  make  it  a  sort  of  vade 
mecuvi  to  astronomers  ;    and,  regarded  as  a  book  en- 

D 


50 


NATURE 


[Nov.  21,  1889 


deavouring  to  effect  a  compromise  between  purely  ele- 
mentary works  on  astronomy  and  advanced  treatises,  it 
is  worthy  of  some  praise.  With  the  many  remarkable 
developments  of  astronomical  science  during  the  last 
quarter  of  a  century,  the  bulk  of  the  original  volume  has 
been  somewhat  increased  by  additions,  and  it  has  now 
been  decided  henceforth  to  publish  the  work  in  three 
divisions,  viz. — 

(i)  The  sun,  planets,  and  comets. 

(2)  Instruments  and  practical  astronomy. 

(3)  The  starry  heavens. 

The  first  division  of  the  work  is  now  before  us,  and 
viewed  as  a  handy  book  of  reference  it  has  many  com- 
mendable features  ;  but  all  that  could  be  said  in  its 
praise  would  be  the  reiteration  of  comments  upon  former 
editions. 

The  most  important  application  of  spectroscopy  to 
astronomy  is  too  well  known  to  need  any  enlarging  upon. 
It  may  be  said  to  be  almost  entirely  a  creature  of  the  last 
quarter  of  a  century,  but  by  far  the  greater  amount  of 
this  spectroscopic  work  has  been  directed  to  the  sun, 
whilst  many  new  and  important  discoveries  have  been 
made  in  connection  with  it.  In  pre-spectroscopic  times 
a  spot  on  the  sun  was  only  that,  and  nothing  more  ;  and 
a  solar  prominence  was  a  stupendous  flame,  the  observa- 
tion of  which  was  only  possible  at  eclipses.  Nothing 
was  known  of  their  constitution  ;  and,  in  fact,  all  we  now 
know  of  the  physical  and  chemical  condition  of  the  sun 
has  been  gained  by  spectroscopists.  However,  it  is  not 
necessary  here  to  consider  the  enormous  work  that  has 
been  done  in  this  direction,  but  it  is  our  duty  most  em- 
phatically to  protest  against  a  compilation  such  as  the  one 
before  us — purporting  to  be  a  completely  revised  account 
of  astronomical  labours  and  advances,  and  yet  render- 
ing terribly  conspicuous  by  its  absence  everything  that 
relates  to  spectroscopy.  It  is  like  a  book  on  loco- 
motion leaving  out  all  about  railways  because  they 
were  not  prominent  when  the  first  edition  was  pub- 
lished. The  pictorial  representations  of  the  corona,  the 
solar  prominences,  the  surface  of  the  sun  and  the  spots 
upon  it,  are  well  discussed  in  their  respective  sections, 
but  no  room  has  been  given  to  an  examination  of  their 
constitution  by  means  of  the  spectroscope  ;  and  indeed, 
as  far  as  this  book  is  concerned,  the  whole  work  that  has 
been  done  in  connection  with  solar  physics  might  have 
been  left  undone. 

But  these  remarks  apply  not  only  to  the  chapters  re- 
lating to  the  sun  ;  those  on  the  planets  and  comets  re- 
spectively are  in  the  same  incomplete  condition.  Without 
the  spectroscope,  the  source  of  luminosity  of  a  comet  was 
far  beyond  human  ken,  and  its  whole  constitution  was  a 
matter  of  considerable  doubt  ;  with  this  instrument,  how- 
ever, much  has  been  added  to  our  knowledge — the  comet's 
light  has  been  analyzed,  and  the  whole  sequence  of 
changes,  as  it  goes  from  aphelion  to  perihelion  and  back 
again,  is  now  understood.  Yet  the  spectroscope  might 
never  have  been  turned  to  these  bodies,  or  indeed  utilized 
in  any  way,  if  the  utility  and  importance  of  the  work 
done  were  measured  by  the  brief  notice  with  which  the 
author  has  seen  fit  to  dispose  of  it,  and  the  following  may 
be  said  to  be  the  reason  for  his  grievous  omissions  : — 

"  The  study  of  the  sun  has  during  the  last  few  years 
taken  a  remarkable  start,  owing  to  the  fact  that,  by  the 


aid  of  the  spectroscope,  we  have  been  enabled  to  obtairt 
much  new  information  about  its  physical  constitution. 
The  subject  being,  however,  a  physical  rather  than  an 
astronomical  one,  and  involving  a  great  amount  of  optical 
and  chemical  details,  it  cannot  conveniently  be  discussed 
at  length  in  a  purely  astronomical  treatise,  though  some- 
thing will  be  said  concerning  it  later  on  in  the  portion  of 
this  work  dedicated  to  spectroscopic  matters." 

This  explanation,  however,  only  aggravates  the  fault. 
The  importance  of  the  work  that  has  been  done  is  as- 
sented to,  but,  instead  of  including  that  part  of  it  relating 
to  the  sun  in  a  chapter  on  that  body,  instead  of  consider- 
ing the  spectroscopy  of  comets  as  inseparable  from  a 
chapter  devoted  to  their  discussion,  the  author  has  rele- 
gated the  whole  work  to  an  unpublished  section  devoted  to 
astronomical  instruments.  Such  an  arrangement  is  un- 
doubtedly wrong.  A  chapter  on  the  sun  must  contain  all 
that  is  known  about  that  body,  if  it  strives  to  be  at  all  com- 
plete ;  similarly,  a  chapter  on  comets  cannot  approach 
completion  unless  their  spectra  are  considered  ;  thus  this 
work  cannot  lead  the  general  public  to  a  just  appreciation  of 
the  many  advancements  that  have  been  made.  The  most 
elementary  text-books  rightly  include  the  spectroscopic 
labours  and  discoveries,  whereas  this  so-called  hand-book, 
although  aiming  at  being  an  historical  account  of  the 
work  that  has  been  directed  to  the  sun,  planets,  and 
comets  respectively,  leaves  a  vast  array  of  facts  out  of 
consideration  altogether. 

There  are  a  few  minor  faults,  one  of  which  is  the 
figure  relating  to  Foucault's  pendulum  experiment  for 
determining  the  rotation  of  the  earth.  The  author  ap- 
pears to  have  discarded  the  method  of  suspension 
adopted  by  Foucault,  and  the  pendulum  is  sketched  as 
if  rigidly  attached  to  a  beam.  The  accompanying  text 
also  leaves  this  most  important  experimental  detail  out 
of  consideration. 

But  apart  from  these  points,  the  work  is  worthy 
of  some  commendation.  An  addition  has  been  made  to 
the  chapter  on  comets,  viz.  a  method  of  determining  the 
elements  of  the  orbit  of  a  comet  by  a  graphical  process. 
The  catalogue  of  comets  whose  orbits  have  been  com- 
puted has  also  been  brought  up  to  date,  and  similar  ad- 
ditions have  been  made  to  the  chapters  on  periodic  and 
remarkable  comets.  Doubtless  the  book  will  prove  to  be 
what  it  has  been  heretofore — a  handy  reference  to  some 
astronomical  facts. 


ELECTRICAL  UNDERTAKINGS. 

Proceedings  of  the  ^National  Electric  Light  Association 
at  its  Ninth  Co?ivention,  1889.  Vol.  VI.  (Boston, 
Mass.,  U.S.  :  Press  oi  Modern  Light  and  Heat,  1889.) 

WE  have  before  us,  in  this  volume,  an  account  of  the 
proceedings  of  the  National  Electric  Light  Asso- 
ciation in  the  United  States  during  the  Convention  held 
at  Chicago  on  certain  days  in  February  1889. 

This  body  is  one  which,  in  the  United  States,  has  been 
brought  into  existence  by  the  growing  necessities  and 
rapid  expansion  of  the  electric  light  and  power  industry. 
Probably  its  nearest  English  analogue  is  the  Iron  and 
Steel  Institute.  It  is  essentially  a  commercial  associa- 
tion, and  its  aims  may  be  said  to  be  comprised  within 
the    limits   of   the    exchange    of   practical    information 


Nov.  2  1,  1889] 


NATURE 


51 


amongst  its  members,  and  of  such  joint  action  as  will 
further  the  use  and  success  of  these  electrical  trades. 
Hence  its  objects  are  not,  exactly  speaking,  scientific) 
at  least  in  the  usual  sense  of  the  word,  and  the  inter- 
mixture of  genuine  desire  to  exchange  veritable  expe- 
rience, with  a  certain  element  of  effort  to  push  into  notice 
particular  personal  "  interests,"  renders  a  discriminating 
mind  necessary  in  dealing  with  its  Reports.  At  the  time 
of  writing,  when  the  work  of  practically  providing  London 
with  distributed  electric  current  is  being  carried  on  with 
energy  in  diverse  directions,  and  the  various  Electric 
Supply  Companies  are  laying  down  mains  and  establish- 
ing stations,  this  Report  serves  a  useful  purpose  of 
enabling  us  to  judge  the  present  state  of  the  industry  in 
jthe  country  where,  of  all  others,  it  has  had  the  most 
I  unhindered  development. 

In  his  opening  address,  the  President,  Mr.  S.  A.  Dun- 
can, gave  some  figures  which  are  significant  of  the 
immense  extent  to  which  the  electric  lighting  business 
has  now  progressed  in  the  United  States.  The  total 
number  of  arc  lights  in  daily  use  is  about  220,000  ;  of 
incandescent  lamps,  some  2,500,000.  There  are  approxi- 
mately 5700  central  stations  and  isolated  plants,  supply- 
ing electric  current  to  single  buildings  or  groups,  or 
:  Sections  of  towns.  There  are  53  electric  railways  in 
Operation,  and  44  in  progress,  on  which  378  electric 
ttram-cars  travel  over  294  miles  of  track.  The  total 
papital  employed  and  sunk  in  these  various  undertakings 
ts  probably  not  under  fifty  millions  sterling.  When  we 
bonsider  that  this  is  the  growth  of  ten  years,  we  are 
Dound  to  admit,  not  only  that  this  youngest  of  the  applied 
sciences  is  of  vigorous  growth,  but  that  its  commercial 
aasis  must  be  sound.  The  Proceedings  of  the  Conven- 
:ion  take  the  form  of  a  series  of  Reports  on  various 
Joints  of  interest  which  are  drawn  up  by  individuals  or 
Committees,  and  then  discussed  by  the  whole  body. 

One  of  the  important  questions  which  in  this  meeting 
eceived  consideration  was  that  of  underground  con- 
iuctors.  It  has  been  evident  for  a  long  time  that  arc-light 
vires,  telephone,  telegraph,  fire-signal,  and  incandescent- 
amp  wires  cannot  be  permitted  to  increase  without  limit 
n  the  form  of  overhead  conductors.  In  the  early  days  of 
he  telephone  and  arc  light  the  inconvenience  of  overhead 
vires  did  not  present  itself  as  a  formidable  one ;  but,  with 
heir  rapid  growth,  the  dangers  to  life  and  property  arising 
rom  an  indiscriminate  collection  of  electric  wires  strung 
in  poles  or  attached  to  roofs  in  large  cities  became  ap- 
;nt.  Hence  has  arisen  a  demand  that  they  shall  be 
underground. 

nfortunately  this  is  not  so  easy  in  practice  as  it  seems. 

:  distributing  companies  in  many  cases  desire  to  avoid 

'ost  of  making  the  exchange  in  those  cases  in  which 

cy  are  operating  overhead  wires.     The  expense  of  an 

uderground  system  of  conductors    is  from   five  to   ten 

•s  that  of  aiirial  lines.     Moreover,  the  various  methods 

;ested  for  sub-laying  the  conductors  in  streets  and 

'  Is  have  all  peculiar  merits  and  demerits.     Mr.  Edison, 

is  well  known,  places  the  copper  conductors  in  steel 

cs,  insulating  them  with  a  bituminous  compound,  and 

f^ys  these  like  gas-pipes  in  the  streets.     This  system  has 

|een  operated  for  years  in  New  York,   Milan,  Boston^ 

nd  Chicago,  with  a  high  degree  of  success.     Other  in- 

entors  have  advocated  a  conduit  system  ;  others,  again. 


the  use  of  bare  copper  conductors  insulated  in  a  subway. 
It  is  thus  seen  that  the  necessary  experience  for  satis- 
factorily laying  down  underground  systems  of  conductors 
for  the  conveyance  of  large  electric  currents  is  only  slowly 
being  collected. 

The  city  of  Chicago  has  one  of  the  most  completely 
developed  systems  ofunderground  conductors  for  arc-light 
wires.  There  are  some  seventy-eight  miles  of  under- 
ground cable  conveying  currents  under  a  pressure  of 
iooo~i8oo  volts.  The  members  of  the  Convention  not 
unnaturally  exhibited  considerable  differences  of  opinion 
on  this  question  of  underground  conductor  systems. 
A  Committee  appointed  for  the  purpose  had  issued  a 
circular  to  about  1066  managers  of  central  stations  and 
lighting  systems  and  others,  with  the  object  of  eliciting 
their  opinions  on  the  subject  of  underground  conductors. 
Out  of  this  number  130  returned  very  full  answers  to  the 
various  questions,  and  the  diversity  of  opinion  seems 
very  great.  It  is  difficult,  however,  to  believe  that  the 
process  of  collecting  information  was  that  which  would 
lead  to  the  best  results,  and  although  the  various  views 
put  forward  in  the  discussion  on  the  Report  are  interest- 
ing, they  do  not  indicate  a  solidarity  of  opinion  on  any 
one  point.  It  is  perfectly  certain,  however,  that  in 
England  electric  conductors  for  systems  of  town  light- 
ing by  electricity  will  have  to  be  placed  underground, 
and  it  is  also  equally  certain  that  those  responsible 
for  this  work  will  have  to  exercise  the  greatest  dis- 
cretion and  take  the  fullest  advantage  of  existing  ex- 
perience. The  question  of  the  fire  risks  of  electric 
lighting  also  occupied  the  attention  of  the  members.  In 
the  United  States,  as  with  us,  the  opinion  based  on 
experience  is  that  when  the  work  of  installing  the  electric 
light  is  carried  out  under  all  known  proper  precautions, 
and  by  the  best  guidance,  there  is  greater  safety  in  it 
than  in  gas  illumination,  but  that  when  these  known 
precautions  are  disregarded  then  danger  ensues.  Minor 
questions,  such  as  the  disruptive  discharges  in  lead 
cables  and  fuel  oil,  attracted  briefer  attention.  The  im- 
portance of  such  a  gathering  in  guiding  the  experience  of 
those  who  are  fostering  an  industry  like  that  of  electric 
lighting,  in  Avhich  invention  advances  by  leaps  and 
bounds,  is  very  great.  We  in  England,  thanks  to  the 
revision  of  the  Electric  Lighting  Act,  are  now  entering  on 
a  period  of  great  electrical  activity,  and  already  it  has 
been  found  that  the  commercial  side  of  electrical  engin- 
eering requires  the  association  of  those  engaged  in  it  for 
mutual  advice  and  joint  action,  and  the  London  Chamber 
of  Commerce  has  now  an  active  Electrical  Section  which 
fulfils  to  some  extent  the  functions  of  the  National  Elec- 
tric Light  Association  in  America. 

J.  A.  F. 


DIANTHUS. 

Enwneratio  Specierian  Varietatuviqiie  Generis  Dianthia. 
Auctore  F.  N.  Williams,  F.L.S.  Pp.  23.  (London: 
West  and  Newman,  1889.) 

ONE  of  the  things  most  wanted  by  species-botanists 
at  the  present  time  is  a  set  of  monographs  of  a 
number  of  the  familiar  large  genera  of  Polypetalous 
Dicotelydons.     The  natural  orders  of  PolypetaL-e  were 


52 


NA  TURE 


{Nov.  2  1,  1889 


monographed  by  De  Candolle  in  the  "  Prodromus  "  be- 
tween 1824  and  1830,  and  the  scattered  material  relating 
to  many  of  the  orders  and  genera  has  not  since  been 
brought  together  and  codified.  As  instances  of  genera 
now  involved  in  great  confusion  for  want  of  a  more  recent 
elaboration,  w^e  may  cite  Ranunculus,  Viola,  Papaver, 
Alyssum,  Draba,  Dianthus,  Geranium,  Galium,  and 
many  others.  The  present  paper  is,  unfortunately,  not 
a  monograph  of  Dianthus,  but  only  a  list  of  the  known 
species  classified  into  groups,  accompanied  by  general 
remarks  on  the  structure  of  the  different  organs  in  the 
genus,  and  on  their  range  of  variation,  so  that,  though 
it  is  interesting  and  useful  as  far  as  it  goes,  it  still  leaves 
very  much  to  be  desired.  Although,  on  the  one  hand, 
Caryophyllacese  are  dried  for  the  herbarium  very  easily, 
and  suffer  little  in  the  process,  yet  Dianthus  is  a  very 
difficult  genus  for  botanists  to  deal  with  and  to  under- 
stand. There  are  230  species  for  a  monographer  to 
characterize.  The  range  of  variation  between  the  ex- 
treme types  is  not  great,  and  some  of  the  commoner 
species  {e.g.  D.  Seguieri,  plu77iarius,  and  Carthusian- 
orum)  are  very  variable,  the  consequence  being  that, 
one  often  sees  them  named  in  gardens  very  incorrectly, 
forms  of  plumarius  especially,  which  is  hardy  and 
spreads  readily,  doing  duty  for  many  totally  distinct 
species. 

Dianthus  is  a  genus  quite  characteristic  of  temperate 
and  sub-temperate  climates.  It  has  its  head-quarters  in 
Europe  and  Western  Asia.  There  are  several  species  at 
the  Cape  ;  a  few  are  Himalayan,  Chinese,  and  Japanese  ; 
none  reach  Australia,  New  Zealand,  or  the  Andes  ;  and 
only  one  just  touches  the  extreme  north-western  tip  of  the 
American  continent.  There  are  two  principal  sub-genera : 
Caryophyllastrum,  of  which  the  carnation  may  be  taken 
as  the  type,  which  is  far  the  largest  ;  and  Armeriastrum, 
or  Carthusianastrum,  of  which  the  flowers  are  numerous 
and  clustered,  as  in  the  sweet-william.  There  is  a  third 
small  sub-genus,  intermediate  between  Tunica  and  the 
true  pinks,  which  is  classified  by  Bentham  and  Hooker 
with  Tunica,  and  by  Mr.  Williams,  following  Linnaeus 
and  Koch,  as  a  third  sub-genus  of  Dianthus.  Within  the 
bounds  of  the  genus,  Mr.  Williams  finds  his  primary 
characters — those  which  mark  groups— in  the  form  of  the 
calyx,  the  nature  of  the  margin  of  the  lamina  of  the 
petals,  the  presence  or  absence  of  a  beard  at  the  junction 
of  the  blade  and  claw  of  the  petals,  filaments,  and  styles, 
the  shape  of  the  leaf,  and  the  disposition  of  the  flowers  ; 
and  his  secondary  characters — those  which  distinguish 
species — in  the  number  and  shape  of  the  bracts  of  the 
epicalyx,  the  form  of  the  lamina  of  the  petals  and  their 
apposition,  the  character  of  the  calyx-teeth,  the  form  and 
structure  of  the  capsule,  the  form  and  structure  of  the 
seeds,  and  the  disposition  of  the  fascicles  of  veins  in  the 
leaves  of  the  barren  shoots  and  flowering  stems.  His 
groups  and  species  do  not  differ  materially  from  those 
given  in  his  paper  in  the  Journal  of  Botany  for  1885, 
p.  340.  The  list  would  have  been  more  useful  if  he  had 
stated  the  native  country  of  each  species,  and  added  a 
reference  to  where  it  was  first  described.  We  hope,  how- 
ever, that  he  will  see  his  way  to  publish,  before  long,  the 
monograph  of  which  this  is  a  mere  outline  sketch. 

J.  G.  B. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Mas;neiism  and  Electricity.     By  Arthur  W.  Peyser,  M.A. 
(London  :  Longmans,  Green,  and  Co.,  1889.) 

Since  the  amount  of  knowledge  that  is  supposed  to  con- 
stitute an  elementary  scientific  education  increases  every 
year,  there  is  sufficient  justification  for  the  publication  of 
a  series  of  science  manuals  designed  to  meet  the  growing 
requirements  of  the  Science  and  Art  Department  examina- 
tions, and  this  work  is  an  excellent  representation  of  such 
a  series.  Apart,  however,  from  the  value  of  this  book 
as  an  examination  manual,  it  possesses  considerable 
merit.  The  matter  contained  in  it  is  just  about  as  much 
as  would  cover  the  course  usually  taken  in  a  year's 
school  work ;  the  explanatory  text  is  couched  in  the 
clearest  language,  and  the  experiments  described  are 
capable  of  being  easily  brought  to  a  successful  termination. 
Also  the  235  illustrations  will  be  of  considerable  assist- 
ance to  the  student,  whilst  the  many  exercises  and 
examination  questions  interspersed  throughout  the  book 
may  be  useful  tests  of  his  knowledge.  The  text-books 
that  in  their  day  have  been  eminently  successful,  if  un- 
revised,  must  be  supplanted  by  others  which  take  a  more 
extended  view  of  the  subject ;  hence  it  is  that  this  book 
will  compare  most  favourably  with  any  written  for  the 
purpose  of  imparting  a  rudimentary  knowledge  of  mag- 
netic and  electrical  phenomena  and  the  laws  by  which 
they  are  governed. 

The  Engineer's  Sketch-book.    By  Thomas  Walter  Barber. 
(London  :  E.  and  F.  N.  Spon,  1889.) 

Engineers  and  draughtsmen  generally  keep  note-books 
in  which  are  jotted  down  most  things  they  wish  to 
particularly  remember,  accompanied  by  rough  sketches 
when  necessary.  The  author  of  this  book  is  no  excep- 
tion to  the  rule.  He  tells  us  he  has  made  many  notes 
and  sketches  during  his  experience  as  an  engineer,  and 
has  often  found  the  want  of  such  a  collection  for  refer- 
ence. This  volume  consists  of  about  1936  sketches, 
classified  under  different  headings,  of  devices,  appli- 
ances, and  contrivances  of  mechanical  movements.  The 
book  is  certainly  unique  in  its  way,  and  will  prove  useful 
to  those  who  have  machinery  to  design,  who  may  require 
suggestive  sketches  of  mechanical  combinations  to  ac- 
complish some  desired  end.  The  author  truly  remarks 
that  a  sketch  properly  executed  is  to  a  practical  man 
worth  a  folio  of  description.  Hence  the  descriptions  given 
are  generally  mere  names,  with  occasionally  a  concise 
statement  of  purpose.  Each  sketch  bears  a  number,  and 
on  the  opposite  page  this  number  is  to  be  found  with  the 
description,  &c., — a  very  good  arrangement. 

These  sketches  are  clearly  printed,  and  are  probably 
executed  from  scale  drawings  in  most  cases.  Taken  as  a 
whole,  they  fairly  represent  what  they  profess  to  do 
Sketch  1636,  however,  is  supposed  to  represent  a  Rams 
bottom  safety  valve,  but  it  gives  a  radically  wrong  im 
pression  of  this  valve.  The  lever  is  shown  resting  on  the  two 
valves  certainly,  but  the  spring  is  attached  to  the  lever  a 
a  point  considerably  above  the  assumed  straight  lin< 
joining  the  points  resting  on  the  valves — an  impossible 
position.  Again,  one  of  the  two  points  of  the  leve: 
resting  on  the  valves  is  usually  loose  and  connected  wit! 
the  lever  by  a  pin.  The  sketch  shows  the  lever  and  th< 
two  projecting  points  made  solid.  This  example  is  th( 
most  unpractical  sketch  discovered  in  the  book,  am 
should  be  rectified  in  a  future  edition.  A  fairly  goo(! 
index  adds  to  the  usefulness  of  the  volume.  There  i  j 
ample  evidence  of  careful  work  on  the  part  of  the  author 
and  he  is  to  be  congratulated  on  writing  a  book  whici! 
will  probably  be  of  use  to  many  engineers  and  thos' 
connected  with  the  profession.  N.  J.  L. 


Nov. 


21, 


1889] 


NA  TURE 


53 


A  Life  of  John  Davis.  By  Clements  R.  Markham,  C.B., 
F.R.S.     (London:  George  Philip  and  Son,  1889.) 

This  is  the  first  volume  of  what  promises  to  be  a  series 
of  great  value  and  interest.  The  object  of  the  series,  as 
explained  by  the  editors,  is  to  provide  a  biographical 
history  of  geographical  discovery.  Each  of  the  great 
men  who  "  have  dared  to  force  their  way  into  the  un- 
known, and  so  unveiled  to  us  the  face  of  mother  earth," 
will  form  the  subject  of  a  volume  ;  and  an  attempt  will  be 
made,  not  only  to  present  a  vivid  picture  of  the  character 
and  adventures  of  these  heroes,  but  to  estimate  exactly 
the  scientific  value  of  their  work.  If  the  scheme  is  carried 
out  in  a  manner  worthy  of  the  stirring  tales  to  which  it 
relates,  the  series  will  be  a  source  of  much  wholesome 
pleasure  to  all  who  care  to  understand  how  our  present 
knowledge  of  the  earth's  surface  came  to  be  built  up,  and 
who  are  capable  of  appreciating  the  splendid  qualities, 
moral  and  intellectual,  of  all  who  have  won  for  them- 
selves a  place  in  the  list  of  illustrious  explorers.  The 
subject  of  the  present  volume  could  not  have  been  in- 
trusted to  a  more  suitable  writer  than  Mr.  Clements 
Markham.  He  tells  in  a  simple  and  natural  style  the 
tale  of  Uavis's  life,  displaying  at  every  stage  of  the  story 
full  and  accurate  knowledge,  and  summing  up  clearly  the 
achievements  which  entitle  the  discoverer  of  Davis 
Straits  to  be  ranked  "  among  the  foremost  sea-worthies 
of  the  glorious  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth."  Two  admirable 
chapters  are  devoted  to  the  following-up  of  the  work  of 
Davis,  and  in  an  appendix  the  author  gives  all  necessary 
information  as  to  authorities.  Mr.  Markham  has  done 
his  work  well,  and  it  will  be  no  easy  task  for  the  writers 
of  the  succeeding  volumes  to  maintain  the  series  at  the 
same  high  level. 

The  Brook  and  its  Banks.  By  the  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood. 
(London  :  The  Religious  Tract  Society,  1889.) 

The  Zoo.  Second  Series.  By  the  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood, 
(London  :  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge, 
1889.) 

The  first  of  these  two  books  was  written  for  the  Girls' 
Own  Paper,  and  a  few  chapters  of  it  have  been  printed 
in  that  periodical.  Now  the  complete  work  is  issued 
separately,  and  it  will  no  doubt  be  welcomed  by  many 
readers  who  have  already  profited  by  the  late  author's 
well-known  writings.  The  reader  is  supposed  to  be  con- 
ducted along  the  banks  of  an  English  brook,  and  to  learn, 
as  he  advances,  the  characteristics  of  the  living  creatures 
which  are  to  be  found  by  the  way.  The  idea  is  carried 
out  brightly,  and — we  need  scarcely  say — with  ample 
knowledge.  There  are  many  illustrations,  and  they  add 
considerably  to  the  interest  of  the  text. 

"  The  Zoo "  contains  an  account  of  animals  of  the 
weasel  tribe,  the  seal  tribe,  the  rodent  family,  and  various 
kinds  of  oxen.  The  descriptions  are  clear,  compact,  and 
lively,  and  cannot  fail  to  interest  the  young  readers 
for  whose  benefit  the  book  was  originally  planned. 
Mr.  Harrison  Weir  contributes  a  number  of  excellent 
illustrations. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

\The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications,  "l 

Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs. 

The  following  letter  records  a  very  interesting  observation 

which  is  new  to  me,  and  I  should  be  glad  to  hear  if  any  similar 

•  fact  has  been  noted  l.efore.     If  not,  it  would  be  very  interesting 


if  those  who  have  the  opportunity  would,  in  the  coming  spring, 
seek  for  as  many  nests  as  possible  of  the  red-backed  shrike,  and 
see  if  they  can  find  any  correlation  between  the  colours  of  the 
eggs  and  the  lining  material  of  the  nest. 

Parkstone,  November  i.  Alfred  R.  Wallace. 

"  Merchant  Taylors^  School,  Crosby,  Liverpool, 
"  October  15,  1889. 

"  Dear  Sir, — I  wish  to  bring  before  your  notice  an  observa- 
tion of  mine  relative  to  the  purpose  of  colour  in  animals. 

"  The  red-backed  shrike  {Lanius  collurio).  Colour  of  eggs — ■ 
either  pale  blue  or  green,  white  ground  with  zone  of  spots  at 
larger  end  ;  or,  pink  ground -^'wh.  reddish  spots. 

"  Observation. — The  colour  of  the  lining  substance  of  the 
nest— such  as  roots — assimilates  to  the  colour  of  the  eggs,  being 
dirty  gray  material  when  the  eggs  are  to  be  pale  (blue  or  green) 
white,  but  being  of  red-brown  roots,  &c.,  when  the  eggs  are  to 
be  pink. 

"  Evidence  for  above  statement.  About  sixteen  years  ago  I 
was  a  lad  of  fifteen,  an  enthusiastic  birds'-nester,  living  at  Maid- 
stone, and  found  several  (I  forget  how  many)  nests,  and  noticed 
this  ;  and  it  so  puzzled  me — because  I  could  not  make  out  how 
the  bird  knew  what  coloured  lining  to  select,  because  she  made 
her  nest  before  she  laid  her  eggs — that  I  have  never  forgotten  it. 
In  those  days  I  had  never  heard  of  '  The  Origin  of  Species,' 
nor  did  I  trouble  myself  about  evolutionary  theories,  knowing 
nothing  about  them,  so  that  there  was  x\o predisposing  cause  in 
me  to  make  a  wrong  observation.  Yet  I  remember  it  was  only 
a  school-boy's  observation,  and  therefore  it  needs  confirmation. 

"  Assume  the  fact.  Protective,  obviously.  Yet,  how  does  the 
bird  know  ?  We  know  birds  build  nests  from  observing  other 
nests,  and  not  by  instinct  wholly. 

"  [a)  Have  we  here  incipient  species,  in  which  the  young, 
emerging  from  pink  eggs,  remember  their  own  infancy  in  a  red- 
dish nest  ? 

'^  [b)  Has  the  sight  of  the  red  lining  an  influence  over  the 
mother  to  tinge  the  eggs  pink — i.e.  would  a  shrike  brought  up 
in  ^  pink  cage  be  more  likely  to  lay  pink  eggs  ?  or  a  gray  rabbit 
in  a  black  or  white  hutch  have  a  greater  proportion  of  black  or 
white  variants  in  her  litter  ? 

"  (^)  A  mere  coincidence  ;  too  few  observations. 

"Will  you  forgive  one  who  intends  to  be  amongst  your  au- 
dience on  October  29  and  30,  if  not  prevented,  thus  trespassing 
on  your  time — time  which,  spent  in  research,  is  so  valuable  to 
the  whole  scientific  world  ?  Yet,  I  do  think  my  boyhood's  obser- 
vation is  worth  recording,  if  only  to  direct  other  observers. 

"E.g.  has  the  amount  of  white  quartzite  veins  in  a  cliif,  or 
chalk,  any  influence  in  the  percentage  of  white,  as  against  blue, 
eggs  of  the  common  guillemot  ? 

"  Believe  me,  yours  faithfully, 

"(Rev.)  Fred.  F.  Grensted." 


Science  and  the  India  Civil  Service  Examinations. 

The  position  of  science  candidates  in  the  Civil  Service  com- 
petitions is  largely  in  the  hands  of  the  science  examiners.  In 
some  cases  they  have  practically  struck  their  subject  out  of  the 
schedule  by  requiring,  or  by  acquiescing  in,  the  demand  for  a 
standard  of  knowledge  far  beyond  the  proportion  of  marks  as- 
signed. Even  in  the  last  India  Civil  Service  competition  the 
first  two  men  in  chemistry  only  scored  196  and  195  respectively, 
whilst  the  first  two  in  German,  out  of  the  same  maximum, 
gained  359  and  353.  If  the  eminent  men  of  science  who  un- 
dertake these  examinations  would  see  that  science  had  fair  play, 
many  more  candidates  would  be  encouraged  to  study  it.  What- 
ever the  private  views  of  the  Civil  Service  Commissioners  may  be, 
their  absolute  justice  and  honourable  impartiality  are  unassailable. 
Even  if  they  did  not  altogether  concur  in  the  opinions  of  the 
examiners,  they  would  give  their  arguments  careful  consideration, 
and  see  that  all  interests  should  be  duly  regarded. 

It  will  not  advance  the  claims  of  science  to  weight  them  with 
the  very  doubtful  proposition  that  "  the  Universities  of  England 
and  India"  are  the  only  places  where  "well  educated"  men  are 
to  be  found.  Many  most  distinguished  men  of  science  have  not 
had  the  advantage  of  a  University  degree  in  early  life.  No 
one  would  venture  to  class  them  for  this  reason  in  "an  inferior 
order  of  men."  Henry  Palin  Gurney. 

2  Powis  Square,  W.,  November  15. 


54 


NATURE 


[Nov.  2  1,  1889 


The  Physics  of  the  Sub-oceanic  Crust. 

In  the  new  edition  of  his  "Physics  of  the  Earth's  Crust," 
Mr.  Fisher  has  made  a  great  advance  on  his  former  position,  for 
he  sees  his  way  to  explain  the  formation  of  mountain  chains,  and 
all  the  phenomena  of  compression  which  are  so  strikingly 
exhibited  in  the  crust  of  the  earth,  without  depending  on  his 
former  theory  of  columnar  expansion,  and  without  falling  back  on 
the  contraction  hypothesis. 

He  believes  that  the  existence  of  a  liquid  substratum  beneath 
a  thin  crust  is  consistent  with  the  physical  conditions  of  the 
universe  ;  and  argues  that  no  appreciable  tide  would  be  produced 
in  it  if  the  liquid  magma  consisted  of  an  intimate  association  of 
fused  rock  and  dissolved  gases.  He  further  concludes  that  this 
magma  is  not  an  inert  or  motionless  liquid,  but  one  in  which 
convection  currents  are  constantly  bringing  up  heat  from  below, 
and  leading  to  frequent  internal  displacements  of  mass. 

In  this  hypothesis  he  finds  a  means  of  explaining  the  move- 
ments of  the  earth's  crust.  Whether  Mr.  Fisher's  position  can 
be  maintained  must  be  decided  by  those  who  are  accustomed  to 
deal  with  the  physical  problems  involved,  but  geologists  will  be 
glad  if  it  should  prove  that  the  objections  to  the  existence  of  a 
liquid  substratum  have  been  succes'-fully  met,  for  they  have 
always  found  a  difficulty  in  explaining  geological  phenomena 
without  having  recourse  to  the  supposition  of  a  liquid  layer. 

One  of  the  most  important  chapters  in  the  book  is  that  on  the 
sub-oceanic  crust,  and  it  is  on  this  that  I  propose  to  offer  a  few 
remarks,  taking  it  for  granted  that  a  truly  liquid  substratum  with 
a  play  of  convection  currents  does  really  exist. 

Mr.  Fisher's  object  is  to  ascertain  the  thickness  and  density  of 
those  parts  of  the  crust  which  lie  beneath  the  oceans,  and  to  see 
whether  in  these  respects  they  diflFer  from  the  continental 
portions.  This  he  does  by  making  a  series  of  assumptions,  and 
considering  how  far  the  results  are  compatible  with  known  facts 
and  conditions.  This  process  involves  the  dismissal  of  certain 
hypotheses,  but  although  he  eventually  finds  one  which  fulfils  the 
requisite  conditions,  it  does  not  follow  that  no  other  equally 
satisfactory  hypothesis  can  be  found.  Consequently  his  results 
though  interesting  cannot  be  regarded  as  final.  The  suppositions 
he  is  obliged  to  introduce  before  obtaining  satisfactory  results 
are,  that  the  density  of  the  subtratum  beneath  the  continental 
and  the  sub-oceanic  portions  of  the  crust  is  different,  and  that  the 
sub-oceanic  crust  consists  of  two  layers  of  different  densities. 

It  is  conceivable,  however,  that  the  lower  part  of  the  crust  is 
everywhere  denser  than  the  upper  part,  and  consequently  that  two 
layers  of  continental  crust  should  be  introduced  into  the  problem  ; 
whether  this  hypothesis  would  likewise  fulfil  the  conditions,  and 
whether  it  would  lead  to  the  same  results  as  that  which  Mr. 
Fisher  adopts,  could  only  be  ascertained  by  trial.  Mr.  Fisher 
informs  me  that  he  has  not  made  this  trial,  and  that  every 
additional  assumption  introduced  increases  the  great  labour  of 
the  calculations. 

Let  us  assume,  however,  that  no  other  hypothesis  would  satisfy 
the  conditions  so  well  as  that  which  he  has  adopted,  and  let  us 
see  to  what  conclusions  it  leads.  Mr.  Fisher  derives  from  it  the 
following  important  results  : — 

(i)  That  the  sub-oceanic  crust  dips  more  deeply  into  the 
substratum  than  the  continental  crust. 

(2)  That  its  lower  part  is  more  dense  than  the  substratum. 

(3)  That  the  density  of  the  liquid  substratum  is  less  beneath 
the  oceans  than  beneath  the  continents. 

This  last  result  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  the  differences  of 
density  in  the  substratum  must  give  rise  to  ascending  and  descend- 
ing convection  currents,  and  that  the  ascending  currents  will  rise 
beneath  the  oceans  while  the  descending  currents  will  occur 
beneath  the  continents.  "That  the  former  occupy  so  much 
larger  an  area  is,"  he  says,  "no  more  than  we  might  expect, 
because  to  whatever  immediate  cause  they  may  be  due,  they  are 
ultimately  the  result  of  secular  cooling.  .  .  .  The  descending 
being  merely  return  currents  will  be  confined  to  the  smaller  area, 
but  on  that  account  they  will  move  the  more  rapidly." 

Finally  he  says  that  these  conclusions  confirm  the  theory  of  the 
permanence  of  oceans,  "because  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  how 
the  subjacent  crust,  once  more  dense,  can  have  subsequently 
passed  into  the  less  dense  condition  which  would  be  requisite  to 
render  it  continental."  I  venture  to  think  he  is  hardly  justified 
in  making  this  unqualified  statement,  and  purpose  to  show  that 
his  results  only  confirm  the  theory  of  the  permanence  of  oceans 
in  a  limited  and  partial  manner. 

In  the  first  place,  if  chapters  xvii.  and  xxiv.  are  read  carefully, 


it  will  be  obvious  that  Mr.  Fisher  uses  the  terms  oceanic  and  sub- 
oceanic  in  a  special  sense.  On  p.  233  he  classes  areas  having  less 
than  two  vertical  miles  of  water  as  "  extensions  of  the  elevations 
that  produced  the  continents,"  and  even  those  with  depths  of  two 
to  three  miles  of  water  he  regards  as  "sometimes  connected  with 
and  prolongations  of  the  first."  In  other  words,  he  looks  upon 
the  shallower  parts  of  the  great  oceans  from  a  continental  coast- 
line to  a  depth  of  at  least  2000  fathoms  as  extensions  of  the 
continental  elevations. 

Again,  on  p.  331  we  find  him  saying  that  New  Caledonia  and 
the  Seychelles  are  not  properly  speaking  oceanic  islands,  because 
the  first  is  a  prolongation  of  the  submerged  ridge  which  connects 
New  Zealand  with  North  Australia,  and  because  the  latter 
belongs  to  an  extension  of  the  Madagascar  ridge  into  the  Indian 
Ocean.  Now  a  reference  to  the  physical  chart  of  the  oceans 
given  in  the  "Narrative  of  the  Cruise  of  the  Challenger" 
(vol.  i.)  shows  that  the  looo-fathom  line  completely  encircles 
New  Caledonia  and  the  adjacent  islands,  and  that  the  submerged 
ridge  which  he  speaks  of  would  be  a  very  narrow  one  unless  we 
regard  it  as  extending  to  the  line  of  2000  fathoms  ;  but  this  line 
includes  also  the  Solomon  Islands,  the  Fijis,  and  the  Friendy 
Islands,  so  that  if  New  Caledonia  cannot  be  considered  as  an 
oceanic  island  neither  can  the  other  islands  just  mentioned, 
though  no  one  would  reject  them  from  that  category  on  other 
grounds.  Similarly,  the  Seychelles  and  Amirantes  are  surrounded 
by  water  of  more  than  1000  fathoms,  and  are  usually  regarded  as 
oceanic  islands.  The  same  may  be  said  of  Barbados,  where 
stratified  Neozoic  rocks  are  found. 

The  contour-line  of  1000  fathoms  has,  I  think,  been  generally 
taken  by  recent  writers  as  the  approximate  limit  of  the 
continental  elevations,  the  space  outside  this  being  regarded  as 
oceanic ;  the  islands  which  rise  from  depths  of  over  1000 
fathoms  would  on  this  view  be  necessarily  classed  as  oceanic, 
and  as  a  matter  of  fact  all  such  islands  come  within  the  terms  of 
Sir  A.  Wallace's  definition  of  an  oceanic  island  except  that  a 
few  of  them  are  not  entirely  of  volcanic  or  coralline  composition. 
To  exclude  all  the  islands  which  rise  from  within  the  2000-fathom 
limit  would  necessitate  the  division  of  oceanic  islands  into  two 
classes,  the  definition  of  which  would  be  difficult. 

I  am  not  saying  that  such  a  distinction  would  be  incorrect,  or 
that  Mr.  Fisher  has  no  right  to  assign  larger  limits  to  the 
continental  elevations  and  narrower  limits  to  the  oceans  :  I  only 
desire  to  show  that  he  takes  a  special  view,  and  that  he  declines 
to  regard  islands  which  rise  from  less  than  2000  fathoms  as 
specimens  of  the  sub-oceanic  crust.  His  discussion  of  the 
probable  structure  of  the  sub-oceanic  crust  deals  therefore  with 
areas  which  are  covered  by  water  of  three  miles  or  more  in  depth — 
that  is  to  say,  from  about  2500  to  5000  fathoms,  and  the 
comparison  which  he  makes  between  patches  of  sub-continental 
and  sub- oceanic  crust  is  really  between  a  piece  of  continental 
land  and  a  piece  below  an  area  of  deep  ocean  at  a  considerable 
distance  from  the  continents. 

With  regard  to  this  point,  I  have  had  the  advantage  of  a 
further  explanation  from  Mr.  Fisher  ;  writing  to  me  he  says  : — 
"  My  sub-oceanic  patch  may  be  anywhere  under  the  ocean,  but 
you  must  remember  that  all  the  quantities  are  subject  to  change 
except  c,  p,  fM,  ff,  as  5  diminishes  ;  i.e.  as  the  ocean  grows 
shallower  toward  the  coast-lines,  the  thicknesses  and  densities 
merge  into  those  at  the  sea-level,  the  second  layer  of  the  sub- 
oceanic  crust  at  the  same  time  thinning  away  to  nothing.  You 
are  quite  right  in  thinking  that  in  a  general  way  in  discussing 
the  sub-oceanic  crust  I  am  dealing  with  the  crust  at  a  consider- 
able distance  from  the  continents I  do   not   profess   to 

explain  the  structure  of  the  crust  of  the  earth  in  those  parts  which 
appear  to  have  sometimes  been  land  and  sometimes  sea.  I 
should,  however,  guess  that  having  been  at  times  land  the 
crust  there  resembles  the  present  continental  crust.  Still  the 
equations  (p.  242)  must  apply  to  these  parts  if  only  we  knew 
what  assumptions  to  make." 

Since,  therefore,  there  are  regions  of  sub-oceanic  crust  the 
structure  of  which  may  resemble  that  of  the  continental  crust 
rather  than  that  beneath  the  central  parts  of  the  oceans,  it  is 
clearly  of  importance  to  consider  the  position  and  extent  of  these 
regions.  Let  us  first  take  that  part  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  in  which 
New  Caledonia  is  situate ;  if  we  are  to  regard  it  as  a  submerged 
plateau  which  may  once  have  been  continental  land,  it  acquires 
a  special  interest.  The  contour  of  2000  fathoms  which  unites 
New  Caledonia  to  Australia  and  New  Zealand  extends  from  the 
north  coast  of  New  Guinea  by  the  Solomon  Islands  to  Samoa, 
and  then  bends  southward  to  New  Zealand,  but  curves  out  again 


Nov.  2  1,  1889] 


NATURE 


55 


...  :j  include  the  Chatham  and  Antipodes  Islands,  some  600 
miles  to  the  south-east  of  New  Zealand.  Southward  it  has  a 
connection  with  the  Antarctic  continent,  but  a  deep  gulf  of  over 
20CO  fathoms  runs  far  up  outside  the  east  coast  of  Australia. 
The  area  within  the  2000-falhom  line  measures  about  2500 
miles  across  its  northern  portion,  and  has  an  extreme  length  of 
ibout  3600  miles  from  its  northern  border  to  the  south  end  of 
New  Zealand. 

If  this  large  area  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  strictly  oceanic — that 
is  to  say,  if  the  physical  structure  of  the  crust  beneath  it  differs 
from  that  of  the  crust  beneath  the  deeper  ocean  outside  it — and 
if  its  geological  history  is  different  from  that  of  this  deeper 
oceanic  area,  and  is  comparable  with  that  of  a  continent,  then  a 
very  important  modification  is  introduced  into  the  theory  of  the 
jermanence  of  oceans  and  continents. 

We  learn  that  an  area  now  covered  with  oceanic  deposits  may 
not  have  been  always  ocean,  and  this  is  precisely  what  Lyell  and 
liis  followers  have  always  maintained  ;  for  if  so  large  a  part  of 
I  he  Pacific  may  have  been  land  (say  in  the  Cretaceous  period), 
there  has  been  what  most  geologists  would  consider  to  be  a 
change  from  continental  to  oceanic  conditions  ;  and  if,  being  such 
a  transmutable  region,  it  may  eventually  be  raised  again  till 
large  parts  of  it  become  land  surfaces,  round  which  shallow 
water  deposits  could  be  formed,  it  would  exhibit  strata  of  deep- 
sea  origin  (usually  called  oceanic)  intercalated  between  forma- 
tions of  the  ordinary  continental  type. 

Another  region  where  similar  transmutations  appear  to  have 
taken  place  is  that  of  the  West  Indian  Islands  with  the  adjoining 
area  of  the  Caribbean  Sea  and  a  portion  of  the  Western  Atlantic. 
Of  this  region  the  structure  of  Barbados  is  an  illustration. 
That  island  conforms  to  the  ordinary  definition  of  an  oceanic 
island  ;  it  is  separated  from  South  America  and  the  rest  of  the 
Antilles  by  water  of  over  1000  fathoms,  and  the  scanty  fauna 
•which  it  possesses  is  not  such  as  would  have  been  introduced  by  any 
former  land  connection.  Its  geological  structure  is  simple  but 
striking :  there  are  no  volcanic  rocks,  but  a  basal  series  of 
sandstones  and  clays  that  are  similar  to  the  older  Tertiaries  of 
Trinidad,  and  may  be  regarded  as  testifying  to  a  former  northern 
extension  of  the  South  American  continent  ;  above  these  are 
oceanic  deposits,  consolidated  radiolarian  and  foraminiferal  oozes, 
which  appear  to  be  of  very  late  Tertiary  age  (Pliocene  or 
Pleistocene).  Capping  the  whole  are  raised  coral  reefs.  Here, 
•therefore,  is  part  of  a  continental  (or  shallow  sea)  area  which  has 
sunk  into  oceanic  depths  during  the  Tertiary  period,  has  received 
a  burden  of  oceanic  deposits,  and  has  risen  again  to  be  invested 
•with  a  formation  of  essentially  shallow  water  origin.  Certainly 
geologists  have  no  proof  of  greater  geographical  changes  than 
this,  though  Europe  affords  evidence  of  quite  as  great  a  change, 
for  in  the  area  of  the  European  chalk  we  have  an  instance  of 
similar  oceanic  conditions  to  those  under  which  the  Barbados 
earths  were  deposited  ;  yet  this  area  was  continental  land  before 
the  Cretaceous  period,  and  has  again  become  so  since  that 
period. 

The  other  oceanic  areas  which  have  less  than  2000  fathoms  of 
water  over  them  are  the  Arctic  Ocean,  the  southern  part  of  the 
Indian  Ocean,  and  part  of  the  North  Pacific  between  America 
-and  Kamchatka.  It  would  appear  then  that  we  may  claim 
these  regions,  together  with  the  Caribbean  area  and  a  large  part 
oi  the  Western  Pacific,  as  areas  which  have  been  interchangeable 
with  the  present  continental  surfaces.^ 

Mr.  Fisher  does  not  discuss  the  subterranean  structure  of  the 
shallow  ocean  areas,  but  in  his  letter  already  quoted  he  inclines 
to  think  that  the  crust  beneath  them  is  similar  to  the  continental 
■crust,  and  this  view  is  borne  out  by  the  structure  of  certain 
•oceanic  islands  ;  but  though  the  density  and  general  structure  of 
"the  crust  may  be  similar  to  that  of  the  continents,  the  condition 
•of  the  liquid  substratum  may  not  be  exactly  the  same,  or  rather 
there  may  be  differences  in  the  force  and  direction  of  the 
•convection  currents  which  traverse  the  substratum. 

In  chapter  xxiv.  Mr.  Fisher  does  briefly  consider  the  condition 
•of  the  substratum  in  the  tracts  that  lie  between  the  continents 
and  the  [deep]  oceanic  regions.  Having  shown  that,  if  the 
density  of  the  substratum  is  less  beneath  the  ocean  than  beneath 
the  land,  the  convection  currents  must  rise  beneath  the  oceans 
and  descend  beneath  the  continents,  he  points  out  that  there 
must  be  a  certain  space  between  the  lines  of  ascent  and  descent 
where  the  currents  will  move  more  or  less  horizontally.  In  this 
horizontal  movement  he  finds  a  force  capable  of  exerting  strong 
pressure  on  the  continental  crust.     Now  in  some  parts  of  the 

'  The  ridges  in  the  Central  and  Southern  Atlantic  do  not  come  ■within  th« 
category  of  shallow  oceans. 


world  the  space  along  which  these  horizontal  currents  move  may 
be  narrow,  but  in  others  it  is  probably  broad  :  thus,  on  the  east 
side  of  the  Pacific,  where  the  change  from  ocean  depths  to  moun- 
tain heights  is  rapid,  this  space  is  doubtless  small,  but  on  the 
west  side  of  the  same  ocean,  as  we  have  seen,  there  is  a  broad 
intervening  area  of  shallow  ocean,  and  beneath  this  the  currents 
that  move  westward  may  continue  to  be  mainly  horizontal  till 
they  reach  Australia. 

The  behaviour  of  convection  currents  is  so  little  understood 
that  one  cannot  predicate  much  about  them  ;  there  would  prob- 
ably be  a  certain  play  of  ascending  and  descending  currents 
beneath  the  broad  semi-oceanic  area  as  well  as  horizontal 
currents,  and  very  slight  changes  may  cause  these  to  vary  in 
volume  and  to  alter  their  positions  ;  such  a  region  is  therefore 
likely  to  b5  in  a  state  of  unstable  equilibrium,  and  its  upheaval 
or  further  subsidence  would  depend  on  the  balance  that  is 
established  between  the  three  sets  of  currents  in  the  liquid 
substratum  beneath  it. 

Another  question  suggests  itself — namely,  whether  the  oceans 
have  always  been  as  deep  as  they  are  now.  According  to  Mr. 
Fisher's  results,  the  mass  of  the  sub-oceanic  crust  is  greater  than 
that  of  the  sub-continental  crust,  but  he  gives  reasons  for  thinking 
that  its  thickness  is  not  greater,  and  if  this  is  so,  then  its  density 
must  be  greater  ;  and  it  is  from  this  he  deduces  the  permanency 
of  the  oceans,  because  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  the  denser  crust 
becoming  less  dense,  which  would  be  necessary  before  any  part 
of  it  could  be  converted  into  a  continent.  But  though  this 
difficulty  certainly  exists,  it  does  not  preclude  the  possibility 
of  the  sub- oceanic  crust  having  been  originally  less  dense  than  it 
is  now  ;  it  may  have  been  growing  denser,  and  there  may  have 
been  a  corresponding  increase  in  the  size  and  depth  of  the  oceans 
at  the  expense  of  the  continents.  His  results,  in  fact,  do  not 
involve  the  permanency  of  the  present  continents,  or  of  the  pre- 
sent relative  proportions  of  land  and  water  surfaces.  We  are  at 
liberty  to  imagine  a  time  when  there  was  much  more  land  than 
there  is  at  present,  and  when  all  the  oceans  were  comparatively 
shallow  ;  there  being  at  this  early  period  less  difference  in  the 
comparative  density  of  the  sub-oceanic  and  sub-continental  crust. 

We  may,  in  fact,  postulate  a  secular  increase  in  the  size  of  the 
oceans  and  in  the  depth  of  the  ocean  basins  corresponding  to  a 
secular  increase  in  the  density  of  the  sub-oceanic  crust  ;  and 
possibly  as  a  consequence  a  general  increased  stability  of  the 
whole  crust. 

The  supposition  of  a  secular  increase  in  the  depth  of  the 
oceans  is  in  accordance  with  the  evidence  of  geological  history, 
for  if  there  had  been  such  an  increase  we  should  expect  to  find 
that  oceanic  deposits  of  the  modern  type  were  essentially  Neozoic 
formations,  and  would  not  occur  among  Palaeozoic  rocks  ;  and 
such  appears  to  be  the  case.  At  present  we  do  not  know  of  the 
existence  of  any  purely  oceanic  limestone  that  is  older  than  the 
Cretaceous  period  ;  and  among  the  Palaeozoic  rocks  there  are  none 
which  appear  to  have  been  formed  at  any  great  distance  from 
continental  land. 

I  think  it  has  now  been  shown  that  Mr.  Fisher's  conclusions 
do  not  give  unqualified  support  to  the  theory  of  the  permanence  of 
oceans,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  they  are  consistent  with  two 
important  limitations  of  the  theory— limitations  which  had 
already  been  suggested  by  geologists  before  the  publication  of 
Mr.  Fisher's  book.  Thus,  Prof.  Prestwich  has  expressed  the 
opinion^  "that  it  is  only  the  deeper  parts  of  the  great  ocean- 
troughs  that  can  claim  the  high  antiquity  which  is  now  advocated 
for  them  by  many  eminent  American  and  English  geologists"  ; 
and  I  have  suggested  the  probability  that  "the  tendency  of  all 
recent  geographical  changes  has  been  to  deepen  the  ocean- 
basins,  and  to  raise  the  mountain-peaks  to  higher  and  higher 
elevations."^ 

It  is  therefore  satisfactory  to  find  that  the  results  of  purely 
physical  and  mathematical  reasoning,  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  a 
consideration  of  the  geological  evidence,  on  the  other  hand,  are 
so  closely  in  accord.  The  importance  of  this  agreement  consists 
in  the  way  it  opens  for  the  reconciliation  of  two  opposing 
geological  schools:  an  important  limitation  is  imposed  on  the 
Lyellian  belief  in  the  past  interchange  of  oceanic  and  continental 
areas  ;  while  the  extreme  view,  held  by  Dana  and  others,  that 
there  has  been  no  such  interchange  at  all,  may  be  equally  far 
from  the  truth  ;  the  probability  being  that  truth  lies  midway 
between  the  two  extremes. 

It  is  also  worthy  of  note  that  the  hypothesis  of  a  secular 
increase  in  the  depth  of  the  oceans  and  the  heights  of  the  moun- 

'  "  Geology,"  vol.  ii.  p.  547. 

2  "  The  Building  of  the  British  Isles,"  p.  334. 


56 


NATURE 


\Nov.  21,  1889 


tains  brings  the  whole  succession  of  past  geological    changes 
within  the  scope  of  a  general  theory  of  geographical  evolution. 

A.  J.  Jukes-Browne. 


The  Composition  of  the  Chemical  Elemen:s. 

My  excuse  for  troubling  your  readers  with  this  well-worn  theme 
is  that  a  definite  hypothesis  is  possible,  which,  should  it  be  fully 
borne  out  by  the  facts,  appears  to  afford  a  remarkably  complete 
explanation  of  the  periodic  law,  as  set  forth  in  Prof.  Mendeleeff's 
table. 

The  periodicity  exhibited  by  this  table  is  double,  alternate 
series  presenting  members  which  have  high  or  low  atomic 
volumes,  are  fusible  or  infusible,  &c. 

Should  the  elements  be  really  simple  atoms,  it- would  be  im- 
possible to  account  for  this  fact  without  introducing  occult  differ- 
ences of  quality,  from  which  it  has  been  all  along  the  aim  of 
chemical  science  to  free  itself.  Undoubtedly  periodical  variations 
in  the  size  and  shape  of  the  atoms  might  account  for  the  dual 
periodicity  of  their  properties,  but  nothing  satisfactory  can  be 
gleaned  from  such  an  explanati  m.  Besides,  we  are  accustomed 
to  regard  differences  of  properties  in  compounds  as  dependent  on 
composition,  even  should  their  molecular  weights  be  similar.  It 
may  also  be  urged  that,  if  the  elements  are  supposed  single,  their 
properties  should  vary  with  increase  of  weight  in  some  con- 
tinuous manner,  and  not  sway  to  and  fro  so  remarkably,  1  am 
aware  that  Prof.  Mendeleeff  himself  does  not  take  this  view  (cf. 
Chem.  Soc.  Journ.,  October  1889),  but  it  is  one  that  is  widely 
spread,  and  is  held  by  other  eminent  chemists. 

It  is,  however,  possible  to  push  too  far  such  analogies  as  that 
of  a  series  of  organic  compounds.  Important  differences  exist 
between  such  a  series  and  that  of  a  natural  family  of  the  ele- 
ments :  for  example,  the  specific  refraction  equivalents  are  not 
at  all  analogous  in  the  two  cases.  Specific  heat  determinations 
show  that,  as  a  rule,  an  element  moves  as  a  single  .'■olid  mass. 
But  these  considerations  need  prove  nothing  more  than  that  we 
must  be  prepared  to  deal,  in  the  case  of  the  elements,  with 
affinities  of  a  different  order — perhaps  brought  into  play  by  vastly 
different  conditions — from  those  found  in  ordinary  compounds. 

If  the  elements  are  assumed  to  be  composite  radicles,  then,  in 
stating  their  hypothetical  composition,  there  is  material  ready  to 
hand.  The  famous  principle  known  as  "Occam's  razor" 
applies  here  as  elsewhere.  Hypothetical  elements  should  only 
be  introduced  where  other  considerations  are  plainly  in  favour  of 
the  suppositions  involved. 

The  elements  form  natural  families  of  two  groups  each,  six  of 
them  having  for  their  types  the  following  :  Li,  Be,  B,  C,  N, 
and  O. 

Since  the  properties  of  the  typical  element  run  all  through  the 
members  of  a  family,  then  (on  the  hypothesis  that  properties 
depend  upon  composition)  we  should  expect  it  to  be  found  in  the 
formulae  of  the  remainder. 

The  hypothesis  here  advanced  is,  that  the  periodicity  of  the 
properties  of  the  elements  is  due  to  the  dependence  of  the  pro- 
perties of  each  element  upon  those  of  the  typical  element  of  the 
family  to  which  it  belongs,  together  with  the  mode  of  its  c  -m- 
bination  with  oxygen.  In  other  words,  that  the  elements,  with 
the  exception  of  the  first  six,  are,  in  a  qualified  sense,  compound 
oxygen  radicles. 

The  reasons  for  the  adoption  of  oxygen  are  :  (i)  the  remark- 
able coincidence  of  the  figures  for  each  family  upon  this  hypo- 
thesis ;  (2)  that  the  atomic  weights  of  the  oxygen  family  of 
elements  are  whole  multiples  of  that  of  oxygen  ;  ^3)  the  relations 
disclosed  between  the  numbers  of  atoms  composing  the  ele- 
ments, which  cannot  be  other  than  the  result  of  law  ;  and  (4) 
the  fact  that  all  the  elements  combine  with  oxygen,  which  is  also 
the  most  plentiful  element  in  Nature. 

Supposing  any  natural  family  complete,  its  two  groups  are 
given  by  the  following  formulas,  R  being  its  typical  element : — 

P    f  Group  {a)  -.  R0„  ROg,  ROg,  RO^,  RO14. 
\  Group  {b)  :  KO,  R.Oj,  R^O^,  R.O;,,  R^Oi^. 

The  seventh  and  eighth  families  are  very  incomplete,  but  may 
be  represented  in  the  same  way. 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  numbers  of  atoms  in  these  formulae 
are  as  follow  : — 


fS,  6,  9,  12,  15. 
[2,  5,  8,  II,  14. 


The  common  difference  in  each  group  being  3,  and  the  numbers 
4,  7,  10,  and  13  being  absent. 


The  resemblance  of  these  figures  to  the  atomic  weights  of  the 
ten  typical  elements  (including  four  hypothetical  ones)  is  very 
close.  One  is  almost  tempted  to  regard  them  as  the  primitive 
forms  of  the  combination  of  matter,  and  to  return  to  Prout's 
hypothesis. 

The  existence  of  y^?^r  elements  between  H  and  Li  is  indicated 
as  well  by  the  gap  which  exists  between  them  as  by  this  hypo- 
thesis. That  Fe,  Co,  Ni,  &c.,  have  formulae  commencing 
with  Rj,  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  they  recur  regularly  in  the 
series  having  these  formulas,  their  comparative  infusibility  and 
low  atomic  volume  indicating  also  this  composition,  as  well  as 
the  fact  that,  if  it  were  otherwise,  the  rule  observable  in  the  first 
six  families  would  be  broken  through.  It  is,  again,  hardly  pos- 
sible to  suppose  that  the  seventh  family,  the  halogens,  should' 
contain  the  electropositive  hydrogen,  although  the  latter  would 
then  lose  its  unique  position,  and  in  this  case  the  difference  be- 
tween the  calculated  values  of  Ag  and  I  (i8"9)  agrees  very  nearly 
with  that  between  those  observed  (18 '87),  the  ratio  of  these 
latter  being  very  exactly  determined  by  Stas.  This,  however,  is 
a  matter  which  may  well  be  left  undecided  for  the  present. 
Should  fluorine  be  a  fundamental  element,  the  halogen  series 
will  break  the  rule  which  holds  for  at  least  six  out  of  the 
remaining  seven  families. 

The  following  table  is  constructed  on  the  lines  of  Mendeleeff's. 
The  seventh  and  eighth  families  are  placed  first  in  order,  and 
the  calculated  and  observed  atomic  weights  are  placed  under- 
neath their  respective  formulae.  Want  of  data  is  indicated  by 
blanks,  but  the  rarer  metals  are  omitted,  although  they  mostly 
correspond  to  the  formulae  R20y.  It  will  be  no  ed  that  the 
arrangement  gives  Mn,  Fe,  Co,  Ni,  and  Cu  an  intelligible 
position  in  the  series. 

It  is  not  to  be  expected  that  the  calculated  and  observed 
figures  will  perfectly  agree,  although  in  some  thirty  cases  the 
average  variation  is  o'5  of  a  unit.  The  chief  variations  occur  ia 
two  series,  in  which,  however,  the  natural  order  is  preserved, 
viz.  Ti,  V,  and  Cr,  with  an  average  error  of  4 "5,  and  all  the 
elements  containing  Ojj,  from  tungsten  to  bismuth,  in  which  the 
mean  difference  is  9.  It  will  be  noted  that  this  difference  holds 
even  in  the  case  of  the  eighth  family,  in  which  the  f  irmulas  con- 
tain the  hypothetical  R",  R"',  and  K'''',  showing  that  the  errors 
arise  from  a  common  cause.  The  atomic  weights,  since  the  dis- 
covery of  the  periodic  law,  have  not  been  decided  upon  without 
reference  to  one  another.  This  whole  series  is  separated  by  a 
huge  gap  from  the  rest  of  the  atomic  weights,  which  is  only 
filled  in  at  intervals  by  the  less  common  metals  of  the  earths,  &c., 
and  consequently  an  error  in  one  of  them  would  certainly  affect 
the  whole.  Similarly,  the  differences  of  4  between  the  observed 
atomic  weights  of  Ca  and  Sc,  and  Sc  and  Ti,  are  anomalous. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  coincidences  exhibited  by  the  table 
cannot  be  the  work  of  chance,  and,  considering  the  inexactitude 
of  the  determinations  of  many  of  the  atomic  weights,  the  fact 
that  the  average  of  the  differences  between  the  observed  and 
calculated  numbers  in  the  large  majority  of  the  elements  is  only 
one  unit,  and  that  the  remainder  appear  to  arise  from  a  single 
cause,  is  remarkable,  especially  when  we  consider  the  facts 
which  are  brought  to  light  by  this  mode  of  representation.  The 
law  that  elements  essentially  similar  differ  only  by  an  atomic 
weight  of  O3,  or  its  multiple,  surely  deserves  attention.  When, 
again,  the  difference  between  the  two  groups  of  any  natural  family, 
and  the  periodicity  of  the  properties  of  the  elements,  are  ex- 
hibited as  the  result  of  composition,  the  conclusion  becomes 
apparent  that  we  have  in  the  hypothesis  at  least  a  guide  for 
future  research. 

The  atomic  volumes  of  the  groups  commencing  with  RO  are 
smaller  than  in  those  commencing  with  ROj.  These  correspond 
to  the  "  even  "  and  "odd  "  series  of  Mendeleeff,  Other  proper- 
ties follow,  thus  affording  a  possible  clue  as  to  hoxv  the  charac- 
teristics of  the  elements  depend  upon  their  composition. 

Without  trespassing  further  upon  your  valuable  space,  I  will 
conclude  by  quoting  Dr.  Gladstone  (Pres.  Address,  Chemical 
Section,  Brit.  Assoc,  Soulhport,  1883): — 

"  The  remarkable  relations  between  the  atomic  weights  of  the 
elements  and  many  peculiarities  of  their  grouping,  force  upon 
us  the  conviction  that  they  are  not  separate  bodies  created  with- 
out reference  to  one  another,  but  that  they  have  been  originally 
fashioned,  or  built  up  from  one  another,  upon  some  general 
plan.  This  plan  we  may  hope  to  understand  better  ;  but  if  we 
are  ever  to  transform  one  of  these  supposed  elements  into  an- 
other, or  to  split  up  one  of  them  into  two  or  three  dissimilar 
forms  of  matter,  it  will  probably  be  by  the  application  of  some 
method  of  analysis  hitherto  unknown." 


Nov.  2  1.  1889J 


NATURE 


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Mirion  Terrace,  Crewe,  October  25. 


A.  M.  Stapley. 


If 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  21,  1889 


Is  Greenland  our  Arctic  Ice  Cap  ? 


The  result  of  Dr.  Nansen's  journey  across  Greenland,  estab- 
lishing, as  it  practically  does,  that  this  Arctic  continent  is  covered 
by  a  huge  ice  cap,  promises  to  be  a  matter  of  some  interest  in 
several  ways. 

Among  other  things  it  may  possibly  yield  a  clue  as  to  the 
cause  of  the  south  polar  cap  of  Mars  being  so  very  excentrically 
placed. 

Since  the  time  of  the  elder  Herschel  this  has  been  a  subject  of 
speculation,  and  various  ingenious  suggestions  have  been  put 
forward  by  astronomers  to  account  for  the  presumed  anomaly. 

Webb,  in  his  "Celestial  Objects,"  p.  147,  tells  us  that 
Herschel  found  that  the  caps  were  not  opposite  each  other ; 
and  says  himself  that  "one  would  expect  that  they  might  have 
been  diametrically  opposite." 

"  Madler  and  Secchi  found  the  north  zone  concentric  with  the 
axis,  but  the  south  considerably  excentric  "  ;  and  "it  has  been 
suggested  by  Beer  and  Madler  that  the  poles  of  cold  may  not 
coincide  with  the  poles  of  rotation." 

Later  on,  at  p.  148,  he  tells  us  that  "  Secchi  found  the  appear- 
ances at  the  poles  irreconcilable  with  the  idea  of  circular  caps, 
and  was  forced  to  adopt  the  supposition  of  complicated  and 
lobate  forms.  Schiaparelli  alludes  to  the  possibility  of  a  mass  of 
floating  ice." 

Apparently  it  was  taken  for  granted  that  the  ice  or  snow  caps 
of  Mars,  should  not  only  be  truly  circular  in  form,  but  centrally 
placed  over  the  axis  of  rotation,  like  the  cloud  caps  of  Jupiter  and 
Saturn. 

But  it  seems  to  me  that  Dr.  Nansen's  journey  will  go  a  long 
way  towards  solving  this  problem,  by  demonstrating  that  Green- 
land is  practically  one  of  our  two  polar  ice  caps.  On  our  South 
Pole  we  have  one,  more  or  less  centrally  placed  over  the  axis  of 
rotation,  and  which  certainly  does  not  float  about,  having  two 
large  active  volcanoes  on  it.  It  corresponds  fairly  well  to  the 
northern  pole  of  Mars.  But  on  our  North  Pole — as  far  as  we  can 
see — there  is  no  large  permanent  ice  cap,  and  in  its  place  we 
have  an  irregular,  extensive  polar  basin. 

Roughly  speaking,  we  may  say  that  the  character  of  the  Arctic 
and  Antarctic  ice  bears  this  out,  for  in  the  south  we  see  the  im- 
mense flat-topped  bergs  of  2000  feet  thickness,  and  several  miles 
long,  which  are  obviously  portions  of  the  southern  ice  cap  broken 
adrift.  In  the  north  we  see  a  preponderance  of  floe,  or  thin 
field-ice,  a  few  flat-topped  bergs  near  Franz  Joseph  Land 
(Young),  and  the  angular  bergs  of  the  Atlantic,  mainly  from 
West  Greenland  (Greely). 

If  our  Arctic  basin  is  deep  and  has  few  islands  in  it,  it  stands 
to  reason  that  a  permanant  ice  cap  could  not  form,  or  become 
anchored,  there  ;  the  floe  would  be  perpetually  broken  up  by 
storms  and  tides,  carried  away,  and  melted.  A  floating  ice  cap 
would  be  impossible.  The  presence  of  a  polar  continent — even 
excentrically  placed — would  seem  to  be  necessary,  as  in  the 
case  of  Greenland.  This  would  indicate  the  solution  for  the 
supposed  anomaly,  re  the  position,  of  the  south  polar  cap  of 
Mars,  and  for  the  lobate  appearances  remarked  by  Secchi 
in  1858. 

If  the  foregoing  remarks  are  at  all  likely  to  be  correct.  Dr. 
Nansen's  journey  may  have  quite  unexpectedly  solved  for  us  an 
interesting  astronomical  problem,  and  thereby  afforded  another 
clue  to  the  condition  of  Mars,  a  proof  almost  of  partial 
glaciation. 

I  believe  that  M.  Fizeau  regards  the  so-called  "canals"  as 
evidence  of  the  "  movement  and  rupture  "  of  a  glacial  crust. 

But  if  this  crust  is  formed  on,  and  attached  to,  any  extensive 
land  surface  (such  as  Greenland,  say),  it  is  not  easy  to  account 
for  such  enormous  ruptures,  and  the  lateral  movement. 

If  the  canals  are  looked  on  as  huge  lanes  of  open  water  in  a 
floating  ice-pack,  they  would  vaiy  in  size  and  form  almost  daily. 
Sibsagar,  Assam,  India,  September  25.  S.  E.  Peal. 


Globular  and  other  Forms  of  Lightning. 

Mr.  a.  T.  Hare's  account  in  Nature,  vol.  xl.  p.  415,  of 
a  flash  of  globular  lightning  seems  to  illustrate  so  well  the 
explanation  which  I  gave,  many  years  ago,  of  the  formation  of 
fire-ball  lightning,  that  the  following  extract  from  my  pamphlet 
"On  Atmospheric  Electricity"  (London,  Hardwicke,  Piccadilly, 
1863)  and  the  remarks  which  I  have  appended  to  it,  may  per- 
haps not  be  without  interest  at  the  present  time.     The  pamphlet 


is  not  now  on  sale.  The  quotation  is  from  pp.  45-46  ;  I  omit 
a  few  references  : — 

"A  slip  of  tin-foil  was  formed  into  a  hollow  cylinder,  and 
thrust  tightly  into  one  end  of  a  glass  tube  which  was  about  i\ 
inch  in  external  diameter,  and  the  glass  was  not  very  thick. 
A  brass  ball  was  fixed  to  the  end  of  the  glass  tube,  and  the  tin- 
foil extended  from  the  ball  to  the  distance  of  about  \2\  inches 
from  it,  and  all  the  tin-foil  was  inside  the  glass  tube.  The 
remainder  of  the  glass  tube  served  for  an  insulating  support  to 
the  part  which  held  the  tin-foil.  On  electrifying  the  ball,  the 
electricity  is  conveyed  by  the  tin-foil  to  the  inside  surface  of  the 
lined  part  of  the  glass  tube  ;  and  at  the  same  moment  the  out- 
side of  this  part  of  the  tube  is  electrified  inductively,  and  with 
the  same  sort  of  electricity  as  that  with  which  the  interior  of  the 
tube  is  charged.  The  part  of  the  tube  which  held  the  tin-foil 
was  supported  horizontally.  There  was  also  a  copper  hook 
which  could  be  set  on  any  part  of  the  outside  of  the  lined  portion 
of  the  glass  tube. 

"The  copper  hook  was  set  at  a  distance  of  l\  inches  from  the 
brass  ball  on  the  end  of  the  tube,  and  was  connected  with  the 
outside  of  a  Leyden-jar  which  was  charged  so  as  to  be  nearly 
able  to  give  a  spark  \  inch  long  between  two  other  brass  balls 
each  of  which  was  i^  inch  in  diameter.  The  knob  of  the  jar 
was  next  brought  to  the  ball  on  the  end  of  the  glass  tube  ;  the 
discharge  readily  passed  over  the  7^  inches  of  the  electrified 
outer  surface  of  the  glass  tube.  Sometimes  the  spark  could 
pass  when  the  hook  was  at  8|  inches  from  the  ball.  When 
the  hook  was  placed  at  a  distance  of  \z%  inches  from  the  ball, 
the  spark  passed  between  the  ball  and  the  hook  with  a  much 
lower  charge  in  the  jar  than  was  necessary  to  produce  a  spark 
f  inch  long  between  the  pair  of  balls  before  mentioned. 

"  These  experiments  show  that  the  length  of  an  ordinary 
electric  spark,  can  be  much  increased  >  by  causing  the  spark  to 
pass  over  an  electrified  surface.  Instances  of  this  are  seen  in  the 
spontaneous  discharge  of  Leyden-jars,  and  in  the  long  sparks 
which  flash  over  the  revolving  glass  of  the  electrical  machine. 

"  Let  a  ball  be  attached  to  the  prime  conductor  of  the  elec- 
trical machine  so  that  the  ball  may  give  electrical  brushes  to  the 
air.  Much  longer  sparks  may  be  drawn  from  the  ball  along  the 
path  of  the  brushes  than  from  the  other  parts  of  the  prime  con- 
ductor. The  brush  discharge  electrifies  the  air  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  ball,  and  the  spark  is  longer  because  it  passes 
near  to,  or  through,  a  mass  of  previously  charged  particles. 

"  It  is  well  known  that  atmospheric  electricity  not  unfre- 
quently  forms  an  electric  fire-ball  which  moves  but  slowly,  and 
which,  on  striking  an  object,  explodes  and  produces  all  the  usual 
effects  of  a  flash  of  lightning.  Sir  William  Harris  writes  : — 
'  Now,  it  is  not  improbable  that,  in  many  cases  in  which  distinct 
balls  of  fire  of  sensible  duration  have  been  perceived,  the  appear- 
ance has  resulted  from  the  species  of  brush  or  glow  discharge 
already  described,  and  which  may  often  precede  the  main 
shock.'  And  Dr.  Noad  says  of  the  electrical  fire-ball  that  '  it 
is  no  doubt  always  attended  by  a  diff"usely-luminous  track  ;  this 
may,  however,  be  completely  eclipsed  in  the  mind  of  the  ob- 
server by  the  great  concentration  and  density  of  the  discharge  in 
the  points  immediately  through  which  it  continues  to  force  its 
way.'  A  more  perfect  explanation  can,  as  I  suppose,  be  given 
by  the  aid  of  the  experiments  of  this  chapter. 

"  A  thunder-cloud  may  produce  both  the  electric  glow  and  the 
electric  brush,  at  the  end  of  one  of  its  cloudy  branches.  And  since 
electricity  passes  freely  along  a  charged  surface,  therefore  the 
glowing  discharge  by  electrifying  the  air  in  front  of  the  aerial 
conductor,  adds  continually  to  the  length  of  the  conducting 
column,  and  so  the  electrical  fire-ball  advances.  Little  drops  of 
water,  or  any  other  conductive  matter  which  the  column  finds 
in  its  course,  must  facilitate  the  transmission  of  the  electricity 
to  the  fire-ball  ;  and  without  doubt,  too,  the  electricity  of  the 
column  continues  to  spread  laterally,  and  so  it  increases  the  con- 
ductive capacity  of  the  column.  The  electricicity  travels  through 
the  electrified  column  as  a  series  of  luminous  disruptive  dis- 
charges ;  but  the  light  is  brightest  at  the  head,  because  there  the 
diameter  of  the  column  is  least,  and  the  discharge  is  most  closely 
packed  ;  and  because  there  the  air  is  unelectrified,  and  conse- 
quently opposes  so  great  resistance  to  the  passage  of  the  elec- 
tricity. As  soon  as  the  fiie-ball  has  arrived  at  a  conducting 
mass  on  the  earth,  the  aerial  conductor  has  been  completed,  and 
a  flash  of  lightning  may  instantly  follow  along  the  path  of  the 
fire-ball." 

Since  the  Leyden-jar,  with  a  charge  somewhat  less  than  that 
required  to  give  a  spark  \  inch  long  between  the  li-inch  brass 


Nov. 


21, 


18S9] 


^^■llls,  gave  a  spark  about  8  inches  long  over  the  excited  glass 
^^Bbe  ;  and  since  the  Leyden-jar,  with  a  charge  much  lower  than 
that  required  to  produce  a  spark  \  inch  long  between  the  two 
brass  balls,  was  sufficient  to  give  a  spark  about  13  inches  long 
over  the  excited  glass  tube  ;  it  was  at  once  seen  that  the  length 
of  the  spark  over  the  excited  glass  tube,  increases  faster  than  the 
intensity  of  the  charge  of  the  Leyden-jar.  Of  course  the  law 
which  connects  the  length  of  the  spark  over  the  excited  glass 
tube,  with  the  intensity  of  the  charge  of  the  Leyden-jar, 
can  only  be  determined  by  experiment.  It  is,  however,  to 
be  noticed  that,  from  the  experiments  of  Harris  and  others, 
the  length  of  a  spark  in  air  of  a  Leyden-jar  varies  directly 
with  the  intensity  of  the  charge — that  is,  with  the  quantity 
of  electricity  in  the  jar  as  measured  by  any  such  con- 
trivance as  the  unit-jar.  And  further,  that  the  length  of  the 
spark  over  the  excited  glass  tube  depends  (i)  on  the  length  of 
the  spark  which  the  charge  of  the  Leyden-jar  can  produce 
between  the  l^-inch  brass  balls ;  and  also  (2)  on  the  degree  of 
electrification  of  the  glass  tube;  and  that  both  these  two 
quantities — namely,  (i)  and  (2) — increase  together.  From  these 
considerations,  I  should  expect  to  find  that  the  length  of  the 
spark  over  the  excited  glass  tube  increases  in  some  way  with  the 
square  of  the  intensity  of  the  charge  of  the  Leyden-jar — that  is, 
with  the  square  of  the  potential. 

'  I  dare  say  that  the  sparks  over  the  excited  glass  tube,  would 
become  very  brilliant  by  using  an  induction  coil  to  charge  the 
Leyden-jar.  But  to  produce  the  maximum  effect,  the  glass  tube 
should,  I  think,  be  lined,  as  in  the  following  experiment,  with 
tin-filings  instead  of  the  tin-foil. 

A  piece  of  hard  German  glass  tube  was  taken,  and  one  end 
closed  at  the  blow-pipe  and  the  other  end  bordered  to  receive  a 
cork.  After  these  operations,  the  tube  was  found  to  be  just 
2  feet  1%  inches  long  ;  the  external  diameter  of  the  tube  was 
W  inch,  and  the  glass  was  4^  inch  thick.  Next,  the  closed  end 
of  the  tube  was  filled  with  tin-filings  to  the  height  of  6  inches, 
the  filings  having  been  condensed  by  tapping  the  end  of  the  tube 
on  a  piece  of  wood.  A  brass  rod,  with  a  knob  at  one  end  and 
a  screw  having  been  cut  on  the  other  end,  was  screwed  into  a 
cork  which  nicely  fitted  into  the  glass  tube,  and,  by  means  of 
the  rod,  the  cork  was  thrust  into  the  tube  until  it  pressed  upon 
the  tin-filings,  and  since  the  point  of  the  rod  was  sharp  and  pro- 
jected beyond  the  cork,  the  end  of  the  rod  entered  a  little  way 
into  the  tin-filings.  The  knob  of  the  brass  rod  now  stood  just  at 
the  mouth  of  the  glass  tube,  and  the  mouth  of  the  tube  also  con- 
tained a  cork  through  which  the  brass  rod  passed.  Of  the  out- 
side of  the  glass  tube,  the  part  surrounding  the  tin-filings  was 
painted  over  with  lac  varnish,  and,  as  soon  as  it  became  suffi- 
ciently sticky,  a  thin  piece  of  tin-foil  was  wrapped  around  the 
tube  so  as  to  cover  the  tin-filings,  and  no  more.  Lastly,  the 
remaining  portion  of  the  outside  of  the  glass  tube  was  painted 
over  with  lac  varnish.  To  charge  this  tubular  Leyden-jar,  it 
was  laid  with  the  tinned  end  on  one  conductor  and  with  the 
knob  of  the  brass  rod  on  the  other  conductor  of  a  Wimshurst 
influence  machine.  I  may  mention,  in  passing,  that  the  capacity 
of  this  tubular  Leyden-jar  was  surprisingly  great  in  comparison 
with  its  size  ;  thus  showing  that  Leyden  batteries,  both  cheap 
and  compact,  can  be  made  with  the  aid  of  glass  tube  and 
metallic  filings.  The  capacity  is  no  doubt  due,  more  or  less,  to 
the  uniform  thinness  of  the  glass,  and  to  the  close  contact  of  the 
tin-filings  and  the  glass.  The  specific  inductive  capacity  of  hard 
German  glass  does  not  seem  to  have  been  ascertained.  But  of 
course,  for  the  construction  of  Leydeu-jars,  and  also  for  the 
plates  of  the  Wimshurst  machine,  glass  of  the  highest  available 
specific  inductive  capacity  should  be  used.  It  may  not  be  amiss 
to  remark  that,  owing  to  the  high  specific  inductive  capacity  of 
glass  as  compared  with  air,  the  efficiency  of  a  Wimshurst 
machine  is  probably  much  more  increased  by  diminishing  the 
thickness  of  the  stratum  of  air  between  the  glass  plates  than  by 
diminishing  the  thickness  of  the  plates. 

Now,  the  Leyden-tube  produces  a  class  of  sparks  which  I  do 
not  think  have  been  shown  by  any  other  Leyden-jar.  The 
Leyden-tube  was  laid,  as  before  mentioned,  on  the  two  con- 
ductors of  a  Wimshurst  influence  machine,  and  the  discharging 
balls  belonging  to  the  conductors  were  set  \  inch  apart.  These 
two  discharging  balls  were  each  i^  inch  in  diameter.  On  turn- 
ing the  handle  of  the  machine,  the  Leyden-tube  continued,  of 
course,  to  become  charged  and  then  to  be  discharged  by  the 
s-inch  spark  between  the  discharging  balls.  But  besides  the 
main  spark  between  the  discharging  balls,  little  streams  of  elec- 
tricity appeared  along  the  glass  tube,  and  extended  away  from 


NATURE 


59 


the  tin-foil  to  a  distance  of  i^  inch  or  more.  These  sparks  were, 
I  think,  best  seen  in  a  subdued  daylight.  They  were  very 
numerous  with  each  discharge  of  the  tube  ;  I  estimated  the 
I  number  of  sparks  in  different  discharges  as  varying  between  one 
,  and  two  dozens.  The  sparks  were  sinuous,  very  bright  at  the 
tin-foil,  and  tapering  away  to  nothing  at  the  further  end.  Some 
of  the  sparks,  however,  were  not  so  bright  as  the  others,  and 
rather  ruddy  ;  they  were  probably  inside  the  glass  tube,  and 
coloured  by  the  varnish  on  the  tube. 

In  the  Leisure  Hour,  November  1888,  p.  777  (56  Paternoster 
Row),  there  is  a  photographic  picture  of  a  lightning-blaze, 
wherein  the  bright  ends  of  several  of  the  flashes  are  seen  to  be 
sitting  upon  what  appears  to  be  rock,  and  the  flashes  bear  a 
strong  resemblance  to  the  little  sparks  whose  bright  bases  rest 
upon  the  edge  of  the  tin-foil. 

In  the  Leistire  Hour,  November  1886,  p.  786,  there  is  an- 
other representation  of  a  flash  of  lightning  from  a  photograph. 
In  this  instance,  the  flash  is  thick  in  the  middle,  but  on  ap- 
proaching the  earth,  it  tapers  off  to  a  fine  point.  Like  as  a  river 
may  be  only  a  small  stream  at  its  source  and  by  gathering  water 
as  it  leads  on  to  the  sea,  become  a  bulky  stream  at  its  mouth  ;  so 
the  sparks  on  the  Leyden-tube  gather  up  electricity  from  the 
Leyden-tube,  and  so  brighten  away  to  the  tin-foil.  But  in  this 
flash  of  lightning,  the  very  reverse  appears  to  take  place.  The 
flash  is  greatly  weakened  before  it  reaches  the  earth,  through  a 
transverse  discharge  to  the  air.  For  around  the  brighter  portions 
of  the  flash,  the  air  is  shining,  and  streamers  are  darting  earth- 
wards from  the  flash  into  the  air.  At  the  upper  part  of  the  flash, 
there  are  also  streamers  acting  manifestly  as  feeders  from  the 
cloud  to  the  flash.  The  flash  rather  resembles  a  long  spark  from 
the  prime  conductor  of  an  electric  machine,  than  the  spark  of  a 
Leyden-jar  ;  but  the  prime  conductor  being  metallic,  can  only 
imperfectly  represent  the  much  lower  conduction  of  a  cloud. 

In  the  Leisure  Hour,  September  1889,  p.  641,  there  is  an 
engraving  from  a  photograph  of  the  so-called  ribbon-lightning. 
This  form  of  lightning  is  clearly  produced  by  a  succession  of 
flashes  following  along  the  same  path,  combined  with  some  slight 
motion  given  to  the  camera  by  the  hand  of  the  operator ;  as 
indeed  is  there  pointed  out.  The  question  is.  How  comes  it  that 
the  flash  so  repeatedly  passes  along  the  same  path  ?  The  answer 
there  given  is  that  suggested  by  Mr.  Cowper  Ranyard,  "That  ap- 
parently the  first  flash  would  heat  the  air  and  slightly  rarefy  it, 
leaving  a  path  of  least  resistance,  along  which  subsequent  dis- 
charges would  flow  as  certainly  as  water  follows  the  twists  and 
turns  of  a  pipe."  It  seems  to  me,  however,  that  a  far  more  im- 
portant cause  for  making  a  second  flash  to  pass  along  the  path  of 
its  predecessor  is  to  be  found  in  the  action  of  the  transverse  dis- 
charge, whereby  a  tubular  mass  of  air  becomes  electrified  around 
the  path  of  the  first  flash  ;  and  through  the  electrified  air,  the  flash 
readily  passes,  as  previously  shown.  In  the  woodcut,  the  efful- 
gence of  the  surrounding  air  and  the  streamers  show  that  the 
lightning  was  distributing  electricity  along  its  path.  The  trans- 
verse discharge  is  perhaps  never  absent  from  the  flash  of  lightning. 
In  Nature,  vol.  xl.  p.  543,  a  flash  of  lightning  which  struck 
a  windmill,  is  described  as  "  a  mass  or  network  of  flame,  which 
threw  off  thousands  of  sparks  like  fireworks." 

The  discharging  balls  of  the  Wimshurst  machine  were  set  one 
inch  apart,  everything  else  remaining  as  before.  The  sparks 
now  extended  along  the  glass  tube  to  a  distance  of  about  3J 
inches  from  the  tin-foil.  The  general  character  of  the  sparks  was 
the  same  as  before,  when  the  discharging  balls  were  set  half  an 
inch  apart. 

The  discharging  balls  were  set  i|  inch  apart.  When  the  dis- 
charge occurred,  the  sparks  extended  along  the  tube  to  about  54 
inches  from  the  tin-foil.  The  sparks  were  straighter,  and  not 
nearly  so  numerous  as  when  the  discharging  balls  were  set  at 
half  an  inch  ;  they  were  also  very  much  brighter,  but  like  the 
others,  they  all  tapered  away  to  nothing.  In  this  experiment, 
the  Leyden-tube  was  charged  to  about  the  highest  potential  that 
the  machine  would  give  it  ;  and  the  matter  was  not  any  further 
pursued.  Reuben  Phillips. 

I  Bay  View  Terrace,  Northam,  Bideford,  October  9. 


"  Darwinism." 

What  my  "laborious  essay  "  "  distinctly  professes  to  be  "  is, 

as  its  title-page  announces, ' '  an  additional %\xzz&%ViOX\.  on  the  origin 

of  species  ";  and  this  additional  suggestion  is  forthwith  stated  to 

be  that  of  ''  another  factor  in  the  formation  of  species,  which, 


6o 


NA  TURE 


{Nov.  2  1,  1889 


although  quite  independent  of  natural  selection,  is  in  no  way 
opposed  to  natural  selection,  and  may  therefore  be  regarded  as  a 
factor  supplementary  to  natural  selection."  This  passage  occurs 
in  the  most  conspicuous  part  of  the  paper,  viz.  at  the  close  of 
the  introduction.  In  the  next  most  conspicuous  part — viz., 
at  the  close  of  the  paper  itself — it  is  said,  "  Without  natural 
selection,  physiological  selection  would  be  powerless  to  create 
any  differences  of  specific  type,  other  than  those  of  mutual  sterility, 
and  trivial  details  of  structure,  form,  and  colour." 

So  much  for  distinct  professions.  But  as  I  am  tired  of  contro- 
verting the  statement  that  I  both  intended  and  perpetrated  an 
"attack  "  on  Mr.  Darwin's  theory,  I  will  not  now  burden  your 
columns  by  supplying  the  context,  or  otherwise  easily  explain- 
ing the  passages  Ivhich  Prof.  Lankester  quotes  in  support  of 
this  statement.  On  a  future  occasion,  however,  I  hupe  to  avail 
myself  of  a  mor-  fitting  opportunity  fully  to  display  the  relation 
in  which  my  "laborious  essay"  stands  to  the  work  of  Mr. 
Darwin ;  and  then  I  trust  it  will  be  clearly  seen  that,  whatever 
we  may  severally  think  about  the  "complementary  principle  "  of 
physiological  selection,  at  all  events  it  is  in  no  way  hostile  to 
the  cardinal  principle  of  natural  selection. 

Edinburgh,  November  19.  George  J.  Romanes. 


How  not  to  Teach  Geometry. 

As  I  have  come  across  an  almost  unforeseen  development  of  the 
above  heading,  I  take  the  liberty  of  bringing  it  before  your 
readers.  For  myself,  I  may  state  that  I  have  considered  the 
"  learn  a  proposition  off  by  heart "  method  was  sufficiently  bad, 
but  what  is  to  be  made  of  the  method  described  in  the  following 
extract  from  a  note  which  I  recently  received  from  my  friend  : — 
"  We  have  half  of  a  proposition  written  on  the  board,  and  then 
we  write  it  at  home  from  memory  ;  then  the  other  half  is 
written  on  the  board,  and  we  write  that  at  home  from 
memory.  Then  we  have  to  learn  the  whole  proposition  at  once, 
to  be  able  to  write  or  say  it  with  different  letters.  We  are  not 
allowed  to  have  a  printed  Euclid  book — we  are  only  allowed  to 
have  a  book  of  Enunciations." 

Of  course  this  refers  to  Euc.  i.  i. 

I  beg  to  commend  the  above  extract  to  the  Association  for 
the  Improvement  of  Geometrical  Teaching.  I  do  not  know 
whether  to  add  the  name  of  the  school  where  the  above  system 
is  followed  by  one  of  the  teachers. 

Herbert  J.  Woodall. 

Normal  School  of  Science,  South  Kensington, 
November  11. 

P. S. — I  should  like  to  see  opinions  on  the  teaching  described. 


A  Brilliant  Meteor. 

Is  not  the  meteor  seen  from  Warwick  School  on  November  4 
the  same  as  that  mentioned  in  the  following  from  my  daughter, 
written  from  the  school  at  Brookfield,  Wigton,  Cumberland? 

"On  Monday  night  (November  4),  at  7.55  p.m.,  when  out 
on  the  playground  viewing  the  stars,  I  saw  a  most  beautiful 
meteor.  It  seemed  to  be  very  near,  and  was  in  sight  for  quite  a 
long  time.  It  appeared  just  over  Skiddaw — that  is  to  say,  due 
south — and  went  towards  the  south-east.  It  had  a  long  tail  of 
light,  and  burst,  and  sent  out  beautiful  colours,  and  disappeared 
near  the  horizon." 

I  may  add  that,  last  Sunday,  November  10,  at  about  5.56 
p.m.,  I  saw  here  a  very  bright  meteor  pass  from  a  point  perhaps 
south-south-west,  and  altitude  about  25°,  to  a  point  perhaps  south 
by  east,  and  altitude  about  10°  or  12°.  It  was  lirighter  than 
Venus  when  the  planet  is  at  its  brightest,  I  think  ;  and  it  seemed 
to  flash  out  still  more  brightly  just  before  disappearing  ;  but  the 
colour  did  not  change  perceptibly  from  its  former  soft  white 
light,  and  there  was  no  appearance  of  bursting.  At  the  time  of 
disappearance,  its  train  of  light  must  have  extended  over  several 
degrees.  Wm.  Scarnell  Lean. 

Ack  worth,  November  16. 


THE  CAUSES  AND  CHARACTER  OF  HAZE. 

T  T  NLIKE  fog,  haze  commonly  occurs  in  this  country 
^  when  the  lower  air  is  in  a  state  of  unusual  dryness. 
It  is  not  only  a  frequent  accompaniment  of  a  spell  of  fine 
dry  weather,  but  may  be,  when  in  combination  with  certain 


other  conditions,  a  sign  of  its  approach.  Night  or  morn- 
ing fogs,  and  in  winter  persistent  fogs,  often  signify  a  calm 
and  settled  condition  of  the  air  and  the  prevalence  of  fair 
weather.  Heavy  dews,  especially  in  the  autumn,  likewise 
portend  fine  weather,  but  usually  of  shorter  duration. 
Fogs  appear  usually  in  one  of  two  conditions  :  either  the 
air  is  nearly  saturated  up  to  a  considerable  height,  or  else 
is  unusually  dry,  except  in  a  stratum  immediately  above 
the  ground.  In  the  first  case,  radiation  or  condensation 
from  some  cause  produces,  by  a  slight  lowering  of 
temperature,  a  large  precipitation  of  vapour  ;  and  in  the 
second  case,  radiation  from  the  earth's  surface  being 
excessive,  owing  to  the  diathermancy  of  the  dry  atmo- 
sphere, the  stratum  next  the  ground  rapidly  reaches  its 
dew-point,  fog  is  formed,  and  this  fog  continues  to  radiate 
to  the  clear  sky  and  further  to  reduce  temperature.  Haze, 
on  the  other  hand,  appears  often  in  weather  distinguished 
by  unusual  dryness,  on  the  surface  as  well  as  at  a  con- 
siderable altitude  above  the  ground.  The  air  remains  for 
many  days  uniformly  dry,  the  nights  being  nearly  dew- 
less,  and  the  sky  often  free  from  clouds.  The  chief  differ- 
ence to  be  observed,  then,  is  this,  that  fog  requires 
saturation  where  it  occurs,  while  haze  seems  to  be 
favoured  rather  by  a  dry  atmosphere. 

Haze  does  not  prevail  on  the  continent  of  Europe  or  in 
the  interior  of  North  America  to  anything  like  the  same 
extent  as  in  England  ;  nor,  probably,  in  mid-ocean  to  the 
same  extent  asneartheshoresof  northern  countries.  On  the 
east  coast  of  Scotland,  and,  indeed,  overall  North  Britain, 
it  is  exceedingly  common,  especially  in  the  spring,  and 
during  the  prevalence  of  east  wind,  although  with  west 
winds  the  atmosphere  is  frequently  clearer  in  summer 
than  in  Southern  England.  Over  Southern  England  it  is 
a  common  accompaniment  of  winds  between  east-south- 
east and  north-east  inclusive.  It  appears  to  prevail  more 
on  the  eastern  than  on  the  western  coasts  when  east 
winds  are  blowing.  In  Western  Surrey,  when  the  lower 
air  moves  from  a  westerly  direction  or  is  calm,  the  ap- 
proach of  east  wind  is  announced  by  a  light  haze  obscur- 
ing distant  views,  before  the  east  wind  has  actually 
arrived  on  the  spot  of  observation.  This  is  not  in  all 
cases  due  to  the  descent  of  London  smoke  from  a  higher 
stratum,  where  the  east  wind  first  gains  ascendancy,  for  the 
phenomenon  maybe  observed  in  other  localities.  The  haze 
produced  on  the  first  arrival  of  the  east  wind  is  thicker  than 
that  which  remains  when  the  east  wind  has  gained  a  strong 
hold,  and  the  neutral  band  where  calm  prevails  between 
a  south-west  and  a  north-east  current  is  marked  by  the 
thickest  mist.  In  winter  a  dark  fog  frequently  marks  this 
neutral  zone,  often  not  more  than  one  or  two  miles  in 
breadth,  and  the  zone  moves  eastwards  or  westwards 
according  as  the  west  or  east  wind  exercises  the  strongest 
pressure.  I  have  frequently  observed  this  phenomenon 
with  great  distinctness.  In  winter,  the  approach  of  the 
equatorial  after  the  prevalence  of  the  polar  current  is 
often  betokened  by  a  damp  fog  and  the  contrary  change  by 
a  dry  fog  ;  the  same  changes  in  summer  are  respectively 
marked  by  a  great  increase  of  transparency  and  by  a 
spreading  haze  or  mist.  The  following  observations  taken 
in  Scotland  illustrate  the  phenomena  accompanying  a 
change  from  west  to  east  in  August.  St.  Fillan's  Hill  is 
a  small,  steep,  isolated  volcanic  cone  about  300  feet  in 
height,  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  valley  of  the  Earn, 
about  two  miles  from  the  lower  end  of  Loch  Earn,  in 
Perthshire.  The  air  was  clear,  and  a  fresh  westerly 
breeze  was  blowing  when  I  was  on  the  summit,  about  5 
p  m.  The  breeze  suddenly  began  to  slacken,  and  in  about 
five  minutes  had  dropped  altogether.  Then  down  the 
valley  eastwards  a  blue  haze  began  swiftly  to  climb  the 
glens  tributary  to  Stralhearn,  and  the  whole  air  eastwards 
grew  obscure.  The  calm  only  lasted  a  little  more  than 
two  minutes,  and  then  suddenly  a  strong  wind  from  the 
east  set  in,  and  soon  the  air,  westwards  as  well  as  east- 
wards, was  robbed  of  its  transparency.     The  east  wind 


Nov.  2  1,  1889] 


NATURE 


61 


continued,  and  in  a  few  minutes  the  tops  of  the  hills, 
which  rise  precipitately  from  Strathearn  to  a  height  of 
about  2000  feet,  were  obscured  with  cloud-banners  grow- 
ing continuously  and  descending  till  in  about  two  hours 
not  only  the  hills  above  a  level  of  about  1000  feet,  but  the 
whole  sky,  were  covered  with  gray  cloud.  The  duration 
of  the  neutral  calm,  from  two  to  four  minutes,  seems  to 
be  about  the  usual  time  occupied  by  a  moderate  east  wind 
in  driving  back  the  opposing  current,  according  to  my 
observations  in  the  neighbourhood  of  London.  In  the 
suburbs  south-west  of  London  such  a  change  is  signalized 
in  the  neutral  band  of  calm  by  a  dense  yellow  haze,  pro- 
ducing great  darkness,  the  result  of  a  banking  up  of 
smoke  to  some  altitude,  together  with  the  condensation 
of  aqueous  vapour  by  the  mixture  of  currents  differing  in 
temperature.  With  lighter  winds  about  equal  to  each 
other  in  momentum,  such  a  band  often  lasts  much  longer, 
and  I  have  known  a  west  wind  prevail  at  Richmond 
simultaneously  with  an  east  wind  m  London,  both  with- 
out fog,  while  at  Wandsworth,  between  the  two,  a  calm 
continued  for  many  minutes,  with  dense,  almost  noc- 
turnally-black,  smoke-fog,  the  pressure  in  each  direction 
being  apparently  equal.  Generally  speaking,  the  mist 
thus  produced  at  the  junction  of  the  two  winds  is  exceed- 
ingly dense  in  winter,  moderately  dense  in  spring  and 
autumn,  and  thinnest  in  summer,  varying,  in  fact,  from  a 
black  fog  in  the  cold  season  to  a  mere  haze  in  the  warmest 
weather.  Hence  we  have  an  ascertained  condition  for 
the  production  of  haze— the  mixture  of  two  opposite 
winds.  It  may  be  here  remarked  that  a  very  sudden 
squall  of  wind  from  the  north,  displacing  an  equatorial 
or  south-westerly  current,  produces  a  somewhat  similar 
dense  wall  of  mist,  which  it  soon  drives  away  before  it. 

Haze  very  frequently  prevails  during  a  north-east  or 
east  wind  in  all  parts  of  Great  Britain  ;  in  the  east  of 
Scotland  it  is,  perhaps,  more  marked  than  in  other  locali- 
ties, and  attends  both  wet  and  dry  weather.  A  dense 
blue  mist  or  haze  brought  by  the  east  wind  sometimes 
invests  the  landscape  for  days  before  a  continuous  down- 
pour from  that  quarter.  This  haze  extends  far  out  to 
sea  eastwards.  The  southern  parts  of  England  are  less 
troubled  than  the  northern  by  this  disagreeable  infliction, 
and  the  northern  parts  of  France  less  still.  In  the  east- 
ern counties,  and  probably  in  other  parts  of  England, 
the  density  of  the  haze  seems  to  increase  in  some  pro- 
portion to  the  dryness  of  the  air,  when  only  a  slight  wind 
blows.  On  thoroughly  rainy  days,  such  as  the  north-east 
wind  sometimes  brings  to  the  London  district,  the  amount 
of  haze  is  below  the  average  ;  and  when  the  north-east 
wind  is  accompanied  by  snow-showers,  as  it  often  is  in 
February  and  March,  or  by  ram-showers  later  in  the 
year,  it  is  remarkably  and  conspicuously  clear.  I  cannot 
remember  any  showery  days  with  a  steady  north-east 
wind  showing  a  true  haze,  beyond  the  influence  of  Lon- 
don, but  have  often  observed  the  extraordinary  clearness 
•of  such  days,  and  the  apparently  dissipative  action  of  the 
air  on  London  smoke. 

Generally,  the  density  of  the  haze  is  less  as  the  strength 
of  the  wind  increases.  A  gale  from  the  north-east  is 
seldom  accompanied  by  much  haze  inland,  although  on 
the  east  coast  the  combination  is  not  uncommon.  Haze 
appears  to  diminish  as  the  north-east  wind  grows  more 
•established,  and  in  winter  a  long  period  of  this  wind  may 
be  experienced  without  the  continuance  of  haze.  It  is 
also  important  to  observe  that,  when  high  upper  clouds 
are  seen  to  be  moving  from  a  direction  between  east  and 
north  inclusive,  but  especially  from  north-east,  the  air  is 
usually  clear,  and  a  long  continuance  of  the  polar  wind 
may  be  expected.  It  is  a  sign  of  the  firm  establishment 
of  the  north-east  wind  when  high  cirro-cumulus  is  seen 
passing  over  from  that  direction,  whatever  deviations 
may  take  place  temporarily  on  the  earth's  surface.  The 
extension  of  the  north-east  wind  to  a  great  altitude  seems 
to  deprive  it  of  its  accustomed  haziness.     When,  on  the 


other  hand,  thick  haze  accompanies  the  north-east  wind, 
if  upper  clouds  are  in  view,  they  are  generally  seen  to  be 
borne  by  a  different  current,  and  in  winter  the  lower  wind 
does  not,  in  such  conditions,  often  remain  long  in  the 
same  quarter.  Hence  we  have  the  means  of  making 
forecasts  with  tolerable  safety  as  follows  ; — 

(i)  If  the  lower  air  be  clear,  whether  clouds  at  a  high 
level  be  seen  to  move  from  the  north-east  or  none  be 
visible,  the  lower  wind  from  north-east  will  probably  last 
some  days,  perhaps  some  weeks. 

(2)  If  the  lower  air  be  very  thick  and  misty,  the  north- 
east wind  is  not  strongly  established,  and  is  likely  soon 
to  be  succeeded  either  by  variable  airs  and  calms,  or  by 
breezes  from  a  different  quarter. 

In  spring   and   summer,  haze  prevails  sometimes  for 

many  days  together,  with  a  dry  atmosphere,  over    the 

whole  or  a  large  part  of  Great  Britain.      The  wind  is 

either  easterly  or  variable,  the  barometer  high,  t'impera- 

ture  high  by  day  and  low  by  night,  and  the  deposition  of 

dew  either  small  or  heavy.     The  haze  seems  to  be  uni- 

i  formly  distributed  through  the  atmosphere,  and  varies 

\  neither  from  one  day  to  another,  nor  from  day  to  night. 

j  The  sky  is  pale  blue,  the  sun  rises  and  sets  red  and  ray- 

!  less,  and  the  moonlight  reveals  the  blue  mist  unchanged 

by  the  absence  of  the  sun's  rays. 

Haze  has  been  known  to  affect  a  great  part  of  Europe 
during  a  period  corresponding  with  the  prevalence  of 
drought. 

The  formation  of  haze  seems  to  be  more  common  and 
more  sudden  in  mountainous  regions  than  on  the  plain. 
I  had  once  an  opportunity  of  observing  the  rapid  pro- 
duction of  a  very  dense  haze  from  the  top  of  Cader  idris, 
in  Wales.  The  morning  was  bright,  fine,  and  clear,  but 
the  heat  very  oppressive.  About  midday,  signs  were  seen 
of  an  approaching  thunderstorm,  which,  however,  spent 
its  force  at  some  distance  down  the  valley.  Before  the 
storm,  a  haze  quickly  gathered,  and  completely  obscured 
even  the  nearer  ranges.  This  haze  resembled  that  which 
prevails  sometimes  during  many  hours  before  the  occur- 
rence of  a  thunderstorm  in  the  level  country. 

The  conditions  favourable  to  the  production  of  haze 
may  be  conveniently  summed  up  as  follows  :  — 

(i)  A  gentle  wind  from  east-south-east  to  north-east 
inclusive,  and  east  wind  in  general,  especially  with  dry 
weather  in  spring  and  summer.  If  the  east  wind  be 
established  up  to  a  great  height,  the  lower  air  is  usually 
clear,  but  if  the  upper  current  is  from  a  westerly  direc- 
tion, haze  prevails. 

(2)  Fine  settled  weather,  with  variable  currents,  a  dry 
air,  and  little  dew. 

(3)  Opposition  of  currents — such  as  occurs  when  several 
shallow  barometric  depressions  exist  over  the  country — 
and  the  atmospheric  state  preceding  thunderstorms. 

(4)  Damp  weather,  with  light  winds  and  varying  tem- 
perature, as  thaw  after  frost,  with  snow  on  the  ground. 

Turning  to  those  conditions  which  are  most  unfavour- 
able to  the  production  of  haze,  or  in  which  the  air  is  most 
transparent,  we  find  them  to  be — 

(i)  A  state  of  great  humidity,  such  as  that  which 
occurs  often  before  bad  weather,  the  wind  being  between 
south  and  west. 

(2)  Strong  winds  and  showery  weather. 

(3)  Winds  between  south-west  and  north. 

(4)  Fine  settled  summer  weather,  with  westerly  or 
southerly  winds. 

(5)  Settled  easterly  or  northerly  winds,  with  either  clear 
sky,  or  high  clouds  moving  from  those  directions. 

(6)  Easterly  or  northerly  winds,  with  a  high  continuous 
cloud  canopy  moving  in  the  same  direction,  small  range 
of  temperature,  and  steady  conditions  ;  or,  with  detached 
cumulus  in  the  daytime,  and  clear  nights. 

(7)  North-west  following  a  wind  between  north-west 
and  south  is  particularly  clear,  except  in  thundery 
weather. 


62 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  2  1,  1889 


It  thus  appears  that  the  most  striking  characteristic 
which  may  accompany  the  formation  of  haze  is  an  un- 
usual dryness  of  the  air,  and  that  a  total  absence  of  haze 
is  often  observed  when  the  air  is  unusually  charged  with 
vapour.  It  does  not  follow  that  haze,  or  a  light  fog 
much  resembling  it,  is  not  also  seen  in  a  damp  state  of 
the  air,  or  that  a  saturated  air  is  always  free  Irom  haze  ; 
indeed,  something  much  resembling  a  dry  haze  does  occur 
with  sudden  changes  of  temperature  in  all  ordinary  hygro- 
metric  states  in  our  climate.  But  the  very  condition  to 
which  haze  in  England  is  commonly,  and  in  a  certain 
sense  correctly,  attributed — namely,  atmospheric  humi- 
dity— is,  if  sufficiently  uniform  and  extended,  least  favour- 
able to  its  manifestation.  A  constant  moisture-laden 
westerly  breeze  would  give  a  climate  nearly  as  clear  as 
that  of  the  south-west  corner  of  France. 

Two  principal  factors  go  to  the  production  of  ordinary 
haze  :  the  first,  a  rather  large  amount  of  vapour  between 
the  earth  and  a  great  altitude,  say  60,000  feet ;  and  the 
second,  a  mixture  of  two  heterogeneous  masses  of  air. 
Evidence  of  the  correctness  of  this  proposition  is  to  be 
found  in  the  geographical  distribution  of  haze  and  the 
state  of  the  winds  when  it  occurs. 

The  causes  of  fog  are  either  radiation  of  heat  from  the 
earth  into  space  and  cooling  of  the  overlying  humid  strata 
of  air  to  a  temperature  below  the  dew-point,  or  else  the 
mixture  of  two  winds,  differing  in  temperature  and  other 
conditions,  one  of  the  currents  being  usually  near  its 
point  of  saturation  previous  to  contact  with  the  other. 

If  the  above-mentioned  statement  of  the  causes  of 
haze  be  correct,  we  shall  be  enabled  to  account  for  the 
appearance  of  haze  in  certain  conditions,  which  have 
been  given,  and  for  its  absence  in  others.  Taking  them  in 
order — 

(i)  A  gentle  wind  from  east  to  north-east  inclusive 
is  favourable  to  haze,  especially  if  it  extends  to  no  very 
great  height.  Often  the  approximate  depth  or  height  of  the 
easterly  current  is  difficult  to  ascertain  ;  but,  in  general, 
if  it  be  of  short  duration,  it  is  shallow,  and  sometimes 
upper  clouds  from  a  westerly  direction  may  be  observed. 
In  these  cases  especially  haze  prevails.  Considering  the 
shallowness  of  lower  winds  compared  with  their  extent — 
an  easterly  wind,  for  instance,  which  has  travelled  300 
miles  beneath  a  westerly  wind  only  four  miles  above  the 
earth's  surface — it  is  quite  certain  that  a  very  large  ad- 
mixture of  the  two  currents  must  take  place.  And 
we  may  be  sure  that  in. the  majority  of  cases  the  easterly 
surface  wind  has  above  it  an  upper  current  from  a  westerly 
direction.  Mr.  William  Stevenson  {Edinburgh  Philo- 
sophical Magazine,  July  1853)  observed  the  cirrus  cloud 
at  Dunse,  Berwickshire,  for  eight  years,  and  from  his 
summary  of  the  direction  of  the  motions  of  that  cloud 
we  derive  the  following  figures  : — 


Direction  of  motion  of  cirri  from  between  south- 
west and  north-west  inclusive      

Direction  of  motion  of  cirri  from  between  north 
and  east  inclusive 

Other  directions    

Direction  of  wind  at  surface  of  the  earth  from 
south-west  to  north-west  inclusive      

Direction  of  wind  at  surface  of  the  earth  from 
north  to  east  inclusive 

Other  directions 


75-2 

10 

14-8 

54-6 

32-4 
13 


Thus  there  remains  a  difference  of  over  20  per  cent,  excess 
of  westerly  upper  current  over  westerly  surface  wind,  and 
at  the  level  of  the  cirrus  a  wind  between  north  and  east 
only  prevails  once  to  every  three  occasions  of  a  surface 
wind  from  that  quarter.  The  significance  of  these  figures 
is  not  seriously  affected  by  the  idea,  first  suggested  by 
Admiral  Fitzroy,  that  visible  cirrus  is  less  likely  to  form 
in  the  polar  than  in  the  equatorial  current,  and  any 
careful  observer  can  easily  satisfy  himself  that  westerly 
winds  are  more  common  and  easterly  winds  less  common 


at  the  cirrus  level  than  on  the  surface.  Mr.  Buchan 
("  Handy  Book  of  Meteorology,"  p.  230)  remarks  that,  as 
the  north-west  current  advances  into  southern  latitudes, 
the  increasing  heat  of  the  sun  will  tend  to  dissolve  the 
cirri  which  mark  its  course,  and  he  therefore  thinks  that 
the  north-west  upper  current  is  the  most  prevalent  in 
Great  Britain.  The  actual  numbers  obtained  by  Mr. 
Stevenson  during  the  eight  years  were  243  for  north-west, 
and  256  for  south-west  direction  of  cirrus. 

Mr.  Ley  ("Laws  of  the  Winds,"  Part  I.  p.  154)  re- 
marks :■ — "  The  fact,  indeed,  that  the  observed  westerly 
upper  currents  prevail  over  the  observed  easterly  upper 
currents,  even  more  than  the  westerly  surface  winds  do 
over  the  easterly  surface  winds,  has  been  admitted  by 
most  of  the  observers  who  have  investigated  the  subject 
in  different  parts  of  Western  Europe  ;  and  the  same 
phenomenon  is  noticed  in  similar  latitudes  of  North 
America.  ...  Be  this  as  it  may,  the  theory  of  prevalent 
polar  upper  currents  derives  no  support  from  our  own 
collection  of  examples.  Again,  the  results  of  the  obser- 
vations classified  in  Table  IV.  appear  altogether  adverse 
to  the  supposition  that  an  easterly  upper  current  is 
common  over  the  northern  portions  of  those  depression 
systems  whose  westerly  winds  are  the  strongest  at  the 
earth's  surface.  .  .  .  Instead  of  easterly  upper  currents,  we 
find  a  great  preponderance  of  southerly  currents." 

Out  of  nine  balloon  ascents  recorded  in  Glaisher's 
"  Travels  in  the  Air,"  in  which  the  wind  at  starting  from 
the  surface  was  easterly,  there  was  not  one  in  which  a 
different  current  was  not  encountered  at  a  moderate 
elevation.     The  changes  were  as  follows  : — 


Date. 

Surface  Wind 

Wind  at 

April  18 

1863. 

N.E. 

A  moderate  height,  N. 

July  II, 

1863. 

E. 

A  moderate  height,  N. 
5400  feet,  N.N.  W. 

May  29, 

1866. 

N.  by  E. 

Above  2000  feet,  N.  by  W. 
5100  feet,  nearly  calm. 

Mar.  31, 

1863. 

E.,  gentle. 

l^etween  10,300  and  15,400  feet,  W 
About  15,400  feet,  N.E. 
Higher  still,  S.W.  and  W. 

Jan.  12, 

1864. 

S.E. 

1300  feet,  strong  S.W. 
4000  feet,  S. 
8000  feet,  S.S.W. 

April  6, 

1864. 

S.E. 

About  9000  feet,  N.W. 

June  10, 

1867. 

Surface  calm 

Higher,  N.N.E. 

low  elevation  Higher  still,  N. 

N.E. 

Aug.  12, 

1868. 

N.E. 

5000  feet,  S.W. 

June  16, 

1869. 

N.E. 

10,000  feet,  S.W. 

On  one  occasion — January  12,  1864— the  temperature 
from  3000  to  6000  feet  was  higher  than  on  the  surface,  but 
at  1 1,500  feet  it  was  more  than  30^  colder — namely,  11°. 
A  large  number  of  balloon  ascents  show  not  only  a  variety 
of  currents,  but  large  and  sudden  variations  of  tempera- 
ture within  a  few  thousand  feet. 

Thus  we  may  confidently  assume,  in  the  majority  of 
cases  of  east  wind,  and  especially  when  this  wind  is  of 
brief  duration,  local,  or  gentle,  that  a  westerly  wind  flows 
above  it  at  no  great  distance  from  the  surface  of  the 
earth.  Considering  the  perpetual  rapid  interchanges 
(hardly  to  be  called  diffusion)  going  on  in  the  atmosphere, 
the  lower  wind  must  be  largely  mixed  with  air  of  a  dif- 
ferent condition  derived  from  the  westerly  current.  If  a 
cold  dry  east  wind  be  permeated  by  patches  and  fila- 
ments, however  minute,  of  moister  and  warmer  air,  they 
must  be  cooled  by  contact  with  the  polar  wind,  and  a 
slight  deposition  of  vapour  may  take  place.  Or  the 
countless  invisible  dust  particles  may,  by  increased  radia- 
tion towards  space  through  a  drier  air,  either  cause  a 
slight  deposition  of  moisture  upon  themselves  or  collect 
still  smaller  particles  together,  as  dust  is  known  to  collect 
on  cold  surfaces  in  a  warm  air.  If  deposition  of  moisture 
take  place,  the  dryness  of  the  air  prevents  the  water 
particles  from  growing  to  anything  like  the  size  of  the 


Nov.  2  1,  1889] 


NATURE 


63 


particles  of  a  fog  ;  a  relatively  small  diffused  quantity  of 
vaporous  air  in  minute  parcels  could  not  produce  by  con- 
densation any  but  extremely  small  and  transitory  water 
particles,  in  the  aggregate  visible  through  long  distances, 
but  probably  individually  beyond  the  power  of  the  micro- 
scope to  discern.  They  may  be  compared  to  the  blue 
mist  escaping  from  the  safety-valve  of  a  boiler  under  high 
pressure :  the  invisible  steam  turns  for  a  moment  blue, 
and  then  to  the  ordinary  white  of  visible  steam.  The 
haze  may  possibly  be  equally  momentary  in  duration,  dis- 
solving long  before  reaching  the  white  stage,  but  fresh  fila- 
ments are  perpetually  keeping  up  the  process  and  giving 
the  appearance  of  a  persistence  like  that  of  smoke  or  dust. 
According  to  Espy,  every  cloud  is  either  forming  or  dis- 
solving (Buchan's  "  Handy  Book  of  Meteorology,"  p.  175). 

The  action  of  a  north-east  wind  setting  in  over 
England  would  be  represented  by  a  trough  of  water,  say 
2  feet  square  and  2  inches  deep,  containing  warm  water 
flowing  in  one  direction,  while  cold  water  enters  from  the 
whole  length  of  the  opposite  side.  The  cold  water  would 
force  its  way  under  the  warm,  and  the  two  opposite 
currents  would  continue  to  flow  ;  but  through  friction  and 
diffusion  there  would  be  a  great  deal  of  mixture  of 
portions  of  the  upper  with  the  lower  stream. 

A  haze  similar  to  that  accompanying  the  east  wind  is 
frequently  seen  where  two  currents  of  the  same  wind 
meet  at  different  temperatures,  as  at  the  junction  of  two 
valleys,  or  at  projecting  headlands  (Buchan's  "  Handy 
Book  of  Meteorology,"  p.  171).  It  is  also  common  with 
a  humid  wind,  otherwise  clear,  when  it  passes  over  ranges 
of  hill  and  valley  of  moderate  elevation,  owing  probably 
to  the  mixture  of  parcels  of  air  of  different  temperatures 
by  alternate  upward  and  downward  thrusts.  The  thin 
white  mist  which  appears  in  gales  from  the  south-west 
on  sunshiny  days  is  probably  due  to  the  forcible  and 
rapid  mixture  of  air  warmed  by  the  ground  with  colder 
portions  from  a  higher  level,  the  deposition  of  minute 
particles  of  dew  being  aided  by  the  abnormal  amount  of 
salt  carried  up  from  the  sea  in  spray,  and  borne  to  great 
distances  inland. 

A  very  good  instance  of  the  powerful  influence  of  the 
mixture  of  two  currents  of  air,  not  greatly  differing  in 
temperature  and  other  conditions,  to  produce  haze  oc- 
curred on  August  26,  1889,  in  southern  Surrey.  The  wind 
over  a  wide  area,  including  the  south  of  England,  was 
variable  and  gentle  from  west  to  north-west.  At  the 
place  of  observation  it  had  been  about  west-north-west 
during  the  afternoon,  and  the  views  were  fairly  clear. 
Cirro-cumulus,  both  at  a  moderate  and  at  a  great  eleva- 
tion, moved  from  north-west.  At  about  5.30  p.m.  the 
landscape  was  suddenly  invested  with  haze,  which,  during 
the  following  hour,  was  thick  enough  to  obscure  altoge- 
ther hills  about  six  miles  off.  Simultaneously  the  wind 
dropped  a  good  deal  and  shifted  to  north-west  and  north 
for  a  short  time,  but  soon  backed,  and  the  air  again 
became  clear  about  7.30.  It  would  thus  seem  sufficient 
that  a  reduction  of  temperature  a  little  more  than  the 
ordinary  about  the  time  of  sunset  should  occur,  in  order 
to  precipitate  visible  moisture  upon  the  dust-particles  of 
the  air.  Both  the  sensation  and  the  appearance  of  the 
sky  resembled  that  during  a  disagreeable  misty  east  wind, 
and,  just  before  the  change,  a  very  dark  bank  of  cloud 
appeared  in  the  north,  which,  on  passing  over,  was  seen 
to  be  more  mist  than  a  well-defined  cloud  stratum.  It 
seems  not  unlikely,  judging  from  the  experience  of  aero- 
nauts, that  in  this  case  a  current  fVom  north  or  north- 
east was  driven  like  a  wedge  into  the  general  north-west 
wind  a  few  thousand  feet  or  less  above  the  ground. 

If  the  account  of  the  formation  of  haze  in  an  easterly 
wind  given  in  the  foregoing  pages  be  correct,  there  should 
be  a  clearing  of  the  atmosphere  when  either  the  east 
wind  extends  itself  to  the  upper  regions  or  the  westerly 
wind  succeeds  in  driving  back  its  opponent  out  of  the 
lower  space.     In  point  of  fact,  the  air  does  clear  itself  in 


either  of  these  events.  Moreover,  a  clearing  away  of 
haze  is  a  good  indication  of  a  strengthening  of  the  polar 
current  or  its  expulsion  by  the  equatorial  ;  other  signs, 
such  as  the  motion  of  cirrus  and  the  aspect  of  the  clouds, 
plainly  informing  us  which  of  the  two  changes  will  occur. 
(2)  The  second  favourable  state  for  the  production  of 
haze  was  given  as  "  fine  settled  weather,  with  variable 
currents,  a  dry  air,  and  little  dew."  This  state  prevails 
often  with  anticyclones,  and  the  movement  of  the  air  is 
to  a  great  extent  vertical,  an  interchange  taking  place 
between  upper  and  lower  strata.  Consequently,  there  is 
a  great  mixture  of  portions  of  air  at  different  tempera- 
tures, with  a  result  like  that  already  described.  The 
heterogeneous  character  of  the  lower  atmosphere  in  a 
horizontal  direction  declares  itself  by  the  poor  transmis- 
sion of  sound.  But  a  great  deal  remains  to  be  explained 
in  the  production  of  haze  in  these  conditions.  The  cause 
is  probably  the  same  as  that  which  sometimes  covers  the 
whole  of  the  British  Isles  with  a  damp  fog,  extending 
high  into  the  atmosphere.  This  occurs  when  two  winds 
of  a  different  character  meet  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
interdiffuse  gradually  over  a  wide  area.  But  in  the  case 
of  haze,  how  can  it  endure  when  the  general  dryness 
of  the  air  is  far  above  the  point  of  saturation?  Haze 
sometimes  continues  in  summer  right  through  the  day, 
when  the  dry  and  wet  bulbs  show  a  difference  of  12°  to  15°. 
It  would  seem  as  if  our  methods  of  estimating  the  dew- 
point  do  not  altogether  hold  for  air  in  a  certain  condition 
and  for  certain  particles  in  it.  Is  it  not  possible  that 
condensation  to  a  slight  degree  may  occur  upon  some 
minute  crystalline  particles,  such  as  the  salt-dust  which 
pervades  our  atmosphere,  at  temperatures  above  the  dew- 
point  ?  Such  action  would  only  be  consistent  with  the 
effect  of  crystals  in  hastening  the  boiling  and  congelation 
of  water.  It  is  probable  that,  if  means  were  available  for 
testing  the  temperature  of  successive  minute  portions  or 
strands  of  air  passing  over  a  thermometer,  we  should  find 
a  great  variation  from  one  moment  to  another.  A  differ- 
ence of  12°  between  the  dry  and  wet  bulbs  may  represent 
a  mean  between  much  higher  and  much  lower  values  ; 
and  on  the  driest  days,  when  haze  prevails,  there  may  be 
extremely  minute  portions  with  a  temperature  at  the 
dew-point — that  is,  containing  more  vapour  than,  at  the 
particular  temperature  to  which  it  is  a  certain  moment 
exposed,  can  remain  uncondensed.  That  volumes  of 
air  at  different  temperatures  take  a  long  time  to  become 
thoroughly  incorporated,  may  be  regarded  as  certain. 
Threads  of  smoke  in  a  still  room  often  remain  for  many 
minutes  unbroken,  and  behave  as  if  they  were  held  toge- 
ther by  some  cohesive  force,  and,  generally,  strains  of  air 
or  gas  at  widely  differing  temperatures,  when  mixed,  tend 
to  hold  together  rather  than  to  diffuse.  Thus,  small  sur- 
faces, of  which  the  vapour-particles  are  at  different  tem- 
peratures, are  frequently  in  contact.  When  we  consider 
that  different  currents  of  air  frequently  prevail  within  a 
a  few  thousand  feet  of  the  earth's  surface,  and  that  within 
five  miles  a  temperature  of  —  2°  may  exist  early  in  Septem- 
ber,^ it  seems  possible  that,  in  so  bad  a  conductor  of  heat  as 
air,  temperature  at  different  points  on  the  same  level  may 
vary  greatly.  On  September  i  and  2,  1889,  the  condition 
of  the  air  was  instructive  with  regard  to  the  formation  of 
fog  and  haze.  The  night  of  August  31-September  i  was 
fine,  and  radiation  rapid,  so  that  in  the  morning  there 
was  a  copious  dew.  From  6  to  8  a.m.  there  was  thick 
fog,  which,  as  the  sun's  power  increased,  lightened  and 
lifted,  but  the  sun  did  not  finally  break  through  till  past 
II.  The  wind  was  fresh  from  north-east.  A  thin  blue 
haze  remained  after  the  fog  had  dissipated,  and  did  not 
altogether  disappear  during  the  day.  The  air  was  not 
damp,  even  before  the  fog  had  lifted,  though  there  was  a 
very  slight  drizzle  about  9  a.m.  On  September  2  the 
night  had  been  very  fine  and  clear,  but.  in  the  morning 

»  See  "  Travels  in  the  Air,"  Glaisher's  ascent  of  September  s,  1862. 


64 


NA  TURE 


[Nov.  2  1,  1889 


a  thick  wet  fog,  with  fresh  north-east  wind,  prevailed. 
This  fog  cleared,  and  the  sun  shone  through,  about  9  a.m. 
A  mist,  however,  remained  much  later.  Now,  in  these 
cases,  the  fog  was  due  to  the  cooling  of  the  earth  by 
radiation  (for  it  did  not  appear  till  after  midnight)  and  to 
the  cool  north-east  wind  co-existing  with  higher  currents 
from  a  different  quarter.^  The  persistence  of  the  haze 
much  beyond  the  fog  reveals  the  difference  between  a 
general  saturation  and  what  might  be  termed  molecular 
saturation.  The  fog  breaks,  decreases  rapidly,  and  has 
gone  when  the  last  few  shreds  of  clouds  lifted  from  the 
earth  vanish  in  the  blue,  but  the  haze  looks  unchanging 
and  uniform  over  the  country.  When  we  see  volumes  of 
vaporous  air  separated,  without  any  apparent  reason,  into 
dense  clouds  and  clear  intervals,  e.g.  cumulus  in  a  blue 
sky,  it  becomes  easy  to  understand  that  very  small  micro- 
scopic clouds,  in  which  condensation  is  only  mom^entary, 
may  permeate  air  otherwise  far  from  saturation. 

It  would  hardly  be  reasonable  to  exclude  electricity  as 
a  possible  agent  in  the  otherwise  not  wholly  accountable 
phenomena  of  mist  and  cloud.  It  may  be  that  the  dust- 
particles  of  two  currents  of  air  differing  in  electric  quality 
or  quantity  may  be  attracted  to  each  other,  or  that  the 
mixture  of  currents  of  different  temperature  may  in  some 
way  set  up  molecular  aggregations. 

Whatever  the  cause,  we  should  bear  in  mind  the  small 
quantity  of  non-transparent  matter  required  to  produce 
the  dimming  effect  of  haze.  If  the  eye  can  observe  the 
colour  produced  in  a  drop  of  water  by  the  fifty-millionth 
of  a  gramme  of  fuchsine,  possibly  a  weight  of  water  or 
dust  not  much  greater  would  suffice  for  visibility  in  a 
column  of  air  1000  feet  long.  The  atmosphere  is  at  all 
times  charged  with  dust-particles  to  a  degree  which  it  is 
difficult  to  realize.  The  purest  air  tested  by  Mr.  Aitken 
previous  to  his  measurements  on  the  top  of  Ben  Nevis, 
contained  about  34,000  dust-particles  to  the  cubic  inch — 
this  was  on  the  Ayrshire  coast.  In  every  cubic  foot  there 
would  be  35,232,000  particles,  and,  in  a  horizontal  column 
of  1000  feet,  35,232,000,000  particles.  It  is  manifest  that 
a  condensation  upon  a  small  proportion  of  these,  or  an 
agglomeration  of  a  small  proportion  into  larger  groups,  or 
a  momentary  adhesion  by  electric  attraction,  would  suffice 
to  produce  optical  effects. 

The  evidence  concerning  the  appearance  of  haze  by 
irregular  transmission  of  light  due  to  unequally  heated 
currents  of  transparent  air  seems  to  be  quite  insufficient, 
and  however  great  the  heat  near  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  say  in  the  desert,  with  consequent  distortion 
of  images,  it  does  not,  as  a  rule,  bring  about  the  haze  so 
common  in  temperate  climates. 

Haze  of  an  abnormal  kind  need  barely  be  mentioned 
here — namely,  that  due  to  smoke,  palpable  dust,  and  the 
products  of  volcanoes.  It  may,  however,  be  very  widely 
spread  and  very  dense.  In  1783  Europe  was  for  months 
covered  by  the  dust  ejected  by  an  Icelandic  volcano,  and 
the  Atlantic  for  900  miles  west  of  the  north-west  coast  of 
Africa  is  every  year  subject  to  a  haze  composed  of  fine 
particles  of  sand  from  the  Great  Desert. 

(3)  Opposition  of  currents,  such  as  takes  place  when 
several  shallow  barometric  depressions  pass  over  the 
country,  results  in  mixture  of  differing  air,  partial  con- 
densation, sultriness,  haziness,  and  frequently  thunder- 
storms. Not  at  all  improbably,  the  differing  electric 
conditions  of  two  winds,  the  rapid  condensation  of 
vapour,  and  the  projection  of  highly  vaporous  air  to  a 
great  height,  accelerate  the  growth  of  water-particles, 
until  they  fall  to  the  earth  in  large  drops.  The  saying 
that  thunderstorms  advance  against  the  wind  is  merely  a 
way  of  asserting  that  two  winds  are  adjacent,  one  above 
the  other,  and  that  the  clouds  move  in  the  upper  current. 
The  haze  preceding  thunderstorms  announces  beforehand 

•  "On  Saturday  evening,  August  3',  a  balloon,  a-;  it  ascended,  (-rossed 
and  recrossed  Lute  n  stveral  times." — Daily  News,  S«p'ember  2,  1S89. 


the  contention  which  is  going  on,  and  the  conglomeration 
of  dust  or  water  particles  by  electric  attraction  or  rapid 
cooling. 

(4)  Damp  weather  with  light  winds  and  varying  tem- 
perature, as  thaw  after  frost,  with  snow  on  the  ground. 
The  cause  of  haze  in  this  condition  is  obviously  the  con- 
tact of  warm  moist  air  with  air  cooled  by  contact  with, 
and  by  radiation  towards,  the  ground.  In  this  case, 
again,  it  is  mixture  of  portions  of  air  of  different  tem- 
peratures which  produces  partial  condensation  and  haze. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  the  air  is  always  charged 
with  an  immense  quantity  of  fine  dust,  such  as  particles 
of  salt,^  that  these  are  capable  of  radiating,  and  that 
when  they  fall  i°  or  2^  below  the  temperature  of  the  air, 
moisture  may  be  deposited  upon  them  sufficiently  to 
become  visible.  In  the  case  supposed,  of  an  equatorial 
current  supervening  after  frost  and  snow,  the  mist  pro- 
duced by  mixture  of  parcels  of  air  at  different  temperatures 
will  be  thin  and  blue  if  the  filaments  in  which  saturation 
and  deposition  occur  are  very  small  in  proportion  to  the 
surrounding  unsaturated  air,  and  white  if  the  proportion 
of  saturated  air  is  large.  For  the  blue  mist  or  haze 
indicates  deposition  in  very  minute  clusters  of  water- 
molecules,  and  instant  reversion  to  the  invisible  state  by 
the  contact  of  unsaturated  air,  while  the  white  mist  is  the 
result  of  condensation  in  much  larger  quantities  in  air 
on  the  whole  very  near  or  at  the  point  of  saturation. 

Consider  next  the  conditions  of  weather  in  which  the 
air  is  most  transparent. 

(i)  A  state  of  great  humidity,  such  as  that  which  occurs 
often  before  bad  weather,  the  wind  being  between  south 
and  west.  What  does  this  clearness  signify,  according  to 
the  views  of  the  causation  of  haze  above  detailed  ?  Chiefly 
that  the  air  up  to  a  great  height  is  fairly  homogeneous — 
that  is,  of  the  same  kind  and  quality  as  regards  moisture, 
electricity,  and  temperature,  with  due  allowance  for  the 
normal  changes  depending  on  altitude.  The  humidity  is 
not  owing  to  this  homogeneity,  but  often  accompanies  it, 
simply  because  the  south-west  and  westerly  winds  have 
passed  over  a  large  extent  of  ocean.  In  fact  the  air 
throughout  has  been  subjected  to  the  same  influences, 
and  nothing  has  occurred  to  disturb  its  uniformity,  so 
that  It  can  for  some  considerable  time  carry  a  large 
amount  of  aqueous  vapour  without  precipitation.  When 
precipitation  does  occur,  it  is  usually  by  the  thrusting  up- 
wards of  the  warmer  strata  into  cold  upper  strata,  and 
then  condensation  proceeds  without  check  and  rapidly 
from  invisible  particles  to  rain-drops.  Thus,  on  reaching 
the  first  mountainous  region,  or  in  passing  over  land 
heated  to  a  temperature  much  above  that  of  the  sea 
surface,  the  ascent  of  the  most  humid  strata  into  the  cold 
upper  air  is  often  followed  by  rain.  The  remarkable 
transparency  before  rain  signifies  a  correspondence  in 
direction  as  well  as  in  qualities  between  the  upper  and 
lower  strata.  If  the  wind  be  between  west  and  south,  as 
it  usually  is  in  these  cases,  we  are  informed  of  a  similar 
wind  at  a  high  level— that  is,  that  the  upper  current,  as 
well  as  the  lower,  is  more  than  commonly  humid,  and  its 
vapour  tending  to  condense  by  passing  towards  higher 
latitudes.  It  only  requires  slight  disturbances  in  a 
vertical  direction  to  precipitate  the  abundant  vapour,  and 
hence  the  frequency  of  showers,  especially  where  large 
columns  of  heated  air  rise  from  the  land,  at  a  distance 
from  the  south  coast,  and  in  hilly  country.  The  south- 
westerly wind  being  a  warm  one,  is  more  likely  to  ascend 
and  to  have  its  vapour  condensed  to  rain  than  a  colder 
current.  The  clear  lower  air  indeed  owes  its  clearness 
partly  to  its  ascending  movement. 

(2)  Strong  winds  and  showery  weather.  Strong  winds 
usually  prevail  when  the  air  up  to  a  great  height 
partakes  more  or  less  of  the  same  movement.     There  is 

'  Salt  is  shown  to  bs  present  everywhere  in  the  atmosphere  by  the 
spectrum  of  a  flame. 


Nov.  2  1,  1889] 


NATURE 


.    ti 

m 


also  no  opportunity  for  the  filtering  through  of  small  por- 
tions of  dissimilar  air,  and,  if  portions  do  descend  into 
the  lower  levels,  they  are  broken  op,  diffused,  and  dis- 
persed. Still,  in  the  colder  half  of  the  year,  if  the  lower 
wind  blows  from  between  east  and  north,  and  does  not 
xtend  to  a  great  height,  a  strong  mist  may  be  pro- 
duced by  its  being  mixed  with  detached  portions  of  the 
westerly  upper  current,  which  take  a  long  time  to  be 
thoroughly  incorporated  and  dissolved,  and  contain  more 
vapour  than  they  can  hold  invisible  in  contact  with  the 
cold  surface-breeze.  Thus  the  prevalence  of  much  haze 
with  a  north-easterly  gale  indicates  an  equatorial  upper 
current,  and  the  polar  wind  is  apt  to  be  replaced  by  it 
before  long.  With  regard  to  showery  weather,  it  may 
almost  be  said  to  be  the  opposite  of  hazy  weather,  and  for 
the  following  reasons  : — First,  as  we  have  seen  above, 
showers  are  produced  by  the  upward  projection  of  lower 
air,  containing  a  good  deal  of  vapour,  into  upper  cold  air 
of  the  same  kind.  Then,  they  are  often  the  expression  of 
a  state  of  the  atmosphere  when  the  interchange  between' 
the  upper  and  lower  strata  proceeds  by  large  ascending 
columns  and  large  down-rushes,  instead  of  by  small  con- 
vection currents,  and  ascending  and  descending  filaments 
over  a  very  large  area.  The  clearness  of  the  air  with  a 
showery  north-east  wind  is  quite  surprising,  for  it  is 
sufficient  to  banish  to  a  great  extent  even  London  smoke. 
Here,  again,  the  north-east  wind  prevails  to  a  great 
height,  and  the  air  is  homogeneous  and  rather  dry. 
When  a  shower  or  even  a  cumulus  cloud  passes  over  a 
large  town,  the  smoke  is  seen  to  be  drawn  up  in  a  moving 
column  to  the  height  of  the  cloud.  Probably  the  chief 
cause  of  the  clearness  of  a  showery  north-east  wind  is  the 
prevalence,  as  in  other  cases,  of  the  same  wind  in  the 
upper  regions,  so  that  there  is  no  admixture  of  strange 
threads  in  its  composition,  no  strands  of  extra-humid 
particles  to  be  rendered  visible  by  incipient  condensation. 

(3)  Winds  between  south-west  and  north.  These  are, 
on  the  whole,  clear  for  a  similar  reason,  for  it  has 
been  shown  that  the  upper  currents  in  Great  Britain 
usually  move  from  between  south-west  and  north-west. 
If,  as  occasionally  happens,  an  east  wind  blows  overhead, 
they  are  very  far  from  transparent. 

(4)  Fine  settled  summer  weather,  with  westerly  or 
southerly  winds,  is  clear  not  only  for  the  reason  above 
stated,  but  on  account  of  the  general  moderate  dryness 
of  the  atmosphere.  In  such  weather,  barometric  pressure 
is  frequently  highest  over  Spain  or  France,  and  our  upper 
currents  are  accordingly  from  north-west,  becoming 
warmer  as  they  advance  southwards  and  increasing  in 
capacity  for  moisture.  There  would  be  no  condensation 
if  portions  of  these  currents  were  to  descend  into  the 
lower  air. 

(5)  Settled  easterly  or  northerly  winds,  with  either  clear 
sky  or  high  clouds  moving  from  those  directions.  Haze 
does  not  form  where  the  wind  is  steady,  the  air  dry  and 
homogeneous  up  to  a  great  height,  and  equilibrium 
stable,  for  there  is  nothing  to  lead  to  condensation  except 
at  the  particular  level  of  saturation  where  clouds  are 
manifested. 

(6)  Easterly  or  northerly  winds  with  a  high  continuous 
cloud  canopy  moving  in  the  same  direction,  small  range 
of  temperature,  and  steady  conditions  ;  or,  with  detached 
cumulus  in  the  daytime,  and  clear  nights.  The  same 
remarks  apply  here  as  to  the  last. 

(7)  North-west  wind,  reaching  that  point  from  west  or 
south,  is  particularly  clear.  Great  transparency  in  this 
case  is  not  a  sign  of  rain,  but  rather  of  fair  weather.  It 
is  probably  due  to  its  agreement  in  general  direction 
with  upper  currents,  the  increasing  dryness  as  it  reaches 
warmer  latitudes,  and  to  the  uniformity  and  equilibrium 
attained  by  passing  over  the  ocean. 

F.  A.  R.  Russell. 


THE  PULSION  MECHANICAL  TELEPHONE. 
(From  a  Correspondent.) 

ANEW  mechanical  telephone  of  extraordinary  power 
has  recently  been  exciting  considerable  attention  in 
London  and  some  other  cities  and  towns  in  this  country. 
It  is  of  American  origin,  like  so  many  other  modern  im- 
provements of  exceptional  character,  being  the  invention 
of  one  Lemuel  Mellett,  I  believe  of  Boston,  U.S.  There 
have  been  many  previous  mechanical  telephones,  as  your 
readers  are  aware,  some  of  which  have  obtained  much 
publicity  for  a  short  time,  and  then  have  been  heard  of 
but  little  more  ;  but  having  had  opportunities  of  experi- 
menting frequently  with  the  new  instrument,  and  observing 
its  vocal  power,  so  to  speak,  under  very  various  circum- 
stances, I  cannot  doubt  that  it  has  a  great  future  before  it. 

It  may  be  clearly  stated  at  once  that  the  pulsion  instru- 
ment is  absolutely  independent  of  all  electrical  aids  or 
appliances,  and  therefore  needs  neither  battery  power  to 
bring  it  into  play,  nor  insulation  of  any  of  its  parts  to 
keep  them  effective.  It  consists  solely  of  two  cheap  and 
simple  instruments  connected  by  an  ordinary  non-insu- 
lated wire  of  copper,  or,  better  still,  of  a  double  steel  wire, 
the  two  parts  being  slightly  intertwisted,  say  with  about 
a  single  turn  in  a  couple  of  feet.  The  wire  (or  wires)  is 
simply  looped  to  the  instrument  at  either  end,  the  con- 
nection being  made  in  a  few  seconds.  The  instrument 
consists  of  a  disk  in  combination  with  a  series  of  small 
spiral  springs  inclosed  in  a  case  of  some  three  or  four 
inches  in  diameter.  These  springs,  arranged  in  a  manner 
that  has  been  determined  by  experiment,  and  so  as  to 
produce  harmonized  vibrations,  appear  to  possess  the 
power  of  magnifying  or  accumulating  upon  the  wire  the 
vibrations  which  the  voice  sets  up  in  the  disk,  and  the 
wire  seems  to  possess — undoubtedly  does  possess — the 
power  of  transmitting  to  great  distances,  and  giving  out 
upon  a  second  pulsion  instrument,  the  sounds  of  the 
voice. 

The  ability  of  this  simple  system  of  springs,  disks,  and 
wires  to  convey  conversational  and  other  sounds  to  con- 
siderable distances  with  great  clearness  and  distinctness, 
reproducing  the  very  tones  of  the  voice  and  the  qualities 
of  musical  sounds  with  but  little  reduction  or  modifica- 
tion, is  most  surprising,  and  to  none  more  so  than  to  the 
many  men  of  science  who  have  been  recently  experiment- 
ing with  it. 

The  writer  of  this  notice  cannot,  perhaps,  do  better 
than  state  his  own  experiences  with  this  system.  After 
examining  and  experimenting  over  several  short  lengths 
of  wire,  some  of  them  exceeding  a  mile  and  a  half,  he 
last  week  went  to  the  Finchley  Road  Station  of  the  Mid- 
land Railway,  from  a  point  near  to  which  a  line  had  been 
conveyed  to  near  the  Welsh  Harp  Station,  a  distance  of 
three  miles  by  the  line  of  railway,  and  of  more  by  the 
track  of  the  wire,  which  for  the  larger  part  was  carried 
by  the  telegraph-posts,  to  which  it  was  attached  by  very^ 
simple  means.  Conversation  through  this  length  of  line,, 
of  over  three  miles,  was  exceedingly  easy  ;  indeed,  so- 
powerfully  was  the  voice  transmitted,  that  an  ordinary 
hat  sufficed  for  all  the  purposes  of  the  second  instrument,, 
without  going  near  to  which  conversation  was  carried  on 
repeatedly  by  means  of  the  hats  of  three  gentlemen  who- 
were  present,  the  tops  of  which  were  merely  placed 
against  the  telephone  wire. 

I  then  went  into  the  garden  of  the  "  Welsh  Harp,"' 
where  a  short  length  of  wire  had  been  led  between  two- 
points,  the  wire  on  its  way  from  one  point  to  the  other 
being  twice  tightly  twisted,  at  an  interval  of  some  yards,, 
round  small  branches  of  trees,  of  about  i  inch  in  diameter,, 
being  wound  round  and  round  the  branch  three  times  in, 
each  case.  Strange  to  say,  this  tight  twisting  of  the 
wires  round  the  branches  in  no  way  interfered  with  the 
transmission  of  the  voice  from  end  to  end  of  the  wire.   , 


66 


NATURE 


{Nov.  2  1,  1889 


A  third  and  last  experiment  was  made  with  a  wire  laid 
obliquely  across  the  Welsh  Harp  lake,  and  allowed  to 
sink  to,  and  rest  upon,  the  lake  bottom.  The  length  of 
the  line  was  roughly  estimated  at  about  one-third  of  a 
mile,  and  from  end  to  end  (excepting  a  few  yards  at  each 
•end  where  the  wire  was  led  from  the  water's  edge  to  the 
telephone  box)  the  wire  was  completely  immersed,  and 
without  any  other  support  than  the  bottom  of  the  lake 
offered  it.  Yet,  notwithstanding  this  immersion  of  the 
whole  wire,  conversation  was  carried  on  through  it  by 
means  of  the  pulsion  instruments  without  the  least 
difficulty.  In  fact,  the  voice  came  through  the  immersed 
wire,  and  the  longest  wire  (of  over  three  miles)  previously 
mentioned,  with  greater  purity  and  mellowness  than 
through  shorter  lengths. 

I  must  leave  to  others  to  explain,  and  if  necessary  to  dis- 
cover, the  scientific  grounds  of  the  success  of  this  extra- 
ordinary little  instrument.  Looking,  however,  at  its  prac- 
tical capabilities  as  exemplified  above,  it  is  not  surprising 
that  Post  Office,  police,  railway,  and  other  commercial 
people,  are  already  overwhelming  with  applications  those 
who  are  arranging  to  supply  the  new  telephone,  which 
from  its  extreme  simplicity  is  manifestly  a  cheap  one. 


NOTES. 

No  fewer  than  1810  patients  bitten  by  dogs  were  treated  at 
■the  Pasteur  Institute  in  the  year  ending  October  31.  There 
were  thirteen  deaths. 

The  Daily  Graphic,  the  first  number  of  which  will  appear 
on  January  4,  will  be  interesting  from  a  scientific  as  well  as 
from  a  popular  point  of  view.  Twenty  years  ago,  when  the 
Graphic  was  started,  so  bold  an  enterprise  would  have  been 
•impossible.  At  that  time  the  pictures  in  illustrated  journals 
were  produced  only  by  the  old  method  of  wood-engraving,  which 
could  not,  of  course,  supply  all  the  needs  of  a  daily  illustrated 
paper.  By  means  of  various  scientific  processes,  drawings  can 
now  be  so  rapidly  and  effectively  reproduced,  that  the  issue 
•even  of  a  daily  illustrated  journal  may  be  safely  undertaken. 
The  new  paper  is  likely  to  afford  a  very  striking  instance  of 
•the  influence  of  these  processes  on  art  and  journalism. 

The  Government  of  New  South  Wales  has  adopted  an  en- 
tirely new  scheme  of  technical  education.  The  present  Board 
of  Technical  Education  is  to  be  abolished,  and  technical  schools 
will  be  placed  under  the  direct  control  of  the  Education  De- 
partment. A  sum  of  ;,^50,ooo  is  to  be  expended  in  the 
erection  and  equipment  of  a  new  Technical  College  and  Mu- 
seum in  Sydney,  while  branch  technical  schools  will  be  esta- 
blished throughout  the  country  districts.  It  is  estimated  that 
;^50,ooo  will  be  required  annually  to  carry  out  the  new 
arrangements. 

Mr.  E.  W.  Collin  has  been  deputed  by  the  Government  of 
Bengal  to  make  inquiries  as  to  the  present  condition  of  technical 
education  in  Bengal,  and  to  find  out  what  steps  should  be  taken 
by  the  Government  towards  its  advancement  in  that  Presidency. 
The  Civil  Engineering  College  at  Seebpore,  an  institution  for 
the  training  of  overseers  and  civil  engineers,  is  supported  by  the 
Bengal  Government,  but  it  does  not  appear  that  there  are  any 
means  at  present  in  Bengal  for  the  technical  training  of  artisans. 
Mr.  Collin  has  addressed  a  circular  to  various  public  bodies 
asking  for  information,  and  he  will  submit  a  report  on  the 
•question  about  the  end  of  the  year. 

Mr.  G.  Bertin  is  to  deliver,  at  the  British  Museum,  a  series 
of  four  lectures  on  the  religion  of  Babylonia.  The  first  lecture 
^Vill  be  given  on  November  26,  and  the  others  on  the  three 
ifollowing  Tuesdays,  at  2.30  p.m. 


Mr.  G.  B,  Scott,  of  the  Indian  Survey  Department,  who 
has  lately  been  employed  on  a  survey  of  the  Wards  Estates  in 
Bengal,  has  been  placed  in  charge  of  the  new  Cadastral  Survey 
of  Upper  Burmah. 

The  next  conversazione  of  the  Royal  Microscopical  Society 
will  be  held  on  Wednesday,  the  27th  instant,  at  8  o'clock. 

Mr.  Thomas  Child,  who  has  just  returned  from  Pekin,  has 
sent  us  very  beautiful  photographs  of  the  two  interesting  old 
astronomical  instruments  at  the  Pekin  Observatory.  These 
instruments  are  the  most  ancient  of  the  kind  in  the  world, 
having  been  made  by  order  of  the  Emperor  Kublai  Khan  in  the 
year  1279.  They  are  exquisite  pieces  of  bronze  work,  and  are 
in  splendid  condition,  although  they  have  been  exposed  to  the 
weather  for  more  than  600  years.  They  were  formerly  up  on 
the  terrace,  but  were  removed  dowri  to  their  present  position  to 
make  way  for  the  eight  instruments  that  were  made  by  the 
Jesuit  Father  Verbiest  in  1670,  during  the  reign  of  the  Emperor 
K'ang  Hsi,  of  the  present  dynasty. 

The  metric  system  of  weights  and  measures  having  been 
adopted  in  the  Photographic  Office  of  the  Indian  Survey,  a 
series  of  tables  for  the  conversion  of  these  measures  to  British, 
and  vice  versd,  has  been  prepared  by  Colonels  Thuillier  and 
Waterhouse,  Survey  or- General  and  Assistant- Surveyor-General 
of  India.  The  scope  of  the  tables,  however,  has  been  extended 
so  as  to  meet,  as  far  as  possible,  the  ordinary  requirements  of 
general  and  scientific  reference.  The  multiples  and  fractions  of 
the  British  and  metric  units  have  each  their  equivalent  expressed 
in  the  other,  so  that  the  number  requiring  to  be  converted  may 
be  multiplied  directly  by  the  decimal  fraction  representing  the 
equivalent  value  of  one  unit  of  the  required  denomination.  The 
relative  equivalents  are  given  for  the  conversion  of  measures  of 
length,  weight,  and  capacity,  cubic  and  square  measures,  and 
also  of  British-Indian  and  metric  weights.  There  are  also  a  few 
miscellaneous  tables  that  may  be  found  generally  useful. 

It  is  well  known  that  whales  can  remain  a  long  time  under 
water,  but  exact  data  as  to  the  time  have  been  rather  lacking. 
In  his  northern  travels,  Dr.  Kiickenthal,  of  Jena,  recently 
observed  that  a  harpooned  white  whale  continued  under  water 
45  minutes. 

The  elephant  skeleton  set  up  in  the  front  hall  of  the  Madras 
Museum  is  10  feet  6  inches  high,  and  it  has  been  stated  that  this 
is  the  skeleton  of  the  lai-gest  elephant  ever  killed  in  India.  Mr. 
Edgar  Thurston,  Superintendent  of  the  Museum,  in  his  latest 
Report,  says  that  this  is  a  mistake.  Mr.  Sanderson  gave  10  feet 
']\  inches  as  the  largest  elephant  he  had  met,  and  there  is  a  still 
larger  one  in  the  Indian  Museum,  Calcutta. 

Some  fragments  of  a  gigantic  elephant's  tusk  (we  learn  from 
the  Rivista  Set.  Ind.)  were  lately  obtained  by  Signer  Terrenzi, 
the  tusk  having  been  found  in  the  yellow  Pliocene  (marine) 
sands  of  Camartina,  Narni.  It  must  have  been  about  10  feet 
long.  One  piece  (which  seems  to  have  been  near  the  base) 
measured  about  2  feet  round  at  the  thickest.  The  tusk  had  been 
broken  up  by  the  peasants,  and  distributed  as  an  infallible 
remedy  for  tooth-ache  and  for  belly  pains  in  cattle  !  It  probably 
belonged  either  to  E.  Jiieridionalis,  Nesti,  or  to  E.  antiqtms, 
Falc.  The  finding  of  elephant  remains  in  the  Pliocene  marine 
sands  of  Italy  is  not  new,  but  it  is  rare. 

A  REMARKABLE  paper  on  "  The  Ethnologic  Affinity  of  the 
Ancient  Etruscans,"  by  Dr.  Daniel  G,  Brinton,  was  read  before 
the  American  Philosophical  Society  on  October  18,  and  has  now 
been  issued  separately.  Dr.  Brinton 's  attention  was  specially 
called  to  the  subject  during  a  sojourn  of  some  months  in  Italy, 
early  in  the  present  year,  when  he  had  an  opportunity  of  study- 
ing many  museums  of  Etruscan  antiquities.     The  object  of  the 


Nov.  21,  1889] 


NATURE 


67 


paper  is  to  prove  that  the  Etruscans  probably  came  from  North- 
ern Africa,  and  belonged  to  the  same  stock  as  the  Kabyles. 
on  the  borders  of  whose  country  Dr.  Brinton  had  spent  some 
time  before  his  visit  to  Italy.  He  thus  sums  up  his  conclusions : — 
(l)  The  uniform  testimony  of  the  ancient  writers  and  of  their 
own  traditions  asserts  that  the  Etruscans  came  across  the  sea 
from  the  south,  and  established  their  first  settlement  on  Italian 
soil  near  Tarquinii  ;  this  historic  testimony  is  corroborated  by 
the  preponderance  of  arch^eologic  evidence  as  yet  brought  for- 
ward. (2)  Physically,  the  Etruscans  were  a  people  of  lofty 
stature,  of  the  blonde  type,  with  dolichocephalic  heads.  In  these 
traits  they  corresponded  precisely  with  the  blonde  type  of  the 
ancient  Libyans,  represented  by  the  modern  Berbers  and  the 
Guanches,  the  only  blonde  people  to  the  south.  (3)  In  the 
position  assigned  to  woman,  and  in  the  system  of  federal 
government,  the  Etruscans  were  totally  different  from  the 
Greeks,  Orientals,  and  Turanians  ;  but  were  in  entire  accord 
with  the  Libyans.  (4)  The  phonetics,  grammatical  plan,  voca- 
bulary, numerals,  and  proper  names  of  the  Etruscan  tongue  pre- 
sent many  and  close  analogies  with  the  Libyan  dialects,  ancient 
and  modern.  (5)  Linguistic  science,  therefore,  concurs  with 
tradition,  archaeology,  sociologic  traits,  and  anthropologic  evi- 
dence, in  assigning  a  genetic  relationship  of  the  Etruscans  to  the 
Libyan  family. 

A  LAKE-DWELLING  has  been  discovered  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Somma  Lombardo,  north-west  of  Milan,  through  the  drain- 
ing of  the  large  turf  moor  of  La  Lagozza.  The  Berlin  Corre- 
spondent of  the  Standard,  who  gives  an  account  of  the  dis- 
covery,  says  that  this  "relic  of  civilization"  was  found  under 
the  peat-bog  and  the  underlying  layer  of  mud,  the  former  being 
I  metre  in  thickness,  and  the  latter  35  centimetres.  The  build- 
ing was  rectangular,  80  metres  long  and  30  metres  broad  ;  and 
between  the  posts,  which  are  still  standing  upright,  lay  beams 
and  half-burnt  planks,  the  latter  having  been  made  by  splitting 
the  trees,  and  without  using  a  saw.  Some  trunks  still  retain 
the  stumps  of  their  lateral  projecting  branches,  and  they  have 
probably  served  the  purpose  of  ladders.  The  lower  end  of 
these  posts,  which  have  been  driven  into  the  clay  soil,  is  more 
or  less  pointed,  and  it  can  be  seen  from  the  partly  still  well-pre- 
served bark  that  the  beams  and  planks  are  of  white  birch,  pine, 
fir,  and  larch.  Among  other  things  were  found  polished  stone 
hatchets,  a  few  arrow-heads,  flint  knives,  and  unworked  stones 
\\  ith  traces  of  the  action  of  fire. 

Mr.  R.  Etheridge,  Jun.,  contributes  to  the  Report  of  the 
Australian  Museum,  just  received,  an  interesting  appendix  on 
the  limestone  caves  at  Cave  Flat,  junction  of  the  Murrumbidgee 
and  Goodradigbee  rivers,  county  of  Harden.  Having  recorded 
the  observations  made  by  him  in  these  remarkable  caves,  Mr. 
Etheridge  offers  some  remarks  on  the  Murrumbidgee  limestone. 
This,  he  says,  is  of  a  dense  blue-black  colour.  It  is  much 
jointed  and  fissured,  highly  brittle  in  places,  with  a  hackly 
conchoidal  fracture,  and  crammed  with  fossils,  especially  corals. 
As  a  display  of  these  beautiful  organisms  in  natural  section,  he 
has  never  seen  its  equal.  Large  faces  of  limestone  may  be  seen, 
with  the  weathered  corals,  and  particularly  .Stromatopora,  stand- 
ing out  in  relief  and  in  section  also.  Many  of  these  masses  of 
coral,  particularly  those  of  Stromatopora  and  Favosites,  are  as 
much  as  4  feet  in  diameter.  The  Murrumbidgee  limestone  has 
been  classed  as  Devonian  by  the  late  Prof  de  Koninck,  but 
Mr.  Etheridge  has  not  yet  sufficiently  examined  the  fossils  of 
this  deposit  either  to  gainsay  or  confirm  this  view.  He  thinks 
it  not  improbable,  however,  that  Prof  de  Koninck's  view  may 
be  correct. 

The  Comptes  rendiis  of  the  Paris  Academy  of  Sciences,  of 
November  4,  contains  a  note  by  M.  A.  Angot,  on  the  mean 
hourly  velocity  of  the  wind  at  the  summit  of  the  Eiffel  Tower, 


measured  during  loi  days,  ending  with  October  i,  by  means  of  an 
anemometer  placed  at  994  feet  above  the  ground,  and  compared 
with  the  results  of  a  similar  instrument  at  the  Paris  Meteoro- 
logical Office,  placed  at  66  feet  above  the  ground.  The  average 
velocity  on  the  tower  was  16  miles  an  hour,  being  over  three 
times  the  amount  registered  at  the  Meteorological  Office,  where 
it  was  only  5  miles  an  hour.  At  the  lower  station  the  diurnal 
variation  showed  a  single  minimum  about  sunrise,  and  a  single 
maximum  about  i  h.  p.m.  On  the  tower  the  minimum  occurred 
about  loh.  a.m.,  and  the  maximum  about  llh.  p.m.,  while  the 
characteristic  maximum  of  lower  regions  about  the  middle  of 
the  day  was  hardly  perceptible  on  the  tower.  It  is  remarkable 
that  this  inversion,  which  is  usual  upon  high  mountains,  should 
occur  at  so  small  a  height  as  that  of  the  Eiffel  Tower.  The  ratio 
of  increased  velocity  was  constant  at  about  5  :  i  between  mid- 
night and  5h.  a.m.;  it  then  decreased  rapidly  and  became  2  :  I 
at  about  loh.  a.m.,  and  maintained  this  value  until  2h.  or  3h. 
p.m.,  when  it  again  rose  regularly  until  midnight.  These  results 
are  of  considerable  importance  to  the  study  of  aerial  navigation. 

The  new  number  of  the  Mineralogical  Magazine  opens  with 
an  important  paper,  by  Mr.  L.  Fletcher,  F.R.S.,  on  the 
meteorites  which  have  been  found  in  the  desert  of  Atacama  and 
its  neighbourhood.  This  paper  is  accompanied  by  a  map  of  the 
district.  Prof  McKenny  Hughes,  F.R.S.,  has  a  paper  on 
the  manner  of  occurrence  of  Beekite  and  its  bearing  upon 
the  origin  of  siliceous  beds  of  Palaeolithic  age.  There  are  also 
three  short  papers  by  Dr.  M.  F.  Heddle,  and  one  by  Mr.  R. 
H.  Solly. 

Some  experiments  on  the  photography  of  the  red  end  of  the 
spectrum,  by  Colonel  J.  Waterhouse,  appear  in  the  Proceedings 
of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal  for  April  1889.  In  order  to 
render  the  ordinary  commercial  gelatine  dry  plates  sensitive  to  the 
red  rays  they  are  bathed  for  one  or  two  minutes  in  a  solution  of 
I  part  of  alizarin  blue  (C1-.H3.NO4)  to  10,000  parts  of  distilled 
water  with  I  per  cent,  of  strong  ammonia  added.  Plates  treated 
with  this  dye  show  very  intense  action  through  the  violet  and 
blue  regions  as  far  as  b  ;  from  E  to  C  there  appears  to  be 
a  minimum  of  action  ;  the  sensitiveness,  however,  increases 
between  C  and  A,  and  is  strongest  between  C  and  B  and  a 
to  A.  Below  A  the  sensitiveness  quickly  diminishes.  Colonel 
Waterhouse  finds  that  plates  saturated  with  a  special  preparation 
of  cyanin  and  sulphate  of  quinine  have  their  maximum  sensitive- 
ness between  D  and  B,  but  between  B  and  A  the  action  is  much 
weaker  than  that  obtained  by  using  alizarin  blue,  hence  the 
latter  dye  is  valuable  as  a  ready  and  simple  means  of  photograph- 
ing the  spectrum  between  C  and  A  with  ordinary  dry  plates.  For 
orthochromatic  photography,  rhodomine  was  found  to  be  almost 
as  efficient  as  erythrosin,  and  to  be  especially  useful  for  photo- 
graphing the  region  immediately  about  D.  The  photographs  were 
taken  by  means  of  Rowland's  plane  and  concave  diffraction 
gratings. 

A  NEW  mode  of  preparing  manganese,  by  which  the  metal 
can  be  obtained  in  a  few  minutes  in  tolerably  large  quantities 
and  almost  perfectly  pure,  is  described  by  Dr.  Glatzel,  of  Bres- 
lau,  in  the  current  number  of  the  Berichte.  A  quantity  of  man- 
ganous  chloride  is  first  dehydrated  by  ignition  in  a  porcelain  dish, 
and  the  pulverized  anhydrous  salt  afterwards  intimately  mixed 
with  twice  its  weight  of  well-dried  potassium  chloride.  The 
mixture  is  then  closely  packed  into  a  Hessian  crucible  and  fused 
in  a  furnace  at  the  lowest  possible  temperature,  not  sufficient  to 
volatilize  either  of  the  chlorides.  A  quantity  of  metallic  mag- 
nesium is  then  introduced  in  small  portions  at  a  time,  the  total 
quantity  necessary  being  about  a  sixth  of  the  weight  of  the  man- 
ganous  chloride  employed.  Provided  the  crucible  has  not  been 
heated  too  much  above  the  melting-point  of  the  mixture  of 
chlorides,  the  action  is  regular,  the  magnesium  dissolving  witb 


68 


NATURE 


[Nov.  2  1,  1889 


merely  a  slight  hissing.  If,  however,  the  mixture  has  been 
heated  till  vapours  have  begun  to  make  their  appearance,  the 
reaction  is  extremely  violent.  It  is  therefore  best  to  allow  the 
contents  of  the  crucible,  after  fusion,  to  cool  down  to  a  low  red 
heat,  when  the  introduction  of  the  magnesium  is  perfectly  safe. 
When  all  action  has  ceased,  the  contents  of  the  crucible  are 
again  heated  strongly,  and  afterwards  allowed  to  cool  until  the 
furnace  has  become  quite  cold.  On  breaking  the  crucible,  all 
the  potassium  chloride  and  the  excess  of  manganous  chloride  is 
found  to  have  been  volatilized,  leaving  a  regulus  of  metallic 
manganese,  fused  together  into  a  solid  block,  about  three  parts 
by  weight  being  obtained  for  every  two  parts  of  magnesium 
added.  The  metal,  as  thus  obtained,  is  readily  broken  up  by 
hammering  into  fragments  of  a  whitish-gray  colour  possessing  a 
bright  metallic  lustre.  The  lustre  may  be  preserved  for  months 
in  stoppered  glass  vessels,  but,  when  exposed  to  air,  the  fresh 
surface  becomes  rapidly  brown.  The  metal  is  so  hard  that  the 
best  files  are  incapable  of  making  any  impression  upon  it.  It  is 
so  feebly  magnetic  that  a  powerful  horse-shoe  magnet  capable  of 
readily  lifting  a  kilogram  of  iron  has  no  appreciable  effect  upon 
the  smallest  fragment.  It  was  noticed  that  the  introduction  of  a 
small  quantity  of  silica  rendered  the  manganese  still  more  brittle, 
and  caused  it  to  present  a  conchoidal  fracture,  that  of  pure  man- 
ganese being  uneven.  The  specific  gravity  of  the  metal,  former 
determinations  of  which  have  been  very  varied,  was  found 
to  be  7 '392 1  at  22°  C.  This  number,  which  was  obtained  with 
a  very  pure  preparation,  is  about  the  mean  of  the  previous  de- 
terminations. Dilute  mineral  acids  readily  dissolve  the  pul- 
verized metal,  leaving  a  mere  trace  of  insoluble  impurity.  It  is 
also  satisfactory  that  practically  no  magnesium  is  retained  alloyed 
with  the  manganese,  and  the  introduction  of  carbon  is  altogether 
avoided  by  the  use  of  this  convenient  method. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Common  Marmoset  {Hapale  jacchus)  from 
South-East  Brazil,  presented  by  Mr.  O.  Burrell ;  a  Common 
Squirrel  {Sciurus  vulgaris),  British,  presented  by  Miss  B. 
Tatham;  a  Common  Stoat  (yJ/wj/^/a  d-rw/w^a)  from  Northampton- 
shire, presented  by  Mr.  Cuthbert  Johnson  ;  a  Wattled  Crane 
■(  Grus  carunculata)  from  West  Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  Robert 
Sinclair,  Jun.  ;  a  Redshank  {Totanus  calidris)  from  Devonshire, 
presented  by  Mr.  R.  M.  J.  Teil  ;  a  White-backed  Piping  Crow 
{Gymnorhina  leuconota)  from  Australia,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  H. 
Felstead  ;  a  Grey-headed  Porphyrio  {Porphyrio  poliocephalus) 
from  India,  presented  by  Dr.  Gerard  Smith  ;  a  Common 
Chameleon  {ChanicBleon  vulgaris)  from  North  Africa,  presented 
by  Mr.  G.  W.  Alder;  a  Dwarf  Chameleon  {ChanicEleon  pumilus) 
from  South  Africa,  presented  by  Mrs.  Leith  ;  a  Green  Lizard 
{Lacerta  viridis),  European,  presented  by  Mr.  C.  H.  Whitlow  ; 
a  Common]  ay  {Garru/us  gianda7'ius),  European,  purchased;  five 
■Carpet  Snakes  {More/ia  variegata)  from  Australia,  received  in 
exchange. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.,  November  21  =  2h. 
"3m.  2is. 


Name. 


(i)  G.  C.  527      ... 

(2)  15  Arietis 

(3)  a  Arietis 

(4)  /3  Trianguli  ... 
<5)  DM  -f  56°  724 
(6)  R  Tauri 


Mag. 


3 

9 

Var. 


Colour. 


Yellowish-red. 

Yellow. 

Bluish-white. 

Reddish-yellow. 

Very  red. 


R.A.  I 

890. 

h. 

m. 

s. 

2 

i.S 

28 

2 

4 

31 

2 

I 

0 

2 

3 

0 

2 

42 

32 

4 

22 

lb 

Decl.  1890. 


-1-41  35 
-f-1859 

+22  57 
-1-3428 
-1-5631 
+  9  55 


Remarks. 

(i)  Sir  John  Herschel's  description  of  this  nebula  is  as  follows  : 
— !  Bright,  very  large,  very  much  extended.  The  spectrum  has 
not  yet  been  recorded. 

(2)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  II.,  in  which  Duner  records  bands 
2-8,  but  states  that  they  are  neither  wide  nor  dark.  The  star 
falls  in  species  13  of  the  subdivision  of  this  group,  and  is 
well  advanced  towards  Group  III.  Metallic  lines,  and  possibly 
hydrogen  lines  (dark)  may  therefore  be  expected.  In  the  earlier 
stages  of  the  group,  no  hydrogen  lines  appear,  the  radiation  from 
the  interspaces  between  the  meteorites  being  balanced  by  the 
absorption  of  the  gas  surrounding  the  incandescent  stones ;  but 
in  the  more  advanced  members,  as  in  o  Orionis,  the  absorption 
will  probably  be  found  to  slightly  predominate.  The  presence 
or  absence  of  the  F  line,  and  of  metallic  lines,  and  their  relative 
intensities,  should  therefore  be  noted. 

{3)  This  is  a  star  of  either  Group  III.  or  Group  V.,  and  the 
U5ual  criteria  (see  p.  20)  should  be  observed  in  order  to  deter- 
mine which.  At  the  same  time,  the  relative  intensitic'^  of  the 
hydrogen  lines  and  the  metallic  lines  (say  b  and  D)  .'-hould  be 
recorded,  so  that  the  star  may  be  placed  in  a  line  of  temperature 
with  others. 

(4)  According  to  Gothard  this  is  a  star  of  Group  IV.  The 
usual  observations  are  required. 

(5)  Duner  classes  this  with  Group  VI.  stars,  but  states  that 
the  type  of  spectrum  is  a  little  doubtful.  Further  observations 
are  therefore  required.  As  the  most  advanced  stars  of  the  group 
are  very  red,  the  colour  of  this  .'^tar  indicates  that  it  probably 
belongs  to  an  early  stage  of  the  group,  in  which  the  carbon 
bands  would  be  narrow,  and  therefore  somewhat  difficult  to 
observe  with  certainty  ;  in  that  case  traces  of  b  and  D  might  be 
expected.     The  colour  should  also  be  checked. 

(6)  Gore  gives  the  period  of  this  variable  as  325*6  days,  and 
the  range  as  7"4-9"o  at  maximum  to  <  13  at  minimum.  The 
maximum  will  occur  on  November  30.  The  spectrum  is  of  the 
Group  II.  type,  and  belongs  to  species  9.  Duner  states 
that  the  dark  bands,  especially  7  and  8,  are  very  wide.  In 
several  variables  of  this  class  (R  Leonis,  R  Andromedae,  &c. ), 
Espin  has  observed  bright  hydrogen  lines  near  maximum,  and 
the  question  is,  Is  this  common  to  all  the  variable  stars  of  this 
type?  As  stated  with  reference  to  15  Arietis,  under  normal 
conditions  the  hydrogen  lines  in  the  earlier  species  of  the  group 
are  absent,  because  the  interspacial  radiation  balances  the  ab- 
sorption ;  but  if  through  some  cause  the  temperature  increases  at 
maximum,  more  hydrogen  would  be  driven  into  the  interspaces 
and  radiation  would  predominate.  It  may  be  mentioned  that, 
according  to  the  meteoritic  theory,  the  increase  of  temperature 
and  luminosity  is  brought  about  by  the  periastrion  passage  of  a 
secondary  swarm  through  the  outliers  of  the  central  one.  It  is 
not  unlikely  that  slight  variations  of  colour  will  take  place  from 
maximum  to  minimum,  and  it  is  important  therefore  that  the 
colour  should  be  noted  when  the  spectroscopic  observations  are 
made.  A.  Fowler. 

The  Minimum  Sun-spot  Period. — M.  Bruguiere,  in 
U Astronomic,  November  1889,  gives  a  series  of  observations 
made  with  a  view  to  determine  the  exact  date  of  the  minimum 
sun-spot  period.  The  following  tables  show  the  condition  of  the 
sun's  surface  with  respect  to  spots  from  the  beginning  of  January 
to  the  end  of  July  of  this  year  : — 


Date, 


Jan. 


3-15 
18-31 
8-21 
2-6 

,.  17-31 
April  11-30 
May      1-5 

,,  10-26 
28-31 

29-30 
i-u 

25-27 


Feb. 
Mar. 


June 
July 


No.  of 

No.  of 

days  with- 

Date, 

days  with 

out  spots. 

1889. 

spots. 

13 

Jan.     16-17    

...  ^  2 

14 

Feb.      1-7      

...     7 

14 

,,       22-29    

...      8 

5 

Mar.      I  and  8-16 

...    10 

.  *s 

April    i-io    

...    10 

;  11^5 

May      6-9      

„       27           

...      4 
...       I 

17 

June    16-28 

...    13* 

..n-« 

July    12-24     

„     28-31      

...    13* 
...      4 

■  ■?|'3 

3 

*  The  same  spot. 

If  the  small  spots  that  were  seen  from  May  6-9,  and  also  on 
May  27,  be  neglected,  it  will  be  seen  that  there  would  be  a 
period  without  spots  extending  from  April  11  to  June  15— -that 


Nov.  21,  1889] 


NATURE 


69 


is,  sixty-six  days  ;  but  if  these  small  spots  be  considered  we  find 
an  interval  of  twenty-five  days  without  spots — namely,  from  April 
II  to  May  5.  The  minimum  period,  therefore,  appears  to  have 
passed  about  the  end  of  April,  this  being  the  time  when  the 
greatest  number  of  days  passed  without  spots  being  observed  on 
the  sun.  The  new  period  opened  with  the  appearance  of  a  large 
spot  on  June  16. 

Return  of  Brorsen's  Comet.— The  following  elements 
and  ephemeris  for  this  comet  are  given  by  Dr.  E,  Lamp  in 
Asfronomische  Nachrichten,  No.  2933  : — 

T  =  1890  February  24*1358  Berlin  midnight. 


0)   = 

14  55  35-89 

) 

ft  = 

loi  27  3374 

>  Mean  Eq. 

1890-0 

<  = 

29  23  48-25 

\ 

<^  = 

54     7  46-19 

M  = 

650" -3693 

Ephemeris  for  Berlin  Midnight. 

1889. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

1889. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

h.  m.  s. 

0 

h 

.  m.  s. 

0                / 

N0V.2I  . 

.229  17 

...    -45     4-6 

Dec,  II  ..22  26  40,. 

.  -3942-8 

22  . 

•       9  47 

••    -4450-3 

12  ... 

2755- 

•  -  39  24  6 

23. 

10  19 

••  -44  35-8 

13... 

29  11  .. 

•  -39    61 

24. 

•     1054 

..    -44  21-2 

14... 

3030.. 

•  -3847-4 

25" 

.     II  31 

..  -44    6-4 

15... 

31  50    . 

.  -3828-5 

26.. 

12  II 

••  -43  51-4 

16... 

33  12.. 

•  -38    9-3 

27  •• 

•     1253 

•     -43362 

17... 

34  36  .. 

•  -37498 

28.. 

•     1338 

•  •   -43  208 

18... 

36    2  . 

■  -3730-1 

29.. 

•      1425 

-  -43    5-2 

19... 

3729.. 

.  -37  lo-i 

30- 

•     15  14 

..  -42  49-4 

20... 

3858.. 

•  -3649-8 

Dec.   I  . 

.      16    6 

-  -4233-4 

21  ... 

4029.. 

.  -36  29-2 

2  .. 

.      17    0 

•■  -42  17-3 

22  ... 

42    I.. 

.-36    8-4 

3" 

•      1756 

..  -42    0-9 

23... 

43  35  •• 

•  -35  47-2 

4" 

•      1854 

..  -41  44-4 

24... 

45  10.. 

.  -3525-8 

5  • 

•      1954 

..  -41  277 

25... 

4647- 

•  -35    4-1 

6.. 

•      2057 

..  -41  IO-8 

26... 

48  26.. 

•  -34420 

7  ■ 

.       22      I 

..   -4053-6 

27... 

50    6 .. 

•  -34  196 

8. 

.     23    8 

..   -4036-3 

28... 

5148.. 

■  -33568 

9 

24  i6 

..   -40    87 

29... 

5332.. 

•  -33336 

10  . 

•     25  27 

..   -40    09 

30... 

5517- 

•  -33  100 

The  Companion  of  77  Pegasi. — A  companion  to  r;  Pegasi 
was  discovered  by  Sir  William  Herschel  in  1780,  and  sub- 
sequently observed  by  South  in  1824.  Its  magnitude  has  been 
rated  from  twelve  to  fifteen.  Mr.  S.  W.  Burnham,  however, 
notes  (Astrotiomische  A^achrichten,  No.  2933)  that,  using  the 
36-inch  refractor  at  the  Lick  Observatory,  the  Herschel  com- 
panion appears  as  a  close  double.  South's  mean  of  two  measures 
is  given  in  his  catalogue  as  : — 

1824-84        338° "9        89"  82        2«  S. 

The  following  is  the  mean  of  four  measures  made  at  Mount 
Hamilton  : — 

t\  Pegasi. 
B  and  C.  A  and  BC. 

1889-53  83°-3  o"-29  lo-i  lo-i  I  1889-53  339°-o  9o"-38 
The  close  pair  is  difficult,  and  can  hardly  fail  to  be  a  physical 
system,  and  Mr.  Burnham  thinks  that,  although  it  is  not  a  test 
for  the  large  telescope,  it  will  not  be  seen  with  any  small  instru- 
ment. 

General  Bibliography  of  Astronomy. — The  second 
part  of  Vol.  I.  of  this  comprehensive  bibliography  has  been  pub- 
lished. It  represents  Houzeau's  last  work,  and  hence  it  is  well 
that  his  biographical  note,  by  A.  Lancaster,  should  be  included. 
The  first  part  of  Vol.  I.,  published  in  1887,  contained  the 
references  to  historical  works  and  those  relating  to  astrology  ; 
the  part  just  published  contains  the  references  to  biographies  of 
astronomers  and  their  epistolary  communications,  general  astro- 
nomical works,  astronomical  societies  and  their  proceedings,  and 
everything  relating  to  spherical  astronomy.  Works  on  theoretical 
astronomy  are  also  well  represented.  The  third  and  last  part  of 
Vol.  I.  is  now  in  press,  and  contains  references  to  all  the  pub- 
lished matter  on  the  mechanism  of  the  heavens,  physical, 
practical,  and  descriptive  astronomy,  and  the  systems  of  cos- 
mogony. The  utility  of  this  bibliography,  when  completed, 
needs  no  comment. 

J.  C,  Houzeau's  "  Vade  Mecum."— With  reference  to  our 
biographical  note   on  J.    C.    Houzeau  (p.  20),  M.  A.  Lancaster 


writes  to  remind  us  that  Houzeau's  "Vade  Mecum  "  was  issued 
after  the  appearance  of  the  second  volume  of  the  "  Bibliographic 
Ge'nerale  de  I'Astronomie,"  the  publication  of  which  began  in 
1879.  Moreover,  the  "Vade  Mecum"  was  only  a  second 
edition  of  the  "Repertoire  des  Constantes  de  I'Astronomie,"  in- 
serted in  1877  in  the  first  volume  of  the  new  series  of  the 
"  Annales  Astronomiques  "  of  the  Brussels  Royal  Observatory. 
The  numerous  materials  brought  together  for  the  "  Bibliographie 
Generale  "  suggested  to  Houzeau  the  idea  of  issuing  a  new 
edition  of  the  "Repertoire"  considerably  corrected  and  en- 
larged. 

A  New  Comet. — A  new  comet  was  discovered  on  Noven>- 
ber  17  by  Mr.  Lewis  Swift,  of  the  Warner  Observatory,  Roches- 
ter, New  York.  Place  at  November  17,  6h.  35m.  2s.  G. M.  T. ; 
R.A.  =  22h.  42m.  24s.  ;  N.P.D.  =  78°  9'.  Daily  motion  in 
R.A.,  -f  2m.  ;  in  N.P.D,,  —  15',     The  comet  was  only  faint. 


MIRAGE  IN  THE  SOUTH  AMERICAN 
PAMPAS. 

WAS  staying  in  the  Pampas  of  the  Argentine  Republic,  near 
Melincue,  a  small  town  of  the  Province  of  Santa  Fe,  from 
September  1888  to  March  1889,  During  my  stay  I  had  the 
opportunity  of  observing  certain  mirage  phenomena.  It  is 
possible  that  my  notes  may  contain  .something  of  interest. 
They  were,  designedly,  taken  without  reference  to  any  previous 
knowledge  of  the  theory  of  mirage  that  I  might  possess. 

To  illustrate  my  observations  I  had  drawn  eight  diagrams  ; 
but,  for  the  purpose  of  insertion  in  Nature,  I  have  been 
obliged  to  reduce  these  to  two.  Hence  I  fear  that  my  descrip- 
tions may  not  be  as  clear  as  I  should  wish. 

The  most  general  conclusion  at  which  I  arrived  was  that 
there  were  two  classes  of  mirage  of  very  different  character. 
The  one  I  shall  call  "the  summer  mirage,"  the  other  "the 
winter  mirage."  I  would  observe  that,  without  a  telescope  of 
some  sort,  one  would  be  unable  to  make  observations  of  much 
value ;  and  that,  as  I  had  but  a  binocular  telescope,  in  many 
details  I  failed  to  make  out  as  much  as  I  could  had  I  possessed 
a  larger  telescope  steadily  mounted. 

I,   The  Summer  Mirage. 

(i)  This  mirage  is  seen  in  full  day.  I  was  told  that  in  normal 
years  it  is  most  remarkable  in  the  extreme  heat  of  summer. 
The  summer  of  December,  January,  and  February  1888  and 
1889  was  abnormally  wet,  however.  And  I  myself  saw  the 
mirage  most  frequently  in  spring  (September,  October,  and 
the  earlier  part  of  November),  the  grass  being  then  short  and 
very  dry.  Later  on  the  grass  became  very  long,  and  unusually- 
green  and  damp,  owing  to  the  heavy  rains.  And  then  I  saw 
the  mirage  but  rarely  in  the  grass  plains,  though  on  the  several 
occasions  on  which  I  passed,  in  the  blaze  of  a  summer  day,  the 
dry  sandy  bed  of  an  old  laguna,  the  mirage  was  there  to  be 
seen  very  clearly. 

On  one  or  two  occasions  in  spring  I  saw  the  mirage  when  there 
was  a  fairly  cold  wind  and  no  perceptible  sunshine,  but  still  in 
full  day. 

(2)  This  kind  of  mirage  usually  appeared  as  a  strip  of  "  water  "' 
running  more  or  less  parallel  to  the  horizon,  at  one  end  narrow- 
ing to  a  point,  and  at  the  other  end  opening  out  into  the  sky.  It 
appeared  much  as  an  arm  of  the  sea,  or  an  estuary,  seen  near  the 
horizon,  and  running  parallel  to  it.  The  "water"  was  of  the 
same  colour  as  the  sky  above  it  near  the  horizon. 

(3)  Viewed  through  glasses,  the  whole  of  the  land  seen  above 
and  beyond  the  "water,"  the  "water"  itself,  and  to  a  less 
extent  the  land  seen  just  this  side  of  it,  appeared  wavy  and  ill- 
defined,  flocculent,  and  (when  there  was  any  breeze)  possessed 
of  a  drifting  movement  down  the  wind.  At  the  thin  end  of  the 
"  water,"  and  just  beyond  it  in  the  line  of  the  layer,  one  could 
see  broken  fragments  of  "  water  "  drifting  over  the  land  ;  and, 
in  like  manner,  the  peninsula  of  land  appeared  to  end  in  a  line 
of  drifting  fragments. 

(4)  It  appeared  to  me  that  the  land  seen  beyond  the  watery 
layer  was  either  within  the  limits  of  the  natural  horizon,  or  not 
much  beyond  them.  One  did  not,  as  one  did  in  the  "winter 
mirage,"  see  houses,  &c.,  that  were  normally  out  of  sight. 

(5)  Cattle,  &c.,  seen  in  the  watery  layer  were  ill-defined.  But 
on  the  whole  it  seemed  that  their  legs  were  hidden,  and  bodies 
were  reflected  inverted,  much  as  if  they  had  been  standing  iij 
shallow  water. 


NATURE 


[Nov.  2  1,  1889 


(6)  When  I  mounted  higher,  a  mirage,  if  seen  at  all,  was 
further  off  than  when  I  stood  lower. 

If,  when  looking  at  the  watery  layer  of  a  mirage,  I  mounted 
higher,  the  "  water  "  narrowed,  and  the  strip  of  land  beyond  it 
widened,  until  at  a  certain  height  of  my  head  the  "water  "  had 
narrowed  into  a  wavy  line  of  fragments.  Further  mounting 
caused  the  "water  "  to  disappear.  If,  on  the  contrary,  I  stooped, 
the  "water"  appeared  to  widen,  the  strip  of  land  above  it  to 
narrow,  until  at  last  the  mirage  joined  the  sky. 

On  one  occasion,  when  the  mirage  was  about  a  mile  and  a 
half  distant,  and  on  another  occasion  when  about  250  yards 
distant,  I  caused  the  "water"  to  appear  and  disappear  by 
a  vertical  movement  of  my  head  not  exceeding  i  foot. 


(7)  Objects  situated  in  the  watery  layer  but  rising  out  of  it, 
or  on  the  strip  of  land  beyond  it,  were  reflected  in  the  "  water" 
much  as  in  true  water  ;  but  all  was  ill-defined,  and  the  inverted 
reflections  often  broken  and  lengthened. 

(8)  It  appeared  to  me  that  objects  on  the  strip  of  land  beyond 
the  watery  layer  were  also  to  be  seen  faintly  reflected  in  the 
land  that  lay  between  them  and  the  '  water."  And  when,  as 
in  (6),  I  had  raised  my  head  until  the  "water"  had  just 
dwindled  away,  objects  near  the  horizon  were  reflected  inverted 
in  the  region  from  which  "  water  "  had  vanished. 

(9)  By  the  aid  of  my  glasses  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
objects  were  not  really,  as  they  appeared  to  the  naked  eye, 
"drawn  up"  by  the  mirage.     But  it  seemed  rather  that,    an 


Fig. 


object  being  seen  above  its  (often  elongated)  reflected  image,  and 
both  being  ill-defined,  to  the  naked  eye  the  whole  appeared 
like  the  object  "drawn  up."  In  this  way  clumps  of  grass 
appeared  as  trees. 

(10)  In  (i)  I  have  mentioned  the  usual  form  of  the  mirage. 
But  with  various  slopes,  &c.,  of  the  ground,  the  form  of  the 
mirage  varied.  Sometimes  the  "water"  opened  out  into  the 
sky  both  ways  ;  and  several  times  I  saw  an  isolated  patch  of 
"  water"  over  an  isolated  patch  of  bare  hot  earth. 

Conclusions  as  to  Summer  Mirage. — It  seemed,  then — 

( I )  That  this  mirage  was  due  to  a  layer  of  relatively  warm  air 
close  to  the  earth. 
^■(2)  That  this  mirage-giving  layer  was  not  more  than  about 

leet  in  depth,  and  that  it  may  have  been  less. 


(3)  That  there  were  not,  to  any  noticeable  extent,  vertical 
elongations  of  objects  nor  extensions  of  normal  horizon. 

{4)  That  in  this  mirage  there  were  no  images,  erect  or 
inverted,  seen  above  the  real  object. 

In  fact,  it  seemed  that  the  sky  and  terrestrial  objects  were 
simply  reflected  in  a  sheet  of  warmer  air  lying  close  to  the 
ground.     (Of  course  the  paths  of  the  rays  would  be  curved. ) 

II.    The   Winter  Mirage. 

[I  was  told  that  this  mirage  is  seen  in  winter,  and  best  on  fine 
mornings  after  hard  frost.  What  I  saw  were,  it  seemed,  but 
poor  specimens.] 

(i)  I  saw  this  mirage  several  times,  always  about  sunrise  and 
after  a  frost.     Before  sunrise,  as  soon   as  there  was  any  light,  I 


Fig.  2. 


looked  out  into  the  plains  with  my  binoculars.  It  appeared  as 
if  the  horizon  were  higher  than  usual,  and  that  one  could  see 
tracts  of  land,  with  houses  and  other  objects,  that  were  usually 
concealed  below  the  horizon. 

Further,  it  seemed  that  this  extension  of  horizon  was  not 
really  continuous,  as  it  at  first  appeared,  but  that  it  was  divided 
into  layers.  As  far  as  I  could  judge,  the  line  (a)  was  beyond 
the  normal  limits  of  the  horizon,  the  tract  from  (o)  to  the  limit 
(j8)  was  more  or  less  a  repetition  of  the  tract  below  (a),  and 
from  ((8)  to  (7)  was  again  more  or  less  a  repetition  of  the  same 
tract.  As  to  what  one  could  see  above  the  line  (7),  I  could 
make  no  trustworthy  observations. 

Before   sunrise,   this   extension  of  the  horizon  was  seen  all 


round  ;  and,  though  the  layers  referred  to  could  be  distinguished 
fairly  well,  there  were  as  yet  no  "  watery  layers  "  to  be  seen. 

The  land  seen  just  above  the  lines  (o)  and  (.8)  was  paler  than 
that  seen  just  below  these  lines. 

(2)  Thanks  to  a  most  convenient  distribution  of  cattle  of 
various  colours,  and  of  other  objects,  I  was  able,  with  the  aid 
of  my  glasses,  to  make  out  a  good  deal. 

But  the  images  changed  as  the  cows  moved,  the  appearances 
varied  as  time  went  on,  and  were  so  different  in  different  parts 
of  the  horizon,  that  I  could  only  arrive  at  some  general  con- 
clusions. 

There  would  be,  for  example,  just  below,  or  on  the  edge  of, 
the  line  (a),  a  cow.     This   I   will  call  the  ^^ first  co'c,"  or  the 


Nov.  21,  1889] 


NA  TURE 


71 


"original  cow."  Just  below  or  on  the  line  (i3),  vertically 
above  \}t\z  first  cow,  and,  like  it,  erect,  would  be  a  second  cow,  a 
repetition  of  the  first.  And  often,  above  this  again,  below  or 
on  the  line  (7),  would  be  a  third  cow,  also  erect. 

Sometimes  there  were  confused  images  hanging  from  the 
second  cow  and  joining  other  confused  images  piled  on  \\\q  first 
caiv ;  sometimes  the  first  cow  was  clear  of  images,  while  they 
hung  down  from  the  second  cow  ;  sometimes  the  second  cow 
was  clear,  and  there  were  images  piled  on  the  first.  Often  the 
third  cow  was  missing  (see  Fig.  i).  As  the  original  cow  moved, 
these  images  changed  their  disposition  or  vanished,  and  the  third 
cow  appeared  or  vanished.  But  in  all  these  changes  it  seemed 
to  me  that  the  first  cow,  second  cow,  and  (when  visible)  the 
third  cvw,  were  the  permanent  images.  These,  it  appeared, 
were  always  erect. 

(3)  After  the  sun  had  risen,  all  continued  in  statu  quo  for  a 
short  time.  But  soon,  at  various  parts  of  the  horizon,  the  land 
just  above  the  edges  (a),  (j8),  and  (7)  paled  away,  and  finally 
melted  into  the  appearance  of  "sky"  or  "  water."  There  were 
left,  in  the  later  stages  of  the  mirage,  first,  the  plain  itself,  with 
an  extension,  the  limits  of  which  were  not  sharp,  beyond  the 
normal  horizon  ;  secondly,  above  this  a  strip  of  land,  apparently 
suspended  in  the  air ;  thirdly,  in  some  parts  of  the  horizon 
another  strip  of  land  suspended  in  the  air  above  this  again. 
The  interval  between  (a)  and  {ff)  was  in  all  stages  greater  than 
that  between  (i3)  and  (7).  One  of  the  appearances  in  the  later 
stages  is  indicated  in  Fig.  2. 

Other  changes  crept  in,  too.  Very  often  the  original  objects 
were  wholly  or  partly  sunk  out  of  sight  ;  the  images  were  less 
defined  ;  and  the  confused  images  hanging  from  the  second  cow, 
e.g. ,  or  piled  on  the  first  cow,  were  now  seen  in  the  watery  layers, 
sometimes  bridging  it  over. 

(4)  As  time  went  on,  the  watery  layers  widened.  The  images, 
too,  became  still  vaguer,  and  the  original  objects  were  usually 
out  of  sight  or  only  just  indicated  above  the  line  (o).  Moreover, 
the  aerial  images,  with  their  confused  trails  of  images  hanging 
from  them,  began  to  assume  more  the  appearance  of  "  inverted 
images  suspended  over  objects  hidden  below  the  horizon." 

(5)  In  these  later  stages,  no  doubt,  anyone  would  have  guessed 
that  the  aerial  images  were  indeed  very  vaguely  defined  inverted 
images.  But  to  me,  as  I  followed  the  phenomenon  from  the 
beginning,  it  seemed  that  they  were  not  so.  It  seemed  to  me 
that  each  aerial  image  was  really  topped  by  an  erect  image, 
which,  with  the  trails  hanging  from  it,  seemed  like  an  inverted 
image.  At  least  I  can  say  that,  so  long  as  the  images  were  well 
defined  at  all,  I  never  made  out  a  clear  case  of  the  main,  or 
permanent,  aerial  images  being  inverted.  Thus,  as  i\iQ  first  cozv 
moved,  it  was  the  erect  second  (and  sometimes  third)  cows  that 
remained  clear. 

(6)  In  these  later  stages  it  was  only  trees  and  houses  that 
could  be  seen  in  the  mirage,  and  these  were  ill-defined. 

(7)  The  mirage  lasted  until  about  an  hour  and  a  quarter  after 
sunrise.  The  last  traces  of  aerial  images  of  land  appeared  just 
under  the  sun,  and  in  that  part  of  the  horizon  that  lay  just 
opposite  to  it.  Whether  the  abnormal  extension  of  the  horizon 
entirely  ceased  at  the  same  time,  I  cannot  say  ;  but  there  did 
not  remain  any  noticeable  extension. 

(8)  As  with  the  summer  mirage,  I  found  I  could  alter  appear- 
ances by  altering  my  level  above  the  earth.  But  the  change  in 
level  had  to  be  more  considerable.  I  have  no  good  notes  on 
this  matter  ;  but  I  believe  that  usually  I  could  recover  a  past 
stage  of  the  mirage  by  a  sufficient  descent  down  a  ladder  from 
my  post  of  observation. 

General  Conclusions  as  to  Winter  Mirage  : — 

(i)  It  is  due  to  the  earth,  and  the  air  near  it,  being  con- 
siderably chilled  below  the  temperature  of  the  rest  of  the 
atmosphere. 

(2)  The  phenomena  of  extended  horizon  and  multiple  images 
are  to  be  observed. 

(3)  The  "drawn  up"  appearance  of  objects  is  really  due  to 
a  number  of  images  piled  upon  one  another,  only  to  be  separated 
by  the  use  of  a  telescope. 

(4)  No  case  of  a  terrestrial  object  having  above  it  a  single 
inverted  image,  or  images  of  which  the  uppermost  was  inverted, 
came  under  my  notice.  W.  Larden. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  journal  of  Mathematics,  vol.  xii.  No,  i,  and  index 
to  vols.    i.-x.    (Baltimore,    1889). — This    volume    opens    with 


an  instalment  of  sixty  pages  of  a  memoir  by  A.  R.  Forsyth, 
F.R.S.,  on  "Systems  of  Ternariants  that  are  Algebraically 
Complete."  In  this  the  writer  has  found  it  convenient  to  use 
"  '  ternariant '  as  a  generic  term  for  concomitants  of  ternary 
quantics,  instead  of  giving  it  the  signification  which  Prof.  Sylves- 
ter proposed  {^Amer.  J.  of  Math.,  vol.  v.  p.  81)  to  give  to  it, 
viz.  the  leading  coefficients  of  those  concomitants."  The  memoir 
is  divided  into  three  parts,  and  deals  with  the  theory  of  the 
algebraically  independent  concomitants  of  ternary  quantics, 
taking  as  the  starting-point  the  six  linear  partial  differential 
equations  of  the  first  order  satisfied  by  them.  References  are 
supplied  to  numerous  memoirs  on  the  subject. — Captain  (now 
Major)  P.  A.  Macmahon  continues  (pp.  61-102)  his  investiga- 
tions (vol.  xi.  No.  I)  in  a  "  Second  Memoir  on  a  New  Theory 
of  Symmetric  Functions."  Herein  he  is  engaged  with  functions 
which  are  not  necessarily  integral,  but  require  partitions,  with 
positive,  zero,  and  negative  parts  for  their  symbolical  expression. 
The  author  thus  summarizes  his  results  :  (i)  a  simple  proof  of 
a  generalized  Vandermonde- Waring  power  law  which  presents- 
itself  in  the  guise  of  an  invariantive  property  of  a  transcendental 
transformation  ;  (2)  the  law  of  "groups  of  separations  ";  (3)  the 
fundamental  law  of  algebraic  reciprocity  ;  (4)  the  fundamental 
law  of  algebraic  expressibility  which  asserts  that  certain  in- 
dicated symmetric  functions  can  be  exhibited  as  linear  functions 
of  the  separations  of  any  given  partition  ;  (5)  the  existence  is 
established  of  a  pair  of  symmetrical  tables  in  association  with 
every  partition  into  positive,  zero,  and  negative  parts,  of  every 
number,  positive,  zero,  or  negative. — The  closing  portion  of  the 
number  (pp.  103-114)  is  taken  up  with  an  article  entitled 
"  De  I'Homographie  en  Mecanique,"by  P.  Appell. — A  likeness 
of  M.  Poincare  faces  p.  I. — The  index  is  of  a  twofold  descrip- 
tion— of  authors  and  of  subjects.  From  the  forewords  we 
learn  that  papers  have  been  published  from  eighty-nine  con- 
tributors ;  these  comprise  "most  of  the  leading  mathematicians 
of  the  world." 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  November  11. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — Presentation  of  Report  of  Proceedings  of  the  permanent 
International  Committee  for  preparing  a  photographic  chart  of 
the  heavens,  by  M.  E.  Mouchez.  Fifteen  Observatories  will  be 
ready  by  the  middle  of  next  year  ;  and  five  others  before  the  end. 
The  zones  are  indicated. — Note  of  M.  Daubree  with  descriptive 
catalogue  of  the  meteorites  of  Mexico  prepared  by  M.  Antonio 
del  Castillo.  Meteorites  are  abundant  in  Mexico.  A  remarkably 
wide  area  of  dispersion  is  indicated  by  three  portions  of  one 
mass,  found  at  the  angles  of  a  triangle,  whose  two  longer  sides 
were  90  km.  and  60  km.  In  one  of  these  places  two  plates  were 
found  250  m,  apart  ;  and  they  seem  to  have  formed  one  huge 
plate  over  24,000  kgm.  weight,  which  broke  near  the  ground. — 
On  the  incineration  of  vegetable  matters,  by  M.  G.  Lechartier. 
Trying  various  methods,  he  finds,  that  in  the  carbonization  and 
incineration  of  a  plant,  there  is  considerable  loss  of  sulphur, 
volatilized  in  various  combinations  ;  and  special  precautions  are 
necessary  in  determining  this  constituent.  Under  the  same 
conditions,  and  care  being  taken  to  prevent  loss  of  solid 
matter  carried  away  mechanically  with  the  issuing  gas, 
there  is  no  sensible  loss  of  phosphorus. — M.  Picard  was 
elected  member  in  Geometry,  in  place  of  the  late  M. 
Halphen. — On  a  rotating  magnetic  field  formed  with  two 
Ruhmkorff  coils,  by  M.  W.  De  Fonvielle.  A  current  from 
accumulators  is  sent  through  the  primary  of  one  coil,  the 
secondary  of  which  is  connected  with  that  of  the  other  coil, 
which  is  in  a  line  with  the  first,  and  the  primary  of  which  may 
be  open  or  closed. — On  certain  ellipsoidal  areas,  by  M.  G. 
Humbert. — On  a  new  calculating  machine,  by  M.  1..  Bollee. 
While  in  previous  machines,  multiplications,  e.g.,  are  done  by 
successive  additions,  this  one  has  a  multiplying  apparatus  which 
determines  immediately,  in  one  function,  the  product  of  a  number 
by  each  figure  of  the  multiplier. — On  the  solubility  of  the  chlorides 
of  potassium  and  of  sodium  in  the  same  solution,  by  M.  Etard.  The 
results  of  experiment  are  shown  in  graphic  form  ;  the  curves  of 
solubility  of  each  salt  separately  being  compared  with  those  of 
the  mixed  salts,  &c.  The  sum  of  the  dissolved  salts  is  re- 
presented by  a  continuous  straight  line.  The  curves  for  the  mixed 
salts  cross  at  temperature  97°  ;  that  for  NaCl  falling  while  the 
other  rises. — On  an  application  of  thermo-chemistry,  by  M.  A. 


72 


NATURE 


{Nov.  2  1,  1889 


Colson.  The  formation  of  nicotine  monohydrochloride  liberates 
about  twice  as  much  heat  as  that  of  the  dihydrochloride  under 
like  conditions  ;  hence  a  probable  difference  in  constitution 
of  the  two  nitrogen  groups  of  nicotine.  The  action  of 
nicotine  on  coloured  reagents  shows  at  once  a  difference 
in  the  two  basicities. — On  the  myelocytes  of  fishes,  by 
M.  J.  Chatin.  In  fishes,  as  in  other  zoological  groups,  the 
aiervous  elements  termed  myelocytes,  are  not  to  be  referred 
to  a  special  histic  type,  but  to  the  nerve  cell ;  which  is  simply 
modified,  chiefly  by  enlargement  of  the  nucleus,  and  correspond- 
ing reduction  of  the  somatic  part. — On  the  continuity  of  the  pig- 
anented  epithelium  of  the  retina  with  the  external  segments  of 
the  cones  and  rods,  and  the  morphological  value  of  this  arrange- 
ment in  vertebrates,  by  MM.  R.  Dubois  and  J.  Renaut.  This 
new  fact  makes  it  probable  (according  to  the  authors)  that  in  the 
retina  of  vertebrates  a  similar  process  occurs  to  that  in  thelight- 
:sensitive  apparatus  of  MoUusks  like  Pholas  ;  by  mechanism  of 
impression  and  transformation  of  luminous  movement  into  con- 
tractile, then  sensorial.  —  On  strabismus,  by  M.  H.  Parinaud.  The 
immediate  cause  of  the  deviation  (in  squinting)  is  a  disorder  of 
innervation,  excess  in  convergence,  defect  in  divergence,  caused 
generally  by  the  accommodative  effort  in  one  case  (hypermetro- 
pia),  and  the  little  use  made  of  accommodation  in  the  other 
'(myopia).  The  deviation,  when  sufficiently  fixed  and  prolonged, 
induces  anatomical  changes  both  in  the  brain- connections  and 
the  tissues  of  the  eye  (in  the  latter  case,  not  only  shortening 
of  muscles,  but  retraction  of  all  relaxed  fibrous  parts,  especially 
Tenon's  capsule).  This  has  important  bearings  on  treatment. — 
On  the  morphology  and  the  biology  of  the  fungus  Oidium 
.albicans  (Robin),  by  MM.  G.  Linossier  and  G.  Roux.  Besides 
^^yeast  form,  and  the  globulofilamentous,  he  finds  a  third, 
similar  to  chlatnydospores,  and  probably  needing  some  new 
inatural  habitat  for  full  development.  This  fact,  with  the  absence 
of  ascospores,  &c. ,  suggests  removal  of  the  organism  from  the 
:genus  Saccharomyces.  Again,  it  is  found,  that  in  culture  of  the 
fungus,  the  complication  of  form  increases  with  the  molecular 
weight  of  the  aliment ;  there  is  a  growing  tendency  to  form  long 
thin  filaments.  This  tendency  is  also  favoured  by  high  tempera- 
ture, excess  of  oxygen,  a  trace  of  nitrates,  and  antiseptics. — 
Comparative  activity  of  various  digitalines,  by  M.  Bardet.  He 
compares  crystallized  and  amorphous  digitaline,  prepared  accord- 
ing to  the  French  codex,  German  digltoxine,  French  digitaleine, 
and  German  digitaline  (the  power  of  the  two  last  is  much  less 
than  those  of  the  others). 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  November  21. 

'Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — (i)  Further  Discussion  of  the  Sun-spot  Observa- 
tions at  South  Kensington  ;  (2)  on  the  Cause  of  Variability  in  Condensing 
Swarms  of  Meteorites:  J.  Norman  Lockyer,  F.R. S.— On  the  Local 
Paralysis  of  Peripheral  Ganglia,  and  on  the  Connection  of  Different  Classes 
of  Nerve  Fibres  with  them  :  J.  N.  Langley,  F.  R.S.,  and  W.  Lee  Dickin- 
son.— On  the  Tubercles  on  the  Roots  of  Leguminous  Plants,  with  Special 
Reference  to  the  Pea  and  the  Bean  (Preliminary  Paper)  :  Prof.  JH.  M. 
Ward,  F.R.S. 

LiNNEAN  Society,  at  8. — External  Anatomical  Characters  indicating  Se.x 
in  Chrysalids,  and  Development  of  the  Azygos  Oviduct  and  its  Accessory 
Organs  in  Vanessa  lo  :  Prof.  W.  Hatchett  Jackson. — Anatomy  of  Lepido- 
ptera:  E.  B.  Poulton. — Lepidoptera  of  Ichang,  North  China:  John  H. 
Leech. 

•Chemical  Society,  at  8. — The  Law  of  the  Freezing-points  of  Solutions  : 
S.  U.  Pickering. 

MONDAY,  November  25. 

RovAL  Geographical  Society,  at  8.30. — The  Bahrein  Islands,  Persian 
Gulf:  J.  Theodore  Bent. 

SociBTV  OF  Arts,  at  8. — Modern  Developments  of  Bread-making  :  William 
Jago. 

TUESDAY,  November  26. 

Anthropological  Institute,  at  8.30. — The  Ethnology  of  the  Western 
Tribe  of  Torres  Straits  :  Prof  A.  C.  Haddon. 

iNsTiTUTioN  OF  Civiu  ENGINEERS,  at  8. — Water-Tube  Steam-Bollers  for 
Marine  Engines  :  John  I.  Thornycroft.     (Discussion.) 

University  College  Biological  Society,  at  5.15. — A  New  Genus  of 
Polycha;t  Worm  :  Florence  Buchanan. 

WEDNESDAY,  November  27. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Scientific  and  Technical  Instruction  in  Elementary 
Schools:  Dr.  J.  Hall  Gladstone,  F.R.S. 

THURSDAY,  November  27. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — Electrical  Engineering  in 
America  :  G.  L.  Addenbrooke. 

FRIDAY,  November  29. 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— Principles  of  Iron  Foundry 
Practice:  G.  H.  Sheffield. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Pubbllcazioni  del  Real  Osservatorio  dl  Palermo,  vol.  iv.  (Palermo). — Obeah  ; 
Witchcraft  in  the  West  Indies  :  H.  J.  Bell  (Low).— Through  Atolls  and 
Islands  in  the  Great  South  Sea:  F.  J.  Moss  (Low). — The  Lesser  Antilles: 
O.  T.  Bulkeley  (Low). — Humanitism  :  W.  A.  Macdonald  (Triibner). — 
Memoirs  and  Proceedings  of  the  Manchester  Literary  and  Phil  sophical 
Society,  vol.  ii.,  4th  series  (Manchester). — Report  on  the  Mining  Industry  of 
New  Zealand,  1889  (Wellington). — Reports  on  Mining  Machinery  and  Ireat- 
ment  of  Ores  in  Australian  Colonies  and  America  (Wellington). —Die  Laby- 
rinthodonten  der  schwablschen  Trias  :  E.  Fraas  (Stuttgart,  E.  Schweizer- 
bart'sche).— The  Butterfly;  its  History.  &c.  :  J.  Stuttard  (Unwin).— A 
Glos'^ary  of  Biological,  Anatomical,  and  Physl'  logical  Terms  :  T.  Dunman 
and  V.  H.  W.  Wingrave  (Griffith,  Farran). — An  Introduction  to  the  Siudy  of 
Shakespeare:  Dr.  H.  Corson  (Boston,  Heath). — On  the  Animal  Alkaloids: 
Sir  W.  Aitken,  2nd  edition  (Lewis)  — Matebele  Land  and  the  Victoria 
Falls,  2nd  edition  ;  F.  Gate---,  edited  by  C.  G.  Gates  (K.  Paul).— Euclid[s 
Elements  of  Geometry,  books  i.  and  ii.  :  H.  M  Taylor  (Cambridge  Uni- 
versity Press). — Travels  in  India  by  Jean  Baptlste  Tavernier,  2  vols.  : 
V.  Ball  (Macmillan). — Results  of  Meteorological  Observations  made  in 
New  South  Wales  during  1887 ;  H.  C.  Russell  (Sydney,  Potter). — 
Ethnographische  Beltrage  zur  Kenntniss  des  Karolinen  Archipels  :  J.  S. 
Kubary  (Leiden.  Trap). — Les  Animaux  et  les  Vegetaux  Lumineiix  :  H. 
Gadeau  de  Kerville  (Paris,  Bailliere). — Bibliographie  Generale  de  I'Astro- 
nomie,  tome  premi-^r,  2nde  partie  :  J.  C.  Houzeau  and  A.  Lancaster 
(Bruxelles,  Hayez). — The  Evolution  of  Sex,  Prof  P.  Geddes  and  J.  A. 
Thomson  (Scott). — Synthese  Scientlfique  et  Phllosophlque  :  A  H.  Simonin 
(Paris,  E.  Leroux)  — The  State:  W.  Wil.son  (Boston,  Heath).— Notes  on 
Sport  and  Ornithology:  late  Crown  Prince  Rudolf  of  Austria;  translated 
by  C.  G.  Danford  (Gurney  and  Jackson).—  Blackle'sGe  ^graphical  Manuals  ; 
No.  2,  the  British  Empire;  Part  t,  The  Home  Countries:  W.  G  Baker 
(Blackie). — Gold-Fields  of  Victoria  ;  Reports  of  the  Mining  Registrars  for 
the  Quarter  ended  June  30,  1889  (Melbourne). — Victoria  ;  Annual  Report  on 
the  Working  of  the  Registration  and  Inspection  of  Mines  and  Mining  Ma- 
chinery Act  during  the  Year  18S8  (Melbourne). — Magnetism  and  Electricity, 
Advanced  and  Honours  Questions  :  A.  Jamieson  (Griffin). — Klectrical  En- 
gineering, I  )rdinary  and  Honours  Questions  :  A.  Jamieson  (Griffin). — Results 
of  Rain,  River,  and  Evaporation  Observations  made  in  New  South  Wales 
during  1888  :  H.  C.  Russell  (Sydney,  Potter). — Astronomical  and  Meteoro- 
logical Workers  in  New  South  Wales,  1778-1860  :  H.  C.  Russell  (Sydney, 
Potter).— The  Thunderstorm  of  October  26,  1888  :  H.  C.  Ru  sell.— On  a 
Self-recording  Thermometer:  H.  C.  Russell. — President's  Aodress  by  H. 
C.  Russell  at  the  First  Meeting  of  the  Australian  Association. — The  Source 
of  the  Underground  Water  in  the  Western  Districts  :  H.  C.  Russell. 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Rock  Metamorphism 49 

Hand-book  of  Descriptive  and  Practical  Astronomy  49 

Electrical  Undertakings.     ByJ.  A.  F 50 

Dianthus.     ByJ.  G.  B 51 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Poyser  :   "  Magnetism  and  Electricity"   . 52 

Barber  :   "  The  Engineer's  Sketch-book." — N.  J.   L.  .  52 

Markham  :   "  A  Life  of  John  Davis " •    •  53 

Wood:    "The    Brook    and    its    Banks,"    and    "The 

Zoo" 53 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs. — Dr.  Alfred  R.  Wal- 
lace ;  Rev.  Fred.  F.  Grensted 53 

Science  and  the  India  Civil  Service  Examinations. — 

Henry  Palin  Gurney 53 

The  Physics  of  the   Sub-oceanic  Crust. — A.  J.  Jukes- 
Browne     54 

The  Composition  of  the  Chemical  Elements. — A.  M. 

Stapley 56 

Is  Greenland  our  Arctic  Ice  Cap  ?— S.  E.  Peal    ...  58 
Globular   and  other    Forms    of    Lightning. — Reuben 

Phillips 58 

"Darwinism." — Prof.  George  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.  59 

How  not  to  Teach  Geometry. — Herbert  J.  Woodall  60 

A  Brilliant  Meteor. — Wm.  Scarnell  Lean 60 

The  Causes  and  Character  of  Haze.      By  Hon.  F.  A. 

R.  Russell 60 

The  Pulsion  Mechanical  Telephone 65 

Notes 66 

Our  Astronomical  Column  : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 68 

The  Minimum  Sun-spot  Period 68 

Return  of  Brorsen's  Comet 69 

The  Companion  of  tj  Pegasi 69 

General  Bibliography  of  Astronomy 69 

J.  C.  Houzeau's  "VadeMecum" 69 

A  New  Comet 69 

Mirage  in  the  South  American  Pampas.  (Illustrated.) 

By  W.  Larden 69 

Scientific  Serials 71 

Societies  and  Academies 71 

Diary  of  Societies •    •     .  72 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 72 


NA  TURE 


n 


THURSDAY,  NOVEMBER  28,  i{ 


MR.  STANLEY. 

MR.  STANLEY'S  latest  letters,  which  have  been 
exciting  universal  attention,  present  as  fascinating 
a  record  of  travel,  adventure,  and  geographical  discovery 
as  any  that  has  ever  awakened  the  interest  of  civilized 
mankind.  It  is  impossible  to  read  them  without  the 
warmest  admiration  for  the  writer's  resolute  energy,  in- 
exhaustible resource,  and  dauntless  courage.  No  previous 
traveller  can  have  been  confronted  by  a  greater  number 
of  formidable — often  apparently  insurmountable — diffi- 
culties. Mr.  Stanley  never  allowed  himself  to  be  dis- 
heartened by  the  obstacles  in  his  way,  but  pressed  steadily 
on,  varying  his  methods  to  meet  changing  needs,  until 
the  immediate  object  of  his  great  enterprise  was  attained. 
Not  the  least  serious  of  his  perplexities  sprang  from  the 
reluctance  of  Emin  Pasha  to  be  "rescued."  It  was  not 
unnatural  that  Emin  should  hesitate  to  quit  a  region  for 
which  he  had  made  so  many  sacrifices,  and  with  regard 
to  which  he  had  entertained  so  many  hopes  ;  but  it  is 
certain  that  if  he  had  remained  he  would  soon  have 
fallen  a  victim  to  treachery.  Happily,  Mr.  Stanley,  after 
many  an  argument,  succeeded  at  last  in  overcoming 
his  scruples  and  hesitations,  and  on  April  :o  the  two 
men,  accompanied  by  a  party  of  about  1500  persons, 
including  native  carriers,  started  from  the  southern 
shore  of  Albert  Nyanza  on  their  homeward  journey.  No 
part  of  Mr.  Stanley's  narrative  is  more  interesting  than 
that  in  which  he  tells  the  story  of  his  efforts  to  persuade 
Emin  that  he  might  with  honour  resign  a  task  which  had 
already  been  practically  taken  out  of  his  hands.  The 
tale  brings  out  vividly  a  most  striking  contrast  between 
two  types  of  character,  each  of  which  in  its  own  way 
commands  our  sympathy  and  respect. 

The  scientific  results  of  Mr.  Stanley's  journey  are  full 
of  interest,  and  form  a  most  important  addition  to  our 
knowledge  of  Central  Africa.  On  April  11  (Nature, 
vol.  xxxix.  p.  560)  we  gave  an  account  of  his  geographical 
discoveries  so  far  as  they  were  then  known  ;  and  anyone 
who  will  consult  the  map  which  we  printed  on  that  occa- 
sion .will  be  able  to  trace  without  difficulty  the  main  lines 
of  the  explorer's  later  course.  In  1877  Mr.  Stanley  dis- 
covered Muta  Nzige,  which  he  now  calls  Lake  Albert 
Edward.  This  lake  is  less  extensive  than  was  originally 
supposed.  At  the  time  of  its  discovery  it  could  not  be 
determined  whether  its  waters  were  discharged  into  the 
Nile  or  the  Congo,  but  now  Mr.  Stanley  has  found  that 
it  is  one  of  the  feeders  of  the  former  river.  It  receives 
all  the  streams  of  the  south-western  part  of  the  Nile 
basin,  just  as  Victoria  Nyanza  receives  all  the  streams 
of  the  south-eastern  part  of  the  Nile  basin.  The  two 
lakes  discharge  their  waters  into  Albert  Nyanza,  whence 
flows  the  White  Nile.  Lake  Albert  Edward  and  Albert 
Nyanza  are  connected  by  a  river  called  the  Semliki, 
whose  valley  Mr.  Stanley  vividly  describes. 

Lake  Albert  Edward  occupies  the  south-western  end  of 

a  great  area  of  depression,  at  the  north-eastern  end  of 

which  lies  Albert  Nyanza.     This  area  of  depression  lies 

between  3°  N.  lat.  and  i^  S.  lat.,  and  is  from  20  to  50 

Vol.  xli.— No.  1048. 


miles  broad.  East  and  west  of  it  rise  extensive  up- 
lands, those  on  the  western  side  forming  the  water- 
parting  between  the  Nile  and  the  Congo.  Towards 
the  east,  beyond  the  valley  of  the  Semliki— that  is, 
the  central  part  of  the  line  of  subsidence  — is  a  great 
mountain  range  called  Ruwenzori,  "the  Mountains  of 
the  Moon,"  culminating  in  peaks  which  Mr.  Stanley 
estimates  to  be  between  18,000  and  19,000  feet.  Past 
this  splendid  range  the  party  advanced  on  their  way 
southwards.  Says  Mr.  Stanley  : — "  Much  as  we  had 
flattered  ourselves  that  we  should  see  marvellous  scenery, 
the  Snow  Mountain  was  very  coy,  and  hard  to  see.  On 
most  days  it  loomed  impending  over  us  like  a  tropical 
storm-cloud  ready  to  dissolve  in  rain  and  ruin  on  us. 
Near  sunset  a  peak  or  two  here,  a  crest  there,  a  ridge 
beyond,  white  with  snow,  shot  into  view,  jagged  clouds 
whirling  and  eddying  round  them,  and  then  the 
darkness  of  night.  Often  at  sunrise,  too,  Ruwenzori 
would  appear  fresh,  clean,  brightly  pure ;  profound 
blue  voids  above  and  around  it  ;  every  line  and 
dent,  knoll,  and  turret-like  crag  deeply  marked  and  clearly 
visible  ;  but  presently  all  would  be  buried  under  mass 
upon  mass  of  mist  until  the  immense  mountain  was  no 
more  visible  than  if  we  were  thousands  of  miles  away. 
And  then,  also,  the  Snow  Mountain,  being  set  deeply  in 
the  range,  the  nearer  we  approached  the  base  of  the 
range,  the  less  we  saw  of  it,  for  nigher  ridges  obtruded 
themselves  and  barred  the  view.  Still  we  have  obtained 
three  remarkable  views — one  from  the  Nyanza  Plain, 
another  from  Kavallis,  and  a  third  from  the  South 
Point." 

Lieutenant  Stairs  tried  hard  to  reach  the  loftiest 
summit,  but  succeeded  only  in  attaining  a  height  of 
10,600  feet,  which  was  separated  from  the  snow-covered 
peaks  by  deep  ravines.  He  is  of  opinion  that  the  central 
mass  of  the  Ruwenzori  range  is  an  extinct  volcano,  and 
that  certain  jutting  pinnacles  on  the  sides  of  the  moun- 
tains are  survivals  of  the  time  when  volcanic  forces  were 
in  full  activity.  So  much  of  the  debris  is  borne  along  by 
the  Semliki  that  the  southern  part  of  Albert  Nyanza  is 
being  rapidly  filled  up. 

Mr.  Stanley  has  much  that  is  new  to  tell  us,  not 
only  about  Albert  Nyanza  and  Lake  Albert  Edward,  but 
about  Victoria  Nyanza,  a  great  south-western  extension  of 
which  he  has  discovered.  About  the  many  tribes  through 
whose  territories  he  passed  he  has  also  a  vast  amount 
of  curious  and  suggestive  information,  offered  with  all  the 
freshness  due  to  his  immediate  contact  with  the  facts  he 
describes.  Nothing  could  be  better  in  its  way  than  his 
account  of  the  Wakonju,  a  tribe  from  whom  he  and  his 
people  received  much  kindness.  They  occupy  the  slopes 
of  the  Ruwenzori  Mountains,  on  which  some  of  their 
villages  are  built  at  a  height  of  8000  feet.  Here  they  have 
taken  refuge  from  their  enemies  the  Warasura.  It  is  note- 
worthy that  in  many  parts  of  the  Central  African  uplands 
which  he  visited  Mr.  Stanley  found  a  physical  type  which 
he  identified  with  that  of  the  Abyssinians.  Cm  these  and 
many  other  points  of  interest  the  world  may  expect  soon 
to  receive  from  him  further  enlightenment.  Meanwhile, 
we  desire  to  join  most  cordially  in  the  expressions  of  high 
appreciation  that  have  been  everywhere  evoked  by  his 
success,  and  by  the  great  qualities  of  intellect  and 
character  by  which  it  has  been  achieved.      Such  geogra- 

K 


74 


NA  TURE 


\Nov.  28,  1889 


phical  labours  as  his  are  unsurpassed  in  hardship,  and 
the  results  obtained  make  his  work  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant and  fruitful  researches  of  the  time. 


THE  HABITS  OF  THE  SALMON. 

The  Habits    of  the    Salmon.     By   John    P.    Traherne. 
(London  :  Chapman  and  Hall,   1889.) 

THE  Stormontfield  breeding- ponds  have  taught  us 
much  of  the  history  of  the  salmon  from  the  eggs  to 
the  smolt  stage.  After  that  he  passes  to  the  sea,  beyond 
the  reach  of  observation,  and,  with  the  exception  of  what 
we  have  learned  from  the  return  to  the  rivers  of  fish  that 
have  been  marked  before  their  passage  to  the  sea,  all  that 
purports  to  be  knowledge  of  the  habits  of  the  fish  is  really 
only  guesses  at  truth. 

Theories  by  a  practical  salmon-fisher,  of  wide  experi- 
ence, are  entitled  to  respectful  examination.  This  Major 
Traherne  can  claim  ;  more  than  that  he  does  not  claim. 
The  arrangement  of  the  chapters  in  the  book  is  objec- 
tionable as  tending  to  confusion.  It  would  be  preferable 
to  take  first  the  chapter  on  smolts,  and  then  to  follow 
the  life  of  the  fish  through  its  grilse,  salmon,  and  kelt 
stages. 

Notwithstanding  that  "smolts  bred  in  the  Stormont- 
field, Howietown,  and  other  fish  ponds  have  never  as 
yet  been  known  to  evince  the  least  desire  to  go  to  sea 
before  the  spring  months,"  yet  Major  Traherne  is  of 
opinion,  and  supports  his  opinion  with  good  evidence, 
that  there  is  a  double  emigration  of  smolts — autumn 
as  well  as  spring.  Smolts  that  are  bred  artificially  are 
always  the  produce  of  ova  spawned  in  November,  and 
these  form  the  spring  migration.  It  is  assumed  that 
the  later  spawned  ova  form  the  autumn  migration.  If 
this  be  so,  it  may  explain  the  mystery  of  the  spring  and 
summer  run  of  fish.  It  is  proved  that  smolts  leaving 
Stormontfield  ponds  in  the  spring  have  returned  to  the 
river  as  grilses  in  July  of  the  same  year,  having  increased 
in  weight  from  3  to  9  pounds  each,  the  grilse  caught  on 
July  I  weighing  3  pounds,  and  that  caught  on  July  31 
weighing  9^  pounds.  The  smolt  would  probably  weigh 
about  2  ounces,  and  the  rapidity  of  growth,  without  any 
expense  for  feeding,  should  make  those  who  have  charge 
of  salmon  legislation  ponder  over  the  problem  of  close 
time. 

What,  then,  becomes  of  the  autumn  emigration  of 
smolts  ?  Do  they  come  back  as  spring  salmon  1  The  first 
run  of  spring  salmon,  like  the  first  run  of  grilse,  is  small  in 
size.  From  8  to  10  pounds  would  be  the  average  weight  of 
the  first  run  of  spring  fish.  The  spring  smolt  takes  three 
months  to  return  a  grilse  ;  the  autumn  smolt  would  have 
five  months  to  return  a  spring  salmon. 

We  quite  agree  with  Major  Traherne  that  spring  fish 
stay  in  the  rivers  to  spawn.  We  also  think,  from  the 
appearance  of  the  fish,  that  the  early,  small  spring  fish  are 
maiden  fish  that  have  never  spawned.  Are  they  not  the 
autumn  smolts  ? 

But  all  rivers  do  not  have  a  run  of  spring  fish.  Major 
Traherne  says  :  "  I  notice  that  early  ascending  salmon  are 
far  more  numerous  in  rivers  that  have  an  annual  close 


time  commencing  on  or  before  September  i,  than  in 
rivers  where  the  close  time  commences  after  that  date." 
This  is  simply  a  confusion  of  cause  and  effect.  It  is  the 
early  river  that  causes  the  early  close  time,  not  the  early 
close  time  that  causes  the  early  river.  What  causes  a  river 
to  be  early  ?  or,  in  other  words,  what  causes  spring  fish  to 
run  up  one  river,  and  not  to  run  up  another  1  Major 
Traherne  replies,  the  temperature  of  the  river.  He  con- 
trasts the  early  arrival  of  salmon  in  Loch  Naver  with  their 
late  arr'val,  by  way  of  the  Thurso,  in  Loch  More,  and  he 
says  that  the  River  Naver,  being  fed  by  a  large,  deep  loch, 
is  warmer  than  the  Thurso,  which  runs  from  a  small 
shallow  loch  ;  therefore  the  earlier  run  of  fish  into  Loch 
Naver  !  But  the  fish  run  as  early  up  the  Thurso  River  as 
they  do  up  the  Naver  River  ;  so  this  illustration  fails.  He 
afterwards  refers  to  the  Shin,  the  Cassley,  and  the  Oykel, 
all  of  which  rivers  empty  themselves  into  the  Kyle  of 
Sutherland.  He  says  that  the  temperature  of  the  water 
in  the  Shin — a  river  flowing  from  a  very  large  lake — is 
higher  than  the  temperature  of  the  Cassley,  or  the  Oykel, 
which  are  not  fed  by  big  lakes  ;  and  that  this  is  the  reason 
why  the  Shin  is  the  only  river,  running  into  the  Kyle  of 
Sutherland,  which  produces  early  salmon.  We  reply  by 
denying  the  premise.  The  Shin  may  be  a  rather  better 
early  salmon  river  than  the  Oykel,  but  it  is  not  an  earlier 
river.  The  opening  day  always  finds  clean  fish  in  the 
Oykel,  and,  this  year,  from  one  bank,  the  Oykel  yielded 
thirteen  fish  in  March.  Last  year  the  yield  of  one  bank 
of  the  Oykel  in  April  was  twenty-three  fish  ;  both  banks 
of  the  Shin  yielding  thirty  fish.  Twenty  fish  in  March 
would  be  a  good  yield  for  the  Shin. 

But  to  come  back  to  the  question,  What  causes  a  river 
to  be  early  .^  Certainly  it  is  not  the  absolute  temperature 
of  the  river.  On  the  north  and  east  of  Scotland  the 
rivers  are  early,  on  the  west  coast  they  are  late.  The 
temperature  of  the  rivers  on  the  west  is  higher  than  that 
of  the  rivers  on  the  north  and  east.  Contrast  the  rivers 
Oykel  and  Inver.  The  former  rises  in  the  eastern  slopes 
of  Ben  More  in  Assynt,  and  is  fed  in  March  and  April  by 
the  melted  snows.  It  has  not  any  big  lock  as  a  reservoir, 
and  in  March  is  often  frozen  over.  The  Inver  runs  out 
of  Loch  Assynt  at  the  western  foot  of  Ben  More.  Little 
snow  lies  on  the  western  side  of  the  hill,  and  Loch  Assynt 
is  large  and  deep.  The  water  of  the  I  nver  is  higher  in 
temperature  than  the  water  of  the  Oykel.  The  rivers  lie 
opposite  to  one  another  in  Sutherlandshire  ;  the  Oykel, 
icy  cold  in  the  spring,  running  east ;  the  Inver,  much 
warmer,  running  west.  The  cold  river  is  an  early  river  ;. 
the  warm  river  is  late.  Major  Traherne  is  therefore  wrong 
when  he  says  that  the  high  temperature  of  a  river  makes 
it  early.  We  say  that  the  relative  temperature  of  the 
river  to  the  sea  into  which  it  empties  itself  determines 
the  run  of  the  salmon.  If  the  temperature  of  the  river 
closely  approximates  to  the  temperature  of  the  sea  the 
fish  will  run,  no  matter  how  cold  both  river  and  sea  may 
be.  On  the  west  coast  the  sea  is  so  warmed  by  the  Gulf 
Stream  that  the  rivers  on  that  coast,  although  positively 
warmer  than  on  the  east  coast,  are,  relatively  to  the  sea, 
colder,  and  they  are  accordingly  late  rivers. 

The  relative  temperature  of  the  air  and  the  water  has 
a  great  effect,  too,  upon  the  feeding  of  the  salmon. 
Major  Traherne  says  :  "  I  never  expect  to  meet  with  a 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


7':> 


blank  day  in  the  coldest  weather,  if  I  know  there  are  fish 
in  the  river."  A  cold  mist  coming  on  will  always  prevent 
fish  from  rising.  On  a  fine  .April  day,  when  the  sun  is 
bringing  down  snow  water,  the  time  to  take  fish  is  after 
the  sun  has  warmed  the  river,  but  before  the  snow  melted 
by  the  sun  about  the  sources  of  the  river  has  had  time  to 
run  down  and  chill  the  water.  In  both  cases  it  is  a 
question  of  the  relative  temperature  of  the  air  to  the 
water. 

"  Do  salmon  feed  in  fresh  water }  '  is  one  of  the 
questions  the  author  asks.  He  answers  it  in  the  affirma- 
tive, as  he  cannot  believe  that  fish  rush  at  spinning  baits, 
eat  prawns,  and  chew  up  a  bunch  of  lob-worms  simply  to 
gratify  the  angler's  love  of  sport.  It  is  difficult,  indeed, 
to  understand  how  the  theory  of  salmon  living  for  months 
in  fresh  water  "  on  his  own  fat,  which  has  been  accumu- 
lated while  feeding  in  salt  water" — as  Dr.  Francis  Day 
puts  it — could  have  been  accepted  by  him,  or  by  the  late 
Frank  Buckland.  Why  are  good  salmon  rivers  bad 
brown  trout  rivers  ?  Simply  because  the  salmon  feed  on 
the  trout. 

The  question  of  close  time  Major  Traherne  says  "  is  the 
key  to  the  situation  ;  in  other  words,  to  the  adjustment  of 
the  various  claims  of  netting  proprietors  and  anglers,  as 
the  prosperity  of  our  salmon  fisheries,  and  the  increase  or 
decrease  of  a  most  valuable  article  of  food  depends  in 
great  measure  upon  the  periods  fixed  to  suit  each  river." 
This  means  that  the  proper  adjustment  of  close  time  to 
«ach  river  will  divide  the  clean  fish  fairly  between  the 
upper  and  lower  proprietors,  and  will  also  provide 
abundant  spawning  fish  to  fill  the  beds  upon  the  upper 
waters.  At  present  the  weekly  close  time  in  England 
and  Scotland,  extending  from  6  p.m.  on  Saturday  to 
6  a.m.  on  Monday,  is  too  short  to  enable  fish  to  run  past 
all  the  nets  on  many  of  our  rivers  ;  the  upper  nets 
sweeping  in  on  Monday  morning  most  of  the  fish  that  left 
the  salt  water  on  Saturday  night.  Again,  the  rod  fishing 
is  kept  open  too  late.  We  have  constantly  seen  gravid 
fish  taken  in  October,  out  of  which  the  eggs  or  milt  ran 
when  the  fish  were  landed — fish  that  were  neither  able  to 
fight,  nor  fit  for  food.  Late  in  the  season  the  gravid  fish 
will  take  any  bait  as  voraciously  as  the  kelts  in  early 
spring,  and  the  angler  is  able  to  state  that  he  killed  his 
six  or  eight  heavy  fish  a  day.  After  being  kippered  they 
are  just  eatable,  and  that  is  the  best  that  can  be  said  for 
them.  On  the  other  hand,  with  each  of  the  female  fish — 
and  most  of  the  fish  killed  at  the  end  of  the  season  are 
hen  fish — perish  some  20,000  eggs  fully  developed.  All 
that  Major  Traherne  says  about  the  weekly  close  time,  as 
well  as  about  the  closing  of  the  fishing  in  the  autumn, 
deserves  careful  consideration. 


AN  ELEMENTAR  V  TEXT-BOOK  OF  GEOLOGY. 

An  Elementary  Text-book  of  Geology.     By  W.  Jerome 

Harrison,  F.G.S.     (London  :  Blackie  and  Son,  1889.) 

IT  is  well  known  that  there  are  certain  things,  which, 
like  reading  and  writing,  come  by  nature,  such  as 
the  driving  of  a  gig,  and  the  management  of  a  small 
farm.  Taese  every  man  can  do.  And  till  lately  it 
seems  to  have  been  very  generally  held,  that,  when  a  man 
or  woma  1  had  shown  by  repeated  failure  that  he  or  she 


was  hopelessly  incompetent  to  earn  bread  in  any  other 
way,  there  was  nothing  to  forbid  him  or  her  from  opening 
a  school  for  small  children  :  the  laying  of  the  foundations 
of  an  education  was  such  a  simple  matter  that  it  was 
within  the  reach  of  everyone.  It  looks  also  as  if  the 
writing  of  an  elementary  text-book  on  a  scientific  sub- 
ject is  very  generally  held  to  be  an  equally  easy  task, 
at  least  the  bounteous  profusion  with  which  such  books 
are  showered  upon  us  would  appear  to  point  to  such  a 
conclusion.  But  anyone  who  has  tried  to  teach  or  to 
write  a  book  that  shall  be  used  for  teaching  purposes, 
knows  only  too  well  that  it  is  with  the  beginner  and  in  the 
elements  of  his  subject  that  the  real  difficulty  lies.  And 
besides  the  inevitable  obstacles  to  success  which  from  the 
nature  of  things  he  must  meet  with  here,  there  are  to  be 
taken  into  account  others  of  a  more  artificial  kind.  An 
elementary  text -book  must  be  cheap ;  neither  author 
nor  publisher  can  be  expected  to  be  wholly  indifferent 
to  profits,  and  only  cheap  books  pay  in  science  ;  but, 
setting  this  consideration  aside,  it  is  of  the  first  importance 
that  the  work  should  be  within  the  reach  of  the  largest 
number  possible  of  buyers.  Cheap,  and  therefore  small 
and  sparingly  illustrated.  So  here  arises  the  first  difficulty. 
What  to  leave  out  in  the  text  and  how  far  illustrations 
may  be  dispensed  with. 

Before  these  questions  can  be  answered,  the  author 
must  make  up  his  mind  what  end  he  proposes  the  book 
shall  be  made  to  compass.  For  there  are  two  most 
distinct  purposes  which  a  text-book  may  be  intended  to 
serve.  It  may  be  designed  to  educate  the  reader  ;  or  it 
may  be  put  together  in  order  to  help  him  to  get  through 
an  examination.  And  for  books  of  the  first  kind  there  are 
two  classes  of  readers  to  be  provided  for  :  some  will  never 
go  beyond  the  elements  of  the  subject  ;  for  others  the 
text-book  is  only  the  first  step  on  a  journey  which  will 
lead  them  on  through  all  the  details  and  ramifications  of 
its  subject.  But  the  needs  of  both  classes  are  at  the 
outset  very  much  the  same.  Both  want  a  basis,  broad 
and  flat  in  its  simplicity,  on  which  they  can  plant  their 
feet  firmly  ;  not  a  surface  so  rough  and  jagged  with 
complicated  details  that  they  are  bewildered  to  know 
where,  or  whether  anywhere,  a  secure  foothold  is  to  be 
found  on  it.  For  both  the  aim  of  the  book  must  be  to  give 
fibre  and  sinew  to  the  mind,  not  to  pack  into  it  a  mis- 
cellaneous assortment  of  useful  and  interesting  facts  ;  the 
mastery  of  the  book  must  involve  not  the  mere  exercise  of 
memory,  but  the  continuous  use  of  observation  and  the 
logical  faculty. 

In  every  branch  of  science  there  are  certain  parts  which 
are  eminently  fitted  to  serve  these  ends,  and  other  parts 
which  will  most  effectually  defeat  them  if  introduced  into 
an  elementary  work.  Now,  in  the  Presidential  address  to 
the  British  Association  at  the  recent  meeting  at  Newcastle 
the  objects  which  ought  to  be  exhibited  in  a  Museum 
intended  for  popular  instruction  were  most  lucidly  marked 
off  from  those  that  ought  not:  an  almost  identical  clas- 
sification will  divide  those  parts  of  a  scientific  subject 
which  ought  to  find  a  place  in  an  elementary  text-book 
from  those  that  ought  not.  In  the  same  address  an 
emphatic  warning  was  given  against  overcrowding  the 
cases.  Equally  must  the  writer  of  a  text  book  be  on  his 
guard  against  congested  sentences  or  chapters. 

Here,  as  in  all  education,  the  course  of  instruction,  if  it 


;6 


NATURE 


{Nov.  28,  1889 


is  to  be  of  any  value  for  mental  discipline,  must  lead  up 
from  the  simple  to  the  complex,  from  the  particular  and 
concrete  to  the  general  and  abstract.  To  start  with  the 
nebular  hypothesis  in  geology  may  claim  to  be  taking 
things  in  their  historical  order,  but  is  like  giving  meat  to 
a  baby  of  three  months  old.  To  lay  before  the  beginner 
a  familiar  object  such  as  a  lump  of  sandstone  or  lime- 
stone ;  to  show  him  how  to  pull  it  to  pieces  and  find  what 
it  is  made  of ;  to  give  him  reasons  for  the  belief  that  it  has 
not  existed  from  the  beginning  of  all  things,  but  is  a 
naturally  manufactured  product;  to  drive  him  to  rummage 
brook,  river,  pond,  and  sea,  the  whole  field  of  outdoor 
nature,  in  hopes  of  finding  some  similar  product  now  in 
process  of  manufacture, — some  such  treatment  as  this  at 
the  outset  would  seem  to  be  the  way  to  lead  a  beginner  on 
to  use  his  hands,  his  eyes,  and  his  reasoning  faculties — in 
a  word,  to  educate  him.  And  at  this  stage  only  well 
ascertained  facts,  and  conclusions  on  the  soundness  of 
which  no  doubt  can  be  thrown,  ought  to  be  introduced ; 
incomplete  observations  and  experiments,  inferences  which 
are  no  more  than  likely,  all  provisional  and  speculative 
hypotheses,  and  all  controversial  matters,  ought  to  be 
kept  carefully  in  the  background.  We  do  not  trust  a 
youngster  among  quicksands  and  shaking  bogs  till  much 
walking  over  sound  ground  has  given  him  sturdy  legs, 
sure  feet,  a  quick  eye,  and  sound  judgment.  There  is  a 
bit  of  advice  given  in  the  preface  to  the  book  now  before 
us,  which  is  not  likely  to  do  much  harm  because  it 
certainly  will  not  be  followed  by  those  for  whom  the  book 
is  written  ;  but  one  shudders  to  think  of  the  mental  chaos 
that  would  result  from  reading  every  book  or  article  on 
geology  which  can  be  bought  or  borrowed,  the  contro- 
versy on  the  Taconic  System  included.  To  encourage  so 
omnivorous  an  appetite  is  not  according  to  knowledge. 

The  limits  of  an  article  will  not  allow  of  more  than  the 
fringe  of  the  subject  being  just  touched  upon  ;  but  enough 
has  been  said  to  show  what  seem  to  be  the  things  to  be 
striven  after  and  the  things  to  be  avoided  in  a  book  on 
elementary  science  which  aims  to  educate  its  readers. 

The  other  kind  of  text-book  is  necessarily  constructed 
on  a  totally  different  principle.  The  author's  aim  is  to 
satisfy  the  requirements  of  a  syllabus  or  code  ;  lucky  it  is 
if  he  is  a  slave  to  only  one,  and  does  not  vainly  struggle 
to  meet  the  demands  of  many.  The  reader  must  be 
fortified  against  every  possible  form  of  question  which  the 
ingenuity  of  the  examiner  can  devise  without  going  out- 
side the  prescribed  limits ;  and  as  that  ingenuity  is 
boundless,  the  number  of  such  questions  must  be  legion. 
Hence  arises  the  necessity  of  packing  into  a  small  com- 
pass an  endless  variety  of  subjects,  with  the  result  that 
only  a  few  words  can  be  spared  for  each.  Each  also, 
instead  of  standing  out  crisp  and  sharp  with  an  appro- 
priate heading  to  call  attention  to  it  and  emphasize  its 
importance,  shares  with  two  or  three  others,  with  which  it 
may  have  only  a  remote  connection,  the  cramped  quarters 
of  a  single  sentence.  What  a  risk  there  must  be  in  such 
a  case  that  matters  of  great  moment  may  be  passed  by 
unheeded  !  Even  in  a  crowd  we  may  stumble  on  inter- 
esting folk,  but  it  is  not  in  a  crowd  that  intimate  acquain- 
tance or  lasting  friendships  usually  begin. 

There  is  another  evil  in  books  of  this  kind  ;  they  foster 
the  dangerous  belief  that  there  are  short  cuts  to  learning— 
a  notion  welcome  enough  in  this  age  of  hurry  and  unrest, 


when  everything  is  to  be  done  quickly,  well  also  if  you 
can,  but  quickly  at  any  cost. 

An  amusing  illustration  of  the  educational  value  of  the 
ordinary  text-book  may  perhaps  be  allowed  a  place  here.  A 
girl,  sharp  enough  to  be  worth  taking  pains  with,  came  to 
me  for  assistance  in  the  preparation  for  her  examination. 
She  was  happy  in  the  possession  of  a  text-book  which 
professed  to  give  all  the  information  which  her  syllabus 
required  on  I  know  not  how  many  branches  of  science. 
She  was  just  beginning  the  section  on  chemistry  and  was 
much  exercised  as  to  the  meaning  of  chemical  symbols. 
I  was  able  to  remove  her  difficulties,  and  to  send  her  away 
hopeful  that  further  progress  would  be  easy  and  rapid. 
The  latter  it  certainly  was,  for  at  the  end  of  a  week  she 
came  again  with  a  beaming  face ;  she  had  finished 
chemistry,  and  made  some  way  in  meteorology,  I  natur- 
ally demurred  to  her  getting  her  geology  in  this  fashion, 
and  substituted  for  the  geological  section  of  her  book  a 
well-known  primer.  She  repaid  me  and  showed  her 
appreciation  of  what  scientific  writing  ought  to  be,  by 
declaring  that  this  was  as  good  as  a  story-book. 

But  it  would  not  be  fair  to  take  the  precious  compendium 
from  which,  but  for  a  lucky  accident,  this  girl  would  have 
derived  all  her  knowledge  of  science,  as  a  fair  sample  of 
the  average  text-book.  On  many  even  of  the  second 
class  it  is  possible  to  look  with  qualified  satisfaction,  and, 
though  the  work  before  us  must  be  placed  in  this  class, 
it  is  good  of  its  kind.  There  is  life  and  spirit  in  it,  and 
here  and  there  its  points  are  happily  put.  No  one  who 
reads  it  attentively  can  fail  to  get  from  it  information 
which  not  only  will  be  serviceable  in  examinations,  but 
may  be  used  as  a  stepping-stone  to  further  progress  in  its 
subject.  But  I  should  like  to  call  the  attention  of  the 
author  to  a  few  points  in  which  there  seems  to  be  room 
for  improvement. 

The  exigencies  of  space  demand  that  there  should  be  no 
repetition  in  a  book  of  this  kind.  But  there  is  more  than 
one  case  in  which  our  author  says  over  again  what  has  been 
already  said  on  a  previous  page.  For  instance,  on  pp.  71 
and  72  we  have  much  that  has  been  previously  given  in 
chapter  ii.  The  amount  of  dissolved  matter  in  the  Thames 
is  stated  twice  over,  on  p.  1 1  and  again  on  p.  73.  Other 
cases  might  be  quoted.  The  general  arrangement  of 
chapter  viii.  does  not  seem  to  be  commendable  :  it  is  hard 
to  see  why  such  simple  matters  as  ripple-marks,  rain- 
pittings,  and  sun-cracks  should  come  after  the  more  com- 
plicated structures  of  foliation  and  faulting ;  what  would 
seem  the  natural  arrangement,  of  beginning  with  the 
simple,  is  absolutely  reversed.  The  term  current-bedding 
is  used  and  partially  explained  on  p.  22,  but  we  do  not 
find  a  full  definition  till  p.  45. 

A  few  cases  of  incomplete  information  and  even  of 
looseness  of  statement  may  be  noted.  In  speaking  of  the 
consolidation  of  sediment  by  pressure,  only  the  weight  of 
the  overlying  rock  is  mentioned  on  p.  18.  Whether  glaciers 
move  solely  by  the  force  of  gravity,  as  is  implied  on  p.  76, 
is  to  say  the  least  a  moot  point.  The  description  of 
fire-clay  as  "  a  fairly  pure  variety  of  clay,  contmmng  but 
little  water j''  can  hardly  be  said  either  to  be  accurate  or 
complete.  Marl  is  not  clay  mixed  with  li?ne.  It  is 
surprising  to  find  among  so  many  really  good  illustrations 
the  time-honoured  section  across  the  Jura  on  p.  42,  which 
only  deserves  to  be  preserved  as  about  the  most  successful 


Nm).  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


effort  that  was  ever  made  to  represent  things  as  they 
are  not.  The  two  paragraphs  on  contorted  strata  and 
inverted  strata  which  follow  are  instances  of  the  congestion 
which  is  unavoidable  in  text-books  of  the  second  class. 
It  is  impossible  in  so  small  a  space  to  give  the  pro- 
minence which  it  deserves  to  the  conception  of  horizontal 
thrust  and  compression,  and  very  few  readers  would 
realize,  from  the  few  words  devoted  to  them,  the  sur- 
prising character  of  the  thrust-planes  of  the  Scotch 
Highlands.  It  is  scarcely  fair  to  magnetite  to  say  that  it 
S07netiines  exhibits  magnetic  properties,  and  ferrous 
carbonate  does  not  give  a  green,  blue,  grey,  or  purple 
colour  to  rocks  (p.  70).  One  and  only  one  more  objec- 
tion will  I  urge.  There  is  a  lamentable  absence  of 
geological  sections.  No  verbal  descriptions  will  suffice 
to  convey  to  anyone,  let  alone  a  beginner,  clear  notions  of 
the  geological  structure  of  a  country  without  illustrative 
sections.  The  reader  of  the  present  work  will  gather 
from  it  the  parts  of  the  country  in  which  the  various 
formations  are  seeji  at  the  surface,  but  he  will  come  away 
with  very  few  notions  as  to  the  lie  of  the  rocks.  I 
cannot  help  feeling  that  the  "imaginary  scenes"  during 
the  several  geological  epochs  might  be  usefully  replaced 
by  a  set  of  geological  sections. 

A.  H.  Green. 


THE  FLORA  OF  DERBYSHIRE. 

A  Contribution  to  the  Flora  of  Derbyshire ;  being  an 
Account  of  the  Flowering  Plants,  Fertis,  ajid  Characecc 
found  in  the  County.  By  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Painter. 
8vo,  pp.  156,  with  a  Map.  (London  :  George  Bell  and 
Sons,  1889.) 

DERBYSHIRE  is  much  the  most  interesting  of  our 
midland  counties  from  a  botanical  and  physico-geo- 
graphical  point  of  view.  Geographical  botanists,  following 
Watson,  divide  the  surface  of  Britain  into  two  regions  of 
climate — a  lower  or  agrarian  region,  in  which  the  cultiva- 
tion of  cereals  and  the  potato  is  practicable,  so  far  as 
climate  is  concerned  ;  and  an  upper  or  Arctic  region,  in 
which  no  cultivation  is  possible.  The  agrarian  region  is 
divided  into  three  zones,  and  whilst  in  Surrey,  Hamp- 
shire, Wiltshire,  and  Kent,  only  one  of  these  three  zones 
is  represented,  in  Derbyshire,  Shropshire,  and  Cheshire, 
we  get  all  three  of  them,  and  a  greater  area  of  super- 
agrarian  zone  in  Derbyshire  than  in  any  other  midland 
county.  The  plants  of  Britain,  botanical  geographers 
divide  into  two  principal  groups — the  southern  types, 
which  have  their  head-quarters  in  Central  Europe,  and 
the  boreal  types,  which  have  their  head-quarters  in 
Northern  Europe,  and  grow  only  upon  high  mountains 
further  south.  The  southern  types  are  to  the  northern  as 
six  to  one — about  1200  species  against  200  ;  tit  less  than 
50  species  reach  the  midland  counties.  In  Derbyshire  we 
get  a  declination  of  surface  from  mountains  nearly  2000 
feet  high  down  to  a  low  level,  so  that  it  shows  better  than 
any  other  county  how,  in  the  centre  of  England,  the 
boreal  and  austral  elements  of  the  flora  meet  and  mingle 
together. 

The  whole  area  of  the  county  is  a  little  over  a  thousand 
square  miles— about  one-sixth  that  of  Yorkshire.  The 
Pennine  chain,  the  backbone  mountain-ridge  of  the  north 
of  England,  extends  for  some  distance  into  Derbyshire 


forming  the  watershed  between  the  streams  that  flow  into 
the  German  Ocean  and  the  Irish  Channel.  We  may 
divide  the  county  into  two  unequal  halves  by  a  line  that 
runs  across  it  from  west  to  east,  from  Ashbourne  to  Duffield. 
South  of  this  line,  with  Derby  in  its  centre,  is  a  level 
tract  underlaid,  by  new  red  sandstone,  with  a  flora  like 
that  of  Leicestershire,  Nottinghamshire,  and  Warwick- 
shire. North  of  this  line,  all  the  rocks  are  Palaeozoic,  and 
the  level  gradually  rises.  The  Carboniferous  limestone 
occupies  the  lower  levels  about  Castleton,  Matlock,  and 
Buxton.  This  is  much  the  most  interesting  part  of  the 
county,  and  the  best  known  to  strangers,  the  region  of 
lead  mines,  caverns,  and  romantic  narrow  dales,  girdled 
by  high  cliffs  of  limestone :  Miller's  Dale,  Monsal  Dale> 
Ashwood  Dale,  Chee  Tor,  Chatsworth,  Haddon  Hall, 
are  all  familiar  names  aUke  to  botanists  and  lovers  of 
fine  scenery ;  and  Dovedale,  Bakewell,  and  Rowsley  are 
classic  ground  to  anglers.  The  market-place  at  Buxton 
is  over  1000  feet  above  sea-level,  so  that  Buxton  is  on 
a  par,  so  far  as  plants  go,  with  Dundee  or  Aberdeen. 
The  heights  of  Abraham,  over  Matlock,  are  about  the 
same  height  above  sea-level  as  the  town  of  Buxton. 
About  Castleton  and  Buxton  the  limestone  reaches  a 
height  of  400  or  450  yards,  and  with  it  many  plants  of 
the  lowlands  ;  for  instance,  Epilobiuin  hirsututn,  Galium 
cruciatuni,  G.  7'eruin,  Lamiuiii  picrpurewn,  and  L 
inctsttvi,  reach  a  higher  level  than  anywhere  else  in  the 
country.  On  the  whole,  the  botany  of  the  Derbyshire 
limestone  tract  is  most  like  that  of  Ribblesdale,  Aire- 
dale, and  Wensleydale.  Above  the  limestone  in  the 
Peak  country,  and  around  Buxton  and  Castleton,  there  is 
a  considerable  thickness  of  shale  and  millstone  grit.  The 
flora  of  these  higher  levels  is  poor  and  monotonous,  but 
we  get  the  cloudberry  {Rubus  Chamamorus)  on  Axe-edge, 
the  bearberry  {Arctost.iphylos  Uva-ursi)  on  the  moors 
round  the  head  of  the  Derwent,  and  the  whortleberry 
{Vaccinium  Vitis-idced)  in  several  places  about  Buxton  and 
Glossop.  East  of  all  these  is  an  area  of  coal- measure 
country,  the  flora  of  which  seems  to  be  very  poor,  and  to 
resemble  that  of  the  country  round  Huddersfield,  Shef- 
field, and  Halifax. 

Mr.  Bagnall  has  already  shown,  in  the  Journal  of 
Botany,  that  Mr.  Painter's  numerical  analysis,  on  p.  4 
of  the  "  Derbyshire  Plants,"  classed  under  their  types  of 
distribution,  needs  material  revision.  Out  of  532  plants 
universal  in  Britain,  j\Ir.  Bagnall's  estimate,  founded  on 
Mr.  Painter's  detailed  list  of  species,  is  486  species  for 
Derbyshire.  In  all  probability,  most  of  the  other  46 
species  will  be  found  if  they  are  carefully  sought  ;  but, 
of  the  599  species  which  represent  the  characteristic- 
ally southern  element  in  the  British  flora,  there  are  238 
species  in  Derbyshire,  or  less  than  half  I  cannot  under- 
stand why  the  figure  of  the  Germanic,  or  characteristic- 
ally south-eastern  plants,  which  is  127  for  Britain  as  a 
whole,  38  for  North  Yorkshire,  26  for  Northumberland 
and  Durham,  should  be  as  low  as  14  for  Derbyshire. 
Out  of  201  boreal  British  species,  there  are  39  in  Derby- 
shire against  104  for  the  Lakes,  93  for  Northumberland 
and  Durham,  and  76  for  North  Yorkshire.  What  Watson 
called  the  intermediate  type,  is  a  very  interesting  group  ; 
they  are  concentrated  in  the  north  of  England,  and  I 
suspect  that  the  principal  reason  of  this  is,  that  they  are 
Montane  plants  with  a  preference  for  limestone.     The 


NA  TURE 


[Nov.  28,  1889 


comparative  figures  are :  37  species  for  Britain  as  a 
whole,  33  for  North  Yorkshire,  21  for  the  Lakes,  21  for 
Northumberland  and  Durham,  and  16  for  Derbyshire. 
The  total  number  of  Derbyshire  plants  is  782  species  out 
of  1425  recorded  for  the  whole  of  Britain. 

Mr.  Painter's  note  (pp.  5-10)  on  the  bibliography  of 
the  botany  of  Derbyshire  is  full  and  satisfactory.  Un- 
fortunately, many  of  the  early  records  contained  in 
Pilkington's  "Derbyshire,"  and  copied  into  the  old 
"Botanist's  Guide,"  are  evidently  inaccurate.  But  a 
great  many  trustworthy  records,  which  stand  on  the  per- 
sonal authority  of  Mr.  H.  C.  Watson  and  Mr.  J.  E.  Bowman, 
are  contained  in  the  "  New  Botanist's  Guide,"  of  which 
Mr.  Painter  seldom  takes  notice.  The  curious  Achillea 
serrafa,  a  plant  not  known  anywhere  in  a  wild  state, 
which  Sir  J.  E.  Smith  describes  and  figures,  in  "  English 
Botany,"  from  the  neighbourhood  of  [Matlock,  he  does 
not  mention  at  all. 

As  Mr.  Painter  explains  in  his  preface  and  indicates 
in  his  title,  his  work  is  not  put  forward  as  a  complete 
record  of  the  flora  of  the  county.  It  is  not  likely  that  much 
that  is  new  will  be  found  in  the  limestone  tract  and  on  the 
gritstone  moors,  but  the  exploration  of  the  coal  tract  and 
level  new  red  sandstone  country  is  still  very  incom- 
plete. A  full  and  adequate  flora  of  a  county  so  inter- 
esting would  be  a  very  acceptable  contribution  to  the 
literature  of  botanical  geography.  J.  G.  B. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Science   of  Evcry-day  Life.      By   J.    A.    Bower,    F.C.S. 
(London:  Cassell  and  Co.,  18S9.) 

We  have  here  another  attempt  to  simplify  the  acquire- 
ment of  a  knowledge  of  some  of  the  elementary  facts  of 
science,  but  though  there  is  much  to  be  commended, 
some  points  certainly  require  revision.  With  reference 
to  the  well-known  experiment  in  which  bits  of  straw, 
wood,  or  cork  come  together  when  thrown  into  a  basin  of 
water  (p.  22),  the  author  has  fallen  into  the  common  error 
of  ascribing  the  effect  to  gravitation  instead  of  to  surface- 
tension.  If  a  few  wax-lights  or  other  things  not  wetted  by 
water  be  added,  it  will  be  found  that  a  substance  which  is 
not  wetted  is  repelled  by  a  substance  which  is,  and  that 
only  "birds  of  a  feather  flock  together."  Again,  with 
young  students,  loose  or  incomplete  statements  cannot  be 
too  carefully  guarded  against ;  the  statement  on  p.  59  that 
15  pounds  or  30  inches  of  mercury  is  "  equal  to  a  square 
inch  column  of  air  to  whatever  height  it  may  extend  "  is 
of  this  clas?. 

The  book  is  apparently  intended  more  especially  for 
the  young  people's  section  of  the  National  Home-Reading 
Union,  but  it  is  hardly  likely  that  many  of  the  branches 
will  be  furnished  with  the  necessary  apparatus  for  the 
experiments.  The  ground  covered  includes  the  pro- 
perties of  matter,  and  the  physics  and  chemistry  of  air 
and  water. 

Eleirientary    Physics.      By   M.    R.    Wright.      (London : 
Longmans,  Green,  and  Co.,  J889.) 

In  this  book  Mr.  Wright  has  added  to  the  more 
elementary  part  of  his  work  on  sound,  light,  and  heat, 
the  leading  facts  of  other  branches  of  physics,  so  as  to 
form  a  general  introduction  to  physical  science.  The 
subject  is  an  essentially  experimental  one,  and  the  author 
having  learned  by  experience  that  a  study  of  facts  is  the 


first  duty  of  beginners,  very  little  space  is  given  to- 
theoretical  considerations.  There  is  very  little  that  is 
new,  and  indeed  it  is  hardly  to  be  expected.  Most  of  the 
experiments  are  clearly  described  and  are  capable  of  easy 
performance,  but  one  or  two  improvements  may  be 
suggested.  On  p.  4  the  student  is  told  to  "cut  a  hole  in 
an  iron  plate  so  that  a  flask  filled  with  cold  water  just 
passes,"  an  operation  beyond  most  students,  and  we  see 
no  reason  why  a  piece  of  card  should  not  do  equally  well. 
Again,  on  p.  6,  the  making  of  a  thermometer  is  hardly 
sufficiently  detailed  ;  having  made  a  bulb  at  one  end  of 
the  tube,  the  student  is  simply  told  to  make  one  at  the 
other  end,  but  he  will  certainly  not  see  his  way  to  do 
this  without  further  assistance.  There  are  no  less  than 
242  diagrams,  but,  needless  to  say,  most  of  them  have 
done  good  service  before. 

The  book  is  excellently  adapted  for  such  a  course  of 
instruction  as  that  laid  down  in  the  syllabus  of  alternative 
physics  by  the  Science  and  Art  Department. 

Teacher's  Manual  of  Geography.  By  J.  W.  Redvva\'. 
(Boston,  U.S.  :  D.  C.  Heath  and  Co.,  1889.) 

We  have  of  late  heard  a  good  deal  on  the  subject  of  how 
geography  should  be  taught,  but  now  we  find  an  author 
who  believes  "  that  less  energy  devoted  to  improvement  of 
methods,  and  a  little  more  to  the  quality  of  the  material 
taught,  would  not  be  amiss."  The  authoi's  view  of  the 
scope  of  geography  is  much  broader  than  that  generally 
accepted,  and,  in  this  country  at  least,  the  title  "  physical 
geography"  would  be  regarded  as  more  appropriate. 

The  first  part  of  the  book  consists  of  ''  hints  to  teachers," 
and  very  valuable  hints  they  are.  Oral  instruction  and 
out-of-door  lessons  are  strongly  recommended,  and  the 
author  attempts  to  make  the  subject  a  practical  one  by 
suggestions  as  to  the  use  of  the  moulding  board  for 
representing  the  variors  features  of  a  country.  The  free 
use  of  pictures  and  instructive  stories  from  authentic 
books  of  travel,  especially  with  piimary  pupils,  is  also 
recommended. 

In  the  second  part,  common  errors,  such  as  the 
assertion  that  "lakes  which  have  no  outlet  are  salt,"  are 
corrected.  There  is  also  an  interesting  chapter  on  the 
history  of  geographical  names.  The  book  is  quite  unique, 
and  teachers  will  find  much  to  interest  as  well  as  instruct 
them. 

Notes  on  the  Pinks  oj  Western  Europe.  By  F.  N. 
Williams,  F.L.S.j;;^_Pp.  47.  (London:  West,  Newman, 
and  Co,  1889.) 

Last  week  we  noticed  Mr.  Williams's  classified  enu- 
meration of  all  the  known  species  of  Dianthus.  In 
the  present  pamphlet  he  gives  Latin  descriptions  of,  and 
English  notes  upon,  the  species  of  Western  Europe. 
Out  of  a  total  of  upwards  of  200  species,  there 
are  altogether  55  in  Western  Europe,  which  are  dis- 
tributed through  the  different  countries  as  follows,  viz. 
43  in  Spain,  33  in  France,  13  in  Portugal,  7  in 
Germany,  5  each  in  Belgium  and  Holland,  and  4  in 
England.  His  descriptions  seem  to  be  clear  and  explicit,^ 
and  he  has  worked  out  carefully  the  geographical  range  of 
each  speci-~,  but  he  does  not  give  references  either  to 
published  1  gures,  or,  with  few  exceptions,  to  the  books 
and  papers  in  which  the  plants  have  been  originally 
described.  As  a  rule,  he  admits  species  freely,  but  he 
unites  the  common  European  Dianthus  Segiiieri  with  the 
Chinese  and  Japanese  D.  sinefisis,  which  is  the  parent  of 
many  cultivated  forms.  This  gives  the  species  a  range 
from  Portugal  to  Japan.  Many  of  the  West  Europeaii 
forms  are  so  puzzling,  and  the  descriptions  are  so  widely 
scattered,  that  it  will  be  a  boon  both  to  botanists  and 
gardeners  to  have  them  all  brought  together  and  worked 
out  on  one  uniform  plan. 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


79 


linerican  Resorts ^  with  Notes  upon  their  Climate.  By 
Bushrod  W.  James,  AM.,  M.D.  (Philadelphia  and 
London:  F.  A.  Davis,  1889.)  | 

Whoever  imagines,  from  the  imposing  exterior  of  this 
volume,  that    he  will  find  much  information  within  its  j 
•covers  on    American    health-resorts,  is  doomed  to  dis- 
appointment.    In  most  cases  he  will  be  as  well  or  better  | 
■off  if  he  consults  a  good  gazetteer  or  geographical  diction-  | 
ary.     It  is  true  it  contains  a  translation  of  some  chapters  j 
of  Dr.  Woeikof 's  "  Die  Klimate  der  Erde  "  ;  indeed,  this 
forms   more   than   one-third  of  the  volume— a  singular 
method  of  producing  an  "  original "  work. 

This  translation  no  doubt  contains  a  great  deal  of  tech- 
nical detail,  but  there  is  extremely  little  in  it  to  help  the 
ordinary  inquirer  to  select  a  suitable  winter  or  summer  re- 
sort. If  a  possessor  of  this  volume  desired  to  obtain,  for  in- 
stance, some  accurate  and  detailed  information  as  to  the 
climate  of  Southern  California  and  its  principal  resorts,  he 
would  find  the  whole  of  this  important  region  disposed  of  in 
less  than  four  pages  ;  while  one  of  its  most  rising  resorts, 
Santa  Barbara,  is  disposed  of  with  fourteen  lines  at 
p.  52,  and  exactly  the  same  number  of  lines  at  p.  152  ; 
and  another,  Los  Angeles,  gets  less  than  ten  lines.  No 
references  to  meteorological  observations,  and  no  climato- 
logical  details  of  any  kind,  are  contained  in  these  extremely 
meagre  accounts.  In  other  parts  of  the  book,  seven  or 
eight  health-resorts  are  disposed  of  in  a  single  page  (pp. 
33>  37»  44)-  Less  than  three  pages  are  devoted  to  Florida 
and  all  its  resorts.  Again  no  meteorological  details  of 
any  kind.  Denver  is  disposed  of  in  eight  lines,  Colorado 
Springs  in  a  like  number,  and  Salt  Lake  City  in  two 
lines. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  deal  seriously  with  a  book 
put  together  in  this  fashion. 

Idylls  of  the  Field.     By  Francis'  A.  Knight.     (London  : 
Elliot  Stock,  1889.) 

With  the  papers  in  this  dainty  volume  readers  of  the 
Daily  News  are  already  familiar.  In  spirit  and  style 
they  closely  resemble  the  papers  included  in  the  same 
author's  "  By  Leafy  Ways."  Mr.  Knight  has  a  genuine 
love  for  the  poetic  aspects  of  Nature,  and  in  these 
■'•  Idylls,"  as  in  his  previous  book,  he  gives  many  a  vivid 
sketch  of  scenes  and  incidents  by  which  he  himself  has 
been  impressed.  The  text  is  illustrated  by  a  number  of 
photogravures  from  drawings  by  Mr.  E.  T.  Compton. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

(  Tkt  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  ^ 

A  New  Logical  Machine. 

As'i'RAXGE  little  instrument  has  been  sent  to  me  from  Auck- 
land, intended  to  illustrate  the  connection  between  the  mathe- 
matical laws  of  thought  and  the  laws  of  growth. 

The  machine  itself  is  simple,  and  consists  of  two  wheels  so 
arranged  that,  by  turning  a  horizontal  one,  a  perpendicular  one 
is  made  to  revolve.  The  axle  of  this  latter  projects  ;  and  on  it 
•can  be  fastened  a  piece  of  cardboard.  All  the  magic  is  in  the 
precise  forms  of  the  cards  sold  with  the  machine  ;  and  of  these 
I  must  now  speak. 

Mr.  Betts,  of  the  Government  Survey,  Auckland,  devised  a 
mode  of  stating  arithmetically  the  main  laws  of  thought.  (Me 
had  not  read  George  Boole's  book  ;  but  his  principle  is,  in  the 
main,  the  same  as  that  on  which  my  husband  worked.) 

Mr.  Betts  wished  to  make  diagrams  which  might  represent 
his  formulae  to  the  eye.  Having  arranged  his  scales,  he  proceeded 
to  draw  the  diagrams  ;  and  found,  to  his  surprise,  that  he  was 
<1  rawing  the  outlines  of  various  leaves.     These  leaf- forms  have 


been  seen  by  many  artists,  who  declare  that  they  are  not  con- 
ventionalizations but  true  simplificaiioiis  of  leaves  occurring  in 
Nature.  Mr.  Betts  next  cut  these  leaf  forms  out  in  white  card- 
board ;  cutting  slits  to  mark  the  growth  lioe^.  When  one  of 
these  cards  is  fastened  on  the  axle  of  his  machine,  and  whirled, 
bands  of  colour  appear,  which  differ  according  to  the  form  of  the 
leaf ;  but  the  preponderating  colour  is  greeti. 

When  Mr.  Betts  told  me  of  this  by  letter,  I  confcfs  I  hardly 
believed  his  account ;  but  he  has  now  sent  me  a  machine  an  1 
some  cardboard  leaves,  and  several  friends  have  seen  the 
colours. 

Although  I  understand  Mr.  Betts's  main  principle,  and  am  sure 
that  it  is  identical  with  my  husband's,  I  will  not  attempt  to 
explain  it,  my  object  being  to  induce  mathematicians  here  to  put 
themselves  in  communication  with  this  extraordinary  mathema- 
tical logician,  who,  not  knowing  the  calculus  of  Kewton,  has 
supplemented  his  deficiency  by  inventing  a  calculus  oi  form, 
which  is  so  far  like  in  principle  to  that  used  by  the  Creator,  as 
to  have  received  from  Nature  the  consecration  o{  colour. 

I  have,  of  course,  seen  the  colours  ;  but,  having  bad  sight,  I 
distrusted  my  own  impressions,  till  I  had  heard  many  persons, 
more  fortunate  than  myself  in  this  respect,  describe  what  they 
saw. 

The  address  is,  Benjamin  Betts,  Esq.,  Milton  Street,  Mount 
Eden,  Auckland,  N.Z.  M.\RY  BooLE. 

103  Seymour  Place,  Bryanston  Sqvtare. 


Lamarck  versus  Weismann. 

Mr.  Wallace's  note  with  "the  above  title  in  Nature 
(vol.  xl.  p.  619)  contains  an  illustration  of  a  kind  of  reasoning 
that  is  so  common  with  the  post-Darwinians  (I  know  of  no  other 
concise  expression  to  designate  this  class  of  thinkers)  that  I 
desire  to  call  attention  to  it.  His  remarks  are  apropos  of  the 
twist  in  the  skull  of  the  flat-fishes,  and  of  Dr.  Lankester's  com- 
ments on  the  explanation  of  its  origin  offered  in  his  book 
"Darwinism."  Mr.  Wallace  has,  as  it  appears  to  me  justly, 
ascribed  the  rotation  of  the  eye  of  these  fishes  to  the  "  trans- 
mission of  a  series  of  slight  shifiings  of  the  eye  acquired  in 
successive  generations  by  the  muscular  effort  of  the  ancestors  of 
our  present  flat-fish"  (Lankes'er,  in  Naiure,  vol.  xl.  p.  568). 
This,  observes  Lankester,  pointedly,  is  "flat  Lamarckism." 
Now  Mr.  Wallace  explains  that  he  has  added  the  following 
language,  which  he  thinks  negatives  the  explanation  cited  by 
Dr.  Lankester;  "those  usually  surviving  whose  eyes  retained 
more  and  more  of  the  position  into  which  the  young  fish  tried 
to  twist  them."  Mr.  Wallace  then  says  that  the  "survival  of 
favourable  variations  is  even  here  the  real  cause  at  work." 

In  the  three  sentences  cited  from  Mr.  Wallace,  we  have  the 
whole  question  at  issue  between  the  post- Darwinians  and  the 
neo-Lamarckians  in  a  nutshell.  We  have  stated  the  "  origin  of 
the  fittest "  and  its  probable  cause  ;  the  ' '  survival  of  the  fittest "  ; 
and  the  tton  sequitur  of  the  post-Da-winians  closely  following. 
I  point  expressly  to  the  words  of  Mr.  Wallace,  that  the  "  survival 
of  favourable  variations  is  even  here  the  real  cause  at  work,"  as 
containing  the  paralogism  (as  Kant  would  say)  which  constitutes 
the  error  of  post-Darwinian  reasoning.  That  survival  constitutes 
a  cause  is  clear  enough,  since  from  survivors  only,  the  succeeding 
generations  are  derived.  But  it  is  strange  that  it  does  not  seem 
equally  clear,  that  if  whatever  is  acquired  by  one  generation 
were  not  transmitted  to  the  next,  no  progress  in  the  evolution  of 
a  character  could  possibly  occur.  Each  generation  would  start 
exactly  where  the  preceding  one  did,  and  the  question  of  survival 
wotdd  never  arise,  for  there  would  be  nothing  to  call  out  the 
operations  of  the  law  of  natural  selection.  Selection  cannot  be 
the  cause  of  those  conditions  which  are  prior  to  selection  ;  in 
other  words,  a  selection  cannot  explain  the  origin  of  anything, 
although  it  can  and  does  explain  survival  of  something  already 
originated  ;  and  evolution  consists  in  the  origin  of  characters, 
as  well  as  of  their  survival. 

The  attempt  to  produce  variations  by  mutilations,  or  by  abrupt 
modifications  of  the  normal  condidons  of  plants  and  animals,  is 
not  likely  to  prove  successful,  as  it  has  evidently  not  been 
Nature's  way  of  evolving  characters,  although  some  well- 
authenticated  instances  of  such  inheritance  are  on  record.  And 
the  fact  that  we  have  not  as  yet  an  explanation  of  inheritance, 
may  be  applied  with  equal  force  against  any  and  all  theories  of 
evolution  that  have  been  entertained.  E.  D.  Cope. 

Philadelphia,  November  3, 


8o 


NATURE  /fi 


[Nov.  28,  1889 


Galls. 

In  his  suggestive  paper  on  Prof.  Weismann's  theory,  Mr. 
Mivart  says,  while  alluding  to  the  formation  of  galls,  "  It  would 
be  interesling  to  learn  how  natural  selection  could  have  caused 
this  plant  to  perform  actions  which,  if  not  self-sacrificing  (and 
there  must  be  gome  expenditure  of  energy),  are  at  least  so 
disinterested." 

Mr.  Mivart  here  strikes  what  has  always  appeared  to  me  one 
of  the  most  important  facts  in  organic  nature  with  reference  to 
the  theory  of  natural  selection.  I  have  always  so  considered  it, 
because  it  seems  to  me  the  one  and  only  case  in  the  whole  range 
of  organic  nature  where  it  can  be  truly  said  that  we  have  un- 
equivocal evidence  of  a  structure  occurring  in  one  species  for  the 
exclusive  benefit  of  another. 

INIoreover.  the  structure  is  here  a  highly  elaborate  one,  entail- 
ing not  only  a  drain  on  the  physiological  resources  of  the  plant 
(as  Mr.  Mivart  observes),  but  also  an  astonishing  amount  of 
morphological  specialisation.  Indeed,  the  latter  point  is  so 
astonishing,  that  when  we  study  the  number  and  variety  of  gall- 
formations  in  different  species  of  plants — all  severally  adapted  to 
the  needs  of  as  many  different  species  of  insects,  and  all  presenting 
more  or  less  elaborate  provisions  for  ministering  to  such  needs — 
it  becomes  idle  to  doubt  that,  ifsuch  cases  had  occurred  elsewhere 
and  with  any  frequency  in  organic  nature,  the  theory  of  natural 
selection  would  have  been  untenable,  at  all  events  as  a  general 
theory  of  adaptations  and  a  consequent  theory  of  species.  But 
seeing  that  the  case  of  galls  is  unique  in  the  relation  which  is  now 
before  us,  it  becomes  reasonable  to  attribute  the  formation  of 
galls  to  the  agency  of  natural  selection,  if  there  be  any  con- 
ceivable manner  in  which  such  agency  can  here  be  brought  to 
bear. 

Now,  although  it  is  obvious  that  natural  selection  cannot 
operate  upon  the  plants  directly,  so  as  to  cause  them  to  grow 
galls  for  the  benefit  of  insects,  I  think  it  is  quite  possible  to 
suppose  that  natural  selection  may  operate  to  this  end  on  the 
plants  indirectly  throiigk  the  insects,  viz.  by  always  selecting  those 
individual  larvae  the  character  of  whose  excitatory  emanations  is 
such  as  will  best  cause  the  plant  to  grow  the  kind  of  morpholo- 
gical abnormality  that  is  required. 

This  explanation  encoun'ers  difficulties  in  some  special  cases  of 
gall-formation,  which  I  will  not  here  occupy  space  by  detailing  ; 
but  as  it  is  the  explanation  given  in  a  course  of  lectures  which  1 
am  at  present  delivering  to  the  students  here,  I  should  like  to 
take  the  opportunity,  which  Mr.  Mivart's  paper  affords,  of  asking 
whether  anybody  else  has  a  better  explanation  to  offer. 

George  J.  Romanes. 

Edinburgh,  November  18. 


"  Modern  Views  of  Electricity." 

Your  reviewer  (p.  5)  takes  rather  high  ground  wherefrom  to 
criticize  a  confessedly  popular  and  expository  book  ;  and  some 
of  the  charges  of  vagueness — as,  for  instance,  that  I  do  not 
definitely  specify  the  velocity  with  which  electricity  travels  in  a 
given  current — strike  me  as  rather  out  of  place,  seeing  that  the 
same  charge  might  be  made  against  the.  treatise  of  Clerk- 
Maxwell.  A  want  of  definiteness  about  the  constitution  of  the 
ether  I  must  perforce  admit ;  and  I  can  hardly  be  surprised  at 
your  reviewer's  want  of  sympathy  with  my  struggles  to  convey 
to  non-mathematicians  some  idea  of  the  tendencies  of  modern 
inquiry,  when  I  find  that  he  thinks  it  "open  to  question  whether 
attention  has  not  of  late  years  been  too  much  diverted  from  the 
condition  of  the  charged  bodies  in  the  electric  field  to  that  of 
the  medium  separating  them." 

But  it  is  not  so  clear  how,  holding  this  view,  he  can  say  that 
the  tentative  theory  attempted  to  be  explained  by  me  "is  in  its 
most  important  features  almost  identical  with  the  old  two-fluid 
[action  at  a  di-tance]  theory  published  by  Symmer  in  1759"; 
nevertheless,  by  taking  a  few  statements  from  the  earlier  and  in- 
troductory portion  of  my  book,  and  caricaturing  them  a  little,  he 
does  manage  to  make  it  appear  as  if  the  so-called  "modern 
views"  were  merely  a  case  of  reversion  to  an  ancestral  type. 

However,  it  is  not  on  these  general  topics  that  I  break  a 
wholesome  rule  and  reply  to  a  review  :  it  is  because  I  am 
charged  with  four  or  five  definitely  misleading  statements,  and 
it  is  these  I  wish  to  either  withdraw  or  justify. 

First,  concerning  the  relation  between  the  Peltier  effect  and 
the  E.  M.F.  at  a  junction.  I  have  argued  this  matter  out  fully 
in  the  Philosophical  I\Iagazi nciox  March  1886,  p.  269,  and  have 


shown  that  the  only  "  further  assumption"  needed  is  this: — 
The  nteasitre  of  the  E.M.F.  at  any  section  of  a  circuit  is  the  work 
done  per  unit  electricity  conveyed  past  that  section,  or,  dlV  = 
QdE.  Until  this  is  disproved  I  regard  it  as  axiomatic  :  and,  so 
regarding  it,  I  hold  that  what  I  have  said  about  contact  E.M.F. 
is  true.  My  position  in  the  matter  is,  at  all  events,  perfectly 
clear  and  definite,  and  is  fully  explained  in  the  Philosophical 
Magazine  article  referred  to,  as  well  as  in  several  others  of  older 
date. 

Second,  as  regards  tourmaline.  I  certainly  did  not  intend  to 
explain  pyro-electricity  as  due  to  unilateral  conductivity  solely, 
but  perhaps  my  brief  statements  concerning  it  on  p.  122  might 
be  more  cautiously  worded  so  as  to  avoid  any  possible  mis- 
conception. 

Third,  the  "  dead-water  "  argument  against  electric  momentum 
(p.  103)  is  not  left  as  a  valid  proof  of  its  non-existence,  though  it 
is  introduced  as  at  first  sight  so  tending  ;  and  all  that  my  critic 
says  against  it  resolves  itself  into  a  question  of  degree. 

The  same  is  true  of  what  he  says  on  the  fourth  point,  concern- 
ing Fitzgerald  and  the  Kerr  effect  ;  and  his  assertion  that  Fitz- 
gerald's deductions  do  not  coincide  with  the  observations  of  Kerr 
and  Kundt  seems  to  me  to  convey  a  much  falser  impression  than 
my  nine-year-old  statement  (p.  323)  to  which  he  objects  :  "  Mr. 
Fitzgerald,  of  Dublin,  has  examined  the  question  mathematically, 
and  has  shown  that  Maxwell's  theory  would  have  enabled  Dr. 
Kerr's  result  to  be  predicted." 

Lastly,  my  suggested  possible  account  of  the  Thomson  effect 
(po.  117,  120,  295),  though  it  does  not  indeed  altogether  hold 
water  (as  both  Prof.  Everett  and  Prof.  J.  J.  Thomson  have 
kindly  pointed  out  to  me),  breaks  down  for  a  reason  entirely 
different  from  that  supposed  by  your  reviewer,  who  is  estimating  it 
only  from  his  own  caricature  of  an  ether  theory.  The  real  weak 
point  lies  in  forgetting  that  the  condition  required  is  unequal 
impulse,  not  simply  unequal  force. 

In  thus  replying  to  objections  raised,  I  by  no  means  suppose 
that  my  critic  has  made  them  in  any  unfriendly  spirit.  I  only 
feel  that  he  has  read  the  book  rather  un sympathetically,  and 
(possibly  on  account  of  faults  in  the  preface)  has  regarded  it  as 
more  scientifically  pretentious  than  its  style  and  object  at  all 
warrant.  Misleading  statements  as  to  matters  of  fact  I  have 
indeed  strenuously  endeavoured  to  eschew,  and  I  trust  that  to 
very  few  of  them  shall  I  have,  in  a  second  edition,  to  plead 
guilty.  Oliver  J.  Lodge. 

November  16. 


Geometrical  Teaching. 

Mr.  Woodall  has  called  attention  to  an  evil  which,  even  at 
the  present  day,  is  more  extensive  and  persistent  than  is 
generally  supposed  to  be  the  case  by  those  who  imagine  that 
"improved  methods  of  geometrical  teaching"  are  making 
themselves  felt. 

It  is  surprising  that  such  a  subject  as  Euclid,  which  of  all 
subjects  perhaps  is  best  calculated  to  produce  in  the  minds 
of  young  persons  an  exact  method  of  reasoning,  should  be  so 
badly  taught.  There  can  be,  I  should  imagine,  only  one 
opinion  as  to  the  method  of  teaching  described  by  Mr.  Woodall, 
viz.  that  it  is  decidedly  bad ;  and  even  worse,  that  it  is  perfectly 
useless. 

It  is  often  objected  by  this  class  of  teachers  that  young  people 
cannot  be  brought  to  appreciate  the  intricacies  and  subtleties  of 
Euclid's  propositions,  and  that,  in  consequence,  if  they  be  learnt 
at  all  they  must  be  learnt  by  heart.  But  is  not  this  a  great 
mistake?  My  own  experience  has  shown  me  that  young  persons 
can  be  induced  to  appreciate  and  take  an  intelligent  interest  in 
Euclid  if  it  be  taught  intelligently.  This  demands  some  little 
trouble  on  the  part  of  a  teacher,  and  I  suspect  that  a  large 
proportion  of  our  bad  geometrical  teaching  is  due  to  the 
disinclination  of  the  teacher  to  take  overmuch  trouble  in  his 
work,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  it  is  often  very  difficult  for 
him  to  get  over  the  superstition  of  his  own  school-days,  that  a 
proposition,  if  it  be  learnt  at  all,  must  be  learnt  by  heart, 
without  any  display  of  intelligent  interest. 

It  does  not  seem  to  me  to  be  nece>sary,  at  the  outset  at 
any  rate,  in  order  to  improve  the  teaching,  that  the  ordinary 
well-known  edition  of  Euclid  should  be  taken  to  pieces  and  a 
new  and  elaborate  arrangement  of  the  propositions  made  out  of 
the  fragments.  The  effective  teaching  of  Euclid  may  be  con- 
ducted upon  the  old  lines,  so  well  known  to  us  in  Potts  and 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


&i 


Todhunter  ;  but  to  make  it  effective  our  teachers  must  be 
possessed  of  ordinary  common- sense.  So  long  as  this  is  ab- 
sent, all  the  elaborate  and  scieniifically  improved  editions  of 
Euclid's  "  Elements  "  in  the  world  will  not  produce  the  much-to- 
be-desired  change.  Let  the  teacher  go  through  any  edition  of  the 
first  book  of  Euclid's  "Elements"  in  a  common-sense  manner 
with  his  pupils,  and  he  will  find  that,  instead  of  the  apathy  and 
general  disgust  exhibited  by  them  when  undergoing  the  ordinary 
process  of  Euclidian  cram,  there  will  be  a  general  air  of  bright- 
ness, interest,  and  intelligent  appreciation.  H. 
_  The  Yorkshire  College,  Leeds,  November  25. 


A  Brilliant  Meteor. 

While  at  my  observatory  to-night,  at  9.37  p.m.,  I  saw  the 
largest  and  brightest  meteor  I  have  seen  since  November  1880. 
It  became  visible  near  v  Eridani,  and  disappeared  near  a 
Leporis.  The  colour  was  a  bright  greenish  blue,  and  the 
brightness  wa-;  twice  or  three  times  Venus  at  greatest  brilliancy. 
It  cast  a  distinct  shadow.  J.  COCKBURN. 

St.  Boswells,  N.B.,  November  23. 


STAR  DISTANCES} 

'T'HE  festal  offering  contributed  by  Prof.  Oudemans  to 
-■;  the  Pulkowa  celebration  is  an  especially  appro- 
priate one.  The  incidents  of  the  long  parallax-campaign 
can  scarcely  be  recapitulated  without  recalling,  in  con- 
nection with  the  name  of  F"riedrich  Struve,  the  quorum 
pars  tnas:nnftn  of  yEneas.  He  it  was  who,  in  Sir  John 
Herschel's  opinion  (Memoirs  R.  Astronomical  Society, 
vol.  xii.  p.  442),  made  the  first  real  impression  upon  the 
problem  by  showing  that  not  one  of  twenty-seven  circum- 
polar  stars  discussed  in  1819-21  could  possibly  have  an 
annual  parallax  amounting  to  half  a  second  of  arc. 
Thenceforward,  astronomers  knew  what  they  had  to 
expect.  Sanguine  hopes  of  meeting  comfortably  large, 
and  properly  periodical  residuals  among  ordinary  obser- 
vations, were  checked,  if  not  extinguished.  The  changes 
of  stellar  position  reproducing,  according  to  the  laws  of 
perspective,  the  movement  of  the  earth  in  its  orbit,  were 
perceived  to  be  on  a  scale  so  minute  that  their  satisfactory 
disclosure  lay,  for  the  moment,  beyond  the  range  of 
what  was  feasible.  Success  in  the  enterprise,  it  was 
evident,  was  conditional  upon  the  employment  of  more 
perfect  instruments  than  had  heretofore  been  available 
with  a  precision  and  vigilance  of  which  the  very  idea 
was  absent  from  all  but  a  few  prescient  minds.  Sir 
William  Herschel  seemed  to  have  anticipated  the  con- 
juncture when  he  declared  in  1782  the  case  to  be  "  by  no 
means  desperate,"  although  stellar  parallax  should  fall 
short  of  a  single  second  {Phil.  Trans.,  vol.  Ixxii.  p.  83). 
The  memorable  "triple  event,"  by  which,  almost  simul- 
taneously, at  the  Cape,  at  Konigsberg,  and  at  Pulkowa, 
his  confidence  was  justified,  is  familiar  to  all  readers  of 
astronomical  history.  Its  significance  may  be  estimated 
from  Bessel's  admission  that,  until  the  yearly  oscillations 
of  61  Cygni  emerged  from  his  measures  in  1838,  he  was 
completely  in  the  dark  as  to  whether  stellar  parallax  was 
to  be  reckoned  by  tenths  or  by  thousandths  of  a  second 
{Astr.  Nach.,  No.  385). 

The  value  to  students  of  Prof  Oudemans'  synoptical 
view  of  what  has  since  then  been  achieved  in  this 
direction  can  hardly  be  overstated.  Not  only  does  he 
record  every  individual  result  worth  considering,  but 
the  tabulated  particulars  enable  a  fair  judgment  to  be 
formed  as  to  the  value  of  each.  There  are,  indeed,  one 
or  two  cases  in  which  a  note  of  warning  might  with 
advantage  have  been  added.     Thus,  Dr.  Brunnow's  small 

'' Uebersicht  der  in  den  letzten  60  Jahren  ausgefiihrten  Bestimmungen 
von  Fi.\stern  parallaxen."  You  J.  A.  C.  Oudemans.  Eine  Fesigabe  zum 
Sojahrigen  J.ibiiaum  der  Sternwarte  zu  Pulkowa.  AstronomiscJie  Nach- 
richtcn,  Nos.  2915-16. 


parallax  for  85  Pegasi,  to  say  the  least,  requires  confir- 
mation. A  perfect  equability  in  the  mode  of  observing  is 
essential  in  such  delicate  operations  ;  but  the  Dunsink 
astronomer  was  himself  conscious  of,  and  noted  with  his 
usual  care,  a  slight  change,  as  the  series  flowed  on,  in  his 
habit  of  "bisecting"  the  large  star  {Dunsink  Observa- 
tions, vol.  ii.  p.  38).  The  distance  of  this  interesting 
binary  system  can  hence  scarcely  be  regarded  as  even 
approximately  known. 

Still  less  reliable,  though  for  different  reasons,  are 
Johnson's  measures  of  Castor,  and  Captain  Jacob's  of  o 
Herculis.  The  parallax  assigned  to  the  latter  star  of 
o"-o62  relative  to  its  fifth  magnitude  companion  cannot  be 
other  than  illusory,  since  the  pair,  as  evidenced  by  a 
small,  but  well-ascertained  common  proper  motion,  are 
physically  connected,  and  must  therefore  be  at  virtually 
the  same  distance  from  the  earth. 

Forty-nine  stars,  all  save  one  measured  within  the 
last  sixty  years,  are  included  in  Prof  Oudemans'  list. 
The  exception  deserves  particular  mention.  Samuel 
Molyneux  erected  at  his  house  in  Kew  Green  in  1725,  a 
zenith  sector  by  Graham,  with  which  he  began,  in  com- 
bination with  Bradley,  a  set  of  observations  for  parallax 
on  y  Draconis.  The  same  star  had,  in  the  previous 
century,  been  similarly  experimented  upon  by  Robert 
Hooke  with  something  of  a  dubious  success.  The  well- 
known  eventual  issue  of  Molyneux's  observations  was 
Bradley's  discovery  of  the  aberration  of  light  ;  but  they 
included  besides  an  element  of  true  parallactic  change, 
brought  out  by  Dr.  Auwers's  discussion  in  1869,^  after  it 
had  lain  concealed  among  them  for  142  years  The  eye 
and  hand  must  indeed  have  been  faithful  thus  to 
record  an  ebb  and  flow  of  change  profoundly  submerged, 
at  that  comparatively  remote  epoch,  in  the  reigning  con- 
fusion betwen  the  real  and  the  apparent  places  of  the 
heavenly  bodies. 

A  light-journey  of  sixty-five  years  (parallax  =  o"o5)  may 
be  considered  the  present  limit  of  really  measurable 
stellar  distance.  Forty  of  the  forty-nine  objects  so 
far  investigated  lie— most  of  them  certainly,  a  ie\w  only 
probably— within  it.  Forty  stars  can  thus  be  located 
with  some  definiteness  in  space — forty  among,  say,  forty 
millions  !  The  disproportion  between  our  knowledge  on 
the  point  and  our  ignorance  is  so  exorbitant  that  general 
conclusions  seem  discredited  beforehand,  and  negative 
ones  at  any  rate  can  have  no  weight  whatever.  Never- 
theless, one  remark  at  least  is  fully  warranted  by  the 
evidence. 

It  is  this,  that  the  largest  stars  are  not  always  those 
nearest  to  the  earth.  For  to  the  narrow  category  of  stars 
at  ascertained  distances  belong  no  less  than  seven 
invisible  to  the  naked  eye,  one  of  them  in  closer  vicinity 
to  us  than  Sirius,  all  than  Capella,  Vega,  Arcturus,  or 
Canopus.  A  cursory  view  might  almost  suggest— irrespective 
of  geometrical  possibilities— that  stellar  brightness  had 
nothing  whatever  to  do  with  remoteness.  The  legitimate 
and  certain  conclusion  to  be  derived  from  the  facts, 
however,  is  that  the  disparities  of  stellar  light-power  are 
enormous.  A  farthing  rushlight  is  not  more  insignificant 
compared  with  the  electric  arc  than  a  faint  compared 
with  a  potent  sun.  Sirius  emits  6400  times  as  much  light 
as  a  ninth  magnitude  star  north  of  Charles's  Wain 
(Argelander-Oeltzen  11,677) ;  our  own  sun  falls  nearly  as 
far  short  of  the  radiative  strength  of  Arcturus.  Inequali- 
ties of  the  same  order  between  the  members  of  revolving 
systems  emphasize  this  result.  Sirius  shines  like  four 
thousand  of  its  own  companions  ;  and  the  movements  of 
other  stars  are  perhaps  swayed  by  almost  totally  obscure 
bodies. 

The  inference  that  the  apparent  lustre   of  individual 
stars  tells  us  nothing  as  regards  their  distance  was  already 

'  Monatsberichte,  Berlin,  1869.  p.  630.  The  result  places  y  Draconis 
at  a  distance  of  ssi  lieht-years,  but  with  a  very  large  "probable  error" 
(parallax  =  o" '092^0    070). 


82 


NATURE 


[Nov.  28,  1889 


"drawn  by  Dr.  Huggins  in  1866  {Phil.  Trans.,  vol.  clvi. 
•p.  393)  ;  it  has  been  amply  confirmed  since,  and  cannot 
■be  too  forcibly  insisted  upon.  We  are  unable  to  place 
"either  an  upper  or  a  lower  limit  to  stellar  dimensions  or 
intrinsic  emissive  intensity.  Until  Arcturus  was  proved 
to  be  immeasurably  remote,  few  would  have  been  disposed 
to  credit  the  existence  of  a  sun  in  space  at  least  six 
thousand  times  as  effiulgent  as  ours  is  ;  but  we  know  no 
reason  why  Arcturus  itself  should  not  be  as  vastly 
exceeded  by  some  giant  orb  at  the  outskirts  of  the  Milky 
Way  ;  while  we  are  equally  debarred  from  asserting  that 
among  sixth,  seventh,  twelfth  magnitude  stars,  there  may 
not  be  found  some  minute  bodies  at  half  the  distance 
from  us  of  a  Centauri. 

But  when  we  pass  from  particular  to  general  reasoning, 
the  aspect  of  the  matter  changes.  No  cause  has  yet 
been  shown  why  the  stars  should  be  exempt  from 
obedience  to  the  "  law  of  large  numbers  "  which  provides 
(as  Prof.  Edgeworth  has  ably  shown)  a  clue  to  other 
labyrinths  of  facts.  Statistics,  it  is  true,  are  often  mis- 
leading, but  only  when  they  are  wrongly  employed.  The 
frequent  misuse  of  a  method  does  not  justify  its  total 
rejection.  And  the  statistical  method  is  peculiarly  liable 
to  misuse.  Attempts  to  get  from  it  more  than  it  will 
properly  give  inevitably  fail  ;  and  what  it  will  properly 
give  are  general  statements  which  should  only  be  gener- 
ally applied.  An  average  result  may  not  be  the  less 
instructive  because  it  is  by  its  nature  incapable  of 
furnishing  specific  data. 

The  stars  then  must,  on  the  whole,  decrease  in  brightness 
as  their  distances  increase,  and  they  must  do  so  according 
to  an  underlying  fixed  law  which  will  be  more  and  more 
closely  conformed  to  the  larger  the  number  of  instances 
included  in  the  generalization.  Each  descent  of  one 
stellar  magnitude  represents  a  falling  off  in  light  in  the 
proportion  of  2|  to  i  ;  it  represents,  accordingly,  an 
augmentation  of  distance  in  the  proportion  of  the  square 
root  of  2|,  or  r59  to  i.  Theoretically,  that  is  to  say, 
stars  of  any  given  magnitude  are  i"59  times  more  remote 
than  those  one  magnitude  superior,  2^  times  (1*59  X  i"59), 
where  the  gap  is  of  two  magnitudes,  and  so  on.  This 
would  be  strictly  and  specifically  true  if  all  the  stars  were 
equal ;  but  since  they  are  enormously  unequal,  the  rule 
may  be  grossly  misleading  in  particular  instances,  and 
can  only,  by  taking  wide  averages,  be  brought  to  approxi- 
mate closely  to  actual  fact. 

The  determination  of  individual  parallaxes  has  always, 
with  astronomical  thinkers,  been  subordinate  to  the 
higher  aim  of  obtaining  a  unit  of  measurement  for  sidereal 
space.  Hence  continual  attempts  to  fix  the  "  average 
parallaxes  "  of  classes  of  stars,  which,  however,  remained 
futile  so  long  as  precarious  assumptions  supplied  the 
place  of  direct  information.  Nor  could  this  be  obtained 
until  the  exigencies  of  the  research  had  evoked  improved 
means  of  practically  meeting  them.  The  earlier  observers 
chose  the  subjects  of  their  experiments  entirely  with  a 
view  to  their  successful  issue.  Stars  likely,  owing  to  their 
brilliancy,  their  swift  motion,  or  both  combined,  to  be 
nearer  the  earth  than  most  others,  were  picked  out  for 
measurement,  with  results,  each  by  itself  of  high  interest, 
but  woithless  for  generalizing  purposes.  It  is  only  a  few 
years  since  increased  skill  in  the  handling  of  methods 
authorized  an  extension  of  the  range  of  their  application. 
The  first  systematic  plan  for  investigating  "  mean 
parallax"  was  proposed  by  Dr.  Gill  in  1883,  and  is  now 
in  course  of  combined  execution  at  Yale  College  and 
the  Cape.  The  completion  last  year  of  a  section  of  the 
work  enabled  Dr.  Elkin  to  deduce  an  average  distance  of 
thirty-eight  light-years  for  the  ten  first  magnitude  stars 
of  the  northern  hemisphere  ;  but  it  would  of  course  be 
folly  to  regard  this  avowedly  "  provisional  and  partial " 
result  as  a  satisfactory  basis  for  definitive  conclusions 
about  the  distances  of  more  remote  classes  of  stars.  At 
the  most,  it  makes  a  useful  temporary  starting-point  for 


some  trial-trips  of  thought  through  snace.  Before  long, 
however,  through  the  exertions  of  Dr.  Gill  and  Prof. 
Pritchard,  direct  measures,  not  only  of  all  the  first,  but 
of  most  of  the  second  magnitude  stars  all  over  the  sky, 
will  have  been  executed  ;  and  the  proportion  between 
distance  and  brightness  thus  established  may  with  some 
confidence  be  used  as  a  fathom-line  for  sounding  otherwise 
inaccessible  sidereal  abysses.  A.  M.  Clerke. 


DR.  H.  BURMEISTER  ON  THE  FOSSIL  HORSES 
AND  OTHER  MAMMALS  OF  ARGENTINA.^ 

'T^HIS  handsome  volume  is  a  continuation  of  the  author's 
^  monograph  on  the  fossil  horses  of  the  Pampean 
beds  of  Argentina,  of  which  the  first  part  was  published 
at  Buenos  Ayres  in  1875,  ^nd  is  stated  to  have  been 
specially  brought  out  for  the  Paris  Exhibition.  The 
author  has,  however,  not  done  himself  justice  as  regards 
the  title  of  this  portion  of  the  work,  since,  in  addition  to 
the  description  of  remains  of  the  horses  of  the  Pampean, 
he  also  describes  and  illustrates  the  osteology  of  Mega- 
therium, Mastodon,  and  MacraucJienia,  so  that  a  better 
title  for  this  volume  would  have  been  "  The  Fossil  Horses 
and  other  Mammals  of  the  Pampean  Deposits." 

Like  the  former  part,  the  text  of  this  volume  is  printed 
in  parallel  columns  of  Spanish  and  German  ;  and  the 
execution  of  the  plates  leaves  nothing  to  be  desired,  so 
far  as  a  clear  delineation  of  the  essential  features  of  the 
specimens  portrayed  is  concerned.  All  the  specimens 
forming  the  subject  of  this  monograph,  are,  as  we  learn 
from  the  introduction,  preserved  in  the  National  Museum 
at  Buenos  Ayres,  of  which  the  learned  author  is  the 
Director  ;  and,  so  far  as  we  may  judge  from  the  descrip- 
tion and  figures,  that  collection  of  fossil  mammals  must 
be  unrivalled  in  the  excellence  and  completeness  of  its 
specimens. 

The  first  section  of  the  work,  or  that  to  which  the  title 
alone  properly  applies,  is  devoted  to  the  horses ;  and 
the  author  commences  his  description  by  observing  that 
the  Equida  differ  from  all  other  Ungulates  in  that  the 
premolars  are  larger  than  the  true  molars.  For  the  more 
generalized  species  of  the  Pampean  deposits,  like  Equus 
principalis  of  Lund,  Dr.  Burmeister  adopts  the  Owenian 
genus  Hippidium  {Hippidion),  remarking  that  these 
forms  are  distinguished  from  the  modern  horses  by  the 
shorter  and  more  curved  crowns  of  their  cheek-teeth, 
which  are  of  a  more  simple  general  structure,  and  also  by 
a  difference  in  the  form  of  the  narial  aperture,  as  well  as 
by  their  shorter  limbs  and  stouter  limb-bones.     In  the 


Fig.  I. — Three  right  upper  cheek-teeth  of  H ipparion,  a,  posterior,  and  b, 
anterior  outer  crescent  ;  c.  anterior,  and  (/,  pjsterior  inner  crescent  ;  e, 
anterior,  and/,  posterior  pillar. 

Structure  of  their  upper  cheek-teeth  the  horses  of  this 
peculiar  South  American  group  make,  indeed,  a  decided 
approach  to  the  more  generalized  representatives  of  the 
family,  such  as  Hipparion.  In  the  litter  the  anterior 
pillar  of  these  teeth  (Fig.  i,  e)  forms,  as  is  well  known,  a 

'  "  Los  Caballos  Fdsiles  de  la  Pampa  Argentina,"  Supleinento.  ("  Die 
fossilen  Pferde  der  PampasformaUon, "  Nachtrags  Bericht.)  By  Dr.  Hermann 
Burmei>ter.     Folio,  pp.  65,  pis.  4.    (Buenjs  Ayres,  1889.) 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


83 


subcylindrical  column  totally  unconnected  with  the  anterior 
crescent  {c)  ;  in  Hippidiian  this  pillar  retains  almost  the 
same  form  as  '\n  Hipparion^hvLi  becomes  connected  with  the 
crescent ;  while  in  the  existing  horses  the  same  pillar  has 
become  greatly  elongated  in  anantero-posterior  direction. 
Further,  in  Hippidium  the  first  premolar,  which  in  modern 
horses  is  generally  absent,  and  if  present  is  minute  and 
deciduous,  is  of  very  large  size,  and  always  persists. 

The  Pliocene  Eqitits  stenonis  of  Europe  forms,  however, 
a  connecting  link  in  respect  of  dental  characters  between 
the  American  Hippiditiin  and  the  modern  horses  ;  and  it  is 
therefore  to  a  great  extent  a  matter  of  individual  opinion 
whether  or  no  the  retention  of  Hippidium  as  a  distinct 
genus  is  convenient.  A  new  species  referred  \o  Hippidiiivi 
is  described  from  Tarija,  in  Bolivia.  Of  more  typical 
horses  the  author  describes  additional  remains  of  Equns 
curvidens,  E.  argentini/s,  and  E.  andium  j  and  he  adds 
to  his  description  a  useful  word  of  warning  in  regard  to 
the  many  forms  of  fossil  horses  from  other  parts  of  South 
America  which  have  been  described  as  distinct  species, 
suggesting  that  all  or  several  of  these  may  be  based  merely 
on  individual  variations. 

In  the  second  section  of  the  volume  we  have  a  descrip- 
tion of  remains  of  other  mammals   from  the   Pampean 


deposits  recently  acquired  by  the  Museum  at  Buenos 
Ayres.  The  first  of  these  additions  is  an  entire  skull  of 
Megatherium  americanu7n,\i\\\c\\.  shows  that  our  previous 
knowledge  was  incomplete.  This  skull  formed  part  of  a 
nearly  entire  skeleton  of  a  very  large  individual  found  in 
August  1888  on  the  Rio  Salado,  but  which  is  as  yet  but 
partially  disinterred.  It  shows  that  instead  of  the  aperture 
of  the  nares  being  bounded  superiorly  merely  by  short 
nasal  bones  which  did  not  reach  within  a  long  distance  of 
the  premaxillae,  there  was  a  large  prenasal  bone  extending 
nearly  as  far  as  this  point  ;  while  there  was  also  a  lateral 
process  projecting  forward  from  the  upper  part  of  the 
maxilla  into  the  nasal  aperture.  This  prenasal  bone  is 
4i  inches  in  length,  and  it  is  considered  probable  that  it 
became  united  with  the  nasals  in  the  adult.  Still  more 
remarkable,  however,  is  the  presence  of  another  ossifica- 
tion extending  upwards  and  backwards  from  the  superior 
surface  of  the  extremity  of  the  premaxillae  towards  the 
prenasal  bone,  from  which  it  is  only  separated  by  a  short 
interval.  These  two  ossifications,  we  may  observe,  are 
evidently  a  rudiment  of  the  complete  bony  arch  connecting 
the  premaxillae  with  the  nasals  in  Mylodon  darwini, 
which  was  on  that  account  generically  separated  by 
Reinhardt  as  Grypotherium  ;  and  they  serve  to  support 


Fig.  2. — The  third  left  upper  true  moiar  of  Mastodon  hnmboldti;  from  the  Pampean  of  Buenos  A3  res.     Two-thirds  natural  size. 


that  the  last-named  species  is  not 
genus   in   which   it   was   originally 


Prof.  Flower's  view 
separable  from  the 
placed. 

The  author  next  proceeds  to  the  consideration  of 
the  skull  of  that  species  of  Mastodon  which  he  terms 
M.  antiiim.  No  mention  is  made  of  the  earlier  name 
M.  cordilterum,  which  appears  to  be  the  proper  one  for 
this  species  ;  and  in  amending  the  usual  spelling  M. 
andium  to  M.  a7itium,  one  cannot  help  wondering  why 
the  same  course  was  not  adopted  in  the  case  of  Equus 
andiuift.  The  object  of  this  part  of  the  work  is  to  show 
that  the  reference  by  the  late  Dr.  Falconer  to  M.  cordil- 
lernm  (as  we  will  call  it)  of  mandibles  from  Texas,  fur- 
nished with  long  tusks  is  incorrect,  and  that  this  species 
really  had,  like  its  near  ally  M.  humboldii,  a  mandibular 
symphysis  of  the  same  general  type  as  that  of  the 
elephants,  without  any  tusks  at  all  in  the  adult.  Figures 
are  given  of  an  immature  and  of  an  adult  skull  with  the 
mandible  in  situ  to  support  this  redetermination.  Dr. 
Burmeister  then  proceeds  to  institute  a  comparison 
between  M.  cordillcrum  and  M.  humboldti,  in  which  he 
states  that,  although  very  similar,  a  careful  examination 
shows  very  clearly  the  distinctness  of  the  two  forms. 
Here  we  may  observe  that  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  no 
comment  or  reference  is  made  to  the  notices  and  figures 
published  by  Falconer  and  other  English  writers  in  refer- 


ence to  these  forms  ;]  but  perhaps  the  real  explanation  of 
this  omission  is  that  the  libraries  at  Buenos  Ayres  are  not 
so  well  stocked  as  those  of  London.  According  to  our 
author,  M.  cordillerum  is  the  smaller  of  the  two  species  ; 
the  length  of  the  mandible  from  the  condyle  to  the 
symphysis  being  75  centimetres  against  85  centimetres  in 
M.  hnmboldti  J  the  last  dimension  agreeing  with  the 
British  Museum  ckull  of  that  species  originally  described 
by  Falconer  in  M.  andium.  Falconer's  observations  as 
to  the  more  complicated  structure  of  the  molars  of  M. 
humbolti  are  in  the  main  confirmed.  A  small  specimen 
of  a  last  upper  molar  referred  to  this  species  in  the  British 
Museum  is  (with  the  permission  of  Dr.  Woodward) 
figured  in  the  accompanying  woodcut,  to  show  the  com- 
plexity of  the  crown,  in  which  the  valleys  are  much 
blocked  by  accessory  tubercles.  In  the  early  stage  of 
wear  of  this  specimen  imperfect  trefoils  of  dentine  are 
shown  only  on  the  inner  columns  ;  but  when  more  worn 
trefoils  would  evidently  also  appear  on  the  outer  columns. 
In  the  well-worn  upper  molar  of  M.  cordillerum,  repre- 
sented in  Plate  x.,  Fig.  5,  of  the  work  before  us,  the 
absence  of  a  distinct  trefoil  on  the  outer  columns,  which 
Falconer  mentioned  as  one  of  the  distinctive  features  of 
this  species,  is  well  shown.  Dr.  Burmeister  further 
observes  that  the  molars  of  M.  cordillerum  are  charac- 
terized   by  their   blackish    enamel,   and   the  brown    or 


84 


NATURE 


{Nov.  28,  1889 


reddish  colour  of  the  dentine  ;  while  in  M.  humboldti  the 
whole  of  the  crown  is  of  a  yellowish  or  white  hue,  with 
darker  roots.  These  distinctive  colours  are  very  noticeable 
in  many  of  the  specimens  in  the  British  Museum,  which 
have  been  respectively  referred  to  the  two  species  in 
question. 

The  work  concludes  with  descriptions  of  the  remains 
of  two  species  of  the  remarkable  Perissodactylate  genus 
Macrauchcttia,  viz.  the  typical  M.  patachonica  of  Owen, 
and  M.  paranensis,  originally  described  by  Bravard  as 
Palceotherium.  Of  the  former  species  an  entire  skeleton 
is  figured,  and  the  author  concludes  that  the  genus  is,  on 
the  whole,  most  nearly  allied  to  PalcEotheriinn,  although 
the  skull  presents  some  remarkable  resemblances  to  that 
of  the  tapirs.  It  appears,  moreover,  from  the  presence 
of  muscular  impressions  on  the  cranial  bones,  that  the 
nose  formed  a  short  proboscis,  as  in  the  latter  group. 
The  author  also  gives  us  an  elaborate  description  of  the 
teeth,  which  are  undoubtedly  of  a  Palaeotherioid  type.  It 
is  further  observed  that  in  the  author's  opinion  there 
appear  to  be  no  grounds  for  generically  separating  M. 
paranensis  and  the  smaller  M.  inimita  from  the  typical 
genus  ;  and  the  author  concludes  his  volume  with  some 
remarks  on  the  proposal  of  Dr.  F.  Ameghino  to  regard 
the  former  as  the  type  of  the  genus  Scalibri7iitheriuin,2SiA 
to  adopt  the  name  of  Oxydon\to'\therium  for  the  latter. 

The  above  appears  to  be  the  gist  of  Dr.  Burmeister's 
new  contributions  to  our  knowledge  of  the  wonderful 
Tertiary  fauna  of  South  America,  which  he  has  done  so 
much  to  enrich.  And  we  congratulate  him  on  the  results 
of  this  his  latest  work,  and  especially  on  the  excellent 
illustrations  by  which  it  is  accompanied,  since  the  want 
of  such  aids  to  a  right  comprehension  of  the  text  forms 
such  a  great  drawback  to  the  work  hitherto  published  by 
other  contemporary  South  American  writers  on  the  same 
subject.  R-  L. 

NOTES. 

In  his  speech  at  Nottingham  on  Tuesday  evening  Lord  Salis- 
Ijury  made  a  most  important  reference  to  the  subject  of  what  is 
called  free  education.  He  said: — "  There  is  another  question 
which  we  have  heard  a  good  deal  discussed,  and  that  is  with 
regard  to  what  has  been,  in  my  opinion,  improperly  termed  free 
education.  I  should  rather  call  it  assisted  education,  because  I 
do  not  know  that  anybody,  however  extreme  his  views,  would 
desire  that  all  the  inhabitants  of  this  country,  whether  rich  or 
poor,  whether  capable  of  paying  for  the  education  of  their  children 
or  not,  should  enjoy  free  education  for  those  children  at  the  cost 
of  the  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer.  On  the  other  hand,  I  have 
before  expressed  the  opinion — I  expressed  it  four  years  ago, 
before  the  two  last  general  elections,  at  Newport — that  by 
making  education  compulsory,  by  forcing  the  people  to  send 
their  children  to  school  whether  they  ask  it  or  not,  you  were 
incurring  a  certain  obligation  to  relieve  the  burden  of  that  com- 
pulsion, where  the  circumstances  of  the  parent  were  such  that  it 
was  too  heavy  for  him  to  bear.  We  believe  that  considerable  pro- 
gress in  that  direction  may  be  made.  We  have  already  introduced 
measures  to  that  effect  in  Scotland.  I  believe  that  with  perfect 
consistency  with  sound  principle,  and  merely  recognizing  the 
fact  that  where  you  enforce  a  duty  upon  a  man  you  are  bound  to 
make  it  as  easy  for  him  as  you  can — I  believe  that  it  will  be 
possible  considerably  to  extend  that  principle  in  England,  and 
very  greatly  to  relieve  the  difficulties  of  the  working  man  in  that 
respect.  But  allow  me  to  say  that  I  consider  the  question  as  to 
its  rapidity,  and  as  to  its  progress,  to  be  a  question  for  the 
Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer.  If  he  has  got  the  money  I  have 
no  doubt  he  will  do  it,  but  if  he  has  not  got  the  money  he  will  not. 
But  it  is  an  object  to  which  I  believe  a  great  deal  of  the  money 
of  a  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer  may  very  fairly  be  applied." 
The  Government  is  to  be  congratulated  on  the  pledge  thus  given 
to  consider  the  matter. 


The  Royal  Society  will  hold  its  anniversary  meeting  on 
Saturday.     After  the  meeting  the  Fellows  will  dine  together. 

On  Tuesday  the  degree  of  D.C.  L.,  honoris  cansA,  was  con- 
ferred in  Convocation,  at  Oxford,  upon  Mr.  Alfred  Russel 
Wallace.  Prof.  Holland  presented  him  for  the  degree,  and 
dwelt  upon  his  labours  as  a  naturalist  in  Brazil,  the  Malay 
Archipelago,  and  elsewhere  ;  upon  the  now  famous  doctrines 
elucidated  by  him,  and  upon  the  relations  between  him  and  Mr. 
Darwin,  reflecting  equal  honour  upon  both. 

A  Conference,  called  by  the  National  Association  for  the 
Promotion  of  Technical  Education,  was  held  in  the  Manchester 
Town  Hall  on  Tuesday.  About  300  delegates  were  present 
from  the  different  technical  schools  and  associations  throughout 
the  Kingdom.  The  chair  was  occupied  at  first  l)y  the  Mayor  of 
Manchester,  and  subsequently  by  Mr.  Rathbone,  M.P.  General 
Donnelly  was  present  to  represent  the  Science  and  Art  Depart- 
ment, South  Kensington.  Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  M.P.,  .sir  Ed- 
mund Currie,  Mr.  A.  H.  D.  Acland,  M. P.,  and  Mr.  Mather, 
M.P.,  were  among  those  present.  The  discussions  related  to 
the  question  of  the  working  of  the  Technical  Instruction  Act, 
1889.  A  report  was  read  by  Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  showing  that 
the  Act  was  being  adopted  partly  or  wholly  in  a  large  number 
of  towns  throughout  the  Kingdom.  The  meeting  will  do  great 
good,  and  we  shall  refer  to  it  next  week. 

According  1o  a  circular  which  has  recently  been  sent  to  the 
leading  physicists,  electricians,  and  others  interested  in  the 
history  of  English  science,  it  is  proposed  to  establish  a  Gilbert 
Club,  the  inaugural  meeting  of  which  has  been  convened  this 
day  in  the  rooms  of  the  Society  of  Arts  at  4.30  p.m.  The  object 
of  the  Club  is  to  do  justice  to  the  memory  of  the  illustrious 
President  of  the  College  of  Physicians  who  was  in  the  possession 
of,  and  was  actually  carrying  on,  the  true  experimental  method  of 
scientific  inquiry  at  a  time  when  Bacon  was  only  talking  and 
writing  about  it.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  claims  of 
William  Gilbert,  of  Colchester,  have  been  to  a  great  extent  over- 
shadowed by  the  fame  of  the  renowned  Lord  Chancellor, 
and  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  we  have  not  had  handed 
down  to  us  more  of  the  results  of  Gilbert's  labours  than  are  to  be 
found  in  his  celebrated  work  "  De  Magnet e,"  published  in  the 
year  i6od.  Such  as  it  is,  this  work  may,  however,  be  justly 
regarded  as  the  earliest  English  scientific  classic,  and  its  author 
must  be  recognized  as  the  first  truly  philosophical  investigator  in 
the  now  all-important  subjects  of  electricity  and  magnetism. 
The  Club  has  been  organized  for  the  object  of  bringing  out  an 
English  edition  of  "  De  Magnete"  as  nearly  as  possible  in  the 
style  of  the  original  folio  edition,  and  to  arrange  for  a  befitting 
celebration  of  the  tercentenary  of  this  work  in  the  year  1900. 
To  quote  the  circular: — "The  publication  of  '  De  Magnete' 
not  only  marked  an  epoch  in  the  science  of  magnetism,  but 
constituted  the  absolute  starting-point  of  the  science  of  electricity. 
It  has  been  hitherto  a  reproach  to  British  electricians  that  they 
too  little  recognized  the  merits  of  the  founder  of  the  science." 
The  preliminary  list  of  members  already  includes  the  names  of 
Sir  William  Thomson,  Lord  Rayleigh,  Prof.  Tyndall,  Sir  John 
Lubbock,  Prof  Riicker,  Prof  Lodge,  Mr.  Preece,  Prof.  Reinold, 
Prof  Perry,  Prof  G.  Forbes,  Prof  D.  E.  Hughes,  Sir  F.  A. 
Abel,  Sir  F,  Bramwell,  Sir  Douglas  Gallon,  Sir  H.  Mance, 
Colonel  Festing,  Captain  Abney,  Prof  Carey  Foster,  Prof.  W. 
G.  Adams,  Prof  J.  C.  Adams,  Prof  Roberts-Austen,  Prof 
Thorpe,  Prof  G.  H.  Darwin,  Prof  Liveing,  Prof.  Dewar,  Prof. 
W.  N.  Shaw,  Prof  Poynting,  Prof  Ray  Lankester,  Mr.  Crookes, 
Mr.  J.  Hopkinson,  Mr.  Glazebrook,  Mr.  G.  J.  Symons,  Dr.  J. 
H.  Gladstone,  Dr.  B.  W.  Richardson,  Prof.  Victor  Horsley, 
Mr.  Latimer  Clark,  &c. 

Dr.  Quesneville,  the  French  chemist,  died  on  November 
14,   at   the   age   of  eighty.     He  took  his  degree  of  doctor  o 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


85 


medicine  in  1834,  having  studied  chemistry  under  Chevreul. 
In  1840  he  started  the  Revue  Scieutifique,  a  monthly  periodical, 
which  he  afterwards  called  the  Monitcur  Scieutifiqtce.  This 
periodical  came  to  an  end  last  month,  Dr.  Quesneville  explain- 
ing that  the  task  was  rendered  too  severe  by  the  infirmities  of 
old  age. 

The  chemical  laboratory,  presented  to  the  Stalybridge 
Mechanics'  Institute  by  the  late  Mrs.  Margaret  Piatt,  was 
formally  opened  last  week.  The  laboratory,  which  has  been 
provided  at  a  cost  of  about  ;,f  600,  was  projected  by  Mrs.  Piatt— 
who  always  took  a  great  interest  in  Stalybridge  and  its  social 
and  educational  welfare— shortly  before  her  death.  Unfortunately 
she  did  not  live  to  see  the  completion  of  this  valuable  addition 
to  the  work  carried  on  by  the  institution,  but  her  representatives 
have  observed  Mrs.  Piatt's  wishes  in  every  respect.  The 
laboratory  is  fitted  with  all  necessary  appliances  for  the  practical 
study  of  chemistry.  At  present  there  are  twenty-two  students 
undergoing  a  course  of  instruction. 

The  ceremony  of  cutting  the  first  sod  on  the  site  of  the 
International  Exhibition  which  is  to  be  held  in  Edinburgh  next 
year  took  place  on  Saturday  last.  The  Lord  Provost,  who 
presided,  said  they  were  all  aware  that  the  Forth  Bridge  was  to 
be  opened  soon,  and  a  large  number  of  scientific  people  would 
be  present  on  that  occasion.  Therefore,  it  seemed  a  most 
opportune  occasion  to  show  a  collection  of  matters  connected  with 
electricity  such  as  had  never  been  gathered  together  before. 
They  had  promises  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  and  the  little 
difficulties  that  were  in  the  way  with  the  London  Chamber  of 
Commerce  had,  he  believed,  all  been  got  over,  and  now  there 
would  be  a  unanimous  feeling  throughout  the  whole  of  the 
electrical  world  that  this  Exhibition  should  be  made  a  great 
success. 

The  Christmas  lectures  at  the  Royal  Institution  (adapted  to 
a  juvenile  auditory)  will  this  year  be  given  by  Prof.  A.  W. 
Riicker,  F.R.S.,  on  electricity.  They  will  begin  on  Saturday, 
December  28. 

The  following  are  the  Science  Lectures  to  be  given  at  the 
Royal  Victoria  Hall  during  the  month  of  December  :— December 
3,  "Snakes  and  Snake-poison,"  by  Dr.  W.  D.  Halliburton; 
December  10,  *'  A  Visit  to  the  Banks  of  the  Rhine,"  by  Mr.  A. 
Hilliard  Atteridge  ;  December  17,  "My  Experiences  in  Cape 
Colony,"  by  Prof.  H.  G.  Seeley,  F.R.S. 

Count  Salvadori  has  just  published  the  first  part  of  a 
supplement  to  his  famous  work  on  the  Birds  of  New  Guinea  and 
Ihe  Molucca  Islands,  entitled  "  Agguinte  alia  Ornitologia  della 
Papuasia  e  delle  Molucche."  The  present  part  consists  of  sixty- 
four  pages,  and  relates  to  the  Accipitres,  Psittaci,  and  Picai-ia, 
which  were  the  orders  treated  of  in  his  first  volume  of  the 
"  Ornitologia."  During  the  seven  years  that  have  elapsed  since 
the  completion  of  Count  Salvadori's  work  much  has  been  done. 
Hunstein,  who  was  an  excellent  collector,  and  whose  untimely 
death  by  a  tidal-wave  in  New  Britain  is  deplored  by  all  naturalists, 
made  some  valuable  explorations  in  the  Horse-shoe  Range  of  the 
Astrolabe  Mountains,  and  discovered  the  wonderful  new  Birds 
of  Paradise,  Paradisornis  riidolpJii,  Astraichia  siephania:,  and 
others.  Mr.  H.  O.  Forbes  explored  the  same  district,  and  also 
procured  some  novelties,  and  the  adventurous  expedition  of  the 
last-named  naturalist  and  his  wife  to  the  Tenimber  Islands  is 
quite  one  of  the  exploits  of  the  last  decade.  Mr.  C.  M.  Wood- 
ford has  likewise  added  many  new  species  to  the  known  avi-fauna 
of  the  Solomon  Islands,  so  that  altogether  Count  Salvadori 
has  had  ample  material  for  his  supplementary  notes.  Besides 
giving  abundant  information  respecting  the  additional  synonymy 
and  geographical  distribution  of  the  members  of  the  three  orders 
treated  of  in  the  present  supplement,  the  author  adds  twelve 
species  of  Accipitres,  fourteen  Psittaci,  and  nine  Picarice.  Count 


Salvadori  thinks  that  Astur  sheba:  of  Sharpe  from  Guadalcanar 
is  the  same  as  A,  pulchellus  of  Ramsay  from  Fauro,  but  as  both 
species  are  represented  in  the  British  Museum  such  a  mistake  in 
identification  is  scarcely  likely.  He  separates  the  Timor  Laut 
Astur,  supposed  to  be  identical  with  A.  albiventris  of  Bouru,  as  a 
new  species,  Astur,  or  as  he  calls  it  Urospizias polionotus.  Several 
doubtful  points  among  the  Parrots,  Count  Salvadori  will  probably 
be  able  to  settle  when  he  comes  to  England  and  examines  the 
series  of  skins  in  the  British  Museum.  Of  Cuckoos,  he  de- 
scribes two  new  species  {Cacomantis arfakianus  and  Lamprococcyx 
politirus),  and  Tanysptera  ineyeri  is  a  new  Kingfisher. 

It  is  proposed  that  a  meteorological  station  shall  be  established 
at  the  Bermuda  Islands  after  the  completion  of  the  telegraph 
service  between  them  and  Nova  Scotia.  Many  vessels  leaving 
Halifax,  the  masters  being  unaware  of  the  approach  of  storms 
from  the  West  Indies,  are  dismantled  before  they  have  been  out 
three  days.  The  establishment  of  the  proposed  meteorological 
station  would,  therefore,  be  of  great  value,  and  the  Canadian 
Government  has  willingly  consented  to  bear  half  of  the  cost. 

We  have  received  vol.  xi.  of  "  Aus  dem  Archiv  der  Deutschen 
Seewarte,"  containing  the  report  of  that  institution  for  the  year 
1888.  Great  activity  is  displayed  in  the  collection  of  observa- 
tions at  sea,  not  less  than  740  logs  and  abstract  journals  having 
been  received  during  the  year,  and  synoptic  charts  of  the  North 
Atlantic  have  been  published  for  four  quarters,  ending  with 
August  1885.  Several  meetings  have  been  held  at  the  Seewarte 
for  the  purpose  of  preparing  an  atlas  of  clouds,  and  the  work  is 
now  about  to  be  published.  In  addition  to  several  treatises  on 
terrestrial  magnetism,  the  volume  contains  (l)  an  article  by 
Dr.  Vettin  on  the  volume  of  air  flowing  into  or  out  of  baro- 
metrical minima  and  maxima  in  different  seasons,  as  determined 
from  the  direction,  height,  and  velocity  of  clouds,  obser\'ed  at 
Berlin  during  the  years  1882-83,  in  connection  with  the  data 
afforded  by  the  daily  weather  charts  published  by  the  Seewarte. 
(2)  The  rainfall  conditions  of  Germany  from  1876-85,  by  Dr. 
H.  Meyer,  The  author  has  not  been  content  with  using  the  usual 
monthly  values,  but  has  investigated  the  daily  observations  from 
the  original  documents.  He  finds  that  periods  of  two  to  four 
rainy  days  are  more  frequent  than  the  same  periods  of  dry  days. 
Periods  of  five  or  more  wet  days  are  more  frequent  on  the  coast 
than  in  the  interior,  but  longer  dry  periods  are  more  probable 
here  than  on  the  coast.  On  the  coast  the  probability  of  a  change 
from  dry  to  wet  is  greater  than  a  change  from  wet  to  dry,  while 
the  reverse  holds  in  the  interior.  Periods  of  twenty  or  more 
wet  days  have  occurred  only  in  Western  Germany,  while  the 
same  periods  of  dry  days  are  of  the  rarest  occurrence  in  any 
part  of  the  country. 

The  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  for  November 
shows  that,  during  the  early  part  of  the  month  of  October,  an 
extensive  area  of  high  barometer  occupied  the  central  regions  of 
the  North  Atlantic  ;  its  position  varied  from  day  to  day,  but  on 
the  1 2th  its  centre  moved  south  of  the  40th  parallel,  and  low 
pressure  prevailed  over  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Transatlantic 
routes  until  the  19th.  At  this  date  an  area  of  high  barometer 
passed  eastward  from  the  American  coast,  and  slowly  traversed 
the  ocean,  reaching  the  British  Isles  towards  the  end  of  the 
month.  Several  storms  occurred  north  of  the  50th  parallel, 
and  also  along  the  Transatlantic  routes  east  of  the  soth  meridian. 
Two  cyclones  of  great  violence  occurred  off  the  Atlantic  coast 
of  the  United  States.  One  developed  quite  suddenly  on  the  14th, 
150  miles  east  of  Hatteras,  and  after  lingering  there  for  four 
days,  started  off  rapidly  to  the  eastward  ;  the  other  storm,  which 
was  central  off  the  Carolina  coast  on  the  23rd,  was  remarkable 
for  its  violence  and  its  increase  of  energy  after  reaching  the 
Gulf  Stream.  Several  other  storms  of  minor  importance  occurred 
on  that  coast  during  the  month.     Comparatively  little  fog  was 


8<5 


NA  TURE 


{Nov.  28,  1889 


experienced,  but  ocean  ice  prevailed  in  considerable  quantity 
to  the  eastward  of  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle,  and  to  some  extent 
on  the  Grand  Banks,  in"  marked  contrast  with  what  is  usually 
experienced  at  this  time  of  year. 

A  CURIOUS  dwarf  Japanese  tree,  Thtija  obtusa,  brought  by 
Mr.  Samuel  from  the  Paris  Exhibition,  was  exhibited  at  the 
meeting  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society  on  Saturday  last.  The 
specimen  was  only  some  two  feet  high,  and  was  stated  to  be 
about  130  years  old.  The  secretary  said  that  these  dwarf 
Japanese  trees  were  good  illustrations  of  the  power  of  endurance 
of  plants  and  trees  under  severe  ill-treatment.  In  the  Society's 
garden  may  be  seen  several  specimens  of  the  common  oak,  be- 
tween forty  and  fifty  years  old,  yet  only  some  ten  or  twelve 
inches  in  height.  They  were  planted  as  an  edging  to  a  flower 
border,  and  kept  clipped  like  the  old-fashioned  box. 

The  greatest  depth  found  by  Captain  Spratt  in  the  Western 
Mediterranean  basin  was  between  Sicily,  Sardinia,  and  Africa 
(about  io,6co  feet).  Recent  measurements  in  the  eastern  basin 
by  Commander  Magnaghi,  of  the  Italian  Navy  {Riv.  Sci.  Ind.) 
have  yielded,  as  maximum  depth,  13,556  feet,  between  the 
Islands  of  Malta  and  Candia. 

At  the  annual  meeling  of  the  Severn  Valley  Field  Club,  at 
Wellington,  in  January  last.  Dr.  Callaway,  the  President,  was 
asked  to  prepare  a  report  of  the  year's  proceedings  with  a 
shorter  account  of  the  work  of  the  preceding  year.  These 
reports  have  now  been  issued,  and  show  that  a  resolute  effort  is 
being  made  to  promote  a  taste  for  geology  and  natural  history 
in  the  district,  and  to  make  the  Field  Club  something  better 
than  a  picnic  society. 

Colonel  WooDTHORPE  recently  delivered,  at  Simla,  a  lecture 
on  the  Aka  Expedition  of  1883.  It  may  be  remembered  that 
this  tribe,  which  inhabits  the  hills  north  of  Assam,  owing  to 
some  forest  disputes  and  a  supposed  interference  with  their  trade 
In  rubber,  seized  two  of  our  forest  officers  and  carried  them  off. 
To  recover  these  men,  a  small  expedition  was  despatched,  under 
the  command  of  Colonel  Woodthorpe.  The  Aka  houses  are 
built  on  piles  raised  above  the  ground,  with  a  large  space  at  one 
end,  where  the  children  play.  The  dress  consists  of  a  tunic  of 
Tibetan  cloth,  and  trousers,  reaching  to  the  feet,  made  of  thin 
white  material.  Long  trousers  are  worn  to  keep  off  the  dam- 
diuu,  a  troublesome  little  fly  or  mosquito.  Bows  and  arrows  and 
knives,  with  blades  easily  detachable  from  a  bamboo  handle,  are 
the  chief  weapons.  The  barbs  of  the  arrows  are  dipped  in 
aconite,  and  are  so  treated  that,  when  any  attempt  is  made  to 
pluck  out  the  arrow,  the  barb  breaks  off  and  remains  in  the 
wound.  The  poison  is  so  deadly,  that  even  a  buffalo  usually 
falls,  after  running  a  few  yards,  when  he  has  been  struck  by  one. 
Some  of  the  superstitions  of  the  Akas  are  curious.  If  a  river 
tans  between  an  Aka's  house  and  his  burying-place,  his  soul 
can  never  go  home  after  death.  This  inability  of  the  spirit  to 
cross  water  is,  however,  overcome,  and,  every  year,  Akas  may 
be  seen  stretching  a  string  across  the  stream  that  divides  the 
grave  from  the  house  of  the  departed.  The  ghost  can  easily 
cross  when  the  slightest  foothold  is  given  him. 

It  is  sometimes  said  about  old  trees  {e.g.  an  old  lime  in  the 
new  Gardens  at  Potsdam)  that  the  present  branches  are  properly 
roots  ;  and  it  has  been  reported  that  trees  may  be  planted, 
and  will  grow,  in  the  inverted  position.  A  scientific  inquiry 
into  this  matter  has  been  made  by  Herr  Kny,  in  Germany, 
taking  a  number  of  plants  of  wild  vine  (Ampelopsis)  and  ivy, 
about  3"5  metres  high.  In  1884  he  planted  these  with  both 
ends  in  the  ground  ;  and  in  the  spring  of  1885,  after  the  tops 
had  rooted,  he  cut  the  arch  at  its  highest  point.  In  the  first 
year  two  of  the  plants  died,  but  the  others  (twelve  vine  and  four, 
teen  ivy)  grew  vigorously,  and  were  still  alive  this  last  spring. 


To  test  the  extent  of  the  inversion,  he  cut  slips  from  the  in- 
verted plants,  and  planted  them  in  a  greenhouse,  some  with 
their  natural,  and  some  with  their  artificial  upper  end  uppermost. 
It  appeared  that  the  callus,  from  which  the  roots  spring,  was 
formed  at  both  ends,  but  more  readily  at  the  naturally  lower 
end,  whether  this  was  above  or  below,  in  the  experiment.  Herr 
Kny  considers  that,  notwithstanding  several  years'  successful 
culture,  the  inversion  was  not  thoroughly  completed.  He  pro- 
poses to  continue  his  investigation,  and  invites  people  who  have 
gardens  to  make  like  experiments  with  other  plants,  recom- 
mending willows,  poplars,  and  roses. 

The  latest  Colonial  Report  from  Basutoland  contains  a  state- 
ment by  Sir  Marshall  Clarke  on  education  in  thai  Stale,  written 
at  the  request  of  Lord  Knutsford.  The  total  amount  granted  by 
the  Government  during  1888  for  educational  work  was  ;i^458i 
amongst  four  missions,  of  which  ^2900  went  to  the  Paris 
Evangelical  Missions.  The  number  of  schools  receiving  Govern- 
ment aid  was  ico,  with  a  nominal  roll  of  4053,  and  an  average 
attendance  of  3480.  The  education  offered  is,  for  the  most 
part,  of  an  elementary  character,  suitable  to  a  people  of  agri- 
cultural pui  suits,  whose  children  are  withdrawn  early  for  labour 
in  the  field.  It  consists  of  reading  and  writing  in  Sesuto,  and 
a  little  elementary  arithmetic  and  English.  A  higher  education 
is  offered  at  the  missionary  centres.  The  number  of  schools 
under  direct  European  supervision  is  21,  with  about  1400  pupils 
on  the  attendance  roll.  At  Morija,  the  head-quarters  of  the 
Paris  Evangelical  Missionary  Society,  the  training  school  affords 
a  sound  English  education,  the  staff  being  composed  of  well 
qualified  Europeans.  There  is  an  interesting  girls'  school  at 
Roma,  the  chief  Roman  Catholic  mission  station,  where  the 
pupils  are  instructed  in  carding,  spinning,  weaving,  and  the 
elements  of  dressmaking,  as  well  as  in  English  and  Sesuto. 
Schools  receiving  Government  aid  are,  from  time  to  time, 
inspected  by  Government  officers,  who  check  the  attendance 
rolls,  examine  the  pupils,  and,  at  the  end  of  the  year,  submit 
reports  from  each  district. 

Mr.  H.  Y.  L.  Brown,  the  Government  Geologist  of  South 
Australia,  returned  to  the  Angle  Pole  head  camp  from  his 
exploration  trip  to  the  Musgrave  Ranges  on  October  7.  Accord - 
to  the  Colonies  and  India,  the  route  was  vid  Cootanoorina  and 
Arkaringa  Creek  to  Glen  Ferdinand,  a  trigonometrical  depot. 
The  exploration  extended  among  the  ranges  to  longitude  131"  E., 
latitude  26"  S.  Mr.  Carruthers,  the  Government  Trigono- 
metrical Surveyor,  starting  from  the  depot,  will  continue  the 
survey  towards  the  western  boundary,  and  expects  to  return  in 
January.  The  Government  Geologist  returned  vid  the  River 
Alberga,  striking  the  telegraph  line  at  the  Angle  Pole. 

From  the  Report  of  the  Ceylon  Survey  Department  for  the 
past  year,  which  has  just  been  issued,  it  appears  that  when  the 
calculations  of  the  northward  running  chain  of  the  13-inch 
triangulation  were  completed,  it  was  found  that  the  computed 
distance  betw  een  the  two  stations  at  Delft  Island  differed  from 
that  of  the  Indian  system  to  such  an  extent  as  to  show  a  con- 
siderable error,  probably  in  the  Ceylon  work.  The  resulting; 
error  is  too  small  to  be  appreciable  on  maps  even  of  the  largest 
scale,  but,  from  a  geodetical  point  of  view,  the  outcome  of  so 
much  work  extending  over  a  large  number  of  years  is  disappoint- 
ing. In  order  to  verify  the  previous  work.  Colonel  Clarke 
purposes  carrying  at  an  early  opportunity  a  new  system  of 
triangles  along  the  west  c  oast,  utilizing  as  many  as  possible  of 
the  old  stations.  A  tentative  scheme  for  the  triangulation  of  the 
west  coast  has  been  drawn  up,  and  when  an  officer  is  available, 
he  will  be  sent  to  inspect  the  country,  and  report  on  the  feasi- 
bility of  the  scheme.  In  consequence  of  the  incompleteness  of 
the  diagrams  and  other  records,  the  construction  of  a  new  series 
of  diagrams,  in  which  will  be  inserted  the  information  gained 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


^7 


from  an  exhaustive  examination  of  the  record  books,  will  be 
commenced.  In  the  past  year  sixty- one  sheets  were  scored 
under  the  superintendence  of  the  Trigonometrical  Assistant, 
each  representing  an  area  of  13 '6  miles  by  8*8  miles,  and  con- 
taining in  all  1687  fixed  stations.  He  has  alsi  prepared  an 
elaborate  map  of  the  island,  showing  sheet  line  distances. 

The  Report  for  the  past  year  on  the  mining  and  mineral 
statistics  of  Canada,  by  Mr.  H.  P.  Brumell,  of  the  Dominion 
Geological  Survey,  has  been  received  in  this  country.  The 
total  value  of  the  production  of  minerals  of  all  kinds  for  the 
year  was  $16,500,000 — an  increase  of  1,500,000  as  compared 
with  1887,  and  6,000,000  against  1886.  Coal  is  the  largest 
mineral  product  of  the  Dominion,  the  value  of  last  year's 
yield  amounting  to  $1,098,610,  as  against  $1,178,637,  in  1887, 
and  $1,330,442  in  1886.  The  decrease  in  the  yield  of  gold  has 
been  anticipated  for  some  years.  Copper  was  mined  to  the 
value  of  $667,543,  and  these  figures  will  in  all  probability  be 
doubled  this  year,  in  view  of  the  rapid  development  of  the 
Sudbury  and  Lake  Superior  Mines.  The  asbestos  yield 
amounted  to  $255,007,  and  the  phosphate  production  shows 
an  appreciable  increase. 

The  Smithsonian  Institution  has  issued  a  "  Preliminary  Cata- 
logue of  the  Shell-bearing  Marine  Mollusks  and  Brachiopods 
of  the  Snuth-Eastern  coast  of  the  United  States,"  by  W.  Mealey 
Dall.  The  volume  includes  admirable  illustrations  of  many 
species. 

We  have  received  the  sixty-second  part  of  the  first  division  of 
the  "  Encyclopjedie  der  Wissenschaften,"'  and  the  fifty-fourth 
and  fifty-fifth  parts  of  the  second  division  of  the  same  work 
"(Breslaii,  Trewendt).  The  first  of  these  three  parts  is  a  contri- 
ibution  to  tlie  hand-book  of  botany  included  in  this  En.;yclopa:dia  ; 
;the  second  and  third  conclude  the  seventh  volume  of  the  Encyclo- 
paedia's Dictionary  of  Chemistry. 

A  NEW  series  of  well  crystallized  salts,  ammoniacal  selenites, 
are  described  by  M.  Boutzoureano  in  the  current  number  of  the 
Attnales  de  Chimie  et  de  Physique.  Most  normal  selenites  are 
found  to  be  readily  solulile  in  strong  ammonia,  and  the  solutions 
on  evaporation  either  in  the-air  or  i)i  vacuo  deposit  crystals  of 
ammoniacal  selenites.  Four  of  these  interesting  salts  have  been 
studied  in  detail,  those  of  zinc,  cadmium,  "copper,  and  silver. 
Ammoniacal  zinc  selenite,  ZnO.  SeOj.NHj.  is  obtained  by  dis- 
solving neutral  zinc  selenite,  ZnO.  SeOj,  a  salt  which  crystallizes 
in  rhombic  prisms,  in  strong  ammonia  at  the  ordinary  tempera- 
ture. On  allowing  the  solution  to  spontaneously  evaporate, 
crystals  of  the  ammoniacal  salt  are  deposited  in  the  form  of  fine 
long  prisms  capped  by  domo-prisms  belonging  to  the  rhombic 
system.  The  crystals  are  insoluble  in  water,  which  appears  to 
exert  no  action  whatever  upon  them.  They  are  also  unchanged 
by  heating  to  100°  C,  but  when  heated  in  a  sealed  tube  the 
selenious  oxide  is  reduced  by  the  hydrogen  of  the  ammonia  with 
evolution  of  water  vapour  and  sublimation  of  selenium.  On 
ignition  they  are  completely  converted  to  zinc  oxide.  Acids 
readily  dissolve  the  crystals  even  when  largely  diluted  with 
water.     The  constitution  of  the  salt  appears  to  be 

/O 
Zn<;  /N     H3. 

\0-Se— 0/ 

Normal  cadmium  selenite,  CdO.  SeO.2,  is  also  soluble  in  am- 
monia, and  the  solution  leaves  on  evaporation  white  rhombic 
crystals  of  an  ammoniacal  cadmium  salt,  CdO.SeO2.NfI3, 
analogous  to  the  zinc  salt.  These  crystals  are  likewise  unattacke  I 
by  water,  and  are  stable  at  100°.  They  also  give  off  water  and 
■vapour  of  selenium  when  heated  in  a  sealed  tube.  The  most 
beautiful  salt  of  the  series,  however,  is  the  ammoniacal  copper 
selenite.     Copper  forms  a  normal  selenite  of  the  composition 


3(CuO.Se0.2).  HgO,  which  crystallizes  in  small  green  monoclinic 
crystals.  These  crystals  readily  dissolve  in  ammonia,  forming  a 
deep  bluish-violet  solution,  which  on  slow  evaporation  in  the 
air  yields  magnificent  blue  crystals  of  the  ammoniacal  salt 
belonging  to  the  triclinic  system.  The  salt  is  found  to  contain 
one  molecule  of  water,  and  is  represented  by  the  formula 
CuO.SeO2.NH3.  H.2O,  the  constitution  being  probably  more 
nearly  expressed  in  the  following  manner, 

/CuO— on 

H3EN/ 

\Se0-0M 

Unfortunately  these  fine  crystals  soon  alter  in  contact  with  air, 
losing  their  water  and  ammonia  and  becoming  covered  with  a 
green  coating  of  basic  copper  selenite.  Water  has  apparently 
no  action  upon  them,  but  in  reality  there  is  a  surface  action,  the 
coating  of  basic  selenite  thereby  formed  preventing  any  further 
decomposition.  In  a  similar  manner  silver  is  found  to  form  an 
ammoniacal  selenite,  the  crystals  belonging,  like  those  of  the 
copper  salt,  to  the  triclinic  system.  They  are  anhydrous, 
Ag2O.SeOo.NH3,  and  are  blackened  by  exposure  to  sunlight. 
Thus  the  series  is  seen  to  be  a  very  well  defined  one,  the  mem- 
bers consisting  of  normal  selenites  combined  with  one  molecule 
of  NH3,  generally  anhydrous,  but  occasionally,  as  in  case  of  the 
copper  sa't,  containing  water  of  crystallization. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Barbary  Ape  (Macaciis  inuus  <i ),  a  Saker 
Falcon  {Falco  sacer)  from  North  Africa,  presented  by  Captain 
Augustus  Kent ;  a  Malbrouck  Monkey  {Cercopithectis  cyno- 
surus  i)  from  West  Africa,  presented  by  Dr.  Messiter  Lang  ; 
two  Fieldfares  {Turdtts  pilaris),  British,  presented  by  Mr.  J. 
Young,  F.Z.S.  ;  a  Golden-naped  Amazon  {Cluysotis  atiripal- 
liata)  from  Central  America,  purchased  ;  a  Molucca  V>tttx  {Ceiinis 
viohtccensis'),  born  in  the  Menagerie. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope, 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.,  November  28 
31m.  57s. 


2h. 


Name. 

Mag 

Colour. 

R.A.  189a 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)G.  C.  575      

(2)  (1  Arietis          

6 

Yellowish-red. 

2  33  30 
2  49  37 

+38  19 
+  17  53 

(3)^ 'Ceti    

S 

Yellowish-white. 

2     7   12 

-f  8  20 

(4)-)'Ceti     

(5)  D  VI  +  57°  647      ... 

(6)  R  Ursa;  Minoris  ,.. 

(7)  V  Geminoruni 

3 
Var. 

White. 
Reddish-yellow. 
Reddish-yell  jW. 

2  37  36 
2  42  51 
i5  31   t8 
7  16  59 

+  246 
+57  24 
+37  34 
+  13  18 

Remarks. 

(i)  Sir  John  Herschel  describes  this  nebula  as  :  Very  bright, 
very  large,  very  much  extended,  very  much  brighter  in  the 
middle.  Dr.  Huggins  noted,  in  i865,  that  the  spectrum  was 
continuous,  but  pointed  out  in  his  remarks  that  this  was  not  to 
be  understood  to  mean  more  than  that,  when  the  slit  was  made 
as  narrow  as  the  feeble  light  permitted,  the  spectrum  was  not 
resolved  into  bright  lines.  Farther  observations  are  therefore 
required,  for  it  may  be  that  slight  brightenings  in  the  apparently 
cmiinuous  spectrum  were  overlooked  in  the  early  observations. 
The  case  of  the  nebula  in  .Andromeda  indicates  tiiat,  in  some  of 
the  nebulae  of  this  class,  bright  carbon  flutings  may  be  super- 
posed upon  the  contitmous  s  lectrum,  in  which  case  they  will  not 
be  very  obvious.  The  carbon  tluings  seen  in  the  spectrum  of 
the  flame  of  a  spirit-lamp  are  convenient  for  comparison  in  an 
observation  of  this  nature. 

(2)  This  is  a  typical  star  of  Gr  nip  II.  Diiner  describes  it  as 
superb  and  brilliantly  developed,  the  bands  1-9  being  perfectly 
visible.  The  star  therefore  affords  an  oi)portunity  of  observing 
the  bright  carbon  flutings  and  checking  their  positions.     If  they 


88 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  28,  1889 


are  very  bright,  the  compound  structure,  as  seen  in  the  spectrum 
of  a  spirit-lamp  or  the  base  of  a  candle-flame,  maybe  looked  for. 
The  star  falls  in  species  9  of  the  subdivision  of  the  group,  and 
is  accordingly  of  about  mean  condensation.  Dark  metallic  lines 
will  probably  be  found  to  make  their  appearance  about  this 
temperature,  and  the  presence  or  absence  of  b,  D,  or  other  lines 
should  therefore  be  noted. 

(3)  Vogel  classes  this  with  stars  of  the  solar  type,  but  is 
doubtful  whether  it  does  not  belong  to  Group  II.  It  is  most 
likely  that  it  is  at  an  intermediate  stage — either  a  late  stage 
of  Group  II.  or  an  early  stage  of  Group  III.  There  are 
evidently  traces  of  some  of  the  dark  flutings,  and  it  is  suggested 
that  the  distinguishing  numbers  of  these  and  the  relative  in- 
tensities of  the  lines  should  be  noted.  The  observations  made 
by  Prof.  Lockyer  and  myself  seem  to  indicate  that  the  bands  in 
the  red  are  the  most  persistent  as  the  temperature  increases. 

(4)  According  to  Gothard  this  is  a  star  of  Group  IV.,  and 
the  usual  observations  are  required. 

(5)  This  is  classed  with  stars  of  Group  VI.  in  Duner's  cata- 
logue, but  it  is  stated  that  the  type  of  spectrum  is  rather  doubtful. 
Like  the  star  given  last  week,  it  may  possibly  be  intermediate 
between  Groups  V.  and  VI.,  and  similar  observations  are 
suggested. 

(6)  This  is  a  variable  star  which  will  be  at  its  maximum  on 
November  30.  Gore  gives  the  period  as  281 '2  days,  and  the 
range  as  8  at  maximum  to  <  11 '5  at  minimum.  The  spec- 
trum is  of  the  Group  II.  type,  and  the  suggestions  made  for  the 
observation  of  R  Tauri  (see  p.  68)  apply  equally  in  this  case.  It 
may  be  further  suggested  that  the  spectrum  be  observed  for 
some  time  after  the  maximum,  special  attention  being  given  to 
the  fading  out  of  the  carbon  fluting  in  the  green  (517,  a  little 
more  refrangible  than  b)  relatively  to  the  other  bright  spaces. 

(7)  Gore  gives  the  period  of  this  variable  (maximum  on 
December  4)  as  276  days,  and  the  range  as  8  "6  to  <  13 '5.  The 
spectrum  and  colour  have  not  yet,  so  far  as  I  know,  been  recorded, 
and  midnight  observers  may  therefore  take  advantage  of  the 
approaching  maximum.  A.  Fowler, 

The  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886. — The  report  of  the 
observations  of  the  total  solar  eclipse  of  August  29,  1886,  made 
at  the  Island  of  Carriacou  by  the  Rev.  S.  J.  Perry,  has  been 
published.  The  two  main  questions  that  required  spectroscopic 
observations  to  answer  them  were  : — (i)  Does  the  absorption, 
which  produces  the  Fraunhofer  lines,  take  place  mainly  in  a 
single  layer  of  the  solar  atmosphere,  or  in  concentric  layers? 
(2)  Does  carbon  exist  in  the  corona?  With  respect  to  the  first 
point.  Father  Perry  thinks  that  the  differences  in  the  length 
of  the  lines  which  he  observed  before  totality  on  the  less  re- 
frangible side  of  b  seems  somewhat  to  strengthen  the  view  that 
the  selective  absorption  takes  place  in  concentric  layers.  During 
totality  a  search  was  made  for  the  two  principal  bands  of  the 
ca:rbon  spectrum.  The  part  of  the  spectrum  observed  was  from 
about  b  to  A560,  but  no  trace  was  seen  of  the  carbon  bands. 
Father  Perry,  however,  suggests  that  perhaps  the  intensity  of  the 
carbon  spectrum  may  vary  m  each  eclipse,  and  may  have  some 
direct  connection  with  the  amount  of  solar  activity.  Some 
sketches  of  the  coronal  streamers  are  appended  to  this  report. 

Mr.  H.  H.  Turner's  report  of  the  observations  of  the  same 
eclipse,  made  in  the  Island  of  Grenada,  has  also  been  received. 
The  following  is  a  list  of  the  lines  seen  and  the  jorder  in  which 
they  appeared  : — 

h.  m.     s. 

7     7  45  ...  F  line  appeared, 

7     8  55  ...  4923  appeared  ;  very  short. 

7  II  30  ...  4923  and  4933.     Immediately  after,  many  lines 

appeared. 

7  12     o  ..,  Totality, 

7  20  50  ...  Only  F  ;  4923  and  4933  visible  at  times, 

7  21   45  ...  4923  still  suspected,  and  4956. 

7  22  28  ...  4956  ;  certainly  visible. 

7  24  42  ...  No  line  visible. 

It  will  be  seen  that  to  some  extent  these  observations  lead  to 
the  same  conclusion  as  that  arrived  at  by  Father  Perry. 

The  corona  was  examined  with  a  view  to  the  detection  of 
currents,  but  with  a  negative  result, 

Palermo  Observatory. — The  fourth  volume  of  observations 
made  at  Palermo  has  beea  issued  by  Prof.  Ricco,  and  covers  the 
period  1884-88.  The  observations  of  sun-spots  during  1885 
.'•how  that  the  limiting  latitude  in  whith  the  phenomena  occurred 


were  -f  25°  and  -  30°.  Two  maxima  are  indicated  by  the  curve 
of  distribution  that  has  been  plotted,  both  extending  from  about 
10°  to  15°  north  and  south  of  the  equator,  but  the  number  of 
spots  that  have  been  observed  in  the  latter  hemisphere  consider- 
ably exceeds  that  observed  in  the  former.  The  minimum  which 
occurs  between  these  two  maxima  is  in  a  latitude  slightly 
north  of  the  equator.  Generally  speaking,  faculae  appear  to 
have  been  equally  distributed  over  the  sun's  surface.  The  spec- 
troscopic observations  that  have  been  made  of  solar  prominences 
in  different  latitudes  demonstrate  that  the  reversal  of  the  coronal 
line  1474K  and  b  was  considerably  more  frequent  a  little  to  the 
south  of  the  equator  than  in  any  other  latitude,  and  was  con- 
tained within  the  limits  -f  30°  to  -  30°,  following  somewhat  the 
same  line  of  distribution  as  that  of  spots. 

Prof.  Ricco  has  included  some  fine  sunset  observations  made 
after  the  eruption  at  Krakatab,  which  support  the  view  that, 
to  a  great  extent,  they  were  due  to  the  suspension  of  volcanic 
dust  in  the  atmosphere.  A  lengthy  series  of  meteorol epical 
measurements,  some  observation  of  Nova  Orionis,  Nova  An- 
dromedas,  and  various  comets,  are  also  contained  in  this 
publication. 

The  Variable  Star  Y  Cygni. — The  irregularities  before 
observed  in  the  period  of  this  star  have  been  verified  by  Mr. 
Chandler's  more  recent  observations  {Astronomical  yournal. 
No.  204,  October  1889).  He  finds  that  the  period  of  the  star, 
which  increased  by  nearly  two  minutes  during  1887  and  1888,  is 
now  decreasing  at  a  similarly  surprising  rate.  The  reversal 
appears  to  have  occurred  about  the  middle  of  1888,  and  the 
average  value  for  the  last  twelve  months  has  been  about 
id.  iih.  567m.  Assuming  this  average  value  for  the  period  of 
the  star,  an  ephemeris  is  subjoined.  Only  alternate  minima  are 
given. 

Minima  of  Y  Cygni.      G.M.  T. 

1889.  1890. 

d.  h.     in.  d.    h.  m. 

727  Dec.     2  12  38  ...  747  Jan.  i   11  32*0 

729       ,,       5  12  31-4  ...  749  ,,  4  II  25-4 

731       ,,       8  12  24-8  ...  751  ,,  7  II  188 

733       ,,      II    12   i8-2  ...  753  ,,  ID  II  12-2 

735       „     J4  12  II-6  ...  755  ,,  13  II  56 

737       „     17  12     50  .„  757  ,,  16  10  59-0 

739       ,,     20  II   584  ...  759  „  19  10  52-4 

741       ,,     23  II   51-8  ...  761  ,,  22  10  45-8 
743       „     26  II  45-2 
745      ..     29  II  38-6 

Paramatta  Observatory. — The  Government  Astronomer 
at  this  Observatory,  Mr.  H.  C.  Russell,  F.R.S.,  has  collected 
and  arranged  in  a  concise  form  the  history  of  what  has  been 
done  in  New  South  Wales  for  astronomy  and  meteorology  since 
1778.  The  paper  may  be  found  in  the  Proceedings  of  the 
Australasian  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science, 
Sydney,  1888,  p.  45. 

Minor  Planet  282. — This  planet,  discovered  by  M.  Char- 
lois,  January  28,  1889,  has  received  the  name  of  Clorinde. 


Comet 

Davidson 

{e    1889).— Ep 

hemeris    for 

time : — 

1889. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

h.    111.     s. 

0          /  . 

Nov.  29*5 

...        19    17    21 

...      +  38  56 

Dec.      I  -5 

,,    21    41 

39  «o 

„       3-5 

•..        „    26      3 

„  25 

„       5-5 

...       „   33  25 

-,,  40 

A  New  Variable  Star  in  Hydra. — Mr.  Edwin  F.  Sawyer,, 
in  the  Astronomical  yournal,  No.  204,  gives  observations  de- 
monstrating the  variability  of  the  star  358  (U,A. )  Hydrse,  R.A. 
I3h.  41m.  59s.,  Decl.  -27°  44  "5  (1875  o).  An  inspection  of 
the  observations  that  had  previously  been  made  of  the  magnitude 
of  this  star  indicates  fluctuations  of  about  one  unit,  viz.  7m.  to 
8m.,  and  the  period  would  appear  to  be  about  one  year.  The 
star  is  quite  red. 

Sun-spots  in  High  Southern  Latitudes. — The  Rev,  S. 
J.  Perry  read  a  paper  under  this  title  at  the  meeting  of  the  Royal 
Astronomical  Society  on  November  8,  in  which  he  drew  attention 
to  some  remarkable  instances  which  have  recently  occurred  of 
the  appearance  of  sun-spots  at  a  great  distance  from  the  equator. 
These  took  place  on  June  5,  June  30,  October  8,  and  October  10 
respectively  ;  that  of  June  30  being  especially  interesting,  as  the 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


£9 


spot  seen  on  that  occasion  attained  a  latitude  of  40",  a  circum- 
stance for  which  there  are  only  a  very  few  recorded  precedents. 
Besides  these  spots  mentioned  by  Father  Perry  some  much 
larger  groups  have  also  been  seen  at  a  less  but  still  considerable 
distance  from  the  equator.  Thus  on  July  26  and  27  a  group  was 
noticed  in  lat.  24^  S.,  while  another  and  more  important  group 
in  nearly  the  same  latitude  was  observed  during  three  successive 
rotations  in  August,  September,  and  October.  Bearing  in  mind 
that  the  mean  distance  from  the  equator  of  all  spots  in  1888  was 
scarcely  more  than  7  ,  and  in  the  first  five  months  of  1889,  but 
little  more  than  5",  these  outbreaks  in  high  latitudes  become 
very  significant  ;  and  taken  with  the  marked  increase  in  number 
and  size  of  spots  during  the  months  of  June,  July,  August,  and 
September,  as  compared  with  the  earlier  part  of  the  year,  point 
to  the  minimum  being  definitely  passed.  If  this  be  so,  the 
period  of  quiescence  has  been  decidedly  shorter,  the  run  down 
from  maximum  swifter,  and  the  turn  towards  recovery  sharper 
than  in  the  preceding  cycle.  Judging  from  the  form  of  the  spot 
curve  on  previous  occasions  when  a  short  period  of  minimum 
has  followed  a  maximum  of  low  intensity,  as  was  that  of  1883, 
we  may  expect  that  the  revival  will  be  rapid,  and  the  next 
maximum  a  strongly  marked  one. 


PROPOSED  MEMORIAL  OF  DR.  JOULE. 

A  PUBLIC  meeting  was  held  on  Monday  in  the  Mayor's 
■^  parlour  at  the  Town  Hall,  Manchester,  for  the  purpose  of 
considering  the  proposal  to  erect  a  memorial  of  the  late  Dr. 
James  Prescott  Joule.  The  meeting  was  convened  in  response  to 
a  memorial  influentially  signed  by  residents  in  Manchester, 
Salford,  and  the  neighbouring  country  who  desire  that  the 
"  deep  sense  of  the  benefits  conferred  on  mankind  for  all  time, 
as  well  as  of  the  great  honour  which  accrues  to  this  district,  by 
the  scientific  work  of  the  late  James  Prescott  Joule  should  be 
marked  by  the  erection  of  some  durable  memorial  of  him  in  the 
city."  The  meeting  was  very  numerously  and  influentially  at- 
tended. The  Mayor  of  Manchester  presided,  and  amongst  those 
piesent  were  Sir  H.  E.  Roscoe,  M.P. ,  Mr.  J.  VV.  Maclure, 
M.P.,  Dr.  Ward  (Vice-Chancellor  of  the  Vicjoria  University), 
Dr.  Greenwood  (Principal  of  the  Owens  College),  Prof.  Osborne 
Reynolds,  Prof.  Munro,  Dr.  Talham,  Mr.  F.  J.  Faraday,  and 
many  others. 

A  number  of  letters  of  apology  for  absence  were  read.  Lord 
Derby  wrote  from  London  : — 

"  I  cannot  attend  the  meeting  on  Monday  in  aid  of  the  Joule 
memorial,  having  business  here,  but  I  heartily  sympathize  with 
the  object,  and  will  with  pleasure  contribute." 

Mr.  William  Mather  wrote  : — 

"When  the  beautiful  simplicity  of  Dr.  Joule's  life  and 
character  are  regarded  in  conjunction  with  the  world-wide  fame 
his  labours  have  acquired  among  the  greatest  intellects  of  our 
time,  we  in  Manchester  must  feel  that  our  late  fellow-citizen's 
memory  deserves  to  be  kept  ever  fresh  in  our  midst  by  a 
memorial  alike  worthy  of  this  city  and  of  the  imperishable 
renown  which  Dr.  Joule  has  won.  Those  of  us  who  apply 
science  to  industry  are  deeply  indebted  for  the  means  through 
which  we  work  to  the  original  thinkers  who  put  the  laws  of 
Nature  into  our  hands  with  clear  definitions  as  to  their  purposes. 
I  trust  this  sense  of  indebtedness  may  be  felt  throughout  this 
district,  and  that  funds  maybe  generously  supplied  to  enable  the 
committee  to  raise  a  memorial  amply  testifying  to  our  gratitude 
and  to  our  admiration  for  the  late  Dr.  Joule. 

The  Bishop  of  Manchester  wrote  : — 

"  I  greatly  regret  that  I  am  prevented  by  an  engagement  from 
attendmg  the  meeting  in  connection  with  the  proposed  memorial 
to  Dr.  Joule.  I  think  that  it  would  be  an  honour  to  any  town 
to  be  the  birthplace  and  home  of  the  man  who  first  proved  the 
truth  of  the  great  principle  of  the  conservation  of  energy.  I 
most  heartily  sympathize  with  the  movement  which  the  meeting  is 
called  together  to  initiate,  and  I  shall  verygladlygive  a  contribution 
to  any  fund  which  may  be  to-day  established  or  recommended." 
The  Mayor,  having  spoken  of  the  relations  between  Manchester 
and  science  in  past  time-,  said  the  scientific  work  of  Dr.  Joule 
had  made  the  name  of  Manchester  famous  throughout  the  world, 
not  merely  as  that  of  a  great  industrial  and  trading  city,  but  as 
a  centre  of  intellectual  culture  and  home  of  genius.  This  great 
man  was  born  in  Salford,  hut  he  learnt  his  science  as  a  boy  from 
Dr.  Dalton,  in  George  Slnet  in  this  city.  There,  he,  for  a 
period  of  nearly  half  a  century,  found  the  congenial  society  which 
stimulated  his  genius.      He  read  many  of  his  papers  there  ;  his 


experiments  were  performed  in  this  city  ;  and  to  the  end  he  con- 
tinued to  re.'ide  in  the  suburbs,  in  a  quiet  and  unostentatious  way^ 
his  riches  truly  consisting,  not  in  the  extent  of  his  possessions,, 
but  in  the  fewness  of  his  wants.  The  last  generation  honoured 
the  memory  of  Dalton  by  a  statue  in  marble  by  Chantrey,  which 
was  considered  to  be  one  of  the  most  beautiful  works  of  art  ia 
the  city,  and  it  was  suggested  that  they  should  show  their  appre- 
ciation of  Dalton's  great  successor  in  a  similar  way. 
Mr.  Oliver  Heywood  moved  : — 

"  That  this  meeting  desires  to  mark  its  deep  sense  of  the 
benel  ts  conferred  on  mankind  for  all  time,  as  well  as  of  the 
great  honour  which  has  accrued  to  this  district,  by  the  scientific 
work  of  the  late  James  Prescott  Joule,  by  the  erection  of  a 
durable  memorial  of  him  in  Manchester,  in  the  form  of  a  white 
marble  statue." 

Sir  H.  E.  Roscoe,  M.P.,  said  he  ftlt  it  a  pleasure  and  an 
honour  in  more  ways  than  one  to  be  asked  to  second  the  resolu- 
tion, because,  in  the  first  place,  he  was  one  of  the  oldest  scientific 
friends  of  the  man  whose  memory  they  had  met  to  honour,  and 
because  it  had  been  his  privilege  not  only  to  become  acquainted 
with  his  important  scientific  labours,  but  to  enjoy  the  friendship 
of  one  who  might  truly  be  said  to  have  been  a  typical  man  of 
science,  the  simple  straightforward  searcher  after  truth  for  its 
own  sake  and  that  alone.  Another  reason  was  a  more  personal 
one.  On  the  occasion  of  his  first  public  utterance  in  Manchester, 
now  more  than  thirty-two  years  ago,  when  he  read  his  inaugural 
address  on  taking  up  the  duties  of  the  Chair  of  Chemistry  in  the 
Owens  College,  he  drew  attention  to  the  great  work  accom- 
plished by  Joule.  This  was,  so  far  as  he  could  learn,  the  first 
occasion  on  which  Joule's  work  and  its  importance  was  brought 
publicly  before  a  Manchester  audience,  and  he  remembered  as  if 
it  were  yesterday  being  asked  by  several  Manchester  friends  who 
this  Dr.  Joule  was  of  whom  he  had  spoken  in  such  high  terms, 
and  what  was  the  great  discovery  he  had  made.  And  then  he  re- 
membered that,  after  explaining  as  well  as  he  could  to  unscientific 
people  the  meaning  of  the  mechanical  equivalent  of  heat  and 
the  conservation  of  energy,  he  added  in  joke,  in  order  to  impress 
the  matter  on  minds  unaccustomed  to  deal  with  subjects  scien- 
tific, that  in  the  good  time  coming  Manchester  would  be  immor- 
talized, not,  as  they  thought,  by  being  the  seat  of  the  cotton 
trade,  but  rather  as  being  the  place  v.'here  John  Dalton  worked 
out  the  atomic  theory  of  chemistry,  and  James  Prescott  Joule 
placed  upon  a  sure  experimental  basis  the  grand  principle  of  the 
conservation  of  energy.  Since  that  time  many  things  had  hap- 
pened, many  changes  had  occurred,  and  the  knowledge  of  Science 
and  her  doings  was  more  widespread.  We  had  acknowledged 
our  indebtedness  to  Dr.  Dalton,  and  we  were  now  met  to  con- 
sider how  we  could  best  do  the  same  for  Joule.  The  memorial 
which  had  been  presented  to  the  Mayor  was  of  itself  proof 
that  Manchester  was  anxious  to  recognize  merit  such  as  that 
of  Dr.  Joule,  and  to  acknowledge  that  services  thus  quietly  and 
unostentatiously  rendered  were  sometimes  of  far  greater  value  to 
the  Stale  than  those  about  which  much  more  was  heard.  This 
was  not  the  occasion  nor  was  that  the  place  to  enter  into  an 
elaborate  discussion  of  Joule's  scientific  labours.  It  was  sufficient 
now  to  remember  that,  just  as  Lavoisier,  more  than  a  century 
ago,  proved  the  indestructibility  of  matter,  so  Joule  nearly  half  a 
century  ago  proved  the  indestructibility  of  energy — that  we  could 
no  more  destroy  or  create  energy  than  we  could  create  or  destroy 
matter.  And  "  thereby  hangs  a  tale  " — a  tale  so  interesting  that 
it  would  take  long  to  tell  it ;  a  tale  so  far-reaching  that  it  con- 
cerned every  great  industry  ;  a  tale  so  important  that  without  it 
all  the  modern  applications  of  scientific  discovery  to  the  daily 
wants  of  mankind  could  not  have  been  made.  The  events 
which  formed  the  incidents  in  this  tale  had  happened  in  our 
midsf,  and  had  taken  place  so  quietly  that  but  few  had  known 
of  their  existence.  Like  many  great  discoverers,  Joule  was  far 
in  advance  of  his  time  ;  and  even  the  results  of  his  most  im- 
portant reseat  ch,  that  on  the  determination  of  the  mechanical 
equiv.ilent  of  heat,  met  with  opposition,  and  were  received  with 
incredulity  by  men  who  ought  to  have  known  better.  Indeed,  it 
was  an  open  secret  that  when  Joule's  first  paper  on  this  subject,  an 
abstract  of  which  had  been  read  at  the  Cork  meeting  of  the  British 
Association  on  August  21,  1843,  was  presented  to  the  Council  of 
the  Royal  Society  for  publication  in  theirTransactions,  someof  the 
niemhers  of  that  learned  body  openly  expressed  their  opinion 
that  the  paper  was  nonsense  from  beginning  to  end,  that  the 
author,  who  was  a  mere  amateur,  living  in  some  remote  and 
rather  uncivilized  part  of  the  country,  out  of  the  charmed  circle 
of  metropolitan  and  professional  science,  had  been  entirely 
mistaken,  because  he  had,  forsooth  !  neglected  the  whole  question 


90 


NATURE 


[Nov.  28,  1889 


■of  friction,  and  had  got  hold  of  an  absurd  idea  that  the  value?  of 
the  various  so-called  imponderables  could  be  expr23>ed  in 
■quantitative  terms,  the  one  of  the  other.  Fortunately  for  the 
•credit  of  the  Roval  Society,  someone  mire  far-seeing  than  these 
•critics,  expressed  the  opinion  that  the  Council  had  better  take 
care  what  it  was  abou%  because  if  they  acted  on  these  ideas 
they  might  find  that  they,  the  highest  scientific  tribunal  in  the 
country,  had  refused  to  publish  the  most  important  scientific 
discovery  of  the  century,  and  one  which  had  already  been 
receivred  with  acclamation  by  all  Continental  scientific  authorities. 
And  so  the  celebrated  paper  on  the  mechanical  equivalent  of 
heat  was  printed,  seven  years  after  its  first  announcement,  in  the 
Philosophical  Transactions  for  1850.  But  while  this,  with  its 
immediate  relations,  was  Joule's  magnum  opus,  other  portions 
of  his  work  were  of  scarcely  less  importance,  and  to  one  only  of 
these  did  he  (Sir  Henry)  wish  f  )r  a  moment  to  revert,  as  it 
touched  on  a  fundamental  principle  in  the  science  of 
•chemistry,  and  was  therefore  specially  interesting  to  himself, 
whilst  it  served  to  show  the  wide  area  which  Joule's  re- 
searches covered.  On  January  24,  1843,  Joule  read  a 
paper  before  the  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  in  their 
rooms  in  George  Street,  hallowed  by  the  memory  of  Dalton, 
entitled,  "On  the  Heat  evolved  during  the  Electrolysis 
-of  Water."  The  results  of  this  apparently  trivial  research 
were  of  the  highest  importance,  as  establishing  the  heat  equiva- 
dence  of  chemical  action.  Dulong,  in  France,  had  already  de- 
termined the  amount  of  heat  evolved  during  combustion,  but  he 
did  not  compare  this  with  the  heat  evolved  by  the  same  com- 
bustion in  the  battery  or  elsewhere,  and  Joule's  discovery, 
described  in  the  above  papers,  was,  that  the  heat  which  dis- 
app'iars  during  separation  of  the  chemical  elements  was  equal  to 
that  which  made  its  appearance  during  their  combination,  on 
the  principle  that  action  and  reaction  were  equal  and  opposite. 
And  this  was  the  discovery  which  established  the  law  proving 
that  chenical  action  was  due  to  the  clashing  of  the  atoms,  and 
that  the  same  laws  applied  to  those  atom?  singly  as  they  did  to 
the.n  when  taken  in  the  aggregite,  thus  showing  that  chemistry 
was  a  branch  of  molecular  physics.  He  trusted  he  had  given 
good  grounds  for  the  acceptance  by  that  m  eting  of  the  resolu- 
tion he  moved.  He  would  humbly  suggest  that  mthing  short  of 
a  similar  memorial  to  that  erected  to  Dalton  ought  to  be  raise! 
in  Manchester  in  recognition  of  the  labours  of  Joule.  They 
had  statues  of  Cob  len,  of  Dalton,  and  of  good  Bishop  Fraser  ; 
they  would  soon  have  one  of  Bright.  Let  them  not  place  Joule 
in  any  less  conspicuous  position,  for  his  work  was  as  glorious  a? 
any  of  theirs.  Let  us  have  a  marble  statue  as  a  companion  to 
that  beautiful  one  of  Dalton,  b/  Chantrey,  in  our  Town  Hall, 
and  let  us  have  a  replica  of  it  in  bronze  to  place  on  our  Infirm- 
:ary  flags,  so  that  all  who  passed  for  generations  might  say, 
"That  is  the  statue  of  our  great  Manchester  man  of  science,  James 
Prescott  Joule,  who  did  work  in  our  midst  not  less  important 
than  that  of  his  master,  John  Dalton,  whose  statue  is  hard  by  ; 
both  men  were  honoured  by  their  contemporaries,  and  are  even 
more  honoured  by  us  who  follow  them." 

Prof.  Osborne  Reynolds,  in  supporting  the  motion,  expressed 
regret  that  they  had  not  present  with  them  Sir  William  Thom- 
son, who  fought  the  battle  with  Dr.  Joule.  Sir  Willian  had 
written  a  letter,  in  the  course  of  which  he  said  :  "  Manchester 
is  certainly,  of  all  cities  in  the  world,  to  be  envied  the  honour  of 
being  able  to  erect  a  monument  to  Joule  as  one  of  its  own  citi- 
zens." Professor  Reynolds  also  made  a  statement  as  to  the 
action  which  had  been  taken  by  the  Manchester  Literary  and 
Philosophical  Society,  with  whom  the  proposal  for  a  memorial 
of  Dr.  Joule  originateL 

On  being  put  to  the  meeting,  the  motion  was  unanimously 
adopted. 

Mr.  Alderman  W,  H.  Bailey  moved  the  appointment  of  the 
following  Committee  to  raise,  by  public  subscription,  a  sufficient 
sum  to  carry  the  above  resolution  into  effect,  viz.  :— Chairman — 
the  Mayor  of  Manchester ;  Treasurer  —Oliver  Heywood ; 
Thomas  -Ashton  ;  the  Ven.  Archleacon  Anson  ;  Sir  William 
-Cunlifife  Brooks,  Bart.,  M.P,  ;  Alderman  W.  H.  Bailey;  Rev. 
St.  Vincent  Beechey  ;  C.  H.  Bayley  ;  Dr.  James  Bottomley  ; 
William  Brockbank ;  J.  H.  Buxton :  Rev.  L.  C.  Casartelli ; 
Councillor  George  Clay  ;  R.  S.  Dale  ;  Prof.  W.  Bjyd  Daw- 
Jcins  ;  ■"  Mr.  Thoaias  Diggles  ;  Samuel  Dixon,  President  of  the 
Manchester  Society  of  Engineers  ;  F.  J.  Faraday,  H  )n. 
Se:ret  ry  of  the  Manchester  Literary  and  Pnilosophical  Society  ; 
Livington  E.  CFletcher;  R.  F.  Gwyther,  Hon.  Secretary  of 
ilha    M  mchester  Literary  and    Philosophical    Society;  Sam.iel 


Gratrix ;  Principal  J.  G.  Greenwood  ;  William  Grimshaw ; 
Charles  J.  Galloway;  Sir  W.  IL  Houldsworth,  Bart.,  M.  P.  ;  T. 
C.  Horsfall  ;  Dr.  Charles  John  Hall  ;  Thomas  Harker  ;  Henry 
H.  Howorth,  M.P.  ;  William  W.  Hulse  ;  Henry  P.  H  )lt ; 
Isaac  Hoyle,  M.  P.  ;  Dr.  Edward  Hopkinson  ;  Canon  Hicks  ; 
James  Jardine,  High  Sheriff  of  Cheshire ;  W.  H.  Johnson  ; 
Thomas  Kay  ;  George  King  ;  Thomas  Kay  ;  Horace  I-amb  ; 
Sir  Joseph  C.  Lee;  Ivan  Levinstein;  J.  W.  Maclure,  M.P.  ; 
Councillor  J.  D.  Milne ;  James  Cosmo  Melvill  ;  Councillor 
Alexander M'Dougall,Jun.  ;  Robert  Montgomery;  Dr.  Morgan  ; 
William  Mather,  M.P.  ;  Ludwig  Mond  (V.P.  Chem.  Soc.)  ; 
Prof.  J.  E.  C.  Munro  ;  Francis  Nicholson  ;  Councillor  Charles 
O'Neill  ;  Henry  D.  Pochin  ;  W.  O.  Pooiey  ;  Sir  H.  E.  Roscoe, 
M.P.,;  Dr.  Ransome ;  Prof.  Osborne  Reynolds;  Henry 
Slatter  ;  Dr.  Schunck  ;  Prof.  Schuster;  Councillor  Dr.  Henry 
Simpson ;  Colonel  Thomas  Sowler  ;  William  Thomson  ; 
Alderman  Joseph  Thompson  ;  Councillor  S.  Chesters-Thompson  ; 
E.  Leader  Williams  ;  Professor  A.  W.  Ward  ;  Thomas  Worth- 
ington  ;  Rev.  Canon  Charles  W.  Woodhouse.  Convener  of 
first  meeting.  Prof.  Osborne  Reynolds.  In  his  remarks  in 
support  of  the  motion,  Mr.  Bailey  said  that  speaking  as  an  ex- 
President  of  the  Manchester  Society  of  Engineers  he  could  testify 
that,  however  slow  many  people  might  have  been  to  acknowledge 
Dr.  Joule's  work,  the  Society  of  Engineers  had  never  forgotten 
Dr.  Joule's  labours  and  the  benefit  which  those  labours  had 
conferred  on  the  engineers  of  this  country  and  on  the  industries 
of  the  world  generally. 

The  motion  was  seconded  by  Colonel  T.  Sowler  and  un- 
animously adopted. 

A  vote  of  thanks  to  the  Mayor  for  presiding  and  for  the  use  of 
his  parlour,  accorded  on  the  motion  of  Prof.  Ward,  seconded  by 
Mr.  C.  Bailey,  brought  the  proceedings  to  a  close.  -^^j^ 

HOW  PLANTS  MAINTAIN   THEMSELVES  IN 
THE  STRUGGLE  FOR  EXISTENCE} 

(^RDINARY  English  scenery,  so  full  of  quiet  and  so  suggest- 
^•'^  ive  of  repose  that  one  may  not  rea'lily  discover  signs  of  a 
struggle  for  existence.  In  tropical  scenery  these  signs  are  so 
clear  that  they  have  been  recognized  again  and  again  by  every 
thinking  naturalist  who  has  ever  visited  tropical  regions. 

Any  comprehensive  view  of  the  phenomenon  of  life  upon  the 
globe  clearly  points  to  the  one  conclusion  that  all  Nature  is  in 
a  perpetual  state  of  desperate  warfare,  and  the  keynote  of  this 
address  must  be  :  the  utter  remorselessness  of  Nature,  the  care 
for  self ;  the  absolute  disregard  for  others.  In  all  cises  the 
weakest  goes  to  the  wall. 

Evidences  of  Struggle  for  Exist  ewe  in  the  Plant  World. 

Ficus  parasitica.  Seed  dropped  by  bird  germinates  on  fork 
of  some  tree,  e.g.  the  jack  fruit  {Artocarpus  integrifolid)  ;  sends 
long  root  into  soil  ;  gradually  spreads  itself  over,  and  suftocates 
the  unfortunate  foster-mother. 

Heraclcum  giganteum.  Allowed  to  seed  itself  freely.  On 
June  I,  18S9,  573  seedlings  had  germinated  ;  on  August  19, 
105  remained,  the  missing  ones  having  been  killed  by  the  more 
vigorous  survivors. 

Bertholletia  excelsa.  Fifteen  to  twenty-four  Brazil  nuts  are 
contained  in  each  fruit,  the  fruit  being  indehiscent.  All  seeds 
germinate  at  once.  The  most  vigorous  gets  first  through  a  small 
hole  at  the  top  to  the  open  air,  and  strangles  and  feeds  upon  all 
the  rest. 

What  Plants  struggle  for. 

Plants  struggle  for  two  main  objects — viz.  their  own  nutrition, 
and  the  reproduction  of  their  species  by  means  of  offspring, 
which  they  leave  behind  them,  and  for  which  they  make  ade- 
quate provision.  The  two  master  functions,  nutrition  and  re- 
production, often  stand  out  clearly  marked  the  one  from  the 
other— ^.^.  in  the  Talipot  palm  (Cojypha  uinhraculiferd),  where 
the  period  of  leaf- bearing  is  succeeded  by  the  period  of  fruiting, 
the  latter  being  accompanied  by  the  final  death  of  the  whole 
plant. 

I. — Nutrition. 

Protective  Adaptations  associated  with  the  mainly  Nutritive 
Organs, 

(i)  Mechanical  contrivances.  Large  forest  trees  (often  200 
feet  high)  have  buttressed  trunks,  e.g.  Canarium  commune. 

^  Abstract  furnished  by  the  Author,  Prof.  Waher  Gardiner,  of  a  lecture 
delivered  at  the  Newcastle  meeting  of  thi  British  Asscciation. 


Nov.  28,  [889] 


NATURE 


91 


(2)  Laige  leaves  in  palms  (often  14  feet  long),  tied  in  at  the 
leaf-base,  e.g.  Dii]ymosperinu?n  distichum. 

{3)  Young  buds  of  many  tropical  trees  hang  vertically  down- 
wards, so  as  to  expose  the  least  surface  to  sun,  e.g.  Amhenlia 
iiobilis. 

(4)  Prickles  ami  spines  developed,  e.g.  immense  leaf  of  Victoria 
7rqia\%  1  rotected  from  fish,  &c.,  which,  in  rising  from  btlow, 
might  nipture  the  leaf-tissue. 

(5)  Patrols  of  ants  attracted.  Ants  provided  with  home, 
honey,  and  food,  e.g.  Acacia  spharocephala.  Similarly,  Iponma 
paniculata  attracts  ants  by  racemose  glands  supplied  with  defi- 
nite ducts,  two  of  which  are  present  in  each  leaf,  at  junction  of 
blade  and  stalk. 

(6)  During  the  unfolding  and  growth  of  the  bud,  special 
mechanisms  exist.  Thus,  water-glands  occur  at  the  apex  of 
each  leaf-tooth  (Saxifraga  crustatd),  which  provide  for  the 
escape  of  the  superabundant  water  sucked  up  by  the  root :  other- 
wife  the  delicate  leaf-tissue  might  be  ruptured.  In  fully  deve- 
loped leaves,  on  a  cold  night,  drops  may  be  seen  escaping  from 
the  teeth,  e  g.  balsam  {Impatiens  Balsamina). 

Other  glands  are  also  found  which  secrete  mucilage  or  resin, 
and  so  protect  the  young  structures  from  the  efiects  of  excessive 
drought,  e.g.  ferns  {hlechtium  Braziliense')  and  other  plants 
{Clusia  sp.  and  Coprosma  .<p.). 

II.  — Reproduction. 

The  importance  of  this  process  is  sufficiently  obvious  from 
the  enormous  expenditure  of  material  and  energy  plants  lavish 
upon  it.  Ilodgsoitia  heterocli'a,  an  extraordinary  Indian  climber, 
with  its  complicated  structure  and  great  beauty,  opens  for  one 
night  only,  and  shrivels  up  and  falls  off  the  next  day.  Amorpho- 
plialtns  Pitauum,  with  its  huge  inflorescence  (the  largest  in  the 
world),  although  it  takes  months  to  develop,  opens  only  on 
one  night,  and  then  only  for  a  few  hours. 

o.  — Floruers. 

(1)  Contrivances  to  insure  fertilization.  Masdevallia  muscosa 
(an  orchid)  has  a  sensitive  labellum.  An  insect  alighting  on  it 
and  touching  a  certain  part,  is  shot  into  the  flower  and  held  a 
prisoner  for  some  time, 

(2)  Protection  by  means  of  sticky  hairs.  Cnphea  si'enoides  is 
piotected  from  the  attacks  of  inse  ts  by  very  numerous  hairs 
secreting  a  gum  resin.  Many  insects  are  caught,  and  as  many 
as  7280  may  be  counted  on  one  plant. 

(3)  Plant  protectid  by  ants,  but  flower  fertilized  by  some  other 
insect.  Plumbago  rosea  has  nectaries  on  the  leaves  and  flower- 
bracts  which  attract  ants,  but  the  ants  are  prevented  by  sticky 
hairs  on  the  calyx  from  obtaining  access  to  the  honey  in  the 
flower. 

5. — Seeds  and  Fruits. 

Some  plants  depend  upon  the  enormous  quantity  of  seeds  pro- 
duced—<'.^.  the  wild  carrot  {Daucus  carota),  which,  moreover, 
sows  its  i-eeds  by  instalments  and  at  different  times.  Others — 
eg.  Voandzcia  sublet ranea — sacrifice  the  advantages  obtained 
from  a  wide  dispersal,  and  depend  upon  the  formation  of  a  few 
seeds  suitably  placed  in  the  soil.  This  plant,  in  fact,  has  a 
mechanism  for  itself,  sowing  its  own  seeds  beneath  the  soil. 

For  purposes  of  distribution,  Uminia  brevicaulis  (a  sedge)  has 
its  fruit  provided  wiih  small  hooks.  Small  birds,  unable  to  pull 
out  the  fruits,  are  occasionally  caught  and  killed  in  Jamaica. 
The  fruits  of  Stipa  pcnnata,  a  grass,  bore  their  way  into  the 
ground  ;  and  anuiher  species,  Stipa  spartea,  is  even  liable  to 
bore  its  way  into  the  bodies  of  sheep  which  are  so  unfortunate 
as  to  come  in  its  neighbourhood  (prairies  west  of  Red  River 
Colony), 

Contrivances  for  assisting  plants  to  maintain  themselves  in  the 
struggle  for  existence  are  by  no  means  limited  to  the  higher 
plants.  They  exist  also  in  tie  Fungi  and  the  Algse,  even  in  the 
smallest  and  most  microscopic  of  them.     Examples  — 

I.  Fungi.  — Clathrus  triscapus,  a  Queensland  fungus,  has  an 
orange-red  colour,  and  the  spores  smell  strongly  and  are  em- 
bedded in  a  sweet  mucilage.  Col  ur,  scent,  and  sweetness  are 
the  usual  advertisements  used  by  the  higher  plants  in  connection 
with  pollen  dispersion. 

Erysphe  Alni.  The  mildew  of  the  alder  has  wonderfully 
hooked  fruits,  which  are  possibly  carried  about  by  tiny /^ra;?, 
&c.  Spores  are  shot  out  with  some  force  from  the  mycelial  fila- 
ments of  the  fungus,  which  attacks  and  kills  flies,  Empusa 
musccc.     The  ergot  Claziceps  purpurea,  at  the  time  of  spore- 


formation,  secretes  a  sugary  nectar,  so  that  flies  are  attracted, 
and  eat  and  disseminate  the  spores,  just  as  birds  do  stone  fruits. 
The  spores  of  Scltrotina  Vaccinii  have  an  almond  smell  ;  are 
gathered  by  bees  with  the  pollen,  and,  being  placed  on  the 
>tigma  of  healthy  flowers,  infect  the  ovary  and  prevent  the 
formation  of  seed.  In  the  race  between  the  pollen-grain  tube 
(the  rightful  owner)  and  the  fungus-spore  mycelial-tube,  the 
fungus  always  wins,  and  soon  spreads  itself  throughout  the 
tissue  of  the  entire  ovary,  producing  mere  spores  for  the  bees 
to  gather  in  mistake  again.  ■«- .« 

II.  Algtr. — The  resting-spores  of  Z?«»/t</!— microscopically 
small  green  Alga: — are  frequently  covered  by  a  spiny  siliceous 
coat.  These  probably  prevent  them  from  being  eaten  by  Anicehc, 
Phizopods,  &c.  The  protoplasm  of  certain  cells  of  (Edoj^oniutn 
ciliatum  (a  fresh-water  filamentous  Alga)  are  in  the  habit  of 
escaping  from  the  cell-wall  and  beginning  life  anew.  This  pro- 
duction of  the  so-called  swarm-spore  is  probably  not  wholly 
unconnected  with  the  existence  of  unfavourable  conditions,  e.g. 
Bacteria  on  the  cell-wall,  deposits  of  lime  on  the  cell-wall,  &c. 

Mesocarpus  sp.,  r.nother  filamentous  Alga,  carefully  protects 
its  chlorophyll  plate  from  too  bright  light  by  turning  it  so  that 
it  shall  receive  the  proper  amount  only.  Should  external  con- 
ditions be  exceptionally  unfavourable,  the  protoplasm  of  the 
various  cells  powerfully  contracts,  and  the  filament  resolves  itself 
into  its  vaiious  constituent  units,  which  sink  to  ihe  bottom  of  the 
river  or  pond,  and  there  divide  up  and  start  afresh. 

Special  Points  tvorthy  of  notice. 

(i)   Various  adaptations  by  members  of  the  same  order,  e.g. 
the    Cticurbitaceic   (Cucumber   family),   in  the    matter  of  seed' 
distribution. 

In  Schizocarpum  fiHforme  the  seeds  escape  through  a  number 
of  slits  in  the  wall  of  the  fruit. 

In  Ecbalium  elatine  the  seeds  are  violently  and  explosively 
shot  out  in  consequence  of  the  j^udden  rupture  of  the  fruit  stalk. 

Sechium  edule  is  indehiscent  and  contains  only  one  seed. 

Zanonia  macrocarpa  dehisces  at  the  apex  by  means  of  valves, 
and  lets  out  winged  seeds  of  extraordinary  beauty,  which,  aided 
by  the  wind,  can  cover  very  appreciable  distances. 

(2)  Various  adaptations  by  metnbers  of  the  same  genus,  e.g. 
the  Clerodendrons. 

Clcrodendron  Koemferi  attracts  ants  by  small  glands  on  the 
leaf  and  calyx. 

Clcrodendron  fislulosum  does  the  same,  but  also  provides  a 
home  for  the  ants  in  its  hollow  stem. 

Clerodettdron  cephalanthutn   climbs  by  means    of  peculiarly 
modified  leafstalks  ;  has  a  multiplicity  of  buds  on  the  axil  of 
each  leaf  (instead   of  the  usual  one)   and  also  possesses  glands 
upon  its  leaves. 

Such  families  as  this  may  well  be  regarded  as  accomplished, 
but  at  the  same  time  their  various  contrivances  are  simply  sc^ 
many  marks  of  a  cruel  and  fierce  fight. 

(3)  Protective  contrivances  associated  with  new  annual  growth 
and  germination. 

Dioscorea,  sp.  nov.,  at  each  new  period  of  growth  produces  at 
first  inconspicuous  shoots  with  small  leaves  which  are  peculiarly 
modified  into  climbing  organs.  When  well  established  and  in 
the  possession  of  a  proper  support  large  green  leaves  appear. 

Hodgsonia  hetcroclita, —  Here  again  the  shoot  on  its  first  ap- 
pearance is  dark  purple  and  inconspicuous,  with  the  leaves  present 
merely  as  scales.  It  can  then  scarcely  be  seen  in  the  tropical 
forest.  Moreover  it  is  a  lateral  shoot  and  not  the  main  terminal 
shoot  which  it  first  protrudes  above  ground.  A  second  lateral' 
and  the  main  terminal  are  held  in  reserve  against  possible  acci- 
dent. When  it  has  reached  a  certain  height,  it  produces  the 
normal  large  leaves. 

(4)  The  accumttlation  of  proactive  contrivances  in  the  same 
individual . 

Blumenbachia  Hieronymi. — The  flower  is  at  first  upright  and 
is  fertilized  in  that  position.  As  the  fruit  develops,  the  flower- 
stalk  elongates  and  the  fruit  is  gradually  and  gently  placed  upoi^ 
the  ground.  Until  quite  ripe,  it  is  protected  by  stinging  hairs. 
Later  on,  these  wither,  and  the  fruit  is  distributed  by  means  of 
a  second  series  of  grapple  hairs,  which  cling  firmly  to  any 
passing  animal. 

Strophanthus  hispidus. — Fruit,  when  ripe,  opens,  and  lets  out 
a  number  of  magnificent  plumed  seeds,  which  are  carried  by  the 
wind.  The  hairs  forming  the  plume  are  sensitive  to  moisture 
and  dryness,  and  are  each  capable  of  moving  through  an  arc  of 
180°.     The  hairs  spread  out  in  dry  weather,  so  that  the  seed 


92 


NATURE 


{Nov.  28,  1889 


may  be  carried  by  the  wind.  They  close  up  tightly  when 
the  rains  come,  so  that  they  may  not  interfere  with  the  placing 
•of  the  seed  close  to  the  ground  and  its  consequent  germination. 
Sooner  or  later  they  break  from  the  seed. 

(5)  Particular  adaplatioiis  contrived  for  particular  classes  of 
insects,  &'c. 

Ants  are  caught  and  killed  at  Kew  by  flowers  of  Eria  stricta 
(an  orchid).  The  ants  are  too  large  for  the  flower,  but  they  visit 
it  for  the  sake  of  the  honey  and  get  caught  in  the  mucilage. 
Thus  both  flower  and  ant  suffer. 

(6)  The  mutual  adaptation  of  plants  and  animals. 

In  some  instances  animals  and  plants  appear  to  strive  with 
each  other,  and,  as  the  one  develops  a  particular  protective  con- 
trivance, the  other  likewise  adopts  some  plan  to  counteract  it 
and  annul  its  efficiency :  thus  the  canari  nut  (the  fruit  of 
Canai-iunt  commune^  develops  a  hard  shell  which  protects  it 
from  most  enemies,  but  the  black  cockatoo  {Microglossus  ater- 
rimus)  reciprocates  by  developing  a  wonderfully  strong  beak, 
which  appears  indeed  to  be  developed  with  a  special  view  to  the 
■canari  nut.  Insects  also  often  imitate  parts  of  plants  for  their 
own  benefit,  e.g.  leaf  insects. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

Cambridge. — The  Senate  has  formally  thanked  Prof.  Sedg- 
wick for  his  munificent  gift  towards  the  new  buildings  for 
physiology,  and  the  Museums  and  Lecture  Rooms  Syndicate 
has  been  authorized  to  contract  for  the  buildings  to  be  imme- 
diately begun. 

Tl)e  following  stipends  have  been  augmented  :  Dr.  Gaskell, 
F.R.S.,  University  Lecturer  in  Physiology,  from  ;^50  to  ^^150  ; 
Mr.    Gardiner,   University  Lecturer   in    Botany,   from   ;^50  to 

;^IOO. 

The  Special  Board  for  Biology  and  Geology,  recommend  the 
appointment  of  an  additional  University  lecturer  on  botany,  at 
a  stipend  of  ^100  per  annum,  after  considering  a  strong  appeal 
for  increased  teaching  power,  from  the  professor  and  lecturers  in 
the  subject.  No  teacher  had  practically  been  added  since  the 
•departure  of  Prof.  Vines  for  Oxford,  and  the  regretted  death  of 
Mr.  Vaizey. 

Mr.  W.  Bateson,  the  Balfour  Student,  will  give  a  course  of 
lectures  during  Lent  term,  on  the  study  of  variation — a  distinct 
and  attractive  novelty  in  the  biological  courses. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  Journal  of  Science,  November. — This  number  opens 
with  an  interesting  address  by  Mr.  R.  S.  Woodward  at  the  last 
meeting  of  the  American  Association,  on  the  mathematical 
theories  of  the  earth,  in  which  emphasis  is  laid  on  the 
incompleteness  of  those  hitherto  advanced. — From  a  simple 
investigation,  Mr.  R.  Hooke  concludes  that  for  planetary  bodies 
assumed  to  have  the  same  surface  density  {i.e.  those  in  which 
solidification  has  taken  place),  the  increase  of  the  difference 
between  the  mean  and  surface  density  is  proportional  to  the 
increase  of  the  diameter.  He  tests  this  by  computation  of  the 
mean  densities  of  the  inner  planets  from  their  assigned  diameters, 
and  further  confirmation  is  derived  from  the  case  of  Jupiter's 
satellites.  He  also  applies  the  law  to  computing  the  ultimate 
diameters  and  mean  densities  {i.e.  after  solidification)  of  the 
sun  and  outer  planets. — Regarding  Tschermak's  theory  of  the 
mica  group  as  inadequate,  Mr.  F.  W.  Clarke  offers  the  view 
that  all  the  micas,  vermiculites,  chlorites,  margarite,  and  the 
clintonite  group,  may  be  simply  represented  as  isomorphous 
mixtures,  every  constituent  being  a  substitution  derivative  of 
normal  aluminium  poly-  or  ortho-silicate. — Mr.  E.  O.  Hovey 
studies  the  low  trap  ridges  (some  six  lines  of  them)  of  the  East 
Haven-Branford  region  in  Connecticut ;  he  considers  all  the 
trap  intrusive,  and  the  western  dikes,  at  least,  of  later  origin 
than  the  tilting  of  the  sandstone. — Mr.  C.  Lea  contends  that 
subchloride,  and  not  oxychloride,  is  the  product  of  the  action  of 
light  on  silver  chloride. — Thei-e  are  also  papers  on  an  improved 
standard  Clark  cell  with  low  temperature  coefiicient,  by  Mr.  H.  S. 
Carhart ;  on  pseudomorphs  of  native  copper  after  azurite,  from 
Grant  County,  New  Mexico,  by  Mr.  W.  S.  Yeates ;  and  on  the 


relation  of  volume,  pressure,  and  temperature,  in  case  of  liquids, 
by  Mr.  C.  Barus. 

The  American  Meteorological  Journal  for  October  contains  : — 
A  reprint  of  Prof  C.  Abbe's  paper  on  the  determination  of  the 
amount  of  rainfall,  read  before  the  recent  meeting  of  the  British 
Association  ;  the  object  of  the  paper  is  to  determine  the  possible 
errors  arising  from  the  different  shapes  of  the  rain-gauges,  and 
their  height  above  the  pea-level  and  the  ground,  &c. — Tornado 
statistics,  by  Lieut.  Finley  :  {a)  for  the  State  of  Louisiana,  for 
the  thirty-seven  years  1852-88, — the  total  number  of  storms 
was  only  thirty,  the  month  of  greatest  frequency  being  April ;  {d) 
for  Texas,  for  the  thirty  years  1850-88, — the  total  number  of 
storms  was  ninety-six,  the  month  of  greatest  frequency  being 
June. — Distribution  of  wind  velocities  in  the  United  States,  by 
Dr.  F.  Waldo.  In  the  Eastern  States  there  is  a  principal  maximum 
and  minimum  in  March  and  August  respectively,  with  a  secondary 
maximum  in  autumn,  and  a  winter  maximum.  The  same  regu- 
larity whicli  exists  in  the  Eastern  States  does  not  occur  in  the  other 
districts,  but  the  region  of  the  Lower  Lakes  has  a  little  more 
wind  in  winter  and  a  little  less  in  summer  than  the  region  of  the 
Upper  Lakes.  He  also  investigates  the  secular  variation  at 
selected  stations,  and  finds  that  a  period  of  about  nine  years  is 
not  improbable. — An  analysis  of  a  paper,  by  Dr.  H.  B,  Baker, 
Secretary  of  the  Michigan  Board  of  Health,  on  the  connection 
of  intermittent  fever  with  atmospheric  temperature.  For  some 
years  that  Board  has  made  a  special  feature  of  the  collection  of 
vital  statistics,  and  publishes  valuable  reports  on  sanitary  matters 
in  general. 

The  Botanical  Gazette  continues  to  publish  valuable  original 
contributions  to  botanical  science,  especially  in  the  department 
of  cryptogamy.  The  August  number  contains  the  first  of  a 
series  of  Prof  Farlow's  notes  on  Fungi,  and  the  September 
number  an  illustrated  paper  on  the  Uredo-stage  of  Gymnospor- 
angium,  by  Mr.  H.  M.  Richards. — Mr.  H.  L.  Russell  also 
contributes  observations  on  the  temperature  of  trees,  illustrated 
by  a  diagram  ;  his  general  conclusion  being  that  the  direct  ab- 
sorption of  heat  is  the  main  cause  of  the  higher  temperature  of 
trees,  and  that  it  is  largely  dependent  on  the  character  of  the 
bark. 

A  LARGE  proportion  of  the  journal  of  Botany  for  August, 
September,  and  October,  is  occupied  by  the  conclusion  of  Mr. 
G.  Murray's  Catalogue  of  the  marine  Algte  of  the  West  Indian 
region,  and  the  continuation  of  Messrs.  Britten  and  Boulger's 
Biographical  Index  of  British  and  Irish  botanists. — Mr.  W. 
West's  paper  on  the  freshwater  Algas  of  North  Yorkshire  is  a 
valuable  contribution  to  a  department  of  botany  in  which  there 
are  but  few  workers  ;  it  is  illustrated  by  a  good  plate,  and  con- 
tains descriptions  of  several  new  species.  — -Mr.  W.  H.  Beeby 
contributes  a  useful  account  of  some  of  the  difficult  and  critical 
British  forms  of  Vio'a. — There  are  other  papers  of  interest, 
especially  to  students  of  British  botany. 

The  number  of  the  Nuovo  Giornale  Botanico  Italiano  of 
October  is  entirely  occupied  by  papers  read  at  the  meetings  of 
the  Italian  Botanical  Society.  They  are  chiefly  devoted  to 
records  of  local  floras,  and  to  descriptions  of  remarkable  tera- 
tological  forms. — Signor  U.  Martelli  contributes  a  note  on  the 
injury  inflicted  on  the  peach  by  Taphrina  deformans. 

Bulletin  de  la  Socike  Imperiale  des  Natziralistes  de  Moscou, 
1889,  No.  I.  —  On  the  origin  of  the  shooting-stars,  by  Th. 
Bredichin  (in  French),  being  an  application  of  the  authors 
theory  of  the  comes  anomales  to  the  origin  of  shooting-stars.  The 
paper  will  be  continued  by  another  on  the  origin  of  periodical 
comets. — On  the  Jurassic  and  Cretaceous  deposits  in  Russia  ; 
Part  I,  on  the  Upper  Jurassic  and  Lower  Cretaceous  deposits  in 
Russia  and  Great  Britain,  by  Prof  A.  Pavloff  (in  French,  with 
three  plates).  The  author's  conclusions  are  to  the  effect  that  the 
Upper  Jurassic  deposits  of  Russia  are  so  intimately  connected 
with  those  of  England  that  a  common  classification  could  easily 
be  established.  Several  fossil  species  are  described  and  figured 
on  plates,  three  of  them  being  new  {Olcosieplianus  blaki,  O. 
swindonensis,  and  O.  stcnomphalus). — Zoological  exploration  in 
the  Transcaspian  region,  by  N.  Zaroudnoi  (in  French),  being 
notes  of  travel,  full  of  interesting  information  about  the  nature 
and  fauna  of  the  country. — On  a  natural  way  of  penetration  of 
superficial  water  into  the  depths  of  the  earth,  by  Stanislas 
Meunier  (in  French). — On  the  Spargania  of  Russia,  by  K.  F. 
Meinshausen  (in  German).  Ten  species  are  described,  two  of  them 
{Sp.  ratis  and  Sp.  septentrionale)  being  new. 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


93 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Entomological  Society,  November  6. — Prof.  J.  O.  West- 
wood  in  the  chair. — Mr.  J.  W.  Douglas  sent  for  exhibition 
specimens  of  Anthocoris  visct,  Dougl.,  a  new  species  taken 
at  Hereford,  in  September  last,  by  Dr.  T.  A.  Chapman  ;  also 
specimens  o{  Psylla  visci,  Curtis,  taken  by  Dr.  Chapman  at  the 
same  time  and  place. — Mr.  R.  McLachlan,  F.R.S.,  exhibited 
coloured  drawings  of  a  specimen  oi  Zygana  filipenduLc,  in  which 
the  left  posterior  leg  is  replaced  by  a  fully-developed  wing, 
similar  to  an  ordinary  hind  wing,  but  less  densely  clothed  with 
scales.  Mr.  McLachlan  also  exhibited  a  female  specimen  of  the 
common  earwig,  Forjicula  aiiricularia,  with  a  parasitic  Gordius 
emerging  from  between  the  metathorax  and  abdomen.  He 
said  that  it  had  been  placed  in  his  hands  by  Mr.  A.  B.  Farn,  by 
whom  it  was  taken,  and  that  other  instances  of  similar  para'^ilism 
by  Gordius  on  earwigs  had  been  recorded. — Mr.  W.  F.  Kirby 
exhibited  a  gynandromorphous  specimen  of  Lyacna  icarns, 
having  the  characters  of  a  male  in  the  right  wings  and  of  a  female 
hi  the  left  wings,  caught  at  Keyingham,  Yorkshire,  in  Jime  last  ; 
also  a  specimen  of  a  variety  of  Crabro  intcrruptus,  De  Geer, 
found  at  Uxbridge. — Mr.  W.  L.  Distant  exhibited  a  male  and 
female  specimen  of  a  species  belonging  to  a  new  genus  of 
Discocephalinic,  from  Guatemala,  in  which  the  sexes  were 
totally  dissimilar,  the  female  having  abbreviated  membranes, 
and  being  altogether  larger  than  the  male. — Dr.  D.  Sharp 
stated  that  he  had  observed  that  in  the  Ipsiita  division  of 
Nitidulidce  there  was  present  a  stridulating  organ  in  a  position 
in  which  he  had  not  noticed  it  in  any  other  Coleoptera — viz.  on 
the  summit  of  the  back  of  the  head.  He  had  found  it  to  exist 
not  only  in  the  species  of  Ips  and  Cryptarcha,  but  also  in  other 
genera  of  the  subfamily.  He  exhibited  specimens  of  If>s  and 
Cryptarcha,  mounted  to  show  the  organ.  Dr.  Sharp  also 
exhibited  a  number  of  Rhynchota,  chiefly  Pentatomidiv,  in  which 
the  specimens  were  prepared  so  as  to  display  the  peculiarities  of 
the  terminal  segment  in  the  male  sex. — Mr.  R.  Adkin  exhibited 
for  Mr.  H.  Murray,  a  fine  series  of  Polia  xantliomista,  var. 
nigrocinda,  from  the  Isle  of  Man,  and  Cidaria  reticulata  and 
Etnmelesia  tantiata  from  the  Lake  District. — Mr.  W.  White 
exhibited  a  living  larva  oi  Zeuzera  cescuH,  and  called  attention  to 
the  thoracic  segments  with  several  rows  of  minute  serrations, 
which  evidently  assist  progression.  He  stated  that  the  larva 
exudes  from  its  mouth,  when  irritated,  a  colourless  fluid,  which 
he  had  tested  with  litmus- paper  and  found  to  be  strongly  alkaline. 
— Captain  H.  J.  Elwes  exhibited  a  number  of  insects  of  various 
orders,  part  of  the  collection  formed  by  the  late  Otto  Moller,  of 
Darjeeling. — Mons.  A.  Wailly  exhibited  the  cocoon  of  an 
unknown  species  of  Antheraa  from  A^^sam  ;  also  a  number  of 
cocoons  and  imagos  of  Anophe  venata  from  Acugua,  near  the 
Gold  Coast ;  specimens  of  Lasiocampa  otiis,  a  South  European 
species,  which  was  said  to  have  been  utilized  by  the  Romans  in 
the  manufacture  of  silk  ;  also  a  quantity  of  eggs  of  Epeira 
madagascariensis,  a  silk-producing  spider  from  Madagascar, 
locally  known  by  the  name  of  "  Halabe."  He  also  read  extracts 
from  letters  received  from  the  Rev.  P.  Camboue,  of  Tananarivo, 
Madagascar,  on  the  subject  of  this  silk-producing  spider. — Mr. 
H.  Goss  read  a  communication  from  Dr.  S.  H.  Scudder,  of 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  U.S.A.,  on  the  subject  of  his  recent 
discoveries  of  some  thousands  of  fossil  insects,  chiefly  Coleo- 
ptera, in  Florissant,  Western  Colorado,  and  Wyoming.  Prof. 
Westwood  remarked  on  the  extreme  rarity  of  fossil  Lepidoptera, 
and  called  attention  to  a  recent  paper  by  Mr.  A.  G.  Butler,  in 
the  Proc.  Zool.  Soc,  1889,  in  which  the  au  hor  described  a  new 
genus  of  fossil  moths  belonging  to  the  family  Euschemidic,  from 
a  specimen  obtained  at  Gurnet  Bay,  Isle  of  Wight. — Mr.  F.  P. 
Pascoe  read  a  paper  entitled  "  Additional  Notes  on  the  genus 
Htlipus"  and  exhibited  a  number  of  new  species  belonging  to 
that  genus. — The  Rev.  Dr.  Walker  read  a  paper  entitled  "  Notes 
on  the  Entomology  of  Iceland."  Mr.  R.  Trimen,  F.  R.S., 
asked  if  any  butterflies  had  been  found  in  the  island.  Dr.  Walker 
said  that  neither  he  nor  Dr.  P.  B.  Mason  had  seen  any  during 
their  recent  visit,  nor  were  any  species  given  in  Dr.  Staudinger's 
list.  Dr.  Mason  said  that  during  his  recent  visit  to  Iceland  he 
had  collected  nearly  one  hundred  species  of  insects,  including 
about  twenty  Coleoptera.  He  added  that  several  of  the  species 
had  not  been  recorded  either  by  Dr.  Staudinger  or  Dr.  Walker. 
Capt.  Elwes  inquired  if  Mr.  J.  J.  Walker,  with  his  great 
experience  as  a  collector  in  all  parts  of  the  world,  was  aware  of 


any  land  outside  the  Arctic  Circle  from  which  no  butterflies  had 
been  recorded.  Mr.  J.  J.  Walker  replied  that  the  only  place 
in  the  world  which  he  had  visited,  in  which  butterflies  were 
entirely  absent  was  Pilcaiin  Island. 

Royal  Microscopical  Society,  October  9. — Dr.  C.  T. 
Hudson,  F.  R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  President  re- 
ferred to  the  deaths  of  the  Rev.  M.  J.  Berkeley  and  Dr.  G.  W. 
Royston-Pigott,  the  former  an  honorary,  and  the  latter  formerly 
an  ordinary,  Fellow  of  the  Society.— Mr.  Crisp  announced  that, 
owing  to  certain  business  arrangements,  he  was  obliged  to  retire 
from  the  secretaryship  of  the  .Society  and  from  the  conduct  of 
the  Jourqal.  Tt  was  with  the  very  greatest  reluctance  that  he  had 
found  it  necessary  to  resign,  but  there  would,  he  anticipated,  be 
no  difficulty  in  continuing  the  Journal  on  its  present  lines,  while 
he  was  sure  there  were  many  Fellows  both  able  and  willing  to 
undertake  the  duties  of  Microscopical  Secretary. — Mr.  John 
Meade's  communication  on  stereoscopic  photo-micrography  was 
read. — The  President  brought  for  inspection  three  photo-micro- 
graphs of  one  of  the  new  rotifers  mentioned  in  his  supplement — 
Gomphogaster  areolatus. — Mr.  E.  M.  Nelson  exhibited  a  new 
elementary  centering  sub-stage  which  he  thought  was  likely  to 
be  useful.  It  was  fitted  in  the  simplest  manner  by  placing  two 
legs  under  the  main  stage,  and  the  movement  was  given  to  it 
with  the  finger  ;  it  was  very  inexpensive,  and  was  only  designed 
to  render  the  ordinary  student's  microscope  of  a  higher  degree 
of  efficiency  by  providing  it  with  an  easy  method  of  correctly 
centering  the  condenser  and  diaphragm. — The  President  men- 
tioned that  Pedalion  was  to  be  had  in  many  places  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  London  about  a  month  ago,  where  it  had  not  been 
previously  found. — Mr.  Ahrens's  description  was  read  of  his  new 
patent  polarizing  binocular  microscope  for  obviating  the  difli- 
culty  of  using  analyzing  prisms  with  the  double  tube.  The 
inventor  uses  for  an  analyzer  a  black  glass  prism,  set  above  the 
objective  with  a  horizontal  side  upwards.  Two  faces  are  sym- 
metrically inclined  to  the  optical  axis  at  the  polari?ing  angle. 
The  pencil  is  thus  reflected  at  the  proper  angle,  and  at  the  same 
time  divided  into  two  parts,  which  are  then  reflected  up  the  two 
tubes  either  by  prisms  or  by  plane  reflectors. — Prof.  Abbe's 
paper,  notes  on  the  effect  of  illumination  by  means  of  wide- 
angled  cones  of  light,  was  read. — Mr.  T.  F.  Smith  read  a  paper 
on  the  ultimate  structure  of  the  Pleurosigma  valve. 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  November  20. — Dr.  W. 
Marcet,  F.R.  S. ,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers 
were  read  : — Second  Report  of  the  Thunderstorm  Committee. 
This  is  a  discussion  by  Mr.  Marriott  on  the  distribution  of  days 
of  thunderstorms  over  England  and  Wales  during  the  seventeen 
years  1871-87.  Notices  of  sheet  lightning  are  included  in  the 
term  "thunderstorms."  The  years  of  greatest  frequency  were  1880, 
1882,  1884,  and  1872  ;  and  the  years  of  least  frequency  1887, 
1874,  1879,  and  1 87 1.  Years  of  greater  or  less  frequency  alter- 
nate regularly  throughout  nearly  the  whole  of  the  period.  The 
average  yearly  number  of  thunderstorms  is  about  thirty-nine. 
The  districts  with  the  greatest  yearly  frequency  are  the  south  of 
England  and  extreme  northern  counties,  and  those  with  the  least 
yearly  frequency  are  Cheshire,  Lancashire,  and  Yorkshire.  The 
greatest  number  of  thunderstorms  occur  in  July,  and  the  least  in 
February  and  December. — On  the  change  of  temperature  which 
accompanies  thunderstorms  in  Southern  England,  by  Mr.  G.  M. 
Whipple. — Note  on  the  appearance  of  St.  Elmo's  fire  at  Walton- 
on-the-Naze,  September  3,  1889,  by  Mr.  W.  H.  Dines. — Notes 
on  cirrus  formation,  by  Mr.  H.  Helm  Clayton.  The  author,  who 
has  made  a  special  study  of  cloud  forms  and  their  changes,  gives 
a  number  of  notes  and  drawings  on  the  formation  of  cirrus  under 
various  conditions,  e.g.  in  a  previously  cloudless  sky,  cirrus  bands 
with  cross  fibres,  cirrus  from  cirro-cumulus  clouds,  cirrus  drawn 
out  from  cumulus  clouds,  "  mares-tail "  cirrus,  &c.  Curved  cirrus 
clouds  when  accompanied  by  decreasing  barometric  pressure 
frequently  indicate  that  a  storm  of  increasing  energy  is  approach- 
ing.— A  comparison  between  the  Jordan  and  the  Campbell- 
Stokes  sunshine  recorder,  by  Mr.  F.  C.  Bayard.  As  a  result  of 
a  year's  comparison  between  these  two  instruments,  the  author 
found  that  the  Jordan  photographic  recorder  registered  nearly  30 
per  cent,  more  sunshine  than  the  Campbell  burning  recorder. — 
Sunshine,  by  Mr.  A.  B.  MacDowall.  This  is  a  discussion  of  the 
hours  of  sunshine  recorded  at  the  stations  of  the  Royal  Meteoro- 
logical Society. — On  climatological  observations  at  Ballyboley, 
CO.  Antrim,  by  Prof.  S.  A.  Hill.  This  is  the  result  of  observa- 
tions made  during  the  five  years  1884-88. 


94 


NA  7  URE 


YNov,  28,  1889 


Geological  Society,  November  6. — W.  T.  Blanford,  F.  R.  S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
"read  : — Contributions  to  our  knowledije  of  the  Dinosaurs  of  the 
Wealden  and  the  Sauropterygians  of  the  Purbeck  and  Oxford 
Clay,  by  R.  Lydekker.  The  first  section  of  this  paper  was 
devoted  to  the  description  of  the  remains  of  Iguanodonts  from 
the  Wadhurst  Clay  near  Hastings  collected  by  Mr.  C.  Dawson. 
They  were  considered  to  indicate  two  species,  for  which  the 
names  Tguaiiodon  hollingtoniensis  and  /.  Fittoni  had  been 
proposed  in  a  preliminary  notice.  In  the  second  section  an 
imperfect  metatarsus  of  a  species  of  Afegalosaiirns  from  the 
Hastings  Wealden  was  described,  and  shown  to  in  iicate  a 
species  quite  distinct  from  the  one  to  which  a  metatarsus  from  the 
Wealden  of  Cuckfield  bel  )nged.  Two  cervical  vertebrae  of  a 
Sauropterygian  from  the  Purbeck  of  the  Isle  of  Portland  were 
next  described,  and  referred  to  Ciinoliosanriis  portlandkiis, 
Owen,  sp.  The  concluding  section  described  an  imperfect 
skeleton  of  a  large  Pliosaur  from  the  Oxford  Clay,  in  the  collec- 
tion of  Mr.  A.  N.  Leeds,  which  indicated  a  species  intermediate 
between  the  typical  Kimeridgian  forms  and  the  genus  Peloneustes. 
Tliese  specimens  were  considered  as  probably  referable  to 
Plioiatiriis  ferox.  Evidence  was  adduced  to  show  that  Plio- 
saurus  Evansi,  Seeley,  should  be  transferred  to  rdoneiistes. 
— Notes  on  a  "dumb  fault"  or  "wash-out"  found  in  the 
Pleasley  and  Teversall  Collieries,  Derbyshire,  by  J.  C.  B. 
Hendy  ;  communicated  by  the  President. — On  some  Palaeozoic 
Ostracoda  from  North  America,  Wales,  and  Ireland,  by  Prof 
T.  Rupert  Jones,  F.  R.S.  The  specimens  were  de-cribed  as 
nearly  as  possible  in  the  order  of  their  natural  relationship,  and 
4hus,  besides  adding  to  the  known  forms,  they  were  shown  to 
illustrate  the  modifications  exhibited  by  the  genera  and  species 
of  these  minute  bivalved  Crustaceans,  both  in  limited  districts 
and  in  different  regions.  Amongst  the  forms  described  were  the 
following  new  species  and  variety  : — Priinitia  nmndula,  Jones, 
var.  cambric%,  nov.  ;  P.  hiimilior,  sp.  nov.  ;  P.  Morgani,  sp. 
nov.  ;  P.  Ulrichi,  sp.  nov.  ;  P.  Whitficldi,  sp.  nov.  ;  Entomis 
■rhoin''oidea,  sp.  nov.  ;  Strepula  sigmoidalis,  sp.  nov.  ;  Beyrkhia 
Hailii,  sp.  nov.  ;  Isochilina  lineata,  sp.  nov.  ;  /.  ?  fabacea,  sp. 
■nov.  ;  Leperditia  Claypolei,  sp.  nov.  ;  Xestoleberis  Wriijhtii, 
sp.  nov. 

Zoological  Society,  November  5. — Prof.  W.  H.  Flower, 
F.  R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  read  a  Report 
•on  the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's  Menagerie 
•during  the  months  of  June,  July,  August,  and  September,  18S9, 
and  called  attention  to  certain  interesting  accessions  which  had 
been  received  during  that  period.  Amongst  these  were  specially 
noted  a  Short  Python  [Python  ciirius),  from  Malacca,  presented 
■on  July  2  by  Mrs.  Bertha  M.  L.  Bonsor ;  and  a  Preire's  Amazon 
{Chrysotis pratrii),  purchased  July  23  :  bjth  new  to  the  collec- 
tion.— Mr.  J.  H.  Gurney,  Jun.,  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on 
a  hybrid  Wagtail,  bred  in  confinement,  between  the  Grey  Wag- 
tail {Motacilla  melanope)  and  the  Pied  Wagtail  [M.  higjibris).  — 
Mr.  W.  B.  Tegetmeier  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  some 
variations  in  the  plumage  of  the  Partridge  (Pcrdixciiierea). — Prof. 
Bell  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  two  specimens  of  Virgiilaria 
.mirabilis,  recently  dredged  by  the  Hon.  A.  E.  Gathorne  Hardy, 
M.P. ,  in  Loch  Craignish.  He  also  exhibited  two  young  living 
specimens  of  Palinurus  vulgaris,  received  from  Mr.  Spencer,  of 
Guernsey,  in  which  the  stridulating-organs  were  still  capable  of 
making  sounds. — A  communication  was  read  from  the  Rev. 
Thomas  R.  R.  Stebbing,  containing  an  account  of  the  Amphi- 
podous  Crustaceans  of  the  genus  UrothoS,  and  of  a  new  allied 
genus  p  oposed  to  be  called  Urothoides. — A  communication  was 
read  from  Colonel  C.  Swinhoe,  containing  descriptions  of  a  large 
number  of  new  Indian  Lepidoptera,  chiefly  Heterocera. — Mr.  P. 
L.  Sclater  gave  an  account  of  the  birds  collected  by  Mr.  Ramage 
in  St.  Lucia,  West  Indies,  which  were  referred  to  thirty  species. 
— Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger  read  a  note  on  the  Short  Python  {Python 
curtus),  a  specimen  of  which  was  stated  to  be  living  in  the 
Society's  reptile  house. — A  communication  was  read  from  Dr.  E. 
C.  Stirling,  of  the  University  of  Adelaide,  on  some  points  in  the 
anitomy  of  the  female  organs  of  generation  of  the  Kangaroo, 
especially  in  relation  to  the  acts  of  impregnation  and  parturition. 
— Mr.  F.  E.  Beddard  read  some  notes  on  the  anatomy  of  an  Oligo- 
chsetous  Worm  of  the  genus  Dero,  relating  principally  to  its  re- 
productive system. — A  communication  was  read  from  Mr.  Scott 
B,  Wilson,  in  which  were  given  the  descriptions  of  four  new 
species  of  Hawaiian  birds,  propos3d  to  be  called  Chrysometridops 
■cczmleirostris,  Loxops  flammea,  Himatione  montana^  and  H. 
Mejnegeri, 


Mathematical  Society,  November  14. — Sir  J.  Cockle, 
P\R. S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  gentle- 
men were  elected  to  form  the  Council  for  the  ensuing  session  : — 
President  :  J.  J.  Walker,  F.R.S.  Vice-Presidents:  Sir  J.  Cockle, 
F.R.S.,  E.  B.  Elliott,  and  Prof  Greenhill,  F.R.S.  Treasurer: 
A.  B.  Kempe,  F.R.S.  Honorary  Secretaries:  M.  Jenkins 
and  R.  Tucker.  Other  members  :  A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S.,  Prof. 
W.  Burnside,  Prof.  Cayley,  F.R.S.,  Dr.  Glaisher,  F.R..S.,  J. 
Hammond,  Dr.  Larmor,  C.  Leudesdorf,  Major  Macmahon, 
R. A.,  and  S.  Roberts,  F.R.S. — The  following  papers  were 
read  : — Isoscelian  hexagrams,  by  Mr.  R.  Tucker. — On  Euler's 
0-function,  two  notes  by  Mr.  H.  F.  Baker  and  Major  Macmahon 
(the  former  communicated  by  Mr.  Jenkins). — On  the  extension 
and  flexure  of  a  thin  elastic  plane  plate,  by  Mr.  A.  B.  Basset, 
F.R.S. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  November  18. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  animal  heat  and  the  heats  of  formation  and  of  com- 
bustion of  urea,  by  MM.  Berthelot  and  P.  Petit.  In  connection 
with  the  production  of  animal  heat  the  study  of  urea  is  of 
special  interest,  for  next  to  carbon  dioxide  it  is  the  chief  form 
under  which  carbon  is  eliminated  from  the  system,  while  almost 
all  the  nitrogen  is  eliminated  as  urea.  Hence  it  is  important 
to  know  how  the  production  of  urea  in  the  organs  is  related  to 
the  heat  of  formation  of  urea,  and  of  the  substances  from  which 
it  is  derived.  In  the  present  paper  the  authors  deal  with  the 
first  problem,  for  the  heat  of  combustion  of  urea  ia  free  oxygen 
has  not  yet  been  measured.  Three  concordant  combustions  in 
the  calorimetric  bomb  yielded  I5i'8  C.  per  gram-molecule, 
and  the  molecular  heat  of  solution  of  urea  at  about  1 1°  C.  is  found 
to  be  -  3'58  C,  whence  the  heat  of  formation  of  urea  is  808  C, 
and  of  its  solution  in  water  or  urine  is  found  to  be  -f  77  2  C.  — On 
the  orbit  of  Winnecke's  periodical  comet,  by  M.  II.  Faye.  These 
remarks  are  made  in  connection  with  a  memoir  presented  to  the 
Academy  by  Baron  von  Ilaerdtl,  on  the  movements  of  Win- 
necke's periodical  comet.  He  arrives  at  the  conclusion  that 
there  is  no  trace  of  acceleration  in  the  mean  movement.  He 
finds  that  the  mass  of  Jupiter  must  be  raised  to  i  :  I047'I52,  and 
determines  that  of  Mercury  in  round  numbers  at  i  :  5,010,000  ± 
700,000.  This  agrees  pretty  closely  with  the  value  i  :  5,310,000 
already  obtained  by  Le  Verrier. — Experimental  study  of  the 
transits  and  occultations  of  Jupiter's  satellites,  by  M.  Ch.  Andre. 
These  observations  have  been  made  by  means  of  an  apparatus 
specially  constructed  by  MM.  Brunner,  and  here  fully  described. 
Particular  attention  was  paid  to  the  phenomenon  of  the  luminous 
ligament  which  is  formed  near  the  point  of  contact.  It  begins  to 
appear  when  the  satellite  is  about  i\  minutes  from  real  contact, 
gradually  increasing  in  size  and  intensity  as  the  two  bodies  draw 
near,  so  that  at  the  instant  of  geometrical  contact  they  appear  to 
be  connected  by  a  veritable  luminous  bridge  about  one-third 
the  breadth  of  the  diameter  of  the  satellite.  The  moment  of 
geometrical  contact  is  accompanied  by  optical  appearances 
sufficiently  distinct  to  serve  as  a  base  for  the  direct  observation 
of  the  phenomenon  — Re:^earches  on  the  application  of  the 
measurement  of  rotatory  power  to  the  study  of  compounds 
resulting  from  the  action  of  malic  acid  on  sodium  molybdate, 
by  M.  D.  Gernez.  In  a  previous  communication  {jOomptes 
rendus,  cix.  p.  151)  the  author  showed  that  solutions  of  malic 
acid,  with  molybdate  of  ammonia  added,  show  sundry  changes 
in  rotatory  power,  which  may  easily  be  explained  by  assuming 
that  definite  compounds  are  formed  between  the  substances. 
His  present  researches,  made  with  the  same  acid  and  neutral 
sodium  molybdate,  lead  to  still  more  varied  results,  clearly 
showing  the  product'.on  of  compounds  between  simple  numbers 
of  molecules  of  these  bodies.  The  results,  which  are  here  tabu- 
lated and  described,  demonstrate  that  definite  compounds  are 
formed  in  solution  on  increasing  the  amount  of  one  of  the 
compounds  regularly.  They  also  show  the  defect  of  analytical 
methods  claiming  to  deduce  the  composition  of  an  active  liquid 
from  the  measurement  of  its  rotation,  at  least  so  far  as  regards 
substances  analogous  to  those  here  under  consideration. — On 
the  ophthalmoscopic  examination  of  the  base  of  the  eye  in 
hypnotic  subjects,  by  MM.  Luys  and  Bacchi.  Nine  subjects 
(six  women  and  three  men)  were  examined,  first  in  the  normal 
state  and  then  in  various  phases  of  catalepsy,  lucid  soamam- 
bulism,  and  hallucination.  In  some  instances  the  iris  was 
found  to  be  excessively  dilated  and  almost  insensible  to 
light.  Other  appearances  are  described,  but  no  general  in- 
ferences are  drawn  from  these  preliminary  observations. — The 
second  part  of  vol.  i.  of  MM.  Houzeau  and  Lancaster's   "Bib- 


Nov.  28,  1889] 


NATURE 


95 


liotheque  gencrale  de  rAstronomie,"  was  presented  by  M.  Faye, 
who  remaiked  ihat  this  great  con-.pilation  would  not  be  inter- 
rupted by  ihe  death  of  M.  Houzeau.  The  present  volume 
comprises  biographies,  didactic  and  general  works,  spherical 
and  theoretical  astronomy,  astronoujical  tables  for  all  epochs, 
and  treatises  on  calendars. 

Berlin. 

Physical  Society,  October  25. — The  President,  Prof.  Kundt, 
opened  the  meeting  liy  a  warm  expression  of  regret  at  the  loss 
sustained  by  the  Society  in  the  death  of  its  late  member.  Dr. 
Robert  von  llelmholtz.  —  Prof,  von  Bezold  spoke  on  the  various 
causes  which  lead  to  the  production  of  clouds  and  aqueous 
precipitates.  Using  the  graphic  methods  which  he  had  himself 
introduced  into  meteorology,  he  showed  by  means  of  diagrams 
that  the  older  ideas  on  this  subject  are  insufficient,  and  that, 
even  in  the  case  where  both  masses  of  air  are  saturated  with 
aqueous  vapour,  the  precipitation  which  may  occur  when  they 
are  mixed  is  not  due  to  the  mere  mixing  of  warm  and  cold  air  : 
the  temperature  of  the  mixture  is  not  the  mean  of  that  of  the 
respective  masses  of  air,  but  is  somewhat  higher,  and  the 
amount  of  water  which  is  condensed  on  their  mixing  is  very 
small.  By  means  of  his  diagrams  a  simple  solution  is  at  once 
obtained  of  many  problems  which  have  reference  to  the  tem- 
perature and  humidity  of  masses  of  air  when  they  are  mixed 
together  in  unequal  quantities.  It  appeared  that  under  the  most 
favourable  conditions,  when  air  .saturated  with  aqueous  vapour 
at  0°  C.  is  mixed  with  air  s^aturated  at  20°  C,  under  a  pressure 
ol  700  millimetres  of  mercury,  only  06  grams  of  water  is  con- 
densed out  of  2  kilograms  of  the  mixed  portions  of  air.  The 
same  mass  of  water  would  be  condensed  out  of  the  same  mass  of 
air  saturated  at  20°  C.  if  its  temperature  were  reduced  to  I9°'3 
C,  or  if  the  air  were  to  ascend  through  a  height  of  200  metres, 
in  which  case  its  temperature  would  fall  to  18° '9  C.  Much 
more  massive  aqueous  precipitates  are  formed  when  moist 
a'r  is  either  cooled  directly,  or  has  its  pressure  reduced  by  rising 
upwards,  in  which  case  a  simultaneous  cooling  occurs.  When 
air  saturated  at  2d°  C.  is  cooled  down  to  io°7  C, — a  tempera- 
ture which  results  from  mixing  air  at  24"  C.  with  air  at  0°  C., — 
44  grams  of  water  are  precipitated  out  of  each  kilogram  of  air, 
and  if  the  temperature  is  reduced  to  0°  C,  8  grams  are  preci- 
pitated. Similar  falls  of  temperature  may  be  obtained  during 
an  adiabatic  rise  in  altitude.  The  conditions  which  hold  good 
for  ■  super-saturated  air  may  similarly  be  comprehended  by  this 
graphic  method.  Notwithstanding  that  the  formation  of  aqueous 
precipitates  by  the  mere  mixing  of  two  masses  of  air  is  thus 
shown  to  be  very  minimal  in  amount,  still  it  does  occur  in  nature 
as  the  result  of  this  cause,  as,  for  instance,  in  the  case  of  cloud- 
caps  formed  when  different  winds  meet,  and  in  the  case  of  the 
formation  of  ground-fogs.  According  to  the  speaker,  clouds 
ought  to  be  distinguished  by  reference  to  the  way  in  which  the 
precipitate  of  which  they  consist  is  formed,  rather  than  by  the 
casual  appearance  which  they  present  to  the  eye  ;  in  any  case, 
mist  and  clouds  must  in  the  future  be  studied  from  the  above 
new  point  of  view. — Prof,  von  Helmholiz  added  to  the  above 
communication  some  remarks  on  the  way  in  which  the  mixing 
of  two  fluids  of  differeiit  specific  gravities  is  brought  about, 
iiuch  mixing  is  only  possible  as  the  result  of  vortex  move- 
ments or  of  "breaking"  waves.  He  had  already  dealt  with 
the  production  of  vortices,  and  the  production  of  waves  has 
recently  engaged  his  attention,  inasmuch  as  this  problem  has,  up 
to  the  present,  only  been  regarded  from  a  one-sided  point  of 
view  with  reference  to  water,  without  taking  into  account  the 
influence  of  the  air  which  is  moving  over  its  surface.  When 
wind  blows  over  the  surface  of  water,  or  when  lighter  air  streams 
over  a  mass  of  heavier  air,  waves  are  formed,  whose  size  and  rate 
of  propagation  depend  upon  the  relationship  of  the  two  fluids 
which  are  moving  one  over  tlie  other.  To  obtain  the  mechanical 
equations  of  these  movements  was  the  problem  which  he  had 
set  before  himself  for  solution  in  a  communication  which  he  had 
recently  made  to  the  Berlin  Academy.  This  dealt  first  with 
waves  on  water,  and  then  the  conditions  involved  in  these  were 
transferred  to  the  consideration  of  waves  in  air.  Waves  i  metre 
long  on  the  surface  of  water,  which  are  frequently  met  with  in 
nature,  correspond  to  waves  in  air  21  metres  long — that  is  to 
say,  to  air-waves  which  extend  over  a  considerable  stretch  of 
land.  Waves  in  air  are  only  visible  in  the  ca-es  where  they  are 
accompanied  by  condensations  of  vapour,  the  latter  occurring  in 
the  case  where  the  air  rises  several  hundred  metres  to  the  crest 


of  a  wave.  Prof.  Helmholiz  pointed  out  that  the  most  important 
outcome  of  the  whole  theoretical  consideration  of  the  problenv 
was  the  following  :  a  quiescent  surface  of  water  over  which  a 
wind  is  blowing  is  in  a  slate  of  unstable  equilibrium  ;  as  the 
result  of  this,  waves  are  produced  as  soon  as  the  wind  acquires  a 
sufficient  velocity,  and  the  energy  requirtd  to  raise  the  water 
from  the  trough  to  the  crest  of  each  wave,  as  well  as  to  produce 
the  onward  motion  of  the  wave,  is  derived  from  the  more  rapidly- 
moving  lower  layers  of  air  of  which  the  w  ind  consists.  Friction 
plays  a  very  subordinate  part  in  the  whole  proce  ss. 

November  8.  —  Prof,  du  Bois  Reymond,  President,  in  the 
chair. —  Dr.  Pernet  demonstrated  the  latest  and  newest  form 
of  Edison's  phonograph,  and  gave  a  minute  description  of 
the  apparatus,  illustrating  his  remarks  by  means  of  two  in- 
struments which  were  exhibited  to  the  Society.  He  prefaced 
his  description  by  a  short  historical  introduction,  from  which  it 
appeared  that  several  years  before  Edison's  discovery,  a  French- 
man named  Gros  had  deposited  with  the  Paris  Academy  a  sealed 
packet  containing  a  statement  of  the  essentials  for  the  construc- 
tion of  a  phonograph. 

Physiological  Society,  November  i. — Prof,  du  Bois  Rey- 
mond, President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Rene  du  Bois  Reymond 
spoke  on  the  striated  muscles  which  occur  in  the  small  intestine 
of  the  tench.  The  exceptional  occurrence  of  striated  muscles  in 
the  small  intestine  of  this  fish  has  long  been  known,  as  also  that 
.when  the  intestine  is  stimulated  electrically  it  contracts  suddenh',. 
as  does  a  skeletal  muscle.  The  whole  intestine  is  surrounded  by 
these  striated  fibres  arranged  both  longitudinally  and  circularly. 
Further  examination  revealed  a  very  thin  layer  of  both  longitu- 
dinal and  circular  non-striated  muscle-fibres,  lying  internally  to 
the  striated  fibres.  The  only  other  known  case  of  a  similar 
occurrence  of  striated  muscle-fibres  in  the  walls  of  the  small 
intestine  is  found  in  Cobitis  ;  but  in  this  fish  the  fibres  do 
not  extend  as  far  as  the  rectum,  as  they  do  in  the  tench.  The 
speaker  set  aside  the  idea  that  these  striated  muscle  fibres  are 
connected  with  the  respiratory  function  of  the  intestine,  by  show -^ 
ing  that  other  fish  are  also  in  the  habit  of  swallowing  air,  and 
that  in  such  fish  the  mucous  membrane  of  the  small  intestine  is 
extremely  rich  in  blood-vessel.'--,  whereas  this  is  not  the  case  in 
the  tench.  He  put  forward  the  suggestion  that  the  striated  fibres 
in  the  intestine  of  the  ttnch  are  a  transitional  form  between 
unstriated  and  striated  muscle-fibres,  and  based  his  views  upon 
the  observation  that,  firstly,  the  reaction  of  these  muscles  is 
alkaline,  and,  secondly,  upon  an  analysis  of  an  aqueous  extract 
of  them.  An  aqueous  extract  of  striated  muscles  contains,  as  is- 
well  known,  three  different  proteids  ;  one  which  coagulates  at 
47°  C,  one  which  comes  down  at  56°  C,  and  a  thiid  coagulating 
at  70° C.  The  proteid  which  coagulates  at  47° C.  does  not 
occur  in  unstriated  muscles,  and  was  similarly  found  to  be  absent 
in  the  extract  of  the  striated  muscles  of  the  intestine  of  the 
tench.  The  function  of  these  last-named  muscles  has  not  as  yet 
been  made  out. — Prof.  Fritsch  spoke  on  the  sensory  organs  in 
the  skin  of  fishes.  Starting  from  the  simplest  forms  in  which 
they  occur  as  end-bulbs  or  tiny  dilatations  in  the  nerves  whiib' 
supply  the  several  somites  in  the  embryos  of  fishes,  the  Sj  eaker 
described  their  gradual  change  of  form  during  growth.  The 
end-organ  is  always  characterized  by  sensory  cells — that  is  to  say, 
by  cells  whiih  have  a  pear-like  shape  and  are  provided  with  a 
sensory  filament  or  hair,  and  are  connected  with  nerve- 
fibres.  The  developmental  change  which  takes  place  is  as 
follows :  at  first  the  organ  becomes  protected  by  being  set 
deeper  into  the  skin,  spaces  are  then  developed  superficially  to 
the  organ,  and  these  are  finally  placed  in  communication  with 
the  surface  of  the  skin  by  means  of  a  minute  orifice  or  somewhat 
lengthy  canal.  The  lateral-line  organs  of  fishes  in  several  modified' 
forms  is  developed  as  above  described  ;  the  sense-organ,  with  its 
sensory  cells  and  nerves,  lying  at  its  base.  A  furthtr  modifica- 
tion leads  to  the  development  of  the  closed  vesicles  of  Savi,  • 
which  are  completely  filied  with  a  mucous  secretion.  In  the 
further  modification  of  itiucture  met  with  in  the  ampullae  oF 
Lorenzini,  a  change  of  functional  activity  is  already  marked,  as- 
shown  by  the  fact  that  the  sensory  ctlls  have  lost  their  hairs  and 
have  been  converted  into  secretory  cells.  The  speaker  expressed 
his  concurrence  with  that  view  of  the  function  of  dermal  sense- 
organs,  according  to  which  they  are  to  be  regarded  as  auditory 
organs  in  a  low  stage  of  evolution,  set  aside  for  the  percepti<  » 
of  vibrations  and  waves  which  are  propagated  through  tlie 
water. 


96 


NATURE 


\_Nov.  28,  1889 


Meteorological  Society,  November  5. — Dr.  Vettin,  Presi- 
dent, in  the  chair. — The  President  spoke  on  the  interchange  of 
air  which  takes  place  between  regions  of  high  and  regions  of 
iow  pressure.  He  first  described  his  own  measurements  of  the 
altitudes  of  the  various  most  characteristic  forms  of  clouds,  find- 
ing them  in  complete  accord  with  those  of  Abercromby  and 
Ekholm.  He  then  passed  on  to  his  determinations  of  the 
velocity  of  the  wind  at  those  several  altitudes,  using  as  a  means 
of  measurement  the  records  afforded  by  the  direction  and  rate 
of  motion  of  the  clouds.  The  mean  values  thus  obtained  for 
the  i-ate  of  flow  of  the  air-currents  were  compared  in  each  case 
with  the  positions  of  maximal  and  minimal  air-pressure  ;  from 
this  comparison  the  speaker  found  that  the  motion  of  the  air 
between  points  of  maximum  and  minimum  pressure  does  not 
take  place  in  the  way  in  which  it  has  usually  been  supposed  to 
occur.  He  then  gave  a  detailed  account  of  the  results  of  his 
observations,  but  these  do  not  admit  of  being  reproduced  within 
the  limits  of  a  brief  abstract. 

Sydney. 

Royal  Society  of  New^  South  Wales,  August  21.  —  A 
*' reception"  of  the  members  of  the  Society  was  held  for  con- 
versational scientific  discussion,  and  the  exhibition  of  various 
■objects  of  interest :  upwards  of  100  members  were  present. 

September  4. — Prof  Liversidge,  F.R.  S.,  President,  in  the 
chair. — Mr.  H.  G.  McKinney  read  a  paper  on  irrigation  in  its 
relation  to  the  pastoral  industry  in  New  South  Wales,  which 
was  freely  discussed. — Sir  Alfred  Roberts,  Vice-President,  exhi- 
bited a  large  collection  of  photo-micrographs  taken  by  the  late 
Captain  Francis. 

October  2.  —  Prof.  Liversidge,  F.  R.  S.,  President,  in  the 
chair. — The  following  papers  were  read:— The  analysis  of 
prickly  pear  ;  on  the  occurrence  of  arabin  in  the  prickly 
pear  {Opicntm  brasiliensis),  by  W.  M.  Hamlet.  ■ —  Personal 
recollections  of  the  aboriginal  tribes  once  inhabiting  the 
Adelaide  Plains  of  South  Australia,  by  Edward  Stephens. 
— The  Chairman  exhibited  some  interesting  fungoid  growths 
which  had  formed  in  water  containing  finely-divided  gold  in 
suspension.  The  gold  had  been  precipitated  from  a  weak 
solution  of  the  chloride  by  phosphorus  dissolved  in  ether  ;  the 
mycelium  of  the  fungoid  growths  had  acquired  a  purple  colour 
from  the  gold  which  it  had  absorbed  ;  on  incineration,  a  skeleton 
outline  of  the  mycelium  is  left  in  gold. 

Amsterdam. 
Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  October  26. — M.  Mulder  pre- 
sented, for  the  Reports  and  Communications,  an  essay  on  tartar- 
ate  of  ethyl,  and  its  relations  to  ethylate  of  sodium  and  potassium. 
— M.  Grinwis  spoke  on  two  forms  of  energy  occurring  in  rolling 
motion,  and  presented  an  essay  on  this  subject  for  the  Reports 
and  Communications. — M.  Rauwenhoff  presented  for  the  Trans- 
actions an  essay  in  quarto,  with  plates,  on  the  sexual  generation  of 
the  Gleicheniacese,  and  communicated  briefly  the  results  to  which 
his  researches  had  led  him. — M.  van  der  Waals  spoke  of  the 
equilibrium  of  solid  compounds  in  presence  of  fluid  and  vapour 
mixtures,  illustrated  by  the  »|/  surface  of  a  mixture  of  two  kinds 
of  matter. 

DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  November  28. 
i.vsTiTUTiON  OF  ELECTRICAL  ENGINEERS,  at  8.— Electrical  Engineering  in 
America  :  G.  L.  Addenbrojke. 

FRIDAY,  November  29. 
In';titution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at   7.30.— Principles  of  Iron  Foundry 
Practice  :  G.  H.  Sheffield. 

SA  I  I "R DAY,  November  30. 
Royal  Society,  at  4.— Anniversary. 

Essex  Ii'ield  Club,  at  7.— How  to  commence  the  Study  of  Botany: 
George  Massee. 

SUNDAY,  December  i. 
'Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at   4.— Invisible  Stars  ;  tbe  Use  of  the  Camera 
in  the  Observatory  (with  Oxyhydrogen  Lantern  Illustration^  :  Sir  Robert 
S.  Ball,  F.R.S.,  Astronomer  Royal,  Ireland. 

MONDAY,  December  2. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— Modern  Developments  of  Bread-making  :  William 
J  ago. 

Society  of  Chemical  Industry,  at  8.— Some  Notes 'on  Variations  in  the 
Products  of  the  Destructive  Distillation  of  Different  Gas  Coals,  Heated 
Separately  in  the  same  Retort,  and  under  Similar  Conditions  :  Watson 
Smith. — Cresontinic  Acid  and  its  Applicatians  :  I.  Hauff. 

Victoria  Institute,  at  8.— Instinct  and  Reason  :  Dr.  C.  Collingwood. 

Aristotelian  Society,  at  8.— The  Esthetic  Theory  of  Ugliness  :  B. 
Bosanquet. 

Royal  Institution,  at  5.— General  Monthly  Meeting. 


TUESDAY,  December  3. 
Zoological  Society,  at  8.30. — On  the  Anatomy  of  Burmeister's  Cariama 

(Chunga  burmeisteri). — On  the  Relations  of  the  Fat-bodies  of  the   Sauro- 

psida  :  G.  W.  Butler. — List  of  the  Reptiles,  Batrachians,  and  Fresh-water 

Fishes,  collected  by  Prof.  Moesch  in  tne  District  of  Deli,  Sumatra  :  G.  A, 

Boulenger. 
Institution  of  Civil    Engineers,    at    8. — Ballot    for    the    Election    of 

Members. — Water-Tube    Steam-Boilers    fir    Marine    Engines  :    John    I. 

Thornycroft.     (Discussion.)— The  Triple-E.xpansion  Engines  at  the  Owens 

College,  Manchester:  Prof.  Osborne  Reynolds,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  December  4. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Rabies  and  its  Prevention  :   Dr.  Armand  Ruffer. 

Geological  Society,  at  8. — On  Remains  of  Small  Sauropodous  Dinosaurs 
fr.im  the  Wealden  :  R.  Lydekker.— On  a  Peculiar  Horn-like  Dinosaurian 
Bane  from  the  Wealden  :  R.  Lydekker. — The  Igneous  Constituents  of  the 
Triassic  Breccias  and  Conglomerates  of  .'^outh  Devon:  R.  N,  Worth. — 
Notes  on  the  (^laciation  of  Parts  of  the  Valleys  of  the  Jhelum  and  Sind 
Rivers  in  the  Himalaya  Mountains  of  Kashmir  :  Captain  A.  W.  Stiffe. 

Entomological  Society,  at  7. — Systematic  Temperature  Experiments  on 
some  Lepidoptera  in  all  their  stages  :  Frederic  Merrifield. — Notes  on 
Indian  Longicornia.  with  Descriptions  of  New  Species  :  Charles  J. 
Gahan. — On  the  Peculiarities  of  the  Terminal  Segment  in  some  Male 
Heniiptera  :  Dr.  D.  Sharp. — Notes  on  a  Species  of  Lycaenidae  :  Lionel 
de  Niceville. 

THURSDAY,  December  5. 
LiNNKAN  Society,  at  8. — Life  History  of  a  Stipitate  Fre.5h-water  Alga  :  G 
Massee.— On  the  Anatomy  of  the  Sand  Grouse  :  G.  Sim. 

FRIDAY,  December  6. 
Geologists'  Association,  at  8. — Conversazione. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Proposed  Method  of  Recording  Variations  in  the  Direction  of  the  Vertical  : 
H.C.  Russell.— The  Storm  of  September2i,  1888  :  H.  C  Russell.— O  Therii 
Forem  Bilinearnych  :  E.  Weyr  (V.  Praze). — Journal  of  Physiology,  vol.  x., 
No.  6  (Cambridge). — Proceedings  of  the  Linnean  Society  of  New  South 
Wales,  vol.  i.,  Part  i  (Sydney). — Quarterly  Journal  of  the  Geological  So- 
ciety, November  1889  (Longmans). — Papers  and  Proceedings  of  the  Royal 
Society  of  Tasmania,  1888  (.Hobart). — Proceedings  of  the  Physical  Society 
of  London,  vol.  x.,  Part  2  (Tayl  ir  and  Francis).^ — Transactions  of  the 
Seismological  Society  of  Japan,  vol.  xiii.,  Part  i  (Yokohama). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Mr.  Stanley    ....     • 73 

The  Habits  of  the  Salmon 74 

An  Elementary  Text-book  of  Geology.     By  Prof.  A, 

H.  Green,  F.R.S 75 

The  Flora  of  Derbyshire.     By  J.  G.  B 77 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Bower:   "  Science  of  Every-day  Life  " 78 

Wright  :  "  Elementary  Physics  " 78 

Redway  :   "  Teacher's  Manual  of  Geography  "   ....  78 

Williams:   "Notes  on  the  Pinks  of  Western  Europe "  78 
James:   "American  Resorts,   with  Notes  upon   their 

Climate" 79 

Knight:  "  Idylls  of  the  Field  " 79 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

A  New  Logical  Machine. — Mary  Boole 79 

Lamarck  versus  Weismann. — Prof.  E.  D.  Cope  ...  79 

Galls.— Prof.  George  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S 80 

"Modern    Views   of  Electricity." — Prof.   Oliver  J. 

Lodge,  F.R.S 80 

Geometrical  Teaching. — H 80 

A  Brilliant  Meteor.— J.  Cockburn 80 

Star  Distances.     By  A.  M.  Gierke 81 

Dr.  H.  Burmeister  on  the  Fossil  Horses  and  other 

Mammals  of  Argentina.     {^Illustrated.)     By  R.  L.     .  82 

Notes 84 

Our  Astronomical  Column: — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 87 

The  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886 88 

Palermo  Observatory 88 

The  Variable  Star  Y  Cygni 88 

Paramatta  Observatory 88 

Minor  Planet  282 88 

Comet  Davidson  (^  1889) 88 

A  New  Variable  Star  in  Hydra 88 

Sun-.spots  in  High  Southern  Latitudes 88 

Proposed  Memorial  of  Dr.  Joule 89 

How  Plants  Maintain  Themselves  in  the   Struggle 

for  Existence.     By  Prof.  Walter  Gardiner      ....  90 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 92 

Scientific  Serials 92 

Societies  and  Academies 93 

Diary  of  Societies •   •    .96 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 96 


NA TURE 


97 


THURSDAY,  DECEMBER  5,  i! 


THE  MANCHESTER  CONFERENCE. 

THE  Manchester  Conference  on  the  working  of  the 
Technical  Instruction  Act  was  as  important  a 
representative  gathering  as  has  taken  place  for  some 
years  to  consider  an  educational  question.  The  Confer- 
ence was  called  by  the  Technical  Association,  and  the 
Executive  Committee  and  the  branch  Associations 
throughout  the  country  were  strongly  represented.  In- 
vitations were  also  addressed  to  the  chief  local  authori- 
ties and  School  Boards  in  large  centres,  and  the  principal 
technical  schools  and  institutions.  It  says  much  for  the 
change  which  has  come  over  public  opinion  in  the  last 
two  years  on  educational  matters,  that  a  circular,  un- 
adorned by  promises  of  party  speeches  by  prominent 
M.P.'s,  but  merely  inviting  discussion  on  the  details  of 
the  operation  of  an  Education  Act,  should  have  sufficed 
to  cram  the  Mayor's  parlour  with  a  body  of  nearly  300 
delegates,  representing  more  than  sixty  local  authorities 
and  institutions. 

"Conferences,"  Mr.  Acland  said  at  the  outset,  "are 
usually  disappointing,"  and  it  would  be  absurd  to  expect 
that  so  large  and  miscellaneous  a  gathering  would  dis- 
pose satisfactorily,  within  little  more  than  a  couple  of 
hours,  of  the  four  difficult  questions  raised  on  the  agenda 
sheet.  But  such  progress  as  was  possible  was  made,  and 
the  remorseless  bell  sounded  with  impartiality  when  a 
speaker's  limit  of  five  minutes  had  been  reached.  In 
this  way  a  good  many  expressions  of  opinion  from  many 
different  points  of  view  were  compressed  into  the  after- 
noon, and  iew  could  have  gone  away  without  any  new 
ideas  suggested  by  the  Conference.  That  is,  if  they  had 
previously  taken  the  trouble  to  acquaint  themselves  with 
the  provisions  of  the  Act,  for  no  time  was  wasted  in  the 
room  in  explaining  its  general  scope,  though  literature  in 
abundance  on  the  subject  could  be  had  from  the  book- 
stall at  the  door. 

The  subjects  discussed  were :  the  relation  of  the  Act 
to  elementary  schools  ;  the  mode  of  its  adoption  and  the 
preliminary  proceedings  connected  therewith  ;  the  mode 
in  which,  and  the  conditions  under  which,  grants  may  best 
be  made  by  local  authorities  to  institutions  giving  tech- 
nical instruction,  and  the  principle  on  which  such  grants 
should  be  apportioned  among  institutions  of  different 
grades  ;  and  the  mode  of  re-organization  by  which  the 
Science  and  Art  Department  may  meet  the  new  duties 
imposed  upon  it  by  the  Act.  The  four  speakers  who 
introduced  these  subjects  happily  represented  the  four 
chief  "  interests  "  involved — education,  politics,  manu- 
factures, and  science. 

Without  following  in  detail  the  order  of  the  discussion, 
■we  may  briefly  sum  up  the  impression  which  it  left. 

The  chief  interest  centred  in  the  question  of  the  rela- 
tion of  the  Act  to  public  elementary  schools.  It  is  no  secret 
that  a  certain  amount  of  misunderstanding  and  difficulty 
has  arisen  over  the  interpretation  of  the  sections  of  the 
Act  which  bear  on  this  knotty  point.  The  Act  forbids  the 
application  of  rates  raised  under  it  to  the  instruction  of 
scholars  working  in  the  "  obligatory  or  standard  subjects" 
Vol.  xh.— No.  1049. 


of  the  Code.  The  meaning  so  far  is  clear.  No  scholar 
of  an  elementary  school  at  the  time  working  in  any  of  the- 
standards  can  take  advantage  of  the  Act.  But  how  about 
ex-seventh  standard  scholars,  or  indeed  of  any  children 
in  elementary  schools,  above  the  exemption  standard,  to 
whom  the  managers  may  wish  to  give  technical  instruc- 
tion ?  It  is  well  known  that,  in  many  Board  and  some 
voluntary  schools,  a  large  number  of  children  are  retained 
who  have  passed  all  the  standards,  but  are  receiving 
science  and  art  instruction,  and  earning  grants  from 
South  Kensington.  What  are  the  powers  of  Boards  and 
managers  with  respect  to  these  children  ?  One  thing 
is  certain — whatever  Boards  could  do  before  the  Act,  that 
at  least  they  can  do  still.  There  is  no  restrictive  clause 
in  the  Act,  which  purposely  enacts  that  "  nothing  in  this 
Act  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  interfere  with  any  existing 
powers  of  School  Boards  with  respect  to  the  provision  of 
technical  and  manual  instruction."  But  there  has  always 
been  some  little  doubt  as  to  the  exact  status  of  School 
Boards  with  respect  to  higher  elementary  schools,  and 
this  the  Act  does  nothing  to  remove.  Sir  Henry  Roscoe's 
Bill,  if  carried,  would  have  placed  the  whole  position  of 
higher  elementary  instruction  on  a  sound  and  satisfactory 
basis.  It  is  a  great  flaw  in  the  present  Act  that  it  leaves 
matters  where  they  were.  It  is,  however,  an  ill  wind  that 
blows  nobody  any  good,  and  it  may  be  that  certain 
advantages  will,  after  all,  result  from  this  anomalous 
state  of  things.  Opinions  of  experts  not  being  unanimous 
about  the  meaning  of  the  Act,  it  is  clearly  a  time  for 
experiments  to  be  made.  Liverpool  is  already  moving 
in  the  matter,  after  obtaining  Sir  Horace  Davey's  opinion 
that  it  is  within  the  power  of  the  School  Board  to  provide 
technical  and  manual  instruction  out  of  the  rates  under 
their  general  powers,  and  other  School  Boards  need  have 
little  fear  in  taking  a  comprehensive  view  of  the  Act 
and  applying  to  the  City  Councils  for  their  share  of  the 
proceeds  of  the  special  rate. 

The  Conference  also  discussed  the  question  whether  a 
local  authority  is  bound  to  distribute  any  grant  which  it 
may  make  among  the  different  qualified  schools  which 
apply  for  aid,  or  whether  it  may  take  the  initiative  and 
adopt  the  course  (in  many  cases  the  wisest)  of  con- 
centrating its  efforts  on  making  one  central  school 
efficient.  This  question,  on  which  some  doubt  was 
previously  felt  owing  to  the  obscurity  of  the  wording  of 
the  Act,  was  satisfactorily  cleared  up  at  Manchester. 
The  town  clerk  of  Blackburn  threw  down  the  challenge, 
by  declaring  that  he  intended  to  advise  his  Council  that 
they  had  the  power  to  build  a  technical  school  and  give 
it  all,  or  the  greater  part,  of  the  proceeds  of  the  rate.  To 
this  General  Donnelly  replied  that  there  was  nothing  in 
this  to  which  he  could  take  exception,  so  that  local 
authorities  have — so  far  as  the  Science  and  Art  Depart- 
ment is  concerned — greater  liberty  of  action  than  some 
had  supposed  ;  and  who  can  object  except  the  Science 
and  Art  Department  ? 

But,  perhaps,  a  question  of  more  real  importance  even 
than  this,  is  the  nature  of  the  qualification  entitling  a 
technical  school  to  rate-aid.  Here,  again,  the  wording  of 
the  Act  is  not  very  clear,  and  it  must  be  confessed  that 
the  discussion  at  the  Conference  still  left  it  in  doubt.  In 
Section  I.,  Sub-section  {a),  we  read  :  "A  Local  Authority 
may,  on  the  request  of  a  School  Board  for  its  district  or 

K 


98 


NATURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


any  part  of  its  district,  or  of  any  other  managers  of  a 

school  or  institution  within  its  district  /or  the  time  being 
in  receipt  of  aid  from  the  Department  of  Science  and  Art" 
make  provision  for  technical  education  in  its  district. 
The  narrowest  interpretation  of  this  clause  would  confine 
the  whole  benefit  of  the  Act  to  schools  already  receiving 
grants  from  South  Kensington,  and  this  view  was  under- 
stood by  some  members  of  the  Conference — we  hope 
wrongly — to  be  endorsed  by  General  Donnelly. 

We  need  hardly  point  out  that  such  an  interpretation 
would  seriously  restrict  and  cripple  the  operation  of  the 
Act.  If  there  is  one  conclusion  clearer  than  another 
from  the  Manchester  Conference,  it  is  that  there  is  a 
general  wish  to  use  the  rate  for  what  we  may  venture  to 
term  its  legitimate  purpose — the  assistance  of  those 
technical  subjects  which  are  not  at  present  included  in 
the  Science  and  Art  Directory.  The  worst  thing  that 
could  be  done  would  be  to  fritter  it  away  in  the  form  of 
doles  to  existing  science  and  art  classes  ;  and  yet,  if  only 
grant-earning  schools  can  profit  by  the  Act,  this  is  what 
will  inevitably  tend  to  take  place.  Such  an  institution  as 
the  Leicesi  r  Technical  School,  which  has  classes  in 
bootmaking,  lace-making,  &c.,  but  no  science  and  art 
classes,  could  get  no  help.  The  same  would  be  true 
of  such  a  school  as  the  P'insbury  Technical  College. 

We  are  glad  to  believe  that  so  narrowing  a  mean- 
ing cannot  fairly  be  given  to  the  wording  of  the 
section.  It  is  true  that  the  words  we  have  italicised 
make  it  necessary  that  the  first  institution  to  make  a 
request  to  the  local  authority  to  put  the  Act  in  force 
must  be  already  in  connection  with  South  Kensington,  if 
it  is  not  a  School  Board.  But  this  condition  only  applies 
to  the  initial  proceedings.  When  the  request  is  made 
and  granted,  the  local  authority  may  make,  "  to  such  an 
extent  as  may  be  reasonably  sufficient  having  regard  to 
the  requirements  of  the  district,  but  subject  to  the  condi- 
tions and  restrictions  contained  in  this  section,  provi- 
sion in  aid  of  the  technical  and  manual  instruction  for  the 
time  being  supplied "  (not  only  in  the  school  which 
makes  the  request,  but)  "  in  schools  or  institutions  within 
its  district." 

That  is,  it  may  aid  all  higher  schools  already  giving 
instruction  which  falls  within  the  four  corners  of  the  Act, 
and  this  instruction  includes  very  much  more  than  the  list 
of  subjects  on  which  grants  can  at  present  be  earned. 

And  this  leads  us  to  the  further  question.  What  is 
meant  by  technical  instruction  in  the  Act?  Some 
people,  even  at  the  Conference,  understood  it  to  mean 
merely  the  subjects  in  the  Science  and  Art  Directory,  and 
any  others  which  may  be  sanctioned  by  the  Department 
on  the  representation  of  a  local  authority.  This  interpre- 
tation, again,  would  severely  cripple  the  usefulness  of  the 
Act.  At  a  time  when  the  pubhc  is  beginning  to  realize 
the  mechanical  nature  of  much  of  the  teaching  subsidized 
by  South  Kensington,  and  the  want  of  elasticity  and 
local  adaptability  which  inevitably  results  from  over- 
centralization,  it  would  be  nothing  less  than  a  disaster  to 
tie  down  all  science  and  art,  and  perhaps  even  techno- 
logical teaching,  to  the  rigid  syllabus  of  a  Government 
Department.  Chemistry  qua  chemistry  would  not  be  a 
"  technical "  subject,  unless,  forsooth,  it  were  taught  ac- 
cording to  a  certain  sylla.bus,  and  followed  by  a  certain 
examination.     No  really  "  technical "  subject  (except  the 


four  or  five  which  are  included  in  the  Directory)  would  be- 
"  technical"  under  the  Act  until  the  local  authorities  in 
each  district  (not,  be  it  noted,  the  managers  of  schools) 
had  made  a  representation  on  the  subject  to  the  Science 
and  Art  Department,  and  a  minute  had  been  laid  before 
Parliament. 

But  here,  again,  we  are  strongly  of  opinion  that  no  such 
meaning  can  fairly  be  attached  to  the  definition.  "Tech- 
nical instruction,"  so  runs  Clause  8,  "shall  mean  '\x\- 
strxxciion'm  the  pri7iciples  rf  science  and  art  applicable  to 
industries,  aud  in  the  application  of  special  branches  of 
science  and  art  to  specif  c  industries  and  employments.  It 
shall  not  include  teaching  the  practice  of  any  trade  or 
industry  or  employment."  There  is  the  definition.  What 
follows  is  not  a  restriction,  but  an  amplification,  intended 
to  provide  a  mode  of  clearing  up  doubtful  cases.  Some 
one  might  hereafter  declare  that  some  subject,  as,  for 
example,  mathematics  or  landscape-painting,  though  in- 
cluded in  the  Directory,  was  not  contemplated  by  the 
Act,  as  not  being  "  instruction  in  the  principles  of  science 
and  art  applicable  to  industries."  The  section  therefore 
expressly  declares  that  the  definition  shall  include  all 
such  subjects  ;  and  if  there  be  any  other  subject  outside  the 
Directory  about  which  doubt  is  entertained,  that  doubt 
may  be  set  at  rest  by  a  representation  from  a  local 
authority.  The  Science  and  Art  Department  is  umpire 
in  doubtful  cases,  but  no  appeal  to  the  Department  is 
necessary  with  reference  to  subjects — say  the  principles  of 
weaving,  dyeing,  plumbing,  &c., — which  fall  unmistakably 
within  the  definition.  That,  at  least,  is  our  view,  and  we 
believe  the  only  rational  one.  It  seems  to  us  as  clearly 
the  meaning  of  the  letter  of  the  Act,  as  it  was  certainly 
the  intention  of  its  promoters. 

The  Science  and  Art  Department,  however,  will  have 
the  power  to  define  the  mode  of  teaching  of  technical 
subjects  for  the  purpose  of  earning  Imperial,  though  not 
local,  grants.  The  Department  might,  as  was  suggested 
at  Manchester  by  Principal  Garnett,  take  over  the  whole 
system  of  grants  and  examinations  now  controlled  by  the 
City  and  Guilds  Institute.  But  we  venture  to  hope— and 
Principal  Garnett  himself  would,  we  believe,  agree  in 
this — that  the  authorities  at  South  Kensington  will  think 
very  carefully  before  embarking  on  a  new  system  of  pay- 
ments on  results,  in  the  case  of  subjects  which  admit  far 
less  of  such  a  test  than  most  of  those  included  in  the 
Science  and  Art  Directory. 

They  would  do  well  to  rely  far  more  on  efficient  inspec- 
tion than  on  individual  examinations,  and  if  the  inspec- 
tion were  made  a  reality,  instead  of  being,  as  now,  too 
often  a  farce,  they  might,  perhaps,  ultimately  base  their 
grants  for  technical  instruction  on  the  amount  of  local 
contributions,  in  some  such  way  as  that  provided  for  in 
the  Welsh  Intermediate  Education  Act.  The  Manchester 
Conference  was  strongly  opposed  to  any  increase  of 
centralization,  and  the  greatest  possible  freedom  ought  to 
be  allowed  to  localities  from  the  outset  to  develop  their 
own  system  to  suit  their  own  needs. 

If  the  Conference  was  decided  on  this  point,  it  was,  we 
think,  equally  decided  that,  under  a  broad  interpretation 
of  the  Act,  the  powers  conferred  on  local  authorities  are 
really  very  extensive.  It  is  little  short  of  a  scandal  that 
an  Act  for  the  improvement  of  English  industry  should 
itself  offer  such  an  exhibition  of  bad  workmanship.     But: 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


99 


it  is  clear  that  the  right  way  to  solve  the  problem  is  for 
local  authorities  and  School  B,)ards  to  push  ahead,  as  we 
believe  they  can  do  without  fear.  The  list  read  by  Sir 
Henry  Roscoe  at  the  opening  of  the  proceedings  shows 
what  progress  in  this  direction  has  already  been  made 
towards  adopting  the  Act,  and  the  Conference  can  hardly 
fail  to  result  in  a  still  more  vigorous  attempt  to  make  a 
wise  and  extensive  use  of  its  provisions. 


AMERICAN  ETHNOLOGICAL  REPORTS. 

Sixth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology  to  the 
Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  1884-85.  By 
J.  W.  Powell,  Director.  (Washington  :  Government 
Printing  Office,  1888.) 

FROM  the  introductory  remarks  of  the  Director  of  the 
Bureau,  we  learn  that  the  results  of  the  research 
prosecuted  among  the  North  American  Indians,  as 
directed  by  Act  of  Congress,  were  of  special  interest 
during  the  continuance  of  the  work  in  the  fiscal  year 
1884-85. 

As  in  forme  years,  the  labourers  in  the  mound  explora- 
tions were  remarkably  successful,  more  especially  in  the 
territories  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  where  Prof. 
Cyrus  Thomas,  in  1885,  and  his  coadjutors,  Messrs. 
Middleton  and  Thing,  subsequently,  made  important 
finds  in  Indian  pottery,  which  were  unique  of  their  kind. 
Even  more  valuable  are  the  results  of  the  explorations 
carried  on  in  New  Mexico  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Stevenson, 
the  latter  of  whom  succeeded  in  obtaining  the  largest 
and  most  important  collection  extant  of  objects  relating 
to  the  sociology  of  the  Zuni  tribes.  This  rare  treasury 
of  Indian  relics  includes  specimens  of  woven  fabrics, 
pottery,  stone  implements,  both  ancient  and  modern, 
pictured  urns,  shrines,  altars,  sacred  masks,  fetishes, 
plume  sticks,  and  other  objects  connected  with  the 
ancient  mythology  and  religious  practices  of  these  people. 
Owing  to  the  great  variety  of  the  objects,  their  true 
■character  cannot  be  determined  without  prolonged  inves- 
tigation, and  in  the  meanwhile  they  have  been  deposited 
in  the  U.S.  Museum,  where  they  await  their  final  classi- 
fication. According,  however,  to  Mr,  Curtis,  these,  as 
well  as  the  still  more  numerous  collections  of  pottery, 
stone  implements,  and  other  objects,  amounting  to  4000 
specimens,  which  have  been  obtained  in  New  Mexico,  all 
belong  to  the  indigenous  arts  and  industries  of  the 
ancient  tribes  who  occupied  the  almost  unknown  tracts 
of  Central  America  in  which  the  Pueblo  Indians  are  now 
located. 

In  the  department  of  linguistic  research,  prosecuted 
by  the  various  employes  of  the  Bureau,  none  have  perhaps 
been  more  successful  than  Mrs.  Ermine  Smith,  who  was 
fortunate  enough  to  discover  two  Onondaga  MSS.,  and  one 
MS.  in  the  Mohawk  dialect,  all  of  which  she  has  anno- 
tated and  translated  with  the  assistance  of  a  half-caste 
of  Tuscaroran  descent.  The  origin  and  history  of  these 
MSS.  are  not  distinctly  known,  but  it  is  conjectured  that 
they  are  copies  of  originals  which  have  been  lost  or 
■destroyed.  In  their  present  form,  they  are,  however, 
alike  interesting  from  a  sociological  and  a  linguistic  point 
of  view,  for  while  the  Mohawk  MS.  gives  an  account  of 
the  religious  rites  and  chants  of  the  Iroquoian  League 


which  represented  the  elder  members  of  the  entire  nation, 
one  of  the  Onondaga  MSS.  x'ecords  the  ritual  in  use 
among  the  younger  members  of  the  same  council,  and 
the  other  the  form  of  address  used  by  the  chief  Shaman 
on  the  initiation  of  a  newly  elected  chief. 

These  curious  records  have  been  turned  to  good 
account  by  Mrs  Smith  in  the  completion  of  her  Tuscarora 
dictionary,  and  in  filling  up  her  vocabulary  for  the  "  In- 
troduction to  the  Study  of  the  Indian  Languages  "  now 
preparing  for  publication. 

In  the  Far  West,  and  especially  in  California,  the 
results  of  linguistic  field-work  are  not  equally  satisfactory  ; 
and  in  the  latter  province,  it  would  appear  from  the  report 
of  Mr.  Henshaw,  who  was  charged  with  the  inquiry,  that 
a  number  of  the  native  dialects  are  extinct.  Only  a 
month  before  his  arrival,  an  old  woman  had  died  who 
was  the  last  person  to  speak  the  language  of  the  Indians 
of  Santa  Cruz.  The  search  for  still  surviving  members  of 
the  several  families  of  Indian  languages  current  on  the 
arrival  of  the  Spaniards  has  not,  therefore,  begun  too 
soon.  The  general  results  of  these  linguistic  researches 
are  embodied  in  a  work  entitled  "  Proof-Sheets  of  a 
Bibliography  of  the  Languages  of  the  North  American 
Indians."  This  volume,  a  quarto  of  more  than  iioo 
pages,  was  compiled  by  Mr.  Pilling,  and  issued  in  1884 
by  the  Institute,  which,  with  its  usual  liberality,  has  dis- 
tributed the  hundred  copies  printed  to  other  public  insti- 
tutions, and  to  the  various  collaborators  in  the  work. 

In  turning  from  the  highly  interesting  explanatory 
remarks  of  the  Director  to  the  various  monographs  con- 
tained in  the  volume  before  us  (a  folio  of  more  than  800 
pages),  we  have  first  to  notice  the  comprehensive  and 
profusely  illustrated  treatise  of  Mr.  Holmes,  "On  the 
Ancient  Art  of  Chiriqui  on  the  Isthmus  of  Panama." 

Here  the  author  supplies  the  technologist  with  an 
exhaustive  history  of  the  rise  and  development  of 
plastic  and  textile  art  in  this  part  of  the  continent,  while 
he  also  treats  fully  of  the  literature  and  geography  of  this 
hitherto  little-known  province,  whose  position  between 
North  and  South  America  imparted  to  the  people  some 
of  the  characteristics  of  the  civilization  of  both  sections 
of  the  western  hemisphere. 

Almost  the  whole  of  the  enormous  mass  of  clay  and 
metal  objects  found  in  Chiriqui  was  extracted  from  tombs 
in  the  various  huancals,  or  cemeteries,  which  are  scattered 
over  the  Pacific  slope  of  the  province.  These  were  first 
made  known  to  science  by  Mr.  Merritt,  the  director  of  a 
gold  mine  in  Veragua,  who,  on  hearing  of  the  accidental 
discovery  of  a  gold  figure  in  Chiriqui,  visited  the  district, 
and  published  a  report  of  his  explorations  in  1859.  From 
him  we  learn  that  in  1858,  after  it  became  known  that  a 
golden  image  had  been  discovered  at  Bugava,  more  than 
1000  persons  flocked  to  the  spot,  who  it  was  estimated 
had  in  that  year  collected  50,000  dollars'  worth  of  gold 
from  one  cemetery  alone,  which  had  an  area  of  only  12 
acres.  A  curious  fact  connected  with  the  plastic  decora- 
tions of  the  Chiriqui  vases  and  other  objects  is  that  no 
vegetable  forms  have  served  the  artificers  as  models, 
animals  alone  having  been  used  for  the  purpose,  as 
crocodiles,  armadillos,  monkeys,  lizards,  alligators,  owing 
probably  to  their  zoo-mythic  conceptions  of  their  divini- 
ties. Among  the  various  groups  of  vases,  the  one  com- 
prising the  so-called  "  alligator  ware  "  is  the  most  interest- 


lOO 


NATURE 


{Dec.  5.  1889 


ing  ;  this  animal  being  not  only  represented  as  a  surface 
ornament,  but  serving  as  a  model  for  the  form  of  such  dis- 
similar objects  as  whistles,  rattles,  tables,  stools,  jars, 
vases  and  other  utensils.  Occasionally  the  human  figure 
appears  under  some  grotesque  form,  and  less  frequently 
it  is  used  to  represent  a  divinity.  According  to  Mr. 
Holmes,  the  entire  system  of  the  scrolls,  frets,  and  other 
devices  used  in  Chiriqui  art  have  been  derived  from  various 
parts  of  the  body  of  an  animal,  probably  the  alligator,  and 
he  regards  this  system  of  ornamentation  as  indigenous  to 
the  district.  In  a  separate  article,  the  author  treats  of 
textile  art  in  its  relations  to  the  development  of  form 
and  ornament,  and  more  especially  with  respect  to  the 
industries  of  the  early  American  people. 

The  article  on  the  Central  Eskimo,  by  Dr.  Franz  Boas, 
although  complete  and  admirable  of  its  kind,  has  com- 
paratively little  interest  for  the  English  reader  conver- 
sant with  the  results  of  Arctic  research,  since  a  very  large 
and  important  part  of  the  information  given  has  been 
derived  from  the  narratives  of  Franklin,  Ross,  Parry,  and 
other  more  recent  British  explorers.  Yet  some  additions 
have  been  made  to  our  older  knowledge  of  the  Eskimo 
by  Dr.  Boas,  who  gives  much  interesting  information 
regarding  their  tribal  laws  and  customs,  the  musical  art 
of  the  people,  and  their  capacity  for  drawing  ;  while  he 
relates  several  curious  tales  and  traditions,  which  present 
so  remarkable  a  similarity  to  those  of  the  Greenlanders 
and  the  Behring  Straits'  tribes  as  to  make  it  probable 
that  all  these  people  are  of  one  race. 

The  Rev.  O.  N.  Dorsey,  to  whom  the  Bureau  is 
indebted  for  the  compilation  of  seventeen  vocabularies 
of  the  different  dialects  used  by  the  Oregon  Indians,  adds 
an  interesting  contribution  to  this  volume,  in  which  he 
describes  the  results  of  his  visit,  in  1883,  to  the  Osages 
in  the  Indian  Territory.  During  his  short  stay  he  obtained 
information  regarding  the  existence  of  a  secret  society  of 
seven  degrees,  in  which  a  knowledge  is  preserved  of  the 
grades  and  general  history  of  the  various  gentes  and  sub- 
gentes,  with  their  taboo  and  names  which  are  regarded 
with  reverence  and  not  spoken  of.  Owing  to  the  strict 
secrecy  usually  maintained  by  members  of  this  society,  it 
was  with  extreme  difficulty  that  he  induced  two  of  the 
initiated  to  recite  to  him  the  traditions  referring  to  the 
mythic  history  of  their  tribe,  which  had  been  imparted 
to  them  on  their  initiation.  These  traditions,  which  the 
author  gives  with  an  interlinear  translation,  record  the 
passage  of  the  primaeval  Osages  from  higher  worlds  before 
they  bore  the  semblance  of  birds,  or  had  acquired  from  a 
beneficent  red  eagle  the  bodies  and  souls  with  which  they 
alighted  on  the  earth.  The  sacred  chart  on  which 
their  descent  was  symbolized  by  a  river  flowing  beside  a 
cedar,  the  tree  of  life,  surrounded  by  sun,  moon,  and 
stars,  was  observed  by  Mr.  Dorsey  to  be  tattooed  on 
the  throats  and  chests  of  some  of  the  elder  men  ;  but 
the  younger  Osages  knew  nothing  of  such  symbols,  and 
he  was  asked  not  to  speak  to  them  on  the  subject.  From 
all  he  saw  and  heard  among  these  and  various  tribes  of 
Iowa  and  Kansas,  he  believes  that  in  this  traditional 
record  of  the  descent  of  their  gentes  from  different  birds 
and  animals,  we  have  a  clue  not  only  to  the  names  by 
which  they  are  distinguished,  but  to  the  meaning  of  the 
chants  and  war-songs  which  only  members  of  the  seven 
degrees  of  their  sacred  societies  have  the  right  to  sing. 


It  would  appear  that  an  arrangement  by  sevens  is  common 
to  various  kindred  tribes,  and  there  is  reason  for  assum- 
ing that  wherever  mythic  names  or  taboos  are  in  use 
there  are,  or  have  been,  secret  societies  or  mysteries* 
which  have  been  derived  from  early  traditional  history. 

In  an  elaborate  article  by  Prof.  Cyrus  Thomas,  entitled 
"  Aids  to  the  Study  of  the  Maya  Codices,"  we  have  an 
interesting  account  of  the  far-famed  Maya  Codex,  which, 
was  acquired  by  the  Royal  Library  of  Dresden  in  1739, 
and  a  large  portion  of  which  was  collated  for  Lord  Kings- 
borough's  great  work  on  "  Mexican  Antiquities,"  of  which 
it  forms  the  larger  part  of  the  third  volume.  According 
to  Dr.  Thomas,  this  unique  document  consists  not  merely 
of  one,  but  of  several  original  MSS.,  while  it  presents 
no  evidence,  as  often  asserted,  that  its  symbols,  figures, 
and  signs  are  to  be  accepted  as  alphabetical,  or  phonetic, 
characters,  its  series  of  dots  and  lines  seeming  to  indicate 
a  close  relationship  with  the  pictographic  system  in  use 
amongst  the  North  American  Indians.  He  is  of  opinion 
that  these  series  have  a  chronological  significance,  based 
on  the  method  of  counting  time  common  to  the  Mexicans 
and  Mayas,  in  which  a  religious,  or  hierarchical,  cycle  of 
260  days  was  recognized,  as  well  as  the  solar  year  calendar 
of  360  days  in  use  among  the  people.  This  interpretation 
must,  however,  for  the  present  rank  as  merely  conjectural^ 
although  his  elaborate  analyses  of  the  Maya  symbols  can- 
not fail  to  be  of  use  to  the  few  interested  in  the  solution 
of  the  curious  philological  problem  involved  in  the  elu- 
cidation of  this  unique  codex,  to  which  special  notice  was 
first  drawn  by  Alexander  von  Humboldt.  His  acquaint- 
ance with  ancient  South  American  MSS.  enabled  him  to 
show  that,  while  its  symbolic  characters  presented  a  close 
affinity  with  those  used  by  the  Mexicans,  the  material  of 
which  the  MS.  was  composed  was  the  Mexican  plant 
metl,  Agave  niexicana. 

EXACT  THERMOMETRY. 
Traite pratique  de  la  Thet'inotm'trie  de  precision.    Par  Cli. 

Ed.  Guillaume.     Pp.  xv.  and  336.     (Paris  :   Gauthier- 

Villars,  I  889.) 
'"T^HE  thermometer,  practically  as  we  now  have  it,  is  an 
-L  instrument  several  centuries  old,  and  by  far  the  most 
popular  of  all  scientific  apparatus.  Yet  probably  much 
less  is  generally  known  about  it  than  about  its  companion 
implements  the  barometer  and  the  telescope.  The  reason 
for  this  want  of  knowledge  lies  doubtless  in  the  fact  that 
the  common  use  of  the  thermometer  is  chiefly  for  rough 
observations  on  the  temperature  of  the  air,  and  for  this 
the  ordinary  instruments  are  sufficiently  accurate  as  they 
leave  the  maker. 

Meteorologists  and  physicians,  however,  occasionally 
have  the  zeros  of  their  thermometers  tested  ;  and,  for 
factory  work,  other  points  have  sometimes  to  be  examined. 
But  in  chemical  and  physical  laboratories,  investigations 
not  unfrequently  require  that  thermometers  should  be 
corrected  with  all  possible  delicacy,  if  the  resulting 
measurement  is  to  be  exact  and  valuable.  For  such 
operations  there  has  hitherto  been  no  exhaustive  guide  ; 
and  M.  GuiUaume,  whose  ample  experience  in  the  Bureau 
international  des  Poids  et  Mesures  is  a  guarantee  for  the 
practical  value  of  what  he  writes,  has  done  good  service 
by  issuing  the  present  work  at  an  opportune  moment. 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


lOI 


It  is  natural  for  a  '•  Traits  pratique  "  to  refer  mainly  to 
the  mercurial  thermometer :  for  the  great  majority  of 
practical  thermometric  measurements  lie  within  its  scope. 
Having  a  range  from  -  40'  to  at  least  360'  C,  and  a 
possible  sensitiveness  of  about  o^'ooi,  it  rarely  has  to  be 
exchanged  for  more  delicate  or  larger-scaled  appliances. 
Even  the  air  thermometer— a  sort  of  general  appeal  court 
in  measurements  of  heat — is  always  accompanied  by  a 
number  of  ancillary  mercurial  thermometers. 

To  begin  at  the  beginning  (which,  by  the  way,  the 
author  has  not  done),  a  thermometer  has  to  be  made  ; 
and  the  method  of  making  it  has  a  serious  influence  on 
the  result.  One  maker  will  overheat  his  glass,  and  thus 
make  the  bulb  harder  than  the  stem  ;  another  will  leave 
irregularities  in  the  bulb  which  will  cause  the  zero  to  rise 
irregularly ;  a  third  can  never  perfectly  "  deprive,"  as  it 
is  termed,  the  stem  of  air  ;  the  breath  of  a  fourth  is  con- 
stantly leaving  fatty  matter  in  the  capillary  tube.  In 
short,  there  are  endless  variations  in  technique,  to  which, 
for  delicate  instruments,  attention  should  be  drawn. 

The  division  of  the  thermometer  is,  as  might  have  been 
expected,  well  described  ;  and  minute  details  of  calibra- 
tion (chiefly  by  the  method  of  broken  threads)  are  duly 
set  forth.  Then  follows  a  notice  of  a  less  familiar 
correction — that,  namely,  which  depends  on  internal 
pressure  when  the  thermometer  is  in  a  vertical  position, 
and  that  which  is  produced  by  the  (external)  pressure  of 
the  air.  Two  methods  of  ascertaining  the  thickness  of  the 
bulb  are  given,  but  they  are  both  inferior  to  Stokes's, 
which  turns  upon  measuring  angularly  the  distance  be- 
tween a  spot  on  the  outside  of  the  glass  and  its  reflec- 
tion from  the  inner  surface.  Then  ensues  a  description 
of  the  usual  apparatus  for  determining  the  zero  (which 
M.  Guillaume  seems  to  read  somewhat  too  soon  after 
immersing  the  bulb  in  the  bath) ;  and  the  method  of 
ascertaining  the  boiling-point  of  water  accompanies  this. 
In  the  comparison  of  thermometers,  which  is  next  treated 
the  present  writer  prefers  an  air  current  to  the  metal 
plunger  figured  on  p.  125. 

If  we  observe  the  zero  of  a  thermometer  soon  after 
manufacture,  and  subsequently  at  frequent  intervals,  we 
shall  find  that  it  is  continually  rising.  The  late  Dr.  Joule 
observed  this  ascent  in  one  of  his  thermometers  for  more 
than  seven-and-twenty  years.  There  can  be  no  doubt 
that  it  is  due  to  a  kind  of  setting  of  harder  silicates  in 
presence  of  softer  or  more  viscous  silicates  in  the  mixture 
of  which  the  bulb  is  composed.  The  softer  glasses  show 
it  more  than  the  harder  ones  ;  but  in  all  exact  work,  it  has 
to  be  determined  and  allowed  for.  This  variation  takes 
place  at  the  ordinary  temperature.  If  now  we  heat  the 
thermometer  moderately  (say  to  loo')  and  cool  it,  we 
shall  notice  a  temporary  depression  due  to  a  tem- 
porary set.  If,  again,  as  is  often  the  case  in  factory 
work,  we  heat  the  thermometer  for  a  long  time  to  a  high 
temperature  (say  ISC'")  the  glass  of  the  bulb  (especially  if 
soft)  will  become  sensibly  more  plastic  ;  and  will  some- 
times yield  sufficiently  to  external  pressure  to  cause  an 
ascent  of  6°.  At  higher  temperatures  the  ascent  is  still 
greater.  Measurements  of  zero  are  therefore  exceedingly 
important,  even  for  moderately  accurate  work,  and  the 
author  does  not  fail  to  draw  minute  attention  to  them. 
We  should  have  been  glad  if  at  this  point  he  had  said 
something  about  the  form  of  thermometer  bulbs.     Bulbs, 


for  instance,  which  have  their  sides  concave  vary  readily 
in  capacity  with  barometric  changes. 

The  exposure  correction  has  exercised  the  minds  of 
physicists  for  a  great  many  years.  When  the  bulb  but 
not  the  stem  of  a  thermometer  is  in  a  bath,  the  stem 
may  clearly  have  a  different  temperature  from  the  bulb, 
and  the  reading  as  a  whole  will  be  too  low.  In  most 
chemical  and  physical  laboratories,  it  is  usual  to  follow 
Regnault,  and  to  add,  to  the  otherwise  corrected  reading 
T.,  the  quantity 

a(T  -  /)N. 

(N  is  the  length  in  degrees  of  the  exposed  column,  /  is 
its  mean  temperature,  and  a  is  the  difference  between 
the  expansion  coefficients  of  glass  and  mercury.)  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  this  correction  gives  too  low  a  result 
at  high  temperatures.  It  has  been  shown  that  if  instead 
of  a  we  simply  write  (a  +  PN)— calculating  a  and  p  from 
the  results-  the  demands  of  experiment  are  fulfilled  with 
all  desirable  accuracy.  The  author,  however,  is  disposed 
to  leave  the  reader  pretty  much  to  his  own  devices  for 
this  correction. 

The  remainder  of  M.  Guillaume's  work  is  chiefly  de- 
voted to  the  comparison  of  the  mercurial  with  the  gas 
thermometer,  and  the  measurement  of  dilatation  of  solid 
bodies  :  there  are  some  valuable  tables  at  the  end. 

A  perusal  of  this  "  Traitd  pratique  "  will  perhaps  cause 
some  regret  that  in  most  of  our  measurements  of 
temperature  we  should  be  obliged  to  employ  a  material 
that  is  constantly  undergoing  physical  change,  and  that 
necessitates  in  instruments  constructed  of  it  so  many 
corrections.  It  is,  on  the  other  hand,  a  fortunate  circum- 
stance that  we  have  in  the  mercurial  thermometer  an 
admirable  means  of  establishing  and  measuring  the 
corrections  necessary  to  be  imposed  wherever  glass  is 
accurately  worked  with.  For  it  cannot  be  too  em- 
phatically pointed  out  that  every  lens,  cylinder,  flask,  or 
other  glass  instrument  we  employ  is  more  or  less 
amenable  to  these  corrections.  M.  Guillaume's  work, 
therefore,  should  command,  as  it  deserves  to  command, 
a  very  wide  interest.  Edmund  J.  Mills. 


THE  FA  UNA  OF  BRITISH  INDIA. 
The  Fauna  of  British    India,  including    Ceylon    and 
Burma.     Edited  by  W.  T.  Blanford.    '  Vol.  I.  Fishes. 
By   Francis    Day.      Pp.  548 ;    164    Figs.      (London : 
Taylor  and  Francis,  1889.) 

THE  first  volume  of  this,  the  last  work  of  the  well- 
known  Indian  ichthyologist,  Francis  Day,  was 
issued  under  particularly  painful  circumstances,  viz. 
almost  on  the  very  day  of  the  author's  death.  The 
state  of  Mr.  Day's  health  during  the  last  few  months 
had  prevented  him  from  attending  to  the  correction  of 
the  proofs  beyond  the  middle  of  this  volume,  which  deals 
with  the  Chondropterygians,  the  Physostome9-,-and  the 
Acanthopterygian  family  Percidce;  and  the  task  of  car- 
rying the  remainder  through  the  press  has  fallen  on 
the  editor.  This  work  is  but  a  condensation  of  the 
author's  quarto  "  Fishes  of  India,"  completed  in  1878,  so 
valuable  for  the  copious  and  beautifully-executed  litho- 
graphic plates  which  accompany  it.  And,  fortunately,  a 
number  of  these   excellent   illustrations   (one  for  every 


I02 


NATURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


genus)  have  been  reproduced,  intercalated  in  the  text,  in 
a  manner  which  is  highly  creditable  to  the  Lithographic 
Etching  Company. 

Considering  how  much  remains  to  be  done  in  the  in- 
vestigation of  the  fish-fauna  of  India  and  its  British 
dependencies,  it  is  a  matter  of  regret  that  so  httle  atten- 
tion has  been  paid  to  the  subject  since  Mr.  Day's  depar- 
ture from  India.  The  supplement  to  the  "  Fishes  of 
India,"  published  in  1888,  records  no  more  than  sixty 
additions  to  the  number  of  species,  a  figure  which  might 
easily  have  been  doubled  in  the  same  lapse  often  years  but 
for  the  unaccountable  want  of  interest  shown  in  this  most 
important  branch  of  study.  As  an  example  of  the  results 
which  may  be  attained  by  an  enthusiastic  collector  in 
those  regions,  we  may  allude  to  the  collections  of  fishes 
brought  together  during  the  last  three  or  four  years  by 
Mr.  Jayakar,  a  surgeon  stationed  at  Muscat,  at  the 
entrance  of  the  Persian  Gulf,  and  presented  by  him  to 
the  British  Museum,  by  which  no  less  than  twenty-five 
species,  many  of  large  size  and  of  commercial  im- 
portance, have  been  added  to  the  record  of  the  fishes 
of  the  Indian  Ocean.  It  is  to  be  hoped,  therefore, 
that  this  new  and  well  got  up  issue  of  the  "  Fishes  of 
India"  in  a  more  j)ortable  form  will  give  a  fresh 
stimulus  to  the  study  of  that  fauna.  A  little  more,  how- 
ever, might  have  been  done  to  facilitate  the  identifica- 
tion of  species,  a  particularly  arduous  task,  the  difficulties 
of  which  would  have  been  greatly  lessened  by  the  pre- 
paration of  satisfactory  "  keys."  Such  as  they  appear 
in  this  work,  viz.  mere  abbreviated  tabulations  of  cha- 
racters, without  or  with  scarcely  any  groupings  under 
special  headings,  the  synopses  fail  in  their  object,  and  it 
is  really  a  matter  of  regret  that  the  editor  did  not  bring 
his  influence  to  bear  for  a  thorough  recasting  of  this  por- 
tion of  the  work,  especially  in  the  case  of  such  extensive 
genera  as  Barbiis,  Neiiiachilus,  Lutjanus,  or  Scrranus, 
where  the  work  of  identifying  species  by  means  of  the 
synopsis  given  is  perfectly  discouraging.  With  the  enor- 
mous multitude  of  species  which  our  present  knowledge 
requires  us  to  grasp,  it  is  of  primary  importance  that  every 
possible  facility  should  be  given  to  the  naturalist  who  uses 
a  manual  of  this  kind,  which  after  all  is  intended  chiefly 
for  those  who  have  but  an  elementary  knowledge  of  the 
special  subject. 

The  above  notice  was  in  type  when  we  received  a  copy 
of  the  second  and  concluding  volume  (509  pp.,  177  figs.). 
We  are  glad  to  see  that  the  editor  has,  in  many  cases, 
recast  the  synopsis  of  genera  and  species.  The  total 
number  of  fishes  known  from  Indian  waters  is  given  as 
1418. 

In  concluding,  we  congratulate  Mr.  Blanford  on  having, 
under  difficult  circumstances,  so  successfully  brought  out 
this  portion  of  the  "  Fauna  of  India"  ;  and  we  join  in  his 
tribute  to  the  memory  of  the  late  author,  who,  as  he  justly 
says,  has  rendered  signal  service  to  Indian  zoology. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

La  France  Prihisioriquc.    Par  Emile  Cartailhac.    (Paris: 
Felix  Alcan,  1889.) 

This  volume  forms  one  of  the  well-known  series, 
"  Bibliotheque  Scientifique  ,  Internationale,"  published 
under  the  direction  of  M.  Em.  Alglave.     The  subject, 


we  need  scarcely  say,  is  one  with  which  M.  Cartailhac 
is  eminently  competent  to  deal,  and  all  who  are  inter- 
ested in  the  study  of  prehistoric  times  will  be  glad  to 
have  so  compact  and  lucid  an  account  of  the  facts  to 
which  the  work  relates.  He  begins  with  a  good  sketch 
of  the  rise  and  progress  of  modern  ideas  with  regard  to 
primitive  civilizations  and  the  antiquity  of  the  human 
race  ;  and  this  is  followed  by  a  discussion  of  the  ques- 
tions connected  with  man's  place  in  Nature,  his  origin, 
and  the  supposed  traces  of  his  existence  during  the  Ter- 
tiary period.  An  admirable  chapter  is  devoted  to  the 
striking  manifestations  of  artistic  impulse  by  men  of  the 
Palaeolithic  age.  The  monuments  of  the  Neolithic  era 
in  France  are  grouped  with  perfect  clearness,  and  M. 
Cartailhac  has  not  failed  to  do  justice  to  any  one  of  the 
various  questions  which  these  monuments  have  forced 
upon  the  attention  of  students.  The  scientific  value  of 
the  book  is  enhanced  by  the  fact  that  he  avoids  as  much 
as  possible  the  use  of  purely  hypothetical  reasoning. 
When  he  comes  to  sets  of  phenomena  which  cannot  be 
simply  and  naturally  accounted  for,  he  thinks  it  better  to 
offer  no  theory  at  all  than  to  suggest  purely  conjectural 
explanations.  The  illustrations,  although  in  no  way  re- 
markable, will  be  of  considerable  service  to  readers  who^ 
have  not  made  themselves  familiar  with  the  aims  and 
methods  of  archaeological  science. 

Experimental  Science  {Elementary,  Practical,  and  Ex- 
perimental Physics).  By  George  M.  Hopkins.  (New 
York  :  Munn  and  Co.  London  :  E.  and  F.  N.  Spon,. 
1890.) 

The  subject  of  experimental  physics  is  here  set  forth  in 
a  manner  calculated  to  aflbrd  to  the  student,  the  artisan, 
and  the  mechanic,  a  ready  and  enjoyable  method 
of  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  this  fascinating  subject. 
Although  the  popular  style  adopted  by  the  author  per- 
haps makes  the  book  better  suited  to  the  general  reader 
than  to  the  student,  it  may  safely  be  said  that  all  classes 
of  readers  will  find  much  to  interest  them.  All  the 
subjects  usually  included  in  the  comprehensive  term 
"physics-'  are  discussed  ;  and,  in  addition,  photography, 
microscopy,  and  lantern  manipulation.  By  carefully 
performing  each  experiment  at  the  time  of  writing  the 
description,  the  author  guarantees  certain  success  if  his 
instructions  are  followed.  There  is  an  excellent  chapter 
on  "  mechanical  operations,"  containing  many  valuable 
hints  on  glass  working,  simple  apparatus  for  laboratory 
use,  soldering,  and  moulding.  ?*lathematical  expressions 
are  almost  entirely  excluded. 

The  book  is  chiefly  remarkable  for  its  hundreds  of  ex- 
cellent illustrations,  very  few  of  which  are  diagrammatic. 
Many  of  them,  like  a  considerable  portion  of  the  text, 
have  already  appeared  in  the  Scientific  American,  which 
is  alone  sufficient  guarantee  of  their  quality.  Some  of 
the  latest  inventions,  including  Edison's  new  phonograph,, 
are  desciibed  and  illustrated. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  refected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
A'o  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  cotntnunicaiions.^ 

"  Modern  Views  of  Electricity." 

The  only  point  really  at  issue  between  Prof.  Lodge  and 
myself  seems  to  be  whether  the  difference  of  potential  between- 
two  metals  in  contact  can  be  measured  by  the  Peltier  effect  or 
not.  He  asserts  that  he  regards  the  statement  that  it  can  as  an 
axicm,  while  1  maintain  that  the  only  reason  for  calling  it  an 
axiom  is  that  it  cannot  be  proved.  Let  us  take  a  simple  case. 
Suppose  we  have  a  condtnser,  the  plates  of  which  are  made  of 
two  different  metals  metallically  connected,  and  that  this  con- 


Dec,  5,  18S9] 


NA  TURE 


10 


denser  is  placed  in  a  vacuum,  then,  so  far  as  I  can  see.  Prof. 
Lodge's  principle  must  lead  to  th^  conclusion  that  the  difference 
■of  potential  between  the  plates  of  the  conden-^er  is  proportional 
to  the  Peltier  effect ;  but  if  this  is  so,  it  is  quite  easy  to  show  by 
the  second  law  of  thermodynamics  that  if  the  system  i?  regarded 
as  a  heat-engine,  the  Peltier  effect  cannot  vanish  except  at  the 
zero  of  absolute  temperature. 

On  the  other  points  mentioned  by  Prof,  Lodge  in  his  letter, 
there  does  not  seem  sufficient  difference  of  opinion  between  us 
to  make  it  worth  while  discussing  them. 

In  conclusion,  let  me  assure  Prof.  Lodge  that  I  am  thoroughly 
in  sympathy  with  the  view  that  the  consideration  of  the  be- 
haviour of  the  medium  in  the  electric  field  is  absolutely 
•essential.  I  do  not  think  there  is  anything  inconsistent  with 
this  in  the  paragraph  he  quotes,  which  was  intended  to  express 
what  is  well  known  to  have  been  the  opinion  of  Maxwell  him- 
self— that  the  key  to  the  secret  of  electricity  would  be  found  in 
the  "vacuum"  tube.  The  Reviewer. 


The  Physics  of  the  Sub-oceanic  Crust. 

In  your  article  on  the  above  subject  in  Nature  of 
■November  21  (p.  54^  the  important  proposition  that  the 
-earth's  crust  rests  on  a  liquid  layer  is  once  more  brought  to  the 
front.  The  question  reaches  to  the  very  basis  of  geology,  but, 
like  most  of  those  of  real  importance,  is  not  now  recognized 
by  the  Society  which  occupies  apartments  in  Burlington  House, 
rent  free,  for  the  purpose  of  forwarding  the  study  of  geology. 

Nothing  is  more  obvious  to  the  geological  student  than  that 
enormous  thicknesses  of  strata  have  been  formed  at  practically 
■one  level.  We  do  not  find  that,  when  a  thousand  feet  of  sedi- 
ment has  been  deposited  under  water,  the  deposition  began  in 
■water  which  was  1000  feet  deep,  and  went  on  gradually  lessen- 
ing the  depth  until  the  sea  or  lake  was  filled  up  ;  but  we  do  find, 
as  in  the  coal-measures,  that  the  entire  1000  feet  was  deposited 
in  most  uniformly  shallow  water  ;  that  therefore  the  crust  of  the 
earth  must  have  sagged  foot  by  foot  as  additional  feet  of  burdens 
were  laid  upon  it.  Deltas  that  have  not  yet  been  bottomed  show 
hundreds  of  feet  of  silt,  every  yard  of  which  was  deposited  at 
only  a  few  feet  from  the  surface  level  of  the  water ;  eUuaries  and 
river  valleys  slowly  sink  where  there  is  sedimentation  ;  ice-caps  tell 
■of  accumulation  ace  'mpanied  by  depression  and  submergence, 
and  re-elevation  when  the  burden  is  melted  and  dissipated  ; 
■coral  formations  and  submergence  are  regarded  as  well-nigh 
inseparable,  and  even  lava-flows  flowing  on  to  a  plain  have 
sunk  its  level  in  a  degree  corresponding  with  their  mass. 
Where  there  is  fifty  or  a  thousand  feet  of  piled-up  lava-sheets  you 
may  look  for  a  fault  of  like  amount  on  its  flanks,  like  that  which, 
still  unsuspected  by  geologists,  cuts  the  Isle  of  Mull  in  half. 
Whether  we  look  at  the  past  or  the  present,  we  seem  to  see 
evidence  of  a  crust  resting  in  equilibrium  on  a  liquid  layer,  and 
sensitive  to  even  apparently  insignificant  readjustments  of  its 
weight.  And  if  the  crust  did  not  respond  to,  and  make  room 
for,  the  burdens  laid  upon  it  by  the  removal  of  disintegrated 
land  and  its  redeposition  as  silt  under  water,  would  not  the  seas 
be  choked  for  miles  round  every  coast  ?  The  abrading  action  of 
the  waves  cuts  down  the  land,  be  it  high  or  low,  to  a  dead 
uniform  level,  and  sooner  or  later  it  must  become  first  beach, 
and  then  sea-bottom.  There  it  is  covered  with  silt  or  sea-weed, 
and  is  no  longer  abraded,  and  would,  therefore,  form  great  level 
tracts,  instead  of  almost  uniformly  shelving  coasts,  unless  it 
yielded  pari  passu  to  the  increasing  weight  of  sedinient  and 
water.  The  immediate  effect  of  cutting  down  cliffs,  say  of  100 
feet  in  height,  and  removing  them  in  solution  or  by  wave  action, 
is  to  relieve  the  pressure  at  their  base  ;  and  I  claim  that,  wherever 
I  have  excavated  for  the  purposes  of  collecting  under  such 
conditions,  I  have  found  a  decided  slope  inwards  away  from  the 
sea,  if  the  strata  were  at  all  horizontal,  no  matter  what  direction 
their  general  inclination  might  be  at  a  distance  from  the  sea 
margin.  But  on  the  beach,  a  little  way  from  the  base  of  the 
•cliffs,  the  slope  is,  on  the  contrary,  towards  the  sea,  and  whatever 
■the  general  inclination  may  be,  we  see  the  harder  ledges,  even 
if  but  a  few  inches  thick,  sloping  away  into  deeper  and  deeper 
water  until  lost  to  view  ;  and  if  you  choose  to  follow  them  and 
dredge,  you  trace  them  tending  downwards  into  yet  deeper 
water.  This  appears  to  me  to  be  simply  because  the  relief  fr)m 
pressure  has  made  the  beach-line  the  crown  of  a  slight  arch,  and 
an  arch  that  continues  to  grow  and  travel,  else  how  could  we 
collect  day  after  day  and  year  after  year,  on  the  same  spots,  such 
as  Eastware  or  Bracklesham  Bays,  fresh  crops  of  fossils  after 


every  tide?  I  have  hundreds  of  times  picked  up  every  vestige 
of  a  fossil  on  perhaps  an  acre  of  Eocene  or  Gault,  yet  a  couple  of 
tides  have  removed  so  appreciable  a  layer  that  the  area  has 
appeared  studded  with  fresh  specimens  that  were  twenty-four 
hours  previously  wholly  covered  and  concealed  under  matrix. 
Yet  this  ceaseless  waste  does  not  lower  the  level  of  the  beach  as 
it  ought  to. 

And  if  such  slight  displacements  as  result  from  coast  denuda- 
tion have  so  appreciable  an  effect,  what  must  take  place  in 
ocean,  if  subsidence  is  going  on,  and  the  weight  of  water  on  the 
increase  ?  Darwin  saw  th.at  the  vast  rise  of  land,  which  he  so 
graphically  describes  in  South  America,  must  have  been  accom- 
panied by  a  corresponding  depression  in  the  bordering  oceans  ; 
and  in  turning  his  pages  you  almost  expect  to  come  on  the  view 
that  depression  in  the  Pacific  must  be  the  cause  of  the  upheaval 
of  the  coastline.  It  only  wanted  the  liquid  layer  theory  to 
make  the  dependence  of  one  on  the  other  obvious.  No  general 
rise  of  land  has,  or  ever  can,  take  place,  under  the  overwhelm- 
ing pressure  of  the  great  ocean  depths,  and  oceans  are  thus 
permanent  ;  the  struggle  is  confined  to  whether  the  liquid  layer 
shall  overcome  lateral  resistance  and  find  relief  along  the  coast- 
lines, which  are  the  nearest  lines  of  least  resistance,  and  already 
weakened  by  abrasion,  forming  coast  ranges,  or  rending  the 
crust,  and  pouring  over  thousands  of  square  miles  from  fissure 
eruptions  ;  or  whether  it  shall  overcome  vertical  resistance,  and 
raise  the  beds  of  shallower  ocean  eventually,  perhaps,  into  land. 

Thus  the  tendency,  as  noticed  by  the  writer  of  your  article,  is 
for  deep  oceans  to  become  deeper,  under  pressure  which  may 
increase  but  never  relaxes,  and  for  mountain-chains  to  grow  into 
higher  peaks,  the  more  weight  is  lessened  by  valleys  being  cut 
up  and  denuded. 

This  theory  accounts  for  innumerable  facts  in  the  physics  of 
the  earth  which  space  would  not  permit  me  to  enter  on,  and  is, 
so  far  as  I  know,  opposed  to  none. 

J.  Starkie  Gardner. 


Area  of  the  Land  and  Depths  of  the  Oceans  in 
Former  Periods. 

In  a  letter  to  Nature  (p.  54),  entitled  "  Physics  of  the  Sub- 
oceanic  Crust,"  by  my  friend,  Mr.  Jukes-Browne,  the  following 
passage  occurs  : — 

"  We  are  at  liberty  to  imagine  a  time  when  there  was  much 
more  land  than  there  is  at  present,  and  when  all  the  oceans  were 
comparatively  shallow." 

I  wish  to  point  out  that  such  a  condition  of  things  could  not 
obtain  if  the  bulk  of  the  ocean  water  was  the  same  as  now.  To 
get  more  land,  the  ocean  would  have  to  be  deeper  than  now,  not 
shallower.  An  easy  way  of  conceiving  the  effect  of  shallowing 
the  oceans  is  to  mentally  lift  up  the  present  ocean-floors,  the 
result  being  an  overflow  of  water  and  decrease  of  land  area. 
The  only  possible  way  of  shallowing  the  oceans  and  increasing 
the  area  of  the  land  W(iuld  be  to  make  the  ocean-floors  perfectly 
flat,  and  to  surround  the  continents  with  vertical  walls  of  rock 
— in  fact,  to  make  the  oceans  into  docks,  which  nevertheless 
would  exceed  two  miles  in  depth. 

I  pointed  out  this  geometrical  fact  in  "  Oceans  and  Con- 
tinents "  ^ — an  article  which  has  provided  some  of  the  stock 
arguments  against  their  fixity.  If,  therefore,  theorists  feel  it 
necessary  that  the  land  areas  should  be  greater,  and  the  oceans 
shallower,  in  former  ages,  they  are  bound  at  the  same  time  to 
provide  some  means  of  decreasing  the  bulk  of  the  ocean  waters. 
This  seems  difficult,  as  other  theorists  tell  us  that  the  amount  of 
water  on  the  globe  goes  on  decreasing,  being  used  up  in  the 
hydration  of  the  crust  of  the  earth,  and  point  to  the  condition  of 
things  on  the  moon  as  the  final  stage  of  our  planetary  existence. 

T.  Mellard  Reade. 

Park  Corner,  Blundellsands,  near  Liverpool, 
November  23. 

Distribution  of  Animals  and  Plants  by  Ocean  Currents. 

Sous  ce  titre,  vous  donniez  nagucre  (vol.  xxxviii.  p.  245) 
une  correspondance  de  M.  A. ,  W.  Buckland  concernant  divers 
phenomenes  observes  k  Port-Elisabeth,  dans  I'Afrique  du  Sud. 
Entre  autres  choses  il  y  etait  relate  que,  vers  la  fin  de  I'ann^e 
1886,  un  fruit  analogue  a.celui  du  cocotier  avail  ete  porte  par  la 
mersur  le  rivage  de  Port- Elisabeth  en  meme  temps  que  des  quan- 
tites  considerables  de  pumites  ou  pierres-ponces. 

'  Geo'o^kal  Magazine.  1880,  p.  389  ;  also,  see  letter  in  same  magazine, 
i38i,  p.  335,  headed  "  subsidence  and  Elevation." 


I04 


NATURE 


{Dec,  5,  1889 


Le  fruit  ramasse  par  un  hoy,  "  //  y  porte  la  dent,  fait  la 
grimace.  .  .  .  Le  moindre  ducaton  serait  bien  mieux  son 
affaire."  Notre  hoy  se  decide  des  lors  a  porter  le  fruit  au 
jardinier  de  "  North  End  Park."  Le  vegetal  confie  a  la  terra 
poussa  et  donna  un  arbre,  Baningtonia  speciosa,  qui  avait 
attaint  4  pieds  de  hauteur  vers  le  milieu  de  I'annee  1888. 

M.  A.  W.  Buckland  emettait  I'hypothese  que  fruit  et  pumites, 
comme  aussi  quelques  poissons  et  serpents  appartenant  a  des 
especes  jusque-la  inconnues  dans  le  pays,  et  arrives  en  meme 
temps,  provenaient  des  parages  de  la  Sonde,  et,  a  la  suite  de  la 
grande  eruption  de  Krakatoa  en  1883,  avaient  ete  portes  par  les 
flots  jusque  sur  les  rivages  de  la  cote  Sud-Africaine. 

II  n'y  a  plus  a  douter,  je  crois,  de  la  provenance  des  pumites. 
Je  n'ai  rien  a  dire  au  sujet  des  poissons  et  serpents.  Mais  pour 
ce  qui  est  du  fruit  de  Barringtonia  speciosa,  il  me  semble  qu'on 
pourrait  lui  donner  une  autre  origine  ou  point  de  depart,  et 
diminuer  ainsi  de  beaucoup  la  duree  de  sa  traversee  sur  I'ocean. 

L'arbre  Barringtonia  speciosa  croir,  en  effet,  a  Madagascar,  oil 
je  I'ai  vu  a  Tamatave,  sur  les  bords  de  la  mer.  II  ne  serait 
done  .point  du  tout  improbable  que  le  fruit  porte  par  les  flots  a 
Port- Elisabeth  provint  de  la  grande  ile  Africaine.  En  meme 
temps  que  je  signalais  I'arrivee  sur  nos  plages  Malgaches  des 
pumites  de  Krakatoa,  en  Septembre  1884  et  en  Fevrier  1885 
{Cosmos,  nouvelle  serie,  No.  12,  p.  320),  j'envoyais  en  Europe 
divers  specimens  de  ces  pumites  ramasses  sur  la  plage  de  Tama- 
tave. Parmi  les  specimens  adresses  a  la  Societe  Nationale 
d'Acclimatation  de  P' ranee  s'en  trouvait  un  dans  lequel  s'etait 
loge  une  partie  de  vegetal, — une  fleur,  si  je  ne  me  trompe,  d'une 
espece  de  Terminalia,  qui  croit  aussi  a  Tamatave  sur  les  bords 
de.  la  mer  {Bulletin  de  la  Sociite  Nationale  d'Acclimatation  de 
France,  Decembre  1884,  p.  983). 

Un  fruit  de  Barringtonia  speciosa  arbre  qui,  comme  je  I'ai 
fait  remarquer,  croit  au  bord  de  la  mer  sur  la  cote  orientale  de 
Madagascar,  a  tres  bien  pu,  de  meme,  prendre  "passage"  sur 
une  pumite  ou  un  banc  de  pumites  atterrees  sur  la  plage  Malgache  ; 
puis,  a  la  premiere  haute  maree,  avoir  cingle  sur  ce  "  transport  " 
d'un  nouveau  genre  vers  la  cote  Sud-Africaine,  pousse  par  le 
Courant  'Indien,  jusqu'a  son  arrivee  a  Port-Elisabeth,  ou  il  a 
enrich  i  le  "  North  End  Park  "  d'un  nouvel  arbre  exotique. 

Mais, ,  meme  dans  cette  hypothese,  le  phenomene  observe 
a  Port-Elisabeth  n'aurait  pas  un  moindre  inteiet.  L'iie  de 
Madagascar  y  gagnerait  de  pouvoir  etre  consideree  comme  une 
grande  "escale,"  etablie  par  le  Dieu  Createur  et  Ordonnateur 
des  Mondes,  pour  le  service  des  "  Messageries  maritimes  "  de  la 
Nature  entre  les  Archipels  de  la  Malaisie  et  la  cote  Sud- 
Africaine. 

Veuillez  agreer,  Monsieur  le  Redacteur,  les  respectueuses 
salutations  de  votre  humble  serviteur, 

Paul  Cambou^,  S.J., 
Missionnaire  apostolique  a  Tananarive. 

Tananarive,  Madagascar,  15  Octobre. 


A  Marine  Millipede. 

British  naturalists,  especially  such  as  work  on  the  south 
coast,  will  hear  with  interest  that  Mr.  J.  Sinel  has  lately  found 
in  Jersey  the  very  curious  marine  Millipede,  Geophilus  sub- 
marilima,  Grube  {Verh.  d.  schles.  Gesellsch.,  1872).  Dr.  Latzel, 
of  Vienna,  tells  me  that  the  specimens  differ  somewhat  from  the 
type,  and  probably  constitute  a  well-marked  variety.  Some 
examples  were  found  close  to  the  low-water  mark  of  very  low 
spring  tides,  where  they  could  not  be  exposed  more  than  two 
days  in  a  fortnight. 

The  Geophilus  occurs  associated  with  two  or  three  beetles, 
of  which  at  least  one  appears  to  be  new,  and  with  a  remark- 
able Chelifer  which  is  probably  identical  with  Ohisium  littorale, 
a  new  species  described  by  Moniez  from  Boulogne,  in  this 
month's  Keviic  Biologique,  or  with  the  doubtful  species  0.  mari- 
timuin  of  Leach  (Zool.  Miscellany,  iii.  181 7). 

Mr.  Sinel's  crowbar,  a  tool  the  naturalist  makes  too  little  me 
of,  is  doing  wonderful  service.  D.  W.  T. 

December  2. 

A  Case  of  Chemical  Equilibrium, 

During  some  experiments  made  in  connection  with  a  research 
recently  laid  before  the  Royal  Society,  we  came  upon  an  in- 
teresting case  of  chemical  equilibrium. 

The  object  of  the  research  was  to  determine  the  rate  of 
evolution  of  oxidizing  material  liberated,  under  varied  condi- 
tions, in  a  solution   containing  dilute  hydrogen   chloride   and 


potassium  chlorate.  There  was  also  introduced  a  little  starch 
solution  and  a  small  quantity  of  potassium  iodide  to  serve  as  an 
indicator  of  the  completion  of  a  certain  amount  of  work,  which  was 
the  conversion  of  a  known  small  weight  of  sodium  thiosulphate 
into  tetrathionate.  The  completion  of  this  change  was  marked 
by  the  appearance  of  a  blue  colour  in  the  liquid.  The  operation 
was  then  repeated. 

In  these  experiments  the  amount  of  substances  undergoing 
change,  when  compared  with  the  total  amount  present,  was  so 
large  that  the  masses  of  the  substances  remained  practically 
constant  during  each  experiment. 

In  such  a  mixture  the  condition  of  equilibrium  may  be  con- 
sidered to  be  represented  by  the  following  equation  : 

«HC1  +  ;;/KCI03  =  /wHClOs  -I-  wKCl  +  {n  -  m)HC\, 

where  n  is  greater  than  w. 

We  may  then  regard  the  oxidizing  material  as  being  liberated  by 
the  reaction  of  the  («  -  m)  molecules  of  hydrogen  chloride  with 
the  jn  molecules  of  hydrogen  chlorate  so  liberated.  The  pre- 
sence of  the  m  molecules  of  potassium  chloride  will  produce  its 
specific  effect  (in  this  case  acceleration)  on  the  rate  of  reaction. 
So  that  out  of  the  n  molecules  of  hydrogen  chloride  employed 
only  n  -  m  are  actively  engaged  in  liberating  oxidizing  materia^ 
the  rest  having  been  employed  in  saline  decouiposition.  If  such 
be  the  case,  it  ought  to  be  possible  to  obtain  a  similar  rate  of 
oxidation  by  taking  m  molecules  of  hydrogen  chlorate  instead  of 
potassium  chlorate,  and  then  reducing  the  hydrogen  chloride 
used  from  n  to  {n  -  m)  molecules.  If  we  then  add  the  m 
molecules  of  potassium  chloride  we  should  then  be  able  to  build 
up  a  system  similar  to  what  is  obtained  in  the  former  case  as 
regards  saline  equilibrium.  The  following  results  were  obtained 
by  this  method  of  procedure. 

The  numbers  signify  millionth  gram  molecules  per  c.c,  and 
the  rates,  B,  denote  the  number  of  millionth  gram  molecules  of 
CIO3  decomposed  per  minute  in  each  cc. 

A.   nUCl  +  ;'«KC103 
I,    ;;  =  18  X  65'ii  gives  A'  =  0'0I04 

;«  =    6  X  51-5  B.   {n  -  w)HCl  +  ^^HClOj  +  wKCI 

gives  B  =  o  0105 


II.    ;/  =  15  X  65 'U 
m  =    6x51-5 


III.    «  =  15  x  65  1 1 
m  =    2  X  51-5 

Dover  College. 


A.  «HC1  -f-  WKCIO3 

gives  B  =  o'oo554 

B.  («  -  ;«)HC1  +  WHCIO3  -1-  wKCl 

gives  B  =  0-00555 

A.  «HC1  +  ;«KC103 

gives  B  =  o '001 95 

B.  («  -  /«)HC1  +  mUClO-i  +  mKC\ 

gives  B  =  o  "0019 1 

W.  H.  Pendlebury. 


On  the  Use  of  the  Word  Antiparallel. 

After  reading  Mr.  James's  note,  I  looked  out  the  reference 
quoted  by  him  from  Stone's  Dictionary  in  the  "  Acta  Erudi- 
torum."  Stone's  reference  is  quite  correct,  and,  as  the  passage  is 
an  interesting  one,  it  may  be  well  to  quote  it  in  full.  It  occurs 
in  an  article  by  Leibnitz  treating  of  the  catenary. 

"  Tangentem  ducere  ad  punctum  lineas  datum  C  ;  in  AR  hori- 
zontali  per  verticem  A  sumatur  R  ut  fiat  OR  aqualis  OB  datas 
et  ipsi  OR  ducta  antiparallela  CT,  occurrens  axi  AO  in  T,  erit 
tangens  qujesita. 


^'  Antiparallel  as  compendii  causa  hie  voco  ipsas  OR  et  TC 
si  ad  parallelas  AR  et  BC  faciant  non  quidem  eosdem  angulos 
sed  tamen,  complemento  sibi  existentes  ad  rectum,  ARO  et 
BCT." 

The  following  quotation  is  given  in  Murray's   "New  English 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


105 


Dictionary,"  and  is  assigned  to  the  year  1660  : — "To  take  the 
opposite  course  and  to  provide  our  remedy  antiparallel  to  their 
disease."  Here  it  seems  inttnded  to  convey  the  idea  of  "parallel 
and  in  the  opposite  sense." 

In  Barlow's  "  Mathematical  Dictionary"  (1814),  the  modern 
meaning  is  given,  and  the  old  error  as  to  the  ratios  of  the 
segments  of  the  sides  of  the  triangle  is  pointed  out. 

In  Rees's  "  Cyclopaedia"  (1819)  the  modern  meaning  is  given, 
but  a  remark  is  added  that  Leibnitz  used  the  word  in  the  sense 
explained  above  ;  as  no  reference  is  given,  we  cannot  tell 
whether  the  writer  meant  that  he  habitually  used  it  or  only  in 
the  article  on  the  catenary.  E.  M.  Langley. 

Bedford. 

A  Surviving  Tasmanian  Aborigine. 

In  your  issue  of  November  14  (p.  43),  you  refer  to  the  paper 
read  by  Mr.  James  Barnard  before  the  Royal  Society  of  Tasmania 
on  a  Mrs.  Fanny  Cochrane  Smith,  who  lays  claim  to  be  the  last 
surviving  aboriginal  Tasmanian.  Since  your  note  appeared,  I 
have  read  a  report  of  the  paper  published  in  the  Hobart  Mercury 
of  September  10  last,  and  think  my  view  on  the  claim  may  be 
of  some  interest  to  your  readers, 

Mr.  Barnard  states  that  he  knew  Mrs.  Smith  forty  years  ago 
when  she  was  seventeen  years  of  age,  and  that  during  the  period 
which  elapsed  since  then  until  she  called  upon  him  shortly  before 
he  wrote  his  paper,  he  had  not  known  of  her  whereabouts.  In 
favour  of  the  claim  I  can  only  find  that  she  has,  with  apparently 
one  exception,  always  been  referred  to  officially  as  a  pure-bred 
aborigine,  and  that  Parliament  appears  to  have  voted  her  grants 
on  two  occasions  (in  1882  and  in  1884)  on  account  of  her  unique 
position. 

The  objections  to  the  claim  may  be  briefly  summarized  as 
follows  : — 

(i)  From  the  meagre  account  given,  it  appears  her  hair  and 
complexion  are  both  that  of  half-castes,  and  we  are  not  supplied 
with  any  other  description  of  her  features  or  stature  or  pecu- 
liarities so  as  to  be  able  to  judge  on  the  question. 

(2)  Beyond  the  mere  statement  as  to  mutual  recognition  no 
evidence  is  given  that  the  claimant  is  the  same  girl  Mr.  Barnard 
knew  forty  years  ago  at  Oyster  Cove,  nor,  indeed,  is  there  any- 
thing to  show  that  this  woman  is  the  child,  or  one  of  the  children, 
referred  to  by  Lieut.  Friend  in  controverting  Count  Strzelecki's 
well-known  views,  which  quasi  fact  forms  the  foundation  for  the 
claim. 

(3)  The  woman  herself  is  reported  to  have  no  recollection  of 
witnessing,  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  a  document  sufficiently  im- 
portant to  have  impressed  itself  on  her  memory,  and  it  is 
somewhat  strange  that  this  very  document  is  said  to  describe  her 
as  a  half-caste. 

It  would,  no  doubt,  be  interesting  were  it  to  be  eventually 
proved  that  this  woman  Fanny  is  a  pure-bred  aborigine,  but  for 
the  present  Truganina  must  be  considered  the  last  survivor  of 
her  race.  Hy.  Ling  Roth. 

Lightcliffe,  November  23. 


Brilliant  Meteors. 

The  brilliant  meteor  seen  at  Warwick  School  and  in 
Cumberland  I  saw  at  Folkestone  on  November  4  a  little  before 
8.  It  was  travelling  slowly  from  north-west  to  north,  about 
30°  above,  and  parallel  with,  the  horizon.  After  travelling  some 
distance  it  appeared  to  partly  explode,  and  then  went  a  little 
farther  and  burst.  At  first  it  was  a  beautiful  green  colour,  but 
after  it  had  partly  burst  it  was  nearly  white.  I  imagined  its 
colour  was  through  the  haze  there  was  in  the  sky.  From  what 
I  saw  I  am  certain  it  would  have  been  a  splendid  sight  had 
the  atmosphere  been  clear.  P.  A.  Harris. 

Inchulva,  Maidstone,  November  27. 

Last  night,  in  clouded  moonlight,  whilst  walking  here  from 
Newton  by  the  road  over  Little  Dunnow,  my  attention  was 
arrested  by  the  glare  of  what  must  have  been  a  very  bright 
meteor,  seen  through  clouds  which  formed  a  general  covering. 
The  quarter  in  which  the  light  appeared  was  east  by  north,  at 
an  elevation  of  about  25°,  and  it  lasted  a  second  and  a  half. 
There  appeared  to  be  three  centres  of  illumination,  but  these 
may  have  been  only  thinner  portions  of  the  clouds.  The  time, 
as  nearly  as  I  could  get  it  by  comparing  my  watch  by  telegraph 
at  the  village  post  office  this  morning,  was  22h.  48m.  45s. 

Slaidburn,  Clitheroe,  December  2.  R.  H.  Tiddeman. 


REPORT  ON  THE  MAGNETICAL  RESULTS  OF 
THE   VOYAGE  OF  H. M.S.  ''CHALLENGER." 

IT  will  be  remembered  by  readers  of  the  "  Narrative  of 
the  Voyage  of  H.M.S.  Ckallenger,"  that  Vol,  II.,  , 
published  in  1882,  contained  a  report  of  the  magnetic 
observations  made  in  that  vessel  in  considerable  detail. 
It  has,  however,  been  reserved  to  the  present  year  for  a 
full  discussion  of  the  Challenger  observations  and  their 
bearing  on  our  existing  knowledge  of  terrestrial  mag- 
netism to  be  made,  and  the  following  is  an  abstract 
of  the  final  Report  about  to  be  published  in  Vol.  II., 
"Physics  and  Chemistry  of  the  Voyage  of  H.M.S, 
Challenger." 

The  method  of  representing  the  values  of  the  magnetic 
elements  by  curves  of  equal  value  has,  since  1700,  when 
Halley  published  his  map  of  the  declination,  found 
general  favour  ;  for  in  succeeding  years  we  find  Moun- 
tain and  Dodson,  Churchman,  Yeates,  and  Barlow,  also 
published  maps  of  the  same  magnetic  element. 

In  1819,  Hansteen  added  maps  of  inclination  to  the 
declination  for  certain  epochs,  and  in  1826  produced  a 
chart  of  isodynamic  lines,  revised  in  1832. 

Following  Hansteen,  there  appeared,  in  1840,  Gauss 
and  Weber's  atlas,  the  result  of  calculations  from  about 
eighty-four  observations  distributed  over  the  world,  pre- 
senting a  remarkable  approach  to  the  truth,  even  when 
viewed  in  the  light  of  our  comparatively  extended  know- 
ledge of  the  earth's  magnetism  in  the  present  day.  It 
may  be  observed  that,  if  only  a  fresh  magnetic  survey  of 
the  regions  south  of  40°  S.  latitude  were  now  made,  a  re- 
calculation of  the  Gaussian  constants  might  be  under- 
taken promising  important  results. 

Between  1868  and  1876  Sir  E.  Sabine's  "Contribu- 
tions to  Magnetism"  were  read  before  the  Royal  Society, 
forming  a  series  of  papers  on  the  magnetic  survey  of 
the  globe  for  the  epoch  1842-5.  Although  the  maps  ac- 
companying these  contributions  serve  as  a  point  of 
departure  for  comparison  with  subsequent  maps,  an  ex- 
amination of  them  shows  that  in  Africa  and  the  North  and 
South  Pacific  Oceans  there  were  large  blanks  from  want 
of  observations 

There  remained,  therefore,  a  large  field  for  observation, 
and  it  will  now  be  shown  how  largely  the  Challenger 
Expedition  contributed  to  the  filling  up  of  these  blanks, 
and  added  to  our  knowledge  of  the  changes  going  on  in 
the  magnetic  elements  in  places  visited  by  previous 
observers. 

The  whole  of  the  magnetical  fesults  have  been  em- 
bodied with  others  from  every  available  source  in  four 
charts^  of  the  magnetic  elements,  for  the  epoch  1880, 
which  may  prove  acceptable  to  magneticians  desirous 
of  noting  the  changes  in  the  magnetic  elements  since 
1842-5. 

The  Challenger  w^.s  not  an  ideal  ship  in  which  to  con- 
duct magnetic  observations  at  sea,  for  she  was  seldom  at 
rest  from  pitching  and  rolling,  and  although  the  errors  in 
the  observations  caused  by  the  horizontal  component  of 
the  ship's  magnetism  were  moderate,  and  could  be 
eliminated  by  "swinging"  the  ship,  those  proceeding 
from  the  vertical  component  were  large,  and  necessitated 
a  frequent  comparison  with  normal  values  on  land.  But 
by  discussing  fully  a  series  of  observations  made  in 
numerous  places  in  both  hemispheres  where  no  trace  of 
local  magnetic  disturbance  could  be  found,  the  magnetic 
condition  of  the  ship  was  readily  determined  for  any 
period  of  the  voyage.  As  a  consequence  of  this,  normal 
values  of  the  magnetic  elements  could  be  obtained  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  places  known  or  suspected  of  being 
affected  by  local  magnetic  disturbance,  and  the  amount 
of  such  disturbance  measured  with  considerable  accuracy. 

This  method  of  detecting  local  magnetic  disturbance, 

'  Note  published  with  the  "  Report  of  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Voyage 
of  H.M.S.  Challenger,"  Physics  and  Chemistry,  Vol.  II.,  Part  VI. 


7o6 


NATURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


was  applied  to  the  solitary  islands  of  the  ocean  visited 
by  the  Challenger,  and  the  following  are  some  of  the 
^principal  results. 

At  Madeira  there  was  a  difference  of  7^'  in  the  ob- 
served inclination  between  observations  made  at  i  foot 
and  i\  above  the  ground  ;  and  at  Santa  Cruz,  Tenerife, 
the  inclination  was  lY  in  excess  of  the  normal  observed 
in  the  ship. 

It  was  at  Bermuda,  however,  that  the  most  remarkable 
results  were  obtained.  For  some  years  previously,  ob- 
servers in  different  parts  of  the  group  had  obtained  very 
different  values  of  the  declination,  and  our  men-of-war 
when  swinging  for  deviations  of  the  compass  had  found 
constant  errors  for  every  direction  of  the  ship's  head 
which  were  peculiar  to  Bermuda.  It  could  only,  therefore, 
be  by  a  properly  equipped  expedition  like  that  of  the 
Challenger,  and  systematic  observation,  that  the  imme- 
diate cause  of  all  this  local  magnetic  disturbance  could 
be  traced. 

For  this  purpose  the  declination  was  observed  at 
seventeen  stations,  the  inclination  at  ten,  and  the  intensity 
at  seven.  Combining  these  observations  with  others  made 
by  previous  observers,  it  was  found  that  between  the 
Governor's  house  at  Mount  Langton  and  the  lighthouse 
on  Gibb's  Hill,  there  is  a  disturbing  magnetic  focus 
attracting  the  north-seeking  end  of  the  needle  with  a 
force  considerably  in  excess  of  that  due  to  the  position 
of  Bermuda  on  the  earth  considered  as  a  magnet.  The 
normal  values  of  the  magnetic  elements  were  obtained 
by  swinging  the  ship  at  sea  15'  south  of  the  green  outside 
the  dockyard.  The  difference  between  the  observed 
declination  at  Clarence  Cove  and  Barge  Island  was  5°  4+'. 
The  greatest  difference  in  the  inclination  was  i^  47',  and 
in  the  vertical  force  -|-o'3i4  (Brit,  units). 

Local  magnetic  disturbances  were  also  noted  at  St. 
Vincent,  Cape  de  Verde  Islands,  Tristan  d'Acunha,  Ker- 
guelen  Island,  Sandwich  Islands,  Juan  Fernandez,  and 
Ascension,  but  not  at  St.  Paul  Rocks. 

By  applying  the  same  method  of  obtaining  normal 
values  at  sea,  and  observing  on  other  adjacent  solitary 
islands  such  as  St.  Helena,  similar  effects  result,  and  the 
following  general  conclusions  seem  to  be  supported  by 
fact  with  regard  to  local  magnetic  disturbance  : — 

(i)  That  in  islands  north  of  the  magnetic  equator,  the 
north-seeking  end  of  the  needle  is  generally  attracted 
vertically  downwards,  and  horizontally  towards  the  higher 
parts  of  the  land  ;  (2)  south  of  the  magnetic  equator  the 
opposite  effects  are  observed,  the  north-seeking  end  of 
the  needle  being  repelled :  in  both  cases  by  an  amount 
above  that  due  to  the  position  of  the  island  on  the  earth 
considered  as  a  magnet. 

Interesting  as  these  conclusions  may  possibly  be  from 
a  scientific  point  of  view,  they  are  of  real  importance  in 
practical  navigation.  Navigators  have  asserted  that  their 
compasses  were  disturbed  when  passing  the  land  in 
certain  parts  of  the  world.  We  learn  from  the  Challenger 
observations  that  within  5  feet  from  the  soil  the  greatest 
magnetic  disturbance  did  not  exceed  3°  in  the  declina- 
tion and  2|°  in  the  inclination.  Remembering  the  law  of 
magnetic  attraction  and  repulsion,  it  is  impossible  that 
a  compass  in  such  case  could  be  disturbed  in  a  vessel 
passing  the  land  at  the  ordinary  distance.  In  point  of 
fact,  it  has  been  shown  that  it  is  to  submerged  magnetic 
land  comparatively  near  the  ship's  bottom,  that  the  dis- 
turbance of  the  compass  is  due.  The  remarkable  instance 
at  Cossack  in  North- West  Australia  may  be  cited  in  sup- 
port of  this  conclusion.  Thus  in  H.  M.S.  i]/^^a,  sailing  on  a 
line  of  transit  of  two  objects  on  land  for  a  quarter  of  an 
hour  in  8  fathoms  of  water,  it  was  found  that  the  compass 
was  steadily  deflected  30°,  no  visible  land  being  nearer 
than  3  miles. 

Great  as  the  gain  must  be  to  the  navigator  to  be  thus 
warned  of  a  formidable  danger  in  certain  places,  it  also 
lays  upon  him  the  important  duty  of  being  on  his  guard 


against  similar  disturbances  elsewhere,  reporting  any  new 
discoveries  as  he  would  a  rock  or  shoal. 

Large  as  was  the  Challenger's  contribution  to  the 
magnetic  charts  for  1880,  it  will  be  readily  understood 
that  it  required  considerable  reinforcement  from  other 
sources,  as  their  construction  was  dependent  on  observa- 
tion alone.  Every  available  observation  between  the  years 
1 865-87  was  utilized.  Beyond  the  published  sources  of  infor- 
mation on  this  subject  may  be  mentioned  the  observations 
made  on  the  east  coast  of  Africa  by  the  officers  of  H.M.S. 
Nassau  in  1874-76,  and  on  the  west  coast  of  Australia  in 
1885-86  by  H.M.S.  Meda.  Also  the  sea  observations 
between  Australia  and  Cape  Horn  of  the  declination  in 
H.M.SS.  Esk,  Pearl,  and  Thalia,  between  1867-87,  not 
forgetting  those  of  the  New  Zealand  Shipping  Company's 
vessels  in  1885-86. 

To  combine  this  twenty  years'  observation  usefully,  a 
somewhat  extended  knowledge  of  the  distribution  and 
amount  of  secular  change  became  a  necessity.  Generally 
speaking,  it  is  only  at  fixed  observatories  that  this 
element  of  terrestrial  magnetism  is  known  with  precision, 
for,  as  already  shown,  observations  a  few  feet  apart  often 
give  very  different  results.  In  the  more  frequented  parts 
of  the  earth  this  secular  change  is  approximately  known, 
especially  in  the  United  States,  where  valuable  work  has 
been  accomplished. 

One  great  object  of  the  voyage  of  the  Challenger  was 
to  visit  certain  unfrequented  positions  where  previous  ob- 
servers had  been,  rather  than  the  beaten  tracks.  Thus 
Ross's  position  of  1840  on  St.  Paul  Rocks  was  visited, 
and  the  secular  change  during  thirty-three  years  obtained. 
Then  Tristan  d'Acunha,  an  important  station  situated  in 
mid-ocean,  rarely  visited  for  magnetic  purposes.  At 
Kerguelen  Island,  another  of  Ross's  positions,  observa- 
tions of  all  three  principal  magnetic  elements  were  made, 
and  the  secular  change  found  approximately. 

In  the  Indian  Ocean  generally,  north  of  30^  S.,  the 
secular  change  of  the  declination  rarely  exceeds  i'  an- 
nually, but  at  Kerguelen  Island  the  westerly  declination 
is  increasing  at  least  5'  annually. 

It  was,  however,  from  two  positions  on  the  homeward 
voyage  that  the  most  novel  and  remarkable  values  of  the 
secular  change  were  obtained — Sandy  Point,  Magellan 
Straits,  and  the  Island  of  Asce  ision,  with  its  adjacent 
waters. 

At  Sandy  Point,  with  the  horizontal  force  nearly 
stationary,  and  the  declination  decreasing  3'  annually,  it 
was  hardly  suspected  until  1876,  when  the  Challenger 
visited  the  place,  that  the  inclination  was  apparently 
changing  11'  annually.  Comparing  the  Challenger's 
results  by  swinging  near  the  Island  of  Ascension  with 
Sabine  of  1842 '5,  the  following  values  of  the  secular 
change  are  obtained  :  declination  increasing  8'  annu- 
ally ;  south  inclination  increasing  14'. 

From  these  results  the  notable  fact  is  made  evident,  that 
the  north-seeking  end  of  the  needle  is  found  to  be  moving 
in  opposite  directions,  downwards  at  Sandy  Point,  and 
more  strongly  upwards  at  Ascension.  Extending  the 
inquiry  into  the  surrounding  seas  and  countries,  it  was 
found  that  these  opposite  movements  of  the  needle  were 
not  confined  to  the  spots  where  they  were  discovered. 

The  author  of  this  Report,  after  having  discussed  his 
collection  of  a  large  number  of  observations  of  the 
magnetic  elements  for  all  parts  of  the  world — in  many 
cases  extending  over  several  years — obtained  approximate 
values  of  their  secular  change  for  the  epoch  1840-80. 

These  several  values  were  weighted  according  to  their 
relative  accuracy,  and  entered  on  maps  against  the  places 
of  observation.  Lines  of  equal  value  were  then  drawn 
for  each  element,  and  the  following  general  results  ob- 
tained with  regard  to  the  movements  of  the  north-seek- 
ing end  of  the  needle. 

I.  Decimation. — The  principal  lines  of  little  or  no 
change  were  found  to  take  the  course  from  St.  John's, 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


107 


Newfoundland,  to  the  West  Coast  of  Africa,  near  Cape 
de  Verde,  emercjing  near  Cape  Palmas,  and  then  to  Cape 
Town  ;  thence  curving  upwards  near  Mauritius,  down- 
wards south  of  Cape  Leeuwin,  again  upwards  through 
Adelaide  and  Cape  York  to  the  vicinity  of  Hong  Kong. 
A  second  line  passed  from  Sitka  through  the  western 
portion  of  the  continent  of  North  America,  striking  South 
America  near  Callao,  then  following  the  trend  of  the  coast 
to  a  point  near  the  western  entrance  to  Magellan  Strait. 

The  foci  of  maximum  value  of  change  were  found  : 
(i)  between  Scotland  and  Norway,  change  about  9'  an- 
nually, needle  moving  eastward  ;  (2)  on  the  east  coast 
of  Brazil,  needle  moving  westward  about  8'.  Minor  foci 
were  also  found  :  one  near  Kerguelen  Island,  the  other 
in  the  South  Pacific.  Another  focus  apparently  exists 
in  Alaska.  The  general  tendency  was  for  the  values  of 
the  change  to  decrease  gradually' from  the  foci  to  lines  of 
no  change. 

2.  lncl77iaiion.—S\m\\2ix\Y  to  that  of  the  declination, 
there  are  lines  of  no  change,  two  principal  foci  of  maximum 
secular  change,  but  only  one  minor  focus.  The  lines  of 
no  change  are  not  so  clearly  defined  as  those  for  the 
declination,  data  being  still  wanting.  The  principal  foci 
of  maximum  change  in  the  inclination  were  found  :  (i) 
near  the  Gulf  of  Guinea,  between  Ascension  and  St. 
Thom^,  which  may  be  called  the  Guinea  focus.  Here 
the  north-seeking  end  of  the  needle  was  moving  upwards 
about  15'  annually.  (2)  in  the  latitude  of  Cape  Horn, 
and  about  80''  W.  long.  This  may  be  called  the  Cape 
Horn  focus,  and  the  annual  change  was  n',  needle 
being  drawn  doiun^vards.  It  must  be  distinctly  under- 
stood that  both  the  positions  and  values  of  the  change 
are  only  approximate,  and  only  the  general  features  in 
the  angular  movement  of  the  freely  suspended  needle 
are  to  be  accepted,  as  clearly  shown  by  this  investigation. 

3.  Magnetic  Intensity.— \r\  the  horizontal  force,  the 
annual  change  (B.U.)  was  about  -0-002  near  Cape  Horn, 
whilst  between  Valparaiso  and  Monte  Video  the  focus  of 
greatest  change  was  about  -  0017.  Again,  on  the  west 
coast  of  Portugal  a  focus  of  -f  0*009  (B.U.)  occurred. 

Turning  to  the  vertical  component  of  the  earth's 
intensity,  some  remarkable  results  were  observed.  At 
the  Cape  Horn  focus  an  annual  change  of  0*055  (B.U.) 
was  found  in  the  vertical  force,  the  north-seeking  end  of 
the  needle  being  drawn  downwards,  the  change  diminish- 
ing in  value  until  the  zero  line  extending  from  Callao 
across  the  American  continent  to  the  west  coast  between 
Bahia  and  Rio  de  Janeiro,  and  then  taking  a  south- 
easterly course  north  of  Tristan  d'Acunha,  was  reached. 
Northward  and  eastward  of  this  zero  line  there  were 
found  increasing  values  in  the  annual  change  in  the 
7//7t/^zr^  vertical  force  acting  on  the  north-seeking  end  of 
the  needle  until  the  Guinea  focus  was  reached,  where  its 
full  value  was  increasing  0*025  annually.  From  the 
Guinea  focus  to  Northern  Europe,  Asia,  and  the  Atlantic 
seaboard  the  change  gradually  decreased  in  amount. 
There  were  signs  of  minor  movements  in  the  north-seek- 
ing end  of  the  needle  in  China,  Mexico,  and  the  United 
States. 

One  of  the  chief  factors  in  the  compilation  of  the  pre- 
viously mentioned  maps  of  the  three  elements  for  the 
epoch  1880  were  the  observations  taken  in  the  Challenger, 
and  these  were  reduced  to  the  common  epoch  by  means 
of  the  investigation  of  annual  change  to  which  reference 
has  just  been  made. 

It  may  be  truly  said  that  the  Challenger''s  track  was 
studded  with  magnetic  observations.  After  successfully 
traversing  the  Atlantic  Oceans  in  varying  directions,  the 
three  magnetic  elements  were  obtained  by  swinging,  in 
probably  the  most  southerly  position  since  the  days  of 
Ross  in  the  hrebus  and  1  error,  in  lat.  63°  30'  S.,  and 
long.  90°  47'  E.  But  the  most  valuable  part  of  the  con- 
tributions to  terrestrial  magnetism  obtained  in  the  Chal- 
lenger were   the   observations   made   in  the  North  and  .. 


South  Pacific.  The  route  lay  from  Wellington,  N.Z.,  to 
Tongatabu,  and  Fiji,  from  the  Admiralty  Islands  to  Japan, 
and  thence  in  mid-ocean  from  nearly  40"  N.,  through  the 
Sandwich  Islands  and  Tahiti  to  40°  S.,  nearly  at  right 
angles  to  the  curves  of  equal  magnetic  inclination. 

During  the  voyage  much  experience  was  gained  as  to 
the  usefulness  of  the  Fox  circle  as  an  instrument  for  use  on 
board  ship  at  sea,  the  general  result  being  that  valuable 
work  may  be  done  with  it  if  frequently  compared  witii 
the  absolute  instruments  on  land,  and  the  instrument 
mounted  on  a  gimbal  stand  prepared  to  withstand  the 
vibrations  caused  by  the  engines  of  the  vessel. 

Although  on  the  general  question  of  the  secular  change 
of  the  magnetic  elements  much  has  been  already  written 
in  this  Report,  there  yet  remain  some  important  points 
which  demand  further  discussion. 

As  to  the  causes  of  the  secular  change  various 
hypotheses  have  been  advanced.  Thus  in  the  early  part 
of  the  last  century,  Halley  considered  the  change  was 
chiefly  caused  by  a  terella  with  two  poles  or  foci  of 
intensity  rotating  within  and  independently  of  the  outer 
shell  of  the  earth,  which  also  possessed  two  foci  of 
intensity,  the  axes  of  the  two  globes  being  inclined  one 
to  the  other  but  having  a  common  centre. 

Again,  Hansteen  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century  concluded  that  there  are  four  poles  of  attraction, 
and  computed  both  the  geographical  positions  and  the 
probable  period  of  the  revolution  of  this  dual  system  of 
poles  or  points  of  attraction  round  the  terrestrial  pole. 

In  later  years  Sabine  considered  the  secular  change  to 
be  causedjby  the  progressive  translation  of  the  point 
of  attraction  at  present  in  Northern  Siberia,  this  point 
of  attraction  resulting  from  cosmical  action.  Walker 
also  agreed  with  Sabine  as  to  the  cosmical  origin  of  the 
change. 

Later  still,  Balfour  Stewart  gave  reasons  for  attributing 
the  secular  variation  to  the  result  of  solar  influence  of  a 
cumulative  nature. 

Keeping  in  view  these  hypotheses,  and  recalling  the 
chief  results  of  observation  during  recent  years,  how  do 
they  accord  "i 

Observation  generally  points  to  the  fixity  of  the  mag- 
netic poles — or  two  limited  areas  where  the  needle  is 
vertical — in  respect  to  the  geographical  poles.  Again, 
in  Siberia  there  is  little  or  no  apparent  translation  of  the 
greatest  point  of  attraction  in  that  region,  and  the  North 
American  focus  of  intensity  is  probably  at  rest. 

Thus  the  results  of  observation  in  recent  years  are  not 
favourable  to  hypotheses  founded  on  the  translation  of 
the  poles  or  foci  of  magnetic  intensity. 

Let  the  terms  blue  and  red  magnetism  be  adopted,  and 
the  movements  of  the  red,  or  north-seeking,  end  of  the 
needle  alone  be  considered. 

The  question  arises.  What  have  recent  observations 
offered  us  instead  ?  They  tell  us  that  near  a  line  drawn 
from  the  North  Cape  of  Norway  across  the  Atlantic  to 
Cape  Horn  lie  some  of  the  foci  of  greatest  known  secular 
change.  It  was  also  found  that  at  the  Cape  Horn  focus 
of  vertical  force  the  needle  was  moving  downwards,  or 
there  was  the  equivalent  to  a  blue  pole  of  increasing 
power  of  attraction,  the  freely  suspended  needle  being 
attracted  towards  it  over  an  extended  region  around.  At 
the  Guinea  focus  there  was  the  equivalent  to  a  red  pole 
of  increasing  power  of  repulsion,  the  freely  suspended 
needle  being  repelled  over  an  extended  region  of  un- 
defined limits.  The  action  of  these  two  poles  apparently 
combine  to  produce  a  focus  of  considerable  angular 
movement  in  the  horizontal  needle  near  Brazil. 

In  China  there  is  a  minor  blue  pole  of  increasing  power 
attracting  the  needle  over  a  large  area. 

With  apparently  small  secular  changes  in  Siberia,  and 
the  horizontal  needle  moving  somewhat  rapidly  to  the 
eastward  at  the  focus  of  change  in  the  declination  in  the 
German  Ocean,  and  similarly  to  the  westward  in  Alaska, 


io8 


NATURE 


{Dec.  5,  1889 


analogy  points  to  the  probability  of  there  being  a  decrease 
in  the  vertical  force  in  the  high  latitudes  of  North 
America,  or  the  equivalent  to  a  red  pole  of  increasing 
power  repelling  the  needle  for  a  large  area  around  it. 

The  variations  in  the  vertical  force  at  and  about  these 
poles  or  foci  of  attraction  and  repulsion  at  different  epochs 
are  not  yet  sufficiently  determined,  but  if  the  hypothesis  of 
translation  be  given  up,  it  is  not  unreasonable  to  suppose 
that  the  secular  changes  in  the  declination  and  inclination 
are  chiefly  dependent  upon  changes  in  the  relative  power 
of  these  poles. 

No  satisfactory  explanation  has  yet  been  given  of  the 
remarkable  changes  in  the  earth's  magnetic  force  as 
measured  on  its  surface,  and  suggestions  are  only  possible 
in  the  present  instance. 

The  voyage  of  the  Challenger  has  shown  that  local 
magnetic  disturbance  is  found  in  the  solitary  islands  of 
the  sea,  although  surrounded  by  apparently  normal  con- 
ditions, similar  to  that  on  the  great  continents.  It  has  also 
been  suggested  that  the  magnetic  portions  of  these  islands 
causing  the  disturbance  may  possibly  "have  been  raised 
to  the  earth's  surface  from  the  magnetized  portion  of  the 
earth  forming  the  source  of  magnetism,"  and  tending  to 
prove  Airy's  conclusion  "  that  the  source  of  magnetism 
lies  deep." 

In  view,  therefore,  of  past  geological  changes  and  those 
now  in  progress,  it  may  fairly  be  conceived,  not  only  that 
large  changes  have  likewise  occurred  in  the  distribution 
of  the  magnetic  portions  of  the  earth  appearing  here  and 
there  on  the  surface  and  producing  local  magnetic  dis- 
turbance, but  that  there  are  others  of  a  more  progressive 
character  below  the  earth's  surface  which  are  only  made 
manifest  by  the  secular  change  observed  in  the  magnetic 
elements.  This  conception  with  regard  to  secular  change 
is  not  intended  to  exclude  the  view  that  solar  influences 
may  have  a  small  share  in  producing  the  observed 
phenomena. 

In  conclusion,  it  may  be  remarked  that  they  who 
would  fully  see  the  substantial  gains  to  terrestrial  magnet- 
ism which  have  been  obtained  by  the  voyage  of  the 
Challenger  must  refer  to  the  original  of  this  abstract 
Report,  with  its  plates  and  charts  of  the  magnetic  elements. 
Subsequent  research  may  add  to,  qualify,  or  reverse 
the  conclusions  drawn  from  the  observations,  but  the 
observations  will  probably  retain  a  long-abiding  value 
to  magneticians.  E.  W.  Creak. 


ON  THE  SUPPOSED  ENORMOUS  SHOWERS 
OF  METEORITES  IN  THE  DESERT  OF 
ATA  CAM  A. 

T  T  is  now  universally  acknowledged  both  that  meteorites 
-*■  come  from  outer  space  and  that  shooting-stars,  what- 
ever they  are,  have  an  extra-terrestrial  origin.  It  is 
further  asserted  that  a  meteoritic  fireball  and  a  shooting- 
star  are  only  varieties  of  one  phenomenon.  Indeed,  after 
it  is  once  granted  that  a  meteoritic  fireball  is  produced 
by  the  passage  through  the  terrestrial  atmosphere  of  a 
dense  body  entering  it  with  planetary  velocity  from  with- 
out, and  that  shooting-stars  have  an  extra-terrestrial 
origin,  it  is  a  very  fair  assumption  that  a  shooting-star 
is  likewise  a  dense  body  rendered  luminous  during  its 
atmospheric  flight. 

One  great  objection  to  this  assertion  is  that,  again  and 
again,  showers  of  hundreds  of  thousands  of  shooting- 
stars  have  taken  place,  during  which  no  heavy  body  has 
been  observed  to  reach  the  earth's  surface.  The  only 
known  case  of  the  arrival  of  a  meteorite  during  a  shooting- 
star  shower  has  been  that  of  Mazapil,  on  November  27, 
1885,  and  that  single  coincidence  may  possibly  be  the 
result  of  accident.  A  sufficient  explanation  of  this  diffi- 
culty, however,  is  to  be  found  in  the  small  size  of  the 
individuals  which  produce  the  appearance  of  a  shooting- 


star  shower.  That  the  individuals  are  really  minute  is 
proved  by  the  fact  that,  while  the  total  mass  of  a  large 
swarm,  like  that  producing  the  November  meteors,  is  so 
small  that  there  is  no  perceptible  influence  on  the  motion 
of  the  planets,  the  number  of  separate  individuals  is 
almost  infinite.  It  is  established  that  the  Leonid 
swarm  must  be  hundreds  of  millions  of  miles  in  length, 
and  some  hundreds  of  thousands  of  miles  in  thickness  ; 
and  in  the  densest  part  of  the  Bielid  swarm,  passed 
through  in  1885,  the  average  distance  of  the  individuals 
from  each  other  was  about  twenty  miles. 

Further,  it  is  now  acknowledged  that  comets  are  them- 
selves meteoritic  swarms,  and  Mr.  Lockyer  has  lately 
brought  forward  spectroscopic  evidence  that  the  fixed 
stars  and  the  nebulae  are  similar  to  comets  in  their  con- 
stitution. 

The  question  therefore  immediately  presents  itself.  Is 
the  size,  of  a  meteoritic  shower,  on  reaching  the  earth's 
surface,  ever  comparable  with  that  of  a  meteoritic  swarm, 
as  manifested  by  a  shower  of  shooting-stars .'' 

During  the  present  century  nearly  300  meteoritic  falls 
on  the  earth's  surface  have  been  observed,  and  on  only  a 
single  date,  namely  August  25.  1865,  has  there  been 
observed  a  fall  on  two  distant  parts  of  the  earth  on  the 
same  day.  On  that  date  stones  fell  at  Aumale  in  Algeria, 
and  at  Sherghotty  in  India  ;  but  as  the  times  of  fall  differed 
by  about  eight  hours,  and  the  stones  arrived  from  different 
directions,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  the  coincidence 
of  date  was  accidental.  Hence  we  must  infer  that  a 
swarm  of  meteorites,  as  far  as  actual  observation  of 
tangible  objects  goes,  far  from  being  hundreds  of  millions 
of  miles  long,  with  individuals  a  few  miles  apart,  is  a 
comparatively  small  group,  separated  from  its  neigh- 
bours, if  it  has  any,  by  a  distance  comparable  with  the 
earth's  diameter. 

The  extent  of  surface  over  which  meteoric  stones  have 
been  picked  up  after  some  of  the  best  known  and  most 
widely  spread  falls  is  given  in  the  following  list : — 

Limerick,  3  miles  long. 
Mocs,  3  miles  by  o"6  mile. 
Butsura,  3  miles  by  2  miles. 
Pultusk,  5  miles  by  i  mile. 
L'Aigle,  6  miles  by  25  miles. 
Barbotan,  6  miles  long. 
West  Liberty,  7  miles  by  4  miles. 
Stannern,  8  miles  by  3  miles. 
Knyahinya,  9  miles  by  3  miles. 
Weston,  10  miles  long. 
Hessle,  10  miles  by  3  miles. 
New  Concord,  10  miles  by  3  miles. 
Castalia,  10  miles  by  3  miles. 
Khairpur,  16  miles  by  3  miles. 

As  far  as  I  have  yet  been  able  to  ascertain,  the  greatest 
observed  separation  has  been  sixteen  miles.  In  the  case 
of  Macao,  Cold  Bokkeveldt,  and  Pillistfer,  wider  spreads 
have  been  chronicled,  but  later  information  has  shown 
the  inaccuracy  of  the  earlier  statements. 

As  regards  the  meteoric  irons,  there  have  only  been 
nine  observed  falls  since  the  year  175 1  :  in  seven  of  them 
only  a  single  mass  was  found  ;  in  the  remaining  two  there 
was  in  each  case  a  couple  of  masses,  not  more  than  a 
mile  apart.  There  is  thus  no  recorded  instance  of  an 
observed  shower  of  meteoric  iron.  The  most  convincing 
proof  of  the  actuality  of  such  showers  is  furnished  by  the 
masses  which  have  been  found  in  the  Valley  of  Toluca, 
in  Mexico  ;  their  existence  had  been  chronicled  as  early 
as  the  year  1784,  yet  in  1856  it  was  still  possible  to  col- 
lect as  many  as  sixty-nine.  When  etched,  they  show  the 
Widmanstatten  figures  in  the  most  excellent  way,  and  in 
their  characters  they  are  typical  meteorites.  Belonging, 
as  they  do,  to  a  single  type,  they  lead  to  the  conviction 
that  they  are  the  result  of  a  single  shower.  But  the 
region  over  which  the  fall  took  place  is  not  large  ;  the 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


109 


length  of  it  is  said  to  have  been  only  about  fourteen 
miles. 

It  is  very  probable,  though  not  conclusively  proved, 
that  large  meteoritic  showers  of  stones,  like  those  of 
Pultusk  and  L'Aigle,  reach  the  terrestrial  atmosphere  as 
swarms  of  isolated  bodies  ;  still,  we  must  have  regard  to 
the  fact  that  a  mass  is  much  fractured  during  its  passage 
through  the  air  by  reason  of  the  enormous  pressure  and 
the  violent  change  of  temperature.  In  the  case  of  the 
Butsura  fall,  for  example,  it  was  conclusively  established 
that  stones  picked  up  some  miles  apart  must  originally 
have  formed  part  of  a  stone  disrupted  during  the  atmo- 
spheric flight. 

It  is  a  question  of  a  certain  amount  of  interest  as  to 
whether  there  is  any  evidence  of  the  actual  fall  of  a 
shower  of  meteorites  over  a  large  extent  of  the  earth's 
surface. 

Such  evidence  has  long  been  supposed  to  be  furnished 
by  the  plentiful  occurrence  of  meteorites  in  the  Desert  of 
Atacama,  a  term  applied  to  that  part  of  Western  South 
America  which  lies  between  the  towns  of  Copiapo  and 
Cobija,  about  330  miles  distant  from  each  other,  and 
which  extends  mland  as  far  as  the  Indian  hamlet  of 
Antofagasta,  about  180  miles  from  the  coast. 

The  generally  received  impression  as  to  the  occurrence 
of  meteorites  in  this  desert  is  well  illustrated  by  the  fol- 
lowing statement  of  M.  Darlu,  of  Valparaiso,  read  to  the 
French  Academy  of  Sciences  in  1845  : — 

"  For  the  last  two  years  I  have  made  observations  of 
shooting-stars  during  the  nights  of  November  ii-Novem- 
ber  1 5,  without  remarking  a  greater  number  than  at  other 
times.  I  was  led  to  make  these  observations  by  the  fact 
that  in  the  Desert  of  Atacama,  which  begins  at  Copiapo, 
meteorites  are  met  with  at  every  step.  I  have  heard, 
also,  from  one  who  is  worthy  of  trust,  that  in  the  Argen- 
tine Republic,  near  Santiago  del  Estero,  there  is — so  to 
say — a  forest  of  enormous  meteorites,  the  iron  of  which 
is  employed  by  the  inhabitants." 

A  study  of  the  literature  indicates  that  "the  forest 
of  enormous  meteorites"  near  Santiago  del  Estero, 
understood  by  Darlu  as  significative  of  infinity  of 
number,  is  really  a  free  translation  of  a  native  state- 
ment "  that  there  were  several  masses  having  the  shape 
of  huge  trunks  with  deep  roots,"  and  that  not  more 
than  four,  or  perhaps  five,  masses  had  really  been  seen 
in  the  Santiago  locality  at  the  time  of  Darlu's  state- 
ment. There  is  a  similar  misunderstanding  relative  to 
the  Atacama  masses  :  it  is  clearly  proved  that,  at  a  date 
long  subsequent  to  1845,  the  Desert  was  virtually  un- 
trodden and  unexplored.  In  Darlu's  time  it  was  only 
crossed  along  definite  tracks  by  Indians  travelling  be- 
tween San  Pedro  de  Atacama  and  Copiapo,  and  between 
the  inland  Antofagasta  and  the  coast.  In  fact,  it  is  esta- 
blished that  the  only  Atacama  meteorites  then  in  circula- 
tion were  all  got  from  a  single  small  area,  three  or  four 
leagues  in  length,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Imilac,  one  of 
the  few  watering-places  on  the  track  between  San  Pedro 
and  Copiapo. 

Since  that  time  the  discovery  of  rich  silver-mines  in 
the  centre  of  the  Desert,  and  the  working  of  the  nitrate 
deposits,  have  led  to  vast  changes  ;  the  Desert  has  been 
more  or  less  closely  examined,  and  other  meteoritic  masses 
have  been  found.  Still,  the  number  of  meteorites  yet 
discovered,  distinct  either  in  mineralogical  characters  or 
locality,  is  shown  to  be,  at  most,  thirteen. 

One  of  them,  Lutschaunig,  is  distinct  from  all  the  rest 
as  being  a  chondritic  stone  ;  a  second,  Vaca  Muerta, 
likewise  differs  from  all  the  others  in  that  it  consists  of 
nickel-iron  and  stony  matter,  both  in  large  proportion ; 
a  third,  Imilac,  is  a  nickel-iron  with  cavities,  like  those 
of  a  sponge,  filled  with  olivine  ;  a  fourth,  Copiapo,  is  a 
nickel-iron  with  irregularly  disposed  angular  inclosures 
of  troilite  and  stony  matter  ;  the  remaining  nine  consist 
of  nickel-iron,  virtually  free  from  silicates,  some  of  them 


showing  no  Widmanstatten  figures  when  etched,  others 
showing  excellent  figures  more  or  less  differing  in 
character. 

Now,  in  every  meteoritic  shower  yet  observed,  the 
individuals  which  have  fallen  simultaneously  have  been 
found  to  belong  to  a  common  type.  Hence,  it  is  reason- 
ably certain  that  several  distinct  meteors  are  represented 
in  the  Desert,  and  that  the  above  masses  are  the  result 
of  several  falls  ;  and  this  being  accepted,  the  assertion  of 
simultaneity  of  fall  of  two  or  more  masses  on  the  purely 
geographical  ground  that  they  have  been  found  in  the 
same  Desert,  can  be  allowed  no  great  weight. 

But  have  masses  belonging  to  any  one  of  the  above 
types  been  found  scattered  over  a  part  of  the  Desert  so 
extensive  as  to  indicate  a  meteoritic  fall  more  widely 
spread  than  any  of  those  actually  observed  ?  A  critical 
examination  of  the  cases  in  which  such  an  enormous 
spread  has  been  asserted  proves  that  the  evidence  is 
quite  unsatisfactory.  The  results  may  thus  be  sum- 
marized .- — 

(i)  Lutschaunig. — This  was  a  single  stone. 

(2)  Vaca  Muerta. — The  masses  were  in  great  abundance 
distributed  over  a  small  area.  But  fragments  undoubtedly 
belonging  to  this  type  have  been  brought  from  two  other 
places  far  distant  from  the  main  locality.  Very  cogent 
evidence  is  brought  forward  to  prove  that  the  said  frag- 
ments must  have  been  carried  to  those  places — the 
Jarquera  Valley  and  Mejillones  —  from  Vaca  Muerta 
itself. 

(3)  Imilac. — An  examination  of  all  the  known  literature 
indicates  that  the  whole  of  the  fragments  belonging  to 
this  type  have  been  got  from  the  immediate  neighbour- 
hood of  Imilac.  Caracoles,  Potosi,  and  Campo  de 
Pucard,  from  which  specimens,  belonging  to  this  type, 
have  been  brought,  are  shown  to  be  on  regular  lines  of 
traffic  starting  from  the  Atacama  coast.  It  is  further 
shown  that  Imilac  specimens  were  in  great  request,  and 
were  certainly  carried  to  very  distant  places  along  such 
lines  of  traffic. 

(4)  Copiapo. — It  is  conclusively  proved  that  the  two 
localities,  upwards  of  400  miles  apart,  for  meteoritic 
masses  belonging  to  this  type,  '•esult  from  a  mere  inter- 
change of  labels,  and  that  all  the  masses  probably  came 
from  a  single  place. 

(5-13)  There  is  no  satisfactory  evidence  furnished  by 
similarity  of  type  for  any  of  the  meteoric  irons  being  part 
of  a  widespread  shower. 

It  is  thus  clear  that  the  meteorites  of  the  Desert  of 
Atacama  afford  absolutely  no  proof  that  enormous 
meteoritic  showers  have  ever  reached  the  earth's  surface. 

The  general  dryness  of  the  air  of  the  Desert,  and  the 
rarity  of  rain,  have  been  sufficient  to  ensure  the  preserva- 
tion of  masses  which  have  fallen  in  the  course  of  many 
centuries  unto  a  time  when  an  exploration  of  a  large 
extent  of  the  Desert  has  taken  place. 

That  the  meteoritic  masses  are  far  from  being  so 
plentiful  as  has  been  imagined  is  conclusively  proved  by 
the  experience  of  Mr.  George  Hicks,  one  of  the  earliest 
explorers  of  the  23rd  and  24th  parallels  ;  although  much 
interested  in  their  occurrence,  he  never  found  a  mass 
himself,  and  he  only  obtained  his  first  specimen  after 
years  of  persevering  inquiry  from  the  Indians. 

Detailed  information  relative  to  the  Atacama  meteorites, 
with  a  description  and  map  of  the  Desert,  will  be  found 
in  the  recently  published  number  of  the  Mineralogical 
Magazine.  L.  F. 


EARLY  EGYPTIAN  CIVILIZATION. 

A  LTHOUGH  the  paintings  in  the  tombs  of  Memphis, 
-^*-  of  Beni  Hasan,  and  of  Thebes,  have  preserved  to 
us  the  knowledge  of  much  of  the  civilization  of  Egypt,  yet 
hitherto  we  have  handled  but  few  examples  of  the  im- 


I  lO 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


plements  used,  and  those  are  mostly  undated.  Broadly 
speaking,  the  three  sites  just  named  represent  respectively 
the  Old  Kingdom  before  3400  r,  C,  the  Middle  Kingdom 
about  26CO  B.C.,  and  the  Kew  Kingdom  from  1600  B.C.  ; 
and  though  debarred  from  scientific  work  in  these  richest 
districts  of  Egypt — owing  to  national  jealousies — I  have 
been  fortunate  enough  to  discover  two  small  towns,  each 
only  occupied  for  a  couple  of  centuries,  which  have  thus 
revealed  the  works  of  the  Middle  and  NeAv  Kingdoms 
with  chronological  exactness.  Beside  the  Egyptian  in- 
terest of  these  places,  they  are  of  prime  importance  for 
Mediterranean  history,  having  been  colonies  of  foreign 
workmen. 

These  towns  are  one  on  each  side  of  the  entrance  to 
the  Fayum  province,  fifty  miles  south  of  Cairo.  The  north- 
ern town,  now  called  Kahun,  was  built  for  the  workmen 
employed  by  Usertesen  II.,  for  his  pyramid  and  temple, 
about  2600  B.C.  The  southern  town,  now  called  Gurob, 
was  founded  by  Tahutmes  III.,  and  destroyed  by  Meren- 
ptah,  thus  lasting  from  about  1450  to  1 190  B.C.  Obtaining 
thus  two  sites  of  different  ages,  close  together,  we  can  be 
certain  that  all  differences  are  due  entirely  to  time  and 
not  to  locality.  The  change  in  an  interval  of  l2co  years 
is  most  marked.  Of  the  pottery,  scarcely  a  single  type 
of  form  or  material  is  alike  in  the  two  periods;  of  the 
many  varieties  of  beads  of  stone  and  glazed  ware,  hardly 


one  was  continued  ;  the  metal  tools  are  every  one  changed 
in  form  ;  and  the  use  of  flints  had  practically  died  out. 
For  the  first  time  we  are  able  to  trace  the  definite  and 
decided  changes  in  all  the  products  of  two  ages  so  remote. 
The  idea  that  Egypt  was  changeless  is  only  due  to  our 
lack  of  knowledge  ;  not  only  fashions  changed — every  few 
years  in  minor  details — but  radical  rearrangements  were 
made  from  age  to  age  in  the  manufactures. 

The  twelfth  dynasty  town — Kahun — is  the  more  import- 
ant, and  we  will  briefly  note  some  of  its  products.  Flint 
working  was  carried  to  a  high  pitch,  the  thin  flat  knives 
being  flaked  with  much  skill :  but  alloys  of  copper  were  also 
in  use,  and  show  ability  in  their  casting  and  hammering,  a 
thin  bowl  being  wrought  out  of  one  piece.  We  find,  then,^ 
flint  and  metal  side  by  side,  the  flint  being  the  commoner 
material,  but  yet  influenced  in  its  forms  by  the  types  of 
metal  tools.  Moreover,  we  now  see  the  use  of  the  numerous 
flint  saws,  formed  of  serrated  flakes;  many  of  them  have 
black  cement  upon  them,  and  one  was  found  remaining 
in  its  socket  in  a  wooden  sickle  (Fig.  i). 

Beside  hatchets,  adzes,  and  chisels  of  bronze,  we  find 
needles,  barbed  and  unbarbed  fish-hooks,  netting-needles,, 
and  knives  of  the  straight-backed  type.  Among  wooden 
tools  are  hoes,  rakes,  grain-scoops,  a  brick-mould,  plas- 
terers' floats,  bow-drills,  plummets,  &c.  Perhaps  the  most 
important  of  all  is  a  fire-stick,  on  which  five  burnt  holes 


Tig.  I. 


Wooden  sickle  with  flint  siw  (twelfth  dynasty). 


remain  where  fire  has  been  drilled  by  a  rotating  rod  :  the 
drilling  was  begun  by  hacking  a  groove  in  the  side  of  the 
stick,  down  which  the  heated  wood  powder  might  run, 
until  it  caught  alight.  This  shows,  for  the  first  time,  how 
the  Egyptians  obtained  fire  :  and  familiar  as  they  were 
with  the  bow-drill,  they  doubtless  used  it  for  the  fire-stick. 
A  very  interesting  point  is  the  origin  of  the  shoe  from  the 
sandal.  Two  sandal-shoes  have  been  found  ;  both  with 
toe  and  heel  straps,  but  with  an  upper  of  leather  across 
the  foot.  Tops,  tip-cats,  clay  toys,  dolls  with  jointed  limbs, 
and  game  boards,  were  all  in  use.  Among  a  large  number 
of  papyri  that  I  found  are  two  wills,  one  of  which  is  a 
recital  of  a  will  and  a  settlement,  duly  witnessed.  The 
provisions  show  that  the  later  law  of  Greek  times  was 
much  the  same  in  matters  of  descent  as  it  was  two 
thousand  years  earlier.  On  receiving  family  property  the 
man  settles  it  on  his  wife  ;  she  has  a  life  interest  in  the 
dwellings,  and  may  divide  all  the  property  among  their 
children  at  her  discretion.  The  man's  ofificial  position  he 
left  to  his  son.  A  guardian  was  also  appointed,  excluding 
the  eldest  son  from  that  duty.  Some  numerical  notes 
concerning  fractions  are  also  found  ;  and  all  these  papyri 
are  in  course  of  study  by  Mr.  F.  L.  Griffith. 

On  turning  to  the  later  town —  Gurob — of  about  1 300  B.C., 
we  find  that  the  art  of  flint  working  was  lost ;  only  a  few 
rude  leaf-shaped  flakes  (totally  different  from  the  earlier 
forms)  and  some  little  saw-flakes  remain,  and  these  are 


scarce.  Thus  we  may  date  the  falfof  fine  flint  manufac- 
ture in  Egypt  to  about  2Coo  B.C.';  though  rude  flakes 
continued  to  be  used  till  late  Roman  times,  and  more 
abundantly  in  poorer  ages.  Bronze  tools  were  much 
modified  ;  hatchets  and  chisels  less  finely  formed,  knives- 
always  double  edged,  fish-hooks  not  barbed,  and  punched 
metal  rasps  were  brought  in.  Bronze  working  reached  a 
high  level  in  the  making  of  two  large  pans,  14  and  9  inches 
across,  exquisitely  wrought  with  difficult  curves,  and  so- 
thin  that  they  can  be  still  bent  in  and  out  by  the  fingers. 
Glass  ornaments  were  commonly  used,  though  not  found, 
in  the  earlier  town.  The  plain  beads  of  fine  blue,  violet,. 
&c.,  belong  to  about  1300  B.C.  ;  while  the  coarser  beads- 
of  black,  yellow,  green,  brown,  and  white,  with  eye- 
patterns,  are  about  a  century  later. 

The  presence  of  foreigners  in  both  of  these  towns  is 
shown  by  the  weights  discovered,  which  are— with  scarcely 
an  exception— of  foreign  standards,  foreign  forms,  or 
foreign  materials.  A  commercial  intercourse  must  there- 
fore have  been  kept  up  between  these  foreign  colonies  and 
the  Mediterranean.  Beside  this  evidence  we  find  at  Gurob 
the  burials  of  one  of  the  Tursha  or  Turseni  (from  Asia 
Minor),  and  a  Hittite  ;  foreign  art  is  seen  in  a  mirror 
handle  with  the  Phoenician  Venus,  and  a  wooden  figure 
of  a  Hittite  ;  and  foreign  complexions  are  shown  by  the 
light  hair  found  on  some  of  the  bodies.  A  very  strong 
Mediterranean  influence  appears  in  the  quantity  of  pottery 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


III 


identical  with  the  earliest  styles  found  at  Mykenac,  at 
Thera,  and  at  Mytilene  ;  and  we  are  now  able  to  date 
those  stages  of  early  culture  in  the  Greek  lands  to 
1300  B.C.,  a  fixed  point  of  the  greatest  value. 

The  most  novel  discovery  of  all  is  the  presence  of  appa- 
rently alphabetic  signs  in  use  in  both  towns  (Fig.  2),  and 
by  all  the  circumstances  amply  guaranteed  to  be  of  about 
2500  p,.c.  and  1300  B.C.  Our  existing  theories  of  alpha- 
betic development  require  us  to  suppose  that  the  Phoeni- 
cian letters  were  established  before  2000  B.C.  ;  as  the 
Egyptian  writing  from  which  De  Rougd  derived  them, 
vvas  extinct  after  that  date;  and  the  Cypriote  syllabic 
signs  must  be  older.  Thus,  though  no  known  inscriptions 
can  be  placed  before  about  900  15. c,  yet  the  forms  must 
have  started  about  the  same  period  as  that  of  the  first  of 
these  towns,  Kahun.  The  conditions  that  we  find,  there- 
fore, of  a  great  variety  of  signs  in  use,  many  of  which  have 
not  survived,  while  others  have  drifted  apart  into  many 
different  alphabets,  are  just  what  might  be  expected  at 

Fig.  2. 

Continuous  inscrip-         Sign';  incised  in  pottery  (the  dots  separating 
tion  on  wood.  different  examples. 

Signs  incised  on  pottery  of  the  twelfth  dynasty  (Kahiin\ 

Signs  on  pottery  of  the  eighteenth  to  nineteenth  dynasty  (Gurob). 

these  early  times.  The  apparent  connection  of  these 
signs  with  some  of  the  mison's  mar'.'CS  of  Egypt  suggests 
that  they  may  have  been  adopted  by  the  foreign  workmen 
from  their  Egyptian  fellow-labourers  ;  and  the  very  lack 
of  literary  education  among  such  men  would  lead  to 
their  forming  alphabets  of  their  own  from  such  materials. 
We  have  at  least  now  obtained  two  well-defined  stages, 
between  the  finished  and  segregated  alphabets  of  the 
period  of  known  inscriptions,  of  900  B.C.  downward,  and 
the  original  elements  of  Egyptian  hieroglyphs,  hieratic, 
■mason's  marks,  and  perhaps  Hittite  and  cuneiform  cha- 
racters, from  which  the  alphabets  were  evolved.  To  dis- 
•cuss  the  historical  descent  of  the  signs,  and  to  form  a 
•continuous  theory  of  them,  will  need  much  discussion, 
and  more  materials.  Meanwhile,  my  work  will  lie  in  the 
■complete  gathering  in  of  what  may  still  remain  in  these 
itowns.  A  full  account  and  drawings  of  every  sign  and 
every  object  of  importance  found  this  year  will  appear 
in  a  few  months.  W.  M.  Flinders  Petrie. 


MR.   STANLEY'S  GEOGRAPHICAL  DIS- 
COVERIES. 
THIS  week  an  interesting  letter  from  Mr.  Stanley  to 
Colonel  Grant  has  been  published.     It  is  dated, 
^'Villages  of  Batundu,  Ituri  River,  Central  Africa,  Sep- 
tember 8,  1888."     Speaking  of  Lake  Albert,  Mr.  Stanley 
says: — 

"  When  on  December  13, 1887,  we  sighted  the  lake,  the 
southern  part  lay  at  our  feet  almost,  like  an  immense 
map.  We  glanced  rapidly  over  the  grosser  details — the 
lofty  plateau  walls  of  Unyoro  to  the  east,  and  that  of 
Baregga  to  the  west,  rising  nearly  3000  feet  above  the 
silver  water,  and  between  the  walls  stretched  a  plain — 
seemingly  very  flat— grassy,  with  here  and  there  a  dark 
clump  of  brushwood— which  as  the  plain  trended  south- 
westerly became  a  thin  forest.     The  south-west  edge  of 


the  lake  seemed  to  be  not  more  than  six  miles  away  from 
where  we  stood — by  observation  the  second  journey  I 
fixed  it  at  nine  miles  direct  south-easterly  from  the  place. 
This  will  make  the  terminus  of  the  south-west  corner  at 
I  17'  N.  lat.  By  prismatic  compass  the  magnetic  bearing 
of  the  south-east  corner  just  south  of  Numba  Falls  was 
137^,  this  will  make  it  about  1°  11'  30"  N.  lat.  A  magnetic 
bearing  of  148'  taken  from  N.  lat.  i'  25'  30"  about  exactly 
describes  the  line  of  shore  running  from  the  south-west 
corner  of  the  lake  to  the  south-east  corner  of  the  Albert. 
Baker  fixed  his  position  at  N.  lat.  i"  15',  if  I  recollect 
rightly.  The  centre  of  Mbakovia  Terrace  bears  121"  30' 
magnetic  from  my  first  point  of  observation,  this  will 
make  his  Vacovia  about  i'  15'  45",  allowing  lo"^  west  varia- 
tion. 

"  In  trying  to  solve  the  problem  of  the  infinity  of  Lake 
Albert  as  sketched  by  Baker,  and  finding  that  the  lake 
terminus  is  only  four  miles  south  of  where  he  stood  to 
view  it  '  from  a  little  hill,'  and  on  '  a  beautifully  clear 
day,'  one  would  almost  feel  justified  in  saying  that  he  had 
never  seen  the  lake.  But  his  position  of  Vacovia  proves 
that  he  actually  was  there,  and  the  general  correctness  of 
his  outline  of  the  east  coast  from  Vacovia  to  Magungo 
also  proves  that  he  navigated  the  lake.  When  we  turn 
our  faces  north-east,  we  say  that  Baker  has  done  exceed- 
ingly well,  but,  when  we  turn  them  southward,  our  senses 
in  vain  try  to  penetrate  the  mystery,  because  our  eyes  see 
not  what  Baker  saw.  When  Gassi  Pasha  first  sketched 
the  lake  after  Baker,  and  reduced  the  immense  lake  to 
one  about  ninety  miles  long,  my  faith  was  in  Baker, 
because  Gessi  could  not  resolve  by  astronomical  ob- 
servations the  south  end  of  the  lake.  When  Mason  Bey 
— an  accomplished  surveyor — in  1877  circumnavigated 
the  lake,  and  corroborated  Gessi,  then  I  thought  that 
perhaps  Mason  had  met  a  grassy  barrier  or  sandbank 
overgrown  with  sedge  and  ambatch,  and  had  not  reached 
the  true  beyond,  because  he  admitted  that  he  could  not 
see  very  far  from  the  deck  of  his  steamer,  my  faith  still 
rested  in  Baker  ;  but  now,  with  Lieutenant  Stairs,  of  the 
Royal  Engineers,  Mr.  Mounteneyjephson,  Surgeon  Parke, 
Emin  Pasha,  Captain  Casati,  I  have  looked  with  my  own 
eyes  upon  the  scene,  and  find  that  Baker  has  made  an 
error.  .  .  . 

"  I  am  somewhat  surprised  also  at  Baker's  altitudes  of 
Lake  Albert,  and  the  '  Blue  Mountains,'  and  at  the 
breadth  attributed  by  him  to  the  lake.  The  shore  oppo- 
site Vacovia  is  ten  and  a  quarter  miles  distant,  not  forty 
or  fifty  miles;  the  'Blue  Mountains'  are  nothing  else 
but  the  west  upland — the  highest  cone  or  hill  being  not 
above  6000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  not  7000  or 
8000  feet  high.  The  altitude  of  Lake  Albert  by  aneroid 
and  boiling-point  will  not  exceed  2350,  not  2720,  feet. 

"And  last  of  all,  away  to  the  south-west  where  he  has 
sketched  his  'infinite'  stretch  of  lake,  there  rises,  about 
forty  miles  from  Vacovia,  an  immense  snowy  mountain — 
a  solid  square-browed  mass  with  an  almost  level  summit 
between  two  lofty  ridges.  If  it  were  'a  beautifully  clear 
day '  he  should  have  seen  this,  being  nearer  to  it  by 
thirteen  geographical  miles  than  I  was." 

Of  the  snowy  Mountain,  Mr.  Stanley  writes  as  fol- 
lows :  — 

"  My  interest  is  greatly  excited,  as  you  may  imagine, 
by  the  discovery  of  Ruwenzori — the  Snowy  Mountain — a 
possible  rival  of  Kilimanjaro.  Remember  that  we  are  in 
north  latitude,  and  that  this  mountain  must  be  near  on 
the  equator  itself,  that  it  is  summer  now,  that  we  saw  it 
in  the  latter  part  of  May,  and  that  the  snow-line  was 
about  (estimate  only)  1000  feet  below  the  summit.  Hence 
I  conclude  that  it  is  not  Mount  Gordon  Bennett,  seen  in 
December  1876  (though  it  may  be  so),  which,  the  natives 
said,  had  only  snow  occasionally.  At  the  time  I  saw  the 
latter,  there  was  no  snow  visible.  It  is  a  little  further 
east,  according  to  the  position  I  gave  it,  than  Ruwenzori. 

"  All  the  questions  which  this  mountain  naturally  gives 


112 


NATURE 


{Dec.  5,  1889 


rise  to  will  be  settled,  I  hope,  by  this  Expedition  before 
it  returns  to  the  sea.  If  at  all  near  my  line  of  march,  its 
length,  height,  and  local  history  will  be  ascertained.  My 
young  officers  will  like  to  climb  to  the  summit,  and  I 
shall  be  glad  to  furnish  them  with  every  assistance." 

At  the  time  when  this  letter  was  written,  Mr.  Stanley 
was  uncertain  as  to  the  destination  of  the  streams  flowing 
between  "the  two  Muta  Nzigds"  :— 

"  Many  rivers  will  be  found  to  issue  from  this  curious 
land  between  the  two  Muta  Nzigcs.  What  rivers  are 
they  ?  Do  they  belong  to  the  Nile  or  the  Congo  ?  There  is 
no  river  going  east  or  south-east  from  this  section,  except 
the  Katonga  and  Kafur,  and  both  must  receive,  if  any,  but 
a  very  small  supply  from  Gordon  Bennett  and  Ruwenzori. 
The  new  mountain  must  therefore  be  drained  principally 
south  and  west.  If  south,  the  streams  have  connection 
with  the  Lake  South  ;  if  west,  the  Semliki  tributary  of 
Lake  Albert,  and  some  river  flowing  to  the  Congo  must 
receive  the  rest  of  its  waters.  Then,  if  the  Lake  South 
receives  any  considerable  supply,  the  interest  deepens. 
Does  the  lake  discharge  its  surplus  to  the  Nile  or  to  the 
Congo  ?  If  to  the  former,  then  it  will  be  of  great  interest 
to  you,  and  you  will  have  to  admit  that  Lake  Victoria  is 
not  the  main  source  of  the  Nile  ;  if  to  the  Congo,  then 
the  lake  will  be  the  source  of  the  River  Lowwa  or  Coa, 
since  it  is  the  largest  tributary  to  the  Congo  from  the  east 
between  the  Aruwimi  and  the  Luama.  For  your  comfort 
I  will  dare  venture  the  opinion  even  now  that  the  lake  is 
the  source  of  the  Lowwa,  though  I  know  nothing  positive 
of  the  matter.  But  I  infer  it,  ftom  the  bold  manner  in 
which  the  Aruwimi  trenches  upon  a  domain  that  anyone 
would  have  imagined  belonged  to  the  Nile.  It  was  only 
ten  minutes'  march  between  the  head  of  one  of  its  streams 
to  the  crest  of  the  plateau  whence  we  looked  down  upon 
the  Albert  Nyanza. 

'*  From  the  mouth  of  the  Aruwimi  to  the  head  of  this 
stream  is  390  geographical  miles  in  a  straight  line.  Well, 
next  to  the  Aruwimi  in  size  is  the  Lowwa  River,  and  from 
the  mouth  of  the  Lowwa  to  the  longitude  of  Ugampaka 
post  in  a  direct  line  is  only  240  geographical  miles." 


NOTES. 

The  Gilbert  Club,  to  which  we  referred  last  week,  was 
formally  founded  on  Thursday,  November  28.  The  following 
officers  were  appointed  at  the  first  general  meeting  : — President, 
Sir  William  Thomson.  Vice-Presidents  :  Lord  Rayleigh,  Prof. 
D.  E,  Hughes,  Prof.  Reinold,  Mr.  Jonathan  Hutchinson 
(President  of  the  Royal  College  of  Surgeons),  Dr.  B.  W. 
Richardson,  and  Mr.  H.  Laver,  of  Colchester.  Mr.  Latimer 
Clark  was  elected  Treasurer,  and  Mr.  Conrad  Cooke,  Prof  R. 
Meldola,  and  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson,  Hon.  Secretaries.  The 
resolution  finally  adopted  by  the  meeting  was  : — "  That  the 
objects  of  the  Gilbert  Club  be  as  follows  :— (i)  To  produce  and 
issue  an  English  translation  of  '  De  Magnete  '  in  the  manner  of 
the  folio  edition  of  1600.  (2)  To  arrange  hereafter  for  the 
tercentenary  celebration  of  the  publication  of  '  De  Magnete  '  in 
the  year  1900.  (3)  To  promote  inquiries  into  the  personal 
history,  life,  works,  and  writings  of  Dr.  Gilbert.  (4)  To  have 
power,  after  the  completion  of  the  English  edition  of  'De 
M^nete,'  to  undertake  the  reproduction  of  other  early  works 
on  electricity  and  magnetism,  provided  at  such  date  a  majority 
of  the  members  of  the  Club  so  desire."  At  the  time  of  the 
inaugural  meeting  eighty-seven  members  had  joined  the  Club. 

Prof.  J.  Bryce's  speech  (read  by  Prof.  Holland)  at  the  pre- 
sentation of  Mr.  A.  R.  Wallace  for  the  degree  of  D.C.L., 
honoris  causd,  at  Oxford,  on  November  26,  was  one  of  unusual 
interest.  We  may  note  especially  the  very  masterly  way  in  which 
the  doctrine  of  the  survival  of  the  fittest  was  expressed.  After 
describing  Mr.  Wallace's  travels  in  Brazilian  forests,  and  among 


the  islands,  "  quje  ultra  Chersonesum  aureum  soli  nimium  pro- 
pinque  subjacent,"  the  speech  referred  to  his  discovery  of  the 
theory  according  to  which  new  species  are  evolved,  which  was 
shortly  stated  as,  "ea  corpora  vigere  magis  prolemque  ex  iis 
Isetiorem  surgere  quae  ipsa  nescio  quo  pacto  natura  vitoe  periculis 
subeundis  aptissima  creaverit :  sic  stirpeja  a  caateris  stirpibus  dis- 
similem  et  in  dies  longius  discrepantem  propagari."  The  con- 
temporaneous discovery  of  natural  selection  by  Charles  Darwin, 
and  his  cordial  recognition  of  Mr.  Wallace's  merits,  were 
mentioned:  "tanta  et  in  hoc  et  in  illo  inerat  animi  nobilitas 
veritatis  quam  glorise  propriae  studiosior."  Reference  was  made 
to  Mr.  Wallace's  various  writings. 

We  regret  to  announce  the  sudden  death  of  Dr.  W.  R. 
McNab.  He  died  at  his  residence  in  Dublin  on  Tuesday 
morning,  the  3rd  inst.  Dr.  McNab  was  Professor  of  Botany 
in  the  Royal  College  of  Science,  Dublin,  having  succeeded 
Prof.  Thiselton  Dyer,  F.R.  S.  He  was  also  Scientific  Super- 
intendent and  Referee  to  the  Royal  Botanic  Gardens,  Glas- 
nevin,  under  the  Science  and  Art  Department.  He  appears 
to  have  been  in  his  usual  health  on  Monday,  and  on  St. 
Andrew's  Day  (Saturday)  took  an  energetic  part  in  the  meeting 
and  banquet  held  by  the  Scotch  residents  in  Dublin. 

The  Colonies  and  India  reports  the  death,  in  Melbourne,  of 
Mr.  Robert  Brough  Smyth,  who  was  for  sixteen  years  Secretary 
of  Mines  in  Victoria.  He  was  well  known  in  Australia  for 
his  contributions,  especially  on  geological  questions,  to  scientific 
literature. 

The  new  Natural  Science  Museum  of  Berlin  was  opened  on 
Monday.  The  Berlin  Correspondent  of  the  Standard,  describing 
the  proceedings,  says  that  the  ceremony  was  striking.  A  hand- 
some tent,  surmounted  by  an  imperial  crown,  was  erected  for  the 
Emperor  and  Empress,  who  were  present  with  the  Princess 
Frederick  Charles,  Prince  Alexander,  the  Hereditary  Prince  and 
Princess  of  Meiningen,  and  a  brilliant  suite.  Nearly  all  the 
Ministers,  including  Count  Bismarck,  who  has  just  returned  from 
Friedrichsruh,  and  the  Mmister  of  War,  were  in  attendance. 
Count  Waldersee,  representatives  of  the  Academy  of  Art,  and 
the  Professors  of  the  University,  were  also  present.  Dr.  von 
Gossler,  Minister  of  Education,  delivered  an  eloquent  address, 
in  which  he  mentioned  that  the  collections  were  founded  a  hun- 
dred years  ago,  and  expressed  the  hope  that  both  science  and  the 
State  would  derive  equal  benefit  from  the  new  institution.  Prof. 
Beyrich,  the  first  Curator  of  the  Museum,  pledged  himself  to 
keep  abreast  with  the  progress  of  science.  Their  Majesties 
were  conducted  through  the  building  by  the  keepers  of  the 
various  collections. 

The  Paris  Museum  of  Natural  History  is  about  to  elect  a 
successor  to  M.  Chevreul  in  the  Chair  of  Chemistry. 

At  the  general  monthly  meeting  of  the  Royal  Institution, 
on  December  2,  the  managers  reported  that  they  had  re- 
appointed Prof.  James  Dewar,  F.R.S.,  as  Fullerian  Professor 
of  Chemistry. 

The  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Vienna  has  appointed  Prof  G. 
Niemann,  of  Vienna,  and  Major  Steffan,  of  Cassel,  to  be  present 
as  impartial  witnesses  at  the  excavations  at  Hissarlik,  begun, 
on  November  25,  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  H.  Schliemann  and 
Dr.  W.  Dorpfeld.  Captain  Ernst  Botticher,  who  has  often 
called  in  question  the  utility  of  Dr.  Schliemann's  archaeological 
investigations,  has  been  requested  to  take  part  in  the  excava- 
tions. 

Mr.  Hugh  G.  Barclay,  in  his  Report  as  to  the  fund  for  the 
preservation  of  birds  in  the  Fame  Islands,  says  he  has  every 
reason  to  believe  that  the  birds  were  very  well  protected  this 
season.  He  visited  the  islands  twice,  and  each  time  he  satisfied 
himself,  by  his  own  personal  investigations,  that  the  birds  had 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


113 


not  been  unduly  disturbed.  Last  year,  at  the  request  of  the 
authorities,  he  allowed  some  young  birds  to  be  taken  from  the 
islands  for  the  purpose  of  being  placed  on  the  lake  at  St.  James's 
Park,  London.  The  following  is  an  extract  from  a  letter  he 
lately  received  from  Mr.  Killy,  the  bird-keeper  there: — "The 
only  birds  alive  now  of  those  brought  from  the  Fame  Islands  are 
the  cormorants,  which  are  thriving.  The  puffins  all  died  during 
the  first  three  months.  The  guillemots  lived  somewhat  longer, 
the  death  of  the  last  one  being  the  result  of  an  accident.  The 
one  kittiwake  also  died  by  an  accident.  The  terns  died  during 
the  severe  frost,  being  apparently  unable  to  get  about  on  the  ice, 
their  tail  and  wings  collected  the  ice  ;  I  suppose  on  account  of 
their  being  pinioned  and  not  being  able  to  use  their  wings  freely." 

The  Council  of  the  Dundee  and  District  Association  for  the 
Promotion  of  Technical  and  Commercial  Education  has  issued 
its  first  Annual  Report,  and  is  able  to  give  a  very  good  account  of 
the  results  it  has  achieved.  With  regard  to  the  future  work  of 
the  Association,  the  Council  suggests  that  workshop  instruction 
for  lads  engaged  at  unskilled  work  ia  factories  and  during  the 
day  should  be  established  in  connection  with  the  evening  classes 
of  the  School  Board.  It  also  proposes  the  drafting  of  additional 
courses  of  instruction,  especially  in  painting,  decoration,  and 
pattern  designing,  and  the  encouraging  of  higher  classes  in  these 
subjects.  In  this  connection  the  Council  appropriately  refers  to 
the  fact  that  in  1884  the  Technical  Instruction  Commissioners 
reported  that  "the  crowded  schools  of  drawing,  modelling, 
carving,  and  painting,  maintained  at  the  expense  of  the  muni- 
cipalities of  Paris,  Lyons,  Brussels,  and  other  cities — absolutely 
gratuitous  and  open  to  all  comers,  well  lighted,  furnished  with 
the  best  models,  and  under  the  care  of  teachers  full  of  enthu- 
siasm— stimulate  those  manufactures  and  crafts  in  which  the  fine 
arts  play  an  important  part  to  a  degree  which  is  without  parallel 
in  this  cojn'.ry." 

A  SERIES  of  questions  on  the  effects  of  London  fogs  on  cul 
tivated  plants  has  been  issued  by  the  scientific  committee  of  the 
Royal   Horticultural   Society.       The  experience  of  the  current 
season  only  is  to  be  utilized. 

A  SPECIMEN  of  the  Rorqual  inns :ulush2L%  just  come  ashore  on 
the  coast  of  the  Medoc  district.  Dr.  Beauregard,  aide  nahiraliste 
at  the  Paris  Museum,  went  to  the  spot  to  examine  this  interesting 
cetacean.  Unfortunately,  the  brain  was  already  in  a  state  of 
decomposition,  but  the  breasts  and  ears  were  dissected  off  for 
complete  examination.  The  animal  was  14  metres  long,  and  6 
metres  in  circumference  at  the  thickest  part  of  the  body. 

Prof.   Chauveau  has  lately  published  in  Va^  Archives  de 
Pathologie  Expe'rimenta/e  a  contribution  to  the  study  of  "  trans- 
formism  "  in  microbiology.    His  researches  relate  to  Bacilhis  an-  j 
thracis,  and  show  that  by  experimental  means  various  important  j 
biological  alterations  may  be  obtained.  1 

Prof.  Marshall  Ward  is  about  to  deliver,  at  th  eCity  and  I 
Guilds  of  London  Institute,  a  course  of  six  lectures  on  timber, 
its  nature,  varieties,  uses,  and  diseases.  The  lectures  will  be 
given  on  Monday  and  Thursday  evenings,  at  7.30  (December  12, 
16,  and  19,  and  January  23,  27,  and  30).  The  object  of  the 
course  is  to  explain  as  simply  and  cleady  as  possible,  with  the 
aid  of  numerous  lantern  illustrations,  the  nature,  properties, 
varieties,  and  uses  of  the  ordinary  timbers  used  in  construction, 
and  to  give  an  intelligible  account  of  dry-rot,  and  allied  diseases 
of  timber. 

The  second  series  of  lectures  given  by  the  Sunday  Lecture 
Society  will  begin  on  Sunday  afternoon,  December  8,  in  St. 
George's  Hall,  Langham  Place,  at  4  p.m.,  when  Mr.  W.  Lant 
Carpenter,  B.Sc,  will  lecture  on  "The  Wonders  of  the  Yellow- 
stone Park — a  Personal  Narrative,"  with  oxy-hydrogen  lantern 
illustrations  from  the  lecturer's  own  camera.      Lectures  will  also 


be  given  by  Commander  V.  L.  Cameron,  R.N.,  Mr.  J.  F, 
Blake,  Mr.  Henry  Blackburn,  Mr,  Wilmott  Dixon,  Mr.  Stantoa 
Coit,  and  Mr,  Eric  S.  Bruce. 

The  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Institution  of  Electrical 
Engineers  will  be  held  at  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  25 
Great  George  Street,  Westminster,  on  Thursday,  December  12, 
at  8  o'clock  in  the  evening,  for  the  reception  of  the  annual 
report  of  the  Council,  and  for  the  election  of  Council  and 
Officers  for  the  year  1890.  The  following  paper  will  be  further 
discussed  :  "  Electric  Engineering  in  America,"  by  Mr,  G.  L. 
Addenbrooke. 

It  is  stated  that  a  scheme  is  on  foot  for  establishing  a  Natural 
History  Society  in  the  Punjaub.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  it  will 
be  successful,  and  that  the  Society  will  flourish  as  other  Indian 
scientific  societies  are  doing. 

In  the  introductory  lecture  to  the  agricultural  class  at  the 
University  of  Edinburgh,  delivered  at  the  opening  of  the  present 
session.  Prof.  Wallace  chose  as  his  subject  some  aspects  of 
Australasian  agriculture.  In  this  lecture,  which  has  now  beea 
printed.  Prof.  Wallace  urges  that  sheep  farmers  in  this  country 
will  shortly  feel  the  effects  of  rivalry  with  the  flock  masters  of 
Australia.  There  are  100,000,000  sheep  in  Australia,  mostly 
merinos,  which  are  not,  by  the  way,  a  flesh-yielding  but  a  wool- 
giving  race.  Prof.  Wallace  hazards  the  opinion,  by  a  very  easy 
process  of  arithmetic,  that,  before  many  years  have  passed, 
Australia  will  be  possessed  of  over  200,oco,ooo.  He  makes,  also, 
the  astonishing  statement  that  merino  mutton  is  equal  in  flavour 
and  texture  to  our  best  Highland,  Welsh,  or  South  Down 
mutton.  Upon  these  two  assumptions,  for  they  are  nothing 
more,  he  foretells  calamities  to  the  meat  producers  of  this  country,, 
which  he,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  will  not  live  to  see. 

A  stalactite  cave  has  been  discovered  in  Ascheloh,  near 
Halle,  in  Westphalia  ;  it  is  reported  to  be  more  than  100  metres 
long. 

A  SHARP  shock  of  earthquake  was  felt  at  Oran,  Algeria,  on 
November  27,  at  3  p.m.  It  lasted  ten  seconds,  the  oscillations 
being  from  east  to  west. 

According  to  a  telegram  sent  through  Reuter's  agency  from. 
Belgrade  on  December  2,  violent  shocks  of  earthquake,  accom- 
panied by  loud  subterranean  rumblings,  were  felt  on  Sunday 
afternoon  at  Kregugewatz,  Jagodina,  and  Kupsia.  The  disturb- 
ance generally  travelled  from  east  to  west,  but  some  of  the  shocks 
moved  from  north  to  south. 

Mr,  H,  C.  Russell,  Government  Astronomer  of  New  South. 
Wales,  has  published  the  results  of  meteorological  observa- 
tions made  in  that  cjlony  during  1887.  The  number  of  report- 
ing stations  is  now  862,  being  94  more  than  in  1886,  the 
increase  being  almost  wholly  in  rain  stations.  The  arrangement 
of  the  tables,  which  give  the  most  important  data  for  each 
station  separately,  is  the  same  as  in  previ  )us  years  ;  but  there 
are  also  two  new  tables  giving  the  mean  maximum  and  minimum, 
temperature  at  Sydney  for  each  month  from  1856  to  1887.  The 
mean  temperature  of  the  whole  colony  for  the  last  seventeen 
years  is  61°  2.  At  Sydney  the  mean  for  thirty  years  is  62°7.. 
The  diagrams  appended  to  the  volume  give  a  good  idea  of  the 
weather  conditions  at  Sydney,  and  clearly  exhibit  the  peculiari- 
ties of  certain  periods,  such  as  the  very  short  winter  of  1873,. 
and  the  long  one  of  1874,  also  the  long  summer  of  1877-78, 
with  four  months  of  hot  weather,  and  the  short  summer  of 
1886-87,  when  there  was  only  one  month  of  hot  weather.  In 
1878  the  lowest  winter  temperature  occurred  in  June,  and  in 
1872  in  August.  A  comparison  is  made  of  the  rainfall  at  the 
principal  places  in  the  various  colonies.  The  contrast  between 
the  amount  at  Brisbane  and  Sydney  an  i  that  at  Melbourne  is 
very  striking.     At   the  former  places  as  much  rain  sometimes. 


114 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


falls  in  one  month  as  woald  mike  a  year's  rainfall  at  Mjlbourne. 
At  Sydney  the  least  annual  rainfall  on  record  is  21 '48  inches, 
and  the  greatest  82 'Si  inches.  The  question  of  evaporation 
continues  to  receive  considerable  attention  ;  the  tabular  results 
are  published,  with  the  rain  and  river  results,  in  a  separate 
volume. 

The  Meteorological  Report  of  the  Straits  Settlements  has 
been  published  for  the  year  1888,  being  the  fifth  year  in  which 
meteorological  observations  in  the  colony  have  been  made  the 
subject  of  a  general  systematic  report.  The  temperature  of  the 
air  ranged  between  67'''2  and  96°,  and  solar  radiation  varied  from 
81°  to  179";  the  lowest  temperature  on  the  grass  was  61°. 
Rainfall  observations  were  received  from  forty-one  stations. 
The  annual  amount  differs  considerably  in  the  various  provinces, 
the  mean  of  the  stations  ranging  from  65  '6  inches  in  Singapore, 
to  1117  inches  in  Penang,  and  123 '2  inches  in  Province 
Wellesley.  The  greatest  fall  in  twenty-four  hours,  was  12 
inches  at  Bertam,  Province  Wellesley,  on  October  21.  The 
Report  also  contains  a  tabular  statement  of  annual  and  monthly 
rainfall  at  Singapore  since  1869,  and  diagrams  of  annual  rainfall 
and  other  elements  since  1870,  at  the  same  place. 

The  International  Commission  for  the  scientific  investigation 
of  the  Lake  of  Constance  have  nearly  finished  their  task,  which 
consisted  of  drawing  a  new  and  comprehensive  map  on  a  scale  of 
I  :  25,000  ;  investigating  the  currents,  density,  temperatures,  and 
chemical  composition  of  the  water  ;  and  minutely  describing  the 
flora  and  fauna  of  the  lake.  A  full  account  will  be  issued  when 
the  researches  are  complete. 

We  have  received  thelatestinstalment  (pp.  321-S4)  ofvol.  xvi.of 
the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  session  1888- 
89.  It  contains : — The  solubility  of  carbonate  of  lime  in  fresh  and 
sea  water,  by  W.  S.  Anderson,  chemist  at  Marine  Station, 
Granton  (continued)  ;  secretion  of  carbonate  of  lime  by 
animals,  part  ii.,  by  Robert  Irvine  and  Dr.  G.  Sims  Woodhead  ; 
theoretical  description  of  a  new  "  azimuth  diagram,"  by  Captain 
Patrick  Weir,  communicated  by  Sir  William  Thomson  ;  note 
on  Captain  Weir's  paper,  by  Prof.  Tait ;  on  the  coagulation  of 
egg  and  serum  albumen,  vitellin,  and  serum  globulin,  by  heat, 
by  Dr.  John  Berry  Haycraft  and  Dr.  C.  W.  Duggan. 

The  fourteenth  part  of  Cassell's  "  New  Popular  Educator" 
has  been  published.  It  includes  a  clearly  printed  map  of  the 
world. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Bombay  Anthropological  Society, 
Mr.  W.  E.  Sinclair,  of  the  Civil  Service,  read  a  paper  on  flint 
remains  in  the  Kolaba  district.  Referring  to  a  collection  be- 
longing to  the  Society  made  in  the  Ghar  Hills,  near  Sukker,  on 
the  Indus,  Mr.  Sinclair  said  that  these  hills  were  evidently  a 
sort  of  "Black  Country"  to  the  flint-using  races.  Cones  and  flakes 
can  be  got  there  literally  by  the  hundredweight.  There  is  no 
historical  evidence  of  the  use  of  such  things  in  India  proper.  On 
the  contrary,  all  historical  evidence  points  to  the  conclusion  that 
India  was  one  of  the  first  countries  to  use  iron,  if  not  the  very 
first.  Amongst  the  wildest  forest  tribes  to-day  the  use  of  stone 
does  not  go  beyond  weighting  a  fishing-line  or  bird  arrow  with  a 
pebble  ;  and  although  stone  spindle- weights  are  still  used  on  the 
coast,  these  are  no  more  barbarous  than  the  stones  in  an  English 
mill.  These  cones  of  flint  are  covered  with  long  grooves  of  a 
curved  section  ;  and  the  flakes  show  each  one  face  correspond- 
ing to  such  a  groove,  which  shows  that  they  have  been  struck 
off  such  cones.  The  cones  themselves  have  a  peculiar  typical 
form,  and  the  art  of  producing  flake  or  cone  is  one  lost  in  the 
India  of  to-day.  Where  a  flint  shows  that  peculiar  groove, 
there  is  good  reason  to  assume  that  it  was  made  before  iron  was 
known  in  India.  On  all  the  agates  and  chalcedonies  in  the 
Kolaba  collection  there  are  the  i-ame  strange  grooves,  the  same 
long  blade-like  flakes  matching  them,  as  in  .Sind  or  in  England 


or  France  ;  and  we  are,  in  fact,  in  presence  of  a  lost  art,  for 
which  there  has  been  no  occasion  from  the  time  that  iron  came 
into  common  use.  That  was  a  long  time  ago  in  India.  Steel — • 
and  very  good  steel,  too — must  have  been  for  many  generations 
in  the  hands  of  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  Konkan  when  the 
first  cave  temples  were  hewn — at  least  2000  years  ago.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  position  of  the  flakes,  both  in  Sind  and  in 
Kolaba,  shows  that  they  belong  to  a  very  recent  geological 
period.  The  Kolaba  specimens,  except  one  or  two,  come  from 
the  surface  of  the  lacustrine  gravels  abundant  in  the  valleys  of 
the  Konkan.  All  search  for  them  in  places  where  sections  of 
these  gravels  are  exposed  has  hitherto  been  fruitless,  and  the 
few  water-worn  specimens  found  came  out  of  a  river  bed.  They 
most  commonly  occur  at  places  where  fresh  water  is  to  be  had 
near  an  estuary. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Rhesus  Monkey  {Macacus  rhesus  9  )  from 
India,  presented  by  Colonel  J.  D.  C.  Ferrell ;  two  Common 
Marmosets  {Hapale  Jacchus)  from  South-East  Brazil,  presented 
by  Mr.  Charles  Petrzywaski  ;  an  Arctic  Fox  {Canis  lagoptis  9  ) 
from  Siberia,  presented  by  Mr.  Stuart  N.  Corlett  ;  a  Corn  Crake 
{Crex  pratensis)  from  Essex,  presented  by  Mr.  Bibby  ;  four 
Common  Snakes  {Tropidonotus  natrix),  British,  presented  by 
the  London,  Chatham,  and  Dover  Railway  ;  a  European  Bison 
{Bison  honasiis  i  )  from  Central  Europe,  deposited  ;  a  Stanleyan 
Chevrotain  ( 7Vagtilus  stanleyanus)  from  Ceylon,  a  Prevost's 
Squirrel  {Sciurus  prevosti  i )  from  Malacca,  a  Common  Roe 
{Capreolus  capraa  <J ),  European,  a  White-faced  Tree  Duck 
{Dendrocygna  viduata)  from  Brazil,  four  Black-necked  Swans 
{Cygnus  nigricollis)  from  Antarctic  America,  a  Curlew  {Nii- 
ntcnius  arquata),  British,  two  Indian  Cobras  {Naia  triptidians) 
from  India,  an  Annulated  Snake  [Leptodira  anmilata)  from 
Panama,  a  Hawk's-billed  Turtle  {Chelone  imbricata)  from  the 
East  Indies,  purchased  ;  two  Crested  Pigeons  {Ocyphaps  lophotes) 
bred  in  the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Ohjects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.,  December  5  =  2h. 
59m.  335. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  189a 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)  G.  C.  648      

— 

— 

3  12  31 

+40    7 

(2)  D  M.  -f  3°  410     ... 

7 

Yellowish-red. 

2  51   19 

+  4    3 

(3)  7  Persei 

3 

White. 

2  56  48 

+53    4 

(4)  I  Cassiopeiae 

4 

Bluish-white. 

2  20    0 

+  66  54 

(5)D.M.  -f  57    702   ... 

8 

Red. 

3     2  57 

+  57  29 

(6)  R  Persei         

Var. 

Reddish. 

3  23     3 

+  33  iS 

(7)  T  Geminoruin 

Var. 

~ 

42  42 

+  24    0 

Remarks. 

(i)  Ihe  General  Catalogue  description  of  this  nebula  is  as 
follows  :— Pretty  bright,  pretty  small,  round,  brighter  in  the 
middle.     The  spectrum  has  not  yet  been  recorded. 

(2)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  II.,  in  which  Duner  records  the 
bands  2-8,  and  states  that  the  bands  2  and  3  are  especially  well 
developed.  This  latter  fact  indicates  that  the  star  is  well 
advanced,  and  it  accordingly  falls  in  a  late  species  (13)  of  the 
group.  As  I  have  before  pointed  out  with  reference  to  similar 
stars,  absorption  li)tes  of  metallic  substances,  and  possibly  of 
hydrogen,  may  be  expected  at  this  stage,  and  it  is  important  to 
note  the  presence  or  absence  of  these,  as  they  will  probably 
form  a  connecting  link  between  the  stars  of  this  group  and  the 
slightly  hotter  stars  of  Group  III.  The  intensity  of  the  bright 
carbon  flutin'4  near  /',  as  compared  with  its  appearance  in  other 
stars  of  the  group,  will  bean  additional  check  in  placing  it  in 
position  on  the  ''temperature  curve." 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


115 


(3)  This  is  classed  with  stars  of  the  solar  type  by  Gothard, 
but  there  is  not  sufficient  detail  in  his  description  of  the  spectrum 
to  enable  us  to  say  whether  it  be  Group  III.  or  V.  Further 
observations  with  special  reference  to  this  point  are  therefore 
required  (for  criteria,  see  p.  20).  Gothard's  statement  as  to  the 
colour  of  the  star  should  be  checked,  as  most  of  the  stars  of 
Groups  III.  and  V.  are  yellowish.  The  stars  which  are  not  far 
removed  from  Group  IV.,  on  either  side,  are  the  whitest. 

(4)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  IV.,  and  the  usual  observations 
are  suggested. 

(5)  This  is  a  ver}-  fine  example  of  the  stars  of  Group  VI., 
showmg  the  subsidiary  bands  4  and  5.  The  band  6  (\  564) 
appears  to  be  most  subject  to  variation  in  the  different  stars  of 
the  group  as  described  by  Duner,  in  some  cases  being  wide  and 
pale,  and  in  others  wide  and  dark.  As  this  may  subsequently 
form  the  basis  of  a  temperature  classification,  the  character  of 
the  band  in  the  star  under  consideration  should  be  carefully 
noted.  The  presence  or  absence  of  lines  in  the  spectrum  should 
also  be  recorded.  [Duner's  notation  for  the  bands  in  the  spec- 
trum of  stars  of  Group  VI.  is  as  follows  :—(i)  656,  (2)  621, 
(3)  604-8,  (4)  589-8,  (5)  576-0,  (6)  563-3,  (7)  551,  (8)  528-3, 
(9)  516-3,  (10)  472-7.  (6),  (9),  and  (10)  are  the  dark  flutings  of 
carbon.] 

(6)  The  period  of  this  variable  is  given  by  Gore  as  210  days, 
and  the  magnitudes  at  maximum  and  minimum  as  7-7-9-2  and 
12-5  respectively.  The  spectrum  has  not  yet  been  recorded.  The 
maximum  will  occur  on  December  15. 

(7)  This  variable  has  a  period  of  288-1  days,  the  next  maxi- 
mum occurring  on  December  14.  The  magnitude  at  maximum 
is  given  by  Gore  as  81-8-7,  and  that  at  minimum  as  <  13.  It 
is  still  doubtful  whether  the  star  belongs  to  Group  II.  or  to 
Group  VI.,  and  the  approaching  maximum  may  afford  an 
opportunity  of  settling  the  question.  A.  Fowler. 

Sun-spot  of  June,  July,  and  August,  1889.— The 
Memoir  of  the  Societa  degli  Spettroscopisti  Italian!  for  October 
contains  a  series  of  observations  by  Prof.  Ricco  of  this  spot. 
The  latitude  of  the  spot  from  its  appearance  on  June  16  and 
during  the  first  semi-rotation,  varied  between  the  limits  -5°-9 
and  -  7° -5.  At  the  second  appearance,  the  variation  was 
between  -  7°-5  and  -  10° "8,  whilst  at  the  third  appearance,  in 
August,  the  limiting  latitudes  were  -  8^-5  and  -  10°. 

The  group  of  spots  that  appeared  on  June  30  was  found  to 
have  a  latitude  as  high  as  -  41°.  The  following  day,  however, 
the  latitude  was  found  to  be  -  40^°,  and  on  July  2  the  group 
disappeared. 

Prof  Sporer,  in  a  communication  to  Prof.  Ricco,  notes  that 
the  following  bright  lines  were  measured  at  Potsdam  on  June  28 
in  a  prominence  that  appeared  as  the  above  large  spot  was  dis- 
appearing over  the  sun's  edge. 


AVave-length. 
6726 
671-6 

C 
649-2 
646  2 

Di 
D., 

D.: 


Origin. 
Calcium 
C  alcium 
Hydrogen 
Calcium 
Calcium 
Sodium 
Sodium 


ave-Iength. 

Origin. 

5588        ... 

Calcium 

53i'6       ... 

Coronal  line 

526-9       ... 

Calcium 

518-8       ... 

Calcium 

h. 

Magnesium 

I', 

Magnesium 

^ 

Magnesium 

Photographic  Star  Spectra.— As  a  portion  of  the  Henry 
Draper  memorial,  the  spectra  of  stars  are  being  photographed 
at  Chosica  in  Peru.  Of  the  photographs  that  have  been  re- 
ceived at  Harvard  College,  Prof.  Pickering  notes  {Js/r.  Nachr., 
No.  2934)  several  have  similar  spectra  to  the  "bright  line" 
stars  in  Cygnus.  The  hydrogen  line  F  is  bright  in  Q  Muscce, 
the  same  as  in  7  Cassiopeia?,  and  the  presence  of  bright  hydrogen 
lines  in  r/  Argus  and  R  Hydrse  is  also  confirmed  by  the  photo- 
graphs. 

Numerous  photographs  have  been  taken  at  Harvard  College 
of  ihe  spectra  of  the  stars  in  the  Pleiades,  and  an  examination  of 
them  shows  that  ths  hydrogen  line  F  in  the  spectrum  of  Pleione 
D.M.  -V  23°  558,  consists  of  a  narrow  bright  line  superposed  on 
a  broader  dark  line.  The  other  hydrogen  lines,  especially  that 
near  G,  show  some  indications  of  a  similar  effect. 

With  respect  to  this.  Prof.  Pickering  observes  that  an  in- 
teresting analogy  between  the  Pleiades  and  Q  Orioiiis  appears 
in  the  fact  that  in  bjth  cases  extensive  nebulosities  surround 
stars  with  bright  lines  in  their  spectra. 


Comet  Brooks  {d  1889,  July  6).— The  following  elements 
and  ephcmeris  have  been  computed  by  Dr.  Knopf  from  observa- 
tions made  at  Mount  Hamilton,  July  8  ;  Dresden,  August  25;. 
and  Vienna,  October  24  :^ — 

t  =  September  29-7436  Berlin  Mean  Time. 

iw- 343  1856-5  ) 

fi  =     17  58  29-6  V  Mean  Eq.  1889-0. 
'  =      63  59-6  ) 
<)  =    28    4  13-3 
/u  =  5oi"-8i56 
U  =  7-071  years. 

Efhemeris  for  Berlin  Midnight. 


Dec, 


?. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

[        1889. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

h.  m.  s. 

0      / 

h.  m.  s. 

^ 

7  • 

..0   758.. 

-f-    248-1 

Dec.  19  .. 

.  0  22  54.. 

•  +  4  55-^ 

8  . 

••      9    7- 

258-4 

20 . 

•      2415.. 

5    6-1 

9 

..    10  17  .. 

3    8-8 

21  .. 

.      2530.. 

•       517-0 

10  . 

..    II  28  .. 

3  I9'2 

22 .. 

.      2658.. 

•       5  27-9 

II  . 

.     12  41  .. 

.       3  29-7 

23.. 

.      2821.. 

■       5  38-9 

12  , 

■     1355- 

3402 

24- 

■      2945.. 

5  49*9 

13- 

•     15    9-- 

3  50-8 

25" 

•      31     9- 

9    0-9 

14.. 

.     16  24 .. 

4    I '4 

26.. 

•      3234.. 

6  12-0 

15- 

•     1740.. 

4  12-1 

27" 

.      34     I.. 

6  23-1 

16.. 

.     1857.. 

4  22-8 

28.. 

•      3528.. 

634-2 

17.. 

.     20  15  .. 

4336 

29  •• 

•     36  55-- 

645-4 

18.. 

•     2134.. 

4  44  "4 

30  " 

•     3823.. 

656-5 

19" 

•     2154.. 

;      4  55-2 

31  " 

•     59  52". 

7    77 

Mr.  Chandler  notes  {Astr.  J  our.  No.  204)  that  the  result  of  an 
.inquiry  into  the  corrected  elements  of  this  comet  is  extremely 
interesting.  The  descending  node  of  the  comet's  orbit  upon 
that  of  Jupiter  lies  at  i85°-5  long.,  Jupiter's  aphelion  at  191% 
and  the  comet's  aphelion  at  i83\  The  aphelion  distances  are 
5-4541  and  5-3992  respectively,  the  mutual  inclination  of  the 
orbits  is  3°,  and  the  orbital  velocities  nearly  the  same  ;  so  that 
when  both  bodies  happen  to  be  near  this  region  they  will 
rtmain  together  many  months.  . 

Comet  Swift  (/1889,  November  17).— The  following  ele- 
mtnis  and  ephtmeris  are  given  by  Dn  Zelbr  in  Circular- 
No.  69,  issued  by  the  Vienna  Academy  of  Sciences,  November 
25,  1889,  and  have  been  computed  from  observations  made  at 
Rochester,  November  17  ;  Vienna  and  Palermo,  November  20^ 
and  at  Vienna,  November  22  :— 

T  =  1889  December  10-5665  Berlin  Mean  Time. 

fi  =  309  51   12  ) 
w  =  109  24  70  >  Mean  Eq.  1889-0, 

*  =       7  14  I    ) 
log  q  =  0-07554, 

A\  cos  j8  =  +  132"   ...   Aj8  =  -  14". 


Ephcmeris  for  Berlin  midnight. 


R.A. 


Decl. 


Log  A. 


Log  r.    ■   Bright- 
1.     m.     s.  ^       ,  ne.ss. 

Dec.    7  ...  23  41  56  ...  -m8  32-4  ...  9-6509  ...  00759  ...  1-29 
II   ...  23  58  44  ...      20    2-7  ...  96457  ...  0075b  ...  1-32 
The  brightness  at  discovery  has  been  taken  as  unity. 

S  Cassiopei.*:. — The  Rev.  T.  E.  Espin,  examining  the  spec- 
trum of  this  star  on  November  27,  found  that  it  resembled  in 
appearance  that  of  R  Andromedse,  the  bright  F  line  blazing  out 
upon  the  background  of  the  continuous  ^pectrum,  and  being 
plainly  visible  even  with  the  least  dispersion  used.  The  star  is 
not  included  by  Duner  in  his  classical  work,  "  Les  Etoiles  a 
Spectres  de  la  Troisieme  Classe,"  but  its  general  spectrum  is 
apparently  of  that  type — Group  II.  oi  Mr.  Lockyer's  classifica- 
tion. Mr.  Espin  adds  that  ''the  yellow  is  brilliant,  suggesting 
(bright)  lines,  but  the  star  is  at  present  too  faint  to  be  sure." 

The  star  is  a  variable  of  very  long  period,  607-5  days;  the 
next  expected  maximum  falls  on  D  cember  26,  so  that  it  may 
show  some  lurther  ar.d  interesting  developments  during  the  next 
three  weeks.  Chandler,  however,  records  his  suspicion  that  the 
period  is  shortening,  so  that  the  actual  maximum  may  be  very 
close  at  hand,  T  he  maximum  brightness  varies  frjm  6  7  mag. 
to  8-6.  Mr,  Espin  estimated  it  as  78  on  the  night  of 
observation.  Place  for  iJ:'9o:  R.A.  ih.  iim.  34s,;  Decl. 
72°  i'-9  N. 


ii6 


NATURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


T/IE  ANNIVERSARY  MEETING  OF  THE 
ROYAL  SOCIETY. 

f~)N  Saturday  last,  St.  Andrew's  Day,  the  Royal  Society  held 
^^  its  anniversary  meeting.  The  President  read  the  anni- 
versary address,  a  copy  of  which  has  not  yet  reached  us.  The 
medals  were  then  presented  as  follows  :  the  Copley  Medal  to 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Salmon  (received  by  Sir  R.  S.  Ball)  ;  the  Davy 
Medal  to  Dr.  Perkin  ;  a  Royal  Medal  to  Dr.  Gaskell  ;  and  a 
Royal  Medal  to  Prof.  Thorpe.  The  Society  next  proceeded  to 
■elect  the  Officers  and  Council  for  the  ensuing  year.  The  selected 
names  we  have  already  published. 

In  the  evening  the  Fellows  and  their  friends  dined  together  at 
the  Whitehall  Rooms,  Hotel  Metropole,  the  President  in  the 
chair.     Over  two  hundred  Fellows  and  guests  were  present. 

The  toast  of    "The  Royal  Society"  was  proposed   by  the 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Commons.     He  said  : — Sir  George 
Stokes    and    Gentlemen, — If    I    thought    the    audience   whom 
I  have  the  honour  to    address,   took  the  same   view   as  I   do 
of  my  own  want  of  qualifications  for  proposing  this  toast,  I  think 
I  should  at  once  sit  down  ;   but  it  is  because  I  trust  to  your 
generous  forbearance  for  a  few  moments  that  I  ask  you  to  allow 
«ie  to  propose  a  toast  which  needs  no  advocacy  of  mine,  the 
toast  of  the  Royal    Society.     I    suppose  the  reason  why  your 
President  has  selected  me  to  propose  this  toast  is  owing  to  the 
fact  of  the  official  position  that  I  hold  in  the  House  of  Commons, 
and  also  partly  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  holder  of  one  chair  has 
been  willing  to  pay  a   compliment   to   the  holder  of  another. 
There   are   very   few    members   of  the  House  of  Commons,    I 
believe,  who  are  entitled  to  put  three  letters   to  their  name  to 
indicate  membership  of  your  Society.     I  omit  those  Privy  Coun- 
cillors who,  I  believe,  by  virtue  of  their  office,  have  a  claim  to 
be  looked  upon  as  members  of  this  Society.     I  am  speaking  now 
of  the  strictly  scientific  men,  and  I  believe   I  could  number  the 
strictly  scientific  members  of  the   House  of  Commons  who  are 
members  of  the  Royal  Society  on  the  fingers  of  one  hand.      But 
I  may  say  that  those  members  of  the  House  of  Commons  make 
up  for  their  numerical  weakness  by  the  qualities  they  disolay, 
the  high  place  they  have  filled,  by  their  pre-eminence  in  debate, 
and  by  the  records  they  have  left  upon  the  Statute-book  of  the 
country.     It  may  be  said  that  five  members  is  a  small  infusion 
to  leaven  the  whole  lump  of  the  House  of  Commons,  and  I  am 
very  conscious  that  scientific  gentlemen  may  regard  at  times  with 
a  feeling  of  displeasure,  if  not  with  a  more  contemptuous  feeling, 
some  of  our  modes  of  procedure  and   some   of  our  habits  of 
thought  in  the  House  of  Commons.     You  may  think  that  we  do 
not  display  that  calmness  of  judgment,  that  patient  investigation 
of  detail,  which  characterize  the  scientific  mind.     You  may  think 
that  we  import  into  our  discussions  too  muchof  a  very  unscientific 
heat,  and  that  we  are  diverted  from  our  objects  by  a  great  many 
cross-currents  of  prejudice  and  of  party.     However  that  may  be, 
Sir,    I  believe  that  the  object  that  you  and  we  have  in  view 
is   the  same.       The   great    historian    Hume,    speaking   of  the 
inception    of    this    Society,    said     that    it    was    the    part    of 
scientific     men     to     lift     the      veil     from     the     mysteries     of 
Nature.       It    is    a    humbler    function    which    the    House    of 
Commons   has   to    discharge — to    solve    the    great   social   and 
political  questions  of  the  day.       But  the  object  of  both  is  the 
same,  the  attainment  of  truth,  and,  by  whatever  means  we  can 
attain  that  object,  that  object  ought  to   be  the  main  purpose  of 
our  lives,     I  believe  I  am  right  in  saying   this  Society  owes  its 
inception  and  its  origin  to  the  University  of  Oxford.     In   these 
later  days  it  owes  a  debt  to  the  great  sister  University,  in  the 
fact  that  that  University  has  sent  to  the  chair  of  your  Society  a 
gentleman  who  combines   in  his  own  person,  not  for  the  first 
time,  the  functions  of  a  Professor,  of  a  member  of  the  University 
of  Cambridge,   and  of  President  of  this  great  scientific  body. 
Sir,  I  am  very  loth,  indeed,  to  trespass  any  longer  upon  your 
time.     I  have  no  claim  whatever  to  do  so.     I  will  only  very 
humbly  express  my  views.    My  own  individual  opinion  is  worth- 
less and  insignificant ;  but  possibly  invested  for  a  few  moments 
with  a  representative  character,  and  speaking  for  the  House  of 
Commons,  and  that  great  public  who  are  behind  it,  I  would  say 
that  the  public  of  the  present  day  regard  not  only  with  that 
vague  astonishment,  which  they  might  well  do,  the  great  achieve- 
ments of  science,  but  they  look  with  admiration  upon  the  great 
men  who  have  illustrated  the  history  of  your  Society,  and  they 
see  in  that  very  lengthened  list  one  of  the  greatest  tributes  to  the 
greatness  of  their  country.     I  do,  Sir,  very  much  feel  the  imper- 
fection with  which  I   have  addressed   to  you  these  few  words. 


But  if  I  have  said  that  the  scientific  mind  is  needed  in  the  House 
of  Commons,  I  will  also  say  this,  that  the  House  of  Commons 
has  in  these  days  to  face  not  only  great  political  problems,  but 
some  of  those  questions  which  are  surging  up  and  coming  ever 
more  to  the  front,  I  mean  the  great  social  problems — problems 
connected  with  the  aggregation  of  vast  multitudes  in  towns, 
problems  connected  with  the  question  how  to  make  the  lot  of 
the  poor  happier,  how  to  make  it  easier  for  men  to  support  a  life 
of  continuous  labour,  how,  in  short,  to  sweeten  life,  and  to  make 
that  toil  which  falls  upon  us  all  lighter  to  the  poor  with  some  ray 
of  hope,  and  easier  with  some  degree  of  comfort  and  con- 
venience. But  it  is  to  science  that  the  public  must  look  for  aid 
in  solving  these  questions.  \o\i  have  done  much  already,  but 
you  will  add  a  still  nobler  title  to  the  admiration  of  the  world  if 
you  deal  with  these  subjects,  as  I  am  sure  you  will,  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  make  it  impossible  for  the  practical  politician  to 
separate  himself  from  the  nobler  follower  of  science.  It  is  with 
a  very  deep  sense  of  the  value  of  this  Society  and  of  the  feeling 
which  is  abroad  with  regard  to  it,  that  I  beg  to  propose  to  you 
—  and  I  thank  you  most  cordially  for  the  toleration  with  which 
you  have  listened  to  my  few  remarks — the  toast  of  "  The  Royal 
Society." 

In  response,  the  President  said  : — My  Lords  and  Gentlemen, 
— On  behalf  of  the  Society  which  I  have  the  honour  to  represent 
on  this  occasion,  I  beg  to  return  our  thanks  for  the  honour  you 
have  done  us  in  drinking  the  toast.  This  Society  is  by  far  the 
oldest  scientific  Society  in  the  Kingdom,  but  it  cannot  for  a 
moment  compare  in  antiquity  with  that  other  institution  over 
which  the  Speaker  presides.  Our  aims  are  of  course  naturally 
very  different,  and  our  modes  of  procedure  are  different  too.  We 
have,  as  the  other  House  has,  discussions  in  our  body,  but  our 
discussions  are  usually  carried  on  with  calmness,  and  we  en- 
deavour— those  of  us  who  pursue  different  branches  of  science 
— to  assist  one  another.  I  do  not  think  that  that  is  always  the 
case  in  the  other  Society.  Perhaps  there  is  nowadays  at  times 
something  akin  to  obslruction  rather  than  assistance.  However, 
in  order  that  truth  may  be  elicited,  it  is  necessary  that  there 
should  be  contact  between  mind  and  mind,  and  contact  some- 
times produces  severance.  It  is  better  that  that  contact  should 
take  place  in  order  that  we  should  understand  one  another.  Our 
Society  does  not  exactly  deal  with  social  problems  such  as  the 
Speaker  has  alluded  to,  still  there  are  many  cases  in  which  ques- 
tions of  great  interest  to  the  bulk  of  the  population  are  capable 
of  being  illuminated  by  scientific  researches.  To  take  one  re- 
markable example  which  has  been  brought  prominently  before 
us.  Let  us  consider  the  investigations,  so  important  in  their 
results,  so  purely  scientific  in  inception,  which  have  been  carried 
on  by  M.  Pasteur  in  France,  As  the  result  of  a  long  series  of  scien- 
tific experiments,  he  has  now  succeeded  in  protecting  in  a  great 
majority  of  instances  those  persons  who  have  been  so  unfortunate 
as  to  have  been  bitten. by  rabid  animals  from  that  terrible  disease 
which  ordinarily  follows  in  the  wake.  His  merits  in  that  respect 
have  been  duly  acknowledged  in  this  country.  We  know  that 
recently,  within  the  course  of  the  present  year,  the  Lord  Mayor 
called  a  meeting  at  the  Mansion  House  to  make  some  recogni- 
tion on  the  part  of  this  country  of  the  great  debt  which  we  owe 
to  M.  Pasteur  for  those  researches.  I  mention  that  as  one, 
but  it  is  only  one,  of  many  instances  in  which  great  social 
advantages  have  accrued  from  purely  scientific  investigation. 
I  trust  that  harmony  will  long  continue  to  exist  between  the 
Society  which  I  have  the  honour  to  represent,  and  that 
which  the  Speaker  represents.  I  can  say  this  much — that, 
whatever  Government  may  have  been  in  power,  there  have 
frequently  been  applications  made  to  the  Royal  Society  lor  ad- 
vice on  some  purely  scientific  questions  on  which  the  Cabinet  of 
the  day  did  not  feel  that  they  had  the  requisite  knowledge  to 
pronounce  an  opinion  ;  and  this  I  must  say,  that  the  Royal 
Society  has  freely  given  the  best  of  their  knowledge  on  these 
subjects  to  the  Government  of  the  day,  without  any  considera- 
tion of  what  the  politics  of  that  Government  might  be.  I 
trust  that  this  will  ever  continue  to  be  the  case,  and  that  the 
Royal  Society  may  go  on  in  a  peaceful  way  doing  the  duties 
which  belong  to  it,  and  that  the  country  may  reap  the  benefits 
resulting  therefrom. 

Responding  for  the  toast  of  "The  Medallists,"  proposed  by 
the  President,  Prof.  Thorpe  said  : — Mr.  President,  my  Lords, 
and  Gentlemen, — We  must  all  regret,  I  am  sure,  that  Dr. 
Salmon's  duties  as  Provost  of  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  should 
have  prevented  him  from  being  present  amongst  us  to-day  to 
receive  the  Copley  Medal  in  person  and  to  respond  to  the  toas 


Dec.  5,  1889] 


NATURE 


"7 


which  has  just  been  so  cordially  drunk  by  you.  For  reasons 
which  my  brother  medallists  at  least  can  fully  appreciate,  no  one 
feels  that  regret  more  keenly  than  I  do.  I  may  confess  that  it 
was  with  a  feeling  akin  to  astonishment  that  I  received  through 
a  good-natured  friend  the  intimation  that  the  Council  of  the 
Society  had  seen  fit  to  honour  such  chemical  work  as  I  had  been 
able  to  do  by  the  signal  recommendation  of  the  award  of  a 
Royal  Medal  ;  but  that  feeling  culminated  into  something  like 
consternation  when  you,  Sir,  informed  me  of  your  wish  that  I 
should  reply,  in  the  absence  of  the  Copley  Medallist,  to  the 
toast  with  which  you  have  connected  my  name  ;  and  I  began 
to  realize  the  full  force  of  the  truth  that  there  are  occasions  when 
it  is  more  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive.  Dr.  Salmon's  absence, 
however,  enables  me  to  attempt  to  give  expression  to  the  feeling 
of  satisfaction  and  pleasure  with  which,  I  am  informed,  the 
mathematical  world  regards  this  year's  award  of  the  Copley 
Medal.  The  worker  in  the  field  of  pure  mathematics  appeals 
for  recognition  to  a  very  select  few  ;  his  work  is,  indeed,  caviare 
to  the  general  ;  his  are  not  the  triumphs  which  appeal  to  the 
popular  fancy  or  which  strike  the  popular  imagination.  If  he 
labours  for  fame,  he  must  be  content  to  wait  with  the  certain 
knowledge  that,  if  his  work  be  good  and  true,  it  will  at  length 
meet  with  the  recognition  it  merits  from  a  tribunal  which  is  un- 
moved by  prejudice  and  is  insensible  to  the  forces  of  fashion  or 
faction.  For  nearly  half  a  century  Dr.  Salmon  has  so  worked, 
and  to-day  he  receives  his  reward  at  the  hands  of  the  highest 
scientific  tribunal  in  the  world  by  the  award  to  him  of  the  most 
precious  gift  which  it  is  in  the  power  of  that  tribunal  to  bestow. 
The  other  medallists.  Dr.  Gaskell  and  Dr.  Perkin,  are  happily 
with  us  to-night  to  receive  the  congratulations  of  their  fellow- 
workers  in  science,  and  to  be  witnesses  of  the  cordiality  with 
which  their  health  has  been  drunk  by  you.  But  I  cannot  forego 
the  opportunity  of  saying  also,  in  their  case,  how  entirely  your 
awards  have  been  appreciated  by  the  great  body  of  scientific 
opinion,  both  within  and  without  the  Royal  Society.  To  be 
praised  by  men  who  are  themselves  praised  is,  we  all  know,  the 
very  highest  form  of  approbation  that  a  man  can  enjoy,  and 
such,  to  my  knowledge,  is  the  happy  lot  of  the  gentlemen  whom 
you  have  been  pleased  to  honour  to-night.  It  is,  h  >wever,  one 
of  the  penalties  to  a  man  who  is  in  the  position  in  which  I  now 
find  myself,  and  who  does  not  pretend  to  be  an  Admirable 
Crichton,  that  he  is  unable  from  his  own  knowledge,  or  rather 
from  the  imperfecti  m  of  it,  to  do  adequate  justice  to  the  claims 
which  such  men  have  upon  your  regard.  Dr.  Gaskell's  work  is  so 
entirely  outside  my  own  province  that  it  would  be  in  the  highest 
decree  presumptuous  on  my  part  to  offer  you  any  expression  of 
my  own  opinion  as  to  its  merits.  Of  my  colleague  and  fellow- 
worker,  Dr.  Perkin,  to  whom  your  Council  has  awarded  the 
Davy  Medal,  I  trust  I  may  be  allowed  to  speak  with  greater 
freedom,  because  in  his  case  I  am  more  or  less  upon  my  own 
ground,  and  am  talking  about  matters  which  are  within  my  own 
knowledge.  It  is  exactly  ten  years  since  that  Dr.  Perkin  was 
placed  by  your  Council  in  the  position  in  which  I  find  myself 
to-day.  In  awarding  him  a  Royal  Medal  on  that  occasion,  our 
former  President,  the  late  Mr.  Spottiswoode,  took  the  oppor- 
tunity to  say  that  Dr.  Perkin  had  then  been,  during  more  than 
twenty  years,  one  of  the  most  industrious  and  successful  workers 
in  organic  chemistry,  and  he  added  that  it  was  seldom  that  an 
investigator  had  extended  his  researches  over  so  wide  a  range  as 
was  the  case  with  Dr.  Perkin,  whose  work  had  always  com- 
manded the  admiration  of  chemists  for  its  accuracy  and  com- 
pleteness, and  for  the  originality  of  its  conception.  There  is 
not  a  chemist  here  present  who  will  not  cordially  re-echo  these 
words.  Dr.  Perkin  is,  no  doubt,  known  to  you  all  as  the 
originator  of  one  of  the  most  important  branches  of  modern 
chemical  industry — that  of  the  manufacture  of  colouring  matters 
from  coal-tar  derivatives — an  industry  which  has  acquired  almost 
colossal  proportions,  and  which  has  effected  a  complete  revolu- 
tion in  the  tinctorial  arts.  I  say  it  with  bated  breath  to  you. 
Sir,  as  the  member  for  the  University  of  Cambridge,  but  we  all 
remember  the  famous  saying  of  Swift  as  to  the  value  to  man- 
kind of  the  whole  race  of  politicians  put  together  when  com- 
pared with  that  man  who  has  made  two  blades  of  grass  to  grow 
where  only  one  blade  grew  before.  I  do  not  know  that  Dr. 
Perkin  has  achieved  that  feat,  but  I  claim  for  him  that  he  has  done 
even  more  than  this,  for  he  has  succeeded  in  demolishing 
an  entire  agricultural  industry.  By  his  researches  he  has  shown 
us  that  we  have  practically  at  our  own  doors,  or  at  least  in  our 
own  coal-pits,  all  the  richness  and  beauty  of  c  )lour  which  were 
formerly  only  to  be  obtained  from  the  madder  fields  of  Avignon 


and  the  Levant.  A  beneficent  fortune,  we  are  glad  to  know, 
has  not  been  unmindful  of  Dr.  Perkin's  success  in  thus  enriching 
the  world,  and  she  has  endowed  him  with  a  share  of  that  material 
benefit  which  his  skill  and  genius  as  an  investigator  has  conferred 
upon  us  all.  That  competency,  and  the  well-earned  leisure  which 
has  sprung  from  it,  Dr.  Perkin  has  dedicated,  with  a  directness 
and  singleness  of  purpose  which  merits  our  warmest  appreciation, 
to  the  service  of  science.  Nothing,  I  think,  more  clearly  in- 
dicates the  truly  scientific  character  of  his  mind,  and  his  love  of 
science  for  its  own  sake,  than  that  he  should,  whilst  compara- 
tively a  young  man,  have  turned  aside  from  the  pursuit  of  the 
great  wealth  which  all  his  friends  thought  would  ultimately  be 
within  his  grasp  in  order  that  he  might  follow,  undisturbed,  his 
innate  desire  for  pure  scientific  research.  The  ten  years  which 
have  elapsed  since  our  late  President  alluded  in  such  character- 
istically graceful  terms  to  Dr.  Perkin's  labours  in  the  domains  of 
pure  and  applied  chemistry  have  been  rich  in  scientific  achieve- 
ment, and  they  have  now  culminated  in  that  laborious  series  of 
researches  on  one  of  the  most  abstruse  points  of  physical 
chemistry  which  has  been  so  fittingly  rewarded  by  you  by  the 
gift  of  the  Davy  medal.  I  have  already  alluded  to  the 
feeling  with  which  I  received  the  intimation  from  my  good- 
natured  friend  that  the  Council  of  the  Royal  Society  had  beerk 
pleased  to  confer  upon  me  a  distinction  which  is  my  sole  excuse 
for  trespassing  upon  your  indulgence  to-night.  I  will  only  again 
refer  to  that  feeling  to  say  that  in  deference  to  the  express  wish, 
of  my  di-tinguished  friend  I  am  doing  my  best  to  get  over  it.  I 
am  bound  to  add  that  my  friend  has  himself  supplied  a  reason 
which  in  some  measure  serves  to  explain  the  circumstance^ 
Among  the  pieces  of  work  which  the  Council  have  thought 
worthy  of  notice  was  a  redetermination  of  the  atomic  weight  of 
gold  made  in  conjunction  with  Mr.  Arthur  Laurie.  I  shall  not 
trouble  you  with  the  reasons  which  made  that  redetermination  seem 
specially  desirable,  but  that  it  was  desirable  will  be  evident  from 
the  fact  that  no  fewer  than  three  independent  investigations  were 
in  progress  at  the  same  time  in  Germany,  England,  and  America. 
All  the  results  have  now  been  published,  and  they  are,  I  think, 
in  very  fair  accord.  But  my  distinguished  friend,  whose  good- 
nature is  only  equalled  by  his  candour,  has  reminded  me  that 
there  is  a  discrepancy  of  a  remote  decimal  place  or  so  in  our 
several  values  for  the  atomic  weight,  and,  in  default  of  any 
other  probable  hypothesis,  it  had  occurred  to  him  that  the  real 
motive  of  the  Council  in  making  the  award  was  to  give  me 
both  the  hint  and  the  opportunity  to  clear  up  the  disparity. 
The  Gold  Medal,  he  pointed  out,  would  afford  an  ample  sup- 
ply of  the  material  on  which  to  base  a  new  determination, 
and  the  Silver  Medal  would  come  in  handy  for  the  pre- 
paration of  the  necessary  standard  solutions.  This  seemed 
to  me  to  put  the  whole  matter  in  a  new  light,  but,  on. 
turning  to  the  official  intimation  of  the  award  forwarded 
to  me  by  Dr.  Foster,  and  then  to  a  friendly  letter  which 
the  President  has  been  so  good  as  to  send  me,  I  have  not 
gathered  that  this  intention  was  ever  in  the  mind  of  the  Council, 
and  until  I  receive  a  further  official  intimation  that  such  was  the 
case,  I  mean  to  do  my  best  to  preserve  intact  the  counterfeit 
presentment  of  the  gracious  lady  which  adorns  the  medals. 
There  is  just  one  other  matter  connected  with  my  work  to  which,, 
with  your  permission,  I  would  allude.  Reference  was  made  in 
the  terms  of  the  award  to  a  series  of  researches  on  fluorine 
compounds  on  which  I  have  been  engaged  for  some  years  past. 
I  wish  to  mention,  and  I  do  so  with  a  very  special, 
pleasure,  that  much  of  this  work  has  been  carried  out 
in  cooperation  with  some  of  my  senior  students  at  the 
Normal  School  of  Science.  This  work  has  been  at  all 
times  difficult,  often  disagreeable,  and  occasionally  dangerous, 
and  I  am  glad  to  seize  this  opportunity  of  testifying  to  the  zeal, 
assiduity,  and,  I  may  add,  courage,  which  my  collaborateurs  have 
shown  in  the  progress  of  the  investigations.  It  is  a  further 
satisfaction  to  me  to  add  that  the  qualities  thus  evoked  and  the 
training  thus  ac  quired  have  been  of  material  benefit  to  them  in. 
their  professional  advancement,  and  I  can  wish  them  no  greater 
good  fortune  than  that  it  may  be  their  lot  in  time  to  come  to 
occupy  my  place  here,  and  to  be  received  by  you  with  that  in- 
dulgence which  you  have  extended  to  me  to-night. 


A  NEW  METHOD  OF  PREPARING  FLUORINE 

A  NEW  method  of  preparing  fluorine  has  been  discovered  by  M. 
•^"^  Moissan.  This  discovery  is  the  outcome  of  the  success  which 
has  attended  M.  Moisian's  effjrts  to  prepare  anhydrous  fluorider 


n8 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  5,  1889 


of  platinum.  Daring  the  process  of  his  memorable  work  upon 
the  isolation  of  fluorine  by  the  electrolysis  of  hydrofluoric  acid 
containing  hydrogen  potassium  fluoride,  one  of  the  most  remark- 
able phenomena  noticed  was  the  rapidity  with  which  the 
platinum  rod  forming  the  positive  electrode  was  corroded  by  the 
action  of  the  liberated  gaseous  fluorine.  It  was  surmised  that  a 
fluoride  of  platinum  was  the  product  of  this  action,  but  hitherto 
all  efforts  to  isolate  such  a  body  have  proved  unsuccessful.  In 
fact,  for  a  reason  which  will  be  discussed  subsequently,  it  is  im- 
possible to  prepare  platinum  fluoride  in  the  wet  way.  M. 
Moissan  has,  however,  been  enabled  to  prepare  anhydrous 
platinum  fluoride  by  the  action  of  pure  dry  fluorine  itself  upon 
the  metal.  It  was  found  at  the  outset  that,  when  fluorine  is  free 
from  admixed  vapour  of  hydrofluoric  acid,  it  exerts  no  action 
whatever  upon  platinum,  even  when  the  latter  is  in  a  finely- 
divided  state,  and  heated  to  100°  C.  But  when  the  temperature 
of  the  metal  is  raised  to  between  500°  and  600°  C,  combination 
readily  occurs  with  formation  of  tetrafluoride  of  platinum  and  a 
small  quantity  of  protofluoride.  The  moment  the  gas  is  mixed 
with  a  little  vapour  of  hydrofluoric  acid,  the  action  is  immensely 
accelerated,  and  then  occurs  readily  at  ordinary  temperatures. 
The  same  rapid  action  occurs  when  platinum  is  placed  in  hydro- 
fluoric acid  saturated  with  free  fluorine,  which  accounts  for  the 
disappearance  of  the  positive  terminal  during  the  electrolysis. 
In  order  to  prepare  the  fluoride  of  platinum,  a  bundle  of  wires 
of  the  metal  is  introduced  into  a  thick  platinum  or  fluor-spar  tube, 
through  which  a  current  of  fluorine  gas  from  the  electrolysis 
apparatus  is  passed.  On  heating  the  tube  to  low  redness, 
the  wires  become  rapidly  converted  to  fluoride,  when  they 
are.,  quickly  transferred  to  a  dry  stoppered  bottle.  If  the 
operation  is  performed  in  a  platinum  tube,  a  large  quantity 
of  fused  fluoride  remains  in  the  tube.  The  tetrafluoride  of 
platinum,  PtF4,  formed  upon  the  wires,  consists  either  of  fused 
masses  of  a  deep  red  colour,  or  of  small  buff"-coloured  crystals 
resembling  anhydrous  platinum  chloride.  It  is  exceedingly 
hygroscopic.  With  water  it  behaves  in  a  most  curious  manner. 
With  a  small  quantity  of  water  it  produces  a  fawn-coloured 
solution,  which  almost  immediately  becomes  warm,  and  decom- 
poses with  precipitation  of  hydrated  platinic  oxide  and  free 
hydrofluoric  acid.  If  the  quantity  of  water  is  greater  and  the 
temperature  low,  the  fawn-coloured  solution  may  be  preserved 
for  a  few  minutes,  at  the  expiration  of  which,  or  immediately  on 
boiling  the  solution,  the  fluoride  decomposes  in  the  manner 
above  indicated.  This  peculiar  behaviour  with  water  explains  the 
impossibility  of  preparing  the  fluoride  in  the  wet  way.  When 
the  anhydrous  fluoride  is  heated  to  bright  redness  in  a  platinum 
tube  closed  at  one  end,  fluorine  at  once  begins  to  be  evolved  as 
gas,  and  if  a  crystal  of  silicon  be  held  at  the  mouth  of  the  tube  it 
takes  fire  and  burns  brilliantly  in  the  gas.  The  residual  platinum 
is  found  on  examining  the  contents  of  the  tube  to  consist  of  dis- 
tinct crystals  of  the  metal.  Hence  by  far  the  most  convenient 
method  of  preparing  fluorine  for  lecture  purposes  is  to  form  a  con- 
siderable quantity  of  the  fluoride  first  by  passing  the  product  of  the 
electrolysis  over  bundles  of  platinum  wire  heated  to  low  redness, 
and  afterwards  to  heat  the  fluoride  thus  obtained  to  full  redness 
in  a  platinum  tube  closed  at  one  end.  It  only  remains  now  to 
■discover  another  method  of  preparing  fluoride  of  platinum  in  the 
dry  way,  to  be  able  to  dispense  with  the  expensive  electrolysis 
apparatus  altogether.  M.  Moissan  has  also  prepared  a  fluoride 
of  gold  in  the  same  manner.  It  is  likewise  very  hygroscopic, 
•decomposable  by  water,  and  yields  gaseous  fluorine  on  heating 
to  redness. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

■  London.] 

Royal  Society,  November  21.—"  On  the  Local  Paralysis  of 
Peripheral  Ganglia,  and  on  the  Connection  of  Different  Classes 
•of  Nerve-Fibres  with  them."  By  J.  N.  Langley,  F.  R.S., 
Fellow  of  Trinity  College,  and  W.  Lee  Dickinson,  Caius 
■College,  Cambridge. 

We  found  that  in  the  rabbit,  30  to  40  milligrams  of  nicotin 
injected  into  a  vein  stopped  the  effect  of  stimulating  the  sym- 
pathetic in  the  neck,  not  only  on  the  pupil,  but  also  on  the 
vessels  of  the  ear.  It  occurred  to  us  that  this  action  of  nicotin 
might  be  due  to  a  paralysis  of  the  nerve-cells  of  the  superior 
•cervical  ganglion,  and  not  to  a  paralysis  of  the  peripheral 
endings  of  the  sympathetic  nerve.  On  testing  this  view,  we 
ifound  that,  after    a  certain  dose  of  liicotin,  stimulation  of  the 


sympathetic  fibres  below  the  ganglion  does  not  produce  dilation 
of  the  pupil  or  constriction  of  the  vessels  of  the  ear,  whilst 
stimulation  of  the  sympathetic  nerve-fibres  above  the  ganglion 
produces  these  changes  in  the  normal  manner. 

The  method  of  action  of  nicotin  can  be  tested  in  a  more  direct 
manner  by  local  application  to  the  isolated  nerve  and  ganglion. 
When  the  sympathetic  in  the  neck  has  been  brushed  over  with 
a  I  per  cent,  solution  of  nicotin,  stimulation  of  it  produces  the 
usual  dilation  of -the  pupil  and  constriction  of  the  vessels  of  the 
ear ;  but  when  the  superior  cervical  ganglion  and  the  filaments 
proceeding  from  it  have  been  brushed  over  with  the  i  per  cent, 
nicotin,  stimulation  of  the  sympathetic  in  the  neck  is  found  to  be 
completely  without  effect,  while  stimulation  of  the  filaments 
running  from  the  ganglion  to  the  carotid  arteries  produces  the 
normal  action. 

Hence  nicotiit  paralyzes  the  cells  of  the  superior  cervical 
ganglion. 

On  the  fibres  of  the  cervical  sympathetic,  which  are  vaso- 
motor for  the  head  generally  and  secretory  for  the  salivary 
glands,  we  have  made  a  few  experiments  only  ;  but  so  far  we 
have  been  unable  to  detect  any  effect  from  stimulating  the 
sympathetic  in  the  neck  after  nicotin  has  been  applied  to  the 
ganglion. 

We  conclude  that  the  dilator  fibres  for  the  pupil,  the  vaso- 
constrictor fibres  for  the  ear  {probably  also  those  for  the  head 
generally),  and  the  secretory  fibres  for  the  glands,  end  in  the  cells 
of  the  superior  cervical  ganglion. 

Ganglion  of  the  Solar  Plexus.— In.  the  dog,  cat,  and  rabbit, 
the  splanchnic  nerve  on  the  left  side  runs  to  two  chief  ganglionic 
masses,  which  we  may  call  respectively  the  coeliac  and  superior 
mesenteric  ganglia.  The  renal  ganglia  are  scattered,  but  in  the 
dog  the  chief  one  often  lies  underneath  the  suprarenal  body, 
and  in  the  cat  the  chief  one  is  placed  between  the  artery  and 
vein  about  \  inch  from  the  superior  mesenteric  ganglion. 

To  determine  whether  the  inhibitory  fibres  of  the  splanchnic 
end  in  the  nerve-cells  of  the  solar  plexus  we  proceeded  as  in  the 
case  of  the  superior  cervical  ganglion.  Having  ascertained  that 
the  application  of  i  per  cent  nicotin  to  the  splanchnic  leaves  its 
inhibitory  power  unaffected,  we  found  that  nicotin  applied  to 
the  whole  plexus  at  once  abolishes  the  inhibitory  power  of  the 
splanchnic  ;  but  inhibition  can  still  be  produced  by  stimulating 
the  fibres  proceeding  from  the  ganglia.  Hence,  the  inhibitory 
fibres  of  the  splanchnic  end  in  the  cells  of  the  solar  plexus. 

Our  experiments  are  not  sufficiently  numerous,  especially 
with  regard  to  the  connection  of  the  coeliac  ganglion  with  the 
stomach,  to  make  it  certain  that  the  one  ganglion  is  entirely 
connected  with  fibres  to  the  intestine,  and  the  other  with  the 
fibres  to  the  stomach  ;  but  we  think  they  show  that  in  the  main, 
and  possibly  altogether,  the  stomachic  inhibitory  fibres  of  the 
splanchnic  nerve  end  in  the  cells  of  the  cceliac  ganglion,  and  the 
intestinal  inhibitory  fibres  of  the  splanchnic  end  in  the  cells  of 
the  superior  mesenteric  ganglion. 

We  find,  however,  that  the  motor  fibres  of  the  vagus  for  the 
stojiiach  and  intestines  do  not  end  in  the  no'je- cells  of  the  solar 
plexus. 

The  connection  of  the  vaso-motor  fibres  of  the  splanchnic 
with  the  nerve-cells  of  the  solar  plexus  can  be  determined  by 
taking  a  tracing  of  the  arterial  blood-pressure  and  stimulating 
the  splanchnic  before  and  after  the  application  of  nicotin  to  the 
ganglia.  By  applying  nicotin  to  both  ganglia,  the  rise  of  blood- 
pressure  caused  by  stimulating  the  splanchnic  is  reduced  to  very 
small  limits,  and  by  applying  it  to  the  renal  plexus  as  well,  the 
effect  of  splanchnic  stimulation  on  the  blood-pressure  is  abolished. 
Since  in  this  case  there  is  no  fall  of  blood-pressure,  we  conclude 
that  the  vaso-dilator  as  7vcll  as  the  vaso-constrictor  fibres  of  the 
splanch?tic  end  in  the  cells  of  the  solar  and  renal  plexuses. 

Combining  oncometer  observations  on  the  dog  with  blood- 
pressure  observations  on  the  rabbit  and  cat,  we  think  there  is 
fair  evidence  that  the  splanchnic  vaso-motor  fibres  for  the  kidney 
end  in  the  cells  of  the  renal  plexus. 

We  have  experimented  upon  various  peripheral  ganglia  other 
than  those  mentioned  above,  and,  though  our  results  are  as  yet 
incomplete,  with  essentially  similar  results  ;  that  is,  we  have 
obtained  an  abolition  of  the  effect  of  some  one  or  more  of  the 
classes  of  nerve- fibres  running  to  them.  We  think,  then,  there 
is  fair  ground  to  conclude  that  by  stimulating  the  nerve-fibres 
running  to  and  those  from  any  peripheral  ganglion,  before  and 
after  the  application  of  dilute  nicotin  to  it,  the  class  of  nerve-fibres 
which  end  in  the  nerve-cells  of  the  ganglion  can  be  distinguished 
from  those  luhich  run  through  the  ganglion  zvithout  being  con- 
nected with  ne)-ve- cells. 


Dec.  5,  1889J 


NA  TURE 


119 


Linnean  Society,  November  7. — Mr.  \V.  Carruthers, 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair.  ^Mr.  H.  Veitch  and  Rev. 
Prof.  Henslow  exhibited  a  beautiful  series  of  East  Indian  hybrid 
rhododendrons,  on  whicli  Prof.  Henslow  made  some  valuable 
remarks  on  the  effects  of  cross-fertilization  in  regard  to  colour 
and  alteration  of  structure,  upon  which  some  critical  observations 
were  made  by  Mr.  Veitch,  Prof.  Bower,  and  Captain  Ehves. — 
Mr.  Y...  M.  Holmes  exhibited  and  made  remarks  upon  some 
new  British  marine  Alga;,  describing  their  origin  and  affinities. 
— Dr.  St.  George  Mivart,  F.R.  S.,  exhibited  a  drawing  by  a 
surgeon,  who  had  been  consulted  as  to  amputation  of  a  tail-like 
process  in  the  human  subject,  being  a  prolongation  of  the 
coccyx  to  the  extent  of  4^  centimetres.  Dr.  Mivart  also 
exhibited  a  photograph,  showing  a  remarkable  resemblance 
between  two  arm  stumps  ;  one  the  result  of  an  amputation,  the 
other  a  congenital  defect  in  the  child  of  a  nurse  who  had  attended 
the  patient  whose  arm  was  amputated.  Both  cases  were  com- 
mented on  and  explained  by  Dr.  W.  O.  Priestley,  and  further 
remarks  were  offered  by  Dr.  Murie,  and  Mr.  W.  Thiselton- 
Dyer. — Mr.  W.  B.  Hemsley  then  read  a  paper  by  General 
CoUett,  C.B.,  and  himself,  on  a  collection  of  plants  made  in 
the  Shan  Stales,  Upper  Burmah.  An  interesting  discussion 
followed,  in  which  Messrs.  J.  G.  Baker,  C.  B.  Clarke,  and 
Captain  Elwes  took  part. 

Anthropological  Institute,  November  12. — Dr.  J.  Beddoe, 
F.R. S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Beddoe  read  a  paper  on 
the  natural  colour  of  the  skin  in  certain  Oriental  races.  Dr. 
Beddoe's  observations  showed  that  the  parts  of  the  skin  covered 
by  clothing  were  very  much  lighter  than  those  exposed  to  the 
sun  and  air  ;  and  that  those  people  whose  skin  was  the  darkest 
in  the  covered  parts,  were  not  those  who  tanned  to  the  blackest 
hue. — A  paper  by  the  Rev.  James  Macdonald  was  read  on  the 
manners,  customs,  superstitions,  and  religions  of  South  African 
tribes. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  November  25. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  the  November  number  of  the  American  Mdeoro- 
logical Jottnial,  by  M.  H.  Faye.  With  this  number  begins  the 
publication  of  a  complete  exposition  of  the  author's  theory  of 
cyclonic  movements,  translated  into  English  by  Mrs.  W.  Har- 
rington. The  first  part  deals  with  storms,  the  second  with 
tornadoes,  while  the  third  is  occupied  with  the  relations  of 
tornadoes  and  storm  phenomena  to  cyclones  properly  so  called. 
— On  animal  heat,  by  M.  Berthelot.  In  continuation  of  his 
previous  paper  on  this  subject,  the  author  here  discusses  the 
question  of  the  heat  liberated  by  the  action  of  oxygen  on  the 
blood.  The  quantity  thus  set  free,  referred  to  the  molecular 
weight  of  oxygen  (O.,  =  32  gr. ),  is  found,  by  the  extremely 
delicate  experiments  here  described,  to  average  14  77  calories.^ 
On  the  exhaustion  of  soils  cultivated  without  manure,  and 
on  the  value  of  the  organic  matter  in  the  soil,  by  M.  P.  P. 
Deherain.  A  series  of  experiments  carried  out  at  the  Agri- 
cultural vSchool  of  Grignon  clearly  shows  that  the  substance 
chiefly  lost  by  continuous  cultivation  without  manure  is  carbon, 
the  proportion  of  phosphoric  acid,  potash,  and  nitrogen 
eliminated  being  comparatively  slight.  It  also  appears  that  the 
organic  matter  itself  is  as  important  a  fertilizing  element  for 
beetroot  as  are  the  nitrates,  phosphates,  or  potash. — On  the 
freno-secretory  fibres,  by  M.  Arloing.  Experiments  are  de- 
scribed which  demonstrate  the  existence  of  these  fibres  in  the 
cervical  chord  of  the  large  sympathetic  nerve. — Observations  on 
Swift's  new  comet  (November  17)  made  at  the  Paris  Observatory 
with  the  equatorial  of  the  west  tower,  by  M.  G.  Bigourdan. 
On  November  21  the  comet  had  the  appearance  of  a  very  faint 
nebulosity  (about  13 '4),  nearly  round,  diameter  about  50",  with- 
out marked  condensation.  Observations  made  by  Mdlle.  D. 
Klumpke  with  the  equatorial  of  the  east  tower  on  November  23 
yielded  similar  results. — Generalization  of  Makeham's  law  of 
probabilities,  by  M.  A.  Quiquet.  The  chief  property  of  Gom- 
pertz's  formula  as  generalized  by  Makeham  has  been  demon- 
strated in  a  very  simple  way  by  M.  J.  Bertrand.  M.  Quiquet 
in  his  turn  now  inquires  whether  this  property  may  not  itself  be  a 
particular  case  of  a  still  more  general  principle,  and  whether  the 
function  discovered  by  the  two  eminent  English  actuaries  may  not 
therefore  be  capable  of  further  generalization. — On  the  employ- 
ment of  electric  conducting  mediums  in  studying  the  displace- 
ments and  distribution  of  acids  with  complex  nature,  by  M. 
Daniel  Berthelot.  Of  the  numerous  substances  acing  both  as 
acid  and  as  alkali  one  of  the  simplest  is  aspartic   acid.     The 


author  here  studies  the  equilibria  that  are  produced  in  the  pre- 
sence of  this  acid  in  diluted  saline  solutions.  The  measurements 
have  been  made  wiih  the  Lippmann  capillary  electrometer,  by 
M.  Ecuty's  eleclrometric  method. — Variations  of  the  electric 
resistance  of  nitric  peroxide  at  different  tempeialures,  by  M.  J.  J. 
Boguski.  Measurements  obtained  by  several  methods  lead  to  the 
conclusion  that  an  increase  of  temperature  of  nitric  peroxide 
produces  an  increase  of  its  electric  resistance,  the  most  abrupt 
variations  occurring  between  0°  and  if  C.  Above  70°  this  acid 
forms  an  almost  perfect  insulator.  During  the  process  of  heating 
two  consecutive  phenomena  were  observed  which  call  for  specijil 
attention.  To  a  rise  of  temperature  up  to  a  given  limit  generally 
corresponds  a  s/atic  and  definite  increase  of  resistance  ;  but  this 
increase  itself  is  preceded  by  a  dynamic  (passing)  decrease  of  re- 
sistance, whose  momentary  value  is  at  times  no  more  than  j^ir 
or  Tjy^jj  of  ^he  static  and  normal  resistance.  —  Preparation  and 
properties  of  the  anhydrous  platinous  fluoride,  by  M.  H.  Moissan. 
In  continuation  of  his  previous  researches,  the  author  here 
shows  that  platinous  fluoride,  PtF].,,  decomposes  vater  at  the 
ordinary  temperature,  which  accounts  for  the  impossibility  of 
preparing  it  by  the  wet  process.  At  red  heat  it  is  dectmposed 
into  crystallized  platinum  and  fluorine. — Contribution  to  the 
study  of  double  decompositions  between  the  halogen  salts  of 
mercury  and  zinc,  by  M.  Raoul  Varet.  The  author  has  studied 
(i)  the  action  of  cyanide  of  mercury  on  bromide  of  zinc;  (2)  the 
action  of  cyanide  of  zinc  on  bromide  of  mercury. — On  a  new 
sugar  of  the  aromatic  group,  by  M.  Maquenne.  To  inosite  and 
quercite,  the  only  saccharine  substances  hitherto  obtained  from 
benzene,  the  author  adds  a  third,  provisionally  named  ;3-inosite, 
which  he  obtains  from  a  pinite  derived  from  the  resin  of  Finns 
laml'crtiain-i,  of  Nebraska.  —  Synthesis  of  metaphenylene-diamine, 
by  M.  Alphonse  Seyewitz.  The  author  has  succeeded  in  effecting 
this  synthesis  by  heating,  to  280°  or  300''  C,  a  mixture  of  resor- 
cine  and  calcium  chloride  under  conditions  here  described. — 
Papers  were  submitted  by  MM.  A.  Behal  and  Choay,  on  the 
action  of  heat  on  chloral-ammonia  ;  by  M.  Raphael  Dubois,  on 
the  mechanism  of  awakening  in  hilernating  animals  ;  by  M.  E. 
Couvreur,  on  the  pulmonary  circulation  of  the  frog,  as  aflected 
by  the  excitation  of  the  pneumogastric  nerve;  by  M.  R. 
Moniez,  on  the  larva  of  the  new  species  Tania  Gi-intaldii,  a 
parasite  of  the  dolphin  ;  by  MM.  Appert  and  Henrivaux,  on  the 
devitrification  of  the  ordinary  glass  of  commeice;  fjy  MM.  E. 
A.  Martel  and  G.  Gaupillat,  on  the  formation  of  springs  in  the 
interior  of  the  limestone  plateaux  of  the  causses  of  Languedoc  ; 
and  by  M.  J.  Thoulet,  on  the  quantitative  analysis  of  the  fine 
sediment  held  in  suspension  in  natural  waters. 


Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  November  15.— ^Prof.  du  Bois- 
Reymond,  President,  in  the  chair.  — After  the  appointment  of 
officers  for  the  year  1889-90,  Dr.  Virchow  spoke  on  the  spiracle 
gill  of  Selachians.  With  the  assistance  of  drawings  and  a  series 
of  diagrams  he  discussed  the  varying  ariangements  and  divisions 
of  the  blood-vessels  which  go  to  form  the  gills  of  Selachians  ; 
he  also  described  the  frequent  occurrence,  confined  to  certain 
regions  of  the  head,  of  blood-vessels  which  are  elaborately  con- 
voluted ;  the  physiological  significance  of  these  vessels  is  quite 
unknown,  but  their  morphological  interest  is  so  great  that  an 
extended  investigation  of  them  in  other  groups  of  animals  is  a 
matter  of  great  importance.  In  all  probabili  y  they  are  rudi- 
mentary structures,  whose  significance  would  be  understood  if 
the  above  extended  investigations  were  carried  out. — Dr.  I. 
Munk  spoke  on  the  absorption  of  fats  and  fatty  acids  in  the 
absence  of  bile  in  the  intestine.  The  older  classical  experi- 
ments on  animals  with  a  biliary  fistula  had  taught  that,  in  the 
absence  of  bile,  proteids  and  starch  are  digoteel  ns  completely 
as  in  a  normal  animal,  whereas,  on  the  other  hand,  the  absorp- 
tion of  fat  is  largely  interfered  with.  In  correspondence  with 
this  view,  the  later  observers  were  of  opinion  that  all  fat  which 
is  not  absorbed  does  not  leave  the  body  as  neutral  fat,  but  as 
fatty  acids,  and  from  this  the  conclusion  was  drawn  that  the  fats 
of  food  are  decomposed  into  fatty  acids  (anel  glycerin)  before 
they  are  normally  absorbed.  The  speaker  had  carried  out  a 
series  of  experiments  on  dogs  with  biliary  fistulas,  during  the 
past  summer,  with  a  view  to  clearing  up  several  obscure  points 
in  the  whole  question  of  the  absorption  of  fats.  After  he  had 
confirmed  the  older  views  as  to  the  normal  digestion  of  proteids 
and  starch,  and  the  appearance  of  unabsorbed  fat  in  the  form  of 
free  fatty  acids  in  the  faeces,  he  proceeded  to  determine  quan- 


I20 


NA  TURE 


{Dec.  5,  1889 


titatively  the  absorption  of  fat  from  the  intestine  in  the  absence  of 
bile.  He  found,  first,  that  in  such  animals  there  is  a  relatively 
large  absorption  of  fat  from  the  alimentary  canal  as  long  as  they 
receive  the  fat  in  company  with  proteids  and  starch,  but  that  the 
absorption  is  much  less  when  the  fat  is  administered — as  it  was 
in  the  experiments  of  the  older  observers — mixed  only  with  pro- 
teids. It  was  found  that  the  animals  absorbed  mare  than  70 
per  cent,  of  such  a  fat  as  pig's  lard,  whose  melting-point  is  low, 
without  the  assistance  of  bile  ;  they  also  absorbed  an  almost 
proportionately  large  quantity  of  the  free  fatty  acids  of  the  lard, 
thus  corresponding  exactly  to  the  behaviour  of  normal  animals, 
which  can  absorb  about  94-98  per  cent,  of  any  fat  whose  melt- 
ing-point is  low,  whether  it  be  administered  in  the  form  of 
neutral  fat  or  of  the  fatty  acids  which  it  contains.  When  a  fat 
was  administered  whose  melting-point  is  high — especially  such  a 
fat  as  only  begins  to  soften  at  the  temperature  of  the  body  [e.g. 
mutton  fat) — the  amount  absorbed  was  considerably  less,  and  it 
was  still  less  when  the  free  fatty  acids  of  this  fat  were  given 
with  the  food.  The  speaker  pointed  out,  with  regard  to  the 
fseces  of  animals  with  a  biliary  fistula,  that  they  may  be  dark- 
coloured,  or  even  black,  on  a  proteid  diet,  and  only  appear 
light-gray  in  colour  when  carbohydrates  are  given  with  the 
food.  This  dark  colour  is  not,  however,  due  to  any  derivative 
of  the  bile-pigments,  but  to  hsematin.  The  speaker  had  not 
been  able  to  detect,  with  certainty,  any  further  advanced 
decomposition  of  the  contents  of  the  intestine  in  animals  with  a 
'biliary  fistula,  neither  did  he  observe  any  increase  of  putrefactive 
products,  such  as  indol,  skatol,  &c.,  in  their  urine. 

In  our  report,  last  week  (p.  95),  of  the  meeting  of  the  Berlin 
Physical  Society  on  October  25  (first  column,  fifth  line  from 
foot),  fo7'  "waves  in  air  21  metres  long"  read  "waves  in  air 
2  kilometres  long." 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 

London. 

THURSDA  Y,  December  5. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30.— Remarks  on  Mr.  A.  W.  Ward's  Paper  on  the 
Magnetic  Rotation  of  the  Plane  of  P  uarization  of  Light  in  Doubly- 
Refracting  Bodies:  O.  Wiener  and  W.  Wedding —Researches  on  the 
Chemistry  of  the  Camphoric  Acids  :  J.  E.  Marsh. — The  Internal  Friction 
of  Iron,  Nickel,  and  C  obalt,  studied  by  means  of  Magnetic  Cycles  of  very 
Minute  Range:  H.  Tonjlinson,  F. R.S.— A  Compound  Wedge  Photo- 
meter :  Dr.  Spitta. 

LiNNBAN  Society,  at  8.— Life  History  of  a  Stipitate  Fresh-water  Alga  :  G. 
Massee. — On  the  Anatomy  of  the  Sand  Grouse  :  G.  Sim. 

FRIDAY,  December  6. 
Physical  Society,  at  5.  — The   Electrification  of  a  Steam  Jet  :  Shelford 

iBidwell,  F.R.S.. — Notes  on  Geometrical  Optics,   Part  11.:  Prof.   S.    P. 

Thompson. — On  the  Behaviour  of  Steel  under  Mechanical  Stress:  C.  H. 

Carus-Wilson. — On  a  Carbon  Point  in  a   Blake  Telephone  Transmitter : 

F.  B.  Havves. 
Geologists'  Association,  at  8. — Conversazione. 

SUNDAY,  December  8. 
Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — The  Wonders  of  the  Yellovi'stone  Park, 

■the  Recreation  Ground  of  America  ;  a  Personal  Narrative  (with  Oxyhydro- 

gen  Lantern  Illustrations  from  the   Lecturer's  own  Camera)  :  Wm.  Lant 

Carpenter. 

MONDAY,  December  9. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Modern  Developments  of  Bread-making  :  William 

J  ago. 

TUESDAY,  December  10. 
Anthropological  Institute,  at  8.30. — The  Natives  of  Mowab,  Daudai. 

New    Guinea :    Edward    Beardmore.      Communicated    by    Prof.    A.     C. 

Haddon.— Fire-making  in  North  Borneo  :  S.    B.   J.    Skertchley. — On  the 

Orginof  the  Eskimo  :  Jir.  H.  Rink. 
Institution  of  Civil  Enginebrs,  at  8. — On  the  Triple-Expansion  Engines 

and   Engine  Trials  at   the   Owens  College,    Manchester:  Prof.    Osborne 

Reynolds,  F.R.S.     (Discussion.) 

WEDNESDAY,  December  ii. 
S  JCIKTV  OF  Art.<;,  at  8.— The  Paris  Exhibition:   H.  Trueman  Wood. 
KoYAL    Microscopical  Society,  at   8. — On    the    Freshwater    Alga    and 
Schizophycese  of  Hampshire  and  Devon  :  A.  W.  Bennett. 

THURSDAY,  December  12. 
Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 
Mathematical  Society,  at  8.— On  the  Radial  Vibrations  of  a  Cylindrical 

Shell  :  A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S. —Note  on  siS4o.Group  :  G.  G.  Morrice.— On 

the  Flexure  of  an  Elastic  Plate  :  Prof.  H.  Lamb,  F.R.S. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8.— Annual  General  Meeting. 

—  Election  of  Council  and  Officers  for   1890.^ — Electrical  Engineering   in 

America  :  G.  L.  Addenbro^ke.     (Discussion.) 

FRIDAY,  December  13. 
Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  8. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— Hydraulic  Station  and  Ma- 
chinery of  the  North  London  Railway,  Poplar :  John  Hale. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Giornale  di  Scienze  Naturali  ed  Economiche,  1887  and  188S  (Palermo  — 
Challenger  Report — Zoology,  vol.  xxxii  (Eyre  and  Spottiswoode).^ — Collo- 
type and  Photo-lithography  :  Dr.  J.  Schnauss  ;  translated  by  E.  C.  Middle- 
ton  (Iliffe). — A  Text  book  cf  Human  Anatomy  :  Dr.  A.  \facAlister  (Giiflfin). 
— A  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes  :  Dr.  S.  J.  Hickson  (Murray).— Algebra, 
Part  2  :  G.  Chrystal  (Edinburgh,  Black). — A  Hand-book  of  Modern  Ex- 
plosives :  M.  Eissler(Lockwood). — Contributions  to  Canadian  Palaeontology, 
vol.  i.,  Part  2  :  J.  F  Whiteaves  (Montreal,  Brown). — Modern  Thought  and 
Modern  Thinkers  :  J.  F.  Charles  (Relfe). — The  Land  of  an  African  Sultan  : 
W.  B.  Harris  (L  w).  — Index  of  British  Plants  :  R.TurnbuU  (Bell).— Manual 
for  Beginners  aud  for  the  London  Uiiiversity  Matriculation  Examination. — 
The  Anatomy  of  the  Frog  :  Dr.  A.  Ecker  ;  tran.slatea  by  Dr.  G.  Haslam 
(Oxford,  Clarendon  Press). — A  Narrative  of  Travels  on  the  Amazon  and 
Rio  Negro  :  A  R.  Wallace  (Ward,  Lock). — Pawnee  Hero  Stories  and  Folk 
Tales  :  G.  B.  Grinnell  (New  York).— Palestine  :  Major  Conder  (Philip). — 
Tractatus  de  Globis :  R.  Hues;  edited  by  C.  R.  Markham  (Hakluyt  So- 
ciety).—Among  Cannibals  :  C.  Lumholtz  (Murray). — Im  Hochgebirge  :  Dr. 
E.  Zsigmondy  (Leipzig,  Duncker  and  Humblot). — Niels  Klein's  Wallfahrt 
in  die  Unterwelt  :  L.  Holbtrg  ;  edited  by  E.  H.  Babbitt  (Boston,  Heath). — 
Practical  Observaiions  on  Agricultural  Papers,  ^c.  2nd  ediiion  :  H.  Wilson, 
Jan.  (Simpkin). — Du  Transfirmisme  et  de  la  Generaiion  Spt  ntanee  :  C.  A. 
Rohant  and  Dr.  M.  Peter  (Paris,  Bailliere). — Einiges  iiber  die  Entstehung 
der  Korallenriffe  in  der  Javasee  und  Branntwunsbai,  und  iiber  Nene 
Korallenbildung  bei  Krakatau  :  Dr.  C.  Ph.  Sluiter  (Batavia,  Ernst). — 
Journal  of  the  Royal  Microscopical  Society,  October  (Williams  and  Nor- 
gate).— The  Asclepiad,  No.  24.  vol.  vi.  :  Dr.  Richardson  (Longmans). — 
Proceedings  of  the  Boston  Society  of  Natural  History,  vol.  xxiv..  Parts  i 
and  2  (Boston). — Journal  of  Morphology,  vol.  iii.  No.  2  (Boston,  Ginn). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Manchester  Conference 97 

American  Ethnological  Reports 99 

Exact    Thermometry.      By  Dr.    Edmund  J,    Mills, 

F.R.S 100 

The  Fauna  of  British  India loi 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Cartailhac  :   "  La  France  Prehistorique  " 102 

Hopkins:   "  Experimental  Science  " 102 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

"  Modern  Views  of  Electricity." — The  Reviewer     .  102 
The  Physics  of   the  Sub-oceanic  Crust. — J.    Starkie 

Gardner 103 

Area  of  the  Land  and  Depths  of  the  Ocean  in  Former 

Periods. — T.  Mellard  Reade 103 

Distribution  of  Animals  and  Plants  by  Ocean  Currents. 

— Rev.  Paul  Camboue,  S.J 103 

A  Marine  Millipede.— D.  W.  T 104 

A  Case  of  Chemical  Equilibrium. — W.    H.    Pendle- 

bury 104 

The  Use  of  theAVord  Antiparallel.   (  With  a  Diagram.) 

— E.  M.  Langley 104 

A  Surviving  Tasmanian  Aborigine. — Hy.  Ling  Roth  105 
Brilliant   Meteors.— P.   A.    Harris  ;  R.   H.  Tidde- 

man 105 

Report  on  the  Magnetical  Results  of  the  Voyage  of 
H.M.S.  Challenger.     By  Commander  E.  W.  Creak, 

R.N.,  F.R.S 105 

On  the  Supposed  Enormous  Showers  of  Meteorites 

in  the  Desert  of  Atacama.     By  L.  F 108 

Early  Egyptian  Civilization.    {Illustrated.)    By  W.  M. 

Flinders  Petrie ...  109 

Mr.  Stanley's  Geographical  Discoveries in 

Notes      112 

Our  Astronomical  Column: — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 114 

Sun-spot  of  June,  July,  and  Augtist,  1889 115 

Photographic  Star  Spectra 115 

Comet  Brooks  (c/ 1889,  July  6) 115 

Comet  Swift  (/ 1889,  November  17) 115 

S  Cassiopeias 115 

The  Anniversary  Meeting  of  the  Royal  Society     .    .  116 

A  New  Method  of  Preparing  Fluorine 117 

Societies  and  Academies 118 

Diary  of  Societies •    •     .  120 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 120 


NA TURE 


121 


THURSDAY,  DECEMBER  12,  \\ 


THE  TEACHING  OF  FORESTRY. 

A  Manual  of  Forestry.      By   William   Schlich,   Ph.D. 

Vol.  I.  (London  :  Bradbury,  Agnew,  and  Co.,  1889.) 
"pROBABLY  it  will  not  for  some  time  be  generally  re- 
-*-  cognized  in  England  that  forestry  is  a  profession  in 
the  sense  in  which  we  speak  of  the  profession  of  law  or 
of  medicine.  And  it  is  a  bold  step  to  publish  a  manual  of 
forestry  for  English  readers  in  a  systematic  and  strictly 
technical  form.  This  is  the  task  which  Dr.  Schlich  has  un- 
dertaken, and  the  volume  before  us  is  the  first  instalment 
of  a  large  work,  which,  when  completed,  will  be  the  first 
comprehensive  manual  of  forestry  in  the  English  lan- 
guage. 

Before  going  out  to  India  in  1866,  Dr.  Schlich  had 
passed  the  examinations  for  the  superior  forest  service  in 
his  own  country  (Hessfe  Darmstadt),  he  had  been  the 
pupil  of  one  of  the  most  eminent  Professors  of  Forestry  in 
Germany,  the  late  Gustav  Heyer,  and  he  held  a  distin- 
guished place  among  his  fellow  students.  At  the  com- 
mencement of  his  career,  the  changes  which  had  taken 
place  in  Hesse  Darmstadt  in  consequence  of  the  Austrian 
war  were  believed  to  affect  injuriously  the  chances  of  pro- 
motion for  the  younger  members  of  the  forest  service. 
This  induced  him  to  accept  the  offer  of  an  appointment 
in  India.  Here  he  was  designated  at  an  early  date 
for  important  positions,  and  thus,  after  he  had  served 
several  years  in  Burmah,  he  was  sent  to  Sind,  where, 
under  completely  different  conditions  of  climate  and 
forest,  he  did  excellent  work.  He  served  successively  as 
Conservator  of  Forests  in  Lower  Bengal  and  in  the 
Punjab,  until  he  rose  to  the  post  of  Inspector-General  of 
Forests.  In  1885  he  consented  to  relinquish  his  import- 
ant position  in  India,  in  order  to  become  Professor  of 
Forestry  at  the  Forest  School  which  it  had  been  decided 
to  form  in  connection  with  the  Royal  Indian  Engineering 
College  at  Coopers  Hill. 

The  volume  before  us  contains  the  general  and  intro- 
ductory part ;  in  a  second  volume  the  author  proposes  to 
set  forth  in  detail  the  different  sylvicultural  operations ; 
while  the  protection  of  forests,  the  utilization  of  timber 
and  other  forest  produce,  the  systematic  arrangement  of 
the  plans  for  working,  and  the  financial  aspect  of  forest 
management,  will  complete  the  work.  Not  the  least  of 
the  advantages  which  will  be  gained  by  the  publication 
of  this  manual  will  be  to  settle  the  English  forest  termino- 
logy. The  technical  terms  which  had  been  tentatively 
used  since  methodical  forest  management  was  begun  in 
India  may  now  be  expected  to  receive  general  currency, 
and  will  be  more  correctly  understood  than  before. 

The  primary  object  of  the  Coopers  Hill  Forest  School 
is  the  training  of  officers  for  the  Indian  Forest  Service, 
but  others  also  may  attend  the  forestry  classes  in  order  to 
qualify  for  the  management  of  forests  and  woodlands  in 
Great  Britain  and  in  the  colonies.  It  may  therefore  be 
hoped  that  Dr.  Schlich's  manual  will  eventually  promote 
the  good  management  of  forests  in  many  parts  of  the 
world.  In  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  the  author  states 
the  area  of  woods  and  forests  at  2,790,000  acres,  and  in 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1050. 


British  India  the  area  of  Government  forests  at  70,000,000. 
No  data  are  available  for  estimating  the  forest  area  in  the 
British  colonies.  But  the  area  stated  is  sufficient  to 
demand  the  systematic  teaching  of  forestry  in  England. 

In  the  German  Empire  the  total  forest  area  only  mea- 
sures 34,346,000  acres,  of  which  1 1,243,000  acres  belong  to 
the  State.  Yet  there  are  no  less  than  nine  forest  schools 
in  the  different  States  for  educating  the  superior  officers 
in  the  State  and  other  public  forests  and  the  principal 
wood  managers  in  private  estates.  The  books  published 
on  the  subject  of  forestry  in  all  its  branches  during  the 
three  years  1886-88  amounted  to  177,  or  fifty-nine  a  year 
on  an  average.  Besides  these,  there  are  ten  periodicals 
on  forestry,  some  quarterly,  most  monthly.  One  general 
association  of  German  foresters  meets  annually,  and  ten 
local  societies  hold  their  meetings  either  annually  or  once 
in  two  years.  And  all  these  associations  publish  their 
transactions.  Perhaps  it  will  be  urged  that  this  large  and 
daily-growing  forest  literature  is  not  necessarily  an  ad- 
vantage ;  that  German  foresters  had  better  attend  to  the 
management  of  their  forests  instead  of  writing  books.  As 
a  matter  of  fact,  however,  the  management  of  the  German 
forests,  public  as  well  as  private,  is  excellent,  and  is  im- 
proving steadily.  The  best  proof  of  this  is  the  large  and 
steadily  growing  income  derived  from  these  estates  by  the 
Government,  by  towns  and  villages,  and  by  private  pror 
prietors,  and,  more  than  that,  the  improved  condition  and 
the  increased  capital  value  of  these  properties. 

A  commencement,  however,  of  forest  literature  has 
been  made  in  the  English  language.  The  Transactions 
of  the  Royal  Scottish  Arboricultural  Society  have  attained 
their  twelfth  volume,  and  they  frequently  contain  papers 
of  considerable  importance.  The  Indian  Forester,  com- 
menced as  a  quarterly  by  Dr.  Schlich  in  1875,  's  now  a 
monthly  magazine,  of  which  fifteen  volumes  have  ap- 
peared. In  addition  to  these  a  number  of  valuable 
publications  on  different  branches  of  forestry  might  be 
named  that  have  been  published  within  the  last  twenty- 
five  years. 

German  forest  literature,  though  it  has  attained  such 
large  dimensions,  is  of  comparatively  recent  origin. 
During  the  eighteenth  century  sylviculture  and  the 
management  of  forestry  had  made  great  progress  in  many 
parts  of  the  country,  but  the  methodical  and  scientific 
treatment  of  the  subject  dates  from  the  labours,  during 
the  first  thirty  years  of  the  present  century,  of  Hartig  in 
Prussia,  Cotta  in  Saxony,  and  Hundeshagen  at  Giessen. 
Scientific  forestry  in  England  must  necessarily  be  built 
upon  what  has  been  accomplished  in  this  respect  in 
Germany,  and  with  becoming  modesty  Dr.  Schlich 
acknowledges  that  the  principal  German  works  have 
been  his  guide  in  the  preparation  of  the  present  book. 
Great  Britain  does  not  stand  alone  in  this  respect.  In 
France  also  the  development  of  scientific  forestry  has  to 
a  great  extent  been  based  upon  the  progress  previously 
made  in  Germany.  The  same  may  be  said  of  forestry  in 
Italy,  Russia,  Scandinavia,  and  other  European  countries. 

Part  I.  of  the  manual  treats  of  the  utility  of  forests, 
directly  in  producing  wood  and  other  forest  produce,  and 
indirectly  in  influencing  the  climate,  in  the  distribution  of 
rain-water,  in  the  preservation  of  the  soil  on  sloping  ground, 
in  the  binding  of  moving  sands,  and  in  affording  shelter 
against   winds.     All  these   matters   are  clearly  and  ex- 

G 


122 


NA  TURE 


{Dec.  12,  1889 


haustively  treated,  and  in  regard  to  the  climatic  influence 
of  forests  the  author  gives  a  most  useful  summary  of  the 
researches  which  have  been  made  to  determine  the  effect 
of  forest  growth  upon  the  temperature  of  air  and  soil, 
rainfall,  humidity,  and  evaporation,  in  Germany,  Switzer- 
land, and  France,  mainly  by  the  establishment  of  parallel 
stations,  one  being  situated  inside  a  fully  stocked  forest 
and  the  other  at  some  distance  in  the  adjoining  open 
country. 

Part  II.  sets  forth  the  fundamental  principles  of  sylvi- 
culture. The  author  maintains,  with  justice,  that  the 
principles  of  sylviculture  hold  good  all  over  the  world, 
but  adds  that  the  illustration  of  these  principles  must  be 
taken  from  a  limited  area.  For  this  purpose  he  has 
chosen  the  timber  trees  of  Western  Europe  on  the 
50th  degree  of  north  latitude,  and  the  countries  im- 
mediately to  the  north  and  south  of  it— in  other  words, 
the  forest  trees  of  England,  Northern  France,  and  the 
greater  part  of  Germany.  These  species  the  author  does 
not  attempt  to  describe  ;  he  assumes  that  his  readers  are 
familiar  with  them.  The  first  chapter  dwells  upon  the  ex- 
ternal conditions  which  influence  the  development  of 
forests.     He  says  : — 

"  Soil,  including  subsoil,  and  atmosphere  are  the  media 
which  act  upon  forest  vegetation,  and  they  together  are  in 
sylviculture  called  the  '  locality.'  The  active  agencies,  or 
factors,  of  the  locality  depend  on  the  nature  of  the  soil 
and  the  climate,  the  latter  being  governed  by  the  situation. 
The  sum  total  of  these  factors  represents  the  quality  or 
yield-capacity  of  the  locality.  The  forester  requires  to 
be  well  acquainted  with  the  manner  in  which  soil  and 
climate  act  on  forest  vegetation,  in  order  to  decide  in 
each  case  which  species  and  method  of  treatment  are  best 
adapted,  under  a  given  set  of  conditions,  to  yield  the 
most  favourable  results." 

Every  forester  knows  that  on  good  soil,  and  under 
conditions  otherwise  favourable,  a  timber  crop  is  heavier 
than  one  of  equal  age  grown  under  less  favourable  con- 
ditions. In  the  concluding  section  of  this  chapter  the 
author  shows  how  one  may  use  this  fact  in  order  to 
assess  the  quality  of  a  locality.  Numerous  measurements 
of  woods  of  different  species  and  ages,  grown  under  dif- 
ferent conditions,  have  been  made  in  Germany  on  a  syste- 
matic plan,  and  from  the  data  thus  obtained  yield  tables 
have  been  calculated,  showing  the  volume  of  timber  pro- 
duced at  different  ages  on  a  given  area  by  the  principal 
species  on  localities  of  different  quality  classes.  Using 
the  yield  tables  published  for  the  Scotch  pine  by  Wilhelm 
Weise,  now  Professor  at  the  Forest  School  of  Karlsruhe, 
the  authar  shows  that  at.the  ages  of  50  and  120  years  the 
volume  per  acre  of  timber  only,  not  including  faggots,  in 
localities,  which  according  to  their  yield-capacity  are 
classed  as  first,  second,  and  third  class,  is  as  follows : — 


I. 

II. 

III. 

Cubic  feet  at  the  age  of  50  years  5060 

3940 

2700 

„         ,,      120   ,,   9060 

6950 

5340 

The  figures  of  these  yield  tables  Dr.  Schlich  has 
found  to  a  certain  extent  to  be  applicable  to  Scotch  pine 
forests  in  England.  They  can  therefore  be  used  in  order  to 
assess  the  yield-capacity  of  any  locality  stocked  with 
Scotch  pine.  Eventually,  similar  yield  tables  will  doubt- 
less be  prepared  for  the  Scotch  pine  and  other  forest  trees 
in    Great    Britain,   and    it   will    then   be  possible    with 


certainty  to  say  what  yield  of  timber  may  be  expected 
from  plantations  made  in  a  certain  locality. 

The  second  chapter  deals  with  the  shape  and  develop- 
ment of  forest  trees,  but  we  can  refer  only  to  what  the 
author  says  regarding  height-growth.  Building  again 
chiefly  upon  researches  made  in  Germany,  Dr.  Schlich 
explains  how  the  different  species  have  a  different  mode 
of  height-growth.  On  p.  163  an  instructive  diagram  will 
be  found  exhibiting  the  relative  height-growth  of  spruce, 
silver  fir,  beech,  and  Scotch  pine,  in  a  locality  of  the  first 
quality.  At  the  age  of  50  years  the  mean  height  attained 
by  each  species  is  as  follows  : — 


Scotch  pine 
Beech 
Spruce 
Silver  fir 


64  feet 
60  „ 
55  „ 
40  ,, 


At  a  later  age  spruce  and  silver  fir  take  the  lead,  while 
beech  and  Scotch  pine  remain  behind  in  the  race  ;  and 
when  120  years  old  the  order  of  the  species  stands  as 
follows  :  — 


Spruce 
Silver  fir 
Beech 
Scotch  pine 


118  feet 

108  „ 

102  ,, 

97  » 


Scotch  pine  and  beech  therefore  make  the  principal 
height-growth  during  the  first  period  of  their  life,  whereas 
spruce  and  silver  fir  continue  to  grow  vigorously  in  height 
to  a  much  greater  age,  spruce  more  so  than  silver  fir. 
The  progress  of  height-growth  of  the  different  species  is 
much  affected  by  the  character  of  the  soil,  by  elevation, 
the  more  or  less  crowded  state  of  the  wood,  and  other 
circumstances,  but  under  otherwise  similar  conditions  it 
will  always  be  found  that  deep,  fresh  fertile  soil  produces 
much  taller  trees  than  shallow,  dry,  or  rocky  soil. 

In  the  third  chapter,  which  deals  with  the  character 
and  composition  of  woods,  the  author  points  out  that  the 
object  of  sylviculture  is  not  to  rear  isolated  trees,  but  con- 
siderable masses  of  trees,  forming  more  or  less  crowded 
woods.  Pure  woods  consist  of  one  species  only,  or  of  one 
species  with  a  slight  admixture  of  others,  whereas  mixed 
woods  contain  a  mixture  of  two  or  more  species.  The 
advantages  of  mixed  woods  are  clearly  set  forth,  and  th  e 
author's  remarks  on  this  subject  may  be  specially  recom- 
mended to  the  attention  of  proprietors  and  managers  of 
woodlands  in  Great  Britain. 

The  last  and  most  important  chapter  deals  with  the 
sylvicultural  systems — that  is,  the  different  methods  under 
which  the  creation,  regeneration,  tending,  and  utilization 
of  woods  are  effected.  The  three  well-known  classes 
are :  first,  high  forest,  originating  in  seedlings,  either 
self-sown  or  artificially  raised  ;  second,  coppice,  which 
regenerates  itself  from  coppice  shoots  ;  and  third,  coppice 
with  standards,  a  combination  of  seedling  and  coppice 
forest.  The  modifications  of  these  three  main  systems  are 
numerous,  and  particularly  the  treatment  of  high  forest 
has  developed  in  a  great  variety  of  ways.  On  this  subject 
wa  must  refer  the  reader  to  the  manual.  These  are 
matters  which  can  hardly  be  fully  understood  without 
opportunities  for  obtaining  practical  experience  of  forests 
treated  under  the  various  systems  described.  Such 
opportunities  may,  to  some  extent,  be  found  in  Great 
Britain.  The  high  forests  of  larch  and  Scotch  pine  in 
Scotland,  raised  by  planting,  are  excellent,  and  in  some 


Dec.  12,  1889J 


NATURE 


12 


districts  Scotch  pine  woods  are  regenerated  by  self-sown 
seedlings.  The  oak  woods  of  the  Forest  of  Dean,  and  the 
beech  woods  on  the  chalk  downs  of  Buckinghamshire, 
are  instances  of  high  forests  with  different  character  and 
different  method  of  treatment.  Most  instructive,  again, 
are  the  natural  oak  forests  in  Sussex — coppice,  with  a 
large  proportion  of  standards.  So  are  the  coppice  woods 
of  ash  and  sweet  chestnut  for  the  production  of  hop-poles 
in  Kent,  and  the  osier  beds  on  the  banks  of  the  Thames. 
The  difficulty  is,  that  the  treatment  of  these  woods  is 
entirely  empirical,  and  that,  without  authentic  statistical 
data  regarding  yield  in  timber,  regarding  income  and 
outlay,  no  forest  can  properly  be  used  for  purposes  of 
instruction.  If  the  student  wishes  fully  to  understand 
this  and  other  portions  of  the  excellent  manual  before  us, 
he  must  study  the  forests  of  Germany,  public  and  private. 
This  may  be  a  disadvantage,  but  under  the  circumstances 
of  the  case  it  cannot  be  helped. 

Appended  to  the  first  part  of  the  book  are  two  treatises 
which  will  be  read  with  interest  by  those  who  may  not 
care  to  study  the  more  technical  portion  of  the  manual. 
They  deal  with  forestry  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  and 
in  British  East  India.  The  physical  configuration  of 
India,  its  climate  and  rainfall,  the  distribution  of  the 
forests,  and  the  forest  policy  pursued  by  the  Government 
of  India  during  the  last  thirty  years,  are  clearly  set  forth. 
The  protection  and  systematic  management  of  its  forests 
are  matters  of  the  utmost  importance  for  the  welfare  of 
the  millions  inhabiting  the  British  Indian  Empire,  of  in- 
finitely greater  importance  than  good  forest  management 
is  for  Germany  or  other  countries  of  Europe.  Enthusiastic 
foresters  in  India  have  long  maintained  that,  by  improving 
the  condition  of  existing  forests,  so  as  to  make  them  more 
dense  and  compact,  by  extending  their  area,  and  by 
■creating  forests  where  none  exist  at  present,  the  rainfall 
in  seasons  of  drought  might  be  increased,  and  famines 
might  thus  be  averted.  Dr.  Schlich  fully  discusses  this 
subject,  and  states  several  cases  in  which  the  presence  of 
dense  forest  growth  seems  to  accom  pany  an  increased 
rainfall ;  but  at  the  same  time  he  fully  explains  the 
reasons  why  a  final  conclusion  does  not  seem  justified. 
The  result  is  that,  though  the  local  influence  of  forests 
in  lowering  the  temperature  and  preserving  moisture  is 
undeniable,  we  are  not  justified  in  hoping  for  an  improve- 
ment of  the  Indian  climate.  The  favourable  influence  of 
forests  in  India  upon  the  irrigation  fro  m  wells  and  tanks 
is,  however,  beyond  doubt,  and  this  is  a  vital  question. 

To  illustrate  the  effect  of  forest  growth  in  protecting 
loose  soil  on  hill-sides,  the  author  mentions  the  Siwalik 
hills  at  the  foot  of  the  North-West  Himalaya.  We  quote 
his  words : — 

"Anyone  who  has  ever  stood  on  the  hills  behind 
Hushiarpur  in  the  Punjab,  and  looked  down  upon  the 
plain  stretched  out  towards  the  south-west,  has  carried 
away  an  impression  which  he  is  not  likely  to  forget.  In 
that  part  the  Siwalik  range  consists  of  an  exceedingly 
friable  rock,  looking  almost  like  sand  baked  together. 
Formerly,  the  range  was  covered  with  a  growth  of  forest 
vegetation,  but  a  number  of  years  ago  cattle  owners 
settled  in  it,  and  under  the  combined  attacks  of  man, 
cows,  sheep,  and  goats,  the  natural  growth  disappeared, 
while  the  tread  of  the  beasts  tended  to  loosen  the  soil. 
The  annual  monsoon  rains,  though  not  heavy,  soon  com- 
menced a  process  of  erosion  and  of  carrying  away  the 


surface  soil.  Gradually,  small  and  then  large  ravines  and 
torrents  were  formed,  which  have  torn  the  hill  range  into 
the  most  fantastic  shapes,  while  the  debris  has  been 
carried  into  the  plains,  forming,  commencing  at  the  places 
where  the  torrents  emerge  into  the  plain,  fan-shaped 
accumulations  of  sand  which  reach  for  miles  into  the 
plain,  and  which  have  already  covered  and  rendered 
sterile  extensive  areas  of  formerly  fertile  fields.  Indeed, 
one  of  these  currents  or  drifts  of  sand  has  actually  carried 
away  a  portion  of  the  town  of  Hushiarpur.  The  evil  has 
by  no  means  reached  its  maximum  extent,  and  if  curative 
measures  are  not  adopted  at  an  early  date,  the  progress 
of  transporting  the  hill  range  into  the  plain  will  goon, 
until  the  greater  part  of  the  fertile  plain  stretching  away 
from  its  foot  has  bean  rendered  sterile." 

The  author  might  have  added  the  denuded  hills,  and 
the  rivers,  formerly  navigable,  but  now  silted  up,  in  the 
Ratnagiri  district  of  Western  India,  and  other  similar 
instances. 

That  a  country  so  populous  as  India  requires  immense 
quantities  of  timber,  bamboos,  and  firewood,  goes  with- 
out saying.  Among  other  articles  of  forest  produce, 
cattle  fodder  is  an  important  item.  In  the  drier  portions 
of  the  country  the  supply  of  grass,  particularly  during 
seasons  of  drought,  is  more  plentiful  under  the  shelter  of 
trees  than  out  in  the  open.  In  times  of  scarcity,  grain 
can  easily  be  carried  long  distances  to  provide  food  for 
the  people,  while  cattle  fodder  cannot  be  so  easily  carried. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  where  forests  have  been  formed  and 
protected  in  the  drier  parts  of  India,  they  have  proved  a 
great  help  in  enabling  the  people  to  maintain  their  cattle 
in  times  of  drought  and  scarcity. 

In  India  the  duty  of  taking  action  necessarily  devolved 
upon  the  State.  The  result  has  been  the  formation  of 
extensive  forest  estates,  called  reserved  forests,  which 
at  present,  the  author  states,  aggregate  33,000,000 
acres,  or  three  times  the  area  of  State  forests  in  the 
German  Empire.  If  forest  matters  in  India  continue  to 
be  properly  managed,  these  estates  will  not  only  secure 
the  well-being  of  the  people,  but  will  be  an  important 
source  of  strength  to  the  Government,  financially  and 
otherwise.  As  yet,  the  revenue  which  they  yield  is  in- 
significant in  relation  to  their  extent.  But  it  is  growing 
steadily.  Dr.  Schlich  shows  that  during  the  three  years 
1864-67  the  average  annual  net  revenue  from  the  Govern- 
ment forests  amounted  to  ^106,615,  and  during  the  five 
years  1882-87  to  ^384,752 ;  and  he  states  it  as  his 
opinion  that,  twenty-five  years  hence,  the  net  surplus  will 
be  four  times  the  present  amount.  More  important, 
however,  than  the  annual  revenue  is  the  steadily  increas- 
ing capital  value  of  these  Government  forest  estates. 

In  Great  Britain  the  aspect  of  affairs  is  different.  The 
small  area  of  the  Crown  forests,  burdened  as  they  are 
with  prescriptive  rights,  cannot  reasonably  be  expected 
materially  to  help  the  development  of  systematic  forest 
management.  But  there  are  over  2,500,000  acres  of 
woods  and  forests  in  the  hands  of  private  proprietors,  and 
there  are  26,000,000  acres  of  barren  mountain  land  and 
waste,  a  portion  of  which  might  be  planted  up.  Pro- 
prietors, as  a  rule,  desire  to  augment  their  income  and  to 
increase  the  capital  value  of  their  estates.  In  many  cases 
this  might  be  effected  by  a  more  systematic  management 
of  their  woodlands,  and  by  the  planting  up  of  waste  lands. 
The  chief  obstacle  to  progress  in  this  direction  is  the  low 


124 


NATURE 


[Dec.  12,  1889 


price  of  timber  and  the  high  rent  at  present  obtained  by 
the  letting  of  grouse  moors  and  deer  forests. 

Upon  data  which  cannot  be  gainsaid,  Dr.  Schlich  has 
based  important  calculations,  which  will  be  found  on 
pp.  17-19.  Space  forbids  the  discussion  of  details,  but 
the  result  is  that  Scotch  pine  forests  cannot  be  expected 
to  yield  more  than  2^  per  cent,  on  the  capital  invested 
(the  value  of  the  land  and  of  the  growing  crop). 

"All  land,  therefore,  which  can  be  let  for  the  raising  of 
field  crops,  for  shooting,  or  other  purposes,  at  a  rental 
equal  to,  or  upwards  of,  2^  per  cent,  of  the  capital  value  of 
the  land,  had  better  be  so  let.  On  the  other  hand,  land 
which  would  realize  a  rental  of  less  than  2h  per  cent,  of 
its  value,  may  with  advantage  be  planted  with  Scotch 
pine  or  other  similarly  remunerative  trees." 

These  conclusions  are  based  upon  circumstances  as 
they  exist  at  the  present  time.  But  a  change  of  circum- 
stances is  not  impossible.  The  author  points  out  that 
6,000,000  loads  of  timber  are  imported  annually  into  the 
United  Kingdom  from  Europe  and  North  America,  and 
that  only  a  small  portion  of  the  forests  which  furnish  this 
large  supply  are  under  systematic  management  and  con- 
trol. It  may  be  regarded  as  certain  that  the  supply  from 
Sweden  and  Norway  and  from  North  America,  amounting 
at  present  to  nearly  4,000,000  loads  a  year,  will  continue 
to  diminish,  and,  under  the  circumstances  of  the  case,  the 
necessary  result  of  such  diminution  will  eventually  be  a 
rise  in  the  price  of  timber.  Again,  if  proprietors  of  wood- 
lands in  England  and  Scotland  were  in  a  position  to  offer 
large  quantities  of  home-grown  timber  of  good  quality  for 
sale,  regularly  at  stated  seasons,  timber  traders  would 
make  their  arrangements  accordingly,  and  in  many  cases 
better  prices  would  be  obtained.  Firewood  is  at  present 
almost  unsaleable  in  the  United  Kingdom,  but  if— and 
this  may  happen — the  price  of  coal  should  rise  consider- 
ably, firewood  would  in  some  districts  become  an  article 
of  general  consumption,  as  it  was  150  years  ago,  and 
to  some  extent  this  would  improve  the  money  yield  of 
woodlands. 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  publication  of  Dr. 
Schlich's  manual  will  give  a  powerful  impetus  to  sys- 
tematic forest  management  in  the  United  Kingdom,  in 
India,  and  in  the  vast  colonies  of  the  British  Empire — in 
fact,  wherever  the  English  language  is  spoken. 

D.  Brandis. 


FERREL'S  THEORY  OF  THE  WINDS. 

A  Popular  Treatise  on  the  Winds.  Comprising  the 
General  Motions  of  the  Atmosphere,  Monsoons, 
Cyclones,  Tornadoes,  Waterspouts,  Hailstorms,  &c. 
By  William  Ferrel,  M.A.,  Ph.D.,  &c.  (New  York: 
John  Wiley  and  Sons.  London  :  Macmillan  and  Co. 
1889.) 

^]UMEROUS  as  are  the  popular  treatises  on  various 
*!  branches  of  phenomenal  meteorology  that  have 
appeared  during  the  last  quarter  of  a  century,  English 
literature  has  hitherto  been  singularly  deficient  in  ele- 
mentary works  treating  of  the  physical  and  mechanical 
processes  of  the  atmosphere  from  a  theoretical  point  of 
view,  and  suited  to  the  capacity  of  the  average  student. 
Those  versed  in  the  higher  mathematics  may  indeed  find 


all  they  require  in  such  modern  works  as  Sprung's 
"  Lehrbuch  der  Meteorologie,"  and  Ferrel's  "  Recent 
Advances  in  Meteorology,"  the  high  merit  and  originality 
of  which  last  are  somewhat  veiled  under  its  more  obtru- 
sive title — "  Part  2  of  the  Report  of  the  Chief  Signal 
Officer  of  the  [U.S.]  Army  for  1885."  But  these  works  are 
hardly  suited  for  popular  instruction  ;  and  for  that  large 
class  of  students  whose  mathematical  acquirements  are 
more  limited,  but  who  nevertheless  desire  to  understand 
the  movements  and  internal  changes  of  the  atmosphere, 
and  to  interpret  them  rationally  in  accordance  with  me- 
chanical and  physical  laws,  there  has  hitherto  been  little 
guidance,  save  such  as  they  may  obtain  from  casual 
references  to  them  in  works  devoted  to  the  general 
teaching  of  these  sciences.  It  is  perhaps  in  consequence 
of  this  divorce  of  the  deductive  from  the  inductive  treat- 
ment of  meteorological  subjects  that  the  contributions  of 
English  observers  to  the  science  of  meteorology  bear 
but  an  insignificant  proportion  to  the  labour  expended  on 
observational  work,  and  that  so  much  of  this  work  is 
abortive,  and  practically  of  little  value,  owing  to  the 
absence  of  guiding  and  suggestive  theoretical  knowledge. 

It  is,  then,  with  no  ordinary  degree  of  satisfaction  that 
we  hail  the  publication  of  Prof.  Ferrel's  treatise,  the  title 
of  which  heads  this  notice.  As  the  originator  and  dis- 
coverer of  many  of  the  most  important  problems  dealt 
with  in  these  pages,  no  one  could  be  better  fitted  to 
explain  them  in  terms  suited  to  general  comprehension, 
and  this  task  he  has  performed  with  a  completeness  and 
lucidity  which  leave  but  little  to  be  desired.  The  work 
is,  as  it  professes  to  be,  a  "  popular  "  treatise,  but  popular 
only  in  the  higher  sense  of  the  word.  A  system  of  move- 
ments so  complex  as  those  of  the  earth's  atmosphere 
cannot  be  made  clear  to  anyone  who  is  not  capable  of 
following  a  chain  of  close  reasoning,  or  who  is  not  pre- 
pared to  bring  to  the  study  that  concentrated  attention 
that  is  requisite  to  master  any  problem  in  deductive 
science.  But,  these  being  granted,  no  further  demand  is 
made  on  the  student  than  some  familiarity  with  the 
elements  of  algebra,  and  the  simplest  conceptions  of 
plane  trigonometry  and  kinetics.  The  action  of  the 
mechanical  and  physical  forces  that  determine  and 
regulate  the  wind  system  of  the  globe  is  clearly  ex- 
plained in  the  first  two  chapters  of  the  work. 

The  most  important  and  original  portion  of  the  book 
is  that  which  deals  with  the  general  circulation  of  the 
atmosphere,  in  relation  to  which  the  cyclones  and  anti- 
cyclones that  cause  the  vicissitudes  of  local  weather  are 
but  matters  of  subordinate  detail.  The  magnitude  of  the 
work  achieved  by  Prof.  Ferrel  in  this  field  has  hitherto 
been  recognized  only  by  the  few.  It  is  not  too  much  to 
say  that  he  has  done  for  the  theory  of  atmospheric  circu- 
lation that  which  Young  and  Fresnel  did  for  the  theory  of 
light ;  and  that  the  influence  of  his  work  is  not  more 
generally  reflected  in  the  literature  of  the  day,  must  be 
attributed  to  the  want  of  some  popular  exposition  of  the 
theory. 

Starting  with  the  fundamental  conditions  of  a  great 
temperature  difference  between  equatorial  and  polar 
regions  and  a  rotating  globe,  and  postulating  in  the  first 
instance  a  uniform  land  or  water  surface,  it  is  shown 
how  the  convective  interchange  of  air  set  up  by  the 
former  must  result  in  producing  two  zones  of  maximum 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


125 


pressure  in  about  lat.  30'  in  both  hemispheres,  two  prin- 
cipal minima  at  the  poles,  and  a  minor  depression  on  the 
equator,  together  with  strong  west  winds  in  middle  and 
high  latitudes,  and  an  excess  of  easterly  winds  in  equa- 
torial regions.  The  two  tropical  zones  of  high  pres- 
sure determine  the  polar  limits  of  the  trade  winds,  and 
the  whole  system  oscillates  in  latitude  with  the  changing 
declination  of  the  sun.  Further,  as  a  consequence  of  the 
fact  that  the  great  mass  of  the  land  is  restricted  to  the 
northern  hemisphere,  whereas  the  southern  hemisphere 
presents  a  comparatively  uninterrupted  sea  surface,  on 
which  the  retarding  friction  is  less  than  in  the  northern 
hemisphere,  the  west  winds  of  middle  and  high  latitudes 
are  much  stronger  in  the  latter  than  in  the  former,  and 
by  their  lateral  pressure  cause  a  slight  displacement  of 
the  tropical  zones  of  high  pressure  and  the  equatorial 
zone  of  low  pressure  to  the  north  of  their  normal  positions 
on  a  hypothetical  uniform  terrestrial  surface. 

The  great  modification  and  extension  of  Hadley's 
theory  thus  introduced  by  Prof.  Ferrel  depends  mainly  on 
two  points  of  the  first  importance.  By  all  previous  writers 
it  was  assumed  that  a  mass  of  air  at  rest  relatively  to  the 
earth's  surface  on  the  equator,  if  suddenly  transferred  to 
some  higher  latitude — say,  e.g.,  60° — would  have  a  relative 
easterly  movement  in  that  latitude  equal  to  the  difference 
of  rotary  velocities  on  the  equator  and  on  the  60th 
parallel,  or  about  500  miles  an  hour,  the  difference  being 
proportional  to  that  of  the  cosines  of  the  latitudes.  This, 
however,  would  be  true  only  in  the  case  of  rectilinear 
motion.  In  reality,  as  Prof.  Ferrel  was  the  first  to  demon- 
strate, the  mass  of  air  would  obey  the  law  of  the  preserva- 
tion of  areas,  like  all  bodies  revolving  under  the  influence 
of  a  central  force,  and  its  relative  eastward  velocity  in 
latitude  60°  would  be  1500  miles^an  hour,  being  as  the 
difference  of  the  squares  of  the  cosines.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  any  mass  of  air  at  rest  in  latitude  60^  were  suddenly 
transferred  to  the  equator,  it  would  have  a  relative  westerly 
movement  of  750  miles  an  hour,  and  any  mass  of  matter 
whatever  moving  along  a  meridian  is  either  deflected — or 
if,  like  a  railway  train  or  a  river  between  high  banks,  it 
is  not  free  to  yield  to  the  deflecting  force,  presses — to  the 
right  of  its  path  in  the  northern,  and  to  the  left  in  the 
southern,  hemisphere. 

The  second  point  first  established  by  Prof.  Ferrel  is 
that,  in  virtue  of  centrifugal  force,  this  deflection  or 
pressure  to  the  right  in  the  northern,  and  to  the  left  in 
the  southern,  hemisphere  is  suffered  in  exactly  the  same 
degree  by  bodies  moving  due  east  and  due  west,  or  along 
a  parallel  of  latitude,  and  therefore  also  in  all  intermediate 
azimuths. 

From  the  first  of  these  principles  it  will  be  readily  seen 
why  the  west  winds  of  middle  latitudes  are  so  much 
stronger  than  the  easterly  winds  of  the  equatorial  zone  ; 
and  from  the  second,  how  these  opposite  winds,  by  their 
mutual  pressure,  produce  the  tropical  zones  of  high 
barometer  and  the  polar  and  equatorial  regions  of  low 
barometer. 

In  subsequent  chapters  are  discussed  the  modes  in 
which  the  general  circulation  of  the  globe  affects  the 
climates  of  different  latitudes  by  determining  the  distri- 
bution of  rainfall  in  wet  and  dry  zones,  and  inequalities 
of  temperature  through  the  agency  of  marine  currents. 
Also  the  causes  that  modify  and  disturb  the  regularity  of 


the  ideal  system,  the  chief  of  which  is  the  mutual  inter- 
action of  expanses  of  land  and  sea.  The  general  excel- 
lence of  these  demonstrations  is  indisputable,  but  we 
have  marked  one  or  two  passages  which  appear  to  us  to  be 
of  doubtful  validity,  and  which  we  recommend  to  the  re- 
consideration of  the  author  when  the  time  comes,  as  we 
doubt  not  it  will  ere  long,  for  the  issue  of  a  second  edition 
of  his  work. 

The  first  point  to  which  we  would  take  exception  is 
what  seems  to  us  the  too  great  influence  ascribed  to 
mountain-chains  in  deflecting  the  great  atmospheric  cur- 
rents. That  they  deflect  the  surface  winds,  like  other 
irregularities  of  the  surface,  and  in  proportion  to  their 
magnitude,  is,  of  course,  a  matter  of  universal  experience  • 
but,  in  the  absence  of  other  causes  operating  to  produce 
a  diversion  of  the  greater  currents,  their  action  in  this 
respect  appears  to  us  to  be  merely  local.  As  an  instance 
we  will  take  the  case  of  the  Western  Ghats  of  India,  an 
escarpment  from  3000  to  7000  feet  in  height,  running 
athwart  the  direction  of  the  summer  monsoon  of  the 
Arabian  Sea.  The  wind  charts  of  the  Arabian  Sea,  issued 
by  the  Indian  Meteorological  Office,  show  no  appreciable 
deflection  of  the  monsoon  wind  on  the  windward  face  of 
this  range  ;  and  if  the  same  cannot  be  asserted  of  the 
corresponding  wind  in  the  north  of  the  Bay  of  Bengal, 
where  it  impinges  on  the  coast  range  of  Arakan,  it  is 
evident  that  the  deflection  of  this  current  to  north,  and 
eventually  to  north-west,  is  caused  by  the  indraught 
towards  the  heated  plains  of  Northern  India. 

We  believe  that  a  similar  explanation  will  be  found  to 
hold  good  in  all  the  more  conspicuous  cases  cited  by 
Prof.  Ferrel.     Thus,  at  p.  183  he  says: — 

"  The  air  of  the  lower  strata  of  the  atmosphere  in  the 
trade-wind  zone  of  the  North  Atlantic,  having  a  westerly 
motion,  and  impinging  against  the  high  table-lands  and 
mountain-ranges  of  Mexico,  is  deflected  around  towards 
the  north  over  the  south-eastern  States,  and  up  the  Mis- 
sissippi valley  into  the  higher  latitudes,  where  it  com- 
bines with  the  geneial  easterly  flow  of  these  latitudes, 
and  adds  to  its  strength.  This  completely  breaks  up  the 
continuity  of  the  tropical  calm  belt  and  dry  zone,  so  that, 
instead  of  a  dry  region  with  scanty  rainfall,  such  as  is 
found  in  North  Africa,  Arabia,  Persia,  Beloochistan,  and 
Cabul,  we  have  on  the  same  parallels  in  the  southern 
and  eastern  United  States  a  region  of  abundant  rainfall, 
and  all  the  way  up  the  Mississippi  valley  and  in  the  in- 
terior of  the  continent  there  is  much  more  rain  than  in 
the  interior  of  Asia." 

Taking  this  passage  as  it  stands,  or  only  together  with 
the  immediate  context,  it  might  be  understood  to  imply 
that  the  author  ascribes  this  great  diversion  of  the  winds 
of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  together  with  all  the  rainfall  they 
bring  to  the  southern  States  of  America,  solely  to  the 
influence  of  the  comparatively  low  mountain-chain  of 
Central  America.  That  such,  however,  is  not  his  mean- 
ing is  evident  from  his  subsequent  remarks  on  p.  215, 
where,  in  describing  the  monsoons  of  North  America, 
after  noticing  the  high  temperature  of  the  land  area  in 
summer,  he  says  : — 

"On  the  southern  and  south-eastern  coast,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  deflection  referred  to  [in  the  passage  quoied 
above],  it  causes  the  prevailing  winds  to  be  southerly  and 
south-easterly,  instead  of  north  easterly,  as  they  would 
otherwise  be  in  these  trade-wind  latitudes." 


I  26 


NATURE 


[Dec.  12,  1889 


In  point  of  fact,  as  may  be  seen  on  Dr.  Hann's  charts 
for  January  and  July,  in  the  new  edition  of  Berghaus's 
"  Physical  Atlas,"  the  diversion  of  the  trade-winds  of  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  northward  up  the  Mississippi  valley 
takes  place  only  in  the  summer,  and  is  an  effect  of  the 
satne  agency,  viz.  the  heating  of  the  northern  continents, 
that  breaks  up  the  high-pressure  zone  of  the  northern  tropic 
into  two  anticyclones,  one  in  each  of  the  great  oceans, 
and  it  is  the  juxtaposition  of  the  Atlantic  anticyclone 
and  the  Mexican  cyclonic  depression  that  determines  the 
course  of  the  winds  and  the  resulting  rainfall.  To  judge 
from  the  case  of  the  Western  Ghats,  we  think  it  may  be 
safely  concluded  that,  if  there  were  no  mountain-chain  to 
the  west  of  the  Gulf,  the  results  would  not  be  greatly 
different.  All  the  other  instances  quoted,  illustrative  of 
the  diversion  of  great  currents  by  mountain-chains,  ex- 
cept such  as  are  purely  local,  appear  to  us  to  be  really 
due  to  other  and  similar  causes. 

In  treating  of  the  monsoons,  Prof.  Ferrel  points  out 
with  perfect  justice  that  their  strength  depends  on  the 
form  of  the  land,  and  that  they  blow  strongly  only  where 
the  interior  of  the  country  is  high  and  mountainous. 
But  when  he  adduces  Persia  as  an  illustration  of  the 
negative  case,  we  are  unable  to  admit  its  relevancy.  At 
p.  199  he  observes  : — 

"In  accordance  with  the  preceding  view  of  the  prin- 
cipal cause  of  monsoons  and  land  and  sea  breezes,  it  is 
seen  from  observation  that  all  the  great  monsoons  and  the 
strongest  land  and  sea  breezes  are  found — the  former  in 
countries  and  on  oceans  adjacent  to  high  mountain- 
ranges,  and  the  latter  along  coasts  with  high  mountains 
in  the  background.  Neither  the  heated  interior  in  sum- 
mer of  the  Great  Sahara  of  Northern  Africa,  nor  of 
Arabia  and  Persia,  which  is  considered  the  warmest  re- 
gion on  the  globe,  causes,  during  this  season  of  the  year, 
any  great  indraught  of  air.  It  is  true  that  at  this  season 
the  north-westerly  winds  prevail  a  little  more  on  the 
north-west  coast  of  Africa  and  the  ocean  adjacent,  due,  no 
doubt,  to  the  influence  of  the  highly-heated  desert  of 
the  Sahara,;  but  over  Arabia  and  Persia  the  north-west 
winds  continue  to  blow  almost  incessantly,  during  June 
and  July,  away  from  the  interior  toward  the  Arabian 
Sea.  .  .  .  The  monsoon  influence,  therefore,  of  countries 
mostly  level,  without  an  elevated  interior,  however  highly 
they  may  become  heated  in  summer  or  cooled  in  winter, 
is  not  very  great." 

But  the  interior  of  Persia  is  a  part  of  the  great  table- 
land of  Iran,  and,  to  quote  the  description  of  Sir  Oliver 
St.  John,  "  its  average  height  above  the  sea  may  be  about 
4000  feet,  varying  from  Sooo  or  higher  in  certain  of  the 
outer  valleys  to  not  more  than  500  in  the  most  depressed 
portions  of  its  centre."  Its  average  elevation  is  therefore 
much  greater  than  that  of  the  interior  of  India,  very  much 
greater  than  that  of  the  Indo-Gangetic  plain,  which  is  the 
goal  of  the  Indian  monsoon,  and,  as  a  glance  at  the  map 
will  show,  it  is  not  deficient  in  mountains.  The  explana- 
tion of  the  fact  that,  instead  of  attracting  the  monsoon 
from  the  Arabian  Sea,  it  is  itself  swept  by  north-west  and 
west  winds — blowing,  not,  indeed,  towards  the  Arabian 
Sea,  but  towards  the  lower  Indus  valley — must  then  be 
sought  for  elsewhere.  The  true  explanation  appears  to 
us  to  lie  in  a  combination  of  causes.  Partly,  perhaps,  in 
the  latitude,  which  brings  it  within  the  zone  of  the  strong 
easterly  current  of  extra-tropical  regions,  which,  by  its 
right-handed   pressure,  must   resist  any  indraught  from 


the  Arabian  Sea  ;  but  chiefly  in  the  fact  that  any  tendency 
that  the  heated  highlands  of  Persia  may  have  to  create 
such  an  indraught  is  overborne  by  the  stronger  set 
towards  India.  For  the  latter  country  reaches  far  down 
into  the  tropics,  and  the  centre  towards  which  the  mon- 
soon blows  must  be  determined  by  the  resultant  of  all 
the  temperature  gradients  of  the  whole  heated  region. 
An  eastward  direction  having  been  given  to  the  monsoon 
at  the  outset,  its  strength  in  that  direction  is  greatly  in- 
creased by  the  energy  set  free  in  the  Indian  monsoon 
rainfall. 

This  question  is  one  of  more  than  theoretical  import- 
ance. These  west  winds  of  Persia  and  Afghanistan  are 
the  dry  winds  of  Northern  and  Western  India,  and  wherk 
they  prevail  beyond  their  normal  limits,  over  the  north 
of  the  Arabian  Sea  and  a  great  part  of  India  itself,  to  the 
exclusion  of  the  rain-bearing  current,  they  bring  the 
drought  and  consequent  dearth  that  have  made  India  sck 
disastrously  notorious  for  its  famines.  Possibly,  the  ex- 
planation of  their  abnormal  extension  may  be  looked  for 
in  those  oscillations  of  the  great  polar  cyclonic  systems 
to  which  Prof.  Ferrel  alludes  at  p.  339  of  his  work. 

Cyclones  and  tornadoes  are  treated  at  great  length , 
each  of  these  subjects  occupying  more  than  one  hundred 
pages  of  the  book  ;  and  in  connection  with  the  latter  is 
given  the  author's  theory  of  the  formation  of  hail,  a  subject 
which  has  hitherto  been  less  understood  than  almost  any 
other  phenomenon  of  the  atmosphere.  It  will  be  best 
given  in  the  author's  own  words  : — 

"  In  the  ascending  current  of  a  tornado,  as  in  that  of 
the  equatorial  calm  belt,  or  of  a  cyclone,  the  rain-drops 
are  formed  down  in  the  cloud  region,  and  carried  upward 
until  they  become  too  large  to  be  supported  by  the  current 
and  so  fall  to  the  earth.  ...  In  a  tornado,  however,  the 
ascending  current  is  often  so  strong  that  the  rain  is 
supported  until,  by  the  blending  of  the  small  drops  by 
coming  in  contact,  very  large  drops  are  formed,  and  the 
strong  ascending  currents  often  extend  so  high  that  these 
large  drops  are  carried  away  up  into  the  region  of  freezing 
temperature.  .  .  .  There  they  are  frozen,  and  after  having 
been  carried  up  and  outward  above  to  a  distance  from  the 
centre,  where  the  ascending  current  is  not  strong  enough 
.  .  .  to  keep  them  up,  they  slowly  descend,  and  receiving 
additions  of  ice  as  they  fall,  as  long  as  their  temperature 
remains  below  zero,  .  .  .  they  finally  fall  to  the  earth  as 
solid  hailstones  " 

The  concentric  coatings  so  commonly  observed  in  large 
hailstones  are  explained  by  these  hailstones  being  carried 
again  and  again  into  the  vortex  by  the  strong  indraught 
in  the  lower  part  of  the  storm-cloud,  the  theory  being 
that  every  hail-cloud  is  a  tornado,  although  it  may  not 
reach  down  to  the  lower  atmosphere.  The  vapour  being 
condensed  as  water  in  the  lower  part  of  the  vortex,  which 
is  frozen  at  a  higher  level,  and  as  snow  in  the  upper  part, 
each  pair  of  coatings  indicate  an  additional  ascent  through 
the  storm-cloud.  This  view,  which,  even  at  first  sight, 
seems  far  more  reasonable  than  any  previous  theory,  has 
received  unexpected  confirmation  from  the  experience  of 
more  than  one  adventurous  balloonist,  more  especially 
that  of  Mr.  John  Wise,  whose  fate  it  was  to  be  drawn 
seven  times  successively  into  the  vortex  of  a  hail-cloud,, 
and  carried  up  repeatedly  until  the  balloon  was  thrown 
out  at  the  top.  The  account  is,  unfortunately,  too  long 
for  extracting. 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


12 


From  what  has  been  said,  it  will  be  apparent  that  Prof. 
Ferrel's  book  enters  very  fully  into  the  many  important 
topics  enumerated  in  the  title.  Indeed,  its  subject-matter 
covers  very  much  of  the  ground  of  which  modern  meteoro- 
logy usually  takes  cognizance,  and  in  the  thoroughness  of 
its  treatment  we  know  of  no  modern  work  in  our  language 
that  can  be  brought  into  comparison  with  it. 

H.  F.  B. 

A  NEW  ATLAS  OF  ALG.E. 

Atlas  dcutscher  Meeresalgen.  Heft  I.    Von  Dr.  J.  Reinke 
(Berlin:  Paul  Parey,  1889). 

THE  German  Government,  operating  through  the 
Kommission  zur  wissenschaftlichen  Untersuchung 
der  deutschen  Meere,  has  undertaken  to  bear  the  cost  of 
producing  this  sumptuous  "  Atlas  "  in  the  interests  of 
fishery,  and  students  of  phycology  have  to  thank  an  eco- 
nomic aspect  of  their  study  for  a  very  remarkable  addition 
to  the  literature  of  it.  Similarly,  we  are  indebted  to  the 
United  States  Fish  Commission  for  the  publication  of 
Prof.  Farlow's  "  New  England  Algae." 

It  may  be  said  at  once  that  Dr.  Reinke's  "Atlas" 
is  a  success  in  every  way,  its  level  being  that  of 
Bornet  and  Thuret's  "  Etudes  Phycologiques."  From 
the  point  of  view  of  technique^  the  plates  are  splendidly 
done,  and  the  rest  of  the  publication  is  worthy  of  them. 
This  first  part  contains  twenty-five  quarto  plates,  and  the 
text  belonging  to  them  consists  of  descriptions  of  the 
AlgiE  figured  and  special  descriptions  of  the  illustrations. 
Speaking  not  merely  from  an  inspection  of  the  book,  but 
from  a  knowledge  of  the  material  of  much  of  it  com- 
municated by  Dr.  Reinke  to  the  British  Museum,  I  do 
not  hesitate  to  state  that  every  one  of  these  figures  has 
great  value  to  phycologists.  They  are  not  mere  portraits 
of  Algae,  taken  from  specimens  more  or  less  at  haphazard, 
as  is  too  much  the  fashion,  but  they  represent  faithfully 
characteristic  stages  in  the  development  of  the  organisms 
in  point.  What  is  commonly  termed  "  microscopical 
detail"  fills  the  "Atlas,"  and- one  can  hardly  imagine  it 
better  done.  In  this  portion  the  author  (who  has  had  the 
assistance  of  Dr.  F.  Schiitt  and  P.  Kuckuck)  deals 
prominently  with  the  Phaeophyceae,  which,  it  is  well 
known,  are  his  particular  study  at  present.  Many  of 
them  are  types  of  his  own  discovery,  and  generally 
unknown  to  workers  in  this  field  until  this  satisfactory 
introduction  to  them.  Since  they  are  of  special  import- 
ance to  our  native  phycologists  as  Alga;  of  the  North  Sea 
and  Baltic,  a  list  is  given  of  them  : — 

Halothrix  lumbricalis,  Kiitz.,  Symphoricflccus  radiatts, 
Rke.,  Kjellmania  sorifera,  Rke.,  Asperococcus  echinains, 
Mert.,  var.  filiforinis,  Rke.,  Ralfsia  verrucosa,  Aresch.^ 
R.  clavata,  Carm  ,  Microspotigium  gelatinosum,  Rke. 
Leptonema fasciculatum,  Rke., var.  iiticinatuin,vds.  majus^ 
var.  flagellare,  Desmotrichum  undulatum,  J.  Ag.,  D. 
daltlcum,  Kiitz.,  D.  scopulorum,  Rke.,  Scytosiphon  pyg- 
mcBiis,  Rke.,  Ascocyclus  reptans,  Cr.,  A.  ocellatus,  Kiitz., 
A.  balticus,  Rke.,  A.  fcecundus,  Stromf.,  var.  seriatus, 
Rke.,  A.  ghbosus,  Rke.,  Ectocarpiis  sphccricus^  Derb.  et 
Sol.,  E.  Stilophorce,  Cr.,  E.  repefis,  Rke.,  E.  ovatus, 
Kjellm.,  var.  arachnoideus,  Rke.,  Rhodochorton  chan- 
transioides,  Rke.,  Antlthamnion  boreale,  Gobi,  var. 
balticum,  Rke  ,  Blastophysa    rhisopus,   Rke.,  Epidadia 


Flustrce,  Rke.,  Cladophora  pygmcsa,  Rke.,  Pringsheimia 
scutata,  Rke. 

It  may  be  anticipated  that  a  fairnumber  of  the  novelties 
among  these  so-called  "  German  Algae  "  (the  title  reminds 
one  of  the  "  Protestant  trout "')  may  be  found  on  our  own 
coasts. 

It  should  be  mentioned  that  more  systematic  detail 
with  reference  to  many  of  these  is  to  be  found  in  the 
author's  "  Algenflora  des  Westlichen  Ostsee"  (Berlin, 
1889). 

The  author  very  properly  calls  attention  to  the  funda- 
mental importance  of  a  thorough  knowledge  of  marine 
Algai  to  fishery,  since  the  plant  world  prepares  by  its 
organs  of  assimilation  the  food  of  the  animal  world  in 
the  sea.  The  German  Commission  deserve  the  highest 
praise  for  the  enlightened  view  of  their  functions  em- 
bodied in  this  undertaking,  and  no  biologist  will  grudge 
the  warmest  encouragement  to  Dr.  Reinke  in  his  work. 
It  is  anticipated  that  the  book,  when  complete,  will  con- 
tain a  hundred  plates,  with  the  accompanying  text.  In 
these  days,  when  the  most  unmitigated  rubbish  frequently 
comes  to  us  with  highly  pretentious  illustrations,  the  stu- 
dent has  learned  to  be  on  his  guard  against  "  prepossess- 
ing appearances."  No  plate  inafiufactttre,  however,  can 
produce  the  welcome  impression  of  weight  and  import- 
ance stamped  on  this  "  Atlas,"  gained  to  a  great  extent 
by  the  fact  that  Dr.  Schiitt  and  Herr  Kuckuck,  who  have 
drawn  the  plates,  have  given  us  the  work  of  skilful 
botanists,  and  not  that  of  draughtsmen  only. 

G.  M. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Die  mikroskopische  Beschaffeiiheit  der  Meteorlten  erldutert 

durch photographische  Abbildungen.  VonG.  Tschermak. 

(Stuttgart : '  E.  Schweizerbart'sche  Verlagshandlung  [E. 

Koch],  1883-85.) 
Die   Structur   iind   Ztisammensctzung  der    Meteoreisen 

erlautert  durch  photographische  Abbildungen  gedtzter 

Schnittjidchen.     Von'    A.     Brezina     und    E.     Cohen. 

(Stuttgart :  E.  Schweizerbart'sche  Verlagshandlung  [E. 

Koch],  1886-87.) 
Die  Meteoritensammlung  des  k.  k.  mineralog.  Hofkablnetes 

in    Wien.     Von  A.  Brezina.      (Wien :  Alfred  Holder, 

1885.) 
The  above  three  works  together  provide  for  the  student 
a  rich  treasury  of  information  relative  to  the  characters  of 
meteorites.  The  first  two  illustrate,  by  the  aid  of  photo- 
graphy, the  structure  and  composition  of  the  more  typical 
meteoric  stones  and  irons  respectively.  The  work  deal- 
ing with  the  meteoric  stones  is  complete  in  three  parts, 
including  25  large  plates,  and  has  been  undertaken  by 
Prof.  Tschermak,  who  had  charge  of  the  Vienna  Collec- 
tion of  Minerals  from  1869  to  1877.  Of  that  which  relates 
to  the  meteoric  irons  only  two  parts  have  as  yet  ap- 
peared, but  they  comprise  no  fewer  than  24  large  plates  : 
it  is  undertaken  jointly  by  Dr.  Brezina,  who  succeeded 
Prof.  Tschermak  in  the  keepership  of  the  Vienna  Collec- 
tion, and  by  Prof  E.  Cohen,  of  Greifswald,  whose  series 
of  micro-photographs  of  sections  of  terrestrial  minerals 
and  rocks  is  so  well  known. 

Photography  has  rarely  been  applied  to  a  more  satis- 
factory purpose  than  the  multiplication  of  exact  represen- 
tations either  of  transparent  meteoritic  sections,  or  of 
etched  meteoric  irons  as  seen  with  the  unassisted  eye  or 
when  magnified  by  means  of  the  microscope.  Meteoritic 
falls  are  rarely  so'  large  that  the  market  is  flooded  with 


128 


NATURE 


{Dec.  12,  1889 


illustrative  specimens  ;  and,  indeed,  a  good  collection  of 
typical  meteorites  is  inaccessible  to  most  students.  But, 
further,  meteoric  irons  are  very  prone  to  deteriorate, 
through  oxidation,  and  the  perpetuation  of  the  characters 
of  a  freshly  etched  face  is  thus  especially  to  be  desired. 
The  excellence  of  the  photographs  is  beyond  all  praise. 
The  details,  whether  of  the  chondritic  structure  or  of  the 
Widmanstatten  figures,  are  most  beautifully  shown.  A 
brief  description  of  the  salient  features  of  the  sections  is 
furnished  with  each  plate. 

The  third  work  is  nominally  "a  Catalogue  of  the  Vienna 
Meteorites,  but,  by  reason  of  the  completeness  of  that 
collection,  is  virtually  a  survey  of  the  petrographical 
characters  of  the  meteorites  of  all  the  known  falls.  The 
classification  adopted  is  in  the  main  that  suggested  by 
Gustav  Rose  in  1864,  and  developed  by  Tschermak  in 
1872  and  1883.  The  detailed  description  and  definition 
of  the  groups  is  preceded  by  a  history  of  the  Vienna 
Collection,  and  also  by  a  sketch  of  the  various  theories 
which  have  been  proposed  relative  to  the  mode  of  forma- 
tion of  meteorites.  As  a  result  of  his  microscopical 
researches,  Dr.  Brezina  supports  the  view  that  the 
structural  features  of  meteorites  are  due  to  hurried  crys- 
tallization, and  not  to  a  slow  agglomeration  of  fragmentary 
matter.  Dr.  Brezina  adds  a  chronological  list  of  the 
meteorites  preserved  in  the  known  collections,  and  also  a 
lengthy  index  of  names,  synonyms,  and  localities.  The 
work  extends  over  126  pages,  and  is  accompanied  by  four 
plates.  L.  F. 

Introduction  to  Chemical  Science.  By  R.  P.  Williams 
A.M.,  and  B.  P.  Lascelles,  M.A.,  F.C.S.  (London  : 
Ginn  and  Company,  1889.) 

There  could  hardly  be  a  more  concise  and  well-digested 
summary  of  elementary  chemical  principles  and  applica- 
tions than  that  contained  in  this  work.  It  is  a  manual 
intermediate  between  the  natural  philosophy  primer  and 
the  minute  and  detailed*  text-book,  and  fills  the  gap 
pointed  out  in  the  Report  on  Chemical  Teaching  of  a 
British  Association  Committee  in  1888.  Hence,  as  an 
outline  of  chemical  science  to  be  filled  up  in  greater 
detail  from  larger  works,  and  as  an  introductory  text- 
book, this  volume  will  be  found  exceedingly  useful.  The 
experiments  described  are  such  as  should  be  performed 
by  everyone  beginning  the  study  of  chemistry,  and  would 
also  serve  as  an  excellent  introduction  to  a  course  of 
qualitative  analysis.  In  addition  to  the  treatment  of 
metals  and  non-metals,  the  work  includes  chapters  on 
organic  chemistry,  and  others  on  photographic  chemistry, 
the  chemistry  of  rocks,  and  electro-chemistry.  Indeed, 
Mr.  Williams,  the  author  of  the  American  edition,  and  the 
reviser,  Mr.  Lascelles,  may  claim  to  have  produced  a 
most  comprehensive  little  work,  and  one  deserving  con- 
siderable commendation. 

The  Cradle  of  the  Aryans.  By  Gerald  H.  Rendall,  M.A. 
(London  :  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 

The  question  as  to  the  primitive  home  of  the  so-called 
Aryan  race  has  lately  excited  so  much  interest  that  many 
students  must  have  wished  for  a  short  and  clear  account 
of  the  controversies  relating  to  the  subject.  This  is 
exactly  what  Prof.  Rendall  supplies  in  the  present  essay, 
the  substance  of  which  was  originally  communicated  to 
the  members  of  the  Liverpool  Literary  and  Philosophical 
Society.  Prof.  Rendall  accepts  Penka's  theory  that  the 
Aryans  were  a  European  people  who,  at  the  close  of  the 
glacial  epoch,  followed  the  ice  northwards,  and  settled  in 
Scandinavia  ;  and  that  Scandinavia  was  the  centre  from 
which,  at  various  subsequent  periods,  groups  of  the 
Aryan  race  were  dispersed.  All  the  arguments 
marshalled  by  the  German  writer  in  favour  of  this 
hypothesis  are  here  briefly  and  effectively  stated.  The 
philological   part   of  the   case  is   presented   in   a   more 


scholarlike  spirit  by  Prof.  Rendall  than  by  Penka  himself, 
whose  rash  philological  conjectures  have  prevented  a  good 
many  people  from  doing  full  justice  to  the  weight  of  his 
anthropological  and  ethnological  evidence. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  Tht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed  by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.'\ 

Mr.  Cope  on  the  Causes  of  Variation. 

Mr.  E.  D.  Cope's  letter  in  Nature  of  November  28  (p.  79) 
is  a  fair  sample  of  his  writings  on  biological  theory,  in  so  far  as 
I  am  acquainted  with  them. 

Mr.  Cope  proposes  to  teach  Mr.  Wallace  and  others  the  first 
principles  of  both  logic  and  biology.  The  tone  of  his  letter 
encourages  a  similar  frankness  in  reply.  Mr.  Cope  must 
not  take  it  amiss  when  he  is  charged  with  two  of  the  gravest 
faults  of  which  a  critic  can  be  guilty — namely,  complete  mis- 
apprehension of  the  matter  which  he  is  attempting  to  criti- 
cize, and  no  less  complete  ignorance  of  the  recognized  and 
elementary  facts  of  the  branch  of  science  to  which  that  par- 
ticular matter  relates.  I  do  not  hesitate  to  assert  that  Mr.  Cope 
puts  forward  an  argument  which  could  not  possibly  be  enter- 
tained by  anyone  who  is  acquainted  with  the  most  notorious  and 
admitted  facts  of  heredity  and  variation.  I  venture  to  express 
myself  thus  emphatically,  because  it  is  a  matter  for  sincere  re- 
gret that  American  biology  should  at  this  moment  be  identified 
with  what  is  sometimes  called  "a  school  of  philosophy  "  which 
owes  its  distinction  to  a  deliberate  ignoring  of  the  writings  of 
Mr.  Darwin.  By  all  means  let  us  have  discussion  and  criticism 
of  Mr.  Darwin's  conclusions,  but  let  it  be  understood  that  those 
who  enter  upon  such  discussion  have  at  any  rate  an  elementary 
acquaintance  with  the  works  of  Mr.  Darwin  himself,  if  not  with 
those  of  Weismann  and  Wallace  ;  otherwise,  much  time  and 
much  of  your  valuable  space  will  be  wasted. 

That  Mr.  Cope  has  not  the  necessary  elementary  acquaintance 
with  the  admitted  facts  of  heredity  and  variation  will  appear 
from  what  follows.  The  discussion  in  which  he  has  intervened 
is  one  as  to  whether  certain  structural  peculiarities  exhibited  by 
flat-fish  are  due  to  the  transmission  to  their  offspring  of  a  form 
and  position  of  parts  acquired  by  muscular  efforts  by  the 
ancestors  of  flat-fish,  or  whether  these  given  structural  pecu- 
liarities suddenly  appeared  in  the  ancestors  of  flat-fish  as  a 
"  congenital  variation  "  having  no  adaptive  relation  to  any  efforts 
or  experiences  of  a  preceding  generation,  and  were  advantageous 
to  their  possc'^sors,  so  that  the  mdividuals  thus  born  were  favoured 
in  the  struggle  for  existence,  survived  to  maturity,  and  trans- 
mitted their  peculiarity  to  some  of  their  offspring  with  such 
intensification  as  is  found  experimentally  to  be  the  result  of 
breeding  from  parents  both  of  which  possess  a  given  congenital 
peculiarity. 

The  question  laised  is,  in  short,  whether  in  this  case  Lamarck's 
hypothesis  of  the  transmission  of  acquired  characters  is  the 
necessary  explanation,  or  whether  the  case  can  be  explained  by 
the  action  of  the  kno'ivn  causes  (not  hypothetical  causes)  on 
which  Mr.  Darwin  founded  his  theory  of  the  origin  of  species, 
viz.  the  occurrence  of  congenital  variations  unrelated  to  any  like 
variations  in  parents  or  ancestors,  and  the  selection  and  intensi- 
fication of  such  variations  in  subsequent  breeding.  There  has 
been  here  no  ambiguity — such  as  unfortunately  arises  sometimes 
when  like  questions  are  discussed — as  to  the  sense  in  which  the 
term  "  acquired  characters  "  is  used.  It  is  clear  enough  that  by 
the  "acquired  characters"  of  a  parent  we  do  not  mean 
characters  congenital  in  the  parent,  but  expressly  exclude  them  ; 
it  is  clear  that  we  refer  on  the  contrary  (as  did  Lamarck)  to  new 
characters  acquired  by  the  parent  as  the  direct  consequence  of 
the  action  of  the  environment  upon  the  parental  structure,  and 
exhibited  by  that  parent  as  definite  measurable  features. 

Now  let  us  consider  Mr.  Cope's  contribution  to  the  discussion. 
He  accuses  Mr.  Wallace — who  is  one  of  those  who  refuse  to 
adopt  Lamarck's  gratuitous  hypothesis  of  the  transmission  of 
acquired  characters — of  being  guilty  of  the  sin  of ' '  non-sequitur  " 
and  "  paralogism."  He  then  proceeds  to  make  a  general  state- 
ment, the  truih  of  which  neo-Darvvinians  (or  post-Darwinians, 
or   anti-Lamarckians),    in  common   with    all    men,    recognize. 


Dec. 


12, 


1889] 


NATURE 


129 


Uthough  Mr.  Cope  offensively  implies  that  they  do  not,  viz. 
'"  Selection  cannot  be  the  cause  of  those  conditions  which  are 
[prior  to  selection  :  in  other  words,  a  selection  cannot  explain  the 
origin  of  anything."  How  can  Mr.  Cope  presume  to  tell  us 
this?  Who  has  ignored  it?  when?  and  where?  Mr.  Cope 
does  not  seem  to  be  aware  of  the  fact  that  the  anti-Lamarckians 
attach  great  importance  to  the  existence  of  congenital  variation, 
that  Darwin  himself  has  written  at  length  on  the  subject,  and 
that  Weismann  has  developed  a  most  ingenious  theory  as  to  the 
relation  of  fertilization  and  its  precedent  phenomena  to  this  all- 
important  factor  in  evolution. 

Mr.  Cope  puts  aside  all  that  has  been  done  on  that  subject,  or 
else  is  ignorant  of  it,  and  calmly  lays  down  the  following  pro- 
position :  "If  whatever  is  acquired  by  one  generation  were  not 
transmitted  to  the  next,  no  progress  in  the  evolution  of  a 
character  could  possibly  occur.  Each  generation  would  stnrt 
exactly  where  the  preceding  one  did."  The  full  significance  of 
this  sentence  can  only  be  apprehended  when  it  is  understood 
that  Mr.  Cope  believes  that  progress  in  the  evolution  of  a 
character  does  occur.  The  statement  therefore  amounts  to  this  : 
(i)  that  whatever  is  acquired  by  one  generation  is  transmitted  to 
the  next  ;  and  (2)  that  the  only  possible  explanation  of  the  fact 
that  a  new  generation  does  not  exactly  resemble  its  parents  at  a 
corresponding  age  is  that  the  parental  generation  has  transmitted 
to  its  offspring  particular  features  acquired  by  it  between  birth 
and  maturity. 

I  doubt  whether  Mr.  Cope  will  find  any  other  naturalist — 
even  the  most  ardent  Lamarckian — to  join  him  in  these 
assertions. 

With  regard  to  the  first,  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  it 
has  never  yet  been  shown  experimentally  that  «//j'M///^'- acquired 
by  one  generation  is  transmitted  to  the  next  (putting  aside  para- 
sitic diseases);  and  as  to  evoytJiing  ("whatever")  being  so 
transmitted,  every  layman  knows  the  contrary  to  he  true. 
Children  are  not  born  with  the  acquired  knowledge  of  their 
parents.  If  there  were  no  other  explanation  offered  of  offspring 
varying  from  their  parents  at  a  like  age  than  the  hypothesis  of 
transmission  of  characters  acquired  by  the  parents  on  their  way 
through  life  by  the  action  of  the  environment,  this  hypothetical 
explanation  would  still  be  quite  insufficient  to  account  for  the 
fact  that  the  individuals  of  one  brood  vary  enormously  as  com- 
pared with  one  another,  a  fact  which  points  to  the  individual 
germs  (egg-cells  and  sperm-cells)  as  the  seat  of  the  processes 
which  result  in  variation,  and  not  to  the  parental  body  which 
is  the  common  carrier  of  them  all.  Assuredly  these  l>roods 
demonstrate  that  all  the  acquired  characters  are  not  transmitted 
to  all  the  offspring. 

With  regard  to  the  second  proposition  which  Mr.  Cope's 
statement  contains,  experimental  fact  is  directly  opposed  to  its 
truth.  As  cited  by  Darwin  on  p.  8  of  the  first  edition  of  the 
"Origin  of  Species,"  Geoffroy  St.  Ililaire  showed  that  "un- 
natural treatment  of  the  embryo  cau-es  monstrosities  ;  and 
rnonstrosities  cannot  be  separated  by  any  clear  line  of  distinc- 
tion from  mere  variations."  Mr.  Darwin  himself  was  "strongly 
inclined  to  suspect  that  the  most  frequent  cause  of  variability 
may  be  attributed  to  the  male  and  female  reproductive  elements 
having  been  affected  prior  to  the  act  of  conception."  What  he 
meant  by  "  being  affected"  is.  explained  at  greater  length  in 
the  "  Animals  and  Plants  under  Domestication,"  where,  in 
chap,  xxii.,  there  is  a  long  discussion  of  the  causes  of  variability, 
the  conclusions  of  which  are  supported  by  an  array  of  observed 
facts  which  Mr.  Cope  cannot  he  permitted  to  ignore  at  his 
pleasure.  Mr.  Darwin  there  gives  solid  reasons  (as  was  his 
wont)  for  holding  that  variability  results  from  the  conditions  to 
which  the  parents  have  b?en  exposed  :  changes  of  any  kind  in 
the  conditions  of  life,  even  extremely  slight  changes,  often  suf- 
fice to  cause  variability.  But  Mr.  Darwin's  examination  of  the 
facts  did  not  lead  him  to  conclude  that  the  bodily  characters 
acquired  by  the  parents  as  the  result  of  changes  were  those 
which  manifested  themselves  as  variations  in  the  offspring.  On 
the  contrary  he  showed  that  the  effect  of  changed  conditions,  of 
excess  of  nutriment,  and  of  the  crossing  of  distinct  forms,  is  a 
"breaking  down,"  as  it  were,  of  the  hitherto  fixed  characters 
of  the  race,  leading  to  the  reappearance  of  long-1  ist  characters 
and  to  the  appearance  of  absolutely  new  characters,  the  new 
characters  having  no  more  (and  perhaps  not  less)  relation  to  the 
exciting  cause  which  acted  through  the  parent  than  has  the 
newly-formed  pattern  in  a  kaleidoscope  to  the  tap  on  the 
kaleidoscope  tube  which  initiated  the  rearrangement. 

For  Mr.    Cope  to  complain  of  the  methods  of  reasoning  of 


post-Darwinians,  and  at  the  same  time  without  any  reasoning 
at  all  to  assert  (as  he  does,  not  directly  but  by  implication)  that 
there  is  no  such  thing  as  "congenital  variation  "  or  "sporting," 
is  not  quite  satisfactory.  When  it  is  asserted  that  every  feature 
by  which  a  young  animal  differs  from  the  structure  of  its  parents 
at  a  corresponding  age  must  have  been  acquired  by  one  or  other 
of  the  parents  as  actual  structural  features,  and  so  transmitted  as 
an  acquired  character  to  the  offspring,  the  whole  world  of  fanciers, 
horticulturists,  farmers,  and  breeders,  is  ready  with  its  unanimous 
testimony  to  contradict  the  assertion. 

Let  me  say,  in  conclusion,  that,  as  Mr,  Wallace  has  pointed 
out,  Mr.  Darwin  did  not  consider  that  variability  in  a  state  of 
nature  was  either  so  general  or  so  wide  in  its  range  as  later 
observations  and  reflections  lead  us  to  believe  it  to  be.  Mr. 
Darwin  studied  those  causes  which  are  found  by  practical 
gardeners  and  breeders  to  be  favourable  to  excessive  variation 
in  animals  and  plants  under  domestication.  He  showed  clearly 
that  the  resulting  variations  had  no  adaptive  relation  to  the 
exciting  causes,  and  were  manifested  in  the  structure  at  birth  of 
a  new  generation,  and  not  in  that  of  the  generation  suf)jected  to 
the  exciting  cause.  No  one  has  yet  been  able  to  give  an 
adequate  account  of  the  frequency  and  range  of  variation  of  any 
number  of  animals  or  plants  in  a  state  of  nature,  because  natural 
conditions  destroy,  on  the  average,  all  individuals  born  of  two 
parents — except  two — before  maturity  is  reached,  and  those  two 
are  naturally  selected  in  consequence  of  their  adhesion  to  the 
specific  type. 

There  can  Ise  no  doubt  from  a  consideration  of  the  facts  cited 
by  Darwin  that,  whilst  variation  often  is  reduced  to  a  miniiiiuin 
in  natural  conditions  which  remain  constant,  natural  variations 
of  conditions  can  and  do  occur,  which  excite  the  germ-cell  and 
sperm-cell,  or  their  united  product,  to  vary  as  in  conditions  of 
domestication.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  there  was  in 
Mr.  Darwin's  mind  the  conception  of  a  definite  relation 
between  two  effects  arising  from  changed  conditions :  the 
one  being  the  disturbance  of  the  equilibrium  of  the  organism 
and  its  consequent  production  of  variations ;  the  other 
being  the  new  requirements  for  survival  ;  in  fact,  there 
seems  to  be,  as  it  were,  at  once  a  new  deal  and  new  rules 
of  the  game.  It  is  not  difficult  to  suggest  possible  ways  in 
which  the  changed  conditions  shown  to  be  important  by  Darwin 
could  act  through  the  parental  body  upon  the  nuclear  matter  of 
^gg'cell  and  sperm-cell,  with  its  immensely  complex  and  there- 
fore unstable  molecular  constitution,  so  as  to  bring  about  varia- 
tions (arbitrary,  kaleidoscopic  variations)  in  the  ultimate  product 
of  the  union  of  the  remnant  of  the  twice-dividtd  threads  of  the 
egg-nucleus  with  the  nuclear  head  of  a  spermatozoon.  The 
wonder  is,  not  that  variation  occurs,  but  that  it  is  not  exces.sive 
and  monstrous  in  every  product  of  fertilization.  And  yet  Mr. 
Cope  writes  from  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  to  assert  that 
there  is  no  possible  cause  of  departure  from  parental  type 
in  offspring,  excepting  that  assumed  in  Lamarck's  unproved, 
improbable  speculation  !  E,  Ray  Lankester. 

December  7. 


Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs. 

Some  years  ago  an  idea  similar  to  that  of  your  correspondent, 
Mr.  Grensted  (November  21,  p.  53),  occurred  to  me,  as  regards 
the  protective  coloration  of  eggs  ;  and,  curiously  enough,  the 
red-backed  shrike  was  one  of  the  birds  whose  eggs  I  selected 
for  special  observation.  My  experience  has  been  that  the  grou.id 
colour  of  these  eg^^s  is  quite  arbitrary.  I  fear  that  I  cannot 
furnish  data,  as  I  ought  ;  but  I  well  remember  that  I  found  in 
Sussex  a  rather  abnormally  pale  clutch  of  eggs  in  a  very  dark 
nest  ;  and  that  I  regarded  this,  at  the  time,  as  completely  doing 
away  with  my  hypothesis.  The  evidence  that  I  got  from  other, 
less  striking  instances,  told  about  equally  for  and  against. 

Another  egg,  whose  variations  I  watched  pretty  closely,  was 
that  of  the  yellowhammer.  Apart  from  differences  of  marking, 
the  ground-colour  of  this  egg  varies  from  pure  or  pinkish- white, 
to  a  white  rather  deeply  suffused  with  purplish-red  or  olive- 
brown.  But  in  this  case,  again,  the  correspondence  of  colour 
between  the  egg  and  its  surroundings  could  not  be  made  out  at 
all  satisfactorily. 

A  pale  and  little-marked  specimen  of  the  egg  of  the  spotted 
flycatcher,  that  was  brought  in  to  me  one  spring  at  Malvern, 
suggested  to  me  that  it  wouhl  be  worth  while  to  observe  the 
variations  here  also.  But  I  again  failed  to  arrive  at  any  con- 
clusion. 


1 30 


NATURE 


[Dec.  12,  1889 


T  am  so  strongly  tempted  unreservedly  to  accept  the  "  pro- 
tective "  theory,  that  I  perhaps  lay  too  great  stress  on  these 
negative  instances.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  I  suppose  that  the 
experience  of  a  single  individual  is  rarely  large  enough  to  justify 
any  induction  being  made  from  it.  I  myself,  for  instance,  have 
never  come  across  the  extreme  variations  of  the  cuckoo's  egg, 
such  as  Seebohm  figures.  E.  B.  TiTCHENER. 

3  Museum  Terrace,  Oxford,  December  3. 


Is  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  a  Fixed  Quantity  ? 

Mr.  Mellard  Reade's  criticism  is  perfectly  sound.  If  the 
bulk  of  the  ocean  water  on  the  surface  of  the  globe  has  always 
been  the  same,  the  oceans  could  not  at  any  time  have  been 
shallower  than  at  present  without  a  decrease  in  the  area  of  the 
land.  Consequently,  the  supposition  that  in  early  geological 
times  the  area  of  the  land  was  larger,  and  the  depth  of  the 
oceans  less,  demands  the  further  inference  that  the  bulk  of  the 
ocean  water  was  less  then  than  it  is  now. 

When  writing  on  the  physics  of  the  sub-oceanic  crust,  I  saw 
that  this  was  a  necessary  consequence  of  the  theory,  but  I  was 
not  then  quite  prepared  to  discuss  it.  I  have  since  had  some 
correspondence  with  Prof.  A.  H.  Green  and  Mr.  O.  Fisher  on 
the  subject,  and  will  briefly  indicate  the  possibilities  that  have 
occurred  to  u^. 

The  first  suggestion  made  was  that,  if  the  solar  radiation  was 
greater  in  Palaeozoic  times,  there  would  be  greater  evaporation, 
and  as  the  temperature  of  the  air  would  also  be  higher,  the 
atmosphere  could  hold  more  aqueous  vapour  than  it  does  now, 
so  that  we  might  suppose  a  part  of  the  water  which  is  now  in 
the  ocean  to  have  been  then  permanently  suspended  above  it. 
Mr.  Fisher,  in  writing  to  me,  admits  this  possibility,  and  even 
thinks  it  might  be  feasible  to  estimately  roughly  the  amount  of 
water  so  suspended  if  the  mean  temperature  of  the  ocean  at  any 
period  was  known.  But  he  says  : — "  I  dj  not  think  you  could 
get  much  diminution  of  the  oceans  in  this  way,  for,  suppose  the 
present  atmosphere  to  consist  of  nothing  but  aqueous  vapour, 
then  it  would  represent  a  layer  of  water  about  30  feet  thick 
evaporated  from  the  earth's  surface.  Now,  it  seems  hardly 
probable  that  at  a  former  time  there  should  have  been  an  amount 
of  aqueous  vapour  in  the  atmosphere  so  great  that  the  mass  of 
suc'i  additional  vapour  should  equal  that  of  all  the  oxygen  and 
nitrogen  and  vapour  now  in  the  atmosphere  ;  and  even  if  there 
was  this  amount,  it  would  take  off  only  about  30  feet  of  water 
from  the  surface  of  the  globe,"  or  about  37  feet  from  the  present 
surface  of  the  oceans. 

If,  therefore,  the  bulk  of  the  wa'er  on  and  above  the  surface 
of  the  earth  has  remained  the  same  since  the  time  when  the 
ciust  was  first  formed,  it  seems  difficult  to  find  any  means  of 
sensibly  diminishing  the  amount  of  water  in  the  oceans.  But 
need  we  make  this  preliminary  assumption,  and  is  it  not  really 
possible  that  there  has  been  an  increase  in  the  bulk  of  surface- 
water,  and  not  a  decrease  by  absorption,  as  some  theorists  would 
have  us  think  ?  May  we  not  suppose,  in  fact,  that  water-sub- 
stance has  always  existed  in  the  interior  of  the  earth,  and  may 
it  not,  by  its  constant  and  gradual  escape,  have  always  been 
adding  to  the  bulk  of  the  surface-waters  ? 

This  idea  had  occurred  to  Mr.  Fisher  so  long  ago  as  1873,  and 
the  following  passage  occurs  a  paper  then  published  (Trans. 
Camb  Phil.  Soc,  vol.  xii.,  Part  2,  p.  431) :  "  If  such  was  the 
condition  of  the  interior  in  the  early  stages  of  the  cosmogony, 
a  large  portion  of  the  oceans  now  above  the  crust  may  once  have 
been  beneath  it  "  ;  and  in  the  new  edition  of  his  "Physics  of 
the  Earth's  Crust  "  he  further  discusses  the  manner  in  which 
this  water-substance  may  be  diffused  through  the  magma  of  the 
liquid  substratum  beneath  the  crust. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  well  known  that  almost  all  volcanoes, 
when  in  eruption,  emit  large  quantities  of  steam,  and  the  pre- 
sence of  this  steam  has  always  been  connected  with  the  causes 
of  volcanic  activity.  There  are  only  two  ways  of  accounting 
for  the  presence  of  this  steam  :  (i)  that  water  from  the  sea  or 
from  the  rainfall  gains  access  to  the  deep  seated  foci  of  volcanic 
action  ;  (2)  that  the  water-substance  is  a  primary  constituent  of 
the  liquid  magma  below,  and  that  when  this  material  is  forced 
up  to  the  surface,  the  pressure  which  kept  the  water  in  solution 
or  combination  is  removed,  and  it  is  blown  off  as  steam. 

As  regards  the  first  possibility,  there  are  great  difficulties  in 

the  way   of  supposing  that  surface-water  can  find  its   way   to 

any  region  where  the  heat  is  sufficient  to  keep  rock  constantly 

»in  a  liquid  condition.     It  does   seem  possible  that  the  access 


of  water  to  the  interior  parts  of  a  volcano  already  established 
may  sometimes  cause  an  eruption,  and,  under  certain  circum- 
stances, an  eruption  of  great  violence ;  but  the  descent  of 
water  through  the  earth's  crust  to  depths  of  20  or  30  miles  so  as 
to  be  the  initial  cause  of  the  establishment  of  volcanoes  is  not  so 
easy  to  understand.  The  pressure  of  the  superincumbent  rocks 
at  a  depth  of  2  or  3  miles  must  be  so  great  that  all  cracks  and 
interstitial  spaces  would  be  reduced  to  a  minimum,  and  at  the 
depth  of  5  miles  one  would  suppose  that  none  such  could  exist. 
Several  facts  are  known  to  geologists  which  show  that  all  cracks 
diminish  rapidly  downwards.  One  such  fact  is  that  in  many 
deep  mines  the  throw  of  a.  fault  diminishes  with  the  depth  to 
which  it  is  followed.  Another  is  the  existence  of  such  warm 
springs  as  those  of  Bath,  the  explanation  of  which  is  supposed 
to  be  that  water  percolating  downward  (say  from  the  Mendips) 
reaches  a  depth  at  which  there  is  less  resistance  to  its  travelling 
laterally  than  to  its  further  descent,  and  that  ultimately  reaching 
a  crack  or  fault,  it  is  forced  up  this  path  of  least  resistance  by 
the  hydrostatic  pressure  of  the  descending  stream. 

It  is  true  that  a  residuum  of  the  water  might  continue  its  down- 
ward journey,  being,  as  it  were,  slowly  sucked  downward  as  far 
as  the  minutest  interstitial  spaces  extended  ;  but  what  would 
happen  when  it  reached  the  lower  layers  of  the  crust  ?  Could  it 
possibly  reach  and  be  absorbed  by  or  dissolved  in  the  semi-fused 
rock  which  must  there  exist?  Captain  C.  E.  Button  has  well 
expressed  this  difficulty.  Referring  to  the  high  temperature  which 
must  exist  at  a  depth  of  5  or  6  miles,  he  says: — "At  such  a 
temperature  the  siliceous  materials  of  which  the  rocks  are  com- 
posed are  no  lon;?er  hard  'and  brittle  as  when  they  are  cold,  but 
viscous  and  plastic.  .  .  .  Now  a  crack  or  fiisure  might  reach 
very  far  down  into  hard,  cold,  brittle  rocks,  but  into  soft  semi- 
fused  plastic  rocks,  never.  Under  a  pressure  of  several  miles  of 
superincumbent  strata,  a  crack,  or  even  the  minutest  vesicle, 
would  be  tightly  closed  up  as  if  its  walls  were  wax  or  butter.  A 
more  perfect  packing  against  ingress  of  water  could  not  be  con- 
ceived." ^ 

Even  capillary  action  could  not  come  into  play  un-^er  such 
conditions  as  these. 

Let  us  next  consider  the  alternative  theory  suggested  by  Mr. 
Fisher.  He  claims  that  geologists  furnish  him  with  a  certain 
amount  of  positive  evidence  for  the  idea  that  water  is  an  essential 
constituent  of  the  liquid  magma  from  which  the  igneous  rocks 
have  been  derived.  Passing  over  the  proofs  of  the  existence  of 
water  in  the  crystals  of  volcanic  rocks  and  in  the  materials  of 
deep-seated  dykes,  let  us  come  at  once  to  granite,  a  rock  which 
can  only  have  been  formed  at  great  depths  and  under  great 
pressures,  and  which  often  forms  large  tract ■;  that  are  supposed 
to  have  been  subterranean  lakes  or  cisterns  of  liquid  matter  in 
direct  communication  with  still  deeper  reservoirs.  Now,  all 
granites  contain  crystals  of  quartz,  and  these  crystals  include 
numerous  minute  cavities  which  contain  water  and  other  liquids  ; 
and  the  quartz  of  some  granites  is  so  full  of  water-vesicles  that 
Mr.  Clifton  Ward  has  said  :  "A  thousand  millions  might  easily 
be  contained  within  a  cubic  inch  of  quartz,  and  sometimes  the 
contained  water  must  make  up  at  least  5  per  cent,  of  the  whole 
volume  of  the  containing  quartz."  This  amount  only  represents 
the  water  that  has  been,  as  it  were,  accidentally  shut  up  in  the 
granite,  for  some  was  doubtless  given  off  in  the  form  of  steam 
which  made  its  way  through  the  surrounding  rocks. 

It  is  therefore  generally  conceded  that  granite  has  consolidated 
from  a  state  of  igneo-aqueous  fusion,  and  that  the  liquid  magma 
from  which  all  granitic  intrusions  have  proceeded  contains  water- 
substance.  It  is  therefore  only  a  step  further  to  assume  that  this 
water-substance  is  an  essential  constituent  of  the  liquid  sub- 
stratum, and  to  suppose  that  it  has  been  there  since  the  con- 
solidation of  the  earth.  That  there  is  no  inherent  improbability 
in  this  supposition,  and  that  it  is  not  inconsistent  with  chemical 
views  of  cosmogony,  Mr.  Fisher  has  shown  at  the  end  of  his 
chapter  on  the  "  Liquid  Substratum." 

I  am  only  now  concerned  with  it  as  an  explanation  of  the 
secular  increase  in  the  bulk  of  the  ocean  waters  which  is 
demanded  by  my  theory  of  the  evolution  of  continents  and 
oceans.  We  can  prove  from  the  geological  records  that  volcanic 
action  has  always  been  in  operation  from  the  very  earliest  times 
in  the  world's  history,  and  if  it  is  true  that  such  a  reservoir  of 
water-substance  has  always  existed  in  the  earth's  interior,  the 
continual  volcanic  eruptions  must  have  constantly  added  water 
to  the  oceans  on  the  earth's  surface.     Hence,  as  I  stated  in  my 

'  "  Volcanoes,"  by  C.  E.  Dutton,  in  Ordnance  Notes,  No.  343,  Washing- 
ton, 1889. 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


^3^1 


first  letter,  we  are  at  liberty  to  impgine  a  time  when  there  was 
much  more  land  than  there  is  at  present,  and  when  all  the 
oceans  were  comparatively  shallow.       A.  J.  Jukes-Browne. 


Galls. 


Before  rushing  into  arguments  on  this  subject,  it  appears  to 
me  that  more  good  might  be  done  by  entering  into  investiga- 
tions of  the  physiological  and  morphological  problems  involved. 

A  gall- fly  of  a  particular  species  inserts  an  egg  in  a  certain 
position  on  a  certain  plant  (oak,  for  instance).  Another  gall-fly 
of  a  different  species  inserts  its  egg  almost  in  the  same  position 
on  the  same  plant.  But  the  results  are  totally  dissimilar.  An 
abnormal  growth  is  set  up,  from  irritation,  in  either  case  ;  but 
the  nature  of  this  growth  is  quite  difierent.  The  initial  irritation 
is  setup  by  the  presence  of  the  egg,  and  in  most  gall-insects  the 
^gg  A''''""'-*"— 'hat  is  to  say,  it  increases  vastly  in  size  before  the 
larva  is  hatched.  The  irritation  is  continued  by  the  larva,  and 
the  gall  is  produced,  varying  in  form  in  accordance  with  the 
species  of  gall-fly  that  deposited  the  e^g.  J5ut  I  want  to  know 
in  what  consists  the  difi"erence  in  the  active  irritation  that  causes 
so  great  a  divergence  in  the  results  ?  I  am  not  aware  that  this 
has  ever  been  answered.  But  I  am  quite  sure  it  could  be 
answered  on  purely  physiological  grounds  if  carefully  studied. 
The  answer  would  not  in  the  least  detract  from  the  importance 
of  the  point  as  regards  natural  selection  ;  but  it  might  very 
materially  modify  speculative  theories  based  on  results  only, 
without  a  precise  knowledge  of  the  agencies  that  produced  those 
results.  R.  McLachlan. 

Lewisham,  November  29. 


Although  I  see  no  need  of  a  better  explanation  than  Prof. 
Romanes's  (Nature,  Novtmber  28,  p.  80)  of  the  difficulty 
which  galls  seem  at  first  sight  to  present  for  natural  selection, 
yet  I  beg  leave  to  say  some  words  of  further  elucidation. 

When  it  was  said  by  Darwin  ("  Origin  of  Species," 
chap,  vi.)  :  •♦  If  it  could  be  proved  that  any  part  of  the 
structure  of  any  one  species  had  been  formed  for  the  exclu- 
sive good  of  another  species,  it  would  annihilate  my  theory, 
for  such  could  not  have  been  produced  through  natural  selec- 
tion," he  evidently  meant  only  species  living  without  organic 
connection  with  each  other,  viz.  his  own  example  of  the  rattle- 
snake. The  argument  does  by  no  means  apply  to  organisms 
living  in  a  relation  of  symbiosis,  as  is  the  case  with  gall-bearing 
plants  and  the  larvae  inhabiting  the  galls. ^  Such  associations  form, 
as  it  were,  one  compound  organism.  Natural  selection  evidently 
may  act  in  favour  of  each  symbiont  separately,  provided  only 
that  the  effect  will  not  damage  the  other  symbiont  in  such  a 
degree  as  seriously  to  impair  its  existence.  Some  "disin- 
terested" expenditure  of  energy  and  of  organic  substance  is  not 
excluded  by  natural  selection,  but  may  be  promoted,  if  of 
advantage  to  the  other  partner.  Thus  the  production  of  galls 
will  scarcely  do  any  serious  injury  to  an  oak,  and  even  if  such 
were  sometimes  the  case,  there  would  be  no  comparison 
to  the  damcge  worked,  for  instance,  by  Trichinae,  on  the 
organism  of  man  and  animals,  which  hosts,  nevertheless,  in 
consequence  of  the  stimulus  caused  by  the  parasite,  afford  the 
substance  for  capsules  protecting  the  worms,  just  as  plants  pro- 
duce manifold  structures  beneficial  to  the  gall-insects.  If 
Trichinae  would  attack  a  species  of  mammals  as  frequently  as, 
for  instance,  leaf-cutting  ants  attack  some  tropical  plants,  then 
those  hosts  would  be  forced  either  to  develop,  by  survival  of  the 
fittest,  some  protection  against  their  invasion,  or  they  would 
succumb  to  the  enemy  and  die  out. 

Analogous  examples  might  be  multiplied  of  both  plants  and 
animals,  and  it  is  especially  to  be  remembered,  as  alluded  to  by 
I'rof.  Romanes,  that  the  chemical  activities  of  parasites,  includ- 
ing the  elaboration  of  ferments  affecting  the  saps  and  tissues  of 
the  host,  are  as  much  under  the  guidance  of  natural  selection  as 
are  their  morphological  variations.  D,  Wetterhan. 

Freiburg,  Badeaia,  November  30. 


With   all    due   deference   to  your  able  correspondents  Dr 
St.    George    Mivart    and    Prof.    G.    J.    Romanes,    I    canno'^ 

Parwin's  thorough  arquaintance  with  these  important  structures  is 
shown  by  his  elaboraie  discus.'- ion  in  "  Animals  and  Plants  under  Doniestica- 
"""•"chap.  .xxiii.  (2nd  ed.  vol.  ii.  p.  272).  It  is  particularly  to  be  notfd 
that  Datwin  insists  en  the  accordance  of  galls,  for  instance,  on  rcses,  with 
structures  arising  through  bud-variati»n. 


for  the  life  of  me  understand  how  the  theory  of  natural 
selection  can  be  seriously  assailed  by  investigations  into 
the  formation  of  galls  by  insects.  Gall-formation  has  always 
appeared  to  me  to  be  a  pathological,  that  is  a  perz-erlcd 
physiological  process,  and  to  be  due  to  the  action  of  some  animal 
irritant  upon  normal  vegetable  tissues  during  their  period  of 
active  growth.  These  formations  are  therefore,  to  my  mind,  fair'y 
on  a  par  with  the  globular  nests  produced  by  the  larvae  of  the 
CEstrus,  or  bot-fly,  in  the  hides  of  oxen  ;  or  to  the  inflammatory 
foci  in  the  tissues  of  the  kidneys,  due  to  the  translation  of  Bacilli, 
in  the  case  of  ulcerative  endocarditis.  Other  examples  bearing 
on  the  subject  will  doubtless  occur  to  your  readers.  In  all  such 
instances  we  have  certain  changes  in  the  cellular  or  protoplasmic 
tissue-elements  of  the  host,  brought  about  by  the  growth  and 
development  of  a  foreigner  in  their  midst  ;  and  natural  selection, 
in  so  far  as  it  operates  in  such  cases,  seems  to  have  sided  mostly 
with  the  stranger,  and  to  be  to  his  advantage  alone.  That  the 
host  under  these  circumstances  performs  actions  "  which,  if  not 
self-sacrificing,"  are  at  least  "disinterested,"  must  be  admitted  ; 
but  it  is  the  self-sacrifice  of  coercion  and  disinterestedness  under 
compulsion.  W.  Ai.nslie  Hollis. 

Brighton,  December  i. 

Luminous  Night  Clouds. 

The  many  inquiries  and  appeals  regarding  observations  of 
luminous  night  clouds  which  have  recently  appeared  in  the 
columns  of  Nature,  and  the  growing  importance  of  the  subject, 
will  justify  me,  perhaps,  in  sending  to  you,  for  publication  in 
that  journal,  the  following  item,  so  long  after  the  event  it 
describes  took  place. 

About  the  middle  of  November  1887,  between  eight  and  nine 
in  the  evening,  as  I  was  walking  homewards  from  my  day's  work, 
I  noticed  what  appeared  to  me  to  be  the  arch  of  a  rainbow  very 
low  above  the  western  horizon,  and  of  a  snow-white  colour.  A 
bank  of  clouds  was  rapidly  approaching  from  the  west,  which,  at 
the  time  of  the  first  appearance  of  the  arch,  covered  nearly  half 
the  sky,  the  eastern  half  being  clear.  The  arch  appeared  to 
move  eastwards,  with  and  in  the  midst  of  the  clouds,  for  it  con- 
tinually rose  above  the  horizon,  and,  in  the  course  of  about  half 
an  hour,  had  approached  the  zenith. 

At  this  time  I  called  rut  several  people  to  witness  the 
phenomenon,  which  certainly  presented  a  most  extraordinary 
appearance.  The  arch  appeared  to  be  uniformly  of  about 
3°  or  4°  in  width,  and  extended  north-north-east  and  south- 
south-west  across  the  whole  sky.  The  latter  was  about  wholly 
overcast  with  the  clouds  at  this  time,  except  the  arch,  which 
presented  a  glaring  brightness,  and  illuminated  the  earth 
with  a  weird  splendour  four  tr  five  times  exceeding  that  of  the 
brightest  moonlight. 

While  at  the  zenith,  the  stars  shone  through  the  entire  width 
of  the  arch  with  apparently  more  than  ordinary  brightness  ;  but 
as  the  arch  approached  towards  and  receded  from  that  point, 
the  width  of  the  transparency  was  observed  to  diminish  rapidly 
with  the  distance,  until  at  10^  or  15°  on  either  side  the  stars 
were  invisible  through  it. 

The  phenomenon  appeared  to  be  a  division  in  the  cloud 
stratum,  the  opposite  walls  of  which  were  pretty  clearly  defined  ; 
and  there  appeared  to  be  absolutely  nothing  between  these  op- 
posite cloud  walls  but  the  purest  air  and  the  white  light  of  the  arch. 
I  remember  also  that  the  wall  or  border  of  cloud  on  either  side 
of  the  arch  was  slowly  revolving  upon  an  axis  parallel  with  the 
arch  ;  just  as  is  often  seen  in  the  fiont  bank  of  clouds  of  an 
approaching  storm.  But  I  do  not  remember  the  direction  of  the 
rotation,  or  whether  both  borders  rotated  in  the  same  or  in 
opposite  directions. 

The  arch  moved  towards  the  east  at  about  the  same  pace 
that  it  approached  from  the  west,  and  with  apparently  the  same 
width  and  direction  of  extension.  There  was  no  moonli^^ht  at 
the  time,  and  only  a  gentle  breeze  was  blowing.  The  weather 
preceding  the  phenomenon  was  fine  for  several  weeks  ;  but  a 
few  days  afterwards,  or  on  November  19,  there  was  a  sudden 
and  extraordinary  fall  of  the  temperature,  accompanied  by  some 
snow  and  very  high  wind. 

I  have  thought  that  possibly  this  phenomenon  might  throw 
some  light  on  the  subject  of  luminous  clouds,  and  that  this 
tolerably  accurate  description  of  it  may  therefore  be  of  interest 
to  the  students  of  that  subject.  I  may  add,  however,  that  the 
luminosity  of  the  arch  did  not  appear  to  proceed  directly  from 
the  clouds  themselves,   but  from  the  clear  space  between  the 


132 


NATURE 


{Dec.  12,  1889 


clouds ;  although,  according  to  the  best  of  my  recollection, 
luminous  filaments  seemed  to  extend  from  the  clouds  for  a  short 
distance  into  the  span  of  the  arch.  Evan  McLennan. 

Brooklyn,  Iowa,  U.S.A.,  November  22. 


Electrical  Figures. 

I  RECENTLY  noticed  a  pretty  form  of  electrical  discharge, 
which  has  probably  been  described  before,  but  was  new  to  me. 
Perhaps  one  of  your  readers  will  be  able  to  refer  us  to  an  account 
of  it. 

The  poles  of  a  Voss  machine  are  put  very  near  together  :  a 
plate  of  ebonite  jV  inch  thick  is  placed  between  them.  As  the 
machine  works,  a  succession  of  delicate  ramified  discharges  run 
over  both  surfaces  of  the  plate  :  they  are  bright  green,  and  each 
crooked  line  is  discontinuous — a  series  of  dashes,  as  if  stitched 
out  in  silk,  now  above  and  now  below  the  surface. 

Winchester  College,  December  6.  W.  B.  Croft. 


NEW  DOUBLE  STARS. 

THE  highest  quality  of  seeing,  as  of  acting  or  of 
thinking,  needs  initiative.  A  mental  impulse  is  the 
spring  of  discovery,  even  by  a  purely  visual  process.  The 
mind  prompts  the  eye,  interprets  what  it  suggests,  bodies 
out  its  semi-disclosures.  So  that  to  perceive  what  has 
never  been  perceived  before  is,  in  a  sort  of  way,  an  act  of 
invention.  It  thus  happens  that  an  accurate  is  not  always 
an  original  observer.  Novelties,  as  such,  are  almost  in- 
accessible to  many  persons  with  exquisite  powers  of  vision 
for  whatever  is  already  known  to  be  within  its  range. 

The  late  Baron  Dembowski  was  an  example  of  a  first- 
rate  observer  but  slightly  endowed  for  detection  ;  Mr.  Burn- 
ham,  on  the  other  hand,  is  a  born  discoverer.  The  accidents 
of  his  career  have  turned  his  attention  almost  exclusively 
to  double  stars  ;  and  his  glance  seems  to  have  a  com- 
pulsive power  of  turning  simple  into  compound  objects 
by  long  and  intent  looking.  His  Chicago  thousand  of 
new  pairs  are  famous  ;  he  bids  fair  to  accumulate  an 
equally  imposing  array  at  Lick.  Nor  does  he  neglect  the 
old  in  the  search  for  the  new.  The  more  exciting  is  not 
permitted  to  exclude  what  is  in  many  respects  the  more 
useful  occupation. 

Progress  in  double-star  astronomy  is  absolutely  de- 
pendent upon  remeasurements  of  the  relative  positions 
and  distances  of  known  pairs.  We  can  otherwise  learn 
nothing  as  to  the  nature  of  their  connection.  Inquiries 
about  them  can,  by  this  means  alone,  be  pushed  through 
the  three  successive  stages  leading  up  towards  complete 
knowledge.  In  the  first  place,  it  has  to  be  decided  whether 
the  stars  shift  their  places  perceptibly  with  reference  one 
to  the  other.  If  they  are  "fixed,"  but  with  a  common 
proper  motion,  then  they  may  safely  be  set  down  as 
physically  coupled,  although  centuries  may  elapse  before 
the  character  of  their  mutual  revolutions  becomes  ap- 
parent. In  the  next  place,  the  nature  of  relative  motions, 
where  they  exist,  has  to  be  ascertained.  Should  they 
prove  to  be  rectilinear,  that  fact  alone  overthrows  the 
possibility  of  any  real  connection  between  the  stars.  Each 
pursues  its  way  independently  of  the  other.  Finally,  in 
the  interesting  cases  in  which  curvilinear  motion  shows 
itself,  persistent  micrometrical  measures  ai-e  required  to 
determine  the  shape  and  period  of  the  orbit  traced  out. 

Yet  the  majority  of  these  objects  receive  little  or  no 
attention.  This  is  in  part  due  to  their  great  numbers. 
About  12,000  double  stars — using  the  term  in  the  widest 
sense — are  now  known  ;  nearly  5000  are  in  really  close 
conjunction — so  close,  in  some  1400  instances,  as  to 
render  the  chances  of  accidental  juxtaposition  all  but 
evanescent.  Only  between  fifty  and  sixty  stellar  orbits 
have,  however,  as  yet  been  computed,  and  many  of  them 
from  most  inadequate  data.  The  truth  is,  that  this  branch 
of  work  wants  organizing.  It  is  too  vast  and  too  im- 
portant to  be  abandoned  to  the  capricious  incursions  of 


irresponsible  amateurs,  whose  industry  is  often  wasted  by 
being  misapplied.  There  ought,  nevertheless,  to  be  little 
difficulty  in  distributing  the  observational  resources  avail- 
able as  advantageously  as  possible  by  the  intervention  of 
some  recognized  authority,  a  central  repository  being  at 
the  same  time  constituted  whence  computers  could  obtain 
on  demand  the  materials  needed  for  the  investigation  of 
particular  systems.  The  tasks  of  stellar  astronomy  are  so 
multitudinous  as  imperatively  to  demand  combination  for 
their  effectual  treatment. 

Discovery,  meanwhile,  must  advance  as  it  can.  It  is 
far  from  desirable  that  it  should  remain  stationary. 
Although  our  acquaintance  among  double  stars  is  already 
embarrassingly  large,  we  cannot  refuse  to  extend  it. 
Every  addition  to  it,  indeed,  is,  for  a  variety  of  reasons, 
to  be  welcomed. 

Information  on  the  general  subject  of  stellar  com- 
positeness  can  only  be  gained  by  continually  widening 
the  area  of  research.  The  comparative  frequency  of  its 
occurrence  can  thus  only  be  estimated.  Struve  found  one 
in  forty  of  120,000  stars  examined  by  him  down  to  1827 
to  be  compound  ;  but  the  proportion  was  naturally  higher 
for  the  brighter  stars,  as  being  in  general  much  nearer  the 
earth,  and  consequently  of  more  facile  optical  separation. 
Every  twenty-fifth  star  in  Piazzi's  Catalogue,  every  eleventh 
in  Flamsteed's,  proved  accordingly  to  have  a  companion 
within  less  than  32".  But  the  process  of  dividing  stars 
has  since  made  such  strides  as  to  show  that  the  real  pre- 
ponderance of  single  over  double  ones  must  be  much 
smaller  than  these  numbers  indicate.  Perhaps,  indeed, 
no  star  can  be  called  absolutely  single.  Between  a  small 
companion  sun  and  a  large  planet  in  its  self-luminous 
stage  it  is  not  easy  to  establish  a  distinction.  The  star 
we  know  best  may  not  always  have  been,  in  its  "  surpassing 
glory,"  so  undeniably  solitary  as  it  now  is.  Jupiter,  if  it 
ever  shone  with  anything  like  stellar  lustre,  would  have 
constituted  with  it  a  fine  unequal  pair  such  as  are  plenti- 
fully exemplified  in  our  catalogues. 

The  distribution  of  double  stars  is  characterized  by  a 
somewhat  irregular  condensation  towards  the  Milky  Way. 
They  abound  in  Cygnus  and  Lyra,  are  scanty  in  Cas- 
siopeia and  Cepheus  ;  while  Struve  met  with  rich  regions 
where  lucid  stars  are  few,  in  Auriga,Telescopium,  and  Lynx. 
Burnham,  however,  could  detect  no  marked  local  pre- 
ferences among  his  numerous  pairs.  Sir  John  Herschel 
was  struck  with  the  paucity  of  close  doubles  in  the 
southern  hemisphere  ;  but  no  searching  scrutiny  has  yet 
been  carried  out  there  with  modern  instruments. 

The  curious  tendency  of  stars  already  in  close  associa- 
tion to  split  up  still  further  when  sufficiently  powerful 
means  are  brought  to  bear  upon  them,  has  been  strongly 
accentuated  by  Mr.  Burnham's  investigations.  Primaries 
with  double  satellites,  such  as  Rigel,  or  satellites  with 
double  primaries,  such  as  ^  and  ^  Scorpii,  swarm  on  his 
lists.  A  fresh  instance  of  the  former  kind  is^Piscium 
(2  100),  registered  by  Struve  as  somewhat  widely  double, 
but  found  to  be  triple  last  autumn  with  the  Lick  twelve- 
inch  achromatic.  The  satellite  of  Struve's  companion,  at 
an  interval  of  less  than  one  second  from  it,  is  of  the 
eleventh  magnitude.  The  bright  stars  are  estimated  by 
Burnham  as  of  sixth  and  eighth,  but  were  photometrically 
determined  at  Harvard  as  of  54  and  6"4  magnitudes  ; 
and  Webb  thought  that  the  chief  of  the  pair  occasionally 
rose  to  the  fourth  rank  of  lustre.  A  presumption  is  thus 
afforded  that  both  fluctuate  in  light.  Their  spectrum,  like 
that  of  most  variable  double  stars,  is  of  the  Sirian  type  ; 
and  their  real  fellowship  is  made  manifest  by  a  community 
of  proper  motion.  We  have  here,  then,  a  genuine  ternary 
system. 

Aldebaran  is  the  centre  of  a  mixed  group.  A  small 
star  at  30"  detected  by  Mr.  Burnham  at  Chicago  on  October 
31,  1877,  was  described  by  him  as  making  with  the  ruddy 
bright  star,  a  pair  resembling  Mars  and  his  outer  satellite 
{Astr.  Nach.,  No.  2189).     A  drift  together  through  space 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


m 


is  probable,  Mr.  Burnham's  remeasurements  after  eleven 
years  indicatingrelative  fixity,notwithstandingAldebaran's 
appreciable  advance  in  the  meantime.  A  more  remote 
companion,  however,  discovered  by  Herschel  in  1781,  is 
certainly  optical,  and  has  been  shown  at  Lick  to  be  double 
{ibid.,  No.  2875).  Most  likely  it  forms  part  of  the  cluster 
of  the  Hyades,  upon  which  Aldebaran  is  casually  projected. 

The  division  of  the  leading  member  of  the  group 
known  as  o-  Ononis  illustrates  Struve's  remark  that 
multiple  stars  are  intermediate  between  double  stars  and 
clusters.  Herschel  saw  it  as  doubly  triple,  one  set  being 
much  fainter  than  the  other.  Each  proved,  under  Struve's 
and  Barlow's  scrutiny,  quadruple,  with  two  very  small  stars 
between  ;  while  the  chief  of  the  decuple  assemblage  has 
been  resolved  at  Lick  into  an  excessively  close  pair,  re- 
calling the  case  of  Sir  J.  Herschel's  quintuple  star  45 
Leporis,  broken  up  into  nine  components  by  Burnham  in 
1874.  No  relative,  and  scarcely  any  absolute  motion  is 
perceptible  among  the  constituents  of  o-  Orionis  ;  but  one 
of  them,  called  "  ashen  "  by  Strove,  "  grape-red  "  by  Webb, 
is  perhaps  variable  in  colour. 

The  "  Pointer "  next  the  Pole,  a  Ursae  Majoris,  has 
so  far  been  seen  as  double  only  with  the  giant  telescope 
of  Mount  Hamilton.  The  extreme  difficulty  of  the  pair 
arises  from  the  disparity  of  light  between  its  members, 
the  eleventh  magnitude  satellite  at  o"'83  being  almost 
swallowed  up  in  the  glare  of  its  brilliant  primary.  This 
disparity,  too,  throws  some  shadow  of  doubt  on  the  reality 
of  the  connection,  since  the  supply  of  small  stars  for  the 
occupation  of  chance  positions  is  of  course  vastly  greater 
than  of  large.  The  similar,  but  more  distant  companion 
of  y  CassiopeicC  (at  2""i8)  also  recently  discovered  at 
Lick,  is  hence  not  unlikely  to  prove  merely  optical,  the 
Milky  Way,  in  which  this  pair  occurs,  being  pre-eminently 
rich  in  such  objects  ;  and  the  presumption  is  still  smaller 
that  a  fourteenth  magnitude  neighbour  of  6  Cygni  owns  a 
genuine  allegiance.  But  here,  as  Mr.  Burnham  points 
out,  the  proper  motion  of  the  larger  star  will  speedily 
decide  {Astr.  Nach.,  No.  2912.)  There  can,  on  the  other 
hand,  be  no  hesitation  in  admitting  that  i]  Ophiuchi,  re- 
solved last  spring  by  the  same  indefatigable  observer  into 
two  nearly  equal  components,  at  o""35,  constitutes  a  physical 
system,  and  one  in  which  rapid  movements  may  be  looked 
for.  The  stars  evidently  travel  together,  else  they  should 
have  been,  through  the  effects  of  a  proper  motion  of  one 
second  of  arc  in  ten  years,  so  far  apart  a  little  time  back 
that  they  could  not  possibly  have  escaped  separate  dis- 
cernment. Their  relation  to  the  Milky  Way  is  picturesque, 
and  has  been  thought  to  be  significant.  "  Situated  at  the 
extreme  northern  and  pointed  extremity  of  a  luminous 
elongated  patch  of  milky  light,"  Mr.  Gore  remarks,  j? 
Ophiuchi  ''  looks  as  if  it  were  drawing  the  nebulous  matter 
after  it  like  the  tail  of  a  comet "  {Journal  Liverpool  Astr. 
Society,  vol.  vii.  p.  178).  But  we  may  safely  regard  the 
appearance  as  illusory. 

Some  of  Mr.  Burnham's  measures  of  known  doubles 
also  supply  results  of  interest.  Thus,  the  duplex,  sea- 
green  companion  of  y  Andromedce  can  now  barely  be 
*' elongated"  with  a  magnifying  power  of  2700  on  the 
great  refractor.  Yet,  so  lately  as  i38i,  the  two  stars  could 
be  distinguished  with  eight  inches  of  aperture.  The  un- 
equal pair,  99  Herculis,  discovered  by  Alvan  Clark  in 
1859,  is  even  more  recalcitrant.  No  amount  of  optical 
•constraint  can  now  extract  from  it  the  slightest  indication 
of  duplicity.  Since  1878,  85  Pegasi  has  traversed  213°  of 
its  orbit  ;  and  Mr.  Schaeberle's  new  elements,  embodying 
the  Lick  data,  give  it  a  period  of  12I  years,  and  oblige 
us  (on  the  dubious  assumption  that  Briinnow's  small 
parallax  can  be  depended  upon)  to  ascribe  a  mass  to  the 
system  eleven  times  the  solar,  the  components  revolving 
at  nearly  eighteen  times  the  distance  of  the  earth  from 
the  sun.  The  sun  and  Jupiter,  if  of  equal  ureal  lustre, 
would  present,  at  half  the  supposed  distance  of  85  Pegasi, 
just  its  telescopic  aspect. 


Like  85  Pegasi,  8  Equulei  is  optically  triple,  while 
physically  double,  the  companionship  of  Struve's  more 
distant  attendant  being  in  each  case  temporary  and  acci- 
dental. The  bright  star  of  S  Equulei  was  divided  by 
O.  .Struve  in  1852,  and  the  pair  soon  proved  to  be  in 
exceptionally  rapid  motion.  They  constitute,  in  fact,  the 
swiftest  binary  system  yet  known.  Glasenapp's  period, 
nevertheless,  of  iii  years  is  evidently  too  short.  The 
Lick  measures  show  the  star  to  be  lagging  slightly  behind 
its  predicted  place. 

The  investigation  of  stellar  orbits  has  scarcely  yet 
emerged  from  a  tentative  stage.  Its  results  are  for  the 
most  part  loose  approximations,  largely  open  to  future 
correction.  There  are  very  few  stars  of  which  the  period 
is  known  within  a  few  years  ;  there  are  perhaps  two — 42 
Comas  and  ^  L^rsa; — of  which  it  is  known  within  a  few 
months.  This  is  due  to  no  lack  of  skill  or  diligence  in 
the  computers,  but  solely  to  the  deficiencies,  both  in  quality 
and  quantity,  of  the  materials  at  their  command.  Very 
small  errors  become  enormous  when  they  affect  the  relative 
situations  of  objects  divided  by  a  mere  hair-breadth 
of  sky  ;  and  there  is  no  branch  of  astronomy  in  which 
"  personality  "  has  played  a  more  conspicuous  or  a  more 
vexatious  part  than  in  double-star  measurements.  This  at 
least  is  abolished  by  photography  ;  which  has,  however,  as 
yet  proved  applicable  only  to  a  limited  class  of  coupled 
stars.  With  the  extension  of  its  powers  to  all,  a  new 
era  in  the  knowledge  of  stellar  revolutions  may  be  ex- 
pected to  open. 

A.  M.  Clerke. 


GEOLOGICAL  EXCURSION  TO  THE  ACTIVE 
AND  EXTINCT  VOLCANOES  OF  SOUTHERN 
ITALY. 

nPHE  excursion  of  geologists  to  the  volcanic  regions 
-*■  of  South  Italy  came  to  a  very  satisfactory  con- 
clusion. We  have  already  referred  to  the  first  part  of 
the  excursion  to  the  Lipari  Islands,  and  the  interesting 
state  of  activity  in  which  the  volcanoes  of  Vulcano  and 
Stromboli  were  found  to  be  in.  On  leaving  those  islands 
the  party  proceeded  to  examine  the  Val  di  Bove,  the 
Cyclopean  Islands,  the  slopes  of  Etna  with  its  numerous 
parasitic  cones  and  lava  streams,  and  the  central  crater 
itself  The  Italian  Minister  of  Public  Instruction  allowed 
the  party  to  sleep  in  the  observatory  near  the  mountain 
summit,  and  although  the  weather  was  rough  and  misty, 
about  half  the  party  were  able  to  get  a  good  view  of  the 
crater,  which  is  now  in  a  solfataric  condition.  The 
geologists  had  also  the  advantage  of  becoming  acquainted 
with  the  mud  volcanoes  of  Paterno.  In  this  part  of  the 
excursion  the  party  had  the  valuble  help  of  Prof  O. 
Silvestri,  to  whom  Dr.  Johnston-Lavis  handed  over  the 
direction  at  Etna,  although  still  acting  as  general  director 
and  interpreting  Prof  Silvestri's  demonstrations.  All 
along  the  journey  the  party  were  feted  by  the  prefect 
of  the  province  and  the  mayors  of  the  different  com- 
munes, and  found  invaluable  hospitality  in  the  splendid 
villa  of  the  Marquis  Favara  at  Biancavilla.  The  second 
fortnight  of  the  excursion  was  spent  at  Naples  and 
its  vicinity,  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  Johnston-Lavis, 
aided  for  the  sedimentary  ro:ks  by  Prof  Bassani  of  the 
University  of  Naples.  Although  the  weather  was  not  so 
favourable  as  in  Sicily,  the  delay  only  amounted  to  two 
days.  Many  thanks  are  due  to  the  mayor  of  Naples  for 
his  hospitality  in  providing  for  the  party  a  splendid  steam 
yacht  for  their  visit  to  Capri  and  Ischia,  so  affording  very 
greatly  increased  facilities  for  their  excursions.  The 
members  gave  a  day  to  the  examination  of  the  reservoirs 
and  other  works  connected  with  the  new  and  most  perfect 
and  purest  town  water  supply  in  Europe,  as  well  as  the 
new  drainage  works  and  destruction  of  the  old  town  of 
Naples.  Although  the  visit  to  the  crater  of  Vesuvius  had 
to  be  delayed  for  upwards  of  ten  days  for  suitable  weather, 


134 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  12,  1889 


the  party  had  the  good  fortune  to  see  the  volcano  in  great 
perfection.  There  existed  at  the  time  of  the  visit  four 
concentric  crater  rings  and  two  main  vents  ejecting  red- 
hot  lava  cakes,  which  the  geologists  were  able  to  approach 
within  ten  yards,  after  which  they  descended  some  distance 
on  the  slopes  of  the  great  cone  to  a  small  lava  stream 
issuing  from  its  sides,  at  which  various  experiments  were 
performed.  The  director,  who  has  visited  the  crater  over 
sixty  times,  remarked  that  he  had  never  but  once  seen  it 
to  greater  perfection. 

The  numerous  volcanoes  of  the  Phlegrean  fields  were 
examined,  and  most  of  those  present  expressed  their 
satisfaction  at  the  many  important  lessons  to  be  learnt 
from  them.  At  Pompeii  the  members  had  the  valuable 
direction  of  Dr.  A.  Sambon  for  the  archaeological  part, 
whilst  Dr.  Johnston-Lavis  devoted  himself  only  to  ex- 
plaining the  phenomena  and  materials  associated  with 
the  destruction  of  the  buried  cities. 

After  Naples  the  party  examined  on  their  way  north- 
wards the  volcano  of  Roccamonfina,  under  the  direction  of 
Dr.  Johnston-Lavis,  and  Monte  Cassino  under  that  of 
Prof.  Bassani  of  Naples.  The  Lyceum  at  Sessa  Aurunca 
was  kindly  lent  by  the  commune  to  accommodate  the 
members  during  their  night's  stay  on  their  way  over  the 
mountain,  a  sumptuous  dinner  being  provided  by  the 
municipality.  The  carriages  the  next  day  were  offered  by 
the  province  of  Terra  di  Lavoro,  and  after  the  ascent  had 
been  made  of  the  central  cone  (Mount  Santa  Croce)  a 
lunch  not  less  sumptuous  than  the  dinner  of  the  pre- 
ceding evening  was  given  by  the  town  of  Roccamonfina. 
The  next  day  was  devoted  to  Monte  Cassino,  its 
manuscript  and  art  treasures,  as  well  as  the  Cretaceous 
limestones  constituting  the  mountain  upon  which  it  is 
built.     Prof.  Bassani  acted  as  geological  director. 

At  Rome  the  party  examined  the  concentric  craters, 
parasitic  cones,  crater  lakes,  lava  streams  of  the  Alban 
volcano,  also  the  fossiliferous  Pliocene  beds  capped  by 
volcanic  deposits  close  to  the  Eternal  City.  The  lower 
Mesozoic  limestones,  the  travertine,  the  sulphur  springs, 
and  all  the  other  points  of  geological  interest  of  the 
Campagna  Romana  were  visited. 

As  directors  of  the  excursions  around  Rome  may  be 
mentioned  Profs.  Mele,  Portis,  and  Striiver.  Signer  Zezi 
(secretary  of  the  Italian  Geological  Survey),  Signors 
Demarchi,  Clerici,  Tellini,  and  Prof.  Lanciani  kindly 
undertook  the  archaeological  demonstrations  which  acted 
as  dessert  to  the  rich  geological  repast. 

The  official  excursions  terminated  on  October  28,  with 
the  trip  to  Tivoli,  although  a  number  of  geologists  re- 
mained to  visit  the  sights  of  Rome.  In  the  evening  a 
dinner  was  offered  to  Dr.  Johnston-Lavis,  Mr.  L.  Sambon, 
and  the  Roman  directors.  The  thanks  of  the  party  were 
offered  to  the  Minister  of  Public  Instruction,  Prefects  and 
Mayors,  and  private  individuals,  who  had  done  so  much 
to  facilitate  the  progress,  through  often  almost  inaccessible 
districts,  for  a  large  party. 

Special  votes  of  thanks  were  proposed  to  the  different 
Italian  geologists  who  had  kindly  offered  their  services  in 
directing  the  party  through  their  districts,  and  lastly  to 
Dr.  Johnston-Lavis  for  originating  this  new  departure  in 
scientific  excursions,  as  well  as  acting  not  only  as  director 
in  his  own  districts,  but  interpreting  and  organizing  during 
the  whole  excursion,  and  to  Mr.  L.  Sambon  for  his 
administrative  skill,  his  attainments  in  different  branches 
of  science,  which  added  so  much  to  the  success  and 
comfort  of  over  forty  English  geologists,  not  to  speak  of 
the  numerous  Italians  who  from  time  to  time  joined. 

REMARKABLE  HAILSTONES. 
/^N  p.  43  of  the  present  volume  of  Nature  the  follow- 
^^     ing  extract  is  given  from  a  paper  by  Prof.  Houston 
in  the  Journal  of  the  Franklin  Institute  : — "  On  some  of  the 
hailstones,  though   not   on   the  majority    of  them,  well- 


marked  crystals  of  clear  transparent  ice  projected  from 
their  outer  surfaces  for  distances  ranging  from  J  to  j  of 
an  inch.     These  crystals,  as  well  as   Ijscould  observe  from 


Fig.  2. 


the  evanescent  nature  of  the  material,  were  hexagonal! 
prisms  with  clearly  cut  terminal  facets.  They  resembled 
the  projecting  cr)stals  that  form  so  common  a  lining  in 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NA  rURE 


135 


geodic  masses,  in  which  they  have  formed  by  gradual 
crystallization  from  the  mother-liquor.  They  differed, 
however,  of  course,  in  being  on  the  outer  surface  of  the 
spherules." 

It  is  evident  from  Prof.  Houston's  paper  that  this 
peculiar  form  of  hail  was  unknown  to  him,  and,  as  it  must 
also  have  been  unknown  to  many  who  have  propounded 
theories  as  to  the  formation  of  hail  which  will  not  account 
for  it,  I  think  that  a  service  may  be  rendered  to  meteoro- 
logy by  the  reproduction  of  three  of  the  exquisite  litho- 
graphs of  this  form  of  hail  given  in  Prof.  Abich's  paper, 
'"  Ueber  krystallinischen  Hagel  im  Thrialethischen  ge- 
birge,"  published  at  Tiflis  in  1871.  The  hailstones  repre- 
sented in  Figs.  1-3  all  fell  on  June  9  (21),  1867,  at  Bjeloi 
Kliutsch,  a  village  about  twenty  miles  south-west  of  Tiflis, 


Fii 


and  12,425  feet  above  sfa-level  (lat.  41°  33'  N.,  long.  44° 
30'  E.). 

Theories  of  the  formation  of  hail  are  almost  innumer- 
able. I  was  reading  a  pamphlet  not  long  since  which 
contained  summaries  of,  I  think,  twenty-three  theories. 
Some — like  Prof.  Schwedoff's,  that  hailstones  come  from 
interplanetary  space  (Brit.  Ass.  Report,  Southampton, 
1882,  p.  458) — are  very  droll  ;  but  the  subject  is  a  very  diffi- 
cult one,  and  one  upon  which  I  do  not  know  of  a  single 
good  treatise  in  our  language.  Possibly,  the  reproduction 
of  these  figures  may  induce  someone  to  prepare  an  ex- 
haustive memoir.  I  could  place  a  large  amount  of 
historical  and  theoretical  material  at  the  disposal  of  any 
competent  person  who  would  undertake  the  preparation 
of  such  a  work,  it  being  quite  impossible  for  me  to  do  it 
myself.  G.  J.  Symons. 


NOTES. 

At  a  largely  attended  meeting  in  Edinburgh  on  Tuesday, 
Dec.  3,  Sir  Douglas  Maclagan  in  the  chair,  it  was  resolved  that 
Mr.  Geo.  Reid,  R.S. A.,  should  be  commissioned  to  paint  a  por- 
trait of  Prof.  P.  G.  Tait,  to  be  placed  permanently  in  the  rooms  of 


the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  A  committee  was  appointed 
to  carry  out  the  resolution,  including,  among  others,  Mr.  John 
Murray  (C'/W/cw^tT  Expedition),  Convener;  Mr.  Gillies  Smith, 
lion.  Treasurer  ;  Lord  President  Inglis,  Lord  Kingsburgh,  Lord 
Maclaren,  Sir  William  Thomson,  Sir  Arthur  Mitchell,  Prof. 
Robertson  Smith,  Prof.  Chiene,  Dr.  Alexander  Buchan,  Mr. 
Robert  Cox,  and  Mr.  William  Peddie.  It  was  proposed  that  an 
etched  engraving  of  the  portrait  be  prepared  for  distribution 
among  the  subscribers,  the  plate  to  be  destroyed  after  the  re- 
quired number  of  copies  have  been  thrown  off.  It  was  further 
resolved  that  all  the  Fellows  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh, 
the  Professor's  old  pupils,  and  others,  be  afforded  an  opportunity 
of  taking  part  in  this  public  recognitition  of  Prof  Tait's  eminent 
services  to  science. 

Italy,  France,  and  the'United  States  of  America  were  repre- 
sented in  the  elections  to  foreign  membership  of  the  Royal 
Society  on  Thursday  last.  Prof.  Stanislao  Cannizzaro,  of  Rome, 
was  elected  on  the  ground  of  his  researches  on  molecular  and 
atomic  weights  ;  Prof.  Chauveau,  of  Parii,  for  his  researches  on 
the  mechanism  of  the  circulation,  animal  heat,  nutrition,  and  the 
pathology  of  infectious  diseases  ;  and  Prof.  Rowland,  of  Balti- 
more, for  his  determination  in  absolute  measure  of  the  magnetic 
susceptibilities  of  iron,  nickel,  and  cobalt  ;  for  his  accurate 
measurements  of  fundamental  physical  constants  ;  for  the  experi- 
mental proof  of  the  electro-magnetic  effect  of  electric  convection  ; 
for  the  theory  and  construction  of  carved  diffraction-gratings  of 
very  great  dispersive  power  ;  and  for  the  effectual  aid  which  he 
has  given  to  the  progress  of  physics  in  America  and  other 
countries. 

Admiral  Mouchez  and  MM.  Janssen  and  Perrotin,  head 
astronomers  of  the  Observatories  of  Paris,  Meudon,  and 
Nice,  were  raised,  in  November,  to  the  grade  of  Officer 
of  the  Order  of  the  Rose  of  Brazil,  and  MM.  Frassenet, 
Paul,  and  Prosper  Henry,  admitted  to  knighthood  in  the  same 
order.  The  Paris  Correspondent  of  the  Daily  News  says  that 
the  diplomas  securing  to  them  these  distinctions  were  the  last 
official  documents  signed  by  Dom  Pedro.  He  asked  his  secre- 
tary to  add  a  personal  compliment  to  each  of  the  astronomers 
with  whom  he  was  personally  acquainted. 

Some  time  ago  we  announced  that  a  Physical  Society  was 
about  to  be  formed  in  Liverpool.  This  has  now  been  done, 
and  we  are  glad  to  learn  that  the  new  Society  begins  its  career 
under  most  favourable  conditions.  The  meeting  at  which  it 
was  constituted  was  well  attended,  and  displayed  much  interest 
in  the  scheme.  Nearly  ninety  names  were  at  once  handed  in  to 
the  secretary,  Mr.  T.  Tarleton,  for  membership.  Prof.  Oliver 
Lodge,  F.R.S.,  was  appointed  President.  The  next  meeting 
will  be  held  in  the  Physics  Theatre,  University  College,  Liver- 
pool, on  Monday,  the  i6th  inst.,  at  8  o'clock,  when  the  President 
will  deliver  his  inaugural  address. 

Dr.  John  G.  McKendrick,  F.R.S.,  Professor  of  Physiology 
in  the  University  of  Glasgow,  has  been  elected  President  of  the 
Philosophical  Society  of  Glasgow. 

Prof.  Lesquereux,  the  eminent  American  bryologist  and 
palteontologist,  died  in  his  house  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  on  October 
25,  at  the  age  of  nearly  eighty-nine  years. 

We  regret  to  learn  from  a  memoir  that  has  been  sent  to  us 
by  Prof  Barboza  du  Bocage,  that  Senor  Jose  Augusto  de  Souza 
died  recently  at  Lisbon,  where  he  was  Curator  of  the  Zoological 
Department  in  the  Museum.  He  was  the  author  of  some  useful 
memoirs  on  African  birds,  and  is  best  known  for  his  Catalogue 
of  the  Accipitres,  Columhcc,  and  Ga/lifuc  in  the  Lisbon  Museum. 

The  fifth  of  the  series  of  "One  Man  "  Photographic  Exhibi- 
tions at  the  Camera  Club  will  be  open  for  private  and  press 


136 


NATURE 


[Dec.  12,  1889 


view  on  Monday,  December  16,  at  8  p.m.,  and  on  and  after 
Tuesday,  December  17,  it  will  be  open  to  visitors  on  presentation 
of  card.  The  Exhibition  will  consist  of  pictures  by  the  late  Mr. 
O.  G.  Rejlander,  and  a  selection  from  over  200  of  his  famous 
figure  and  genre  studies  will  be  shown.  The  pictures  will  be  on 
view  for  about  six  weeks. 

On  November  21  the  American  Philosophical  Society,  Phila- 
delphia, celebrated  the  hundredth  anniversary  of  its  first  occu- 
pation of  its  present  hall.  The  banquet  was  a  great  success. 
The  following  were  the  toasts: — -"The  language  of  Science 
and  Philosophy  is  universal,  but  adopts  various  dialectic  forms 
to  diffuse  knowledge,"  proposed  by  Prof.  John  W.  Mallet, 
representative  from  the  Royal  Society  of  London  ;  "  Our  kindred 
Societies  in  every  clime,"  proposed  by  Prof.  Joseph  Lovering, 
President  of  the  American  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences  ; 
"  All  research  into  the  Book  of  Nature  has  not  discovered  an 
erratum,"  proposed  by  Sir  Daniel  Wilson,  President  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Toronto  ;  "  The  successful  pursuit  of  Science  expunges 
error — it  never  antagonizes  truth,"  proposed  by  the  flon.  Lyon 
G.  Tyler,  President  of  William  and  Mary  College;  "Men- 
tal Analysis  is  the  efficient  solvent  of  many  difficulties  in 
Science  and  Philosophy,"  proposed  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Charles  W. 
Shields,  Princeton  College  ;  and  "  The  labours  and  achieve- 
ments of  great  teachers  in  Science  and  Philosophy  live  after 
them — these  are  their  monuments,"  proposed  by  the  Right  Rev. 
Dr.  John  J.  Keane,  President  of  the  Catholic  University  of 
America. 

Dr.  Pax,  of  Breslau,  has  been  appointed  Curator  of  the 
Botanic  Garden  in  Berlin  ;  Mr.  D.  G.  Fairchild,  Assistant  in  the 
section  of  Vegetable  Pathology  in  the  United  States  Department 
of  Agriculture ;  Dr.  H.  Dingier,  Professor  of  Botany  in  the 
Forest  Academy  of  Aschaffenburg  ;  Dr.  F,  Noll,  Professor  of 
Botany  in  the  University  of  Bonn  ;  and  Dr.  N.  Wille,  of  Stock- 
holm, Lecturer  on  Botany  at  the  Royal  Agricultural  Institution 
at  Aas,  near  Christiania. 

Prof.  Bornmuller,  Director  of  the  Botanic  Garden  at 
Belgrade,  has  started  on  a  twelve  months'  botanical  tour  through 
Asia  Minor.  Beginning  at  Amasia,  he  will  travel  through  the 
country  between  the  courses  of  the  Kisil-Irmak  and  Euphrates, 
southward  to  the  completely  unexplored  mountains  of  Ak-dagh. 
The  Botanical  Gazette  says  that  this  country  has  only  once  been 
explored,  thirty-five  years  ago,  by  the  Russian  botanist  Wiede- 
mann. According  to  the  same  authority,  Prof.  Bornmuller  is  a 
young  and  very  successful  explorer,  with  a  great  deal  of  ex- 
perience, especially  from  his  long  journey  in  1886,  through 
Dalmatia,  Monte  Negro,  Greece,  Turkey,  East  Bulgaria,  and 
Asia  Minor.  His  original  collection  will  be  transferred  to 
Weimar,  where  it  will  be  carefully  gone  through  by  Prof. 
Hausknecht. 

The  *'  mountain  laurel,"  or  Kalmia,  and  the  Indian  corn,  are 
suggested  in  American  papers  as  national  flowers  for  the  United 
States. 

In  the  December  number  of  the  Keiv  Bulletin  Mr.  Thiselton 
Dyer  explains  that  for  some  years,  when  it  has  been  necessary  to 
find  space  in  the  Palm  House  at  Kew  for  the  development  of  new 
and  interesting  species  of  palms,  he  has  not  hesitated  to  transfer 
to  the  Temperate  House  plants  which  he  thought  -.vould  probably 
endure  a  lower  temperature.  The  experiment  has  been  most 
successful,  many  of  the  plants  luxuriating  in  the  change.  Anxious 
to  obtain  further  information  as  to  cool  cultivation  of  tropical 
and  sub-tropical  plants,  Mr.  Dyer  lately  applied  for  leave  to 
send  Mr.  Watson,  assistant  curator  at  Kew,  to  the  south  of 
France  to  report  on  what  he  might  be  able  to  observe.  Per- 
mission v>as  given  ;  and  Mr.  Dyer's  statement  is  followed  by  a 
series  of  valuable  and  interesting  notes  in  which  Mr.   Watson 


sums  up  the  results  of  his  mission.  His  journey  took  place  in 
the  latter  part  of  October,  He  had  a  fortnight  at  his  disposal, 
and  during  that  time  he  visited  as  many  gardens  as  possible  be- 
tween Hyeres  and  Mentone.  One  of  the  most  interesting  of  the 
gardens  visited  was  a  branch  establishment,  at  Hyeres,  of  the 
Societe  d'Acclimatation,  Paris.  Here  a  good  deal  of  experi- 
mental gardening  is  practised,  plants  of  all  kinds  being  planted 
and  tested  as  to  their  hardiness,  &c.  Mr.  Watson  says  that 
while  he  was  inspecting  these  gardens  the  idea  was  suggested 
"  that  a  well-managed  botanical  station,  devoted  chiefly  to  ex- 
perimental testing,  proving,  and  breeding  operations  amongst 
plants,  would,  if  established  in  some  such  favoured  locality  as 
Hyeres,  be  capable  of  much  valuable  work. " 

The  following  are  the  lecture  arrangements  at  the  Royal 
Institution,  so  far  as  they  relate  to  science,  befjre  Easter : — • 
Prof.  A.  W.  Riicker,  six  Christmas  lectures  to  juveniles  on 
electricity ;  Prof.  G.  J.  Romanes,  ten  lectures  on  the  post- 
Darwinian  period  ;  Mr.  Frederick  Niecks,  four  lectures  on  the 
early  developments  of  the  forms  of  instrumental  music  (with 
musical  illustrations)  ;  Prof.  Flower,  three  lectures  on  the 
natural  history  of  the  horse  and  of  its  extinct  and  existing  allies  ; 
the  Right  Hon.  Lord  Rayleigh,  seven  lectures  on  electricity  and 
magnetism.  The  Friday  evening  meetings  will  begin  on  January 
24,  when  a  discourse  will  be  given  by  Prof.  Dewar  on  the 
scientific  work  of  Joule.  Succeeding  discourses  will  probably 
be  given  by  Sir  Frederick  Abel,  Mr.  Henry  B.  Wheatley,  Prof. 
J.  A.  Fleming,  Mr.  Shelford  Bidwell,  Prof.  C.  Hubert  H. 
Parry,  Mr.  Francis  Gotch,  Prof  T.  E.  Thorpe,  Prof.  G.  F. 
Fitzgerald,  the  Right  Hon.  Lord  Rayleigh,  and  other  gentlemen. 

Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co.  will  shortly  publish  the  first 
part  of  Prof.  Elmer's  work  on  "Organic  Evolution  as  the  Re- 
sult of  the  Inheritance  of  Acquired  Characters  according  to  the 
Laws  of  Organic  Growth,"  translate!  by  J.  T.  Cunningham, 
M.A.,  F.R.S.E.,  late  Fellow  of  University  College,  Oxford. 

MESSRS.  Blackwood  and  Sons  have  just  published  "  The 
Construction  of  the  Wonderful  Canon  of  Logarithms,"  a  trans- 
lation of  "  Mirifici  Logarithmorum  Canonis  Constructio,"  by 
John  Napier,  of  Merchiston.  The  work  was  published  in  1619, 
but  is  so  rare  as  to  be  very  little  known,  being  only  once  re- 
printed in  1620,  and  never  translated.  The  present  translation 
is  by  William  Rae  Macdonald,  who  also  contributes  notes  and 
a  catalogue  of  Napier's  works. 

Slight  shocks  of  earthquake,  lasting  from  five  to  ten  seconds, 
were  felt  on  Sunday,  at  Taranto,  Poggia,  Chieti,  Monte- 
saraceno,  Agnone,  Ancona,  and  Urbino.  At  Torremileto,  in 
the  province  of  Foggia,  a  strong  shock  is  said  to  have  been  felt  ; 
and  a  slight  shock,  followed  by  a  somewhat  stronger  one,  oc- 
curred at  Naples  soon  after  6  a.m.  On  Monday  there  were 
seismic  disturbances  in  Dalmatia,  Bosnia,  and  Herzegovina, 
According  to  a  telegram,  through  Reuter's  Agency,  from  Vienna, 
a  somewhat  severe  shock  was  felt  on  Monday,  at  6.30  a.m.,  at 
Knin,  Dernis,  Sebenico,  Trau,  Scardona,  and  Spalato,  the 
direction  of  the  movement  being  from  north-east  to  south-west. 
A  violent  shock,  lasting  five  seconds,  occurred  at  6.40  at  Serajevo, 
being  felt  three  minutes  later  at  Novi  and  Krupa  also. 

At  the  ordinary  meeti'ig  of  the  Council  of  the  Sanitary  Assur- 
ance Association,  on  Monday  last,  arrangements  were  completed 
for  a  series  of  lectures  during  January  and  February  1890,  in 
the  theatre  of  the  College  of  State  Medicine,  Great  Russell 
Street.  The  series  will  include  the  following  : — Mr.  H.  Ruther- 
furd,  barrister-at-law,  on  "  House  Sanitation  from  a  House- 
holder's Point  of  View,"  Sir  Joseph  Fayrer,  F.  R.S.,  in  the 
chair;  Prof.  T.  Roger  Smith,  on  "Household  Warming  and 
Ventilation,"  Sir  Douglas  Galton,  F.R.S.,  in  the  chair ;  Mr. 
Mark  H.  Judge,  on  "  The  Sanitary  Registration  of  Buildings 
Bill,"  Lord  Henry  Bruce,  M.P.,  in  the  chair.     The  object  of 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


"^11 


the  Association  being  to  promote  good  sanitary  arrangements  in 
the  houses  of  all  classes  of  the  community,  both  men  and 
women  are  invited  to  these  lectures.     Discussion  is  invited. 

The  *'  Fauna  of  British  India,"  of  which  we  noticed  the  first 
volume  of  fishes  last  week,  is  making  steady  progress.  Mr. 
Eugene  Oates  will  produce  the  first  volume  of  the  birds  of 
India  during  the  present  month.  The  work  will  be  principally 
founded  on  the  great  Hume  Collection  in  the  British  Museum, 
and  the  author  of  the  "  Hand-book  of  the  Birds  of  British 
Burmah,"  may  be  trusted  to  give  a  thoroughly  good  account  of 
the  birds  of  India.  Side  by  side  with  his  three  volumes  on 
Indian  ornithology,  Mr.  Oates  will  also  publish  a  new  edition 
of  Mr.  A.  O.  Hume's  "  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,"  which 
has  long  been  out  of  print.  For  this  purpose  Mr.  Hume  has 
intrusted  to  Mr.  Oates  ihe  whole  of  the' material  collected  by 
him  for  a  second  edition,  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  work 
will  be  warmly  welcomed  by  naturalists.  Portraits  of  some  of 
the  leading  men  who  have  contributed  to  the  history  of  Indian 
ornithology  will  be  given  in  this  new  edition,  and  will  form  an 
interesting  feature  of  the  work. 

Mr.  Francis  Nicholson,  a  well-known  Manchester  ornitho- 
logist, is  about  to  issue  an  English  translation  of  Sunderall's 
"Ttntamen,"  with  a  memoir  and  portrait.  This  work  will  be 
welcome  at  the  present  time,  when  increased  attention  is  being 
paid  to  the  classification  of  birds. 

Mr.  Seebohm  will,  we  understand,  propound  his  system  of 
arrangement  of  the  class  Aves  in  the  January  number  of  the //vV, 
and  the  memoir  will  doubtless  be  a  valuable  one,  as  the  author 
is  known  to  have  devoted  close  study  to  the  subject  during  the 
past  two  years. 

Mr.  a.  p.  Goodwin,  who  was  with  Sir  William  McGregor 
on  his  recent  exploration  of  Mount  Owen  Stanley,  is  about  to 
start  on  a  lecturing  tour  in  America,  He  was  successful  in 
taking  several  interesting  photographs  of  the  country  visited  by 
the  Expedition,  and  he  paid  especial  attention  to  the  habits  of 
the  Birds  of  Paradise  and  the  Bower-birds.  He  has  some 
remarkable  sketches  of  the  playing-grounds  of  some  of  the  latter, 
notably  of  Anddyornis  sutalaris,  of  Sharpe,  which  rivals  in 
decoiative  faculty  the  Gardener  Bower-bird  {An.blyornis 
inornata)  of  Noith- Western  New  Guinea. 

Prof.  Giard  has  recently  discovered  a  micro-organism  which 
possesses  the  power  of  conferring  luminosity  or  phosphorescence 
upon  different  crustaceans.  This  microbe  was  found  in  the 
tissues  of  Talitncs,  and  is  easily  cultivated  in  appropriate  media. 
It  soon  kills  Ta/iti-us. 

M.  LouBAT,  member  of  the  New  York  Historical  Society, 
has  presented  the  French  Academy  of  Inscriptions  with  a  sum 
producing  icoo  francs  per  annum  ;  his  intention  being  that  a 
prize  of  3000  francs  shall  be  offered  every  three  years  for  the 
best  printed  work  concerning  the  history,  geography,  archaeology, 
ethnography,  linguistics,  and  numismatics  of  North  America. 
The  first  prize  will  be  granted  in  1892,  and  the  Academy  has 
decided  that  the  works  submitted  for  consideration  shall  not 
relate  to  matters  referring  to  an  earlier  date  than  1776.  The 
competition  will  be  open  to  the  author  of  any  work  on  the 
subject  published  after  July  i,  1S89,  in  any  of  the  following 
languages :  Latin,  French,  English,  Spanish,  and  Italian. 
Two  copies  must  be  sent  to  the  Secretary  of  the  French  Institute 
before  December  31,  1891. 

In  the  Pacific  Coast  region  there  are  now  four  flouri>hing 
colonies  of  introduced  pheasants.  Dr.  C.  Hart  Meriam,  who 
refers  to  the  subject  in  his  last  Report  to  the  American  Agri- 
cultural Department,  says  that  the  most  northerly  of  these 
colonies  is  at  the  south  end  of  Vancouver  Island,  near  Victoria  ; 


the  second  in  Protection  Island,  in  Puget  Sound  ;  the  third  at 
tV  e  junction  of  the  Willamette  River  with  the  Columbia  ;  and 
the  fourth  in  the  middle  portion  of  the  Willamette  Valley.  The 
two  latter  colonies  are  now  separated  by  so  narrow  a  strip  of 
territory  that  they  will  doubtless  become  united  during  the  next 
few  years.  All  the  pheasants  of  the  three  colonies  last  men- 
tioned appear  to  have  been  iioported  from  China  by  Judge  O. 
N.  Denny. 

The  American  Agricultural  Department  has  been  making 
careful  inauiry  as  to  the  food  of  crows  ;  and  the  result,  asset  forth 
in  a  Report  by  Mr.  Walter  B.  Barrows,  is  likely  to  surprise 
those  who  have  always  contended  that  these  birds  do  very  much 
more  good  than  harm.  It  is  not  disputed  that  they  destroy  in- 
jurious insects,  that  they  are  enemies  of  mice  and  other  rodents, 
and  that  they  are  occasionally  valuable  as  scavengers  ;  but  these 
services  are  slight  in  comparison  with  the  mischief  for  which 
they  are  responsible.  The  injury  done  by  them  to  Indian  corn, 
wheat,  rye,  oats,  and  other  cereals  is  enormous.  According  to 
one  observer,  the  crow  eats  corn  "  from  ten  minutes  after  planting 
until  the  blades  are  three  inches  high  ;  "  and  more  than  a  score 
of  other  observers  testify  that  he  not  only  pulls  up  the  young 
plants,  but  digs  up  the  newly  sown  seed.  His  depredations  ex- 
tend to  potatoes,  sweet  potatoes,  beans,  pea-nuts,  cherries, 
strawberries,  raspberries,  and  blackberries  ;  and  he  widely  dis- 
tributes certain  poisonous  plants,  the  seeds  of  which  are- 
improved  rather  than  impaired  by  passage  through  his  digestive 
organs.  As  if  all  this  were  not  enough,  it  is  shown  that  the 
crow  eats  beneficial  insects,  and  that  he  makes  himself  a  most 
formidable  nuisance  by  destroying  the  eggs  and  young  both  of 
domesticated  fowls  and  wild  birds. 

Two  new  seismoscopes,  made  by  Brassart  Brothers,  of  Rome, 
and  adopted  at  the  Italian  meteorological  stations,  are  described 
in  \}s\&  Rivista  Scienlijicolndiistrialc  of  October  15.  They  are  of 
a  very  simple  nature,  the  one  consisting  merely  of  an  iron  rod, 
about  5  inches  long,  leaning  slightly  against  an  adjustable  screw 
support  near  its  middle,  and  with  its  lower  pointed  end  in  a 
cup.  When  a  shock  or  tremor  occurs,  the  rod  falls  away  from 
its  support  and  is  c:iut;ht  by  a  fixed  metallic  ring,  making  electric 
contact  and  ringing  a  bell.  In  the  other  instrument,  the  ring  is 
connected  with  a  hinged  lever  arrangement,  which  stops  th; 
mechanism  of  a  timepiece,  showing  when  the  shock  occurred. 

The  National  Association  for  the  Promotion  of  Technical 
and  Seconc'a'y  Education  has  issued  an  excellent  Report  on  the 
existing  facilities  for  technical  and  scientific  instruction  in  Eng- 
land and  Wales  As  Mr.  Acland  and  Mr.  Llewellyn  Smith 
explain  in  a-prefatory  note,  the  Report  is  not  intended  so  much 
for  experts  as  for  tho  e  who  wish  to  obtain,  without  consulting 
many  Blue-books  and  other  official  documents,  some  trustworthy 
information  as  to  what  is  being  done.  The  facts  have  been 
arranged  with  the  utmost  care,  and  the  work  ought  to  be  of 
considerable  service  in  helping  to  show  "what  are  the  gaps  in^ 
our  educational  system  that  must  be  filled,  and  how  great  is 
the  need  for  the  re-organization  and  improvement  of  existing; 
agencies." 

The  Annual  Report  of  the  Manchester  Literary  and  Philo- 
sophical Society,  published  in  vol.  ii.,  4th  series,  of  the  Pro- 
ceedings, shows  a  marked  improvement  in  the  financial  condition' 
of  the  Society,  the  membership  being  only  one  less  than  at  the 
corresponding  period  last  year.  The  volume  contains  many 
papers  and  abstracts  of  papers  of  varying  interest.  There  is  a 
long  paper  on  ^^ Hynunoptcra  OriciUalis"  hy  Mr.  Cameron,  giving, 
descripii  ins  of  the  various  species,  their  habits  and  localities, 
and  references  to  the  literature  of  the  subject.  Dr.  A.  Hodgkin- 
son  communicates  an  interesting  paper  on  the  "  Physical  Cause- 
of  Colour  in  Natural  and  Artificial  Bodies,"  recording  experi- 
ments which  tend  to  show  whether  the  colour  is  produced  by  a. 


138 


NA  TURE 


{Dec.  12,  1889 


-structure  of  thin  plates,  or  one  of  fine  lines.  There  are  two 
papers  on  leaves  from  the  cutting  of  the  Ship  Canal,  one  giving 
a  general  description,  and  the  other,  by  Dr.  Schunck,  F.  R.  S. 
showing  that  the  green  colouring-matter,  which  has  proved  to 
be  so  permanent,  is  due  to  a  modified  form  of  chloroph3'll  ;  spec- 
troscopic examination  of  the  colouring-matter  showed  it  to  be 
identical  with  that  produced  by  the  action  of  dilute  hydrochloric 
acid  on  ordinary  chlorophyll. 

The  Middlesex  Natural  History  and  Science  Society  has 
issued  a  volume  containing  its  Transactions  during  the  session 
1888-89.  The  volume  opens  with  an  interesting  Presidential 
address  by  Prof.  Flower,  on  the  Natural  History  Museum, 
•Cromwell  Road,  and  some  recent  additions  thereto.  Mr.  E. 
M.  Nelson  has  an  illustrated  paper  on  diatom  structure ;  and 
Mr.  J.  A.  Brown  contributes  a  paper,  also  illustrated,  on  work- 
ing sites  and  inhabited  land  surfaces  of  the  Palaeolithic  period 
in  the  Thames  Valley. 

The  fourth  volume  of  "  Blackie's  Modern  Cyclopaedia  "  has 
■been  issued.  It  begins  with  the  word  "fire"  and  ends  with 
^'  Ilorin."  The  work,  as  we  have  said  on  former  occasions,  is 
admirably  edited  by  Dr.  C.  Annandale.  The  articles  are 
necessarily  brief  ;  but,  so  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  test  them, 
they  are  clear  and  accurate.  There  is  no  falling  off  in  the 
present  volume. 

Messrs.  Ward,  Lock,  and  Co.,  have  added  to  their 
""  Minerva  Library  of  Famous  Books"  a  reprint  of  Dr.  A.  R. 
Wallace's  fascinating  "Narrative  of  Travels  on  the  Amazon  and 
Rio  Negro."  A  biographical  sketch  of  the  author  is  contributed 
by  Mr.  G.  T.  Bettany,  the  editor  of  the  series  ;  and  the  volume 
includes  a  portrait  of  Dr.  Wallace,  a  map,  and  full-page 
illustrations. 

Hazell's  Annual  for, 1890- — the  fifth  issue — has  been  pub- 
lished. It  is  edited  by  Mr.  E.  D.  Price.  An  immense  quantity 
of  information,  alphabetically  arranged,  has  been  packed  into 
this  useful  volume.  Many  articles  which  the  editor  describes  as 
^'  new  and  important  "  have  been  inserted  in  the  present  issue. 

A  Science  Club  has  been  formed  among  the  students  of  the 
University  of  St.  Andrews  for  the  purpose  of  developing 
the  interest  already  taken  in  scientific  pursuits.  Prof.  W.  C. 
IMcTntosh,  F.R.  S.,  has  been  elected  Hon.  President  for  the 
session  1889-90. 

Another  important  paper  by  M.    Henri  Moissan  upon  the 
'perfected  mode  of  preparation  and  upon  the  density  of  fluorine, 
is  contributed   to  the   current  number  of  the  Coniptes  remhis. 
Since  the  appearance  of  his  paper  of  two  years  ago,  M.  Moissan 
has  employed  an  electrolysis  apparatus  of  much  larger  size,  and 
has  added  to  it  an  accessory  apparatus  by  means  of  which  the 
gas  may  be  obtained  quite  free  from  vapour  of  hydrofluoric  acid, 
Avhich,  as  described  in  Nature  last  week,  is  the  cause  of  the 
•destructive  action  upon  platinum.     The  platinum  U't^^^c  of  the 
new  apparatus  has  a  capacity  of  160  c.c,  and  contains  during 
-i(he  electrolysis   ico  c.c.  of  hydrofluoric  acid.     The  exit  tube  at 
the  positive  side,   from  which  the  fluorine  is  liberated,  is  con- 
tinued into  a  small  platinum  spiral  condenser  immersed  in  a 
bath  of  methyl  chloride  at  -  50°  C,  where  all  but  the  last  trace 
■of  hydrofluoric  acid  is  retained.     From  this  the  gas  is  led  through 
«wo  platinum  tubes  filled  with  fragments  of  sodium  fluoride,  a 
salt  which  combines  with  hydrofluoric  acid  with  great  energy, 
forming  hydrogen  sodium  fluoride.     By  these  means  the  fluorine 
is  obtained  perfectly  pure,   and  is  quite  invisible  in  dry  air,  no 
trace  of  fuming  being  apparent,  as  is  the  case  before  purifica- 
tion.    In  order  to  determine  the  density  of  the  gas,  a  couple  of 
ingeniously  constructed  platinum    flasks   have   been  employed. 
Each  of  these  flasks  is  closed  by  a  cylindrical  stopper  also  of 
platinum  ;  to  the  side  of  the  neck  a  side  tube  is  attached  on  a 


level  with  the  centre  of  the  stopper.  Through  the  stopper  an 
aperture  is  bored  in  such  a  manner  that,  when  the  stopper  is 
rotated  into  a  certain  position,  connection  is  established  between 
the  interior  of  the  flask  and  the  side  tube.  A  vertical  tube  also 
passes  through  the  stopper  and  penetrates  to  near  the  bottom 
of  the  flask ;  this  tube  is  also  closed  at  its  upper  end 
by  means  of  a  platinum  stopper.  The  stoppers  are  finely 
polished  and  adjusted  with  great  care.  Each  flask  weighs  about 
70  grams  and  has  a  capacity  of  about  100  c.c.  In  the  density 
determinations  the  two  flasks  were  counterpoised  on  the  two 
pans  of  the  balance.  One  of  them  was  then  filled  with  pure  dry 
nitrogen  gas,  which  was  subsequently  displaced  by  the  pure 
fluorine,  the  electrolysis  apparatus  being  connected  with  the 
upper  end  of  the  vertical  tube  of  the  density  flask  by  means  of 
flexible  platinum  tubing.  The  fluorine  was  allowed  to  pass 
through  the  apparatus  for  five  minutes  after  cold  silicon  was 
readily  ignited  by  the  gas  issuing  from  the  side  exit  tube.  The 
stopper  of  the  flask  was  then  rotated  through  half  a  revolution, 
so  as  to  completely  shut  off  the  exit  tube,  and  the  stopper  of  the 
vertical  tube  replaced.  The  flask  was  again  weighed  against  the 
other  flask  containing  air,  and  the  difference  of  weight  noted. 
The  amount  of  residual  nitrogen  was  estimated  by  opening  the 
stopper  of  ithe  vertical  tube  under  water,  when  the  fluorine 
instantly  decomposed  an  equivalent  of  water,  liberating  oxygen 
and  forming  hydrofluoric  acid.  The  mixture  of  oxygen  and  the 
residual  nitrogen  was  then  collected,  and  the  oxygen  absorbed  by 
pyrogallic  acid  and  potash.  Three  determinations  yielded,  for 
the  density  of  fluorine  compared  with  that  of  hydrogen,  18 '2?, 
1 8  "26,  and  18  "33.  These  values  appear  to  indicate  that  the 
number  19,  usually  taken  as  representing  the  atomic  weight  of 
fluorine,  is  slightly  too  high,  and  this  view  is  confirmed  by  the 
low  numbers  obtained  in  former  determinations  of  the  density  of 
phosphorus  trifluoride. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Malayan  Bear  (  Ursus  malayaiins  9  )  from 
Malacca,  a  Gold  Pheasant  {Thaitmalca  picta  ?)  from  China, 
presented  by  Captain  Bason  ;  a  Common  Squirrel  {Sciurtis 
vulgaris),  British,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  Aubrey  Chandler ;  a 
Mexican  Deer  [Cariactcs  mcxicamts  i )  from  Peru,  a  Grey- 
breasted  Parrakeet  {Bolborhynclms  vionachus)  from  Monte 
Video,  deposited  ;  an  American  Bison  (Bison  aincricanus  S 
born  in  the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.,  December  12  =  3h. 


27m.  93 


Remarks. 

(i)  The  General  Catalogue  description  of  this  nebula  is  as 
follows: — !!!  Bright;  very  large,  irregular  figure.  According 
to  Tempel,  this  is  a  variable  nebula,  and  its  spectrum,  which 
has  not  yet  been  recorded,  will  therefore  have  a  special  interest. 
Continued  observations  may,  very  probably,  give  a  clue  to  the 
origin  of  the  variability. 

(2)  Duner  classes  this  with  stars  of  Group  II.,  but  states  that 
the  spectrum  is  only  feebly  developed.  Further  observations 
are  necessary  before  it  can  be  placed  in  position  on  the  "tem- 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


139 


perature  curve."  As  I  have  previously  pointed  out,  the  "feebly 
developed  "  stars  of  the  group  are  probably  either  early  or  late 
species,  as  the  bands  would  be  weak  in  either  case.  If  it  be  an 
early  star,  the  bands  in  the  blue  will  be  most  strongly  deve- 
loped ;  while,  if  it  be  a  late  star  of  the  group,  the  bands  in  the 
red  will  be  strongest.  In  the  latter  case,  lines  would  probably 
also  be  seen. 

(3)  Konkoly  classes  this  with  stars  of  the  solar  type.  As  in 
former  stars  of  this  class  which  have  appeared  in  these  columns, 
observations  are  required  to  decide  whether  the  star  belongs  to 
Group  III.  or  to  Group  V.     (For  criteria,  see  p.  20.) 

(4)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  IV.,  of  which  observations  of 
the  relative  intensities  of  the  hydrogen  and  metallic  lines  are 
required,  so  that  the  star  may  be  arranged  in  a  line  of  tempera- 
ture with  others. 

(5)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  VI.,  which  Duner  describes  as 
having  a  spectrum  consisting  of  three  zones,  band  2  being  prob- 
ably also  present.  Particular  attention  should  be  given  to  the 
intensity  of  the  band  6  as  compared  with  the  others.  Other 
subsidiary  bands  should  also  be  looked  for,  as  they  are  seen  in 
several  stars  of  lower  magnitude,  and  it  is  important  that  we 
should  know  whether  their  presence  is  dependent  solely  upon 
the  brightness  of  the  star,  or  really  indicates  a  difference  in  the 
condition  of  the  star  itself.     (For  notation  of  bands,  see  p.  112.) 

(6)  The  maximum  of  this  variable  will  occur  on  December  27. 
The  period  is  315  days,  and  the  magnitude  varies  from  <  I3'5 
at  minimum  to  8"6  at  maximum.  The  spectrum  has  not  yet 
been  recorded. 

Note. — Some  of  the  comets  of  which  ephemerides  have  recently 
appeared  in  Nature  may  possibly  be  bright  enough  for  spec- 
troscopic examination.  It  is  not  likely  that,  at  their  present 
perihelion  distances,  their  temperatures  will  be  very  high,  so 
suggestions  for  comparison  spectra  may  be  confined  to  those 
suitable  for  low-temperature  comets.  The  probable  sequence 
of  spectra  as  a  comet  leaves  aphelion  is  as  follows: — (i)  The 
spectrum  of  a  planetary  nebula,  as  in  the  comets  of  1866-67, 
observed  by  Dr.  Huggins.  This  consists  of  a  single  line  in  the 
position  of  the  chief  nebula  line  near  A  5CX5.  (2)  The  low- 
temperature  spectrum  of  carbon,  consisting  chiefly  of  three 
flutings  near  A  483,  519,  and  561.  (3)  The  high-temperature 
spectrum  of  carbon,  consisting  mainly  of  flutings  near  A  564, 
517,  and  a  group  of  five  flutings  extending  from  468  to 
474.  The  most  convenient  comparison  to  begin  with  will  be 
the  flame  of  a  spirit-lamp,  which  will:  give  the  hot  carbon 
spectrum.  If  this  does  not  show  coincidences  with  the  comet- 
ary  bands,  a  comparison  with  the  bright  fluting  in  the  spectrum 
of  burning  magnesium  should  be  made.  This  will  determine 
the  presence  or  absence  of  the  chief  nebula  line.  If  neither 
shows  coincidences,  the  positions  of  the  bands  relatively  to  the 
hot  carbon  flutings  may  roughly  indicate  the  presence  or  absence 
of  cool  carbon.  As  the  two  less  refrangible  flutings  of  cool 
carbon  fall  very  near  to  two  of  hot  carbon,  the  best  criterion  for 
cool  carbon  is  the  fluting  at  A  483,  which  is  about  one-third  of 
the  distance  from  the  fluting  commencing  at  474  towards  that 
commencing  near  517.  Any  variation  ot  the  form  of  the  least 
refrangible  cometary  band  from  the  corresponding  carbon  fluting 
should  be  noted,  as  this  varies  with  the  temperature  (see  Ro)'. 
Soc.  Proc,  vol.  xlv.  p.  168).  A.  Fowler. 

Photometric  Intensity  of  Coronal  Light. — The  ob- 
servations made  by  Prof.  Thorpe  during  the  solar  eclipse  of  1886 
•(Phil.  Trans.,  vol.  clxxx.,  p.  363,  1889)  show  that  the  diminu- 
tion in  intensity  of  coronal  light  at  different  distances  from  the 
sun's  limb  does  not  vary  according  to  the  law  of  inverse  squares. 
The  following  measurements  make  this  apparent : — 

Distance  in  Solar  Photometric  Intensity. 

Semi-diameters.  Observed.  Law  of  Inverse  Squares. 

16  ...  o'o66  ...  o'o66 

0*042 
0029 
0022 
o'oi6 
0013 

The  brightness  of  the  brightest  measured  part  of  the  corona 
(i  "55  solar  semi-diameters)  was  200  times  less  bright  than  that 
of  the  surface  of  the  moon,  or  about  006  candle,  whilst  the 
furthest  spot  at  3 '66  solar  semi-diameters  was  only  1/800  of  the 
brightness,  or  0015  candle.  The  results  obtained  will  be  useful 
in  comparing  the  brightness  of  the  corona  on  this  occasion  with 
that  of  other  eclipses,  and  determining  what  connection  the 
sun-spot  periods  have  with  the  coronal  phenomena. 


20 

0-053 

2-4 

0-043 

2-8 

0-034 

3*2 

0-026 

3-6 

0'02I 

Corona  of  January  i,  1889. — Prof.  Tacchini,  in  the  Atti 
del/a  R.  Accadcmia  del  Lined  (p.  472),  gives  a  note  on  the 
corona  as  shown  in  a  positive  copy,  on  glass,  of  one  of  Mr. 
Barnard's  negatives  taken  during  this  eclipse.  The  corona  ex- 
tends, according  to  Prof.  Tacchini,  from  -I-  64°  to  -  68°  on  the 
west  limb  of  the  sun,  and  from  -f  53°  to  -68°  on  the  east  limb, 
these  being  about  the  limits  of  the  zone  of  the  maximum  fre- 
quency of  protuberances  derived  from  his  own  observations. 
Two  of  the  protuberances  on  the  photograph  were  observed 
at  Rome  and  at  Palermo. 

Minor  Planet  (12),  Victoria. — Dr.  Gill  has  issued  the 
ephemeris  of  this  planet  for  the  opposition  of  1889,  computed 
from  elements  which  have  been  corrected  from  the  observations 
of  1888. 

Observatories  co-operating  in  the  meridian  observations  of 
Victoria  should  compare  their  results  with  this  ephemeris,  em- 
ploying 8" -So  for  the  solar  parallax. 

Dr.  Auwers  has  undertaken  the  discussion  of  the  meridian 
observations,  so  the  detailed  results  should  be  forwarded  to  him 
as  soon  as  possible. 

Comet  Swift  (/  1889,  November  17). — The  following 
ephemeris  is  given  by  Dr.  R.  Schorr  i^Asir.  Nachr.,  No.  2937) : — 


I8S9. 

R.A. 

DecL 

1889. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

h.  m.  s. 

0       / 

h.  m.  s. 

•      / 

Dec.  12. 

.2347  28.. 

.  -H9    6-7 

Dec.  22.. 

019     7.. 

.  -1-21  49-4 

i3- 

.      50  3I-- 

19  23 -6 

23- 

22  24  .. 

.        22     4-8 

14.. 

•      5336.. 

.      19  404 

24.. 

25  43  •• 

.       22  20'I 

15- 

.      56  42  . 

•      1957-1 

25  . 

29      2  .. 

.       2235-2 

16.. 

•      5950- 

.      20  13-6 

26.. 

3223.. 

22  50  I 

17.. 

.  0    259.. 

.      20  29-9 

27,. 

35  44- 

.      23    4-8 

18.. 

6  10  . 

.      20461 

28.. 

39    6.. 

•      23  19-3 

19.. 

9  22  .. 

21      2-2 

29.. 

4230.. 

•      23  33-6 

20.. 

•      1235.. 

.        21    181 

30.. 

45  54  •• 

•      23477 

21.. 

.      1550.. 

.      21  33-8 

31- 

4918.. 

■      24    1-5 

The  brightness  of  the  comet  =o-8i  (December  12)  and  0-57 
(December  31),  that  at  discovery  being  taken  as  unity. 

Coniptes  rendns.  No.  23  (December  2,  1889),  contains  obser- 
vations of  this  comet  extending  from  November  20  to  Novem- 
ber 27.     It  is  noted  that  the  comet  is  very  feeble  and  diffuse. 

Periodic  Comets. -^Several  short-period  comets  return  to 
the  sun  in  i8go,  and  their  ephemerides  will  be  furnished  as  soon 
as  issued.  The  perihelion  passage  of  Brorsen's  comet  will 
occur  about  February  25,  Dennirg's  comet  may  be  expected  to 
return  to  perihelion  in  May,  and  D'Arrest's  comet  about  the 
third  week  in  September.  The  orbit  of  Barnard's  comet  has  not 
jet  been  sufficiently  defined  to  enable  the  date  of  perihelion 
passage  to  be  stated. 

The  Eclipse  Parties. — The  following  telegram  relating  to 
the  eclipi^.e  parties  has  been  received  : — "  Loanda,  December  7. 
— The  United  Stales  corvette  Pensaeola,  Captain  Arthur  R. 
Yates,  with  the  Solar  Eclipse  Expedition  on  board,  arrived  at 
St.  Paul  de  Loanda  to-day.  The  voyage  down  was  very  smooth, 
with  delightful  sailing.  The  astronomers  were  at  work  on  the 
instruments  all  the  way,  and  are  all  ready  for  the  eclipse.  The 
time  is  now  so  short  that  it  is  inadvisable  to  attempt  to  take  the 
parly  and  all  their  instruments  inland,  so  the  Expedition  will 
locate  at  Cape  Ledo  immediately,  and  send  one  or  two  branch 
parties  inland,  with  such  instruments  as  are  not  bulky  or  heavy, 
and  can  quickly  be  set  up  and  adjusted.  The  European  eclipse^ 
observers  are  beginning  to  arrive  here.  Mr.  Taylor,  of  the 
Royal  Astronomical  Society,  London,  has  already  arrived  with 
a  small  outfit  of  apparatus.  None  of  the  French  or  Germaiv. 
astronomers  are  yet  here.  Cape  Ledo  turns  out  to  be  in  every 
way  the  most  favourable  point  for  locating  the  American  Expe- 
dition. Not  only  are  the  meteorological  conditions  likely  to  be 
better,  but  the  party  can  live  for  the  most  part  on  the  Pensaeola, 
as  she  will  lie  at  a  safe  anchorage  near  the  shore.  The  health 
of  the  members  of  the  party  is  thus  insured.  The  eclipse  is 
several  seconds  longer  there  than  at  Muxima,  and  chances  for 
clear  afternoon  skits  appear  to  be  rather  better.  If  nothing  is 
heard  from  the  Expedition  for  the  next  few  days,  it  may  either 
be  taken  that  ihe  Eclipse  Station  is  finally  located  at  Cape 
Ledo,  or  that  the  semi-cannibal  Quissamas  have  cleared  out  the 
whole  Expedition." 

RECENT  INDIAN  SURVEYS. 

'T^HE  "Statement  exhibiting  the  Moral  and  Material  Pro- 
■^  gress  and  Condition  of  India,"  recently  issued,  devotes,, 
as   usual,   a  section  to  the  survey  work  of  the  past  year,  oi 


I40 


NATURE 


{Dec.  12,  1889 


which  the  following  is  a  summary.  The  work  of  the  Survey  of 
India  is  divided  under  five  heads,  namely  : — (i)  Trigonometrical 
Survey,  (2)  Topographical  iSurvey,  (3)  Cadastral  Survey,  (4) 
Special  Surveys  and  Explorations,  (5)  Map  Production. 

Trigonometrical. — Out  of  twenty-six  survey  parties  employed 
tluring  the  year,  only  one  was  engaged  on  trigonometrical  work. 
It  carried  secondary  triangulation  for  370  miles  along  the  Coro- 
mandel  coast  as  far  as  the  Tanjore  District  ;  the  work  is  intended 
as  a  basis  for  marine  survey  operations.  Some  triangulation  in 
extension  of  the  great  Indian  triangles  had  to  be  undertaken  in 
Baluchistan  as  a  basis  for  topographical  maps  there. 

Topographical. — The  number  of  parties  engaged  in  this  work 
was  reduced  from  eight  to  six,  and  15,673  square  miles  of  topo- 
graphical survey  were  accomplished,  which  included  934  square 
miles  of  survey  in  the  Southern  Mahratta  country,  the  same 
party  doing  a  quantity  of  detached  forest  survey  in  the  valuable 
teak  forests  of  Kanara ;  1085  square  miles  of  topographical 
work  in  Guzerat,  besides  285  square  miles  of  detailed  forest 
■survey  in  the  jungles  of  Thana  and  Nasik.  Parties  15  and  16 
continued  the  Baluchistan  survey,  accomplishing  in  all  11,977 
square  miles.  The  cold  and  snow  in  winter,  as  well  as  the 
difficulty  in  getting  supplies,  were  extremely  trying  to  the 
parties.  977  square  miles  were  surveyed  in  the  Himalayan  dis- 
tricts of  Kangra,  Simla,  and  the  native  States  pertaining  to 
those  districts  ;  4535  square  miles  of  trianiiulation  and  1284 
square  miles  of  topographical  survey  in  the  Madura  district  and 
the  States  of  Travancore  and  Cochin  of  South  India.  The  cost 
of  the  Himalayan  work  and  of  the  Baluchistan  surveys  was  con- 
siderably cheaper  per  square  mile  than  in  the  previous  year. 

Forest  Surveys  — Two  half-parties  of  the  Topographical  Sur- 
vey did  fresh  work,  as  above  stated,  in  Bombay.  Ground  was 
broken  in  the  forests  near  Hoskungabad  of  the  Central  Pro- 
"vinces  ;  but  in  the  first  year,  on  account  of  climatic  difficulties 
and  the  ruggedness  of  the  country,  the  out-turn  of  work  was 
snail.  343  square  miles  of  forest  survey  were  effected  in  the 
forests  of  the  Prome  and  Thayetmyo  districts  of  Lower  Burmah. 
In  Gorakpur  of  the  North- West  Provinces,  and  in  Orissa,  sur- 
veys of  certain  forest  reserves  were  made  by  cadastral  parties 
working  in  the  neighbourhood.  The  whole  area  of  forest  sur- 
veys accomplished  by  all  these  parties  during  the  year  was  893 
-square  miles. 

(7^('(ii'^//<r.— Telegraphic  longitude  operations  were  resumed, 
and  seven  arcs  of  longitude  were  measured  between  trigono- 
metrical stations  in  Southern  India.  The  season's  observations 
tend  strongly  to  confirm  previous  evidence  that  on  the  coast  of 
India  there  is  a  perceptible  deviation  of  the  plum-line  towards 
the  ocean. 

Tidal  and  Levelling  Operations. — The  recording  of  tidal 
curves  by  self-registering  tide-gauges,  their  reduction,  and  the 
publication  of  tide-tables,  were  continued  at  eighteen  stations, 
of  which  seven  are  permanent,  and  eleven  are  temporary  for 
five  years.  The  registrations  of  tides  were  satisfactory,  and 
there  were  few  failures.  So  far  as  predictions  of  high  water 
were  concerned ,  98  per  cent,  of  the  entries  in  the  tables  were 
correct  within  8  inches  of  actual  heights  at  open  coast  stations, 
and  69  per  cent,  at  riverain  stations,  while  as  to  time  of  high 
water,  56  and  71  per  cent,  respectively  of  the  entries  were 
correct  within  fifteen  minutes.  Levelling  operations  were 
prosecuted  from  Madras  to  Vizagapatam,  at  False  Point,  to 
connect  the  Marine  Survey  beach  marks  with  the  main  line  of 
level,  and  from  Chinsurah  to  Nuddea,  along  the  right  bank  of  the 
Hooghly.  There  were  597  miles  of  double  levelling  accomplished. 
In  Upper  Burmah,  survey  parties  or  surveyors  accompanied  the 
•columns  which  marched  through  the  northern  Shan  States,  the 
southern  Shan  States,  and  the  columns  that  operated  in  the  Yaw 
coiintry,  the  Chindwan  Valley,  and  the  Mogoung  district. 
Triangulation  was  carried  over  23,274  square  miles,  and 
20,780  square  miles  of  hitherto  unknown  country  were  mapped 
on  a  scale  of  four  miles  to  the  inch,  of  which  7605  belonged  to  the 
Shan  States.  North-east  from  Mandalay,.  the  survey  was 
•carried  as  far  as  the  Kanlow  ferry,  on  the  Salween  River,  a 
place  on  the  old  caravan  road  between  Burmah  and  China.  A 
large  scale  map  was  made  of  the  Ruby  Mines  tract,  showing  the 
-sites  of  all  ruby  workings.  Surveyors  accompanied  an  exploring 
expedition  from  the  Assam  Valley,  across  the  Patkoi  ranges, 
into  the  Hukong  Valley  of  Upper  Burmah,  and  surveyed  two 
practical  passes  through  the  Patkoi  hills.  A  good  map  of  the 
Black  Mountain  country  was  prepared  on  observations  and 
surveys  taken  by  officers  deputed  with  the  liazara  field  force. 
The   hill    country   of  Western  Nepal  has   been  observed   and 


mapped,  and  a  compilation  of  recent  observations  by  explorers 
in  Tibet  and  Bhutan  will  shortly  be  published. 

Marine  Survey. — The  survey- vessel  Investigator  and  two 
boat  parties  were  employed  on  marine  surveys  throughout 
the  open  season,  the  staff  being  employed  in  the  chart  office 
during  the  monsoon  months.  The  Investigator  accomplished 
4630  miles,  and  the  boat  parties  1542  miles  of  soundings. 
Among  the  results  of  the  year's  work  were  soundings  round  the 
approaches  to  Madras,  whereby  it  was  shown  that  there  were 
1700  fathoms  of  water  on  a  spot  hitherto  marked  on  the  charts 
as  "5  fathoms  doubtful."  Surveys  were  made  round  the 
Laccadive  and  the  Andaman  Islands,  at  the  Palk  Straits,  the 
Western  Coral  Banks,  on  the  Malabar  coast  near  Cannanore 
and  Tellicherry,  and  off  Parbandar.  Interesting  marine  organ- 
isms, some  of  them  quite  new,  were  brought  up  by  the  trawler, 
especially  from  a  depth  of  250  fathoms  off  the  Andamans.  The 
observations  for  temperature  have  enabled  the  survey  to  construct 
a  temperature  curve  which  is  fairly  constant  for  all  parts  of  those 
seas. 

Geological  Survey. — Among  the  investigations  by  the  Geo- 
logical Survey  during  the  year  1888  may  be  mentioned  the 
examination  of  the  auriferous  rocks  known  as  the  Dharwar 
rocks,  bands  of  which  occur  in  the  gneiss  mountains,  from 
the  edge  of  the  Deccan  trap  in  the  meridian  of  Kaladgi, 
across  the  upper  basins  of  the  Kistna,  Tangabhadra,  Penner, 
and  Cauvery  Rivers.  At  many  places  in  the.^e  bands  of 
Dharwar  rock,  the  geological  officers  discovered  traces  of 
extensive  gold  workings,  the  existence  of  which  was  hardly 
known  to  the  present  inhabitants.  The  investigators  consider 
that  in  many  places,  especially  in  the  Kolar  and  Maski  bands, 
gold  will  be  found  in  quantities  that  will  repay  working.  The 
workers  of  past  centuries  used  to  crush  the  ore  in  saucer-like 
hollows  in  the  solid,  tough,  trappoid  rocks,  with  rounded  granite 
crushers,  weighing  about  a  ton  each.  The  supposed  diamond 
sources  in  the  Anantapur  district  of  Madras  were  examined,  hut 
with  only  negative  results.  The  coal-field  of  Singareni,  in  the 
Nizam's  dominions,  was  examined ;  it  was  estimated  that 
17,000,000  tons  of  coal  were  available  in  the  field.  The 
geologists  reported  that  the  cost  of  raising  coal  into  waggons  at 
the  pit's  mouth  ought  not  eventually  to  exceed  2  rupees  a  ton. 
Further  examinations  were  made  of  the  coal-bearing  rocks  of 
Western  Chota  Nagpore  and  of  Rajmehal  ;  the  latter  coal 
source  cannot  be  thoroughly  tested  until  bore  holes  are  put 
down.  The  seams  of  coal  at  Kohst,  in  Baluchistan,  were  found 
to  contain  ij  to  2  feet  of  good  coal  at  times  ;  coal  from  surface 
workings  is  now  chiefly  used  in  locomotives  ;  but  the  best  plan  for 
permanent  workings  has  not  yet  been  settled.  The  petroleum 
sources  at  Khatun,  in  Baluchistan,  and  in  the  Rawal  Pindi  dis- 
trict of  the  Punjab,  were  visited  by  officers  of  the  Survey  ;  the 
Khatun  oil  is  too  thick  to  flow  down  a  pipe  for  forty  miles  to  the 
railway,  where  it  has  made  excellent  fuel.  The  Cashmere 
coal-field,  in  the  upper  valley  of  the  Chenab,  was  also 
examined. 

The  report  of  the  Cadastral  Surveys  and  Settlements  is  devoid 
of  scientific  interest. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

Oxford. — In  the  course  of  the  term  which  has  just  come  to 
an  end,  Mr.  J.  B.  Farmer,  B.  A.,  has  been  elected  to  a  Fellow- 
ship at  Magdalen,  after  an  examination  in  botany — a  subject  to 
which  no  Fellowship  has  been  allotted  for  many  years  ;  and 
the  Burdett-Coutts  Scholarship  in  Geology  has  been  awarded  to 
Mr.  F.  Pullinger,  Corpus. 

Mr.  Hatchett  Jackson  will  continue  to  act  as  Deputy  Professor 
of  Comparative  Anatomy  for  the  next  two  terms  at  least. 

The  recently  founded  Readership  in  Geography  seems  to  have 
proved  a  success  this  term,  as  Mr.  Mackinder  had  a  class  of 
fifty  in  regular  attendance. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Royal  Society,  November  21. — "On  the  Tubercles  on  the 

Roots  of  Leguminous  Plants,  with  special  reference  to  the  Pea 

and  the  Bean."    By  H.  Marshall  Ward,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  F.L.S., 

late  Fellow  of  Christ's  College,  Cambridge,  Professor  of  Botany 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NATURE 


141 


in   the   Forestry   School,   Royal   Indian  Engineering   College, 
Cooper's  Ilill. 

In  the  Philosophical  Transactions  for  1887  (vol.  clxxviii.  B, 
pp.  539-562,  Pis.  32  and  33)  the  author  published  the  reirults  of 
some  investigations  into  the  structure  and  nature  of  the  tuber- 
cular swellings  on  the  roots  of  Vicia  Faba  and  other  Leguminous 
plants. 

The  chief  facts  established  in  that  paper  were  as  follows  : — 
That  the  tubercles  occur  in  all  places  and  at  all  times  on  the  roots 
of  Papilionaceous  plants  growing  in  the  open  land,  but  that  in 
sterilized  media  and  in  properly  conducted  water-cultures  they 
are  not  developed,  unless  the  root  is  previously  infected  by 
contact  with  the  contents  of  other  tubercles.  In  other  word=, 
the  tubercles  can  be  produced  at  will  by  artificial  infection.  The 
author  also  showed  that  the  act  of  infection  is  a  perfectly 
definite  one,  and  is  due  to  the  entrance  into  the  root-hair  of  a 
hyphalike  infecting  tube  or  filament,  which  starts  from  a  mere 
brilliant  dot  at  the  side  or  apex  of  the  root-hair,  passes  down  the 
cavity  of  the  latter,  traverses  the  cortex  of  the  root  from  cell  to 
cell,  until  its  tip  reaches  the  innermost  cells  of  the  cortex,  where 
it  branches  and  stimulates  these  cells  to  divide  and  form  the 
young  tubercle. 

These  facts  of  the  infection  were  entirely  new,  as  were  the 
methods,  and  the  author  showed  actual  preparations  of  the 
infecting  filaments  parsing  down  the  root-hairs,  at  the  time 
(June  1887). 

In  this  paper  the  author  described  and  explained  the  trumpet - 
shaped  enlargements  of  the  filaments,  and  the  bacterium-like 
contents  of  the  cells  (bacteroids — gemmules^,  and  showed  that  the 
latter  arise  from  the  former.  He  also  pointed  out  that  the  root- 
hairs  are  distorted  at  the  point  of  infection,  and  that  the  infect- 
ing filament  originates  there  from  a  brilliant  granule,  presumably 
one  of  the  bacteroids.  Another  important  observation  was  that 
the  protoplasm  of  the  cells  of  the  tubercle  is  stimulated  by  the 
activity  of  the  bacteroids  in  it,  and  behaves  like  a  plasmodium. 

The  author  now  draws  attention  to  some  results  of  his  further 
researches  into  this  confessedly  difficult  subject. 

After  numerous  culture  experiments  and  observations  made 
last  year  (1888),  it  was  decided  to  abandon  the  broad-bean  as 
the  subject  for  histological  analysis,  chiefly  because  it  takes  so 
long  to  exhaust  its  stores  of  reserve  materials  ;  it  was  better  for 
the  cultures  to  be  made  with  the  pea,  the  cotyledons  of  which  are 
so  much  smaller,  and  the  plant  of  which  is  more  easily  managed 
in  every  way  in  water  and  pot  cultures,  while  the  tubercles  and 
their  contents  present  no  essential  features  of  difference. 

But  more  conclusive  evidence  than  the  above  is  offered  for  the 
identity  of  the  bacteroids  in  the  two  cases.  In  some  of  ihe  cultures 
made  in  the  summer  of  1888  the  roots  of  the  pea  were  success- 
fully infected  with  bacteroids  taken  from  the  tubercles  of  the 
bean,  and  this  is  a  point  of  importance,  in  view  of  the  belief 
that  each  species  of  I.eguminosse  may  have  its  own  species  of 
bacteroid. 

It  is  especially  the  very  young  root-hairs,  with  extremely 
delicate  cell-walls,  that  are  infected,  and  the  first  sign  is  the 
appearance  of  a  very  brilliant  colourless  spot  in  the  substance  of 
the  cell-wall :  sometimes  it  is  common  to  two  cell-walls  of  root- 
hairs  in  contact,  and  not  unfrequently  one  finds  several  root- 
hairs  all  fastened  together  at  the  common  point  of  infection. 
This  highly  refringent  spot  is  obviously  the  "bright  spot" 
referred  to  in  the  author's  previous  paper  as  the  point  of 
infection  from  which  the  infecting  filament  takes  origin.  It 
soon  grows  larger,  and  develops  a  long  tubular  process,  which 
grows  down  inside  the  root-hair,  and  invades  the  cortex,  passing 
across  from  cell  to  cell,  as  described  in  1887. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  then,  the  "bright  spot  "  is  the  point  of 
origin  of  the  infecting  filament ;  and,  as  a  matter  of  inference 
from  the  experiments,  it  cannot  but  be  developed  from  one 
of  the  "bacteroids"  or  "gemmules"  of  the  tuberc'es.  This 
attaches  itself  to  the  root-hair,  fuses  with  and  pierces  the 
delicate  cellulose  wall,  and  grows  out  into  a  hypha-like  filament 
at  the  expense  of  the  cell  contents.  The  further  progress  of 
this  filament  has  already  been  described  in  the  author's  memoir 
in   the   Philos  )phical  Transactions  for   1887. 

Researches  were  made  during  1888  and  1889  with  the  object 
of  learning  more  about  the  conditions  which  rule  the  devclop- 
rnent  of  the  tubercles,  and  the  relations  of  the  organism  to  them. 
The  experiments  seem  to  prove  conclusively  that  the  well  being 
of  the  organism  of  the  tubercle  and  that  of  the  pea  or  bean  go 
hand  in  hand.     This  ,of  course  is   only  so  much  evidence   in 


favour  of  the  view  that  we  have  here  a  case  of  symbiosis  of  the 
closest  kind,  as  expressed  in  the  previous  memoir. 

During  the  spring  and  summer  of  1888  numerous  experiments 
were  made  with  water-cultures  with  beans,  allowed  to  germinate 
in  soil  so  as  to  be  infected  by  the  "  germs  "  therein,  as  demon- 
strated previously.  Several  dozens  of  such  cultures  were  made, 
and  .'ome  of  them  placed  in  the  dark,  others  in  the  ordinary 
light  of  the  laboratory,  and  some  in  a  well-lighted  greenhouse. 
Tables  were  prepared  showing  the  number  of  leaves,  living  and 
dead,  the  condition  of  the  roots,  the  height  of  the  stem,  and  so 
forth,  as  recorded  every  week  or  so  (or  at  shorter  intervals) 
when  the  plants  were  examined.  It  resulted  that,  when  the 
beans  are  in  any  way  so  interfered  with  that  they  do  not  assimi- 
late more  material  than  is  necessary  for  the  growth  and  im- 
mediate requirements  of  the  plant,  the  infecting  organism  either 
gains  no  hold  at  all  on  the  roots,  or  it  forms  only  small  tubercles 
which  are  found  to  be  very  poor  in  "  bacteroids  ":  in  some  cases 
the  starving  plants  began  to  develop  tubercles,  which  never 
became  larger,  and  in  which  the  infecting  organism  seemed  to 
be  in  abeyance.  Whether  this  is  due  to  the  bacteroids  being 
developed  in  small  quantities,  or  to  the'r  absorption  into  the 
plant,  is  still  a  question. 

In  these  tubercles  the  chief  difference  was  the  paucity  in 
bacteroids,  and  the  prominence  of  the  branched  filaments  in  the 
cells. 

In  the  spring  of  this  year  (1889)  the  author  started  a  series  of 
water-cultures  of  beans,  infected  artificially  by  placing  the 
contents  of  tubercles  on  their  root-hairs,  and  kept  the  roots 
oxygenated  by  passing  a  stream  of  air  through  the  culture  liquid 
for  twenty-four  hours  at  intervals  of  a  few  days  :  here  again  the 
increased  growth  of  the  plants — not  compensated  by  increased 
assimilation — seemed  to  cause  the  suppression  of  the  tubercles, 
or  the  formation  of  very  poor  ones  only.  These  and  similar 
experiments  lead  to  the  conclusion  that  the  organism  which 
induces  the  development  of  the  tubercles  is  so  closely  adapted  to 
its  conditions  that  comparatively  slight  disturbances  of  the 
conditions  of  symbiosis  affect  its  well-being  :  it  is  so  dependent 
on  the  roots  of  the  Leguminossc,  that  anything  which  affects 
their  well-being  affects  it  also. 

Some  experiments  with  peas,  which  are  now  being  tabulated, 
may  throw  some  light  on  the  wider  question  which  has  been 
raised  of  late,  as  to  the  alleged  connection  between  the  develop- 
ment of  these  tubercles  and  the  increase  of  nitrogen  in  Legu- 
minous plants.  Thirty-two  peas  were  sown  in  separate  pots  of 
silver-sand,  or  soil,  in  five  batches  of  six  each,  and  one  of  two, 
and  treated  in  various  ways. 

The  tubercles  were  developed  on  all  but  one  of  the  plants, 
except  those  in  the  completely  sterilized  media.  The  evidence 
at  present  goes  to  show  that  the  Leguminous  plant  gains  nitrogen 
by  absorbing  the  nitrogenous  substance  of  the  bacteroids  from  the 
tubercles  ;  that  nitrogenous  substances  are  thus  brought  by  the 
"bacteroids"  ("gemmules")  of  the  infecting  organism  of  the 
plant ;  and  that,  finally,  no  satisfactory  explanation  seems  forth- 
coming as  to  how  the  organism  obtains  this  nitrogen  in  certain 
cases  where  no  compounds  of  nitrogen  have  been  added.  At 
any  rate,  if  we  regard  the  pot  of  sand  and  its  pea  as  one  system, 
there  is  in  some  cases  a  distinct  gain  of  nitrogen  in  the  crop,  and 
in  the  sand  at  its  roots. 

The  author  then  refers  to  the  literature  since  1887,  and  reviews 
two  papers  by  Prazmowski  which  bear  directly  on  these  re- 
searches. 

"To  sum  up,  Prazmowski's  account  of  the  whole"  matter 
confirms  that  given  to  the  Royal  Society  by  the  author  in  1887, 
excepting  that  he  interprets  the  origin  and  nature  of  the  bac- 
teroids differently ;  he  regards  them  as  produced  froin  the 
contents  of  the  filaments — as  germ-like  bodies  developed  in  the 
interior  of  the  filaments,  and  not  budded  off  from  them.  This 
is  hypothesis  only,  however,  for  the  author  expressly  states  (p. 
253),  '  Direct  habe  ich  ihre  Theilungen  nicht  gesehen,  obgleich 
ich  mir  die  Miihe  gab,  sie  in  den  verschiedensten  Nahrmedien 
und  unter  den  verschiedensten  iiusseren  Bedingungen  zu  ziichten.* 
He  concludes  they  can  only  multiply  in  the  still  living  pro- 
toplasm. 

"  As  to  the  shapes  of  the  bacteroids  and  tubercles,  Prazmowski's 
statements  agree  with  those  of  previous  observers,  and  he  also 
remarks  the  Plasmodium  like  appearance  of  the  cell  protoplasm 
at  certain  stages,  as  noticed  by  myself.  Some  observations  on 
a  possible  spore-formation  need  not  be  dwelt  upon,  as  he 
recognized  his  mistake  in  a  subsequent  paper  in  1889, 


14^ 


NA  TURE 


{Dec,  12,  1S89 


"  He  leaves  the  question  as  to  the  origin  of  the  bacteroids  by 
l)udding  or  otherwise  quite  undecided,  having  failed  to  satisfy 
liimself  whether  my  suggestion  is  right  or  not  ;  at  the  same 
tim^,  he  fully  agrees  with  me  and  others  in  believing  that  these 
tiny  bodies  must  be  the  infecting  agents,  easily  and  abundantly 
■distributed  as  they  are  in  the  soil,  water,  &c." 

The  author  concludes  by  saying  : — 

"  I  think  it  will  be  admitted  by  all  who  study  the  literature 
of  this  subject,  that  the  only  real  point  at  issue  between  Praz- 
mowski  and  myself  is  the  nature  of  the  bacteroids  and  their  origin 
from  the  filaments.  I  interpreted  them  as  extremely  minute 
budding  'gemmules,'  and  not  bacteria  ;  Prazmowski,  with  Beyer- 
inck,  regards  them  as  true  Schizomycetei.  We  have  all  alike 
failed  to  actually  see  the  process  of  budding  or  fission,  a  fact 
which  will  surprise  no  one  who  has  examined  these  extremely 
minute  bodies,  which  are,  as  Beyerinck  rightly  puts  it,  among 
the  smallest  of  living  beings. 

"  The  fact  of  infection,  and  the  mode  of  infection,  by  means  of 
a  hypha-like  filament  passing  down  the  root-hair  were  definitely 
established  by  myself  in  1887,  and  it  is  satisfactory  to  find  it 
confirmed  in  every  essential  detail  by  Prazmowski.  Our  views 
as  to  the  symbiosis,  the  struggle  between  the  protoplasm  and 
the  'gemmules'  (or  'bacteroids')  are  the  same;  though  Praz- 
mowski and  Beyerinck  carry  the  matter  a  step  further  in 
definitely  inferring  the  absorption  of  the  conquered  bodies  of  the 
latter,  a  point  in  part  supported  by  some  of  my  experiments. 

"As  to  the  occurence,  origin,  and  structure  of  the  tubercles, 
Prazmowski's  account  is  simply  in  accordance  with  my  own  ;  and 
it  is  interesting  to  note  how  many  points  of  detail — the  distortions 
of  the  root-hairs,  the  relations  of  the  branching  filaments  to  the 
nuclei  and  cell-contents,  and  those  of  the  incipient  tubercle  to 
the  end  of  the  filament,  for  example — are  confirmed  by  him." 

Chemical  Society,  November  7. — Dr.  W.  J.  Russell, 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were 
read  : — Isolation  of  a  tetrahydrate  of  sulphuric  acid  existing  in 
solution,  by  Mr.  S.  U.  Pickering.  The  freezing-points  of 
mixtures  of  sulphuric  acid  and  water  form  three  distinct 
curves  representing  the  crystallization  of  water,  of  the  hydrate, 
H2SO4  -{-  HoO,  and  of  sulphuric  acid,  and  the  highest  point  of 
each  of  these  curves  is  in  exact  correspondence  with  the  com- 
position of  the  substance  which  crystallizes  out.  Solutions 
containing  between  40  and  75  per  cent,  of  sulphuric  acid  had 
not  hitherto  been  frozen  ;  but  it  appeared  to  the  author  that  if 
his  former  deductions  from  the  irregularities  in  the  curves 
■representing  the  densities  and  other  properties  of  the  solutions 
of  the  acid  were  correct,  an  independent  curve  representing  the 
crystallization  of  a  new  hydrate  should  occupy  this  interval, 
and  that  this  new  hydrate  should  have  the  composition 
H2SO4  -i-  5IH2O,  or  H2SO4  -I-  4H2O.  Experiment  has  proved 
it  to  be  the  latter.  The  two  branches  of  the  new  curve  rise 
from  about  -  80°,  and  meet  in  a  sharply  marked  angle  at  a  point 
■corresponding  with  the  composition  of  the  tetrahydrate,  the 
temperature  at  which  this  point  is  reached  being  -  25°.  The 
tetrahydrate  forms  large,  well-defined,  hard  crystals.  The 
author  regards  the  isolation  of  this  hydrate  as  affording  fresh 
confirmatory  evidence  of  the  hydrate  theory  of  solution. — 
Additional  observations  on  the  magnetic  rotation  of  nitric  acid, 
and  of  hydrogen  and  ammonium  chlorides,  bromides,  and  iodides 
in  solution,  by  Dr.  W.  H.  Perkin,  F.  R  S.  In  his  previous 
experiments,  the  author  has  limited  his  observations  on  nitric 
acid  to  the  pure  acid  HNO3 ;  he  has  now  examined  a  somewhat 
diluted  acid,  and  the  results  indicate  that  HNOj  unites  with 
water,  forming  an  acid  analogous  to  orthophosphoric  acid,  viz. 
•(OH)3NO.  The  experiments  on  hydrogen  chloride,  bromide, 
and  iodide  were  originally  made  on  single  samples  in  a  very 
concentrated  solution  of  each.  These  gave  abnormally  high 
results— rather  more  than  twice  the  values  calculated  for  the 
pure  compounds — but  on  examination  of  solutions  of  different 
strengths,  it  was  found  that  the  rotation  increases  up  to  a  dilution 
equivalent  to  about  six  or  seven  molecular  propoKtions  of  water, 
to  one  molecular  proportion  of  hydride,  the  value  then  remaining 
practically  stationary.  To  see  whether  the  solvent  had  any 
influence,  a  solution  of  hydrogen  chloride  in  isoainyl  oxide  was 
examined,  and  was  found  to  give  values  nearly  identical  with 
those  calculated  from  the  chlorine  derivatives  of  the  paraffins  ; 
and  there  can  be  little  doubt  that,  if  the  other  hydrides  could  be 
examined  in  a  similar  way,  analogous  results  would  be  obtained. 
As  union  with  water  should  reduce  the  rotations,  the  results  are 
at  present  inexplicable.  The  compounds  with  ammonia  and 
the  compound  ammonias  have  also  been  further  examined  ;  the 


results  are  remarkable  when  considered  in  relation  to  those 
afforded  by  the  hydrides,  as  the  rotations  found,  instead  of 
being  those  calculated  from  the  results  obtained  in  the  case  of 
the  paraffin  derivatives,  or  those  found  in  the  case  of  hydrogen 
chloride  dissolved  inisoamyl  oxide,  nearly  correspond  with  those 
required  on  the  assumption  that  the  hydrides  are  present  in 
aqueous  solution  together  with  ammonia.  The  rotations, 
however,  do  not  vary  with  the  strength  of  the  saline  solutions. 
The  author's  explanation  of  this  is  that  when  the  salts  are 
dissolved  in  water,  they  dissociate  almost  entirely  into  the 
hydride  and  the  amine,  the  hydride  undergoing  an  increased 
rotation  on  account  of  its  being  in  aqueous  solution.  In  the 
case  of  triethylamine  hydrochloride  the  numbers  are  lower,  and 
there  is  evidently  less  dissociation  ;  and  in  the  case  of  tetrethyl- 
ammonium  chloride  little  or  no  dissociation  appears  to  take 
place.  Solutions  of  ammonium  iodide  and  diethylamine  hydro- 
chloride in  absolute  alcohol  gave  somewhat  lower  numbers 
than  aqueous  solutions,  indicating  somewhat  smaller,  although 
still  large,  amount  of  dissociation.  Ammonium  nitrate  and  acid 
ammonium  sulphate  in  aqueous  solution  give  numbers  agreeing 
closely  with  the  calculated  values,  and  apparently  do  not 
dissociate  to  any  appreciable  extent.  In  the  discussion  which 
followed  the  reading  of  this  paper,  Dr.  Gladstone,  F.R.S., 
stated  that,  on  examining  Dr.  Ferkin's  solution  of  hydrogen 
chloride  in  isoamyl  oxide,  he  found  that  the  refraction  and 
dispersion  values  deduced  for  the  chloride  are  very  much  smaller 
than  those  afforded  by  aqueous  solutions. — Phosphoryl  trifluoride, 
by  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  and  Mr.  F.  J.  Hambly. 
Phosphorus  oxyfluoride,  POF3,  may  be  easily  and  conveniently 
made  by  heating  a  mixture  of  cryolite  and  phosphoric  oxide, 
and  collecting  the  products  at  the  mercurial  trough  — Acetylation 
of  cellulose,  by  Messrs.  C.  F.  Cross  and  E.  J.  Bevan.  On  heating 
cotton  cellulose  with  acetic  anhydride  and  zinc  chloride,  a  product 
is  obtained  which  appears  to  be  a  pentacetyl  derivative  of 
cellulose.  The  compound  is  very  stable,  and  on  alkaline 
hydrolysis  yields  a  substance  having  the  properties  of  a  normal 
cellulose.  It  would  therefore  appear  that  all  the  oxygen  of  the 
cellulose  molecule  acts  as  hydroxylic  oxygen,  and,  in  view  of  this 
result,  a  reconsideration  of  the  present  ideas  as  to  the  constitution 
of  cellulose  is  rendered  necessary. — Action  of  light  on  moist 
oxygen,  by  Dr.  A.  Richardson.  The  presence  of  liquid  water 
very  much  facilitates  the  oxidation  of  many  substances  under  the 
combined  influence  of  sunlight  and  oxygen,  but  if  the  water  is 
present  as  aqueous  vapour,  the  decomposition  is  exceedingly 
slow,  and  in  some  cases  is  entirely  arrested.  The  author  finds 
that  peroxide  of  hydrogen  is  formed  when  water  containing  pure 
ether,  or  pure  water  acidified  with  pure  sulphuric  acid,  is  exposed 
to  light  in  an  atmosphere  of  oxygen,  and  draws  the  conclusion 
that  the  oxidation  of  substances  under  the  influence  of  light 
involves  in  many  cases  initially  an  oxidation  of  water  to  hydrogen 
peroxide,  and  that  the  oxidation  of  the  compound  is  the  result 
of  a  secondary  interaction  between  it  and  the  hydrogen  peroxide. 
In  the  discussion  which  followed  the  reading  of  the  paper.  Prof. 
Armstrong  pointed  out  that,  whilst  Dr.  Richardson  assumed  that 
water  was  directly  oxidized  when  mixed  with  ether  and  exposed 
to  oxidation,  Mr.  Kingzett  had  argued — and  in  the  case  of 
turpentine  had  adduced  weighty  experimental  evidence — that 
the  hydrogen  peroxide  was  a  secondary  product  formed  by  the 
action  of  water  on  an  organic  peroxide.  The  use  of  ether  or 
sulphuric  acid,  which  Dr.  Richardson  had  added  with  the  object 
of  protecting  the  peroxide,  was  to  be  deprecated,  since  hydrogen 
peroxide  in  weak  solutions  was  comparatively  stable  ;  no 
satisfactory  evidence  had  been  adduced  that  the  peroxide  is 
formed  in  the  absence  of  a  third  substance  when  water  and 
oxygen  are  exposed  to  light.  Prof.  Dunstan  remarked  that  he 
had  found  that  hydrogen  peroxide  was  not  formed  when  pure 
ether  was  used,  although  a  substance  was  obtained  which  was 
capable  of  liberating  iodine  from  potassium  iodide.  The 
President  said  that  in  experiments  which  he  and  Captain  Abney 
had  made  together  on  the  fading  of  water-colours,  the  action  of 
aqueous  vapour  had  been  most  strikingly  apparent  ;  colours 
were  found  to  be  stable  on  exposure  to  light  in  dry  air,  which 
were  considerably  affected  when  aqueous  vapour  was  present. — 
a-;8-dibenzoylstyrolene  and  the  constitution  of  Zinin's  lepiden 
derivatives,  by  Prof.  F.  R.  Japp,  F. R. S.,  and  Dr.  F.  Klinge- 
mann.  The  authors  have  continued  their  investigation  of  the 
interactions  of  dibenzoylstyrolene  (anhydracetophenonebenzil), 
and  find  that  there  is  an  almost  perfect  parallelism  in  behaviour 
between  it  and  one  of  the  three  isomeric  oxy  epidens  prepared 
by  Zinin,  viz.  the  "acicular  oxylepiden"  melting  at  220°. 
The  various  compounds  obtained  by  them  stand  to  the  corre- 


Dec.  12,  1889] 


NA  TURE 


14; 


spending  compounds  of  the  lepiden  series  in  the  relation  of 
triphenyl  derivatives  of  furfuran  to  tetraphenyl  derivatives,  a 
relation  which  is  exhibited  in  the  fitst  place  by  dibenzoylstyro- 
lene  and  oxylepiden  themselves.  Like  "acicular  oxylepiden," 
dibenzoylstyrolene  yields  two  isomeric  derivatives  on  heating  ; 
the  isomeride  formed  in  larger  quantity  in  each  case  is  almost 
certainly  a  derivative  of  crotolactone,  whilst  the  isomeride 
formed  in  smaller  quantity  is  probably  a  stereometric  isomeride 
of  "acicular  lepiden"  and  dibenzoylstyrolene  respectively. — 
Ethylic  aoj-diacetyladipate,  by  Pr^f.  \V.  H.  Perkin.— (i  :  2) 
methylethylpentamethylene,  by  Dr.  T.  R.  Marshall  and  Prof. 
W.  H.  Perkin. — Action  of  reducing  agents  on  a-codiacetyl- 
pentane ;  formation  of  (l  :  2)  niethylethylhexamethylene,  by 
Dr.  F.  S.  Kipping  and  Prof.  W.  H.  Perkin.  — Action  of 
reducing  agents  on  a-co-diacetylpentane  ;  formation  of  (i  :  2) 
dimethylheptamethylene,  by  the  same. — Oxyamidosul'phonates 
and  their  conversion  into  hyponitrites,  by  Dr.  E.  Divers, 
F. R. S. ,  and  Mr.  T.  Haga.  The  oxyamidosulphonates  are  the 
sulphazidates  of  Fremy,  which  Claus  and  Raschig  have  shown 
to  be  monosulphonic  derivatives  of  hydroxylamine.  The  auihors 
find  that  these  compounds  on  treatment  with  alkali,  instead  of 
yielding  hydroxylamine  and  the  alkaline  sulphate  as  asserted  by 
Claus  and  Raschig,  and  as  it  is  admitted  they  do  when  hydro- 
lyzed  by  an  acid,  are  converted  exclusively  into  sulphite  and 
hyponitrite,  thus,  2HO  .  NH  .  SOgK  -  4KHO  =  (KON).>  + 
2K0SO:,  +  4H.,0.  The  reducing  action  of  the  oxyamido- 
sulphonates has  been  examined,  and  it  is  found  that  the  generally 
accepted  view  that  it  is  due  to  the  supposed  conversion  of  these 
salts  into  sulphate  and  hydroxylamine,  the  latter  then  acting 
upon  the  copper  hydroxide  in  the  usual  way,  is  untenable. — The 
alloys  of  lead,  tin,  zinc,  and  cadmium,  by  Mr.  ^\.  P.  Laurie. 
In  extension  of  his  previous  observations  (Trans.  Chem.  Soc. , 
1888,  88),  the  author  has  made  voltaic  cells  with  the  various 
alloys,  and  has  thus  compared  their  behaviour  with  that  of  the 
single  metal  by  means  of  an  electrometer.  He  concludes  that 
the  metals  now  examined  do  not  combine  together,  thus  con- 
firming Matthiessen's  conclusions. 

November  21.— Dr.  \V.  J.  Russell,  F.R.S.,  President, 
in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read  : — The  law 
of  the  freezing-points  of  solutions,  by  Mr.  S.  U.  Pickering. 
— The  constituents  of  flax,  by  Messrs.  C.  F.  Cross  and  E.  J. 
Bevan.  As  a  result  of  their  examination  of  the  cuticular  con- 
stituents of  the  fibre,  the  authors  have  isolated  ceryl  alcohol, 
two  fatty  acids,  of  which  one  appears  to  be  cerotic  acid,  an  oily 
ketone,  and  a  residue  of  complex,  ill-defined,  inert  compounds 
yielding  "  ketones"  on  hydrolysis.  These  "  ketones  "  have  the 
characteristic  odour  of  raw  flax  and  flax  goods,  and  from  their 
property  of  emulsifying  with  water  undoubtedly  exercise  an  im- 
portant influence  on  the  wet  processes  of  fine  spinning  of  flax. 
The  pectic  group  of  constituents  associated  with  the  cellulose  in 
the  fibre  proper  is  found  to  yield  mucic  acid  on  oxidation  with 
dilute  nitric  acid,  and  flax  cellulose  when  oxidized  with  potas- 
sium permanganate  yields,  in  addition  to  oxycellulose  and  oxalic 
acid,  |acid  substances  from  which  furfural  is  obtained  on  acid 
hydrolysis. — Acetylcarbinol  (acetol),  by  Prof.  W.  H.  Perkin  and 
Dr.  J.  B.  Tingle.  The  authors  announce  the  preparation  of 
anhydrous  acetylcarbinol. 

Zoological  Society,  November  19. — Prof.  W.  H.  Flower, 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  read  a  report  on 
the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's  Menagerie  during 
the  month  of  October  1889,  and  called  special  attention  to  the 
arrival  of  a  young  male  Gaur  {Bibos  gatirtis)  from  Pahang,  one 
of  the  native  States  in  the  Malay  Peninsula,  presented  to  the 
Society  by  Sir  Cecil  C.  Smith,  the  Governor  of  the  Straits 
Settlement. — The  President  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  a 
head  of  an  African  Rhinceros  {Rliiiwcoos  bicornis)  with  a  third 
posterior  horn  partially  developed.  The  animal  from  which  it 
was  taken  had  been  shot  by  Sir  John  Willoughbey,  in  Eastern 
Africa.  — The  Secretary  exhibited  a  skin  of  an  albino  variety  of 
the  Cape  Mole- Rat  (6Vw7t/««  capcnsis),  forwarded  to  the  Society 
by  the  Rev.  G.  H.  R.  Fisk,  of  Cape  Town.— Mr,  A.  Smith- 
Woodward  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  a  portion  of  the 
rostrum  of  an  extinct  Saw- fish  {Sclerorbynclms)  from  the  chalk 
of  Mount  Lebanon. — Mr.  Goodwin  exhibited  and  made  remarks 
on  specimens  of  some  rare  Paradise  Birds  obtained  by  him  on 
Mount  Owen  Stanley,  New  Guinea,  when  in  company  with  Sir 
William  Macgregor's  recent  expedition  ;  also  some  photographs 
taken  on  the  same  occasion. — A  communication  was  read  from 
the  Rev.  Thomas  R.  R.  Stebbing  and  Mr.  David  Robertson 
containing  the  descriptions  of  four  new  British  Amphipodous 


Crustaceans.  These  were  named  Sopkrosyne  lo'iertsoni,  Syirlio^ 
Ji)nb)-/ata,  Fodoceropiis,  pahnatus,  and  IWoccrus  cttmbrcnsis. 
Of  these,  Sophrosy)tc  robcrlsoiii  belonged  to  a  genus  first  of>- 
served  at  Kerguelen  Island.  —  Mr.  G.  W.  Butler  read  a  paper 
on  the  subdivison  of  the  body-ca\i;y  in  Lizards.  Crocodiles, 
and  Birds,  in  which  an  attempt  was  made  to  analyze  the  coui- 
plex  conditions  of  the  membranes  observable  in  the  last  two 
groups,  and  to  express  ihem  in  terms  of  the  simpler  structures 
found  in  the  Lizards. — Mr.  J.  IT.  Leech  read  the  third  part  of 
his  pnpir  on  the  Lepidoplera  of  Japan  and  Corea,  comprising 
an  account  of  the  A'octiiic  and  Dcitoidic  ;  in  all  upwards  of  475 
species.  Of  these  forty-six  were  now  described  as  new  to 
science,  and  two  others  were  considered  to  be  varietal  forms. 
— Mr.  R.  Lydekker  read  a  paper  on  the  remains  of  aTheriodont 
Reptile  from  the  Karoo  System  of  the  Orange  Free  State.  The 
remains  described  were  an  associated  series  of  vertebra:  and 
limb-bones  of  a  comparatively  large  Theriodnnt,  which  was 
probably  different  from  any  described  form.  The  humerus  was 
of  the  normal  Theriodont  type,  and  quite  distinct  from  the  one 
on  Iwhich  the  genus  Propappiis  had  been  fonnded,  which  the 
author  considered  to  belong  to  a  form  closely  alli-.'d  to,  if  not 
generically  identical  with,  Pariasaurus. — Mr.  G.  B.  Sowerby 
read  the  descriptions  of  thirteen  new  or  rare  species  of  Land- 
Shells  from  various  localities. —A  communication  was  read  from 
Mr.  Edward  A.  Minchin  containing  an  account  of  the  mode  of 
attachment  of  the  embryos  to  the  oral  arms  of  Avirlia  aitrita. 
It  was  shown  that  the  embryos  of  Aitrelia  aitrita  are  developed 
on  the  arms,  in  broad  capsules  formed  as  evaginations  of  the 
walls  of  the  oral  groove,  and  that  the  capsules  increase  in  size 
with  the  addition  of  more  embryos. 

Linnean  Society,  November  2T. — Mr.  W.  Carruthers,. 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  Duncan  exhibited  and 
made  remarks  on  a  stem  of  Ilyalonciita  Sieboldii,  dredged  be- 
tween Aden  and  Bombay,  a  remarkable  position,  inasmuch  as- 
this  Glass  Sponge  had  not  previously  been  met  with  in  any 
waters  west  of  the  Indian  Peninsula.  Prof  Stewart  criticized 
the  occurrence,  and  referred  to  a  parasite  on  the  .Sponge  which 
had  been  found  to  be  identical  with  one  from  the  Japanese  seas. 
— Mr.  James  Groves  exhibited  and  gave  i-ome  account  of  a  new 
Briti>h  Chara,  Nitella  batrachiospcrma,  which  had  been  collected 
in  the  Island  of  Harris. — Mr.  Thomas  Christy  exhibited  some 
bark  of  Qiiillaia  saponaria  from  ChUi,  v.'hich  has  the  property  of 
producing  a  great  lather,  and  is  extensively  used  for  washing  silk 
and  wool.  It  is  now  found  to  solidify  hydrocarbon  oils  and. 
benzoline,  and  thereby  to  insure  their  safe  transport  on  long, 
voyages  ;  a  small  infusion  of  citric  acid  rendering  them  again 
liquid. — Dr.  F.  Walker  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  some 
plants  collected  by  him  in  Ireland. — Mr.  W.  Hachett  Jackson 
gave  an  abstract  of  an  elaborate  paper  on  the  external  anatomical 
characters  distinctive  of  sex  in  the  chrysalis,  and  on  .the  develop- 
ment of  the  azygos  evident  in  Vanessa  lo. — Mr.  E.  B.  Poulton 
followed  by  giving  a  resume  of  his  researches  on  the  external 
morphology  of  the  Lepidopterous  pupa. — Mr.  J.  H.  Leech  gave 
an  account  of  some  new  Lepidoptera  from  Central  China. 

Paris. 
Academy  of  Sciences,  December  2. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  the  fermentation  of  stable  manure,  by  M.  Tb.. 
Schlcesing.  A  series  of  experiments  has  been  cairied  out  by 
the  author  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  whether,  during  fer- 
mentation under  cover  from  the  air,  the  manure  of  farmyards 
liberates  nitrogen,  as  it  is  known  to  liberate  a  mixture  of  car- 
bonic acid  and  methane.  He  finds  that  at  the  temperature  of 
52°  C.  no  gaseous  nitrogen  is  generated  from  the  decompo;i.:on 
of  nitric  compounds  ;  nor  is  any  nitric  combination  formed  by 
oxidation  of  ammonia  in  presence  of  organic  substances.  The 
organic  matter  loses  more  carbon  than  oxygen,  the  propor- 
tion of  hydrogen  remaining  about  the  same.  The  reading  of 
the  paper  was  followed  by  some  remarks  by  M.  Berthelot  on 
the  same  subject. — Remarks  on  the  diastases  secreted  by  Bacillus 
liemi)icerolnophilns,  by  M.  Arloing.  These  re^earches  show  that 
under  artificial  cultivation  this  organism  secretes  several  soluble 
ferments,  enabling  it  to  prejjare  for  assimilation  all  the  organic 
substances  needed  for  the  nutrition  and  development  of  a  living 
being;  and  that  amongst  these  ferments,  or  associated  with 
them,  there  is  one  that  transforms  the  organic  matter,  while 
liberating  gases — that  is,  exercises  a  fund  0.1  hitherto  attribi.te-l 
to  the  micro-organisms  themselves,  and  not  to  their  secretions. — 
Verbal  rcpt  rt  on  the  work  of  E.  I).  Suess,  entitled  "  Das  Antlkz 
der  Erde,"  vols.  i.  and  ii.,  1885  and  18S8,  by  M.  Daubree. 
This  fundamental  treatise  on  the  constitution  of  the  earth  is  here 


144 


NA  TURE 


\Pec.  12,  1889 


<lescribed  as  a  summary  of  the  facts  already  established  regard- 
ing the  geology  of  the  various  parts  of  the  globe,  the  essential 
features  of  its  present  mountain  ranges  and  depressions,  and 
the  successive  movements  of  the  terrestrial  crust  of  which  these 
are  the  outcome.  The  work  marks  a  new  departure  in  the 
progress  of  physical  geography. — Observations  of  Swift's  new 
■comet  made  with  the  Brunner  equatorial  at  the  Observatory  of 
Toulouse,  by  M.  B.  Baillaud ;  and  with  the  large  equatorial  at 
the  Observatory  of  Bordeaux,  by  MM.  G.  Rayet  and  Picart. 
All  these  observations,  extending  from  November  21  to  Novem- 
ber 27,  give  the  same  results :  comet  very  faint  and  greatly 
diffused,  making  observations  very  difficult.  Tables  are  also 
given  of  observations  made  at  Algiers  by  MM.  Trepied,  Ram- 
baud,  Sy,  and  Renaux,  during  the  same  period. — Mechanical 
realization  of  thermodynamic  phenomena,  by  M.  Chaperon. 
Purely  mechanical  systems  may  be  conceived,  which  present  a 
striking  analogy  to  heat-engines  in  respect  of  their  influence  on 
finite  movements.  The  author  here  describes  one  of  these 
systems,  which  is  distinguished  by  its  extreme  simplicity. — 
On  the  correspondence  between  the  characteristic  equations  of 
gases,  by  M.  Ladislas  Natanson.  The  author  here  shows  that 
Wroblewski  s  posthumous  memoir,  published  by  the.  Vienna 
Academy  in  November  1888,  forms  a  natural  complement 
to  Van  der  Waal's  law  that  at  absolute,  that  is,  correspond- 
•iiig  temperatures  proportional  to  the  critical  temperatures  of 
the  different  bodies,  the  pressures,  P,  of  their  saturated  vapours 
are  proportional  to  the  respective  critical  pressures. — Method 
of  measuring  the  spheric  and  chromatic  aberrations  of  the 
■objectives  of  the  microscope,  by  M,  C.  J.  A.  Leroy.  Findine 
in  an  artificial  eye  certain  effects  connected  with  the  aberra- 
tions of  sphericity  and  refrangibility,  the  author  has  applied  the 
method  known  as  "  Cuignet's  keratoscopy  "  to  the  study  of  the 
aberrations  of  the  eye,  and  of  the  objectives  of  the  microscope. 
His  present  observations  are  confined  to  the  objectives  alone. — 
On  the  electric  conductivity  of  the  Eiffel  Tower  and  its  con- 
ductors, by  M.  A.  Terquem.  It  is  shown  that  the  tower  with 
its  complete  system  of  lightning  conductors,  constructed  under 
the  direction  of  MM.  Becquerel,  Berger  and  Ma?cart,  is 
calculated  to  afford  perfect  security  for  a  considerable  space 
round  about. — Fresh  researches  on  the  preparation  and  den- 
sity of  fluorine,  by  M.  Henri  Moissan. — Papers  were  sub- 
mitted by  M.  Daniel  Berthelot,  on  the  electric  conductivities 
and  multiple  affinities  of  aspartic  acid  ;  by  MM.  E.  Jungfleisch 
■and  L.  Grimbert,  on  some  facts  relative  to  the  analysis  of  sugars  ; 
by  M.  G  Colin,  on  the  varying  effects  of  virulent  sub^^tances 
used  for  inoculating  animals  ;  by  M.  P.  Fliche,  on  the  silicified 
woods  of  Algeria;  by  M.  Stanislas  Meunier,  on  the  Phu-Hong 
■meteorite,  with  remarks  on  the  limerick  type ;  and  by  M. 
Leon  Teisserenc  de  Bort,  on  the  distribution  of  atmospheric 
pressure  over  the  surface  of  the  globe. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  December  12. 

Rival  Society,  at  4.30. — The  Relation  of  Physiological  Action  to  Atomic 
Weight :  Miss  H.  J.  Johnstone  anJ  Prof.  T.  Carnelley. — An  Experimen  al 
Investigation  into  the  Arrangement  of  the  Excitable  Fibres  of  the  Internal 
Capsule  of  the  Bonnet  Monkey  (Macacus  sinicus)  :  Dr.  P.eevor  and  Prof. 
V.  Horsley,  F.R.S. — On  the  Effect  of  the  Spectrum  on  the  Haloid  Salts 
of  Silver:  Capt.  Abney,  F.R.S. ,  and  O.  S.  Edwards. — Magnetic 
Properties  of  Alloys  of  Nickel  and  Iron  :  Dr.  Hopkinson,  F.R.S 

M  VTHKMATICAL  SociHTV,  at  8. — On  the  Radial  Vibrations  of  a  Cylindrical 
Shell  :  A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S.— Note  on  5iS40-Group  :  G.  G.  Morrice.— On 
the  Flexure  of  an'  Elastic  Plate:  Prof.  H.  Lamb,  F.R.S.— Notes  on  a 
Plane  Cubic  and  a  Conic  :  R.  A.  Roberts. — Complex  Multiplication 
]\Ioduli  of  Elliptic  Functions  for  the  Determinants  -  53  and  -  61 :  Prof. 
G.  B.  Math.ws. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — Annual  General  Meeting. 
—  Election  of  Council  and  Officers  for  1890. — Electrical  Engineering  in 
America  :  G.  L.  Addenbrooke.     (Discussion.) 

FRIDAY,  December  13. 

RovAL  Astronomical  Society,  at  8. 

•Quekett  Microscopical  Club,  at  8. 

iNSTiTUll  >N  OF  Civil  Engineeks,  at  7.30.— Hydraulic  Station  and  Ma- 
chinery of  the  North  London  Railway,  Poplar :  John  Hale. 

SATURDAY,  December  14. 
Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

SUNDAY,  December  15. 
Sunday  Lecture  Society,   at  4. — The  Geology  of  London  (with   Oxy- 
hydrogen  Lantern  Illustrations)  :  Rev.  J.  F.  Blake. 

MONDAY,  December  16. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Modem  Developments  of  Bread-making  :  William 

Jago. 
Aristotelian    Society,  at  8. — Symposium— Is  there  Evidence  of  Design 

in  Nature?:  S.  Alexander,  Dr.  Gildea,  Miss  Naden,  G.J.  Romanes. 


TUESDAY,  December  17. 

Royal  Statistical  Society,  at  7.45. — Accumulations  of  Capital  in  the 
United  Kingdom  in  1875-85  (with  reference  to  a  Paper  read  in  1878): 
Dr.  Robert  Giffen. 

Institution  of  Civil  Enginerrs,  at  8. — On  tVie  Triple-Expansion  Engines 
and  Engine  Trials  at  the  Whitworth  Engineering  Laboratory,  Owens 
College,  Manchester:  Prof  Osborne  Reynolds,  F.R.S.     (Discussion.)       1 

University  College  Biological  Society,  at  5.15. — Amphioxus :  C.  E. 
Franck. 

WEDNESDAY,  December  18 

S  >ciety  of  Arts,  at  8. — London  Sewage:   Sir  Robert  Rawlinson.  K.C. B. 

GsoLOGiCAL  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Occurrence  of  the  Genus  Girvanella, 
and  Remarks  on  Oolitic  Structure:  E.  Wethered, — On  the  Position  of  the 
Westleion  Beds  or  "  Pebbly  Sands  "  of  .Suffolk  to  those  of  Norfolk,  and 
on  their  Extension  Inland,  with  some  Observations  on  the  Period  of  the 
Final  Elevation  and  Denudation  of  the  Weald  and  of  the  Thames  Valley, 
Part  2  :  Prof.  Joseph  Prestwich,  F.R.S. 

RovAL  Meteorological  Society,  at  7. — Report  of  the  Wind  Force 
Committee  on  the  Factor  of  the  Kew  Pattern  Robinson  Anemometer : 
drawn  up  by  W.  H.  Dines — On  Testing  Anemometers  ;  W.  H.  Dines. — 
On  the  Kamfall  of  the  Riviera  :  G.  J.  Symons,  F.R.S. — Report  on  the 
Phenological  Observations  for  1889  :  Edward  Mawley. 

University  College  Chemical  and  Physical  Society,  at  4.30. — 
The  Magnetization  of  Iron  and  Nickel  :  J   J.  Stewart. 

THURSDAY,  December  19. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

LiNVWAN  Society,  at  8. — Intensive  Segregation  and  Divergent  Evolution 
in  Land  Mollusca  of  Oahu  :  Rev.  John  T.  Gulick. — Dictopteris ;  ■with 
Remarki  on  the  Systematic  Position  of  the  Dictyotacese  :  T.  Johnson. 

Chemical  Society,  at  8.— On  Frangulin  :  Prof  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  and  H. 
H.  Robinson. 

Zoological  Society,  at  4. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED, 

Australia  Twice  Traversed,  2  vols  :  E.  Gi'es  (Low). — Physiology  of 
Bodily  Exerci.se  :  Dr.  E.  Lagrange  (Kegan  Paul). — Linear  Differential 
Eq  lations,  vol.  i.  :  Dr.  T.  Craig  (Triibner). — Philosophy  of  the  Steam- 
Engine  :  R.  H,  Thurston  (Triihner).  — The  British  Journal  Photographic 
'Alm.^xnac,  1890  (Greenwood). — Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity  and 
Magnetism,  2nd  edition:  A.  Gray  (Macmillan). — Occasional  Thoughts  of 
an  Astronomer  on  Natu'-e  and  Revelation  ;  Rev.  Dr.  Pritchard  (Murray). — 
Star-Land:  Sir  R.  S.  Ball  (Cassell).— The  Story  of  Chemistry  :  H.  W. 
Picton  (Isbister). — A  Text-book  of  Assaying :  C.  Beringer  and  J.  J. 
Beringer  (Griffin). — History  and  Pathjlogy  of  Vaccination,  2  vols.:  Prof. 
E.  M.  Crookshank  (Lewis). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The    Teaching  of  Forestry.      By    Sir  D.    Brandis, 

F.R.S.        121 

Ferrel's  Theory  of  the  Winds.     By  H.  F.  B 124 

A  New  Atlas  of  Algae.     By  G.  M 127 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Tschermak  :  "  Die  mikroskopische  Beschaffenheit  der 
Meteoriten";  Brezina  and  Cohen:  "Die  Structur 
und  Zusammensetzung  der  Meteoreisen  "  ;  and  Bre- 
zina :  "  Die  Meteoritensammlung  der  k.  k.  mineralog. 

Hofkabinetes  in  Wien." — L.  F 127 

Williams  and  Lascelles  :  "Introduction  to  Chemical 

Science" 128 

Rendle  :   "  The  Cradle  of  the  Aryans  " 128 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Mr.  Cope  on  the  Causes  of  Variation. — Prof.  E.  Ray 

Lankester,  F.R.S 128 

Protective  Coloration  of  Eggs. — E.  B.  Titchener     .  129 
Is  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  a  Fixed  Quantity  ? — A, 

J.  Jukes-Browne 130 

Galls.— R.  McLachlan,  F.R.S.  ;  D,  Wetterhan  ; 

W.  Ainslie  Hollis      .        131 

Lum.inous  Night  Clouds. — Evan  McLennan    ...  131 

Electrical  Figures. — W.  B.  Croft      132 

New  Double  Stars.     By  A.  M.  Clerke 132 

Geological  Excursion   to    the  Active   and  Extinct 

V   Icanoes  of  Southern  Italy 133 

Remarkable     Hailstones.      {Illustrated.)      By    G.    J. 

Symons,  F.R.S. 134 

Notes      135 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 138 

Photometric  Intensity  of  (joronal  Light 139 

Corona  of  January  i,  1889 139 

Minor  Planet  ( J  2),  Victoria 139 

Comet  Swift  (/ 1889,  November  17) 139 

Periodic  Comets 139 

The  Eclipse  Parties 139 

Recent  Indian  Surveys 139 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 140 

Societies  and  Academies 140 

Diary  of  Societies •    •    .  144 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 144 


NA TURE 


145 


THURSDAY,  DECEMBER  19,  i{ 


THE  EPIDEMIC  OF  INFLUENZA. 

FOR  the  first  time  after  an  immunity  of  nearly  half 
a  century,  our  country  is  again  threatened  with 
an  epidemic  of  influenza.  The  accounts  we  receive  of 
epidemic  illness  in  Russia,  in  Germany,  and  last  of  all 
in  Paris,  seem  to  make  its  irruption  here  every  week  more 
imminent.  The  question  will,,  however,  naturally  be  asked 
by  the  public,  whether  there  is  any  real  ground,  in  the 
history  and  in  what  is  known  of  the  nature  of  the  disease, 
for  such  an  apprehension.''  Is  it  a  disease  really  brought 
from  a  distance  ?  Is  it  anything  more  than  the  general 
prevalence  of  catarrhal  affections,  of  colds  and  coughs, 
which  the  time  of  year,  and  the  remarkably  unsettled 
weather  we  have  lately  experienced,  make  readily  ex- 
plicable without  any  foreign  importation?  Indeed,  is 
influenza,  after  all,  anything  more  than  a  severe  form  of 
the  fashionable  complaint  of  the  season  ? 

To  answer  the  last  question  first,  and  so  to  put  it  by, 
there  can  be  little  doubt  that  influenza  is  a  distinct, 
specific  affection,  and  not  a  mere  modification  of  the 
common  cold.  The  grounds  for  this  belief  cannot  be 
fully  stated  here,  but  may  be  gathered  by  reference  to 
the  descriptions  of  the  disease  as  seen  in  former  out- 
breaks by  physicians  of  the  older  generation  ;  for  instance, 
by  Sir  Thomas  Watson  in  his  classical  "Principles  of 
Physic,"  or  the  late  Dr.  Peacock  in  his  article  in  Quain's 
"  Dictionary  of  Medicine." 

These  symptoms,  the  history  of  the  disease,  and  its 
distribution,  all  justify  us  in  treating  it  as  a  distinct  and 
specific  disease,  which  when  it  is  prevalent  will  rarely  be 
mistaken,  though,  with  regard  to  isolated  and  sporadic 
cases,  difficulties  of  diagnosis  may  arise.  About  its 
•nature,  or  its  affinities  with  other  diseases,  it  is  unne- 
cessary to  speculate.  It  will  be  sufficient  to  inquire  what 
its  recorded  history  in  the  past  justifies  us  in  expecting  as 
to  its  behaviour  in  the  future.  There  are  few  cases  in 
which  history  proves  so  important  an  element  in  the 
scientific  conception  of  a  disease  as  it  does  in  that  of 
influenza.  For  hardly  any  disease  shows  a  more  marked 
tendency  to  occur  in  epidemics — that  is,  in  outbreaks 
strictly  limited  in  point  of  time.  After  long  intervals  of 
inaction  or  apparent  death,  it  springs  up  again.  Its 
chronology  is  very  remarkable.  Though  probably  occur- 
ring in  Europe  from  very  early  times,  it  first  emerged  as 
a  definitely  known  historical  epidemic  in  the  year  15 10. 
Since  then,  more  than  100  general  European  epidemics 
have  been  recorded,  besides  nearly  as  many  more  limited 
to  certain  localities.  Many  of  them  have  in  their  origin 
and  progress  exhibited  the  type  to  which  that  of  the  pre- 
sent year  seems  to  conform.  We  need  not  go  further 
back  than  the  great  epidemic  of  1782,  first  traceable  in 
Russia,  though  there  believed  to  have  been  derived  from 
Asia.  In  St.  Petersburg,  on  January  2,  coincidently 
with  a  remarkable  rise  of  temperature  from  35"  F.  below 
freezing  to  5°  above,  40,000  persons  are  said  to  have 
been  simultaneously  taken  ill.  Thence  the  disease  spread 
over  the  Continent,  where  one-half  of  the  inhabitants  were 
supposed  to  have  been  affected,  and  reached  England  in 
Vol.  xli. — No.  1051. 


May.  It  was  a  remarkable  feature  in  this  epidemic  that 
two  fleets  which  left  Portsmouth  about  the  same  time  were 
attacked  by  influenza  at  sea  about  the  same  day,  though 
they  had  no  communication  with  each  other  or  with  the 
shore. 

There  were  many  epidemics  in  the  first  half  of  this 
century  ;  and  the  most  important  of  them  showed  a  simi- 
lar course  and  geographical  distribution.  In  1830  started 
a  formidable  epidemic,  the  origin  of  which  is  referred  to 
China,  but  which  at  all  events  by  the  end  of  the  year  had 
invaded  Russia,  and  broke  out  in  Petersburg  in  January 
1 83 1.  Germany  and  France  were  overrun  in  the  spring, 
and  by  June  it  had  reached  England.  Again,  two  years 
later,  in  January  1833,  there  was  an  outbreak  in  Russia, 
which  spread  to  Germany  and  France  successively,  and 
on  April  3,  the  first  cases  of  influenza  were  seen  in  our 
metropohs;  "all  London,"  in  Watson's  words,  "being 
smitten  with  it  on  that  and  the  following  day."  On 
this  same  fateful  day  Watson  records  that  a  ship  ap- 
proaching the  Devonshire  coast  was  suddenly  smitten 
with  influenza,  and  within  half  an  hour  forty  men 
were  ill.  In  1836  another  epidemic  appeared  in 
Russia  ;  and  in  January  1837,  Berlin  and  London 
were  almost  simultaneously  attacked.  Ten  years 
later,  in  1847,  ^the  last  great  epidemic  raged  in 
our  own  country,  and  was  very  severe  in  November, 
having  been  observed  in  Petersburg  in  March,  and  having 
prevailed  very  generally  all  over  Europe. 

Some  of  these  epidemics  are  believed  to  have  travelled 
still  further  westward,  to  America ;  but  the  evidence  on 
this  point  seems  less  conclusive.  Without  entering  on 
further  historical  details,  and  without  speculating  on  the 
nature  of  the  disease,  we  may  conclude  that  these 
broad  facts  are  enough  to  show  that  a  more  or  less  rapid 
extension  from  east  to  west  has  been  the  rule  in  most  of 
the  great  European  epidemics  of  influenza ;  and  that 
therefore  its  successive  appearance  in  Russia,  Germany, 
and  France,  makes  its  extension  to  our  own  country  in  the 
highest  degree  probable. 

There  are,  it  is  true,  certain  facts  on  the  other  side,  but 
they  appear  much  less  cogent.  Since  our  last  great  visita- 
tion, certain  epidemics  of  influenza  have  been  recorded 
on  the  Continent  which  have  not  reached  our  shores. 
One  was  that  of  Paris  in  1866-67  ;  another  at  Berlin  in 
1874-75,  of  ^  disease  described  by  the  Gg-man  doctors 
as  influenza,  and  of  great  severity,  affecting  all  classes  of 
society.  But  in  all  epidemic  and  even  contagious 
diseases  there  are  outbreaks  which  seem  to  be  self-limited 
from  the  first,  showing  no  tendency  to  spread.  This  has 
been  notably  the  case  with  plague  and  cholera.  On  the 
other  hand,  when  an  epidemic  shows  an  expansive  and 
progressive  character,  it  is  impossible  to  predict  the  extent 
to  which  it  may  spread.  And  the  present  epidemic,  it 
must  be  confessed,  appears  to  have  this  expansive 
character. 

Many  interesting  points  are  suggested  by  this  historical 
retrospect.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  westward  spread 
of  influenza,  of  cholera,  and  other  diseases?  Is  it  a  uni- 
versal law  ?  To  this  it  must  be  said,  that  it  is  by  no 
means  the  universal  law  even  with  influenza,  which  has 
spread  through  other  parts  of  the  world  in  every  kind  of 
direction,  but  it  does  seem  to  hold  good  for  Europe,  at 
least  in  the  northern  parts.     The  significance  of  this  law, 

H 


146 


NA  TURE 


{Dec.  19.  1889 


as  of  the  intermittent  appearances  of  influenza,  probably 
is  that  this  is  in  Europe  not  an  indigenous  disease,  but 
one  imported  from  Asia.  Possibly  we  may  some  day 
track  it  to  its  original  home  in  the  East,  as  the  old  plague 
and  the  modern  cholera  have  been  traced. 

As  regards,  however,  the  European  distribution  of  influ- 
enza, it  has  often  been  thought  to  depend  upon  the  pre- 
valence of  easterly  and  north-easterly  winds.  There  are 
many  reasons  for  thinking  that  the  contagium  of  this 
disease  is  borne  through  the  air  by  winds  rather  than  by 
human  intercourse.  One  reason  for  thinking  so  is  that 
it  does  not  appear  to  travel  along  the  lines  of  human  com- 
munications, and,  as  is  seen  in  the  infection  of  ships  at 
sea,  is  capable  of  making  considerable  leaps.  The 
mode  of  transmission,  too,  would  explain  the  remarkable 
facts  noticed  above  of  the  sudden  outbreak  of  the  disease 
in  certain  places,  and  its  attacking  so  many  people  simul- 
taneously, which  could  hardly  be  the  case  if  the  infection 
had  to  be  transmitted  from  one  person  to  another. 

Another  important  question,  and  one  certain  to  be  often 
asked,  is  suggested  by  the  last — namely,  whether  influenza, 
is  conta  gious.  During  former  epidemics  great  care  was 
taken  to  collect  the  experience  of  the  profession  on  this 
point,  and  its  difficulty  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  opinions 
were  much  divided.  Some  thought  the  disease  could  be 
transmitted  by  direct  contagion,  while  others  doubted  it. 
But  there  was  and  is  a  general  agreement  that  this  is  not 
the  chief  way  in  which  the  disease  spreads,  either  in  a 
single  town,  or  from  place  to  place. 

We  must  avoid  the  fascinating  topic  of  the  cause  of 
influenza,  or  our  limits  would  be  speedily  outrun.  But 
one  simple  lesson  may  be  drawn  from  the  facts  already 
mentioned — namely,  that  the  disease  is  not  produced  by 
any  kind  of  weather,  though  that,  of  all  possible  causes  of 
disease,  is  the  one  most  often  incriminated  in  this  coun- 
try. It  is  true  that  some  of  our  worst  epidemics  have 
occurred  in  winter,  but  several  have  happened  in  summer  ; 
and  the  disease  has  been  known  in  all  parts  of  the  world, 
in  every  variety  of  climate  and  atmospheric  condition  ; 
so  that  it  is  certainly  not  due  to  a  little  more  or  less  of 
heat  or  cold,  moisture  or  dryness.  Its  constancy  of  type, 
the  mode  of  its  transmission,  its  independence  of  climatic 
and  seasonal  conditions,  all  suggest  that  its  cause  is 
"  specific," — that  is,  having  the  properties  of  growth  and 
multiplicatiorf  which  belong  to  a  living  thing. 

Whether  the  disease  affects  the  lower  animals  is  not 
absolutely  certain,  but  the  human  epidemic  has  often 
been  preceded  or  accompanied  by  an  epidemic  among 
horses  of  a  very  similar  disease.  It  is  pretty  well  known 
that  such  a  disease  is  now  very  prevalent  among  horses 
in  London.  Nearly  three  weeks  ago,  one  of  the  railway 
companies  in  London  had  120  horses  on  the  sick  list, 
and  the  epidemic  is  still  by  no  means  extinguished.  To 
a  certain  extent  this  must  be  taken  as  prognostic  of  human 
influenza. 

It  may  be  asked,  if  the  influenza  is  really  to  come,  can 
we  form  any  notion  how  soon  it  is  likely  to  appear  ?  On 
such  a  point  little  beyond  speculation  is  possible,  for  the 
rate  at  which  the  disease  travels  is  extremely  variable. 
Generally,  it  has  taken  some  weeks,  or  even  months, 
to  traverse  Europe,  but  occasionally  much  less,  as,  for 
instance,  in  1833,  when  it  appeared  to  travel  from  Berhn 
to  Paris  in  two  days.     It  is  now  barely  a  month  since 


the  epidemic  became  noticeable  in  Petersburg,  where, 
according  to  a  correspondent  of  the  British  Medical 
Journal,  it  began  on  November  15  or  17,  though 
sporadic  cases  had  undoubtedly  occurred  earlier.  In  the 
beginning  of  December  it  was  already  widely  spread 
throughout  Russsia,  and,  as  it  would  seem  from  the  pub- 
lished accounts,  must  have  been  in  Berlin  about  the 
same  time.  In  Paris  the  first  admitted  and  recorded 
cases  occurred  about  December  10,  though  doubtless 
there  were  cases  before  that  date.  Both  public  and 
private  accounts  report  it  exceedingly  prevalent  there 
now.  In  London,  notwithstanding  the  abundance  of 
colds  and  coughs,  and  the  mysterious  rumours  which 
have  been  afloat,  it  appears  to  the  present  writer  doubt- 
ful whether  any  cases  of  true  influenza  have  yet  occurred. 
But  according  to  its  apparent  rate  of  progress,  it  might, 
if  coming  from  Paris,  have  already  arrived  here  ;  and  it  may 
be  breaking  out  even  while  these  lines  are  going  through  the 
press.  But,  on  the  whole,  one  would  be  disposed  to  give 
the  epidemic  another  week  or  two.  If  its  distribution 
depends,  as  it  seems  to  do,  on  the  winds,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  prophesy  with  much  plausibility.  A  steady  breeze 
setting  in  from  one  of  the  affected  places  might  bring  us 
an  invasion  in  a  very  short  time ;  but  the  current  of  air 
would  have  to  be  continuous  over  the  whole  district. 
Light  local  winds,  whatever  their  direction,  would,  if  the 
hypothesis  be  correct,  have  little  effect.  On  the  other 
hand,  a  steady  frost,  with  an  "  anticyclone  "  period,  might 
effectually  keep  off  the  disease.  If,  then,  there  is  any- 
thing in  the  views  above  stated,  prophecy  belongs  rather 
to  the  province  of  the  weather-doctors  than  of  the  medical 
doctors. 

Should  the  prospect  seem  a  grave  one,  it  may  be  some 
consolation  to  remember  that  an  epidemic  of  influenza 
rarely  lasts  more  than  a  few  weeks — three  to  six — in  one 
place ;  that  it  is  rarely  a  fatal  disease,  though  affecting 
large  numbers  of  people  ;  and  that  the  present  epidemic 
seems  to  have  displayed  on  the  Continent  a  decidedly 
mild  type,  which,  according  to  the  general  rule,  it  is 
likely  to  retain.  J-  F.  P. 


THE  HORNY  SPONGES.  . 

A  Monograph  of  the  Horny  Sponges.     By  Robert  von      \ 
Lendenfeld.    (London  :  Published  for  the  Royal  Society 
by  Trubner  and  Co.,  Ludgate  Hill,  1889.) 

WITHIN  the  last  few  years,  and  as  a  direct  result  of 
the  famous  Expedition  of  the  Challenger,  three 
most  important  monographs  of  the  sponges  belonging  to 
the  groups  of  the  Hexactinellida,  Monaxonida,  and  the 
Tetractinellida  have  been  published,  nor  must  the  valuable 
contributions  by  Polejaeff  to  the  history  of  the  remaining 
groups,  Calcarea  and  Keratosa,  be  overlooked.  The 
Calcarea  had  the  advantage  of  having  been  already 
monographed  by  Haeckel,  and  so  there  only  remained 
the  Horny  Sponges  to  be  fully  described,  in  order  that 
the  natural  history  of  the  sponges  should  be  up  to  date. 

Such  a  work  has  now  been  accomplished — thanks  to 
the  liberality  of  the  Royal  Society— by  the  labour  and 
scientific  skill  of  Dr.  Robert  von  Lendenfeld.  This  mono- 
graph forms  a  fine  quarto  volume  of  over  900  pages,  with 
an  atlas  of  fifty  lithographed  plates. 

While  a  student  at  the  University  of  Graz,  Lendenfeld 


Dec.  19,  1889J 


NATURE 


H7 


slls  us,  his  time  was  chiefly  spent  in  the  zoological  labor- 
Itory  of  Prof.  F.  E.  Schulze,  then  engaged  on  those  re- 
earches  on  the  natural  history  of  sponges  with  which 
is  name  will  ever  be  associated.  This  led  him  to  take  a 
;)ecial  intest  in  the  group,  and  to  work  out  its  history, 
irst  in  the  Mediterranean,  and  then  at  Melbourne  and 
other  places  on  the  southern  coast  of  Australia — a  coast 
exceedingly  rich  in  organisms  of  this  class.  From  Mel- 
bourne, New  Zealand  was  visited,  and  the  Christchurch 
and  Dunedin  collections  were  examined.  Next,  that  ap- 
parent El  Dorado  of  the  spongologist,  Sydney,  was  ex- 
plored, and,  thanks  to  the  splendid  liberality  of  Sir 
William  Macleay,  Lendenfeld  was  enabled  to  establish 
a  laboratory  at  the  water-edge,  and  to  study  in  a  very 
thorough  manner  the  sponges  of  this  district. 

With  such  abundant  material,  and  with  such  ready 
help,  nothing  was  wanting  to  work  out  the  structural  his- 
tory of  the  species  of  the  group.  But  to  describe  and 
name  them,  reference  to  type  specimens  was,  above  all 
things,  necessary,  and  these  latter  were  to  be  found  most 
conveniently  in  the  British  Museum  ;  thither,  therefore, 
Lendenfeld  came,  early  in  1886,  at  first  resolved  to  write 
an  account  of  the  Australian  Horny  Sponges  ;  but  for- 
tunately finding,  during  the  progress  of  this  work,  that 
so  great  a  proportion  of  the  known  forms  were  Austra- 
lian, he  determined  to  make  a  complete  monograph  of 
the  group,  and  hence  the  volume  which  we  proceed  to 
notice. 

This  monograph  of  the  Horny  Sponges  is  divided  into 
three  parts  :  (i)  an  introduction,  containing  a  brief  his- 
torical summary  and  a  detailed  list  of  publications  relat- 
ing to  sponges  ;  (2)  an  analytical  portion,  devoted  to  the 
systematic  description  of  all  the  known  Horny  Sponges  ; 
and  (3)  a  synthetical  part,  in  which  the  anatomy  and 
physiology  of  sponges,  especially  of  Horny  Sponges,  are 
treated,  and  their  phylogeny,  systematic  position,  and 
classification  discussed. 

Of  the  very  extensive  and  scattered  literature  relating 
to  the  sponges,  a  most  excellent  bibliography  is  given ; 
the  papers  are  arranged  alphabetically  under  their  authors' 
names,  but  the  publications  of  each  author  are  given 
chronologically  ;  the  number  of  pages  in  each  memoir  is 
given,  but,  unfortunately,  no  reference  is  made  to  illustra- 
tions ;  abstracts  and  translations  of  papers  are  always 
quoted. 

Considering  the  genus  as  "  the  important  unit,"  the 
analytical  part  consists  essentially  of  a  series  of  mono- 
graphs of  the  genera  of  Horny  Sponges,  but  "  species  " 
as  such  are  described ;  and  the  author  has  "  done  his 
best  to  make  the  different  species  equivalent,"  though 
this  has  been  difficult  of  achievement.  In  those  cases 
where  he  has  felt  compelled  to  establish  varieties,  he  has 
followed  the  plan  of  E.  Haeckel  and  F.  E.  Schulze,  and 
has  divided  the  whole  species  into  "the  requisite  number 
of  equivalent  varieties."  The  total  number  of  the  species 
and  varieties  described  amounts  to  348,  of  which  no  less 
than  258  have  been  found  in  the  Australian  area. 

It  would  not  be  possible,  within  any  reasonable  space, 
to  give  any  satisfactory  details  of  the  analytical  portion 
of  this  monograph.  The  descriptions  of  each  genus  are 
grouped  into — an  historical  introduction  ;  a  sketch  of  the 
shape,  size,  colour,  surface,  and  rigidity  characteristic  of 
tlie  group  ;  an   account  of  the  canal  system,  skeleton, 


with  notes  on  the  histology  and  physiology  ;  the  affinities 
of  the  genus  ;  statistics  of  the  species,  with  a  key  thereto, 
and  details  of  distribution.  Doubts  must  of  necessity 
arise  as  to  the  exact  limits  that  each  author  would  ascribe 
to  the  species  described  by  him,  and  in  doubtful  cases  of 
this  sort  Dr.  Lendenfeld  has  adopted  the  plan  of  placing 
no  authors'  names  after  them,  but  gives  a  full  list  of 
synonyms ;  we  think  it  a  pity  that  in  these  lists  the  memoirs, 
instead  of  being  quoted,  are  simply  referred  to  by  num- 
bers, for  the  explanation  of  which  one  must  refer  to  the 
bibliographical  list. 

It  is  in  the  synthetical  part,  in  which  the  general  re- 
sults are  discussed,  that  the  chief  interest  of  this  work 
lies,  at  least  for  the  general  reader.  Here  we  have  the 
questions  of  the  general  structure  and  evolution  of  sponges 
as  a  group  considered,  and  their  classification  and  sys- 
tematic position  discussed  ;  and  finally,  as  the  fashion 
of  some  authors  is,  "  an  ancestral  tree  of  the  families  " 
is  given.  Starting  with  the  story  of  the  metamorphic 
development  of  sponges,  we  find  the  primitive  sponge 
defined  as  consisting  of  a  simple  ento-  and  ectoderm, 
and  a  thin  mesogloea — a  very  primitive  mesoderm — be- 
tween the  two.  Dr.  Lendenfeld  thinks  that  it  is  now 
generally  acknowledged  that  the  Physemaria,  which 
Haeckel  considered  as  "  Gastreaden  der  Gegenwart,"  are 
not  sponges  at  all,  but  Protozoa,  so  that  they  need  not 
here  be  taken  into  account.  Of  course,  it  is  evident  that 
the  views  about  these  Physemarias,  held  at  present  by 
Haeckel,  were,  at  the  time  of  his  thus  writing,  un- 
known to  Dr.  Lendenfeld.  The  modified  Gastraea  is 
traced  onwards  in  its  development,  and  the  morphology 
of  the  adult  structures  are  passed  under  review ;  their 
want  of  symmetry — and  the  exceptions  are  but  few — is 
noted.  None  of  the  Horny  Sponges  are  green ;  blue  is 
never  observed  in  the  group,  the  range  of  colour  being 
from  light  yellow  to  dark  brown,  light  to  dark  red,  and 
light  to  a  dark,  almost  black,  violet  ;  the  colour  is  lost  in  all, 
with  a  few  exceptions,  such  as  inAplysillaviolacea,  when 
the  sponge  is  preserved.  The  Horny  Sponges  would 
seem  never  to  imitate  their  surroundings  in  colour,  but 
it  is  suggested  that  in  some  cases  the  intense  vivid 
colours  may  have  the  effect  of  frightening  their  enemies. 

An  attempt  is  made  to  account  for  the  shape  of  the 
sponge  conuli  as  the  result  of  two  pressure  forces  and  to 
express  this  by  formula.  The  biological  student  will 
scarcely  be  grateful  for  this,  and  is  likely  to  be  bewildered 
when  he  reads  that  "  the  conuli  are  hyperbolic  rotatory 
bodies,  formed  by  the  rotating  of  the  hyperbola, 

y={p.  x)i(/  +  t  .  X), 

round  an  axis  parallel  to  the  direction  of  pressure  through 
the  summit  of  the  conulus."  The  canal  system  is  de- 
scribed in  some  detail,  the  author  not  confining  himself 
to  the  Horny  Sponges.  In  contrasting  this  system  in  the 
Hexactinellida  and  the  Hexaceratina,  there  seems  some 
little  confusion  as  to  the  comparative  "  tenderness  "  of  the 
structures.  The  absence  of  spicules  (siliceous)  in  the 
fibres  is  considered  as  the  characteristic  feature  of  the 
Horny  Sponges,  which  distinguishes  them  from  their 
siliceous  ancestors  ;  but  in  the  superficial  fibres  of  Aulena, 
echinating  proper  spicules  occur ;  in  the  ground  sub- 
stance of  several  genera  of  Spongeliadae,  microsclera  are 


148 


NATURE 


{Dec.  19,  1889 


to  be  found,  while  in  Darwinella,  triaxon  horny  spicules 
abound. 

Very  interesting  accounts  are  given  of  the  connective 
tissue,  muscle  cells,  and  nervous  system.  Stewart's 
account  of  the  "  palpocils "  is  accepted ;  and,  although 
Prof.  Stewart's  specimens  are  the  only  ones  which  show 
these  organs  properly,  yet  Lendenfeld  thinks  that,  when 
groups  of  converging  sense-cells  are  observed  (in  sections) 
below  the  continuous  surface,  these  may  be  regarded  as 
the  cells  of  a  "  retracted  "  palpocil. 

The  researches  of  the  author  have  thrown  but  little 
fresh  light  on  the  subject  of  the  occurrence  of  the  strange 
"  filaments  "  in  the  species  of  the  genus  Hircinia  ;  these 
filaments  are  generally  more  abundant  in  the  superficial 
layer  than  in  the  interior  of  the  sponge.  They  may  be 
isolated,  or  arranged  in  bundles  of  varying  thickness,  in 
which  they  are  parallel.  Such  bundles  are  particularly 
conspicuous  in  H.  gtgatttea,  where  they  form  a  pretty 
uniform  network  which  pervades  the  whole  of  the  sponge. 
The  filaments  are  never  straight :  they  may  be  continuously 
and  simply  curved,  or  they  are  undulating.  The  latter  form 
of  curvature  is  particularly  frequently  observed  in  the 
filaments  which  are  joined  to  form  large  bundles.  While 
their  abundance  is  subject  to  variation,  no  case  of  a 
sponge  with  but  a  few  isolated  filaments  is  on  record.  No 
apparent  young  stages  of  these  filaments  have  been  seen. 
Schulze's  researches  enabled  him  to  make  no  positive 
statement  concerning  them,  but  they  at  the  same  time 
demonstrated  that  "no  cellulose  is  contained  in  them, 
that  they  have  no  trace  of  true  cellular  structure,  and 
that  they  contain  a  great  deal  of  nitrogen  (9-2  per  cent,  of 
their  substance),  and  that  they  are  not  Algae.  The  resist- 
ance of  the  filaments  in  boiling  alkali  is  against  their 
being  ordinary  Fungi,  while  their  general  chemical  com- 
position indicates  no  relationship  to  the  ordinary  sponge 
skeleton."  As  to  the  very  minute  dumb-bell  shaped  struc- 
tures observed  by  Pol^jaeff,  and  considered  by  him  to  be 
young  stages  of  the  filaments,  Lendenfeld  thinks  that  this 
is  extremely  doubtful,  "particularly  as  nobody  besides 
Polejaeff  has  seen  them  in  H.  friabilis  or  any  other 
sponge."  But  is  this  so  ?  for  in  another  paragraph  we 
read : — 

"The  spherical  bodies  which  Schmidt  and  Polejaeff 
consider  as  young  stages  of  these  filaments— in  fact,  as 
terminal  knots,  either  dropped  off,  or  on  the  way  to  pro- 
duce a  filament— have  also  been  observed  and  carefully 
studied  by  Schulze,  who  considers  them  as  monocellular 
Algae,  which  have  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  the 
filaments." 

Lendenfeld  says  that  "no  trace  of  filaments  or  '  spores ' 
can  be  detected  in  the  young  embryos  which  are  often 
found  in  specimens  of  Hircinia." 

On  the  physiology  of  the  group,  this  monograph  throws 
but  little  light  :— 

"  Our  knowledge  of  the  vital  functions  of  sponges  is  at 
present  exceedingly  unsatisfactory.  We  do  not  even 
know  which  parts  of  the  sponge  absorb  nourishment, 
or,  in  fact,  what  kind  of  food  the  sponges  take  in.  We 
are  equally  ignorant  concerning  their  respiration  and 
secretion." 

There  being  then  no  facts  to  serve  us  as  guides  to 
knowledge,  the  next  "  best  thing  "  is  to  have  recourse  to 
imaginations,  and  our  author  "  thinks  "  that  "  it  is  by  no 


means  unlikely  that  the  sponges  may  exclusively  absorb 
liquid  food — that  is  to  say,  organic  substances  dissolved 
in  the  water  which  is  continuously  passing  through  their 
canal  system.  All  the  other  organisms  in  which  arrange- 
ments are  made  to  insure  a  continuous  water  current — 
I  refer  to  the  higher  plants— absorb  exclusively  nourishing 
material  in  solution  (the  absorption  of  gaseous  food  by 
plants  does  not  concern  us  here).  The  existence  of  a 
traversing  canal  system  and  a  continuous  water  current 
seems  to  me  to  point  to  the  nourishing  material  of 
sponges  being  in  solution  in  the  sea-water.  The  numerous 
fine  sieves  and  filter  arrangements  generally,  and  the  mere 
fact  that  the  water  always  enters  through  the  smaller  holes 
and  is  expelled  through  the  larger,  clearly  shows  that  the 
sponges  are  not  desirous  that  large  food-particles  should 
enter  their  canal  system." 

Even  granting  that  the  word  "  exclusively  "  should  be 
after  the  word  "  material,"  we  do  not  quite  understand 
the  comparison  of  the  well-known  facts  of  plant  physiology 
as  they  are  presented  to  us  in  the  above  extract,  nor  see 
how  it  helps  us  to  an  understanding  of  how  the  sponge 
adds  to  its  protoplasm  ;  the  undoubted  power  possessed 
by  some  of  the  sponge-cells  to  lay  down  silica,  lime,  &c.,  is 
quite  different  functionally  from  the  phenomena  attending 
growth  and  development,  using  these  terms  in  Herbert 
Spencer's  sense ;  but  once  set  a  thinking,  our  author 
proceeds,  and  telling  us  that  a  "  tape-worm  is  an  animal 
which  takes  up  liquid  food,  and  which  has  no  special 
digestive  apparatus,  and  that  it  evidently  takes  up  a  great 
quantity  of  material  from  the  surrounding  chyle  through 
the  apparently  indifferent  cylindrical  ectodermal  epithe- 
lium cells  ;  that  the  excess  material  and  waste  products 
are  got  rid  of  by  the  nephrydia,"  he  goes  on  to  say 
that  he  is  inclined  "  to  think  that  in  sponges  we  may  have 
a  similar  mode  of  absorption  of  nourishment  "  ;  but  then, 
where  are  the  nephrydia  or  their  analogues  ?  and  he 
thinks  again  "  that  it  is  not  impossible  that  the  ciliated 
chambers  may  be  partly  analogous  to  the  nephrydia  of 
the  Coelomata,  and  that  the  collar-cells  may,  besides 
performing  other  functions,  also  secrete  the  urine." 
However  uncertain,  he  adds,  this  hypothesis  may  appear, 
"  I  think  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  there  is  more  proba- 
bility in  it  than  in  the  view,  held  by  Carter  and  others  of 
the  older  authors,  that  the  ciliated  chambers  are  merely 
digestive  apparatus."  This  seems  a  rather  dreamy  hypo- 
thesis, with  no  facts  for  its  foundation  ;  but  it  is  but  fair 
to  remark  that  it  comes  at  the  very  end  of  a  volume  which 
is  a  record  of  numerous  and  important  observations. 

Under  the  headings  variability,  parasitism,  and  sym- 
biosis, many  interesting  details  are  given.  The  author 
thinks  that  certain  forms  of  Aulena  and  Chalinopsilla 
imitate  "  certain  siliciferous  Cornacuspongias.  These 
sponges  have  descended  from  thosa  which  they  imitate ; 
and,  whilst  they  have  lost  the  spicules  in  the  fibres,  they 
have  retained  the  outer  appearance  of  their  better  pro- 
tected ancestors  in  a  most  striking  manner."  Apparently, 
"  the  primordial  sponge  ancestors  were  free-swimming, 
and  had  no  skeleton.  Some  produced  a  calcareous, 
others  a  siliceous  skeleton ;  in  both  the  subsequent 
development,  the  formation  of  ciliated  chambers,  which 
the  ancestors  did  not  possess,  and  the  fixing  of  the  axis 
and  rays  of  the  spicules,  were  the  same.  The  primordial 
Silicea  had  indifferent  irregular  spicules,  from  which  the 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


149 


triaxon  and  the  tetraxon  spicules  were  developed  by  an 
adaptation  of  the  divergent  development  of  the  canal 
system.  The  primordial  forms  of  both  lived  in  water 
rich  in  silica,  and  certain  forms  of  both  lost  their  spicules 
in  consequence  perhaps,  of  rising  from  deeper  to  shallower 
water,  where  silica  is  more  scarce.  In  both,  some  forms 
have  lost  the  skeleton  altogether,  while  others  have  re- 
placed it  gradually  by  spongin." 

While  acknowledging  that  some  authors  whose  opinions 
must  carry  great  weight,  such  as  Balfour,  Biitschli,  and 
Sollas,  consider  the  sponges  as  a  separate  group,  equal 
in  value  to  the  groups  Protozoa  and  Metazoa,  Lendenfeld 
cannot  but  conclude  that  the  sponges  are,  without  doubt, 
Metazoa,  and  certainly  Coelentera,  in  the  sense  of  being 
provided  with  a  simple  body  cavity. 

The  last  twenty  pages  of  the  work  are  devoted  to  a 
synopsis  of  all  the  known  sponges,  giving  the  classes, 
families,  orders,  and  genera.  In  this  extremely  useful  list 
there  is  a  short  analysis  of  the  families  and  orders, 
which  is  based  on  the  labours  of  Vosmaer,  Ridley,  Dendy, 
Sollas,  Schulze,  added  to  those  of  the  author's  own.  The 
author  ends  his  treatise  with  the  statement  that  "  Now 
that  all  the  groups  of  sponges  have  been  thoroughly  in- 
vestigated, we  may  consider  our  knowledge  of  their  phylo- 
genetic  affinities  established  on  a  satisfactory  footing " 
(p.  909)  ;  but  it  seems  well  to  call  to  mind  the  statement 
with  which  he  closes  his  short  preface,  and  with  which  we 
feel  the  more  inclined  to  agree,  "  our  present  knowledge 
of  the  group  .  .  .  has  only  just  arrived  at  a  stage  corre- 
sponding to  the  knowledge  of  the  higher  animals  of  half 
a  century  ago  "  (p.  5). 

In  concluding  our  only  too  brief  notice  of  this  important 
work,  for  which  all  workers  on  the  group  must  thank  Dr. 
Lendenfeld,  we  may  mention  that  the  sponge  portraits 
are  for  the  most  part  photo-lithographs  taken  from  the 
original  types.;  though  in  a  few  cases,  where  no  good 
specimens  were  available,  the  lithographic  illustrations 
are  from  drawings. 


THE  FLORA   OF  SUFFOLK. 
The  Flora  of  Suffolk.     By  W.  M.  Hind,  LL.D.,  Rector 
of  Honington,  assisted  by  the  late  Churchill  Babing- 
ton,   D.D.,  F.L.S.     With  a  Chapter  on  the  Geology, 
Climate,    and   Meteorology    of  Suffolk,  by  Wheelton 
Hind,  M.U.,  F.R.C.S.     Pp.  508,  with  a  Map.     (Lon- 
don :  Gilbert  and  Jackson,  1889.) 
SUFFOLK  is  a  characteristic  lowland  maritime  Eng- 
lish county,  the  flora  of  which,  at  the  present  day, 
contains  absolutely  no   infusion  of  the  boreal  element. 
Its  area  is  about  1500  square  miles.     The  whole  surface 
is  flat,  without  any  prominent  rocks.     It  is  underlain  by 
chalk,  which,  in  the  north  and  west,  lies  immediately 
below  the  subsoil,  but,  in  the  south  and  east,  is  covered 
by  Tertiary  and  Glacial  deposits,  which  at  Harwich  have 
been  found  to  reach  a  thickness  of  1000  feet  before  the 
chalk  is  reached.     In  White's  history  of  the  county,  its 
soils   are   classified  into  three  groups:    heavy  lands,  in 
which  clay  predominates  ;  mixed  land,  common  mixed 
soil,  rich  deep  moulds,  fen-lands,  and  rich  marshes  ;  and 
light  lands,  consisting  of  sand  over  chalk.     To  the  first 
set  belong  the  soils  of   the  western  two-thirds    of  the 


county,  except  in  the  extreme  north  and  near  the  coast. 
The  mixed  lands  are  found — one  portion  east  of  the  heavy 
lands  between  the  Orwell  and  the  Stour  ;  a  second  in  the 
north,  between  Halesworth  and  Yarmouth  ;  and  a  third 
west  of  the  heavy  lands   between    Holston  and    New- 
market.    The  sandy,  or  light,  soils  are  in  the  extreme 
north-west,  in  what  is  called  the  "  Breck  district,"  between 
Thetford    and    Mildenhall,  where  are  found  the  rarest 
plants  of  the  county,  such  as  Veronica  hybrida,  V.  tri- 
phyllos,   V.  verna,  and  Apera  interrupta.     The  coast  is 
remarkable  for  the  extent  of  its  tidal  estuaries  and  bays, 
creeks  and  havens.     There  are  no  cliffs  of  any  consider- 
able height,  but  a  great  extent  of  sand  and  shingle.     The 
beach  at  Orford,  where  grows  the  great  mass  of  Lathyrus 
inaritimus,  the  seeds  of  which  saved  the  life  of  many 
poor  people  in  a  famine  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  is  said  to  have  the  greatest  breadth  of  sand  any- 
where on  the    English   coast.      The  rivers  are  shallow 
streams  with  slow  currents.     In  the  north-east  there  are 
several  lakes  of  brackish  water,  not  so  well  known  as  the 
Norfolk  Broads,  of  which  Braydon  Water  covers  1200, 
and  Thorpe  Mere  1000,  acres-     The  fresh- water  lakes  of 
the  county  are  few  and  small.     There  is  a  considerable 
area  of  fen-  and  marsh-land,  both  in  the  north-west  and 
east,  so  that  we  get  in  the  county  all  the  conditions  that 
produce  a  rich  low-country  flora,  and,  superadded  to  the 
common  lowland  plants,  rarities  characteristic  of  chalk 
country,  the  seashore,  and  fen-land  ditches  and  marshes. 
The  country  is  so  easy  of  access  from  the  centres  where 
have  lived  many  of  the  best  botanists  of  bygone  time, 
such  as  London,   Cambridge,  Yarmouth,  Norwich,  and 
Saffron  Walden,  that  the  principal  features  of  its  botany 
have  long  been  known,  and    many  excellent  botanists, 
from  the  time  of  Buddie  down  to  the  present  day,  have 
resided  within  its  compass.     The  father  of  Suffolk  botany 
was  Sir  John   CuUum,  F.R.S.,  who  lived  near  Bury  St. 
Edmunds,  and  kept  a  diary  between   1772  and   1785,  in 
which  he  has  recorded  the  occurrence  of  upwards  of  500 
plants.      To  his  son.  Sir  Thomas  Cullum,  F.R.S.,  who 
was  also  an  enthusiastic  botanist,  Sir  J.  E.  Smith  dedi- 
cated his  "  English  Flora."     In  the  present  work  there  is 
not  only  a  full  general  history  of  the  progress  of  Suffolk 
botany,  but,  under  each  plant,  the  name  of  its  first  known 
collector  is  registered.     The  first  "  Flora"  of  the  county 
was  published  in  i860.     It  was  carried  out  mainly  by  the 
exertions  of  the  late  Mr.  E.  Skepper,  working  under  the 
superintendence  of  Prof.  Henslow.      After  it  was  pub- 
lished, Mr.  Skepper  made  a  great  many  notes  for  a  new 
edition,  but  he  died  in  1867.     For  several  years  the  Rev. 
Churchill  Babington,  who  settled  in  the  county  in  1866, 
paid  attention  to  the  subject.     In  1875,  the  Rev.  W.  M. 
Hind,    a  very  competent  botanist,  well  known   by    his 
"  Flora   of   Harrow,"  settled    in    the    county,   and    Dr. 
Babington  sought  and  obtained  his  assistance  to  carry 
on  the  work.     Dr.  Babington  died  early  in  the  present 
year. 

The  bulk  of  the  book  is,  of  course,  occupied  by  the 
enumeration  of  the  species  and  an  account  of  the  dis- 
tribution and  special  localities  of  the  varieties.  The 
county  is  divided  into  five  districts,  and  the  distribution 
of  the  plants  is  traced  through  them.  Only  the  Phanero- 
gamia  and  Vascular  Cryptogamia  are  dealt  with,  but 
the  mosses  of  the  county  have  also  been  well  worked. 


I50 


NATURE 


\_Dec.  ]9,  1889 


There  is  also  a  detailed  tabular  comparison  of  the  plants 
of  Suffolk  with  those  of  Norfolk,  Cambridgeshire,  and 
Essex,  and  a  short  chapter  on  the  characteristic  plants  of 
the  different  soils  of  the  county,  which  will  be  found  very 
interesting  to  students  of  plant-dispersion.  The  chapters 
contributed  by  Dr.  Wheeler  Hind,  the  son  of  the  editor, 
on  the  geology,  physical  geography,  and  meteorology  of 
the  county  are  very  full,  clear,  and  add  greatly  to  the 
interest  of  the  book. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  circumstances  in  the  county 
flora  is  the  occurrence  of  several  maritime  plants  far 
inland.  In  the  Breck  country,  between  Thetford  and 
Mildenhall,  grow  Vicia  lutea,  Erythro'a  littoralis,  Rumex 
maritimus,  Carex  arenaria,  Phleum  arenarium,  and 
Corynephorus  canescens.  These  are  all  seaside  plants, 
and  their  occurrence  fifty  miles  inland  is  accounted  for 
by  Prof.  Newton  and  the  editor  by  supposing  that  an  arm 
of  the  sea  has  penetrated  here  southward  from  the  Wash 
at  a  comparatively  recent  period. 

It  is  in  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  that  the  most  valuable 
observations  have  been  made,  by  Mr.  Clement  Reid  and 
his  fellow-workers,  in  illustration  of  the  time  of  origin 
of  our  present  British  flora.  The  Cromer  plant-bed  ex- 
tends into  Suffolk,  past  Pakefield,  to  Southwoldand  Dun- 
wich.  This  is  pre-glacial,  and  yet,  out  of  upwards  of  forty 
plants  found  in  it  that  have  been  clearly  identified,  there 
are  only  two  that  are  not  British  now — the  spruce  fir  and 
Trapa  natatts.  At  Hoxne,  near  Diss,  lacustrine  deposits 
have  been  found  resting  on  a  bed  of  boulder  clay,  but 
beneath  beds  which  contain  bones  of  the  elephant.  In 
these  are  contained  Salix  polaris,  S.  Myrsinites,  Betula 
nana,  Hypnum  sarmentosum,  and  a  Pinus  which  is 
probably  sylvestris — ail  characteristic  Arctic-Alpine  types, 
associated  with  many  lowland  plants  which  grow  un- 
changed in  Suffolk  at  the  present  time.  A  chapter  in  the 
book  contains  a  list  of  all  these  plants,  but  their  geological 
position  is  not  clearly  explained. 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  is  a  very  interesting  and  com- 
plete county  flora,  and  that  it  is  worthy  of  being  studied 
carefully  by  all  who  are  interested  in  the  distribution  of 
our  indigenous  plants.  J.  G.  B. 

THE  MANUFACTURE  OF  IRON  AND  STEEL. 
Iron   ajid  Steel  Manufacture.     By  Arthur    H.    Hiorns. 
(London  :  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 

THIS  volume  is  meant  as  a  text-book  for  beginners, 
and  will  very  worthily  occupy  that  position.  It  is 
full  of  information,  and  information  of  the  very  kind 
which  the  student  should  possess  before  entering  upon 
the  study  of  the  greater  works  of  Percy  or  Phillips.  On 
the  other  hand,  those  already  engaged  in  the  metallurgy 
of  iron  and  steel  will  find  in  these  pages  much  that  may 
be  referred  to. 

The  book  begins  with  a  brief  history  of  the  processes 
that  have  been  employed  down  to  our  own  time,  the  land- 
marks in  which  are  Dud  Dudley's  successful  attempts  to 
smelt  with  coal  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury ;  Cort's  introduction  of  the  puddling  process  in  1784  ; 
Neilson's  recommendation  to  use  hot  blast  in  1828  ;  the 
revolution  produced  in  the  iron  trade  by  the  invention 
of  the  Bessemer  steel  process  in  1855,  as  supplemented 
by   R.    F,    Mushet,  of   the   Siemens   furnace   and   steel 


process,  and   finally   of  Thomas   and   Gilchrist's    basic 
process. 

The  chapter  which  deals  with  chemical  principles  and 
changes,  inserted  for  the  benefit  of  those  having  a  limited 
knowledge  of  chemistry,  is  valuable  on  account  of  the 
simple  manner  in  which  it  is  written  ;  this  is  particularly 
the  case  as  regards  oxidizing  and  reducing  agents,  the 
examples  given  of  oxidation  and  reduction  showing  the 
reactions  very  clearly.  A  chapter  is  devoted  to  the 
definition  of  metallurgical  terms,  refractory  materials  and 
fuel,  another  to  the  ores  and  alloys  of  iron,  and  then  a 
description  of  the  various  processes  employed  in  the  metal- 
lurgy of  iron  and  steel  is  given,  attention  being  pretty 
equally  divided  between  the  two  metals. 

The  most  ancient  and  most  difficult  method  of  ex- 
tracting iron  from  the  ere  is  what  is  known  as  the  direct 
method,  and  the  author  explains  clearly  the  two  causes  of 
its  failure,  whether  in  the  case  of  the  old  Catalan  or  any 
of  the  modern  processes,  and  the  reason  why  the  blast 
furnace,  although  an  indirect,  has  proved  so  successful  a 
method.  These  two  causes  are  "the  easy  oxidation  of 
iron  by  carbonic  acid  and  water,  at  the  temperature  at 
which  ferrous  oxide  is  reduced  to  the  metallic  state  by 
carbon,  carbonic  oxide,  or  hydrogen,  and  the  facility  with 
which  iron  at  a  red  heat  combines  with  carbon." 

The  preparation  of  the  ores  for  reduction  in  the  blast 
furnace  and  their  treatment  therein  are  next  brought 
forward,  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  the  hot 
blast,  the  utilization  of  waste  gases,  the  dimensions  and 
form  of  blast  furnace  and  subsidiary  subjects  being 
treated  of. 

The  metal  being  now  in  the  state  of  pig-iron,  the  means 
of  refining  and  puddling  are  described ;  the  various  ar- 
rangements are  set  forth  by  which  attempts  have  been 
made  to  effect  the  work  of  the  puddler  by  mechanical 
means,  whether  by  automatic  rabbles  or  rotatory  furnaces, 
and  their  relative  advantages  and  disadvantages.  A  chap- 
ter is  devoted  to  the  treatment  of  puddled  iron  under 
the  hammer  and  in  the  rolling  mill,  and  to  the  tinning 
and  galvanizing  of  iron. 

Leaving  the  subject  of  malleable  iron,  the  author  next 
considers  the  question  of  iron-founding.  He  describes 
the  cupola  furnace  in  which  the  pig  metal  is  fused  ;  and  the 
various  methods  of  moulding  and  casting,  and  the  brands 
of  pig-iron  used  for  different  purposes,  are  treated  of. 

About  a  third  of  the  book  is  devoted  to  the  considera- 
tion of  steel ;  it  is  in  this  branch  of  the  treatment  of  iron 
that  the  greatest  development  has  occurred  of  late  years, 
and  the  book  under  review  treats  of  all  the  modern 
practice.  It  is  pleasant  to  find,  too,  in  the  preparation  of 
an  elementary  work,  that  constructive  perspective  has 
been  employed.  Modern  processes  are  not  brought  into 
prominence  simply  because  they  are  modern,  and  ancient 
methods  are  not  thrown  into  the  shade  if  still  employed. 
Amongst  the  latter  we  find  full  attention  given  to  the 
cementation  process,  and  crucible  steel  ;  whilst  a  chapter 
is  devoted  to  each  of  the  processes  of  Bessemer  and 
Siemens.  The  book  finishes  with  a  chapter  on  steel- 
casting  and  on  testing. 

The  volume  before  us  is  intended  to  assist  pupils 
preparing  for  the  ordinary  grade  examinations  of  the  City 
and  Guilds  of  London  Institute,  and  its  author— the 
principal  of  the  School  of  Metallurgy  in  connection  with 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


151 


the  Birmingham  and  Midland  Institute — is  to  be  con- 
gratulated on  the  good  work  he  has  done  in  this  con- 
nection. The  book  is  illustrated  with  72  figures,  which  agree 
with  the  simplicity  and  clearness  of  the  diction,  and  ques- 
tions are  found  at  the  end  of  each  chapter,  which  have 
been  well  prepared  to  test  the  learner's  apprehension  of 
its  contents.  We  are  pleased  to  be  able  to  recommend 
this  little  work,  as  a  foundation  for  the  study  of  the 
metallurgy  of  iron  and  steel. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

On  the  Creation  and  Physical  Structure  of  the  Earth. 
By  J.  T.  Harrison,  F.G.S.,  M.Inst.C.E.  (London: 
Longmans,  1889.) 

This  book  brings  to  mind  one  of  the  most  winning  of  the 
vagaries  of  childhood.  A  bright  child  of  an  inquiring 
turn  will  sometimes  sit  with  comical  sedateness  listening 
to  the  talk  of  its  elders.  It  may  afterwards  be  overheard 
repeating  to  one  of  its  playmates,  or  to  some  lucky  adult 
who  has  the  knack  of  winning  its  confidence,  such 
detached  scraps  of  the  conversation  as  have  found  a 
resting-place  in  its  little  brain  ;  and,  conscious  even  at  its 
early  age  of  the  necessity  of  some  continuity  in  a  narra- 
tive, filling  up  the  gaps  with  inventions  or  criticisms  of  its 
own,  charming  every  way,  but  mainly  on  account  of  their 
utter  want  of  connection  with  the  subject  of  the  conver- 
sation which  it  is  attempting  to  report.  So  our  author 
has  listened  to  the  teaching  of  many  geologists,  and  has 
culled  many  detached  passages  from  their  writings  :  these 
he  repeats  to  the  world  in  a  book,  printing  between  them 
omments  and  lucubrations  of  his  own,  about  as  innocent 
ip.d  as  little  apposite  as  the  child's  prattle — hardly  so 
amusing,  however.  The  following  passage  is  a  fair  sample 
of  the  writer's  own  share  in  the  book.  "  The  termination 
of  the  Secondary  Period,  which  introduced  these  altered 
conditions  of  the  surface  of  the  northern  hemisphere,  was 
really  the  commencement  of  what  is  called  the  Glacial 
epoch  in  Europe.  We  have  noted  signs  of  glaciation 
during  the  deposition  of  the  upper  chalk  in  India  and 
North  America,  but  now  the  conditions  which  induced  that 
glaciation  are  extended  in  such  a  manner  as  to  unite 
these  districts,  and  produce  that  enormous  accumulation 
of  snow  and  ice  at  the  North  Pole,  the  weight  of  which  in 
the  Miocene  epoch  depressed  the  crust  in  that  region 
and  upheaved  the  mighty  mountain  ranges  to  which  I 
have  just  referred. " 

The  book  bristles  with  cataclysms  and  catastrophes. 
The  shifting  of  a  thin  crust  on  an  internal  nucleus  which 
it  does  not  fit,  and  incessant  protrusions  of  granite,  are 
invoked  to  account  for  phenomena  which  every-day 
people  still  persist  in  thinking  are  satisfactorily  explained 
by  every-day  causes.  But  the  author  is  one  born  out 
of  due  time — two  centuries  too  late.  How  he  and  Burnet 
would  have  enjoyed  a  crack  together  !  But  there  is  this 
to  be  said,  the  "  Sacred  Theory  of  the  Earth"  is  Burnet's 
own  :  the  staple  of  the  present  work  consists  of  extracts 
from  the  works  of  others.  The  mottoes  are  verses  from 
the  first  chapter  of  Genesis,  but  their  relevancy  to  the 
subject-matter  of  the  chapters  which  they  head  is  not 
obvious.  A.  H.  G. 

Through  Atolls  and  Islands  in  the  Great  South  Sea. 
By  F.  J.   Moss.     (London:  Sampson  Low,  1889.) 

Mr.  Moss — a  member  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
New  Zealand — started  from  Auckland,  in  September  1886, 
in  the  schooner  Buster,  for  a  voyage  among  the  islands 
and  islets  of  "  the  outer  lagoon  world."  He  was  absent 
seven  months,  and  during  that  period  he  crossed  the 
equator  six  times,  and  visited  more  than  forty  islands 
among    the    least   frequented   groups.     In    the    present 


volume  he  sums  up  the  impressions  produced  upon  him 
by  what  he  saw  and  heard  in  the  course  of  his  voyage. 
Mr.  Moss,  in  dealing  with  matters  which  really  interest 
him,  shows  that  he  is  an  accurate  observer  and  a  man 
of  sound  judgment.  His  style,  although  plain  and 
unpretending,  is  well  fitted  for  the  task  he  has  fulfilled. 
The  best  parts  of  the  book  are  those  in  which  he  tries  to 
convey  some  idea  of  the  daily  life  led  by  those  natives 
whose  customs  he  had  an  opportunity  of  studying.  He 
appreciates  warmly  some  aspects  of  the  various 
Polynesian  types  of  character,  but  thinks  that  the  people 
are  likely  to  degenerate  rapidly,  unless  they  can  be 
provided  with  a  better  class  of  native  teachers  than  most 
of  those  to  whom  the  duty  of  guiding  them  is  now 
intrusted.  What  is  needed,  he  thinks,  is,  that  the  is- 
landers shall  have  in  their  work  and  in  their  amusements 
freer  scope  for  the  imaginative  powers  with  which  they 
are  endowed,  and  the  exercise  of  which  is  too  often 
foolishly  discouraged.  Everything  Mr.  Moss  has  to  say 
on  this  subject  deserves  the  serious  consideration  of  those 
to  whom  his  warnings  and  counsels  are  either  directly  or 
indirectly  addressed. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  TTie  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

Who  Discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  ? 

In  Nature  of  November  I4(p.  31),  Profs.  Flower  and  Latter 
criticise  my  note  which  appeared  the  week  previous  (November 
7,  p.  11),  concerning  the  discovery  of  teeth  in  the  young  Orni- 
thorhynchtis.  They  promptly  dismiss  my  claim  that  Sir  Everard 
Home  discovered  the  teeth  of  the  young  Ornithorhynchus,  by 
stating  that  the  structures  described  and  figured  by  Sir  Everard 
are  the  well-known  cornules  of  the  adult  animal. 

If  they  will  take  the  trouble  to  turn  to  the  plate  cited  by  me — 
namely,  Plate  lix.  of  the  second  volume  of  Home's  "  Lectures," 
1814 — and  will  read  the  accompanying  explanation,  they  will  see 
that  Home  was  familiar  with  the  teeth  of  both  the  young  and  the 
old  animal. 

For  the  benefit  of  those  whc  may  not  have  access  to  Home's 
"Lectures,"  I  here  reproduce  outline  tracings  of  two  of  his 
finjures.  Plate  lix.  Fig.  2,  shows  the  teeth  of  the  young  Orni- 
thorhynchus— the  "first  set,"  as  Home  says,  "to  show  that 
there  are  two  grinding  teeth  on  each  side."  The  next  figure  is 
a  similar  tracing  from  the  succeeding  plate  in  Home's  "  Lectures  " 
(Plate  Ix.),  which  represents,  to  again  use  Home's  words,  "the 
under  jaw  of  the  full-grown  Ornithorhynchus  paradoxus,  to 
show  that  there  is  only  one  grinder  on  each  side."  Both  of 
these  figures  are  natural  size. 

In  thevface  of  these/a^/j-,  further  comment  seems  unnecessary. 

I  admit,  of  course,  that  Home  did  not  discover  the  chemical 
composition  of  the  teeth  of  the  young  animal — this  was  Poul ton's 
discovery.  C.  Hart  Merriam. 

Washington,  D.C.,  November  30. 

[We  do  not  reproduce  the  outlines  sent,  as  anyone  interested 
in  the  subject  may  see  the  originals,  not  only  in  Home's  "  Com- 
parative Anatomy,"  but  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions,  where 
they  first  appeared. — Ed.  Nature.] 


I  SHOULD  be  very  sorry  to  deny  the  credit  of  any  discovery 
to  Sir  Everard  Home,  or  anyone  else,  if  any  evidence  could 
be  shown  of  its  having  been  made.  Of  the  figures  cited  by  Dr. 
Hart  Merriam,  that  of  the  younger  animal  seems  (as  far  as  can  be 
judged  from  the  roughly  executed  engraving,  with  the  assistance 
of  the  descriptive  text)  to  represent  the  homy  plates,  showing 
the  hollows  from  which  the  true  teeth  have  recently  fallen ;  that 
of  the  old  specimen,  the  same  plates  after  they  are  fully  grown, 
and  their  surfaces  worn  down  by  attrition.  This  difference  led 
Home  to  conjecture  that  these  plates  were  changed  during  the 
growth  of  the  animal — a  view  which  was  corrected  by  Owen 
("Comp.  Anat.  of  Vertebrates,"  vol.  iii.  p.  272),  by  the  statement 


152 


NATURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


that  "  each  division  or  tubercle  of  the  [horny]  molar  is  separately 
developed,  and  they  become  confluent  in  the  Course  of  growth." 
By  the  way,  no  one  can  have  been  better  acquainted  with  the 
work  of  Home  than  his  successor  in  the  Hunterian  Chair,  Sir 
Richard  Owen  ;  and  yet,  in  his  numerous  references  to  this 
subject  (Art.  "  Monotremata,"  "Cyclop.  Anat.  and  Physio- 
logy"; "Odontography";  "Comp.  Anat.  of  Vertebrates,"  &c.), 
no  trace  is  shown  of  any  knowledge  of  a  discovery  which  could 
not  have  failed  to  have  interested  him,  if  it  had  been  made 
before  his  time. 

If  a  cursory  perusal  of  Sir  Everard  Home's  first  account  of 
the  mouth  of  the  Ornithorhynchus  (in  the  Philosophical  Trans- 
actions for  1800),  or  any  interpretation  placed  upon  his  figures, 
might  lead  anyone  to  infer,  with  Dr.  Merriam,  that  the  real 
teeth  of  the  young  animal  had  been  discovered  at  that  time, 
the  best  possible  authority  may  be  conclusively  cited  against 
such  an  idea,  no  other  than  that  of  Home  himself,  who,  in  his 
later  description  of  the  same  specimen  ("  Lectures  on  Compara- 
tive Anatomy,"  1814),  describes  the  organs  in  question  as  "the 
first  set  of  cuticular teeth" — an  expression  quite  incompatible  with 
their  being  the  teeth  described  by  Mr.  Poulton  and  Mr.  Oldfield 
Thomas.  It  really  seems  superfluous  to  have  to  remind  a 
zoologist  of  such  high  repute  as  Dr.  Hart  Merriam  that  the 
difference  between  teeth  with  the  structure  and  mode  of  growth 
which  characterize  these  organs  in  the  Mammalia  generally, 
and  the  horny  epithelial  plates  of  Ornithorhynchus,  is  not  merely 
one  of  "  chemical  composition."  W.  H.  Flower. 


The  Pigment  of  the  Touraco  and  the  Tree  Porcupine. 

Attention  has  been  lately  again  directed  to  the  red  pigment 
in  the  wing  feathers  of  the  touraco,  which  has  been  stated  by 
several  observers  to  be  soluble  in  pure  water.  Prof.  Church, 
who  was  the  first  to  experiment  upon  this  pigment  ( The  Student, 
vol.  i.,  1868  ;  Phil.  Trans.,  1869),  quotes  Mr.  Tegetmeier  and 
others,  to  the  effect  that  this  pigment  can  be  washed  out  of  the 
feathers  by  water.  Later,  M.  Verreaux  (Proc.  Zool.  Soc,  1871) 
confirmed  these  statements  from  his  own  experiments  while 
travelling  in  South  Africa  ;  attempting  to  catch  one  of  these  birds 
whose  feathers  were  sodden  with  rain,  he  found  that  the  colour 
stained  his  hands  "blood-red."  A  few  years  ago  Prof.  Kruken- 
berg  ("  Vergl.  Phys.  Studien  ")  took  up  the  study  of  turacin — as 
Prof.  Church  termed  the  pigment — and  added  some  details  of 
importance  to  Prof.  Church's  account ;  Krukenberg,  however, 
contradicted  certain  of  the  statements  quoted  by  Church  with 
reference  to  the  solubility  of  turacin  in  pure  water,  remarking 
that  the  pigment  in  the  dead  bird  is  insoluble  in  water.  A 
writer  in  the  Standard  of  October  17  is  able  "  partially  to  con- 
firm "  the  assertion  that  turacin  is  soluble  in  pure  water.  Seeing 
that  there  is  some  conflict  of  opinion  with  regard  to  this  matter, 
I  think  it  worth  while  to  state  that  I  found  it  quite  easy  to  ex- 
tract with  tap  water  (warm)  some  of  the  pigment  from  a  spirit- 
preserved  specimen  of  the  bird  ;  only  a  very  small  amount  couid 
be  extracted  in  this  way,  and  the  feathers  were  not  perceptibly 
decolorized  even  after  remaining  in  the  water  for  a  fortnight.  I 
also  experimented  upon  a  feather  just  shed  from  one  of  the  speci- 
mens now  in  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  ;  this  was  steeped 
in  water  for  some  time  without  any  effect  being  visible,  but  after 
a  period  of  two  days  the  water  became  stained  a  very  faint  pink. 

The  touraco,  however,  is  not  a  unique  instance  of  a  terrestrial 
animal  with  an  external  colouring  matter  soluble  in  water.  I 
am  not  aware  whether  other  cases  have  been  recorded,  but  I  find 
a  pigment  of  a  similar  kind  in  a  South  American  tree  porcupine 
{Sphingurus  villosus). 

This  porcupine  has  bright  yellow  spines  which  are  for  the 
most  part  concealed  by  abundant  long  hair.  The  spines  them- 
selves are  parti-coloured,  the  greater  part  being  tinged  with  a 
vivid  yellow  ;  the  tip  is  blackish-brown.  I  was  unable  to  extract 
this  pigment  with  chloroform,  or  with  absolute  alcohol  even 
when  heated  ;  like  so  many  other  colouring  substances  which  are 
insoluble  in  these  fluids,  the  pigment  could  be  extracted  by 
potash  or  ammonia  ;  I  found  also  that  tap  water,  warm  or  cold, 
dissolved  out  the  yellow  colour  ;  the  action  was  slower  than 
when  the  water  was  first  rendered  alkaline  by  the  addition  of 
ammonia,  but,  unlike  the  touraco,  the  pigment  was  nearly,  if 
not  quite,  as  completely  dissolved.  The  skin,  from  which  the 
spines  were  taken,  was  a  dried  skin  of  an  animal  recently  living 
in  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  ;  it  had  not  been  preserved 
in  alcohol  or  treated  in  any  way  which  might  lead  to  the  sup- 
position that  the  pigment  was  chemically  altered.     There   is, 


therefore,  a  considerable  probability  that  in  the  living  animal 
the  pigment  is  also  soluble  in  water.  I  believe  that  this  yellow 
pigment  is  undescribed,  but  I  have  not  yet  completed  my  study 
of  it  ;  in  any  case,  it  is  not  zoofulvin  or  picifulvin,  or  any 
"lipochrome."  Frank  E.  Beddard. 

Exact  Thermometry. 

In  the  account  which  Prof.  Mills  has  given  (Nature,  Decem- 
ber 5,  p.  100)  of  M.  Guillaume's  "  Traite  pratique  de  la  Thermo- 
metrie  de  precision,"  the  permanent  ascent  of  the  zero-point  of 
a  mercurial  thermometer,  after  prolonged  heating  to  a  high  tem- 
perature, is  stated  to  be  due  to  compression  of  the  bulb — rendered 
more  plastic  by  the  high  temperature — by  the  external  atmo- 
spheric pressure. 

The  constant  slow  rise  of  the  zero-point  of  a  thermometer  at 
the  ordinary  temperature  is  mentioned  by  Prof.  Mills  ;  and  the 
late  Dr.  Joule's  observation  of  this  change  in  a  thermometer 
during  twenty-seven  years  is  specially  alluded  to.  It  may,  I 
imagine,  be  taken  for  granted  that  after  the  lapse  of  a  sufficient 
length  of  time — possibly  many  centuries — a  final  state  of  equili- 
brium would  be  attained  ;  and  it  has  always  appeared  to  me 
that  the  effect  of  heating  the  thermometer  to  a  high  temperature 
is  simply  to  increase  the  rate  at  which  this  final  state  is 
approached.  It  is  my  impression  that,  owing  to  the  more  rapid 
cooling  of  the  outer  parts  of  the  bulb  after  it  has  been  blown, 
the  inner  parts  are  in  a  state  of  tension,  as,  to  a  very  exaggerated 
degree,  in  the  Prince  Rupert's  drops  ;  and  that  it  is  the  gradual 
equalization  of  the  tension  throughout  the  glass  that  causes  the 
contraction  ;  in  other  words,  that  the  process  is  one  of  slow 
annealing. 

This  explanation  appears  to  be  supported  by  the  facts — (i) 
that  when  a  thermometer  is  exposed  for  a  long  time  to  a  high 
temperature,  the  zero-point  rises  rapidly  at  first,  then  more  and 
more  slowly,  and  finally  becomes  constant  or  nearly  so  ;  (2)  that 
the  higher  the  temperature  the  more  rapidly  is  this  state  of 
equilibrium  attained.  I  do  not  know  of  any  experimental 
evidence  that  the  rate  of  ascent  is  influenced  by  changes  of 
external  pressure,  and  it  seemed  to  be  desirable  to  test  the 
point. 

In  order  to  do  this  I  have  exposed  three  thermometers,  A,  B, 
and  C,  constructed  by  the  same  maker  and  of  the  same  kind  of 
glass,  to  a  temperature  of  about  280°  for  several  days  in  the  same 
vapour-bath,  under  the  following  conditions : — The  thermo- 
meters were  all  placed  in  glass  tubes  closed  at  the  bottom  (C 
being  suspended  from  above),  and  the  tubes  were  heated  by  the 
vapour  of  boiling  bromonaphthalene.  One  of  the  tubes — that 
containing  thermometer  C — was  exhausted  so  as  to  reduce  the 
exterhal  pressure  on  the  bulb  to  zero  ;  the  others  were  open  to 
the  air.  In  thermometer  A  there  was  a  vacuum  over  the 
mercury,  but  air  was  admitted  into  B  and  C  to  increase  the 
internal  pressure.  Consequently,  the  bulb  of  A  was  exposed  to 
a  resultant  external  pressure  equal  to  the  difference  between  the 
barometric  pressure  and  that  of  the  column  of  mercury  in  the 
stem  of  the  thermometer ;  the  internal  and  external  pressures  on 
the  bulb  of  B  were  approximately  equal ;  lastly,  the  internal 
pressure  on  the  bulb  of  C  was  the  sum  of  the  pressures  of  the 
column  of  mercury  in  the  stem  and  of  the  air  above  it,  while  the 
external  pressure  was  zero. 

The  following  results  were  obtained  : — 


A.     Rise.  B.    Rise.         C.      Rise- 

.      0-15  0"10            -O'lO 

0-35  0-25                 0-40 

..      0-50  0-35                0-30 

o"8o  075  Q-So 

After  an  additional  5  J  hours' 
heating       i'30  no  I'lo 


Zero  before  heating  . . . 
After  2  hours'  heating 


Total  rise  of  zero- point...  I"i5  I'oo  i'20 

The  thermometers  were  heated  until  5  p.m.  each  day,  and 
the  zero-points  read  on  the  following  morning. 

If  the  diminution  of  volume  of  the  thermometer  bulb,  usually 
observed,  were  due  to  external  pressure,  the  zero- point  of  A 
should  have  risen,  that  of  B  should  have  remained  nearly 
stationary,  while  that  of  C  should  have  fallen.  Instead  of  this, 
however,  the  zero-points  of  all  three  thermometers  rose  at  nearly 
the  same  rate ;  therefore  the  yielding  of  the  bulbs  to  pressure^ 
owing  to  the  plasticity  of  the  glass,  if  it  occurred  at  all,  had  no 
sensible  effect  on  the  result.  Sydney  Young. 

University  College,  Bristol,  December  12. 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


Locusts  in  the  Red  Sea. 


I 

^■pA  GREAT  flight  of  locusts  passed  over  the  s.s.  Golconda  on 
^November  25,  1889,  when  she  was  off  the  Great  Hanish  Islands 
in  the  Red  Sea,  in  lat.  13° '56  N.,  and  long.  42°'30  E. 

The  particulars  of  the  flight  may  be  worthy  of  record. 

It  was  first  seen  crossing  the  sun's  disk  at  about  11  a.m.  as  a 
dense  white  flocculent  mass,  travelling  towards  the  north-east  at 
about  the  rate  of  twelve  miles  an  hour.  It  was  observed  at  noon 
by  the  officer  on  watch  as  passing  the  sun  in  the  same  state  of 
density  and  with  equal  speed,  and  so  continued  till  after  2  p.m. 

The  night  took  place  at  so  high  an  altitude  that  it  was  only- 
visible  when  the  locusts  were  between  the  eye  of  the  observer  and 
the  sun  ;  but  the  flight  must  have  continued  a  long  time  after 
2  p.m.,  as  numerous  stragglers  fell  on  board  the  ship  as  late  as 
6  p.m. 

The  course  of  flight  was  across  the  bow  of  the  ship,  which  at 
the  time  was  directed  about  17"  west  of  north,  and  the  flight 
was  evidently  directed  from  the  African  to  the  Arabian  shore  of 
the  Red  Sea. 

The  steamship  was  travelling  at  the  rate  of  thirteen  miles  an 
hour,  and,  supposing  the  host  of  insects  to  have  taken  only  four 
hours  in  passing,  it  must  have  been  about  2000  square  miles  in 
extent. 

Some  of  us  on  board  amused  ourselves  with  the  calculation 
that,  if  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  swarm  were  forty-eight 
miles,  its  thickness  half  a  mile,  its  density  144  locusts  to  a  cubic 
foot,  and  the  weight  of  each  locust  yV  of  an  ounce,  then  it 
wolild  have  covered  an  area  of  2304  square  miles  ;  the  number 
of  insects  would  have  been  24,420  billions;  the  weight  of 
the  mass  42,580,  millions  of  tons  ;  and  our  good  ship  of  6000 
tons  burden  would  have  had  to  make  7,000,000  voyages  to  carry 
this  great  host  of  locusts,  even  if  packed  together  11 1  times  more 
closely  than  they  were  flying. 

Mr.  J.  Wilson,  the  chief  officer  of  the  Golconda,  permits  me 
to  say  that  he  quite  agrees  with  me  in  the  statement  of  the  facts 
given  above.  He  also  states  that  on  the  following  morning 
another  flight  was  seen  going  in  the  same  north-easterly  direction 
from  4.15  a.m.  to  5  a.m.  It  was  apparently  a  stronger  brood 
and  more  closely  packed,  and  appeared  like  a  heavy  black  cloud 
on  the  horizon. 

The  locusts  were  of  a  red  colour,  were  about  2\  inches  long, 
and  ^\,  of  an  ounce  in  weight.  G,  T.  Carruthers. 


NATURE 


153 


A  Marine  Millipede. 

It  may  interest  "  D.  W.  T.  "  (Nature,  December  5,  p.  104) 
to  know  that  Geophihis  maritinncs  is  found  under  stones  and 
sea-weeds  on  the  shore  at  or  near  Plymouth,  and  recorded  in  my 
"Fauna  of  Devon,"  Section  "  Myriopoda,"  &c.,  1874,  published 
in  the  Transactions  of  the  Devonshire  Association  for  the 
Advancement  of  Literature,  Science,  and  Art,  1874.  This 
species  was  not  known  to  Mr.  Newport  when  his  monograph 
was  written  (Linn.  Trans.,  vol.  xix.,  1845).  Dr.  Leach  has 
given  a  very  good  figure  of  this  species  in  the  Zoological 
Miscellany,  vol.  iii.  pi.  140,  Figs.  I  and  2,  and  says  :  "  Habitat 
in  Britannia  inter  scopulos  ad  littora  maris  vulgatissime."  But, 
so  far  as  my  observations  go,  I  should  say  it  is  a  rare  species. 
See  Zoologist,  1866,  p.  7,  for  further  observations  on  this 
animal.  Edward  Parfitt. 

Exeter,  December  9,  1889. 


Proof  of  the  Parallelogram  of  Forces. 

The  objection  to  Duchayla's  proof  of  the  "parallelogram  of 
forces "  is,  I  suppose,  admitted  by  all  mathematicians.  To 
base  the  fundamental  principle  of  the  equilibrium  of  a  particle 
on  the  "  transmissibility  of  force,"  and  thus  to  introduce  the 
conception  of  a  rigid  body,  is  certainly  the  reverse  of  logical  pro- 
cedure. The  substitute  for  this  proof  which  finds  most  favour 
with  modern  writers  is,  of  course,  that  depending  on  the 
"  parallelogram  of  accelerations."  But  this  is  open  to  almost 
as  serious  objections  as  the  other.  For  it  introduces  kinetic 
ideas  which  are  really  nowhere  again  used  in  statics.  I 
should  therefore  propose  the  following  proof,  which  depends  on 
very  elementary  geometrical  propositions.  The  general  order  of 
argument  resembles  that  of  Laplace. 

I  adopt  the  "  triangular  "  instead  of  the  "  parallelogrammic  " 
form.  Thus,  if  PQ,  QR  represent  in  length  and  direction  any 
directed  magnitudes  whatever,  and,  if  these  have  a  single  eqiii- 
zalent,  that  single  equivalent  will  be  represented  by  PR. 


To  prove  that  the  equivalent  of  PQ,  QK  is  PR. 

(i)  The  equivalent  of  two  perpendicular  lengths  is  equal 
length  to  their  hypothenuse. 

For,  draw  AD  perpendicular  to  hypothenuse  EC. 


Fig.  I. 

Then,  let  BD,  DA  =  k  .  BA,  making  angle  e  with  BA 
towards  BD. 

Then,  by  similar  triangles,  AD,  DC  =  >^  .  AC,  making  angle 
e  with  AC  towards  AD. 

But  these  equivalents  are  at  right  angles,  and  proportional  to 
BA  and  AC.  Hence,  their  equivalent,  by  similar  triangles,  is 
P  .  BC  along  BC. 

But  BD,  DA,  AD,  DC  =  BC.     .:  k"^  =  i  ;  .:  k  =  i. 

(2)  If  theorem  holds  for  right-angled  triangle  containing 
angle  0,  it  holds  for  right-angled  triangle  containing  hB. 

For,  let  ACD  =  6,  where  D  is  90°.  Produce  DC  "to  B,  such 
thatCB^CA.     ThenABD  =  Ae. 


Fig. 


Then  assume  CD,  DA  =  CA.  Add  BC.  . '.  BD,  DA'= 
BC,  CA. 

But  BD,  DA  =  BA  in  magnitude  by  (l)  ;  and  BC,  CA 
has  its  equivalent  along  BA,  •.  •  BC  =  C A.  .  *.  BD,  DA  =  BA, 
both  in  magnitude  and  direction. 

(3)  If  the  theorem  holds  for  6  and  (p,  it  holds  for  0  -f  <^.  1      '■- 

For  make  the  well-known  projection  construction.     Thus — 


Fig.  3. 

OP  =  OQ,  QP  =  ON,  NQ,  QR,  RP  =  OM,  MP. 

(4)  Finally,  by  (i),  theorem  holds  for  isosceles  right-angled 
triangle  ;  .  *.  by  (2)  it  holds  for  right-angled  triangle  containing 
angle  90°  ^  2"  ;  . '.  by  (3)  it  holds  for  right-angled  triangle  con- 
taining angle  ?n.  90°  -^  2"  :  i.e.  for  any  angle  (as  may  be  shown, 
if  considered  necessary,  by  the  method  for  incommensurables  in 
Duchayla's  proof). 

Hence,  if  AD  be  perpendicular  on  BC  in  any  triangle, 


BA,  AC  =  BD,  DA,  AD,  AC  =  BC. 


Q.E.D. 


W.  E.  Johnson. 
Llandaff  House,  Cambridge,  November  12. 


154 


NATURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


Glories. 

Mr.  James  McConnel  asks  in  Nature  (vol.  xl.  p.  594) 
for  acccounts  of  the  colours  and  angular  dimensions  of  glories. 
I  saw  a  good  instance  of  the  phenomenon  on  Lake  Superior, 
June  17,  1888,  and,  having  had  my  attention  called  to  the  value 
of  accurate  descriptions  in  such  cases  by  Mr.  Henry  Sharpe's 
"  Brocken  Spectres,"  I  examined  it  carefully. 

The  shadow  of  my  head  on  the  mist  was  surrounded  by  a 
brilliant  halo  or  glory,  .slaty-white  around  the  head,  followed  by 
orange  and  red  ;  then  a  circle  of  blue,  green,  and  red,  and  the 
same  colours  repeated  more  faintly.  The  diameter  of  the 
innermost  and  brightest  circle  of  red,  as  measured  on  the 
graduated  semicircle  of  a  clinometer,  was  4|°.  There  was  also 
a  very  distinct,  but  nearly  white,  fog-bow  outside,  of  42°  radius, 
as  measured  in  the  same  way.  A.  P.  Coleman. 

Faraday  Hall,  Victoria  University,  Cobourg,  Ontario. 


Fossil  Rhizocarps. 

Referring  to  Sir  William  Dawson's  note  on  this  subject  in 
Nature  of  November  7  (p.  10),  we  regret  that  we  have  been 
unable  to  trace  the  original  source  from  which  the  statement  in 
our  "  Hand-book  of  Cryptogamic  Botany  "  was  derived,  relative 
to  the  fructification  of  Protosalvinia  or  Sporangites.  The  sentence 
will  therefore,  with  apologies  to  Sir  W.  Dawson,  be  removed 
from  future  editions  of  the  work. 

Alfred  W.  Bennett. 

The  Arc-Light. 

Would  you  or  any  of  your  readers  kindly  tell  me  where  I 
may  find  an  account  of  any  of  the  latest  methods  of  determining 
the  back  E.M.F.  of  the  arc-light?  Joseph  McGrath. 

Mount  Sidney,  Wellington  Place,  Dublin. 


THE  HYDERABAD    CHLOROFORM 
COMMISSION. 

nPHE   appointment  of   a  Commission   at   the   present 
-^       time  to  investigate  the  action  of  chloroform  as  an 
anaesthetic  might  to  many  seem  an  anomaly.     For  the 
use  of  chloroform  as  an  anaesthetic  was  introduced  over 
forty  years  ago:  it  was  in  November,  1847,  that   Prof. 
Simpson,  of  Edinburgh,  first  brought  this  valuable  agent 
before  the  medical  profession.      Since  that  time,  the  use 
of  chloroform  has  enormously   extended,  especially    in 
our  country,  and  although  there  are  other  valuable  agents 
of  the  same  class— such  as  ether  and  nitrous-oxide  gas — 
yet  there  is  a  universality  of  opinion  that  the  employment 
of  chloroform  has   in  many  cases  a  special  advantage. 
Considering  the  extensive  use  of  the  agent,  and  the  pro- 
gress which  has  been  made  of  late  years  in  the  study  of 
the  action  of  drugs  in  man,  it  certainly  is  surprising  that 
the  knowledge  of  the  effect  of  chloroform  on  the  different 
parts  and  organs  of  the  body  is  not  complete.     This  is 
not  altogether  from  want   of  attention  to  the   subject ; 
because,  previous  to  the  Hyderabad  Commission,  at  least 
two  Commissions  were  appointed  with  the  view  of  investi- 
gating the  action  of  chloroform  and  its  occasional  serious 
effects.  These  Commissions  were  appointed  by  the  Royal 
Medical  and  Chirurgical  Society  of  London,  and  by  the 
British   Medical  Association,  and    they  were  composed 
of  men  who,  from   their  knowledge    of  experiment  and 
acquaintance  with  practical  medicine,  were  competent  to 
discuss  the  question.  The  two  Commissions  arrived  at  the 
same   conclusions   as  the  distinguished  French  man   of 
science,  Claude  Bernard,  had  published  years  before,  and 
these  conclusions  tallied  with  the  teaching  of  the  great 
London  medical  schools. 

Chloroform  and  other  anaesthetic  agents  have  a  peculiar 
position  :  they  are  powerful  drugs  used,  not  for  disease 
itself,  but  for  the  purpose  of  allowing  an  operation  to  be 
performed,  preventing  the  pain  which  would  otherwise 
be  felt,  and  relaxing  the  contraction  and  sparms  of  the 
muscles,  so  that  the  surgeon  can  more  readily  and  accu- 


rately operate.  The  administration  of  the  anaesthetic  is 
something,  then,  outside  the  diseased  condition  ;  so  that 
its  use  ought  theoretically  to  be  perfectly  harmless  to  the 
sick  person.  Unfortunately  it  is  not  always  so,  and 
deaths  from  chloroform  are,  although  rare,  by  no  means 
unknown.  The  administrator  of  chloroform  is  therefore 
a  person  of  great  responsibility  :  he  has  to  watch  carefully 
the  effect  of  the  agent  on  the  patient,  to  notice  any 
unfavourable  change  that  occurs,  and  to  adopt  measures 
to  counteract  any  bad  effects  which  appear.  The 
knowledge  of  the  mode  in  which  chloroform  causes 
danger  to  the  life  of  the  patient  is  therefore  of  vast  im- 
portance ;  for,  if  the  administrator  knows  the  signs  of 
danger,  there  is  more  likelihood  of  counteracting  a  fatal 
result.  These  fatal  results,  which  are  among  the  saddest 
that  occur  in  medical  practice,  ought,  if  possible,  to  be 
avoided. 

What,  then,  is  the  danger  to  life  of  chloroform  ?  Or,  to 
speak  more  fully,  what  particular  part  of  the  body  does 
chloroform  injuriously  affect  when  there  is  danger  ?  This  is 
just  the  point  that  the  various  Commissions  have  attempted 
to  settle.  In  the  Scotch  schools,  more  especially  that  of 
Edinburgh,  it  has  been  taught  that  the  great  danger  of 
chloroform  was  in  failure  of  respiration  ;  meaning  by  this 
that  the  danger-signal  of  chloroform  was  the  stoppage  or 
irregularity  of  the  breathing.  As  a  corollary  to  this  belief, 
it  was  considered  that  the  heart  was  only  affected  after 
the  breathing  had  become  interfered  with  ;  that,  in  fact, 
the  respiration  stopping,  the  blood  was  not  oxygenated, 
so  the  heart  stopped  beating.  This  was  the  teaching  of 
the  great  Edinburgh  surgeon,  Syme.  The  English  (and 
especially  the  London)  teaching  was  almost  directly 
opposed  to  this.  It  was  taught,  and  is  still  taught  in  the 
London  schools,  that  the  great  danger  from  chloroform 
arose  from  its  effect  on  the  heart,  which  stopped  beating 
before  the  respiration  ceased.  Which,  then,  of  these  two 
doctrines  is  true,  or  are  both  true  ? 

The  decision  of  this  question  is,  as  we  have  stated,  one 
of  vast  importance  ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that, 
whichever  is  right,  the  administrator  of  anaesthetics  always 
pays  attention  to  both  the  beating  of  the  heart  and  the 
regularity  of  the  respiration.  Surgeon-Major  Lawrie,  one 
of  the  prominent  members  of  the  Hyderabad  Chloroform 
Commission,  says  that  "it  is  possible  to  avert  all  risk  to 
the  heart  by  devoting  the  entire  attention  to  the  respiration 
during  chloroform  administration."  Medical  opinion  in 
England,  both  of  that  of  experts  (professional  aneesthetists) 
and  of  the  general  profession,  is  distinctly  opposed  to  this 
view  ;  and  the  administrator  who  does  not  attend  to  the 
pulse,  as  well  as  to  the  breathing,  is  certainly  neglecting 
one  of  the  main  paths  by  which  Nature  shows  us  what  is 
going  on  inside  the  organism. 

From   the   statement   of    Surgeon-Major   Lawrie  just 
quoted,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  Hyderabad  Chloroform 
Commission  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  danger  from 
the  administration  arose,  not  from  the  heart,  but  from  the 
respiration.    This  view  was  strongly  combated  in  our  con- 
temporary, the  Lancet.      The  importance  of  the  question 
led  the  Nizam  of  Hyderabad  to  obtain  the  services  of  a 
scientific  medical  man  from  England  to  go  out  to  India 
and  attempt  to  settle  the  question.     Dr.  Lauder  Brunton, 
F.R.S.,  consented  to  go  ;  and,  well  known  as  he  is  for  his 
life-long  devotion  to  the  experimental  investigation  of  the 
action  of  remedies  and  their  practical  appHcation,  it  was 
considered  probable  that  his  aid  in  the  research  would 
lead   to    interesting  and   important   results.     From   the 
somewhat  scanty  news  of  the  results  which  have  been 
telegraphed  to  England,  it  seems  likely  that  the  investi- 
gation   now    progressing    at    Hyderabad    will    tend    to 
revolutionize  existing  views  as  to  the  action  of  chloroform. 
Dr.  Brunton's  views  as  regards  the  dangers  of  chloro- 
form before  he  left  England  were  clearly  expressed  in  his 
well-known  "  Text-book  of  Pharmacology."     In  it  he  says 
that   "  the  dangers   resulting   from    the    employment  of 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


155 


chloroform  are  death  by  stoppage  of  respiration  and 
death  by  stoppage  of  the  heart ;  "  he  lays  as  much  stress 
on  the  effect  on  the  heart  as  on  the  respiration,  and  he 
proceeds  to  affirm  that  too  strong  chloroform  vapour 
may  very  quickly  paralyze  the  heart.  This  view  is,  in- 
deed, similar  to  the  one  we  have  already  mentioned  as 
taught  in  the  London  schools  of  medicine.  It  is  also 
well  known  that  death  may  occur  soon  after  chloroform 
has  begun  to  be  administered,  from  the  heart  being 
affected.  If  the  operation  is  begun  too  soon,  fainting 
from  pain  may  supervene,  and  a  fatal  result  occur :  this 
has  always  been  strongly  insisted  upon  by  Dr.  Brunton. 
Surgeon-Major  Lawrie  says  that  in  such  cases  it  is  not 
the  chloroform  that  acts  on  the  heart,  but  simply  that 
there  is  fatal  syncope  or  fainting. 

From  the  large  number  of  experiments  on  animals 
which  Dr.  Brunton  has  performed  in  India,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  the  Hyderabad  Commission  and  a  medical 
delegate  of  the  Indian  Government,  it  appears  that  the 
"  danger  from  chloroform  is  asphyxia  or  an  overdose  ;  " 
there  is  none  whatever  from  the  heart  direct.  This  state- 
ment is  a  distinct  reversal  of  the  view  generally  held  in 
England.  It  means  that  chloroform  causes  a  fatal  result 
by  affecting  the  respiration  or  by  too  much  being  taken 
into  the  system  and  affecting  the  brain  ;  and  that  there 
is  no  direct  paralysis  of  the  heart  from  the  chloroform. 
A  perfectly  impartial  opinion  cannot,  however,  be  formed 
from  the  scanty  records  of  the  investigation  which  have 
been  as  yet  received  in  England.  We  must  wait  for 
fuller  details  of  the  experiments  before  a  final  judgment 
can  be  passed. 

It  is  well,  however,  to  point  out  that  the  prevailing  view 
in  England  has  been  founded,  not  only  on  experiments  on 
the  lower  animals,  but  also  on  the  extended  clinical  ob- 
servation of  two  generations  of  medical  men.  Clinical 
observation  is  not  so  accurate  or  so  lucid  as  that  of  direct 
experiment,  but  it  has  its  value,  and  one  by  no  means  to 
be  despised  in  a  case  where  it  is  so  extensive,  and 
directed  to  a  subject  of  such  great  importance,  not  only 
to  the  medical  profession,  but  to  the  general  public,  as 
the  question  of  the  administration  of  chloroform. 


ON  THE  CA  VENDISH  EXPERIMENT. 

T  N  the  last  number  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal 
-*■  Society  (vol.  xlvi.  p.  253),  I  have  given  an  account  of 
the  improvements  that  I  have  made  in  the  apparatus  of 
Cavendish  for  measuring  the  constant  of  gravitation. 
■As  the  principles  and  some  of  the  details  there  set  out 
apply  very  generally  to  other  experiments  where  extremely 
minute  forces  have  to  be  measured,  it  is  possible  that  an 
abstract  of  this  paper  may  be  of  sufficient  interest  to  find 
a  place  in  the  columns  of  Nature. 

In  the  original  experiment  of  Cavendish  (Phil.  Trans., 
1798,  p.  469),  as  is  well  known,  a  pair  of  small  masses, 
mm  (Fig.  i),  carried  at  the  two  ends  of  a  very  long  but 
light  torsion  rod,  are  attracted  towards  a  pair  of  large 
masses,  M  M,  thus  deflecting  the  arm  until  the  torsion  of 
the  suspending  wire  gives  rise  to  a  moment  equal  to  that 
due  to  the  attraction.  The  large  masses  are  then  placed 
on  the  other  side  of  the  small  ones,  as  shown  by  the 
dotted  circles,  and  the  new  position  of  rest  of  the  torsion 
arm  is  determined.  Half  the  angle  between  the  two 
positions  of  rest  is  the  deflection  produced  by  the  attract- 
ing masses.  The  actual  force  which  must  be  applied  to 
the  balls  to  produce  this  deflection,  can  be  directly 
determined  in  dynamical  units  when  the  period  of  oscilla- 
tion and  the  dimensions  and  masses  of  the  moving  parts 
are  known.  In  the  original  experiment  of  Cavendish, 
the  arm  is  6  feet  long,  the  little  masses  are  balls  of  lead 
2  inches  in  diameter,  and  large  ones  are  lead  balls  i  foot 
in  diameter.  Since  the  attraction  of  the  whole  earth  on 
the  smaller  balls  only  produces  their  weight,  i.e.  the  force 


with  which  they  are  attracted  downwards,  it  is  evident 
that  the  balls,  M  M,  which  are  insignificant  in  com- 
parison with  the  size  of  the  earth,  can  only  exert 
an  extremely  feeble  attraction.  So  small  is  this  that  it 
can  only  be  detected  when  the  beam  is  entirely  inclosed 
in  a  case  to  protect  it  from  draughts  ;  when,  further,  the 
whole  apparatus  is  placed  in  a  room  into  which  no  one 
must  enter,  because  the  heat  of  the  body  would  warm  the 
case  unevenly,  and  so  set  up  air  currents  which  would 
have  far  more  influence  than  the  whole  attraction  to  be 
measured  ;  and  when,  finally,  the  period  of  oscillation  is 
made  very  great,  as,  for  instance,  five  to  fifteen  minutes. 
In  order  to  realize  how  small  must  be  the  force  that  will 
only  just  produce  an  observable  displacement  of  the 
balls,  mm^  it  is  sufficient  to  remember  that  the  force 
which  brings  them  back  to  their  position  of  rest  is  the 
same  as  the  corresponding  force  in  the  case  of  a  pendulum 
which  swings  at  the  same  rate.  Now  a  pendulum  that 
would  swing  backwards  and  forwards  in  five  minutes  would 
have  to  be  about  20,000  metres  long,  so  that  in  this  case 
a  deflection  of  one  millimetre  would  be  produced  by  a 
force  equal  to  1/20,000,000  of  the  weight  of  the  bob.  In 
the  case  of  a  pendulum  swinging  backwards  and  for- 
wards once  in  fifteen  minutes  the  corresponding  force 
would  be  nine  times  as  small,  or  1/180,000,000  of  the 
weight. 

In  spite  of  the  very  small  value  of  the  constant  of 
gravitation,  Cavendish  was  able,  by  making  the  appa- 
ratus on  this  enormous  scale,  to  obtain  a  couple  which 


Fig.  I. 

would  produce  a  definite  deflection  against  the  torsion  of 
his  suspending  wire. 

These  measures  were  repeated  by  Reich  {Comptes 
rendus,  1837,  p.  697),  and  then  by  Baily  {Phil.  Mag.,  1842, 
vol.  xxi.  p.  1 1 1),  who  did  not  in  any  important  particular 
improve  upon  the  apparatus  of  Cavendish,  except  in  the 
use  of  a  mirror  for  observing  the  movements  of  the 
beam. 

Cornu  and  Bailie  {Comptes  rendus,  vol.  Ixxvi.  p,  954,  vol. 
Ixxxvi,  pp.  571,  699,  looi)  have  modified  the  apparatus 
with  satisfactory  results.  In  the  first  place  they  have 
reduced  the  dimensions  of  all  the  parts  to  about  one- 
quarter  of  the  original  amount.  Their  beam,  an  aluminium 
tube,  is  only  ^  metre  long,  and  it  carries  at  its  ends 
masses  of  \  pound  each,  instead  of  about  2  pounds,  as 
used  by  Cavendish.  This  reduction  of  the  dimensions 
to  about  one-quarter  of  those  used  previously  is  con- 
sidered by  them  to  be  one  of  the  advantages  of  their 
apparatus,  because,  as  they  say,  in  apparatus  geometri- 
cally siniilar,  if  the  period  of  oscillation  is  unchanged, 
the  sensibility  is  independent  of  the  mass  of  the  sus- 
pended balls,  and  is  inversely  as  the  linear  dimensions. 
I  do  not  quite  follow  this,  because,  as  I  shall  show,  if  all 
the  dimensions  are  increased  or  diminished  together,  the 
sensibility  will  be  unchanged.  If  only  the  length  of  the 
beam  is  altered  and  the  positions  of  the  large  attracting 
masses,  so  that  they  remain  opposite  to,  and  the  same 
distance  from,  the  ends  of  the  beam,  then  the  sensibility 
is  inversely  as  the  length.  This  mistake — for  mistake  it 
surely  is — is  repeated  in  Jamin's  "  Cours  de  Physique," 
tome  iv.  ed.  iv.  p.  18,  where,  moreover,  it  is  emphasized 
by  being  printed  in  italics. 

The   other    improvements  introduced   by  Cornu  and 


156 


NA  TURE 


{Dec.  19,  1889 


Bailie  are  the  use  of  mercury  for  the  attracting  masses 
which  can  be  drawn  from  one  pair  of  vessels  to  the  other 
by  the  observer  without  his  coming  near  the  apparatus, 
the  use  of  a  metal  case  connected  with  the  earth  to  prevent 
electrical  disturbances,  and  the  electrical  registration  of 
the  movements  of  the  index  on  the  scale,  which  they 
placed  560  centimetres  from  the  mirror. 

The  great  difficulty  that  has  been  met  with  has  been 
the  perpetual  shifting  of  the  position  of  rest,  due  partly 
to  the  imperfect  elasticity  or  fatigue  of  the  torsion  wires, 
but  chiefly,  as  Cavendish  proved  experimentally,  to  the 
enormous  effects  of  air-currents  set  up  by  temperature 
differences  in  the  box,  which,  with  large  apparatus,  it  is 
impossible  to  prevent.  In  every  case  the  power  of  ob- 
serving was  in  excess  of  the  constancy  of  the  effect 
actually  produced.  The  observations  of  Cornu  are  the 
only  ones  which  are  comparable  in  accuracy  with  other 
physical  measurements,  and  these,  as  far  as  the  few 
figures  given  enable  one  to  judge,  show  a  very  remarkable 
agreement  between  values  obtained  for  the  same  quantity 
from  time  to  time. 

Soon  after  I  had  made  quartz  fibres,  and  found  their 
value  for  producing  a  very  small  and  constant  torsion,  I 
thought  that  it  might  be  possible  to  apply  them  to  the 
Cavendish  apparatus  with  advantage.  Prof.  Tyndall,  in 
a  letter  to  a  neighbour,  expressed  the  conviction  that  it 
would  be  possible  to  make  a  much  smaller  apparatus  in 
which  the  torsion  should  be  produced  by  a  quartz  fibre. 
The  result  of  an  examination  of  the  theory  of  the  instru- 
ment shows  that  very  small  apparatus  ought  practically 
to  work,  but  that  in  many  particulars  there  is  an  advantage 
in  departing  from  the  arrangement  which  has  always 
been  employed,  conclusions  which  experiment  has  fully 
confirmed. 

As  I  have  already  stated,  the  sensibility  of  the  appa- 
ratus is,  if  the  period  of  oscillation  is  always  the  same, 
independent  of  its  linear  dimensions.  Thus,  if  there  are 
two  instruments  in  which  all  the  dimensions  of  one  are  n 
times  the  corresponding  dimensions  of  the  other,  the 
moment  of  inertia  of  the  beam  and  its  appendages  will  be 
as  tv' :  I,  and,  therefore,  the  torsion  also  must  be  as  «^ :  i. 
The  attracting  masses,  both  fixed  and  movable,  will  be  as 
«''^:i,and  their  distance  apart  as  n:\.  Therefore,  the 
attraction  will  be  as  n'^ltf-  or  «*:  i,  and  this  is  acting  on 
an  arm  n  times  as  long  in  the  large  instrument  as  in  the 
small ;  therefore  the  moment  will  be  as  iv' :  i  ;  that  is,  in 
the  same  proportion  as  the  torsion,  and  so  the  angle  of 
deflection  is  unchanged. 

If,  however,  the  length  of  the  beam  only  is  changed, 
and  the  attracting  masses  are  moved  until  they  are 
opposite  to,  and  a  fixed  distance  from,  the  ends  of  the 
beam,  then  the  moment  of  inertia  will  be  altered  in  the 
ratio  tt^ :  1,  while  the  corresponding  moment  will  only 
change  in  the  ratio  of  ;z  :  i  ;  and  thus  there  is  an  ad- 
vantage in  reducing  the  length  of  the  beam  until  one  of 
two  things  happens  :  either  it  is  difficult  to  find  a  suffi- 
ciently fine  torsion  thread  that  will  safely  carry  the  beam 
and  produce  the  required  period — and  this,  I  believe,  has 
up  to  the  present  time  prevented  the  use  of  a  beam  less 
than  \  metre  in  length — or  else,  when  the  length  becomes 
nearly  equal  to  the  diameter  of  the  attracting  balls,  they 
then  act  with  such  an  increasing  effect  on  the  opposite 
suspended  balls,  so  as  to  tend  to  deflect  the  beam  in  the 
opposite  direction,  that  the  balance  of  effect  begins  to 
fall  short  of  that  which  would  be  due  to  the  reduced 
length  if  the  opposite  ball  did  not  interfere.  Let  this 
shortening  process  be  continued  until  the  line  joining  the 
centres  of  the  masses  M  M  makes  an  angle  of  45°  with  the 
line  7n  m  ;  then,  without  further  moving  the  masses  M  M, 
a  still  greater  degree  of  sensibility  can  be  obtained,  pro- 
vided the  period  remains  unaltered,  by  reducing  the 
length  of  the  beam  7n  m  to  half  its  amount,  so  that  the 
distance  between  the  centres  of  M  M  is  2  \/2  times  the 
new  length  m  m,  at  which  point  a  maximum  is  reached. 


It  might  be  urged  against  this  argument  that  a  diffi- 
culty would  arise  in  finding  a  torsion  fibre  that  would 
give  to  a  very  short  beam,  loaded  with  balls  that  it  will 
safely  carry,  a  period  as  great  as  five  or  ten  minutes,  and 
until  quartz  fibres  existed  there  would  have  been  a  diffi- 
culty in  using  a  beam  much  less  than  a  foot  long,  but 
it  is  now  possible  to  hang  one  only  half  an  inch  long 
and  weighing  from  twenty  to  thirty  grains  by  a  fibre  not 
more  than  a  foot  in  length,  so  as  to  have  a  period  of  five 
minutes.  If  the  moment  of  inertia  of  the  heaviest  beam  of 
a  certain  length  that  a  fibre  will  safely  carry  is  so  small  that 
the  period  is  too  rapid,  then  the  defect  can  be  remedied 
by  reducing  the  weight,  for  then  a  finer  fibre  can  be  used, 
and  since  the  torsion  varies  approximately  as  the  square 
of  the  strength  (not  exactly,  because  fine  fibres  carry 
heavier  weights  in  proportion),  the  torsion  will  be  reduced 
in  a  higher  ratio,  and  so  by  making  the  suspended  parts 
light  enough,  any  slowness  that  may  be  required  may  be 
provided. 

Practically,  it  is  not  convenient  to  use  fibres  much 
less  than  one  ten-thousandth  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  and 
these  have  a  torsion  10,000  times  less  than  that  of 
ordinary  spun  glass.  A  fibre  one  five-thousandth  of  an 
inch  in  diameter  will  carry  a  litde  over  thirty  grains. 

Since  with  such  small  apparatus  as  I  am  now  using  it 
is  easy  to  provide  attracting  masses  which  are  very  large 
in  proportion  to  the  length  of  the  beam,  while  with  large 
apparatus  comparatively  small  masses  must  be  made  use 
of  owing  to  the  impossibility  of  deaUng  with  balls  of  lead 
of  great  size,  it  is  clear  that  much  greater  deflections  can 
be  produced  with  small  than  with  large  apparatus.  For 
instance,  to  get  the  same  effect  in  the  same  time  from  an 
instrument  with  a  6-foot  beam  that  I  get  from  one  in 
which  the  beam  is  five-eighths  of  an  inch  long,  and  the 
attracting  balls  are  2  inches  in  diameter,  it  would  be 
necessary  to  provide  and  deal  with  a  pair  of  balls  each 
25  feet  in  diameter,  and  weighing  730  tons  instead  of 
about  If  pound  apiece.  There  is  the  further  advantage 
in  small  apparatus  that  if  for  any  reason  the  greatest 
possible  effect  is  desired,  attracting  balls  of  gold  would 
not  be  entirely  unattainable,  while  such  small  masses  as 
two  piles  of  sovereigns  could  be  used  where  qualitative 
effects  only  were  to  be  shown.  Owing  to  its  strongly 
magnetic  qualities,  platinum  is  unsuited  for  experiments 
of  this  kind. 

By  far  the  greatest  advantage  that  is  met  with  in  small 
apparatus  is  the  perfect  uniformity  of  temperature  which 
is  easily  obtained,  whereas,  with  apparatus  of  large  size, 
this  alone  makes  really  accurate  work  next  to  impossible. 
The  construction  to  which  this  inquiry  has  led  me,  and 
which  will  be  described  later,  is  especially  suitable  for 
maintaining  a  uniform  temperature  in  that  part  of  the 
instrument  in  which  the  beam  and  mirror  are  suspended. 

With  such  small  beams  as  I  am  now  using  it  is  much 
more  convenient  to  replace  the  long  thin  box  generally 
employed  to  protect  the  beam  from  disturbance  by  a 
vertical  tube  of  circular  section,  in  which  the  beam  with 
its  mirror  can  revolve  freely.  This  has  the  further  ad- 
vantage that,  if  the  beam  is  hung  centrally,  the  attraction 
of  the  tube  produces  no  effect,  and  the  troublesome  and 
approximate  calculations  which  have  been  necessary  to 
find  the  effect  of  the  box  are  no  longer  required.  The 
attracting  weights,  which  must  be  outside  the  tube,  must 
be  made  to  take  alternately  positions  on  the  two  sides  of 
the  beam,  so  as  to  deflect  it  first  in  one  direction  and 
then  in  the  other.  For  this  purpose  they  are  most 
conveniently  fastened  to  the  inside  of  a  larger  metal  tube, 
which  can  be  made  to  revolve  on  an  axis  coincident  with 
the  axis  of  the  smaller  tube.  There  are  obviously  two 
planes,  one  containing  and  one  at  right  angles  to  the 
laeam,  in  which  the  centres  of  the  attracting  balls  will  lie 
when  they  produce  no  deflection.  At  some  intermediate 
position  the  deflection  will  be  a  maximum.  Now,  it  is 
,  a  matter  of  some  importance  to  choose  this  maximum 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


^7 


position  for  the  attracting  masses,  because,  in  showing 
the  experiment  to  an  audience,  the  largest  effect  should 
be  obtained  that  the  instrument  is  capable  of  producing  ; 
while  in  exact  measures  of  the  constant  of  gravitation  this 
position  has  the  further  advantage  that  the  only  measure- 
ment which  there  is  any  difficulty  in  making,  viz.  the 
angle  between  the  line  joining  the  large  masses  and  the 
line  joining  the  small,  which  may  be  called  the  azimuth  of 
the  instrument,  becomes  of  little  consequence  under  these 
circumstances.  In  the  ordinary  arrangement  the  slightest 
uncertainty  in  this  angle  will  produce  a  relatively  large 
uncertainty  in  the  result.  I  have  already  stated  that  if 
an  angle  of  45°  is  chosen,  the  distance  between  the  centres 
of  the  large  balls  should  be  2  sj'2  times  the  length  of  the 
beam,  and  the  converse  of  course  is  true.  As  it  would 
not  be  possible  at  this  distance  to  employ  attracting  balls 
with  a  diameter  much  more  than  one  and  a  half  times 
the  length  of  the  beam,  and  as  balls  much  larger  than  this 
are  just  as  easily  made  and  used,  I  have  found  by  calcula- 
tion what  are  the  best  positions  when  the  centres  of  the 
attracting  balls  are  any  distance  apart. 

If  the  effect  on  the  nearer  ball  only  is  considered,  then 
it  is  easy  to  find  the  best  position  for  any  distance  of  the 
attracting  mass  from  the  axis  of  motion.  Let  P  (Fig.  2) 
be  the^ centre  of  the  attracting  ball,  N  that  of  the  nearer 


Fig.  2. 


attracted  ball,  o  the  axis  of  motion,  c  and  a  the  distances 
of  P  and  N  from  o,  and  x  the  distance  from  N  of  the 
foot  of  the  perpendicular  from  p  on  ON  produced.  Then 
the  moment  of  N  about  O  will  be  greatest  when 

x^  +  ^ JI X  =  2{c^  —  d^), 

or  what  comes  to  the  same  thing  when 

cos^  6  +  ^'  +^'  cos  6  =  z- 
ca 

Now,  as  the  size  of  the  attracting  masses  M  M  is  in- 
creased, or,  as  is  then  necessarily  the  case,  as  the  distance 
of  their  centres  from  the  axis  increases,  their  relative 
action  on  the  small  masses  m  m  at  the  opposite  ends  of 
the  beam  increases,  and  so  but  a  small  fraction  of  the 
advantage  is  obtained,  which  the  large  balls  would  give 
if  they  acted  only  upon  the  small  balls  on  their  own  side. 
For  instance,  if  the  distance  between  the  centres  of  M  M 
is  five  times  the  length  of  the  beam,  the  moment  due  to 
the  attraction  on  the  opposite  small  balls  is  nearly  half 
as  great  as  that  on  the  near  balls,  so  that  the  actual 
sensibility  is  only  a  little  more  than  half  that  which  would 
be  obtained  if  the  cross  action  could  be  prevented. 

I  have  practically  overcome  this  difficulty  by  arranging 


the  two  sides  of  the  apparatus  at  different  levels.  Each 
large  mass  is  at  or  nqar  the  same  level  as  the  neighbour- 
ing small  one,  but  one  pair  is  removed  from  the  level  of 
the  other  by  about  the  diameter  of  the  large  masses 
which  in  the  apparatus  figured  below  is  nearly  five  times 
as  great  as  the  distance  in  plan  between  the  two  small 
masses. 

In  order  to  realize  more  fully  the  effect  of  a  variety  of 
arrangements,  I  have,  for  my  own  satisfaction,  calculated 
the  values  of  the  deflecting  forces  in  an  instrument  in 
which  the  distance  between  the  centres  of  the  attracting 
balls  is  five  times  the  length  of  the  beam,  for  every  azi- 
muth and  for  differences  of  levels  of  o,  i,  2,  3,  4,  and  5 
times  the  length  of  the  beam. 

The  result  of  the  calculation  is  illustrated  by  a  series 
of  curves  in  the  original  paper.  The  main  result,  how- 
ever, is  this. 

In  the  particular  case  which  I  have  chosen  for  the  in- 
strument, i  e.  where  the  distance  between  the  centres  of 
M  M  and  the  axis,  and  the  difference  of  level  between  the 
two  sides  are  both  five  times  the  length  of  the  beam,  as 
seen  in  plan,  and  where  the  diameter  of  the  large  masses 
is  6"4  times  the  length  of  the  beam,  the  angle  of  deflection 
becomes  187  times  as  great  as  the  corresponding  angle 
in  the  apparatus  of  Cavendish,  provided  that  the  large 
masses  are  made  of  material  of  the  same  density  in  the 
two  cases  and  the  periods  of  oscillation  are  the  same. 

Having  now  found  that  with  apparatus  no  bigger  than 
an  ordinary  galvanometer  it  should  be  possible  to  make 
an  instrument  far  more  sensitive  than  the  large  apparatus 
in  use  heretofore,  it  is  necessary  to  show  that  such  a  piece 
of  apparatus  will  practically  work,  and  that  it  is  not  liable 
to  be  disturbed  by  the  causes  which  in  large  apparatus 
have  been  found  to  give  so  much  trouble. 

I  have  made  two  instruments,  of  which  I  shall  only  de- 
scribe the  second,  as  that  is  better  than  the  first,  both  in 
design  and  in  its  behaviour. 

The  construction  of  this  is  made  clear  by  Fig.  3.  To 
a  brass  base  provided  with  levelling  screws  is  fixed  the 
vertical  brass  tube  /,  which  forms  the  chamber  in  which 
the  small  masses  a  b  are  suspended  by  a  quartz  fibre 
from  a  pin  at  the  upper  end.  These  little  masses  ^are 
cylinders  1  of  pure  lead  11  "3  millimetres  long  and  3  m'illi- 
inetres  in  diameter,  and  the  vertical  distance  between 
their  centres  is  5o"8  millimetres.  They  are  held  by  light 
brass  arms  to  a  very  light  taper  tube  of  glass,  so  that  their 
axes  are  6"5  millimetres  from  the  axis  of  motion.  The 
mirror  m,  which  is  127  millimetres  in  diameter,  plane,  and 
of  unusual  accuracy,  is  fastened  to  the  upper  end  pf  the 
glass  tube  by  the  smallest  quantity  of  shellac  varnish. 
Both  the  mirror  and  the  plate-glass  window  which 
covers  an  opening  in  the  tube  were  examined,  and  after- 
wards fixed  with  the  refracting  edge  of  each  horizontal, 
so  that  the  slight  but  very  evident  want  of  parallelism 
between  their  faces  should  not  interfere  with  the  defini- 
tion of  the  divisions  of  the  scale.  The  large  masses  M  M 
are  two  cylinders  ^  of  lead  50"8  millimetres  in  diameter, 
and  of  the  same  length.  They  are  fastened  by  screws  to 
the  inside  of  a  brass  tube,  the  outline  of  which  is  dotted 
in  the  figure,  which  rests  on  the  turned  shoulder  of  the 
base,  so  that  it  may  be  twisted  without  shake  through  any 
angle.  Stops  (not  shown  in  the  figure)  are  screwed  to 
the  base,  so  that  the  actual  angle  turned  through  shall  be 
that  which  produces  the  maximum  deflection,  A  brass 
hd  made  in  two  halves  covers  in  the  outer  tube,  and 
serves  to  maintain  a  very  perfect  uniformity  of  tempera- 
ture in  the  inner  tube.  Neither  the  masses  M  M,  nor 
the  hd,  touch  the  inner  tube.  The  period  of  oscillation 
is  160  seconds. 

With  this  apparatus  placed  in  an  ordinary  room  with 

•  Cylinders  were  employed  instead  of  spheres,  because  they  are  more 
easily  made  and  held,  and  because  spheres  have  no  advantage  except  when 
absolute  calculations  have  to  be  made.  Also  the  vertical  distance  a  b  was 
for  convenience  made  only  about  four  times  the  length  abia  plan. 


158 


NATURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


draughts  of  air  of  different  temperatures  and  with  a  lamp 
and  scale  such  as  are  used  with  a  galvanometer,  the 
effect  of  the  attraction  can  easily  be  shown  to  a  few,  or, 
with  a  lime-hght,  to  an  audience.  To  obtain  this  result 
with  apparatus  of  the  ordinary  construction  and  usual 
size  is  next  to  impossible,  on  account  chiefly  of  the  great 
disturbing  effect  of  air  currents  set  up  by  difference  of 
temperature  in  the  case.  The  extreme  portability  of  the 
new  instrument  is  a  further  advantage,  as  is  evident  when 
the  enormous  weight  and  size  of  the  attracting]  masses 
in  the  ordinary  apparatus  are  considered. 


Fig. 


However,  this  result  is  only  one  of  the  objects  of  the 
present  inquiry.  The  other  object  which  I  had  in  view  was 
to  find  whether  the  small  apparatus,  besides  being  more 
sensitive  than  that  hitherto  employed,  would  also  be  more 
free  from  disturbances  and  so  give  more  consistent  results. 
With  this  object  I  have  placed  the  apparatus  in  a  long 
narrow  vault  under  the  private  road  between  the  South 
Kensington  Museum  and  the  Science  Schools.  This  is 
not  a  good  place  for  experiments  of  this  kind,  for  when  a 
cab  passes  overhead  the  trembling  is  so  great  that  loose 
things  visibly  move  ;  however,  it  is  the  only  place  at  my 


disposal  that  is  in  any  degree  suitable.  A  large  drain- 
pipe filled  with  gravel  and  cement  and  covered  by  a  slab 
of  stone  forms  a  fairly  good  table.  The  scale  is  made  by 
etching  millimetre  divisions  on  a  strip  of  clear  plate  glass 
80  centimetres  long.  This  is  secured  at  the  other  end  of 
the  vault  at  a  distance  of  io53"8  centimetres  from  the 
mirror  of  the  instrument.  A  telescope  132  centimetres 
long  with  an  object-glass  5* 08  centimetres  in  diameter, 
rests  on  V's  clamped  to  the  wall,  with  its  object-glass 
360  centimetres  from  the  mirror.  Thus  any  disturbance 
that  the  observer  might  produce  if  nearer  is  avoided,  and 
at  the  same  time  the  field  of  view  comprises  100  divisions. 
While  the  observer  is  sitting  at  the  telescope  he  can,  by 
pulling  a  string,  move  an  albo-carbon  light,  mounted  on 
a  carriage,  so  as  to  illuminate  any  part  of  the  scale  that 
may  happen  to  be  in  the  field  of  the  telescope.  The 
white  and  steady  flame  forms  a  brilliant  background  on 
which  the  divisions  appear  in  black.  The  accuracy  of 
the  mirror  is  such  that  the  millimetre  divisions  are  clearly 
defined,  and  the  position  of  the  cross-wire  (a  quartz  fibre) 
can  be  read  accurately  to  one-tenth  of  a  division.  This 
corresponds  to  a  movement  of  the  mirror  of  almost 
exactly  one  second  of  arc. 

The  mode  of  observation  is  as  follows :  When  all  is 
quiet  with  the  large  masses  in  one  extreme  position,  the 
position  of  rest  is  observed  and  a  mark  placed  on  the 
scale.  The  masses  are  moved  to  one  side  for  a  time  and 
then  replaced,  which  sets  up  an  oscillation.  The  reading 
of  every  elongation  and  the  time  of  every  transit  of  the 
mark  are  observed  until  the  amplitude  is  reduced  to  3  or 
4  centimetres.  The  masses  are  then  moved  to  the  other 
extreme  position  and  the  elongations  and  transits  observed 
again,  and  this  is  repeated  as  often  as  necessary. 

On  the  evening  of  Saturday,  May  18,  six  sets  of  readings 
were  taken,  but  during  the  observations  there  was  an 
almost  continuous  tramp  of  art  students  above,  producing 
a  perceptible  tremor,  besides  which  two  vehicles  passed, 
and  coals  were  twice  shovelled  in  the  coal  cellar,  which 
is  separated  from  the  vault  in  which  the  observations 
were  made  by  only  a  4i-inch  brick  wall.  The  result  of 
all  this  was  a  nearly  perpetual  tremor,  which  produced  a 
rapid  oscillation  of  the  scale  on  the  cross-wire,  extending 
over  a  little  more  than  i  millimetre.  This  increased  the 
difficulty  of  taking  the  readings,  but  to  what  extent  it 
introduced  error  I  shall  not  be  able  to  tell  until  I  can 
make  observations  in  a  proper  place. 

In  spite  of  these  disturbances,  the  agreement  between 
the  deflections  deduced  from  the  several  sets  of  observa- 
tions, and  between  the  periods,  is  far  greater  than  I  had 
hoped  to  obtain,  even  under  the  most  favourable  condi- 
tions. In  order  to  show  how  well  the  instrument  behaved, 
I  have  copied  from  my  note-book  the  whole  series  ot 
figures  of  one  set,  which  sufficiently  explain  themselves. 


c 

.  T3 

fcfl 

c 

0. 

0 

E 

W 

< 

1 5  "OS 
53'2o 

38-15 

2248 
47-28 

30-72 

24-80 

27-28 

20 -oo 

l6-I2 

43  "40 

12-98 

10-46 

8-38 

677 

5-47 

3042 
40-88 
32-50 

39-27 
33"8o 

38-25 

4-45 

0-805 
0-808 

0807 
0-807 
0-805 

0-806 

0-802 

0-808 

o-8o8 
0-814 

0-8066 


36-18 
36-20 
36-21 
36-20 
36-22 
36-21 
36-22 
36-24 
3624 
36-26 
36-26 


H.2 


9 
II 
12 
13 
15 
16 

17 
19 
20 
21 


25-0 

45-5 

5-3 

25-8 

45-0 

60 

25  o 

46-0 

4-5 
27-0 
44-0 


og 

0 

**'*3  il 

2*cn  « 

u 

U^ 

0 

U 

0  c 

'^H 

+ 

0-08 

- 

0-18 

+ 

0*24 

- 

0-28 

+ 

0-41 

- 

0-47 

+ 

063 

- 

0-91 

4- 

I-I3 

- 

1-58 

+ 

1-94 

W.1 


80-2 
80-2 

80 -o 

79-9 
8o-i 
80-1 

79-S 
80-5 
79-8 
80-5 

80  08- 


Dec.  19,  1.S89] 


NA  TURE 


159 


It  will  be  noticed  that  the  true  position  of  rest  is  slightly 
rising  in  value,  and  this  rise  was  found  to  continue  at  the 
rate  of  o'36  centimetre  an  hour  during  the  whole  course 
of  the  experiment,  and  to  be  the  same  when  the  large 
masses  were  in  the  positive  or  negative  position.  The 
motion  was  perfectly  uniform,  and  in  no  way  interfered 
with  the  accuracy  of  the  experiments.  It  was  due,  I 
believe,  to  the  shellac  fastening  of  the  fibre,  for  I  find 
that  immediately  after  a  fibre  has  been  attached,  this 
movement  is  very  noticeable,  but  after  a  few  days  it 
almost  entirely  ceases  ;  it  is,  moreover,  chiefly  evident 
when  the  fibre  is  loaded  very  heavily.  At  the  time  that 
the  experiment  was  made  the  instrument  had  only  been 
set  up  a  few  hours. 

The  mean  decrement  of  three  positive  sets  was  o'Soii, 
and  of  three  negative  sets,  o'8o35.  The  observed  mean 
period  of  three  positive  sets  was  79'g8,  and  of  three 
negative  sets,  8003  seconds,  from  both  of  which  0*20 
must  be  deducted  as  the  time  correction  for  damping. 

The  deflections,  in  centimetres,  obtained  from  the  six 
sets  of  observations  taken  in  groups  of  three,  so  as  to  take 
into  account  the  effect  of  the  slow  change  of  the  position 
of  rest,  were  as  follows  : — ■ 


From  sets   i,   2,  and  3 

,,         2,   3,  and  4 

,,         3,  4,  and   ^ 

,,        4,  5,  and  6 


17-66  ±  Q-oi 

17-65  ±  0-02 

17-65  ±   0-02 

17-65  ±  002 


An  examination  of  these  figures  shows  that  the  deflec- 
tion is  known  with  an  accuracy  of  about  one  part  in  two 
thousand,  while  the  period  is  known  to  the  4000th  part 
of  the  whole.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  discrepancies  are 
not  more  than  may  be  due  to  an  uncertainty  in  some  of 
the  observations  of  A  millimetre  or  less,  a  quantity  which, 
under  the  circumstances,  is  hardly  to  be  avoided. 

The  result  of  these  experiments  is  complete  and  satis- 
factory. As  a  lecture  experiment,  the  attraction  between 
small  masses  can  be  easily  and  certainly  shown,  even 
though  the  resolved  force  causing  motion  is,  as  in  the 
present  instance,  no  more  than  the  1/200,000  of  a  dyne 
(less  than  1/10,000,000  of  the  weight  of  a  grain),  and  this 
is  possible  with  the  comparatively  short  half  period  of 
80  seconds.  Had  it  been  necessary  to  make  use  of  such 
half  periods  as  three  to  fifteen  minutes,  which  have  been 
employed  hitherto, then,  even  though  a  considerable  deflec- 
tion were  produced,  this  could  hardly  be  considered  a 
lecture  experiment.  So  perfectly  does  the  instrument 
behave,  that  there  can  be  no  difficulty  in  making  a  fairly 
accurate  measure  of  the  attraction  between  a  pair  of 
No.  5,  or,  I  believe,  even  of  dust  shot. 

The  very  remarkable  agreement  between  successive 
deflections  and  periods  shows  that  an  absolute  measure 
made  with  apparatus  designed  for  the  purpose,  but  on 
the  lines  laid  down  above,  is  likely  to  lead  to  results  of 
far  greater  accuracy  than  any  that  have  been  obtained. 
For  instance,  in  the  original  experiment  of  Cavendish 
there  seems  to  have  been  an  irregularity  in  the  position 
of  rest  of  one-tenth  of  the  deflection  obtained,  while  the 
period  showed  discrepancies  of  five  to  fifteen  seconds  in 
seven  minutes.  The  experiments  of  Baily,made  in  the  most 
elaborate  manner,  were  more  consistent,  but  Cornu  was 
the  first  to  obtain  from  the  Cavendish  apparatus  results 
having  a  precision  in  any  way  comparable  to  that  of 
other  physical  measurements.  The  three  papers,  pub- 
lished by  him  in  the  Coinptes  rendiis  of  1878,  referred  to 
above,  contain  a  very  complete  solution  of  some  of  the 
problems  to  which  the  investigation  has  given  rise.  The 
agreement  between  the  successive  values,  decrement,  and 
period  is  much  the  same  as  I  have  obtained,  nevertheless 
the  means  of  the  summer  and  of  the  winter  observations 
differ  by  about  I  per  cent. 

I  have  not  referred  to  the  various  methods  of  determin- 
ing the  constant  of  gravitation  in  which  a  balance, 
whether  with  the  usual  horizontal  beam,  or  with  a  vertical 


beam  on  the  metronome  principle,  is  employed.  They 
are  essentially  the  same  as  the  Cavendish  method,  except 
that  there  is  introduced  the  friction  of  the  knife-edges 
and  the  unknown  disturbances  due  to  particles  of  dust  at 
these  points,  and  to  buoyancy,  without,  in  my  opinion, 
any  compensating  advantage.  However,  it  would  appear 
that  if  the  experiment  is  to  be  made  with  a  balance,  the 
considerations  which  I  have  advanced  in  this  paper 
would  point  to  the  advantage  of  making  the  apparatus 
small,  so  that  attracting  masses  of  greater  proportionate 
size  may  be  employed,  and  the  disturbance  due  to 
convection  reduced. 

It  is  my  intention,  if  I  can  obtain  a  proper  place  in 
which  to  make  the  observations,  to  prepare  an  apparatus 
specially  suitable  for  absolute  determinations.  The  scale 
will  have  to  be  increased,  so  that  the  dimensions  may  be 
determined  to  a  ten-thousandth  part  at  least.  Both  pairs 
of  masses  should,  I  think,  be  suspended  by  fibres  or  by 
wires,  so  that  the  distance  of  their  centres  from  the  axis 
may  be  accurately  measured,  and  so  that,  in  the  case  of 
the  little  masses,  the  moment  of  inertia  of  the  beam, 
mirror,  &c.,  may  be.  found  by  alternately  measuring  the 
period  with  and  without  the  masses  attached.  The  un- 
balanced attractions  between  the  beam,  &c.,  and  the 
large  masses,  and  between  the  little  masses  and  anything 
unsymmetrical  about  the  support  of  the  large  masses,  will 
probably  be  more  accurately  determined  experimentally 
by  observing  the  deflections  when  the  large  and  the  small 
masses  are  in  turn  removed,  than  by  calculation. 

If  anything  is  to  be  gained  by  swinging  the  small 
masses  in  a  good  Sprengel  vacuum,  the  difficulty  will  not 
be  so  great  with  apparatus  made  on  the  scale  I  have  in 
view,  i  e.  with  a  beam  about  5  centimetres  long,  as  it 
would  with  large  apparatus.  With  a  view  to  reduce  the 
considerable  decrement,  I  did  try  to  maintain  such  a 
vacuum  in  the  first  iustrument,  in  which  a  beam  V2 
centimetre  long  was  suspended  by  a  fibre  so  fine  as  to 
give  a  complete  period  of  five  minutes,  but  though  the 
pump  would  click  violently  for  a  day  perhaps,  leakage 
always  took  place  before  long,  and  so  no  satisfactory 
results  were  obtained. 

With  an  apparatus  such  as  I  have  described,  but 
arranged  to  have  a  complete  period  of  six  minutes,  it  will 
be  possible  to  read  the  scale  with  an  accuracy  of  1/10,000 
of  the  deflection,  and  to  determine  the  time  of  vibration 
with  an  accuracy  about  twice  as  great. 

I  hope  early  next  year,  in  spite  of  the  difficulty  of 
finding  a  suitable  place  to  observe  in,  to  prepare  appa- 
ratus for  absolute  determinations,  and  I  shall  be  glad  to 
receive  any  suggestions  which  those  interested  may  be 
good  enough  to  offer.  C.  V.  BOYS. 


WILLIAM  RAMSAY  McNAB. 

XiriLLIAM  RAMSAY  McNAB,  M.D.,  whose  sudden 
*  *  death  from  heart-disease  we  have  already  re- 
corded, was  born  in  Edinburgh  in  November  1844.  He 
was  educated  at  the  Edinburgh  Academy,  and  after- 
wards in  the  Univei'sity  of  that  city,  obtaining  the  degree 
of  Doctor  of  Medicine  when  twenty-two  years  of  age. 

His  grandfather  and  father,  in  succession,  held  office 
as  Curators  of  the  Edinburgh  Botanic  Garden  ;  and  the 
late  Dr.  McNab  early  manifested  an  inherited  capacity 
for  botanical  work  ;  for,  while  still  an  undergraduate,  he 
was  appointed  assistant  to  Prof.  Balfour,  who  then  held 
the  Edinburgh  botanical  chair.  He  also  entered  the 
University  of  Berlin  as  a  student — in  botany  under  Profs. 
Braun  and  Koch,  and  in  pathological  anatomy  and 
histology  under  Prof.  Virchow.  Three  years  of  his 
later  life  were  spent  in  medical  practice  ;  but  his  love 
of  botany  was  his  dominant  feeling,  and  in  1870  he 
embarked  upon  a  purely  biological  career,  having  been 
then  appointed  to  the  Professorship  of  Natural  History 


i6o 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


in  the  Royal  Agricultural  College,  Cirencester.  Two 
years  later  he  succeeded  to  the  Chair  of  Botany  in  the 
Royal  College  of  Science,  Dublin,  and  this  post  he  held 
until  his  death.  During  his  student  life  he  paid  con- 
siderable attention  to  the  practical  study  of  geology  ;  and 
for  many  years  he  collected  Coleoptera,  of  which  he 
possessed  a  very  fine,  collection,  now  in  the  Dublin 
Museum  of  Science  and  Art. 

During  the  nineteen  years  exclusively  devoted  to  natural 
science,  Prof.  McNab  pubhshed  a  considerable  number 
of  technical  papers  ;  most  of  these  were  short,  but  some 
forty  or  fifty  of  them  are  fit  to  rank  as  original  communi- 
cations. The  work  by  which  he  is  best  known  was  that 
upon  the  movements  of  water  in  plants.  Following  a 
suggestion  of  Prof.  A.  H.  Church,  that  lithium  might 
prove  useful  in  his  researches,  he  instituted  experiments 
which  proved  the  value  of  this  method,  and  paved  the 
way  for  later  investigators.  McNab's  chief  claim  to  dis- 
tinction lay,  however,  not  in  the  direction  of  pure  research, 
but  in  the  fact  of  his  having  been  the  first  to  introduce  to 
British  students  the  methods  of  Sachs,  now  universally 
adopted.  He  inaugurated  the  modern  methods  of  teach- 
ing botany  at  Cirencester,  in  the  year  1871,  and  at  Dublin 
two  years  later  ;  and  he  fully  admitted  his  indebtedness 
to  the  first  edition  of  Sachs's  celebrated  "  Lehrbuch  der 
Botanik."  Dr.  McNab  was,  at  the  time  of  his  death,  an 
examiner  in  botany  to  the  Victoria  University,  Man- 
chester. The  appointment  of  Scientific  Superintendent 
of  the  Royal  Botanic  Gardens,  Glasnevin,  Dubhn,  was 
created  for  him  in  1880,  and  in  connection  with  this  office 
he  issued,  five  years  later,  an  enlarged  and  considerably 
revised  Guide-book.  He  was  joint  author,  with  Prof. 
Alex.  Macalister,  of  a  "  Guide-book  to  the  County  of 
Dublin,"  prepared  on  the  occasion  of  the  visit  of  the 
British  Association  to  that  city.  In  1878  he  published,  in 
Longmans'  "London  Science  Series,"  two  botanical  class- 
books,  entitled  "Outlines  of  Morphology  and  Physiology," 
and  "  Outlines  of  Classification'' ;  and  he  leaves  behind 
him  the  first  few  chapters,  and  a  large  amount  of  manu- 
script in  a  nearly  completed  condition,  of  a  contemplated 
"  Text-book  of  Botany,"  which  he  was  to  have  written  for 
Messrs.  C.  Griffin  and  Co.  In  1888  he  was  appointed 
Swiney  Lecturer  to  the  British  Museum  of  Natural 
History,  and  in  that  capacity  he  has  lectured  for  two 
sessions.  His  discourses,  which  were  upon  "  The 
Fossil  Plants  of  the  Palaeozoic  Epoch "  and  "  Ferns 
and  Gymnosperms  of  the  Palaeozoic  and  Mesozoic 
Epochs,  and  dawn  of  the  Angiospermous  Flora"  re- 
spectively, were  attended  with  much  success.  He  has 
left  behind  him  carefully  written  manuscript  lectures, 
which  it  is  sincerely  hoped  may  be  published  as  a 
memorial  volume.  At  the  time  of  his  decease  he  was 
actively  engaged  upon  his  intended  third  course,  in  which 
he  would  have  dealt  with  the  Cainozoic  flora.  He  was  an 
excellent  teacher,  possessed  of  a  natural  aptitude  for  the 
work  ;  and  his  laboratory  instruction  was  characterized 
by  thoroughness  and  precision.  As  a  lecturer  he  was 
fluent  and  entertaining  ;  and,  in  his  several  capacities,  he 
endeared  himself  to  those  with  whom  he  came  in  contact. 
Friends,  colleagues,  and  students,  alike  mourn  his  loss. 

NOTES. 

The  death  of  Prof.  Lorenzo  Respighi,  Director  of  the 
Osservatorio  Campidoglio,  Rome,  which  we  deeply  regret  to 
announce,  is  a  great  loss  to  science.     He  died  on  December  10. 

In  a  recent  number  we  gave  some  account  of  a  meeting  held 
in  Manchester  on  November  25  for  the  purpose  of  preparing  the 
way  for  the  erection  of  a  memorial  of  James  Prescott  Joule  in 
that  city.  It  was  resolved  that  the  memorial  should  be 
in  the  form  of  a  white  marble  statue,  and  a  committee  was 
appointed  to  carry  out  this  resolution.  At  the  first  meeting  of 
the  committee,  on  November    29,  an  executive  committee  was 


appointed,  and  the  following  motion  was  adopted  : — "  That  the 
movement  be  directed  to  secure,  not  only  a  marble  statue  of  the 
late  Dr.  James  Prescott  Joule  as  a  companion  to  that  of  the  late 
Dr.  Dalton  by  Sir  Francis  Chantrey,  but  also  a  replica  in  bronze 
to  occupy  some  public  place  in  the  city,  and  that  the  executive 
committee  be  instructed  to  take  all  needful  steps  for  that 
purpose."     Many  subscriptions  have  been  already  promised. 

An  attempt  is  being  made  to  secure  the  erection  of  an  inter- 
national monument  to  James  Watt  at  Greenock,  his  birthplace. 
It  is  proposed  that  the  memorial  shall  be  "  a  large  and  thoroughly 
equipped  technical  school." 

A  NEW  fortnightly  scientific  periodical  is  about  to  be 
published  in  Paris.  It  will  be  entitled  Revue  Generale  des 
Sciences  Fures  et  Appliqtiees,  and  will  deal  with  the  mathe- 
matical, physical,  and  natural  sciences,  and  with  their  appli- 
ca-tions  in  geodesy,  navigation,  engineering,  manufactures, 
agriculture,  hygiene,  medicine,  and  surgery.  According  to  the 
preliminary  statement,  the  new  periodical  will  take  as  its  model 
the  method  of  exposition  adopted  in  Nature.  The  editor  is 
M.  Louis  Olivier,  and  the  list  of  contributors  includes  many  of 
the  most  eminent  French  men  of  science.  The  first  number 
will  appear  on  January  15,  1890. 

The  second  Report  of  the  Committee  appointed  by  the 
British  Association  to  inquire  into,  and  report  upon,  the  present 
methods  of  teaching  chemistry,  which  was  presented  at  the 
Newcastle  meeting,  and  to  which  we  called  attention  in  these 
columns  a  short  time  ago,  has  now  been  put  on  sale  by  the 
Council.  It  may  be  obtained  from  the  office  of  the  Association, 
22  Albemarle  Street,  W. 

On  Tuesday  evening,  after  the  distribution  of  the  prizes  and 
certificates  to  the  students  of  the  City  and  Guilds  of  London 
Institute,  at  Goldsmiths'  Hall,  Sir  Henry  Roscoe  congratulated 
the  students  of  the  various  schools  upon  the  reports  he  had 
heard.  He  observed  that  the  City  Guilds  were  now  engaged 
separately  and  collectively  in  nobly  carrying  out  the  work  for 
which  they  were,  to  a  certain  extent,  originally  founded.  The 
Technical  Instruction  Bill  which  was  passed  in  the  last  session 
of  Parliament  had  materially  changed  the  whole  aspect  of  aflfairs, 
and  sooner  or  later  a  complete  scheme  for  technical  education 
would  have  to  be  framed.  The  beginning  of  such  a  scheme  had 
been  made  by  the  eftbrts  of  the  City  of  London  Institution, 
which,  with  its  many  branches,  was  a  nucleus  of  such  a  system, 
the  importance  of  which  would  only  be  recognized  when  the 
history  of  that  important  movement  came  to  be  written.  It  was 
a  satisfactory  thing  to  hear  that  employers  of  skilled  labour  were 
beginning  to  find  out  that  the  men  who  had  been  trained  at  such 
Colleges  as  these  were  of  greater  value  than  those  who  had  not 
received  such  training.  It  was  not  only  necessary  to  educate 
the  craftsman  ;  the  employer  needed  it  equally,  if  not  more. 
He  thought  that  the  Council  of  the  Institute  had  fully  recog- 
nized that  fact  at  their  Central  Institution,  but  a  demand  for 
high-class  education  had  yet  to  be  created. 

The  British  Medical  Journal  says  that  owing  to  the  somewhat 
late  period  in  the  year  at  which  the  invitation  to  hold  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  British  Medical  Association  in  Birmingham  was 
received  and  accepted,  the  arrangements  are  not  yet  so  complete 
as  in  former  years  ;  but  a  large  general  committee  and  all  the 
necessary  sub-committees  have  been  formed,  and  the  use  of  the 
requisite  public  buildings  has  been  obtained. 

On  March  i,  1890,  a  new  marine  laboratory  will  be  opened  at 
Saint-Wast-la-Hougue. 

We  are  glad  to  know  that  there  will  soon  be  well-equipped 
physical  and  chemical  laboratories  at  Bedford  College,  Lon- 
don. Mr.  Tate,  who  has  already  given  ;^iooo  towards  the 
new  College  buildings,  which  are  on  the  eve  of  completion,  has 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


161 


offered  a  second  ;if  iood  towards  the  fitting  up  and  equipment  of 
the  laboratories,  contingent  on  the  friends  of  the  College  con- 
tributing an  equal  amount.  We  purpose  shortly  giving  an 
account  and  plans  of  these  laboratories. 

More  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  has  passed  since  it  was 
decided  that  the  Entomologist's  Monthly  Magazine  should  be 
started.  The  editors  have  now  resolved  to  issue  a  new  series, 
each  volume  of  which  will  begin  in  January  and  end  in  Decem- 
ber. There  will  be  no  radical  change  in  the  constitution  of  the 
magazine,  but  the  number  of  pages  and  illustrations  will  often 
be  increased. 

The  result  of  the  poll  for  a  free  library  at  Whitechapel, 
declared  last  Saturday  night,  is  interesting  and  significant.  On 
a  register  of  6000,  there  were  3553  affirmative  votes  and  only 
935  dissentients.  This  is  the  more  noteworthy,  because  about 
eleven  years  ago  a  like  proposal  was  rejected  by  a  majority  of 
about  two  to  one. 

The  following  science  lectures  will  be  given  at  the  Royal 
Victoria  Hall  during  January  :  January  7,  "  A  Visit  to  the  Chief 
Cities  of  Italy,"  by  Rev.  W.  W.  Edwards;  January  14,  "The 
Bottom  of  the  Sea,"  by  Dr.  P.  H.  Carpenter  ;  January  21,  "To 
Vancouver's  Island  and  back,"  by  Mr.  W.  L.  Carpenter ; 
January  28,  "  Musical  Sounds  and  how  we  hear  them,"  by  Dr. 
F.  W.  Mott. 

A  SECOND  edition  of  Sir  William  sAitken's  "Animal  Alka- 
loids" (H.  K.  Lewis)  has  been  published.  The  work  has  been 
carefully  revised,  and  the  author's  aim  has  been  to  bring  the 
book  up  to  the  present  state  of  knowledge  regarding  the  im- 
portant subject  to  which  it  relates. 

The  first  part  of  a  monograph  of  Oriental  Cicadida,  by  W.  L. 
T)istant,  has  been  published  by  order  of  the  Trustees  of  the 
Indian  Museum,  Calcutta.  It  is  printed  in  clear  type,  and  in- 
cludes two  fine  plates.  The  monograph,  when  completed,  will 
evidently  be  of  much  scientific  value. 

M.  Vayssiere  has  now  completed  the  publication  of  his 
"  Atlas  d' Anatomic  Comparee  des  Invertebres."  It  comprises 
sixty  plates,  with  corresponding  letterpress,  and  is  much 
appreciated  by  French  zoologists.  , 

The  Proceedings  and  Transactions  of  the  International  Agri- 
cultural Congress  held  in  Paris  last  summer  have  just  been  issued. 

A  Reuter's  telegram  from  Madrid  says  that  a  shock  of 
earthquake  was  felt  at  Granada  on  the  evening  of  December  16. 
There  was  great  alarm  for  the  moment,  and  the  people  rushed 
in  panic  out  of  the  theatre,  where  a  performance  was  going  on 
at  the  time.     Apparently  no  damage  was  done. 

The  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  for  December 
states  that  stormy  weather  has  been  prevalent  during  the  month 
of  November.  Two  notable  cyclones  have  occurred  ;  the  first 
moved  eastward  from  Chesapeake  Bay  on  the  night  of  the  9th. 
On  the  nth  it  was  central  in  about  latitude  41°  N.,  longitude 
57°  W.  ;  and  from  this  position  it  moved  nearly  due  north-east, 
and  rapidly  increased  in  energy.  The  other  cyclone  moved  east- 
ward from  the  New  Jersey  coast  on  the  13th,  and  was  central  on 
the  14th  in  latitude  42°  40' N.,  longitude  63°  20'  W.  This 
storm  attained  great  violence  during  the  14th  and  15th.  After 
the  1 6th,  gales  of  varying  force  occurred  along  the  coast  north 
of  Florida.  There  was  very  little  fog  during  the  month  ;  a 
dense  bank  was  reported  on  the  17th  on  the  north  coast  of  Cuba. 
A  number  of  icebergs  arc  still  reported  in  the  vicinity  of  Belle 
Isle,  and  several  smaller  bergs  have  been  seen  over  the  New- 
foundland Banks. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  French  Meteorological  Society  on 
November  5,  M.  Teisserenc  de  Bort  gave  an  account  of  his 
researches  on  barometric  gradients.  He  distinguished  two  kinds  of 
gradients,  one  due  to  the  differences  of  temperature,  and  another 


due  to  the  earth's  rotation,  and  pointed  out  that  these  twa 
gradients  are  always  superposed,  and  that  their  distinction  was 
a  matter  of  importance,  for  if  the  first  case  predominates  (a 
gradient  due  to  difference  of  temperature),  the  wind  force  may 
increase  and  the  depression  become  deeper,  while  in  the  second 
case  the  depression  tends  to  disappear.  He  thought  it  was  not 
impossible  to  make  this  distinction,  for  if  we  know  the  force  of 
the  wind  we  might  calculate  the  moment  of  inertia  and  the  cor- 
responding gradient.  He  also  presented  a  work  on  the  distri- 
bution of  atmospheric  pressure  over  the  surface  of  the  globe. 
He  showed  that  the  distribution  of  pressure  over  different 
meridians  varies  upwards  of  an  inch  on  the  same  parallel  accord- 
ing to  the  season.  With  the  view  of  finding  out  the  arrangement 
of  the  isobars  in  higher  regions  of  the  atmosphere,  the  author 
has  calculated  the  pressures  by  formulae  at  various  heights,  from 
the  pressure  and  temperature  observed  at  the  earth's  surface,  and 
compared  their  accuracy  by  the  readings  at  some  mountain 
stations,  and  he  has  found  that  most  of  the  irregularities  in  the 
distribution  of  the  isobars  tend  to  disappear  as  we  reach  the 
higher  regions  of  the  air,  and  to  be  replaced  by  inflexions  in  the 
opposite  sense.  A  summary  of  this  paper  will  be  found  in  the 
Comptes  rendus  of  the  French  Academy  for  December  2. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Linnean  Society  of  New  South  Wales 
on  October  30,  Mr.  A.  Sidney  OUiff  called  attention  to  the  ex- 
traordinary abundance  of  a  large  Noctuid  moth — apparently 
Agrotis  spina,  Gu.  {A.  vastator,  Sc. ) — during  the  early  part  of 
October  in  various  parts  of  the  country,  especially  in  the  vicinity 
of  Sydney,  where  it  appeared  in  such  vast  numbers  as  to  cause 
great  consternation  amongst  those  who  were  not  aware  that  its 
food  in  the  larval  state  is  confined  to  low-growing  herbage,  and 
that  at  no  stage  of  its  existence  does  it  eat  cloth,  furs,  or  feathers. 
A  similar  visitation  of  these  moths  occurred  in  October  1867. 
Mr.  Olliff  said  that  Agrotis  spina  was  found  in  great  numbers 
on  the  summit  of  Mount  Kosciusko  and  other  high  points  in  the 
Australian  Alps,  and  added  that  he  was  of  opinion,  after  ex- 
tended inquiry,  that  this  species,  and  no  other,  was  the  true 
Bugong  moth,  which  formerly  formed  an  important  article  of 
food  amongst  the  blacks  of  the  Upper  Tumut  district. 

Mr.  Thomas  Cornish,  Penzance,  recently  recorded  in  Th 
Zoologist  the  occurrence  of  the  "Old  English"  or  "  Black '^' 
Rat,  captured  at  a  place  about  five  miles  north-east  of  Penzance. 
In  the  current  number  of  the  same  periodical  he  says  that  im- 
mediately after  that  capture  a  perfectly  trustworthy  observer  saw 
near  Cam  bourne,  at  a  place  ten  miles  south-east  from  where  the 
first  specimen  was  obtained,  a  Black  Rat,  which  was  certainly 
not  the  ordinary  Hanoverian  Rat ;  and  at  a  later  time  Mr. 
Cornish  saw  and  handled  another  specimen,  captured  in  Paul 
Parish,  about  three  miles  south-west  of  Penzance.  "  These 
facts,"  says  Mr.  Cornish,  "  apparently  point  to  an  incursion  of 
this  animal,  which  is  gregarious  certainly,  and  probably  a  vagrant 
in  herds,  but  not  a  migrant." 

Mr.  J.  R.  Dobbins,  San  Gabriel,  California,  contributes  to- 
the  new  number  of  Insect  Life  (vol.  ii.  No.  4)  a  note  on  the 
spread  of  the  Australian  ladybird.  The  note  is  dated  July  2, 
1889.  At  that  time  the  Vedolia  had  multiplied  in  numbers,  and 
had  spread  so  rapidly  that  every  one  of  Mr.  Dobbins's  3200 
orchard  trees  was  literally  swarming  with  them.  All  his 
ornamental  trees,  shrubs,  and  vines  which  had  been  infested  with 
white  scale  were  practically  cleansed  by  this  wonderful  parasite. 
"About  one  month  since,"  says  Mr.  Dobbins,  "  I  made  a  public 
statement  that  my  orchard  would  be  free  from  '  Icerya  by  Novem- 
ber I,'  but  the  work  has  gone  on  with  such  amazing  speed  and 
thoroughness,  that  I  am  to-day  confident  that  the  pest  will  have 
been  exterminated  from  my  trees  by  the  middle  of  August. 
People  are  coming  here  daily,  and  by  placing  infested  branches 
upon  the  ground  beneath  my  trees  for  two  hours,  can  secure 


l62 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


colonies  of  thousands  of  the  Vedolia,  which  are  there  in  count- 
less numbers  sucking  food.  Over  50,000  have  been  taken  away 
to  other  orchards  during  the  present  week,  and  there  are 
millions  still  remaining,  and  I  have  distributed  a  total  of  63,000 
since  June  i.  I  have  a  list  of  130  names  of  persons  who  have 
taken  the  colonies,  and  as  they  have  been  placed  in  orchards  ex- 
tending from  South  Pasadena  to  Azusa,  over  a  belt  of  country 
ten  miles  long  and  six  or  seven  in  width,  I  feel  positive,  from  my 
own  experience,  that  the  entire  valley  wiil  be  practically  free 
from  Icerya  before  the  advent  of  the  new  year." 

Cocoa-nut  butter  is  now  being  made  at  Mannheim,  and, 
according  to  the  American  Consul  there,  the  demand  for  it  is 
steadily  increasing.  The  method  of  manufacture  was  discovered 
by  Dr.  Schlunk,  a  practical  chemist  at  Ludwigshafen.  Liebig 
and  Fresenius  knew  the  value  of  cocoa-nut  oil  or  fa^,  but  did 
not  succeed  in  producing  it  as  a  substitute  for  butter.  The  new 
butter  is  of  a  clear  whitish  colour,  melts  at  from  26°  to  28°  C, 
and  contains  O'oooS  per  cent,  water,  o'oo6  per  cent,  mineral 
stuffs,  and  99 '9932  per  cent.  fat.  At  present  it  is  chiefly  used 
in  hospitals  and  other  State  institutions,  but  it  is  also  rapidly 
finding  its  way  into  houses  or  homes  where  people  are  too  poor 
to  buy  butter.  The  working  classes  are  taking  to  it  instead 
of  the  oleomargarines  against  which  so  much  has  been  said 
during  the  last  two  or  three  years. 

A  POINT  of  great  importance  for  the  progress  of  Western 
science  in  the  Chinese  Empire  is  whether  it  should  be  taught  in  the 
Chinese  or  in  a  foreign  language.  The  subject  has  been  frequently 
discussed,  and  quite  recently  the  opinions  of  a  large  number  of 
men  most  prominently  engaged  in  the  education  of  Chinese  were 
collected  arid  published  in  a  Shanghai  magazine,  the  Chinese 
Recorder.  The  editor  says  that  nine-tenths  of  these  authorities 
are  of  opinion  that  the  Chinese  language  is  sufficient  for  al} 
purposes  in  teaching  Western  science.  One  gentleman  states 
that  Chinese  students  can  only  be  taught  science  in  their  own 
language,  and  that  the  long  time  necessary  for  them  to  acquire 
English  for  this  purpose  is  wasted  ;  another  says  that  "science 
must  be  planted  in  the  Chinese  language  in  order  to  its  per- 
manent growth  and  development "  ;  a  third  sees  no  reason  why 
the  vernacular  should  not  be  enough  to  allow  the  Chinese 
student  to  attain  the  very  highest  proficiency  in  Western  science, 
although  he  admits  that  there  is  at  present  a  want  of  teachers 
and  text-books.  Prof.  Oliver,  of  the  Imperial  University  at  Pekin, 
says  he  has  never  found  English  necessary,  but  has  always  taught 
in  Chinese.  Prof.  Russell,  of  the  same  institution,  finds  Chinese 
sufficient  for  popular  astronomy.  On  the  other  hand,  Mr. 
Tenney  says  that  it  can  only  be  for  the  most  popular  views  of 
science  that  the  vernacular  is  sufficient.  "  It  is  impossible,"  he 
says,  "  for  scholars  who  are  ignorant  of  any  European  language 
to  attain  any  such  excellence  in  modern  sciences  as  to  enable 
them  to  bear  comparison  with  the  finished  mathematical  and 
scientific  scholars  of  Europe  and  America."  Thus,  he  continues, 
as  a  medium  of  thought,  any  Western  language  is  incomparably 
superior  to  Chinese  in  precision  and  clearness  ;  the  student 
acquainted  with  a  foreign  language  has  a  vast  field  of  collateral 
thought  open  to  him  which  does  not  and  never  will  exist  in 
Chinese,  and  he  can  keep  abreast  of  the  times,  which  the  Chinese 
student  who  must  depend  on  translations  cannot  do.  The 
relation  of  the  Chinese  student  "to  the  world  of  thought  is 
analogous  to  that  of  a  blind  and  deaf  person  in  the  West,  whose 
only  sources  of  knowledge  are  the  few  and  slowly  increasing 
volumes  of  raised  type  letters  which  make  up  the  libraries  of  the 
blind."  As  has  been  said,  however,  the  weight  of  opinion  is 
against  Mr.  Tenney. 

In  a  recent  number  of  Humboldt,  Herr  Fischer- Sigwart  de- 
scribes the  ways  of  a  snake,  Tropldonotus  tessellatus,  which  he 
kept  in  his  terrarium  in  Zurich.     It  was  fond  of  basking  in  the 


sun  on  the  top  of  a  laurel,  from  which  it  climbed  easily  to  a  high 
cherry-tree  fixed  against  a  wall,  its  night  quarters.  Sometimes, 
after  lying  still  for  hours,  it  would  hasten  down  into  a  snail 
pond  (about  4  square  yards  surface)  containing  gold-fish,  and 
hide  itself  for  a  long  time,  quite  under  water,  behind  some  stone, 
or  plants,  the  tongue  constantly  playing.  When  a  fish  came 
near,  the  snake  would  make  a  dart  at  its  belly.  Often  missing, 
it  would  lose  patience,  and  swim  after  the  fishes,  driving  them 
into  some  corner,  where  it  at  length  seized  one  in  the  middle  of 
the  belly,  and  carried  it  to  land,  much  as  a  dog  would  a  piece  of 
wood.  Curiously,  the  fish,  after  being  seized,  became  quite 
still  and  stiff,  as  if  dead.  If  one  then  liberated  it,  the  skin  of 
the  belly  was  seen  to  be  quite  uninjured,  and  the  fish  readily 
swam  away  in  the  water.  The  author  thinks  the  snake  has  a 
hypnotic  influence  on  its  prey  (and  he  had  observed  similar 
effects  with  a  ringed  snake).  It  would  otherwise  be  very  diffi- 
cult for  the  snake  to  retain  hold  of  a  wriggling  fish.  The  snake 
usually  carried  off  the  fish  some  distance  to  a  safe  corner,  to 
devour  it  in  peace. 

A  SPLENDID  find  of  minerals  containing  the  rare  metals  of  the 
yttrium  and  thorium  groups  has  been  made  in  Llano  County, 
Texas  {Amer.  yourn.  of  Science,  December  1889).  The  whole 
district  for  many  miles  round  consists  almost  entirely  of  Archaean 
rocks,  granite  being  met  with  everywhere,  and  forming  the 
common  wayside  rock.  Throughout  the  granite  are  dispersed 
veins  of  quartz,  and  it  is  in  these  veins,  and  especially  the  swell- 
ings of  the  veins,  that  large  masses  of  rare  minerals  have  been 
found.  The  largest  of  these  deposits  consist  of  gadolinite  and  fer- 
gusonite,  and  of  two  entirely  new  minerals,  to  which  the  names 
yttrialite  and  thoro-gummite  have  been  given.  The  first  discovery 
of  gadolinite  in  Texas  was  made  in  1886,  when  a  pocket  of 
huge  crystals  and  masses  aggregating  to  about  500  kilo- 
grammes was  unearthed.  Since  that  time  a  more  complete  pro- 
spection  of  the  district  has  revealed  the  existence  of  still  larger 
quantities.  The  gadolinite  is  generally  found  in  small  lumps 
weighing  about  half  a  pound,  but  frequently  also  in  much  heavier 
masses,  and  sometimes  in  immense  crystals.  One  double  crj'stal 
was  found  weighing  42  pounds,  and  a  still  larger  single  crystal 
weighed  no  less  than  60  pounds.  And  these  immense  crystals 
actually  contain  over  50  per  cent,  of  oxides  of  the  yttrium  metals, 
as  do  also  the  massive  varieties.  The  crust  of  the  gadolinite 
crystals,  which  appear  to  be  of  monoclinic  habit,  was  generally 
altered  into  a  brownish-red  hydrate  of  waxy  lustre  ;  but  occa- 
sionally, as  in  case  of  two  particular  specimens,  the  crystals  were 
found  in  a  state  of  rare  beauty  and  perfection.  The  new  inineral 
yttrialite,  a  thorium-yttrium  silicate,  was  discovered  associated 
with  and  often  upon  the  gadolinite.  It  was  generally  altered  at 
the  surface  to  an  orange-yellow  hydrate  of  quite  different  struc- 
ture to  that  of  the  hydrate  of  gadolinite.  One  mass  of  this  in- 
crustation was  found  to  weigh  over  10  pounds.  It  contains  46 
per  cent,  of  oxides  of  the  yttrium  metals.  Fergusonite,  hitherto 
an  exceedingly  rare  mineral,  occurs  in  large  quantities  in  the 
Llano  County  district,  generally  in  the  form  of  broken  interlacing 
prisms  several  inches  long.  Two  varieties  of  it  have  been  identi- 
fied— one  a  monohydrated  and  the  other  a  trihydrated  variety. 
The  monohydrated  kind  forms  tetragonal  prisms  with  acute 
pyramidal  terminations,  of  dull  gray  exterior,  but  possessing  a 
brilliant  bronze- like  fracture.  It  contains  42  per  cent,  of  yttrium 
earths  and  46  per  cent,  ofcolumbic  acid,  Cb.205.  The  trihydrated 
variety  is  similar,  but  of  a  dark  brown  colour.  Associated  with  the 
fergusonite  is  the  new  mineral  thoro-gummite,  a  hydrated  uranium 
thoro-silicate.  This  mineral  is  frequently  found  in  well-developed 
crystals  resembling,  and  having  angles  very  nearly  the  same  as, 
those  of  zircon.  It  contains  22  per  cent,  of  UO3,  41  per  cent,  of 
ThOj,  and  6  per  cent,  of  yttrium  earths.  Its  probable  essential 
composition  is  UO3  .  3ThOo  .  sSiO.^  .  6H2O.  Besides  these  four 
minerals  of  special  interest  to  chemists,    many  more— such   as 


Dec.  19,  1889J 


NATURE 


163 


cyrtolite,  moiybdite,  allaniie,  tengeriie,  and  a  new  hydrated 
thorium-yttrium-lead  uranate,  termed  nivenite — have  been  found. 
Altogether,  this  is  the  richest  find  of  rare  earths  which  has  been 
heard  of  for  some  time,  and  will  probably  exert  a  fresh  impetus 
upon  the  attempts  to  set  our  knowledge  of  the  rare-earth 
elements  upon  a  surer  foundation. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Ring-tailed  Coati  {Nasua  rufa  i )  from 
South  America,  presented  by  Mrs.  Petre ;  a  Common  Squirrel 
{Schirus  vulgaris),  British,  presented  by  Mri;.  S.  Stutterd  ;  a 
Short-eared  Owl  {Asia  brachyoius)  from  Hampshire,  presented  by 
Mr.  E.  Hart,  F.Z.S.  ;  two  Owen's  Apteryx  {Apteryx  oweni) 
from  New  Zealand,  presented  by  Captain  C.  A.  Findlay,  R.N.R., 
R.M.S.  S.  Ruapehti ;  four  Common  Vipers  ( F?^fra  berus)  from 
Hampshire,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  H.  B.  Pain  ;  a  Marsh  Ich- 
neumon (Herpesies  galera)    from   South  Africa,    purchased  ;    a 

Troupial   {Xanthosomus  frontalis)  from  Brazil,  received  in 

exchange. 

OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.,  December  19  =  3h. 
54m.  45s. 


Name. 


(i)  G.  C.  826 

(2)  y  Eridani 

(3)  e  Persei ... 

(4)  3  Persei  ... 

(5)  43  Schj.  ... 

(6)  .S  Tauri  ... 


Mag. 


3 
3 
3 
8 
Var. 


Colour. 


Yellowish-red. 

Yellowish-white. 

Bluish-white. 

Very  red. 


R.A.  1890.  Decl.  1890. 


h.  m.  s. 

4  9  15 

-13  I 

3  52  53 

-1346 

3  50  30 

+  39  39 

3  51  6 

-1-47  26 

4  44  37 

-f-28  20 

4  23  10  1 

+  942 

Remarks. 

(1)  This  is  described  in  the  General  Catalogue  as  "a  globular 
cluster,  very  bright,  small,  round,  very  suddenly  brighter  in  the 
middle,  barely  resolvable  (mottled  as  if  with  stars)."  In  1864 
Dr.  Huggins  observed  the  spectrum,  and  noted  that  it  was 
apparently  continuous,  extending  from  the  orange  to  the  blue, 
without  any  traces  of  either  bright  or  dark  lines.  It  was  again 
observed  by  Winlock  at  Harvard  College  in  December  1868, 
and,  strange  to  say,  a  bright  line  spectrum  was  recorded.  "  Two 
distinct  bright  lines,  near  each  other,  and  coincident  with  air- 
lines A  5020_±  and  K  4990  ;  a  third  faint  line  \  4900  ±  "  ('•  Har- 
vard College  Observations,"  vol.  xiii.  Part  I,  p.  64).  These  lines 
were  in  all  probability  the  three  ordinary  nebula  lines  near  A  500, 
495,  and  486.  Winlock  describes  the  nebula  as  planetary,  and 
gives  exactly  the  same  co-ordinates  as  those  given  by  Huggins 
and  in  the  General  Catalogue.  If  both  observers  really  saw  the 
same  nebula,  the  results  are  highly  suggestive  of  variability  ;  but 
even  then  there  is  the  difficulty  of  the  recorded  resolvability.  It 
is  quite  possible  that,  in  the  four  years  which  elapsed  between 
the  observations,  the  spectrum  changed  from  an  apparently  con- 
tinuous one  to  a  discontinuous  spectrum,  by  some  action  similar 
to  that  producing  variability  in  such  stars  as  Mira,  but  at  the 
same  time  a  change  of  brightness  would  also  be  expected,  and 
of  this  there  is  no  record.  In  any  ca-e,  the  nebula  is  well  worthy 
of  further  examination. 

(2)  This  star  of  Group  11.  is  interesting,  as  being  a  connect- 
ing-link between  stars  like  o  Herculis,  in  which  the  bands  are 
very  wide  and  dark,  and  those  like  Aldebaran,  in  which  there 
is  a  line  spectrum  with  only  the  remnants  of  the  bands  in 
the  red.  Duner  states  that  the  bands  2-8  are  visible,  but  all  of 
them  are  narrow  and  pale,  b,  and  presumably  D,  are  very 
strong.  Further  observations,  with  special  reference  to  the 
lines  of  hydrogen,  are  suggested. 

(3)  A  star,  hitherto  described  as  of  the  solar  type,  of  which 
the  usual  observations  are  required.  If  the  star  appears  to  be 
of  the  same  type  of  the  sun  or  Capella,  special  attention  should 
be  directed  to  the  presence  or  absence  of  dark  carbon  flutings. 
It  is  highly  probable  that  stars  like  the  sun,  in  which  there  is  a 
photographic  indication  of  carbon  absorption,  will  subsequently 
cool  down  and  become  stars  of  Group  VI.,  in  which  carbon 


absorption  is  predominant.  If  this  be  the  case,  all  the  interme- 
diate stages  of  mixed  metallic  lines  and  dark  carbon  flutings 
should  be  represented  amongst  the  stars. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.,  of  which  the  usual  observations  are 
required. 

(5)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  VI.  The  three  ordinary  bands  of 
carbon  are  visible,  band  6,  near  A.  564,  being  rather  pale.  A 
study  of  Duner's  catalogue  of  the  stars  of  this  group  shows 
that  some  of  those  in  which  band  6  is  pale  give  secondary 
bands,  whilst  others  do  not.  This  appears  to  be  mainly,  though 
not  entirely,  due  to  differences  of  magnitude.  Comparative 
observations  with  the  same  telescope  and  spectroscope,  with 
reference  to  this  point,  are  suggested. 

(6)  Gore  states  the  period  of  this  variable  as  378  days, 
and  the  magnitudes  at  maximum  and  minimum  as  9*9  and  <  13 
respectively.  The  colour  is  described  as  trifling,  but  the  spec- 
trum has  not  yet  been  recorded.  The  maximum  will  occur  on 
December  28.  A.  FoWLER. 

Period  of  U  Corona. — Mr.  S.  C.  Chandler  {Astronomical 
yotirnal.  No.  205),  from  the  observations  of  the  period  of  this 
star,  finds  an  inequality  of  the  same  order  as  those  detected  in 
U  Ophiuchi  and  U  Cephei,  variables  of  the  Algol  type.  The 
period  appears  to  be  shortening  by  0'0036s.  from  minimum  to 
minimum.  The  results  depend  upon  forty-five  very  unequally 
distributed  minima  ;  thirty-eight,  however,  lie  in  the  interval 
1870-74,  and  afford  a  basis  to  work  upon.  A  larger  series  of 
observations  is  required  to  elucidate  Mr.  Chandler's  hypothesis, 
which,  however,  is  quite  conformable  within  the  limits  of  the 
purely  accidental  errors  of  the  observations  that  have  been 
investigated. 


Identity  of  Brooks's  Comet  {d  1889)  with  Lexell's 
Comet  1770. — In  the  same  publication  as  the  above,  Mr. 
Chandler  gives  some  most  interesting  results  of  an  investigation 
into  the  orbits  of  these  comets.  The  following  is  a  summary  of 
the  principal  conclusions  : — 

(i)  The  encounter  of  the  comet  with  Jupiter  in  1886  effected 
a  complete  transformation  of  the  comet's  orbit.  Instead  of  the 
present  seven  years'  ellipse,  it  was  previously  moving  in  a  large 
one  of  twenty-seven  years'  period. 

(2)  Several  months  before  reaching  its  perihelion,  it  passed, 
near  the  beginning  of  1886,  into  the  sphere  of  Jupiter's  attrac- 
tion, and  was  deflected  into  a  hyperbolic  path  about  that  planet, 
and  narrowly  escaped  being  drawn  into  a  closed  orbit,  as  a 
satellite  of  Jupiter. 

(3)  At  the  point  of  closest  approach  to  Jupiter,  May  20,  1886, 
the  comet  was  distant  from  it  only  about  nine  diameters  of  the 
planet,  passing  a  little  outside  of  the  orbit  of  the  third  satellite. 

(4)  In  1779,  and  not  before,  the  comet  must  have  come  so 
near  to  Jupiter  as  to  pass  under  his  control  and  experience  a 
radical  change  of  orbit  at  the  point  of  longitude  where  Lexell's 
comet  underwent  its  notable  disturbance  in  that  year.  More- 
ever,  the  elements  of  Lexell's  comet  before  the  disturbance  were 
strikingly  similar  to  those  found  for  the  present  comet  previous 
to  1886. 

Taking  all  the  points  presented  into  consideration,  the  argu- 
ment for  the  identity  of  the  two  comets  is  overwhelming.  A 
fuller  investigation  will  be  made  as  soon  as  the  observations  for 
the  whole  apparition  have  been  received. 

Some  Photographic  Star  Spectra. — An  examination 
has  been  made  by  Dr.  Scheiner  of  the  star  spectra  photographed 
at  Potsdam  i^Astr.  Nachr.,  No.  2923).  The  wave-lengths  of 
lines  in  the  spectra  were  determined  by  comparison  with  the 
solar  spectrum,  and  as  the  probable  error  of  the  measures  is 
estimated  so  small  as  0005,  the  identification  of  the  lines  seems 
beyond  doubt.     The  following  are  some  descriptive  results  :  — 

7  Cassiopeia.  Continuous  spectrum  ;  hydrogen  lines  and  D3. 
bright. 

o  CoroncB.  The  magnesium  line  at  448 '2  appears  as  a  broad 
line  in  this  star. 

a  LyrcB.  Some  fine  lines,  supposed  to  be  due  to  iron  or  calcmm, 
are  seen,  but  have  not  been  measured. 

Sirius.  91  similar  fine  lines  to  those  in  the  above  star  have 
been  measured,  and  43  ascribed  to  iron.  Even  more  of  these 
lines  occur  in  Procyon. 

o  AquilcB.  The  spectrum  of  this  star  appears  almost  identical 
with  that  of  the  sun. 

&  Orionis.  The  hydrogen  and  other  lines  appear  broad,  but 
are  not  diffused  at  the  edges  as  in  o  Lyras  and  similar  stars.  20 
lines  have  been  measured  from  A  4C0  to  A  460. 


164 


NATURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


a  AurigcE.  291  lines  have  been  measured  in  the  spectrum  of 
this  star  between  A  410  and  A  470,  all  of  which  appear  identical 
with  solar  lines. 

Magnitude  and  Colour  of  i\  Argus, — Observations  of 
this  variable  have  been  made  at  Cordoba  since  1871,  and  some 
comparisons  made  by  Mr.  Thome  (Asir.  Nachr,  No.  2922) 
show  that  it  steadily  decrea,sed  in  magnitude  until  about  the  end 
of  1886,  when  a  minimum  of  7*65  was  reached,  and  it  is  now 
about  6'6.  In  1843,  Maclear  gave  the  brightness  of  i\  Argus  as 
-  I'D,  or  between  that  of  Sirius  and  Canopus,  so  that  the 
variation  in  magnitude  is  8 '5,  and  not  6  as  heretofore  assumed, 
this  variation,  extending  over  44  years,  gives  an  average  yearly 
rate  of  diminution  of  o'2. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  change  in  magnitude  was 
accompanied  by  a  change  in  colour  ;  for  although  before  mini- 
mum the  star  was  of  a  dull  scarlet  the  colour  became  lighter, 
until  in  June  1889  it  was  a  bright  orange. 

Orbit  of  Barnard's  Comet  1884  II. — From  an  investiga- 
tion of  all  the  available  observations  of  this  periodic  comet.  Dr. 
Berberich  has  computed  the  following  elements  (^5^r.  A^«c/jr. , 
2938-39). 

Epoch  1884  August  l6'5,  Berlin  Mean  Time. 

M  =  35°9  59  49-13 

w  =  301     I  58-63 

ft  =      58  59-12 

1=      5  27  38-40 

<?>  =    35  44  50-92 
M  =  65  7" -0839  ±  o"-8876 
log  a  =  0-4882572 
Perihelion  passage  =:  1884  August  16-516543 
Period  =  1972-35  ±  2*66  days. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  foregoing  period,  that  the  comet  will 
be  at  perihelion  again  in  1890  January  9-87. 

Algol. — At  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Prussian  Academy  of 
Sciences,  held  on  November  28,  Prof.  Vogel  gave  the  results 
he  had  obtained  from  photographs  of  the  spectrum  of  this 
variable.  Prof.  Pickering  had  pointed  out,  some  years  ago,  that 
if  the  variation  in  stars  of  the  Algol  class  were  due  to  the  transit 
of  a  dark  satellite  across  the  disk  of  its  primary,  producing  a 
partial  eclipse,  then  since  in  every  case  yet  known  the  two 
bodies  must  be  close  to  each  other,  and  of  not  very  dispropor- 
tionate size,  the  primary  must  revolve  with  very  considerable 
rapidity  in  an  orbit  round  the  common  centre  of  gravity  of  the 
two  ;  and,  therefore,  be  sometimes  approaching  the  earth  with 
great  rapidity  and  sometimes  receding  from  it.  Six  photographs 
of  the  spectrum  of  Algol — obtained,  three  during  last  winter,  and 
three  during  the  November  just  past — have  shown  that  before 
the  minimum  the  lines  of  the  spectrum  of  Algol  are  markedly 
■displaced  towards  the  red,  showing  a  motion  of  recession  ;  but 
that  after  the  minimum  the  displacement  is  towards  the  blue, 
showing  a  motion  of  approach.  Assuming  a  circular  orbit  for 
the  star,  and  combining  the  details  given  by  the  spectroscope 
with  the  known  variation  of  the  star's  light.  Prof.  Vogel  derives 
the  following  elements  for  the  system  of  Algol : — 

Diameter  of  Algol 1,074,100  English  miles. 

Diameter  of  the  dark  companion  840,600       ,,  ,, 

Distance  of  centre...         ...         ...     3,269,000       ,,  ,, 

Speed  of  Algol  in  its  orbit  27  iniles  per  second. 

Speed  of  the  companion  in  its  orbit       ...      56     ,,  ,, 

Mass  of  Algol        ^  of  the  sun. 

Mass  of  the  companion     ...         ...         ...       ^      ,,         ,, 

Speed  of  translation  of  the  entire  system  l  .,  , 

towards  the  earth  ^   __    |  2  miles  per  second. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  density  both  of  Algol  and  its  com- 
panion is  much  less  than  that  of  the  sun— less  than  a  quarter,  in 
fact.  This  is  what  we  might  expect,  for  Algol  and  all  the 
variables  of  its  class  yet  examined  give  spectra  of  Group  IV., 
and  should  therefore  represent  a  less  advanced  stage  of  condensa- 
tion than  that  seen  in  our  sun.  This  demonstration  of  the  truth 
of  the  satellite  theory  of  variation  of  the  Algol  type  derives  also 
an  especial  interest  from  Prof.  Darwin's  researches  on  tidal 
evolution,  for  assuming,  as  we  well  may,  that  the  cause  of 
variation  is  the  same  in  all  members  of  the  class,  we  now 
know  of  nine  stars  in  which  a  large  companion  is  revolving 
round  its  primary  at  but  a  very  short  distance  from  it,  and  in  a 
very  short  space  of  time.  The  companion  of  U  Ophiuchi  must, 
indeed,  be  almost  in  contact  with  its  parent  star. 


Discovery  of  a  New  Comet. — A  faint  comet  was  dis- 
covered by  M.  Borrelly  at  j  Marseilles,  on  December  12,  at 
7h.  49-5m.  G.M.T.  R.A.  i8h,  7m.;  daily  motion  in  R.A, 
+  im.  I2S.     N.P.D.  41°  7';  daily  motion  +  60'. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

We  regret  to  have  to  record  the  death  of  Major  Peter  Egerton 
Warburton,  whose  name  will  always  be  intimately  associated  with 
the  history  of  exploration  in  Australia.  He  died  at  Beaumont, 
Adelaide,  in  his  seventy-sixth  year.  His  most  famous  achieve- 
ment, undertaken  in  1873,  was  the  crossing  of  the  continent  from 
a  point  on  the  overland  telegraphic  line  to  the  De  Grey  River, 
in  Western  Australia.  Nothing  was  heard  of  him  for  about 
twelve  months,  during  which  he  and  his  party  suffered  terrible 
privations  in  their  march  across  the  desert.  After  the  expedi- 
tion. Major  Warburton  visited  England,  and  was  awarded  a 
Gold  Medal  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society  for  his  efforts 
towards  increasing  our  knowledge  of  the  interior  of  Australia, 
He  received  the  Companionship  of  the  Order  of  St.  Michael 
and  St.  George  in  1875. 

The  death  is  announced  of  Cardinal  G.  Massaja  in  his  eighty- 
first  year,  at  St.  Georgio  a  Cremano,  For  nearly  half  a  century 
the  name  of  this  distinguished  explorer  has  been  intimately  asso- 
ciated with  the  progress  of  geographical  discoveries  in  Abys- 
sinia and  the  surrounding  regions.  It  was  at  his  suggestion  that 
the  Italian  Geographical  Society  organized  the  Antinori  Expedi- 
tion to  Shoa,  which  has  resulted  in  the  occupation  of  a  vast 
region,  and  the  extension  of  Italian  influence  over  the  whole  of 
Ethiopia.  His  chief  work,  "  I  miei  trentacinque  Anni  nell' 
alta  Etiopia,"  abounds  in  valuable  geographical,  historical,  and 
ethnological  information  on  the  East  African  regions  for  so 
many  years  explored  and  studied  by  him.  The  Cardinal  was 
born  at  Piova  in  1809,  and,  in  1846,  appointed  Vicar  Apostolic 
of  the  Galla  nation. 

From  the  Berlin  Correspondent  of  the  Daily  News  we  learn 
that  a  full  account  of  the  ascent  of  Kilimanjaro  by  Dr.  Hans 
Meyer  and  Prof,  Purtscheller  has  been  received  at  Berlin.  It  is 
dated  "  Marangu  Jagga,  October  9."  The  journey  from  Zanzibar 
to  Uawela  took  exactly  a  fortnight.  On  September  25  the  tra- 
vellers reached  Marangu.  On  October  2  they  encamped,  with 
a  Pangani  negro,  on  the  ridge  of  the  plateau,  at  a  height  of 
14,450  feet.  At  2.30  a.m.  they  started  for  the  lava-ribs  sur- 
rounding the  valley  of  glaciers  to  the  south  about  1200  feet 
above.  At  7  o'clock,  on  the  right  side  of  the  valley,  at  an 
elevation  of  about  16,500  feet,  the  first  snow  was  seen  under 
cover  of  the  rocks.  The  higher  they  went,  the  more  clefts  and 
fissures  the  field  of  ice  had.  The  travellers  say  :— ' '  After  great 
exertions  we  reached,  at  1.45,  the  snow-line,  and  it  was  seen 
that  the  highest  peak,  which  was  formed  of  rocks  jutting  out  of 
the  snow,  was  about  one  and  a  half  hour's  march  to  the  left. 
After  resting  a  day  and  a  half  we  set  off,  on  October  5)  ^^o 
bivouac  in  the  Lava  Cave,  at  a  height  of  about  15,200  feet, 
and  on  the  next  day  we  repeated  the  ascent.  The  peaks  were 
gained  without  particular  difficulty,  and  on  the  central  and 
highest  one,  19,680  feet  above  the  sea,  the  German  flag  was 
planted."  Dr.  Meyer  proposes  to  call  this  peak  Kaiser  Wilhelm 
Peak.  The  view  from  here  on  to  the  Kibbs  Crater — which  is 
6600  feet  broad  and  660  feet  high,  and  the  lower  half  of  which 
is  encased  in  a  mighty  belt  of  ice,  whilst  a  volcanic  cone  of 
about  500  feet  rises  in  the  centre — is  magnificent.  The  beauties 
of  the  landscape  in  the  Kilimanjaro  region  seem  to  be  quite 
extraordinary.  On  October  10  the  Kimawensi  was  to  be 
ascended.     The  two  travellers  enjoy  the  best  of  health. 

The  double  number  of  the  Bollettino  of  the  Italian  Geogra- 
phical Society  for  October  and  November,  which  appears  some 
weeks  behind  time,  is  largely  devoted  to  African  subjects,  and 
more  particularly  to  the  north-eastern  region,  which  is  rapidly 
becoming  an  "  ItaHan  colony,"  Captain  D.  Stasio  publishes  a 
summary  of  Don  Francesco  Alvarez's  "Travels  in  Ethiopia" 
in  the  sixteenth  century,  enriched  with  valuable  notes  and  addi- 
tions, Alvarez,  a  priest  attached  to  an  embassy  forwarded  by 
Portugal,  in  1520,  to  the  Emperor  of  Abyssinia,  shows  himself 
a  careful  observer  of  men  and  things,  and  his  work,  which  was 
included  in  Ramusio's  "Navigationi  et  Viaggi  "  (Venice,  1588), 
abounds  in  details  regarding  the  political,  social,  and  economic 
relations  of  that  region  in  the  sixteenth  century,  Giulio  D. 
Cocorda  brings  to  a  conclusion  his  important  series  of  papers 


Dec,  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


16; 


on  the  South  African  gold-fields,  which  include  much  informa- 
tion on  the  present  condition  of  the  whole  of  South  Africa  as 
far  north  as  the  Zambesi.  The  observer  points  out  that,  while 
the  Delagoa  Bay  and  other  lines  of  communication  are  much 
discussed,  the  fine  artery  of  the  perfectly  navigable  Limpopo  is 
entirely  neglected,  notwithstanding  Captain  Chaddock's  naviga- 
tion of  it  a  few  years  ago.  The  writer  remarks  that  "  this  river 
flows  mainly  through  regions  under  the  influence  or  protectorate 
of  England  ;  the  Transvaal  people  on  the  one  side,  and  those  of 
Matabeleland  on  the  other,  would  certainly  be  glad  to  avail  them- 
selves of  this  outlet  for  their  produce.  As  it  traverses  only  a 
small  tract  of  Portuguese  territory  about  its  estuary,  I  hope  and 
believe  that  Portugal  will  not  be  allowed  to  treat  the  Limpopo 
as  she  is  now  attempting  to  treat  the  Zambesi.  The  subject  is 
of  such  importance  that  it  cannot  fail  soon  to  be  brought  before 
the  British  Parliament."  Referring  to  the  negotiations  at  pre- 
sent going  on  in  connection  with  the  Swaziland  question,  he 
observes,  in  the  same  spirit : — "  The  Swazi  people  must,  sooner 
or  later,  yield  either  to  the  Transvaal  or  to  England,  and  if  to 
the  former,  it  must  be  to  the  entire  detriment  of  British  interests. 
England,  as  the  suzerain  power  in  South  Africa,  should  be  the 
first  in  the  field,  both  in  her  own  interest  and  in  that  of  her 
other  colonies  and  subjects.  If  she  does  not  assume  the  pro- 
tectorate of  Swaziland,  besides  losing  the  control  of  a  vast  and 
rich  mineral  district,  she  will  deprive  the  colony  of  Natal  of  all 
further  hope  of  expansion.  If  she  ignores  her  responsibility  in 
this  matter,  and  allows  the  Transvaal  Republic  to  absorb  Swazi- 
land, she  will  add  another  to  the  long  list  of  blunders  that 
threaten  to  destroy  all  prospect  of  consolidating  a  dominion  as 
large  as  Canada,  and  may  end  disastrously  for  British  interests 
in  South  Africa." 

A  French  traveller  has  just  achieved  a  feat  of  great  interest. 
Captain  Trivier,  equipped  by  the  newspaper  Za  Giroizde,  started 
some  eighteen  months  ago  for  the  Congo  State.  He  went  up 
the  river  to  Stanley  Falls,  and  thence  proceeded  to  Central 
Africa  and  the  Lake  region,  accompanying  caravans.  He  has 
just  arrived  at  Mozambique. 

Globus  reports  that  during  the  past  summer  M.  Thoroddsen, 
the  well  known  student  of  Iceland,  has  carried  out  a  journey  in 
the  waste  region  known  as  Fiskivotn,  lying  between  Hecla  and 
the  Vatna  Jokul,  which  has  hitherto  been  unvisited  for  the  most 
part  by  any  inquirer.  To  the  east  and  north  of  Hecla  he  dis- 
covered a  new  obsidian  region.  Crossing  the  Tunguaa,  he 
went  to  the  Fiskivotn  group  of  lakes,  all  true  crater  lakes.  The 
district  between  this  and  the  Vatna  Jokul  has  absolutely  no 
plant-life  whatever ;  it  consists  of  lava-fields,  and  plains  of  vol- 
canic sand.  In  it  he  found  a  lake,  Thorisvatn,  the  second 
largest  in  the  island.  Thence,  after  a  day's  journey  through  an 
utterly  desolate  district,  he  reached  the  hitherto  unknown  source 
of  the  Tunguaa.  To  the  south  of  this  he  discovered,  between 
three  ranges  of  hills,  previously  unknown,  a  new  and  very  long 
lake. 

Mr.  Dauvergne  has,  says  the  Times  of  India,  completed  an 
adventurous  journey  in  the  regions  of  North- West  Cashmere. 
His  course  was  from  Leh  northwards  to  the  Kilian  Pass,  in 
Kashgaria,  and  then  northwards  across  the  Pamir  to  the  Upper 
Oxus.  He  reached  Sarhad  in  safety,  and  after  six  days'  halt 
there,  crossed  the  Hindu  Kush  by  the  Baroghil  Pass,  as  he  did 
not  wishto  visit  Chitral.  He  then  turned  eastwards,  and  after 
a  trying  journey  through  the  snow,  crossed  the  Ishkaman  Pass, 
north  of  Yasin.  Thence  he  travelled  southwards  by  the 
Karambar  Valley,  and  eventually  reached  Gilgit,  a  short  time 
after  Captain  Durand  had  started  for  Chitral.  Mr.  Dauvergne 
reports  that  the  Russian  explorer,  Captain  Grombchevsky, 
whose  attempt  to  reach  Kafiristan  was  noticed  some  time 
ago,  was  stopped  at  Kila  Panjah  on  the  Oxus,  by  the  Afghan 
authorities. 


THE  ST.  PETERSBURG  PROBLEM. 
'T'HIS  celebrated  problem,  which  is  first  mentioned  before 
1708  in  a  letter  from  the  younger  Nicholas  Bernoulli  to 
Montmort,  has  been  frequently  discussed  by  Daniel  Bernoulli 
(1730)  and  other  eminent  mathematicians.  It  may  be  briefly 
stated  as  follows  : — 

A  tosses  a  coin,  and  undertakes  to  pay  B  a  florin  if  head 
comes  up  at  the  first  throw,  two  florins  if  it  comes  up  at  the 
second,  four  florins  if  it  be  deferred  until  the  third  throw,  and  so 
on.     What  is  the  value  of  B's  expectation  ? 


The  chance  of  head  appearing  at  the 
1st,  2nd,  3rd,  4th  ....  wth  throw  is 
\,     \,      \,      iV  •    •    •    •  i"-     A  promises  to  pay  for  head 
I,     2,      4,       8   .    .    .    .  2"  ~ '  florins,  hence  B's  expectation  is 

*,     h      %,      I'V  .   .    .    •  a'-Vz"  =  \  florin. 

Hence  the  total  value  of  B's  expectation  is  an  infinite  series, 
each  term  of  which  is  a  shilling,  or  it  is  infinite. 

This  result  of  the  theory  of  probability  is  apparently  directly 
opposed  to  the  dictates  of  common-sense,  since  it  is  supposed 
that  no  one  would  give  even  a  large  finite  sum,  such  as  £'^0,  for 
the  prospect  above  defined. 

Almost  all  mathematical  writers  on  probability  have  allowed 
the  force  of  the  objection,  which  they  have  endeavoured  to  evade 
by  various  ingenious  artifices  all  more  or  less  unsatisfactory. 

The  real  difficulty  of  the  problem  seems  to  lie  in  the  exact 
meaning  oi  infinite  and  value  of  the  expectation. 

Since  the  infinite  value  of  the  result  is  only  true  if  an  infinite 
number  of  trials  are  paid  for  and  made,  all  such  considerations 
as  want  of  time  and  the  bankruptcy  of  A  or  B  are  precluded  by 
the  terms  of  the  question. 

The  value  of  B  s  expectation  is  frequently  confused  with  how 
much  he  can  or  ought  to  pay  for  it  ;  thus  Mr.  Whitworth 
("Choice  and  Chance,"  p.  234)  finds  that  if  B  have  1024  florins, 
he  may  give  very  little  more  than  6  florins  for  the  venture.  This 
ingenious,  solution  seems  to  have  no  reference  to  the  original 
problem,  which  has  been  modified  by  Mr.  Whitworth's  introduc- 
tion of  the  word  "advantageously"  (p.  232). 

B  can  pay  for  his  expectation  in  three  ways :  (i.)  a  sum  before 
each  toss ;  (ii.)  a  sum  before  each  series  of  tosses  ending  with 
head  ;  (iii.)  a  sum  for  the  total  result  of  A's  operations. 

Mr.  Whitworth  apparently  assumes  the  first  method  of  pay- 
ment, and  shows  that  the  larger  B's  funds  are  the  more  he  may 
safely  pay  for  each  toss,  since  he  can  continue  to'  play  longer. 
Many  mathematicians  take  the  second  method  of  payment. 
"However  large  a  fee  I  pay  for  each  of  these  sets,  I  shall  be 
sure  to  make  it  up  in  time  '  ("  Logic  of  Chance,"  p.  155). 

It  is  easy  to  show  in  this  case  also  that  what  may  be  safely 
paid  before  each  series  increases  with  the  number  of  series. 

Suppose  a  very  large  number  of  tosses  made,  about  half 
would  come  up  heads  and  half  tails  ;  each  head  would  end 
a  series,  when  a  fresh  payment  must  be  made  by  B.  Suppose 
the  tosses  limited  to  one  series,  if  B  pays  one  florin  he  cannot 
possibly  lose,  if  he  pay  anything  more  he  may  lose  by  head 
coming  up  the  first  time,  and  the  more  he  pays  the  greater  will 
his  chance  of  loss  be,  since  the  series  of  tails  must  be  longer  to 
cover  it.  But,  however  large  a  finite  sum  he  pays,  he  is  not 
certain  to  lose,  e.g.  head  may  not  come  up  till  the  hundred  and 
first  toss,  when  he  would  receive 

2^0"  =  1,267650,600228,229401,496  703,205  376  florins. 

If  the  sets  are  limited  to  one  hundred,  about 

50  heads  would  probably  come  up  the  1st  toss. 


25 

13 

6 

3 
2 
I 


2nd 
3rd 
4th 
5th 
6th 
7th 


B  would 
receive  for 
each  series 
50  florins. 


Hence  for  the  hundred  sets,  B  would  receive  about  350  florins, 
or  he  could  pay  without  loss  seven  shillings  for  each  set. 

If  N  be  the  number  of  sets,  the  total  amount  received  by  B 
will  probably  not  be  less  than  n  terms  of  the  series 


/N  X 
t      2I 


N    X    2^ 


-f-  &c. 


}  =«{i}N, 


but  n  is  the  number  of  times  which  N  is  successively  divisible 
by  2,  or  2"  =  N,  or  «  =  log  N/log  2.  But  the  amount  x  which 
B  can  afford  to  pay  per  set  when  multiplied  by  the  number  of 
sets  is  equal  to  the  amount  which  he  r  eceives,  or — 

xN=Mi}N, 
log  2 
hence  x  ~  log  N/o'6  nearly. 

This  formula,  though  inexact  for  low,  is  very  convenient  for 
high,  values  of  N. 

N=        I  X  =  o  N=io8  X  =  10 

=      50  =  2*7  =10^  =15 

=    100  =  3'3  =  lo'*^  =  20 

=  1000  =5  =  10^^  =  25 

X  increases  with,  though  much   more   slowly  than,  N,  and 

becomes  infinite  when  N  does.     But  to  justify  a  payment  of 


1 66 


NATURE 


{Dec.  19,  1889 


;^50  per  set,  we  must  expect  a  number  of  sets  represented  by 
301  figures. 

Lastly,  what  is  the  value  of  B's  expectations  if  A's  operations 
are  continued  indefinitely.  With  great  deference  to  contrary 
opinions,  I  believe  this  to  be  the  correct  meaning  of  the  problem 
in  its  original  form.  The  theoretical  result  is  in  this  ca'«e 
easily  realized  by  the  aid  of  the  following  illustration.  Suppose 
the  person  A  replaced  by  an  automatic  machine  similar  to  that 
used  for  weighing  sovereigns,  which  tosses  continuously  ten 
times  per  minute.  On  the  average  of  a  large  number  of  tosses, 
B  cannot  receive  less  than  one  shilling  a  toss,  £\  every  two 
minutes,  or  £^2.0  a  day  for  ever.  If  the  current  rate  of  interest 
be  3  per  cent.,  he  may  safely  pay  for  this  perpetual  annuity 
;^8, 760,000.  Suppose,  instead  of  this  comparatively  slow  rate, 
the  machine  increased  the  rapidity  of  its  operations  indefinitely, 
■the  sum  to  be  paid  for  the  result  would  also  increase  indefinitely, 
or  the  expectation  would  become  infinite. 

Sydney  Lupton. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

Cambridge. — The  Newall  Telescope  Syndicate  has  drawn 
-up  a  scheme  for  building  a  dome  for  the  telescope  on  a  site 
adjoining  the  present  Observatory,  with  an  observer's  house  ; 
and  they  recommend  that  an  observer  be  appointed,  at  a  stipend 
of  ^250  per  annum,  with  a  house,  to  devote  himself  to  research 
in  stellar  physics,  under  the  general  direction  of  the  Director  of 
the  Observatory. 

The  results  of  this  year's  commercial  examination,  held  by  the 
School's  Examinations  Board,  are  satisfactory.  Geography  was 
still  very  im'perfect.  Elementary  mechanics  has  now  been  added 
to  the  list  of  compulsory  subjects. 

An  influential  syndicate  has  been  appointed  to  consider  the 
question  of  the  mechanical  workshops,  their  management  and 
utility. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Royal  Society,  December  12. — "  An  Experimental  Investi- 
gation into  the  Arrangement  of  the  Excitable  Fibres  of  the 
Internal  Capsule, of  the  Bonnet  Monkey  {Macacus  sinicus)." 
By  Charles  E.  Beevor,  M.D.,  F.R.C. P.,  and  Victor  Horsley, 
B.S.,   F.  R.  S.  (from  the  Laboratory  of  the  Brown  Institution). 

After  an  historical  introduction,  the  authors  proceed  to  describe 
the  method  of  investigation,  which  was  conducted  as  follows. 
The  animal  being  narcotized  with  ether,  the  internal  capsule 
was  exposed  by  a  horizontal  section  through  the  hemisphere. 
By  means  of  compasses  the  outline  of  the  basal  ganglia  and 
capsule  were  accurately  transferred  to  paper  ruled  with  squares  of 
one  millimetre  side,  so  that  a  projection  of  the  capsule  was  thus 
obtained,  divided  into  bundles  of  one  millimetre  square  area. 
Each  of  these  squares  of  fibres  was  then  excited  by  a  minimal 
stimulus,  the  same  being  an  induced  or  secondary  interrupted 
current.  The  movements  were  recorded  and  the  capsule 
jphotographed. 

In  all  forty-five  experiments  were  performed,  and  they  are 
•arranged  in  eight  groups,  representing  eight  successive  levels 
(i.e.  from  the  centrum  ovale  to  the  crus)  at  which  the  capsule 
was  investigated. 

Before  the  results  are  described  in  detail  a  full  account  is  given 
of  previous  investigations,  experimental,  clinical,  and  anatomical, 
on  the  arrangement  of  the  internal  capsule. 

The  anatomy  of  the  part  and  the  relation  of  the  fibres  to  the 
basal  ganglia  are  then  discussed,  and  a  full  description  given  of 
each  of  the  groups  examined. 

The  general  results  are  next  given  at  length,  of  which  the 
following  is  a  resume. 

Firstly,  the  rare  occurrence  of  bilateral  movement  is  discussed, 
and  the  meaning  of  the  phenomenon  defined.  Secondly,  the 
lateral  arrangement  and  juxtaposition  of  the  fibres  are  considered. 
Thirdly,  the  antero-posterior  order  in  which  the  fibres  for  the 
movements  of  the  different  segments  are  placed  is  described,  and 


that  order  found  to  be  practically  identical  with  that  observed  on 
the  cortex,  viz.  from  before  back  : — 

Movements  of  eyes. 

,,  head. 

„  tongue. 

„  mouth. 

„  upper  limb  (shoulder  preceding  thumb). 

,,  trunk. 

,,  lower  limb  (hip  preceding  toes). 

The  character  or  nature  of  these  movements  is  set  out  in  a 
table  giving  the  average  localization  of  each  segment.  Speaking 
generally,  it  may  be  said  that  the  movements  are  arranged  in 
the  same  way  as  has  already  been  shown  by  the  authors  to  exist 
in  the  cortex  (vide  previous  papers  in  Phil.  Trans.,  1887,  1888), 
viz.  that  the  representation  of  extension  is  situated  in  front  of 
flexion  for  the  segments  of  the  upper  limb,  while  for  the  toes 
flexion  is  obtained,  as  in  the  cortex,  in  front  of  extension. 

Numerous  tables  and  diagrams  are  appended,  showing  the 
extent  of  appropriation  of  fibres  for  each  movement. 

Physical  Society,  November  15.— Prof.  Reinold,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  Enright  resumed  the  reading  of 
his  paper  on  the  electrification  due  to  contact  of  gases  with 
liquids.  Repeating  his  experiments  with  zinc  and  hydrochloric 
acid,  the  author,  by  passing  the  gas  into  an  insulated  metallic 
vessel  connected  with  the  electrometer,  proved  that  it  was  always 
charged  with  electricity  of  the  opposite  kind  to  that  of  the  solu- 
tion. The  electrical  phenomena  of  many  other  reactions  have 
been  investigated,  with  the  result  that  the  gas,  whether  H,  COo, 
SO3,  SH2,  or  CI,  is  always  electrified  positively  when  escaping 
from  acids,  and  negatively  when  leaving  a  solution  of  the  salt. 
In  some  cases  distinct  reversal  is  not  obtainable,  but  all  these 
seem  explicable  by  considering  the  solubility  and  power  of 
diffusion  of  the  resulting  salts.  Various  other  results  given  in 
the  paper  tend  to  confirm  this  hypothesis.  Seeking  for  an 
explanation  of  the  observed  phenomena,  the  author  could  arrive 
at  no  satisfactory  one  excepting  "contact"  between  gases  and 
liquids,  and  if  this  be  the  true  explanation  he  hoped  to  prove  it 
directly  by  passing  hydrogen  through  acid.  In  this,  however,  he 
was  unsuccessful,  owing,  he  believes,  to  the  impossibility  of 
bringing  the  gas  into  actual  contact  with  the  liquid.  True 
contact  only  seems  possible  when  the  gas  is  in  the  nascent  state. 
Some  difficulty  was  experienced  in  obtaining  non-electrified  gas, 
for  the  charge  is  retained  several  hours  after  its  production,  even 
if  the  gas  be  kept  in  metallic  vessels  connected  to  earth.  Such 
vessels,  when  recently  filled,  form  condensers  in  which  the 
electricity  pervades  an  inclosed  space,  and  whose  charge  is  avail- 
able on  allowing  the  gas  to  escape.  Soap  bubbles  blown  with 
newly  generated  hydrogen  were  also  found  to  act  as  condensers, 
the  liquid  of  which,  when  broken,  exhibited  a  negative  charge. 
This  fact,  the  author  suggested,  may  explain  the  so-called  "  fire- 
balls," sometimes  seen  during  thunderstorms';  for  if,  by  any 
abnormal  distribution  of  heat,  a  quantity  of  electrified  air 
becomes  inclosed  by  a  film  of  moisture,  its  movements  and 
behaviour  would  closely  resemble  those  of  fire-balls.  A  similar 
explanation  was  proposed  for  the  phenomenon  mentioned  in  a 
recent  number  of  Nature,  where  part  of  a  thundercloud  was 
seen  to  separate  from  the  mass,  descend  to  the  earth,  and  rise 
again.  The  latter  part  of  the  paper  describes  methods  of 
measuring  the  contact  potential  differences  between  gases  and 
liquids,  the  most  satisfactory  of  which  is  a  "water  dropper," 
and  by  its  means  the  P.D.  between  hydrogen  and  hydro- 
chloric acid  was  estimated  to  be  about  42  volts.  Prof  Riicker 
asked  if  the  experiment  with  zinc  and  hydrochloric  acid  could  be 
started  in  the  second  stage  by  having  the  acid  partly  saturated 
with  salt.  Dr.  C.  V.  Burton  thought  it  probable  that  contact 
could  be  made  between  a  gas  and  a  liquid  by  shaking  them  up 
together  in  a  bottle.  In  reply,  Mr.  Enright  said  the  experiment 
could  be  started  at  any  stage,  and  reversal  effected  as  often  as 
desired  by  adding  either  acid  or  a  solution  of  salt  to  the  generat- 
ing vessel. — Mr.  Herbert  Tomlinson,  F.R.S.,  read  a  paper  on 
the  effect  of  repeated  heating  and  cooling  on  the  electrical  resist- 
ance and  temperature  coefficient  of  annealed  iron.  In  a  paper 
recently  presented  to  the  Roval  Society,  the  author  has  brought 
forward  an  instance  of  an  iron  wire,  which  when  subjected  to 
magnetic  cycles  of  minute  lange  alternately  at  17°  and  100°  C, 
had  its  molecular  friction  and  magnetic  permeability  reduced 
respectively  to  about  one-quarter  and  one-half  their  original  values. 
The  present  experiments  were  undertaken  to  see  whether  by 


Dec.  19,  1889] 


NATURE 


167- 


such  heatings  and  cooHngs  the  temperature  coefficient  of  iron 
could  be  brought  down  to  something  approaching  the  number 
given  by  Matthiessen  for  "  most  pure  metals."  The  wire  experi- 
mented on  was  first  annealed  by  heating  to  1000°  C.  for  several 
hours  and  allowing  to  cool  slowly  in  a  furnace  placed  at  right 
angles  to  the  magnetic  meridian  ;  the  process  was  repeated  three 
times.  Afterwards  the  wire  was  covered  with  paper  and  wound 
doubly  into  a  coil.  This  coil  was  inclosed  in  a  water-jacketed 
air-chamber,  and  connected  with  a  sensitive  Wheatstone  bridge. 
Thermo-electric  and  Peltier  effects  were  eliminated  by  always 
keeping  the  galvanometer  circuit  closed.  By  repeated  heating 
to  100°  C.  and  cooling  to  17°  C.  for  long  intervals,  the  specific 
resistance  at  17°  C.  was  reduced  from  11,162  to  10,688 
C.G.  S.  units,  after  which  the  operations  produced  no  further 
change.  At  the  same  time  the  temperature  coefficient  in- 
creased in  the  proportion  of  I  :  i  "024.  From  careful  determina- 
tions of  the  resistance  at  different  temperatures,  the  formula 
R/ =  Rj(i  +  0-005131/  +  o-ooooo8i5/'-)  was  deduced,  whilst  that 
obtained  from  Matthiessen's  results  for  pure  iron  annealed  in  hy- 
drogen is  R/=R|,(i  -1-0  005425/ -fo-ooooo83/-).  Taking  his  own 
determination  of  specific  resistance  of  impure  iron  as  correct, 
coupled  with  Matthiessen's  law  connecting  the  resistances  and 
temperature  coefficients  of  metals  and  their  alloys,  the  author 
finds  that  the  specific  resistance  of  pure  iron  deduced  from 
Matthiessen's  results  is  from  4  to  5  per  cent,  too  high.  In  con- 
clusion, Mr.  Tomlinson  expresses  a  hope  that  the  B.A.  Electrical 
Standards  Committee  may  be  induced  to  determine  the  absolute 
resistance  and  temperature  coefficient  of  the  pure  metals  which 
are  in  ordinary  use.  Prof.  Ayrton  thought  Matthiessen's  results 
were  expressed  in  B.A.  units,  and  hence  might  appear  i  or  2 
per  cent,  too  great.  Mr.  Tomlinson,  however,  believed  the 
number  he  took  were  expressed  in  legal  ohms.  Dr.  Walmsley 
asked  for  what  value  of  the  magnetizing  force  the  permeability  of 
the  iron  mentioned  in  the  beginning  of  the  paper  was  determined  ; 
to  which  Mr.  Tomlinson  replied  that  they  were  much  smaller 
than  the  earth's  horizontal  component. — Dr.  Thompson's  paper 
on  geometrical  optics  was  postponed. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  December  2. — Sir  Douglas  Maclagan,  Vice- 
President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  Tait  communicated  a  paper  by 
Dr.  G.  Plarr,  on  the  transformation  of  Laplace's  coefficients. — 
Mr.  A.  C.  Mitchell  read  a  preliminary  note  on  the  thermal  con- 
ductivity of  aluminium.  A  comparatively  rough  first  experiment 
shows  that  this  metal  slightly  exceeds  good  copper  in  conduc- 
ductivity. — Dr.  John  Murray  discussed  the  question  of  the  origin 
and  nature  of  coral  reefs  and  other  carbonate  of  lime  formations 
in  recent  seas.  He  first  referred  to  experiments  which  have 
recently  been  made  regarding  secretion  and  solution  of  carbonate 
of  lime.  Carbonate  of  lime  remains  are  found  in  great  abund- 
ance at  the  sea  bottom  in  shallow  waters,  but  the  amount 
steadily  diminishes  as  the  depth  increases,  until  at  4000  fathoms 
almost  every  trace  has  disappeared.  This  is  due  to  solution,  as 
the  organisms  slowly  fall  to  the  bottom.  Everywhere  within 
500  fathoms  of  the  surface  the  ocean  teems  with  life.  The 
Greely  Expedition  was  starving  within  ten  feet  of  abundant  food 
which  might  have  been  obtained  by  breaking  a  hole  through  the 
ice  and  using  a  shirt  as  a  drag-net.  Dr.  Murray  then  proceeded 
to  discuss  his  theory  of  the  formation  of  coral  reefs,  bringing 
forward  in  reply  to  objections  by  Dana  and  others,  some  recently 
obtained  facts  regarding  the  existence  of  shallow  regions  in  what 
is,  on  the  whole,  deep  water.  He  showed  that  carbonate  of 
lime  is  continually  produced  in  great  quantity  in  warm  tropical 
water  by  the  action  of  sulphate  of  lime  in  solution  on  effete  pro- 
ducts. This  explains  the  great  growth  of  coral  in  tropical  regions. 
The  absence  of  coral  on  certain  shores  in  tropical  districts  is 
explained  by  the  uprise  of  cold  water  due  to  winds  blowing  off 
shore.  His  paper  was  illustrated  by  an  elaborate  series  of 
lime-light  diagrams. 

Paris. 
Academy  of  Sciences,  December  9. — M,  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  the  nitrification  of  ammonia,  by  M.  Th.  Schloesing. 
In  a  recent  communication  (September  9)  the  author  described 
three  experiments  on  the  nitrification  of  ammonia  in  vegetable 
humus,  tending  to  prove  that  this  phenomenon  is  accomplished 
without  any  appreciable  loss  of  nitrogen  liberated  in  the  gaseous 
state.  He  now  reports  the  results  of  two  other  experiments, 
showing  that  this  is  no  longer  the  case  when  a  larger  proportion 
of  ammonium  carbonate  is  introduced  into  the  soil. — Correction 


in  the  tables  of  Jupiter's  movement  worked  out  by  Le  Verrier,. 
by  M.  A.  Gaillot.  Comparing  the  secular  terms  of  the  eccen- 
tricity and  perihelion  of  Jupiter's  and  Saturn's  orbits  as  deter- 
mined by  Le  Verrier,  Hill  {Astronotnica/  yournal.  No.  204) 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  there  must  be  an  error  of  sign  in  the 
terms  of  the  second  order  relating  to  Jupiter's  orbit.  M.  Gaillor 
has  now  gone  over  the  calculations  again,  and  finds  that  Le 
Verrier's  manuscript  is  correct,  but  that,  as  conjectured  by  Hill, 
a  misprint  of  a  sign  occurs  in  the  published  work.  In  vol.  x. 
p.  242,  the  sign  +  appears  instead  of  -  before  the  term 
o"'oi5>554'8'  cos(a)  -  tt').  —  On  the  characteristic  temperatures,, 
pressures,  and  volumes  of  bodies,  by  M.  Ladislas  Netanson. 
These  researches  tend  to  show  that  for  every  gas  there  exists  an 
infinite  number  of  characteristic  values-,  t,  p,  v,  which,  being 
adopted  as  units  of  the  general  variables  t,  p,  v,  have  the 
remarkable  property  of  eliminating  all  difference  in  the  charac- 
teristic equations  of  the  different  gases.  The  systems  usually 
employed  in  measuring  temperatures,  pressures,  and  volumes, 
having  nothing  in  common  with  the  intimate  nature  of  the  bodies 
themselves,  give  rise  to  differences  in  the  equation  F(/,  /,  v)  =  o, 
which  disappear  when  for  each  body  the  physicist  employs  a 
special  system  in  accordance  with  its  properties.  —  On  the  localiza- 
tion of  the  interference  fringes  in  thin  isotropic  plates,  by  M.  J. 
Mace  de  Lepinay.  In  studying  the  exact  conditions  of  the 
fringes  in  thin  prismatic  plates,  the  author  finds  a  complete 
verification  of  the  general  theory  expounded  by  him  in 
a  previous  communication  (Comptes  rendus,  July  22,  1889). 
The  consequences  of  the  theory  may  be  considered  as  entirely 
verified  by  these  experiments. — On  the  want  of  accuracy  in  ther- 
mometers, by  M.  E.  Renou.  On  a  recent  occasion  (July  i)  M. 
Cornu  remarked  that  hitherto  these  instruments  have  been  liable 
to  an  error  of  from  o°'2  to  o°'3.  It  is  now  shown  that  observa- 
tions hitherto  recorded  may  give  rise  to  the  greatest  tincon- 
venience,  more  perhaps  in  future  than  at  present.  These 
remarks  were  supplemented  by  M.  Cornu,  who  pointed  out  that 
errors  in  the  mercury  thermometer  as  great  as  o°'2  or  o°*3  occur 
only  in  observations  taken  at  considerable  intervals  of  tempera- 
ture and  with  instruments  not  sufficiently  tested. — Variations  in 
the  mean  temperature  of  the  air  at  Paris,  by  M.  Renou.  Twenty 
years  ago  the  author  attempted  to  show  that  severe  winters  re- 
turn in  groups  of  five  or  six  every  forty-one  years.  This  some- 
what elastic  period  is  perhaps  reproduced  better  in  groups  of 
years  than  in  single  years.  It  also  appears  that  the  Observatory 
of  Paris  gives  a  mean  temperature  higher  by  o°7  than  that  of 
the  surrounding  rural  districts — 10°  7  as  compared  with  10° 'O  of 
the  Pare  Saint- Maur  Observatory. — On  the  observations  of  tem- 
perature on  the  top  of  the  Eiffel  Tower,  by  M.  Alfred  Angot. 
I  These  observations,  begun  on  July  i,  are  being  still  continued 
with  a  Richard  registering  thermometer,  placed  336  metres 
i  above  the  sea,  and  about  301  above  the  ground.  Compared  with 
j  those  of  the  Pare  Saint-Maur  (50  metres)  they  show  that  the 
1  normal  decrease  of  about  1°  for  every  180  metres  is  greatly  ex- 
ceeded in  summer  and  during  the  day  (means  of  the  maxima), 
and  correspondingly  diminished  in  winter  and  at  night  (means  of 
the  minima) ;  or  there  is  generally  even  an  inversion  in  the 
temperatures,  the  air  being  then  warmer  at  300  metres  than  near 
the  ground. — Papers  were  submitted  by  M.  Raoul  Varet,  on  the- 
ammoniacal  cyanides  of  mercury  ;  by  M.  L.  Prunier,  on  the 
simultaneous  quantitative  analysis  of  sulphur  and  carbon  in 
substances  containing  sulphur;  by  M.  E.  Guinochet,  on  an  acid 
isomerous  with  tricarballylic  acid  ;  by  M.  C.  Tanret,  on  two  new 
sugars  extracted  from  quebracho  {Aspidosperina  qjtebracho)  ;  by 
M.  Arnand,  on  carotine,  its  probable  physiological  action  on  the 
leaf;  and  by  MM.  Andre  Thil  and  Thouroude,  on  a  micro- 
graphic  study  of  the  woody  tissues  of  native  trees  and  shrubs, 
prepared  for  the  special  exhibition  of  the  Forest  Department. — 
The  sealed  paper,  by  M.  A.  Joannis,  on  compounds  of  potassium- 
and  sodium  with  ammonia  gas,  was  opened  by  the  Secretary. 

Berlin. 

Physical  Society,  November  22. — Prof,  du  Bois  Reymond,. 
President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Lehmann  spoke  on  the  nature  and 
distribution  of  the  Babylonian  metrical  system.  He  expressed 
his  desire  to  lay  before  the  competent  judgment  of  the  Physical 
Society,  the  results  of  his  most  recent  archaeological  researches, 
so  far  as  they  are  of  direct  physical  interest,  and  then  proceeded 
to  describe  the  numerical  system  employed  by  the  ancient 
Baylonians,  explaining  that  it  consisted  of  a  sexagesimal  system 
with    decimal   subdivisions.     The   imit    of    time,    the    double- 


i68 


NATURE 


[Dec.  19,  1889 


minute,  was  the  time  oc>:upied  by  the  sun's  rising,  msasured  at 
the  Equinox,  and  could  tlius  be  recovered  at  any  time.  It  was 
measured  by  the  mass  of  water  which  flowed  out  of  a  certain 
vessel  from  the  instant  at  which  the  upper  edge  of  the  sun 
appeared  above  the  horizon  to  the  moment  at  which  his  lower  edge 
was  exactly  touching  the  horizon.  The  day  consisted  of  720  of  these 
units.  The  unit  of  length  was  the  ell,  which  was  used  in  t«-o 
forms,  either  as  a  single-  or  double-ell  ;  subdivisions  used  were 
the  foot  =  a  double-ell,  the  hand-width,  and  the  finger-length. 
The  unit  of  weight  was  the  mine,  also  occurring  as  single-mine 
or  double-mine.  The  derivation  of  units  of  weight  from  units  of 
length,  as  in  the  modern  case  of  grams  and  centimetres,  was 
also  known,  but  of  course  the  water  used  was  not  distilled  and 
was  not  weighed  at  4°  C.  The  speaker  had,  however,  succeeded 
in  discovering  a  measuring-scale  on  an  ancient  monument  dating 
from  the  year  2500  B.C.,  which  had  enabled  him  to  compare 
the  Babylonian  measures  with  those  of  our  own  time.  It 
appeared  from  this  that  a  hand-breadth  =  99*4-99  6  mm.  ;  a 
double-ell  =  994-996  mm.  ;  and  the  foot  =  331-332  mm.  He 
had  further  discovered  several  stamped  weights,  and  thus  found 
that  the  double-mine  =  982 '4-985 '8  grams.  The  single-mine 
weighed  half  as  much  as  the  double-mine,  but  the  gold-mine  and 
silver-mine  were  equal  to  five-sixths  of  a  single-mine.  The  royal- 
mine  was  I  per  cent,  heavier  than  the  gold-mine,  and  was 
employed  for  the  payment  of  tribute.  The  coinage  was  based 
upon  the  mine  and  its  sexagesimal  division.-  Dr.  Lehmann 
remarked  how  surprising  it  is  to  find  that  the  length  of  a 
seconds-pendulum  at  Babylon  is  992 '5  mm.,  and  was  mclined 
to  advance  the  hypothesis  that  the  Babylonian  unit  of  length 
was  derived  from  a  seconds-pendulum,  the  foot  being  one-third 
the  lengh  of  the  pendulum.  He  next  proceeded  to  give  an 
account  of  the  spread  of  the  Babylonian  mine,  and  of  the 
Phoenician  which  was  derived  from  it,  as  a  unit  of  weight 
among  the  civilized  nations  of  Europe.  The  discovery  of  an 
old  Roman  balance  had  enabled  him  to  determine  that  the  old 
Etrurian  pound  was  equal  in  weight  to  the  Babylonian  mine. 
The  Babylonian  unit  of  weight  is  found  not  only  in  Italy  and 
the  Mediterranean  generally,  but  also  the  old  Dutch  and  French 
pounds  and  the  Russian  pood  are  equal  in  weight  to  the  mine. 
The  speaker  considered  it  to  be  quite  impossible  that  in  all 
the  above  cases  we  are  dealing  with  a  chance  correspondence 
between  the  several  weights.  In  the  discussion  which  ensued, 
objections  were  raised  on  several  sides  against  the  hypothesis 
that  the  ancient  Babylonians  had  knowledge  of  the  seconds- 
pendulum,  which  had  subsequently  been  lost.  On  the  other 
hand,  it  was  pointed  out  by  others  that  the  ancients  were  not 
improbably  acquainted  with  the  plummet,  and  used  it  for 
squaring  stones,  &c. ;  and  since,  further,  they  employed  the 
double-minute  as  unit  of  time,  it  is  not  impossible  that  they  were 
acquainted  with  the  seconds-pendulum.  The  cause  of  their  not 
having  employed  this  instrument  to  supply  a  time-unit  may 
perhaps  be  found  in  their  ignorance  of  any  means  by  which  the 
pendulum  could  be  kept  in  continuous  and  uniform  motion.  In 
conclusion,  the  speaker  laid  stress  on  the  high  state  of  culture 
which  the  Babylonians  had  attained  three  thousand  years  B.C., 
and  expressed  his  regret  that  a  complete  blank  exists  with 
regard  to  everything  of  an  earlier  date  than  the  cuneiform 
inscriptions. 

Stockholm. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  November  13. — On  the 
vegetation  of  the  southmost  part  of  the  Isle  of  Gotland,  by  Prof. 
Wittrock. — Myxochsete,  a  new  genus  of  fresh-water  Algse,  by 
Herr  K.  Bohlin.  — On  determinations  of  the  longitude  and 
observations  on  the  pendulum  executed  in  Sweden  during  the 
year  1889,  by  Prof.  Rosen. — On  a  reform  in  the  analysis  of 
gaseous  bodies,  by  Prof.  O.  Pettersson.  — On  the  invariants  of 
linear,  homogeneous  differential  equations,  by  Prof.  Mittag- 
Leffler. — The  form  of  the  observations  on  linear  differential 
equations,  by  Herr  A.  M.  Johanson. — On  the  case  of  Poincare 
as  to  the  three  bodies  problem  and  some  analogous  dynamical 
propositions,  by  Herr  E.  Phragmen. — On  the  observations  made 
at  the  Observatory  of  Upsala  for  the  determination  of  the 
equinoctium  in  the  spring  of  1889,  by  Dr.  K.  Bohlin  and  Herr 
C.  A.  Schultz-Steinheil. — Definitive  orbit  elements  of  the  comet 
1840  iv.,  by  Herr  Schultz-Steinheil. — Study  of  the  infra-red 
spectra  of  carbonic  acid  and  of  carbonic  oxide,  by  Dr.  K. 
Angstrom, — On  the  action  of  nitric  acid  on  naphthalin-ia;-sulphon 
acid,  by  Prof.  P.  J.  Cleve. — On  naphthalin-1-5,  calogene- 
sulphon-acids,  by  Herr  R.  Manselius. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 

London, 

THURSDAY,  December  19. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — (i)  Comparison  of  the  Spectra  of  Nebulae  and 
Stars  of  Groups  I.  and  II.,  with  those  of  Comets  and  Aurorae  ;  (2)  the 
Presence  of  Bright  Carbon  Flutings  in  the  Spectra  of  Celestial  Bodies  : 
Prof.  J.  N.  Lockyer,  F.  R.S.— Some  Observations  on  the  Amount  of 
Luminous  and  Non-luminous  Radiation  emitted  by  a  Gas-flame  :  Sir  J. 
Conroy,  Bart. — On  the  Effects  of  Pressure  on  the  Magnetization  of 
Cobalt  :  C.  Chree. — On  the  Steam  Calorimeter  :  J.  Joly. — On  the  Exten- 
sion and  Flexure  of  Cylindrical  and  Spherical  Thin  Elastic  Shells  :  A.  B. 
Basset,  F.R.S. 

LiNNEAN  Society,  at  8. — Intensive  Segregation  and  Divergent  Evolution 
in  Land  Mollusca  of  Oahu  :  Rev.  John  T.  Gulick. — Dictopteris ;  with 
Remarks  on  the  Systematic  Position  of  the  Dictyotaceae  :  T.  Johnson. 

Chemical  Society,  at  8.— On  Frangulin  :  Prof.  Thorpe,  F.R.S. ,  and  H. 
H.  Robinson. — Arabinon,  the  Saccharon  of  Arabinose:  C.  O'Sullivan, 
F.R.S. — Note  on  the  Identity  of  Cerebrose  and  Galactose  :  H.  T.  Brown, 
F.R.S.,  and  Dr.  G.  H.  Morris. 

SUNDAY,  December  22. 
S  'NDAV   Lecture  Society,    at  4.— Algeria  and   Morocco  :  some  Artistic 
Experiences  (with   Oxyhydrogen   Lantern   Illustrations)  :   Henry   Black- 
bum. 

SATURDAY,  December  28. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory)  : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Rucker,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

East  Africa  and  its  Big  Game:  Sir  J.  C.  Willoughby  (Longmans). — 
Measurement  of  Small  Mammals,  &c.  :  Dr.  C.  H.  Merriam  (Washington). — 
North  American  Fauna,  Nos.  land  2  :  Dr.  C.  H.  Merriam  (Washington). — 
Report  of  the  Ornithologist  and  Mammalogist  for  1888  ;  Dr.  C.  H.  Merriam 
(Washington). — Physical  Memoirs,  vol,  i..  Part  2  (Taylor  and  Francis). — 
Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society,  October  (Murray). — Mitteilungen 
des  Vereins  fiir  Erdkunde  zu  Halle  A/s,  1889  (Halle). — Proceedings  of 
the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences  of  Philadelphia,  Part  2,  1889  (Phila- 
delphia).— Notes  from  the  Leyden  Museum,  vol.  xi..  No.  3  (Leyden,  Brill). — 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Epidemic  of  Influenza,     ByJ.  F.  P 145 

The  Horny  Spons;es 146 

The  Flora  of  Suffolk.     By  J.  G.  B 149 

The  Manufacture  of  Iron  and  Steel 150 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Harrison  :  "  On  the  Creation  and    Physical  Structure 

of  the  Earth."— A.  H.  G 151 

Moss :    "  Through   Atolls  and   Islands   in  the  Great 

South  Sea" 151 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Who  Discovered  the  Teeth    in  Ornithorhynchus  ? — 
Dr.  C.  Hart  Merriam ;  Prof.    W.    H.    Flower, 

F.R.S 151 

The  Pigment  of  the  Touraco  and  Tree  Porcupine. 

Frank  E.  Beddard 152 

Exact  Thermometry. — Dr.  Sydney  Young    ....  152 

Locusts  in  the  Red  Sea.— G.  T.  Carrui hers  .    ...  153 

A  Marine  Millipede. — Edward  Parfitt 153 

Proof  of  the  Parallelogram  of  Forces.     ( With  Dia- 
grams.)—"W.  E.  Johnson 153 

Glories. — A.  P.  Coleman 154 

Fossil  Rhizocarps. — Alfred  W.  Bennett 154 

The  Arc  Light.— Joseph  McGrath      154 

The  Hyderabad  Chloroform  Commission   .....  154 
On  the  Cavendish  Experiment.     {Illustrated.)     By  C. 

V.  Boys,  F.R.S 155 

William  Ramsay  McNab 159 

Notes      160 

Our  Astronomical  Column: — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 163 

Period  of  U  Coronee 163 

Identity  of    Brooks's  Comet  {d  1889)  with   Lexell's 

Comet  1770 163 

Some  Photographic  Star  Spectra 163 

Magnitude  and  Colour  of  7?  Argus  . 164 

Orbit  of  Barnard's  Comet  1884  II 164 

Algol 164 

Discovery  of  a  New  Comet 164 

Geographical  Notes 164 

The  St.  Petersburg  Problem.     By  Sydney  Lupton  .  165 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 166 

Societies  and  Academies 166 

Diary  of  Societies •    •  168 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 168 


NA TURE 


169 


THURSDAY,  DECEMBER  26,  \\ 


RECENT  ORNITHOLOGICAL  WORKS. 

Notes  on  Sport  and  Ornithology.  By  His  Imperial  and 
Royal  Highness  the  late  Crown  Prince  Rudolph  of 
Austria.  Translated,  with  the  Author's  permission,  by 
C.  G.  Danford.  Pp.  i.-viii.,  1-648.  (London  :  Gurney 
and  Jackson,  1889.) 

Matabele  Land  and  the  Victoria  Falls.  A  Naturalist's 
Wanderings  in  the  Interior  of  South  Africa.  From  the 
Letters  and  Journals  of  the  late  Frank  Oates,  F.R.G.S- 
Edited  by  C.  G.  Gates,  B.A.  Second  Edition.  Pp. 
i.-xlix.,  1-433.  (London  :  Kegan  Paul,  Trench,  and 
Co.,  1889.) 

Index  Generum  Avium.  A  List  of  the  Genera  and  Sub- 
genera of  Birds.  By  F.  H.  Waterhouse,  A.L.S.  Pp. 
i.-v.,  1-240.     (London:  R.  H.  Porter,  1889.) 

The  Birds  of  Oxfordshire.  By  O.  V.  Aplin.  With  a 
Map.  Pp.  i.-vii.,  1-217.  (Oxford:  Clarendon  Press, 
1889.) 

The  Birds  of  Berwickshire;  with  Remarks  on  their 
Local  Distribution,  Migration,  and  Habits,  and  also 
on  the  Folk-lore,  Proverbs,  Popular  Rhytnes,  and 
Sayings  connected  with  them.  By  George  Muirhead, 
F.R.S.E.  Vol.  I.,  pp.  i.-xxvi.,  1-334-  (Edinburgh : 
David  Douglas,  1889.) 

The  Birds  in  my  Garden.  By  W.  T.  Greene,  M.A., 
M.D.     (London  :  Religious  Tract  Society,  1889.) 

NO  naturalist  can  peruse  the  pages  of  the  handsome 
volume  which  contains  the  record  of  the  sporting 
journeys  of  the  late  Crown  Prince  Rudolph,  without 
sincere  feelings  of  pity  and  regret.  Here  was  a  young 
man,  whose  scientific  instincts  were  of  the  truest,  and  for 
whom,  in  every  way,  a  splendid  future  might  have  been  pre- 
dicted, whose  opportunities  for  the  advancement  of  science 
were  unHmited ;  and  it  is  most  sad  that  so  promising  a  life 
should  have  been  cut  short  by  the  decrees  of  fate.  One-third 
of  the  volume  before  us  is  devoted  to  "  Fifteen  Days  on  the 
Danube,"  and  the  narrative  affords  a  striking  experience 
among  the  varied  forms  of  bird-life  which  are  to  be  met 
with  on  that  famous  river  in  April.  This  is  a  really 
valuable  sketch  of  the  ornithology  of  the  district,  and 
will  be  useful  to  everyone  who  is  interested  in  the  dis- 
tribution of  European  birds.  The  same  may  be  said  of 
the  chapters  entitled  "  Sketches  of  Sport  in  Hungary" 
(pp.  391-98),  "  Miscellaneous  Notes  on  Ornithology " 
(pp.  409-54),  "  Ornithological  Sketches  in  Transylvania" 
(pp.  559-72),  and  the  various  "Ornithological  Notes" 
from  the  neighbourhood  of  Vienna,  &c.  Throughout 
the  work  the  great  affection  which  the  author  entertained 
for  the  birds  of  prey  is  manifested,  and  the  "  Ornitho- 
logical Sketches  from  Spain"  (pp.  455-502),  are  entirely 
devoted  to  Raptorial  birds,  as  are  also  many  other  chapters 
in  the  book.  Prince  Rudolph  thoroughly  believed  in  the 
races  of  Golden  Eagle  {Aquila  chrysaetus),  which  are 
admitted  by  A.  E.  Brehm  and  other  Continental  authors. 
The  "  Stein  "  Eagle  is  generally  supposed  to  be  a  distinct 
bird  from  the  true  Golden  Eagle,  and  we  remember  how 
the  Crown  Prince  overhauled  the  series  of  specimens  in 
VO  L.  XLIi— No.  1052. 


the  British  Museum,  and  pointed  out  the  differences 
between  the  supposed  races ;  but  when  the  discussion 
was  over,  we  could  only  see  that  the  "  Stein  "  Eagles  con- 
sisted mostly  of  immature  birds,  while  the  "  Golden '' 
Eagle  was  represented  by  the  older  birds  in  the  collec- 
tion, the  alleged  difference  of  habitat  being  due  to  the 
fact  that  the  more  lowland  country  frequented  by  the 
"  Stein  "  Eagle  was  due  to  their  being  driven  from  the 
mountain  eyries  by  the  older  birds.  The  discussion  of 
many  points  by  the  Crown  Prince  on  his  visit  to  the 
British  Museum'was  sufficient  to  show  what  a  thoroughly 
sound  ornithologist  he  was.  Mr.  Danford  has  done  his 
work  as  a  translator  with  evident  care  and  a  sympathetic 
knowledge  of  his  subject.  Over  much  of  the  ground 
traversed  by  the  Prince  the  translator  has  also  travelled, 
and  he  has  evidently  fully  appreciated  the  enthusiasm  of 
the  author.  In  the  "  Ornithological  Sketches  from  the 
East,"  wherein  are  detailed  the  results  of  the  Crown 
Prince's  journeys  in  Egypt  and  Nubia,  and  afterwards 
in  Palestine,  we  notice  several  identifications  which  strike 
us  as  remarkable,  and  which  we  believe  to  be  wrong. 
Was  not  Falco  feldeggii,  the  Lanner  Falcon,  the  species 
identified  by  the  Prince  as  F.  barbarus?  Acrocephalus 
turdoides  (p.  513).  Surely  this  is  A.  stentoreus?  Cer- 
thilauda  duponti,  "seen  in  considerable  numbers,  but 
only  among  the  bushes  and  scattered  pastures  of  the 
islands  near  the  Barrage  of  the  Nile."  We  should  like 
some  confirmation  of  such  an  eastward  extension  of  this 
Algerian  bird's  range.  Generally,  however,  the  nomen- 
clature is  good,  though  slightly  Brehmian  in  character, 
and  Mr,  Danford  has  detected  some  obvious  errors, 
though  the  above  statements  appear  to  have  escaped 
him. 

The  late  Mr.  Frank  Oates  was  a  young  naturalist 
who  travelled  in  South  Africa  in  1873,  1874,  and  1875, 
and  died  from  fever  in  February  of  the  latter  year  after 
his  return  from  the  Zambesi.  He  was  a  fine  specimen  of 
the  English  traveller,  devoted  to  the  pursuit  of  natural  his- 
tory, and  gifted  with  indomitable  perseverance  and  pluck. 
His  intention  on  going  to  South  Africa  was  to  penetrate 
into  the  interior  beyond  the  Zambesi,  and  he  seems  to 
have  regarded  his  Matabele  journey  as  but  a  preliminary 
to  more  important  explorations.  The  difficulties,  how- 
ever, of  getting  to  the  Victoria  Falls  were  very  great,  and 
the  traveller  only  succeeded  in  reaching  this  desired  goal 
after  four  attempts  and  after  excessive  difficulties  and 
delays.  He  seems  to  have  won  the  friendship  of 
Lobengula,  and  readily  obtained  the  support  of  the  latter 
for  his  expedition,  but  the  inferior  chiefs  and  the  natives 
generally  were  very  troublesome.  The  narrative  shows 
that  at  the  date  of  Frank  Oates's  expedition  it  was  by  no 
means  easy  to  get  to  the  Zambesi,  especially  when  the 
traveller  was  bent  upon  collecting  en  route.  He 
gave  himself  no  rest  in  his  pursuits  ;  and  the  attack 
of  fever  which  carried  him  off  at  the  very  time  when 
one  of  his  brothers  was  on  the  way  to  join  him  in 
the  interior  was  doubtless  accentuated  and  rendered 
fatal  by  his  untiring  devotion  to  work,  which  seems 
to  have  been  one  of  his  most  pronounced  charac- 
tej-istics.  After  the  traveller's  death,  a  friend,  Mr. 
Gilchrist,  went  into  the  interior  and  brought  down  all 
Oates's  effects  and  his  natural  history  collections,  and 
the   story  of  the   expedition  was   originally  told  by  his 

I 


170 


NATURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


brother,  Charles  Gates.  The  collections  were  worked 
out  by  different  naturalists,  and  the  whole  results  em- 
bodied in  appendices  which  were,  moreover,  thoroughly 
well  illustrated.  Scarcely  had  the  book  appeared  and 
met  with  a  cordial  appreciation  from  the  public,  when  a 
fire  at  the  publishers'  destroyed  the  whole  of  the  unsold 
copies ;  and  now,  after  a  lapse  of  some  years,  Frank  Oates's 
brother  and  faithful  biographer,  Charles  Gates,  has 
brought  out  a  second  edition.  Although  the  necessity  of 
residing  abroad  has  prevented  the  latter  from  finishing 
his  labour  of  love  before  the  present  year,  the  work  has 
lost  nothing  in  consequence.  The  narrative  must  always 
remain  of  value  as  a  simple  record  of  a  naturalist's 
journey,  and  the  maps  of  the  route  are  laid  down  with  a 
fidelity  and  minuteness  not  to  be  exceeded  if  the  traveller 
had  been  on  a  cycling  tour  instead  of  in  the  wilds  of 
Matabele  Land,  while  the  lapse  of  time  has  enabled  the 
authors  of  the  various  appendices  to  give  additional 
information,  to  correct  errors,  and  generally  to  bring  their 
work  up  to  date.  Several  species  undetermined  in  the 
first  edition  have  now  been  identified  and  described,  new 
plates  have  been  added,  and  the  results  as  now  given  to 
the  public  by  Mr.  Charles  Gates  form  a  very  material 
and  valuable  contribution  to  our  knowledge  of  the  natural 
history  of  Southern  Africa,  with  the  development  of  which 
the  name  of  Frank  Gates  will  be  for  ever  connected.  All 
the  authors  of  the  various  appendices — the  late  Prof. 
Rolleston  (to  whose  memoir  Mr.  Hatchett  Jackson,  of 
the  Gxford  Museum,  has  added  some  further  information), 
Prof.  Westwood,  Mr.  Distant,  Mr.  Glliff,  and  Mr.  Rolfe 
— seem  to  have  been  actuated  by  a  desire  to  work  out 
the  collections  intrusted  to  them  for  description  with  the 
utmost  care  ;  and  the  present  writer  can  only  say  that  the 
writing  of  the  ornithological  portion  of  the  volume  was 
not  only  a  pleasing  task,  but  took  the  form  of  an  absolute 
duty  to  do  justice  to  the  memory  of  the  traveller,  and  to 
aid  Mr.  Charles  Gates  in  his  fraternal  enthusiasm  for  his 
brother's  fame.  Would  that  every  traveller  in  the  Dark 
Continent  attached  as  much  importance  to  its  natural 
history  as  did  Frank  Gates,  and  that  the  work  of  each 
one  was  edited  by  a  loving  friend,  possessed  of  a  desire 
to  place  on  record  the  scientific  results  of  the  expedition, 
as  has  been  done  in  the  present  work,  so  that  volumes  of 
travel,  important  as  they  are,  might  be  rendered  still 
more  valuable  by  biological  appendices  such  as  are  to  be 
found  in  Gates's  "  Matabele  Land." 

Mr.  F.  H.  Waterhouse,  the  well-known  Librarian  of  the 
Zoological  Society,  has  just  issued  a  very  useful  book, 
which  supplies  a  great  want.  The  splendid  library  under 
his  charge  has  given  him  the  opportunity  of  personally 
verifying  his  references,  and  many  inaccuracies  which 
had  been  copied  from  one  author  to  another  are  herein 
set  right.  He  has  applied  himself  so  diligently  to  his 
task,  that  we  believe  that  about  500  names,  of  which  the 
origin  was  obscure,  have  been  traced  by  the  industrious 
author  to  their  original  source,  and  this  fact  alone  should 
commend  the  work  to  the  attention  of  every  working 
ornithologist.  It  should  be  mentioned,  however,  that 
Mr.  Waterhouse  does  not  pretend  to  be  a  practical 
ornithologist,  and  he  has  been  dependent  to  a  great  extent 
upon  the  Zoological  Record  for  recent  additions.  As  the 
volume  for  1887  appeared  only  while  the  present  work 
was  going  through  the  press,  several  new  genera  proposed 


in  that  year  do  not  find  a  place  in  Mr.  Waterhouse's 
book,  and  therefore  the  student  who  interleaves  his  copy 
must  begin  with  the  Record  of  1887  if  he  wishes  to  have  a 
complete  "  catalogue  "  of  ornithological  generic  names. 

Gf  the  making  of  county  lists  of  birds  there  is  appar- 
ently no  end,  and  "  a  good  job  too  ! "  Little  by  little,  en- 
thusiastic observers  are  compiling  ornithological  lists  for 
the  different  counties  of  the  British  Islands,  and  by  these 
means  alone  can  we  hope  to  obtain  a  thoroughly  accurate 
knowledge  of  the  distribution  of  the  birds  of  Great 
Britain.  Mr.  G.  V.  Aplin  has  long  been  known  to  us  as 
an  excellent  observer,  and  we  hope  that  the  success  of  his 
first  work,  the  results  of  several  years  of  assiduous  labour, 
will  encourage  him  to  still  more  ambitious  efforts.  The 
somewhat  irregular  shape  of  the  county  of  Gxfordshire, 
and  its  generally  narrow  diameter,  preclude  the  anticipa- 
tion of  a  very  varied  avifauna  ;  but  the  record  of  242 
species  for  the  district  is  by  no  means  bad,  and  some  very 
interesting  notes  are  given,  the  principal  rarity  being  the 
Alpine-  Chough,  of  which  the  only  British  occurrence  has 
taken  place  in  Gxfordshire,  and  of  which  a  good  plate,  by 
Mr.  S.  L.  Moseley,  is  given.  Gne  of  the  most  inviting 
features  of  Mr.  Aplin's  book  is  its  conciseness.  In  the 
capital  introduction  he  gives  a  very  complete  account 
of  the  configuration  of  the  county  and  its  natural 
features,  all  of  which  can  be  easily  studied  with  the  aid  of 
the  excellent  map  which  accompanies  the  work. 

A  more  ambitious  volume  is  Mr.  Muirhead's  "  Birds  of 
Berwickshire,"  which  is  got  up  in  a  Bewickian  style,  as 
a  book  matured  in  such  close  proximity  to  Northumber- 
land should  be.  Mr.  Muirhead's  book  is  a  complete 
exemplification  of  that  better  style  of  county  record 
which  has  been  the  order  of  the  day  during  recent  years, 
when  a  sober  statement  of  facts  of  distribution  and  habits 
has  taken  the  place  of  strenuous  efforts  to  record  rare,  and 
often  impossible,  visitants.  After  an  introduction  which 
deals  with  the  physical  features  of  the  county,  aided  by 
a  very  clear  map,  the  author  gives  an  account  of  the 
birds,  from  the  Thrushes  to  the  end  of  the  Accipitres. 
The  accounts  of  these  birds  not  only  contain  ample,  yet 
concise,  information,  but  are  interspersed  with  poetry,  of 
a  Scottish  and  local  flavour,  which  successfully  combats 
any  notion  of  dulness,  while  the  folk-lore  of  the  district 
appears  to  have  special  attractions  for  the  author.  In 
some  instances,  notably  that  of  the  Rook,  very  full  de- 
tails of  the  breeding-haunts  are  given  in  tabular  form. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  how,  on  the  border-lands,  some 
species  have  increased  in  numbers,  and  have  gradually 
extended  their  range  towards  Scotland.  The  illustrations 
of  nests  are  drawn  by  Mrs.  Muirhead,  and  very  good 
they  are  ;  and  the  book  is  replete  with  woodcuts  by  Mr. 
John  Blair,  aided  by  some  excellent  reproductions  of  etch- 
ings by  W.  D.  M'Kay,  R.S.A.,  and  other  well-known 
artists.  We  trust  that  in  the  second  volume  Mr.  Muir- 
head may  be  tempted  to  give  us  a  few  details  respecting 
some  of  the  places  illustrated  in  the  text,  that  his  readers 
may  share  the  evident  pleasure  with  which  he  has  illus- 
trated some  of  the  interesting  localities  of  Berwickshire. 

Dr.  W.  T.  Greene's  little  work,  "The  Birds  in  my 
Garden,"  is  an  entertaining  idyll  of  a  London  suburb. 
Many  of  the  author's  experiences  agree  with  our  own, 
and  such  a  book  as  the  present  is  just  the  one  to  en- 
courage a  love  for  the  birds  which  are  still  to  be  seen  in 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


171 


the  vicinity  of  London,  although,  as  the  operations  of 
the  builder  are  extended  in  every  direction  year  by  year, 
their  number  gradually,  but  surely,  diminishes.  Where 
Dr.  Greene  writes  from  his  own  experience,  he  is  always 
worth  listening  to,  but  he  has  a  faith  in  Morris,  which,  as 
might  be  expected,  often  leads  him  awry.  He  quotes 
from  the  Bible  about  the  "Sparrow"  on  the  house-top 
(p.  13),  but  the  bird  alluded  to  is  the  Blue  Rock  Thrush 
{Monticola  cyanea),  for  which  cf.  Canon  Tristram's  "  Fauna 
and  Flora  of  Palestine"  (p.  31).  The  illustration  on 
p.  23  is  not  that  of  the  'common  Sparrow,  but  of  the 
Tree-sparrow.  At  p.  46  he  gives  a  tabular  list  of  charac- 
ters by  which  to  distinguish  the  Missel-thrush  from  the 
Song-thrush,  in  which  the  former  bird  is  said  to  have 
"  no  song  to  speak  of."  Evidently,  Dr.  Greene  has  never 
heard  a  "  Storm-cock  "  in  full  swing.  He  does  not  love 
the  Greenfinch,  but  this  need  not  lead  him  to  say  that 
the  species  likewise  "has  no  song."  Acock  Greenfinch, 
perched  on  the  top  of  a  tree  in  the  nesting  season,  and 
singing  to  his  mate  sitting  on  the  nest  below,  has  a 
charming  and  varied  song,  like  that  of  a  very  powerful 
Canary.  The  Whitethroat,  of  which  Dr.  Greene  appears 
to  know  only  one  species,  is  placed  in  the  sub-family 
MotacillidcB,  and  it  will  surprise  many  ornithologists  to 
hear  that  the  song  of  the  Chiff-chaff  is  continued  even 
till  late  in  September  (this  information  is  derived  from  the 
Rev.  F.  O.  Morris  !).  The  Blackcap  does  not  winter  in 
Eastern  Africa,  and  it  can  hardly  be  said  that  the  Siskin 
''  rarely  nests  in  this  country."  We  mention  these  points 
at  the  risk  of  appearing  hypercritical,  but  we  recognize 
in  Dr.  Greene  an  author  who  has  the  knack  of  writing 
good  natural  history  books  for  the  young,  and  it  is  there- 
fore the  more  incumbent  upon  him  to  be  scrupulously  ac- 
curate. Let  him  discard  Morris,  and  stick  to  Seebohm's 
"  History  of  British  Birds,"  or  to  the  new  edition  of 
<'  Yarrell."  Some  pretty  illustrations  by  Mr.  Whymper 
form  an  additional  attraction  to  his  little  book. 

R.  BOWDLER   SHARPE. 


DESCARTES. 

History  of  Modern  Philosophy.      "  Descartes    and    his 

School."     By  Prof.  Kuno  Fisher.     Translated  by  J.  P. 

Gordy,  Ph.D.,  and  edited  by  Noah  Porter,  D.D.,  LL.D. 

(London  :  T.  Fisher  Unwin,  1887.) 
/\  MONG  the  many  histories  of  modern  philosophy 
'^  few  are  so  interesting  and  attractive  as  that  by 
Prof.  Kuno  Fisher.  The  present  volume  consists  of  a 
translation  of  the  third  revised  German  edition,  which 
includes  the  period  of  Descartes  and  his  school  ;  and  the 
admirable  way  in  which  the  author  deals  with  so  difficult 
a  subject  and  his  boldness  in  overcoming  it  are  worthy 
of  the  highest  praise. 

The  book  is  divided  into  three  parts,  the  first  of  which 
is  preceded  by  an  introduction  to  the  subject,  showing  the 
course  of  development  of  the  Greek  philosophy  and  that 
of  the  Middle  Ages,  with  an  account  of  the  early  history 
of  Christianity  and  the  Church,  concluding  with  the 
periods  of  the  Renaissance  and  the  Reformation. 

In  Part  L  we  have  an  account  of  the  early  history  of 
Descartes.  He  was  born  in  the  year  1596,  a  few  days 
before  the  death  of  his  mother,  and  was  a  weak  and  sickly 
child.      Throughout  his  childhood  he  showed  a  strong 


desire  for  knowledge,  and  it  was  on  this  account  that 
his  father  called  him  his  "  little  philosopher." 

Descartes  was  among  the  first  pupils  in  the  new  school 
that  was  started  at  the  Royal  palace  at  La  Fl&che  by 
Henry  IV.  ;  at  the  age  of  seventeen  he  was  committed 
to  the  care  and  tutorage  of  Father  Dinet.  During  his 
school  life  he  was  among  the  chosen  pupils  who,  on  June 
10,  1 6 10,  solemnly  received  the  heart  of  the  king,  which, 
by  Henry's  will,  was  to  be  buried  in  the  church  of  La 
Fl^che. 

While  going  through  a  two  years'  course  on  philosophy, 
he  became  completely  fascinated  by  mathematics,  and  was 
thereby  incited  to  make  a  further  study  of  it ;  and  later 
on  in  hfe,  seeing  the  true  spirit  of  mathematics  as  a 
method  of  solving  problems,  he  began  by  algebraical 
equations  to  solve  geometrical  problems,  and  thus  to 
him  is  due  the  discovery  of  analytical  geometry.  On 
the  completion  of  his  school  career,  the  state  of  his 
mind  may  be  gathered  from  his  own  words—"  ...  I 
found  myself  involved  in  so  many  doubts  and  errors, 
that  I  derived  no  other  result  from  my  desire  of  learning 
than  that  I  had  more  and  more  discovered  my  own 
ignorance." 

The  next  few  years  of  his  life  were  spent  in  military 
service  in  Holland  and  Germany,  after  which,  at  the  age 
of  five-and-twenty,  he  travelled  for  nine  years  ;  to  him 
his  travels  were  studies  in  the  great  book  of  life,  and 
during  them  he  "  did  nothing  but  wander  now  here,  now 
there,  since  I  wished  to  be  a  spectator  rather  than  an 
actor  in  the  dramas  of  the  world."  The  last  period  of 
his  life  consisted  of  the  development  and  publication  of 
his  works,  and  the  founding  of  a  school  of  philosophy, 
concluding  with  his  illness  and  death  during  his  stay  in 
Stockholm,  to  which  place  he  was  invited  by  Christina, 
then  Queen  of  Sweden,  who,  being  deeply  interested  in 
his  works,  found  the  difficulties  in  his  system  could  better 
be  explained  by  Descartes  himself  than  by  anyone  else. 

Although  the  philosophy  of  Descartes  treats  of  the 
whole  realm  of  Nature,  we  will  here  touch  only  upon 
those  parts  that  are  interesting  to  us  from  the  scientific 
point  of  view.  Not  by  any  means  the  least  important  is 
his  attempt  to  explain  the  origin  of  the  world  by  purely 
mechanical  laws.  He  bases  his  theory  on  the  rest  and 
motion  of  solid  and  liquid  bodies,  and  the  influence  of 
the  latter  upon  the  former.  Before  entering  upon  this 
hypothesis,  the  mechanical  principle  of  his  explanation 
of  Nature  is  first  brought  before  us.  He  treats  motion 
as  a  mode  of  extension,  and  explains  it  as  the  "  transla- 
tion of  place  (transport)  of  one  part  of  matter  or  of  one 
body  from  the  vicinity  of  those  bodies  which  directly 
touch  it,  and  are  considered  at  rest,  into  the  vicinity  of 
others." 

The  causes  of  motion  are  next  dealt  with,  showing  us 
that  all  changes  are  due  to  outward  collision,  and  that 
since  space  is  by  no  means  empty,  but  is  full  of  bodies 
moving  in  every  direction,  we  may  get  a  great  number  of 
coHisions,  the  various  possible  results  of  which  he  then 
goes  on  to  discuss.  According  to  his  principles,  then, 
bodies  are  quite  destitute  of  force,  excepting  that  of 
resistance ;  changes  in  the  material  world  are  due  to 
external  collisions,  and  motion,  therefore,  is  due  to 
impacts.  Comparing  the  views  of  Descartes  with  those 
of  GaUleo  and  Newton,  we  cannot  do  better  than  quote 


172 


NATURE 


{Dec.  26,  1889 


what  the  author  says  on  this  point : — "  Gravity  is  regarded 
as  ....  an  original  property  of  a  body  belonging 
to  it  of  itself.  Descartes  denies  it.  Therein  consists  the 
opposition  between  Galileo  and  Descartes  ;  with  gravity 
he  was  obliged  to  reject  gravitation  and  the  power  of 
attraction.  Therein  consists  the  subsequent  opposition 
of  Newton  and  Descartes  ;  he  is,  therefore,  compelled  to 
deny  the  so-called  central  forces,  as  well  as  every  actio  in 
distansP 

The  two  essential  pre-suppositions  of  his  hypothesis  are 
the  "immeasurableness  of  the  universe  and  the  nullity  of 
empty  space.  From  the  first  it  follows  that  the  universe 
is  not  a  spherical  body,  and  does  not  consist  in  concentric 
spheres  to  which  the  stars  are  fastened  ;  that  there  is, 
therefore,  no  celestial  sphere  beyond  the  farthest  planet 
(Saturn),  and  that  the  sun  does  not  lie  in  the  same 
spherical  superficies.  From  the  second,  it  follows  that 
the  spaces  of  the  heavens  are  filled  with  fluid  matter,  and 
that  the  heavenly  bodies  are  surrounded  by  the  latter, 
and  subject  to  its  influences." 

Descartes  supposes  the  earth  to  be  completely  sur- 
rounded by  this  fluid,  and  "  acted  upon  uniformly  in 
every  direction,  or  carried  along  by  its  current,  as  a  solid 
body  in  liquid  matter.  The  planets  follow  also  the  same 
rule.  Each  is  at  rest  in  the  heavens  in  which  it  is,  and 
all  the  change  of  place  which  we  observe  in  those  bodies 
follows  from  the  motion  of  the  matter  of  the  heavens 
which  surrounds  them  on  all  sides." 

By  supposing,  again,  that  this  flow  of  the  matter,  which 
surrounds  the  earth  and  planets,  describes  a  current 
"spinning  round  like  a  vortex,"  with  the  sun  in  the 
centre  and  the  earth  and  planets  going  round  it ;  he 
obtains,  without  considering  their  weight  and  attraction, 
a  method  by  means  of  which  their  various  motions  may 
be  explained.  He  compares  this  "vortex"  motion  of  the 
matter  with  eddies  of  water,  "  as  waters  when  they  are 
forced  to  a'reflux  form  an  eddy,  and  draw  violently  within 
their  rotary  motion,  and  carry  along  with  them,  light 
floating  bodies,  as,  for  example,  straws  ;  as  then  these 
bodies,  seized  by  the  eddy,  turn  about  their  own  centre, 
and  those  nearer  the  centre  of  the  eddy  always  complete 
their  rotation  earher  than  the  more  distant  ones  ;  as, 
finally,  this  eddy  always,  to  be  sure,  describes  a  circular 
figure,  but  almost  never  a  perfect  circle,  but  extends  itself, 
now  more  in  length  and  now  in  breadth,  wherefore  the 
parts  at  the  periphery  are  not  equally  distant  from  the 
centre, — so  one  can  easily  see  that  the  motion  of  the 
planets  is  of  the  same  character,  and  that  no  other  con- 
ditions are  necessary  to  explain  all  their  phenomena." 

Thus  Descartes  agrees  with  Copernicus  and  Galileo 
with  regard  to  the  hehocentric  motion  of  the  earth  and 
planets,  although  basing  his  hypothesis  on  different 
mechanical  laws ;  he  also  teaches  that  the  earth  is  a 
planet,  and  rotates  on  its  axis  daily,  and  revolves  yearly 
in  an  elliptical  orbit  round  the  sun. 

The  author  then  tells  us  how  Descartes,  after  the  com- 
pletion of  his  hypothesis,  postponed  its  publication,  on 
account  of  the  fate  of  Galileo,  and  how  he  (Descartes) 
expressly  stated  at  the  end  that  "  his  hypothesis  not  only 
may  be,  but  in  certain  respects  is,  false."  Although  he 
denied  the  movement  of  the  earth,  it  was  only  in  a  sense 
that  followed  from  his  idea  of  motion  which  he  applied 
to  the  heavenly  bodies ;  for,  with  reference  to  the  other 


bodies  in  the  heavens,  it  does  move,  but  is  at  rest  in 
relation  to  the  fluid  matter  around  it,  or,  as  the  author 
says,  "  it  moves  exactly  as  a  man  who  is  asleep  in  a  ship, 
while  it  takes  him  from  Dover  to  Calais." 

In  conclusion,  we  must  add  that  the  work  of  both 
translator  and  editor  has  been  honestly  done,  though,  as 
the  above  quotation  shows,  the  style  of  the  translator  is 
susceptible  of  improvement,  and  that  this  volume  will 
form  a  valuable  addition  to  the  libraries  of  students  of 
moral  philosophy.  To  the  readers  of  such  a  work  as 
this,  consisting  as  it  does  of  so  many  historical  facts,  an 
index  is  imperative,  and  we  hope  in  future  editions  to  see 
one, inserted.  W.  J.  L. 

A  TEXT-BOOK  OF  ORGANIC  CHEMISTRY. 
A  Text-book  of  Organic  Che7nistry.  By  A.  Bernthsen, 
Ph.D.,  formerly  Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Heidelberg.  Translated  by  George  McGowan, 
Ph.D.,  Demonstrator  in  Chemistry,  University  College 
of  North  Wales,  Bangor.  (London  :  Blackie  and  Son, 
1889.) 

THIS  work  furnishes  an  excellent  elementary  account 
of  the  principles  of  organic  chemistry.  An  intro- 
duction treating  of  the  general  theory  of  organic  com- 
pounds, including  the  subjects  of  constitution,  isomerism, 
physical  properties,  &c.,  is  followed  by  the  detailed  de- 
scription of  the  various  classes  of  compounds  and  their 
relations  to  one  another,  the  fatty  compounds  being  first 
discussed,  and  then  those  belonging  to  the  group  of  aro- 
matic substances  and  to  the  pyridine  group.  The  treat- 
ment of  the  various  compounds  in  "  series,"  all  the 
hydrocarbons  of  the  fatty  series — paraffins,  olefines  and 
acetylenes — being,  for  example,  fully  described  before  any 
of  their  halogen  derivatives  or  of  the  alcohols  are  dis- 
cussed, cannot  be  commended  from  the  point  of  view  of 
the  novice  to  the  science,  for  whom  the  book  is  avowedly 
designed.  This  evil  is,  however,  largely  compensated  for 
in  the  present  work  by  the  clear  language  invariably  em- 
ployed, and  more  especially  by  the  frequent  introduction 
of  semi-diagrammatic  tables  showing  the  connection 
between  various  related  series,  such,  for  example,  as  the 
glycols,  hydroxy-acids  and  dibasic  acids. 

The  description  of  the  aromatic  compounds,  prefaced 
by  a  short  account  of  the  benzene  theory,  is  grouped 
alDout  the  typical  hydrocarbons,  benzene  and  its  deriva- 
tives being  first  treated,  then  diphenyl  with  its  derivatives, 
triphenyl-methane  and  its  group,  naphthalene,  &c.  Mere 
description  of  compounds  is  sternly  and  consistently 
avoided,  its  place  being  supplied,  [whenever  possible,  by 
tabulated  statements,  showing  at  a  glance  both  the 
chemical  and  physical  relations  of  a  whole  series  of 
derivatives.  These  tables  are  a  distinguishing  feature  of 
the  book,  and  impart  to  it  a  clearness  and  conciseness 
which  will  render  it  welcome  to  every  student. 

Abundant  references  are  provided  to  the  original  papers 
concerning  subjects  which  fall  without  the  elementary 
scope  of  the  work,  such  as,  among  many  others,  the 
diazo-derivatives  of  the  fatty  series,  the  syntheses  of  glu- 
cosides,  and  the  grouping  of  atoms  in  space,  which  last  is 
treated  in  language  which  will  perhaps  be  apt  to  mislead, 
and  scarcely  receives  a  degree  of  attention  commensurate 
with  its  importance. 


Dec.  26,  1889J 


NATURE 


17 


The  translator  has  performed  his  work  with  great  suc- 
cess, and  he  is  to  be  congratulated  on  the  almost  complete 
absence  of  printers'  errors,  which  so  often  mar  the  pages 
of  works  of  this  class.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  he  has  in 
some  instances  neglected  to  adopt  the  nomenclature  em- 
ployed by  the  Chemical  Society,  since  uniformity  of  usage 
in  this  respect  is  greatly  to  be  desired.  An  excellent 
index  forms  a  fitting  conclusion  to  the  work,  which  is  sure 
to  take  as  high  a  place  among  the  elementary  text-books 
of  organic  chemistry  in  the  English  language  as  it  has 
already  done  in  the  Fatherland. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

The  Viking  Age;  the  Early  History,  Manners,  and 
Customs  of  the  Ancestors  of  the  English-speaking 
Nations.  By  Paul  B.  Du  Chaillu.  Two  Vols.  1366 
Illustrations,  and  Map.     (London  :  Murray,  1889.) 

The  author  of  this  work  has  persuaded  himself  that  the 
invaders  who  conquered  and  settled  in  Britain  after  the 
departure  of  the  Romans  were  not,  as  we  have  been 
taught  to  believe,  Low  Dutch  tribes,  but  Norsemen.  It 
is  unfortunate  that  he  should  have  hampered  himself  in 
his  researches  by  so  arbitrary  a  theory.  Of  course,  no 
one  disputes  that  there  is  a  strong  Scandinavian  element 
in  England  ;  the  fact  has  always  been  perfectly  well  un- 
derstood by  historians,  and  has  received  from  them  due 
attention.  But  to  say  that  the  English  people  are  wholly 
or  mainly  descended  from  Scandinavians  is  to  advance 
a  proposition  opposed  to  all  the  most  vital  evidence  we 
possess  on  the  subject.  The  evidence  of  language  alone 
would  suffice  to  dispose  of  so  crude  a  doctrine.  Mr.  Du 
Chaillu  has  not  approached  the  consideration  of  the 
question  in  a  scientific  spirit,  and  has  too  lightly  brushed 
aside  the  difficulties  in  his  way. 

He  has  tried  to  give  an  account  of  the  ideas,  customs, 
manners,  and  institutions  of  the  ancient  Scandinavians  ; 
and  we  need  scarcely  say  that  there  are  some  lively  and 
attractive  passages  in  his  chapters  on  these  subjects. 
From  his  book,  English  anthropologists  will  learn  that 
there  is  valuable  material  for  them  in  the  old  northern 
laws  and  Icelandic  Sagas.  They  will,  however,  be  unable 
to  make  use  of  his  translated  extracts,  because  he  does 
not  attempt  to  estimate  the  date  and  weight  of  the  docu- 
ments used,  late  forged  Sagas  being  treated  precisely  as 
authentic  early  poems  or  contemporary  histories. 

The  work  has,  in  fact,  no  scientific  value.  It  will 
amuse  "the  general  reader,"  but  it  is  unsuitable  for 
serious  students.  To  the  archaeologist  it  may  serve  as  a 
rough  index  to  the  chief  finds  made  in  the  three  Scandin- 
avian countries ;  but  even  for  this  purpose  he  will  need 
to  refer  to  the  original  plates  and  cuts  from  which  the 
illustrations  in  these  volumes  are  more  or  less  happily 
reproduced.  This  will  be  obvious  to  anyone  who  studies 
the  originals  in  the  papers  of  Montelius,  the  Proceedings 
of  the  Stockholm  Congress,  1874,  the  splendid  Copen- 
hagen Museum  Catalogues,  or  the  "  Aarbipger  for  Nordisk 
Old-kyndighed  og  Historie."  F.  Y.  P. 

A  Glossary  of  Anatomical,  Physiological,  and  Biological 
Terms.  By  T.  Dunman.  Second  Edition.  Edited, 
and  supplemented  with  an  Appendix,  by  W.  H. 
Wyatt  Wingrave,  M.R.C.S.  (London:  Griffith,  Farran, 
Okeden,  and  Welsh.) 

It  is  now  eleven  years  since  the  first  edition  of  this  book 
appeared.  The  senior  author  outlived  its  publication  by 
but  a  short  period.  The  editor  of  the  present  edition  has 
left  its  pages  unaltered,  and  has  taken  upon  himself  to 
add  thereto  (in  the  form  of  an  appendix)  twenty-five 
pages,  embracing  some  400  physiological  and  morpho- 
logical  terms,  to   the  paucity  of  which,  in  the  original 


edition,  he  directs  attention.  Many  of  his  supplementary 
words  are  superfluous,  others  are  obsolete,  and  by  no 
means  a  few  are  either  insufficiently  or  inaccurately  ex- 
plained. The  original  edition  was  by  no  means  free  c<f 
like  defects  :  in  it  we  read,  by  way  of  example,  that  the 
^^  Sepiostaire"  is  "the  only  representative  of  an  endo- 
skeleton  in  the  cuttle-fishes";  that  the  '''' Septum lucidum^'' 
is  "  the  partition  which  separates  from  each  other  the 
lateral  ventricles  of  the  brain  "  ;  that  by  "  Schizoccele  "  is 
meant  "  a  term  applied  to  the  peri-visceral  cavity  of  the 
Invertebrata,  when  formed  by  a  splitting  of  the  meso- 
blast  of  the  embryo."  The  present  editor,  while  pre- 
serving the  above  and  many  other  similar  misstatements, 
has,  in  turn,  shown  himself  wanting  in  power  of  accurate 
definition  of  fundamentals.  This  is  seen,  for  example, 
in  his  renderings  of  "  Endomysium,"  "  Inhibition  "  (de- 
fined as  "  checking  or  controlling  influence,  exercised  by 
a  nerve-centre  over  some  subordinate  organ  or  process"), 
"  Metabolis7n"  "  Meckelian  bar"  and  Negative  variation  ' 
(which,  we  are  told,  embraces  "  changes  in  the  natural 
nerve  or  muscle  currents  which  occur  during  contrac- 
tion"). The  little  volume  has  hitherto  recommended 
itself  to  students  chiefly  by  its  compactness.  There  has 
always  characterized  it  a  want  of  expressiveness  and  of 
finish.  A  single  instance  will  suffice:  ''  Glomerulus'^  has 
all  along  stood,  and  still  stands,  as  "  the  small  ball  of  capil- 
laries in  the  Malpighian  capsules  of  the  kidney."  It  is 
the  first  duty  of  an  editor  of  a  new  edition  to  rectify 
original  defects  ;  and,  until  that  shall  have  been  done,  he 
has  no  right  to  add  supplementary  matter.  The  volume, 
as  it  now  stands,  must  be  speedily  revised,  if  the  recom- 
mendation of  experienced  teachers  is  to  be  looked  for ; 
and  it  is  upon  the  same  that  it  can  alone  maintain  its 
honoured  position. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex  - 
pressed  by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications,  "l 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. 

Being  one  of  those  who  do  not  believe  that  either  the  theory 
of  Darwin  or  the  theory  of  Lamarck  gives  any  adequate  or 
rational  account  of  the  "origin  of  species,"  I  am  always  glad 
to  see  any  controversy  which  pits  the  one  of  them  against  the 
other.  It  is  by  such  controversy  that  the  weak  points  of  each 
are  best  exposed.  But  I  now  write  in  the  interests  of  peace  and 
conciliation.  Prof.  Ray  Lankester  seems  to  me  to  be  much  too 
belligerent.  I  see  no  necessary  antagonism  between  "conge- 
nital variation"  and  the  transmission  of  "acquired  characters." 
If  an  acquired  character  affects  the  whole  organism,  and  espe- 
cially the  reproductive  elements,  then  its  hereditary  transmission 
would  perfectly  reconcile  the  two  conceptions.  And  this  is 
probably  the  universal  fact.  I  have  no  doubt  of  the  hereditary 
transmission  of  acquired  characters.  So  far  is  it  from  being 
"unproved,"  it  is  consistent  with  all  observation  and  all  ex- 
perience. It  lies  at  the  foundation  of  all  organic  development. 
But  it  implies  no  denial  of  "congenital"  causes.  It  is  very 
probable  that  every  "acquired  character"  is  necessarily  corre- 
lated with  some  physical  modifications  in  organic  structure,  and 
that  it  is  only  transmitted  to  progeny  through,  and  by  means  of, 
this  physical  modification. 

This  being  so,  the  question  arises,  Why  is  it  that  the  idea  of 
acquired  characters  becoming  hereditary  is  so  fiercely  opposed 
by  extreme  Darwinians  ?  Is  it  the  mere  jealousy  of  an  exclusive 
worship — the  mere  dislike  of  the  great  name  of  Lamarck  being 
mentioned,  even  in  the  same  day,  with  the  name  of  Darwin  ? 
It  is  partly  this,  no  doubt.  But  it  is  something  more.  It  is  jea- 
lousy of  any  conception  which  tends  to  break  down  the  empire 
of  mere  fortuity  in  the  phenomena  of  variation.  Darwin  him- 
self is  not  wholly  responsible  for  this  feeling.  He  expressly 
guarded  himself  against  the  interpretation  which  has  been  affixed 
to  his  language  about  "accidental"  variation.     He  knew  well 


174 


NATURE 


{Dec.  26,  1889 


enough  that  variations  must  be  governed  by  some  law.  But  as 
we  are  absolutely  ignorant  what  that  law  is,  he  thought  it 
allowable  to  make  provisional  use  of  the  word  accidental.  But 
the  "neo- Darwinians"  (as  Prof.  Ray  Lankester  calls  them)  are 
not  content  with  this  dethronement  of  their  idol,  Fortuity.  The 
supreme  and  everlasting  rule  of  pure  accident  is  their  creed  and 
worship.  Hence  comes  Prof.  Ray  Lankester's  simile  of  the 
kaleidoscope,  by  which  he  illustrates  the  genesis  of  "new  cha- 
racters "  in  organic  life.  There  is,  he  indicates,  no  more  con- 
nection between  those  "new  characters  "  and  their  origin  in  the 
parent,  than  there  is  between  the  new  patterns  which  tumble  in 
a  kaleidoscope  and  the  tap  upon  the  tube  which  shakes  them  out. 
There  is  no  argument  so  false  as  a  false  analogy.  And  this 
is  a  case  in  point.  Every  illustration  or  analogy  must  be  false 
which  confounds  mere  mechanical  arrangement  with  organic 
structure.  They  are  not  only  different,  but  they  are  different  in 
kind.  Neither  mechanical  aggregation,  nor  mechanical  segre- 
gation, can  possibly  account  for  the  building  up  of  organic 
tissues.  To  attempt  to  account  for  such  structures  by  causes 
similar  to  those  which  determine  the  arrangement  of  tumbling 
bits  of  glass,  is  even  more  irrational  than  it  would  be  to  account 
for  the  structure  of  a  great  cathedral  by  explaining  to  us  how 
its  bricks  or  its  stones  were  made.  There  is  one  grand  pecu- 
liarity in  all  organic  structures  which  all  such  illustrations  are 
framed  to  conceal.  That  grand  peculiarity  is  this — that  they 
are  all  made  for  work,  for  the  discharge  of  some  function.  They 
are  where  they  are  not  merely  because  somehow  they  have 
been  put  there.  But  they  are  what  they  are,  and  where  they  are, 
because  they  have  some  given  work  to  do.  But  more  than  this  : 
they  all  pass  through  stages  of  development  in  which  their  work 
cannot  as  yet  be  done.  In  all  these  stages,  that  work  lies  before 
them  in  respect  to  time,  and  behind  them  in  respect  to  adapta- 
tion. They  are  all  of  the  nature  of  an  "  apparatus."  This  is 
the  word  which  the  profound  but  unconscious  metaphysic  of 
human  speech  has  invented  for  them.  It  is  the  word  chosen  by 
natural  selection,  and,  as  such,  it  ought  to  secure  the  homage 
even  of  Prof.  Ray  Lankester  himself  The  idea,  however,  comes 
before  the  word — shapes  it,  and  inspires  it — ^just  as  the  needs  of 
function,  and  the  organic  necessities  imposed  by  inorganic  laws, 
have  shaped  and  inspired  the  growth  and  development  of  every 
organic  apparatus. 

I  am  very  glad  to  see  that  under  the  stress  of  controversy  the 
Professor  admits — and  even  hotly  denies  that  it  has  ever  been 
doubted — that  natural  selection  cannot  account  for  the  pre- 
existence  of  the  structures  which  are  presented  for  its  choice. 
And  not  only  must  selected  organs  exist  before  they  can  be 
chosen  by  natural  selection,  but  they  must  have  been  already 
sufficiently  developed  to  possess  some  functional  activity.  This 
was  my  contention  thirty  years  ago,  and  to  this  day  I  have 
always  found  it  either  denied  or  evaded  by  the  whole  ultra- 
Darwinian  school.  I  rejoice  to  see  it  now  admitted  as  unques- 
tionable. "Natural  selection  can  account  for  the  origin  of 
nothing" — so  says  Mr.  Cope.  The  Professor  indignantly  re- 
plies :  "  How  can  Mr.  Cope  presume  to  tell  us  this?  Who  has 
ignored  it  ?  when  ?  and  where  ?  "  So  ends  a  long  and  a  hard 
fight.  The  enemy  not  only  lays  down  his  arms,  but  denies  he 
has  ever  carried  them.  Argyll. 


Who  Discovered  the  Teeth  in  Ornithorhynchus  ? 

It  is  almost  superfluous  to  add  anything  to  Prof.  Flower's 
reply  (p.  151)  to  Dr.  Hart  Merriam.  Injustice,  however,  to 
Mr.  Poulton,  it  ought,  I  think,  to  be  stated  that  he  fully  refers 
to  Home's  paper  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions.  In  the 
Quart.  Jotirn.  Micr.  Set.,  vol.  xxix.  p.  27  (a  paper  to  which  Dr. 
Hart  Merriam  alludes  as  though  he  had  read  it)  Mr.  Poulton, 
describing  the  horny  plates  of  Ornithorhynchus,  writes  as  follows  : 
"Home  (Phil.  Trans.,  1802,  p.  71)  correctly  describes  these 
horny  plates  as  differing  '  from  common  teeth  very  materially, 
having  neither  enamel  nor  bone,  but  being  composed  of  a  horny 
substance  only  embedded  in  the  gum,'"&c.  I  observe  too, 
with  great  interest,  that  in  the  same  paper  Home  makes  use  of 
the  expression  (p.  70)  "the  teeth,  if  they  can  be  so  called."  On 
p.  28  Mr.  Poulton  quotes  in  full  the  passage  from  Owen  given 
by  Prof.  Flower.  Perhaps  Dr.  Hart  Merriam  does  not  accept 
Owen's  correction  of  Home's  hypothesis.  It  is  hardly  necessary 
to  point  out  that  the  teeth  which  Mr.  Poulton  describes  (p.  x$  et 
seq.)\ixi^QX  the  headings  (i)  tooth  papilla;  (2)  dentine;  (3) 
enamel ;  (4)  inner  epithelium  of  enamel  organ  ;  (5)  stratum  inter- 
medium of  Hannover  ;  (6)  middle  membrane  of  enamel  organ ; 


and  (7)  outer  membrane  of  enamel  organ,  must  be  very  different 
from  those  which  Home  calls  "cuticular,"  and  further  qualifies 
as  in  the  sentence  which  I  have  quoted. 

Comparison  of  Home's  figures  with  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas's 
(Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  vol.  xlvi.  pi.  2)  renders  it  highly  probable  that 
the  true  teeth  of  Home's  younger  specimen  had  only  recently 
dropped  out  from  the  horny  plates  ;  the  dimensions  given  by  the 
two  authors  being  almost  identical.  But  Home's  description  is 
perfectly  definite,  and  no  hint  whatever  is  made  to  true  teeth 
situated  upon  the  horny  plates  such  as  those  described  and 
figured  by  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas.  The  length  of  the  skull  of 
Home's  specimen,  as  given  in  his  figure,  is  71  miUimetres,  while 
that  of  Thomas's  female  specimen  is  65  millimetres  ;  the  male  is 
slightly  larger.  Probably,  therefore.  Home's  specimen  was 
considerably  older  than  Thomas's,  and  had  lost  the  true  teeth 
for  some  little  time. 

The  only  conclusion  at  which  I  can  arrive  is  that  Dr.  Hart 
Merriam  did  not  read  any  of  the  three  papers  bearing  on  this 
subject  with  sufficient  care  and  attention  to  enable  him  to  fully 
understand  the  facts  ascertained  by  their  respective  authors,  if 
indeed  he  proceeded  further  than  the  introductory  remarks  pre- 
facing Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas's  communication  to  the  Royal 
Society.  Oswald  H.  Latter. 

Anatomical  Department,  Museum,  Oxford,  December  20. 


Galls. 


In  answer  to  Mr.  Ainslie  HoUis,  I  should  like  to  observe 
that,  in  my  opinion,  the  theory  of  natural  selection  is  not 
"  seriously  assailed  by  investigations  into  the  formation  of  galls 
by  insects."  On  the  contrary,  in  reply  to  what  appeared  to  be 
a  challenge  from  Mr.  Mivart,  I  pointed  out  the  manner  in  which 
natural  selection  might  here  be  fairly  supposed  to  have  operated. 
But,  while  doing  this,  it  appeared  desirable  to  add  that  the  case  is 
a  highly  peculiar  one.  If  galls  were  merely  amorphous  tumours, 
or  even  if  they  presented  but  as  small  an  amount  of  specializa- 
tion for  the  benefit  of  the  larvae  as  is  presented  by  animal  tissues 
for  the  benefit  of  their  parasites,  the  case  would  not  be  so 
peculiar.  But  the  degree  of  morphological  specialization  which 
the  "pathological  process"  presents  in  the  case  of  some  galls — 
and  this,  of  course,  for  the  exclusive  benefit  of  the  contained 
parasites — is  very  remarkable.  And  although  I  doubt  not  that 
it  is  but  a  higher  exhibition  of  the  same  principles  as  obtain  in 
the  case  of  animal  tissues  and  their  parasites,  it  is  a  case  of 
much  greater  interest  from  the  Darwinian  point  of  view.  For, 
if  the  explanation  given  in  my  last  letter  be  accepted,  the  facts 
show  how  enormous  must  be  the  power  of  natural  selection 
in  building  up  adaptive  structures,  seeing  that  it  can  do  this  in 
so  high  a  degree  even  when  working,  as  it  were,  at  the  end  of  a 
long  lever  of  the  wrong  kind — i.e.  acting  indirectly  on  the  veget- 
able tissues  through  the  benefits  thereby  conferred  on  their  ani- 
mal parasites.  I  am  not  aware  that  there  is  any  other  instance 
of  "symbiosis"  where  so  high  a  degree  of  adaptive  specializa- 
tion is  presented  by  one  of  the  "  partners "  for  the  exclusive 
benefit  of  the  other.  George  J.  Romanes., 

London,  December  13. 

Mr.  W.  Ainslie  Hollis  has  involuntarily  misrepresented 
me  as  saying  that  the  theory  of  natural  selection  can  be 
"seriously  assailed"  by  investigations  respecting  galls.  I 
said,  indeed  (Nature,  November  14,  p.  41),  that  it  would  be 
"very  interesting  to  learn  how"  natural  selection  could  have 
caused  them  ;  but  I  was  careful  to  add  that  doubtless  an  ex- 
planatory hypothesis  was  ready  to  hand.  I  do  not  myself 
believe  they  were  so  caused  ;  but  if  they  were  not,  they  would 
none  the  less,  like  almost  all  biological  phenomena,  be  explicable 
by  an  unlimited  use  of  gratuitous  hypotheses  concerning  physio- 
logical correlations  and  imaginary  ancestors. 

I  confess  I  do  not  see  that  calling  them  "pathological"  (an 
epithet  I  certainly  would  not  deny  them),  and  comparing  them 
with  inflammatory  renal  foci  due  to  Bacilli,  will  explain  them, 
unless  it  be  affirmed  that  pathological  conditions  favourable  to 
parasites  are  always  due  to  the  action  of  "  natural  selection"  on 
the  parasites  themselves — an  affirmation  which  appears  to  ask 
too  much. 

Herr  Wetterhan's  argument  from  symbiosis  sins  against  natural 
selection  itself.  For  that  theory  requires  that,  in  the  arduous 
and  incessant  struggle  for  life  it  supposes,  any  prejudicial 
growth  should,  in  time,  be  eliminated  unless  carrying  with  it 
some  preponderating  advantage.     The  insect  and  the  plant  are 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


175 


not  "partners,"  for  the  latter  does  not  participate  in  the  gain  of 
the  former.  How,  then,  on  symbiotic  principles,  can  "natural 
selection  "  have  been  the  means  of  producing  a  growth  which, 
though  important,  if  not  necessary,  to  the  animal  symbiont,  is 
more  or  less  prejudicial  to  the  symbiont  vegetable  organism? 

There  can,  of  course,  be  no  doubt,  as  Mr.  McLachlan  says, 
that  the  various  peculiarities  of  gall-structure  "  could  be"  ex- 
plained "  on  purely  physiological  grounds  if  carefully  studied  ;  " 
but  that  "natural  selection"  will  suffice  to  explain  them,  seems 
to  me  by  no  means  equally  free  from  uncertainty. 

St.  George  Mivart. 

Hurstcote,  Chilworth,  December  13. 


The  Permanence  of  Continents  and  Oceans. 

I  CAN  find  no  flaw  in  the  reasoning  on  the  dynamical  ques- 
tion of  the  permanence  of  continents  and  oceans,  in  Mr.  Starkie 
Gardner's  letter  in  Nature  of  December  5  (p.  103),  by  which 
he  endeavours  to  show  the  universal  "tendency  for  deep  oceans 
to  become  deeper,  and  for  mountain  chains  to  grow  into  higher 
peaks."  But  when  he  says  it  is  opposed  to  no  known  facts,  I 
wish  to  ask  how  it  is  to  be  reconciled  with  the  fact  of  the 
general  distribution  of  marine  deposits  over  the  face  of  the 
earth,  so  that  every  part  of  what  is  now  land  appears  to  have 
once  been  ocean  ? 

I  fully  concede  that  the  change  of  ocean  spaces  into  land 
spaces  is  an  extremely  slow  process,  taking,  probably,  millions 
of  years,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  it  must  have  occurred,  though 
I  cannot  suggest  through  what  agency. 

Belfast,  December  14.  Joseph  John  Murphy. 


Does  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  Increase? 

Mr.  Jukes-Browne  (Nature,  December  12,  p.  130)  admits 
that  "  if  the  area  of  the  land  were  larger,  and   the  depth  of  the 
oceans  less,"  in  early  geological  times,  a  further  inference  must  be  , 
drawn — "that  the  bulk  of  the  ocean  water  was  less  then  than  it  is  ' 
now."  ^ 

So  far  we  are  in  agreement ;  indeed,  we  could  scarcely  be  " 
otherwise,  as  the  proposition  admits  of  complete  demonstration. 
When,  however,  Mr.  Jukes-Browne  proceeds  to  give  his  reasons  ', 
for  holding  that  the  bulk  of  ocean  water  was  less  in  early  times 
than  now,  he  enters  upon  a  more  controversial  subject.  ; 

1  am  familiar  with  the  arguments  he  urges  partly  on  the 
authority  of  Mr.  Fisher,  and  have  to  some  extent  discussed  them 
in  chapter  xii.  of  the  "Origin  of  Mountain  Ranges."  I  desire, 
however,  to  point  out  a  further  objection  that  when  stated  will, 
I  think,  appear  extremely  obvious. 

According  to  Dr.  George  Darwin  and  many  other  astronomers 
who  follow  him,  our  satellite,  the  moon,  was  once  an  integral 
portion  of  the  earth,  having  been  thrown  off  when  the  earth  was 
in  a  molten  condition.  If  this  theory  be  correct,  it  is  a  fair  as- 
sumption that  the  magma  out  of  which  the  moon  has  consolidated 
was  composed  of  matter  similar  to  that  of  our  earth.  Even  if 
their  relations  were  never  so  intimate  as  this,  I  think  most 
physicists  and  astronomers  will  admit  a  similarity  of  material 
constitution  of  the  two  spheres. 

If  then  volcanic  action  on  the  earth  is,  as  Mr.  Jukes-Browne 
contends,  accompanied  by  a  separation  of  water  initially  con- 
tained in  the  magma,  and  its  condensation  on  the  surface  in  such 
quantities  as  to  materially  increase  the  bulk  of  ocean  water,  why 
has  not  the  same  effect  followed  volcanic  action  on  the  moon  ? 
Why,  in  fact,  do  we  not  see  oceans  on  the  surface  of  the  moon 
instead  of  a  dry  and  desert  waste  of  volcanic  rings,  mountain 
protuberances,  and  arid  plains  ?  In  face  of  this  great  fact  it  ap- 
pears to  me  that  ingenious  arguments  as  to  the  amount  of  water 
contained  in  the  fluidal  cavities  of  granite,  which  most  geologists 
think  is  explicable  by  percolation,  have  not  much  weight. 

At  all  events,  it  seems  a  reasonable  question  to  ask  why 
oceans  should  be  supplied  with  water  from  the  perspiring  pores 
of  mother  earth,  while  her  offspring,  the  moon,  is  so  dry  as  to 
have  absorbed  into  herself  all  evidence  of  any  aqueous  envelope 
that  may  have  formerly  existed.  T.  Mellard  Reade. 

Park  Comer,  Blundellsands,  December  14. 

A  Natural  Evidence  of  High  Thermal  Conductivity  in 
Flints. 
A   RATHER  curious  effect  of  the  recent  frost  attracted  my 
attention  in  the  gravel  foot-paths  leading  over  Addington  Hill, 


near  Croydon,  on  the  beautifully  bright  day  of  the  ist  inst. 
The  clear  nights  and  frosty  air  of  the  closing  week  of  last  month 
had  been  productive  of  continued  low  temperatures  in  that 
locality,  and  the  result  observed  was  that  the  flint  pebbles, 
which  in  neighbouring  gravel-beds  and  here  and  there  on  the 
paths,  are  of  the  size  of  hens' eggs,  and  remarkably  well  rounded, 
had,  in  places,  sunk  in  the  frozen  clunch  or  clay-earth  of  the 
foot-paths,  and  in  the  peaty  ground  or  turf  beside  the  paths,  as 
it  appeared,  like  filberts  shrunk  and  resting  at  the  bottoms  of 
their  shells ;  or  else  as  if  the  pebbles'  earthy  moulds  had,  by 
expanding  upwards,  left  such  a  large  vacuity  above  each  stone, 
that  the  tops  of  some  of  the  large  ones,  instead  of  being  level 
(as  at  first  they  must  have  been,  by  the  appearance  of  the  moulds) 
with  the  surface  of  the  ground,  were  now,  in  a  somewhat  turfy 
place,  about  as  much  as  half  an  inch  below  it.  The  physical 
enigma  which  hereupon  offered  itself  for  elucidation  was,  how 
the  pebbles  could  remain  at  the  much  lower  level,  while  such  a 
considerable  expansion  upwards  had  been  brought  about  by 
freezing  in  the  moist  earth  immediately  surrounding  them  ;  and 
this  problem  had  certainly,  in  looking  at  the  thickly-clustered 
cavities  in  the  frozen  ground,  at  first  a  very  paradoxical  appear- 
ance. 

But  if  the  question  how  the  inclosing  cavities  of  moist  earth 
round  flint  pebbles  which  are  nearly  embedded  in  it,  are  dis- 
tended upwards  so  curiously  by  a  strong  frost's  predominance, 
has  presented,  it  may  be,  to  some  of  your  readers  who  may  have 
noticed  in  similar  conditions  a  similar  appearance,  as  it  at  first 
did  to  me,  a  subject  for  rather  puzzled  contemplation  and  con- 
jectures, it  will  be  worth  pointing  out,  perhaps,  that  there  is  a 
well-ascertained  thermal  property  of  siliceous  rocks  and  flint,  of 
which  it  seems  not  improbable  that  this  not  unfrequently  occur- 
ring action  of  a  strong  frost,  in  such  conditions,  may  really  be 
an  interesting  illustration. 

Among  a  series  of  about  a  hundred  different  descriptions  and 
varieties  of  commonly  occurring  rocks  whose  thermal  conducti- 
vities were  experimentally  determined  by  a  Committee  of  the 
British  Association  in  the  years  1874-78,  it  was  found  that  such 
entirely  siliceous  ones  as  quartz,  flint,  and  pure  siliceous  sand- 
stone, &c.,  so  much  surpass  all  other  ordinary  rocks  in  their 
rates  of  transmitting  both  heat  and  temperature,  that  in  flint 
pebbles  these  conducting  powers  are,  for  example,  about  four  or 
five  times  as  great  as  in  damp  sandy  mould,  or  in  wet  clayey 
earth. 

Instead  of  the  layers  of  cold  temperature,  therefore,  produced 
in  wet  pebbly  ground  by  continued  frosty  winds  and  radiation, 
proceeding  in  plane  levels  downwards  from  one  depth  below  the 
surface  to  another,  large  flints  exposed  in  it  must  grow  cold  very 
quickly  through  their  whole  substance,  and  must  freeze  the  wet 
earth  under  them  almost  as  soon  as  the  soil's  surface-layer  round 
them  is  beginning  to  be  frozen.  The  effect  of  this  freezing  process's 
expansion,  it  seems  evident,  will  hardly  be  so  much  to  raise  the 
pebbles  and  the  earth's  exposed  surface  upwards  very  differently 
from  each  other,  by  the  frost's  nearly  equal  action  on  them 
both,  as,  during  the  frost's  continuance,  to  force  up  towards  the 
surface  a  large  superfluity  of  soft  earth  from  between  the  bedded 
stones,  carrying  the  cast  or  mould  of  the  stone's  upper  sides, 
itself  to  some  height  above  them.  We  would  require,  perhaps, 
as  an  aid  to  this  interpretation  of  the  process,  to  regard  the  con- 
gelation round  the  stones,  as  rooting  them  down,  perhaps  to 
lower-lying  ones,  so  that  the  upward  thrust  of  the  extruded 
earth  may  not  be  able  to  dislodge  them,  but  can  be  effective  to 
raise  up  their  frozen  caps  ;  but  some  such  supposition  as  this  does 
not  appear  to  be  a  very  impossible  conjecture.  By  this  recourse 
to  the  pre-eminent  thermal  conductivity  of  flints  above  that  of 
moist  turf  and  clay,  in  which  they  are  embedded,  it  seems  at 
least  not  impracticable  to  give  a  somewhat  intelligible  explana- 
tion of  the  frozen  ground's  abnormal  elevation  round  them, 
lifting  the  moulded  caps  of  earth-covering  off  their  upper  sides 
until  their  roadside  clusters  present  the  curious  appearance  of 
shrunken  petrifactions  of  some  nest  of  fossil  yolks  in  half- 
empty  egg-shells. 

It  is,  indeed,  true  that  when  by  long  continuance  of  a  frost 
the  sodden  earth  may  have  become  entirely  penetrated  and 
frozen  by  it  to  some  considerable  and  tolerably  even  depth  (we 
may  suppose)  below  a  layer  of  embedded  flints,  it  should  be 
noticed,  to  simplify  the  process's  consideration,  that  the  form 
which  the  frozen  ground  will  then  have  acquired  between  and 
round  the  flints  could  be  nowise  affected  in  the  end  by  any  various 
shapes,  plane  or  contorted  by  irregularly  formed  and  differently 
conducting  solid  bodies  in  its  course,  wherewith  the  tract  of 


176 


NATURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


reezing  temperature  after  entering  the  ground  approaches  by 
stages  of  quick  or  slow  rates,  in  different  parts,  towards  the  sup- 
posed nearly  even  depth  at  last,  if  we  might  only  presuppose 
that,  because  of  the  endless  material  obstruction  to  its  motion  in 
any  horizontal  direction,  no  channels  for  the  earth's  lateral  ex- 
pansion in  freezing  should  subsist ;  but  that  in  all  places  and  in 
all  conditions  where  the  freezing  happens,  the  only  line  of  escape 
of  the  earth's  increase  of  volume  should  be  vertically  upwards 
towards  a  direction  where  no  insuperable  forces  are,  at  least, 
opposed  to  it. 

Were  this  assumption  of  upward  reliefs  only  of  all  of  the 
expansions  a  really  true  and  valid  one,  every  vertical  fibre  of 
the  wet  earth's  mass  would  behave  in  freezing  quite  indepen- 
dently of  every  other  one,  and  would  take  up  its  fully  expanded 
length  at  last,  no  matter  at  what  times  and  in  what  order  con- 
gealing overtook  its  individual  portions.  A  stone,  in  this  sup- 
position, just  embedded  in  the  ground,  would  have  its  lower  half 
lifted  at  last  in  its  socket,  and  the  upper  half  of  the  socket 
lifted  off  the  stone  (whether  its  thermal  conductivity  is  great  or 
small),  to  the  height,  in  either  case,  of  a  water-column's  change  of 
length  by  freezing,  whose  initial  height  is  but  half  the  vertically 
measured  thickness  of  the  round  embedded  stone — that  is  to  say, 
about  one-eleventh  of  an  inch  for  a  stone  2  inches  in  diameter, 
instead  of  nearly  half  an  inch,  which  was  about  the  depth  of  the 
settlement,  in  some  of  the  large-sized  flint  stones,  which  was 
actually  observed. 

To  return  to  the  reality,  however,  from  this  artificial  suppo- 
sition, the  actual  course  of  the  expansions,  and  the  effects  pro- 
duced by  the  freezing  dilatations  must,  no  doubt,  be  very 
different.  Supposing  that  the  flint-stones,  by  their  good  thermal 
conductivities,  soon  become  covered  with  a  thickening  coat  of 
frozen  earth,  flow  of  the  soft,  unfrozen  earth  between  them  will 
really  spring  up  and  be  maintained  by  direct  outward  expan- 
sions from  the  stones  of  the  icy  coats  surrounding  them.  On 
account  of  the  firm  rigidity  of  the  exposed  earth-surface,  to 
which  the  stones  themselves  must  soon  become  fast  fixed,  the 
resultant  flow  of  soft  earth  from  between  the  stones,  instead  of 
finding  an  upward  path  the  easiest,  will  rather  choose  a 
vertically  downward  one  for  its  escape  from  its  confine- 
ment, and  lift  the  stones  and  icy  covering  together,  rather  than 
seek  by  an  upward  course  to  break  through  the  latter.  Yet  this 
last  effect  may  also  perhaps  occur  to  some  extent,  raising  the 
frozen  earth-caps  in  some  measure  off  the  stones'  upper  sides,  and 
stretching  them,  it  may  be,  a  little  upwards,  so  as  to  leave 
between  them  and  the  stones  clear  empty  spaces.  That  this 
last  effect  must  be  only  a  secondary  and  inconspicuous  one, 
however,  seems  to  be  pretty  obvious  from  this  passingly  essayed, 
and  as  it  now  appears  all  too  uselessly  pursued  and  desultory 
aper^u  of  the  frost's  real  mode  and  process  of  expansive  action. 

Regarding  the  peculiar  structures,  in  fact,  altogether  from 
another  point  of  view,  and  rejecting  the  imperfect  explanation 
which  any  one  of  these  presumed  congelation  processes  might 
at  first  have  been  supposed  to  furnish,  of  the  curiously 
sunken-lookiug  assemblages  of  the  wayside  pebbles,  an  exactly 
opposite  interpretation  of  their  semi-interred  condition  seems, 
perhaps,  indeed,  to  afford  a  more  satisfactory  and  likely  explana- 
tion of  it,  than  the  expansive  effects  of  frost  in  the  moist  earth 
were  ascertained  and  shown  to  have  any  capabilities  and  physical 
resources  for.  The  warmth  of  the  sun,  or  of  wind  and  rain  in 
some  thawing  daytime  temperature  of  the  generally  frosty  week, 
may  in  short  be  supposed  (which  the  weather-table  of  the  week, 
on  the  26th  and  27th  ult.  confirms)  quite  plainly  and  certainly 
enough,  in  consequence  of  the  flints'  good  thermal  conductivities, 
to  have  melted  and  shrunk  again  to  its  natural  dimensions  the 
hard  frozen  earth  under  them,  without  lowering  the  level  equally 
of  the  badly  conducting  frozen  earth  surrounding  them.  Alter- 
nate days  of  thaw  and  nights  of  frost  would,  by  progressive 
stages  which  can  be  easily  traced  out  and  understood,  tend  quite 
naturally  to  exaggerate  tliis  difference.  Thus  in  another  way, 
but  complementary  to  and  at  returning  times  just  fitly  supple- 
mented by  that  first  supposed,  the  problem  which  the  winter 
scene  presented  is,  still  more  simply  and  clearly  than  before,  seen 
to  be  solved  quite  truly  and  correctly  by  the  relatively  high 
thermal  conductivity  of  the  rounded  flints  as  compared  with  that 
of  the  hard  frozen  earth  in  which  they  are  enveloped. 

This  gradual  subsidence,  therefore,  of  flint  stones  during 
alternate  frosts  and  thaws,  into  frozen  earth,  by  consolidation 
and  lateral  expansion,  followed  by  liquefaction  and  vertical  con- 
traction of  the  water  in  the  earth  beneath  them,  is,  it  would 
seem  that  we  may  reckon  it  accordingly,  a  phenomenon  on  land 


just  analogous  and  similar  to  the  familiar  thermal  process  which 
small  stones  scattered  on  a  smooth  frozen  glacier-field  display 
in  summer-time,  by  intercepting  the  heat  of  the  sun's  rays,  and 
by  sinking  to  the  bottom  of  the  deep  water-holes  which  they  thus 
scoop  and  delve  out  for  themselves,  wherever  they  happen  to 
have  found  a  lodgment  in  the  naked  ice. 

A.  S,  Herschel. 
Observatory  House,  Slough,  December  9. 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

At  the  last  meeting  of  the  Linnean  Society  I  exhibited  a 
number  of  crabs  and  certain  shells  of  the  genus  Phorus  having 
various  foreign  substances  attached  to  them,  about  which  it  is  desir- 
able that  more  should  be  known.  Some  of  the  crabs  manage  to 
fasten  bits  of  sea-weed  to  the  hairs  on  the  carapace  and  legs  ; 
Polyzoa,  Balani,  Serpulse,  &c.,  in  their  earlier  stages  fasten  them- 
selves on  others  ;  a  crab  of  the  Indian  Seas —  Camposcia  retusa 
— is  sometimes  completely  covered  on  every  part  with  sand, 
small  shells,  and  bits  of  sea-weed — Corallina  chiefly.  These 
could  only  be  attached  by  some  adhesive  matter,  but  whence 
derived  ?  Droniia  vulgaris  is  occasionally  found  with  a  sponge 
extending  over  the  carapace  and  almost  completely  hiding  the 
animal.  The  species  of  this  genus  have  the  two  hinder  pairs  of 
legs  much  reduced,  flattened,  and  lying  close  to  the  back,  and 
this  is  assumed  to  be  an  adaptation  for  the  purpose  of  retaining 
the  sponge.  Out  of  a  number  of  specimens  dredged  in  the  Bay 
of  Naples,  I  recollect  only  getting  one  with  a  sponge  on  it,  and 
that  very  soon  shrivelled  up,  leaving  a  leathery-looking  substance 
attached  to  the  base  of  the  carapace,  not  held  by  the  legs 
apparently.^  Two  crabs — yEthusa  mascarone  and  Dorippe 
lanata — having  similarly  reduced  hind-legs,  but  directed  upwards, 
seem  much  better  adapted  for  retaining  a  foreign  substance, 
which,  however,  they  are  not  known  to  do.  In  a  Mauritian  crab 
— Dynomene  hispida — the  hind  pair  only  are  reduced,  but  to 
such  an  extent  as  to  be  merely  rudimentary  and  incapable  of  any 
use.  Paramithrax  barbutus — a  New  Zealand  crab — has,  like  some 
others,  hooked  hairs,  but  in  the  specimen  exhibited  they  appear 
to  be  free  of  any  foreign  substances,  although  many  small  frag- 
ments of  an  uncertain  nature  appear  between  them. 

In  Phorus  a  strong  cement  only  could  hold  on  those  large  and 
heavy  substances — shells,  stones,  &c. — completely  covering  the 
shell,  as  in  P.  agglutinans.  I  have  not  seen  any  account  of 
their  modus  operandi,  but,  as  the  animals  have  a  long  proboscis,  it 
is  possible  that  that  may  be  the  organ  employed,  but  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  believe  that  it  would  be  able  to  lift  any  large  substance, 
or  that  it  could  reach  the  top  of  the  shell.  Another  difficulty  is 
that  they  must  cast  off,  from  time  to  time  as  they  grow,  the 
smaller  substances,  to  replace  them  by  larger  ones.  There  is  one 
Phorus,  however — P.  calyctdatus — in  which  small  shells  imbed 
themselves  at  short  intervals  along  the  whorls,  leaving  the 
greater  part  of  the  shell  uncovered  ;  these  little  cup-shaped  de- 
pressions are  marked  inside,  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  shell  will 
permit  them  to  be  seen,  by  corresponding  protuberances.  This 
would  seem  to  indicate  a  certain  softening  of  the  shell  at  one 
time  or  other. 

I  do  not  see  where  protection  comes  in,  in  any  of  these  cases. 

December  14.  Francis  P.  Pascoe. 

A  Marine  Millipede. 

In  the  hopes  of  arousing  the  interest  and  the  energies  of 
British  entomological  collectors,  "D.  W.  T.,"  in  a  short  notice 
on  p.  104  of  the  present  volume  of  Nature,  draws  attention  to 
the  recent  discovery  in  Jersey,  by  Mr.  Sinel,  of  that  remarkable 
marine  centipede  Geophilus  (Schendyla)  sub?narinus  (not  sttb- 
7naritimus  by  the  way),  of  Grube. 

Those  who  observed  this  notice,  and  are  interested  in  the 
fauna  of  Great  Britain,  may  be  glad  to  hear  in  addition  that 
more  than  twenty  years  ago  a  number  of  specimens  of  this  then 
undescribed  species  were  taken  by  Mr.  Laughrin  at  Polperro  on 
the  south  coast  of  Cornwall.  These  specimens,  which  were 
presented  to  the  British  Museum  in  1868,  were  found  associated 
with  Linotania  viaritima  (Leach) — also  a  marine  centipede— 

'  Bell,  in  his  "British  Crustacea"  (p.  371),  states  having  received 
"  numerous  young  specimens  from  Sicily,  every  one  of  which  had  the  cara- 
pace entirely  covered  with  a  sponge,  which  had  grown  over  it,  conceahng 
even  the  two  hinder  pairs  of  legs,  which  were  closely  placed  against  the  back, 
and  rendered  immovable."  No  mention  is  made  of  a  sponge  on  those  that 
came  from  the  Channel. 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


177 


among  the  rocks  on  the  sea-shore  ;  but  whether  the  place  of  their 
capture  was  above  or  below  high-watermark,  is  not  stated  on  the 
ticket  with  which  the  specimens  are  labelled. 

Dr.  Grube's  specimens  were  taken  at  St.  Malo. 

December  17.  R.  I.  PocoCK. 


SUGGESTIONS  FOR  THE  FORMATION  AND 
ARRANGEMENT  OF  A  MUSEUM  OF 
NATURAL  HISTORY  IN  CONNECTION 
WITH  A   PUBLIC  SCHOOL. 

HAVING  lately  been  asked  by  Dr.  Warre,  Head 
Master  of  Eton,  to  give  him  some  assistance  in  the 
fitting  up,  arrangement,  and  management  of  the  museum 
about  to  be  inaugurated  at  that  College,  I  put  down 
some  notes,  which  he  was  pleased  to  think  might  be  of 
use  in  pointing  out  the  lines  that  should  be  followed  with 
most  advantage.  As  these  notes  are  equally  applicable 
to  other  school  museums,  I  venture  to  publish  them  for 
the  information  of  those  who  may  be  in  position  to  profit 
by  them,  premising  that  they  are  mere  outlines,  which  are 
susceptible  of  much  elaboration  in  detail,  and  of  some 
modifications  according  to  special  circumstances. 

The  subjects  best  adapted  for  such  a  museum  are 
zoology,  botany,  mineralogy,  and  geology. 

Everything  in  the  museum  should  have  some  distinct 
object,  coming  under  one  or  other  of  the  above  subjects, 
and  under  one  or  other  of  the  series  defined  below,  and 
everything  else  should  be  rigorously  excluded.  The 
curator's  business  will  be  quite  as  much  to  keep  useless 
specimens  out  of  the  museum,  as  to  acquire  those  that  are 
useful. 

The  two  series  or  categories  under  which  the  admissible 
specimens  should  come  are  the  following  : — (i)  Specimens 
illustrating  the  teaching  of  the  natural  history  subjects 
adopted  in  the  school,  arranged  in  the  order  in  which  the 
subjects  are,  or  ought  to  be,  taught.  (2)  Some  special 
sets  of  specimens  of  a  nature  to  attract  boys  to  the  study 
of  such  branches  of  natural  history  as  readily  lie  in 
the  path  of  their  ordinar)'  life,  especially  their  school 
life,  and  to  teach  them  some  of  the  common  objects  they 
see  around  them. 

The  specimens  of  the  first  class  should  be  all  good  of 
their  kind,  carefully  prepared  and  displayed,  and  fully 
labelled.  They  should  also  be  so  arranged  that  they  can 
be  seen  and  studied  without  being  removed  from  their 
position  in  the  case  or  in  any  way  disturbed  or  dama^^ed. 
It  would  be  best  that  they  should  never  be  taken  out  of  the 
museum,  but  if  it  is  necessary  to  remove  them  for  the 
purpose  of  demonstration  at  lectures  or  classes,  special 
provision  should  be  made  by  which  a  whole  tray  or  case 
can  be  moved  together,  with  due  precautions  against  dis- 
turbing the  individual  specimens.  As  a  rule,  the  teachers 
should  either  bring  the  classes  into  the  museum  for 
demonstrations,  or  they  should  rely  upon  a  different  set 
of  specimens  kept  in  store  in  the  class-rooms,  and  only 
brought  out  when  required,  and  which  may  be  handled 
and  examined  without  fear  of  injury.  Really  good  per- 
manent preparations  may  be  looked  at,  but  not  touched 
except  by  very  skilled  hands. 

In  zoology  the  collection  should  consist  of  illustrations 
of  the  principal  modifications  of  animal  forms,  living  and 
extinct,  a  few  selected  typical  examples  of  each  being 
given,  showing  the  anatomy  and  development  as  well  as  the 
external  form.  The  series  now  in  the  course  of  arrange- 
ment in  the  Central  Hall  of  the  Natural  History  branch 
of  the  British  Museum,  in  the  Cromwell  Road,  may,  as 
far  as  it  is  complete,  be  taken  as  a  guide,  but  for  a  school 
museum  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  enter  so  fully  into 
detail  as  in  that  series. 

In  botany  there  should  be  a  general  morphological 
collection,  showing  the  main  modifications  of  the  different 
organs  in  the  greater  groups  into  which   the  vegetable 


kingdom  is  divided,  and  illustrating  the  terms  used  in 
describing  these  modifications.  Such  a  collection  may 
also  be  seen  (although  still  far  from  complete)  in  the  same 
institution. 

For  a  teaching  collection  of  minerals,  an  admirable 
model  has  for  several  years  past  been  exhibited  in  the 
Mineralogical  Gallery  of  the  Natural  History  Museum, 
being,  in  fact,  the  various  paragraphs  of  Mr.  Fletcher's 
"  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Minerals  "  cut  up,  and  with 
the  statements  in  each  illustrated  by  a  choice  specimen. 

The  geological  collection  would  best  be  limited  mainly 
.to  a  series  illustrating  the  rocks  and  characteristic  fossils 
of  the  British  Isles,  arranged  stratigraphically.  There 
would  be  no  difficulty  in  making  such  a  series  on  any 
scale,  according  to  the  space  available,  and  if  well  selected 
and  arranged,  it  would  be  extremely  instructive  and  form 
a  complete  epitome  of  the  whole  subject.  It  should  be 
placed  in  a  continuous  series  along  one  side  of  the  room, 
beginning  with  the  oldest  and  ending  with  the  most  recent 
formations.  It  might  be  preceded  by  some  general 
specimens  illustrating  the  various  kinds  of  rock  struc- 
tures, &c. 

Mineral  and  fossil  specimens  are  generally  to'be  pro- 
cured as  wanted  from  the  dealers,  and  as  they  require 
little  or  no  preparation,  collections  illustrating  these  sub- 
jects can  be  quickly  made,  if  money  is  available  for  the 
purpose.  This  is  not,  however,  the  case  with  zoological 
and  botanical  specimens,  most  of  which  require  labour, 
skill,  and  knowledge  to  be  expended  upon  their  prepara- 
tion before  they  can  be  preserved  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
make  them  available  for  permanent  instruction. 

We  will  next  proceed  to  consider  what  objects  may  be 
included  under  the  second  head,  many  of  which  need 
not  be  constantly  exhibited,  but  may  be  preserved  in 
drawers  for  special  study.     These  may  be — 

(i)  A  well-named  collection  of  the  commoner  British 
insects,  especially  those  of  the  neighbourhood  in  which 
the  school  is  situated,  with  their  larvae,  which  should  (if 
means  will  allow)  be  mounted  on  models  of  the  plants 
upon  which  they  feed.  All  should  have  their  localities 
and  the  date  of  capture  carefully  recorded.  These  are 
best  kept  in  a  cabinet,  with  glass-topped  drawers,  with  a 
stop  behind,  so  as  to  allow  them  to  be  pulled  out  for 
inspection,  but  not  entirely  removed.  Such  a  collection, 
formed  of  specimens  prepared  and  presented  by  Lord 
Walsingham,  can  now  be  seen  in  the  British  Room  of  the 
Natural  History  Museum. 

(2)  A  similar  collection  of  British  shells,  especially  the 
land  and  freshwater  shells  of  the  neighbourhood. 

(3)  If  space  and  means  allow,  a  collection  of  British 
birds,  especially  the  best-known  and  more  interesting 
species.  Rare  and  occasional  visitors,  reckoned  in  the 
books  as  British,  which  are  the  most  expensive  and 
difficult  to  procure,  are  the  least  important  for  such  a  col- 
lection. Variations  in  plumage  in  young  and  old,  and  at 
different  seasons,  should  be  shown  in  some  common 
species.  Every  specimen  must  be  good  and  well  mounted, 
or  it  is  not  worth  placing  in  the  museum. 

(4)  The  principal  British  mammals  of  smaller  size, 
especially  the  bats,  shrews,  and  mice. 

(5)  The  British  reptiles,  Amphibia,  and  commoner 
fishes,  so  shown  that  their  distinctive  characters  may  be 
recognized. 

(6)  A  collection,  as  complete  as  may  be,  of  British 
plants,  or  at  all  events  of  the  plants  of  the  neighbour- 
hood. By  far  the  best  way  of  preserving  and  exhibiting 
such  a  collection  is  in  glazed  frames,  movably  hinged 
upon  an  upright  stand,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  Botanical 
Gallery  of  the  Natural  History  Museum.  A  collection 
arranged  in  this  manner  should  find  a  place  in  every 
local  museum  of  natural  history. 

(7)  A  collection  of  the  fossils  found  in  the  quarries  of 
the  neighbourhood,  should  there  be  any. 

Every  collection  or  series  should  be  kept  perfectly  dis- 


178 


NATURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


tinct  from  and  independent  of  the  others,  and  its  nature 
and  object  clearly  indicated  by  a  conspicuous  label. 

The  exhibited  specimens  should  be  arranged  in  upright 
wall-cases  or  in  table-cases  on  the  floor  of  the  room.  For 
the  latter  a  high  slope  is  preferable,  and  in  all  the  exhibi- 
tion space  should  not  extend  too  high  or  too  low  for 
comfortable  inspection.  .  Between  three  to  six  or  seven 
feet  from  the  floor  should  be  the  limits  for  the  exhibition 
of  small  objects.  The  three  feet  nearest  the  floor  may  be 
inclosed  with  wooden  doors  forming  cupboards  or  fitted 
with  drawers.  Glass  in  this  situation  is  liable  to  be 
broken  by  the  feet  or  knees. 

The  museum  should  have  a  permanent  curator — a  man 
of  general  scientific  attainments,  and  who  is  specially 
acquainted  with,  and  devoted  to,  museum  work,  and  who 
might  also  be  one  of  the  teachers,  if  too  much  of  his  time 
is  not  so  occupied.  But,  as  he  is  not  likely  to  have  special 
knowledge  of  more  than  one  branch  of  natural  history, 
the  teachers  of  the  other  branches  represented  in  the 
museum  would  probably  each  give  advice  and  assistance 
with  regard  to  his  own  department.  It  is  also  probable 
that  some  of  the  boys  may  be  sufficiently  interested  in  the 
work  to  render  valuable  aid  in  collecting  and  preparing 
specimens. 

If  ethnographical,  archaeological,  historical,  or  art  col- 
lections be  also  part  of  the  general  museum  scheme,  they 
should  be  kept  quite  distinct  from  the  natural  history 
collections,  preferably  in  another  room. 

Above  all  things,  let  the  following  words  of  Agassiz  be 
remembered  :  "  The  value  of  a  museum  does  not  consist 
so  much  in  the  number  as  in  the  order  and  arrangement 
of  the  specimens  contained  in  it." 

W.  H.  Flower. 


THE  FISHERY  INDUSTRIES  OF  THE 
UNITED  STATES. 

'T'HE  volumes  which  form  the  subject  of  the  present 
-••  article  are  the  continuation  of  a  complete  mono- 
graph of  the  fisheries  and  fishing  industries  of  the  United 
States,  of  which  the  first  and  second  sections  have  already 
been  published  under  the  titles  of  "A  Natural  History  of 
Useful  Aquatic  Animals,"  and  "A  Geographical  Review 
of  the  Fisheries  of  the  United  States." 

The  direction  of  the  immense  investigation  necessary 
for  the  preparation  of  this  work  has  been  in  the  hands  of 
Mr.  G.  Brown  Goode,  who,  as  early  as  1877,  had  drawn 
■up  a  scheme  for  an  exhaustive  exploration  of  the  coast  of 
the  United  States  in  connection  with  the  fishing  industry. 
The  enterprise  was  undertaken  jointly  by  the  United 
States  Fish  Commission  and  the  Census  Bureau,  and  the 
expenses  of  investigation,  compilation,  office  and  field 
work,  and  publication,  have  been  shared  by  these  two 
departments. 

A  work  of  this  magnitude  was  quite  beyond  the  powers 
of  an  individual,  and  we  find  accordingly  that  a  number 
of  authors,  whose  names  are  given  at  the  back  of  the 
title-page,  have  been  associated  with  Mr.  Brown  Goode 
in  his  undertaking.  Among  them  are  many  names  well 
known  to  science  from  their  contributions  to  the  natural 
history  of  the  United  States.  Chief  among  these  are 
Messrs.  Marshall  MacDonald,  J.  A.  Ryder,  and  other 
members  of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission. 

An  English  reader  will  invariably  use  his  knowledge  of 
British  fisheries  as  a  standard  for  comparison  with  those 
of  a  foreign  country,  and,  in  doing  so,  will  find  many 
difficulties,  owing,  not  only  to  the  difference  in  the  species 
of  fish  which  are  found  on  the  two  sides  of  the  Atlantic, 

'  "The  Fisheries  and  Fishery  Industries  of  the  United  States."  By 
George  Brown  Goode,  Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institute,  and 
a  staff  of  Associates.  Section  III.  The  Fishing-Grounds  of  North  America, 
with  49  Charts,  edited  by  Richard  Rathbun.  Section  IV.  The  Fishermen  of 
the  United  States,  by  George  Brown  Goode  and  Joseph  W.  Collins.  Sec- 
tion V.  History  and  Methods  of  the  Fisheries ;  in  Two  Volumes,  with  an 
Atlas  of  255  Plates.     (Washington  :  Government  Printing  Office,  1887.) 


but  to  the  fact  that  many  of  our  common  names,  such  as 
pollack  and  hake,  are  applied  to  different  fish  in  America, 
and  that  the  Americans  often  use  an  altogether  peculiar 
zoological  nomenclature,  which  may  throw  even  an  experi- 
enced zoologist  into  confusion.  Many  American  fishes  of 
great  commercial  importance  are  unknown  in  Great  Britain, 
such  as  the  tautog  {Tautoga  onitis),  the  squeteague 
{Cynoscion  regale),  the  blue-fish  {Pomatomus  sa//a/or),  the 
menhaden  {Brevoortia  tyrannus),  and  the  shad  {Clupea 
sapidissimd).  The  most  favourite  edible  crab  of  North 
America  {Callinectes  haslatus),  the  blue  crab,  is  a  per- 
fectly distinct  species  from  our  common  Cancer  pagurtis, 
and  the  American  lobster  {Homarus  americanus)  and 
oyster  {Osircea  virginica')  are  different  from  our  own. 
The  European  sole  is  unknown  in  American  waters,  as 
are  our  turbot  and  brill ;  the  halibut,  which  has  only 
recently  become  important  in  British  fisheries,  is  of  great 
importance  in  America,  and  their  "  plaice"  {Paralidithys 
dentatus)  differs  entirely  from  the  fish  known  to  us  by 
that  name.  These  and  many  other  differences  in  the 
species  of  marketable  fish  are  important,  as  they  serve  in 
part  to  explain  the  different  methods  pursued  by  American 
fishermen  ;  why,  for  instance,  beam-trawling  is  unknown 
in  their  waters. 

Of  the  third  section  of  the  monograph,  which  forms  a 
halfof  the  first  of  the  four  volumes  under  consideration,  Mr. 
Brown  Goode  himself  says  : — "  It  is  the  first  report  of  the 
kind  ever  written.  It  describes  the  locations,  the  charac- 
teristics, and  the  productiveness  of  the  numerous  grounds 
resorted  to  by  the  fishermen  of  the  United  States,  ex- 
tending from  Greenland  to  Mexico,  from  Lower  Cali- 
fornia to  Alaska,  and  including  the  fishing  grounds  of  the 
great  lakes."  For  the  Atlantic  seaboard  this  work  is 
carried  out  on  a  scale  of  completeness  never  before 
attempted.  Not  only  does  the  text  abound  with  informa- 
tion relative  to  the  different  fishing  grounds  and  banks, 
their  history,  productiveness,  the  character  of  their 
bottom,  and  the  weather  prevailing  there  at  different 
seasons,  but  the  whole  of  this  is  graphically  represented 
in  a  series  of  admirable  charts  which  form  in  themselves 
a  complete  fisherman's  guide  to  the  whole  coast  from 
Greenland  to  Mexico.  In  addition  to  this,  the  migrations 
of  different  species  of  fish  from  locality  to  locality  are 
alluded  to,  and  the  characters  of  the  invertebrate  fauna 
are,  in  some  instances,  adduced  in  explanation  of  these 
migrations.  It  is  impossible  to  criticize  this  part  of  the 
work  :  to  do  so  one  must  have  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
all  the  principal  fishing-grounds  of  America  ;  but,  granted 
that  the  information  and  observations  on  which  the 
charts  and  text  are  founded  are  correct,  the  method  of 
displaying  this  information  is  unimpeachable. 

Not  the  least  valuable  part  of  Section  III.  is  the 
appendix  containing  the  temperature  observations  from 
1 88 1  to  1885  inclusive.  A  word  as  to  the  manner  of 
making  these  observations  will  not  be  out  of  place.  The 
Census  Bureau  was,  of  course,  unable  to  undertake  this 
kind  of  work,  and  the  Fish  Commissioners,  whose 
steamers  were  constantly  engaged  in  expeditions  to 
various  localities,  found  that  they  could  not  keep  a 
sufficiently  continuous  record  of  the  temperatures  ob- 
served at  different  points  along  the  coast.  Application 
was  accordingly  made  to  the  United  States  Lighthouse 
Board  and  Signal  Service,  and  these  departments  in- 
structed their  employes  to  make  the  required  observations 
as  part  of  their  regular  duties,  and  without  extra  com- 
pensation. The  editor  acknowledges  the  thoroughness 
with  which  these  men  performed  the  gratuitous  services 
demanded  of  them,  and  the  result  is  a  large  number  of 
charts  of  temperature  curves  for  each  observing  station, 
and  charts  showing  the  isothermal  lines  connecting  the 
stations  in  different  years. 

The  Pacific  fisheries  are  dealt  with  in  a  much  less 
complete  manner,  and  are  referred  to  as  being  unde- 
veloped.    The  Alaskan   fisheries    are    more  fully  dealt 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


T70 


with,  and  have  a  special  interest  as  forming'  the  chief,  if 
not  the  only  means  of  subsistence  of  the  native  popula- 
tion. The  methods  of  fishing  adopted  there  are  of  the 
most  primitive  character,  and  very  few  civilized  fisher- 
men are  employed  in  the  industry.  Fish,  however,  is 
exceedingly  abundant,  and  its  value  is  shown  by  the  price 
oi  %^YCvon\Onchorhynchus)  in  the  Yukon  River.  Dried 
salmon  is  called  tikali,  and  the  best  quality  chowichee 
tikali.  One  chowichee  ukali  is  accounted  a  sufficient 
day's  food  for  six  men  or  dogs,  and  can  be  purchased  for 
one  leaf  of  tobacco,  or  five  to  eight  musket-balls. 

The  fourth  section  of  the  monograph  relates  to  the 
United  States  fishermen  themselves.  In  1880  there  were 
101,684  bo7id  fide  professional  fishermen  in  the  United 
States,  those  men  only  being  reckoned  as  fishermen  who 
make  more  than  half  their  income  by  fishing.  At  the 
same  time  there  were  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland 
between  90,000  and  100,000  fishermen  who  would  come 
under  this  definition.  It  appears  that  whalers  and 
sealers  are  reckoned  among  the  American  fishermen, 
and  as  they  are  certainly  not  reckoned  in  the  English 
computation,  the  number  of  men  engaged  in  fishing,  pro- 
perly so  called,  would  be  about  equal  in  the  two  countries. 
Of  the  United  States  fishermen,  the  majority,  including 
the  negroes  of  the  Southern  States,  and  the  Alaskans,  are 
native-born  American  citzens,  while  from  10  to  12  per 
cent,  are  foreigners.  The  majority  of  the  latter  are 
natives  of  British  provinces  ;  the  remainder  are  made 
up  of  Portuguese  from  the  Azores,  Scandinavians,  Irish, 
and  Englishmen,  Italians,  Indians,  and,  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  Chinese.  The  chapters  devoted  to  the  fishermen 
of  the  different  States  are  very  interesting.  The  descrip- 
tion of  the  Maine  fishermen  might  be  taken  from  any 
English  fishing  port.  They  are  hardy,  self-reliant,  and 
honest,  but  are  ill  educated,  inveterate  grumblers,  and 
entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  middleman.  They  will  work 
hard  when  fishing,  but  are  reluctant  to  undertake  any 
other  work,  even  for  good  pay.  They  marry  early,  and 
have  large  families,  whilst  their  profits  are  low,  the 
average  annual  return  to  each  fisherman  being  $175 
(about  ^^36). 

Oyster-dredging  seems  to  have  a  peculiarly  demoraliz- 
ing effect  in  the  United  States,  the  white  oystermen  of 
Maryland  being  reckoned  as  the  lowest  of  their  class. 
The  New  England  fishermen  are  the  best  educated,  the 
most  enterprising,  and  the  most  successful  in  the  United 
States.  Unlike  the  majority  of  European  fishermen, 
they  do  not  form  a  class  apart,  and  have  no  peculiar 
traits  or  characteristics  marking  them  off  from  their  fel- 
low-countrymen. They  are  good  men  of  business,  and 
many  of  them  have  left  the  fishing  trade  altogether,  and 
been  highly  successful  in  other  branches  of  business. 
Their  fishing-craft,  nearly  all  schooner-rigged,  are  the 
finest  and  largest  in  the  world,  and  their  life  on  board 
is  far  more  civilized  and  comfortable  than  anything  met 
with  in  Europe.  Their  earnings  are  far  higher  than 
those  of  the  Maine  fishermen.  A  Gloucester  man  will 
commonly  make  $1000  (more  than  ^200)  in  a  year,  whilst 
skippers  who  are  partly  owners  have  on  rare  occasions 
made  as  much  as  $10,000  to  $15,000  in  a  single  year 
(from  ;^2ooo  to  ^3000).  Men  living  under  such  con- 
ditions are  naturally  of  a  high  standard  of  intelligence, 
and  the  U.S.  Fish  Commission  have  profited  largely  from 
the  co-operation  of  the  New  England  fishermen.  They 
have  from  the  first  recognized  the  value  of  a  scientific 
inquiry  in  fishing  matters  ;  have  in  many  instances  de- 
voted themselves  heartily  to  assisting  the  labours  of  the 
Commissioners  ;  have  kept  regular  records  of  their 
journeys,  including  observations  on  tides,  temperatures, 
weather,  and  sea-bottoms ;  have  collected  the  fauna  of 
the  different  fishing-grounds,  and  otherwise  have  been 
instrumental  in  helping  scientific  observation.  They 
have  one  and  all  been  ready  to  profit  by  the  information 
gained  by  the  Commission,  and  have  readily  tried  and 


adopted  novel  methods  of  fishing,  such  as  gill-nets  for 
cod-fishery,  and  purse-seines  for  catching  mackerel. 

It  is  obvious,  from  a  perusal  of  this  volume,  that  the 
American  fishermen  are  far  more  careful  of  their  fish 
than  Englishmen  ;  they  do  not  thump  them  down  on  the 
deck  and  stamp  about  on  them,  as  is  too  commonly  done 
on  a  British  smack  ;  they  carefully  clean  them  on  board, 
and  store  them  in  proper  receptacles,  and,  where  fish  is 
cured,  it  is  commonly  done  on  board  when  the  fish  is 
perfectly  fresh.  The  reputation  of  the  Gloucester,  Mass., 
fishermen  is  curiously  illustrated  by  a  petition  sent  to  the 
Lord-Lieutenant  of  Ireland  this  year.  It  was  reported 
that  several  American  schooners  were  coming  to  fish  for 
mackerel  off  the  coast  of  Ireland,  and  the  fishermen, 
who  do  not  fear  the  competition  of  English  and  French 
boats,  were  in  great  alarm  lest  the  Americans  with  their 
purse-seines  and  large  boats  should  utterly  sweep  the 
seas  of  fish. 

Section  IV.  closes  with  a  description  of  the  dangers  to 
which  American  fishermen  are  exposed,  and  an  account 
of  the  management  of  fishing-craft.  The  whole  is  most 
interesting  reading. 

Section  V.  comprises  two  thick  volumes  of  text  and  one 
of  plates.  The  subjects  it  deals  with  range  from  whale- 
fishing  to  sponge-gathering,  from  baiting  hooks  to  pre- 
paring sardines.  Each  branch  of  the  fishing  industry  is 
minutely  described  in  the  text ;  the  history  of  the  fishery 
is  given  ;  old  and  new  methods  are  compared  ;  the  boats, 
crews,  fishing-gear,  methods  of  packing  and  curing  on 
board  are  carefully  explained,  and  the  descriptions  are 
supplemented  by  a  profuse  number  of  illustrations. 

It  will  be  unnecessary  to  follow  the  various  branches 
of  fishing  in  detail,  but  a  few  remarks  on  special  forms 
of  fishing  will  be  of  interest.  As  has  been  said  above, 
the  Americans  have  no  beam-trawl  fishery  :  the  flat-fish 
which  are  so  highly  prized  in  Europe  are  either  absent 
from  the  American  shores,  or  are  held  in  low  estimation, 
and  we  find  no  special  mention  of  flat-fish  fisheries  in 
this  section,  with  the  exception  of  the  extensive  fishery 
for  halibut.  There  appears  to  be  a  prejudice  against 
flat-fish  in  many  parts  of  America,  and  there  is  certainly 
a  prejudice  against  the  use  of  the  beam-trawl.  If  the 
latter  were  introduced,  and  the  several  flat-fishes  which  are 
abundant  in  some  parts  of  the  United  States  waters  were 
thrown  freely  into  the  market,  an  important  branch  of 
fishery  would  no  doubt  be  established.  Halibut  are 
caught  in  deep  water  by  means  of  long  lines,  known  in 
America  as  "  trawls,'"  just  as  they  are  by  the  Grimsby 
boats  working  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Faroe  Islands. 
The  method  of  setting  several  long  lines  round  the 
schooner  by  means  of  smaller  boats  called  "  doiies,"  is 
well  worth  noticing,  but  the  great  risk  to  life  entailed  by 
the  use  of  the  "  dories "  is  an  objection  to  introducing 
this  mode  of  fishing  into  British  waters. 

The  cod-fishery  of  the  United  States  is  very  large,  and 
is  carried  on  to  a  large  extent  on  the  Great  Bank  of 
Newfoundland,  as  well  as  on  the  Labrador  and  St.  Law- 
rence coasts.  There  appears  to  be  a  fine  cod-fishery 
off  Alaska,  but  it  has  only  been  partially  worked  by  a 
small  fleet  hailing  from  San  Francisco.  The  cod-fishery 
was  formerly,  and  still  is  to  a  large  extent,  carried  on  by 
hand  lines  and  long  lines,  or  "trawls,"  but  in  1880  the 
U.S.  Fish  Commission  succeeded  in  introducing  gill-nets, 
long  since  used  by  the  Norwegians,  among  the  fishermen 
of  Gloucester.  The  obvious  advantages  of  the  cod  gill- 
nets  are  that  they  save  the  fishermen  the  trouble  and 
expense  of  obtaining  bait,  which  is  often  as  difficult  to 
procure  as  it  is  in  England,  and  thus  increase  their  profit ; 
they  are  easily  set  and  worked,  they  catch  more  than  the 
long  lines  working  on  the  same  ground,  and  as  the  size 
of  the  mesh  is  adapted  only  for  cod  of  a  certain  size,  the 
small  fish  or  "  trash  "  pass  through  and  escape.  This  is 
a  good  example  of  the  practical  usefulness  of  the  U.S. 
Fish  Commission. 


i8o 


NATURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


The  accounts  of  the  menhaden  and  mackerel  fishing 
show  that  the  Americans  are  as  prone  to  complain  of 
particular  modes  of  fishing  as  English  fishermen :  the 
purse-seine  is  as  obnoxious  to  some  of  them  as  the  beam- 
trawl  is  in  England,  and  the  use  of  steam  is  at  least 
equally  unpopular.  Steam  is  used  chiefly  in  the  men- 
haden fishery,  and  this,. in  combination  with  the  purse- 
seine,  a  net  practically  unknown  in  England,  has,  it  is 
alleged,  utterly  destroyed  the  menhaden  fishing  in  certain 
districts.  This  led  to  petitions  to  Congress  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  menhaden  fishery,  and  in  1882  and  1883 
the  matter  was  inquired  into,  and  protective  legislation 
recommended.  The  evidence  of  actual  decrease  in  the 
fishery  does  not  appear  in  the  Report  on  the  fishery,  but 
as  the  Commissioner  of  Fisheries  was  a  member  of  the 
Committee  which  drew  up  the  Report  recommending 
legislative  interference,  it  is  to  be  presumed  that  he  was 
satisfied  that  the  fact  of  a  diminution  of  the  menhaden, 
due  to  over-fishing,  was  established. 

Mackerel-fishing  is  conducted  entirely  by  sailing-boats, 
most  of  them  schooners  of  sixty  tons  register  and  up- 
wards, and  in  these  days  it  is  carried  on  almost  entirely 
by  means  of  the  purse-seine.  In  England,  the  summer 
fishing  for  mackerel  is  carried  on  by  means  of  hand  lines, 
and  small  boats  may  be  seen  "  railing  "  or  "  whiffing  " 
amongst  the  schools  of  mackerel.  This  method  was 
formerly  followed  in  America,  but  is  now,  to  all  intents 
and  purposes,  a  thing  of  the  past,  the  figures  of  small 
boats  "jigging"  and  "drailing,"  as  it  is  called  in  America, 
being  given  only  in  illustration  of  an  obsolete  industry. 

The  purse-seine  first  came  into  general  use  in  1850, 
but  its  greatest  development  dates  only  from  1870,  and 
since  the  latter  date  there  has  been  great  opposition  to 
its  use,  on  the  score  of  its  destructiveness.  The  statistics 
of  the  mackerel-fishery  do  not,  however,  warrant  this 
opposition.  Mackerel-fishing  has  always  been  uncertain, 
and,  as  early  as  1660,  prohibitory  laws  of  various  kinds 
were  passed  to  prevent,  as  it  was  supposed,  the  destruc- 
tion of  this  industry.  In  1838,  twelve  years  before  the 
introduction  of  purse-seines,  the  catch  of  mackerel  was 
very  small,  and  then  the  blame  was  laid  on  "  the  bar- 
barous method  of  taking  mackerel  called  gigging."  The 
largest  take  of  mackerel  in  a  single  year  was  in  1831, 
when  449,950  barrels  of  pickled  mackerel  were  officially 
inspected  ;  the  second  largest  catch  was  in  1881,  when 
391,657  barrels  were  inspected.  The  worst  catch  was  in 
1877,  when  127,898  barrels  were  inspected.  A  glance  at 
the  official  tables  shows  that  the  fluctuations  in  the  mack- 
erel-fishery are  quite  independent  of  the  usual  method  of 
fishing.  The  use  of  purse-seines  might  advantageously 
be  tried  in  England,  though  it  was  found  a  failure  by 
American  schooners  fishing  off"  the  Norwegian  coasts, 
because,  as  it  was  alleged,  the  mackerel  moved  there  in 
smaller  schools  than  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Atlantic. 

In  the  second  volume,  on  history  and  methods,  Eng- 
lish readers  will  find  especial  interest  in  the  account  of 
the  great  fur-seal  industry  of  Alaska,  which  is  regulated, 
as  is  well  known,  by  a  wise  law  prohibiting  the  destruc- 
tion of  more  than  a  fixed  number  of  seals  every  year. 

No  one  who  reads  these  volumes  can  fail  to  be  struck 
with  the  practical  national  benefit  of  the  United  States 
Fish  Commission.  The  production  of  this  great  work  is 
only  a  small  part  of  their  active  usefulness,  but  if  it  be 
judged  by  its  utility  alone,  it  is  an  exceedingly  important 
part.  When  finished,  this  monograph  of  the  fishing  in- 
dustry of  the  United  States  will  form  a  complete  text- 
book of  American  fisheries  in  all  their  branches,  and  will 
serve  not  only  to  interest  the  American  public  in  a  great 
national  industry,  but  as  a  reliable  guide  to  all  those  who 
are  engaged  in  the  fishing  trade  itself.  In  many  cases  it 
will  be  eminently  serviceable  as  a  book  of  reference  to 
the  practical  fisherman,  informing  him  of  the  localities 
and  characteristics  of  fishing-grounds  with  which  he  is 
unacquainted,  of  the  kinds  and  abundance  of  fish  that 


he  may  expect  there  at  different  seasons,  and  of  the  best 
methods  of  prosecuting  fisheries  to  which  he  is  unaccus- 
tomed. Capitalists  and  manufacturers  will  learn  from  it 
how  they  may  most  profitably  embark  in  a  new  industry, 
and  the  consumer  will  know  from  it  how  to  judge  of  the 
quality  of  the  article  he  consumes,  and  where  to  obtain 
it  to  the  best  advantage.  It  is  impossible  to  refrain  from 
drawing  a  comparison  between  this  enlightened  support 
given  to  an  industry  which  from  its  very  nature  is  in- 
capable of  being  benefited  by  private  effort,  and  the 
comparatively  small  support  given  by  the  English  Go- 
vernment to  our  own  fisheries,  which,  when  the  whale 
and  seal  fisheries  are  discounted,  are  at  least  of  equal 
value  with  those  of  the  United  States.  There  are,  in- 
deed, signs  that  it  is  being  generally  recognized  that  the 
laissez  faire  policy  as  applied  to  national  fisheries  is  a 
mistake.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that,  when  our  Government 
takes  another  step  forward,  the  example  of  the  United 
States  may  not  be  lost  sight  of,  and  that,  in  addition  to  a 
central  office  with  its  necessary  clerks  and  official  ad- 
ministrators, a  staff  of  skilled  scientific  investigators  and 
practical  men  may  be  appointed,  such  as  will  be  able  to 
produce  as  exhaustive  a  work  as  that  under  review. 


NOTES. 
On  Friday  evening  last,  Sir  Lyon  Playfair,  having  distributed 
the  prizes  and  certificates  gained  by  the  students  of  the  City  of 
London  College,  delivered  an  interesting  address,  taking  as  his 
chief  subject  the  need  for  vital  improvements  in  English  methods 
of  education.  There  had  been,  he  said,  a  marked  change  going 
on  over  the  world  in  regard  to  work.  Machinery  had  been 
taking  the  place  of  muscular  labour.  Less  human  labour  was 
employed,  but  it  was  much  better  paid  than  formerly.  The 
workman  must  adapt  himself  by  trained  intelligence  to  these 
changes,  otherwise  he  would  go  to  swell  the  ranks  of  unskilled 
labour.  Foreign  countries  had  been  quicker  awake  to  the  changes 
that  were  going  on  than  we  had  been.  We  were  proposing 
technical  education,  while  France,  Germany,  Belgium,  and 
Switzerland  had  been  adapting  themselves  to  the  altered  state  of 
things  by  improved  schools,  secondary  schools,  commercial, 
building,  and  other  special  schools,  which  they  had  been  pro- 
moting for  many  years.  Germans  and  Frenchmen  were  taking 
places  in  English  counting-houses,  because  the  youth  of  London 
had  not  been  educated  in  those  languages  which  were  necessary 
to  commerce.  We  were  now  beginning  to  awake  to  the  necessity 
of  doing  what  was  being  done  in  other  countries.  Until  com- 
paratively lately  we  had  nothing  but  classical  schools.  The 
learned  classes  had  been  entirely  separated  from  the  people  ;  but 
the  people's  knowledge  of  trade  improved  science,  and  science 
improved  trade.  The  learned  classes  were  ignorant  of  this.  This 
was  not  the  way  that  the  magnificent  science  and  literature  of 
Greece  and  Rome  arose.  Their  great  philosophers  were  busy  in 
commerce,  and  were  acquiring  experience  and  knowledge  among 
the  masses  of  their  own  countrymen.  This,  he  was  rejoiced  to  see, 
was  what  we  were  now  trying  to  bring  about  in  this  country. 

The  formation  of  two  new  Microscopical  Societies  has  recently 
been  announced.  One  of  these  is  the  Scottish  Microscopical 
Society,  meeting  in  Edinburgh,  with  the  following  ofiice-bearers  : 
President,  Prof.  Sir  W.  Turner ;  Vice-Presidents,  Prof.  Hamil- 
ton and  Mr.  Ad.  Schulze ;  Secretaries,  Dr.  A.  Edington  and 
Mr.  Geo.  Brook.  This  Society  has  already  held  two  successful 
meetings.  The  other  Society  is  the  Italian  Microscopical  Society, 
intended  to  bring  together  microscopists  from  the  whole  of  Italy. 
The  subjects  for  research,  specially  mentioned  in  the  prospectus, 
are  animal  and  vegetable  histology,  petrology,  bacteriology,  and 
the  structure  of  the  microscope  and  its  appliances. 

At  Leyden  there  is  a  fine  ethnographical  collection,  which  is 
especially  valuable  so  far  as  it  relates  to  the  Dutch  East  Indian 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


181 


territories.  At  present  this  collection  is  seen  to  great  dis- 
advantage, but  there  is  some  prospect  that  it  may  soon  be  trans- 
ferred to  better  quarters.  A  Parliamentary  Committee  has  re- 
commended that  proposals  should  be  submitted  to  Parliament 
for  the  erection  of  a  suitable  building. 

The  Public  Free  Libraries  Committee  of  Manchester,  in 
their  annual  report,  just  issued,  state  that  the  success  which  has 
so  long  attended  the  working  of  the  public  free  libraries  in  that 
city  still  continues  in  all  departments.  During  the  last  twelve 
months  the  number  of  readers  and  borrowers  at  the  various 
libraries  and  reading  rooms  {i.e.,  the  number  of  visits  they 
made)  reached  an  aggregate  of  nearly  four  millions  and  a  half 
(4,442,499),  being  over  70,000  in  excess  of  the  previous  year. 
The  number  of  books  used  for  home  reading  and  for  perusal  in 
the  reading  rooms  was  1,649,741.  In  the  preceding  year  the 
number  was  1,606,874,  the  increase  being  42,867.  The  daily 
average  of  volumes  used  in  all  the  libraries  was  4700.  Of  the 
volumes  issued  to  readers  at  the  libraries,  336,058  were  read  in 
the  reference  library,  507,964  in  the  reading  rooms  attached  to 
the  branches,  and  64,770  in  the  Bradford,  Harpurhey,  and 
Hyde  Road  reading  rooms.  The  number  of  volumes  lent  out 
for  home  reading  was  740,949.  Out  of  these  only  sixteen  are 
missing.  There  are  now  197,947  volumes  in  the  libraries. 
The  committee  express  regret  that  the  limited  resources  at 
their  disposal  prevent  the  extension  of  branch  libraries  and 
public  reading  rooms,  but  they  trust  that  the  Council  will, 
before  long,  enable  them  to  take  the  necessary  measures  for 
giving  effect  to  the  resolution  of  the  Council  passed  unanimously 
on  December  21,  1887,  with  regard  to- obtaining  parliamentary 
powers  for  the  removal  of  the  present  restriction  of  the  rate  (a 
\d.  in  the  £)  to  be  expended  for  library  purposes. 

The  following  scientific  lectures  will  probably  be  delivered  at 
the  Friday  evening  meetings  of  the  Royal  Institution  before 
Easter,  1890:— January  24,  Prof.  Dewar,  F.R.S.,  scientific 
work  of  Joule;  January  31,  Sir  Frederick  Abel,  F.R.S., 
smokeless  explosives ;  February  14,  Prof.  J.  A.  Fleming, 
problems  in  the  physics  of  an  electric  lamp  ;  February  21, 
Shelford  Bidwell,  F.R.S.,  magnetic  phenomena;  February  28, 
Prof.  C.  Hubert  H.  Parry,  evolution  in  music  ;  March  7,  Francis 
Gotch,  Esq.,  electrical  relations  of  the  brain  and  spinal  cord  ; 
March  14,  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  the  glow  of  phos- 
phorus; March  21,  Prof.  G.  F.  Fitzgerald,  F.^.S,,  electro- 
magnetic radiation.  On  Friday,  March  28,  a  lecture  will  be 
given  by  Lord  Rayleigh,  F.  R.  S. 

On  December  8,  at  6.30  a.m.,  a  severe  shock  of  earthquake 
was  felt  in  Upper  and  Central  Italy,  Dalmatia,  the  Herzegovina, 
and  Bosnia.  At  Serajewo  three  shocks  were  felt,  the  direction 
being  from  south-east  to  north-west.  They  lasted  for  five 
seconds  each. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Reggio  d'Emilia,  in  Upper 
Italy,  are  very  much  alarmed  by  the  activity  of  the  volcano,  the 
Queccia  de  Salsa,  which  is  situated  about  eight  kilometres  from 
the  town.  During  the  last  two  or  three  weeks  it  has  thrown  up 
lava,  stones,  and  ashes. 

In  the  Comptes  rendus  of  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences 
for  December  9,  M.  Angot  has  published  an  interesting  paper  on 
the  observations  of  temperature  at  the  top  of  the  Eiffel  Tower. 
The  mean  monthly  maxima  and  minima  for  July  to  November 
inclusive  are  compared  with  those  recorded  at  the  Pare  Saint- 
Maur.  According  to  the  usual  decrease  of  temperature  with 
height,  the  tower  observations  should  be  about  2°'9  lower  than 
at  the  ground  station,  but  the  difference  is  much  greater  in  sum- 
mer during  the  day,  and  much  less  in  winter  during  the  night. 
In  calm  and  clear  nights  especially,  the  temperature  has  been 


found  to  be  nearly  1 1°  higher  at  the  summit  than  at  the  base. 
At  the  time  of  a  change  of  atmospheric  conditions,  the  change 
is  manifested  some  hours,  or  even  days,  at  the  higher  station.  A 
striking  instance  of  this  occurred  in  November.  After  a  period 
of  high  pressure,  with  calms  and  easterly  breezes,  the  wind  on 
the  surface  became  strong,  and  shifted  to  south-south-west,  and 
temperature  rose.  But  the  change  had  manifested  itself  on  the 
tower  on  the  evening  of  the  21st,  and  during  the  whole  period 
from  the  evening  of  the  21st  to  the  morning  of  the  24th,  the 
temperature  at  the  tower  was  higher  than  at  the  base,  at  some 
times  even  exceeding  18°.  Observations  made  by  a  "  swinging  " 
thermometer  at  iih.  a,m.  on  the  22nd  showed  that  the  inferior 
limit  of  the  warm  current  was  approximately  between  500  and 
600  feet  above  the  ground. 

The  Third  Report  of  the  Meteorological  Institute  of  Rou- 
mania  for  the  year  1888  shows  that  much  progress  is  being 
made,  with  very  scanty  means,  thanks  to  the  willingness  of  the 
observers  and  to  the  voluntary  assistance  rendered  in  the  pre- 
paration of  the  observations  for  publication.  The  Institute  has 
been  established  only  four  years,  and  at  the  beginning  of  1889  it 
numbered  21  stations  of  various  classes,  in  addition  to  42  rainfall 
stations.  The  observations  are  regularly  published  in  the 
Annales  of  the  Institute,  a  quarto  volume  of  about  600  pages, 
about  half  of  the  volume  being  devoted  to  discussions,  in  French 
and  Roumanian. 

For  a  year  past  Mr.  R.  W.  Schufeldt  has  been  working  at  a 
memoir  on  the  morphology  and  life-history  of  Heloderma  sus- 
pectum,  the  well-known  poisonous  lizard  of  the  south-western 
part  of  the  United  States.  This  memoir  is  now  nearly  ready 
for  publication.  Biologists  have  hitherto  denied  Heloderma  even 
the  rudiment  of  a  zygomatic  arch,  and  Dr.  Giinther,  of  the  British 
Museum,  has  said  in  his  article  *  *  Reptiles,"  in  the  ninth  edition 
of  the  "Encyclopaedia  Britannica"  (p.  451),  that  "the  skull  of 
Heloderma  is  very  remarkable  in  that  it  has  no  zygomatic  arch 
whatever."  We  learn  from  Mr.  Schufeldt  that  his  recent  dis- 
sections of  this  lizard  go  to  prove  that  such  statements  must  be 
qualified.  Upon  examining  skulls  of  both  old  and  young  in- 
dividuals of  H.  suspectum,  he  has  found  at  least  a  very  substan- 
tial vestige  of  the  arch  in  question.  It  consists  of  a  freely 
articulated,  conical  ossicle,  standing  on  the  top  of  the  quadrate, 
being  moulded  to  the  outer  side  of  the  posterior  end  of  the 
squamosal,  with  which  it  also  freely  articulates.  It  is  seen  to  be 
present  upon  both  sides.  That  this  is  the  osseous  rudiment  of 
the  hinder  end  of  the  zygomatic  arch  in  this  reptile,  there  cannot, 
Mr.  Schufeldt  thinks,  be  the  shadow  of  a  doubt. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  American  Ornithologists'  Union, 
Mr.  Jonathan  D wight,  Jun.,  read  a  paper  on  birds  that  have 
struck  the  statue  of  Liberty,  Bedloe's  Island,  New  York 
Harbour.  He  said,  that,  on  account  of  its  lighter  colour,  more 
birds  strike  the  pedestal  of  the  statue  than  the  statue  itself.  The 
statue  was  erected  too  late  in  1886  for  the  migratory  birds. 
It  was  first  struck  on  May  19,  1887,  then  late  in  August, 
when  the  lights  were  said  to  be  put  out  by  birds.  The 
first  date  at  which  birds  struck  the  statue  in  1889  was  August  5, 
when  fourteen  were  killed.  A  few  others  were  killed  during  the 
month,  and  a  considerable  number  in  September  and  October. 
October  24  was  the  last  date  at  which  birds  were  killed.  The 
whole  number  killed  this  year  was  690,  which  was  considerably 
less  than  in  1888  or  1887.  He  found  that  every  cold  wave  in 
the  early  fall  was  followed  by  migratory  birds  flying  against  the 
statue.  Of  the  dead  birds  picked  up  this  year,  60  per  cent, 
belonged  to  one  species,  the  Maryland  yellow-throats.  The 
remaining  40  per  cent,  included  a  great  variety. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Scientific  Committee  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society  on  December  10,  Mr.  Morris  read  a  letter 
addressed  to  the  Director,  Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  by  Mr.  R.  W. 


l82 


NATURE 


{Dec.  26,  1889 


Blunfield  : — "I  see  in  the  August  number  of  the  Kew  Bulletin, 
an  interesting  account  of  the  Icerya  purchasi,  and  its  depreda- 
tions in  South  Africa,  California,  &c.  During  the  past  four 
years  our  gardens  at  Alexandria  have  been  invaded  by  a  coccus, 
which  threatens  now  to  destroy  all  our  trees,  and  is  causing  the 
greatest  alarm  here.  ...  It  first  appeared  about  four  years  ago, 
when  I  noticed  it  in  quantities  on  the  under  side  of  the  leaves  of 
a  banyan  tree,  but  it  has  since  spread  with  extraordinary  rapidity, 
and  one  of  our  most  beautiful  gardens,  full  of  tropical  trees  and 
shrubs,  has  been  almost  destroyed.  A  breeze  sends  the 
cottony  bugs  down  in  showers  in  all  directions.  It  seems  to 
attack  almost  any  plant,  but  the  leaves  of  the  Ficus  ruhiginosa, 
and  one  or  two  other  kinds  of  fig,  seem  too  tough  for  it,  and  it 
will  not  touch  them.  It  seems  almost  hopeless  here  for  a  few 
horticulturists  to  try  to  eradicate  this  formidable  pest,  while 
their  indifferent  neighbours  are  harbouring  hotbeds  of  it,  and 
there  will  have  to  be  some  strong  measures  taken  by  law  to  put 
it  down."  The  insect  in  question  had  been  referred  to  Mr. 
Douglas,  and  was  said  to  be  an  undescribed  species  of  Dacty- 
lopius.  Spraying  with  kerosene  emulsion  was  recommended, 
but  no  remedy  was  likely  to  be  effectual  that  was  not  carried 
out  universally. 

The  new  number  of  the  Journal  of  the  Royal  Horticultural 
Society  contains  a  full  and  interesting  report  of  the  proceedings 
of  the  National  Rose  Conference  held  at  the  gardens  of  the 
Society  at  Chiswick  on  July  2  and  3.  In  the  same  number 
there  are  the  following  papers  :  on  irises,  by  Prof.  Michael 
Foster ;  the  strawberry,  by  Mr.  A.  F.  Barron  ;  strawberries 
for  market,  by  Mr.  G.  Bunyard ;  the  origin  of  the  florist's 
carnation,  by  Mr.  S.  Hibberd  ;  peaches  and  nectarines,  by  Mr. 
T.  F.  Rivers  ;  on  conifers,  by  Mr.  W.  Coleman ;  on  pears,  by 
Mr.  W.  Wildsmith. 

A  German  biography  of  the  late  Dr.  E.  G.  F.  Grisanowski, 
by  Elpis  Melena,  has  just  been  published  (Hanover:  Schmorl 
lind  von  Seefeld).  The  book  ought  to  be  interesting  to  anti- 
vivisectionists,  as  Dr.  Grisanowski  was  an  enthusiastic  advocate 
of  their  ideas,  and  much  attention  is  given  to  the  subject  by  his 
biographer. 

The  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  has  issued  the 
first  and  second  of  a  series  of  illustrated  papers  on  the  North 
American  fauna.  They  are  by  Dr.  C.  Hart  Merriam.  The 
first  is  a  revision  of  the  North  American  pocket  mice,  and 
includes  descriptions  of  twelve  new  species  and  three  new  sub- 
species. The  second  paper  contains  descriptions  of  fourteen 
new  species  and  one  new  genus  of  North  Am  erican  mammals. 

The  sixth  edition  of  Mr.  H.  Bauerman's  "Treatise  on  the 
Metallurgy  of  Iron  "  (London  :  Crosby  Lockwood  and  Son)  has 
been  published.  Mr.  Bauerman  explains  that,  as  the  progress 
in  iron  and  steel  manufacture  during  the  seven  years  that  have 
elapsed  since  the  last  issue  of  the  volume  has  been  mainly  in 
the  direction  of  perfecting  the  appliances  and  working  details  of 
the  great  processes  introduced  between  1858  and  1878,  it  has 
not  been  necessary  to  make  any  very  great  alteration  in  the 
principal  part  of  the  text.  The  additions  required  to  bring  the 
information  up  to  date  have  been  placed  mostly  as  supplemental 
notes  at  the  end.  The  statistical  details  have  been  revised  and 
brought  up  to  the  latest  dates  for  which  returns  are  available. 

In  a  recent  paper  on  zoogeography,  in  Hutnboldt,  Dr.  Lampert 
states  that  a  good  many  wolves  are  still  captured  in  the  east  and 
west  provinces  of  Germany,  e.g.  about  fifty  annually  in  Lorraine. 
In  France,  701  wolves  were  destroyed  in  1887  ;  in  Norway,  only 
15.  It  is  estimated  that  in  Russia  the  yearly  loss  in  domestic 
animals  through  wolves  is  over;i^2,ooo,ooo,  and  the  loss  of  game 
from  the  same  cause,  over  ;^7,ooo,ooo.  The  German  mole 
swarms     apparently,  in  the    neighbourhood   of  Aschersleben, 


where  97>5i9  individuals  were  taken  last  year,  and  rewards 
amounting  to  £()"]  were  paid.  In  great  part  of  Germany,  how- 
ever (Upper  and  Lower  Bavaria,  East  and  West  Prussia),  it  is 
not  met  with.  Mecklenburg  and  Pomerania  are  its  northern 
limits,  at  present.  The  beaver  is  nearly  extinct  in  Germany, 
but  a  new  settlement  of  thirty  individuals  was  recently  discovered 
at  Regenwehrsberg,  not  far  from  Schonebeck,  on  the  Elbe.  A 
recent  catalogue  of  diurnal  birds  of  prey  in  Switzerland  (by 
Drs.  Studer  and  Fatio)  gives  thirty-two  species.  The  disappear- 
ance of  the  golden  vulture  is  here  noteworthy.  Early  in  this 
century  it  w  as  met  with  in  all  parts  of  the  Alpine  chain ;  whereas 
now,  only  a  very  few  individuals  survive  on  the  inaccessible 
heights  of  the  Central  Alps. 

An  interesting  inquiry  into  prehistoric  textiles  has  been  re- 
cently made  by  Herr  Buschan  [Arch,  fiir  Anthrop.)  He  ex- 
amined tissues  with  regard  to  the  raw  material  used,  to  their 
distribution  in  prehistoric  Germany,  to  their  mode  of  production, 
and  to  their  alteration  by  lying  in  the  ground.  With  certain 
chemical  reagents  he  was  able  to  distinguish  the  various  fibres, 
though  much  altered.  The  oldest  tissues  of  Germany  (as  we  now 
know  it)  come  from  the  peat-finds  of  the  northern  bronze 
period.  On  the  other  hand,  some  articles  of  bone  found  in  caves 
of  Bavarian  Franks,  and  evidently  instruments  for  weaving  or 
netting  (bodkins,  knitting  needles,  &c. ),  show  that  already  in  the 
Neolithic  period  textiles  were  made.  The  art  of  felting  probably 
preceded  that  of  weaving.  Herr  Buschan  sums  up  his  results  as 
follows:  (l)  in  the  prehistoric  times  of  Germany,  wool  (mostly 
sheep's)  and  flax  were  made  into  webs,  but  no  hemp  ;  (2)  the 
use  of  wool  preceded  that  of  flax  ;  (3)  the  wool  used  was  always 
dark  ;  (4)  most  of  the  stuffs  were  of  the  nature  of  huckaback 
(none  smooth)  ;  (5)  the  textiles  have,  on  the  whole,  changed 
but  little  in  course  of  time.  The  author  has  some  interesting 
observations  on  the  oldest  kinds  of  loom.  The  pile-builders  on 
the  Pfafiiker,  Niederwyl,  and  Boden  Lakes,  were  busy  weavers  ; 
and  they  knew  how  to  work  flax  fibres  not  only  into  coarse  lace, 
fish  nets,  or  mats,  but  into  such  finer  articles  as  fringes,  coverlets, 
embroidery,  and  hair-nets. 

In  a  recent  Consular  Report  from  British  North  Borneo, 
an  account  is  given  of  the  explorations  for  gold  which  were 
made  in  the  territories  of  the  British  North  Borneo  Company 
last  year.  The  main  obstacle  had  always  been  the  difficulty 
of  ascending  the  river,  which  is  full  of  shallows  and  rapids,  and 
of  forwarding  supplies  of  provisions,  as  the  country  is  totally  un- 
inhabited, and  does  not  afford  supplies  of  any  kind  whatever. 
Striking  into  the  forest  at  a  point  in  Darvel  Bay,  which  was 
judged  to  be  nearest  to  the  desired  district,  Mr.  Skertchly 
crossed  three  sharp  ridges  of  mountains,  and  at  length  struck 
the  higher  Segama,  at  a  place  some  250  miles  inland  from  its 
mouth.  The  track  is  only  31  miles  long,  but  great  difficulty  was 
experienced  in  bringing  up  provisions,  as,  owing  to  the  rocky  and 
mountainous  nature  of  the  ground,  animals  could  not  be  used  for 
transport,  and  everything  had  to  be  carried,  at  considerable  ex- 
pense, on  men's  backs.  Payable  gold  was  found  soon  after  the 
Segama  was  reached,  and  the  higher  the  river  was  ascended  the 
more  there  was,  but  it  was  patchy  and  uncertain,  and,  so  far, 
no  reefs  are  reported,  the  gold  being  almost  entirely  in  the 
river-bed.  It  is  now  certain,  says  the  Consul,  that  payable  gold 
exists,  but  whether  the  extent  of  country  it  is  found  in  is  large 
or  small  has  yet  to  be  ascertained,  while  the  expense  of  convey- 
ing provisions  to  the  gold-fields  will  require  gold  to  be  abundant 
to  make  it  worth  while  working,  unless  an  easier  path  is  found. 
Mr.  Skertchley  was  five  months  and  a  half  in  the  forest  without 
coming  out  once,  and  it  was  mainly  owing  to  his  foresight  in 
arranging  details,  and  his  perseverance  in  carrying  on  the 
expedition,  that  success  was  due. 

The  Annual  Report  of  the  Conservator  of  Forests  at  Singa- 
pore refers  at  great  length  to  the  difficulty  of  dealing  with  a 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


183 


grass  called  lalang  {Imperata  cylindrica,  Cyr. ),  which  is  not 
only  useless,  but  very  injurious,  both  by  reason  of  its  inflamma- 
bility, and  because  it  prevents  any  cultivation  of  the  land  covered 
by  it,  except  with  a  great  deal  of  labour  and  expense.  Wherever 
the  land  is  burnt  or  having  been  under  cultivation  is  suffered  to 
run  to  waste,  it  is  soon  covered  with  lalang,  whatever  may  have 
been  the  previous  vegetation,  except  where  the  soil  is  sandy,  or 
wet,  or  shaded  by  trees.  The  treatment  of  the  soil  by  chemicals, 
such  as  salt,  sulphate  of  iron,  &c.,  apart  from  the  heavy  expense 
connected  with  it,  is  liable  to  have  a  very  injurious  efTect,  even 
for  many  years,  on  the  plants  with  which  the  ground  is  after- 
wards afforested.  The  introduction  of  some  more  actively 
growing  plant  to  combat  and  destroy  the  lalang,  has  been  pro- 
posed, but  this  would  be  to  destroy  one  noxious  weed  by  another 
still  more  noxious.  When  trees  are  tall  enough  to  throw  a 
shade  upon  the  ground,  the  lalang  quickly  disappears,  nor  can 
it  penetrate  even  into  forest  glades  if  but  a  few  trees  bar  its 
progress.  It  is  suggested,  therefore,  that  shade  trees  and 
bushes  should  be  gradually  planted. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.,  December  26  =  4h. 
22m.  20s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)  G.  C.  839      

— 

— 

4  15  32 

+  19    7 

(2)  47  Eridani     

5 

Keddish-yellow. 

4  28  54 

-   825 

(3)  e  Tauri 

4 

Whitish-yellow. 

4  22  12 

+  1856 

(4)  AJ  Eridani      

4 

White. 

4  40    0 

-   3  27 

(5)  R  Leporis     

Var. 

Red. 

4  54  36 

-1456 

(6)  U  Geminorum 

Var. 

Variable. 

7  48  34 

+  2.J  17 

(7)  Neptune,  Dec.  26.. 

— 

-  Greenish. 

4     2  21 

+  1859 

„         Jan.  2  ... 

— 

— 

4     I  44 

+  1857 

Remarks. 

(i)  This  is  described  in  the  General  Catalogue  as  an  exceed- 
ingly interesting  object,  but  very  faint  and  small;  according  to 
Hind  it  is  variable.  I  have  not  been  able  to  find  any  record 
of  its  spectrum.  Continuous  observations  over  a  considerable 
period,  even  with  small  dispersion,  may  throw  light  upon  the 
nature  of  the  changes  which  take  place. 

(2)  A  star  of  Group  II.,  in  which  Duner  records  the  bands 
2-8.  Bands  2  and  3  are  the  strongest,  indicating  that  the  star 
is  well  advanced  in  condensation  towards  Group  III.  As  in 
similar  stars,  dark  metallic  lines  and  lines  of  hydrogen  should 
receive  special  attention,  as  the  stages  at  which  these  make  their 
appearance  have  not  yet  been  determined. 

(3)  Vogel  classes  this  with  stars  of  the  solar  type,  and  the 
usual  differential  observations  are  suggested.  (For  criteria,  see 
p.  20.) 

(4)  According  to  Konkoly,  this  is  a  star  of  Group  IV.  The 
usual  observations  of  the  relative  intensities  of  the  hydrogen  and 
metallic  lines  are  required,  so  that  the  star  maybe  placed  in  line 
with  others  on  the  temperature  curve. 

(5)  This  is  a  variable  star  of  Group  VI.,  but  the  range  of 
variation  is  small  (6-5-8*5).  The  origin  of  variability  in  stars  of 
this  group  has  not  yet  been  satisfactorily  explained,  and  there  is 
no  record  of  the  spectroscopic  changes  which  accompany  the 
changes  in  magnitude.  Further  observations  are  therefore  neces- 
sary, and  it  is  suggested  that  variations  in  the  intensities  of  the 
carbon  flutings  should  be  particularly  noted.  The  star  was  at 
minimum  on  October  23. 

(6)  This  variable  reached  its  maximum  on  December  21,  and, 
as  the  period  is  only  86  days,  observations  may  be  made  from 
maximum  to  minimum,  providing  that  sufficient  optical  power  is 
employed.  The  magnitude  ranges  from  about  9  at  maximum  to 
14  at  minimum.  The  colour  is  stated  to  vary  from  white  at 
maximum  to  reddish  at  minimum.  The  spectrum  has  been 
described  as  continuous  (probably  near  maximum),  but  the 
colour-changes  indicate  that  considerable  variations  in  the 
spectrum  may  also  be  expected. 


(7)  The  spectrum  of  Neptune  was  first  observed  by  Secchi, 
in  1869.  He  noted  that  there  were  three  broad  dark  bands, 
which  were  nebulous  at  the  edges,  and  that  there  was  a  remark- 
able absence  of  red  light.  Vogel  gave  a  more  detailed  account 
of  the  spectrum  in  i?>']2  [Bothkamp  Beobachlungen,  1872,  p.  71). 
The  bands  then  recorded  were  as  follows  ; — 


Wave-lengths. 

597 

5657 

556 

540 

518 

513 

507 

485-8 

477 


Remarks. 
End  of  spectrum. 
End  of  a  wide  dark  band. 
Very  feeble  band. 
Middle  of  the  darkest  band. 
Faint  band. 


Middle  of  a  dark  band. 
Middle  of  a  wide  dark  band. 


The  whole  spectrum  is  very  similar  to  that  of  Uranus.  The 
proximity  of  the  edges  of  some  of  the  dark  bands  to  the  bright 
flutings  of  carbon  and  manganese  led  Prof.  Lockyer  to  suggest 
that  in  Uranus  and  Neptune  we  might  have  to  deal  with  the 
radiation  of  those  substances,  the  dark  bands  being  produced 
by  contrast.  Acting  on  this  suggestion,  I  made  observations  of 
Uranus  with  a  lo-inch  equatorial,  and  afterwards,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  Mr.  Taylor,  with  Mr.  Common's  5-foot  reflector. 
Direct  comparisons  certainly  showed  coincidences  of  the  flutings 
of  carbon  with  luminous  parts  of  the  spectrum.  No  solar  lines 
were  visible,  but  Dr.  Huggins  has  recently  photographed  the 
spectrum,  and  found  nothing  but  solar  lines.  In  a  recent  obser- 
vation of  Neptune,  I  thought  the  bright  flutings  were  more 
evident  than  in  Uranus,  but  I  have  not  had  an  opportunity  of 
making  comparisons.  Further  observations  with  reference  to 
the  existence  of  bright  flutings  are  suggested.      A.  Fowler. 

Variable  Star  in  Cluster  G.C.  3636. — Prof.  Pickering 
writes  (Astr.  JSachr.,  2941)  that  photographs  are  being  taken 
at  Wilson's  Peak,  Southern  California,  with  a  telescope  of  13 
inches  aperture.  Four  photographs,  with  exposures  of  about 
one  hour  each,  were  taken  of  the  above  cluster,  whose  position 
for  1900  is  R.A.  I3h.  37m.  35s.,  Decl.  +  28°  52'-9.  A  star 
about  twenty  seconds  south  of  the  centre  of  the  cluster  was 
found  to  be  much  brighter  on  May  21  and  June  8,  1889,  than 
on  May  31  and  June  17,  1889.  Two  maxima  seem  to  be  indi- 
cated by  the  photographs  separated  by  an  interval,  during  which 
the  star  becomes  comparatively  faint.  Visual  observations  made 
at  Cambridge  Observatory  since  June  appear  to  confirm  this 
variability. 

Changes  in  Lunar  Craters. — A  few  observations  made 
by  Prof.  Thury  {A sir.  Nachr.,  2940),  of  craters  in  the  terraced 
ring  of  Plinius,  indicate  some  striking  changes.  On  November  I, 
Plinius  presented  the  same  aspect  as  that  described  in  1882  by 
MM.  Elger,  Gaudibert,  and  H.  Klein.  Two  craters,  cutting 
one  another,  appear  in  the  middle  of  the  ring,  and  it  is  thought 
that  one  of  these  was  not  visible  in  the  middle  of  September. 
The  central  opening  seems  to  have  been  enlarged,  for  on  Nov- 
ember I  its  diameter  was  estimated  as  at  least  one-third  of  the 
total  crater,  whereas  in  September  the  diameter  of  the  opening 
was  rather  less  than  one-fourth  of  the  total  diameter. 

The  interpretation  put  by  Prof.  Thury  upon  these  appearances 
is  that  in  the  centre  of  Plinius  there  are  two  small  craters,  the 
aspect  of  which  is  modified  by  the  different  amounts  of  snow 
and  ice  about  them.  Emissions  of  heated  gas  and  vapour  would 
affect  considerably  the  state  of  the  lunar  surface,  for  if,  in  the 
beginning  of  an  eruption,  water-vapour  were  predominant,  it 
would  be  immediately  condensed  around  the  crater,  forming  a 
circular  field  of  snow,  so  that  the  apparent  enlargement  of  the 
opening  may  be  due  to  the  melting  of  the  snow  surrounding  it 
by  the  hot  gases  emitted. 


ON  THE  FUTURE  OF  OUR  TECHNICAL 
EDUCATION. 

T  AST  week  we  referred  to  an  address  delivered  by  Sir  Henry 
-'-'  Roscoe  at  Goldsmiths'  Hall  on  Tuesday,  December  17, 
after  the  distribution  of  the  prizes  and  certificates  to  the  students  of 
the  City  and  Guilds  of  London  Institute.  He  spoke  as  follows  :  — 
In  his  admirable  address  delivered  last  year  on  a  similar 
occasion  to  the  present,  Sir  Lyon  Playfair  pointed  out  that 
one  of  the  important  objects  for  which  the  City  Guilds  were 
originally  founded  was  to  develop  and  restore  arts  and  sciences, 


i84 


NATURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


and  act  as  teachers  to  pupils.  In  the  ancient  charters  the  word 
"  Universitas  "  is  used  for  the  modern  designation  of  Guild. 
University  simply  means  a  teaching  corporation,  whether  for 
professional  or  trade  purposes.  In  both  cases  the  teacher  is 
termed  a  "master,"  and  the  pupil  an  "apprentice  "  from 
apprendre,  to  learn.  The  function  of  teaching  by  the  Guilds 
was  gradually  lost.  The  master  became  the  capitalist,  the 
pupil  the  workman.  The  capitalist  does  not  consider  it  part  of 
his  duty — quite  the  contrary — to  teach  the  workman  his  craft, 
and  thus  the  latter,  though  handy  in  one  branch,  never  becomes 
a  craftsman  ;  intelligence  is  wanting,  and  the  industry  suffers 
when  placed  in  competition  with  that  for  which  the  craftsman 
has  been  intelligently  trained. 

But  now  the  Guilds  have  recovered  their  long  lost  ground,  and 
by  a  natural  process  of  evolution  they  are  now  engaged  separately 
and  collectively  in  nobly  carrying  out  the  work  for  which  to  a 
great  extent  they  were  originally  constituted. 

This  new  departure,  or  rather  this  recurrence  to  the  ancient 
type,  we  know  as  technical  education,  and  we  define  it  as 
the  instruction  in  those  arts  and  sciences  which  underlie  the 
practice  of  the  industry  or  trade,  this  instruction  being  given  in 
the  technical  school. 

No  attempt  is  there  made  to  teach  the  trade  or  industry  itself; 
this  is  done,  and  can  only  be  done,  in  the  factory  or  workshop. 
The  school  teaches  how  to  make  the  best  article  ;  the  workshop, 
how  to  make  that  article  cheapest.  The  school  ignores  econo- 
mical production,  whilst  this  is  the  all-important  factor  in  the 
workshop. 

In  my  remarks  this  evening  I  propose  to  consider  how  the 
Guilds  are  now  carrying  on  this  work,  and  to  point  out  the  rela- 
tion which  that  work  bears  to  the  general  question  of  technical 
education  in  the  country,  which  is  now  acknowledged  on  all 
hands  to  be  one  vitally  affecting  our  industrial  supremacy 
amongst  the  nations. 

This  acknowledgment  has  now  received  a  national  recogni- 
tion in  the  passing  of  the  Technical  Instruction  Act  of  last  session 
of  Parliament,  and  thus  has  materially  changed  the  whole  aspect 
of  affairs.  Now  technical  instruction,  which  has  hitherto  been 
sporadic  may  become  systematic,  for  private  effort  has  received 
national  authorization,  and  sooner  or  later  a  complete  scheme  for 
technical  instruction  must  be  forthcoming. 

The  commencement  of  such  a  scheme  has  indeed  already  been 
made  by  the  efforts  of  the  City  Guilds.  Your  Institute,  with  its 
various  branches,  is  the  nucleus  of  such  a  system,  the  importance 
of  which  will  perhaps  only  be  recognized  when  the  history  of  this 
great  educational  movement  comes  to  be  written. 

Starting  from  small  beginnings,  this  work  has  already  attained 
dimensions  which  exceed  the  most  sanguine  expectations  of  its 
founders. 

The  extension  of  your  technological  examinations  has  been 
so  rapid  that  now  no  fewer  than  12,000  students  are  receiving 
instruction  in  500  registered  classes  in  1 13  towns  in  the  Kingdom, 
whilst  6000  students  passed  the  examinations  last  year. 

Of  the  value  of  these  examinations  as  stimulating  a  knowledge 
of  the  rationale  of  practical  processes  there  can  be  no  doubt. 
The  age  of  empiricism  is  past,  rule-of-thumb  is  dead,  and  a  new 
rule,  that  of  scientific  training  or  organized  common-sense,  has 
taken  its  place. 

These  examinations  serve  to  spread  that  scientific  training 
amongst  the  masses  of  our  population,  and  though  they  do  not 
accomplish  all,  they  accomplish  much,  and  the  classes  if  not  all 
first-rate  are  still  vastly  better  than  none  at  all,  and  it  is  satis- 
factory to  note  that  the  employers  of  skilled  labour  are  beginning 
to  find  out  that  the  men  thus  trained  are  of  greater  value  than 
those  who  have  not  had  such  training. 

To  quote  one  example  of  this  among  many,  a  pupil  of  the 
Manchester  Textile  School  gained  at  the  last  examination  the 
silver  medal  in  honours.  He  was  simply  a  "  cotton  operative," 
but  since  that  time  he  has  obtained  the  post  of  manager  of  11 70 
looms  under  a  large  manufacturing  firm,  and  the  determining 
factor  in  his  success  over  a  great  number  of  competitors  was  his 
possession  of  the  silver  medal  first-class  certificate  in  honours  of 
this  Institute. 

But,  after  all,  the  attendance  on  these  classes  is  only  the 
beginning.  A  more  thorough  training  is  needed ;  for  this  the 
Institute  has  founded  the  admirable  model  "Intermediate" 
Technical  School  in  Finsbury,  where  the  course  is  a  real  pre- 
paration for  entering  the  workshop,  and  thus  the  pupils  begin 
industrial  life  under  more  favourable  conditions  than  otherwise 
would  have  been  the  case. 


It  is  much  to  be  hoped  that  the  Institute  may  not  only  be  able  to- 
continue  grants  to  this  most  useful  school,  but  may  see  its  way 
to  plant  other  similar  schools  in  various  parts  of  the  metropolis, 
which  after  all  is  the  greatest  industrial  centre  in  the  Kingdom.. 

But  the  Institute  does  not  stand  alone  in  carrying  on  this  great 
work  of  raising  up  the  true  craftsman,  and  thus  helping  to  keep 
down  that  dangertoour  overcrowded  centres  of  population — the 
great  army  of  unskilled  labour.  The  Guilds  are  separately- 
taking  up  the  question,  and  if  we  rhay  deplore  the  withdrawal 
of  some  from  the  general  scheme,  we  may  well  commend  their 
efforts  in  other  directions.  Witness  the  foundation  by  the  Com- 
pany in  whose  hall  we  are  now  assembled  of  a  great  technical 
and  recreative  institute  at  New  Cross,  which  bids  fair  to  become 
a  centre  of  light  and  leading  in  a  district  dark  and  backward. 

Again,  look  at  what  the  Drapers'  Company  have  done,  and 
are  doing,  at  the  East  End  to  place  the  People's  Palace  on  a 
sound  financial  basis  ;  or  at  the  still  greater  work,  if  such  things 
can  be  compared,  which  the  Clothworkers'  Company  has  done 
in  Yorkshire  and  other  districts  to  place  upon  sure  scientific 
foundations  the  clothworker's  craft. 

Amongst  these  efforts  to  raise  the  industrial  capabilities  of  our 
population  we  must  not  forget  the  scheme  of  the  Charity  Com- 
missioners for  the  application  of  the  property  of  the  City  of 
London  charities.  This  arose  out  of  an  Act  passed  six  years  ago 
at  the  instance  of  my  friend  Mr.  Bryce,  which  directed  that 
the  general  funds  of  these  charities  should  be  applied  to  the  benefit 
of  the  poorer  part  of  the  population. 

No  less  a  sum  than  ^^50,000  per  annum  is  thus  applicable, 
and  the  scheme  lately  put  forward  by  the  Commissioners  for  the 
appropriation  of  this  sum  is,  on  the  whole,  an  admirable  one, 
which  may,  if  wisely  worked,  end  in  the  creation  of  what  may 
be  termed  a  popular  technical  University  for  London.  The 
value  of  such  an  organization  as  is  thus  proposed  will  be  appre- 
ciated by  those  who  have  some  knowledge  of  how  these  things 
are  managed  on  the  Continent,  and  in  how  chaotic  a  state  is  the 
whole  of  London  education  beyond  the  rank  of  the  primary 
school. 

All  these  efforts  are  truly  "  signs  of  the  times  ; "  they  point  to 
the  recognition  by  the  better  endowed  that  not  merely  is  it  their 
duty,  but  their  self-interest,  to  see  that  those  who  have  the  power 
know  how  to  use  it  wisely,  for  it  is  on  this  that  our  national 
stability  and  progress  depend. 

But  it  is  not  enough  simply  to  educate  the  craftsman  ;  his 
employer  needs  it  equally,  if  not  more,  and  this  task  is,  perhaps, 
a  more  difficult  one,  for  as  the  Royal  Commissioners  on  Technical 
Education  report,  ' '  Englishmen  have  yet  to  learn  that  an  ex- 
tended and  systematic  education,  up  to  and  including  original 
research,  is  a  necessary  preliminary  to  the  fullest  development  of 
industry,"  and  this  necessity  your  Council  have  fully  acknow- 
ledged, for,  at  the  inauguration  of  your  Central  Institution,  Lord 
Selborne  said  : — "It  is,  however,  in  the  appreciation  of,  and  in 
the  facilities  for  higher  technical  instruction,  that  we  in  this 
country  are  most  deficient,  and  it  is  to  supply  this  want  that  the 
Central  Institution  has  been  established,  ...  in  which  new  and 
increased  facilities  will  be  afforded  for  the  prosecution  of  original 
research,  having  for  its  object  the  more  thorough  training  of 
the  students  and  the  elucidation  of  the  theory  of  industrial  pro- 
cesses." 

I  do  not  think  that  one  could  more  emphatically  or  more 
clearly  define  the  character  of  the  work  needed  for  the  highest 
instruction  of  the  future  leaders  of  industry,  than  Lord  Selborne 
has  done  in  these  words. 

Now,  the  question  arises.  Is  the  Central  Institution  accom- 
plishing the  ends  thus  clearly  marked  out  ?  It  must  be  admitted 
that  the  supply  of  students  has  hardly  been  equal  to  the  expecta- 
tions formed  by  its  friends  at  the  outset.  But  if  the  work  done 
is  of  a  high  class,  and  if  those  who  come  within  its  walls  are 
there  fitted  for  discharging  the  higher  duties  which  modern  in- 
dustry requires,  we  may  be  satisfied,  for  the  fact  is  that  the 
demand  for  high-class  technical  instruction  has  yet  to  be  created. 
Other  difficulties  beset  this  particular  kind  of  teaching.  One  is 
that,  as  in  many  new  institutions,  the  students  enter  ill- prepared,, 
and  thus  the  instruction  is  forced  into  elementary  lines,  and  the 
time  which  can  be  given  to  higher  work  materially  shortened. 

A  second,  is  that  of  hitting  off  the  happy  inean  between  the 
teaching  of  theory  and  that  of  practice,  and  in  order  that  this 
essential  may  be  accomplished,  it  is  necessary  that  the  teachers 
giving  this  higher  technical  instruction  should  be  men  who  are 
well  known  and  respected  in  their  several  professions,  and  not 
mere  schoolmasters.     In  other  words,   that  they  shall  know  the 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


185 


practice  as  well  as  the  theory  of  the  subjects  they  profess.  Such 
men,  as  far  as  I  am  able  to  judge,  your  Council  has  found  in 
the  present  able  staff  of  professors. 

Then  again,  in  measuring  the  success  of  such  a  College,  it 
must  be  remembered  that  it  is  intended  for  the  elite  of  the 
industrial  world,  and  that,  as  individual  attention  must  be  paid 
to  each  student  in  the  laboratories  and  drawing- offices,  the 
highest  technical  instruction  of  crowds  is  impossible. 

Little  seems  hitherto  to  have  been  done  in  the  way  of  training 
technical  teachers,  and  for  the  obvious  reason  that  the  demand 
for  such  is  very  limited,  whilst  that  for  competent  men  to  enter  a 
more  practical  career  is  great. 

But  whether  the  College  is  training  teachers,  or  those  who  are 
to  carry  out  the  lessons  of  such  teachers  into  practice,  does  not 
matter.  The  object  is  to  train  men  who  can  improve  our  present 
industries,  and  raise  up  new  ones  ;  and  this  may  be  accomplished 
by  either  or  by  both  methods.  Neither  the  one  nor  the  other 
can,  however,  succeed  unless  the  student  of  technology  has  a 
firm  grasp  of  the  scientific  principles  upon  which  his  industry  is 
based. 

It  is  useless,  and  worse,  to  attempt  to  teach  the  applications 
to  pupils  to  whom  the  science  itself  is  an  unknown  quantity. 

Hence  arises  the  question.  How  and  where  can  the  preliminary 
science  training  be  best  given  ?  and  the  answer  to  this  raises 
many  difficult  and  some  delicate  matters. 

First,  however,  let  me  disabuse  your  minds  of  a  notion  which 
may  become  general,  and,  if  so,  harmful — namely,  the  new 
Metropolitan  Polytechnic  Institutions,  as  they  are  called,  can 
ever  do  this  highest  and  most  important  kind  of  education.  Do 
not  let  us  fancy  that  the  establishment  of  these  no  doubt  very 
valuable  institutions  is  the  ultimatum  to  be  aimed  at  in  technical 
education,  or  imagine  that  they  can  attempt  to  do  what  is  done 
in  Germany,  France,  or  Switzerland  by  institutions  bearing  the 
same  name.  I  look  upon  it  as  a  misfortune  that,  by  mere 
chance,  the  name  of  the  old  Institution  in  Regent  Street,  known 
to  fame  as  the  home  of  the  diving-bell  and  of  Prof.  Pepper's 
Ghost,  should  have  been  retained  for  institutions  which  neither 
resemble  it  nor  the  high  schools  which  form  so  marked  a  feature 
in  the  Continental  educational  system.  These  latter  are  in  our 
country  rather  represented  by  the  scientific  departments  of  our 
Universities,  and  by  those  of  the  metropolitan  and  local  Uni- 
versity Colleges,  by  the  Royal  Normal  School  of  Science,  and 
by  your  own  Central  Institution^  We  cannot  too  clearly  under- 
stand that  whatever  success  attends  the  foundation  of  these 
Metropolitan  Polytechnics — and  no  one  more  cordially  wishes 
them  success  than  I  do — the  work  of  the  centres  of  the  highest 
education  still  remains  to  be  done  ;  indeed,  the  greater  the 
popularity  of  the  lower  institutions,  the  greater  the  need  and 
scope  for  the  higher  ones. 

The  rapid  growth  in  London  of  this  idea  of  the  importance 
of  handicraft  and  recreative  education  is  most  remarkable,  and 
for  this  stimulus  we  are  almost  wholly  indebted  to  Mr.  Quintin 
Hogg. 

The  effect  of  this  movement  upon  your  Institute  has  been 
severely  felt,  for  it  is  clear  that,  whereas  seven  or  eight  years  ago 
the  enthusiasm  of  the  City  Companies  was  strongly  in  favour  of 
the  higher  technical  education  in  the  Continental  sense,  it  is  now 
all  for  this  newer  and  more  popular,  I  will  not  say  less  useful, 
form  of  handicraft  and  recreative  instruction. 

It  is  a  fact  which  may  as  well  be  clearly  stated,  that  the  Central 
Institution  cannot  do  all  it  might  do  for  want  of  a  few  thousands, 
and  that  the  scheme  of  technological  examinations  is  crippled  by 
the  loss  of  the  support  of  those  who  at  first  nobly  contributed 
towards  these  objects. 

The  Drapers  prefer  to  support  more  popular  institutions  at  the 
East  End,  and  the  Goldsmiths  do  likewise  in  regard  to  their  own 
institution  at  New  Cross,  so  that  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  in- 
terest formerly  felt  in  the  general  and  collective  work  of  the 
Institute  is  distinctly  on  the  wane. 

Well,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  a  consideration  of  these  patent 
facts  leads  one  to  the  question,  How  are  these  things  to  go  on  ? 
Are  we  never  to  have  ' '  law  and  order  " — about  which  we  have 
heard  enough  in  other  matters — introduced  into  affairs  educa- 
tional ? 

And  in  what  I  am  about  to  say,  let  me  premise  that  I  merely 
express  my  own  individual  opinion  as  an  independent  observer, 
anxious  only  for  the  success  of  the  good  cause  which  we  all  have 
at  heart.  Then  may  I  say  that  I  am  dead  against  a  cut-and- 
dfied  system  of  Governmental  education  such  as  we  see  in  other 
countries  ?  I  am  all  for  stimulating  and  developing  local  effort 
to  local  requirements,  and  it  is  because  I  am  fully  aware  of  the 


dangers  of  centralization,  and  desire  to  promote  adaptability  ta 
local  needs,  that  I  gave  my  hearty  support  to  the  Government 
Technical  Instruction  Bill  as  amended  in  the  House  of  Commons^ 
in  which  the  power  of  the  locality  to  work  out  its  own  educational 
salvation  is  fully  safe-guarded. 

But  holding  these  views  I  see  clearly  that  there  are  things^ 
which  can  only  be  satisfactorily  accomplished  by  a  central 
authority. 

That  our  primary  education  can  only  be  properly  conducted 
on  a  national  basis  has  been  admitted  for  more  than  a  quarter  of 
a  century  ;  so  it  will  be  with  the  higher  or  secondary  education, 
whether  technical,  commercial,  or  professional — we  must  have  a 
system.  As  I  have  said,  the  foundation  of  your  Institute  was 
the  beginning  of  such  a  system  for  technical  instruction  ;  but  has 
it  not  already  outstripped  the  bounds  of  your  control  ?  Can  it 
be  satisfactorily  worked  in  the  future  on  its  present  lines  ? 

Let  us  look  at  the  matter  from  an  independent  point  of  view.  We 
have  now  three  Government  Departments  charged  with  educational 
work — the  Education  Department  for  Elementary  Instruction, 
the  Science  and  Art  Department,  and  the  Charity  Commissioners. 
One  of  the  most  important  steps  which  could  be  taken  to  bring 
these  under  effect  ive  control  is  the  appointment  of  a  Minister 
of  Education,  of  Cabinet  rank,  who  would  be  in  close  touch  with 
every  part  of  our  now  discordant  educational  system.  But  that 
is  not  the  immediate  question  before  us. 

This  refers  more  especially  to  the  desirability  of  consolidating 
the  Science  and  Art  Department.  As  you  know,  this  controls  and 
stimulates,  in  what  I  think  we  may  allow  to  be  a  satisfactory 
manner,  the  teaching  of  elementary  science  and  of  art  through- 
out the  country.  Would  it  not  conduce  to  the  benefit  of  the 
country,  if  the  Guilds'  technological  examinations  were  to  be 
undertaken  by  the  Department,  and  thus  placed  on  a  national 
basis?  Several  of  the  subjects  now  included  in  the  Directory  of 
the  Department,  on  which  grants  are  made,  are  of  a  distinctly 
technical  character,  and  therefore  no  objection  can  be  raised  that 
the  other  subjects  now  under  the  Guilds  Institute  cannot  equally 
well  be  placed  under  the  Department. 

The  benefits  which  would  thus  accrue  are  great  and  palpable,, 
the  two  systems  of  examinations  in  pure  and  in  applied  science 
would  then  work  side  by  side  without  friction  or  overlapping,, 
and  the  extension  of  the  technical  examinations  would  be  easy 
and  certain. 

If  this  were  accomplished,  I  for  one  would  strongly  urge  the 
removal  of  the  system  of  payment  on  individual  results — a 
method  in  all  cases  to  be  deprecated,  but  one  which  is  especially 
unsuited  for  testing  the  value  of  technical  instruction.  This  can 
be  much  more  certainly  effected  by  ascertaining  the  efficiency  of 
the  whole  class,  of  the  teacher,  and  of  his  appliances,  by  in- 
spection or  otherwise. 

If  once  we  get  rid  of  this  system  of  payment  on  individual 
results  in  one  set  of  subjects,  we  may  look  forward  to  its  ultimate 
extinction  in  the  others,  and  no  subject  seems  so  suitable  for 
making  a  beginning  as  that  of  technical  instruction. 

I  would  therefore  suggest  that  the  best  means  of  securing  the 
permanency  and  the  extension  of  the  very  useful  technological 
examinations  which  your  Council — and  all  honour  to  them  for  it — 
have  started,  is  to  request  the  Government  to  take  them  over, 
thereby  rendering  the  Science  and  Art  Department  more  efficient, 
and  enabling  that  Department  to  make  the  improvements  and 
alterations  in  the  system  which  it  undoubtedly  requires. 

May  I  go  one  step  further  in  these  suggestions,  and  ask  if  this 
should  be  done,  is  it  not  a  necessary  corollary  that  the  Central 
Institution  should  likewise  become  a  Government  Normal  School 
for  Applied  Science  ?  There  is  much  to  be  said  in  favour  of  such 
a  proposal. 

The  very  situation,  close  to  the  Royal  Normal  School  of 
Science,  seems  to  forecast  its  ultimate  destiny.  Under  separate 
management,  no  consistent  or  well-arranged  scheme  of  common 
work  is  possible  ;  brought  under  one  direction,  the  essential 
alliance  between  pure  and  applied  science,  as  regards  teaching, 
becomes  easy  of  attainment. 

Students  would  pass  and  re-pass  from  the  one  school  to  the 
other,  obtaining  at  the  one  the  knowledge  of  the  scientific 
principles,  and,  at  the  other,  that  of  their  applications. 

Of  the  national  advantages  of  such  a  fusion  there  can,  I  think, 
be  little  doubt.  England  would  then  be  in  possession  of  an. 
institution  which  might,  for  completeness  and  efficiency,  both 
as  regards  the  personnel  and  the  appliances,  soon  be  made 
second  to  none  on  the  Continent,  and  worthy  of  the  greatest 
industrial  nation  in  the  world. 

Your  Institute  would  thus  set  itself  free  to  extend  its  influence- 


i86 


NATURE 


{Dec.  26,  1889 


in  other  direc'ions,  and  could  then  concentrate  its  efforts  on  what 
is  perhaps,  after  all,  its  most  legitimate  and  most  useful  function 
— that  of  providing  intermediate  technical  schools  on  the  pattern 
of  the  Finsbury  School,  of  which  many  are  required  in  the 
metropolis. 

The  exact  terms  on  which  the  Government  would  be  prepared 
to  take  over  this  part  of  your  work  is  a  subject  on  which,  of 
course,  I  cannot  pretend  to  enter,  but  a  satisfactory  basis  can,  I 
do  not  doubt,  easily  be  found. 

Your  Council  would  then  feel  that  the  great  work  which  they 
have  begun  has  been  handed  over  in  its  full  vigour  to  the  nation, 
and  that  with  the  nation  lies  the  responsibility  of  extending  and 
perfecting  the  system  which  they  have  had  the  honour  and  the 
gratification  of  inaugurating, 

I  am  aware  that  in  making  these  suggestions,  I  have  raised  a 
somewhat  burning  question  about  which  there  may  be  difference 
of  opinion,  and  my  apology  for  this  indiscretion,  if  one  is 
needed,  must  be  the  importance  of  the  subject,  and  the  anxiety 
which  we  all  feel  that  the  technical  education  of  our  country 
shall  be  placed  on  a  firm  and  enduring  national  basis. 

A  FIRST  FORESHADOWING  OF  THE 
PERIODIC  LA  W. 

TT  is  well  known  that  the  Newlands-Mendeleeff  classification 
of  the  elements  was  preceded  by  the  discoveries  of  certain 
numerical  relations  between  the  atomic  weights  of  allied  ele- 
ments, due  to  Dobereiner,  Dumas,  and  others  ;  but  what  has 
been  almost  entirely  ignored  is  the  immense  advance  made  by 
M.  A.  E.  Beguyer,  de  Chancourtois,^  a  French  geologist  of  note. 
Professor  at  the  Ecole  des  Mines,  who  was  the  first  to  publish 
a  list  of  all  the  known  elements  in  the  order  of  their  atomic 
weights. 

M.  de  Chancourtois  embodied  his  results  in  two  memoirs 
presented  to  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences  in  April  1862 
and  March  1863.  These  memoirs  have  never  been  printed  in 
^xtensoj^  but  extracts  from  them,  and  additional  notes  relating 
to  the  subject,  were  published  in  the  Comptes  rendus  for  1862 
(liv.  pp.  757,  840,  and  967  ;  Iv.  p.  600),  1863  (Ivi.  pp.  253 
and  479),  and  1866  (vol.  Ixiii.  p.  24).  The  first  note  bears 
the  date  of  April  7,  1862,  so  that  there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to 
de  Chancourtois's  claim  to  priority  in  this  important  matter.^ 

I  have  in  my  possession  a  thin  quarto  pamphlet,  by  de 
Chancourtois,  entitled  "  Vis  Tellurique  :  Classement  naturel  des 
corps  simples  ou  radicaux,  obtenu  au  moyen  d'un  systeme  de 
classification  helicoidal  et  numerique  "  (Paris,  Mallet-Bachelier,* 
1863),  which  contains  nearly  all  the  extracts  from  the  Comptes 
rendus,  together  with  some  additional  matter.  It  contains,  also, 
what  is  absolutely  essential  to  the  comprehension  of  de  Chan- 
courtois's ideas,  the  graphic  representation  of  his  system,  which 
is  not  to  be  found  in  the  Comptes  rendus. 

I  propose  to  give  here  a  translation  of  the  first  communica- 
tion to  the  Academy,  followed  by  certain  explanatory  comments 
and  brief  extracts  from  the  other  papers  : — 

"Geological  studies  in  the  field  of  research  opened  up  by 
M.  Elie  de  Beaumont  in  his  note  on  volcanic  and  metalli- 
ferous intrusions  {emanations)  have  led  me,  for  the  completion 
of  a  lithological  memoir  on  v^'hich  I  am  now  engaged,  to  a 
natural  classification  of  the  simple  bodies  and  radicles  by  a  table 
in  the  form  of  a  helix,  founded  on  the  use  of  numbers  which  I 
■call  characteristic  numbers  or  numerical  cliaracteristics. 

"  My  numbers,  which  are  immediately  deduced  from  the 
measure  of  the  equivalents  or  other  physical  or  chemical  capacities 
of  the  different  bodies,  are,  in  the  main,  the  proportional  numbers 
^iven  by  the  treatises  on  chemistry,  these  being  reduced  to  half 
in  the  case  of  hydrogen,  niirogen,  fluorine,  chlorine,  bromine, 

I  Wurtz("The  Atomic  Theory,"  p.  170)  and  Berthelot  ("  Les  Origines 
•de  rAlchimie,"  p.  302)  give  a  bare  mention  of  de  Chancourtois's  name. 
Mendeleeflf,  in  his  Faraday  Lecture  (Journ.  Chem.  Soc,  October  1889), 
couples  his  name  with  those  of  Newlands  and  Strecker,  and  shows  greater 
appreciation  of  his  work. 

^  M.  Friedel,  the  eminent  ProfessDr  of  Organic  Chemistry  at  the  Sorbonne, 
has  kindly  procured  for  me  the  information  that  the  original  manuscripts  of 
these  memoirs  are  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  Institut  ;  I  hope  to  be 
able  to  examine  them  at  some  future  period. 

3  Hr.  Newlands'  first  paper,  chiefly  devoted  to  showing  that  the  nume- 
rical differences  between  the  atomic  weights  of  allied  elements  are  approxi- 
mately multiples  of  8  was  publ.shed  on  February  7,  1863  {Chemical  News, 
vol.  vii.  p.  70) ;  his  second  paper,  in  which  he  arranges  the  elements  in  the 
order  of  their  atomic  weights,  was  published  on  July  30,  1864  {Chemical 
News,  vol.  X.  p.  39)  Sej  J.  A.  R.  Newlands  "On  the  Discovery  of  the 
Periodic  Law,"  Ike.  (Spon,  1884). 

4  Now  Gauthier-Villars. 


Iodine,  phosphorus,  arsenic,  lithium,  potassium,  sodium,  and 
silver  ;  in  other  words,  I  either  divide  the  equivalents  of  these 
bodies  by  two  in  the  system  in  which  oxygen  is  taken  as  100, 
or  multiply  by  two  the  equivalents  of  the  other  bodies  in  the 
system  in  which  hydrogen  is  taken  as  unity. 

"  On  a  cylinder  with  a  circular  base,  I  trace  a  helix  which  cuts 
the  generating  lines  at  an  angle  of  45°.  I  take  the  length  of  one 
turn  of  the  helix  as  my  unit  of  length,  and  starting  from  a  fixed 
origin,  I  mark  off  on  the  helix  lengths  corresponding  to  the 
different  characteristic  numbers  of  the  system  in  which  the 
number  for  oxygen  is  taken  as  unity.  The  extremities  of  the 
lines  thits  marked  off  determine  points  on  the  cylinder  which  I 
call  indifferently  characteristic  points  or  geometrical  cliaracters, 
and  which  I  distinguish  by  the  ordinary  symbols  for  the  different 
bodies.  The  same  points  will  evidently  be  obtained  if  we  take 
as  the  unit  of  length  the  ^V  of  ^  turn  of  the  helix,  and  mark  off 
on  the  curve  lengths  corresponding  to  the  numbers  of  the  system 
in  which  hydrogen  is  represented  by  unity. 

"The  series  of  points  thus  determined  constitutes  the  graphic 
representation  of  my  classification,  which  may  easily  be  traced 
on  a  plane  surface  by  supposing  the  stirface  of  the  cylinder  de- 
veloped ;  by  its  aid  I  am  enabled  to  enounce  the  fundamental 
theorem  of  my  system:  The  relations  between  the  properties  of 
different  bodies  are  manifested  by  simple  geotnetrical  relations 
between  tlie  positions  of  their  characteristic  points. 

"  For  instance,  oxygen,  sulphur,  selenium,  tellurium,  bismuth,^ 
fall  approximately  on  the  same  generating  line,  while  magnesium, 
calcium,  iron,  strontium,  uranium,  and  barium,  fall  on  the 
opposite  generating  line.  On  either  side  of  the  first  of  these 
lines  we  find  hydrogen  and  zinc  on  the  one  hand,  bromine  and 
iodine,  copper  and  lead  on  the  other  ;  parallel  to  the  second  line 
we  find  lithium,  sodium,  potassium,  manganese,  &c. 

"  Simple  relations  of  position  on  a  cylindrical  surface  would  be 
obviously  defined  by  means  of  helices,  of  which  the  generating 
lines  are  only  a  particular  case  ;  hence,  as  a  complement  to  the 
first  theorem,  we  may  add  the  following :  Each  helix  drazvn 
through  two  characteristic  points  and  passing  through  several 
other  points  or  only  near  them,  brings  out  relations  of  a  certain 
kind  between  their  p7-operties ;  likenesses  and  differences  being 
manifested  by  a  certain  numerical  order  in  their  succession,  for 
example,  immediate  sequence  or  alte?-nation  at  various  periods. 

"  In  order  to  attain  a  greater  degree  of  accuracy,  it  is  necessary 
to  discuss  the  results  of  different  measurements  with  respect  to 
the  same  body. 

"One  question  is  all-important  in  this  discussion;  it  is  to 
know  if  the  divergencies  which  occur  may  have  causes  other 
than  the  error  of  experiment.  I  reply  to  this  question  in  the 
affirmative. 

"  I  think  that  here,  as  in  all  determinations  of  constants  which 
we  wish  to  compare,  they  must  be  reduced  to  the  same  con- 
ditions. This  idea  seems  to  me  the  indispensable  complement 
to  the  notion  of  an  absolute  characteristic  number.  Once  the 
existence  of  this  absolute  number  or  numerical  characteristic 
guaranteed  by  the  possibility  of  connecting  it  afresh  with  ob- 
served facts,  certain  limits  of  variation  being  allowed  {literally, 
varying  within  certain  limits],  we  promptly  arrive  at  Front's 
law,  which  presents  itself  as  furnishing  a  means  for  reducing 
experimental  observations  to  a  comparable  state  by  a  series  of 
trials,  without  this  state  being  even  a  completely  defined  one, 
but,  on  the  contrary,  in  order  to  be  able  to  define  it.  The 
combination  of  this  principle  with  the  rules  for  alignment  allow 
me  to  give  the  most  striking  form  to  my  invention.  I  am  thus 
led  to  formulate  the  table  of  integral  numbers,  which,  as  I  must 
not  omit  to  mention,  exhibits  under  certain  aspects  the  rSsumS 
of  the  work  of  M.  Dumas  on  this  subject. 

"  In  the  construction  of  this  table  I  have  had  recourse  to  the 
determinations  of  specific  heats,  not  only  as  a  means  of  control, 
but  also  to  find  new  numbers  unattainable  by  the  methods  of 
chemical  investigation.  By  adopting  as  the  constant  product  of 
specific  heat  by  atomic  weight,  the  number  which  corresponds 
both  to  sulphur  and  to  lead,  I  have  deduced  from  the  series  of 
results  given  by  M.  Regnault,  purely  thermic  quotients  or  num- 
bers, which  take  their  places  on  my  alignments  in  the  most  felici- 
tous way.  I  will  only  quote  two  examples  :  firstly,  the  number 
44,  obtained  from  the  specific  heat  of  the  diamond,  which  finds 
its  place  on  the  generating  line  of  the  characteristic,  12,  of  car- 
bon, by  the  side  of  the  characteristic,  43,  which  corresponds  to 
one  of  the  equivalents  generally  accepted  for  silicon  ;  and  another 

'  This  is  probably  a  misprint,   as   bismuth  does   jiot  fall  on   the  same 
generating  line  in  the  table. 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NATURE 


187 


characteristic,  36,  of  silicon  deduced  from  an  equivalent  pro- 
posed by  M.  Regnault,  and  which  is  very  remarkable,  from  its 
coincidence  with  the  characteristic  of  ammonium. 

"  By  the  discussion,  which  has  shown  me  the  advisability  of 
accepting  various  results  hitherto  looked  on  as  scarcely  recon- 
cilable, I  have  been  led  to  conceive  the  possibility  of  reproduc- 
ing the  se7-ics  of  natural  numbers  in  the  series  formed  by  the 
numerical  characteristics  of  the  real  or  supposed  simple  bodies 
supplemented  by  the  characteristics  of  the  compound  radicles 
formed  from  gazolytic  ^  elements,  such  as  cyanogen,  the  ammo- 
niums, &c.,  and  doubtless  also  by  the  compound  radicles  formed 
from  metallic  elements,  of  which  the  alloys  offer  us  an  example. 
In  this  natural  series,  the  bodies  which  are  really  simple,  or  at 
least  irreducible  by  the  ordinary  means  at  our  disposal,  would 
be  represented  by  the  prime  numbers.  It  will  be  at  once  seen 
that  there  are  in  my  table  at  least  twelve  bodies,  which, 
like  sodium  (23),  have  characteristics  which  are  prime  numbers. 
This  is  what  led  me  to  perceive  this  law,  which,  I  believe,  is 
destined,  when  established,  to  form  one  of  the  bases  for  the 
discovery  of  the  law  of  molecular  attraction.  The  predomin- 
ance of  the  law  of  divisibility  by  4  in  the  series  of  my  table, 
a  predominance  which  is  also  to  be  found  in  the  elements  of  the 
theory  of  numbers,  has  confirmed  me  in  the  idea — an  idea  in 
itself  really  simple — that  there  is  a  perfect  agreement  between 
bodies,  the  elements  of  the  material  order,  and  numbers,  the 
elements  of  the  abstract  order  of  things  {elements  de  la  variety 
matirielle,  de  la  variete  abstraite).  This  goal  once  caught  sight 
of,  it  will  seem  natural  that  I  should  have  recourse  to  the  theory 
of  numbers  to  help  me  attain  it.  It  will  seem  not  less  natural 
that  I  should  also  have  recourse  to  higher  geometry ;  for  the 
series  of  relations  it  offers  cannot  fail  to  afford  resources  which 
may  enable  one  to  establish  connections  between  the  different 
numerical  characteristics. 

"  My  helicoidal  system  in  this  way  leads  me  on  towards  abstract 
views  of  an  extremely  general  nature  ;  and  on  the  other  hand  it 
should,  it  seems  to  me,  find  an  application  in  the  natural"^ 
sciences,  as  a  method  of  classification  throughout  their  whole 
domain,  from  the  series  of  simple  bodies  which  forms  the  proto- 
type, to  the  opposite  extreme  of  our  natural  divisions  ;  in  it 
will  be  found,  I  believe,  the  means  of  bringing  into  connection 
simultaneously,  and  by  all  their  characters,  the  different  terms 
of  those  parallel  series,  orders,  families,  genera,  species,  and 
races,  in  each  natural  kingdom,  of  which  men  of  science  have  in 
vain  tried  to  show  the  affiliation.  In  geology,  as  is  evident,  the 
application  is  implicit. 

"Whatever  may  be  the  import  of  these  considerations,  and  to 
return  to  the  principal  object  of  the  present  memoir,  I  think 
that  the  efficacy  of  the  helicoidal  system  will  be  admitted  as  a 
means  towards  hastening  the  advent  of  the  time  when  chemical 
phenomena  shall  be  amenable  to  mathematical  investigations. 

"  My  table,  by  the  distribution  of  bodies  in  simple  or  coupled 
series,  by  its  indication  of  the  existence  of  conjugate  groups,  &c., 
traces  a  plan  for  diverse  categories  of  syntheses  and  analyses 
already  executed  or  to  be  executed  ;  it  draws  up  very  definite 
programmes  for  the  execution  of  several  researches  which  are 
exciting  attention.  Will  not  my  f-eries,  for  instance,  essentially 
chromatic  as  they  are,  be  a  guide  in  researches  on  the  spectrum  ? 
Will  not  the  relations  of  the  different  rays  of  the  spectrum  prove 
to  be  derived  directly  from  the  law  of  numerical  characteristics, 
or  vice  vcrsd  ?  This  idea,  which  occurred  to  me  before  we  were 
taught  the  identification  of  the  lines  in  the  spectrum,  and  the 
admirable  applications  of  this  discovery,  seems  to  me  now  even 
more  than  probable.  Finally,  looking  upon  it  only  as  a  concise 
representation  of  known  facts,  and  reducing  it  to  the  points 
which  offer  no  matter  for  discussion,  the  geometrical  table  of 
numerical  characteristics  affords  a  rapid  method  for  teaching  a 
large  number  of  notions  in  physics,  chemistry,  mineralogy,  and 
geology.  I  hope,  therefore,  that  my  natural  classification  of  the 
simple  bodies  and  radicles  being  capable  of  rendering  manifold 
services,  will  need,  like  every  object  in  habitual  use,  a  name  of 
easy  application  ;  hence,  on  account  of  its  graphic  representation 
and  its  origin,  I  give  it  the  significant  name  oitelluHc  helix." 

It  will  be  well  to  point  out  immediately  that  M.  de  Chan- 
courtois's  system  assigns  to  the  numerical  characteristics  of  the 
elements  a  general  formula  of  the  form  («  -f  l6«'),  where  «'  is 
necessarily  an  integer  ;  '^  and  his  table  thus  brings  out  the  fact 

'  Metalloid. 

^  The  term  includes  physical  science. 

3  u  is  always  represented  in  the  author's  table  as  integral,  but  he  expressly 
states  that  he  looks  on  this  as  by  no  means  necessary.  '"The  construction  of 
the   telluric  helix  rests  on  the  use  of  proportional  numbers  derived   from 


5S 


that  the  differences  between  the  atomic  weights  oi  allied  bodies 
approximate  in  many  cases  to  multiples  of  i6.* 

Thus  we  get  the  parallel  series  of  which  our  author  speaks — 
Li  Na  K 

7    ...     7  -I-  16  =  23    ...     7  +  2  .  16  =  39 
Rb 
7  -1-5  .  16  =  87.2 

S  Se 

16  +  16  =  32  ...  16  -f  4  .  16  =  80  ...  16  -f  7  .  16  =  128.^ 

As  we  glance  at  the  first  two  turns  of  de  Chancourtois's  helix, 
we  ask  ourselves  if  the  discovery  of  Newlands  and^Mendeleeff 
does  not  lie  before  us. 


O 
16 


Mn 

7  +  3-16 


Te 


But  the  discovery  of  the  "octaves"  or  "periods"  cannot  be 
ascribed  to  our  author,  although  it  seems  almost  impossible  that 
chemists  should  not  have  perceived  their  existence  on  looking  at 
his  table. 

experiment.  It  would  remain  valid  with  fractional  numbers,  and  often  the 
hel.coidal  alignments  would  be  even  more  easily  applicable  to  these  than  to 
integers"  (Coiitptes  rendus,  vol.  liv.  p.  842). 

'  This  fact,  now  familiar,  has  again  been  noticed  by  your  correspondent, 
Mr.  A.  M.  Stapley,  in  the  issue  of  November  21,  1889. 

*  The  atomic  weight  of  rubidium  should  be  85.  ^A'e  may  notice  that  the 
author  gives  as  probable  also  Cs  =  135  =  7  f  8  .  16,  which  is  thus  placed  on 
the  same  generating  line. 

3  Certainly  too  high  a  value;  according  to  Brauner,  the  exact  atomic 
weight  of  tellurium  remains  to  be  determined. 


i88 


NA  TURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


Three  important  points,  however,  do  exist  in  common 
between  de  Chancourtois's  system  and  that  of  Mendeleeff:  — 

Firstly,  all  the  known  elements  are  arranged  in  the  order  of 
their  combining  weights. 

Secondly,  the  combining  weights  chosen  as  best  suited  to 
bring  out  clearly  the  numerical  relations  existing  between  them 
are  those  adopted  by  Cannizzaro  in  1858,  a  striking  fact  when 
we  recollect  that  de  Chan'courtois  wrote  only  in  1862,  at  a  date 
long  before  these  numbers  had  gained  anything  like  general 
acceptance. 

Lastly,  an  attempt  is  made  to  show  that  simple  numerical 
relations  exist,  not  only  between  the  combining  weights,  but 
between  all  the  measurable  properties  {toiites  les  capacitcs 
physiques  et  chimiques')  of  allied  elements. 

The  reasons  for  the  neglect  of  de  Chancourtois's  researches 
and  the  oblivion  into  which  they  have  fallen  are  not  far  to  seek. 
His  style  was  heavy  and  at  times  obscure,  and,  moreover,  his 
ideas  were  presented  in  a  way  most  unattractive  to  chemists. 

A  geologist  by  profession,  de  Chancourtois  had  been  power- 
fully impressed  by  the  facts  of  isomorphism  in  the  case  of  the 
feldspars  and  pyroxenes,  which  form  such  important  constituents 
of  the  volcanic  rocks  he  was  studying  ;  and  he  was  thus  led  to 
seek  for  a  system  of  classification  which  should  bring  out  some 
simple  relationship  between  the  elements  they  contained. 

To  quote  from  his  paper  {Comptes  rendus,  vol.  liv.  p.  969)  : 
"The  parallelism  of  the  groups  of  manganese  (7  +  3  .  16) 
and  iron  (8  +  3  .  16),  of  potassium  (7  +  2  .  16)  and  calcium 
(8  +  2  .  16),  of  sodium  (7  +  16)  and  magnesium  (8  +  16),  is  the 
origin  of  my  system  "  ;  and  again,  suggesting  the  expediency  of 
adopting  55  (=  7  +  3  .  16)  as  a  characteristic  for  aluminium, 
which  would  bring  the  element  on  the  sodium  and  potassium 
generating  line,  "this  would  render  perfect  the  parallelism 
between  the  elements  of  the  feldspars  and  the  pyroxenes,  the 
starting-point  of  my  system  "  {Comptes  rendus,  Ivi.  p.  1479)- 

Thus  the  correct  idea  of  seeking  for  a  relationship  between 
the  combining  weights  of  isomorphous  elements  was  marred 
by  a  somewhat  imperfect  comprehension  of  the  facts  of 
isomorphism.  No  chemist  would  certainly  have  tried  to  show 
any  close  relationship  between  aluminium  on  the  one  hand  and 
the  group  of  the  alkalies  on  the  other,  notwithstanding  their 
union  in  the  feldspars  and  pyroxenes  ;  and  a  suggestion  of  this 
kind  served  to  cast  discredit  on  de  Chancourtois's  really  important 
views. 

Notwithstanding  his  frequently  eccentric  ideas,  de  Chancour- 
tois had  the  merit,  so  rare  in  an  inventor  of  this  stamp,  of  not 
considering  his  system  as  final.  We  cannot  do  better  than  let 
him  speak  for  himself ;  and  quote  the  conclusion  of  his  last  paper 
on  the  subject  (Comptes  rendus,  Ivi.  p.  481)  : — "  In  presence 
of  the  rapid  increase  in  the  list  of  elements  which  engage  the 
attention  of  chemists  and  physicists,  it  has  become  urgent  to 
unite  in  one  synthesis  all  the  notions  of  chemical  and  physical 
capacities,  of  which  the  exposition  would  otherwise  become  an 
impossible  task. 

"  It  is,  therefore,  perhaps  not  unnecessary  to  recall  the  ideas  of 
Pythagoras,  or  what  I  may  better  term  the  Biblical  truth  which 
dominates  all  the  sciences,  and  of  which  I  propose  to  make 
practical  use  by  the  following  concrete  example,^  the  first  general 
conclusion  of  my  essay  : — 

"The  properties  of   bodies  are   the  properties  of 

NUMBERS. 

"It  is  easily  perceived,  that  a  helicoidal  system  of  some  kind 
or  another,  which  is  necessarily  a  graphic  table  of  divisibility, 
•offers  the  most  convenient  means  for  rendering  manifest  the 
relations  between  the  two  orders  of  ideas.  It  is  evident,  also, 
that  the  particular  system  which  I  have  adopted  brings  into 
relief  the  relations  of  the  most  important  and  usual  of  the  proper- 
ties of  matter,  because  the  case  of  divisibility  by  4,  which  is  the 
basis  of  my  plan,  is  the  first  which  presents  itself  in  arithmetical 
speculation  after  the  case  of  divisibility  by  2,  to  which  there 
•corresponds  directly,  as  one  perceives  by  a  first  glance  at  my 
table,  the  existence  of  the  natural  couples  of  elements,  with 
consecutive  odd  and  even  characteristics. 

"  I  hope,  therefore,  that  the  telluric  helix  will  offer,  until  it 
is  replaced  by  some  more  perfect  invention,  a  practical  frame- 
work, a  convenient  scale,  on  which  to  set  down  and  compare  all 
measurements  of  capacities,  whatever  the  point  of  view  which 
may  be  taken,  whatever  elasticity  or  variation,  whatever  inter- 
pretation may  be  given  to  the  nuinerical  characteristics,  by  which 
these  capacities  must  always  be  represented. 

■*  The  French  is  vulgarisation,  WicraWy  j>oJ>Hlarixatitn. 


"  The  development  in  a  plane  of  the  cylinder  ruled 
into  squares,  with  the  circumference  at  the  base  divided  into 
16  equal  parts,  seems  to  me,  in  a  word,  to  be  a  stave  on 
which  men  of  science,  after  the  fashion  of  musicians,  will  note 
down  the  results  of  their  experimental  or  speculative  studies, 
either  to  co-ordinate  their  work,  or  to  give  a  summary  of  it  in 
the  most  concise  and  clear  form  to  their  colleagues  and  the 
public. " 

Lothar  Meyer  has  noted  down  his  classification  in  the  form  of 
a  helix, '^  and  Dr.  Johnstone  Stoney,  F.R.S.,  has  shown  that  the 
numerical  values  of  the  atomic  weights  may  be  expressed  geo- 
metrically as  functions  of  a  series  of  integral  numbers  by  points 
all  lying  approximately  on  a  logarithmic  spiral. 

But  no  simple  mathematical  formula  has  so  far  been  discovered 
to  express  the  relationships  of  the  atomic  weights  accurately — 
i.e.  within  the  limits  of  experimental  error,  and  de  Chancourtois's 
predictions  still  remain  but  incompletely  fulfilled. 

I  need  not  comment  further  on  the  remarkable  breadth  and 
originality  of  our  author's  views,  taken  as  a  whole.  Strange  to 
say,  it  was  only  a  year  or  two  before  his  death  that  he  heard, 
through  a  colleague,  of  the  immense  development  they  had 
undergone  ;  nor  did  he  ever  set  up  any  claims  to  priority.  But 
when  we  speak  of  the  greatest  generalization  of  modern  chemistry, 
and  recall  the  names  of  Newlands  and  Mendeleeff,  it  is  only  just 
that  we  should  no  longer  forget  their  distinguished  precursor, 
de  Chancourtois.  P.  J.  Hartog. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  [ournal  of  Science,  December. — The  temperature 
of  the  moon,  by  S.  P.  Langley,  with  the  assistance  of 
F.  W.  Bery.  With  this  memoir  the  authors  complete  the 
researches  begun  at  the  Allegheny  Observatory  in  1883  and 
continued  during  the  next  four  years.  The  main  outcome  is 
that  the  mean  temperature  of  the  sunlit  lunar  surface  is  much 
lower  than  has  been  supposed,  most  probably  not  being  greatly 
above  0°  C. — The  Lower  Cretaceous  of  the  South- West,  and  its 
relation  to  the  underlying  and  overlying  formations,  by  Charles 
A.  White.  The  chalk  formations  constituting  the  so-called 
"  Texas  Section  "  are  here  referred  to  two  natural  divisions, 
which  may  be  designated  the  Upper  and  Lower  Cretaceous 
respectively,  although  not  necessarily  the  exact  equivalents  of 
the  corresponding  European  strata.  Their  fossil  contents  show 
that  each  represents  an  unbroken  portion  of  Cretaceous  time, 
while  the  palaeontological  contrast  between  the  two  indicates 
that  there  is  a  time  hiatus  between  them.  But  this  hiatus  is  no 
greater  than  exhibited  in  others  of  the  mountain  uplifts  in  the 
same  region,  and  not  so  great  as  it  is  in  some  cases. — On  the 
hinge  of  Pelecypods  and  its  development,  with  an  attempt 
toward  a  better  subdivision  of  the  group,  by  William  H.  Dall. 
Three  fundamental  types  of  hinges  are  described,  and  on  these 
is  based  a  new  classification  comprising  the  three  orders  of 
Anomalodesmacea  with  five  sub-orders,  Prionodesmacea  with 
eight  sub-orders,  and  Teleodesmacea  with  eleven  or  more  sub- 
orders.— The  magnetism  of  nickel  and  tungsten  alloys,  by 
John  Trowbridge  and  Samuel  Sheldon.  The  question  is  here 
discussed  whether  nickel  and  timgsten  alloys  magnetized  to 
saturation  increase  in  specific  magnetism  as  different  kinds  of 
steel  alloyed  in  small  proportions  with  tungsten  or  wolfram  are 
known  to  do.  The  tabulated  results  show  that  tungsten  greatly 
increases  the  magnetic  moment  of  nickel,  if  the  alloy  be  forged 
and  rolled,  but  has  small  influence  if  simply  cast ;  nor  do  changes 
in  the  amount  of  tungsten  appear  to  cause  corresponding  changes 
in  the  magnetic  properties  of  the  alloy. — Note  on  the  measure- 
ment of  the  internal  resistance  of  batteries,  by  B.  O.  Peirce 
and  R.  W.  Willson.  The  authors'  researches  show  that  the 
value  of  the  resistance  of  a  cell  obtained  by  the  use  of  alternate 
currents  is  always  smaller  than  that  obtained  by  other  methods, 
but  the  application  of  the  method  of  alternate  currents  "  fatigues  " 
all  but  the  so-called  constant  cells.  In  most  cases  there  is  a 
tendency  in  the  internal  resistance  to  decrease  as  the  strength  of 
the  current  which  the  cell  is  delivering  increases. — Papers  were 
contributed  by  Robert  T.  Hill  and  R.  A.  F.  Penrose,  Jun.,  on 
the  relation  of  the  uppermost  Cretaceous  beds  of  the  Eastern 
and  Southern  United  States,  and  on  the  Tertiary  Cretaceous 
parting    of    Arkansas    and    Texas  ;   by    W.    E.    Hidden   and 

^  "Die  modernen  Theorien  der  Chemie,"  iv.  Auflage,  p.   137;  English 
translation,  p.  118. 


Dec.  26,  1889] 


NA  TURE 


189 


J.  B.  Mackintosh,  on  sundry  yttria  and  thoria  minerals  from 
Llano  County,  Texas  ;  and  by  O.  C.  Marsh,  on  the  skull  of  the 
gigantic  Ceratopsidse. 

The  American  Meteorological Joiti-nal  for  November  contains 
the  first  part  of  an  article  on  "Theories  of  Storms,  based  on 
Redfield's  Laws,"  by  M.  H.  Faye,  member  of  the  French 
Institute.  In  support  of  his  "whirlpool  "  theory,  he  urges  that 
meteorologists  have  constructed  a  theory  of  storms  on  the  basis 
of  a  single  fact,  viz.  that  storms  which  burst  over  a  region  cause 
a  fall  of  the  barometer  there,  and  he  points  out  that  starting  with 
the  idea  of  an  ascending  column,  exercising  an  aspiration  below, 
a  thing  is  invariably  produced  which  neither  turns  nor  progresses. 
Mr.  A.  L.  Rotch  contributes  the  first  part  of  an  article  on 
"Meteorology  at  the  Paris  Exposition,"  dealing  with  the 
instruments  exhibited  in  the  French  Section.  Among  the  most 
interesting  are  (i)  the  actinometers  exhibited  by  the  Montsouris 
Observatory  ;  (2)  the  Richard  actinometer,  which  has  bright  and 
black  bulbs  in  vacuo,  connected  with  two  thermometers,  by 
which  curves  are  traced  giving  at  each  instant  the  radiation  from 
the  sky,  both  at  night  and  day ;  (3)  the  Richard  anemographs, 
which  have,  instead  of  the  usual  Robinson  cups,  a  fan  wheel 
formed  of  six  blades  inclined  at  45°,  and  fastened  to  a  very  light 
axis,  one  revolution  of  the  wheel  corresponding  to  one  metre  of 
wind.  Parrigou- Lagrange's  anemometer  (Nature,  vol.  xxxvii.  p. 
18),  giving  the  vertical  component  of  the  wind,  was  also  exhibited. 
M.  Baudin  showed  some  very  fine  standard  thermometers,  and 
Mr,  Rotch  describes  various  other  instruments,  such  as  hygro- 
meters, aneroids,  &c.  Dr.  F.  Waldo  continues  his  discussion  of 
the  "Distribution  of  Average  Wind- velocities  in  the  United 
States."  The  present  article  deals  with  the  comparison  of 
average  wind-velocities  with  other  elements,  e.g.  with  barometric 
minima.  Lieutenant  Finley  contributes  State  tornado  charts 
for  Arkansas,  North  Carolina,  and  Dakota. 

The  numbers  of  the  Journal  of  Botany  for  November  and 
December  are  chiefly  occupied  with  articles  of  special  interest  to 
students  of  British  botany.  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer  gives  a  very 
interesting  biography  of  the  late  Mr.  John  Ball,  F.R.S.,  first 
President  of  the  Alpine  Club,  Under-Secretary  of  State  for  the 
Colonies  under  Lord  Palmerston,  an  ardent  explorer  in  all  the 
four  quarters  of  the  globe,  and  a  botanist  of  wide  and  varied 
knowledge.  In  the  December  number  is  a  remarkable  article 
on  the  disappearance  of  British  --plants,  mainly  through  the 
depredations  of  collectors. 

Rendiconti  del  Reale  Istituto  Lombardo,  November  i. — Phy- 
sical researches  on  the  lakes  of  North  Italy,  by  Prof.  F.  A.  Forel. 
During  a  visit  to  this  lacustrine  region,  last  autumn,  the  author 
studied  the  waters  of  Lakes  Maggiore,  Como,  Piano,  and 
Lugano,  with  a  view  to  determining  their  temperature,  colour, 
and  transparency,  as  compared  with  the  analogous  properties  of 
Lakes  Lucerne  and  Geneva.  The  results,  which  are  here  tabu- 
lated, show  that  the  temperature  is  generally  higher,  and  the 
colour  deeper  in  the  Italian  than  in  the  Swiss  lakes,  while  the 
transparency  is  about  the  same,  except  in  the  shallow  Lake 
Piano,  where  the  temperature  is  lower  and  the  transparency  less 
than  in  any  of  these  basins. — Meteorological  observations  made 
at  the  Brera  Observatory  during  the  month  of  September. 
These  observations  include  records  of  temperature,  barometric 
pressure,  atmospheric  moisture,  rainfall,  direction  of  the  winds, 
and  cloudiness. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  December  12. — "The  Relation  of  Physio- 
logical Action  to  Atomic  Weight."  By  Miss  E.  J.  Johnston, 
University  College,  Dundee,  and  Thos.  Carnelley,  Professor  of 
Chemistry  in  the  University  of  Aberdeen.  Communicated  by 
Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  F.R.S. 

A.  As  deduced  from  the  Character  of  the  Elements  occurring 
naturally  in  Living  Organisms. — It  is  shown  {a)  that  life  is 
associated  with  a  low  atomic  weight,  so  that  elements  with  an 
atomic  weight  of  40  and  under  are  required  by  the  living 
organism,  whereas  those  of  an  atomic  weight  greater  than  40 
are  more  or  less  inimical  to  life  (compare  bestini,  Gazz.  Chim. 
Ital.,  vol.  15,  p.  107).  (b)  That  the  eight  elements  which  enter 
most  largely  into  the  composition  of  the  earth's  crust,  and  which, 
therefore,  are  the  most  easily  accessible  to  the  living  organism. 


are  all  included,  with  the  exception  of  aluminium,  in  the  fourteen 
elements  which  are  required  by  the  living  organism. 

A  consideration  of  the  exceptions  (viz.  Li,  Be,  B,  Al,  and  Fe) 
to  the  first  rule  and  of  all  the  known  facts  bearing  on  the 
question  leads  to  the  conclusion  that,  "  The  degree  of  necessity 
of  ati  element  to  the  living  organism  is  a  fu7tction  of,  first,  its 
at077iic  weight,  and,  second,  its  accessibility  to  the  organism." 
An  element  may  be  inaccessible  to  living  organisms  either  because 
it  is  rare  {e.g.  Li  and  Be)  ;  or  because,  though  moderately 
common,  it  has  a  very  limited  distribution  {e.g.  B) ;  or  because, 
though  plentiful  and  widely  distributed,  it  does  not  occur  in 
nature  in  a  form  in  which  it  can  be  assimilated  (1?.^.  Al,  on 
account  of  the  insolubility  of  its  native  compounds). 

That  elements  which  are  necessary  to  life  must  be  readily 
accessible  is  self-evident,  but  that  living  organisms  should  require 
elements  with  low  atomic  weights,  while  elements  with  high 
atomic  weights  are  inimical  to  life,  is  not  so  evident.  This, 
however,  may  be  due,  in  part  at  least,  to  the  fact  that  the 
elements  with  low  atomic  weights  are  on  the  whole  the  most 
common  elements  (as  shown  by  Gladstone,  Phil.  Mag.  [5],  vol. 
4>  P-  379  ;  compare  also  MendeljefiT,  Zeit.  f.  Chem.  vol.  5,  1869, 
p.  405),  and  therefore  the  most  accessible,  so  that  fro??i  the  first' 
the  elements  ■iililized  in  vital  processes  have  been  those  zuhich  have 
been  the  most  accessible,  and  therefore  those  with  the  lozvest  ato?nic 
weights. 

B.  As  deduced  from  the  Toxic  Action  of  Compounds  adminis- 
tered artificially. — In  view  of  the  somewhat  discordant  results 
obtained  by  previous  observers  as  to  the  relation  between  atomic 
weight  and  physiological  action,  the  authors  have  reinvestigated 
the  subject  as  carefully  as  possible.  Their  experiments  have 
been  made  partly  with  fish  (sticklebacks)  and  partly  with  aerial 
micro-organisms,  the  salt  being  administered  by  solution  in  the 
medium  (water  or  Koch's  jelly)  in  which  the  organism  lived, 
the  following  conclusions  are  drawn  from  the  results  of  about 
800  experiments  which  the  authors  have  made  during  the  two 
years  they  have  worked  on  this  subject  : — 

1.  With  corresponding  compotmds  of  elements  belonging  to  the 
same  sub-group,  the  toxic  action^  alters  regularly  {\.q.  increases 
or  diminishes')  with  the  ato?nic  weight. 

2.  In  ahnost  all  cases  this  alteration  takes  place  in  such  a  way 
that  the  toxic  power  increases  zuith  the  atomic  iveight.  (This  is 
analogous  to  increase  in  toxic  action  in  homologous  series  of 
carbon  compounds.) 

3.  Elements  belonging  to  odd  series  (Mendeljeff 's  classification) 
are  much  more  toxic  than  the  corresponding  elements  of  even 
series. 

4.  Other  things  being  the  same,  the  greater  the  ease  of  reduci- 
bility  of  an  element  from  a  state  of  combination  to  the  free  state 
the  greater  its  toxic  action.  (Applicable  to  compounds  of  odd  as 
compared  with  those  of  elements  of  even  series,  and  also  to  com- 
pounds of  the  elements  of  odd  series  belonging  to  the  same  group 
when  compared  with  one  another.) 

5.  Other  things  being  the  same  and  the  compounds  comparable ^ 
the  greater  the  heat  of  formation  of  a  compound  from  its  elements 
the  smaller  is  its  toxic  power  ;  or,  in  other  words,  the  greater  the 
stability  of  a  compound  the  smaller  its  toxic  power.  (Applicable 
to  elements  belonging  to  odd  series  ;  data  for  those  belonging  to 
even  series  are  wanting  or  are  too  incomplete.) 

There  is  a  close  connection  between  rules  3,  4,  and  5. 

6.  Lithium  forms  a  very  marked  exception  to  all  the  above 
rules,  for  notwithstanding  its  very  low  atomic  weight,  its  difficult 
reducibility  to  the  free  state,  the  fact  that  it  belongs  to  an  even 
series,  and  the  great  stability  of  its  compounds,  as  indicated  by 
their  relatively  great  heat  of  formation,  its  toxic  power  is,  never- 
theless comparatively  very  great.  This  exceptional  character  of 
lithium,  however,  is  not  limited  to  its  physiological  action  only, 
but  applies  likewise  to  many  of  its  purely  chemical  and  physical 
properties.  So  much  so,  indeed,  is  this  the  case  that  its 
exceptional  physiological  character  might  have  been  foreseen. 

7.  The.  toxic  action  of  a  series  of  comparable  salts  runs  parallel 
zvith  the  solubility  in  such  a  way  that  as  the  solubility  increases 
the  toxic  action  either  increases  likeivise  or  else  diminishes. 

8.  When  the  quantity  of  salt  present  in  Koch's  felly  is  less 
than  the  7ninimum  dose  required  to  prevent  the  developjnent  of 
micro-organisms,  the  number  of  colonies  zuhich  develops  increases 
as  the  amount  of  salt  diminishes,  btit  as  a  rule  much  more 
rapidly. 

'  As  represented  in  terms  of  either  the  mhiimum  to.\ic  weight  of  metal  or 
cf  the  minimum  molecular  toxic  dose.  The  minimum  molecular  toxic  dose  = 
minimum  toxic  weight  of  salt  -^  moleculav  weiu'ht  of  the  salt. 


IQO 


NATURE 


[Dec.  26,  1889 


9.  When  Koch's  jelly  has  been  previously  neutralized  with 
sodium  carbonate  the  minimum  quantity  of  metallic  salt  required 
to  prevent  the  development  of  aerial  micro-organisms  is  scarcely 
altered  in  the  case  of  KCl,  NaCl,  MgCIg,  and  HgCl2,  but  is 
slightly  greater  in  that  of  CaCI.,,  and  much  less  in  the  case  of 
KBr,  KT,  NaBr,  Nal,  ZnCl.j,  andCdClg,  than  when  the  jelly  has 
not  been  neutralized. 

10.  Mercuric  iodide,  notwithstanding  its  comparative  insolu- 
bility, has  an  exceptioiially  high  antiseptic  poiuer,  which  is  i^ 
times  as  great  as  that  of  mercuric  chloride  per  weight  of  salt, 
or  2\  times  a^  great  per  weight  of  metal,  or  3  times  as  great 
per  minimum  molecular  toxic  dose. 

Geological  Society,   November  20. — Mr.  W.  T.  Blanford, 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  announced  that 
a  series  of  specimens  from  the  line  and  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
Main   Reef,   east    and  west   of   Johannesburg,   Witwatersrand 
Gold  Fields,  had  been  presented  to  the  Museum  by  Dr.  H.  Exton, 
a.  id   a  letter   from   that  gentleman  in  explanation  of  them  was 
read.     In  this  Dr.  Exton  stated  that  all  but  one  of  the  mines 
represented  were  on  the  main  reef  of  the  district,  which  has  a 
general  direction  east  and  west,  its  dip  varying  generally  from 
45°  to  80°.     South  of  the  main  reef,  and  parallel  to  it  at  a  distance 
of  15-20  feet,    is  a  narrow   reef  known  to  the  miners  as   the 
^' south  leader,"  and  generally  much  richer  than  the  main  reef. 
The  gold-bearing  deposits  consist  of  conglomerates,  specimens 
of  which,  and  of  a  purplish-red  rock  which  forms  a  jagged  ridge 
at  some  distance  north  of  and  parallel  to  the  so-called  reef,  were 
contained    in    the    collection.     The    President   considered   the 
occurrence  of  the  gold  in  large  quantities  in  such  a  conglomerate 
was  a  remarkable  and  interesting  case.     The  rock  was  an  ancient- 
looking  one,  and  the  country  appeared  to  have  undergone  much 
disturbance.     Dr.  Hinde  remarked  that  in  Nova  Scotia  beds  of 
■conglomerate    of   supposed   Carboniferous    age   were  formerly 
worked  for  gold,  but  the  yield  had  not  been  very  great. — The 
following  communications  were  read  : — On  the  occurrence  of  the 
striped    hyaena    in    the   Tertiary   of  the    Val    d'Arno,    by    R. 
Lydekker. — The  catastrophe  of  Kantzorik,  Armenia,  by  Mons. 
F.   M.    Corpi  ;  communicated  by  W.    H.    Hudleston,   F.R.S. 
Secretary.     The  village   is  60  km.  from  Erzeroum,   and   1600 
metres  above  sea-level.     Subterranean  noises  and  the  failure  of 
the    springs   had   given   warning,    and   on   August   2  last  part 
of   the  "eastern  mountain"  burst  open,  when  the  village,  with 
136  of  its   inhabitants,    was  buried  in   a   muddy  mass.     The 
author  described  the  district  as  formed  of  Triassic,   Jurassic, 
and  Cretaceous  strata,   subsequently  broken   up   and    torn   by 
granitic,  trachytic,  and  basaltic  rocks,  which  overlie  the  Second- 
ary rocks,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  dislocation.     The  flow 
was  found  to  have  a  length  from  east  to  west  of  7-8  km,,  with 
a  width  ranging  from  100  to  300  metres,  and  the  contents  were 
estimated  at  50,000,000  cubic  metres.     It  appeared  as  a  mass  of 
blue-grey   marly  mud,   which,   after  the  escape    of  the  gases, 
solidified  at  the  top  ;  the  inequalities  projected  to  the  extent  of 
10  metres.     The  site  of  the  village  was  marked  by  an  elevation 
of  the  muddy  mass,  some  of  the  debris  of  the  houses  having  been 
carried  forward.     The  lower  part  of  the  flow  was  still  in  a  state 
of  motion,  and  carried  forward  balls  of  marly  matter.     It  was 
•difficult  to  approach  the  source  of  this  flow  on  account  of  the 
<;revasses  in  the  side  of  the  mountain.     An  enormous  breach 
served  as  the  orifice  for  the  issue  of  the  mud,  which  emitted,  it 
was  said,  a  strong  odour.     The  violent  projection  of  this  marly 
liquid  and    "incandescent"  (?)  mass   had  carried  away  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  the  flanks  of  the  mountain,   whose  debris 
might  be  recognized  on  the  surface  of  the  flow  by  the  difference 
of  colour.     Great  falls  were  still  taking  place,  throwing  up  a 
tine  powder  which  rose  into  the  air  like  bands  of  smoke.     There 
were    also    fissures   and    depressions    of    the  ground    at    other 
localities  in  the  neighbourhood.     The  President,  in  commenting 
on  the  remarkable  nature  of  the  phenomenon,  said  it  was  not  a 
•volcanc    eruption,    but   more   of   the    nature   of   a    mud-flow 
produced  by  a  big  landslip — possibly  connected  with  the  stop- 
page of  the  springs.     Still  it  was  on  a  very  large  scale,   though 
■clearly  the  effect  of  water  and  not  of  fire.     Dr.  Evans  agreed 
with  the  President.     It  was  difficult  to  reconcile  the  alleged 
incandescence  with  the  other  phenomena.     Infiltration  of  water 
probably  had  something  to  do  with  the  outburst.     It  was  not 
■even  a  mud  volcano.     The  falling  in  of  the  mountain,  he  thought, 
might  have  been  due  to  soft  beds  covered  by  harder  material 
having  oozed  out.     It  would  be  interesting  to  know  if  there  had 
been  an  increased  rainfall  prior  to  the  occurrence.     There  was 
■nothing  of  a  truly  volcanic  nature  mentioned  in  the  paper.     He 


should  like  to  have  further  information  about  the  incandes- 
cence. Mr.  Dallas  (the  translator  of  the  paper)  said  that  the 
"  redness  "  was  reported  by  the  people  to  the  author.  Rev. 
Edwin  Hill  thought  that  the  mud-balls  could  in  no  way  be 
explained  by  igneous  agency.  The  photographs  gave  no  indi- 
cation of  the  presence  of  steam.  As  a  landslip  the  amount  was 
very  great,  and  possibly  the  phenomenon  might  be  something 
similar  to  the  overflow  of  peat-bogs.  Mr.  Hudleston  recalled 
the  statement  of  the  author  regarding  the  geological  constitution 
of  the  district,  where  masses  of  Secondary  rocks  are  folded 
within  igneous  ones,  probably  of  Tertiary  age.  It  was  likely, 
therefore,  that  some  of  the  softer  Secondary  marls,  pressed  in 
more  than  one  direction  by  harder  rocks  and  soaked  by  water, 
might  at  last  have  given  way.  The  immediate  cause  of  the 
catastrophe  could  scarcely  be  indicated  without  a  knowledge  of 
the  district.  Such  events  occurred  from  time  to  time  elsewhere. 
The  Russian  topographers,  if  his  memory  served  him  right,  had 
described  the  bursting  of  a  mountain-side  with  fatal  results,  in 
one  of  the  valleys  near  Lake  Issyk  Kul.  The  smoke-like  powder, 
resulting  from  the  continued  falls  of  rock,  had  often  given  rise  to 
the  notion  of  volcanic  action.  There  could  be  no  better  instance 
of  this  than  the  case  of  Mount  .St.  Elias,  the  highest  mountain  in 
North  America.  In  geography-books  this  mountain  has  almost 
invariably  been  described  as  a  volcano,  and  a  portion  has 
actually  been  designated  as  the  crater.  This  illusion  had  been 
occasioned  by  the  dust  of  rock-falls  resembling  smoke.  We 
might  well  pardon  the  author  for  speculating  on  the  probability 
of  a  return  to  volcanic  activity  in  a  region  which  bears  so  many 
traces  of  it  as  this  part  of  Armenia. — On  a  new  genus  of  Siliceous 
sponges  from  the  Lower  Calcareous  Grit  of  Yorkshire,  by  Dr. 
G.  J.   Hinde. 

December  4.— Mr.  W.  T.  Blanford,  F.R.S.,  President, 
in  the  chair. — The  President  stated  that  a  circular  letter 
had  been  received  from  the  Secretary  of  the  Committee  on 
Geological  Photographs,  formed  at  the  last  meeting  of  the 
British  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  to  ar- 
range for  the  collection,  preservation,  and  systematic  regis- 
tration of  photographs  of  geological  interest  in  the  United 
Kingdom,  in  which  the  aid  and  co-operation  of  geologists  is 
earnestly  requested.  Copies  of  instructions,  &c.,  drawn  up  in 
order  to  secure  uniformity,  are  to  be  obtained  on  application  t  1 
Mr.  O.  W.  Jeffs,  Secretary  to  the  Committee,  12  Queen's  Road, 
Rock  Ferry,  Cheshire,  and  one  would  be  suspended  on  the 
Society's  notice-board. — The  following  communications  were 
read : — On  remains  of  small  Sauropodous  Dinosaurs  from  the 
Wealden,  by  R.  Lydekker. — On  a  peculiar  horn-like  Dino- 
saurian  bone  from  the  Wealden,  by  R.  Lydekker.  Among  a 
series  of  vertebrate  remains  sent  from  the  Dorsetshire  County 
Museum  to  the  British  Museum,  there  is  an  imperfect,  stout, 
short,  cone-like  bone  from  the  Wealden  of  Brook,  Isle  of 
Wight.  It  appears  to  present  a  close  resemblance  to  the  horn- 
cores  of  the  Dinosaur  described  by  Prof.  Marsh  as  Ceratops. 
The  author  did  not  regard  the  specimen  as  affording  conclusive 
evidence  of  the  existence  in  the  Wealden  of  a  large  Dinosaur 
furnished  with  horn-like  projections  on  the  skull  like  those  of 
the  American  Ceratops,  but  suggested  that  such  might  really 
prove  to  be  its  true  nature. — The  igneous  constituents  of  the 
Triassic  breccias  and  conglomerates  of  South  Devon,  by  R.  N. 
Worth.  The  reading  of  this  paper  was  followed  by  a  discussion, 
in  which  the  President,  Prof.  Bonney,  Dr.  Geikie,  Dr.  Hicks, 
Mr.  Hudleston,  Prof.  Hughes,  and  Prof.  Judd,  took  part. — 
Notes  on  the  glaciation  of  parts  of  the  valleys  of  the  Jhelam 
and  Sind  Rivers  in  the  Plimalaya  Mountains  of  Kashmir,  by 
Captain  A.  W.  Stiffe.  After  referring  to  the  previous  writings 
of  Messrs.  Lydekker,  Theobald,  and  Wynne,  and  Colonel 
Godwin- Austen,  the  author  gave  an  account  of  his  observations 
made  during  a  visit  to  Kashmir  in  1885,  which  appeared  to  him 
to  indicate  signs  of  former  glaciation  on  a  most  enormous  scale.  A 
transverse  valley  from  the  south  joins  the  Sind  valley  at  the  plain 
of  Sonamurg,  and  contains  glaciers  on  its  west  side.  These, 
the  author  stated,  filled  the  valley  at  no  remote  period,  and  ex- 
tended across  the  main  Sind  valley,  where  horseshoe  shaped 
moraines,  many  hundred  feet  high,  occurred,  and  dammed  the 
river,  forming  a  lake  of  which  the  Sonamurg  plain  was  the  result. 
The  mountains  which  originated  the  above  glaciers  were  described 
as  being  cut  through  by  the  Sind  river,  and  the  rocks  of  the  gorge 
were  observed  to  be  striated,  whilst  rocks  with  a  vioutonnee  ap- 
pearance extended  to  a  height  of  about  2000  feet.  The  whole 
of  the  Sind  valley  was  stated  to  be  characterized  by  a  succession 
of  moraines  through  which  the  river  had  cut  gorges,  whilst  the 


Dec,  26,  1889] 


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191 


hillsides  were  seen  to  be  comparatively  rounded  to  heights  of 
2000  feet  or  more.  The  author  had  also  formed  the  opinion 
that  at  Baramulla  the  barrier  of  a  former  lake  occupying  the 
Kashmir  valley  was  partly  morainic,  before  reading  Prof.  Leith 
Adams's  view  of  the  glacial  origin  of  some  of  the  gravels  of  this 
point.  The  whole  valley  of  the  Jhelam  from  this  point  to 
Mozufferabad  showed  extensive  glacial  deposits,  which  had  been 
modified  by  denudation  and  by  the  superposition  of  detrital 
fans,  widely  different  in  character  from  the  glacial  deposits. 
Below  Rampoor  the  valley  was  thickly  strewn  with  enormous 
granite  blocks  resting  upon  gneiss,  and  the  author  believed  that 
they  had  been  transported  by  ice.  In  conclusion,  it  was  noted 
that  the  existing  torrential  stream  had  further  excavated  the 
valley  since  Glacial  times,  and,  in  places,  to  a  considerable 
depth.  Comments  on  this  paper  were  offered  by  the  President, 
Mr.  Lydekker,  General  MacMahon,  and  Prof.  Hughes. 

Entomological  Society,  December  4. — The  Right  Hon. 
Lord  Walsingham,  F.R. S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — Prof. 
Franz  Klapalek,  of  Prague,  was  elected  a  Fellow. — Mr.  W.  L. 
Distant  exhibited,  on  behalf  of  Mr.  Lionel  de  Niceville,  a 
branch  of  a  walnut  tree  on  which  was  a  mass  of  eggs  laid  by  a 
butterfly  belonging  to  the  Lycmnidce.  He  also  exhibited  two 
specimens  of  this  butterfly  which  Mr.  de  Niceville  had  referred 
to  a  new  genus  and  described  as  Chmtoprocta  odata.  The 
species  was  said  to  occur  only  in  the  mountainous  districts  of 
North-West  India,  at  elevations  of  from  5000  to  10,000  feet 
above  the  sea-level. — Dr.  D.  Sharp  exhibited  the  eggs  of 
Piezosternum  subulatiim,  Thunb.,  a  bug  from  South  America. 
These  eggs  were  taken  from  the  interior  of  a  specimen  which 
had  been  allowed  to  putrefy  before  being  mounted.  Although 
the  body  of  the  parent  had  completely  rotted  away,  the  eggs 
were  in  a  perfect  state  of  preservation,  and  the  cellular  con- 
dition of  the  yelk  was  very  conspicuous. — Mr.  J.  H.  Leech 
exhibited  a  large  number  of  Lepidoptera  recently  collected  for 
him  by  Mr,  Pratt  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Ichang,  Central 
China.  The  collection  included  about  fifty-four  new  species  of 
butterflies  and  thirty-five  new  species  of  moths.  Captain  Elwes 
observed  that  he  noticed  only  two  genera  in  this  collection 
which  did  not  occur  at  Sikkim,  and  that  the  similarity  of  the 
insect  fauna  of  the  two  regions  was  very  remarkable ;  about 
fifteen  years  ago,  in  a  paper  "On  the  Birds  of  Asia,"  he  had 
called  attention  to  the  similarity  of  species  inhabiting  the 
mountain  ranges  of  India,  China,  and  Java.  Mr.  McLachlan, 
F.  R.  S.,  remarked  that  he  had  lately  received  a  species  of 
dragonfly  from  Simla  which  had  previously  only  been  recorded 
from  Pekin.  Mr.  Distant  said  he  had  lately  had  a  species  of 
Cicada  from  Hong  Kong,  which  had  hitherto  been  supposed  to  be 
confined  to  Java. — Mr.  W.  H.  B.  Fletcher  exhibited  a  preserved 
specimen  of  a  variety  of  the  larva  of  Sphinx  ligustri,  taken  in  a 
wood  near  Arundel,  Sussex.  Mr.  W.  White  exhibited  drawings 
of  the  larvae  of  this  species,  and  called  especial  attention  to  one  of 
a  variety  that  had  been  exhibited  at  a  previous  meeting  by  Lord 
Walsingham. — Mr.  F.  D.  Godman,  F.R.S.,  read  a  letter  from 
Mr.  Herbert  Smith,  containing  an  account  of  the  Hymenoptera, 
Diptera,  Hemiptera,  and  Coleoptera,  he  had  recently  collected 
in  St.  Vincent,  where  he  was  employed  under  the  direction  of  a 
Committee  of  the  Royal  Society,  appointed  to  investigate  the 
natural  history  of  the  West  Indies.  A  discussion  followed,  in 
which  Dr.  Sharp,  Captain  Elwes,  Lord  Walsingham,  and  Mr. 
McLachlan  took  part. — Captain  Elwes  read  a  letter  from  Mr. 
Doherty,  in  which  the  writer  described  his  experiences  in 
collecting  insects  in  the  Naga  Hills,  by  means  of  light  and 
"sugar."  Colonel  Swinhoe  said  that  the  attractive  power  of 
light  depended  very  much  on  its  intensity,  and  on  the  height  of 
the  light  above  the  ground.  By  means  of  the  electric  light  in 
Bombay  he  had  collected  more  than  300  specimens  of  SphingidcE 
in  one  night.  Mr.  J.  J.  Walker,  R.N.,  stated  that  he  had 
found  the  electric  light  very  attractive  to  insects  in  Panama. 
Dr.  Sharp,  Mr.  Leech,  Captain  Elwes,  the  Rev.  Canon  Fowler, 
and  others  continued  the  discussion. — Mr.  de  Niceville  communi- 
cated a  paper  entitled  "Notes  on  a  New  Genus  of  LyccenidcB." 
— Mr.  F.  Merrifield  read  a  paper  entitled  "  Systematic  Tempera- 
ture Experiments  on  some  Lepidoptera  in  all  their  Stages,"  and 
exhibited  a  number  of  specimens  in  illustration  of  his  paper. 
The  author  stated  that  the  darkness  of  colour  and  the  markings 
in  Ennomos  autumnaria  resulted  from  the  pupae  being  subjected 
to  a  very  low  temperature.  In  the  case  of  Selenia  illustraria, 
exposing  the  pupae  to  a  low  temperature  had  not  only  affected 
the  colour  of  the  imagos,  but  had  altered  the  markings  in  a 
striking  manner.     Lord  Walsingham  observed  that  it  appeared 


that  exposure  to  cold  in  the  pupa-state  produced  darker  colouring 
in  the  imago,  and  that  forcing  in  that  stage  had  an  opposite 
effect  ;  that  insects  subjected  to  glacial  conditions  probably 
derive  some  advantage  from  the  development  of  dark  or  suffused 
colouring,  and  that  this  advantage  was,  in  all  probability,  the 
more  rapid  absorption  of  heat.  He  said  he  lielieved  that  an 
hereditary  tendency  in  favour  of  darker  forms  was  established 
under  glacial  conditions,  and  that  this  would  account  for  the 
prevalence  of  melanic  forms  in  northern  latitudes  and  at  high 
elevations.  Captain  Elwes,  Mr.  Jenner  Weir,  and  Dr.  Sharp 
continued  the  discussion. 

Linnean  Society,  December  5. — Mr.  J.  G.  Baker,  Vice- 
President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  George  Murray  exhibited  and 
made  some  remarks  upon  specimens  of  Struvea  macrophylla  and 
S.  phwiosa. — Mr.  A.  W.  Bennett  communicated  some  observa- 
tionsonanewanda  little-known  British  fresh-water  Algtc — Schizo- 
thrix  anglica  and  Sphceroplcea  annulina.  It  was  pointed  out 
that  Scikizothrix oiYiaxxeys  "  Phycologia  Britannica  "  is  really  an 
Inactis. — Mr.  E.  M.  Holmes  exhibited,  as  a  new  British  marine 
Alga,  a  specimen  of  Gracilaria  divergens,  a  rare  native  of  the 
warmer  portions  of  the  Atlantic  and  the  Mediterranean,  which 
had  been  recently  found  at  Brighton  by  Mr.  J.  Myles.  The 
specimen  exhibited  possessed  tetrasporic  and  cystocarpic  fruits 
not  described  by  Agardh. — Mr.  Pascoe  exhibited  (with  a  view 
of  eliciting  information  as  to  the  modus  operandi)  a  number  of 
Crustacea  and  certain  shells  of  the  genus  Phorus  having  various 
foreign  substances  attached  to  them.  Commenting  upon  these 
specimens.  Prof.  Stewart  gave  an  interesting  account  from 
personal  observation  of  the  way  in  which  certain  Crustacea 
collect  and  adorn  themselves  with  fragments  of  shell,  seaweed, 
&c.,  apparently  as  a  protective  covering. — Mr.  T.  Christy  ex- 
hibited and  made  remarks  on  some  "liquid-amber"  or  resin 
{Attingia  excelsa)  from  Cochin  China. — A  paper  was  then  read 
by  Mr.  George  Massee  on  the  life-history  of  a  stipitate  fresh-water 
Alga,  illustrated  by  some  excellent  diagrams.  A  discussion 
followed,  in  which  the  chairman,  Mr.  Murray,  and  Mr.  Bennett 
took  part. — In  the  absence  of  the  author,  Mr.  Harting  detailed 
the  chief  points  of  interest  in  a  paper  by  Mr.  George  Sim  on 
the  anatomy  of  the  sand  grouse  {Syrrhaptes  paradoxus),  and  the 
habits  of  this  bird  as  observed  on  the  sand  hills  of  the  coast  of 
Aberdeenshire.  A  comparison  was  made  of  the  sternum  and 
the  alimentary  organs  with  the  same  parts  in  the  pigeon  and  red 
grouse. 

Chemical  Society,  December  5. — Dr.  W.  J.  Russell, 
F.R. S.,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read: — 
Compounds  of  phenanthraquinone  with  metallic  salts,  by  Prof. 
F.  R.  Japp,  F. R.S. ,  and  Mr.  A.  E.  Turner.  The  authors  have 
obtained  several  double  compounds  of  phenanthraquinone  with 
metallic  salts,  viz.  C14H8O2,  ZnClj,  crystallizing  in  dark, 
reddish-brown  needles  ;  (Ci4H802)2,  HgCl2,  crystallizing  in  red, 
obliquely  truncated  prisms  ;  and  (Ci4H802)2,  Hg(CN)2,  crystal- 
lizing also  in  red  forms.  They  have  prepared  a  similar  com- 
pound from  mercuric  chloride  and  )3-naphthaquinone,  but  could 
not  obtain  double  compounds  from  benzoquinone,  a-naphthaqui- 
none,  anthraquinone,  diacetyl,  or  benzil.  It  would,  therefore, 
appear  that  compounds  of  this  class  are  derivable  only  from 
orthoquinones,  and  not  from  paraquinones  or  open- chain 
a-diketones.  The  intense  colour  of  the  double  compounds 
indicates  that  in  them  the  quinone  preserves  its  distinctive  cha- 
racter. In  this  respect  they  differ  from  the  colourless  com- 
pounds of  the  orthoquinones  with  sodium  hydrogen  sulphite, 
which,  inasmuch  as  their  formation  involves  reduction,  are  to  be 
regarded  as  quinol  derivatives. — Action  of  aldehydes  and 
ammonia  on  a-diketones,  by  Mr.  G.  H.  Wadsworth. — Phenyl- 
hexamethylene  derivatives,  by  Dr.  F.  S.  Kipping  and  Prof.  W.  H. 
Perkin. — Diphenylfurfuran,  by  Prof.  W.  H,  Perkin  and  Dr.  A. 
Schloesser. 

Royal  Microscopical  Society,  November  13. — Dr.  C.  T. 
Hudson,  F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Rev.  Armstrong 
Hall  exhibited  a  Bacillus  from  urine,  which  closely  resembled 
B,  tuberculosis. — Mr.  Hardy  exhibited  and  described  a  little 
apparatus  which  he  had  devised  for  the  purpose  of  photograph- 
ing an  object  under  the  microscope,  without  having  to  alter  the 
position  of  the  instrument  in  any  way.  He  had  originally  made 
it  in  metal,  but  had  found  it  too  heavy  ;  the  one  now  before  them 
was  made  of  wood,  and  weighed  about  one  ounce,  the  cost  being 
nothing  at  all  beyond  the  trouble  of  making  it. — Mr.  Watson 
exhibited  and  described  a  new  pattern  microscope  for  students 
(the  "Edinburgh  student's  microscope"),  and  a  student's  petro- 


192 


NATURE 


{Dec.  26,  1889 


logical  microscope  made  upon  the  same  lines  ;  also,  a  small  box 
for  holding  slides,  for  which  a  patent  had  been  obtained  by  Mr. 
Moseley,  its  inventor.  The  slides  were  held  in  flat  trays  in  the 
usual  way,  but  they  were  so  arranged  that,  upon  opening  the 
front  of  the  box,  the  trays  were  drawn  forward  so  as  to  form  a 
series  of  layers  overlapping  sufficiently  to  expose  the  labels  at 
the  front  end  of  each  row,  and  enabling  the  position  of  any  par- 
ticular slide  to  be  seen  without  the  necessity  of  removing  the 
trays  in  search  of  it. — Mr.  Crisp  exhibited  apparatus  by  which 
it  was  proposed  to  convert  a  microscope  into  a  microtome  by 
placing  the  embedded  substance  in  the  lower  end  of  the  tube, 
and  cutting  sections  by  means  of  a  blade  fitted  to  move  upon  the 
stage  plate. — Mr.  J.  Mayall,  Jun.,  described  the  various  micro- 
scopes and  accessories  which  he  had  examined  at  the  Paris 
Exhibition,  pointing  out  that,  whereas  at  former  International 
Exhibitions  most  of  the  best  makers  in  England,  America,  and 
■other  countries  were  exhibitors,  on  this  occasion  they  had  been 
rather  conspicuous  by  their  absence.  The  French  opticians 
were  fairly  well  represented  as  to  numbers,  but  the  instruments 
'they  exhibited  were  for  the  most  part  of  the  old,  not  to  say 
■antiquated,  types.  He  had  seen  very  little  that  was  new  in  the 
.matter  of  design. 

Zoological  Society,  December  3. — Mr.  Osbert  Salvin, 
'F.R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  read  a 
report  on  the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's 
Menagerie  during  the  month  of  November  1889. — An  extract 
was  read  from  a  letter  received  from  the  Rev.  G.  H.  R.  Fisk, 
concerning  some  specimens  of  Bipalitim  ^ewense,  which  he  was 
keeping  in  captivity  at  Cape  Town. — Mr.  Henry  Seebohm  ex- 
'hibited  and  made  remarks  upon  some  specimens  of  new  or  rare 
species  of  birds  lately  received  from  the  Bonin  Islands,  North 
Pacific. — ^Mr.  Sclater  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  an  egg  of 
'the  crested  screamer  {Chauna  chavaria),  from  the  collection  of 
Mr.  J.  J.  Dalgleish.— Mr.  F.  E,  Beddard  read  the  first  of  a 
series  of  contributions  to  the  anatomy  of  Picarian  birds.  The 
present  communication  treated  of  some  points  in  the  structure  of 
•the  hornbills  {Bucerotida:),  particularly  of  the  syrinx,  and  of  the 
muscular  anatomy  of  these  birds. — Mr.  Beddard  also  read  a 
paper  upon  the  anatomy  of  Burmeister's  cariama  ( Chunga  bur- 
meisteri),  and  pointed  out  the  differences  between  this  form  and 
Cariama  cristata.  — Mr.  G.  W.  Butler  read  a  paper  on  the  rela- 
tions of  the  fat-bodies  (subperitoneal  and  subcutaneous)  of  the 
Sauropsida.  The  author  showed  that  a  consideration  of  the  sub- 
peritoneal fat-bodies  appeared  to  throw  light  on  the  condition  of 
the  abdominal  membranes  in  the  monitors. — A  communication 
was  read  from  the  Rev.  H.  S.  Gorham,  containing  descriptions 
of  new  species  of  the  Coleopterous  family  Erotylidae  from  various 
localities. — A  communication  was  read  from  Mr.  L.  Taczanowski, 
containing  the  description  of  a  new  warbler  of  the  genus  Locus- 
Jella  from  Corea,  which  he  proposed  to  call  Locustella  pleskei. — 
Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas  pointed  out  the  characters  of  a  new  mun- 
goose,  allied  to  Herpestes  albicaudatus,  which  he  proposed  to 
call  H.  grandis.  The  type  specimen  (a  skeleton)  had  been 
obtained  by  Mr.  T.  E.  Buckley  in  South-East  Africa. 

Stockholm. 
Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  December  11.— The  Asco- 
ceratidse  and  the  Lituitidas  of  the  Upper  Silurian  formation  of 
Gotknd  described,  by  Prof,  G.  Lindstrom. — Researches  on  the 
constitution  of  the  spectra  of  emission  of  the  chemical  elements, 
by  Dr.  T.  R.  Rydberg. — On  the  observations  at  the  Observa- 
tory of  Upsala  to  determine  the  equinoctium  of  the  spring  1889, 
by  Dr.  K.  Bohlin  and  C.  Schulz-Steinheil. — Definitive  elements 
of  the  orbit  of  the  comet  1840,  by  C.  Schulz-Steinheil.— On 
the  ores  and  minerals  of  the  Gellivard  district,  especially  the 
apatite,  by  Herr  A.  Sjogren. — The  English  edition  of  the  atlas 
of  fac-simile  maps,  by  Prof.  A.  E.  Nordenskiold,  exhibited  by 
himself.— On  the  conductibility  of  snow,  by  Dr.  S.  Hjaltstrom. 
— On  the  influence  of  the  averting  force  of  the  telluric  rotation 
on  the  movement  of  the  air,  by  Dr.  N.  Ekholm. — A  large 
collection  of  mosses  from  Japan,  Korea,  and  East  India,  pre- 
sented to  the  State  Museum  by  Captain  S.  Ankarcrona,  R.N., 
and  determined  by  Dr.  W.  Brotherus,  of  Helsingfors,  and  by  Dr. 
Carl  Miiller,  in  Halle,  exhibited  by  Prof.  Wittrock.  On  the 
recently-published  first  part  of  the  second  supplement  to  C.  F. 
Nyman's  "Conspectus  florae  Europese,"  by  Prof.  Wittrock. — 
Echinologica,  by  Prof.  S.  Loven. — Some  morphologic  researches 
•on  the  arteries  of  the  brain  of  the  Vertebrata,  by  Herr  A.  Klin- 
kowstrom. — Derivatives  of  ortho-amido-benzyl  alcohol,  ii.,  by 
Dr.  G.  H.  Soderbaum  and  Prof.  Widman. — On  distri  azol  com- 
binations, by  Dr.  Bladin.— On  naphtoe  acids,  by  Dr.  Ekstrand. 


— Derivatives  of  sulphate  of  ammonium,  by  Herr  O.  S.  Hector. 
— Demonstration  of  some  theories  of  Poincare,  by  Herr  de 
Brun. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 

London. 
SATURDAY,  December  28. 
RoYAi.  Institution,  at  3.— Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory)  : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Riicker,  F.R.S. 

TUESDAY,  December  31. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3.— Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory)  : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Riicker,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  January  i. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  7. 

THURSDAY,^ AiiVARY  2. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3.— Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory)  : 

FRIDA  Y,  January  3. 
Geologists'  Association,  at  8. 

SATURDAY,  January  4. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3.— Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory) : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Riicker,  F.R.S. 

BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

The  Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caermarthenshire  and  Associated  Rocks  :  A. 
Harker  (Camb.  University  Press). — The  Popular  Works  of  Johann  Gottlieb 
Fichte,  2  vols.;  translated  Iby  Dr.' W.  Smith  (Triibner). — Astronomy 
with  an  Opera-Glass  :  G.  P.  Serviss,  2nd  edition  (Appleton). — Logic  Taught 
by  Love:  M.  Boole  (Edwards). — The  Collected  Mathematical  Papers  of 
Arthur  Cayley,  vol.  ii.  (Camb.  University  Press). — Apergu  des  Travaux 
Geographiques  en  Russie  :  Baron  N.  Kaulbars  (St.  Petersbourg).— Mag- 
netic and  other  Physical  Properties  of  Iron  at  a  High  Temperature :  Dr.  J. 
Hopkinson  (Triibner). — On  a  Fossil  Fish:  M.  Browne  (Leicester). — Journal 
of  the  Chemical  Society,  December  (Gurney  and  Jackson). — Brain,  Part  47 
(Macmillan). — Proceedings  of  the  Geologists'  Association,  vol.  xi.  No.  5 
(Stanford). — The  Prevention  of  Measles  :  C.  Candler  (K.  Paul). — Lectures 
on  the  Religion  of  the  Semites  :  W.  Robertson  Smith  (Edinburgh,  Black). — 
Le  Temps  de  Pose :  A.  de  la  Baume  Pluvinel  (Paris,  Gauthier-Villars). — 
Manual  de  Phototypie  :  M.  G.  Bonnet  (Paris,  Gauthier-Villars).— The  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Lxnnean  Society  of  New  South  Wales,  vol.  iv.  Part  2 
(Sydney). — Internationales  Archiv  fur  Ethnographie,  Band  ii.  Heft  5 
(Triibner). 

CONTENTS.  ^E 

Recent    Ornithological    Works.      By    R.     Bowdler 

Sharpe 169 

Descartes.     By  W.  J.  L 171 

A  Text-book  of  Organic  Chemistry 172 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

DuChaillu:  "  The  Viking  Age  ;  the  Early  History, 
Manners,  and  Customs    of  the  Ancestors    of  the 

English-speaking  Nations." — F.  Y.  P 173 

Dunman  and  Wingrave  :  "  A  Glossary  of  Anatomical, 

Physiological,  and  Biological  Terms 173 

Letters  to  the  Editor : — 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. — The 

Duke  of  Argyll,  F.R.S 173 

Who  Discovered   the  Teeth   in  Ornithorhynchus  ? — 

Prof.  Oswald  H.  Latter 174 

Galls.— Prof.  George  J.    Romanes,  F.R.S.;  Dr. 

St.  George  Mivart,  F.R.S 174 

The  Permanence  of  Continents  and  Oceans. — ^Joseph 

John  Murphy 175 

Does    the    Bulk    of    Ocean    Water     Increase? — T. 

Mellard  Reade 175 

A  Natural  Evidence  of  High  Thermal  Conductivity 

in  Flints.— Prof.  A.  S.  Herschel,  F.R.S.     .    .    .     175 
Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — Francis  P. 

Pascoe 176 

A  Marine  Millipede. — R.  I.  Pocock    .......     176 

Suggestions  for  the  Formation  and  Arrangement  of 
a  Museum  of  Natural  History  in  Connection  with 
a  Public  School.  By  Prof.  W.  H.  Flower,  F.R.S.  .     177 
The  Fishery  Industries  of  the  United  States     .    .    .    178 

Notes      180 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowleri 183 

Variable  Star  in  Cluster  G.C.  3636    .    .    .' 183 

Changes  in  Lunar  Craters 183 

On  the  Future  of  our  Technical  Education    ....    183 
A  First  Foreshadowing  of  the  Periodic  Law.    ( IVzi/i 

Diagram.)     P.  J.  Hartog 186 

Scientific  Serials 188 

Societies  and  Academies 189 

Diary  of  Societies •    •     .    192 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 192 


NA TURE 


193 


THURSDAY,  JANUARY  2,  1890. 


THE  BERMUDA  ISLANDS. 

A  Contribution  to  the  Physical  History  and  Zoology  of 
the  Sfltncrs  Archipelago.      With  an  Examination  of  the 
Structure  of  Coral  Reefs.    By  Angelo  Heilprin,  Curator- 
in-Charge  and  Professor  of  Invertebrate  Palaeontology 
at  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences  of  Philadelphia, 
&c.     With  additions  by  Prof.  J.  P.  McMurrich,  Mr, 
H.  A.  Pilsbry,  Dr.  George  Marx,  Dr.  P.  R.  Uhler,  and 
Mr.  C.  H.  Bollman.     (Philadelphia  :    Published  by  the 
Author,  1889.) 
'  pHIS  work  is  mainly  the  outcome  of  researches  con- 
•-       cerning  the  physical  history,  geology,  and  zoology 
of  the  Bermudas,  which  were  accomplished  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences  of  Phila- 
delphia in  the  summer  of  1888.     The  author's  principal 
object  was   to    satisfy    his  own  mind  on   certain  points 
connected  with  the  structure  of  coral  reefs,  and  but  little 
zoological  work  was   contemplated.      Fortunately,  how- 
ever, the  collection  of  zoological  material  proved  more 
extensive  than  was  expected,  and  in  this  respect  Prof. 
Heilprin  was  greatly  assisted  by  the  students  who  ac- 
companied him. 

After  a  pleasant  chapter  of  "  general  impressions,"  the 
author  gives  the  results  of  his  examination  of  these 
islands,  and  then  proceeds  to  make  such  a  vigorous  attack 
on  the  views  advanced  by  Agassiz,  Murray,  and  their 
followers,  concerning  the  origin  of  coral  islands,  that 
those  attacked  may  be  pardoned  if  they  regard  him  as 
an  apostle  of  the  old  belief. 

Coming  from  the  pen  of  Prof.  Heilprin,  this  volume 
will,  however,  be  welcomed  by  both  sides  in  the  con- 
troversy, but  he  must  expect  from  his  opponents  an 
energetic  reply  to  some  of  his  criticisms,  and  an  unmis- 
takable dissent  from  some  of  his  conclusions.  Thus 
when  the  author  asserts  that  the  existence  of  an  atoll  in 
the  present  position  of  the  Bermudas  is  not  demonstrable, 
and  that  we  have  yet  to  learn  to  what  form  of  coral 
structure  these  islands  belong,  he  is  at  variance  with 
most  other  authorities  on  the  subject  ;  and  it  becomes  at 
the  same  time  a  little  difficult  to  follow  him  in  his  conclu- 
sion that  the  results  of  his  researches  go  to  sustain  the 
atoll-theory  of  Darwin,  However,  laying  this  difficulty 
aside,  and  accepting  the  fact,  fairly  established  in  this 
volume,  that  these  islands  have  undergone  recent  move- 
ments, first  of  upheaval  and  then  of  subsidence,  we  may 
ask  :  "  Of  what  use  is  this  double  testimony  to  any  theory, 
whether  of  upheaval  or  of  subsidence,  unless  a  direct 
connection  is  first  established  between  the  form  of  a  reef 
and  the  character  of  the  movement?"  The  direct  testi- 
mony of  a  single  atoll  that  can  be  proved  to  have  grown 
in  a  stationary  area  will,  unless  this  connection  be  estab- 
lished, far  outweigh  the  presumptive  evidence  derived 
from  a  slight  subsidence  of  every  atoll  in  the  Indian  and 
Pacific  Oceans. 

Dr.  Rein,  in  the  instance  of  the  Bermudas,  was  the 
leader  of  one  of  the  early  skirmishes  in  this  controversy, 
and  it  was  to  his  description  of  these  islands  that  the 
opponents  of  the  atoll-theory  of  Darwin  pointed  in  sup-  | 
Vol.  XLi. — No.  1053. 


port  of  their  views.  They  miss,  therefore,  in  this  book, 
any  special  exposition  on  the  author's  part  of  the  relation 
of  his  own  views  to  those  of  Dr.  Rein.  They  also  will 
fail  to  see  how  Murray's  explanation  of  the  origin  of  the 
inner  basins  of  the  Bermudas  by  solution  can  be  met 
merely  by  a  statement  of  contrary  conviction  unsupported 
by  experimental  proof.  Nor  will  they  agree  with  Prof. 
Heilprin's  assertion  that  the  recent  memoir  of  Agassiz  on 
the  Hawaiian  Islands  can  scarcely  be  said  to  contribute 
materially  towards  the  solving  of  the  problem. 

The  author  in  this  volume  treats  as  absurd  my  attempt 
to  show  that  a  true  conception  of  the  relative  dimensions 
of  an  atoll  is  necessary  to  understand  the  nature  of  the 
problem.  I  was  aware  that,  if  my  meaning  was  not  under- 
stood, I  should  lay  myself  open  to  some  curious  reflec- 
tions, and  therefore  the  point  is  further  elucidated  in  my 
description  of  the  Keeling  Islands,  in  the  Scottish 
Geographical  Magazine.  To  Prof.  Heilprin's  inquiry  as 
to  how  near  are  we  brought  to  an  understanding  of  the 
character  of  an  atoll  by  a  true  conception  of  its  relative 
dimensions,  I  would  answer  with  the  query,  "  How  far  are 
we  misled  from  the  truth  by  the  woefully-distorted  sections 
of  atolls  that  are  employed  by  lecturers  and  by  the  authors 
of  text-books?"  Let  me  cite  a  single  instance — that  of 
Darwin's  section  of  the  Great  Chagos  Bank,  whichgives  that 
atoll  (which  is  76  miles  in  width  and  40  to  50  fathoms  deep) 
the  relative  dimensions  of  a  soup-plate.  Some  go  further, 
and  draw,  with  a  free  hand,  a  deep,  saucer-shaped  section 
of  such  reefs.  Illustrations  of  this  kind  practically  beg 
the  question  at  the  start,  if  we  are  arguing  in  favour  of 
the  theory  of  subsidence.  The  mind  is  at  once  informed 
by  the  eye  that  there  is  a  deep  basin  to  be  accounted  for, 
whereas  a  section  on  a  true  scale  would  exhibit  no 
appreciable  depression.  In  the  exaggeration  of  the  rela- 
tive depth  of  an  atoll  is  concerned  the  very  essence  of  the 
problem,  and  a  side-note  cannot  remove  the  impression 
made  by  a  false  section  on  the  mind.  Our  conception  of 
the  problem  can  scarcely  be  assisted  by  a  section  of  an 
atoll  representing  in  the  lagoon  greater  oceanic  depths 
than  the  Challetiger  ever  plumbed. 

Passing  from  these  controversial  matters  to  the  zoo- 
logical section  of  this  volume,  we  find  a  very  interesting 
chapter  on  the  relationship  of  the  Bermudian  fauna.  The 
number  of  known  species  of  marine  Mollusca  has  been 
increased  from  80  to  about  170,  none  of  the  eleven  spe- 
cies peculiar  to  Bermuda  having  been  described  before 
this  exploration.  Strangely  enough,  though  "  over- 
whelmingly Antillean  in  character,"  the  marine  Mollusca 
include  a  Pacific  element.  The  land  mollusks  have  been 
increased  from  about  twenty  to  thirty  species,  of  which 
eight  appear  to  be  confined  to  these  islands  ;  but,  in 
explaining  the  mode  of  transport  of  the  non-peculiar 
species,  the  author  scarcely  seems  to  have  laid  sufficient 
importance  on  the  transporting  agencies  of  commerce.  A 
remarkable  fact  noted  in  connection  with  the  Bermudian 
crustaceans  is  the  occurrence  of  three  macrurans — 
Palcemonella  tenuipes,  Palccinon  affinis,  and  Penceus 
velutinus— hitherto  only  recorded  from  the  Pacific,  Prof, 
Heilprin  arrives  at  some  interesting  conclusions  in  this 
chapter,  and  perhaps  the  most  important  one  is  con- 
nected with  the  large  proportion  of  peculiar  forms 
amongst  the  land-shells,  a  circumstance  which  is  pointed 
to  as  evidence  not  only  of  the  antiquity  of  a  portion  of 

K 


194 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


the  fauna,  but  also  of  its  derivation  from  some  pre-existing 
fauna  in  those  islands.  Much  other  zoological  matter  is 
to  be  found  in  this  volume,  though  only  a  portion  of  the 
collections  are  here  described.  We  are  informed,  how- 
ever, that  a  great  deal  of  systematic  work  still  remains  for 
the  naturalist  in  the  Bermudas,  and  Dr.  Uhler,  in  respect 
of  the  insects,  avers  that  much  arduous  collecting, 
particularly  of  the  less  conspicuous  kinds,  is  still  needed. 

I  do  not  know  whether  any  argument  for  the  consider- 
able antiquity  of  the  Bermudas  from  the  character  of  the 
fauna  has  been  advanced  before.      At  all  events,   Prof 
Heilprin's  valuable  suggestion  opens  up  a  line  of  inquiry 
in  the  case  of  coral  islands  generally,  which  might  be 
pursued    with  profit.      From  investigations  of  the  coral 
phenomena  alone,  I  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  Keel- 
ing Atoll  has  a  life-history  of  from  1 5,000  to  20,000  years, 
and  that  it  is  now  in  the  last  quarter  of  its  existence.      If 
this  coral  island  is  a  type,  then  atolls  must  possess  a  high 
antiquity ;  and,  taking  our  cue  from   Prof.  Heilprin,  we 
may  ask  whether,  in  the  fauna   and  flora  of  a  typical 
Pacific  or  Indian  Ocean  atoll,  there  is  anything  to  suggest 
that  they  are  derived  from  a  pre-existing  order  of  things. 
Confining  ourselves  to   the    flora,  we  find  that  oceanic 
atolls  are  mostly  characterized  by  Hemsley  as  possessing 
no  endemic  element  amongst  their  plants.     Yet  some  of 
these  large  atolls  must  have  once  engirt,  according  to  the 
theory  of  subsidence,  a  mountainous  island  possessing 
an  upland  flora,  and,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Fijis,  not  a 
few  peculiar  species.     The  islands  formed  on  the  encir- 
cling reef,  just  like  the  coral  islands  that  often  front  the 
shore  of  a  mountainous  island  in  the  Western  Pacific, 
would  possess,  in  addition  to  the  common  littoral  plants, 
a  number  of  plants  derived  from  the  slopes  of  the  ad- 
jacent island.     How  comes  it,  then,  that,  if  these  large 
groups  of  oceanic  atolls  mark  the  disappearance  of  moun- 
tain-ranges, we  find  no  sign  of  the  vanished  upland  flora 
amongst  the  common  littoral  plants  that  are  now  brought 
by  currents,  winds,  and  sea-bird 5  to  every  atoll  ?     The 
Island    of  Tahiti  could    hardly   disappear  beneath    the 
ocean  without  leaving  a  Tahitian  impress  on  the  flora 
of  the  surviving  atoll.    A  similar  reflection  often  occurred 
to  me  whilst  on  the  Keeling  Islands. 

In  conclusion,  I  would  remark  that  partisanship  in 
matters  of  scientific  dispute  cannot  affect  the  value  of 
this  work  by  an  American  naturalist  on  one  of  the  oldest 
of  British  possessions.  The  book  is  illustrated  with 
several  beautiful  phototypes  of  general  views  in  the 
islands,  as  well  as  of  the  feolian  formations  and  of  the 
coast  scenery  ;  and  seventeen  lithographic  plates  accom- 
pany the  zoological  descriptions.  H.  B.  Guppy, 


THE  USEFUL  PLANTS  OF  AUSTRALIA. 
The  Useful  Plants   of  A  ustralia  {including  Tasinania). 
By  J.    H.    Maiden,   F.L.S.,    F.C.S.,    &c.      (London: 
Triibner  and  Co.     Sydney  :   Turner  and   Henderson. 
1889.) 

ALTHOUGH  designed  in  the  first  instance  as  a 
hand-book  to  the  specimens  in  the  Technological 
Museum  at  Sydney,  this  work  in  its  present  form  is  really 
a  concise  text-book  treating  of  "  all  Australian  plants 
which,  up  to  the  present,  are  known  to  be  of  economic 
value,  or  injurious  to  man  and  domestic  animals." 


The  literature  of  Australian  economic  botany  may  be 
said  to  date  from  the  Great  Exhibition  of  1851.     Owing, 
however,  to  the   unsettled  nomenclature  of  Australian 
plants  previous  to  the  publication  of  the  great  "  Flora 
Australiensis,"  by  Bentham  and  Mueller,  the  properties  of 
the  same  plant  were  often  found  described  under  numerous 
botanical  names.     The  publication  of  the  "  Flora,"  and 
the  subsequent  issue  of  Baron  Mueller's  "  Census  of  Aus- 
tralian   Plants"    (with    annual   supplements),   have   now 
rendered  species  names  easily  accessible  to   workers  in 
all  parts  of  Australia,  and  the  ground  is  well   prepared 
for  such  a  publication  as  that  which  lies  before  us.     It  is 
a  bulky  volume  of  700  pages,  well  arranged,  well  got  up, 
and  furnished  with  an  excellent  index  of  botanical  names, 
and  also  one   of  vernacular  names.      As  Mr.    Maiden 
reminds  us,  this  is  the  first  attempt  made  to  grapple  with 
the   economical   botany  of  Australia.      He   has   wisely 
followed  Baron  Mueller  in  all  essential  details  of  classi- 
fication, and  due  credit  is  given  throughout  the  book  to 
this  learned  and  indefatigable  worker,  now,  the  greatest 
living  authority  on  all  that  relates  to  Australian  vegetable 
life.      The  arrangement  of    subjects  has   been  adopted 
as  that  found  most  convenient  in  the  Museum.     This  is 
not,  perhaps,  the  best  arrangement  for  a  text-book,  as  it 
involves  considerable  repetition  of  names  and  synonyms 
under  each  section  ;  but  on  that  point  we  are  not  dis- 
posed to  quarrel  with  the  author.     It  opens,  with  human 
foods,  and  food  adjuncts  ;  and  these  are  succeeded  by 
forage  plants,   drugs,  gums,  resins  and  kinos,  oils,  per- 
fumes, dyes,  tans,  timbers,  fibres,  and  it  closes  with  plants 
having    miscellaneous   uses  not   previously  enumerated. 
A  glance  at  the  book  shows  very  clearly,  that  if  we  except 
timbers,  a  description  of  which  occupies  about  one  half 
the  contents,  the  economic  products  of  Australia  are  not 
of  extraordinary  importance.     It    is  noticeable  that  the 
northern  parts,  where  the  flora  is  reinforced  by  represen- 
tatives from  the  Malayan  Archipelago  and  Southern  Asia,, 
yield  most  of  the  plants  possessing  medicinal  properties. 
The  genus  Eucalyptus,  comprising  more  than  130  species^ 
yields  excellent  timber,  kinos,  and  essential  oils,  and  prob- 
ably the  chief  economic  products  of  Australia  derived  from 
native  plants.     Mr.  Maiden  has  brought  together  practi- 
cally all  that  is  known  about  the  industrial  application  of 
'*  gum  "-trees,  but  we  cannot  now  attempt  to  follow  him. 

Eucalyptus  Gunnii  (a  large  plant  of  which  grows  in 
the  open  air  at  Kew)  yields  a  sweetish  sap  converted  by 
settlers  into  an  excellent  cider.  This,  and  manna, 
from  E.  viminalis  and  E.  dutnosa  are  probably  the 
only  food  products  derived  from  Eucalyptus  trees. 
In  the  production  of  Eucalyptus  oil  (from  E.  amygdalin 
and  E.  globulus),  Australia,  it  appears,  has  powerful 
competitors  in  Algeria  and  California,  where  gum-trees 
have  been  largely  planted  during  the  last  twenty  years. 
In  the  latter  country,  a  large  quantity  is  available  as  a 
by-product  in  the  manufacture  of  anti-calcaire  prepara- 
tions for  boilers. 

The  widely-spread  Acacias  of  Australia,  locally  known 
as  wattles,  are  hardly  less  useful  than  the  gum-trees.  Owing 
to  the  immense  number  destroyed  for  the  sake  of  the 
bark  used  in  tanning,  the  wattles  in  some  districts  are 
said  to  be  threatened  with  extinction.  Some  whose  leaves 
are  eaten  by  stock  are  also  becoming  scarce.  To  coun- 
teract  these  influences,  systematic  attempts  have  been 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


195 


made  to  plant  wattles  on  a  large  scale.  It  is  doubtful, 
however,  whether,  except  in  South  Australia,  such  planta- 
tions will  be  ultimately  successful.  Gum  arabic,  of  good 
quality,  is  yielded  by  various  species  of  Acacia,  but  owing 
"  to  the  great  cost  of  unskilled  labour  in  Australia,  and 
the  impossibility  of  utilizing  the  services  of  the  aborigi- 
nals, it  will  never  find  its  way  into  the  world's  market  to 
any  very  great  extent."  Australian  indigenous  edible  fruits, 
roots  and  leaves  and  stems,  are  apparently  wisely  left 
to  the  appreciation  of  "  school-boys  and  aboriginals." 
Almost  more  important  than  food  in  a  dry  country  is  a 
constant  supply  of  water.  The  aboriginal  method  of 
obtaining  water  from  the  fleshy  roots  of  certain  trees 
such  as  Hakea  Icucoptera,  and  from  the  stem  of  Vitis 
hypoglauca,  is  similar  to  that  adopted  in  other  countries, 
but  Mr.  Maiden  has  wisely  given  prominence  to  the  fact, 
as  the  knowledge  of  it  may  be  the  means  of  saving  the 
lives  of  many  lost  in  the  bush.  Very  few  native  Aus- 
tralian plants  yield  valuable  fibres.  The  aboriginals 
appear  to  prepare  their  fishing-nets  by  chewing  fibrous 
plants,  and  "  this  practice  causes  their  teeth  to  be  worn 
down  to  a  dead  level."  In  the  same  manner,  we  may 
add,  the  natives  of  Formosa  prepare  certain  fibres  for 
making  clothes. 

The  best  fodder  grass  of  Australia  is  said  to  be  An- 
thistiria  ciliatay  known  as  the  "  common  kangaroo  grass." 
There  are  several  poison  bushes  (species  of  Gastrolo- 
bium,  Swainsonia,  and  Sarcostei7tma)  dangerous  to  stock 
so  widely  distributed  as  to  render  extensive  tracts  of 
country  unoccupiable.  These  of  late  years  have  been 
reinforced  by  noxious  weeds  from  other  countries. 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed,  however,  that  our  knowledge 
of  the  economic  uses  of  Austrahan  plants  is  yet  com- 
plete, and  we  are  glad  to  learn  that  the  author  is  actively 
engaged  in  observations  that  no  doubt  will  be  incor- 
porated in  a  later  edition.  In  the  meantime,  however, 
we  cannot  do  better  than  commend  this  work  as  a  most 
trustworthy  guide  in  a  handy  form  to  the  useful  plants 
of  Australia.  D.  M. 


MOUNT  VESUVIUS. 
Mount  Vesuvius.  A  Descriptive,  Historical,  and  Geologi- 
cal Account  of  the  Volcano  and  its  Surroundings.  By 
J.  Logan  Lobley,  F.G.S.,  &c.  (London:  Roper  and 
Drowley,  1889.) 
TV  /T  ANY  people  have  been  puzzled  by  the  fact  that 
■i-*J-  there  are  so  few  EngUsh  books  on  Vesuvius, 
especially  of  the  descriptive  type.  The  appearance  of 
this  work  was  looked  forward  to  with  ardent  expecta- 
tions, but  it  is  doubtful  whether  it  will  fulfil  them. 
Prof.  Phillip's  work  was  a  remarkable  one  considering 
the  short  stay  he  made  in  Naples,  but  possessed 
those  defects  that  all  books  must  have  which  are  written 
from  little  experience.  Prof.  Phillips  wrote  immediately 
after  his  visit.  The  first  book  of  Prof.  Lobley  was  pre- 
pared under  similar  circumstances,  but  apparently  he  has 
not  re-examined  the  district  for  twenty  years.  Nearly 
every  geologist  on  his  visit  to  the  type  volcano  of  the 
world  is  attacked  by  a  fever  to  write  something  about  it 
—witness  the  1300  or  more  books  and  articles  in  all 
languages  referring  to  it— but  a  few  months  bring  him 
safely  through  his  complaint,  and  leave  him  satisfied  that 


years  of  careful  study  on  the  spot  will  hardly  qualify  him ' 
to  produce  even  a  short  description.  This  leads  us  to 
the  main  defects  of  the  work,  which  spring  from  the 
author's  want  of  personal  observation,  and  the  necessity 
of  his  obtaining  information  second-hand.  Many  recent 
authorities  do  not  seem  to  have  been  consulted  by  Prof. 
Lobley.  In  consequence,  he  constantly  makes  statements 
that  are  incorrect  or  only  partially  accurate.  Another 
fault  to  be  found  is  the  very  incorrect  and  old-fashioned 
illustrations  which  would  much  bother  a  new-comer  to 
the  district  with  this  work  as  a  guide.  Many  of  the 
crystal  forms  are  incorrectly  drawn,  and  in  Plate  xiv. 
dykes  should  not  be  represented  as  pipes  branching  out 
from  the  main  chimney,  but  principally  as  radial  sheets. 

The  accounts  of  the  Phlegrean  Fields,  so  far  as  they  go, 
are  very  attractive,  but  lack  that  accuracy  that  a  recent 
visit  would  have  conferred.  In  describing  Vesuvius, 
he  mentions  the  library  of  vulcanology  collected  in  the 
Naples  section  of  the  Italian  Alpine  Club,  stating  that 
25,000  volumes  are  there  preserved,  which  is  more  than 
three  times  the  number.  Neither  will  most  people  have 
had  such  a  favourable  experience  of  Vesuvian  guides  as 
Prof.  Lobley.  Yet  altogether,  the  chapters  on  Vesuvius 
are  the  best  part  of  the  work,  and  are  quite  as  much  as  a 
visitor  with  a  couple  of  days  to  give  to  the  mountain  can 
comfortably  absorb.  The  chapter  on  the  geology  of  the 
volcano  is  clear  and  well  written. 

Unfortunately  the  book  is  spoiled — more  perhaps  than 
by  anything  else — by  the  author's  views  as  to  the  causes 
of  volcanic  action.  In  the  first  place,  the  class  of  readers 
to  whom  the  rest  of  the  book  appeals  are  not  likely  to 
possess  sufficient  physical  and  geological  knowledge  to 
be  able  to  enter  into  the  question,  and  to  them  chapter 
viii.  is  likely  to  prove  a  bore,  and  should  they  begin  to 
peruse  the  book  at  this  point,  the  effect  will  probably  be 
that  they  will  read  no  more.  Even  if  it  be  supposed  that 
the  questions  regarding  the  mechanics  of  the  extrusion  of 
igneous  matter  on  the  earth's  surface  are  an  easy  matter 
of  comprehension,  the  method  of  putting  the  subject  into 
numbered  paragraphs  is  much  to  be  deprecated  when  the 
reader  is  not  a  specialist. 

In  the  same  way  it  is  doubtful  whether  a  description  of 
rocks  not  occurring  in  the  district  is  likely  to  be  of  use. 
Why  mention  the  rare  local  rocks,  "  analcimite,"  "haiiy- 
nophyre,"'  "  tholeite,"  &c.,  while  "  gabbro,"  "  diorite,' 
"  syenite,"  are  neglected  1 

The  chapter  on  the  minerals  of  Vesuvius  is  little  more 
than  a  catalogue  of  every  one  that  can  possibly  be  raised 
to  a  species  ;  some  being  obtained  by  dissolving  saline 
crust  in  water,  and  allowing  the  solution  to  crystallize — a 
method  that  is  hardly  justifiable.  Of  far  greater  interest 
would  have  been  a  chapter  on  the  general  mode  of  occur- 
rence, origin,  &c.,  of  the  principal  species,  their  characters 
being  left  to  the  systematic  treatises  on  mineralogy. 

The  book  is  neatly  got  up  and  well-divided  into  separate 
chapters,  so  that  the  traveller,  who  will  make  most  use  of 
it,  can  easily  turn  up  to  a  short  account  of  any  particular 
locality  or  subject.  The  language  is  clear,  and  not  over- 
burdened by  petrological  or  other  ver>'  learned  words. 
Altogether,  putting  aside  the  above-mentioned  blemishes, 
the  work  is  likely  to  be  of  much  use  in  leading  travellers  to 
observe  for  themselves  one  of  the  most  interesting  of 
geological  phenomena. 


196 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


Ol/R  BOOK  SHELF. 

Index  of  British  Plants,  arranged  according  to  the 
London  Catalogtce  {Eighth  Edition),  including  the 
Synonyms  used  by  the  Priticipal  Authors,  &^c.  By 
Robert  Turnbull.  Pp.  98.  (London  :  George  Bell  and 
Son,  1889.) 

This  alphabetical  synonymic  list  of  Bi-itish  flowering- 
plants  and  vascular  Cryptogamia  is  similar  in  general 
plan  to  that  which  was  published  about  a  year  ago  by  Mr. 
Egerton-Warburton,  which  we  noticed  at  the  time  of  its 
issue  (Nature,  vol.  xl.  p.  306).  The  author  uses  as  a 
basis  the  last  edition  of  the  London  Catalogue,  and  gives 
the  synonyms  of  all  the  species  that  are  described  under 
different  names  in  "  English  Botany,"  Bentham's  "  Hand- 
book," Babington's  "Manual,"  Hooker's  "Student's 
Flora,"  "  British  Wild  Flowers,"  Lindley's  "  Synopsis," 
Hooker  and  Arnott's  "British  Flora,"  Withering's  "Ar- 
rangement," Notcutt's  "  Hand-book,"  and  Hayward's 
"  Pocket-book."  The  author  has  carried  out  his  task 
very  carefully,  and  has  added  an  English  name  for  each 
species,  and  given  at  the  end  a  list  of  English  names 
in  alphabetical  order.  Two  things  lately  have  com- 
bined to  cause  considerable  change  in  plant-names, 
the  revision  and  redescription  of  the  genera  by  Bentham 
and  Hooker,  and  the  increased  attention  which  has  been 
paid  in  tracing  out  priority  by  Mr.  Daydon  Jackson  and 
Mr.  Britten  in  England,  and  by  Ascherson,  Nyman,  and 
many  other  writers  on  the  Continent.  We  have  noted  a 
few  slips  in  turning  over  the  pages.  For  instance,  there 
are  only  two  native  species  oi  Achillea, not  five — decolorans, 
serrata,  and  tanacetifolia,  being  manifest  introductions. 
No  wonder  the  author  has  not  been  able  to  refer  some 
of  the  older  bramble  names  to  their  London  Catalogue 
synonyms.  Guntheri,  Bab.,  and  saltnum,  Foche,  are  both 
synonyms  of  the  plant  called  Jlexuosus  in  the  London 
Catalogue.  The  book  will  be  found  useful  to  many 
collecting  botanists  scattered  up  and  down  the  country 
who  have  been  puzzled  to  understand  what  was  intended 
by  many  of  the  newly-introduced  names.  J.  G.  B. 

Practical  Observations  on  Agricultural  Grasses  and  other 
Pasture  Plants.  By  William  Wilson,  Jun.  (London; 
Simpkin,  Marshall,  and  Co.,  1889.) 

Mr.  Wilson  tells  us  that  "  agriculturists  have  allowed 
themselves  to  run  too  much  after  a  channel  of  indoor  in- 
vestigations." We  do  not  know  that  this  has  been  a  fault 
in  agriculturists,  and  are  not  convinced  of  the  fact.  Mr. 
Wilson  appears  to  have  omitted  to  acquire  one  important 
accomplishment  in  a  writer  on  any  subject — namely,  the 
power  of  writing  intelligibly.  He  tells  us  that  "  soil  may  be 
described  as  earthy  matter  on  the  surface  of  the  globe  " ; 
that  "  climate  has  been  described  as  a  very  complex 
matter,  depending  on  a  great  variety  of  conditions "  ; 
but  he  does  not  say  by  whom  it  has  been  so  lucidly 
"described."  We  are  told  that  "sweet-scented  vernal 
grass  is  one  which  most  writers  on  grasses  give  a 
place  as  a  useful  grass,  but  not  very  definite  as  to  what 
place  it  belongs,  as  it  is  not  very  readily  eaten  in  some 
parts  where  there  is  a  considerable  quantity  of  it." 
Speaking  of  rough-stalked  meadow-grass,  he  says :  — 
"The  Rev.  J.  Farquharson,  F.R.S.,  mentions  in  his  paper, 
which  I  have  previously  spoken  of,  as  having  cultivated 
it  successfully  on  such  soil,  testifies  as  to  the  fondness 
of  animals — both  cattle  and  horses — for  it,  both  as  pasture 
and  hay."  Again,  he  informs  us  that  "  the  fact  has  been 
pretty  well  borne  out  that  a  great  fault  has  been  to  look  at 
cultivation  too  much  in  the  light  of  a  matter  which  has 
been  thoroughly  investigated,  when  in  reahty  it  has  little 
more  than  reached  its  infancy."  Now,  with  all  respect  to 
Mr.  Wilson,  it  appears  to  us  to  be  mere  cant  to  talk  of  the 
most  ancient  of  all  arts  as  having  only  reached  its  infancy. 
The  style  in  which  this  little  eigh teen-penny  book  is  written 


is  poor  and  obscure,  and  the  above  quotations  may  be  con- 
sidered as  fair  samples  of  it.  For  instance,  the  eye  falls  by 
chance  on  the  following  passage  (p.  70) : — "  The  results  of 
my  observations  have  led  me  to  the  same  conclusion  as 
Mr.  Sinclair — am  of  opinion  that  a  mixture  of  it  {sic)  on 
dry  soil  would  prove  satisfactory,  but  should  not  be  sown 
on  clay  moist  soil."  That  this  work  should  have  reached 
a  second  edition  is  certainly  strange,  and  appears  to  indi- 
cate that  the  agricultural  palate  is,  as  yet,  particularly 
fresh.  It  must  require  a  good  deal  of  open-air  exercise 
to  enable  a  reader  to  digest  Mr.  Wilson's  crudities. 

W. 

The  State.  Elements  of  Historical  and  Practical  Politics 
By  Woodrow  Wilson,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.  (Boston,  U.S.A.  : 
Heath  and  Co.,  1889.) 
This  work  may  be  regarded  partly  as  a  text-book  of 
political  science  adapted  to  the  education  of  the  young, 
partly  as  a  repertory  of  what  the  writer  calls  "govern- 
mental facts,"  useful  to  readers  of  all  ages.  In  the  first 
part  of  his  task  Mr.  Wilson  has  encountered  great  diffi- 
culties. He  has  no  predecessors  in  whose  steps  to  follow. 
Also  the  loose  mass  of  facts  and  opinions  which  make  up 
what  is  called  political  science  does  not  admit  of  being 
compressed  with  safety.  Again  the  class  to  whom  Mr. 
Wilson  offers  a  highly  concentrated  intellectual  pabulum 
are  little  able  to  assimilate  this  species  of  nutriment 
even  in  its  most  digestible  form.  The  young  man,  says 
Aristotle  is  not  fit  to  be  a  student  of  political  science. 
These  difficulties  appear  to  have  been  surmounted  by  Mr. 
Wilson  better  than  might  have  been  expected.  He  avoids 
the  dogmatism  to  which  short  catechisms  are  liable.  For 
instance  in  his  section  on  the  probable  origin  of  govern- 
ment he  does  not  rule  that  the  earliest  constitution  of  the 
family  was  patriarchal,  or  "  matriarchal,"  as  we  believe  it 
is  now  the  fashion  to  say.  While  inclining  to  the 
former  view  he  presents  also  the  latter  ;  and  gives  refer- 
ences by  the  aid  of  which  the  enquiry  can  be  pursued. 
He  stimulates  curiosity  and  affords  the  means  of  gratify- 
ing it.  The  " evolution  of  government"  is  traced  from 
the  origin  of  the  Aryan  family  through  the  changing  types 
of  Greek  and  Roman  governments.  This  "  institutional 
history  "  is  somewhat  dry  ;  but  the  writer  expects  that  the 
topical  skeleton  furnished  by  him  will  be  clothed  upon  by 
the  lessons  of  the  intelligent  teacher.  Coming  to  modern 
times,  we  find  a  description  of  the  principal  pieces  of 
political  machinery  which  are  now  in  use  in  the  civilized 
world.  This  compilation  seems  to  serve  the  purpose  of  a 
sort  of  magnified  "  Whittaker."  If  anyone  who  has  not 
exhausted  the  subject  of  Home  Rule  wishes  to  refresh  his 
memory  as  to  the  relations  between  Austria  and  Hungary 
or  Sweden  and  Norway,  he  can  here  look  out,  as  in  a 
political  dictionary,  the  main  facts.  We  come  nearest  to 
the  "  practical  politics "  announced  in  the  title  in  the 
chapter  which  discusses  what  are  the  proper  objects  of 
government.  "  This,"  says  Mr.  Wilson  with  much  good 
sense,  "  is  one  of  those  difficult  problems  upon  which 
it  is  possible  for  many  sharply  opposed  views  to  be  held 
apparently  with  almost  equal  weight  of  reason  ...  It 
is  a  question  which  can  be  answered,  if  answered  at  all, 
only  by  aid  of  a  broad  and  careful  wisdom  whose  conclu- 
sions are  based  upon  the  widest  possible  inductions  from 
the  facts  of  political  experience  in  all  its  phases."  Mr. 
Wilson's  solution  of  what  Burke  has  called  the  "  finest 
problem  in  legislation  "  is  thus  stated  : — "  It  should  be  the 
end  of  government  to  accomplish  the  objects  of  organized 
society Not  licence  of  interference  on  the  part  of  govern- 
ment, only  strength  and  adaptation  of  regulation.  The 
regulation  which  I  mean  is  not  interference,  it  is  the  equal- 
ization of  conditions,  so  far  as  is  possible,  in  all  branches 
of  endeavour."  Perhaps  this  teaching  would  have  been 
more  impressive  if  the  writer,  condescending  to  particulars, 
had  discussed  pretty  fully  any  one  question  such  as  whether 
in  any  assigned  country,  the  railways  ought  to  be  managed 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


197 


by  the  state.  Once  more  however  we  admit  that  the 
scope  and  limits  of  his  work  have  imposed  upon  him 
almost  insuperable  difficulties. 

Introductory  Lessons  in  Quantitative  Analysis.  By  John 
Mills  and  Barker  North.  (London  :  Chapman  and 
Hall,  1889.) 

This  book  of  eighty-five  pages  is  the  first  part  of  a  larger 
work  by  the  same  authors,  which  will  shortly  be  published. 
It  is  designed  mainly  for  the  use  of  "students  in  evening 
classes  who  have  but  little  time  to  spare  in  acquiring 
such  knowledge,"  and  also  to  be  of  service  for  the  Science 
and  Art  Department  examination,  as  well  as  those  of 
London  University.  The  descriptions  contained  in  the 
three  chapters  constituting  the  book,  and  which  treat  of 
preliminary  operations,  gravimetric  analysis,  and  volu- 
metric analysis,  respectively,  are  meagre  in  the  extreme, 
and  lack  many  details  essential  to  a  primer.  Slips  and 
loose  statements  are  numerous.  For  example,  the  student 
is  led  to  infer  that  the  ash  of  any  of  Schleicher  and  Schiill's 
filter-papers  is  negligible.  Lead  is  estimated  by  means 
of  "  bichromate  of  potash,"  which  is  formulated  as  K^CrOi. 
On  p.  62  the  authors  assert  that  "  Normal  solutions  of 
univalent  substances  like  iodine,  silver  nitrate,  sodium 
chloride,  &c.,  contain  their  molecular  weight  in  grams  in 
one  litre."  Whatever  be  the  meaning  attached  to  this, 
it  is  in  no  way  confirmed  by  what  follows  on  p.  63 — 
namely,  that  "  The  atomic  weight  of  iodine  being  I26'5,  a 
normal  solution  would  contain  this  number  of  grams  in 
one  litre." 

The  general  scheme  of  work  set  out  in  the  lessons  is 
satisfactory,  and  if  carefully  elaborated  might  be  useful. 
In  its  present  condition,  however,  the  effect  of  the  book 
on  the  beginner  cannot  be  other  than  confusing. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

( TTie  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

Note  on  a  Probable  Nervous  Affection  Observed  in  an 
Insect. 

Whilst  walking  in  the  garden  one  bright  September  morning, 
my  attention  was  called  to  a  moth  fluttering  in  a  peculiar  manner 
on  the  ground  ;  it  kept  going  round  and  round  in  a  circle, 
running  with  its  feet  on  the  stones,  its  wings  meanwhile  being  in 
rapid  motion. 

I  captured  the  insect,  which  proved  to  be  a  quite  fresh  speci- 
men of  a  male  Orgyia  antiqua  (vapourer  moth),  of  which  there 
were  many  in  the  garden. 

I  replaced  the  insect  without  injury  on  the  path,  and  watched 
it  more  closely. 

The  movements  of  the  wings  were  irregular,  convulsive,  and 
very  rapid  in  character;  the  feet  and  body  were  also  in  rapid 
movement,  resulting  in  a  circular  motion  of  the  whole  insect 
from  right  to  left — that  is,  in  the  same  direction  as  the  move- 
ments of  the  hands  of  a  watch. 

1  again  captured  the  insect,  thinking  that  perhaps  one  of  its 
antennx-  might  have  been  injured  ;  but  on  careful  examination 
with  a  hand  lens,  I  could  detect  no  lesion  nor  the  presence  of  any 
parasite  which  might  account  for  the  condition. 

I  again  placed  the  insect  on  the  path,  when  it  immediately 
began  to  rotate  as  before.  It  seemed  unable  to  keep  still, 
though  evidently  trying  to  do  so. 

Occasionally  it  would  wedge  itself  in  between  two  or  more 
small  stones,  with  its  head  downwards,  and  the  under  surface  of 
its  body  upwards,  its  wings  resting  on  the  stones  below  ;  in  this 
position  it  appeared  to  obtain  some  relief,  as  the  movements 
were  less  continuous,   though  every  breath  of  wind   caused   a 


convulsive  twitching  of  the  wings  and  body.  On  one  occasion 
a  leaf  fell  upon  the  insect  whilst  wedged  in,  causing  a  very 
violent  convulsion  of  the  whole  insect,  by  which  it  was  jerked 
quite  out  of  its  retreat,  when  the  gyrating  movements  at  once 
began  again. 

I  tried  stroking  the  antennae  with  the  point  of  a  pencil,  but 
this  had  no  effect,  nor  could  I  obtain  cessation  of  movement 
by  stroking  the  body  or  the  wings ;  on  the  contrary,  when  the 
insect  was  wedged  in  each  touch  caused  a  convulsion,  varying 
with  the  intensity  of  the  stimulus  applied. 

These  movements  continued  without  interruption  for  fully 
forty  minutes,  the  insect  gyrating  in  a  space  about  a  foot  square. 
At  the  end  of  that  time  I  placed  it  upon  a  piece  of  smooth 
paper,  when  the  movements  became  more  rapid  and  the 
gyrations  less  ample,  it  completing  a  turn  in  much  less  time  than 
on  the  stones,  owing,  no  doubt,  to  there  being  no  projections  on 
the  paper  to  cause  the  insect  to  deviate. 

I  then  placed  it  in  a  shallow  cardboard  box  in  the  full  sun- 
light, but  protected  from  the  wind.  In  this  way  the  convulsive 
movements  were  less  intense  and  less  frequent  ;  the  insect,  how- 
ever, was  often  jerked  over  on  to  its  back,  then,  after  a  struggle 
or  two,  would  right  itself,  and  begin  to  go  round.  When,  how- 
ever, it  managed  to  press  the  top  of  its  head  against  the  side  of  the 
box,  so  that  its  antenna;  were  pressed  between  the  head  and  the 
side  of  the  box,  all  movement  ceased  till  some  external  stimulus 
again  set  it  in  motion. 

At  the  end  of  one  hour  the  insect  seemed  quite  exhausted,  a 
strong  stimulation  being  required  to  develop  one  convulsion. 

On  examination  I  found  that  it  had  worn  away,  in  its  move- 
ments, all  its  legs  with  the  exception  of  the  left  hind  leg,  which 
was  apparently  pretty  intact,  and  had  broken  both  its  wings  on 
the  right  side,  so  that  the  greater  part  of  them  hung  useless  over 
its  body. 

After  a  few  more  violent  convulsions,  the  upper  wing  of  the 
right  side  was  broken  off,  and  the  insect  now  began  to  revolve 
from  left  to  right,  owing,  I  suppose,  to  the  movements  of  the 
left  leg  ;  the  others  being  reduced  to  mere  stumps  would  have 
little  power  of  propelling  the  insect. 

About  twenty  minutes  later,  during  a  convulsion,  the  right 
hind  wing  was  broken  off. 

Shortly  afterwards  I  noticed  that  the  convulsive  movements 
of  the  antennas,  which  had  been  slight  up  to  that  time,  were 
much  increased  ;  indeed,  they  were  moving  so  rapidly  as  to  have 
the  appearance  of  two  small  black  wings. 

One  hour  and  fifty-five  minutes  after  I  first  noticed  the  insect 
all  convulsions  had  ceased ;  no  stimulus  could  excite  any  ;  the 
moth  was  dead. 

Conclusion. — The  insect,  suffering  from  no  apparent  injury, 
and  being  attacked  by  no  internal  or  external  parasite,  was,  I 
believe,  suffering  from  some  nervous  lesion.  I  was  unfortunately 
unable  to  examine  the  insect  microscopically  to  ascertain  if  the 
nervous  centres  exhibited  any  pathological  characters. 

E.   W.   Carlier. 


Does  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  increase  "i 

The  idea  was,  I  think,  suggested  by  myself,  and  has  been 
referred  to  with  approval  by  Mr.  Jukes-Browne,  that  much  of  the 
water  on  the  surface  of  the  globe  was  originally  occluded  in  the 
molten  interior,  and  has  been  emitted  by  volcanic  action  in  the 
course  of  ages.  Mr.  Mellard  Reade  argues  against  this,  that  the 
moon  is  covered  with  volcanic  craters,  and  yet  has  no  water  on 
its  surface,  and  that  if  the  accumulation  of  surface  water  has 
followed  volcanic  action  on  the  earth,  it  ought  likewise  to  have 
done  so  on  the  moon.  He  concludes  : — "  At  all  events,  it  seems 
a  reasonable  question  to  ask  why  oceans  should  be  supplied  with 
water  from  the  perspiring  pores  of  mother  earth,  while  her  off- 
spring, the  moon,  is  so  dry  as  to  have  absorbed  into  herself  all 
evidence  of  any  aqueous  envelope  that  may  have  formerly 
existed." 

It  is  a  singular  coincidence  that  one  possible  answer  to  this 
objection  is  suggested  by  a  notice  in  the  "  Astronomical  Column  " 
of  the  same  number  of  Nature  which  contains  Mr.  Reade's 
letter.  Therein  Prof  Thury  attributes  apparent  changes  in  the 
aspect  of  a  lunar  crater  to  the  melting  of  snow  or  ice  around  it. 
Neither  is  he  the  only  selenologist  who  thinks  that  those  crater- 
rings  consist  more  or  less  of  frozen  water.  If  they  do  so,  then 
there  is  water  on  the  moon,  although  in  a  solid  state.  On  the 
other  hand,  Proctor,  in  his    work  on  the  moon,  says  that  her 


198 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


surface  is  more  nearly  black  than  white,  which  seems  to  render 
the  existence  of  snow  fields  upon  it  less  probable,  unless  they  are 
covered  with  voloanic  dust,  as  the  end  of  a  glacier  usually  is 
with  rock  debris. 

But  even  if  we  take  Mr.  Reade's  view,  it  is  still  conceivable 
that  steam  may  have  been  the  explosive  agent  in  the  moon's 
volcanoes,  while  her  internal  temperature  was  very  high,  and 
that  the  resulting  water  may  have  been  subsequently  absorbed 
after  the  body  became  cool,  because  the  water  would  occupy 
less  space  within  the  interstices,  which  this  theory  of  imbibition 
postulates,  than  the  equivalent  vapour  did,  when  the  temperature 
was  high.  The  case  of  the  earth  would  not  be  a  parallel  one, 
because  it  has  not  yet  cooled. 

Although  not  myself  a  selenologist,  I  have  a  suspicion  that  very 
little  is  known  about  the  constitution  of  the  moon  ;  and  that  it  is 
not  even  certain  that  its  enormous  craters  are  all  of  them  really 
volcanic.  It  has  been  admitted  by  Prof.  Darwin,  in  discussing 
the  subject  with  Mr.  Nolan,  that  on  his  view  of  the  genesis  of  the 
moon  it  must  have  originally  existed  as  a  "  flock  of  meteorites." 
These  falling  in  during  the  later  stages  of  the  building  up  of  its 
mass  would  have  produced  pits  on  a  viscous  surface,  much  like 
some  of  the  craters. 

At  any  rate  it  seems  unsafe  to  rely  upon  arguments  respecting 
the  condition  of  the  earth's  interior,  of  which  we  know  little, 
drawn  from  that  of  the  moon's  body,  of  which  we  know  less. 

Harlton,  Cambridge.  O.  FiSHER, 


Exact  Thermometry. 

The  interesting  experiments  of  Dr.  Sydney  Young,  recorded 
in  Nature  of  December  19  (p.  152),  seem  to  leave  no  doubt 
that  the  main  part  of  the  permanent  ascent  of  the  zero-point  of 
a  mecurial  thermometer,  after  prolonged  heating  to  a  high  tem- 
perature, is  not  due  to  compression  of  the  bulb — rendered  more 
plastic  by  the  high  temperature — by  the  external  atmospheric 
pressure.  Researches  on  the  effects  of  stress  on  the  physical 
properties  of  matter  have  convinced  me  that  the  molecules,  not 
only  of  glass,  but  of  all  solids  which  have  been  heated  to  a 
temperature  at  all  near  their  melting-point,  are,  immediately 
after  cooling,  in  a  state  of  constraint,  and  that  this  state  can 
be  more  or  less  abolished  by  repeatedly  heating  the  solid  to 
a  temperature  not  exceeding  a  certain  limit,  and  then  allowing 
it  to  cool  again  (it  is  not  only  the  heating  but  the  cooling  also 
that  is  efficacious).  It  appears  that  the  shifting  backwards  and 
forwards  of  the  molecules,  produced  by  this  treatment,  enables 
them  to  settle  more  readily  into  positions  in  which  the  elasticity 
is  greatest  and  the  potential  energy  is  least. 

This  "accommodation"  of  the  molecules,  as  Prof.  G. 
Wiedemann  and  others  have  called  it,  is,  as  one  might  suppose, 
attended  with  alterations  of  the  dimensions  and  other  physical 
properties  of  solids,  and  is  not  confined  to  the  release  of  mole- 
cular strain  set  up  by  thermal  stress,  but  is  extended  to  the 
strain  set  up  by  any  stress  whatever.  As  years  roll  on,  the 
time  of  vibration  of  a  metal  pendulum  gradually  alters  (and  so, 
no  doubt,  do  the  lengths  of  our  standard  measures),  the  bulb  of 
a  thermometer  diminishes  in  volume,  a  steel  magnet  parts  with 
more  or  less  of  its  magnetism,  a  coil  of  German-silver  wire  gains 
in  electrical  conductivity,  &c.  The  changes  in  all  these  cases 
would  probably  be  far  less  than  they  actually  are  if  the  tempera- 
ture throughout  the  whole  time  could  be  maintained  constant  ; 
but  this  last  is  not  the  case — heating  and  cooling  goes  on  more 
or  less  every  day.  We  may  assist  the  effect  of  time  by  artificially 
increasing  the  range  of  temperature,  but  it  would  appear  that 
we  must  not  exceed  a  certain  limit  of  temperature,  which  limit 
depends  partly  upon  the  nature  of  the  substance  and  partly  upon 
the  stresses  that  are  acting  upon  it  at  the  time.  Thus,  the  in- 
ternal friction  of  a  torsionally  oscillating  iron  wire  which  has  been 
previously  well  annealed  may  be  enormously  diminished  by 
repeatedly  raising  the  temperature  to  100°  €.,  keeping  it  there 
for  several  hours,  and  then  allowing  it  to  fall  again.  The  amount 
of  diminution  of  internal  friction  depends  upon  the  nature  of  the 
wire,  and  on  the  load  which  there  is  at  the  end  of  it  (if  the  load 
exceeds  a  certain  amount,  the  friction  is  increased  instead  of 
diminished).  In  attempting  to  "accommodate  "  the  molecules 
in  this  manner  the  heating  must,  at  any  rate  in  some  cases,  be 
prolonged  for  several  hours,  and  the  substance  should  then  be 
allowed  to  remain  cold  for  a  still  longer  period. 

I  have  not  had  much  experience  with  glass,  but  I  think  it  prob- 


able that  the  settling  down  of  the  zero-point  of  an  ordinary  ther- 
mometer into  its  ultimate  position  could  be  very  materiall)' 
facilitated  by  the  heating  and  cooling  process  mentioned  above. 

Herbert  Tomlinson. 
36  Burghley  Road,  Highgate  Road, 
December  2^,  1880. 


Self-luminous  Clouds. 

Without  venturing  to  call  in  question  the  occasional  occur- 
rence of  self-luminous  clouds,  I  may  be  permitted  to  relate  an 
observation  which  seems  to  reveal  a  possible  source  of  error  in 
the  records  of  such  phenomena. 

On  June  14,  1887,  about  10.45  p.m.,  I  witnessed  an  ap- 
pearance over  the  north-north-west  horizon  which  struck  me 
as  very  remarkable.  Amidst  the  strong  glow  of  twilight  a  few 
fragments  of  cirrus  cloud  shone  with  a  pure  white  light  having  so 
much  the  character  of  phosphorescence  that  it  was  difficult  to 
believe  the  objects  were  not  self-luminous.  Looking  out  again 
an  hour  later,  I  found  no  trace  of  bright  clouds,  but  in  their 
place  were  small  bands  of  cirrus  showing  dark  and  grey  against 
the  feeble  twilight  that  remained.  I  could  not  but  conclude  that 
the  clouds  in  both  instances  were  the  same  or  similar,  lit  up  by 
the  direct  rays  of  the  sun  at  the  time  of  the  first  observation,  and 
having  lost  his  rays  at  the  time  of  the  second  observation.  Had 
they  been  self-luminous  they  should  have  become  brighter 
instead  of  darker  as  the  twilight  faded. 

It  has  been  suggested  to  me  that  the  bright  clouds  seen  at 
10.45  P-in.  may  have  owed  their  brightness,  not  to  the  sun's  rays 
falling  on  them  at  the  time,  but  to  a  temporary  phosphorescence, 
the  result  of  exposure  to  the  sun's  rays  in  the  day-time,  and  that 
this  temporary  quality  had  died  out  in  the  interval  between  the 
two  observations. 

I  think  this  explanation  is  unnecessary  for  the  following 
reasons.  In  the  first  place,  it  is  certain  that  if  a  cirrus  cloud 
were  present  in  the  atmosphere  at  a  sufficient  height  to  catch  the 
sun's  rays  at  10.45  P-m.  of  a  midsummer  day,  it  would  appear 
as  a  bright  object  amidst  the  surrounding  gloom.  And,  secondly, 
there  can  be  nothing  incredible  in  the  presence  of  a  cirrus  cloud  at 
that  height,  when  the  persistence  of  twilight  proves  the  presence 
of  atmospheric  particles  of  some  kind  at  a  greater  elevation 
still.  George  F.  Burder. 

Clifton,  December  19,  1889. 


Duchayla's  Proof. 

I  HAVE  read  with  much  interest  the  new  proof  given  by  Mr. 
W.  E.  Johnson  of  "  the  parallelogram  offerees,"  in  Nature  of 
December  19  (p.  153),  and  regard  it  as  deserving  a  place  among 
the  best  proofs  that  have  been  given. 

I  think,  however,  that,  in  his  criticism  of  Duchayla's  proof,  ISIr. 
Johnson  runs  to  excess,  when  he  says,  "  To  base  the  funda- 
mental principle  of  the  equilibrium  of  a  particle  upon  the 
transmissibility  of  force,  and  thus  to  introduce  the  conception  of 
a  rigid  body,  is  certainly  the  reverse  of  logical  procedure." 

Duchayla's  proof  only  requires  us  to  suppose  the  transmission 
of  force  by  strings.  A  particle  is  unthinkable.  In  presenting 
to  a  learner  the  conception  of  three  equilibrating  forces  acting 
on  a  particle,  we  cannot  do  better  than  represent  the  forces 
by  pulls  in  strings,  and  the  particle  itself  by  the  knot  where  the 
three  strings  are  tied  together.  All  the  steps  of  Duchayla's 
demonstration  that  the  resultant  force  is  directed  along  the 
diagonal  of  the  parallelogram  can  be  presented  in  tangible  form 
with  the  aid  of  strings.  I  do  not  think  this  is  an  illogical  or 
unnatural  procedure.  J.  D.  Everett. 

Belfast,  December  23,  1889. 


The  Satellite  of  Algol. 

The  results  of  Vogel's  photographs  as  to  the  satellite  of  Algol 
are  of  great  interest  to  your  astronomical  readers.  The  ob- 
servations made  at  Greenwich  tended  to  the  same  result,  but  were 
unfortunately  intermitted  before  anything  approaching  certainty 
was  arrived  at. 

Regarding  it  as  certain  that  the  variations  of  Algol  are  due  to 
the  interposition  of  a  satellite,  the  question  of  the  slight  change 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


199 


in  its  period  and  the  much  larger  change  observed  in  the  period 
of  another  variable  of  the  same  class  in  Cygnus  becomes 
important.  Besides  the  possibility  of  a  third  disturbing  body  it 
may  be  remarked  that  the  existence  of  the  solar  corona  and 
perhaps  other  appendages  of  the  sun  suggests  that  a  resisting 
medium  may  exist  in  the  entire  space  traversed  by  Algol  and  its 
satellite  at  each  revolution.  Also  if  the  influence  of  gravitation 
is  propagated  in  time  (with  whatever  degree  of  velocity)  the  very 
rapid  angular  motion  of  a  satellite  which  performs  a  complete 
revolution  in  less  than  three  days  (and  in  another  variable  of 
this  class  in  twenty  hours)  could  hardly  fail  to  exhibit  traces 
of  this  time-propagation.  The  attractive  force,  in  fact, 
would  never  act  in  the  line  joining  the  centres  of  the  principal 
star  and  satellite,  and  the  deviation  would  probably  be  per- 
ceptible. I  hope  some  mathematical  astronomer  will  take  up 
the  problem,  and  show  what  the  effects  of  each  of  these  supposed 
causes  would  be.  W.  H.  S.  Monck, 

16  Earlsfort  Terrace,  Dublin,  December  21,  1889. 


Maltese   Butterflies. 

In  reading  Mr.  Wallace's  "Darwinism"  I  am  reminded  by 
his  observations  on  Island  fauna  (p.  106)  of  the  impressions 
made  upon  me  by  the  natural  productions  of  Malta.  My  time 
was  so  fully  occupied  that  I  had  little  opportunity  of  exploring 
the  country  districts.  I  paid  one  visit  to  the  extraordinary  ruins 
of  a  Phoenician  temple  at  Hagiar  Kim,  and  one  to  the  curious 
islet  in  St.  Paul's  Bay.  On  the  latter  I  noticed  several  strange 
thistles  and  a  beautiful  flower — something  like  a  large  pink  or 
purplish  Tutsan.  On  the  barren  wastes  round  Hagiar  Kim 
many  familiar  wild  flowers  grew,  but  all  seemed  shrunk  and 
shrivelled  as  compared  with  those  of  Britain.  The  only  un- 
familiar one  was  called  by  the  natives  "the  English  flower."  It 
was  a  tall  trefoil  with  a  drooping  yellow  trumpet-flower  (not  at 
all  papilionaceous  in  form),  and  grew  plentifully  by  the  edges  of 
the  dustiest  roads — unlike  anything  I  know  in  England. 

I  lived  for  some  time  at  the  Imperial  Hotel,  at  Sliema,  which 
has  a  somewhat  extensive  garden,  in  which  I  used  to  spend  about 
half  an  hour  every  morning.  During  April  and  May  it  was  very 
lovely.  The  oleanders  were  then  in  their  richest  bloom ;  a 
shrub  like  a  gigantic  heliotrope,  both  in  flower  and  leaf,  was 
frequented  by  myriads  of  humming-bird  moths ;  there  were  a 
few  strawberry-plants,  the  fruit  of  which  was  delicious,  although 
even  smaller  than  that  of  our  own  wild  kind  ;  but  most  attractive 
to  me  were  the  clumps  of  valerian  and  scabious  which  were 
haunted,  just  as  at  home,  by  crowds  of  butterflies.  These  in- 
cluded blues,  coppers,  wood-ladies,  painted-ladies,  red-admirals, 
tortoise-shells,  and  swallow-tails.  All  of  these  were  smaller 
than  their  English  relatives  are,  and  much  less  brilliant  in  colour. 
The  swallow-tails  were  especially  dwarfed  in  their  proportions, 
I  am  puzzled  to  account  for  their  presence  in  Malta,  as  there  is 
nothing  like  a  marsh  or  a  fen  in  the  whole  island,  whilst  in 
England  they  are  only  to  be  found  in  the  district  of  the  meres. 
Can  any  of  your  readers  throw  light  on  this  mystery  ?  I  saw 
several  of  the  larger  hawk- moths.  They  did  not  seem  to  suffer 
in  size,  but  even  they  were  dimmer  in  their  colours. 

Hoping  to  get  a  general  idea  of  Maltese  entomology,  I  visited 
the  University  Museum — only  to  find  a  few  cases  of  insects  in 
which  every  specimen  had  been  devoured  by  mites  ! 

George  Eraser. 

Leighside,  Tunbridge  Wells,  December  22,  1889. 


A  Preservative, 

I  HAVE  been  very  much  troubled  in  conducting  classes  in 
mammalian  anatomy  by  the  want  of  a  preservative  medium 
which  would  retain  the  natural  colour  and  texture  of  tissues, 
would  impart  to  them  no  offensive  smell,  would  be  inexpensive, 
and  easily  handled.  Various  experiments  with  freezing,  alco- 
holic, glycerine,  and  other  media  have  all  proven  failures,  and 
this  fall  I  turned  to  experimentation  upon  the  simplest  and 
cheapest  of  all  chemical  reagents— water  and  table-salt.  My 
entire  success  with  these  was  so  satisfactory  that  I  shall,  at  the 
risk  of  telling  an  old  story,  state  the  experiments  here. 

I  tried  preserving  squirrels  in  three  strengths  of  salt  solution, 
one  of  5  parts  by  weight  of  salt  to  95  of  water,  a  second  of 
10  per  cent,  salt,  and  a  third  of  15  per  cent.  All  gave  satisfac- 
tion, but  the  10  per  cent,  seems  best,  because  the  weakest 
solution  in  which  putrefaction  could  not  take  place.     Specimens 


placed  in  five  times  their  bulk  of  this  solution  retain  the  natural 
flexibility  of  all  the  tissues ;  the  peculiar  look  of  nerve-tendon 
and  blood-vessel  against  muscle  is  retained  ;  the  tint  of  muscle 
is  faded  somewhat  by  the  solution  of  haemoglobin  from  the  blood, 
but  it  is  still  distinctly  reddish  ;  there  is  no  putrefactive  odour ; 
all  of  this  after  four  weeks  standing  in  the  laboratory. 

This  is  so  simple  a  preservative  that  I  wonder  that  it  is  not 
in  common  use.  H.  Leslie  Osborn. 

Hamline  University,  St,  Paul,  Minnesota, 
December  7,  1889. 


The  Evolution  of  Sex. 

It  is  a  fact  well  known  to  pigeon  fanciers  that  the  two  eggs  laid 
by  pigeons  almost  invariably  produce  male  and  female.  But  no 
attempt  appears  to  have  been  made  to  ascertain  which  of  the 
two  eggs  produces  the  male,  and  which  the  female.  The  second 
egg  is  laid  about  twenty-four  hours  after  the  first.  I  have  kept 
pigeons  for  seven  or  eight  years,  and  have  only  met  with  one  or 
two  instances  of  the  young  birds,  produced  from  the  two  eggs, 
being  of  the  same  sex,  Recently  I  have  made  several  experi- 
ments to  ascertain  if  any  relation  exists  between  the  order  in 
which  the  eggs  are  laid  and  the  sexes  of  the  young  birds 
produced.  The  results  show  that  the  egg  first  laid  produces  the 
female,  the  second  egg  the  male.  It  may,  perhaps,  be  well  to 
give  the  experiments. 

(i)    Egg  I  of  pair  A  produced  a  female  ;  egg  2  was  bad. 
('')  Egg  I. of  pair  B  produced  a  female  ;  egg  2  a  male. 
(iii)  Egg  I  of  pair  B  produced  a  female  ;  egg  2  a  male, 
(iv)  Egg  2  of  pair  B  produced  a  male  ;  egg  i  was  bad. 
(^)  Egg  I  of  pair  C  produced  a  female  ;  egg  2  was  bad, 
(vi)  Egg  2  of  pair  D  produced  a  male  ;  egg  I  was  broken. 

These  experiments  were  made  on  white  fantail  shakers.  A 
large  number  of  experiments  must  be  made  to  prove  if  this 
relation  does  exist  ;  should  it  be  found  correct,  an  examination 
of  the  eggs  and  of  the  ovary  of  the  parent  might  throw  some 
light  upon  the  "evolution  of  sex."  M.  S.  Pembrey. 

Oxford,  December  14,  1889. 


Fighting  for  the  Belt. 

A  FIGHT  has  been  going  on  in  my  verandah  for  the  last  half- 
hour  between  two  young  birds — minas — with  four  birds  of  last 
season  looking  on. 

Now  the  fight  is  just  over.  I  have  watched  it  throughout,  and 
am  positive  that  one  of  the  on-lookers  walked  often  round  the  com- 
batants without  interfering ;  and  that  another  on-looker  came, 
when  he  (or  she?) could,  and  attacked  one  of  the  fighters.  I  say 
"  came  when  he  could,"  because  the  other  on-looker  prevented 
him  if  possible — even  fighting  to  that  end.  It  seemed  to  me 
very  much  as  if  two  youngsters  from  different  nests  were  fighting 
for  the  belt,  and  the  parents  looking  on— the  one  complacently  at 
her  offspring's  success,  the  other  angry  and  breaking  the  rules  of 
the  ring  to  help  the  weaker.  F.  C.  Constable. 

Karachi,  December  i,  1889. 


The  British  Museum  Reading-Room. 

The  proper  ventilation  of  this  spacious  room  is  a  problem, 
surely  not  insoluble,  but  still  awaiting  solution.  Is  it  not  a 
serious  grievance  that  to  make  use  of  one  of  the  finest  libraries  in 
existence,  means,  for  many,  injury  to  health  ?  Bad  headaches 
and  other  ills,  due  to  the  stuffy  and  impure  atmosphere  which 
collects  about  the  desks,  are  a  common  experience  ;  and  I  know 
men  who  have  given  up  going  to  the  place  on  that  account. 
For  readers  who  live  by  work  which  can  only  be  done  there 
(some  of  whom  are  women),  the  matter  is  especially  grave. 
Officials,  again,  will  tell  you  that  they  often  feel  thoroughly  done 
out  after  their  day's  work,  which  in  itself  is  not  generally  severe. 
It  seems  to  me  the  atmosphere  improves  after  the  lamps  are  lit  ; 
possibly  owing  to  the  upward  current  of  heated  air.  If  this  were 
verified,  it  might  offer  a  clue  to  improvement.  The  whole 
matter  calls  for  thorough  scientific  investigation ;  and  I  would 
suggest,  as  a  preliminary  step,  that  analysis  be  made  of  the  air 
(say)  on  a  Saturday  afternoon,  with  regard  not  only  to  its  gaseous 
constituents,  but  also  to  micro-organisms,  which  are  no  doubt 
olentiful.  A,  B,  M, 


200 


NATURE 


\Jan.  2,  1890 


''AMONG  cannibals:'^ 

IN  the  year  1880,  Mr.  Carl  Lumholtz — as  he  explains  in 
the  preface  to  the  work  the  title  of  which  is  given 
below — undertook  an  expedition  to  Australia,  partly  at  the 
expense  of  the  University  of  Christiania,  with  the  object 
of  making  collections  for  the  zoological  and  zootomical 
museums  of  the  University,  and  of  instituting  researches 
into  the  customs  and  anthropology  of  the  Australian 
aborigines.  His  travels  occupied  four  years,  and  the  first 
part  of  that  time  he  spent  in  the  south-eastern  colonies, 
South  Australia,  Victoria,  and  New  South  Wales.  From 
November  1880  to  August  1881  he  was  in  Central  Queens- 
land, and  at  the  latter  date  he  began  his  first  journey  of 
discovery,  in  the  course  of  which  he  penetrated  about  800 
miles  in  Western  Queensland — the  results,  he  says,  in  no 
wise  corresponding  to  the  hardships  he  had  to  endure. 
He  then  went  to  Northern  Queensland,  where  he  spent 
fourteen  months  in  constant  travel  and  study,  his  head- 
quarters from  August  1882  to  July  1883  being  in  the  valley 
of  what  he  describes  as  "  the  short  but  comparatively 
broad  and  deep  Herbert  River,"  which  flows  into  the 
Pacific  at  about  18°  S.  lat.  From  his  base  on  this  river 
he  made  expeditions  in  various  directions,  extending  in 
some  instances  to  nearly  100  miles,  and  he  repeatedly 
came  in  contact  with  savages  who  had  never  before  been 
visited  by  a  white  man. 


It  is  to  the  period  spent  by  him  in  the  camps  of  the 
northern  aborigines  that  Mr.  Lumholtz  chiefly  devotes 
attention  in  the  present  volume,  and  it  would  hardly  be 
possible  to  praise  too  highly  the  manner  in  which  he  has 
recorded  his  experiences.  In  every  part  of  his  narrative 
he  displays  a  remarkable  power  of  keen  and  accurate 
observation,  and  he  presents  his  facts  in  a  style  at  once 
so  fresh  and  so  simple  that  from  beginning  to  end  the 
reader's  interest  is  maintained.  Hitherto  students  of 
anthropology  in  Australia  have  derived  their  materials 
mainly  from  the  southern  part  of  the  continent.  Mr. 
Lumholtz  may  almost  be  said,  therefore,  to  have  broken 
new  ground,  and  it  is  ground  which  it  was  well  worth 
while  to  break,  for  the  northern  aborigines — from  an 
anthropological  point  of  view — are  even  more  interesting 
than  the  southern  tribes.  They  are  decidedly  at  an 
earlier  stage  of  development,  and  many  of  them  have  been 
only  slightly  and  indirectly  influenced  by  the  ideas  of 
European  settlers. . 

If  there  are  any  survivors  of  the  school  of  Rousseau, 
who  attributed  so  many  fine  qualities  to  "  the  noble 
savage,"  it  would  be  wholesome  for  them  to  study  what 
Mr.  Lumholtz  has  to  tell  about  the  savages  of  Northern 
Queensland.  A  more  unlovely  picture  than  his  descrip- 
tion of  these  poor  people  it  would  hardly  be  possible  to 
imagine.  He  went  to  Australia  full  of  sympathy  with  the 
natives ;  when  he  left  it,  he  found  that  his  interest  in 


Fig.  I. — Brow-band  from  Central  Queensland  (\  size). 


them  was  as  deep  as  ever,  but  that  his  sympathy  had 
nearly  vanished.  That  they  are  cannibals  is  beyond 
doubt.  Luckily,  they  do  not  take  to  white  flesh  ;  it  has 
too  salt  a  flavour  for  their  taste.  But  native  flesh,  when 
they  can  get  it,  provides  them  with  the  meal  they  like 
best,  and  they  are  quite  willing  to  talk  freely  about  the 
parts  which  they  consider  the  most  delicious  morsels. 
They  are  not  only  treacherous,  but  seem  to  have  not  the 
faintest  idea  that  treachery  is  anything  to  be  ashamed  of. 
If  anyone  is  kind  to  them,  they  at  once  mistake  his 
motive  :  they  fancy  that  his  generosity  springs  from  fear, 
and  if  this  notion  gets  into  their  minds,  it  is  time  for  their 
benefactor  to  look  about  him,  for  they  will  not  scruple  to 
kill  him  in  order  to  obtain  possession  of  his  goods.  Mr. 
Lumholtz  found  that,  when  accompanied  by  a  party  of 
natives,  it  was  unsafe  for  him  to  walk  in  front  ;  he  had 
always  to  bring  up  the  rear,  and  to  keep  every  one  well 
in  view.  At  night,  before  going  to  sleep  in  his  tent,  he 
had  to  fire  his  gun  as  a  reminder  that  he  had  the  means 
of  defending  himself.  For  this  weapon  they  had  the 
most  profound  respect ;  also  for  his  revolver,  "  the  baby 
of  the  gun."  The  supreme  ambition  of  the  native  is  to 
have  as  many  wives  as  possible,  their  number  being  re- 
garded as  a  test  of  his  wealth  and  importance.     And  he 

'  "Among  Cannibals:  an  Account  of  Four  Years'  Travel  in  Australia, 
and  of  Camp  Life  with  the  Aborigines  of  Queensland."  By  Carl  Lumholtz, 
M.A.  With  Maps,  Coloured  Plates,  and  122  Illustrations.  (London  :  John 
Murray,  1S89.)  We  are  indebted  to  the  kindness  of  the  publisher  for  the  use 
of  the  cuts  reproduced  in  this  article. 


takes  good  care  that  they  shall  not  earn  his  approval  too 
easily.  All  the  hard,  disagreeable  work  has  to  be  done 
by  women,  and  when  they  excite  the  displeasure  of  their 
lords  they  may  think  themselves  well  off  if  they  are  not 
severely  beaten. 

In  every  way  these  savages  are  creatures  of  impulse.  It 
is  difficult  for  them  to  fix  their  attention  on  anything,  and 
they  can  look  ahead  only  a  very  short  way.  Fortunately 
for  themselves,  they  have  no  intoxicating  stimulants,  but 
tobacco  gives  them  intense  delight,  and  it  was  chiefly  by 
promising  to  reward  them  with  small  quantities  of  it  that 
Mr.  Lumholtz  was  able  to  secure  their  services.  When 
they  have  a  chance,  they  gorge  themselves  with  food  ; 
and  on  a  hot  day  they  plunge  like  dogs  into  water  they 
may  happen  to  pass.  At  the  approach  of  night  they  be- 
come timid,  trembling  at  every  sound  they  hear  in  the 
bush  ;  but  with  sunrise  all  their  fears  are  dispelled,  and 
after  they  have  become  thoroughly  awake — a  rather  slow 
process — they  are  ready  for  any  pleasure  that  may  come 
in  their  way.  It  is  a  happy  moment  for  them  when  they 
discover  a  tree  in  which  there  is  honey.  This  they  eat 
with  rapture  ;  and  Mr.  Lumholtz  says  he  has  known  cases 
in  which  they  have  lived  upon  it  for  three  days  in  succes- 
sion. If  a  savage  finds  such  a  tree,  and  is  not  able  at 
once  to  take  possession  of  its  treasure,  he  marks  the  tree, 
and  the  mark  will  be  respected  by  members  of  his  own 
family  or  clan.  There  is,  however,  no  conception  cor- 
responding to  the  idea  of  property,  so  far  as  anything 
claimed  by  strangers  is  concerned. 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


201 


As  the  people  live  in  small  groups,  they  have,  of  course, 
the  germs  of  social  life  ;    but  more  than  this  they  can 


scarcely  be  said  to  possess.     But  they  have  aptitudes 
which  have  been  naturally  developed  in  the  circumstances 


Fig.  2. — Wallaby  Hunt. 


in  which  they  spend  their  lives.     They   display   extra- 
ordinary cleverness  in  climbing  trees,  and  their  sense  of 


they  have  considerable  skill.  Fig.  i  represents  a  brow- 
band  of  native  workmanship  (5  size).  This  specimen 
however,  comes  from  Central  Queensland.  The  Austra- 
lians are  generally  supposed  to  throw  the  spear  well,  but 
Mr.  Lumholtz  never  discovered  any  remarkable  ability  of 
this  sort  among  the  blacks  of  Herbert  River.  Fig.  2, 
represents  a  wallaby  hunt,  which  he  had  an  opportunity 
of  seeing.     He  says  : — 

"  Soon  those  who  had  remained  behind  spread  them- 
selves out,  set  fire  to  the  grass  simultaneously  at  different 
points,  and  then  quickly  joined  the  rest.  The  dry  grass 
rapidly  blazed  up,  tongues  of  fire  licked  the  air,  dense 


Fig.  3. — Peculiar  position  of  natives  resting. 

smell  is  so  keen  that  it  is  invaluable  to  them  when  they 
are  tracking  wild  animals.  In  various  kinds  of  handiwork 


Carralinga 

come  here  to-morrow 

and  take  Nowwanjung. 

Fig.  4. — Message  stick,  with  interpretation  of  inscription. 

clouds  of  smoke  rose,  and  the  whole  landscape  was  soon 
enveloped  as  in  a  fog.  I  fastened  up  my  horse  and  went 
into  this  semi-darkness,  watching  the  blacks,  who  ran 
about  like  shadows,  casting  their  spears  after  the  animals 
that  fled  from  the  flames.  But  though  many  spears 
whizzed  through  the  air,  and  though  a  large  field  was 
burned,  not  a  single  wallaby  was  slain." 

Mr.  Lumholtz  often  noticed  natives  resting  in  a  most 
peculiar  position,  represented  in  Fig.  3.  "  They  stood 
on  one  foot,  and  placed  the  sole  of  the  other  on  the  inside 
of  the  thigh,  a  little  above  the  knee.  The  whole  person 
was  easily  supported  by  a  spear."     This  custom  is  said  to 


202 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  i8(,o 


prevail  among  the   inhabitants  of  the  Soudan  and  the 
White  Nile  district. 

A  kind  of  sign  language  is  occasionally  used  by  the 
Australians.  It  consists  of  figures  scratched  on  "  a 
message  stick  "  made  of  wood,  about  four  to  seven  inches 
long,  and  one  inch  wide.  Fig.  4  represents  one  of  these 
sticks.  It  conveys  a  message  from  a  black  woman  named 
Nowwanjung  to  her  husband  Carralinga,  of  the  Woongo 
tribe.     "  Other  message  sticks,"  says  Mr,  Lumholtz,  "are 


engraved  with  straight  or  circular  lines  in  regular  patterns 
as  in  embroidery  ;  this  has  caused  an  entirely  diiTerent 
view  of  their  significance,  which  supposes  them  to  be 
merely  cards  to  identify  the  messenger.  This  view  may 
be  correct,  but  it  is  not  corroborated  by  my  experience  on 
Herbert  River." 

Mr.  Lumholtz  secured  a  valuable  collection  of  zoological 
specimens,  and  some  of  the  best  passages  in  his  book  are 
those  relating  to  this  part  of  his  work.     Fig.  5  represents 


Fig.  5. — Young  Cassowary. 


a  young  cassowary,  which  the  natives  one  day  brought 
to  him,  with  two  eggs.  He  at  once  asked  the  natives  to 
guide  him  to  the  nest,  near  which,  in  a  bed  of  loose 
leaves,  he  placed  the  young  bird,  hoping  to  attract  the  old 
one.  After  the  lapse  of  about  ten  minutes  they  suddenly 
heard  the  voice  of  the  cassowary.  This  usually  sounds 
like  thunder,  "  but  now,  when  calling  its  young,  it  re- 
minded us  of  the  lowing  of  a  cow  to  its  calf."  Soon  the 
beautiful  blue  and  red  neck  of  the  bird  became  visible 


among  the  trees.  The  creature  "  stopped  and  scanned 
its  surroundings  carefully  in  the  dense  scrub,  but  a  charge 
of  No.  3  shot,  fired  from  a  distance  of  fifteen  paces,  laid 
it  low."  Six  natives  carried  home  the  prize,  which  proved 
to  be  an  unusually  fine  specimen  of  a  male. 

We  cordially  recommend  this  book  to  all  who  take  an 
interest  in  anthropology  and  zoology,  or  in  incidents 
of  travel  through  unfamilar  scenes.  They  will  find  in  it 
much  that  cannot  fail  to  give  them  genuine  pleasure. 


BRITISH  EARTHQUAKES. 

TT  is  somewhat  remarkable  that  the  ordinary  notion 
^  that  Great  Britain  has  a  special  immunity  from  serious 
earthquake  phenomena,  still  very  generally  obtains  credit. 
An  explanation  of  this  popular  fallacy  may  perhaps  be 
found  in  the  simple  fact  that,  on  the  average,  few  people 
living  at  any  one  time  chance  to  have  experienced  any 
considerable  shock  ;  whilst  in  the  case  of  those  few — we 
except  the  many  who  were  aiTected  by  the  disastrous  Essex 
earthquake  five  years  ago — who  have  felt  the  sensation, 
as  a  momentary  mental  impression  it  has  been  soon  for- 


gotten. It  should,  however,  by  this  time  be  more  gener- 
ally known  and  accepted  that  no  part  of  the  habitable 
globe  is  entirely  exempt  from  seismic  action,  and  that 
earth-tremors  of  considerable  amplitude  and  intensity  are 
by  no  means  necessarily  connected  with  volcanic  disturb- 
ances, as  was  formerly  supposed.  When  it  is  duly 
recognized  that,  at  the  lowest  computation,  600  dis- 
connected shocks  are  known  to  have  taken  place  in 
this  country  during  the  present  era,  the  popular  belief 
respecting  "  our  tight  little  island''  may  well  be  entirely 
shaken.  This  number  includes  many  earthquakes  of  con- 
siderable  magnitude,   and   the   additional    seismological 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


203 


evidence  of  modern  compilations  furnishes  the  testimony 
that  as  many  as  six  or  eight  minor  shocks  have  occurred 
annually  in  recent  years.  In  evidence  of  the  prevalence  of 
such  phenomena  in  England,  it  should  be  also  remem- 
bered that  it  was  on  this  island  that  Prof.  George  Darwin 
first  discovered  the  fact  of  the  continuous  microseismic 
vibration  of  the  earth's  crust. 

The  new  edition  of  the  late  Mr.  William  Roper's  excel- 
lent summary  of  the  principal  earthquakes  that  have 
been  recorded  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  during  this 
era,  which  has  lately  been  issued/  bears  witness  both 
to  the  frequency  of  such  phenomena,  and,  even  more 
strikingly,  to  the  great  advance  that  has  taken  place  within 
recent  years  in  the  study  of  seismology  in  Britain.  The 
increased  attention  which  has  been  devoted  to  the  subject 
is  doubtless  partly  due  to  the  extensive  shock  which 
occurred  in  this  country  in  1884. 

The  famous  Catalogue  compiled  by  Robert  Mallet  will 
ever  remain  the  cyclopaedic  work  of  reference  upon  which 
all  subsequent  earthquake  catalogues  will  necessarily  be 
based ;  and  the  name  of  Mallet,  as  the  authority,  naturally 
figures  most  extensively  in  Mr.  Roper's  list.  Until  re- 
cently, it  may,  indeed,  be  said  that  the  work  of  Mallet, 
and  of  M,  Alexis  Perrey,  of  Dijon,  stood  almost  alone 
as  the  historical  register  of  seismic  force  in  the  world. 
Within  the  last  few  years,  however,  the  valuable  experi- 
mental work  of  Prof.  Milne  and  others  in  Japan,  and  of 
numerous  European  and  American  seismologists,  has 
been  supplemented  by  several  treatises  devoted  to  British 
earthquakes  alone.  Some  of  these  publications — as  the 
detailed  report  of  the  great  Essex  earthquake,  and  Mr. 

E.  Parfitt's  Devonshire  Catalogue— being  issued  in  con- 
nection with  particular  areas,  and  by  local  scientific 
bodies,  have  had  a  restricted  application  ;  whilst  others, 
as  Prof.  O'Reilly's  catalogue,  and  the  one  just  mentioned, 
have  included  the  entire  British  Islands  in  their  scope. 
It  was  the  intention  of  the  present  writer,  when  engaged, 
in  conjunction  with  Prof.  Meldola,  upon  the  Report  of  the 
East  Anglian  earthquake,''^  to  furnish  a  full  list  of  British 
earthquakes  ;  but,  from  the  quantity  of  material  accumu- 
lated from  very  many  sources,  it  was  found  that  so  ex- 
tensive a  catalogue  grew  entirely  out  of  proportion  to 
the  purpose  of  a  special  monograph,  and  only  those 
disturbances  which  had  similarly  caused  structural 
damage  were  included  in  that  memoir.  These  alone, 
however,  number  as  many  as  sixty  well-authenticated 
records,  although  Mr.  Roper,  in  his  catalogue,  which, 
unfortunately,  is  very  scanty  in  point  of  detail,  omits  fully 
25  per  cent,  of  these  injurious  shocks.  But  since  his 
catalogue  too  modestly  professes  to  include  only  "the 
more  remarkable  earthquakes,"  it  is  to  be  expected  that 
numerous  omissions  might  be  noticed,  and  we  could 
readily  add  to  his  list  over  two  or  three  dozen  records 
(both  mediaeval  and  modern)  which  fully  equalled  the 
average  intensity  of  those  he  has  included.  In  fact, 
while  it  may  be  said  to  form  the  most  comprehensive 
list  of  British  earthquakes  that  has  yet  been  produced, 
it  is  incomplete,  and  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  that 
the  compiler  did  not  survive  to  finish  his  erudite 
undertaking,  as  is  explained  in  a  prefatory  note  by 
his  son. 

Mr.  Roper  has,  in  effect,  unconsciously  erred  unduly 
on  the  side  of  moderation,  since  he  includes  most  of  the 
fabulous  stories  that  belong  to  mediaeval  times,  while  he 
has  omitted  many  important  shocks.  This  recalls  a 
somewhat  strange  incident  in  connection  with  the  1884 
earthquake — namely,  that  more  damage  actually  occurred 
in  the  out-of-the-way  villages  chiefly  affected  by  the  shock, 
than  was  ever  reported  in  the   London  newspapers — a 

"  A  List  of  the  more  Remarkable  Earthquakes  in  Great  liritain  and 
Ireland  diinng  the  Christian   Era."     Compiled  by  William  Roper,  F.S.S., 

F.  R.Met.Soc.     (Lancaster:  Thos.  Bell.) 

^  "Report  on  the  East  Anglian  Earthquake  of  April  22,  1884."  By 
R.-iphael  Meldola,  F.R.S.,  &c.,  and  William  White.  (Essex  Field  Club 
Special  Memoirs,  vol.  i.)    (London  :  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1885.) 


fact  which  does  credit  to  the  caution  exercised  by 
the  daily  press  writers  at  the  time.  Too  much,  on  the 
other  hand,  was  made  of  the  really  slight  but  widely  dis- 
tributed shock  which  took  place  on  May  30  in  the  present 
year,  when  no  displacement  of  furniture  nor  stoppage  of 
clocks  then  resulted  ;  the  experience  being  limited  to  the 
rattling  of  windows  and  the  swaying  of  walls,  as  may  be 
seen  on  referring  to  the  summary  which  appeared  in 
Nature  for  June  6  (pp.  140-42). 

Covering  so  considerable  a  period  of  history,  and  in- 
cluding so  much  subject-matter,  Mr.  Roper's  work  cer- 
tainly deserved  a  more  extended  treatment  than  it  has 
received.  An  introductory  analytical  chapter  would 
have  added  considerably  to  the  interest  of  such  a  cata- 
logue, while  a  fuller  elaboration  and  thorough  editing 
would  have  advantageously  extended  the  work  beyond 
its  unpretentious  limit  of  fifty  pages.  The  convenient 
method  adopted  by  Mr.  Roper  of  inserting  a  preliminary 
list  of  "  principal  authorities  cited,"  is  almost  compulsory 
in  such  a  work,  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a  code  of 
abbreviations  for  subsequent  use  in  the  columns  of  the 
list ;  but  the  titles  are  generally  given  imperfectly  or  in- 
correctly, without  the  requisite  details  of  publication, 
while  the  dates,  where  given,  are  not  throughout  those 
of  the  original,  as  they  should  be,  but  of  later  reprints. 
These  and  similar  slight  defects  are  inconvenient  in  an 
historical  treatise,  and  we  hope  they  may  receive  attention 
in  the  event  of  another  edition  of  this  interesting  list  being 
called  for. 

The  total  number  of  distinct  earthquakes  included  in 
this  catalogue— regarding  the  series  of  repeated  shocks 
which  sometimes  take  place  within  a  brief  period  as  a 
single  record — amounts  to  582,  and  an  analysis  of  these 
records  may  be  of  interest  here,  as  furnishing  some  slight 
indication  of  the  chronological  distribution  of  the  chief 
seismic  disturbances  which  have  been  accounted  in 
British  annals  as  having  taken  place  within  our  area. 
They  may,  for  convenience,  be  arranged  as  they  occurred 
during  each  century,  and  term  of  500  years  :  thus — 


'^  Total  during  the  ist  500  years  34 


1st  century    .    .    .    . 

6 

2nd 

5 

3rd 

8 

4th 

9 

5th 

6 

6th 

7 

7th 

6 

8th 

7 

9th 

3 

loth 

5 

nth 

27 

1 2th 

28 

13th 

26 

14th 

12 

15th 

4 

i6th 

20 

17th 

36 

iSth 

132 

19th 

(to  1889)  . 

235 

„    .     „         2nd         „         28 


3rd  ,,         97 


4th  „      423 


It  may  perhaps  be  fairly  assumed  from  this  table  that 
no  true  estimate  of  the  actual  number  of  shocks  happen- 
ing within  each  period  can  be  arrived  at,  for  the  chief 
reason  that  the  records  are  entirely  subject  to  the  irre- 
gularities of  the  few  capable  observers  of  the  early  cen- 
turies. It  is  to  be  observed  that  423  shocks,  or  nearly 
75  per  cent,  of  the  total  number,  have  occurred  since 
1600,  which  may  be  considered  as  the  period  from  which 
the  more  trustworthy  accounts  commenced.  There  is  no 
reason  whatever  for  supposing  that  the  frequency  of 
seismic  shocks  has  increased  since  that  period  ;  and  the 
evidence  indicates  little  more  than  the  activity  of  the 
observers,  who  appear  to  have  fallen  off  considerably  at 
times,  as  during  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries. 
This  point  is  worth  remarking,  on  account  of  the  mis- 
leading statement  that  has  been   more  than  once  made, 


204 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


that  the  twelfth  century  was  specially  subject  to  earth- 
quakes. 

Since  the  development  of  telegraphy,  and  the  conse- 
quent rapid  production  of  daily  press  news,  the  means  of 
recording  such  phenomena  with  prompt  accuracy  has  of 
course  been  greatly  facilitated.  This  is  very  apparent 
when  the  number  of  shocks  which  have  occurred  within 
the  present  century  is  apportioned  into  decades  of  ten 
years.     Thus — 

In  1800-10  there  were    9  shocks  recorded. 


181 1-20 
1821-30 
1831-40 
1841-50 
1851-60 
1861-70 
1871-80 
1881-88 


36 
23 
49 
27 
12 

25 
18 

34 


Making  a  total  number,  between  1800-88,  of  233  shocks. 

Although  it  appears  from  this  artificially  divided  list 
as  if  a  low  decade  was  followed,  as  a  rule,  by  a  high 
decade,  the  number  being  often  doubled,  no  safe  compu- 
tation whatever  can  be  inferred  ;  and  the  more  one 
considers  the  facts  accumulated,  the  more  one  feels 
that  there  is  no  real  evidence  upon  which  the  various 
conjectures  respecting  earthquake  periodicity  have  been 
made.  About  a  dozen  only  of  the  numerous  Comrie 
shocks  are  included  in  the  above  figures,  but  even 
this  number  is  sufficient  to  materially  affect  any  such 
calculation,  whilst  very  many  other  well-authenticated 
shocks,  as  already  mentioned,  are  omitted  in  Mr. 
Roper's  list.  With  regard  to  Comrie,  in  Perthshire, 
it  may  further  be  remarked  that,  during  the  month 
of  October  1839,  as  many  as  sixty- six  separate  shocks 
are  reported  to  have  taken  place ;  and  during  the  years 
1839-42,  altogether  upwards  of  200  vibrations  were  ex- 
perienced in  that  district  iodide  NATURE,  vol.  xxiii.  pp. 
117  and  170). 

With  regard  to  the  trustworthiness  of  the  earlier  records, 
it  may  be  generally  assumed  that  some  earth  vibration  did 
actually  take  place  at  the  time  stated,  notwithstanding  the 
exaggerations  and  extraneous  notions  that  were  mixed  up 
with  such  phenomena  in  superstitious  times.  But  whether 
the  occurrence  was  in  every  case  an  earthquake  in  the 
proper  sense  of  the  term  is  open  to  doubt.  It  is, 
indeed,  highly  probable  that  such  occurrences  as  that 
recorded  under  the  date  of  June  7,  1750,  and  other 
more  recent  cases,  were  not  earthquakes  at  all,  but  the 
effect  of  bursting  bolides,  similar  to  the  phenomenon 
which  was  described  very  fully  in  Symons's  Meteorological 
Magazine  for  December  1887.  Others,  again,  appear  to 
have  been  no  more  than  extensive  landslips,  or  other 
superficial  rock  displacements  resulting  from  aerial  denu- 
dation ;  while  some  others  were  probably  only  connected 
with  violent  storms,  or  the  frost-cannonadings  which  are 
commonly  produced  on  exposed  chalk  cliffs  during  the 
winter  season. 

The  absurd  statements  that  were  made  respecting 
some  of  the  older  occurrences  are  evidently  either  inten- 
tional or  unintentional  falsehoods  ;  but  many  of  them  con- 
tain so  much  quaint  humour  that  a  few  samples  are  well 
worth  quoting.  In  the  year  132  a.d.  there  was  a  terrible 
earthquake  in  England,  when  '"men  and  cattle  were 
swallowed  up  "  ;  but  this  fashion  in  recording  events  had 
been  set  at  least  twenty-nine  years  earlier,  for  in  the 
year  103,  "a  city  is  said  to  have  been  swallowed  up." 
In  418  there  was  one  that  was  "  great  and  general  ;  then 
famine,  plague,  hail,  snow,  cold,  and  meteors."  In  505 
one  lasted  for  three  hours.  At  about  three  o'clock  on 
August  1 1,  1089,  there  was  a  terrible  one  in  England, 
which  caused  great  scarcity  of  fruit,  and  a  late  harvest  ; 
while  twelve  years  later  there  was  another  that  "  terrified 


all  England  with  a  horrid  spectacle,  for  buildings  were 
lifted  up  and  then  again  settled  as  before."  Again,  in 
1 177,  near  Darlington,  "the  earth  swelled  up  to  a  great 
height  from  nine  in  the  morning  to  the  setting  of  the 
sun,  and  then  with  a  loud  noise  sank  down  again  "  ;  there 
was  another  that  took  up  all  the  day  in  mo;  while  on 
September  11,  1275,  a  great  earthquake  was  felt  in  New- 
castle, with  "  dreadful  thunder  and  lightning,  blazing  stars, 
and  a  comet,  ....  with  the  appearance  of  a  great 
dragon,  which  terrified  the  people  between  the  first  and 
third  hour  of  the  day.''  This  savours  somewhat  of  the 
Chinese  dragon  fables,  while  some  others  almost  match 
the  deluge  of  Noah  in  their  vast  extent.  In  974,  for 
instance,  "  a  great  one  shook  the  whole  of  England  "  ; 
while  earlier  still,  in  856,  one  occurred  "  over  the  greatest 
part  of  the  known  world."  In  11 33,  "in  manie  parts  of 
England  an  earthquake  was  felt  so  that  it  was  thought 
that  the  earth  would  have  sunke  under  the  feete  of  men, 
with  such  a  sound  as  was  horrible  to  heare."  In  1290, 
there  was  one  felt  in  England  that  was  described  as 
being  "nearly  universal  (I)  in  Europe"  ;  while  we  are 
assured,  with  circumstantial  evidence,  that,  in  the  year 
1426,  "  on  the  even  of  St.  Michael  the  Archangel,  in  the 
morning  before  day,  betwixt  the  hours  of  one  and  two  of 
the  clocke,  beganne  a  terrible  earthquake,  with  lightning 
and  thunder,  which  continued  the  space  of  two  boures, 
and  was  universal  through  the  world.  The  unreasonable 
beasts  rored  and  drewe  to  the  townes  with  hideous  noise  ; 
also  the  fowls  of  the  ayre  likewise  cried  out." 

Space  does  not  permit  of  other  equally  curious  accounts, 
as  marvellous  almost  as  the  more  primitive  traditions  of 
patriarchal  times  regarding  the  vindictive  forces  of  Nature. 
Whatever  may  be  said  about  the  accompaniments  and 
absurd  effects  which  have  been  ascribed  to  earthquake 
action,  the  majority  of  those  shocks  which  are  recorded 
as  having  caused  damage  to  buildings  may  fairly  be  set 
down  as  facts,  and  although  they  may  have  occasionally 
been  exaggerated,  some  of  the  details  are  generally 
authentically  described. 

A  curious  problem  may  be  raised  with  regard  to  the 
effect  of  earthquakes  upon  river  courses.  That  shoals 
have  frequently  been  produced  along  marine  coasts  is 
well  known,  a  striking  case  being  that  which  happened 
early  in  January  1885,  off  Malta,  to  the  extent  of  danger- 
ously affecting  navigation  ;  but  there  are  several  accounts 
which  agree  in  the  assertion  that  the  beds  of  such  navi- 
gable streams  as  the  Trent  and  the  Thames  have  been 
temporarily  raised  by  local  earthquakes  so  as  to  permit 
of  people  "  passing  over  dry-shod."  What  became  of  the 
river  course  during  the  operation  is  a  problem  that  does 
not  appear  to  have  required  solution.  Yet  sufficient 
circumstantial  evidence  has  been  produced,  in  connection 
with  the  shock  in  mo  at  Nottingham,  and  in  1158  at 
London,  to  almost  warrant  the  idea  that  a  certain  amount 
of  credence  may  be  given  to  the  stories.  Whether  it 
may  be  inferred  from  such  statements  that  a  change  in 
the  bed  of  the  rivers  in  question  then  took  place  is  doubtful, 
as  history  yields  us  no  information  on  the  point. 

As  a  general  statement  we  may  safely  infer  finally  that 
earthquakes  in  Great  Britain,  including  the  microseismic 
disturbances  which  are  now  so  frequently  recorded,  were 
as  common  in  the  past  as  in  the  present  period  of  more 
scientific  observation ;  though,  fortunately, such  calamitous 
results  as  attended  the  catastrophe  in  Essex  within  recent 
times  continue  to  be  rare.  It  is  still  a  matter  for  regret, 
however,  that  no  steps  have  yet  been  taken  to  establish 
seismographs  in  different  parts  of  this  country.  Until 
this  is  done,  the  chance  records  of  various  individuals — 
whose  impressions,  being  inevitably  affected  more  or  less 
by  the  personal  equation,  produce  only  doubtful  data — 
must  continue  to  take  the  place  of  precise  observation. 

William  White. 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


205 


EFFECT  OF  OIL  ON  DISTURBED   WATER. 

GENERALLY  speaking,  proverbs  are  the  resultant 
expression  of  observed  facts,  but  the  efficacy  of 
oil  upon  troubled  waters  would  appear  to  be  a  proverb 
which,  instead  of  being  preceded  by  and  founded  upon 
trial  and  experiment,  has  rather  led  to  the  scientific  de- 
monstration and  establishment  of  the  truth  it  asserts. 
From  the  very  earliest  ages  the  effect  of  oil  when  poured 
upon  disturbed  water  appears  to  have  been  widely  known. 
Aristotle  mentions  it,  and  accounts  for  the  phenomenon 
by  assuming  that  the  thin  film  of  oleaginous  matter  into 
which  oil  resolves  itself  when  poured  upon  water  pre- 
vents the  wind  from  obtaining  a  hold  upon  the  water, 
and  so  checks  the  wave  formations  which  are  the  usual 
results  of  wind  at  sea.  Pliny,  too,  observes  that  among 
the  officers  of  his  fleet  the  soothing  influence  of  oil  was 
matter  of  common  knowledge,  and  that  the  Assyrian 
divers  were  in  the  habit  of  sprinkling  the  surface  water 
with  oil  when  they  wished  to  smooth  down  ripples,  and 
so  obtain  a  better  light  for  prosecuting  their  work  below. 
Coming  down  to  more  recent  times,  the  custom  of  oiling 
the  waves  with  a  view  to  facilitate  navigation  would  ap- 
pear to  have  fallen  into  desuetude.  Benjamin  Franklin, 
however,  seems  to  have  been  led,  from  observing  the 
effect  of  pouring  overboard  some  greasy  water,  to  test 
its  potency  in  a  thoroughly  scientific  manner,  when  on  a 
voyage  across  the  Atlantic.  Having  experimented  with 
great  success  upon  the  surface  of  a  pond  near  London, 
he  tested  the  effects  of  oil  upon  the  sea  itself.  A 
stormy  day  was  chosen,  and  from  a  boat,  some  half  a 
mile  from  the  beach  at  Portsmouth,  oil  was  poured 
upon  the  sea.  The  experiment  met  with  a  very  small 
share  of  success,  for,  while  a  greasy  patch  of  water 
was  discernible  right  to  the  shore,  the  surf  con- 
tinued to  break  upon  the  beach  with  unabated  vigour. 
Subsequent  and  recent  investigation  has  confirmed 
Franklin's  finding,  and  proved  that  the  greatest  benefit 
derived  from  the  use  of  oil  is  obtainable  in  deep  water, 
where  wave-motion  is  merely  undulatory.  When  a  shore- 
approaching  wave  ceases  to  find  enough  depth  to  impart 
to  its  neighbour  its  peculiar  undulatory  motion,  it  is  no 
longer  a  wave  pure  and  simple,  but  becomes  an  actual 
moving  body  of  water  which  moves  rapidly  forward, 
until  it  breaks  with  great  violence  upon  the  shore  ;  upon 
such  waves  as  these,  oil  has  little  or  no  effect. 

The  knowledge  of  the  influence  of  oil  upon  a  rough  sea 
has  long  been  known  to  those  engaged  in  the  whale  and 
seal  fisheries,  and  its  application  is  of  common  occurrence. 
When  their  vessels  or  boats  are  overtaken  by  a  storm, 
they  usually,  by  means  of  a  drogue  or  sea  anchor,  make 
what  is  nauticafly  termed  a  dead  drift,  i.e.  they  suffer 
themselves  to  be  slowly  drifted  before  the  wind.  In  such 
circumstances  as  these,  the  application  of  oil  to  the  waves 
insures  that  the  area  into  which  the  boat  drifts  is  one  of 
calni;  as  the  oil  spreads  more  rapidly  than  the  boat 
moves,  and  consequently  prepares  a  smooth  patch  for 
the  vessel  to  drift  into.  If  the  captain,  however,  prefers 
to  run  his  vessel  before  the  wind,  then  she  ranges  ahead 
of  the  oiled  patch,  and  thus  the  effect  of  oiling  the  waves 
is  very  materially  discounted. 

The  native  Eskimo,  when  engaged  in  transporting 
his  family  from  place  to  place,  always  insures  a  smooth 
passage  for  the  oomialc,  or  women's  boat,  by  trailing  a 
punctured  skin  filled  with  oil  from  the  stern  of  his  kayak, 
which  he  propels  at  some  considerable  distance  ahead  of 
the  boat  containing  his  wife  and  children. 

Within  the  last  twenty  years  many  well-authenticated 
instances  have  been  placed  on  record  as  to  the  potency 
of  oil  as  a  water-soother,  but  unfortunately  the  value  of 
such  reports  is  very  much  diminished  by  the  ship-masters 
neglecting  to  explain  the  relative  position  of  their  vessel 
in  regard  to  the  wind  and  sea.  The  British  warship 
Swiftsicre,  when  on  a  voyage  from  Honolulu  to   Esqui- 


mault,  encountered  a  gale  accompanied  by  tremendous 
seas.  A  bag,  punctured  with  the  point  of  a  knife,  was 
filled  with  oil  and  rigged  out  on  the  weather  side  of  the 
vessel.  This  had  such  a  marked  effect,  that  the  vessel 
rode  bravely  through  the  gale,  and  reached  her  destina- 
tion in  perfect  safety.  On  October  8,  1880,  a  Mr.  Fonda- 
caro  left  Monte  Video  for  Naples  in  a  three-ton  boat. 
He  arrived  at  Malaga  on  February  4,  1881.  On  his 
voyage  across  the  Atlantic,  he  had  repeatedly  to  lay-to 
during  stress  of  weather,  and  reports  that  he  considered 
his  safe  arrival  entirely  due  to  his  use  of  oil.  A  gallon  of 
olive-oil  would  last  him,  when  hove-to,  for  twenty-four 
hours.  He  gives  it  as  his  experience  that  oil  does  not 
diminish  the  size  of  the  waves,  but  renders  them  compara- 
tively harmless  by  preventing  their  breaking.  There  is 
a  consensus  of  opinion  among  those  who  have  tested 
the  use  of  oil,  that  a  small  quantity  is  quite  as  efficacious 
as  a  larger  one,  a  consumption  of  one  pint  per  hour 
being  sufficient.  Small  as  this  quantity  is,  the  ex- 
treme expansibility  of  oil  when  floating  upon  the  water 
renders  it  quite  adequate.  Thus  a  ship  running  10  knots 
an  hour  will  leave  behind  her  a  wake  some  10  knots  by 
40  feet,  covered  with  a  thin  film  of  oil. 

The  Dunkirk  Chamber  of  Commerce,  fully  alive  to 
the  vast  importance  of  the  use  of  oil  as  materially  con- 
ducing to  safe  navigation,  have  just  reported  on  the 
results  of  some  tests  made  at  their  direction  among 
the  French  fishing  fleet  off  Iceland.  One  master  reports 
that  by  its  use  he  was  enabled  to  ride  out  successfully  a 
prolonged  and  severe  spell  of  bad  weather,  which  com- 
pelled his  confreres  to  run  to  port  until  the  weather 
moderated.  The  Chamber  rewarded  him  with  100  francs. 
Other  captains  who  have  reported  in  detail  the  result  of 
their  experiments,  agree  with  him  in  stating  that,  for 
small  vessels  experiencing  stress  of  weather  in  deep 
water,  the  use  of  oil  cannot  be  too  highly  recom- 
mended. 

Nor  is  the  utility  of  oil  confined  alone  to  this  branch 
of  marine  navigation.  Advices  just  received  from  New 
York  furnish  some  interesting  particulars  relative  to  the 
towage  of  the  disabled  steamship  Italia  of  the  Ham- 
burg American  Company.  The  Italia  broke  her  shaft 
whilst  proceeding  from  Havre  to  New  York:.  In  this 
condition  she  was  taken  in  tow  by  the  Gellert,  of  the 
same  company.  The  towing  hawsers — 6-inch  steel  wire — 
were  lengthened  by  heavy  chain  cables  until  the  distance 
between  the  two  vessels  was  increased  to  1000  feet. 
Unfortunately,  a  heavy  gale  from  the  north-west  caused 
a  dangerous  sea  to  arise,  and  it  was  feared  that 
the  Italia  would  have  to  be  abandoned.  As  a  last 
resort,  a  can  of  oil  with  a  small  hole  in  the  bottom  was 
set  over  the  stern  of  the  Gellert.  The  effect,  according  to 
the  master.  Captain  Kampf,  was  magical.  The  seas  broke 
over  the  bows  of  the  Italia  with  much  less  fury,  merely 
surging  past  in  a  heavy  swell,  while  the  tension  on  the 
cable  was  immediately  relieved,  and  the  Gellert  was 
enabled,  in  spite  of  continued  bad  weather,  to  reach  New 
York  in  safety,  having  towed  her  charge  continuously  for 
the  distance  of  750  miles.  Possibly  many  cases  of  aban- 
doned towages  in  bad  weather  might  be  averted  did  the 
masters  of  tugs  but  try  the  effect  of  a  little  oil  prior  to 
casting  the  vessel  adrift. 

The  true  part  played  by  this  oleaginous  film  iij 
diminishing  the  disturbance  of  the  sea  seems  to  be  that  of 
a  lubricant.  Waves  are  formed  by  the  friction  of  wind 
and  water.  Any  force,  therefore,  that  tends  to  lessen  the 
friction  reduces  the  violence  of  the  waves.  As  far  as  is 
at  present  known,  animal  or  the  heavier  vegetable  oils 
form  the  best  lubricant  between  the  two  elements. 
Mineral  or  fossil  oils,  which  possess  less  viscosity  and 
are  less  oleaginous  in  their  mechanical  properties,  exert 
much  less  influence  upon  the  water.  This  anti-frictional 
force  of  oil  can  hardly  be  over-estimated.  The  Atlantic 
waves  have  been  calculated  to  exert  an  average  pressure 


2o6 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


during  the  winter  months  of  2086  pounds  per  square  foot. 
During  a  heavy  gale  this  pressure  is  increased  to  6983 
pounds  ;  yet  the  thin  oil  blanket  is  sufficient,  when  applied 
under  certain  conditions,  to  enable  a  vessel  to  navigate 
through  them  in  perfect  safety,  their  oiled  summits  raising 
themselves  in  sullen  grandeur,  but  never  breaking  aboard. 
What  the  exact  coefficient  of  friction  between  air  in 
motion  and  water  is,  and  the  proportion  of  its  reduction 
by  oil  or  other  lubricants,  are  questions  that  open  up  a 
most  interesting  subject  of  inquiry,  the  resolution  of 
which  will  prove  highly  beneficial  to  the  whole  nautical 
and  mercantile  world. 

Numerous  experiments  have  been  made  with  a  view  to 
testing  the  utility  of  oil  in  smoothing  the  approaches  to 
exposed  harbours  in  rough  weather.  The  tests  undertaken 
at  Peterhead  have  met  with  unqualified  success.  The 
modtts  operandi  has  been  to  lay  leaden  pipes  along  the 
bottom  of  the  harbour,  taking  care  to  keep  the  pipes 
stationary  by  means  of  concrete.  The  pipe  is  provided 
with  numerous  roses  for  disseminating  the  oil.  When 
rough  weather  comes  on,  oil  is  forced  along  the  pipes, 
and  it  escapes  into  the  water  through  the  apertures 
provided,  and  then,  its  specific  gravity  being  less  than 
that  of  water,  it  rises  to  the  surface  and  quickly  renders 
the  sea  less  turbulent  and  the  passage  into  the  harbour 
quite  safe.  Another  method  employed  to  render  safe 
ingress  into  harbours  in  bad  weather  is  that  of  firing  out 
to  sea  an  oil-carrying  projectile.  This  consists  of  a  heavy 
tin  tube  weighted  with  lead  at  one  end.  The  tube  is 
filled  with  two  or  three  quarts  of  oil,  and  the  aperture 
stopped.  When  the  projectile  is  fired  from  a  gun  or 
mortar,  it  reverses,  and,  the  time-fuse  exploding,  the 
powder  blows  out  the  plug,  and  the  liberated  oil  falls 
into  the  sea.  A  series  of  experiments,  conducted  by  a 
Committee  appointed  by  the  United  States  Life-saving 
Service  to  inquire  into  the  practical  utility  of  oil-carrying 
projectiles,  goes  to  confirm  the  statement  made  above,  viz. 
that  the  power  of  oil  to  subdue  the  force  of  the  waves  in 
shoal  water,  or  to  prevent  the  waves  breaking  in  surf,  is 
very  small  indeed.  There  is  one  point,  however,  upon 
which  all  authorities  who  have  tested  the  use  of  oil  at 
sea  are  agreed.  As  an  adjunct  to  the  equipment  of  ships' 
boats  it  is  simply  invaluable.  Many  a  shipwrecked  crew 
have  been  enabled  to  keep  their  frail  craft  afloat  until 
land  was  reached  or  a  rescue  effected,  solely  by  its  use. 
Nothing  is  more  common  among  the  records  of  ship- 
wrecks than  to  read  of  the  small  boats  either  being 
swamped  while  at  the  vessel's  side,  or  capsizing  through 
stress  of  weather.  In  January  1884  the  Cambria  emi- 
grant ship  was  run  into  by  the  Sultan  in  the  North  Sea, 
and,  out  of  522  on  board,  416  were  drowned.  Of  the 
four  starboard  boats,  no  less  than  three  capsized,  and  all 
their  occupants  perished.  In  the  collision  in  the  Channel 
between  the  Forest  and  Avalaiiche,  two  out  of  three  boats 
which  left  the  Forest  were  swamped,  and  all  on  board 
lost  their  lives.  These  are  but  two  instances  out  of  many 
where  lives  miirJit  have  been  saved  bv  the  use  of  a  little 
oil. 

The  subject  of  saving  endangered  life  at  sea  is  one  that 
always  enlists  the  deepest  sympathies  of  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men.  The  perusal  of  the  "  Annual  Wreck 
Chart,"  published  by  the  Board  of  Trade,  or  of  the 
lamentable  records  of  personal  sorrows  and  destitution 
consequent  upon  the  disasters  around  our  coasts,  sug- 
gests the  possibility  that  the  loss  of  life  might  be  con- 
siderably reduced  by  a  practical  knowledge  of  the  best 
methods  of  applying  oil  during  storms  at  sea.  We  think 
that  much  might  be  done  by  its  use  to  facilitate  the 
launching  of  boats  from  distressed  vessels,  and  their  safe 
subsequent  navigation.  Harbours  of  refuge  on  exposed 
coasts  might  be  established  at  a  very  small  cost. 

In  one  department  alone  of  our  maritime  industry, 
deep-sea  fishing,  many  lives  might  be  saved.  At  pre- 
sent, the  mortality  among  the  carriers,  i.e.  those  engaged 


in  carrying  in  small  boats  the  fish  from  the  smacks  to  the 
steam  despatch-boats,  is  very  great.  Their  boats  might  be 
equipped,  at  a  very  low  cost,  with  oil-tanks  or  oil-bags  to  be 
used  when  trans-shipments  are  being  effected  in  heavy 
weather.  Already  the  Governments  of  the  United  States 
and  Germany  have  realized  the  vast  importance  of  this  sub- 
ject, and  have  instituted  an  exhaustive  series  of  experiments 
with  the  view  of  rendering  compulsory  the  carrying  of 
oil  for  use  as  a  life-saving  equipment.  When  that  com- 
plex and  overburdened  instrument  of  government,  the 
Board  of  Trade,  was  asked  in  Parliament  to  cause  experi- 
ments to  be  made  relative  to  the  use  of  oil  at  sea,  the  reply 
was,  that  there  were  no  funds  available  for  the  pur- 
pose ;  that  the  Board  could  not  spend  money  or  become 
investors  in  such  schemes.  The  Consultative  Committee 
appointed  under  the  Life-saving  Appliances  Act  of  last 
year  have,  however,  suggested  oil-bags,  among  other 
equipments,  to  be  carried  by  boats  and  rafts.  At  the 
International  Maritime  Conference  at  Washington,  U.S., 
this  subject  has  received  the  attention  its  importance 
merits.  Further,  the  National  Life-boat  Institution  and 
the  National  Sea  Fisheries  Protection  Association  have 
amalgamated  their  forces  with  a  view  to  testing  the  efficacy 
of  oil,  but  as  yet  the  results  of  their  investigations  have 
not  been  published.  W'hile  it  is  very  gratifying  to  know 
that  the  man  of  science  and  the  philanthropist  are  ready 
to  explore  the  practical  utility  of  this  question,  we 
cannot  hope  for  any  satisfying  material  results  until  the 
Board  of  Trade  sees  its  way  to  take  administrative 
action  in  the  matter,  and  to  deal  in  a  fitting  manner  with 
a  question  that  is  so  indissolubly  connected  with  the 
interests  of  all  classes  of  this  great  mercantile  community. 

Richard  Beynon. 


RECENT  OBSERVATIONS  OF  JUPITER. 

OBSERVATIONS  of  Jupiter  have  been  conducted 
under  great  difficulties  during  the  past  opposition 
in  consequence  of  the  low  altitude  of  the  planet.  His 
elevation,  even  at  meridian  passage,  has  only  been  about 
16°,  as  observed  in  this  country,  so  that  the  study  of 
his  surface  markings  has  been  much  interrupted  by  the 
bad  definition  which  usually  aftects  objects  not  far  re- 
moved from  the  haze  and  vapours  on  the  horizon.  It  is,, 
however,  important  that  planetary  features,  especially 
those  which  exhibit  changes  of  form  and  motion,  should 
be  watched  as  persistently  as  circumstances  allow,  and 
with  this  purpose  in  view  Jupiter  has  been  submitted  to- 
telescopic  scrutiny  whenever  the  atmosphere  offered 
facilities  for  such  work  during  the  past  summer  and 
autumn.  Few  opportunities  occurred,  however,  during  the 
latter  season  owing  to  the  great  prevalence  of  clouds,  and 
on  the  several  nights  sufficiently  clear  for  the  purpose,  the 
atmosphere  was  unsteady  and  the  definition  indifferent  : 
thus  the  more  delicate  lineaments  of  the  planet's  surface 
could  be  rarely  observed  with  satisfactory  distinctness. 

The  great  red  spot  was  visible  on  the  night  of  May  21, 
1889,  and  it  was  estimated  to  be  on  the  central  meridian 
at  I2h.  31m.  Further  views  of  the  same  object  were 
secured  in  June,  July,  and  later  months.  In  appearance 
and  form  it  presented  much  the  same  aspect  as  in  pre- 
ceding years.  Its  elliptical  outline  is  still  preserved,  and 
there  seems  to  have  occurred  no  perceptible  change  in  its 
size.  It  is  somewhat  faint  relatively  to  the  very  con- 
spicuous belts  north  of  it,  and  it  is  only  on  a  good  night 
that  it  can  be  well  recognized  as  a  complete  ellipse  with  a 
dusky  interior.  On  the  evening  of  September  12  last,  I 
obtained  an  excellent  view  of  it  with  my  lo-inch  reflector, 
power  252.  The  spot  was  central  at  6h.  33m.,  and  its 
following  end  was  seen  to  be  much  the  darkest.  This  has 
usually  been  the  case,  and  I  have  often  noticed  a  very 
small,  black  spot  at  this  extremity.  Another  observation 
was  effected  on  the  early  evening  of  November  26,  when 
the  spot  crossed  the  planet's  centre  at  3h.  54m.,  but  the 


Jan.  2,  1890 


NATURE 


207 


exact  time  was  a  little  uncertain,  the  conditions  being  far 
from  favourable.  Possibly  the  spot  may  have  effected  its 
passage  a  little  before  this  time,  as  from  several  views  of 
the  following  end  of  this  object  at  about  4h.  30m.,  I  con- 
cluded my  estimate  might  be  a  trifle  late,  but  in  any  case 
the  error  would  be  small. 

Comparing  the  observation  on  November  26]with  that 
recorded  on  May  21,  it  will  be  found  that  in  the  interval 
of  i88"64  days  the  red  spot  completed  456  rotations,  and 
that  its  mean  period  was  gh.  55m.  40*1 5s.  This  is  nearly 
identical  with  the  rotation  period  I  found  for  the  same 
object  in  1888,  when  it  was  gh.  55m.  40"24s.  (462  rotations), 
and  in  1887,  when  the  figures  were  gh.  5Sm.  4o"5s.  It  is 
evident  from  these  several  determinations  that  during  the 
last  three  oppositions  the  motion  of  the  spot  has  been 
very  consistent  and  equable.  There  has  been  a  slight 
acceleration  perhaps  in  velocity,  inducing  the  rotation 
period  to  become  a  little  shorter,  but  the  differences  are 
so  small  that  they  may  well  be  covered  by  the  observa- 
tional errors  which  cannot  be  altogether  eliminated  from 
work  of  this  character,  and  particularly  at  a  time  when 
the  object  observed  is  unfavourably  placed.  In  any  case 
the  red  spot  has  rotated  with  more  celerity  during  the  last 
year  or  two  than  in  1886,  when  its  mean  period  was 
9h.  55m.  4ris.,  to  which  it  had  gradually  increased  from 
9h.  55m.  34'2s.  in  1879-80.  These  variations  of  motion 
may  be  regularly  effected  in  a  cycle,  and  it  will  be  very 
important  if  future  observations  can  determine  the  exact 
period. 

The  white  spots  near  the  equator  of  Jupiter  are  still 

occasionally  visible,  but  it  has  not  been  feasible  to  secure 

I    views  of  them  of  a  sufficiently  exact  nature  to  deduce 

f     their  rotations.     In  recent  years  the  apparent  velocity  of 

\    these  objects  has  been  decreasing,  for  while  in  the  autumn 

'     of  1880  their  period  was  9h.  50m.  6s.,  it  was  found,  from 

many  observations  of  similar  markings  by  Mr.  A.  Stanley 

Williams,  of  Brighton,  in  1887,  that  it  had  increased  to 

9h.  50m.  22'4s. 

Smce  1884  a  number  of  white  spots  have  been  also 
observed  on  the  northern  borders  of  the  great  northern 
equatorial  belt.  The  period  of  these  is  but  very  slightly 
less  than  that  of  the  red  spot.  On  September  12,  I  ob- 
served one  of  these  situated  in  a  longitude  not  far  pre- 
ceding the  west  end  of  the  red  spot,  and  it  appeared  to 
have  divided  the  equatorial  belt  with  a  vein  of  bright 
material.  There  was  another  object  of  the  same  kind 
following  the  red  spot,  but  in  this  case  the  continuity  of 
the  belt  was  not  interrupted,  the  bright  matter  appearing 
as  a  slight  indentation  in  its  northern  side.  •  These  mark- 
ings are  shown  in  a  drawing  of  Jupiter  made  by  Mr. 
Keder  with  the  great  Lick  refractor,  power  315,  on 
September  5  last,  but  they  are  not  delineated  in  quite 
the  same  characters  as  seen  here.  The  drawing  alluded 
to  is  perhaps  the  best  and  the  most  replete  with  detail  of 
any  I  have  ever  seen  of  this  planet,  and  it  furnishes  clear 
testimony  that  the  defining  properties  of  the  36-inch 
telescope  are  of  the  highest  order. 

The  curiously  curved  belt  immediately  north  of  the  red 
spot  is  still  one  of  the  most  -prominent  features  on  the 
planet's  disk.  It  forms  the  southern  half  of  the  great 
south  equatorial  belt  which  is  double.  Under  the  ends 
•of  the  red  spot  it  suddenly  dips  to  the  north  and  runs 
into  the  other  half  of  the  belt.  In  recent  years  the 
curved  belt  has  been  very  dark  and  pronounced  in  the 
region  contiguous  to  the  following  end  of  the  red  spot, 
and  upon  its  crest  there  have  been  condensations  of 
•extremely  dark  matter.  Under  the  preceding  end  of  the 
spot  this  belt  is,  however,  more  delicate  in  tone,  and  it 
looks  like  a  mere  pencil  shading. 

During  the  few  ensuing  years  these  interesting  features 
may  be  studied  to  greater  effect,  as  the  planet  will  assume 
a  more  northerly  position,  and  rise  above  the  vaporous 
undulations  which  have  recently  much  interfered  with 
•observations  of  his  surface.  W.  F.  Denning. 


NOTES. 

Dr.  Archibald  Geikie,  F.R.S.,  has  just  received  a  diploma 
of  membership  of  the  Kaiserlich  Leopoldinisch-Carolinisch 
Deutsche  Akademie  der  Naturforscher,  the  oldest  scientific 
Society  of  Germany. 

Sir  John  Lubbock's  name  appears  in  the  list  of  those  who 
have  received  New  Year's  honours  and  appointments.  He  has 
been  made  a  member  of  the  Privy  Council.  A  baronetcy  has 
been  conferred  on  William  Scovell  Savory,  F.  R.  S.,  President 
of  the  Royal  College  of  Surgeons. 

The  Paris  municipality  proposes  to  do  honour  to  the  memory 
of  Darwin  by  naming  a  new  street  after  him. 

A  Committee  has  been  formed  in  Paris  for  the  purpose  of 
preparing  the  way  for  the  erection  of  a  statue  of  the  late  M. 
Boussingault.  His  scientific  researches  were  of  so  much  service 
to  industry,  especially  to  agriculture,  that  the  Committee  ought 
to  have  little  difficulty  in  obtaining  the  necessary  funds. 

The  death  of  Sir  Henry  Yule,  which  we  regret  to  have  to 
record,  is  a  great  loss  to  geographical  science.  He  died  on 
Monday,  in  his  seventieth  year.  His  masterpiece  was  his 
splendid  edition  of  the  "Book  of  Ser  Marco  Polo" — a  work 
to  the  permanent  value  of  which  he  added  largely  by  his 
learned  and  luminous  notes. 

We  regret  to  announce  the  death,  after  an  illness  which  lasted 
some  months,  of  M.  Eugene  Deslongrhamps,  of  the  Chateau 
Mathieu,  Calvados.  He  was  formerly  Professor  of  Zoology  and 
Palaeontology  at  the  Faculty  of  Sciences  at  Caen,  and  a  member 
of  the  committee  of  the  "  Palaeontologie  Frangaise."  He  was  the 
son  of  the  celebrated  French  palaeontologist,  Prof.  Eudes-Deslong- 
champs,  and  published  several  memoirs  on  the  palseontological 
fauna  of  Normandy,  ranging  from  Brachiopoda  to  the  Crocodilia. 
His  best  known  memoirs  are  the  "  Prodrome  des  Teleosauriens 
du  Cavaldos  "  and  "  Les  Brachiopodes  des  Terrains  Jurassiques." 

German  papers  announce  the  death  of  Dr.  Karl  Edward 
Venus,  an  eminent  entomologist,  and  founder  of  the  Entomo- 
logical Society  "  Iris,"  at  Dresden.     He  died  on  December  13. 

The  Congress  of  Russian  men  of  science  and  physicians  is 
now  holding  its  eighth  meeting.  Work  began  on  December  28, 
and  will  go  on  until  January  7. 

The  general  meeting  of  the  Association  for  the  Improvement 
of  Geometrical  Teaching  will  be  held  in  the  Botanical  Theatre, 
University  College,  London,  on  Friday,  January  17,  At  the  morn- 
ing sitting  (11  a.m.)  the  reports  of  the  Council  and  the  Commit- 
tees will  be  read,  the  new  officers  will  be  elected,  and  various 
candidates  will  be  proposed  for  election  as  members  of  the  Asso- 
ciation. After  an  adjournment  for  luncheon  at  i  p.m.,  members 
will  reassemble  for  the  afternoon  sitting  (2  p.m. ),  at  which  papers 
will  be  read  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  C.  Taylor,  on  "A  New  Treatment 
of  the  Hyperbola"  ;  by  Mr.  G.  Heppel,  on  "  The  Teaching  of 
Trigonometry;"  by  Mr.  E.  M.  Langley,  on  "Some  Geome- 
trical Theorems "  ;  and  by  the  President  (Prof.  Minchin),  on 
"  Statics  and  Geometry." 

The  Annual  Conference  of  the  Principals  of  the  University 
Colleges  was  held  on  Tuesday  at  the  Durham  College  of  Science, 
Newcastle-upon-Tyne,  Principal  Garnett  occupying  the  chair. 
The  Principals  were  subsequently  entertained  at  dinner  by  the 
chairman.  Several  questions  affi:cting  the  interests  of  the 
Colleges  collectively  were  discussed  at  the  meeting,  and  it  was 
decided  on  the  invitation  of  Principal  Reichel  that  the  next 
gathering  should  be  held  at  University  College,  Bangor. 

The  Paris  Municipal  Council  has  lately  instituted  two  new 
scientific  chairs  in  the  Hotel  de  Ville.     One  of  them  is  devoted 


208 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


to  the  study  of  the  history  of  religions.  The  other  is  a  Chair  of 
Biology,  and  has  been  entrusted  to  Prof.  Pouchet,  of  the  Natural 
History  Museum,  who  delivers  a  course  of  general  lectures  on 
the  fundamental  ideas  relating  to  zoology,  anatomy,  life,  &c. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Senate  of  the  University  of  Sydney,  on 
November  4,  1889,  a  letter  from  Dr.  Hasv^ell  was  read,  inti- 
mating his  acceptance  of  the  Senate's  offer  of  the  Challis  Pro- 
fessorship of  Biology,  to  take  effect  from  March  i,  1890. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Manx  Geological  Society  on 
December  28,  in  the  Peel  Grammar  School,  Dr.  Haviland,  the 
retiring  President,  referred  with  pleasure  to  the  fact  that  early  in 
the  summer  Mr.  Robert  Russell  had  been  sent  to  prosecute  the 
geological  survey  of  the  Isle  of  Man.  Dr.  Haviland  was  also 
able  to  congratulate  Peel  on  the  prospect  of  a  system  of  technical 
education  being  established  in  Christian's  School,  under  the 
au  pices  of  the  Cloth  Workers'  Company  and  Sir  Owen  Roberts. 

Mr.  a.  V.  Garratt,  Secretary  of  the  American  National 
Electric  Light  Association,  has  sent  to  the  members  a  circular 
letter,  asking  them  to  state  briefly  the  hardest  electrical  problems 
they  meet  in  their  investigations  or  in  the  conduct  of  their  elec- 
trical business.  He  asks  them  also  to  state  what  feature  of  their 
business  is  the  least  economical  or  efficient,  and  why,  and  where 
the  greatest  economy  could  be  effected  if  the  difficulty  could  be 
overcome.  The  answers  to  these  queries  will  be  digested,  and 
the  results  submitted  to  Prof  Henry  A.  Rowland,  of  Johns 
Hopkins  University.  Prof  Rowland  has  con-dented  to  address 
the  next  Electric  Light  Convention  at  Kansas  City  in  February, 
basing  his  remarks  upon  the  problems  suggested  by  the  members, 
and  pointing  out  the  direction  in  which  their  solution  must  be 
sought- 

M.  Victor  Giraud,  the  African  explorer,  has  just  published 
the  narrative  of  his  explorations  in  the  African  Lake  Region 
from  1883  to  1889.     The  work  contains  many  illustrations. 

The  fourth  volume  of  M.  Grandeau's  "  Etudes  Agrono- 
miques,"  just  issued,  contains  a  review  of  British  and  American 
agriculture,  as  represented  at  the  Paris  Exhibition. 

An  historical  sketch  of  the  geographical  works  relating  to 
Russia  has  been  compiled  by  Baron  Kaulbars  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Imperial  Geographical  Society  of  Russia,  in  which  the 
author  endeavours  to  show  the  respective  parts  played  by  the 
army  and  navy,  with  various  scientific  societies,  in  the  exploration 
and  representation  of  the  Empire.  Beginning  with  the  map 
found  by  Dr.  Michof  in  St.  Mark's  library,  Venice,  only  five 
years  ago,  and  dating  back  to  1525,  he  traces  all  the  labours 
geographic  and  geodetic,  referring  to  Russia.  The  astronomer 
Struve  figures  well  among  the  latter  workers  in  the  measure- 
ments of  various  meridian  arcs  and  the  determination  of 
differences  of  longitude,  whilst  few  can  speak  with  more  authority 
than  Colonel  Baron  Kaulbars  himself  on  the  geographical  portion. 
Hydrographical  labours  began  with  Peter  the  Great,  and  all 
similar  undertakings  completed  by  the  Russian  navy  have  been 
brought  together  ;  the  bibliographical  sketch  commencing  with 
the  Baltic  Sea,  as  being  the  most  important  in  the  history  of  the 
navy.  In  the  chapter  chronicling  the  works  of  scientific  societies, 
accounts  are  given  of  the  many  explorations  into  Siberia  and 
Arctic  regions.  A  long  and  complete  list  of  all  maps  due 
to  Russian  topographers  is  also  given  in  historical  sequence, 
together  with  the  various  scales  used. 

The  Report  of  the  Kew  Committee  for  the  year  ending 
October  31  last  contains  an  interesting  account  of  the  experi- 
ments carried  on  at  the  Kew  Observatory ;  the  list  of  instru- 
ments verified,  especially  clinical  thermometers,  Navy  telescopes 


and  sextants,  and  of  chronometers  and  watches  rated,  is  a  suf- 
ficient test  of  the  value  set  upon  the  certificates  given.  The 
death  of  Mr.  De  la  Rue,  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee,  wilt 
be  much  felt,  as  he  was  one  of  the  most  munificent  benefactors 
of  the  Observatory,  and  it  was  at  his  suggestion  that  the  first 
photohelio^raph  was  constructed  and  brought  into  use  there. 
The  complete  sets  of  magnetic,  meteorological,  and  electrical 
instruments  have  been  kept  in  perfect  working  order,  and  sum- 
maries of  the  results  for  the  year's  working  are  given  in  the 
appendices  to  the  Report.  Sketches  of  sun-spots  have  been 
made  on  173  days,  and  the  collection  of  solar  negatives  taken 
between  1858  and  1872  have  been  handed  over  to  the  Solar 
Physics  Committee,  with  a  view  to  their  utilization.  A  good 
whirling  machine  has  been  erected,  for  the  purpose  of  examining 
the  accuracy  of  small  anemometers  and  of  the  air-meters  em- 
ployed in  measuring  air-currents  in  mine-shafts,  &c.  In  accord- 
ance with  a  resolution  of  the  International  Meteorological 
Committee,  a  thermometer  of  very  low  range  has  been  con- 
structed, to  be  used  as  a  standard  spirit  thermometer  for 
temperatures  ranging  from  zero  to  about    -  70°  C. 

Messrs.  Sampson  Low  have  issued,  with  Mr.  Stanley's 
permission,  a  shilling  volume,  containing  "The  Story  of  Emin's 
Rescue  as  told  in  Stanley's  Letters."  It  has  been  edited  by 
Mr.  Keltie,  who  contributes  an  introduction  bringing  the  narra- 
tive of  the  Emin  Pasha  Relief  Expedition  up  to  the  date  at 
which  the  first  of  Mr.  Stanley's  letters  was  received.  A  map, 
showing  Mr.  Stanley's  routes  and  discoveries,  is  included  in  the 
volume. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Photographic  Society  on  December  10^ 
Mr.  G.  M.  Whipple  read  an  interesting  and  valuable  paper  on 
photography  in  relation  to  meteorology.  There  are  now  32 
observatories — 8  in  this  country,  7  in  the  colonies,  and  17 
abroad — in  which  photographic  apparatus  is  used  for  meteoro- 
logical observations. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  French  Meteorological  Society  of 
December  3,  1889,  M.  Wada  gave  an  account  of  the  cyclone 
which  ravaged  the  southern  and  eastern  part  of  Japan  on  Sept- 
ember II  and  12  last.  The  centre  of  the  storm  followed  a 
course  towards  N.  35°  E.,  progressing  at  a  rate  of  30  to  43 
miles  an  hour,  the  velocity  of  the  wind  reaching  65  miles  an 
hour.  The  barometer  fell  to  28*23  inches — a  reading  which  is 
only  known  to  have  occurred  once  before  in  Japan.  This  storm 
raised  an  enormous  wave,  said  to  have  been  nearly  20  feet  above 
high-water  mark,  and  which  carried  away  3000  houses.  M. 
Ritter  explained  his  experiments  upon  the  artificial  production 
of  clouds  in  liquids  and  gases.  With  regard  to  the  clouds  in 
the  atmosphere,  the  author  distinguishes  two  principal  kinds — 
viz.  (i)  the  "stratus"  and  semi-transparent  mist,  and  (2)  the  or- 
dinary forms,  such  as  "cumulus,"  &c.,  and  he  deals  with  them 
from  two  points  of  view  :  the  diffusion  of  vapour  according  to 
Dalton's  law,  and  the  transference  of  clouds  by  the  movement 
of  the  air.  He  referred  to  the  different  results  produced  from 
these  conditions,  with  regard  to  suspension  in  the  atmosphere, 
&c.  The  details  of  the  paper  will  be  published  in  the  Anntiaire 
of  the  Society. 

The  Jaarbock  of  the  Royal  Meteorological  Institute  of  the 
Netherlands  for  1888  is  the  fortieth  of  the  series,  and  contains, 
in  addition  to  the  daily  observations  and  summaries  at  various 
stations  a  summary  of  phenological  observations  for  1879-88, 
and  observations  at  Parimaribo,  Jeddah,  and  from  the  Upper 
Congo.  The  preface  contains  an  explanation  of  the  conventional 
signs  used  in  this  long  series,  and  of  the  curious  errors  which 
have  occurred  from  time  to  time  ;  a  reference  to  this  volume  is 
therefore  necessary  to  anyone  who  wishes  to  make  use  of  the 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


209 


observations  of  previous  years,  as  the  errors  are  not  all  typo- 
graphical ;  for  instance,  the  wind  is  given  during  a  year  and 
eight  months  in  kilometres  per  hour  instead  of  \  kilometres. 
But,  notwithstanding  certain  defects  and  peculiarities  of  methods, 
the  Institute  has  been  consistent  in  keeping  to  one  and  the 
same  plan,  from  a  period  at  which  the  publication  of  systematic 
observations  was  in  its  infancy. 

The  trustees  of  the  Missouri  Botanical  Garden,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  intention  of  its  founder,  have  set  a  good  example 
by  establishing  six  scholarships  for  garden  pupils,  the  object 
being  to  provide  theoretical  and  practical  instruction  for  young 
men  desirous  of  becoming  gardeners.  The  course  of  instruction 
will  extend  over  six  years,  and  will  include  thorough  training  in 
every  department  of  work  in  which  practical  gardeners  are 
interested. 

From  the  latest  Report  of  the  School  of  Mines  and  Industries 
at  Bendigo,  Victoria,  we  are  glad  to  learn  that  this  institution 
continues  to  make  steady  progress.  In  1883-84  it  had  324 
students.  The  number  in  1888-89  was  799.  This  shows,  as 
the  Council  fairly  claim,  that  the  efforts  of  the  school  to  supply 
scientific  and  technical  education  to  miners,  engineers,  assayers, 
architects,  pharmacists,  artisans,  art  students,  and  others  are 
thoroughly  appreciated  in  Australia.  Some  of  the  students 
hail  from  Queensland,  South  Australia,  and  other  distant  parts. 

The  fifth  part  of  the  second  volume  of  the  Internationales 
Archiv  fiir  Ethtiographie  has  been  issued.  It  maintains  in 
all    respects    the   high    level    reached    by    previous    numbers. 

Among   the   contributions   are     an   article    in    German,   by  F. 

Grabowsky,  on  death,  burial,  and  the  funeral  festival  among  the 
Dajaks  ;  and  one  in  English,  by  Prof.  H.  H.  Giglioli,  on  a 
singular  obsidian  scraper  used  at  present  by  some  of  the  Galla 
tribes  in  southern  Shoa. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Philosophical  Institute  of  Canterbury, 
New  Zealani,  on  October  3,  Mr.  H.  O.  Forbes,  Director  of  the 
Canterbury  Museum,  Christchurch,  described  an  extinct  species 
of  swan  from  osteological  remains  which  he  had  discovered  while 
excavating  a  cave  recently  exposed  at  Sumner,  on  the  estuary  of 
the  Heathcote  and  Avon  Rivers,  a  few  miles  distant  from  Christ- 
church.  The  cave  had  been  entirely  concealed  by  the  falling  in 
of  the  basaltic  rock  overhanging  the  entrance.  This  grr;at  heap 
of  debris  had  been  there  since  the  arrival  of  the  first  settlers  at 
Canterbury,  and  had  been  quarried  from  for  twenty-five  years  for 
the  making  of  roads,  without  any  trace  of  a  cave  being  exposed 
till  about  the  beginning  of  September.  When  the  cave  was  first 
entered,  there  were  found  on  the  surface  a  few  Moa  bones,  and 
various  Maori  implements — a  well-made  paddle,  an  ornamental 
baler,  numerous  greenstone  adzes,  obsidian  flake  scrapers, 
shell-openers,  and  ornaments  carefully  polished.  In  some  of  the 
latter,  small  holes  for  suspending  them  round  the  neck  were 
drilled  in  the  most  beautiful  manner.  It  isdifificult  to  conjecture 
how  the  Maoris  had  accomplished  this  when  European  workers 
in  greenstone  find  it  a  laborious  process  even  with,  and  im- 
possible without,  a  diamond  drill.  Besides  these  greenstone 
objects,  there  was  a  great  quantity  of  fishing  paraphernalia — 
stone  suckers,  fish-hooks  of  all  sizes  made  out  of  Moa  and  other 
bones — all  carefully  and  elaborately  fashioned.  Some  of  the 
larger  fish-hooks  were  carved  out  of  bones  which  must  have 
belonged  to  a  Dinornis  of  great  size.  On  the  floor  of  the  cave 
was  also  found  a  well-carved  representation  in  wood  of  a  dog, 
which  seems  to  have  formed  the  terminating  ornament  of  a 
paddle-handle — evidence  that  the  Maoris  were  well  acquainted 
with  this  animal.  The  femur  of  the  Maori  rat  and  a  portion  of 
the  skin  covered  with  dense  reddish  fur  in  perfect  preservation 
were  also  obtained.  A  quantity  of  human  hair  was  scattered 
about,  both  on  the  floor  and  in  the  kitchen  midden  in  front  of 
the  cave.     This  midden  was  composed  chiefly  of  marine  shells 


of  many  kinds,  and  of  the  remains  of  fires  and  feasts.  One 
large  lock  of  long  hair — evidently  a  woman's — was  discovered  in 
the  midden  tied  up  with  great  care  at  both  ends  with  plaited 
flax,  and  incased  in  a  plaited  flax  pocket.  Some  very  fine  bone 
needles  also  were  come  upon,  but  little  thicker  than  steel 
needles,  with  an  eye  exquisitely  drilled.  There  were,  besides 
Moa  bones,  those  of  many  other  species  of  birds,  of  dogs, 
of  fish,  of  seals  (both  fur  and  hair),  and  sea  elephants 
— all  of  which  had  been  used  for  food,  but  no  human 
bones.  Of  the  ornithic  remains,  some  apparently  belong  to 
species  now  extinct  in  New  Zealand,  and  not  yet  described. 
The  bones  and  egg-shells  of  the  Moa  show  incontestably 
that  the  Maori  and  it  were  contemporaneous.  The  geological 
evidence  would  seem  to  indicate  that  this  cave  was  of  consider- 
able antiquity,  and  was  inhabited  at  intervals  for  a  long  period 
of  time.  Several  fire-places  occur  interstratified  with  bands  of 
silt,  as  if  the  cave  had  been  inhabited  and  then  flooded  many 
times.  Definite  conclusions  on  the  geological  evidence  have 
not  yet  been  arrived  at.  The  swan  bones  discovered  consist  of 
three  complete  coracoids,  the  proximal  and  distal  portions  of 
the  humerus  sufficient  to  complete  the  whole  bone.  They  differ 
very  little  from  those  of  the  Clicnopis  atrata  of  Australia,  except 
in  their  greater  size.  The  new  species  has  been  named  Chenopis 
stimnerensis.  It  is  smaller,  however,  than  a  species  of  swan 
discovered — as  a  complete  skeleton — many  years  ago  in  Otago, 
some  18  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  ground,  when  the  foundation 
for  a  house  was  being  dug  in  Dunedin.  This  Sumner  cave  has 
been  closed  since  before  the  introduction  of  the  Clicnopis  atrata 
into  New  Zealand.  The  extension,  therefore,  of  the  Cygnidse  to 
New  Zealand  is  a  very  interesting  fact  in  ornithology.  A 
similar  cave,  but  far  distant  from  the  present  one,  was  excavated 
and  examined  by  Sir  Julius  von  Haast  (Mr.  Forbes's  predecessor) 
many  years  ago.  Of  the  bones  found  in  it,  the  Moa  remains 
were  fully  described  by  their  discoverer,  but  none  belong- 
ing to  the  smaller  birds  have  as  yet  been  described.  These 
with  the  osteological  collections  disinterred  from  the  Glenmark 
and  Hamilton  swamps,  and  from  the  Earnscleugh  Cave,  will 
form  the  subject  of  a  future  paper  by  Mr.  Forbes  before  the 
Institute. 

In  a  previous  paper  before  the  Philosophical  Institute  of 
Canterbury,  Mr.  Forbes  pointed  out  that  the  bone  figured  by 
Prof.  Owen  on  plate  ciii.  of  his  "  Extinct  Birds  of  New  Zealand  " 
as  the  coracoid  of  the  Cneiniornis,  belongs  with  little  doubt  to 
Aptornis.  The  coracoid  of  Cneiniornis,  of  which  there  are 
numerous  specimens  in  the  Christchurch  and  Otago  Museums,  is 
of  the  typical  anserine  form,  and  closely  resembles  that  of 
Cercopsis.  The  coraco-clavicular  angle  in  Aptornis  approached 
130°. 

The  following  curious  instance  of  inheritance  of  an  acquired 
mental  peculiarity  is  given  by  Pastor  Handtmann,  of  Seedorf  by 
Lenzen  on  the  Elbe,  in  the  Korrespondenzblatt  of  the  German 
Anthropological  Society.  When  acting  as  substitute  for  a  few 
months  in  1868,  in  the  parish  of  Groben,  in  Brandenburg,  he 
there  met  a  farmer  named  Lowendorf,  who,  when  he  signed  his 
name  officially  in  connection  with  the  school,  always  wrote  his 
Christian  name  "Austug"  instead  of  "August."  Some  years 
later,  the  writer  was  inspecting  this  school,  and  heard  a  little 
girl  read  "  Leneb  "  for  "Leben,"  "Naled"  for  "  Nadel,"  and 
so  on.  On  inquiry,  he  found  her  name  was  Eiiwendorf,  and 
she  was  a  daughter  of  this  farmer.  The  father  (then  dead)  had 
in  talk  with  his  neighbours  occasioned  much  amusement  by  the 
peculiar  habit,  which  appeared  to  be  the  result  of  a  fall  from  the 
upper  story  of  a  barn,  some  time  before  the  birth  of  this  girl. 
She  wrote,  as  well  as  spoke,  in  the  peculiar  way  referred  to. 

Pkok.  Leumann  is  of  opinion  {Pliil.  Stni/iti/)  that  the  influence 
of  blood  circulation  and  breathing,  on  mind-life,  has  been  too  little 


2  lO 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


consWered.  He  notices  the  parallelism  between  pulse  accelera- 
tion and  passion,  the  rush  of  ideas  in  fever,  and  so  on.  The 
differences  of  pulse  and  breathing  in  different  persons  are  no  less 
significant,  and  should  be  regarded  in  all  psychometric  deter- 
minations. The  author  noticed  in  boys  of  a  Strasburg 
gymnasium,  that  in  scanning  verse,  the  number  of  feet  spoken  in 
a  minute  rose  with  the  pulse-frequency.  Even  in  one  person, 
experimented  on  from  midday  till  evening,  the  dependence  of 
normal  reading  of  metrical  compositions  on  pulse-frequency  was 
proved  ;  the  rhythmic  intervals  in  scanning  corresponded  to  the 
pulse-intervals.  Leumann  supposes  that  to  be  the  most  general  and 
normal  song-metre,  whose  feet  correspond  to  the  pulsations,  and 
its  lines  to  respiration.  And,  in  fact,  the  Indo-Germanic  original 
metre  consists  of  four  times  four  trochees,  an  arrangement  agree- 
ing with  that  view  ;  from  it  arose  the  Nibelungen  strophe  and  the 
hexameter. 

In  the  Legislative  Council  of  India  recently,  Mr.  R.  J. 
Crosthwaite  in  introducing  the  amended  Land  Revenue  (Central 
Provinces)  Bill,  said  that  many  objections  hafl  been  raised, 
chiefly  by  the  Malguzars'  Association  of  Nagpore,  to  the  powers 
given  by  the  Bill  to  the  Chief  Commissioner  to  make  rules  for 
the  management  of  forests.  To  show  that  such  powers  were 
necessary,  Mr.  Croslhwaite  instanced  two  cases  of  the  wanton 
destruction  of  forests  which  is  so  common  in  India.  In  1885  the 
Deputy  Commissioner  of  Nagpore  reported  that  the  malguzar 
of  Munsar  had  given  a  contract  for  the  cutting  and  removal  of 
the  wood  in  the  forest  land  of  his  mahal.  The  villagers  had 
rights  in  this  forest-land,  and  those  rights  were  interfered  with 
by  the  cutting  of  the  wood ;  but,  in  spite  of  the  Chief  Com- 
missioner, the  malguzar  continued  the  cutting,  and  the  hills  were 
completely  stripped  of  all  timber  and  brushwood.  In  another 
case  a  zemindar  had  sold  the  right  to  collect  resin  from  his  forest. 
The  resin  is  obtained  by  girdling  the  trees,  and  it  was  found  that 
in  about  four  square  miles  of  particularly  fine  forest  every  sab  tree 
was  killed  outright.  That  is,  four  square  miles  of  forest  were 
destroyed  to  produce  about  i20orupees.  SirCharles  Elliott,  speak- 
ing on  the  same  occasion,  said  that  if  some  such  provision  as  that 
now  proposed  had  existed  in  the  past,  the  forest  clearances  round 
Simla  and  along  the  southern  slopes  of  the  Himalayas  abutting 
the  Punjab  plain  could  never  have  taken  place. 

Messrs.  Dulau  and  Co.  have  issued  a  catalogue  of  works 
on  chemistry  and  physics. 

In  some  copies  of  Nature,  last  week,  the  following  sentence 
appeared  in  the  first  paragraph  of  the  Duke  of  Argyll's  letter 
on  "Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation":  "But 
it  implies  the  denial  of  'congenital'  causes."  It  ought  to  have 
been  :   "  But  it  implies  no  denial  of  '  congenital '  causes." 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during 
the  past  two  weeks  include  a  Malbrouck  Monkey  {Cercopithectis 
cynosums  S )  from  South  Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  William  F. 
Hughes  ;  a  Lesser  White-nosed  Monkey  {Ccrcopithecus  petaurista) 
(rom  West  Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  Lawson  N.  Peregrine  ; 
two  Viscachas  {Lagostomus  trichodactylus  i  9 )  from  the 
Argentine  Republic,  presented  by  Mr.  Thomas  Taylor ;  two 
Crimson-winged  Parrakeets  {Aprosmictus  crythropterus  J  ? ) 
from  Australia,  presented  by  Mrs.  G.  Byng-Payne ;  a  Bonnet 
Monkey  {Macacus  siiiicus  ?)  from  India,  .presented  by  Mr. 
James  Entwistle  ;  a  Malabar  Parrakeet  (/'a/fctjmw  cohunboides) 
from  Southern  India,  presented  by  Mr.  J.  E.  Godfrey ;  three 
Common  Bluebirds  {Sialia  lailsoni)  from  North  America,  pre- 
sented by  Commander  W.  M.  Latham,  R.N.,  F.Z.S.  ;  a  Black 
Wallaby  {Halmatunis  lualabatus  i )  from  New  South  Wales, 
two  Black  and  White  Geese  {Anseranas  mclanoleiica)  from 
Australia,  a  Ring-tailed  Coati  [Nasua  rufa)  from  South 
America,  deposited. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal   Time   at  Greenwich   at    10  p.m.,  January  2  =  4h, 
49m.  56s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  189a 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)  G.  C.  1157    

— 

— 

5  27  .Sz 

-f  21  57 

(2)  5  Ononis        

5 

Yellowish-red. 

4  47  39 

T    2  20 

(3)iAurig3e        

3 

Orange. 

4  49  48 

+  33  0 

(4)  II  Aungse        

4 

White. 

4  58  48 

-f4i    5 

(5)  51  Schj 

6 

Very  red. 

4  59  43 

+   I    2 

(6)  S  Geminorum 

Var. 

Yellowish-red. 

7  36  26 

-+-23  43 

(7)  S  Persei         

Var. 

Yellowish-red. 

2  14  59 

•i-SS    5 

Remarks. 

(1)  Described  as  "very  bright,  very  large,  very  gradually 
brighter  in  the  middle  ;  barely  resolvable."  The  spectrum  was 
observed  at  Harvard  College  in  1869.  The  continuous  spectrum 
extended  from  about  A.  450  to  607.  Two  bright  lines  appear  to 
have  been  observed,  less  refrangible  than  those  of  other  nebulae, 
but  no  reliable  measures  were  made,  owing  to  errors  in  the  micro- 
meter (Harvard  College  Observations,  vol.  xiii.  part  i.  p.  64). 
Further  observations  are  required,  as  all  departures  from  the 
ordinary  spectrum  of  bright  lines  are  especially  interesting  in 
connection  with  the  question  of  the  variation  of  spectrum  with 
temperature.  Comparisons  with  the  carbon  flutings  seen  in  the 
flame  of  a  spirit-lamp,  and  the  brightest  flutings  of  manganese 
and  lead,  conveniently  obtained  by  burning  the  chlorides  in  the 
flame,  are  suggested. 

(2)  In  this  star  of  Group  11.  the  bands  are  very  weak,  only  2, 
3,  7,  8  being  well  seen.  The  star  falls  in  species  3  of  the  sub- 
division of  the  group,  the  manganese  fluting  (band  4)  being 
absent  because  it  is  masked  by  the  fluting  of  carbon  near  K  564, 
and  5  and  6  being  absent  because  the  temperature  is  low.  The 
carbon  flutings  appear  to  be  brightest  in  the  earlier  species,  and 
it  seems  probable  that  band  9  is  also  present  but  has  been  over- 
looked. This  band  is  the  dark  space  lying  between  the  bright 
fluting  of  carbon  468-474  and  the  end  of  the  continuous 
spectrum.  Comparisons  with  the  spectrum  of  the  spirit-lamp 
flame,  with  special  reference  to  the  presence  of  the  carbon  fluting 
468-474  are  suggested.  Duner's  mean  value  for  the  end  of  the 
band  in  other  stars  is  K  476. 

(3)  This  is  classed  by  Gothard  with  stars  of  the  solar  type. 
The  usual  observations  are  suggested. 

(4)  Gothard  describes  the  spectrum  of  this  star  as  Group  IV., 
but  is  somewhat  doubtful  about  it.  It  is  probably  either  a  late 
star  of  Group  III.  or  Group  V.,  as  in  either  case  the  hydrogen 
lines  would  be  moderately  thick. 

(5)  This  is  a  good  example  of  stars  of  Group  VI.,  in  which 
Duner  records  the  bands  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  9,  and  10.  The  last 
three  are  carbon  absorption  flutings,  and  the  only  point  to  be 
noted  in  connection  with  these  is  the  intensity  of  band  6  (near 
A.  564),  relatively  to  the  other  bands.  The  first  four  are 
secondary  bands,  possibly  produced  by  vapours  similar  to  those 
which  produce  the  telluric  bands  in  the  solar  spectrum.  Other 
absorptions  may  also  be  looked  for. 

(6)  This  is  another  variable  of  which  no  spectrum  has  been 
recorded.  The  range  of  variation  is  from  about  8*5  at  maximum 
to  <  13  at  minimum,  and  the  period  is  294  days.  The  maxi- 
mum occurs  on  January  2. 

(7)  This  is  a  variable  star  of  Group  II.,  of  the  same  type  as 
those  in  which  Espin  has  found  bright  lines  of  hydrogen  at 
maximum.  The  number  and  character  of  the  bands  and  the 
presence  or  absence  of  bright  lines  should  be  noted.  The 
intensity  of  the  bright  carbon  flutings  and  their  fading  away,  if 
any,  as  the  maximum  (January  7)  is  passed  should  also  be  noted. 
The  magnitude  at  maximum  is  stated  by  Gore  as  7 '6  and  that  at 
minimum  as  <97.  A.  Fowler. 

Dr.  Peters's  Star  Catalogue. — The  case  of  Dr.  Peters 
against  Mr.  Borst,  with  reference  to  the  possession  of  the  Clinton 
catalogue,  containing  over  30,000  stars  arranged  in  the  order  of 
their  right  ascension,  has  been  definitely  settled.  It  will  be 
remembered  that  Mr.  Borst  claimed  the  catalogue  on  the  grounds 
that  most  of  the  computations  had  been  made  by  him  outside  of 
his  labours  at  the  Observatory,  and  not  under  the  direction  of 
Dr.  Peters,  who,  however,  devised  the  work,  and  regarded  it  all 


Jan.  2,  1890J 


NATURE 


211 


along  as  his  own,  since  it  included  his  observations  extending 
over  very  many  years.  The  court  held,  firstly,  that  the  manu- 
script could  not  belong  to  Hamilton  College,  of  which  Dr. 
Peters  is  Professor,  nor  to  Litchfield  Observatory,  of  which  he 
is  Director,  but  to  the  authors  and  to  them  alone  ;  and  secondly, 
that  the  whole  of  the  manuscript,  numbering  3572  pages,  held 
l>y  Mr.  Borst,  had  been  wrongfully  detained,  and  would  have 
to  be  delivered  to  Dr.  Peters,  with  compensation  for  the 
detention. 

Longitude  of  Mount  Hamilton. — A  telegraphic  de- 
termination of  the  longitude  of  Mount  Hamilton  has  been  made 
by  the  United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey,  and  the  result 
found  for  the  transit  house  meridian  (Fauth  transit  instrument) 
of  the  Lick  Observatory  is — 

8h.  6m.  34-8073.,  or  121°  38'  42""lo  W.  of  Greenwich, 

with  an  estimated  probable  error  ±  o'is.  or  i"'5. 

Comet  Borelly,  g  1889  (December  12). — The  following 
elements  and  ephemeris  have  been  computed  for  this  comet  by 
Mrs.  Zelbr  and  Froebe  {As/r.  Nach.,  2943) :  — 

T  =  1890  January  277438  Berlin  Mean  Time. 

IT  =  211  4  23  ) 

fl  =  16  59  17  [  Mean  Eq.  1889-0. 
'  =  59  56  56  ) 
log  q  =  9'4575S 

AA  cos  0  =    -  4"- 1 

A)3    rr     +    107 

EpJicDicris  for  Berlin  Midnight. 

R.A.  Decl. 

li.    m.     s.  3        , 

18    31   40         ...  -f   21    36-2 

35  45  -  15  22-9 

40  25  ...  8  20-5 

46  40  ...  -I-    o  197 

56  31  ...  -     8  42-1 


1889-90. 


Jan.    4 

8 

12 

16 

20 

The  brightness  at  discovery  has  been  taken  as  unity. 

Comet  Brooks,  d  1889  (July  6). — The  following  epheiieris 
is  in  continuation  of  that  previously  given  (Nature,  vol.  xli. 
P-  115):— 


Bnght- 
ness. 
368 

5  02 
7-06 

IO'22 
1 4  "80 


Jan.     4 

8 

12 

16 

20 

24 
28 


R.A. 
h.  m.     s. 

0  45  54 
52  5 
58  25 

1  4  53 
II  29 
18  12 
25     I 


Decl. 

+    7°  52-6 

8  37-6 

9  227 
10    7-8 

10  52  7 

11  37  "4 

12  2 1  "9 


Bright- 
ness. 
06 

o'5 
0-5 
0-5 
0-4 
0-4 
0-4 


Brightness  at  discovery  =  1.  , 

The  Solar  Eclipse. — Intelligence  has  been  received  by 
Mr.  Turner,  Secretary  of  the  Eclipse  Committee,  from  Mr. 
Taylor,  stationed  at  Loanda,  announcing  that  he  has  obtained 
no  observations. 


ACCUMULATIONS     OF    CAPITAL    IN     THE 
UNITED   KINGDOM  IN   1875-85. 

A  T  a  meeting  of  the  Royal  Statistical  Society  on  December  1 7, 
Mr.  Robert  Giffen  read  a  paper  on  accumulations  of 
capital  in  the  United  Kingdom.  He  began  by  stating  that  he 
proposed  to  continue  and  expand  the  paper  which  he  read  to  the 
Society  ten  years  ago,  on  "  Recent  Accumulations  of  Capital  in 
the  United  Kingdom,"  which  dealt  specially  with  the  increase  of 
capital  between  1S65  and  1875.  He  would  now  deal  with  the 
accumulations  between  1875  and  1885,  another  ten  years'  period, 
and  1885  also  being  practically  the  present  time,  there  being  very 
little  change  in  the  income-tax  assessments  since  1885,  though  it 
appeared  likely  enough  there  would  be  considerable  changes  in 
a  year  or  two.  His  notes  had  extended  so  much,  as  really  to 
become  a  book,  which  would  be  published  immediately  by 
Messrs.  George  Bell  and  Sons,  under  the  title  of  "  The  Growth 
of  Capital,"  and  the  paper  he  now  proposed  to  read  consisted  of 
extracts  from  that  book.  It  must  be  understood  that  the  om- 
pulations  were  necessarily  very  rough  and  approximate  only,  and 
only  designed,  in  the  absence  of  better  figures,  to  throw  light  on 


the  growth  of  societies  in  wealth,  and  on  the  relations  of  different 
societies  in  that  respect,  with  reference  to  such  cjuestions  as  the 
relative  burden  of  taxation  and  national  debts,  the  rate  of  saving 
in  communities  at  different  times,  and  the  like.     Exact  figures 
were  impossible,  but  approximate  figures  were  still  useful.     The 
method  he  followed  was  to  take  the  income-tax  returns,  capitalise 
the  different  descriptions  of  income  from  property  there  mentioned 
at  so  many  years'  purchase,  and  make  an  estimate  for  property 
of  other  kinris  not  coming  into  the  income-tax  returns.    Formerly, 
in  comparing  1865  and  1875,  he  had  capitalised  at  the  same 
number  of  years'  purchase  in  each  year,  but  between  1875  and 
1885  there  were  changes  in  capital  value  irrespective  of  changes 
in  income  which  it  wa<  important  to  take  notice  of,  at  least  as 
between  different  descriptions  of  property,  though  the  results  in 
the  aggregate  would  not  be  much  different  from  what  they  are 
if  no  change  in  the  number  of  years'  purchase  were  made.     In 
1885,  then,  the  total  valuation  of  the  property  of  the  United 
Kingdom,  according  to  the  method  followed  in  the  paper,  came 
to  10,000  millions  sterling  in  round  figures,  equal  to  about  ;i^27o 
per  head.       The  principal  items  were  :  Land.s,   169 1  millions  ;. 
houses,  ;,f  1,927,000  ;  railways  in  United  Kingdom,  932  millions  ; 
miscellaneous  public  companies  in  Schedule  D,  696  millions  ; 
trades  and  professions  in  Schedule  D,   542  millions  :  farmers' 
profits,  &c.,  in  Schedule  B,  522  millions  ;  public  funds  (excluding 
home   funds),    528   millions ;   gasworks,    126    millions  ;  water- 
works, 65  millions  ;  canals,  docks,  &c.,  71  millions  ;  mines  and 
ironworks,  39  millions.     These  were  all  based  on  the  method 
of  capitalising  income  in  the  income-tax  returns,  and  the  principal 
item  of  other  property,  for  which  an  estimate  was  made  in  a 
dififerent  way,  was  that  of  movable  property  not  yielding  income, 
e.g.  furniture  of  houses,  works  of  art,  &c.,  which  was  taken  at 
about  half  the  value  of  houses,  or  960  millions.     Comparing 
these  figures  with  those  of  1875,  when  the  valuation  was  8500 
millions,  the  apparent  increase  was  1500  millions,  or  about  17^ 
per   cent.  ;  but  there  were  important  changes  in  detail,  lands 
having  declined  considerably,  mines  and  ironworks  having  also 
declined,  and  there  being  a  great  increase  in  houses   and  some 
other  items.     It  appeared  also  that  the  increase  in  the  decade 
1875-85  was  considerably  less  than  in  the  previous  decade  dealt 
with  in  the  former  paper.     In  1865-75,  in  fact,  the  increase  was 
from  about  6100  millions  to  8500  millions,  or  no  less  than  2400 
millions,   and  40  per  cent,  in  ten  years,  and  240  millions  per 
annum  ;  whereas  in  1875-85  the  increase  was  only  1500  millions, 
or    17^  per  cent,  in  ten  years,  and  only  150  millions  per  annum. 
The  difference  in  the  rate  of  growth  was  ascribed  very  largely  to 
a  difference  in  the  rate  of  growth  of  money  values  only,  reasons 
being  given  for  the  belief  that  in  real  prosperity,  in  the  multiplica- 
tion of  useful  things,  and  not  merely  money  values,  the  improve- 
ment in  the  later  period  was  not  less  than  in  the  first.     The 
distribution  of  this  great  property  between  England,  Scotland, 
and.  Ireland,   could  not  be  exactly  shown,   part  of  the  income 
belonging  to  the  community  of  the  United  Kingdom  in  a  way 
which  did  not  permit  of  a  distinction  being  made  ;  but  upon  a 
rough  estimate  it  appeared  that  England   was   considered   to 
have  8617  millions,  or  86  per  cent,   of  the  total  ;   Scotland,  973 
millions,  or  97  per  cent.  ;  and  Ireland,  447  millions,  or  4-3  per 
cent.     These  figures  worked  out   about  ;^3o8,   ^243,  and  ^^93 
per  head  respectively,   as  compared  with  the  average  of  £'2.'jo 
for  the  United  Kingdom.     The  small  relative  amount  of  property 
in  Ireland  was  commented  upon,  and  the  difference  between  it 
and  Great  Britain    was    ascribed    very   largely  to  the  political 
agitation  in  Ireland,  which  depreciated  property,  and  the  excess 
of  population  on  the  land,  which    had  the  same  effect ;  these 
two  causes  together  making  a  difference  of  200  millions  in  the 
apparent  capital  of  Ireland.      Measured   by  property,   Ireland 
was  enormously  over-represented    in  the  Imperial  Parliament. 
Looking  at  the  subject  historically,  they  found  that  there  had 
been  an  enormous  and  continuous  advance  in  the  course  of  the 
past  three  centuries,  during  which  at  different  times  there  had 
been    contemporary    estimates    on    the    subject.      In    1600  the 
property  estimate  was  for  England  only  lOO  millions,  or  ;{^22 
per  head  ;  1680,   250  millions,    or  ^^46  per  head  ;    1690,  320 
millions,   or  ;^58   per  head  ;    1720,  370   millions,  or  ;,^57  per 
head  ;  1750,  500  millions,  or  £']\  per  head  ;  and  in  1800,  1500 
millions,  or  £16"]  per  head.     The  estimate  for  Great  Britain  in 
the  latter  year  being  about  one-eighth  more  in  the  aggregate  than 
for  England  only,   and  ^160  per  head.     Since   1800  there  are 
figures  for  the    United   Kingdom,  and  these  show:  181 2,  2700 
millions,  or  ;^  160  per  head  ;  1822,    2500  millions,  or  ;^120  per 
head  (a  reduction  largely   due  to  fall  of  prices) ;    1833,  3600 


212 


NATURE 


\yan,  2,  1890 


millions,  or  £\AA  per  head;  184$,  4000  millions,  or  £1/^1 
per  head;  1865,  6000  millions,  or  £100  per  head  ;  1875,  8500 
millions,  or  ;^26o  per  head  ;  and  finally,  the  present  figures  of 
lo.ooo  millions,  or  £2^0  per  head.  There  was  in  fact  a  steady 
increase,  with  the  exception  of  the  interval  between  1812 
and  1822,  when  there  was  a  heavy  fall  of  prices,  and  this 
increase,  it  was  believed,  represented  almost  all  through  a  real 
increase  in  things,  money  prices  at  any  rate  being  at  a  lower 
rate  now  than  at  the  beginning  of  the  century.  There  had  also 
been  a  remarkable  change  all  through  in  the  proportions  of 
different  descriptions  of  property.  Lands,  at  the  commence- 
ment constitute  about  60  per  cent,  of  the  total  ;  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  century  they  are  still  about  40  per  cent.  ;  at  the 
present  time  they  are  17  per  cent,  only.  Houses,  on  the  other 
hand,  are  about  15  per  cent,  of  the  total  at  the  beginning, 
and  19  percent,  at  the  present  time,  an  increasing  percentage 
of  an  ever- increasing  total  ;  but  the  main  increase  after  all 
is  in  descriptions  of  property  which  are  neither  lands  nor 
houses.  After  referring  to  the  accumulations  of  capital  in 
foreign  countries,  Mr.  Giffen  concluded  by  giving  illustrations 
of  the  mode  of  using  such  figures,  showing  the  difference  of  the 
burden  of  taxation  and  national  debts  in  England,  France,  and 
the  United  States  ;  the  preponderance  of  England  in  the  United 
Kingdom  as  compared  with  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland  ; 
the  rapid  growth  of  the  United  States  in  recent  years  as  com- 
pared with  the  United  Kingdom,  and  especially  as  compared 
with  France  (the  national  debt  in  the  United  States,  from 
amounting  twenty  years  ago  to  a  sum  equal  to  a  fifth  of  the 
total  property,  having  come  to  be  only  equal  to  a  thirtieth  of 
the  property) ;  and  the  small  proportion  of  the  annual  savings 
of  the  country  which  comes  into  the  public  market  for  invest- 
ment, as  compared  with  the  savings  invested  privately  as  they 
are  made.  In  passing,  a  reference  was  made  to  the  talk  of  the 
vast  expenditure  on  military  armaments,  and  the  burden  they 
impose  on  certain  communities  ;  and  it  was  suggested  that, 
heavy  as  the  burdens  are,  yet  the  vast  amount  of  property  re- 
latively indicated  that  the  point  of  exhaustion  was  more  remote 
than  was  commonly  supposed.  In  conclusion,  the  hope  was 
expressed  that  the  discussion  of  recent  years  would  lead  in  time 
to  the  production  of  better  figures,  especially  with  regard  to  the 
growth  of  different  descriptions  of  property.  Were  trouble 
taken,  results  might  be  arrived  at  which  would  be  of  value  to 
the  Government  practically,  as  well  as  to  economists  in  their 
discussions.  The  progress  of  revenue  was  intimately  connected 
with  the  progress  of  national  resources,  and  the  progress  of 
money  revenue  with  the  progress  of  the  money  expression  of 
those  resources.  The  resources  themselves,  and  the  money 
values,  must  be  studied  by  Chancellors  of  the  Exchequer  with 
almost  equal  anxiety,  and  they  should  both,  at  any  rate,  be 
studied  together.  Periodical  complete  valuations  of  property 
were  in  this  view  as  indispensable  as  the  census  of  population 
itself. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

University  College,  Liverpool.— The  Sheridan  Mus- 
pratt  Chemical  Scholarship,  of  the  value  of  ;^50  per  annum  for 
two  years,  has  been  awarded  to  Mr.  J.  T.  Conroy,  who  has 
been  a  student  in  the  chemical  laboratories  during  the  past  two 
years.  Mr.  Conroy  has  recently  taken  the  degree  of  B.Sc,  with 
honours  in  chemistry,  at  the  University  of  London.  The 
Scholarship,  which  is  the  gift  of  Mrs.  Sheridan  Muspratt,  is 
intended  to  enable  the  ht)lder  to  continue  work  in  the  higher 
branches  of  chemistry.  The  Sheridan  Muspratt  Exhibition  of 
^25  has  been  awarded  to  Mr.  A.  Carey,  of  Widnes,  who  has 
been  a  student  of  the  College  during  the  last  two  and  a  half 
years,  and  is  now  in  the  final  stage  of  preparation  in  the  honours 
school  of  chemistry  of  Victoria  University. 


phor  and  camphorated  alcohol  produce  no  effect  on  the  virus, 
and  that  chloroform  and  hydrated  chloral  have  a  more  or  less 
attenuating  action,  checking  the  development  of  the  artificially 
cultivated  microbe,  or  even  in  some  cases  rendering  it  absolutely 
sterile,  while  camphorated  chloral  has  a  decidedly  neutralizing 
effect  on  the  virus.  Other  experiments  show  that  when  tetanus 
is  once  developed  in  the  system  iodoform  is  powerless  to  arrest 
its  progress,  but  is  most  efficacious  in  neutralizing  the  virus  of 
the  injured  part.  The  whole  series  of  experiments  fully  con- 
firms the  author's  previous  conclusion  that  iodoform  is  the 
specific  disinfectant  of  the  microbe  of  tetanus. 

Bulletin  de  VAcadenie  Royale  de  Belgique,  October  12. — 
Jupiter's  north  equatorial  band,  by  M.  F.  ferby.  The  author 
describes  in  detail  the  structure  of  this  remarkable  phenomenon 
which  he  has  been  carefully  studying  for  the  last  three  years 
with  a  Grubb  8-inch  telescope. — Determination  of  the  invariant 
functions  or  forms  comprising  several  series  of  variants,  by  M. 
Jacques  Deruyts.  In  continuation  of  his  previous  communica- 
tions, the  author  here  extends  to  forms  with  several  series  of 
variants  the  results  already  made  known  for  forms  with  a  series 
of  n  variables. — M.  C.  Vanlair  describes  the  symptoms  and 
treatment  of  a  new  case"  of  bothriocephaly  in  Belgium,  due  to 
the  presence  of  Bothriocephaliis  latus  in  the  patient. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

Rendiconti  del  Reale  Istituto  Lombardo,  November. — On 
the  antidotes  of  the  virus  of  tetanus,  and  on  its  prophylactic  sur- 
gical treatment,  by  Prof.  G.  Sormani.  In  continuation  of  his 
previous  paper  on  this  subject,  the  author  here  describes  some 
further  experiments  with  alcohol,  chloroform,  and  various  pre- 
parations of  camphor,  chloral,  and  iodine.     He  finds  that  cam- 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  December  5,  1889. — "Researches  on  the 
Chemistry  of  the  Camphoric  Acids."     By  J.  E.  Marsh. 

An  account  is  given  of  some  experiments  leading  to  the  pro- 
duction, in  any  desired  quantity,  of  a  new  camphoric  acid,  and 
to  the  mutual  conversion  of  one  acid  into  the  other  ;  as  well  as 
to  a  method  of  quantitatively  separating  the  two  acids  when 
mixed.  The  space  at  our  disposal  does  not  permit  us  to  enter 
into  any  details  of  the  experiments,  nor  into  the  theoretical 
considerations  involved.  For  this,  reference  must  be  made  to 
the  original  paper. 

December  19,  1889.  — "  On  the  Steam  Calorimeter."  By  J. 
Joly,  M.A.  Communicated  by  G.  F.  Fitzgerald,  F.R.S., 
F.T.C.D. 

The  theory  of  the  method  of  condensation  has  been  previously 
given  by  the  author  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society, 
vol.  41,  p.  352. 

Since  the  publication  of  that  paper  a  much  more  extended 
knowledge  of  the  capabilities  of  the  method  has  been  acquired, 
which  has  led  to  the  construction  of  new  forms  of  the  apparatus, 
simple  in  construction  and  easily  applied.  Two  of  these  are 
described  and  illustrated,  one  of  which  is  new  in  principle, 
being  a  differential  form  of  the  calorimeter.  The  accuracy  of 
observation  attained  by  this  latter  form  is  so  considerable  that 
it  has  been  found  possible  to  estimate  directly  the  specific  heats 
of  the  gases  at  constant  volume  to  a  close  degree  of  accuracy. 

An  error  incidental  to  the  use  of  the  method  arising  from  the 
radiation  of  the  substance,  when  surrounded  by  steam,  to  the 
walls  of  the  calorimeter,  is  inquired  into.  It  is  shown  that  this 
affects  the  accuracy  of  the  result  to  a  very  small  degree,  and  is 
capable  of  easy  estimation  and  elimination. 

Further  confirmation  of  the  accuracy  of  the  method  is  afforded 
in  a  comparison  of  experiments  made  in  different  forms  of  the 
steam  calorimeter. 

Various  tables  of  constants  are  given  to  facilitate  the  use  of 
the  method,  and  the  results  of  experiments  on  the  density  of 
saturated  steam  at  atmospheric  pressures,  made  directly  in  the 
calorimeter,  are  included.  These  are  concordant  with  the 
deductions  of  Zeuner,  based  on  Regnault's  observations  on  the 
properties  of  steam,  and  were  undertaken  in  the  hope  of 
affording  reliable  data  on  which  to  calculate  the  displacement 
effect  on  the  apparent  weight  of  the  substance  transferred  from 
air  to  steam. 

The  communication  is  intended  to  provide  a  full  account  of 
the  mode  of  application  of  the  steam  calorimeter. 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  December  18,  1889. — Dr. 
W.  Marcet,  F.  R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  following 
papers  were  read : — Report  of  the  Wind  Force  Committee  on 
the  factor  of  the  Kew  pattern  Robinson  anemometer.  This 
has  been  drawn  up  by  Mr.   W.    H.  Dines,  who  has  made  a 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


213 


large  number  of  experiments  with  various  anemometers  on  the 
whirling  machine  at  Hersham.  Twelve  of  these  were  made 
with  the  friction  of  the  Kew  anemometer  artificially  increased, 
seven  with  a  variable  velocity,  and  fourteen  with  the  plane  of 
the  cups  inclined  at  an  angle  to  the  direction  of  motion.  In  dis- 
cussing the  results  the  following  points  are  taken  into  considera- 
tion, viz.  the  possibility  of  the  existence  of  induced  eddies,  the 
effect  of  the  increased  friction  due  to  the  centrifugal  force  and 
gyroscopic  action,  and  the  action  of  the  natural  wind.  The 
conclusion  that  the  instrument  is  greatly  affected  by  the  vari- 
ability of  the  wind  to  which  it  is  exposed  seems  to  be  irresistible, 
and  if  so,  the  exact  value  of  the  factor  must  depend  upon  the 
nature  of  the  wind  as  well  as  upon  the  mean  velocity.  There 
is  evidence  to  show  that  during  a  gale  the  variations  of  velocity 
are  sometimes  of  great  extent  and  frequency,  and  there  can  be 
but  little  doubt  that  in  such  a  case  the  factor  is  less  than  2  "15. 
The  one  point  which  does  seem  clear  is,  that  for  anemometers 
of  the  Kew  pattern  the  value  3  is  far  too  high,  and  consequently 
that  the  registered  wind  velocities  are  considerably  in  excess  of 
the  true  amount. — On  testing  anemometers,  by  Mr.  W.  H. 
Dines.  The  author  describes  the  various  methods  employed 
in  the  testing  of  anemometers,  points  out  the  difficulties  that  have 
to  be  encountered,  and  explains  how  they  can  be  overcome. — 
On  the  rainfall  of  the  Riviera,  by  Mr.  G.  J.  Symons,  F. R.  S. 
The  author  has  collected  all  the  available  information  respecting 
rainfall  in  this  district,  which  is  very  scanty.  He  believes  that 
the  total  annual  fall  along  the  Riviera  from  Cannes  to  San 
Remo  is  about  31  inches,  and  that  any  difference  between 
the  several  towns  has  yet  to  be  proved. — Report  on  the  pheno- 
logical  observations  for  1889,  by  Mr.  E.  Mawley.  This  is  a 
discussion  of  observations  on  the  flowering  of  plants,  the  appear- 
ance of  insects,  the  song  and  nesting  of  birds,  &c.  Taken  as 
a  whole,  1889  was  an  unusually  gay  and  bountiful  year. 

Physical  Society,  Dec.  6,  1889. — Prof.  Reinold,  President, 
in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were  read  : — On 
the  electrification  of  a  steam  jet,  by  Shelford  Bid  well,  F.R.  S. 
The  author  showed  that  the  opacity  of  steam  issuing  from  a 
nozzle  is  greatly  increased  by  bringing  electrified  points  near  it, 
and  that  its  colour  is  changed  to  orange-brown.  Electrified  balls 
and  disks  when  placed  in  the  steam  produce  similar  effects,  and 
when  these  are  connected  with  an  iiifluence  machine  at  work, 
the  decoloration  of  the  jet  rapidly  responds  to  each  spark.  On 
examining  the  absorption  spectrum  of  the  unelectrified  jet,  little 
or  no  selective  absorption  was  detected,  but  on  electrification,  the 
violet  disappeared,  the  blue  and  green  were  diminished,  and  the 
orange  and  red  remained  unchanged.  From  these  results  the 
author  concludes  that  electrification  causes  an  increase  in  the 
size  of  the  water  particles  in  the  steam,  from  something  small 
compared  with  the  wave-length  of  light,  to  about  1/50000  of  an 
inch  in  diameter.  Allied  phenomena  with  water  jets  have  been 
observed  by  Lord  Rayleigh,  who  found  that  a  straggling  water  jet 
is  rendered  much  more  coherent  by  bringing  a  rubbed  stick  of  seal- 
ing wax  near  it.  These  observations  are  of  considerable  meteoro- 
logical interest,  for  the  steam  jet  phenomena  go  far  towards  ex- 
plaining the  cause  of  the  intense  darkness  of  thunderclouds,  and  of 
the  lurid  yellow  light  with  which  that  darkness  is  frequently 
tempered.  After  making  his  experiments  the  author  learnt  that 
similar  observations  had  recently  been  made  by  the  late  Robert 
Helmholtz,  who  viewed  the  steam  jets  by  reflected  light  against 
a  dark  background.  On  electrification  the  jets  became  much 
better  defined,  and  presented  diffraction  colours.  Luminous 
flames  also  produced  similar  effects,  and  Mr.  Bidwell  has  found 
that  glowing  touch  paper  is  equally  efficient.  Helmholtz  con- 
jectures that  the  sudden  condensation  may  be  due  to  molecular 
tremors  or  shock  imparted  by  the  electrification  upsetting  the 
unstable  equilibrium  of  the  supersaturated  vapour,  just  as  a 
supersaturated  saline  solution  is  suddenly  crystallized  when  dis- 
turbed. Another  hypothesis  suggests  that  condensation  is  caused 
by  the  introduction  of  solid  matter  into  the  jet  by  the  exciting 
cause,  thus  producing  nuclei  upon  which  the  vapour  may  con- 
dense. On  reading  Helmholtz's  paper,  the  author  tried  the 
effect  of  gas-flames  on  water  jets,  and  found  that  when  luminous 
they  influenced  the  jet  considerably,  whereas  non-luminous 
flames  had  no  appreciable  effect.  He  also  found  that  luminous 
flames  are  positively  electrified,  and  demonstrated  this  before  the 
meeting.  Prof.  Riicker  thought  the  surface  tension  of  the  films 
surrounding  the  water  jets  might  be  lowered  by  the  presence  of 
a  burning  substance,  and  that  the  smoke  from  the  to^ich  paper 
used  in  some  of  the  experiments  on  steam  jets  would  introduce 


solid  particles  and  facilitate  condensation.  Mr.  Richardson  in 
quired  whether  a  red-hot  iron  had  any  effect.  Dr.  Fisonsaid  he 
had  made  experiments  on  the  electrification  of  flame,  and  found 
that  potentials  varying  from  +  2  volts  to  -  i^  volts  could  be 
obtained  in  the  region  within  and  surrounding  a  Bunsen  flame. 
Prof  S.  P.  Thompson  commented  on  the  contrast  between  Mr. 
Bidwell's  experiments  and  those  of  Dr.  Lodge  on  the  dissipation, 
of  fogs  by  electricity,  and  also  asked  whether  the  colour  of  the 
jet  depended  on  the  length  of  the  spark  produced  by  the 
machine.  Prof.  Forbes  thought  a  crucial  test  between  the  two 
hypotheses  of  Helmholtz  could  be  obtained  by  trying  the  experi- 
ment in  a  germless  globe.  The  President  said  he  had  recently 
noticed  that  gas  flames  were  electrified.  Mr.  Bidwell  in  reply 
said  he  ought  to  have  mentioned  that  the  effect  of  flames  on  jets 
may  be  due  to  dirt,  for  if  soap  or  milk  be  added  to  the  water  in 
the  steam  generator,  no  effect  is  produced  by  electrification  or 
flame.  As  to  change  of  colour  with  spark-length,  little  (if  any) 
variation  is  caused  thereby.  He  had  not  tried  whether  a  red-hot 
iron  produced  any  effect  on  a  steam  jet, — Notes  on  geometrical 
optics.  Part  2,  by  Prof  S.  P.  Thompson.  Three  notes  were 
presented,  the  first  of  which  dealt  with  the  geometrical  use  of 
"focal  circles  "  in  problems  relating  to  lenses  and  mirrors,  and 
to  single  refracting  surfaces.  By  "focal  circles"  the  author 
means  the  circles  having  the  principal  foci  as  centres,  and  whose 
radii  are  equal  to  the  focal  lengths.  By  their  use  the  point  con- 
jugate to  any  point  on  the  principal  axis  is  readily  determined. 
One  construction  for  a  mirror  is  to  draw  a  tangent  to  the  focal 
circle  from  a  point  p  on  the  axis  ;  the  foot  of  the  perpendicular 
to  the  axis  drawn  through  the  point  of  contact  gives  the  point 
conjugate  to  r.  When  applied  to  a  thin  lens,  a  tangent  is  drawn 
as  above  to  one  focal  circle,  and  the  line  joining  the  point  of 
contact  with  the  centre  of  the  lens  is  produced  to  meet  the  other 
focal  circle ;  a  perpendicular  to  the  axis  from  the  remote  point  of 
intersection  gives  the  conjugate  point.  Modifications  applicable 
to  thick  lenses  and  single  refracting  surfaces  were  also  given.  In 
his  second  note  the  author  treated  similar  problems  by  the  aid 
of  squares  drawn  on  the  principal  focal  distances,  the  construc- 
tions being  remarkably  simple,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  figure,  in. 

-M7   Mi 


4-—, 

-P 

Q     Fj 

:irs 

which  Mj  Mj  represent  the  principal  planes  of  a  thick  lens,  Fj,. 
Fj,  its  principal  foci,  and  p  and  Q  are  conjugate  points.  The 
line  B  c  is  drawn  parallel  to  p  A.  In  the  third  note,  the  paths  of 
rays  through  prisms  are  determined  by  the  aid  of  imaginary- 
planes  representing  the  apparent  position  of  the  plane  bisecting 
the  dihedral  angle  of  the  prism  when  viewed  through  its  two 
faces.  Just  as  in  problems  on  thick  lenses  in  which  the  part  be- 
tween the  principal  planes  may  be  supposed  removed,  so  when 
dealing  with  prisms,  the  part  between  the  imaginary  planes 
above  referred  to  may  be  supposed  non-existent.  In  another 
method  of  treatment,  the  apparent  positions  of  points  outside  the 
prism  when  viewed  from  inside  the  prism  are  made  use  of,  and 
their  application  to  illustrate  dispersion  was  pointed  out.  Mr. 
C.  V.  Boys  asked  whether  the  latter  construction  could  be  used 
to  show  why  the  slit  of  a  spectroscope  appears  curved. — On  the 
behaviour  of  steel  under  mechanical  stress,  by  Mr.  C.  H.  Carus- 
Wilson.  This  is  an  inquiry  into  the  properties  of  steel  as  illus- 
trated by  the  stress-strain  curves  given  in  automatic  diagrams 
from  testing  machines,  and  by  magnetic  changes  which  take 
place  during  testing.  After  pointing  out  that  the  permanent 
elongation  of  a  bar  under  longitudinal  stress  consists  of  a  sliding 
combined  with  an  increase  of  volume,  the  author  showed  that 
the  "yield"  is  caused  by  the  limit  of  elastic  resistance  (p) 
parallel  to  one  particular  direction  in  the  bar  (generally  at  45° 
to  the  axis)  being  less  than  along  any  other  direction.  When  this 
lower  limit  is  reached,  sliding  takes  place  in  this  direction  until 
the  hardening  of  the  bar  caused  thereby  raises  the  limit  of 
elastic  resistance  (in  the  direction  referred  to)  to  that  of  the  rest 
of  the  bar,  after  which  the  stress  must  be  increased  to  produce 
further  permanent  set.  From  considerations  based  on  the  stress- 


2  14 


NATURE 


Jan.  2.  1890 


strain  curves  of  the  same  material  when  hardened  to  different 
■degrees  by  heating  and  immersion,  &c.,  it  was  concluded  that 
the  increase  of  (p)  during  "  yield  "  is  the  same  for  all  the  speci- 
mens, and  that  the  "yield"  is  a  measure  of  the  "hardness." 
The  question  of  discontinuity  of  the  curves  about  the  "yield 
point "  was  next  discussed,  and  evidence  to  the  contrary  given 
by  specimens  which  show  conclusively  that  the  yield  does  not 
take  place  simultaneously  at  all  parts  of  the  bar,  but  travels 
along  the  bar  as  a  strain  wave.  In  these  specimens  the  load  had 
been  removed  before  the  wave  had  traversed  the  whole  length  ; 
and  the  line  between  the  strained  and  unstrained  portions  could 
be  easily  recognized.  As  additional  evidence  of  continuity,  the 
■close  analogy  between  the  stress-strain  curves  of  steel  of  various 
degrees  of  hardness,  and  the  isothermals  of  condensible  gases  at 
different  temperatures  when  near  their  point  of  liquefaction,  was 
pointed  out ;  the  apparent  discontinuity  in  the  latter  probably 
being  due  to  the  change  from  gas  to  liquid  taking  place  piece- 
meal throughout  the  substance  (see  Prof.  J.  Thomson,  Proc. 
Roy.  Soc,  71,  No.  130).  In  seeking  for  an  explanation  of  the 
hardening  of  steel  by  permanent  strain,  the  author  was  led  to 
believe  this  due  to  the  displacement  of  the  atoms  within  the 
molecules  of  the  substance.  To  test  this  hypothesis,  experiments 
on  magnetization  by  stretching  a  bar  in  a  magnetic  field  were 
made ;  these  show  that  the  magnetization  increases  with  the 
stress  up  to  the  "yield  point,"  and  is  wholly  permanent  when 
approaching  that  point.  On  comparing  his  results  with  Joule's 
experiments  on  the  elongation  of  loaded  wires  produced  by 
magnetization,  the  author  infers  that  there  are  two  kinds  of 
elongation — firstly,  that  produced  by  relative  motion  of  the  mole- 
cules, and  secondly,  an  elongation  resulting  from  a  straining  of 
the  molecules  themselves.  To  this  latter  straining  the  hardening 
by  permanent  strain  is  attributed,  and  this  view  seems  com- 
patible with  the  results  of  Osmond's  researches  on  the  hardening 
of  steel. — Mr,  F.  C.  Hawe's  paper  was  postponed. 

Mathematical  Society,  Dec.  12.  1889.— Mr.  J-  J.iWalker^ 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were 
read  : — On  the  radial  vibrations  of  a  cylindrical  elastic  shell,  by 
A.  B.  Basset,  F.R.S.— Note  on  the  51840  group.  Dr.  G.  G. 
Morrice. — The  President  then  vacated  the  chair,  which  was 
taken  by  Mr.  E.  B.  Elliott,  Vice-President. — Complex  multi- 
plication moduli  of  elliptic  functions  for  the  determinants  -  53 
and  -  61,  by  Prof.  G.  B.  Mathews  (communicated  by  Prof. 
Greenhill,  F.R.  S.). — On  the  flexure  of  an  elastic  plate,  by  Prof. 
H.  Lamb,  F.R.S. — Notes  on  a  plane  cubic  and  a  conic,  by  R. 
A.  Roberts  (communicated  by  the  Secretary). — ^Dr.  Larmor  and 
Mr.  Curran  Sharp  made  brief  communications. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  December  16,  1889.— Sir  Arthur  Mitchell, 
Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Thomas  Muir  read  a  note  on 
Cayley's  demonstration  of  Pascal's  theorem.  He  has  succeeded 
in  simplifying  the  proof. — Dr.  Muir  also  read  a.  paper  on  self- 
conjugate  permutations,  and  one  on  a  rapidly  converging  series 
for  the  extraction  of  the  square  root. — Prof.  Tait  read  a  note 
on  some  quaternion  integrals,  and  also  a  note  on  the  glissette  of 
a  hyperbola.  When  a  given  ellipse  slides  on  rectangular  axes, 
any  point  in  its  plane  traces  out  a  definite  curve,  and  the  same 
■curve  can  be  similarly  obtained  as  the  trace  of  a  definite  point 
in  the  plane  of  a  certain  hyperbola  sliding  between  axes  in 
general  inclined  to  the  former. — Dr.  Woodhead  communi- 
•cated  a  paper,  written  by  Dr.  Herbert  Ashdown,  on  certain 
substances,  formed  in  the  urine,  which  reduce  the  oxide  of 
copper  upon  boiling  in  the  presence  of  an  alkali.  Dr.  Ashdown 
was  led  to  search  for  these  substances  in  the  human  subject  as 
the  result  of  observations  made  upon  lower  animals. — Dr.  G.  E. 
Cartwright  Wood  discussed  enzyme  action  in  the  lower  organisms. 
—Dr.  Woodhead  communicated  a  paper,  by  Mr.  Frank  E. 
Beddard,  on  the  structure  of  a  genus  of  OligochsetK  belonging 
to  the  Limnicoline  section. 

Paris. 
Academy  of  Sciences,  December  16,  1889.— M.  Hermite 
in  the  chair. — Note  on  the  eclipse  of  December  22,  by  M.  J- 
Janssen.  The  arrangements  are  described  which  were  made 
at  the  Observatory  of  Meudon  for  observing  this  event. — 
On  the  effects  of  a  new  hydraulic  engine  used  for  irrigation  pur- 
poses, by  M.  Anatole  de  Caligny,  The  general  disposition  of 
this  apparatus  was  fully  described  in  the  Comptes  rendus,  Novem- 
ber 19,  1887.     The  present  note  has  reference  to  an  improve- 


ment introduced  for  the  purpose  of  remedying  a  serious  defect 
in  the  original  design.  It  has  now  the  advantage  of  giving  as 
good  results  as  any  of  the  systems  in  general  use,  while  superior 
to  them  in  simplicity  and  economy.  —  On  the  production  of  films 
of  ice  on  the  surface  of  the  alburnum  of  certain  species  of  plants, 
by  M.  D.  Clos.  Early  in  December,  after  a  hard  frost,  when 
the  glass  fell  to  -  6°  C.  at  night,  Verbesina  virginica,  Helian- 
thus  orgyalis,  and  several  other  plants  exhibited  the  same  phe- 
nomenon of  glaciation  at  the  Toulouse  Botanical  Garden  as 
was  observed  and  described  by  Dunal  at  Montpellier  in  1848. 
An  explanation  is  here  given  of  the  phenomenon,  which  occurred 
on  a  much  larger  scale  on  the  present  than  on  the  previous 
occasion. — Observations  of  Borrelly's  new  comet  (g  1889),  made 
at  the  Paris  Observatory  with  the  equatorial  of  the  west  tower, 
by  M.  G.  Bigourdan.  The  observations  were  taken  on  Decem- 
ber 15,  when  the  comet  presented  the  appearance  of  a  nebulosity 
indistinctly  round,  of  2'  diameter,  slightly  more  _brilliant  in  the, 
central  region,  but  without  notable  condensation.  In  its  expanse 
were   clearly   visible   two  stellar  points,  and   the   presence   of 

several  others  suspected. — On  the  series  ^-^j  "St'  by   M. 

Andre  Markoff.  From  the  nature  of  these  series  the  author 
establishes  a  formula  which  yields  the  equation — 


I  -f- 


+  - -;,  + 


+ 


=  I  -202  056  903 159  594  285  40, 


correct  to  20  decimals,  M.  Markoffs  paper  forms  a  sequel  to 
Stirling's  memoir  "De  Summatione  et  Interpolatione  Serierum 
Infinitarum."— On  magnetic  potential  energy  and  the  measure- 
ment of  the  coefficients  of  magnetization,  by  M.  Gouy.  The 
mechanical  action  of  magnets  on  isotropous  substances  dia- 
magnetic  or  feebly  magnetic  isotropous  bodies  has  often  been 
utilized  for  measuring  or  comparing  the  coefficients  of  magnetiza- 
tion assumed  to  be  constants.  On  this  hypothesis  has  been 
established  the  expression  of  the  potential  energy  which  serves 
to  calculate  the  mechanical  action  in  question.  Here  M.  Gouy 
proposes  to  supply  a  somewhat  more  complete  theory  by  regard- 
ing these  coefficients,  not  as  constants,  but  as  variable  with  the 
magnetizing  force,  and  utilizing  the  experimental  data  for 
measuring  the  variations. — On  the  colour  and  spectrum  of 
fluorine,  by  M.  Henri  Moissan.  The  colour  of  fluorine  as  here 
determined  is  a  greenish -yellow,  much  fainter  than  that  of 
chlorine  under  like  conditions,  and  inclining  more  to  the  yellow 
tint.  Thirteen  rays  have  been  determined  in  the  red  region  of 
the  spectrum.  With  hydrofluoric  acid  several  bands  have  been 
obtained  in  the  yellow  and  violet,  but  very  wide  and  not  suffi- 
ciently distinct  to  fix  their  position  with  accuracy. — Action  of 
ammonia  on  the  combinations  of  the  cyanide  with  the  chlorides 
of  mercury,  by  M.  Raoul  Varet.  The  paper  deals  severally 
with  the  action  of  ammonia  on  the  cyanochloride  of  mercury  ; 
the  action  of  absolute  ammoniacal  alcohol ;  the  action  of 
ammoniac  gas  ;  the  cyanochloride  of  mercury  and  zinc  ;  and  the 
cyanochloride  of  mercury  and  copper. — On  an  adulteration  of 
the  essence  of  French  turpentine,  by  M.  A.  Aignan.  This 
fraud,  which  consists  in  the  addition  of  a  small  quantity  of  the 
oil  of  resin,  is  not  easily  detected,  but  may  be  discovered  by 
studying  the  rotatory  power  of  the  liquid,  as  is  here  shown. — 
Papers  were  submitted  by  M.  Besson,  on  the  temperature  of 
solidification  of  the  chlorides  of  tin  and  arsenic,  and  on  their 
faculty  of  absorbing  chlorine  at  a  low  temperature ;  by  M. 
Seyewitz,  on  the  synthesis  of  dioxidiphenylamine  and  of  a  red- 
brown  colouring  substance  ;  by  M.  Pierre  Mercier,  on  a  general 
method  of  colouring  photographic  proofs  with  the  salts  of  silver, 
platinum,  and  the  metals  of  the  platinum  group ;  and  by  MM. 
G.  Pouchet  and  Bietrix,  on  the  egg  and  first  development  of  the 
alose,  a  fish  allied  to  the  sardine. 

December  23. — jSI.  Hermite  in  the  chair. — On  the  discovery 
of  a  fossil  ape,  by  M.  Albert  Gaudry.  On  presenting  to  the 
Academy  the  skull  of  an  ape  recently  discovered  by  Dr. 
Donnezan  at  Serrat  d'en  Vaquer,  M.  Gaudry  remarked  that, 
except  those  from  Pikermi  in  Greece,  these  are  the  only  cranial 
remains  of  a  fossil  Simian  hitherto  brought  to  light.  Many 
other  fossils  have  been  found  in  the  same  place,  which  evidently 
contains  large  accumulations,  especially  of  extinct  vertebrate 
animals. — Observations  of  the  comet  discovered  by  M.  Borrelly 
at  the  Observatory  of  Marseilles,  on  December  12,  by  M, 
Stephan.  The  observations  are  for  December  12,  13,  and  14, 
during  which  period  the  comet  steadily  increased  in  brightness, 
and   assumed   more   distinct    outlines.      On   the    12th   it   was 


Jan.  2,  1890] 


NATURE 


215 


obscured  for  a  few  minutes  by  a  star  of  the  tenth  or  eleventh 
magnitude. — Determination  of  the  difference  of  longitude  be- 
tween Paris  and  Leyden,  by  M.  Bassot.  This  international 
operation,  executed  by  MM.  Van  de  Sande  Bakhuyzen  and 
Bassot,  presents  a  special  geodetic  interest,  Leyden  being  the 
northernmost  station  of  the  meridian  of  Sedan  which  now  passes 
through  Belgium  far  into  the  Netherlands.  From  the  observa- 
tions the  difference  of  longitude  between  Paris  and  Leyden 
appears  to  be  8m.  35*6025.,  with  probable  error  ±  O'Oiis., 
which,  reduced  to  the  official  meridians,  gives  8m.  35 '2 1 3s. — 
On  the  degree  of  accuracy  attained  by  thermometers  in  the 
measurement  of  temperatures,  by  M.  Ch.  Ed.  Guillaume.  On 
presenting  to  the  Academy  his  '*  Traite  pratique  de  la  Thermo- 
mt'trie  de  precision,"  the  author  took  occasion  to  reply  to  M. 
Renou's  recent  remarks  on  the  accuracy  of  the  mercury  ther- 
mometer. Reviewing  the  whole  question,  and  comparing  the 
opinions  and  experiences  of  the  most  distinguished  physicists 
during  late  years,  M.  Guillaume  considers  it  placed  beyond 
doubt  that  mercury  thermometers  with  glass  of  varying  qualities 
yield  varying  results.  But  these  differences,  formerly  supposed 
to  be  fortuitous,  are  now  known  to  be  systematic,  so  that  any 
number  of  instruments  giving  identical  results  may  be  constructed 
by  a  judicious  selection  of  glass  and  careful  manipulation. 
— On  /8-inosite,  by  M.  Maquenne.  In  a  previous  note 
{Compfes  rendus,  vol.  cix.  p.  812)  the  author  showed  that 
pinite  may  be  decomposed  into  a  molecule  of  methyl  iodide  and 
a  molecule  of  a  new  sugar  called  by  him  i8-inosite.  The  analysis 
cif  these  two  bodies  leading  to  identical  results,  he  inferred  that 
they  were  isomerous,  presenting  relations  of  the  same  order  as 
those  existing  between  the  two  known  hexachlorides  of  benzine. 
This  hypothesis  has  been  fully  confirmed  by  his  further  study  of 
;3-inosite,  communicated  in  the  present  memoir. — On  a  new 
class  of  diacetones,  by  MM.  A.  Behal  and  V.  Auger.  The 
authors  have  already  shown  that  the  chlorides  of  malonyl, 
methylmalonyl,  and  ethylmalonyl  react  on  the  aromatic  car- 
burets, yielding  diacetones,  /8,R— CO— CHX— CO— R.  They 
have  also  determined  the  formation  of  compounds  having  the 
characteristic  property  of  yielding  with  the  alkalies  and  alkaline 
carbonates  blood-red  solutions.  A  further  series  of  researches 
has  now  enabled  them  to  prepare  several  of  these  compounds  in 
large  quantities,  and  thus  study  their  constitution  as  here  de- 
scribed. The  best  results  were  yielded  by  metaxylene  and  the 
chloride  of  ethylmalonyl. — Optical  properties  of  the  polychroic 
aureolas  present  in  certain  minerals,  by  M.  A.  Michel  Levy. 
This  curious  phenomenon  is  traced  mainly  to  the  presence  of 
small  crystals  of  zircon  widely  disseminated  throughout  granitic 
and  other  rocks.  In  some  cases  it  may  also  be  due  to  the 
presence  of  dumortierite  and  allanite.  These  aureoles  offer  an 
interesting  example  of  a  simultaneous  modification  of  birefraction 
and  polychroism,  a  modification,  however,  which  is  not  per- 
manent, or  at  least  which  may  disappear,  without  involving  any 
change  in  the  properties  of  the  mineral  itself. — Analysis  of  the 
Mighei  meteorite,  by  M.  Stanislas  Meunier.  This  meteorite, 
which  fell  on  June  9,  1889,  at  Mighei,  in  Russia,  yielded  be- 
sides the  usual  constituents,  a  new  element,  which  M.  Meunier 
has  not  yet  succeeded  in  identifying. — Papers  were  contributed 
by  M.  Y.  Wada,  on  the  earthquake  of  July  28  at  Kiushu  Island, 
Japan  ;  by  M.  Ch.  Contejean,  on  the  circulation  of  the  blood  in 
mammals  at  the  moment  of  birth  ;  by  M.  Ferre,  on  the  semeio- 
logic  and  pathologic  study  of  rabies  ;  and  by  Messrs.  Woodhead 
and  Cartwright  Wood,  on  the  antidotic  action  exercised  by 
the  pyocyanic  liquids  on  the  development  of  the  anthracite 
disease. 

Berlin. 

Meteorological  Society,  Dec.  3,  1889.— Dr.  Vettin,  Presi- 
dent, in  the  chair. —Dr.  Kremser  spoke  on  the  frequency  of 
occurrence  of  mist,  a  subject  whose  investigation  he  had  recently 
undertaken.  Up  to  the  present  time  the  material  derived  from 
observation  is  extremely  scanty,  as  shown  by  the  extremely 
divergent  mean  values  obtained  for  different  places  in  close 
proximity  to  each  other,  as,  for  instance,  Hamburg  and  Altona, 
or  even  different  parts  of  the  one  city,  Berlin.  It  seems  scarcely 
possible  to  attribute  the  differences  to  local  conditipns  in  all 
cases,  for  the  mean  annual  values  resulting  from  the  observations 
of  different  observers  in  one  and  the  same  place  show  an  equally 
striking  discordancy.  This  is  undoubtedly  due  to  the  want  of 
suitable  units  for  estimating  and  measuring  mists.  From  the 
above  it  follows  that  it  is  impossible  to  determine  any  secular 
changes  on  the  basis  of  existing  observations,  although  the  yearly 


variations  may  be.  By  comparisons  based  on  a  long  series  of 
observations,  it  appeared  that  a  series  extending  over  ten  years 
suffices  to  give  a  reliable  monthly  mean.  From  this  it  appears 
that  at  most  stations  the  maximal  amount  of  mist  occurs  in  the 
months  of  November  and  December,  the  maximum  occurring  in 
November  in  the  eastern  provinces  of  Prussia,  and  falling  pro- 
gressively later  the  further  the  stations  lie  towards  the  west. 
On  the  coasts  of  the  North  Sea  and  on  the  adjacent  islands  the 
maximum  is  observed  in  January,  while  it  occurs  on  mountains 
as  early  as  September  and  October.  At  the  latter  stations  the 
minimum  is  met  with  as  early  as  May,  and  is  progressively 
later  (June  and  July)  at  the  other  stations  according  to  the 
lateness  of  the  maximum.  On  the  islands,  as,  for  instance, 
Heligoland,  the  minimum  does  not  occur  before  September 
or  October.  As  a  general  rule,  70  per  cent,  falls  in  autumn 
and  winter,  20  per  cent,  in  spring,  and  10  per  cent,  in 
summer.  The  amplitude  of  the  yearly  differences  is  greatest 
on  the  plains  and  least  on  mountains.  The  number  of 
days  on  which  mist  occurs  is  greatest  at  mountain  stations, 
amounting  on  the  average  to  200  per  annum,  falling  in  the  low 
lands  to  as  few  as  40  or  less.  The  material  at  hand  for  deter- 
mining the  variations  in  the  amount  of  mist  per  diem  was  ex- 
tremely scanty  ;  still  it  was  possible  to  make  out  that,  in  winter, 
mist  is  most  frequent  in  the  morning,  diminishing  considerably 
towards  midday,  and  being  in  the  evening  at  times  as  frequent 
as  at  midday,  at  times  somewhat  more  frequent.  In  summer, 
mist  is  observed  only  in  the  morning,  and  then  disappears  com- 
pletely. In  the  discussion  which  followed  the  above  communi- 
cation it  was  pointed  out  how  essential  it  is  to  distinguish 
between  clouds  and  mist,  as  also  many  other  factors,  such  as  the 
frequency  of  purely  local  mists,  the  absence  of  wind,  the  diffi- 
culty of  determining  the  density  of  mists,  the  differences  of  alti- 
tude, &c. — Dr.  Sprung  spoke  on  some  new  self-recording  appa- 
ratus of  various  kinds  made  by  Richard  of  Paris,  and  described 
fully  his  actinometer  and  anemocinometer. 

Physical  Society,  Dec.  6,  1889. — Prof-  Kundt,  President, 
in  the  chair. — Prof.  Planck  spoke  on  the  development  of  elec- 
tricity and  heat  in  dilute  electrolytic  solutions.  From  the 
experiments  of  Kohlrausch  and  Hittorf,  and  the  theoretical 
considerations  of  Van  t'  Hoff,  Arrhenius,  and  Nernst,  all  that 
takes  place  in  dilute  electrolytic  solutions  during  the  passage  of 
a  current  is  very  accurately  known,  especially  in  the  cases  where 
the  solution  is  very  dilute  and  the  electrolyte  is  very  uniformly 
distributed  in  it.  It  has  become  possible  to  subject  the  occur- 
rences in  electrolytic  solutions  to  mathematical  investigation, 
owing  to  the  existing  conceptions  of  the  osmotic  pressure 
in  such  solutions,  of  the  more  or  less  complete  dissociation 
of  the  electrolyte  when  in  dilute  solution,  of  the  applicability 
of  the  gaseous  laws  to  such  solutions,  and  owing  to  the  experi- 
mental determination  of  the  rate  at  which  the  ions  travel.  The 
speaker  had  submitted  the  general  case,  in  which  the  solution  is 
not  quite  uniform,  to  a  mathematical  analysis,  and  deduced  the 
formulae  which  represent  that  which  is  taking  place  in  each  unit 
of  volume  of  the  highly  diluted  solutions  in  which  dissociation  is 
complete.  These  formulae  correspond  exactly  to  those  arrived 
at  by  Nernst  for  the  development  of  electricity.  Up  to  the  present^ 
time  the  thermal  phenomena  in  dilute  electrolytic  solutions 
have  not  been  fully  dealt  with.  The  speaker  showed  that  heat 
is  the  most  important  form  of  energy  existing  in  the  solution.  It 
is  only  possible  to  arrive  at  a  complete  understanding  of  the  heat 
production  if,  when  drawing  parallels  between  dilute  solutions 
and  gases,  a  further  step  is  taken,  and  it  is  assumed  that  just  as 
gases  become  warmer  by  compression  and  colder  by  a  fall  of 
pressure,  so  also  heat  is  developed  in  electrolytic  solutions  when 
the  ions  are  increased  in  number,  and  disappears  when  they  are 
diminished  per  unit  of  volume.  Hence  the  mere  diffusive  pro- 
cesses in  an  electrolytic  solution  whose  composition  is  not 
uniform  must  develop  an  osmotic  heat,  which  makes  its  appear- 
ance, and  can  be  calculated  in  the  absence  of  any  electrical  current. 
This  osmotic  heat  must  be  taken  into  account,  along  with  the 
two  already  known  sources  of  heat  production,  during  the  pas- 
sage of  an  electric  current  through  a  solution,  before  it  is  possible 
to  calculate  all  the  relationships  of  energy  in  a  dilute,  non- 
uniform, electrolytic  solution  during  the  passage  of  a  current 
through  it. — The  President  exhibited  the  air-pump  constructed 
by  Otto  von  Guericke  in  1675,  which  had  recently  been  acquired 
by  the  Physical  Society.  This  pump  is  still  in  a  thoroughly 
workable  condition,  with  the  exception  of  the  glass  vessel,  which 
has  been  renewed.  The  pressure  in  this  receiver  could  be  re- 
duced to    20  mm.  of   mercury,  by  means  of  the  pump.     The 


2  l6 


NATURE 


\yan.  2,  1890 


celebrated  Magdeburg  hemispheres  have  also  come  into  the 
possession  of  the  Society,  and  were  exhibited  at  the  same  time ; 
they  are  perfect  except  in  the  want  of  the  leather  packing. 


Amsterdam. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  November  30,  1889. — Dr. 
Hoek  read  a  paper  on  the  Zuyder  Zee  herring,  showing  that  it 
belongs  to  a  race  of  spring  herrings  (herrings  spawning  in  spring) 
closely  related  to  the  spring  herrings  of  the  Baltic,  as  described 
by  Heincke.  But  whereas,  in  the  Baltic,  two  races  of  herrings 
—an  autumn  or  winter  herring,  and  a  spring  herring — can  be 
distinguished,  all  the  herrings  which  enter  the  Zuyder  Zee— both 
those  which  enter  it  in  autumn  and  those  which  are  caught  in 
spring— belong  to  one  variety :  they  all  spawn  in  the  spring 
months  only  ;  they  are  reproduced  only  in  water  that  is  rather 
brackish  (nearly  fresh)  ;  and  their  fry  is  very  small  in  comparison 
with  that  of  open-sea  herrings.  Considering  that  the  Zuyder 
Zee  herring  is  a  variety  which  has  sprung  from  the  open  North 
Sea  herring,  it  furnishes  a  striking  instance  of  the  formation  of 
a  variety  under  changed  conditions  in  the  course  of  a  few  cen- 
turies.— Prof,  van  de  Sanden  Bakhuyzen  gave  an  account  of  the 
meeting  of  the  Committee  for  the  Construction  of  the  Photo- 
graphic Map  of  the  Heavens,  held  at  Paris  in  September  last, 
and  spoke  about  the  share  of  the  Dutch  astronomers  in  that 
undertaking. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THl/HSDAy,  ]A>iVAiiY  2. 

•Royal  Institution,  at  ■\. — Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory) : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Rucker,  F.R.S. 

FRIDAY,  January  3. 

■Geologists'  Association,  at  8. — On  the  Fossil  Fishes  of  the  English 
Lower  Ojlites  (illustrated  by  Specimens  from  t'le  Collection  of  Tnos. 
Jesson) :  A.  Smith  Woodward.  —A  Short  Account  of  the  Excursion  to  the 
Volcanic  Regions  of  Southern  Italy  (illustrated  by  Photographic  Views): 
Dr.  H.J.  Johnston  Lavis. 

SATURDAY,  January  4. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory)  : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Rucker,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  January  5. 

S  'NDAY  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — Ballooning  in  the  Service  of  Science 
(with  Oxyhydrogen  Lantern  Illustrations)  :  Eric  S.  Bruce. 

MONDAY,  January  6. 

'k'lCTORiA  Institute,  at  8. — Iceland  :  Rev.  Dr.  F.  A.  Walker. 

society    of    Chemical    Industry,    at    8. — Peroxide    of    Hydrogen,    its 

Preservation  and  Commercial  Uses  :  C.  T.  Kingzett. 
Aristotelian  Society,  at  8. — Practical  Cenainty  the  Highest  Certainty  : 

R.  E.  Mitcheson. 

TUESDAY,  January  7. 
Anthropological  Institute,  at  8.30. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditorv)  • 
Prof.  A.  W.  Rucker,  F.R.S.  ^  n 

WEDNESDAY,  January  8. 

Geological  Society,  at  8. — On  some  British  Jurassic  Fish-remains  refer. 

able  to  the  Genera  Eurycormus  and  Hypsocormus  :  A.  Smith  Woodward. 

— On  the  Pebidian  Volcanic  Series  of  St.  Davids :  Prof.  C.  Lloyd  Morgan! 

The  Variolitic  Rocks  of  Mount  Genevre  :  Grenville  A.  J.  Cole  and  J.  W. 

Gregory. 
•Royal   Microscopical  Society,  at   8. — On  the  Variations  of  the  Female 

Reproductive  Organs,    especially   the  Vestibule,    in  Different  Species  of 

Uropoda  :  A.  D.  Michael. 
S  jcibtv  of  Arts,  at  7. 

THURSDAY,  January  9. 
•Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

•Mathematical  Society,  at  8.— On  the  Deformation  of  an  Elastic  Shell : 
Prof.  H.  Lamb,  F.R.S.— On  the  Relation  between  the  LogicalTheory  of 
Classes  and  the  Geometrical  Theory  of  Points  :  A.  B.  Kerape,  F.  K.S. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3— Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditorv) : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Rucker,  F.R.S.  ' 

/^y?/Z).4r,  January  id. 

.Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  8. 

iFSTiruTiON  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.33. —The  Irrigation  Works  on 
the  Cauvery  Delta  ;  Alfrad  Chatterton. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Challenger  Report  ;  Physics  and  Chemistry,  vol.  ii.  (Eyre  and  Spottis- 
woode). — Manuel  de  1' Analyse  des  Vins  :  E.  Banllot  (Paris,  Gauthisr-Villars). 
— Traite  de  Photographic  par  les  Procedei  Pelliculaires,  tome  premier  et 
second:  G.  Balagny  (Pans,  Gauthier-Villars). — Legoni  sur  la  Theorie 
Mathematique  de  I'Electricit^  :  J.  Bertrand  (Paris,  Gauthier-Villars!.— 
Sundevall's  Tentamen,  translated  by  F.  Nicholson  (Porter). — The  Nests  and 

j   Eggs  of  Indian  Birds,  vol.  i.,  2nd  edition  :  A.    O.   Hume,  edited  by  E.  W. 

[    Oates  (Porter). — The   Cosmic    Law  of   Thermal    Repulsion    (iVew   York. 

I    Wiley). — Old    Age:    Dr.   G.   H.    Humphry  (Cambridge,    Macmillan   and 

I  Bowes). — A  Hand-book  of  Quantitative  Analysis  :  J.  Mills  and  B.  North 
(Chapman  and  Hall). — Alternate  Elementary  Physics  :  J.    Mills  (Chapman 

,   and  Hall). — Solutions  to  the  Questions  set  at  the  May  Examinations  of  the 

I  Science  and  Art  Department,  1881  to  1886  ;  Pure  Mathematics,  Stages  i  and 
2  :  T.  T.  Rankin  (Chapman  and  Hall).  —  Perspective  Charts  for  Use  in  Class- 

j  teaching:  H.  A.  James  (Chapman  and  Hall).— Theoreiische  Mechanik 
Starrer  Systeme :  Sir  R.  S.  Ball,  herausgeben  von  H.  Gravelius  (Berlin, 
Reimer). — Prodromus  of  the  Zoology  of  Victoria,   decade  -xix.  :  F.   McCoy 

!  (Triibner) — The  Garden's  Story,  2nd  edition  :  G.  H.  Ellwanger  (Appleton). 
—  New  Light  from  Old  Eclipses:  W.  M.  Page  (St.  Louis). — A  Trip 
through  the  Eastern  Caucasus:  Hon.  John  Abercromby  (Stanford). — 
A  Manual  of  Palajontology,  2  vols.,  3rd  edition  :  H.  A.  Nicholson  and  R. 
Lydekker  (Blackwood). — A  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant  in  the  Shan 
States  :  H.  S.  Hallett  (Blackwood). — Descriptions  of  Eighi  New  Species  of 
Fossils,  &c.  :  J.  F.  Whiteaves  (Montreal). — Victoria  Water  Supply,  Third 
Annual  General  Report  (Melbourne).  — Studies  from  the  Biological  Labora- 
tory, Johns  Hopkins  University,  vol  4,  No.  5  (Baltimore). — Journal  of  the 
Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal,  vol.  58,  Part  2,  Nos.  i  and  2  (Calcutta). — Journal 
of  the  Anthropological  Institute,  November  1889  (Triibner). — Journal  of  the 
Royal  Microscopical  Society,  December  (Williams  and  Norgate). — Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Royal  Society  of  Queensland,  1889,  vol.  6,  Part  5(Br.sbane). 
— Zahl  und  Vertheilung  der  Markhaltigen  Fasern  im  Froschruckenmark, 
No.  9  (Leipzig,  Hiizei).  — Notes  from  the  Leyden  Museum,  vol.  xi.,  No.  4 
(Leyden.  IJnll). — The  Quarterly  Journal  of  Microscopical  Science,  December 
(Churchill). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Bermuda  Islands.     By  Dr.   H,  B.  Guppy  .    .    .     193 

The  Useful  Plants  of  Australia.     By  D.  M 194 

Mount  Vesuvius 195 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Turnbull :   "  Index  of  British  Plants."— J.  G.  B.    .    .  196 
Wilson  :    "  Practical    Observations    on    Agricultural 

Grasses  and  other  Plants." — W 196 

Wilson:   "The  State"     ....        196 

Mills  and  North  :   "  Introductory  Lessons  in  Quanti- 
tative Analysis" 197 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Note  on  a  Probable  Nervous  Affection  observed  in  an 

Insect. — E.  W.  Carlier 197 

Does  the  Bulk  of  Ocean  Water  Increase  ? — -Rev.  O. 

Fisher • 197 

Exact  Thermometry. — Herbert  Tomlinson,  F.R.S.  198 

Self-luminous  Clouds.  —  George  F.  Burder    ....  198 

Duchayla's  Proof. -Prof.  J.  D.  Everett,  F.R.S.  .    .  198 

The  Satellite  of  Algol.— W.  H.  S.  Monck     ....  198 

Maltese  Butterflies. — George  Eraser 199 

A  Preservative. — H.  Leslie  Osborn 199 

The  Evolution  of  Sex. — M.  S.  Pembrey 199 

Fighting  for  the  Belt. — F.  C.  Constable 199 

The  British  Museum  Reading-Room. — A.  B.  M.    .    .  199 

"  Among  Cannibals."     {Illustrated.) 200 

British  Earthquakes.     By  William  White 202 

Effect  of    Oil   on    Disturbed    Water.      By   Richard 

Beynon 205 

Recent  Observations  of  Jupiter.     By  W^.  F.  Denning  206 

Notes     207 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowlerj 210 

Dr.  Peters's  Star  Catalogue 210 

Longitude  of  Mount  Hamilton 211 

Comet  Borelly,  ^  1889  (December  12) 211 

Comet  Brooks,  ^/ 1889  (July  6) 211 

The  Solar  Eclipse 211 

Accumulations  of  Capital  in  the  United  Kingdom  in 

1875-85 211 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 212 

Scientific  Serials 212 

Societies  and  Academies 2 [2 

Diary  of  Societies •    •     .  216 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 216 


NA TURE 


217 


THURSDAY,  JANUARY  9,  1850. 


THE   ZOOLOGICAL  RESULTS    OF   THE 
''CHALLENGER"  EXPEDITION. 

Report  on  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Voyage  of  H.M.S. 
"  Challenger'^  during  the  Years  1873-76,  under  the 
comtnand  of  Captain  George  S.  Nares,  R.N.,  F.R.S., 
and  the  late  Captain  Frank  T.  Thomson,  R.N  Pre- 
pared under  the  superintendence  of  the  late  Sir  C. 
Wyville  Thomson,  Knt.,  F.R.S.,  &c.,  Director  of  the 
Civilian  Staff  on  board,  and  now  of  John  Murray, 
LL.D.,  Ph.D.,  &c.,  one  of  the  Naturalists  of  the 
Expedition.  Zoology— Vols.  XXXI.  and  XXXII. 
(Published  by  Order  of  Her  Majesty's  Government. 
London  :  Printed  for  Her  Majesty's  Stationery  Office, 
and  sold  by  Eyre  and  Spottisvvoode,  1889.) 

WITH  these  recently  published  volumes,  the  series 
of  Reports  on  the  zoological  results  of  the  Chal- 
lenger Expedition,  comes  to  a  close.  Volume  XXXI. 
contains  three  Reports,  the  first  of  which  is  on  the 
"  Alcyonaria,"  by  Profs.  E.  Perceval  Wright  and  Th. 
Studer.  It  would  appear  that  on  the  first  distribution  of 
the  zoological  treasures  of  the  Expedition,  the  Alcyonaria 
were  given  to  Prof,  von  Kolliker  to  describe,  and  the  first 
part  of  his  Report  on  the  Pennatulid?e,  forms  the  Second 
i  Report  published  in  1880.  From  a  note  of  the  editor, 
I  ,^  we  learn  that  Prof.  Kolliker  being  unwilling  to  under- 
take the  remainder  of  the  group,  the  fixed  forms  were 
committed  to  Dr.  E.  P.  Wright  for  description.  After  the 
appearcince  of  the  "  Narrative  of  the  Expedition "  in 
which  a  few  of  the  more  remarkable  of  the  new  species 
were  described  by  this  author.  Prof.  Studer  consented  to 
join  Dr.  Wright  in  preparing  the  Report,  and  all  the  details 
were  worked  out  in  unison. 

The  Report  opens  with  a  brief  introduction,  in  which 
an  attempt  is  made  to  present  a  more  or  less  complete 
list  of  the  orders,  families,  and  genera,  of  the  recent 
Alcyonaria ;  short  diagnoses  and  references  to  the 
bibliography  are  given.  While  this  introduction  might 
with  advantage  have  been  greatly  expanded,  yet  we  think 
its  value  will  be  appreciated  by  all  those  working  at  this 
group.  This  is  followed  by  the  description  of  the  genera 
and  species  in  the  Challenger  collection.  In  the  earlier 
pages  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  include  brief  notices  of 
all  the  known  forms,  but  it  was  soon  found  that  this  would 
occupy  too  much  space,  as  the  forms  from  large  portions 
of  the  Indian  Ocean  and  the  very  rich  Alcyonarian  fauna 
of  the  western  shores  of  North  America  were  not  repre- 
sented in  the  collection. 

One  hundred  and  eighty-nine  species  are  described  as 
found  during  the  voyage  of  the  Challenger  and  of  this 
number  no  less  than  one  hundred  and  thirty-three  are 
described  as  new.  Of  the  more  interesting  of  these,  the 
following  may  be  mentioned,  Callozostron  mirabilis,  a 
most  extraordinary  species  taken  in  the  Antarctic  Sea,  in 
the  most  southerly  dredging  made  during  the  voyage. 
While  there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  its  affinities  yet  this 
form  presents  many  puzzling  features.  Another  remark- 
able species  from  the  Fiji's,  Calypterinus  «//;/?««?,  although 
it  has  a  rigid  axis,  in  the  arrangement  of  its  polyps  shows 
Vol.  xli. — No.  1054. 


some  relationship  to  the  previously  mentioned  species 
A  great  number  of  new  species  are  added  to  a  genus 
quite  recently  described  by  Verrill,  and  which  is  made 
the  type  of  the  family  Dasygorgidae.  The  new  genus 
Acanthoisis,  which  is  nearly  related  to  the  well  known 
genus  Isis,  exhibits  an  unique  condition  of  its  axis,  which 
consists  of  alternate  horny  and  calcareous  joints,  the 
latter  being  very  beautifully  grooved  and  spined.  Keroeides 
/core?ii,  with  a  sclerogorgic  axis,  from  Japan,  is  also  a 
curious  species,  with  massive  spicules. 

Under  the  heading  of  "  Geographical  Distribution,"  a 
brief  history  is  given  of  the  distribution  of  the  species  of 
most  of  the  well  established  genera  ;  while  this  subject  is 
necessarily  very  incomplete,  yet  it  would  seem  as  if  the 
West  Indian  Islands,  the  Californian  shores  of  America, 
the  Australian  seas  and  especially  those  of  Japan  were 
the  chief  centres  of  the  group.  But  it  cannot  be  overlooked 
that  the  record  is  very  imperfect  and  that  the  recent 
researches  of  Danielssen  have  proved  that  immense  num- 
bers of  species  exist  in  the  seas  of  Norway. 

This  Report  extends  to  386  pages  and  is  illustrated  by 
49  lithographic  plates,  the  figures  in  which  have  been 
drawn  by  Mr.  George  West,  Jun.,  and  Mr.  Armbruster  of 
Berne. 

The  second  Report  is  by  Dr.  Giinther,  on  the  pelagic 
fishes,  and  comprises  an  account  of  the  specimens  which 
were  obtained  in  the  open  ocean  by  means,  chiefly,  of  the 
surface  net. 

The  specimens  were  as  numerous  as  those  of  either 
the  shore  or  deep-sea  fishes,  described  in  the  author's 
first  and  second  Reports  on  the  Challenger  fishes,  and 
by  far  the  greater  number  were  of  small  size  ;  some,  indeed, 
had  been  taken  at  so  early  a  stage  in  their  development 
as  to  make  it  impossible  to  refer  them  to  their  family  or 
even  order.  The  pelagic  fish  fauna,  as  defined  by  the 
author,  consists,  first,  of  the  truly  pelagic  fish — those 
which  habitually  live  on  the  surface  of  the  ocean,  acci- 
dentally and  rarely  approaching  the  shore  ;  the  majority 
breed  in  the  open  sea  and  pass  through  all  their  phases 
of  growth  without  coming  into  the  vicinity  of  land  ; 
numerous  representatives  of  these  were  in  the  collections. 
Secondly,  there  are  a  number  of  fishes  inhabiting  the  depth 
of  the  ocean,  from  a  hundred  fathoms  downwards,  which 
seem  periodically  to  ascend  to  the  surface,  possibly  in 
connection  with  their  propagation  ;  most  of  these  are 
found  at  the  surface,  only  during  the  early  stages  of  their 
growth,  but  they  connect  the  truly  surface  fishes  with  the 
deep-sea  fishes,  and  were  fairly  well  represented  in  the 
collection.  Thirdly,  the  pelagic  fauna  receives  a  very 
considerable  contingent  from  the  littoral  fauna  ;  some 
shore  fishes,  when  in  a  young  state,  are,  while  floating  on 
the  surface,  driven  to  sea  to  great  distances  by  currents 
and  winds  ;  many  such  immature  forms  were  found.  And, 
lastly,  fully  developed  specimens  of  littoral  species  some- 
times stray  or  are  accidentally  driven  out  to  the  open  sea, 
and  several  such  were  in  the  collection. 

Sixty-seven  species  are  indicated,  and  several  new 
genera  and  species  are  described.  A  new  species  of 
Branchiostoma  is  described  from  the  Pacific  ;  it  was 
either  from  the  surface  or  from  a  depth  of  1000  fathoms  ; 
the  perfect  condition  of  its  delicate  fin-fringe  seemed  to 
militate  against  the  latter  idea,  and  yet  it  would  be  even 
more  extraordinary  to  find  a  lancelet  living  at  the  surface 


2l8 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


of  the  open  sea.      This  Report  extends  to  47  pages,  and 
his  six  plates. 

The  third  Report  is  by  Arthur  W.  Waters,  and  is 
entitled  a  "  Supplementary  Report  on  the  Polyzoa.' 
From  every  point  of  view  we  regret  that  these  "  notes 
the  time  for  the  preparation  of  which  has  been  limited 
by  Mr.  Murray,"  have  been  published  as  part  of  the 
present  series  of  Reports. 

If  the  Reports  on  the  Challenger  Polyzoa  by  the  late 
George  Busk,  which  form  Parts  XXX.  and  L.  of  the 
zoological  series,  had  been  defective,  say,  for  example, 
that  a  number  of  new  or  rare  species  had  escaped  de- 
scription, then  it  would  have  been  useful  and  perhaps 
excusable  to  have  had  a  supplemental  Report  issued, 
noting  such  ;  but  out  of  the  41  pages  of  which  this 
Supplementary  Report  consists,  not  more  than  one  and 
a  half  are  devoted  to  the  record  of  the  three  new  species 
described,  while  the  rest  is  simply  a  series  of  criticisms 
on  the  late  Mr.  Busk's  work. 

The  very  heading  of  the  Report  contains  an  implied 
piece  of  criticism,  "  The  term  Polyzoa  is  used  for  sake  of 
uniformity."  Into  the  argument  pro  and  con  for  the  use, 
of  this  term  it  is  not  needful  for  us  here  to  enter,  but 
remembering  what  Mr.  Busk  had  written  to  justify  its  use, 
this  uncalled-for  remark  might  have  been  omitted.  We 
read  : — 

"  Shortly  after  the  death  of  Mr.  George  Busk,  who 
prepared  the  Report  on  the  Challenger  Polyzoa,  I  had, 
through  the  kindness  of  his  daughter,  Miss  Busk,  an 
opportunity  of  examining  some  of  the  duplicate  speci- 
mens, and  I  desire  to  thank  her  for  sending  me  those 
which,  from  published  criticism,  were  most  interesting  to 
me.  I  have  also  to  thank  Mr.  John  Murray,  the  director 
of  the  Challenger  publications,  for  allowing  me  to  examine 
the  whole  of  the  duplicate  material  in  Edinburgh.  I 
communicated  to  Mr.  Murray  some  valuable  results 
arising  from  an  examination  of  sections  of  the  Challenger 
specimens  prepared  by  a  method  similar  to  that  employed 
in  the  examination  of  fossil  Polyzoa,  and  at  his  request  I 
have  drawn  up  the  following  supplementary  notes  on  the 
Challenger  species." 

We  have  been  careful  to  quote  the  author's  own 
account  of  his  work,  which  would  have  formed  an  in- 
teresting communication  to  any  of  our  scientific  Societies, 
but  which  seems  to  us  to  be  quite  out  of  place  where  it  is 
now  published.  There  is  probably  not  one  of  the  eighty- 
two  Reports  published  on  the  zoological  results  of  the 
Challenger  Expedition  that  could  not  be  added  to  and 
emended,  and  no  one  would  wish  that  they  should  escape 
every  just  criticism,  but  this  is  quite  a  different  thing  from 
employing  the  funds  placed  by  the  Treasury  for  the  pub- 
lication of  these  Reports  on  the  printing  and  illustrating 
of  critical  notes  on  the  already  published  ones.  This 
supplementary  Report  is  illustrated  by  three  plates  from 
drawings  of  the  author. 

In  the  editorial  notes  to  Vol.  XXXII.  we  are  told  : — 

"  This  volume  concludes  the  zoological  series  of  Reports 
on  the  scientific  results  of  the  Expedition,  with  the  pos- 
sible exception  of  a  few  supplementary  notes  to  some  of 
the  memoirs  and  Prof.  Huxley's  Report  on  the  genus 
Spirula,  which  may  appear  as  an  appendix  to  the  con- 
cluding summary  volume." 

We  must  content  ourselves  with  protesting  against  the 
pubhcation  of  any  further  "  supplementary  notes  "  on  the 


Reports  unless  these  are  contributed  by  the  several  authors 
thereof.  As  to  a  "  concluding  summary  volume,"  opinions 
may  differ  as  to  the  advisability  of  publishing  a  summary 
of  the  thirty-two  volumes  in  the  same  series  as  the 
original  volumes.  For  the  scientific  worker  such  a 
summary  would  be  quite  useless,  for  any  such  would  have 
recourse  to  the  full  details.  For  the  general  reader, 
anxious  to  know  something  of  the  facts  stored  away,, 
beyond  his  reach,  in  these  many  ponderous  volumes,  a 
summary  would  no  doubt  be  of  interest,  and,  if  fairly  well 
executed,  of  value,  but  the  size  and  cost  of  a  volume  like 
those  already  published  in  this  series  would  place  such 
far  beyond  the  buying  powers  of  most  people,  and  to  us 
it  would  seem  a  waste  of  public  money  to  undertake  so  un- 
necessary a  labour.  If,  indeed,  the  Treasury  would  pub- 
lish, in  a  convenient  handy  volume,  a  carefull  y  prepared 
sketch  of  the  cruise  of  the  Challenger,  with  a  few  chap- 
ters added  giving  a  summary  of  the  additions  to  biological 
knowledge,  which  were  the  [immediate  results  of  the 
Expedition,  such  a  volume  would  be  acceptable  to  the 
general  public,  and  would  let  them  know  more  than  they 
at  present  do  of  the  most  important  voyage  of  discovery 
of  this  century. 

The  first  Report  in  Volume  XXXII.  is  on  the  Antipath- 
aria  by  George  Brook,  and  we  believe  it  to  be  one  of  the 
most  praiseworthy  of  all  the  Reports  ;  the  time  at  the 
disposal  of  the  author  was  of  necessity  very  short,  and 
perhaps  no  group  of  marine  animals  had  been  so  little 
attended  to.  Our  Museums  no  doubt  possessed  numerous 
specimens,  but  these  being  in  the  great  majority  of  cases, 
only  the  dried  skeletons,  presented  little  upon  which  to 
work,  there  were  therefore  many  and  serious  drawbacks 
to  a  determination  of  the  species  or  to  a  knowledge«of  their 
anatomy.  In  spite  of  all  this  Mr.  Brook  has  succeeded  in 
making  this  Report  an  excellent  contribution  to  our  know- 
ledge of  the  classification,  distribution,  and  anatomy  of 
the  group.  There  was  one  fortunate  circumstance  about 
the  Challenger  specimens,  most  of  them  had  the  polyps 
well  preserved,  so  that  their  structure  could  be  fairly 
well  made  oiit.  Mak  ing  the  most  of  the  material  at  his 
disposal,  the  author  has  attempted  a  partial  revision  of 
the  group,  and  has  placed  the  classification  for  the  first 
time  on  a  natural  basis.  The  study  of  the  fine  collections 
made  by  Pourtales  and  during  the  voyages  of  the  Blake, 
would  have  greatly  assisted  Mr.  Brook's  labours,  but  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Alcyonaria,  the  specimens  were  not 
available. 

Nearly  all  the  forms  collected  by  the  Challenger  were 
new,  which  is  to  be  largely  accounted  for,  by  the  fact 
that  almost  all  the  collections  were  made  in  localities 
from  which  no  Antipatharia  had  been  previously  recorded. 
The  collection  is  remarkably  deficient  in  littoral  forms, 
but  a  number  of  species  are  now  for  the  first  time 
described  from  great  depths.  In  this  monograph  not  only 
are  all  the  Challenger  species  described  but  a  number  of 
new  species  in  the  British  Museum  are  also  described,  so 
that  the  Report  forms  quite  a  monograph  of  the  group. 

The  Report  opens  with  a  bibliography,  not  a  very 
extensive  one,  and  one  which  up  to  the  time  of  Pallas, 
possesses  little  interest.  Botanists  like  Bauhin,  Tournefort, 
and  Breynius  are  among  the  pre-Linnaean  writers  who 
refer  to  these  corals,  and  it  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  last 
mentioned   of   these    authors,   describes    and  gives   an 


yan.  9,  r8go] 


NATURE 


2  19 


excellent  figure  of  a  species  of  Antipathes,  in  his 
"  Prodomus  fasciculi  rariorum  plantarum  anno  1679  in 
hortis  celeberrimis  Hollandiae,  etc.,  observatarum."  He 
calls  it  Abies  maritima,  and  mentions  it  as  a  fossil  plant ; 
thus  beginning  his  Prodomus  with  a  form  which  was  not 
a  plant,  and  which  certainly  never  grew  in  any  of  the 
Dutch  gardens.  After  the  bibliography  there  is  a  critical 
review  of  the  literature  ;  it  is  pleasing  to  find  the  author 
doing  justice  to  Esper's  "beautiful  work  '  Die  Pflanzen- 
thiere,' "  and  without  wishing  to  enter  on  any  technical 
criticism  in  a  general  notice  like  this,  we  may  mention, 
in  reference  to  a  remark  that  "  Esper  does  not  describe 
Antipathes  ericoides,  but  gives  a  figure  of  it,"  that  in  the 
second  volume  of  his  work,  p.  150,  he  tells  us  that  the 
name  Antipathes  niyriophylla  should  replace  the  name  of 
Antipathes  ericoides  engraved  on  the  plate,  and  having 
a  delamarck's  ^  copy  of  the  "  Fortsetzungen  der  Pflan- 
zenthiere  "  open  before  us,  we  may  add  that  nearly  all  the 
references  to  Part  ii.  of  this  work  in  Mr.  Brook's  Report 
should  be  to  Part  i.  Part  ii.  contains  only  48  pages,  and 
Antipathes  virgata,  Esper,  is  the  only  species  of  the 
genus  described  in  it.  In  justice  to  Esper  it  may  be  also 
mentioned  that  he  corrects  his  mistake  of  describing 
a  decorticated  gorgonid  as  A.  fiabellwn  {vide  "  Pflanzenth. 
forts.,"  ii.  Th.  p.  33). 

The  general  morphology  is  next  treated  of,  a  general 
outline  of  the  structure  of  the  various  genera,  more 
especially  with  regard  to  the  forms  of  the  zooids  and  the 
number  of  and  relative  development  of  the  mesenteries  ; 
this  is  the  first  detailed  outline  of  the  kind  yet  published 
on  the  morphology  of  the  group,  and  it  is  illustrated  by 
woodcuts.  The  classification  and  description  of  the 
genera  and  species  follow  ;  then  notes  on  the  geogra- 
phical and  bathymetrical  distribution.  Four  species  were 
taken  at  depths  of  between  2000  and  3000  fathoms. 

A  chapter  on  the  anatomy  concludes  the  Report,  but 
we  must  content  ourselves  with  quoting  only  the  last 
few  words  of  this  most  valuable  contribution  : — 

"  The  Antipathinze  approach  the  Cerianthidai  more 
closely  than  the  Hexactinia^  in  structure,  particularly  in  the 
following  points  :  the  arrangement  of  the  mesenteries  ; 
the  relatively  thin  mesogloea,  which  is  entirely  devoid 
of  stellate  connective  tissue  cells;  the  presence  of  an 
ectodermal  muscular  layer  in  the  stomodaeum  and  body 
wall ;  and  the  rudimentary  condition  of  the  musculature 
of  the  mesenteries." 

This  Report  extends  to  222  pages,  and  has  an  atlas  of 
15  plates. 

The  second  Report  in  this  volume  is  by  Prof  Th. 
Studer,  M.D,  Bern,  being  a  "  Supplementary  Report  on  the 
Alcyonaria."    We  quote  the  short  preface  : — 

"  After  the  main  Report  on  the  Challenger  Alcyonaria 
was  in  the  press,  several  further  specimens  were  found. 
These  were  in  part  new  species,  of  which  however,  it  was 
no  longer  possible  to  insert  a  description  in  the  text.  I 
am  under  great  obligations  to  Dr.  John  Murray,  the 
editor  of  the  Challejiger  Reports,  for  allowing  me  to 
publish  in  the  form  of  a  supplement  an  account  of  these 
new  species  with  the  necessary  illustrations.  At  the  same 
time  I  have  seized  the  opportunity  to  insert  further  illustra- 
tions of  such  forms  as  Dr.  Wright  and  myself  had  only 
been  able  to  describe  in  the  Report,  as  Telesto  tricho- 
stemma  and  Siphonogorgia  kollikeri.     This   supplement 

*  So  Lamarck  has  written  his  name  on  the  title-piges. 


extends  the  list  of  the  Challenger  collection  by  three  new 
species  of  the  genus  Siphonogorgia,  three  Muriceidas,  an 
Indian  representative  of  the  genus  Bebryce  (which  before 
had  been  known  only  from  the  Mediterranean),  and  one 
of  the  Plexauridas." 

It  seems  surprising  that  as  a  matter  of  courtesy,  quite 
apart  from  other  considerations,  either  the  editor  of  these 
Reports  or  the  author  of  this  supplementary  one,  could 
have  brought  out  this  8ist  Part  of  the  Challeftger  'R.^poris, 
without  any  communication  with  or  participation  therein, 
by  Prof  Wright,  to  whom  the  preparation  of  the  Report 
of  the  fixed  Alcyonaria  was  originally  committed. 

With  personal  matters  the  reader  has  no  right  to  be 
troubled,  but  he  may  well  inquire  why,  when  the  Report 
itself  was  published  in  1889  as  the  joint  work  of  two 
Reporters,  who  narrate  in  their  preface  how  pleasantly 
they  worked  in  unison,  there  should  appear  in  the  same 
year  this  supplementary  Report,  written  by  but  one  of 
the  two,  and  why  he  should  acknowledge  "  his  great  obli- 
gations to  Dr.  Murray  for  enabling  him  to  describe  seven 
new  species,  under  his  own  name,"  which  had  been 
found  not  by  himself,  but  had  been  transmitted  to  him 
by  his  co-reporter  as  new  forms  early  in  1888.  The  dates 
of  the  reception  of  the  manuscript  of  this  supplement 
prove  that  it  could  have  been  easily  added  to  the 
appendix  to  the  Report. 

This  supplementary  Report  adds  eight,  not  seven  as 
stated  in  the  preface  as  quoted  above,  to  the  species 
collected  during  the  cruise  of  the  Challenger.  The 
"  Indian  representative  of  the  genus  Bebryce  "  belongs  to 
the  Muriceidas  ;  but  the  interesting  Sarakka  crassa,  Dan. 
belonging  to  the  Alcyonidee  must  be  added  to  the  list. 
Seven  new  species  are  described  and  figured,  in  addition 
to  the  last  mentioned  species,  and  figures  are  given  of 
Siphonogorgia  kollikeri  and  Telesto  trichosteuuna  which 
were  described  in  the  original  Report.  To  the  fourteen 
pages  of  the  Report  is  added  a  list  of  the  Alcyonaria 
(Pennatulacea  excepted)  obtained  during  the  voyage, 
arranged  according  to  the  order  of  the  stations  at  which 
they  occurred  ;  this  comparatively  useless  record  decuples 
ten  pages,  and  is  followed  by  a  four  page  account  of  the 
bathymetrical  range  of  the  species,  which  takes  no 
account  of  the  record  of  the  ranges  as  given  in  the 
original  Report,  which  omits  references  to  some  of  the 
Challenger  forms  and  alludes  to  a  large  number  of  genera 
not  found  by  the  Challenger. 

The  six  plates  have  been  well  drawn  by  Armbruster  of 
Berne. 

The  third  Report  and  the  last  of  the  series  is  by  Prof. 
Ernst  Haeckel,  on  the  deep-sea  Keratosa. 

It  will  be  remarked  that  this  is  not  a  "supplementary" 
Report  to  the  Report  on  the  Keratosa  by  Dr.  Polejaeff 
published  in  1884,  and  it  may  be  mentioned  that  the 
forms  herein  described  appear  to  be  of  a  very  doubtful 
nature,  "  several  spongiologists  (among  them  some  well 
known  authorities)  had  denied  their  sponge  nature  and 
declared  that  these  peculiar  objects  were  either  Rhizopods 
or  other  Protozoa.  Other  naturalists  on  the  contrary  who 
were  closely  acquainted  with  the  Rhizopods,  could  not 
acknowledge  their  Rhizopod  nature,  neither  could  they 
make  out  the  class  to  which  they  belonged."  Possibly 
Prof  Haeckel  was  even  one  of  these  later  for  he  tells  us 
that  "  A  closer  comparative  examination  of  these  doubtful 


220 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


organisms  of  the  deep  sea  has  led  me  to  the  conviction 
that  they  are  true  sponges,  for  the  most  part  modified  in 
a  peculiar  manner  by  the  symbiosis  with  a  commensal 
organism  which  is  very  probably  in  most  cases  (if  not  in 
all)  a  Hydropolyp  stock." 

Four  families  and  eleven  genera  of  these  strange  forms 
are  described,  and  the  species  are  well  illustrated.  With 
some  few  of  them  we  may  have  had  a  previous  acquaint- 
ance, but  these  turn  up  here  with  quite  new  faces  ;  for,  "  to 
avoid  further  confusion,"  the  author  "  proposes  to  employ 
the  term  Haliphysema  for  that  monothalamous  Foramini- 
fer  in  the  sense  of  Mobius,  Brady,  and  most  recent 
authors";  while  "for  the  true  Physemaria,  however," 
which  he  described  in  1876  "  as  Haliphysema  primordi- 
alis,  &c.,  it  will  be  best  to  adopt  the  term  Prophysema," 
and  he  thinks  that  "  it  may  be  that  the  body-wall  (in 
these  Physemaria)  is  perforated  by  numerous  microsco- 
pical pores,  and  that  these  were  closed  temporarily  and 
accidentally  during  the  few  hours  I  was  examining  them ; 
in  this  case  they  are  Ammoconidas,"  that  is,  belong  to 
the  first  family  of  these  deep-sea  Keratosa. 

In  the  truly  extraordinary  forms  placed  in  the  fourth 
family  of  Stannomidas,  containing  specimens  taken  from 
depths  of  between  2425  and  2925  fathoms,  we  find  pre- 
sent a  fibrillar  spongin  skeleton,  composed  of  thin,  simple 
or  branched  spongin  fibrillae,  never  anastomosing  or  re- 
ticulated and  also  symbiotic  Hydroids.  Haeckel  thinks 
that  these  "  fibrillce  "  throw  some  light  on  the  peculiar  fila- 
ments met  with  in  the  Hircinidae,  and  that  in  both  in- 
stances these  fibres  are  not  independent  organisms,  but 
are  produced  by  the  sponges,  in  which  they  occur,  and 
should  be  regarded,  as  "  monaxial  Keratose  spicules." 

In  concluding  this  notice  of  one  of  the  most  remark- 
able of  the  series  of  animal  forms  found  during  the  ex- 
pedition of  the  Challenger,  we  feel  compelled  to  protest 
against  the  style  of  the  author's  criticisms  on  Polejaefif's 
previously  published  Reports  on  the  Keratosa.  It  is  very 
easy  to  write  that "  the  whole  systematic  work  of  Polejaefif 
turns  in  a  large  circtdus  viirosus"  &c.,  &c.,  but  is  it  fair 
or  just  for  one  Reporter  to  thus,  at  the  expense  of  Her 
Majesty's  Treasury,  write  of  a  fellow  Reporter?  Such 
sentences  must  have  been  overlooked  by  the  editor. 

This  Report  extends  to  ninety-two  pages,  and  is  accom- 
panied by  an  atlas  of  eight  coloured  plates. 


THE  VERTEBRATES  OF  LEICESTERSHIRE 
AND  RUTLAND. 

The  Vertebrate  Animals  of  Leicestershire  and  Rutland. 
By  Montagu  Browne.  Pp.  223,  illustrated.  (Birming- 
ham and  Leicester,  1889.) 
AS  we  are  informed  in  the  preface,  the  volume  before 
us  is  the  first  complete  work  treating  of  the  verte- 
brate fauna  of  the  two  counties  mentioned  in  the  title, 
which  has  hitherto  appeared,  although  scattered  notes 
and  a  few  lists  have  been  published  by  several  writers. 
The  author,  who,  from  his  position  as  Curator  of  the 
Town  Museum  at  Leicester,  has  exceptional  opportunities 
for  a  work  of  this  nature,  can  certainly  claim  that  the 
result  of  his  labours  does  not  err  on  the  side  of  incom- 
pleteness. Thus  this  volume  is  not  only  a  record  of  all 
the  existing  species  of  vertebrates  which  have  been 
observed  within  the  limits  of  the  counties  in  question,  but 


Hkewise  includes  the  fossil  forms  hitherto  described  from 
the  same  area.  The  recent  and  extinct  forms  are,  indeed, 
arranged  together  in  a  systematic  manner,  without  any 
difiference  of  type  or  other  indication  to  distinguish  at  a 
glance  the  fauna  of  the  present  from  that  of  the  past ;. 
and  it  is  certainly  rather  startling,  at  first  sight,  to 
find  in  a  fauna  of  an  English  Midland  county  the  dor- 
mouse immediately  followed  by  elephants  and  rhino- 
ceroses. Now,  although  we  are  not  on  the  side  of  those 
who  regard  the  sciences  of  zoology  and  palccontology  as 
separated  by  a  wide  gulf,  yet  we  venture  to  think  that  in 
this  instance  the  author  would  have  been  better  advised 
had  he  given  his  synopsis  of  extinct  types  in  a  separate 
portion  of  the  volume,  after  having  first  dealt  with  the 
existing  species.  Faunas  are,  indeed,  to  a  very  large 
extent,  features  of  one  particular  epoch;  and  when  we 
have  those  of  two  or  more  distinct  epochs  mixed  up 
together,  we  tend  to  lose  sight  of  the  peculiar  features 
of  each  one.  The  ordinary  student  of  the  local  distribution 
of  existing  English  mammals  will  find  that  the  introduction 
of  a  number  of  extinct  types,  of  which  he  knows  nothing, 
tends  to  distract  his  attention  from  the  observations 
regarding  the  local  distribution  of  the  living  forms. 
Fortunately,  indeed,  this  objection  does  not  apply  to  the 
birds,  in  which  no  extinct  forms  are  recorded. 

The  very  natural  tendency  on  the  part  of  the  author 
to  make  as  much  as  possible  of  his  subject,  probably 
accounts  for  the  introduction  of  some  groups  or  species 
which  might  have  been  better  omitted,  or,  at  all  events, 
passed  over  with  a  brief  foot-note.  Thus,  in  the  first  place, 
the  introduction  of  the  family  Hominidce  could  have  been 
very  well  spared,  at  all  events  in  the  systematic  arrange- 
ment. Then,  again,  the  devoting  of  nearly  two  pages  to 
the  order  Cetacea  seems  to  be  very  unnecessary,  seeing 
that  the  only  ground  for  the  introduction  of  this  order 
into  the  fauna  of  Leicestershire  is  that  the  bones  of 
whales  are  sometimes  used  as  gate-posts,  or  in  one 
instance  as  an  ornament  to  a  carriage-drive  !  The 
author's  remark  in  the  latter  instance  that  he  records 
"  these,  lest,  in  the  event  of  their  getting  loose  and  being 
subsequently  dug  up,  they  should  be  mistaken  for  bones 
of  an  extinct  elephant,"  reads  as  though  intended  for 
a  caustic  sarcasm  against  palaeontologists.  As  another 
instance,  we  may  mention  the  case  of  the  avocet  (p.  150), 
introduced  on  the  ground  that  a  gentleman  fishing  at 
the  junction  of  the  Soar  with  the  Trent,  at  the  extreme 
northernlimitof  West  Leicestershire,saw  what  he  believed 
to  be  an  example  of  this  bird  flying  overhead.  The 
inclusion  of  species  on  this  account  would  almost  justify 
passengers  passing  through  a  town  by  railway  being 
entered  among  the  list  of  visitors  thereto. 

The  same  natural  tendency  to  make  the  most  of  the 
subject  will  probably  account  for  the  introduction  of 
sub-ordinal  and  sectional  names  {e.g.  Carnivora  Vera, 
^luroidea,  Arctoidea,  &c.)  which  are  of  no  possible 
importance  in  a  work  of  this  nature,  and  are  really  an 
incumbrance. 

The  author  tells  us  he  has  followed  the  latest  descrip- 
tions throughout  his  work,'  and  we  see  that  in  several 
instances  he  is  even  in  advance  of  many  writers  in  regard 
to  the  adoption  of  early  names  on  the  ground  of  priority. 
Thus  the  name  Microtus  is  employed  for  the  voles,  in 
lieu  of  the  well-known  Arvicolaj  but  in  this  particular 


Jan.  9,  1890] 


NATURE 


221 


instance  it  would  surely  have  been  well  for  the  author  to 
have  departed  from  his  rule  and  introduced  the  latter 
term  as  a  synonym.  A  still  more  glaring  instance  of  the 
inadvisability  of  dropping  all  mention  of  synonyms 
occurs  in  treating  of  the  lesser  shrew  (p.  13),  for  which 
the  name  Sorex  minietus,  Linn.,  is  adopted,  in  place  of 
the  later  6".  py^^mceiis,  Pall.  Now,  the  author  refers  to 
Bell's  "  British  Quadrupeds  "  for  the  distinctive  characters 
of  this  species,  which  is  there  mentioned  only  as  S. 
pygmceus ;  thus  laying  himself  open  to  the  criticism  of 
those  who  are  not  specialists  that  he  has  confused  the 
terms  pygmietis  and  minutus.  This  species  has,  more- 
over, never  been  recognized  in  the  district,  so  that  its 
mention  seems  rather  unnecessary.  In  discarding  the 
name  Lepiis  timidiis  in  favour  of  L.  europceiis  for  the 
common  hare,  our  author  follows  those  who  regard  the 
letter  of  the  law  as  more  than  the  spirit ;  and  although 
there  is  but  little,  if  any,  doubt  that  at  least  some  of  the 
hares  to  which  Linnaeus  applied  the  name  of  L.  timidus 
were  really  of  that  species  to  which  we  commonly  apply 
the  name  L.  variabilis,  yet  we  cannot  help  thinking  that 
the  former  name  might  be  advantageously  retained  in  its 
common  acceptation. 

Among  the  Ungulata,  the  author  retains  the  fossil 
Bos  longifrons  {frontosus)  as  a  distinct  species,  although 
it  has  been  shown  over  and  over  again  that  it  can  only 
be  regarded  as  a  race  of  B.  taurus.  Similarly,  all  recent 
observations  tend  to  show  that  Bos  prinii genius  is  nothing 
more  than  a  larger  variety  of  the  same  species  ;  while 
there  appear  to  be  no  valid  grounds  for  specifically  dis- 
tinguishing the  Pleistocene  Bison  priscus  from  the  living 
Lithuanian  aurochs.  The  author  would  confer  a  great 
benefit  upon  palaeontologists  if  he  could  show  how  the 
skull  he  refers  to  the  so-called  Sus  palustris  can  be 
specifically  distinguished  from  one  of  S.  scrofa. 

In  commenting  upon  the  absence  of  remains  of  fossil 
Carnivora  from  the  Leicestershire  Pleistocene,  Mr.  Browne 
does  not  appear  to  be  aware  how  extremely  rare  these 
remains  are  in  the  equivalent  deposits  of  other  counties. 
Thus,  at  Barrington,  in  Cambridgeshire,  where  bones 
and  teeth  of  Ungulates  are  found  by  the  hundred  or 
thousand,  those  of  Carnivores  may  be  reckoned  by  units 
or  tens  ;  and  the  introduction  of  special  hypotheses  to 
account  for  their  absence  in  Leicestershire  is,  therefore, 
quite  superfluous. 

The  total  number  of  mammals  mentioned  is  forty-eight 
(including  man),  but  of  this  list  only  twenty-five  are  now 
found  in  a  wild  state  in  the  area  described.  The  num- 
ber of  species  of  birds  is  very  large,  as  we  might  expect 
in  an  area  of  the  size  of  that  forming  the  subject  of  the 
work.  Several  species,  such  as  the  gannet,  cormorant, 
&c.,  are,  however,  but  occasional  stragglers  from  the 
coast ;  while  in  other  cases,  as  we  have  already  remarked, 
the  evidence  of  occurrence  within  the  two  counties  is  of 
the  slightest,  A  good  lithographic  plate  of  Pallas's 
sand-grouse,  and  a  coloured  one  of  the  cream-coloured 
courser,  are  given  ;  and  we  also  have  an  elaborate  table 
of  the  dates  of  arrival  of  summer  immigrants.  In  the 
reptiles,  the  five  existing  species  are  almost  lost  among  a 
number  of  fossil  forms,  to  which  they  have  but  a  very 
remote  kinship.  This  swamping  of  recent  forms  by  their 
fossil  allies  is,  however,  not  so  marked  among  the  fishes, 
owing  to  the  circumstance  that  all  the  fossil  forms  belong 


to  extinct  families,  which  follow  the  recent  ones.  Mr. 
Browne  follows  Prof.  Cope  in  abolishing  the  orders 
Teleostei  and  Ganoidei,  and  arranging  the  representatives 
of  the  former  and  the  typical  groups  of  the  latter  in  a 
sub-class  Teleostomi,  which  is  ranked  as  equivalent  to 
the  Elasmobranchii.  The  Salmonidce  are  thus  imme- 
diately followed  by  a  family  which  the  author,  in  defiance 
of  all  grammatical  rules,  terms  Leptolepidcs,  and  which 
forms  a  transition  from  the  Ganoids  to  the  Teleostei.  It 
seems  strange  that,  while  employing  the  correctly-formed 
term  Rhizodotitidcs  (instead  of  Rhizodidcs),  the  author 
should  retain  names  like  Leptolepidce  and  Osteolepidce 
in  place  of  Leptolepidida;  and  Osteolepididce  ;  but  here, 
perhaps,  he  merely  follows  those  who  ought  to  know 
better.  The  number  of  fossil  fishes  from  the  Lias  quar- 
ries of  Barrow-on-Soar  is  very  considerable ;  and  we 
believe  that  the  Leicester  Museum  is  rich  in  this  respect, 
as  well  as  in  the  remains  of  Saurians  from  the  same 
locality. 

The  author  seems  to  have  spared  no  labour  in  looking 
up  references  and  making  his  work  in  all  respects  as 
nearly  complete  as  possible  ;  and,  since  the  volume  is 
handsomely  got  up  and  well  printed,  with  a  remarkable 
freedom  from  misprints,  it  should  take  a  place  in  the  first 
rank  of  local  faunas.  R.  L. 


THE  SCIENTIFIC  PAPERS  OF  ASA  GRA  Y. 

Scientific  Papers  of  Asa  Gray.  Selected  by  Charles 
Sprague  Sargent.  Two  Vols.  (London :  Macmillan 
and  Co.,   1889.) 

NO  more  fitting  monument  could  have  been  raised  to 
the  memory  of  the  late  Dr.  Asa  Gray — who  was 
almost  as  well  known  to  botanists  on  this  side  of  the 
Atlantic  as  on  the  other — than  a  reprint  of  a  selection  of 
his  numerous  writings.  During  a  period  of  upwards  of 
fifty  years  he  was  actively  engaged  in  the  investigation 
and  publication  of  the  botany  of  North  America,  and 
studies  of  a  wider  range.  As  Prof.  Sargent  says,  in  his 
preface  to  the  present  collection,  "  The  number  of  his 
contributions  to  science  and  their  variety  is  remarkable, 
and  astonishes  his  associates  even,  familiar  as  they  were 
with  his  intellectual  activity,  his  various  attainments,  and 
that  surprising  industry  which  neither  assured  position,  the 
weariness  of  advancing  years,  nor  the  hopelessness  of  the 
task  he  had  imposed  upon  himself,  ever  diminished." 

The  hopeless  task,  it  may  be  explained,  was  a  complete 
"  Synoptical  Flora  of  North  America."  Botanists  need 
not  be  told  how  he  laboured  to  complete  this  gigantic 
undertaking,  even  at  an  age  when  most  men  are  past 
work.  Taking  up  the  work  where  the  unfinished  "  Flora 
of  North  America,"  by  Torrey  and  Gray,  ceased  thirty- 
five  years  previously.  Gray  published  the  remainder  of 
the  Gamopetalae  in  1878.  This  was  followed  in  1884 
by  a  re-elaboration  of  the  Compositse  and  neighbouring 
natural  orders  ;  and  the  whole  was  re-issued  in  the  form 
of  one  volume  in  1886.  This  volume  comprises  about 
1000  closely  printed  pages  of  descriptive  matter — descrip- 
tive matter  perhaps  unsurpassed  in  botanical  literature, 
and  dealing  with  567  genera  and  3521  species.  What- 
ever may  be  done  by  Gray's  successors  towards  com- 
pleting the  "  Synoptical  Flora,"  his  own  contribution  is  a 


222 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


most  valuable  one — valuable  because  it  embodies  the 
vi^hole  of  his  numerous  scattered  writings  on  the  group  in 
question. 

In  making  a  selection  of  Dr.  Gray's  work  for  re- 
publication, Prof.  Sargent  naturally  did  not  choose  de- 
scriptive botany,  though  an  index  to  the  genera  and 
species  described  in  a  variety  of  more  or  less  inaccessible 
publications  would  be  of  the  utmost  service  to  botanists  ; 
for  even  under  the  most  favourable  conditions  a  long  time 
must  elapse  before  the  completion  of  the  "  Synoptical 
Flora." 

The  selection,  "  which  was  found  difficult  and  em- 
barrassing," is  limited  to  reviews  of  works  on  botany  and 
related  subjects,  essays,  and  biographical  sketches,  and 
it  is  on  the  whole,  doubtless,  as  good  a  one  as  could  have 
been  made.  Gray  wrote  "more  than  eleven  hundred 
bibliographical  notices  and  longer  reviews,"  and,  as  space 
for  only  fifty  is  found  in  a  volume  of  400  pages,  it  follows 
that  "  it  was  necessary  to  exclude  a  number  of  papers 
of  nearly  as  great  interest  and  value  as  those  which  are 
chosen." 

Dr.  Gray's  method,  if  I  may  so  term  it,  of  reviewing 
the  productions  of  his  contemporaries  was  of  such  an 
instructive,  temperate,  and  impartially  critical  character 
that  these  reviews  have  a  permanent  value.  On  reading 
some  of  them  again,  one  is  more  than  ever  impressed 
with  the  fact  that  he  made  himself  thoroughly  acquainted 
with  the  works  he  criticized,  and  that  he  well  fulfilled  his 
duty  alike  to  the  public  and  the  author.  He  did  not  hesi- 
tate to  point  out  what  he  regarded  as  defects  in  the 
writings  of  his  most  intimate  friends ;  but  he  was  more 
careful  to  give  an  analysis  of  the  contents  of  a  book,  with 
his  own  views  thereon,  than  to  condemn  it  on  its  faults  or 
weak  points. 

These  reviews  cover  a  wide  field,  as  well  as  a  long 
period,  and  still  remain  profitable  and  interesting  reading. 
The  selection  is  too  limited  to  be  a  history  of  botany 
during  the  last  half-century,  but  it  is  sufficiently  com- 
prehensive to  give  an  idea  of  the  most  notable  events. 
It  is  true  that  the  essays  on  the  Darwinian  theory  are  not 
here  reproduced,  as  they  had  already  been  republished  by 
their  author. 

The  first  volume,  which  is  devoted  to  reviews,  com- 
mences with  a  detailed  notice  of  the  second  edition  of 
Lindley's  "  Natural  System  of  Botany "  and  ends  with 
Ball's  "  Flora  of  the  Peruvian  Andes,"  reminding  us  of 
our  most  recent  loss  in  the  very  small  circle  of  private 
gentlemen  who  may  be  said  to  have  studied  botany 
successfully. 

Early  among  the  reviews  is  that  of  Endlicher's  '•  Genera 
Plantarum,"  a  work  published  at  intervals  between  1836 
and  1840  ;  and,  almost  at  the  end,  a  short  article  on  the 
completion  of  Bentham  and  Hooker's  "  Genera  Plan- 
tarum," 1862-83.  In  the  latter  we  find  a  comparison  of 
the  number  of  genera  admitted  in  various  works  of  the 
same  class,  from  the  appearance  of  the  fifst  edition  of 
Linnaeus's  "Genera  Plantarum,"  in  1737,  down  to 
Bentham  and  Hooker,  and  remarks  on  the  ideas  of 
generic  limits  entertained  by  the  different  authors,  and  on 
the  relative  quality  of  their  work. 

Interspersed  between  these  are  notices  of  such  widely 
different  subjects  as  De  Candolle's  "  Prodromus " ;  von 
Mohl's  "Vegetable  Cell"  ;  Boussingault,  "  On  the  Influ- 


ence of  Nitrogen  "  ;  Bentham's  "  Hand-book  of  the  British 
Flora";  De  Candolle's "GeographieBotanique";  Hooker's 
"  Distribution  of  Arctic  Plants  "  ;  Ruskin's  "  Proserpina"  ; 
Darwin's  "  Insectivorous  Plants  "  ;  and  Wallace's  "  Epping 
Forest." 

Among  the  fourteen  "  Essays  "  in  the  second  volume^ 
those  on  the  longevity  of  trees,  the  flora  of  Japan, 
Sequoia,  and  forest  geography  and  archaeology,  may  be 
named  as  specially  interesting. 

The  biographical  sketches  are  thirty-eight  in  number, 
ranging  from  Brown  and  Humboldt  to  Bentham  and 
Boissier.  As  only  some  two  hundred  pages  are  devoted 
to  them,  these  sketches  are,  many  of  them,  necessarily 
very  brief;  but,  as  Gray  had  a  personal  knowledge  of 
most  of  the  men  of  whom  he  wrote,  they  contain  original 
and  interesting  observations  and  facts  not  to  be  found 
elsewhere.  And  all  who  knew  Dr.  Gray  will  enjoy 
I'eading  again  his  opinion  of  other  men  and  their  works. 

W.  BOTTING  HEMSLEY. 


MANURES  AND  THEIR  USES. 

Manures  and  their  Uses.  By  Dr.  A.  B.  Griffiths.  (London; 
George  Bell  and  Sons,  1889.) 

THIS  is  a  hand-book  for  farmers  and  students,  and 
may  be  described  as  a  smaller  and  less  ambitious 
successor  to  the  treatise  on  manures,  by  the  same  author, 
reviewed  some  months  ago  in  Nature.  The  principal 
value  of  this  latter  work  consists  in  the  direct  information 
it  contains  as  to  sources  of  phosphatic,  potassic,  and  nitro- 
genous manures,  including  guanos,  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 
The  analyses,  localities,  amounts  imported,  and  values,  are 
all  interesting  facts  for  farmers,  and  this  little  book  may 
well  take  its  place  in  an  agricultural  library  as  supplying 
knowledge  which  otherwise  might  need  research  through 
many  scattered  sources  of  information.  When,  however, 
we  consider  the  book  as  a  means  for  imparting  sound 
views  on  agricultural  principles,  we  must  advise  caution 
on  the  part  of  the  reader.  Dr.  Griffiths  is  one  of  those 
teachers  who  are  infected  with  an  inordinate  affection  for 
chemical  manures.  He  believes,  with  M.  Ville,  that "  the 
farmer  who  uses  nothing  but  farmyard  manure  exhausts 
his  land,"  Now,  a  man  who  starts  with  such  an  obvious 
fallacy  can  scarcely  get  into  the  right  path.  This  doc- 
trine is  contrary  to  science  and  practice  ;  and  until  Dr. 
Griffiths  relinquishes  it  he  cannot  hope  to  enjoy  the  con- 
fidence of  any  farmer.  We  venture  to  put  the  matter  in 
two  or  three  positions  from  which  it  can  be  clearly  viewed. 
Dr.  Griffiths  says,  "  This  [farmyard]  manure  is  erroneously 
supposed  to  contain  a// the  necessary  plant-foods  required 
for  the  growth  of  crops."  Erroneously  !  why,  farmyard 
manure  at  least  must  contain  all  the  constituents  of  straw, 
for  it  is  largely  made  of  straw.  Similarly,  it  must  contain 
the  elements  of  turnips  and  root  crops,  when  it  is  com- 
posed of  them  in  no  small  proportion.  Also  it  must 
contain  the  constituents  of  corn,  because  all  meals  and 
cakes  which  are  consumed  by  cattle,  and  all  hay,  which 
is  also  consumed  by  cattle,  contain  the  constituents  of 
corn  in  the  form  of  nitrogen,  phosphorus,  sulphur,  potash, 
lime,  magnesia,  &c.  Whether  looked  at  chemically  or 
approached  through  pure  reasoning,  it  is  clear  that  farm- 


Jan.  9,  i8go] 


NATURE 


223 


yard  manure  is  the  true  restorer  of  fertility,  the  very  milk 
of  plants,  the  very  life-blood  of  the  soil,  if  such  an  expres- 
sion may  be  allowed.  Farmyard  manure  during  its  decay 
has  its  elements  liberated  from  organic  combinations  gra- 
dually, and  when  wanted,  as  well  as  in  a  condition  so  avail- 
able for  the  food  of  plants,  that  as  a  manure  it  is  inimitable. 
No  other  manure  can  in  all  cases  be  applied  to  all  crops 
with  the  same  marked  effects.  It  is  strange  that  farm- 
yard manure  alone  acts  promptly  and  certainly  upon 
leguminous  crops  such  as  beans,  peas,  and  clover.  No 
chemical  manure,  whether  nitrogenous  or  phosphatic,  can 
be  relied  upon  to  affect  these  crops,  and  yet  farmyard  dung 
tells  upon  them  at  once.  Dr.  Griffiths  lays  stress  upon 
the  fact  that  animals  retain  phosphates  and  nitrogen  for 
the  formation  of  bones,  nerves,  and  muscles,  and  therefore 
to  some  extent  rob  the  land.  This  fact  is,  however,  entirely 
over-ridden  by  the  customary  importation  of  extraneous 
matter  on  to  the  farm  in  the  form  of  foods  purchased. 
The  amount  of  phosphates  and  nitrogen  removed  by 
animals  in  their  bodies  is  as  nothing  compared  to  the  tons 
of  cake,  meal,  hay,  and  even  roots  which  are  imported. 
Neither  must  we  forget  the  town  manure  which  is  so  often 
bought  by  farmers,  and  which  will  compensate  for  such  a 
loss  as  that  which  Dr.  Griffiths  fears.  Too  much  pro- 
minence is  given  to  chemical  manures,  and  too  little 
importance  is  attached  to  stock-feeding  as  a  manurial 
agency.  Dr.  Griffiths  quotes  many  writers  upon  matters 
on  which  they  are  scarcely  to  be  regarded  as  authorities. 
On  such  matters  he  might  just  as  well  have  told  us 
his  opinion,  instead  of  backing  it  up  with  the  name  of  a 
solicitor  who  has  been  dead  for  years  and  whom  nobody 
now  knows  of.  Neither  is  an  agriculturist,  pure  and 
simple,  an  authority   on   a   chemical   point  such  as  the 

^     valuation  of  farmyard  manure  on  the  basis  of  its  chemical 

I     constituent  parts. 

'  Dr.  Griffiths  claims  to  have  made  a  discovery  with 
regard  to  the  use  of  iron  sulphate  as  a  fertilizer,  and  a 
good  deal  of  space  is  devoted  to  this  subject,  which  is  not 
without  interest.  Haifa  hundredweight  of  iron  sulphate  per 
acre  produces  extraordinary  results,  according  to  experi- 
ments recorded  in  this  book.  No  doubt  this  is  Dr.  Griffiths's 
great  point,  and  far  be  it  from  us  to  detract  from  its 
significance.  If  it  is  as  potent  a  fertilizer  as  Dr.  Griffiths 
thinks,  we  shall  probably  hear  more  of  it.  He  is  evidently 
not  the  man  to  let  the  matter  rest.  W. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Histoire  Nature  lie  des  C^taces  des  Mers  d^  Europe.  By 
P.  J.  Van  Beneden.  Pp.  664.  (Brussels  :  F.  Hayez. 
1889.) 

It  is  fifty-three  years  since  the  veteran  Professor  of 
Zoology  in  the  University  of  Louvain  published  his  first 
paper  on  the  Cetacea,  entitled  "  Caract^res  specifiques 
des  grands  Cetaces  tirds  de  la  conformation  de  I'oreile 
osseuse."  During  the  greater  part  of  this  long  period  he 
has  made  this  group  of  animals  especially  his  own, 
having  industriously  collected  from  every  available  source 
information  upon  them,  which  he  has  given  to  the  world, 
not  only  in  his  great  works  on  the  osteology  of  the 
Cetacea  and  the  fossil  Cetacea  of  Antwerp,  but  also  in  a 
series  of  memoirs  which  have  appeared  from  time  to 
time  in  the  publications  of  the  Belgian  Academy  of 
Sciences.  During  the  last  three  years  the  "  Mdmoires 
couronnes  et  autres  Mdmoires,"  published  by  that  learned 


body  in  octavo  form,  have  contained  a  number  of  articles 
from  his  pen  upon  the  Cetacea  of  the  European  seas,  and 
it  has  been  a  happy  idea  of  the  author  to  collect  these 
together,  and  republish  them  in  a  handy  form,  so  as  to 
render  them  accessible  to  many  who  would  have  difficulty 
in  referring  to  them  when  scattered  throughout  the  pages 
of  the  journal  in  which  they  first  appeared. 

The  work  treats  systematically  of  all  the  species  known 
to  inhabit  any  of  the  seas  by  which  Europe  is  surrounded, 
and  under  each  species  are  sections  devoted  to  the 
literature,  the  history,  the  synonymy,  the  characters,  the 
organization,  the  habits,  the  geographical  distribution, 
the  mode  of  capture,  the  museums  in  which  specimens 
are  known  to  exist,  the  published  figures,  and  finally  an 
account  of  the  commensals  and  parasites  which  dwell 
upon  or  within  them.  On  all  these  subjects  the  informa- 
tion given  is  derived  from  years  of  close  and  diligent 
gathering,  and  the  result  is  an  exhaustive  account  of  our 
present  knowledge  of  the  European  Cetacea.  As  a  book 
of  reference  to  all  who  are  engaged  in  the  study  of 
cetology  this  work  is  absolutely  invaluable,  and  if  figures, 
even  in  outline,  of  all  the  species  had  been  added,  it 
might  have  gone  far  to  occupy  the  place  of  the  much- 
needed  popular  hand-book  of  this  still  little  understood, 
though  interesting  order  of  mammals. 

The  number  of  species  admitted  is  judiciously  re- 
stricted, many  of  those  appearing  in  previous  works  being 
relegated  either  definitely  or  provisionally  to  synonyms. 
Twenty-six  are,  however,  left,  all  undoubtedly  distinct 
forms.  Of  these,  seven  are  whalebone  whales,  viz. 
Balcena  biscayensis,  B.  inysticetus,  Megaptera  boops, 
Bal(E7ioptera  rostrata,  B.  borealis,  B.  musculits,  and 
B.  sibbaldii J  five  are  Ziphioids,  viz.  Physeter  nia- 
crocepJialus,  Hyperobdoii  rostratus,  Ziphius  cavirostris, 
Micropterus  sowerbyi,  and  Dioplodon  europcBus ;  and 
the  remaining  fourteen  are  Delphinoids,  viz.  Phoccena 
communis,  Orca  gladiator,  Pseudorca  crassidens, 
Globicephalus  uielas.  Grampus  griseus,  Lagenorhynchus 
albirostris,  L.  acutus,  Eudelphinus  delphis,  Tur slops 
iursio,  Prodelphinus  tethyos,  P.  dubius,  Steno  rostratus, 
DelpJdnopterus  leucas,  and  Monodon  monoceros.  The 
only  exceptions  we  can  take  to  this  nomenclature  are  the 
adoption  of  the  generic  term  Micropterus  in  preference 
to  Mesoplodon,  as  the  former  was  preoccupied  by  a  genus 
of  Coleoptera,  and  the  use  of  the  needless  term  Eudel- 
phinus  for  the  common  dolphin.  If  this  should  be  gene- 
rally accepted,  the  good  old  Linnean  genus  Delp)hinus 
would  disappear  altogether  from  the  list.  That  it  should 
be  greatly  restricted  by  the  lopping  off  of  aberrant 
branches  was  inevitable,  but  surely  the  name  might  have 
been  left  for  such  a  characteristic  species. 

W.  H.  F. 

Hand-book  of  Practical  Botany  for  the  Botanical  Labor- 
atory and  Private  Student.  By  E.  Strasburger. 
Edited,  from  the  German,  by  W.  Hillhouse,  M.A., 
F.L.S.  Second  Edition,  Revised  and  Enlarged.  With 
116  original  and  33  additional  Illustrations.  (London: 
Swan  Sonnenschein  and  Co.,  1889.) 

The  first  edition  of  Prof.  Hillhouse's  translation  of 
Strasburger's  "Practical  Botany"  was  reviewed  in 
Nature  (vol.  xxxv.  p.  556).  The  new  edition  has  been 
considerably  enlarged,  and  is  now  intermediate  in  extent 
between  the  smaller  and  the  larger  German  editions. 
The  new  matter,  mainly  derived  from  the  larger  "  Botan- 
isches  Practicum,"  second  edition,  adds  greatly  to  the 
value  of  the  book.  The  most  important  additions  are 
the  accounts  of  the  reproduction  of  Fucus  and  of  Chara, 
and  of  the  fertilization  and  embryology  of  Picea.  The 
much  fuller  description  of  the  reproduction  of  Mucor 
must  also  be  noticed,  as  well  as  the  considerable  altera- 
tions, affecting  both  text  and  figures,  in  the  chapters  on 
vascular  bundles.  Further,  the  structure  of  the  grain 
of  wheat  is  now  described — a  very  useful  addition. 


224 


NA TURE  4{     \.^,  [Jan.  9.  1 890 


Some  verbal  inaccuracies  which  had  crept  into  the  first 
translation  have  been  corrected,  and  in  every  respect  the 
editor  may  be  congratulated  on  the  work  in  its  present 
form.  It  will  be  of  the  greatest  use  to  students — espe- 
cially, perhaps,  to  those  who  have  to  work  alone. 

D.  H.  S. 

Traiid d^Optique.    Par  M,  E.  Mascart.     Tome  I.    (Paris: 
Gauthier-Villars,  1889.) 

This  is  the  first  half  of  a  very  elaborate  treatise  on 
optics,  the  full  scope  of  which  we  cannot  tell  till  the 
second  volume  appears,  as  no  hint  is  given  of  what  is 
yet  to  come.  This  first  volume  begins  with  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  the  wave-theory  of  light,  deduces 
from  them  the  elementary  laws  of  geometrical  optics, 
discusses  the  properties  of  a  co-axal  system  of  refracting 
surfaces,  describes  the  structure  of  the  eye,  expounds  the 
facts  of  colour-mixture,  points  out  the  conditions  which 
determine  the  resolving  power  of  a  telescope,  develops  at 
great  length  the  theories  of  diffraction  and  interference, 
with  some  of  their  principal  applications,  and  devotes 
about  80  pages  to  polarization  and  double  refraction. 
There  is  practically  nothing  about  the  microscope,  and 
nothing  at  all  about  the  paths  of  rays  in  media  of  con- 
tinuously varying  density. 

The  book  is  by  no  means  easy  reading,  and  the  labour 
of  perusing  it  is  increased  by  the  smallness  of  the  refer- 
ence letters  (with  their  numerous  accents  and  suffixes) 
which  occur  in  the  figures.  The  plan  involves  much 
specialization.  For  instance,  the  proof  of  the  formula  for 
retardation  on  which  the  theory  of  Newton's  rings  de- 
pends is  not  given  in  the  sections  devoted  to  Newton's 
rings  and  colours  of  thin  plates,  but  some  370  pages 
earlier.  In  many  cases,  when  the  student  has  found  a 
formula  which  appears  to  contain  the  information  of 
which  he  is  in  quest,  he  has  to  search  carefully  through 
a  long  series  of  preceding  pages  before  he  can  find  the 
meaning  of  some  symbol  which  occurs  in  it.  The  volume 
contains  a  vast  store  of  information,  but  not  generally  in 
a  form  to  suit  hasty  seekers  after  truth.  It  requires  to 
be  studied  at  leisure,  and  the  time  so  spent  will  not  be 
wasted.  Great  pains  have  obviously  been  taken  to  em- 
body the  latest  information  and  present  it  in  the  clearest 
form.  We  may  instance  the  spiral  curves  which  illustrate 
the  values  of  Fresnel's  integrals,  and  the  curve  (to  which 
a  folding-plate  is  devoted)  showing  the  relations  of 
the  colours  of  diffraction  fringes  to  the  three  primary 
colours.  There  is  an  excellent  discussion  of  the  theory 
of  concave  gratings,  both  for  reflection  and  refraction. 
The  least  attractive  chapter  is  that  entitled  "  Properties 
of  Vibrations."  It  is  a  discussion  of  the  composition  of 
simple  harmonic  motions,  and  occupies  40  pages  bristling 
with  elaborate  formulas.  We  think  a  more  moderate 
display  of  mathematics  under  this  head  would  have 
sufficed. 

The  order  of  arrangement  adopted  in  the  volume  is 
rather  peculiar,  and  baffles  all  a  priori  conjecture.  For 
instance,  the  discussion  on  colour-mixtures  occurs  in  a 
chapter  on  "  Interferences,"  and  the  investigation  of  the 
conditions  which  determine  the  resolving  power  of  a 
telescope  is  given  in  the  introductory  chapter  under  the 
head  of  "  Preliminaries." 

The  book  is  essentially  a  mathematical  treatise,  all  ex- 
perimental descriptions  being  reduced  to  the  narrowest 
possible  limits. 

The  preface  states  that  the  work  is  addressed  mainly 
to  "  pupils  of  the  Faculties  and  Schools  of  higher  in- 
struction," but  we  think  its  principal  use  in  this  country 
will  be  as  a  book  of  reference  for  teachers.  Its  value  for 
this  purpose  will' be  greatly  increased  if  a  good  alpha- 
betical index  is  added  at  the  end  of  the  second  volume. 

J.  D.  Everett. 


Bibliotheque  photographique  :  Le  Cylindrographe,  Ap- 
pareil  panoramique.  Par  P.  Moessard,  Commandant 
du  Gdnie  brevet^,  attache  au  Service  geographique  de 
I'Arme'e.     (Paris  :  Gauthier-Villars,   1889.) 

This  is  a  description  of  a  photographic  camera  invented 
by  Colonel  Moessard,  in  which  the  lens  is  pivoted  on  an 
axis,  and  the  sensitive  film  is  arranged  in  a  cylindrical 
form  about  this  axis,  on  a  radius  equal  to  the  focal  length 
of  the  lens.  By  this  means  a  panoramic  view  of  angular 
breadth  up  to  170°  can  be  taken.  The  camera  being  fixed 
in  position,  the  lens  is  uncapped,  and  then  rotated  quickly 
or  slowly,  according  to  the  speed  of  the  plate,  and  the  in- 
tensity of  light  in  any  direction.  The  author  claims  for 
the  instrument  useful  employment  in  surveying,  either  in 
the  carefully  detailed  plans  of  an  ordnance  survey,  or  in 
the  rapid  views  useful  for  warlike  purposes,  which  the  in- 
strument can  afford.  Two  photographs  taken  with  the  aid 
of  the  instrument  illustrate  very  favourably  its  powers, 
especially  for  architectural  purposes. 

A  Hand-book  of  Modern  Explosives.  By  M.  Eissler. 
(London  :  Crosby  Lockwood  and  Son,  1889.) 

In  this  book  the  author  of  "  Modern  High  Explosives" 
has  collected  much  useful  information  about  the  various 
explosives  now  in  use.  The  greater  part  of  the  work  is 
devoted  to  nitro-compounds,  but  short  accounts  of  the 
other  types  of  explosives  now  being  manufactured  are 
added.  The  manufactures  of  gun-cotton  and  nitro- 
glycerine receive  full  treatment,  together  with  the  modifi- 
cations introduced  in  the  various  large  factories  both  of 
America  and  Europe.  The  important  subject  of  the  use 
of  explosives  in  fiery  mines  has  a  chapter  to  itself  The 
description  of  the  tests  of  flameless  powders  is  of 
especial  interest ;  in  fact,  the  official  reports  of  the  tests 
of  many  of  the  most  important  explosives  are  perhaps 
the  most  instructive  portions  of  the  book.  The  chapter 
dealing  with  the  practical  application  of  explosives  should 
be  useful  not  only  to  the  miner,  but  also  to  officers  of 
both  services  to  whom  blasting  and  the  use  of  explosives 
generally  may  at  any  time  become  a  necessary  auxiliary. 
An  interesting  account  of  the  history  and  trials  of  the 
Lalinsky  gun,  together  with  the  manufacture  and  use  of 
gun-cotton  shells,  is  also  well  worthy  of  their  perusal. 
Little  is  said  on  the  use  of  explosives  below  water, 
especially  on  the  subject  of  the  removal  of  wrecks,  which 
would  stand  far  fuller  treatment.  Four  appendices  are 
added,  two  dealing  with  the  analysis  and  determination 
of  stability  of  explosives,  and  one  containing  abstracts 
from  the  principal  provisions  of  the  Explosive  Act  of  1875. 
Although  there  is  much  that  is  necessarily  old,  still  this  is 
a  book  that  will  be  read  with  interest  by  most  who  are 
accustomed  to  work  with  high  explosives.  The  illustra- 
tions are  well  executed,  and  the  whole  wonderfully  free 
from  printer's  errors. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

\The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

The  Peltier  Effect,  and  Contact  E.M.F. 

Without  any  further  reference  to  the  heading  of  a  letter  on 
p.  102,  signed  "The  Reviewer,"  I  wish  to  discuss  an  interesting 
argument  therein  propounded  as  proving  that  a  true  electro- 
motive force  at  contact  between  two  metals  cannot  be  the  cause 
or  sole  cause  of  the  Peltier  effect,  unless  the  latter  be  simply 
proportional  to  absolute  temperature.  The  argument  is  very 
like  one  that  I  indistinctly  remember  to  have  heard  suggested 
some  time  ago  by  Prof.  Schuster,  and  it  struck  me  at  the  time 
as  ingenious  and  not  easily  answerable. 


Jan,  9,  1890] 


NATURE 


225 


On  seeing  it  in  print,  however,  a  natural  answer  occurs  to  me, 
which  it  may  be  worth  while  to  give.  The  whole  point  of  the 
reasoning  depends  on  assumed  properties  of  vacuum. 

The  assumptions  are  as  follow  : — 

(i)  That  a  perfect  vacuum  is  an  absolute  non-conductor  of 
electricity. 

(2)  That  no  contact  EM.F.  exists  between  a  metal  and  a 
vacuum. 

(3)  That  vacuum  has  a  specific  inductive  capacity. 

Grant  all  these,  and  the  argument  is  sound.  Decline  to 
admit  any  of  them,  and  it  proves  nothing.  Break  down  the 
first  two  of  them,  and  it  proves  too  much:  it  proves  the  non- 
existence of  any  thermal  contact-force  whatever  between  con- 
ductors. For  if  there  were  any  E.M.  F.  at  the  metallic  contact, 
and  none  at  the  other  or  vacuum  contacts,  a  continuous  current 
would  flow,  propelled  by  energy  derived  from  a  cold  place. 

This  argument  is  indeed  the  ordinary  one  to  i:)rove  that  the 
algebraic  sum  of  the  E.M.F.'s  at  all  the  junctions  of  a  closed 
conducting  circuit  in  which  no  energy  but  heat  is  supplied  must 
be  zero  when  the  temperature  is  uniform. 

The  proof  scarcely  holds  when  insulators  are  interposed, 
though  \}ci&  fact  may  be  true  nevertheless.  When  chemically 
active  substances  with  their  extraneous  supply  of  energy  are 
interposed,  the  fact  itself  is  no  longer  true.  But  how  do  we 
know  what  is  true  when  vacuum  is  interposed  ?  The  hypothesis 
on  which  the  argument  is  founded  is  a  baseless  conjecture. 

But  it  may  be  said,  Are  not  the  hypotheses  probable?  Do 
you  not  yourself  believe  them?  I  believe  in  (i)  and  (3)  pro- 
visionally, but  certainly  not  in  (2).  The  contact  E.M. F.  be- 
tween two  substances  is  probably  some  surface  action  or  skin 
phenomenon,  and  I  see  no  reason  why  it  should  not  occur  as 
well  in  the  boundary  between  metal  and  void  as  in  the  boundary 
between  one  metal  and  another.  Indeed,  it  is  not  improbable 
that  the  sum  of  the  E.M.F.'s  in  every  circuit  of  chemically  inert 
substances,  whether  conducting  or  not,  and  inclusive  of  vacuum, 
is  zero  under  uniform  temperature  conditions. 

All  that  is  wanted  to  establish  this  is  the  knowledge  that  in  a 
circuit  of  any  one  substance  at  non-uniform  temperature  the 
total  E.M.F.  shall  be  zero,^  or  that  the  Thomson  effects  in  a 
single  substance  always  balance  each  other  ;  i.e.  that  the  total 
E.M.F.  in  a  circuit  shall  depend  on  a  potential  function  of 
temperature,  ox  d\i=f'{t)dt. 

Now  it  is  quite  true  that  this  /'(/)  is  the  Peltier  coefficient 
divided  by  absolute  temperature,  and  that/(/)  in  its  most  general 
form  contains  an  arbitrary  constant,  but  what  of  that  ?  Nothing 
is  known  of  f{t)  except  that  it  is  a  potential  function  :  it  is  not 
known  to  represent  any  physical  effect.  I  never  said  that  the 
Peltier  effect  enabled  us  to  find  the  most  general  form  of  the 
function/!/)  ;  I  said  it  gave  us  the  E.M.F.  at  a  junction. 

And  there  is  much  ground  for  the  assertion  ;  for  it  is  easy  to 
show  that  in  a  simple  AB  circuit,  with  junctions  at  /^  and  t^, 
the  total  E.M.F.  is 


E 


n, 


n2  +  /(e 


(0A  -  ®Adt ; 


just  as  if  the  resultant  E.M.F.  were  the  algebraic  sum  of  two 
Peltier  E.M.F.'s  and  of  two  Thomson  E.M.F.'s. 

My  only  contention  is  that  this  equation,  which  is  undeniably 
true  when  the  IT  are  interpreted  as  heat-coefficients,  is  also  true 
and  immediately  interpretable  when  they  stand  for  contact 
E.M.l'.'s.  The  burden  of  proof  as  to  the  physical  existence  of  an 
unnecessary  and  in  every  sense  arbitrary  constant  rests  with 
those  who  doubt  this  simple  explanation. 

It  is  difficult  to  zee  how  a  doubt  can  arise,  or  how  the  Peltier 
and  Thomson  productions  or  destructions  of  heat  can  be  ac- 
counted for  without  local  E.M.F.'s.  Nohow,  so  Dr.  Ilopkinson 
has  proved,  and  I  also  have  insisted  {F/iiI.  Mag.,  October  1885, 
.ind  March  1886),  except  by  some  wildly  gratuitous  assumption 
of  an  actual  physical  specific  heat  for  electricity,  dependent  on  the 
temperature  and  on  the  metal  in  which  it  happens  to  be. 

Liverpool,  December  14,  1889.  Oliver  J.  Lodge. 


Mirages. 

The  article  in  Nature  of  November  21,  1889  (p.  69),  recalls 
to  me  mirages  I  saw  in  March  1888,  while  travelling  in  the 
I'^ast  on  the  steam  yacht  Ceylon. 

On  the  29th  we  were  crossing  the  Black  Sea  from  Sebastopol. 

'  Hopkinson  virtually  pointed  this  cut,  PhiL  ]\fag.,  October  1885. 


It  was  a  fine  cool  day  and  quite  calm.  In  the  afternoon  a  false 
or  mirage  horizon  about  3°  above  the  true  one  was  visible  for  a 
few  hours.  No  objects  \vere  within  range  of  vision.  The 
mirage  disappeared  as  the  sun  declined. 

The  next  day  was  very  much  warmer,  and  we  saw  a  more 
marked  and  interesting  mirage  in  the  afternoon  as  we  were 
steaming  across  the  Sea  of  Marmora  away  from  Constantinople. 
In  this  case  it  appeared  only  in  the  west,  and  objects  were  seen 
reflected  in  an  inverted  position.  A  small  conical-shaped  island 
was  seen  with  its  inverted  image  at  times  distinct  from  and  at 
times  blending  with  the  original.  The  image  was  distinctly 
seen  of  some  land,  which  was  actually  below  the  horizon.  The 
mirage  of  the  reflection  of  the  sun  in  the  sea  was,  when  seen 
through  a  glass,  especially  beautiful.  It  resembled  a  glorious 
cataract  of  golden  water.  This  mirage  lasted  till  quite  the  dusk 
of  the  evening,  and  then  gradually  thinned  down  and  died 
away. 

I  do  not  know  whether  mirages  at  sea  are  uncommon  ;  but  as 
the  officers  on  board  did  not  remember  seeing  one  before,  I 
thought  these  instances  might  be  worth  recording. 

Arthur  E.  Brown. 

Thought  Cot,  Brentwood,  December  31,  1889. 


Self-luminous  Clouds. 

I  AM  very  sorry  that  I  took  no  notes,  some  six  or  seven  years 
ago,  on  the  first  and  only  occasion  of  my  seeing  self-luminous 
clouds,  but  though  I  can  give  neither  date  nor  positions,  the 
following  facts  are  still  fresh  in  my  memory. 

Passing  through  Bushey  Park  after  dark,  I  noticed  an  aurora 
borealis,  and,  as  I  had  only  recently  seen  the  rather  rare 
phenomena  of  the  rays  of  the  setting  sun  converging  towards  a 
point  in  the  east,  I  followed  the  direction  of  one  of  the  principal 
lieams  of  light  towards  the  south,  when,  at  a  point  somewhat 
south  of  my  zenith,  I  noticed  an  equatorial  belt  of  luminous 
clouds.  I  found  that  each  cloud  belonged  to  a  ray,  and  faded 
and  brightened  with  it,  but  was  separated  by  about  60°  of  clear 
sky.  This  belt  of  clouds  extended  down  to  the  western  horizon, 
the  eastern  one  was  obstructed  by  trees,  while  shortly  afterwards 
small  dark  clouds  appeared  on  that  side,  and  the  sky  soon 
became  overcast. 

The  luminous  clouds  were  quite  transparent,  so  that  even 
faint  stars  could  be  seen  through  them  when  at  their  brightest. 
I  have  heard  from  Scandinavian  captains  that  these  luminous 
belts  are  sometimes  seen  in  northern  latitudes,  and  are  sure  signs 
of  bad  weather.  I  have  written  these  few  remarks  in  the  hope 
that  those  of  your  readers  who  may  have  the  chance  of  seeing 
an  aurora  borealis  will  also  look  out  for  these  clouds,  and  if 
possible  determine  their  position.  C.  E.  Stromeyer. 

Strawberry  Hill,  January  4. 


The  Revised   Terminology  in    Cryptogamic    Botany. 

The  anglicized  forms  of  most  of  the  terms  in  common  use, 
employed  in  the  "  Hand-book  of  Cryptogamic  Botany  "  recently 
issued  by  Mr.  G.  Murray  and  myself,  have  not  up  to  the  present 
time  found  much  support  from  our  fellow-botanists.  I  propose, 
therefore,  to  give,  in  some  detail,  the  reasons  which  have 
induced  us  to  adopt  them,  and  to  urge  their  general  use  on  writers 
on  cryptogamic  botany.  For  this  purpose  we  will  take  as  our  text 
extracts  from  three  reviews  of  the  "  Hand-book,"  marked,  as  all 
the  critiques  have  been,  with  only  one  or  two  exceptions,  by  a 
generous  appreciation  of  the  difficulties  of  our  task,  and  a  too 
great  leniency  to  the  many  shortcomings  of  the  work  : — "  The 
most  conspicuous,  though  not  the  most  important,  of  these 
[changes]  is  the  adoption  of  anglicized  terminations  for  Latin 
and  Greek  technical  words.  This  is  a  matter  in  which  it  is 
hard  to  draw  the  line  aright.  ...  As  a  matter  of  taste  we 
think  the  authors  have  gone  much  too  far  in  this  direction. 
They  complain  of  the  '  awkwardness  and  uncouth  form  of  these 
words ' ;  we  should  have  thought  the  reproach  applied  much 
more  strongly  to  'coenobe,'  'sclerote,'  'nemathece,'  and 
'columel'"  (Nature).  "An  Englishman  may  guess  what 
'  archegone '  is  short  for,  for  example  ;  but  why  puzzle  a 
foreigner  with  a  new  form  of  a  word  with  which  he  is  familiar 
in  every  treatise  hitherto  written  on  the  special  subject  in  any 
European  language?"  (Academy).  "Too  sanguine  expectations 
on  this  head  might  well  be  toned  down  by  remembering  the 
complete  failure  of  the  somewhat  similar  experiment  made  by 
Lindley.    .   .    .Primworts,   spurgeworts,  bean-capers,    and    hip- 


226 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


purids  are  decidedly  simpler,  even  if  less  euphonious,  than  Primu- 
laceas,  Euphorbiacese,  Zygophyllacese,  and  Haloragefe  ;  yet  the 
longer  Latin  terms  are  still  universally  used,  while  the  quasi- 
English  ones  have  never  obtained  even  temporary  acceptance  " 
(Journal  of  Botany). 

The  last  of  these  criticisms  appears  to  rest  on  a  confusion 
between  the  principles  of  nomenclature  and  those  of  terminology. 
In  nomenclature,  rigid  rules  have  been  laid  down,  and  accepted 
by  all  leading  naturalists  of  all  countries,  in  order  that  the 
scientific  names  of  species,  genera,  orders,  &c.,  may  correspond  in 
scientific  treatises  in  all  languages.  In  the  terminology  of 
flowering  plants  no  such  rule  has  ever  been  attempted  to  be  laid 
down  ;  but  each  writer,  when  writing  in  his  own  language,  uses 
terms,  usually  of  classical  origin,  and  derived  from  common  roots, 
but  of  a  form  as  far  as  possible  amenable  to  the  laws  of  the 
language  in  which  he  writes.  All  that  we  are  contending  for  is 
the  extension  of  the  same  principle  to  cryptogamic  botany  ;  one 
of  the  main  objects  in  the  publication  of  our  *'  Hand-book  "  being 
to  make  the  study  of  flowerless  plants  as  attractive  to  the  public 
at  large  as  is  that  of  flowering  plants. 

In  order  to  show  how  recent  is  the  universal  adoption  of  this 
practice  in  phanerogamic  botany — a  change  largely  due  to  the 
influence  of  Dr.  Lindley's  writings — we  append  a  list  of  a  few 
terms  in  use  in  standard  works  of  original  research  or  of  reference, 
published  within  the  last  thirty-two  years,  which  presented 
themselves  the  first  to  our  hand ;  viz. — "  The  Miscellaneous 
Botanical  Works  of  Robert  Brown"  (1866)  ;  Mr.  Currey's 
translation  of  "  Hofmeister  on  the  Higher  Cryptogamia,  &c." 
(1872);  Berkeley's  "Introduction  to  Cryptogamic  Botany" 
(1857) ;  and  Bentley's  "  Manual  of  Botany  "  (2nd  ed.,  1870)  : — 


Achcenium 

Ant  Jura 

Arillus 

Bractea 

Carpellum 

Integitmentum 

Involucrum 

Ovarium 


Bentley 

Brown 

Bentley 

Brown 

Brown 

Berkeley 

Brown 

Brown 


Ovulum  Brown 

Perianthinin  Brown 

Pericarpium  Brown 

Pistillnm  Brown 

Rhizoma  Berkeley 

Spermatozoon  Currey 
Stamini  (plural)  Brown 

Slipula  Currey 


With  the  exception  of  words  which  have  been  incorporated 
into  our  language,  such  as  corolla,  nucleus,  Sec,  comparatively 
few  of  those  used  in  describing  flowering  plants  now  retain  their 
classical  forms ;  the  most  conspicuous  exceptions  being  those 
applied  to  the  structure  of  tissues,  such  as  epidermis  and  those 
ending  in  enchyma ;  and  can  anything  be  more  puzzling  than 
the  forms  in  common  use  for  the  terms  derived  from  the  Greek 
Se'p/ia — -epidermis,  hypoderma,  and  periderm  ?  We  have  no 
doubt  that,  had  our  critic  lived  in  the  days  of  Robert  Brown 
and  Lindley,  he  would  have  thought  all  the  innovations  intro- 
duced by  the  latter  "uncouth"  simply  because  we  were  not 
used  to  them;  and  would  have  said  that  Lindley  had  "gone 
much  too  far."  In  some  of  those  adopted  by  ourselves  we  have, 
in  fact,  been  forestalled  by  others,  as  in  the  cases  of  antherid  and 
archegone  by  Lindley,  and  sporange  by  Oliver. 

We  now  come  to  the  charge  made  by  our  critic  in  the 
Academy,  that  the  terms  we  have  introduced  would 
"puzzle foreigners."  Unfortunately,  our  polyglottism,  or  rather 
oligoglottism,  will  not  allow  us  to  vie  with  our  reviewer  in  his 
acquaintance  with  every  European  language  ;  we  are  compelled 
to  confine  ourselves  chiefly  to  three ;  but  these  include  by  far 
the  greater  part  of  European  botanical  literature  —in  fact,  every 
treatise  which  nine  out  of  ten  English  readers  will  wish  to  con- 
sult in  the  original.  The  statement  quoted  above  seems  to  have 
been  rashly  made. 

In  Italian,  as  far  as  our  knowledge  goes,  the  practice  is 
absolutely  uniform :  no  botanical  writer  of  repute  uses  the 
classical  forms  ;  but  every  technical  term  has  its  Italian  spelling 
and  termination.  To  such  an  extent  is  this  adaptation  to  the 
laws  of  orthography  of  the  language  carried,  that  we  find 
"xylem"  converted  into  xilema,  "phloem  "into  floema, 
"  hormogonium  "  into  ormogonio,  and  "  hyphce  "  into  ife  ;  and 
this  by  the  first  writers  "  on  special  subjects." 

Our  acquaintance  with  Swedis/i,  Danish,  Dutch,  and  Spanish 
is  too  slight  to  allow  us  to  speak  with  confidence ;  but  in  all 
these  the  general  practice  is,  we  believe,  the  same  as  in  Italian, 
though  not  to  the  same  extent ;  with  the  best  writers,  when 
writing  in  their  own  language,  the  use  of  terms  with  Latin  or 
Greek  terminations  appears  to  be  the  exception  rather  than  the 
rule. 

In  French,  the  practice   is   by   no  means   so  uniform  as  in 


Italian  ;  but  still  that  of  the  highest  authorities  is,  on  the  whole, 
very  decidedly  in  favour  of  French,  rather  than  Latin  or  Greek, 
forms  of  the  words  in  most  common  use.  From  works  picked 
up  almost  at  random,  we  select  the  following : — 


Anthiridie  Van  Tieghem, 
Guignard,  Philibert,  De 
Wildeman,  Bornet,  Thuret. 

Archegone  Van  Tieghem. 

Baside  Tulasne,    Rou- 

meguere  [basidie,  Fayod). 

Capiiicle  Bornet. 

Conidie  Costantin,  Rou- 

meguere  {conid,  Bornet). 


Parenchynie  Guignard,  Hec- 
kel,  Fayod,  Bornet, 
Tulasne. 

Pcrithcce  Costantin. 

Pollinide  (Floridese)  Guignard. 

Procarpe  Bornet,  Thuret. 

Propagate  Bornet. 

Prothalle  Guignard. 

Pycnide  Costantin,  Rou- 


Epiderme 

Van  Tieghem, 

meguere. 

Renault. 

Sclerote 

Van   Tieghem, 

Favelle 

Bornet,  Thuret. 

Fayod. 

Gametange 

De  Wildeman. 

Sore 

Thuret. 

Glomirule 

Bornet,  Tulasne. 

Sporange 

Bornet,  Thuret, 

Gonidie 

De  Wildeman. 

Roumeguere,  Tulasne,  Van 

Hormogonie 

Bornet. 

Tieghem, 

De   Wildeman, 

Hyphe 

De  Wildeman. 

Guignard, 

Philibert. 

Nucleate 

Guignard. 

Stipe 

Fayod,  Roume- 

Oogone 

De   Wildeman 

guere. 

ipogonie. 

Roumeguere). 

St  ornate 

Philibert,  Thu- 

Opercule 

Philibert. 

ret. 

Ostiole 

Thuret,        De 

Thalle 

Thuret,      Gay, 

Wildeman. 

De  Wildeman,  Fayod. 

Paraphyse 

De  Wildeman. 

Zoosporange 

Flahault. 

The  great  stronghold  of  the  conservatives  in  terminology  is 
the  Ger?nan  language.  No  doubt  a  large  mumber  of  the  best 
writers  do  here  maintain  the  classical  form  of  most  technical 
cryptogamic  terms,  including  some  in  which  it  has  already  been 
abandoned  with  us,  such  as  conceptaculutn,  receptaculum, 
stolo,  and  per-ianthium,  just  as  we  still  meet  with  ovarium, 
ovulum,  and  protoplasma.  This  is  no  doubt  largely  due  to  the 
greater  difficulty  which  the  German  language  has  than  the 
French  or  our  own  in  naturalizing  aliens.  But  even  here  the 
practice  is  by  no  means  uniform,  and  Germanized  forms  are 
coming  yearly  more  and  more  into  use.  In  order  that  there  may 
be  no  question  as  to  the  recency  and  authority  of  the  examples 
quoted,  the  following  list  has  been  compiled  exclusively  from  the 
standard  treatises  in  Schenk's  "  Handbuch  der  Botanik"  ;  had 
other  works  of  equal  authority  been  consulted,  the  list  might 
have  been  considerably  extended  : — 

Hormogon       Zopf 
My  eel  Zimmermann 

Paraphyse       Zopf 
Parencliym     Haberlandt,  Zim- 
mermann, Detmer,  Schenk, 
Zopf 
Plasmod  Zopf 

Prokarp  Falkenberg 

Sklerenchym  Haberlandt,  Det- 
mer, Schenk 
Sporogon         Goebel 


We  do  not  mean  that  these  words  are  exclusively  used  by  the 
writers  quoted ;  it  is  not  uncommon  to  find  the  Latin  and  the 
German  form  used  indifferently  on  the  same  page.  It  is  note- 
worthy also  that  even  the  most  rigid  conservatives  do  not  use  the 
Latin  form  in  the  plural  of  such  words  as  "oogonium,"  "sporan- 
gium, " ' '  antheridium, "  ' ' sclerotium, "  &c. ,  but  always  the  German 
lorms,  Oogonien,  Sporangien,  Antheridien,  Sklerotien,  &c.  ;  such 
words  as  "oogonia,"  "sporangia,"  "antheridia,"  "sclerotia," 
&c.,  are,  as  far  as  our  experience  goes,  to  be  found  only  in 
English  and  American  writings  and  in  Latin  diagnoses. 

Analyzing,  therefore,  the  statement  that  the  Latin  and  Greek 
forms  of  words  used  in  cryptogamic  terminology  are  "familiar 
in  every  treatise  hitherto  written  on  the  special  subject  in  any 
European  language,"  we  find  that  in  Italian  the  practice  is 
unanimously,  and  in  French  (as  also,  we  believe,  in  most  other 
European  languages)  preponderatingly  in  the  opposite  direction  ; 
and  that  German  is  the  only  widely  read  language  of  Continental 
Europe  in  which  even  the  weight  of  authority  is  still  on  that 
side. 

There  are  some  terms  in  which,  no  doubt,  the  classical  form 
must  be  retained,  especially  those  which,  when  deprived  of  their 


Apophyse 

Goebel 

Arches  par 

Goebel 

Basidie 

Zopf 

Carpogon 

Falkenberg 

Cilie 

Zopf 

Collenchym 

Haberlandt,   Zim 

mermann 

Conidie 

Zopf 

Endospor 

Goebel 

Enzyme 

Zopf 

Epithet 

Haberlandt 

Exospor 

Goebel 

Jan.  9,  1890] 


NATURE 


227 


classical  termination,  become  monosyllabic,  such  as  "thallus, " 
"sorus,"  "hypha,"  and  "ascus,"  just  as  we  still  speak  of  a 
"corolla," a  "stigma,"  a  "hilum,"and  a  "raphe,"  But,  with 
regard  to  the  great  majority  of  terms  in  current  use  in  descriptive 
cryptogamic  botany,  we  entertain  not  the  smallest  doubt  that  the 
change  will  gradually  be  brought  about  which  has,  within  the  last 
forty  years,  become  established  in  phanerogamic  botany  ;  and  we 
would  venture  to  suggest  to  our  fellow- workers  in  cryptogamic 
botany  in  this  country  and  in  America,  whether  it  will  not  be 
best  to  accept  it  frankly  once  for  all. 

Alfred  W.  Bennett. 


Exact  Thermometry. 

I  AM  quite  in  agreement  with  Prof.  Sydney  Young  (NATURE, 
December  19,  p.  152),  that  after  the  lapse  of  a  sufficient  time — 
let  us  say,  an  infinite  time — the  constant  slow  rise  of  the  zero- 
point  of  a  thermometer  at  the  ordinary  temperature  will  attain  a 
definite  limit ;  but  I  cannot  accept  his  view  that  the  effect  of 
heating  the  thermometer  to  a  high  temperature  is  simply  to 
increase  the  rate  at  which  this  final  state  is  approached.  If  the 
results  of  experiment  at  the  ordinary  temperature  be  expressed 
in  a  mathematical  formula  which  admits  of  making  the  time 
infinite,  the  limiting  value  of  the  rise  (on  that  condition)  will 
not  exceed  on  the  average  2°  C,  even  in  a  thermometer  of  lead 
glass.  After  exposure  to  a  high  temperature,  and  in  the  same 
thermometer,  so  great  an  ascent  as  18°  C.  is  a  possible  measure- 
ment, actually  realized.  The  two  phenomena  are  therefore  very 
diflferent  in  their  nature. 

The  view  that,  owing  to  the  more  rapid  cooling  of  the  outer 
parts  of  the  bulb  after  it  has  been  blown,  the  inner  parts  are  in  a 
state  of  tension,  and  that  it  is  the  gradual  equalization  of  the 
tension  throughout  the  glass  that  causes  the  contraction,  has 
frequently  been  held,  and  will  probably  be  for  a  long  time  the 
favourite  hypothesis  upon  the  subject.  It  breaks  down,  however, 
when  we  attempt  to  calculate  what  the  amount  of  the  contraction 
might  be,  on  the  supposition  that  it  is  well  founded  :  only  a  very 
small  portion  of  the  contraction  could  be  thus  accounted  for. 
I  regret  that  I  cannot  now  conveniently  refer  to  Guillaume's 
interesting  demonstration  of  this  result. 

Prof.  Young  has  placed  on  record  an  experiment  with  three 
thermometers,  which  he  heated  to  280°  C.  The  zero  movement, 
however,  only  ranged  from  1°  to  i°-2, — small  readings  which 
might  very  possibly  have  been  obtained,  or  not,  on  either  of  the 
thermometers  at  other  times.  It  is  consequently  very  difficult  to 
draw  any  inference  from  this  experiment.  I  may,  however, 
mention  that  closed  thermometers  made  of  lead  glass  are  very 
apt  to  show  a  rise  of  zero  after  heating  to  about  120°  C.  and 
upwards  to  some  temperature  in  the  neighbourhood  of  270°  C, 
and  after  that  a  descent  of  zero  ;  the  temperature  of  280°  C. 
would  in  that  case  be  an  unsatisfactory  one  for  a  test  experiment, 
and  the  efi'ect  of  plasticity  might  very  possibly  be  masked.  On 
the  other  hand,  if  the  three  thermometers  were  of  hard  glass,  all 
the  zero  movements  would  in  that  case  be  greatly  diminished, 
and  the  results  would  be  in  less  bold  relief. 

I  do  not  know  any  substance  more  curious  or  interesting  in  its 
properties  than  glass ;  and  I  should  be  glad  if  Prof.  Young — 
into  whose  able  hands  the  matter  has  fallen — could  decisively 
test  my  suggestion  that  plasticity  is  the  main  cause  of  the  zero 
ascent  after  120°  C.  Probably  it  has  little  or  nothing  to  do  with 
the  ascent  at  the  ordinary  temperature.  It  is,  however,  known 
that  fine  threads  of  glass  are  undoubtedly  plastic  at  the  ordinary 
temperature.  Edmund  J.  Mills. 

Melrose,  N.B.,  December  29,  1889. 


THE  PAL^ONTOLOGICAL  EVIDENCE  FOR 
THE  TRANSMISSION  OF  ACQUIRED 
CHARACTERS.^ 

TV/rUCH  of  the  evidence  brought  forward  in  France 
"'■*-*■  and  Germany  in  support  of  the  transmission  of 
acquired  characters,  which  has  been  so  ably  criticized  in 

.  '  ."^'^'^  article  is  an  informal  reply  to  the  position  taken  by  Prof.  Weismann 
m  his  essays  upon  heredity.  I  have  borrowed  freely  from  the  materials  of 
Cope,  Ryder,  and  others,  without  thinking  it  necessary  to  give  acknowledg- 
ment in  each  case. 


Weismann's  recent  essays,  is  of  a  very  different  order 
from  that  forming  the  main  position  of  the  so-called 
Neo-Lamarckians  in  America.  It  is  true  that  most 
American  zoologists,  somewhat  upon  Semper's  lines, 
have  supported  the  theory  of  the  direct  action  of  environ- 
ment, always  assuming,  however,  the  question  of  trans- 
mission. But  Cope,  the  able  if  somewhat  extreme 
advocate  of  these  views,  with  Hyatt,  Ryder,  Brooks,  Dall, 
and  others,  holding  that  the  survival  of  the  fittest  is  now 
amply  demonstrated,  submit  that,  in  our  present  need  of 
an  explanation  of  the  origin  of  the  fittest,  the  principle 
of  selection  is  inadequate,  and  have  brought  forward  and 
discussed  the  evidence  for  the  inherited  modifications 
produced  by  reactions  in  the  organism  itself — in  other 
words,  the  indirect  action  of  environment.  The  supposed 
arguments  from  pathology  and  mutilations  have  not  been 
considered  at  all :  these  would  involve  the  immediate 
inheritance  of  characters  impressed  upon  the  organism  and 
not  springing  from  internal  reactions,  and  thus  differ  both 
in  the  element  of  time  and  in  their  essential  principle  from 
the  above.  As  the  selection  principle  is  allowed  all  that 
Darwin  claimed  for  it  in  his  later  writings,  this  school 
stands  for  Lamarckism  plus — not  versus — Darwinism,  as 
Lankester  has  recently  put  it.  There  is  naturally  a 
diversity  of  opinion  as  to  how  far  each  of  these  principles 
is  operative,  not  that  they  conflict. 

The  following  views  are  adopted  from  those  held  by 
Cope  and  others,  so  far  as  they  conform  to  my  own 
observations  and  apply  to  the  class  of  variations  which 
come  within  the  range  of  palseontological  evidence.  In 
the  life  of  the  individual,  adaptation  is  increased  by  local 
and  general  metatrophic  changes,  of  necessity  correlated, 
which  take  place  most  rapidly  in  the  regions  of  least 
perfect  adaptation,  since  here  the  reactions  are  greatest ; 
the  main  trend  of  variation  is  determined  by  the  slow 
transmission,  not  of  the  full  increase  of  adaptation,  but  of 
the  disposition  to  adaptive  atrophy  or  hypertrophy  at 
certain  points ;  the  variations  thus  transmitted  are 
accumulated  by  the  selection  of  the  individuals  in  which 
they  are  most  marked  and  by  the  extinction  of  inadaptive 
varieties  or  species :  selection  is  thus  of  the  ensemble  of 
new  and  modified  characters.  Finally,  there  is  sufficient 
palceontological  and  morphological  evidence  that  acquired 
characters,  in  the  above  limited  sense,  are  transmitted. 

In  the  present  state  of  discussion,  everything  turns 
upon  the  last  proposition.  While  we  freely  admit  that 
transmission  has  been  generally  assumed,  a  mass  of 
direct  evidence  for  this  assumption  has  nevertheless 
been  accumulating,  chiefly  in  the  field  of  paleontology. 
This  has  evidently  not  reached  Prof.  Weismann,  for 
no  one  could  show  a  fairer  controversial  spirit,  when 
he  states  repeatedly :  "  Not  a  single  fact  hitherto  brought 
forward  can  be  accepted  as  proof  of  the  assumption."  It 
is,  of  course,  possible  for  a  number  of  writers  to  fall 
together  into  a  false  line  of  reasoning  from  certain  facts  ; 
it  must,  however,  be  pointed  out  that  we  are  now  deciding 
between  two  alternatives  only,  viz.  pure  selection,  and 
selection //z^j'  transmission. 

The  distinctive  feature  of  our  rich  palaeontological  evi- 
dence is  that  it  covers  the  entire  pedigree  of  variations  : 
we  are  present  not  only  at  but  before  birth,  so  to  speak. 
Among  many  examples,  I  shall  select  here  only  a  single 
illustration  from  the  mammalian  series — the  evolution  of 
the  molar  teeth  associated  with  the  peculiar  evolution  of 
the  feet  in  the  horses.  The  feet,  starting  with  plantigrade 
bear-like  forms,  present  a  continous  series  of  readjustments 
of  the  twenty-six  original  elements  to  digitigradism  which 
furnish  proof  sufficient  to  the  Lamarckian.  But,  as 
selectionists  would  explain  this  complex  development  and 
reduction  by  panmixia  and  the  selection  of  favourable 
fortuitous  correlations  of  elements  already  present,  the 
teeth  render  us  more  direct  service  in  this  discussion,  since 
they  furnish  not  only  the  most  intricate  correlations  and 
readjustments,  but  the  complete  history  of  the  addition 


228 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


of  a  number  of  entirely  new  elements — the  rise  of  useful 
structures  from  their  minute  embryonic,  apparently  useless, 
condition,  the  most  vulnerable  point  in  the  pure  selection 
theory.  Here  are  opportunities  we  have  never  enjoyed 
before  in  the  study  of  the  variation  problem. 

The  first  undoubted  ancestor  of  the  horse  is  Hyraco- 
therium;  let  us  look  back  into  the  early  history  of  its  multi- 
cuspid upper  molars,  every  step  of  which  is  now  known. 
Upon  the  probability  that  mammalian  teeth  were  developed 
from  the  reptilian  type,  Cope  predicted  in  1871  that  the 
first  accessory  cusps  would  be  found  on  the  anterior  and 
posterior  slopes  of  a  single  cone,  i.e.  at  the  points  of 
interference  of  an  isognathous  series  in  closing  the  jaws. 
Much  later  I  showed  that  precisely  this  condition  is  filled 
in  the  unique  molars  of  the  Upper  Triassic  Dromotheriicm. 
These  with  the  main  cusp  form  the  three  elements  of  the 
tritubercular  crown.  Passing  by  several  well-known 
stages,  we  reach  one  in  which  the  heel  of  the  lower  molars 
intersects,  and,  by  wearing,  produces  depressions  in  the 
transverse  ridges  of  the  upper  molars.  At  these  points 
are  developed  the  intermediate  tubercles  which  play  so 
important  a  role  in  the  history  of  the  Ungulate  molars. 
So,  without  a  doubt,  every  one  of  the  five  main  component 
cusps  superadded  to  the  original  cones,  is  first  prophesied 
by  a  point  of  extreme  wear,  replaced  by  a  minute  tubercle, 
and  grows  into  a  cusp.  The  most  worn  teeth,  i.e.  the  first 
true  molars,  are  those  in  which  these  processes  take  place 
most  rapidly.  We  compare  hundreds  of  specimens  of 
related  species  ;  everywhere  we  find  the  same  variations 
at  the  same  stages,  differing  only  in  size,  never  in  position. 
We  extend  the  comparison  to  a  widely  separate  phylum, 
and  find  the  same  pattern  in  a  similar  process  of  evolution. 
Excepting  in  two  or  three  side  lines  the  teeth  of  all  the 
Mammalia  have  passed  through  closely  parallel  early 
stages  of  evolution,  enabling  us  to  formulate  a  law  :  The 
new  main  elements  of  the  crown  make  their  appearance  at 
the  first  points  of  contact  and  chief  points  of  wear  of  the 
teeth  in  preceding  periods.  Whatever  may  be  true  of 
spontaneous  variations  in  other  parts  of  the  organism,  these 
new  cusps  arise  in  the  perfectly  definite  lines  of  growth. 
Now,  upon  the  hypothesis  that  the  modifications  induced 
in  the  organism  by  use  and  disuse  have  no  directive  influence 
upon  variations,  all  these  instances  of  sequence  must  be 
considered  coincidences.  If  there  is  no  causal  relation- 
ship, what  other  meaning  can  this  sequence  have  ?  Even  if 
useful  new  adjustments  of  elements  already  existing  may 
arise  independently  of  use,  why  should  the  origin  of  new 
elements  conform  to  this  law  ?  Granting  the  possibility 
that  the  struggle  for  existence  is  so  intense  that  a  minute 
new  cusp  will  be  selected  if  it  happens  to  arise  at  the 
right  point,  where  are  the  non-selected  new  elements,  the 
experimental  failures  of  Nature  ?  We  do  not  find  them. 
Palaeontology  has,  indeed,  nothing  to  say  upon  individual 
selection,  but  chapters  upon  unsuccessful  species  and 
genera.  Here  is  a  practical  confirmation  of  many  of  the 
most  forcible  theoretical  objections  which  have  been 
urged  against  the  selection  theory. 

Now,  after  observing  these  principles  operating  in  the 
teeth,  look  at  the  question  enlarged  by  the  evolution  of 
parallel  species  of  the  horse  series  in  America  and  Europe, 
and  add  to  the  development  of  the  teeth  what  is  observed 
in  progress  in  the  feet.  Here  is  the  problem  of  correlation 
in  a  stronger  form  even  than  that  presented  by  Spencer 
and  Romanes.  To  vary  the  mode  of  statement,  what 
must  be  assumed  in  the  strict  application  of  the  selection 
theory  ?  (rt)  that  variations  in  the  lower  molars  correlated 
with  coincident  variations  of  reversed  patterns  in  the 
upper  molars,  these  with  metamorphoses  in  the  premolars 
and  pocketing  of  the  incisor  enamel ;  {b)  all  new  elements 
and  forms  at  first  so  minute  as  to  be  barely  visible 
immediately  selected  and  accumulated  ;  [c)  in  the  same 
individuals  favourable  variations  in  the  proportions  of  the 
digits  involving  readjustments  in  the  entire  limbs  and 


skeleton,  all  coincident  with  those  in  the  teeth  ;  {d)  finally, 
all  the  above  new  variations,  correlations  and  readjust- 
ments, not  found  in  the  hereditary  germ-plasm  of  one 
period,  but  arising  fortuitously  by  the  union  of  different 
strains,  observed  to  occur  simultaneously  and  to  be 
selected  at  the  same  rate  in  the  species  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  the  Thames  Valley,  and  Switzerland  !  These 
assumptions,  if  anything,  are  understated.  Any  one  of 
them  seems  to  introduce  the  element  of  the  inconstant, 
whereas  in  the  marvellous  parallelism,  even  to  minute  teeth 
markings  and  osteological  characters,  in  all  the  widely  dis- 
tributed forms  between  Hyracotherium  and  Equus,  the 
most  striking  feature  is  the  constant.  Viewed  as  a 
whole,  this  evolution  is  one  of  uniform  and  uninterrupted 
progression,  taking  place  simultaneously  in  all  the  details 
of  structure  over  great  areas.  So  nearly  does  race  adapt- 
ation seem  to  conform  to  the  laws  of  progressive  adaptation 
in  the  individual,  that,  endowing  the  teeth  with  the  power 
of  immediate  reactive  growth  like  that  of  the  skeleton,  we 
can  conceive  the  transformation  of  a  single  individual 
from  the  Eocene  five-toed  bunodont  into  the  modern 
horse. 

The  special  application  of  the  Lamarckian  theory  to 
the  evolution  of  the  teeth  is  not  without  its  difficulties, 
some  of  which  have  been  pointed  out  to  me  by  Mr.  E.  B. 
Poulton.  To  the  objection  that  the  teeth  are  formed 
before  piercing  the  gum,  and  the  wear  produces  a  loss  of 
tissue,  it  may  be  replied  that  it  is  not  the  growth,  but 
the  reaction  which  produces  it,  which  is  supposed  to  be 
transmitted.  Again,  this  is  said  to  prove  too  much  ;  why 
is  the  growth  of  these  cusps  not  continuous  ?  This  may 
be  met  in  several  ways  :  first,  in  the  organism  itself 
these  reactions  are  least  in  the  best  adapted  structures,  a 
proposition  which  is  more  readily  demonstrated  in  the 
feet  than  in  the  teeth — moreover,  since  the  resulting 
growth  never  exceeds  the  uses  of  the  individual,  there  is 
a  natural  limit  to  its  transmission  ;  secondly,  the  growth 
of  the  molars  is  limited  by  the  nutritive  supply — we 
observe  one  tooth  or  part  growing  at  the  expense  of 
another  ;  third,  in  some  phyla  we  do  observe  growth 
which  appears  to  lead  to  inadaptation  and  is  followed  by 
extinction.  In  one  instance  we  observe  the  recession  of 
one  cusp  taking  place  pari  passu  with  the  development  of 
the  one  opposed  to  it.  These  and  many  more  general 
objections  may  be  removed  later,  but  they  are  of  such 
force  that,  even  granting  our  own  premises,  we  cannot 
now  claim  to  offer  a  perfectly  satisfactory  explanation  of 
all  the  facts. 

The  evidence  in  this  field  for,  is  still  much  stronger  than 
that  against,  this  theory.  To  sum  up,  the  new  variations 
in  the  skeleton  and  teeth  of  the  fossil  series  are  observed 
to  have  a  definite  direction  ;  in  seeking  an  explanation  of 
this  direction,  we  observe  that  it  universally  conforms  to 
the  reactions  produced  in  the  individual  by  the  laws  of 
growth  ;  we  infer  that  these  reactions  are  transmitted.  If 
the  individual  is  the  mere  pendent  of  a  chain  (Galton), 
or  upshoot  from  the  continuous  root  of  ancestral  plasm 
(Weismann),  we  are  left  at  present  with  no  explanation 
of  this  well-observed  definite  direction.  But  how  can 
this  transmission  take  place?  If,  from  the  evident 
necessity  of  a  working  theory  of  heredity,  the  ottus 
probandiiaWs  upon  the  Lamarckian — if  it  be  demonstrated 
that  this  transmission  does  not  take  place — then  we  are 
driven  to  the  necessity  of  postulating  some  as  yet  un- 
known factor  in  evolution  to  explain  these  purposive  or 
directive  laws  in  variation,  for,  in  this  field  at  least,  the 
old  view  of  the  random  introduction  and  selection  of  new 
characters  must  be  abandoned,  not  only  upon  theoretical 
grounds,  but  upon  actual  observation. 

Reading  between  the  lines  of  Weismann's  deeply 
interesting  essays,  it  is  evident  that  he  himself  is  coming 
to  this  conclusion.  Henry  Fairfield  Osborn. 

Princeton  College,  August  23. 


Jan.  9,  1890] 


NATURE 


229 


A  FIELD  LAID  DOWN  TO  PERMANENT 
GRASS. 

A  VALUABLE  paper,  by  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes,  on  the 
history  of  a  field  laid  down  to  permanent  grass,  has 
been  reprinted,  by  Messrs.  Spottiswoode,  from  the  Journal 
of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England.  The  field 
in  question  forms  part  of  the  Rothamsted  estate,  and  was 
laid  down  to  permanent  grass  nearly  thirty  years  ago, 
by  Dr.  Gilbert,  to  whom  it  was  let  in  1856.  It  has  been 
mown  for  hay  every  year  from  the  commencement ;  and 
in  the  present  pamphlet  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes  gives  full  particu- 
lars as  to  the  economical  results,  the  constituents  supplied 
in  the  manures  and  removed  in  the  crops,  the  changes 
within  the  soil  in  the  formation  of  the  meadow,  and  the 
botany  of  the  meadow.  The  following  are  his  summary 
and  general  conclusions  : — 

(i)  By  the  judicious  employment  of  manures,  both 
natural  and  artificial,  arable  land  has  been  converted  into 
permanent  grass,  not  only  without  loss,  but  with  some 
profit  to  the  tenant. 

(2)  The  important  constituents,  nitrogen  and  phosphoric 
acid,  were  supplied  in  the  manures  in  larger  quantities 
than  they  were  removed  in  the  crops  ;  but  potash  in  only 
about  the  same  quantity  as  it  was  removed. 

(3)  The  application  of  dung,  not  only  compensates  for 
much  of  the  exhaustion  from  the  removal  of  hay,  but  it 
has  a  beneficial  influence  on  the  botanical  character  of 
the  herbage. 

(4)  Although  the  grass  has  been  mown  every  year  for 
nearly  thirty  years,  there  has  been  a  considerable  accumu- 
lation of  fertihty  within  the  soil. 

(5)  Analysis  has  shown  that  there  has  been  an  increase 
of  nitrogen  in  the  surface-soil,  beyond  that  which  could 
be  explained  by  excess  supplied  in  manure  over  that  re- 
moved in  crops,  and  by  the  combined  nitrogen  coming 
down  in  rain,  and  the  minor  deposits  from  the  atmosphere. 
Part,  if  not  the  whole,  of  this  increase  is  probably  derived 
from  the  subsoil  by  deeply-rooted  plants,  which  after- 
wards leave  a  nitrogenous  residue  within  the  surface-soil. 
Or,  possibly,  some  of  it  may  have  its  source  in  the  free 
nitrogen  of  the  atmosphere,  brought  into  combination 
within  the  soil,  under  the  influence  of  micro-organisms, 
or  other  low  forms. 

(6)  In  laying  down  arable  land  to  permanent  grass, 
especially  if  hay  is  to  be  removed,  it  is  essential  to 
supply,  not  only  nitrogenous,  but  an  abundance  of  mineral 
manures,  and  especially  of  potash,  a  large  quantity  of 
which  is  removed  in  the  crops,  and  must  be  returned. 
When  the  grass  is  not  mown,  but  fed,  the  exhaustion  is 
much  less,  but  it  is  greater  when  consumed  for  the  pro- 
duction of  milk  than  when  for  that  of  store  or  fattening 
increase. 


THE  TOTAL  ECLIPSE  OF  DECEMBER  22. 

MISFORTUNE  has  attended  the  double  expedition 
sent  by  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society  to  observe 
the  total  eclipse  of  December  22.  In  Africa  observations 
were  made  impossible  by  bad  weather.  Observations 
were  secured  off  the  coast  of  French  Guiana,  but  at  a 
cost  which  is  deeply  to  be  deplored — the  death  of  Father 
Perry. 

The  telegram  received  from  Demerara  is  as  follows  : — 
"  104  corona  American  Perry  dead  dysentery."  With 
regard  to  the  part  of  this  telegram  which  needs  explana- 
tion, the  Titnes  of  January  6  says: — "  104  is  resolvable 
into  the  factors  2,  4,  and  13,  of  which  the  first  number 
means  that  the  weather  was  only  moderately  good  ;  the 
second  that  successful  exposures  were  made  with  the 
Abney  4-inch  lens,  but  that  the  development  was  not 
carried  out,  owing  either  to  unfavourable  climatic  condi- 
tions, or  possibly  to  the  illness  of  Father  Perry  ;  and  the 


third,  that  successful  photographs  were  obtained  with  the 
20-inch  mirror,  but  again  the  development  was  not  com- 
pleted. The  words  corona  American  signify  most  prob- 
ably that  the  corona  was  of  the  same  form  as  that  seen 
on  Januaiy  i,  1889,  when  a  total  eclipse  was  successfully 
observed  in  California,  and  the  form  was  then  that  now 
generally  ascribed  to  a  period  of  minimum  sun-spots, 
elongated  at  the  sun's  equator  and  radial  but  short  at  the 
poles." 


NOTES. 

The  list  of  those  who  received  New  Year's  honours  and 
appointments  included  Brigade-Surgeon  George  King,  F.R.  S., 
Bengal  Medical  Service,  Superintendent  of  the  Royal  Botanical 
Gardens,  Calcutta.  He  has  been  made  Companion  of  the  most 
eminent  order  of  the  Indian  Empire. 

The  seventy-second  anniversary  of  the  Institution  of  Civil 
Engineers  occurred  last  Thursday,  when  a  revised  list  of  the 
members  of  all  classes  showed  that  the  numbers  on  the  books 
amounted  to  5904,  representing  an  increase  of  3^Spercent.  in 
the  past  twelve  months. 

The  Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers  will  hold  the  first 
meeting  of  the  current  term  this  evening,  when  the  President, 
Dr.  John  Hopkinson,  F.R.S.,  will  deliver  his  inaugural 
address. 

The  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Royal  Meteorological 
Society  will  be  held  at  25  Great  George  Street,  Westminster, 
on  Wednesday,  the  rsth  inst.,  at  7.15  p.m.,  when  the  Report 
of  the  Council  will  be  read,  the  election  of  Officers  and  Council 
for  the  ensuing  year  will  take  place,  and  the  President  (Dr.  W. 
Marcet,  F.R.S.)  will  deliver  an  address  on  "Atmospheric 
Dust,"  which  will  be  illustrated  by  a  number  of  lantern 
slides. 

The  Mining  Jotcrnal  is  to  be  congratulated  on  the  very 
admirable  portait  of  Dr.  Archibald  Geikie  which  appeared  in 
its  issue  of  December  28.  The  portrait  was  accompanied  by  a 
short  but  very  good  account  of  Dr.  Geikie's  life  and  labours. 

Dr.  Raoul  Gautier  has  been  appointed » Professor  of 
Astronomy  at  the  University  of  Geneva,  and  has  at  the  same 
time  been  made  director  of  the  Observatory.  His  father, 
Colonel  E.  Gautier,  retains  his  connection  with  the  latter 
establishment,  with  the  title  of  honorary  director. 

The  Professorship  of  Agriculture  and  Rural  Economy  at 
the  Royal  Agricultural  College,  Cirencester,  vacant  by  the 
resignation  of  Prof.  McCracken,  has  been  conferred  upon  an 
old  student  and  gold  medallist  of  the  College,  Mr.  James  Muir. 

The  arrangements  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society  for  1890 
include  exhibitions  of  spring  flowers  on  March  26  and  April  23  ; 
summer  exhibitions  of  plants,  flowers,  and  fruit,  on  May  14 
and  June  11  ;  and  an  evening  fete  and  exhibition  on  July  2. 
Botanical  lectures  will  be  given  on  May  9,  16,  23,  and  30,  and 
on  June  6  and  13.  These  lectures  will  be  free  to  all  visitors  in 
the  Gardens. 

On  Thursday,  January  16,  Prof.  R.  Meldola,  F.R.S.,  will 
begin  a  course  of  twelve  special  evening  lectures  at  the  Finsbury 
Technical  College,  on  coal-tar  products.  The  object  of  the 
course  is  to  describe  the  technology  of  the  raw  materials  manu 
factured  from  the  tar.  The  theoretical  treatment  will  serve 
as  a  general  introduction  to  the  chemistry  of  the  aromatic 
compounds.  A  syllabus  can  be  had  on  application  to  the 
College. 


230 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


In  May  next,  the  six  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  foundation 
of  the  University  of  Montpellier  will  be  celebrated. 

M.  CossoN,  member  of  the  French  Academy  of  Sciences, 
and  the  author  of  many  memoirs  on  the  flora  of  Algeria  and 
Tunis,  died  a  few  days  ago  in  Paris,  and  was  buried  on  the 
4th  inst. 

We  review  to-day  the  volumes  which  conclude  the  series  of 
Reports  on  the  zoological  results  of  the  Challenger  Expedition. 
In  a  prefatory  note  introducing  Vol.  II.  of  the  Report  on 
Physics  and  Chemistry,  just  issued,  Dr.  Murray  explains  that 
with  the  exception  of  a  volume  on  deep-sea  deposits,  which  will 
be  issued  in  March  next,  and  a  summary  volume,  which,  it  is 
hoped,  may  be  finished  in  about  a  year  thereafter,  the  entire 
series  of  Reports  is  now  completed.  These  Reports  have  been 
issued  at  intervals  during  the  last  nine  years,  whenever  ready, 
and  without  any  reference  to  systematic  arrangement.  They  are 
bound  up  in  forty-seven  large  quarto  volumes,  containing  27,650 
pages  of  letterpress,  2662  lithographic  and  chromo-lithographic 
plates,  413  maps,  charts,  and  diagrams,  together  with  a  great 
many  woodcuts. 

Some  time  ago  Mr.  J.  T.  Cunningham,  Naturalist  at  the 
Plymouth  Marine  Biological  Laboratory,  wrote  to  the  Times 
about  the  occurrence  of  anchovies  on  the  south  coast  of  England. 
In  another  letter,  printed  in  the  Times  on  Wednesday,  he  has 
given  some  fresh  information  about  the  matter.  From  Mr. 
Whitehead,  of  Torquay,  he  learns  that  the  sprat  fishermen  at 
that  place  were  catching  a  number  of  anchovies  in  their  sprat 
nets  together  with  sprats ;  that  about  a  fifth  of  their  catches 
consisted  of  anchovies.  Mr.  Dunn  has  sent  him  specimens 
from  Megavissey.  These  were  caught,  as  it  were,  accidentally 
in  pilchard  nets.  Mr.  Cunningham  has  made  inquiries  among 
the  pilchard  and  heiring  fishermen  at  Plymouth,  and  finds  that 
almost  every  time  they  shoot  their  nets  they  catch  a  few  ancho- 
vies— from  one  to  a  dozen.  The  mesh  of  a  pilchard  net  is  much 
too  large  to  hold  an  anchovy,  and  these  occasional  specimens 
are  caught  only  in  parts  of  the  nets  that  get  entangled  ;  they  are 
not  meshed  in  the  ordinary  way.  Of  the  anchovies  he  has 
obtained  from  the  pilchard  fishermen,  he  says  there  is  no  doubt 
whatever  as  to  their  being  of  the  same  species  {Engraulis  en- 
crasicholus)  as  those  which  we  import  from  France  and  It  aly. 

A  RATHER  serious  subsidence  has  occurred  near  Dane  Bridge, 
Northwich.  A  large  hole,  nearly  10  feet  deep  and  covering  a 
space  of  50  feet  by  30  feet,  has  been  formed  near  the  roadway. 
The  Bridge  Inn  is  now  24  inches  out  of  the  perpendicular,  or 
some  5  inches  more  than  it  was  before  the  subsidence.  The 
inn  had  been  securely  bolted  and  the  walls  secured  some  time 
since,  otherwise  it  would  probably  have  collapsed.  Some 
wooden  structures  standing  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road 
have  been  rendered  untenantable.  The  gas  and  water  mains 
were  dislocated,  and  had  to  be  repaired  by  the  local  board. 

The  General  Report  of  the  Survey  of  India  Department  for 
1887-88,  which  has  recently  been  published,  indicates  a  gradual 
increase  in  the  annual  amount  of  work  done.  The  triangulation 
along  the  Madras  Coast  has  been  extended  370  miles  in  length  ; 
and  similar  operations  have  been  conducted  in  Baluchistan,  one 
series  along  a  parallel  of  30°  N. ,  and  another  along  the  meridian 
of  67°  E.,  both  meeting  at  Quetta  and  having  an  aggregate 
length  of  270  miles.  The  topographical  surveys  during  the 
year  covered  an  area  of  15,673  square  miles.  It  is  gratifying  to 
note  that  the  system,  started  in  the  previous  year,  of  employing 
the  village /a/warzV  as  cadastral  surveyors  has  been  continued 
with  very  encouraging  results,  the  aggregate  area  surveyed 
cadastrally  being  5435  square  miles.  The  special  telegraphic 
longitude  operations  were  resumed,  and  7  arcs  of  longitude  in 
Southern  India  measured,  with  the  particularly  interesting  result 


of  indicating  an  excess  of  gravitation  toward  the  ocean  surround- 
ing India.  Geographical  surveys  in  Burmah  have  been  made  on 
a  large  scale,  the  Ruby  Mine  tract  receiving  special  attention. 
A  valuable  addition  to  our  knowledge  of  Afghanistan  is  furnished 
by  the  report  of  Yusuf  Sharif,  who  accompanied  the  Afghan 
Boundary  Commission,  and  succeeded  in  surveying  4600  miles  of 
new  country  on  his  return.  The  statistics  of  the  output  of  maps 
and  reproductions  at  the  principal  offices  show  a  marked  increase. 
The  value  of  the  Dehra  Dun  station  for  purposes  of  solar  photo- 
graphy is  forcibly  demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  photographs 
of  the  sun  were  obtained  on  no  less  than  327  days,  and  forwarded 
to  the  Solar  Physics  Committee,  to  complete  the  Greenwich 
series.  The  Report  is  accompanied  by  the  usual  maps  and 
narratives  of  the  various  expeditions. 

We  owe  a  new  and  interesting  application  of  photography  to 
M.  Bertillon,  the  well-known  director  of  the  Identification 
Department  at  the  Paris  Prefecture  of  Police.  M.  Bertillon  has 
been  devoting  himself  for  some  months  to  the  study  of  the 
physical  peculiarities  engendered  by  the  pursuit  of  different 
occupations.  The  police  have  frequently  to  deal  with  portions 
of  bodies,  and  it  would  greatly  aid  their  investigations  to  be  able 
to  determine  the  calling  of  the  murdered  person  in  each  parti- 
cular case.  The  hand  is  as  a  rule  the  part  naturally  most 
affected  by  the  occupation,  and  M.  B  ertill  on  has  taken  a  very 
large  series  of  photographs,  each  one  showing  on  a  large  scale 
the  hands,  on  a  smaller  scale  the  whole  figure  of  the  workman 
at  his  work,  so  that  one  may  see  at  a  glance  the  position  of  the 
body,  and  which  are  the  parts  that  undergo  friction  from  the 
tools  in  use.  From  the  hands  of  the  navvy  all  the  secondary 
lines  disappear,  and  a  peculiar  callosity  is  developed  where 
the  spade  handle  rubs  against  the  hand  ;  the  hands  of  tin-plate 
workers  are  covered  with  little  crevasses  produced  by  the  acids 
employed  ;  the  hands  of  lace- makers  are  smooth,  but  they  have 
blisters  full  of  serum  on  the  back  and  callosities  on  the  front 
part  of  the  shoulder,  due  to  the  friction  of  the  straps  of  the 
loom  ;  the  thumb  and  the  first  joints  of  the  index  of  metal- 
workers show  very  large  blisters,  whilst  the  left  hand  has  scars 
made  by  the  sharp  fragments  of  metal.  Experts  in  forensic 
medicine  (Vernois  among  others)  have  before  drawn  attention 
to  the  subject,  but  this  is  the  first  time  that  an  investigation  has 
been  carried  out  on  a  large  scale,  and  in  M.  Bertillon's  hands  it 
should  1  ead  to  the  best  results. 

Shocks  of  earthquakes  continue  to  be  felt  in  the  province  of 
Semiryetchensk,  Russian  Turkestan.  After  September  12,  they 
were  felt  nearly  every  day,  the  most  severe  shocks  having  been 
experienced  on  September  17,  at  11.45  a.m.  ;  on  the  22nd,  at 
1. 15  p.m.  ;  on  the  23rd,  at  4.55  a.m.  On  September  30,  at  6.30- 
p.m.,  there  was  a  particularly  severe  shock,  preceded  by  a  loud 
underground  noise. 

Severe  shocks  of  earthquake  were  felt  on  the  northern  and 
north-eastern  shores  of  Lake  Issyk-kul  nearly  every  day  from 
November  19  to  December  5.  Many  chimney-pots  in  several 
villages  were  destroyed  by  the  shock  of  November  19. 

The  latest  information  as  to  the  earthquake  which  visited 
Lake  Issyk-kul  on  July  12  is  given  in  the  Akmolinsk  Gazette, 
It  lasted  from  3.15  to  3.30  a.m.,  and  destroyed,  or  rendered  un- 
inhabitable, all  buildings  in  the  villages  Uital,  Sazanova, 
Preobrajensk,  and  Teplyi  Klutch,  of  the  Issyk-kul  district. 
Eight  persons  were  killed,  and  43  injured,  some  of  them 
severely.  The  greatest  disasters,  however,  appear  to  have 
occurred  among  the  Kirghizes,  who  camped  in  the  Kunghei 
Alatau,  on  the  northern  shore  of  Lake  Issyk-kul.  They 
had  no  fewer  than  26  killed  and  15  injured.  The  numbers 
of  cattle  killed  during  the  earthquake  were  :  283  horses,  75 
horned  cattle,  and  379  sheep.     Several  villages  of  the  district 


Jan.  9,  1890J 


NATURE 


231 


of  Vyernyi  also  suffered  very  much.  At  Przevalsk  (formerly 
Karakol,  on  the  southern  shore)  and  the  surrounding  villages 
many  houses  were  destroyed ;  while  amidst  the  Taranchis  of 
the  district  of  Vyernyi  21  persons  were  killed  and  2  severely 
injured.  At  Vyernyi  itself  (50  miles  north  of  the  lake)  the 
earthquake  was  relatively  feeble  ;  but  at  Jarkend  all  houses 
were  rendered  uninhabitable.  In  the  west  of  Lake  Issyk-kul 
the  shocks  were  feeble,  but  in  the  north  the  wave  of  the  earth- 
quake spread  as  far  as  Kopal  (180  miles  from  Issyk-kul,  as  the 
crow  flies),  and  even  as  far  as  Sergiopol,  which  is  380  miles 
distant  from  the  northern  shore  of  the  lake. 

The  Council  of  the  Italian  Meteorological  Society,  publishes 
an  Anmiario  Meteorologico,  in  which  will  be  found  much  useful 
information  for  general  readers.  The  volume  for  1890  contains 
276  small  octavo  pages,  and  is  divided  into  four  parts: — (l) 
Ephemerides  and  astronomical  tables.  This  part  also  contains  a 
special  appendix  giving  the  concordance  of  the  calendars  and 
other  particulars  of  the  17  eastern  nations.  (2)  Tables  for  the 
reduction  of  meteorological  observations,  by  Padre  Denza,  with 
useful  examples  of  how  the  corrections  are  applied,  and  also 
meteorological  and  magnetical  statistics.  (3)  Geographical  and 
topographical  elements,  together  with  an  instructive  paper  on 
recent  electrical  terms  and  measurements.  (4)  A  series  of  short 
articles  on  various  sciences,  among  which  we  may  specially 
mention  one  by  Padre  Denza,  on  the  mode  of  determining  the 
meridian  line  and  time,  for  the  use  of  observers  who  have  only 
simple  instruments.  The  most  recent  ideas  upon  the  formation 
of  hail,  by  Prof  L.  Bombicci.  On  the  types  of  isobars  which 
favour  frosts,  by  Prof.  P.  Busin,  with  suggestions  for  any  ob- 
servers willing  to  work  at  this  subject.  And,  on  the  cause  of 
earthquakes,  in  which  the  various  theories  are  discussed,  by  Dr. 
C.  De  Giorgi. 

The  Deutsche  Seewarte  has  published,  in  a  separate  memoir, 
the  results  of  the  meteorological  observations  taken  at  its  nine 
coast  stations  for  the  two  lustra  1876-80  and  1881-85,  together 
with  summaries  for  the  whole  decade.  The  work  contains  very 
useful  information  relating  to  the  climate  of  Northern  Germany, 
and  the  hope  is  expressed  that  other  institutions  will  publish 
similar  results  for  their  respective  systems.  In  Syinons's  Monthly 
Meteorological  Magazine  for  November  it  is  pointed  out  that  the 
years  begin  with  December,  in  opposition  to  the  regulations  of 
the  Vienna  Congress  that  the  years  should  begin  with  January, 
and  an  explanation  of  this  is  asked  for.  The  explanation  is  given 
in  the  introduction  :  by  this  method  the  Seewarte  has  been  able 
to  give  seasonal  means,  as  well  as  monthly  means.  The  Decem- 
ber observations,  which  precede  those  for  January,  are  for  the 
same  year  as  all  the  other  months,  not  'for  the  preceding  year. 
The  greatest  annual  range  of  temperature  is  I07°-I  at  Neufahr- 
wasser.  The  greatest  daily  rainfall  occurred  at  Hamburg — viz. 
3*37  inches.  The  annual  percentage  of  rainy  days  varies  from 
41-6  to  597, 

The  Annual  Report  of  the  Chief  Signal  Officer  of  the  United 
States,  for  the  year  1889,  sets  forth  the  extended  and  important 
character  of  the  meteorological  work  that  is  carried  on.  Apart 
from  weather  forecasts,  and  storm  warnings,  the  duties  include 
the  gauging  and  reporting  of  rivers,  the  reporting  of  temperature  j 
and  rainfall  conditions  for  the  cotton  interests,  frost  warnings  in 
the  interest  of  agriculture,  and  the  notification  of  advancing  cold 
waves  for  the  benefit  of  the  general  public.  The  Chief  Signal 
Officer  estimates  that  the  gratuitous  distribution  of  meteorological 
data  in  the  United  States  in  a  single  week  is  greater  than  in  all 
Europe  in  the  entire  year.  The  weather  forecasts  are  issued 
twice  daily,  at  8  a.m.  and  8  p.m.,  for  a  period  of  twenty-four 
hours,  and  the  percentage  of  success  shows  a  general  average  of 
81.  The  present  system  of  flag  signals  gives  clear  and  definite 
information   as   to  whether  a  storm  is  to   be   light  or   severe, 


!  whether  its  centre  is  approaching  or  has  passed  the  station,  and 
from  what  quarter  high  winds  are  expected.  With  regard  to 
scientific  researches,  systematic  observations  of  atmospheric 
electricity  have  been  made,  to  determine  whether  these  could  be 
made  use  of  in  weather  forecasting,  the  result  being  that  negative 
electricity  may  be  observed  without  being  in  any  way  related  to 
precipitation,  past,  present,  or  future,  and  that  such  observations 
do  not  promise  to  be  of  practical  use.  Prof.  C.  Abbe  has 
prepared  a  popular  and  non-mathematical  exposition  of  the  laws 
of  storms,  with  a  view  to  their  better  prediction.  The  Chief 
Signal  Officer  states  that  the  Report  brings  together  many  new 
results,  and  that  Prof.  Abbe  finds  the  source  and  maintaining 
power  of  a  storm  in  the  absorption  by  the  cloud  of  solar  heat, 
and  in  the  liberation  of  heat  in  the  cloud  by  those  particles  that 
subsequently  fall  to  the  ground  as  rain  or  snow,  and  endeavours 
to  show  that  the  movement  of  the  storm  centre  is  principally 
influenced  by  the  location  and  amount  of  such  precipitation. 

Remarkable  electrical  phenomena  are  witnessed  at  the  new 
observatory  on  the  steep  and  isolated  Santis  (821  5)  in  Northern 
Switzerland.  Thunderstorms  are  extremely  frequent ;  thus  in 
June  and  July  last  year,  only  three  days  were  without  them. 
As  a  rule,  thunder  peals  from  midday  till  evening.  The  noise  is 
short,  partly  owing  to  shortness  of  flashes  and  partly  to  the 
small  amount  of  echo.  The  thunderstorms  come  on  quite 
suddenly,  in  a  clear  sky.  One  of  the  surest  indications  of  their 
approach  is  the  bristling  of  the  observer's  hair.  During  hail, 
the  iron  rods  of  the  house  give  a  hissing  sound,  associated  with 
luminous  effects. 

M.  E.  HospiTALiER,  the  electrician,  has  begun  the  publica- 
tion of  a  work  in  two  volumes,  entitled  "  Traite  Elementaire 
de  I'Energie  electrique."  The  first  volume,  comprising  the 
definition,  principles,  and  general  laws,  has  been  issued. 
Vol.  II.,  on  industrial  applications,  will  be  issued  during  the 
present  year. 

In  the  current  number  of  the  American  Naturalist  Mr. 
Clement  L.  Webster  gives  an  interesting  account  of  various 
"  mound-builder  mounds  "  near  Old  Chickasaw,  Iowa.  Speaking 
of  three  human  skeletons  found  in  one  of  these  mounds,  the 
writer  says  that  the  crania  show  "an  extremely  low  grade  of 
mental  development.  "  They  are  smaller  than  the  Neanderthal 
skull. 

M.  Vayssi^re  has  published  the  second  part  of  his  monograph 
of  the  Opisthobranchiate  Mollusca  of  the  Gulf  of  Marseilles. 
It  contains  many  fine  plates. 

The  origin  of  the  very  extensive  pampas-formation  in  South 
America,  a  humus-covered  loess  of  fine  dust-like  material,  from 
100  to  160  feet  thick,  with  limestone  concretions,  and  numerous 
fine  passages,  has  attracted  the  attention  of  several  geologists- 
From  an  important  recent  contribution  to  the  subject  by  Roth 
(German  Geological  Society),  it  would  appear  that  wind,  river, 
lag  oon,  and  coast  deposits  may  all  be  distinguished  in  the 
pampas.  The  coast  deposits  are  chiefly  recognized  by  sand  and 
marine  shells.  The  lagoon  formations  are  darker  in  colour  and 
of  small  extent  and  thickness.  The  deposits  from  rivers  are 
either  from  those  rising  in  the  mountains,  or  from  those  rising  in 
the  pampas  themselves.  The  former  contain,  near  the  moun- 
tains, blocks  of  stone  rolled  down,  and  the  granular  nature  of 
the  deposit  grows  ever  finer  in  the  course  of  the  rivers,  which 
lose  themselves  in  the  pampas,  in  a  region  rich  in  lagoons,  with 
a  pretty  abundant  vegetation  under  recurrent  rains.  The  deposits 
from  the  poor  streams  rising  in  the  pampas  have  round,  smooth, 
lime  concretions,  with  smooth  bone  fragments  of  mammals. 
But  most  extensive  are  the  aeolic  or  air  formntions,  of  which  the 
vertical  root- like  tubes  and  irregularly- formed  lime  concretions 
are  characteristic.     Violent  winds  carry  the  fine  water-deposited 


232 


NATURE 


\yan.  9,  1850 


material  in  all  directions  over  the  plains  till  vegetation  comes 
and  retains  it.  The  uniform  character  of  the  pampas  loess  arises, 
according  to  Roth,  not  from  the  material  and  mode  of  deposi- 
tion, but  chiefly  from  its  transformation  under  the  influence  of 
vegetation.  .The  roots  taking  up  the  matters  they  need,  decom- 
pose the  soil,  and  the  humus  arising  from  the  decay  of  the  plants 
acts  on  the  new  material  Spread  over  the  surface  by  wind  and 
rain,  along  with  fresh  plants,  by  way  of  decomposition.  A 
further  metamorphosis  occurs  by  water  carrying  down  matter 
through  the  porous  layers,  with  the  result  of  new  combinations, 
and  a  harder,  more  compact  loess  in  the  lower  parts.  From 
observations  of  marine  Tertiary  beds  of  (probably)  Miocene  age 
in  Entre  Rios,  over  typical  pampas  loess,  Roth  infers  that  the 
formation  of  loess  began  some  time  in  the  Eocene  period ;  in 
diluvial  times  it  grew  in  intensity,  and  has  gone  on  till  now 
without  interruption. 

An  interesting  study  has  been  lately  made  by  Herr  Tarchenoff" 
{Pfliiger's  Archiv)  of  electric  currents  in  the  skin  from  mental 
excitation.  Unpolarizable  clay-electrodes,  connected  with  a 
delicate  galvanometer,  were  applied  to  various  parts — hands, 
fingers,  feet,  toes,  nose,  ear,  and  back  ;  and,  after  compensation 
of  any  currents  which  occurred  during  rest,  the  effects  of  mental 
stimulation  were  noted.  Light  tickling  with  a  brush  causes, 
after  a  few  seconds'  period  of  latency,  a  gradually  increasing 
strong  deflection.  Hot  water  has  a  like  effect  ;  cold,  or  the 
pain  from  a  needle-prick,  a  less.  Sound,  light,  taste,  and  smell 
stimuli  act  similarly.  If  the  eyes  have  been  closed  some  time, 
mere  opening  of  them  causes  a  considerable  deflection  from  the 
skin  of  the  hand.  Different  colours  here  acted  unequally.  It 
is  remarkable  that  these  skin-currents  also  arise  when  the  sen- 
sations are  merely  imagined.  One  vividly  imagines,  e.g.,  he  is 
suffering  intense  heat,  and  a  strong  current  occurs,  which  goes 
down  when  the  idea  of  cold  is  substituted.  Mental  effort  pro- 
duces currents  varying  with  its  amount.  Thus,  multiplication 
of  small  figures  gives  hardly  any  current ;  that  of  large,  a  strong 
one.  If  a  person  is  in  tense  expectation,  the  galvanometer 
mirror  makes  irregular  oscillations.  When  the  electrodes  are 
on  hand  or  arm,  a  voluntary  movement,  such  as  contraction  of 
a  toe  or  convergence  of  the  eyes,  gives  a  strong  current.  In  all 
the  experiments  it  appeared  that,  with  equal  nerve  excitation, 
the  strength  of  the  skin-currents  depended  on  the  degree  to 
which  the  part  of  the  skin  bearing  the  electrodes  was  furnished 
with  sweat-glands.  Thus  some  parts  of  the  back,  and  upper 
leg  and  arm,  having  few  of  these,  gave  hardly  any  current. 
Herr  Tarchenoff"  considers  that  the  course  of  nearly  every  kind 
of  nerve-activity  is  accompanied  by  increased  action  of  the  skin- 
glands.  Every  nerve-function,  it  is  known,  causes  a  rise  of 
temperature,  and  accumulation  of  the  products  of  exchange  of 
material  in  the  body.  Increase  of  sweat-excretion  favours 
cooling,  and  the  getting  rid  of  those  products. 

A  METEORITE  of  special  interest  to  chemists  has  been  exa- 
mined by  M,  Stanislas  Meunier.  It  fell  at  Mighei,  in  Russia, 
on  June  9,  1889,  and  it  was  evident,  from  a  cursory  inspection, 
that  it  was  of  a  carbonaceous  nature.  In  external  appearance  it 
exhibited  a  deep  greenish-black  colour,  relieved  by  numerous 
small  brilliant  white  crystals ;  the  surface  was  considerably 
wrinkled,  and  blown  out  into  swellings.  The  material  was  very 
friable,  and  readily  soiled  the  fingers.  A  section  under  the 
microscope  was  observed  to  consist  largely  of  opaque  matter 
interspersed  with  crystals  of  a  magnesian  pyroxene  and  peridote. 
Fine  particles  of  metallic  iron  and  nickeliferous  iron  were  readily 
collected  by  a  magnet  from  the  powdered  rock,  having  all  the 
characteristics  of  meteoric  iron.  The  density  of  the  meteorite 
was  not  very  high,  2-495.  About  85  per  cent,  of  the  rock  was 
found  to  be  attacked  by  acids,  the  portion  so  attacked  being 
shown  by  analysis  to  consist  mainly  of  a  silicate  of  magnesium  and 
iron  having  the  composition  of  peridote.   On  the  remaining  15  per 


cent,  being  heated  in  a  current  of  dry  oxygen  gas,  it  readily  took  fire 
and  burnt  brilliantly.  The  products  of  combustion,  which  were 
allowed  to  pass  through  the  usual  absorption  tubes  containing 
pumice  and  sulphuric  acid  and  potash,  showed  that  the  meteorite 
contained  nearly  5  per  cent  of  organic  matter.  In  order  to 
obtain  some  idea  as  to  the  nature  of  the  carbonaceous  substance 
present,  a  quantity  of  the  rock  was  powdered  and  then  digested 
with  alcohol ;  on  evaporation  the  alcoholic  extract  yielded  a 
bright  yellow  resin,  which  was  readily  precipitated  from  the 
alcoholic  solution  by  water,  and  much  resembled  the  kabaite  of 
Wohler.  The  most  curious  chemical  properties  of  the  meteorite, 
however,  are  exhibited  with  a  cold  aqueous  extract  of  the 
powdered  rock.  The  filtered  liquid  is  quite  colourless,  but 
exhales  a  faint  odour  due  to  an  organic  salt  which  carbonizes 
on  evaporation  to  dryness,  and  may  be  burnt  upon  platinum 
foil.  The  aqueous  extract  further  contains  nearly  2  per  cent, 
of  mineral  matter  possessing  properties  of  a  novel  character. 
Barium  chloride  solution  gives  a  heavy  white  precipitate,  which, 
however,  is  not  barium  sulphate.  Silver  nitrate  gives  a  voluminous 
curdy  reddish-violet  precipitate,  reminding  one  of  silver  chrom- 
ate,  but  of  quite  a  distinct  and  peculiar  tint,  and  which  blackens 
in  a  very  few  minutes  in  daylight.  The  substance  which  exhibits 
these  reactions  is  unchanged  by  evaporation  to  drynes  s  and  igni- 
tion to  redness,  readily  dissolving  in  water  again  on  cooling  and 
giving  the  above  reactions.  The  silver  nitrate  precipitate,  when 
allowed  to  stand  for  some  time  undisturbed  in  the  liquid,  be- 
comes converted  into  colourless  but  brilliantly  refractive  crystals, 
which  polarize  brightly  between  crossed  Nicols  under  the  micro- 
scope, and  which  are  insoluble  in  boiling  water.  The  properties 
of  this  new  substance  contained  in  the  water  extract  appear  to 
approximate  most  closely  to  those  of  certain  metallic  tellurates, 
but  the  new  compound  appears  also  to  differ  in  certain  respects 
from  those  terrestrial  salts. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Brown  Capuchin  {Cebus  fatuellus  S )  from 
Guiana,  presented  by  J.  H.  Bostock  ;  a  Common  Gull  (Larits 
canus),  a  Black-headed  Gull  {Lams  7-idibundus),  British,  pre- 
sented by  Mr.  E.  Keilich  ;  two  Schlegel's  Doves  {Chalcopelia 
piiella)  from  West  Africa,  presented  by  Major  C.  M.  MacDonald  ; 
a  Common  Barn  Owl  {Strix  flammea),  British,  presented 
by  Mr.  H.  Craig;  two  Swainson's  Lorikeets  {Trichoglossits 
novce-hollandiis)  from  Australia,  deposited. 

OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal   Time   at  Greenwich   at    10  p.m.,  January  9  =  5h. 
17m.  32s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1850. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)  Nebula  in  Orion  ... 

— 

Greenish. 

5  2y  .sz 

-   5  29 

(2)  20  Leporis  U.A.  ... 

6 

Reddish-yellow. 

5     6  14 

-II  59 

(3)  r\  Orionis        

4 

Whitish-yellow. 

5  19     0 

-    2  30 

(4)  /3  Tauri 

2 

White. 

5  19  18 

+  2831 

(5)  99  Birra 

8 

Reddish-yellow. 

5     4  25 

-    538 

(6)  U  Canis  Minoris ... 

Var. 

Reddish  ? 

7  35  22 

+  838 

(7)  T  Arietis       

Var. 

Yellow. 

2  42  II 

+  17    3 

Remarks. 

(i)  The  bright  lines  so  far  recorded  in  the  visible  part   of  the 
spectrum  of  the  Great  Nebula  in  Orion  are  as  follows  : — 

Wave-lengths.  Observers. 

5872(03)             ...  Dr.  Copeland. 

559                        ...  Mr.  Taylor. 
520 

500                       ..,  Dr,  Hnggins. 

495 

486  (F) 

470                        ...  Mr.  Taylor. 

447                        ...  Dr.  Copeland. 

434  (G)                ...  Dr.  Huggins. 


Jan.  9,  1890] 


NATURE 


233 


The  principal  line  in  the  photographic  spectrum  is  near  wave- 
length 373,  and  this  seems  to  be  special  to  certain  parts  of  the 
nebula,  according  to  Dr.  Huggins  s  researches. 

Although  so  much  admirable  work  has  already  been  done, 
there  is  still  abundant  scope  for  further  investigations.  One  of 
the  chief  points  requiring  attention  at  present  is  the  character 
of  the  brightest  line,  near  A  500.  Researches  on  the  spectra  of 
meteorites,  coupled  with  previous  records  of  the  line  as  having 
a  fringe  on  its  more  refrangible  side,  led  Prof.  Lockyer  to  sug- 
gest, in  1887,  that  it  was  the  remnant  of  the  fluting  near  A  500 
seen  in  the  spectrum  of  burning  magnesium.  Observations 
liave  since  been  made  by  Prof.  Lockyer,  Mr.  Taylor,  and 
myself,  and  all  agree  that  the  line  is  not  sharp  on  the  more  re- 
frangible side.  Further  observations  are  suggested.  High  dis- 
]iersion  is  not  necessary,  or  indeed  desirable. 

Direct  comparisons  of  the  chief  nebula  line  with  the  mag- 
nesium fluting  are  also  required,  but  this  is  an  observation  of 
preat  delicacy,  requiring  high  dispersion.  It  must  also  be 
(iLMBonstrated  that  under  the  same  conditions  of  comparison  the 
K  line  of  hydrogen  is  coincident  with  the  third  nebula  line. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  the  line  near  559  recorded  by  Mr. 
Taylor  is  the  remnant  of  the  brightest  manganese  fluting  ;  this 
can  only  be  decided  by  direct  comparisons. 

In  my  own  observations  I  noted  that  the  F  line  is  not  seen 
in  all  parts  of  the  nebula,  and  in  this  respect  it  resembles  the 
ultia-violet  line.  This  localization  of  the  lines  opens  up  a  new 
lield  of  work. 

(2)  This  is  one  of  the  finest  examples  of  stars  of  Group  II. 
The  bands  i  to  9  are  perfectly  well  seen,  but  there  is  no 
record  of  the  presence  or  absence  of  line  absorptions.  Observa- 
tions of  the  carbon  flutings  are  suggested,  a  spirit-lamp  flame 
being  convenient  for  comparisons.  The  two  flutings  to  be 
examined,  both  for  position  and  compound  structure,  are  those 
near  A  517  and  474.  The  latter  is  a  group  of  five  flutings, 
extending  from  about  A  468  to  A  474,  and  under  some  conditions 
the  point  of  maximum  brightness  of  the  group  is  shifted  from 
474  10468.  Comparisons  of  bands  4  and  5  with  the  brightest 
flutings  of  manganese  and  lead  should  also  be  made. 

(3)  This  is  a  star  with  a  spectrum  of  the  solar  type,  of  which 
the  usual  differential  observations  are  required.  The  relative 
thicknesses  of  the  hydrogen  and  other  lines  should  also  be 
noted. 

(4)  Gothard  describes  this  star  as  belonging  to  Group  IV. 
The  usual  observations  are  required. 

(5)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  VI.,  in  which  band  9  is  dark,  and 
band  6  pale.  Duner  does  not  record  any  of  the  secondary 
bands.     These  and  absorption  lines  should  be  looked  for. 

(6)  This  variable  has  a  period  of  423  days,  and  ranges  from 
8'5  at  maximum  to  I3'5  at  minimum  (Gore).  The  spectrum 
has  not  yet  been  recorded.     Maximum  on  January  9. 

(7)  This  is  a  variable  with  a  spectrum  of  the  Group  II.  type. 
The  period  is  324  days,  and  the  magnitude  varies  from  about  8 
at  maximum  to  9*5  at  minimum.  The  maximum  will  not  occur 
until  January  17,  but  observations  for  the  bright  lines  of  hy- 
drogen, &c.,  may  be  commenced  at  once.  Variations  of  the 
widths  and  intensities  of  the  bands  before  and  after  maximum 
may  also  be  looked  for.  A.  Fowler. 

Identity  of  Comet  Vico  (1844)  with  Brooks's  (1889). — 
In  a  note  on  some  comets  of  short  period  {^Bulletin  Astj-onoinique, 
November  1889),  M.  L.  Schulhof  observes  that  a  comparison 
of  the  elements  of  Vice's  comet  (1844)  given  by  Le  Verrier  with 
those  of  Brooks's  comet  (1889)  shows  a  striking  similarity. 
According  to  Mr.  Chandler  {Astronomical  Journal,  No.  205), 
Brooks's  comet  in  May  1886  was  at  a  distance  0^064  from 
Jupiter,  and  in  heliocentric  longitude  185°,  whilst  Vico's  comet 
found  itself  about  1885-86,  according  to  the  elements  of  M. 
Briinnow  in  heliocentric  longitude  162°,  and  approximately  0*4 
from  Jupiter.  M.  Schulhof  adds,  however,  that  the  only  objec- 
tion to  the  hypothesis  is  that  the  aclion  of  Jupiter  at  a  distance 
o"4  would  hardly  have  been  sufficient  to  change  so  considerably 
the  perihelion  distance  and  the  time  of  revolution.  It  will  be 
sufficient  to  calculate  back  the  perturbations  of  Brooks's  comet  as 
far  as  1885  to  definitely  settle  this  question. 

An  investigation  of  the  elements  of  Comets  Lexelland  Finlay 
has  led  to  the  conclusion  that  they  are  not  identical,  but  the 
results  found  are  not  to  be  taken  as  conclusive,  a  farther  and 
more  exact  determination  of  the  elements  of  Finlay's  comet 
having  been  undertaken. 


Observations  of  some  Suspected  Variables. — Observa 
tions  of  Lalande  26980  =  I4h.  427m,  -H  6"  28'-9  (1875),  be 
Rev.  John  G.  Hagen,  of  Georgetown  College,  give  the  n^ativy 
result  that  there  is  no  proof  of  variation  between  the  years  1884- 
89,  and  although  an  average  of  15  observations  a  year  have  been 
made,  the  extreme  range  of  magnitude  is  less  than  o'2. 

Three  stars  were  found  that  showed  rather  a  large  difference 
from  the  Bonn  D. M.  magnitudes,  and  were  watched  from  1886 
to  1889.  No  variation,  however,  was  noticed  during  these 
three  years.  The  following  are  the  three  stars  and  the  magni- 
tudes found  compared  with  A  rgelander's  : — 


D.M.  55-2587 
D.M.  44-3368 
D.M.  44-3402 


78  db  o-i  ;  D.M.  =  8-8. 
7-6  i'o'i  ;  D.M.  =  7-0. 
77  ±  o-o;  D.M.  =  8-1. 


Spectrum  of  a  Metallic  Prominence. — Prof.  Vogel  in 
a  letter  to  Prof  Tacchini  {Mem.  Societa  Spettroscopisti  Italiani, 
November  1889)  observes  that  the  positions  of  the  lines 
measured  in  a  metallic  prominence  on  June  28  were  incorrectly 
given  by  Prof.  Spoerer  in  the  Memorie  for  October  (see  Nature, 
vol.  xli.  p.  115),  and  that  the  following  should  be  substituted  : — 
Wave-length.  Origin.  Wave-length.  Origin. 

667-6      Fe  I      553-4 Ba,  Fe,  Sr. 

C         H.  I      531-6 Ceronium. 

649-6      Ba.  5269 Ca,  Fe. 

646-2      Ca.  518-8 Ca,  Fe. 

Di        Na,  b^      Mg. 

D2        Na.  I        b^      Mg. 

D3        Helium.  b^      Fe,  Ni. 

b^      Mg,  Fe. 

The  above  table  only  contains  a  small  number  of  the  bright 
lines  seen  in  this  eruption. 

Comet  Swift  (/  1889,  November  17). — The  following 
corrected  elements  are  given  by  Dr.  Zelbr  {Astr.  Nachr.y 
2944)  :— 

T  =  1889  November  29-664x1  Berlin  Mean  Time. 


X  =    40  55 

52-8) 

&  =  331  26 

40- 1  >  M( 

;an  Eq.  I 

889-0. 

t  =     19     3 

21-1  ) 

< 

^  =     39    8 

23-1 

log 

a  =  0-559784 

log 

H  =  2"-7i033i 

Period  =  6-91  years. 

Dr.   Lamp  has  computed  th 

e  ephemeris  given 

below  from 

these  elements  : — 

1850. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

1S90. 

R.A. 

Decl. 

h.  m.  s. 

0      ' 

h.  m.  s. 

0      / 

Jan.    8.. 

I   19  48  ... 

+  25  50-9 

Jan.  19 

•  •  I  59  43 

..   -t- 27  46-2 

9" 

2325... 

26    2-8 

20 

..2    3  21 

..       27  55-0 

10  . 

27      2... 

26  14-4 

21 

•  •       659 

..      28    35 

II  .. 

3039- 

26  25-7 

22 

..     1036 

..      2811-8 

12   . 

3417- 

26  36-7 

23 

..     14  14 

..      28  19-8 

13  •• 

37  54-- 

2647-5 

24 

■  ■     17  51 

..      28  27-4 

14.. 

41  32... 

26  58-0 

25 

..       21  28 

..      28  34-8 

15  •• 

45  10... 

27    8-2 

26 

..       25     4 

..      2841-9 

16.. 

4848... 

27  I8-I 

27 

. .       28  40 

..      2848-7 

17.. 

5227... 

27  27-7 

28 

..232  15 

..      2855-3. 

18.. 

156    5- 

2737-1 

The   brightness   on  Jan.    8  =  0-48    and    on   Jan.    28  =  0-30, 
that  at  discovery  being  taken  as  unity. 

M.  Schulhof  notes  {Bulletin  Astronomique,  November  1889)- 
that,  according  to  the  elements  of  this  comet,  it  is  probably 
identical  with  Blanpain's  comet  (1819),  which  M.  Clausen  has 
shown  to  be  identical  with  Grischow's  comet  (1743). 

Solar  Spots  and  Prominences. — In  the  November 
Memorie  della  Societa  degli  Spettroscopisti  Italiani,  Prof.  Tacchini 
contributes  a  note  on  spots  and  faculae  observed  from  July  to 
September  of  this  year.  A  comparison  of  these  observations 
with  those  of  the  preceding  quarter  shows  an  augmentation  of 
the  phenomena  described  and  a  diminution  of  the  frequency  of 
days  without  spots. 

Spectroscopic  observations  made  by  Prof.  Tacchini  during  the 
same  period  as  the  above  show  the  mean  daily  number  of 
prominences  to  have   been   2-93,    with   an   average  altitude  of 


234 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  9,  1890 


38"  "8.  This  is  an  increase  on  the  results  of  the  preceding 
quarter  both  in  the  number  and  height  of  prominences.  Two 
elaborate  plates  are  included  ia  the  Memorie,  indicating  the 
prominences  observed  at  Rome  and  Palermo  from  September  to 
December  1886. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

The  following  news  was  received  a  few  days  ago  at  St. 
Petersburg  from  Colonel  Roborovski,  the  present  chief  of  the  late 
M.  Prjevalsky's  projected  expedition.  They  crossed  the  Tian-Shan 
by  the  Barskaun  and  Bedel  Passes,  and  reached  the  Taushkan- 
daria.  Then  they  crossed  the  Kara-teke  chain,  and  when  they 
were  on  the  banks  of  the  Yarkend  river,  they  found  out  that 
the  Kashgar-daria  no  longer  reaches  the  Yarkend-daria,  but  is 
lost  in  the  irrigation  canals  of  Maral-bash.  They  followed  the 
Yarkend  river,  which  rolls  a  mass  of  muddy  water  between  quite 
flat  banks,  covered  for  some  15  to  30  miles  on  both  sides 
of  the  river,  by  thickets  of  Populus  euphratica,  Populus  prunosa, 
tamarisks,  Halostachus  shrubs,  and  rushes.  Sand  deserts  spread 
on  both  sides, — towards  the  west  to  Kashgar,  and  eastwards 
to  Lob-nor.  Many  ruins  of  old  cities  are  met  with  in  the 
deserts  which  are  never  visited  by  the  natives.  In  the  thickets 
of  shrubs  which  fringe  them  there  are  numbers  of  tigers  and 
wild  boars,  while  amidst  the  barkhans  of  the  deserts  the  wild 
camels  are  freely  grazing.  From  Yarkend,  the  expedition  went 
south,  towards  the  hilly  tracts,  where  it  stayed  for  a  month, 
and  then  it  moved  towards  Kotan,  whence  Colonel  Roborovski 
wrote  on  October  7.  He  proposed  to  winter  at  Niya,  and  to 
search  for  a  pass  to  Tibet  across  the  border-ridge  to  which 
Prjevalsky  gave  the  name  of  "  Russian  Ridge."  If  they  succeed 
they  will  spend  next  summer  in  Tibet. 

In  a  lecture  lately  delivered  before  the  Geographical  Society  of 
Bremen,  Prof  Kuekenthal,  of  Jena,  gave  some  account  of  his 
researches  in  King  Charles  Land.  Geologically,  these  islands 
belong  to  Spitzbergen,  and  not,  as  was  formerly  supposed,  to 
Francis  Joseph  Land.  During  his  stay  of  nearly  three  months, 
Prof  Kuekenthal  thoroughly  investigated  this  remote  district, 
which  is  almost  unapproachable,  the  surrounding  seas  being 
densely  packed  with  icebergs.  The  islands  are  almost  entirely 
without  vegetation  ;  only  a  few  mosses  struggle  for  existence  on 
the  clay  soil.  Numerous  walrus  skeletons  are  thrown  up  by  the 
sea.  Game  is  plentiful ;  Prof.  Kuekenthal  shot  14  bears  (besides 
bringing  back  two  live  specimens),  39  walruses,  and  as  many  seals. 
Many  insects  and  crustaceans  were  obtained  from  the  land 
lakes. 


THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  ROYAL 
SOCIETY. 

'T'HE  President,  after  giving  an  account  of  the  scientific  work 
of  many  Fellows  deceased  during  the  past  year,  addressed 
the  Society  as  follows  : — 

On  account  of  the  great  importance  of  Joule's  labours,  both 
directly,  in  the  advancement  of  science,  and  indirectly,  through 
the  knowledge  thus  acquired,  in  enabling  improvements  to  be 
made  in  the  practical  application  of  science  for  industrial  pur- 
poses, it  has  been  suggested  that  it  might  be  desirable  to  raise 
some  public  memorial  to  him,  and  the  Council  has  appointed  a 
Committee  to  consider  the  question. 

I  have  referred,  and  that  very  briefly,  to  some  only  of  the 
Fellows  whom  we  have  lost  during  the  past  year,  but  fuller 
details  both  of  them,  of  other  Fellows  whom  we  have  lost,  and 
of  our  recently  deceased  Foreign  Members,  will  be  found  in  the 
obituary  notices  which  appear  from  time  to  time  in  the  Proceed- 
ings, according  as  they  are  received  from  the  Fellows  who  have 
kindly  undertaken  to  draw  them  up. 

Of  those  who  last  year  were  on  our  list  of  Foreign  Members, 
we  have  since  lost  one  who  was  truly  a  veteran  in  science. 
More  than  three  years  have  elapsed  since  the  celebration  of  the 
centenary  of  the  birth  of  M,  Chevreul,  and  two  more  recur- 
rences of  his  birthday  came  round  before  he  was  called  away. 
He  will  be  known  for  his  researches  on  the  contrast  of  colours. 
But  his  great  work  was  that  by  which  he  cleared  up  the  constitu- 
aion  of  the  fixed  oils  and  fats,    and  established  the  theory  of 


saponification.  Few  scientific  men  still  surviving  were  even 
born  when  this  important  research  was  commenced — a  research 
in  the  course  of  which  he  laid  the  foundation  of  the  method 
now  universally  followed  in  the  study  of  organic  compounds, 
by  showing  that  an  ultimate  analysis  by  itself  alone  is  quite 
insufficient,  and  that  it  is  necessary  to  study  the  substances 
obtained  by  the  action  of  reagents  on  that  primarily  presented 
for  investigation. 

There  is  one  whose  name,  though  he  was  not  a  Fellow,  I  can- 
not pass  by  in  silence  on  the  present  occasion.  I  refer  to  Thomas 
Jodrell  Phillips  Jodrell,  who  died  early  in  September,  in  his 
eighty-second  year.  About  the  time  of  the  publication  of  the 
reports  of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  Commission,  the  subject  of 
the  endowment  of  research  was  much  talked  of,  and  Mr.  jodrell 
placed  the  sum  of  ^6000  in  the  hands  of  the  Society  for  the 
purpose  of  making  an  experiment  to  see  how  far  the  progress  of 
science  might  be  promoted  by  enabling  persons  to  engage  in 
research  who  might  not  otherwise  be  in  a  condition  to  do  so.. 
But  before  any  scheme  for  the  purpose  was  matured,  the  Govern 
ment  Grant  for  the  promotion  of  scientific  research  was  started, 
under  the  administration  of  Lord  John  Russell,  then  Prime 
Minister.  This  rendered  it  superfluous  to  carry  out  Mr.  Jodrell's 
original  intention,  but  he  still  left  the  money  in  the  hands  of  the 
Society,  directing  that,  subject  to  any  appropriation  of  the  money 
that  he  might  make,  with  the  approval  of  the  Royal  Society, 
during  his  lifetime,  the  capital  should,  immediately  upon  his 
death,  be  incorporated  with  the  Donation  Fund,  and  that  in  the 
meantime  the  income  thereof  should  be  received  by  the  Roya\ 
Society.  Of  the  capital,  ^1000  was  several  years  ago  assigned 
to  a  fund  for  the  reduction  of  the  annual  payments  to  be  made 
by  future  Fellows,  and  the  remaining  ;^50oo  has  now,  of  course, 
been  added  to  the  Wollaston  Donation  Fund.  By  the  Fee 
Reduction  Fund  the  annual  payment  of  ordinary  Fellows  elected 
subsequently  to  the  time  of  the  change  was  made  ^3  instead  of 
£^,  and  the  entrance  fee  abolished.  As  to  the  Donation  Fund, 
a  very  wide  discretion  was,  by  the  terms  of  the  original  founda- 
tion, left  in  the  hands  of  the  Council  as  to  the  way  in  which 
they  should  employ  it  in  the  interest  of  science. 

Since  the  Croonian  Foundation  for  lectures  was  put  on  its 
present  footing,  it  has  been  made  the  means  of  securing  for  us 
the  advantage  of  a  lecture  delivered  before  the  Society  by  dis- 
tinguished foreign  men  of  science.  In  the  present  year  our 
Foreign  Member,  M.  Pasteur,  was  invited  to  deliver  the  lecture. 
Unfortunately,  the  state  of  his  health  would  not  allow  him  to 
deliver  it  himself,  but  at  one  time  he  hoped  that  he  would  have 
been  able  to  be  present  at  its  delivery.  It  was  ultimately 
arranged  that  his  fellow-labourer  at  the  Pasteur  Institute,  Dr. 
Roux,  should  deliver  the  Croonian  Lecture  in  his  stead  ;  and 
several  of  the  Fellows  have  heard  his  lucid  account,  first  of  the 
discoveries  of  M.  Pasteur  in  relation  to  diseases  brought  about 
by  microscopic  organisms,  and  then  further  researches  of  his 
own  in  the  same  field. 

In  addressing  the  Fellows  at  the  anniversary  last  year,  I 
mentioned  that  Commandant  Desforges  had  kindly  offered  to 
compare  that  portion  of  Sir  George  Schuckburgh's  scale,  with 
reference  to  which  the  length  of  the  seconds  pendulum  had  been 
determined  by  Kater  and  Sabine,  with  the  French  standard 
metre  ;  and  as  the  ratio  of  this  to  the  English  standard  yard  was 
accurately  known,  the  length  of  the  pendulum,  as  determined 
by  these  accurate  observers,  would  thus  for  the  first  time  be 
brought  into  relation  with  the  English  yard  by  direct  comparison 
with  accurately  compared  measures  of  length.  The  comparison 
was  shortly  afterwards  executed,  and  the  scale,  which,  of  course, 
was  very  carefully  packed  for  its  journey  to  Paris  and  back,  has 
long  since  been  replaced  in  the  apartments  of  the  Society.  This 
highly  desirable  comparison  occupied  but  a  few  days  in  its 
execution ;  which  affords  one  example  of  the  scientific  advan- 
tages derivable  under  an  international  agreement,  from  the 
establishment  of  the  Bureau  des  Poids  et  Mesures.  Our  own 
country,  which  for  some  years  held  aloof  from  the  Convention, 
forming  the  sole  exception  to  the  general  agreement  among 
nations  of  importance,  joined  it  some  years  ago  ;  and  we  thus 
have  the  privilege  of  availing  ourselves,  as  occasion  may  arise, 
of  the  appliances  at  the  office  in  Paris  for  such  comparisons  of 
measures  of  length  or  weight. 

The  services  of  Mr.  Arthur  Soper,  as  a  special  assistant,  have 
been  retained  during  the  past  session,  with  advantage  to  the 
library.  He  has  completed  the  much-needed  shelf  catalogue, 
and  the  re-arrangement  of  the  books  where  necessary.  In  the 
course  of  this  work  the  volumes  of  a  purely  literarv  character 


Jan.  9.  1890] 


NATURE 


235 


have  been  collected  together,  and  a  selection  of  the  most  valu- 
able have  been  preserved  in  a  properly  protected  case.  Of  the 
remainder,  about  150  volumes  (in  addition  to  those  reported  last 
year)  have  been  presented  to  various  public  libraries,  and  a  slip 
catalogue  of  the  volumes  which  are  retained,  containing  about 
1700  entries,  has  been  prepared. 

The  manuscripts  (other  than  the  originals  of  ordinary  papers 
read  at  the  meetings)  which  have  accrued  to  the  Society  since 
the  publication  of  Halliwell's  Catalogue  have  been  collected  from 
various  parts  of  the  building  into  the  Archives  Room,  with  the 
object  of  preparing  a  complete  catalogue  of  the  manuscripts  at 
l^resent  in  the  possession  of  the  Society. 

Since  the  last  anniversary,  twenty-four  memoirs  have  been 
published  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions,  containing  a  total 
of  753  pages  and  33  plates.  Of  the  Proceedings,  twelve  num- 
bers have  been  issued,  containing  1062  pages  and  6  plates.  Dr. 
R.  von  Lendenfeld's  "Monograph  of  the  Horny  Sponges," 
mentioned  in  my  last  anniversary  address,  has  also  been  issued 
during  the  year  in  a  quarto  volume  of  940  pages  of  text  and  51 
plates. 

The  Fellows  are  aware  that  for  a  great  many  years  the  Royal 
Society  has  devoted  a  part  of  its  funds  to  the  collection,  pre- 
paration for  the  press,  and  correction  of  the  proofs  of  a  Cata- 
logue of  Scientific  Papers.  We  have  endeavoured  to  make  the 
work  as  complete  as  possible,  and  to  include  scientific  serials  in 
all  languages.  The  first  part,  covering  the  period  1800-63,  is 
printed  in  six  thick  quarto  volumes,  of  which  the  last  appeared 
in  1872.  The  decade  1864-73  occupies  two  more  volumes,  of 
which  the  second  was  published  in  1879.  This  work,  in  the 
preparation  of  which  the  Royal  Society  has  spent  a  large  sum, 
is  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole  civilized  world,  and  the  sale  of  it 
could  not  be  expected  nearly  to  cover  the  cost  of  printing, 
paper,  and  binding.  On  a  representation  to  this  effect  being 
made  to  Government,  when  the  first  part  was  ready  for  the 
press,  the  Lords  of  the  Treasury  consented  that  it  should  be 
printed  at  the  public  expense,  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  the 
work,'  after  reserving  a  certain  number  of  copies  for  presenta- 
tion, being  repaid  to  the  Treasury.  In  consideration  of  the 
large  outlay  involved  in  the  preparation,  those  Fellows  of  the 
Society  who  wished  to  purchase  the  work  could  do  so  at  about 
two-thirds  of  the  cost  to  the  general  public.  A  similar  application 
to  the  Treasury  with  reference  to  the  decade  1864-73  met  with 
a  similar  response,  and  we  proceeded,  as  I  mentioned  at  the 
anniversary  last  year,  with  the  preparation  of  the  manuscript  for 
the  next  decade,  1874-83,  which  was  then  nearly  ready.  On 
making  application  towards  the  end  of  last  year  to  the  Treasury 
for  the  printing  of  this  decade,  our  request  was  not  acceded  to. 
While  declining,  however,  to  continue  any  further  the  printing 
of  this  great  work,  the  sum  of  ;^looo  was  put  in  the  Estimates, 
and  has  since  been  voted  by  Parliament,  to  assist  us  in  the  pub- 
lication, and  the  copies  of  the  work  still  remaining  unsold  have 
been  handed  over  to  us.  This  has  enabled  us  to  conclude  nego- 
tiations with  Messrs.  Clay  and  the  Syndics  of  the  Cambridge 
University  Press  for  the  printing  of  the  decade  last  mentioned, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  make  some  provision  towards  the  future 
continuation  of  the  work,  without,  as  it  may  be  hoped,  en- 
croaching to  a  greater  extent  than  hitherto  on  our  own 
resources. 

The  utility  of  the  work  would  obviously  be  much  increased 
if  it  could  be  furnished  with  some  sort  of  key  enabling  persons 
to  find  what  had  been  written  on  particular  subjects.  I  am  not 
without  hopes  that  this  very  desirable  object  may  yet  be  accom- 
plished, notwithstanding  the  magnitude  of  any  such  undertaking. 

Within  the  last  year  the  Council  of  the  Royal  Society  has 
accepted  a  duty  in  connection  with  scientific  agriculture,  of 
which  it  will  be  interesting  to  the  Fellows  to  be  informed.  It 
is  well  known  that  for  the  last  fifty  years,  or  thereabouts.  Sir 
John  Lawes  has  carried  out  on  his  estate  at  Rothamsted  an 
elaborate  and  most  persevering  series  of  experiments  on  the 
conditions  which  influence  the  growth  and  yield  of  crops  of 
various  kinds,  the  effect  of  manures  of  diff'erent  kinds,  the  result 
of  taking  the  same  crop,  year  after  year,  from  off"  the  same  land 
without  supplying  to  it  any  manure,  &c.  Long  as  these  experi- 
ments have  already  been  continued,  there  are  questions,  par- 
ticularly as  re^^ards  the  capabilities  of  the  sub-soil,  which  require 
for  their  satisfactory  answers  that  similar  experiments  should  be 
continued  on  the  same  land  for  a  still  longer  period.  In  respect 
of  such  questions,  the  investigator  of  the  science  of  agriculture  is 
in  a  position  resembling  that  in  which  the  astronomer  is  often 


placed,  in  having  to  make  observations,  the  full  interest  of  which 
it  must  be  left  to  posterity  to  enjoy. 

To  prevent  the  interruption  of  these  experiments,  which  it 
would  take  a  life-time  to  repeat  on  fresh  ground,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  provide  for  the  carrying  out  of  researches  generally 
bearing  on  the  science  of  agriculture.  Sir  John  Lawes  has  created 
a  trust,  securing  to  the  trustees  a  capital  sum  of  ;^  100, 000,  and 
leasing  to  them  for  ninety-nine  years,  at  a  peppercorn  rent, 
certain  lands  in  his  demesne  on  which  the  experiments  have 
hitherto  been  carried  on,  together  with  his  laboratory.  The 
trust  is  intended  to  be  for  original  research,  not  for  the  instruc- 
tion of  students.  The  general  direction  of  the  experiments  and 
researches  to  be  carried  on  is  vested  in  a  committee  of  manage- 
ment consisting  of  nine  persons,  of  whom  four  are  to  be  appointed 
by  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Royal  Society. 

The  trustees  named  in  the  deed  were  Sir  John  Lubbock, 
Dr.  Wells,  and  our  Treasurer,  Dr.  Evans.  One  of  these  is 
now  no  more.  Lord  Walsingham  has  been  appointed  a  trustee 
in  place  of  the  late  Dr.  Wells. 

The  Copley  Medal  for  the  year  has  been  awarded  to  Dr. 
Salmon  for  his  various  papers  on  subjects  of  pure  mathematics, 
and  for  the  valuable  mathematical  treatises  of  which  he  is  the 
author.  Dr.  Salmon's  published  papers  are  all  valuable.  Among 
others  may  be  mentioned  his  researches  on  the  classification  of 
curves  of  double  curvature,  and  on  the  condition  for  equal  roots 
of  an  equation  ;  the  very  important  theorem  of  the  constant 
anharmonic  ratio  of  the  four  tangents  of  a  cubic  curve  ;  his 
researches  on  the  theory  of  reciprocal  surfaces  ;  his  paper  on 
quaternary  cubics.  But  any  notice  of  his  contributions  to  the 
advancement  of  pure  mathematics  would  be  incomplete  which 
did  not  specially  mention  his  invaluable  text-books  on  conic 
sections,  higher  plane  curves,  solid  geometry,  and  the  modern 
algebra — works  which  not  only  give  a  comprehensive  view  of 
the  subjects  to  which  they  relate,  but  contain  a  great  deal  of 
original  matter. 

Of  the  Royal  Medals,  it  is  the  usual  though  not  invariable 
practice  to  award  one  for  mathematics  or  physics,  including 
chemistry,  and  one  for  some  one  or  more  of  the  biological 
sciences.  No  distinction  is,  however,  made  between  the  two 
medals  in  point  of  order  of  precedence,  and  I  will,  therefore, 
take  the  names  of  the  medallists  in  alphabetical  order. 

The  Council  have  awarded  one  of  the  Royal  Medals  this  year 
to  Dr.  Walter  Holbrook  Gaskell  for  his  researches  in  cardiac 
physiology,  and  his  important  discoveries  in  the  anatomy  and 
physiology  of  the  sympathetic  nervous  system. 

In  his  memoir,  "On  the  Rhythm  of  the  Heart  of  the  Frog" 
(Croonian  Lecture,  Phil.  Trans.,  1882),  and  in  a  subsequent 
memoir,  "On  the  Innervation  of  the  Heart  of  the  Tortoise" 
{Journ.  of  Physiol.,  vol,  iv.).  Dr.  Gaskell  very  largely  advanced 
our  knowledge  of  the  physiology  of  the  heart-beat,  more  espe- 
cially as  relates  to  the  sequence  of  the  beats  of  the  several  parts, 
the  nature  of  the  inhibitory  action  of  the  vagus  nerve,  and  the 
relations  of  tonicity  and  conducting  power  to  rhythmical  con- 
traction. These  memoirs,  however,  lacked  completeness  on 
account  of  their  not  taking  into  full  consideration  the  action  of 
the  cardiac  augmentor  or  accelerator  fibres,  the  existence  of 
which  had  been  previously  indicated  in  the  case  of  mammals,, 
and  suspected  in  the  case  of  the  frog  and  allied  animals. 

By  a  striking  experiment  {Jo7irn.  of  Physiol.,  vol.  v.)  Dr. 
Gaskell  subsequently  gave  the  first  clear  demonstration  of  the 
presence  in  the  frog  of  cardiac  augmentor  fibres  ;  also  he  gave  a 
clear  account  of  the  nature  of  the  action  of  their  fibres,  and  the 
relations  of  that  action  to  the  action  of  the  vagus  fibres.  Revising 
his  previous  work  by  the  help  of  the  light  thus  gained,  Dr. 
Gaskell  was  enabled  to  give  the  first  really  consistent  and  satis- 
factory account  of  the  nature  of  the  heart-beat,  of  the  modifica- 
tions of  beat  due  to  extrinsic  nerves,  and  of  the  parts  played  by 
muscular  and  nervous  elements  respectively. 

Important  as  was  this  work  on  the  heart.  Dr.  Gaskell's 
subsequent  work  "On  the  Structure,  Functions,  and  Distribu- 
tion of  the  Nerves  which  govern  the  Vascular  and  Visceral 
Systems"  (Jouni.  of  Physiol.,"  vol.  vii.)  has  a  far  higher 
importance  and  significance.  In  spite  of  the  knowledge  which 
during  the  past  thirty  or  forty  years  has  been  gained  concerning 
vaso-motor  nerves  and  the  nerves  governing  the  movements  of 
the  viscera,  physiologists  had  up  to  the  time  of  the  appearance 
of  Dr.  Gaskell's  memoir  failed  to  obtain  a  clear  conception  of 
the  nature  and  relations  of  the  so-called  sympathetic  nervous 
system.     By  his   researches,   in  which  the  several  methods  of 


236 


NATURE 


[Jan.  9,  1890 


■gross  anatomical  investigation,  minute  histological  examination, 
and  experimental  inquiry  were,  in  a  striking  manner,  made  to 
assist  each  other,  Dr.  Gaskell,  by  tracing  out  the  course  and 
determining  the  nature  of  vaso-constrictor  and  vaso-dilator 
fibres,  and  comparing  them  with  the  cardiac  augmentor  and 
inhibitory  fibres,  and  with  the  fibres  governing  the  visceral 
muscles,  has  already  reduced  to  order  what  previously  was  to  a 
large  extent  confusion,  and  has  opened  up  what  promises  to  be 
the  way  to  a  complete  understanding  of  the  whole  subject. 

The  results  arrived  at,  besides  their  great  physiological  im- 
portance, on  the  one  hand  promise  to  be  of  great  assistance  in 
■practical  medicine,  and  on  the  other  are  eminently  suggestive 
from  a  purely  morphological  point  of  view. 

The  other  Royal  Medal  has  been  awarded  to  Prof.  Thomas 
Edward  Thorpe  for  his  researches  on  fluorine  compounds,  and 
his  determination  of  the  atomic  weights  of  titanium  and  gold. 

Prof.  Thomas  Edward  Thorpe's  experimental  work  has 
secured  for  him  a  place  in  the  first  rank  of  living  experi- 
mentalists. 

His  researches,  which  are  not  confined  to  one  department  of 
chemical  science,  but  extend  over  many  branches,  are  all  distin- 
guished both  by  accuracy  and  originality  of  treatment.  As 
examples  of  the  high  character  of  his  investigations,  those  of  the 
determinations  of  the  atomic  weights  of  titanium  and  gold  may 
be  specially  cited  as  permanently  settling  the  value  of  two  most 
important  chemical  constants ;  whilst  his  researches  on  the 
fluorine  compounds,  including  the  discovery  of  thiophosphoryl 
fluoride,  a  body  capable  of  existing  undecomposed  in  the  state 
of  gas,  and  his  latest  work  on  the  vapour-density  of  hydro- 
fluoric acid,  do  not  fall  short  of  the  highest  examples  of 
classical  chemical  investigation. 

The  Davy  Medal  has  been  awarded  to  Dr.  W.  H.  Perkin  for 
his  researches  on  magnetic  rotation  in  relation  to  chemical 
constitution. 

Dr.  Perkin  is  well  known  as  the  originator  of  what  is  now  a 
great  industry,  that  of  the  coal-tar  colours,  by  his  preparation 
and  application  to  tinctorial  purposes  of  a  colouring  matter 
which  had  previously  merely  been  noticed  as  affording  a  chemical 
test  for  the  presence  of  aniline.  This,  however,  is  now  a  long 
lime  ago,  and  it  is  for  more  recent  work,  the  interest  of  which 
is  purely  scientific,  that  the  medal  has  been  awarded  to  him. 

Dr,  Perkin  first  showed,  in  1884,  that  a  definite  relationship 
exists  between  the  chemical  constitution  of  substances  and  their 
power  of  rotating  the  plane  of  polarization  of  light  when  under 
magnetic  influence  ;  and  he  pointed  out  how  the  "molecular 
coefficient  of  magnetic  rotation"  or  "  molecular  rotatory 
power  "  might  be  deduced. 

In  1884  he  presented  to  the  Chemical  Society  a  lengthy  paper 
describing  his  method,  and  the  results  obtained  for  a  very  large 
number  of  paraffinoid  hydrocarbons  and  haloid  and  oxygenated 
derivatives  thereof;  from  these  he  deduced  "constants,"  which 
he  has  since  shown  to  be  applicable  in  calculating  the  magnetic 
rotatory  power  of  paraffinoid  compounds  generally.  From  time 
to  time_  he  has  published  further  instalments  of  his  work,  and 
only  quite  recently  has  described  the  results  obtained  on  examin- 
ing nitrogen  compounds,  which  exhibit  many  most  interesting 
peculiarities. 

The  results  are  of  special  value  on  account  of  the  exceptional 
care  devoted  to  the  preparation  of  pure  substances,  and  the 
guarantee,  which  Dr.  Perkin's  reputation  affords,  that  everything 
possible  has  been  done  to  secure  accuracy  ;  and  also  because  the 
substances  chosen  are  for  the  most  part  typical  substances,  or 
belong  to  series  in  which  a  simple  relationship  exists. 


HAIL-STORMS  IN  NORTHERN  INDIA. 

J  N  a  paper  recently  published  in  the  Journal  of  the  Asiatic 
Society  of  Bengal,  Mr.  S.  A.  Hill  describes  certain  severe 
hail-storms  and  tornadoes  that  occurred  on  April  30  and  May  i, 
1 888,  in  the  Gangetic  doab  and  Rohilkand  in  Northern  India. ^ 
Tornadoes  are  not  very  common  in  India,  but  they  appear  to 
have  been  somewhat  more  prevalent  than  usual  in  the  spring  of 
1888,  the  storms  in  question  having  been  preceded  on  April  7 
by  a  very  destructive  tornado  at  Dacca  in  Bengal,  a  full  descrip- 
tion of  which  was  given  by  Mr.  Pedler  and  Dr.  Crombie  in  a 
previous  number  of  the  Society's  Journal.  Like  all  previously 
recorded  storms  of  this  character,  these  occurred  in  the  spring, 

'  Op.  cit.,  vol.  Iviii.,  Part  2,  No.  2,  1889. 


when  the  seat  of  minimum  pressure  is  established  in  the  Lower 
Punjab,  and  a  trough  of  low  pressure  extends  from  this  region 
eastward  to  the  Gangetic  plain.  To  the  south  of  this  trough  very 
dry  west  winds,  the  hot  winds  of  Northern  India,  prevailed  in 
Rajputana  and  Central  India,  while,  to  the  north  of  it,  damp 
easterly  winds  blew  up  the  northern  margin  of  the  plain  and 
across  the  outer  slopes  of  the  Himalaya.  It  is  apparently  in  the 
meeting  of  these  two  winds,  where  the  former  blows  in  an  upper, 
the  latter  in  the  lower,  stratum,  that  are  generated  the  thunder 
squalls  that  form  a  normal  feature  of  the  spring  months  in 
Northern  India  ;  and  tornadoes,  as  Prof.  Ferrel  has  shown,  are 
merely  an  exaggerated  development  of  the  thunder  squall.  In 
the  present  instance,  ordinary  storms  of  this  character,  and  dust 
storms,  occurred  pretty  generally  over  all  the  north-western 
districts  of  the  North- West  Provinces,  simultaneously  with  the 
tornadoes  in  Rohilkand  and  the  Gangetic  doab. 

From  the  evidence  quoted  by  Mr.  Hill,  it  does  not  appear 
indeed  to  be  positively  established  that  any  of  the  storms  described 
exhibited  all  the  characteristic  features  of  tornadoes,  as  was  un- 
doubtedly the  case  of  the  Dacca  storm.  No  mention  is  made  in 
any  of  the  reports  of  any  whirling  column  having  been  actually 
observed  ;  and  that  whirlwinds  were  the  real  agents  of  destruction 
seems  to  be  inferred  chiefly  from  the  destructive  force  of  the 
wind,  especially  its  lifting  power,  and  some  rather  vague  reports 
on  the  wind's  changes  during  the  passage  of  the  storm.  On  a 
point  of  this  kind,  however,  in  India,  negative  evidence  goes  for 
little,  and  the  chief  subject  discussed  in  Mr.  Hill's  paper,  viz. 
the  conditions  which  determine  these  atmospheric  disturbances, 
is  of  equal  interest,  whether  they  were  really  tornadoes  or  only 
remarkably  severe  hail-storms  of  the  more  usual  kind. 

In  the  barometric  changes  of  the  days  preceding  the  storms 
there  does  not  appear  to  be  anything  that  throws  much  light  on 
their  genesis.  The  relative  distribution  of  pressure  shown  by  the 
observations  on  the  Indo-Gangetic  plain  underwent  but  little 
variation,  and  the  existence  of  a  slight  secondary  depression  in 
the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  the  storm  tract,  on  April  30,  is 
inferred  solely  on  the  evidence  of  two  Himalayan  stations  at 
elevations  of  5300  feet  and  6000  feet  above  the  sea,  and  may  be 
delusive.  There  had,  however,  been  a  general  steady  fall  of  the 
barometer  for  three  days  before  the  storms  of  April  30 — one  of 
those  oscillations,  apparently,  which  Mr.  Abercromby  has  termed 
surges,  and  a  rapid  rise  set  in  after  the  storms.  As  has  been 
pointed  out  elsewhere,  this  is  an  ordinary  recurrent  feature  of 
the  season. 

It  is  in  the  changes  in  the  vertical  distribution  of  temperature 
that  Mr.  Plill  finds  the  conditions  that  determined  the  atmo- 
spheric disturbance.  Taking  as  his  fundamental  data  the  observed 
temperatures  of  the  three  stations,  Roorkee  at  886  feet,  Dehra 
at  2233  feet,  and  Mussooree  at  6881  feet,  and  assuming  that 
these  represent  approximately  the  rate  of  vertical  decrease  over 
the  neighbouring  plain,  he  computes  the  fall  of  temperature  for 
increments  of  1000  feet  up  to  10,000  feet  by  means  of  a  simple 
formula  of  interpolation,  and  finds  that,  up  to  the  forenoon  of 
April  30,  the  condition  of  unstable  equilibrium  which  results 
from  the  diurnal  heating  of  the  plains  did  not  extend  beyond 
3000  or  4000  feet  above  the  ground  surface.  This  would  set  up 
a  considerable  amount  of  convective  interchange  between  these 
lower  strata,  but  the  cloud-forming  strata  would  still  be  in  a 
stable  condition,  at  least  in  a  non-saturated  atmosphere.  On 
the  afternoon  of  April  30,  the  conditions  were  changed.  With  a 
great  fall  of  temperature  at  the  lowest  and  highest  stations,  as 
compared  with  the  previous  day  at  the  same  hour,  that  of  the 
intermediate  station  was  but  little  affected,  and  hence  the  com- 
puted table  shows  a  reduction  of  the  vertical  decrement  at  low 
levels,  a  corresponding  increase  at  the  higher  levels,  and  a 
transfer  of  the  condition  of  unstable  equilibrium  from  the  former 
to  the  latter.  Simultaneously  with  this  change  took  place  that 
violent  disturbance  of  the  atmosphere  that  resulted  in  the  hail- 
storms on  the  plains. 

Mr.  Hill's  conclusions  are  entirely  in  accord  with  what  might 
be  expected  on  a  priori  grounds.  But  before  they  can  be  fully 
accepted,  it  is  necessary  to  scrutinize  the  data,  and  as  the  result 
of  this  scrutiny  we  must  confess  they  do  not  seem  to  us  com- 
pletely convincing.  We  may  put  aside  the  question  whether 
and  to  what  extent  the  empirical  formula  of  interpolation 
adopted  by  Mr.  Hill  really  expresses  the  law  of  decrement  of 
temperature,  since,  although  it  would  evidently  fail  for  extrapola- 
tion much  beyond  the  altitude  of  7000  feet,  it  probably  does  not 
involve  any  very  serious  error  below  that  limit,  provided  the 
numerical  values  afforded  by  observation  are  trustworthy.     The 


Jan.  9,  1890J 


NATURE 


237 


critical  point  of  the  whole  reasoning  is  whether  the  observed 
temperatures  at  the  three  stations  Roorkee,Dehra,  and  Mussooree, 
can  be  safely  accepted  as  approximately  representing  those  of  the 
free  atmosphere  over  the  plains  at  the  same  levels,  and  this 
seems  to  us  at  least  open  to  question.  In  the  case  of  the  lowest 
and  highest  stations,  indeed,  there  is  not  much  to  object  to. 
Roorkee  is  a  fairly  representative  station  of  the  northern  part  of 
the  Gangetic  plain,  and  the  Mussooree  Observatory,  situated  on 
the  very  crest  of  the  ridge  of  the  Himalaya,  overlooking  the 
plains,  is  probably  as  little  affected  by  the  local  heating  of  the 
ground  as  any  mountain  observatory  can  be.  But  Dehra,  which 
furnishes  the  really  critical  datum  of  Mr.  Hill's  reasoning,  is  on 
the  plain  of  the  Di'in,  a  flat  valley  six  or  eight  miles  across, 
stretching  between  the  Sivaliks  and  the  foot  of  the  Mussooree 
ridge,  and  it  is  by  no  means  self-evident  that  the  local  tempera- 
ture is  not  largely  affected  by  causes  which  are  quite  inoperative 
in  the  free  atmosphere  at  the  same  elevation  over  the  plains. 

In  our  opinion,  then,  Mr.  Hill's  conclusion  that  the  storms  of 
April  30  and  May  i  were  determined  by  a  change  in  the  vertical 
distribution  of  temperature,  transferring  the  condition  of  in- 
stability from  the  lower  to  the  higher  atmospheric  strata,  is  at 
least  open  to  doubt.  To  a  certain  extent,  indeed,  it  is  supported 
bytheevidence  of  other  observatories  in  the  North-West  Himalaya, 
especially  Chakrata,  the  situation  of  which  is  very  similar  to 
that  of  Mussooree;  but  the  difference  of  their  elevation  (170 
feet)  is  too  small  to  allow  of  its  having  much  weight  in  determin- 
ing the  point  at  issue. 

The  most  noteworthy  feature  of  the  storm  of  April  30  was  the 
fearful  loss  of  life  caused  by  it  at  Moradabad.  Not  less  than  230 
deaths  were  reported  at  this  station  alone,  the  vast  majority  of 
which  were  caused  directly  by  the  hail.  The  collector's  report 
states  that  men  caught  in  the  open  and  without  shelter  were 
simply  pounded  to  death.  The  spring  is  especially  the  season  of 
native  weddings,  and  "more  than  one  marriage  party  was 
caught  by  the  storm  near  the  banks  of  the  river  and  was  anni- 
hilated." It  is,  however,  suggested  by  Mr.  Hill  that  many  of  the 
deaths  may  have  been  caused  by  cold.  "Immediately  before 
the  storm  the  temperature  had  been  very  high,  and  many  if  not 
the  majority  of  the  deaths  due  to  it  may  have  been  occasioned  by 
the  persons  exposed  to  its  fury  being  knocked  down  and  temporarily 
packed  in  ice."  At  Moradabad  the  hailstones  are  stated  to  have 
been  the  size  of  plums — probably  the  ber  plum,  Zizyphus  jujtiba, 
the  cultivated  form  of  which  is  two  or  three  times  as  large  as  a 
walnut. 

In  the  storm  of  May  i,  the  hailstones  at  some  places  were 
larger,  though  the  destruction  was  less.  At  Ghaziabad  they  are 
said  to  have  been  as  large  as  cricket  balls,  and  one  was  picked 
up  at  Delhi  weighing  4?  ounces.  At  Tilhar  they  are  reported 
to  have  been  larger  than  goose  eggs,  and  at  a  neighbouring 
place  they  averaged  3  inches  in  diameter.  Their  form  is 
described  as  a  flat  oval. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

BtiUdin  de  f  Academic  Royale  de  Belgique,  November  1889. — 
On  the  existence  of  a  gizzard,  and  on  its  structure,  in  the  family 
of  the  Scolopendridse,  by  M,  Victor  Willem.  The  presence  of 
a  gizzard  in  the  lower  organisms  was  first  determined  by  M.  F. 
Plateau  in  1876.  But  the  gizzard  of  insects  was  long  supposed 
to  be  merely  a  triturating  organ  acting  mechanically,  without 
any  physiological  function.  Continuing  Plateau's  researches,  M. 
Willem  now  finds  that  the  gizzard  is  not  only  present  in  several 
genera  of  the  Scolopendrid  family,  but  that  it  is  a  true  digester. 
The  structure  is  fully  described,  and  illustrated  by  two  plates, 
on  which  are  figured  the  gizzards  of  Scolopendra  hispanica,  S. 
cingulata,  S.  heros,  Scolopocryptops,  Cryptops  pnnctatus,  and  C. 
hortensis.  In  these  last,  the  apparatus  is  most  highly  developed, 
being  even  more  complicated  than  amongst  the  higher  order  of 
insects.  No  explanation  is  offered  of  this  apparent  anomaly. — 
Unexpected  proof  of  diurnal  nutation,  and  necessity  of  taking 
it  into  consideration  in  the  reduction  of  observations,  by  M.  F. 
Folie.  The  coefficient  of  diurnal  nutation  as  already  approxim- 
ately determined  at  o-ois.  by  the  author's  numerous  researches, 
has  recently  been  confirmed  in  a  somewhat  remarkable  manner 
by  the  results  of  M.  Kobold's  observations  of  the  Polar  star 
with  the  meridian  circle  of  Strassburg.  The  azimuthal  errors 
of  this  instrument  were  found  to  present,  not  an  annual,  but  a 
diurnal  period,   and    Kobold's    corrections    are   shown  to    be 


illusory,  being  due  to  his  neglect  of  the  element  of  diurnat 
nutation  in  the  reduction  of  his  observations.  When  this  ele- 
ment is  taken  into  account,  the  results  harmonize  with  those 
previously  arrived  at  by  M.  P"olie. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  Dec.  19,  1889. — "  On  the  Effects  of  Pressure 
on  the  Magnetization  of  Cobalt."  By  C.  Chree,  M.A.,  Fellow 
of  King's  College,  Cambridge.  Communicated  by  Prof.  J.  J. 
Thomson,  F.R.  S. 

It  has  long  been  known,  from  the  classic  researches  of  Dr. 
Joule,  that  a  rod  of  iron  free  from  stress  increases  in  length  whea 
magnetized  in  a  comparatively  weak  field.  When,  however,  the 
strength  of  the  field  is  contmually  raised,  it  has  been  found  by 
Mr.  Shelford  Bidwell  that  the  rod  ceases  to  increase  in  lengthy 
and  then  shortens,  so  that  in  a  sufficiently  strong  field  the  length, 
becomes  less  than  it  was  originally.  It  has  also  been  found  by 
Villari,  Sir  W.  Thomson,  and  others,  that  when  a  rod  of  iron  is. 
exposed  to  successive  loadings  and  unloadings  of  a  given  weight 
in  a  magnetic  field,  there  appears  a  corresponding  cyclic  change 
of  magnetization.  In  this  cyclic  change  the  maximum  mag- 
netization occurs  when  the  load  is  "on,"  or  when  the  load  is 
"off,"  according  as  the  field  is  weaker  or  stronger  than  a  certain 
critical  field  depending  on  the  load,  called  by  Sir  W.  Thomson, 
the  Villari  crhical  field. 

Cobalt  has  been  found  by  Mr.  Shelford  Bidwell  to  shorten- 
when  magnetized  in  weak  fields,  but  to  lengthen  in  very  strong 
fields.  The  field  in  which  it  ceases  to  shorten  is  very  much 
higher  than  the  field  in  which  iron  ceases  to  lengthen.  Also  in 
weak  fields  Sir  W.  Thomson  has  found  the  magnetization  of  a 
cobalt  rod  under  cyclic  applications  of  tension  to  be  least  when 
the  tension  is  "  on" 

Now,  Prof.  J.  J.  Thomson  has  shown  that  on  dynamical 
principles  the  effect  of  changes  of  magnetization  on  the  length 
of  a  rod  of  magnetic  metal,  and  the  effect  of  changes  in  the 
length  of  the  rod  on  the  magnetization,  must  be  fundamentally 
connected.  In  his  "Applications  of  Dynamics  to  Physics  and 
Chemistry,"  he  has  arrived  at  mathematical  equations  connecting 
the  two  phenomena,  such  that  from  a  knowledge  of  the  one  set 
of  phenomena  the  character  of  the  other  set  can  be  deduced. 

The  conclusions  derived  from  the  theory  are  in  the  case  of 
iron  in  accordance  with  the  results  of  experiment,  at  least  in 
their  general  character.  In  cobalt  there  is  also  an  agreement 
between  theory  and  experiment,  so  far  as  Sir  W.  Thomson's 
experiments  go.  In  the  absence  of  further  experiments  it 
would,  however,  be  impossible  to  tell  whether  or  not  this 
agreement  extended  to  the  strong  fields  in  which  occurred  the 
important  phenomena  observed  by  Mr.  Shelford  Bidwell.  The 
application  of  Prof.  J.  J.  Thomson's  formulae  to  Mr.  Shelford 
Bidwell's  results  led  him  to  the  conclusion  that  under  cyclic 
applications  of  pressure  a  cobalt  rod  should  experience  cyclic 
change  of  magnetization,  and  that  the  maximum  magnetization 
should  answer  to  pressure  "  on,"  or  to  pressure  "  off,"  according 
as  the  magnetic  field  was  weaker  "br  stronger  than  a  critical  field, 
corresponding  to  the  Villari  field  in  iron.  It  was  for  the  purpose 
of  determining  whether  such  a  critical  field  did  actually  exist 
that  the  present  investigation  was  commenced  at  Prof.  J.  J. 
Thomson's  suggestion. 

Employing  the  magnetometric  method,  it  was  found  that  the 
agreement  between  theory  and  experiment  was  at  least  as  satis- 
factory in  cobalt  as  in  iron.  The  application  of  pressure-cycles 
in  a  magnetic  field  led  to  a  cyclic  change  of  magnetization  in  a 
cobalt  rod,  in  which  the  maximum  magnetization  occurred  when 
pressure  was  "on,"  or  when  it  was  "off,"  according  as  the 
strength  of  the  field  was  below  or  above  120  C.G. S.  units. 
This  accordingly  was  the  Villari  critical  field  foreshadowed  by 
theory. 

In  weak  fields  the  first  pressure  applied  after  the  introduction 
of  the  cobalt  rod  into  the  magnetizing  coil  caused  a  large  in- 
crease in  the  induced  magnetization.  As  the  strength  of  the 
field  was  raised,  this  change  in  the  magnetization  attained  a 
maximum,  then,  diminishing,  vanished  in  a  field  considerably 
stronger  than  the  Villari  field  for  the  cyclic  effect,  and  in  all 
stronger  fields  consisted  in  a  diminution  of  magnetization. 

Both  Villari  and  Prof.  Ewing  observed  that,  after  the  break 
of  the  magnetizing  current,  cyclic  changes  of  tension  produced 


238 


NATURE 


[Jan.  9,  1890 


eventually,  in  iron  wires,  cyclic  changes  of  the  residual  mag- 
netization. In  these,  the  maximum  magnetization  answered,  as 
in  the  induced  magnetization  in  fields  below  the  Villari  point,  to 
tension  "  on." 

In  the  present  investigation,  the  existence  of  a  cyclic  change 
in  the  residual  magnetization  of  cobalt  accompanying  cyclic 
changes  of  pressure  has  been  established,  and  the  magnitude  of 
the  eiTect  examined  in  a  large  number  of  fields,  extending  from 
o  to  400  C.G.S.  units.  It  was  found  that  not  only  the  mag- 
nitude, but  the  sign  even,  of  the  effect  depended  largely  on  the 
condition  of  the  rod  during  the  break  of  the  current.  When 
the  rod  was  under  pressure  during  the  break,  the  residual  mag- 
netization in  the  cyclic  state  showed  a  maximum  underpressure, 
whatever  was  the  strength  of  the  pre-existing  field.  When, 
however,  the  rod  was  free  from  pressure  during  the  break  of  the 
current,  it  was  only  in  the  residual  magnetization  left  after  the 
weakest  fields  that  the  maximum  answered  to  pressure  "on." 
When  the  strength  of  the  pre-existing  field  was  raised,  the  effect 
passed  through  the  value  zero  and  changed  sign. 

"  On  the  Extension  and  Flexure  of  Cylindrical  and  Spherical 
Thin  Elastic  Shells."     By  A.  B.  Basset,  M.A.,  F.R.S. 

The  method  which  I  have  employed  in  dealing  with  problems 
relating  to  the  equilibrium  and  motion  of  thin  cylindrical  and 
spherical  elastic  shells,  is  as  follows  : — 

Taking  the  case  of  a  cylindrical  shell,  let  OADB  be  a  small 
curvilinear  rectangle  described  on  the  middle  surface,  of  which 
the  sides  OA,  BD  are  generators,  and  the  sides  AD,  OB  are 
circular  sections.  The  resultant  stresses  per  unit  of  length 
across  the  section  AD  are  completely  specified  by  the  following 
five  quantities,  viz.  (i)  a  tension,  T^  ;  (2)  a  tangential  shearing 
stress,  M, ;  (3)  a  normal  shearing  stress,  N,  ;  (4)  a  flexural  couple, 
Go ;  (5)  a  torsional  couple,  H^  ;  and  the  stresses  across  BD  may 
be  derived  by  interchanging  the  suffixes  i  and  2.  If,  therefore, 
we  resolve  all  the  forces  which  act  upon  the  element  along  OA, 
OB  and  the  normal,  and  take  moments  about  these  lines,  we 
shall  obtain  the  six  equations  of  motion  in  terms  of  these  stresses. 

The  expression  for  the  potential  energy  is  next  found,  which 
■differs  from  that  obtained  by  Mr.  Love  (Phil.  Trans.,  1888), 
owing  to  the  fact  that  he  has  omitted  to  take  into  account 
several  terms  involving  the  product  of  the  extensions  and  the 
cube  of  the  thickness. 

The  variational  equation  can  now  be  written  down,  and  if  it 
be  applied  to  a  curvilinear  rectangle  bounded  by  two  lines  of 
curvature  and  worked  out  in  the  usual  way,  the  line  integral  part 
will  determine  the  values  of  the  edge  stresses  Tj,  Tg,  . .  .  in  terms 
of  the  displacements  ;  and  the  surface  integral  part  will  deter- 
mine the  three  equations  of  motion  in  terms  of  the  displacements. 
These  results  furnish  a  test  of  the  accuracy  of  the  work,  and 
:also  of  the  fundamental  hypothesis  upon  which  the  theory  is 
'based  (viz.  that  if  the  surfaces  of  the  shell  are  not  subjected  to  any 
surface  pressures  or  tangential  stresses,  the  three  stresses,  R,  S, 
T,  are  of  the  order  of  the  square  of  the  thickness) ;  for  if  we  sub- 
stitute the  values  of  the  edge  stresses  in  the  last  three  of  our 
original  equations,  they  ought  to  reduce  to  identities  ;  whilst  if 
we  substitute  these  values  in  the  first  three,  we  ought  to  reproduce 
the  equations  of  motion  which  we  have  obtained  by  means  of 
the  variational  equation  ;  and  this  is  found  to  be  the  case. 

The  boundary  conditions  are  obtained  by  Stokes's  theorem, 
which  enables  us  to  prove  that  it  is  possible  to  apply  a  certain 
•distribution  of  stress  to  the  edge  of  a  thin  shell,  without  pro- 
ducing any  alteration  in  the  potential  energy  due  to  strain. 

Geological  Society,  December  18,  1889.— W.  T.  Blanford, 
F.  R.  S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications 
were  read  : — On  the  occurrence  of  the  genus  Girvanella,  and 
remarks  on  Oolitic  structure,  by  E.  Wethered.  The  author 
referred  to  his  previous  work,  wherein  he  had  shown  that 
Girvanella  is  not  confined  to  Silurian  rocks,  and  that  as  a  rock- 
forming  organism  it  is  more  important  than  was  supposed, 
occurring  in  the  Gloucestershire  Pea-grit,  and  also  in  the 
Coralline  Oolite  of  Weymouth.  He  now  dealt  more  in  detail 
with  its  occurrence  (l)  in  the  Carboniferous  Oolitic  Limestone; 
smdi  {2)  \n\h^  Jurassic  Oolites.  In  the  Carboniferous  limestone 
of  the  Avon  valley.  Oolitic  limestone  occurs  on  four  horizons,  in 
.three  of  which  the  Oolites  rest  on  dolomite.  In  none  of  these 
.three  cases  are  there  signs  of  Girvanella.  From  beds  partly 
Oolitic,  and  not  resting  on  dolomite,  he  has  been  able  to  de- 
termine two  new  species.  The  Oolite  not  associated  with  dolomite 
is  less  crystalline,  and  the  original  structure  is  better  preserved. 
In  referring  to  G.  pisolitica,  he  discussed  whether  Girvanella  is 


most  allied  to  the  Challenger  Foraminifer,  Hyperammina  vagans, 
or  to  Syringaniviina  fragilissima.  Traces  of  the  organism  occur 
in  the  Clypeus-^xii,  but  none  are  quoted  from  beds  of  the  Great 
Oolite,  nor  from  the  Portland  Oolite.  The  author  had  already 
shown  that  the  pisolites  in  the  Coralline  Oolite  of  Weymouth  were 
not  concretions,  but  forms  of  Girvanella.  Excluding  these,  he 
showed  that  the  spherules  are  of  four  types,  of  which  one  is  the 
ordinary  Oolitic  granule,  while  each  of  the  others  suggests  the 
presence  of  Girvanella.  The  characters  of  the  genus,  as  seen 
under  the  microscope  were  indicated,  and  four  new  species  were 
described.  The  President  remarked  on  the  importance  of  in- 
vestigating the  question  whether  these  appearances  are  organic 
or  not.  We  should  take  warning  from  Eozoon  as  to  possible 
differences  of  opinion  in  the  interpretation  of  tubular  structure, 
though  these  mystifying  appearances  seem  more  common  in 
serpentine  and  chalcedony  than  in  calcite.  In  the  bodies 
depicted,  the  wall,  the  irregularity,  and  the  manner  in  which 
the  tubes  curve  round  each  other  are  in  favour  of  their  being 
organic.  Prof.  Rupert  Jones  thought  that  these  forms  were  not 
due  to  mineral  but  to  organic  laws.  Dr.  Evans,  while  dis- 
claiming any  special  knowledge  of  the  subject,  suggested  that 
the  appearances  might  be  interpreted  on  the  supposition  of  an 
organism  boring  into  a  comparatively  hard  substance.  Dr. 
Hinde,  who  had  seen  most  of  the  known  species  of  Girvanella, 
spoke  of  the  wide  distribution  of  these  organisms.  Remarks 
were  also  offered  by  Dr.  Hicks,  Prof.  Bonney,  Prof.  Judd,  the 
Rev.  H.  H.  Winwood,  and  the  author. — On  the  relation  of  the 
Westleton  Beds  or  ' '  Pebbly  Sands  "  of  Suffolk  to  those  of  Norfolk, 
and  on  their  extension  inland,  with  some  observations  on  the 
period  of  the  final  elevation  and  denudation  of  the  Weald  and 
of  the  Thames  Valley,  Part  2,  by  Prof.  Joseph  Prestwich, 
F.R.S. — The  author  having,  in  the  first  part  of  this  paper 
(Proc.  Geol.  Soc,  June  5,  1889),  discussed  the  relationship  of 
the  Westleton  Beds  to  the  Crag  series  and  to  the  Glacial 
deposits,  proceeded  in  the  present  contribution  to  consider 
the  extension  of  the  Westleton  Beds  beyond  the  area  of  the  Crag, 
and  described  their  range  inland  through  Suffolk,  East,  West, 
and  South  Essex,  Middlesex,  North  and  South  Hertfordshire, 
South  Buckinghamshire,  and  North  and  South  Berkshire, 
noticing  their  relationship  to  the  overlying  Glacial  beds,  where 
these  were  developed,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  reposed 
upon  older  deposits.  He  gave  an  account  of  the  heights  of  the 
various  exposures  above  Ordnance  Datum,  and  mentioned 
the  relative  proportion  of  the  different  constituents  in  various 
sections,  thus  showing  that  in  their  southerly  and  westerly 
extension  they  differed  both  in  composition  and  in  mode  of 
distribution  from  the  Glacial  deposits.  Distinction  was  also 
made  between  the  Westleton  Beds  and  the  Brentwood  Beds. 
Attention  was  next  directed  to  the  occurrence  of  the  Westleton 
series,  south  of  the  Thames,  in  Kent,  Surrey,  and  Hamp- 
shire, and  their  possible  extension  into  Somersetshire  was 
inferred  from  the  character  of  the  deposits  on  Kingsdown  and  near 
Clevedon.  In  tracing  the  deposits  from  the  east  coast  to  che 
Berkshire  Downs,  the  author  noticed  that  at  the  former  place  the 
beds  lay  at  sea-level,  bat  ranging  inland,  they  gradually  rose  to 
heights  of  from  500  to  600  feet  ;  that  in  the  first  instance  they 
underlay  all  the  Glacial  deposits,  and  in  the  second  they  rose 
high  above  them,  and  their  seeming  subordination  to  the  Glacial 
series  altogether  disappeared  ;  thus  at  Braintree,  where  the 
Westleton  Beds  were  largely  developed,  they  stood  up  through 
the  Boulder-clay  and  gravel  which  wrapped  round  their  base, 
whilst  further  west,  where  they  became  diminished  to  mere 
shingle-beds,  they  attained  heights  of  from  350  to  400  feet,  capping 
London-clay  hills,  where  the  Boulder-clay  lay  from  80  to  100 
feet  lower  down  the  slopes,  the  difference  of  level  between  the 
two  deposits  becoming  still  greater  in  a  westerly  direction,  until 
finally  the  Boulder-clay  disappeared.  The  origin  of  the 
component  pebbles  of  the  beds  was  discussed,  and  their  de- 
rivation traced  (i)  to  the  beds  of  Woolwich  age  in  Kent, 
North  France  and  Belgium,  and  possibly  to  some  Diestian  beds, 
(2)  to  the  older  rocks  of  the  Ardennes,  (3)  to  the  Chalk  and  older 
drifts,  and  (4)  to  the  Lower  Greensand  of  Kent  and  Surrey,  or 
in  part  to  the  Southern  drift.  The  marine  nature  of  the  beds 
was  inferred  from  the  included  fossils  of  the  type-area,  and  the 
absence  of  these  elsewhere  accounted  for  by  decalcification. 
The  southward  extension  of  the  beds  was  shown  to  be  limited 
by  the  anticlinal  of  the  Ardennes  and  the  Weald,  and  the  scanty 
palasontological  evidence  of  the  nature  of  that  land  was  noted, 
and  the  possible  existence  of  the  Scandinavian  ice-sheet  to  the 
north  was  referred  to  in  connection  with  the  disappearance  of  the 


Jan.  9,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


239 


beds  in  that  direction.  From  the  uniform  character  of  the 
Westleton  shingles,  the  author  maintained  that  they  must  origin- 
ally have  been  formed  on  a  comparatively  level  sea-floor,  and 
that  the  inequalities  in  distribution  had  been  produced  by 
subsequent  differential  movement  to  the  extent  of  500  feet  or 
more  to  the  north  and  west  above  that  experienced  to  the  east 
and  south,  where  the  chronological  succession  remained  un- 
broken, also  that  the  inequalities  below  the  level  of  the  West- 
leton beds  had  been  produced  since  the  period  of  their  deposition, 
as,  for  instance,  the  gorge  of  the  Thames  at  Pangbourne  and 
Goring,  and  most  of  the  Preglacial  valleys  in  the  district  ; 
furthermore,  evidence  was  adduced  in  favour  of  the  formation  of 
the  escarpments  of  the  Chalk  and  Oolites  since  Westleton  times, 
whilst  certain  observations  supplied  data  for  estimation  of  the 
relative  amounts  of  pre-  and  post-glacial  denudation  of  the 
valleys.  It  was  stated,  in  conclusion,  that  the  time  for  the  vast 
amount  of  denudation  was  so  limited  that  it  was  not  easy  to 
realize  that  such  limits  could  suffice,  but  the  author  did  not  see 
how  the  conclusions  which  he  had  arrived  at  could  well  be 
avoided.  After  the  reading  of  this  paper  there  was  a  discussion, 
in  which  the  President,  Mr.  Topley,  Prof.  Hughes,  and  others 
took  part. 

Linnean  Society,  December  19,  1889. — Mr.  J.  G.  Baker, 
r.R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  P.  M.  Duncan  made 
some  supplementary  remarks  on  a  specimen  of  Hyaloneina  Sie- 
holdii,  which  he  had  exhibited  at  a  previous  meeting. — Mr.  W. 
Hatchett  Jackson  exhibited  and  gave  an  account  of  an  electric 
centipede  {Geophilus  electricus),  detailing  the  circumstances 
under  which  he  had  found  it  at  Oxford,and  the  results  of  experi- 
ments which  he  had  made  with  a  view  of  determining  the  nature 
and  properties  of  a  luminous  fluid  secreted  by  it.  This,  he 
found,  could  be  separated  from  the  insect,  and  could  be  com- 
municated by  it  to  every  portion  of  its  Integument.  An  inter- 
esting discussion  followed,  in  which  Mr.  Briese,  Mr.  A.  W. 
Bennett,  Prof.  Stewart,  Mr.  A.  D.  Michael,  Dr.  Collingwood, 
Mr.  Christy,  and  Mr.  J.  E.  Harting  took  part.  The  last-named 
speaker  pointed  out  that  the  observations  made  by  Mr.  W. 
Hatchett  Jackson  on  this  centipede  had  been  long  ago  antici- 
pated by  Dr.  Macartney  in  an  elaborate  paper  on  luminous 
insects  published  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions  for  18 10 
(vol.  c.  p.  277). — A  paper  was  then  read  by  Mr.  T.  Johnson  on 
Dictyopteris,  in  which  he  gave  a  detailed  account  of  the  life- 
history  of  this  brown  seaweed,  with  remarks  on  the  systematic 
position  of  the  Diciyotacca:.  Dr.  Scott,  Mr.  George  Murray, 
and  Mr.  A.  W.  Bennett  criticized  various  portions  of  the  paper, 
and  acknowledged  the  important  scientific  bearing  of  the  facts 
which  had  been  brought  out  by  Mr.  Johnson's  careful  and 
minute  researches. — In  the  absence  of  the  author,  Mr.  W.  P. 
Sladen  detailed  the  more  important  portions  of  a  paper  by  the 
Rev.  John  Gulick,  on  intensive  segregation  and  divergent  evolu- 
tion in  land  MoUusca  ;  a  paper  which  might  be  regai'ded  as  a 
continuation  and  amplification  of  the  views  which  the  same 
author  had  expressed  in  a  former  paper  published  in  the  Society's 
Journal  last  year  (vol  xx.,  Zool.,  pp.  189-274). 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  December  30,  1889.— M.  Hermite 
in  the  chair. — List  of  the  prizes  awarded  to  successful  competitors 
in  the  various  branches  of  science  during  the  year  1890: — Geo- 
metry :  Prix  Francoeur,  M.  Maximilien  Marie  ;  Prix  Poncelet, 
M.  Edouard  Goursat.  Mechanics :  Extraordinary  Prize  of  6000 
francs,  MM.  Caspari,  Clauzel,  and  Degouy,  2000  francs  each  ; 
Prix  Montyon,  M.  Gustave  Eiffel  ;  Prix  Plumey,  M.  Widmann. 
Ashonomy :  Prix  Lalande,  M.  Gonnessiat ;  Prix  Valz,  M.  Char- 
lois  ;  Prix  Janssen,  Mr.  Norman  Lockyer.  Physics  :  Prix  L. 
La  Caze,  M.  Hertz.  Statistics :  Prix  Montyon,  two  prizes 
awarded — one  to  the  late  M.  Petitdidier  and  M.  Lallemand,  the 
other  to  Dr.  F.  Lede.  Chemistry :  Prix  Jecker,  MM.  A. 
Combes,  R.  Engel,  and  A.  Verneuil ;  Prix  L.  La  Caze,  M.  F. 
M.  Raoult.  Geology :  Prix  Delesse,  M.  Michel  Levy.  Botany  : 
Prix  Desmazieres,  M.  E.  Breal  ;  Prix  Montagne,  MM.  Ch. 
Richon  and  Ern.  Roze ;  Prix  Thore,  MM,  de  Bosredon  and  de 
Ferry  de  la  Bellone.  Agriculture :  Prix  Vaillant,  M.  Ed.  Pril- 
lieux.  Anatomy  and  Zoology:  Grand  Prize  of  the  Medical 
Sciences,  MM.  L.  Felix  Henneguy  and  Louis  Roule.  Medicine 
and  Surgery :  Prix  Montyon,  three  prizes  were  awarded  to  M. 
A.  Charrin,  to  MM.  A.  Kelsch  and  P.  L.  Kiener,  and  to  M. 
Basile  Danilewsky,  respectively  ;  Prix  Breant,  M.  A.  Laveran  ; 
PrixBarbier,  MM.  M.  E.  Duval,  Ed.  Heckel,  and  F.  Schlagden- 


hauffen  ;  Prix  Godard,  M.  A.  Le  Dentu  ;  Prix  Lallemand,  M, 
Paul  Loye;  Prix  Bellion,  MM.  F.  Lagrange,  and  Laborde  and* 
Magnan ;  Prix  Mege,  Dr.  A.  Auvard.  Physiology :  Prix 
Montyon,  M.  A.  d'Arsonval  ;  Prix  L.  La  Caze,  M.  Francois 
Franck  ;  Prix  Pourat,  Dr.  Johannes  Gad  and  Dr.  J.  F.  Hey- 
mans  ;  Prix  Martin-Damourette,  M.  J.  V.  Laborde.  Physical 
Geography  :  Prix  Gay,  M.  Drake  del  Castillo.  General  Prizes : 
Prix  Montyon  (Unhealthy  Industries),  honourable  mention  of 
Dr.  Maxime  Randon ;  Prix  Tremont,  M.  Jules  Morin  ;  Prix 
Gegner  (Physiology),  M.  H.  Toussaint ;  Prix  Petit  d'Ormoy 
(Natural  Sciences),  M.  Jean  Henri  Fabre  ;  Prix  Petit  d'Ormoy 
(Mathematical  Sciences),  M.  Paul  Appell ;  Prix  Leconte 
(Chemical  Explosives),  M.  Paul  Vieille  ;  Prix  Laplace,  two 
prizes,  ex  aquo,  to  MM.  E.  A.  A.  Verlant  and  E.  Ch.  E.  Herscher. 
— The  following  prizes  were  proposed  for  the  year  1890  : — Grand 
Prize  of  the  Mathemathical  Sciences  :  To  perfect  in  any  im- 
portant point  the  theory  of  differential  equations  of  the  first 
order  and  of  the  first  degree.  Prix  Bordin  :  To  study  the  sur- 
faces whose  linear  element  may  be  reduced  to  the  form 

ds"-  =  [/[u)  -  <piv)]{du-  +  dv^). 

Prix  Francoeur  :  Inventions  or  works  tending  to  the  progress  of 
pure  and  applied  mathematics.  Prix  Poncelet :  The  author  of 
any  work  tending  most  to  further  the  progress  of  pure  and 
applied  mathematics.  Extraordinary  Prize  of  6000  francs  :  Any 
improvements  tending  to  increase  the  efficiency  of  the  French 
naval  forces.  Prix  Montyon  :  Mechanics.  Prix  Plumey  :  Im- 
provement of  steam-engines  or  any  other  invention  contributing, 
most  to  the  progress  of  steam  navigation.  Prix  Lalande : 
Astronomy.  Prix  Damoiseau  :  To  jperfect  the  theory  of  the 
long  periodical  irregularities  in  the  movement  of  the  moon  caused 
by  the  planets.  Prix  Valz  :  Astronomy.  Prix  Janssen  :  Physical 
Astronomy.  Prix  Montyon :  Statistics.  Prix  Jecker  :  Organic 
chemistry.  Prix  Fontannes  :  The  author  of  the  best  work  on 
palseontology.  Prix  Vaillant  :  Researches  on  the  agencies  that 
have  caused  the  foldings  in  the  terrestrial  crust — part  played  by- 
horizontal  displacements.  Prix  Gay  :  Orographic  study  of  any 
mountain  system  by  new  and  rapid  processes.  Prix  Barbier  : 
Any  valuable  [discovery  in  the  surgical,  medical,  or  pharma- 
ceutical sciences,  and  in  therapeutic  botany.  Prix  Desmazieres  r 
The  best  work  on  the  whole  or  any  part  of  the  Cryptogamic 
flora.  Prix  Montagne  :  The  authors  of  important  works  on  the 
anatomy,  physiology,  development,  or  description  of  the  lower 
Crytogamic  plants.  Prix  Thore  :  Works  on  the  cellular  Crypto- 
gams of  Europe,  and  on  the  habits  or  anatomy  of  any  species 
of  European  insect,  alternately.  Prix  Bordin  :  Comparative 
study  of  the  auditory  nerve  in  mammals  and  birds.  Prix 
Savigny :  For  young  zoological  travellers.  Prix  Serres :  On 
general  embryology  applied  as  far  as  possible  to  physiology 
and  medicine.  Prix  Dusgate  :  The  best  work  on  the  diagnosis 
of  death,  and  on  the  means  of  preventing  premature  burials. 
Prix  Montyon  :  Medicine  and  surgery.  Prix  Breant :  The  dis- 
covery of  a  certain  cure  for  Asiatic  cholera.  Prix  Godard  :  On 
the  anatomy,  physiology,  and  pathology  of  genito-urinary  organs. 
Prix  Lallemand :  Researches  on  the  nervous  system  in  the 
widest  sense  of  the  term.  Prix  Bellion  :  Works  or  discoveries 
serviceable  to  the  health  of  man  or  to  the  improvement  of  the 
human  species.  Prix  Mege  :  The  author  of  a  continuation  and 
completion  of  Dr.  Mege's  essay  on  the  causes  that  have  retarded 
or  favoured  the  advancement  of  medicine.  Prix  Montyon  : 
Experimental  physiology.  Prix  Pourat :  On  the  properties  and 
functions  of  the  nervous  cells  attached  to  the  organs  of  sense 
or  to  any  one  of  them.  Prix  Delalande-Guerineau :  For  the 
French  traveller  or  naturalist  who  shall  have  rendered  the  greatest 
service  to  France  or  to  science.  Prix  Jerome  Ponti  :  The  author 
of  any  scientific  work  the  continuation  or  development  of  which 
may  be  deemed  valuable  to  science.  Prix  Montyon  :  Unhealthy 
industries.  Prix  Tremont  :  For  any  naturalist,  artist,  or  mechanic 
needing  help  in  carrying  out  any  project  useful  or  glorious  for 
France.  Prix  Gegner  :  In  aid  of  any  savant  distinguished  by 
solid  work  done  towards  the  advancement  of  the  positive  sciences. 
Prix  Laplace  :  For  the  best  student  leaving  the  Ecole  Poly- 
technique. 

Berlin. 

Physical  Society,  December  20,  1889.— Prof  von  Helm- 
holtz.  President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Assmann  demonstrated  his 
aspiration  thermometers  and  psychrometers  after  having  first  ex- 
plained the  theory  and  construction  of  the  latter  (see  Nature, 
vol.  xxxvii.  p.  215,  and  vol.  xl.  p.  660).     He  first  dipped  oneof 


240 


NATURE 


[Jan.  9,  1890 


ihe  thermometers  into  warm  water  at  45°  C,  in  such  a  way  that 
its  external  metallic  envelopment  was  in  contact  with  the  water 
and  took  on  the  temperature  of  the  latter,  while  at  the  same  time 
aspiration  could  proceed  undisturbed.  When  the  clock-work 
was  not  set  in  motion  and  the  turbine  in  the  upper  part  of  the 
instrument  was  at  rest,  the  thermometer  indicated  a  temperature 
of  35°  C.  ;  but  as  soon  as  aspiration  was  started  by  setting  the 
clock-work  in  motion,  the  temperature  recorded  fell  to  22° '5  C, 
being  now  identical  with  that  indicatedby  a  second  thermometer 
not  immersed  in  water.  In  the  next  place,  a  series  of  experi- 
ments was  made  in  order  to  determine  the  rate  of  flow  of  the 
air  through  the  thermometer.  To  effect  this  the  thermometer 
was  attached  by  an  air-tight  joint  to  the  upper  end  of  a  glass 
<;ylrnder  whose  capacity  was  5  litres,  whose  interior  was  moistened 
with  soapy  water,  and  whose  lower  end  was  closed  with  a  soap- 
film.  On  setting  the  instrument  in  work  the  time  required  for 
the  aspiration  of  5  litres  of  air  was  measured  by  the  time  the 
soap-film  occupied  in  ascending  from  the  lower  to  the  upper  end 
of  the  cylinder.  The  speaker  showed  that  when  the  turbine  was 
in  motion  the  rate  of  flow  of  the  aspired  air  was  about  2'5  m. 
per  second  ;  when  in  addition  to  the  turbine  an  external  injector 
was  used,  the  velocity  rose  to  rather  more  than  3  m.  ;  when  the 
injector  alone  was  used  the  velocity  was  similarly  3  m.  The 
bellows  which  he  had  used  in  his  earlier  instruments  gave  a  very 
variable  and  much  slower  current  of  air.  Finally,  he  demon- 
strated the  action  of  the  instrument  when  employed  as  a 
psychrometer.  By  surrounding  the  thermometer  with  gauze  and 
moistening  the  latter  the  instrument  recorded  a  temperature  of 
1 8°  C,  while  at  the  same  time  a  similar  non-moistened  thermo- 
meter recorded  21°  C.  An  ordinary  psychrometer  which  was 
placed  in  close  proximity  to  the  other  indicated  21°  C.  with  the 
dry-bulb,  and  16°  C.  with  the  wet.  The  President  pointed  out 
that  when  determining  temperatures  with  an  aspiration  thermo- 
meter the  rarefaction  of  the  air  must  lead  to  a  slight  fall  of 
temperature,  which  is,  however,  partly  compensated  for  by  the 
friction  of  the  air.  Both  these  factors  can  be  calculated  from  the 
known  rate  of  flow  of  the  air. 

In  the  report  of  the  Berlin  Physical  Society,  NATURE, 
January  2,  p.  215,  in  the  fourth  line  from  the  bottom,  for 
*'  Society  "  read  "  Institute." 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  January  9. 

:RovAL  Society,  at  4.30. — New  Experiments  on  the  Question  of  the  Fixation 
of  Free  Nitrogen  (Preliminary  Notice):  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes,  Bart.,  F.R.S., 
and  Prof.  Gilbert,  F.R.S. — On  Electric  Discharge  between  Electrodes  at 
Different  Temperatures  in  Air  and  in  High  Vacua  ;  Prof.  J.  A.  Fleming. 
— A^Milk-dentition  in  Orycteropus  :  Oldfield  Thomas. 

Mathematical  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Deformation  of  an  Elastic  Shell : 
Prof.  H.  Lamb,  F.R.S.— On  the  Relation  between  the  Logical  Theory  of 
Classes  and  the  Geometrical  Theory  of  Points:  A.  B.  Kempe,  F.K.S. — 
On  the  Correlation  of  Two  Spaces,  each  of  Three  Dimensions  :  Dr.  Hirst, 
F.R.S. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3  —Electricity  (adapted  to  a  Juvenile  Auditory)  : 
Prof.  A.  W.  Rucker.  B'.R.S. 

/^j7/2>.4F,<'January  10. 
Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  8. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— The  Irrigation  Works  on 
the  Cauvery  Delta  ;  Alfred  Chatterton. 

SATURDAY,  January  ii. 
■Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Essex  Field  Club,  at  7.— The  Inter-Relations  of  the  Field  Naturalist's 
Knowledge  :   Prof.  J.  Logan  Lobley. 

SUNDAY,  January  12. 

S  JNDAT  Lecture  Society,  at  4.— Heroes  of  British  India  ;  the  Men  who 
Conquered,  Ruled,  and  Saved  it :  Willmott  Dixon.    . 

TUESDAY,  January  14. 

Zoological  Society,  at  8.30.— On  a  New  Species  of  Otter  from  the  Lower 
Pliocene  of  Eppelsheim  :  R.  Lydekker. — A  Complete  List  of  the  Sphinges 
and  Bombyces  known  to  occur  on  the  Nilgiri  Hills  of  Southern  India, 
with  Descriptions  of  New  Species  :  G.  F.  Hampson. — On  some  Cranial 
and  Dental  Characters  of  the  Domestic  Dog:  Prof.  Bertram  C.  A.  Windle 
and  John  Humphreys. — Fourth  Contribution  to  the  Herpetology  of  the 
Solomon  Islands  :  G.  A.  Boulenger. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — Recent  Dock  Extensions  at 
Liverpool :  George  Fosbery  Lyster. 


WEDNESDAY,  January  15. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. 
Royal   Meteorological  Society,   at  7.15 — Annual  General  Meeting.— 

Report  of  the  Council. — Election  of  Officers  and  Council. — Atmospheric 

Dust  (illustrated  by  Lantern  Slides)  :  Dr.  W.  Marcet.  F.R.S..  President.^ 
Entomological  Society,  at  7. — Annual  Meeting. — Election  of  the  Council 

and  Officers  for   1890. — Address   by  the   Right  Hon.    Lord  Walsingham, 

F.R.S.,  President. 
University  College  Chemical    and    Physical    Society,    at    4.30. — 

The  Magnetization  of  Iron  and  Nickel  ;  J.  J.  Stewart. 

THURSDAY,  J  a:^VARY  16. 
Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 
Linnean    Society,   at   8. — Life-History  of  a    Remarkable   Uredine     on 

Jasminum  grandiflora  :  A.  Barclay. — Certain  Protective  Provisions  in  some 

Larval  British  Teleosteans  :  E.  Prince. 

FRIDAY,  January  17. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. 
Physical  Societv,  at  5.— On  a  Carbon  Deposit    in  a  Blake  Telephone 

Transmitter  :  F.  B.  Hawes.— On  Electric  Splashes  :  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson. 

—On  Galvanometers :  Prof.  W.  E.    Ayrton,  F.R.S.,   T.   Mather,  and  W. 

E.  Sumpner. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Food  in  Health  and  Disease:  Dr.  J.  Burney  Yeo  (Cassell). — A  Guide 
for  the  Electric  Testing  of  Telegraph  Cables,  3rd  edition  :  Colonel  F. 
Hoskioer  (  Spon). — The  Educational  Annual,  1890;  E.  Johnson  (Philip). — 
Parallel  Translations  of  Lines  and  Surfaces,  2nd  edition :  D.  Maver 
(Aberdeen,  Brown). — Year-book  of  Pharmacy,  1889  (Churchill). — Natural- 
istic Photography,  and  edition  :  P.  H.  Emerson  (Low). — Warren's  Table 
and  Formula  Book:  Rev.  J.  Warren  (Longmans). — Bergens  Museums  Aars- 
beretning  for  188S  (Bergen).— Geological  M-^chanism  :  J.  L.  Wilson  (J. 
Heywood). — Bibliography  of  Meteorology,  Part  2,  Moisture  (Washing- 
ton).— Proceedings  of  the  Society  for  Psychical  Research,  Part  15  (Triib- 
ner). — Mind,iNo.  Ivii.  (Williams  and  Norgate). 

CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Zoological  Results  of  the  Challenger  Expedition    217 
The  Vertebrates  of  Leicestershire  and  Rutland.    By 

R.   L 220 

The  Scientific  Papers  of  Asa  Gray.    By  W.  Dotting 

Hemsley,  F.R.S 221 

Manures  and  their  Uses.     By  W 223 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Van  Beneden  :   "  Histoire  Naturelle  des  Cetaces  des 

Mers  d'Europe."— W.  H.  F 223 

Strasburger  and  Hillhouse  :  "  Hand-book  of  Practical 
Botany  for  the  Botanical   Laboratory  and    Private 

Student."— D.  H.  S 223 

Mascart  :  "  Traited'Optique."— Prof.  J.  D.  Everett, 

F.R.S .    224 

Moessard  :  *'  Bibliotheque  photographique  :  Le  Cylin- 

drographe,  Appareil  panoramique  " 224 

EissleV:   "  A  Hand-book  of  Modern  Explosives  "  .    .    224 
Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

The    Peltier    Effect,    and    Contact    E.M.F.— Prof, 

Oliver  J.  Lodge,  F.R.S 224 

Mirages. — Arthur  E.  Brown 225 

Self-luminous  Clouds.— C.  E.  Stromeyer 225 

The  Revised  Terminology  in  Cryptogamic  Botany. — 

Alfred  W.  Bennett 225 

Exact     Thermometry. -Dr.      Edmund    J.     Mills, 

F.R.S 227 

The   Palaeontological  Evidence  for  the  Transmis- 
sion of  Acquired  Characters.     By  Henry  Fairfield 

Osborn 227 

A  Field  laid  down  to   Permanent   Grass.     By  Sir  J. 

B.  Lawes,  F.R.S 229 

The  Total  Eclipse  of  December  22 229 

Notes      229 

Our  Astronomical  Column  : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope.— A.  Fowler 232 

Identity  of  Comet  Vico  (1844)  with  Brooks's  (1889)    .    233 

Observations  of  some  Suspected  Variables 233 

Spectrum  of  a  Metallic  Prominence 233 

Comet  Swift  (/ 1889,  November  17) 233 

Solar  Spots  and  Prominences 233 

Geographical  Notes 234 

The  Anniversary  of  the  Royal  Society.  By  Sir  G.  G. 

Stokes,   M.P.,  P.R.S 234 

Hail-storms  in  Northern  India 236 

Scientific  Serials 237 

Societies  and  Academies 237 

Diary  of  Societies •    •     •    240 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 240 


NA TURE 


24l 


THURSDAY,  JANUARY  i6,  1890. 


THE  NEW  MUZZLING  REGULATIONS. 

\  N  essential  fault  of  popular  government  is  in  danger 
■i  »-  of  being  exemplified  just  now  by  the  possibility  of 
the  selfish  interests  of  a  few  individuals  attracting  favour- 
able attention,  in  utter  opposition  to  the  true  interests  of 
the  nation  at  large. 

A  very  reprehensible  leading  article  which  appeared  in 
the  Standard  or\.  the  4th  inst.,  to  which  we  shall  presently 
refer  in  fuller  detail,  has  started  an  agitation  in  the  home 
counties,  especially  in  Kent,  in  opposition  to  the  valuable 
regulations  recently  issued  by  Mr.  Chaplin  against 
hydrophobia  or  rabies. 

It  is  not  uninstructive  to  review  the  way  in  which  the 
issue  of  these  regulations  has  been  brought  about,  while 
it  is  a  matter  of  painful  interest  to  compare  our  position 
in  England,  as  regards  the  prevalence  of  rabies,  with  that 
of  some  of  the  more  advanced  nations  on  the  Continent. 

Before  M.  Pasteur  began  his  wonderful  researches  into 
rabies,  the  vast  majority,  even  of  the  highly  instructed 
public,  regarded  hydrophobia  as  a  kind  of  Divine  visita- 
tion, and  rabies  as  a  form  of  canine  lunacy.  Legislation, 
in  the  absence  of  that  which  has  so  frequently  been  called 
with  a  double  meaning  "  a  healthy  despotism,"  necessarily 
lagged  behind  in  the  arrest  of  what  everyone  now  knows 
to  be  a  simple  zymotic  disease,  which,  enzootic  in  Eng- 
land, becomes,  by  steady  increase  during  every  few  years 
of  unchecked  development,  both  epizootic  and  unfortu- 
nately epidemic. 

The  first  advance  towards  rational  prevention  of  the 
trouble  was  made  in  London  in  1885-86  by  the  Chief 
Commissioner  of  Police,  first  by  Sir  E.  Henderson,  after- 
wards by  Sir  Charles  Warren. 

The  result  of  their  work  is  well  known — namely,  the 
temporary  extirpation  of  rabies  in  London.  In  a  country 
with  more  respect  for  scientific  fact,  such  a  benefit  to  the 
community  would  have  been  followed  by  the  general 
establishment  of  preventive  legislation  throughout  the 
centres  of  the  disease,  so  as  to  arrest  it  completely  ;  and 
this  having  been  effected,  the  adoption  of  proper  quaran- 
tine measures  would  alone  of  course  have  been  required 
to  free  us  for  ever  from  the  evil  by  preventing  its  re- 
introduction  from  abroad. 

Partly  owing  to  the  fact  that,  until  the  most  wise  estab- 
lishment by  the  present  Government  of  a  General  Board 
of  Agriculture,  there  was  no  special  authority  for  moving 
in  the  matter,  no  such  general  action  wasjtaken.  Lord 
Cranbrook,  however,  was  earnestly  convinced  of  the  im- 
portance of  the  subject,  and  conferred  a  lasting  benefit  on 
all  those  interested  in  it  by  appointing  that  Select  Com- 
mittee of  the  House  of  Lords  whose  Report  and  evidence 
not  only  furnished  a  complete  and  exhaustive  account  of 
rabies,  but  also  strongly  emphasized  the  necessity  of  the 
adoption  of  thorough  legislative  measures,  especially  of 
muzzling,  to  prevent  and  eradicate  the  malady. 

In  the  meanwhile,  rabies  in  dogs,  and  of  course  con- 
currently its  fatal  attacks  on  men,  steadily  increased,  until 
the  spring  of  last  year  (1889)  saw  us  threatened  again  in 
London  with  an  epidemic  like  that  of  1885. 

All  the  large  dog-owners  and  breeders  who  had  experi- 
VoL.  XLi.— No.  1055. 


enced  the  manifest  value  of  the  regulations  of  1885  called 
for  the  reinstitution  of  the  muzzle,  and  at  the  present  time 
the  Field,  Fancier's  Gazette,  &c.,  afford  strong  proof,  in 
the  earnestness  of  their  expressions  of  satisfaction  at  the 
present  muzzling  order,  of  the  folly  of  their  contemporary 
who  has  endeavoured  to  oppose  it. 

Of  course,  as  before,  a  few  agitators,  trading  on  the 
innate  selfishness  of  some  natures,  and  supported  by  the 
money  of  a  small  band  of  individuals  whose  names  should 
be  for  ever  preserved  as  having  sought  to  work  harm  to 
their  fellow-creatures,  recommenced  their  irresponsible 
attacks  on  the  authorities  and  others  for  this  much-needed 
sanitary  regulation,  and  it  is  a  recrudescence  of  this  selfish 
obstruction  which  the  Standard  has  attempted  for  some 
(as  yet  unknown)  reason  to  revive. 

An  amusing,  if  degrading  feature  of  such  opposition  is 
the  constant  change  of  front  which  the  inevitable  progress 
of  scientific  truth  forces  upon  these  people,  as  their  mis- 
statements and  ignorance  become  revealed  to  the  public. 
At  different  stages  of  the  agitation,  their  leaders.  Miss 
Cobbe,  "  Ouida,"  and  others,  have  stated  with  inexplicable 
self-contradiction,  that  no  such  disease  as  rabies  existed, 
that  it  was  wholly  imaginary,  that  it  was  rare  in  England, 
that  the  police  ran  no  risks  in  extirpating  it,  that  the 
muzzle  produced  this  (non-existent)  disease,  and  so  on  to 
the  end  of  the  chapter.  But  while  the  logical  difficulties 
in  which  these  writers  involve  themselves  must  excite 
amusement,  it  is  a  matter  of  serious  regret  that  they  cannot 
be  legally  dealt  with  like  other  disseminators  of  false 
news,  such  for  instance  as  those  who  in  the  wilderness  of 
the  "  great  gooseberry  season  "  cry  "  'orrible  murder  " 
when  homicide  is  pro  tern,  non-existent.  The  evil  done 
by  these  latter  is  indeed  small,  compared  with  that  of  the 
far  graver  false  statements  which  we  have  cited  above. 

In  spite,  however,  of  this  flood  of  misrepresentations 
the  muzzling  regulations  were  enforced  in  London,  and 
with  notable  benefit,  and  by  the  recent  order  they  have 
been  continued  and  extended  by  Mr.  Chaplin,  so  as  to  cut 
right  at  the  root  of  the  evil,  viz.  in  all  the  centres  of  the 
disease  simultaneously. 

It  was  with  the  consciousness  that  this  measure  would 
be  required  by  the  country  of  the 'President  of  the  Board 
of  Agriculture,  that  the  anti-muzzlites  made  a  last  effort 
against  it  by  holding  a  public  meeting.  The  real  nature 
of  this  agitation,  which  had  been  notorious  from  the  com- 
mencement, was  then  made  most  amusingly  conspicuous. 
We  refer  to  the  fact  that  this  variety  of  obstruction  is  in 
truth  only  a  branch  of  the  anti-vivisectionist  agitation,  and 
worthy  of  such  a  parent  stem.  It  seems  that  at  the  meeting 
an  atnendment  in  strong  support  of  muzzling  was  carried 
by  a  majority  of  something  like  80  per  cent.  The  fact 
of  the  origin  of  the  Association  which  had  summoned  the 
meeting  having  been  alluded  to,  the  Chairman,  the  Bishop 
of  Ely,  first  (we  are  glad  to  see)  repudiated  the  idea  that 
he  was  an  anti-vivisectionist,  and  then  went  on  to  say 
that  the  anti-vivisectionists  had  nothing  to  do  with  the 
anti-muzzling  agitation.  This  repudiation  on  the  Bishop's 
part  was  followed  by  the  resignation  of  the  originators  of 
the  movement,  Miss  Cobbe  and  others,  demonstrating  the 
truth  of  what  we  have  just  said  and  the  inaccuracy  of  the 
Bishop's  second  statement. 

The  general  facts  bearing  upon  the  origin  and  develop- 
ment of  the  agitation  were  fully  exposed  at  the  meeting, 

u 


242 


NATURE 


\jfan.  16,  1890 


so  that  the  strong  expression  of  opinion  in  favour  of  the 
muzzling  regulations  (in  conjunction  with  the  dis- 
ihgenuousness  of  the  argument  of  their  opponents)  is 
easily  understood. 

From  a  survey  of  the  known  behaviour  of  animals 
affected  with  rabies,  and  in  accordance  with  the  measures 
customarily  adopted  in  dealing  with  infection  among 
animals,  where  as  in  the  present  case  it  is  not  desirable 
to  interfere  with  their  free  movement  from  place  to  place, 
Mr.  Chaplin  declared  a  number  of  counties  as  infected, 
taking  areas  around  to  provide  sufficient  margin  against 
conveyance  of  contagion. 

It  is  this  wise  and  carefully-designed  attempt  to  stamp 
out  the  disease,  which  the  Standard,  alone  in  the  Press, 
has  attacked  in  the  most  unmeasured  language.  Having 
no  "  case  '^  from  the  scientific  and  medical  stand-point, 
the  editor  through  his  leader-writers  abuses  his  opponent's 
attorney  (if  Mr.  Chaplin  will  forgive  the  simile).  The 
Conservatives  in  Kent  are  positively  called  upon  by  the 
leading  daily  paper  of  their  party  to  vote  against  their 
own  Government,  and  why?  Because  they  are  asked  to 
help  stamp  out  rabies ;  and  at  what  cost  ?  it  may  be 
asked.     None  save  that  of  the  hire  of  a  muzzle. 

This  is  where  the  difficulty  of  our  kind  of  Government 
arises.  Because  a  solitary  voice  in  the  Press  objects  to  a 
sanitary  measure,  which  has  nothing  whatever  to  do  with 
politics,  ill-feeling  is  to  be  aroused  among  the  voters.  It 
is,  however,  satisfactory  to  add  that  possibly  no  such 
attempt  on  the  part  of  any  journal  has  ever  met  with  such 
a  chilling  reception  from  the  rest  of  its  contemporaries— 
those  who  have  not  refrained  from  observations  on  the 
matter  having  only  mentioned  it  to  utterly  condemn  it. 

A  sanitary  question,  to  our  mind,  becomes  a  question  of 
moral  right  or  wrong  when  the  means  proposed  for  its 
solution  involve  nothing  beyond  a  little  reasonable  trouble, 
and  it  is  this  view  of  the  matter  which  we  fancy  finally 
crystallizes  out  in  the  form  of  what  is  called  public 
opinion.  After  the  process  of  the  actual  experience  of 
the  last  five  years,  public  opinion  is  evidently  set  in  the 
direction  of  preventing  hydrophobia  by  muzzling.  It  is 
of  course  impossible  that  Mr.  Chaplin  should  yield  to 
this,  the  first  abusive  attack  that  has  been  made  upon  him 
in  his  official  capacity,  but  certainly  if  anything  should 
support  him,  it  is  the  cognizance  of  the  unworthiness  of 
the  opposition  which  the  Standard  has  fomented  against 
his  action  in  the  service  of  the  community. 

We  should  wish  in  conclusion  to  direct  attention  to 
certain  obvious  deductions  which  can  justly  be  drawn 
from  the  history  of  this  matter,  and  other  events  con- 
nected with  the  subject  of  rabies. 

Both  the  prevention  and  the  cure  of  this  horrible 
zymotic  malady  are  the  outcome  of  close  scientific  experi- 
mental work.  It  was  reserved  for  M.  Pasteur  to  make 
clear  and  harmonize  the  various  stages  (always  obscure 
and  apparently  contradictory  at  first)  of  our  knowledge 
by  the  immense  progress  he  inaugurated  and  carried  out 
in  the  study  of  infection. 

It  is  M.  Pasteur  who  himself  has  pointed  out  better 
than  anyone  how  the  disease  can  be  prevented  from  attack- 
ing man  or  animals,  and  he  is  the  first  who  has  shown 
in  the  slightest  degree  how  it  can  be  prevented  from 
developing  in  the  system  after  it  has  gained  access  to  the 
body. 


The  nineteenth  century,  however,  affords  no  shelter  to 
the  man  of  science  to  discover  benefits  for  his  fellow- 
men,  for  although  the  progress  of  knowledge  has  fortu- 
nately destroyed  the  Inquisition,  yet  society  tolerates 
the  existence  of  the  anti-vivisectionist  agitation,  which  not 
only  scatters  broadcast  the  foulest  and  falsest  aspersions  on 
such  a  man's  life  and  character,  but  in  its  most  recent 
development  violently  opposes  the  advance  of  hygiene. 


POLYTECHNICS  FOR  LONDON. 

WHETHER  or  not  the  London  County  Council 
comes  to  the  wise  decision  to  utilize  the  pro- 
visions of  the  new  Technical  Instruction  Act,  it  is  prob- 
able that  for  the  most  part  Londoners  will  have  to  look  for 
intermediate  and  higher  technical  instruction  to  other 
agencies  than  rate-aided  schools,  at  all  events  in  the 
immediate  future.  In  these  matters  London  is  in  an 
exceptional  position  as  the  capital  of  the  Empire.  In 
the  first  place,  it  is  the  natural  home  of  the  Normal 
Schools  of  Science  and  Art  which  form  part  of  the 
machinery  of  the  Science  and  Art  Department.  And, 
besides  this,  it  is  the  centre  of  greatest  activity  of  the 
organization  of  the  City  and  Guilds  Institute,  whose  three 
model  Colleges  are  all  situated  within  the  metropolitan 
area. 

The  proportion,  however,  of  the  inhabitants  of  London 
whose  education  is  affected  by  these  higher  institutions 
is  necessarily  small.  The  Government  schools  are  im- 
perial rather  than  local,  and  their  situation  is  chosen 
regardless  of  the  industrial  needs  of  London  The 
Central  Institution  of  the  City  and  Guilds  likewise 
belies  its  name  by  its  situation  at  South  Kensington. 
The  other  two  schools  of  the  City  and  Guilds,  at  Fins- 
bury  and  Kennington,  have  a  direct  and  most  important 
relation  to  surrounding  industries,  and  keep  high  the 
standard  of  what  teaching  in  applied  science  and  art 
ought  to  be.  But  teaching  of  this  high  order  is  very 
expensive,  though  the  fees  charged  may  be  low,  and  of 
recent  years  a  newer  and  more  popular  movement  has 
sprung  up,  aiming  at  a  lower  standard  of  instruction 
carried  on  at  less  cost,  and  adapted,  so  far  as  practicable, 
to  the  benefit  of  the  mass  of  working  men. 

The  best  type  of  such  institutions  in  London  is  the 
so-called  "  Polytechnic  "  in  Regent  Street.  The  basis  of 
the  organization  is  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Institute 
started  some  years  ago  by  Mr,  Quintin  Hogg,  Round 
this  nucleus  he  has  gradually  built  up  an  institution  in 
which  evening  classes,  recreation,  and  gymnastics  have 
all  a  part.  Under  his  guidance  the  Institute  has  grown 
to  great  dimensions,  and  a  number  of  very  largely-attended 
classes  of  all  kinds  are  now  conducted  in  the  building 
which  for  many  years  was  occupied  by  the  "  Polytechnic  " 
of  the  diving-bell  and  Prof.  Pepper.  Many  of  the  classes 
are  in  general  and  commercial  subjects,  but  there  are 
science  and  art  classes  in  connection  with  South  Ken- 
sington, technological  classes  in  connection  with  the  City 
and  Guilds  Institute,  and  trade  and  practical  classes  in 
various  industries  and  handicrafts.  The  greater  part  are 
held  in  the  evening,  but  there  are  also  day  classes ;  and 
day  schools  for  boys  and  girls  are  attached  to  the  institu- 
tion. 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  experiment  in  technical  educa- 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


NATURE 


243 


tion  differs  very  materially  in  plan  from  that  of  such  an  in- 
stitution as  Finsbury  College.  The  educational  side  of  the 
Polytechnic  does  not  form  an  organized  school  course 
so  much  as  a  set  of  classes  among  which  a  student  may 
choose,  and  the  standard  aimed  at  is  not  so  high.  But 
there  is  this  obvious  advantage  in  taking  the  Polytechnic 
as  a  model  for  similar  institutions  that  the  instruction,  so 
far  as  it  goes,  is  far  less  costly  than  at  Finsbury,  being 
largely  subsidized  by  science  and  art  grants. 

The  example  of  the  Polytechnic  has  been  recently  fol- 
lowed, with  a  certain  amount  of  success,  at  the  People's 
Palace  in  Mile  End,  where  the  Drapers'  Company  have 
devoted  the  funds  which  they  have  withdrawn  from  the 
City  and  Guilds  Institute  to  building  and  endpwing  a 
school  somewhat  on  the  Polytechnic  lines. 

While  these  institutions  have  been  developing,  the 
Charity  Commissioners  have  been  engaged  in  pursuance 
of  Mr.  Bryce's  Act  of  1883  in  framing  a  scheme  for  the 
application  of  the  funds  of  the  City  parochial  charities 
for  the  benefit  of  the  working  classes  of  greater  London. 
The  Commissioners  came  early  to  the  determination 
to  devote  a  large  proportion  of  the  proceeds  of  the  chari- 
ties to  some  educational  purpose,  and  decided  further  that 
the  main  direction  of  the  educational  institutions  thus 
established  should  be  technical  and  industrial. 

It  is  not  our  purpose  to  enter  at  all  into  the  questions 
that  have  been  raised  as  to  the  mode  of  division  of  the 
endowment  between  secular  and  ecclesiastical  purposes, 
or  the  wisdom  of  tying  up  the  greater  part  of  the  dis- 
posable funds  in  perpetuity.  There  are  plenty  of  keen 
observers  who  will  make  their  views  felt  on  these  questions; 
and  indeed  many  champions  of  other  schemes,  such  as 
the  promotion  of  open  spaces,  are  already  in  the  field. 
But  we  must  regard  the  main  object  to  which  the  funds 
will  be  devoted  as  practically  decided.  The  Charity 
Commissioners  gave  notice  of  it  in  their  last  Report,  and 
little  exception  seemed  then  to  be  taken  to  the  project. 
Since  then  large  sums  of  money  have  been  raised  by 
local  subscriptions  on  the  faith  of  the  proposal.  It  is  too 
late  now  to  advocate  the  application  of  the  main  part  of 
the  fund  to  any  other  object  than  education,  and  those 
who  are  agitating  for  such  a  change  are,  in  our  opinion, 
wasting  their  powder  and  shot. 

But  while  the  public  is  easily  induced  to  join  in  a 
general  outcry  which,  if  it  has  any  justification,  certainly 
comes  far  too  late,  it  is  quite  possible  that,  unless  vigilant 
care  is  exercised,  the  final  scheme  may  come  into  force 
without  those  alterations  and  improvements  in  detail 
which  seem  individually  of  small  importance,  but  may 
make  all  the  difference  between  a  good  and  a  bad  scheme 
of  technical  education  for  London.  The  funds  handled 
are  far  larger  than  those  authorized  to  be  raised  for  the 
whole  of  Wales  under  the  new  Intermediate  Education 
Act.  It  behoves  all  friends  of  education  to  take  care 
that  these  large  endowments  are  used  aright. 

Let  us  glance,  then,  at  the  main  outline  of  the  scheme 
so  far  as  it  relates  to  technical  education.  The  Com- 
missioners were  instructed  under  the  Act  to  make  pro- 
vision for  the  "  poorer  classes."  Consequently  any 
technical  schools  established  or  aided  under  the  scheme 
must  aim  directly  at  the  benefit  of  the  workman  rather 
than  that  of  the  manager. 

The  Commissioners  propose   to    devote   large  capital 


grants  to  the  erection  of  technical  and  recreative  institutes 
in  various  parts  of  London,  somewhat  on  the  model  of 
the  Regent  Street  Polytechnic,  and  to  give  a  permanent 
endowment  to  these  institutes,  as  well  as  to  the  Poly- 
technic and  the  People's  Palace  already  in  existence. 
Each  institute  is  to  be  governed  under  a  scheme,  devised 
by  the  Charity  Commission,  and  is  to  be  subject  to  the 
general  control  of  a  Central  Governing  Body  of  Trustees. 

The  objects  of  the  institutes  are  threefold.  They  are 
to  bs  social  centres,  where  concerts  and  entertainments 
may  be  given,  and  where  outside  clubs  and  working  men's 
societies  may  have  an  opportunity  of  meeting  ;  they  are 
to  include  young  men's  and  young  women's  institutes 
for  social  and  recreative  purposes,  open  to  "  young 
persons "  between  the  ages  of  sixteen  and  twenty-five  ; 
and  lastly,  they  are  to  provide  for  the  educational  wants  of 
the  working  classes  in  the  neighbourhood.  Libraries, 
museums,  swimming-baths,  and  gymnasia  will  form  part 
of  the  equipment  of  most  of  these  institutions. 

It  is  with  the  educational  work  of  these  "  Polytechnics  " 
that  we  are  here  most  directly  concerned.  But  their 
educational  and  social  sides  must  be  very  closely  linked  • 
together,  and  the  success  of  the  classes  will  largely 
depend  on  the  success  of  the  institute  as  a  whole.  En- 
trance to  the  clubs  may,  under  the  scheme,  be  made  con- 
tingent on  entrance  to  the  classes,  as  is  now  the  case  at  the 
People's  Palace,  though  such  a  course  seems  to  us  to  be  un- 
wise. In  any  case  we  must  not  pass  over  the  social  side  of 
the  institutes  without  a  word.  The  Young  Men's  Institute 
at  the  Polytechnic  has  been  a  great  success,  but  it  haS' 
been  a  growth  of  time,  and  it  has  grown  round  the  nucleus 
of  the  Y.M.C.A.  The  social  Institute  at  the  People's  Palace 
has  sprung  suddenly  into  existence,  without  the  pre-existing 
nucleus ;  it  is  admitted  to  have  been  a  failure,  and  is 
now  suppressed.  Can  the  lesson  be  mistaken  t  Doubt- 
less the  Charity  Commissioners  are  alive  to  the  difficulty. 
Their  detailed  regulations  for  the  management  of  an  insti- 
tute, of  which  the  draft  has  been  published,  are,  in  the 
main,  carefully  drawn.  But  those  who  hope  that  the 
scheme  will  result  in  the  growth  of  a  number  of  Palaces 
of  Delight  which  will  delight  Mr.  Walter  Besant's  heart 
will  be  doomed  to  disappointment.  There  will  be  no 
"  People's  Palaces  " — only  "  Young  People's  Institutes." 
The  present  People's  Palace  will  be  constrained  to  con- 
fine its  membership  in  future  to  persons  between  the 
ages  of  sixteen  and  twenty-five.  Why  this  limita- 
tion ?  We  see  with  pleasure  that  the  Goldsmiths'  Com- 
pany, who  are  founding  an  institute  at  New  Cross  on 
somewhat  the  same  model  as  those  proposed  by  the 
scheme,  have  struck  out  the  upper  limit.  There  are  far 
too  many  of  these  restrictions  in  the  scheme.  For 
example,  smoking  and  dancing  are  (the  latter  with  certain 
specified  exceptions)  forbidden.  Surely  details  such  as 
these  can  be  left  to  the  by-laws  of  the  several  institutes. 
Here,  again,  the  Goldsmiths'  Company  have  shown  them- 
selves in  advance  of  the  Charity  Commission. 

We  have  a  similar  criticism  to  make  on  the  whole  of 
the  educational  scheme.  There  is  too  little  guidance  in 
matters  of  principle,  too  much  restriction  in  matters  of 
detail. 

Perhaps  the  most  important  thing  to  ensure  is  that  the 
Central  Governing  Body  shall  be  a  strong  body,  exercising 
effective  supervision   over  the   teaching   of  the   various 


244 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  1 6,  1890 


institutes.  Its  official  name  ("Trustees  of  the  City- 
Parochial  Charities  ")  is  unfortunate  ;  it  has  too  much  of 
a  flavour  of  Mr.  Bumble's  "porochial"  office.  It  would 
require  an  Act  of  Parliament  to  change  the  name,  so  the 
best  thing  to  do  is  to  let  it  be  forgotten.  The  Central 
Governing  Body  (for  so  let  us  call  it)  is  to  be  representa- 
tive of  the  Crown,  the  City  Corporation,  the  County 
Council,  the  higher  Colleges  and  University  of  London, 
the  Ecclesiastical  Commissioners  (temporarily),  and  the 
Governing  Bodies  of  the  Bishopsgate  and  Cripplegate 
Foundations.  No  one  can  forecast  the  action  of  such  a 
hybrid  body  until  we  know  the  actual  men  who  are  to  be 
nominated.  A  very  efficient  educational  body  might  be 
elected  as  proposed,  and  on  the  other  hand  it  mightn't. 
It  is  to  be  hoped  that  one  of  the  blots  on  the  constitution  of 
the  Board — the  absence  of  working-men  representatives — 
will  be  partly  corrected  by  the  inclusion  of  some  working- 
men  leaders  among  the  five  Crown  nominees.  But  it  is 
impossible  to  resist  the  conviction  that  the  suggested 
constitution— suitable  enough  to  the  time  when  the  Act 
was  passed  and  London  had  no  organized  system  of  local 
government— has  far  too  little  of  the  popular  element, 
and  that  it  would  be  far  better  to  put  the  whole  manage- 
ment of  the  scheme  in  the  hands  of  the  County  Council, 
or  a  joint  committee  of  the  County  Council  and  School 
Board. 

Supposing  that  the  Central  Body  is  all  that  could  be 
wished,  the  next  thing  to  ensure  is  the  satisfactory  com- 
position of  the  governing  bodies  of  the  various  institutes, 
and  their  organic  connection  with  the  Central  Body.  It 
is  essential  that  the  schemes  shall  be  so  arranged  that  the 
educational  programme  of  all  the  institutes  shall  pass 
through  the  hands  of  competent  experts,  and  the 
educational  work  shall  be  adequately  supervised,  in- 
spected, and  revised,  from  time  to  time.  The  Charity 
Commissioners  propose  two  methods  of  attaining  this 
result.  They  give  three  nominations  on  each  governing 
Board  to  the  Central  Governing  Body,  and  these  three  mem- 
bers may  be  experts,  though  of  this  there  is  no  guarantee. 
Further,  the  secretary  of  each  institute  is  required  to  send 
to  the  secretary  of  the  Central  Governing  Body  a  com- 
plete list  of  proposed  classes  a  week  before  each  term- 
This  is  presumably  intended  to  give  a  power  of  sugges- 
tion, if  not  revision,  to  the  Central  Body,  but  what  is  the 
use  of  suggestions  a  week  before  term  ?  What  is  wanted 
is  a  central  committee  of  well-known  experts  to  advise 
the  Central  Governing  Body  on  educational  matters. 
The  committee  should  be  small — say  three  scientific  and 
three  artistic  representatives.  They  should  be  paid  for 
their  services,  and  should  be  in  touch  with  the  science 
and  art  divisions  of  every  institute. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  scheme  to  prevent  the  appoint- 
ment of  such  a  Committee,  though  it  would  be  well  if 
some  distinct  suggestion  of  the  kind  were  made.  In  any 
case  it  is  a  matter  to  be  borne  in  mind  and  pressed  when 
the  time  comes,  for  it  may  make  all  the  difference  in  the 
world  to  the  future  of  technical  education  in  London. 
Let  us  be  frank  about  the  matter.  How  many  men  are 
likely  in  any  given  district  to  be  on  the  governing  body 
of  the  local  institute  who  know  the  difference  between 
good  teaching  and  bad  ?  And  yet  no  scheme,  however 
admirably  drawn,  will  produce  a  good  technical  school, 
unless  it  is  worked  by  such  men.     On  the  other  hand. 


with  a  first-rate  governing  body  we  have  little  fear. 
Payment  by  results  will  lose  most  of  its  terrors  if  those 
in  power  know  the  difference  between  the  incompetence 
which  cannot  earn  grants,  and  the  independence  which 
prefers  real  teaching  to  cram.  And  we  may  add  that  it 
is  only  by  associating  with  the  governing  body  members 
engaged  in  local  industries  that  the  practical  character 
of  the  trade  classes  can  be  assured. 

So  much  for  the  machinery.  We  must  next  say  a  word 
about  the  character  of  the  instruction  to  be  aimed  at  in 
the  institutions.  It  is  to  be  mainly  technical,  and  hence 
must  be  adapted  to  the  special  needs  of  each  locality. 
It  is  by  this  time  a  truism  to  say  that  this  adaptation  will 
not  be  brought  about  by  allowing  a  set  of  science  and 
art  teachers  to  take  the  line  of  least  resistance  through  the 
South  Kensington  Directory  to  the  goal  of  the  maximum 
of  grant.  A  lady  is  reported  to  have  lately  obtained  a 
silver  medal  for  agriculture  at  a  London  institution  which 
the  Charity  Commissioners  are  proposing  to  endow.  Is 
this  adaptation  to  local  needs  and  industries  ? 

We  wish  sincerely  that  those  responsible  for  the  whole 
scheme  had  been  able  to  arrange  for  exceptional  treat- 
ment of  the  new  institutes  in  the  matter  of  the  appor- 
tionment of  the  Government  grant  now  paid  on  results. 
No  better  opportunity  is  likely  to  present  itself  for  an 
experiment  in  basing  grant  on  efficient  inspection  rather 
than  on  examination.  But  what  chance  is  there  of  such 
a  proposal  when  our  Government  departments  responsible 
for  public  education  are  cut  u  p  into  air-tight  compartments 
without  connection  among  themselves  ?  The  Charity 
Commission,  the  Education  Department,  and  the  Science 
and  Art  Department  still  form  a  great  circumlocution  office, 
and  until  this  is  altered  abuses  will  continue,  which  it  is 
nobody's  business  to  remedy.  Our  great  hope,  therefore,  de- 
pends on  the  choice  of  the  principals,  teachers,  secretaries, 
inspectors,  and  governing  bodies,  who  will  make  or  mar 
the  institutes  through  which,  for  many  years,  Londoners 
will  derive  their  technical  instruction.  Let  them  be  en- 
lightened men,  with  broad  views  and  sympathies,  who 
know  their  business,  or  at  least  know  their  limitations, 
and  all  may  be  well.  But  if  not,  it  were  better  that  the 
whole  scheme  were  put  in  the  fire. 

What,  again,  is  to  be  the  scope  of  the  instruction  ?  Is  it 
to  be  mainly  confined  to  the  level  of  "  elementary  "  science 
and  "  second-grade  "  art  ?  Or  are  there  to  be  advanced 
classes  in  more  specialized  subjects  ?  Provision  is  made 
for  such  classes  in  the  scheme  if  they  can  be  arranged 
without  trenching  on  the  endowment.  The  Commis- 
missioners  are  probably  afraid  of  misapplying  funds  in- 
tended for  the  poor  to  the  benefit  of  the  middle  classes. 
There  is  justice  in  their  objection,  but  such  instruction 
can  never  be  made  self-supporting,  and  it  is  most  im- 
portant that  it  should  be  included  in  the  programme  of 
the  institutes,  if  only  to  keep  the  standard  high  throughout. 
Here  is  theri  an  opportunity  for  the  City  and  Guilds 
Institute.  Let  it  relieve  itself  of  the  charge  of  its  examina- 
tions, which  may  now  be  transferred  on  equitable  terms  to 
the  Science  and  Art  Department  under  the  provisions  of 
the  Technical  Instruction  Act,  and  let  it  also  transfer  to 
the  Government  the  Central  Institution,  the  geographical 
situation  of  which  marks  it  out  plainly  as  an  adjunct 
rather  than  a  rival  to  the  Normal  School,  and  let  it  apply 
the  energy  thus  liberated  in  establishing  in  every  "  Poly- 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


NATURE 


245 


technic "  a  higher  department,  providing  for  the  more 
specialized  wants  of  each  locality.  This  will  be  a  work 
which  no  body  is  so  well  fitted  to  undertake  as  the  great 
Institute  which  has  been  a  pioneer  in  higher  technical 
instruction.  Such,  it  appears  to  us,  is  the  true  solution  of 
the  question  of  the  relations  between  the  Charity  Com- 
missioners' scheme  and  the  City  and  Guilds  of  London. 

One  word  of  caution  in  conclusion.  The  new  institutes 
should  be  allowed  to  grow,  and  not  be  started  on  too 
ambitious  a  scale  at  first.  Local  wants  change,  and  the 
institutes  should  develop  in  harmony  with  their  changes. 
This  is  the  lesson  of  the  old  Mechanics'  Institutes  and 
Athenseums.  The  lesson  is  repeated  in  the  newer  experi- 
ments of  Mr.  Hogg's  Polytechnic,  and  the  People's  Palace. 
We  do  not  want  to  begin  with  erecting  huge  shells  of 
bricks  and  mortar,  hoping  that  life  will  somehow  come 
into  them  after  a  time.  The  life  first,  then  the  buildings, 
to  grow  as  it  expands  and  deepens — that  surely  is  the  law 
of  nature.  "  Several  architectural  white  elephants "  is 
the  dismal  but  suggestive  forecast  of  a  writer  in  the 
Charity  Organization  Review,  on  the  supposition  that  this 
law  is  violated.  If  these  warnings  are  neglected,  the  pro- 
moters of  the  movement  will  be  merely  courting  failure, 
however  good  their  intentions  may  be.  And  they  will 
have  failed  because  "  they  were  not  poets  enough  to 
understand  that  life  develops  from  within." 

ASSAYING. 
Text-book  of  Assaying.  By  C.  Beringer  and  J.  J.  Beringer. 
(London  :  Griffin  and  Co.,  1889.) 

THIS  text-book  marks  an  important  departure  in  the 
literature  of  assaying.  The  authors  abandon  the 
dreary  details  of  traditionary  methods,  and  attempt  with 
success  to  rationalize  the  art  of  the  assayer,  rather  than 
to  follow  the  usual  course  of  reproducing  "  dry "  assay 
methods  and  elaborate  classifications  of  processes  the 
interest  of  which  is  only  historical.  Assaying  is  here 
treated,  in  a  broad  sense,  as  the  determination,  by  analy- 
tical methods,  of  components  of  ores  and  of  intermediate 
or  finished  metallurgical  products.  Such  compounds  may 
be  either  of  value  in  themselves,  or  important  from  being 
valuable  or  injurious  in  the  operations  of  smelting,  or  in 
adapting  the  metals  for  use. 

The  methods  of  the  authors,  and  the  measure  of  success 
which  they  have  attained,  may  be  fairly  judged  by  their 
treatment  of  copper,  ead,  and  iron.  Copper  ores  and 
furnace  materials  are  still  sold  in  the  English  market  by 
the  "  Cornish"  assay.  This  antiquated  method  of  assay- 
ing has  really  no  claim  to  retention,  now  that  more 
trustworthy  methods  are  well  known,  and  the  authors  give  it 
but  little  prominence.  They,  however,  repeat  the  fallacious 
argument  of  its  apologists  by  stating  that  "  it  gives  the 
purchaser  an  idea  of  the  quantity  and  quality  of  the  metal 
that  can  be  got  by  smelting."  The  Cornish  assay  does 
not  deserve  even  this  modified  approval,  as  the  results  it 
affords  neither  represent  the  actual  amount  of  copper 
contained  in  the  ore,  nor  the  proportion  of  metal  which  can 
be  produced  by  smelting,  and  several  expert  assayers, 
working  on  portions  of  the  same  samples,  will  obtain 
results  which  vary  in  the  most  erratic  way.  Fortunately 
for  those  who  may  be  guided  by  this  text-book,  its  authors 
proceed  to  describe  assaying  processes  which  are  really 


well  calculated  to  give  trustworthy  indications  as  to  the 
quantity  and  quality  of  metal  obtainable  from  ores. 
These  are  to  be  found  in  well  proved  "  wet "  methods  of 
determining  actual  copper  contained  in  ores  as  well  as 
the  components  that  interfere  with  the  extraction  and 
the  quality  of  the  metal.  In  describing  these  methods, 
ample  information  is  given  for  the  guidance  of  the  smelter 
under  the  varying  conditions  of  the  metal's  occurrence. 
While  passing  shortly  over  the  Cornish  assay,  the  authors 
judiciously  omit  such  clumsy  "  wet "  methods  of  assay  as 
the  direct  titration  by  cyanide  of  potassium,  which  is  re- 
tained in  some  recent  books  of  standing,  although  it  has 
been  abandoned  by  most  skilful  assayers.  On  the  other 
hand,  titration  by  cyanide  of  potassium  after  separation 
of  the  copper  from  interfering  metals,  and  the  assay  by 
electrolysis,  leave  little  to  be  desired  in  rapidity  and 
accuracy,  and  to  these  due  prominence  is  given.  Failing 
reasonable  manipulative  skill,  no  assay  can  be  accurate, 
and  the  expertness  demanded  by  those  who  conduct  the 
"  dry  "  or  Cornish  assay  is  not  more  easily  acquired  than 
is  the  analytical  skill  needed  for  better  "wet"  methods. 
In.  an  assay  method  giving  accurately  the  amount  of  metal 
actually  present  in  the  ore,  the  metallurgist  has  a  sure 
basis  for  calculation,  the  results  of  which  can  be  brought 
under  the  control  of  his  experience  as  to  the  losses  of 
metal  in  operations  on  a  large  scale.  The  results  of  the 
Cornish  assay,  with  all  its  inherent  uncertainty,  have 
equally  to  be  judged  in  the  light  of  the  smelter's  experience 
as  to  what  the  final  "  out-turn  "  will  be.  In  lead,  again, 
the  dry  assay  is  usually  treated  in  books  on  assaying  with 
much  elaboration,  which  is  no  longer  useful,  if  it  ever  was. 
It  gives  results  that  indicate  neither  the  actual  amount  of 
metal  contained  in  the  ore,  nor  the  amount  which  will  be 
produced  by  smelting,  and  like  the  Cornish  assay  for 
copper  is  most  unsatisfactory  for  guidance  in  smelting. 
The  wet  methods  of  lead  assaying  which  are  described 
are  convenient  and  trustworthy,  while  the  only  practically 
useful  methods  of  dry  lead  assay  are  given  in  sufficient 
detail.  In  the  assay  of  iron  ores  we  find  dry  methods 
entirely  omitted.  The  wisdom  of  this  cannot  be  doubted, 
for  the  want  of  exactitude  which  is  characteristic  of  the 
dry  assay  of  copper  and  lead  is  still  more  marked  in  the  dry 
assay  of  iron.  Processes  of  wet  assay  capable  of  giving 
prompt  and  strictly  accurate  results  are  available,  and 
these  are  fully  described. 

The  plan  of  subordinating  or  ignoring  unsatisfactory 
methods  of  assay,  while  giving  prominence  to  those 
which  have  proved  to  be  trustworthy,  runs  through  the 
treatment  of  methods  of  assaying  the  other  metals,  as 
well  as  estimating  the  components  of  ores  which  are  not 
usually  dealt  with  in  books  on  assaying.  Among  the 
latter  are  silica,  the  earths,  sulphur,  arsenic,  and  phos- 
phorus. These  demand  study  by  the  metallurgist,  to 
whom,  under  either  the  necessity  of  "  fluxing  "  them  away, 
or  of  minimizing  their  interference  with  the  purity  of  the 
metals,  their  ready  and  accurate  determination  is  a  matter 
of  the  greatest  importance.  The  details  of  assaying  the 
precious  metals,  though  hardly  sufficient  for  adoption  in 
the  assay  of  bullion  in  a  mint,  are  all  that  is  needed  in  a 
works. 

The  authors  have  clearly  not  been  content  to  merely 
record  published  processes,  but  in  order  to  add  to  the 
completeness    of    their    work   have    given    unpublished 


-246 


NATURE 


[^an.  16,  1890 


results  of  the  experience  acquired  by  themselves  and 
others.  The  writer  notices  their  description  of  a  process 
for  the  estimation  of  arsenic  in  minerals  and  metals, 
which  was  devised  by  himself  for  use  in  works  ijnder  his 
control,  that  has  not  hitherto  been  published.  It  consists 
in  the  separation  of  arsenic  from  its  associations,  by 
distillation  with  ferric  chloride  mixed  with  calcium 
chloride,  and  subsequent  titration  of  the  distillate  by 
iodine.  The  authors  are  mistaken  in  stating  that  there  is 
a  difficulty  in  obtaining  ferric  chloride  free  from  arsenic. 
Even  if  there  were  difficulties,  it  is  obvious  that  the 
process  itself  affords  a  ready  means  of  eliminating  arsenic 
from  the  ferric  chloride  mixture,  before  using  it  in  the 
actual  assay.  In  this  and  one  or  two  other  cases,  there 
is  a  tendency  to  adopt  the  always  undesirable  method  of 
"blank"  experiments  to  correct  error  arising  from  the 
use  of  impme  reagents,  rather  than  whenever  practicable 
lo  avoid  the  source  of  danger  by  the  use  of  pure  materials. 
These  are,  however,  hardly  noticeable  blemishes  in  a 
really  meritorious  work,  that  may  safely  be  depended 
upon  by  those  using  it  either  for  systematic  instruction 
or  for  reference.  Thomas  Gibb. 


BREWING  MICROSCOPY. 

The  Microscope  in  the  Brewery  and  Malt  House.  By 
Chas.  Geo.  Mathews,  F.C.S.,  F.I.C.,  &c.,  and  Francis 
Edw.  Lott,  F.I.C.,  A.R.S.M.,  &c.  (London  and  Derby  : 
Bemrose  and  Sons,  J 889.) 

THERE  are  certainly  few  industries  the  growth  and 
development  of  which  have  been  more  influenced 
by  the  progress  of  pure  scientific  discovery  than  those  of 
the  brewer  and  distiller.  These  industries,  formerly 
carried  on  upon  purely  empirical  lines,  handed  down 
from  father  to  son  through  countless  generations,  have 
in  recent  years,  through  the  advances  in  chemical  and 
biological  science,  been  so  transformed  that  their  suc- 
cessful conduct  at  the  present  time  requires  a  most 
thorough  acquaintance  with  the  leading  principles  of 
these  sciences.  As  a  consequence  of  this  change,  we 
find  an  increasing  tendency  for  these  industries  to  be- 
come concentrated  in  a  smaller  number  of  hands  each 
producing  on  a  larger  and  larger  scale.  The  small 
brewer  himself  lacking  the  necessary  scientific  training, 
and  not  able  to  afford  the  requisite  skilled  assistance, 
gives  way  before  the  larger  breweries  employing  a  com- 
plete scientific  staff  and  provided  with  the  latest  im- 
provements. 

The  present  work  is,  we  understand,  intended  to  bring 
before  those  connected  with  brewing  a  concise  account 
of  the  assistance  which  may  be  derived  in  the  conduct  of 
their  business  from  the  use  of  the  microscope.  We  are 
of  opinion  that  the  authors  have  been  unfortunate  already 
in  the  choice  of  their  title,  as  one  of  the  most  conspicuous 
results  of  modern  scientific  research  in  this  direction  is  that 
the  use  of  the  microscope  alone  is  of  comparatively  little 
value  in  the  study  of  micro-organisms  in  general,  whether 
connected  with  fermentation  or  other  processes.  This  in- 
adequacy of  microscopic  study  per  se  the  authors  in 
various  parts  of  their  work  indeed  frankly  admit.  Modern 
students  of  these  low  forms  of  life  have,  in  fact,  become 


more  and  more  aware  of  the  fallacious  results  yielded  by 
mere  microscopical  observation  when  unaccompanied  and 
uncontrolled  by  those  processes  of  cultivation  which  have 
been  developed  during  the  past  ten  years.  Even  the  work 
performed  under  the  auspices  of  the  masterly  genius 
and  supreme  experimental  skill  of  Pasteur  has  had  to  be 
revised  and  brought  up  to  date  by  Hansen,  with  the  aid 
of  the  more  recent  methods  of  research.  Now,  although 
the  authors  appear  fully  aware  of  the  great  change  which 
has  taken  place  since  the  earlier  work  of  Pasteur,  Reess, 
Fitz,  and  others,  they  have  not  sufficiently  distinguished 
between  observations  which  rest  upon  the  surest  founda- 
tion and  fulfilling  the  most  modern  requirements,  and 
those  which,  though  possibly  correct,  require  repetition 
and  confirmation. 

The  absence  of  sharp  differentiation  in  this  matter 
cannot  fail,  we  believe,  to  occasion  much  confusion  in 
the  mind  of  the  ordinary  practical  student  who  depends 
upon  text-books  and  manuals  for  his  guidance  and  in- 
formation, and  it  is,  in  our  opinion,  quite  unnecessary 
that  he  should  be  burdened  with  the  microscopic  de- 
scriptions of  the  various  forms  of  yeast  given  by  the  older 
observers,  who  were  almost  certainly  dealing  with  impure 
cultures,  but  on  the  contrary  he  should  rather  devote  his 
whole  attention  to  the  charactersof  such  undoubtedly  pure 
forms  of  yeast  as  have  been  obtained  by  the  most  recent 
methods.  Moreover,  unless  the  necessity  of  resorting  to 
these  cultivation  experiments  for  obtaining  accurate  in- 
formation is  duly  impressed  upon  the  student,  he  will 
naturally  be  inclined  to  shirk  these  far  more  laborious 
and  difficult  observations,  and  place  undue  reliance  upon 
microscopic  features. 

These  remarks  apply,  perhaps,  with  even  greater  force  to 
the  manner   in   which  the  authors  have  dealt  with  the 
schizomycetes  ;    in   this  part  of  the  book  we  find  much 
space  devoted  to  microscopic  descriptions  of  bacteria  ot 
uncertain   purity,  whilst  there   is  little  or  nothing  said 
about  the  methods   by  which   these  organisms  can  be 
really  identified,  and  their  characters  defined.     We  also 
miss    any   adequate   account    of   the    staining-processes 
which  are  so  invaluable  in  obtaining  a  correct  idea  of  the 
microscopic   forms  and  dimensions  of  bacteria.     As  an 
instance  of  the  unsatisfactory  present  condition  of  brew- 
ing microscopy,  we  may  quote  the  following  sentence  : 
"  Bact.  lactis,  as  seen  in  beers,  is  generally  in  the  form 
of  small  rods,  2  to  3  /li  in  length,  and  sometimes  in  threads 
containing   from    2  to   5    individuals ;    it  is  not  certain, 
I  however,  that  this  form  is  B.  lactis."     Thus,  in  respect  of 
I  the  bacterium  which  is  perhaps  of  most  consequence  to 
the    brewer,   as  being  "the   most   commonly  occurring 
,  disease-organism  encountered  in  the   brewing   process  " 
'  there  is  this  absolute  lack  of  all  precise  information. 

What  may  be  called  the  more  purely  scientific  part  of 
the  work  is  succeeded  by  a  chapter  of  "  general  rertiarks 
on  the  brewing  process,"  which,  embodying  as  it  does 
some  of  the  practical  experience  of  the  authors  them- 
selves, we  would  have  gladly  seen  enlarged. 

The  book,  which  is  printed  on  excellent  paper  and 
elegantly  got  up,  is  illustrated  with  a  number  of  admir- 
ably executed  plates,  many  of  the  best  of  which  are 
original. 

A  full  index  and  glossary  are  appended. 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


NATURE 


247 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 


FIouier-Latid :  an  hitroduciion  to  Botany.  By  Robert 
Fisher,  M.A.,  Vicar  of  Sewerby,  Yorks.  (London: 
Bemrose  and  Sons,  1889.) 

This  is  a  capital  first  book  of  botany,  intended  for  small 
children.  The  style,  however,  is  really  more  elementary 
than  the  matter,  and  a  child  who  has  mastered  this  book 
will  have  made  a  very  good  start  in  the  science.  There 
is  a  good  deal  of  information  given  about  the  internal 
structure  and  function,  as  well  as  the  external  form,  of 
the  organs  of  plants,  and  this  information  is  given  cor- 
rectly, as  well  as  clearly. 

The  book  is  illustrated  by  177  woodcuts,  most  of  which 
are  well  suited  to  their  purpose.  D.  H.  S. 

Five  Months^  Fine  Weather  in  Canada,  Western  U.S., 
and  Mexico.  By  Mrs.  E.  H.  Carbutt.  (London  : 
Sampson  Low  and  Co.,  1889.) 

In  this  book  Mrs.  Carbutt  records  her  experiences  during 
a  remarkably  pleasant  journey  made  by  herself  and  her 
husband  in  the  New  World.  The  scenes  she  describes 
have  often  been  described  before,  but  she  writes  so  brightly 
about  what  she  saw  that  even  readers  to  whom  she  has 
nothing  new  to  tell  will  find  a  good  deal  to  interest  them 
in  her  narrative.  They  will  be  particularly  pleased  with 
her  account  of  "  sunny  Mexico,  and  its  merry,  courteous 
people." 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

( The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

The  Duke  of  Argyll  and  the  Neo-Darwinians. 

It  has  a  curious  and  not  uninstructive  effect  to  see  the 
pages  of  this  journal  invaded  by  the  methods  of  discussion 
which  are  characteristic  of  political  warfare.  The  letter  of  the 
Duke  of  Argyll,  published  in  Nature  for  December  26,  1889 
(P-  173)  is  a  clever  debating  speech.  But  it  rather  obscures  than 
illuminates  the  questions  really  at  issue.  And,  after  the  fashion 
of  the  political  orator,  it  attributes  to  those  who  disagree  with 
the  writer  motives  which,  in  so  far  as  they  differ  from  reasoned 
conviction,  are  essentially  insincere. 

In  politics,  the  personal  rivalry  which  is  bound  up  inextricably 
with  the  solution  of  great  problems  may  make  it  a  necessary 
part  of  the  game  to  endeavour  to  belittle  one's  opponents.  But 
in  science  it  is  not  so.  The  newer  problems  which  have  been 
raised  by  Darwinism  depend  for  their  solution  upon  the  discussion 
of  evidence,  and  no  competent  biologists  will,  in  the  long  run, 
be  influenced  in  the  opinions  they  form  about  them  by  anything 
else. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  Duke's  letter  which  has  not  been  worn 
threadbare  by  discussion.  Still,  there  are,  no  doubt,  many 
readers  of  Nature  who,  while  taking  a  general  interest  in  the 
matter,  have  not  followed  all  that  has  been  written  about  it.  I 
am  disposed  to  think,  therefore,  that  it  may  not  be  without  its 
use  to  go  over  the  ground  which  the  letter  covers. 

First,  as  to  acquired  characters.  Let  us  take  a  simple  case. 
It  is  admitted  that  a  blacksmith,  by  the  constant  use  of  his  arms, 
may  stimulate  their  abnormal  muscular  development ;  that  is  an 
acquired  character.  But  a  working  man,  whose  arms  are  of  per- 
fectly average  dimensions,  may  nevertheless  have  a  son  with 
arms  which  would  seem  to  mark  him  out  for  the  blacksmith's 
profession  ;  that  would  be  a  congenital  variation.  Now  we 
know  that  a  congenital  variation  is  likely  to  be  inherited  ;  that 
is  a  matter  of  observation.  What  is  the  case  as  to  the  acquired 
character?  The  answer  must  be,  I  take  it,  that  there  is  no 
probability  that  the  arms  of  a  blacksmith's  son  will  differ  in  any 
respect  from  those  of  the  average  inhabitant  in  the  locality  where 
he  was  born.  The  Duke  of  Argyll,  however,  suggests  that  there 
is  "no  necessary  antagonism  between  congenital  variation  and 
the   transmission   of    acquired   characters."      This   is  perfectly 


reasonable  ;  theoretically,  there  is  none.  But  this  does  not 
make  the  transmission  of  acquired  characters  less  doubtful. 
The  Duke  has  no  doubt  about  it,  however.  "So  far  from  its 
being  unproved,  it  is  consistent  with  all  observation  and  all 
experience.  It  lies  at  the  foundation  of  all  organic  develop- 
ment." Very  possibly,  but  where  is  the  observation  and  where 
is  the  experience  ?  These  are  the  biological  desiderata  of  the 
day.  Imagine  the  fate  at  the  Duke's  hands  of  any  scientific 
writer  who  put  forward  statements  such  as  these  unsupported  by 
a  shred  of  a  fact. 

"  This  being  so,"  however,  the  question  then  arises,  Why  do 
extreme  Darwinians  so  fiercely  oppose  the  idea  of  the  trans- 
mission of  acquired  characters  ?  Well,  it  is  obvious  that  they  do 
so  because  they  think  the  evidence  in  its  favour  insufficient,  and 
it  is  clearly  the  duty  of  a  scientific  man,  whether  an  extreme 
Darwinian  or  not,  to  oppose  the  acceptance  of  that  which  ex- 
perience does  not  support.  But  the  Duke  of  Argyll  attributes 
their  opposition  to  two  causes  :  first,  jealousy  of  associating  the 
names  of  Lamarck  and  Darwin  ;  and,  secondly,  the  dethrone- 
ment of  their  idol  Fortuity.  The  first  of  these  reasons  is  almost 
too  preposterous  to  discuss.  No  serious  naturalist  would  speak 
with  other  than  respect  of  Lamarck's  position  in  scientific 
history  ;  this  cannot  be  effaced  however  much  that  of  Darwin 
may  be  magnified.  And  no  serious  naturalist  would  adhere  to 
any  theory  Darwin  had  propounded  a  moment  longer  than  the 
evidence  seemed  to  carry  conviction.  The  charge  in  this  par- 
ticular matter  is,  however,  the  more  grotesque,  because,  although 
Darwin  did  not  esteem  as  of  much  value  Lamarck's  doctrine  of 
development  and  progression,  we  know  that  his  own  mind 
became  more  and  more  fluid  on  the  question  of  the  "direct 
action  of  conditions."  The  idea  is  in  fact  so  plausible  that  the 
difliculty  is  not  in  accepting  it,  but  in  shaking  oneself  free  from 
it.  What  were  probably  the  last  words  which  Darwin  wrote  on 
the  subject  are  contained  in  a  letter  to  Prof  Semper,  dated 
July  19,  1 88 1.  I  quote  a  passage  which  appears  to  me  to 
pretty  accurately  define  the  present  position  of  the  question  : — 

"  No  doubt  I  originally  attributed  too  little  weight  to  the  direct 
action  of  conditions,  but  Hoffmann's  paper  has  staggered  me. 
Perhaps  hundreds  of  generations  of  exposure  are  necessary.  It 
is  a  most  perplexing  subject.  I  wish  I  was  not  so  old,  and  had 
more  strength,  for  I  see  lines  of  research  to  follow.  Hoffmann 
even  doubts  whether  plants  vary  more  under  cultivation  than  in 
their  native  home  and  under  their  natural  conditions  ("  Life  and 
Letters,"  vol.  iii.  p.  345). 

Darwin's  difficulty,  in  point  of  fact,  was  exactly  that  of  every- 
one else.  The  evidence,  instead  of  being  "  consistent  with  all 
observation  and  all  experience,"  failed  to  be  forthcoming. 

The  second  reason  is  equally  baseless.  Fortuity  is  no  idol  of 
the  neo-Darwinians  ;  if  h  is  an  idol  at  all,  it  is  an  "  idol  of  the 
market,"  imposed  upon  their  understanding  by  the  Diike.  But 
at  any  rate  he  does  not  attribute  any  blame  to  Darwin.  And  as 
this  is  a  rather  important  matter,  on  which  I  admit  that  persons 
who  ought  to  know  better  have  gone  astray,  I  will  quote  a 
passage  on  the  subject  from  Prof  Huxley's  admirable  biography 
(Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  No.  269)  : — 

"Those,  again,  who  compare  the  operation  of  the  natural 
causes  which  bring  about  variation  and  selection  with  what  they 
are  pleased  to  call  'chance,'  can  hardly  have  read  the  opening 
paragraph  of  the  fifth  chapter  of  the  '  Origin'  (ed.  I,  p.  131)  : 
'  I  have  sometimes  spoken  as  if  the  variations  ....  had  been 
due  to  chance.  This  is  of  course  a  wholly  incorrect  expression, 
but  it  seems  to  acknowledge  plainly  our  ignorance  of  the  cause 
of  each  particular  variation.'" 

It  is  obvious  that  the  use  of  accidental  in  the  guarded  sense  in 
which  it  is  employed  by  Darwin  is  widely  different  from  for- 
tuitous as  employed  by  the  Duke  of  Argyll.  Darwin  took 
variation  as  a  fact  of  experience.  Its  causes  and  laws  have  still 
to  be  worked  out.  One  of  the  latter,  due  to  Quetelet,  was  ex- 
plained by  Prof.  George  Darwin  in  this  journal  (vol.  viii.,  1873, 
p.  505).  He  says  :  "One  may  assume,  with  come  confidence, 
that  under  normal  conditions,  the  variation  of  any  organ  in  the 
same  species  may  be  symmetrically  grouped  about  a  centre  of 
greatest  density." 

And  this  is  quite  in  accord  with  the  remark  of  Weismann  that 
variability  is  not  something  independent  of  and  in  some  way 
added  to  the  organism,  but  is  a  mere  expression  for  the  fluctua- 
tions in  its  type.  Variation  is  therefore  not  unlimited,  and  we 
must  admit  with  Weismann  that  its  limits  are  determined  hy 
"  the  underlying  physical  nature  of  the  organism  ; "  or  as  he 
again  puts  it,  "  under  the  most  favourable  circumstances  a  bird 


248 


NATURE 


{Jan.  16,  1890 


can  never  be  transformed  into  a  mammal."  There  is  something 
more  therefore  than  blind  chance  at  work  here. 

But  within  the  limits,  it  is  a  matter  of  experience  that  every 
possible  variation  may  occur.  If  anyone  will  take  the  trouble 
to  examine  the  leaves  of  the  ribbon-grass  so  commonly  cultivated 
in  gardens,  he  will  find  it  impossible  to  obtain  any  pair  in  which 
the  green  and  white  striping  is  exactly  alike.  If  it  were  pos- 
sible to  raise  to  maturity  all  the  progeny  of  some  prolific  organ- 
ism, the  same  diversity  (in  different  degree,  of  course)  would 
manifest  itself ;  but  the  whole  group  of  variations  in  respect  of 
any  one  organ  would  obey  Quetelet's  law.  When  we  attempt 
to  give  some  physical  explanation  of  this  fact,  we  know  from 
the  objective  facts  which  have  been  made  out  about  fertilization 
that,  although  the  protoplasmic  content  of  the  fertilized  ovum 
is,  in  a  general  sense,  uniform,  its  actual  structure  and  physio- 
logical components  must  be  combined  in  as  endless  variety  as 
the  green  and  white  stripes  of  the  leaves  of  the  ribbon-grass. 
If,  with  Prof.  Lankester,  we  say  that  the  combinations  are 
kaleidoscopic,  I  do  not  see  that  we  go  beyond  the  facts.  And 
it  appears  to  me  quite  permissible  to  correlate  the  ascertained 
variable  constitution  of  the  ovum  arising  from  this  cause  with 
the  equally  ascertained  varying  structure  of  the  organism  deve- 
loped from  it. 

Of  the  varied  progeny,  we  know  that  some  survive  and  others 
do  not.  And  what  Darwin  has  taught  us  is,  that  the  reason  of 
survival  is  the  possession  of  favourable  variations.  The  surviving 
race  necessarily  differs  somewhat  from  its  progenitors,  and  Dar- 
win has  further  stated  that  it  is  probable  that  by  the  continued 
repetition  of  the  process  all  the  diversity  of  organic  nature  has 
been  brought  about. 

The  area  of  fortuity  is  narrowed  down  therefore,  on  this  point 
of  view,  to  the  variable  constitution  of  the  individual  ovum. 
And  it  is  upon  the  recognition  of  this  fact,  for  which  there  seems 
to  be  good  scientific  evidence,  that  the  Duke  of  Argyll  founds  his 
charge  that  the  neo-Darwinians  make  fortuity  their  idol.  The 
reason  appears  to  be  that  it  comes  into  collision  with  teleological 
views.  But  such  collisions  are  no  new  event  in  the  history  of 
the  biological  sciences.  And  teleology,  like  a  wise  damsel,  has 
generally,  though  temporarily  ruffled,  managed  to  gather  up  her 
skirts  with  dignity  and  make  the  best  of  it.  For  some  element 
of  fortuity  is  inseparable  from  life  as  we  see  it.  It  is  at  the 
bottom  one  of  the  most  pathetic  things  about  it.  Nowhere  is 
this  more  vividly  portrayed  perhaps  than  by  Addison  in  the 
"Vision  of  Mirzah."  Yet  I  do  not  remember  that  anyone  was 
ever  so  unwise  as  to  taunt  Addison  with  making  fortuity  his  idol. 

But,  philosophically  considered,  what  is  gained  by  this  tenacity 
about  out-works  ?  I  reply,  exactly  as  much  as  was  gained  by 
the  tenacity  of  the  Church  in  respect  to  the  geocentric  theory  of 
the  planetary  system.  Scientific  men  cannot  be  stopped  in  the 
application  of  their  best  ability  to  the  investigation  of  Nature.  If 
their  conclusions  are  false,  they  will  detect  the  falsity  ;  if  true, 
they  will  not  be  deterred  from  accepting  them  by  some  ci  priori 
conception  of  the  order  of  the  universe.  It  is  not  justifiable  to 
say  that  this  is  due  to  any  devotion  to  such  an  empty  abstraction 
as  fortuity.  No  scientific  man  is,  I  hope,  so  foolish  as  to  suppose 
that,  however  completely  mechanical  may  be  his  Qonception  of 
Nature,  he  is  in  any  way  competent  to  account  for  its  existence. 
The  real  problem  of  all  is  only  pushed  further  back.  And  the 
Duke  of  Argyll's  difficulty  resolves  itself  into  the  old  question, 
whether  it  is  more  orthodox  to  conceive  of  the  universe  as  an 
automatically  self-regulating  machine,  or  as  one  which  requires 
tinkering  at  every  moment  of  its  action. 

It  may  be  replied  that  this  is  all  very  well,  but  that  it  is  not 
the  way  the  neo-Darwinians  state  their  case.  I  may  be,  there- 
fore, excused  for  quoting  some  passages  to  the  contrary  from 
Weismann's  "  Studies  in  the  Theory  of  Descent  "  : — 

"This  conception  represents  very  precisely  the  well-known 
decision  of  Kant :  '  Since  we  cannot  in  any  case  know  a  prioj-i 
to  what  extent  the  mechanism  of  Nature  serves  as  a  means  to 
every  final  purpose  in  the  latter,  or  how  far  the  mechanical  ex- 
planation possible  to  us  reaches,'  natural  science  must  every- 
where press  the  attempt  at  mechanical  explanation  as  far  as 
possible  "  (p.  638). 

Further,  he  quotes  from  Karl  Ernst  von  Baer  : — 

"The  naturalist  must  always  commence  with  details,  and  may 
then  afterwards  ask  whether  the  totality  of  details  leads  him  to 
a  general  and  final  basis  of  intentional  design  "  (p.  639). 

Again,  he  says  : — 

"  We  now  believe  that  organic  nature  must  be  conceived  as 
mechanical.  But  does  it  thereby  follow  that  we  must  totally 
deny  a  final  universal  cause  ?    Certainly  not  ;  it  would  be  a 


great  delusion  if  anyone  were  to  believe  that  he  had  arrived  at 
a  comprehension  of  the  universe  by  tracing  the  phenomena  of 
Nature  to  mechanical  principles"  (p.  710). 

In  truth,  this  revolt  of  teleology  against  Darwinism  is  a  little 
ungrateful.  For,  if  Darwinism  has  done  anything,  it  has  carried 
on  and  indefinitely  extended  its  work.  In  the  last  century, 
teleology  was,  it  seems  to  me,  a  valuable  motive-power  in  bio- 
logical research.  Such  a  book  as  Derham's  "Physico-Theology  " 
(171 1)  may  be  read  with  interest  even  now.  I  well  remember 
that  my  first  ideas  of  adaptive  structures  were  obtained  from  the 
pages  of  Paley.  Thirty  years  ago  I  do  not  know,  except  from 
them  and  the  notes  to  Darwin's  "  Botanic  Garden,"  where  such 
information  was  to  be  otained.  The  basis  of  research  was, 
however,  too  narrow  to  continue  ;  it  did  not  look  beyond  the 
welfare  of  the  individual.  The  more  subtle  and  recondite  springs 
of  adaptation  opened  up  by  the  researches  of  Darwin,  which  look 
to  the  welfare  of  the  race,  were  not  within  its  purview.  Conse- 
quently it  dried  up,  and  virtually  expired  with  the  Bridgewater 
Treatises. 

To  return,  however,  to  the  Duke  of  Argyll.  "  Neither 
mechanical  aggregation,  nor  mechanical  segregation,  can  possibly 
account  for  the  building  up  of  organic  tissues."  Who  has  said 
they  did  ?  The  Duke  has  entirely  misunderstood  the  matter. 
Prof.  Lankester  never  suggested  that  it  was  possible  to  put  so 
much  protoplasm  into  a  vessel,  and  shake  out  a  cockatoo  or  a 
guinea-pig  at  choice.  His  image  of  the  kaleidoscope  had 
nothing  to  do  with  the  building  up  of  organisms,  only  with  the 
varied  combination  of  the  elements  known  to  take  part  in  the 
formation  of  the  fertilized  ova  from  which  organisms  originate. 

I  am  not  sure  that  I  perfectly  comprehend  what  follows. 
Perhaps  some  further  emendation  than  that  already  published  is 
needed  in  one  of  the  sentences.  But  it  seems  evident  that  the 
Duke  is  re-stating  his  old  doctrine  of  "prophetic  germs."  He 
has  already  defined  what  he  means  by  these  (Nature,  vol. 
xxxviii.  p.  564).  "All  organs,"  he  says,  "do  actually  pass 
through  rudimentary  stages  in  which  actual  use  is  impossible." 
Here,  again,  as  in  the  case  of  the  transmission  of  acquired 
characters,  what  one  wants  is  not  a  reiteration  of  the  assertion, 
but  some  definite  observed  evidence.  For  the  production  of 
this,  if  only  in  a  single  instance,  Prof.  Lankester  pressed  the 
Duke  more  than  a  year  ago  (Nature,  I.e.  p.  588).  None, 
however,  has  as  yet  been  forthcoming ;  and  it  appears  to  me 
that  it  is  not  permissible  to  persist  in  statements  for  which  he 
does  not  attempt  to  offer  a  shadow  of  proof. 

The  Duke  exults  in  a  very  amazing  fashion  over  what  he 
strangely  calls  Prof.  Lankester's  admission  that  "  natural  selec- 
tion cannot  account  for  the  pre-existence  of  the  structures  which 
are  prescribed  for  its  choice."  I  am  afraid  I  have  already  tres- 
passed on  your  space  too  much  with  quotations  ;  but  1  have 
done  so  in  order  to  show,  in  some  measure  at  any  rate,  what  is 
the  consensus  of  opinions  amongst  students  of  Darwinism  ;  and 
I  must  answer  the  Duke  with  one  more  from  Prof.  Huxley's 
a  dmirable  biography.  It  is  true  that  the  Royal  Society  publishes 
th  ese  things  in  the  least  attractive  way  possible  ;  but  this  par- 
ticular paper  could  hardly  have  escaped  attention,  as  it  won  the 
notice  and  admiration  of  even  a  journal  so  little  occupied  with 
scientific  discussion  as  Truth. 

"  There  is  another  sense,  however,  in  which  it  is  equally  true 
that  selection  originates  nothing.  '  Unless  profitable  variations 
.  .  .  occur,  natural  selection  can  do  nothing'  ('Origin,'  ed.  I, 
p.  82).  '  Nothing  can  be  effected  unless  favourable  variations 
occur'  {I.e.,  p.  108).  'What  applies  to  one  animal  will  apply 
throughout  time  to  all  animals — that  is,  if  they  vary — for  otherwise 
natural  selection  can  do  nothing.  So  it  will  be  with  plants '  (I.e. 
p.  113).  Strictly  speaking,  therefore,  the  origin  of  species  in 
general  lies  in  variation ;  while  the  origin  of  any  particular 
species  lies,  firstly,  in  the  occurrence,  and,  secondly,  in  the 
selection  and  preservation  of  a  particular  variation.  CleaJness 
on  this  head  will  relieve  one  from  the  necessity  of  attending  to 
the  fallacious  assertion  that  natural  selection  is  a  deus  ex  maehind, 
or  occult  agency." 

And  the  Duke  says  he  has  been  waiting  for  this  for  thirty 
years.  One  can  only  wonder  what  Darwinian  literature  has 
been  the  subject  of  his  studies  during  that  time. 

W.  T.  Thiselton  Dyer. 

Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  January  6. 


The  Microseismic  Vibration  of  the  Earth's  Crust. 

In  Mr.  White'sarticle  on  British  earthquakes  (Nature,  Jan.  2, 
p.  202)  he  refers  to  me  as  having  diseovcrcd  the  microseismic 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


AM  TURH 


249 


vibration  of  the  earth's  crust.  My  brother  Horace  and  I  were, 
we  believe,  the  first  to  verify  in  England  the  observations  of 
Bertelli,  Rossi,  d'Abbadie,  and  the  other  (principally  Italian) 
pioneers  in  this  interesting  subject. 

In  our  Reports  to  the  British  Association  for  1881  and  1882 
on  "The  Lunar  Disturbance  of  Gravity,"  some  account  will  be 
found  of  the  earlier  literature  on  the  subject. 

January  9.  G.  H.  Darwin. 

Meteor. 

On  Sunday,  12th  inst.,  about  8.10  p.m.,  a  bright  meteor 
was  seen  here,  coming  into  view  near  5  Aurigae.  It  was  of  a 
reddish  colour,  moved  slowly,  leaving  a  short  tail,  and  burst 
above  e  Leonis,  then  with  diminished  light  continued  its  course 
to  the  horizon.  T.  W.  Morton. 

Beaumont  College,  Old  Windsor,  January  13. 


MAGNETISMS 
I. 

A  S  old  as  any  part  of  electrical  science  is  the  knowledge 
-^"^  that  a  needle  or  bar  of  steel  which  has  been  touched 
with  a  loadstone  will  point  to  the  north.  Long  before  the 
first  experiments  of  Galvani  and  Volta  the  general  pro- 
perties of  steel  magnets  had  been  observed — how  like 
poles  repelled  each  other,  and  unlike  attracted  each  other  ; 
how  the  parts  of  a  broken  magnet  were  each  complete 
magnets  with  a  pair  of  poles.  The  general  character  of 
the  earth's  magnetism  has  long  been  known — that  the 
earth  behaves  with  regard  to  magnets  as  though  it  had 
two  magnetic  poles  respectively  near  the  rotative  poles, 
and  that  these  poles  have  a  slow  secular  motion.  For 
many  years  the  earth's  magnetism  has  been  the  subject 
of  careful  study  by  the  most  powerful  minds.  Gauss 
organized  a  staff  of  voluntary  observers,  and  applied  his 
unsurpassed  powers  of  mathematical  analysis  to  obtaining 
from  their  results  all  that  could  be  learned. 

The  magnetism  of  iron  ships  is  of  so  much  importance 
in  navigation  that  a  good  deal  of  the  time  of  men  of 
great  power  has  been  devoted  to  its  study.  It  was  the 
scientific  study  of  Archibald  Smith ;  and  Airy  and 
Thomson  have  added  not  a  little  to  our  practical  know- 
ledge of  the  disturbance  of  the  compass  by  the  iron  of 
the  ship.  Sir  W.  Thomson,  in  addition  to  much  valuable 
practical  work  on  the  compass,  and  experimental  work  on 
magnetism,  has  given  the  most  complete  and  elegant 
mathematical  theory  of  the  subject.  Of  late  years  the 
development  of  the  dynamo  machine  has  directed 
attention  to  the  magnetization  of  iron  from  a  different 
point  of  view,  and  a  very  great  deal  has  been  done  by 
many  workers  to  ascertain  the  facts  regarding  the 
magnetic  properties  of  iron.  The  upshot  of  these  many 
years  of  study  by  practical  men  interested  in  the  mariner's 
compass  or  in  dynamo  machines  by  theoretical  men 
interested  in  looking  into  the  nature  of  things,  is, 
that  although  we  know  a  great  many  facts  about  mag- 
netism, and  a  great  deal  about  the  relation  of  these  facts 
to  each  other,  we  are  as  ignorant  as  ever  we  were  as 
to  any  reason  why  the  earth  is  a  magnet,  as  to  why  its 
magnetic  poles  are  in  slow  motion  in  relation  to  its  sub- 
stance, or  as  to  why  iron,  nickel,  and  cobalt  are  magnetic, 
and  nothing  else,  so  far  as  we  know,  is  to  any  practical 
extent.  In  most  branches  of  science  the  more  facts  we 
know  the  more  fully  we  recognize  a  continuity  in  virtue  of 
which  we  see  the  same  property  running  through  all  the 
various  forms  of  matter.  It  is  not  so  in  magnetism  ;  here 
the  more  we  know  the  more  remarkably  exceptional  does 
the  property  appear,  the  less  chance  does  there  seem  to 
be  of  resolving  it  into  anything  else.  It  seems  to  me  that 
I  cannot  better  occupy  the  present  occasion  than  by  re- 
calling your  attention  to,  and  inviting  discussion  of,  some 

"  Inaugural  Address  delivered  before  the  Institution  of  Electrical  En- 
gineers, on  Thursday,  January  9,  by  J.  Hopkinson,  M.A.,  D.Sc,  F.R.S., 
President. 


of  those  salient  properties  of  magnetism  as  exhibited  by 
iron,  nickel,  and  cobalt — properties  most  of  them  very 
familiar,  but  properties  which  any  theory  of  magnetism 
must  reckon  with  and  explain.  We  shall  not  touch  on 
the  great  subject  of  the  earth  as  a  magnet — though  much 
has  been  recently  done,  particularly  by  Riicker  and 
Thorpe — but  deal  simply  with  magnetism  as  a  property 
of  these  three  bodies,  and  consider  its  natural  history, 
and  how  it  varies  with  the  varying  condition  of  the 
material. 

To  fix  our  ideas,  let  us  consider,  then,  a  ring  of  uniform 
section  of  any  convenient  area  and  diameter.    Let  us  sup- 
pose this  ring  to  be  wound  with  copper  wire,  the  convolu- 
tions being  insulated.    Over  the  copper  wire  let  us  suppose 
that  a  second  wire  is  wound,  also  insulated,  the  coils  of 
each  wire  being  arranged  as  are  the  coils  of  any  ordinary 
modern  transformer.    Let  us  suppose  that  the  ends  of  the 
iimer  coil,  which  we  will  call  the  secondary  coil,  are  con- 
nected to  a  ballistic  galvanometer  ;  and  that  the  ends  of 
the  outer  coil,  called  the  primary,  are  connected,  through 
a  key  for  reversing  the  current,  with  a  battery.     If  the 
current  in  the  primary  coil  is  reversed,  the  galvanometer 
needle  is  observed  to  receive  a  sudden  or  impulsive  deflec- 
tion, indicating  that  for  a  short  time  an  electromotive 
force  has  been  acting  on  the  secondary  coil.     If  the  re- 
sistance of  the  secondary  circuit  is  varied,  the  sudden 
deflection  of  the  galvanometer  needle  varies  inversely  as 
the  resistance.  With  constant  resistance  of  the  secondary 
circuit  the  deflection  varies  as  the  number  of  convolutions 
in   the   secondary  circuit.     If  the  ring  upon  which  the 
coils  of  copper  wire  are  wound  is  made  of  wood  or  glass 
— or,  indeed,  of  99  out  of  every  100  substances  which 
could   be   proposed— we   should    find    that  for  a  given 
current  in  the  primary  coil  the  deflection  of  the  galvano- 
meter in  the  secondary  circuit  is  substantially  the  same. 
The  ring  may  be  of  copper,  of  gold,  of  wood,  or  glass-^ 
it  may  be  solid  or  it  may  be  hollow — it  makes  no  difference 
in  the  deflection  of  the  galvanometer.     We  find,  further, 
that  with  the  vast  majority  of  substances  the  deflection  of 
the  galvanometer  in  the  secondary  circuit  is  proportional 
to  the  current  in  the  primary  circuit.      If,  however,  the 
ring  be  of  soft  iron,  we  find  that  the  conditions  are  enor- 
mously different.     In  the  first  place,  the  deflections  of  the 
galvanometer  are  very  many  times  as  great  as  if  the  ring 
were  made  of  glass,  or  copper,  or  wood.      In  the  second 
place,  the  deflections  on  the  galvanometer  in  the  secondary 
circuit  are  not  proportional  to  the  current  in  the  primary 
circuit ;  but  as  the  current  in  the  primary  circuit  is  step 
by  step  increased  we  find  that  the  galvanometer  deflec- 
tions   increase    somewhat,  as    is  illustrated    in   the  ac- 
companying  curve  (Fig.   i),  in  which  the  abscissa;  are 
proportional  to  the  primary  current,  and  the  ordinates  are 
proportional  to  the  galvanometer  deflections.      You  ob- 
serve that  as  the  primary  current  is  increased  the  galvano- 
meter deflection  increases  at  first  at  a  certain    rate  ;  as 
the  primary  current  attains  a  certain  value  the  rate  at 
which   the  deflection  increases  therewith  is   rapidly  in- 
creased, as  shown  in  the  upward  turn  of  the  curve.     This 
rate  of  increase  is  maintained  for  a  time,  but  only  for  a 
time.     When  the  primary  current  attains  a  certain  value 
the  curve  bends  downward,  indicating  that  the  deflections 
of  the  galvanometer  are  now  increasing  less  rapidly  as 
the  primary  current  is  increased  ;  if  the  primary  current 
be  still  continually  increased,  the  galvanometer  deflections 
increase  less  and  less  rapidly. 

Now  what  I  want  to  particularly  impress  upon  you  is 
the  enormous  difference  which  exists  between  soft  iron  on 
the  one  hand,  and  ordinary  substances  on  the  other.  On 
this  diagram  I  have  taken  the  galvanometer  deflections 
to  the  same  scale  for  iron,  and  for  such  substances  as 
glass  or  wood.  You  see  that  the  deflections  in  the  case 
of  glass  or  wood,  to  the  same  scale,  are  so  small  as  to  be 
absolutely  inappreciable,  whilst  the  deflection  for  iron  at 
one  point  of  the   curve  is  something  like  2000  times  as 


250 


NATURE 


[yan.  1 6,  1890 


great  as  for  non-magnetic  substances.  This  extraordinary- 
property  is  possessed  by  only  two  other  substances 
besides  iron — cobalt  and  nickel.  On  the  same  figure  are 
curves  showing  on  the  same  scale  what  would  be  the 
deflections  for  cobalt  and  nickel,  taken  from  Prof. 
Rowlands's  paper.  You  observe  that  they  show  the  same 
general  characteristics  as  iron,  but  in  a  rather  less  degree. 
Still,  it  is  obvious  that  these  substances  may  be  broadly 
classed  with  iron  in  contradistinction  to  the  great  mass  of 
other  bodies.  On  the  other  hand,  diamagnetic  bodies 
belong  distinctly  to  the  other  class.  If  the  deflection  with 
a  non-magnetic  ring  be  unity,  that  with  iron,  as  already 
stated,  may  be  as  much  as  2000  ;  that  with  bismuth,  the 
most  powerful  diamagnetic  known,  is  0*999825 — a  quantity 
differing  very  little  from  unity.  Note,  then,  the  first  fact 
which  any  theory  of  magnetism  has  to  explain  is  :  Iron, 
nickel,  and  cobalt,  all  enormously  magnetic  ;  other  sub- 
stances practically  non-magnetic.  A  second  fact  is : 
With  most  bodies  the  action  of  the  primary  current  on 
the  secondary  circuit  is  strictly  proportional  to  the 
primary  current ;  with  magnetic  bodies  it  is  by  no 
means  so. 

You  will  observe  that  the  ordinates  in  these  curves, 
which  are  proportional  to  the  kicks  or  elongations  of  the 


galvanometer,  are  called  induction,  and  that  the  abscissas 
are  called  magnetizing  force.  Let  us  see  a  little  more 
precisely  what  we  mean  by  the  terms,  and  what  are  the 
units  of  measurement  taken.  The  elongation  of  the 
galvanometer  measures  an  impulsive  electromotive  force 
— an  electromotive  force  acting  for  a  very  short  time. 
Charge  a  condenser  to  a  known  potential,  and  discharge 
it  through  the  galvanometer  :  the  needle  of  the  galvano- 
meter will  swing  aside  through  a  number  of  divisions 
proportional  to  the  quantity  of  electricity  in  the  condenser 
— that  is,  to  the  capacity  and  the  potential.  From  this 
we  may  calculate  the  quantity  of  electricity  required  to 
give  a  unit  elongation.  Multiply  this  by  the  actual  re- 
sistance of  the  secondary  circuit  and  we  have  the  impulsive 
electromotive  force  in  volts  and  seconds,  which  will,  in 
the  particular  secondary  circuit,  give  a  unit  elongation. 
We  must  multiply  this  by  10^  to  have  it  in  absolute  C.G.S. 
units.  Now  the  induction  is  the  impulsive  electromotive 
force  in  absolute  C.G.S.  units  divided  by  the  number  of 
secondary  coils  and  by  the  area  of  section  of  the  ring  in 
square  centimetres.  The  line  integral  of  magnetizing 
force  is  the  current  in  the  primary  in  absolute  C.G.S.  units 
— that  is,  one-tenth  of  the  current  in  amperes — multiplied 
by  47T.    The  magnetizing  force  is  the  line  integral  divided 


^^w 

^^^ 

^^^s 

1 

1 

■ 

^ 

1 

^ . ■■"          wrcoght 

Iron 

^^^H^^^H^^^n^^^Uj^^^S^^^H 

5000- 

-' 

■a^BBB 

y 

<z 

u 

X 

Ma 

;neti; 

INC,  F 

ORCE 

50                                                                   100                                          150 
Induction  for  Non-magnetic  Substances 

Fig.  I. 


by  the  length  of  the  line  over  which  that  line  integral  is 
distributed.  This  is,  in  truth,  not  exactly  the  same  for 
all  points  of  the  section  of  the  ring — an  imperfection  so 
far  as  it  goes  in  the  ring  method  of  experiment.  The 
absolute  electro-magnetic  C.G.S.  units  have  been  so 
chosen  that  if  the  ring  be  perfectly  non-magnetic  the 
induction  is  equal  to  the  magnetizing  force.  We  may 
refer  later  to  the  permeability,  as  Sir  W.  Thomson  calls 
it ;  it  is  the  ratio  of  the  induction  to  the  magnetizing 
force  causing  it,  and  is  usually  denoted  by  fi. 

There  is  a  further  difference  between  the  limited  class 
of  magnetic  bodies  and  the  great  class  which  are  non- 
magnetic. To  show  this,  we  may  suppose  our  experiment 
with  the  ring  to  be  varied  in  one  or  other  of  two  or  three 
different  ways.  To  fix  our  ideas,  let  us  suppose  that  the 
secondary  coil  is  collected  in  one  part  of  the  ring,  which, 
provided  that  the  number  of  turns  in  the  secondary  is 
maintained  the  same,  will  make  no  difference  in  the 
result  in  the  galvanometer.  Let  us  suppose,  further, 
that  the  ring  is  divided  so  that  its  parts  may  be  plucked 
from  together,  and  the  secondary  coil  entirely  withdrawn 
from  the  ring.  If  now  the  primary  current  have  a 
certain  value,  and  if  the  ring  be  plucked  apart  and  the 
secondary  coil  withdrawn,  we  shall  find  that,  whatever 


be  the  substance  of  which  the  ring  is  composed,  the 
galvanometer  deflection  is  one-half  of  what  it  would  have 
been  if  the  primary  current  had  been  reversed.  I  should 
perhaps  say  approximately  one-half,  as  it  is  not  quite 
strictly  the  case  in  some  samples  of  steel,  although, 
broadly  speaking,  it  is  one-half.  This  is  natural  enough, 
for  the  exciting  cause  is  reduced  from — let  us  call  it  a 
positive  value,  to  nothing  when  the  secondary  coil  is 
withdrawn  ;  it  is  changed  from  a  positive  value  to  an 
equal  and  opposite  negative  value  when  the  primary 
current  is  reversed.  Now  comes  the  third  characteristic 
difference  between  the  magnetic  bodies  and  the  non- 
magnetic. Suppose  that,  instead  of  plucking  the  ring 
apart  when  the  current  had  a  certain  value,  the  current 
was  raised  to  this  value  and  then  gradually  diminished  to 
nothing,  and  that  then  the  ring  was  plucked  apart  and 
the  secondary  coil  withdrawn.  If  the  ring  be  non- 
magnetic, we  find  that  there  is  no  deflection  of  the 
galvanometer  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  if  the  ring  be 
of  iron,  we  find  a  very  large  deflection,  amounting,  it  may 
be,  to  80  or  90  per  cent,  of  the  deflection  caused  by  the 
withdrawal  of  the  coil  when  the  current  had  its  full  value. 
Whatever  be  the  property  that  the  passing  of  the  primary 
current  has  imparted  to  the  iron,  it  is  clear  that  the  iron 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


251 


retains  a  large  part  of  this  property  after  the  current  has 
ceased.  We  may  push  the  experiment  a  stage  further. 
Suppose  that  the  current  in  the  primary  is  raised  to  a 
great  value,  and  is  then  slowly  diminished  to  a  smaller 
value,  and  that  the  ring  is  opened  and  the  secondary 
coil  withdrawn.  With  most  substances  we  find  that 
the  galvanometer  deflection  is  precisely  the  same  as  if 
the  current  had  been  simply  raised  to  its  final  value.  It 
is  not  so  with  iron  :  the  galvanometer  deflection  depends 
not  alone  upon  the  current  at  the  moment  of  withdrawal, 
but  on  the  currentto  which  the  ring  has  been  previously  sub- 
jected. We  may  then  draw  another  curve  (Fig.  2)  represent- 
ing the  galvanometer  deflections  produced  when  the  current 
has  been  raised  to  a  high  value  and  has  been  subsequently 
reduced  to  a  value  indicated  by  the  abscissa.  This  curve 
may  be  properly  called  a  descending  curve.  In  the  case 
of  ordinary  bodies  this  curve  is  a  straight  line  coincident 
with  the  straight  line  of  the  ascending  curve,  but  for  iron 
is  a  curve  such  as  is  represented  in  the  drawing.  You 
observe  that  this  curve  descends  to  nothing  like  zero  when 
the  current  is  reduced  to  zero  ;  and  that  when  the  current 
is  not  only  diminished  to  zero,  but  is  reversed,  the  galvano- 
meter deflection  only  becomes  zero  when  the  reversed 
current  has  a  substantial  value.  This  property  possessed 
by  magnetic  bodies  of  retaining  that  which  is  impressed 


upon  them  by  the  primary  current  has  been  called  by 
Prof.  Ewing  "  hysteresis,"  or,  as  similar  properties  have 
been  observed  in  quite  other  connections,  "  magnetic 
hysteresis."  The  name  is  a  good  one,  and  has  been 
adopted.  Broadly  speaking,  the  induction  as  measured 
by  the  galvanometer  deflection  is  independent  of  the  time 
during  which  the  successive  currents  have  acted,  and 
depends  only  upon  their  magnitude  and  order  of  succes- 
sion. Some  recent  experiments  of  Prof.  Ewihg,  however, 
seem  to  show  a  well-marked  time  effect.  There  are 
curious  features  in  these  experiments  which  require  more 
elucidation. 

It  has  been  pointed  out  by  Warburg,  and  subsequently 
by  Ewing,  that  the  area  of  curve  2  is  a  measure  of  the 
quantity  of  energy  expended  in  changing  the  magnetism 
of  the  mass  of  iron  from  that  produced  by  the  current 
in  one  direction  to  that  produced  by  the  current  in  the 
opposite  direction  and  back  again.  The  energy  expended 
with  varying  amplitude  of  magnetizing  forces  has  been 
determined  for  iron,  and  also  for  large  magnetizing  forces 
for  a  considerable  variety  of  samples  of  steel.  Different 
sorts  of  iron  and  steel  differ  from  each  other  very  greatly 
in  this  respect.  For  example,  the  energy  lost  in  a  com- 
plete cycle  of  reversals  in  a  sample  of  Whitworth's  mild 
steel  was  about  10,000  ergs  per  cubic  centimetre  ;  in  oil- 


FlG.  2. 


hardened  hard  steel  it  was  near  100,000  ;  and  in  tungsten 
steel  it  was  near  200,000 — a  range  of  variation  of  20  to  i. 
It  is,  of  course,  of  the  greatest  possible  importance  to 
keep  this  quantity  low  in  the  case  of  armatures  of  dynamos, 
and  in  that  of  the  cores  of  transformers.  If  the  armature 
of  a  dynamo  machine  be  made  of  good  iron,  the  loss  from 
hysteresis  may  easily  be  less  than  i  per  cent  ;  if,  how- 
ever, to  take  an  extreme  case,  it  were  made  of  tungsten 
steel,  it  would  readily  amount  to  20  per  cent.  In 
the  case  of  transformers  and  alternate-current  dynamo 
machines,  where  the  number  of  reversals  per  second  is 
great,  the  loss  of  power  by  hysteresis  of  the  iron,  and  the 
consequent  heating,  become  very  important.  The  loss  of 
power  by  hysteresis  increases  more  rapidly  than  does  the 
induction.  Hence  it  is  not  well  in  such  machines  to 
work  the  iron  to  anything  like  the  same  intensity  of  in- 
duction as  is  desirable  in  ordinary  continuous  current 
machines.  The  quantity  O  A,  when  measured  in  proper 
units,  as  already  explained — that  is  to  say,  the  reversed 
magnetic  force,  which  just  suffices  to  reduce  the  induction 
as  measured  by  the  kick  on  the  galvanometer  to  nothing 
after  the  material  has  been  submitted  to  a  very  great 
magnetizing  force— is  called  the  "  coercive  force,"  giving 
a  definite  meaning  to  a  term  which  has  long  been  used  in 
a  somewhat  indefinite  sense.  The  quantity  is  really  the 
important  one  in  judging  the  magnetism  of  short  per- 


manent magnets.  The  residual  magnetism,  o  B,  is  then 
practically  of  no  interest  at  all ;  the  magnetic  moment 
depends  almost  entirely  upon  the  coercive  force.  The 
range  of  magnitude  is  somewhat  greater  than  in  the  case 
of  the  energy  dissipated  in  a  complete  reversal.  For 
very  soft  iron  the  coercive  force  is  r6  C.G.S.  units  ;  for 
tungsten  steel,  the  most  suitable  material  for  magnets,  it  is 
51  in  the  same  units.  A  very  good  guess  may  be  made  of 
the  amount  of  coercive  force  in  a  sample  of  iron  or  steel 
by  the  form  of  the  ascending  curve,  determined  as  I  de- 
scribed at  first.  This  is  readily  seen  by  inspection  of 
f  '^-  3>  which  shows  the  curves  in  the  cases  of  wrought 
iron,  and  steel  containing  0*9  per  cent,  of  carbon.  With 
the  wrought  iron  a  rapid  ascent  of  the  ascending  curve  is 
made,  when  the  magnetizing  force  is  small  and  the 
coercive  force  is  small  ;  in  the  case  of  the  hard  steel  the 
ascent  of  the  curve  is  made  with  a  larger  magnetizing 
current,  and  the  coercive  force  is  large.  There  is  one 
curious  feature  shown  in  the  curve  for  hard  steel  which 
may,  so  far  as  I  know,  be  observed  in  all  magnetizable 
substances  :  the  ascending  curve  twice  cuts  the  descend- 
ing curve,  as  at  M  and  N.  This  peculiarity  was,  so  far  as 
I  know,  first  observed  by  Prof.  G.  Wiedemann. 

I  have  already  called  emphatic  attention  to  the  fact 
that  magnetic  substances  are  enormously  magnetic,  and 
that  non-magnetic  substances  are  hardly  at  all  magnetic  : 


252 


NATURE 


\yan.  1 6,  1890 


there  is  between  the  two  classes  no  intermediate  class. 
The  magnetic  property  of  iron  is  exceedingly  easily  des- 
troyed. If  iron  be  alloyed  with  12  per  cent,  of  man- 
ganese, the  kick  on  the  galvanometer  which  the  material 
will  give,  if  made  into  a  ring,  is  only  about  25  per  cent, 
greater  than  is  the  case  with  the  most  completely  non- 
magnetic material,  instead  of  being  some  hundreds  of 
times  as  great,  as  would  be  the  case  with  iron.  Further, 
with  this  manganese  steel,  the  kick  on  the  galvanometer 
is  strictly  proportional  to  the  magnetizing  current  in  the 
primary,  and  the  material  shows  no  sign  of  hysteresis. 
In  short,  all  its  properties  would  be  fully  accounted  for  if 
we  supposed  that  manganese  steel  consisted  of  a  perfectly 
non-magnetic  material,  with  a  small  percentage  of  metallic 
iron  mechanically  admixed  therewith.  Thus  the  property 
of  non-magnetizability  of  manganese  steel  is  an  excellent 
proof  of  the  fact — which  is  also  shown  by  the  non-mag- 
netic properties  of  most  compounds  of  iron — that  the 
property  appertains  to  the  molecule,  and  not  to  the  atom  ; 
or.  to  put    it    in   another  way,   suppose  that   we  were 


to  imagine  manganese  steel  broken  up  into  small  par- 
ticles, as  these  particles  became  smaller  there  would  at 
length  arrive  a  point  at  which  the  iron  and  the  manganese 
would  be  entirely  separated  from  each  other  :  when  this 
point  is  reached  the  particles  of  iron  are  non-magnetic. 
By  the  magnetic  molecule  of  the  substance  we  mean  the 
smallest  part  which  has  all  the  magnetic  properties  of  the 
mass.  The  magnetic  molecule  must  be  big  enough  to 
contain  its  proportion  of  manganese.  In  iron,  then,  we 
must  have  a  collection  of  particles  of  such  magnitude  that 
it  would  be  possible  for  the  manganese  to  enter  into  each 
of  them,  to  constitute  an  element  of  the  magnet.  Man- 
ganese is,  so  far  as  I  know,  a  non-magnetic  element 
Smaller  proportions  of  manganese  reduce  the  magnetic 
property  in  a  somewhat  less  degree,  the  reduction  being 
greater  as  the  quantity  of  manganese  is  greater.  It 
appeared  very  possible  that  the  non-magnetic  property 
of  manganese  steel  was  due  to  the  coercive  force  being 
very  great — that,  in  fact,  in  all  experiments  we  were  still 
on  that  part  of  the  magnetization  curve  below  the  rapid 


rise,  and  that  if  the  steel  were  submitted  to  greater  forces 
it  would  presently  prove  to  be  magnetic,  like  other  kinds 
of  steel.  Prof.  Ewing,  however,  has  submitted  man- 
ganese steel  to  very  great  forces  indeed,  and  finds  that 
its  magnetism  is  always  proportional  to  the  magnetizing 
force. 

No  single  body  is  known  having  the  property  of 
capacity  for  magnetism  in  a  degree  which  is  neither  very 
great  nor  very  small,  but  intermediate  between  the  two 
extremes.  We  can,  however,  mix  magnetic  and  non- 
magnetic substances  to  form  bodies  apparently  inter- 
mediate. It  is,  therefore,  interesting  to  consider  what 
the  properties  might  be  of  such  a  mixture.  It  depends 
quite  as  much  on  the  way  in  which  the  magnetic  part  is 
arranged  in  the  mass,  as  on  its  actual  quantity.  Suppose, 
for  example,  it  is  arranged  as  in  Fig.  4^in  threads  or 
plates  having  a  very  long  axis  in  the  direction  of  the 
magnetizing  force — we  may  at  once  determine  the  curve 
of  magnetization  of  the  mixture  from  that  of  the  magnetic 


substance  by  dividing  the  induction  for  any  given  force 
in  the  ratio  of  the  whole  volume  to  the  volume  of  magnetic 
substance.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  as  in  Fig.  5 — with 
a  very  short  axis  in  the  direction  of  the  force,  and  a  long 
axis  perpendicular  thereto — we  can  equally  construct  the 
curve  of  magnetization.  This  is  done  in  Fig.  6,  which 
shows  the  curve  when  nine-tenths  of  the  material  is  highly 
magnetic  iron,  arranged  as  in  Fig.  5,  whilst  the  other  curve 
of  the  same  figure  is  that  when  only  one-tenth  is  magnetic, 
but  arranged  as  in  Fig.  4.  You  observe  how  very  different 
is  the  character  of  the  curve — a  difference  which  is  reduced 
by  the  much  less  proportion  of  magnetic  material  in  the 
mixture  in  the  one  case  than  in  the  other.  One  peculiarity 
of  these  arrangements  of  the  two  materials  in  relation  to 
each  other  is,  that  the  resulting  material  is  not  isotropic  ; 
that  is,  its  properties  are  not  the  same  in  all  directions,  but 
depend  upon  the  direction  of  the  magnetizing  force  in  the 
material.  Of  course,  this  is  not  at  all  a  probable  arrange- 
ment, but  it  is  instructive  in  showing  the  character  of  the 


Jan.  1 6,  1890J 


NATURE 


-DO 


result  as  depending  upon  ihe  construction  of  the  material. 
Let  us,  however,  consider  the  simplest  isotropic  arrange- 
ment ;  let  us  suppose  that  one  material  is  in  the  form  of 
spheres  bedded  in  a  matrix  of  the  other  :  if  the  spheres 
are  placed  at  random  this  is  clearly  an  isotropic  arrange- 
ment.    ,The   result   is   very   different   according   as   the 


matrix  or  the  spheres  are  of  the  magnetic  material. 
Suppose  that  the  volume  of  the  spheres  is  one-half  of  the 
whole  volume.  In  Fig.  7  we  have  approximately  the 
curve  for  iron,  for  a  mixture  of  equal  quantities  of  iron 
and  a  non- magnetic  material ;  the  spheres  being  non- 
magnetic and  the   matrix  iron,  and   for  a  mixture,  the 


Fig.  4. 

spheres  being  iron  and  the  matrix  non-magnetic. 
Observe  the  great  difference.  When  the  spheres  are 
iron,  the  induction  is  near  four  times  the  force  for  all 
values  of  the  force.  When  the  matrix  is  iron,  the  induc- 
tion is  near  two-fifths  of  the  induction  when  the  material  is 
iron  only. 


Fig.  5. 

In  speaking  of  the  properties  of  bodies  which,  like 
manganese  steel,  are  slightly  magnetic,  it  may  be  well 
here  to  enter  a  caution.  But  little  that  is  instructive  is 
to  be  learned  by  testing  filings,  or  the  like,  with  magnets, 
as  these  show  but  little  difference  between  bodies  which 
are    slightly    magnetic    and    those    which   are  strongly 


magnetic.  Suppose  the  fihngs  to  be  spheres  ;  m  the 
following  table  are  given  comparative  values  of  the  forces 
they  would  experience  in  terms  of  /t,  if  placed  in  a 
magnetic  field  of  given  value,  /x  having  its  ordinary 
signification — that  is,  being  the  ratio  of  the  kick  on  the 
galvanometer  when  a  ring  is  tried  made  of  the  material 
of  the  filing  to  the  kick  if  the  ring  is  made  of  a  perfectly 
non-magnetic  material : — 


^c                    .^ 

Utraction. 

I 

0 

I.' 47 

o-i8 

3-6 

I"2  , 

5 

15 

10 

2T 

lOO 

2'8 

10  JO 

2-9^ 

Non-magnetic  body. 

Manganese  steel  with  12  per  cent. 

Manganese!steel  with  9  per  cent. 


254 


NATURE 


\yan.  1 6,  1890 


Now  bodies  in  which  \l  is  so  small  as  3'6  belong  distinctly 
to  the  non-magnetic  class  ;  but  the  test  with  the  magnet 
would  very  markedly  distinguish  them  from  manganese 
steel  with  12  per  cent  of  manganese.     The  distinction. 


however, between  \i  =  36  and  /x  =  1000  is  comparatively 
small ;  whereas,  under  the  conditions  of  experiment,  /x  is 
much  more  than  1000  for  most  bodies  of  which  iron  is 
the  principal  constituent. 


Fig.  7. 


The  effect  of  stress  on  the  magnetic  properties  of  iron 
and  nickel  have  been  studied  by  Sir  W.  Thomson.  A  fact 
interesting  from  a  broad  and  general  point  of  view  is 
that  the  effects  of  stress  are  different  in  kind  in  the  case 
of  iron  and  nickel.     In  the  case  of  iron,  for  small  mag- 


netizing forces  in  the  direction  of  the  tension,  tension 
increases  the  magnetization  ;  for  large  forces,  diminishes 
it.  In  the  case  of  nickel  the  effect  is  always  to  diminish 
the  magnetization. 

{To  be  continued^ 


LORENZO  RESPIGHI. 

r^URING  the  last  forty  years  the  Eternal  City  has 
possessed  two  astronomical  observatories.  It  was 
at  the  old  building,  connected  with  the  Collegio  Romano, 
that  Scheiner  collected  the  principal  materials  for  his 
farnous  work  on  the  sun,  called  from  its  dedication  to 

Prince  Orsini.  the  Duke  of  Bracciano,  "  Rosa  Ursina"  ; 
and  though  it  is  with  some  justice  that  Delambre  speaks 
disparagingly  of  its  contents  as  compared  with  its  bulk, 
the  observations  of  the  solar  spots  show  with  what  care 
they  were  made,  and  they  afford  the  first  indication  of 
the  now  familiar  fact  that  their  rotation  varies  in  duration 
in  different  heliographical  latitudes,  though  Scheiner's 
idea  seems  to  have  been  that  it  was  not  the  same  in  the 
two  solar  hemispheres.  But  it  was  not  until  1787  that  the 
present  observatory  of  the  Collegio  Romano  was  com- 
menced, nor  until  1804  that  the  general  interest  felt  in  the 
great  eclipse  of  February  1 1  in  that  year  induced  Pope  Pius 
yil.  to  provide  G.  Calandrelli  with  the  means  of  furnish- 
ing it  with  suitable  instruments.  Another  astronomical 
phenomenon,  the  appearance  of  the  great  comet  of  1843, 
led  his  son  Ignazio  CalandreUi,  to  wish  to  form  a  new 
observatory  on  the  Capitohne  Hill ;  but  it  was  not  until 
five  years  later  that  Pius  IX.  was  able,  in  1848,  to  provide 
him  with  the  means  for  carrying  out  this  design.  Mean- 
while Calandrelli  continued  his  observations  at  Bologna, 
ably  assisted  by  the  subject  of  our  notice. 

Lorenzo  Respighi  was  born  at  Cortema^giore,  in  the 
province  of  Placentia,  in  1824.  His  first  studies  were 
made  at  Parma,  from  which  town  he  proceeded  to  the 
University  of  Bologna,  where  he  obtained  high  Jionours 
in  the  departments  of  mathematics  and  philosophy  in 
1847.  Nominated  Professor  of  Optics  and  Astronomy  in 
185 1,  he  subsequently  succeeded  Calandrelli  as  Director 
of  the  Observatory.     On  the  retirement  of  the  latter  in 


1865  (followed  by  his  death  in  1866)  Respighi  was  ap- 
pointed his  successor.  His  earliest  papers  were  on 
mechanical  and  optical  subjects  ;  but  he  will  be  best 
remembered  by  his  subsequent  labours  on  stellar  spectra, 
on  those  of  the  solar  corona  and  protuberances,  and  on 
the  scintillation  of  the  stars.  In  1871  he  went  on  an  ex- 
pedition to  Poodocottah,  in  Hindustan,  to  observe  the 
total  eclipse  of  December  12  in  that  year  ;  an  account  of 
the  observations  will  be  found  in  the  eclipse  (41st)  volume 
of  the  Memoirs  of  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  of 
which  Respighi  was  elected  an  Associate  in  1872.  He 
formed  from  his  observations  between  1875  and  1881  a 
catalogue  of  2534  stars  in  the  northern  hemisphere  from 
the  first  to  the  sixth  magnitude,  which  was  published 
in  successive  numbers  of  the  Memoirs  of  the  Lincean 
Academy. 

His  death  took  place  after  a  long  illness,  aggravated  by 
the  recent  epidemic,  on  December  10  last,  and  the  Cam- 
pidoglio  Observatory  has  thus  been  deprived  of  its  second 
director,  who  has  so  ably  and  energetically  conducted  its 
operations  during  nearly  the  last  quarter  of  a  century. 

W.  T.  Lynn. 


NOTES. 

On  Saturday  evening,  at  the  Royal  Institution,  Prof.  Max 
Miiller  delivered  an  address  to  inaugurate  the  establishment  of 
a  school  for  modern  Oriental  studies  by  the  Imperial  Institute  in 
union  with  University  College  and  King's  College,  London. 
The  Prince  of  Wales  presided,  and  among  those  present  were 
many  eminent  persons,  including  some  distinguished  Orientals 
Prof.  Miiller  presented  with  admirable  force  and  clearness  the 
need  for  a  great  English  school  for  Oriental  studies,  and  had 
much  to  tell  his  hearers  as  to  work  done  in  this  direction  in 
other  countries.     His  account  of  the  new  Berlin  seminary  of 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


NATURE 


255 


Oriental  languages  was  particularly  interesting.     This  institution 
has  the  following  staff  of  professors  and  teachers  : — One  pro- 
fessor of  Chinese  ;  two  teachers  of  Chinese,  both  natives — one 
for  teaching   North  Chinese,    the   other   South   Chinese ;   one 
professor  of  Japanese,  assisted  by  a  native  teacher  ;  one  professor 
of  Arabic,  assisted  by  two  native  teachers — one  for  Arabic  as 
spoken  in  Egypt,  the  other  for' Arabic  as  spoken  in  Syria  ;  one 
native  teacher  of  Hindustani  and  Persian  ;  one  native  teacher  of 
Turkish  ;  one  teacher  of  Suaheli,  an  important  language  spoken 
on  the  East  Coast  of  Africa,  assisted  by  a  native.     Besides  these 
special  lectures,  those  given  by  the  most  eminent  professors  of 
Sanskrit,   Arabic,   Persian,  and  Chinese  in  the   Universities  of 
Berlin  are  open  to  the  students  of  the  Oriental  seminary.     The 
number  of  students  amounts  at  present  to   115.     Of  these,  56 
are  said  to  belong  to  the  faculty  of  law,  which  must  be  taken  to 
include  all  who  aspire  to  any  employment  in  the  consular  and 
colonial  services.     Fifteen  belong  to  the  faculties  of  philosophy, 
medicine,  and  physical  science  ;  four  to  the  faculty  of  theology, 
who  are  probably  intended  for  missionary  work.     Twenty-three 
are  mentioned   as   engaged   in   mercantile   pursuits,    three   are 
technical  students,  five  officers  in  the  army,  and  nine  are  returned 
as  studying  modern  Greek  and  Spanish,  languages  not  generally 
counted  as  Oriental,  though,  no  doubt,  of  great  usefulness  in  the 
East  and  in  America.     Prof.  Miiller  succeeded  in  conveying  a 
remarkably  vivid  impression  of  the  fact  that  England,  looking 
at  the  subject  simply  from  the  point  of  view  of  her  own  material 
interests,  cannot  afford  to  neglect  the  studies  to  which  so  much 
attention  is  devoted  elsewhere.     "England,"  he  said,  "cannot 
live  an   isolated  life.     She  must  be  able  to  breathe,  to  grow,  to 
expand,  if  she  is  to  live  at  all.      Her  productive  power  is  far  too 
much  for  herself,  loo  much  even  for  Europe.     She  must  have  a 
wider  field  for  her  unceasing  activity,  and  that  field  is  the  East, 
with  its  many  races,  its  many  markets,  its  many  languages.     To 
allow  herself  to  be  forestalled  or  to  be  ousted  by  more  eloquent 
and  persuasive  competitors  from  those  vast  fields  of  commerce 
would   be   simple   suicide.      Our   school,   in   claiming   national 
support,  appeals  first  of  all  to  the  instinct  of  self-preservation. 
It  says  to  every  manufacturing  town  in  England,  help  us,  and,  in 
doing  so,  help  thy.self.     Whenever  the  safety   and   honour  of 
England  are  at  stake  we  know   what  enormous  sums  Parliament 
is  willing  to  vote  for  army  and  navy,  for  fortresses  and  harbours 
— sums  larger  than  any  other  Parliament  would  venture  to  name. 
We  want  very  little  for  our  School  of  Oriental  Languages,  but 
we  want  at  least  as  much  as  other  countries  devote  to  the  same 
object.     We  want  it  for  the  very  existence  of  England  ;  for  the 
vital  condition  of  her  existence  is  her  commerce,  and  the  best 
markets  for  that  commerce  lie  in  the  East." 

On  Saturday,  February  22,  the  Physikalisch-okonomische 
Gesellschaft  of  Konigsberg  is  to  hold  its  centenary  celebration. 
The  proceedings  will  consist  of  a  Festsitzung  at  11  a.m.,  a  visit 
to  the  Provinzial-Museum  at  I,  and  a  Festessen  at  8  p.m. 

Several  courses  of  afternoon  lectures  which  promise  to  be 
exceptionally  interesting  will  be  delivered  during  the  present 
season  at  the  Royal  Institution.  On  January  21  Mr.  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S.,  will  begin  a  series  of  ten  lectures,  forming 
the  third  part  of  his  course  on  "  Before  and  After  Darwin.'' 
This  series  will  relate  to  the  post-Darwinian  period,  and  will 
•nclude  a  discussion  of  Weismann's  theory  of  heredity.  Prof. 
Flower,  F.R.S.,  will  begin  on  January  25  a  course  of  three 
lectures  on  the  natural  history  of  the  horse,  and  of  its  extinct 
and  existing  allies.  A  course  of  four  lectures  on  the  early 
developments  of  the  forms  of  instrumental  music  will  be  begun 
by  Mr.  F.  Niecks  on  March  6. 

The  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Institution  of  Mechanica' 
Engineers  will  be  held  at  25  Great  George  Street,  Westminster, 
on  January  29,  30,  and  31.  The  chair  will  be  taken  each  even- 
ing by  the  President  at  7.30  p.m.  The  following  are  the  papers  : 


on  the  compounding  of  locomotives  burning  petroleum  refuse 
in  Russia,  by  Thomas  Urquhart  ;  on  the  burning  of  colonial 
coal  in  the  locomotives  of  the  Cape  Government  railways,  by 
Michael  Stephens ;  on  the  mechanical  appliances  employed  in 
the  manufacture  and  storage  of  oxygen,  by  Kenneth  S.  Murray. 

The  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Anthropological  Institute 
of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  will  take  place  on  Tuesday,  the 
28th  inst.,  at  8.30  p.m.,  Dr.  John  Beddoe,  F.R.S.,  President, 
in  the  chair.  The  following  will  be  the  order  of  business  : — 
Confirmation  of  the  minutes,  appointment  of  scrutineers  of  the 
ballot,  Treasurer's  financial  statement.  Report  of  Council  for 
1889,  the  Presidential  Address,  report  of  scrutineers,  and 
election  of  Council  for  1890. 

DuRi  NG  the  last  few  years  anthropological  studies  have  excited 
a  good  deal  of  popular  interest,  and  lately  it  occurred  to  the 
Council  of  the  Anthropological  Institute  that  it  might  be  worth 
while  for  them  to  arrange  for  the  preparation  of  a  series  of 
lectures  presenting  clearly  the  results  of  recent  anthropological 
research.  Accordingly  a  course  on  the  following  branches  of 
the  subject  has  been  planned  :  physical  anthropology  ;  the  geo- 
logical history  of  man  ;  prehistoric  and  non-historic  dwellings, 
tombs,  and  ornaments  ;  the  development  of  the  arts  of  life  ; 
social  institutions  ;  anthropometry.  The  Assistant-Secretary  of 
the  Institute  is  prepared  to  arrange  for  the  delivery  of  these 
lectures  at  places  within  convenient  distance  of  London. 

The  first  volume  of  Prof,  Thorpe's  "  Dictionary  of  Applied 
Chemistry  "  (Longmans)  will  be  published  in  a  few  days.  The 
work  will  consist  of  three  volumes,  and  will  treat  specially  of 
chemistry  in  its  relations  to  the  arts  and  manufactures.  It  will 
be  uniform  with  the  new  edition  of  Watts's  "  Dictionary  of 
Chemistry,"  edited  by  Muir  and  Morley. 

M.  Gran  EL  has  been  appointed  Professor  of  Botany  to  the 
Faculty  of  Medicine  at  Montpellier. 

On  Monday  the  Khedive  opened  the  new  Museum  at  Ghizeh, 
whither  the  archasological  treasures  hitherto  preserved  at  Boulak 
have  been  transferred. 

The  "  tercentenary  of  the  invention  of  the  compound  micro- 
scope "  will  be  celebrated  by  a  Universal  Exhibition  of  Botany 
and  Microscopy,  to  be  held  at  Antwerp  during  the  present  year, 
under  the  auspices  of  M.  Ch.  de  Bosschere,  President,  M.  Ch. 
Van  Geert,  Secretary,  and  Dr.  H,  Van  Heurck,  Vice-President. 
It  is  proposed  to  organize  an  historical  exhibition  of  microscopes, 
and  an  exhibition  of  the  instruments  of  all  makers,  and  of 
accessory  apparatus  and  photomicrography.  At  the  conferences 
the  following  subjects  will  be  discussed  and  illustrated  : — The 
history  of  the  microscope  ;  the  use  of  the  microscope  ;  the  pro- 
jecting microscope  and  photomicrography  ;  the  microscopical 
structure  of  plants  ;  the  microscopical  structure  of  man  and  of 
animals  ;  microbes  ;  the  adulteration  of  food-substances,  &c. 
Communications  are  to  be  addressed  to  M.  Ch.  de  Bosschere, 
Lierre,  Belgium. 

We  regret  to  have  to  record  the  death  of  Mr.  Daniel  Adamson, 
well  known  from  his  connection  with  the  iron  and  steel  industries. 
He  died  on  Monday  at  the  age  of  71.  Mr.  Adamson  was 
President  of  the  Iron  and  Steel  Institute  in  1887,  and  was  a 
member  of  other  mechanical  and  scientific  associations. 

Dr.  F.  Hauck,  the  eminent  algologist,  died  at  Trieste  on 
December  21,  1889,  at  the  early  age  of  forty-four.  He  was 
the  author  of  the  volume  on  marine  Algae  in  the  new  edition  of 
Rabenhorst's  "Cryptogamic  Flora  of  Germany." 

The  December  number  oi  \\^&[Amcricatt.  Geologist  contains 
an  interesting  paper,  by  William  Upham,  on  the  late  Prof. 
Henry  Carvill  Lewis,  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  died  at 
Manchester  on  July  21,  1888,  a  day  or  two  after  his  arrival  in 
this  country  from  America.     He  became  ill  during  the  voyage. 


256 


NATURE 


\yan.  16,  1890 


and  it  seems  that  the  immediate  cause  was  the  contamination  of 
the  water  supply  of  Philadelphia,  where  he  had  been  living, 
and  where  about  a  thousand  cases  of  typhoid  fever  appeared  at 
nearly  the  same  time.  Prof.  Lewis  was  only  in  his  thirty- fifth 
year.  An  excellent  portrait  of  him  accompanies  Mr.  Upham's 
paper. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  University  Experimental  Science 
Association,  Dublin,  on  December  13,  Mr.  J.  Joly  read  a  paper 
on  a  resonance  method  of  measuring  the  constant  of  gravitation. 
A  simple  pendulum  of  small  mass  is  hung  in  a  tall  glass  tube, 
rendered  vacuous.  Inclose  proximity  two  massive  pendulums, 
one  at  either  side,  are  maintained  in  a  state  of  vibration  for  any 
desired  period  of  time.  The  times  of  vibration  of  all  these  pen- 
dulums are  alike.  The  observations  consist  in  observing  the 
amplitude,  or  the  increase  of  amplitude,  of  the  central  pendulum, 
after  a  known  number  of  vibrations  executed  by  the  exterior 
pendulums.  Several  modifications,  carrying  out  the  same 
principle,  were  suggested.  It  is  proposed  to  test  the  method  in 
the  vaults  of  the  physical  laboratory. 

The  Central  Meteorological  Observatory  of  Mexico,  which  is 
situated  at  7489  feet  above  the  sea,  has  published  a  summary  of 
meteorological  results  for  each  month  of  twelve  years  ending 
1888  (excepting  January  and  February  1877).  The  coldest 
month  is  January,  the  mean  temperature  of  which  is  54°,  and 
the  warmest  month  is  April,  the  mean  temperature  of  which  is 
64°.  The  absolute  maximum  in  the  shade  was  89°,  and  the 
minimum  28° "9.  The  wettest  month  is  August,  in  which  the 
mean  rainfall  is  5*4  inches,  and  the  driest  month  is  February, 
with  an  average  of  0-4  inch.  The  greatest  fall  at  one  time  was 
2" 5  inches.     The  prevalent  direction  of  the  wind  is  north-west. 

The  Essex  County  Chronicle  of  January  10  says  that  on  Tues- 
day, the  7th  inst.,  two  slight  shocks  of  earthquake  were  noticed 
at  Chelmsford.  The  first  occurred  at  12.30,  when  a  low  rumbling 
sound  like  thunder  in  the  distance  was  heard,  accompanied  by 
a  vibration  of  the  ground  and  a  rattling  of  the  windows.  The 
''hock  was  observed  in  several  parts  of  the  town.  The  more 
pronounced  shock  was,  however,  at  1.25  p.m.,  when  the  rumbling, 
moaning  sound  was  intensified,  there  being  a  heavy  throbbing 
in  the  air  like  the  pulsation  of  an  engine.  At  many  houses  there 
was  a  violent  shaking  of  the  windows,  and  two  cases  are  reported 
of  things  trembling  on  the  tables.  Some  men  working  for  Mr. 
Norrington  heard  the  sound,  took  it  to  be  the  rumble  of  a  heavy 
waggon,  and  went  out  to  see  it.  Nothing  was  in  sight.  Several 
people  recognized  the  shock  as  being  similar  to  the  forerunner 
of  the  1884  earthquake,  and  rushed  out  of  their  houses.  Mr. 
Arthur  E.  Brown,  writing  to  us  from  Brentwood,  says  that  the 
shocks  were  noticed  there.  They  were  attributed  by  the  people 
in  his  house  to  the  firing  of  guns  at  Woolwich.  They  rattled 
the  doors  violently. 

A  CORRESPONDENT  Writes  that  during  the  thunderstorm  which 
prevailed  over  the  greater  part  of  Scotland  early  on  Monday 
morning,  January  6,  a  slight  shock  of  earthquake  was  felt  in  a 
district  of  Perthshire.  "  This,"  he  says,  "is  somewhat  similar 
to  what  took  place  at  Argyll  on  the  evening  of  July  15  last  year, 
and  might  lead  one  to  suppose  that  atmospheric  influence  has 
something  to  do  with  the  production  of  seismic  disturbances." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society  on  Saturday, 
attention  was  called  to  a  specimen  of  the  double  cocoanut,  or 
cocoa  de  mer,  now  known  to  come  from  the  Seychelles.  For 
some  hundreds  of  years  these  nuts  have  been  occasionally  found 
washed  up  by  the  sea,  and  their  extraordinary  appearance,  large 
size,  and  mysterious  origin  have  given  rise  to  many  stories  of 
miraculous  virtue  in  the  cure  of  diseases.  Some  are  even  said 
to  have  been  sold  for  their  weight  in  gold.  This  specimen 
belonged  to  General  Gordon,  and  was  given  by  him  to  General 
Gerald  Graham,  by  whom  it  has  been  presented  to  the  Society. 


The  Transactions  of  the  Congres  pour  I'Utilisation  des  Eaux 
fluviales,  held  last  summer  in  Paris,  have  just  been  issued.  The 
volume  contains  a  great  number  of  engravings. 

A  BOOK  on  the  Congo  State,  by  E.  Dupont,  the  Director  of 
the  Natural  History  Museum  of  Brussels,  has  just  been  published. 
He  presents  the  scientific  results  of  his  travels,  devoting  especial 
attention  to  geological  questions. 

Messrs.  George  Philip  and  Son  have  published  the 
second  issue  of  their  valuable  "Educational  Annual."  The 
work  has  been  enlarged,  revised,  and  to  some  extent  re- 
arranged ;  and  it  ought  to  be  of  great  service  to  all  who  are 
for  any  reason  especially  interested  in  educational  institutions. 

Messrs.  Perken,  Son,  and  Rayment  have  produced  a 
projecting  optical  lantern,  which  is  likely  to  be  of  considerable- 
service.  When  enlargements  are  required,  a  condenser  of 
10  inch  diameter  is  available ;  but  when  a  magic-lantern 
entertainment  is  to  be  provided,  a  condenser  of  4-inch  diameter 
can  be  substituted.  The  apparatus  consists  of  a  mahogany- 
body  lantern  with  a  long  bellows-camera  adjusted  by  the  patent 
quick-action  rack  and  pinion,  and  lighted  by  the  refulgent 
three-wick  lamp. 

On  January  21,  and  the  three  following  evenings,  Dr.  E. 
Symes  Thomson  will  deliver,  at  Gresham  College,  a  course  of 
lectures  on  influenza  or  epidemic  catarrh.  In  the  first  lecture 
he  will  present  a  historical  sketch  of  the  subject.  The  remain- 
ing lectures  will  be  on  influenza  as  it  affects  the  lower  animals, 
the  causes  and  consequences  of  influenza,  and  diagnosis  and 
management. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  four  Leopard  Tortoises  {Testudo  fardalis), 
three  Well-marked  Tortoises  {Homopiis  signatus),  a  Rufous 
Snake  {Ablabes  rufuhis),  six  Gray's  Frogs  {Rana  grayi)  from 
South  Africa,  presented  by  the  Rev.  G.  H.  R.  Fisk,  C.M.Z.S.  ; 
two  Spur-winged  Geese  {Plectropterus  gafnbensis)  from  West 
Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  C.  B.  Mitford  ;  six  Red-bellied  Wax- 
bills  {Estrelda  7-ubriventris),  five  Crimson-eared  Waxbills 
{Estrelda  phoenicotis),  seven  Grenadier  Waxbills  {Urcegintlms 
grantinus,   6  cj    i   ?  ),  three  Paradise  Whydah  Birds  ( Vidua 

paradisea),   three  Weaver   Birds    [Euplectes    )   from 

Benguela,  West  Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  T.  W.  Bacon  ;  a 
Bluish  Finch  {Spermophila  ccerulescens  i  )  from  Brazil,  presented 
by  Mrs.  Mayne ;  a  Green  Turtle  {Chelone  viridis)  from  the 
West  Indies,  presented  by  Mrs.  Harris ;  a  Chattering  Lory 
{Lorius  garrulus)  from  Moluccas,  presented  by  Captain  Bason, 
P.  and  O.  s.s.  Bombay;  three  Yellow-winged  Sugar  Birds 
{Cmrea  cyanea),  two  Yellow-fronted  Tanagers  {Euphonia  favi- 
frons)  from  South  America,  deposited ;  four  Tufted  Umbres 
{Scopus  umbretta)  from  Africa,  a  Geoff'roy's  Terrapin  {Hydraspis 
hilarii)  from  the  Argentine  Republic,  purchased ;  a  Koala 
{Fhascolarctus  cinereus  ?)  from  Australia,  two  Indian  Cobras 
{Naia  tripudians),  an  Indian  Python  {Python  molurus)  from 
India,  received  in  exchange. 

OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal  Time   at  Greenwich   at  10  p.m.,  January_i6  =  sh. 
4Sm.  8s. 


Name. 

Mag 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)  G.C.  1185      

— 

— 

5  30     7 

-    5  20 

(2)  119  Tauri      

4 

Reddish-yellow. 

5  25  46 

-fi8  3i 

(3)  a  Orionis       

4 

Whitish-yellow. 

S  33  12 

-    2  40 

(4)  y  Orionis       

2 

White. 

5  19  12 

-f  6  15 

(s)  64  Schj 

8 

Very  red 

5  38  29 

-1-24  22 

(6)  R  Ceti    

Var 

Yellowish-red. 

2  20  24 

-   0  40 

(7)  U  Ceti   

Var. 

Reddish. 

2  28  26 

- 13  37 

yan.  1 6,  1890] 


NATURE 


^S7 


Remarks. 
(i)  This  is  described  in  Herschel's  general  catalogue  as  "a 
remarkable  object,  very  large,  round,  with  tail,  much  brighter 
in  the  middle."  The  spectrum  has  not  yet  been  recorded,  but  it 
promises  to  be  one  of  great  interest,  as  the  nebula  is  apparently 
one  of  the  cometic  ones.  The  meteoritic  hypothesis  suggests 
that  tliese  are  produced  by  a  condensed  swarm  moving  at  a  high 
velocity  through  a  sheet  of  meteorites  at  rest,  or  a  swarm  almost 
at  rest  surrounded  by  a  moving  sheet.  In  the  former  case  the 
collision  region  would  be  behind  the  swarm,  and  would  be  spread 
out  like  a  comet's  tail,  the  angle  of  the  fan  and  length  of  '*  tail " 
depending  upon  the  velocity  of  the  moving  swarm.  Observa- 
tions for  variations  of  spectrum  between  nucleus  and  tail  will 
also  be  valuable. 

(2)  This  is  a  typical  example  of  stars  of  Group  II.  Observa- 
tions similar  to  those  suggested  for  20  Leporis,  U.  A.,  last  week, 
are  required. 

(3)  Konkoly  classes  this  with  stars  of  the  solar  type.  The  usual 
differential  observations,  as  to  whether  the  star  belongs  to  Group 

III.  or  to  Group  V.,  are  required. 

(4)  In  Gothard's  list  of  star  spectra  this  is  described  as  Group 

IV.  The  usual  observations  are  suggested. 

(5)  Duner  describes  the  spectrum  of  this  star  as  Group  VI., 
but  his  description  is  not  complete.  The  characters  of  the 
different  bands,  especially  of  Band  6,  require  further  observa- 
tion. It  may  be  remarked  in  connection  with  these  stars  of 
small  magnitude,  that  the  observations  are  by  no  means  so  diffi- 
cult as  in  the  case  of  small  stars  with  spectra  consisting  of  fine 
lines.  The  bands  are  broad  and  generally  dark,  so  that  the 
continuous  spectrum  is  broken  up  into  zones. 

(6)  This  variable  has  a  period  of  167  days,  and  ranges  in 
magnitude  from  about  8  at  maximum  to  13  at  minimum.  The 
spectrum  is  of  the  Group  II.  type,  and,  as  in  other  variables  of 
the  same  group,  bright  lines  mayaj^pear  at  maximum.  Duner 
states  that  the  bands  are  very  wide  and  dark,  but  he  does  not 
state  what  bands  are  present.     Maximum  on  January  18. 

(7)  The  spectrum  of  this  variable  has  not  yet  been  recorded, 
but  the  colour  indicates  that  it  is  probably  either  Group  II.  or 
Group  VI.  The  period  is  228  days,  and  the  range  from  7  at 
maximum  to  10  at  minimum.  The  maximum  will  occur  on 
Januarv  18.  A.  Fowler. 

The  Temperature  of  the  Moon. — Prof.  Langley,  by 
means  of  the  bolometer,  made  some  measurements  of  the  heat 
from  different  parts  of  the  eclipsed  moon  on  the  night  of  Sep- 
tember 23,  1885  {Phil.  Mag.,  January,  1890).  These  measure- 
ments were  made  in  connection  with  a  much  more  extended 
study  on  the  temperature  of  our  satellite.  The  following  par- 
ticulars are  given : — The  diameter  of  the  lunar  image  was 
28-3  millimetres,  and  of  this  only  a  limited  portion  (o  08  of  the 
whole)  fell  upon  the  bolometer.  As  the  penumbra  came  on, 
the  diminution  of  heat  was  marked,  being  measured  by  the 
bolometer  even  before  the  eye  had  detected  any  appearance  of 
shadow.  The  heat  continued  to  diminish  rapidly  with  the  pro- 
gress of  the  immersion  in  the  penumbra.  At  one  hour  before 
the  middle  of  the  total  eclipse,  the  deflection  in  the  umbra  was 
3*8  divisions.  Fifty  minutes  after  the  middle  of  the  eclipse,  it 
had  diminished  to  approximately  i  "3  divisions,  this  being  less 
than  I  per  cent,  of  the  heat  from  a  similar  portion  of  the  un- 
eclipsed  moon.  The  rise  of  the  temperature  after  the  passage 
of  the  umbra  was  apparently  nearly  as  rapid  as  the  previous  fall. 
The  most  important  conclusion  drawn  by  Prof.  Langley  from 
his  researches  is  that  the  mean  temperature  of  the  sunlit  lunar 
soil  is  most  probably  not  greatly  above  zero  Centigrade. 

On  the  Orbit  of  Struve  228.— The  Monthly  Notices  of 
the  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  December  1889,  contains  a 
note,  communicated  by  Mr.  J.  E.  Gore,  on  this  binary  star. 
Recent  measures  show  that,  since  Struve  discovered  the  star  in 
1829,  it  has  described  about  120°  of  its  apparent  orbit.  The 
following  provisional  elements  have  been  computed  : — 


Elements  of  2  228. 


P  =  8873  years. 
T  =  1906 '03 

e  =  0-5311 

i  =  70°  59' 


a  =  84  49 
A  =  51  36 

a  =  o"-98 
M  =  +4° -057 


According  to  this  orbit,  the  distance  between  the  components 
will  gradually  increase  during  the  next  few  years  up  to  a  maxi- 
mum of  about  o"-55,  and  then  diminish  again  as  the  companion 
approaches  the  periastron.     The  minimum  distance  will  not  be 


t  = 

5  23     3-8 

ir-«  = 

106  13     4'i 

a  = 

296  42  55 -r 

Iog^=: 

9-8163726 

log  a  = 

0-4905937 

T  = 

1880  Nov.  7-786610 

Periodic 

time  =  1988-33  days. 

reached  until  the  position  angle  is  180°  (after  the  periastron  pas- 
sage), when  the  components  will  probably  be  separated  by  less 
than  o"-2.  The  binary  lies  a  little  preceding  62  Andromedae, 
the  position  for  1890-0  being  approximately — 

R.A.  2h.  6m.  59s.,  Decl.  +  46°  58'-4. 
The  magnitudes  of  the  components  are  about  6*7  and  7-6. 

Orbit  of  Swift's  Comet  (V.  1880). — The  orbit  of  this 
comet  has  been  computed,  by  Gibbs's  vector  method,  by  Messrs, 
W.  Beebe  and  A.  W.  Phillips  (Astr.  yourn.,  Nos.  207,  208). 
This  method  is  found  to  possess  advantages  over  those  of  Gauss 
and  Oppolzer.  Below  are  given  elements  which  have  been 
computed  from  eight  observations  ranging  from  October  25, 
1880,  to  January  7,  1881,  and  compared  with  these  are  the 
elements  computed  from  three  observations  by  Gibbs's  method. 
Both  are  referred  to  the  ecliptic  and  mean  equinox  of  1880-0 : — 
Eight  observations.  'I  hree  observations. 

O  /  /' 

i  =        5   22      2-03 

v-  0,=  106  13  I9'I7 
9,  =  296  52     2*09 
log  e  =  9*8146985 
log  a  =  0-4873065 

T=  1880  Nov.  7-782810 
Periodic  time  =  1965-88  days. 
On  the  Variability  of  R  Vulpecul^. — Schcinfeld,  from 
a  discussion  of  the  observations  from  1859  to  1874,  found  that 
a  uniform  period  left  systematic  deviations  outstanding  which 
exceeded  seven  or  eight  times  the  uncertainty  of  the  single 
maxima,  but  that  a  quadratic  term,  corresponding  to  a  shorten- 
ing of  o'i2  days  from  epoch  to  epoch,  brought  them  within  the 
range  of  the  probable  errors.  The  divergence  from  observation, 
however,  soon  began,  and  rapidly  widened,  until  in  1885  it 
amounted  to  106-5  days.  Mr.  Chandler  {Astr.  yourn.,  No. 
208)  gives  a  table  showing  the  maxima  and  minima  observed 
since  1807,  with  the  deviations  from  the  elements  of  his  cata- 
logue. It  is  seen  that,  whereas  the  difference  between  the  ob- 
served and  the  calculated  maxima  and  minima,  using  Schonfeld's 
elements,  are  very  considerable,  the  elements  given  by  the  author 
differed  from  those  observed  only  in  a  very  slight  degree. 

On  the  Rotation  of  Mercury. — Nearly  a  century  has 
elapsed  since  Schroter  published  his  first  observation  of  the 
physical  aspect  of  Mercury,  and  assigned  to  the  planet  a  period 
of  rotation  ;  but  it  has  been  left  to  that  perspicacious  observer, 
Signor  Schiaparelli,  to  demonstrate  the  fact  by  a  series  of  re- 
markable observations  given  by  him  in  Astranomische  Nach- 
richten.  No.  2944.  The  observations  extend  from  1882  to  the 
end  of  last  year.  As  many  as  150  drawings  have  been  made  of 
the  markings  upon  the  planet  with  respect  to  the  best  positions 
for  observation.  It  is  noted  that  one  of  the  finest  drawings  was 
made  on  August  11,  1882,  when  Mercury  was  only  3°  2'  from 
the  sun's  limb.  The  markings  that  are  visible  on  Mercury  when 
observed  at  the  same  hour  on  consecutive  days  are  identical  in 
their  aspect,  and  this  being  so,  three  hypotheses  have  been  pro- 
pounded {Astr.  Nach.,  2479)  regarding  the  rotation  of  the  planet,, 
viz.  : — 

That  (i)  the  lime  of  rotation  is  about  24  hours. 

(2)  The  planet  makes  two  or  more  rotations  in  the  same  in- 
terval. 

(3)  The  time  of  rotation  is  so  slow  as  to  be  inappreciable  when 
observing  the  markings  during  a  few  days. 

Schroter  decided  in  favour  of  the  first  hypothesis,  and  Bessel, 
from  a  discussion  of  this  observer's  data,  determined  the  time  of 
rotation  to  be  24h.  om.  52 •97s.  Schiaparelli's  observations 
support  the  last  of  these  hypotheses,  and  are  opposed  to  the 
rotation  period  determined  by  Schroter. 

Following  a  series  of  dark  markings,  shown  in  the  figure 
which  accompanies  the  article,  it  was  found  that — 

Mercury  revolves  round  the  sun  in  the  same  manner  that  the 
moon  revolves  round  the  earth,  always  presenting  to  it  the  same 
hemisphere  ;  hence,  since  the  planet's  periodic  time  is  87-9693 
days,  this  must  be  the  time  of  rotation  on  its  axis. 

The  dark  markings  observed  appear  extremely  faint,  and  are 
not  easily  recognized.  On  good  occasions  the  colour  may  be 
seen  to  be  reddish-brown,  and  always  differs  from  the  general' 
colour  of  the  planet's  disk,  which  is  a  bright  rose  changing  to 
copper. 

This  most  interesting  and  important  communication  from 
Milan  Observatory  must  be  read  in  detail  in  order  that  it  may 
be  appreciated. 


258 


NATURE 


\yan.  1 6,  1890 


ON  CERTAIN  APPROXIMA  TE  FORMULAE  FOR 
CALCULATING  THE  TRAJECTORIES  OF 
SHOT. 

TN  the  postscript  to  a  paper  by  Mr.  W.  D.  Niven,  "On  the 
•*■  Calculation  of  the  Trajectories  of  Shot,"  which  is  published 
in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society,  vol.  xxvi.  pp.  268-287, 
I  have  given,  without  demonstration,  some  convenient  and  not 
inelegant  formulas  applicable  to  a  limited  arc  of  a  trajectory 
when  the  resistance  is  supposed  to  vary  as  the  «th  power  of  the 
velocity. 

In  these  formulee,  the  angle  between  the  chord  of  the  arc  and 
the  tangent  at  any  point  is  supposed  to  be  always  small.  The 
index  n  is  not  restricted  to  integral  values,  but  may  take  any 
value  whatever. 

As  the  proof  of  these  formulae  is  not  altogether  obvious,  and 
a  similar  method  of  treatment  may  be  found  useful  in  other 
problems,  I  think  it  may  not  be  unacceptable  to  your  readers  if 
I  show  here  how  the  formulae  may  be  demonstrated. 

Analysis. 

Investigation  of  formulae  applicable  to  a  small  arc  of  a 
trajectory,  when  the  resistance  varies  as  the  wth  power  of  the 
velocity. 

Let  X  and  y  denote  the  horizontal  and  vertical  co-ordinates  at 
time  /,  u  the  horizontal  velocity,  and  ^  the  angle  which  the 
direction  of  motion  makes  with  the  horizon  at  the  same  time. 

Hence  the  velocity  at  time  ^  is  «  sec  0,  and  we  may  denote 
the  resistance  by  kti"(%QQ.  <^Y,  where  k  is  constant  throughout  the 
small  arc  in  question. 

Also  let/  and  q  denote  the  values  of  u  at  the  beginning  and 
end  of  the  arc,  o  and  6  the  corresponding  values  of  4>,  g  the  force 
of  gravity,  T  the  time  taken  to  describe  the  arc,  X  and  Y  the 
corresponding  total  horizontal  and  vertical  motion. 


Making  <^  the  independent  variable,  the  fundamental  formulae 
are — 


(I) 

^-    =    --^-(sec^)«  +  i; 

(2) 

g^-^^Csec.,)- 
d<p             g 

(3) 

d<t>             g 

(4)    ^i  =  -  -(sec  <pf. 
d<p  g 

From  the  first  of  these  equations — 

I       du         k,       ^s„  ,  1 
— — — ,    -,-   =  -(sec  d>)«  + 1   ; 

and    therefore,   by  integration  between    the    limits  (p  =  a   and 

i  I    _  kn  f" 

r   ~  P"  ~  JJ    (sec<^)«V^«/'- 
Also,  we  have — 

X  = 


and 


I     /  o 

-  /   «-(sec  <p)-d<b  ; 
gj  y9 

Y  =  -  /   ti-(%&c  0)'-  tan  <p  d<f> ; 
SJ  P 

T  =  -  /    ti{sec  <f>y-d(b  ; 
gJ  fi 


and  we  wish  to  compare  the  two  former  of  these  definite  integrals 
with  the  following  known  one,  viz.  :  — 


and  the  last  with — 


r 


p" 


-  =  («  -  2) 


J  fiU"-^ 


^"d<t>   =  '^ 


2) 


'i: 


u^sec  <p)"  +  ^d(p  ; 


,  =  («  -  l)  /     —    -,-d(p 


k{n  -   I) 


«(sec  </))"  +  V^). 


This  may  be  done  by  means  of  the  following  lemma,  which  follows  immediately  from  Taylor's  theorem  : — 

Lemma. 

If  F((^)  be  any  function  either  of  ^  only,  or  of  <^  and  ti,  where  I  and  if  o  and  /3  be  the  limiting  values  of  <p  in  the  integral  and 
n  is  a  function  of  (^  given  by  the  above  differential  equation  (i),   |  7  =  A(o  +  j8),  then,  putting  for  a  moment  (^  =  7  +  co, 

rF(<^)^<^=    f   ^'''"^'F(7  +  ccKa,   =    f   *'""''' I  F(7)  +  F'(7)«    +  F"(7)-'*''  +  F"'(7)^' +  F""(7)''~   +  &c.  U/co 
)  B  J  -A(a-^)  J  ~iU-^>^  2  6  24  J 

=  (a-;3)  j  F(7)    +  i-(a  -  &fF"{y)  +  ^y     {a  -  fi)*F""(y)  +  &c.  | 
I  24  1920  J 


where  F'(<|>)  =  ^\   F"(^)  =  ^^Uc,  and  F(7),  F'(7), 

F"{y),  Sec,  are  what  F{<t>),  F'(4>),  F"((/)),  &c.,  become  when  7  is 
substituted  for  f,  and  the  corresponding  value  of  u  {iiq  suppose) 
is  put  for  ti. 

In  what  follows,  the  last  of  the  terms  above  written,  which  is 
of  the  5  th  order  in  (a  -  j8),  is  neglected,  together  with  all  terms 
of  the  same  order  of  small  quantities. 

All  the  definite  integrals  with  which  we  are  here  concerned 
are  included  in  the  two  forms 

/   tc^(stc  <p)"'dtp,  and   /   u'{sec  </>)'"  tan  <p  d<p. 

J  /8  J  ff 

j    (sec  (p)"  +  ^d<p  =  (a  -  /8)(sec  7)''  + 1)  | 
Hence 


I  +   (a 

24 


In  the  first  place,  we  will  apply  the  above  formula  to  the 
case  in  which  ¥{<{))  is  a  function  of  <{>  only,  viz.  when  F(<^)  = 
(sec  (p)"-  + 1. 

Hence 

F'{<p)  =  («  +  i)(sec  </>)"+!  tan  <p  ; 

¥"{<!>)  =  (u  +  !)[(«  +  i)(sec  </))«+i(tan  <p)^  +  (sec  <p)"  +  '^] 

=  («  +  i)[u~+~2{sec  <j>)"  + -^  -  n  -r~i(sec  <^)«  +  ^]; 

and  therefore, 

)3)2  [«  +  2(sec7)--  n  +   i]  }-,  to  the  4th  order  inclusive. 


-    -   --   =  ^^'(a  -  m{sec  7)"  + 1 1 1  +  "±^(a  -  ^f\n  +  2(sec  7)2  -  «  +  i]|, 

P"  g  \  2\  J 

or 

F'(^)  =  F{<p)r^~u"{sec  <[>)"  + '^+  i'«tan<^~|; 


p 

■which  gives  g  when  /  is  known. 

In  the  next  place,  let  F(<]))  —  u\sec  (p)"'. 
Hence 

F'{<p)  =  ^  =  lu'  -  ^~  (sec  ^)'«  +  mu\sQc  <p)'"  tan  <p 
j<p  d<p 


Jan.  1 6,  1890] 


NATURE 


259 


and  F"(4))  =  F'((^)r^^  ;/»(sec  4))"  +  '+  m  tan  <^T  +  F(<^)R''"/<'«     i'^''(sec  <^)«+^  +   -^(«  +  l>"(sec  <^)'' +  Manf   +  >w(sec  <^)2~l, 
or 

F"(<^)  =  F(</))r'^'''?«2«(sec4))2«  +2  +  2-^-7<"(sec<^)«  +  i  tan  <p  +  ;«2(sec  (^)-  -  nf\ 

*  ":/<2»(sec  4))2«  +-  +^(«  +  i)«"(sec<j))«  + 1  tan  4>  +  ^(sec  ^)- 

=  F(«^)-^  — (/  +  «)«<2«(sec  0)-«  +  -  +     -(2/«  +  «  +  i)«»  (sec  ^)"  +  '  tan  A  +  w(w  +  i)(sec<f)-  -  w^  l 
'-  iT  .  .4''  i 


Since 


~  =  -  u   ^    (sec  <^)"  +  \ 
this  last  expression  may  be  put  under  the  form — 

F"(0)  =  F(4))  I  /(/  +  »)(^'l^'  +  ik^rn  +  u  +  O  (  -"  )  tan  f  +  m  {m  +  i)  (sec  i>)-  -  m-\ . 
Hence,  by  the  above  lemma, 

rVsec<^"V(^  =  (a  -  i8^F(7)  j  i  +  h  («  -  ^^'[^(^  +  «/ jj'  Y  +  ^^2«i  +  «  +  i)  (-^)  tan7  +  m{m  +  i)(sec7)-  -»'']} 

=  {a  -  B)  2/,  (sec  7)"'{  i  +  V^  («  -^".(as  before)  | 

where  (   '      |  denotes  what  —     becomes  when  w  =  o,  or  when  7  is  substituted  for  <t>,  and  «„  for  //,  that  is — 

f  du\         k     n  ,  ^«  +  1 

I  — r      —  -  "  0  (sec  7)    ^  . 

The  factor  «'^^  may  be  eliminated  from  this  expression,  and  the  expression  itself  simplified,  by  means  of  the  formula — 


-    =  («  - 

)/  —  /  .71—  I  ^ 

'1  P 


^Vd,=^(^^   fw^sec.^r'''^^, 


//" 


for,  putting  in  =  «  +  i  in  the  above  expression,  we  have — 

/*■'  «'  (sec  <pT  +  V^)  =:  (a  -  ^);/o  (sec  7)"  ^ '  {  i  +  sVla  -  )8)-r/(/+  "/^  Y  +  3A«  +  i)f '^  V^n  7  +  « +"1"  «  +  2  (sec  7)^  -  («  +  l) 2  jj- 

Hence 

1^  u'  (sec  <^)"./<?>  -  J;  ./  (sec  ^f  +  ^  d.p,    or   J^  ./  (sec  ,|.)'«  ^.^  -  ^_:^-^(_i-,  -    ^_i-,) 

=  (sec  7)'"  —  "  ~  ^  I  I  +  V?  (a  -  j8)'^     2/(w  -  «  -   i)  [—t]   tan  7  +  w«  -  «  -  I  w  +  «  +  2  (sec  7)-  -  /«  -  ;/    -  Iw  +  w+i      |  • 
It  will  be  noticed  that  the  term  involving  (      **  )    has  disappeared  by  this  division. 
Now  make  m  =  2,  and  this  formula  becomes  — 
\\^  (sec  .^f  d<p  =  ^/^^  -    ~r)  (co«  7)"  -  ^  {  I  -  .M«  -  3){2/(«  -  I  )(^^)^  tan  7 +^i  ^4  (sec  7)=  -  ^i  ilTs]}- 
Divide  throughout  by  g,  and  put  /  =  2,  then,  from  before, 

X  =         '     -,  f  -i-   -    -i-'j  (cos  7)«  -^  I  -  ^^--  («  -  iS)-  [4  (^)    tan  7  +  («  +  4)  (sec  7)-  -  ^"Tl]  }. 
>&(«  -  2)\4'''-"''       /"-V  I  24     ^  L     \ud<ph  J) 

Similarly,  divide  throughout  by^,  and  put  I  =  l,  then — 

T= ' (-^  _^i-)(cos7)«-M»  -^^^I(a  -  P'fl^i-^h;)  tan7  +  (;^  +  4)(sec7)--»  +  3l{- 

Lastly,  let 


so  that 
then 
and 
Hence 


F{(f>)  =  u'  (sec  (p)'"  tan  <p  =  A'P)  tan  <?»  suppose, 
/{<p)  =  M'(sec  <l>)"' ; 
F'(<^)  =  /'(<^)  tan  t  +  /  (<?>)  (sec  ^)2, 
F"(<^)  =/"(^)  tart  <t>  +  2/\<t>)  (sec  (pf  +  2j{<p)  (sec  <p)-  tan  ^. 


['F{ip)d<p  =  {a-  j8){F(7)  +  tjIt  («  -  ^)"^  F"(7)l  approximately, 
=  («  -  J3)  |/(7)  tan  7  +  A(«  -  )3F[/'(7)  tan  7  +  2/(7)  (sec  7)2  +  2/(7)  (sec  7)2  tan  7]  ^  ; 
f'^/{<t>)d<p  =  (a  - 18)  1/(7)  +  ^i"'  -  J8)y "(7)!-  approximately  ; 

f'F{<l>)d,p  ^    ['A<PW<P  =  tan  7  +"  V5(«  -  -^^'P/T^  '^^^^  '^^''  "''  ^^'^'^  '^'^'  t^"  T  J  ' 
in  which  the  term  involving/"(7)  has  disappeared. 


also 

and  therefore 


and  therefore 
Hence — 


260  NATURE  [Jan.  16,  1890 

Now,  since  y(<|))  =  w'(sec  i^)"\  we  have,  as  before 

/M  =  l{J»\    +  m  tan  7. 

/"   F(<^)(/(/)  ^  j    yi^)^?!/)  =  tan  7  +  j\(a  -  /8)2(sec  7)2r/('_^'\    +   w  +  i  tan  7I  ; 
and  in  the  particular  case  where  /=  2,  and  tn  =  2,  we  have — 

I  =  ta„.^  +  A(.  -  «)Vc7)f  2(i|)_^   +   3  >a"  r] 

=  .a„{,  +  ,V.-«=[.(-fi.)^   +   3.an.]|. 
Hence  the  anfjle  which  the  chord  of  the  arc  makes  with  the  axis  of  jc  is — 

7  +  -,V(«  -  ^^^[^(^X  +   3  tan  7I   =  7,  suppose. 
Muhiplying  by  the  value  of  X  found  above,  we  have— 

^=l(;^)C'^2-^r_3)(cos7)«-i|tan7  -  ^S(«-i8)2  |  (^)£4'^l(tan  7)2-4(sec  7)']  +  tan  7[^^'^^^M^(sec  7)' "  6(sec 

-w-i  «  +  3j/  /  ' 

^(.r^2)(^2  -^,i.)(cos  7)«-^  {tan  7-  ^\(«  -  fir{{^)[4>-I^2isecyr   -    4^7=7]  +  tan  7  [^7^-2  ;^s  ^'^^  ^^^ 

-  H-i  «  +  3j  I }• 
Considering -   — ?— ,    _?_   -    -J — ,   and  o  -  ^  to  be  small  quantities  of  the  first  order,  the  above  expressions  for 

—-   -    ^ ,  X,  Y,  and  T  are  true  to  the  fourth  order. 

q"         p» 

The  quantity  {  ~  \  which  occurs  as  a  factor  in  some  of  the  terms  of  the  third  order  may  be  put  under  a  very  convenient 

form  in  the  following  manner. 
We  have,  by  Taylor's  theorem. 

In  this  make  co  =  ^(o  -  /8)  and  -  J(o  -  ;3)  successively  ;  therefore 


or 

Y 


and 


Hence  we  have  to  the  first  order  of  small  quantities — 

~  '        p  —  (J   _   (du\ 

a~-  fi   ~    V^/o' 
and 

,  ,     ,  ^  Up  +  1)  =  «(,■> 

and  therefore 

V«/#/o        (/  +  ;;')(«  -  )8) 

Making  this  substitution  forf  ~\  the  expressions  for  X,  Y,  and  T  become— 
\ua<p/o 

^  =  .&(«- 2)  (^^  -/'^y^°^^^'"4'  "  '^•f+f(«-^)tan7-'^'(«-3)n«  +  4(sec7y^  -  «T3]}; 

Y=_^— .^  (-1-  -  -'L-Vcos7)"-i|tan7-|.-^::i2(a-)8)[7^(sec7)2-"^^i]-.T\(a-/8)2tan7[^e^^T5(seC7)--«-l  «  +  3]l; 

''  =  M^){-^-^  -  ^y^^yy-'b-  ^^(«-3)tan7  -  ^(a-^)n«-Ti(sec7)^-.7+l]}; 

and  these  values  are  still  true  to  the  fourth  order,  considering  -^^^  and  o— ;3  to  be  small  quantities  of  the  first  order  as  before. 

P  +  1 
The  angle  which  the  chord  of  the  arc  makes  with  the  axis  of  x  becomes,  in  like  manner — 

7  =  7  +  ^l^'lia-P)  +  i(«-8)2tan  7, 
which  is  true  to  the  third  order. 


Jan,  1 6,  1890]  NATURE  261 

The  above  expressions  for  X  and  Y  may  be  transformed  by"  introducing  this  angle  7  into  them  instead  of  7,  thus — 
(cos  7)''-^  =  (cos  7)''-i  -  («  -  I)  (cos  7)«-2  sin  7  \}j^  («  -  /8)  +  i(«  -  &f  tan  7J 
=  (cos7)«-^{i-^'^-^(«-j8)tan7-  '^-"J- (« _ /3)Mtan  7)"  }  • 

^=>^)(^-/^0^-^^)"-^  {  '  -~^V-m«^2(sec7)^-«-::i]}. 

Y  =  X  tan  7  =  ^— ^  (-^_-7,  -  •^-,j  (cos  7)" -'^  sin  7 {  i  -  ^^  (a  -  )8)2  [^^  (sec  7)2  -  ^^]  }  J 

^  =  i(^(r^2-/^)(^°^"^^"-^'Q' 

Y  =  — ( -  — — -  )  (cos  7)"  —  -  sin  7  Q  ; 


Hence  we  find — 
and 


n  -   \ 


Q  being  =  i  -  — _      («  -  ^)2  [«  -  2  (sec  7)2  -  «  -  3']. 
24 
Similarly,  if 

7'=  7  +  ^^J:_£^(a  _  ;8)  +  1  («  _  ^)2  tan  7, 


we  have 


and  therefore 

T  = 


(cos  7')"-"^  =  (cos7)«-i  -  (n  -  I)  (cos7)»-2siiiX  1/ £.  („  -  )3)   +  \{a.  -  )3)2  tan  7  ~|  ; 

L"/  +  ?  J 

=  (cos7)»-i  1 1  -  ^±/^X  («  _  ^)  tan  7  -   'L^l-i,o.   -   ^f  (tan  7)'  }  ; 
\  O        p  ->r  q  4  -' 

where  Q  has  the  same  value  as  before. 

Hence  the  values  of  X,  Y,  and  T  are  as  stated  in  my  postscript  to  Mr.  Niven's  paper. 

Although  the  method  of  finding  the  expressions  for  X  and  T  given  above,  is  perhaps  the  plainest  and  most  straightforward^that 
can  be  taken,  the  following  leads  to  simpler  operations. 

Let  y(<^)  =  M^(sec  <^)«+i. 

Then   if^d^  =  /'^'(sec  ^)"+i^^  =  |  /"«-;- «-i  ^^  d(p  by  equation  (i) 

=  —-—§- —  «'-«  +  const. 
k(l  —  n) 
Hence 

Now  let 

F(<^)  =f[<p){sQc  <p)"'  =  «'(sec  <^)'«+«+i, 
then 

F'(^)  =/'{f){sec  (p)'"  +  mf{<p){%tc  </>)  '«tan  <p, 
and 

F"(f)  =/"(<^)(sec  ^)'«  +  2OT/'((^)(sec  ^)"'tan  <|)  +  OT/((/))[;«(sec  <^)"'(tan  </>)2  +  (sec  <^)'«+2] 

=  /"(4>)(sec  <^)»*  +  2m/'(<p)(sec  <^)»»tan  <^  +m/[^)[m  +  i(sec^)"'+2  -»»(sec<^)*»]. 
Hence,  by  the  lemma, 

rF(<^)^<^  -  (a-i8){F(7)  +  ^V(«  "  0)'F"{y)} 

=  (a  -  ^)|/(7)(sec7)'«  +  ^(o  -  i8)-(sec  7)"'[/"(7)  +  2w/'(7)tan  y  +  m/{y)[m  +  i(sec  7)2  -  m]\]j 

=  (a  -  ;8)(sec  7)"'  ^/{y)  +  ^\{a  -  m/"(y)+  2mf  {y)  tan  7  +  ;;;y(7)[^TT(sec  7)^  -  w]]  j  • 
But  from  above 

-J—lf-^n    _    al-^n)    ^       [    /{<t>)d<p, 

k{l  -  ny  ^  J  fi 

=  («  -  i8){/(7)  +  ^V(«  -  ^)y"(7)}. 
Hence,  by  division, 

j  F{<p)df-^^-j^{f     »-/-:«)  =  (sec  7)'«  j  i  +  ^a  --  py\_  zm-^—tuny  +  fu{m  +  i(sec  7)2  -  w) J  | . 


262- 


NATURE 


\jfan.  1 6,  1890 


It  will  be  noticed  that  in  this  division  the  quantity /"(v)  has  qlisappeared. 
Now,  from  above, 

/(<^)  =  /<^(sec<^)«  +  i, 
and  therefore 

-/>)=  /^"   +(«  +  i)tan<|,, 

and 


Hence 


n-yl  =  l(^\     +in  +  I)  tan  7. 

rF{<}>)d<l>  ~        f^       ip^-  "-q^-  ")  =  (sec  7)"'  1 1  +  ^\ (a  -  )8)2|_  2/w  (  «^^)^  tan  7  +  2w  ;7+'i (tan  7)2  +  ;«(;«TT(sec  7)^  -  w ) ]} 

=  (sec7)"'  j  I  +  •5V(o  -  )3)2J    2lm(--~\  tan  7  +  ;«(;«  +  2;/  +  3)(sec  7)-  -  m{m  +2«  +  2)      l- 


Now  make  m  +  n  +  i  =  2, 

or  w  =  -  («  -  i),  and  we  have 


r  «^(sec  <?))'•'  ^  -^-^^  (/-"  -  /-  ")  =  (cos  7)«  -1  j  I  -  ^\(a  -  ^f[2l{ti  -  i)(^~\  tan  7  +  («  -  i)(«  +  4)(sec  yf  -  («  -  i)(«  +  3)1 1  • 


In  this  make  1=2,  and  I  =  I,  successively,  and  we  obtain  the 
same  expressions  for  X  and  T  as  before. 

The  case  thus  treated  is  not  one  of  mere  curiosity,  but  is 
practically  important.  From  theoretical  considerations,  Newton 
concluded  that  the  resistance  of  the  air  to  the  motion  of  pro- 
jectiles is  proportional  to  the  square  of  the  velocity,  and  very 
little  progress  has  been  made  in  the  theory  of  the  subject  since 
his  time.  Experiments  have  shown  that  the  relation  between 
the  velocity  of  a  projectile  and  the  resistance  offered  by  the  air 
to  its  motion  is  far  from  being  so  simple  as  that  given  by  the 
theory.  The  most  extensive  and  accurate  series  of  such  experi- 
ments which  we  have  are  those  made  by  Mr.  Bashforth  by 
means  of  his  chronograph,  which  measures  with  the  greatest 
precision  the  times  taken  by  the  same  projectile  in  passing 
over  several  successive  arcs  in  the  course  of  its  flight.  In 
a  summary  of  his  results  for  ogival-headed  shot,  struck  with  a 
radius  of  i  J  diameters,  given  in  Nature  (vol.  xxxiii.  pp.  605, 
606),  Mr.  Bashforth  concludes  that  the  resistance  may  be  ap- 
proximately represented  by  supposing  it  to  vary  as  one  power  of 
the  velocity  when  that  velocity  lies  between  certain  limits,  as 
another  power  when  the  velocity  lies  between  certain  other 
limits,  and  so  on. 

Thus,  if  V  denote  the  velocity  expressed  in  feet  per  second, 
d  the  diameter  of  the  shot  in  inches, 
and  w  its  weight  in  pounds, 

and  if  —  =  c, 

w 

then,  when  v  lies  between  430  f.s.  and  850  f.s., 

the  resistance  is  nearly  =  6i"kc  ( 1  : 

when  V  lies  between  850  f.s.  and  1040  f.s., 

the  resistance  is  nearly  =  74*4  c  ( |  : 

\  1000/ 

when  V  lies  between  1040  f.s.  and  iioo  f.s., 

the  resistance  is  tiearly  =  79*2  ^r  ( —^JTTT" 

Viooo/ 

when  V  lies  between  iioo  f.s.  and  1300  f.s., 

the  resistance  is  nearly  =  108  "8  c  (    ^     \  ; 
. — —  Viooo/ 

and  lastly,  when  v  lies  between  1300  f.s.  and  2700  f.s., 

the  resistance  is  nearly  =  141 'i;  c  ( ^—\ 
^  ^     Vicoo/  ■ 

Hence  the  resistance  varies  nearly  as  the  square  of  the  velocity 
both  when  the  velocity  is  less  than  850  f.s.,  and  when  it  is 
greater  than  1300  f.s.,  but  the  coefficient  increases  from  61  "3 
in  the  former  case,  to  141  "5  in  the  latter.  Also,  the  re- 
sistance varies  nearly  as  the  cube  of  the  velocity,  both  when  v 
lies  between  850  f.s.  and  1040  f.s.,  and  also  when  it  lies  between 
zioo  f.s.  and  1300  f.s.,  but  the  coefficient  increases  from  74 "4  in 


the  former  to  108 '8  in  the  latter  case.  Again,  for  velocities 
which  are  nearly  equal  to  that  of  sound  in  air,  the  proportionate 
increase  of  the  resistance  is  much  greater  than  that  of  the 
vehjcity. 

Mr.  Bashforth  remarks  that  the  points  of  transition  from  one 
law  of  resistance  to  another,  as  stated  above,  are  somewhat 
arbitrary,  but  that,  if  they  were  changed  a  little  in  either  direc- 
tion, the  practical  error  would  not  be  large. 

Of  course,  if  we  had  at  our  disposal  much  more  numerous 
and  still  more  accurate  observations,  it  would  be  possible  to 
represent  the  experimental  results  with  any  degree  of  exactness 
that  might  be  desired,  by  subdividing  the  observations  in'o  a 
larger  number  of  groups,  so  that  the  limiting  velocities  in  any 
one  group  should  be  closer  together,  and  that  the  change  of  the 
index  of  the  power  of  the  velocity  in  passing  from  one  group  to 
the  next  should  be  less  aj^rupj^^  J.  C.  Adams. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Chemical  Society,  December  19,  1889. — Dr.  W.  J.  Russell, 
F.R.  S.,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read  : — Fran- 
gulin,  by  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe,  F.R.S.,  and  Mr.  H.  H.  Robinson. 
The  authors  prepared  the  glucoside  frangulin  from  the  bark  of 
the  alder  buckthorn  {Rha7nmis  frangida),  and  find  its  formula  to 
be  C22H22O9.  On  hydrolysis  it  yields  a  yellow  product,  CigHjoOs, 
which  agrees  in  its  properties  with  emodin,  and  a  sugar  which 
has  the  power  of  reducing  Fehling's  solution,  and  is  not  identical 
with  dextrose. — Arabinon,  the  saccharon  of  arabinose,  by  Mr. 
C.  O' Sullivan,  F.  R.  S.  The  substance  having  an  optical  activity 
"well  above  [«]/=  140,"  obtained  by  the  author  by  the 
hydrolysis  of  arable  acid,  and  described  under  the  name  of  a- 
arabinose  (Chem.  Soc.  Trans.,  1884,  55),  yields  arabinose  on 
hydrolysis,  and  appears  to  bear  to  this  carbohydrate  a  relation 
similar  to  that  which  saccharon  (cane  sugar)  bears  to  dextrose  : 
the  author  therefore  terms  it  arabinon.  It  has  the  formula 
CjoHjgOg,  and  on  hydrolysis  gives  a  yield  of  arabinose  agreeing 
very  closely  with  that  required  by  the  equation  CjoHjgOg  +  HjO 
=  aCoHjoOg.  As  yet  it  has  not  been  obtained  in  a  crystalline 
state  ;  it  has  a  specific  rotatory  power  of  [a]i,  =  198°  "8,  and  100 
parts  have  the  same  cupric  reducing  power  as  58*8  parts  of 
dextrose. — On  the  identity  of  cerebrose  and  galactose,  by  Mr. 
H.  T.  Brown,  F.R.S.,  and  Dr.  G.  H.  Morris.  The  authors 
give  the  results  of  an  examination  of  a  specimen  of  cerebrose, 
prepared  from  phrenosin,  which  was  placed  in  their  hands  early 
in  1888  by  Dr.  Thudichum,  who  first  isolated  and  crystallized 
this  substance.  They  show  that  its  specific  rotatory  power, 
cupric  reducing  power,  and  molecular  weight  as  determined  by 
Raoult's  method,  are  identical  with  those  of  galactose,  thus  con- 
firming the  recent  work  of  Thierfelder,  Zeit.  Physiol.  Chem.,  14, 
209)  who  has  proved  the  sugar  produced  by  the  action  of  acid  on 
cerebrin  to  be  identical  with  galactose.  In  the  discussion  which 
followed  the  reading  of  the  paper,  Dr.  Thudichum  said  that 
phrenosin,  C4^H79N08,  consisted  of  the  sugar  now  shown  to  be 
identical  with  galactose,  Q^yfi^,  of  neurostearic  acid,  CjgHjgOo. 
an  isomeride  of  stearic  acid,  fusing  at  84°,  and  of  sphingosine,  an 


Jan.  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


263 


alkaloid  of  the  formula  Ci-H.j-.NOj.  Some  human  brains  con- 
tained as  much  as  4  per  cent,  of  phren  ;sin  in  addition  to  other 
glucosides.  The  crystallized  sugar  (galactose)  from  phrenosin  was 
always  accompanied  by  an  almost  equal  weight  of  uncrystallizable 
sugar,  of  which  the  nature  was  not  yet  ascertained. — The  action 
of  chloroform  and  alcoholic  potash  on  hydrazines,  Part  3,  by  Dr. 
S.  Ruhemann.  The  products  formed  by  the  action  of  chloroform 
and  alcoholic  potash  on  hydrazines  are  to  be  regarded  as  deriva- 

.cn.NH. 

lives  of  tetrazine,  N^  jN  ;  and  in  the  present  com- 

Xnh.ch/^ 

munication  the  author  describes  the  di-paratolyI,-orthotolyl,  and 
-pseudocumyl  derivatives  of  this  base  (cf.  Chem.  Soc.  Trans., 
1889,  242). 

Royal  Microscopical  Society,  December  ii,  1889. — The 
Rev,  Dr.  Dallinger,  F. R. S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Mr. 
E.  M.  Nelson  read  a  short  paper  descriptive  of  a  new  semi- 
apochromatic  objective  which  he  exhibited. — Mr.  C.  Rousselet 
exhibited  a  small  tank  for  Rotifers  which  could  be  readily 
moved  about  in  such  a  way  as  to  render  an  examination 
of  the  contents  very  easy,  so  that  any  desired  specimens 
could  be  easily  picked  out.  The  lens  used  was  a  Zeiss's 
No.  6  Steinheil,  the  focussing  being  done  by  rackwork. — 
Mr.  Crisp  called  attention  to  a  number  of  stereoscopic  photo- 
micrographs of  embryos,  by  Prof.  Fol.  They  afforded  a  con- 
clusive answer  to  the  question  brought  forward  at  their  meeting 
as  to  whether  stereoscopici  photomicrographic  slides  had  been 
produced  before  that  time. — Mr.  Crisp  read  some  extracts 
from  a  paper  by  Mr.  Gill,  which  he  was  sorry  to  say 
was  only  handed  in  at  the  conclusion  of  their  last  meet- 
ing, as  otherwise  it  could  have  been  read  then,  and 
would  have  added  to  the  interest  of  the  specimens  ex- 
hibited at  the  conversazione,  which'  seemed  almost  conclusively 
to  prove  that  the  "markings  "on  certain  diatoms  were  aper- 
tures.— Mr.  A.  W.  Bennett  gave  a  rhwne  of  his  paper  on  the 
freshwater  Algae  and  Schizophyceae  of  Hampshire  and  Devon. 
It  was  the  result  of  collections  made,  during  his  summei 
holidays,  in  the  New  Forest  and  on  Dartmoor,  many  of  the 
species  being  not  only  interesting,  but  also  new  to  science. 
— Mr.  Crisp  reminded  the  Fellows  present  that  at  the  last 
meeting  mention  was  made "  of  a  new  objective  with  an 
aperture  of  i  "60,  the  price  of  which  was  said  to  be  ;^40o.  Some 
doubt  was  expressed  at  the  time  as  to  whether  the  account  was 
true,  but  since  then  they  had  received  several  communications 
about  it.  A  letter  from  Prof.  Abbe,  describing  the  principles  of 
its  construction,  was  read.  Letters  were  also  read  from  Dr. 
van  Heurck,  describing  the  performance  of  the  lens,  and 
inclosing  a  series  of  remarkable  photomicrographs  of  diatoms 
taken  with  it,  with  magnifying  powers  of  10,000  and  15,000 
diameters. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  January  6. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — State  of  the  Academy  on  January  i.  Full  lists  are 
given  of  the  Members  of  the  various  Sections.  Amongst  the 
foreign  Associates  and  Correspondents  occur  the  following 
English  and  American  names  : — Associates :  Sir  Richard  Owen, 
Sir  George  Biddell  Airy,  and  Sir  William  Thomson.  Cor- 
respondeiits :  Geometty — James  Joseph  Sylvester  and  George 
Salmon  ;  Astronomy — John  Russell  Hind,  J.  C.  Adams,  Arthur 
Cayley,  Joseph  Norman  Lockyer,  William  Huggins,  Simon 
Newcomb,  Asaph  Hall,  Benjamin  Apthorp  Gould,  and  Samuel 
Langley ;  Geography  and  Navigation — Rear-Admiral  George 
Henry  Richards  ;  General  Physics — George  Gabriel  Stokes ; 
Chemistry — Edward  Frankland  and  Alexander  William  William- 
son ;  Mineralogy — James  Hall  and  Joseph  Prestwich  ;  Botany — 
Joseph  Dalton  Hooker  and  Maxwell  Tylden  Masters  ;  Rural 
Economy — John  Bennet  Lawes  and  Joseph  Henry  Gilbert  ; 
Anatomy  and  Zoology — James  D wight  Dana,  Thomas  Henry 
Huxley,  and  Alexander  Agassiz ;  Medicine  and  Surgery — Sir 
James  Paget. — M.  Duchartre  was  elected  Vice-President  for  the 
year  1890. — Analogy  of  diamantiferous  matrix  in  South  Africa 
to  meteorites,  by  M.  Daubree.  It  is  argued  that  the  South 
African  diamonds  were  not  formed  in  situ,  but  were  erupted 
from  great  depths  together  with  the  fragmentary  materials  in 
which  they  are  embedded.  The  presence  of  the  diamond  in  the 
pormal  state  and  as  carbonado,  as  well  as  transformed  from 
graphite  in  various  types  of  meteorites,  is  now  placed  beyond 
reasonable  doubt.  Attention  is  here  called  to  the  analogous 
conditions   of  association  under  which   this  crystal   occurs   in 


South  Africa  and  in  meteorites.  M,  Daubree  incidentally  infers- 
that  the  diamond  is  not,  as  is  generally  supposed,  of  vegetable 
origin,  but  is  of  inorganic  nature,  as  is  also  the  graphite 
occurring  in  analogous  beds. — On  some  new  fluorescent  materials, 
by  M.  Lecoq  de  Boisbaudran.  The  author  describes  some 
new  fluorescent  appearances  which  he  has  obtained  by  employ- 
ing samaria  and  the  earths  Za  and  Z/3  as  agents,  and  calcined 
silica  and  zircon  as  solid  solvents.  Mr.  Crookes's  failure  to 
obtain  any  fluorescences  from  samaria  with  SiO,  and  ZrOj,  he 
considers  was  probably  due  to  their  having  been  calcined 
at  too  low  a  temperature. — Observations  of  Borrelly's  comet 
made  at  the  Observatory  of  Algiers,  by  MM.  Trepied,  Ramraud, 
and  Renaux.  The  observations  are  for  the  period  December 
23-30,  when  the  nebulosity  was  somewhat  elongated,  and  about 
2'  in  extent. — Observations  of  Brooks's  comet  (July  6,  1889) 
made  at  the  Observatory  of  Nice  with  the  o'38m.  equatorial,  by 
M.  D.  Eginitis. — On  the  elliptic  functions,  by  M.  Paul  Appell. 
It  is  shown  that  the  representation  of  the  elliptic  functions  by 
the  quotient  of  0  functions  may  be  justified  a  priori  by  con- 
siderations which  seem  capable  of  being  extended  to  the  functions 
of  two  variables  with  four  groups  of  periods. — On  the  rational 
integrals  of  equations  of  the  first  order,  by  M.  P.  Painlevc. 
Given  a  differential  equation  of  any  order,  it  is  shown  that  the 
polynomes  may  always  be  found  which  verify  the  equation  by 
determining  a  higher  limit  of  their  degree. — On  the  absolute 
value  of  the  magnetic  elements  on  January  I,  1890,  by  M.  Th. 
Moureaux.  These  values  are  deduced  from  the  mean  of  the 
horary  observations  taken  at  the  Pare  Saint-Maur  on  December 
31,  1889,  and  January  i,  1890,  and  at  Perpignan  from  the 
twenty-four  horary  observations  taken  on  January  i. — On  the 
refracting  powers  of  the  simple  salts  in  solution,  by  M.  E. 
Doumer.  Owing  to  Mr.  B.  Walter's  recent  note  in  Wiedemann^ 
Annalen  {iSSg,  No.  9,  p.  107),  M.  Doumer  here  publishes  some- 
what prematurely  the  researches  on  this  subject,  which  he  has 
carried  on  for  over  five  years,  and  during  which  he  has  dealt  with 
90  salts.  He  concludes  that  all  salts  formed  by  the  same  acid 
have  the  same  molecular  refracting  power  when  they  are  con- 
structed on  the  same  type  ;  that  the  refracting  powers  of  salts 
belonging  to  different  types  are  approximately  multiples  of  the 
same  number  ;  lastly,  that  the  molecular  refracting  powers  of  all 
salts  are  functions  of  the  number  of  valencies  of  the  metallic 
element  entering  into  their  construction. — Papers  were  read  by 
M.  Georges  Vogt,  on  the  composition  of  the  rocks  employed  in 
China  for  the  manufacture  of  porcelain  ;  by  M.  Charles  Combes, 
on  matezite  and  matezo-dambose  ;  by  M.  E.  Guinochet,  on  the 
carballylates  ;  by  M.  A.  Lacroix,  on  the  mineral-bearing  cipo- 
line  marbles  and  the  wernerite  rocks  of  Ariege  ;  and  by  M. 
Thoulet,  on  the  sub-lacustrine  relief,  geology,  and  temperature 
of  Lake  Longemer  (Vosges). 

Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  Decemberr3,  1889.  —Prof,  du  Bois- 
Reymond,  President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  Moebius  spoke  on  a 
*' drumming"  fish  {Batistes  aculeatus)  from  Mauritius.  During 
a  recent  visit  to  this  island  he  observed  a  bright  blue-coloured 
fish  in  the  shallow  waters  of  the  harbour  ;  when  caught  and  held 
in  the  hand  this  fish  emitted  from  its  interior  a  most  striking 
noise,  like  that  of  a  drum.  A  careful  examination  of  the  animal 
failed  to  reveal  any  obvious  movements,  with  the  exception  of 
one  part  of  the  skin,  lying  just  behind  the  gill-slit,  which  was  in 
continuous  vibration.  Noth withstanding  prolonged  endeavours 
he  had  not  been  able  to  secure  a  second  living  example  of  this 
fish,  and  had  hence  been  able  to  carry  out  his  investigations  on 
the  cause  of  the  drumming  noise  only  on  dead  specimens.  The 
portion  of  the  skin  (membrana  supra-axillaris)  which  vibrates 
stretches  from  the  clavicle  to  the  branchial  arch :  it  is  provided  with 
four  large  bony  plates,  and  lies  over  the  swim-bladder,  which  in 
this  fish  for  the  most  part  projects  out  of  the  trunk -muscles. 
Behind  the  clavicle  lies  a  curiously-shaped  long  bone,  which  is 
attached  to  the  clavicle  at  one  point  in  such  a  way  as  to  form  a 
lever  with  two  arms.  The  long  arm  of  this  bony  lever  (os  post- 
claviculare)  is  embedded  in  the  ventral  trunk-muscles,  and  is. 
capable  of  easy  movement  to  and  fro.  The  short  arm  slides 
during  this  movement  over  the  rough  inner  side  of  the  clavicle, 
and  gives  rise  to  a  crackling  noise,  and  this  noise  is  then  inten- 
sified by  the  swim-bladder,  which  lies  in  close  proximity  to  the 
short  arm  of  the  lever,  and  acts  as  a  resonator.  When  the  trunk- 
muscles  contract  the  body  cavity  is  diminished  in  size,  the  air  in 
the  swim-bladder  is  driven  forward,  and  the  bladder  then  com- 
municates the  vibrations  of   the  bony  lever  to  the   membrana 


264 


NATURE 


[Jan.  16,  1890 


supra-axillaris,  and  the  latter  communicates  them  to  the  air.  The 
speaker  was  of  opinion  that  the  above  was  the  explanation  of  the 
"drumming"  of  this  fish  ;  he  was,  at  all  events,  unable  to  find 
any  other  organ  in  it  which  could  account  for  the  noise.  This 
noise  is  not  known  to  be  emitted  by  other  species  of  Balistes, 
although  it  is  known  to  occur  in  other  groups. — Prof.  Fritsch 
spoke  on  the  anatomy  of  Torpedo  mannorata.  In  opposition  to 
the  revolutionary  views  of  many  recent  investigators,  who  deny 
the  nervous  nature  of  the  ganglion-cells,  he  laid  great  stress  upon 
the  extremely  close  relationship  which  exists  between  the  ganglia 
and  end-organs,  and  is  so  strikingly  shown  in  Torpedo.  A  thick 
nerve-fibre  runs  from  each  ganglion-cell  to  the  electrical-organ, 
divides  into  twelve  to  twenty-three  fibrils  before  it  reaches  the 
organ,  and  each  of  these  fibrils  is  connected  up  with  some  one 
special  plate  of  the  organ.  Now,  since  each  plate,  which  is  of 
hexagonal  shape,  owing  to  the  close  juxtaposition  of  the  columns, 
receives  one  nerve-fibre  at  each  of  its  angles,  it  hence  follows 
that  the  number  of  the  plates  must  be,  on  the  average,  three 
times  as  great  as  the  number  of  the  ganglia.  The  fibres  of  one 
ganglion  supply  eighteen  plates,  the  latter  (being  hexagonal) 
require  six  times  eighteen  fibres  for  tlieir  supply,  and  since  on  an 
average  eighteen  fibres  run  out  from  each  ganglion,  it  requires 
six  ganglia  to  supply  eighteen  plates  with  nerves.  The  speaker 
had  counted  the  plates  of  an  electrical-organ  in  Torpedo,  and 
obtained  a  number  corresponding  closely  with  an  older  enumera- 
tion of  Valentin's  made  on  a  Torpedo  of  the  same  size  ;  the 
number  of  plates  he  found  to  be  179,625.  He  had  further 
counted  the  ganglion-cells  which  supply  the  plates  with  nerves 
and  found  them  to  number  53,739  ;  this  corresponds  closely  with 
the  enumeration  of  Boll,  who  counted  53,760.  The  counting  of 
ganglion-cells  is  subject  to  much  uncertainty,  chiefly  owing  to 
the  fact  that  in  sections  of  the  central  nervous  system  many  cells 
are  cut  through,  and  are  thus  liable  to  be  counted  twice  :  hence 
the  speaker  had  enumerated,  most  readily  by  means  of  photo- 
graphs, the  axis-cylinders  of  the  nerves  which  supply  the  electric- 
-organ ;  he  found  them  to  number  58,318,  corresponding  to  the 
same  number  of  ganglion-cells.  The  last  number  is  nearly  one- 
third  the  number  of  plates  in  the  electrical-organ,  and  corre- 
sponds closely  to  the  number  which  should  be  found  if  the  older 
view  is  the  correct  one,  that  the  ganglion-cells  are  the  centres  for 
;the  nervous  end-organs. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDA  y,  January  16. 
;RjVAL   Society,   at  4.30. — On  the   Chief  Line   in    the  Spectrum  of   the 

Nebulae  :  Prof.  J.  N.  Lockyer,   F.R.S. — Observations  on  the  Excretion 

and  Uses  of  Bile :  A.  W.  Mayo  Robson. — On  the  Theory  of  Free  Stream 

Lines:  J.  H.  Michell. 
.LiNNEAN    Society,    at   8.— Life-History  of  a    Remarkable   Uredine    on 

Jasminum  grandiflora :  A.  Barclay. — Certain  Protective  Provisions  in  some 

Larval  British  Teleosteans  :  E.  Prince. 
Chemical  Society,  at  8.— On  a  New  Method  of  estimating  the  Oxygen 

dissolved  in  Water  :  Dr.  J.  C.  Thresh. 

;Z00L0GICAL  SOCIKTV,  at   4. 

FRIDAY,  January  17. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. 

Physical  Society,  at  5.— On  a  Carbon  Deposit  in  a  Blake  Telephone 
Transmitter  :  F.  B.  Hawes.— On  Electric  Splashes  :  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson. 
—On  Galvanometers  :  Prof.  W.  E.  Ayrton,  F.R.S. ,  T.  Mather,  and  W. 
E.  Sumpner. 

SUNDAY,  January  19. 

S  iNDAT  Lecture  Society,  at  4.— How  I  crossed  Africa  from  the  Indian 
Ocean  to  the  Atlantic  (with  Oxyhydrogen  Lantern  Illustrations)  :  Com- 
mander V.  L.  Cameron,  R.  N. 

MONDAY,  January  20. 
Royal  Geographical  Society,  at  8.30.— Mr.  J.  R.  W.  Pigott's  Journey 
to   the  Upper  Tana  in   i«89 :   E.  G.   Ravenstein.— The  Mouths  of   the 
Zambezi :  Daniel  J.  Rankin. 
■Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— The  Electromagnet ;  Dr.  Silvanus  P.  Thompson. 
Aristotelian  Society,  at  8.— The  Universal  :  M.  H.  Dziewicki. 
Victoria  Institute,  at  8.— Ancient  Eastern  Laws  in  Regard  to  Land: 
Rev.  J.  Neil. 

TUESDAY,  January  21. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  5.— Tea,  Coffee,  and  Cocoa  Industries  of  Ceylon  : 

John  Loudoun  Shand. 
Institution  op  Civil  Engineers,  at  8.— Recent    D^ck  Extensions  at 

Liverpool :  George  Fosbery  Lyster.     (Discussion.) 
Royal  Statistical  Society,  at  7.45. 
iloYAL  Institution,  at    3.— The  Post-Darwinian  Period:   Prof    G.    T 

Romanes,  F.R.S. 
iUnivkrsity  College  Biological  Society, at  5  15. — Vegetarianism:    W. 

North. 


WEDNESDAY,  January  22. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Vision-testing  for  Practical  Purposes  :  R.  Brudenell 

Carter. 
Geological  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Crystalline  Schists  and  their  Relation 

to  the    Mesozoic  Rocks  in   the  Lepontine  Alps  :  Prof    T.    G.   Bonney, 

F.R.S.— The  Variolitic  Rocks  of  MontGenevre:    Grenville  A.  J.  Cole 

and  J.  W.  Gregory. 

THURSDAY,  January  23. 
Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 
KOYAL  Institution,   at  3. — Sculpture  in   Relation   to   the   Age:   Edwin 

Roscoe  MuUins. 

FRIDAY,  January  24. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — The    Up-keep  of  Metalled 

Roads  in  Ceylon  :  Thos.  H.  Chapman. 
Royal  Institution,  at  9. — The  Scientific  Work  of  Joule :  Prof.  Dewar 

F.R.S. 

SATURDAY,  January  25. 

Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal   Institution,    at   3. — The  Natural  History  of  the  Horse,  and  of 
its  Extinct  and  Existing  Allies  :  Prof.  Flower,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

A  Search  for  Knowledge,  and  other  Papers :  A.  N.  Pearson  (Melbourne). 
— The  Magic  Lantern  (Perkin). — The  Fauna  of  British  India,  including 
Ceylon  and  Burma  ;  Birds,  vol.  i.  :  E.  W.  Gates  (Taylor  and  Francis). — A 
Text-book  of  Animal  Physiology :  Dr.  W.  Mills  CAppleton). — Our  Earth 
and  its  Story,  vol.  iii.  :  edited  by  Dr.  R.  Brown  (Cassell). — Geological  and 
Natural  History  Survey  of  Canada  ;  Annual  Report,  vol.  iii.,  Parts  i  and  2, 
Maps,  &c. ,  to  accompany  ditto  (Montreal). — Stanley's  Explorations  in  Africa  ; 
a  new  Map  (Philip). — The  Scenery  of  the  Heavens :  J.  E.  Gore  (Roper  and 
Drowley). — Graphical  Statics :  L.  Cremona  ;  translated  by  T.  H.  Beare 
(Oxford,  Clarendon  Press). — Annuaire  de  I'Acadtfmie  Royale  de  Belgique, 
1890  (Bruxelles). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  New  Muzzling  Regulations 241 

Polytechnics  for  London 242 

Assaying.     By  Thomas  Gibb 245 

Brewing  Microscopy 246 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Fisher  :   "  Flower-Land  :  an  Introduction  to  Botany." 

— D.  H.  S 247 

Carbutt :   "  Five  Months'  Fine  Weather  in  Canada, 

Western  U.S.,  and  Mexico" 247 

Letters  to  the  Editor : — 

The  Duke  of  Argyll  and  the  Neo-Darwinians. — W.  T, 

Thiselton-Dyer,  C.M.G.,  F.R.S.     \ 247 

The  Microseismic  Vibration  of  the  Earth's  Crust. — 

Prof.  G.  H.  Darwin,  F.R.S 248 

Meteor. — Rev.  T.  W.  Morton 249 

Magnetism.     I.    {Illustrated.)     By  Dr.  J.  Hopkinson, 

F.R.S 249 

Lorenzo  Respighi.     By  W.  T.  Lynn 254 

Notes 254 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 256 

The  Temperature  of  the  Moon 257 

On  the  Orbit  of  Struve  228 257 

Orbit  of  Swift's  Comet  (V.  1880) 257 

On  the  Variability  of  R  Vulpeculas 257 

On  the  Rotation  of  Mercury 257 

On  Certain  Approximate  Formulae  for  Calculating 
the  Trajectories  of  Shot.     By  Prof.  J.  C.  Adams, 

F.R.S 258 

Societies  and  Academies 262 

Diary  of  Societies •    .  264 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received     .....  264 


NA TURE 


26=: 


THURSDAY,  JANUARY  23,  1890. 


THE  FUTURE  INDIAN  CIVIL  SERVICE 
EXAMINA  TIONS. 

THE  importance  of  obtaining  a  satisfactory  posi- 
tion for  future  science  candidates  in  these  ex- 
aminations is  now  very  great.  We  have  not  only  to 
consider  the  need  there  is  that  the  men  selected  should 
represent  every  side  of  modern  thought  and  culture,  but 
also  to  bear  in  mind  the  influence  of  such  examina- 
tions on  the  development  of  education  at  home.  It  is 
unfortunately  notorious  that  candidates  offering  science  in 
the  examinations  conducted  by  the  Civil  Service  Com- 
mission stand,  as  a  rule,  at  a  great  disadvantage.  The 
marks  allotted  to  science  subjects  have  often  been  rela- 
tively small,  and  even  when  outside  pressure  has  secured 
the  allotment  of  a  fair  proportion  of  marks  to  science,  the 
methods  adopted  in  conducting  the  examinations  have 
as  has  been  pointed  out  in  our  columns  and  elsewhere, 
frequently  been  such  as  to  prevent  good  candidates  from 
actually  obtaining  an  equitable  proportion  of  them. 

Now  as  the  Commissioners,  year  by  year,  deal  with 
thousands,  we  might  say  with  tens  of  thousands,  of  candi- 
dates of  various  types  and  ages  ;  and  as  their  influence  is 
by  no  means  confined  to  the  actual  candidates  examined, 
it  is  plain  that  we  have  in  this  organization  a  body  whose 
influence,  for  good  or  ill,  on  education  in  this  country 
is  enormous.  Therefore  we  regard  it  as  most  urgent  that 
those  who  are  familiar  with  this  question  should  press 
the  facts  of  the  present  case  not  only  on  the  attention  of 
the  Civil  Service  Commission,  but  also  at  the  India  Office 
and  on  the  notice  of  the  public.  We  are  happy  to  know, 
indeed,  that  the  subject  is  being  energetically  taken  up  by 
a  number  of  distinguished  graduates  of  Cambridge.  But 
the  forces  on  the  other  side  are  very  strong,  and  past 
experience  of  the  action  of  the  Commission  has  made  it 
plain  that  the  representatives  of  science  have  a  serious 
task  before  them. 

In  their  Report  for  1888,  the  Commissioners  have  been 
at  some  pains  to  convince  the  public  that  their  examina- 
tions have  had  a  minimum  disturbing  effect  on  the 
ordinary  course  of  education.  For  example,  they  show 
that  at  several  recent  examinations  for  Class  I.  clerkships 
in  the  home  services,  all,  or  nearly  all,  the  successful 
candidates  have  been  men  of  University  education. 
The  Commissioners  should  carry  their  investigations 
somewhat  deeper,  and  ascertain  how  far  these  selected 
candidates  represent  all  classes  of  University  graduates. 
We  have  done  this  so  far  as  opportunity  has  permitted  ; 
and  the  results  of  our  investigation  in  the  case  of  the 
Class  I.  clerkships  (which  alone  we  have  at  present 
examined,  as  it  only  affects  the  present  question)  do  not 
bear  out  the  contention  of  the  Commissioners,  but  go  to 
show  that  the  examinations  concerned  are  very  distinctly 
calculated  either  to  disturb  the  course  of  education  or  to 
fail  to  select  men  representing  all  the  chief  types  of 
University  culture. 

From  our  results,  which  are  given  below,  it  is  easy  to 

foresee  what  it  is  that  is  to  be  feared  under  the  coming 

scheme.     For  in  the  competition  for  Class  I.  clerkships, 

the  major  limit  of  age,  twenty-four,  is  not  far  removed  from 

Vol.  xli.— No.  1056. 


that  about  to  be  adopted  for  future  Indian  Civil  servants 
of  the  highest  class.  And  in  them,  as  we  learn  will  be  the 
case  in  the  future  examinations  for  the  Indian  service, 
no  limit  is  placed  on  the  number  of  subjects  that  may  be 
selected  from  those  which  are  examined. 

We  have  before  us  the  results  of  a  number  of  these 
competitions  held  during  the  last  ten  or  eleven  years, 
and  they  show,  as  might  have  been  expected  from  the 
scheme  of  marks,  that  science  men  are  practically  ex- 
cluded. We  have  ascertained  as  far  as  possible  the 
degrees  taken  by  the  successful  candidates,  and  out  of 
thirty  we  find  that  twenty-two  have  taken  their  degrees 
in  classics,  seven  in  mathematics,  and  one  in  natural 
science  ;  whilst  the  marks  of  forty  others,  whose  degrees 
could  not  be  ascertained,  show  a  similar  preponderance 
of  classical  men.  Now,  when  it  is  remembered  that  many 
men  take  honours  in  science  at  Oxford,  that  the  number 
who  do  so  at  Cambridge  is  approaching  that  of  those  who 
take  classical  honours,  and  that  scholarships  are  now 
given  for  science  in  considerable  numbers  at  both  Univer- 
sities, it  is  plain  that  a  scheme  which  is  likely  to  produce 
such  results  as  those  we  have  quoted  ought  on  no  account 
to  be  adopted  for  the  Indian  Civil  Service.  Such  a  one- 
sided system  of  selection  is  not  fair  to  the  various  classes 
of  candidates,  and  it  is  not  fair  to  the  dependency  which 
they  will  be  charged  to  administer.  The  plain  fact  is  that 
in  the  competition  for  the  home  services,  the  marks 
assigned  to  classics,  mathematics,  and  science  respec- 
tively are  scarcely  fair  to  mathematics,  and  very  distinctly 
unfair  to  science.  These  branches  of  learning  have  been 
placed  upon  a  far  more  equal  footing  at  our  Universities, 
and  science  candidates  may  fairly  claim  more  equal  treat- 
ment from  the  Commissioners  in  competitions  such  as 
those  which  we  are  now  considering.  In  the  examinations 
for  first-class  appointments  in  the  home  services,  there 
is  the  enormous  difference  of  375  marks  against  science, 
out  of  1250  in  the  effective  mark  values  of  classics  and 
science.  On  a  recent  occasion  the  difference  between 
the  highest  and  lowest  on  the  list  of  successful  candidates 
was  no  more  than  158,  and  although  this  is  indeed  a  very 
exceptional  case,  it  shows  how  enormous  the  effect  of 
such  a  difference  may  be  when  the  candidates  are  at  all 
evenly  matched. 

Such  a  boycotting  of  the  men  of  scientific  training  is 
deplorable  enough  in  the  selecting  of  men  for  the  home 
services,  but  in  the  case  of  the  future  administrators  of 
our  Indian  dependency  it  would  be  far  more  unfortunate. 
There,  if  anywhere,  men  of  every  type  should  play  their 
part  in  the  national  work.  The  Cambridge  men  of  science 
are  doing  their  best  to  avert  the  catastrophe  that  we  fear. 
We  hope  they  will  be  supported  promptly,  universally, 
and  energetically  by  their  scientific  brethren,  both  great 
and  small. 


THE  SHAN  STATES. 
A  Thousand  Miles  on  an  Elephant  in  the  Shan  States. 
By  Holt  S.  Hallett.     (London  and  Edinburgh  :  William 
Blackwood  and  Sons,  1889.) 

MR.  HALLETT'S  journeys  in  Burmah,  Siam,  and 
the  Shan  States,  in  search  of  the  best  path  to 
connect  Burmah  with  China  and  Siam,  were  performed 
partly  by  boat,  and  partly  on   the   back   of  elephants. 

N 


266 


NATURE 


[Jan.  23,  1890 


The  problem  before  him  was  a  difficult  one,  owing  to  the 
geography  of  Central  Indo-China  being  unknown  at  the 
time  of  his  visit.  He  has  filled  up  a  great  blank  in  the 
map  of  this  interesting  region,  and  has  proved  that  a 
practicable  route  for  the  railway  exists,  chiefly  through 
great  and  fertile  plains,  to  the  populous  parts  of  the 
Chinese  province  of  Yunnan,  and  thence  through 
Southern  into  Central  China.  The  project  has  been 
for  some  years  before  the  public,  and  has  received  the 
unanimous  support  of  the  manufacturing  and  mercantile 
communities,  who  have  constantly,  through  the  Chambers 
of  Commerce,  pressed  the  matter  upon  the  attention  of 
the  Government.  The  Siamese  section  of  the  line,  and 
several  important  branches,  are  now  being  surveyed  and 
estimated  for  the  King  of  Siam  by  English  engineers,  and 
are  hkely  soon  to  be  taken  in  hand. 

The  handsome  volume  before  us  contains  an  excellent 
index  map  of  Southern  China  and  Indo-China,  five  route 
maps,  and  nearly  a  hundred  original  illustrations.  The 
index  map  shows  clearly  the  projected  Anglo-Siamese 
system  of  lines,  and  its  continuation  into  Central  China, 
together  with  the  proposed  branch  to  Pakhoi,  the  Southern 
Chinese  seaport.  On  the  same  map  are  shown  the  rival 
lines  which  the  French  propose  to  construct  in  order  to 
draw  the  trade  of  Southern  and  Central  China  and  of  the 
Shan  States  to  a  French  port  in  Tonquin.  The  route 
maps,  which  are  beautifully  executed  from  Mr.  Hallett's 
survey,  have  the  population,  geology,  and  height  above 
sea-level  of  the  country  noted  on  them,  which  greatly 
increases  their  value.  Apart  from  its  commercial  and 
geographical  aspect,  the  book  will  prove  of  great  interest 
to  the  politician  and  the  general  reader.  It  gives  the 
account  of  an  able,  intelligent,  and  careful  inquirer  on 
the  spot,  concerning  the  position  of  the  frontier  of  the 
British  and  Siamese  Shan  States  at  the  time  we  annexed 
Upper  Burmah,  and  it  indicates  the  districts  claimed  by 
our  new  subjects  which  were  then  forcibly  occupied  by 
the  Siamese.  It  describes  the  mode  of  government  and 
the  condition  of  the  people  in  Siam  and  its  Shan  States, 
countries  which  are  now  being  brought  into  close  political 
and  commercial  relations  with  us.  It  treats  of  the 
threatened  absorption  of  Siamese  territory  by  the 
French,  and  shows  how  vast  is  our  present  stake  in 
the  country.  It  points  out  how  imperative  it  is  that  we 
should  pay  close  attention  to  the  proceedings  of  the 
French,  and  safeguard  our  interests,  which  include  the 
only  known  practicable  route  for  the  railway  connection 
of  Burmah  with  the  populous  and  fertile  regions  of 
Southern  and  Western  China. 

The  author  expresses  himself  fluently  and  concisely.  His 
descriptions  of  scenery,  people,  and  wayside  incidents, 
are  extremely  good,  and  the  story  of  the  journey  is  lightly, 
brightly,  and  amusingly  told.  He  was  exceptionally  fortunate 
in  his  companions,  and  had  no  trouble  in  gaining  the  good- 
will and  assistance  of  everyone  he  met  during  his  travels. 
Dr.  Cushing  and  Dr.  McGilvary,  who  joined  the  party  as 
interpreters,  were  masters  of  the  Shan  language,  and, 
being  missionaries,  took  a  great  interest  in  the  welfare 
of  the  people.  They  had  made  a  careful  study  of  their 
manners  and  customs,  and,  having  previously  traversed 
the  Shan  States  in  various  directions,  were  well  known  to 
the  chiefs,  nobles,  and  officials  of  the  country.  Another 
missionary,  Mr.  Wilson,  who  had  resided  at  Zimmd  for 


several  years,  affi^rded  Mr.  Hallett  great  assistance  in 
collecting  statistics  and  particulars  of  the  trade  of  the 
country,  and  information  about  the  religions,  supersti- 
tions, and  folk-lore  of  the  various  races.  In  the 
preface,  Mr.  Hallett  gives  an  interesting  history  of 
the  races  found  in  Indo-China,  and  during  his 
travels  he  collected  several  of  their  vocabularies. 
The  aborigines  of  Lower  Indo-China  appear  to  have 
been  Negritos,  probably  akin  to  those  of  the  Andaman 
Islands  and  the  hills  of  the  Malay  Peninsula.  Other 
dwarf  races  of  Negrito  origin  were  met  with  on  the 
journey,  belonging  to  the  Ka  tribes  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Luang  Prabang.  These  are  probably  of  the  same 
stock  as  the  Trao  in  Cochin  China  and  one  of  the  native 
races  in  Formosa,  and  are,  in  all  likelihood,  akin  to  the 
Tiao,  a  race  of  pygmies  with  whom  the  Chinese  became 
acquainted  when  they  entered  North-Eastern  China  more 
than  4000  years  ago.  The  Bau  Lawa  tribes  met  by  him 
in  the  Shan  States,  and  found  in  the  hills  as  far  south  as 
the  latitude  of  Bangkok,  as  well  as  the  Mon  race  in 
Lower  Burmah  and  the  Cham  or  people  of  Cambodia, 
migrated  into  their  present  habitat  at  an  early  period, 
and  are  Mongoloid  tribes  of  a  race  with  Malaysian  affi- 
nities. This  Mon  race  is  represented  in  Western  Bengal 
and  Central  India  by  the  Kolarian  tribes.  They  are  prob- 
ably descendants  of  the  Ngu  stock,  including  the  Pang, 
Kuei,  and  Miao  tribes,  who,  with  the  Shan,  Yang  or 
Karen,  and  King  or  Chin  tribes,  formed  the  chief  part  of 
the  population  of  Central  and  Southern  China  during  the 
struggle  for  empire — 604-220  B.C. 

Other  interesting  tribeSjknown  asLa-Hu  and  Kiang Tung 
La-Wa,  were  met  with  by  Mr.  Hallett ;  and  these  are  said 
to  belong  to  the  same  white  race  as  ourselves.  They  had 
already  settled  about  the  southern  bend  of  the  Hoang-ho  at 
the  time  when  the  Chinese  tribes  arrived  on  the  borders  of 
China  after  their  long  journey  from  the  neighbourhood  of 
Chaldaea.  Part  of  these  various  races  have  been  gradu- 
ally amalgamated  with  the  Chinese,  who  have  doubt- 
less received  from  them  and  other  races  much  of  their 
folk-lore  and  superstitions.  It  may  therefore  prove  highly 
interesting  to  compare  the  habits,  customs,  folk-lore,  and 
superstitions  of  these  early  inhabitants  of  China  with 
those  of  the  Chinese.  Many  of  the  customs  and  super- 
stitions must  have  been  widespread  at  an  early  date. 
Mr.  Hallett  notices  the  strong  similarity  between  some 
of  the  customs  and  superstitions  of  the  Finnish  tribes 
and  those  of  the  Shans.  The  book  is  rich  in  legends 
connected  with  various  events  which  are  said  to  have 
happened  in  the  country.  Some  of  these  relate  to  the 
time  when  the  Lawa  were  conquered  or  driven  into  the 
hills  by  the  Shans  ;  others  relate  to  events  which  have 
since  happened  in  the  country  ;  and  the  remainder  are 
adaptations  from  Buddhistic  stories,  or  refer  to  the 
guardian  spirits  of  the  country,  or  to  romantic  incidents- 
that  have  occurred.  The  guardian  spirits  universally 
worshipped  by  the  Shans  are,  strange  to  say,  the 
spirits  of  ancient  Lawa  kings  and  queens  reigning  in  the 
country  at  the  time  when  wars  were  carried  on  between 
the  Lawa  and  the  Shans.  Some  of  these  local  Sivas  are 
believed  to  have  ogre  propensities,  and  formerly  human 
sacrifices  were  offered  up  to  them.  Even  the  year 
previous  to  Mr.  Hallett's  visit,  the  execution  of  several 
criminals  was  hurried  on  in  order  to  appease  the  local. 


yan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


267 


Lavva  spirits,  so  that  they  might  be  induced  to  allow  the 
waterneededfor  the  irrigation  of  the  fields  to  flow  down  from 
the  hills.  Human  sacrifices  at  the  obsequies  of  their  chiefs 
were  offered  by  the  Shans  up  to  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  when  the  States  became  feudatory  to  Burmah. 
At  the  time  the  chiefs  were  buried,  elephants,  ponies,  and 
slaves  were  interred  with  them.  The  continuance  of  this 
custom  was  strictly  prohibited  by  the  Burmese  Emperor 
Bureng  Naung.  Besides  the  legends,  many  humorous 
stories  and  fables  are  current  amongst  the  people,  speci- 
mens of  which  are  given  in  the  book. 

Buddhism,  with  the  Shans,  as  with  the  Chinese,  is  merely 
a  cloak  covering  the  belief  inancient  superstitions,  ancestral 
worship,  and  spirit  worship  of  the  people.  Even  the  images 
of  Buddha  in  the  temples  are  believed  to  be  inhabited  by  the 
spirits  of  deceased  monks,  and  when  an  abbot,  celebrated 
for  his  learning  and  virtue,  dies,  it  is  the  custom  for  those 
who  have  spent  their  monastic  life  under  his  instruction  to 
prepare  a  shrine  for  him  in  some  part  of  their  house,  or, 
if  still  in  the  monastery,  in  their  dormitory,  where  flowers 
and  food  are  placed  for  the  acceptance  of  the  spirit  of 
their  deceased  teacher.     If  he  is  treated  with  neglect  or 
disrespect,  he  may  become  a  spirit  of  evil  towards  his 
former  pupils.      This  custom  probably  arises  from  the 
monks  being  celibate,  and  therefore  having  no  children 
to  carry  on  the  ancestral  worship  of  the  family.     Another 
peculiar  practice  in  relation  to  the  images  of  Buddha  is 
the  transferring  to  him  of  some  of  the  attributes  of  the 
Kwan-yin,  the  Chinese  Goddess  of  Mercy,  the  offspring 
of  the  lotus  flower,  who  terminates  the  torment  of  souls 
in  purgatory  by  casting  a  lotus  flower  on  them.  In  China, 
miniature  offerings  are  laid  before  this  goddess  as  a  hint 
for  her  to  convey  the  articles  implied  by  their  likenesses 
to   the   spirits   of  friends  or   relations.      The   offerings, 
frequently   accompanied   by    a    scroll    stating    who    the 
articles  are  for,  consist  of  miniatures — -cut  out  of  paper — 
of  money,  houses,  furniture,  carts,  ponies,  sedan-chairs, 
pipes,  male  and  female  slaves,  and  all  that  one  on  this 
earth  might  wish  for  in  the  way  of  comfort.     In  Siam 
and  the  Shan  States,  there  being  no  temple  of  this  god- 
dess, Buddha,  who  is  generally  depicted  as  sitting  on  a 
lotus  flower,   is  besought   to  do  her  work,    and  similar 
things  are  heaped  on  his  altar,  but  cut  out  of  wood,  or 
formed  of  rags  or  any  kinds  of  rubbish,  as  paper  is  not 
easily  obtainable.    The  whole  country  outside  the  villages 
is,  according  to  the  Shans,  infested  with  jungle  demons, 
the  spirits  of  human  beings  who  have  died  when  absent 
from  their  homes.     These  endeavour  to  cause  the  death 
of  others  by  the  same  means  as  caused  their  own.     Their 
victims  have  to  join  the  company  or  clan  of  demons  to 
which   the   successful   demon   belongs.      Thus  the   clan 
increases  in  numbers,  and  is  ever  becoming  more  potent 
for  mischief.     The  people  believe  in  divination,  charms, 
omens,    exorcism,    sorcery,    mediums,    witchcraft,    and 
ghosts.     Witch-hunting  rages   throughout   the  country, 
and  villages  are  set    apart   in   which  those  accused  of 
witchcraft  must  reside.     Mr.   Hallett    noticed    that    the 
elephant-drivers  every  evening  placed  pieces  of  lattice- 
work on  tall  sticks  stuck   in  the  ground  on  the  paths 
leading  to  and  from  the  camp  ;  and  on  inquiry  he  learned 
they  were  to  entangle  any  evil  spirit  that  might  wish  to 
enter  the  camp  and  injure  the  party.     The  Shans  con- 
rsider  such  precautions  fully  sufficient  to  ward  off  their 


malignant  foes.  The  spirits,  in  their  opinion,  have  as 
little  intelligence  as  the  birds  of  the  air,  and  any  scare- 
crow device  will  keep  them  at  a  distance.  The  spirits  of 
those  who  die  from  abortion,  miscarriage,  or  childbirth 
are  much  dreaded  by  the  widower.  If  the  child  dies  with 
the  mother,  its  spirit  joins  hers  in  its  rambles,  endeavour- 
ing to  harm  the  living.  The  first  object  of  their  search  is 
the  husband  and  father,  whose  death  they  do  all  they  can 
to  accompUsh.  Sometimes  the  man  endeavours  to  escape 
by  becoming  a  monk  in  a  monastery  far  from  his  home. 
This  belief,  like  most  of  the  superstitions  in  Indo-China, 
is  also  current  in  China. 

With  reference  to  the  condition  of  the  people  in  the 
Shan  States,  Mr.  Hallett  says  : — 

"  Nowhere  in  the  Shan  States  is  misgovernment  and 
oppression  of  the  people  so  rampant  as  in  Siam.  Taxa- 
tion in  the  Shan  States  is  exceedingly  light ;  and  the  people 
are  not  placed  under  grinding  Government  masters,  but 
have  the  power  to  change  their  lords  at  their  will  ;  they 
are  not  compelled  to  serve  for  three  months  in  the  year 
without  receiving  either  wages  or  food ;  amongst  them 
gamblers,  opium-smokers,  and  drunkards  are  looked 
down  upon  and  despised,  and  libertinism  is  nearly 
unknown.  The  only  loose  women  seen  by  me  in  the 
Shan  States  were  a  few  Siamese,  who  had  taken  up  their 
quarters  at  Zimme,  the  head-quarters  of  the  Siamese 
judge." 

Referring  to  Siam,  he  gives  a  fearful  description  of  the 
oppression  ruling  in  the  country,  and  he  says  : — 

"  If  it  were  not  for  slavery,  serfdom,  vexatious  taxation 
and  for  the  vices  of  the  people,  the  Siamese  might  be  a 
happy  race.  Living  as  they  do  chiefly  upon  vegetables 
and  fish  ;  in  a  country  where  every  article  of  food  is 
cheap  ;  where  a  labourer's  wages  are  such  as  to  enable 
him  to  subsist  upon  a  fourth  of  his  earnings  ;  where  a 
few  mats  and  bamboos  will  supply  him  with  materials  for 
a  house  sufficient  to  keep  out  the  rays  of  the  tropical  sun 
and  the  showers  in  the  rainy  season  ;  where  little  clothing 
is  needed,  and  that  of  a  cheap  and  simple  kind  ;  where 
nine-tenths  of  the  land  in  the  country  is  vacant,  without 
owners  or  inhabitants — surely  such  a  people  might  be 
contented  and  happy.  The  land  is  so  fertile  and  the 
climate  is  so  humid,  that  every  cereal  and  fruit  of  the 
tropics  grows  there  to  perfection.  Yet  among  the 
common  people  it  is  seldom  a  man  or  woman  can  be 
found  who  is  not  the  slave  of  the  wealthy  or  the  noble. 
The  Government  battens  on  the  vices  of  the  people  by 
granting  monopolies  for  gambling,  opium,  and  spirits. 
Government  places  the  people  under  unscrupulous  and 
tyrannical  Government  masters — merciless,  heartless,  and 
exorbitant  leeches — who,  unless  heavily  bribed,  force  the 
peasantry  to  do  their  three  months'  corvee  labour  at  times 
and  seasons  that  necessarily  break  up  all  habits  of  in- 
dustry, and  ruin  all  plans  to  engage  in  successful  business. 
Government  imposes  taxes  upon  everything  grown  for 
human  requirements  in  the  country  :  fishing-nets,  stakes, 
boats,  spears,  and  lines,  are  all  taxed.  The  Government 
net  is  so  small  that  even  charcoal  and  bamboos  are  taxed 
to  the  extent  of  one  in  ten,  and  firewood  one  in  five,  in 
kind.  Fancy  the  feelings  of  an  old  woman,  after  trudging 
for  miles  to  market  with  a  hundred  sticks  of  firewood, 
when  twenty  of  the  sticks  are  seized  by  the  tax-gatherer 
as  his  perquisite  !  There  is  a  land-tax  for  each  crop  of 
annuals  sown,  and  paddy  and  rice  are  both  subject  to 
tax  ;  so  that  three  taxes  can  thus  be  reaped  from  one 
cereal.  The  burdensome  taxation  is  levied  in  the  most 
vexatious  manner  that  can  be  conceived  ;  for  the  taxes 
are  let  out  to  unscrupulous  Chinamen,  who  are  thus  able 
to  squeeze,  cheat,  and  rob  the  people  mercilessly.  It  is 
no  use  appealing  from  the  tax-gatherer  to  the  officials. 


268 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


Money  wins  its  way,  and  justice  is  unknown  in  Siam. 
Everyone  wlio  has  not  a  friend  at  Court  is  preyed  upon 
by  the  governors  and  their  rapacious  underHngs.  Such 
being  the  present  state  of  Siam,  one  is  not  surprised  to 
learn  that  the  majority  of  its  inhabitants,  besides  being 
slaves  and  selling  their  children,  are  libertines,  gamblers, 
opium  smokers  or  eaters,  and  given  to  intoxicating 
beverages." 

Mr.  Alabaster,  the  confidential  adviser  of  the  King  of 
Siam,  told  Mr.  Hallett  that  nine-tenths  of  the  non- 
Chinese  inhabitants  of  Bangkok  were  slaves  ;  that 
'squeezing"  was  so  universal  amongst  the  nobility, 
officials,  and  monopolists,  that  no  man  could  become 
rich  in  the  country  unless  he  purchased  an  appointment, 
and  thus  became  one  of  the  rulers ;  and  that  justice  in 
the  courts  was  a  farce — the  heaviest  purse,  or  the  most 
powerful  person,  invariably  winning  the  case  ;  besides 
which,  if  a  man  was  believed  to  be  in  possession  of 
money,  false  charges  were  brought  against  him,  directly 
or  indirectly,  by  the  officials,  in  order  to  wring  the  money 
out  of  him.  Everyone  that  he  questioned  in  Bangkok 
was  of  opinion  that  the  state  of  the  people  could  not  be 
much  worse  than  it  was  at  the  time  of  his  visit.  Accord- 
ing to  an  inspector  of  police  in  Siamese  employ,  the 
magistrates  in  that  city  have  the  reputation  of  being  the 
biggest  liars  in  the  country,  and  the  police  are  said  to  be 
the  greatest  thieves,  and  so  unsafe  are  the  people  from 
false  charges  and  lawsuits,  that  they  willingly  become 
the  slaves  of  the  powerful  in  order  to  gain  their  protection. 
The  whole  volume  is  replete  with  interesting  informa- 
tion ;  we  heartily  commend  it  to  the  attention  of  our 
readers. 


THE  LESSER  ANTILLES. 

The  Lesser  Antilles.  A  Guide  for  Settlers  in  the  British 
West  Indies  and  Tourists'  Companion.  By  Owen  T. 
Bulkeley.  (London  :  Sampson  Low,  Marston,  Searle, 
and  Rivington,  Limited,  1889.) 

SINCE  Mr.  Froude  wrote  on  the  West  Indies,  numerous 
books  and  pamphlets  have  been  produced,  either  to 
show  he  was  entirely  wrong,  or  to  supplement  in  some 
important  particular  the  information  he  gave  respecting 
these  islands.  The  author  of  the  little  book  before  us 
took  note  of  Mr.  Froude's  lament  that  all  hand-books  to 
the  West  Indies  "  were  equally  barren "  of  facts  con- 
nected with  the  higher  interest  which  the  islands  possess 
for  Englishmen,  and  he  seeks  to  supply  the  deficiency. 

Although  it  is  evident  that  Mr.  Bulkeley  has  not  an 
intimate  knowledge  of  all  the  islands  concerned,  this  is 
no  great  disparagement — especially  when  we  recall  their 
comparative  isolation,  and  the  general  ignorance  which 
exists  even  in  the  West  Indies  themselves  in  regard  to 
the  affairs  of  their  neighbours. 

The  facts  stated  are  generally  trustworthy,  and  the 
hints  given  to  visitors  and  intending  settlers  are  likely  to 
be  useful.  There  are  a  moderately  good  map  and  some 
twenty  illustrations,  most  of  which,  however,  are  already 
familiar  to  us.  Although  usually  grouped  together,  the 
several  islands  in  the  Lesser  Antilles  differ  much  more 
from  each  other  than  is  usually  supp>osed.  One  end  of 
the  chain,  at  the  Virgin  Islands,  touches  19°  N.  lat., 
while   the  other    end   at    Trinidad    is    in    10°    N.    lat. 


Hence,  the  extreme  points  of  the  Lesser  Antilles  are- 
about  six  hundred  miles  apart,  and  there  is  such  a 
diversity  of  soil  and  climate  that  each  island  really  re- 
quires separate  treatment. 

There  is  still  much  misconception  in  the  mind  of  the 
British  public  as  regards  the  healthiness  of  these  islands,, 
and  also  as  regards  their  suitability  for  settlers  with  a 
small  capital.  If  there  were  someone  in  this  country 
whose  business  it  was  to  give  accurate  information  re- 
specting the  West  Indies,  they  would  probably  be  greatly 
benefited. 

The  revival  of  interest  in  these  islands,  and  the  large 
number  of  people  who  annually  visit  them,  are  facts  which 
have  naturally  led  to  the  production  of  a  guide-book. 
Mr.  Bulkeley  has,  however,  aimed  at  producing  some- 
thing more  than  a  guide-book.  The  greater  part  of  the 
volume  is  devoted  to  a  minute  description  of  the  physical 
features,  and  the  circumstances  of  the  several  islands,, 
and  this  is  followed  by  information  for  intending  settlers, 
with  the  view  of  inducing  those  who  have  capital  to  in- 
vest to  make  their  homes  in  these  islands.  While  we 
cannot  endorse  all  Mr.  Bulkeley's  statements  on  this  latter 
point,  it  is  only  right  to  say  that  none  of  them  are  posi- 
tively misleading,  and  at  all  times  they  are  discussed  with 
a  modesty,  and  an  evident  desire  to  arrive  at  a  right  con- 
clusion, that  disarms  criticism. 

Besides  the  sugar-cane  and  cocoa-nut  palms,  there  are 
industries  connected  with  fruits,  fibres,  spices,  annatto, 
arrow-root,  pepper,  maize,  medicinal  plants,  scent-pro- 
ducing plants,  coca,  ramie,  tea,  tobacco,  and  many  others 
well  suited  to  the  soil  and  climate. 

It  is  well  known' that  in  former  days  large  fortunes  were 
made  by  sugar  planters  in  the  West  Indies.  Now,  how- 
ever, even  the  best  estates  do  little  more  than  give  a 
small  return  on  the  capital  invested,  while  many  cannot 
even  do  this.  It  would  be  unwise,  therefore,  for  the  West 
Indies  to  confine  their  attention  exclusively,  or,  indeed, 
largely,  to  the  sugar-cane.  Already  a  change  is  taking  place. 
Jamaica  has  pimento,  coffee,  tropical  fruits,  cinchona, 
dye-woods,  annatto,  cacao  ;  Trinidad  has  cacao,  cocoa- 
nuts  ;  Grenada  is  almost  exclusively  cacao  and  spices  : 
Montserrat  is  noted  for  its  lime  plantations  and  lime-juice  ;; 
while  Dominica  exports  concentrated  lime-juice,  cacao,, 
cocoa-nuts,  as  well  as  oranges  to  the  neighbouring 
islands.  The  tendency  is  for  the  cultivation  of  the  West 
Indies  to  become  more  and  more  diversified,  and  it  is 
well  it  should  be  so. 

With  such  good  markets  for  produce  of  all  kinds  in  the- 
United  States  and  Europe,  it  is  evident  that  West  Indian 
planters  could  regain  much  of  their  former  prosperity  if 
only  they  adapted  themselves  to  the  new  order  of  things. 
To  assist  them  in  the  development  of  new  industries,. 
Government  botanical  gardens  are  in  course  of  being 
established,  under  the  auspices  of  Kew,  in  every  island, 
and  from  these  new  plants  and  information  respecting 
their  cultivation  are  being  widely  distributed.  In  such  a 
work  enterprising  governors,  such  as  the  late  Sir  Anthony 
Musgrave,  and  the  present  Governor  of  Trinidad,  Sir 
William  Robinson,  and  others,  have  taken  an  active  part. 
It  is  not,  however,  as  regards  industrial  subjects  only  that 
interest  in  the  West  Indies  has  revived  of  late.  The 
publication  of  Grisebach's  "Flora  of  the  British  West 
Indian   Islands"  in   1864  (one  of  the  series  of  colonial. 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


269 


flora  projected  by  the  late  Sir  William  Hooker)  was  for 
a  long  time  the  only  effort  made  in  the  cause  of  botanical 
science  in  this  part  of  the  world.  Since  that  time,  both 
the  fauna  and  flora  have  received  systematic  attention  in 
this  country  and  in  the  United  States,  and  after  a  lapse 
of  nearly  two  hundred  years  we  are  beginning  to  have  a 
clear  idea  of  the  distribution  of  life  in  the  Caribbean 
Archipelago. 

A  Joint  Committee  of  the  Government  Grant  Com- 
mittee of  the  Royal  Society  and  of  the  British-  Associa- 
tion, has  been  engaged  for  the  last  three  years  in 
investigating  ascertained  deficiencies  in  the  fauna  and 
flora.  Almost  every  page  of  Mr.  Bulkeley's  work  affords 
ample  evidence  of  the  aid  he  has  received,  directly 
or  indirectly,  from  the  botanical  efforts  of  recent  years. 
More,  however,  might  have  been  said  of  the  special 
plants  which  are  characteristic  of  the  several  islands,  and 
which  contribute  so  large  a  share  to  the  interest  of  daily 
life  in  them. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  the  day  is  not  far  distant  when  this 
first  unpretentious  guide-book  to  the  Lesser  Antilles  will 
be  followed  by  others,  not  less  interesting,  but  still  more 
fully  meeting  the  requirements  of  those  who  may  visit 
them  for  pleasure,  or  go  to  them  in  the  hope  of  pursuing 
some  of  the  numerous  industries  opened  to  settlers  in  these 
beautiful  islands.  D.  M. 


A   TEXT-BOOK  OF  HUMAN  ANATOMY. 

A  Text-book  of  Human  Anatomy^  Systematic  and  Topo- 
graphical. Including  the  Embryology,  Histology,  and 
Morphology  of  Man,  with  special  reference  to  the  re- 
quirements of  Practical  Surgery  and  Medicine.  By 
Alex.  Macalister,  M.A.,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  Professor  of 
Anatomy  in  the  University  of  Cambridge.  (London  : 
Charles  Griffin  and  Co.,  1889.) 

WHEN  it  was  announced  some  time  ago  that  the 
Professor  of  Anatomy  in  the  University  of  Cam- 
bridge was  engaged  in  writing  a  systematic  work  on 
Human  Anatomy,  its  publication  was  looked  for  with 
anticipation  and  interest.  Prof.  Macalister  deservedly 
enjoys  a  high  reputation  as  a  man  of  remarkable  culture 
in  many  branches  of  knowledge,  and  as  an  anatomist  in 
the  comprehensive  meaning  of  the  term.  Curiosity  was 
excited,  therefore,  as  to  the  mode  in  which  he  would 
treat  the  subject :  whether  he  would  follow  the  old  lines 
pursued  by  so  many  of  those  who  have  preceded  him  in 
the  writing  of  text-books,  or  if  he  would  strike  out  a  new 
path  for  himself. 

In  his  preface  he  tells  us  that  he  has  endeavoured  to 
■give  a  comprehensive  account  of  the  Anatomy  of  Man 
studied  from  the  Morphological  standpoint.  Accordingly, 
we  find  that,  after  a  few  explanatory  paragraphs  on  the 
meaning  of  terms  used  in  description,  he  proceeds  to 
state  his  conception  of  a  Cell.  His  definition  is  so  com- 
prehensive that  he  regards  it  in  its  simplest  form  as  a 
minute  speck  of  protoplasm  without  either  nucleus  or 
•cell-wall ;  and,  in  this  respect,  he  may  be  said  to  coincide 
with  the  view  held  by  Strieker  in  his  well-known  article 
-on  the  Ceir.  He  then  briefly  describes  the  process  of 
Karyokinesis,  and  very  properly  states  that  the  study  of 
the  specialization  of  the  products  of  cell  multiplication 


is  the  only  trustworthy  guide  to  the  solution  of  the  many 
morphological  problems  which  Human  Anatomy  presents. 
This  very  naturally  leads  to  an  account  of  the  Development 
of  the  Embryo,  which  is,  however,  compressed  into  so  few 
pages  that  we  doubt  whether  a  beginner  can  derive  from 
it  a  clear  conception  of  the  very  elaborate  set  of  changes 
which  lead  from  the  simple  laminated  blastoderm  to  the 
form  of  the  foetus  at  the  time  of  birth. 

A  chapter  on  Histology  or  tissue-anatomy  comes  next 
in  order.  He  groups  the  tissues  into  five  classes — 
epithelial  or  surface  limiting ;  connective  or  skeletal  ; 
nervous  or  sensory  ;  muscular  or  contractile  ;  blood  and 
lymph  or  nutritive.  This  classification  is  both  simple  and 
convenient,  and  is  much  to  be  preferred  to  the  grouping 
into  cellular,  fibrous,  membranous  and  tubular  tissues, 
sometimes  adopted.  In  the  course  of  this  chapter  he  in 
part  fills  up  some  of  the  gaps  in  the  section  on  embryo- 
logy, by  describing  the  development  of  the  nervous  and 
vascular  systems. 

The  skeleton  is  next  described,  and  following  the  plan 
pursued  by  Prof  Humphry  in  his  well-known  treatise* 
and  by  Hyrtl,  Gegenbaur,  Krause,  and  others  in  their 
systematic  works,  he  describes  the  joints  and  ligaments 
along  with  the  bones  with  which  they  are  associated. 
This  arrangement,  undoubtedly,  has  certain  advantages 
more  especially  in  the  direction  of  economizing  space  in 
description. 

About  one-third  of  the  work,  extending  to  248  pages,  is 
occupied  with  the  chapters  to  which  we  have  just  referred, 
and  the  remaining  two-thirds  is  devoted  to  an  account  of 
the  soft  parts,  including  the  anatomy  of  the  brain  and 
organs  of  sense.  In  this,  the  larger  division  of  his  text- 
book, Prof.  Macalister  alters  his  mode  of  treating  the 
subject,  and  departs  from  the  method  which  systematic 
writers  are  in  the  habit  of  pursuing. 

The  rule,  almost  without  exception,  has  been  to  describe 
in  separate  chapters  the  muscular,  vascular,  nervous,  ali- 
mentary, respiratory,  and  genito-urinary  systems,  so  as 
to  bring  before  the  student  in  a  continuous  series  all 
those  organs  which  possess  corresponding  properties. 
To  some  extent,  therefore,  the  arrangement  adopted  in  our 
text-books  of  systematic  anatomy  has  had  a  physiological 
basis. 

Dr.  Macalister  has  not  followed  this  plan.  He  has 
adopted  an  arrangement  on  a  topographical  basis,  i.e. 
according  to  the  method  pursued  in  the  dissecting-room, 
in  which  the  student  works  out  for  himself  the  constituent 
parts  of  the  body  as  he  displays  them  in  the  course  of  his 
dissections.  This  method  of  studying  the  anatomy  of  the 
human  body  is,  as  everyone  will  admit,  of  enormous  import- 
ance— indeed,  we  may  say  of  primary  value — to  the  prac- 
titioner of  medicine  and  surgery.  But  it  is  the  custom  of  the 
schools  to  distinguish  between  the  analytical  or  dissect- 
ing-room method,  in  which  the  body  is  picked  to  pieces  by 
the  dissector  himself,  and  the  synthetical  or  systematic 
method,  in  which  the  body  is,  as  it  were,  built  up  by  the 
teacher  for  the  student.  This  custom  is  the  fruit  of  long 
experience,  for  whilst  giving  full  value  to  the  topographical 
or  regional  aspect  of  anatomy,  it  enables  the  teacher  to 
show  to  the  student  the  continuousness  of  such  systems 
as  the  vascular,  nervous,  and  alimentary,  and  to  point 
out  their  physiological  relations.  For  it  should  be  kept 
in  mind  that  anatomy  is  the  basis  of  physiology,  as  well 


270 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


as  the  foundation  of  that  side  of  medical  and  surgical 
practice  which  is  based  on  a  sound  knowledge  of  regional 
anatomy.  The  incomplete  recognition  of  the  physio- 
logical aspect  of  anatomy  is,  we  think,  the  weak  part  of 
the  book,  and  it  is  especially  shown  in  the  scanty  notice 
which  is  taken  of  the  action  of  the  muscles  and  their 
association  with  the  movements  of  the  joints. 

To  enable  both  these  lines  of  anatomical  study  to  be 
pursued,  the  student  is  accustomed  to  employ  at  least 
two  text-books ;  the  one  in  connection  with  his  syste- 
matic work,  the  other  as  a  guide  to  the  dissection  of  the 
body.  Prof.  Macalister  apparently  expects,  as,  indeed, 
he  states  in  his  preface,  that  his  text-book  should  stand 
in  the  place  of  the  two  customarily  employed.  We  doubt, 
however,  whether  this  expectation  will  be  fulfilled.  For  his 
text-book,  in  addition  to  what  is  essential  in  topographical 
description,  by  containing  an  account  of  the  microscopic 
structure  of  tissues  and  organs,  a  section  on  embryology, 
and  a  detailed  description  of  the  bones,  is  necessarily  a 
work  of  considerable  size  and  weight,  and  too  cumber- 
some to  be  conveniently  carried  to  and  fro  by  the  student, 
as  is  required  with  a  dissecting-room  manual.  On  the 
whole,  therefore,  we  prefer  the  old  and  well-accustomed 
lines  on  which  text-books  have  for  so  long  been  written, 
to  Prof.  Macalister's  modified  plan. 

But  whilst  expressing  our  inability  to  regard  the  method 
which  has  been  followed  in  the  descriptive  anatomy  of 
the  soft  parts  as  an  improvement  on  the  customary 
arrangement  of  systematic  text-books,  we  recognize  with 
pleasure  the  clearness  of  the  descriptions  and  the  many 
suggestive  hints,  both  morphological  and  practical,  which 
the  book  contains.  The  volume  is  profusely  illustrated 
with  upwards  of  eight  hundred  wood-cuts,  about  one  half 
of  which  are  original  figures. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

A  Treatise  on  Ordinary  and  Partial  Differential  Equa- 
tions. By  W.  W.  Johnson.  (London:  Macmillan, 
1889.) 

We  have  read  Prof.  Woolsey  Johnson's  work  with  some 
interest :  his  style  is  clear,  and  the  worked-out  examples 
well  adapted  to  elucidate  the  points  the  writer  wishes  to 
bring  out.  He  appears  to  recognize  Boole,  but,  so  far  as 
the  text  is  concerned,  does  not  acknowledge  the  existence 
of  Mr.  Forsyth's  fine  work.  We  do  not  say  that  he  was 
under  any  obligation  to  do  so,  but  nowadays  we  are  so 
accustomed  to  see  a  list  of  authors  upon  whom  a  writer 
has  drawn  that  we  missed  it  here.  "  An  amount  of  space 
somewhat  greater  than  usual  has  been  devoted  to  the 
geometrical  illustrations  which  arise  when  the  variables 
are  regarded  as  the  rectangular  co-ordinates  of  a  point. 
This  has  been  done  in  the  belief  that  the  conceptions 
pecuhar  to  the  subject  are  more  readily  grasped  when 
embodied  in  their  geometric  representations.  In  this 
connection  the  subject  of  singular  solutions  of  ordinary 
differential  equations,  and  the  conception  of  the  character- 
istic in  partial  differential  equations  may  be  particularly 
mentioned."  This  is  certainly  the  most  prominent  feature 
of  the  early  chapters,  and  it  is,  to  our  mind,  clearly  put 
before  the  student.  Reference  is  duly  made  to  Prof. 
Cayley's  work  in  the  Messenger  of  Mathematics  (vol.  ii.), 
which  initiated  the  present  mode  of  treatment  of  the  sub- 
ject, but  not  to  Dr.  Glaisher's  "Illustrative  Examples" 
(vol.  xii.),  nor  to  Prof.  M.  J.  M.  Hill's  paper  (London 
Math.  Soc.  Proc,  vol.  xix.),  in  which  the  theorems  stated 
by  Prof.  Cayley  are  proved.  This  paper,  though  read 
before  the  Society,  June  14,  1888,  may  not  have  reached 


the  author  before  his  work  was  in  the  printer's  hands  :  we 
do  not  say  that  a  perusal  of  it  would  have  called  for  any 
further  notice  than  a  reference.  Symbolic  methods  come 
in  for  their  due  meed  of  recognition  and  employment.  The 
author  satisfies  himself  with  referring  the  student  to  the 
table  of  contents  for  the  topics  included  and  the  order 
pursued  in  treating  them.  The  work  consists  of  twelve 
chapters  divided  up  into  twenty-four  sections :  i.  (i)  dis- 
cusses the  nature  and  meaning  of  a  differential  equation 
between  two  variables  ;  ii.  (2,  3,  4,)  equations  of  the  first 
order  and  degree  ;  iii.  equations  of  the  first  order,  but  not 
of  the  first  degree,  (5)  singular  solutions  (discriminant, 
cusp-,  tac-,  and  node-loci),  (6)  Clairaut's  equation,  (7) 
geometrical  applications,  orthogonal  trajectories  ;  iv.  (8) 
equations  of  the  second  order  ;  v.  (9,  10)  linear  equations 
with  constant  coefficients,  in  (10)  symbolic  methods  are 
employed;  vi.  (11-13)  linear  equations  with  variable  co- 
efficients ;  vii.  (14,  15)  solutions  in  series;  viii.  (16)  the 
hypergeometric  series  ;  ix.  (17)  special  forms  of  differential 
equations,  as  Riccati's  equation  (due  reference  is  made  to 
Dr.  Glaisher's  classical  paper  in  the  Phil.  Trans,  for  1881), 
Bessel's  equation,  and  Legendre's  equation  (reference  is 
made  to  text-books  and  memoirs) ;  x.  (18-20)  equations 
involving  more  than  two  variables ;  xi.  (21, 22)  partial  differ- 
ential equations  of  the  first  order  ;  xii.  (23,  24)  partial  differ- 
ential equations  of  higher  order.  Examples  for  practice  are 
added  at  the  end  of  each  section.  Though  Prof.  Johnson 
cannot  lay  claim  to  have  made  here  any  additions  to  our 
knowledge  of  the  subject,  he  has  produced  an  excellent 
introductory  hand-book  for  students,  and  this,  we  expect, 
was  the  object  he  proposed  to  himself  in  its  compilation. 
We  have  omitted  to  state  that  all  use  of  the  complex 
variable  is  eschewed. 

The  Land  of  an  African  Sultan :  Travels  in  Morocco^ 
1887,1888,  a«^i889.  By  Walter  B.  Harris,  F.R.G.S- 
(London:  Sampson  Low  and  Co.,  1889.) 
A  GOOD  deal  has  been  written  about  Morocco  lately, 
and  Mr.  Harris's  volume  is  an  interesting,  although  not  a 
very  important,  contribution  to  the  literature  of  the  subject. 
He  describes  first  a  journey  through  northern  Morocco, 
then  a  journey  with  H.B.M.  Special  Mission  to  the  court 
of  the  Sultan  at  Morocco  city,  next  a  visit  to  Wazan  and 
a  ride  to  Sheshuan ;  and  in  a  final  chapter  he  sums  up 
the  impressions  produced  upon  him  by  the  Moors  and  their 
country.  In  the  chapter  on  his  ride  to  Sheshuan,  he  de- 
scribes a  place  which  had  been  "  only  once  before  looked 
upon  by  Christian  eyes."  Mr.  Harris  does  not  pretend 
to  have  produced  an  exhaustive  work  on  Morocco ;  but 
he  presents  clearly  what  he  himself  has  had  opportunities 
of  observing. 

Wayside  Sketches.     By  F.  Edward  Hulme,  F.L.S.,  F.S.A. 

(London  :  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge, 

1889.) 
This  is  a  pleasantly  conversational  book  on  all  sorts  of 
subjects  more  or  less  connected  with  natural  history  or 
country  life  :  birds,  caterpillars,  flowers,  snow-crystals, 
and  the  forms  of  clouds,  all  come  in  for  a  share  of  atten- 
tion. Without  having  any  scientific  pretensions  of  its 
own,  the  book  may  well  serve  to  rouse  a  first  interest  in 
many  branches  of  science.  The  numerous  illustrations 
are  very  good  indeed. 

LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 
\The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. "{ 

Influenza. 
The  following  paragraph,  taken  from  Sir  David  Brewster's 
"Life  of  Sir  Isaac  Newton,"  is  not  uninteresting  at  the  present 
time : — 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


271 


"  Some  light  has  been  recently  thrown  on  the  illness  of 
Newton  by  Dr.  Dowson,  of  Whitby,  who,  at  a  meeting  of  the 
Philosophical  Society  there  on  the  3rd  of  January,  1856,  read  a 
paper  'On  the  Supposed  Insanity  of  Sir  Isaac  Newton,'  in 
which  he  has  shown  that  the  malady  with  which  he  was  afflicted 
in  September  1693  was  probably  influenza  or  epidemic  catarrhal 
fever,  which  prevailed  in  England,  Ireland,  France,  Holland, 
and  Flanders  in  the  four  last  months  of  1693.  This  distemper, 
which  lasted  from  eight  or  ten  days  to  a  month,  was  so  general, 
that  '  few  or  none  escaped  from  it ' ;  and  it  is  therefore  probable,  as 
Dr.  Dowson  believes,  that  Newton's  mental  disorder  was  merely 
the  delirium  which  frequently  accompanies  a  severe  attack  of 
influenza.  See  Dr.  Theophilus  Thomson's  '  Annals  of  Influenza 
or  Epidemic  Catarrh  in  Great  Britain,'  published  in  1852  by 
the  Sydenham  Society.  See  also  the  Philosophical  Transactions 
for  1694,  vol.  xviii.  pp.  105-115."  W.  Greatheed. 


About  forty-five  years  ago  I  paid  a  visit  with  a  friend  to  the 
laboratory  of  the  celebrated  chemist  Prof.  Schonbein,  the  dis- 
coverer of  ozone  in  the  atmosphere  and  the  cause  of  influenza. 
Just  prior  to  our  visit  the  Professor  had  obtained  some  ozone, 
and  had  inhaled  it  for  the  purpose,  as  he  said,  of  giving  himself 
influenza,  in  order  to  ascertain  how  it  would  affect  him.  We 
both  distinctly  observed  most  of  the  ordinary  symptoms  of  the 
malady.  Augustus  Harvey, 

12  Landridge  Road,  Fulham,  January  17. 


Rainbow  due  to  Sunlight  reflected  from  the  Sea. 

I  HAVE  never  heard  of  a  rainbow,  due  to  the  image  of  the  sun 
in  water,  having  been  seen  ;  and  I  think  the  following  letter, 
from  an  old  student  of  mine  of  sixteen  years  ago,  may  interest 
your  readers.  WiLLIAM  THOMSON. 

The  University,  Glasgow,  January  7. 

On  September  18,  1889,  I  saw  a  rainbow,  caused,  not  by  the 
direct  rays  of  the  sun,  but  by  their  reflection  from  the  sea. 

We  were  at  the  height  of  900  feet ;  the  sky  was  all  clouded 
except  along  the  western  horizon  ;  the  sun,  an  hour  before  set- 
ting, was  hidden  ;  but  its  rays  were  reflected  from  the  sea.  A 
drizzle  was  falling,  and  my  companion  was  remarking  how  strong 
the  light  from  the  sea  was,  when  it  occurred  to  me  that  it  might 
give  a  bow.  And  there  it  was  behind  us — not  the  usual  recum- 
bent bow,  less  than  a  semicircle,  but  an  overhanging  one,  greater 
than  a  semicircle.  The  clouds  were  drifting  from  the  west,  so 
that  the  sun  came  into  view ;  and  the  usual  rainbow  became 
visible  with  its  secondary  bow  ;  so  that  three  rainbows  were  seen 
at  once.  The  sea-bow  and  the  usual  bow  were  identical  at  the 
horizon.     The  angle  between  them  was  greater  than  the  sun's 


angular  height,  but  not  double.  It  seemed  as  if  the  complemen- 
tary segment  of  the  rim  had  been  folded  up  from  beneath  into 
view,  but  that  the  colours  were  not  reversed.  The  sea-bow  was 
just  as  bright  as  the  secondary  bow,  which  it  intersected. 

From  the  fact  that  the  three  were  seen  together,  for  over  3 
minutes,  at  least  in  part,  I  would  argue  that  it  is  no  unusual 
sight,  and  that  in  Scotland,  where  bows  are  so  frequent,  and 
plenty  of  comparatively  smooth  water  available,  this  sea-bow 
may  be  looked  for  and  seen. 

I  may  mention,  also,  that  I  saw  a  fourth  bow  that  evening. 
After  the  sun  had  set,  a  bow  of  one  colour,  an  orange-pink,  took 
the  place  of  the  usual  bow.  The  source  of  light,  I  thought,  was 
a  cloud  just  over  the  place  where  the  sun  had  set. 

William  Scouller, 

86  Calle  de  la  Independencia,  Valpiaraiso,  November  9,  1889, 


Osteolepidae, 

Your  reviewer  R,  L.  is  mistaken  in  condemning  so  absolutely 
the  above  form.  The  word  "  Osteolepus  "  would  be  a  legitimate 
adjective  expressing  the  same  idea  as  the  substantive  Osteolepis  ; 
and  the  patronymic  of  the  "Osteolepi"  would  be  simply 
"  Osteolepidae,"  and  not  "  Osteolepididse." 

It  may  be  useful  for  R.  L.  and  some  others  to  apprehend  this 
principle  in  word-building — viz,  that  compound  Greek  adjectives 
do  not  take  the  lengthened  genitive  as  root ;  thus  the  correct 
Latin  equivalent  for  the  corresponding  Greek  adjective  is  not 
"  echinodermatus "  but  "echinodermus,"  not  "distomatus" 
but  "  distomus,"  Hence,  the  correct  form  for  the  neuter  plural 
of  the  former  is  "  Echinoderma ; "  and  for  the  neuter  singular  of 
the  latter  is  Distomum,  And  it  would  be  wrong  to  write  "  Dis- 
tomatidse"  as  the  family  name,  and  correct  to  write  "  Disto- 
midse."  Hence  Osteolepidae  and  the  like  are  admissible,  since 
they  may  be  considered  as  formed  from  adjectives,  and  not  from 
the  substantive  (of  questionable  form  itself)  in  -is. 

R.  L.  -f  E. 


Exact  Thermometry. 

Since  the  publication  of  my  letter  in  Nature  (December  19, 
1889,  p.  152)  on  the  cause  of  the  rise  of  the  zero-point  of  a  ther- 
mometer when  exposed  for  a  considerable  time  to  a  high 
temperature,  two  letters  on  the  same  subject  have  appeared,  one 
from  Mr.  Herbert  Tomlinson  (January  2,  p.  198),  the  other  from 
Prof.  E.  J.  Mills  (January  9,  p.  227),  who  replies  to  my 
objections  to  the  plastic  theory. 

Mr.  Tomlinson  considers  that  my  experiments  seem  to  leave 
no  doubt  that  compression,  due  to  the  plasticity  of  the  glass,  is  not 
the  main  cause  of  the  rise  of  the  zero-point,  but  he  considers  that 
it  is  not  merely  the  prolonged  heating,  but  also  the  change  of 
temperature  (heating  or  cooling),  that  is  effective  in  bringing 
about  the  change.  I  have  not  yet  had  time  to  make  any  special 
experiments  to  test  this  point,  but  I  may  perhaps  mention  that 
such  data  as  I  possess  seem  rather  to  point  to  the  conclusion  that 
long-continued  steady  heating  is  more  effective  than  alternate 
heating  or  cooling.  As  the  following  experiment,  made  about  a 
year  ago,  seems  to  bear  on  the  point,  I  give  the  results  : — 


31     6    6 


Total 

rise  of 

zero 


j-  i°"6  o°*i5  o°'85  o°'5  o°"i  i°'2  0°  0°         /^'i, 


Approximate 
time  in  hours. 
Rise  of  zero- 
point 

Two  other  thermometers,  heated  each  day  for  about  six  hours, 
showed  after  nine  days  rises  of  zero-point  of  3°"8  and  4°*i  re- 
spectively, but  in  these  cases  the  change  was  apparently  not 
quite  complete.  The  temperature  was  in  each  case  280°,  and 
all  these  thermometers  belonged  to  the  same  batch  as  those 
employed  in  my  experiments  already  described  in  Nature, 

Prof.  Mills  does  not  regard  the  experiments  as  conclusive,  but 
criticizes  my  results  in  the  following  words  :  "  The  zero  move- 
ment, however,  only  ranged  from  1°  to  i°'2 — small  readings 
which  might  very  possibly  have  been  obtained,  or  not,  on  either 
of  the  thermometers  at  other  times."  This  criticism,  in  striking 
contrast  to  the  rest  of  the  letter,  appears  to  be  rather  unkind 
either  to  me  or  to  my  thermometers,  I  hardly  know  which,  I 
sincerely  hope  that  none  of  my  thermometers  are  capable  of  such 
erratic  behaviour  as  to  show  changes  of  zero-point  of  1°  (or  even 
twice  this  amount  if  the  plastic  theory  is  correct)  without  extra- 
ordinary treatment,  or  that  my  readings  of  temperature  are 
reliable  only  to  within  i°  or  so.  But  to  make  the  matter  more 
certain,  I  will  continue  the  heating  of  the  two  thermometers,  A 
and  C,  under  the  same  conditions  as  before,  and  will  also  heat 
two  more  thermometers  under  similar  conditions  to  about  360°. 
Prof,  Mills  mentions  the  very  curious  behaviour  of  lead-glass 
thermometers  at  different  temperatures,  but  his  objection  on  that 
score  to  the  temperature  280°  does  not  seem  to  apply,  as  my 
thermometers  are  all  made  of  soft  German  soda-glass.  It  may, 
however,  be  useful  to  heat  two  more  thermometers  to  a  tempera- 
ture of  about  220°  in  order  to  compare  the  total  rise  with  that  at 
280°  and  360°, 

With  regard  to  the  statement  that  the  final  state  of  a  thermo- 
meter kept  at  the  ordinary  temperature  for  an  infinite  time 
would  differ  from  that  of  the  same  thermometer  after  being  sub- 
jected to  prolonged  heating  at  a  high  temperature,  I  am  not 
prepared  to  give  a  decided  opinion  either  one  way  or  the  other, 
but  it  does  appear  to  me  to  be  rather  a  daring  procedure  to 
make  observations  of  the  minute  changes  of  zero-point  over  a 
few  years,  and  to  extrapolate  from  a  decade  or  so  to  eternity. 


272 


NATURE 


[Jan.  23,  1890 


I  am  also  quite  willing  to  admit  that  there  may  be  other 
causes  tending  to  raise  the  zero-point  besides  the  equalization  of 
tension,  such,  for  instance,  as  the  chemical  changes  alluded  to 
by  Prof.  Mills  ;  but  I  should  like  to  ask,  as  I  am  ignorant  on  the 
point,  whether  there  is  any  experimental  evidence  of  their 
nature  or  existence.  Sydney  Young. 

University  College,  Bristol,  January  11. 

Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

In  your  issue  of  December  26,  and  also  in  exhibiting  his 
collection  of  crabs  before  the  Linnean  Society,  Mr.  Pascoe  cast 
some  doubt  on  the  function  of  the  two  pairs  of  modified  legs  of 
Dromia  vulgaris,  which  are  usually  supposed  to  be  adapted  to 
the  retention  of  the  sponge  with  which  it  covers  its  carapace. 

That  these  legs  were  really  used  for  this  purpose  I  was  enabled 
to  observe,  during  my  stay  at  the  zoological  station  in  Naples 
last  winter.  I  had  in  my  tank  several  specimens,  in  some  of 
which  the  sponge  had  also  extended  on  to  the  ventral  surface, 
over  the  edge  of  the  carapace,  thus  securing  a  firm  hold  apart 
from  the  action  of  the  legs.  In  all  specimens,  however,  there 
are  seen,  when  the  sponge  is  removed,  which  requires  con- 
siderable force,  two  oblique  depressions  into  which  the  legs  fit, 
giving  them  thus  a  distinct  hold  on  the  sponge. 

If  the  latter  be,  however,  removed  from  the  animal  but  left  in 
the  tank,  the  crab  soon  sets  to  work  to  regain  possession  of  its 
covering,  and  can  be  seen  to  use  its  modified  hinder  pairs  of 
legs  most  effectually  for  this  purpose.  It  would  seem  therefore 
beyond  doubt  that  these  modified  legs  serve  not  only  for  holding 
oh  the  sponge,  but  also  for  getting  hold  of  a  new  sponge,  should 
the  old  one  get  injured  or  die,  as  must  happen  not  unfrequently. 

F.  Ernest  Weiss. 

The  Zoological  Laboratory,  University  College,  January  6. 


Galls. 


I  AM  sorry  if  I  unintentionally  misrepresented  the  opinions  of 
Prof.  Romanes  and  Dr.  St.  George  Mivart  in  suggesting  that 
they  wished  to  assail  the  theory  of  natural  selection  in  their 
recent  communications  to  Nature  on  this  subject.  They  must, 
however,  pardon  me  for  saying  that  I  still  think  the  extract 
to  which  I  alluded  in  my  note  admits  this  interpretation.  As 
my  views  of  the  relations  of  gall-formation  to  the  theory  of 
natural  selection  are  clearly  at  variance  with  those  of  your  corre- 
spondents, perhaps  you  will  allow  me  space  to  give  briefly  the 
grounds  upon  which  I  base  my  conclusions. 

There  are  in  England  about  ninety  well-known  varieties  of 
galls,  and  of  this  number  fully  a  third  are  found  in  the  oak. 
About  half  the  oak-galls  are  formed  on  growing  leaves.  In 
nearly  one-third  of  the  total  number  the  grub  is  hatched,  and 
the  gall  is  fashioned  in  a  developing  bud.  We  can  readily 
imagine,  in  the  case  of  a  tree  with  deciduous  leaves,  that  the 
presence  of  a  few  galls  upon  its  foliage  would  not  greatly  affect 
its  chances  of  survival,  if  its  fitness  was  in  other  respects  com- 
plete. It  is  otherwise  when  a  gall  occupies  the  position  of  a 
developing  bud,  especially  when  the  bud  is  a  terminal  one.  In 
this  case  there  occurs  coincidently  with,  and  as  a  result  probably 
of,  the  adventitious  formation,  an  arrest  of  normal  development 
and  growth.  Indeed,  I  believe  "the  gnarled  and  twisted  oak  " 
owes  niany  of  its  gnarls  and  most  of  the  twists  to  the  common 
oak-apple  and  other  bud-galls.  If  a  tree  endowed  with  less 
developmental  vigour  and  with  fewer  supplementary  buds  than 
the  oak  had  been  exposed  to  the  repeated  attacks  of  the  insects 
for  many  generations  in  a  struggle  for  existence,  it  would  doubt- 
less have  long  ago  succumbed,  and  it  would  have  done  so  by  a 
process  of  natural  selection  operating  in  the  ordinary  manner, 
and  not  "  at  the  end  of  a  long  lever  of  the  wrong  kind,"  what- 
ever that  may  mean.  This  selective  process  in  the  case  of  gall- 
bearing  trees  has  left  possible  traces  of  its  action  to-day,  for  I 
am  unaware  that  any  other  English  tree  than  the  oak  is  attacked 
by  terminal  bud-galls.  The  terminal  leaf-galls  of  certain  Salices 
and  Conifers  can  scarcely  affect  their  growth  and  development 
to  the  same  extent  as  the  bud-galls. 

When  we  compare  pathological  tumours  in  the  higher  animals 
with  these  vegetable  excrescences,  we  must  make  due  allowances 
for  the  different  conditions  under  which  each  lives.  I  cannot 
then  see  that  the  "morphological  specialization"  of  galls, 
which,  for  the  most  part,  are  composed  of  hypertrophied  repro- 
ductions of  the  simpler  vegetable  tissues,  is  greater  than  that 
exhibited  by  man  himself,  when,  for  instance,  he  becomes  the 


involuntary  host  of  Dr.  Lewis's  Filaria;,  and  his  leg  the  seat  of 
Elephantiasis  lymphangiectodes,  accompanied  by  hypertrophy 
of  many  integumentary  structures  of  the  limb.  Oak-spangles, 
on  the  other  hand,  are  to  my  mind  comparable  to  the  circular 
nests  of  ringworm,  or  to  the  sprouting  epithelium  of  a  Verruca 
necrogenetica.  Such  comparisons  may  be  of  little  scientific 
value,  yet  I  take  it  they  are  as  useful  in  their  place  as  attempts 
to  gauge  the  amount  of  "  disinterestedness"  shown  by  a  cabbage 
when  it  becomes  the  unwilling  host  of  the  gall-producing 
Ceuthorhynchus  sulcicollis.  W.  Ainslie  Hollis. 

Brighton,  December  30,  1889. 


The  Evolution  of  Sex. 

The  interesting  note  of  Mr.  M.  S.  Pembrey  in  your  issue  of 
January  2  (p.  199),  induces  me  to  draw  the  attention  of  your 
correspondent  to  a  short  paper  of  mine  just  published  (or  in 
course  of  publication)  in  the  Ibis,  where  I  communicated  the 
experiences  of  a  friend,  who  had  hatched  a  series  of  parrot 
eggs,  belonging  to  the  genus  Eclectus,  in  which  the  young 
males  are  green,  the  young  females  rd.  It  is  remarkable  that 
by  far  the  larger  number  of  the  birds  hatched  were  males.  In 
each  case  only  two  eggs  were  laid,  and  the  breeder  himself,  with- 
out being  able  to  tell  why,  is  of  opinion  that  nearly  all  his 
hatche-  consisted  of  male  birds.  As  there  are  still  many  embryos 
of  those  Eclectus  in  my  hands,  the  sex  of  which  is  not  yet  de- 
termined, I  hope  to  be  able  to  make  known  the  result  of  my  in- 
vestigation later,  whether  the  pairs  are  always  males,  or  always 
females,  or  consist  of  a  male  and  a  female  bird,  at  least  sometimes. 
Meanwhile,  I  should  be  glad  to  hear  if  anything  more  is  known 
about  the  sexes  of  birds  which  lay  only  two  eggs  at  a  time. 

A.  B.  Meyer. 

Royal  Zoological  Museum,  Dresden,  January  5. 


"  Manures  and  their  Uses." 

Allow  me  to  thank  the  well-known  writer  "W."  for  his 
review  of  the  above-mentioned  book.  "W."  does  not  hold 
with  the  view  that  "farmyard  manure  is  erroneously  supposed 
to  contain  all  the  necessary  plant-foods  required  for  the  growth 
of  plants."  I  believe,  with  M.  Ville  and  others,  that  "the 
farmer  who  uses  nothing  but  farmyard  manure  exhausts  his 
land."  "  W."  speaks  of  this  as  an  "obvious  fallacy."  If  the 
statement  is  wrong,  would  "W. "  kindly  answer  the  quotation 
given  on  p.  76  of  the  book  in  question.  The  quotation  "runs  " 
as  follows  : — 

"M.  Grandeau  (the  French  agricultural  authority)  recently 
estimated  that  one  year's  crop  in  France  represents  298,200 
tons  of  phosphoric  acid,  of  which  only  151,200  tons  were  re- 
covered from  the  stable  dung,  thus  leaving  a  deficit  of  147,000 
tons,  equal  to  over  one  million  tons  of  superphosphate,  to  be 
made  good  by  other  means. 

"M.  Grandeau  also  estimated  that  the  entire  number  of  farm 
animals  in  France  in  1882,  representina^  a  live  weight  of 
6,240,430  tons,  had  accumulated  from  their  food  193,453  tons  of 
mineral  matter  containing  76,820  tons  of  phosphoric  acid. 
These  figures  give  some  idea  of  the  enormous  quantities  of  phos- 
phoric acid  required  to  restore  to  the  soil  what  is  continually 
bemg  carried  away  by  the  crops  sold  off  the  farm." 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  in  the  above  estimates,  M. 
Grandeau  includes  the  purchase  of  oil-cakes  and  other  feeding 
stuffs.  Therefore,  if  farmyard  manure  only  contains  about  half 
the  amount  of  phosphoric  acid  (to  say  nothing  of  nitrogen, 
potash,  &c. )  required  to  retain  the  land  in  a  fertile  condition, 
how  can  I  have  attached  "too  much  prominence  to  chemical 
manures,  and  too  little  importance  to  stock-feeding  as  a  manurial 
agency"?  A.  B.  Griffiths. 

[Dr.  Griffiths  assumes  that  because,  as  asserted  by  M. 
Grandeau,  the  balance  of  fertilizing  matter  in  France  is  against 
the  land,  "the  farmer  who  uses  nothing  but  farmyard  manure 
exhausts  his  land. "  This  is  arguing  from  general  principles  to 
special  cases,  and  there  is  no  sequence  in  his  reasoning.  A 
nation  may  be  rushing  to  ruin,  bin  that  does  not  prevent  an  in- 
dividual from  growing  rich.  Phosphates  and  nitrates  may  be 
diminishing,  but  that  does  not  prevent  them  from  accumulating 
on  any  particular  farm.  We  traverse  Dr.  Grififiths's  statement 
without  qualification,  that  the  farmer  who  uses  nothing  else  but 
farmyard  manure  exhausts  his  land.  We  believe  he  improves, 
his  land. — The  Reviewer.] 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


273 


MAGNETISM} 

II. 

"\^HEN  one  considers  that  the  magnetic  property  is 
^^  peculiar  to  three  substances — that  it  is  easily- 
destroyed  by  the  admixture  of  some  foreign  body,  as 
manganese — one  would  naturally  expect  that  its  existence 
would  depend  also  on  the  temperature  of  the  body.  This 
is  found  to  be  the  case.  It  has  long  been  known  that  iron 
remains  magnetic  to  a  red  heat,  and  that  then  it  somewhat 
suddenly  ceases  to  be  magnetic,  and  remains  at  a  higher 
temperature  non-magnetic.  It  has  long  been  known  that 
the  same  thing  happens  with  cobalt,  the  temperature  of 
change,  however,  being  higher  ;  and  with  nickel,  the  tem- 
perature being  lower.  The  magnetic  characteristics  of 
iron  at  a  high  temperature  are  interesting.  Let  us  return 
to  our  ring,  and  let  us  suppose  that  the  coils  are  insulated 
with  a  refractory  material,  such  as 
asbestos  paper,  and  that  the  ring  is 
made  of  the  best  soft  iron.  We  are 
now  in  a  position  to  heat  the  ring  to  a 
high  temperature,  and  to  experiment 
upon  it  at  high  temperatures  in  exactly 
the  same  way  as  before.  The  tempe- 
rature can  be  approximately  deter- 
mined by  the  resistance  of  one  of  the 
copper  coils.  Suppose,  first,  that  the 
current  in  the  primary  circuit  which 
we  use  for  magnetizing  the  ring  is 
small ;  that  from  time  to  time,  as  the 
ring  is  heated  and  the  temperature 
rises,  an  experiment  is  made  by  re- 
versing the  current  in  the  primary  cir- 
cuit, and  observing  the  deflection  of 
the  galvanometer  needle.  At  the  or- 
dinary temperature  of  the  air  the  de- 
flection is  comparatively  small ;  as  the 
temperature  increases  the  deflection 
also  increases,  but  slowly  at  first ;  when 
the  temperature,  however,  reaches 
something  like  600°  C,  the  galvano- 
meter deflection  begins  very  rapidly 
to  increase,  until,  with  a  temperature 
of  770^  C,  it  attains  a  value  of  no  less 
than  1 1,000  times  as  great  as  the  de- 
flection would  be  if  the  ring  had  been 
made  of  glass  or  copper,  and  the  same 
exciting  current  had  been  used.  Of 
course,  a  direct  comparison  of  11,000 
to  I  cannot  be  made  :  to  make  it,  we 
must  introduce  resistance  into  the 
secondary  circuit  when  the  iron  is 
used  ;  and  we  must,  in  fact,  make  use 
of  larger  currents  when  copper  is 
used.  However,  the  ratio  of  the  induc- 
tion in  the  ca-e  of  iron  to  that  in  the  case  of  copper,  at 
770°  C,  for  small  forces  is  no  less  than  11,000  to  I.  Now 
mark  what  happens.  The  temperature  rises  another 
15^  C.  :  the  deflection  of  the  needle  suddenly  drops  to  a 
value  which  we  must  regard  as  infinitesimal  in  comparison 
to  that  which  it  had  at  a  temperature  of  770°  C.  ;  in  fact, 
at  the  higher  temperature  of  785°  C.  the  deflection  of  the 
galvanometer  with  iron  is  to  that  with  copper  in  a  ratio 
not  exceeding  that  of  ri4  to  1.  Here,  then,  we  have  a 
most  remarkable  fact :  at  a  temperature  of  776°  C.  the 
magnetization  of  iron  11,000  times  as  great  as  that  of  a 
non-magnetic  substance ;  at  a  temperature  of  785'^  C. 
iron  practically  non-magnetic.  These  changes  are  shown 
in  Y'x'g.  8.  Suppose  now  that  the  current  in  the  primary 
circuit  which  serves  to  magnetize  the  iron  had  been  great 
instead  ot  very  small.     In  this  case  we  find  a  very  differ- 

'  Inaugural  Address  delivered  before  the  Institution  of  Electrical  En- 
gineers, on  rhursday,  January  9.  by  J.  Hopkinson,  M.A., -D-Sc,  F.R.S., 
President.     Continued  from  p.  254. 


ent  order  of  phenomena.  As  the  temperature  rises,  the 
deflection  on  the  galvanometer  diminishes  very  slowly 
till  a  high  temperature  is  attained  ;  then  the  rate  of 
decrease  is  accelerated  until,  as  the  temperature  at 
which  the  sudden  change  occurred  for  small  forces 
is  reached,  the  rate  of  diminution  becomes  very 
rapid  indeed,  until,  finally,  the  magnetism  of  the 
iron  disappears  at  the  same  time  as  for  small  forces. 
Instead  of  following  the  magnetization  with  constant 
forces  for  varying  temperatures,  we  may  trace  the  curve 
of  magnetization  for  varying  forces  with  any  temperature 
we  please.  Such  curves  are  given  in  Diagrams  9  and  10. 
In  the  one  diagram,  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  out 
different  points  in  the  curve,  the  scale  of  abscissae  is  20 
times  as  great  as  in  the  other.  You  will  observe  that  the 
effect  of  rise  of  temperature  is  to  diminish  the  maximum 
magnetization  of  which  the  body  is  capable,  slowly  at 


Wrought   Iron 
MAGNETisiNa  Force  0-3. 


100  200  300  400  SOD  600  700     78S800'C 


Fig.  8. 

first,  and  rapidly  at  the  end.  It  is  also  very  greatly  to 
diminish  the  coercive  force,  and  to  increase  the  facility 
with  which  the  body  is  magnetized.  To  give  an  idea  of 
the  magnetizing  forces  in  question,  the  force  for  Fig.  8 
was  03  ;  and  as  you  see  from  Figs.  9  and  10,  the  force 
ranges  as  high  as  60.  Now  the  earth's  force  in  these 
latitudes  is  043,  and  the  horizontal  component  of  the 
earth's  force  is  o'i8.  In  the  field  of  a  dynamo  machine 
the  force  is  often  more  than  7000.  In  addition  to  the 
general  characteristics  of  the  curve  of  magnetization,  a 
very  interesting,  and,  as  I  take  it,  a  very  important,  fact 
comes  out.  I  have  already  stated  that  if  the  ring  be  sub- 
mitted to  a  great  current  in  one  direction,  which  current 
is  afterwards  gradually  reduced  to  zero,  the  ring  is  not  in 
its  non-magnetic  condition,  but  that  it  is,  in  fact,  strongly 
magnetized.  Suppose  now  we  heat  the  ring,  whilst  under 
the  influence  of  a  strong  magnetizing  current,  beyond  the 
critical  temperature  at  which  it  ceases  to  have  any  mag- 
netic properties,  and  that  then  we  reduce  the  current  to 


274 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


zero,  we  may  in  this  state  try  any  experiment  we  please. 
Reversing  the  current  on  the  ring,  we  shall  find  that  it  is 
in  all  cases  non-magnetic.  Suppose  next  that  we  allow 
the  ring  to  cool  without  any  current  in  the  primary,  when 
cold  we  find  that  the  ring  is  magnetized  ;  in  fact,  it  has  a 
distinct  recollection  of  what  had  been  done  to  it  before  it 
was  heated  to  the  temperature  at  which  it  ceased  to  be 
magnetic.  When  steel  is  tried  in  the  same  way  with 
varying  temperatures,  a  similar  sequence  of  phenomena 


Fjg.  9. 


Fig.  10. 


200 

100 

z 
0 

1- 
0 

Q 

^     0 

-- 

4 

■ 

— >■ 

— == 

\ 

h- 

-~       " 

ZT 

\ 

\ 

Mac 

;net 

SING 

FORC 

E  6- 

7 

L 

\ 

tl 

\ 

TZ 

\ 

— 

A: 

Ten 

IPERATUReO                      00°                200°                 300°               400°                 5C 

)0°             60 

0?C 

Fig.  II. 

is  observed  ;  but  for  small  forces  the  permeability  rises  to 
a  lower  maximum,  and  its  rise  is  less  rapid.  The  critical 
temperature  at  which  magnetism  disappears  changes 
rapidly  with  the  composition  of  the  steel.  For  very  soft 
charcoal  iron  wire  the  critical  temperature  is  as  high  as 
880"  C.  ;  for  hard  Whitworth  steel  it  is  690"  C. 

The  properties  of  an  alloy  of  manganese  and  iron  are 
curious.  More  curious  are  those  of  an  alloy  of  nickel 
and  iron.     The  alloy  of  nickel  and  iron  containing  25  per 


cent,  of  nickel  is  non-magnetic  as  it  is  sure  to  come  from 
the  manufacturer  ;  that  is  to  say,  a  substance  compounded 
of  two  magnetic  bodies  is  non-magnetic.  Cool  it,  how- 
ever, a  little  below  freezing,  and  its  properties  change : 
it  becomes  very  decidedly  magnetic.  This  is  perhaps 
not  so  very  remarkable  :  the  nickel  steel  has  a  low  critical 
temperature — lower  than  we  have  observed  in  any  other 
magnetizable  body.  But  if  now  the  cooled  material  be 
allowed  to  return  to  the  ordinary  temperature  it  is  mag- 
netic ;  if  it  be  heated  it  is  still  mag- 
netic, and  remains  magnetic  till  a  tem- 
perature of  580°  C.  is  attained,  when 
it  very  rapidly  becomes  non-magnetic, 
exactly  as  other  magnetic  bodies  do 
when  they  pass  their  critical  tempera- 
ture. Now  cool  the  alloy :  it  is  non- 
magnetic, and  remains  non- magnetic 
till  the  temperature  has  fallen  to 
below  freezing.  The  history  of  the 
material  is  shown  in  Fig.  il,  from 
which  it  will  be  seen  that  from  —  20°  C. 
to  580^  C.  this  alloy  may  exist  in  either 
of  two  states,  both  quite  stable — a 
magnetic  and  a  non-magnetic — and 
that  the  state  is  determined  by  whether 
the  alloy  has  been  last  cooled  to  —id" 
C.  or  heated  to  580°  C. 

Sudden  changes  occur  in  other  pro- 
perties of  iron  at  this  very  critical  tem- 
perature at  which  its  magnetism  dis- 
appears. For  example,  take  its  elec- 
trical resistance.  On  the  curve.  Fig. 
12,  is  shown  the  electrical  resistance 
of  iron  at  various  temperatures,  and 
also,  in  blue,  the  electrical  resistance 
of  copper  or  other  pure  metal.  Ob- 
serve the  difference.  If  the  iron  is 
heated,  its  resistance  increases  with 
an  accelerating  velocity,  until,  when 
near  the  critical  temperature,  the  rate 
of  increase  is  five  times  as  much  as 
the  copper  ;  at  the  critical  tempera- 
ture the  rate  suddenly  changes,  and  it 
assumes  a  value  which,  as  far  as  expe- 
riments have  gone,  cannot  be  said  to 
differ  very  materially  from  a  pure 
metal.  The  resistance  of  mangan- 
ese steel  shows  no  such  change  ; 
its  temperature  coefficient  con- 
stantly has  the  value  of  o'ooi2, 
which  it  has  at  the  ordinary  tem- 
perature of  the  air.  The  electrical 
resistance  of  nickel  varies  with 
temperature  in  an  exactly  similar 
manner.  Again,  Prof.  Tait  has 
shown  that  the  thermo-electric 
properties  of  iron  are  very  ano- 
malous— that  there  is  a  sudden 
change  at  or  about  the  tempera- 
ture at  which  the  metal  becomes 
non-magnetic,  and  that  before  this 
temperature  is  reached  the  varia- 
tions of  thermo-electric  property 
are  quite  different  from  a  non- 
magnetic metal. 
Prof.  Tomlinson  has  investigated  how  many  other  pro- 
perties of  iron  depend  upon  the  temperature.  But  the 
most  significant  phenomenon  is  that  indicated  by  the 
property  of  recalescence.  Prof.  Barrett,  of  Dublin,  ob- 
served that  if  a  wire  of  hard  steel  is  heated  to  a  very 
bright  redness,  and  is  then  allowed  to  cool,  the  wire  will 
cool  down  till  it  hardly  emits  any  hght  at  all,  and  that 
then  it  suddenly  glows  out  quite  bright  again,  and  after- 
wards finally  cools.     This  phenomenon  is  observed  with 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


275 


great  difficulty  in  the  case  of  soft  iron,  and 
is  not  observed  at  all  in  the  case  of  man- 
ganese steel.  A  fairly  approximate  numeri- 
cal measurement  may  be  made  in  this 
way  :  Take  a  block  of  iron  or  steel  on 
which  a  groove  is  cut,  and  in  this  groove 
wind  a  coil  of  copper  wire  insulated  with 
asbestos ;  cover  the  coil  with  many  layers 
of  asbestos ;  and  finally  cover  the  whole 
lump  of  iron  or  steel  with  asbestos  again. 
We  have  now  a  body  which  will  heat  and 
cool  comparatively  slowly,  and  which  will 
lose  its  heat  at  a  rate  very  approximately 
proportional  to  the  difference  of  tempera- 
ture between  it  and  the  surrounding  air. 
Heat  the  block  to  a  bright  redness,  and 
take  it  out  of  the  fire  and  observe  the 
resistance  of  the  copper  coil  as  the 
temperature  falls,  due  to  the  cooling  of 
the  block.  Plot  a  curve  in  which  the 
abscissae  are  the  times,  and  the  ordinates 
the  logarithms,  of  the  increase  of  resist- 
ance of  the  copper  coil  above  its  resistance 
at  the  temperature  of  the  room.  If  the 
specific  heat  of  the  iron  were  constant, 
this  curve  would  be  a  straight  line  ;  if 
at  any  particular  temperature  latent  heat 
were  liberated,  the  curve  would  be  hori- 
zontal so  long  as  the  heat  was  being 
liberated.  If  now  a  block  be  made  of 
manganese  steel,  it  is  found  that  the 
curve  is  very  nearly  a  straight  line,  show- 
ing that  there  is  no  liberation  of  latent  heat 
at  any  temperature.  If  it  is  made  of 
nickel  steel  with  25  per  cent,  of  nickel,  in 
its  non-magnetic  state,  the  result  is  the 
same — no  sign  of  liberation  of  heat.  If 
now  the  block  be  made  of  hard  steel, 
the  temperature  diminishes  at  first ;  then 
the  curve  (Fig.  13)  which  represents  the 
temperature  bends  round  :  the  tempera- 
ture actually  rises  many  degrees  whilst 
the  body  is  losing  heat.  The  liberation 
of  heat  being  completed,  the  curve  finally 
descends  as  a  straight  line.  From  in- 
spection of  this  curve  it  is  apparent  why 
hard  steel  exhibits  a  sudden  accession  of 
brightness  as  it  yields  up  its  heat.  In 
the  case  of  soft  iron  the  temperature  does 
not  actually  rise  as  the  body  loses  heat, 
but  the  curve  remains  horizontal,  or  nearly 
horizontal,  for  a  considerable  time.  This, 
again,  shows  why,  although  a  consider- 
able amount  of  heat  is  liberated  at  a 
temperature  corresponding  to  the  hori- 
zontal part  of  the  curve,  no  marked  re- 
calescence  can  be  obtained.  From  curves 
such  as  these  it  is  easy  to  calculate  the 
amount  of  heat  which  becomes  latent. 
As  the  iron  passes  the  critical  point  it 
is  found  to  be  about  200  times  as  much 
heat  as  is  required  to  raise  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  iron  i  degree  Centigrade. 
From  this  we  get  a  very  good  idea  of 
the  importance  of  the  phenomenon. 
When  ice  is  melted  and  becomes  water, 
the  heat  absorbed  is  80  times  the  heat 
required  to  raise  the  temperature  of 
the  water  1  degree  Centigrade,  and 
160  times  the  heat  required  to  raise 
the  temperature  of  the  ice  by  the 
same  amount.  The  temperature  of  re- 
calescence  has  been  abundantly  identi- 
fied   with    the     critical    temperature    of 


Fl3.  13. 


270 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1690 


magnetism.^  I  am  not  aware  that  anything  corre- 
sponding with  recalescence  has  been  observed  in  the 
case  of  nickel.  Experiments  have  been  tried,  and  gave 
a  negative  result,  but  the  sample  was  impure ;  and 
the  result  may,  I  think,  be  distrusted  as  an  indication  of 
what  it  would  be  in  the  case  of  pure  nickel.  The  most 
probable  explanation  in  the  case  of  iron,  at  all  events, 
appears  to  be  that  when  iron  passes  from  the  magnetic  to 
the  non-magnetic  state  it  experiences  a  change  of  state  of 
comparable  importance  with  the  change  from  the  solid  to 
the  liquid  state,  and  that  a  large  quantity  of  heat  is  ab- 
sorbed in  the  change.  There  is,  then,  no  need  to  suppose 
chemical  change  ;  the  great  physical  fact  accompanying 
the  absorption  of  heat  is  the  disappearance  of  the  capacity 
for  magnetization. 

What  explanations  have  been  offered  of  the  phenomena 
of  magnetism  .?  That  the  explanation  must  be  molecular 
was  early  apparent.  Poisson's  hypothesis  was  that  each 
molecule  of  a  magnet  contained  two  magnetic  fluids, 
which  were  separated  from  each  other  under  the  influence 
of  magnetic  force.  His  theory  explained  the  fact  of  mag- 
netism induced  by  proximity  to  magnets,  but  beyond  this 
it  could  not  go.  It  gave  no  hint  that  there  was  a  limit  to 
the  magnetization  of  iron — a  point  of  saturation  ;  none  of 
hysteresis  ;  no  hint  of  any  connection  between  the  mag- 
netism of  iron  and  any  other  property  of  the  substance  ; 
no  hint  why  magnetism  di  sappears  at  a  high  temperature. 
It  does,  however,  give  more  than  a  hint  that  the  perme- 
ability of  iron  could  not  exceed  a  limit  much  less  than  its 
actual  value,  and  that  it  should  be  constant  for  the  mate- 
rial, and  independent  of  the  force  applied.  Poisson  gave 
his  theory  a  beautiful  mathematical  development,  still 
useful  in  magnetism  and  in  electrostatics. 

Weber's  theory  is  a  very  distinct  advance  on  Poisson's. 
He  supposed  that  each  molecule  of  iron  was  a  magnet 
with  axes  arranged  at  random  in  the  body  ;  that  under 
the  influence  of  magnetizing  force  the  axes  of  the  little 
magnets  were  directed  to  parallelism  in  a  greater  degree 
as  the  force  was  greater.  Weber's  theory  thoroughly 
explains  the  limiting  value  of  magnetization,  since  no- 
thing more  can  be  done  than  to  direct  all  the  molecular 
axes  in  the  same  direction.  As  modified  by  Maxwell,  or 
with  some  similar  modification,  it  gives  an  account  of 
hysteresis,  and  of  the  general  form  of  the  ascending  curve 
of  magnetization.  It  is  also  very  convenient  for  stating 
some  of  the  facts.  For  example,  what  we  know  regarding 
the  effect  of  temperature  may  be  expressed  by  saying  that 
the  magnetic  moment  of  the  molecule  diminishes  as  the 
temperature  rises,  hence  that  the  limiting  moment  of  a 
magnet  will  also  diminish  ;  but  that  the  facility  with 
which  the  moLcules  follow  the  magnetizing  force  is  also 
increased,  hence  the  great  increase  of  /n  for  small  forces, 
and  its  almost  instantaneous  extinction  as  the  temper- 
ature rises.  Again,  in  terms  of  Weber's  theory,  we  can 
state  that  rise  of  temperature  enough  to  render  iron  non- 
magnetic will  not  clear  it  of  residual  magnetism.  The 
axes  of  the  molecules  are  brought  to  parallelism  by  the 
force  which  is  impressed  before  and  during  the  time  that 
the  magnetic  property  is  disappearing  ;  they  remain 
parallel  when  the  force  ceases,  though,  being  now  non- 
magnetic, their  effect   is  nil.     When,   the  temperature 

'  I  have  only  recently  become  acquainted  with  the  admirable  work  of 
M.  Osmond  on  recalescence.  He  has  examined  a  great  variety  of  samples 
of  steel,  and  determined  the  temperatures  at  which  they  give  off  an  excep- 
tional amount  of  heat.  Some  of  his  results  are  apparent  on  my  own  curves, 
though  I  had  assumed  them  to  be  mere  errors  of  observation.  For  example, 
refernng  to  my  Koyal  Society  paper,  there  is,  in  Fig.  38,  a  hint  of  a  second 
small  anomalous  point  a  little  below  the  larger  one.  And.  compari'ig 
Figs.  38  and  38A,  we  see  that  the  higher  the  heating,  the  lower  is  the  point 
of  recalescence  ;  both  features  are  bn  ught  out  by  M.  Osmond  The 
double  recalescence  observed  by  M.  Osmmd  in  steel  with  a  moderate 
quantity  of  carbon  I  would  explain  provisionally  by  supposing  this  steel  to 
be  a  mixture  of  two  kinds  which  have  different  critical  temperatures. 
Although  M.  Osmond's  metlicd  is  admirable  for  determining  the  tempe-ature 
of  recalescence,  and  whether  it  is  a  single  point  or  multiple,  it  is  not 
adapted  to  determine  the  quantity  of  heat  liberated,  as  the  small  sample 
used  is  inclosed  in  a  tube  of  considerable  mass,  which  cools  down  at  the 
same  time  as  the  sample  experimented  upon. 


falling,  they  become  again  magnetic,  the  effect  of  the 
direction  of  their  axes  is  apparent.  But  Weber's  theory 
does  not  touch  the  root  of  the  matter  by  connecting  the 
majjnetic  property  with  any  other  property  of  iron,  nor 
does  it  give  any  hint  as  to  why  the  moment  of  the  mole- 
cule disappears  so  rapidly  at  a  certain  temperature. 

Ampere's  theory  may  be  said  to  be  a  development  of 
Weber's  :  it  purports  to  state  in  what  the  magnetism  of 
the  molecule  consists.  Associated  with  each  molecule  is 
a  closed  electric  current  in  a  circuit  of  no  resistance  ; 
each  such  molecule,  with  its  current,  constitutes  Weber's 
magnetic  molecule,  and  all  that  it  can  do  they  can  do. 
But  the  great  merit  of  the  theory—  and  a  very  great  one 
it  is — is  that  it  brings  magnetism  in  as  a  branch  of  elec- 
tricity ;  it  explains  why  a  current  makes  a  magnetizable 
body  magnetic.  It  also  gives,  as  extended  by  Weber,  an 
explanation  of  diamagnetism.  It,  however,  gives  no  hint 
of  connecting  the  magnetic  properties  of  iron  with  any 
other  property.  Another  difficulty  is  this  :  When  iron 
ceases  to  be  magnetizable,  we  must  assume  that  the  mole- 
cular currents  cease.  These  currents  represent  energy. 
We  should  therefore  expect  that,  when  iron  ceased  to  be 
magnetic  by  rise  of  temperature,  heat  would  be  liberated  ; 
the  reverse  is  the  fact. 

So  far  as  I  know,  nothing  that  has  ever  been  proposed 
even  attempts  to  explain  the  fundamental  anomaly.  Why 
do  iron,  nickel^  and  cobalt  possess  a  property  which  we 
have  found  nowhere  else  in  nature  ?  It  may  be  that  at 
lower  temperatures  other  metals  would  be  magnetic,  but 
of  this  we  have  at  present  no  indication.  It  may  be  that, 
as  has  been  found  to  be  the  case  with  the  permanent 
gases,  we  only  require  a  greater  degree  of  cold  to  extend 
the  rule  to  cover  the  exception.  For  the  present,  the 
magnetic  properties  of  iron,  nickel,  and  cobalt  stand  as 
exceptional  as  a  breach  of  that  continuity  which  we  are  in 
the  habit  of  regarding  as  a  well  proved  law  of  Nature. 


NOTES  ON  A  RECENT  VOLCANIC  ISLAND 
IN  THE  PACIFIC. 

IN  1867,  H.M.S.  Falcon  reported  a  shoal  in  a  position 
in  about  20^  20'  S.,  and  175°  20'  W.,  or  30  miles  west 
of  Namuka  Island  of  the  Friendly  or  Tonga  Group. 

In  1877  smoke  was  reported  by  H.M.S.  Sappho  to  be 
rising  from  the  sea  at  this  spot. 

In  1885  a  volcanic  island  rose  from  the  sea  during  a 
submarine  eruption  on  October  14,  which  was  first  re- 
ported by  the  Janet  Ntchol,  a  passing  steamer,  to  be  2 
miles  long  and  about  250  feet  high. 

The  U.S.S.  Mohican  passed  it  in  ]  886,  and  from  calcula- 
tion founded  on  observations  in  passing,  gave  its  length 
as  ij*o  miles,  height  165  feet.  The  crater  was  on  the 
eastern  end,  and  dense  columns  of  smoke  were  rising 
from  it. 

In  1887  the  French  man-of-war  Decres  reported  its 
height  to  be  290  feet. 

In  the  same  year  an  English  yacht,  the  5y<^//,  passed  it, 
and  a  sketch  was  made  by  the  owner,  H.  Tufnell,  Esq., 
which  is  here  produced. 

The  island  has  now  been  thoroughly  examined  and 
mapped,  and  the  surrounding  sea  sounded  by  H.M. 
surveying-ship  Egerta,  Commander  Oldham. 

It  is  now  ly^j  mile  long,  and  yjj  of  a  mile  wide,  of  the 
shape  given  in  the  accompanying  plan.  The  southern 
portion  is  high,  and  faced  by  cliffs  on  the  south,  the 
summit  of  which  is  153  feet  above  the  sea.  A  long  flat 
stretches  to  the  north  from  the  foot  of  the  hill. 

The  island  is  apparently  entirely  formed  of  ashes  and 
cinders,  with  a  few  blocks  and  volcanic  bombs  here  and 
there,  especially  on  the  verge  of  the  hill. 

Under  the  action  of  the  waves,  raised  by  the  almost 
constant  south-east  winds,  this  loose  material  is  being 
rapidly  removed  ;  continual  landslips  take  place,  and 
Commander   Oldham    is    of    opinion   that   the   original 


Jan.  23,  1890J 


NATURE 


277 


^ 
1 


fly  H.   7 ujiic//,  J-'-<ij.,  iS^7,  bearing S.E.  about  2  mile 


By  ** Egeria,''^  1889,  bearing  E.  i|  mile. 


Jh'  "  E^oia,"  18S9,  bearing  N. N.  W.  \  W.  i  mile. 


no  : 

*:f.akA^?.., 


ea 

Uk.s.sli 


SL        \ 


\ 

.    \ 
31  X 


4i 


ft.9\ 


4 

6      ••. 


) 

/' 

/ 

/  - 

/ 

f  / 

•,;siiia 

9."     \ 
/ 

•: 

TONGA-    oa    FRIENDLY     I» 


FALCON  ISLAND 

H.  M.  3.  S    EGERIA,  I8B9. 
Lett:  20?  I9'0"S.-Zoncj:  17S;  21'30'W. 
Soundings  in.lf'aSioina.Meightt  inVeei. 


MOcVlaeksCii  ■voral.taB&.riiidtTa, 
oiifm       i.fine,  gn. preen,  xa..mu.ii, 
~v6i.wlcanie,  s.saini.sb.shelli. 


278 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


summit  was  some  200  or  300  yards  southward  of  the 
present  highest  cliff,  and  that  the  shallow  bank  stretching 
to  the  south  represents  the  original  extension  of  the 
island. 

As  far  as  can  be  judged  from  Mr.  Tufnell's  sketch  from 
the  north-west  and  that  of  the  Egeria  from  the  south- 
south-east,  considerable  changes  have  taken  place  in  two 
years,  the  different  summits  shown  in  the  former  having 
disappeared  as  the  sea  has  eaten  away  the  cliffs. 

The  flat  to  the  north  seems  to  be  partly  due  to  redis- 
tribution under  the  lee  of  the  island  of  the  material 
removed  from  the  southern  face.  It  is  crossed  by  curved 
ridges  from  3  to  12  feet  high,  which  Commander  Oldham 
considers  to  have  been  formed  as  high  beaches  during 
spring  tides  and  strong  winds,  the  flat  ground  between 
them,  almost  at  the  level  of  the  water,  being  deposited 
under  normal  conditions  of  weather. 

The  island  is  thus  gaining  on  one  side,  while  losing  on 
the  other,  but  when  the  high  part  has  gone,  this  partial 
recovery  will  probably  cease. 

A  little  steam  issuing  from  cracks  in  the  southern  cliffs 
was  the  sole  sign  of  activity,  but  a  pool  of  water  at  a 
temperature  of  from  91°  to  113°  F.,  water  which  rose  in  a 
hole  dug  in  the  flat  of  a  temperature  of  128°  F.,  and  a 
temperature  of  100°  F.  in  a  hole  dug  half-way  up  the  slope, 
also  show  that  the  island  still  retains  heat  near  the  sur- 
face. The  water  is  sea-water  that  has  filtered  through  the 
loose  ashes,  and  it  rose  and  fell  with  the  tide. 

It  appears  by  the  condition  of  the  flat  that  the  island 
has  neither  risen  nor  subsided  during  the  past  two  or 
three  years. 

It  will  be  interesting  to  watch  the  ultimate  fate  of  this 
last  addition  to  the  Pacific  isles,  but  it  seems  probable 
that  its  existence  as  an  island  will  be  short  unless  a  hard 
core  is  yet  revealed. 

The  soundings  between  Falcon  Island  and  Namuka 
show  that  they  are  separated  by  a  valley  6000  feet  deep. 

Metis  Island,  73  miles  north-north-east  of  Falcon 
Island,  is  another  volcanic  cone  that  appeared  a  few 
years  before  the  latter,  but  has  not  yet  been  examined. 

W.  J.  L.  Wharton. 


WEATHER  FORECASTING. 

■pOPULAR  interest  in  weather  prediction  shows  no 
-^  sign  of  abating.  The  January  number  of  the  Kew 
Bulletin  is  devoted  to  an  account  of  Herr  Nowack's  so- 
called  "weather  plant,"  and  its  failure  as  an  indicator 
either  of  coming  weather  or  of  earthquakes.  Very 
recently  a  lively  correspondence  has  been  carried  on  in 
the  daily  press  on  the  merits  or  demerits  of  the  forecasts 
issued  by  the  Meteorological  Office.  Accordingly,  some 
remarks  on  the  subject  in  the  columns  of  Nature  may 
not  be  out  of  place. 

One  critic  says  that  the  forecasts  are  little  better  than 
haphazard  guesses,  and  that  the  money  devoted  to  them 
would  be  better  spent  on  an  additional  lifeboat  or  two 
on  the  coast.  Another  says  the  forecasts  are  not  worth 
the  paper  they  are  printed  on,  and  wishes  that  the  Office 
published  in  the  newspapers  fuller  accounts  of  the  weather 
reported  from  the  coasts. 

The  fact  is  that  the  Office  is  compelled  by  public 
opinion  to  issue  forecasts.  The  public  will  have  its 
forecasts,  as  in  1867  it  would  have  its  storm-warnings, 
notwithstanding  the  reluctance  of  meteorologists  to  issue 
either  the  one  twenty  years  ago  or  the  other  at  present. 
It  can  hardly  be  doubted  that,  for  these  islands  at  least, 
conscientious  meteorologists  would  be  disposed  to  agree 
with  Arago,  who  said  in  1846,  and  printed  it  in  italics 
in  the  Annuaire  du  Bureau  des  Longitudes:  "Jamais, 
quels  que  puissent  etre  les  progres  des  sciences,  les 
savants  de  bonne  foi  et  soucieux  de  leur  reputation  ne  se 
hasarderont  k  prddire  le  temps."      We  are,  of  course, 


speaking  of  forecasts  based  on  telegraphic  reports,  and 
emanating  from  a  central  office.  In  every  country,  with- 
out exception,  where  forecasts  for  distant  counties  or 
provinces  are  issued  from  headquarters,  the  complaints 
from  outlying  stations,  of  occasional  failure,  are  frequent 
enough. 

The  fact  is  that  at  individual  stations  the  percentage 
of  success  may  be  highly  satisfactory,  as  at  Mr.  C.  E. 
Peek's  observatory  at  Rousdon,  Lyme  Regis.  The 
results  for  this  point  appeared  in  the  Times  of  January 
14,  and  are  as  follows : — 

00           o  ^               3  45              67 

1884  ...  587  ...  690  ...  20"0  ...  ii'o  ...  73*4  ...  i6*9  ...  9*7 

1885  ..,  7o'o  ...  8o'o  ...  i2*o  ...  8*o  ...  8o'o  ...  12*0  ...  8'o 

1886  ...  73'o  ...  800  ...  ii-o  ...  9-0  ...  85-0  ...     8*o  ...  70 

1887  ...  75-0  ...  83-0  ...     9-0  ...  8-0  ...  82-0  ...  ii-o  ...  7*o 

1888  ...  8i*o  ...  89-0  ...     5-0  ...  6'o  ...  89*0  ...     7'o  ...  4"o 

In  this,  Col.  I  is  percentage  of  reliable  wind  and  weather. 

Col.  2  ,,  ,,         wind  only. 

Col.  3  ,,  wind  doubtful. 

Col.  4  ,,  wind  unreliable. 

Col.  5  ,,  reliable  weather. 

Col.  6  ,,  weather  doubtful. 

Col.  7  ,,  ,,       unreliable. 

On  the  other  hand,  at  other  points  the  forecasts  may 
be  frequently  unsuccessful. 

In  one  important  particular  not  only  our  own  Office, 
but  all  other  Offices  in  Europe,  signally  fail,  and  that  is 
the  quantitative  prediction  of  rain.  No  one  is  able,  ap- 
parently, to  predict  whether  the  amount  of  rainfall  on 
the  morrow  will  be  a  tenth  of  an  inch  or  a  couple  of 
inches.  No  sudden  floods  have  ever  yet  been  foretold. 
By  this  we  are  not  speaking  of  predicting  the  approach 
of  floods  to  the  lower  valleys  from  rain  which  has  already 
fallen  on  the  upper  reaches  of  a  river,  for  that  is  not 
meteorological  prediction  at  all. 

With  the  necessarily  incomplete  character  of  the  in- 
formation reaching  head-quarters,  the  wonder  is  that  the 
Office  can  attain  such  success  as  it  does.  The  main 
deficiency  in  the  information  is  in  its  quantity,  and  this 
seems  to  lie  at  the  door  of  the  Postal  Telegraph  Office,, 
which  insists  on  being  paid  for  its  telegrams.  If  meteoro- 
logical messages  were  transmitted  gratis,  we  might  expect 
to  hear  at  frequent  intervals  from  our  outposts,  instead 
of  twice,  or,  at  most,  thrice  in  the  twenty-four  hours  :  in 
fact,  from  several  stations  we  can  only  hear  once,  the 
cost  of  more  telegrams  being  prohibitive.  It  is  self- 
evident  that  such  an  amount  of  information  is  quite  in- 
sufficient. The  weather  will  not  abstain  from  changing 
because  the  hour  for  a  telegraphic  report  has  not  arrived. 

The  information  contained  in  the  telegrams  is  also 
deficient  in  quantity,  for  the  reporters  cannot,  within  the 
prescribed  form  of  their  messages,  communicate  all  the 
impressions  which  the  ever- varying  appearance  of  the 
sky  may  have  conveyed  to  their  minds.  A  skilled  cloud 
observer,  who  has  leisure  to  practise  his  powers,  is  often 
able  to  form  a  very  correct  idea  of  what  is  coming  for 
the  region  bounded  by  his  own  horizon,  but  he  is  quite 
unable  to  give  the  benefit  of  his  observations  and  experi- 
ence to  a  friend  in  another  county  by  telegraphing  the 
information. 

The  greatest  want  which  the  Office  finds  in  its  observers 
is  skill  in  cloud  observation,  and  it  appears  to  be  the  case 
that  a  cloud  observer  nascitur  non  Jit,  and  that  it  is  next 
to  impossible  to  teach  the  art  to  a  new  hand,  at  least  by 
correspondence. 

Instrumental  records  of  the  phenomena  taking  place  in 
the  higher  strata  of  the  atmosphere  are  of  course  unat- 
tainable, and  it  is  only  by  carefully  watching  the  upper 
clouds  that  we  can  gain  any  notion  of  changes  taking 
place  up  there,  but,  by  means  of  such  watching,  Mr, 
Clement  Ley  is  able  to  predict  with  nearly  perfect 
certainty  the  weather  for  the  Midlands— his  own  neigh- 
bourhood. 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


279 


It  must  always  be  remembered  that  the  forecasts  are 
drawn  for  districts,  not  for  individual  stations  ;  and  disre- 
garding the  amount  of  correctness  claimed  by  the  Office 
by  its  own  checking  of  its  work,  they  attain  a  very  credit- 
able amount  of  success  when  tested  by  independent 
observers.  This  happens  even  in  the  summer-time,  the 
very  season  at  which  a  recent  critic  said  that  the  forecasts 
for  one  month,  if  shuffled  about,  and  drawn  at  random 
from  a  bag,  would  suit  just  as  well  for  the  next !  This  is 
proved  by  the  results  of  the  hay  harvest  forecasts,  which 
are  deduced  from  the  reports  of  the  recipients,  practical 
agriculturists. 

The  following  is  the  table  for  the  season  of  1888,  the 
latest  for  which  the  figures  are  available  : — 


Names  of  stations. 

Percentages. 

Districts. 

Is 

S  0 

c3S 

IS 

.2  si 

Scotland,  N 

E 

England,  N.E.    ... 

E 

Midland  Counties.. 

EngUnd,  S 

Scotland,  W 

England,  N.W.  ... 

S.W.   ... 

Ireland,  N 

„      S 

Golspie  and  Munlochy 

North  Berwick,  Glamis,  Aberfeldy, 

and  Rothiemay     

Chatton  and  Ulceby       

Thorpe  and  Rothamsted        

Cirencester  and  East  Retford 
Horsham,  Maidstone,  and  Downton 
Dumbarton,  Islay,  and  Stranraer 

Leyburn  and  Prescot      

Bridgend    (Glamorgan),      Clifton, 

Glastonbury   and    Spring    Park 

(Gloucestershire) 

Moynalty  and  Hollymount   

Moneygall,      Kilkenny,       Ardfert 

Abbey     

48 

43 
50 
48 

S3 

52 

45 
57 

46 
43 

53 

34 

41 
27 
39 
32 
40 
41 
24 

36 
38 

31 

17 

n 
17 
10 

9 
6 
8 
II 

13 
14 

10 

I 
5 

6 

2 

6 
8 

5 
S 

6 

Every  year  the  Office  hears  of  farmers  expressing  their 
interest  in  these  announcements,  and  sending  daily  to 
the  places  where  they  are  exhibited,  to  learn  what  they 
contain. 

To  give  an  idea  of  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  accurate 
opinions  from  outsiders  as  to  the  value  of  storm-warnings, 
which  are  a  class  of  forecasts,  it  may  be  interesting  to 
give  some  specimens  of  reports. 

Inquiries  were  made  in  1882,  from  all  the  stations  where 
signals  are  hoisted,  as  to  their  correctness  and  general 
utility.  From  Tynemouth  the  answer  was  that  "  these 
signals  have  been,  and  will  be,  an  inestimable  boon  to  our 
seafaring  population."  From  South  Shields,  just  opposite 
Tynemouth,  the  reply  to  a  recent  official  inquiry  was 
that  "  the  warnings  were  not  a  ha'porth  of  use,  and  that 
no  one  minded  them."  Each  answer  merely  represented 
the  private  opinion  of  the  person  who  uttered  it. 

The  reader  can  see  that  there  is  some  difficulty  in 
picking  out  the  actual  truth  from  such  a  heap  of  incon- 
gruous statements  as  the  foregoing  are  certain  to  furnish. 

R.  H.  S. 


THE  LABORA  TORIES  OF  BEDFORD 
COLLEGE. 

jDEDFORD  COLLEGE,  in  York  Place,  Baker  Street, 
'*-'  which  was  one  of  the  earliest  institutions  devoted  to 
the  higher  education  of  women,  is  taking  a  leading  part 
in  providing  facilities  for  their  instruction  in  science. 
Founded  long  before  Oxford  and  Cambridge  con- 
descended to  the  "  weaker  sex  "  (which  has  since  proved 
strong  enough  to  attain  to  the  highest  place  in  the 
Classical  Tripos),  it  is  the  result  of  the  work  of  en- 
thusiasts who  would  not  admit  the  possibility  of  defeat. 
It  has  had  to  struggle  not  only  against  the  inevitable 
difficulties  due  to  its  early  foundation,  but  against  the 
apathy  of  London.  Provincial  towns  feel  that  their 
honour  is  involved  in  the  success  of  their  institutions. 
The  Colleges  for  women  at  Oxford  and  Cambridge  share 


in  the  picturesque  surroundings  of  those  old  homes  of 
learning.  They  attract  attention  and  interest  by  their 
situation  amid  scenes  and  traditions  of  which  the  whole 
English-speaking  race  is  proud.  Bedford  College  has 
had  no  such  advantages.  London  institutions  are  re- 
garded as  either  Imperial  or  parochial — as  too  large  or  too 
small  to  interest  its  citizens  as  such.  Bedford  Square 
compares  unfavourably  with  the  "  backs,"  and  it  is  im- 
possible to  regard  York  Place  with  that  gush  of  emotion 
which  "  the  High  "  sets  free.  Thus  it  is  that,  although 
Bedford  College  has  been  at  work  since  1849,  and  though 
one  in  every  four  of  the  whole  number  of  women  who 
have  gained  degrees  of  the  University  of  London  has 
been  a  student  in  its  classes,  the  work  of  the  College  does 
not  yet  receive  the  meed  of  public  appreciation  which  it 
has  fairly  earned.  Bedford  College  is  for  women  what 
University  and  King's  Colleges  are  for  men.  It  provides, 
within  easy  reach  of  all  Londoners,  an  education  which  is 
tested  by  the  severe  standard  of  the  University  of 
London,  and  bears  the  hall-mark  of  success.  One-third 
of  its  students  are  aiming  at  degrees,  and  their  presence 
in  the  class-rooms,  their  work  in  the  examination-hall, 
guarantees  the  quality  of  the  teaching  they  receive  to 
class-mates  who  do  not  intend  to  face  the  same 
ordeal.  Science  has  for  long  been  taught  in  Bedford 
College,  but  there  has  been  a  pressing  need  for  better 
laboratories  and  class-rooms.  These  the  Council  has 
now  provided.  A  new  wing  has  been  built,  dedicated  to 
the  memory  of  the  late  Mr.  William  Shaen,  who  worked 
long  and  devotedly  for  the  College.  About  ^2000  is 
required  to  complete  and  fit  up  this  building  free  of  all 
debt,  and  Mr.  Henry  Tate,  who  had  already  given  ^1000 
to  the  fund,  has  promised  to  supplement  it  by  a  like 
amount  if  the  Council  on  its  part  can  raise  the  other 
moiety  of  the  deficit.  It  is  too  probable  that  this  sum 
will  only  be  obtained  by  an  exhausting  effort,  but  surely 
it  is  not  too  much  to  hope  that  the  public  may  at  last 
appreciate  the  importance  of  promoting  the  higher  educa- 
tion of  women  in  London.  In  a  northern  manufacturing 
town  the  money  would  be  forthcoming  in  a  week. 

As  regards  the  laboratories,  it  may  be  sufficient  to  say 
that  Dr.  W.  Russell,  F.R.S.,  is  the  Chairman  of  the 
Council,  and  that  they  have  been  built  under  his  general 
supervision.  They  appear  to  be  in  all  respects  suited  to 
the  purposes  for  which  they  are  intended.  The  physical 
laboratory  and  lecture-room  are  on  the  ground  floor.  The 
former  has  a  concrete  floor,  and  is  well  lighted,  partly  by 
windows,  partly  by  a  skylight.  It  looks  out  upon  East 
Street,  and  is  therefore  removed  as  far  as  possible  from 
the  effects  of  the  heavy  traffic  in  Baker  Street.  The 
chemical  laboratory  is  at  the  top  of  the  house,  and  opens 
into  a  class-room  which  is  fitted  with  all  the  usual 
conveniences  for  experimental  illustration. 

It  is  surely  a  hopeful  sign  that  a  College  for  the  higher 
education  of  women  should  now  be  regarded  as  incom- 
plete unless  it  controls  physical  and  chemical  laboratories 
specially  designed  and  fitted  for  the  delivery  of  lectures 
and  the  performance  of  experiments.  These  Bedford 
College  now  possesses.  We  can  only  hope  that  it  may 
soon  possess  them  free  of  debt.  The  Editor  of  Nature 
will  be  happy  to  receive  and  forward  to  the  College 
authorities  any  subscriptions  which  may  be  sent  to  him 
for  that  purpose. 


STEPHEN  JOSEPH  PERRY,  F.R.S. 

/^N  the  evening  of  January  4  a  telegram  from  Demerara 
^^  announced  that  there  had  been  a  successful  ob- 
servation of  the  eclipse  of  December  22,  and  that  Father 
Perry  had  succumbed  to  dysentery. 

Stephen  Joseph  Perry  was  bom  in  London  on  August 
26,  1833,  and  received  his  early  education  at  Gifford  Hall 
School.    Having  decided  to  enter  the  priesthood,  he  went 


28o 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


to  the  Catholic  Colleges  at  Douai  and  Rome.  "While  at 
Rome,  he  resolved  to  enter  the  Order  of  Jesuits  ;  and, 
returning  to  England,  he  joined  the  Enghsh  province  of  the 
Order  on  November  12,  1853.  After  two  years' noviciate, 
he  went  to  France  for  one  year.  He  then  returned  to 
Stonyhurst  for  a  course  in  philosophy.  His  inclination 
to  mathematics  was  soon  apparent,  and  his  superiors  in 
the  Order  decided  to  train  him  specially  for  this  line  of 
work.  In  1858  he  occupied  the  6th  place  on  the  Mathe- 
matical Honours  list  of  the  London  University.  After 
attending  lectures  by  De  Morgan,  he  went  to  Paris  for  a 
year  to  finish  his  mathematical  studies.  On  returning  to 
Stonyhurst,  he  was  appointed  Professor  of  Mathematics 
and  Director  of  the  Observatory,  succeeding  Father 
Weld,  who  had  for  many  years  occupied  the  position. 
During  the  College  year  1862-63,  Father  Perry  taught 
one  of  the  classes  at  Stonyhurst.  In  September  1863  he 
went  to  study  divinity  at  St.  Bueno's  College,  North 
Wales,  and  in  1866  he  was  ordained  priest.  Two  years 
later  he  returned  to  Stonyhurst  to  resume  his  professor- 
ship and  the  charge  of  the  Observatory.  From  this  time 
he  never  left  the  College  save  to  take  part  in  some 
scientific  expedition. 

The  work  at  Stonyhurst  Observatory  had  been  chiefly 
meteorological  and  magnetic  before  Father  Perry's  as- 
sumption of  the  directorship.  In  1866  it  was  selected  as 
one  of  the  first-class  meteorological  stations.  In  1867  the 
astronomical  department  of  the  Observatory  was  placed 
in  a  much  more  satisfactory  position  by  the  acquisition  of 
an  equatorial  which  originally  belonged  to  Mr.  Peters, 
and  a  small  instrument  destined  for  spectroscopic  work. 
The  first  of  these  instruments  was  an  8-inch  by  Troughton 
and  Simms,  the  second  a  2|-inch.  The  first  spectroscope 
was  procured  in  1870  from  Mr.  Browning,  and  was  used 
for  prehminary  work  on  star  spectra,  pending  the  con- 
struction of  a  larger  instrument  ordered  from  Troughton 
and  Simms.  In  1874  a  large  direct-vision  spectroscope 
was  ordered  from  Browning  for  use  in  observing  the 
transit  of  Venus.  Two  years  later  a  Maclean  spectroscope 
was  added,  and  in  1879  another  by  Browning  containing 
6  prisms  of  60°  ;  and  more  recently  a  Christie  half-prism 
by  Hilger. 

With  these  instruments  Father  Perry  has  carried  out 
systematic  work  of  the  highest  class,  his  aim  being  to 
make  Stonyhurst  as  efficient  an  observatory  for  solar 
physics  as  the  means  at  his  disposal  would  admit.  His 
first  communication  to  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society 
indicates  the  policy  he  pursued — to  undertake  no  work 
which  was  a  mere  duplication  of  that  done  at  other  places. 
His  solar  work  during  the  last  ten  years  formed  the  sub- 
ject of  a  lecture  at  the  Royal  Institution  on  May  24.  It 
may  be  divided  into  two  classes — drawings  and  spectro- 
scopic observations.  For  the  drawings  an  image  of  the 
sun  lol  inches  in  diameter  was  projected  on  a  sheet  of 
drawing-paper  affixed  to  a  sketch-board  carried  by  the 
telescope,  and  all  markings  on  the  sun  traced.  The 
drawing  finished,  the  chromosphere  and  prominences 
were  examined  with  the  spectroscope.  About  250  draw- 
ings were  made  every  year  from  1880.  The  results  of 
the  observations  were  published  annually  in  a  neat  little 
volume,  and  also  in  various  publications. 

In  addition  to  this  work,  regular  observations  of 
Jupiter's  satellites,  comets,  &c.,  were  made,  as  also 
spectroscopic  observations  of  comets,  stars,  &c. 

Father  Perry's  labours  were  not  confined  to  the  Ob- 
servatory alone,  and  in  fact  the  extraneous  work  which 
he  undertook  gave  the  world  the  best  opportunities  for 
studying  his  high  character,  and  impressed  astronomers 
with  a  sense  of  his  great  devotion  to  their  science.  The 
first  occasion  on  which  he  left  the  Observatory  for 
scientific  work  was  in  the  autumn  of  1868,  when,  accom- 
panied by  Father  Sidgreaves,  he  made  a  magnetic  survey 
of  the  west  of  France.  In  the  following  year  the  vacation 
was  spent  in  a  like  work  for  the  east  of  that  country.     In 


1 87 1,  assisted  by  Mr,  Carlisle,  he  made  a  similar  survey 
of  Belgium. 

In  1870,  Father  Perry  took  part,  for  the  first  time,  in  an 
eclipse  expedition,  being  stationed  near  Cadiz,  whither  he 
had  taken  the  two  spectroscopes  acquired  by  the  Observa- 
tory in  1870,  and  two  telescopes — a  Cassegrain  of  9I; 
inches  and  a  4-inch  achromatic.  In  1874  he  volunteered 
for  the  Transit  of  Venus  expeditions,  and  was  selected  by 
Sir  George  Airy  as  chief  of  the  Kerguelen  party.  Much 
tact  and  energy  were  required  for  the  success  of  his 
party,  who  encountered  several  obstacles  before  arriving 
at  the  "  Island  of  Desolation,"  as  he  termed  Kerguelen. 
The  spirit  in  which  these  obstacles  were  met  is  shown  by 
his  words — "  We  were  determined  that  no  consideration 
should  make  us  flinch  where  the  astronomical  interests 
of  the  expedition  were  at  stake."  That  this  was  no  vain 
boast  is  proved  by  the  evidence  of  those  who  were  his 
colleagues  in  any  excursions  by  water.  His  sufierings 
from  sea-sickness  were  so  fearful  that  everyone  wondered 
that  he  cared  to  venture  on  even  the  most  promising  trip  ; 
aad  that  he  should  have  undertaken  the  terrible  voyage 
to  Kerguelen  speaks  volumes  for  his  enthusiasm  for 
science.  "  Four  days  and  nights  the  mighty  waves  had 
been  washing  over  the  VolageP  His  patience  in  suffering 
on  this  and  other  occasions  helped  to  win  for  him  the 
esteem  of  the  officers  with  whom  he  came  in  contact. 
Not  one  word  of  his  discomfort  is  to  be  found  in  any  of 
the  journals  kept  by  him.  In  addition  to  the  work  of  the 
expedition,  he  took  magnetic  observations  at  the  Cape,^ 
Kerguelen,  Bombay,  Aden,  Port  Said,  Malta,  Palermo, 
Rome.  Naples,  Florence,  and  Moncalieri,  and  lectured  on 
the  Transit  of  Venus  at  the  Cape  and  Bombay,  and,  on 
his  return,  at  the  Royal  Institution. 

In  1882  he  went  to  Madagascar  for  the  Transit  of 
Venus.  For  the  eclipse  of  August  29,  1886,  he  went  ta 
Carriacou,  for  that  of  August  19,  1887,  to  Russia  ;  and 
last  November  he  sailed  for  Salut  Isles  on  his  final  expe- 
dition. It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  the  Archbishop  of 
Demerara,  who  had  been  a  pupil  of  his,  went  to  Barba- 
does  in  1886  to  see  his  old  master  ;  and  on  the  present 
occasion  the  body  of  the  master  was  taken  to  Demerara. 

When  at  Stonyhurst,  Father  Perry,  in  addition  to  his 
Observatory  work,  carried  out  to  the  fullest  extent  his 
duties  as  a  professor.  He  was  very  popular  as  a  lecturer  ; 
and  at  Liverpool,  Wigan,  and  neighbouring  towns,  he 
often  delighted  audiences,  some  of  which  numbered  more 
than  3000  people.  Father  Perry  but  rarely  occupied  the 
pulpit  of  recent  years,  but  he  was  much  admired  as  a 
preacher.  His  sermons  were  marked  by  the  earnestness 
which  formed  so  distinguished  a  feature  of  his  character. 

To  those  who  came  in  contact  with  him  in  connection 
with  his  scientific  work,  he  endeared  himself  by  his  genial 
and  retiring  manner,  retiring  on  all  occasions  save  when 
some  sacrifice  was  demanded  for  the  science  he  loved  so 
well,  and  for  which  he  laid  down  his  life  on  December  27. 

In  1874,  Father  Perry  was  elected  a  Fellow  of  the  Royal 
Society,  and  very  shortly  before  his  last  voyage  he  was 
placed  on  its  Council.  He  was  a  Fellow  and  Member  of 
Council  of  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  and  a  Fellow 
of  the  Royal  Meteorological  Society,  the  Physical  Society 
of  London,  and  the  Liverpool  Astronomical  Society.  Of 
the  last-named  Society  he  was  President  at  the  time  of 
his  death.  In  1886  he  received  the  honorary  degree  of 
D.Sc.  from  the  Royal  University  of  Ireland,  and  at 
various  dates  he  was  elected  by  the  Accademia  dei  Nuovo 
Lincei,  the  Societe  Scientifique  de  Bruxelles,  and  the 
Soci^t^  Ge'ographique  d'Anvers.  For  several  years  pre- 
ceding his  death,  he  served  on  the  Committee  of  Solar 
Physics,  appointed  by  the  Lords  of  the  Committee  of 
Council  on  Education,  and  also  on  the  Committee  for  Com- 
paring and  Reducing  Magnetic  Observations,  appointed 
by  the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science. 
In  April  1887  he  took  part  in  the  International  Astro- 
photography  Congress  held  at  Paris. 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


281 


MR.  DANIEL  ADAMSON. 

A  S  a  mechanical  engineer  and  a  metallurgist,  Mr. 
-^~*-  Daniel  Adamson  must  always  maintain  a  foremost 
place,  for  he  was  in  the  van  in  the  industrial  progress  of 
the  century.  He  was  born  at  Shildon,  in  the  county  of 
Durham,  in  1818,  and  apprenticed  to  Mr.  T.  Hackworth, 
locomotive  superintendent  of  the  Stockton  and  Darling- 
ton Railway,  with  whom  he  remained  from  1835  to  1841. 
He  then  held  various  stations  in  the  same  railway  until 
1850,  and  in  1851  he  began  business  on  his  own  account 
as  an  iron-founder,  engineer,  and  boiler-maker. 

From  this  time  forward  until  quite  recently  Mr.  Adam- 
son  has  brought  out  many  highly  successful  inventions 
in  connection  with  the  manufacture  of  boilers  and  the 
application  of  steam.  The  first  of  these  was  a  flange 
seam  for  high-pressure  boilers,  patented  by  him  in  1852, 
and  well  known  as  Adamson's  flange  seam.  In  1856, 
Mr.,  now  Sir  Henry,  Bessemer,  read  a  paper  before  the 
British  Association  at  Cheltenham  describing  his  steel 
process,  and  one  of  the  first  to  apply  it  was  Mr.  Adamson. 
Having  satisfied  himself  by  experimental  trials  of  the 
quality  of  steel,  he  determined  to  use  it  for  the  manu- 
facture of  boilers ;  and  Sir  Henry  Bessemer,  when 
on  May  9,  1888,  he  presented  the  Bessemer  Medal  to 
Mr.  Adamson  on  behalf  of  the  Council  of  the  Iron  and 
Steel  Institute,  referred  with  satisfaction  to  this  circum- 
stance, as  being  the  turning-point  in  his  own  career,  and 
as  having  given  a  start  to  the  use  of  steel  for  general 
engineering  purposes.  Later  on,  when  open-hearth  steel 
was  introduced  by  the  late  Sir  William  Siemens,  Mr. 
Adamson  made  trial  of  it  for  boiler  use,  and  was  for 
years  an  upholdei  of  the  merits  of  steel.  He  wrote  a 
comprehensive  paper  "  On  the  Mechanical  and  other 
Properties  of  Iron  and  Mild  Steel,"  which  was  brought 
before  the  Paris  meeting  of  the  Iron  and  Steel  Institute 
in  1878,  when  it  gave  rise  to  a  most  interesting  discus- 
sion. This  paper  is  looked  upon  as  a  standard  one  on  the 
subject  of  steel. 

Mr.  Adamson's  inventions  appear  to  have  been  all 
intimately  connected  with  his  business.  In  1858  he 
applied  hydraulic  power  for  the  riveting  of  steel  structures, 
and  in  1862  he  brought  out  an  invention  for  building 
steam  boilers,  the  rivet  holes  being  drilled  through  the 
plates  when  these  were  in  position.  He  was  entirely 
opposed  to  the  punching  of  steel  plates ;  he  de- 
scribed it  as  a  barbarous  mode  of  treatment,  as  it 
tore  the  fibre  of  the  material ;  and  he  would  never  allow 
it  to  be  used  in  his  own  works.  The  important  feature  in 
all  Mr.  Adamson's  work  was  its  thoroughness  ;  all  the 
material  used  was  subjected  to  chemical  and  mechanical 
tests,  so  that  he  obtained  a  reputation  throughout  the 
world  for  the  soundness  of  everything  he  turned  out. 

Mr.  Adamson  was  one  of  the  first  to  show  the  superi- 
ority of  compound  engines.  This  class  of  engine  had 
already  been  introduced  by  Mr.  John  Elder,  of  Glasgow, 
but  to  Mr.  Adamson  is  greatly  due  the  credit  of  the  em- 
ployment of  triple  and  quadruple  expansion  engines.  In 
i874he  read  a  paper  at  Manchester,  in  which  he  maintained 
that  pressures  of  150  pounds  on  the  square  inch  could  be 
as  safely  applied  as  pressures  of  50  pounds  by  a  careful 
extension  of  the  compound  system.  As  far  back  as  1861 
he  patented  and  brought  out  a  triple-expansion  engine, 
and  in  1873  a  quadruple  engine.  In  the  paper  to  which 
we  have  just  referred  Mr.  Adamson  gave  expression  to 
the  opinion  that  the  consumption  of  coal  per  horse-power 
per  hour  should  not  exceed  from  I  to  li  pounds  of  coal, 
whilst  at  that  time  2|  pounds  per  horse-power  per  hour 
was  considered  a  very  good  result. 

Besides  these  inventions,  Mr.  Adamson  took  out  patents 
in  connection  with  the  manufacture  of  steel  by  the 
Bessemer  process,  with  machinery  for  compressing  steel, 
and  for  testing  machines,  as  also  improvements  in  guns 
and  armour. 


No  account  of  his  work  would  be  complete  without  a 
reference  to  his  connection  with  the  Manchester  Ship 
Canal.  He  was  of  an  enthusiastic  temperament,  and  this 
was  made  specially  evident  in  connection  with  this  great 
undertaking.  A  Manchester  man,  and  thoroughly  con- 
vinced of  the  benefit  which  would  accrue  to  the  sur- 
rounding manufacturing  towns,  Mr.  Adamson  set  to 
work  to  effect  what  others  had  proposed.  It  is  more  than 
65  years  ago  since  it  was  proposed  that  Manchester 
should  be  connected  with  the  sea  by  a  ship  canal,  but  it 
was  Mr.  Adamson's  invitation  to  various  persons  to  meet 
at  his  house  on  June  27,  1882,  that  really  started  the 
project.  The  proceedings  then  initiated  resulted  in  the 
incorporation  of  the  Manchester  Ship  Canal  Company  in 
1885.  Mr.  Adamson's  work  in  connection  with  inter- 
national progress,  and  his  labours  to  make  Manchester  an 
ocean  steam  port,  will  not  readily  be  forgotten. 

In  September  and  October  last  he  was  engaged  on  an 
examination  of  the  iron  mines  of  the  inland  of  Elba,  and 
he  embodied  the  results  in  a  report  to  the  Italian  Govern- 
ment. About  two  months  ago  he  caught  a  cold  on  his 
Flintshire  estate  of  Wepre  Hall.  He  returned  to  his 
home  at  Didsbury,  and  died  there  on  Monday,  the 
13th   inst. 

Quite  recently  Mr.  Adamson  was  elected  President 
of  the  Iron  and  Steel  Institute.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  of  the  Institution 
of  Mechanical  Engineers,  and  of  the  Iron  and  Steel  In- 
stitute, and  to  the  proceedings  of  these  Societies  he 
presented  many  papers  containing  the  results  of  his 
inquiries  as  to  the  properties  and  treatment  of  metals,, 
especially  iron  and  steel. 


NOTES. 

At  a  meeting  of  a  Committee  appointed  by  the  Council  of  the 
Royal  Society  to  set  on  foot  a  memorial  to  the  late  James  Pres- 
cott  Joule,  held  on  November  30  last,  at  Burlington  House,  it 
was  unanimously  resolved  that  a  fund  should  be  raised  for  a 
memorial  of  an  international  character  commemorative  of  the 
life-work  of  Joule.  This  memorial  will  have  for  its  object  the 
encouragement  of  research  in  physical  science.  It  is  proposed 
also  that  a  tablet  or  bust  shall  be  erected  to  his  memory  in 
London,  a  Manchester  Memorial  Committee  having  already 
taken  steps  to  ensure  a  suitable  monument  in  his  native  city.. 
Joule's  discoveries  were  of  such  commanding  importance  that 
there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  success  of  this  movement.  The 
Committee  feel  coniident  not  only  that  men  of  science  will  gladly 
contribute  towards  a  fund  to  do  honour  to  Joule's  memory,  and 
to  assist  others  to  follow  in  his  footsteps,  but  that  those  who 
devote  themselves  to  the  practical  application  of  scientific 
principles  will  also  be  anxious  to  aid  in  the  promotion  of  a 
fitting  memorial  of  one  whose  work  has  exerted  so  great  aa 
influence  on  industry. 

We  regret  to  announce  the  death  of  Gustave-Adolphe  Hirn,, 
the  eminent  physicist.  He  died  at  Colmar  on  January  14,  ia 
his  seventy-fifth  year. 

Mr.  Roonev,  who  accompanied  the  late  Father  Perry  on  the 
solar  eclipse  expedition  to  the  Salut  Isles,  has  arrived  in  England,, 
bringing  with  him  the  plates  successfully  exposed  during  the 
totality  of  the  eclipse  by  Father  Perry  and  himself.  Mr. 
Rooney  has  put  himself  in  communication  with  the  Astronomer 
Royal,  and  the  plates  will  be  handed  over  to  the  Royal  Astro- 
nomical Society  to  be  developed. 

The  Forth  Bridge  was  tested  by  the  engineers  on  Tuesday  as 
a  preliminary  to  the  passage  of  the  first  train  over  it  on  Friday. 
The  following  is  the  official  report : — "  Sir  John  Fowler  and  Mr.. 


282 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


Baker,  engineers  of  the  Forth  Bridge,  have  to-day  tested  the 
two  1700-feet  spans  by  placing  on  the  centres  two  trains,  each 
made  up  of  50  loaded  coal  waggons  and  three  of  the  heaviest 
engines  and  tenders,  the  total  load  thus  massed  upon  the  spans 
being  the  enormous  weight  of  1800  tons,  which  is  more  than 
double  what  the  bridge  will  ever  be  called  upon  in  practice  to 
sustain.  The  observed  deflections  were  in  exact  accordance 
with  the  calculations  of  the  engineers,  and  the  bridge  exhibited 
exceptional  stiffness  in  all  directions. "  Every  part  of  the  bridge 
will  be  in  perfect  order  for  the  visit  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  on 
March  4. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Convocation  of  London  University,  on 
Tuesday,  there  was  some  discussion  as  to  the  question  of  the  re- 
constitution  of  the  University.  Dr.  F.  J.  Wood,  who  presided,  said 
he  was  not  in  a  position  to  help  Convocation  very  much.  As  they 
were  well  aware,  the  Senate  had  drawn  up  a  scheme  which  was 
intended  to  follow  on  the  lines  of  the  recommendations  of  the 
Royal  Commission.  That  scheme  had  been  submitted  to  the 
consideration  of  University  College  and  King's  College,  and  up 
to  now  those  Colleges  had  arrived  at  no  decision  upon  it,  but 
requested  a  conference.  That  conference  was  about  to  take 
place,  and,  of  course,  until  it  was  held  it  was  impossible  for 
any  of  them  to  say  what  shape  the  scheme  would  ultimately 
assume.  Mr.  T.  Tyler  moved  a  resolution  declaring  that  "The 
proposal  of  the  University  for  London  Commission  that,  under 
a  new  charter  for  this  University,  special  powers  and  privileges 
should  be  conferred  on  certain  institutions  in  or  near  London  is 
incompatible  with  the  fair  and  just  treatment  of  the  provincial 
Colleges,  and  that  the  acceptance  of  this  proposal  would  be 
■detrimental  alike  to  the  interests  of  the  provincial  Colleges  and 
to  those  of  the  University  itself."  This  motion  was  unanimously 
adopted. 

On  Friday,  January  24,  at  4.30  p.m.,  Mr.  Holland  Crompton 
•will  begin  a  course  of  ten  lectures  at  the  Central  Institution, 
Exhibition  Road,  on  the  theory  of  electrolysis  and  the  nature  of 
chemical  change  in  solution.  In  this  course  an  historical  account 
will  be  given  of  the  recent  development  of  the  Clausius  dissocia- 
tion hypothesis  by  Arrhenius,  Ostwald,  and  others ;  of  van't 
Hoffs  extension  of  Avogadro's  theorem  to  dilute  solutions  ; 
and  of  the  Raoult  methods  of  determining  the  molecular  weights 
of  dissolved  substances.  On  Monday,  January  27,  at  4.30  p.m.. 
Prof.  Armstrong,  F.R. S.,  will  begin  a  special  course  of  ten 
lectures  on  methods  of  analysis  as  applied  to  the  determination 
of  the  structure  of  carbon  compounds.  The  object  of  this  course 
will  be  to  explain  and  experimentally  demonstrate  the  methods 
adopted  in  determining  the  structure  of  the  more  important  and 
typical  compounds,  including  alkaloids,  carbohydrates,  and  oils 
and  fats. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  Association  for  the  Improvement 
of  Geometrical  Teaching  was  held  last  Friday  morning  in  one 
of  the  theatres  of  University  College,  London,  under  the  presi- 
dency of  Prof.  Minchin.  While  observing  with  pleasure  that 
the  Universities  of  Oxford  and  Cambridge  had  embodied  in  the 
printed  regulations  for  various  examinations  some  requests  of 
the  Association  with  regard  to  elementary  geometry,  the  Council 
•in  their  report  expressed  regret  that  the  Euclid  papers  set  for 
responsions  at  Oxford  still  consist  exclusively  of  "book  work." 
The  response  of  the  University  of  Dublin  to  the  Society's 
petition  is  that  they  are  not  prepared  to  decide  on  such  important 
questions  without  much  consideration.  At  the  afternoon  meeting 
papers  were  read  by  the  Master  of  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge, 
on  a  new  treatment  of  the  hyperbole  ;  by  Mr.  G.  Heppel,  on 
the  teaching  of  trigonometry ;  by  Mr.  E.  M.  Langley,  on  some 
geometrical  theorems  ;  by  Prof.  Minchin,  on  statics  and  geometry ; 
and  by  Mr.  R.  Tucker,  on  isoscelian  hexagrams. 


Fears  having  been  expressed  as  to  a  possible  connection 
between  influenza  and  cholera  epidemics.  Dr.  Smolenski  pub- 
lishes, in  the  Russian  Official  Messenger,  an  elaborate  report 
upon  the  subject.  He  points  out  that  the  suspicion  is  not  new, 
and  that  in  1837  it  was  discussed  by  Gluge  ("  Die  Influenza  "), 
and  refuted.  In  fact,  influenza  or  grippe  epidemics  have  been 
known  in  Europe  since  11 73 — that  is,  for  more  than  seven 
hundred  years  ;  whilst  the  first  cholera  epidemic  .appeared  in 
Europe  in  1823,  but  did  not  spread,  that  time,  further  than 
Astrakhan.  Six  years  later  it  broke  out  in  Orenburg  ;  next  year 
in  Caucasia  and  Astrakhan  again,  whence  it  spread  over  Russia, 
and,  in  1831,  reached  Western  Europe.  As  a  rule,  influenza 
spreads  very  rapidly,  and  in  1782,  at  St.  Petersburg,  no  fewer 
than  40,000  persons  fell  ill  of  it  on  the  same  day  (January  14). 
In  1833  its  progress  was  also  very  rapid,  and  within  a  few 
days  it  appeared  at  places  so  far  apart  as  Moscow,  Odessa, 
Alexandria,  and  Paris,  while  cholera  epidemics  are  usually  slow 
in  their  migrations  from  one  place  to  another.  Moreover, 
influenza  is  chiefly  a  winter  epidemic,  while  cholera  prefers  the 
spring  and  the  summer.  Dr.  Smolenski  has  further  tabulated 
all  influenza  and  cholera  epidemics  which  have  broken  out  in  the 
course  of  our  century  in  Europe,  and  he  comes  to  the  following 
results  : — Influenza  broke  out  in  1816,  in  Iceland  ;  1827,  in 
Russia  and  Siberia  ;  1830-33,  in  Europe  generally ;  1836-37, 
in  Europe  ;  1838,  in  Iceland  ;  1841-48  and  1850-51,  in  Europe  ; 
1853,  in  the  Faroe  Islands  ;  1854-55  and  1857-58,  in  Europe  ; 
1856,  in  Iceland  and  the  Faroe  Islands  ;  1862,  Holland  and 
Spain  ;  1863-64,  France  and  Switzerland ;  1866,  France  and 
Great  Britain ;  1867,  France,  Germany,  and  Belgium ;  1868, 
Turkey;  and  1874-75,  Western  Europe.  As  to  the  cholera 
epidemics  during  the  same  period  they  were  :  1823,  Astrakhan 
and  Caucasia  (from  Persia) ;  1829,  Orenburg  (from  Turkestan)  ; 
1830,  Russia  (from  Persia) ;  1831-37,  various  parts  of  Europe  ; 
the  next  epidemic  appeared  in  1846  in  Transcaucasia  (coming 
from  Persia)  ;  in  1847  it  spread  over  Siberia  and  Russia,  and  in 
1848  it  was  in  Europe  ;  in  1849-52  it  was  followed  by  feeble 
outbreaks  all  over  Europe.  The  third  cholera  epidemic  came 
from  Persia  again  in  1852,  and  it  resulted  in  a  severe  outbreak 
during  the  years  1853-55  ya.  Europe,  followed  by  feebler  out- 
breaks till  1861.  The  fourth  cholera  epidemic  came  through  the 
Mediterranean  ports  in  1865,  and  lasted  in  Europe  till  1868, 
with  feebler  epidemics  in  1869-74.  The  latest  invasion  of 
cholera  was  in  1884,  when  it  came  again  through  the  Mediter- 
ranean ports.  As  to  the  cholera  epidemic  which  now  begins  to 
die  out  in  Persia  and  Mesopotamia,  it  certainly  is  a  danger — 
the  more  so  as,  out  of  the  five  epidemics  of  cholera  which  have 
visited  Europe,  three  have  come  from  Persia. 

Attention  has  lately  been  called  to  the  fact  that  anchovies 
are  found  off  Torquay  and  other  south  coast  fishing  centres. 
Prof.  Ewart,  of  Edinburgh,  has  written  to  the  Times  that  during 
the  present  winter  they  have  made  their  appearance  in  the 
Moray  Firth.  At  the  end  of  December  they  were  abundant  off 
Troup  Head,  where  considerable  numbers  were  captured  in  the 
herring  nets  by  the  Buckie  fishermen.  Prof.  Ewart  thinks  that 
further  inquiries  may  perhaps  show  that  the  northward  migration 
of  the  anchovies  is  in  some  way  related  to  the  mildness  of  the 
winter.  He  points  out  that  it  is  most  desirable  to  ascertain 
whether  they  have  reached  the  Moray  Firth  with  the  warm 
Atlantic  water  that  during  western  winds  rushes  through  the 
Pentland  Firth,  or  by  travelling  along  the  east  coast  through  the 
cold  Arctic  water  that  wells  up  from  the  bottom  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  Dogger  Bank. 

The  programme  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  for  the 
present  year  includes  a  daffodil  exhibition  and  conference,  to  be 
held  at  Chiswick  on  four  days  of  April ;  the  great  show  in  the 
Temple  Gardens  in  May ;  an  exhibition  of  tea  roses,  by  the 
National  Rose  Society,  in  June  ;  in  July  an  exhibition  of  and 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


28- 


conferences  upon  carnations,  ferns,  and  selaginellas ;  and  in 
September,  at  Chiswick,  exhibitions  of  and  conferences  upon 
dahlias  and  grapes.  The  drill-hall  meetings  began  with  one  on 
the  subject  of  winter  gardening,  introduced  by  the  Rev.  W. 
Wilks ;  and,  after  the  annual  meeting  in  February,  there  are  to 
be  papers  and  discussions  upon  hippeastrums  (amaryllis),  salad - 
ings,  spring  flower  gardening,  spring  flowering  shrubs  and  trees, 
herbaceous  pseonies,  lilies,  fruit-drying,  hollyhocks,  crinums, 
trees  and  shrubs  for  large  towns,  and  Chinese  primulas.  The 
accommodation  at  the  drill-hall  is  not  adequate  to  the  wants  of 
the  Society,  and  the  Council  is  considering  whether  it  would 
not  be  possible  to  erect  a  suitable  building  on  the  Thames 
Embankment. 

The  International  Horticultural  Exhibition  to  be  held  in 
Berlin  under  Royal  and  Imperial  auspices,  from  April  25  to 
May  5,  will  be  characterized  by  two  special  features — an  exhibi- 
tion of  horticultural  architecture,  and  one  of  horticultural  models, 
apparatus,  &c.  It  is  requested  that  all  exhibits  or  announce- 
ments of  such  should  be  promptly  sent  to  the  General  Secretary 
of  the  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Horticulture,  Prof.  Dr.  L. 
Wittmack,  Invalidenstrasse  42,  Berlin  N.,  from  whom  all 
further  information  may  be  obtained.  The  Exhibition  will  be 
held  in  the  Royal  Agricultural  Exhibition  building,  on  the 
Lehrt  Railway.  The  general  organizer  of  the  scientific  depart- 
ment is  Prof.  Dr.  Pringsheim ;  and  the  following  gentlemen  have 
undertaken  the  management  of  special  branches:— For  the 
geography  of  plants,  Prof.  Dr.  Ascherson ;  for  physiology.  Prof. 
Dr.  Frank  ;  for  seeds,  Herr  P.  Hennings ;  for  morphology, 
anatomy,  and  the  history  of  development,  Prof.  Dr.  Kny  ;  for 
fungi.  Prof.  Dr.  Magnus ;  for  soils.  Prof.  Dr.  Orth  ;  for  history, 
literature,  and  miscellaneous.  Dr.  Schumann ;  for  officinal  and 
technical  objects.  Dr.  Tschirch.  The  Minister  for  Agriculture, 
Dr.  Freiherr  v.  Lucius-Balhausen,  will  be  the  Honorary  President 
of  the  Exhibition.  The  city  of  Berlin  has  granted  the  sum  of 
15,000  marks  towards  its  expenses  ;  and  a  guarantee  fund  of 
80,000  marks  has  been  raised. 

The  Calcutta  Herbarium  contains  a  rich  collection  of  Malayan 
plants,  and  Dr.  King,  the  superintendent  of  the  Calcutta  Royal 
Botanic  Garden,  proposes  to  publish  from  time  to  time  a  sys- 
tematic account  of  as  many  of  them  as  are  indigenous  to  British 
provinces,  or  to  provinces  under  British  influence.  In  addition 
to  the  States  on  the  mainland  of  the  Malayan  penninsula,  these 
provinces  include  the  islands  of  Singapore  and  Penang,  and  the 
Nicobar  and  Andaman  groups.  The  classification  which  Dr. 
King  intends  to  follow  is  that  of  the  late  Mr.  Bentham  and  Sir 
Joseph  Hooker.  The  current  number  of  the  Journal  of  the 
Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal  contains  the  first  of  this  proposed 
series  of  papers. 

The  January  number  of  the  Kew  Bulletin  contains  an  able 
and  most  interesting  report,  by  Dr.  Francis  Oliver,  on  the  so- 
called  weather  plant.  This  plant  is  Abrus precatorius,  Linn.,  a 
well-known  tropical  weed.  Mr.  Joseph  F.  Nowack  claims  to 
have  discovered  that  its  leaves  have  "the  peculiar  property  of 
indicating  by  their  position  various  changes  in  nature  about 
forty-eight  hours  before  the  said  changes  occur."  Numerous 
observations  with  hundreds  of  such  plants  have  convinced  him 
that  ' '  any  given  position  of  the  leaves  corresponds  always  to  a 
certain  condition  of  the  weather  forty-eight  hours  afterwards." 
Some  time  ago  he  devised  an  apparatus  for  the  purpose  of  putting 
his  supposed  discovery  to  practical  use.  It  consists  of  a  "  trans- 
parent vessel  containing  the  weather  plant,  closed  on  all  sides, 
protected  against  injurious  external  influences,  and  adapted  to  be 
internally  ventilated  and  maintained  at  a  temperature  of  at  least 
18°  Reaumur,  these  being  the  conditions  under  which,  in  temperate 
climates,  Nowack's  weather  plant  answers  the  purpose  of  a 
weather  indicator."     Last  year  Mr.  Nowack  was  anxious  that 


his  apparatus  should  be  scientifically  tested  at  Kew,  but  it  would 
not  have  been  easy  for  any  member  of  the  staif  of  the  Royal 
Gardens  to  find  time  for  the  necessary  observations.  The  task 
was  undertaken  by  Dr.  Francis  Oliver,  who  now  presents  the 
results  of  his  investigation.  The  following  is  a  summary  of  the 
conclusions  at  which  he  has  arrived  : — '*  I  contend  that  all  the 
movements  exhibited  by  the  leaves  of  Abrus  precatorius  depend 
on  causes  not  so  far  to  seek  as  those  suggested  by  Mr.  Nowack. 
The  ordinary  movements  of  the  leaflets,  of  rising  and  falling,  are 
called  forth  in  the  main  by  changes  in  the  intensity  of  the  light. 
In  a  humid  atmosphere  they  are  more  sluggish  than  in  a  relatively 
dry  one.  In  other  words,  when  the  conditions  are  favourable 
for  transpiration  the  movements  are  most  active.  The  position 
for  snow  and  hail  is  connected  intimately,  in  the  cases  that  have 
come  under  my  observation,  with  a  spotting  or  biting  (by  insects) 
of  the  leaflets,  and  is  not  due  to  any  other  external  factor.  The 
position  for  fog  and  mist,  and  for  electricity  in  the  air,  is  prob- 
ably due  to  the  disturbance  caused  by  varying  light,  the  rhythmical 
movements  of  the  leaflets  being  temporarily  overthrown.  The 
position  indicating  thunder  and  lightning  I  take  to  be  patho- 
logical from  its  tendency  to  recur  on  the  same  leaves.  Daily 
movements  of  the  rachis  constitute  a  periodic  function  in  this  as  in 
many  other  plants  with  pinnate  leaves.  The  regularity  of  these 
oscillations  is  considerably  influenced  by  both  light  and  tem- 
perature." 

On  Tuesday  an  Archseological  Congress  began  its  proceedings 
at  Moscow.  The  sitting  was  attended  by  delegates  from  German, 
Austrian,  and  French  Archaeological  Societies.  The  section  of  the 
Russian  Imperial  Historical  Museum  in  Moscow  allotted  to  the 
Moscow  Archseological  Society  was  formally  opened  on  January  8, 
by  Prince  von  Dolgoroukofi",  the  Governor- General.  The  collec- 
tion consists  of  a  variety  of  antiquities  from  the  Caucasus,  stone 
and  glass  ornaments,  beautiful  enamel  work  from  various  parts  of 
Russia,  ancient  holy  images,  and  antique  garments  and  china.  A 
correspondent  of  the  Times,  who  gives  an  account  of  the  exhibits, 
calls  attention  especially  to  a  number  of  ancient  gold  ornaments 
from  the  Caucasus  (described  as  Merovingian),  contributed  by 
the  Countess  Ouvarova,  the  President  of  the  Society.  He  also 
refers  to  certain  Osetinian  copper  pins,  18  inches  long,  found 
near  some  human  skulls,  and  supposed  to  have  been  used  for 
dressing  the  hair.  A  helmet  of  Assyrian  form  has  attracted 
much  notice. 

In  one  of  the  lectures  he  is  delivering  at  Aberdeen,  under  the 
Giffbrd  Bequest,  Dr.  E.  B.  Tylor  offered  a  most  interesting 
suggestion  the  other  day  as  to  the  meaning  of  a  well-known  but 
puzzling  Assyrian  sculptured  group.  This  group  consists  of  two 
four-winged  figures,  with  bodies  of  men  and  heads  of  eagles,, 
standing  opposite  a  tree- like  formation,  which  is  easily  recog- 
nized as  a  collection  of  date-palms,  or  a  conventionalized  re- 
presentation of  a  palm-grove.  Each  of  the  two  figures  carries 
in  the  left  hand  a  bucket  or  basket,  in  the  right  a  body  which 
each  seems  to  be  presenting  to  the  palm-tree.  What  is  this^ 
body  ?  It  is  usually  described  as  a  fir-cone,  but  some  have  re- 
garded it  as  a  bunch  of  grapes,  others  as  a  pine-apple.  Dr. 
Tylor  suggests  that  it  should  be  connected  with  the  most  obvious 
point  of  interest  for  which  the  date-palm  has  been  famous 
among  naturalists  since  antiquity — namely,  its  need  of  artificial 
fertilization  in  order  to  produce  a  crop  of  edible  dates.  This 
process  in  its  simplest  form  consists  in  shaking  the  pollen  from 
the  inflorescence  of  the  male  date-palm  over  the  inflorescence  of 
the  female.  The  practice  is  mentioned  by  Theophrastus  and 
Pliny,  and  in  modern  times  in  such  works  as  Shaw's  "Travels 
in  Barbary."  Dr.  Tylor  exhibited  a  drawing  of  the  male  palm 
inflorescence,  and  said  it  was  hardly  necessary  to  point  out  the 
resemblance  to  the  object  in  the  hand  of  the  winged  figure  of 
the  Assyrian  sculpture.  As  the  cultivator  of  the  palm-tree  has 
to  ascend  the  tree  in  order  to  perform  the  process  of  fertilization,. 


284 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


he  of  course  takes  with  him  a  supply  of  fresh  flowers  in  a  basket. 
Dr.  Tylor's  theory,  therefore,  is  that  the  objects  carried  by  the 
winged  genii  of  the  Assyrians  are  the  male  inflorescence  of  the 
date-palm  in  one  hand,  the  basket  with  a  fresh  supply  of  inflor- 
escence in  the  other, 'and  that  the  function  the  genii  are  depicted 
in  the  sculptures  as  discharging  is  that  of  fertilizing  the  palm- 
groves  of  the  country — a' function  which  must  have  been  held  to 
denote  their  great  beneficence,  since  it  showed  them  fulfilling 
the  great  duty  of  providing  the  Assyrians  with  bread. 

The  current  quarterly  statement  of  the  Palestine  Exploration 
Fund  contains  a  brief  review  of  the  work  done  in  connection 
with  the  Fund  during  1889.  It  is  stated  that  excavations  on 
property  belonging  to  a  French  gentlemen  on  the  eastern  slope 
of  Zion  have  revealed  a  number  of  rock-hewn  chambers,  which 
appear  to  have  been  used  in  ancient  times  partly  as  dwellings 
and  partly  as  storehouses.  In  describing  them  Herr  Schick  re- 
marks that  nearly  all  the  ground  covered  by  the  city  of  Jerusalem 
is  found  on  examination  to  be  honeycombed  with  these  lock- 
hewn  chambers.  It  is  not  improbable  that  the  Jebusites  were  to 
some  extent  troglodytes.  In  the  Apocryphal  Acts  of  the  Apostles 
mention  is  made, of  a  cave  at  Cyprus  "where  the  race  of  the 
Jebusites  formerly  dwelt." 

Several  violent  shocks  of  earthquake  occurred  in  Carinthia 
on  January  14,  at  9.30  p.m.,  their  direction  being  from  south- 
east to  north-west.  In  the  theatre  at  Klagenfurt,  which  was 
densely  packed,  the  seismic  disturbance  caused  a  panic,  which 
was  heightened  by  a  false  alarm  of  fire.  The  audience,  how- 
ever, soon  became  reassured,  and  there  was  no  accident  to  life 
or  limb. 

The  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  for  the  month 
of  January  states  that  December  was  notable  for  the  severe 
storms  that  prevailed  along  the  Transatlantic  routes.  A  number 
of  the  depressions  followed  each  other  in  rapid  succession  ;  the 
most  notable  of  these  was  one  on  the  i6th,  in  about  lat.  51°  N., 
long.  37°  W.  Gales  of  hurricane  force,  with  mountainous  seas, 
accompanied  this  disturbance,  as  it  moved  to  the  north-eastward, 
to  the  serious  embarrassment  of  west-bound  steamers.  Two  storms 
occurred  to  the  eastward  of  Bermuda  during  the  first  week  of  the 
month.  The  first  of  these  disturbances  was  central  on  the  4th, 
in  about  lat.  36°  N.,  long.  55°  W.  After  16  hours  the  wind 
hauled  to  south-east  and  moderated.  The  south-east  wind  ex- 
perienced after  the  passage  of  the  storm  was  probably  due  to  the 
approach  of  the  second  cyclone,  which  was  central  on  the  5th  in 
about  lat.  31°  N.,  long.  63°  W.,  and  was  accompanied  by  severe 
hailstorms  and  heavy  seas.  Very  little  fog  was  reported.  A 
dense  fog  along  the  coast  of  the  United  States  on  the  19th,  20th, 
and  2 1  St,  extended  some  distance  inland ;  navigation  in  New 
York  harbour  was  practically  suspended  on  the  20  th.  Ocean  ice 
was  reported  in  the  neighbourhood  of  lat.  48°  N.,  long.  47°  W. 

We  referred  lately  to  a  new  kind  of  butter  which  is  now 
being  made  in  Germany  from  cocoanut  milk.  The  Calcutta 
■Correspondent  of  the  Times  says  that  the  cocoanuts  required  for 
this  industry  are  imported  in  large  numbers  from  India,  chiefly 
Bombay,  and  that  the  trade  seems  likely  to  attain  still  greater 
importance. 

According  to  the  Perseveranza  of  Milan,  quoted  in  the 
current  number  of  the  Board  of  Trade  Journal,  important 
■sponge-banks  have  lately  been  discovered  close  to  the  island  of 
Lampedusa,  on  the  southern  coast  of  Sicily.  These  deposits 
of  sponges  extend  for  over  a  surface  of  from  15  to  18  marine 
leagues,  and  are  situated  about  an  equal  distance  from  the  south- 
eastern extremity  of  the  island.  The  smallest  depth  above  these 
banks  is  20  ells  ;  the  greatest  depth  is  from  30  to  31  ells.  At 
the  lesser  depths  rock  is  met  with,  on  which  the  sponge  grows  ; 
-at  greater  depths  a  sandy  soil  is  found.     All  varieties  of  sponge 


are  discovered  here,  including  those  which  are  in  the  greatest 
commercial  request,  and  they  are  easy  to  obtain.  Greek  and 
Italian  vessels  have  already  proceeded  to  Lampedusa  to  take 
advantage  of  this  discovery. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Linnean  Society  of  New  South  Wales, 
on  November  27,  Mr.  K.  H.  Bennett  read  a  paper  on  the 
breeding  of  the  glossy  ihh  (Ibis  fakinelltis,  Linn.).  The  un- 
precedented rainfall  of  the  year  on  the  Lower  Lachlan  induced 
several  species  of  birds  to  breed  in  the  district,  contrary  to  the 
author's  experience  of  previous  years.  Among  these  was  the 
glossy  ibis,  two  nests  of  which  with  eggs  of  a  beautiful  green- 
ish-blue colour  somewhat  resembling  those  of  Ardea  nova:- 
hollandia;,  but  much  brighter,  were  found  in  October  and 
November.  At  the  same  meeting  Mr.  J.  H.  Maiden  com- 
municated preliminary  notes,  by  Dr.  T.  L.  Bancroft,  on  the 
pharmacology  of  some  new  poisonous  plants.  Mr.  T.  P.  Lucas 
read  a  paper  on  Queensland  Macro-Lepidoptera,  with  localities 
and  descriptions  of  new  species.  Forty-one  species  belonging 
to  various  families  were  proposed  as  new,  and  new  localities 
were  given  for  about  ninety-five  other  species. 

The  new  number  of  "The  Year  Book  of  Pharmacy"  (J.  and 
A.  Churchill)  has  been  issued.  It  comprises  abstracts  of  papers 
relating  to  pharmacy,  materia  medica,  and  chemistry,  con- 
tributed by  British  and  foreign  journals  from  July  i,  1888,  to 
June  30,  1889.  It  presents  also  the  Transactions  of  the  British 
Pharmaceutical  Conference  at  the  twenty-sixth  annual  meeting, 
held  at  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  September  1889. 

Messrs.  E.  and  F.  N.  Spon  have  issued  a  third  edition  of 
"  A  Guide  for  the  Electric  Testing  of  Telegraph  Cables,"  by 
Colonel  V.  Hoskiser,  of  the  Royal  Danish  Engineers.  The  first 
edition  appeared  in  1873.  The  Congress  of  Electricians  in 
1881  made  some  alterations  necessary,  and  the  author  explains 
that  he  has  added  a  few  methods  of  testing,  in  the  hope  of 
making  the  book  more  useful. 

The  Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge  has  issued, 
in  the  series  entitled  "  Chief  Ancient  Philosophies,"  a  third 
edition  of  the  Rev.  I.  Gregory  Smith's  "  Aristotelianism,"  in 
which  an  attempt  is  made  to  tabulate  from  the  "Ethics"  the 
opinions  of  Aristotle  on  questions  relating  to  what  has  been 
called  "  the  scientific  basis  of  morality."  In  the  same  volume 
is  printed  a  treatise,  by  the  Rev.  W.  Grundy,  Head  Master  of 
Malvern  College,  on  the  more  important  of  Aristotle's  other 
works. 

Some  interesting  properties  and  reactions  of  the  chlorides  of 
selenium  are  described  by  M.  Chabrie  in  the  current  number  of 
the  Bulletin  de  la  Societe  Chimiqtie  de  Paris.  Selenium  tetra- 
chloride, SeCl4,  was  obtained  by  Berzelius  by  passing  a  stream 
of  chlorine  over  selenium  at  the  ordinary  temperature,  a  quantity 
of  the  reddish-brown  liquid  subchloride,  Se2Cl2,  being  first 
formed,  and  eventually  converted  to  the  pale  yellow  solid  tetra- 
chloride. The  tetrachloride  was  subsequently  volatilized  by 
heating  and  obtained  in  small  white  opaque  crystals.  By  heating 
the  crystals  obtained  by  this  method  in  one  end  of  a  sealed  tube 
to  i90°-200°  C,  M.  Chabrie  has  obtained  a  sublimate  of  much 
larger  and  better  formed  crystals,  presenting  brilliant  faces. 
With  these  crystals  determinations  of  the  vapour  density  of  the 
tetrachloride  were  attempted  by  Victor  Meyer's  method  at  360° 
in  an  atmosphere  of  nitrogen.  The  resulting  numbers  show 
that  two  molecules  of  SeCl.j  dissociate  at  360°  into  one  molecule 
of  ScjClo  and  three  molecules  of  chlorine.  The  subchloride, 
Se2Cl2,  is  a  very  much  more  stable  body,  and  may  be  distilled 
unchanged  at  360°.  Determinations  of  the  density  of  its  vapour 
yield  values  closely  approximating  to  7  "95,  the  theoretical  density 
of  a  molecule  of  the  formula  SejCIj.  Among  the  numerous 
reactions  of  these  compounds  which  M.  Chabrie  has  studied,  the 
most  interesting  are  those  between  selenium  tetrachloride  and 


Jan.  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


285 


benzene.  It  is  curious  that  when  pure  benzene  is  allowed  to 
react  upon  pure  SeC^,  the  latter  body  undergoes  precisely  the 
same  decomposition  as  when  heated  to  360°,  the  liberated 
chlorine  reacting  with  the  benzene  to  form  several  chlor- 
benzenes  and  all  the  selenium  remaining  in  the  form  of 
SegClj.  If,  however,  the  benzene  and  selenium  tetrachloride 
are  brought  together  in  presence  of  that  most  useful  of  inter- 
mediate reagents,  aluminium  chloride,  quite  a  different  series  of 
changes  occur.  On  treating  the  mixture  with  water,  and  separat- 
ing and  distilling  the  oil  obtained,  three  distinct  fractions  may 
be  collected  The  first,  which  passes  over  at  131°-!  33°,  consists 
of  monochlor  benzene,  CgHr.Cl.  The  second,  distilling  at  227°- 
228"  under  a  pressure  of  only  a  few  millimetres  of  mercury,  con- 
sists of  phenyl  selenide,  (C(jH5)2Se,  corresponding  j  to  phenyl 
sulphide,  (€5115)28,  and  phenyl  oxide,  (CeH5)20.  It  is  a  yellow 
oil  of  sp.  gr.  I '45  at  I9°"6.  The  third  fraction,  boiling  between 
245°  and  250°  under  the  same  reduced  pressure,  consists  of 
another  new  compound  of  the  composition  Se2(C(jHp,);jCeH4Cl. 
This  substance  is  a  red  oil  of  sp.  gr.  i'55  at  I9°'6.  On  allowing 
this  red  oil  to  stand  it  deposits  yellow  crystals  of  a  compound  of 
powerful  odour,  which  may  be  obtained  recrystallized  from 
alcohol  in  long  rhombic  prisms.  On  analysis  this  substance 
turns  out  to  be  seleno-phenol,  CgHgSeH,  analagous  to  thiophenol 
and  mercaptan,  both  of  evil  odour.  Like  all  the  hitherto  in- 
vestigated mercaptans,  its  alcoholic  solution  readily  reacts  with 
salts  of  mercury  and  silver.  Analysis  of  the  silver  salt  leads  to 
the  formula  CgHsSeAg.  The  reactions  by  which  phenyl  selenide 
and  seleno-phenol  are  respectively  produced  are  believed  by  M, 
Chabrie  to  be  as  follows  : —  • 

2CgH6  +  SeCl4  =  (C6H5)2Se  -f-  2HCI  +  Clg, 
CgHg  -»-  SeCl^  =  CgHjSeH  -I-  2CI2. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Black-headed  Gull  {Lartis  ridibundtis), 
British,  presented  by  Mr.  E.  Hart,  F.Z.S.  ;  a  Chinese  Jay 
Thrush  {Garrulax  chinensis)  from  China,  presented  by  Sir 
Harry  B.  Lumsden,  C.B.,  K.C.S.I.,  F.Z.S.  ;  a  King  Parakeet 
{Aprosmictus  scaptilatus  i )  from  Australia,  presented  by  the 
Rev.  A.  J.  P.  Matthews,  F.L.S.  ;  a  Peregrine  Falcon  {Fako 
ptregrinus)  from  Scotland,  presented  by  Mr.  Geo.  W.  Landels  ; 
a  Vulturine  Eagle  {Aquila  verreauxi),  a  Jackal  Buzzard  {Bnteo 
jcuat),  a  White  necked  Raven  {Corvultur  albicollis)  from  South 
Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  Marshall ;  a  Pigmy  Cormorant  {Phala- 
crocorax  africanus),  a  Moorhen  {Gallinula  chloropus),  two 
Shining  Weaver  Birds  {Hypochera  nitens),  four  Black-bellied 
Weaver  Birds  {Euplectes  afer  2  <J  2  9  ),  two  Abyssinian  Weaver 
Birds  {Ploceus  ahyssinicus  6  6),  four  Red-beaked  W^eaver  Birds 
(Quelea  sanguinirostris  26  2  ? ),  four  Cutthroat  Finches 
{Atnadina  fasciata  1  6  "i  'i),  four  Orange- cheeked  Waxbills 
{Eslrelda  melpoda),  a  Paradise  Whydah  Bird  (  Vidua  paradisea  6  ) 
from  West  Africa,  an  Indian  Silver-Bill  {Munia  malabarica)  from 
India,  two  Cardinal  Grosbeaks  {Cardinalis  virginianus  6  6) 
an  Indigo  Bird  {Cyanospiza  cyanea  6 )  from  North  America, 
purchased. 

OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.  on  January  23  =  6h 
12m.  44s. 


Remarks. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  189a 

Decl.  1890. 

h.in.  s. 

(l)  G.C.  1225       

— 



S  36     5 

-f  9    2 

(2)  LL.  12169     

7 

Yellowish-red. 

6  15  58 

-  II  46 

(3)  e  Cams  Maj. 

5 

Yellow. 

6  48  38 

-II  53 

(4)  y  Geminorutn 

2 

White. 

6  31  24 

-|-i6  30 

(5)  74  Schj. 

6 

Reddish-yellow. 
Reddish. 

6  19  12 

■f  14  46 

(6)  U  Cancri       

Var. 

8  29  28 

-fig  16 

(7)  R  Draconis 

Var. 

Yellowish-red. 

16  32  22 

-f66  59 

(i)  The  General  Catalogue  description  of  this  nebula  is  as 
follows:  "Planetary  nebula;  pretty  bright,  very  small,  very 
little  extended."  So  far  as  I  know,  the  spectrum  has  not  yet 
been  recorded,  but  if  it  is  of  the  same  nature  as  other  planetary 
nebulae,  bright  lines  may  be  expected.  The  character  of  the 
chief  line,  near  A.  500,  if  visible,  should  be  particularly  noted. 

(2)  Duner  classes  this  with  stars  of  Group  II.,  but  states  that 
the  type  of  spectrum  is  a  little  uncertain.  He  notes,  however, 
that  the  bands  2,  3,  and  7  are  visible,  so  there  seems  to  be  no 
reasonable  doubt  about  the  type.  The  probability  is  that  it  is 
either  an  early  or  late  star  of  the  group,  in  which  case  we  should 
not  expect  to  find  all  the  bands  fully  developed.  The  star  has 
been  provisionally  placed  in  species  2  of  the  subdivision  of  the 
group,  but  further  observations  are  at  once  suggested  to  deter- 
mine whether  this  is  right  or  wrong.  If  right,  the  bright  flutings 
of  carbon  should  be  fairly  prominent,  as  it  is  probably  due  to  the 
masking  effects  of  these  flutings  that  some  of  the  dark  bands  are 
absent.  The  carbon  flutings  near5i7  and  474,  seen  in  the  spectrum 
of  a  bunsen  or  spirit-lamp  flame,  should  therefore  be  particularly 
looked  for.  It  is  possible,  too,  that  in  the  earlier  stars  of  the 
group  the  hydrogen  lines  may  appear  bright,  as  the  swarms  are 
only  a  little  more  condensed  than  those  constituting  stars  with 
bright  lines,  so  that  the  interspacial  radiation  may  more  thatv 
balance  the  absorption. 

(3)  According  to  the  observations  of  Konkoly,  this  is  a  good 
example  of  stars  of  the  solar  type.  The  usual  observations,  as 
to  whether  the  star  belongs  to  Group  III.  or  to  Group  V.,  are 
required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Gothard).  The  main  point  to  be 
noted  iu  stars  of  this  class  is  the  relative  intensities  of  the  lines- 
of  hydrogen  and  those  of  iron,  magnesium,  and  sodium,  for  the 
purpose  of  arranging  them  in  a  line  of  temperature.  If  possible, 
the  criterion  lines  which  indicate  increasing  or  .decreasing  tem- 
perature should  also  be  noted,  as  in  the  stars  which  have 
hitherto  been  classed  as  of  the  solar  type. 

(5)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  VI.,  showing  the  usual  carbon, 
flutings  and  the  subsidiary  bands  4  and  5  (Duner).  In  some 
stars  of  the  group  of  smaller  magnitude,  a  greater  number  of 
secondary  bands  have  been  noted,  and  it  seems  possible,  there- 
fore, that  74  Schj.  may  not  have  been  observed  under  the  most 
favourable  conditions.  Further  confirmatory  observations  are 
therefore  necessary  before  conclusions  as  to  the  specific  differ- 
ences between  the  different  stars  of  the  group  can  safely  be 
drawn. 

(6)  The  spectrum  of  this  variable  has  not  yet  been  recorded. 
The  period  is  3057  days,  and  the  range  from  8'2-lo'6  at 
maximum  to  <  13  ;at  minimum  (Gore).  The  maximum  occurs, 
on  January  23. 

(7)  This  variable  star  has  a  period  of  244*5  days,  and  ranges 
from  7-87  at  maximum  to  •<  13  at  minimum.  The  spectrum, 
is  of  the  Group  II.  type,  and  the  range  of  variability  is  such 
that  the  appearance  of  bright  lines  at  maximum  may  be  ex- 
pected, as  in  R  Leonis,  &c.,  observed  by  Mr.  Espin.  The 
maximum  occurs  on  January  25.  A.  Fowler. 

The  Cluster  G.C.  1420  and  the  Nebula  N.G.C.  2237. 
— Dr.  Lewis  Swift,  in  the  Sidereal  Messenger  for  January  1890, 
calls  attention  to  a  wonderful  nebulous  ring  entirely  surrounding 
this  cluster.  The  ring  was  discovered  by  Prof.  Barnard  last 
year  {Astr.  Nach.,  2918),  and  its  average  outer  diameter  esti- 
mated as  not  less  than  40',  so  that  in  comparison  the  ring  nebula 
in  Lyra  is  a  pygmy.  Although  Dr.  Swift  discovered,  in  1865,  a 
large  diffused  nebula  north-preceding  the  star-cluster  G.C.  1420, 
his  attention  was  first  directed  to  the  ring  structure  by  Prof. 
Barnard  in  January  1889. 

The  nebula  N.G.C.  223713  in  the  constellation  Monoceros  j; 
its  position  is  R.A.  6h.  24m.  48s.,  Decl.  -i-  5°  8' ;  hence  it  will 
soon  be  favourably  situated  for  observation,  and  Dr.  Swift  hopes 
that  Mr.  Isaac  Roberts  will  be  induced  to  photograph  it,  as  a 
change  both  in  brightness  and  form  is  suspected. 

On  the  Spectrum  of  C  Urs^  Majoris. — An  examination 
of  seventy  photographs  of  the  spectrum  of  this  star,  taken  on  as 
many  different  nights  at  Harvard  College,  and  beginning  on 
March  27,  1887,  has  led  Prof.  Pickering  to  conclude  that  the 
K  line  is  double  at  intervals  of  52  days,  and  that,  for  several 
days  before  and  after  it  is  seen  to  be  double  in  the  photo- 
graphs, it  presents  a  hazy  appearance.  From  the  period 
assigned,  it  was  predicted  that  the  line  should  be  double 
on  December  8,  1889,  and  January  30,  1890,  and  the  duplicity 


286 


NATURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


was  confirmed  on  the  former  of  these  dates  by  each  of  three 
photographs.  Two  more  stars  have  been  found  having  a  similar 
periodicity — 0  Aurigae  and  b  Ophiuchi.  The  hydrogen  lines  of 
-^Ursse  Majoris  appear  to  be  broader  when  the  K  line  is  double 
than  when  it  is  single.  Several  other  lines  are  also  seen  double 
when  the  K  line  is  double.  Measures  of  the  plates  gave  a 
mean  separation  of  O'lifi  millionths  of  a  millimetre  for  a  line 
whose  wave-length  is  448'!,  when  the  separation  of  the  K  line, 
whose  wave-length  is  3937,  was  o'igg. 

The  explanation  of  this  phenomenon  proposed  by  Prof. 
Pickering  is  that  the  brighter  component  of  this  star  is  itself 
a  double  star  having  components  nearly  equal  in  brightness, 
but  too  close  to  have  been  separated  as  yet  visually,  and  some 
interesting  results  have  been  worked  out  which  appear  to 
support  this  hypothesis. — American  Journal  of  Science,  January 
1890. 

Spectroscopic  Observations  of  Algol. — A  note  on  the 
motion  of  this  star  in  line  of  sight  has  previously  appeared 
(Nature,  vol.  xli,  p.  164).  The  detailed  investigation  of  the 
six  photographs  taken  at  Potsdam  is  given  by  Prof.  Vogel  in 
Astronomische  Nachrichten,  No.  2947,  from  which  the  following 
is  taken.  Motion  towards  the  earth  is  represented  by  a  minus 
sign,  and  a  motion  of  recession  by  a  plus  sign  ;  both  are  ex- 
pressed in  geographical  miles  per  second  : — 


Potsdam  mean  time. 

h. 

1888, 

Dec. 

4, 

6-6 

1889, 

Jan. 

6, 

57 

,, 

9, 

r.s 

Nov. 

13, 

9-3 

>» 

23. 

9-0 

>> 

26, 

8-5 

Distance  from 
minimum, 
h. 
1 1  '4  after. 
22*4  before. 
19*4  before. 
13-3  after. 
22 '3  before. 
1 9  "6  before. 


Motion  in  line 
of  sight. 

-5-0 
+  6-9 
+  7*5 
-5-6 
+  6-2 
-f-6-8 


From  these  results  it  will  be  seen  that,  before  minimum,  Algol 
has  an  average  motion  of  recession  of  6 '8  geographical  miles 
per  second,  but  after  minimum  it  approaches  the  earth  with  an 
average  velocity  of  5  '3  geographical  miles  per  second.  A  re- 
duction of  the  measures  by  the  method  of  least  squares  shows 
the  velocities  per  second  to  be — 

Before  the  minimum,  -F  5  '3  geographical  miles, 
After  the  minimum,    -6*2  ,, 

which  give  an  average  motion  of  recession  or  approach  =  S'7 
■miles.  The  entire  system  is  found  to  be  moving  towards  the 
earth  with  a  velocity  of  0*5  geographical  miles  per  second. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  South  Australian  branch  of  the  Royal 
Geographical  Society,  on  November  i,  1889,  Mr,  Tietkens  gave 
an  account  of  his  recent  explorations  in  Central  Australia.  His 
expedition  was  despatched  by  the  Central  Australian  Exploring 
and  Prospecting  Association,  and  consisted  of  a  party  of  five 
persons,  including  a  black  tracker  and  a  native  boy.  At  one 
point  of  his  journey,  when  the  party  came  within  sight  of  "  an 
imposing  range,"  Mr.  Tietkens  hoped  to  find  a  watercourse  flow- 
ing from  its  slopes  to  Lake  Amadeus.  He  was  disappointed.  No 
watercourse  worth  mentioning  was  discovered,  nor  any  spring 
or  place  where  water  could  collect.  Mr.  Tietkens  discovered 
several  ranges  of  hills,  to  which  he  gave  names.  One  of  the 
pleasantest  places  found  by  him  he  called  Gill's  Creek,  after  the 
hon.  treasurer  of  the  South  Australian  branch  of  the  Royal 
Geographical  Society.  Here  a  stream  flows  from  a  range  of 
hills  through  a  gorge  or  glen  of  sandstone  formation.  "  This, ' '  he 
says,  "  was  a  most  beautiful  spot,  where  a  few  days  could  be  spent 
profitably,  so  the  camels  were  unloaded,  and  Billy  and  myself 
went  up  the  creek  to  explore  its  wonders.  We  found  that  the 
creek  separated  into  three  distinct  channels.  Following  the 
principal  one,  we  found  the  creek  to  be  running  through  a  glen 
with  perpendicular  cliffs  80  or  100  feet  high  on  each  side,  and 
fully  three  miles  in  length.  We  returned  to  our  charmingly 
situated  camp  late  in  the  afternoon.  .  .  .  The  water  will  not  be 
found  to  be  always  running,  but  in  the  glen  at  the  head  of  the 
^reek,  and  which  I  have  named  after  my  sister  Emily,  large 
deep  pools  will  be  found,  four  or  five  chains  long,  10  and  15 
feet  deep,  and  so  shaded  by  rocks  from  the  sun  that  they  cannot 
be  looked  upon  as  otherwise  than  permanent."     After  the  read- 


ing of  the  paper  Mr.  G.  W.  Goyder,  Surveyor- General,  ex- 
pressing gratitude  to  Mr.  Tietkens,  said  that  although  as  an 
effort  to  increase  the  extent  of  Australian  mineral  and  pastoral 
resources  Mr.  Tietken's  expedition  might  have  been  a  compara- 
tive failure,  yet  the  route  which  he  had  travelled  might  serve  as 
a  most  useful  base  for  after-comers.  His  journey  showed  that 
no  large  large  river,  as  had  been  hoped,  flowed  into  Lake 
Amadeus,  and  only  gave  another  proof  that  the  interior  of 
Australia  consists  of  a  series  of  low  mountains  with  shallow 
basins,  which  in  wet  seasons  form  lakes  and  in  dry  seasons 
evaporate. 

Messrs.  George  Philip  and  Son  have  issued  an  excellent 
map  showing  all  Stanley's  explorations  in  Africa  from  1868  to 
1889.  Each  expedition  is  distinctly  marked  in  colour,  and  dated 
on  the  map  ;  and  a  condensed  account  of  the  explorer's  travels 
and  discoveries  is  provided  by  Mr.  E.  G.  Ravenstein. 


THE  SOURCES  OF  NITROGEN  IN  SOILS} 

'X'HE  number  of  this  half-yearly  Journal,  issued  last  April,  con- 
tains  nineteen  valuable  contributions,  covering  a  considerable 
portion  of  the  large  subject  of  agriculture.  Many  of  them  are  of 
purely  practical  import,  such  as  the  report  upon  the  previous 
year's  prize  farm  competition,  on  implements  exhibited  at  the 
Nottingham  meeting,  and  on  the  Exhibition  of  thoroughbred 
stallions  of  February  last.  Among  the  articles  of  special 
scientific  interest  may  be  named  "The  History  of  a  Field  newly 
laid  down  to  Permanent  Grass,"  by  Sir  J.  B.  Lawes,  F. R. S.  ; 
"Grass  Experiments  at  Woburn,"  by  W.  Carruthers,  F.R.S.  ; 
"  The  Composition  of  Milk  on  English  Dairy  Farms,"  by  Dr. 
Paul  Veith,  and  the  Annual  Reports  of  the  scientific  staff"  of  the 
Society.  The  Journal  contains  380  closely-printed  pages,  is  well 
illustrated,  and  replete  with  tables  and  statistics.  Among  such 
a  mass  of  information,  all  of  which  possesses  important  economic 
value,  it  is  by  no  means  easy  to  make  a  selection  for  special 
notice.  The  changes  within  the  soil,  in  the  formation  of  a 
meadow  by  Sir  John  Lawes,  are,  however,  worthy  of  close 
attention  at  a  time  when  grazing  and  stock-feeding  appears  to 
be  the  most  popular  remedy  for  the  agricultural  depression  under 
which  the  country  has  so  long  suffered.  These  observations  are 
also  important  scientifically,  as  they  throw  light  upon  the  in- 
teresting question  as  to  the  sources  of  nitrogen  in  all  soils.  The 
gradual  improvement  of  grass  land,  from  the  period  when  it  is 
first  laid  down  until  it  assumes  the  character  of  old  pasture,  is  a 
well-known  agricultural  fact.  The  gradual  increase  in  the 
amount  of  nitrogen  per  acre  in  the  meadow  selected  by  Sir  John 
Lawes  throws  light  upon  this  practical  observation,  and  is 
recorded  as  follows: — "There  can  be  no  doubt  that  there  has 
been  a  considerable  accumulation  of  nitrogen  in  the  surface  soil 
during  the  formation  of  the  meadow  (1856  to  i888),  amounting 
in  fact  to  an  average  of  nearly  52  pounds  per  acre  per  annum  over 
the  last  twenty-three  years.  The  question  arises,  Whence  has 
this  nitrogen  been  derived  ?  "  This  is,  as  is  well  known,  a  con- 
troverted point.  The  balance  in  favour  of  this  acccumulation  of 
nitrogen  within  the  soil  is  still  large,  even  after  every  source  of 
nitrogen  in  fertilizers  employed,  foods  fed  upon  the  land  by  live 
stock,  rainfall,  and  from  every  other  possible  source  is  taken 
into  account.  Therefore,  Sir  John  comes  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  gain  of  nitrogen  in  the  surface  soil  must  have  had  its  source 
either  in  the  subsoil,  the  atmosphere,  or  both.  There  is  much 
experimental  evidence  pointing  to  the  conclusion  that  at  any 
rate  some  deep-rooted  leguminous  plants  derive  a  considerable 
quantity  of  nitrogen  from  the  subsoil.  Reasoning  upon  the 
question  as  to  how  far  the  whole  of  the  accumulated  nitrogen  in 
the  surface  soil  has  been  derived  by  deeply-searching  roots  from 
the  subsoil,  Sir  John  says,  "  On  this  point  we  think  it  may  safely 
be  concluded,  from  the  results  of  the  experiments  of  Boussingault 
and  of  those  made  at  Rothamsted,  many  years  ago,  that  our 
agricultural  plants  do  not  themselves  directly  assimilate  the  free 
nitrogen  of  the  air  by  their  leaves.  But  in  recent  years  the 
question  has  assumed  quite  a  new  aspect.  It  now  is.  Whether 
the  free  nitrogen  of  the  atmosphere  is  brought  into  combination 
within  the  soil  under  the  influence  of  micro-organisms,  or  other 
low  forms,  and  so  serving  indirectly  as  a  source  of  nitrogen  to 
plants  of  a  higher  order  ?  Thus  Hellreigel  and  Wilfarth  have 
found,  in  experiments  with  various  leguminous  plants,  that  if  a 

'  "The  Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Societyof  England,"  April  1889. 
(John  Murray,  Albemarle  Street.) 


yan,  23,  1890] 


NATURE 


287 


soil  free  of  nitrogen  have  added  to  it  a  small  quantity  of  soil- 
extract  containing  the  organisms,  the  plants  will  fix  much  more 
nitrogen  than  was  otherwise  available  to  them  in  the  combined 
form.  It  further  seemed  probable  that  the  growth  and  crop 
residue  of  certain  plants  favoured  the  development  and  action  of 
special  organisms.  It  is  admittedly  not  yet  understood,  either 
in  what  way  the  lower  organisms  affect  the  combination,  or  in 
what  way  the  higher  plants  avail  themselves  of  the  nitrogen  thus 
brought  into  combination.  .  ,  .  Should  it  be  firmly  established 
that  such  an  action  does  take  place  in  the  case  of  certain  plants, 
though  not  in  that  of  others,  it  is  obvious  that  part,  at  any  rate, 
of  the  gain  of  nitrogen  by  the  soil  supporting  the  mixed  herbage 
of  grass  land  may  be  due  to  the  free  nitrogen  of  the  air  brought 
into  combination  under  the  influence  of  the  action  supposed," 
This  must  be  regarded  as  an  important  concession  to  the  view 
that  nitrogen  may  be  derived  for  the  purposes  of  plant  nutrition 
from  the  inexhaustible  ocean  of  the  atmosphere,  and  it  will 
probably  not  be  long  before  the  vexed  question  of  the  sources  of 
nitrogen  in  soils  will  be  placed  upon  a  more  satisfactory  basis. 

John  Wrightson. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal   Society,  December   5,    1889. — "A   New   Form  of 
Wedge  Photometer."     By  Edmund  J.  Spitta. 

The  author  explained  that  his  attention  was  called  to  the 
necessity  of  devising  an  arrangement  of  this  nature  during  a 
series  of  experiments  upon  which  he  has  for  some  time  been  en- 
gaged to  ascertain  the  cause  or  causes  of  the  discrepancy  pre- 
viously shown  to  exist  when  points  of  light  are  photometrically 
compared  with  objects  of  sensible  size  ("  On  the  Appearances 
presented  by  the  Satellites  of  Jupiter  during  Transit,"  Monthly 
Notices  R.A.S.,  vol.  48).  This  investigation  has  served  to 
indicate  that  a  portion  of  the  error  to  which  reference  has  been 
made  arises  from  the  wedge  form  itself  when  employed  upon  a 
disk  of  any  appreciable  area,  for  it  will  be  remembered  that 
hitherto  this  instrument  has  only  been  employed  upon  points  of 
light  such  as  is  exhibited  by  the  stars.  Woodcuts  are  given  to 
explain  how  this  takes  place,  but  it  may  be  briefly  stated,  that  as 
the  field  of  view  in  a  single  wedge  photometer  is  of  necessity 
variable  in  intensity  of  absorption,  so  the  preceding  limb  of  a 
disk  is  not  extinguished  at  the  same  part  of  the  wedge,  and  so 
not  at  the  same  "wedge-reading,"  as  i\ie  folloivittg  limb.  Hence 
when  comparing  two  different  sized  disks  it  is  not  difficult  to 
understand  that  an  error  in  the  "  wedge-interval,"  technically  so 
called,  must  inevitably  occur.  To  meet  this  difficulty,  the  error 
resulting  from  which  will  of  necessity  vary  with  the  size  of  the 
area  under  consideration,  the  new  photometer  has  been  devised. 

It  essentially  consists  of  two  wedges  of  neutral  tinted  glass, 
arranged  to  pass  one  another  in  equal  proportions  by  the  turning 
of  a  single  milled  headed  screw.  A  little  consideration  suffices 
to  show  that  by  this  exceedingly  simple  means,  the  field  of  view 
in  the  photometer  must  be  absolutely  uniform  in  density  through- 
out its  extent,  but  that  its  power  of  absorption  can  be  increased 
or  diminished  by  the  shifting  of  the  wedges  in  the  manner  de- 
scribed. Another  improvement  is  submitted  by  the  addition  of 
a  wheel  of  tinted  glasses  of  varying  density,  which,  by  revolving 
in  front  of  the  eye-piece,  enables  the  operator  to  employ  the 
photometer  upon  objects  having  a  wide  range  of  intensity.  The 
instrument  in  its  complete  form,  is  mounted  on  the  occulting  eye- 
piece {Monthly  N'otices  J?.A.S.,  vol.  45)  to  afford  the  observer 
a  means  of  hiding  any  object  or  objects  not  under  examination 
for  the  time  being,  which  it  is  needless  to  point  out  is  a  matter 
of  great  consideration  in  all  photometric  comparisons. 

Mathematical  Society,  January  9. — ^J.  J.  Walker,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
made : — On  the  deformation  of  an  elastic  shell,  by  Prof.  H.Lamb, 
F.  R.  S. — On  the  relation  between  the  logical  theory  of  classes  and 
the  geometrical  theory  of  points,  by  A.  B.  Kempe,  F.R.S. — On 
the  correlation  of  two  spaces,  each  of  three  dimensions,  by  Dr. 
Hirst. — On  the  simultaneous  reduction  of  the  ternary  quadric 
and  cubic  to  the  forms  Ax"^  +  By^  +  Cz'  4-  Bzv",  ax^  +/>y^  + 
cz' +  d-u>\  by  the  President  (Sir  J.  Cockle,  F.R.S.,  Vice- 
President,  in  the  chair). 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  January  13.— M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  some  new  fluorescent  materials,  by  M.  Lecoq  de  Bois- 


baudran.  In  continuation  of  his  recent  communication  the  author 
has  investigated  zircon  and  Zfi  ;  tin  dioxide  and  samaria  ;  tan- 
talum pentoxide  and  samaria  ;  tin  dioxide  and  Za  ;  tantalum 
pentoxide  and  Zo  ;  tin  dioxide  and  Z&  ;  tantalum  pentoxide  and 
Zj3.  All  these  fluorescent  substances  are  fresh  examples  of  the 
number  of  spectra  obtained  from  the  same  active  material  with 
different  solid  solvents.  In  combination  with  the  agents  the  sol- 
vents must  naturally  always  modify  the  wave-lengths  of  the  bands 
as  well  as  their  constitution,  while  still  leaving  to  the  various 
spectra  of  the  agents  a  family  likeness,  whereby  their  common 
origin  may  at  once  be  recognized.  But  if  the  identity  or  diversity 
of  two  active  materials  has  to  be  determined  dy  exact  wave-length 
measuretjients,  then  it  becomes  essential  to  operate  with  abso- 
lutely similar  solid  solvents. — Multiple  resonances  of  M.  Hertz's 
electric  undulations,  by  MM.  Edouard  Sarasin  and  Lucien  de  la 
Rive.  Certain  experiments  are  here  described,  which  tend  to 
throw  doubt  on  Hertz's  well-known  hypothesis  on  the  undulatory 
propagation  of  electric  induction.  The  reading  of  the  paper  was 
followed  by  some  remarks  by  M.  Comu,  who  pointed  out  that 
it  would  now  be  necessary  to  receive  with  the  greatest  reserve 
the  theoretical  consequences  drawn  by  M.  Plertz  from  his  re 
markable  researches,  more  especially  as  regards  the  measure- 
ment of  the  velocity  with  which  the  induction  is  propagated  in  a 
rectilinear  conductor.  His  experimental  method  will  have  to 
be  subjected  to  much  careful  study  before  it  can  be  accepted  as  a 
demonstration  of  the  identity  of  light  and  electricity. — On  the 
relation  between  the  electric  and  thermal  conductivities  of  the 
metals,  by  M.  Alphonse  Berget.  In  a  previous  paper  the  author 
described  an  easy  method  for  measuring,  by  means  of  simple 
determinations  of  temperature,  the  thermal  conductivity  of  the 
different  metals  relative  to  that  of  mercury,  whose  absolute 
value  had  already  been  determined.  He  has  now  extended  these 
determinations  to  copper,  zinc,  iron,  tin,  lead,  and  several  other 
metals.  The  tabulated  results  show  that  the  order  of  the  con- 
ductivities is  the  same  for  heat  and  electricity,  but  that  the 
relation  of  the  mean  coefficients  of  thermal  and  electric  conduc- 
tivity is  not  absolutely  constant.  Hence  the  law  of  their  pro- 
portionality is  only  approximately  correct,  and  subject  to  some- 
what the  same  conditions  as  Dulong  and  Petit's  law  of  specific 
heats. — Heat  of  formation  of  platinum  tetrachloride,  by  M. 
L.  Pigeon.  A  process  is  described  for  obtaining  this  substance 
in  considerable  quantities,  and  the  heat  of  formation  of  the 
anhydrous  chloride  is  determined  at  +  20*5  calories.  To  com- 
plete its  thermochemical  study  M.  Pigeon  is  now  endeavouring 
to  determine  its  heat  of  solution  in  water  and  that  of  its  hydrate. 
— On  the  combinations  of  gaseous  phosphoretted  hydrogen 
with  boron  and  silicium  fluorides,  by  M.  Besson.  The  boron 
compound  has  the  formula  2BF;j.PH3,  and  is  decomposed  by 
water  with  liberation  of  gaseous  phosphoretted  hydrogen.  The 
silicon  compound  was  obtained  in  the  form  of  small  and  very 
bright  white  crystals,  their  composition  corresponding  to  two 
volumes  of  phosphoretted  hydrogen  gas  to  three  of  silicon  fluoride 
or  thereabouts.  These  and  some  other  compounds  that  remain 
to  be  studied  render  the  analogy  between  phosphoretted  hydro- 
gen gas  and  ammonia  still  closer. — On  the  state  of  equili- 
brium of  a  solution  of  a  gas  in  a  liquid,  different  portions  of 
which  are  kept  at  different  temperatures,  by  M.  P.  Van  Berchem. 
These  researches  were  made  with  hydrochloric  acid  and  am- 
monia, their  high  coefficient  of  solubility  facilitating  the  detection 
of  slight  differences  of  concentration.  The  results  show  that 
there  exists  a  special  state  of  equilibrium  for  solutions  of  gases  if 
the  lower  part  of  the  solution  is  cooled,  and  the  upper  part  heated. 
— Note  on  the  rotatory  power  of  matezite  and  matezo-dambose, 
by  M.  Aime  Girard.  Some  numerical  errors  in  the  author's  former 
papers  on  the  rotatory  power  of  these  bodies  {Comptes  rendus, 
Ixxvii.  p.  995)  are  here  rectified,  and  the  author's  fresh  experi- 
ments confirm  his  previous  conclusion  that  their  rotatory  power  is 
absolutely  identical. — Papers  were  submitted  by  M.  Emile  Picard, 
on  the  employment  of  successive  approximations  in  the  study  of 
certain  equations  with  partial  derivatives  ;  by  MM.  Maquenne 
and  Ch.  Tanret,  on  a  new  inosite  ("racemo-inosite") ;  by  M. 
Edouard  Heckel,  on  the  utilization  and  transformations  of  some 
alkaloids  present  in  corn  during  germination ;  by  M.  A.  Giard, 
on  the  relationship  of  the  annelids  and  mollusks ;  by  M.  Leon 
Vaillant,  on  the  bichique  {Gobius  and  Sicydium)  fisheries  in  the 
island  of  Reunion  ;  by  M.  A.  Vaissiere,  on  Prosopistoma 
variegatum  of  Madagascar ;  and  by  M.  Salomon  Reinach,  on  the 
volcanic  eruptions  supposed  to  have  taken  place  in  France  during 
the  fifth  century  a.  d. 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  23,  1890 


Berlin. 
PhysioloEfical  Society,  December  27,  1889. — Prof.  duBois- 
Reymond,  President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Augustus  Waller,  of 
London,  demonstrated  the  electrical  negative  variation  of  the 
heart  which  accompanies  the  pulse.  The  demonstration  was 
preceded  by  a  short  introductory  description  of  the  method  by 
which  it  is  possible  to  detect  the  negative  variation  accompany- 
ing each  beat  of  the  heart  both  in  man  and  other  normal 
animals.  The  peculiar  position  of  the  heart  determines  the 
special  position  of  the  equipotential  lines  for  the  cardiac  muscle, 
and  these  then  determine  the  way  in  which  the  electrodes  must 
be  applied  to  the  outer  surface  of  the  body  in  order  to  obtain 
the  most  marked  results.  Thus,  for  instance,  when  one  pole  of 
the  capillary-electrometer  is  applied  to  the  head  or  right 
shoulder  of  a  man,  while  the  other  pole  is  connected  with  his 
left  hand,  this  arrangement  is  effective,  and  the  mercurial 
meniscus  in  the  electrometer  can  be  seen  to  move  synchronously 
with  the  pulse.  When  the  poles  are  applied  to  the  left  shoulder 
and  left  foot,  or  left  hand  and  left  foot,  or  right  hand  and  right 
foot,  these  arrangements  are  non-effective.  In  the  horse,  dog, 
and  cat,  results  are  obtained  by  connecting  the  fore-limbs" with 
the  hind-limbs  through  the  electrometer  ;  this  is  due  to  the  fact 
that  in  these  animals  the  heart  is  placed  with  its  axis  from  right 
to  left,  thus  dividing  the  body  symmetrically  into  a  front  and 
hinder  half.  The  demonstrations  were  made  on  a  man,  a  horse, 
and  a  dog. — Mr.  Auschiitz  exhibited  an  apparatus  ("  Schnell- 
seher ")  for  the  stroboscopic  examination  of  instantaneous 
photographs  (twelve  per  second)  of  moving  objects.  The 
reproduction  of  the  movements  afforded  by  the  instrument  was 
very  perfect. 

Stockholm. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  January  8. — On  our  know- 
ledge of  the  nature  of  the  Antarctic  regions,  and  on  the  desirable- 
ness of  researches  there  as  well  planned  and  comprehensive  as 
those  which  have  been  conducted  by  Swedish  investigators  in 
the  Arctic  regions  during  many  years,  by  Baron  Nordenskiold. 
If  contributions  could  be  obtained  from  Australia,  Baron  O. 
Dickson  and  Baron  Nordenskiold  would  fit  out  a  scientific  ex- 
pedition to  the  Antarctic  regions  to  start  from  Sweden  in  1891.  — 
On  remains  of  birds  from  the  Saltholms  Limestone  (Upper 
Cretaceous)  at  Limhamn,  in  Scania,  by  Prof.  W.  Dames,  of 
Berlin.  (The  right  humerus,  scapula,  and  coracnideum,  of 
probably  a  wading-bird,  being  next  the  Enaliornis  of  the  chalk 
of  Cambridge,  in  England,  the  only  European  find  of  a  Cre- 
taceous bird.  It  has  been  named  Scaniornis  Lundgreni,  Dam.) 
— Researches  on  oiazotiol  combinations,  by  Herr  Hector. — On 
Jurassic  woods  from  Green  Harbour,  in  Spitzbergen,  by  Prof. 
Schrenk,  of  Leipzig. — On  the  secretions  of  the  digestion  in  the 
median  intestines,  and  some  phenomena  in  combination  therewith 
in  insects  and  Myriopoda,  by  Dr.  G.  Alderz. 

DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 

London. 

THURSDAY,  January  23. 

RovAL   Society,   at  4.30. — On  a  Photographic  Method  for  Determining 

Variability    in    Stars  :    Isaac    Roberts. — Physical   Properties  of   Nickel 

Steel:  Dr.  Hopkinson,  F.R.S. 

Institution    of    Electrical    Engineers,    at    8. — MagnetLsm :  Dr.    J. 

Hopkinson,  F.R.S.     (Discussion.) 
Royal  Institution,    at  3.— Sculpture  in   Relation   to   the   Age:  Edwin 
Roscoe  Mullins. 

FRIDAY,  January  24. 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— The    Up-keep  of  Metalled 

Roads  in  Ceylon  :  Thos.  H.  Chapman. 
Royal  Institution,  at  9.— The  Scientific  Work  of  Joule:  Prof.  Dewar, 
F.R.S. 

SA  TURD  A  Y,  January  25. 
•Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3.— The  Natural  History  of  the  Horse,  and  of 
its  Extinct  and  Existing  Allies :  Prof.  Flower,  C.B.,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  January  26. 
Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4.— John  Milton,  the  Champion  of  Liberty  : 
Dr.  Stanton  Coit. 

MONDAY,  January  27. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— The  Electro-magnet ;  Dr.  Silvanus  P.  Thompson. 

TUESDA  Y,  January  28. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— The  Relation  of  the  Fine  Arts  to  the  Applied 
Arts  :  Edward  C.  Robins. 

Anthropological  Institute,  at  8.30.— Anniversary  Meeting.— Presi- 
dential Address. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8.— Recent  Dock  Extensions  at 
Liverpool :  George  Fosbery  Lyster.  (Discussion.)— Bars  at  the  Mouths 
of  Tidal  Estuaries  :  W.  H.  Wheeler. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3.— The  Post-Darwinian  Period:  Prof.  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 


WEDNESDA  Y,  January  zq. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— The  Utilization  of  Blast-furnace  Slag  :  Gilbert 
Redgrave. 

THURSDAY,  January  30. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3— Sculpture  in  Relation    to    the  Age  :    Edwin 
Roscoe  Mullins. 

FRIDAY,  January  31. 
Royal    Institution,  at  9.  — Smokeless  Explosives  :  Sir  Frederick  Abel, 
C.B.,  F.R.S. 

SATURDAY,  February  i. 
Royal  Institution,  at   3.— The  Natural  History   of  the   Horse,   and   of 
its  Extinct  and  Existing  Allies  :  Prof.  Flower,  C.B.,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Atlas  of  Commercial  Geography  :  J.  G.  Bartholomew  (C.  J.  Clay). — Elec- 
tric Light,  3rd  edition  :  J.  W.  Urquhart  (C.  Lockwood). — North  American 
Birds,  Parts  i  and  2  :  H.  Nehrling  (Wesley). — Handbuch  der  Palaeontologie, 
ii.  Abthg. ,  8  Liefg.  (Munchen). — Handbiich  der  Palaeontologie,  i.  Abthg., 
iii.  Band,  3  Liefg.  CMiinchen). — Year-book  of  Photography  for  1890  (Piper 
and  Carter). — Livy,  Book  xxi.  :  Allcrof:  and  Masom  (Clive). — Queensland 
Meteorological  Report  for  1887. — Handleiding  tot  de  Kennis  der  Fl^ra  van 
Nederlandisch  Indie.  Eerste  Deel :  Dr.  J.  G.  Boerlage  (Leiden,  Brill). — Die 
Arten  der  Gattung  Ephedra  :  Dr.  O.  Stapf  (Wien).  — Grasses  of  the  Southern 
Punjab:  W.  Coldstream  (Thacker). — Prof.  Arnold  Guyot ;  J.  D.  Dana 
(Washington). — Miscellaneous  Papers  relating  to  Anthropology  (Washing- 
ton).— Accounts  of  the  Progress  in  Anthropology,  Zoology,  Mineralogy, 
Chemistry,  Physics,  Geography  and  Exploration,  Vulcanology  and  Seis- 
mology, North  American  Geology  in  1886  (Washington). — Bibliography  of 
North  American  Pala;antology  m  1886  (Washington). — The  Advance  of 
Science  in  the  Last  Half  Century  :  T.  H.  Huxley  (Washington). — Report  of 
the  Smithsonian  Exchanges  for  the  Year  ending  June  30,  1887  (Washing- 
ton).— Preservation  of  Museum  Specimens  from  Insects  and  the  Effects  of 
Dampness:  W.  Hough  (Washington) — Ethno-Conchology :  R.  E.  C. 
Stearns  (Washington). — The  Human  Beast  of  Burden  :  O.  T.  Mason 
(Washington), — Notes  on  the  Artificial  Deformation  of  Children  among 
Savage  and  Civilized  Peoples  :  Dr.  J.  H.  Porter  (Washington). — Cradles  of 
the  American  Aborigines  :  O.  T.  Mason  (Washington). — The  Ether  Theory 
of  1839,  Part  I  :  J.  Johnstone  (Edinburgh,  Gemmell). — Third  Annual  Report 
on  the  Puffin  Island  Biological  Station:  Dr.  W.  A.  Herdman  (Liverpoal). 
— Journal  of  Anatomy  and  Physiology,  January  (Williams  and  Norgate). — 
Traits  Kncyclopedique  de  Photographic,  January  15  (Paris,  Gauthier-Villars). 
— Records  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  India,  vol.  xxii..  Part  4. — Journal 
of  the  College  of  Science,  Imperial  University,  Japan,  vol.  iii..  Part  3 
(Tokio). 

CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Future  Indian  Civil  Service  Examinations     .    .  265 

The  Shan  States 265 

The  Lesser  Antilles.     By  D.  M 268 

A  Text-book  of  Human  Anatomy 269 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Johnson:    "A    Treatise    on    Ordinary    and    Partial 

Differential  Equations" 270 

Harris:   "  The  Land  of  an  African  Sultan  "     ....  270 

Hulme  :   "  Wayside  Sketches  " 270 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Influenza.  — W.  Greatheed  ;  Augustus  Harvey     .  270 
Rainbow  due  to   Sunlight  reflected  from    the    Sea. 
(///M.f/ra^f^.)— Sir  William  Thomson,    F.R.S,; 

William  Scouller 271 

Osteolepidas. — R.  L.  +  E 271 

Exact  Thermometry. — Dr.  Sydney  Young    ....  271 
Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — F.    Ernest 

W^eiss 272 

Galls. — W.  Ainslie  Hollis 272 

The  Evolution  of  Sex. — Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer  .....  272 
"Manures  and  their  Uses."— Dr.    A.   B,    Griffiths; 

The  Reviewer 272 

Magnetism.     II.    {Illustrated.)    By  Dr.  J.  Hopkinson, 

F.R.S 273 

Notes  on  a  Recent  Volcanic  Island  in  the  Pacific. 
{Illustrated.)    By  Captain  W.  J.  L.  Wharton,  R.N., 

F.R.S.,  Hydrographer 276 

Weather  Forecasting.     By  R.  H.  S 278 

The  Laboratories  of  Bedford  College 279 

Stephen  Joseph  Perry,  F.R.S 279 

Mr.  Daniel  Adamson 281 

Notes 281 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 285 

The  Cluster  G.C.  1420  and  the  Nebula  N.G.C.  2237  .  285 

On  the  Spectrum  of  ^  Ursse  Majoris 285 

Spectroscopic  Observations  of  Algol 286 

Geographical  Notes 286 

The  Sources  of  Nitrogen  in  Soils.     By  Prof.  John 

Wrightson 286 

Societies  and  Academies 287 

Diary  of  Societies •    .  288 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 288 


NA  TURE 


289 


THURSDAY,  JANUARY  30,  1890. 


THE  HYDERABAD  CHLOROFORM 
COMMISSION. 

THE  safety  of  anaesthetics  is  a  subject  of  the  deepest 
personal  interest  to  everyone,  either  on  his  own 
account  or  on  that  of  his  family  or  friends.  For  this 
reason,  the  general  public,  as  well  as  the  medical  pro- 
fession, have  been  looking  with  interest  for  the  Report  of 
the  Chloroform  Commission  which  has  lately  been  trying 
to  work  out  the  subject  under  the  generous  auspices  of 
the  Nizam  and  his  Minister  Sir  Asman  Jah.  As  we 
pointed  out  in  Nature  of  December  19,  1889,  p.  154, 
two  views  regarding  chloroform  are  commonly  held. 
The  one  view  is  that  it  may  kill  by  paralyzing  the  heart 
directly.  The  other  is  that  it  really  kills  by  paralyzing  the 
respiration,  and  only  stops  the  heart  indirectly  through 
the  asphyxia  which  quickly  follows  stoppage  of  the 
respiration.  The  first  view  is  generally  held  in  London, 
the  second  in  Edinburgh,  where  it  was  strongly  insisted 
on  by  the  late  distinguished  surgeon  Prof.  Syme.  As 
we  learn  from  the  Report  now  published,  it  was  in  con- 
sequence of  his  reverence  for  Syme's  teaching,  that 
Surgeon-Major  Lawrie  moved  for  the  appointment  of 
the  Commission,  which  was  generously  granted  by  the 
Nizam's  Government.  This  teaching  was  founded  on 
clinical  experience,  but  the  results  of  some  physiological 
experiments  appeared  to  show  that  it  was  incorrect,  and 
that  chloroform  paralyzed  the  heart  directly.  To  en- 
sure anything  like  general  acceptance  of  Syme's  teaching 
it  was  necessary  that  it  should  be  shown  that  these  ex- 
periments did  not  really  disprove  it.  But  this  necessitated 
a  complete  revision  of  the  whole  question  of  the  modus 
operandi  of  chloroform,  and  of  the  production  of  an 
immense  amount  of  experimental  evidence.  This  has 
been  supplied  by  the  present  Commission,  and  the  re- 
sult of  their  labours  appears  to  be  that  there  is  some  truth 
in  both  views,  but  that  when  chloroform  is  given  in  the 
ordinary  way  by  inhalation,  it  is  the  respiration  which 
stops  first.  When  chloroform  vapour  is  blown  down  the 
trachea  the  heart  may  be  stopped  by  it,  but  when  the 
vapour  is  drawn  into  the  lungs  in  the  usual  way  by 
the  movements  of  the  chest,  this  is  not  the  case,  for,  the 
respiratory  movements  being  arrested  first,  their  stoppage 
prevents  any  more  chloroform  vapour  from  being  taken 
into  the  lungs.  Embarrassment  of  respiration  constitutes 
the  first  sign  of  danger,  and  should  be  at  once  attended 
to.  The  breathing  should  not  be  allowed  to  stop,  but  if 
it  should  do  so  by  any  accident,  life  may  still  be  pre- 
served by  the  immediate  use  of  artificial  respiration. 
Should  the  interval  of  asphyxia  between  the  stoppage  of 
natural  breathing  and  the  commencement  of  artificial 
respiration  be  too  long,  the  heart  may  fail  to  such  an 
extent  that  artificial  respiration  is  in  vain  ;  and  if  the 
administrator  waits  for  a  failing  pulse  to  warn  him  of 
danger,  the  warning  may  come  too  late.  In  a  former 
research  by  the  Glasgow  Committee  of  the  British 
Medical  Association,  some  of  the  experiments,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  Committee,  seemed  to  show  that  chloro- 
form not  only  lowers  the  blood-pressure  and  paralyzes 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1057. 


the  heart,  but  does  so  sometimes  in  an  unexpected  and 
capricious  manner.  The  Commission  has  repeated  their 
experiments,  and  found  a  similar  fall  of  the  blood-pressure 
and  slowing  of  the  pulse,  but  has  come  to  a  different 
conclusion  regarding  their  causation,  and  attributes  them 
not  to  chloroform  but  to  asphyxia.  If  this  opinion  be 
correct,  it  shows  how  much  care  is  necessary  to  avoid 
asphyxia,  for  the  Glasgow  Committee  appear  to  have 
overlooked  its  presence,  notwithstanding  the  serious  effects 
it  was  producing  on  the  heart  in  the  animals  on  which 
they  were  experimenting.  The  work  of  the  Hyderabad 
Commission  points  strongly  to  the  conclusion  that  deaths 
from  chloroform  in  man  are  likewise  due  to  asphyxia, 
and  the  Commission  considers  that  by  careful  attention 
to  the  respiration  all  deaths  may  and  should  be  pre- 
vented. The  Report  points  out  that  instead  of  the  con- 
clusions at  which  the  Commission  has  arrived  being 
opposed  to  those  of  Claude  Bernard,  they  are  almost 
exactly  those  at  which  that  distinguished  physiologist, 
so  well  known  for  his  accurate  work,  had  arrived, 
although  his  name  is  often  quoted  in  support  of  the 
doctrine  that  chloroform  kills  by  paralyzing  the  heart. 
The  number  of  experiments  on  which  the  Commission 
bases  its  conclusions  is  very  large,  no  fewer  than  430 
having  been  done  without  recording  apparatus,  and  1 57 
with  recording  apparatus.  The  former  consisted  chiefly 
of  experiments,  firstly,  on  the  general  action  of  chloro- 
form given  in  various  ways,  in  various  dilutions,  and  in 
different  conditions  of  the  animal,  e.g.  fasting,  after 
meals,  after  a  preliminary  dose  of  spirits,  &c. ;  and, 
secondly,  on  the  limits  within  which  artificial  respiration 
could  restore  life,  and  the  effect  of  morphine,  strychnine, 
atropine,  &c.,  in  modifying  the  action  of  the  anaesthetic 
and  the  reviving  power  of  artificial  respiration.  The 
necessary  apparatus  was  taken  out  by  Dr.  Lauder 
Brunton,  and  on  his  arrival  at  Hyderabad  the  Com- 
mission was  at  once  constituted  :  Surgeon-Major  Lawrie, 
President ;  Drs.  Lauder  Brunton,  Bomford,  and  Rus- 
tamji,  members  ;  Dr.  Bomford  acting  as  secretary. 
They  were  greatly  aided  in  their  work  by  the  members 
of  the  first  Commission,  Drs.  Hehir,  Kelly,  and  Chama- 
rette,  as  well  as  to  Messrs.  Tripp,  Carroll,  and  Mayberry, 
the  latter  of  whom  gave  the  chloroform.  To  Dr.  Chama- 
rette's  energy  and  fertility  of  resource  the  success  of  the 
experiments  was  mainly  due.  The  work  was  continued 
daily  from  7  a.m.  to  5  p.m.,  except  on  Sundays  and 
holidays,  from  October  23  to  December  18.  From  a 
speech  made  by  Dr.  Lauder  Brunton  at  a  dinner  given 
to  the  Chloroform  Commission  by  the  Nawab  Intesar 
Jung,  we  learn  that  the  facilities  for  work  afforded  to  the 
Commission  were  such  as  were  not  to  be  found  even  in 
the  great  laboratories  of  the  continent  of  Europe  ;  and, 
indeed,  the  large  number  of  experiments  which  were 
made  in  a  comparatively  short  time,  is  sufficient  of  itself 
to  show  this.  At  this  dinner  the  Nawab  Intesar  Jung 
reminded  his  guests  that  Europe  is  indebted  to  Moham- 
medan writers  of  the  schools  of  Bagdad  and  Cordova 
for  the  preservation  of  medical  science  during  the  dark 
ages  ;  and  as  Dr.  Lauder  Brunton  very  truly  said  in  his 
reply,  the  Nizam  has  not  only  followed  the  traditions  of 
the  Mussulmans  in  selecting  the  subject  of  research,  but 
has  rivalled  the  generosity  of  Haroun-al-Raschid  and 
Abdurrahman  in  supplying  the  Commission  with  every- 

o 


290 


NA  rURE 


{Jan.  30,  1890 


thing  it  could  require.  Although  the  liberal  endowment 
of  universities  and  schools  is  now  fortunately  much  more 
common,  especially  in  America,  than  it  used  to  be,  yet 
there  are  few  instances  of  such  liberality  as  the  Nizam 
has  shown  towards  definite  subjects  of  scientific  research. 
For  the  excellent  example  they  have  shown  in  this 
matter,  the  Nizam  and  his  enlightened  Minister,  Sir 
Asman  Jah,  deserve  the  thanks  of  the  scientific  world, 
while  they  also  deserve  that  of  the  public  in  general  for 
their  endeavour  to  save  life  and  lessen  suffering  by 
rendering  the  administration  of  anaesthetics  so  safe  that 
they  may  be  employed  without  fear  whenever  they  are 
required. 


HYGIENE. 

Hygiene,  or  Public  Health.     By  Louis  C.  Parkes,  M.D. 
(London:  H.  K.  Lewis,  1889.) 

DR.  LOUIS  PARKES  has  conferred  an  important 
service  by  the  opportune  publication  of  his  manual 
of  hygiene.  The  public  mind  has  been  slow  to  perceive 
the  importance  of  the  science  of  preventive  medicine. 
For  nearly  lialf  a  century  Sir  Edwin  Chadwickand  others 
have  preached  the  doctrine.  It  fell  for  a  long  time  on 
sterile  ears.  No  doubt  provisions  have  been  made  by 
Parliament  from  time  to  time,  when  some  special  danger 
or  disease-cause  was  brought  prominently  into  notice  : 
not,  indeed,  as  a  part  of  a  system  of  sanitary  protection, 
but  as  if  it  were  the  only  matter  to  be  cared  for.  Thus, 
vaccination  was  made  compulsory  to  stop  small-pox,  but 
for  a  long  time  many  other  diseases  were  ignored.  These 
scattered  efforts  in  sanitary  legislation  were  brought  to  a 
focus  in  1875,  and  systematic  sanitation  may  be  said  to 
have  been  instituted  by  the  division  of  the  country  into 
sanitary  areas,  and  by  the  appofntment  of  medical  officers 
of  health.  These  provisions  were  rather  a  theoretical 
recognition  of  the  importance  of  the  subject  than  a  prac- 
tical creation  of  efficiency,  for  the  medical  officers  in  a 
large  number  of  instances  have  not  received  such  re- 
muneration as  would  enabl-e  them  to  give  their  whole 
time  to  their  duties ;  nor  do  they  possess  security  of 
tenure.  They  have  been,  for  the  most  part,  men  in  local 
practice,  who  have  been  content  to  receive  an  honorarium 
in  some  cases  as  low  as  £20  or  ^10,  and  occasionally 
even  ^5  and  ^3  a  year.  Such  payments  could  not  be 
expected  to  induce  men  to  do  more  than  give  a  nominal 
service  to  their  official  duties  ;  and  it  is,  indeed,  notorious 
that  in  many  instances  the  object  of  members  of  the 
sanitary  authority  which  has  made  the  appointment,  who 
are  themselves  owners  of  house  property,  has  been  to 
nominate  men  who  would  let  matters  rest,  and  would  not 
compel  owners  of  cottages  to  spend  money  on  sanitation. 

We  are  now,  however,  entering  upon  a  new  era  in 
sanitation.  The  creation  of  County  Councils  which  took 
place  last  year  has  introduced  a  new  feature.  Although 
the  powers  vested  in  these  bodies  are  permissive  and 
somewhat  tentative,  it  has  already  become  quite  certain 
that  they  will,  sooner  or  later,  bring  the  whole  sanitary 
service  of  the  country  under  their  general  supervision 
and  control. 

The  Local  Government  Act  of  1888  lays  down  the 
provision  that  the  medical  officer  of  health  to  be  ap- 


pointed by  a  county  must  be  qualified  in  sanitary  know- 
ledge— that  is  to  say,  in  the  knowledge  of  the  prevention 
of  disease,  as  distinguished  from  curative  knowledge.  It 
will,  therefore,  be  necessary  that  the  men  appointed  shall 
have  spent  time  and  money  in  obtaining  the  required 
qualifications  for  their  duties  :  hence  they  will  expect 
adequate  salaries  to  remunerate  them  for  the  trouble 
and  expense  which  they  will  have  incurred  in  thus  edu- 
cating themselves.  The  call  for  education  in  preventive 
medicine  will  react  upon  the  medical  schools  and  the 
various  degree-conferring  bodies— such  as  the  Univer- 
sities— and  will  compel  them  to  hold  examinations  in, 
and  to  confer  diplomas  or  certificates  upon  the  possessors 
of,  sanitary  knowledge.  Moreover,  the  sanitary  authori- 
ties, in  order  to  justify  to  themselves  the  higher  salaries 
which  they  will  be  compelled  to  pay,  will  be  induced  to 
place  enlarged  areas  under  the  medical  officer,  and,  in 
order  that  he  may  effectually  perform  his  duties,  he  will 
insist  on  being  furnished  with  a  better  educated  staff  of 
sanitary  inspectors  or  inspectors  of  nuisances  than  have 
been,  as  a  rule,  appointed  under  the  old  regime. 

It  is  thus  evident  that  there  will  soon  be  a  great  call 
for  sanitary  education,  and  Dr.  Parkes's  volume  forms  a 
very  useful  commentary  upon  what  are  the  general  heads 
comprised  in  a  course  of  instruction  in  the  methods 
necessary  for  applying  various  branches  of  science  to  the 
prevention  of  disease.  A  glance  at  the  table  of  contents 
shows  the  very  large  field  embraced  under  the  title  of  pre- 
ventive medicine.  It  concerns  not  only  the  medical  man, 
but  the  engineer,  the  architect,  the  chemist,  the  physiologist, 
the  meteorologist,  and  the  statistician.  The  questions  to 
be  studied  include  climatic  conditions ;  the  effect  on 
health  of  the  state  and  movement  of  the  atmosphere  % 
the  health  of  soils  ;  the  purity  of  water-supply,  and  the 
prevention  of  injury  to  health  from  fouled  water ;  the 
construction  of  buildings,  their  warming,  lighting,  and 
ventilation  ;  questions  of  food  and  clothing  ;  the  history 
of  communicable  diseases ;  and  bacteriology,  as  well  as 
hygienic  chemistry  and  statistics. 

A  brief  summary  of  the  present  position  of  our  know- 
ledge shows  us  that  preventive  medicine  is  still  far  re- 
moved from  being  an  exact  science.  We  have,  no  doubt, 
lately  made  much  progress  in  removing  from  the  medical 
man  the  imputation  that  his  proceedings  were  empirical. 
Physiological  studies  in  recent  years  have  established  the 
relationship  between  certain  diseases  and  the  presence 
of  micro-organisms  ;  and  although  this  relationship  may 
not  be  as  universal  as  some  persons  wouldhold,yet  we  know 
that  there  is  a  positive  relationship  in  the  case  of  certain 
diseases.  When  the  causes  of  diseases  are  known  ;  when 
the  action  of  the  causes  can  be  studied,  and  their  mode  of 
entrance  into  the  body  ascertained ;  when  the  methods 
which  can  be  applied  to  their  destruction  are  discovered  ^ 
then  the  science  of  the  prevention  of  disease  ceases  to  be 
empirical. 

Whilst,  however,  our  progress  in  this  knowledge  has  o^ 
late  years  been  extremely  rapid  as  compared  with  former 
experience  ;  yet  when,  as  in  this  volume,  we  are  brought 
face  to  face  with  the  various  problems  of  the  prevention 
of  disease,  we  are  amazed  to  find  what  a  vast  field  is  still 
unexplored  in  the  knowledge  of  the  causes  of  disease.  Dr. 
Parkes  has  given  a  very  interesting  summary  of  our 
knowledge  on  this  part  of  the  question  in  his  chapters  on. 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


291 


contagia  and  communicable  diseases.  We  may  be  said 
at  present  to  be  only  standing  on  the  threshold  of  this 
veiy  intricate  subject.  Even  in  the  case  of  those  diseases 
which  have  been  ascribed  with  the  greatest  assurance  to 
the  presence  of  organisms  in  the  blood  or  the  tissues,  we 
are  told  that  it  is  as  yet  uncertain  whether  the  symptoms 
of  disease  are  the  results  of  the  direct  action  of  microbes 
themselves  upon  the  tissues,  or  are  caused  by  their 
indirect  action  in  producing  poisonous  alkaloids  or  fer- 
ments. We  have  not  yet  elucidated  the  curious  connec- 
tion between  the  diseases  of  animals  and  mankind  ;  but 
whilst  we  are  gradually  acquiring  the  conviction  that 
some  diseases  from  which  animals  suffer  are  communic- 
able to  the  human  race,  it  is  at  any  rate  satisfactory  at 
the  same  time  to  have  arrived  at  the  certainty  that  those 
laws  of  cleanliness  in  air,  soil,  and  water,  which  are  the 
basis  of  human  sanitation,  are  the  most  effective  safe- 
guards to  be  observed  in  the  case  of  domestic  animals,  if 
certain  classes  of  disease  are  to  be  avoided.  But  with  all 
our  increased  knowledge  of  the  existence  and  methods  of 
propagation  of  the  various  forms  of  organisms  which 
appear  to  co-exist  with  certain  forms  of  disease,  we  have 
not  yet  discovered  why  certain  diseases  become  epidemic 
at  certain  times,  whilst  they  lie  comparatively  dormant  at 
other  times  ;  Nature  has  not  yet  revealed  all  her  secrets 
to  the  microscope  or  to  the  laboratory. 

Take  as  an  instance,  the  influenza  which  is  now  present 
with  us.  Its  epidemics  are  historical.  It  has  appeared 
over  and  over  again  at  somewhat  distant  intervals.  But 
we  do  not  know  why  it  comes  at  one  time  and  not  at 
another.  It  has  been  specially  described  on  various 
occasions  since  1557.  In  1837  it  covered  the  whole  of 
the  north  of  Europe  in  fifteen  days.  It  travels  as  rapidly 
through  sparsely  inhabited  as  through  populous  countries. 
In  1780  it  manifested  itself  in  ships  in  mid-ocean,  which 
had  had  no  communication  with  the  shore.  The  facts 
connected  with  its  incidence  are  thus  well  known.  Its 
progress  would  scarcely  seem  to  be  accounted  for  by 
contagion  or  infection  in  the  common  acceptance  of  the 
word.  Is  its  present  advent  due,  like  the  beautiful 
sunsets  with  which  we  were  favoured  a  few  years  ago, 
as  some  observer  suggests,  to  a  catastrophe  in  some 
•distant  part  of  the  globe  ?  or  is  it  owing,  as  M.  Descroix, 
of  the  Meteorological  Observatory  at  Montsouris,  tells  us, 
to  the  remarkably  stagnant  atmosphere  of  last  autumn  ? 
Large  populations  agglomerated  in  towns  depend,  for  the 
removal  of  the  foul  emanations  continually  passing  into 
the  atmosphere  from  their  midst,  upon  the  action  of 
winds  and  storms,  and  these  causes  of  ventilation 
were  notably  absent  during  the  past  autumn  ;  and  Dr. 
Descroix  points  out  that  the  failure  to  remove  this  im- 
purity would  favour  the  propagation  of  organisms  in- 
jurious to  the  health  of  the  community,  acting  in  this 
respect  just  as  a  festering  drain  or  manure  heap  would 
act. 

The  advance  which  each  separate  science  makes 
opens  out  new  views  to  the  hygienist,  and  this  short 
reference  to  the  epidemic  of  influenza  serves  to  point  out 
the  extent  of  the  subject,  and  to  impress  upon  us  the  fact 
that  it  is  almost  impossible  that  a  moderate-sized  treatise 
by  a  single  individual  could  form  an  adequate  text-book 
for  the  student  in  these  various  and  intricate  questions. 

Dr.  Parkes's  volume,  admirable  as  it  is  in  many  respects. 


leaves  something  to  be  desired  in  its  treatment  of  some 
of  the  subjects.  We  would  especially  refer  to  those  re- 
lating to  civil  engineering  and  architecture,  which  are  not 
the  special  subjects  of  a  medical  man.  The  treatment  of 
these  branches  presents  some  weak  points,  and  there  is  an 
occasional  tendency  to  recommend  specific  inventions 
rather  than  to  enunciate  principles,  which  may  somewhat 
militate  against  the  general  acceptance  of  the  volume  as 
a  complete  and  permanent  text-book. 

It  would  have  been  better  if  the  educational  features  of 
the  book  had  been  limited  to  those  special  subjects  with 
which  the  profession  of  the  author  has  made  him  most 
familiar.  The  work  is,  however,  a  convenient  hand-book, 
and  will  serve  as  a  valuable  guide  to  show  the  student 
what  are  the  several  subjects  which  have  to  be  studied  ; 
and  in  that  sense  we  can  safely  recommend  it  as  an 
adjunct  to  the  library  of  every  sanitarian. 


IN  THE  HIGH  ALPS. 
Im  Hochgebirge.    Wanderungen  von  Dr.  Emil  Zsigmondy. 
Mit  Abbildungen  von  E.  T.  Compton.     Herausgegeben 
von    K.  Schulz.      (Leipzig :     Duncker   and    Humblot, 
1889.) 

THIS  handsome  volume  possesses  a  melancholy 
interest,  for  it  is  in  reality  a  memorial  to  a  young 
and  ardent  mountaineer  who  was  killed  by  a  fall  from  a 
precipice  in  the  year  1885.  Emil  Zsigmondy  was  by 
descent  a  Hungarian,  but  was  born  and  educated  in 
Vienna,  where  his  father  practised  as  a  physician.  The 
son  followed  the  same  profession,  of  which  he  was  a 
distinguished  student.  As  a  boy  he  showed  a  love  of 
mountain-climbing.  At  the  age  of  fifteen,  he  and  his 
brother  Otto,  without  guides,  made  an  ascent  of  the 
Reiseck,  a  peak  2958  metres  high.  The  expedition  occu- 
pied twenty-six  hours,  of  which  twenty-two  were  spent  in 
actual  walking,  a  remarkable  feat  of  endurance  on  the  part 
of  two  lads. 

After  this  Emil  made  annually  an  Alpine  excursion, 
the  expeditions  increasing  in  difficulty  and  (with  the 
exception  of  one  year)  in  number.  The  first  of  which  a 
description  was  published  was  accomplished  in  his  eight- 
eenth year,  and  after  this  references  to  the  journals  of 
foreign  Alpine  Clubs  and  similar  publications  are  frequent 
on  the  list.  Altogether,  as  we  are  told  in  the  brief  bio- 
graphical notice  prefixed  to  this  work,  Emil  Zsigmondy, 
though  he  perished  a  few  days  before  completing  his 
twenty-fourth  year,  had  climbed  nearly  100  summits  of 
more  than  3000  metres  in  height  above  the  sea  -in  more 
than  nine  cases  out  of  ten  unaccompanied  by  guides. 
Most  of  the  expeditions  described  in  this  volume  have 
already  appeared  in  various  journals,  and  describe  excur- 
sions which  in  themselves  are  not  new  ;  but  many  of  them 
have  this  special  interest,  that  they  were  made  without 
guides.  Sometimes  the  brothers  were  alone,  but  on  the 
more  difficult  excursions  they  were  generally  accom- 
panied by  one  or  two  trusty  friends,  such  as  Prof.  Schulz, 
editor  and  part-author  of  this  work. 

The  book  is  a  record  of  Alpine  expeditions  told  in  plain 
but  graphic  language.  It  scarcely  touches  upon  scientific 
questions,  though  we  are  informed  that  Emil  was  a  student 
of  Alpine  botany,  zoology,  and  geology,  and  published 
some  observations  on  these  subjects  in  a  work  which 


292 


NATURE 


\yan.  30,  1890 


appeared  before  his  death.  But  now  and  then  a  chance 
remark  indicates  the  geologist,  and  there  is  an  interesting 
account  of  a  remarkable  appearance  of  the  "  Brocken 
spectre."  This  was  witnessed  from  a  rocky  ridge  near 
the  summit  of  the  Bietschhorn,  a  lofty  peak  on  the 
southern  side  of  the  Bernese  Oberland.  The  shadow  of 
the  observer  was  seen  within  a  triple  rainbow-ring.  Of 
these  rings,  the  inner  one  exhibited  the  usual  tints ;  these 
were  weaker  in  the  second,  and  barely  visible  in  the  third. 
The  shadow  was  larger  than  life,  but  was  less  than  the 
diameter  of  the  inner  ring.  By  this,  according  to  the 
text,  it  was  encircled  ;  but  in  the  accompanying  woodcut 
the  shadow  of  the  legs  from  below  the  knees  is  thrown 
upon  the  rings.  The  sun  was  getting  low,  and  towards 
the  west,  for  it  was  nearly  4  o'clock  on  an  afternoon  early 
in  September.  The  wind  came  from  the  same  direction, 
and  the  clouds  were  drifting  eastwards  from  the  moun- 
tain-peak. The  "  spectre "  remained  visible  for  nearly 
an  hour,  while  the  observers  completed  the  ascent  to  the 
actual  summit. 

The  illustrations  are  numerous,  and  some  of  them  are 
not  without  a  scientific  value  as  faithful  renderings  of 
mountain  scenery.  It  is  seldom  that  the  same  can  be 
said  of  similar  engravings  in  English  books.  These,  if 
no  longer  the  caricatures  which  were  formerly  supposed 
to  represent  mountains,  are  still  too  often  devoid  of  cha- 
racter, Mr.  Whymper  can  and  does  give  the  outline  of  a 
mountain  peak  and  the  distinctive  features  of  its  rocks, 
but  the  ordinary  illustrator  is  content  with  some  con- 
ventional smudging  which  serves  impartially  for  granite 
or  limestone,  for  schist  or  slate,  and  is  equally  unlike 
each  one  of  them,  or,  indeed,  anything  that  exists  on  this 
earth.  But  as  our  artists  are  at  length  beginning  to 
realize  that  Nature's  workmanship  is  better  than  their 
own,  and  to  follow  the  path  which  was  trodden  by  Turner, 
Elijah  Walton,  Ruskin,  and  a  few  pioneers,  we  may 
hope  that  the  illustrations  of  mountain  scenery  in  English 
books  may  rise  to  the  level  of  Continental  publications, 
which,  though  not  free  from  mannerisms,  do  make  some 
attempt  at  accuracy.  Those  in  the  present  work  consist 
of  eighteen  full-page  photogravures,  copied  apparently 
from  water-colour  drawings,  and  of  a  large  number  of 
woodcuts,  which  are  in  part  from  finished  drawings,  in 
part  from  pen-and-ink  outline  sketches.  Many  of  the 
former  ai'e  excellent,  so  also  are  some  of  the  latter  ;  but 
these  are  less  successful  in  representing  scenery  than 
in  recording  little  incidents  in  the  mountaineers'  expe- 
rience. The  simple  unaffected  narrative  of  adventure, 
in  which  there  is  evidence  of  skill  in  dealing  with  moun- 
tain difficulties,  and  courage,  pushed,  perhaps,  sometimes 
to  the  border  of  rashness,  is  very  pleasant  to  read,  and  it 
is  sad  to  think  that  such  a  life  has  been  lost  to  his  many 
friends.  The  fatal  fall  occurred  during  an  attempted 
ascent  of  the  Meije,  in  Dauphind,  by  a  new  route  up  the 
southern  cliffs.  Emil  had  climbed  some  distance  above 
his  two  companions,  when  he  fell  from  a  cliff.  They 
bravely  attempted  to  check  his  descent  by  means  of  the 
rope  which  was  attached  to  his  waist,  but  it  snapped 
under  the  strain,  and  the  chmber  in  a  few  moments  lay 
lifeless  on  a  glacier  2000  feet  below.  A  full  account  of 
the  accident  was  published  in  the  Alpine  Journal  for 
1885,  which  indicates  that  on  this  occasion  more  risk 
was  being  incurred  than  could  be  justified.        T.  G.  B, 


THE  STORY  OF  CHEMISTRY. 
The   Story   of  Chemistry.       By   Harold    Picton,    B.Sc.,. 
^yith  a  Preface  by  Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  M.P.,  D.C.L.^ 
LL.D,,  F.R.S.     Pp.386.     (London:  I  sbister,  1889.) 

IT  is  a  matter  for  surprise  that,  among  the  many  books 
on  the  different  branches  of  chemistry,  so  few  are 
to  be  found  devoted  to  the  historical  treatment  of  the 
science.  The  ordinary  student  in  attempting  to  get  an 
idea  of  the  development  of  the  subject  labours  under 
considerable  disadvantages.  From  time  to  time,  in- 
deed, our  professors  are  to  be  heard  expounding  "  The 
Atomic  Theory,"  "  Joseph  Priestley,"  "  The  Birth  of 
Chemistry,"  and  like  topics  ;  books  on  such  subjects  also 
exist.  Our  larger  treatises,  as  a  rule,  have  short  historical 
introductions ;  text-books,  too,  occasionally  contain  inform- 
ation such  as  "  the  gas  discovered  by  Rutherford  in  1772 
was  subsequently  named  nitrogen  by  Chaptal."  Front 
such  sources,  however,  a  conception  of  the  fundamental 
discoveries  which  have  led  up  to  the  chemistry  of  to-day 
is  only  possible  by  dint  of  much  searching,  and  at  an 
expenditure  of  time  far  beyond  that  at  the  disposal  of 
most  students.  A  short  history  of  the  science  in  a  handy 
form  would  be  a  decided  acquisition  to  chemical  literature. 
The  name  of  the  little  volume  before  us  is  thus  a  promising 
one,  and  on  perusal,  the  book  in  no  way  belies  its  title. 

After  showing  who  the  alchemists  were,  and  the  state 
of  chemical  knowledge  before  they  appeared  on  the  scene, 
the  author  proceeds  to  divide  his  subject  into  nine  periods. 
The  first  of  these,  "Alchemical  Mysticism,"  extending 
from  the  time  of  the  mysterious  Hermes  Trismegistus  to 
that  of  Roger  Bacon  and  Raymond  LuUy,  includes  also  an 
account  of  Geber  and  Albertus  Magnus.  Next  comes 
"  Medical  Mysticism,"  in  which  are  sketches  of  Basil 
Valentine  and  his  "  Triumphant  Chariot  of  Antimony,"  of 
Paracelsus  and  Van  Helmont  ;  followed  by  the  "  Decline 
of  Mysticism,"  reaching  down  to  the  founding  of  the 
Royal  Society  of  London  by  Charles  IL  in  1662,  and 
embracing  the  work  of  Glauber  and  Helvetius,  The 
fourth  period,  "  The  Beginnings  of  Science,"  deals  with 
Boyle,  Hooke,  Mayow,  and  Hales.  The  reader's 
attention  is  then  directed  to  Black's  introduction  of 
"  weighing  "  as  a  means  of  investigation.  This  chapter, 
which  gives,  besides,  a  pretty  picture  of  Cullen,  Black's 
instructor,  constitutes  the  "  Childhood  of  Truth."  Then 
follows,  under  the  heading  of  "  The  Conflict  with  Error," 
a  succinct  account  of  the  rise  and  progress  of  Stahl's 
phlogiston  theory,  with  its  bearings  on  the  researches  of 
Priestley,  Cavendish,  Scheele,  and  their  contemporaries. 
Lavoisier's  keen  penetration  and  masterly  deductions, 
"  The  Triumph  of  Truth,"  are  then  discussed,  and  lead 
up  to  "  The  Atomic  Theory,"  Dalton's  idea,  and  its  later 
developments,  from  the  time  of  Gay-Lussac,  Ampere,  and 
Avogadro,  to  that  of  Newlands  and  Mendeleeff  After  a 
separate  chapter  on  Davy  and  Faraday  the  book  is  brought 
to  a  close  by  short  descriptions  of  the  present  state  of 
inorganic  and  organic  chemistry. 

Mr.  Picton's  style  is  fresh  and  pleasing  ;  his  descriptions 
are  clear  and  to  the  point.  Whenever  possible,  brief  sur- 
veys of  the  life  and  work  of  the  men  of  science  mentioned 
are  given.  Extracts  from  original  writings  are  frequently 
quoted,  and  pains  taken  to  enable  the  reader  to  form  an 
idea  of  the  general  character  of  the  individuals  apart 
from   their  chemical  discoveries    alone.      Chronological 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


293 


■order  has  not  in  every  case  been  adhered  to,  the  main 
idea  and  its  subsequent  development  being  frequently 
-treated  together  ;  but  the  sequence  of  epoch-making  events 
is  strictly  maintained.  The  work  is  quite  up  to  date  ; 
Avhen  advisable,  the  author  has  introduced  facts  which 
have  only  been  established  by  recent  investigations. 

The  book  is  tastefully  bound,  and  the  illustrations  are 
numerous.  The  latter  are  varied,  and  embrace  cuts  from 
■  Die  Zwolf  Schliissel,"  apparatus  historic  and  modern, 
.ind  portraits  of  celebrated  chemists.  To  the  reader  pos- 
sessed of  some  chemical  knowledge  the  volume  will  be 
most  useful,  and  to  the  uninitiated  its  earlier  chapters,  at 
<east,  cannot  fail  to  be  inviting. 

LUMINOUS  ORGANISMS. 
I^es  Animaux  et  les   V^getaux  Luviineux.     Par   Henri 
Gadeau  de  Kerville.     (Paris  :    J.   B.  Bailliere  et  fils, 
1890.) 

THIS  little  book  is  a  semi-popular  summary  of  what  is 
known  in  regard  to  the  photogenous  structures  of 
the  various  kinds  of  luminous  animals  and  plants,  com- 
monly (but  improperly,  as  the  author  points  out)  known 
•as  phosphorescent.  As  it  is  on  the  whole  fairly  complete 
and  accurate,  being  based  largely  upon  the  important 
researches  of  Panceri,  Sars,  R.  Dubois,  Emery,  and 
•others,  it  will  probably  be  useful  not  only  to  amateurs, 
but  also  to  students  who  wish  to  get  a  general  knowledge 
•of  the  range  in  organic  nature  of  light-producing  forms, 
and  of  the  more  important  investigations  on  the  subject 
which  have  been  made  since  the  days  of  Aristotle  and 
Pliny. 

Although  the  title-page  of  this  book  bears  the  date 
1890,  the  important  discovery  by  Giard,  in  September 
last,  of  luminosity  in  Amphipods  which  is  due  to  an 
infectious  disease  is,  it  may  be  supposed,  too  recent  to 
have  been  included — at  any  rate,  it  is  not  referred  to. 

After  a  short  historical  rdsuvie,  the  first  half  of  the 
work  (170  pages)  is  occupied  by  a  systematic  account  of 
those  plants  and  animals  which  are  luminous,  commencing 
with  the  plants  and  then  working  up  through  the  animal 
series  from  Protozoa  to  Vertebrata.  More  animals  than 
plants  are  photogenous,  and  most  of  these  are  marine. 
Few  observations  have  been  made  upon  freshwater  forms, 
and  none  are  known  from  brackish  water.  M.  Gadeau 
de  Kerville  takes  care  to  point  out,  what  is  undoubtedly 
the  case,  that  many  supposed  instances  of  luminosity, 
<;specially  in  dead  animals  or  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
harbours,  &c.,  where  there  is  much  decaying  organic 
matter,  are  due,  not  to  any  "  phosphorescence  "  of  the 
animal  observed  glowing,  but  to  the  presence  of  luminous 
Bacteria  on  the  surface,  in  mucus,  or  in  the  tissues. 
Several  species  of  light-producing  micro-organisms  {jBa- 
cilH  and  Micrococci)  are  already  known,  and  the  list  will 
probably  be  largely  added  to  in  the  future.  It  is,  how- 
ever, an  excess  of  caution  to  doubt  the  claim  of  Ceraiium 
{Peridifiium)  to  be  placed  amongst  photogenous  genera, 
as  two  or  three  of  the  species  appear  to  be  responsible 
for  a  good  deal  of  the  "  phosphorescence  of  the  sea " 
around  our  western  coasts  in  autumn— a  phenomenon 
which  is  usually  attributed  even  by  naturalists  to  Nocti- 
luca  viiliaris,  although  at  such  times  it  often  happens 
that  not  a  single  Noctiluca  is  caught  by  the  townet ! 


The  well-known  observations  and  experiments  of  Pan- 
ceri on  Pennatiila  and  other  forms  are  given,  and  the 
figures  reproduced,  and  it  will  no  doubt  be  useful  to  many 
to  have  the  information  obtained  by  various  investi- 
gators thus  collected  into  one  volume.  On  p.  83  is  given 
an  observation  by  Quatrefages  upon  certain  luminous 
Talitri  (Amphipod  Crustaceans)  on  the  beach,  which  he 
supposed  had  derived  their  luminosity  from  contact  with 
Noctiluca.  Is  it  not  more  probable  that,  like  Giard's 
diseased  Amphipods  at  Wimereux  (which,  by  the  way, 
have  turned  up  lately  at  Jersey,  and  will  probably  be 
found  to  be  widely  spread),  they  were  infested  by  a 
photogenous  microbe  ? 

In  connection  with  the  remarkable  "  luminous  globules  " 
of  some  Schizopods  {Euphausia,  Nyctiphanes,  &c.),  M. 
Gadeau  de  Kerville  suggests  that  these  organs  are  light- 
perceiving,  as  well  as  light-producing,  and  that,  therefore, 
the  old  designation  of  "  accessory  eyes"  was  not  impro- 
perly applied.  This  view  is  supported  by  several  ob- 
served cases  where  the  true  eyes  of  higher  Crustacea 
were  luminous  ;  but  it  should  be  remembered  that  it  is 
entirely  opposed  to  the  matured  opinion  given  by  G.  O. 
Sars  in  his  Report  on  the  Challenger  Schizopods. 

Chapter  xiii.  is  devoted  to  an  account  of  the  anatomy 
and  physiology  of  the  photogenous  organs,  in  which, 
however,  little  of  importance  is  added  to  what  was 
given  in  the  preceding  part  of  the  book.  The  author 
adopts  the  view  of  Dubois  (founded  upon  experiments  on 
Pholas  dactyliis  made  at  the  Roscoff  Laboratory),  that  in 
all  cases  the  luminosity  is  a  purely  physico-chemical  phe- 
nomenon, and  is  dependent  on  the  presence  of  two  sub- 
stances— the  one  ijuciferine)  soluble  in  water  and  obtain- 
able in  the  crystalline  state,  the  other  (lucife'rase)  a  soluble 
ferment  (like  diastase) — which  must  be  brought  in  contact 
in  order  that  light  may  be  produced.  This  seems  going 
further  than  our  present  knowledge  really  warrants.  The 
light-producing  organisms  and  organs  are  so  varied  that 
it  is  possible  that  the  causes  of  the  luminosity  may  be 
manifold ;  and,  at  any  rate  in  the  higher  forms,  the  bring- 
ing together  of  the  lucifirine  and  luciferase  must  be 
under  the  direct  control  of  the  nervous  system,  as  the 
production  of  light  is  a  reflex,  perhaps  in  some  cases  a 
voluntary,  action. 

In  a  short  chapter,  entitled  "  Philosophie  naturelle," 
the  author  considers,  from  the  evolution  stand-point,  such 
questions  as  the  origin  of  luminosity,  the  reason  why 
only  relatively  small  numbers  of  animals  and  plants  are 
luminous,  why  the  majority  of  luminous  animals  are 
marine,  &c.  ;  but  for  a  discussion  of  these  points,  and 
also  of  the  various  uses  (both  to  animals  and  to  man) 
which  the  luminosity  may  have,  reference  must  be  made 
to  the  book  itself,  which,  although  some  of  the  illus- 
trations are  poor,  and  there  is  unnecessary  repetition 
and  verbosity  in  the  text,  forms  a  readable  and  useful 
introduction  to  a  very  interesting  and  important  subject. 

W.  A.  Herdman. 

OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

The  Chemistry  of  Photography.     By  R.  Meldola,  F.R.S. 
(London  ;  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 

This  work  is  well  worthy  of  study  by  serious  devotees  of 
photography.  It  enters,  as  its  title  indicates,  into  the  che- 
mistry of  photography,  and  that  in  a  very  thorough  and 


294 


NATURE 


[Jan.  30,  1890 


easily  understandable  manner.  There  are  some  very  few  i 
points  in  the  author'sexplanationsof  phenomenaas  regards  I 
which  we  cannot  quite  agree  with  him.  For  instance,  when 
he  is  considering  the  action  of  light  on  silver  chloride  he 
states  that  an  oxychloride  is  formed  (on  the  authority  of 
Dr.  Hodgkinson).  That  this  is  not  always  the  case  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  silver  chloride  is  darkened  when 
exposed  in  the  presence  of  bodies  which  contain  no 
oxygen,  as,  for  instance,  when  the  exposure  is  given  in 
benzene.  The  author  has  adopted  the  plan  of  calling  his 
chapters  lectures,  and  in  this  instance  we  shall  find  no 
fault  with  what  often  is  an  artifice  to  cover  slipshod 
writing,  since  the  subject-matter  is  good,  the  language 
clear,  and  descriptive  experiments  are  appended  after  each 
note  in  the  narrative.  We  feel  assured  that  if  a  student 
be  fairly  grounded  in  elementary  chemistry  and  carries 
out  these  experiments,  he  will  have  a  far  better  knowledge 
of  the  theory  of  photography  than  nine  out  of  ten  students 
possessed  before  this  work  was  written.  The  author 
rightly  points  out  that  much  in  the  theory  of  photography 
still  requires  elucidation,  and  with  this  we  quite  agree  ;  but 
by  putting  into  a  connected  shape  those  portions  of  the 
theory  which  may  not  require  reconsideration,  he  has 
done  much  towards  facilitating  the  solution  of  the  remain- 
ing problems  which  are  still  sicb  judice. 

The  Popular  Works  of  Johatm  Gottlieb  Fichte.  Trans- 
lated from  the  German  by  William  Smith,  LL.D. 
With  a  Memoir  of  the  Author.  Fourth  Edition.  In 
Two  Vols.     (London  :  Triibner  and  Co.,  1889.) 

These  volumes  form  part  of  the  well-known  "  English 
and  Foreign  Philosophical  Library."  The  translations 
included  in  them  were  first  published  in  1845-49,  when 
German  philosophy  had  only  begun  to  attract  attention 
in  England.  Fichte  holds  so  clearly  marked  a  place  in 
the  development  of  modern  thought  that  it  is  still  worth 
the  while  of  students  to  make  themselves  famihar  with 
his  governing  ideas  ;  and  there  can  be  no  disadvantage  in 
their  beginning  with  his  popular  rather  than  with  his 
more  systematic  works.  So  far  as  the  form  of  Fichte's 
teaching  is  concerned,  it  cannot  of  course  be  said  to  meet 
the  needs  of  the  present  day.  To  many  minds  there  is  ! 
something  even  irritating  in  his  use  of  large,  abstract 
expressions,  which  are  incapable  of  precise  definition, 
and  in  the  dogmatic  tone  in  which  he  proclaims  his  con- 
victions, as  if  he  had  somehow  had  special  access  to  the 
sources  of  absolute  truth.  But  his  effort  to  solve  the 
questions  which  lie  behind  the  problems  of  physical 
science  has  at  least  the  interest  that  belongs  to  perfect 
sincerity ;  and  his  methods  and  conclusions,  whether 
they  commend  themselves  to  our  judgment  or  not,  are 
often  in  a  high  degree  suggestive.  He  was  personally  of 
so  manly  and  noble  a  character  that  his  popular  writings, 
in  which  he  expressed  his  sympathies  and  tendencies 
freely,  are  perhaps  more  valuable  from  the  ethical  than 
from  the  strictly  intellectual  point  of  view.  Dr.  Smith's 
work  as  a  translator  is,  we  need  scarcely  say,  excellent  ; 
and  the  like  may  be  said  of  his  work  as  a  biographer. 
His  memoir  of  the  philosopher  is  written  in  a  thoroughly 
appreciative  spirit,  and  with  adequate  knowledge. 

Travels  in  France.  By  Arthur  Young.  With  an  In- 
troduction, Biographical  Sketch,  and  Notes,  by  M. 
Betham- Edwards.  (London  :  George  Bell  and  Sons, 
1889.) 

Everyone  who  has  given  even  slight  attention  to  the 
pre-revolutionary  period  of  French  history  knows,  at 
least  by  hearsay,  something  about  Arthur  Young's 
"  Travels  in  France."  No  other  work  of  that  time 
throws  so  clear  and  steady  a  light  on  the  social  and 
economic  conditions  which  prevailed  among  the  mass  of 
the  French  people  immediately  before  their  great  national 
convulsion.  This  is  well  understood  by  French  historical 
students,  who  have  found  in  the  record  of  Young's  ob- 


servatiolis  a  tnine  of  information  on  the  very  subjects 
about  which  they  are  most  anxious  to  obtain  trustworthy 
contemporary  statements.  The  present  reprint  deserves, 
therefore,  to  be  cordially  welcomed.  It  has  been  care- 
fully edited  by  Miss  Betham-Edwards,  who,  in  an  in- 
teresting introduction,  prepares  the  way  for  the  study  of 
the  book  by  presenting  "  a  contrasted  picture  of  France 
under  the  ancien  regime  and  under  the  third  Republic." 
She  also  gives  a  valuable  biographical  sketch  of  Arthur 
Young,  the  materials  having  been  supplied  by  his  grand- 
son. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

yrht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. 

Mr.  Dyer  accuses  me  of  invading  the  pages  of  Nature  by 
methods  of  discussion  characteristic  of  the  political  debater. 
Those  methods,  however,  may  be  good  as  well  as  bad.  In 
addition  to  direct  affirmative  arguments  in  support  of  a  particular 
conclusion,  they  may  trace  the  working  and  the  power  of  pre- 
conceptions which  in  science,  as  well  as  in  other  things,  are  an 
abounding  source  of  error.  On  the  other  hand,  methods  of 
debate  may  be  confused  and  declamatory,  dealing  in  vague 
phrases,  and  delighting  in  clap-trap  illustrations.  If  I  could  not 
handle  a  scientific  question  by  some  method  less  adapted  to  the 
"  shilling  gallery  "  than  the  method  of  my  censor  in  this  case, 
I  should  wish  to  be  silent  for  evermore.  In  his  letter  I  see 
"  Teleology  "  compared  to  "a  wise  damsel  ".  who  is  "tempor- 
arily ruffled,"  but  who  nevertheless  "gathers  up  her  skirts 
with  dignity."  I  see  Addison  brought  in,  head  and  shoulders, 
with  "the  vision  of  Mirza."  I  see  Fortuity  described  as  "in- 
separable from  life,"  with  the  somewhat  obscure  oratorical 
addition  that  "it  is  at  the  bottom  one  of  the  most  pathetic 
things  about  it."  I  see  mixed  metaphors  of  all  sorts  and  kinds, 
"the  church,"  and  "orthodoxy,"  and  "automatically  self-re- 
gulating machines,"  and  "tenacity  about  outworks  " — and  many 
other  such  words  and  phrases — all  handled  according  to  methods 
which  do  not  strike  me  as  at  all  perfect  examples  of  true  scientific 
reasoning. 

Nor  am  I  able  to  follow  Mr.  Dyer's  logic  better  than  I  can 
admire  his  declamation.  The  object  of  my  last  letter,  which  he 
attacks,  was  to  lay  down  and  defend  the  proposition  that  "  there 
is  no  necessary  antagonism  between  congenital  variation  and 
the  transmission  of  acquired  characters."  Mr.  Dyer  admits  this 
proposition  to  be  "  perfectly  reasonable,"  adding,  in  respect  to 
this  supposed  antagonism,  "theoretically  there  is  none."  But 
then  he  proceeds  to  say,  "  this  does  not  make  the  transmission 
of  acquired  characters  less  doubtful."  In  other  words,  the  com- 
plete and  effectual  removal  of  an  adverse  presumption  is  of  no 
value  in  an  argument  which  rests  altogether  on  difficulties  and 
doubts.  This  would  be  unreasonable  enough  considered  merely 
in  the  abstract.  But  it  becomes  still  more  unreasonable  when 
we  recollect  that  the  whole  doctrine  of  evolution  implies,  of 
necessity,  the  continual  rise  of  new  characters  and  the  transmis- 
sion of  them.  These  new  characters  are  "acquired"  in  one 
sense,  and  they  may  be  congenital  in  another.  They  not  only 
may  be,  but  probably  they  must  be,  acquired  from  latent  con- 
genital tendencies,  and  they  may  be  fixed  and  transmitted  only 
by  those  tendencies  ceasing  to  be  latent.  On  this  view  of  the 
matter,  the  present  controversy  between  the  two  conceptions 
becomes  a  mere  logomachy.  The  diffisrent  breeds  of  dog  do 
undoubtedly  transmit  characters  which  have  been  "acquired." 
But  it  is  always  possible  to  assert,  and  always  impossible  to  deny, 
that  these  characters  arose  out  of  congenital  tendencies  latent  in 
the  species.  Mr.  Dyer's  assertion  that  this  method  of  reconcil- 
ing the  two  ideas  ' '  does  not  make  the  transmission  of  acquired 
characters  less  doubtful,"  is  an  assertion,  therefore,  which  is 
obviously  wrong.  The  reconciliation  attacks  the  difficulty  about 
the  "  inheritance  of  acquired  characters  "  at  its  very  heart  and 
centre.  It  shows  it  to  lie — as  a  thousand  other  difficulties  have 
lain  before — in  an  ambiguous  word.  ' '  Acquired  "  ?  Yes ;  but  from 
what?     From   "use"?    Yes,  but  whence  came  the  possibility 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


295 


of ' '  use  " — and  the  tendency — or  the  disposition — or  the  instinct — 
to  use  ?  The  answer  may  be,  and  perhaps  always  must  be,  that 
the  possibility  of  each  new  use,  and  the  disposition  to  it,  has 
been  acquired  from  the  evolution  of  elements  inherent  in  the 
germ. 

The  next  specimen  of  pure  scientific  reasoning  which  I  find 
in  Mr,  Dyer's  letter  is  involved  in  his  rebuke  to  me  for  having 
made  an  assertion  in  support  of  which  I  have  produced  no 
"  definite  observed  evidence."  That  assertion  he  correctly 
quotes  thus : — "  All  organs  do  actually  pass  through  rudi- 
mentary stages  in  which  actual  use  is  impossible."  He  chal- 
lenges me  for  proof.  I  return  the  challenge,  and  summon 
Mr.  Dyer  to  produce  one  single  instance  of  any  animal  which 
does  NOT  pass  through  such  stages.  It  is  the  universal  law  of 
all  organic  beings.  In  some  germ — in  some  bud — in  some  egg 
— in  some  womb,  every  living  thing  begins  to  grow.  Moreover, 
what  is  true  of  it  as  a  whole,  is  true  of  all  its  parts.  All  its 
organs — be  they  few  and  simple,  or  many  and  complex — pass 
through  stages  of  incipience,  of  impotence — of  divorce  from 
even  the  possibility  of  actual  and  present  use.  It  is  truly  an 
astonishing  circumstance  that  any  scientific  man  should  ask  for 
any  proof  of  this.  It  is  a  signal  illustration  of  the  power  of 
neglected  elements  in  reasoning — of  the  familiar  becoming  the 
practically  unknown,  because  it  is  the  unconsidered. 

Possibly,  Mr.  Dyer  may  say  that  he  did  not  understand  me  to 
make  the  assertion  of  each  individual  organism.  But  this  is  a 
distinction  without  a  difference.  If  the  Darwinian  theory  be 
true,  there  has  never  been  any  other  origin  for  species  than  the 
origin  of  a  few  first  germs — developed  ever  since  by  the  pro- 
cesses of  ordinary  generation,  through  a  succession  of  individuals. 
The  well-known  generalization  of  Darwinian  embryologists  is  that 
the  foetal  development  of  the  individual  organism  is  the  type  and 
repetition  of  the  development  of  species  in  the  womb  of  time. 
In  the  doctrine  of  "  prophetic  germs,"  which  he  quotes  as  mine, 
nothing  is  mine  except,  perhaps,  the  adoption  of  the  words.  It 
is  the  embodiment,  in  what  I  hold  to  be  accurate  and  appro- 
priate language,  of  the  most  familiar  facts  in  nature,  and  of  the 
intellectual  conceptions  which  are  their  necessary  counterpart  in 
mind. 

ITiere  is  one  consequence  necessarily  following  from  this  con- 
ception, which  is  seldom  thought  of  and  never  fully  accepted  or 
recognized;  and  that  is,  that,  if  every  organism  has  been  deve- 
loped from  older  organisms  by  very  slow  and  gradual  and 
minute  changes  through  unnumbered  ages,  there  must  have  been 
a  constant  succession  of  new  organs  coming  on,  along  with  an 
equally  constant  succession  of  other  organs  passing  off.  I  see 
no  escape  from  this  conclusion.  Yet  if  it  be  true,  nothing  can 
be  more  unreasonable  than  to  wonder  at  the  occurrence  of  struc- 
tures which  are  divorced  from  actual  use,  and  which  are  variously 
called  "rudimentary,"  or  "aborted."  The  common  interpreta- 
tion always  is  that  they  are  the  inherited  remains  of  structures 
which  have  been  once  in  full  use,  and  have  been  lost  by  the 
atrophy  of  disuse.  This  may  or  may  not  be  true,  according  to 
special  facts  in  each  case.  But  that  there  has  always  been  in 
time  past  a  series  of  incipient  structures  on  the  rise  for  actual 
use  in  future  generations  of  development  is  a  necessary  conse- 
quence of  the  Darwinian  hypothesis,  and  indeed  of  all  other 
iorms  of  pure  evolutionism.  The  only  escape  from  it  is  the  sup- 
position that  special  organs  may  have  arisen  suddenly — may  have 
advanced  rapidly  into  functional  use — as  rapidly  as  a  caterpillar 
rushes  into  the  structure  of  a  butterfly,  after  a  short  interval  of 
inactivity  or  sleep. 

This  is  possible — this  is  at  least  conceivable.  Nay  more,  this 
may  have  been  the  process  by  which  new  species  have  been 
introduced.  But  this  is  not  Darwinism.  The  occasional  intro- 
duction of  new  germs,  with  new  potentialities,  and  the  "hurry- 
ing up "  of  these  through  rapid  stages  of  development,  or  of 
hatching,  is  an  idea  which,  if  I  remember  right,  did  not  escape 
the  speculative  glance  of  Darwin.  But  it  was  too  incongruous 
to  be  easily  assimilated  with  his  special  formulae,  and  so  his  fine 
eye  glanced  off  it  again,  after  only  a  momentary  look  ;  and  at  a 
later  date  he  was  so  biassed  in  favour  of  the  mechanics  of  for- 
tuitous variation  that  he  came  to  regard  the  very  idea  of  develop- 
ment being  guided  towards  any  use  yet  lying  wholly  in  the 
future  as  incompatible  with  his  theory,  and  indeed  destructive 
of  it. 

Mr,  Dyer  says  that  there  was  nothing  in  my  last  letter  "  which 
has  not  been  worn  threadbare  by  discussion."  If  so,  it  seems  a 
pity  that  Mr.  Dyer  should  have  interposed  in  a  discussion  which 
he  thinks  exhausted.      This  impression  may  account  for  the 


poverty  of  the  contribution  made  by  an  able  man  to  a  subject 
which  is  perhaps  the  most  difficult,  the  most  interesting,  and 
the  most    far-reaching  which    can  engage  the    human  under- 
standing. .\rgyll. 
Inveraray,  January  19, 

Multiple  Resonance  obtained  with  Hertz's  Vibrators. 

While  Mr.  Trouton  and  I  were  carrying  out  some  experi ' 
ments  to  try  and  drive  an  independent  current  through  the  arc 
formed  when  a  spark  passes  in  a  Hertzian  resonating  receiver, 
we  succeeded  to  some  extent  in  doing  so,  but  obtained  an  un- 
expected result  which  may  be  of  service  to  others  working  upon 
this  matter.  We  found  that  if  the  two  sides  of  the  receiver  be 
connected  with  a  delicate  galvanometer,  it  is  affected  whenever 
a  spark  passes.  It  is  not  so  easy  to  get  sparks  to  pass  when  the 
galvanometer  is  so  connected  as  when  the  receiver  is  insulated  ; 
but  whenever  a  spark  passes,  the  galvanometer — a  7000-ohm 
Cambridge  Scientific  Instrument  Company's  pattern — is  deflected 
through  several  degrees  and  often  off  the  scale.  It  is  not  very 
easy  to  see  how  the  action  takes  place,  because  one  would 
imagine  that  an  electro-dynamometer  would  be  required.  The 
current  is  reversed  along  with  the  reversal  of  the  primary  induc- 
tion, and  seems  to  be  connected  with  the  direction  of  the  electro- 
magnetic impulse  that  first  breaks  down  the  air-space  in  the 
receiver  :  an  explanation  founded  upon  this  consideration  ex- 
plains the  facts  so  far,  but  further  investigation  is  required  to 
fully  confirm  it.  We  have  found  this  method  of  observing  the 
Hertzian  phenomena,  which  we  have  worked  successfully  with 
an  apparatus  giving  a  wave-length  of  o"6  metre,  much  more 
satisfactory  than  the  method  founded  on  utilizing  the  conductivity 
of  the  spark  as  a  path  to  drive  an  independent  current  either 
across  or  along.  Some  experiments  in  a  vacuum  tube,  however, 
showed  that  this  method  is  capable  of  extension.  We  found  it 
also  more  satisfactory  than  a  bolometer  method,  which,  however, 
worked  fairly  well.  For  this  we  interposed,  instead  of  the  spark- 
gap,  a  very  fine  wire,  which  was  made  into  one  of  the  arms  of  a 
Wheatstone's  bridge.  The  great  desideratum  was  a  very  fine 
wire,  and  we  intend  trying  silvered  quartz  fibres  if  we  can  obtain 
them,  and  lead  drawn  inside  glass,  &c.,  our  heai^s  having  been 
broken  trying  to  use  that  brittle  beauty,  Wollaston  wire. 

Any  of  these  methods,  in  which  your  observing  apparatus,  the 
galvanometer,  can  be  at  a  distance  from  the  receiver,  is  more 
manageable  than  ones  like  that  described  by  Mr.  Gregory,  in 
which  the  receiver  is  itself  also  the  observing  apparatus.  We 
exhibited  our  method  of  observing  the  occurrence  of  spark  by  con- 
necting the  ends  of  the  spark-gap  with  a  delicate  galvanometer 
at  the  meeting  of  the  Dublin  University  Experimental  Science 
Association  last  November.  Geo.  Fras.  Fitzgerald. 

January  25, 

As  I  see  from  a  notice  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Academy 
of  Sciences,  Paris,  in  last  week's  Nature  (p.  287),  that  MM, 
Edouard  Sarasin  and  Lucien  de  la  Rive  have  observed  the  fact 
that  "  multiple  resonance  "  can  be  obtained  by  using  different 
sized  resonators  with  a  Hertzian  "vibrator,"!  adjoin  the  fol- 
lowing short  account  of  experiments  of  a  somewhat  different 
character  made  during  last  autumn,  which  have  led  to  the  same 
results,  and  which  were  brought  before  the  notice  of  the  Dublin 
University  Experimental  Association  last  November.  Since 
then  I  have  learnt  what  these  experimenters  also  seem  not  to 
have  known — that  some  of  Hertz's  earlier  experiments  were  more 
especially  concerned  with  this  very  fact. 

First,  it  was  found  that  the  wave-length  in  the  Hertzian  ex- 
periment of  loop  and  nodes  formed  by  reflection  from  a  large 
metallic  sheet  had  altered  since  the  apparatus  had  been  last 
used  some  months  previously.  This  was  attributed  at  first  to 
something  in  the  "vibrator,"  such  as  the  width  of  the  spark- 
gap  ;  but  ultimately,  on  remembering  how  an  accident  had 
necessitated  a  new  resonator  being  made,  the  cause  was  recog- 
nized— namely,  that  it  was  not  exactly  the  same  size  as  the 
previous  one  ;  and  when  several  resonators  of  different  sizes 
were  made,  they  were  found  to  give  the  node  at  different  distances 
from  the  reflecting  sheet.  The  intensity  of  the  sparking  with 
which  these  were  affected  increased  with  their  size  up  to  a  certain 
point,  and  then  diminished.  So  that  it  seems  as  if  a  "vibrator" 
did  not  send  out  a  "  line  spectrum,"  so  to  speak,  but  sends  out 
a  "band  spectrum,"  the  centre  of  which  is  the  brightest  The 
period,  then,  of  a  "vibrator"  is  that  belonging  to  the  centre  of 
this  "band." 


296 


NATURE 


\yan.  30,  1890 


Again,  in  like  manner,  a  "resonator"  was  always  found  to 
give  the  node  in  different  positions  according  to  the  size  of  the 
"  vibrator  "  employed.  This  is  what  would  be  expected  from 
the  principle  of  resonance,  a  resonator  being  able  to  respond 
to  any  member  of  the  "  band"  it  would  itself  give  out  when 
acting  as  a  radiator,  the  central  period  of  course  with  the  greatest 

ease.  Some  such  factor  as  ^"'(^"'^o)  could,  perhaps,  express 
this  sort  of  thing,  where  \  belongs  to  the  period  of  the  radia- 
tion, supposed  for  the  moment  "monochromatic,"  falling  on 
the  resonator,  and  A^  belongs  to  the  "period"  of  the  resonator, 
or  that  of  the  centre  of  its  "band." 

The  position  of  the  node  was  also  found  to  vary  on  altering 
the  character  of  the  dielectric  surrounding  the  resonator  ;  even 
laying  a  piece  of  sealing-wax  on  the  wire  of  the  resonator  was 
sufficient  to  be  observed.  This  might  be  employed  to  deter- 
mine "V"  in  a  dielectric  of  which  only  a  small  quantity  was 
obtainable. 

It  is  obviously  of  importance  for  the  "  central  period  "  of  the 
resonator  employed  to  coincide  with  that  of  the  vibrator,  espe- 
cially when  determining  the  velocity  of  the  disturbance,  for  this 
is  presumably  the  period  given  by  theory.  This  is  practically 
always  done  when  arranging  their  relative  sizes,  so  as  to  obtain 
greatest  intensity.  So  that  the  caution  urged  by  M.  Cornu  in 
connection  with  Prof.  Hertz's  measurements  of  this  velocity 
seems,  from  these  considerations,  to  be  to  a  great  extent 
unnecessary. 

It  would  obviously  be  of  importance  to  investigate  what  form 
the  resonator  should  take,  so  as  to  give  out  a  radiation  most 
approaching  one  definite  period.  Fred.  T.  Trouton. 

Bourdon's  Pressure  Gauge, 

As  there  does  not  seem  to  be  in  any  of  the  more  familiar  text- 
books of  Physics  or  Engineering  any  satisfactory  explanation  of 
the  action  of  the  Bourdon  gauge,  the  following  may  be  of  use  to 
some  of  your  readers. 

What  we  have  to  explain  is  the  uncurling  of  the  gauge  under 
internal  pressure  whether  of  gas  or  liquid. 

Instead  of  the  usual  flattened  tube  of  more  or  less  elliptical  seel  ion 


bent  into  the  arc  of  a  circle  as  in  Fig.  i,  think,  for  convenience, 
of  one  of  rectangular  section,  such  as  AB  of  Fig.  2,  in  which  a 


Fig.  2. 

is  the  fixed  and  B  the  free  end,  and  in  which  we  shall  distinguish, 
as  indicated,  the  walls,  roof,  and  floor. 

If  the  annulus  of  tube  were  complete,  as  shown  in  the  central 
cross-section  (Fig.  3),  then  it  is  evident  that  under  the  in- 
fluence of  internal  fluid  pressure  the  outer  wall  would  be  every- 
where in  a  state  of  tension  in  the  direction  of  its  length,  and  the 
inner  wall  in  a  state  of  compression.  In  the  immediate  neigh- 
bourhood  of  the   ends  a  and  b  this  state  of  compression   or 


extension  will  be  somewhat  modified,  but  at  a  sufficient  distance 
from  either  the  condition  of  the  walls  will  be  the  same  as  if  the 
annulus  really  were  complete. 

If  T  be  the  tension  of  the  outer  wall  in  the  direction  of  its 
length,  P  the  pressure  of  the  inner,  and  R  the  resultant  fluid 
pressure  on  any  cross-section  such  as  A  or  B  (Fig.  2),  then  for  the 
equilibrium  of  the  half  of  the  annulus  lying  on  either  side  of  the 
diameter  ab  (Fig.  3)  we  must  have 

T  =  P  +  R. 

Consider  now  the  equilibrium  of  any  portion  BC  (Fig.  2) 
contained  between  the  free  end  B  and  a  cross-section  c  at  some 
little  distance  from  B,  when  the  internal  pressure  is  applied,  and 
before  uncurling  takes  place. 


Imagine  the  fluid  within  BC  to  be  solidified,  then  the  externa! 
forces  acting  on  BC  (see  Fig.  4)  reduce  to 

(i)  A  tension,  T,  due  to  the  action  of  the  outer  wall  beyond  c. 

(2)  A  pressure,  P,  ,,  ,,  inner      ,,         ,, 

(3)  A  resultant  fluid  pressure,  R,  acting  at  the  centre  of  pres- 

sure of  the  cross- section  c. 

and  since  P  -f  R  =  T,  these  reduce  to  a  couple  tending  to  un- 
curl the  tube,  and  the  same  holds  for  all  sections  sufficiently 
removed  from  A  and  B. 

As  the  tube  imcurls,  however,  new  forces  come  into  play,  viz. 
the  resistance  to  bending  of  the  walls,  but  especially  of  the  floor 
and  roof  of  the  tube,  whose  width  in  the  direction  of  a  principal 


Fig.  4. 

radius  of  the  annulus,  and  consequently  whose  resistance  to 
bending,  is  much  greater  than  that  of  the  walls.  Uncurling  goes 
on  till  the  moment  of  the  couple  resisting  flexure  is  equal  to  the 
moment  of  the  bending  couple. 

It  is  evident  from  this  explanation  that  even  a  tube  of  circular 
section  would  tend  to  uncurl,  but  that  it  would  be  very  insensitive 
on  account  of  its  strength  to  resist  flexure,  and  that  up  to  a 
certain  point  sensitiveness  is  gained  by  having  the  walls  of  thin 
material,  high,  and  very  near  together. 

Devonport,  December  23,  1889.       A.  M.  WoRTHiNGTON. 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

Referring  to  Mr.  F.  P.  Pascoe's  letter  (Nature,  December 
26,  p.  176),  1  cannot  refrain  Jrom  expressing  my  asiouishment 
at  his  inability  to  "see  where  protection  comes  in"  in  the  case 
of  craLs  covered  with  sponges,  Polyzoa,  &c.  I  should  have 
thought  it  obvious  to  everybody  that  slow-moving  crabs,  such  as 
all  those  he  mentions  and  many  others  that  1  have  seen,  would 
have  a  much  better  chance  of  escaping   their   enemies   wher^ 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


297 


covered  with  material  that  renders  them  almost  indistinguishable 
from  the  stones  and  gravel  in  which  they  are  found  than  if  they 
were  naked. 

As  regards  the  use  of  the  peculiar  hind  legs  in  the  Anomoura 
and  Dorippe,  perhaps  the  enclosed  extract  from  a  paper  read  by 
me  on  December  12  before  the  Chester  Society  of  Natural 
Science  may  be  of  interest.  It  will  shortly  be  published  in  vol. 
iv.  of  the  Transactions  of  the  Liverpool  Biological  Society. 

Alfred  O.  Walker. 

London,  W.,  January  17. 

"  An  interesting  fact,  illustrating  the  ingenuity  shown  by  more 
than  one  species  of  Crustacea  in  concealing  themselves,  came 
under  my  notice  last  summer.  Having  dredged  a  number  of 
Amphipoda,  I  placed  them  in  a  vessel  of  sea  water  till  I  could 
examine  them.  Amonsi  them  I  noticed  what  seemed  to  be  a 
piece  of  dead  weed  swimming  rapidly  about  and  occasionally 
falling  to  the  bottom.  Examination  with  a  lens  showed  that  the 
piece  of  weed  was  carried  by  an  Amphipod  (Atylus  swanimev' 
damii),  which  grasped  it  by  the  two  first  pairs  of  walking  legs 
(peraeopoda).  When  it  came  to  the  bottom  the  animal  con- 
cealed itself  beneath  the  weed,  which  was  much  larger  than 
itself. 

"  In  connection  with  this  habit  of  A.  swammerdamii,  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  another  species,  Atylus  falcatus  (Metier),  re- 
sembles the  first-named  minutely  in  every  respect  but  one,  viz. 
that  the  first  peraeopod  has  the  claw  (dactylus)  immensely  de- 
veloped, while  at  the  base  of  the  next  joint  are  two  or  three 
strong  blunt  spines  or  tubercles  into  which  the  point  of  the  claw 
fits.  This  would  appear  to  give  the  latter  species  a  great  ad- 
vantage over  its  congener  in  grasping  an  object  for  purposes  of 
concealment.  It  is  a  rare  species,  but  I  have  met  with  a  few 
specimens  this  summer :  I  am  not  aware  of  its  having  been 
recorded  as  British  yet. 

"  In  some  of  the  Podophthalmata  the  same  instinct  has  been 
observed,  and  especially  among  the  Anomoura.  All  these  have 
the  last  or  hindmost  pair  of  legs  of  a  shrunken  and  apparently 
almost  abortive  form.  They  never  appear  to  be  used  for  walk- 
ing, and  are  generally  carried  turned  up  on  the  back  ;  but  they 
are  utilized  by  some  species  of  curiously  shaped,  flat-bodied 
crabs  {Dorippe)  to  carry  the  valve  of  a  bivalve  mollusk  over 
their  backs,  under  which  they  can  squat  and  hide.  From  this  it 
is  an  easy  transition  through  various  stages  to  the  hermit  crabs 
[Paguridcc),  which  ensconce  themselves  altogether  in  a  univalve 
shell,  and  use  the  curiously  abortive  hind  limbs  to  cling  to  the 
inside  whorls.  My  friend  Surgeon-Major  Archer  has  seen 
crabs  of  the  genus  Dorippe  protecting  themselves  (probably  from 
the  scorching  tropical  sun),  at  low  tide,  on  the  mud  flats  at 
Singapore,  by  carrying  large  leaves  over  their  backs  (Journal  of 
Linn.  Soc,  vol.  xx.  p.  108)." 

I  CAN  corroborate  Mr.  Ernest  Weiss's  remarks  on  the  use  of 
the  modified  legs  of  Dromia.  A  small  one  I  had  in  an  aquarium 
would,  when  the  sponge  was  removed  from  the  back,  hunt 
about  until  it  found  something — a  shell,  a  pebble,  or  even  a 
dead  fish — to  replace  the  sponge.  When  there  was  nothing  in 
the  aquarium  which  it  could  seize,  it  was  evidently  in  an 
unhappy  condition. 

With  regard  to  foreign  substances  on  other  crabs,  I  have 
caught  spider-crabs  so  completely  covered  with  sponges  as  quite 
to  hide  their  shape,  and,  until  they  moved,  it  was  impossible  to 
say  what  they  were.  David  Wilson-Barker. 


Thought  and  Breathing. 

With  reference  to  Prof.  Leumann's  researches  into  the  influ- 
ence of  blond  circulation  and  breathing  on  mind  life,  referred  to 
in  Nature  of  January  2  (p.  209),  it  is  worthy  of  note  that 
regulation  and  suppression  of  the  breath  {Prdndydma  or 
Hatha-  Vidyd),  is  an  all-important  religious  observance  amongst 
Hindus. 

It  is  one  of  the  eight  chief  requisites  of  the  Yoga  philosophy, 
for  attaining  "  complete  abstraction  or  isolation  of  the  soul  in 
its  own  essence,"  and  minute  instructions  exist  for  the  exer- 
cise, which  is  adopted,  apparently,  as  an  immediate  aid  to  deep 
meditation.  Some  of  these  instructions  are  quoted  in  Prof. 
Monier- Williams's  recent  work  on  Buddhism  (p.  242),  and  he 
also  quotes,  in  connection  with  this  subject  (p.  241),  Sweden- 
borg's  opinion  that  thought  commences  and  corresponds  with 
respiration. 


Swedenborg  also  says: — "It  is  strange  that  this  correspond- 
ence between  the  states  of  the  brain  or  mind  and  the  lungs  has 
not  been  admitted  in  science."  R.  Barrett  Pope. 

Brighton. 

On  the  Effect  of  Oil  on  Disturbed  Water. 

Having  seen  the  interesting  article  by  Mr.  R.  Beynon  on  the 
above  subject  (Nature,  January  2,  p.  205),  shortly  before 
leaving  England,  I  propose  to  make  a  few  observations  on  the 
theoretical  aspect  of  the  phenomena  described  by  him. 

The  simplest  case  of  wave-motion  in  a  viscous  liquid  arises 
when  two-dimensional  waves  are  propagated  in  a  liquid  whose 
depth  is  so  great  in  comparison  with  the  lengths  of  the  waves 
that  the  former  may  be  treated  as  infinite.  If  at  any  particular 
epoch,  which  we  may  choose  as  the  origin  of  the  time,  the  form 
of  the  free  surface  is  determined  by  the  equation  tj  =  Ac'"", 
where  2icjm  is  the  wave-length,  its  form  at  any  subsequent  time 
may  be  represented  by  rj  =  Ae'*'+"'",  and  the  object  of  a  theo- 
retical solution  is  to  find  the  value  of  /•.  The  equation  for 
determining  k  is  given  in  the  last  chapter  of  my  "  Hydro- 
dynamics "  ;  and  it  is  there  shown  that  if  the  viscosity  of  the  liquid 
be  sufficiently  small,  k  will  be  of  the  form  -  a  ±  <)3,  where  o  and 
)3  are  real  positive  constants.  Hence  the  equation  of  the  free 
surface,  in  real  quantities,  may  be  written — 

17  =  Ae-'^cosfwAT  -  3^) (i) 

which  represents  periodic  motion  whose  amplitude  diminishes 
with  the  time,  and  which  therefore  ultimately  dies  away,  the 
rapidity  with  which  the  motion  decays  depending  upon  the 
magnitude  of  a.  If,  however,  the  viscosity  be  large,  the  solution 
changes  its  character,  since  in  this  case  k  is  a  real  negative 
quantity,  and  the  equation  of  the  free  surface  becomes 

rj  =  Ae  -"'cos/wx (2) 

which  represents  non-periodic  motion,  which  rapidly  dies  away. 

The  phenomena  discussed  by  Mr.  Beynon  are  somewhat 
different  from  the  special  case  of  deep-sea  waves,  inasmuch  as  a 
thin  film  of  a  highly  viscous  liquid,  viz.  oil,  whose  thickness  is 
very  small  compared  with  the  wave-length,  is  spread  over  the 
surface  of  water,  which  is  a  liquid  whose  viscosity  is  so  small, 
that  it  might  probably  be  neglected  altogether.  The  action  of 
the  wind  would  also  introduce  an  additional  complication  ;  but 
the  circumstance  that  the  thickness  of  the  oil  is  small  compared 
with  the  wave-length,  would,  on  the  other  hand,  facilitate  the 
calculations  which  would  be  necessary  in  order  to  obtain  a 
theoretical  solution.  There  can,  however,  I  think,  be  little 
doubt  that  the  free  surface  would  be  given  by  equations  of  the 
forms  either  of  (i)  or  (2)  ;  where  a  is  so  large,  that  after  a  .short 
time  has  elapsed  after  the  film  of  oil  has  spread  itself  over  the 
water,  the  amplitude  of  the  existing  motion  would  be  small 
compared  with  that  of  the  original  motion.        A.  B.  Basset. 

Hotel  Beau  Site,  Cannes,  January  11. 


Luminous  Clouds. 

In  the  correspondence  that  has  taken  place  on  luminous 
clouds,  totally  different  classes  of  phenomena  have  been  men- 
tioned. There  are  self-luminous  clouds  entirely  distinct  from 
what  I  have  termed  "  sky- coloured  clouds,"  which  latter,  though 
by  some  deemed  self-luminous,  have  been  generally  admitted  to 
shine  by  reflecting  the  direct  light  of  the  sun. 

The  self-luminous  clouds  described  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Stromeyer 
(p.  225)  appear  to  have  been  a  part  of  the  aurora  which  was 
visible  at  the  same  time  ;  but  other  correspondents  have  men- 
tioned self-luminous  clouds  which  have  apparently  not  been  of  a 
truly  auroral  character,  and  the  nature  of  these  clouds  seems  not 
to  be  understood,  and  requires  investigation  ;  there  may  be 
various  kinds  of  these  and  causes  of  their  luminosity.  I  have 
myself  not  unfrequently  seen  what  I  call  irregular  auroras, 
which  may  be  one  form  of  what  others  call  self-luminous  clouds. 
They  consist  of  bands  which,  unlike  regular  auroras,  appear 
indifferently  in  all  parts  of  the  sky,  and  lie  in  any  direction  ; 
they  are  usually  much  fainter  than  the  Milky  Way,  and  are 
always  feebler  near  the  zenith  than  near  the  horizon.  The 
bands  composing  them  are  generally  parallel,  or  nearly  so,  and 
3°  to  10°  wide.  They  differ  from  ordinary  cirrus  in  being,  so 
tar  as  I  can  judge,  perfectly  transparent,  and  also  in  moving 
extremely  slowly,  giving  one  the  impression  that  they  are  much 
higher  up  in  the  atmosphere  than  cirrus.     Their   spectrum  is 


298 


NATURE 


\yan.  30,  1890 


continuous,  though  theyare  sometimes  as  bright  as  true  magnetic 
auroras  which  show  the  citron  line. 

The  average  number  of  nights  on  which  I  have  seen  these 
irregular  auroras  in  the  past  28  years,  chiefly  at  Sunderland,  is 
I  "9  per  annum  ;  and,  if  doubtful  cases  are  included,  2*7,  They 
agree  with  magnetic  auroras  in  so  far  as  they  show  some 
tendency  to  an  eleven-year  periodicity,  being  most  frequent 
about  2  years  after  the  sun-spot  maximum,  and  least  so  about  5 
years  later.  T.  W.  Backhouse. 

Sunderland,  January  15. 

Mr.  Stromeyer's  letter  in  Nature  of  the  9th  inst.  (p.  225)  re- 
minds me  of  a  magnificent  display  that  I  once  saw  of  luminous  white 
clouds,  transparent  to  the  stars,  which  shone  brightly  through 
them.  These  clouds  were  extended  Hkc  ribbons  from  north  to 
south  across  the  sky,  in  a  way  not  uncommon  with  true  clouds. 
I  thought,  and  still  think,  that  they  were  an  aurora.  May  not 
those  described  by  Mr,  Stromeyer  have  been  the  same? 

Belfast,  January  15.  Joseph  John  Murphy. 


The  Meteorite  of  Mighei. 

With  reference  to  the  interesting  meteorite  of  Mighei,  ex- 
amined by  M.  Stanislas  Meunier,  I  have  not  observed,  in  any  of 
the  notices  I  have  seen,  any  statement  as  to  whether  the  organic 
matter  exhibited  any  traces  of  an  organized  structure.  I  would 
suggest  that,  if  it  has  not  already  been  done,  it  should  be  care  - 
fully  examined  to  see  if  the  carbonaceous  matter  shows  any  such 
traces.  J.  Rutherford  Hill. 

January  11. 


Achlya. 

I  shall  be  very  grateful  to  any  of  your  readers  who  can  send 
me  specimens  of  Achlya  with  the  sexual  reproduction,  which  I 
cannot  at  present  obtain  in  my  cultures.  The  culture  should  be 
dropped  bodily  into  a  cold  saturated  solution  of  corrosive  sub- 
limate, in  a  wide-mouthed  corked  bottle,  and  this  filled  up  with 
the  liquid  to  the  cork  before  posting. 

Marcus  M.  Hartog. 

5  Roseneath  Villas,  Cork,  January  6. 


The  Parallelogram  of  Forces. 

What  is  the  force  of  the  word  "rigid,"  introduced  into  the 
statement  and  proof  of  the  parallelogram  of  forces  and  other 
theorems  in  Statics,  as  quoted  by  Mr.  W.  E.  Johnson  from  the 
ordinary  text-books  ? 

The  word  "  rigid  "  requires  definition  ;  it  describes  a  state  of 
things  which  is  not  met  with  in  Nature  ;  and  it  is  redundant  and 
limiting  ;  because  the  conditions  of  equilibrium  of  a  body  are  the 
same,  whether  elastic  to  an  appreciable  extent,  or  to  such  an 
inappreciable  extent  that  the  word  "rigid"  may  be  aiDplied 
to  it. 

Better  omit  the  word  ' '  rigid  "  altogether. 

A.  G.  Greenhill. 


Foot-Pounds. 

In  the  statics  and  dynamics  paper  set  in  the  last  Woolwich 
entrance  examination,  candidates  are  asked  to  determine  the 
magnitude  of  a  moment  of  a  force  m.  foot-pounds.  Surely  it  is 
unfortunate  to  introduce  this  term  in  such  a  sense.  One 
foot-pound  is  a  unit  of  work,  and  though  its  dimensions 
(ML^T--)  are  the  same  as  that  of  a  unit  of  a  moment  of  a  force, 
the  two  conceptions  are  perfectly  distinct,  and  the  introduction 
of  a  foot-pound  as  a  unit  of  a  moment  of  a  force  is  likely  to 
cause  confusion,  especially  in  the  minds  of  beginners. 

A.  S.  E. 


Chiff-Chaff  singing  in  September. 

In  a  review  of  certain  recent  ornithological  works,  in  one  of 
your  latest  issues,  doubt  seems  to  be  thrown  on  the  fact  of  the 
chifF-chaff  singing  late  in  September. 

I  believe  it  is  not  an  unusual  occurrence.  It  always  nests  in 
my  garden,  and  this  year,  as  I  see  by  a  note  made  at  the  time, 
it  sang  on  the  20th,  21st,  and  22nd  of  that  month.  We  had  a 
slight  frost  on  the  21st.  F.  M.  Burton. 

Highfield,  Gainsborough,  January  6. 


EAST  AFRICA  AND  ITS  BIG  GAME} 

■pOR  sporting  purposes  Cape  Colony  and  the  adjoining 
-^  districts  are  long  ago  "  used  up,"  and  the  hunter 
who  would  fain  see  "big  game"  must  follow  Mr.  Selous 
into  Matabeld-Land  and  Mashoona-Land,  if  he  does  not 
find  it  better  to  cross  the  Zambesi.  Even  here,  some  of 
the  largest  animals  are  already  exterminated.  The  re- 
doubted hunter  whose  name  we  have  just  mentioned 
has  not  met  with  a  White  Rhinoceros  din-ing  the  past 
four  seasons,  and  his  "bag"  of  ivory  shows  a  yearly 
diminution.  So  much  for  the  south  of  the  Dark  Conti- 
nent. The  northern  entrance  to  the  great  Interior,  which 
afforded  Sir  Samuel  Baker  and  those  who  followed  him 
such  splendid  sport  on  the  Atbara  and  Settite,  has  been 
closed  up  by  the  Mahdists,  and  until  we  have  made  up 
our  minds  to  "  clear  out  Khartoum,"  no  European  can  hope 
to  penetrate  in  this  direction.  There  remains,  therefore, 
only  the  eastern  coast  as  a  mode  of  access  to  the  wild 
interior  of  game-tenanted  ^Ethiopia,  the  west  coast 
being  practically  closed  by  swamps  and  fevers. 

On  the  eastern  coast  of  Africa,  however,  immediately 
under  the  equator,  a  splendid  stretch  of  high-lying  land, 
full  of  big  game,  and  easy  of  access,  is  still  open  to  the 
enterprising  sportsman.  First  made  known  to  us  by  the 
German  missionaries  Rebmann  and  Krapf,  the  "  Kili- 
manjaro District,"  as  it  is  now  usually  called,  was  sub- 
sequently opened  to  us  by  Von  der  Decken,  New,  and 
Hildebrandt.  To  these  explorers  succeeded  Mr.  Joseph 
Thomson  on  his  route  to  Masai-Land,  and  Mr.  H.  H. 
Johnston  on  his  expedition  up  the  Kilimanjaro  Mountain, 
to  which  Dr.  Hans  Meyer  and  other  more  recent  travellers 
have  also  devoted  their  special  attention.  Access  to  this 
sportsman's  paradise  is  rendered  easy  by  the  port  of 
Mombas,  now  under  the  benign  sway  of  the  British 
Imperial  East  African  Company,  and  connected  with 
Aden  by  a  regular  line  of  steamboats.  Here,  in  the 
autumn  of  1886,  having  made  the  necessary  preparations 
at  Zanzibar,  the  author  of  the  present  volume,  with  his 
brother  sportsmen  Sir  Robert  Harvey  and  Mr.  H.  C.  V. 
Hunter,  assembled  their  caravan.  Their  plan  was  to 
reach  as  quickly  as  possible  the  forest  of  Taveta,  distant 
about  250  miles  from  the  coast  and  within  ten  miles  of 
the  base  of  Kilimanjaro,  and  having  established  their 
head-quarters  in  this  favoured  spot,  to  work  thence  the 
surrounding  plains  and  open  country.  Mr.  C.  B.  Harvey, 
the  brother  of  Sir  Robert,  was  to  join  them  when  his  leave 
commenced,  a  month  later. 

How  well  this  programme  was  carried  out  the  entertain- 
ing pages  of  Sir  John  Willoughby's  narrative  fully  explain 
to  us,  while  the  map  at  the  commencement  clearly  shows 
the  route  and  the  nature  of  the  different  districts  traversed, 
as  they  appeared  to  the  eyes  of  the  enthusiastic  sportsmen. 
Much  time  and  trouble  was  saved  to  the  expedition  by 
the  selection  of  a  Maltese  named  Martin  as  "  chief  of  the 
staff."  Martin  had  accompanied  Mr.  Thomson  during 
his  adventurous  journey  into  Masai-Land,  and  was,  more- 
over, the  owner  of  a  "  freehold  building-site  "  at  Taveta. 
Hereon  was  a  house  and  a  range  of  huts,  forming  three 
sides  of  a  large  square,  while  the  fourth  was  bounded  by 
a  sparkling  rivulet  well  stocked  with  fish.  Such  a  haven 
of  refuge,  protected,  as  it  was,  by  a  thorn-hedge  with  a 
strong  gateway,  and  situated  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
a  good  game-country  at  an  elevation  of  2400  feet  above 
the  sea-level,  seemed  little  less  than  a  Paradise  to  our 
travellers,  who  arrived  here  on  December  26,  about  six- 
teen days  after  leaving  Mombas.  Into  their  various  ex- 
cursions from  this  convenient  centre  we  need  not  closely 
follow  them.     Suffice  it  to   say   that  their  routes   were 

'  "  East  Africa  and  its  Big  Game,  the  Narrative  of  a  Sporting  Trip  from 
Zanzibar  to  the  Borders  of  the  Masai."  By  Captain  Sir  JohnC.  Willoughby, 
Bart.,  Royal  Horse  Guards.  With  Postscript  by  Sir  Robert  G.  Harvey, 
Bart.  Illustrated  by  G.  D.  Giles  and  Mrs.  Gordon  Blake;  those  of  the 
latter  from  photographs  taken  by  the  Author.  (London :  Longmans, 
1889.) 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


299 


mostly  to  the  west  of  Taveta,  amongst  the  numerous 
streams  that  drain  the  southern  slopes  of  Kilimanjaro 
and  unite  to  form  the  Ruvu  River,  which  enters  the  sea  at 
Pangani,  and  to  the  east  of  the  great  mountain  on  the 
head  waters  of  the  Tzavo.  These  various  hunting  ex- 
peditions occupied  the  time  until  April  21,  when  a  safe 
return  was  effected  to  Mombas,  and  thence  to  Europe. 

The  list  of  larger  game-animals  killed  by  the  party 
during  their  four  months  shows  a  goodly  total  of  330  head, 
although  we  are  assured  by  Sir  John  Willoughby  that  no 
useless  slaughter  was  perpetrated  during  the  expedition, 
and  that  no  animal  was  killed  unless  required  for  a  speci- 
men, or  for  food  by  the  hunters  and  their  native  companions. 
In  the  list  of  these  330  animals,  we  find  21  Buffaloes,  66 
Rhinoceroses,  2  Elephants,  4  Hippopotamuses,  4  Zebras, 
and  211  Antelopes  of  different  species.     But  a  much  more 

attractive  list 
to  the  natural- 
ist will  be  found 
in  the  appen- 
dix "  on  the 
fauna  of  the 
plains  round 
Kilimanjaro," 
compiled  by 
Mr,  Hunter. 
So  little  is  yet 
known  of  the 
larger  mam- 
mals of  this 
fine  country, 
except  from 
fragmentary 
notices,  that 
Mr.  Hunter's 
notes,  brief  as 
they  are,  form 
a  not  unim- 
portant contri- 
bution to  zoo- 
logical science. 
Lions,  Ele- 
phants, Hip- 
popotamuses, 
and  Giraffes 
are  prevalent 
alike  in  every 
part  of  Wild 
Africa,  but  the 
splendid  Bo- 
vine animals 
called  Ante- 
lopes vary  very 
materially  in 
the  different 
districts.  In 
the  Kilimanja- 
ro country,  sixteen  Antelopes  are  recorded  as  having  been 
met  with,  and  amongst  them  are  some  of  the  finest  and 
largest  of  the  whole  group.  The  Eland  {Oreas  cannd)  is 
"  rather  local,"  but  there  "  are  a  fair  number  to  the  south 
of  the  mountain."  The  Eland  found  here  belongs  to  the 
variety  called  Livingstone's  Eland,  first  met  with  by  that 
great  explorer  on  the  Zambesi.  "  Both  males  and  females 
are  all  more  or  less  striped."  The  Larger  Kudu  {Strepsi- 
ceros  kudu)  was  "  only  seen  on  two  or  three  occasions  on 
the  Useri  River"  ;  the  Lesser  Kudu  {S.imberbis)  is  found 
"  in  the  bush  around  Taveta,"  and  in  several  other  loca- 
lities. Two  examples  of  this  until  lately  little-known 
Antelope  from  this  district  are  now  living  in  the  Zoo- 
logical Society's  Gardens.  The  Beisa  {Oryx  beisa)  is 
"  plentiful  on  the  plains  and  in  thin  thorny  bush " ;  the 
Coke's  Hartebeest  {Alcelaphus  cokii)  is  "  quite  the  most 
common  Antelope    on   the   plains,  being  found   every- 


FiG.  I.— Head  of  Grant's  Gazelle. 


where  in  immense  herds " ;  while  the  Brindled  Gnu 
{Co7tnochcetes gnu),  the  Mpallah  {/Epyceros  melampus), 
and  the  Waterbuck  {Cobus  elUpsiprymnus)  are,  accord- 
ing to  Mr.  Hunter,  abundant  in  appropriate  localities. 
We  suspect,  however,  that  Mr.  Hunter's  so-called  "Water- 
buck  "  is  the  Sing-sing  ( Cobus  sing-sing),  of  which  some 
fine  heads  were  procured  by  Mr.  Holmwood,  lately 
H.B.M.  Consul  at  Zanzibar,  during  an  excursion  to  the 
Tavita  district.  Of  the  beautiful  tribe  of  Gazelles,  three 
well-marked  species,  all  recently  discovered  and  appro- 
priately named  after  distinguished  African  travellers, 
tenant  the  plains  of  Kilimanjaro.  These  are  the  Grant's 
Gazelle  {Gazella  granti),  the  Thomson's  Gazelle  {G. 
thomsoni), 
and  the 
Waller's 
Gazelle  {G. 
IV a  II erf). 
Grant's 
Gazelle  is 
"common 
everywhere 
on  the  open 
plains."  Its 
fine  lyre- 
shape  d 
horns  at- 
tain alarger 
develop- 
ment  than 
in  perhaps 
any  other 
species  of 
the  genus. 
Their  ele- 
gant shape 
and  pro- 
minent out- 
lines will  be 
seen  by  the 
accom- 
panying 
figure  from 
the  Pro- 
ceedings of 
the  Zoolo- 
gical So- 
c  i  e  t  y  . 
Thomson's 
Gazelle  was 
found  in 
large  num- 
bers in  the 
plains  of 
the  Masai 
country  to 
the  south- 
west of  the 
mountain. 
Waller's 
Gazelle  was 

"  very  rare  near  Kilimanjaro,"  but  subsequently  found  to  be 
numerous  up  the  Tana  River.  One  was  killed  near  Lake 
Jipd.  But  the  great  prize  among  the  Antelopes  was  met 
with  by  Sir  Robert  Harvey  and  his  companions  Messrs. 
Greenfield  and  Hunter,  during  a  subsequent  expedition  to 
Eastern  Africa.  In  the  course  of  this  journey  they  ascended 
the  River  Tana,  which-  forms  the  northern  boundary  of 
the  dominions  of  the  British  Imperial  East  African  Com- 
pany. Here,  on  the  northern  bank,  they  came  across 
specimens  of  an  entirely  new  Antelope,  "  of  a  bright  red 
colour,  in  some  respects  resembling  a  Hartebeest,  espe- 
cially in  regard  to  the  length  of  its  head,  and  of  about 
the  same  size,  but  hardly  so  high  at  the  withers."    This 


Fig.  2. — Head  of  Hunter's  Antelope. 


lOO 


NATURE 


{Jan.  30,  1890 


Antelope  has  been  since  named  Hunters  Antelope 
{Danialis  hiiJtteri)  by  Mr.  Sclater  (see  Proc.  Zool.  Soc, 
1879,  p.  372,  PI.  xlii.),  and  mounted  specimens  of  it  may 
be  seen  in  the  Mammal  Gallery  of  the  Natural  History 
Museum  at  South  Kensington. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  supposed  that  the  rich 
mammal-fauna  of  the  Kilimanjaro  district  has  been  yet 
entirely  exhausted.  We  read,  in  Sir  John  Willoughby's 
narrative,  of  a  Duiker  Antelope  {Cephalophus),  of  a  dark 
red  colour,  found  on  the  mountain,  of  which  a  specimen 
was  obtained  by  an  American  traveller.  Dr.  Abbott,  but 
not  by  the  British  sportsmen.  On  the  same  mountain,  at 
an  elevation  of  about  9000  feet,  Dr.  Abbott  also  secured 
an  example  of  an  "  extraordinary  animal "  like  a  Serow 
{i.e.  Capricornis  bubalina  of  the  Himalayas),  but  "  darker 
in  colour  and  shorter  on  the  legs."  There  is  therefore 
ample  room  for  future  discoveries,  both  in  this  and  in 
other  branches  of  natural  history.  The  plateau  surround- 
ing Mount  Kenia,  which  has  yet  to  be  explored  scientific- 
ally, would  doubtless  supply  many  other  novelties.  In 
short,  at  the  present  time  we  know  of  no  other  field  for 
zoological  discovery  so  promising  and  so  easily  accessible 
as  the  slice  of  Eastern  Africa  recently  assigned  to  Sir 
William  Mackinnon  and  his  associates  of  the  B.I.E.A. 
Company,  to  which  the  author  of  the  present  volume  has 
given  us  such  a  useful  and  agreeable  introduction. 


THE  CORAL  REEFS  OF  THE  J  A  VA  SEA  AND 
ITS  VICINITY} 

O  I  ^'CE  comparatively  few  of  the  naturalists  who  have 
•^  sojourned  in  the  Indian  Archipelago  have  paid 
special  attention  to  the  coral  reefs  of  that  region,  it  be- 
comes a  cause  of  satisfaction  that  Dr.  C.  Ph.  Sluiter,  of 
Batavia,  who  has  long  been  engaged  in  studying  the 
marine  fauna  of  his  neighbourhood,  has  taken  up  the 
subject  in  earnest.  In  a  paper  on  the  origin  of  the  coral 
reefs  of  the  Java  Sea,  and  of  Brandewijns  Bay  on  the 
west  coast  of  Sumatra,  and  on  the  new  coral  formations 
of  Krakatab,  Dr.  Sluiter  gives  the  results  of  his  recent 
preliminary  investigations.-'  This  paper  is  excellent  in 
method,  and  the  results  of  the  highest  importance. 

In  the  western  half  of  Batavia  Bay,  where  the  depth 
varies  from  5-12  fathoms,  there  are  numerous  coral 
reefs  which  occur  in  all  stages  of  growth  from  the 
incipient  reef  to  the  coral  island  begirt  with  a  barrier- 
reef.  Being  curious  to  learn  how  the  corals  first  began 
to  grow  on  the  muddy  bottom  of  this  bay,  the  author  of 
this  paper  soon  found  an  explanation  in  the  fact  that  the 
stones  and  fragments  of  sunken  Krakatax)  pumice,  which 
lay  in  places  on  the  mud,  were  covered  with  living  corals. 
Hence  he  concluded  that  in  those  favourable  circum- 
stances where  several  of  the  stones  and  pumice  fragments 
lay  close  together  we  might  have  the  beginning  of  a  reef. 
A  singular  feature  in  the  growth  of  these  reefs  then 
attracted  his  attention.  Some  fourteen  years  ago,  an 
artesian  boring  was  made  in  the  small  coral  island  of 
Onrust  in  Batavia  Bay,  when  an  accumulation,  20  metres 
thick,  of  coral  debris,  shells,  and  clay,  was  found  to  pass 
downward  into  a  firmer  clay.  The  depth  of  the  sea 
around  is  only  11  metres,  and  after  allowing  about  2 
metres  for  the  height  of  the  island.  Dr.  Sluiter  infers  that 
the  coral  fragments  have  sunk  down  7  metres  into  the 
mud  or  clay  of  the  sea- bottom. 

To  support  this  view,  the  author  gives  a  section  of  the 
shore-reef  of  Brandewijns  Bay,  on  the  west  coast  of 
Sumatra,  the  section  being  constructed  from  data  sup- 
plied by  fifteen  borings,  none  deeper  than  24  metres,  the 

'  "  Einiges  fiber  die  Entstehung  der  Korallenriffe  in  der  Javasee  und 
Branntweinsbai,  und  fiber  neue  Korallenbildung  bei  Krakatau."  Von 
Dr.  C.  Ph.  Sluiter.     (Batavia  en  Noordwijk  :  Ernst  and  Co.,  1889.) 

^  Natuurkiindi^  Tijdschrift  voor  Nederlmdsch  Indie,  Band  xlix. 


reef  there  being  rather  under  300  metres  wide.  As  is 
there  shown,  the  volcanic  formations  of  the  steep  coast- 
border  descend  at  a  precipitous  angle  under  the  sea,  so 
that  they  do  not  form  a  foundation  for  the  shore-reef. 
This  reef,  the  thickness  of  which  varies  greatly,  being  in 
some  places  as  much  as  1 1  metres  and  in  others  only 
half  that  amount,  lies  on  "  a  substratum  of  clay  or  mud 
mixed  with  coral  debris.,  and  forming  a  bed  ranging  from 
2  to  7  metres  in  thickness."  This  substratum  of  clay  and 
coral  passes  down  into  a  clay  or  mud,  formed  from  the 
decomposed  andesitic  rocks  of  the  district,  which  may  be 
firm  in  some  places  and  soft  in  others.  The  next  point 
brought  out  in  the  section  is  that  the  substratum  of  clay 
and  coral  ddbris  is  thickest  and  deepest  where  the  under- 
lying clay  is  soft,  and  thinnest  and  nearest  to  the  surface 
when  the  clay  is  firm  or  is  mixed  with  sand.  From  these 
and  allied  considerations.  Dr.  Sluiter  passes  on  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  same  process  has  taken  place  here 
which  occurs  in  the  construction  of  dams  and  piers  on  a 
yielding  bottom,  a  large  amount  of  coral  materials  having 
been  sunk  in  the  mud,  whilst  the  reef,  by  its  own  weight, 
has  prepared  its  own  foundation. 

Having  been  familiar  with  the  appearance  of  Krakatab 
before  the  great  eruption  of  1883,  Dr.  Sluiter  observed 
some  interesting  changes  in  connection  with  the  shore- 
reefs  of  this  island  when  he  revisited  it  in  1888  and  1889. 
The  pumice  and  ashes  at  the  time  of  the  outbreak,  accord- 
ing to  the  account  of  Dr.  Yerbeek,  the  historian  of  the 
eruption,  destroyed  all  life  in  the  sea  around,  making  the 
sea-bottom  a  lifeless  waste  ;  and  under  an  accumulation, 
20  metres  thick,  of  these  materials  lies  the  old  shore-reef. 
In  1888  and  1889  the  old  condition  of  things  was  be- 
ginning to  re-assert  itself.  In  one  place  a  young  shore- 
reef,  composed  mostly  of  madrepores,  had  attained  a 
breadth  of  a  metre,  and  living  corals  were  brought  up  in 
abundance  by  the  dredge,  attached  to  sunken  pumice. 
Amongst  the  measurements  of  coral  growth  given  by  the 
author  are  those  relating  to  specimens  of  Madrepora 
nobilis,  Dana,  which  had  attained  a  length  of  from  2  to 
23  decimetres  in  a  period  that  could  not  have  exceeded 
five  or  six  years,  and  was  probably  much  less.  Specimens 
of  Porites  mucronata,  Dana,  had  also  in  the  same  period 
grown  to  a  length  of  i  decimetre. 

After  referring  briefly  to  the  interesting  Thousand 
Islands,  a  linear  group  of  small  coral  islands  near 
Batavia,  many  of  which,  in  the  southern  part,  affect  the 
atoll  form,  Dr.  Sluiter  sums  up  the  results  of  his  observa- 
tions. A  coral  reef  in  the  Java  Sea  commences  its  growtli. 
on  a  muddy  bottom  in  the  form  of  a  colony  of  corals 
growing  on  the  stones  and  su7iken  pumice  that  there  lie. 
As  it  increases  in  extent  and  height,  it  secures  its  own 
foundation  by  its  weight,  a  large  amount  of  coral  materials 
sinking  into  the  mud  to  a  depth  of  seven  or  less 
metres.  In  its  upward  growth  it  presents  a  level  top,  and 
displays  no  hollow  or  basin,  a  uniformity  which  it  pre- 
serves until  a  foot  from  the  surface,  when  it  dies  in  the 
centre,  and  the  agencies  dwelt  upon  by  Murray  and 
Agassiz  then  co-operate  in  forming  an  atoll  or  a 
barrier-reef.  Because  the  small  coral  reefs  (500  metres 
wide)  of  the  Java  Sea  grow  up  uniformly  until  near  the 
surface,  Dr.  Sluiter  places  himself  in  partial  antagonism 
to  a  portion  of  Murray's  theory.  In  this,  however,  he  has 
missed  the  point  of  the  new  view,  according  to  which 
such  small  reefs  would  either  have  no  lagoon  or  else 
possess  a  very  shallow  one.  With  this  correction,  his 
partial  confirmation  of  Murray's  theory  becomes  more 
complete. 

We  hope  that,  with  the  great  facilities  at  his  disposal, 
Dr.  Sluiter  will  make  an  exhaustive  examination  of  the 
Thousand  Islands,  the  varied  and  unusual  conditions  of 
their  growth  rendering  them  particularly  important  as  a 
field  for  thoroughly  investigating  the  problem. 

H.  B.  GUPPy. 


Jan.  30,  1890J 


NATURE 


301 


THE  ELECTRIC  LIGHT  AT  THE  BRITISH 

MUSEUM. 

THE  authorities  of  the  British  Museum  are  to  be 
congratulated  on  the  thorough  and  admirable 
manner  in  which  the  scheme  for  the  electric  lighting  of 
the  galleries  has  been  carried  out.  Everyone  present  at 
the  private  view  on  Tuesday  evening  was  pleased  with 
the  results  v/hich  had  been  achieved.  Both  arc  and  glow 
lamps  are  employed  ;  the  former  in  the  galleries  on  the 
ground  floor  containing  Greek  and  Roman  sculpture, 
the  Elgin  marbles,  and  Assyrian  and  other  antiquities, 
and  in  some  galleries  on  the  upper  floor.  The  suite  of 
bronze  and  vase  rooms  on  the  west,  and  the  ethnographical 
gallery  on  the  east,  of  the  upper  floor  are  lighted  by  glow 
lamps.  The  light  from  glow  lamps  is  more  agreeable  to 
the  eyes  than  the  more  powerful  light  of  arc  illuminants  ; 
but  tliese  have  been  regulated  with  the  utmost  care,  and 
on  Tuesday  evening  there  was  a  very  general  feeling  that 
the  beauties  of  the  sculpture  were  brought  out  by  them  more 
effectually  than  by  such  daylight  as  is  at  times  rendered 
possible  by  our  northern  climate.  With  regard  to  the 
arc  lights  on  the  upper  floor,  it  was  noticed  that  they  were 
admirably  adapted  for  the  exhibition  of  the  Japanese 
drawings,  even  the  minutest  details  of  these  delicately 
finished  works  being  rendered  plainly  visible  without 
any  diminution  of  the  beauty  of  the  colours. 

We  quote  from  the  Times  of  January  29  the  following 
description : — 

"In  the  galleries  on  the  ground  floor  there  are  69  arc 
lamps  of  various -powers,  while  on  the  upper  floor  there 
are  57  arc  and  627  glow  lamps.  In  addition  to  these  there 
are  five  large  arc  lamps  in  ihe  reading-room,  six  in  the 
court-yard,  and  upwards  of  200  glow  lamps  in  the  offices 
and  passages.  The  total  current  required  to  work  the 
whole  of  the  lamps  is  nearly  1200  amperes,  with  an  E.M.F, 
of  115  volts  at  the  lamp  terminals;  and  this  output  is 
produced  by  the  expenditure  of  nearly  200  brake-horse- 
power. The  current  is  generated  by  four  Siemens  dynamo 
machines,  each  capable  of  givmg  an  output  of  450 
amperes  and  130  volts,  which  are  connected  to  a  general 
switchboard  in  the  engine-room  by  means  of  which  they 
can  be  put  to  work  in  parallel  to  any  or  all  of  the  circuits. 
The  switchboard  is  fitted  with  instruments  indicating  the 
current  given  off  by  each  dynamo  and  four  circuits  are 
led  from  it  round  the  Museum — two  for  the  upper  and  two 
for  the  lower  floor.  The  main  wires  are  laid  outside  the 
building.  In  order  to  insure  safety,  and  to  guard,  as  far  as 
possible,  against  failure  of  light,  the  motive  power  is  in 
duplicate.  The  four  dynamos  are  driven  in  pairs,  each  pair 
by  a  separate  engine  with  a  separate  countershaft.  Each 
engine  has  a  separate  steampipe  in  diiect  communication 
with  the  boilers,  and  there  is  an  ample  reserve  of  boiler 
power  The  powerof  theenginesanddynamosissoadjusted 
that  each  of  the  two  sets  is  capable  of  working  the  whole 
of  the  lamps  in  those  galleries  proposed  to  be  lighted  on 
any  one  evening  ;  the  other  set  standing  by  ready  to  work. 
Further,  in  order  to  work  if  required,  at  half-power,  or  in 
order  to  provide  half-light  for  the  whole  of  the  galleries — 
which  light  should  suffice  for  an  emergency  such  as  sudden 
fog  or  accident — the  lamps  are  connected  in  pairs  alter- 
nately, so  that  half  of  the  number  being  cut  off,  the  light 
of  the  other  half  still  remains  evenly  distributed.  The 
engines  have  been  supplied  and  erected  by  Messrs. 
Marshall,  Sons,  and  Co.  (Limited),  of  Gainsborough,  and 
the  electrical  work  has  been  executed  by  Messrs.  Siemens 
Brothers  and  Co.  (Limited)." 

The  eastern  and  western  portions  of  the  Museum  will 
be  open  to  the  public  on  alternate  week-day  evenings,  and 
all  the  world  agrees  with  the  Times  that  "  the  educational 
value  of  the  unique  collections  of  art  and  scientific 
treasures  the  Museum  contains  will  be  greatly  enhanced 
by  the  change." 


NOTES. 

The  Medals  and  Funds  to  be  given  at  the  anniversary  meeting 
of  the  Geological  Society  on  February  21  have  been  awarded 
by  the  Council  as  follows  :  the  Wollaston  Medal  to  Prof. 
William  Crawford  Williamson,  F-  R-  S.  ;  the  Murchison  Medal  to 
Prof.  Edward  Hull,  F.R.S.  ;  and  the  Lyell  Medal  to  Prof, 
Thomas  Rupert  Jones,  F.R.S.  ;  the  balance  of  the  Wollaston 
Fund  to  Mr.  W,  E.  A.  Ussher,  of  the  Geological  Survey  of 
England  ;  that  of  the  Murchison  Fund  to  Mr.  Edward  Wethered  ; 
ihat  of  the  Lyell  Fund  to  Mr.  C.  Davies  Sherborn  ;  and  a  portion 
of  the  Barlow- Jameson  Fund  to  Mr.  William  Jerome  Harrison. 

The  Council  of  the  Royal  Meteorological  Society  have 
arranged  to  hold  at  25  Great  George  Street,  Westminster,  on 
March  18  to  21  next,  an  Exhibition  of  Instruments  and  Photo- 
graphs illustrating  the  application  of  photography  to  meteorology. 
The  Exhibition  Committee  invite  co-operation,  as  they  are 
anxious  to  obtain  as  large  a  collection  as  possible.  They  will 
also  be  glad  to  show  any  new  meteorological  instruments  or 
apparatus  invented,  or  first  constructed,  since  last  March ;  as 
well  as  photographs  and  drawings  possessing  meteorological 
interest.  Anyone  willing  to  co-operate  in  the  proposed 
Exhibition  should  furnish  the  assistant  secretary  (not  later  than 
February  12)  with  a  list  of  the  articles  he  will  be  able  to  con- 
tribute and  an  estimate  of  the  space  they  will  require. 

The  second  course  of  the  Clifford  Lectures  at  Glasgow  will 
begin  on  February  5.  As  announced  in  the  first  course,  these 
lectures  will  treat  of  what  Prof.  Max  Miiller  calls  "Physical 
Religion,"  or  the  belief  in  natural,  sub-natural,  and  super-natural 
powers,  discovered  in  some  of  the  great  phenomena  of  Nature. 

Some  most  interesting  notes  on  the  last  days  of  Father  Perry 
are  contributed  to  the  Tablet  of  January  25  by  Father  Strick- 
land, S.J.  The  facts  stated  by  the  writer  bring  out  in  a  very 
striking  light  the  earnest  and  resolute  spirit  in  which,  to  the  end 
of  his  life,  Father  Perry  devoted  himself  to  science.  During 
the  voyage  he  suffered  badly  from  sea-sickness,  and  on  his 
arrival  at  the  Isles  de  Salut  he  was  "much  done  up."  Never- 
theless, he  allowed  himself  no  rest,  but  landed  at  once  to  view 
the  site  and  introduce  himself  to  the  authorities.  Captain  Atkin  • 
son  urged  him  to  live  on  board  the  Cotnus  and  land  each  morning 
for  his  work  ;  and  Father  Strickland  is  of  opinion  that  if  he  had 
done  this  "  his  life  would  not  have  been  sacrificed  to  his  over- 
anxious desire  to  do  everything  for  the  best  for  the  success  of 
the  work  confided  to  him."  He  preferred,  however,  to  take  up 
his  quarters  in  the  hospital,  and  said  nothing  about  the  fact  that 
he  was  in  bad  health,  making  "  light  of  all  his  personal  wants 
for  fear  of  giving  trouble  to  others. "  The  observatory  erected 
for  the  occasion  was  half  a  mile  from  the  hospital,  and  "the 
intervening  ground  was  very  rough,  being  a  steep  descent  and 
ascent,  and  the  distance  was  gone  over  on  foot  four  times  each 
day  in  fair  weather  or  foul."  "  On  the  Friday  before  the  eclipse 
Father  Perry  complained  of  being  'very  bad  inside,'  but  he 
worked  on  until  nearly  3  a.m.,  and  when  the  men  retired  to  the 
Coinus  he  tried  to  snatch  a  little  rest  where  he  was,  and  lay 
down  in  a  hammock  in  the  tent.  He  was  up  again  before  6 
o'clock  to  take  the  position  of  the  sun  at  rising.  At  6.45  the 
men  arrived  from  the  ship,  and  at  7.30  there  was  a  complete, 
most  careful,  and  most  successful  rehearsal  of  all  the  operations 
and  duties  which  were  to  be  performed  next  morning  in  the 
solemn  moments  of  the  eclipse,  for  which  they  had  been  pre- 
paring so  long  and  had  travelled  so  far.  Everyone  was  surprised 
at  Father  Perry's  exactitude  in  contributing  to  carry  out  his  own 
orders  and  his  courage  in  facing  fatigue.  His  readiness  to  sacri- 
fice himself  and  his  own  convenience  in  order  to  save  trouble 
to  others  endeared  him  to  all  who  worked  with  him,  and  chal- 
lenged their  utmost  efforts  to  secure  success  for  their  work  in 


302 


NATURE 


[jfan.  30,  1890 


spite  of  the  oppressive  climate  and  surroundings.  Just  before 
noon  on  Saturday,  Lieutenant  Thierns  went  to  see  him  at  the 
hospital  and  found  him  much  exhausted  ;  but  he  was  again  at 
his  post  in  the  observatory  at  3  p.m.,  at  which  time  an 
important  photograph  was  secured  with  the  mirror.  In  the 
evening  he  went  on  board  the  Comus  for  dinner,  but  was  only 
able  to  lie  on  a  sofa  all  the  time  ;  and  he  sent  to  the  doctor  for 
some  chlorodyne.  Much  against  the  wishes  and  earnest  advice 
of  Captain  Atkinson  (who  spoke  to  me  of  Father  Perry  with  the 
sincerest  regard  and  esteem).  Father  Perry  made  his  way  on 
shore  in  a  violent  pouring  rain  to  sleep  in  his  own  quarters,  and 
would  allow  no  one  to  hinder  him.  Next  morning,  Sunday  the 
22nd,  was  the  important  moment  of  the  eclipse.  Lieutenant 
Thierns  landed  with  his  observatory  party  at  six  o'clock,  and  on 
arrival  was  informed  by  Mr.  Rooney  that  Father  Perry  had 
passed  a  very  bad  night  and  was  very  ill,  so  a  man  was  sent  to 
help  him  over  the  bad  half  mile  from  his  quarters,  as  he  declined 
to  let  himself  be  carried  on  a  stretcher.  He  reached  the  obser- 
vatory in  good  time,  though  in  a  very  exhausted  state.  As  the 
important  moment  approached,  he  seemed  to  rally,  and,  during 
the  minutes  of  the  eclipse,  seemed  to  be  himself  again,  and 
showed  no  signs  of  illness  or  exhaustion.  There  were  two 
photographic  instruments  in  use — one  an  old  one,  which  had 
often  been  in  use  before,  the  other  was  the  special  new  corona 
graphic  instrument  prepared  for  the  occasion,  of  which  Father 
Perry  himself  took  charge.  He  was  so  alert  and  self-possessed 
during  the  eclipse,  that  his  friends  about  him  hoped  he  was  not 
so  ill,  but  he  gave  way  immediately  after,  and  with  much  difficulty 
reached  his  quarters  in  the  hospital.  It  was  known  after,  that 
during  the  previous  night  he  had  been  very  seriously  ill." 
On  Sunday  night  it  became  evident  that  he  was  suffering  from 
the  very  worst  form  of  dysentery.  On  Wednesday,  Christmas 
Day,  he  was  better,  and  the  vessel  started  for  Demerara.  All 
hope  was  gone  on  Friday  at  1.30  p.m.  At  3  p.m.  his  mind 
began  to  wander,  and  at  4. 20  he  died.  It  is  pathetic  to  read 
that  before  he  quite  lost  consciousness  he  thought  himself  again 
engaged  in  "  the  supreme  moment  of  the  scientific  mission 
which  had  so  long  filled  his  thoughts,"  and  "  began  to  give  his 
orders  as  duiung  the  short  minutes  of  the  eclipse." 

At  its  annual  sitting,  the  Russian  Academy  of  Sciences 
elected  the  following  as  Corresponding  Members : — In  Mathe- 
matics, Prof,  Sophie  Kovalevskaya,  Stockholm  ;  in  Astronomy, 
Prof.  Moris  Lcewy,  Paris ;  in  Chemistry,  Prof.  Stanislas  Can- 
nizaro,  Rome ;  in  Biology,  Th.  Keppen,  Russia,  and  Prof. 
Henri  Baillon,  Paris. 

The  Sanitary  Institute  has  made  arrangements  for  the  ninth 
course  of  lectures  and  demonstrations  for  sanitary  officers.  They 
will  be  given  in  the  Parkes  Museum,  and  will  be  specially 
adapted  for  candidates  preparing  for  the  Institute's  examination 
for  inspectors  of  nuisances.  The  introductory  lecture  will  be 
delivered  on  February  18  by  Mr.  E.  C.  Robins.  Among  the 
lecturers  will  be  Sir  Douglas  Galton  and  Prof.  W.  H.  Corfield. 
The  former  will  lecture  on  ventilation,  measurement  of  cubic 
space,  &c ;  the  latter  on  sanitary  appliances. 

Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co,  are  issuing  a  monograph  of 
the  British  Cicadse,  by  George  Bowdler  Buckton,  F.R.S.  It 
will  consist  of  eight  quarterly  parts,  each  containing  on  an 
average  ten  litho-chromo  plates  and  letterpress,  illustrating  the 
forms,  metamorphoses,  general  anatomy,  and  the  chief  details 
connected  with  the  life-history  of  this  family  of  insects.  The 
work  will  contain  also  short  diagnoses  of  all  the  British  species, 
about  230  in  number,  most  of  which  have  come  under  the 
author's  notice,  each  species  being  illustrated  by  one  or  more 
coloured  drawings.  Some  account  will  be  given  of  the  curious 
myths  and  tales  told  by  ancient  Greek  and  Latin  poets,  and 
descriptions   will  be  appended  relating  to   the  curious  sound- 


organs  possessed  by  some  species,  and  other  subjects  connected 
with  the  economy  of  this  interesting  but  difficult  group  of 
Rhynchotous  insects. 

Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co.  have  in  the  press  a  "  Manual 
of  Public  Health,  "  by  Mr.  Wynter  Blyth,  M.R.C.S.,  Medical 
Officer  of  Health  for  St.  Marylebone. 

Malta  has  suffered  a  great  loss  in  the  almost  sudden  death  of 
Dr.  Gulia,  Professor  of  Botany,  Hygiene,  and  Forensic  Medicine 
in  the  Royal  University  of  Valletta,  He  was  born,  in  1835,  ^^ 
Cospicua,  a  suburb  of  Valletta,  where  his  father  was  a  physician. 
He  graduated  in  medicine  and  surgery,  in  1855,  at  Valletta,  and 
afterwards  went  to  complete  his  studies  at  Paris,  where  he  made 
the  acquaintance  of  a  large  number  of  eminent  men,  including 
Milne-Edwards,  Blanchard,  and  Vidal,  On  his  return  to  reside 
in  his  native  town,  he  was  elected  to  the  above-mentioned  Chair 
in  the  University  in  Valletta.  Besides  attending  to  his  pro- 
fessorial duties  and  the  requirements  of  a  large  medical  practice, 
Prof.  Gulia  found  time  to  edit  an  important  medical  journal,  in 
which  he  exhibited  great  literary  and  scientific  talents.  He  also- 
issued,  among  other  writings,  a  "  Flora  of  Malta."  His  son  is 
about  to  publish  his  last  work,  containing  the  completest  account 
of  the  flora  of  Malta  up  to  the  present  time,  bringing  the  total 
number  of  species  up  to  833. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Society  of  Arts,  last  week,  Mr,  Bru- 
denell  Carter  read  a  valuable  paper  on  "  Vision-testing  for 
Practical  Purposes."  Referring  to  colour  blindness,  Mr.  Carter 
said  that  Dr.  Joy  Jeffries,  in  the  last  edition  of  his  work  on  the 
subject,  tabulates  the  results  of  the  examination  of  175,127  per- 
sons, and  shows  that  the  percentage  of  this  number  who  were 
colour  (blind  amounted  to  395.  Any  method  of  examination, 
which  gives  a  percentage  differing  from  this  in  any  marked  de- 
gree must,  Mr.  Carter  thinks,  be  vitiated  by  some  error.  Of  the 
methods  of  examination  pursued  on  the  English  and  Scottish 
lines  of  railway,  and  by  the  Board  of  Trade,  he  said  they  had 
one  feature  in  common — they  were  all  wrong,  "the  direct  off- 
spring, in  almost  every  instance,  of  a  degree  of  ignorance  and 
presumption,  the  very  existence  of  which  would  be  incredible  if 
the  proofs  of  it  were  not  brought  daily  under  our  observation. " 
"Even  where  the  use  of  Holmgren's  method  is  professed,"  said 
Mr.  Carter,  "the  rules  laid  down  by  Holmgren  for  conducting 
it  are,  as  a  rule,  utterly  ignored,  and  the  results  obtained  are  as 
utterly  misleading.  The  test  should  be  used  in  exact  conformity 
with  his  very  detailed  and  precise  instructions,  or  it  should  not 
be  used  at  all," 

The  first  of  a  series  of  Friday  evening  lectures  on  Astronomy 
was  delivered  on  Friday,  the  24th  instant,  by  Mr,  E.  J.  C. 
Morton,  at  the  Battersea  Public  Baths.  An  audience  numbering 
over  400  assembled,  and  manifested  much  interest  in  the  subject 
with  which  Mr.  Morton  dealt.  The  lectures  are  being  given  in 
connection  with  the  University  Extension  Scheme, 

The  following  science  lectures  will  be  given  at  the  Royal 
Victoria  Hall  during  February  :  4th,  ' '  Algeria  and  Morocco, "  by 
Mr.  Henry  Blackburn  ;  lith,  "  Arsenic,"  by  Mr,  Ward  Cold- 
ridge  ;  i8th,  "Eyesight  and  Some  of  its  Defects,"  by  Dr.  Collins;. 
25th,  "  Sinai  and  Palestine,"  by  Sir  Charles  Wilson. 

The  third  series  of  lectures  given  by  the  Sunday  Lecture 
Society  will  begin  on  Sunday  afternoon,  February  2,  in  St. 
George's  Hall,  Langham  Place,  at  4  p.m.,  when  Dr.  B,  W. 
Richardson,  F.R.S.,  will  lecture  on  "  The  Health  of  the  Mind  ; 
and  Mental  Contagions."  Lectures  will  subsequently  be  given 
by  Sir  Henry  E.  Roscoe,  M.P.,  F,R,S.,  Mr,  Justin  H, 
McCarthy,  M,P.,  Mr,  G,  Wotherspoon,  Mr,  H,  L.  Braekstad, 
Mr.  Louis  Fagan,  and  Dr,  James  Edmunds. 

Great  efforts  are  being  made  to  secure  that  the  eleventh 
meeting  of  the  National  Electric  Light  Association,  to  be  held 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


303 


at  Kansas  City  from  February  1 1  to  14,  shall  be,  as  Scietue  puts 
it,  *'  one  of  the  most  interesting  conventions  ever  held."  Those 
who  propose  to  go  to  Kansas  from  New  York  may  look  forward 
to  a  pleasant  journey.  A  vestibule  train,  to  be  called  the  I^lectric 
Limited,  is  to  run  through  without  change  to  Kansas  City  vid 
Chicago  and  the  Chicago,  Burlington,  and  Quincy  Railroad. 
The  committee  making  the  necessary  arrangements  feels 
confident  that  this  train  will  be  "the  finest  ever  run  out  of 
New  York."  It  will  be  composed  of  the  latest  Pullman  vesti- 
bule sleeping-cars,  lighted^by  electricity,  a  dining-car,  composite 
car  containing  barber  shop,  bath  room,  card  room,  library, 
writing  desk,  smoking  room,  &c.,  and  an  observation  car  with  a 
large  open  room  luxuriously  furnished,  as  well  as  an  observation 
platform.  The  train  will  be  supplied  throughout  with  fixed 
and  portable  electric  lamps. 

Herr  Trautweiler  thinks  that  a  railway  should  go  to  the 
top  of  the  Jungfrau,  and  in  the  Schweizerische  Bauzeitung gwe?,  a 
brief  account  of  his  scheme.  The  railway  would  go  from  the 
valley  below  to  the  summit,  and  would  be  almost  entirely  under- 
ground. There  would  be  several  intermediate  stations,  from 
which  convenient,  well-arranged  tunnels  would  lead  to  points  on 
the  mountain  whence  the  best  views  are  to  be  had.  If  stormy 
weather  came  on,  the  passengers  could  withdraw  into  the  shelter 
of  those  tunnels.     The  railway  would  be  lighted  by  electricity. 

The  following  is  translated  from  a  notice  published  by  the 
authorities  of  the  Madrid  Observatory  : — "D.  Ernesto  Caballero, 
Professor  of  Physics,  and  director  of  the  electric  lighting  manu- 
factory in  Pontevedra,  writes  to  this  Observatory,  giving  details 
of  a  remarkable  meteorological  phenomenon  which  appeared  at 
9.15  p.m.  on  the  2nd  inst.  In  a  sky  serene  and  clear,  there 
appeared  suddenly  a  globe  or  ball  of  fire  of  the  apparent  size 
of  an  orange,  which  after  falling  (it  is  not  possible  to  well  indi- 
cate how  or  from  whence)  upon  the  conducting  wires  stretched 
across  the  city,  entered  the  manufactory  (referred  to)  by  a  sky- 
light or  window,  struck  the  apparatus  for  distributing  the  light, 
from  which  (after  raising  the  armature  of  a  magnetic  current 
closer)  it  struck  the  dynamo  at  work.  In  the  presence  of  the 
alarmed  engineer  and  workmen  present  it  rebounded  twice  from 
the  dynamo  to  the  conductor,  and  from  the  conductor  to  the 
dynamo,  then  fell  and  burst  with  a  sharp  and  clear  detonation 
into  a  multitude  of  fragments,  without  producing  any  harm  or 
leaving  any  trace  of  its  mysterious  existence.  In  various  parts 
of  the  city  the  lights  swiftly  oscillated  and  were  extinguished 
for  some  seconds,  and  that  the  darkness  was  not  general  and 
long  continued  was  owing  to  the  admirable  self-possession  of 
the  employh,  who  almost  instantly  established  the  order  of 
things  so  suddenly  and  strangely  interrupted  by  this  mysterious 
meteor,  of  whose  action  and  presence  there  only  remained 
traces  on  the  melted  (or  soldered)  edges  of  the  thick  copper 
plates  belonging  to  the  armature  of  the  circuit  closer.  Outside 
the  building,  and  at  the  moment  of  falling  upon  the  conducting 
wires,  it  was  seen  by  (among  others)  the  Professor  of  Natural 
History,  Seiior  Garceran,  and  from  various  effects  observed  on  the 
wires  during  the  following  day  there  were  undoubted  manifesta- 
tions {in  no  other  way  explicable)  of  its  electrical  origin." 

The  second  part  of  a  voluminous  bibliography  of  meteorology 
prepared  by  Brigadier-General  Greely,  Chief  Signal  Officer  of  the 
United  States  Army,  and  edited  by  Oliver  L.  Fassig,  has  been 
issued,  and  consists  of  a  classed  catalogue  of  printed  literature 
relating  to  moisture,  from  the  origin  of  printing  to  the  close  of 
1 88 1.  The  whole  literature  included  is  divided  into  22  sub- 
divisions, a  comprehensive  classification  which  will  be  highly 
appreciated.  A  section  is  devoted  to  rainfall  in  general,  others 
to  distribution  and  variation  of  rainfall,  others  to  heavy  rainfall 
and  drought,  and  so  on  throughout  the  whole  work.  A  division 
on   «'  Showers  of  Miscellaneous  Matter,"  though  not  properly  a 


part  of  the  subject,  has  been  deemed  of  sufficient  interest  in  con- 
nection with  the  general  subject  of  precipitation  to  be  included 
within  this  volume.  Although  supplements  to  Part  I.  Tempera- 
ture, and  Part  II.  Moisture,  may  appear  later,  it  is  to  be  regretted 
that  it  will  be  impracticable  for  any  other  part  of  this  bibliography 
to  be  issued  from  the  Signal  Office. 

In  Petermanii' 5    Mittdlungen   for   December  last.   Dr.    R. 
Spitaler  has  an  instructive  paper  on  the  temperature  "anomalies" 
of  the  surface  of  the  earth  in  January  and  July,  with  charts 
showing  those  districts  which  are  too  warm  (in  positive  anomaly) 
or  too  cold  (in  negative  anomaly),  compared  with  the  normal 
values  of  their  geographical  positions.     Such  charts  were  first 
drawn  by  Dove  ;  but  as  the  materials  at  the  disposal  of  Dr. 
I  Spitaler  are  much  better  than  those  which  Prof.  Dove  possessed, 
'  the  charts  differ  in  several  important  particulars.     The  influence 
j  of  the   warm  and  cold    ocean-currents   upon   the  temperature 
j  anomaly  is  very  clearly  shown.     Europe,   for  instance,  being 
under  the  influence  of  the  Gulf  Stream  and  south-west  winds,  is 
always  in  positive  anomaly,  whereas  Central  Asia  is  a  district 
which  has  in  winter  24°  C.  of  negative  anomaly,  while  in  sum- 
mer it  has  6"  of  positive  anomaly,  or  of  greater  heat  than  the 
I  same  latitude  in  Europe.     The  July  chart  shows  in  the  northern 
hemisphere  two  decided  maxima  of  positive  anomaly,  and  two 
minima,  while  in  the  southern  hemisphere,   owing  to  the  less 
amount  of  land,  the  anomaly  is  much  smaller.     In  July  the  con- 
tinents of  the  northern  hemisphere  are  almost  entirely  in  positive 
anomaly,  while  the  whole  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans 
and  Central  America  are  in  negative  anomaly. 

In  the  current  number  of  the  Journal  of  the  Anthropological 
Institute  there  is  a  valuable  paper,  by  Dr.  Arthur  Thomson,  on 
the  Veddahs  of  Ceylon.  Discussing  the  affinities  of  the  Veddahs, 
he  says  there  appears  to  be  little  doubt  that  if  they  be  not  of 
the  same  stock  as  the  so-called  aborigines  of  Southern  India 
they  at  least  present  very  strong  points  of  resemblance  as 
regards  stature,  proportions  of  limbs,  cranial  capacity,  and  form 
of  skull.  The  similarities  of  hair  and  colour  between  these 
races  have  often  been  remarked,  so  that,  on  the  whole,  if 
physical  features  alone  be  taken  into  account.  Dr.  Thomson 
thinks  the  affinities  of  the  Veddahs  with  the  hill  tribes  of  the 
Nilgherries  and  the  natives  of  the  Coromandel  coast,  and  the 
country  near  Cape  Comorin,  are  fairly  well  proved. 

Mr.  H.  B.  Bashore  sends  to  Science  sketches  of  an  interest- 
ing Indian  pipe.  It  is  made  of  dark  green  steatite,  carved  into 
an  admirable  image  of  a  turtle,  and  represents,  no  doubt,  one 
of  the  Delaware  totems.  The  back  of  the  animal  is  well 
polished  and  distinctly  marked  with  lines,  and  the  hole  for  the 
stem  is  well  drilled,  and  of  a  smooth  bore.  This  relic  was 
found  thirty  years  ago  on  the  site  of  what  is  now  the  village  of 
Fairview,  on  the  Susquehanna,  close  to  an  old  Indian  burying- 
ground. 

The  Punjab  Government  is  obtaining  a  number  of  young 
olive  trees  from  Italy,  and  proposes  to  find  out  by  experiment 
whether  the  low  hills  below  Murree  in  the  Rawul  Pindi  district 
are  suitable  for  olive  cultivation. 

The  Laccadive  Islands  have  been  suffering  severely  from  a 
plague  of  rats.  According  to  the  Calcutta  Correspondent  of  the 
Times,  these  invaders  have  destroyed  the  cocoanut  plantations 
and  reduced  the  islanders  to  a  state  of  destitution. 

Mr.  R.  M.  Johnston  lately  called  the  attention  of  the 
Royal  Society  of  Tasmania  to  the  extreme  variability  of  the 
genus  Unio,  inhabiting  the  northern  rivers  of  Tasmania.  The 
shell  seems  to  be  capable  of  a  remarkable  number  of  modifica- 
tions with  regard  both  to  form  and  colour.  This,  Mr.  Johnston 
says,  is  more  particularly  the  case  if  specimens  marking  different 
stages  of  growth  are  compared  with  each  other.     In  specimens 


504 


NATURE 


\yan.  30,  1890 


marking  seven  stages  of  growth,  the  variation  in  form — from 
youth  to  the  adult  stage — embraces  characteristics  covering 
"  most  of  the  distinctions  upon  which  many  of  the  Austrahan 
forms  mainly  depend  for  the  recognition  of  distinct  specific 
rank."  Such  being  the  variability  of  local  form  in  the  indi- 
viduals of  the  various  stages  of  growth,  Mr.  Johnston  thinks 
there  is  good  reason  for  the  belief  that  the  several  forms  erected 
into  specific  ranks  in  various  parts  of  Australia  may  prove  to  be 
local  varieties,  or  particular  stages  of  growth  of  one  widely 
distributed  species. 

The  destruction  of  the  native  opossum  is  attracting  some 
attention  in  Tasmania.  It  is  said  that  about  75  per  cent,  of  the 
animals  killed  have  had  young  in  the  pouch  at  the  time.  The 
opossum  has  great  commercial  value,  and  there  seems  to  be  a 
general  opinion  that  it  ought  to  be  efficiently  protected. 

In  the  third  report  of  the  Liverpool  Marine  Biological  Station 
on  Puffin  Island,  Prof  W.  A.  Herdman  gives  a  concise  and 
interesting  account  of  much  good  work  done  during  the  past 
year.  In  the  autumn  the  station  was  closed,  but  it  will  be  re- 
opened at  the  beginning  of  either  April  or  May,  and  Prof. 
Herdman  has  no  doubt  that  next  summer  all  the  different  lines 
of  investigation  hitherto  started  will  be  followed  up  with  a 
renewed  enthusiasm  which  will  more  than  make  up  for  the  loss 
of  the  winter  observations. 

The  Annuaire  de  VAcadentie  Royale de  Belgiquc  for  the  current 
year  contains  the  usual  information  about  the  Academy  and  the 
awards  of  the  various  prizes.  There  is  little  to  interest  non- 
members  except  the  series  of  biographies  and  portraits  of  former 
distinguished  members,  including  Houzeau. 

Dk.  C.  Hart  Merriam,  chief  of  division  of  ornithology  and 
mammalogy,  in  the  U.S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  has  issued  a 
series  of  directions  for  the  measurement  of  small  mammals  and 
the  preparation  of  museum  skins.  The  directions  are  accompanied 
by  an  illustration,  showing  the  appearance  of  a  well  made  skin. 

Mr.  de  Zilva  Wickremasinghe,  assistant  librarian  of  the 
Colombo  Museum,  has  compiled  a  valuable  list  of  the  "  Pansi- 
yapanas  Jataka,"  the  550  birth  stories  of  Gautama  Buddha.  In 
order  to  make  the  record  complete  the  compiler  consulted  many 
old  manuscripts  belonging  to  temple  libraries  in  various  parts  of 
Ceylon.  The  list  has  been  published  in  the  Journal  of  the  Ceylon 
branch  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society,  and  is  also  printed  separately. 

Solutions  to  the  questions  in  Pure  Mathematics,  Stages  I. 
and  II.,  set  at  the  May  examinations  of  the  Science  and  Art 
Department  from  1881  to  1886,  have  been  published  by  Messrs. 
Chapman  and  Hall  in  book  form.  Each  of  the  questions  has 
been  fully  worked  out,  and  together  they  make  a  useful  series  of 
examples  in  elementary  mathematics. 

Messrs.  Dulau  and  Co.  have  issued  a  catalogue  of  works 
relating  to  cryptogamic  botany. 

We  have  to  acknowledge  receipt  of  £2,  sent  by  Mrs.  Morton 
Sumner  towards  the  payment  of  the  debt  on  the  laboratories  of 
Bedford  College,  to  which  we  called  attention  last  week. 

An  interesting  paper  is  contributed  by  Prof.  Carnelley  to  the 
Philosophical  Magazine  for  January,  in  which  he  attempts  to 
express  the  periodic  law  of  the  chemical  elements  by  means  of 
an  algebraic  formula.  For  reasons  which  are  given  in  detail 
in  the  memoir,  an  expression  of  the  form  A  =  c{m  4-  ^Iv)  is 
adopted,  where  A  represents  the  atomic  weight  of  the  element, 
c  a  constant,  m  a  member  of  a  series  in  arithmetical  progression, 
depending  upon  the  horizontal  series  in  the  periodic  table  to 
which  the  element  belongs,  and  v  the  maximum  valency  or  the 
number  of  the  vertical  group  of  which  the  element  is  a  member. 
From  a  number  of  approximations.  Prof.  Carnelley  finds  that  m 


is  best  represented  by  the  value  o  in  the  lithium-beryllium-boron 
&c.,  horizontal  row,  by  2h  in  the  sodium  series,  5  in  the  potas- 
sium series,  and  8i,  12,  154,  19,  22i,  &c  ,  in  the  subsequent 
rows.  Thus  m  is  a  member  of  an  arithmetical  series  of  which 
the  common  difference  is  25  for  the  first  three  members,  and  3J 
for  all  the  rest.  On  calculating  the  values  of  the  constant  c  from 
A 


the  equation  c 


for  55  of  the  elements,  the  numbers 


m  -I-  sl'v 

are  all  found  to  lie  between  6'0  and  7*2  with  a  mean  value  of6'6 
In  by  far  the  majority  of  cases  the  value  is  much  closer  to  the  mean 
6 '6  than  is  represented  by  the  two  extreme  limits,  thus  in  35 
cases  the  values  lie  between  6*45  and  6'75.  If  the  number 
6  "6,  therefore,  is  adopted  as  the  value  of  c,  and  the  atomic 
weights  of  the  elements  are  then  calculated  from  the  formula 
A  =  6  6{m  -\-  is/v),  the  calculated  atomic  weights  thus  obtained 
approximate  much  more  closely  to  the  experimental  atomic 
weights  than  do  the  numbers  derived  from  an  application  of  the 
atomic  heat  approximation  of  Dulong  and  Petit.  The  number 
6  6  at  once  strikes  one  as  being  remarkably  near  to  the  cele- 
brated 6'4  of  Dulong  and  Petit,  and  Prof.  Carnelley  draws  the 
conclusion  that  there  must  be  a  connection  between  the  two. 
This  assumption  appears  to  be  supported  by  the  following  inter- 
esting facts.  If  we  assume  c  to  represent  the  atomic  heat,  then 
atomic  weight  =  atomic  heat  x  {m  -f-  ,^/v)  =  atomic  weight  x 

specific  heat  x   (m  +   Jv)  :  or  specific  heat  = ^  .    O" 

calculating  the  specificheats  of  the  elements  from  this  equation,  they 
are  found  to  agree  remarkably  well  with  the  experimental  values, 
except  in  those  cases  in  which  the  observed  specific  heat  is  known  to 
be  abnormal.  Again,  Bettone  has  shown  that  the  hardness  of  the 
elements  is  inversely  proportional  to  their  specific  volumes.  If 
this  be  so,  hardness  =     ^^-  '        gravi  y  _  ^^^^  ^^  calculating  the 

hardness  from  this  formula,  the  numbers  are  again  found  to 
agree  very  closely  with  the  hardness  experimentally  determined 
by  Bettone.  That  the  periodic  law  may  therefore  be  approxi- 
mately expressed  by  a  formula  of  the  type  A  =  c{m  +  ^/v) 
appears  very  probable,  and  that  the  number  6 '6  is  a  very  close 
approximation  to  the  value  of  c  appears  also  to  be  established. 
Moreover,  the  fact  that  m  in  the  even  series  represents  a  whole 
number,  while  in  the  odd  series  it  represents  a  whole  number  and 
a  half,  corresponds  to  ihe  well-known  difference  in  chemical  pro- 
perties between  the  members  of  these  series  ;  and  the  assumption 
that  the  common  difference  between  the  first  three  values  of ;;/  is 
only  22,  while  between  all  the  rest  it  is  35,  is  borne  out  by 
Mendeleeff's  statement  that  the  elements  of  the  lithium  and 
sodium  rows  are  more  or  less  exceptional  in  their  nature,  and 
not  strictly  comparable  with  the  subsequent  series. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  two  Brown  Capuchins  i^Cebus falttellus  i  6) 
from  Paraguay,  presented  by  Mr.  E.  Malateste  ;  a  Bonnet 
Monkey  {Macacus  siidcus  $  )  from  India,  presented  by  Miss 
Alice  Booth  ;  a  Macaque  Monkey  (Macaais  cynomolgiis  i  )  from 
India,  presented  by  Mr.  C.  Harris  ;  a  Green  Monkey 
{Cercopithecus  callitrichus  tj )  from  West  Africa,  presented  by 
Quarter- Master  Serjeant  Mathison,  W.I.R.  ;  a  Silver  Pheasant 
{Euplocamus  nycthtmerus  6 )  from  China,  presented  by  Mr.  W. 
R  Rootes  ;  a  Malbrouck  Monkey  [Cercopithecus  cynosurus  i) 
from  Rorke's  Drift,  South  Africa,  a  Bonnet  Monkey  [Macacus 
sinicus   ?  )  from  India,  deposited. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.  on  January  30  =  6h. 
40m.  20s. 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


305 


Name. 


(i)  G.C.  1425      

(2)  DM.  +  17"  1479  ... 

(3)  f  Canis  Minoris   ... 

(4)  y  Oeminorum 

(5)78Schj 

(6)  R  Leonis      


Mag 


6 
Var. 


Colour. 


Yellowish-red. 
Yellowish-white. 

Bluish-white. 

Reddish-yellow. 

Vtry  red. 


R.A.  1890.1  Decl.  1890. 


h.  m.  s. 

6  26  3r 

6  56     I 

7  »9  f> 
6  31  24 
6  28  59 
9  41  39 


T-io  14 

+  17  53 
+  930 
+ 16  30 
+3831 
-t-ii  56 


Remarks. 


(l)  This  nebula  is  described  by  Sir  John  Ilerschel  as  "pretty 
large,  cometic,  much  brighter  nucleus  south  following."  The 
remarks  relating  to  the  nebula  G.C.  1 185  (see  p.  257)  apply 
equally  in  this  case,  the  spectrum  not  having  been  recorded. 
Next  in  importance  to  observations  of  the  general  character  of 
the  spectrum  will  be  observations  of  differences  between  the 
spectrum  of  the  nucleus  and  that  of  the  "tail."  It  seems  hardly 
likely  that  the  same  spectrum  will  be  given  by  the  dense  and 
sparse  portions  of  the  nebula. 

(2)  This  star  has  a  fine  spectrum  of  the  Group  II.  type. 
I  >uner  stales  that  bands  2-8  inclusive  are  visible,  and  possibly 
also  band  9,  all  the  bands  being  very  wide  and  dark.  The  point 
chiefly  requiring  attention  in  a  spectrum  of  this  character  is  the 
presence  or  absence  of  the  compound  fluting  of  carbon  which 
extends  from  about  wave-length  468  to  474,  it  having  been  sug- 
gested that  band  9  is  simply  a  contrast  band  due  to  the  presence 
of  this  fluting.  The  mean  wave-length  given  by  Duner  for  the 
edge  of  band  9  is  476 'o,  and  if  the  suggestion  referred  to  be  of  any 
value,  this  ought  to  be  coincident  with  the  less  refrangible  edge 
of  the  carbon  group.  This  can  only  be  satisfactorily  settled  by 
direct  comparisons  of  the  spectrum  of  the  star  with  that  of 
carbon,  obtained  in  the  usual  way  from  a  Bunsen  or  spirit-lamp 
flame. 

(■?)  Vogel  classes  this  with  stars  of  the  solar  type.  The  usual 
differential  observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Gothard).  The  usual  observations 
are  required  (see  p.  285). 

(5)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  VI.,  Duner  stating  that  the  bands 
2-9  are  visible.  Band  6  is  a  little  weaker  than  the  other  carbon 
flutings.  It  seems  probable  that  some  of  the  brighter  stars  of 
the  group  will  give  metallic  line  absorptions,  seeing  that  they 
are  most  probably  formed  by  the  cooling  of  stars  like  the  sun,  in 
which  there  are  only  traces  of  carbon  absorption,  whilst  the  line 
absorption  is  strongly  marked.  If  the  b  group  be  present,  it 
will  most  likely  produce  an  apparent  displacement  of  the  carbon 
fluting  to  a  slightly  less  refrangible  position,  its  absorption  being 
added  to  that  of  carbon.  This  can  readily  be  determined  by 
comparison  with  the  spirit-lamp  flame.  Other  lines  may  also 
appear,  but  b  is  mentioned  as  being  amongst  the  more  prominent 
solar  lines. 

(6)  Mr.  Espin  found  bright  lines  in  the  spectrum  of  this  variable, 
when  near  its  maximum  in  1889.  The  star  will  again  be  at  a 
maximum  on  January  30,  and  observers  will  therefore  have  an  , 
opportunity  of  making  a  more  detailed  examination  of  the 
spectrum.  The  general  spectrum  is  of  the  Group  II.  type. 
Particular  attention  should  be  given  to  the  bright  carbon  flutings, 
both  at  maximum  and  for  some  time  after,  as  it  seems  probable 
that  an  increase  of  carbon  radiation  will  accompany  the  appear- 
ance of  the  bright  lines  of  hydrogen.  The  star  ranges  from 
about  magnitude  6  at  maximum  to  95  at  minimum,  and  the 
period  is  313  days.  A.  Fowler. 

The  Total  Eclipse  of  January  i,  1889. — With  a 
summary  of  the  observations  of  this  eclipse,  Prof.  Holden 
has  come  to  the  conclusion  that  coronal  forms  vary  periodi- 
cally, those  of  1867,  1878,  and  1889  being  of  the  same  form; 
that  the  outer  corona,  terminated  in  branching  forms,  suggests 
the  presence  of  streams  of  meteorites  near  the  sun,  whilst  the 
extension  of  the  corona  along  and  very  near  the  plane  of  the 
ecliptic  would  show  that  such  streams  must  have  long  been 
integral  parts  of  the  solar  system.  The  photographs  taken  just 
before  second  and  after  third  contact  prove  the  corona  to  be, 
without  doubt,  a  solar  appendage.  Spectroscopic  observations 
indicate  that  the  true  atmosphere  of  the  sun  mny  be  compara- 
tively shallow,  it  being  conclusively  shown  that  the  length  of  a 
coronal  line  is  not  always  an  indication  of  the  depth  of  the 
gaseous  coronal  atmosphere  of  the  sun  at  that  point. — Observa- 
tory, January  1890. 

The  Orbits  of  the  Companions  of  Brooks'  Comet(i889 
v.,  July  6. — The  four  companions  which  accompanied  this  comet 


were  notified  as  B,  C,  D,  and  E,  respectively,  by  Prof.  Barnard^ 
of  the  Lick  Observatory  {Astr.  Nacfi.,  2919),  the  principal  portion 
being  called  A.  Prof.  Bredichin  has  computed,  as  far  as  possible, 
the  orbits  of  the  companions  {Astr.  Nach.,  2949).  Taking  the 
elements  given  by  Mr.  Chandler  for  the  principal  mass  A,  the 
following  elements  have  been  found  for  C  and  K  ;  all  are 
reduced  to  mean  equinox  1 889*0  : — 

Elements  of  C's  Orbit. 
T  =  1889  October  I  -3369 


Elements  of  A's  Orbit. 
T  =  1889  October  2*1 112 

O  t  II 

u>  =  344  29  20 '6 

a,  =   17  52  19-0 
i  =    656-9 

0  =    28     2  II "6 
log  a  =  0*565011 
Period  =  7  0390  years. 


«  =  344  II  47-1 

a  =  17  15  245 
I  =  656-2 
<p  ~  2S   2  13-2 

log  rt  -  0-505059 
Period  =  7*0402  years. 


Elements  of  E's  Orbit,     i 
T  =  1889  October  8*7356 

"  =  347  30  i8*9 

Si  =   17  52  24-5 

«  —      6     5     6*2 
(/)  =    28  10  10*5 
log  a  =  0-564834 
Period  =  7*0348  years. 

The  orbit  of  the  mass  B  is  situated  between  the  orbits  of  A  and 
C,  and  the  orbit  of  D  between  those  of  C  and  E.  From  the 
inclination  and  position  of  the  node  it  is  evident  that  the 
division  of  the  comet  was  effected  in  the  plane  of  A's  orbit,  and 
the  elements  of  C  and  E  indicate  almost  the  same  point  for  the 
separation  of  the  comet  into  these  masses.  It  may  be,  therefore, 
that  the  separation  was  due  to  the  action  of  Jupiter. 

Greenwich  Observatory. — The  Astronomer-Royal  has^ 
issued  the  Greenwich  Observations  for  1887.  An  additional 
feature  is  the  ten-year  catalogue  of  4059  stars,  deduced  from  ob- 
servations extending  from  1877  to  1886,  and  reduced  to  the 
epoch  1880.  The  work,  therefore,  appears  more  bulky  than 
ever. 


THE  PHYSICAL  AND  CHEMICAL  CHARAC- 
TERISTICS OF  METEORITES  AS  THROW- 
ING LIGHT  UPON  THEIR  PAST  HISTORY. 

T  N  several  articles  which  appeared  in  Nature  last  year  I  used 
the  term  meteorite  as  a  generic  one,  to  include  all  meteoritic 
masses,  whether  they  consist  of  the  tiniest  specks  which  give  rise 
to  the  instantaneous  appearance  of  a  shooting-star  in  the  highest 
reaches  of  our  air,  or  of  the  largest  masses  which  have  so  far  been 
found  after  their  descent  to  the  earth's  surface. 

I  must  now  confine  it  to  those  masses  which  have  reached  the 
earth's  surface,  whether  large  or  small,  and  I  have  first  to  refer  to 
the  variou-i  suggestioiis  which  have  been  made  as  to  their  origin. 

The  members  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Paris  were  the 
last  to  acknowledge  their  extra-terrestrial  origin,  and  that  long 
after  the  writings  and  reasonings  of  Chladni,  to  which  reference 
has  been  made. 

Laplace  ascribed  them  to  lunar  volcanoes,^  by  others  it 
was  imagined  that  they  came  from  our  own  volcanoes  ;  there 
were  those,  also,  who  held  that  they  came  from  the  sun  ;  while,, 
again,  others  thought  they  were  fragments  of  a  broken  planet. 

The  theory  of  the  volcanic  origin  of  meteorites,  whether  lunar 
or  terrestrial,  does  not  satisfactorily  explain  the  orbital  motions 
around  the  sun,  for,  if  this  were  their  real  origin,  the  meteorites 
would  travel  round  the  earth.  Neither  does  it  explain  the  rela- 
tions which  exist  between  comets  and  meteorites,  for  no  one 
supposes  that  comets  are  effects  of  volcanic  action.  Further,, 
fragments  thus  ejected  from  the  earth's  surface  would  be  con- 
sumed in  the  journey  by  the  same  process  which  is  afterwards  to 
render  them  visible  to  us  as  shooting-stars. 

With  regard  to  the  theory  of  the  solar  origin  of  meteorites,  it  is 
difficult  to  understand  how  solid  bodies  can  come  from  the  sun 
after  passing  through  an  immense  thickness  of  the  intensely  heated 
solar  atmosphere.  Then,  again,  particles  shot  out  from  the  sun 
would  not  travel  in  an  orbit,  as  the  meteorites  do,  but  would 
simply  move  outwards  in  a  straight  line,  and  then  fall  back. 

That  the  meteorites  are  fragments  of  a  broken  planet  is  sup- 
ported by  a  considerable  number  of  facts,  but  the  main  difficulty 

'  "  Les  l^etcorites,"  Meunier,  p.  112. 


3o6 


NA  TURE 


\yan.  30,  1890 


is  to  establish  the  connection  between  comets  and  meteorites,  as 
even  the  supporters  of  the  theory  do  not  claim  that  the  comets 
are  parts  of  a  broken  planet.  Then,  again,  it  is  only  an  assumption 
that  such  a  planet  ever  existed,  and  it  is  difficult  to  understand 
how  a  broken  planet  should  so  far  disobey  the  law  of  gravity  as 
to  divide  itself  into  small  scattered  fragments. 

The  real  parentage  of  those  meteorites  which  fall  on  our  earth 
is,  therefore,  probably  cometic,  for  the  association  of  comets, 
meteorites,  and  shooting-stars  can  no  longer  be  denied,  and  it 
is  an  observed  fact  that  comets  do  break  up. 

The  discovery  of  Schiaparelli  (1866),  and  his  view  that  the 
head  of  a  comet  was  the  largest  meteorite  in  a  swarm,  of  course, 
put  these  origins  of  some  meteorites,  at  all  events,  out  of  the 
question. 

Reichenbach  (1858)  did  not  consider  that  the  head  of  a  comet 
was  a  large  meteorite,  but  a  swarm  of  small  ones,  and  the  large 
meteorites  he  considered  to  be  built  up  in  some  way  out  of  the 
smaller  ones  bi-ought  into  our  system  by  comets.  If  this  view  be 
subsequently  confirmed,  since  we  now  know  that,  as  suggested  by 
Schiaparelli,  comets  are  nebulous  shreds,  brought  into  our 
system  by  solar  or  planetary  attraction,  it  follows  that  in  the 
nebulae  also  we  may  be  only  dealing  with  excessively  small 
masses. 

If  meteorites,  in  the  restricted  sense  of  the  term  above  referred 
to,  do  not  exist  sporadically  in  external  space,  they  must  be 
manufactured  in  our  system,  and  two  tests  should  be  open  to  us  : 
(i)  no  meteorites  should  reach  us  from  outer  space  ;  and  (2)  they 
should  bear  traces  of  the  process  by  which  they  have  been  built 
up  from  cometary  materials. 

If  we  can  establish  this,  then  we  imagine  a  gradual  progression 
in  the  size  of  meteoritic  masses  from  regions  where  they  are  so 
small  that  luminous  collisions  are  all  but  impossible,  to  those 
regions  nearest  to  a  cooling  sun,  like  our  own,  where  there 
has  been  the  richest  supply  of  cometary  material,  furnished  at 
successive  perihelion  passages  for  the  longest  time. 

With  regard  to  (i),  we  have  the  facts  that  it  is  only  very  rarely 
meteorites  fall  in  displays  of  shooting-stars,  and  that  when  the 
earth  has  passed  near  a  comet  no  increase  in  the  avei-age  number 
of  meteorites  has  been  noticed. 

The  most  important  piece  of  evidence  on  this  point,  however, 
has  been  recently  furnished  by  Prof.  Newton,  who,  from  a  com- 
plete discussion  of  the  data  extant  from  all  known  falls,  has 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  all  the  meteorites  now  in  our 
collections  have  come  from  a  single  ring  of  bodies  circulating 
round  the  sun. 

We  next  come  to  (2).  The  most  important  point  to  consider 
here,  in  the  first  place,  is  the  very  special  structure  of  meteorites. 

Thumb  Markings. 
Regarding  the  origin  of  the  remarkable  pittings  of  the 
surfaces  of  aerolites  and  aerosiderites,  an  opinion  was  lately 
expressed  and  advocated  by  Daubree,^  that  in  their  flight 
through  the  air  they  undergo  erosion  and  excavation  by  joint 
effects  of  combustion  and  fusion,  assisted  mainly  by  air  vortices 
attacking  most  violently  certain  portions  of  their  surface.  An 
important  paper  on  this  subject  by  Prof.  Maskelyne  was  published 
immediately  afterwards  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine  (of  August 
1876).  It  is  true  that  pittings  identical  in  appearance  with  those 
of  meteorites  are  found  on  the  surfaces  of  certain  large  grains  of 
powder  blown  unconsumed  from  the  mouths  of  the  large  modern 
rifled  ordnance  (excellent  specimens  of  this  kind  received  from 
Prof.  Abel  and  Major  Noble  having  been  shown  by  Prof. 
Maskelyne  to  M.  Daubree  in  the  summer  of  1875)  5  but  two 
important  grounds  for  exception,  in  regard  to  this  explanation, 
are  pointed  out  by  Prof.  Maskelyne,  which  must  not  be  over- 
looked. The  closest  examination  of  the  molten  glaze  with  which, 
like  other  parts  of  these  surfaces,  the  pittings  or  depressions  of 
meteorites  are  coated  over,  shows  no  indications  of  vorticose 
action  of  the  air,  although  stream-lines  of  the  glaze  from  front 
to  rear  are  of  frequent  and  conspicuous  occurrence.  The  process 
of  atmospheric  combination,  or  combustion,  is  also  rare,  if  not 
entirely  absent,  during  the  period  of  most  intense  operation  of 
the  heat,  as  is  shown  by  particles  of  metallic  iron  which  are 
occasionally  found  embedded  in  the  glaze,  and  even  by  cases 
where  the  highly  oxidizable  mineral  oldhamite  (calcium  sulphide), 
occurring  in  spherules  in  the  Bustee  meteorite,  is  glazed  over 
equally  with  the  augite  without  offering  any  signs  of  combustion 
or  of  the  production  of  cavities  where  they  are  exposed. 

'  Coniptes  rendus,   April  24,    1876.      See   "Report  on  Observations   of 
tuminovis  Meteors  for  the  year  1875-76,"  p.  167. 


Cho)idritic  Structure. 

We  have  spherules  of  iron,  like  small  shot  of  different  sizes,  in 
the  stones. 

These  spherules,  or  chondroi,  as  they  are  sometimes  called, 
vary  very  considerably  in  size  ;  some  reach  the  size  of  a  cherry, 
while  others  are  so  small  that  they  can  only  be  seen  by  the  aid 
of  atmicroscope. 


Chondroi  in  Soko-Banya  meteorite  (magnified  10  diameters) 


Chondroi  in  Mocs  meteorite  (magnified  10  diameters) 

By  examining  sections  of  chondritic  stony  meteorites  we  find 
that  they  consist  sometimes  almost  entirely  of  spherules.  The 
Parnellee  aerolite  affords  us  a  very  good  instance  of  this,  the 
most  varied  groups  of  spherules  being  seen  collected  together  in 
one  section.  These  spherules  are  sometimes  encased  in  small 
shells  of  nickeliferous  iron,  or  sometimes  in  addition  with  a  kind 
of  pyrites,  a  sulphide  of  iron  termed  troilite  (FeS),  peculiar  to 
meteorites. 

vSome  chondroi  have  round  depressions  which  point  to  plas- 
ticity during  contact,  as  if  the  spherules  which  form  the  splintered 
fragments  had  acquired  their  form  during  the  act  of  rubbing. 
Others,  again,  have  projections  of  a  rounded  form,  or  an  almost 
pointed  end.^ 

Our  terrestrial  rocks  contain  no  structure  identical  with  that 
chondritic  structure  so  peculiar  to  meteorites,  and  the  characters 
of  the  spherules  are  found  to  be  quite  different  from  those  in 
either  perlite  or  obsidian. 

Tschermak  ^  directs  attention  to  the  peculiarities  observed  in 
several  chondritic  meteorites.  The  first  is  the  occurrence  of  a 
crust  over  the  surface  of  the  bronzite  spherules,  possessing  fibrous 
structure.  This  crust  is  thin,  and  is  distinguished  from  the 
inclosed  material  by  its  paler  colour ;  it  has  the  same  fibrous 

'  Flight,  "  History  of  Meteorites,"  p.  207. 

2  Quoted  from  "  Report  of  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors  during  the 
Year  1877-78,"  p.  107. 


yan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


307 


structure,  doubly  refractive  power,  and,  in  fact,  is  optically 
orientated  like  the  inclosed  silicate.  It  appears  to  be  produced 
by  some  agent  acting  from  without,  perhaps  heat  in  conjunction 
with  a  reducing  gas.  The  agent  has  not  caused  friction,  but  a 
slight  modification  of  the  texture  of  the  surface. 

Indications  afforded  by  Crystalline  Strtuture. 

The  mixed  minerals  of  meteorites  have  been  subjected  to 
microscopic  examination  by  Sorby^  and  Rose,"  and  both  have 
found  that  the  crystals  differ  in  some  essential  particulars  from 
those  of  volcanic  rocks. 

Sorby  long  since  showed  that  when  crystals  are  formed  by 
deposition  from  water  or  from  a  mass  of  melted  rock,  they  often 
catch  up  portions  of  this  water  or  melted  stone  which  can  be 
seen  as  cavities  containing  fluid  or  glass.  Crystalline  minerals 
formed  by  purely  aqueous  or  by  purely  igneous  processes 
can  thus  be  distinguished.  One  of  the  most  common  of  the 
minerals  in  meteorites  is  olivine,  and  when  met  with  in  volcanic 
lavas  this  mineral  usually  contains  only  a  few  and  small  glass- 
cavities  in  comparison  with  those  seen  in  such  minerals  as  augite. 
The  crystals  in  meteorites  are  generally  only  small,  and  thus 
the  difficulty  of  the  question  is  considerably  increased.  However, 
by  careful  examination  with  high  magnifying  power,  Sorby 
found  well-marked  glass-cavities,  with  perfectly  fixed  bubbles, 
the  inclosed  glass  being  sometimes  of  brown  colour  and  having 
deposited  crystals.  On  the  contrary  he  was  never  able  to  detect 
any  trace  of  fluid-cavities,  with  moving  bubbles,  and  therefore  he 
holds  it  very  probable,  if  not  absolutely  certain,  that  the  crys- 
talline minerals  in  meteorites  were  chiefly  formed  by  an  igneous 
process,  like  that  which  has  produced  lava,  and  analogous 
volcanic  rocks. 

Passing  from  the  structure  of  the  individual  crystals  to  that  of 
the  aggregate,  Sorby  points  out  that  in  some  cases  we  have  a 
structure  in  every  respect  analogous  to  that  of  erupted  lavas, 
though  even  then  there  are  very  curious  differences  in  detail. 

The  results  of  the  observations  of  the  kinds  of  crystallization 
noted  in  meteorites  by  many  eminent  authorities  go  to  show  that 
it  took  place  hastily.  Thus  Brezina,  after  making  a  complete 
study  of  the  Vienna  collection,  comes  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  structural  features  of  meteorites  are  the  result  of  a  hasty 
crystallization. 

Again,  it  is  the  opinion  of  several  high  authorities  that  the 
crystallization  did  not  necessarily  take  place  under  conditions  of 
high  temperature. 

M.  Daubree's  opinion  is  thus  expressed  : — ^ 

•'It  is  extremely  remarkable  that,  in  spite  of  their  great 
tendency  to  a  perfectly  distinct  crystallization,  the  silicate  com- 
binations which  make  up  the  meteorites  are  there  only  in  the 
condition  of  very  small  crystals,  all  jumbled  together  as  if  they 
had  not  passed  through  fusion.  If  we  may  look  about  us  for 
something  analogous,  we  should  say  that,  instead  of  calling  to 
mind  the  long  needles  of  ice  which  liquid  water  forms  as  it 
freezes,  the  fine-grained  texture  of  meteorites  resembles  rather 
that  of  hoar  frost,  and  that  of  snow,  which  is  due,  as  is  known,  to 
the  immediate  passage  of  the  atmospheric  vapour  of  water  into 
the  solid  state," 

This  possibility  of  the  absence  of  high  temperature  is  thus 
further  insisted  upon  by  Prof.  Newton  : — * 

"  The  meteorites  resemble  the  lavas  and  slags  of  the  earth. 
These  are  formed  in  the  absence  of  water,  and  with  a  limited 
supply  of  oxygen,  and  heat  is  present  in  the  process.  But  is 
heat  necessary  ?  Some  crystallizations  do  take  place  in  the  cold  ; 
some  are  direct  changes  from  gaseous  to  solid  forms.  We  cannot 
in  the  laboratory  reproduce  all  the  conditions  of  crystallization 
in  the  cold  of  space.  We  cannot  easily  determine  whether  the 
mere  absence  of  oxygen  will  not  account  fully  for  the  slag-like 
character  of  the  meteoric  minerals.  Wherever  crystallization  can 
take  place  at  all,  if  there  is  present  silicon  and  magnesium  and 
iron  and  nickel,  with  a  limited  supply  of  oxygen,  their  silicates 
ought  to  be  expected  in  abundance,  and  the  iron  and  nickel  in 
their  metallic  forms.  Except  for  the  heat,  the  process  should  be 
analogous  to  that  of  the  reduction  of  iron  in  the  Bessemer  cupola, 
when  the  limited  supply  of  oxygen  combines  with  the  carbon, 
and  leaves  the  iron  free." 

Should  this  view  be  subsequently  confirmed,  all  early  ideas 
touching  the  formation  of  meteorites  will  require  to  be  modified. 
Thus,  in  1855,  Prof.  Lawrence  Smith  stated  :  "They  have  all 
been  subject  to  a  more  or  less  prolonged  igneous  action  corre- 

'  Proc.  R.S..  January  1864.  *  Berlin  Acad.  Trans. 

3  Quoted  by  Newton,  Nature,  vol.  xxxiv.  p.  535.        4  Nature,  loc.  cit. 


sponding  to  that  of  terrestrial  volcanoes."  Haidinger,  in  1861^ 
not  only  declared  for  high  temperature,  but  for  high  pressure. 

Obviously,  these  views,  which  were  based  more  upon  the  ana- 
logues of  some  of  the  meteoriteswith  volcanic  basic  rocks  than  upon^ 
the  actual  character  of  the  crystallization,  suggested  the  forma- 
tion of  large  masses  ;  and  the  ideas  that  comets  were  solid  bodies 
and  that  meteorites  were  fragments  of  comets  or  planets  were 
both  based  upon  these  views,^  and  the  higher  the  temperature 
required  and  the  slower  the  crystallization,  the  larger  in  imagina- 
tion did  these  possible  birthplaces  of  the  meteorites  become. 

If  neither  much  time  nor  heat  be  required  to  produce  the  crys- 
tallization observed,  then,  with  Prof  Newton,  we  can  suppose 
"  a  mass  containing  silicon,  magnesium,  iron,  nickel,  a  limited' 
supply  of  oxygen,  and  small  quantities  of  other  elements,  all  in 
their  primordial  or  nebulous  state  (whatever  that  may  be),  segre- 
gated somewhere  in  the  cold  of  space.  As  the  materials  con- 
solidate and  crystallize,  the  oxygen  is  appropriated  by  the  silicon 
and  magnesium,  and  the  iron  and  nickel  are  deposited  in  metallic 
form.  Possibly  the  heat  developed  may,  before  it  is  radiated 
into  space,  modify  and  transform  the  substance.  The  final  result 
is  a  rocky  mass  (or  possibly  several  adjacent  masses)  which  sooner 
or  later  is,  no  doubt,  cooled  down  throughout  to  the  temperature 
of  space." 

We  shall  see  subsequently  that  there  are  many  known  causes 
in  operation  which  will  provide  us  with  just  such  a  mixed  mass 
of  vapours  as  Prof.  Newton  requires,  and  it  is  at  once  obvious 
that,  not  only  is  the  generic  separation  into  iron  and  stones  thus 
accounted  for,  but  the  special  form  of  crystallization  observed  in 
stones  and  the  special  chondritic  structure  observed  both  in  irons 
and  stones  would  all  arise  from  the  same  cause. 

Evidences  of  Heating  and  Action  of  Violent  Forces  at  Different 
Times. 

The  peculiarities  in  the  mineralogical  structure  of  the  meteorites 
are  probably  in  part  due  to  the  successive  heatings  and  coolings 
to  which  they  were  subjected  with  each  approach  of  the  comet  to 
the  sun,  and  partly,  perhaps,  to  the  heat  of  combination  of  oxygen 
and  silicon.  They  were  most  probably  formed  in  a  limited  supply 
of  oxygen,  so  that  the  elements  possessing  greatest  affinity  for 
that  element  were  the  first  to  form  compounds,  leaving  iron  and 
nickel  in  the  metallic  or  uncombined  state. 

Some  meteoric  stones  from  examination  seem  to  have  been 
heated  to  a  high  temperature  right  through  their  mass.  Such 
cases  as  Orvinio,  Chantonnay,  Juvenas,  and  Weston  show  signs 
that  fragments  are  cemented  together  with  a  material  of  the 
same  substance  as  themselves.  Again  we  have  indications  of 
chemical  changes,  the  chondroi  in  some  stones  being  found  to- 
be  surrounded  by  spherical  and  concentric  aggregations  of 
minute  particles  of  nickel,  due,  as  is  supposed,  to  the  reducing 
action  of  hydrogen  at  a  high  temperature. 

Some  meteorites  are  merely  breccias,  consisting  of  fragments, 
the  dibris  of  pre-existing  meteorites,  or  of  the  original  mass 
tremcndou-ly  shattered,  and  subsequently  cemented  together. 

In  this  connection  Sorby  writes : — 

"  It  would  therefore  appear  that,  after  the  material  of  the 
meteorites  was  melted,  a  considerable  portion  was  broken  up 
into  small  fragments,  subsequently  collected  together,  and  more 
or  less  consolidated  by  mechanical  and  chemical  actions,  amongst 
which  must  be  classed  a  segregation  of  iron,  either  in  the  metallic 
state  or  in  combination  with  other  substances.  Apparently  this 
breaking  up  occurred  in  some  cases  when  the  melted  matter  had 
become  crystalline,  but  in  others  the  forms  of  the  particles  lead 
me  to  conclude  that  it  was  broken  up  into  detached  globules^ 
whilst  still  melted  (Mezd-Madaras,  Pamellee).  This  seems  to- 
have  been  the  origin  of  some  of  the  round  grains  met  with  in 
meteorites  ;  for  they  occasionally  still  contain  a  considerable 
amount  of  glass,  and  the  crystals  which  have  been  formed  in  it 
are  arranged  in  groups,  radiating  from  one  or  more  points  on  the 
external  surface,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  indicate  that  they  were 
developed  after  the  fragments  had  acquired  their  present 
spheroidal  shape  (Aussun,  &c.).  In  this  they  differ  most  cha- 
racteristically from  the  general  type  of  concretionary  globule* 
found  in  terrestrial  rocks,  in  which  they  radiate  from  the  centre  ; 
the  only  case  that  I  know  at  all  analogous  being  that  of  certain 
Oolitic  grains  in  the  Kelloways  rock  at  Scarborough,  which  have 
undei^one  a  secondary  crystallization."  " 

Mr.  Sorby  remarks  :  "A  most  careful  study  of  their 
microscopical  structure   leads   me  to  conclude  that  their  con- 

'  See  Newton,  Natlre,  vol.  xxxiv.  p.  S34- 

-  "Microscopical  Structure  of  Meteorites,"  Proc.R.S.,  June  16,  1864. 


;o8 


NATURE 


[Jan.  30,  1890 


■stituents  were  originally  at  such  a  high  temperature  that  they 
were  in  a  state  of  vapour,  like  that  in  which  many  now  occur  in 
the  atmosphere  of  the  sun,  as  proved  by  the  black  lines  in  the 
solar  spectrum."  We  may,  in  fact,  look  upon  them  as  being  to 
planets  what  the  minute  drops  of  water  in  the  clouds  are  to  aa 
ocean.  He  has  shown  that  possibly,  after  the  condensation  of 
the  vapour,  they  collected. into  larger  masses,  which  have  been 
subsequently  changed  by  metamorphic  action,  broken  up  by 
mutual  impact,  and  again  collected  and  solidified,  the  meteoric 
irons  possibly  being  those  portions  of  the  metallic  constituents 
which  were  separated  from  the  rest  by  fusion  when  the  meta- 
morphosis was  carried  to  the  extreme  point. 

In  this  manner  the  subsequent  heating,  or  any  number  of 
subsequent  heatings,  are  explained. 

Iron  Meteorites  not  fused  in  falling.  ^ 

A  question  of  no  slight  interest  in  regard  to  the  changes 
which  meteoric  irons  undergo  during  their  passage  through  the 
atmosphere  is  whether  their  surface  becomes  fused.  Ffom  his 
study  of  the  Charlotte  meteorite,  Dr.  Smith  is  inclined  to  answer 
it  in  the  negative.  The  fact  of  the  delicate  reticulated  surface 
having  been  preserved  is  a  proof  that  the  heat,  instead  of  having 
been  raised  to  a  high  temperature,  has  quickly  been  conducted 
away  into  the  mass  of  metal.  Had  fusion  of  the  superficial 
layer  taken  place,  the  meteorite  would  have  been  coated  with 
■molten  oxide. 

Veins. 

Now  and  again  we  come  across  meteorites  which  have  veins, 
like  terrestrial  rock-veins,  running  right  through  them.  Prof. 
Maskelyne's  description  of  them  is  as  follows  : — " 

"  Just  as  in  a  mine  one  may  meet  with  a  fissure  that,  once 
dividing  the  'country,'  but  subsequently  filled  by  rocky 
matter,  cuts  across  the  course  of  a  mineral  vein  which  itself  was 
originally  formed  in  a  similar  way  ;  and  just  as  such  a  cross 
fissure,  thus  intersecting  with  the  original  metalliferous  vein, 
often  gives  us  evidence  of  a  heave,  i.e.  that  one  side  of  the  new 
fissure  has  slid  upwards  or  downwards  along  the  other,  so  an 
exactly  similar  thing  is  met  with  in  meteorites,  and  is  admirably 
■seen  in  the  microscopic  sections  of  them." 

Faults  and  throws  are  both  represented  in  meteorites.  In  that 
of  Aumieres  there  is  a  throw  of  several  centimetres  indicated, 
and  faults  intersect.  These  faults  are  accompanied  by  heat  due 
to  the  friction  of  the  surfaces,  and  in  the  case  of  gray  stony 
meteorites  the  faults  are  black  like  the  crust. ^  (The  black  veins 
are  physically  connected  with  the  crust,  and  are  supposed  to 
have  the  same  origin,  the  melted  material  having  filled  up  the 
•fissures. ) 

On  examining  such  meteorites  as  Chateau-Renard,  Pultusk, 
and  Alessandria,  it  is  found  that  some  of  the  spherules  even  are 
broken  in  half  and  the  halves  separated  from  each  other  by  a 
vein  of  meteoric  iron  or  troilite,  and  in  some  cases  by  a  black 
fused  substance,  like  the  crust  of  a  meteorite. 

The  Presence  of  Sulphides. 

The  presence  of  sulphides,  which  must  have  been  formed  when 
Tjoth  water  and  free  oxygen  were  absent,  shows  a  distinctly  non- 
terrestrial  condition,  as,  indeed,  does  also  the  presence  of  small 
particles  of  iron.  On  this  point  Dr.  Flight  rema'ks  :  *  "If  the 
conditions  necessary  for  the  formation  of  pure  calcium  sulphide 
be  borne  in  mind,  the  evidence  imported  into  this  inquiry  by 
the  Bustee  aerolite  seems  further  to  point  to  the  presence  of  a 
-reducing  agent  during  the  formation  of  its  constituent  materials." 

Sorby's  General  Conclusions. 
We  have  before  referred  to  Sorby's  microscopical  examination 
•of  meteorites.     In   1865   he  stated  the  general  conclusions  he 
Jiad  arrived  at  as  follows.     It  will  be  seen  how  remarkable  the 
agree.uent  is  between  him  and  Keichenbach. 

"As  shown  in  my  paper  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal 
Society  (xiii.  333),  there  is  good  proof  of  the  material  of 
meteorites  having  been  to  some  extent  fused,  and  in  the  state  of 
minute  detached  particles.  I  had  also  met  with  facts  which 
seemed  to  show  that  some  portions  had  condensed  from  a  state 
of  vapour  ;  and  expected  that  it  would  be  requisite  to  adopt  a 
modified  nebular  hypothesis,  but  hesitated  until  I  had  obtained 
more  satisfactory  evidence.     The  character  of  the  constituent 

'  Quoted  from  the  "  Report  on  Observations  of  Luminous  Meteors  during 
the  year  1874-75,"  p.  247.  '=  Nature,  vol.  xii.  p.  505. 


2  Flight,  toe.  cit.,  p.  Ill 


•*  Loc.  cit..,  p.  119. 


particles  of  meteorites  and  their  general  microscopical  structure 
differ  so  much  from  what  is  seen  in  terrestrial  volcanic  rocks,  that 
it  appears  to  me  extremely  improbable  that  they  were  ever  por- 
tions of  the  moon,  or  of  a  planet,  which  differed  from  a  large 
meteorite  in  having  been  the  seat  of  a  more  or  less  modified 
volcanic  action.  A  most  careful  study  of  their  microscopical 
structure  leads  me  to  conclude  that  their  constituents  were 
originally  at  such  a  high  temperature  that  they  were  in  a  state  of 
vapour,  like  that  in  which  many  now  occur  in  the  atmosphere  of 
the  sun,  as  proved  by  the  black  lines  in  the  solar  spectrum.  On 
cooling,  this  vapour  condensed  into  a  sort  of  cometary  cloud, 
formed  of  small  crystals  and  minute  drops  of  melted  stony  matter, 
which  afterwards  became  more  or  less  devitrified  and  crystalline. 
This  cloud  was  in  a  state  of  great  commotion,  and  the  particles 
moving  with  great  velocity  were  often  broken  by  collision. 
After  collecting  together  to  form  larger  masses,  heat,  generated 
by  mutual  impact,  or  that  existing  in  other  parts  of  space  through 
which  they  moved,  gave  rise  to  a  variable  amount  of  meta- 
morphism.-  In  some  few  cases,  when  the  whole  mass  was  fused, 
all  evidence  of  a  previous  history  has  been  obliterated  ;  and  on 
solidification  a  structure  has  been  produced  quite  similar  to  that 
of  terrestrial  volcanic  rocks.  Such  metamorphosed  or  fused 
masses  were  sometimes  more  or  less  completely  broken  up  by 
violent  collision,  and  the  fragments  again  collected  together  and 
solidified.  Whilst  these  changes  were  taking  place,  various 
metallic  compounds  of  iron  were  so  introduced  as  to  indicate  that 
they  still  existed  in  free  space  in  the  state  of  vapour,  and  con- 
densed amongst  the  previously  formed  particles  of  the  meteorite;!. 
At  all  events  the  relative  amount  of  the  metallic  constituents 
appears  to  have  increased  with  the  lapse  of  time,  and  they  often 
crystallized  under  conditions  differing  entirely  from  those  which 
occurred  when  mixed  metallic  and  stony  materials  were  meta- 
morphosed, or  solidified  from  a  state  of  igneous  fusion  in  such 
small  masses  that  the  force  of  gravitation  was  too  weak  to 
separate  the  constituents,  although  they  differ  so  much  in  specific 
gravity.  (Report  of  British  Association,  1864.)  Possibly,  how- 
ever, some  meteoric  irons  have  been  produced  in  this  manner 
by  the  occurrence  of  such  a  separation.  The  hydro  carbons  with 
which  some  few  meteorites  are  impregnated  may  have  condensed 
from  a  stale  of  vapour  at  a  relatively  late  period. 

"  I  therefore  conclude  provisionally  that  meteorites  are  records 
of  the  existence  in  planetary  space  of  physical  conditions  more 
or  less  similar  to  those  now  confined  to  the  immediate  neigh- 
bourhood of  the  sun,  at  a  period  indefinitely  more  remote  than 
that  of  the  occurrence  of  any  of  the  facts  revealed  to  us  by  the 
study  of  geology — at  a  period  which  might  in  fact  be  called 
pre-tcrrestrial." 

Are  Meteorites  merely  Modern  Phenomena  ? 

It  has  often  been  a  subject  of  remark  that  in  spite  of  the  very 
considerable  number  of  undoubted  meteorites  now  in  various 
collections,  we  scarcely  have  traces  of  any  which  suggest  like 
falls  in  any  of  the  geological  periods  preceding  the  present  one. 

The  iron  found  by  Prof.  Nordenskiold  at  Ovifac,  Western 
Greenland,  was  at  first  thought  to  be  meteoric  iron  of  Miocene 
age,  but  after  an  analysis  of  the  basalt  or  lava  rocks  of  Assuk, 
Disco  Island,  a  part  of  the  same  basaltic  range  in  Greenland,  only 
100  miles  from  the  spot  where  Prof  Nordenskiold's  discovery  was 
made,  it  was  held  by  most  authorities  to  be  no  other  than  the 
metallic  nickel-iron  which  is,  though  extremely  rarely,  a  native 
product  in  some  terrestrial  rocks.  Other  explorers  besides  Prof. 
Nordenskiold  have  brought  back  specimens  of  this  iron,  and 
Dr.  Lawrence  Smith  has  stated,  not  only  that  the  nickel-iron  of 
Ovifac  is  without  doubt  of  terrestrial  origin,  but  that  the  specimens 
brought  back  by  the  other  explorers  resembles  the  Ovifac  and 
each  other  remarkably,  while  they  differ  from  meteoric  iron  by 
the  large  proportion  of  combined  carbon  in  their  composition. 

Again,  in  Nature,  vol.  xxxv.  p.  36,  we  have  a  description  of 
another  meteorite  supposed  to  be  a  fossil  one,  found  in  a  block 
of  Tertiary  coal.  It  was  said  to  belong  to  the  group  of  meteoric 
irons,  and  was  taken  from  a  block  of  coal  about  to  be  used  in  a 
manufactory  of  Lower  Austria.  On  its  examination  by  various 
specialists,  different  origins  were  assigned  to  it.  Some  believed 
it  to  be  meteoric,  others  an  artificial  production,  and  others 
again  thought  it  was  a  meteorite  modified  by  the  hand  of  man. 
After  a  careful  examination  Dr.  Gurlt  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  there  was  no  ground  for  believing  in  the  intervention  of 
human  agency.  The  mass  was  almost  a  cube,  two  opposite  faces 
being  rounded,  and  the  four  others  being  made  smaller  by  these 
roundings.     A  deep  incision  ran  all   through  the  cube.     The 


Jan.  30,  1890J 


NATURE 


309 


faces  and  the  incision  bore  such  characteristic  traces  of  meteoric 
iron  as  to  show  that  the  mass  was  not  the  work  of  man.  A 
layer  of  oxide  formed  a  thin  covering  of  the  iron ;  it  was  67  mm. 
high,  67  mm.  broad,  and  47  mm.  at  its  thickest  part  ;  it  was 
found  to  be  about  as  hard  as  steel,  and  besides  carbon  it  con- 
tained a  small  percentage  of  nickel.  It  resembled  the  meteoric 
masses  of  St.  Catherine  in  Brazil,  and  Braunau  in  Bohemia, 
found  in  1847. 

The  evidence,  however,  is  so  strong  that  what  we  really  obtain 
now  at  the  earth's  surface  forms  but  a  very  small  portion  of  the 
meteorites  which  enter  the  upper  air,  that  it  would  not  be 
probable  that  in  former  ages  of  the  earth's  history,  when  the 
atmosphere  was  denser  than  it  is  now,  anything  whatever  would 
be  left  by  the  time  the  surface  was  reached. 

J.  Norman  Lockyer. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  Journal  of  Science,  January. — Measurement  of  the 
Peruvian  arc,  by  E.  D.  Preston.  In  this  paper,  which  was 
read  before  the  American  Association  for  the  Advancement  of 
Science  at  Toronto,  August  1889,  the  author  reviews  the  whole 
question  of  the  relative  lengths  of  the  earth's  axes,  dealing  in 
detail  with  Bouguer's  expedition  to  Peru  in  1735,  ^od  arguing 
that  the  amplitude  of  his  Peruvian  arc  may  be  in  error  by  many 
seconds.  Hence  he  contends  that  the  geodetic  science  of  to-day 
demands  the  remeasurement  of  this  arc. — Neutralization  of 
induction,  by  John  Trowbridge  and  Samuel  Sheldon.  A  system 
of  neutrah'zation  for  inductive  disturbances  is  here  described, 
which  might  be  adopted  where  it  is  impossible  to  employ  entire 
metallic  circuits  in  which  the  earth  plays  no  part.  —  Divergent 
evolution  and  the  Darwinian  theory,  by  Rev.  John  T.  Gulick. 
The  author  discusses  Darwin's  apparently  contradictory  views 
on  the  causes  of  natural  selection  on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the 
other  on  the  causes  of  diversity  of  natural  selection.  He  con- 
cludes that,  though  Darwin  has  not  recognized  segregation  as  a 
necessary  condition  of  divergence  of  species,  he  has  indicated 
one  process  (geographical  or  local  separation  under  different 
environments)  by  which  segregation  is  produced  in  nature, 
adding,  however,  that  this  is  not  the  only  cause  of  segregation 
and  consequent  divergence. — The  Devonian  system  of  North 
and  South  Devonshire,  by  H.  S.  Williams.  During  a  recent 
visit  to  England  the  author  studied  this  system  both  on  the  spot 
and- in  the  geological  collections  in  London  and  elsewhere.  He 
dwells  especially,  (i)  on  the  close  resemblance  of  the  English 
Devonian  species  to  those  of  the  New  York  Devonian,  though 
mostly  passing  under  different  names,  and  (2)  on  the  character 
of  the  North  and  Souih  Devonian  rocks,  which  in  appearance, 
composition,  and  order  are  as  different  as  two  distinct  systems 
well  can  be. — The  zinciferous  clays  of  South- West  Missouri, 
and  a  theory  as  to  the  growth  of  the  calamine  of  that  section, 
by  W.-  H.  Seamon.  Full  analyses  are  given  of  the  so-called 
"tallow"  and  "joint" clays  occurring  associated  and  sometimes 
intermixed  in  every  calamine  digging  in  South- West  Missouri. 
These  analyses  show  a  large  percentage,  often  from  50  to 
56,  of  zinc  oxide,  and  it  is  inferred  that  at  one  time  all 
the  massive  calamine  probably  existed  in  "tallow  clays"  pre- 
cipitated from  solutions.  —  On  the  spectrum  of  f  Ursas  Majoris, 
by  Edward  C.  Pickering  — Origin  of  normal  faults,  by  T. 
Mellard  Reade.  Some  critical  remarks  are  offered  on  Prof. 
Le  Conte's  recent  explanation  of  the  origin  of  normal  faults, 
which  is  not  new,  and  presents  many  insuperable  difficul- 
ties.— Papers  were  submitted  by  J.  Dawson  Hawkins,  on  a 
specimen  of  minium  from  Leadville  ;  by  W^illiam  P.  Blake,  on 
some  minerals  from  Arizona  ;  by  F.  A.  Genth,  on  a  new  oc- 
currence of  corundum  in  Patrick  County,  Virginia  ;  by  Alfred 
C.  Lane,  on  the  estimation  of  the  optical  angle  of  observations 
in  parallel  light  ;  by  L.  G.  Eakins,  on  a  new  stone  meteorite 
from  Texas  ;  by  Edward  S.  Dana,  on  the  barium  sulphate  from 
Perkin's  Mill,  Templeton,  Province  of  Quebec  ;  and  by  O.  C. 
Marsh,  on  some  new  Dinosaurian  reptiles  recently  discovered 
in  Wyoming,  Colorado,  and  Dakota. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Royal  Society,  January  9.— "A  Milk  Dentition  in  Orycte- 
ropus."  By  Oldfield  Thomas,  Natural  History  Museum,  Com- 
municated by  Dr.  A.  Giinther,  F.R.S. 

Of  the  few  Mammalia  in  which  no  trace  of  a  milk  dentition 


has  betn  found,  Orycteropus,  the  Aard-Vark,  has  always  occupied 
a  prominent  place,  owing  partly  to  the  peculiar  structure  of  its 
prominent  teeth,  and  partly  to  its  very  doubtful  systematic 
position. 

An  opportunity  has  now  fallen  in  my  way  of  proving  that  it 
has  after  all  two  sets  of  teeth,  those  of  the  first,  or  milk  set, 
being  rudimentary,  and  probably  quite  functionless,  but  never- 
theless so  far  developed  as  to  be  all  completely  calcified,  and  to 
be  for  the  most  part  readily  distinguishable  by  form  and  position 
from  those  of  the  second  or  permanent  set. 

Among  the  collections  in  the  Natural  History  Museum  there 
are  two  very  young  females  of  Orycteropns  afer  in  spirit,  pre- 
sented by  Sir  Richard  Owen,  and  it  is  in  these  that  the  milk 
teeth  now  to  be  described  occur.  The  larger  of  the  two  measures 
18  inches  in  total  length,  and  the  smaller  14  inches. 

Each  of  these  specimens  has  a  complete,  although  rudi- 
mentary, set  of  milk  teeth,  extending  the  whole  length  of  the 
maxillary  bones  above,  and  along  a  rather  shorter  portion  of  the 
mandible  below.  None,  however,  are  observable  in  the  pre- 
maxillse,  or  in  the  corresponding  anterior  part  of  the  mandibles. 
The  teeth  are  all  quite  minute,  and  it  is  doubtful  whether  they 
would  ever  have  cut  the  gum. 

In  the  upper  jaw  there  appear  to  be  normally  no  less  than 
seven  milk  teeth.  Of  these  the  most  posterior  is  by  far  the 
largest,  has  a  rudimentary  crown,  and  two  distinct  roots,  anterior 
and  posterior.     The  others  are  simple  and  styliform. 

In  the  lower  jaw  there  are  four  milk  teeth  only,  of  which, 
again,  the  most  posterior  is  more  or  less  molariform. 

As  to  the  structure  of  the  milk  teeth,  a  horizontal  section  of 
the  last  upper  one,  ground  down  in  the  dry  state,  presents 
numerous  large  openings  which  are  obviously  the  sockets  into 
which  pulp-papilla;  have  extended,  so  that  the  milk  teeth  show 
a  commencement  of  the  remarkable  histological  structure  cha- 
racteristic of  the  permanent  teeth. 

But  important  as  a  knowledge  of  the  presence  of  a  milk  denti- 
tion in  Orycteropus  is,  it  does  not  at  present  render  any  easier 
the  difficult  questions  as  to  the  phylogeny  and  systematic  position 
of  that  animal.  Although  called  an  Edendate,  it  has  always, 
been  recognized  as  possessing  many  characters  exceedingly 
different  from  those  of  the  typical  American  members  of  the 
order.  ^  It  has  in  fact  been  placed  with  them  rather  on  account- 
of  the  inconvenience  of  forming  a  special  order  for  its  reception, 
than  because  of  its  real  relationship  to  them.  Now,  as  they  are 
either  altogether  toothless  or  else  homodont  and  monophyodont 
(apart  from  the  remarkable  exception  of  Tatusia),  it  seems  more 
than  ever  incorrect  to  unite  with  them  the  solitary  member  of 
the  Tubulideittata,  toothed,  heterodont,  and  diphyodont,  and' 
differing  from  them  in  addition  by  its  placentation,  the  anatomy 
of  its  reproductive  organs,  the  minute  structure  of  its  teeth,  and; 
the  general  characters  of  its  skeleton. 

But  if  Orycteropus  vs,  not  genetically  a  near  relation  of  the 
Edendates,  we  are  wholly  in  the  dark  as  to  what  other  Mammals 
it  is  allied  to,  and  I  think  it  would  be  premature  to  hazard  a 
guess  on  the  subject.  W^hether  even  it  has  any  special  connec- 
tion with  Manis  is  a  point  about  which  there  is  the  greatest 
doubt,  and,  unfortunately,  we  are  as  yet  absolutely  without  any,- 
palseontological  knowledge  of  the  extinct  allies  of  either. 
Macrotherium  even,  usually  supposed  from  the  structure  of  itS; 
phalangeal  bones  to  be  related  to  Manis,  has  lately  proved  (see 
Osborn,  American  Naturalist,  vol.  xxii.  p.  728,  1882)  to  have- 
the  teeth  and  vertebrae  of  a  Perissodactyle  Ungulate,  and  one 
could  not  dare  to  suggest  that  the  ancestors  of  Manis  or 
Orycteropus  were  to  be  sought  in  that  direction.  Lastly,  as  the 
numerous  fossil  American  Edentates  do  not  show  the  slightest 
tendency  to  an  approximation  towards  the  Old  World  forms,  we 
are  furnished  with  an  additional  reason  for  insisting  on  the 
radical  distinctness  of  the  latter,  whose  phylogeny  must  therefore 
remain  for  the  present  one  of  the  many  unsolved  zoological 
problems. 

Physical  Society,  January  17. — Prof.  W.  G.  Adams,  Vice- 
President,  in  the  chair. — Owing  to  the  unavoidable  absence  of 
Mr.  F.  B.  Hawes,  his  paper  on  a  carbon  deposit  in  a  Blake 
telephone  transmitter  was  postponed. — Dr,  S.  P.  Thompson 
made  a  communication  on  electric  splashes,  and  illustrated  his 
subject  by  beautiful  experiments  on  the  production  of  Lichten- 
berg's  figures.  The  author  has  recently  investigated  these 
phenomena  as  modified  by  varying  the  conditions  under  which 

*  On  this  subject  see  especially  Flower,  ' '  On  the  Mutual  Affinities  of  the 
Anim.-ils  composing  the  Order  Edent.-\ta,"  Zool.  Soc.  Proc,  1882,  p.  358*/ 
seqq. 


3IO 


NATURE 


\yan.  30,  1890 


the  figures  are  obtained,  and  has  arrived  at  the  following  con- 
clusions :  (i)  the  nature  of  the  dielectric  plate  does  not  change 
the  character  of  the  figures  produced,  and  (2)  the  nature  of  the 
powders  used  seems  to  have  no  material  effect  on  their  shape. 
In  the  course  of  his  experiments  he  has  found  a  mixture  of  sub- 
limed sulphur  and  lycopodium  to  give  better  figures  than  the  red 
lead  and  sulphur  usually  employed,  and  also  that  a  large  and 
highly  polished  knob  is  advantageous,  particularly  when  the 
Leyden  jar  is  charged  negatively.  Sometimes  when  obtaining 
negative  figures,  nebulous  patches  occur,  and  these  were  attri- 
buted to  the  so-called  electric  winds  sent  off  from  roughnesses  on 
the  knob  when  not  sufficiently  well  polished.  If  instead  of  bring- 
ing the  knob  in  contact  with  the  plate,  it  is  only  brought  near  to 
it,  then  a  peculiar  figure  closely  resembling  a  "splash"  results. 
A  positive  splash  consists  of  short  lines  radiating  from  the  point 
-of  approach,  whilst  a  negative  splash  is  made  up  of  more  or  less 
rounded  spots  which  become  elongated  in  a  radial  direction  as 
their  distance  from  the  centre  of  the  splash  increases.  Negative 
splashes  are,  however,  much  more  difficult  to  produce  than  posi- 
tive ones.  When  viewed  in  the  dark,  the  discharge  producing 
the  splash  is  seen  to  consist  of  a  bundle  of  small  sparks  which 
branch  outwards  on  approaching  the  plate.  In  conclusion  the 
author  remarked  that  roughnesses  on  a  conductor  produced  more 
electric  winds  when  the  conductor  is  charged  negatively  than 
when  positively  charged,  and  invited  the  opinions  of  members  as 
to  the  causes  of  the  differences  observed  between  positive  and 
negative  electricity.  Prof.  RUcker  said  he  had  recently  obtained 
figures  produced  by  discharges  on  photographic  plates.  Generally 
he  observed  that  negative  discharges  produce  roundish  patches, 
whilst  positive  ones  give  more  filamentary  figures.  On  passing 
a  spark  across  a  glass  plate  covered  with  lampblack,  its  trace 
was  found  to  have  a  black  core  at  one  end,  whilst  the  other  was 
quite  clear.  He  also  made  remarks  on  the  distinctive  character 
of  the  positive  and  negative  discharges  in  partial  vacuo,  and  con- 
sidei'ed  investigations  as  to  the  causes  of  such  differences  to  be  of 
great  importance.  Prof.  Adams  thought  any  attempt  to  discover 
the  causes  of  such  differences  as  those  noted  in  the  paper  was  to 
be  commended,  for  the  well-known  fact  that  it  is  more  difficult 
to  insulate  a  negative  charge  than  a  positive  one  has  long  needed 
an  explanation. — A  paper  on  galvanometers,  by  Prof  W.  E. 
Ayrton,  F.  R.S.,  T.  Mather,  and  W.  E.  Sumpner,  was  read 
by  Pi-of.  Ayrton.  In  fitting  up  the  Physical  Laboratories  of  the 
Central  Institution  of  the  City  and  Guilds  of  London  Institute, 
the  authors  have  had  occasion  to  obtain  galvanometers  of  various 
types  and  patterns,  some  of  which  have  been  made  to  special 
designs,  and  specimens  of  instruments  embodying  recent  im- 
provements were  exhibited  at  the  meeting.  The  question  as  to 
whether  fairly  sensitive  galvanometers  should  be  astatic  or  non- 
astatic  was  answered  in  favour  of  the  former  system,  from  the 
fact  of  its  being  less  affected  by  external  magnetic  disturbances, 
and  the  greater  ease  with  which  great  sensibility  may  be  obtained. 
The  usual  method  of  placing  the  mirror  inside  the  coil  was  shown 
to  be  undesirable,  and  in  the  newer  forms  of  instruments  Mud- 
ford's  improvement  of  placing  the  mirror  outside  the  coils  has 
been  adopted ;  the  space  near  the  axis  of  the  coil  being  nearly 
filled  with  wire.  It  was  also  shown  that  if  wire  be  wound  in  a 
certain  approximately  spheroidal  space  near  the  magnets,  then 
these  convolutions  will  tend  to  oppose  the  more  distant  portions  of 
the  coil ;  however,  by  winding  the  two  parts  in  opposite  direc- 
tions they  conspire  to  deflect  the  magnet.  Details  as  to  methods 
•of  supporting  the  coils  were  then  discussed,  and  the  importance  of 
fitting  them  in  boxes  mounted  on  hinges  or  otherwise,  so  as  to 
be  readily  removable,  was  pointed  out.  A  galvanometer  devised 
for  teaching  purposes,  and  provided  with  variable  damping 
arrangements  was  described,  in  which  the  damping  is  effected  by 
enclosing  the  mirror  in  a  glass  cell  whose  sides  can  be  caused  to 
approach  or  recede  by  turning  a  milled  head  outside  the  instru- 
ment. This  arrangement  enables  the  damping  to  be  varied 
between  wide  limits,  and  its  effect  on  the  swing  produced  by  a 
given  discharge  can  be  determined.  The  instrument  is  also 
serviceable  both  as  an  ordinary  damped  galvanometer,  or  as  a 
fairly  ballistic  one.  In  measuring  quantities  of  electricity  by  the 
first  swing  of  a  galvanometer  needle,  a  correction  has  usually  to 
be  introduced  for  damping  ;  this  correcting  factor  is  simple 
enough  when  the  damping  is  small,  but  becomes  more  complicated 
as  the  damping  increases,  and  to  facilitate  the  calculations  a  table 
of  values  of  the  factor  for  various  values  of  A.  (the  logarithmic 
decrement)  has  been  calculated.  From  this  it  appears  that,  for 
values  of  A  less  than  o'5,  the  value  of  the  factor  is  very  nearly 
(i  -V  \\),  the   correction  usually  employed.     Improvements  in 


methods  of  insulating  the  coils  and  terminals  of  galvanometers 
required  for  insulation  tests  were  next  described,  the  principle  of 
which  may  be  gathered  from  Figs.  107  and  108  in  Prof  Ayrton's 
"  Practical  Electricity."  A  special  form  of  instrument  for  high 
insulation  work  was  exhibited,  in  which  the  copper  resistance  of 
the  coils  is  nearly  400,000  ohms,  and  the  shortest  path  along 
which  surface  leakage  can  take  place  from  the  coils  to  the  base  of 
the  instrument  is  between  30  and  40  inches  of  ebonite  artificially 
dried  by  sulphuric  acid.  This  is  attained  by  supporting  the  coils 
from  two  corrugated  ebonite  rods  which  depend  from  a  brass  ring 
carried  on  the  top  of  three  corrugated  pillars  fixed  to  the  base  plate. 
The  instrument  was  constructed  to  drawing  and  specification  by 
Messrs.  Nalder  Brothers,  but  the  method  of  supporting  the  coils 
was  'suggested  by  Messrs.  Eidsforth  and  Mudford.  With  re- 
ference to  the  proportionality  of  deflection  to  current  in  reflecting 

fgalvanometers,  it  was  pointed  out  that  ordinary  instruments 
may  differ  as  much  as  2  per  cent,  within  the  limits  of  the  scale, 
hence  showing  the  necessity  for  calibration  when  any  approach  to 
accuracy  is  desired.  Galvanometers  of  the  D'Arsonval  type  some- 
times differ  from  proportionality  quite  as  much  as  the  one  above 
referred  to,  but  by  fitting  such  instruments  with  curved  pole 
pieces,  and  all  )wing  the  coil  to  hang  freely  from  the  top  suspen- 
sion, a  proportionality  true  to  less  than  o"i5  per  cent,  has  been 
attained  over  a  scale  about  30  inches  long.  Coming  to  the  ques- 
tion of  sensitiveness,  the  importance  of  keeping  the  wire  as  close 
as  possible  to  the  magnets  was  brought  prominently  forward,  as 
well  as  the  necessity  of  reducing  the  "  figures  of  merit  "  of  various 
instruments  to  the  same  standard,  in  comparing  their  sensibilities. 
The  standard  adopted  as  most  convenient  and  closely  approximat- 
ing to  practical  usage  is  arrived  at  by  supposing  the  distance  of 
the  mirror  from  the  scale  to  be  equal  to  2000  scale  divisions,  and 
the    sensibilities   for    current   and   quantity  are   given   as  scale 

.divisions  per  micro- ampere,  and  scale  divisions  per  micro-coulomb 
respectively.  The  period  of  oscillation  is  also  taken  into  account. 
A  table  showing  the  resistances,  sensibilities,  coefficients  of 
self-induction  and  volumes  of  the  coils  of  various  instruments, 
together  with  the  relations  existing  between  them,  accompanies 
the  paper,  and  from  this  it  appears  that  in  the  best  astatic  double 
coil  instruments,  of  from  10,000  to  30,000  ohms  resistance,  the 
number  of  scale  divisions  per  micro-ampere  may  reach  400  times 
the  resistance  to  the  |th  power  (400  R^)  when  the  period  is  10 
seconds.  In  obtaining  data  of  various  instruments  the  authors 
have  consulted,  amongst  others,  Prof.  Threlfall's  paper  on  the 
measurement  of  high  specific  resistances,  in  the  Phil.  Mag.  "for 
December  1889,  and  noticed  two  serious  errors.  The  first  of 
these  makes  an  instrument  constructed  according  to  Messrs. 
Gray's  pattern  nine  times  less  sensitive  than  it  actually  was, 
whilst  the  sensibility  of  a  form  recommended  in  the  paper  is 
given  seventeen  times  too  great.  On  account  of  the  lateness  of 
the  hour,  the  discussion  was  adjourned  till  February  6,  before 
which  time  it  is  hoped  that  a  fairly  full  abstract  will  appear 
in  the  technical  papers. 

Geological  Society,  January  8.— W.  T.  Blanford,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
read  : — On  some  British  Jurassic  fish-remains  referable  to  the 
genera  Eurycormus  and  Hypsocormus,  by  A.  Smith  Woodward. 
Hitherto  our  knowledge  of  the  Upper  Jurassic  fish  fauna  has 
been  mainly  derived  from  specimens  found  in  fine  lithographic 
stones,  where  the  various  elements  are  in  a  state  of  extreme 
compression.  Within  the  last  few  years  remains  of  similar  fish 
have  been  discovered  in  the  Oxford  and  Kimeridge  Clays  of 
England,  and  these  are  of  value  for  precise  determination  of 
certain  skeletal  features  in  the  genera  to  which  they  belong. 
The  author  described  Emycormus  grandis  from  the  Kimeridge 
Clay  of  Ely,  a  large  species  which  makes  known  for  the  first 
time  the  form  and  proportions  of  several  of  the  head-bones  in 
this  genus.  A  technical  description  of  all  the  bones  the  charac- 
ters of  which  are  distinguishable  was  given,  and  the  author  con- 
cluded that  there  is  considerable  similarity  between  the  head  of 
Eurycormus  and  the  recent  Ganoid  Amia,  even  to  minute  points 
of  detail.  He  further  described  Hypsocormus  tenuirostris  and 
//.  Leedsii  from  the  Oxford  Clay  of  the  neighbourhood 
of  Peterborough,  the  osteology  of  this  genus  not  having 
as  yet  been  elucidated.  Portions  of  the  jaws  have  been  dis- 
covered, affording  valuable  information  as  to  the  form  and 
dentition  of  the  principal  elements.  These  jaws  are  not  precisely 
paralleled  by  any  other  Jurassic  genus,  though  they  possess  a 
resemblance  to  Pachycormus,  as  also  to  the  Upper  Cretaceous 
genus,  Protosphyi'cena.     The  President  remarked  that  Amia  is  a 


Jan.  30,  1890] 


NATURE 


311 


freshwater  genus,  and  inquired  whether  the  fossil  fish  was  fresh- 
water or  marine.  Mr.  E.  T.  Newton  remarked  upon  the  great 
interest  and  importance  of  the  paper.  The  author,  in  reply  to 
the  President's  question,  said  that  the  old  Ganoids  were  marine, 
and  it  was  only  in  more  recent  times  that  they  had  become 
restricted  to  fresh  water. — On  the  Pebidian  volcanic  series  of  St. 
David's,  by  Prof.  C.  Lloyd  Morgan.  After  a  brief  sketch 
of  the  principal  theories  that  have  been  propounded,  the 
author  concluded  that  our  knowledge  of  this  series  has  not 
yet  reached  "a  satisfactory  position  of  stable  equilibrium." 
His  own  communication  was  divided  into  three  sections. 
The  Relation  of  Pebidian  to  Catnbrian :  There  are  four  locali- 
ties where  the  junction  is  described — Caerbwdy  Valley,  St. 
Non's  Bay,  Ogof  Golchfa,  and  Ramsey  Sound.  The  strati- 
graphy of  the  second  of  these  was  given  with  much  detail,  and 
illustrated.  The  author  concluded  that  here,  together  with 
clear  signs  of  local  or  contemporaneous  erosion,  the  general 
parallelism  of  the  strike  of  Pebidian  and  Cambrian  is  most 
marked.  There  is  no  evidence  of  any  bending  round  of  the 
conglomerate  against  the  strike  of  the  Pebidians.  The  strati- 
graphical  evidence  in  each  of  the  localities  having  been  con- 
sidered, together  with  the  evidence  offered  by  the  materials  of 
the  Cambrian  conglomerate  and  local  interstratification  with  the 
volcanic  beds  (the  interdigitation  at  Carnarwig  being  well 
marked),  he  concluded  that  there  was  no  great  break  between 
the  conglomerate  and  the  underlying  Pebidians.  The  upper- 
most  Pebidian  already  foreshadowed  the  sedimentary  conditions 
of  the  Harlech  strata,  and  the  change  emphasized  by  the  con- 
glomerate was  one  that  followed  volcanic  conditions  after  no 
great  lapse  of  time.  Hence  the  relation  of  the  Pebidian  to  the 
Canibrian  is  that  of  a  volcanic  series,  for  the  most  part  sub- 
marine, to  succeeding  sedimentary  strata — these  strata  being 
introduced  by  a  conglomerate  formed  in  the  main  of  foreign 
pebbles  borne  onward  by  a  current  which  swept  the  surface  of, 
and  eroded  channels  in  the  volcanic  tufifs  and  other  deposits. 
He  was  disposed  to  retain  the  name  Pebidian  as  a  volcanic 
series  in  the  base  of  the  Cambrian  system.  The  Pebidian  Suc- 
cession :  With  the  exception  of  some  cinder- beds,  which  appear 
to  be  subaerial,  the  whole  series  was  accumulated  under  water. 
There  is  no  justification  for  making  separate  subdivisions  ;  the 
series  consists  of  alternating  beds  of  tuff  of  varying  colour  and 
basicity,  the  prevailing  tints  being  dark  green,  red-grey,  and 
light  sea-green.  In  the  upper  beds  there  is  an  increasing 
amount  of  sedimentary  material,  and  more  rounded  pebbles 
are  found.  Basic  lava-flows  occur,  for  the  most  part,  in  the 
upper  beds.  Detailed  work,  laid  down  on  the  6-inch  Ordnance 
map,  appears  to  establish  a  series  of  three  folds— a  northern 
anticline,  a  central  syriclin^,  'arid  "a  southern  anticline— folded 
over  to  form  an  isocline,  with  reversed  dips  to  the  south-east. 
The  axis  of  folding  is  roughly  parallel  to  the  axis  of  St.  David's 
promontory.  The  total  thickness  is  from  1200  to  1500  feet. 
The  author  devoted  a  considerable  number  of  pages  to  further 
details  concerning  this  series  of  deposits.  He  failed  to  find  the 
alleged  Cambrian  overlap.  "  The  probabilities  are  that  it  is  by 
step-faults  brtween  Rhoson  and  Porth  Sele,  and  not  by  overlap, 
that  the  displacement  of  the  conglomerate  has  there  been 
effected."  Also  at  Ogof  Goch  it  does  not  rest  upon  the  quartz- 
felsite  breccia  and  sheets  (group  C,  of  Dr.  Hicks),  but  is  faulted 
against  them.  A  section  was  devoted  to  the  felsitic  dykes,  and 
it  was  suggested  that  they  may  be  volcanic  dykes  of  Cambrian 
age.  The  Relation  of  the  Pebidian  to  the  Dimetian :  The 
author  has  not  been  able  to  satisfy  himself  of  the  existence  of 
the  Arvonian  as  a  separate  and  distinct  system.  He  notes  the 
junction  of  Pebidian  and  Dimetian  in  Porthlisky  Bay  and  the 
Allen  Valley  at  Porth  Clais,  at  neither  of  which  places  are  there 
satisfactory  evidences  of  intrusion.  At  Ogof  Llesugn  the  in- 
trusive character  of  the  Dimetian  was  strongly  impressed  upon 
him.  He  criticized  the  mapping  of  Dr.  Hicks,  and  pointed  out 
the  difficulties  which  present  themselves  in  the  way  of  mapping 
the  Dimetian  ridge  as  pre-Cambrian.  He  pointed  out  that  not 
a  single  pebble  of  Dimetian  rock,  such  as  those  now  lying  on 
the  beach  in  Porthlisky  Bay,  is  to  be  found  in  the  conglomerate. 
He  concluded  that  the  Dimetian  is  intrusive  in  the  southern 
limb  of  the  isocline,  and  that  there  are  no  Archaean  rocV%insitu. 
After  the  reading  of  this  paper  there  was  a  discussion,  in  which 
the  President,  Dr.  Hicks,  Prof.  Blake,  Prof.  Hughes,  and  Mr. 
■Wuhams  took  part. 

Sydney. 
Royal  Society  of  New  South  Wales,  November  6,  1889. 
—Monthly  meeting. ^Prof.   Liversidge,   F.R.S.,  President,  in 


the  chair. — The  Chairman  announced  the  death  of  the  Rev.  J. 
E.  Tenison-Woods,  who  had  been  an  honorary  member  of  the 
Society  since  1875.— The  following  papers  were  read  :— Aids  to 
the  sanitation  of  unsewered  districts,  poudrette  factories,  by 
Dr.  J.  Ashburton  Thompson. — Notes  on  Goulbum  lime,  by 
E.  C.  Manfred'.— Notes  on  some  minerals,  &c.,  by  John  C.  H. 
Mingaye. 

December  4.— Monthly  Meeting;. — Prof.  Liversidge,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read: — 
Well  and  river  waters  of  New  South  Wales,  by  W.  A.  Dixon. 
— The  Australian  aborigines,  by  Rev.  John  Mathew. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  January  20. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  the  various  states  of  the  carbon  graphites,  and  on  the 
chemical  derivatives  corresponding  to  them,  by  MM.  Berthelot 
and  P.  Petit.  The  graphites,  when  oxidized  by  the  wet  process 
at  a  low  temperature,  form  ternary  compounds,  one  of  whose 
terms  has  been  discovered  by  Brodie.  But  M.  Berthelot  has 
since  shown  that  there  exist  several  chemically  distinct  graphites, 
each  forming  a  particular  graphitic  oxide,  which  yields  a  corre- 
sponding hydrographitic  and  pyrographitic  oxide,  and  which  may 
be  recovered  with  all  their  primitive  properties.  These  various 
graphites  and  the  series  of  corresponding  compounds  have  been 
studied,  first  by  their  composition  and  behaviour,  and  in  a 
second  memoir  by  the  measurement  of  the  heats  of  combustion 
and  formation. — Remarks  on  the  formation  of  the  nitrates  in 
plants,  by  M.  Berthelot.  The  author  points  out  that  the  facts 
established  by  Haeckel  and  Lundstrom,  taken  in  connection 
with  his  own  observations,  tend  to  show  an  affinity  between  the 
microbes  present  in  the  soil  and  those  developed  in  the  plant. 
This  applies  to  the  microbes  which  fix  the  nitrogen  of  vegetable 
humus  and  the  leguminous  plants,  as  well  as  to  those  which 
similarly  form  the  nitrates  in  amaranthus,  sterculia,  the  coffee 
shrub  and  vegetable  humus.— Note  on  a  fundamental  point  of 
the  theory  of  polyhedrons,  by  M.  de  Jonquieres.  The  paper 
deals  with  Euler's  famous  formula  S  +  H  =  A  4-  2,  and  shows- 
that  it  is  applicable,  and  intended  by  Euler  to  be  applicable,  to 
all  polyhedrons  without  exception,  and  not  restricted  to  any 
particular  class,  as  supposed  by  Legendre,  Cauchy,  and  others. 
— Ephemerides  for  the  search  of  the  periodical  comet  of  d'Arrest 
on  its  return  in  1890,  by  M.  Gustave  Leveau.  Having  previously 
obtained  the  elements  for  the  years  1870,  1877,  and  1883,  by 
allowing  for  the  disturbing  influence  of  Jupiter,  Saturn,  and 
Mars,  M.  Leveau  here  supplies  those  for  1890  (February  25, 
mean  Paris  time)  by  studying  the  disturbing  effects  produced  by 
Jupiter  in  the  interval  between  1883  and  1890.— Observations  of 
Swift's  comet  made  at  the  Observatory  of  Nice  with  the  0*38  m. 
equatorial,  by  M.  D.  Eginitis.— On  the  solar  statistics  for  the 
year  1889,  by  M.  Rud.  Wolf.  From  the  solar  observations  made 
at  Zurich  and  the  magnetic  observations  recorded  at  Milan,  the 
author  has  constructed  a  table  of  monthly  means  showing  that 
both  the  relative  numbers  and  the  magnetic  variations  have  con- 
tinued to  diminish  during  1890.  But  he  thinks  that  the  retro- 
grade movement  will  soon  cease,  and  that  we  probably  entered 
the  minimum  period  towards  the  end  of  last  year. — On  the 
theory  of  the  figure  of  the  planets,  by  M.  M.  Hamy.  An 
attempt  is  here  made  to  realize  theoretically  the  conditions  of  a 
system  answering  to  M.  Poincare's  remarkable  theorem  published 
in  the  Comptes  rendus  for  June  1888. — On  the  integration  of  an 
equation  with  partial  derivatives,  by  M.  Zaremba.  The  paper 
deals  with  an  equation  of  the  form 


cPx 
dxdy 


+  <^l(-+>')(i  +  |)+«^2(^-+.^)-0. 


where  <^-^  and  (^.^  are  two  functions  whatsoever  oi  x  ■\-  y,  and 
shows  that  the  determination  of  the  general  integration  may  be 
reduced  to  the  integration  of  an  ordinary  linear  differential 
equation  of  the  second  order,  and  to  quadratures. — On  the  varia- 
tion of  the  resistance  of  bismuth  in  the  magnetic  field,  by  M.  A. 
Leduc.  The  author  here  continues  his  studies  of  the  electric 
resistance  of  bismuth  as  affected  by  varying  temperature. — 
Calculation  of  the  compressibility  of  nitrogen  up  to  3000  atmo- 
spheres, by  M.  Ch.  Antoine.  The  results  of  fresh  calculations 
are  here  summed  up  in  a  table  resuming  all  the  data  relative  to 
the  pressure  of  nitrogen  up  to  a  pressure  of  3000  atmospheres. — 
On  the  combinations  of  the  metals  of  the  alkalies  with  ammonia, 
by  M.  H.  W.  Bakhuis  Roozeboom.  An  explanation  is  offered  of 
the  curious  phenomena  mentioned  by  M.  Joannis  in  his  recent 


312 


NATURE 


\yan.  2f>y  1890 


communication  {Comptes  rendus,  cix.  p,  900)  on  the  combina- 
tions of  potassium  and  sodium  with  ammonia. — On  the 
absorption  of  the  ultra-violet  rays  by  some  organic  substances 
belonging  to  the  fatty  series,  by  MM.  J.  L.  Soret  and  Alb.  A. 
Rilliet.  These  studies,  which  to  a  large  extent  confirm  the 
conclusions  of  Messrs.  Hartley  and  Huntington  (Philosophical 
Transactions  of  the  Royal  Society,  1879),  show  in  ageneral  way 
that  the  measurement  of  the  absorption  of  the  ultra-violet  rays 
constitutes  a  delicate  means  of  estimating  the  purity  of  organic 
substances. — On  the  refracting  powers  of  double  salts  in  solu- 
tion, by  M.  E.  Doumer.  These  researches  have  been  carried 
on  by  the  same  method  which  enabled  the  author  to  determine 
the  refracting  powers  of  simple  salts.  The  results,  which  are 
here  tabulated,  show  that  the  molecular  refracting  power  of  a 
double  salt  is  equal  to  the  sum  of  the  molecular  refracting  powers 
of  the  constituent  simple  salts ;  and  in  general,  the  molecular 
refracting  power  of  any  salt,  simple  or  double,  is  proportional  to 
the  number  of  valences  of  the  metallic  part  of  the  salt. — Papers 
were  read  by  M.  Ph.  A.  Guye,  on  the  molecular  constitution  of 
bodies  at  the  critical  point  ;  by  M.  Raoul  Varet,  on  the  re- 
actions between  the  salts  of  copper  and  the  metallic  cyanides  ; 
by  MM.  C.  Chabrie  and  L.  Lapicque,  on  the  physiological 
action  of  selenious  acid  ;  and  by  M.  L.  de  Launay,  on  the 
geology  of  the  island  of  Lesbos.  M.  de  Launay  considers  the 
volcanic  eruptions  of  this  island  as  comparatively  recent,  possibly 
not  older  than  the  Pliocene  epoch,  and  doubtless  contemporary 
with  the  disturbances  resulting  in  the  creation  of  the  ^gean  Sea 
in  a  region  previously  forming  a  vast  marshy  plain  with  shallow 
lakes. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDA  y,  January  30. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — Investigations  into  the  Effects  of  Training  Walls 
in  an  Estuary  like  the  Mersey :  L.  F.  Vernon  Harcourt. — On  Outlying 
Nerve-Cells  in  the  Mammalian  Spinal  Cord  :  C  S.  Sherrington. — On  the 
Germination  of  the  Seed  of  the  Castor-oil  Plant  (Ricinus  communis)  :  Prof. 
J.  R.  Green. 

Royal  Institxjtion,  at  3 — Sculpture  in  Relation  to  the  Age  :  Edwin 
Roscoe  Mullins. 

FRIDAY,  January  31. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Smokeless  Explosives  :  Sir  Frederick  Abel, 
C.B.,  F.R.S. 

SATURDAY,  February  i. 

Essex  Field  Club,  at  7. — Annual  General  Meeting. — Migration  of  Birds  : 

E.  A.  Fitch,  President. 
Royal  Institution,  at   3. — The  Natural  History   of  the    Horse,   and   of 

its  Extinct  and  Existing  Allies  :  Prof  Flower,  C.B. ,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  February  2. 

Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — The  Health  of  the  Mind ;  and  Mental 
Contagions:  Dr.  B.  W.  Richardson,  F.R.S. 

MONDAY,  February  3. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — The  Electromagnet':  Dr.  Silvanus  P.  Thompson. 

Society  of  Chemical  Industry,  at  8. — On  the  Properties  and  Applica- 
tions of  Metallic  Compounds  of  the  Phenols  :  A.  H.  Allen  and  W.  W. 
Staveley. 

Aristotelian  Society,  at  8. — The  Conception  of  Sovereignty :  D.  G. 
Ritchie. 

Royal  Institution,  at  5. — General  Monthly  Meeting. 

TUESDAY,  February  4. 

Zoological  Society,  at  4. — On  the  Morphology  of  a  Reptilian  Bird 
(Opisthoco mus  cristatus)  :  W.  K.  Parker,  F.R.S. — ObservaUons  on 
Wolves,  Jackals,  Dogs,  and  Foxes :  A.  D.  Bartlett. — A  Synopsis  of  the 
Genera  of  the  Family  Soricidae :  G.  E.  Dobson,  F.R.S. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — Bars  at  the  Mouths  of  Tidal 
Estuaries  :  W.  H.  Wheeler. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Post-Darwinian  Period :  Prof  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  February  s- 

Geological  Society,  at  8. — The  Variolitic  Rocks  of  Mount  Genevre : 
G.  A.  J.  Cole  and  J.  W.  Gregory. — The  Propylites  of  the  Western  Isles 
of  Scotland  and  their  Relation  to  the  Andesites  and  Diorites  of  the  same 
District:  Prof  J.  W.  Judd,  F.R.S. 

Entomological  Society,  at  7. — On  the  Peculiarities  of  the  Terminal  Seg- 
ment in  some  Male  Hemiplera  :  Dr.  Sharp. — The  Lepidoptera  of  Burmah  : 
Colonel  Chas.  Swinhoe. — On  the  Phylogenetic  Significance  of  the  Wing- 
Markings  in  certain  Genera  of  Nymphalida  :  Dr.  F.  A.Dixey. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— High-Speed  Knitting  and  Weaving  without  Weft : 
Arthur  Paget. 

University  College  Chemical  and  Physical  Society,  at  4.30. — 
The  Life  and  Work  of  Faraday :   S.  B.  Schry  ver. 


THURSDAY,  FEURUARve. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

LiNNEAN  Society,  at  8.— On  the  Stamens  and  Setae  of  Scirpeae  :  C.  B. 
Clarke,  F.R.S.— On  the  Flora  of  Patagonia  :  John  Ball.  F.R.S. 

Chemical  Society,  at  8 — Ballot  for  the  Election  of  Fellows. — The  Oxides 
of  Nitrogen:  Prof.  Ramsay,  F.R.S. — Studies  on  the  Constitution  of  Tri- 
Derivatives  of  Naphthalene  :  Dr.  Armstrong  and  W.  P.  Wynne  — On  the 
Action  of  Chromium  Oxychloride  on  Nitrobenzole  :  G.  G.  Henderson  and 
J.  Morrow  Campbell. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Sculpture  in  Relation  to  the  Age:  Edwin 
Roscoe  Mullins. 

FRIDAY,  February  7. 

Physical  Society,  at  5. — Annual  General  Meeting.^On  Galvanometers  : 
Prof.  W.  E.  Ayrton,  F.R.S.,  T.  Mather,  and  W.  E.  Sumpner.— On  a 
Carbon  Deposit  in  a  Blake  Telephone  Transmitter :  F.  B.  Hawes. 

Geologists' Association,  at  7.30. — Annual  General  Meeting — Notes  on 
the  Nature  of  the  Geological  Record  :  The  President. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  5. — The  Utility  of  Forests  and  the  Study  of  Forestry  : 
Dr.  Schlich. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — Reclamation  of  Land  on  the 
River  Tees  :  Colin  P.  Fowler. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9. — The  London  Stage  in  Elizabeth's  Reign: 
Henry  B.  Wheatley. 

SATURDAY,  February  8. 

Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Natural  History  of  the  Horje,  and  of 
its  Extinct  and  E.xisting  Allies  :  Prof  Flower,  C.B.,  F.R.S. 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Hyderabad  Chloroform  Commission 289 

Hygiene 290 

In  the  High  Alps.     By  T.  G.  B 291 

The  Story  of  Chemistry 292 

Luminous  Organisms.     By  Prof.  W.  A.  Herdman  .    293 
Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Meldola  :  ' '  The  Chemistry  of  Photography  "  .    .    .    .     293 
Smith:    "The  Popular    Works    of  Johann   Gottlieb 

Fichte" 294 

Young:  "  Travels  in  France  " 294 

Letters  to  the  Editor : — 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. — The 

Dukeof  Argyll,  F.R.S 294 

Multiple  Resonance  obtained  in  Hertz's  Vibrators. — 
Prof.     Geo.     Fras.     Fitzgerald  ;      Fred.      T. 

Trouton 295 

Bourdon's  Pressure- Gauge.     {Illustrated.)— Vroi.  A. 

M.  Worthington 296 

Foreign    Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — Alfred   O. 

Walker;  Captain  David  Wilson-Barker  .  .  .  297 
Thought  and  Breathing. — R.  Barrett  Pope  ....  297 
On  the  Effect   of  Oil  on  Disturbed  Water.— A.    B. 

Basset,  F.R.S 297 

Luminous   Clouds. — T.    W.    Backhouse  ;    Joseph 

John  Murphy 297 

The  Meteorite  of  Mighei.— J.  Rutherford  Hill     .    .    298 

Achlya. — Prof.  Marcus  M.  Hartog 298 

The  Parallelogram  of  Forces. — Prof.  A.  G.  Green- 
hill,  F.R.S 298 

Foot-Pounds.— A.  S.  E 298 

Chiff-Chaff  singing  in  September. — F.  M.  Burton  .  298 
East  Africa  and  its  Big  Game.  {Illustrated.)  ....  298 
The  Coral  Reefs  of  the  Java  Sea  and  its  Vicinity. 

By  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy     .        300 

The  Electric  Light  at  the  British  Museum     ....    301 

Notes 301 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 304 

The  Total  Eclipse  of  January  i,  1889 305 

The    Orbits   of  the   Companions    of   Brooks'    Comet 

(1889  v.,  July  6) 305 

Greenwich  Observatory 305 

The  Physical  and  Chemical  Characteristics  of 
Meteorites  as  throwing  Light  upon  their  Past 
History.     {Ilhistrated.)      By  J.    Norman    Lockyer, 

F.R.S 305 

Scientific  Serials 309 

Societies  and  Academies 309 

Diary  of  Societies •    .    312 


NA TURE 


313 


THURSDAY,  FEBRUARY  6,  1890. 


TA  VERNIER'S  TRA  VELS  IN  INDIA, 

Travels  in  India  of  Jean  Baptiste  Tavermer,  Baron 
of  Atibonne.  Translated  from  the  original  French 
Edition  of  1676,  &c.,  by  V,  Ball,  LL.D.,  F.R.S., 
F.G.S.,  &c.  In  Two  Volumes.  (London  :  Macmillan 
and  Co.,  1889.) 

JEAN  BAPTISTE  TAVERN lER  was  a  Sindbad  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  To  an  insatiable  love  of 
travel,  which  prompted  him  even  in  his  boyhood  to  rove 
through  the  greater  part  of  Europe,  and  in  his  mature 
life  to  accompUsh  no  less  than  six  voyages  to  Persia, 
India,  and  the  still  more  remote  East,  he  united  the 
faculties  of  a  shrewd  and  successful  trader.  By  his  traffic 
in  jewels  and  other  costly  commodities  of  small  bulk,  he 
turned  his  wanderings  to  profitable  account,  and  amassed 
a  fortune  which  enabled  him  to  purchase  the  Barony  of 
Aubonne,  and  to  enjoy  the  dignified  retirement  of  a 
wealthy  old  age.  But,  like  a  true  traveller,  he  remained 
active-minded  and  active-bodied  to  the  last.  At  the  age  of 
79,  attracted  by  the  offer  of  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  to 
conduct  an  embassy  to  India,  he  set  forth  on  a  circuitous 
journey  through  Europe,  and,  disposing  of  his  estate  and 
chateau  of  Aubonne,  he  embarked  on  renewed  mercantile 
ventures.  The  few  remaining  years  of  his  life  were 
passed,  for  the  most  part,  in  journeying  to  and  fro  in 
Europe,  and  he  died  while  so  occupied.  The  place  of 
his  death  has  long  been  doubtful,  and  it  has  only  recently 
been  discovered,  on  the  authority  of  a  letter  from  the 
Swedish  Resident  at  Moscow,  that  the  indefatigable  tra- 
veller drew  his  last  breath  at  Smolensk,  in  February  1689, 
when  on  his  journey  to  the  ancient  Russian  capital. 

Despite  some  inaccuracies  and  inconsistencies,  due 
mainly  to  the  incompetent  editing  of  the  original  work, 
Tavernier's  account  of  his  travels  has  long  been  appealed 
to  by  Indian  historians  as  a  recognized  authority — the 
testimony  of  an  eye-witness  to  the  condition  of  India 
under  the  later  great  Mogul  emperors.  At  the  time  of 
his  visits,  the  Mogul  Empire  was  in  the  zenith  of  its 
power  and  splendour.  On  the  occasion  of  his  first  jour- 
ney to  India,  he  found  Shah  Jehan,  "  the  most  magnificent 
prince  that  ever  appeared  in  India,"  peaceably  seated  on 
the  Imperial  masnad ;  and  throughout  his  dominions, 
though  these  were  less  extensive  than  in  the  time  of  his 
successor  Aurungzebe,  a  degree  of  good  administration 
and  general  prosperity  surpassing  that  attained  under  any 
previous  or  subsequent  emperor.  He  quitted  India  for  the 
last  time  only  about  two  months  after  the  death  of  Shah 
Jehan,  then  deposed  and  imprisoned,  when  Aurungzebe 
was  setting  out  on  that  career  of  conquest  and  oppression 
that  in  the  following  century  brought  about  the  wreck  of 
the  Mogul  Empire,  and  exposed  its  rich  cities  and  pro- 
vinces to  be  wasted  and  despoiled  by  Mar^thd  hordes  and 
Afghan  invaders. 

At  a  Court  gathered  around  the  famous  peacock  throne, 
where  emperor  and  nobles  vied  with  each  other  in  the 
acquisition  of  costly  jewels,  an  expert  such  as  Tavernier 
was  received  as  a  welcome  visitor  ;  and  in  pursuit  of  his 
calling  he  travelled  without  hindrance  through  the  length 
Vol.  xli. — No.  1058. 


and  breadth  of  India,  visiting  the  European  settlements 
of  Surat,  Goa,  Madras,  and  Kdsimbazdr,  the  independent 
Court  of  Golconda  (Hyderabad),  and  certain  of  the  dia- 
mond-mines that  were  then  actively  worked  both  in 
Southern  and  Northern  India.  His  work  is  a  medley  of 
historical  memoranda,  incidents  of  travel,  itineraries,  and 
details  of  his  commercial  dealings,  put  together  without 
much  system,  but  nevertheless  highly  instructive,  and  ap- 
parently far  more  trustworthy  than  was  conceded  to  him 
by  most  of  his  contemporaries  ;  altogether  furnishing  a 
fund  of  information  respecting  the  state  of  India  in  the 
middle  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

The  latest  English  translation  of  Tavernier's  travels 
appeared  more  than  two  centuries  ago,  and  as  Mr.  Ball 
remarks,  owing  to  the  translator's  misconception  of  the 
author's  meaning,  through  want  of  local  knowledge,  and 
to  serious  abridgment,  it  gives  a  very  inadequate  idea  of 
the  true  merits  of  the  original  work.  Mr.  Ball's  own  long 
experience  of  India,  and  his  familiarity  with  its  geography 
and  the  varied  phases  of  native  life,  would  alone  have  en- 
abled him  to  correct  most  of  the  errors  of  his  predecessors  ; 
and  the  deficiencies  as  a  philological  and  historical  critic 
which  he  modestly  urges  as  having  determined  him,  for  a 
time,  to  abstain  from  attempting  a  new  translation,  have 
been  made  good  by  the  invaluable  assistance  afforded  by 
the  late  Sir  Henry  Yule,  under  whose  advice  he  eventually 
undertook  the  work.  The  result  is  the  two  handsome 
volumes  now  before  us,  in  which  for  the  first  time  the  old 
traveller's  experiences  are  presented  to  English  readers, 
elucidated  by  the  results  of  modern  research,  and  in  a  form 
which  very  greatly  enhances  their  value  for  all  purposes  of 
future  reference.  Some  i^^  inconsistencies  remain,  and 
are  duly  pointed  out  in  the  footnotes,  but  they  are  such 
as  relate  to  matters  of  detail,  occasional  confusion  of 
dates  or  persons,  and  the  like  ;  and  they  do  not  appre- 
ciably detract  from  the  general  trustworthiness  of  the 
narration. 

With  the  political  and  historical  data  of  Tavernier's 
work  it  is  hardly  our  province  to  deal  in  this  place. 
Most  of  his  facts  relating  to  the  Court  of  Delhi  were  prob- 
ably furnished  to  him  by  his  cotemporary  and  sometime 
fellow-traveller  Bernier,  and  all  that  is  important  in  them 
has  been  long  rendered  familiar  to  English  readers  in  the 
lucid  pages  of  Elphinstone.  Neither  need  we  dwell  on 
his  descriptions  of  native  customs  or  the  manner  of  life  of 
those  European  exiles  of  various  nationalities  who  were 
then,  as  pioneers,  exploiting  the  riches  of  the  East,  with 
no  small  display  of  mutual  jealousy  and  animosity,  and 
indulgence  in  practices  sometimes  hardly  less  barbarous 
than  those  of  the  indigenous  population  amid  which  they 
dwelt.  The  social  condition  of  the  Indian  people  in 
Tavernier's  day  was  essentially  the  same  as  when,  more 
than  a  century  andia  half  later,  the  British  Empire  having 
been  raised  and  consolidated  on  the  ruins  left  by 
Mardthds  and  Pathdns,  a  new  era  of  peace  and  civiliza- 
tion was  inaugurated  by  Lord  Bentinck,  and  the  suppres- 
sion of  thuggi,  dacoity,  sati,  and  other  barbarous  rites  of 
the  Hindu  religion,  preceded  the  establishment  of  schools 
and  Universities,  and  the  opening  up  of  the  wilds  of  India 
by  systems  of  roads  and  railways.  The  social  regeneration 
of  India,  such  as  it  is,  has  been  almost  exclusively  the 
work  of  the  last  seventy  years,  and  even  now  it  has 
hardly  penetrated  far  below  the  surface. 


14 


NATURE 


\_Feb.  6,  1890 


It  was  the  information  given  by  the  traveller  on  the 
diamond-mines  worked  in  his  day,  that  first  drew  Mr. 
Ball's  attention  to  the  subject  of  Tavernier's  travels.  The 
mines  visited  and  described  by  him  have  long  been 
abandoned,  and  even  their  very  sites  forgotten.  With 
free  labour,  and  at  its  present  enhanced  rates,  diamond- 
working  is  no  longer  so  remunerative  as  under  the 
despotic  governments  of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  it 
is  within  the  recollection  of  the  present  writer  that  the 
working  of  one  of  the  most  productive  mines  of  the 
former  Golconda  State  was  let  on  behalf  of  the  British 
Government  at  the  modest  rental  of  100  rupees.  Ta- 
vernier  gives  it  to  be  understood,  indeed,  that  only  four 
mines  were  worked,  all  of  which  he  visited  ;  but  Mr. 
Ball  tells  us  there  is  ample  reason  for  believing  that  they 
were  far  more  numerous  than  he  had  any  conception  of ; 
and  in  an  appendix  he  gives  a  full  list  of  all  the  Indian 
localities  at  which  diamonds  have  been  obtained  as  far 
as  is  known,  together  with  the  geographical  co-ordinates 
of  all  such  as  he  has  succeeded  in  identifying.  Owing 
to  the  vagaries  of  phonetic  spelling,  and  the  ignorance  of 
Indian  geography  on  the  part  of  many  who  have  dealt 
with  this  subject,  this  identification  has  been  far  from 
easy.  As  amusing  examples  of  the  way  in  which 
localities  have  been  confused  by  some  previous  writers, 
Mr.  Ball  tells  us  that  "  one  author  gives  Pegu  as  a 
diamond-mine  in  Southern  India  ;  in  the  Mount  Catti 
of  another  we  have  a  reference  to  the  Ghdts  of  Southern 
India  "  ;  and  he  adds  :  "  For  some  time  I  was  unable  to 
identify  a  certain  Mr.  Cullinger,  who  was  quoted  by  one 
writer,  in  connection  with  diamonds.  Will  it  be  believed 
that  this  gerttleman  ultimately  proved  on  investigation  to 
be  Xh&fort  of  Kalinjar  1 " — a  well-known  historical  fortress 
in  Bundelkhand. 

Indian  diamonds  are  found  exclusively  in  rocks  of  the 
Vindhyan  formation  or  in  the  gravels  of  rivers  that  drain 
these  rocks.  The  formation  consists  of  sandstones,  lime- 
stones, and  other  sedimentary  rocks,  certainly  not  more 
recent  than  the  Lower  Palaeozoic  age,  but  being  unfossili- 
ferous,  their  precise  age  cannot  be  determined.  In 
Southern  India  the  diamonds  occur  only  in  the  Bdnagan- 
pili  sandstone,  at  the  base  of  the  lower  subdivision  of  the 
Vindhyan  series,  or  in  gravels  derived  from  that  bed. 
This  is  described  by  the  authors  of  the  "  Manual  of  the 
Geology  of  India"  as  usually  from  10  to  20  feet  thick 
consisting  of  gravelly,  coarse  sandstone,  often  earthy,  and 
containing  numerous  beds  of  small  pebbles.  The  dia. 
monds  are  found  in  some  of  the  more  clayey  and  pebbly 
layers,  and  in  the  opinion  of  Dr.  W.  King,  the  present 
Director  of  the  Indian  Geological  Survey,  they  are 
innate  in  the  rock.  This  view  does  not,  however,  appear 
to  commend  itself  to  the  authors  of  the  manual.  In 
Northern  India,  at  Panna,  in  Bundelkhand,  the  diamond 
bed  is  in  the  upper  division  of  the  Vindhyan  series  ;  but 
it  is  considered  not  improbable  that  here  also  the  original 
nidus  of  the  diamonds  was,  as  in  Southern  India,  a  bed 
of  the  lower  subdivision,  pebbles  of  which  occur  in  the 
diamond  bed,  and  are  extracted  and  broken  up  in  the 
search  for  the  gem. 

As  is  well  known,  Tavernier  examined,  and  in  his  book 
described  and  figured,  the  famous  Great  Mogul  diamond, 
then  in  the  possession  of  the  Emperor  Aurungzebe  ;  and 
he  has  been  often   cited  as  a  principal  witness  by  those 


who  have  discussed  the  question  of  the  history  of  the 
Koh-i-noor.  To  this  subject  Mr.  Ball  devotes  a  long 
note  in  the  appendix,  arriving  at  conclusions  which  differ 
from  those  of  Prof.  N.  S.  Maskelyne,  and  indeed  of  most 
previous  writers,  with  the  exception  of  James  Forbes,. 
Major-General  Sleeman,  and  Mr.  Tennant.  The  argu- 
ment is  somewhat  complex,  and  hardly  admits  of  abstrac- 
tion, and  we  must  therefore  refer  those  who  are  interested 
in  the  subject  to  the  text  of  Mr.  Ball's  note.  It  will  suffice 
here  to  indicate  the  main  issues.  They  are  concerned 
with  the  identification  inter  se  of  the  three  diamonds 
known  respectively  as  the  Mogul  diamond,  Baber's  dia- 
mond, and  the  Koh-i-noor.  The  first  of  these,  described 
and  figured  by  Tavernier,  is  the  largest  diamond  on  re- 
cord, and  is  stated  to  have  weighed  originally,  before 
cutting,  900  ratis  (an  Indian  weight  still  in  use,  but  the 
value  of  which  has  varied  greatly  at  different  times  and 
under  different  circumstances).  When  Tavernier  saw 
it,  it  had  been  reduced  by  unskilful  cutting  to  about 
two-fifths  of  its  former  size,  and  weighed  only  3795 
7-atis,  which  Mr.  Ball  computes  to  be  equivalent  to  268 
English  carats.  Baber's  diamond,  of  which  Tavernier 
makes  no  mention,  but  which  is  equally  historic,  Mr. 
Ball  thinks  was  probably  retained  by  the  imprisoned 
Shah  Jehan,  and  acquired  by  Aurungzebe  only  after 
Shah  Jehan's  death.  The  weight  of  this  stone  is  com- 
puted by  Mr.  Ball,  from  the  statements  of  Baber  and 
Ferishta,  to  have  been  186  English  carats.  The  weight 
of  the  Koh-i-noor  when  first  brought  to  England  was 
exactly  the  same  as  that  computed  for  Baber's  diamond, 
or,  accurately,  i86'o6  carats.  Now  Prof.  Maskelyne, 
General  Cunningham,  and  several  other  writers  regard 
these  three  stones  as  identical,  and  the  former  suggests 
that  Tavernier's  estimate  of  the  weight  of  the  Great 
Mogul  diamond  in  carats  (probably  Florentine)  was  erro- 
neous, and  due  to  his  having  adopted  a  mistaken  value 
for  the  rati.  This  view  Mr.  Ball  is  unable  to  accept. 
Nevertheless  he  considers  it  probable  that  the  Koh-i-noor 
is  the  remnant  of  the  Mogul  diamond,  from  which  por- 
tions have  been  removed  while  it  was  in  the  possession 
of  the  unfortunate  grandson  of  Nadir  Shah,  or  some 
other  of  those  through  whose  hands  it  passed  before  it 
was  acquired  by  Runjeet  Singh ;  and  that  Baber's  dia- 
mond was  a  distinct  stone,  now  in  the  possession  of  the 
Shah  of  Persia,  and  known  as  the  Dariya-i-noor  (sea  of 
lustre),  the  weight  of  which  is  also  186  carats. 

Mr.  Ball's  careful  criticism  of  the  available  evidence, 
and  his  clear  setting  forth  of  the  several  steps  of  his 
argument,  give  weight  to  the  conclusion  at  which  he 
finally  arrives,  that  will  doubtless  be  acknowledged  even 
by  those  who  differ  from  him.  But  as  regards  the 
identity  of  the  Koh-i-noor  and  the  Mogul  diamond,  there 
remains  one  objection  which,  as  it  appears  to  us,  Mr. 
Ball  has  hardly  adequately  disposed  of.  If  Tavernier's 
figure,  as  reproduced  by  Mr.  Ball,  represents  at  all  faith- 
fully the  general  form  and  especially  the  height  of  the 
Mogul  diamond,  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  a  comparatively 
flat  stone  like  the  Koh-i-noor  could  have  been  obtained 
from  it  without  a  much  greater  reduction  of  its  weight 
than  the  82  carats  which  are  all  that  his  data  admit  of. 
The  lateral  dimensions  of  the  two  stones  accord  fairly 
enough,  so  that  any  reduction  of  Tavernier's  figured 
stone,  to  bring  it   down  to   the   required  size,  could  be 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


3^0 


effected  only  by  diminishing  its  height ;  in  which  case  it 
would  hardly  correspond  to  his  description  of  its  form  as 
that  of  an  egg  cut  in  two.  The  question  can  only  be 
fairly  tested  by  the  weighment  of  a  model  constructed  as 
nearly  as  possible  in  accordance  with  Tavernier's  figure, 
and  of  such  lateral  dimensions  as  to  be  capable  of  in- 
cluding the  Koh-i-noor.  It  may  be  that  such  a  model,  of 
the  specific  gravity  of  the  diamond,  would  be  found  much 
to  exceed  Tavernier's  reported  weight  of  the  stone,  in  ' 
which  case  the  importance  of  his  figure  as  an  item  of 
evidence,  would  be  greatly  invalidated. 

Whatever  may  be  the  final  outcome  of  this  controversy? 
Mr.  Ball  has  done  a  good  service  to  literature  and  science 
in  re-translating  Tavernier's  work,  in  its  careful  editing, 
and  in  throwing  light  on  much  that  has  hitherto  remained 
obscure.  The  result  will  certainly  be  that  which  he  has 
anticipated,  the  vindication  of  Tavernier's  claim  "to  be 
regarded  as  a  veracious  and  original  author." 

H.  F.  B. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Star    Land.     By    Sir    Robert    S.    Ball,   LL.D.,    F.R.S. 
(London  :  Cassell  and  Co.,  1889.) 

The  author  of  this  work  is  now  so  well  known  as  a 
popular  expounder  of  astronomical  subjects  that  it  is 
quite  sufficient  praise  of  his  new  book  to  say  that  it  fully 
sustains  his  reputation.  The  book  is  described  as  "  talks 
-with  young  people  about  the  wonders  of  the  heavens," 
being  founded  chiefly  on  notes  taken  at  his  courses  of 
juvenile  lectures  at  the  Royal  Institution.  Astronomy 
gives  plenty  of  scope  for  the  exercise  of  the  imagination, 
and  Dr.  Ball  takes  full  advantage  of  this.  The  book 
abounds  with  anecdotes  and  homely  illustrations,  calcu- 
lated to  impress  the  facts  on  the  memory  as  well  as  to 
■excite  wonder  at  them.  The  startling  figures  dealt  with 
in  astronomy  are,  as  usual,  converted  into  railway  train 
notation,  and  otherwise  illustrated.  One  new  illustration 
of  the  distances  of  the  stars  is  that  it  would  take  all  the 
Lancashire  cotton  factories  400  years  to  spin  a  thread 
long  enough  to  reach  the  nearest  star  at  the  present  rate 
of  production  of  about  155,000,000  miles  per  day.  The 
irregularities  in  the  motion  of  Encke's  comet  are  explained 
in  an  interesting  dialogue  between  the  "  offending  comet" 
and  the  astronomer,  in  which  the  comet  explains  that 
his  delay  was  due  to  the  fact  that  Mercury  was  "meddle- 
some." 

The  only  disappointing  parts  of  the  book  are  those 
which  deal  with  astronomical  physics.  One  point  not 
sufficiently  insisted  upon  is  the  now  generally  acknow- 
ledged meteoritic  constitution  of  comets  ;  a  connection  is 
certainly  suggested,  but  that  comets  are  now  supposed  to 
be  simply  dense  swarms  of  meteorites  is  not  stated  at  all. 
Nebulae,  again,  are  described  as  "  masses  of  glowing  gas," 
notwithstanding  the  recent  researches  on  the  subject. 
The  theory  that  meteorites  are  the  products  of  ancient 
terrestrial  volcanoes  is  also  still  adopted  by  Dr.  Ball, 
without  any  consideration  of  the  objections  to  such  a  view. 

The  book  is  well  illustrated,  and  will  undoubtedly 
awaken  an  interest  in  the  subject  in  all  intelligent 
readers. 

The  Magic  Lantern :  its  Co7tstruction  and  Use.  By  a 
Fellow  of  the  Chemical  Society.  (London :  Perken, 
Son,  and  Rayment.) 

The  third  edition  of  this  little  book  has  been  issued, 
and  will  be  exceedingly  useful  to  those  who  work  with 
the  lantern.  Descriptions  are  given  of  the  various 
lights  used  in  lanterns,  from  the  oil  lamp  to  the  electric 
arc ;  the  methods  of  making  simple  slides  are  entered 


into,  and  a  few  experiments,  illustrative  of  elementary 
scientific  principles,  are  well  included.  The  work  is 
thoroughly  practical  ;  none  of  the  little  details  so 
necessary  to  beginners  have  been  omitted,  whilst  many 
of  the  hints  it  contains  may  be  of  service  to  all  who  use 
this  optical  instrument,  whether  it  be  for  lecture  purposes 
or  for  recreation  only. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

\The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  ] 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. 

I  PO  not  see  that  the  Duke  of  Argyll's  last  letter  in  any  way 
strengthens  his  position.  The  questions  at  issue  with  regard  to 
evolution  are  now,  I  believe,  thoroughly  understood  by  biologists. 
Nothing,  in  my  opinion,  can  solve  them  in  the  direction  the 
Duke  desires  but  the  evidence  of  fact.  And  that,  I  can  only 
repeat,  is  precisely  what  is  not  forthcoming.  I  am  equally  of 
opinion  that  the  discussion  has  been  worn  threadbare.  I  should 
not  myself  have  interfered  in  it,  had  it  not  seemed  desirable  to 
show  that  the  motives  attributed  by  the  Duke  to  those  who 
accept  Darwinian  principles  were  destitute  of  foundation. 

This  part  of  his  position  the  Duke  does  not  attempt  to  defend. 
As  to  the  rest  he  merely  restates  what  he  has  said  before.  His 
remarks  fall  under  two  heads,  and  I  shall  content  myself  with 
the  briefest  possible  comment  upon  these. 

(i)  Acquired  Characters. — The  Duke  gives  what  I  presume 
he  intends  as  a  logical  proof  of  the  theorem  that  acquired 
characters  are  inherited.  It  may,  I  think,  be  formally  expressed 
as  follows  : — 

"  It  is  always  possible  to  assert  "  that  acquired  characters  are 
developed  latent  congenital  characters. 

It  is  admitted  that  congenital  characters  are  inherited. 

.  ■ ,  Acquired  characters  are  inherited. 

It  will  be  observed  in  the  first  place  that  this  is  a  mere  a 
priori  argument.  And  next  that,  while  it  is  not  denied  by  Dar- 
winians that  the  organism  is  a  complex  of  congenital  tendencies, 
limitations,  and  possibilities,  this  is  entirely  beside  the  question. 
From  Lamarck  to  Darwin,  Weismann,  and  Lankester,  the  mean- 
ing of  "acquired  characters"  has  been  clearly  defined.  They 
are  those  changes  of  hypertrophy,  extension,  thickening,  and  the 
like,  which  are  obviously  due  to  the  direct  physical  action  of  the 
environment  on  the  body  of  the  individual  organism.  It  was 
these  changes  which  Lamarck  asserted  were  transmitted  to  the 
offspring  ;  and  it  is  this  transmission  which  it  is  now  maintained 
needs  demonstration  as  a  fact. 

Let  me  give  another  illustration,  I  read  the  other  day  in  the 
newspapers  that  the  police  of  Paris  have  carried  out  an  extremely 
interesting  investigation.  They  have  carefully  ascertained  the 
recognizable  changes  in  the  normal  human  organism  produced 
by  the  prolonged  pursuit  of  any  particular  occupation.  The 
object  was  to  obtain  data  for  the  identification  of  unknown  dead 
bodies.  The  changes  proved  more  numerous  and  characteristic 
than  could  have  been  supposed.  They  supplied,  in  fact,  diagnostic 
marks  by  which  the  occupation  of  the  individual  could  be 
accurately  inferred.  It  seems  to  me  impossible  to  have  a  more 
admirable  case  of  the  direct  action  of  external  conditions.  I 
ask.  Is  there  any  reason  to  suppose  that  these  acquired  characters 
would  be  transmitted  ? 

This  appears  to  me  an  extremely  plain  issue,  as  it  is  certainly 
an  extremely  important  one.  There  is  not  the  least  reluctance 
on  the  part  of  Darwinians  to  face  it  squarely.  But  the  Duke 
appears  to  me  to  deliberately  evade  it. 

(2)  Prophetic  Germs. — It  seems  to  me  that  we  are  somewhat 
at  cross- purposes.  The  Duke  admits  that  I  have  correctly 
quoted  him  as  saying :  "All  organs  do  actually  pass  through 
rudimentary  stages  in  which  actual  use  is  impossible."  When 
Prof.  Lankester  challenged  the  Duke  to  produce  a  single  in- 
stance, he  guarded  himself  by  the  remark:  "The  stages  here 
alluded  to  are — if  I  understand  correctly — ancestral  stages,  not 
stages  in  the  embryological  development  of  the  individual." 
The  Duke  has  never  repudiated,  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  that 
limitation  of  his  meaning,  if  it  be  a  limitation.     And  as  he  has 


3i6 


NATURE 


\Feb.  6,  1890 


never  responded  to  the  challenge,  I  maintain  that  he  has  no 
right  in  a  scientific  discussion  to  reiterate  a  statement  in  support 
of  which  he  has  produced  no  definite  observed  evidence.  He 
now  returns  the  challenge  to  me.  But  it  is  no  affair  of  mine. 
I  simply  take  note  of  the  fact  that  Prof.  Lankester  pointed  out 
that  the  Duke's  case  collapsed  unless  the  challenge  was  met, 
and  that  the  Duke  acquiesced  by  silence. 

Just,  however,  as  with  the  question  of  acquired  characters,  the 
Duke  in  defect  of  direct  evidence  now  tries  an  a /r/t^n  argument. 
He  reminds  us  of  the  well  known  principle  of  embryology,  some- 
times called  the  recapitulation  theory.  Darwin  states  it  in  this 
form  :  the  embryo  is  "a  picture,  more  or  less  obscured,  of  the 
progenitor,  either  in  its  adult  or  larval  state,  of  all  the  members 
of  the  same  great  class." 

Now,  of  course,  in  the  development  of  the  individual  organism, 
we  have  "a  series  of  incipient  structures  on  the  rise  for  actual 
U'-e, "  if  by  "on  the  rise  "  we  mean  in  process  of  nutritive  growth. 
This  is,  however,  not  necessarily  true  of  the  recapitulative  struc- 
tures which  may  or  may  not  be  temporarily  utilized.  When  they 
are  not  so  utilized  they  are  mere  survivals,  and  we  know  that 
survivals  constantly  so  completely  fall  out  of  use,  that  by  mere 
inspection  it  is  often  difficult  to  conceive  what  could  have  been 
their  original  function.  I  may  give  a  single  illustration.  In 
flowering  plants  the  homologue  of  the  spore  of  the  vascular 
cryptogams  is  still  preserved.  Within  it,  previous  to  fertiliza- 
tion, certain  rudimentary  structures  are  developed.  It  has  been 
shown  that  these  are  the  last  recapitulative  remnant  of  an  in- 
dependent series  of  structures  developed  outside  the  spore  in  the 
fern.  In  that  type  they  form  the  prothallus,  which  possesses  all 
the  attributes  of  an  independent  organism,  assimilates,  respires, 
often  reproduces  itself  asexually,  and  finally  bears  the  sexual 
reproductive  organs.  All  this  in  the  flowering  plant  is  not 
merely  reduced  to  scarcely  intelligible  rudiments,  but,  in  ac- 
cordance with  a  well-known  principle  in  embryology,  it  is 
thrown  backwards  in  the  order  of  development,  and  never 
emerges  from  the  spore  at  all,  instead  of  as  in  the  fern  being 
wholly  external  to  and  independent  of  it. 

In  this  case  we  know  the  recapitulation  and  the  thing  reca- 
pitulated. We  infer  from  their  comparison  that  a  fern-like  plant 
was  amongst  the  ancestry  of  the  flowering  plant.  But  I  defy 
anyone,  from  a  mere  inspection  of  what  happens  in  the  latter, 
to  form  any  idea  of  what  happens  in  the  former.  From  cases 
such  as  these  it  is  obvious  that  the  analogy  between  the  deve- 
lopment of  the  individual  and  the  evolution  of  the  race  only 
holds  for  the  broad  facts  of  the  sequence  of  stages,  and  does  not 
give  us  any  information  as  to  the  inutility  of  the  structures  of  the 
ancestral  organisms,  or  even,  indeed,  as  to  the  precise  period  in 
their  life  when  such  structures  made  their  appearance.  The 
Duke's  argument  may  now,  I  take  it,  be  stated  as  follows  : — 

In  the  development  of  the  individual  organism,  incipient 
organs  are  useless. 

The  development  of  the  individual  organism  is  a  recapitulation 
of  the  evolution  of  the  race. 

. '.  Incipient  organs  in  the  evolution  of  the  race  are  useless. 

I  observe  that  the  Duke's  estimation  of  my  logical  powers  is 
the  reverse  of  flattering.  I  abstain,  therefore,  from  criticizing 
this  piece  of  reasoning.  For  my  part  I  must  confess  I  do  not 
possess  an  a  priori  mind .  No  argument,  however  ingenious,  is 
as  convincing  to  me  as  accurately  observed  facts.  If  the  Duke's 
convictions  are  laws  of  Nature,  the  objective  verification  ought 
to  be  forthcoming.  W.  T.  Thiselton  Dyer. 

Royal  Gardens,  Kew. 

The  Duke  of  Argyll  supports  his  assertion  that  "all  organs 
do  actually  pass  through  rudimentary  stages  in  which  actual  use  is 
impossible  "  by  reference  to  the  stages  of  embryonic  growth. 
Surely  the  assertion  remains  merely  an  empty  repetition  of  the 
Darwinian  position  that  the  development  of  the  embryo  sum- 
marizes the  morphological  history  of  the  race. 

The  modern  dress  coat  has  developed  from  a  mere  blanket, 
but  even  the  useless  parts  of  the  modern  coat  can  be  easily 
shown  to  have  had  their  use  in  some  anterior  forms  of  completed 
coat.  The  embryo,  like  the  coat,  preserves  traces  of  evolutional 
stages  at  which  what  now  appear  useless  characters  were  in 
reality  actual  useful  characters. 

What  the  Duke  has  to  show  is  some  instance  of  a  completed 
organ  in  a  completed  organism,  useless  to  that  organism,  not 
phases  in  the  growth  of  an  organ  affording  a  blurred  copy  of 
some  form  of  the  organ  existent  at  an  anterior  stage  of  the 
organism,    and    then    useful   to  it.      So    far    he    has    merely 


confounded  ontogenal  steps  of  growth  with  phylogenal  phases 
of  plan.  F.  V,  Dickins. 

Burlington  Gardens,  February  3. 


Eight  Rainbows  seen  at  the  Same  Time. 

The  following  letter  which  I  have  just  received  from  Dr. 
Percival  Frost  of  Cambridge,  may  interest  your  readers. 

The  theory  of  the  rainbows  produced  by  the  sun  itself  directly, 
and  by  the  image  of  the  sun  reflected  from  still  water,  is  given 
in  Prof  Tait's  book  on  "Light."  The  phenomenon  seems  to 
have  been  observed  by  Halley  in  1698  (see  Nature,  vol.  x. 
pp.  437,  460,  and  483  for  interesting  correspondence  on  the 
subject). 

The  diffuse  rainbow  produced  by  the  image  of  the  sun  re- 
flected from  a  white  cloud  after  sunset,  described  by  Mr. 
Scouller,  is,  I  believe,  a  novelty. 

William  Thomson. 

The  University,  Glasgow,  January  31. 

In  Nature  (January  23,  p.  27i)yougivealetter  from  Mr.  Scouller 
describing  an  interesting  case  of  a  rainbow,  due  to  the  image  of  the 
sun  in  water,  which,  with  the  ordinary  primary  and  secondary 
bows,  make  up  (there  being  no  secondary  to  that  formed  by 
the  reflected  sun)  the  three  which  he  saw.  Here  is  a  short 
account  of  what  I  saw  long  ago,  almost  in  prehistoric  times,  in 
Scotland,  where  such  sights  ought,  according  to  your  corre- 
spondent, to  be  very  commonly  seen.  I  may  mention  that  I 
saw  at  the  same  time,  lasting  some  five  minutes,  eight  well- 
defined  rainbows  of  one  sort  or  another. 


In  1841,  during  the  time  of  a  long  vacation  party,  spent 
at  Oban,  I  walked  out  with  my  brother  to  Dunstaffiiage, 
and  we  were  on  the  top  of  the  Castle,  somewhere  between 
3  and  4  p.m.,  on  a  day  in  the  middle  of  August.  Not 
a  breath  of  wind,  bright  sun  over,  I  think,  Lismore 
Lighthouse,  dusky  clouds  all  over  Ben  Cruachan  and  Conoll 
Ferry ;  the  sea  in  the  bay  (bounded  by  Dunstaff"nage  in 
the  west)  as  smooth  as  a  pond.  Gradually  there  appeared 
before  us  the  astonishing  sight  of  the  aforesaid  eight  distinct 
rainbows,  viz.  primary  and  secondary  ordinary  bows ;  pri- 
mary   and    secondary    bows  by    reflected    sun ;    primary  tanci 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


Z^l 


secondary  bows  formed  by  light  from  the  real  sun  reflected  from 
the  water  after  leaving  certain  drops  ;  primary  and  secondary 
formed  by  light  from  the  sun  reflected  at  the  water,  and,  after 
leaving  certain  other  drops,  again  reflected  at  the  water.  I  have 
called  the  latter  four  distinct  bows,  because,  although  they 
looked  like  reflections  of  a  solid  set  of  four  arcs,  they  were  really 
formed  by  means  of  drops  distinct  from  those  which  helped  to 
make  the  first  four  bows.     I  append  a  sketch  of  what  I  saw. 

Percival  Frost. 
15  Fitzwilliam  Street,  January  29. 

[We  have  received  other  letters  on  the  subject  of  Mr.  Scouller's 
letter.] 

Thought  and  Breathing. 

I  SEND  you  some  extracts  from  the  Sanskrit  Yoga-siitras 
which  treat  very  fully  of  the  prawajama,  or  the  expulsion  and 
retention  of  breath,  as  a  means  of  steadying  the  mind. 

A  Yogi  has  first  of  all  to  assume  certain  postures  which  help 
him  to  fix  his  mind  on  certain  objects.  He  cannot  concentrate 
his  mind  while  walking  or  running.  He  ought  to  assume  a  firm 
and  pleasant  position,  one  requiring  little  effort.  To  judge, 
however,  from  the  description  given  of  some  of  these  postures, 
they  would  seem  to  us  anything  but  pleasant. 

When  a  Yogi  has  accustomed  himself  to  his  posture,  he 
begins  to  regulate  his  breath — that  is,  he  draws  in  the  breath 
through  one  nostril,  retains  it  for  some  time  in  the  chest,  and 
then  emits  it  through  the  other  nostril.  The  details  of  this  pro- 
cess are  given  in  the  first  chapter  of  the  Yoga-siitras,  sutra  37. 
Here  the  commentator  states  that  the  expulsion  means  the 
throwing  out  of  the  air  from  the  lungs  in  a  fixed  quantity  through  a 
special  effort.  Retention  is  the  restraint  or  stoppage  of  the  motion 
of  breath  for  a  certain  limited  time.  That  stoppage  is  effected  by 
two  acts — by  filling  the  lungs  with  external  air,  and  by  retaining 
therein  the  inhaled  air.  Thus  the  threefold  pra«ayama,  including 
the  three  acts  of  expiration,  inspiration,  and  retention  of  breath, 
fixes  the  thinking  principle  to  one  point  of  concentration.  All 
the  functions  of  the  organs  being  preceded  by  that  of  the  breath 
— there  being  always  a  correlation  between  breath  and  mind  in 
their  respective  functions — the  breath,  when  overcome  by 
stopping  all  the  functions  of  the  organs,  effects  the  concentration 
of  the  thinking  principle  to  one  object. 

Rajendralal  Mitra,  to  whom  we  owe  a  very  valuable  edition 
of  the  text  and  translation  of  the  Yoga-siitras,  adds  the  fol- 
lowing remarks  : — "  All  other  Yogic  and  Tantric  works  regard 
the  three  acts  of  expiration,  inspiration,  and  retention  performed 
in  specific  order  to  constitute  prawayama.  The  order,  however, 
is  not  always  the  same.  .  .  .  The  mode  of  reckoning  the  time 
to  be  devoted  to  each  act  is  regulated  in  one  of  two  ways  :  (i) 
by  so  many  repetitions  of  the  syllable  om,  or  the  mystic  mantra 
{formula)  of  the  performer,  or  the  specific  mystic  syllables  (vija) 
of  that  mantra  ;  (2)  by  turning  the  thumb  and  the  index-finger 
of  the  left  hand  round  the  left  knee  a  given  number  of  times. 
The  time  devoted  to  inspiration  is  the  shortest,  and  to  retention 
the  longest.  A  Vaishwava  in  his  ordinary  daily  prayer  repeats 
the  Vija-mantra  once  while  expiring,  7  times  while  inspiring, 
and  20  times  while  retaining.  A  Sakta  repeats  the  mantra  16 
times  while  inspiring,  64  times  while  retaining,  and  32  times 
while  expiring.     These  periods  are  frequently  modified." 

The  usual  mode  of  performing  the  prawayama  is,  after 
assuming  the  posture  prescribed,  to  place  the  ring-finger  of  the 
right  hand  on  the  left  nostril,  pressing  it  so  as  to  close  it,  and  to 
expire  with  the  right,  then  to  press  the  right  nostril  with  the 
thumb,  and  to  inspire  through  the  left  nostril,  and  then  to  close 
the  two  nostrils  with  the  ring  finger  and  the  thumb,  and  to  stop 
all  breathing.  The  order  is  reversed  in  the  next  operation,  and 
in  the  third  act  the  first  form  is  required.  The  Ha/Aadipika 
says:— "By  the  motion  "of  the  breath,  the  thinking  principle 
moves  ;  when  that  motion  is  stopped,  it  becomes  motionless, 
and  the  Yogi  becomes  firm  as  the  trunk  of  a  tree  ;  therefore  the 
wind  should  be  stopped.  As  long  as  the  breath  remains  in  the 
body,  so  long  it  is  called  living.  Death  is  the  exit  of  that 
breath,  therefore  it  should  be  stopped." 

Some  of  the  minor  works  on  Yoga  expatiate  on  the  sanitary 
and  therapeutic  advantages  of  practising  prawayama  regularly  at 
stated  times.  In  America  some  spiritualistic  doctors  prescribe 
the  same  practice  for  curing  diseases. 

In  India  pra«ayama  is  only  a  means  towards  a  higher  object — 
namely,  the  abstraction  of  the  organs  from  their  natural  functions. 
It  is  a  preliminary  to  Yoga,  which  consists  in  d/idraad,  stead- 


fastness, dhydna,  contemplation,  and  samddki,  meditation,  or 
almost  a  cataleptic  trance.  These  three  are  supposed  to  impart 
powers  or  siddhts  which  seem  to  us  incredible,  but  which  never- 
theless are  attested  by  the  ancient  Yogis  in  a  very  bond-fide 
spirit,  and  deserve  examination,  if  only  as  instances  of  human 
credulity.  I  say  nothing  of  modern  impostures. 
Oxford,  January  22.  F.  Max  Mijller. 

In  connection  with  Prof.  Leumann's  recent  researches  into 
the  relation  between  changes  in  respiration  and  changes  in 
certain  cerebral  functions,  it  seems  curious  that  the  employment 
of  deep  and  rapid  respiration  as  an  ansesthetic  has  received  so 
little  attention.  Some  dentists  order  their  patients  to  respire  as 
quickly  and  fully  as  they  can  for  a  period  which  varies,  I  believe, 
from  four  to  six  minutes,  although  as  to  the  exact  duration  I 
am  insufficiently  informed.  At  the  termination  of  this  period 
the  patient  becomes  giddy,  and  to  a  great  extent  loses  con- 
sciousness, when  a  short  operation  can  be  painlessly  performed. 
The  patient,  while  unable  to  move  his  arms,  opens  his  mouth  at 
the  order  of  the  operator.  I  have  heard  of  no  casualties  or  evil 
effects  from  this  mode  of  treatment.  W.  Clement  Ley. 


Chiff-ChafF  singing  in  September. 

During  more  than  forty  years'  observation  of  the  singing  of 
birds,  I  have  invariably  heard  the  chiff-chaff  singing  in  Sept- 
ember, although  the  song  is  much  less  frequently  repeated  than 
in  the  spring.  In  connection  with  this  observation  I  may  men- 
tion that  both  the  male  and  female  birds  appear  to  be  invariably 
mute  for  two  or  three  days  after  their  spring  arrival  in  Northern 
Europe.  W,  Clement  Ley. 

Lutterworth,  January  31. 

Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

I  have  read  in  recent  numbers  of  Nature  some  letters  on 
sponges  attached  to  crabs. 

There  are  two  crabs  on  the  east  coast  of  Australia — one  of 
them  allied  to  Dromia  vulgaris — which  cover  themselves  with 
sponges  or  with  a  composite  Ascidian.  I  have  in  one  case 
counted  no  less  than  seven  species  of  sponges  on  one  individual 
crab. 

The  Ascidian  referred  to  is  usually  from  ten  to  thirty  times  as 
large  as  the  crab  to  the  back  of  which  it  is  attached. 

Among  the  specimens  brought  by  me  from  Australia,  and 
now  deposited  in  the  National  Collection  of  the  British  Mu- 
seum, there  are  some  of  these  crabs  with  sponges  and  Ascidians 
attached. 

These  might,  perhaps,  be  interesting  to  your  correspondents 
on  the  subject.  R.  V.  Lendenfeld. 

University,  Innsbruck,  January  25. 

Foot-Pounds. 

"A.  S.  E."  will  find  m  ^ments,  of  resistance,  of  bending,  or  of 
turning,  expressed  in  foot-pounds  (often  inch-pounds  or  foot  tons) 
in  any  treatise  on  civil,  mechanical,  or  marine  engineering,  on 
architecture,  land  or  naval,  and,  in  fact,  in  every  treatise  on 
real  mechanics  he  may  consult.  Why,  then,  should  a  different 
terminology  be  adopted  in  a  Civil  Service  examination  paper  ? 
In  metric  units,  moments  are  given  in  kilogramme-metres  or 
-centimetres  ;  but  in  the  C.G.S.  system  I  do  not  suppose  it  is 
suggested  to  measure  moments  of  dyne-centimetres  in  ergs. 

February  3.  A.  G.  Greenhill. 

If  "A.  S.  E."  will  push  his  researches  further,  he  will  find 
that  in  Government  dockyards  the  stability  moment  on  ships  is 
calculated  in  foot-tons.  V. 

February  3. 


PROF.  WEISMANN'S  THEORY  OF  HEREDITY, 

IN  Nature  of  October  24,  1889  (p.  621),  appeared  a 
criticism  by  Prof.  Vines  of  my  essays  on  heredity 
and  allied  subjects.  I  should  be  glad  to  reply  briefly  to 
his  objections,  and  the  more  so  as  I  hope  thus  to  be  able 
to  place  the  scientific  problems  at  issue  in  a  somewhat 


NATURE 


[Feb.  6,  1890 


clearer  light.  With  regard  to  the  immortality  which  I 
attribute  both  to  the  unicellular  organisms  and  to  the 
germinal  cells  of  the  multicellular,  if  I  understand  Prof. 
Vines  aright,  he  does  not  attack  the  proposition  itself,  but 
has  simply  overlooked  the  explanation  in  my  book  of  the 
way  in  which  mortal  organisms  arose  out  of  immortal  in 
process  of  phyletic  development,  a  process  which  must  have 
taken  place  if  the  Protozoa  have  developed  in  the  course  of 
the  world's  history  into  the  higher  Metazoa, — "the  first 
difficulty  is  to  understand  how  the  mortal  heteroplastides 
can  have  been  evolved  from  the  immortal  monoplastides." 
My  explanation  was  simply  that  which  appears  to  be  the 
true  one  for  the  origin  of  every  higher  differentiation — 
namely,  the  division  of  the  cell-mass  of  the  Protozoan,  on 
the  principle  of  the  division  of  labour,  into  two  dissimilar 
halves,  differing  in  substance,  and  consequently  also  in 
function  ;  from  the  one  cell  which  performed  all  functions 
comes  a  group  of  several  cells  which  distribute  themselves 
over  the  work.  In  my  opinion,  the  first  such  differentia- 
tion produced  two  sets  of  cells,  the  one  the  mortal  cells 
of  the  body  proper,  the  other  the  immortal  germ-cells. 
Prof.  Vines  certainly  believes  in  the  principle  of  the  divi- 
sion of  labour,  and  in  the  part  that  it  has  played  in  the 
development  of  the  organic  world,  as  well  as  I  ;  but  it 
seems  to  him  that  this  division  of  a  unicellular  being  into 
somatic  and  germinal  cells  is  impossible,  and  that  my 
explanation  of  the  process  by  dissimilar  division  is 
inadequate,  because  it  strikes  him  as  "  absurd  to  say  that 
an  immortal  substance  can  be  converted  into  a  mortal 
substance." 

There  certainly  does  seem  to  be  a  great  difficulty  in 
this  idea,  but  in  reality  it  arises  simply  from  a  confusion 
of  two  conceptions — immortality  and  eternity.  That 
the  Protozoa  and  the  germ-cells  of  Metazoa  are  in  a  certain 
sense  immortal  seems  to  me  an  incontrovertible  proposi- 
tion. As  soon  as  one  has  clearly  realized  that  the  division 
of  amonoplastidisinno  way  connected  with  the  death  of 
one  part,  there  can  be  no  further  question  that  we  have 
to  do  with  individuals  of  indefinite  duration  ;  but  this  in 
no  way  implies  that  they  possess  an  eternal  duration  ;  on 
the  contrary,  we  imagine  that  they  have  all  had  a  be- 
ginning. The  conception  of  eternity,  however,  extends 
into  the  past  as  well  as  the  future  ;  it  is  without  beginning 
or  end,  and  does  not  affect  the  present  question  ;  it  is  an 
entirely  artificial  conception,  and  has  no  real  and  com- 
prehensible existence  ;  to  express  it  more  accurately, 
eternity  is  merely  the  negation  of  the  conception  of 
transitoriness.  Of  the  objects  with  which  natural  science 
deals,  none  are  eternal  except  the  smallest  particles  of 
matter  and  their  forces,  certainly  not  the  thousandfold  sem- 
blances and  combinations  under  which  matter  and  force 
meet  us.  As  I  have  said  years  ago,  the  immortality  of 
unicellular  organisms,  and  of  the  germ-cells  of  the  multi- 
cellular, is  not  absolute  but  potential ;  it  is  not  that  they 
must  live  for  ever  as  did  the  gods  of  the  ancient  Greeks 
— Ares  received  a  "  mortal "  wound,  and  roared  for 
pain  like  to  ten  thousand  bulls,  but  could  not  die ;  they 
can  die — the  greater  number  do  in  fact  die — but  a  pro- 
portion lives  on  which  is  of  one  and  the  same  substance 
with  the  others.  Does  not  life,  here  as  elsewhere,  depend 
on  metabolism — that  is  to  say,  a  constant  change  of 
material  1  And  what  is  it,  then,  which  is  immortal  ? 
Clearly  not  the  substance,  but  only  a  definite  form  of 
activity.  The  protoplasm  of  the  unicellular  animals  is  of 
such  chemical  and  molecular  structure  that  the  cycle  of 
material  which  constitutes  life  returns  even  to  the  same 
point  and  can  always  begin  anew,  so  long  as  the  neces- 
sary external  conditions  are  forthcoming.  It  is  like  the 
•  circulation  of  water,  which  evaporates,  gathers  into 
clouds,  and  falls  as  rain  upon  the  earth,  always  to  eva- 
porate afresh.  And  as  in  the  physical  and  chemical 
properties  of  water  there  is  no  inherent  cause  for  the 
cessation  of  this  cycle,  so  there  is  no  clear  reason  in  the 
physical  condition  of  unicellular  organisms  why  the  cycle 


of  life,  i.e.  of  division,  growth  by  assimilation,  and 
repeated  division,  should  ever  end ;  and  this  charac- 
teristic it  is  which  I  have  termed  immortality.  It  is  the 
only  true  immortality  to  be  found  in  Nature — a  pure 
biological  conception,  and  one  to  be  carefully  dis- 
tinguished from  the  eternity  of  dead,  that  is  to  say 
unorganized,  matter. 

If  then  this  true  immortality  is  but  cyclical,  and  is  con- 
ditioned by  the  physical  constitution  of  the  protoplasm, 
why  is  it  inconceivable  that  this  constitution  should  be, 
under  certain  circumstances  and  to  a  certain  extent,  so 
modified  that  the  metaboHc  activity  no  longer  exactly 
follows  its  own  orbit,  but  after  more  or  fewer  revolutions 
comes  to  a  standstill  and  results  in  death  ?  All  living 
matter  is  variable  ;  why  should  not  variations  in  the 
protoplasm  have  also  occurred  which,  while  they  fulfilled 
certain  functions  of  the  individual  economy  better,  caused 
a  metabolism  which  did  not  exactly  repeat  itself,  i.e. 
sooner  or  later  came  to  a  condition  of  rest .''  I  admit  that 
I  feel  such  a  descent  from  immortahty  into  mortality  far 
less  remarkable  than  the  permanent  retention  of  immor- 
tality by  the  monoplastids  and  germ-cells.  Small,  indeed, 
must  be  the  variations  in  the  complicated  qualities  of 
living  matter  to  bring  in  their  train  such  a  fall  ;  and  very 
sharply  must  the  essentials  of  its  constitution  be  retained, 
for  metabolism  to  take  place  so  smoothly  without  creating 
in  itself  an  obstacle  to  its  own  continuance  !  Even  if  we 
cannot  penetrate  into  the  mysteries  of  this  constitution, 
still  we  may  say  that  a  rigorous  and  unceasing  natural 
selection  is  unremittingly  active  in  maintaining  it  at  such 
an  exact  standard  as  to  preserve  its  immortality;  and 
every  lapse  from  this  standard  is  punished  by  death. 

I  believe  that  I  have  proved  that  organs  no  longer  in 
use  become  rudimentary,  and  must  finally  disappear 
solely  by  "  panmixie "  ;  not  through  the  direct  action  of 
disuse,  but  because  natural  selection  no  longer  main- 
tains their  standard  structure.  What  is  true  for  an  organ 
is  true  also  for  its  function,  since  the  latter  is  but  the 
expression  of  the  qualities  of  material  parts,  whether  we 
can  directly  perceive  their  relations  or  not.  If,  then,  as 
we  saw,  the  immortality  of  monoplastids  depends  on  the 
fact  that  the  incessant  metabolism  of  their  bodies  is  ever 
returning  exactly  to  its  starting-point,  and  produces  no 
such  modifications  as  would  gradually  obstruct  the  repe- 
tition of  the  cycle,  why  should  that  quality  of  the  livnig 
matter  which  causes  immortality — nay,  how  could  it  be 
retained — when  no  longer  necessary.?  It  is  obvious  that 
it  was  no  longer  necessary  in  the  somatic  cells  of  the 
heteroplastids.  From  the  instant  that  natural  selection 
relaxed  its  watch  on  this  quality  of  immortality  began  the 
process  of  panmixia  which  led  to  its  abolition.  Prof. 
Vines  will  ask.  How  can  one  conceive  of  this  process  ? 
I  answer,  Quite  easily.  When  once  individuals  arose 
among  monoplastids,  in  the  protoplasm  of  which  occurred 
such  variation  in  chemical  and  molecular  constitution  as 
to  result  in  a  gradual  check  on  the  metabolic  cycle,  it 
would  happen  that  these  individuals  died  ;  a  permanent 
variety  could  not  grow  out  of  such  variations.  But  if 
there  arose  among  heteroplastids  individuals  with  a 
similar  differentiation  of  the  somatic  cells,  the  death  of 
these  cells  would  not  be  detrimental  to  the  species,  since 
its  continuance  is  ensured  by  the  imtnortal  germ-cells. 
Upon  the  differentiation  into  germinal  and  somatic  cells,^ 
natural  selection  was,  speaking  metaphorically,  trained 
to  bear  on  immortality  of  the  germ-cells,  but  on  quite 
other  qualities  in  the  somatic  cells — on  motility,  irritabi- 
lity, capacity  for  assimilation, &c.  We  do  not  know  whether 
the  attainment  of  these  qualities  was  accompanied  by  a 
constitutional  alteration  which  caused  the  loss  of  immor- 
tality, but  it  is  at  least  possible  ;  and,  if  true,  the  somatic 
cells  will  have  lost  their  immortality  even  more  rapidly 
than  through  the  unaided  action  of  panmixia. 

In  the  fourth  essay  of  my  book,  I  have  cited  the  two 
Volvocinean  genera  Pandorina  and  Volvox  as  examples 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


319 


of  the  differentiation  of  homoplastids  into  the  lowest 
heteroplastids  ;  in  Pandorina  the  cells  are  still  all  alike 
and  all  perform  the  same  functions,  in  Volvo x  occur 
somatic  and  germinal  cells,  and  in  the  latter  case  we 
should  expect  to  find  the  commencement  of  natural  death. 
Recent  researches  of  Dr,  Klein  ("  Morphologische  und 
biologische  Studien  iiber  die  Gattung  Volvox,"  Jahrb. 
wiss.  Botan.,  xx.,  1889)  show  that  this  is  actually  the 
case  ;  as  soon  as  the  germ-cells  are  ripe  and  emerge 
from  the  sphere,  the  ciliated  somatic  cells  begin  to  shrivel 
up,  and  die  in  one  or  two  days.  This  is  the  more  interest- 
ing, as  the  somatic  are  also  the  nutritive  cells  ;  for,  though 
the  germ-cells  also  possess  chlorophyll,  the  rapid  growth 
of  the  latter  (which  attain  an  enormous  size  in  Volvox)  is 
only  possible  by  the  supply  of  nourishment  from  the 
somatic  cells.  The  latter  are  so  constituted  that  they 
assimilate,  but  cannot  grow  larger  when  once  the  sphere 
has  reached  its  definite  size ;  they  transfer  the  nourishment 
which  they  derive  from  the  decomposition  of  carbon 
dioxide,  &c.,  to  the  germinal  cells  by  means  of  fine 
pseudopodia ;  and  themselves  wither  when  once  the 
germs  are  ripe.  In  this  case  adaptation  to  the  nutrition 
of  the  germinal  cells  might  well  have  accelerated  the 
introduction  of  a  natural  death  of  the  somatic  cells,  the 
capacity  for  considerable  assimilation  combined  with  a 
drain  on  their  nutrition  may  have  led  after  a  certain 
time  to  stoppage  of  the  process  of  assimilation  and  to 
death.  To  me,  the  idea  that  modification  of  the  living 
matter  may  have  been  connected  with  loss  of  immortality 
does  not  appear  more  unlikely  or  more  difficult  than  the 
generally  received  view  of  the  gradual  differentiation  of 
the  somatic  cells  in  the  course  of  phylogeny  into  their 
various  species  of  digestive,  secretive,  motile,  and  nervous 
cells.  An  immortal  unalterable  living  substance  does  not 
exist,  but  only  immortal  forms  of  activity  of  organized 
matter. 

I  maintain,  therefore,  in  its  entirety,  my  original  state- 
ment, that  monoplastids  and  the  germ-cells  of  higher 
forms  have  no  natural  death.  I  do  not  know  how  this 
can  to-day  be  better  expressed  than  by  saying  that  these 
living  units  possess  a  real  and  actual  immortality  as 
against  the  imaginary  ideal  immortality  of  the  Greek 
gods.  If  death  from  internal  causes  does  not  exist  for 
them,  one  may  yet  say  with  certainty  that  the  fatal  hour 
will  one  day  strike  for  them  all,  not  from  internal  causes, 
but  because  the  external  conditions  for  the  constant 
renewal  of  vital  activity  will  some  day  cease.  The 
physicists  prophesy  that  the  circulation  of  water  on  the 
globe  will  end,  not  from  any  alteration  in  the  qualities  of 
water,  but  because  external  conditions  will  render  this 
form  of  motion  of  aqueous  particles  impossible. 

Prof  Vines  then  attacks  my  view  of  embryogeny.  He 
finds  it  "not  a  little  remarkable  that  Prof.  \Veismann 
should  not  have  offered  any  suggestion  as  to  the  concep- 
tion which  he  has  formed  of  the  mode  in  which  the  con- 
version of  germ-plasm  into  somatoplasm  can  take  place, 
considering  that  this  assumption  is  the  key  to  his  whole 
position."  He  sees  here  the  same  difficulty  as  in  the 
phyletic  development,  and  says :  "  There  is  really  no 
other  criticism  to  be  made  on  an  unsupported  assumption 
such  as  this,  than  to  say  that  it  involves  a  contradiction 
in  terms."  He  means  by  this  that  the  eternal  cannot 
pass  into  the  finite,  as  must  be  the  case  if  the 
immortal  germ-cell  grow  into  the  mortal  soma.  At 
the  bottom  of  this  objection  lies  the  same  confusion 
between  immortality  and  eternity  which  has  already  been 
made  clear.  I  do  not  wish  to  reproach  Prof.  Vines  with 
this  obscurity,  as  I  felt  the  same  objection  myself  for 
many  years,  and  could  not  at  once  discover  the  reply  to 
it ;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  indebted  to  him  for  the  oppor- 
tunity to  express  myself  on  the  point.  Up  to  this  time 
we  have  had  no  scientific  conception  of  immortality  ;  if 
this  be  accepted,  the  significance  of  immortality  is  not 
life  without  beginning  or  end,  but  life  which,  after  its  first 


commencement,  can  continue  in'.efinitely  with  or  without 
modification  (specific  changes  in  the  germ-plasm  or  the 
monoplastids)  ;  it  is  a  cyclical  activity  of  organic  material 
devoid  of  any  intrinsic  momentum  which  would  lead  to 
its  cessation,  just  as  the  motion  of  the  planets  contains  no 
intrinsic  momentum  which  would  lead  to  its  cessation, 
although  it  has  had  a  commencement  and  will  some  day, 
through  the  operation  of  extrinsic  forces,  have  an  end. 

Prof.  Vines  says  later :  "  I  understand  Prof.  Weismann 
to  imply  that  his  theory  of  heredity  is  not — like,  for 
instance,  Darwin's  theory  of  pangenesis — a  provisional 
or  purely  formal  solution  of  the  question,  but  one  which 
is  applicable  to  every  detail  of  embryogeny,  as  well  as  to 
the  more  general  phenomena  of  heredity  and  variation." 
I  have,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  designated  Darwin's  pangenesis 
as  a  "  purely  formal "  solution  of  the  question,  but  should 
like  here  to  give  a  slight  explanation  of  the  expression,  as 
I  fear  that  not  only  Prof.  Vines,  but  also  many  other 
readers  of  my  essays,  have  misunderstood  me.  On  the 
one  hand,  I  am  afraid  that  they  see  in  my  words  a  definite 
reproach  against  Darwin  for  his  theory  of  pangenesis,  of 
which  I  had  not  the  remotest  intention  ;  and  on  the  other, 
that  they  incline  to  charge  me  with  too  great  an  affection 
for  my  own  theory. 

I  believe  there  are  two  kinds  of  theory  ;  one  may  term 
them  the  "  real  "  and  the  "  ideal "  ;  practically  they  are 
rarely  sharply  to  be  discriminated  ;  both  often  occur  in 
one  and  the  same  theory,  but  should  be  conceived  of 
separately.  The  "  ideal "  theories  attempt  to  render  con- 
ceivable the  phenomena  to  be  explained  by  an  arbitrarily 
accepted  principle,  apart  from  the  question  whether  the 
principle  itself  possesses  any  grain  of  truth  or  not ;  they 
seek  only  to  show  that  there  are  hypotheses  on  which  the 
phenomena  in  question  become  comprehensible.  "  Real " 
theories  do  not  make  hypotheses  at  pleasure,  but  strive 
to  construct  such  as  have  some  degree  of  probability  ; 
they  desire  to  give  not  a  formal,  but,  if  possible,  the  right 
explanation.  Sir  William  Thomson  in  endeavouring  to 
make  clear  the  dispersion  of  rays  of  light,  never  believed  in 
the  remotest  degree  that  such  molecules  as  he  pictured 
really  existed,  but  desired  merely  to  show  that  there  were 
hypotheses  on  which  the  phenomena  of  dispersion  were 
comprehensible.  Darwin's  pangenesis  was  originally  in- 
tended in  this  sense,  and  was  by  him  termed  a  "  pro- 
visional" hypothesis,  although  in  later  years  he  may  have 
attributed  to  it  the  weight  of  a  real  theory.  To  me  his  "gem- 
mules"  are  a  pure  invention,  an  invention  in  no  way  corre- 
sponding to  the  actual  facts,  but  showing  what  hypotheses 
must  be  made  in  order  to  explain  the  phenomena  of 
heredity.  Are,  however,  such  ideal  theories  worthless } 
Certainly  not.  They  are  often  the  first  and  essential  step 
towards  the  understanding  of  complicated  phenomena,  and 
lay  the  foundation  for  the  gradual  erection  of  a  real  theory. 
It  would  perhaps  never  have  occurred  to  me  to  deny 
the  inheritance  of  acquired  characters,  had  not  Darwin's 
pangenesis  shown  me  that  the  matter  was  only  explicable 
on  an  hypothesis  so  difficult  to  conceive,  as  that  of  the 
giving  off,  circulation,  and  reassemblage  of  gemmules.  I 
do  not  even  now  maintain  that  Darwin's  pangenesis  cannot 
possibly  contain  a  kernel  of  truth ;  De  Vries  ("  Intra- 
cellulare  Pangenesis,"  Jena,  1889)  has  shown  in  a  recent 
and  most  interesting  memoir  that  the  ideal  impossible 
pangenesis  may  be  transformed  into  a  real  and  possible 
one  by  means  of  certain  profound  modifications  ;  he  ac- 
cepts my  view  that  acquired  (somatogenic)  modifications 
cannot  be  transmitted,  and  thereby  puts  on  one  side  just 
that  part  of  Darwin's  theory  which  has  always  appeared 
to  me  to  lie  beyond  the  pale  of  reality — namely,  the  circula- 
tion, &c.,  of  the  gemmules.  The  future  will  show  whether 
his  view  of  modified  gemmules  or  my  hypothesis  is  the 
best  explanation  of  the  facts  of  heredity. 

In  any  case,  I  am  far  from  assuming  that  I  have  settled 
the  whole  question  of  heredity  ;  I  have  undertaken  re- 
searches on  some  of  the  more  important  parts  of  the 


320 


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[Feb.  6,  1890 


problem,  and  have  thus  been  compelled  to  formulate 
some  fundamental  principles  for  the  explanation  of  the 
phenomena  ;  but  no  one  can  be  more  convinced  than  I 
how  far  we  are  from  a  definite  and  complete  explanation, 
not  only  of  "  every  detail,"  but  also  of  "  the  more  general 
phenomena."  My  endeavour  was  to  put  forth  a  real,  in 
place  of  the  previous  ideal,  theory  ;  and  on  this  ground  I 
took  pains  to  make  only  such  suppositions  as  might  pos- 
sibly correspond  to  actual  facts.  There  certainly  is  a 
material  carrier  of  heredity  in  the  ovum  ;  it  certainly  can 
be  transported  from  nucleus  to  nucleus  ;  it  certainly  can 
be  modified  in  the  process,  or  can  remain  the  same  ;  and 
even  the  supposition  that  it  is  able  to  stamp  its  own  cha- 
racter on  the  cell  contains  nothingwhich  seems  to  us  impos- 
sible and  non-existent ;  on  the  contrary,  we  are  able  now  to 
state  that  it  is  so,  even  if  we  do  not  understand  in  what 
wise  it  happens.  My  hypothesis  relative  to  the  quiescent 
state  of  germ-plasma  also  rests  on  a  basis  of  fact  ;  we 
know  that  ancestral  characteristics  may  be  transmitted 
in  a  latent  condition,  and  that  the  process  of  transmis- 
sion is  bound  up  with  a  substance,  the  idioplasma  ;  there 
must  therefore  actually  be  an  inactive  stage  of  idioplasma. 

If  it  could  be  shown  that  upon  such  principles  an  ex- 
planation of  heredity  is  attainable,  we  should  have  made 
a  distinct  advance  upon  the  ideal  theory  of  pangenesis 
which  is  founded  on  unreal  hypotheses.  Possibly  it  is 
upon  the  path  which  I  have  opened  up  that  we  shall 
gradually  attain  a  satisfactory  solution  of  the  numerous 
questions  at  issue  ;  possibly  further  research  will  show 
that  it  is  not  the  right  path,  and  must  be  abandoned  ;  no 
one,  it  appears  to  me,  can  foretell  this.  My  reflections 
on  heredity  are  not  a  conclusion,  but  a  commencement — 
no  complete  theory  of  heredity  which  claims  to  provide  a 
complete  solution  of  all  the  problems  at  issue,  but  re- 
searches which,  if  fortunate,  may  sooner  or  later,  by 
direct  or  circuitous  paths,  lead  to  a  true  appreciation  of 
the  question,  to  a  "  real"  theory.  In  the  preface  to  the 
English  edition  of  my  "Essays"  I  have  stated  this 
expressly. 

I  have  also  in  that  place  distinctly  insisted  that  the 
book  was  not  written  as  a  whole  ;  that  it  consists  rather 
of  a  series  of  researches,  the  one  growing  out  of  the  other, 
and  showing  the  development  of  my  views  as  they  shaped 
themselves  during  the  course  of  nearly  a  decade's  work. 
It  is  therefore  unreasonable  to  extract  ideas  from  an 
earlier  essay  and  apply  them  against  a  later  one.  I  have 
left  them  unaltered,  and  even  "  left  certain  errors  of  inter- 
pretation uncorrected,"  because,  if  altered,  their  internal 
connection  could  not  have  been  understood. 

I  believe  that  the  objections  which  Prof.  Vines  makes  to 
my  theory  of  the  continuity  of  germ-plasma  rest  solely  on 
an  unintentional  confusion  of  my  ideas,  as  he  compares 
the  opinions  expressed  in  the  second  essay  with  those  of 
the  later  ones,  with  \vhich  they  do  not  tally.  I  will  en- 
deavour to  make  this  clear.  In  this  second  essay  (1883) 
I  contrasted  the  body  (soma)  with  the  germ-cells,  and  ex- 
plained heredity  by  the  hypothesis  of  a  "  Vererbungs- 
substanz"  in  the  germ  cells  (in  fact  the  germ-plasma), 
which  is  transmitted  without  breach  of  continuity  from 
one  generation  to  the  next.  I  was  not  then  aware  that 
this  lay  only  in  the  nucleus  of  the  ovum,  and  could  there- 
fore contrast  the  entire  substance  of  the  ovum  with  the 
substance  of  the  body- cells,  and  term  the  latter  "somato- 
plasm," In  Essay  IV.  (1885)  I  had  arrived,  like  Stras- 
burger  and  O.  Hertwig,  at  the  conviction  that  the  nuclear 
substance,  the  chromatin  of  the  nuclear  loops,  was  the 
carrier  of  heredity,  and  that  the  body  of  the  cell  was 
nutritive  but  not  formative.  Like  the  investigators  just 
named,  I  transferred  the  conception  of  idioplasma,  which 
Nageli  had  enunciated  in  essentially  different  terms,  to 
the  "  Vererbungs-substanz  "  of  the  ovum-nucleus,  and 
laid  down  that  the  nuclear  chromatin  was  the  idioplasma 
not  only  of  the  ovum  but  of  every  cell,  that  it  was 
the  dominant  cell-element  which  impressed  its  specific 


character  upon  the  originally  indifferent  cell-mass.  From 
then  onwards,  I  no  longer  designated  the  cells  of  the  body 
simply  as  "  somatoplasm,"  but  distinguished,  on  the  one 
hand,  the  idioplasm  or  "  Anlagen-plasma  "  of  the  nucleus 
from  the  cell-body  or  "  Cyloplasma,"  and,  on  the  other,, 
the  idioplasm  of  the  ovum-nucleus  from  that  of  the 
somatic  cell-nucleus  ;  I  also  for  the  future  applied  "germ- 
plasm  "  to  the  nuclear  idioplasm  of  ovum  and  spermato- 
zoon, and"  somatic  idioplasm"  to  that  of  the  body-cells 
{e.g.  p.  184).  The  embryogenesis  rests,  according  to  my 
idea,  on  alterations  in  the  nuclear  idioplasma  of  the  ovum, 
or  "germ-plasm" ;  on  p.  186,  et  seqq.,  is  pictured  the  way  in 
which  the  nuclear  idioplasm  is  halved  in  the  first  cell- 
division,  undergoing  regular  alterations  of  its  substance  in 
such  a  way  that  neither  half  contains  all  the  hereditary 
tendencies,  but  the  one  daughter-nucleus  has  those  of 
the  ectoblast,  the  other  those  of  the  entoblast ;  the  whole 
remaining  embryogenesis  rests  on  a  continuation  of  this 
process  of  regular  alterations  of  the  idioplasma.  Each 
fresh  cell-division  sorts  out  tendencies  which  were  mixed 
in  the  nucleus  of  the  mother-cell,  until  the  complete  mass 
of  embryonic  cells  is  formed,  each  with  a  nuclear  idio- 
plasm which  stamps  its  specific  histological  character  on 
the  cell. 

I  really  do  not  understand  how  Prof.  Vines  can  find  such 
remarkable  difficulties  in  this  idea.  The  appearance  of 
the  sexual  cells  generally  occurs  late  in  the  embryogeny  ; 
in  order,  then,  to  preserve  the  continuity  of  germ-plasm 
from  one  generation  to  the  next,  I  propound  the  hypo- 
thesis that  in  segmentation  it  is  not  all  the  germ-plasm 
{i.e.  idioplasm  of  the  first  ontogenetic  grade)  which  is 
transformed  into  the  second  grade,  but  that  a  minute 
portion  remains  unaltered  in  one  of  the  daughter-cells, 
mingled  with  its  nuclear  idioplasm,  but  in  an  inactive 
state  ;  and  that  it  traverses  in  this  manner  a  longer  or 
shorter  series  of  cells,  till,  reaching  those  cells  on  which 
it  stamps  the  character  of  germinal  cells,  it  at  last  assumes 
the  active  state.  This  hypothesis  is  not  purely  gratuitous, 
but  is  supported  by  observations,  notably  by  the  remark- 
able wanderings  of  the  germinal  cells  of  Hydroids  from 
their  original  positions. 

But  let  us  neglect  the  probability  of  my  hypothesis,  and 
consider  merely  its  logical  accuracy.  Prof  Vines  says  : — 
"  The  fate  of  the  germ-plasm  of  the  fertilized  ovum  is. 
according  to  Prof  Weismann,  to  be  converted  in  part  into 
the  somatoplasm  [!]  of  the  embryo,  and  in  part  to  be 
stored  up  in  the  germ-cells  of  the  embryo.  This  being 
so,  how  are  we  to  conceive  that  the  germ-plasm  of  the 
ovum  can  impress  upon  the  somatoplasm  [!]  of  the 
developing  embryo  the  hereditary  character  of  which  it 
(the  germ-plasm)  is  the  bearer?  This  function  cannot 
be  discharged  by  that  portion  of  the  germ-plasm  of  the 
ovum  which  has  become  converted  into  the  somato- 
plasm [!]  of  the  embryo  for  the  simple  reasoji  that  it  has 
ceased  to  be  germ-plasm,  and  must  therefore  have  lost  the 
properties  characteristic  of  that  substance.  Neither  can 
it  be  discharged  by  that  portion  of  the  germ-plasm  of  the 
ovum  which  is  aggregated  in  the  germ-cells  of  the  embryo,, 
for  under  these  circumstances,  it  is  withdrawn  from  all 
direct  relation  with  the  developing  somatic  cells.  The 
question  remains  without  an  answer."  I  believe  myself  to- 
have  answered  this  above.  I  do  not  recognize  the  somato- 
plasm of  Prof.  Vines  ;  my  germ-plasm  or  idioplasm  of  the 
first  ontogenetic  grade  is  not  modified  into  the  somato- 
plasm of  Prof.  Vines,  but  into  idioplasm  of  the  second, 
third,  fourth,  hundredth,  &c.,  grade,  and  every  one  im- 
presses its  character  on  the  cell  containing  it. 

Prof.  Vines  also  attacks  my  view  of  the  idioplasmatic 
nature  of  the  nuclear  substance  (the  chromatic  grains)  \ 
and  maintains  that  it  is  as  easy  to  speak  of  the  continuity 
of  the  cell-body  as  of  that  of  the  nuclear  substance,  and 
that  the  one  may  transmit  heritable  qualities  to  progeny 
as  well  as  the  other.  I  quite  understand  that  a  botanist 
may  easily  be  led  to  this  view  ;  and  Prof.  Vines  is  not  the 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


321 


only  one  to  hold  it.  Waldeyer  ("  Ueber  Karyokinese  und 
ihre  Beziehung  zu  den  Befruchtungs-vorgange,"  Arch, 
mikr.  Anat.,  xxxii.,  1888)  has  considered  the  observed 
facts  insufficient  to  justify  the  regarding  of  the  nuclear 
loops  as  idioplasm  ;  Whitman  ("  The  Seat  of  Formative 
and  Regenerative  Energy,"  Boston,  1888)  among  zoologists 
has  expressed  himself  against  this  view,  and  the  same  occurs 
in  the  recent  book  of  Geddes  and  Thomson  ("  The  Evolu- 
tion of  Sex,"  London,  1889).  The  facts  which  led  me  to 
the  idea  that  the  nuclear  threads  were  the  real  carriers  of 
heredity — were,  in  fact,  the  idioplasma— are  enumerated 
in  Essay  IV.  ;  they  were  primarily  the  observations  of  E. 
van  Beneden  on  the  phenomena  of  fertilization  in  the 
ovum  of  Ascarta  megalocephala,  ihost  of  Strasburger  on 
fertilization  in  the  Phanerogams  by  a  mere  nucleus,  and 
the  researches  of  Nussbaum  and  Gruber  on  division  in 
the  Infusoria.  One  may  further  cite  as  of  essential  im- 
portance the  facts  of  karyokinesis/i?r  se,  and  the  circum- 
stance that,  only  on  the  supposition  that  the  nucleus 
contains  the  idioplasma  can  the  extrusion  of  polar  bodies 
from  the  animal  ovum  be  rendered  comprehensible.  The 
latter  process  divides  the  nuclear  substance  of  the  ovum 
into  two  quantitatively  equal  halves,  but  the  body  of  the 
ovum  into  two  unequal  halves,  the  size  of  which  is  different 
in  every  species.  The  essential  part  of  the  process  must 
therefore  be  the  division  of  the  nuclear  substance,  not 
that  of  the  cell-mass.  These  facts  on  reflection  so  com- 
pletely convinced  me  that  the  nucleus  alone  acts  as  carrier 
of  hereditary  tendencies,  that  the  theory  of  the  physio- 
logical equality  of  the  nuclei  of  the  sexual  elements  which 
I  had  propounded  ten  years  before  (1873)  struck  me  as  a 
certainty  ;  and  I  then  advanced  the  theory  of  fertilization 
which  is  contained  on  p.  246  of  Essay  IV.  I  believe 
that  till  recently  Strasburger  and  I  alone  had  expressed 
similar  views  of  the  essence  of  fertilization,  at  least  so  far 
as  relates  to  the  homodynamy  of  the  sexual  nuclei.  That 
most  distinguished  observer,  E.  van  Beneden,  who  has 
won  such  renown  in  the  investigation  of  the  process  of 
fertilization,  took  his  stand  with  regard  to  its  theoretical 
significance  on  the  platform  of  the  older  view,  which  re- 
garded it  as  the  union  of  two  elements  intrinsically  and 
essentially  the  opposite  of  each  other.  He  could  not  free 
himself  from  that  dominant  and  deeply  rooted  idea,  that 
the  difference  between  the  sexes  is  something  fundamental, 
an  essential  principle  of  existence.  The  fertilized  oosperm 
is  in  his  eyes  a  hermaphrodite  object,  uniting  in  itself 
both  male  and  female  essences,  an  idea  in  which  many 
other  observers  (cf.  Kolliker,  "  Die  Bedeutung  der 
Zellenkerne  fiir  die  Vorgange  der  Vererbung,"  Zeii.  wiss. 
ZooL,  xlii.,  1885)  have  followed  him,  and  of  which  the 
logical  sequence  is  that  all  the  cells  of  the  body  are  to  be 
regarded  as  hermaphrodite  ! 

Van  Beneden  was  also  influenced  by  the  idea  which 
sways  the  naturalists  of  so  many  countries,  that  fertiliza- 
tion is  a  process  of  rejuvenescence,  in  the  sense  that 
without  it  life  cannot  be  prolonged  to  the  end.  Many 
still  hold  to  this  idea  ;  Maupas  ("  Recherches  expdr.  sur 
la  multiplication  des  infusoires  cilids,"  Arch.  zool.  exp. 
gen.,  (2)  vi.  p.  165)  very  recently  believed  that  he  had 
found  a  proof  of  its  correctness,  and  attempted  to  show 
that  Infusoria,  for  a  continuance  of  existence,  must  from 
time  to  time  enter  into  conjugation,  or  die  from  internal 
causes  if  this  conjugation  be  prevented.  Even  were  his 
observations  correct,  they  would  still  fall  short  of  proving 
his  conclusions ;  they  would  prove  nothing  against  the 
immortality  of  the  Protozoa,  or  for  a  rejuvenescence  in 
the  sense  here  intended  ;  they  would  rather  state  the 
platitude  that  ovum  and  spermatozoon  must  die,  if  the 
condition  of  their  continued  existence,  namely  fusion, 
inevitable  in  most  species  of  plants  and  animals,  be 
prohibited ;  but  this  is  an  accidental,  not  a  natural, 
death.  Richard  Hertwig  ("  Ueber  die  Conjugation  der 
Infusorien,"  Miinchen,  1889)  has  also  briefly  shown  that 
the  facts,  on  which  Maupas  bases  his  inference,  are  not 


universally  true  ;  that  Infusoria  hindered  from  conjuga- 
tion do  not  die,  but  increase  by  division,  and  may  pro- 
duce whole  colonies  of  animals — nay,  that  they  are 
generally  thus  rendered  abnormally  prolific. 

I  am  distinctly  opposed  to  the  rejuvenescence  theory, 
whether  applied  to  unicellular  or  multicellular  organisms  ; 
my  view  is  expressed  in  Essay  IV.,  and  may  be  sum- 
marized in  this  position — we  should  no  longer  speak  of 
the  conjugating  nuclei  of  the  sexual  elements  as  male 
and  female,  but  as  paternal  and  maternal,  there  is  no 
opposition  of  the  one  to  the  other,  they  are  essentially 
alike,  and  differ  only  so  far  as  one  individual  differs  from 
another  of  the  same  species.  Fertilization  is  no  process 
of  rejuvenescence,  but  merely  a  union  of  the  hereditary 
tendencies  of  two  individuals  ;  tendencies  which  are 
bound  up  with  the  matter  of  the  nuclear  loops  ;  the  cell- 
body  of  the  ovum  and  spermatozoon  is  indifferent  in  this 
connection,  and  plays  merely  the  part  of  a  nutritive 
matter  which  is  modified  and  shaped  by  the  dominant 
idioplasm  of  the  nucleus  in  a  definite  way,  as  clay  in  the 
sculptor's  hand.  The  different  appearance  and  function 
of  ovum  and  spermatozoon,  and  their  mutual  attraction, 
rest  on  secondary  adaptations,  qualified  to  ensure  that 
they  shall  meet  and  that  their  idioplasmata  shall  come 
into  contact,  &c. ;  and  as  with  the  cells,  so  the  differentia- 
tion oi persons  into  male  and  female  is  also  secondary ; 
all  the  numerous  differences  of  form  and  function  which 
characterize  sex  in  the  higher  animals,  the  so-called 
"  secondary  sexual  characters,''  which  reach  even  into 
the  highest  spiritual  regions  of  mankind,  are  nothing  but 
adaptations  to  ensure  the  union  of  the  hereditary  ten- 
dencies of  two  individuals. 

These  are  briefly  the  views  of  fertilization  which  I 
have  indicated  since  1873,  but  have  only  published  in  a 
finished  and  definite  shape  since  the  discovery  by  van 
Beneden  of  the  morphological  processes  in  the  fertiliza- 
tion of  the  ovum  of  Ascaris  (Essay  IV.,  1885).  I  con- 
cluded then  with  these  words  : — "  If  it  were  possible  to 
introduce  the  female  pro-nucleus  of  an  tgg  into  another 
egg  of  the  same  species,  immediately  after  the  transforma- 
tion of  the  latter  into  the  female  pro-nucleus,  it  is  very 
probable  that  the  two  nuclei  would  conjugate  just  as  if  a 
fertilizing  sperm-nucleus  had  penetrated  [the  ovum].  If 
this  were  so,  the  direct  proof  that  egg-nucleus  and  sperm- 
nucleus  are  identical  would  be  furnished.  Unfortunately 
the  practical  difficulties  are  so  great  that  it  is  hardly 
possible  that  the  experiment  can  ever  be  made  ;  but  such 
want  of  experimental  proof  is  partially  compensated  by 
the  fact,  ascertained  by  Berthold,  that  in  certain  Algae 
(Ectocarpus  and  Scytosiphon)  there  is  not  only  a  female, 
but  also  a  male  parthenogenesis ;  for  he  shows  that  in 
these  species  the  male  germ-cells  may  sometimes  develop 
into  plants,  which  however  are  very  weakly." 

I  have  since  attempted  to  fertilize  one  frog's  &%g  with 
the  nucleus  of  another ;  the  experiment  was,  as  one 
would  expect,  not  successful,  owing  to  the  enormous 
havoc  caused  by  introducing  a  cannula  into  the  egg  ;  but 
Boveri  ("  Ein  geschlechtlich  erzeugter  Organismus  ohne 
miitterliche  Eigenschaften,"  Ges.  Morph.  Physiol.  Miin- 
chen, 16  Jul!,  1889)  was  more  fortunate,  in  finding  an  object 
which  allowed  of  the  converse  experiment  to  mine  ;  follow- 
ing Hertwig's  example,  he  removed  the  nucleus  from  an 
Echinoid  ovum  by  agitation,  and  brought  such  denucleated 
ova  to  develop  by  introducing  spermatozoa.  From  the 
spermatozoan  nucleus  was  formed  a  regular  segmentation- 
nucleus,  the  embryogenesis  pursued  its  regular  course, 
and  there  was  formed  a  complete  though  small  free-swim- 
ming larva,  which  lived  for  a  week.  From  this  experiment 
alone  it  follows  that  the  views  of  Strasburger  and  myself 
on  fertilization  are  correct,  viz.  that  the  sperm-nucleus  can 
play  the  part  of  ovum-nucleus  and  vice  versd,  and  the 
older  view,  to  which  Prof.  Vines  ("  Lectures  on  the  Physio- 
logy of  Plants,"  Cambridge,  1886,  pp.  638-681)  has  also 
sworn  allegiance,  must  be  given  up. 


322 


NATURE 


[Feb.  6,  1890 


An  interesting  and  important  modification  of  Boveri's 
experiment  confirmed  both  this  experiment,  and  also,  if  it 
were  necessary,  the  recognition  of  the  nuclear  substance 
as  idioplasm,  as  maintained  by  O.  Hertwig,  Strasburger, 
and  myself.  If  eggs  of  Echinus  micro tuberculatus,  when 
artificially  deprived  of  their  nuclei,  be  fertilized  with  the 
spermatozoa  of  SphcBrechimis  granulatus,  larvce  are  de- 
veloped with  the  true  characters  of  the  second  species — 
that  is  to  say,  they  have  derived  everything  from  the 
father,  nothing  from  the  mother  ;  the  nuclear  substance 
alone  it  is  which  transmits  heredity,  and  by  it  the  cell-mass 
is  dominated. 

I  have  interpreted  the  first  polar  body  of  the  Metazoan 
ovum  as  a  carrier  of  ovogenous  plasm,  which  has  to  be 
removed  from  the  ovum  in  order  that  the  germ-plasm 
may  attain  the  predominance.  It  is  possible  that  this 
explanation  is  not  correct ;  the  most  recent  researches 
on  the  conjugation  of  Infusoria,  as  expressed  in  the 
splendid  memoirs  of  Maupas  and  R.  Hertwig,  argue 
against  my  interpretation  ;  but  the  idea  which  lay  at  the 
bottom  of  this  explanation  is  justified.  As  it  is  the  nu- 
clear matter  which  gives  to  the  cell-body  its  specific 
character,  the  ovum  must,  previous  to  fertilization,  be 
dominated  by  a  different  idioplasm  to  the  sperm-cell, 
since  they  are,  up  to  this  point,  different  in  appearance 
and  function.  On  the  other  hand,  when  they  have 
united,  they  contain  the  same  idioplasm — namely,  germ- 
plasm  ;  the  consequence  is  that  the  first  dominant  idio- 
plasm is  different  to  that  of  a  later  period.  This  was  the 
idea  at  the  bottom  of  my  explanation  of  the  first  polar 
body,  and  it  is  correct.  One  might  perhaps  imagine  that 
the  idioplasmata  of  ovum  and  spermatozoon  were  origin- 
ally different,  but  that  both  possessed  the  power  of 
alteration  into  germ-plasm  ;  but  it  would  be  then  incom- 
prehensible why  parthenogenetic  ova  should  expel  one 
polar  body.  Both  facts,  however,  are  explicable,  if  ovum 
and  spermatozoon  are  dominated  up  to  the  period  of 
maturation  by  different  histogenetic  idioplasmata  with 
which  a  small  quantity  of  germ-plasm  is  mingled,  and  if 
at  a  later  period  the  former  be  removed  and  the  germ- 
plasm  come  to  rule  in  both  cells.  This  process  would  be 
by  no  means  abnormal  and  unparalleled,  since  entirely 
analogous  divisions  of  the  idioplasm  into  qualitatively 
dissimilar  portions  must  occur  hundreds  of  times  in  every 
embryogenesis.  However,  I  am  most  willing  to  allow 
that  the  last  word  has  not  yet  been  said  on  this  question, 
and  would  only  maintain  that  my  theory  of  heredity  is 
not  concerned  thereby.  It  is  not  the  interpretation  of 
the  first  polar  body,  but  that  of  the  second,  which  is  de- 
cisive ;  and  one  can  none  the  less  easily  think  of  the  latter 
as  a  halving  of  the  number  of  ancestral  germ-plasmata, 
even  if  it  be  proved  that  my  explanation  of  the  first  polar 
body  was  erroneous.  I  would  then  express  the  first 
division  merely  as  introductory  to  the  second,  as  the 
necessary  first  step  in  the  reduction  of  ancestral  plasmata, 
the  necessity  for  which  we  should  thus  perhaps  learn  to 
understand. 

The  regular  modification  of  idioplasma  during  the 
ontogeny,  which  I  have  maintained  and  which  so  many 
have  attacked  (Kollikeri  with  special  vehemence)  will 
now  stand  out  as  justified.  If  the  nucleus  of  a  sperm-cell 
is  capable  of  impressing  on  the  denucleated  mass  of  an 
ovum  its  own  inherited  tendencies,  and  of  calling  into 
being  an  organism  with  specific  characteristics  purely 
paternal,  it  will  be  found  difficult  to  explain  the  ontogeny 
otherwise  than  as  a  regular  modification  of  the  idioplasm, 
continuous  from  one  cell-division  to  another,  which  stamps 
on  the  body  of  each  separate  cell  at  each  stage  its  peculiar 
character,  not  only  with  regard  to  shape  but  also  to 
function,  and  especially  with  regard  to  the  "  rhythm "  of 
cell-division. 

'  "  Das  Karyoplasma  und  die  Vererbung  :  eine  Kritik  der  Weismann'sche 
Theorie  von  der  Continui'at  des  Keimplasma's,"  Zcit.  whs.  ZocL,  xliv. 
p.  228,  1886. 


A  further  objection  is  directed  by  Prof.  Vines  against 
my  views  on  the  origin  of  variation.  In  the  fifth  essay  I 
have  sought  the  significance  of  sexual  reproduction  in  the 
fact  that  it  alone  could  have  called  into  existence  that 
multiplicity  of  form  of  the  higher  animals  and  plants,  and 
that  constantly  fluctuating  union  of  individual  variations, 
of  which  natural  selection  stood  in  need  for  the  creation 
of  new  species.  I  am  still  of  the  opinion  that  the  origin 
of  sexual  reproduction  depends  on  the  advantage  which 
it  affords  to  the  operation  of  natural  selection  ;  nay,  I  am 
completely  convinced  that  only  through  its  introduction 
was  the  higher  development  of  the  organic  world  possible. 
Still,  I  am  at  present  inclined  to  believe  that  Prof.  Vines 
is  correct  in  questioning  whether  sexual  reproduction  is 
the  only  factor  which  maintains  Metazoa  and  Metaphyta 
in  a  state  of  variability.  I  could  have  pointed  out  in  the 
English  edition  of  my  "Essays"  that  my  views  on  this  point 
had  altered  since  their  publication  ;  my  friend  Prof,  de 
Bary,  too  early  lost  to  science,  had  already  called  my 
attention  to  those  parthenogenetic  Fungi  which  Prof. 
Vines  justly  cites  against  my  views  ;  but  I  desired,  on 
grounds  already  mentioned,  to  undertake  no  alteration  in 
the  essays.  Bessides,  I  was  well  aware  when  the  essay 
was  first  committed  to  paper  (1886)  that  my  current  view 
on  the  radical  cause  of  variation  was  possibly  incomplete  ; 
and  so,  in  order  to  expose  the  truth  of  the  view  as  far  as 
possible  to  a  general  test,  I  drove  its  logical  consequences 
home,  and  enunciated  the  statement  that  species  repro- 
ducing parthenogenetically  could  not  be  modified  into 
new  species.  I  also  began  myself  at  that  time  experi- 
ments on  the  variation  of  parthenogenetic  species  which 
are  still  being  continued,  and  on  which  on  some  future 
occasion  I  hope  to  be  able  to  report. 

Even  if,  however,  from  our  present  knowledge  it  is 
probable  that  sexual  reproduction  is  not  the  sole  radical 
cause  of  variability  of  the  Metazoa,  still  no  one  will  dispute 
that  it  is  a  most  active  means  of  heightening  variations 
and  of  mingling  them  in  favourable  proportions.  I  believe 
that  the  important  part  which  this  method  of  reproduction 
has  played  in  calling  out  the  existing  processes  of  selection, 
is  hardly  diminished,  even  if  one  grants  that  direct  influ- 
ences upon  the  idioplasm  call  forth  a  portion  of  individual 
variability.  Prof.  Vines  even  holds  it  probable  "that 
the  absence  of  sexuality  in  these  plants  [Fungi]  may 
be  just  the  reason  why  no  higher  forms  have  been  evolved 
from  them,  for  in  this  respect  they  present  a  striking 
contrast  to  the  higher  Algse  in  which  sexuality  is  well 
marked."  But  when  Prof.  Vines  says,  "  there  can  be 
no  doubt  that  sexual  reproduction  does  very  materially 
promote  variation,"  he  does  not  mean  to  say  that  this  is 
a  self-evident  proposition  ;  he  is  well  aware  that  promi- 
nent investigators  like  Strasburger  see  in  sexual  reproduc- 
tion the  reverse  action,  that  of  maintaining  the  constancy 
of  the  specific  character.  But  I  gladly  accept  his  agree- 
ment with  my  view,  which  confirms  the  main  position  of 
the  fifth  essay,  which  runs  :  Sexual  reproduction  has 
arisen  by  and  for  natural  selection  as  the  sole  means  by 
which  individual  variations  can  be  united  and  combined 
in  every  possible  proportion. 

With  reference  also  to  the  problem  of  the  inheritance 
of  acquired  (somatogenic)  characters.  Prof.  Vines  is 
again  my  opponent ;  he  holds  that  such  inheritance  is 
possible.  I  have  denied  it,  because  it  did  not  appear  to 
me  self-evident— as  was  formerly  universally  assumed — 
but  rather  utterly  unproven  ;  and  because  I  think  that 
completely  unfounded  assumptions  of  such  far-reaching 
consequence  should  not  be  made,  when  requiring  a  large 
number  of  improbable  hypotheses  for  their  exphcation.  I 
have  tested  all  the  available  evidence  for  such  inheritance 
as  accurately  as  I  could,  and  have  found  that  none  has 
the  value  of  proof.  There  is  no  inheritance  of  mutilations, 
and  this  constitutes  up  to  now  the  only  basis  of  fact  for 
the  supposition  of  the  inheritance  of  somatogenic  varia- 
tions.    If,  in  the   last   essay,    I   have   not   denied  every 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


323 


possibility   of  such   a  transmission,   Prof.   Vines  should 
interpret  that  in  my  favour,  not  to  my  discredit ;  it  is  not 
the  business  of  an  investigator  to  set  forth  a  proposition, 
which  on  the  existing  evidence  he  is  compelled  to  believe, 
as  an  infallible  dogma.     Prof.  Vines  finds  my  "  statements 
of  opinion  so  fluctuating  that  it  is  difficult  to  determine 
what  [my]  position  exactly  is,"  but  he  could  have  easily 
discovered  my  meaning,  if,  instead  of  promiscuously  con- 
trasting the  eight  essays  and  the  eight  years  of  their  pro- 
duction, he  had  merely  brought  the  last  of  them  to  the  bar 
of  judgment.      This  essay  is   especially  concerned  with 
"  the  supposed  transmission  of  mutilations,"  and  at  its 
conclusion  my  verdict  on  the  state  of   the    problem  of 
the  inheritance  of  acquired  characters  is   thus  summar- 
ised : — "  The  true  decision  as  to  the  Lamarckian  prin- 
ciple [lies  in]  the  explanation  of  the  observed  phenomena 
of  transformation.  .    .    .  If,  as  I  believe,  these  phenomena 
can  be  explained  without  the  Lamarckian  principle,  we 
have  no  right  to  assume  a  form  of  transmission  of  which 
we  cannot  prove  the  existence.      Only  if   it    could   be 
shown  that  we  cannot  now  or  ever  dispense  with    the 
principle,  should  we  be  justified  in  accepting  it."     The 
distinguished  botanist  De  Vries  has  proved  that  certain 
constituents   of  the   cell-body,  e.g.  the   chromatophores 
of  Alga;,  pass  directly  from  the  maternal  ovum  to  the 
daughter-organism,  while  the  male  germ-cell  generally 
contains  no  chromatophores.     Here  it  appears  possible 
that   a   transmission   of  somatogenic   variation    has  oc- 
curred ;    in  these  lower   plants,  the  separation  between 
somatic  and  reproductive  cells  is  slight,  and  the  body 
of  the  ovum  does  not  require  a  complete  chemical  and 
physical  alteration  to  become  the  body  of  the  somatic 
cell  of  the  daughter.     But  how  does  this  affect  the  ques- 
tion whether,  for  instance,  a  pianoforte  player  can  trans- 
mit to  his  progeny  that    strength  of  his  finger-muscles 
which  he  has    acquired    by  practice  ?      How  does    this 
result  of  practice  arrive  at  the  germ-cells.''     In  that  lies 
the  real  problem  which  those  have  to  solve  who  maintain 
that  somatogenic  characters  are  transmissible. 

It  is  proved  by  the  observations  of  Boveri,  quoted 
above,  that  among  animals  the  body  of  the  ovum  con- 
tributes nothing  to  inheritance.  If  the  transmission  of 
acquired  characters  should  take  place,  it  would  have  to 
be  by  means  of  the  nuclear  matter  of  the  germ-cells — in 
fact,  by  the  germ-plasm,  and  that  not  in  its  patent,  but 
in  its  latent  condition. 

To  renounce  the  principle  of  Lamarck  is  certainly  not 
the  way  to  facilitate  the  explanation  of  the  phenomena  ; 
but  we  require,  not  a  mere  formal  explanation  of  the 
origin  of  species  of  the  most  comfortable  nature,  but  the 
real  and  rightful  explanation.  We  must  attempt,  there- 
fore, to  elucidate  the  phenomena  without  the  aid  of  this 
principle,  and  I  believe  myself  to  have  made  a  beginning 
m  this  direction.  A  short  time  ago  I  tried  this  in  one  of 
those  cases  where  one  would  least  expect  to  be  able  to 
dispense  with  the  principle  of  modification  by  use — 
namely,  in  the  question  of  artistic  endowment.^  I  pro- 
posed to  myself  the  question  whether  the  musical  sense 
of  mankind  could  be  conceived  of  as  arising  without  a 
heightening  of  the  original  acoustic  faculty  by  use.  But 
even  here  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that,  not  only  do  we 
not  need  this  principle,  but  that  use  has  actually  taken 
no  part  in  the  development  of  the  musical  sense. 

A.  Weismann. 

THE  LIFE  AND  WORK  OF  G.  A.  HIRN. 

'T* HE  three  men  who  worked  at  the  experimental  deter- 
-■-  mination  of  the  mechanical  equivalent  of  heat  and 
at  practical  Thermodynamics  have  psssed  away  within 
a  few  months  of  each  other — Clausius,  Joule,  and  now 
Hirn. 

'  "Gedanken   uber  Musik  bei  Thieren  und  bei  Menschen,"   Deutsche 
undschau,  October  1889. 


They  were  much  of  the  same  age,  and  began  their  ex- 
periments while  young  at  almost  the  same  time  ;  and 
the  practical  agreement  of  the  conclusions  drawn  from 
their  experimental  results  is  our  best  guarantee  of  con- 
fidence in  the  modem  theory  of  Thermodynamics  which 
is  built  upon  these  results. 

Gustave  Adolphe  Hirn  was  born  at  Logelbach,  in 
Alsace,  on  August  21,  1815,  and  died  on  January  14  of 
this  year,  a  victim  to  the  prevailing  epidemic  of  influenza  ; 
but  for  this,  we  might  have  expected  still  further  develop- 
ments of  his  scientific  theories,  as  he  continued  at  work 
on  his  favourite  subjects  to  the  last. 

Self-taught,  so  far  as  his  scientific  education  was  con- 
cerned, he  found  himself,  with  his  elder  brother  Ferdinand, 
a  manager  of  the  works  of  Haussman,  Jordan,  and  Co., 
an  establishment  for  the  fabrication  of  indiennes.,  estab- 
lished in  1772.  Finding  the  machinery  antiquated  and 
worn  out,  Hirn,  in  setting  to  work  to  makethebest  of  it,  was 
really  better  placed  for  theorizing  and  experimentalizing 
than  if  he  had  charge  of  modern  works  in  first-rate  order. 
The  different  parts  of  the  works  being  at  a  distance 
from  each  other,  his  brother  Ferdinand  brought  out  his 
system  of  cable  transmission  of  power  ;  and  it  was 
Gustave  who  pointed  out  theoretically  the  advantage  of  a 
thin  light  cable  run  at  a  high  speed. 

Hirn  also  turned  his  attention  to  the  important  economic 
question  of  the  lubrication  of  machinery,  and  upset  the 
previous  prejudice  against  the  use  of  mineral  oil  for  this 
purpose.  He  also  demonstrated  experimentally  that,  while 
the  old  laws  of  friction  enunciated  by  Morin  were  suffi- 
ciently accurate  for  the  contact  of  one  dry  metal  against 
another,  these  laws  are  powerfully  modified  when  the 
surfaces  are  well  lubricated,  as  with  machinery.  Now  the 
friction  varies  as  the  square  root  of  the  pressure,  and  as 
the  surface  and  the  velocity  ;  so  that  the  theory  falls  in 
with  that  of  the  viscous  flow  of  liquids.  These  laws  have 
received  confirmation  of  recent  years  by  the  experiments 
carried  out  under  the  auspices  of  the  Institution  of 
Mechanical  Engineers. 

But  it  is  chiefly  for  his  experiments  on  a  large  scale  on 
the  steam-engines  under  his  charge  that  Hirn  is  best 
known,  and  from  his  varied  methods  of  determining  the 
mechanical  equivalent  of  heat  by  the  friction  of  metals 
on  metal  or  water,  and  finally  from  observation  of  the 
amount  of  heat  consumed  by  the  steam-engine,  when 
every  source  of  gain  or  loss  is  carefully  followed  up. 

With  this  object  he  investigated  experimentally  the 
separate  effects  of  conduction,  of  jacketing,  of  initial 
condensation  in  the  cylinder,  and  of  its  prevention  by 
superheating. 

If  we  watch  the  performance  of  a  modern  marine  triple- 
expansion  engine,  we  notice  that  the  high-pressure 
cylinder  appears  choked  with  water  from  initial  condensa- 
tion, while  the  intermediate  and  low-pressure  cylinders 
work  comparatively  dry.  It  was  considered  in  the  early 
days  of  compound  engines  that  this  initial  condensation 
was  a  source  of  great  loss,  and  superheating  was  intro- 
duced to  minimize  it.  But  the  superheated  steam  ruined 
the  packings,  and  dried  up  the  lubricant,  so  that  the 
superheater  was  found  practically  to  do  more  harm  than 
good.  A  characteristic  story  is  told  of  John  Elder,  the 
pioneer  of  compounding  in  modern  marine  engines,  too 
long  to  insert  here,  which  bears  on  this  point. 

Nowadays  this  initial  condensation  is  looked  upon  as 
inevitable,  and  as  not  really  so  uneconomical  as  the 
books  make  out,  when  attendant  advantages  are  con- 
sidered ;  but  to  the  theorist  such  as  Hirn  this  condensa- 
tion was  something  to  be  avoided  at  any  cost,  and  he 
worked  hard  to  make  its  prevention  feasible. 

Hirn  was  a  man  of  varied  reading,  taste,  and  pursuits, 
and  he  worked  into  his  treatises  on  his  favourite  subject 
of  Thermodynamics  a  good  deal  of  speculative  meta- 
physics, which  make  his  books  rather  curious  reading 
sometimes  to  modern  tastes,  and  we  must  go  back  to  the 


324 


NATURE 


\Feb.  6,  1890 


time  of  Descartes  and  Leibnitz,  when  physical  science 
and  moral  philosophy  went  hand  in  hand,  to  find  an 
equivalent. 

But  it  must  be  allowed  that  the  science  of  Thermo- 
dynamics may  be  treated  with  advantage  from  this 
double  point  of  view  ;  for,  after  its  First  Law  has  been 
established,  that  heat  and  work  are  equivalent  and  inter- 
changeable, the  rate  of  exchange  being  fixed  by  the 
mechanical  equivalent  of  Joule  and  Hirn,  when  we  come 
to  the  Second  Law,  named  after  Carnot,  we  are  compelled 
to  secure  conviction  of  its  truth  by  an  appeal  to  the 
arguments  of  analogy  and  metaphysics. 

Hirn  spent  the  last  years  of  his  life  at  Colmar,  in  the 
society  of  a  few  congenial  friends,  much  interested  in 
metaphysics  and  meteorology,  but  cut  off  from  his  native 
France  by  international  strained  relations. 

In  this  age  of  practical  Thermodynamics  his  work  will 
not  be  lost  sight  of;  but  we  are  still  far  from  a  complete 
reconciliation  of  the  abstract  theories  of  the  books  and 
the  observed  realities  of  practice. 

A.  G.  Greenhill. 


NOTES. 
The  Croonian  Lecture,  which  will  be  delivered  before  the 
Royal  Society  on  February  27  by  Prof.   Marshall  Ward,  will 
be  on  "  The  Relations  between  Host  and  Parasite  in  certain 
Epidemic  Diseases  of  Plants." 

On  Thursday  last  the  Astronomer- Royal  was  elected  by  b&Hot 
to  fill  the  place  of  the  late  Father  Perry  upon  the  Council  of 
the  Royal  Society. 

Meteorologists  will  be  sorry  to  hear  of  the  death  of  Prof. 
C.  H.  D.  Buys-Ballot,  on  Sunday  last.  He  was  born  in  181 7, 
and  had  been  Director  of  the  Meteorological  Institute,  Utrecht, 
for  more  than  30  years. 

Dr.  David  Sharp,  the  eminent  entomologist,  and  late 
President  of  the  Entomological  Society  of  London,  has  accepted 
the  appointment  of  Curator  in  Zoology  in  the  Museum  of  the 
University  of  Cambridge,  rendered  vacant  by  the  resignation  of 
the  Rev.  A.  H.  Cooke,  whose  labours  on  the  Macandrew  Col- 
lection in  that  Museum  have  been  so  highly  appreciated  by 
conchologists. 

Sir  WiixiAM  Gull,  F.R.S.,  was  so  distinguished  a  physi- 
cian, and  his  name  was  so  well  known,  that  the  tidings  of  his  death 
excited  a  widespread  feeling  of  regret.  He  died  on  Wednesday, 
January  29,  from  paralysis,  and  the  funeral  took  place  on 
Monday  at  the  churchyard  of  Thorpe-le-Soken,  Essex.  He 
was  in  his  seventy-fifth  year. 

We  regret  to  hear  of  the  death  of  Dr.  L.  Taczanowski,  which 
took  place  at  Warsaw  on  January  li.  He  is  best  known  for  his 
standard  work  "  Ornithologie  du  Perou,"  but  his  contributions 
to  the  ornithology  of  Poland, "of  Siberia,  and  the  Corea  have  also 
been  numerous  and  important. 

German  papers  announce  the  death  of  Otto  Rosenberger,  the 
well-known  astronomer.  He  was  born  in  Courland  in  1810, 
and  in  1831  was  appointed  to  the  charge  of  the  Observatory  at 
Halle,  and  at  the  same  time  was  made  Professor  of  Mathematics. 
This  position  he  held  during  the  rest  of  his  long  life.  Rosen- 
berger's  name  is  known  chiefly  in  association  with  his  work 
relating  to  Halley's  comet. 

Another  death  which  we  are  sorry  to  have  to  record  is 
that  of  Prof.  Neumayr,  the  geologist,  of  Vienna.  He  was 
only  a  little  over  forty  years  of  age,  and  his  death  is  a  great 
loss. 

On  February  15,  Lord  Rayleigh  will  begin  a  course  of  seven 
lectures  at  the  Royal  Institution.  The  subject  will  be  electricity 
and  magnetism. 


The  Council  of  the  Society  of  Arts  have  arranged  that  a 
course  of  lectures  on  "  The  Atmosphere  "  shall  be  given  by 
Prof.  V.  Lewes  on  the  following  Saturday  afternoons  :  March 
8,  15,  22,  and  29,  at  3  o'clock. 

Mr.  B.  a.  Gould,  Cambridge,  Mass.,  has  been  appointed 
President  of  the  American  Metrological  Society  for  the  present 
year.  Among  the  members  of  the  Council  of  this  Society  are 
Messrs.  Cleveland  Abbe,  H.  A.  Newton,  Simon  Newcomb, 
and  S.  P.  Langley.  The  Society  was  founded  in  1873,  and  its 
objects  are  to  improve  existing  systems  of  weights,  measures, 
and  moneys,  and  to  bring  them  into  relations  of  simple  com- 
mensurability  with  each  other  ;  to  secure  the  universal  adoption 
of  common  units  of  measure  for  quantities  in  physical  observa- 
tion or  investigation,  for  which  ordinary  systems  of  metrology 
do  not  provide  ;  to  secure  uniform  usage  as  to  standard  points  of 
reference,  or  physical  conditions  to  which  observations  must  be 
reduced  for  purposes  of  comparison ;  and  to  secure  the  use  of 
the  decimal  system  for  denominations  of  weight,  measure,  and 
money  derived  from  unit-bases,  not  necessarily  excluding  for 
practical  purposes  binary  or  other  convenient  divisions. 

The  Committee  of  the  Cambridge  University  Antiquarian 
Society  in  their  fifth  Annual  Report  state  that,  since  the  opening 
of  the  Archaeological  Museum  in  1884,  over  2800  objects  and 
900  books  have  been  added  to  the  collection.  The  most  im- 
portant additions  have  been  made  in  the  ethnological  department, 
including  (during  the  past  year)  General  Scratchley's  collections 
from  New  Guinea,  a  series  of  500  specimens  of  implements 
and  ornaments  from  the  West  Indies,  presented  by  Colonel 
Fielden,  who  has  also  given  many  rare  stone  implements  and 
weapons  collected  in  South  Africa,  and  a  series  of  70  specimens 
of  dresses,  weapons,  &c.,  from  the  Solomon  and  Banks  Islands 
and  from  Santa  Cruz,  presented  by  Bishop  Selwyn.  The  Curator, 
Baron  von  Hiigel,  reports  that  during  the  long  vacation  he 
excavated  with  success  a  Roman  refuse-pit  and  a  burial-place  at 
the  eastern  side  of  Alderney.     The  digging  is  to  be  resumed. 

The  seventh  annual  dinner  of  the  Association  of  Public 
Sanitary  Inspectors  was  held  on  Saturday  evening  at  the  First 
Avenue  Hotel,  Holborn.  Dr.  B.  W.  Richardson  presided,  and 
proposed  the  toast  of  "The  Association  and  its  President,  Sir 
Edwin  Chadwick."  The  duties  of  the  Association,  he  said, 
were  to  teach  and  protect  its  members,  and  all  sanitary  inspec- 
tors ought  to  belong  to  it.  He  hoped  that  the  apathy  at  present 
shown  by  too  many  of  them  would  not  last  any  longer. 

Dr.  a.  N.  Berlese,  of  Padua,  has  been  appointed  Professor 
of  Botany  to  the  Royal  Lyceum  at  Ascoli-Piceno  ;  and  Dr.  J. 
H.  Wakker,  of  Utrecht,  Professor  of  Botany  at  the  dairy  school 
at  Oudshoorn,  Holland. 

The  Botanical  Gazette  published  at  Crawfordsville,  Indiana, 
gives  some  particulars  of  one  of  the  most  magnificent  bequests 
ever  made  for  scientific  purposes,  that  of  the  late  Mr.  H.  Shaw 
for  the  endowment  of  the  Botanic  Garden  and  School  of  Botany 
at  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  amounting  to  not  less  than  between  three 
and  five  million  dollars.  The  trustees  have  determined  to  apply 
the  income  to  the  maintenance  and  increase  in  the  scientific 
usefulness  of  the  Botanic  Garden  ;  to  provide  fire-proof  quarters 
for  the  invaluable  herbarium  of  the  late  Dr.  George  Engelmann, 
and  to  supply  means  for  its  enlargement ;  to  secure  a  botanical 
museum ;  and  to  gradually  acquire  and  utilize  facilities  for 
research  in  vegetable  physiology  and  histology,  the  diseases 
and  injuries  of  plants,  and  other  branches  of  botany  and  horti- 
culture. To  aid  in  the  carrying  out  of  this  last  purpose, 
travelling  botanical  scholarships  have  been  established.  The 
present  very  able  director  of  the  Botanic  Garden  is  Dr.  William 
Trelease. 


Feb.  6,  1890J 


NATURE 


325 


The  Kew  Bulletin  for  February  begins  with  some  extracts 
from  the  Annual  Report  on  the  Government  cinchona  plantation 
and  factory  in  Bengal  for  the  year  1888-89.  The  valuable  in- 
formation presented  in  these  extracts  is  given  for  the  benefit  of 
jjersons  growing  cinchona  in  countries  which  the  documents  for 
the  Government  of  Bengal  are  little  likely  to  reach.  The  new 
number  also  deals  with  the  use  of  maqui  berries  for  the  colour- 
ing of  wine,  vine-culture  in  Tunis,  phylloxera  in  Victoria,  the 
botanical  exploration  of  Cuba,  and  the  sugar  production  of  the 
world.  The  section  on  the  last  of  these  subjects  relates  to  statis- 
tics brought  together  in  Dr.  Robert  Giffen's  report  on  the  progress 
of  the  sugar  trade.  Commenting  on  the  figures  supplied  in  this 
report,  the  writer  in  the  Bulletin  says  that  if  they  "do  not 
justify  a  gloomy  view  of  the  present  position  of  the  cane-sugar 
industry  in  British  colonies,  they  scarcely  justify  a  very  optim- 
istic one.  It  is  obvious  that  the  capital  which  should  be  applied 
to  the  improvement  of  manufacturing  processes  and  machinery 
is,  under  present  circumstances,  practically  diverted  to  the  mere 
maintenance  of  the  cultivation.  And  this  in  the  long  run  must 
be  a  losing  game.  At  present  the  fact  stands  that  West  Indian 
sugar  has  to  a  large  extent  been  driven  from  the  home  market 
to  that  of  the  United  States.  If  in  time  it  should  lose  that,  its 
fate  apparently  is  sealed." 

At  the  last  meeting  of  the  Paris  Biological  Society,  Prof. 
Raphael  Bianchard  gave  an  interesting  account  of  a  peculiar 
pigment,  hitherto  found  in  plants  only,  caroiine,  which  he  has 
discovered  in  a  crustacean  in  one  of  the  Alpine  lakes,  near 
Brian9on.  Its  functions  are  not  yet  known,  but  M.  Bianchard 
intends  to  pursue  his  study  of  the  subject  on  the  spot.  The 
animals  cannot  be  transported  alive  to  lower  levels. 

We  are  glad  to  welcome  the  first  number  of  The  University 
Extension  journal.  The  Society  by  which  it  is  issued  has 
become  important  enough  to  need  an  organ  of  its  own  ;  and  the 
new  periodical,  which  will  appear  at  the  beginning  of  every 
month,  ought  to  be  of  service  to  all  who  are  in  any  way 
interested  in  the  movement. 

The  Engineer  oi  ]im\xa.\y  31  contains  a  leading  article  on 
"Colour-blind  Engine-drivers,"  and  it  is  interesting  to  note 
what  the  leading  technical  journal  has  to  say  on  the  subject: 
"  We  do  not  say  that  no  accident  was  ever  brought  about  by 
the  inability  of  a  driver  to  distinguish  between  a  green  light  and 
a  red  one,  but  we  can  say  that  nothing  of  such  an  accident  is  to 
be  met  with  in  the  Board  of  Trade  Reports."  Our  contemporary 
is  of  opinion  that  the  testing  of  the  sight  "of  locomotive  men 
should  be  made  under  working  conditions,  i.e.  with  actual  signal 
lights. 

A  PAPER  on  mortality  from  snake-bhe  in  the  district  of 
Ratnagherry  was  read  lately  before  the  Bombay  Natural  History 
Society  by  Mr.  Vidal,  of  the  Bombay  Civil  Service.  Many  of 
the  deaths  in  that  district  are,  he  says,  due  to  a  small  and  in- 
significant-looking snake,  called  "  foorsa  "  by  the  natives.  It 
is  a  viper  rarely  more  than  a  foot  long,  and  is  so  sluggish  that  it 
does  not  move  out  of  the  way  till  trodden  on.  Thus  it  is  much 
more  dangerous  than  the  stronger  and  fi;ercer  cobra. 

During  the  year  1889  no  fewer  than  28  bears,  115  wolves, 
and  45  wolf-cubs  were  shot  in  the  single  district  of  Travnik,  in 
Bosnia. 

Das  Wetter  for  January  contains  :— (a)  An  article  by  Dr.  R. 
Assmann  on  climatological  considerations  about  the  prevalent 
epidemic  of  influenza.  From  an  experience  of  many  years  in 
dealing  with  the  connection  between  climatic  conditions  and  the 
state  of  health,  the  author  gives  the  following  conditions  as  ihe 
most   favourable  for  spreading  organisms  in  the  air:  (i)   dry- 


ness of  the  soil,  (2)  deficiency  of  snow  covering,  (3)  deficiency 
of  rainfall,  (4)  existence  of  fog  or  low-hanging  clouds,  (5)  preva- 
lence of  high  barometer  with  a  small  intermingling  of  air  in  the 
vertical  direction ;  and  he  shows  that  these  conditions  were 
prevalent  in  Eastern  and  Central  Europe  from  the  beginning  of 
November ;  that  atmospheric  dust  existed  in  great  quantities, 
and  was  propagated  westward  by  easterly,  north-easterly,  and 
south-easterly  winds.  He  considers  that  changes  of  temperature 
had  no  important  relation  to  the  spread  of  the  epidemic.  (/')  A 
lecture  recently  delivered  to  the  Scientific  Club  in  Vienna,  on  the 
general  circulation  of  the  atmosphere,  by  Dr.  J.  M.  Pernter. 
He  refers  to  the  idea  of  the  conflict  of  polar  and  equatorial 
winds  so  long  supported  by  Dove  and  others,  and  shows  that 
the  publication  of  synoptic  charts  since  the  year  1863  has  demon- 
strated that  the  above  theory  does  not  hold  good  for  temperate 
and  northern  latitudes,  that  the  circulation  there  depends  upon 
the  positions  of  the  areas  of  high  and  low  pressures,  producing 
cyclones  and  anticyclones.  Many  dark  points  require  explana- 
tion, such  as  the  tracks  which  the  cyclones  follow,  but  much 
new  light  has  recently  been  thrown  upon  the  subject,  especially 
by  the  researches  of  Ferrel,  Oberbeck,  and  Abercromby. 

Dr.  Albrecht  Penck,  Professor  of  Physical  Geography  at 
the  University  of  Vienna,  lately  called  attention  to  the  fact  thit 
no  two  official  accounts  of  the  area  of  the  Austro-Hungarian 
monarchy  agree.  The  difference  between  the  highest  and  the 
lowest  estimates  amounts  to  331375  square  kilometres.  By  an 
examination  of  the  new  special  map  constructed  by  the  Army 
Geographical  Institute,  which  is  on  the  scale  of  i  to  75,000, 
and  occupies  400  sheets,  Prof.  Penck  has  satisfied  himself  that 
the  actual  area  of  the  Empire  is  3247  "12  square  kilometres 
greater  than  is  given  in  the  latest  published  official  account. 
The  error  arose  chiefly  from  an  incorrect  triangulation  of  the 
Hungarian  portion  of  the  Empire,  which  is  3054*02  square 
kilometres  larger  than  has  been  supposed. 

It  has  hitherto  been  generally  believed  that  the  Montgolfier 
or  hot-air  balloon  cannot  be  used  in  tropical  climates.  If  this 
were  true,  ballooning  for  war  purposes  would  of  course  be  im- 
possible in  places  where  coal-gas  could  not  be  obtained.  We 
learn  from  the  Ti)nes  that  Mr.  Percival  Spencer,  who  has  been 
making  a  series  of  interesting  balloon  experiments  in  Central 
India,  has  succeeded  in  showing  that  the  theory  is  without 
foundation.  At  Secunderabad,  in  presence  of  the  garrison  and 
a  crowd  of  European  and  native  spectators,  he  lately  made  an 
ascent  in  his  patent  asbestos  balloon.  The  inflation  was  effected 
by  the  burning  of  methylated  spirit  inside  the  balloon,  which 
was  held  in  place  by  25  soldiers  of  the  Bedford  regiment  until 
the  word  to  "  let  go"  was  given.  After  rising  to  a  considerable 
height,  the  aeronaut  descended  by  means  of  his  parachute. 
The  spot  where  the  ascent  was  made  is  over  2000  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea,  and  the  achievement  was  all  the  more  remark- 
able because  of  the  sultry  climate  and  the  great  rarity  of  the  air. 

An  interesting  paper  on  "  Some  Terraced  Hill  Slopes  of  the 
Midlands,"  by  Mr.  Edwin  A.  Walford,  has  been  reprinted  from 
the  Journal  of  the  Northamptonshire  Natural  History  Society. 
The  factors  in  the  formation  of  these  terraced  slopes  Mr. 
Walford  groups  as  follows  : — (i)  The  slipping  and  sliding 
outwards  of  the  saturated  porous  marls  upon  the  tenacious  clays 
at  the  line  of  drainage,  aided  doubtless  by  the  pressure  of  ihe 
superincumbent  rock  bed.  (2)  Displacements  caused  by  the 
removal  by  chemical  and  mechanical  solution  of  certain  con- 
stituents of  the  marls  and  marlstone  by  the  passage  of  the  surface 
water  through  them.  (3)  The  sliding  downwards  of  the  surface 
soil,  as  described  by  Dr.  Darwin,  and  latterly  illustrated  by  Mr. 
A.  Ernst.  The  suggestions  offered  by  Mr.  Walford  agree  in 
the  main,  as  he  himself  points  out,  with  those  adopted  by  Mr- 
A.  Ernst  in  his  paper  in  Nature,  February  28,  1889. 


326 


NA  TURE 


{Feb.  6,  1890 


Messrs.  Gauthier-Villars  (Paris)  have  recently  added 
three  new  works  to  their  already  large  list  of  photographic  treat- 
ises. One  is  the  "  Manuel  de  Phototypie,"  by  M.  Bonnet,  giving 
full  details  of  the  various  processes  for  the  rapid  reproduction  of 
photographs,  such  as  is  now  demanded  for  many  purposes.  The 
formulae  are  stated  very  clearly,  and  the  apparatus  required  is 
sufficiently  illustrated  by  diagrams.  The  treatise  is  thoroughly 
practical,  and  will  be  very  valuable  to  all  interested  in  the  subject, 
whether  as  amateurs  or  for  trade  purposes.  The  second^ — -"Temps 
de  Pose  " — is  by  M.  Pluvinel,  and  deals  with  the  difficult  question 
of  the  time  of  exposure.  It  is  shown  that  what  is  generally 
regarded  as  a  rule-of-thumb  process  can  be  reduced  to  a  scientific 
one.  The  various  functions  of  the  duration  of  the  exposure  are 
first  considered  mathematically,  and  it  is  then  shown  how  the 
results  of  the  investigations  are  to  be  applied  practically,  the 
method  being  illustrated  by  worked- out  examples.  To  simplify 
matters,  tables  are  given  showing  the  different  elements,  such  as 
coefficient  of  brightness,  for  all  ordinary  photographic  subjects. 
The  treatise  is  chiefly  interesting  as  a  scientific  contribution,  as 
few  photographers  will  care  to  take  the  trouble  of  working  out 
the  time  of  exposure,  now  that  they  have  found  that  good  work 
can  be  done  by  judgment  alone.  The  third  book  is  in  two 
volumes,  and  treats  of  the  various  "film  "  processes  ("  Precedes 
Pelliculaires,"  by  George  Balagny).  It  claims  to  give  a  full 
account  of  all  that  has  been  said  and  done  in  connection  with 
the  subject  since  the  introduction  of  photography,  and  as  far  as 
we  can  judge,  this  claim  is  fully  justified.  Every  detail  of  the 
subject  is  considered  in  a  very  practical  manner.  One  of  the 
most  interesting  applications  of  flexible  films  mentioned  is  the 
registration  of  flash  signals  in  "  optical  telegraphy." 

The  "  Year-book  of  Photography  "  (Piper  and  Castle)  for  1890 
fully  bears  out  the  good  reputation  gained  by  its  predecessors.  In 
addition  to  the  information  relating  to  the  various  photographic 
societies,  there  are  several  articles  on  the  advances  in  photographic 
processes  which  have  been  made  during  the  past  year,  and  other 
useful  notes.  One  of  the  most  interesting  articles  is  that  by  the 
editor  on  photography  in  natural  colours,  from  which  we  learn 
that  "  processes  of  practical  value,  to  achieve  the  end,  are  likely 
to  be  discovered  by  the  exercise  of  ability  and  perseverance." 
The  only  important  omission  we  notice  is  a  record  of  the 
remarkable  achievements  in  astronomical  photography.  The 
volume  contains  a  portrait  and  short  biographical  notice  of 
Edmond  Becquerel.  The  whole  forms  an  invaluable  book  of 
reference  to  all  photographic  matters,  with  the  exception 
referred  to. 

Messrs.  George  Bell  and  Sons  have  published  "The 
School  Calendar  and  Hand-book  of  Examinations,  Scholarships, 
and  Exhibitions,  1890."  This  is  the  fourth  year  of  issue,  and 
great  pains  have  been  taken,  as  in  former  years,  to  secure  that 
the  information  brought  together  shall  be  full  and  trustworthy. 
A  preface  is  contributed  by  Mr.  F.  Storr. 

The  sixteenth  part  of  Cassell's  "  New  Popular  Educator  "  has 
been  issued.     It  includes  a  map  of  Australasia. 

The  Proceedings  of  the  International  Zoological  Congress, 
held  in  Paris  last  summer,  will  be  ready  for  distribution  in  a 
fortnight. 

A  NEW  and  very  simple  method  of  synthesizing  indigo  has 
been  discovered  by  Dr.  Flimm,  of  Darmstadt  {Ber.  deut.  chem. 
Ges.,  No.  I,  1890,  p.  57).  In  studying  the  action  of  caustic 
alkalies  upon  the  monobromine  derivative  of  acetanilide, 
CfiHg.NH.CO.CHjBr,  a  solid  melting  at  131° '5,  it  was  found 
that  when  this  substance  was  fused  with  caustic  potash  a  product 
was  obtained  which  at  once  gave  an  indigo  blue  colour  on  the 
addition  of  water,  and  quite  a  considerable  quantity  of  a  blue 
solid  resembling  indigo  separated  out.  The  best  mode  of  carrying 
out  the  operation  is  described  by  Dr.  Flimm  as  follows  : — The 


monobromacetanilide  is  carefully  mixed  with  dry  caustic  potash  in 
a  mortar,  and  the  mixture  introduced  into  a  retort  and  heated 
rapidly  until  a  homogeneous  reddish-brown  melt  is  obtained 
This  is  subsequently  dissolved  in  water,  and  a  little  ammonia 
or  ammonium  chloride  solution  added,  when  the  liquid  im- 
mediately becomes  coloured  green,  which  colour  rapidly  changes 
into  a  dark  blue,  and  in  a  short  time  the  blue  colouring  matter 
is  for  the  most  part  deposited  upon  the  bottom  of  the  vessel  in 
which  the  operation  is  performed.  The  fused  mass  may  also 
conveniently  be  dissolved  in  dilute  hydrochloric  acid,  and  a  little 
ferric  chloride  added,  when  the  formation  of  indigo  takes 
place  immediately.  The  collected  blue  colouring  matter  may 
be  readily  obtained  pure  by  washing  first  with  dilute  hydrochloric 
acid  and  afterwards  with  alcohol.  That  this  blue  substance  was 
really  common  indigo  was  proved  by  the  fact  that  it  yielded 
several  of  the  most  characteristic  reactions  of  indigotin,  such  as 
solubility  in  aniline,  paraffin,  and  chloroform,  its  sublimation, 
and  the  formation  of  sulphonic  acids,  which  gave  similar  changes 
of  colour  with  nitric  acid  to  those  of  indigotin.  The  final  proof 
was  afforded  by  its  reduction  to  indigo  white  and  re -oxidation  to 
indigo  blue  by  exposure  to  air.  Moreover,  the  absorption 
spectrum  of  the  colouring  matter  was  found  to  be  identical  with 
the  well-known  absorption  spectrum  of  indigo.  Hence  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  indigo  is  really  formed  by  this  very  simple 
process.  The  chemical  changes  occurring  in  the  reaction  are  con- 
sidered by  Dr.  Flimm  to  be  the  following  :— Indigo  blue  is  not 
produced  directly,  but  'first,  as  a  condensation  product   of  the 

monobromacetanilide,  indoxyl  is  formed,  C^Hj;  />CH, 


^\ 


COH^" 


C6H,< 


more   probably  a  pseudo-indoxyl  of  the   isomeric  constitution 
/NH. 

yCH^-   This  intermediate  substance  then  passes  over 
'CO^ 

/NH.  /NH. 

by   oxidation   into     indigo,     CgH^  ^C=:C<^  pCgH4, 

\CO/  ^CQ/ 

two  molecules  each  losing  two  atoms  of  hydrogen  by  oxidation, 
and  then  condensing  to  form  indigo.  It  was  not  found  possible 
to  isolate  the  intermediate  pseudo-indoxyl,  owing  to  its  extreme 
instability  ;  indeed,  the  all-important  point  to  be  observed  in  the 
practical  carrying  out  of  the  synthesis  by  this  method  is  that  the 
fusion  must  be  performed  quickly  and  the  temperature  raised 
rapidly  to  a  considerable  height,  the  whole  process  occupying 
only  a  few  minutes.  The  yield  of  pure  indigo  under  the  con- 
ditions yet  investigated  is  not  very  large,  amounting  to  about 
four  per  cent,  of  the  weight  of  the  original  anilide. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  thirteen  Cuning's  Octodons  {Octodon  cuniiigi) 
from  Chili,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  H.  Newman ;  five  Common 
Dormice  {Muscardimis  avellanarius),  British,  presented  by  Mr. 
Florance  Wyndham  ;  a  Large  Hill-Mynah  (6^rafz</(7  intermedia) 
from  India,  deposited;  a  Dingo  {Canis  dingo),  born  in  the 
Gardens. 

OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at  10  p.m.  on  February  6  =  yh. 
7m.  56s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

1 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)  G.C.  151S       - 

_J     _ 

— - 

7   17   14 

-f  69  14 

(2)  51  Geminorum 

••       5"5 

Yellowish-red. 

7     7     3 

-f-16  21 

(s)  V  Geminorum 

4 

Yellow. 

7  27  26 

-1-32    8 

(4)  a  Geminorum 

Wh:te. 

7   "  48 

-t-1644 

(5)  DM.  +  3"T38i    . 

..;      9 

Rediish-yellow. 

6  38  54 

+  324 

(6)  U  Monocerotis     . 

..j  Var. 

Orange. 

7  25  32 

-   9  33 

Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


327 


Remarks. 
(i)  The  spectrum  of  this  nebula  has  not  yet,  so  far  as  I  know, 
been  recorded,  but  the  observation  will  not  be  difficult,  if  one 
may  judge  from  the  description  given  by  Herschel,  namely  : 
"  Very  bright,  pretty  large,  round,  much  brighter  in  the 
middle,  mottled  as  if  with  stars." 

(2)  This  star  has  a  spectrum  of  the  Group  II.  type,  Duner 
describing  it  as  very  beautiful.  He  states  that  all  the  bands, 
1-9,  are  very  wide  and  dark.  The  observations  most  likely  to 
extend  our  knowledge  of  the  group  of  bodies  to  which  this  star 
belongs  are  (i)  observations  of  the  bright  carbon  flutings  (see 
P-  305) ;  (2)  comparisons  with  the  flame  spectra  of  manganese, 
magnesium,  and  lead  ;  (3)  observations  made  with  special  refer- 
ence to  the  presence  or  absence  of  absorption  lines,  of  which 
Duner  makes  no  mention. 

(3)  Gothard  classes  this  with  stars  of  the  solar  type.  The 
usual  differential  observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  The  usual  observations  of  the  re- 
lative intensities  of  the  hydrogen  and  metallic  lines  {b,  D,  &c.), 
as  compared  with  other  stars,  are  required. 

(5)  A  rather  faint  star  of  Group  VI.,  in  which  the  character 
of  band  6  (near  \  564),  as  compared  with  the  other  carbon  bands 
(9  and  10),  requires  further  attention.  Secondary  bands  should 
also  be  looked  for. 

(6)  This  variable  is  stated  by  Gore  to  have  a  continuous 
spectrum,  but  it  seems  probable  that  lines  or  flutings  will  be 
found  if  the  star  be  examined  under  the  most  favourable  con- 
ditions— that  is,  when  near  maximum.  Rigel  was  formerly  said 
to  have  a  "  continuous"  spectrum,  but  the  lines  are  now  by  no 
means  difficult  to  s^e.  The  star  ranges  from  magnitude  6  at 
maximum  to  7*2  at  minimum,  and  the  period  is  31-50  days 
(Gore).  A.  Fowler. 

Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886. — Dr.  Schuster  has  thus 
summarized  the  spectroscopic  results  he  obtained  at  this  eclipse 
(Phil.  Trans.,  vol.  180,  1889)  :— 

(i)  The  continuous  spectrum  of  the  corona  has  the  maximum 
of  actinic  intensity  displaced  considerably  towards  the  red,  when 
compared  with  the  spectrum  of  sunlight. 

(2)  While,  on  the  two  previous  occasions  on  which  photo- 
graphs of  the  spectrum  were  obtained,  lines  showed  themselves 
outside  the  limits  of  the  corona,  this  was  not  the  case  in  1886. 

(3)  Calcium  and  hydrogen  do  not  form  part  of  the  normal 
spectrum  of  the  corona.  The  hydrogen  lines  are  visible  only 
in  the  parts  overlying  strong  prominences  ;  the  H  and  K  lines 
of  calcium,  though  visible  everywhere,  are  stronger  on  that  side 
of  the  corona  which  has  many  prominences  at  its  base. 

(4)  The  strongest  corona  line  in  1886  was  at  A  =  4232*8;  this 
is  probably  the  4233*0  line  often  observed  by  Young  in  the 
chromosphere. 

(5)  Of  the  other  strong  lines,  the  positions  of  the  following 
seem  pretty  well  established  : — 

4056-7    40842    40893    4169  7    41950    4211-8 

4280-6       4365-4    4372-2   4378-1     4485-6      4627-9 

The  lines  printed  in  thicker  type  have  been  observed  also  at  the 
Caroline  Island  and  Egyptian  Eclipses. 

(6)  A  comparison  between  the  lines  of  the  corona  and  the 
lines  of  terrestrial  elements  has  led  to  negative  results. 

Annuaire  du  Bureau  des  Longitudes. — In  the  volume  f:)r 
1890,  MM.  Loewy  and  Schulhof  contribute  a  list  of  the  comets 
which  appeared  from  1825  to  1835  inclusive,  and  in  1888,  being 
a  continuation  of  the  lists  given  in  former  years.  M.  Loewy 
also  gives  a  complete  table  of  the  appearances  of  the  planets 
throughout  1890,  and  ephemerides  of  a  considerable  number  of 
variable  stars.  An  elaborate  comparison  of  the  various  calendars  is 
from  the  pen  of  M.  Cornu,  and  under  the  head;of  the  solar  system 
a  rich  store  of  information  is  included.  With  the  notices  we 
find  an  account  of  the  meeting  of  the  permanent  committee  of 
the  photographic  chart  of  the  heavens  and  the  Photographic 
Congress  of  September  last.  This  year's  Annuaire  is  as  com- 
pletely filled  with  information  as  it  has  ever  been  and  doubtless 
will  be  as  much  appreciated  by  astronomers. 

Annuaire  de  l'Observatoire  Royal  de  Bruxelles. — 
The  volume  for  1890  is  the  fifty-seventh  annual  publication  from 
this  Observatory.  It  contains  tables  of  the  mean  positions  of  the 
principal  stars  and  their  apparent  right  ascensions,  of  the  occulta- 
tion  of  stars  by  the  moon,  and  of  eclipses  of  Jupiter's  satellites, 
mention  being  also  made  of  remarkable  phenomena  relating  to 
the   moon   and   the   planets.      M.    Folic   gives   a  biographical 


sketch  of  his  predecessor,  J.  C.  Houzeau,  which  is  embellished 
with  the  portrait  of  this  deceased  bibliographer.  Considerable 
attention  has  been  paid  to  the  researches  on  diurnal  nutation  and 
the  determination  of  the  constant.  M.  Spee  discusses  the  tabulated 
observations  of  the  condition  of  the  sun's  surface  during  1888, 
and  M.  Moreau  contributes  an  interesting  note  on  the  movement 
of  a  solid  about  a  fixed  point.  A  list  is  also  given  of  the  comets 
and  asteroids  discovered  in  1889,  and  some  of  the  particulars 
relating  to  their  orbits. 

Royal  Astronomical  Society. — The  annual  general 
meeting  of  the  Fellows  of  this  Society  will  be  held  at  Burlington 
House  on  Friday,  the  14th  inst.,  for  the  purpose  of  receiving  the 
Report  of  the  Council,  electing  officers  for  the  ensuing  year,  and 
transacting  other  business  of  the  Society.  The  chair  will  be 
taken  at  3  o'clock  precisely. 

Erratum. — In  the  elements  of  companion  C  of  Brook's  comet 
(P-  305).  r^ad  Q,  =z  \f  52'  24" -5,  and  log  a  =  o  565059. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

Baron  Nordenskiold  has  announced  in  the  Swedish 
Academy  of  Sciences,  that  he  and  Baron  Oscar  Dickson,  with 
assistance  from  the  Australian  colonies,  will  start  on  an  expedition 
in  the  South  Polar  regions  next  year. 

A  recent  telegram  from  Tashkent  announced  that  Colonel 
Pevtsoff  and  M.  Roborovsky  had  discovered  a  convenient  pass 
to  the  north-western  part  of  Tibet,  from  Nia,  and  had  mounted 
to  the  great  table-land.  The  plateau  has  there  an  altitude  of 
1 2,000  feet  above  the  sea,  and  the  country  round  is  desolate  and 
uninhabited,  while  towards  the  south  the  plateau  is  well  watered 
and  wooded.  The  Tashkent  telegram  is  so  expressed  that  it 
might  be  supposed  to  mean  that  two  separate  passes  had  been 
discovered  by  the  two  explorers.  But  the  news  received  from 
the  expedition  at  St.  Petersburg  on  December  26,  and  dated 
October  27,  shows  that  both  explorers  proposed  to  leave  the 
oasis  of  Keria  (100  miles  to  the  east  of  Khotan)  on  the  next  day, 
for  Nia  (65  miles  further  east)  and  there  to  search  for  a  passage 
across  the  border-ridge  which  received  from  Prjevalsky  the  name 
of  the  "  Russian  ridge."  This  immense  snow-clad  chain  separates 
the  deserts  of  Eastern  Turkestan  from  the  trapezoidal  space,  the 
interior  of  which  is  quite  unknown  yet,  and  which  is  bordered 
by  the  "  Russian"  ridge  and  the  Altyn-tagh  in  the  north-west  ; 
the  ridges  of  Tsaidam  and  those  named  by  Prjevalsky"  Columbus  " 
and  "  Marco-Polo"  in  the  north-east  ;  the  highlands  (explored 
by  Prjevalsky  in  1879-80)  at  the  sources  of  the  Blue  River,  in 
the  south-east  ;  and  a  long,  yet  unnamed  ridge  which  seems  to 
be  a  prolongation  of  the  Tan-la,  in  the  south-west.  The  pass 
leading  to  that  plateau  from  Nia,  and  now  discovered  by  the 
Russian  expedition,  is  situated  some  80  miles  to  the  east  of  the 
well-known  pass  across  the  Kuen-lun  Mountains  which  leads 
from  Southern  Khotan  to  Lake  Yashi-kul.  M.  Roborovsky's 
intention  is  evidently  next  to  move  up  the  Tchertchen  river  and 
to  endeavour  to  reach  the  ridges  "Moscow  "  and  "  Lake 
Unfreezing"  (11,700  feet  high),  which  were  visited  by  Prjevalsky 
from  the  east  during  his  last  journey.  Having  succeeded  in 
finding  a  pass  to  Tibet  in  the  south  of  Nia,  Colonel  Pevtsoff 
proposes,  as  soon  as  the  spring  comes,  to  proceed  himself  by  this 
pass  to  the  table-land,  while  M.  Roborovsky  probably  will  be 
despatched  to  explore  the  same  border-ridge  further  east,  in  the 
south  of  Tchertchen. 

The  Boletin  of  the  Madrid  Geographical  Society  for  the  last 
quarter  of  1889  contains  a  most  valuable  memoir  by  Dr. 
Fernando  Blumentritt,  on  the  intricate  ethnology  of  the  Philip- 
pine Islands.  The  author  classifies  the  whole  of  the  native  popu- 
lation in  three  broad  divisions — Negrito,  Malay,  and  Mongoloid; 
the  last  comprising  those  tribes  which  in  their  physical  appear- 
ance betray  certain  Chinese  or  Japanese  affinities.  All  are 
grouped  in  an  admirably  arranged  alphabetical  table,  where 
their  names,  race,  language,  religion,  culture,  locality,  and 
numbers  are  briefly  specified  in  seven  parallel  columns.  With 
a  few  variants  and  cross-references  this  table  contains  no  less 
than  159  entries,  and  thus  conveys  in  summary  form  all  the 
essential  particulars  regarding  every  known  tribe  in  the  Philip- 
pine Archipelago.  From  it  we  gather  that  the  Negritoes— that 
is,  the  true  autochthonous  element,  variously  known  as  Aetas, 
Attas,  Ates,  Etas,  Itas,  Mamanuas,  &c. ,  and  physically  belong- 
ing to  the  same  stock  as  the  Samangs  of  the  Malay  Peninsula — 


328 


NA  TURE 


[Feb.  6,  1890 


are  now  reduced  to  about  20,000,  dispersed  in  small  groups 
over  the  islands  of  Luzon,  Mindoro,  Tablas,  Panay,  Negros, 
Cebu,  Paragan  (Palawan),  and  Mindanao.  A  few  [also  appear 
still  to  survive  in  Alabat,  Busuanga,  and  Culiou.  Of  the  Malay 
peoples  by  far  the  most  numerous  and  important  are  the  southern 
Bisayas  (Visayas),  and  the  northern  Tagalas,  both  described  as 
"civilized  Christians,"  and  numbering  respectively  1,700,000 
and  1,250,000.  These  two  peoples  are  steadily  encroaching  on 
all  the  surrounding  tribes,  causing  them  to  disappear  by  a 
gradual  process  of  absorption  or  assimilation,  and  the  time  is 
approaching  when  the  whole  of  the  islands  will  be  divided  into 
two  great  nationalities  bearing  somewhat  the  same  relation  to 
each  other  that  the  High  German  does  to  the  Low  German 
branch  of  the  Teutonic  family. 


SMOKELESS  EXPLOSIVES.^ 

I. 

'T*HE  production  of  smoke  which  attends  the  ignition  or  ex- 
plosion of  gunpowder  is  often  a  source  of  considerable  in- 
convenience in  connection  with  its  application  to  naval  or 
military  purposes,  its  employment  in  mines,  and  its  use  by  the 
sportsman,  although  occasions  not  unfrequently  arise  during 
naval  and  military  operations  when  the  shroud  of  smoke  pro- 
duced by  musketry  or  artillery  fire  has  proved  of  important 
advantage  to  one  or  other,  or  to  both,  of  the  belligerents  during 
different  periods  of  an  engagement. 

Until  within  the  last  few  years,  however,  but  little,  if  any, 
thought  appears  to  have  been  given  to  the  possibility  of  dispens- 
ing with  or  greatly  diminishing  the  production  of  smoke  in  the 
application  of  fire-arms,  excepting  in  connection  with  sport. 
The  inconvenience  and  disappointment  often  resulting  from  the 
obscuring  effects  of  a  neighbouring  gun-discharge,  or  of  the  first 
shot  from  a  double-barrel  arm,  led  the  sportsman  to  look  hope- 
fully to  gun-cotton,  directly  after  its  first  production  in  1846,  as  a 
probable  source  of  greater  comfort  and  brighter  prospects  in  the 
pursuit  of  his  pastime  and  in  his  strivings  for  success. 

A  comparison  between  the  chemical  changes  attending  the 
burning,  explosion,  or  metamorphosis  of  gun-cotton  and  of  gun- 
powder, serves  to  explain  the  cause  of  the  production  of  smoke 
in  the  latter  case,  and  the  reason  of  smokelessness  in  the  case  of 
gun-cotton.  Whilst  the  products  of  explosion  of  the  latter  con- 
sist exclusively  of  gases,  and  of  water  which  assumes  the  trans- 
parent form  of  highly-heated  vapour  at  the  moment  of  its  pro- 
duction, the  explosive  substances  classed  as  gunpowder,  and 
which  consist  of  mixtures  of  saltpetre,  or  another  nitrate  of  a 
metal,  with  charred  wood  or  other  carbonized  vegetable  matter, 
and  with  variable  quantities  of  sulphur,  furnish  products,  of 
which  very  large  proportions  are  not  gaseous,  even  at  high  tem- 
peratures. Upon  the  ignition  of  such  a  mixture,  these  products 
are  in  part  deposited  in  the  form  of  a  fused  residue,  which  con- 
stitutes the  fouling  in  a  fire-arm,  and  are  in  part  distributed,  in 
an  extremely  fine  state  of  division,  through  the  gases  and  vapours 
developed  by  the  explosion,  thus  producing  smoke. 

In  the  case  of  gunpowder  of  ordinary  composition,  the  solid 
products  amount  to  over  fifty  per  cent,  by  weight  of  the  total 
products  of  explosion,  and  the  dense  white  smoke  which  it  pro- 
duces consists  partly  of  extremely  finely-divided  potassium  car- 
bonate, which  is  a  component  of  the  solid  products,  and,  to  a 
great  extent,  of  potassium  sulphate  produced  chiefly  by  the 
burning  of  one  of  the  important  solid  products  of  explosion — 
potassium  sulphide — when  it  is  carried  in  a  fine  state  of  division 
into  the  air  by  the  rush  of  gas. 

With  other  explosives,  which  are  also  smoke-producing,  the 
formation  of  the  smoke  is  due  to  the  fact  that  one  or  other  of  the 
products,  although  existing  as  vapour  at  the  instant  of  its  develop- 
ment, is  immediately  condensed  to  a  cloud  composed  of  minute 
liquid  particles,  or  of  vesicles,  as  in  the  case  of  mercury  vapour 
liberated  upon  the  explosion  of  mercuric  fulminate,  or  of  the 
aqueous  vapour  produced  upon  the  ignition  of  a  mixture  of 
ammonium  nitrate  and  charcoal,  or  ammonium  nitrate  and  picric 
acid. 

Until  within  the  last  half-dozen  years,  the  varieties  of  gun- 
powder which  have  been  applied  to  war  purposes  ia  this  and 
other  countries  have  exhibited  comparatively  few  variations  in 
chemical  composition.     The  proportions  of  charcoal,  saltpetre, 

'  Friday  Evening  Discourse  delivered  by  Sir  Frederick  Abel,  F.R.S.,  at 
the  Royal  Institution  of  Great  Britain,  on  January  31,  1890. 


and  sulphur  employed  in  their  production  exhibit  slight  differ- 
ences in  different  countries,  and  these,  as  well  as  the  character 
of  the  charcoal  used,  its  sources  and  method  of  production, 
underwent  but  little  modification  for  very  many  years.  The 
same  remark  applies  to  the  nature  of  the  successive  operations 
pursued  in  the  manufacture  of  black  powder  for  artillery  purposes 
in  this  and  other  countries. 

The  replacement  of  smooth-bore  guns  by  rifled  artillery  which 
followed  the  Crimean  war,  and  the  increase  in  the  size  and  power 
of  guns  consequent  upon  the  application  of  armour  to  ships  and 
forts,  soon  called  for  the  pursuit  of  investigations  having  for  their 
object  the  attainment  of  means  for  variously  modifying  the  action 
of  fired  gunpowder,  so  as  to  render  it  suitable  for  the  different 
calibres  of  guns,  whose  full  power  could  not  be  effectively,  or  in 
some  instances  safely,  developed  by  the  use  of  the  kind  of  gun- 
powder previously  employed  indiscriminately  in  artillery  of  all 
known  calibres. 

In  order  to  control  the  violence  of  explosion  of  gunpowder,  by 
modifying  the  rapidity  of  transmission  of  explosion  from  particle 
to  particle,  or  through  the  mass  of  each  individual  particle,  of 
which  the  charge  of  a  gun  is  composed,  the  accomplishment  of 
the  desired  results  was,  in  the  first  instance,  and  indeed  through- 
out practical  investigations  extending  over  many  years,  sought 
exclusively  in  modifications  of  the  size  and  form  of  the  individual 
masses  composing  a  charge  of  powder,  and  of  their  density  and 
hardness,  it  being  considered  that,  as  the  proportions  of  saltpetre, 
charcoal,  and  sulphur  generally  employed  in  the  production  of 
gunpowder  very  nearly  correspond  to  those  required  for  the 
development  of  the  greatest  chemical  energy  by  those  incorporated 
materials,  it  was  advisable  to  seek  for  the  attainment  of  the 
desired  results  by  modifications  of  the  physical  and  mechanical 
characters  of,  rather  than  by  any  modification  in  the  proportions 
and  chemical  characters  of,  its  ingredients. 

The  varieties  of  powder,  which,  as  the  outcome  of  careful 
practical  and  scientific  researches  in  this  direction,  have  been 
introduced  into  artillery  service  from  time  to  time,  and  some  of 
which,  at  any  rate,  have  proved  fairly  efficient,  have  been  of  iwo 
distinct  types.  The  first  of  these,  produced  by  breaking  up 
more  or  less  highly-pressed  cakes  of  black  powder  into  grains, 
pebbles,  or  boulders,  of  approximately  uniform  size  and  shape, 
the  sharp  edges  and  rough  surfaces  being  afterwards  removed  by 
attrition  (reeling  and  glazing),  are  simply  a  further  development 
of  one  of  the  original  forms  of  granulated  or  corned  powder, 
represented  by  the  old  F,  G.,  or  small  arms,  and  L.  G.,  or 
cannon  powder.  Gunpowder  of  this  class,  ranging  in  size  from 
about  1000  pieces  to  the  ounce,  to  about  six  pieces  to  the  pound,, 
have  been  introduced  into  artillery  service,  and  certain  of  them, 
viz.  R.  L.  G.  (rifle  large  grain),  which  was  the  first  step  in 
advance  upon  the  old  cannon-powder  (L.  G. );  pebble-powder 
(P.),  and  large  pebble  or  boulder-powder  (P.  2),  are  still 
employed  more  or  less  extensively  in  some  guns  of  the  present 
day. 

The  other  type  of  powder  has  no  representative  among  the 
more  ancient  varieties  ;  it  has  its  origin  in  the  obviously  sound 
theoretical  view  that  uniformity  in  the  results  furnished  by  a 
particular  powder,  when  employed  under  like  conditions,  de- 
mands not  merely  identity  in  regard  to  composition,  but  also 
identity  in  form,  size,  density,  and  structure  of  the  individual 
masses  composing  the  charge  used  in  a  gun.  The  practical 
realization  of  this  view  should  obviously  be  attained,  or  at  any 
rate  approached,  by  submitting  equal  quantities  of  one  and  the 
same  mixture  of  ingredients,  presented  in  the  form  of  powder  of 
uniform  fineness  and  dryness,  to  a  uniform  pressure  for  a  fixed 
period  in  moulds  of  uniform  size,  and  under  surrounding  con- 
ditions as  nearly  as  possible  alike.  The  fulfilment  of  these 
conditions  would,  moreover,  have  to  be  supplemented  by  an 
equally  uniform  course  of  proceeding  in  the  subsequent  drying 
and  other  finishing  processes  to  which  the  powder-masses  would 
be  submitted. 

The  only  form  of  powder,  introduced  into  our  artillery  service 
for  a  brief  period,  in  the  production  of  which  these  conditions 
were  adhered  to  as  closely  as  possible,  was  a  so-called  pellet 
powder,  which  consisted  of  small  cylinders  having  semi-perfora- 
tions with  the  object  of  increasing  the  total  inflaming  surface  of 
the  individual  masses. 

Practical  experience  with  this  powder,  and  with  others  pre- 
pared upon  the  same  system,  but  with  much  less  rigorous  regard 
to  uniformity  in  such  details  as  state  of  division  and  condition 
of  dryness  of  the  powder  before  its  compression  into  cylindrical 
or  other  forms,  showed  that  uniformity  in  the  ballistic  properties- 


Feb,  6,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


329 


of  black  powder  could  be  as  well  and  even  more  readily  secured 
by  the  thorough  blending  or  mixing  together  of  batches  pre- 
senting some  variation  in  I'egard  to  density,  hardness,  or  other 
features,  as  by  aiming  at  an  approach  to  absolute  uniformity  in 
the  characters  of  each  individual  mass  composing  a  charge. 

At  the  time  that  our  attention  was  first  actively  given  to  this 
subject  of  the  modification  of  the  ballistic  properties  of  powder, 
it  had  already  been  to  some  extent  dealt  with  in  the  United 
States  by  Rodman  and  Doremus,  and  the  latter  was  the  first  to 
propose  the  application,  as  charges  for  guns,  of  powder-masses 
produced  by  the  compression  of  coarsely  grained  powder  into 
moulds  of  prismatic  form.  In  Russia  the  first  step  was  taken  to 
utilize  the  results  arrived  at  by  Doremus,  and  to  adopt  a  prismatic 
powder  for  use  in  guns  of  large  calibre. 

Side  by  side  with  the  development  and  perfection  of  the 
manufacture  of  prismatic  powder  in  Russia,  Germany,  and  in 
this  country,  new  experiments  on  the  production  of  powder- 
masses  suitable,  by  their  comparatively  gradual  action,  for 
employment  in  the  very  large  charges  required  for  the  heavy 
artillery  of  the  present  day,  by  the  powerful  compression  of 
mixtures  of  more  or  less  finely  broken  up  powder-cake  into 
masses  of  greater  size  than  those  of  the  pebble,  pellet,  and 
prism  powders,  were  actively  pursued  in  Italy,  and  also  by  our 
own  Government  Committee  on  Explosives,  and  the  outcome  of 
very  exhaustive  practical  investigations  were  the  very  efficient 
Fossano  powder,  or  foudre  progressif,  of  the  Italians,  and  the 
boulder  and  large  cylindrical  powders  known  as  P-  and  C^, 
produced  at  Waltham  Abbey,  which  scarcely  vied,  however, 
with  the  Italian  powder  in  the  uniformity  of  their  ballistic 
properties. 

Researches  carried  out  by  Captain  Noble  and  the  lecturer  some 
years  ago  with  a  series  of  gunpowders  differing  considerably  in 
composition  from  each  other,  indicated  that  advantages  might  be 
secured  in  the  production  of  powders  for  heavy  guns  by  so  modi- 
fying the  proportions  of  the  constituents  {e.g.  by  considerably 
increasing  the  proportion  of  charcoal  and  reducing  the  proportion 
of  sulphur)  as  to  give  rise  to  the  production  of  a  much  greater 
volume  of  gas,  and  at  the  same  time  to  diminish  the  heat  developed 
by  the  explosion. 

These  researches  served,  among  other  purposes,  to  throw  con- 
siderable light  upon  the  cause  of  the  wearing  or  erosive  action  of 
powder-explosions  upon  the  inner  surface  of  the  gun,  which  in 
time  may  produce  so  serious  a  deterioration  of  the  arm  as  to 
diminish  the  velocity  of  projection  considerably,  and  so  affect  the 
accuracy  of  shooting,  a  deterioration  which  increases  in  extent 
in  an  increasing  ratio  to  the  size  of  the  guns,  in  consequence, 
obviously,  of  the  large  increase  in  the  weight  of  the  charges  fired. 
Several  causes  undoubtedly  combine  to  bring  about  the  wear- 
ing away  of  the  gun's  bore,  which  is  especially  great  where  the 
products  of  explosion,  while  under  the  maximum  pressure,  can 
escape  between  the  projectile  and  the  bore  of  the  gun.  The 
great  velocity  with  which  the  very  highly  heated  gaseous  and 
liquid  (fused  solid)  products  of  explosion  sweep  over  the  heated 
surface  of  the  metal  gives  rise  to  a  displacement  of  the  particles 
composing  it,  which  increases  as  the  surface  becomes  roughened 
by  the  first  action  upon  the  least  compact  portions  of  the  metal, 
and  thus  opposes  greater  resistance  ;  at  the  same  time,  the 
effect  of  the  high  temperature  to  which  the  surface  is  raised  is 
to  reduce  its  rigidity  and  power  of  resisting  the  force  of  the 
gaseous  torrent,  and  lastly  some  amount  of  chemical  action 
upon  the  metal,  by  certain  of  the  highly  heated  non-gaseous 
products  of  explosion,  contributes  towards  an  increase  in  the 
erosive  effects.  A  series  of  careful  experiments  made  by 
Captain  Noble  with  powders  of  different  composition,  and  with 
other  explosives,  afforded  decisive  evidence  that  the  material 
which  furnished  the  largest  proportion  of  gaseous  products,  and 
the  explosion  of  which  was  attended  by  the  development  of  the 
smallest  amount  of  heat,  exerted  least  erosive  action. 

It  is  probable  that  important  changes  in  the  composition  of 
powders  manufactured  by  us  for  our  heavy  guns  would  have 
resulted  from  those  researches,  but  in  the  meantime,  two 
eminent  German  gimpowder  manufacturers  had  occupied  them- 
selves independently,  and  simultaneously,  with  the  important 
practical  question  of  producing  some  more  suitable  powder  for 
heavy  guns  than  the  various  new  forms  of  ordinary  black 
powder,  the  rate  of  burning  of  which,  especially  when  confined 
in  a  close  chamber,  was,  after  all,  reduced  only  in  a  moderate 
degree  by  the  increase  in  the  size  of  the  masses,  and  by  such 
increase  in  their  density  as  it  was  practicable  to  attain.     The 


German  experimenters  directed  their  attention  not  merely  to  the 
proportions  in  which  the  powder  ingredients  are  employed,  but 
also  to  a  modification  in  the  character  of  charcoal,  and  the 
success  attending  their  labours  in  these  directions  led  to  the 
practically  simultaneous  production,  by  Mr.  Heidemann  at  the 
Westphalia  Powder  Works,  and  Mr.  Diittenhofer  at  the  Rott- 
weil  Works  neari  Hamburg,  of  a  prismatic  powder  of  cocoa- 
brown  colour,  consisting  of  saltpetre  in  somewhat  higher 
proportion,  of  sulphur  in  much  lower  proportion,  than  in 
normal  black  powder,  and  of  very  slightly  burned  charcoal, 
similar  in  composition  to  the  charcoal  {charbon  roux)  which 
Violette,  a  French  chemist,  first  produced  in  1847  by  the  action 
of  superheated  steam  upon  wood  or  other  vegetable  matter,  and 
which  he  proposed  for  employment  in  the  manufacture  of 
sporting  powder.  These  brown  prismatic  powders  (or  "cocoa- 
powders,"  as  they  were  termed  from  their  colour),  are  dis- 
tinguished from  black  powder  not  only  by  their  appearance,  but 
also  by  their  very  slow  combustion  in  open  air,  by  their  com- 
paratively gradual  and  long-sustained  action  when  used  in  guns, 
and  by  the  simple  character  of  their  products  of  explosion  as 
compared  with  those  of  black  powder.  As  the  oxidizing  in- 
gredient, saltpetre,  is  contained,  in  brown  or  cocoa  powder,  in 
larger  proportion  relatively  to  the  oxidizable  components,  sulphur 
and  charcoal,  than  in  black  powder,  these  become  fully  oxidized, 
while  the  products  of  explosion  of  the  latter  contain,  on  the 
other  hand,  larger  proportions  of  unoxidized  material,  or  only 
partially  oxidized  products.  Moreover,  there  is  produced  upon 
the  explosion  of  brown  powder  a  relatively  very  large  amount 
of  water-vapour,  not  merely  because  the  finished  powder  con- 
tains a  larger  proportion  of  water  than  black  pDwder,  but  also 
because  the  very  slightly  charred  wood  or  straw  used  in  the 
brown  powder  is  much  richer  in  hydrogen  than  black  charcoal, 
and  therefore  furnishes  by  its  oxidation  a  considerable  amount 
of  water.  The  total  volume  of  gas  furnished  by  the  brown 
powder  (at  0°  C.  and  760  mm.  barometer)  is  only  about  200 
volumes  per  kilogramme  of  powder,  against  278  volumes, 
furnished  by  a  normal  sample  of  black  powder,  but  the  amount 
of  water-vapour  furnished  upon  its  explosion  is  about  three 
times  that  produced  from  black  powder,  and  this  would  make 
the  volume  of  gas  and  vapour  developed  by  the  two  powders 
about  equal  if  the  heat  of  its  explosion  were  the  same  in  the 
two  cases ;  the  actual  temperature  produced  by  the  explosion 
of  brown  powder,  is,  however,  somewhat  the  higher  of 
the  two. 

Although  the  smoke  produced  upon  firing  a  charge  of  brown 
powder  from  a  gun  appears  at  first  but  little  different  in  dense- 
ness  to  that  of  black  powder,  it  certainly  disperses  much  more 
rapidly,  a  difference  which  is  probably  due  to  the  speedy  absorp- 
tion, by  solution,  of  the  finely  divided  potassium  salts  by  the 
large  proportion  of  water-vapour  distributed  throughout  the  so- 
called  smoke. 

This  class  of  powder  was  substituted  with  considerable  advan- 
tage for  black  powder  in  guns  of  comparatively  large  calibre ; 
nevertheless  it  became  desirable  to  attain  even  slower  or  more 
gradual  action  in  the  case  of  the  very  large  charges  required  for 
guns  of  the  heaviest  calibres,  such  as  those  which  propel  shot  of 
about  2000  pounds  weight.  Accordingly,  the  brown  powder  has 
been  modified  in  regard  to  the  proportions  of  its  ingredients  to- 
suit  these  conditions,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  powder  inter- 
mediate with  respect  to  rapidity  of  action  between  black  pebble 
powder  and  the  brown  powder,  has  been  found  more  suitable 
than  the  former  for  use  in  guns  of  moderately  large  calibre. 

The  recent  successful  adaptation  of  machine  guns  and  com- 
paratively large  quick-firing  guns  to  naval  service,  more  especially 
for  the  defence  of  ships  against  attack  by  torpedo  boats,  &c. , 
has  rendered  the  provision  of  a  powder  for  use  with  them, 
which  would  produce  comparatively  little  or  no  smoke,  a  matter 
of  very  considerable  importance,  inasmuch  as  the  efficiency  of 
such  defence  must  be  greatly  diminished  by  the  circumstance 
that,  after  a  very  brief  use  of  the  guns  with  black  powder,  the 
objects  against  which  their  fire  is  destined  to  operate,  become 
more  or  less  completely  hidden  from  those  directing  them,  by 
the  dense  veil  of  powder-smoke  produced.  Hence  much  atten- 
tion has  been  directed  during  the  last  few  years  to  the  production 
of  smokeless,  or  nearly  smokeless  powders  for  naval  use  in  the 
above  directions.  At  the  same  time,  the  views  of  many  military 
authorities  regarding  the  importance  of  dispensing  with  smoke 
in  land  engagements  has  also  created  a  demand,  the  apparent 
urgency  of  which  has  been  increased  by  various  circumstances,. 


330 


NATURE 


{Feb.  6,  1890 


for  a  smokeless    powder  suitable  for  field  artillery  and  small 
arms. 

The  properties  of  ammonium  nitrate,  of  which  the  products 
of  decomposition  by  heat  are,  in  addition  to  water-vapour, 
entirely  gaseous,  have  rendered  it  a  tempting  material  to  work 
upon  in  the  hands  of  those  who  have  striven  to  produce  a  smoke- 
less powder,  but  its  deliquescent  character  has  been  the  chief 
obstacle  to  its  application  as  a  component  of  an  explosive  agent 
susceptible  of  substitution  for  black  powder  for  service  purposes, 
A  German  chemical  engineer,  F.  Gaus,  conceived  that,  by  in- 
corporating charcoal  and  saltpetre  with  a  particular  proportion 
of  ammonium  nitrate,  he  had  produced  an  explosive  material 
which  did  not  partake  of  the  hygroscopic  character  common  to 
other  ammonium-nitrate  mixtures,  and  that,  by  its  explosion,  the 
potassium  in  the  saltpetre  formed  a  volatile  combination  with 
nitrogen  and  hydrogen,  a  potassium  amide,  so  that,  although 
■containing  nearly  half  its  weight  of  potassium  salt,  it  would 
furnish  only  volatile  products.  The  views  of  Mr.  Gaus  regarding 
the  changes  which  his  so-called  amide  powder  undergoes  upon 
■explosion  were  not  borne  out  by  existing  chemical  knowledge, 
while  the  powder  compounded  in  accordance  with  his  views 
proved  to  be  by  no  means  smokeless,  and  was  certainly  not  non- 
hygroscopic.  Mr.  Heidemann  has,  however,  been  successful, 
by  modifications  of  Gaus's  prescription  and  by  application  of  his 
own  special  experience  in  powder- manufacture,  in  producing  an 
ammonium-nitrate  powder  possessed  of  remarkable  ballistic 
properties,  furnishing  comparatively  little  smoke,  which  speedily 
disperses,  and  exhibiting  the  hygroscopic  characteristics  of  am- 
monium-nitrate preparations  in  a  decidedly  less  degree  than  any 
other  hitherto  prepared.  The  powder,  while  yielding  a  very 
much  larger  volume  of  gas  and  water-vapour  than  black  or 
brown  powder,  is  considerably  slower  than  the  latter ;  the 
■charge  required  to  produce  equal  ballistic  results  is  less,  while 
the  chamber-pressure  developed  is  lower,  and  the  pressures 
along  the  chase  of  the  gun  are  highei",  than  in  the  case  of  brown 
powder. 

The  ammonium-nitrate  powder  contains,  in  its  normal,  dried 
condition,  more  water  than  even  brown  powder ;  it  does  not 
exhibit  any  great  tendency  to  absorb  moisture  from  an  ordi- 
narily dry  or  even  a  somewhat  moist  atmosphere,  but  if  the 
amount  of  atmospheric  moisture  approaches  saturation,  it  will 
rapidly  absorb  water,  and  when  once  the  process  begins  it  con- 
tinues rapidly,  the  powder-masses  becoming  speedily  quite  pasty. 
The  charges  for  quick-firing  guns  are  enclosed  in  metal  cases,  in 
which  they  are  securely  sealed  up  ;  the  powder  is  therefore  pre- 
vented from  absorbing  moisture  from  the  external  air,  but  it  has 
been  found  that  if  the  cartridges  are  kept  for  long  periods  in 
ships'  magazines,  in  which,  from  their  position  relatively  to  the 
ships'  boilers,  the  temperature  is  more  or  less  elevated,  some- 
times for  considerable  periods,  the  expulsion  of  water  from  some 
portions  of  the  powder-masses  composing  the  hermetically  sealed 
charge,  and  its  consequent  irregular  distribution,  may  give  rise 
to  want  of  uniformity  in  the  action  of  the  powder,  and  to  the 
occasional  development  of  high  pressures.  Although,  therefore, 
this  ammonium-nitrate  powder  may  be  regarded  as  the  first 
successful  advance  towards  the  production  of  a  comparatively 
smokeless  artillery  powder,  it  is  not  uniformly  well  adapted  to 
the  requirements  which  it  should  fulfil  in  naval  service. 

Attention  was  first  seriously  directed  to  the  subject  of  smoke- 
less powder  by  the  reports  received  about  four  years  ago  of 
remarkable  results  stated  to  have  been  obtained  in  France  with 
such  a  powder  for  use  with  the  magazine  rifle  (the  Lebel)  which 
was  being  adapted  to  military  service.  These  reports  were 
speedily  followed  by  others,  descriptive  of  marvellous  velocities 
obtained  with  small  charges  of  this  powder,  or  some  modifica- 
tions of  it,  from  guns  of  very  great  length.  As  in  the  case  of 
melinite,  the  fabulously  destructive  effects  of  which  were  much 
vaunted  at  about  the  same  time,  the  secret  of  the  precise  nature 
of  the  smokeless  powder  was  so  well  preserved  by  the  French 
authorities,  that  surmises  could  only  be  made  on  the  subject 
even  by  those  most  conversant  with  these -matters.  It  is  now 
well  known,  however,  that  more  than  one  smokeless  explosive 
has  succeeded  the  original  powder,  the  perfection  of  which  was 
reported  to  be  beyond  dispute,  and  that  the  material  now 
adopted  for  use  in  the  Lebel  rifle  bears,  at  any  rate,  great 
similarity  to  preparations  which  have  been  made  the  subject  of 
patents  in  this  country,  and  which  are  still  experimental  powders 
in  other  countries. 

{To  be  continued.^ 


SOLAR  HALOS  AND  PARHELIA. 
'HTHE  recent  appearance  of  solar  and  lunar  halos,  parhelia, 
■*■  and  paraselene,  has  called  forth  a  considerable  amount  of 
correspondence  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  and  the  accompany- 
ing figure  may  be  taken  as  a  composite  representation  of  the 
solar  phenomenon  observed.  A  glance  at  the  times  at  which 
the  halos  were  observed  on  the  29th  ult.,  makes  it  apparent  that 
they  occurred  earliest  in  places  of  highest  latitudes.  At  Driffield, 
in  lat.  54°,  the  halo,  with  its  attendant  parhelia,  was  observed 
at  1.34  p.m.,  and  the  whole  phenomenon  disappeared  at  2.8 
p.m.  ;  at  Burton-on-Trent,  lat.  52°  48',  the  halos  and  parhelia 
were  first  observed  at  2  p.m.,  and  lasted  more  or  less  distinctly 
until  3  p.m.  ;  whilst  about  a  degree  south  of  this,  at  Oxford, 
Colnbrook,  and  Walton-on- Thames,  the  phenomena  occurred 
from  about  3.30  to  4.30.  The  uniform  difference  in  the  times 
when  the  halos  were  observed  at  the  places  of  different  latitudes 
necessarily  follows  from  the  fact  that  they  are  formed  by  the 
action  upon  solar  rays  of  prismatic  crystals  of  ice  suspended 
in  the  air  by  the  ascending  currents  which  especially  occur  in 
the  spring  and  autumn.  Those  prisms  that  are  in  such  positions 
that  the  rays  from  the  sun  in  transmission  through  them  suffer 
minimum  deviation  are  the  cause  of  the  formation  of  halos,  and 
since  the  angular  distance  of  the  sun  equal  to  minimum  deviation 
is  about  22°,  this  must  be  the  radius  of  the  halo,  and  the  ex- 
ternal circle,  being  produced  by  two  such  refractions  in  succession, 
has  a  radius  of  about  46°. 

The  halos  recently  observed  do  not  differ  in  the  main  from 
those  frequently  seen  in  higher  latitudes,  and  consisting  of  (i) 
a  first  circle  or  halo  concentric  with  the  sun,  red  within,  violet 
without,  and  at  an  angular  distance  of  22^  or  23°  ;  (2)  a  second 
circle  or  halo,  similar  to  the  preceding,  but  at  an  angular  dis- 


a  was  seen  at  3.33  p.m. ;  h  at  3.45  p.m.  :  c  and  a?  at  3.50  p.m.  ;  e  at  4.0  p,m  : 
y  at  4.10  p.m. 

tance  of  46° ;  (3)  a  portion  of  the  parhelic  circle  appearing  hori- 
zontal and  diametral,  and  at  the  points  of  junction  of  this  circle 
v/ith  the  two  halos,  there  is  increased  luminosity,  which  have 
been  taken  for  images  of  the  sun  ;  (4)  horizontal  arcs,  tangents 
to  the  circular  halos,  and  a  vertical  line  making  a  cross  with  the 
horizontal  portion  of  the  parhelic  circle, 

Mr.  John  Lovell  thus  describes  the  phenomena  observed  at 
Driffield  : — "  A  splendid  solar  halo,  with  its  attendant  parhelia, 
was  observed  this  afternoon  at  1.34  local  time.  The  halo 
(diameter  45°)  was  almost  perfect,  the  lower  part  only  being 
slightly  obliterated  by  the  thick  atmosphere  near  the  horizon. 
Attached  to  the  upper  side,  an  inverted  portion  of  a  similar  halo 
appeared,  brilliantly  illumined  on  the  concave  side,  the  lower 
part  giving  out  a  dull  red  light.  Again,  22|°  above  this,  and 
also  inverted,  about  60°  of  arc  beautifully  coloured  with  rain- 
bow colours  was  clearly  visible,  the  red  side  lowest.  This  arc, 
if  it  had  been  produced,  would  have  circled  the  zenith.  The 
mock  lights  on  each  side  of  the  halo  were  drawn  out  into  long 
cones  of  intensely  bright  light,  while  the  inner  sky  of  the  halo 
was  of  a  very  dark  shade.  The  most  noteworthy  feature  of  the 
display  was  a  brilliant  patch  of  pure  white  light  in  the  north- 
western sky,  at  a  distance  of  90°  from  the  western  mock  sun, 
and  undoubtedly  emanating  from  it,  and  which  remained  visible 
for  nearly  ten  minutes.  The  whole  phenomena  disappeared  at 
2.8  p.m.,  the  sky  then  being  covered  with  streaky  cirro-stratus 
haze  from  the  north-north-west." 

The  patch  of  white  light  referred  to  by  Mr.  Lovell  was  doubt- 
less produced  by  the  junction  of  the  parhelic  circle  with  one  of 
the  halos  concentric  with  the  sun.  It  is  perhaps  hardly  neces- 
sary to  note  the  relation  that  exists  between  halos  and  cirro- 


Feb,  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


331 


stratus  clouds,  and  that  the  space  included  within  the  halo  is 
frequently  of  a  more  intense  grey,  or  of  a  deeper  blue  than  the 
rest  of  the  sky. 

The  son  of  Sir  W.  Herschel  observed  the  phenomena  at 
Oxford,  and  noted: — "The  sun  was  near  the  horizon.  On 
either  side  of  it,  at  a  distance  of  five  or  six  diameters  of  the  sun, 
was  a  mock  sun,  not  very  bright,  of  the  colours  of  the  rainbow, 
the  one  on  the  right  being  the  brighter.  There  was  a  scarcely 
perceptible  rainbow,  of  which  red  was  the  only  colour  visible, 
joining  the  two  mock  suns.  This  rainbow  was  brightest  directly 
over  the  sun.  As  far  oft  again  as  the  first  was  a  second  rainbow, 
hazy,  but  fairly  bright,  which  was  equally  visible  from  earth  to 
earth.  Vertically  above  the  sun,  a  third,  a  very  bright  rainbow, 
touched  the  second,  being  inverted,  and  having  its  centre  straight 
overhead.  It  did  not  look  quite  as  large  as  the  second.  The 
weather  was  clear,  but  the  clouds  on  and  above  the  horizon  were 
of  a  uniform  grey  colour,  fading  off  gradually  to  a  nearly  clear 
sky  overhead.  There  seemed  always  to  be  a  much  lighter  shade 
of  grey  in  the  clouds  where  the  sun  and  the  two  mock  suns 
were." 

The  coloured  parhelia  observed  indicates  the  refraction  and 
dispersion  of  solar  light  by  vertical  prisms,  whilst  the  phenomena 
of  inverted  arches  are  produced  by  the  light  which  passes 
through  horizontal  crystals,  at  different  azimuths. 

Mr.  Frank  E.  Lott,  at  Burton-on-Trent,  observed  a  third 
parhelia  on  the  part  of  the  first  halo  vertically  above  the  sun, 
whilst  Mr.  H.  G.  Williams,  of  Caterham,  observing  the  pheno- 
mena about  4  p.m.,  noted  that  the  sun  appeared  about  10°  above 
the  horizon.  So  far,  the  observations  of  two  or  three  parhelia 
with  two  halos  and  two  inverted  arches  agree  with  many  former 
descriptions.  In  the  diagram  appended,  however,  and  in  the 
majority  of  sketches  received,  the  inverted  arch  is  not  given  as 
the  arc  of  a  circle,  but  hyperbolic. 

Mr.  A.  J.  Butler,  observing  at  \Valton.-on-Thames,  remarks  : 
"The  hyperbolic  band  above  the  sun  was  carefully  noted  ;  "  and 
Mr.  C.  A.  Carus-Wilson,  in  the  following  observation  made  at 
Staines,  supports  this  view  : — 

"  The  sun  was  just  setting  behind  a  bank  of  hazy  mist,  appear- 
ing as  a  crimson  disk  enveloped  in  blue  grey  cloud  ;  I  first 
noticed  a  distinct  bow,  of  light  grey  tint,  and  coloured  for  a 
short  distance  at  its  left  extremity  with  the  ordinary  rainbow 
tints — red  inside.  There  then  appeared  a  part  of  a  second 
bow  outside  the  other,  coloured  throughout  the  whole  length 
visible — red  inside.  From  the  sun  vertically  upwards  to  the  first 
bow,  there  was  a  band  of  white  light,  quite  distinct  from  the 
light  grey  tint  of  the  lower  bow,  and  above  the  lower  bow  this 
band  continued  as  a  hyperbolic  brush  of  white  light :  this  brush 
was  much  brighter  and  better  defined  than  the  vertical  band,  A 
hasty  measurement,  with  a  pocket  sextant,  of  the  angular  radii  of 
the  two  bows,  gave  46°  and  23°  for  the  outside  and  inside  bows 
respectively." 

Mr.  H.  W.  Pyddoke  also  remarks  : — "  The  most  noticeable 
thing  of  all  was  the  shape  of  the  upper  bow,  which  was  like  a 
hyberbole  except  at  its  ends  where  it  bent  round  again  very 
slightly  ;  "  and  other  correspondents  concur  in  this  description 
of  the  shape  of  the  first  inverted  arch. 

From  the  descriptions  and  figures  given  it  is  evident  that  the 
two  parhelia  on  the  parhelic  circle  are  the  respective  centres  of 
halos  similar  to  the  first  halo  concentric  with  the  real  sun  ;  the 
intersection  of  these  two  circles  with  that  surrounding  the  sun 
gives  the  appearance  of  a  hyperbolic  curve  at  the  top  of  it.  An 
exactly  similar  appearance  was  drawn  by  Pastorff  as  occurring  on 
December  29,  1789,  and  is  found  in  his  "  Beobachtungen  dtr 
Sonnenflecke  "  ;  and  V AstTonoviie  for  August  1889  contains  a 
drawing  and  description  of  a  very  similar  appearance. 

Lunar  halos  followed  the  solar  halos  on  the  29th  ult.,  and 
on  the  following  day  Mr.  G.  B.  Buck  ton,  F.R.S.,  observed 
three  fine  parhelia  and  a  halo  at  Haslemere,  and  describes 
them  as  follows  : — 

"  The  sun  shone  brightly,  but  through  a  moderate  haze.  On 
the  right  and  on  the  left,  at  equal  altitudes  with  the  sun,  an 
oblong  bright  patch  of  light  appeared.  That  on  the  left  was  the 
brightest,  and  formed  a  blurred  image  of  the  sun  with  all  the 
prismatic  colours  of  the  rainbow,  but  the  colours  were  reversed 
in  order.  The  upper  and  lower  parts  of  these  mock  suns  were 
drawn  out,  and  formed  portions  of  a  large  circle  of  about  (by  eye 
estimate)  20°  radius.  These  images  were  connected  with  the 
haze,  but  a  lower  stratum  of  finely  striated  cloud  came  between 
the  eye  and  these  patches.  Immediately  above  the  true  sun  a 
third  patch  of  light  occurred,  through  which  a  portion  of  an  in- 


verted circle  was  seen,  the  greater  part  of  which  was  lost  in  the 
blue  of  the  sky  above.  The  right-hand  mock  sun  was  fainter 
than  the  other,  on  account  of  the  grey  haze  being  more  dense." 

Mr.  Buckton's  observation  is  a  demonstration  of  the  principle 
laid  down — namely,  that  parhelia  always  appear  at  the  same 
elevation  as  the  true  sun,  and  are  united  to  each  other  by  a 
white  horizontal  circle,  whose  pole  is  the  zenith.  This  circle 
changes  in  elevation  with  the  true  sun  ;  and  the  apparent  semi- 
diameter  is  always  equal  to  the  distance  of  the  luminary  from 
the  zenith. 

Mr,  Nagel,  of  Trinity  College,  Oxford,  notes  that :—"  The 
solar  halos  on  the  afternoon  of  January  29  were  very  clearly 
seen  in  Oxford ;  the  tangential  arc  to  the  outer  halo  was  ex- 
tremely brilliant,  and  the  two  mock  suns  at  the  extremities  of 
the  horizontal  diameter  of  the  inner  halo  were  well  marked. 
During  part  of  the  time  the  halos  lasted,  a  whitish  incomplete 
circle  was  seen  about  So''  from  the  sun,  and  consequently  beyond- 
the  zenith.  This  circle  seemed  to  correspond  to  that  first 
described  by  Helvelius  in  1661." 

It  is  evident  from  the  descriptions  given  that  the  parhelia 
are  not,  as  is  sometimes  supposed,  images  of  the  real  sun  at  all, 
but  only  the  junctions  of  two  of  the  circles  formed.  The  upper 
and  the  lower  parts  of  these  mock  suns  were  drawn  out  and 
connected  with  the  first  halo,  whilst  their  sides  were  observed  to- 
be  drawn  out  and  to  merge  into  the  parhelic  circle. 


THE  INSTITUTION  OF  MECHANICAL 
ENGINEERS. 

T^HE  forty-third  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Institution 
-^  of  Mechanical  Engineers  took  place  on  January  29,  30, 
and  31,  in  the  theatre  of  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers. 

The  papers  down  for  reading  and  discussion  were  as  follows  : 
on  the  compounding  of  locomotives  burning  petroleum  refuse  in 
Russia,  by  Mr.  Thomas  Urquhart,  Locomotive  Superintendent, 
Grazi  andTsaritsin  Railway,  South-East  Russia  ;  on  the  burning 
of  colonial  coal  in  the  locomotives  on  the  Cape  Government 
railways,  by  Mr.  Michael  Stephens,  Locomotive  Superin- 
tendent ;  and  on  the  mechanical  appliances  employed  in  the 
manufacture  and  storage  of  oxygen,  by  Mr.  Kenneth  S.  Murray, 
of  London.  The  latter  paper  was  communicated  through  Mr, 
Henry  Chapman, 

Mr,    Urquhart's   paper   is   one   of  a  series   of  excellent  and 
thoroughly  useful  descriptions  of  work   done  by  that  gentleman 
on  his  railway,   and  had  been  for  some  time  promised  to  the 
Institution.     In  order  to  satisfy  himself  as  to  the  utility   and 
saving   of  fuel   in    compound    locom.otives,     he    obtained    the 
sanction  of  the  Government  for  altering  one  locomotive  by  way 
of  experiment.     The  altered  engine  was    put  to  work,  and  the 
driver  was  allowed   over   a   month's    running  to  get  fully  ac- 
quainted with  the  handling  in  regular  service.      Comparative 
trials  were   then    made   of  the   compound  against  a  non-com- 
pound  locomotive   with    the   same    weight    of    train,    on    the 
same  days,    so    as   to   expose   them    both  to  the  same  circum- 
stances in  regard  to  weather.     It  was  clearly  proved  that  the 
compound   burnt   22   per  cent,    less  of  the    petroleum    refuse 
!  used  as  fuel  than  the  non-compound  engine,  and  the  author's 
I  experience  has  left  no  doubt  in  his  own  mind  that  compound 
j  locomotives  are  the  engines  of  the  future  in  all  countries.     Mr. 
i   Urquhart's  results  are  thoroughly  borne  out  by  those  obtained 
\  in  this  country  by  Messrs.  Worsdell  and  Webb.     Some  engi- 
neers suppose  that  this  great  economy  in  fuel  is  due   to  the 
higher  working  steam  pressure,  and  therefore  greater  expansion 
in  the  compound  engines  as  compared  with  the  non-compound 
engines. 

The  paper  by  Mr.  Michael  Stephens  is  a  description  of  the 
South  African  coal-fields,  their  discovery,  and  general  working 
within  the  last  sixteen  years.  It  appears  from  the  paper  that 
the  local  coal  cannot  be  burned  to  advantage  without  a  special 
arrangement  of  fire-bars — as  may  be  well  imagined,  since  it 
contains  nearly  30  per  cent,  of  incombustible  matter. 

Mr.  Kenneth  S.  Murray  gives  an  interesting  account  of  the 
commercial  preparation  of  oxygen  from  the  atmosphere  by 
means  of  the  alternate  heating  and  cooling  of  the  monoxide  of 
barium.  About  thirty  years  ago  the  eminent  French  chemist 
Boussingault  made  the  discovery  that,  at  a  temperature  of  about 
1000°  F.,  the  monoxide  of  barium  would  absorb  oxygen  readily 
from  the  atmosphere,  with  the  resulting  formation  of  the  dioxide  ; 


332 


NATURE 


{Feb.  6,  1890 


and  that  at  a  higher  temperature  of  about  1700°  F,  the  oxygen 
thus  absorbed  would  be  given  off  again,  and  the  monoxide  would 
apparently  be  restored  to  its  original  condition.  The  paper 
clearly  describes  the  machinery  required  for  the  manufacture  of 
oxygen  by  means  of  barium  oxide. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

Oxford. — The  lecture  lists  for  this  term  include  the  following 
courses  : — Prof.  Clifton,  Magnetism  ;  Mr.  Baynes,  Thermo- 
dynamics ;  Prof.  Odling,  Diacidic  Olefine  Acids ;  Mr.  Veley, 
Physical  Chemistry.  Prof.  Burdon-Sanderson  has  resumed  his 
lectures,  and  Mr.  Gotch  is  treating  of  the  Physiology  of  Muscle. 
Dr.  Tylor  lectures  on  the  Development  of  Religions. 

An  open  Fellowship  in  Mathematics  at  Christ  Church  has 
been  awarded  to  Mr.  C.  H.  Thompson,  Queen's  College,  Lec- 
turer in  Mathematics  at  Lampeter.  No  other  mathematical 
Fellowship  has  been  awarded  for  about  seven  years. 

The  arrangement  of  the  Pitt-Rivers  anthropological  collection 
at  the  Museum  is  proceeding  as  rapidly  as  the  constant  acqui- 
sition of  new  material  allows,  and  a  large  portion  of  the  collec- 
tion is  now  open  for  public  inspection. 

CAMBPaDGE.^ — At  the  next  meeting  of  the  Cambridge  Philo- 
sophical Society,  on  Monday,  February  10,  the  following  papers 
will  be  read  : — 

(i)  W.  Bateson  (St.  John's),  on  the  perceptions  and  modes  of 
feeding  of  fishes. 

(2)  A.  C.  Seward  (St.  John's),  notes  on  Lomatophloios. 

(3)  S.  F.  Harmer  (King's),  on  the  origin  of  the  embryos  in 
the  ovicells  of  Cyclostomatous  Polyzoa. 

Prof.  Stuart  has  communicated  to  the  Vice-Chancellor  his 
intention  of  resigning  the  Chair  of  Mechanism  and  Applied 
Science  before  the  end  of  the  current  academical  year. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  Journal  of  Mathematics,  vol.  xii..  No.  2  (Balti- 
more, January  1890). — The  number  opens  with  the  concluding 
part  of  Mr.  Forsyth's  paper  on  "  Systems  of  Ternariants  that 
are  Algebraically  Complete"  (pp.  1 15-160).  It  is  illustrated 
with  numerous  tables  and  closed  with  a  useful  abstract  of  con- 
tents.— In  the  following  memoir  (pp.  161-190),  by  Prof.  Franklin, 
on  "  Some  Applications  of  Circular  Co-ordinates,"  the  author 
investigates,  with  the  aid  of  these  co-ordinates,  some  interesting 
theorems  relating  to  the  orientation  of  systems  of  lines  given 
in  a  recent  volume  (vol,  x,  p.  258)  by  M.  Humbert.  Several 
further  illustrations  are  given,  and  the  memoir  closes  with  a 
discussion  of  the  curve  given  by  the  equation  sin  x^^/x  =  smydy. — 
Mr.  F.  N.  Cole  writes  (pp.  191-212)  on  "Rotations  in  Space 
of  Four  Dimensions,"  The  present  article  is  preliminary  to  a 
second  paper  on  groups  of  rotations  in  four-dimensional  space 
which  is  to  follow. 

Bulletins  de  la  Socicte  d^ Anthropologic,  tome  xii.,  serie  iii., 
fasc.  3  (Paris,  1889). — Continuation  of  M.  Dumont's  paper  on 
the  natality  of  Paimpol,  in  which  he  treats  at  great  length  of  the 
causes  which  influence  the  ratio  of  marriages  contracted  in  every 
hundred  of  the  population  in  the  maritime  districts  of  Brittany, 
and  of  the  number  of  children  born  in  each  family.  In  both  these 
respects  the  means  rank  amongst  the  lowest  for  all  France. 
One  cause  for  this  may  be  the  preponderance  of  women  over 
men,  a  large  number  of  the  latter  being  engaged  as  seamen,  or 
taking  part  in  the  Iceland  and  other  distant  fisheries.  Another 
factor  in  this  problem  is  probably  the  subdivision  of  property  among 
all  the  members  of  a  family,  who  in  the  peasant  and  small 
burgher  classes,  not  uncommonly  remain  together  all  their  lives, 
and  avoid  marriage  in  the  fear  of  diminishing  their  individual 
shares  of  the  patrimony.  This,  coupled  with  the  repugnance, 
so  common  among  the  French  peasantry,  against  large  families, 
leads  indirectly  to  late  marriages  or  to  celibacy,  and  has  thus 
exercised  a  baneful  influence  on  the  normal  increase  of  the 
population. — An  essay  on  the  classification  of  human  races, 
based  entirely  on  physical  characters,  by  M.  Denniker.  Believ- 
ing in  the  long  persistence  of  types  in  spite  of  the  constant  inter- 
mixture of  races,  the  author  thinks  that  it  is  only  by  a  careful 
study  of  the  typical  characteristics  in  a  so-called  ethnic  group 
that  we  can  arrive  at  any  correct  idea  of  the  affinities  between 
•different  races.     In  an  elaborate  synoptical  table  he  enumerates 


the  thirteen  races  which  he  proposes  for  his  classification,  adding 
separate  remarks  on  the  varieties  of  each. — The  dog,  by  M.  G. 
de  Mortillet.  Assuming  from  negative  evidence  the  non- 
existence of  the  dog  in  the  Quaternary  age,  the  author  traces  his 
presence  onwards  from  the  Kjokkenmoddings,  in  which 
abundant  remains  of  this  animal  are  to  be  found.  Passing  from 
the  prehistoric  ages  in  Europe  he  considers  at  length  the  evidence 
that  can  be  advanced  of  the  existence  of  several  varieties  of  the 
dog  among  the  Egyptians,  and  later  on  among  the  ancient 
Greeks  and  Romans ;  and  in  the  fact  of  the  innumerable 
varieties  of  Canis  domcsticus,  M.  de  Mortillet  believes  we  have 
one  of  the  most  conclusive  proofs  of  e volution. ^ — Observations 
on  the  skeletons  of  two  young  orangs,  by  M.  Herve. — Pre- 
Columbian  ethnography  of  Venezuela,  by  Dr.  Marcano.  The 
most  interesting  report  in  this  treatise  is  that  referring  to  the 
Grotto  de  Cerro  de  Luna,  owing  to  the  almost  absolute  certainly 
that  it  had  never  been  entered  since  Guiana  was  first  visited  by 
white  men.  Here  Dr.  Marcano  recovered  fifty- two  male,  and 
forty-three  female  skulls,  with  five  of  children,  together  with 
numerous  long  bones.  Among  these  skulls  many  were  painted 
red,  and  others  had  obviously  been  embalmed.  The  general 
mean  of  their  cephalic  index  was  79,  while  the  facial 
characters  were  mesorrhinic  and  prognathic. — On  correlative 
variations  in  the  biceps,  by  M.  G.  Herve. — A  report  of  the 
Seventh  Conference  on  Transformism,  by  M.  M.  Duval.  The 
author  here  gives  an  interesting  biographical  notice  of  the  great 
P'rench  savant  Lamarck,  entering  at  the  same  time  fully  into 
the  character  and  scope  of  his  researches,  and  showing  how  far 
his  views  differed  from,  or  approximated  to,  those  of  Darwin. 
As  a  rtsu7ne  of  what  Lamarck  attempted  on  the  same  lines  of 
inquiry  so  successfully  followed  by  Darwin,  M.  Duval's  report 
presents  much  interest  for  the  English  reader. — On  the  menhirs 
of  Morbihan,  by  M.  Gaillard. — On  the  discovery  of  Roben- 
hausian  flint  implements  near  Macon,  by  M.  Lafay. — Compari- 
son of  three  sub-species  of  man,  by  M.  Lombard. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Royal  Society,  January  23. — "  On  a  Photographic  Method 
for  determining  Variability  in  Stars."  By  Isaac  Roberts, 
F.R.  A.S.  Communicated  by  Prof  J.  Norman  Lockyer, 
F.R,S, 

Some  of  the  uncertainties  which  necessarily  attend, ^:he  de- 
termination of  variability  in  the  brightness  of  star^  by  eye 
observations  are  removed  by  the  application  of  phptographic 
methods,  and  particularly  by  that  of  giving  two  or  more  ex- 
posures of  the  same  photographic  plate  to  a  given  sky  space, 
with  intervals  of  days  or  weeks  between  each  exposure. 

In  this  way  any  errors  caused  by  atmospheric,  actinic,  or 
chemical  changes,  together  with  those  due  to  personal  bias,  are 
eliminated,  and  the  study  of  stellar  variability  can  be  pursued 
under  conditions  that  admit  of  the  necessary  exactitude. 

As  a'l  illustration  of  the  applicability  of  this  dual  photographic 
method,  the  enlargement  on  paper  from  the  negative  is  now 
submitted.  It  shows  the  results  obtained  by  two  exposures  of 
the  same  plate  to  the  sky  in  the  region  of  the  great  nebula  in 
Orion.  The  first  exposure  was  of  two  hours'  duration  on 
January  29,  and  the  second  of  two  and  a  half  hours  on 
February  3,  1889.  The  stellar  images  formed  during  the 
two  exposures  are  o"oi22ofan  inch  apart,  measured  from  centre 
to  centre,  and  therefore  comparable  with  each  other  in  the  field 
of  a  microscope.  When  the  images  are  examined  in  the 
manner  thus  indicated,  and  their  diameters  also  measured  by 
means  of  a  suitably  made  eye-piece  micrometer,  it  is  found  that 
at  least  ten  of  the  photographed  stars,  the  magnitudes  of  which 
are  estimated  to  range  between  the  7th  and  15th,  have  changed 
to  a  considerable  extent  in  the  short  interval  of  five  days. 

The  ten  stars  referred  to  are  to  be  found  within  an  area  of  less 
than  two  square  degrees  of  the  sky,  and  in  the  table  given  are 
the  co-ordinates  of  their  positions  with  reference  to  0  Orionis. 
The  measurements  of  the  diameters  of  their  photo  images  on  a 
scale  of  o"00002  of  an  inch  are  also  given. 

"Physical  Properties  of  Nickel  Steel."  By  J.  Hopkinson, 
D.Sc,  F.R.S. 

Mr.  Riley,  of  the  Steel  Company  of  Scotland,  has  kindly 
sent  me  samples  of  wire  drawn  from  the  material  concerning  the 
magnetic  properties  of  which  I  recently  made  a  communication 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


333 


lo  the  Royal  Society.^  As  already  stated,  this  material  contains 
25  per  cent,  of  nickel  and  about  74  per  cent,  of  iron,  and  over 
a  range  of  temperature  from  something  below  freezing  to  580°  C. 
it  can  exist  in  two  states,  magnetic  and  non-magnetic. 

The  wire  as  sent  to  me  was  magnetizable  as  tested  by  means 
of  a  magnet  in  the  ordinary  way.  On  heating  it  to  a  dull  red- 
ness, it  became  non-magnetizable,  whether  it  was  cooled  slowly 
or  exceedingly  rapidly  by  plunging  it  into  water.  A  quantity 
of  the  wire  was  brought  into  the  non-magnetizable  state  by 
heating  it,  and  allowing  it  to  cool.  The  electric  resistance  of  a 
portion  of  this  wire,  about  5  metres  in  length,  was  ascertained 
in  terms  of  the  temperature  ;  it  was  first  of  all  tried  at  the 
ordinary  temperature,  and  at  temperatures  up  to  340°  C.  The 
specific  resistances  at  these  temperatures  are  indicated  in  the 
curve  by  the  numbers  i,  2,  3.  The  wire  was  then  cooled  by 
means  of  solid  carbonic  acid  ;  the  supposed  course  of  change  of 
resistance  is  indicated  by  the  dotted  line  on  the  curve  ;  the  actual 
observations  of  resistance,  however,  are  indicated  by  the  crosses 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  letter  A  on  the  curve.     The  wire 


was  then  allowed  to  return  to  the  temperature  of  the  room,  and 
was  subsequently  heated,  the  actual  observations  being  showi> 
by  crosses  on  the  lower  branch  of  the  curve  ;  the  heating  was- 
continued  to  a  temperature  of  680'  C,  and  the  metal  was  then 
allowed  to  cool,  the  actual  observations  being  still  shown  by 
crosses.  From  this  curve,  it  will  be  seen  that  in  the  two  states 
of  the  metal,  magnetizable  and  non-magnetizable,  the  resist- 
ances at  ordinary  temperatures  are  quite  different.  The  specific 
resistance  in  the  magnetizable  condition  is  about  o'oooofa,  in 
the  non-magnetizable  condition  it  is  about  0"000072.  The  curve 
of  resistance  in  terms  of  the  temperature  of  the  material  in  the 
magnetizable  condition  has  a  close  resemblance  to  that  of  soft 
iron,  excepting  that  the  coefficient  of  variation  is  much  smaller, 
as,  indeed,  one  would  expect  it  to  be  in  the  case  of  an  alloy ;. 
at  20°  C.  the  coefficient  is  about  0*00132,  just  below  600°  C.  it 
is  about  0'0040,  and  above  600°  it  has  fallen  to  a  value  less  than 
that  which  it  had  at  20°  C.  The  change  in  electrical  resistance 
effected  by  cooling  is  almost  as  remarkable  as  the  change  in  the 
magnetic  properties. 


OOOOIZOO 

fic  Jiesistance. 

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^^ 

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*>• 

^ 

■ 
■ 

^ 

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a 
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> 

600 

SOO 

000004-00 

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a 
■ 
■ 

L^ 

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If 

A 

-  eoo     - 100 


zoo"        300°       400 


SOO'         700°  800' C 


Samples  of  the  wire  were  next  tested  in  Prof.  Kennedy's 
laboratory  for  mechanical  strength.  Five  samples  of  the  wire 
were  taken  which  had  been  heated  and  were  in  the  non-mag- 
netizable state,  and  five  which  had  been  cooled  and  were  in  the 
magnetizable  state.  There  was  a  marked  difTerence  in  the 
hardness  of  these  two  samples  ;  the  non-magnetizable  was  ex- 
tremely soft,  and  the  magnetizable  tolerably  hard.  Of  the  five  non- 
magnetizable  samples  the  highest  breaking  stress  was  50*52  tons 
per  square  inch,  the  lowest  4875  ;  the  greatest  extension  was  33*3 
per  cent.,  the  lowest  30  per  cent.  Of  the  magnetizable  samples, 
the  highest  breaking  stress  was  88 '12  tons  per  square  inch,  the 
lowest  was  8576;  the  highest  extension  was  8-33,  the  lowest 
670.  The  broken  fragments,  both  of  the  wire  which  had 
originally  been  magnetizable  and  that  which  had  been  non- 
magnetizable,  were  now  found  to  be  magnetizable.  If  this 
material  could  be  produced  at  a  lower  cost,  these  facts  would 
have  a  very  important  bearing.  As  a  mild  steel  the  non-mag- 
netizable material  is  very  fine,  having  so  high  a  breaking  stress 
for  so  great  an  elongation  at  rupture.  Suppose  it  were  used  for 
any  purpose  for  which  a  mild  steel  is  suitable  on  account  of  this 
considerable  elongation  at  rupture,  if  exposed  to  a  sharp  frost 
its  properties  would  be  completely  changed — it  would  become 
essentially  a  hard  steel,  and  it  would  remain  a  hard  steel  until 
it  had  been  heated  to  a  temperature  of  about  600°  C, 

Geological  Society,  January  22.— W.  T,  Blanford,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communication  was 
read  :— On  the  crystalline  schists  and  their  relation  to  the  Meso- 
zoic  rocks  in  the  Lepontine  Alps,  by  Prof.  T.  G.  Bonney, 
F.R.  S.  In  the  debate  upon  the  paper  on  two  traverses  of  the 
crystalline  rocks  of  the  Alps  (read  December  5,  1888)  it  was 
stated  that  rocks  had  been  asserted  on  good  authority  to  exist  in 
the  Lepontine  Alps,  which  contained  Mesozoic  fossils,  together 
with  garnets,  staurolites,  &c.,  and  thus  were  undistinguishable 
from  crystalline  schists  regarded  by  the  author  as  belonging  to 
the  presumably  Archaean  massifs  of  that  mountain-chain.  In 
reply  the  author  stated  that  he  regarded  this  as  a  challenge  to 
demonstrate  the  soundness  or  unsoundness  of  the  hypothesis  to 
which  he  had  committed  himself.  The  present  paper  gives  the 
result  of  his  investigations,  undertaken   in  the  month  of  July 

'  See  Address  to  the  Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers  (Nature,  January 
23.  p.  274). 


1889,  in  company  with  Mr.  James  Eccles,  to  whom  the  author  is 
deeply  indebted  for  invaluable  help.  The  paper  deals  with  the 
following  subjects  : — (i)  T/te  Andermatt  Section.  By  the  geo- 
logists aforepaid,  a  highly  crystalline  white  marble  which  occurs- 
on  the  northern  side  of  the  Urserenthal  trough,  at  and  above 
Altkircb,  near  Andermatt,  is  referred  to  the  Jurassic  series 
(members  of  w  hich  undoubtedly  occur  at  no  great  distance, 
almost  on  the  same  line  of  strike).  The  author  describes  the 
relation  of  the  marble  to  an  adjacent  black  schistose  slate,  and 
discusses  the  significance  of  some  markings  in  the  former  which 
might  readily  be  considered  as  organic,  but  to  which  he  assigns 
a  different  origin.  He  shows  that  there  are  most  serious 
difficulties  in  regarding  these  two  rocks  as  members  of  the  same 
series,  and  explains  the  apparent  sequence  as  the  result  of  a 
sharp  and  probably  broken  infold,  as  in  the  case  of  the  admitted 
band  of  Carboniferous  rock  at  Andermatt  itself.  That  the  sec- 
tion is  a  difficult  one  on  any  hypothesis  the  author  admits,  but 
in  regard  to  the  former  of  these,  after  a  discussion  of  the 
evidence,  he  concludes,  "  that  tendered  on  the  spot  demands  a 
verdict  of  '  not  proven ' — that  obtainable  in  other  parts  of  the 
Alps,  will  compel  us  to  add,  'not  provable.'  (2)  The  Schists 
of  the  Val  Piora.  These  schists,  already  noticed  by  the  author 
in  his  Presidential  address  to  the  Society  in  1886,  occur  in  force 
near  the  Lago  di  Ritom,  and  consist  of  two  groups — the  one 
dark  mica-schists,s  ometimes  containing  conspicuous  black 
garnets,  banded  with  quartzites,  the  other  various  calc-mica 
schists  ;  between  them,  apparently  not  very  persistent,  occurs 
a  schist  containing  rather  large  staurolites  or  kyanites.  On 
the  north  side  is  a  prolongation  of  the  garnet-actinolfte 
(Tremola-)  schists  of  the  St.  Gothard  and  then  gneiss, 
on  the  south  side  gneiss.  There  is  also  some  rauchwacke. 
This  lock,  at  first  sight,  appears  to  underlie  the  Piora 
schists,  and  thus  to  be  the  lowest  member  of  a  trough.  If 
so,  as  it  is  admittedly  about  Triassic  in  age,  the  Piora  schists 
would  be  Mesozoic.  The  author  shows  that  (i)  the  latter  rocks 
do  not  form  a  simple  fold  ;  (2)  they  are,  beyond  all  question, 
altered  sediments ;  (3)  they  have  often  been  greatly  crushed 
subsequent  to  mineralization  ;  (4)  the  garnets,  staurolites, 
&c.  (if  not  injured  by  subsequent  crushing)  are  well  de- 
veloped and  characteristic,  and  are  authigenous  minerals. 
(3)  The  Ratichxvacki  and  its  Relation  to  the  Schist,  {a)  The  Vat 
Piora  Sections :  Th.t  author  shows   that  the  rauchwacke,  which 


NA  TURE 


\Feb.  6,  1890 


at  first  sight  seems  to  underlie  the  darlc  mica- schist,  is  inconstant 
in  position   (on  the  assumption  of  a  stratigraphical  sequence) ; 
that  its  crystalline  condition  does  not  resemble  that  of  the  schist- 
series,  but  is  rather  such  as  is  common  in  a  rock  of  its  age ;  that 
it  contains  mica  and  other  minerals  of  derivative  origin,  and  in 
places  rock-fragments  which  precisely  resemble  members  of  the 
Piora  schist  series,     {b)    The    Val  Canaria   Section :   This   sec- 
tion, described  by  Dr.  Grubenmann,  is  discussed  at  length.     It 
is  shown  that  the  idea  of  a  simple  trough  is  not  tenable,  for 
identical  schists  occur  abovp  and  below  the  rauchwacke  ;    that 
there  is  evidence  of  great  pressure,  which,  however,  acted  sub- 
sequently to  the  mineralization  of  the  schists ;  and  that  in  one  place 
the  rauchewacke  is  full  of  fragments  of  the  very  schists  which  are 
supposed  to  overlie  it.     {c)  Nufenen  Pass,   ^'c.  :   Other  cases, 
further  to  the  west,  are  described,  where  confirmatory  evidence 
is  obtained  as  to  great  difference  in  age  between  the  rauchewacke 
and  the  schists,  and  the  antiquity  of  the  latter.     The  apparent 
interstratification  is  explained  by  thrust-faulting.    (4)  T/ie  Jurassic 
Pocks,  containing  Fossils  and  Minerals.     The  author  describes 
the  section  on  the  Alp  Vitgira,    Scopi,  and  the  Nufenen  Pass. 
Here  indubitable  Belemnites  and  fragments  of  Crinoids  occur  in 
a  dark,  schistose,  somewhat  micaceous  rock,  which  is  often  very 
full  of  "knots"  and    "prisms"  of  rather  ill-defined  external 
form,  something  like  rounded  garnets  and  ill-developed  stauro- 
lites.     These  rocks  at  the  Alp  Vitgira  appear  to  overlie,  and  in 
the  field  can  be  distinguished  from  the  black  garnet  schists.     In 
one  place  the  rock  resembles  a  compressed  breccia,  and  among 
the  constituent  fragments  is  a  rock  very  like  a  crushed  variety  of 
the   black-garnet   mica-schist.      These   Jurassic    "schists"    are 
totally  different  from  the  last-named  schists,  to  which  they  often 
present  considerable  superficial  resemblance  ;  for  instance,  their 
matrix  is  highly  calcareous,  the  other  rock  mainly  consisting  of 
silicates.     Some  of  the  associated  mica  may  be  authigenous,  but 
the  author  believes  much  of  it  and  other  small  constituents  to  be 
derivative.     There  is,  however,    a  mineral  resembling  a  mica, 
■exhibiting  twinning  with   (?)  simultaneous  extinction,  which  is 
authigenous.     The  knots  are  merely  matrix  clotted  together  by 
some  undefinable  silicate,   and  under  the  microscope  have  no 
resemblance  to  the  "  black  garnets."     The  prisms  are  much  the 
same,  but  slightly  better  defined  ;  they  present  no  resemblance 
to  the  i-taurolites,  but  may  be  couseranite,  or  a  mineral  allied  to 
•tlipyre.     Hence,  though  there  is  rather  more  alteration  in  these 
rocks  than  is  usual  with  members  of  the  Mesozoic  series,  and  an 
interesting  group  of  minerals  is  produced,  these  so-called  schists 
differ  about  as  widely  as  possible  from  the  crystalline  schists  of 
ihe  Alps,  and  do  not  affect  the  arguments  in  favour  of  the  anti 
quity  of  the  latter.     In  short,  they  may  be  compared  to  rather 
poor  forgeries  of  genuine  antiques.     Incidentally  the  author's 
•observations  indicate  (as  he  has  already  noticed)  that  a  cleavage- 
foliation  had  been  produced  in  some  of  the  Alpine  schists  anterior 
to  Triassic  times.  After  the  reading  of  this  paper.  Dr.  Geikie  stated 
that  he  had  sent  to  Prof.  Heim  an  abstract  of  the  paper  read  by 
Prof.  Bonney  to  the  British  Association  at  Newcastle,  and  Dr.  Heim 
had  favoured  him  with  a  resume  of  his  views  on  the  subject  of 
the  present  discussion.     Having  read  a  translation  of  this  resume, 
Dr.  Geikie  complimented  the  author  on  his  courage  in  returning 
to  this  difficult  ground,  but,  notwithstanding  the  arguments  so 
skilfully  brought  forward  that  evening,  he  was  not  convinced  of 
an  error  on  the  part  of  the  Swiss  geologists.     Even  the  author's 
own  sections  gave  some  countenance  to  their  views,  since  the 
dark  garnetiferous  schists  might  quite  well  be  part  of  the  same 
series  as  the  Belemnite-schists.     In  metamorphic  regions  there 
must  be  some  line,  on  one  side  of  which  fossils  are  recognizable, 
on  the  other  not  so.     In  the  Alps,  as  Heim  and  his  associates 
contend,  the  Belemnite-schists,   which  have   become   markedly 
crystalline,  may  be  less  altered  portions   of  masses  from  which 
all    trace  of  fossils  has  been  generally  obliterated.      Remarks 
were  also  made  by  Mr.   Eccles,   Mr.   Teall,    Dr.    Irving,  Prof 
Hughes,  the  Rev,  E.  Hill,  and  Prof.  Bonney. 

Entomological  Society,  January  15.— Fifty-seventh  Annual 
Meeting. — The  Right  Hon.  Lord  Walsingham,  F.R.  S.,  Presi- 
dent, in  the  chair. — An  abstract  of  the  Treasurer's  accounts, 
showing  that  the  finances  of  the  Society  were  in  a  thoroughly 
satisfactory  condition,  was  read  by  Dr.  Sharp,  one  of  the 
Auditors,  and  the  Report  of  the  Council  was  read  by  Mr.  H. 
Goss.  It  appeared  therefrom  that  the  Society  had  lost  during 
the  year  several  Fellows  by  death  and  had  elected  24  new 
J'ellows  ;  that  the  volume  of  Transactions  for  the  year  extended 
to  nearly  600  pages,  and  comprised  23  memoirs,  contributed  by 


20  authors  and  illustrated  by  17  plates  ;  and  that  the  sale  of  the 
Society's  Transactions  and  other  publications  is  largely  on  the 
increase.  It  was  then  announced  that  the  following  gentlemen 
had  been  elected  as  Officers  and  Council  for  1890  : — President, 
The  Right  Hon.  Lord  Walsingham,  F.  R.S.  ;  Treasurer,  Mr. 
Edward  Saunders  ;  Secretaries,  Mr.  Herbert  Goss  and  the 
Rev.  Canon  Fowler  ;  Librarian,  Mr.  Ferdinand  Grut ;  and  as 
other  Members  of  Council,  Mr.  J.  W.  Dunning,  Caotain  H.  J. 
Elwes,  Mr.  F.  DuCane-Godman,  F.R.S.,  Dr.  P. 'B.  Mason, 
Prof  R.  Meldola,  F.R.S.,  Mr.  R.  South,  Mr.  Henry  T.  Stainton, 
F.R.S.,  and  Mr.  Roland  Trimen,  F.R.S.  Lord  Walsingham 
nominated  Mr.  J.  W.  Dunning,  Captain  Elwes  and  Mr.  F. 
DuCane-Godman,  Vice-Presidents  for  the  Session  1890-91, 
and  he  then  delivered  an  address.  After  remarking  on  the 
attractive  beauty  of  some  of  the  larger  diurnal  Lepidoptera,  and 
the  brilliant  metallic  colouring  of  certain  species  of  Coleoptera, 
the  influence  that  such  magnificent  examples  of  the  wealth  of 
design  in  Nature  might  have  upon  artistic  taste,  and  the  con- 
sequent refinement  and  increased  enjoyment  of  life.  Lord  Walsing- 
ham referred,  in  illustration  of  the  practical  usefulness  of 
entomological  studies,  to  the  successful  importation  into  California 
of  the  Australian  parasites  infesting  the  scale  insect  {Icerya 
purchasi),  which  had  proved  so  noxious  to  the  orange  plantations. 
Through  the  efforts  of  Prof  Riley,  upwards  of  10,000  parasites 
had  been  distributed  and  had  since  spread  very  widely,  so  that 
in  many  localities  the  orange  and  other  trees  hitherto  thickly 
infested  with  this  noxious  insect  had  been  practically  cleared  of 
it  by  their  aid.  He  also  referred  to  the  successful  fertilization  of 
red  clover  in  New  Zealand  by  the  importation  of  impregnated 
queens  of  the  common  humble-bee,  and  to  the  uses  to  which  the 
silk  produced  by  various  exotic  species  of  Bombycidas  had  now 
been  successfully  applied.  Reference  was  then  made  to  the 
investigation  instituted  by  Mr.  Francis  Galton,  F.  R.  S.,  and  to  the 
experiments  of  Mr.  F.  Merrifield,  with  the  view  of  determining 
the  percentage  of  hereditary  transmission  to  successive  offspring 
by  different  generations  of  successors,  and  to  the  valuable 
auxiliary  such  experiments  and  the  researches  of  Prof.  Weismann, 
Mr.  Poulton,  F.R.  S.,  and  others  might  prove  to  the  study  of  the 
laws  of  heredity,  protective  resemblance,  and  natural  selection. 
It  was  then  observed  that  even  if  the  study  of  entomology  could 
claim  to  have  conferred  no  greater  benefits  upon  the  human 
race  than  to  have  afforded  to  many  members  of  our  urban 
population  an  inducement  to  improve  their  minds  and  recreate 
their  bodies,  it  would  have  contributed  in  no  small  degree  to  the 
sum  of  human  health,  happiness,  and  morality  ;  in  connection 
with  these  remarks  he  quoted  the  words  of  the  Abbe  Umhang  in 
the  obituary  notice  of  Henri  de  Peyerimhofif,  "J'ai  connu  plus 
d'un  jeune  homme  qui  s'est  passionne  pour  une  branche  de 
I'histoire  naturelle,  et  je  n'en  ai  vu  aucun  s'ecarter  du  chemin  de 
la  vertu  et  de  I'honneur."  Attention  was  then  drawn  to  the 
enormous  numbers  of  species  of  Insecta  as  compared  with  the 
numbers  of  species  of  other  orders  of  the  animal  kingdom,  and 
an  approximate  estimate  was  made  of  the  extent  of  the  field  of 
entomology,  and  of  its  relation  to  other  branches  of  biological 
study.  In  connection  with  the  subject  of  the  principal  works  in 
entomology  continued  or  completed  during  the  year,  special 
mention  was  made  of  the  "  Biologia  Centrali  Americana,"  by 
Messrs.  Godman  and  Salvin,  and  the  "  Revisio  Insectorum 
Familise  Mantidarum,"  by  Prof.  Westwood.  In  conclusion, 
Lord  Walsingham  referred  to  the  losses  by  death  during  the 
past  year  of  several  Fellows  of  the  Society  and  other  entomo- 
logists, mention  being  made  of  Mr.  F.  Bond,  Dr.  Signoret, 
Mons.  Puis,  Colonel  C.  J.  Cox,  Pastor  Holmgren,  Dr.  Franz 
Low,  Dr.  Karl  Venus,  and  the  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood.  Votes  of  thanks 
having  been  passed  to  the  President,  Secretaries,  and  Librarian, 
Lord  Walsingham,  Mr.  H.  Goss,  Canon  Fowler,  and  Mr.  Grut 
replied. 

Linnean  Society,  January  16. — Mr.  J.  G.  Baker,  F.R.S., 
Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  Clement  Reid  exhibited  and 
made  some  remarks  upon  a  collection  of  fruit  of  Trapa  natans, 
from  the  Cromer  Forest  bed  at  Mundesley. — Mr.  J.  G.  liaker 
exhibited  and  described  a  collection  of  cryptogamic  plants  from 
New  Guinea,  upon  which  Mr.  A.  W.  Bennett  and  Captain 
Elwes  made  some  critical  remarks. — In  the  absence  of  the 
author,  Mr.  A.  Barclay,  a  paper  was  read  by  Mr.  B.  D.  Jack- 
son on  the  life-history  of  a  remarkable  Uredine  on  yasminum 
grandijiora.  A  discussion  ensued  in  which  Mr.  A.  W. 
Bennett  and  Prof.  Marshall  Ward  took  part. — This  was  followed 
by  a  paper  from  Mr.  Edward  E.  Prince,  on  certain  protective 
provisions  in  some  larval  British  Teleosteans. 


Feb.  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


135 


Royal  Microscopical  Society,  January  8. — Rev.  Dr. 
Dallinger,  F.R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  T.  F. 
Smith  exhibited  to  the  meeting,  by  means  of  the  oxyhydrogen 
lantern,  a  series  of  photomicrographs  of  various  diatoms  taken 
with  Zeiss's  apochromatic  objectives  and  projection  eye-pieces,  , 
giving  powers  of  1000  to  7500  diameters.  At  the  conclusion  of 
the  exhibition  Mr.  Smith  presented  the  series  of  slides — 52 
in  number — to  the  Society  for  future  use  and  reference. — Mr. 
T.  C.  White  exhibited  a  specimen  of  a  parasite  found  in  the 
cockroaches  which  infest  sugar-ships  ;  also  a  slide  containing 
bacilli  in  large  numbers  from  a  urinary  deposit. — A  paper  by 
Dr.  R.  L.  Maddox,  on  a  small  glass  rod  illuminator,  was  read. — 
Owing  to  the  lateness  of  the  hour,  the  reading  of  papers  by  Mr. 
Michael  and  Dr.  Czapski  was  postponed  until  the  March 
meeting. 

Chemical  Society,  January  16. — Dr.  W.  J.  Russell,  F.R.S., 
in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read  : — A  new  method 
of  estimating  the  oxygen  dissolved  in  water,  by  Dr.  J.  C.  Thresh. 
The  process  is  based  on  the  fact  that  whereas,  in  the  absence  of 
oxygen,  nitrous  acid  and  hydrogen  iodide  interact,  forming 
iodine,  water,  and  nitric  oxide,  in  the  presence  of  oxygen  the 
nitric  oxide  becomes  re-oxidized,  and,  serving  as  a  carrier  of  the 
oxygen,  brings  about  an  additional  separation  of  iodine,  equiva- 
lent in  amount  to  the  oxygen  present ;  hence,  deducting  the 
amount  of  iodine  liberated  by  the  nitrous  acid  and  by  the  oxygen 
dissolved  in  the  solutions  used  from  the  total  amount,  the  differ- 
ence will  be  that  corresponding  to  the  oxygen  dissolved  in  the 
water  examined.  The  apparatus  required  is  a  very  simple  one, 
the  analytical  operations  are  conducted  in  an  atmosphere  of  coal 
gas,  and  the  results  in  the  case  of  freshly  distilled  water  agree 
closely  with  those  recently  published  by  Sir  H.  E.  Roscoe  and 
Mr.  Lunt  (Chem.  Soc.  Trans.,  1889,  552). — Note  on  a  milk  of 
abnormal  quality,  by  Mr.  F.  J.  Lloyd.  The  author  gave  the 
results  of  an  examination  of  the  milk  of  two  cross-bred  short- 
horns, and  called  attention  to  the  abnormally  low  proportion  of 
solid  constituents  other  than  fat. — The  sulphates  of  antimony,  by 
Mr.  R.  H.  Adie. 

Zoological  Society,  January  14. — Prof.  A.  Newton, 
F.  R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  read  a 
report  on  the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's 
menagerie  during  the  month  of  December  1889. — Mr.  Sclater 
exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  a  specimen  of  a  very  singular 
duck  from  North-East  Asia,  apparently  referable  to  the  genus 
Tadorna,  sent  to  him  for  determination  by  Dr.  Liitken,  of 
Copenhagen.  After  a  careful  examination  Mr.  Sclater  was  in- 
clined to  think  that  it  was  probably  a  hybrid  between  Tadorna 
casarca  and  Qiierquedida  falcata. — Mr.  Sclater  exhibited  and 
made  remarks  on  a  set  of  small  birds'  bones  obtained  from 
beneath  some  deposits  of  nitrate  in  Southern  Peru,  transmitted 
lo  the  Society  by  Prof.  W.  Nation. — Mr.  David  Wijson-Barker 
exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  some  specimens  of  Teredos  taken 
from  submarine  telegraphic  cables  off  the  Brazilian  coast. — Prof. 

F.  Jeffrey  Bell  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  some   living 
specimens  of  Bipalium,  transmitted  to  the  Society  by  the  Rev. 

G.  H.  R.  Fisk,  of  Capetown. — A  communication  was  read  from 
Mr.  R.  Lydekker,  containing  an  account  of  a  new  species  of 
extinct  olter  from  the  Lower  Pliocene  of  Eppelsheim.  The 
author  described  part  of  the  lower  jaw,  which  he  had  previously 
referred  to  Luira  dtibia,  fiom  the  deposits  indicated.  Having, 
however,  now  seen  a  cast  of  the  type  of  the  latter,  he  found  that 
the  present  specimen  indicated  a  distinct  species,  for  which  the 
name  L.  hessica  was  proposed. — A  communication  was  read 
from  Prof.  Bertram  C.  A.  Windle  and  Mr.  John  Humphreys, 
on  some  cranial  and  dental  characters  of  the  domestic  dog.  The 
paper  was  based  on  the  results  of  the  measurements  of  a  large 
number  of  dogs'  skulls  of  various  breeds.  Its  object  was  to 
ascertain  whether  cranial  and  dental  characteristics  afforded 
sufficient  information  to  permit  of  a  scientific  classification  of  the 
breeds,  or  would  throw  any  light  upon  their  origin.  The  con- 
clusion so  far  arrived  at  was  that  interbreeding  had  been  so 
extensive  and  complicated  as  to  make  it  impossible  to  distinguish 
the  various  forms  scientifically  from  the  characters  examined. 
Several  points  with  regard  to  the  shape  of  head  and  palate  and 
the  occasional  occurrence  of  an  extra  molar  were  also  touched 
upon.^Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger  read  the  fourth  of  his  series  of 
contributions  to  the  herpetology  of  the  Solomon  Islands.  The 
present  memoir  gave  an  account  of  the  last  collection  brought 
home  by  Mr.  C.  M.  Woodford.  Besides  known  species,  this 
collection  contained  examples  of  a  new  snake,  proposed  to  be 


called  Hoplocephalus  elapoides. — A  second  paper  by  Mr.  Bou- 
lenger contained  a  list  of  the  reptiles,  batrachians,  and  freshwater 
fishes  collected  by  Prof.  Moesch  and  Mr.  Iversen  in  the  districts 
of  Delhi  and  Langkat,  in  North-Eastem  Sumatra. — Dr.  Giinther, 
F.R.S.,  read  a  paper  entitled  "A  Contribution  to  our  Know- 
ledge of  British  Pleuronectidse."  The  author  described  the  true 
Arnoglossus  grohmanni,  a  Mediterrariean  scald-fish,  recently 
discovered  by  the  Rev.  W.  S.  Green  on  the  Irish  coast,  and 
quite  distinct  from  Arnoglossus  lopJiotes.  Dr.  Giinther  also 
stated  that  the  Mediterranean  lemon-sole  {Solca  lascaris)  was 
specifically  identical  with  the  British  species  {Solea  aiirantiacd), 
but  was  distinct  from  that  of  the  Canary  Islands  and  Madeira 
{Solea  scriba)  ;  and  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  Mediterranean' 
Solea  lutea  and  British  Solea  viinuta  cannot  be  separated  by  any 
constant  character. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  January  6. — Lord  Maclaren,  Vice-President, 
in  the  chair. — Bailie  Russell  read  an  obituary  notice  of  the  late 
Sir  James  Falshaw,  Bart. — Prof.  Tait  read  a  paper  on  the  effect 
of  friction  on  vortex-motion. — Dr.  A.  Bruce  described  a  con- 
nection (hitherto  undescribed)  of  the  inferior  olivary  body  of 
the  medulla  oblongata,  which  has  a  function  in  the  maintenance 
cf  equilibrium  of  the  body. — Dr.  W.  H.  Perkin  read  a  paper 
on  the  internal  condensation  of  some  diketones. — A  photograph 
of  a  group  of  sun-spots  and  of  the  surface  of  the  sun  was  pre- 
sented by  Mr.  James  Naismith.  The  photograph  was  from  a 
drawing  made  in  1864. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  January  27. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  clasmatocytes,  by  M.  L.  Ranvier.  The  author  gives 
this  name  (from  KKafffia,  fragment,  and  kvtos,  cell)  to  certain 
elements  which  are  easily  detected  under  the  microscope  in  the 
thin  connective  membranes  of  the  vertebrates  when  they  are  pre- 
pared by  a  process  here  described.  They  are  not  migratory 
cells,  but  have  their  origin  in  the  leucocytes,  or  lymphatic  cells, 
though  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  all  leucocytes  develop  into- 
clasmatocytes. — On  the  theorem  of  Euler  in  the  theory  of  poly- 
hedrons, by  M.  de  Jonquieres.  The  paper  deals  with  Lhuilier's 
objection,  accepted  by  Gergonne,  against  the  generalization  of 
Euler's  formula,  which  is  shown  to  be  applicable  to  all  poly- 
hedrons, whether  convex  or  not.  It  is  further  placed  beyondi 
doubt  that  Euler  not  only  enounced,  but  gave  a  full  demonstra- 
tion of  the  formula  in  question. — On  the  roots  of  an  algebraic 

equation,  by  Prof.  A.  Cayley.     Assuming    /  {u)  to  be  a  rational 

and  integral  function,  with  real  or  imaginary  coefficients,  of  the 

n  order;  and  supposing  that  the  equation   /  {ti)  =  o,  of  the  order 

I,   has  «  -  I   roots,   then  it  is   shown  that  the    equation- 

{u)  =  o  will  have  «  roots.     The  demonstration  rests  on  the 


/ 


same  principles  as  those  of  Gauss  and  Cauchy. — Researches  on 
the  cultivation  of  the  potato,  by  M.  Aime  Girard.  The  author 
communicates  the  re>ults  of  his  experiments,  continued  for  three 
years  at  the  Ferme  de  la  Faisanderie,  Joinville-le-Pont,  with  the 
variety  of  the  potato  known  as  Richter's  Imperator,  which  is 
shown  to  yield  a  far  larger  crop  of  starch-bearing  tubers  than  any 
other  variety  cultivated  in  France.  The  paper  was  supplemented 
by  some  remarks  by  M.  P.  P.  Deherain,  who  stated  that  his  own 
experiments  fully  confirmed  those  of  M.  Girard.  There  could  be 
no  doubt  as  to  the  great  superiority  of  Richter's  Imperator, 
especially  as  a  starch-producing  tuber. — Remarks  on  the 
Annualrc  dti  Bureau  des  Longittides  for  1890,  by  M.  Faye. 
In  presenting  a  copy  of  this  valuable  annual  for  1890,  M.  Faye 
remarked  that  the  astronomic  section  of  the  work  became  more 
important  every  year.  The  present  volume  contains  a  table  of 
the  planetary  phenomena,  the  most  accurate  available  data  for  the 
variable  stars,  a  catalogue  of  the  chief  stars  whose  magnitudes  cor- 
respond to  Pickering's  photometric  scale,  papers  on  the  use  of  the 
aneroid  barometer,  on  the  elasticity  of  solids  and  the  neutral  tem- 
perature of  thermo-electric  couples,  together  with  the  magnetic 
elements  for  France  and  its  seaports  on  January  i,  1890,  and  at 
various  Mediterranean  stations  for  1887. — On  the  simply  rational 
transformations  of  algebraic  surfaces,  by  M.  Paul  Painleve.  In 
this  paper  the  author  extends  to  the  transformations  in  question 
M.  Picard's  method  relative  to  the  biralional  transformations 
of  algebraic  surfaces. — ,On  the  substitution  of  the  salts  in  mixed 
solutions,  by  M.   A.  Etard.      In  his  previous   researches   the 


33(^ 


NATURE 


[Fed.  6,  1890 


author  determined  the  lines  of  complete  solubility  for  a  mixture 
of  potassium  and  sodium  chlorides,  varying  the  quantity  of  the 
metals  saturated  by  the  same  metalloid  as  a  function  of  the  tem- 
perature. He  studies  the  reverse  case  here,  determining  the 
results  when  in  a  solution  of  the  same  metal  the  metalloids  are 
varied. — On  the  different  states  of  iodine  in  solution,  by  MM. 
Henri  Gautier  and  Georges  Charpy.  Iodine  solutions  are 
usually  divided  into  two  classes^brown  (alcohol,  ether,  &c.) 
and  violet  (sulphur  of  carbon,  chloroform,  benzine,  &c.).  The 
molecular  weights  have  been  determined  by  Raoult's  method, 
and  results  were  obtained  varying  from  330  to  489,  according  to 
the  solvent ;  Loeb's  results  are  thus  confirmed  and  amplified. 
— Calorimetric  study  of  the  phosphites  and  pyro-phosphite 
of  soda,  by  M.  L.  Amat.  These  researches  fully  confirm 
the  author's  previous  conclusion  that  the  acid  phosphite  of 
soda,  POjH.NaH,  may,  by  the  simple  process  of  drying, 
lose  water  and  become  transformed  into  pyrophosphite  of 
soda,  a  substance  differing  in  many  of  its  properties  from  the 
acid  phosphite. — A  study  of  the  pneumococcus  occurring  in  the 
fibrine  pneumonia  consecutive  to  la  grippe  (influenza),  by  MM. 
G.  See  and  F.  Bordas.  From  these  clinical  researches,  made 
on  a  large  number  of  patients  in  the  Hotel-Dieu,  the  authors 
<:onclude  that  pneumonia  is  not  only  a  local  affection  caused  by 
infection,  but  that  it  is  itself  infecting  in  the  sense  that  it  may 
invade  other  organs. — Papers  were  read  by  M.  Chr.  Bohr,  on 
pulmonary  respiration  ;  by  M.  Abel  Dutartre,  on  the  poison 
of  the  land  salamander;  by  M.  Ch.  Mu?set,  on  "  selenotrop- 
ism  "  (influence  of  moonlight  on  plants)  ;  by  M.  A.  de  Schulten, 
on  the  artificial  reproduction  of  malachite  all  but  identical  in 
density,  hardness,  and  crystallization  with  the  natural  stone  ;  by 
M.  A.  de  Grossouvre,  on  the  presence  of  Alpine  f>;ssils  in  the 
Callovian  formation  of  the  west  of  France  ;  and  by  M.  Ch.  V. 
Zenger,  on  the  magnetic  storms  and  auroras  boreales  of  the  years 
1842-57. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  Feuruarv  6. 

■RovAL  Society,  at  4.30. — A  New  Theory  of  Colour-blindness  and  Colour- 
perception  ;  Dr.  Edndge  Green. — Memoir  on  the  Symmetrical  Functions 
of  the  Roots  of  Systems  of  Equations  :  Percy  A.  MacMahon,  Major  R.A. 

fLiNNKAN    SociKTV,   at    8. — On  the  Stamens  and  Setae  of  Scirpese  :  C.  B. 

Clarke,  F.R.S.— On  the  Flora  of  Patagonia:  John  Ball,  F.R.S. 
Chemical  Society,  at  8.— Ballot  for  the  Election  of  Fellows.— The  Oxides 
of  Nitrogen  :  Prof.  Ramsay,  F.R.S. —Studies  on  the  Constitution  of  Tri- 
Derivatives  of  Naphthalene  :  Dr.  Armstrong  and  W.  P.  Wynne. — On  the 
Action  of  Chromium  Oxychloride  on  Nitrobenzole  :  G.  G.  Henderson  and 
J.  Morrow  Campbell. 

'Royal  Institution,  at  3.— Sculpture  in  Relation  to  the  Age:  Edwin 
Roscoe  Mullins. 

FRIDAY,  February  7. 

•Physical  Society,  at  5. — Annual  General  Meeting.— On  Galvanometers  : 
Prof.  W.  E.  Ayrton,  F.R.S.,  T.  Mather,  and  W.  E.  Sumpner.— On  a 
Carbon  Deposit  in  a  Blake  Telephone  Transmitter  :  F.  B.  Hawes. 

Geologists'  Association,  at  7.30. — Annual  General  Meeting. — Notes  on 
the  Nature  of  the  Geological  Record  :  The  President. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  S-— The  Utility  of  Forests  and  the  Study  of  Forestry  : 
Dr.  Schlich. 

•Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— Reclamation  of  Land  on  the 
River  Tees  :  Colin  P.  Fowler. 

•Royal  Institution,  at  9.— The  London  Stage  in  Elizabeth's  Reign: 
Henry  B.  Wheatley. 

SATURDAY,  February  8. 
Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3.— The  Natural  History  of  the  Horse,  and  of 
its  Extinct  and  Existing  Allies  :  Prof.  Flower,  C.B.,  F.R.S. 

MONDAY,  February  10. 

JR.0YAL  Geographical  Society,  at  8.30.— Search  and  Travel  in  the  Cau- 
casus ;  an  Account  of  the  Discovery  of  the  Fate  of  the  Party  lost  in  rSSS  : 
Douglas  W.  Freshfield  (illustrated  by  Photographs  by  Signor  V.  Sella  and 
H.  WooUey). 

.Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— The  Electromagnet :  Dr.  Silvanus  P.  Thompson. 

TUESDAY,  February  ii. 
Anthropological    Institute,   at    8.30.— Exhibition    of    some    Skulls, 

dredged  by  G.  F.  Lawrence  from  the  Thames,  in  the  Neighbourhood  of 

Kew :  Dr.  Garson  —Characteristic  Survivals  of  the  Celts  in  Hampshire  : 

T.  W.  Shore. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— Cast  Iron  and  its  Treatment  for  Artistic  Purposes  : 

W.  R.  Lethaby. 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8.— Bars  at  the  Mouths  of  Tidal 

Estuaries  :  W.  H.  Wheeler. 
■Royal  Institution,  at    3.— The  Post-Darwinian  Period:  Prof.   G.  J. 

Romanes,  F.R.S. 
University  College  Biological  Society,  ats  15.— Some  Aberrant  Coleo- 

ptera :  S.  V.  Tebbs. 

WEDNESDAY,  February  12. 
Royal   Microscopical    Society,  at    8.— Annual  Meeting.— President's 

Address. 
■•'J^'BTVOF  Arts,  at  8.— Modern  Improvements  in  Facilities  for  R.tilway 

Travelling  :  George  Findlay. 


THURSDAY,  February  13 
Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 
Mathematical  Society,  at  8. — Concerning  Semi-invariants:  S.  Roberts, 

F.R.S.— Ether-Squirts  :  Prof.  K.  Pearson. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Kngineers,  at  8. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Three  Stages  of  Shakspeare's  Art ;  Rev. 

Canon  Ainger. 

FRIDAY,  February  14. 
Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  3  — Anniversary  Meeting. 
RovAL  Institution,  at  9. — Problems  in  the  Physics  of  an  Electric  Lamp  ; 

Prof.  J.  A.  Fleming. 

SATURDAY,  February  15. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism:  Right  Hon.  Lord 
Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Medical  Electricity  and  Massage  :  H.  N.  Lawrence  (Gill). — .A.  Theory  of 
Lunar  Surfacing  by  Glaciation  :  S.  E.  Peal  rrh.acker). — Einleitung  in  die 
chemische  Krystallographie :  Dr.  A.  Fock  (Leipzig,  Engelmann). — Ele- 
mente  der  Palaontologie,  2  ,Halfte  :  Dr.  G.  Steinmann  and  Dr.  L.  Doderlein 
(Leipzig,  Engelmann). — L' Evolution  du  Systeme  Nerveux  :  H.  Beaunis 
(Paris,  J.  B.  Bailliere). — A  Theory  of  Gravitation  :  T.  Wakelin  (Petherick). 
— The  Psychology  of  Attention :  T.  Ribot  (Chicago,  Open  Court  Publishing 
Company). — English  Intercourse  with  .Siam  in  the  Seventeenth  Century  : 
Dr.  J.  Anderson  (K.  Paul). — Contributions  to  the  Fauna  of  Mergui  and  its 
Archipelago,  2  vols.  (Taylor  and  Francis). — Report  of  the  Commissioner  of 
Education  for  the  Year  1887-88  (Washington). — The  Library  Reference  Atlas 
of  the  World:  J.  Bartholomew  (Macmillan). — Science  and  Scientists:  Rev. 
J.Gerard  (London). — Le  Climat  de  la  Belgique  en  1889:  A.  Lancaster 
(Bruxelles). — Tylar's  Practical  Hints  and  Photographic  Calendar,  1890 
(Tylar,  Birmingham). — Results  of  Astronomical  Observations  made  at  the 
Melbourne  Observatory  in  the  Years  1881-84  (Melbourne). — Babbage's  Cal- 
culating Engines  (Spon). — Practical  Hints  for  Electrical  Students,  vol.  i  : 
Kennelly  and  Wilkinson  {Electrician  Office). — Lehrbuch  der  Meteorologie  : 
Dr.  W.  J.  Van  Bebber  (Stuttgart,  Enke). — Is  the  Copernican  System  of 
Astronomy  True  ?  :  W.  S.  Cassedy  (Kittanning,  Pa.). — New  Zealand  for  the 
Emigrant,  Invalid,  and  Tourist:  J.  M.  Moore  (S.  Low). — Fauna  der  Gas- 
kohle  und  der  Kalksteine  der  Permformation  Bohmens,  Band  2,  Heft  n  :  Dr. 
Ant.  Fritsch  (Prag). — The  Extermination  of  the  American  Bison:  W.  T. 
Hornaday  (Washington). — Iowa  Weather  Report,  i878-7g-8o-82-83-84- 85-87 
(Des  Moines,  Iowa). — U.S.  Commission  of  Fish  and  Fisheries;  Part  XIV., 
Report  of  the  Commissioner  for  1886  (Washington). — Report  on  Insect  and 
Fungus  Pests,  No.  i  :  H.  Tryon  (Brisbane,  Beal). — La  Photographie  a  la 
Lumiere  du  Magnesium:  Dr.  J.  M.  Eder  (Paris,  Gauthier-Villars). — Notes 
upon  a  Proposed  Photographic  Survey  of  Warwickshire  :  W.  J.  Harrison 
(Birmingham). — Chinese  Games  with  Dice:  S.  Culin  (Philadelphia). — An- 
cient Symbolism  among  the  Chinese  :  Dr.  J.  Edkins  (Triibner). — Journal  of 
the  Royal  Statistical  Society,  December  (Stanfor4). — Charts  showing  the 
Normal  Monthly  Ramfall  in  the  United  States  (Washington). 

CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Tavernier's  Travels  in  India.     By  H.  F.  B 313 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Ball:   "Star  Land" 315 

"The  Magic  Lantern:  its  Construction  and  Use"  .    .    315 
Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. — W. 
T.  Thiselton    Dyer,  C.M.G.,   F.R.S.  ;    F.  V. 

Dickins      315 

Eight  Rainbows  seen  at  the  Same  Time.   {Illustrated. ) 
— Sir  \A^iIliam  Thomson,  F.R.S.;  Dr.  Percival 

Frost,  F.R.S -316 

Thought   and    Breathing. — Prof.  F.  Max    Miiller; 

Rev.  W.  Clement  Ley 317 

Chiff-Chaff  singing   in  September. — Rev.   W.   Cle- 
ment Ley 317 

Foreign    Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — Dr.    R.   v. 

Lendenfeld 317 

Foot-Founds.— Prof.  A.  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.  ;  V.     317 
Prof.  Weismann's  Theory  of  Heredity.     By  Prof.  A. 

Weismann 317 

The  Life  and  Work  of  G.  A.  Hirn.     By  Prof.  A.  G. 

Greenhill,  F.R.S 323 

Notes 324 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 326 

Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  1886 327 

Annua're  du  Bureau  des  Longitudes 327 

Annuaire  de  I'Observatoire  Royal  de  Bruxelles     .    ,    .    327 

Royal  Astronomical  Society 327 

Geographical  Notes 327 

Smokeless  Explosives.     I.     By  Sir  Frederick  Abel, 

F.R.S 328 

Solar  Halos  and  Parhelia.     [Illustrated.) 330 

The  Institution  of  Mechanical  Engineers 331 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 332 

Scientific  Serials 332 

Societies  and  Academies 332 

Diary  of  Societies •     .    336 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 336 


NA TURE 


337 


THURSDAY,  FEBRUARY  13,  1890. 


RELIGIOUS  INSTITUTIONS  OF  THE  SEMITES. 

Lectures  on  the  Religion  of  the  Semites.  The  Funda- 
mental Institutions.  By  W.  Robertson  Smith,  (Edin- 
burgh :  Black,  1889.) 
THE  volume  before  us  contains  the  first  series  of 
lectures  on  "  the  primitive  religions  of  the  Semitic 
peoples,  viewed  in  relation  to  other  ancient  religions,  and 
to  the  spiritual  religion  of  the  Old  Testament  and  of 
Christianity,"  which  the  Trustees  of  the  Burnett  Fund 
asked  Prof.  Robertson  Smith  to  deliver  at  Aberdeen  in 
the  year  1887.  As  may  be  readily  imagined,  the  selection 
of  Prof.  R.  Smith  as  lecturer  on  the  subject  which,  of  all 
men  in  England,  he  had  made  peculiarly  his  own,  was 
approved  of  by  Semitic  scholars  and  by  the  more  liberal- 
minded  of  the  clergy  of  all  denominations.  There  were 
and  are,  of  course,  many  who  will  view  the  publication  of 
these  lectures  in  a  book  form  with  anything  but  favour  ; 
still  it  is  quite  certain  that  they  must,  if  honestly  read 
and  candidly  thought  over,  bring  many  of  this  class  over 
to  the  view,  which  is  gaining  ground  with  great  rapidity, 
that,  if  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  are  to  be  properly  under- 
stood by  us,  and  their  value  accurately  gauged,  we  must 
bring  to  their  consideration  the  same  amount  of  common- 
sense,  the  same  critical  investigation,  and  the  same  weigh- 
ing of  evidence,  which  we  should  bring  to  bear  upon  any 
piece  of  general  history.  The  Bible  is  a  unique  work, 
and  is  the  production  of  many  writers  who  lived  at 
different  periods.  In  it  we  have  a  mixture  of  historical 
facts  fused  with  legend,  poetry,  folk-lore,  stories,  and 
traditions,  deeply  devotional  religious  hymns,  prophecies, 
and  descriptions  of  scenes  in  the  life  and  history  of  the 
sons  and  descendants  of  Abraham.  Anyone  who  knows 
the  Oriental  character  will  understand  at  once  why  the 
book  is  such  a  favourite  with  the  Eastern  Semites,  and 
will  see  that  it  is  precisely  the  kind  of  work  which  their 
writers  could  not  help  producing  ;  it  is  the  greatest  mis- 
take possible,  however,  to  assume  that  the  book  could 
only  be  the  production  of  a  certain  branch  of  the  Semitic 
race.  This  is  what  has  been  thought  for  centuries  by 
clergy  and  laity  alike,  and  as  a  result  its  value  has  been 
much  underrated  and  its  evidence  only  partly  understood  ; 
also,  for  hundreds  of  years  the  value  of  the  Hebrew  text 
from  the  point  of  view  of  comparative  philology  was 
rendered  useless  because  a  powerful  section  of  the  Church 
declared  that  the  vowel-points  were  an  integral  part  of 
the  text  itself,  and  not  an  addition  to  it  made  by  the 
Rabbis  of  Tiberias  because  the  true  pronunciation  of  the 
language  was  dying  out  and  was  not  generally  understood. 
The  Bible  has  lost  nothing  in  the  eyes  of  scholars  because 
it  has  been  proved  that  the  vowel-points  are  not  fourteen 
hundred  years  old,  and  that  the  learned  men  who  added 
the  points  made  mistakes  themselves  !  It  is  hard  to  say 
what  provoked  the  intense  opposition  of  certain  sects  of 
the  Church  a  few  years  ago  to  historical  research  as 
applied  to  the  New  Testament.  It  may  be  that  the 
manner  in  which  the  German  philologists  and  com- 
mentators carried  on  their  investigations,  and  expressed 
their  opinions,  caused  the  narrow-minded,  and  we  may 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1059. 


add  unlearned,  theologians  of  the  English  Church  to 
abhor  and  detest  all  such  works  ;  nevertheless,  we  ven- 
ture to  believe  that,  in  spite  of  all  the  so-called  destructive 
criticism  of  Kuenen  and  Wellhausen,  the  Bible  has 
gained  more  by  the  labours  of  the  critical  school,  ot 
which  these  two  scholars  are  brilliant  examples,  than  it 
has  lost.  It  is  but  a  few  years  since  Prof.  Robertson 
Smith  defended  his  views  on  historical  research  as 
applied  to  the  Old  Testament  before  the  courts  of  his 
Church,  in  which  bigotry  and  ignorance  of  modern 
research  were  curiously  blended,  and  in  a  very  few  years 
it  will  be  difficult  to  believe  that  such  a  trial — the  only 
result  of  which  was  the  loss  to  his  Church  of  its  most 
learned  member — ever  took  place. 

The  lectures  printed  in  the  first  volume  of  Prof. 
Robertson  Smith's  work  are  eleven  in  number,  and  they 
relate  to  the  fundamental  institutions  of  the  Semitic 
race  as  a  whole,  viz.  sanctuaries,  sacrifices,  first-fruits, 
tithes,  the  blood  covenant,  fire  sacrifices,  sacrificial  gifts, 
&c.  The  introductory  lecture  explains  clearly  the  method 
of  inquiry  into  the  subject,  and  states  the  lines  upon 
which  this  inquiry  is  to  be  based.  Practically  speaking, 
Prof.  Robertson  Smith  says : — We  have  the  Bible  with 
its  remarkable  accounts  of  the  institutions  of  the  ancient 
Jews,  and  of  the  ancestors  of  these  Jews.  We  want  to 
find  out  a  great  deal  more  about  them  than  is  stated  in 
it,  because  the  writers,  taking  for  granted  that  its  readers 
would  understand  not  only  their  arguments  but  the  facts 
which  led  up  to  them,  and  the  history  and  manners  and 
customs  of  the  race  to  which  they  belonged,  only  made 
sufficient  reference  to  them  to  make  the  point  under  dis- 
cussion perfectly  clear.  The  Jews  were  a  small  nation, 
belonging  to  the  great  Semitic  race,  which  had  a  great 
deal  in  common  with  the  other  peoples  of  the  race,  viz. 
Assyrians,  Babylonians,  the  dwellers  of  Syria,  &c.,  whom 
we  have  been  taught  to  look  upon  as  heathen  outside  the 
pale  of  the  salvation  of  the  Jewish  God.  Now  the  Jews 
have  left  behind  them  fewer  remains  than  any  other  nation 
belonging  to  the  great  Semitic  race  ;  the  other  nations 
of  this  race,  however,  have  left  behind  them  inscriptions, 
buildings,  books,  &c.,  the  study  of  which  will  cast  much 
light  upon  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  peoples  de- 
scribed in  the  Old  Testament.  The  last  sixty  years  have 
made  us  acquainted  with  the  languages  which  these  people 
spoke,  we  have  learned  the  relationships  of  these  nations 
to  each  other,  we  have  certain  fixed  points  in  their  chrono- 
logy, and  we  know  a  great  deal  about  their  religion  and 
their  public  and  private  life.  Let  us  then  compare  the 
records  of  all  these  various  families  of  the  Semitic  race, 
and  see  how  much  they  have  in  common,  where  they 
differ,  and  if  possible  let  us  try  and  find  out  how  they 
differ.  With  a  mind  well  stocked  by  the  study  of  the 
native  records  of  the  great  Semitic  nations.  Prof. 
Robertson  Smith  begins  this  difficult  task.  At  the  outset 
he  distinguishes  between  Judaism,  Christianity,  and  Islam, 
which  he  calls  positive  religions,  and  the  systems  of 
ancient  heathenism.  Each  of  the  positive  religions,  how- 
ever, was  built  upon  the  beliefs  and  customs  of  ancient 
heathenism,  and  we  can  only  understand  a  system  of 
positive  religion  when  we  understand  the  principles  of  the 
religion  which  preceded  it.  The  Hebrews  had  many  re- 
ligious conceptions  and  usages  in  common  with  many 
kindred   peoples  ;  and  as   the  matter  is  pithily  put   by 

Q 


338 


NATURE 


[Feb. 


O' 


1890 


Prof.  Robertson  Smith,  "those  who  had  no  grasp  of 
spiritual  principles,  and  knew  the  religion  of  Jehovah 
only  as  an  affair  of  inherited  usage,  were  not  conscious 
of  any  great  difference  between  themselves  and  their 
heathen  neighbours,  and  fell  into  Canaanite  and  other 
foreign  practices  with  the  greatest  facility.  .  .  .  Tradi- 
tional religion  is  handed  down  from  father  to  child,  and 
therefore  is  in  great  measure  an  affair  of  race.  Nations 
sprung  from  a  common  stock  will  have  a  common  inherit- 
ance of  traditional  belief  and  usage  in  things  sacred  as 
well  as  profane,  and  thus  the  evidence  that  the  Hebrews 
and  their  neighbours  had  a  large  common  stock  of 
religious  tradition  falls  in  with  the  evidence  which  we 
have  from  other  sources,  that  in  point  of  race  the  people 
of  Israel  were  nearly  akin  to  the  heathen  nations  of 
Syria  and  Arabia."  Prof.  Robertson  Smith,  in  common 
with  the  general  opinions  of  the  best  scholars,  is  inclined 
to  place  the  original  home  of  the  Semitic  race  in  the 
Arabian  peninsula,  and  it  is  pretty  certain  that,  from  time 
immemorial,  the  tract  of  land  bounded  by  the  Medi- 
terranean on  the  west,  Persia  on  the  east,  the  Armenian 
mountains  on  the  north,  and  the  Indian  Ocean  on  the 
south,  was  peopled  by  tribes  who  spoke  Semitic  dialects. 
It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  so-called  Babylonians 
had  their  territory  invaded  by  a  horde  of  warlike  but 
intelligent  men  from  the  east  who  eventually  succeeded 
in  imposing  upon  them  the  cuneiform  writing.  After  all 
the  nonsense  which  has  been  talked  during  the  last  few 
years  about  the  so-called  "  Hittites  "  being  identical  with 
the  Hittites  of  the  Bible,  it  is  refreshing  to  find  a  scholar 
like  Prof.  Robertson  Smith  stating  plainly  that  the  "  Hit- 
tites of  the  Bible  .  .  .  were  a  branch  of  the  Canaanite 
stock,  and  that  the  utmost  concession  that  can  be  made 
to  modern  theories  on  this  subject  is  that  they  may  for  a 
time  have  been  dominated  by  a  non-Semitic  aristocracy." 
It  is  as  well  to  say  at  once  that  no  successful  attempt  has 
yet  been  made  to  decipher  the  "  Hittite  "  inscriptions,  and 
none  can  be  made  until  a  bilingual  inscription  has  been 
found.  The  "boss"  of  Tarkondemos  is,  no  doubt,  a 
forgery  ;  but,  even  granting  that  it  is  not,  no  one  can 
certainly  say  what  or  how  many  of  the  signs  in  the  centre 
of  the  "  boss  "  represent  one  of  the  words  in  cuneiform 
around  it. 

Prof.  R.  Smith  is  quite  right  not  to  place  too  much 
trust  in  the  traditions  of  the  Babylonian  religion  as  made 
known  to  us  by  the  cuneiform  inscriptions.  It  is  true 
that  these  are  the  oldest  Semitic  inscriptions  known  to 
us,  but  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  the  writing  itself  and 
many  of  the  religious  myths  and  traditions  known  to  the 
Babylonians  were  either  forced  upon  them  by,  or  bor- 
rowed from,  their  conquerors  from  the  east.  Just  as 
the  Arabic  language  is  the  right  point  to  start  from  in 
the  study  of  comparative  Semitic  mythology,  so  the 
traditions  of  the  old,  heathen  inhabitants  of  Arabia  are 
those  which  must  form  the  ground-work  of  any  compara- 
tive inquiry  into  the  traditions  of  Semitic  religion  gener- 
ally. The  remainder  of  the  first  lecture  is  occupied  with 
general  statements  of  an  important  nature,  which  no 
reviewer  could  do  justice  to  in  an  ordinary  review.  Lecture 
II.  describes  the  primitive  Semitic  society  and  its  religion  ; 
the  oldest  Semitic  communities  and  their  gods ;  the 
fatherhood  of  the  gods,  and  the  kinship  of  gods  and  men  ; 
monarchy  and  monotheism,  &c.     Lecture  III.  discusses 


the  gods,  jinn,itotems,  and  Semitic  totemism  ;  Lecture  IV.,^ 
holiness,  taboo,  the  sanctuary,  and  the  jealousy  of  the 
god ;  Lecture  V.,  sanctuaries,  holy  waters,  trees,  caves, 
and  stones  ;  Lecture  VI.,  sacrifice  in  all  its  various  forms  ; 
Lecture  VII.,  first-fruits,  tithes,  and  sacrificial  meals  ; 
Lecture  VIII.,  the  original  significance  of  animal  sacrifice  ; 
Lecture  IX.,  the  sacrificial  elBcacy  of  animal  sacrifice,  the 
blood  covenant,  &c.  ;  Lecture  X.,  the  development  of 
sacrificial  ritual  and  fire  sacrifices  ;  Lecture  XL,  the 
special  ideas  involved  in  piacular  sacrifices.  A  series  of 
"additional  notes"  (A— N)  and  a  good  index  complete 
the  volume.  Prof  Robertson  Smith's  arguments  are 
sound,  and  they  are  carefully  reasoned  out ;  but  as  new 
material  comes  to  hand  some  of  the  details  may  require 
alteration.  The  work  deserves  the  careful  study  of  all 
scholars  who  are  anxious  to  meet  with  a  straightforward, 
unbiassed  statement  upon  the  difficult  subject  of  ancient 
Semitic  religion  ;  where  it  has  been  necessary  to  combat 
opposite  opinions,  the  discussion  is  carried  on  with  fairness 
to  the  scholars  concerned,  and  consequently  with  credit  to 
the  author  of  these  lectures.  The  works  of  Kuenen,  Well- 
hausen,  and  Goldziher,  repel,  rather  than  attract,  many 
readers  ;  we  do  not  imagine  that  any  honest  seeker  after 
truth,  be  he  theologian  or  lay  reader,  will  turn  away  from 
the  perusal  of  these  lectures,  having  once  begun  to  read 
them.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  Bible  commentators  will  at 
once  embody  in  their  works  the  explanations  of  the  large 
number  of  Scriptural  passages  which  have,  up  to  the 
present,  been  simply  not  to  be  understood.  It  is  also  to 
be  hoped  that  Prof.  R.  Smith  will  soon  be  enabled  to  give 
to  the  world  the  concluding  part  of  his  valuable  work,  the 
publication  of  which  is  a  sign  of  the  times  in  JLngland. 


ALGEBRA. 
Algebra:    an    Elementary    Text -book  for    the   Higher 
Classes  of  Secondary   Schools  and  for  Colleges.      By 
G.  Chrystal,  M.A.      Part  11.     (Edinburgh  :  Adam  and 
Charles  Black,  1889.) 

THE  work  before  us  is  the  realization  of  the  hope  with 
which  we  concluded  our  notice  of  the  first  part 
(Nature,  vol.  xxxiv.  p.  614). 

The  author  apologizes  for  the  delay  in  its  appearance. 
The  occupation  of  a  busy  life  would  be  to  most  men 
a  sufficient  raison  d'etre  for  such  delay,  and  to  this  has 
been  added  a  further  source  of  delay  arising  from  circum- 
stances of  a  private  character.  Students,  however,  have 
gained  hereby,  for  the  work  has  grown  in  the  progress  of 
its  construction.  It  has  not,  "as  some  one  prophesied, 
reached  ten  volumes,"  for  this  is  the  concluding  volume  ; 
but  it  has,  we  are  told,  cost  the  writer  infinitely  more 
trouble  than  he  expected.  The  first  instalment  extended 
to  542  pages ;  this  one,  with  answers  and  index  of  names 
(which  we  are  glad  to  have),  is  comprised  in  588  pages. 
The  prominent  features  of  the  exposition  as  to  its 
"  singular  ability  and  freshness  of  treatment "  are  as 
conspicuous  here  as  in  Part  I.,  and  we  need  not  repeat 
the  praise  which  we  accorded  to  it  (/.<:.). 

Let  us  hearken  to  Prof  Chrystal,  for  he  always  writes 
to  the  point  : — 

"The  main  object  of  Part  II.  is  to  deal  as  thoroughly 
as  possible  with  those  parts  of  algebra  which  form,  to 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


use  Euler's  title,  an  *  Introductio  in  Analysin  Infini- 
torum.'  A  practice  has  sprung  up  of  late  (encouraged  by 
demands  for  premature  knowledge  in  certain  examina- 
tions) of  hurrying  young  students  into  the  manipulation 
of  the  machinery  of  the  differential  and  integral  calculus 
before  they  have  grasped  the  preliminary  notions  of  a 
limit  and  of  an  infinite  series,  on  which  all  the  meaning 
and  all  the  uses  of  the  infinitesimal  calculus  are  based. 
Besides  being  to  a  large  extent  an  educational  sham,  this 
course  is  a  sin  against  the  spirit  of  mathematical  progress. 
The  methods  of  the  differential  and  integral  calculus, 
which  were  once  an  outwork  in  the  progress  of  pure 
mathematics,  threatened  for  a  time  to  become  its  grave. 
Mathematicians  had  fallen  into  a  habit  of  covering  their 
inability  to  solve  many  particular  problems  by  a  vague 
wave  of  the  hand  towards  some  generality,  like  Taylor's 
theorem,  which  was  supposed  to  give  '  an  account  of  all 
such  things,'  subject  only  to  the  awkwardness  of  practical 
inapplicability.      Much   has    happened    to   remove  this 

danger  and  to  reduce  didx  and  /  dx  to  their  proper  place 

as  servants  of  the  pure  mathematician.  .  .  .  For  the 
proper  understanding  of  this  important  branch  of  modern 
mathematics  \i.e.  function-theory],  a  firm  grasp  of  the 
doctrine  of  limits  and  of  the  convergence  and  continuity 
of  an  infinite  series  is  of  much  greater  moment  than 
familiarity  with  the  symbols  in  which  these  ideas  may  be 
clothed.  It  is  hoped  that  the  chapters  on  inequalities, 
limits,  and  convergence  of  series  [chapters  xxiv.-xxvi.], 
will  help  to  give  the  student  all  that  is  required  both  for 
entering  on  the  study  of  the  theory  of  functions  and  for 
rapidly  acquiring  intelligent  command  of  the  infinitesimal 
calculus.  In  the  chapters  in  question,  I  have  avoided 
trenching  on  the  ground  already  occupied  by  standard 
treatises  :  the  subjects  taken  up,  although  they  are  all 
important,  are  either  not  treated  at  all  or  else  treated  very 
perfunctorily  in  other  English  text-books." 

No  student  who  masters  the  present  treatise  will  pass 
such  judgment  upon  these  chapters,  or,  indeed,  upon  any 
part  of  the  work.  What  the  writer  aims  at,  and  succeeds 
in  achieving,  is  thoroughness. 

The  first  part  occupied  twenty-two  chapters  ;  the  second 
part  occupies  chapters  xxiii.-xxxvi. 

Following  on  the  lines  of  our  previous  notice  (/.f .),  we 
give  a  brief  analysis  of  the  chapters  : — 23,  permutations 
and  combinations  (with  applications  to  binomial  and 
multinomial  theorems,  distributions  and  derangements, 
and  the  theory  of  substitutions) ;  24-26,  see  extract  above  ; 

27,  binomial  and  multinomial  theorems  for  any  index : 

28,  exponential  and  logarithmic  series  (with  an  account, 
and  applications,  of  Bernoulli's  numbers) ;  29,  30,  summa- 
tion of  the  fundamental  power-series  for  complex  values 
of  the  variable,  and  general  theorems  regarding  the  ex- 
pansion of  functions  in  infinite  forms — these  are  two 
splendid  chapters,  which  the  author  says 

"  may  be  regarded  as  an  elementary  illustration  of  the 
application  of  the  modern  theory  of  functions.  They  are 
intended  to  pave  the  way  for  the  study  of  the  recent 
works  of  Continental  mathematicians  on  the  same  subject. 
Incidentally,  they  contain  all  that  is  usually  given  in 
English  works  under  the  title  of  analytical  trigonometry. 
If  anyone  should  be  scandalized  at  this  traversing  of 
the  boundaries  of  English  examination  subjects,  I  must 
ask  him  to  recollect  that  the  boundaries  in  question  were 
never  traced  in  accordance  with  the  principles  of  modern 
science,  and  sometimes  break  the  canon  of  common- 
sense.  .  .  .  The  timid  way,  oscillating  between  ill-founded 
trust  and  unreasonable  fear,  in  which  functions  of  a  com- 
plex variable  have  been  treated  in  some  manuals,  is  a 
little  discreditable  to  our  intellectual  culture,  f  Some  ex- 


pounders of  the  theory  of  the  exponential  function  of  an 
imaginary  argument,  seem  even  to  have  forgotten  the 
obvious  truism  that  one  can  prove  no  property  of  a 
function  which  has  not  been  defined." 

Chapter  30,  moreover,  closes  with  "a  careful  dis- 
cussion of  the  reversion  of  series  and  of  the  expansion  in 
power-series  of  an  algebraic  function — subjects  which 
have  never  been  fully  treated  before  in  an  English  text- 
book, although  we  have  in  Frost's  curve-tracing  an 
admirable  collection  of  examples  of  their  use"  (this  is  a 
work  often  referred  to  with  high  commendation  in  the 
text).  To  resume  our  analysis,  chapter  31  is  on  the 
summation  and  transformation  of  series  in  general  ; 
32-34  gives  a  thorough  discussion  of  continued  fractions 
and  their  applications  ;  35  gives  numerous  general  pro- 
perties of  integral  numbers ;  and  36  is  on  probability,  or 
the  theory  of  averages.  In  this  last  chapter  the  author 
has  "  omitted  certain  matter  of  doubtful  soundness  and 
of  questionable  utility  ;  and  filled  its  place  by  what  I 
hope  will  prove  a  useful  exposition  of  the  principles  of 
actuarial  calculation." 

The  student  of  the  present  day  knows  that  "  things  are 
not  always  what  they  seem,"  so  when  he  hears  that  an 
elementary  text-book  of  algebra  occupies  more  than  a 
thousand  octavo  printed  pages,  he  is  prepared  to  find 
that  the  "  elementary"  is  comparative,  and  the  "  algebra  " 
comprises  some  other  subjects,  in  ordinary  parlance, 
called  by  other  names.  He  will  find  the  present  work 
most  readable,  provided  he  comes  to  the  perusal  with 
the  requisite  knowledge  and  ability,  and  when  he  has 
got  to  the  end  of  the  course  he  will  have  an  excellent 
foundation  for  all  his  after  mathematical  reading.  Prof. 
Chrystal  gives  good  advice,  which  we  copy.  "  When  you 
come  on  a  hard  or  dreary  passage,  pass  it  over ;  and  come 
back  to  it  after  you  have  seen  its  importance  or  found  the 
need  for  it  further  on.  To  facilitate  this  skimming  pro- 
cess, I  have  given,  after  the  table  of  contents,  a  sugges- 
tion for  the  course  of  a  first  reading."  There  are 
numerous  "  historical  notes,"  which  form  a  conspicuous 
and  useful  feature  of  the  whole  work. 

The  author  uses  the  expression  (see  above)  "  dreary 
passage  " :  we  have  not  come  across  these,  but  we  can 
certify  with  regard  to  the  first  part,  that  we  have  taken  it 
up  again  and  again,  and  have  always  found  it  difficult  to 
rest  contented  with  a  brief  glance,  and  the  part  before  us 
appears,  in  some  respects,  to  be  even  more  attractive. 


FERMENTATION  WITH  PURE   YEAST. 

The  Micro-organisms  of  Fermentanon,  practically 
considered.  By  Alfred  Jorgensen.  Edited  from  the 
German  by  G.  Harris  Morris,  Ph.D.,  F.C.S.,  F.I.C., 
&c.  With  an  Introduction  by  Horace  T.  Brown, 
F.C.S.,  F.I.C.     (London  :  F.  W.  Lyon,  1889.) 

DURING  the  past  ten  years  in  which  the  investigation 
of  micro-organisms  and  their  functions  has  been 
so  actively  pursued  there  has  been  a  conspicuous  absence 
of  any  work  dealing  with  the  progress  made  in  our  know- 
ledge of  those  particular  forms  which  are  of  industrial 
importance.  Thus  whilst  numerous  text-books  in  various 
languages  have  appeared  embodying  the  latest  discoveries 
in  the  relationship  of  micro-organisms  to  disease,  the 
only   noteworthy   treatise   on   the  technological  side   of 


340 


NATURE 


[Feb.  13,  1890 


bacteriology  since  Pasteur's  "  Etudes  sur  le  Vin,  le 
Vinaigre,  et  la  Bi^re,"  the  last  of  which  was  published 
in  1876,  is  Alfred  Jorgensen's  "  Micro-organismen  der 
Giihrungsindustrie"  (1886),  of  which  the  volume  before 
us  is  an  edited  translation.  This  lack  of  text-books  is 
doubtless  in  great  measure  due  to  the  industrial  aspects 
of  micro-organisms  having  been  comparatively  neglected 
during  the  time  that  Pasteur,  Koch,  and  their  numerous 
disciples  have  been  busily  engaged  in  the  investigation 
of  questions  of  still  more  absorbing  human  interest. 
But  whilst  the  great  majority  of  bacteriologists  have 
during  this  past  decade  been  thus  occupied  in  establishing 
or  endeavouring  to  establish  the  connection  between 
numerous  diseases  and  specific  organisms,  a  few  more 
silent  workers  have  been  patiently  engaged  upon  the  less 
sensational  though  no  less  arduous  task  of  placing  the 
fermentation  industries  on  a  more  scientific  basis,  adding 
in  fact  to  the  structure  which  had  been  commenced  by 
Pasteur  in  his  "  Etudes "  referred  to  above.  The  fore- 
most in  this  field  of  research  has  unquestionably  been 
Christian  Hansen  of  the  now  world-famed  Carlsberg 
Laboratory  near  Copenhagen,  and  to  a  concise  and 
most  lucid  description  of  whose  successful  labours  the 
present  volume  is  chiefly  devoted.  The  principal  addi- 
tion which  has  been  made  to  our  knowledge  of  the 
fermentation  organisms  by  Hansen  has  been  the  precise 
characterization  of  a  number  of  different  "  races "  of 
yeast  and  the  determination  of  the  specific  features  of  the 
fermentation  induced  by  each  particular  race.  Thus 
whilst  Pasteur  attributed  the  various  diseases  in  wine 
and  beer  to  the  presence  of  organisms  other  than  yeast, 
Hansen  has  shown  that  certain  races  of  yeast  itself  are 
capable  of  bringing  about  most  serious  disturbances  in 
the  fermentation  process.  The  lines  on  which  Hansen 
has  differentiated  these  several  races  of  yeast,  and  the 
methods  by  which  their  pure  culture  may  be  effected  are 
clearly  though  briefly  described  in  this  work,  with  which 
latest  developments  of  brewing  technology,  both  the  author 
and  translator  have  already  identified  themselves  in  the 
past. 

The  influence  which  has  been  exerted  by  the  researches 
of  Pasteur  and  Hansen  on  the  practical  conduct  of  the 
fermentation  industries  is  quite  analogous  to  that  v/hich 
has  resulted  in  surgery  from  the  investigations  of  Lister 
and  Koch,  in  both  cases  the  principle  of  rigid  scientific 
cleanliness  has  become  the  order  of  the  day.  Thus  we 
read,  "the  air  in  the  fermenting-room  may  contain  a 
world  of  germs  which,  in  the  fermentation  industries, 
bring  with  them  the  most  calamitous  results  ;  it  is,  how- 
ever, possible  to  obtain  air  free  from  these  invisible  germs, 
and  it  admits  of  no  doubt  that,  on  the  one  hand,  the  puri- 
fication of  the  air  in  the  fermenting-room  by  passing  it 
through  a  salt-water  bath,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
most  rigidly  executed  order  and  cleanliness  in  the  cellars 
of  the  Old  Carlsberg  brewery,  stand  in  direct  relation  to 
the  results." 

From  a  practical  point  of  view,  the  chief  merit  due  to 
Hansen  is  that  he  has  not  only  shown  how  pure  growths 
of  yeast  may  be  obtained  in  the  laboratory,  but  that  he 
has  further  devised  methods  by  which  these  pure  cultures 
may  actually  be  employed  on  the  largest  brewery  scale. 
This  brewing  with  pure  yeast  has  already  assumed  very 
large  dimensions  on  the  Continent    where  a  continuallv 


increasing  number  of  breweries  receive  regular  supplies- 
of  pure  material.  We  have  ourselves  visited  the  labora- 
tories of  the  Wissenschaftliche  Stationen  fiir  Brauerei 
und  Brennerei  at  Berlin  and  at  Munich,  and  can  testify 
to  the  impressiveness  of  witnessing  the  careful  prepara- 
tion on  the  manufacturing  scale  of  different  forms  of  pure 
yeast,  each  possessed  of  specific  fermenting  properties, 
which  are  then  transmitted  to  various  parts  of  Europe  ac- 
cording to  the  special  requirements  of  different  breweries. 
These  experimental  brewing-stations,  like  so  many  other 
similar  institutions  on  the  Continent,  are  directly  or 
indirectly  subsidized  by  the  State  and  number  amongst 
their  staff  men  of  universal  reputation  in  their  particular 
departments.  As  we  should  anticipate,  this  method  of 
scientific  brewing  with  pure  yeast  has  so  far  taken  no  root 
in  this  country,  although  we  are  glad  to  know  that  the 
translator,  along  with  Mr.  Horace  Brown,  has  for  some 
time  past  been  engaged  upon  its  experimental  trial,  and 
we  learn  from  the  latter  in  his  introduction  to  this  book 
"  that,  in  a  more  or  less  modified  form,  pure  yeast  culture 
will  play  a  very  important  part  in  the  brewing  of  the  future 
in  this  country." 

This  little  work,  which  is  condensed  into  166  pages,  and 
profusely  illustrated  and  provided  with  an  admirable 
bibliography,  should  receive  the  most  careful  attention 
from  practical  men,  for  whom  it  is  mainly  intended.  Even 
the  purely  scientific  student  will  find  much  in  its  pages 
that  should  prove  of  service  to  him. 

Percy  F.  Frankland. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

An  Epitome  of  the  Synthetic  Philosophy.  By  F.  Howard 
Collins,  with  a  Preface  by  Herbert  Spencer.  (London  : 
Williams  and  Norgate,  1 889.) 

The  aim  and  scope  of  this  work  cannot  be  more  tersely 
or  more  accurately  conveyed  than  by  quoting  i/i  extenso 
the  "  compiler's  preface." 

"  The  object  of  this  volume  is  to  give  in  a  condensed 
form  the  general  principles  of  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer's 
Philosophy  as  far  as  possible  in  his  original  words.  In 
order  to  carry  out  this  intention  each  section  (§)  has  been 
reduced,  with  but  few  exceptions,  to  one-tenth ;  the  five 
thousand  and  more  pages  of  the  original  being  thus  re- 
presented by  a  little  over  five  hundred.  The  Epitome 
consequently  represents  '  The  Synthetic  Philosophy '  as  it 
would  be  seen  through  a  diminishing  glass  :  the  original 
proportion  holding  between  all  its  varied  parts. 

"  Should  this  volume  lead  the  general  reader  to  a 
better  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Spencer's  own  works,  I 
shall  feel  amply  repaid  for  my  labour. 

"  My  warmest  thanks  are  due  to  Mr.  Spencer  for  his 
invaluable  preface ;  and  also  to  Miss  Beatrice  Potter, 
and  Mr.  Henry  R.  Tedder,  F.S.A.,  the  able  and  accom- 
plished secretary  and  librarian  of  the  Athenaeum  Club, 
for  their  valuable  suggestions  while  the  work  has  been  in 
progress." 

The  desirability  of  such  an  undertaking,  supposing  it 
to  have  been  successfully  accomplished,  is  both  manifest 
and  manifold.  Mr.  Spencer's  works  are  so  voluminous 
that  it  is  impossible  to  acquire  a  knowledge  of  his  system 
of  philosophy  as  a  whole  without  devoting  to  it  an  ex- 
penditure of  time  which  is  practically  impossible  for  most 
men  who  are  not  specially  engaged  in  philosophic  studies. 
Moreover,  even  to  a  reader  who  is  thus  specially  engaged, 
and  who  therefore  desires  fully  to  master  this  system,  no 
small  difificulty  is  experienced  from  the  fact  that  hitherto 
there  has  not  been  so  much  as  an  index  to  guide  his 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


341 


studies  through  these  reams  and  reams  of  paper.  Con- 
sequently, the  first  class  of  readers  have  hitherto  for  the 
most  part  been  satisfied  to  gain  their  knowledge  of 
Spencer  through  the  "  Cosmic  Philosophy"  of  Fiske, 
while  the  latter  class  have  experienced  a  hitherto  hopeless 
difficulty  in  refreshing  their  memories  upon  particular 
points,  or  in  finding  passages  to  which  they  may  wish  to 
refer  in  publications  of  their  own.  Speaking  for  our- 
selves, we  are  conscious  of  often  having  done  a  negative 
injustice  to  Mr.  Spencer  on  this  account,  simply  because, 
in  order  to  avoid  the  possibility  of  any  positive  injustice 
in  the  way  of  misrepresentation,  we  have  deemed  it  wisest 
not  to  allude  to  him  at  all. 

Now,  the  epitome  which  Mr.  Howard  Collins  has 
supplied  so  admirably  satisfies  all  the  requirements  of 
the  case  that  henceforth  the  general  reader  will  be  able 
to  acquire  a  clear  knowledge  of  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer's 
philosophy  in  one-tenth  of  the  time  that  it  has  hitherto 
been  necessary  to  expend,  while — as  Mr.  Spencer  himself 
observes  in  his  highly  commendatory  preface — more 
serious  students  will  find  that  "  a  clear  preliminary  con- 
ception is  more  readily  obtained  from  a  small  outline- 
map  than  from  a  large  one  full  of  details."  Lastly,  for  all 
purposes  of  reference,  this  epitome  leaves  nothing  to  be 
■desired  ;  for  not  only  does  it  run  parallel  with  the  original 
— chapter  by  chapter  and  section  by  section — but  it  is  also 
furnished  at  the  end  with  an  alphabetical  index  of  subject- 
matter  :  so  that,  if  a  man  is  writing  upon  any  of  the  in- 
numerable topics  which  Mr.  Spencer  has  handled,  he 
can  immediately  ascertain  all  that  Mr.  Spencer  has  said 
with  regard  to  them. 

For  these  reasons  we  cordially  recommend  this  most 
painstaking  epitome  to  every  class  of  readers  ;  and  we 
cannot  doubt  that  its  publication  will  greatly  promote  the 
diffusion  of  Mr.  Spencer's  thought  in  all  the  English- 
-speaking  communities  of  the  world.  G.  J.  R. 

The  Earth  and  its  Story.      Edited  by  Robert  Brown, 

Ph.D.,  F.L.S.  (London  :  Cassell  and  Co.,  1889.) 
The  continued  publication  of  good  and  popularly  written 
scientific  works  is  one  of  the  most  gratifying  signs  of  the 
times  ;  it  testifies,  in  no  uncertain  manner,  to  the  growth  of 
a  taste  for  scientific  knowledge  in  the  mind  of  the  general 
public,  and  hence  is  a  matter  of  congratulation. 

Of  all  the  sciences  none  may  perhaps  be  made  more 
interesting  than  physical  geography,  or  its  modern 
•equivalent  physiography.  The  desire  to  know  something 
about  the  earth's  position  in  the  universe,  its  formation, 
and  its  inhabitants,  is  and  always  has  been  innate  in  man, 
and  we  are  glad,  therefore,  to  welcome  works  that  may 
satisfy  this  craving  after  light.  The  one  before  us  deals 
in  a  comprehensive  manner  with  the  geographical  dis- 
tribution of  plants  and  animals,  and  the  agents  concerned 
in  their  dispersion  ;  with  the  physics  of  the  sea,  waves, 
currents,  and  tides  ;  with  terrestrial  magnetism  ;  climate 
.and  the  causes  affecting  its  distribution  ;  rainfall  and 
precipitation  in  general.  A  considerable  amount  of  space 
is  given  to  descriptions  of  geological  formations  and  the 
fossils  they  contain,  whilst  ideal  landscapes  with  restored 
animals  are  plentifully  figured.  We  regret,  however,  that 
only  a  very  meagre  description  is  given  of  the  earth  as  a 
planet.  It  must  be  remembered  that  astronomy  is  a 
very  important  part  of  physiography,  even  when  looked  at 
from  a  utilitarian  point  of  view.  The  reason  why  the 
movements  of  the  heavenly  bodies  have  been  studied 
from  time  immemorial  is  that  a  knowledge  of  them 
was  necessary  in  order  to  meet  the  vicissitudes  of  life,  and 
even  before  primitive  man  had  inquired  into  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  earth  he  had  arrived  at  crude  conceptions  as 
to  the  constitution  of  the  universe  from  uncritical  obser- 
vations of  celestial  phenomena.  The  priority  of  these 
conceptions  demonstrates  their  importance,  and  therefore, 
in  a  work  intending  to  convey  earth  knowledge,  the 
verification  of  the  earth's  rotation  and  revolution  and  the 


determination  of  its  true  size  and  shape  should  certainly 
be  included.  The  measurements  of  arcs  of  meridian, 
whereby  the  exact  size  and  shape  of  the  earth  may  be 
found,  are  easy  to  describe,  and  preferable  to  the  proofs  of 
the  earth's  rotundity  known  in  the  time  of  Peate  ;  be- 
sides which,  such  investigations  essentially  belong  to 
physical  geography.  But,  excepting  these  omissions, 
the  work  is  one  of  sterling  value  ;  it  is  profusely  illus- 
trated, each  of  the  two  volumes  containing  twelve 
coloured  plates  and  about  270  woodcuts,  and  the  explana- 
tory text  is  very  readable  and  interesting  throughout. 
Such  a  production  will  naturally  gravitate  to  the  free 
public  libraries  and  similar  institutions,  and  will  be  of 
great  use  in  extending  scientific  knowledge. 

Steam.  By  William  Ripper,  Professor  of  Mechanical 
Engineering  in  the  Sheffield  Technical  School. 
(London  :  Longmans,  Green,  and  Co.,  1889.) 

This  volume  consists  of  an  elaboration  of  notes  of 
lectures  given  by  the  author  to  an  evening  class  of  young 
mechanical  engineers.  For  its  size,  it  contains  much 
useful  information  ;  and  the  simplicity  of  expression,  and 
the  absence  of  elaborate  calculation,  throughout  the 
chapters  help  to  make  it  suitable  for  elementary  classes. 
The  author  gives  special  prominence  to  the  principles 
involved  in  the  economical  use  of  steam.  This  part  of 
the  book  is  particularly  lucid  and  concise,  being  perfectly 
clear  to  the  average  student.  He  also  describes  well  the 
compound,  triple,  and  quadruple  expansion  engines, 
especially  dealing  with  the  general  idea  of  the  expansion 
and  course  of  the  steam  through  the  cylinders  on  its  way 
to  the  condenser,  as  well  as  with  the  general  laws  regu- 
lating the  volumes  of  the  cylinders.  Although  the 
subject  is  treated  in  an  elementary  manner,  there  is  much 
sound  work  in  the  book.  Text-books  on  steam  have 
greatly  improved  of  late  years  from  an  engineer's  point  of 
view,  and  the  present  volume  is  a  good  example  of  the 
way  in  which  the  subject  should  be  handled  for  the 
benefit  of  budding  engineers. 

The  illustrations  and  diagrams  are  good,  the  former 
being  taken  from  engines  in  actual  practice.  Fig.  134, 
however,  does  not  represent  particularly  good  practice. 
The  flat  crown  of  the  fire-box  of  locomotive  type  of 
marine  boilers  is  probably  seldom  stayed  after  the 
manner  shown  ;  the  crown  stays  being  generally  screwed 
through  the  shell  of  the  boiler,  and  either  rivetted  over  or 
fastened  with  a  nut  and  a  copper  washer.  Assuming 
that  these  stays  are  screwed  through  the  fire-box  crown 
sheet,  it  would  be  interesting  to  know  how  the  author 
proposes  to  place  them  in  position,  as  shown  in  the 
figure.  Fig.  137  represents  a  Ramsbottom  locomotive 
safety  valve.  Although  correct  in  principle,  it  is  quite  a 
curiosity  in  point  of  design,  the  valve  in  general  use 
being  very  different  in  appearance,  as  the  reader  may 
observe  by  referring  to  the  one  shown  on  the  locomotive 
boiler  illustrated  in  Fig.  132.  We  may  say  in  conclusion 
that  a  fuller  index  would  have  added  considerably  to  the 
value  of  the  book.  N.  J.  L. 

Australia  Twice  Traversed.     By  Ernest  Giles.     In  Two 

Vols.  (London  :  Sampson  Low  and  Co.,  1889.) 
The  narrative  presented  in  these  volumes  has  been  com- 
piled by  Mr.  Giles  from  the  journals  written  by  him  during 
five  exploring  expeditions  into  and  through  central  South 
Australia  and  Western  Australia  from  1872  to  1876.  The 
materials  of  the  book  are  not,  therefore,  very  fresh,  but 
this  ought  not  to  detract  much  from  their  interest,  as 
hitherto  only  fragmentary  accounts  of  Mr.  Giles's  travels 
have  been  printed.  It  must  be  admitted  that  records  of 
wanderings  in  the  interior  of  Australia  are  not  usually  very 
fascinating.  Mr.  Lumholtz's  book,  which  we  lately  re- 
viewed, is  a  brilliant  exception  to  the  general  rule.  We 
cannot  say  that  Mr.  Giles's  work  rises  to  an  equal  height 
above  the  ordinary  level  ;  for  it  lacks  that  fine  insight  into 


42 


NATURE 


Feb. 


1890 


native  life  and  temperament  which  is  the  special  and  most 
valuable  characteristic  of  the  Danish  explorer's  record. 
Moreover,  Mr.  Giles  had  to  pass  through  much  desert 
country,  the  description  of  which  could  have  been  invested 
with  charm  only  by  a  writer  of  genius.  The  book,  how- 
ever, shows  that  he  has  the  courage,  resource,  and  spirit 
of  enterprise  which  are  absolutely  essential  to  an  explorer, 
and  here  and  there  his  story  is  lighted  up  by  what  he  has 
to  say  about  the  few  well-watered  and  pleasant  tracts  of 
land  through  which  he  passed  duringhis  various  journeys. 
His  explorations  were  necessary  links  in  the  chain  of 
Australian  geographical  research,  and  he  has  acted  wisely 
in  preparing  a  full  and  accurate  account  of  them.  The 
value  of  the  work  is  considerably  increased  by  maps  and 
illustrations. 

New  Zealand  for  the  Emigrant,  Invalid,  and  Tourist. 
By  John  Murray  Moore,  M.D.  (London:  Sampson 
Low  and  Co.,  1890.) 

Dr.  Moore  spent  nine  years  in  New  Zealand,  and 
not  only  enjoyed  his  stay,  but  derived  from  it  renewed 
health  and  vigour.  When,  therefore,  he  began  to  set 
down  the  results  of  his  observation  and  experience,  he 
was  in  the  right  mood  for  the  production  of  a  genial 
and  appreciative  record  ;  and  his  book  ought  to  be  of 
considerable  service  to  each  of  the  three  classes  men- 
tioned on  the  title-page.  The  most  original  parts  of 
the  work  are  two  chapters,  in  one  of  which  he  indi- 
cates the  various  climatic  zones  into  which  New  Zealand 
as  a  health-resort  is  divisible,  while  in  the  other  he 
presents  a  full  account  of  the  characters  and  therapeutic 
achievements  of  the  principal  thermal  springs  of  the  North 
Island.  Both  of  these  chapters  will  be  read  with  interest 
by  medical  men,  and  by  invalids  who  may  feel  disposed, 
as  the  author  puts  it  in  the  rhetorical  style  he  sometimes 
affects,  to  "  fly  on  the  wings  of  steam  to  the  realm  of  the 
Southern  Cross."  He  gives  a  good  description  of  Auck- 
land, "  the  Naples  of  New  Zealand,"  and  sets  forth  plea- 
santly and  effectively  the  impressions  produced  upon  him 
during  excursions  to  the  hot  lakes  and  terraces,  and  to 
the  west  coast  Sounds.  An  instructive  chapter  is 
devoted  to  the  volcanic  eruption  of  Mount  Tarawera, 
and  Dr.  Moore  offers  much  valuable  information  about 
self-government  in  New  Zealand,  and  the  settlement  of 
the  land  ;  and  about  social  life,  public  works  and  institu- 
tions, productions  and  industries.  The  volume  includes 
several  maps,  in  one  of  which  are  shown  New  Zealand's 
climatic  zones. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

\Tht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  ^ 

A  Key  to  the  Royal  Society  Catalogue. 

In  his  anniversary  address  to  the  Royal  Society,  the  President, 
referring  to  the  great  catalogue  of  scientific  papers,  used  these 
words  : — "  The  utility  of  the  work  would  obviously  be  much 
increased  if  it  could  be  furnished  with  some  sort  of  key,  enabling 
persons  to  find  what  had  been  written  on  particular  subjects.  I 
am  n  )t  without  hopes  that  this  very  desirable  object  may  yet  be 
accomplished,  notwithstanding  the  magnitude  of  any  such  under- 
taking." Almost  everyone  engaged  in  scientific  research  must 
have  felt  the  want  of  such  a  key,  and  will  join  in  the  President's 
hopes.  My  present  object  is  to  suggest  a  scheme  for  supplying 
the  want  at  comparatively  little  trouble  and  expense. 

A  complete  subject  index,  arranged  in  alphabetical  order, 
would  indeed  be  a  great  undertaking.  The  subdivisions  being 
minute,  most  of  the  papers  would  have  to  be  catalogued  more 
than  once,  and,  even  if  the  references  were  only  to  the  name  of 
the  author  and  the  number  of  the  paper  in  the  present  catalogue, 


the  new  catalogue  would  probably  be  as  large  as  the  old.  The 
key  that  I  suggest  would  be  much  smaller,  and  yet  in  many  cases 
more  convenient.  The  proposal  can  hardly  be  novel,  but  its 
advantages  may  not  have  been  fully  realized.  Divide  up  the 
whole  of  science  into  some  5000  heads,  classified  in  their  natural 
order  underthe  various  branches — pure  mathematics,  astronomy, 
physics,  chemistry,  &c.  Under  each  head  place  the  names  of  the 
writers  who  have  treated  of  the  subject,  with  the  dates  of  their 
earliest  and  latest  papers  thereon.  If  the  heads  are  skilfully 
selected  it  will  seldom  be  necessary  to  classify  a  paper  under 
more  than  one  head. 

Some  idea  of  the  size  of  the  suggested  work  may  be  gained 
from  the  following  considerations.  In  the  eight  volumes  of  the 
catalogue  at  present  published  (1800-63  and  1863-73)  are  the 
names  of  about  57,000  authors,  treating  the  names  in  the  second 
part  as  entirely  new.  Of  these,  about  30,000  have  only  one 
paper  each,  and  the  remaining  27,000  average  about  eight  papers 
each.  In  view  of  the  tendency  of  all  writers  to  devote  them- 
selves to  special  subjects,  three  heads  seem  a  fair  allowance  for 
the  papers  of  each  of  the  27,000  authors.  We  have  thus  1 1 1,000 
authors'  names  to  be  catalogued  under  5000  heads,  giving  an 
average  of  about  22  names  to  each  head.  Such  a  list,  printed 
in  the  style  of  the  present  catalogue,  but  with  three  columns 
instead  of  two  in  a  page,  would  fill  a  volume  of  about  800  pages. 
Each  of  the  present  volumes  contains  about  looo  pages,  and  is 
sold  at  20s,,  which  we  are  told  covers  the  cost  of  the  paper  and 
printing.  If  the  sections  devoted  to  the  various  sciences — 
chemistry,  geology,  &c. — were  published  separately,  the  sale 
would  probably  be  large. 

With  regard  to  the  use  of  this  list,  the  labour  of  looking  up 
20  or  even  50  names  in  the  main  catalogue  would  generally  be 
trifling  compared  with  the  unavoidable  labour  of  reading  the 
actual  papers  when  the  references  had  been  found.  In  many 
cases  the  dates  would  show  at  once  that  certain  authors  need  not 
be  referred  to.  Even  if  we  had  a  complete  alphabetical  subject 
index,  it  would  be  necessary  to  think  of  every  possible  word  by 
which  the  particular  subject  in  question  might  be  denoted,  so 
that  the  classified  list,  though  more  troublesome  at  first,  would 
often  prove  more  satisfactory  in  the  end.  With  5000  heads  for 
the  whole  of  science,  perhaps  750  might  be  allotted  to  physics, 
and  of  these,  150  to  light.  This  would  admit  of  such  sub- 
divisions as  velocity  of  light,  colour  sensation,  fluorescence, 
selective  reflection,  magnetic  rotation  of  the  plane  of  polariza- 
tion, &c.  Those  subdivisions  should  be  selected,  into  which 
the  actual  papers  most  naturally  fall,  rather  than  those  which 
seem  ideally  correct. 

The  labour  of  preparing  such  a  list  as  I  propose  would  be  in 
itself  considerable,  but,  compared  with  the  colossal  enterprise 
which  the  Royal  Society  has  already  carried  out,  it  would  be 
small,  and  the  service  to  science  would  be  great. 

Hotel  Buol,  Davos,  James  C.  McConnel, 

Osteolepidae. 
The  letter  of  your  correspondent  "  R.  L.  -f  E."  somewhat 
misses  the  issue  raised  in  the  passage  to  which  he  refers.  In 
that  passage  the  question  was  not  raised  whether  or  no  we  are 
right  in  making  family  names  from  the  inflected  form  of  the 
generic  ones,  the  sole  contention  being  for  uniformity  in  this 
respect.  Thus,  if  we  are  right  in  making  Rhizodontida:  {z.XiA  not 
Rhizodid(2\  {torn  Rhizodtts,  we  clearly  ought  to  have  Ostcolepidida- 
(and  not  Osteolepida:)  from  Osteolepis,  both  these  generic  names 
being  precisely  analogous  compounds.  If,  on  the  other  hand, 
your  corresp  mdent  is  right  in  saying  that  we  should  regard  all 
such  names  as  adjectival,  then  we  ought  at  once  to  abolish  family 
names  MlVlq  Macropodida:,  Dasypodidcc,  Octodontldcc,  &c. ,  in  favour 
oi  Macropidcc,  DasyptdcB,  and  Octodidcr.  R.  L. 


There  can  be  no  question  that  "  R.  L,  +  E."  is  himself 
mistaken  in  his  arbitrary  assumption  of  a  rule  for  the  formation 
of  compound  adjectives  in  Greek.  Sometimes  the  lengthened 
genitive  is  used  as  the  stem,  as  in  hiawtmros  ("disomatus  ") ; 
sometimes  the  short  nominative  stem  is  employed,  as  in  Sitrro/ios 
("distomus  ") ;  and  sometimes  both  forms  occur  side  by  side,  as 
<l>t\aifj.aTos  ('*  philsematus  ")  and  (p'lKaifjLos  ("  philsemus  "),  the 
former  seeming  to  be  preferred.  These  are  words  actually  in 
use  in  Greek  writers,  and  any  lexicon  will  give  plenty  of  other 
instances.  But  his  whole  argument  is  beside  the  point ;  the 
question  is  not  whether  an  adjective  is  formed  from  the  lengthened 
genitive,     but    whether    an    adjective,    formed    from    a   noun 


Feb.  13    1890] 


NATURE 


343 


■which  lengthens  its  genitive,  lengthens  its  own  genitive.  It  does 
so  in  every  instance  ;  e.g.  we  have  KaWidpt^  with  genitive 
KuWirpixos,  iiiKpoirTfpv^  with  genitive  fitKpoirrfpvyos.  Hence, 
in  the  Lepidoptera,  we  rightly  call  the  family,  of  which 
Micropteryx  is  the  type,  the  Micropterygidce. 

Osteolepis,  though  not  occurring  in  Greek  writers,  is  not  "of 
questionable  form,"  but  as  good  a  word  as  <pi\6-iTo\is  and 
^iKSirarpts  ;  and  just  as  the  latter  actually  forms  a  genitive 
■<pi\o'7ra,TpiSos,  so  also  oo'Te(^A67rjs  would  form  offTeoKfrnSos,  and 
the  family  name  would  be  Osteolepididic,  Finally,  it  is  to  be 
remembered  that  the  family  name  is  not  formed  from  a 
^'possible"  generic  name,  but  from  an  existing  one;  so  that 
Osliohpus  is  out  of  the  question,  and  indeed  is  only  "  possible  " 
because  there  happens  to  be  a  word  kItcos  from  which  it  can  be 
derived. 

I  must  apologize  for  troubling  you  at  this  length,  but  my 
fellow-workers  in  science  are  not  unfrequently  so  hazy  on  the 
subject  of  classical  nomenclature  that  there  is  a  need  for  the 
setting  forth  of  sound  doctrine.  E.  Meyrick. 

The  College,  Marlborough,  January  25. 


As  to  the  facts  of  word-formation  in  Greek,  Mr.  Meyrick  is, 
as  was  indeed  to  be  expected,  quite  right,  and  might  have  put 
the  case  even  more  strongly.  The  short  forms,  like  iroAvtrroytios, 
are  much  rarer  than  those  in  which  the  full  stem  is  found,  like 
iroKvffiisixaTos.  They  are,  indeed,  unless  I  mistake,  found  only 
with  the  neuter  stems  in  -or-,  as  in  ^epixa{T-),  <TTOfj.a(T-),  (Ta)/j.a{T-), 
i,tfm{r-),  airepixair-),  and  appear  to  be  a  speciality  of  that  class 
of  nouns,  where  they  occur  beside,  but  not  to  the  exclusion  of, 
the  full  normal  forms.  There  is  no  ground  for  thinking  that  a 
<lerivative  form  in  -lepos  could  be  formed  from  the  noun  Xeiris, 
\firiS-,  or  a  derivative  in  -ornos  from  opvis,  opvld-.  * Osteolepus 
and  its  alleged  pi.  *Osteolepi,  may  certainly  be  pronounced  im- 
possible on  Greek  analogies  ;  and  could  not  even  be  grounded  on 
the  by-form  of  the  noun,  \eiros,  stem  \eire{a)-,  since  the  adjective 
from  that  -os,  -es  stem,  would  necessarily  end  in  -Xeirrjs,  -Xenes. 
As,  therefore,  Osteolepid-  is  the  stem  of  the  noun,  the  name  of 
the  family,  on  Greek  analogies,  is  necessarily  Osteolepid-idce. 

But  I  do  not  myself  think  that  it  is  always  necessary  to  con- 
form to  Greek  analogies  ;  I  think  that  the  convenience  of  English 
needs  is  also  to  be  considered.  In  Ostec/lepis,  Osteo'lepi'didce,  I 
think  English  needs  are  fairly  answered  ;  but  it  is  not  always  so  ; 
^ome  formations  of  the  kind  are  hardly  pron)unceable,  or  when 
pronounced,  through  shifting  of  accent,  presence  of  mute  letters, 
pronunciation  of  c,  sc,  as  s,  and  the  like,  do  not  in  the  least 
suggest  their  meaning. 

Indeed,  I  think  it  very  desirable  that  the  Linnean  and  other 
learned  Societies  should  esiablish  a  Committee  of  Nomenclature, 
who  should  consider  every  new  name  proposed,  and  pass  or 
reject  it,  after  taking  into  consideration  not  merely  etymological 
correctness  of  formation,  but  what  I  think  far  more  important, 
-capability  of  being  pronounced,  distinctness  from  other  existing 
names,  and  fitness  for  yielding  derivatives,  if  needed.  I  entirely 
disagree  with  the  notion  that  every  discoverer  of  a  genus  has  a 
right  to  confer  a  name  upon  it  which  he  himself  has  never  con- 
sidered how  to  pronounce.  I  have  had  occasion  repeatedly  to 
ask  inventors  of  such  names,  how  they  pronounced  them,  and 
have  more  than  once  been  told  that  they  had  never  thought  of 
.that,  only  of  getting  the  Greek  form  right,  and  that  I,  forsooth, 
must  settle  the  pronunciation  !  Such  men  were,  of  course, 
utterly  unfit  to  confer  names,  however  eminent  as  scientists. 
Every  name  that  does  not  lend  itself  to  a  distinct  and  easy  pro- 
nunciation, or  which,  when  pronounced,  is  undistinguishable 
from  some  other  word  spelt  quite  differently  {e.g.  words  in 
coeno-.,  cccno-,  scetio-,  seno-,  &c.),  ought  to  be  rejected.  Better 
invent  new  words  off  at  the  ground,  having  no  etymology,  than 
put  together  Greek  roots  in  combinations  unsuitable  for  modern 
mouths  and  modern  ears.  Why  must  modern  knowledge  be 
confined  within  the  swaddling-bands  of  a  nomenclature  2000 
years  younger  ?  J.  A.  H.  Murray. 

Oxford,  January  28. 


Compounds  of  Selenium. 

In  your  issue  of  the  23rd  ult.  (p.  284)  you  insert  a  paragraph 
describing  experiments  by  M.  Chabrie  on  compounds  of  selenium. 
While  fully  acknowledging  the  value  of  his  work  on  the  phenyl 
ilerivatives  of  selenium,  I  think  it  right  to  state  that  much  of 
M.   Chabrie's  investigation  has  been  anticipated  by  Mr.  F.  P. 


Evans  and  myself  as  long  ago  as  1884  ;  and  that  several  of  his 
assertions  are  incomplete  and  incorrect.  The  tetrachloride, 
SeCl4,  as  we  then  showed,  exists  in  vapour  as  such  between 
180°  and  200°  ;  with  rise  of  temperature  it  dissociates,  but  even 
at  360°,  dissociation  is  incomplete.  In  our  paper  ( Trans. 
Chem.  Soc,  45,  62)  the  progress  of  the  dissociation  is  followed. 

We  do  not  agree  with  M.  Chabrie's  suggestion  that  the  pro- 
ducts of  dissociation  are  the  other  chloride,  SejCIj,  and  chlorine, 
for  the  very  good  reason  that  ScoCig  itself  is  an  extremely  un- 
stable body.  Instead  of,  as  he  asserts,  having  a  constant  boiling- 
point  at  360°,  it  begins  to  boil  at  145"  ;  and  temperature  rises 
to  173°,  while  a  mixture  of  SegClj  and  SeCl4  distils  over, 
leaving  a  residue  of  selenium.  The  vapour-density  of  Se.^Cl.j 
was  found  by  us  apparently  normal  ;  but  this  is  caused  in  reality 
by  the  fact  that  it  also  dissociates  completely  on  vaporization 
into  selenium  and  chlorine  without  change  of  volume,  according 
to  the  equation  SejClj  =  Se™  +  CIg. 

A  revision  of  the  experimental  work  of  previous  investigators 
is  obviously  to  be  desired  ;  but  it  should  be  undertaken  as  a 
revision,  else  inaccurate  conclusions  may  be  drawn  from  incom- 
plete work,  as  they  have  been  in  this  case. 

Perhaps  I  may  be  allowed  to  take  this  opportunity  of  inquiring 
by  what  reaction  selenophenol,  CfiHjSeH,  is  produced  from  the 
red  oil,  Se2(CgH5)3CgH4Cl,  out  of  which  it  is  said  to  deposit  on 
standing?  William  Ramsay. 

University  College,  Gower  Street,  February  3. 


Royal  Victoria  Hall  and  Morley  Memorial  College. 

I  have  only  just  read  the  article  on  Polytechnics  for  London 
in  your  number  for  January  16  (p.  242).  I  hope  it  is  not  too 
late  to  offer  a  few  words  of  comment  on  it.  Nothing  is  said  of 
that  part  of  the  Commissioners'  scheme  which  applies  to  the 
Royal  Victoria  Hall  and  Morley  Memorial  College,  probably 
because  the  amount  intended  for  them  is  comparatively  small — 
;^6ooo  down  for  structural  alterations,  and  ;^iooo  a  year  to  be 
divided  between  Hall  and  College.  But  it  derives  an  import- 
ance beyond  what  is  due  to  the  amount  of  the  grant,  from  the 
fact  that  it  is  no  castle  in  the  air,  hut  a  going  concern,  and  had 
begun  its  useful  life  long  before  the  Commissioners  had  planned 
their  scheme.  Moreover,  many  of  your  strictures  do  not  apply 
to  this  particular  part  of  it.  You  say  there  will  be,  under  the 
new  scheme,  "  no  People's  Palaces — only  Young  People's  Insti- 
tutes "  You  object  to  limitation  of  age,  and  to  smoking  being 
forbidden,  and  you  conclude  by  urging  most  truly  that  "life 
should  come  first,  then  buildings,"  for  life  develops  from  within. 

May  I  therefore,  in  as  few  words  as  possible,  give  an  account 
of  the  history  and  present  position  of  the  Hall  and  College, 
with  the  object  of  showing  that  the  truths  you  urge  have  been 
already  laid  to  heart  ? 

The  Hall  (formerly  the  "Old  Vic."  Theatre)  was  opened  9 
years  ago  as  a  temperance  music  hall,  to  compete  with  the  de- 
grading attractions  of  ordinary  music  halls,  about  which  there 
was  less  stir  in  those  days  than  now.  At  first  we  had  variety 
entertainments  every  night,  but  before  long  the  experiment  was 
tried  of  introducing  something  better  on  certain  nights.  There 
is  no  need  to  enter  into  the  ups  and  downs  through  which 
experience  was  gained  ;  suffice  it  to  say  that  we  still  have 
"variety"  pure  and  simple  on  Saturdays,  when  our  gallery 
boys,  as  well  as  well  as  their  elders,  enjoy  themselves  to  their 
hearts'  content,  to  the  number  of  1800  or  so;  and  a  modification 
of  this  kind  of  entertainment  takes  place  before  a  much  smaller 
audience  on  Mondays  and  Wednesdays.  But  on  Tuesdays  (as 
your  readers  know  from  the  occasional  notes  which  appear  in 
your  paper)  we  have  popular  illustrated  lectures  from  many  of  our 
leadinij  scientific  men,  who  continually  express  their  gratification 
at  the  appreciative  attention  of  the  audience.  On  Thursdays  we 
have  ballad  and  operatic  concerts,  at  which  (interspersed  among 
operatic  selections)  tableaux,  representing  scenes  from  operas, 
are  given.   And  on  Fridays  there  are  temperance  entertainments. 

All  this  will  be  left  unchanged  by  the  new  scheme  ;  and  is 
not  this  something  very  like  a  "  Palace  of  Delight "  ?  Smoking 
is  and  will  be  freely  carried  on  (except  in  certain  parts  of  the 
house  on  concert  nights),  and  anyone,  without  distinction  of 
age,  can  come  in  by  payments  ranging  from  twopence  on  Thurs- 
days and  Saturdays,  and  from  a  penny  other  nights. 

But  this  is  not  all.  A  little  more  than  four  years  ago,  classes 
were  started  in  the  unused  dressing-rooms  at  the  back  of  the 
stage,  in  response  to  a  demand  for  more  systematic  instruction 
from  some  of  those  who  had  attended  the  lectures.     The  first 


344 


NATURE 


[Feb.  13,  1890 


class  began  with  four  students,  but  soon  the  number  was  as 
great  as  the  rooms  could  conveniently  accommodate,  and  excel- 
lent work  was  done  in  spite  of  many  inconveniences,  one  of  the 
greatest  of  which  was  the  impossibility  of  excluding  the  sounds 
of  the  entertainments  in  the  Hall.  From  time  to  time  soirees 
were  held,  and  the  students  informally  consulted  as  to  what 
additional  classes  they  wished  for.  Where  a  demand  existed, 
every  effort  was  made  to  obtain  the  supply. 

Then  came  the  offer  of  the  Commissioners  to  meet  a  subscrip- 
tion with  an  equivalent  endowment,  and  thefreehold  was  bought, 
in  memory  of  one  of  the  truest  friends  of  the  work,  Mr.  Samuel 
Morley.  Finally,  the  waste  space  which  had  been  occupied  by 
dre- sing-rooms  and  stores  of  old  scenery  was  cleared  of  its 
dangerous  wooden  staircases,  a  sound-proof,  fire-proof  wall  was 
built  to  divide  it  from  the  theatre,  and  large  convenient  class- 
rooms were  built  ;  and  on  the  last  day  of  September  the  Morley 
Memorial  College  was  opened,  for  working  men  and  women  ; 
Miss  Goold  (the  well-known  head  of  the  Queen  Square  College) 
having  consented  to  take  the  office  of  Principal  here  also. 

Already  there  are  680  students  on  the  books.  Many  criticisms 
may  be  made  on  the  arrangements,  but  no  one  can  say  that  there 
is  a  want  of  life  in  the  place.  The  builder's  men  are  hardly  yet 
out  of  it,  and  the  fittings  are  at  present  of  the  scantiest  (the 
result  of  want  of  funds,  for  the  delay  in  passing  the  Com- 
missioners' scheme  through  Parliament  has  caused  unlooked- 
for  and  very  embarrassing  delay  in  the  receipt  of  the  help  ex- 
pected from  that  quarter)  but  the  enclosed  prospectus  will  show 
ample  signs  of  life.  Admission  to  the  gymnasium,  smoking,  and 
recreation  rooms  can  only  be  gained  by  I'OJi/i  fide  attendance  on 
at  least  one  class,  a  rule  which  the  Committee  consider  very  im- 
portant, and  which  they  adopted  in  consequence  of  their  ex- 
perience with  a  club  which  met  at  one  time  in  some  of  the  old 
rooms  belonging  to  the  Hall.  No  new  students  are  admitted 
under  17,  for  the  simple  reasons  that  it  does  not  answer  to  mix 
boys  and  men,  and  that  the  boys  are  provided  for  by  the  Re- 
creative Evening  Schools  Association  ;  but  there  is  no  limit  of 
age  at  the  other  end.  When  the  Borough  Road  Polytechnic  is 
started,  the  College  will  probably  take  those  students  who  want 
advanced  literary  and  scientific  teaching,  excluding  "techno- 
logical classes,"  for  which  neither  space  nor  funds  would  suffice. 
In  fact,  the  College  will  be  in  all  probability  the  advanced  branch 
of  the  Polytechnic.  At  all  events,  it  is  intended  that  the  two 
institutions  should  play  into  each  other's  hands  and  avoid  over- 
lapping. 

You  say  most  truly  that  life  develops  from  within.  I  would 
go  further,  and  say  that  ^' 07iine  viviim  ex  vivo"  is  as  true  of 
moral  and  social  as  it  is  of  organic  life.  No  institution  can  gi-ow 
and  flourish  unless  life  has  been  given  in  its  service,  and  this  is 
emphatically  the  case  with  that  of  which  we  are  speaking.  To 
mention  names  would  not  interest  outsiders,  and  to  those  who 
have  watched  the  Hall  from  its  very  beginning,  nine  years  ago, 
it  is  well  known  whose  heart  work  as  well  as  head  work  has 
been  devoted  to  it  and  kept  it  alive  through  its  troubled  infancy. 
This  it  is  which  has  drawn  other  workers  to  help  in  doing  what 
one  alone  could  never  accomplish,  and  given  spirit  to  the  whole. 
They  have  allowed  life  to  develop  from  within,  watching  for 
what  was  practicable  instead  of  airing  preconceived  theories,  and 
this  is  why  so  little  has  had  to  be  done  twice  over.  Help  of  all 
kinds  is  greatly  needed,  for  the  concern  is  only  in  its  early  child- 
hood yet,  but  one  thing  is  certain— whatever  wants  have  to  be 
supplied  and  defects  remedied,  this  is  not  an  "architectural 
white  elephant."  Probably  that  could  never  be  true  of  any 
institution  which  had  so  much  heart  as  well  as  head  devoted  to 
it,  but  let  those  who  doubt  come  and  see  for  themselves  ! 
February  5.  A  Member  of  Committee. 


Galls. 
In  Nature  of  November  28,  1889  (p.  80),  Prof  G.  J.  Romanes 
speaks  of  galls  as  "unequivocal  evidence  of  a  structure  occurring 
in  one  species  for  the  exclusive  benefit  of  another,"  and  states 
that  "it  is  obvious  that  natural  Selection  cannot  operate  upon 
the  plants  directly."  Nevertheless,  there  is  one  way  in  which 
galls  may  be  supposed  to  have  been  evolved  as  beneficial— or 
rather,  less  harmful— to  the  plants.  Every  farmer  is  aware  of 
the  great  loss  to  vegetation  caused  annually  by  larvae  of  insects 
boring  within  the  branches  and  twigs  of  trees.  Now  suppose 
that  all  internal  plant  feeders  were  originally  borers  or  leaf- 
miners— and  this  is  highly  probable,— but  that  some  had  a 
tendency  to  cause  swellings  in  which  they  fed.     These  latter 


would  be  less  injurious  to  the  plants,  and  the  greater  the  vitality 
of  the  plants  the  more  nourishment  for  them  ;  and  so  by  degrees- 
the  globular  and  other  highly  specialized  and  least  harmful  galls 
would  be  developed,  by  natural  selection,  for  the  benefit  not 
only  of  the  insect,  but  also  of  the  plant.  And  known  galls, 
which  I  need  not  here  enumerate,  furnish  us  with  all  the  steps 
of  this  evolution.  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell. 

West  Cliff,  Colorado,  U.S.A.,  January  23, 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

The  Compound  Ascidian  referred  to  by  Dr.  R.  v.  Lendenfeld 
in  yesterday's  Nature  (p.  317)  is  one  of  the  Polyclinidoe,  and 
probably  a  new  species.      It  belongs  to  the  genus  Aiopogaster, 
and  is  closely  related  to  A.  infonnis  {Challenger  Rt^ori,  Part  ii. 
p.  171). 

I  have  bef.>re  me  now  five  good  specimens  of  the  crab  and 
Ascidian  (the  crab  in  this  case  is  Dromia  excavata,  Haswell), 
dredged  in  Port  Jackson,  and  sent  by  the  Australian  Museum, 
Sydney  ;  they  measure  as  follows  : — 

Specimen. 

A 
B 
C 
D 
E 

In  the  largest  of  them  the  Ascidian  seems  to  be  quite  twenty 
times  the  size  of  the  crab. 

I  notice  in  these  specimens  that  the  last  pair  of  thoracic  legs^ 
in  the  crab,  which  are  much  larger  than  the  preceding  pair,  are 
turned  up  dorsally,  and  ai'e  so  firmly  embedded  and  attached  by 
their  sharp  claws  in  the  test  of  the  Ascidian  that  it  is  easier  to 
disarticulate  them  than  to  loosen  their  hold. 

To  those  who  dredge  much  round  our  coasts,  a  crab  covered 
with  foreign  substances  is  no  unusual  sight.  Specimens  of  Hyas 
are  often  found  so  overgrown  with  Algas,  Sponges,  Zoophytes, 
and  Polyzoa  that  almost  the  whole  of  the  body  and  legs  is 
hidden,  and  the  animal  is  scarcely  recognizable  except  by  its 
movements.  W.  A.  Herdman. 

Liverpool,  February  7. 


Crab 

Ascidian 

(greatest  diameter). 

(length,  breadth,  and  height> 

cm. 

cm.      cm.       cm. 

4 

10      x8      X5 

3-5 

10     x6     X5 

2-5 

8     x6     X5.5 

2-5 

6x6x5 

25 

5"5x4'5^3 

The  Ten  and  Tenth  Notation. 

It  is  no  doubt  difficult  for  anyone  to  really  conceive  enor- 
mously great  or  infinitely  small  quantities.  This  difficulty  is, 
however,  much  minimized  by  the  ten  and  tenth  notation. 
Indeed,  if  systematically  used,  I  believe  one's  mental  power  of 
estimation  would  be  practically  perfect.  But  is  it  so  used  ?  I 
have  before  me  three  books — I  only  take  this  as  an  example  of 
what  frequently  occurs — in  which  Joule's  equivalent  is  given, 
is — 

42        X   10"  \ 
4*2     X  10''  >  respectively. 
0-42  X  10* ) 

B.  A.  MUIRHEAD. 
Pall  Mall  Club,  Waterloo  Place,  S.W.,  February  8. 

P.  S. — The  natural  uniform  notation,  at  any  rate  for  text- 
books, seems  obvious. 


EARTH  TREMORS  FROM  TRAINS. 

A  MONG  the  writings  of  those  who  love  to  speculate  on 
-^*-  the  future  of  our  planet  there  is  probably  some- 
where (though  we  have  not  had  time  to  discover  it)  an 
essay  on  the  cosmical  changes  which  man  will  be  able  to 
produce  in  the  earth.  The  data  for  solving  this  problem 
are  striking.  In  a  few  centuries  man  has  acquired  all 
those  powers  over  large  and  solid  objects  represented  by 
his  knowledge  of  explosives,  and  his  use  of  steam. 
Multiply  the  centuries,  and  with  them  the  history,  by 
convenient  figures  (a  familiar  process  in  this  kind  of  prob- 
lem) and  there  is  no  reason  why  the  earth's  axis  of 
rotation  should  not  be  shifted  considerably  by  human 
agency. 
For  the  present,  however,  we  are  concerned  with  a  more 


Feb. 


j> 


1890] 


NATURE 


345 


modest  inquiry — to  wit,  how  far  the  railways  which  jar 
the  nerves  of  Mr.  Ruskin  so  terribly,  are  desirable  neigh- 
bours for  anyone  who  prefers  the  earth  under  his  feet  to 
be  firm  and  steady,  as  it  was  aforetime,  and  as  it  is  now 
sometimes  in  remote  parts  of  the  country  on  Sundays. 
We  have  all  noticed,  when  standing  near  a  passing  train, 
the  vibration  of  the  ground  under  our  feet.  Though  this 
vibration  decreases  as  we  recede  from  the  train,  and  may 
at  a  distance  of  50  or  100  yards  become  insensible  to 
such  a  coarse  test  as  the  actual  jarring  of  our  body,  we 
can  understand  that  it  may  be  sufficient  to  disturb  deli- 
cate instruments  at  a  considerable  distance  ;  and  thus 
affect  the  use  of  instruments  requiring  a  steady  foundation. 
Pre-eminent  among  such  are  astronomical  instruments, 
and  it  was  very  early  in  the  history  of  railways  that 
astronomers  found  themselves  compelled  to  fight  for  the 
retention  of  that  steadiness  of  ground  in  their  neighbour- 
hood which  is  of  vital  importance  to  them,  and  with 
which  no  human  agency  had  previously  suggested  an 
interference.  It  was  in  1835  that  the  question  of  taking 
a  railway  near  an  Observatory  was  first  raised,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  Royal  Observatory,  Greenwich  ;  and  an 
animated  discussion  resulted  in  the  defeat  of  the  railway 
company. 

But  they  have  several  times  since  returned  to  the 
charge,  for  Greenwich  has  always  been  an  atjtractive 
centre  for  excursions,  and  there  are  many  reasons  why 
railway  companies  find  it  continually  cropping  up  in  their 
schemes  ;  indeed,  it  is  only  a  few  months  ago  that  the 
latest  application  of  the  kind  was  refused  by  Parliament. 

On  June  19,  1835,  the  Secretary  of  the  Admiralty  wrote 
to  the  Astronomer- Royal,  Mr.  Pond,  asking  for  his  com- 
ments on  the  proposed  scheme  for  a  Greenwich-Gravesend 
railway,  passing  in  a  tunnel  under  a  part  of  Greenwich 
Park,  in  which  the  Royal  Observatory  is  situated.  Mr. 
Pond  replied  that  he  had  no  experience  in  such  matters  ; 
but  "  the  most  important  observations  made  at  the  Royal 
Observatory  are  those  in  which  the  stars  are  seen  by 
reflection  from  a  horizontal  surface  of  mercury.  It  appears 
to  me  highly  probable,  by  what  I  have  experienced  from 
sUghter  causes,  that  the  passage  of  heavy  carriages,  even 
at  the  distance  of  the  intended  tunnel,  might  produce 
sufficient  tremor  on  this  surface  to  destroy  the  accuracy 
of  these  observations."  On  receiving  this  reply.  Captain 
Beaufort,  then  Hydrographer  to  the  Admiralty,  wrote  to 
a  friend.  Commander  Denham,  asking  him  to  make  ex- 
periments near  one  of  the  few  existing  lines  of  railroad — 
that  between  Liverpool  and  Manchester— with  a  sextant 
and  artificial  horizon.  After  explaining  the  object  of  the 
experiments,  he  says: — ''It  would  be  childish  to  be 
guided  by  opinions  and  suggestions,  when  the  facts  can 
be  distinctly  ascertained  by  means  of  the  Liverpool  and 
Manchester  Railroad,  and  I  therefore  want  you  to  take 
your  artificial  mercury  horizon  to  that  railroad,  and  watch 
the  contact  of  a  star  or  the  sun  in  altitude  with  a  tele- 
scope when  the  train  is  passing,  at  two  or  three  different 
distances,  till  you  come  to  the  outer  limit  of  vibration,  or, 
in  other  words,  to  the  distance  at  which  the  mercury  is 
no  longer  affected.  After  you  have  tried  this  on  the 
surface,  I  wish  you  would  then  try  the  same  experiment 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  tunnel,  as  I  presume  that 
the  results  will  be  very  different." 

Commander  Denham's  reply  is  as  follows  : — "  I  find 
the  vibration  of  trains  of  120  tons,  at  a  speed  of 
25  miles  an  hour,  affect  the  mercury  as  far  as  942  feet 
laterally  with  the  rails,  on  the  same  level,  and  on  equal 
substratum;  but  vibration  perfectly  ceases  at  I  no  feet, 
whilst  directly  over  the  tunnel  no  vibration  is  detectable 
at  95  feet  distance,  though  quite  discernible  at  65  feet 
vertical  distance.  .  .  .  I  am  mdebted  to  the  co-operative 
accommodation  of  the  directors,  who  allowed  trains  of 
extra  weight,  and  at  extra  speed,  to  pass  down  at  night 
hours  when  the  busy  hum  (of  carting  carriages  and 
bustle)  was  completely  suspended." 


In  the  printed  report  of  this  correspondence  the 
Hydrographer  notes  on  this  letter:  "It  is  proper  to 
remark  on  the  above  that  Commander  Denham's  experi- 
ments depended  on  observations  with  a  sextant,  and  that 
the  limits  of  tremors  in  the  mercury  would  be  far  more 
extensive  if  viewed  by  the  high  magnifying  powers  used 
with  the  mural  circle." 

We  have  quoted  this  case  in  detail  not  only  because  it 
was  the  first  experiment  of  the  kind,  but  because  the  accu- 
racy of  the  results,  as  interpreted  by  the  Hydrographer's 
note,  has  been  confirmed  by  later  experiments.  This 
report  was  adverse  to  the  railway  company,  who  wished 
to  approach  within  650  feet  of  the  Observatory ;  but  they 
did  not  relinquish  their  scheme  at  once.  They  suggested 
various  plans — of  running  trains  at  slow  speeds,  or 
stopping  them  altogether  if  the  Royal  Observatory 
signalled  that  an  important  observation  was  just  going 
on,  and  so  forth — all  of  which  were  open  to  the  objection 
of  looking  too  well  on  paper.  Meanwhile  Mr.  Pond  had 
been  succeeded  by  Mr.  (afterwards  Sir  George)  Airy, 
who,  in  1836  January,  repeated  Commander  Denham's 
experiments  in  the  Glebe  Meadow,  near  the  Greenwich 
Railway,  but  using  a  small  telescope  instead  of  a  sextant. 
He  found  that  "a  disturbance  in  the  clearness  of  the 
image  (in  mercury)  was  perceptible  when  the  train  was 
1 106  feet  from  the  mercury,  and  the  image  was  almost 
lost  from  the  violence  of  the  agitation  when  the  train 
was  about  700  feet  from  the  mercury.  When  the  train 
was  500  feet  from  the  mercury  it  was  impossible  to 
know  whether  there  ought  to  be  any  object  visible 
at  all." 

The  question  was  ultimately  resolved  into  a  decision 
upon  the  minimum  distance  from  the  Observatory  at 
which  a  railway  could  be  allowed  ;  and  under  strong 
pressure,  Sir  George  Airy  was  induced  to  define  this 
distance  as  something  over  700  feet ;  but  the  position  to 
which  the  line  was  thus  removed  was  found  to  bring  it 
near  other  buildings,  and  the  project  was  ultimately 
shelved.  The  Astronomer  Royal's  troubles  were,  how- 
ever, only  just  commencing.  In  1840  the  London  and 
Chatham  Railway  Company  asked  for  leave  to  go  through 
the  Park  ;  being  promptly  followed  by  a  similar  applica- 
tion from  the  South-Eastern  Company  ;  and  he  must 
needs  repeat  his  experiments  and  protests. 

His  experiments  in  March  1846  near  the  Kensal  Green 
tunnel  showed  that  tremor  was  sensible  in  the  compact 
clay  of  Kensal  Green  to  a  distance  of  1700  feet,  but  that 
the  tremor  was  very  much  diminished  where  the  railway 
enters  a  tunnel.  Dr.  Robinson,  of  Armagh,  made  inde- 
pendent experiments  on  the  Dublin  and  Kingstown 
Railway.  He  mounted  a  mural  circle  on  an  ash  post 
driven  deeply  into  the  ground,  at  a  distance  of  1655  feet 
from  the  nearest  point  of  the  line  ;  and  found  that  the 
vibration  of  passing  trains  gradually  shook  the  instrument 
away  from  any  position  in  which  it  was  clamped,  so  that 
an  object  would  not  remain  bisected  by  the  cross  wires. 
His  reflection  observations  were  numerous,  and  he  sums 
them  up  as  follows  :  ''  On  these  facts  it  is,  I  presume, 
unnecessary  to  offer  any  comment,  except  the  simple  re- 
mark that  they  show  clearly  that,  in  a  soil  such  as  I  have 
described,  a  train  of  no  uncommon  weight  or  velocity  can 
produce,  at  an  oblique  distance  of  two  miles,  such  dis- 
turbance as  ought  never  to  be  tolerated  in  an  Observatory." 

Sir  James  South  also  made  experiments,  and  concludes 
his  report  to  the  Admiralty  thus  : — "  To  the  observations 
of  right  ascension  made  by  reflectioii,  the  more  immediate 
object  of  this  communication,  let  me  then  entreat  your 
Lordships'  serious  attention,  convinced,  as  I  am,  that,  did 
they  stand  alone,  they  would  justify  your  Lordships  in 
saying  \.o  present  as  well  as  to  future  x?a\xo2A  applicants, 
'  Within  this  Park  stands  the  Royal  Observatory 
OF  England,  and  within  this  Park's  walls  a 
Railroad  shall  never  come.'"  (The  italics  and 
capitals  are  as  in  the  original.) 


346 


NATURE 


\Feb.  13,  1890 


These  strong  protests  had  the  desired  effect  for  the  time 
being,  and  it  was  not  till  1853  that  another  attempt  was 
made  to  bring  a  railway  within  the  Park.  This  was  by 
the  South-Eastern  Company,  and  being  postponed  for  a 
year,  was  not  heard  of  again.  In  1863,  however,  the 
London,  Chatham,  and  Dover  Company  proposed  a  line 
from  Dulwich  to  Epsom  passing  within  700  feet  of  the 
Observatory ;  and  the  South  London,  Greenwich,  and 
Woolwich  Railway  another  passing  within  600  feet.  Sir 
George  Airy  was  at  first  inclined  to  think  that,  if  these 
railways  were  laid  in  tunnels,  they  might  be  permitted. 
But  as  facilities  for  mak  ng  experiments  had  meantime 
increased  with  the  multiplicity  of  lines,  he  renewed  his 
investigations  at  the  suggestion  of  the  Hydrographer, 
and  found  that  the  protection  of  the  tunnel  was  by  no 
means  established  ;  and  in  other  respects  he  had  been  if 
anything  too  lenient  in  assigning  minimum  distances. 
His  conclusions  from  the  experiments  were  : — 

"  L  It  is  indispensable  that  the  railway  pass  through 
the  Park  in  a  covered  tunnel. 

"  II.  It  is  indispensable  that  its  minimum  distance  from 
the  transit  circle  of  the  Royal  Observatory  exceed  1000 
feet." 

The  result  of  all  these  independent  experiments  seem 
to  be  that  even  with  small  instruments,  such  as  a  sextant 
or  a  small  telescope,  vibration  is  sensible  at  1000  feet 
distance  ;  and  that  though  a  tunnel  may  be  a  protection 
in  some  cases  (we  shall  presently  find  reason  to  question 
this  more  seriously)  the  reasons  are  not  sufficiently  under- 
stood to  enable  us  to  predict  the  influence  of  individual 
tunnels.  All  the  observations,  except  one  of  Dr.  Robin- 
son's, have  reference  to  reflection  observations  ;  but  it 
does  not  follow  that  these  are  the  only  observations  dis- 
turbed, as  is  made  abundantly  clear  by  the  single  observa- 
tion of  Dr.  Robinson's  referred  to,  where  the  telescope 
was  practically  shaken  to  another  position  against  the 
clamp.  It  is  in  reflection  observations  that  the  vibration 
is  most  easily  discernible,  but  errors  introduced  into  other 
observations  are  no  less  serious  because  they  are  not 
readily  detected.  Observation  with  mercury  is  a  delicate 
test,  but  it  is  quite  possible  that  we  may  very  soon  find 
even  a  more  delicate  test  necessary.  We  are,  for  instance, 
only  on  the  threshold  of  photographic  experiments  for 
which  the  most  perfect  steadiness  is  essential ;  and  it  is 
of  the  utmost  importance  to  make  sure  that  our  large 
Observatories  are  so  protected  as  to  be  available  for  such 
work  as  is  gathering  shape  in  the  mists  of  the  near  future. 
If  any  mistake  has  been  made  in  dealing  with  railway 
proposals,  it  has  been  that  of  being  too  lenient ;  firstly, 
from  the  desire  to  yield  as  far  as  possible  in  matters 
affecting  public  convenience  ;  and,  secondly,  perhaps 
from  not  fully  appreciating  the  remark  of  Captain 
Beaufort  in  1835,  that  the  results  obtained  with  small 
instruments  must  be  properly  magnified  for  deahng  with 
large  ones.  This  point  has  been  made  clear  by  the  last 
case  we  shall  quote,  also  from  the  history  of  the  Royal 
Observatory.  Proposals  for  an  adjacent  railway  were 
renewed,  as  we  have  said  above,  in  1888.  It  had  been 
already  noticed  that  the  lines  which  had  been  permitted 
were  not  sufficiently  remote  to  prevent  disturbance,  and 
accordingly  experiments  were  now  made  with  the  transit 
circle  itselt  instead  of  with  a  small  instrument.  An  observer 
was  stationed  at  the  transit  circle  prepared  for  a  nadir 
observation,  and  for  an  hour  noted  the  times  when  the 
images  were  steady,  when  partially  disturbed,  and  when 
so  agitated  as  to  prevent  observation.  These  times  were 
noted  carefully  by  a  standard  clock  to  within  a  few  seconds. 
Other  observers  were  furnished  with  watches  set  to 
standard  time,  and  travelling  on  the  various  lines  of 
railway  in  the  neighbouthood  noted  the  exact  times  of 
stopping  and  starting  of  all  trains,  entries  into  tunnels,  &c. 
The  observations  were  made  near  midnight  when  other 
traffic  was  stopped.  On  the  following  day  the  indepen- 
dent records  of  the  transit  circle  observer  and  the  train 


observers  were  compared.  These  operations  were  re- 
peated on  five  separate  nights.  The  result  of  the  series 
of  observations  may  be  gathered  from  the  following 
extract  from  the  Report  of  the  Astronomer-Royal  to  the 
Board  of  Visitors,  1888  June  2  : — 

"  It  resulted  from  these  experiments  that  trains  on  the 
Greenwich-Maze  Hill  Railway  caused  great  disturbance 
during  their  passage,  not  only  on  the  section  between 
Greenwich  and  Maze  Hill,  the  nearest  point  of  which  is 
570  yards  from  the  transit  circle,  but  also  on  the  line 
beyond  Greenwich  on  the  London  side,  and  beyond  Maze 
Hill  on  the  Woolwich  side.  The  distances  of  the  Green- 
wich and  Maze  Hill  Stations  from  the  Observatory  are 
about  970  and  670  yards  respectively  .  .  .  The  disturbance 
was  very  great  during  the  passage  between  Greenwich 
and  Maze  Hill,  the  reflected  image  being  invisible  while 
the  train  was  in  the  tunnel,  at  a  minimum  distance  of  570 
yards,  and  there  was  considerable  disturbance  during  the 
passage  of  trains  through  the  Blackheath-Charlton  tunnel, 
at  a  distance  of  a  mile,  the  reflected  image  becoming 
occasionally  invisible." 

It  thus  appears  that  the  tunnels  increased  rather  than 
diminished  the  disturbance  ;  and  that  the  minimum  dis- 
tance for  insensible  tremor  had  been  considerably  under- 
estimated. But  the  interference  with  the  work  of  the 
Observatory  is  not  serious.  By  the  vigorous  action  of 
Sir  George  Airy  and  his  successor  the  national  Observa- 
tory has  been  saved  from  the  misfortunes  which  have 
befallen  Paris  and  Berlin,  where  traffic  has  been  allowed 
to  make  certain  classes  of  observation  impossible. 

H.  H.  Turner. 


TITANOTHERIUM  IN  THE  BRITISH 
MUSEUM. 

T^O  those  English  zoologists  who  have  not  had  the 
■*■  good  fortune  to  visit  the  palaeontological  museums 
of  the  United  States  the  huge  Miocene  mammals  form- 
ing the  family  Titanotheriidce  have  been  hitherto  known 
only  by  description  and  small-sized  figures  of  the  skull 
and  skeleton,  which,  however  excellent  they  may  be,  afford 
but  a  very  inadequate  idea  of  the  proportions  of  these  most 
remarkable  Perissodactyle  Ungulates.  Recently,  how- 
ever. Prof.  O.  C.  Marsh,  of  New  Haven,  to  whose 
generosity  our  National  Museum  is  already  much  indebted, 
has  presented  that  institution  with  a  beautifully  executed 
model  of  the  skull  of  one  of  these  mighty  brutes,  v/hich 
is  now  exhibited  in  the  front  palaeontological  gallery,  below 
the  head  of  the  skeleton  of  the  Kentucky  mastodon.  By 
singular  good  fortune  the  Keeper  of  the  Geological 
Department  of  the  Museum  has  been  enabled  at  the 
same  time  to  purchase  associate  d  examples  of  the  teeth 
of  another  member  of  the  family,  which  are  placed  along- 
side of  the  cast,  and  thus  enable  us  to  see  the  actual  state 
of  preservation  in  which  the  remains  of  these  creatures 
are  found. 

The  TitanotheriidcB  were  first  made  known  to  science 
from  the  evidence  of  specimens  of  the  dentition  described 
years  ago  by  the  French  naturalist  Pomel,  by  whom  the 
name  Menodus  was  proposed  for  their  owner.  Unluckily, 
however,  this  name  was  preoccupied  by  the  earlier 
Menodon;  and  we  are  therefore  compelled  to  adopt  for 
the  type  member  of  the  family  the  name  Titanotheriuvi, 
which  is  the  first  of  the  numerous  terms  proposed  by 
American  writers.  The  species  of  which  the  skull  has 
been  presented  to  the  Museum  is  made  by  Prof.  Marsh 
the  type  of  a  distinct  genus  under  the  name  of  Brontops. 
The  chief  distinction  of  this  form  from  the  type  of 
Brontotherhtm,  which  seems  inseparable  from  Titano: 
iherium,  appears  to  be  the  reduced  number  of  incisors, 
but  if  writers  like  the  Director  of  the  Museum  are  right 
in  regarding  such  variations  in  the  allied  group  of  the 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


347 


Rhinoceroses  as  of  not  more  than  specific  importance, 
this  species  should  be  included  in  the  type  genus. 

These  Titanotherioids  appear  to  have  been  most  nearly 
allied  to  the  Rhinoceroses  among  existing  forms,  as  is  at 
once  apparent  from  the  contour  of  the  skull.  According 
to  Prof.  Marsh  they  were  larger  than  the  Dinocerata  of 
the  Eocene,  and  nearly  equalled  in  size  the  existing  ele- 
phants. The  skull  differs  from  those  of  the  rhinoceroses, 
however,  in  that  instead  of  having  one  or  two  horns 
placed  in  the  middle  line  of  the  nasal  region  and  having 


no  sort  of  bor.y  connection  with  the  skull  itself,  it  has  two 
large  processes  of  solid  bone  in  a  transverse  line 
immediately  over  the  nose,  which  were  probably  invested 
with  a  horny  sheath. 

The  molar  teeth  are,  moreover,  unlike  those  of  the 
rhinoceroses,  having  excessively  low  crowns,  and  an 
arrangement  of  the  tubercles  and  ridges  very  similar  to 
that  obtaining  in  the  Tertiary  genera  Limnohyus  and 
Chalicotheriiini  ;  the  first  of  which  is  certainly,  and  the 
latter  probably,  a  Perissodactyle,  although  the  recent  dis- 


Restoratio  1  of  the  skeleton  of  Titanothcriuiii  robustiiiit  (^'j  nat.  size).     After  Marsh. 


covcry  that  the  peculiar  claws  upon  the  evidence  of  which 
the  supposed  Edentate  genus  Macrothcritim  was  founded 
are  referable  to  it,  render  it  a  most  aberrant  type. 

The  skeleton  to  which  the  original  of  the  cast  presented 
to  the  Museum  pertains  was  found  in  1874  by  the  donor 
in  those  beds  of  the  Dakota  Miocene  known  as  the 
Brontotherium  beds,  and  it  appears  to  be  the  best  pre- 
served example  yet  known.  A  restoration  is  given  in 
the  accompanying  woodcut.     According  to  Prof.  Marsh 


these  deposits  are  several  hundred  feet  in  thickness,  and 
maybe  separated  into  horizons,  characterized  by  peculiar 
species  of  Tztanotherudce.  The  remains  of  several 
hundred  individuals  of  this  exclusively  American  group 
have  already  been  secured  by  the  palaeontologists  of  New 
Haven,  and  their  English  confreres  look  forward  to  the 
publication  of  the  sumptuous  monograph  in  which  Prof. 
Marsh  promises  to  illustrate  these  specimens  with  much 
interest. 


NOTES. 
There  is  some  talk  of  a  Committee  of  the  Royal   Society 
being  appointed  to  investigate  the  subject  of  colour-blindness, 
and  the  proper  methods  of  testing  the  colour-vision  of  employes 
on  railways. 

We  may  remind  our  readers  that  all  applications  for 
assignments  from  the  Government  Grant  must  be  sent  to  the 
Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Royal  Society  on  or  before  the  last 
day  of  February.  AppHcations  received  after  that  date  will  not 
be  considered  by  the  Committee  of  this  year. 

An  influential  Committee  has  been  formed  for  the  purpose  of 
securing  that  the  scientific  and  other  friends  of  the  late  Dr. 


McNab,  Professor  of  Botany  in  the  Royal  College  of  Science, 
Dublin,  shall  have  an  opportunity  of  expressing  their  apprecia- 
tion of  his  work  and  their  respect  for  his  memory.  Through  no 
fault  of  his  own,  Prof.  McNab  was  unable  to  make  adequate 
provision  for  his  wife  and  five  children  ;  and  it  is  proposed  that 
the  memorial  shall  consist  of  a  fund,  sufficiently  large  to  be  of 
real  service  to  his  family.  A  good  many  subscriptions  have 
already  been  received  or  promised,  and  we  hope  that  many 
more  may  be  forthcoming.  Mr.  Greenwood  Pirn,  Easton  Lodge, 
Monkstown,  Co.  Dublin,  acts  as  hon.  secretary  ;  Prof.  W.  N. 
Hartley,  F.R.S.,  Royal  College  of  Science,  Dublin,  as  hon. 
treasurer.  As  Prof.  Hartley  has  been  obliged  to  leave  Dublin 
for  some  time,  all  communications  should  be  addressed,  and 
cheques  made  payable,  to  the  hon.  secretary. 


34« 


NATURE 


[Feb.  13,  1890 


We  have  already  (p.  207)  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  a 
committee  has  been  formed  in  Paris  for  the  purpose  of  making 
arrangements  for  the  erection  of  a  statue  of  the  late  M.  Boussin" 
gault.  His  work  marked  an  era  in  the  history  of  the  agricultural 
sciences,  and  we  have  no  doubt  there  vi^ill  be  a  prompt  and 
liberal  response  to  the  committee's  appeal  for  subscriptions. 
M.  Pasteur  is  the  honorary  president  of  the  committee.  The 
acting  president  is  M.  Schloesing,  and  the  following  are  the 
vice-presidents  :  MM.  Berthelot,  Duchartre,  Laussedat,  Peligot, 
Risler,  and  Tisserand.  MM.  Miintz  and  Sagnier  are  the  secre- 
taries, and  M.  Liebaut  is  treasurer. 

The  death  of  M.  Sebastien  Vidal,  Director  of  the  Botanic 
Garden  at  Manilla,  is  announced.  He  was  well  known  for  his 
researches  on  the  flora  of  the  Philippine  Islands. 

The  scheme  of  the  Senate  of  the  University  of  London, 
drawn  up  in  accordance  with  the  recommendations  of  the 
recent  Royal  Commission,  does  not  at  all  commend  itself  to 
the  authorities  of*  the  provincial  Colleges.  They  are  convinced 
that  it  would  be  most  injurious  to  the  interests  of  places  of 
education  outside  the  capital.  This  view  was  strongly  expressed 
last  autumn  at  a  meeting  of  representatives  of  the  provincial  Col- 
leges at  Birmingham,  and  yesterday  (Wednesday)  it  was  pressed 
upon  the  attention  of  Lord  Cranbrook  by  a  deputation  which 
waited  upon  him  at  the  Privy  Council  Office. 

To-morrow  afternoon  (Friday),  at  the  Royal  United  Service 
Institution,  Mr.  H.  Dent  Gardner  will  read  a  paper  on  "The 
Ship's  Chronometer — its  History  and  Development."  The 
paper  will  be  divided  into  four  parts:  (l)  historical,  (2) 
"historical-descriptive  (the  building  up  of  the  chronometer), 
(3)  the  chronometer  of  to-day,  and  (4)  methods  of  testing  and 
lating  chronometers. 

The  Ben  Nevis  Observatory  Monthly  Report  for  January  is 
of  more  than  usual  interest.  The  rainfall  during  the  month 
amounted  to29"42  inches,  being  15TO  inches  above  the  mean  of 
the  month  since  the  Observatory  was  opened  in  1883.  A  mea- 
surable quantity  fell  every  day,  and  on  1 1  days  over  an  inch  was 
recorded  each  day,  while  on  the  14th,  3*88  inches  fell.  The  total 
bright  sunshine  amounted  to  only  4  hours,  being  the  smallest  num- 
ber hitherto  recorded.  Lightning  occurred  on  5  days.  The  storm 
of  the  5th  was  peculiarly  severe,  on  which  occasion  the  tele- 
graph cable  was  damaged  and  communication  stopped.  St. 
Elmo's  Fire  was  seen  on  the  21st  and  25th,  under  the  same  re- 
lations to  the  cyclones  then  passing  over  North- Western  Europe 
as  described  recently  in  Nature. 

We  have  received  from  Mr.  C.  L.  Wragge,  Government 
Meteorologist  of  Queensland,  his  first  Annual  Report  of  the 
Meteorological  Branch  of  the  Post  and  Telegraph  Department 
for  the  year  1887.  It  is  divided  into  three  sections.  Section  i 
gives  an  account  of  the  organization,  inspections,  &c. ,  containing 
a  list  of  the  recommendations  originally  made  by  Mr.  Wragge, 
and  a  general  statement  as  to  how  far  each  of  them  has  been 
carried  out.  This  synopsis  shows  that,  while  he  has  accom- 
plished much  during  the  year  1887,  more  still  remains  to  be 
done.  Section  2  contains  abstracts  of  reports  for  each  month 
from  the  rainfall  stations,  with  climatological  and  other  tables 
from  the  stations  which  are  supplied  with  instruments.  These 
abstracts  contain  very  interesting  data  upon  the  state  of 
the  country,  and  will  become  more  valuable  in  proportion  as 
the  number  of  verified  instruments  to  be  supplied  year  by  year 
increases.  As  Mr.  Wragge  himself  points  out,  any  conclusions 
from  so  short  a  series  of  observations  would  be  premature. 
Section  3  contains  a  graphic  record  of  the  chief  meteorological 
elements  for  Brisbane,  with  seasonal  wind  charts  and  cloud 
charts  for  Queensland,  and  specimen  wind  charts  for  Austral- 


asia. These  form  the  most  interesting  portion  of  the  Report, 
and  give  promise  of  valuable  materials  for  scientific  study. 
In  Western  Australia,  however,  the  weather  charts  show  that 
there  are  vast  tracts  of  country  with  apparently  no  meteorological 
stations. 

The  last  issue  of  the  Memoirs  of  the  Tashkent  Observatory 
(Part  3)  contains  a  most  valuable  magnetical  map  of  part  of 
Central  Asia,  based  on  the  recent  measurements  of  MM. 
Sharnhorst  and  Schwarz. 

We  have  already  mentioned  some  of  the  conclusions  as  to  the 
secular  upheaval  of  the  coasts  of  Finland  which  may  be  drawn 
from  the  accurate  measurements  made  since  1858  under  the 
direction  of  the  Finska  Vetenskaps-Societeten.  We  have  now 
an  elaborate  paper  on  this  subject,  contributed  by  A.  R.  Bonsdorf 
to  the  Izvestia  of  the  Russian  Geographical  Society  (vol.  xxv.  5). 
It  appears  from  the  mathematical  analysis  to  which  the  measure- 
ments have  been  submitted  that  the  average  upheaval  of  the 
coasts  of  South- West  Finland  is  55  centimetres  per  century  ; 
and  that  the  rate  of  upheaval  increases  from  Ut-o  (in  the 
Aland  Islands)  towards  the  north,  and  towards  the  east  as  far  as 
Porkala  (not  far  from  Ilelsingfors),  whence  it  decreases  again 
towards  the  east.  The  interpolation  formulae  better  correspond 
to  actual  measurements  if  the  changes  of  the  level  of  the  Baltic 
Sea  resulting  from  the  changes  of  atmospheric  pressure  are 
taken  into  account. 

Globus  reports  that  the  Russian  Geographical  Society  has 
presented  a  memorial  to  the  Minister  of  Marine  urging  that 
scientific  investigations  of  various  kinds  should  be  undertaken 
in  connection  with  the  Black  Sea.  Amongst  other  things,  the 
Society  points  out  that  more  exact  soundings  are  needed  in 
several  parts  of  that  sea,  and  that  it  is  especially  desirable  they 
should  be  taken  in  the  western  part  between  Odessa  and  Con- 
stantinople. 

One  of  the  problems  presented  by  the  frightful  eruption  of 
Mount  Bandai  in  Japan,  two  years  ago,  was  the  manner  in  which 
a  large  number  of  holes  in  the  earth  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
mountain  were  formed.  It  was  suggested  that  they  owed  their 
existence  to  the  falling  of  rocks  and  stones  cast  up  the  eruption, 
while  another  theory  was  that  they  were  formed  by  forces 
beneath  the  surface.  At  the  last  meeting  of  the  Seismological 
Society  of  Japan,  Dr.  Knott  read  a  paper  on  the  first  theory,  in 
which  he  demonstrated  that  it  was  quite  insufficient  to  account 
for  the  phenomena.  Prof.  Milne,  it  may  be  added,  has  expressed 
the  same  view  from  the  beginning. 

Last  Friday  a  valuable  paper  on  "  The  Utility  of  Forests  and 
the  Study  of  Forestry"  was  read  before  the  Indian  Section  of  the 
Society  of  Arts  by  Dr.  W.  Schlich,  Professor  of  Forestry  at  the 
Royal  College  of  Engineering,  Cooper's  Hill.  In  the  course  of 
his  remarks  Dr.  Schlich  gave  an  account  of  the  instruction  in 
forestry  at  Cooper's  Hill,  and  mentioned  that  the  authorities 
were  thinking  of  appointing  a  second  professor  of  the  subject, 
and  thus  doubling  the  amount  of  instruction  now  given.  After 
the  reading  of  the  paper  Major-General  Michael,  C.S. I.,  who 
presided,  made  some  interesting  observations.  No  one,  he 
said,  who  had  visited  the  great  forest  regions  of  Germany, 
Austria,  and  France  could  fail  to  be  impressed  with  the  visible 
effects  of  good  management,  and  to  wish  they  were  more  generally 
apparent  in  England  and  Scotland.  There  were  signs  that  the 
education  and  practical  training  of  foresters  were  being  more 
thought  of  at  the  present  time  in  England,  and  he  ventured  to 
predict  that  Dr.  Schlich  would  shortly  have  a  good  many 
students  under  him  who  were  destined  for  home  employment  and 
not  for  India  only.  Personally  he  knew  more  about  the  value 
of  forestry  and  the  life  of  a  forester  in  India,  having  spent  seven 
or  eight  of  the  happiest  and  perhaps  the  most  useful  years  of 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


349 


his  youth  as  a  forest  ofificer.  That  was  more  than  40  years 
ago,  before  the  time  arrived  for  experts  like  Dr.  Schlich  and  his 
distinguished  predecessor  Sir  Dietrich  Brandis  to  come  to  the 
country.  He  could  therefore  tell  any  of  Dr.  Schlich's  students 
who  might  be  present  that  the  life  of  a  forester  in  India  was  not 
only  a  career  of  importance,  but  that  it  was  one  full  of  interest 
and  of  real  enjoyment.  The  formation  of  the  department  in 
which  they  would  serve  had  justly  been  characterized  by  Sir 
Richard  Temple  as  one  of  the  greatest  achievements  effected  in 
India  during  the  Queen's  reign. 

The  Royal  Society  of  New  South  Wales  offers  its  med?,l  and 
a  prize  of  £2^  for  the  best  commnication  (provided  it  be  of 
sufficient  merit)  containing  the  results  of  original  research  or 
observation  upon  each  of  the  following  subjects  : — (To  be  sent 
in  not  later  than  May  i,  1890) — The  influence  of  the  Australian 
climate  (general  and  local)  in  the  development  and  modification 
of  disease  ;  on  the  silver  ore  deposits  of  New  South  Wales  ;  on 
the  occurrence  of  precious  stones  in  New  South  Wales,  with  a 
description  of  the  deposits  in  which  they  are  found.  (To  be 
sent  in  not  later  than  May  i,  1891) — The  meteorology  of 
Australia,  New  Zealand,  and  Tasmania ;  anatomy  and  life 
history  of  the  Echidna  and  Platypus;  the  microscopic  structure 
of  Australian  rocks.  (To  be  sent  in  not  later  than  May  i,  1892) 
— On  the  iron  ore  deposits  of  South  Wales  ;  on  the  effect  which 
settlement  in  Australia  has  produced  upon  indigenous  vegeta- 
tion, especially  the  depasturing  of  sheep  and  cattle  ;  on  the 
coals  and  coal  measures  of  Australasia.  The  competition  is  not 
confined  to  members  of  the  Society,  nor  to  residents  in  Australia. 

M.  LiGNiER  has  been  appointed  Professor  of  Botany  to  the 
Faculty  of  Sciences  at  Caen  ;  and  Mr.  G.  C.  Druce,  author 
of  the  "  Flora  of  Oxfordshire,"  succeeds  Dr.  Schonland  as 
Curator  of  the  Fielding  Herbarium  at  Oxford. 

Herr  Jadin,  of  Montpellier,  has  undertaken  a  voyage  for 
the  investigation  of  the  algal  flora  of  the  islands  Mauritius  and 
Reunion  ;  and  Prof.  P.  L.  Menyhardt,  who  has  been  appointed 
to  a  mission  on  the  Zambesi,  is  intending  to  make  a  collection  of 
plants  in  the  region  between  the  Zambesi  and  the  sources  of  the 
Congo. 

For  the  purpose  of  growing  plants  under  more  natural  con- 
ditions than  those  usually  afforded  by  the  soil  and  surroundings 
of  ordinary  botanic  gardens,  M.  G.  Bonnier,  the  Director  of  the 
Botanic  Garden  in  Paris,  has  obtained  from  the  Director  for 
Higher  Education  in  Paris  the  grant  of  a  piece  of  land  in 
the  Forest  of  Fontainebleau,  as  an  annexe  for  experimental 
culture.  It  has  been  placed  under  the  special  charge  of  M. 
CI.  Duval. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society  on  Saturday  a 
sweet-scented  fern,  from  the  Society's  garden,  was  exhibited. 
The  perfume,  which  closely  resembles  that  of  fresh  hay,  is 
retained  after  the  frond  is  dry,  and  lasts  for  many  months,  if 
not  years,  imparting  its  fragrance  to  anything  in  contact  with  it. 
The  secretary  thought  it  might  be  grown  as  a  source  of  perfume 
by  amateurs,  if  not  commercially.  As  yet  it  appeared  to  be 
little  known  in  collections  of  exotic  ferns.  Some  fine  blooms  of 
scarlet  anemone,  gathered  from  plants  growing  in  the  open  air 
in  Rutland,  were  shown  by  Mr.  T.  H.  Burroughes. 

It  is  a  good  sign  that  the  present  building  of  the  Bethnal 
Green  Free  Library  has  become  quite  inadequate  for  the  needs 
of  the  institution,  and  that  much  larger  premises  are,  if  possible, 
to  be  erected.  The  sum  of  ;i^20,ooo  is  required,  and  many 
donations  have  already  been  received  or  promised.  We  may 
note  that  a  largely  attended  meeting  at  the  Bethnal  Green  Free 
Library  lately  started  as  tudents'  union,  for  the  study  of  various 
branches  of  science  and  art,  in  connection  with  the  evening 
classes. 


In  his  "  History  of  Barbados,"  published  in  1848,  Sir 
Richard  Schomburgk  says  of  the  Barbados  monkey  that  it  was 
found  in  large  numbers  by  the  first  settlers.  From  the  appear- 
ance of  a  living  specimen  he  considered  it  "to  be  Cebus  eapu- 
cinus,  Geoff.,  the  Sai  or  Weeper,  or  a  very  closely  allied 
species."  In  the  current  number  of  the  Zoologist  Col.  H.  W. 
Feilden  presents  a  wholly  different  view.  He  asserts  that  the 
Barbados  monkey  is  an  Old  World  form,  the  Green  Monkey, 
Cercopithecus  callitrichus.  Is.  Geoffr.,  and  that  its  original 
habitat  is  West  Africa.  "  This,"  he  says,  "  undoubtedly  proves 
its  introduction  to  Barbados  by  the  Guinea  trading-ships." 
Col.  Feilden  cannot  discover  any  warrant  for  Schomburgk's 
statement  that  this  animal  was  found  in  large  numbers  by  the 
first  settlers  on  their  arrival.  The  subject  is  interesting  because 
of  its  bearing  on  the  general  view  set  forth  by  Col.  Feilden, 
that  Barbados  has  had  no  continental  connection  since  the  intro- 
duction of  its  present  flora  and  fauna,  but  has  received  its 
tc-restrial  animals  and  plants  from  the  effects  of  ocean  currents, 
winds,  accidental  occurrences,  or  by  the  agency  of  man. 

The  Council  of  the  Ceylon  Asiatic  Society,  in  its  last  Report, 
urges  on  the  Government  the  importance  of  systematically  col- 
lecting, transcribing,  and  publishing  the  manuscripts  of  the 
ancient  literature  of  the  island  which  are  scattered  about  in  the 
libraries  of  temples,  as  well  as  in  private  houses.  The  researches 
which  have  already  been  made  by  individuals,  or  on  behalf  of 
the  Government,  show  that  manuscripts  of  great  value  may  be 
found.  During  the  last  three  years,  private  exertions  have 
secured  69  of  these  ;  but  what  is  needed  is  that  the  work  should 
be  undertaken  as  carefully  and  systematically  as  in  India,  where 
the  duty  of  preserving  the  ancient  literature  of  the  country  has 
been  recognized  by  the  Government,  and  where  the  collection 
of  ancient  manuscripts  has  for  years  past  been  conducted  by 
a  large  staff  of  officers. 

Sugar  seems  to  be  losing  its  attractions  for  Lepidoptera. 
Mr.  Joseph  Anderson  writes  to  the  Entomologist  from  Chichester 
that  his  experience  agrees  with  all  that  has  been  written  on  this 
subject  lately.  In  the  trees  surrounding  his  house,  and  in  those 
of  his  neighbour's  garden,  he  has  good  sugaring  grounds,  and  in 
former  years  they  brought  him  a  satisfactory  return  for  the 
trouble  expended  on  them,  his  captures  numbering  about  fifty 
different  species.  "Now,"  he  says,  "for  three  or  four  years 
past,  night  after  night,  sugaring  has  been  almost  of  no  avail. 
Can  it  be  a  case  of  inherited  instinct  ?  And  are  the  rising 
generation  of  moths  getting  too  wise  to  be  trapjei  by  the 
sugaring  baits  ?  " 

With  the  aid  of  an  apparatus  called  a  periscope,  the  sub- 
marine boat  Gymnote  was  lately,  it  will  be  remembered,  piloted 
safely  in  Toulon  harbour.  This  enables  the  officer  directing  the 
movements  to  have  a  wide  view  around  ;  and  it  consists  of  a 
vertical  telescopic  arrangement,  with  a  lenticular  total  reflection 
prism  at  the  top  held  between  the  tube  and  a  cover  above. 
After  reflection  in  the  prism,  the  rays  converge  at  a  certain  point, 
and  are  received  by  a  lens,  the  principal  focus  of  which 
coincides  with  this  point ;  thus  a  vertical  cylindrical  beam  is 
formed,  which  meeting  a  mirror  below,  inclined  at  45°,  is 
directed  horizontally  to  the  eye-piece.  A  diaphragm,  having  a 
small  radiating  tongue,  and  moved  by  a  tangent  screw,  enables 
one  to  intercept  the  view  of  the  vertical  plane  in  which  the  sun 
is,  the  tongue  being  brought  to  coincide  with  the  plane.  The 
system  is  said  to  work  admirably. 

Experimenting  lately  on  the  sense  of  smell,  Dr.  Zwarde- 
maaker,  0/  Utrecht,  devised  an  olfactometer,  which  consists 
simply  of  a  glass  tube  with  upward  curving  part  to  be  inserted 
in  the  nostril.  A  short  movable  cylinder  made  of  some 
odoriferous  substance  fits  over  the  outer  straight  end  of  the  tube. 


350 


NA  TURE 


\_Feb.  13,  1890 


On  inhaling,  one  perceives  no  odour  so  long  as  this  cylinder  does 
not  project  beyond  the  inner  tube  ;  but  the  further  it  is  pushed 
out,  the  larger  is  the  scented  surface  presented  to  the  entering 
air,  and  the  stronger  the  odour  perceived.  The  author  studies 
mixture  of  odours  by  applying  a  cylinder  saturated  with  a 
scented  body  to  the  end  of  the  olfactometer,  and  varying  the 
length  of  the  two  odoriferous  substances.  But  he  considers  a 
double  olfactometer  better  (one  tube  for  each  nostril).  "With 
this,  one  may  easily  experience  how  one  odour  will  overwhelm 
another  ;  rubber,  e.g.,  causing  the  smells  of  paraffin,  wax,  andtolu 
to  disappear.  Even  with  very  strong  excitants,  there  is  never  a 
mingling  of  sensations.  Either  the  one  or  the  other  odour  is 
perceived,  till  by  cai-eful  equilibration  of  the  two,  no  sensory 
effect  at  all  is  perceived.     Sensibility  is  quite  eliminated. 

The  Verein  Itir  Erdkunde,  of  Halle,  is  arranging  for  a  hydro- 
graphical  and  zoological  investigation  of  the  Lake  of  Ploen,  in 
Holstein. 

Vienna  and  Berlin  will  shortly  be  connected  by  telephone. 

A  PRETTY  and  convenient  celluloid  paper  knife  is  being  sent 
by  Messrs.  Woodhouse  and  Rawson  United,  Limited,  to  their 
clients.  No  one  who  uses  it  can  doubt  that  celluloid  may  for 
some  purposes  be  a  very  good  substitute  for  ivory. 

Messrs.  William  Wesley  and  Son  have  issued  No.  99  of 
their  "  Natural  History  and  Scientific  Book  Circular."  It 
consists  of  a  list  of  works  in  astronomy,  mathematics,  and 
physics. 

A  paper  upon  phosphorus  trifluoride  is  contributed  by  M. 
Moissan  to  the  February  number  of  the  Annales  de  Chimie  et  de 
Physique.  In  a  previous  communication  it  was  shown  that  this 
interesting  gas  could  be  obtained  either  by  heating  a  mixture  of 
lead  fluoride  and  copper  phosphide,  or  by  the  action  of  arsenic 
trifluoride  upon  phosphorus  trichloride.  Since  that  time  it  has 
been  found  that  a  regular  and  more  rapid  evolution  of  phosphorus 
trifluoride  occurs  when  a  mixture  of  zinc  fluoride  and  phosphorus 
tribromide  is  gently  warmed,  and  this  appears  to  be  by  far 
the  most  convenient  way  of  obtaining  the  gas  in  quantity.  Zinc 
fluoride  reacts  much  more  rapidly  than  lead  fluoride,  and  is  best 
prepared  by  the  action  of  pure  hydrofluoric  acid  upon  zinc  car- 
bonate. The  insoluble  fluoride  thus  obtained  is  washed  with 
distilled  water  and  dried  at  200°  C.  It  is  important  not  to  raise 
the  temperature  beyond  this  point,  as  further  heating  renders  it 
much  less  easily  attacked  by  phosphorus  tribromide.  The  dry 
zinc  fluoride  is  then  placed  in  a  brass  tube  closed  at  one  end  and 
fitted  at  the  other  with  a  double  bored  ordinary  cork,  well 
paraffined,  and  through  which  pass  two  tubes,  one  a  delivery 
tube  of  lead,  and  the  other  a  kind  of  dropping  funnel,  from  which 
the  tribromide  of  phosphorus  is  allowed  to  slowly  fall  upon  the 
gently  warmed  fluoride  of  zinc.  As  soon  as  the  temperature  of 
the  latter  has  begun  to  rise,  the  action  becomes  very  energetic, 
and  in  a  few  moments  several  litres  of  the  gas  may  be  collected. 
In  order  to  free  the  phosphorus  trifluoride  from  admixed  vapour 
of  phosphorus  tribromide,  it  is  quite  sufficient  to  allow  it  to 
bubble  through  a  little  water  contained  in  a  small  wash  bottle, 
after  which  it  may  be  dried  by  passing  through  tubes  containing 
pumice,  which  has  been  boiled  in  strong  oil  of  vitriol,  and 
heated  until  only  the  minimum  quantity  of  sulphuric  acid  remains 
adhering  to  it,  inasmuch  as  the  strong  acid  absorbs  a  notable 
quantity  of  phosphorus  trifluoride.  The  gas  is  finally  collected 
over  mercury.  The  reaction  occurring  during  the  preparation 
is  stated  to  be  as  follows  : — 

SZnF^  -f  2PBr3  =  2PF3  -f  sZnBrg. 
Gaseous  trifluoride  of  phosphorus  as  thus  prepared  possesses  a 
very   sharp  odour,   but  does   not  fume  in  the  air.     It  is  very 
slowly  absorbed  by  water,  but  is  decomposed  immediately  by 


solutions  of  chromic  acid  or  potassium  permanganate.  As  the 
above  reaction  appears  to  yield  the  gas  in  a  very  pure  state,  M. 
Moissan  has  made  determinations  of  its  density,  and  finds  it  to 
be  3*03.  The  calculated  density  of  PF3  is  3  "08.  When  a 
measured  quantity  of  the  gas  is  heated  over  mercury  in  a  closed 
glass  vessel,  it  is  totally  decomposed  by  the  silica  of  the  glass, 
and  the  volume  diminishes  by  one-fourth,  four  molecules  of 
PF3  becoming  converted  into  three  molecules  of  gaseous  silicon 
tetrafluoride,  SiF4. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Ring-tailed  Lemur  {Lemur  catta)  from 
Madagascar,  presented  by  the  executors  of  Dr.  Allen  ;  a  Vulpine 
Phalanger  {Pkalangista  vulpina  ?  )  from  Australia,  presented 
by  Mr.  W.  H.  Seward;  a  Hamster  {Cricetus  frumentariusy 
from  Russia,  presented  by  Mr.  Harold  Hanauer,  F.Z.S.  ;  an 
Alligator  {Alligator  mississippiensis)  from  Florida,  presented 
by  Mr.  A.  B.  Archer  ;  a  Hoffmann's  ?>\o'Cc\.{Cholopus  hoffmanni) 
from  Panama,  deposited. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at   10  p.m.   on  February  3  = 
7h.  35m.  32s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R  A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)G.C.  1546     

— 

— 

7  29  42 

+  35  28 

(2)  DM.  +  14°  1729... 

6 

Yellowish-red. 

7  35  SI 

-M4  28 

(3)  ^  Geminorum 

2 

Yellowish-white. 

7  38  36 

-f28  18 

(4)  a  Cams  Minoris  ... 

I 

Bluish-white. 

7  33  30 

+  5  31 

(5)  89  Schj 

7 

Yellowish-red. 

7     2   5S 

-  II   47 

(6)  S  Hydra;       

Var. 

Reddish-yellow. 

8  47  50 

+   3  29 

Remarks. 

(i)  The  General  Catalogue  description  of  this  nebula  is  as 
follows  : — "  Pretty  bright  ;  considerably  small  ;  round  ;  very 
gradually  a  very  little  brighter  in  the  middle  ;  mottled  as  if 
with  stars  ;  almost  planetary."  The  spectrum  of  the  nebula 
has  not  yet  been  recorded. 

(2)  Duner  describes  the  spectrum  of  this  star  as  a  very  fine 
example  of  the  Group  II.  type.  He  states  that  all  the  bands 
2-8  are  wide  and  dark,  especially  2  and  3,  and  that  the  whole 
spectrum  is  well  developed.  No  mention  is  made  of  the 
presence  or  absence  of  absorption  lines,  but  there  is  little  doubt 
that  some  will  be  found  if  looked  for,  the  predominance  of  the 
bands  2  and  3  probably  indicating  that  the  star  belongs  to  a. 
later  species,  and  is  therefore  approaching  Group  III.,  in  which 
line  absorption  is  predominant.  Observations  of  the  green  and 
blue  carbon  flutings  are  also  suggested  (see  p.  305). 

(3)  This  star  has  hitherto  been  described  as  having  a  spectrum^ 
of  the  solar  type.  The  usual  observations,  as  to  whether  the 
temperature  of  the  star  is  increasing  (Group  III.)  or  decreasing 
(Group  VI.)  are  required. 

(4)  Gothard  classes  Procyon  with  stars  of  Group  IV.,  but  the 
Henry  Draper  Memorial  photograph  of  the  spectrum  seems  to 
indicate  that  it  would  be  more  properly  described  as  an  early 
stage  of  Group  V.,  differing  from  the  solar  spectrum  in  having 
the  hydrogen  lines  more  developed  and  the  metallic  lines  slightly 
thinner.  Further  observations  of  the  visible  spectrum  are 
suggested. 

(5)  According  to  Duner  the  spectrum  of  this  star  belongs  to 
Group  VI.,  and  shows  the  usual  three  absorption  bands  of 
carbon.  Band  6,  which  appears  to  be  the  most  variable,  is  stated 
in  this  case  to  be  very  dark,  and  the  question  is,  Are  there  any 
other  variations  in  the  spectrum  accompanying  the  condition  in. 
which  band  6  is  dark  ?  It  seems  probable  that  the  number 
and  intensities  of  the  secondary  bands  will  be  found  to  vary 
with  band  6,  and  these  should,  therefore,  receive  special 
attention. 

(6)  This  variable  has  a  spectrum  of  the  Group  II.  type,  but 
Duner  does  not  give  a  complete  description,  as  he  probably  did 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


351 


Tiot  observe  it  at  maximum.  A  further  examination  is  therefore 
required.  Bright  lines  should  also  be  carefully  looked  for,  in 
order  to  determine  whether  the  appearance  of  bright  lines  at  the 
maxima  of  stars  of  Group  II.  is  general.  The  period  is  given  by 
Gore  as  256  days,  and  the  range  as  from  7 '5-8 "5  at  maxi- 
mum to  <  I2'2  at  minimum.  The  maximum  will  occur  on 
February  24.  A.  Fowler. 

Spectrum  of  the  Zodiacal  Light. — In  this  month's 
Observatory,  Mr.  Maxwell  Hall  gives  the  results  of  a  series  of 
observations  of  the  zodiacal  light  made  at  Jamaica.  The  obser- 
vations are  divided  into  three  groups,  according  to  the  angular 
distance  from  the  sun  of  the  part  of  the  zodiacal  light  observed. 
With  respect  to  the  first  group,  made  at  a  distance  of  50°  from 
the  sun,  it  is  noted  that  the  spectrum  was  seen  as  a  faint  white 
continuous  band,  commencing  suddenly  at  X  561,  and  extending 
as  far  as  G,  where  it  died  out  very  gradually.  The  limit  was 
well  determined  by  comparison  with  the  carbon  flutings  at 
W  470,  517,  and  564.  The  result  of  the  second  group  of  ob- 
servations, made  at  a  distance  of  22°  from  the  sun,  showed  that 
the  spectrum  commenced  at  A.  561,  but  not  so  suddenly;  its 
feeble  maximum  was  transferred  to  about  A.  517;  from  thence 
it  was  tolerably  uniform  to  about  \  497,  and  then  it  gradually 
diminished  and  faded  away  at  G. 

The  ob<ervations  made  at  a  distance  of  15°  from  the  sun  gave 
X  562  for  the  limit  of  the  red  end  of  the  spectrum,  and  G  as 
before  for  the  violet  end.  But  the  spectrum  did  not  commence 
at  all  suddenly:  the  stronger  maximum  was  still  at  A  517:  it 
was  fairly  uniform  from  thence  to  A  497,  and  then  faded  away. 

Observations  of  twilight  are  needed  to  determine  whether,  as 
it  grows  more  and  more  faint,  the  maximum  appears  to  shift 
towards  the  red  end  of  the  spectrum  or  not  ;  if  not,  the  change 
in  intensity  of  portions  of  the  spectrum  of  the  zodiacal  light  as 
observations  are  made  at  varying  distances  from  the  sun  are 
peculiar  to  it,  and  need  further  investigation. 

Solar  and  Stellar  Motions. — Prof.  J.  R.  Eastman,  in  his 
address  as  retiring  President  of  the  Philosophical  Society  of 
Washington,  delivered  December  7,  1889,  gave  an  exhaustive 
account  of  the  investigations  that  have  been  made  to  determine 
the  co-ordinates  of  the  solar  apex  and  the  annual  value  of  the 
motion  of  the  solar  system.  His  investigations  into  the  relation 
between  stellar  magnitudes,  distances,  and  motions,  show  that, 
in  opposition  to  the  assumption  generally  accepted,  which  asserts 
that  the  largest  stars  are  nearest  the  solar  system,  there  is  an 
almost  uniformly  increasing  proper  motion  as  the  stars  grow 
fainter.  Forty-six  stars,  that  is,  practically  all  those  whose 
parallaxes  have  been  well  determined,  have  been  tabulated  and 
arranged  in  five  nearly  equal  groups  according  to  the  magnitude 
of  their  proper  motion.  The  following  table  gives  the  mean 
results  found  for  each  of  the  groups: — 


1st  Group 

••       9 

2nd     ,, 

..       9 

3rd     „ 

9 

4th      „ 

..       9 

5th      „ 

..       ID 

Number  of  Stars      Mean 
in  Group.       Magnitude. 


5-57 
5-59 
3  "37 
2  36 
2-84 


Mean  Proper 
Motion. 

•  4-93 

•  2-33 
I  04 

.        0-38 
006 


Mean 
Parallax. 

0-32 
0'20 
020 

o-i6 

0-13 


The  mean  magnitude  of  the  first  two  groups  is  5*58,  and  the 
mean  proper  motion  is  Z-"()T).  Of  the  last  three  groups  the 
mean  magnitude  is  2'86,  and  the  mean  proper  motion  is  o"49. 

If  the  46  stars  investigated  be  arranged  according  to  the 
magnitude  of  their  parallaxes,  it  is  found  that  18  of  them  have  a 
parallax  greater  than  o" '2,  The  mean  magnitude  of  these  stars 
is  5 '56,  and  the  mean  parallax  is  o-"34.  Of  the  remaining  28 
stars  the  mean  magnitude  is  2-89,  and  the  mean  parallax  is 
o"ii.  J'rom  this  it  would  appear  that,  if  any  law  can  be 
formulated  from  the  observed  data,  it  must  be  that  the  fainter 
rather  than  the  brighter  stars  are  nearest  the  solar  system. 

Dun  Echt  Observatory.— The  Earl  of  Crawford,  in  a 
circular  issued  on  the  29th  ult. ,  expresses  his  thanks  for  the  hearty 
co-operation  he  has  met  with  at  all  hands  in  his  endeavours  to 
advance  the  science  of  astronomy.  Although  some  little  time 
will  elapse  before  all  the  instruments  can  be  removed  from  Dun 
Echt  to  the  Royal  Observatory  at  Edinburgh,  the  former  observa- 
tory must  be  looked  upon  as  closed,  and  the  generous  donor 
trusts  that  the  astronomical  friends  who  have  for  years  con- 
tinued to  enrich  the  library  at  Dun  Echt  Observatory  with 
donations  of  books  and  pamphlets  will  extend  their  liberality 


to  the  new  home  of  the  collection  at  Edinburgh.  The  important 
astronomical  work  done  by  the  Earl  of  Crawford  personally, 
and  at  his  observatory,  has  contributed,  in  no  slight  degree,  to 
the  progress  of  astronomy,  and  the  very  generous  gift  to  the 
nation  of  the  entire  contents  of  the  observatory  at  Dun  Echt  is 
worthy  of  the  man,  and  appreciated  by  all  friends  of  the  science 
throughout  the  world. 

Melbourne  Observatory. — We  have  received  from  Mr. 
Ellery  the  volume  containing  the  results  of  transit  circle  obser- 
vations made  from  the  beginning  of  188 1  to  the  end  of  August 
1884.  The  separate  results  for  R.A.  and  N.P.D.  have  been 
taken  directly  from  the  transit  books,  and  also  the  observer's 
estimates  of  the  magnitude.  The  places  and  magnitudes  of  the 
stars  given  in  the  annual  catalogues  have  been  derived  from  these 
separate  results  by  taking  their  arithmetical  mean. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society  on  Monday, 
Mr.  Douglas  W.  Freshfieldreadamostinterestingpaperon  "Search 
and  Travel  in  the  Caucasus  :  an  account  of  the  discovery  of  the 
fate  of  the  party  lost  in  1888."     He  began  by  acknowledging 
his  obligations  to  M.  de  Stael,  the  Russian  Ambassador  to  the 
Court  of  St.   James's,  the  officials  at  Vladikavkaz,    and  more 
particularly   to   MM.    Jukofif  and    Bogdanoff,    of    the    Russian 
Survey,  for  the  facilities  and  assistance  given  to  him  and  his 
companions   in   carrying   out  the  object  of  his  journey.     The 
topographical   information  accumulated   by   the   surveyors  had 
been  placed  at  his  disposal  with  the  greatest  readiness,  and  part 
of  the  result  might  be  seen  in  the  great  map  (6  inches  to  the 
mile)   of  the  central  group  hung  on  the  wall.     The  heights  of 
the  principal  peaks  were  now  ascertained.     There  were  eight 
higher  than  Mont  Blanc,  and  fifteen  of  over  15,000  feet.     The 
four  highest  are  Elbruz,    Koshtantau,    Shkara,    and   Dychtau. 
Ushba  is  15,600  feet.     Mr.  Freshfield  briefly  described  the  new 
carriage  pass,   the  Mamison,  9400   feet,    from  Vladikavkaz  to 
Kutais.      Its  scenery  is  finer  than  that  of  the  Dariel,  and  the 
road  has  been  well  engineered,  but  it  will  shortly  fall  into  ruin 
unless  a  service  is  organized  for  its  maintenance.     He  referred 
to  the  remarkable  old  Ossete  sanctuary  of  Rekom,   at  the  foot 
of  the  Ceja  Glacier,  and  to  the  tombs  found  at  Chegem,  and 
exhibited  a  collection  of  metal    and   other   objects   discovered 
mostly  at  Styr  Degir.     In  many  villages  small  settlements  of 
"Mountain  Jews"  were   found.     There   were  over  20,000  of 
this  race  in  the  Caucasus,  and  a  work  on  them  has  lately  been 
published  at  Moscow.     The  author,  M.  Mirimisoff,  states  that 
their  beliefs  and  superstitions  are  singular,  and  show  Persian 
influence,  but  they  have  had  for  centuries  no  connection  with 
the    rest    of    their    race,     from    which     they    were    probably 
separated   at   a  very  early  date.     The  party  had  crossed  five 
high    glacier    passes   before    reaching    Suanetia.       Here    Mr. 
Freshfield    and   Captain   Powell    were    the    guests    of    Prince 
Atar  Dadish  Kilia,  the  representative  of  the  family  who  once 
ruled  Lower  Suanetia.     He  now  spends  a  few  months  in  the 
summer  at  his  house  at  Ereri,  dispensing  hospitality  in  feudal 
fashion  among  his  retainers.     The  population  assembles  every 
Sunday  for  games  on  the  green,  and  the  women  sing  ballads  re- 
counting incidents  in  local  history  or  tales  of  love  and  revenge. 
The  Leila  peaks  (13,400  feet)  south  of  Suanetia  were  ascended 
for  the  first  time.     They  are  pre-eminent  in  forests  and  flowers. 
One  of  the  glaciers  falls  over  a  cliff  in  avalanches  into  a  glen 
which  is  a  bed  of  wild  roses  and  yellow  hlies,  growing  often  with 
fourteen  blooms  on    one    stalk.     From    Suanetia   to    Sukhum 
Kaleh  the  travellers  forced  a  way  with  mules  through  an  almost 
trackless  forest,  and  down  the  deserted  valley  of  the  Kodor,  the 
region  that  was  once  Abchasia.     Strange  tales  are  told  of  the 
forest,  even  by  Russian  officials,  who  declared  that  a  wild  race, 
without  villages,  arms,  or  clothes,  haunted  its  recesses.     No  one 
was  met,  however,  but  a  few  hunters  ani  shepherds.     Bit  con- 
siderable difficulty  was  met  with  in  forcing  a  way  through  the 
tangle  of  fallen  timber  and  finding  a  passage  over  the  torrents, 
and  the  native  guides  employed  deserted  the  travellers  before 
they  reached  Lata,  the  first  Russian  station  on  the  Kodor.     Mr. 
Freshfield  proceeded   to  relate  in  detail  the   incidents   of  the 
search    undertaken   by    Mr.  C.    Dent    and   himself,  with    the 
aid    of   Mr.     H.    Woolley    and    Captain    Powell,    for    traces 
of  the    fate    of  the    mountaineers,   Mr.    W.    F.   Donkin,    Mr. 
H.   Fox,    and   two    Meiringen    guides,    lost    in    August    1888, 
It  was  known,  from  a  note  in  a  diary  left  by  Mr.  Fox  in  a  lower 


152 


NATURE 


{Feb.  13,  1890 


camp  with  his  heavy  luggage,  that  the  lost  party  had  set  out  from 
the  Dumala  Valley  in  the  Bezingi  District,  with  the  hope  of 
climbing  Dychtau,  16,880  feet,  from  the  south-east.  Karaoul,  at 
the  head  of  the  Cherek  Valley,  was  made,  therefore,  the  head- 
quarters of  the  search  party.  They  bivouacked  under  a  rock 
beside  the  Tutuin  Glacier,  at  a  height  of  9400  feet.  Next  morn- 
ing (July  29)  they  started  at  dawn,  and  forced,  not  without  dif- 
ficulty, a  passage  through  the  monstrous  scracs  of  the  Tutuin 
Glacier.  Above  them  they  found  a  long  snowy  corridor  leading 
to  the  base  of  Dychtau,  and  to  the  foot  of  a  gap  in  its  east  spur, 
which  they  believed  Mr.  Donkin  and  his  companions  had  crossed 
from  the  Dumala  glen  on  the  further  side.  Nothing  was  found 
at  the  foot  of  the  steep  rock  wall,  1400  feet  high,  which  pro- 
tected the  pass.  The  searchers  therefore  climbed  the  rocks 
leading  to  it,  and  when  1000  feet  above  the  snow  and  some 
400  below  the  ridge,  the  traces  sought  were  met  with.  The 
leader  at  the  rope's  end  suddenly  stopped  short  and  gasped, 
"See,  here  is  the  sleeping-place."  Before  our  eyes  rose  a  low 
wall  of  loose  stones  built  in  a  semicircle  convex  to  the  lower 
precipice.  A  crag  partially  overhung  it ;  any  object  dropped 
over  the  wall  fell  1000  feet  on  to  the  snow  plain  below.  The 
space,  some  6  feet  square,  inside  the  wall,  was  filled  with  un- 
even snow  or  ice,  from  which  portions  of  knapsacks  and  sleep- 
ing bags  protruded.  A  black  stew-pan,  half  full  of  water,  in 
which  a  metal  cup  floated,  lay  against  the  rock  ;  a  loaded  re- 
volver was  hung  beside  it.  It  cost  more  than  three  hours'  hard 
work  to  dig  out  all  the  objects  from  the  frozen  stuff  in  which 
they  were  embedded.  Only  three  could  work  at  once  in  the 
narrow  space,  and  Mr.  Freshfield  and  Mr.  Woolley  went  on  to 
the  ridge,  where  they  found  a  small  stoneman,  but  no  written 
record.  Some  manuscript  notes  and  maps  of  Mr.  Fox's  were 
found  in  the  bivouac,  but  nothing  written  after  leaving  the  lower 
camp.  The  whole  of  the  cliff  and  cliff's  foot  were  carefully 
searched  with  a  strong  telescope.  Mr.  Woolley  and  his  guides 
twice  passed  along  the  cliff's  foot  on  his  ascent  of  Dychtau,  and 
he  made  certain  that  the  party  had  not  climbed  the  peak — that 
the  accident  therefore  had  happened  on  the  ascent.  After  the 
lecture,  Mr.  Freshfield  showed  in  the  lantern  a  series  of  views 
of  the  Caucasus,  from  photographs  by  Mr.  Hermann  Woolley 
and  Signor  V.  Sella.  A  complete  set  of  Signor  Sella's  views, 
embracing  eight  panoramas  and  90  views,  was  shown  in  an 
adjoining  room.  The  panorama  from  Elbruz  shows  the  whole 
chain  of  the  Caucasus  above  a  sea  of  clouds,  and  is  probably 
the  finest  mountain  photograph  yet  exhibited. 

The  last  issue  of  the  Rvestia  of  the  Russian  Geographical 
Society  is  more  than  usually  interesting,  as  it  contains  detailed 
letters  received  from  the  members  of  the  three  Russian  expedi- 
tions now  engaged  in  the  exploration  of  Central  Asia.  The 
letter  of  M.  Roborovsky,  dated  August  16,  and  written  in  the 
highlands  to  the  south  of  Yarkend,  contains  a  most  vivid  de- 
scription of  the  journey  from  the  town  Prjevalsk  to  Yarkend, 
across  the  passes  of  Barskaun  and  Bedel.  M.  Roborovsky  knows 
Central  Asia  well,  as  he  was  Prjevalsky's  travelling  companion 
during  three  of  his  great  journeys  ;  and  his  descriptions  of  the 
country — its  orography,  climate,  and  flora — are  full  of  most  valu- 
able information.  Another  letter  is  from  M.  Bogdanovitch,  the 
geologist  of  the  expedition,  w'lo  joined  it  at  Yarkend,  after 
having  crossed  the  Kashgarian  Mountains  on  another  route  and 
explored  the  Mustagh-ata  glaciers.  That  part  of  the  Pamir 
border-ridge  had  already  been  explored  by  Stoliczka,  but  M. 
Bogdanovitch  adds  much  new  information.  It  appears — as  might 
have  been  expected  from  the  orography  of  the  region^ — that  there 
is  no  trace  of  mountains  running  north  and  south  on  the  eastern 
edge  of  the  great  Pamir  plateau.  The  Kashgar  Mountains  are 
an  upheaval  of  gneisses,  metamorphic  slates,  and  Tertiary 
deposits,  running  from  norih-west  to  south-east.  The  limestones 
which  Stoliczka  supposed  to  be  Triassic,  proved  to  be  Devonian. 
The  most  characteristic  fossils  of  the  Upper  Devonian  (Ahypa 
reticularis,  A.  latilinguis,  A.  aspera,  Spirifer  Verneuli,  and 
several  others)  were  found  together  with  the  corals  {Lithodcn- 
dron),  Stromatoporse  and  Ccrioporm  described  by  Stoliczka.  The 
Tertiary  sandstones  are  broken  through  (as  is  often  the  case  in 
Siberia)  by  dolerites  of  volcanic  origin,  at  the  very  border  of  the 
plateau,  on  its  slope  turned  towards  Kashgaria.  Another  series 
of  letters,  the  last  of  which  is  dated  September  23,  from  the 
sources  of  the  Aksu,  is  from  Colonel  Grombchevsky.  The  late 
spring  delayed  the  advance  of  the  expedition,  which  spent  the 
first  part  of  June  in  crossing  the  Alai  Mountains.  The  great 
Alai  Valley  of  the  Pamir  could  be  reached  only  on  June  19,  but 
the  Trans- Alai  Mountains  were  buried  in  snow  ;  no  passage  was 


possible,  and  the  explorer  was  compelled  to  march  to  the  lower 
tracts  of  Karategin.  He  thence  proceeded  to  Kala-i-khum,  a 
little  town  situated  on  the  Pendj,  at  a  height  of  4500  feet,  and 
enjoying  a  relatively  mild  climate.  From  Kala-i-khum  M. 
Grombchevsky  succeeded  in  reaching  the  Vantcha  river ;  but 
having  met  there  the  Afghan  troops  which  were  taking  possession 
of  the  khanates  of  Shugnan  and  Rothan,  he  could  not  move 
further  south,  nor  explore  the  western  parts  of  the  Pamir  ;  so  he 
proposed  to  continue  the  exploration  of  the  eastern  parts  of  the 
Roof  of  the  World.  Finally,  the  two  brothers,  Grum  Grzimailo, 
who  are  exploring  the  Eastern  Tian-Shan  from  Kuldja  to 
Urumtsi,  give  short  news  of  their  progress,  and  remark  that  our 
maps  of  Eastern  Tian-Shan  are  quite  incorrect — a  circumstance 
which  might  have  been  guessed  from  the  general  orographical 
structure  of  Central  Asia.  The  collections  of  vertebrates  and 
insects  which  have  been  gathered  by  the  two  explorers  are 
exceedingly  rich. 

A  PERMANENT  Marocco  museum  is  to  be  established  at  the 
head- quarters  of  the  Society  of  Commercial  Geography  at 
Berlin. 


SMOKELESS  EXPLOSIVES^ 

H. 

CO  far  as  smokelessness  is  concerned,  no  material  can  surpass 
"-^  gun  cotton  pure  and  simple  ;  but,  even  if  its  rate  of  combustion 
in  a  firearm  could  be  controlled  with  certainty  and  uniformity, 
although  only  used  in  very  small  charges,  such  as  are  required 
for  military  rifles,  its  application  as  a  safe  and  reliable  propulsive 
agent  for  military  and  naval  use  is  attended  by  so  many  difficul- 
ties, that  the  non-success  of  the  numerous  attempts,  made  in 
the  first  twenty-five  years  of  its  existence,  to  apply  it  in  this 
direction,  is  not  surprising. 

Soon  after  its  discovery  by  Schonbein  and  Bottger  in  1846, 
endeavours  were  made  to  apply  gun-cotton  wool,  rammed  into 
cases,  as  a  charge  for  small  arms,  but  with  disastrous  results. 
Subsequently  von  Lenk,  who  made  the  first  practical  approach 
to  the  regulation  of  the  explosive  power  of  gun-cotton,  produced 
small-arm  cartridges  by  superposing  layers  of  gun -cotton  threads, 
these  being  closely  plaited  round  a  core  of  wood.  Von  Lenk's 
system  of  regulating  the  rapidity  of  burning  of  gun-cotton,  so  as 
to  suit  it  either  for  gradual  or  violent  action,  consists,  in  fact,  in 
converting  coarse  or  fine,  loosely  or  tightly  twisted,  threads  or 
rovings  of  finely  carded  cotton  into  the  most  explosive  form  of 
gun-cotton,  and  of  arranging  the~e  threads  or  yarns  in  different 
ways  so  as  to  modify  the  mechanical  condition,  i.e.  the  compact- 
ness and  extent  and  distribution  of  enclosed  air-spaces,  of  the 
mass  of  gun-cotton  composed  of  them.  Thus,  small-arm  cartridges 
were  composed,  as  already  stated,  of  compact  layers  of  tightly- 
plaited,  fine  gun-cotton  thread  ;  cannon  cartridges  were  made  up 
of  coarse,  loose  gun-cotton  yarn  wound  very  compactly  upon  a 
core  ;  charges  for  shells  consisted  of  very  loose  cylindrical  hollow 
plaits  (like  lamp  wicks),  along  which  fire  flashed  almost  instan- 
taneously ;  and  mining  charges  were  made  in  the  form  of  a 
very  tightly  twisted  rope  with  a  hollow  core.  While  the  two 
latter  forms  of  gun-cotton  always  burned  with  almost  instan- 
taneous rapidity  in  open  air,  and  with  highly  destructive  effects 
if  they  were  strongly  confined,  the  tightly  wound  or  plaited 
masses  burned  slowly  in  air,,  and  would  frequently  exert  their 
explosive  force  so  gradually  when  confined  in  a  firearm  as  to 
produce  good  ballistic  results  without  appreciably  destructive 
effect  upon  the  arm.  Occasionally,  however,  in  consequence  of 
some  slight  unforeseen  variation  in  the  compactness  of  the 
material,  or  in  the  amount  and  disposition  of  the  air-spaces  in 
the  mass,  very  violent  action  would  be  produced,  showing  that 
this  system  of  regulating  the  explosive  force  of  gun-cotton  was 
quite  unreliable. 

Misled  by  the  apparently  promising  nature  of  the  earliest 
results  which  von  Lenk  obtained,  the  Austrian  Government  em- 
barked, in  1862,  upon  a  somewhat  extensive  application  of  von 
Lenk's  gun-cotton  to  small  arms,  and  provided  several  batteries 
of  field  guns  for  the  use  of  this  material.  The  abandonment  of 
these  measures  for  applying  a  smokeless  explosive  to  military 
purposes  soon  followed  upon  the  attainment  of  unsatisfactory 
results,  and  was  hastened  by  the  occurrence  of  a  very  destructive 

'  Friday  Evening  Discourse  delivered  by  Sir  Frederick  Abe!,  F  R.S.,  at 
the  Royal  Institution  of  Great  Britain,  on  January  31,  1890.  Continued 
from  p.  330. 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


;53 


explosion  at  gun-cotton  stores  at  Simmering,  near  Vienna,  in 
1862. 

It  was  at  about  this  time  that  the  attention  of  the  English 
Government,  and  through  them  of  the  lecturer,  was  directed  to 
the  subject  of  gun-cotton,  the  Austrian  Government  having  com- 
municated details  regarding  improvements  in  its  manufacture 
accomplished  by  von  Lenk,  and  results  obtained  in  the  extended 
experiments  which  had  been  carried  out  on  its  application  to  the 
various  purposes  above  indicated,  according  to  the  system  devised 
by  that  officer.  One  of  the  results  of  the  lecturer's  researches, 
subsequently  carried  on  at  Woolwich  and  Waltham  Abbey,  was 
his  elaboration  of  the  system  of  manufacture  and  employment  of 
gun-cotton  which  has  been  in  extensive?  use  at  the  Government 
works  with  little  if  any  modification  for  over  eighteen  years,  and 
has  been  copied  from  us  by  P'rance,  Germany,  and  other  countries. 
By  reducing  the  partially  purified  gun-cotton  fibre  to  pulp,  as  in 
the  ordinary  process  of  making  paper,  then  completing  its  purifi- 
cation when  in  that  condition,  and  afterwards  converting  the 
finely-divided  explosive  into  highly  compressed  homogeneous 
masses  of  any  desired  form  and  size,  very  important  improve- 
ments were  effected  in  its  stability,  its  uniformity  of  composition 
and  action,  and  its  adaptability  to  practical  uses,  a  great  advance 
being  made  in  the  exercise  of  control  over  the  rapidity  of  com- 
bustion or  explosion  of  the  material. 

No  success  had  attended  the  experiments  instituted  in  England 
with  wound  cannon  cartridges  of  gun-cotton  threads  made  accord- 
ing to  von  Lenk's  plan  ;  on  the  other  hand,  a  number  of  results 
which  at  first  sight  appeared  very  promising  were  obtained  at 
Woolwich  in  1867-68  with  bronze  field-guns  and  cartridges  built 
up  of  compressed  gun-cotton  masses  arranged  in  different  ways 
(with  varied  air-spaces,  &c.)  with  the  object  of  regulating  the 
rapidity  of  explosion  of  the  charge.  But  although  the  attainment 
of  high  velocities  with  comparatively  small  charges  of  the  material, 
unaccompanied  by  any  indications  of  injury  to  the  gun,  was 
frequent,  it  became  evident  that  the  fulfilment  of  the  conditions 
essential  to  safety  to  the  arm  were  exceedingly  difficult  to  attain 
with  certainty,  and  appeared  indeed  to  be  altogether  beyond 
absolute  control,  even  in  so  small  a  gun  as  the  twelve-pounder. 
Military  authorities  not  being,  in  those  days,  alive  to  the  advan- 
tages which  might  accrue  from  the  employment  of  an  entirely 
sfnokeless  explosive  in  artillery,  the  lecturer  received  no  en- 
couragement to  persevere  with  experiments  in  this  direction,  and 
the  same  was  the  case  with  respect  to  the  possible  use  of  a 
smokeless  explosive  in  military  small  arms,  with  which,  however, 
far  more  promising  results  had  at  that  time  been  obtained  at 
Woolwich. 

Abel's  system  of  preparing  gun-cotton  was  no  sooner  ela- 
borated than  its  application  to  the  production  of  smokeless 
cartridges  for  sporting  purposes  was  achieved  with  considerable 
success  by  Messrs.  Prentice,  of  Stowmarket.  The  first  gun- 
cotton  cartridge,  which  found  considerable  favour  with  sports- 
men, consisted  of  a  roll  of  felt-like  paper  composed  of  gun-cotton 
and  ordinary  cotton,  and  produced  from  a  mixture  of  the  pulped 
materials.  Afterwards  a  cylindrical  pellet  of  slightly  compressed 
gun-cotton  pulp  was  used,  the  rapidity  of  explosion  of  which 
was  retarded,  while  it  was  at  the  same  time  protected  from 
absorption  of  moisture,  by  impregnation  with  a  small  proportion 
of  india-rubber.  Neither  of  these  cartridges  afforded  promise  of 
sufficient  uniformity  of  action  to  fulfil  military  requirements,  but 
after  a  series  of  experiments  which  the  lecturer  made  with  com- 
pressed gun-cotton  arranged  in  various  ways,  very  promising 
results  were  attained,  especially  with  the  Martini-Henry  rifle 
and  a  charge  of  pellet-form,  the  rapidity  of  explosion  of  which 
was  regulated  by  simple  means. 

A  sporting  powder  which  was  nearly  smokeless  had,  in  the  j 
meantime,  been  produced  by  Colonel  Schultze,  of  the  Prussian 
Artillery,  from  wood  cut  up  into  very  small  cube-like  fragments, 
converted  into  a  mild  form  of  nitro-cellulose  after  a  preliminary  | 
purifying  treatment,  and  impregnated  with  a  small  portion  of  an 
oxidizing  agent.  Subsequently  the  manufacture  of  the  Schultze 
powder  was  considerably  modified  ;  it  was  converted  into  the 
granular  form,  and  rendered  considerably  niore  uniform  in 
character  and  less  hygroscopic,  and  it  then  bore  considerable 
resemblance  to  the  E.G.  powder,  a  granulated  nitro-cotton 
powder,  produced,  in  the  first  instance,  at  Stowmarket,  and 
consisting  of  a  less  highly  nitrated  cotton  than  gun-cotton 
(trmitrocellulose),  incorporated  in  the  pulped  condition  with  a 
somewhat  considerable  proportion  of  the  nitrates  of  potassium 
and  barium,  and  converted  into  grains  through  the  agency  of  a 
solvent  and  a  binding  material.     Both  of  these  powders  pro- 


duced some  smoke  when  fired,  though  the  amount  was  small  in 

I    comparison  with  that  from  black  powder.    They  did  not  compete 

I    with  the  latter  in  regard  to  accuracy  of  shooting,  when  used  in 

I    arms  of  precision,   but  they  are  interesting  as  being  the  fore- 

,    runners  of  a  variely  of  so-called  smokeless  powders,  of  which 

gun-cotton  or  nitro-cotton  is  the  basis,  and  of  which  those  of 

Johnson  and  Borland,  and  of  the  Smokeless  Powder  Company, 

are  the  most  prominent  in  this  country. 

In   past   years,  both  camphor  and  liquid  solvents,   such  as 

acetic  ether  and  acetone  for  gun-cotton,  and  mixtures  of  ether 

I  and  alcohol  for  nitro-cotton,  have  been  applied  to  the  hardening 

of  the   surfaces   of   compressed    masses   or  granules    of  those 

j  materials,   by  von  Forster  and  others,  with  a  view  to  render 

j  them  non-porous,   and   in  the    E.G.   powder   manufacture  the 

j  latter  solvent  was  thus  applied  to  harden  the  powder-granules. 

j  In  the  Johnson- Borland  powder  camphor  is  applied  to  the  same 

purpose  ;  in  smokeless  powders  of  French  and  German  manu- 

I  facture  acetic  ether  and  acetone  have  been  used,  and  the  solvent 

I  has  been  applied  not  merely  to  harden  the  granules  or  tablets 

,  of  the  explosive,  but  also  to  convert  the  latter  into  a  homogeneous 

horn-like  material. 
1  Much  mystery  has  surrounded  the  nature  and  origin  of  the  first 
smokeless  powder  adopted,  apparently  with  undue  haste,  by  the 
1  French  Government,  for  use  with  the  Lebel  magazine  rifle.  A 
I  few  particles  of  the  Vieille  powder,  or  Poudre  B,  were  seen  by 
the  lecturer  about  two  years  ago,  and  very  small  specimens- 
appear  to  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  German  Government 
about  that  time.  They  were  in  the  form  of  small  yellowish- 
brown  tablets  of  about  0*07  inch  to  01  inch  square,  of  the 
thickness  of  stout  notepaper,  and  had  evidently  been  produced 
by  cutting  up  thin  sheets  of  the  material.  They  appeared  to 
contain,  as  an  important  ingredient,  picric  acid  (the  basis 
of  "melinite")  a  substance  extensively  used  as  a  dye,  and  ob- 
tained by  the  action  of  nitric  acid,  at  a  low  temperature,  upon 
carbolic  acid  and  cresylic  acid,  constituents  of  coal  tar.  Origin- 
ally produced  by  the  action  of  nitric  acid  upon  indigo,  and 
afterwards  by  similar  treatment  of  Botany  Bay  gum,  it  was  first 
known  as  carbazotic  acid,  and  is  one  of  the  earliest  of  known 
explosives  of  organic  origin.  When  sufficiently  heated,  or  when 
set  light  to,  it  burns  with  a  yellow  smoky  flame,  and  even  very 
large  quantities  of  it  have  been  known  to  burn  away  somewhat 
fiercely,  but  without  exploding.  Under  certain  conditions, 
however,  and  especially  if  subjected  to  the  action  of  a  powerful 
detonator,  it  explodes  with  very  great  violence  and  highly 
destructive  effects,  as  pointed  out  by  Sprengel  in  1873,  and 
recent  experiments  at  Woolwich  have  shown  that  it  does  this 
even,  as  in  the  case  of  gun-cotton,  when  it  contains  as  much  as 
15  per  cent,  of  water.  It  is  no  longer  a  secret  that  picric  acid 
at  any  rate  forms  the  basis  of  the  much  vaunted  and  mysterious 
explosive  for  shells  for  which  the  French  Government  were  said 
to  have  paid  a  very  large  sum  of  money,  and  the  destructive 
effects  of  which  have  been  described  as  nothing  less  than  mar- 
vellous. M.  Turpin  patented,  in  1875,  the  use  of  picric  acid- 
alone  as  an  explosive  for  shells  and  for  other  engines  of  destruc- 
tion, and  whether  or  not  his  claims  to  be  the  inventor  of  melinite 
are  valid,  there  appears  no  doubt  that  his  patent  in  France  was 
the  starting-point  of  the  development  and  adoption  of  that 
explosive. 

The  attention  thus  directed  in  France  to  the  properties  of 
picric  acid  appears  to  have  given  rise  to  experiments  resulting  in 
its  employment  as  an  ingredient  of  the  first  smokeless  powder 
{Poudre  B)  adopted  for  the  French  magazine  rifle. 

The  idea  of  employing  picric  acid  preparations  as  explosive 
agents  for  propulsive  purposes  originated  with  Designolle  about 
twenty  years  ago,  but  no  useful  results  attended  the  experiments 
with  the  particular  mixtures  proposed  by  him.  It  is  certain  that 
the  recent  adaptation  of  that  substance  in  France  was  of  a 
different  character,  and  that,  promising  as  were  the  results  of  the 
new  smokeless  powder,  of  which  it  formed  an  ingredient,  and  of 
which  a  counterpart  was  made  the  subject  of  experiments  at 
Woolwich  about  three  years  ago,  its  deficiency  in  the  all- 
essential  quality  of  stability  must  have  been  at  any  rate  one 
cause  of  its  abandonment  in  favour  of  another  form  of  smokeless 
powder,  which  there  is  reason  to  believe  is  of  more  simple 
character. 

In  Germany,  the  subject  of  smokeless  powder  for  small  arms 
and  artillery  was  being  steadily  pursued  in  secret,  while  the 
sensational  reports  concerning  Poudre  B  were  spread  about  in 
France,  and  a  small-arm  powder,  giving  excellent  results  in 
regard  to  ballistic  properties  and  uniformity,  was  elaborated  at 


354 


NA  TURE 


\_Feb.  13,  1890 


the  Rottweil  powder-works,  and  appears  to  have  been  adopted 
into  the  German  service  for  a  time,  but  its  first  great  promise  of 
success  seems  to  have  failed  of  fulfilment  through  defects  in 
stability. 

Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  conversion  of  gun- 
cotton  (trinilrocellulose),  and  to  mixtures  of  it  with  less  explosive 
forms  of  nitrated  cotton  (or  nitrated  cellulose  of  other  descrip- 
tion), by  the  action  of  solvents  into  horn-like  materials.  These 
are  in  the  first  instance  obtained  in  the  form  of  gelatinous 
masses,  which,  prior  to  the  complete  evaporation  or  removal  of 
the  solvent,  can  be  pressed  or  squirted  into  wires,  rods,  or  tubes, 
or  rolled  or  spread  into  sheets  ;  when  they  have  become 
hardened,  they  may  be  cut  up  into  tablets  or  into  strips  or  pieces 
of  size  suitable  for  conversion  into  charges  or  cartridges. 
Numerous  patents  have  been  secured  for  the  treatment  of  gun- 
cotton,  nitro-cotton,  or  mixtures  of  these  with  other  substances, 
by  the  methods  indicated  ;  but  in  this  direction  the  German 
makers  of  the  powder  just  now  referred  to  seem  to  have  secured 
priority.  Experiments  were  made  about  a  year  and  a  half  ago 
with  powder  produced  in  this  way  at  Woolwich,  and  the  Wet- 
teren  Powder  Company  in  Belgium  has  also  manufactured  so- 
called  paper  powders,  or  horn-like  preparations,  of  the  same 
kind,  which  were  brought  forward  as  counterparts  of  the  French 
small-arm  and  artillery  smokeless  powder. 

Mr.  Alfred  Nobel,  to  whom  the  mining  world  is  so  largely 
indebted  for  the  invention  of  dynamite,  and  of  other  very  effi- 
cient blasting  agents  of  which  nitro-glycerine  is  the  basis,  was 
the  first  to  apply  the  latter  explosive  agent,  in  conjunction  with 
one  of  the  lower  products  of  nitration  of  cellulose,  to  the  pro- 
duction of  a  smokeless  powder.  The  powder  bears  great 
resemblance  to  one  of  the  most  interesting  of  known  violent 
explosives,  also  invented  by  Mr.  Nobel,  and  called  by  him 
blasting  gelafine,  in  consequence  of  its  peculiar  gelatinous  cha- 
racter. When  the  nitro-cotton  is  impregnated  and  allowed  to 
dige-t  with  nitro-glycerine,  it  loses  its  fibrous  nature  and  be- 
comes gelatinized  while  assimilating  the  nitro-glycerine,  the  two 
substances  furnishing  a  product  which  has  almost  the  character 
of  a  compound.  By  macerating  the  nitro-cotton  with  from  7  to 
10  per  cent,  of  nitro-glycerine,  and  maintaining  the  mixture 
warm,  the  whole  soon  becomes  converted  into  a  plastic  material 
from  which  it  is  very  difficult  to  separate  a  portion  of  either  of 
its  components.  This  preparation,  and  certain  modifications  of 
it,  have  acquired  high  importance  as  blasting  agents  more 
powerful  than  dynamite,  and  possessed  of  the  valuable  property 
that  their  prolonged  immersion  in  water  does  not  separate  from 
them  any  appreciable  proportion  of  nitro-glycerine. 

In  the  earlier  days  of  the  attempted  application  of  blasting 
gelatine  to  mil  tary  uses,  in  Austria,  when  endeavours  were 
there  made  to  render  the  material  less  susceptible  of  accidental 
explosion  on  active  service  (as  by  the  penetration  of  bullets  or 
shell  fragments  into  transport  waggons  containing  supplies  of  the 
explosive),  this  result  was  achieved  by  Colonel  Hess  by  in- 
corporating with  the  components  a  small  proportion  of  camphor, 
a  substance  which  had  then,  for  some  time  past,  played  an  in- 
portant  part  in  the  technical  application  of  nitro-cotton  to  the 
production  of  the  remarkable  substitute  for  ivory,  horn,  &c., 
known  as  xylenite.  By  incorporating  with  nitro-glycerine  a 
much  larger  proportion  of  nitro-cotton  than  used  in  the  produc- 
tion of  blasting  gelatine,  and  by  employing  camphor  as  an 
agent  for  promoting  the  union  of  the  two  explosives,  as  well  as, 
apparently,  for  deadening  the  violence,  or  reducing  the  lapidity 
of  explosion  of  the  product,  Mr.  Nobel  has  obtained  a  material 
of  almost  horn-like  character,  which  can  be  pressed  into  pellets 
or  rolled  into  sheets  while  in  the  plastic  condition,  and  which 
compares  favourably  with  the  gun-cotton  preparations  of  some- 
what similar  physical  characters  just  referred  to,  as  regards 
ballistic  properties,  stability,  and  uniformity,  besides  being 
almost  absolutely  smokeless.  The  retention  in  its  composition 
of  some  proportion  of  the  volatile  substance  camphor,  which 
may  gradually  be  reduced  in  amount  by  evaporation,  renders  this 
explosive  liable  to  undergo  some  modification  in  its  ballistic 
properties  in  course  of  time  ;  it  is  believed  that  this  point  has 
been  dealt  with  by  Mr.  Nobel,  and  accounts  from  Italy  speak 
favourably  of  the  results  of  trials  of  his  powder  in  small  arm^, 
while  Mr.  Krupp  is  reported  to  be  carrying  on  experiments  with 
it  in  guns  of  several  calibres. 

The  Government  Committee  on  Explosives,  in  endeavouring 
to  remedy  the  above  defect  of  Nobel's  original  powder,  were  led 
by  their  researches  to  the  preparation  of  other  varieties  of  nitro- 
glycerine powder,  which,  when  applied  in  the  form  of  wires  or 


rods,  made  up  into  sheaves  or  bundles,  have  given,  in  the 
service  small-bore  rifle,  excellent  ballistic  results.  The  most 
promising  of  them,  which  fulfils,  besides,  the  conditions  of  smoke- 
lessness  and  of  stability,  so  far  as  can  be  guaranteed  by  the 
application  of  special  tests  of  exposure  to  elevated  temperatures, 
&c.,  is  now  being  submitted  to  searching  experiments  with  the 
view  of  so  applying  it  in  the  arm  as  to  overcome  certain  difficulties 
attending  the  employment,  in  a  very  small-bore  rifle,  of  an 
explosive  developing  much  greater  energy  than  the  black-powder 
charge,  which  therefore  gives  very  considerably  higher  velocities 
even  with  much  smaller  charges,  and  consequently  heats  the 
arm  much  more.  Thus,  the  service  black-powder  charge 
furnishes,  with  the  small-bore  rifle,  an  average  (and  variable) 
velocity  of  1800  f  s.,  together  with  pressures  ranging  from  18  to 
23  tons  per  square  inch  ;  on  the  other  hand,  with  con-^iderably 
less  of  the  powder  referred  to,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  securing 
a  very  uniform  velocity  of  about  2200  f.s.  with  pressures  not 
exceeding  17  tons,  while  velocities  as  high  as  2500  f.s.  are 
obtainable  with  pressures  not  greater  than  the  maximum  allowed 
with  the  black-powder  charge. 

It  is  obvious,  from  what  has  already  been  said  respecting  the 
causes  of  the  erosive  action  of  powder  in  guns,  that  compara- 
tively considerable  erosive  effects  would  be  expected  to  be 
produced  by  powders  of  high  energy  as  compared  with  black 
powder.  Moreover,  the  freedom  of  the  products  of  explosion 
from  any  solid  substances,  and  consequently  the  absence  of  any 
fouling  or  deposition  of  residue  in  the  arm,  causes  the  heated 
surfaces  of  the  projectile  and  of  the  interior  of  the  barrel  to 
remain  clean,  and  in  a  condition,  therefore,  very  favourable  to 
close  adherence  together.  If  to  these  circumstances  be  added 
the  fact  that  the  behaviour  of  the  smokeless  powder  has  to  be 
adapted  to  suit  an  arm,  a  cartridge,  and  a  projectile  originally 
designed  for  use  with  black  powder,  it  will  be  understood  that 
the  devising  of  an  explosive  which  shall  be  practically  smokeless, 
sufficiently  stable,  and  susceptible  of  perfectly  safe  use  in  the 
arm  under  all  service  conditions,  easy  of  manufacture,  and  not 
too  costly,  is,  after  all,  but  a  small  part  of  the  difficult  problem 
of  adapting  a  smokeless  powder  successfully  to  the  new  military 
rifle — a  problem  which,  however,  appears  to  be  on  the  near 
approach  to  satisfactory  solution. 

The  experience  already  acquired  in  guns  ranging  in  calibre 
from  I  '85  inches  to  6  inches,  with  the  smokeless  powder  devised 
for  use  in  our  service,  has  been  very  promising,  and  indicates 
that  the  difficulties  attending  its  adaptation  to  guns  designed  for 
black  powder  are  likely  to  prove  considerably  less  than  in  the 
case  of  the  small  arm.  But  here,  again,  the  circumstances  that 
much  smaller  charges  are  required  to  furnish  the  same  ballistics 
as  the  service  black-powder  charges,  and  that  the  comparatively 
gradual  and  sustained  action  of  the  new  powder  gives  rise  to 
lower  pressures  in  the  chamber  of  the  gun,  and  higher  pressures 
along  the  chase,  demonstrate  that  the  full  utilization  of  the  bal- 
listic advantages,  and  the  increase  in  the  power  of  guns  of  a 
given  calibre  and  weight  with  the  new  form  of  powder,  are  only 
attainable  by  some  modifications  in  the  designs  of  the  guns- 
such  as  a  reduction  in  size  of  the  charge- chamber,  and  some 
additions  to  the  strength,  and  perhaps,  in  some  cases,  of  the 
length,  of  the  chase. 

When,  however,  the  smokeless  powder  has  been  adapted  with 
success  in  all  respects  to  artillery,  from  small  machine-guns  to 
guns  of  comparatively  heavy  calibre,  and  when  its  ballistic  ad- 
vantages have  been  fully  utilized  in  guns  of  suitable  design,  it 
will  remain  to  be  determined  how  far  such  a  powder — unde- 
niably of  much  more  sensitive  constitution  than  black  powder, 
or  any  of  its  modifications — will  withstand,  unchanged  and 
unharmed,  the  various  vicissitudes  of  climate,  and  the  service 
storage-conditions  in  ships  and  on  land  in  all  parts  of  the  world 
— a  condition  essential  to  its  adaptability  to  naval  and  military 
use,  and  especially  to  the  service  of  our  Empire  ;  and  whether 
sufficient  confidence  can  be  placed  in  its  stability  for  long  periods 
under  these  extremely  varied  conditions  to  warrant  the  necessary 
freedom  from  apprehension  of  possible  danger,  emanating  from 
within  the  material  itself,  to  allow  of  its  being  substituted  for 
black  powder  wherever  its  use  may  present  advantages. 

Possible  it  might  be,  that  the  storage,  with  perfect  safety,  of 
such  a  powder  in  ships,  forts,  or  magazines  might  demand 
the  adoption  of  precautionary  measures  tending  to  place 
comparatively  narrow  limits  upon  the  extent  of  its  practicable 
service  applications  ;  even  then,  however,  an  imperative  need  for 
the  introduction  of  special  arrangements  to  secure  safety  and 
immunity  from   deterioration   may    be  of  small  importance   as 


Feb. 


1890J 


NATURE 


355 


compared  with  the  great  advantages  which  the  provision  of  a 
thoroughly  efficient  smokeless  powder  may  secure  to  the  possessor 
of  it,  especially  in  naval  warfare. 

That  the  opinions  re-pecting  the  importance  of  such  advantages 
are  founded  upon  a  sound  basis,  one  can  hardly  doubt,  after  the 
views  expressed  by  several  of  the  highest  military  and  naval 
authorities,  although  opinions  as  to  their  extent  may  differ  very 
considerably  even  among  such  authorities. 

The  accounts  furnished  from  time  to  time  from  official  and 
private  sources  of  the  effects  observed,  at  some  considerable 
distance,  by  witnesses  of  practice  with  the  smokeless  powders 
successively  adopted  in  France,  have  doubtless  been  regarded  by 
military  authorities  as  warranting  the  belief  that  the  employment 
of  such  powders  must  effect  a  great  revolution  in  the  conduct  of 
campaigns.  Not  only  have  the  absence  of  smoke  and  flame 
been  dwelt  upon  as  important  factors  in  such  a  rievolution,  but 
the  recorders  of  the  achievements  of  smokeless  powder — whose 
descriptions  have  doubtless  been  to  some  extent  influenced  by 
the  vivid  pictures  already  presented  to  them  of  what  they  should 
anticipate — have  even  been  led  to  make  such  explicit  assertions 
as  to  the  noiselessncss  of  theSe  powders,  that  high  military 
authorities  have  actually  been  thereby  rnisled  to  portray,  by 
vivid  word-painting,  the  contrast  between  the  battles  of  the 
future  and  the  past  ; — to  imagine  the  terrific  din  caused  by  the 
discharge  of  several  hundred  field-guns  and  the  roar  of  musketry 
in  the  great  battles  of  the  past,  giving  place  to  noise  so  slight 
that  distant  troops  will  no  longer  receive  indications  where  their 
comrades  are  engaged,  while  sentries  and  advanced  posts  will  no 
longer  be  able  to  warn  the  main  body  of  the  approach  of  an 
enemy  by  the  discharge  of  their  rifles,  and  that  battles  might 
possibly  be  raging  within  a  few  miles  of  columns  on  the  march 
without  the  fact  becoming  at  once  apparent  to  them. 

It  is  somewhat  difficult  to  conceive  that,  in  these  comparatively 
enlightened  days — an  acquaintance  with  the  first  principles  of 
physical  science  having  for  many  years  past  constituted  a  pre- 
liminary condition  of  admission  to  the  training  establishments  of 
the  future  warrior — the  physical  impossibility  of  such  fairy  tales 
•is  appear  to  be  considered  necessary  in  France  for  the  delusion 
of  the  ordinary  public,  would  not  at  once  have  been  obvious. 
Yet,  even  in  professional  publications  in  Germany,  where  we 
are  led  to  expect  that  the  judgment  of  experts  would  be  com- 
paratively unlikely  to  be  led  astray  through  lack  of  scientific 
knowledge,  we  have,  during  the  earlier  part  of  last  year,  read, 
in  articles  upon  the  influence  of  smokeless  powder  upon  the  art 
of  war  (based  evidently  upon  the  reports  received  from  France), 
such  passages  as  these  : — "  The  art  of  war  gains  in  no  way  as 
far  as  simplicity  is  concerned  ;  on  the  contrary,  it  appears  to  us 
that  the  absence  of  so  important  a  mechanical  means  of  help  as 
noise  and  smoke  were  to  the  commander,  requires  increased  skill 
and  circumspection  in  addition  to  the  qualities  demanded  by  a 
general.  ..."  "  The  course  of  a  fight  will  certainly  be 
mysterious,  on  account  of  the  relative  stillness  with  which  it  will 
be  carried  on." 

In  an  amusing  article,  in  imitation  of  the  account  of  the  Battle 
of  Dorking,  which  appeared  in  the  Deutsche  Heeres  Zeitung  of 
April  last,  the  consternation  is  described  with  which  a  battalion 
receives  the  information  from  a  wounded  fugitive  from  the  out- 
posts that  the  enemy's  bullets  have  been  playing  havoc  among 
them,  without  any  visible  or  audible  indications  as  to  the  quarter 
of  attack.  Later  in  the  year,  and  especially  since  the  manoeuvres 
before  the  German  and  Austrian  Emperors,  when  the  employ- 
ment of  the  new  smokeless  powder  was  the  event  of  the  day, 
the  absurdity  of  the  assertions  as  to  the  noiselessncss  of  the  new 
powders  became  a  theme  for  strong  observations  in  the  German 
service  papers  ;  the  assumed  existence  of  a  noiseless  powder  was 
ridiculed  as  a  thing  equally  impossible  with  a  recoil-less  powder  ; 
the  violence  of  the  report,  or  explosion,  produced  upon  the  dis- 
charge of  a  firearm  being  in  direct  relation  to  the  volume  and 
tension  of  the  gaseous  matter  projected  into  the  surrounding 
air. 

The  circumstance  that  blank  ammunition  was  alone  used  in 
the  smokeless  powder  exhibition  at  the  German  manoeuvres, 
may  have  served  to  lend  some  support  to  the  assertions  as  to 
comparativfly  little  noise  made  by  the  powder — the  report  of 
blank  cartridges  being  slight,  on  account  of  the  small  and  lightly 
confined  charges  used.  It  is  said  that  the  sound  of  practice 
with  blank  ammunition  at  the  German  manoeuvres,  was  scarcely 
recognized  at  a  distance  of  100  metres.  In  a  recently  published 
pamphlet  on  the  results  of  employment  of  the  latest  German 
smokeless  powder  in  the  manoeuvres,  it  is  stated,  on  the  other 


hand,  that  the  difference  between  the  violence  of  the  report  of 
the  new  powder  and  of  black  powder  is  scarcely  perceptible ; 
that  it  is  sharper  and  more  ringing,  but  not  of  such  long  dura- 
tion. This  description  accords  exactly  with  our  own  experience 
of  the  reports  produced  by  different  varieties  of  smokeless 
powder,  and  of  the  lecturer's  earlier  experience  with  gun-cotton 
charges  fired  from  rifles  and  field  guns.  The  noise  produced  by 
the  latter  was  decidedly  more  ringing  and  distressing  to  the  ear 
in  close  proximity  to  the  gun,  but  also  of  decidedly  less  volume 
than  the  report  of  a  black-powder  charge,  when  heard  at  a  con- 
siderable distance  from  the  gun. 

As  regards  smokelessness,  the  present  German  service  powder 
is  not  actually  smokeless,  but  produces  a  thin,  almost  trans- 
parent, bluish  cloud,  which  is  immediately  dissipated.  Inde- 
pendent rifle-firing  was  not  rendered  visible  by  the  smoke 
produced  at  a  distance  of  300  metres,  and  at  shorter  ranges 
the  smoke  presented  the  appearance  of  a  puff  from  a  cigar. 
The  most  rapid  salvo-firing  during  the  operations  near  Spandau 
did  not  have  the  effect  of  obscuring  tho>e  firing  from  distant 
observers. 

That,  in  future  warfare,  if  smokeless  or  nearly  smokeless 
powders  have  maintained  their  position  as  safe  and  reliable 
propelling  agents  for  small  arms  and  field  artillery,  belligerents 
of  both  sides  will  be  alike  users  of  them,  there  can  be  no  doubt. 
The  consequent  absence  of  the  screening  effect  of  smoke — 
which,  on  the  one  hand,  removes  an  important  protection  and 
the  means  of  making  rapid  advances  or  sudden  changes  of  posi- 
tion in  comparative  safety,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  secures  to 
both  sides  the  power  of  ensuring  to  the  fullest  extent  accuracy 
of  shooting,  and  of  making  deadly  attack  by  individual  fire 
through  the  medium  of  cover,  with  comparative  immunity  from 
detection — can  scarcely  fail  to  change  more  or  less  radically 
many  of  the  existing  conditions  under  which  engagements  are 
fought. 

As  regards  the  naval  service,  it  is  especially  and,  at  present  at 
any  rate,  exclusively  for  the  new  machine  and  quick-firing  guns 
that  a  smokeless  powder  is  wanted  ;  for  such  service  the  advan- 
tages which  would  be  secured  by  the  provision  of  a  reliable  powder 
of  this  kind  can  scarcely  be  over-estimated,  and  their  realization 
within  no  distant  period  may,  it  is  believed,  be  anticipated  with 
confidence. 


NOTE  ON  MR.  M ELBE'S  VIBRATING  STRINGS, 

'T'HE  effect  of  Mr.  Melde's  pretty  experiments  with  the 
-*■  vibrating  stretched  thread  attached  to  one  of  the  prongs  of 
a  tuning-fork  is  often  spoiled  to  the  spectators  by  the  unfavour- 
able plane  of  vibration  assumed  by  the  thread.  A  very  simple 
device  removes  this  inconvenience,  and  enables  the  operator  to 
suit  his  own  choice  for  the  plane  of  vibration.  The  accom- 
panying sketch  sufficiently  explains  itself,  and  shows  the  arrange- 
ment for  restricting  the  vibrations  to  the  vertical  plane. 


d 


A,,-- 


-'^.C„~-'- 


-,  B 


■Q 


m 


re^~^ 


Instead  of  attaching  the  end  of  the  thread  to  the  prong  of  the 
tuning-fork,  it  is  tied  to  the  middle  of  a  short  thread  dA.e,  and 
the  ends  d  and  e  of  this  are  attached  to  the  prong  in  a  vertical 
line.  It  is  clear  that  if  the  distance  of  A  from  the  line  de  is  an 
appreciable  part  of  the  quarter  wave-length  of  the  vibration,  and 
AB  is  an  integral  multiple  of  the  half  wavelength,  vibration  is 
possible  only  in  the  vertical  plane.  For  in  the  horizontal  plane 
this  rate  of  vibration  is  impossible,  A  being  not  a  fixed  point  of 
the  thread  for  vibration  in  this  plane,  and  the  length  from  the 
prong  to  the  pulley  being  not  an  integral  multiple  of  the  half 
wave-length  of  vibration.  And  in  any  other  plane  the  vibration,^ 
if  possible,  would  be  compounded  of  two,  viz.  of  the  vertical 
which  is  possible  and  of  the  horizontal  which  is  impossible. 

The  most  convenient  form  of  fixture  for  the  short  thread  dAe^ 
is  alight  steel  wire  with  an  eye  at  each  end,  lashed  to  the  prong 


356 


NATURE 


[Feb.  13,  1890 


with  two  turns  of  fine  thread.  The  plane  of  vibration  can  then 
lie  easily  adjusted  to  suit  the  spectators  by  sluing  the  wire  in  its 
lashing. 

Note.—T\\^  triangular  thread  du  should  be  of  the  same 
quality  as  the  vibrating  length.  If  it  is  much  heavier  length  for 
length  the  arms  of  the  triangle  may  become  half  wave-lengths  of 
the  vibration  for  the  tension  employed,  and  then  they  lose  their 
control  over  the  plane  of  vibration. 

The  arrangement  has  its  own  worth,  independently  of  the  aid 
it  lends  to  visible  effect,  as  an  illustration  of  the  suppression  of 
all  half  wave-lengths  which  are  not  true  sub-multiples  of  the 
vibrating  length  of  the  cord.  When  the  fork  is  moved  from  its 
position  in  the  figure  to  bring  up  the  line  de  to  the  position  of  A, 
the  vertical  vibrations  are  suppressed,  and  only  the  horizontal 
vibrations  are  possible.  W.  Sidgreaves. 


EIGHTH  CONGRESS  OF  RUSSIAN 
NATURALISTS. 

'T'HE  eighth  Congress  of  Russian  Naturalists  and  Physicians 
was  opened  on  January  9  at  St.  Petersburg,  and  was  a 
great  success.  It  was  attended  by  no  fewer  than  2000  members, 
half  of  whom  came  from  the  provinces,  and  at  the  three  general 
public  sittings  (corresponding  to  the  sittings  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation devoted  to  the  delivery  of  the  Presidential  addresses),  as 
well  as  the  meetings  of  the  Sections,  the  public  were  well  repre- 
sented. At  the  first  general  sitting.  Prof.  Mendeleeff  delivered  a 
most  interesting  address  on  the  methods  of  natural  science  as 
applied  to  the  study  of  prices.  His  parallels  between  the  prices 
of  goods  and  the  specific  weights  and  specific  volumes  of  chemi- 
cal bodies  were  very  suggestive.  The  next  address,  by  Prof. 
Sklifasovsky,  was  on  the  wants  of  Russian  medical  education. 
At  the  second  general  sitting,  Prof.  Stoletoff  spoke  of  ether  and 
electricity.  Prof.  Famintzyn's  address  on  the  psychical  life  of 
the  simplest  representatives  of  living  beings,  partly  based  upon 
his  own  recent  researches  into  the  intelligence  of  Infusoria,  was 
fall  of  facts  as  to  the  means  used  by  various  micro-organisms  in 
attack  and  defence.  Prof.  Wagner  dealt  with  the  physiological 
and  psychological  views  upon  hypnotism,  and  Prof.  Gustavson 
spoke  of  the  micro-biological  bases  of  agronomy. 

The  work  of  the  Sections  was  very  varied,  and  will  be  fully  re- 
p^rted  in  the  Diary  of  the  Congress,  the  publication  of  which 
began  during  the  sitting  of  the  Congress,  and  will  be  continued 
till  a  full  account  has  been  produced. 

The  Sections  of  Geography  and  Anthropology,  Hygiene,  and 
partly  of  Agronomy,  were  most  largely  attended,  and  many 
interesting  communications  were  made  in  them.  At  the  com- 
bined sittings  several  important  questions  were  raised  as  to  the 
geography  of  Russia,  its  meteorology,  and  the  bearings  of  a 
scientific  study  of  climate  and  soil  upon  agriculture. 

The  following  communications  relative  to  geography  and 
anthropol  )gy  were  especially  worthy  of  note.  Captain  Makaroff 
reported  the  results  of  his  careful  measurements  as  to  the  differ- 
ences of  level  of  various  seas  of  Europe.  Taking  the  average 
level  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean  opposite  Lisbon  for  zero,  he  found 
that  the  level  of  the  western  parts  of  the  Mediterranean  i-;  434 
millimetres  below  zero,  its  eastern  part,  -  507  millimetres  ;  the 
^gean  Sea,  —  563  millimetres  ;  the  Marmora  Sea,  from  -  360 
to  -  291  millimetres  ;  while  the  Black  Sea  is  +  246  millimetres 
— that  is,  higher  than  the  Lisbon  zero  ;  the  western  part  of  the 
Baltic,  -t-  259  millimetres  ;  its  eastern  part,  -f  254  millimetres  ; 
and  the  Gulf  of  Finland,  +  415  millimetres.  Dr.  Blum's 
anthropological  measurements  amidst  twelve  different  tribes 
of  the  Caucasus  show  that  there  are  no  pure  race-;  in  Caucasia, 
all  of  them  being  mixtures  between  Semitic  and  Indo-European 
races.  Like  conclusions  were  arrived  at  by  M.  Kharuzin  as 
regards  the  Bashkires,  who  proved  to  be  a  mixed  race, 
presenting  features  both  of  the  Mongolian  and  the  Caucasian 
races. 

Prof.  Klossovsky's  researches  into  the  variations  of  level  and 
temperature  in  the  coast  region  of  the  Black  Sea  are  most  valu- 
able, as  they  are  based  on  accurate  measurements  made  since 
1879  at  16  different  places.  They  fully  disclose  the  importance 
of  atmospheric  pressure  upon  the  level  of  the  Black  Sea,  and  it 
is  wirthy  of  note  that  the  passage  of  a  cyclone  over  Odessa 
resulted  in  a  rise  of  the  level  of  the  sea  by  fully  5  feet  over  the 
average,  followed  by  a  sinking  of  the  level  by  fully  7  feet,  in 
-accordance  with  the  variations  of  atm  ispheric  pressure. 

Dr.    Orzanski's  extensive  anthropological    researches  amidst 


the  population  of  Russian  prisons,  and  his  numerous  measure- 
ments, show  no  difference  between  the  supposed  "criminal's 
skull  "  and  the  average  Russian  skull.  Numerous  photographs 
were  exhibited  to  illustrate  this  conclusion,  so  different  from 
those  arrived  at  by  Dr.  Lombroso. 

Two  new  periodicals— one  of  them  devoted  to  Russian  natural 
science,  and  the  other  to  meteorology — were  founded  while 
the  Congress  was  at  work.  The  meeting  came  to  an  end  on 
January  20. 

The  Congress  hoped  to  obtain  from  the  Government  per- 
mission to  appoint  a  permanent  Board,  and  thus  to  lay  the 
foundation  of  a  Russian  Association  for  the  Advancement  of 
Science. 


TECHNICAL  EDUCATION  IN  ELEMENTARY 
SCHOOLS. 

'T'HE  Committee  of  the  National  Association  for  the  Promotion 
■^  of  Technical  and  Secondary  Education  have  submitted  to 
the  Education  Department  the  following  suggestions  for  the 
modification  of  the  Code  as  regards  elementary  technical 
education  : — 

A. — Draiving. 

(i)  Drawing  to  be  introduced  in  infant  schools,  at  least  for 
boys. 

(2)  Drawing  to  be  made  compulsory  in  boys'  schools. 

(3)  The  Minute  requiring  cookery  to  be  taught  in  girls' 
schools  as  a  condition  of  receiving  grant  for  drawing,  to  be 
repealed. 

B.  —  Object  Lessons. 

(4)  No  school  to  be  recognized  as  efficient  which  does  not 
provide  in  the  three  lower  standards  a  graduated  scheme  of  object 
lessons  in  continuation  of  Kindergarten  instruction  in  the  in- 
fant school. 

C.  — Science. 

(5)  In  order  to  encourage  science  as  a  class  subject,  the 
clause  requiring  English  as  one  of  the  class  subjects  to  be  can- 
celled, and  the  teaching  of  science  as  a  class  subject  to  be 
further  encouraged  in  the  upper  standards  by  an  additional 
grant. 

(6)  Scholars  of  any  public  elementary  school  to  be  allowed 
to  attend  science  classes  held  at  any  place  approved  by  the 
inspector,  and  such  attendance  to  count  as  school  attendance. 

(7)  Examinations  in  science  to  be  conducted  orally,  and  not 
on  paper,  especially  in  the  first  five  standards.  If  the  inspec- 
tion is  satisfactory,  an  attendance  grant  of  45.  to  be  made  for 
scientific  specific  subjects. 

(8)  Managers  to  be  encouraged  to  submit  alternative  courses 
of  instruction  in  specific  subjects  under  Art.  16  (Code  1888). 
Such  subjects  to  receive  a  grant  on  the  same  principle  as  the 
subjects  enumerated  in  Art.  15. 

[Art.  16.  "Any  other  subject  other  than  those  mentioned  in 
Art.  15,  may,  if  sanctioned  by  the  Department,  be  taken  as  a 
specific  subject,  provided  that  a  graduated  scheme  of  teaching 
it  be  submitted  to  and  approved  by  the  inspector." 

But  Art.  109  yg)  which  lays  down  the  condition  for  grants, 
says,  "The  specific  subjects  which  may  be  taken  are  those 
enumerated  in  Art.  15."] 

(9)  Grants  to  be  made  towards  apparatus  for  science  teaching 
and  school  museums. 

D.  —Manual  Instruction. 

(10)  Manual  instruction  to  be  introduced  in  boys'  schools, 
corresponding  to  needlework  for  girls. 

(11)  Instruction  in  the  use  of  simple  tools  to  be  introduced  in 
the  higher  standards  as  a  specific  subject,  and  grants  to  be  paid 
thereon. 

(12)  Provision  to  be  made  for  the  introduction  of  elementary 
modelling  in  connection  with  the  teaching  of  drawing,  and  a 
grant  to  be  made  in  connection  therewith. 

(13)  Instruction  in  laundry  work  to  be  encouraged  in  girls' 
schools,  so  far  as  practicable,   as  a  part  of  domestic  economy. 

E, — Evening  Schools. 

(14)  The  clause  providing  that  "No  scholar  may  be  pre- 
sented for  examination  in  the  additional  subjects  alone  "  to  be 
cancelled,  to  enable  scholars  to  earn  grants  though  not  receiving 
instruction  in  the  standard  subjects. 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


357 


(15)  The  number  of  "additional  subjects"  which  may  be 
taken  to  be  increased  from  two  to  four. 

F. — Training  Colleges. 

(16)  Day  Training  Colleges  and  a  third  year  of  training  to  be 
recognized.  The  Universities  and  local  University  Colleges  to 
be  utilized  for  the  training  of  teachers,  where  suitable  arrange- 
ments can  be  made. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

Cambridge. — The  following  appointments  of  Electors  to 
Professorships  have  been  made.  Each  Board  consists  of  eight 
members,  and  it  is  provided  by  the  Statutes  that  at  least  two 
members  shall  not  be  resident  in  the  University  or  officially  con- 
nected with  it.  In  certain  cases  more  than  two  such  members 
have  been  voluntarily  chosen  by  the  Senate. 

Arabic :  Prof.  Bensly  ,  Music :  Sir  George  Grove  ;  Chemistry : 
Dr.  E.  Frankland,  F.R.S.  ;  Plumian  of  Astronotny  ;  Mr.  W. 
U.  Niven  ;  Anatomy:  Dr.  Huxley,  F.R.S.  ;  Botany:  Prof.  D. 
<  »liver,  F.R.S.  ;  Woodwardian  of  Geology:  Dr.  A.  Geikie, 
V .  R.  S.  ;  Jacksonian  of  Natural  Philosophy :  Dr.  Hugo  Miiller, 
F.R.S.  ;  Mineralogy :  Sir  W.  Warington  Smyth,  F.R.S.  ; 
I  Political  Economy:  Mr.  R.  H.  Inglis  Palgrave,  F.R.S,; 
I  Zoology  and  Comparative  Anatomy:  Dr.  Huxley,  F.R.S.  ; 
Sanskrit :  Prof.  Aufrecht  and  Mr.  R.  A.  Neil ;  Cavendish  of 
Physics:  Sir  William  Thomson,  F.R.S.  ;  Mechanism :  Mr.  W. 
Airy;  Doivning  of  Lcno :  Mr.  Justice  Denman  ;  Doxvning  op 
Medicine:  Dr.  Richard  Quain,  F.R.S.  ;  Physiology:  Prof. 
Burdon  Sanderson,  Y. V^. "a.  %  Pathology :  Dr.  J.  F.  Payne; 
Surgery:  Sir  James  Paget,  F.R.S;  Chinese:  Dr.  Peile. 

Prof.  Robertson  Smith  being  unable  on  account  of  the  state 
of  his  health  to  lecture  this  term,  Mr.  A.  A.  Bevan,  B.A.,  of 
Trinity  College,  has  been  appointed  his  deputy. 

The  Syndicate  appointed  to  consider  the  probable  expense  of 
maintaining  and  working  the  great  telescope  offered  to  the 
University  by  Mr.  Newall,  report  that  a  capital  sum  of  £222^^, 
and  an  annual  expenditure  of  ^^400  will  probably  be  required. 
They  report  further  that  the  Sheepshanks  Special  Fund,  founded 
in  1863  for  the  benefit  of  the  observatory,  will  probably  be  able 
to  furnish  a  capital  sum  of  ;if  1000,  and  an  annual  grant  of 
;^ioo,  towards  the  expenses  of  the  Newall  telescope.  The 
remainder,  or  £122^  at  once,  and  £Tfio  a  year,  will  have  to  be 
provided  from  other  sources  ;  but  whence  is  by  no  means 
apparent. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

Revue  d'' Anthropologic,  troisieme  serie,  tome  iv.,  sixieme 
fasc.  (Paris,  1889). — Researches  on  the  cephalic  index  of  the 
Corsican  population,  by  Dr.  A.  Fallot  (of  Marseilles).  In  an 
earlier  number  of  this  review,  the  author  drew  attention  to  the 
very  appreciable  alteration  which  the  cephalic  index  had  under- 
gone in  recent  times  among  the  inhabitants  of  Marseilles.  Thus 
in  one  group  of  living  subjects,  born  at  the  beginning  of  the 
century,  he  found  that  21  per  cent,  exhibited  an  index  of  84, 
while  in  another  group,  consisting  of  men  of  middle  age,  this 
number  occurred  only  in  the  ratio  of  7  per  cent.  This  remark- 
able difference  led  the  author  to  continue  his  determinations  of 
the  cephalic  index  among  different  communities.  With  this 
object  in  view,  he  last  year  visited  Corsica,  and  in  the  present 
article  we  have  the  results  of  his  craniometric  determinations  in 
this  island,  where  from  its  peculiar  geographical  position  and 
geognostic  features,  the  inhabitants  have  preserved  a  permanence 
of  type,  and  a  homogeneity  of  ethnic  characteristics,  probably 
unequalled  in  any  other  European  nation.  Indeed  so  inconsider- 
able have  been  the  changes  effected  in  recent  times  in  the 
Corsican  population,  that  the  observations  made  by  Volney,  in 
*793.  on  the  country  and  the  people,  apply  almost  equally  well 
to  their  present  condition.  At  the  same  time  so  little  addition 
has  been  made  since  that  period  to  our  previously  imperfect 
knowledge  of  Corsica,  that  Dr.  Fallot's  observations  supply  a 
valuable  contribution  to  ethnological  inquiry.  All  his  deter- 
minations tend  to  demonstrate  the  great  uniformity  of  cranial 
type  and  characters  in  the  people.  Thus  while  54  per  cent,  of 
the  population  present  a  cephalic  index  varying  from  75  to  78, 


not  more  than  13  per  cent,  gave  an  index  above  80,  while  in 
only  one  out  of  200  cases  the  index  amounted  to  86,  and  hence 
he  assumes  the  mean  index  to  be  76 '5.  He  found  that  this 
uniformity  was  the  greatest  in  the  interior  of  the  island,  and  mere 
especially  in  the  dipartement  of  Corte  ;  while  at  Bastia,  in  the 
extreme  north,  the  cranial  characteristics  e;^hibited  more  variety, 
and  afforded  evidence  of  an  admixture  with  foreign  elements,  a 
subbrachycephalic  type  supplanting  the  more  general  Corsican- 
character  of  dolichocephalism.  In  the  preponderance  of  this 
latter  type  Dr.  Fallot  thinks  we  have  incontrovertible  evidence 
against  the  opinion  of  Lauer,  that  the  Corsicans  are  of  Ligurian 
descent,  and  he  believes  that  they  may  be  more  correctly  charac- 
terized as  an  offshoot  from  the  old  Iberian  races.  The  author  gives 
numerous  useful  tables,  and  his  brief  summary  of  the  history  of 
the  island  is  clear  and  instructive.  From  his  observations  on 
the  geological  conformation  of  the  island  we  learn  how  numerous, 
spurs,  thrown  off  from  the  central  high  mountain  range,  have 
enclosed  and  isolated  the  several  valleys,  cutting  off  villages  and 
settlements  from  their  neighbours,  and  thus  exerted  so  strong  an 
influence  upon  the  character  and  habits  of  the  inhabitants,  thai 
the  physical  features  of  the  island  may  be  said  to  supply  the 
key  to  its  history.  From  the  author's  observations  it  may  be 
assumed  that  in  the  mountain  districts  of  the  interior  the 
genuine  Corsican  cranial  type  has  been  best  preserved. — On 
infibulation,  and  other  mutilations  practised  among  the  littoral 
tribes  of  the  Red  Sea,  and  the  Gulf  of  Aden,  by  Dr.  Jousseaume. 
The  author  describes  at  length  the  methods  by  which  these  pro- 
cesses are  effected,  and  considers  that  whatever  may  have  been 
their  original  motive  they  are  in  no  way  at  present  connected  with 
religious  observances,  but  are  simply  carried  on  from  generation 
to  generation  as  survivals  of  ancient  barbarous  customs. — On 
modern  crania  in  Montpellier,  by  M.  deLapouge.  In  1888  the 
author  obtained  150  tolerably  perfect  skulls,  which  had  been 
recovered  from  the  soil  of  a  cemetery  at  Montpellier  used  for 
interments  from  the  seventeenth  century  until  it  was  closed 
in  1830.  An  examination  of  the  author's  elaborate  series  of 
comparative  craniometric  measurements  shows  that  the  mean 
for  the  cephalic  index  of  these  skulls,  viz.  78  3,  is  the  lowest 
as  yet  observed  in  France,  while  their  general  cranial  characters 
have  less  affinity  with  a  French,  than  a  North  African  type. — 
Prehistoric  Scandinavia,  by  M.  I.  Undset.  This  is  a  sequel  to 
a  paper  published  in  this  review  in  1887,  the  author  now  bringing 
his  survey  of  the  progress  of  northern  palasontological  science  up 
to  the  present  time. 

A  HE  American  Meteorological  Journal  for  December  con- 
tains :— An  article  by  W.  M.  Davis  and  C.  E.  Curry,  on  Ferrel's 
convectional  theory  of  tornadoes;  his  theory,  which  is  remarkably 
simple,  is  based  on  the  occurrence  of  an  ascensional  movement 
in  the  tornado-whirl.  The  authors  state  that  this  fact  seems  too 
well  established  to  admit  of  a  doubt,  although  Faye  and  others 
in  Europe,  and  Hazen  in  the  United  States,  have  questioned  it. 
The  paper  contains  graphical  illustrations  of  the  instability 
caused  by  convection. — Tornado  chart  of  the  State  of  In- 
diana, by  Lieutenant  J.  P.  Finley,  compiled  from  statistics  for 
seventy-one  years  ending  1888.  The  average  yearly  frequency 
is  4*5  storms.  The  month  of  greatest  frequency  is  May. — 
Theory  of  storms,  based  on  Redfield's  laws,  by  H.  Faye,  con- 
tinued from  the  November  number,  and  dealing  with  the  mecha- 
nics of  whirls  in  flowing  water,  and  with  the  upper  currents  of 
the  atmosphere  ;  the  conclusion  being  that  cyclones  are  whirls, 
originating  in  the  upper  regions  of  the  air.— A  continuation 
of  the  article  on  the  meteorology  at  the  Paris  Exhibition,  by 
A,  L,  Rotch,  describing  the  meteorological  instruments  in  the 
foreign  sections.— The  conclusion  of  Dr.  F.  Waldo's  inter- 
esting discussion  of  wind  velocities  in  the  United  States,  with 
charts  of  "  isanemonals  "  for  January,  July,  and  the  year.  The 
fact  that  the  curves  can  be  drawn  with  general  symmetry  shows 
that  there  is  some  uniformity  in  the  exposure  of  the  anemometers 
for  like  regions.  The  author  points  out  that  the  effect  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  seems  to  make  itself  felt  on  the  winds  to  a 
distance  of  200  or  300  miles  to  the  eastward. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 
Royal  Society,  December  19,  1889.— «' Some  Observations 
on  the    Amount  of  Luminous   and   Non- Luminous   Radiatica 
emitted  by  a  Gas-Flame."     By  Sir  John  Conroy,  Bart, 


6y 


NA  rURE 


[Feb.  13,  1890 


These  experiments  show — 

(i)  that  3  millimetres  of  glass  and  10  centimetres  of  water 
transmit  a  small  portion  of  the  non-luminous  radiation  of  an 
Argand  gas-burner,  but  that,  when  the  thickness  of  the  water 
is  increased  to  15  centimetres,  the  transmitted  radiation  consists 
exclusively,  or  almost  exclusively,  of  those  kinds  of  radiation 
which  affect  the  eye  as  light. 

(2)  That,  with  the  form  of  apparatus  employed  (a  thermopile 
and  galvanometer),  there  is  no  measurable  difference  between 
the  diathermancy  of  pure  water  and  of  a  solution  of  alum. 

(3)  That  the  radiation  from  an  Argand  gas-burner  consists  of 
about  175  per  cent,  luminous  and  98'25  per  cent,  non-luminous 
radiation. 

January  30. — "  On  outlying  Nerve-cells  in  the  Mammalian 
Spinal  Cord."  By  Ch.  S.  Sherrington,  M.A.,  M.B.,  &c. 
Communicated  by  Prof.  M.  Foster,  Sec.  R.  S. 

Gaskell  has  shown  that  in  the  cord  of  the  alligator  scattered 
nerve-cells  are  to  be  seen  at  the  periphery  of  the  lateral  column. 
Although  nerve-cells  appear  to  be  absent  from  that  position  in 
the  spinal  cord  of  Mammalia  as  represented  by  the  rabbit,  cat, 
dog,  calf,  monkey,  and  man,  yet  there  are  in  these  animals 
isolated  nerve-cells  present  in  the  white  matter  of  the  cord,  not 
only  in  the  deeper  portions  of  the  lateral  column,  but  in  the 
anterior  and  posterior  columns  as  well. 

In  the  anterior  columns  occasional  nerve-cells,  of  the  multi- 
polar kind,  lie  among  those  fibre-bundles  which  pass  between 
the  deeper  mesial  border  of  the  anterior  horn  and  the  anterior 
commissure  at  the  base  of  the  anterior  fissure.  They,  in  the 
instances  observed,  are  smaller  than  the  large  cells  characteristic 
of  the  anterior  horn,  and  lie  with  two  of  the  processes  directed 
parallel  with  the  horizontal  transverse  fibres  among  which  th;^y 
are  placed. 

In  the  lateral  column,  of  the  spinal  cord  of  man  and  the 
other  animals  named  above,  it  is  common  to  find  outlying 
members  of  the  group  of  small  cells  of  the  lateral  horn,  Clarke's 
tractus  intermedio-lateralis,  situated  in  the  white  matter,  dis- 
tinctly beyond  the  limits  of  the  grey.  Some  outlying  cells  here 
are  placed  at  a  great  distance  from  the  grey.  They  are  gener- 
ally placed  upon,  or  at  least  in  close  connection  with,  the  fine 
•cinnective-tissue  septa  which  pass  across  the  white  matter.  It 
is  probable  that  the  cells  are  connected  with  the  medullated 
nerve-fibres  running  along  these  septa. 

In  the  part  of  the  lateral  column  adjacent  to  the  lateral 
reticular  formation  numerous  nerve-cells  are  to  be  found  among 
the  interlacing  bands  of  nerve-fibres.  These  are  often  fusiform, 
l)Ut  in  many  cases  multipolar  ;  they  are  for  the  most  part  small, 
but  occasional  large  individuals  can  be  found  ;  the  latter  would 
appear  always  to  be  multipolar.  Where  the  lateral  column 
comes  into  contact  with  the  lateral  limb  of  the  substantia  gela- 
tinosa  of  the  caput  cornu  posterioris  ganglion-cells  can  frequently 
be  seen  in  it.  The  larger  axis  of  these  cells  is  parallel  to  the 
outline  of  the  caput  cornu. 

In  the  posterior  columns  outlying  nerve-cells  are  also  to  be 
found,  especially  in  the  human  cord.  They  are  best  seen  in  the 
upper  lumbar  and  lower  dorsal  regions.  They  are  large, 
measuring  in  some  instances  70  ix  across.  In  appearance  they 
closely  resemble  the  cells  of  Clarke's  column.  They  are  nearly 
always  of  broadly  ovate  shape.  They  appear  always  to  lie  on  or 
in  close  relation  to  those  horizontal  bundles  of  nerve-fibres 
which  curve  in  a  ventro-lateral  direction  from  the  depth  of  the 
extero-posterior  column  into  the  grey  matter  in  the  neighbourhood 
•of  the  posterior  vesicular  group.  The  longer  axis  of  the  cell  is 
placed  parallel  to  the  nerve-fibres  it  lies  upon  or  among. 
Where  a  process  from  the  bipolar  cell-body  can  be  followed,  it 
disappears  in  a  direction  which  is  that  of  the  surrounding  nerve- 
fibres. 

With  regard  to  the  cells  existing  among  fibres  passing  to  the 
white  commissure  of  the  cord,  it  is  legitimate  to  consider  their 
presence  as  evidence  in  favour  of  the  view  that  some  of  the  cells 
■of  the  median  portion  of  ihe  ventral  grey  horn  are  directly  con- 
nected with  medullated  fibres  passing  to  or  from  the  opposite 
half  of  the  cord  by  way  of  the  anterior  commissure. 

The  cells  in  the  lateral  column  outside  the  lateral  horn  may 
be  taken  to  point  to  the  connection  of  the  intermedio-lateral 
group  of  Clarke  with  the  nerve-fibres  which  radiate  in  bundles 
from  the  grey  matter  of  that  region  into  the  lateral  column. 
Concerning  some  of  the  outlying  cells  in  the  more  dorsal  portion 
of  the  lateral  column,  the  same  inferences  may  be  drawn  ;  and 
some  of  them  would  seem  to  be  connected  with  fibres  of  the 
posterior  roots  that  curve  round  the  lateral  aspect  of  the  caput 


cornu  posterioris.  Of  the  outlying  cells  in  the  posterior  column, 
if  they  are  outlying  members  of  Clarke's  group,  the  relations 
which  they  suggest  for  that  group  are — 

i.  That  the  group  is  connected  directly  with  certain  of  the 
median  fibres  of  the  posterior  spinal  roots — namely,  those  which 
after  an  upward  course  in  Burdach's  column  plunge  into  the  grey 
matter  of  the  base  of  the  posterior  horn. 

ii.  That  some  at  least  of  the  cells  of  that  group  are  inter- 
polated, more  or  less  immediately,  into  the  course  of  medullated 
nerve-fibres  of  large  calibre. 

The  question  naturally  arises,  May  not  these  cells  in  the 
posterior  column  of  the  Mammalian  cord  represent  the  bipolar 
cells  discovered  by  Freud,  in  the  cord  of  Petromyzon  planeri,  to 
be  in  direct  communication  with  fibres  of  the  posterior  roots? 
If  so,  may  Clarke's  column  be  considered  a  portion  of  the 
ganglion  of  the  posterior  spinal  nerve-root  which  has  been 
retained  in  the  interior  of  the  spinal  cord  in  the  thoracic  an  1 
certain  other  regions  ? 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  January  15. — Annual 
Meeting. — Dr.  W.  Marcet,  F. R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair.- — 
The  Council,  in  their  Report,  congratulated  the  Fellows  on  the 
generally  prosperous  state  of  the  Society  ;  the  past  year's  work, 
though  not  in  any  respect  exceptional,  having  been  thoroughly 
successful.  The  total  number  of  Fellows  is  550,  being  an  in- 
crease of  25  on  the  previous  year;  the  finances  are  improving, 
and  the  library  is  overflowing. — Mr.  Baldwin  Latham  wa-i 
elected  President  for  the  ensuing  year. — The  retiring  President, 
Dr.  Marcet,  then  delivered  an  address  on  "Atmospheric  Dust," 
which  he  divided  into  organic  or  combustible,  and  mineral  or  in- 
combustible. The  dust  scattered  everywhere  in  the  atmosphere, 
and  which  is  lighted  up  in  a  sunbeam,  or  a  ray  from  an  electric 
lamp,  is  of  an  organic  nature.  It  is  seen  to  consist  of  countless 
motes,  rising,  falling,  or  gyrating,  although  it  is  impossible  to 
follow  any  of  them  with  the  eye  for  longer  than  the  fraction  of  a 
second.  It  is  difficult  to  say  how  much  of  the  dust  present  in 
the  air  may  become  a  source  of  disease,  and  how  much  is  inno- 
cuous. Many  of  the  motes  belong  to  the  class  of  micro-  organisms 
which  are  frequently  the  means  of  spreading  infectious  diseases. 
Many  trades,  owing  to  their  dusty  nature,  are  very  unhealthy. 
Dust,  when  mixed  with  air,  is  inflammable  and  liable  to  explode. 
After  giving  several  instances  of  explosions  due  to  fine  dust  in 
flour  mills  and  coal  mines.  Dr.  Marcet  referred  to  inorganic  or 
mineral  dust,  and  gave  an  account  of  dust  storms  and  dust 
pillars  in  India.  He  then  proceeded  to  describe  volcanic  dust, 
which  consists  mainly  of  powdered  vitrified  substances,  produced 
by  the  action  of  intense  heat.  The  so-called  ashes  or  scoriae  shot 
out  in  a  volcanic  eruption  are  mostly  powdered  pumice,  but  they 
also  originate  from  stones  and  fragments  of  rocks,  which  striking 
against  each  other,  are  reduced  into  powder  or  dust.  Volcanic 
dust  has  a  whitish-gray  colour,  and  is  sometimes  nearly  quite 
white.  Dr.  Marcet  concluded  with  an  account  of  the  great 
eruption  of  Krakatab  in  August  1883.  The  address  was 
illustrated  by  a  number  of  lantern  slides. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  January  20. — Sir  W.  Thomson,  President,  in 
the  chair. — Prof  Tait  communicated  an  obituary  notice  of  Dr. 
Andrew  Graham,  R.N.,  by  Mr.  John  Romanes,  W.  S. — The  Pre- 
sident gave  a  paper  on  electrostatic  stress.  A  complete  dynamical 
illustration  of  electro-dynamic  action  may  be  had  in  an  elastic 
solid,  homogeneous  in  so  far  as  rigidity  is  concerned,  permeated 
with  pores  of  unalterable  size  containing  liquid.  These  pores 
may  be  in  part  in  communication  with  each  other,  and  in  part 
closed  by  elastic  partitions.  These  cases  correspond  to  con- 
ductors and  non-conductors  respectively.  Electrostatic  stress 
depends  on  the  curvature  and  extension  of  the  partitions.  The 
law  of  capacity  in  the  model  is  identical  with  that  in  conductors. 
— Prof.  C.  Michie  Smith  described  the  great  eruption  at  Ban- 
daisan,  Japan,  photographs  being  shown. — Prof  Tait  read  a 
paper,  by  Prof  Heddle,  on  a  curious  set  of  fog-bows. — Dr. 
Berry  Haycraft  gave  an  account  of  some  experiments  which 
extend  our  knowledge  of  volitionary  movement  and  explain  the 
production  of  the  muscle  and  heart  sounds. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  February  3.— M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — On  the  nuclei  of  the  great  Comet  II.  of  1882,  by  M.  F. 
Tisserand.  From  the  presence  of  five  bright  points  disposed  in 
a  straight  line,  it  is  evident  that  the  matter  was  not  uniformly 


Feb.  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


359 


distributed  in  the  head  of  this  comet.    There  exist  peveral  centres 
of  condensation  with  apparent  diameters  of  i"  or  2",  their  mutual 
distances  changing  from  time  to  time,  but  their  position  remaining 
constant  in  the  same  straight  line,  which  revolves  progressively 
round    the    principal  nucleus.     These   conditions  are   specially 
favourable  for  the  development  of  secondary  nuclei,  which  the 
author  regards  as  so  many  minor  comets  submitted  to  the  attrac- 
tion of  the  sun  alone,  moving  in  very  elongated  elliptical   orbits 
with  a  common  perihelion  and  different   long   axes,  disposed, 
however,  according  to  the  same  straight  line.     Hence  the  comet 
contained  within  itself  the  germs  of  disrupture,  its  elements  in 
this  respect  resembling  those  of  the  1843  and  1880  comets. — On 
the  roots  of  an  algebraic  equation,  by  Prof.  A.  Cayley.  Resum- 
ing the  theory  of  the  roots  of  the  equation  /{«)  =  o,  instead  of 
the  surface  c  -  z  —  2"-  ■\-  Q'\  the  author  now  studies  the  surface 
(c  _  z)-  =  P-  -f-  Q-,  taking  into  consideration  the  positive  values 
only  of  z  that  are  not  greater  than  c.      He  hopes  to   apply  this 
theory  to  the  case  of  a  cubic  equation,  where  the  calculations, 
however,  are  much  more  difficult. — Determination  of  regulated 
harmonic  surfaces,  by  M.    L.   Raffy.       Very  few  surfaces  are 
known  whose  linear  element  is  reducible  to  the  harmonic  form 
(Liouville's  form).     To  find  others,  the  author  employs  two  dis- 
tinct processes.      The  first  consists  in  taking  the  analytical  form 
of  the  co-ordinates  of  the  surface  in  function  of  two  parameters, 
and  determining  the  unknown  functions,  so  that  the  linear  ele- 
ment may  be  harmonic ;  the  second,  in  seeking  for  harmonic 
surfaces  amongst  those  which  may  be  generated  by  taking  their 
linear  element  alone. — Solar  observations  for  the  last  six  months 
of  1889,  by  M.  Tacchini.     Excluding  the  month  of  August,  the 
observations  here  tabulated  for  the  spots  and  faculas  show  that 
the  period  of  calm  has  continued  to  the  end  of  the  year,  and 
the  observations  already  made  for  January  1890  show  that  this 
period  still  continues.     The  same  result  is  shown  in  the  case  of 
the  protuberances,  so  that  we  appear  to  have  entered  the  period 
of  absolute  minimum. — On  the  propagation   of  sound,  by  MM. 
Violle  and  Vaulier.     These  experiments,  made  with  a  cylindical 
tube,  lead  to  the  inference  that,  whatever  be  the  nature  of  the 
initial  impulse,  the  sound-wave  tends  towards  a  simple,  deter- 
mined form,  and  this  form  once  acquired,  the  various  parts  of  the 
wave  are  propagated  with  a  uniform  velocity  which  must  be  re- 
garded as  the  normal  velocity  of  the  sound.     The  velocity  in  the 
open  air  is  greater  than  in  a  tube,  where  the  influence  of  the  walls 
causes  a  retardation  in  inverse  ratio  to  the  diameter,  and  ex- 
ceeding 046  m.  in  a  tube  with  diameter  of  i  meter.     The  nor- 
mal velocity  of  sound  in  a  dry  atmosphere  at  zero  is  331 'lO  m., 
with  probable  error  less  than  o"io  m. — On  the  state  of  the  mag- 
netic field  in  conductors  of  three  dimensions,  by  M.  P.  Joubin. 
The  results  of  these  researches,  which  agree  with  experience,  show 
that  the  magnetic  field  produced  by  a  current  exists  in  the  medium 
traversed  by  the  electric  flux  as  well  as  in  the  exterior  medium. — 
On  the  mechanical  actions  of  variable  currents,  by  M.  J.  Berg- 
man.  In  reproducing,  with  the  limited  resources  of  a  laboratory, 
the  interesting  experiments  exhibited  by  Prof.  E.  Thomson  at 
last  year's  Exhibition,  the  author  has  obtained  some  fresh  results, 
which  are  here  described. — Results  of  the  actinometric  observa- 
tions  made  at  Kiev  in    1888-89,  by  M.   R.    Savelief.     These 
observations  lead  to  the  general  conclusion  that  63*5  per  cent,  of 
the  annual  solar  heat  reaching  the  earth  is  absorbed  by  the  ter- 
restrial atmosphere,   only   36-5  arriving  on  the  surface  of  the 
ground ;    in    October    the  proportion    is    41,    in    January  and 
February  28  per  cent.     The  maximum  received  on  a  fine  day  in 
the  beginning  of  July  is  610,  and  in  December  87  calories  on  a 
given  space.  —  On  the  compounds  of  the  metals  of  the  alkalies  with 
ammonia,  by  M.  Joannis.      In  continuation  of  his  previous  com- 
munication {Com/>/es  rendus,  cix.   p.    900)  the  author  describes 
some  further  experiments,  which  are  totally  at  variance  with  the 
theory  advanced   by  M.  Bakhuis   Roozeboom  {Comptes  retiihis, 
ex.  p.  134)  to  explain  the  phenomena  already  observed  by  M. 
Joannis. — On  the  combinations  of  ammonia  and  phosphuretted 
hydrogen  with  dichloride  and  dibromide  of  silicon,  by  M.  Besson. 
Withrammonia  a  solid,  white,  amorphous  substance    of  the  for- 
mula SioBr4,  7NH3,  is  obtained,  in  all  respects  resembling  the 
corresponding  compound  of  the  chloride.     Phosphuretted  hy- 
drogen has  no  action  on  silicon  dichloride  at  the  ordinary  tem- 
perature,  but  is  absorbed  at  low  temperatures.     At    -  60    C. 
the  composition  is  approximately  Si2Cl4,  2PH3. — On  the  part 
played  by  certain  foreign  substances  in  iron  and  steel,  by  M.  F. 
Osmond.      The  author   here    gives   results    for  boron,    nickel, 
copper,  silicium,  arsenic,   and  tungsten,   reserving  for  a  future 
paper  full  treatment  of  the  subject. — On  lussalite,  anew  crystal- 


lized variety  of  silica,  by  M.  Kr.  Mallard.  To  the  substance 
here  described  as  nearly  pure  silica,  the  author  gives  the  name 
of  lussatite,  from  the  deposits  of  bitumen  at  Lussat,  near  Pont- 
du-Chateau,  where  its  properties  may  best  be  studied. — On  the 
oxides  of  manganese,  by  M.  Alex.  Gorgeu.  In  this  paper,  the 
author  studies  the  psilomelanes  and  wads,  reserving  for  a  future 
note  the  manganites,  properly  so  called  :  hausmannite,  acerdese, 
and  braunite. — Papers  were  read  by  M.  Paul  Marchal,  on  the 
structure  of  the  excreting  organ  in  the  prav\n  ;  by  M.  P.  A. 
Dangeard,  on  the  junction  of  stem  and  root  in  the  gymno- 
sperms  ;  by  M.  Stanislas  Meunier,  on  a  new  method  of  arti- 
ficially producing  ferriferous  platinum  with  magnetic  poles  ;  and' 
by  M.  Alexis  de  Tillo,  on  the  hypsometric  chart  of  European 
Russia.— M.  Gilbert  was  nominated  Corresponding  Member  of 
the  Section  for  Mechanics  in  place  of  the  late  M.  Broch. 

Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  January  17. — Prof,   du  Bois-Rey- 
mond.  President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Weyl  gave  an  account  of 
experiments  which  he  had  made  in  conjunction  with  Dr.  Kitasato 
on  the  biology  of  anaerobic  Bacteria.   Koch  had  only  imperfectly 
overcome  the  difficulty   in  the  way  of  a  pure  culture  of  these 
Bacteria,  viz.  the  exclusion  of  atmospheric  oxygen,  by  covering 
the  plates  on  which  they  were  being  grown  with  films  of  mica. 
Livonius  was  more  successful  by  means  of  a  deep  layer  of  Agar- 
Agar,  and  by  replacing  the  air  by  an  atmosphere  of  hydrogen. 
The  speaker  had  endeavoured  to  arrive  at  the  same  result  by 
mixing  the  material  on  which  the  cultivation  was  carried  on  witb 
some  substance  which  has  an  affinity  for  oxygen,  and  obtained 
good  results  with  dioxyphenols  and  aldehydes,   but  more  par- 
ticularly with  formate  of  soda.     The  members  of  the  first  class 
of  substances,  of  which  a  large  number  were  tried,  had  for  the 
most  part  to  be  abandoned,  for  they  exerted  a  toxic  action  on  the 
Bacteria  when  they  were  employed  in  quantities  sufficient  to  in- 
sure  the    complete    absorption    of    oxygen.     Very   fine    pure 
cultures  of  the  anaerobic  Bacteria  of  "quarter-evil"   {Raiisch- 
brand),   of  tetanus,  and  of  malignant  oedema,  were  obtained  on. 
Agar- Agar  by  the  use  of  eikonogen  and  of  formate  of  soda,  and! 
were  exhibited  to  the  meeting.     By  means  of  these  pure  cultures 
it  was  possible  to  demonstrate  that  the  anaerobic  Bacteria  exert  a 
powerful  reducing  influence  ;  this  was  shown  on  preparations  in 
which  the  culiure-material  was  deeply  coloured  with  indigo-blue, 
the  latter  being  then  reduced  by  the  organisms  to  indigo-white. 
These  simple  methods  of  cultivation  facilitate  greatly  the  further 
investigation  of  these  Bacteria. — Prof.  Liebreich  spoke  on  the 
function  of  the  bladder  in  fishes.     During  his  investigations  of 
the  inert  layer  on  the  upper  surface  of  fluids,  he  had  allowed  a 
float  whose  specific  gravity  was  slightly  less  than  that  of  the  fluid 
to  ascend  through  the  fluid,  and  observed  that  it  came  to  rest  a 
short  distance  below   the  surface  and  remained  there.     During 
these  experiments  the  slight  changes  of  temperature  which  are 
unavoidable  in  large    masses    of  fluid   produced   irregularities 
which  led  him  to  study  the  phenomena  exhibited  by  a  "  Carte- 
sian diver."     These  are  not  correctly  described  in  either  the 
older  original  works  on  the  subject  or  in  the  more  recent  text- 
books of  physics.    The  equilibrium  of  the  diver  is  unstable  for  any 
given  pressure  exerted  upon  the  elastic  membrane  which  covers 
the  upper  end  of  the  vessel  in  which  he  is  contained.     This  the 
speaker  proved,  not  only  by  developing  the  formulae  which  hold 
good  for  a  system  composed  partly  of  solids  and  partly  of  air  when- 
immersed  in  a  liquid,  but  also  by  means  of  a  series  of  striking 
experiments.     When  the  attention  is  directed  to  the  experiment, 
it  may  readily  be  noticed  that  it  is  impossible  to  keep  the  diver 
in  a  condition  of  rest  at  any  given  level  by  exerting  a  unifarm 
pressure  with  the  finger  on  the  elastic  membrane,  but  that  in 
order  to  produce  this  result  the  pressure  must  be  continuously 
varied.     If  the  pressure  is  applied  by  a  screw  instead  of  the 
finger,  the  diver  does  not  remain  at  rest.     When  the  air  is  com- 
pressed until  the  specific  gravity  of  the  diver  is  slightly  greater 
than  that  of  the  liquid,   he  sinks  to  the  bottom  and  remains 
there,  however  great  the  air-pressure  may  be.     If  now   he  is 
drawn  to  the  top  of  the  liquid  by  means  of  a  magnet  attracting 
a  small  slip  of  iron  attached  to  the  diver,  he  similarly  remains  at 
rest  at  the  surface.     If,  again,  he  is  now  drawn  slightly  down, 
he  rises  towards  the  surface  again,  when  left  to  himself,  until  he 
reaches  a  level  above  which  he  no  longer  rises  but  now  sinks  to  the 
bottom.     This  layer  of  fluid— such  that  when  drawn  above  it  he 
rises  and  when  drawn  down  below  it  he  sinks — may  be  called  his 
"hydrosphere,"  or,  in  other  words,  it  is  a  layer  of  liquid  within 
the  limits  of  which  his  specific  gravity  is  unity.   A  fish  possessed 


36o 


NATURE 


[Feb.  13,  1890 


■of  a  swim-bladder  is  in  exactly  the  same  condition  as  the  diver, 
for  it  also  is  in  unstable  equilibrium  in  the  witer.  The  fish  can 
only  remain  at  rest  in  the  water  by  continually  readjusting  its 
"hydrosphere"  by  means  of  shght  contractions  of  the  bladder, 
and  thus  balancing  itself  in  a  position  of  rest.  When  the  fish 
rises  or  sinks,  or  moves  horizontally,  the  alterations  of  the  swim- 
bladder  and  the  changes  in  specific  gravity  which  are  the  result 
of  this,  play  an  important  part,  inasmuch  as  they  strike  a  con- 
tinual balance  between  the  forces  tending  to  raise  and  depress 
the  fish's  body.  The  laws  according  to  which  the  swim-bladder 
plays  its  part  in  a  fish  are  in  general  the  same  as  those  which 
hold  good  for  the  Cartesian  diver,  and  these  laws  are  now  con- 
siderably cleared  up  by  the  speaker's  researches. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  Feisruarv  13. 
Royal   Society,  at  4.30. — The   Liquation  of  Gold  and   Platinum  Alloys: 

E.  Matthey. — On  the  Unit  of  Length  of  a  Standard  Scale  by  Sir  George 

Shuckburgh  :  General  Sir  J.  T.  Walker,  R.  E.,  F.R.S. 
Mathkmatical  Society,  at  8. — Concerning  Semi-invariants :  S.  Roberts, 

F.R.S. — Ether-Squirts:   Prof.   K.  Pearson. — On  Class- Invariants  :  Prof. 

G.  B.  Mathews. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — The  Theory  of  Armature 

Reaction  in  Dynamos  and  Motors  :  Jas.  Swinburne. 
Royal  Institijtion,  at  3 — The  Three  Stages  of  Shakspeare's  Art :  Rev. 

Canon  Ainger. 

FRIDAY,  Februarv  14. 
Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  3. — Anniversary  Meeting. 
Amateur    Scientific    Society,    at    7.30. — Annual    General    Meeting. — 

Election  of  Council,  &c.— The  Old  Red  Sandstone   of  North-East  Scot- 
land :  J.  W.  Evans. 
Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Problems  in  the  Physics  of  an  Electric  Lamp  ; 

Prof.  J.  A.  Fleming. 

SATURDAY,  February  15. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism  :  Right  Hon.  Lord 
Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  February  16. 
Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — Norway  ;  its   Scenery  and   its   People 
(with  Oxyhydrogen   Lantern  Illustrations)  :  H.  L.  Brakstad. 

MONDAY,  February  17. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Stereotyping  :  Thomas  Bolas. 
Aristotelian  Society,  at   8. — The  Distinction  between  Society  and  the 

State  :  J.  S    Mann. 
Victoria  Institute,  at  8. — Iceland  (concluding  paper)  :  Rev.  Dr.  Walker. 

TUESDAY,  February  18. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Oce.-in  Penny  Postage  and  Cheap  Telegraph 
Communication  between  England  and  all  Parts  of  the  Empire  and 
America  :  J.  Henniker  Heaton,  M.P. 

Zoological  Society,  at  8.30. — First  Report  on  Additions  to  the  Lizard 
Collection  in  the  British  Museum  (Natural  History):  G.  A.  Boulenger. — 
On  a  Guinea-fowl  from  Zambesi,  allied  to  Numida  cristata  :  P.  L.  Sclater, 
F.R.S.— Notes  on  the  Genus  Cyon  :  Dr.  Mivart,  F.R.S. 

Royal  Statistical  Society,  at  7.45. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — The  Shanghai  Water-Works: 
J.  W.  Hart.— The  Tytam  Water- Works,  Hong-Kong:  Jas.  Orange.— The 
Construction  of  the  Yokohama  Water-Works  :  J.  H.  T  _  Turner. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Post-Darwinian  Period:  Prof.  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  February  19. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — The  Organization  of  Secondary  and  Technical 
Education  in  London  :  Prof.  Silvanus  P.  Thomps)n._ 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  at  7. — Observations  on  the  Motion  of 
Dust,  as  illustrative  of  the  Circulation  of  the  Atmosphere,  and  of  the 
Devel  >pment  of  certain  Cloud  Forms  :  Hon.  Ralph  Abercromby.  — Cloud 
Nomenclature  (illustrated  by  Lantern  Slides)  :  Captain  D.  Wilson- 
Barker. — An  Optical  Feature  of  the  Lightning  Flash  (illustrated  by 
Lantern  Slides  :  Eric  S.  Bruce. 

"University  College  Chemical  and  Physical  Society,  at  5. — The 
Chemical  History  of  a  Crystalline  Schist :  E.  Greenly. 

THURSDAY,  February  20. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

LiNNEAN  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Fruit  and  Seed  of  Juglandia  ;  on  the 
Shape  of  the  Oak-leaf ;  and  on  the  Leaves  of  Viburnum  ;  Sir  John  Lub- 
bock, Bart.,  P.C,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 

■Chemical  Society,  at  8. — The  Behaviour  of  the  most  Stable  Oxides  at 
High  Temperatures:  G.  H.  Bailey  and  W.  B.  Hopkins. — The  Influence 
of  Different  Oxides  on  the  Decomposition  of  Potassium  Chlorate:  G.  J. 
Fowler  and  J.  Grant. 

Zoological  Society,  at  4. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 

>R}YAL  Institution,  at  3. — The  Three  Stages  of  Shakspeare's  Art :  Rev. 
Canon  Ainger. 

FRIDAY,  February  21. 

Gbological  Society,  at  3. — Annual  General  Meeting. 

Physical  Society,  at  5. — On  a  Carbon  Deposit  in  a  Blake  Telephone 
Transmitter :  F.  B.  Hawes. — The  Geometrical  Construction  of  Direct 
Reading  Scales  for  Reflecting  Instruments  :  A.  P.  Trotter. — A  Paralle 
Motion  Suitable  for  Recording-Instruments  :  A.  P.  Trotter. — On  Ber- 
trand's  Refractoraeter :  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson. 


Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — Some  Types  of  American 

Locomotives,  and  their  Construction  :  C.  N.  Goodall. 
Royal  Institution,  atg. — Magnetic  Phenomena:  Shelford  Bidwell,  F.R.S. 

SATURDAY,  February  22. 

Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.<5.     _  _ 

Royal    Institution,    at   3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism:    Right    Hon. 
Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

A  Dictionary  of  Applied  Chemistry,  vol.  i  :  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe  (Long- 
mans).— Prodromus  Faunae  Mediterranea;,  vol.  2,  Part  i  :  J.  V.  Carus 
(Stuttgart,  E.  Koch).— Reports  from  the  Laboratory  of  the  Royal  College  of 
Physicians,  Edinburgh,  vol.  2  (Pentland)  —Catalogue  of  the  Fossil  Reptilia 
and  Amphibia  in  the  British  Museum  (Natural  History).  Part  3  :  R.  Lydekker 
(London). — Elements  of  Logic:  E  E.  C.  Jones  (Edinburgh,  Clark). — Pi. 
Catalogue  of  British  Fossil  Vertebrata :  A.  S.  Woodw.ard  and  C.  D.  Sher- 
born  (Bulau) — The  Elements  of  Astronomy  :  Prof.  C.  A.  Youn?  (Arnold). 
— American  Spiders  and  their  Spinning  Work,  vol.  i  :  Dr.  H.  C.  McCook 
(Author,  Philadelphia).— The  Flowering  Plant:  J.  R.  A.  Davis  (Griffin).— 
The  Electrician  Electrical  Trades'  Directory  .ind  Handbook  for  T890 
{Electrician  Office). — The  Photographers'  Diary  and  Desk  Book,  1890 
{Camera  Office). — Untersuchungen  iiber  die  Bewegungsverhaltnisse  in  dem 
Dreifachen  Sternsysteme  Scorpii  :  B.  Schorr  (Miinchen,  Straub)  —A 
Modern  University  :  Hy.  Dyer  (Perth.  Cowan). — On  a  University  Faculty 
of  Engineering  :  Hy.  Dyer  (Glasgow,  Munro). — Types  of  Metamorphosis 
in  the  Devel 'pment  of  the  Crustacea:  I.  C.  Thompson  (Liverpool). — Mag- 
netism and  Earth  Structure  :  Dr.  E.  Naumann  (  I'riibner). — Journal  of  the 
Chemical  Society,  February  (Gurney  and  Jacks  m). — Brain,  No.  48  (Mac- 
millan). — Journal  of  the  Institute  of  Actuaries,  January  (Layton).-;-Mono- 
graph  of  the  British  Cicadae,  Part  i  :  G.  B.  Buckton  (Macmillan).-— 
Quarterly  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society,  No.  i8i  (Longmans). — Bulletin 
of  the  U.S.  Geological  Survey,  No.  54  (Washington). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Religious  Institutions  of  the  Semites 337 

Prof.  Chrystal's  "  Algebra." 338 

Fermentation  with   Pure  Yeast.     By  Prof.  Percy  F. 

Frankland •     .    .  339 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Collins  :   "An  Epitome  of  the  Synthetic  Philosophy." 

— G.  J.  R 340 

Brown  :"  The  Earth  and  its  Story  " 341 

Ripper  :  "  Steam."— N.  J.  L 341 

Giles:   "  Australia  Twice  Traversed  " 341 

Moore:    "New   Zealand  for  the  Emigrant,   Invalid, 

and  Tourist  " 342 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

A  Key  to  the  Royal  Society  Catalogue.— James  C. 

McConnel 342 

Osteolepidse.— R.   L.  ;  E.   Meyrick  ;  Dr.  J.  A.  H. 

Murray 342 

Compounds  of  Selenium.— Prof.  William  Ramsay, 

F.R.S 343 

Royal  Victoria  Hall  and  Morley  Memorial  College. — 

A  Member  of  Committee 343 

Galls.— T.  D.  A.  Cockerell 344 

Foreign    Substances  attached    to  Crabs. — Prof.   W. 

A.  Herdman 344 

The  Ten  and  Tenth  Notation. —B.  A.  Muirhead     .  344 

Earth  Tremors  from  Trains.     By  H.  H.  Turner     .    .  344 

Titanotherium  in  the  British  Museum.    (Illustrated.)  346 

Notes 347 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope.— A,  Fowler 350 

Spectrum  of  the  Zodiacal  Light 351 

Solar  and  Stellar  Motions 351 

Dun  Echt  Observatory 351 

Melbourne  Observatory 351 

Geographical  Notes 351 

Smokeless  Explosives.     II.     By  Sir  Frederick  Abel, 

C.B.,  F.R.S 352 

Note  on  Mr.  Melde's  Vibrating  Strings.  (Illustrated.) 

By  Rev.  W.  Sidgreaves,  S.J 355 

Eighth  Congress  of  Russian  Naturalists 356 

Technical  Education  in  Elementary  Schools      .    .    .  356 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 357 

Scientific  Serials 357 

Societies  and  Academies 35^ 

Diary  of  Societies •    •  360 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 360 


NA TURE 


361 


THURSDAY,  FEBRUARY  20,  1890. 


THE  PHYSICS  AND  CHEMISTRY  OF  THE 
''CHALLENGER"  EXPEDITION. 

Report  071  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Exploring  Voyage 
of  H. M.S.  "■Challenger^'  1873-76.  Physics  and  Che- 
mistry, Vol.  II.  (Published  by  Order  of  Her  Majesty's 
Government,  1889.) 

THE  second  volume  of  the  Report  on  the  Physics  and 
Chemistry  of  the  Challenger  Expedition  has  been 
published,  and  contains  matter  of  very  great  interest. 

The  first  paper  is  on  the  compressibility  of  water,  by 
Prof.  Tait.  He  has  used  Amagat's  "  manometre  "k  pistons 
libres." 

"  The  principle  on  which  the  instrument  works  is 
the  same  as  that  of  the  Manometre  Desgoffes — a  sort 
of  inverse  of  that  of  the  well-known  Bramah  Press.  In 
the  British  instrument,  pistons  of  very  different  sectional 
area  are  subjected  to  the  same  pressure  (thatof  one  mass 
of  liquid),  and  the  total  thrust  on  each  is,  of  course,  pro- 
portional to  its  section.  In  the  French  instrument,  the 
pistons  are  subjected  to  equal  total  thrusts,  being  exposed 
respectively  to  fluid  pressures  which  are  inversely  pro- 
portional to  their  sections.  The  British  instrument  is 
employed  for  the  purpose  of  overcoming  great  resistances 
by  means  of  moderate  forces  ;  the  French,  for  that  of 
measuring  great  pressures  in  terms  of  small  and  easily 
measurable  pressures." 

By  means  of  the  instrument  from  his  description  of 
which  the  above  is  an  extract  (p.  21),  Prof.  Tait  has  de- 
termined the  compressibilities  of  cistern  water,  sea  water, 
and  solutions  of  common  salt  up  to  pressures  of  450 
atmospheres,  and  for  a  range  of  temperature  extending 
from  o^  to  1 5^  C.  The  results  may  be  briefly  summed  up 
as  follows. 

The  average  compressibility  of  fresh  water  at  o'  C.  and 
at  low  pressures  is  520  X  lo"'^  per  atmosphere.  The 
compressibility  is  a  minimum  at  60°  C.  Both  the  com- 
pressibility and  the  temperature  at  which  the  minimum 
occurs  are  lowered  by  pressure.  The  average  compressi- 
bility for  a  pressure  of  456*9  atmospheres  is  478  X  10"'^ 
per  atmosphere,  and  the  temperature  of  minimum  com- 
pressibility is  about  30°  C.  The  average  compressibility 
of  sea  water  is  about  0*92  of  that  of  fresh  water.  The 
point  of  minimum  compressibility  is  about  56°  C.  at 
atmospheric  pressure. 

At  o^  C.  the  average  compressibility  of  water  per  atmo- 
sphere may  be  expressed  by  the  formula  o"ooi86/(36  -\-  p), 
where/  is  the  pressure  in  tons  per  square  inch.  The 
compressibility  of  solutions  of  NaCl,  containing  s  parts 
of  salt  to  100  of  water,  is  given  by  the  formula 

o"ooi86/(36  ■{•  P  ■\-  s). 

The  depth  of  a  sea  about  six  miles  deep  is  reduced  by 
620  feet  by  compression.  If  the  ocean  were  incom- 
pressible, the  level  of  the  surface  would  be  116  feet 
higher  than  it  is  at  present,  and  about  two  million  square 
miles  of  land  would  be  submerged.  Finally,  the  maxi- 
mum density-point  of  water  is  lowered  by  about  3'  C.  by 
an  additional  pressure  of  150  atmospheres,  and  the  tem- 
perature of  maximum  density  coincides  with  the  freezing- 
point  at  -  2°-4  C.  under  a  pressure  of  2-14  tons  per 
square  inch. 

Vol.  xli.— No.  1060. 


It  will  be  seen  from  this  brief  recapitulation  of  his 
results  that  Prof.  Tait  has  carried  through  a  very  diffi- 
cult research  with  success,  and  has  made  substantial 
additions  to  our  knowledge.  It  may  therefore  appear 
ungracious  to  criticize  points  which  do  not  touch  the 
essence  of  the  investigation,  but  it  is  impossible  to  read 
the  Report  without  feeling  that,  in  some  respects,  it  falls 
short  of  the  standard  of  classical  perfection  which  ought 
to  be  attained  in  papers  published  at  the  national  expense 
to  illustrate  a  great  national  research. 

In  the  first  place,  the  C.G.S.  system  is  entirely 
ignored.  As  the  compressibilities  are  measured  per 
atmosphere,  this  is,  so  far,  not  of  importance  ;  but  in  the 
formulae  quoted  above,  which  express  the  compressibility 
per  atmosphere,  terms  occur  in  which  the  pressures  are 
measured  in  tons  per  square  inch.  The  units  are  thus 
mixed,  and  though  the  requisite  data  for  conversion  into 
atmospheres  are  supplied,  there  is  no  doubt  that  foreigners 
will  have  some  difficulty  in  interpreting  the  results. 

Again,  though  we  cannot  but  admire  the  scrupulous 
honesty  with  which  he  tells  the  tale,  some  annoyance 
may  justly  be  felt  that  a  paper  should  go  forth  to  the 
world  in  a  publication  intended  to  mark  the  highest  level 
to  which  British  science  has  attained,  marred  by  the 
confession  that  the  author — who  deservedly  holds  a  place 
in  the  very  foremost  ranks  of  British  physicists — had 
never  heard  of  Van  der  Waals'  work  on  the  continuity 
j  of  the  liquid  and  gaseous  states  till  the  end  of  the  year 
1888. 

Van  der  Waals'  investigation  was  published  in  Dutch 
in  1873.  In  spite  of  the  disadvantage  due  to  the  lan- 
guage in  which  it  was  written,  its  importance  was  at  once 
recognized.  Clerk- Maxwell  gave  a  long  account  of  it  in 
Nature  in  1874  (vol.  x.  p.  477).  He  returned  to  the  sub- 
ject in  a  lecture  delivered  before  the  Chemical  Society  on 
February  18,  1875,  and  reported  in  full  in  Nature  (vol. 
xi.  p.  357).  After  indicating  what  he  considered  to  be 
the  weak  points  of  Van  der  Waals'  theory,  he  added  that 
nevertheless  "  his  attack  on  this  difficult  question  is  so 
able  and  so  brave,  that  it  cannot  fail  to  give  a  notable 
impulse  to  molecular  science.  It  has  certainly  directed 
the  attention  of  more  than  one  inquirer  to  the  study 
of  the  Low-Dutch  language  in  which  it  is  written." 
Maxwell  again  referred  to  Van  der  Waals  in  his 
articles  on  "Atom"  and  "Capillary  Action,"  published 
in  the  "  Encyclopaedia  Britannica"  in  1875  and  1876.  So 
important  was  the  theory  considered,  that,  although  it 
was  then  four  years  old,  twelve  pages  were  devoted  to  it 
in  the  first  number  of  the  "  Beiblatter  "  to  Poggcndorff's 
A}inalen{i^77).  O.E.  Meyer  discussed  it  inhis"Kinetische 
Theorie  der  Case"  in  the  same  year.  It  is  described  in 
modern  German  text-books,  such  as  Riihlmann's  "  Hand- 
buch  der  Mechanischen  Warmetheorie,"  and  Winkel- 
mann's  edition  of  Graham-Otto's  "  Lehrbuch  der  Chemie," 
both  published  in  1885.  It  was  translated  in  full  into 
German  by  Dr.  Roth  in  1881,  and  an  English  translation 
by  Prof.  Threlfall,  of  the  University  of  Sydney,  is  about 
to  be  published  by  the  Physical  Society  of  London. 

In  spite  of  all  this,  the  author  of  the  Report  we  are  dis- 
cussing informs  us,  in  an  addendum  da'.ed  August  8, 1888, 
that  only  a  few  days  before  he  had  been  told  by  a  visitor 
to  his  laboratory  "  that  one  of  Van  der  Waals'  papers  (he 
did  not  know  which,  but  thought  it  was  a  recent  one) 

R 


362 


NATURE 


[Feb.  20,  1890 


contains  an  elaborate  study  of  the  molecular  pressure  in 
fluids  "  ;  and  a  few  lines  further  down  he  refers  to  "  Van 
der  Waals'  memoir  *  On  the  Continuity  of  the  Gaseous 
and  Liquid  States,'  which  I  have  just  rapidly  perused  in  a 
German  translation." 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  Prof.  Tait  published  a  book  on 
"  Heat"  in  1884,  these  statements  are  so  astonishing  that 
his  interview  with  the  visitor  from  whom  he  heard  of  Van 
der  Waals  can  only  be  described,  in  the  words  of  Mr- 
Montague  Tigg  when  he  discovered  that  Martin  Chuzzle- 
wit  was  in  the  next  box  in  the  pawn-shop,  as  "one  of 
the  most  tremendous  meetings  in  Ancient  or  Modern 
History." 

Other  indications  of  a  lack  of  acquaintance  with  what 
has  been  done  by  others  are  not  wanting.  Taking 
p{zr  -  a)  =  constant,  as  the  equation  to  the  isothermal 
of  a  gas,  and  assuming  that  it  applies  approximately 
to  a  liquid,  the  author  concludes  "  that  water  [at  0°  C.] 
can  be  compressed  to  somewhat  less  than  three-fourths 
of  its  original  bulk,  but  not  further."  He  adds  that  "  the 
whole  of  this  speculation  is  of  the  roughest  character,'' 
but  makes  no  reference  to  the  converging  lines  of  evidence 
which  indicate  that  liquids  could  be  compressed  to  from 
o"2  to  o'3  of  their  bulk  at  ordinary  temperatures  and 
pressures.  The  numbers  which  lead  to  this  conclusion 
are  frequently  in  good  accord,  whether  they  are  deduced 
from  direct  observation  on  the  specific  inductive  capaci- 
ties or  the  refractive  indices  of  the  liquids  themselves,  or 
from  those  of  their  vapours,  or  from  the  molecular 
volumes  of  the  elements  of  which  they  are  composed. 
The  latter,  however,  as  calculated  in  the  few  cases 
he  discussed  from  Van  der  Waals'  theory,  are  larger^ 
except  in  the  case  of  hydrogen,  than  the  corre- 
sponding numbers  obtained  from  optical  or  electrical 
measurements.  Van  der  Waals  did  not  deal  with  water- 
vapour,  but  if  we  use  the  molecular  volumes  for  Hg  and 
air  obtained  by  means  of  O.  Meyer's  modification  of  his 
theory,  and  take  the  molecular  volumes  of  air  and  O2  as 
identical  (an  assumption  which  will  certainly  make  the 
result  too  large),  we  obtain  the  following  values  :— 

Volume  of  the  Matter  in  the  Unit  Volume  of  Water 
tinder  Standard  Conditions. 

Deduced  from  observations  on  the  refractive  index  of)  , 

liquid  water  (L.  Lorentz) ...  J  °  ^°°'- 

Deduced  from  observations  on  the  refractive  index  of)  ro 

water-vapour  (L.  Lorentz)      jO  2005. 

Deduced  from  the   molecular  volumes  of  Hg  and  0.{\ 

obtained  from  refractive  index  or  specific  inductive  rO'23. 

capacity...         ...         ...         ...         ...  ...         ...j 

Deduced  from  the  molecular  volumes  of  H2  and  air  |    .„ 

given  by  Van  der  Waals' theory         J^-' 


'ZZ- 


Prof.  Tait's  value  is  0717.  It  is  certainly  unfortunate 
that  a  number  so  widely  divergent  from  the  results  of  a 
whole  literature  of  optical,  electrical,  and  thermal  re- 
searches should  be  published  in  a  Challenger  Report 
without  any  reference  to  the  discrepancy.  It  is  still  more 
unfortunate  that  in  discussing  the  theory  on  which  this 
result  is  based  the  opinion  should  be  registered  that  "  the 
quantity  a  [in  the  formula  p{v  -  a)  =  constant]  obviously 
denotes  the  ultimate  volume  "  (p.  48).  This  was  published 
sixteen  years  after  Van  der  Waals  had  given  reasons  for 
believing  that  a  (or,  as  he  calls  it,  b)  is  four  times  the 
ultimate  volume,  and  twelve  years  after  O.  Meyer  had 


argued  that  the  multiplier  ought  to  be  increased  to  4^/2. 
The  best  theories  on  the  subject  are  no  doubt  tentative, 
their  agreement  with  facts  is  imperfect,  but  it  is  esta- 
blished beyond  the  possibility  of  doubt  that  the  constant 
in  question  need  not  have  the  meaning  which  is  here  said 
to  be  obvious. 

Two  papers  in  which  the  compressibilities  of  solutions 
of  NaCl  are  discussed  had  appeared  in  Wiedemann's 
Annalen  some  little  time  before  the  conclusion  of  Prof. 
Tait's  work.  Rontgen  and  Schneider  (Wied.  Ann. 
xxix.  165,  1886)  determined  the  relative  compressibilities 
of  water  and  of  a  number  of  different  salt-solutions,  and 
Schumann  ( Wied.  Ann.,  xxxi.  14,  May  1887)  gave  absolute 
measures.  Both  researches  were  carried  on  at  low 
pressures  only,  but  they  are  interesting  in  their  relation 
to  Prof.  Tait's  conclusions,  inasmuch  as  his  compressi- 
bihties  at  low  pressures  are  obtained  (as  he  fully  explains) 
by  an  extrapolation,  and  it  is  therefore  desirable  to  compare 
them  with  the  values  given  by  direct  observation. 

In  the  following  table  the  compressibihties  obtained  by 
Schumann  for  solutions  containing  given  percentages  of 
NaCl  {i.e.  parts  of  salt  to  100  of  solution)  are  compared 
with  the  values  deduced  from  Prof.  Tait's  formula  : — 


Compress 

bility 

per  atmosph 

ere  X  lo**. 

Percentage. 

Schumnnn 

Tait. 

0 

50-3 

52 'O 

5 

45-5 

45-1 

10 

397 

39"5 

15 

34-8 

.34  "6 

20 

30-6 

30"5 

25 

258 

26  •& 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  the  number  50*3  is  assumed 
by  Schumann  from  Grassi,  and  that  it  was  employed  in 
experiments  made  with  water,  for  determining  the  effect  of 
pressure  on  the  internal  volume  of  the  piezometers.  If  it 
had  been  replaced  by  Prof.  Tait's  value,  the  close  agree- 
ment between  the  results  for  mean  percentages  would  be 
destroyed.  Schumann  also  obtains  maxima  of  com- 
pressibility for  low  percentages  of  certain  salts,  though  he 
seems  very  doubtful  about  the  validity  of  these  results. 
We  have  no  intention  of  entering  into  a  detailed  discus- 
sion of  his  work  which  certainly  appears  to  require  con- 
firmation, but  there  is  no  doubt  that  nobody  could  have 
made  a  critical  comparison  between  his  own  experiments 
and  those  of  Schumann  so  well  as  Prof.  Tait,  when  he  had 
the  whole  subject  at  his  fingers'  ends.  It  is  thus  a  real 
loss  to  science  when  a  man  of  his  great  ability  ignores  an 
investigation  published  nearly  a  year  before  the  date  of 
his  own  paper. 

The  form  of  the  formula  given  by  Prof.  Tait  for  the 
compressibility  of  salt-solutions  is  closely  analogous  to 
that  deduced  from  theory  by  Prof  J.  J.  Thomson  in  his 
"  Applications  of  Dynamics  to  Physics  and  Chemistry '' 
(p.  184).  He  shows  that  if  k'  is  the  compressibility  of 
water,  and  P  is  the  internal  pressure  due  to  the  solution 
of  a  salt,  the  compressibility  of  the  solution  is  k'jil  +  Vk'). 
If  then  we  put  k'  =  o"ooi86/(36  +  p),  Prof.  Tait's  formula 


for   a  salt-solution  becomes  k\ 

0"00I{ 

since  P  is  proportional  to         very  similar  to  J.  J .  Thomson's. 


4 


I  +  k'- 


\  ,  which. 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


363 


expression,  and  would  be  identical  with  it  if  P  =  j/o-ooi86 
atmospheres.  In  that  case  the  internal  pressure  due 
to  the  salt  in  a  solution  containing  20  parts  of  salt  to 
100  of  water  would  be  about  the  same  as  the  internal 
pressure  in  pure  water  as  given  by  Van  der  Waals.  If, 
however,  we  attempt  to  apply  van  't  HofTs  theory  of  the 
pressure  due  to  dissolved  substances,  we  find,  as  in  the 
examples  quoted  in  the  "  Applications  "  {loc.  cit.),  that  the 
observed  values  of  Vk'  are  many  times  greater  than  those 
given  by  calculation. 

The  second  Report,  by  Mr.  Buchan,  on  "  Atmospheric 
Circulation,"  of  which  we  shall  give  some  account  in  a 
future  number,  is  rather  a  treatise  on  meteorology  than  a 
simple  discussion  of  the  Challenger  observations.  All  the 
data,  other  than  those  derived  from  the  expedition  (which 
have  been  previously  published),  are  set  forth,  and  a  vast 
collection  of  meteorological  facts  from  all  parts  of  the 
world  is  utilized. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  attempt  to  discuss  Mr. 
Buchan's  conclusions  in  detail,  but  one  may  be  selected 
as  an  example.  Twenty-six  thunderstorms  occurred  at 
sea  during  the  voyage,  and  of  these  only  four  took  place 
between  8  a.m.  and  10  p.m.  Nineteen  occurred  when  the 
ship  was  near  the  land,  and  these  were  pretty  evenly  dis- 
tributed throughout  the  twenty-four  hours.  Over  land 
thunderstorms  are  most  frequent  during  the  day.  At  sea 
thunderstorms  are  nocturnal,  and  occur  chiefly  during 
the  morning  minimum  of  pressure. 

"  Over  the  land  the  maximum  of  thunderstorms  occurs 
during  the  hours  of  the  day  when  temperature  is  the  highest, 
but  over  the  open  sea  during  those  hours  when  temperature 
is  lowest.  The  great  majority  of  thunderstorms  over  the 
land  thus  occur  during  the  part  of  the  day  when  the 
ascensional  movement  of  the  air  from  the  heated  surface 
of  the  ground  takes  place  "  (p.  32). 

These  facts  furnish  Mr.  Buchan  with  an  interesting 
suggestion  as  to  the  cause  of  these  differences  : — 

"  As  regards  thunderstorms  over  the  land  surfaces  of  the 
globe,  the  disturbance  of  atmospheric  equilibrium,  result- 
ing in  ascending  and  descending  currents,  is  brought 
about  mainly  by  the  superheating  of  the  surface  and 
thence  of  the  lowermost  strata  of  the  air.  But  as  regards 
the  open  sea,  this  mode  of  disturbing  the  atmospheric 
equilibrium  cannot  take  place,  inasmuch  as  the  influence 
of  solar  radiation  is  only  to  raise  the  temperature  of  the 
surface  of  the  sea  not  more  than  a  degree.  Hence  it  is 
probable  that  the  disturbance  of  the  equilibrium  of  the 
atmosphere,  in  the  case  of  thunderstorms  over  the  open 
sea,  is  brought  about  by  the  cooling  of  the  higher  strata 
of  the  atmosphere  by  terrestrial  radiation  "  (p.  34). 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  Mr.  Murray  is  right  in 
thinking  that  Mr.  Buchan's  Report  will  be  a  standard  work 
of  refere.  ce  for  many  years  to  come. 

The  third  Report,  by  Commander  Creak,  is  on  the  Mag- 
netical  Results  of  the  voyage.  As  the  author  has  himself 
described  the  main  results  of  his  investigations  in  thepages 
of  Nature,  it  is  unnecessary  t j  do  more  than  refer  to  its 
most  salient  features.  We  have  two,  and  only  two 
criticisms  to  make.  Commander  Creak  has  employed 
the  British  unit  of  force,  and  his  paper  will  therefore  be 
used  with  less  comfort  and  ease  by  most  magneticians 
than  if  he  had  employed  the  C.G.S.  system.  Perhaps, 
however,  as  an  Admiralty  official  he  felt  bound  to  adhere 
to  the  traditions  of  his  office.  Again,  we  think  that  he 
has  been  rather  too  modest  in  the  amount  of  space  he 


has  claimed.  Like  Mr.  Buchan,  he  has  used  information 
from  many  sources  which  are  not,  or  at  all  events  are  not 
stated  to  be,  generally  accessible.  These  he  has  employed 
in  determining  the  rates  of  secular  change  during  the  last 
40  years  all  over  the  globe.  It  would  have  been  interest- 
ing if  means  could  have  been  devised  for  showing  not 
merely  the  results  of  this  investigation  but  the  data  on 
which  they  are  based.  Again,  the  map  in  which  the 
direction  of  motion — eastward  or  westward — of  the  north 
pole  of  the  needle  is  graphically  shown  for  the  period 
considered  would  have  been  more  valuable  if  the  mag- 
nitudes of  the  mean  annual  motion  at  different  places  had 
been  added.  This  has,  in  fact,  been  done  in  a  recent 
German  work  on  the  same  subject. 

But  if  we  are  inclined  to  wish  that  Commander  Creak 
had  claimed  a  larger  share  of  space  and  given  more 
details,  in  what  he  has  done  he  has  gone  beyond  any 
previous  writer.  His  work  is  of  the  highest  importance 
as  introducing  a  novel  view  of  the  causes  of  secular  mag- 
netic change,  and  in  connecting  it  with  certain  definite 
localities. 

Mr.  Buchan  has  furnished  us  with  new  meteorological 
maps.  Commander  Creak  has  prepared  new  magnetic 
maps,  which  enable  us  to  institute  a  comparison  between 
the  magnetic  state  of  the  globe  in  1880  and  its  condition 
when  Sabine  portrayed  it  for  an  epoch  some  40  years 
earlier.  The  positions  of  the  magnetic  poles  and  foci 
of  maximum  intensity  do  not  appear  to  have  altered. 
The  secular  change  is  associated,  not  with  these,  but  with 
four  points,  towards  two  of  which  the  north  pole  of  the 
needle  is  veering,  and  from  two  of  which  it  is  apparently 
being  repelled.  The  points  of  increasing  attraction  on 
the  north-seeking .  pole  are  to  the  south  of  Cape  Horn 
and  in  the  south  of  China  ;  the  foci  of  diminishing  at- 
traction are  in  the  Gulf  of  Guinea  and  near  the  north 
magnetic  pole  in  Canada.  The  existence  of  this  last 
focus  is  more  or  less  hypothetical,  but  in  the  case  of  the 
other  three  the  various  magnetic  elements  concur  in  in- 
dicating the  same  neighbourhood  as  the  centre  of  change. 
Thus  not  only  is  the  secular  variation  of  the  declination 
of  opposite  signs  to  the  east  and  west  of  these  points, 
but  the  increase  of  the  downward  attraction  on  the  north 
pole  of  the  needle  is  a  maximum  near  Cape  Horn  and 
in  China,  and  a  minimum  {i.e.  a  maximum  decrease)  in 
the  Bight  of  Benin. 

Again  the  annual  change  of  horizontal  force  is  very 
small  near  Cape  Horn,  but  it  is  decreasing  in  South 
America,  and  the  rate  of  decrease  is  a  maximum  at  a 
point  between  Valparaiso  and  Monte  Video.  These  are 
precisely  the  kind  of  results  which  would  follow  from  the 
gradual  production  of  a  subsidiary  centre  of  relative 
attraction  on  the  north-seeking  pole  of  the  magnet  near 
Cape  Horn.  The  real  existence  of  the  Gulf  of  Guinea 
centre  is  similarly  confirmed.  Commander  Creak 
cautiously  abstains  from  theorizing  on  these  remarkable 
facts,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  he  is  right  in  thinking 
that  they  must  lead  us  to  look  for  the  chief  causes  of 
secular  variation  within  the  globe  rather  than  in  solar  or 
extra-terrestrial  influences.  His  paper  will  be  a  point  of 
new  departure  in  the  science  of  terrestrial  magnetism. 

It  will  be  seen  from  what  has  been  said  that  the  three 
Reports  which  have  been  discussed  are  written  with  a 
wider  scope  than  the  mere  discussion  of  the  observations 


;64 


NATURE 


[Feb.  20,  1890 


made  during  the  voyage  of  the  Challenger.  Prof.  Tait's 
paper  has  indeed  little  connection  with  the  work  of  the 
Expedition.  Mr.  Buchan  and  Commander  Creak  have 
worked  up  an  immense  amount  of  matter  derived  from 
other  sources. 

The  records  of  the  Challenger  have  not  only  added 
facts  of  great  importance  to  our  stock  of  knowledge  ; 
but  have  been,  as  it  were,  nuclei  round  which  a  host  of  other 
observations  have  crystallized  into  orderly  arrangement. 
Each  one  of  the  authors  has  made  a  step  forward.  Prof. 
Tait  has  extended  the  range  of  pressure  over  which  com- 
pressibilities have  been  measured.  Mr.  Buchan  has 
attacked  the  diurnal  climatology  of  the  ocean.  Com- 
mander Creak  has  given  a  new  turn  to  our  ideas  on  the 
secular  change  of  terrestrial  magnetism.  It  is  only  to  be 
regretted  that  the  exclusive  use  of  British  systems  of 
measurement,  and  the  other  blemishes  to  which  we  have 
felt  compelled  to  refer,  give  a  certain  insular  appearance 
and  character  to  a  work  of  world-wide  interest. 

The  Report  on  the  Rock-Specimens  collected  on 
Oceanic  Islands,  by  Prof.  A.  Renard,  consists  of  180 
pages,  well  illustrated  by  woodcuts  and  seven  maps,  and 
constitutes  a  very  important  part  of  the  petrology  of  the 
Challenger  Expedition.  The  account  of  the  rocks  of  St. 
Paul's  from  the  pen  of  Prof.  Renard  has  already  appeared 
in  Vol.  II.  (Narrative),  Appendix  B,  of  the  Challenger 
Reports,  and  we  are  glad  to  learn  from  the  preface  to 
the  volume  now  before  us  that  the  "  Report  on  Deep- 
Sea  Deposits "  which  has  been  so  long  looked  for  by 
geologists,  is  to  be  issued  next  month. 

Mr.  Murray  is  to  be  congratulated  on  having  secured 
the  services  of  so  able  a  mineralogist  and  petrographer 
as  Prof.  Renard  to  describe  the  rocks  brought  home  by 
the  Expedition.  Most  of  these  descriptions  have  already 
appeared  in  the  Bulletin  of  the  Mtis'ee  Royal  (THistoire 
Naticrelle  de  Belgique ;  but  English  geologists  will  be 
glad  to  see  them  collected  together  and  published  in  their 
own  language,  and  in  a  convenient  form  for  reference. 

Prof.  Renard  explains  in  his  opening  remarks  the 
grounds  for  publishing  this  account  of  the  rock-specimens 
collected  on  the  oceanic  islands  by  the  officers  of  the 
Challenger  Expedition  : — 

"  Mr.  Murray  had  discovered  that  loose  volcanic 
materials  played  a  very  large  part  in  the  formation  of  the 
deposits  of  the  deep  sea,  and  it  was  considered  desirable 
to  institute  a  comparison  between  these  and  the  products 
of  the  same  origin  in  volcanic  islands  situated  in  or  on 
the  borders  of  the  great  ocean  basins." 

It  is  at  the  same  time  admitted,  by  the  editor  of  the 
volume,  that  Prof.  Renard's  lithological  and  mineralogical 
descriptions  must  be  regarded  rather  as  contributions  to 
the  geology  of  the  islands  visited,  than  as  supplying  full 
and  descriptive  discussions  of  the  subject. 

"  The  necessities  of  the  voyage,  bad  weather,  or  the 
difficulties  of  the  exploration,  prevented,  in  many  cases, 
the  naturalists  from  passing  more  than  an  hour  or  two  on 
shore  ;  they  were  thus  unable  to  give  any  detailed  account 
of  the  stratigraphical  relations,  and  the  collections  of 
hand-specimens  were  sometimes  limited  to  those  rocks 
situated  near  the  coast." 

In  the  case  of  Tenerife,  of  which  we  have  such  full 
descriptions  in  the  writings  of  Von  Fritsch  and  Reiss, 
and  of  Sauer  ;  in  that  of  the  Cape  de  Verde  Islands,  the 


rocks  of  which  have  been  carefully  studied  by  Dolter ; 
and  of  Fernando  Noronha,  which  has  been  surveyed  and 
its  rocks  admirably  described  by  Profs.  Branner  and 
Williams,  it  is  obvious  that  the  description  of  the  specimens 
placed  in  the  hands  of  Prof.  Renard  can  only  be  regarded 
as  supplementary  to  the  fuller  and  more  comprehensive 
accounts  of  the  geology  of  the  islands  which  we  already 
possess.  But  in  the  case  of  some  of  the  smaller  islands,. 
I  like  Tristan  da  Cunha,  Marion  Island,  and  Heard  Island 
I  the  notes  in  the  present  Report  constitute  almost  the  only 
I  materials  which  exist  for  judging  of  their  geological  con- 
stitution and  structure.  In  the  case  of  the  Island  of  St. 
Thomas,  in  the  West  Indies  ;  of  Kandavu,  in  Fiji ;  of  the 
volcano  of  Goonong  Api,  in  the  Banda  Islands  \  of  the 
volcano  of  Ternate,  and  of  several  islands  in  the  Philip- 
pine Group,  Prof.  Renard  has  taken  the  opportunity 
afforded  to  him  by  the  receipt  of  interesting  specimens 
casually  collected,  to  discuss  points  of  considerable 
mineralogical  and  geological  interest. 

Quite  apart  from  their  connection  with  certain  localities,, 
these  very  careful  notes  of  Prof.  Renard  on  peculiarities 
exhibited  by  rock-forming  minerals  are  of  much  value  to 
geologists  ;  and  so  also  are  the  series  of  analyses  of  these 
rock-specimens,  made,  evidently  with  great  care,  by  Dr. 
Klement. 

So  many  of  the  islands  visited  by  the  Challenger  were 
previously  touched  at  by  the  Beagle,  on  board  of  which 
Charles  Darwin  was  acting  as  naturalist,  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  avoid  comparing  the  work  before  us  with  that 
author's  classical  memoir,  "  Geological  Observations  on 
the  Volcanic  Islands,"  which  was  published  in  1844  and 
re-issued  in  1876.  In  spite  of  the  improvements  of  our 
petrographical  methods  during  the  half-century,  which 
has  witnessed  the  application  of  the  microscope  to  the 
study  of  rocks,  it  is  very  interesting  to  see  how  often 
observations  made  by  Darwin,  aided  by  that  great 
pioneer  in  crystal lographic  research.  Prof.  W.  H.  Miller 
of  Cambridge,  are  confirmed  by  the  painstaking  labours 
of  Prof.  Renard.  There  is,  perhaps,  some  danger,  at  the 
present  day,  that  the  facilities  afforded  for  the  micro- 
scopic study  of  rocks,  by  the  aid  of  transparent  sections^ 
should  lead  geologists  and  mineralogists  to  despise,  or 
to  regard  as  of  small  value,  the  observations  made  with- 
out such  aid.  To  those  who  entertain  such  an  idea,  it 
will  be  instructive  to  see  how  Darwin  and  Miller  by  the 
aid  of  pocket-lens,  knife-blade,  and  magnet,  were  often 
able  to  form  an  appreciation  of  the  mineralogical  constitu- 
tion of  rocks,  which  has  been  very  largely  confirmed  by 
the  application  of  the  more  refined  methods  of  the 
present  day. 

The  discussion  of  great  geological  problems,  which,  as 
treated  by  Darwin  in  1844,  contributed  so  largely  to  the 
interest  excited  by  his  book,  have  of  course  not  come 
within  the  scope  of  the  work  undertaken  by  Prof.  Renard. 
The  particular  varieties  of  volcanic  rocks  in  Ascension,- 
which  Darwin  found  to  illustrate  in  so  striking  a  manner 
the  origin  of  foliation  in  the  crystalline  schists,  do  not 
seem  to  have  been  among  those  collected  by  the  officers 
of  the  Challenger.  But  as  an  important  contribution  to 
micropetrography,  the  work  of  Prof.  Renard  is  of  the 
highest  value,  as  might  indeed  have  been  anticipated 
from  the  well-proved  skill  and  acumen  of  the  author  ia 
this  interesting  branch  of  scientific  research. 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


365 


THE  HUMAN  FOOT. 
The  Human  Foot :   its  Form  and  Structure,  Functions 
and  Clothitig.     By  Thos.  S.  Ellis.     (London  :  J.  and  A. 
Churchill,  1889.) 

THIS  book  is  an  endeavour  on  the  part  of  a  practical 
surgeon  to  explain  the  mechanical  construction  of 
the  human  foot,  and  from  this  basis  to  show  the  prin- 
ciples on  which  boots  and  shoes  ought  to  be  constructed. 
Although  written  in  a  popular  form,  and  intended  for  the 
instruction  of  the  public,  it  is  treated  in  a  scientific  spirit 
by  one  who  is  competent,  on  the  ground  of  anatomical 
knowledge,  to  discuss  the  subject.  Mr.  Ellis  was  led  to 
give  special  attention  to  the  mechanism  of  the  foot 
owing  to  one  of  his  feet  having  been  accidentally  injured  ; 
and  his  recovery  from  lameness  was  due  to  the  indepen- 
dent study  which  he  was  obliged  to  give  to  the  structure 
of  the  foot  in  relation  to  its  functions. 

The  earlier  pages  of  the  book  are  occupied  by  a  short 
but  clearly-written  description  of  the  form  of  the  foot, 
and  of  so  much  of  its  anatomy  as  is  needed  to  explain  its 
mechanism.  In  the  course  of  this  description  the  author 
points  out  that  the  two  feet  are  to  be  considered  together, 
not  as  if  they  were  two  independent  pedestals,  or  plinths, 
supporting  the  lower  limbs  and  body,  but  as  the  two 
halves  of  one  pedestal  or  plinth,  the  divisions  of  which 
are  separated  from  each  other.  He  recognizes  the  inner 
margin  of  the  foot  in  its  front  or  expanded  part  as  form- 
ing a  straight  line,  whilst  the  outer  margin  forms  a  bold 
curve,  and  acts  as  a  sort  of  buttress  to  the  main  structure 
of  the  foot.  The  inner  margin  also  is  elevated  to  form 
the  arch  of  the  instep.  He  refers  to  Prof.  Meyer's  well- 
known  line  continued  backwards  from  the  mid-line  of 
the  great  toe  through  a  central  point  of  the  heel  which 
follows  the  line  of  the  long  flexor  of  the  great  toe,  and 
states  that  this  line  corresponds  with  the  highest  part  of 
the  ridge  on  the  dorsum  or  upper  surface  of  the  foot, 
which  indicates  the  course  of  the  long  extensor  of  the 
great  toe. 

The  importance  of  the  great  toe  in  the  construction  of 
the  foot  is  dwelt  upon  by  Mr.  Ellis.  He  shows  that,  when 
the  foot  is  used  as  the  basis  from  which  the  body  is  to  be 
propelled  forwards  in  the  act  of  progression,  the  great  toe 
leaves  its  fellows  and  passes  towards  the  mesial  plane 
between  the  two  feet,  but  that  it  is  not  bent  in  so  doing. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  smaller  toes,  whilst  being  pressed 
against  the  ground,  become  bent,  and  the  phalangeal 
joints  are  lifted  upwards. 

The  relative  length  of  the  great  and  second  toes  is  also 
discussed.  As  is  well  known,  in  many  of  the  statues  of 
ancient  art  the  second  toe  is  modelled  somewhat  longer 
than  the  great  toe,  but  as  a  rule  in  nature  itself  the  great 
toe  is  the  longer.  Exceptions,  however,  occasionally 
occur.  The  writer  of  this  notice  has  now  before  him  the 
casts  of  two  well-formed  feet,  from  a  man  and  a  woman, 
in  both  of  which  the  second  toe  projects  beyond  the  great 
toe.  He  has  also  in  his  possession  casts  of  the  feet  of 
several  of  the  aborigines  of  Australia,  taken  under  the 
superintendence  of  Prof.  Anderson  Stuart,  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Sydney,  in  which  interesting  variations  in  the 
relative  length  of  these  toes  may  be  seen.  In  a  man  and 
one  woman  the  great  toe  is  longer  than  the  second  ;  in 
another  woman  the  second  toe  in  the  right  foot  is  longer 


than  the  first,  but  in  the  left  foot  the  opposite  is  the  case. 
In  an  Australian  boy,  aged  4,  in  the  right  foot  the  great 
toe  is  slightly  the  longer,  but  in  the  left  foot  the  second 
toe  has  the  advantage.  In  none  of  these  Australians  had 
the  feet  ever  worn  shoes,  so  that  the  variation  in  the 
length  of  these  toes  is  natural,  and  not  produced  by  arti- 
ficial means.  It  would  appear,  therefore — as  was  shown 
several  years  ago  by  Prof.  Ecker,  of  Freiburg,  and  by  a 
writer  in  NATURE,  to  be  the  case  in  the  hand  with  the 
ring  and  index  finger— that  variations  in  relative  length 
may  occur,  not  only  in  different  individuals,  but  in 
opposite  limbs  in  the  same  person. 

The  author  then  discusses  the  movements  at  the  joints 
of  the  foot  and  the  action  of  the  muscles  ;  more  especially 
when  the  heel  is  raised  and  the  foot  rests  on  tip-toe  as 
in  the  movements  of  progression.  He  regards  the  long 
flexor  of  the  hallux  as  exercising  a  bow-string  or  tie-rod 
influence,  bracing  up  the  arch  and  diminishing  the  dis- 
tance between  the  heel  and  the  great  toe.  Hence  the 
exercise  of  dancing  is  one  of  the  most  important  means 
of  promoting  and  maintaining  the  strength  of  the  foot.  As 
regards  the  act  of  walking,  Mr.  Ellis  contends  that  what 
he  calls  the  "four-square  position,"  in  which  the  inner 
borders  of  the  great  toes  are  retained  almost  parallel  to 
each  other,  is  that  which  is  most  conducive  to  steady  and 
continuous  progression,  for  the  joints  and  muscles  of  the 
foot  obtain  through  it  momentary  rest  in  the  intervals 
between  the  steps.  He  condemns  the  military  position, 
with  the  toes  turned  outwards,  both  in  standing  and 
walking,  as  much  more  fatiguing,  by  keeping  the  muscles 
and  joints  in  a  constant  strain.  The  condition  of 
"  flat-foot "  ought  never  to  arise  if  the  tie-rod  action  of 
the  long  flexor  muscles  of  the  toes  be  sufficiently  exercised 
by  frequent  springing  of  the  foot  to  tip-toe,  such  as  takes 
place  in  the  act  of  dancing. 

The  author  applies  the  anatomical  principles  which  he 
has  expounded  to  the  construction  of  stockings  and 
shoes.  He  holds  that  quite  as  much  mischief  is  done  to 
the  feet  by  wearing  ill-made  socks  as  badly-shaped  shoes. 
He  considers  that  a  stocking  with  a  separate  stall  for  the 
great  toe  is  always  desirable,  but  that  a  straight  inside 
line  is  imperative.  To  obtain  a  properly  fitting  boot  it  is 
necessary,  in  addition  to  the  measures  of  length  and  girth, 
to  have  the  contour  lines  of  the  foot,  and  to  obtain  these 
the  author  has  devised  a  foot-stand  or  pedistat,  a  de- 
scription and  figure  of  which  are  given  in  the  book.  From 
these  measures  a  last  can  be  made  which  conforms  to  the 
shape  of  the  foot  throughout  as  it  stands  on  a  level  surface. 

We  recommend  the  perusal  of  this  book  to  all  who  are 
interested  in  the  mechanism  of  the  foot,  and  in  obtaining 
for  it  well-fitting  socks  and  shoes  ;  and  we  do  so  with  the 
more  confidence  as  the  author  had  obviously  passed 
through  a  painful  experience  before  he  had  satisfied  him- 
self of  the  principles  which  ought  to  be  attended  to  in  the 
construction  of  its  clothing. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Das  australiscJte  Florenelevient  in   Europa.     Von    Ur. 

Constantin  Freiherr  von  Ettingshausen.    Pp.  10.   Tab. 

I.     (Graz  :  Leuschner  and  Lubensky,  1890.) 
This  is  a  defence  of  the  identification  of  fossil  plants  from 
the   Tertiary  beds  of  Europe,  chiefly  from  Austria   and 


366 


NATURE 


[Feb.  20,  1890 


Hungary,  with  existing  Australian  genera.  Baron  Ettings- 
hausen  himself  is  largely  responsible  for  these  identifica- 
tions, which  have  been  questioned  "  by  certain  critics 
insufficiently  acquainted  with  the  subject."  He  claims  that 
he  was  supported  in  his  views  by  such  eminent  palaeontolo- 
gists as  Franz  Unger  and  Oswald  Heer.  It  is  now  some 
years  since  Unger  published  his  sensational  "  Neuholland 
in  Europa."  In  this  little  work  almost  every  one  of  a  set 
of  Eocene  fossil  plants  is  identified  with  some  essentially 
Australian  genus,  and  often,  we  should  add,  on  the  very 
slenderest  of  material.  The  late  Mr.  G.  Bentham,  who, 
as  is  well  known,  handled  and  described  every  Australian 
plant  of  which  specimens  had  been  collected  up  to  his 
time,  disputed  the  correctness  of  the  identifications,  and 
endeavoured  to  prove  that  the  remains  might  well  be  those 
of  genera  still  found  in  the  northern  hemisphere ;  yet 
Baron  Ettingshausen  gives  us  to  understand  that  Mr. 
Bentham  confirmed  his  determination  of  a  European 
fossil  leaf  as  belonging  to  the  genus  Dryatidra. 

Quite  recently  the  Marquis  de  Saporta  has  attacked 
Baron  Ettingshausen's  position,  and  the  present  pamphlet 
may  be  regarded  as  a  reply.  The  author  concludes 
with  the  statement  that,  to  prevent  misunderstanding,  he 
wishes  it  to  be  known  that  any  objections  or  criticisms 
will  meet  with  no  response  from  him,  because  he  is  con- 
vinced of  the  accuracy  of  his  "  facts,"  and  his  time  is  too 
valuable  to  enter  upon  superfluous  discussion.  Without 
discussing  his  "  facts ''  one  by  one,  and  without  actually 
denying  their  accuracy,  we  may  say  that  the  illustrations 
given  are  by  no  means  convincing,  as  most  botanists  who 
have  worked  many  years  in  herbaria  on  plants  from  all 
parts  of  the  world,  we  believe,  will  agree.  Few  persons 
probably  have  paid  so  much  attention  to  the  venation 
and  forms  of  leaves  as  Baron  Ettingshausen,  yet  we  find 
none  of  his  determinations  absolutely  beyond  doubt.  So 
far  as  we  are  aware,  not  a  single  fruit  of  Eucalyptus  or  of 
the  assumed/'r^'/^af^^  has  been  discovered  in  the  European 
Tertiary  formations.  As  to  his  leaves  of  Eucalyptus,  they 
might  be  matched  in  the  genus  Eugenia,  and  we  see  no 
reason  why  any  of  the  others  are  necessarily  remains  of 
species  of  Australian  genera.  W.  B.  H. 

Is  the  Copernican  Systet/i  of  Astronomy   True  ?     By  W. 

S.    Cassedy.      (Standard   Publishing  Co.,  Kittanning, 

Pa.,  1888.) 
An  astronomer  nowadays  would  find  it  a  hard  task  to 
bring  forth  any  facts  which  would  throw  doubt  upon  the 
truth  of  the  Copernican  theory,  but  it  appears  that  there 
are  still  people  amongst  us  who  are  bold  enough  to  attack 
the  strongholds  of  astronomy.  Such  attempts  are  always 
hopeless  failures,  and  the  one  under  notice  is  no  exception. 
It  is,  indeed,  doubtful  whether  the  author  knows  what  is 
meant  by  the  Copernican  system,  for  he  goes  so  far  as  to 
suggest  that  the  known  diameter  of  the  earth's  orbit 
(assuming  that  it  exists)  should  be  used  as  a  base-line  for 
determining  the  distance  of  the  sun  !  He  also  states  that 
he  has  "  found  by  experiment "  that  similar  right-angled 
triangles  have  sides  proportionate  in  length,  though  it  is 
only  fair  to  say  that  he  is  aware  of  the  existence  of  the 
first  book  of  Euclid,  if  not  of  the  sixth. 

We  have  already  said  enough  to  show  that  the  book 
need  not  be  considered  seriously  ;  but  we  cannot  refrain 
from  stating  that  the  author,  by  sighting  the  sun  along 
straight-edges  at  the  equinoxes,  has  found  that  "  the 
distance  of  the  sun  from  the  surface  of  the  earth,  at 
40°  N.,  is  one  million  miles  (p.  49)."  This  result  is  about 
as  near  the  mark  as  could  be  expected  from  the  method 
employed. 

Naturalistic  Photography.     By    P.   H.    Emerson,   B.A., 

M.B.     (London  :  Sampson  Low,  Marston,  Searle,  and 

Rivington,  1890.) 

The  quick  call  for  a  second  edition  of  this  work  indicates 

the  approval  with  which  it  has  been  received,  and  we  may 


safely  say  there  is  not  a  better  or  more  instructive  book 
on  the  art  principles  of  photography  than  the  one  before 
us.  Dr.  Emerson  is  a  photographer  of  the  first  rank,  his 
artistic  compositions  are  everywhere  admired,  and  the 
energetic  manner  with  which  many  of  the  old  and  cher- 
ished ideas  of  the  ordinary  photographer  are  attacked 
and  others  established  makes  it  very  manifest  that  he 
only  writes  what  he  knows  to  be  true.  The  hterary  style 
of  the  book  is  excellent,  and  the  exposition  has  the 
merit  of  being  strikingly  original  ;  it  should,  therefore, 
be  studied  by  every  photographer,  both  amateur  and 
professional,  who  desires  to  excel  in  his  art. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

\The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Natxjre, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

Acquired  Characters  and  Congenital  Variation. 

Beyond  this  letter  I  cannot  pursue  my  interpolated  adversary,. 
Mr.  Dyer. 

The  syllogisms  which  he  attributes  to  me  are  entirely  his 
own.  I  willingly  admit,  therefore,  that  they  are  as  ingeniously 
bad  as  they  can  well  be. 

T  will  now  state  shortly  what  my  position  was,  and  is  :  — 

(i)  The  assumed  antithesis  between  "acquired  characters" 
and  "congenital  variation  "  has  arisen  out  of  the  cult  of  Darwin 
as  opposed  to  Lamarck. 

(2)  The  theory  of  Lamarck  fails,  in  my  opinion,  as  much  as 
the  theory  of  Darwin,  to  give  any  adequate  or  satisfying  explana- 
tion either  of  the  genesis,  or  of  the  development,  of  organic 
forms. 

(3)  But  the  theory  of  Lamarck  is  more  philosophical  than  the 
theory  of  Darwin,  in  so  far  as  it  seeks  for,  and  specifies,  a 
definite  natural  cause  for  the  phenomena  of  variation. 

(4)  The  theory  of  Darwin  is  essentially  unphiiosophical  in  sa 
far  as  it  ascribes  these  phenomena  to  pure  accident,  or  fortuity. 

(5)  That  Darwin  himself,  at  one  time,  if  not  always,  admitted 
this  idea  of  fortuity  to  be  a  mere  provisional  resort  under  the 
difficulties  of  ignorance. 

(6)  That  the  later  worshippers  of  Darwin  depart,  in  this 
respect,  from  their  master,  and  making  the  weakest  part  of  his 
system  the  special  object  of  their  worship,  have  set  up  Fortuity 
as  their  idol. 

(7)  That  it  is  under  the  influence  of  this  superstition  that  they 
now  seek  to  deny  altogether  that  acquired  characters  can  become 
congenital. 

(8)  That  this  denial  is  against  the  most  familiar  experience  of 
Nature,  and  especially  of  artificial  selection,  which  is  the  ante- 
type  and  foundation  of  the  whole  theory  of  evolution. 

(9)  That  in  all  domestic  animals,  and  especially  in  dogs,  we 
have  constant  proof  that  many  acquired  characters  may  become 
congenital. 

(10)  That  it  is  no  answer  to  this  argument  to  demand  proof 
that  the  babies  of  a  blacksmith  are  ever  born  with  the  abnormal 

j  arm-muscle  of  their  papa. 

( 1 1 )  That  in  order  to  avoid  and  evade  the  force  of  innumerable 
facts  proving  that  many  acquired  characters  may,  and  do,  become 
hereditary,  iortuitists  have  invented  a  new  verbal  definition  of 
what  they  mean  by  "acquired." 

(12)  That  this  definition  is  full  of  ambiguities  and  assumptions, 
concealed  under  plausible  words,  but  the  object  of  which  is  ta 
limit  the  meaning  of  "acquired  characters"  to  gross,  visible, 
palpable  changes  affecting  single  individuals,  and  which  the 
analogies  of  Nature  do  not  lead  us  to  expect  or  to  suppose  can 
be  repealed  in  a  single  generation,  even  if  a  tendency  to  their 
development  is  really  implanted  in  the  race. 

(13)  That,  still  farther  to  render  impossible  the  proof  they 
demand,  our  fortuitists  affix  to  their  definition  of  the  word 
"  acquired,"  conditions  which  beg  the  whole  question  in  dis- 
pute. Not  only  must  the  new  characters  be  gross,  palpable, 
visible — cases  of  "  hypertrophy,"  of  "  extension,"  or  of  "  thick- 
ening,"— but  also  they  must  be  "obviously  due  to  the  direct 
physical  action  of  the  environment  on  the  body  of  the  indi- 
vidual."    This  is  a  condition  which  is  irrational.     It  excludes. 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


;67 


all  those  fine,  invisible  "molecular"  changes,  through  which 
Nature  habitually  works,  and  it  ascribes  to  mere  outward  and 
mechanical  agencies,  effects  which,  alone,  we  have  no  reason  to 
suppose  they  ever  can  produce. 

On  the  question  of  "prophetic  germs,"  Mr.  Dyer  challenged 
me  to  produce  a  single  case  of  organs  useless  now,  but  in  course  of 
preparation  for  future  use.  I  replied  by  referring  him  to  this 
phenomenon  as  universal  throughout  Nature  in  the  life-history 
of  every  individual  organism  ;  and  I  also  referred  him  to  the 
well-known  idea  of  Darwinian  embryology  which  establishes  a 
close  analogy  between  the  laws  governing  the  development  of 
the  embryo,  and  the  whole  past  development  of  organic  life. 

Mr.  Dyer  replies  that  I  ought  to  have  explained  this  sooner — 
when  challenged  to  do  so  by  Prof.  Ray  Lankester — an  observa- 
tion which  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  merits  of  the  question. 
The  truth  is,  I  wished  to  close  my  dispute  with  that  distin- 
guished Professor,  as  I  now  desire  to  close  it  with  Mr.  Dyer, 
and  I  was  satisfied  with  an  indirect  admission  that,  as  regards 
every  individual  organism,  my  assertion  could  not  be  contra- 
dicted. What  this  involves,  I  left,  and  now  leave  again,  as 
unexhausted  as  it  is  indeed  inexhaustible. 

In  conclusion,  I  must  observe  upon  the  use  Mr.  Dyer  makes 
of  the  phrase  '•^  a  priori  argument,"  which  he  apparently  uses 
not  only  for  all  deductive  argument,  but  for  all  analytical  reason- 
ing. When  he  says  he  "  has  not  an  a  priori  mind,"  he  really 
means  that  he  is  indisposed  to  all  analysis.  This  is  a  very  com- 
mon attitude  even  with  many  able  and  distinguished  men — espe- 
cially when  they  are  devoted  to  a  system,  and  are  the  disciples 
of  some  prophet,  whose  words  and  phrases  they  gulp  and  swal- 
low whole.  It  is  an  attitude  which  has  its  use  ;  but  it  is  not 
one  to  boast  of.  Mr.  Dyer's  declaration  that  "  the  questions  at 
issue  with  regard  to  evolution  are  now,  I  believe,  thoroughly 
understood  by  biologists  "  is  the  most  astonishing  utterance  I  have 
ever  heard  or  read  coming  from  a  scientific  man.  Discussion 
with  him  is  useless.  He  and  his  friends  know  all  about  it. 
How  life  began,  and  how  it  grew  from  more  to  more — the  whole 
secret  of  creation — "an  open  scroll,  before  them  lies."  I  am 
happy  to  think  that  I  am  not  the  only  searcher — by  many 
thousands — whose  pens  Mr.  Dyer  must  intervene  to  stop. 
There  is  a  great  army  of  us  who  are  conscious  above  all  things 
of  the  ignorance  of  man.  Argyll. 

Kinellan,  Murrayfield,  N.B. 


In  the  number  for  January  i6  (p.  247)  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer  ob- 
serves that  "there  are  many  readers  of  Nature  who,  while 
taking  a  general  interest  in  the  problems  raised  by  Darwinism, 
have  not  followed  all  that  has  been  written  about  it."  For  the 
benefit  of  such  persons  he  gives  an  interesting  explanation  of 
Darwin's  views  on  several  important  points. 

I  have  not  read  all  that  has  been  written,  but  all,  I  think,  that 
has  ever  appeared  in  the  pages  of  NA'ruRE,  and  with  the  result 
that  I  am  more  and  more  convinced  of  the  inadequacy  of  the 
Darwinian  theory  to  account  for  the  origin  of  species.  Natural 
selection  is  a  vera  causa,  but  of  very  limited  operation.  The 
theory  of  sexual  selection  but  partly  removes  one  serious  difficulty 
not  of  the  first  magnitude. 

I  find  Darwinians — not  Darwin — very  ready  to  insinuate  or 
assert  that  an  unwillingness  to  adopt  their  views,  on  the  part  of 
persons  who  believe  in  a  supernatural  revelation,  arises  from 
theological  prejudice,  which  hinders  them  from  listening  to  the 
voice  of  reason.  I  think  there  is  some  prejudice  on  both  sides. 
For  myself,  fully  believing  in  a  Supreme  Designer,  I  am  per- 
fectly and  most  fearlessly  willing  that  "  the  attempt  at  mechanical 
explanation"  should  be  carried  as  far  as  possible,  well  knowing 
that  "a  final  universal  cause"  cannot  possibly  be  disproved  or 
reasonably  denied.  And  Darwinism  is  committed  to  no  such 
denial. 

We  have  our  choice  between  two  alternatives.  Life  on 
our  globe  had  a  beginning ;  and  its  cause  was  certainly 
not  mechanical  or  natural, — for  reasons  not  theological,  but 
strictly  scientific,  in  the  technical  sense  of  the  word.  For, 
as  the  laws  of  Nature  operate  uniformly,  if  life  had  ever  com- 
menced spontaneously,  it  must  of  natural  necessity  do  so  again 
and  again,  since  it  would  be  most  absurd  to  suppose  that  only 
•during  some  previous  state  of  the  earth's  surface  did  matter  exist 
in  such  a  condition  as  to  be  capable  of  conversion  into  living 
things.  If  life  had  ever  arisen  mechanically,  it  would  require  a 
miracle  to  prevent  repetitions  of  the  process. 

We  have,  then,  to  take   our  choice  between  supposing  with 


Darwinians  that  the  life-producing  power  acted  once  for  all,  and 
supposing  that  it  has  acted  repeatedly  and  continuously,  in  more 
ways  than  one.  I  see  no  theological,  and,  let  me  say,  no  Scrip- 
tural, objection  to  either.  Let  it  be  believed  willingly,  if  good 
reasons  can  be  given,  that  all  life  began  with  a  single  germ 
which  could  not  only  produce  its  like — which  is  wonderful 
enough — but  which  even  contained  in  it?elf  such  amazing 
potentialities  that  it  could  become,  and  has  become,  the  parent 
of  every  form  of  life,  sentient  or  non-sentient,  that  has  ever 
appeared  on  our  globe. 

To  me  this  seems  scientifically  improbable.  For  why  should 
the  power,  whether  acting  intelligently,  or,  if  anyone  prefers  it. 
without  intelligence,  create  one  germ  only  ?  Why  not  millions  ? 
And  if  of  one  kind,  why  not  of  many  ?  And  if  single  organisms, 
why  not  organisms  connected  with  one  another,  even  in  highly 
complex  structures  ?  And  why  act  once  only  ?  Why  not  start 
non-sentient  life  at  one  time,  sentient  at  another  ?  For  do  not 
sentient  things  need  a  separate  germ?  I  take  leave  to  think  so. 
But  be  this  as  it  may,  they  are  as  much  in  advance  of  the  non- 
sentient,  however  much  alike  those  germs  we  know  of  may 
appear  to  be,  as  the  non-sentient  are  of  inanimate  matter. 

The  other  alternative  supposition  is  that  the  life-producing 
power,  instead  of  acting  once  only,  and  then  subsiding  into  its 
primaeval  torpor,  continues  to  act.  That,  as  it  once  acted  upon 
inanimate  matter,  not  robbing  it  of  anything,  but  rather,  while 
availing  itself  of  its  properties,  conferring  upon  it  new  powers, 
so  it  has  acted  since  upon  living  things,  ever  producing  out  of 
the  old  new  and  higher  forms  of  life  ;  availing  itself  of  all 
existing  faculties  of  living  things,  but  while  allowing  them  to 
achieve  all  that  they  can,  still  moulding  fresh  forms,  and  con- 
ferring higher  faculties.  To  suppose  this,  is  only  to  suppose 
that  the  action  of  the  life-producing  power,  since  life  began,  has 
been  analogous  to  what  we  know  was  its  action  in  producing 
life.  It  is  hardly  to  be  supposed  that  the  production  of  one 
marvellous  germ  has  exhausted  all  its  energy. 

Yet,  if  the  Darwinian  theory  can  enable  us  to  dispense  with 
the  aid  of  this  power,  let  it  do  so.     Let  reason  prevail. 

Darwinians  offer,  as  an  adequate  explanation  of  the  formation 
of  new  species  from  the  older,  that  this  development  comes 
about  simply  through  natural  selection — through  the  survival  of 
the  fittest  of  favourable  variations. 

"  The  origin  of  any  species,"  says  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer,  "lies 
firstly  in  the  occurrence,  and  secondly  in  the  selection  and 
preservation,  of  a  particular  variation."  But  surely  a  particular 
variation  alone — that  is,  such  as  can  be  brought  about,  as  we 
know  from  experience,  in  a  single  generation — does  not  suffi- 
ciently differentiate  one  species  from  another.  Short-horned 
cattle,  for  instance,  are  not  a  new  species,  nor  would  they  deserve 
to  be  so  termed  if  it  should  eventually  happen  that  all  other 
varieties  of  horned  cattle  became  extinct.  In  the  great  majority 
of  cases,  at  all  events,  there  must  be  more  than  one  particular 
variation,  before  we  can  recognize  a  specific  difference.  Species 
have  become  what  they  are  by  the  combination,  in  one  organism, 
of  many  particular  variations,  each  well  suited  to  the  rest.  No 
particular  variation  could  make  of  another  ruminant  a  giraffe. 
What  we  want,  and  what  seems  to  be  wanting  in  the  Darwinian 
theory,  is  a  satisfactory  hypothesis  to  explain  the  concurrence 
of  many  particular  variations,  by  the  co-existence  of  which  in 
one  structure  the  new  species  is  constituted.  Variations,  or 
"fluctuations,"  as  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer  has  happily  termed 
them,  will  not  account  for  this.  Between  some  species  there 
may  be  merely  slight  and  single  differences ;  but  Nature  can 
show  us  much  more  than  this.  We  often  find  a  complicated 
apparatus  formed  by  the  concurrence  in  one  individual  of  many 
particulars  of  structure  combining  to  produce  an  effect  wholly 
peculiar. 

Take  the  following  instance,  or  rather  group  of  instances. 
There  are  venomous  serpents,  of  many  species  and  in  many 
lands,  which  differ  most  widely  from  the  non-venomous  kinds, 
from  which,  or  from  the  ancestors  of  which,  they  are  generally 
believed  to  have  been  derived.  In  these  we  find,  to  begin  with, 
teeth  which  have  undergone  strange  modifications.  They  are 
needle-like  in  shape.  They  are  not  fixed  in  the  jaw.  They 
occupy  a  very  prominent  position.  They  have  minute  perfora- 
tions, terminating  near,  but  not  precisely  at,  the  point.  They 
have  muscles  by  which  they  may  be  recurved,  so  that  their 
points  may  be  directed  towards  the  throat.  They  have  hollows 
in  which  to  lie.  They  have  muscles  by  which,  on  occasions, 
they  may  be  projected  beyond  the  mouth.  Besides  all  this 
poison-secreting  glands,  and  poison-bags,  and  channels  of  com- 


368 


NATURE 


4i 


[Fed.  20,  1890 


munication  with  the  perforations  in  the  teeth.  Further  still,  a 
special  instinct  leading  the  snake  to  make  use  of  this  wonderful 
weapon  of  offence,  and  suitable  nerves  to  i-egulate  its  compli- 
cated action. 

Now,  unless  all  these  numerous  variations— and  they  might  fairly 
be  multiplied  by  subdivision — had  in  the  first  instance  appeared 
simultaneously  in  one  individual,  and  unless  all  had  been  duly 
connected,  the  whole  apparatus  would  have  been  useless,  and 
there  would  have  been  nothing  of  which  natural  selection  could 
avail  itself.  Useful  intermediate  forms  there  can  be  none.  A 
rifle  is  a  more  formidable  weapon  than  a  lance  or  dart,  but  of 
what  use  would  be  a  thing  half-way  between  the  two  ?  The 
venom-discharging  apparatus  has  in  it  no  part  which  could 
possibly  be  dispensed  with. 

To  give  one  more  instance.  The  tongue  of  the  woodpecker  is 
moved  forwards  in  a  singular  way  ;  not  simply,  as  usual,  by  a 
muscle  and  sinew  in  front  of  the  base  of  the  tongue,  but  by  a 
sinew  terminating  in  a  loop,  through  which  passes  another  sinew 
from  behind  the  tongue  which,  doubling  through  the  loop,  is 
attached  to  the  base  of  the  tongue.  By  this  means,  when  the 
muscle  is  contracted,  the  tongue  is  drawn  forward  with  a  double 
velocity,  which  is  to  this  bird  specially  useful.  Now,  it  is  im- 
possible for  any  ingenuity  to  devise  an  action  intermediate 
between  this  and  the  usual  simple  pull  in  respect  of  utility  or 
complexity.  But  there  is  much  more  here  than  "a  particular 
variation."  The  first  woodpecker  that  possessed  this  structure 
must  have  had  it  in  complete  order,  for  otherwise  the  tongue 
would  not  move  at  all.  In  that  woodpecker  it  must  have  com- 
menced to  exist  in  a  rudimentary  form  before  birth,  in  a  germ 
possessing  novel  powers. 

And  here  I  must  ask,  How  is  it  that  anyone  questions  the  Duke 
of  Argyll's  statement  that  "all  organs  do  actually  pass  through 
rudimentary  stages  in  which  actual  use  is  impossible  "  ?  Is  it  not 
precisely  this  which  is  implied  in  the  Darwinian  statement  that 
"  from  the  variable  constitution  of  the  ovum  probably  arises  the 
varying  structure  of  the  organism  developed  from  it  "  ?  What 
was  afterwards  developed  was  at  first  rudimentary,  and  useless. 
This  is  equally  true  of  the  whole  organism — say  of  the  serpent, 
or  of  the  bird — and  of  the  entirely  novel  and  complicated  appa- 
ratus found  in  them. 

To  call  the  apparatus  in  either  serpent  or  bird  ' '  a  particular 
variation  "  would  be  to  give  up  the  whole  case  for  Darwinism. 
A  wonderful  combiitation  of  many  particular  variations  has  to 
be  accounted  for  ;  and,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  Darwinism  utterly 
fails  to  account  for  it.  There  are  thousands  of  cases  presenting 
the  same  difficulty. 

There  are  simpler  cases  of  specific  change,  in  which  the  con- 
currence, the  simultaneous  appearance,  of  many  slight  and  par- 
ticular variations  is  not  indispensable,  but  only  their  succession 
in  due  order  in  the  course  of  many  generations.  Here,  there  is 
some  room  for  the  theory.  Thus  perhaps,  possibly,  we  might 
get  a  giraffe.  But  I  prefer  a  theoiy  which,  if  true  at  all, 
accounts  as  readily  for  the  most  complicated  apparatus  as  for 
the  simplest  forms  oP  living  things.  R.  Courtenay. 

Hotel  Faraglioni,  Capri,  January  31. 


Probably  many  readers  of  the  recent  discussion  on  the 
transmission  of  acquired  characters  will  regret  that  a  moie 
definite  conclusion  has  not  been  arrived  at.  This  is  probably 
due  to  the  fact  that  the  premises  now  in  our  possession  do  not 
admit  of  a  definite  answer  yet  being  given.  Those  who  assume 
that  there  is  no  evidence  in  favour  of  the  transmission  of  acquired 
characters  are  mostly,  I  presume,  supporters  of  "  the  continuity 
of  the  germ-plasm  "  theory  of  Weismann.  Almost  everyone 
admits  that  individuals  may  and  do  acquire  certain  characters 
due  to  change  in  environment,  use,  disuse,  &c. ;  but  while  many 
maintain  that  these  characters  are  transmitted  to  offspring,  others 
deny  that  such  is  the  case,  or  think  that  the  evidence  is  in- 
sufficient. In  supporting  "the  continuity  of  the  germ-plasm" 
theory  it  is  impossible  to  suppose  that  the  germ-plasm  is  con- 
tinued from  one  generation  to  another  like  a  portion  of  entailed 
property.  For  each  individual  gives  off  thousands  of  ova  or 
spermatozoa  as  the.  case  may  be,  only  a  very  few  of  which  go  to 
produce  new  individuals  ;  therefore  there  is  a  dissipation  of 
"germ-plasm," — that  is  to  say,  in  the  germinal  cells  of  mam- 
mals of  to-day  there  cannot  be  any  of  the  identical  "ger.n- 
plasm"  which  existed  in  their  remote  invertebrate  ancestors 
ages  ago.  For  all  this  dissipation  there  must  be  some  construe, 
live  process,  otherwise  the  germ-plasm  would  come  to  an  end. 


From  whence  is  derived  this  constructive  material  ?  Clearly 
from  the  exterior,  for  a  fertilized  ovum  obtains  material  from 
without  to  admit  of  growth  and  elaboration.  The  constructive 
material,  then,  which  the  "  germ-plasm  "  obtains — to  admit  of 
its  liberal  dissemination  each  generation — is  derived  from  the 
external  world,  via  the  organism  with  which  it  is  incorporated, 
or  indeed  of  which  it  forms  a  part.  Seeing,  then,  that  the- 
organism — from  which  this  germinal  matter  is  derived — can 
acquire  characters — that  is,  undergo  certain  definite  changes  in 
response  to  altered  conditions — then  it  seems  reasonable  to 
suppose  that  that  part  of  it  which  ultimately  finds  its  way  to  the 
germ-cells,  is  also  modified  during  its  transmission,  and  will- 
therefore  have  more  or  less  effect  upon  the  forthcoming  genera- 
tion. But  how  much  variation  is  due  to  the  above  cause,  and 
how  much  to  the  almost  infinitely  various  possible  combinations 
of  the  two  unlike  germinal  elements,  it  is  impossible  to  say. 

J.  COWPER. 

Easy  Lecture  Experiment  in  Electric  Resonance. 

An  experiment,  exhibited  by  me  in  its  early  stages  at  the 
Royal  Institution  a  year  ago,  and  since  shown  here  in  various 
forms,  on  the  overflow  of  one  Leyden  jar  by  the  impulses  accu- 
mulated from  a  similar  jar  discharging  in  its  neighbourhood,  is 
so  simple  an  illustration  of  electric  resonance,  and  so  easily 
repeated  by  anyone,  that  I  write  todescribe  it. 

Two  similar  Leyden  jars  are  joined  up  to  similar  fairly  large 
loops  of  wire,  one  of  the  circuits  having  a  spark-gap  with  knobs 
included,  the  other  being  completely  metallic,  but  of  an  adjust- 
able length. 

The  jar  of  this  latter  circuit  has  also  a  strip  of  tinfoil  pasted 
over  its  lip  so  as  to  provide  an  overflow  path  complete  with  the 
exception  of  an  air-chink,  c.  It  is  important  that  this  overflow 
path  be  practically  devoid  of  self-induction.  A  jar  already 
perforated  could  be  well  utilized  for  the  purpose. 

Then  if  the  two  circuits  face  each  other  at  a  reasonable  distance, 
and  if  the  slider,  s,  is  properly  adjusted,  every  discharge  of  A 
causes  r.  to  overflow.  A  slight  shift  of  the  slider  puts  them  out 
of  tune. 


Instead  of  thus  adjusting  by  variable  Felf-induction,  my  assist- 
ant, Mr.  Robinson,  has  made  a  slight  modification  by  using  a 
condenser  of  variable  capacity,  consisting  of  two  glass  tubes 
coated  with  tinfoil,  one  sliding  into  the  other,  and  joined  by  a 
flexible  loop  of  wire ;  an  easy  overflow  from  one  coat  to  the 
other  being  likewise  provided.  On  making  this  loop  face  the 
discharging  circuit  of  an  ordinary  Voss  machine  with  customary 
small  jars  in  situ,  bright  sparks  at  the  overflow  gap  occur  when- 
ever the  common  machine  sparks  are  taken,  provided  the  sliding 
condenser  be  adjusted  to  the  right  capacity  by  trial. 

There  is  little  or  no  advantage  in  using  long  primary  sparks  ; 
the  vibrations  are  steadier  and  more  definite  with  short  ones. 
It  is  needless  to  point  out  that  the  2  jars  constitute  respectively 
a  Hertz  oscillator  and  receiver,  but  fair  precision  of  timing  is 
more  needed  with  these  large  capacities  than  with  mere  spheres 
or  discs,  because  the  radiation  lasts  longer  and  there  are  more 
impulses  to  accumulate.  Hence  actual  resonance  as  distinguished 
from  the  effect  of  a  violent  solitary  wave  is  better  marked. 
Moreover,  the  sparks  are  bright  enough  to  be  easily  seen  by  a 
large  audience.  Oliver  J.  Lodge. 

University  College,  Liverpool. 


African  Monkeys  in  the  West  Indies. 

"NViTK  reference  to  the  note  in  Nature  of  February  13  (p. 
349),  on  the  occurrence  of  an  Old- World  monkey  in  Barbados,. 
1  may  point  out  that  the  same  West  African  monkey  {Cercopi- 
thecus  callitriclms)  has  also  been  introduced  and  is  now  found 
wild  in  St.  Kitts  (cf.  Sclater,  P.Z.S.,  i866,  p.  79).     It  likewise 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


369 


occurs  in  Nevis,  whence  the  Zoological  Society  received  living 
specimens  (presented  by  Mr.  Graham  Briggs)  in  1870. 

The  only  West  Indian  island  in  which  Quadrumana  of  the 
American  type  occurs  is  Trinidad,  which  was,  doubtless, 
formerly  part  of  the  mainland  of  South  America. 

3  Hanover  Square,  W.,  February  17.  P.  L,  Sclater. 


Galls. 


I  HAD  not  intended  to  take  any  further  part  in  this  corre- 
spondence ;  but  the  interesting  suggestion  which  has  now  been 
made  upon  the  subject  by  Mr.  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell  (Nature,  Feb. 
13,  p.  344)  induces  me  to  withdraw  the  sentences  that  he  quotes 
from  my  previous  letters,  to  the  effect  that  it  seems  impossible 
to  imagine  any  way  in  which  galls  can  be  attributed  to  natural 
selection  acting  on  the  plants  directly.  In  my  own  consideration 
of  the  matter  this  seemed  "  obvious,"  and  therefore  my  motive 
in  taking  up  the  difficulty  as  presented  by  Mr.  Mivart  was  that 
of  "  asking  whether  anybody  else  had  a  better  explanation  to 
offer"  than  the  one  which  my  letter  suggested — viz.  "that 
natural  selection  may  operate  on  the  plants  indirectly  through 
the  insects,"  by  always  selecting  those  insects  the  character  of 
whose  secretions  is  such  as  will  best  cause  the  plants  to  grow 
the  particular  kind  of  morphological  abnormality  which  the 
larvae  require.  Mr.  Cockerell,  however,  has  now  furnished  what 
seems  to  me  an  extremely  plausible  hypothesis,  showing  that 
there  is  a  way  in  which  it  is  quite  conceivable  that  the  growth 
of  galls  may  be  an  actual  benefit  to  the  plants,  and  therefore 
that  natural  selection  may  act  directly  on  the  plants  themselves 
in  evolving  these  sometimes  highly  specialized  structures  for  the 
use  of  their  parasites.  Mr.  Cockerell  informs  me  in  a  private 
communication  that  he  has  been  verifying  this  hypothesis  by  ob- 
servations in  detail  ;  but  whether  or  not  he  will  be  able  to 
establish  it,  I  think  at  any  rate  he  has  done  good  service  in  thus 
suggesting  another  possibility. 

On  the  other  hand,  I  cannot  see  that  Mr.  Ainslie  Hollis  has 
helped  us  at  all  (Nature,  January  23,  p.  272).  For  he  merely 
enunciates  the  truism  that  trees  which  were  not  endowed  with 
sufficient  "developmental  vigour"  adequately  to  resist  the 
attacks  of  gall-making  insects  "  would  doubtless  have  long  ago 
succumbed  in  a  struggle  for  existence."  And  this  truism  he 
appears  to  suppose  furnishes  an  explanation  of  how  "  natural 
selection,  operating  in  the  ordinary  manner,"  has  produced  galls 
for  the  exclusive  benefit  of  the  insects.  But  it  is  obvious  that 
the  more  detrimental  the  growth  of  galls  has  proved  to  trees, 
the  less  reason  there  must  have  been  for  natural  selection, 
"operating  in  the  ordinary  manner,"  to  have  developed  these 
often  highly  specialized  structures  for  the  benefit  of  parasites. 

London,  February  13.  George  J.  Romanes. 

The  Supposed  Earthquakes  at  Chelmsford  on 
January  7. 

Nature  for  January  16  (p.  256)  reprints  from  the  Essex 
County  Chronicle  a  short  account  of  two  supposed  earthquake- 
shocks  felt  at  and  near  Chelmsford  on  January  7,  at  12.30  and 
1.25  p.m.  Being  engaged  in  the  study  of  British  earthquakes,  I 
made  inquiries  in  the  district  referred  to,  and  the  result  of  these 
is  to  show  that  the  shocks  were  almost  certainly  due  to  the  firing 
of  unusually  heavy  guns  at  Woolwich.  It  may  be  worth  while 
to  state  the  evidence  for  this  conclusion  somewhat  fully,  as  it 
will  be  difficult  to  obtain  it  in  after  years. 

(i)  I  applied  to  the  authorities  at  Woolwich  and  Shoeburyness 
as  to  the  nature  of  the  firing  on  January  7.  At  the  latter  place, 
the  only  practice  was  from  9-inch  and  lO-inch  guns,  the  maximum 
charge  used  was  70  pounds  of  powder,  and  therefore  not 
capable  of  producing  the  shocks  felt  at  Chelmsford.  At  Wool- 
wich, however,  the  no-ton  gun,  *^  the  heaviest  in  H.  M.  service,''' 
was  fired  at  the  times  mentioned. 

(2)  Form  of  the  Disturbed  Area, — The  only  accounts  I  have  as 
yet  received  are  from  the  following  places :  Great  Warley 
(near  Romford),  Brentwood,  Epping,  Ingatestone,  on  the  road 
between  Ongar  and  Fyfield,  Roxwell,  Chelmsford,  Chignall 
St.  James,  and  Chipping  Hill  (Witham) ;  which  are  respectively 
at  about  6,  \2\,  14,  16,  16,  21,  24,  24,  and  32  miles  distance 
from  Woolwich.  Referring  to  a  map  of  Essex,  it  will  be  seen 
that  these  places  all  lie  close  to  a  line  drawn  from  Woolwich  in 
a  north-easterly  direction  ;  with  the  exception  of  Epping,  the 
direction  of  which  is  about  north  by  east  from  Woolwich.  Ac- 
cording to  the  Times  weather  report  of  January  8,  southerly  and 


south-westerly  breezes  prevailed  very  generally  throughout  the 
kingdom  on  the  previous  day. 

(3)  Nature  of  the  Shock.— In  four  cases,  the  shock  was  in  the 
first  instance  attributed  to  the  firing  of  heavy  guns.  If  there  was 
any  vibration  of  the  earth,  it  must  have  been  very  slight,  and  the 
following  descriptions  seem  to  leave  little  doubt  that  the  rattling 
of  windows  noticed  was  due  to  an  air-wave. 

Great  Warley — The  shock  "  broke  a  pane  of  glass  4  feet  x  2  feet 
on  my  job." 

Brentwood — "The  shocks  commenced  as  a  low  rumble,  in- 
creasing till  the  doors  shook  and  rattled,  as  though  the  rumbling 
was  followed  by  a  bang  or  explosion." 

Between  Ongar  and  Fyfield  (the  observer  driving) — "The 
ground  felt  as  if  it  were  sinking,"  and  there  was  "a  rumbling 
noise  something  like  guns  in  the  distance. " 

Roxwell — The  sound  "exactly  resembled  the  report  of  the 
big  guns  at  Shoebury,  but  was  far  louder  than  we  usually  hear 
them." 

Chelmsford  (the observer  walking) — There  was  "a  noise  as  of 
a  very  heavy  weight  being  rolled  across  the  floor  of  the  room  of 
the  house  to  the  south  of  him,  which  he  was  passing." 

Chignall  St.  James — "  The  shock  was  extremely  slight,  but 
there  was  a  most  pronounced  concussion  in  the  air  which  made  a 
sound  on  the  windows  as  if  a  person  had  thumped  the  centre  of 
the  window  frame  with  the  soft  part  of  his  hand.  There  was  no 
tremulous  motion  felt." 

Witham— The  observer  "heard  a  strange  rumbling  sound 
which  seemed  to  slightly  deafen  him,  but  he  felt  no  vibration  of 
the  earth." 

That  the  disturbances  recorded  had  only  one  origin  is,  I  think, 
evident,  (i)  from  the  decrease  in  intensity  (roughly  speaking)  as 
the  distance  from  Woolwich  increases,  and  (2)  from  there  being 
no  considerable  gap  between  the  places  of  observation.  Records 
from  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  Woolwich  could  hardly  be 
expected,  as  there  they  would  naturally  be  attributed  to  their 
proper  source. 

I  am  indebted  to  the  editor  of  the  Essex  County  Chronicle  for 
inserting  a  letter  asking  for  observations  on  the  shocks,  and  to 
several  gentlemen  for  the  courtesy  and  kindness  with  which  they 
replied  to  this  letter  and  to  other  inquiries  that  I  made  in  the 
surrounding  district.  Charles  Davison. 

38  Charlotte  Road,  Birmingham,  February  13. 

Shining  Night-Clouds. 

In  July  last,  on  a  fine  night,  about  8  p.m.  (two  hours  after 
sunset),  I  noticed  a  fleecy  cloud  lit  up  by  a  yellowish  light, 
directly  over  the  back  of  a  range  of  hills  due  west  from  this 
place.  As  it  did  not  move,  it  struck  my  attention,  and  I 
observed  that  what  little  wind  there  was  carried  the  few  floating 
clouds  north-east  to  south-west.  I  continued  to  watch  the 
cloud,  which  covered  say  4°  or  5°,  until  li  p.m.,  and  concluded 
that  as  in  that  direction  lay  the  Purace  volcano,  about  40  miles 
away,  the  light  and  cloud  probably  came  from  it.  But  I  made 
inquiries  by  telegraph,  and  found  that  no  eruption  had  taken 
place  in  the  Purace,  which  has  been  quiet  now  for  many  years. 
I  regret,  seeing  now  that  the  subject  is  interesting,  that  I  did 
not  observe  more  carefully.  I  may  add  that  in  the  direction  of 
the  cloud  no  prairie  or  forest  fire  could  have  occurred  to  account 
for  it.  Robert  B.  White. 

Agrado  (lat.  2°  20'  N.),  Department  of  Tolima, 

U.S.  of  Colombia,  S.A.,  December  22,  1889. 

A  Greenish  Meteor. 

To-night  (Jan.  30),  at  8.15  p.m.,  I  saw  a  meteor  which,  not- 
withstanding a  bright  moon,  shone  out  exceedingly  brightly, 
exceeding  any  star.  It  appeared  to  travel  south,  for  about  10°, 
vanishing  about  15°  above  the  horizon.  Its  colour  differed  from 
that  of  any  meteor  I  have  seen  before,  being  pale  green  or 
greenish.  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell. 

West  CUff,  Custer  Co.,  Colorado,  January  30. 


THE  MOLECULAR   STABILITY  OF  METALS, 
PARTICULARLY  OF  IRON  AND  STEEL. 

(1)  A  LLOW  me  to  add  some  words  relative  to  the  very 

-^~^     timely  lecture  on  the  hardening  and  tempering- 

of    steel,  recently   published   by    Prof.  Roberts-Austen 


2>7o 


NATURE 


[Fed.  20,  1890 


(Nature,  xH.  pp.  11,  42).  I  desire,  in  the  first  place,  to 
point  out  the  bearing  of  the  singular  minimum  of  the 
viscosity  of  hot  iron  (^oc.  cit.,  p.  34)  on  the  interpretation 
given  of  Maxwell's  theory  of  viscosity  {Phil.  Mag.  (5), 
xxvi.  pp.  183,  397,  1888  ;  xxvii.  p.  155,1889).  When  iron 
passes  through  Barrett's  temperature  of  recalescence,  its 
molecular  condition  is  for  an  instant  almost  chaotic.  This 
has  now  been  abundantly  proved  (cf.  John  Hopkinson, 
Phil.  Trans.,  London,  clxxx.  p.  443,  1889,  where  the 
literature  may  be  found  ;  cf.  Osmond,  below).  The 
number  of  unstable  configurations,  or,  more  clearly,  the 
number  of  configurations  made  unstable  because  they  are 
built  up  of  disintegrating  molecules,  is  therefore  at  a 
maximum.  It  follows  that  the  viscosity  of  the  metal 
must  pass  through  a  minimum.  Physically  considered, 
the  case  is  entirely  analogous  to  that  of  a  glass-hard  steel 
rod  suddenly  exposed  to  300°.  If  all  the  molecules  passed 
from  Osmond's  /3  state  to  his  a  state  together,  the  iron  or 
steel  would  necessarily  be  liquid.  This  extreme  possi- 
bility is,  however,  at  variance  with  the  well-known  prin- 
ciples of  chemical  kinetics.  The  ratio  of  stable  to 
unstable  configurations  cannot  at  any  instant  be  zero. 
Hence  the  minimum  viscosity  in  question,  however  rela- 
tively low,  may  yet  be  large  in  value  as  compared  with 
the  liquid  state. 

(2)  My  second  point  has  reference  to  the  function  of 
carbon  in  steel.  It  is  not  to  be  understood  that  we  ignore 
the  importance  of  the  changes  of  carburation  produced 
by  tempering  steel.  To  explain  the  varied  physical  phe- 
nomena which  accompany  temper,  it  is  sufficient  to  re- 
cognize some  special  instability  in  the  tempered  metal. 
This  is  given  by  the  carbide  configuration,  and  the  phy- 
sical explanations  in  question  may  be  made  without 
specifying  its  nature  further.  Hence  the  permissibility 
of  the  purely  physical  considerations. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  indeed  surprising  that,  on  the 
part  of  engineers  and  chemists,  the  important  subject  of 
temper  has  been  but  inadequately  dealt  with,  as   Prof. 
Austen  justly   remarks.       Sir   Frederick    Bramwell    (cf. 
Nature,  xxxviii.   p.  440),  in  his  inaugural    address    at 
Bath,  in   1888,  dwelt  at  some  length  on  the  subject  of 
temper.      The  question  is  again  touched  upon   by  Mr. 
Anderson  at  the  Newcastle  meeting  of  the  British  Asso- 
ciation.      Neither  of   these   gentlemen,  however,  really 
shows  forth  the  gist  of   the    matter.     Indeed,  even    in 
Ostwald's  massive  "  Lehrbuch  der  AUgemeinen  Chemie" 
(Leipzig,  W.  Engelmann,  1887),  full  of  examples  as  it  is, 
bearing  on  all  points  of  chemical  physics,  the  frequent  and 
exceptionallyimportant  case  of  tempered  steel  is  altogether 
absent.  And  yet  the  chemical  interpretation  to  be  given  to 
the  phenomena  of  temper  seems  to  be  closely  at  hand.    Dr. 
Strouhal  and  1    {\Vied.  Ann,->ii.  p.  390,  1880;  Bulletin 
U.S.  Geol.  Survey,  No.  14,  chap,  ii.,  1885)  showed  that, 
by  the  process  of  hardening,  the  electrical  resistance  of 
steel  may  be  increased  by  more  than  three  times  its  value 
for  the  soft  metal.     If  the  hard  rod  is  now  softened,  the 
resistance  again  decreases  by  an  amount  depending  on 
the  temperature  to  which  the  hard  metal  is  exposed  and 
on  the  time  of  such  exposure,  in  a  way  which,  throughout 
the  whole  research,  is  beautifully  sharp  and  character- 
istic.     Eventually,  the  relatively  low  resistance  of  soft 
steel  is  again  reached.     Now  suppose  the  carbon  mole- 
cule of  steel  to  be  dissolved  in  the  metal,  forming  an 
alloy  of  Matthiessen's  Class  II.     Seeing  that  the  quantity 
of  carbon  contained  is  not  large,  the  electrical  resistance 
of  hard  steel  is  at  once  an  expression  of  its  chemical  com- 
position, structurally  unknown  though  it  be.     Hence  in 
the  electrical  diagram  of  the  phenomena  of  temper  con- 
structed by  Dr.  Strouhal  and  myself,  the  time  variations 
of  resistance  of  hard  steel  at  any  given  temperature  may 
be  interpreted  as  a  case  of  Wilhelmy's  {Pogg.  Arm.,  Ixxxi., 
pp.  413,  499,  1850)  rate  of  chemical  reaction  {Rcactions- 
geschwindigkeit),  and  expressed  in  accordance  with  his 
well-known  exponential  law.  This  indeed  is  the  character 


of  the  observed  time  curves.  Hence  also  the  full  diagram 
of  the  phenomena  of  temper,  considered  both  in  their 
variation  with  time  and  with  temperature,  is  available  for 
the  elucidation  of  most  points  relative  to  the  effect  of 
temperature  on  rate  of  chemical  reaction.^ 

(3)  A  further  remark  may  be  made  relative  to  Osmond's 
{Antiales  des  Mines,  July- August,  1888,  pp.  6-7  ;  Mem.  de 
VArtillerie  de  la  Marine,  Paris,  1888,  p.  4)  iron  of  the  a 
and  the  ^  type.  The  assertion  that  mere  strain  partly 
changes  a  into  /3  iron  is  in  conformity  with  the  viscous 
behaviour  of  the  metal.  For  it  appears  that  the  effect  of 
any  mechanical  strain  as  well  as  of  temper,  is  marked 
decrease  of  the  viscosity  of  the  metal.  Osmond's  theory, 
however,  appears  to  explain  too  much.  Since  most  metals 
can  be  similarly  hardened  by  straining,  it  would  follow 
that  there  should  be  a  and  ^3  varieties  in  all  these  cases, 
even  though  a  molecular  change  corresponding  to  Gore's 
phenomenon  in  iron  has  only  in  a  few  instances  been 
observed  (iron,  nickel,  platinum-iridium  alloy).  I  believe, 
however,  that  there  is  reason  to  be  urged  even  in  favour  of 
this  extreme  view.^  The  ion  theory  of  metallic  conductivity 
is  fast  gaining  ground. 

J.  J.  Thomson  states  it  in  his  well-known  book 
("  Applications  of  Dynainics,"  p.  296).  Giese  ( Wied. 
Ann.,  xxxvii.  p.  576,  1889)  has  outlined  an  ion  theory  of 
electric  conduction,  uniformly  applicable  to  metals, 
electrolytes,  and  gases.  It  seems  to  me,  if  a  preliminary 
hypothesis  be  made  relative  to  the  evolution  of  a  magnetic 
field  out  of  an  electric  field  ;  if  advantage  be  taken  of  the 
spiral  distribution  of  points  which  frequently  results  from 
the  symmetrical  interpenetration  of  two  congruent  Bravais 
systems  ;  ^  if,  finally,  in  metals,  the  function  performed  by 
a  bodily  transfer  of  ions  can  also  be  performed  by  an 
exchange  of  the  charges  of  charged  atoms  (Giese,  in- 
directly Helmholtz),  that  the  possibility  of  an  ion  theory 
of  magnetism  may  be  suspected.  Quite  apart  from  the 
influence  of  a  field,  the  conditions  of  exceptionally  close 
approach  favourable  to  the  transfer  of  charges  from  atom 
to  atom,  are  given  by  the  distribution  of  the  heat  agitation 
in  the  metal. 

(4)  I  will  close  this  note  by  some  remarks  on  the  change 
of  the  character  of  diffusion  when  occurring  in  solids. 
Studying  the  coloured  oxide  coats  on  iron,  Dr.  Strouhal 
and  I  (Bull.  U.S.G.S.,  No.  27,  p.  51,  1886)  pointed  out 
that  the  outer  surface  of  the  film  is  oxidized  as  highly  as 
possible  in  air  ;  and  that  the  inner  surface  of  the  film, 
continually  in  contact  with  iron,  is  reduced  as  far  as 
possible.  This  distribution  of  the  degree  of  oxidation 
along  the  normal  to  the  layer,  is  equivalent  to  a  force  in 
virtue  of  which  oxide  is  moved  through  the  layer,  from  its 
external  surface  to  its  internal  surface.  The  formation  of 
an  oxide  coat  is  thus  a  case  of  diffusion.  Conformably 
with  this  view,  the  film,  during  its  formation,  behaves  like 
an  electrolyte,  as  was  pointed  out  by  Franz,  Gaugain, 
and  Jenkin,  and  more  recently  by  Bidwell  and  by  S.  P. 
Thompson. 

We  then  adverted  to  the  crucial  difference  be- 
tween diffusion  in  solids  and  diffusion  in  liquids,  in- 
asmuch as  in  the  former  case  (solids)  diftusion  de- 
monstrably ceases  after  a  certain  small  thickness  is  per- 
meated. The  limit  thickness  of  the  film  is  reached 
asymptotically,  through  infinite  time.  It  has  a  definite 
value  for  each  temperature,  increasing  as  temperature 
increases.  In  the  light  of  other  evidence  since  gained, 
this  explanation  is  substantiated.     The  formation  of  the 

'  An  ulterior  consideration  presents  itself  here  relative  to  an  extension  of 
the  thejry  of  Arrhenius  \i^' ied.  Ann.,  iv.  p.  391,  1878)  to  metallic  con- 
ductivity. Arrhenius  and  Ostwald  find  in  the  maximum  of  electrolytic  con- 
ductivity a  measure  of  rate  of  reaction.  I  must  pass  over  this  question  here, 
since  it  is  without  immediate  bearing  on  the  text. 

-  I  have  spent  much  time  in  endeavouring  to  throw  light  on  this  question, 
and  will  indicate  the  results  later.  My  methods  were  (i)  to  find  the  effect  of 
mechanical  strain  on  the  carburation  of  steel ;  (2)  to  find  the  effect  of  strain 
on  the  rate  of  solution  ;  (3)  to  find  the  hydro-electric  effect  of  stretching. 

i  A  good  account  of  the  relations  of  the  iiravais  .ind  the  Sohncke  system  is 
given  by  H.  A.  Miers,  in  Nature,  xxxix.  p.  277. 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


371 


oxide  coat  is  a  case  of  solid  diffusion,  and  as  such  it 
bears  the  same  relation  to  the  diffusion  of  liquids,  that 
the  viscosity  of  solids  bears  to  the  viscosity  of  liquids. 
The  two  phases  (solid,  liquid)  of  each  phenomenon  are 
to  be  correlated  in  ways  essentially  alike.  The  available 
stress,  as  compared  with  the  available  instability  at  a 
given  temperature,  determines  the  time  character  of  the 
result.  Carl  B.\rus. 

Physical  Laboratory,  U.S.  Geological  Survey, 
Washington,  D.C. 


CHRISTOFORUS    HENRTCUS  DIEDERICUS 
BUYS  BALLOT. 

"OUYS  BALLOT  was  born  on  October  10,  18 17,  at 
-*-'  Kloetinge  in  Zealand ;  was  a  student  in  arts  and 
the  natural  sciences  at  the  University  of  Utrecht,  where 
he  first  became  Lector  of  Physics  and  Chemistry  in  1844, 
and  then  successively  Professor  of  Mathematics  in  1847, 
and  of  Experimental  Physics  in  1870,  which  latter  chair 
he  ceased  to  hold  in  November  1887  on  completing  his 
fortieth  year  as  Professor.  He  was  appointed  Director  of 
the  Royal  Meteorological  Institute  of  the  Netherlands  in 
1854,  and  held  this  position  with  great  ability  and  distinc- 
tion till  his  death  on  Monday,  the  3rd  of  the  present 
month. 

His  first  contribution  to  science  was  a  paper  on  a 
chemical  subject  in  1842,  this  being  a  science  of  which 
he  was  Lector  at  the  time  ;  but  soon  thereafter  he  turned 
his  attention  to  meteorology,  which  he  emphatically  made 
the  business  of  his  life.  The  following  are  among  the 
earlier  of  his  papers  on  the  subject,  and  they  are,  it  will 
be  seen,  very  significant  of  his  future  work : — "  On  the 
Influence  of  the  Rotation  of  the  Sun  on  the  Temperature 
of  our  Atmosphere,"  in  1846;  "On  the  Importance  in 
Meteorology  of  Deviations  from  the  Mean  States  of  the 
Atmosphere,"  in  1850;  "Results  of  the  Observations  of 
1849  and  1850  in  different  places  in  Holland,"  in  1851  ; 
and  "  On  Synchronous  Representations  of  Weather 
Phenomena,"  in   1854. 

In  these  early  times  of  meteorology,  when  instruments 
and  modes  of  observing  still  greatly  needed  the  guiding 
hand  of  science  towards  the  founding  of  international 
meteorology.  Dr.  Buys  Ballot  was  wisely  led  to  attempt 
the  construction  of  no  general  isobaric  and  isothermal 
maps  in  investigating  storms  and  other  weather  pheno- 
mena, but  contented  himself  in  investigating  weather  dis- 
turbances by  representing  them  over  the  surface  of  Europe 
by  means  of  deviations  from  the  means,  or  averages,  of  the 
places  represented.  In  this  mode  of  working  he  made 
several  of  his  more  important  contributions  to  meteoro- 
logy, and  out  of  it  developed  the  system  of  storm  warnings 
he  issued  for  Holland.  In  this  connection  his  barometric 
and  thermometric  means  for  a  very  large  number  of  places 
over  Europe  will  long  be  a  standard  work.  Of  these  contri- 
butions, unquestionably  the  most  important  is  that  known 
as  Buys  Ballot's  Law  of  the  Winds,  which  states  the 
relation  between  the  direction  of  the  wind  and  the  distri- 
bution of  atmospheric  pressure  at  the  time  the  wind  is 
blowing.  This  relation  was  further  developed  by  Dr. 
Buchan  in  1869,  in  his  paper  on  the  mean  pressure  of  the 
atmosphere  and  prevailing  winds  of  the  globe,  in  which 
it  was  shown  that  the  prevailing  winds  of  all  climates  are 
simply  the  result  of  the  distribution  of  pressure. 

One  of  the  most  exhaustive  discussions  of  the  influence 
of  the  moon  on  weather  was  made  by  Dr.  Ballot.  The 
discussion  covered  a  period  of  about  a  century,  and  he 
showed  that  the  longer  the  period  the  closer  do  the  cases 
for  or  against  any  such  influence  approach  equality.  Sub- 
sequent to  Maury,  Dr.  Ballot  was  one  of  the  earlier  and 
most  energetic  and  successful  workers  in  maritime  me- 
teorology, and  his  meteorological  charts  of  the  routes  of 


Dutch  ships  over  the  great  oceans  is  a  standard  work. 
Dr.  Ballot  also  took  an  active  and  efficient  part  in  the 
Meteorological  Conferences  and  Congresses  held  at  in- 
tervals from  1872  to  1888,  which  have  brought  about  a 
greater  uniformity  in  meteorological  observations  and 
discussions  than  previously  existed.  He  was  chosen,  by 
the  first  Congress,  President  of  the  Permanent  Commit- 
tee. Among  his  last  works  was  the  proposal  of  a  method 
of  developing  and  representing  the  variability  of  the 
weather  and  climates  by  the  values  of  the  deviations  of 
the  daily  observations  from  the  averages,  irrespective  of 
sign. 

The  great  merits  of  his  indefatigable  services  to  science, 
but  more  particularly  to  meteorology,  were  recognized  by 
his  being  made  LL.D.  of  Edinburgh  University,  Knight  of 
the  Order  of  the  Netherland  Lion,Commander  of  the  Order 
of  Franz  Joseph  of  Austria,  and  of  S\  James  of  the  Sword 
of  Portugal,  and  Knight  of  second  class  of  the  Prussian 
Order  of  the  Crown.  But  above  all,  his  ever  readiness 
in  every  degree  to  obhge,  the  genial  sunshine  of  his  face, 
and  his  lovableness,  make  his  death  to  be  felt  by  many  of 
us  as  a  sharp  personal  bereavement. 


NOTES. 

On  Tuesday  evening  the  Cambridge  University  Natural 
Science  Club  and  the  Master  of  Downing  (Dr.  Alex.  Hill)  gave 
a  conversazione  at  Downing  Lodge,  at  which  260  guests,  in- 
cluding many  distinguished  residents  and  non-residents,  were 
present.  The  several  scientific  professors  were  very  liberal  in 
lending  the  treasures  from  their  museums,  and  as  this  is  the  first 
entertainment  of  the  kind  which  has  been  given  in  Cambridge, 
many  objects  •  of  great  historic  interest,  such  as  Babbage's 
calculating  machine,  Cavendish's  apparatus,  &c.,  were  exhibited. 
Artificial  silk  was  spun,  quartz  filaments  drawn,  smokeless  gun- 
powder and  other  scientific  novelties  shown.  One  of  the  most  in- 
teresting exhibits  was  a  series  of  Egyptian  heads  unwrapped  from 
their  mummy  cloths,  and  artfully  "restored"  by  Prof.  Macalister. 
A  very  attractive  feature  of  the  entertainment  was  an  address  by 
Dr.  Lauder  Brunton,  who  had  much  that  was  interesting  to  say 
about  his  recent  experiences  in  India.  Mr.  Gardiner  illustrated 
the  dispersion  of  seeds  by  the  aid  of  the  limelight  and  boxes 
of  seeds  of  various  kinds  suspended  from  the  ceiling. 

The  annual  general  meeting  of  the  Geological  Society  of 
London  will  be  held  to-morrow  (Friday)  at  3  o'clock,  and  the 
Fellows  and  their  friends  will  dine  together  at  the  Criterion 
Restaurant  at  7.30  p.m. 

Before  the  next  ordinary  meeting  of  the  Royal  Microscopical 
Society,  it  will  have  moved  its  quarters  from  the  rooms  hitherto 
occcupied  by  it  in  King's  College,  which  are  now  required  for 
the  purposes  of  the  College,  to  20  Hanover  Square.  The 
ordinary  meetings  will  in  future  be  held  on  the  third  instead  of 
the  second  Wednesday  in  the  month,  and  the  annual  meeting 
in  January  instead  of  February.  The  Quekett  Microscopical 
Club  has  also  transferred  its  place  of  meeting  to  20  Hanover 
Square  since  the  commencement  of  the  year. 

We  regret  to  have  to  record  the  death  of  Sir  Robert  Kane, 
F.R.S.  He  died  after  a  short  illness  on  Sunday,  the  i6thinst., 
at  his  residence  in  Dublin. 

The  fine  buildings  of  the  University  of  Toronto  were  almost 
wholly  destroyed  by  fire  last  Friday.  The  flames  were  un- 
fortunately fanned  by  a  strong  wind,  and  the  fire  spread  so 
rapidly  that  hardly  anything  could  be  saved.  A  small  number 
of  specimens  in  the  museum,  and  some  of  the  scientific  apparatus, 
were  brought  out  by  students,  but  they  were  mostly  broken  while 


372 


NATURE 


^^Feb.  20,  1890 


being  removed.  The  Canadians  are  justly  proud  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Toronto,  and  will  no  doubt  provide  for  it  even  more 
splendid  buildings  than  those  which  are  now  in  ruins. 

SiGNOR  Sella's  views  of  the  Caucasus  have  been  on  exhi- 
bition in  the  Royal  Geographical  Society's  map-room  since 
Friday  last,  and  will  continue  to  be  exhibited  till  the  close  of 
ihe  month. 

We  print  elsewhere  Prof.  David  P.  Todd's  record  of  work  done 
by  the  U.S.  Scientific  Expedition  to  West  Africa,  1889,  of 
which  he  was  director.  This  is  one  of  several  bulletins  printed 
on  board  the  U.S.S.  Pensacola. 

In  the  engineering  notes  from  North-West  India,  of  Engineer- 
ing of  the  14th  inst.,  we  find  a  most  interesting  account  of  the 
testing  of  the  Chenab  Bridge,  near  Mooltan.  This  bridge 
consists  partly  of  seventeen  spans  of  200  feet,  which  are  of  mild 
steel  throughout.  These  trusses  are  of  the  Whipple-Murphy 
type,  with  raking  heel  posts  ;  the  ties  are  at  an  angle  of  45°, 
and  consequently  the  depth  is  a  tenth  of  the  span.  In  previous 
girders  of  this  type,  made  in  iron,  the  deflection  under  full  loads 
was  usually  less  than  0*0004  of  the  span,  while  here  \\  inch, 
equal  to  o'ooo6,  obtains  throughout,  and  in  each  case  the 
observed  permanent  set  is  less  than  \  inch  in  the  whole  thirty- 
four  girders  in  the  viaduct.  Engineering  6bsQX\QS  that  "there 
is  thus  no  question  of  bad  workmanship  either  in  the  pieces  sent 
out  from  home  or  in  the  erection  at  site,  and  it  is  very  clear  that 
steel  structures,  especially  when  so  light  as  these  spans,  which 
only  weigh,  with  corrugated  floor  and  all  bearing  and  expansion 
gear,  220  tons  each,  are  necessarily  more  sensitive  than  those  of 
ix'on." 

The  new  number  of  the  Internationales  Archiv  fiir  Ethno- 
graphie  (Band  ii.  Heftvi.)  opens  with  a  valuable  paper,  by  Prof. 
G.  Schlegel,  of  Leyden,  on  Siamese  and  Chinese- Siamese  coins. 
This  contribution  is  illustrated  by  a  coloured  plate.  Of  the 
other  papers,  the  most  important  is  an  account  of  the  Nanga  of 
the  Fiji  Islands,  by  Mr.  Adolph  B.  Joske,  Fiji.  These  remark- 
able stone  inclosures,  now  ruined,  were  first  brought  to  the 
notice  of  anthropologists  by  the  Rev.  Lorimer  Fison,  of  the 
Australasian  Wesleyan  Mission.  Three  of  them  have  been 
visited  by  Mr.  Joske,  and  he  is  thus  enabled  to  give  the  plan 
of  an  inclosure  drawn  from  his  own  measurements.  His  paper 
has  been  edited  by  Baron  Anatole  von  Hiigel,  who  adds  in- 
sti'uctive  notes.  In  another  paper,  Prof.  Giglioli  gives  an  in- 
teresting account  of  a  remarkable  stone  axe  and  stone  chisel  in 
use  among  the  Chaniacocos  of  South-East  Bolivia. 

We  are  glad  to  observe  that  in  the  Ceylon  estimates  for  the 
current  year  provision  is  made  for  an  increased  vote  of  Ks. 
10,000  for  archEEological  purposes.  Sir  Arthur  Gordon,  in  ex- 
plaining the  vote,  said,  "It  is  proposed  to  make  some  systematic 
examination  of  the  interesting  remains  at  Sigiri,  and  to  com- 
mence on  a  modest  scale,  before  the  rapidly  disappearing 
monuments  of  the  past  have  altogether  perished,  a  species  of 
aixhaeological  survey  resembling  that  carried  on  in  India.  Such 
an  examination  should  be  completed  in  about  three  years,  and 
the  vote  is  proposed  to  cover  the  salai-y  and  travelling  expenses, 
for  1890,  of  the  officer  selected  for  the  purpose." 

A  LARGE  and  rich  collection  of  specimens  of  amber,  illus- 
trating all  the  varieties  found  in  the  amber  district  of  North 
Germany,  has  lately  been  sent  to  the  New  York  School  of 
Mines  by  one  of  its  earliest  graduates,  Mr.  H.  A.  Demelli,  now 
a  resident  of  Berlin.  At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  New  York 
Academy  of  Sciences,  this  collection  was  examined  with  great 
interest  by  the  members,  and  Dr.  Newberry,  the  President,  read 
an  instructive  paper  on  amber.  After  the  reading  of  the  paper. 
Dr.  N.  L.  Britton  spoke  of  the  occasional  occurrence  of  amber 
in  New  Jersey,  in  connection  with  the  lignites  so  abundant  in 


the  Cretaceous  and  Eocene  beds  ;  and  Mr.  George  F.  Kunz 
exhibited  several  specimens  of  American  amber,  one  of  which 
^from  Mexico — excited  much  admiration.  Mr.  Kunz  said  that 
during  the  last  fifteen  or  twenty  years  travellers  had  occasion- 
ally brought  specimens  of  a  very  remarkable  amber  from  some 
locality  in  Southern  Mexico.  The  only  thing  known  about  this 
amber  is  that  it  is  taken  to  the  coast  by  natives,  who  report  that 
it  occurs  in  the  interior  so  plentifully,  and  in  such  large  pieces, 
that  they  use  it  for  making  fires.  It  is  of  a  rich,  deep  golden 
yellow,  and,  when  viewed  in  different  positions,  it  exhibits  a 
remarkably  green  fluorescence,  like  that  of  certain  petroleums. 
It  is  perfectly  transparent,  and,  according  to  Mr.  Kunz,  even 
moi'e  beautiful  than  the  famous  so-called  opalescent  or  green 
amber  found  at  Catania,  Sicily. 

A  FRESH  illustration  of  the  way  in  which  foreign  plants  may 
become  "  weeds "  under  new  and  favourable  conditions  is 
afforded  by  Melilotus  alba  in  the  Western  States  of  America. 
It  was  introduced  a  few  years  ago  as  a  garden-plant,  and  has 
spread  so  rapidly  in  the  rich  bottom-lands  along  the  Missouri 
River  that,  according  to  Garden  and  Forest,  it  is  fast  driving 
out  the  sunflower  and  other  native  weeds.  It  is  commonly 
called  "Bokhara  clover." 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Scientific  Committee  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society,  on  February  11,  Dr.  Oliver  and  Prof  Scott 
presented  an  interim  report  on  the  investigations  undertaken  by 
them  respecting  the  effects  of  London  fogs  on  plants  under  glass. 
Specimens  of  orchids  affected  by  fog  had  been  received  from 
j\Iessrs.  Veitch  and  Son,  Chelsea  ;  and  of  tomato  plants  from 
the  superintendent  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society's  gardens 
at  Chiswick.  On  the  suggestion  of  the  chairman,  it  was  decided 
that  the  chemical  constituents  of  London  fog  should  be  in- 
vestigated, and  that  the  exciting  causes  of  the  injury  to  plants 
should  be  traced.  In  order  that  the  work  might  be  carried  out 
under  advantageous  circumstances,  it  was  resolved  that  applica- 
tion should  be  made  to  the  Government  Grant  Committee  of  the 
Royal  Society  for  pecuniary  aid. 

At  the  same  meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society's 
Scientific  Committee,  Mr.  McLachlan  drew  attention  to  a  disease 
in  sugar-cane  at  St.  Vincent,  where  in  some  localities  about 
25  per  cent,  of  the  crop  would  be  lost  this  year.  According  to 
Mr.  Herbert  Smith,  who  had  examined  the  canes,  a  beetle  of 
the  family  Scolytidge,  and  the  larva  of  a  moth,  were  concerned. 
It  is  probable  that  the  beetles  enter  the  canes  only  by  the  exit 
holes  of  the  moths,  and  that  the  moth  is  a  widely  spread  species, 
already  known  to  attack  sugar-cane  in  other  countries. 

In  the  January  number  of  the  American  Naturalist  Mr. 
R.  E.  C.  Stearns  begins  what  promises  to  \)e  an  interesting 
series  of  papers  on  the  effects  of  musical  sounds  on  animals.  His 
first  paper  deals  with  "dogs  and  music."  From  his  friend. 
Prof.  George  Davidson,  of  California,  he  has  received  the  fol- 
lowing instance: — "A  small  black-and-tan  named  'Bessie, 
belonging  to  Mr.  A.  B.  Corson,  of  North  Fifth  Street,  Phila- 
delphia, will,  on  hearing  '  Shall  we  meet  beyond  the  river  ? 
sung,  throw  her  head  back  and  set  up  a  most  dismal  howl,  while 
the  tears  will  run  down  her  cheeks.  If  the  tune  is  played 
solemnly  on  an  organ  and  no  word  spoken,  the  same  thing  will 
occur  ;  but  if  any  of  the  words  are  spoken,  with  not  the  slightest 
musical  intonation,  she  will  run  to  the  speaker,  and  beg  and 
plead  in  her  own  way,  and  do  everything  but  speak,  to  have  it 
stojDped." 

The  Annalen  der  Hydrographie  und  Maritimen  Meteorologie 
for  December,  published  by  the  German  Admiralty,  contains  an 
interesting  discussion  by  Dr.  W.  J.  van  Bebber,  on  the  depend- 
ence of  the  force  of  the  winds  upon  the  surface  over  which  they 
blow.     It  is  generally  admitted  that  the  winds  at  sea  are,  under 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


2>7 


0/3 


similar  circumstances,  stronger  than  on  land  ;  but  actual  com- 
parisons, such  as  the  author  has  undertaken,  are  not  frequently 
made.  He  has  chosen  two  stations  on  the  coast — viz.  Cherbourg 
and  Hurst  Castle — having  a  different  position  with  regard  to  the 
sea,  but  at  which  the  observations  are  made  under  nearly  similar 
conditions.  The  results  of  careful  comparisons  under  eight 
points  of  the  compass,  for  a  period  of  several  years,  plainly 
show  that  in  all  months  the  northerly  and  north-easterly  winds 
at  Cherbourg  are  considerably  stronger  than  at  Hurst  Castle, 
ind  that  the  southerly  winds  at  Cherbourg  fall  considerably 
short  in  strength  of  those  at  Hurst  Castle.  The  tables  show 
that  the  strong  winds  coming  from  the  sea  are  on  an  average 
one  degree  of  Beaufort's  scale  (1-12)  heavier  than  those  coming 
from  the  land,  while,  with  lighter  or  local  winds,  the  difference 
often  amounts  to  two  degrees  of  the  above  scale.  Information 
of  this  kind  should  be  of  use  to  fishermen  and  others  when 
putting  to  sea. 

» 
M.  Plantamour  gives,  in  a  recent  number  of  the  Archives 
des  Sciences,  the  results  of  his  eleventh  year's  observations  of 
periodic  movements  of  the  ground,  as  shown  by  spirit-levels. 
It  appears  that,  while  in  general  the  east  side  sinks  with  lower- 
ing of  temperature,  and  rises  with  a  rise,  these  movements  do 
not  always  follow  with  the  same  rapidity.  A  sudden  change  of 
temperature  produces  at  once  a  rise  or  sinking  of  the  east  side  ; 
but  the  maxima  of  the  ground-positions  rarely  coincide  with  the 
maximum  or  minimum  of  temperature.  This  eleventh  year  is  ex- 
ceptional in  that  the  extremes  of  temperature  are  but  one  or  two 
days  in  advance  of  those  of  the  movements,  whereas  in  previous 
years  the  retardation  has  been  a  fortnight  to  four  months  behind 
minimum  temperature,  and  a  fortnight  to  three  months  behind 
niaximum.  In  two  years  (1881  and  1885)  the  maximum  of 
rise  was  even  four  days  before  the  maximum  of  temperature. 
Thus,  while  temperature  seems  to  be  the  chief  cause  of  the 
oscillations,  some  other  opposing  cause  must  be  at  work.  M. 
Plantamour  compared  the  eleven  years'  mean  effects  with  the 
variations  in  solar  intensity,  but  failed  to  detect  any  relation. 

Carl  Hess,  the  German  naturalist,  has  proved  by  minute 
microscopical  investigation  that  the  eye  of  the  mole  is  perfectly 
capable  of  seeing,  and  that  it  is  not  short-sighted,  as  another 
naturalist  (Kadyi)  would  have  us  believe.  Hess  maintains  that, 
in  spite  of  its  minute  dimensions, — i  millimetre  by  0*9  milli- 
metre— the  eye  of  this  little  creature  possesses  all  the  necessary 
properties  for  seeing  that  the  most  highly-developed  eye  does  ; 
that  it  is,  indeed,  as  well  suited  for  seeing  as  the  eye  of  any 
other  mammal,  and  that  in  the  matter  of  refraction  it  does  not 
differ  from  the  normal  eye.  In  order  to  bear  out  the  theory  of 
short-sightedness,  the  physiological  reason  was  adduced  that  in 
its  subterranean  runs  the  mole  is  accustomed  to  see  things  at 
close  distances,  and  that  its  eye  had  become  gradually  suited  to 
near  objects.  But  to  this  Hess  objects  that  the  mole  when  under 
ground  most  probably  makes  no  use  of  his  eyes  at  all,  as  it 
would  be  impossible  to  see  anything  owing  to  the  absence  of 
light,  but  that  when  he  comes  to  the  surface,  and  especially 
v/hen  he  is  swimming,  he  does  use  his  eyes.  In  order  to 
accomplish  this,  he  only  has  to  alter  the  erect  position  of  the 
hairs  which  surround  and  cover  his  eyes,  and  which  prevent  the 
entry  of  dirt  when  he  is  under  ground,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
protrude  his  eyes  forward. 

It  seems  rather  strange  that,  while  skins  and  eggs  of  the  Great 
Auk  are  so  highly  valued,  the  public  rarely  hear  of  Pallas's 
Cormorant,  the  extinction  of  which  in  the  North  Pacific  corre- 
sponds to  that  of  the  Great  Auk  in  the  North  Atlantic.  Only 
four  specimens  of  Pallas's  Cormorant  are  known  to  exist  in 
museums  ;  no  one  possesses  its  eggs  ;  and  no  bones  were  found 
or  preserved  until  Mr.  Leonhard  Stejneger,  of  the  Smithsonian 
Institution,  was  so  fortunate  some  years  ago  as  to  rescue  a  few 


of  them.  Yet  this  bird  was  the  largest  and  handsomest  of  its 
tribe.  So  says  Mr.  Stejneger  in  an  interesting  paper— just  issued 
by  the  Smithsonian  Institution— in  which  he  records  how  the 
bones  referred  to  were  found  by  him  in  1882  near  the  north- 
western extremity  of  Behring  Island.  In  an  appendix  to  this 
paper  Mr.  Stejneger's  "find  "  is  fully  and  exactly  described  by 
Mr.  Frederic  A.  Lucas. 

We  have  received  the  first  two  numbers  of  the  Scottish  Journal 
of  Natural  History.  This  monthly  periodical  is  intended  to  be 
mainly  a  chronicle  of  the  work  done  by  the  different  Natural 
History  Societies  in  Scotland  ;  but  short  papers  on  subjects 
connected  with  Natural  History  will  also  be  given,  and  we  notice 
that  articles  have  been  promised  by  well  known  men  of  science, 
including  Profs.  James  Geikie,  G.  J.  Romanes,  and  many  others. 
At  present  very  few  of  the  Scottish  Natural  History  Societies 
print  Transactions  ;  so  there  is  ample  room  for  the  new  venture, 
and  we  wish  it  all  success.  Communications  are  to  be  addressed 
to  the  Editors,  care  of  the  publisher,  Mr.  W.  B.  Robinson, 
194  Sauchiehall  Street,  and  105  New  City  Road,  Glasgow. 

The  first  part  of  the  Memoirs  and  Proceedings  of  the  Man- 
chester Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  for  the  current  session 
has  been  issued.  It  contains  a  paper  by  Mr.  Charles  Bailey,  on 
the  discovery  near  Ribblehead  of  Arenaria  gothica,  a  plant  new 
to  Britain,  the  typical  form  of  which  has  so  far  been  recorded  only 
for  two  Swedish  localities.  The  Ribblehead  specimens  are  stated 
to  be  more  robust  than  those  from  Sweden.  The  issue  also  in- 
cludes a  paper  by  Mr.  Charles  H.  Lees  on  the  law  of  cooling  and 
its  bearing  on  the  theory  of  heat  in  bars ;  and  the  first  part  of 
Mr.  Faraday's  "  Selections  from  the  (unpublished)  Correspon- 
dence of  Colonel  John  Leigh  Philips,  of  Mayfield,  Manchester  " 
(1761-1814).  The  latter  includes  letters  from  Dr.  Henry  Clarke 
(the  mathematician),  James  Sowerby,  and  a  number  of  other 
persons  of  local  eminence  during  the  latter  half  of  the  last 
century. 

Prof.  Weismann  requests  us  to  state  that  in  his  article  on 
Heredity,  printed  in  Nature  on  February  6,  the  sentence 
beginning  on  p.  319,  line  38,  should  have  read—"  Sir  William 
Thomson,  in  endeavouring  to  make  clear  the  dispersion  of  rays 
of  light  by  conceiving  of  a  molecule  as  consisting  of  hollow 
spheres  enclosed  one  within  the  other  and  in  contact  with  one 
another  through  springs,  never  believed,"  &c. 

Tw^o  gaseous  fluorides  of  carbon,  the  tetrafluoride,  CF4,  and  the 
difluoride,  C.^Fj,  have  been  isolated,  and  form  the  subject  of 
two  simultaneous  papers  contributed  to  the  current  number  of 
the  Comptes  rendus.  One  of  these  communications  is  from  M. 
Moissan,  whose  energy  in  this  domain  of  chemistry  appears  un- 
tiring. Unlike  chlorine,  fluorine  directly  attacks  carbon  with 
varying  degrees  of  energy,  according  to  the  form  in  which  the 
carbon  is  presented.  When  a  current  of  pure  fluorine  is  passed 
over  the  purest  form  of  lamp-black,  which  has  previously  been 
freed  from  hydrocarbons  by  digestion  with  petroleum  and  boiling 
alcohol,  combination  occurs  with  such  energy  that  the  whole  of 
the  finely  divided  carbon  becomes  instantly  incandescent.  The 
lighter  varieties  of  wood  charcoal  also  take  fire  spontaneously  in 
fluorine,  the  gas  appearing  to  be  first  condensed  for  a  few 
moments,  and  then  the  mass  becomes  suddenly  incandescent  and 
throws  off  brilliant  scintillations.  If  the  density  of  the  charcoal 
is  greater,  and  there  is  no  loose  dust  upon  its  surface,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  warm  it  to  50^-100°  C.  in  order  to  bring  about  combina- 
tion and  its  accompanying  incandescence.  When  once  the 
incandescence  is  started  at  any  spot  it  rapidly  extends  through- 
out the  entire  mass.  Ferruginous  graphite  requires  to  be 
heated  to  a  temperature  just  below  dull  redness,  and  gas 
retort  carbon  to  full  redness,  in  order  to  effect  combination, 
while  the  diamond  may  be  heated  for  any  length  of  time  over  a 


174 


NA  TURE 


\Feb.  20,  1890 


Bunsen  lamp  without  any  alteration  in  weight  being  noticeable. 
The  products  of  combination  are  generally  gaseous  mixtures  of 
CF4  and  probably  C2F4,  When  the  most  readily  attacked  varieties 
of  carbon  are  employed,  and  only  in  small  quantities  so  as  to  avoid 
excess,  the  gas  is  almost  pure  CF4.  Carbon  tetrafluoride  is  a 
colourless  gas,  which  liquefies  under  a  pressure  of  five  atmo- 
spheres at  10°  C.  It  is  completely  absorbed  and  decomposed 
by  an  alcoholic  solution  of  potash  with  production  of  potassium 
fluoride  and  carbonate.  On  decomposing  the  latter  salt  with  an 
acid  the  volume  of  carbon  dioxide  liberated  is  the  same  as  that 
of  the  carbon  tetrafluoride  used.  CF4  is  slightly  soluble  in 
water,  more  readily  in  carbon  tetrachloride,  alcohol,  or  benzene. 
Determinations  of  its  density  gave  numbers  which  agreed  with 
the  formula  CF4.  If  excess  of  carbon  is  heated  to  redness  in  a 
platinum  tube,  and  fluorine  allowed  to  slowly  stream  through, 
another  gas  is  obtained  on  collecting  over  water  which  is  not 
capable  of  being  absorbed  by  alcoholic  potash.  This  gas 
liquefies  at  10°  under  a  pressure  of  19-20  atmospheres.  M. 
Moissan  does  not  seem  to  have  yet  determined  its  composition, 
but  it  appears  likely  to  be  the  C^Fj  described  in  the  second  com- 
munication by  M.  Chabrie,  M.  Moissan  also  states  that  CF4 
may  likewise  be  prepared  by  passing  vapour  of  carbon  tetra- 
chloride over  silver  fluoride  heated  to  a  temperature  of  300°  C. 
in  a  glass  or  metal  tube.  M.  Chabrie  shows  that  both  CF4  and 
C2F4  may  be  obtained  by  heating  the  corresponding  chlorides  of 
carbon  with  silver  fluoride  in  a  sealed  tube  to  220°  C.  In  an 
actual  experiment  5'i  grams  of  AgF  were  heated  with  i'55 
grams  of  CCI4  for  two  hours,  at  the  end  of  which  time  the  tube, 
which  itself  was  but  little  attacked,  was  opened,  and  an 
almost  theoretical  yield  of  CF4  obtained ;  the  gas  was  totally 
absorbed  by  alcoholic  potash  in  accordance  with  the  equation 
CF4  -f  6KOH  =  K2CO3  +  4KF  -t-  3H2O.  When  C2CI4  was 
used  instead  of  CCI4,  a  gas  whose  density  corresponded  to  the 
formula  C2F4  was  obtained.  The  experimental  density  was  3"43  ; 
the  calculated  value  for  C2F4  is  3  "46.  The  spectra  of  the  two 
fluorides,  according  to  M.  Moissan,  exhibit  the  lines  of  fluorine 
very  clearly,  together  with  several  broad  bands,  resembling  the 
flutings  of  carbon. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at   10  p.m.  on  February  20  = 
8h.  3m.  7s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

:R  A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

j    h.  m.  s. 

(i)G.C.  1565      

— 

— 

i      7  36  25 

-  14  29 

(2)  27  Cancri       

6 

Yellowish-red. 

'     8  20  39 

+  13     I 

(3)  /3  Cancri        

4 

Yellow. 

8  10  36 

+   9  32 

(4)  C  Canis  Min. 

5 

White. 

;    7  46    0 

+  12     3 

(5)  26  Pickering 

Var. 

Reddish-yellow. 

1     7  57     2 

- 12  47 

(6)SCygni 

Var. 

Reddish. 

20     3  14 

1 

+  57  40 

Remarks. 

(i)  "  Planetery  nebula  ;  pretty  bright,  pretty  small  ;  extremely 
little  elongated."     The  spectrum  has  not  yet  been  recorded. 

(2)  A  star  of  Group  II.  Duner  states  that  the  bands  are  very 
wide  and  dark  in  the  red,  but  weaker  in  the  green  and  blue.  He 
does  not,  however,  state  what  bands  are  present.  Observations 
similar  to  those  already  suggested  for  other  stars  of  the  group 
are  required. 

(3)  This  is  stated  to  have  a  fine  spectrum  of  the  solar  type  by 
Vogel.     The  usual  differential  observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV,  (Vogel).  Usual  observations 
required. 

(5)  This  star  has  a  very  feeble  spectrum  of  the  Group  VI. 
type,  which  has  not  yet  been  fully  described. 

(6)  Although  Cygnus  is  not  now  in  the  most  convenient  posi- 


tion for  observations,  it  may  still  be  observed  soon  after  sunset. 
The  variable,  S  Cygni,  has  not  yet  had  its  spectrum  recorded, 
and  the  approaching  maximum  (February  28)  may  therefore  be 
taken  advantage  of.  Gore  states  the  period  as  323  days,  and 
the  range  as  from  8'8-io'i  at  maximum  to  <I3  at  minimum. 
If  it  has  a  banded  spectrum,  as  may  be  expected  from  the 
colour,  the  type  of  spectrum  will  probably  not  be  difficult  to 
determine,  notwithstanding  the  faintness  of  the  star. 

A.  Fowler. 

Progress  of  Astronomy  in  1886. — An  account  of  the 
progress  of  astronomy  in  the  year  1886,  by  Prof.  Winlock,  has 
been  issued  from  the  Smithsonian  Institution.  Although  the 
record  is  primarily  intended  to  serve  as  a  series  of  notes  for 
those  who  have  not  access  to  a  large  astronomical  library,  the 
bibliography  will  be  found  useful  to  the  professional  astronomer 
as  a  reference  list  of  technical  papers.  A  considerable  amount 
of  useful  information  is  given  in  this  extract  from  the  Smith- 
sonian Report  for  1886-87,  the  section  devoted  to  reports  of 
Observatories  being  very  complete.  A  subject-index  to  the 
review  has  been  effected  by  inserting  the  necessary  page  refer- 
ences to  the  bibliography. 

The  Maximum  Light-Intensity  of  the  Solar  Spec- 
trum.— We  have  received  from  Dr.  Mengarini  his  paper  on 
the  above  subject  ( Untersttchungen  ztir  Nattirlehre  des  Menschen 
und  dcr  Thiere,  xiv.  Band,  2  Heft).  After  reviewing  the  pre- 
vious work  that  has  been  done  on  the  varying  intensity  of  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  spectrum,  the  author  describes  the  three  methods 
he  used  in  his  researches.  The  observations  led  him  to  conclude 
that  the  maximum  of  light-intensity  is  subject  to  variability  in 
position  from  day  to  day  and  hour  to  hour,  just  as  the  maxima 
of  thermal  and  chemical  effects  of  the  spectrum,  although  the 
sky  be  clear  and  the  atmosphere  steady.  Using  a  prismatic 
spectrum,  it  was  found  that  the  maximum  light-intensity  fluctu- 
ated between  about  A  564  and  D,  and,  generally  speaking,  was 
more  pronounced  in  the  morning  than  in  the  afternoon.  Some 
observations  made  at  Rome  in  July  1881,  on  clear  or  slightly 
clouded  days,  showed  that  the  maximum  shifted  from  A  564*1 
to  584-3. 

Spectrum  of  Borelly's  Comet,  g  1889. — Mr.  Back- 
house, in  a  letter  to  the  Observatory,  notes  that  he  ob- 
served the  spectrum  of  this  comet  with  a  Browning  miniature 
spectroscope  on  the  15th  and  19th  ultimo.  The  three  CO 
bands  were  very  vividly  seen,  but  no  other  line  ;  on  the  former 
date  there  was  a  very  faint  continuous  spectrum,  but  on  the 
latter  only  a  suspicion  of  such. 

Spectra  of  5  and  ^l  Centauri. — Prof.  Pickering,  in  a 
communication  to  Astronomischc  Nachrichten,  No.  2951,  records 
that  an  examination  of  the  photographs  of  stellar  spectra  taken 
by  Mr.  S.  J.  Baily  at  the  Harvard  Observatory  station,  near 
Closica,  Peru,  shows  that  the  F  line  due  to  hydrogen  is  bright 
in  the  spectra  of  the  stars  S  and  /it  Centauri. 

On  the  Star  System  \  Scorpii. — Some  elaborate  re- 
searches into  the  orbits  of  the  components  of  this  system  were 
given  by  Dr.  Schorr  in  an  inaugural  dissertation  at  Munich  Uni- 
versity last  year.  All  available  measures  of  position-angle 
and  distance  have  been  brought  together  and  compared 
with  those  derivable  from  the  new  elements  found,  making  the 
computation  of  great  value. 


GEOGR4PHICAL  NOTES. 

On  Tuesday,  Dr.  Nansen  lectured  in  Christiania  on  his  plan 
for  a  North  Pole  Expedition.  He  advocates  the  employment  of 
a  ship  built  with  a  special  view  to  strength,  having  its  sides  con- 
structed at  such  an  angle  that,  instead  of  being  crushed  by  the 
ice,  the  vessel  would  be  raised  by  it.  The  Expedition,  he 
thinks,  should  advance  through  the  Behring  Straits,  where  the 
vessel  would  be  carried  northward  by  a  favourable  current.  A  t 
the  New  Siberian  Island  the  vessel  would  enter  the  ice-floes.  Il 
would  then  *'  proceed  towards  the  North  Pole,  in  which  direc- 
tion the  current  would  probably  carry  it." 

The  Colonies  and  India  gives  the  last  news  from  Cooktown 
relating  to  Sir  William  Macgregor's  explorations  in  New  Guinea. 
His  project  was  to  ascend  the  Fly  River  on  another  voyage  of 
discovery.  It  seems  that  Sir  William  and  his  party,  in  a  steam 
launch,  dropped  anchor  in   the   river  on  December  14.      The 


Feb.  20,  1890J 


NATURE 


%n 


launch  stranded,  and  fifteen  canoes,  carrying  about  150  natives, 
bore  down  upon  the  explorers  and  commenced  a  savage  attack. 
The  Governor's  party  opened  fire,  and  the  natives  promptly 
beat  a  retreat.  After  about  half  an  hour,  however,  they  re- 
turned, bringing  a  pig  as  a  peace  offering.  Sir  William  conse- 
quently went  180  miles  further  up  the  river,  and  on  his  return 
visited  the  same  people  again,  to  find  them  quite  peaceably  in- 
clined. The  Governor  started  again  on  December  26  to  explore 
higher  up  the  Fly  River. 

The  Survey  Department  of  Burmah  has  in  preparation  a  new 
map  containing  all  the  latest  information  derived  from  the 
parties  sent  out  by  the  Department.  A  preliminary  issue 
omitting  all  the  mountain  ranges  has  recently  been  published. 

SiGNOR  G.  B.  Sacchiero,  Italian  Consul  at  Rangoon,  sends 
to  the  Bollettino  of  the  Italian  Geographical  Society  for 
December  an  interesting  notice  of  the  savage  Chin  tribes  who 
occupy  the  hilly  region  in  the  north  of  Burma  about  the  head- 
waters of  the  Irawady.  The  collective  tribal  name  is  variously 
written  Chin,  Kyen,  Kiyin,  Kachin,  Kakyen,  &c. ;  but  they  call 
themselves  Sihu,  and  according  to  Signor  Sacchiero  they  evi- 
dently belong  to  the  Burmese  branch  of  the  Mongol  stock. 
In  the  districts  brought  under  British  rule  many  have  already 
adopted  the  Burmese  dress,  and  these  can  with  difficulty  be 
•distinguished  from  the  Burmese  themselves.  But  the  language 
is  more  allied  to  that  of  the  widespread  Karen  race,  and  the 
Karen  alphabet  composed  by  the  American  missionaries  in 
Lower  Burma  is  well  suited  for  expressing  the  sdunds  of  the 
Chin  idiom.  The  Chins  themselves  have  no  knowledge  of 
letters  ;  nor  have  they  made  any  progress  beyond  the  rudest  state 
of  social  culture.  They  still  go  nearly  naked,  and  the  women  on 
arriving  at  the  age  of  puberty  are  tattooed  all  over  the  face  with 
a  black  pigment,  being  thus  disfigured  for  life,  either  to  prevent 
the  Burmese  or  the  neighbouring  tribes  from  kidnapping  them, 
or  else  to  distinguish  them  from  the  women  captured  by  the 
Chins  from  the  surrounding  peoples.  They  marry  early,  the 
bride  requiring  the  consent,  not  of  her  parents,  but  of  an  elder 
brother,  and  the  husband  promising  not  to  beat  her  too  much, 
nor  to  cut  her  hair  if  she  behaves  well.  The  family  yields 
obedience  to  the  father  alone,  who  recognizes  no  authority 
except  that  of  the  village  chief,  this  authority  passing  in  both 
cases  to  the  youngest  son.  The  men  always  carry  firearms,  and 
make  their  own  gunpowder,  using  instead  of  sulphur  a  seed 
called  aunglak,  first  roasted,  and  then  pounded  up  with  charcoal 
and  saltpetre,  three  parts  of  the  two  first  to  twenty  of  the 
last,  and  mixing  the  w  hole  with  alcohol,  or  tobacco  juice.  Both 
sexes  smoke  little  Indian  hookahs,  and  their  favourite  drink  is 
khaung,  a  kind  of  beer  extracted  from  fermented  rice.  They 
live  mainly  by  the  chase,  and  when  a  boar,  stag,  or  other  big 
game  is  captured,  there  are  great  rejoicings  in  the  village.  The 
quarry  is  covered  from  neck  to  tail  in  a  red  cloth,  and  pre- 
sented to  the  "  temple,"  or  abode  of  the  iiat  (spirit);  then  the 
"friend  of  the  nat"  (priest)  pronounces  a  blessing  on  the  success- 
ful hunter,  after  which  all  join  in  the  feast,  with  much  tam- 
taming,  shouting,  drinking,  and  dancing  through  the  village. 
When  they  descend  to  the  plains,  the  Chins  are  Buddhists,  but 
in  their  villages  spirit-worshipper--.  Not  only  every  village  and 
every  district,  but  every  person  has  his  special  tiat,  mostly  a 
malevolent  being  who  requires  to  be  pacified  by  propitiatory 
offerings.  The  vendetta  is  a  universal  institution,  feuds  being 
inherited  from  family  to  family,  from  tribe  to  tribe,  and  thus 
leading  to  constant  bloodshed.  If  a  man  is  drowned,  his  son 
reeks  vengeance  on  the  water  where  he  perished  by  piercing  it 
with  spears  or  slashing  it  about  with  long  knive^.  Many  of  the 
Chins  have  already  tendered  their  submission  to  the  British 
authorities,  and  arrangements  are  now  in  progress  for  extending 
orderly  government  over  the  whole  territory. 


ON  SOME  NEEDLESS  DIFFICULTIES  IN 
THE  STUDY  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY} 

J\   LITTLE  while  ago  I  read,  in  the  preface  to  a  work  on 
natural  history,  that  the  book  was  •'  of  little  value  to  the 
scientific  reader,  but  that  its  various  anecdotes,  and  its  minute 
detail  of  observation  would  be  found  useful  and  entertaining." 

What,   then,   may  the    "scientific  reader"   be   expected   to 
desire  ?     He  must  be,  in  my  opinion,  a  most  unreasonable  man, 

'  The  Presidential  Address  to  the  Royal  Microscopical  Society,  at  the 
annual  meeting,  on  February  12,  1890,  by  Dr.  C.  T.  Hudson,  F.R.S. 


if  he  does  not  thankfully  welcome  anecdotes  of  the  creatures  he 
wishes  to  study,  when  these  anecdotes  are  the  result  of  patient 
and  accurate  observation.  For  it  is  precisely  such  information, 
that  is  conspicuously  absent  from  many  scientific  memoirs  and 
monographs  ;  the  author  generally  spending  his  main  space  and 
strength  in  examining  the  shape  and  structure  of  his  animals, 
and  in  comparing  one  with  another,  but  giving  the  most  meagre 
details  of  their  lives  and  habits. 

Which,  then,  is  the  more  scientific  treatment  of  a  group  of 
animals — that  which  catalogues,  classifies,  measures,  weighs, 
counts,  and  dissects,  or  that  which  simply  observes  and  relates? 
Or,  to  put  it  in  another  way,  which  is  the  better  thing  to  do — 
to  treat  the  animal  as  a  dead  specimen,  or  as  a  living  one  ? 

Merely  to  state  the  question  is  to  answer  it.  It  is  the  living 
animal  that  is  so  intensely  interesting,  and  the  main  use  of 
the  indexing,  classifying,  measuring,  and  counting  is  to  enable 
us  to  recognize  it  when  aliye,  and  to  help  us  to  understand  its 
perplexing  actions. 

But,  it  may  be  objected,  that  because  the  study  of  the  living 
animal  is  the  more  interesting,  it  is  not  necessarily  the  more 
scientific ;  indeed,  that  the  amount  of  entertainment,  which  we 
may  get  out  of  the  pursuit  of  natural  history,  has  nothing  to  do 
with  the  question  at  all  ;  that  by  science  we  mean  accurate 
knowledge  presented  in  the  most  suitable  form  ;  that  shape, 
structure,  number,  weight,  comparison  are  the  fundamental 
notions,  with  wttich  sciences  of  every  kind  have  to  deal  ;  and 
that  scientific  natural  history  is  more  properly  that  which  takes 
cognizance  of  a  creature's  size,  form,  bodily  organs,  and  rela- 
tion to  other  creatures,  than  that  which  concerns  itself  with  the 
animal's  disposition  and  habits. 

I  can  fancy  that  I  already  hear  some  of  my  audience  say  : 
",But  why  set  up  any  antagonism  between  these  two  ways  of 
studying  a  creature  ?  Both  are  necessary  to  its  thorough  com- 
prehension, and  our  text-books  should  contain  information  of 
both  kinds  ;  we  should  be  told  how  an  animal  is  made,  where 
it  ought  to  be  placed  among  others  of  the  same  group,  and 
also  how  it  lives,  and  what  are  its  ways." 

Precisely  ;  that  is  just  what  memoirs  and  text-books  ought  to 
do  ;  but  what,  too  often,  they  do  noL  We  read  much  of  the 
animal's  organs  ;  we  see  plates  showing  that  its  bristles  have 
been  counted,  and  its  musculir  fibres  traced  to  the  last  thread  ; 
we  have  the  structure  of  its  tissues  analyzed  to  their  very  ele- 
ments ;  we  have  long  discussions  on  its  title  to  rank  with  this 
group  or  that ;  and  sometimes  even  disquisitions  on  the  probable 
form  and  habits  of  some  extremely  remote,  but  quite  hypothe- 
tical ancestor — some  "  archirotator  "  (to  take  an  instance  from 
my  own  subject)  who  is  made  to  degrade  in  this  way,  or  to  ad- 
vance in  that,  or  who  is  credited  with  one  organ,  or  deprived  of 
another,  just  as  the  ever-varying  necessities  of  a  desperate 
hypothesis  require  : — but  of  the  living  creature  itself,  of  the 
way  it  lives,  of  the  craft  with  which  it  secures  its  prey  or  out- 
wits its  enemies,  of  the  home  that  it  constructs,  of  its  charming 
confidence  or  its  diabolical  temper,  of  its  curious  courtship,  its 
droll  tricks,  its  games  of  play,  its  fun  and  spite,  of  its  perplexing 
stupidity  coupled  with  actions  of  almost  human  sagacity — of  all 
this,  this  which  is  the  real  natural  history  of  the  animal,  we,  too 
often,  hear  little  or  nothing.  And  the  reason  is  obvious,  for 
in  many  cases  the  writer  has  no  such  information  to  give  ;  and, 
even  when  he  has,  he  is  compelled  by  fashion  to  give  so  much 
space  to  that  which  is  considered  to  be  the  more  scientific  portion 
of  his  subject,  that  he  has  scant  room  for  the  more  interesting. 
Neither  ought  we  to  be  surprised  if  a  writer  is  "  gravelled  for 
the  lack  of  matter,"  when  he  comes  to  speak  of  an  animal's 
life  ;  for  the  study  of  the  lives  of  a  large  majority  is  a  difficult 
one.  It  requires  not  only  abundant  leisure,  but  superabundant 
patience,  a  residence  favourably  situated  for  the  pursuit,  and  an 
equally  favourable  condition  of  things  at  home.  The  student, 
too,  must  be  ready  to  adopt  the  inconvenient  hours  of  the  crea- 
tures that  he  watches,  and  be  indifferent  to  the  criticisms  of 
those  that  watch  Aim.  If  his  enthusiasm  will  not  carry  him, 
without  concern,  through  dark  nights,  early  mornings,  vile 
weather,  fatiguing  distances,  and  caustic  chaff,  the  root  of  the 
matter  is  not  in  him.  Besides,  he  ought  to  have  a  natural  apti- 
tude for  the  pursuit,  and  know  how  to  look  for  what  he  wants 
to  see  ;  or  if  he  does  not  know,  to  be  able  to  make  a  shrewd 
guess  :  and,  above  all,  when  circumstances  are  not  favourable, 
to  have  wit  enough  to  invent  some  means  of  making  them  so. 
And  yet  when  the  place,  the  man,  the  animals,  and  the  circum- 
stances all  seem  to  promise  a  rich  harvest  of  observations,  how 
often   it  happens  that  some  luckless  accident,  a  snapt   twig,  a 


376 


NA  TURE 


\Feb.  20,  1890 


lost  glass,  a  hovering  kestrel,  a  sudden  gust  of  wind,  a  roving 
dog,  or  a  summer  shower,  robs  the  unlucky  naturalist  of  his 
due  ;  nay,  it  sometimes  happens  that,  startled  by  some  rare 
sight,  or  lost  in  admiration  of  it,  he  himself  lets  the  happy 
moment  slip,  and  is  obliged  to  be  contented  with  a  sketch  from 
memory,  when  he  might  have  had  one  from  life. 

But  I  have  not  yet  got  to  the  bottom  of  my  budget — the 
heaviest  trouble  still  remains  ;  and  that  is,  that  the  result  of  a 
day's  watching  will  often  go  into  a  few  lines,  or  even  into  a  few 
words  ;  and  so  it  happens,  that  the  writer  of  the  history  of  a 
natural  group  of  animals  is  too  frequently  driven  to  fill  up  his 
space  with  minute  analysis  of  structure,  discussions  on  classifica- 
tion, disputes  on  the  use  of  obscure  organs,  or  descriptions  of 
trifling  varieties  ;  which,  exalted  to  the  rank  of  species,  fill  his 
pages  with  wearisome  repetitions  ;  for  were  he,  before  he  writes 
his  book,  to  endeavour  to  make  himself  acquainted  with  the 
habits  of  all  the  creatures  he  describes,  his  own  life-time  might 
be  spent  in  the  pursuit. 

We  will  now  take  a  different  case,  and  suppose  that  many 
years  have  been  spent  in  the  constant  and  successful  study  of  the 
animals  themselves  ;  and  that  the  time  has  come,  when  the 
naturalist  may  write  his  book,  with  the  hope  of  treating,  with 
due  consideration,  the  most  interesting  portion  of  his  subject.  He 
is  now  beset  with  a  new  class  of  difficulties,  and  finds  that  pub- 
lishers and  scientific  fashion  alike,  combine  to  drive  him  into  the 
old  groove  :  for  the  former  limit  his  space,  by  naturally  demur- 
ring to  a  constantly  increasing  number  of  plates  and  an  ever 
lengthening  text ;  while  the  latter  insists  so  strongly  on  having  a 
complete  record  of  the  structure,  and  points  of  difference,  of 
every  species,  however  insignificant,  that  it  is  hardly  possible  to 
do  much  more  than  give  that  record — a  mere  dry  shuck,  emptied 
of  nearly  all  that  makes  natural  history  delightful. 

And  so  we  come  round  again  to  the  point  that  I  have  already 
glanced  at,  viz.  "  Ought  natural  history  to  be  delightful  ?  " 

Ought  it  to  be  delightful !  Say,  rather,  ought  it  to  exist  ? 
What  title  has  the  greater  part  of  natural  history  to  any  existence 
but  that  it  charms  us  ?  It  is  true  that  this  study  may  help — does 
help  many — to  worthier  conceptions  of  the  unseen,  to  loftier 
hopes,  to  higher  praise ;  that  it  gives  us  broader  and  sounder 
notions  of  the  possible  relation  of  animals,  not  only  to  one 
another,  but  also  to  ourselves  ;  that  it  provides  us  with  the 
material  for  fascinating  speculations  on  the  embryology  of  our 
passions  and  mental  powers  ;  and  that  it  may  even  serve  to  sug- 
gest theories  of  the  commencement  and  end  of  things,  of  matter, 
of  life,  of  mind,  and  of  consciousness — ^grave  questions,  scarcely 
to  be  dealt  with  successfully  by  human  faculties,  but  in  a  condi- 
tion to  be  discussed  with  infinite  relish. 

When  I  speak,  then,  of  the  pleasure  we  derive  from  the  study 
of  natural  history,  I  include  these  graver  and  higher  pleasures 
in  the  word. 

Here  and  there,  too,  no  doubt,  the  knowledge  of  the  powers 
and  habits  of  animals  is  materially  useful  to  us ;  and,  indeed, 
in  the  case  of  some  of  the  minuter  organisms,  may  be  of  terrible 
importance  ;  but,  in  that  of  the  large  majority  of  creatures,  we 
might  go  out  of  the  world  unconscious  of  their  existence  (as, 
indeed,  very  many  people  do),  and  yet,  unlike  the  little  jackdaw, 
not  be  "a  penny  the  worse."  For  what  is  a  man  the  better  for 
studying  butterflies,  unless  he  is  delighted  with  their  beauty,  their 
structure,  and  their  transformations?  Why  should  he  learn  any- 
thing about  wasps  and  ants,  unless  their  ways  give  him  a  thrill 
of  pleasure  ?  What  can  the  living  plumes  of  the  rock-zoophytes 
do  for  us,  but  'witch  our  eyes  with  their  loveliness,  or  entrance 
us  with  the  sight  of  their  tiny  fleets  of  medusa- buds,  watery 
ghostlets,  flitting  away,  laden  with  the  fate  of  future  generations? 

When,  at  dusk,  we  steal  into  the  woods  to  hear  the  nightin- 
gale, or  watch  the  night-jar,  what  more  do  we  hope  for  than  to 
delight  our  ears  with  the  notes  of  the  one,  or  our  eyes  with  the 
flight  of  the  other?  When  the  microscope  dazzles  us  with  the 
sight  of  a  world,  whose  inhabitants  and  their  doings  surpass  the 
wildest  flights  of  nightmare  or  fairy  tale,  do  we  speculate  on 
what  possible  service  this  strange  creation  may  render  us  ?  Do 
we  give  a  thought  to  the  ponderous  polysyllables  that  these  mites 
bear  in  our  upper  world,  or  to  their  formal  marshalling  into 
ranks  and  companies,  which  are  ever  being  pulled  to  pieces,  to 
be  again  re-arranged  ?  No  !  it  is  the  living  creature  itself  which 
chains  us  to  the  magic  tube.  For  there  we  see  that  the 
dream  of  worlds  peopled  with  unimagined  forms  of  life — with 
sentient  beings  whose  ways  are  a  mystery,  and  whose  thoughts 
we  cannot  even  guess  at — is  a  reality  that  lies  at  our  very  feet ; 
that  the  air  we  breathe,   the  dust  that  plagues  our  nostrils,  the 


water  we  fear  to  drink,  teem  with  forms  more  amazing  than  any 
with  which  our  fancy  has  peopled  the  distant  stars  ;  and  that  the 
actions  of  some  of  the  humblest  arouse  in  us  the  bewildering 
suspicion,  that,  even  in  these  invisible  specks,  there  is  a  faint 
foreboding  of  our  own  dual  nature. 

If,  then,  we  make  some  few  exceptions,  we  are  entitled  to  say 
that  the  study  of  natural  history  depends  for  its  existence  on  the 
pleasure  that  it  gives,  and  the  curiosity  that  it  excites  and 
gratifies  :  and  yet,  if  this  be  so,  see  how  cruelly  we  often  treat 
it.  Round  its  fair  domain  we  try  to  draw  a  triple  rampart  of 
uncouth  words,  elaborate,  yet  ever-changing  classifications,  and 
exasperatingly  minute  subdivisions  ;  and  we  place  these  diffi- 
culties in  the  path  of  those  whose  advantages  are  the  least,  those 
who  have  neither  the  vigorous  tastes  that  enable  them  to  clear 
such  obstacles  at  a  bound,  nor  the  homes  whose  fortunate  position 
enables  them  to  slip  round  them.  For  modern  town  life  forces  a 
constantly  increasing  number  of  students  to  take  their  natural 
history  from  books  ;  and  too  often  these  are  either  expensive 
volumes  beyond  their  reach,  or  dismal  abridgments,  which  have 
shrunk,  under  examination  pressure,  till  they  are  little  else  than 
a  stony  compound  of  the  newest  classification  and  the  oldest 
woodcuts. 

But  the  happier  country  lad  wanders  among  fields  and 
hedges,  by  moor  and  river,  sea-washed  cliff^  and  shore,  learn- 
ing zoology  as  he  learnt  his  native  tongue,  not  in  paradigms 
and  rules,  but  from  Mother  Nature's  own  lips.  He  knows  the 
birds  by  their  flight,  and  (still  rarer  accomplishment)  by  their 
cries.  He  has  never  heard  of  the  CEdicnemus  crepitans,  the 
CJiuradrius  pluvialis,  or  the  Sqtiatarola  cinerea,  but  he  can  find 
a  plover's  nest,  and  has  seen  the  young  brown  peewits  peering 
at  him  from  behind  their  protecting  clods.  He  has  watched  the 
cunning  flycatcher  leaving  her  obvious,  and  yet  invisible  young, 
in  a  hole  in  an  old  wall,  while  it  carried  off"  the  pellets  that  might 
have  betrayed  their  presence  ;  and  has  stood  so  still  to  see  the 
male  redstart,  that  a  field-mouse  has  curled  itself  up  on  his 
warm  foot  and  gone  to  sleep.  He  gathers  the  delicate  buds  of 
the  wild  rose,  happily  ignorant  of  the  forty-odd  names  under 
which  that  luckless  plant  has  been  smothered  ;  and  if,  perchance, 
his  last  birthday  has  been  made  memorable  by  the  gift  of  a 
microscope,  before  long  he  will  be  glorying  in  the  transparent 
beauties  of  Asplanchna,  unaware  that  he  ought  to  crush  his 
living  prize,  in  order  to  find  out  which  of  some  half-dozen  equally 
barbarous  names  he  ought  to  give  it. 

The  faults,  indeed,  of  scientific  names  are  so  glaring,  and  the 
subject  is  altogether  so  hopeless,  that  I  will  not  waste  either 
your  time  or  my  patience  by  dilating  on  it.  But,  while  admitting 
that  distinct  creatures  must  have  different  names,  and  very  re- 
luctantly adm.itting  that  it  seems  almost  impossible  to  alter  the 
present  fashion  of  giving  them,  I  see  no  reason  why  these,  as 
well  as  the  technical  names  of  parts  and  organs,  should  not  be 
kept  as  much  as  possible  in  the  background,  and  not  suffered  to 
bristle  so  in  every  page,  that  we  might  almost  say  with  Job, 
"There  are  thistles  growing  instead  of  wheat,  and  cockle  instead 
of  barley." 

We  laughed  at  the  droll  parody  in  which  the  word  change  was 
defined  as  "  a  perichoretical  synechy  of  pamparallagmatic  and 
porroteroporeumatical  differentiations  and  integrations,"  yet  it 
would  not  be  a  difficult  matter  to  point  out  sentences,  in  recent 
works  on  our  favourite  pursuits,  that  would  suggest  a  similar 
travesty.  No  doubt,  new  notions  must  often  be  clothed  in  new 
language,  and  the  severer  studies  of  embryology  and  develop- 
ment require  a  minute  precision  of  statement  that  leads  to  the 
invention  of  a  multitude  of  new  terms.  Moreover,  the  idea  that 
the  meaning  of  these  terms  should  be  contained  in  the  names 
themselves  is  excellent ;  but  I  cannot  say  that  the  result  is  happy — 
I  might  almost  say  that  it  is  repulsive;  and  if  we  suffer  this  language 
to  invade  the  more  popular  side  of  natural  history,  I  fear  that 
we  shall  only  write  for  one  another,  and  that  our  scientific 
treatises  will  run  the  risk  of  being  looked  at  only  for  their 
plates,  and  of  being  then  bound  up  with  the  Russian  and 
Hungarian  memoirs. 

The  multiplication  of  species,  too,  is  a  crying  evil,  and  the 
exasperating  alterations  of  their  names,  in  consequence  of 
changing  classifications,  is  another.  The  former,  of  course,  is 
mainly  due  to  the  difficulty,  no  doubt  a  very  great  one,  of  deter- 
mining what  shall  be  a  species,  and  what  a  variety.  How" 
widely  experts  may  differ  on  this  question,  Darwin  has  shown, 
by  pointing  out  that,  excluding  several  polymorphic  genera  and 
many  trifling  varieties,  nearly  two  hundred  British  species,  which 
are  generally  considered   varieties,  have   all   been   ranked  by 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


377 


botanists  as  species  ;  and  that  one  expert  has  made  no  fewer 
than  thirty-seven  species  of  one  set  of  forms,  which  another 
arranges  in  three,  besides,  even  in  the  cases  where  successive 
naturalists  have  agreed  in  separating  certain  forms,  and  in  con- 
sidering them  true  species,  it  happens  now  and  then,  as  it  did 
to  myself,  that  a  chance  discovery  throws  down  the  barriers,  and 
unites  half-a-dozen  species  into  one. 

Under  these  circumstances  one  would  have  expected  that  the 
tendency  would  have  been  to  be  chary  of  making  new  species, 
and  no  doubt  this  is  the  practice  of  the  more  experienced 
naturalists  ;  but,  among  the  less  experienced,  there  is  a  bias  in 
the  opposite  direction ;  and  all  of  us,  I  fear,  are  liable  to  this 
bias  when  we  have  found  something  new  ;  for,  even  if  it  is 
somewhat  insignificant,  we  are  inclined  to  say  with  Touchstone, 
"A  poor  thing,  sir,  but  mine  own!"  Now,  were  this  fault 
mended,  much  would  be  avoided  that  tends  to  make  monographs 
both  expensive  and  dull ;  for,  though  the  needs  of  science 
require  a  minute  record  of  the  varieties  of  form,  which  are 
sometimes  of  high  importance  from  their  bearing  on  scientific 
theories,  yet  the  description  of  them,  as  varieties,  may  often  be 
dismissed  in  a  line  or  two,  when  nothing  further  is  set  forth 
than  their  points  of  difference ;  whereas,  if  these  forms  are 
raised  to  the  rank  of  species,  they  are  treated  with  all  the  spaced- 
out  dignities  ot  titles,  lists  of  synonyms,  specific  characters,  &c., 
&c.,  and  so  take  up  a  great  deal  of  valuable  room,  weary  the 
stuaent  with  repetitions,  and  divert  his  attention  from  the  typical 
forms. 

But  when  everything  has  been  done  that  seems  desirable, 
when  names  and  classification  have  been  made  both  simple  and 
stable,  and  the  number  of  species  reduced  to  a  minimum,  there 
will  still  remain  the  difficulty  that  monographs  must,  from  the 
nature  of  the  case,  generally  be  grave,  as  well  as  expensive 
books  of  reference,  rather  than  pleasant,  readable  books,  within 
the  reach  of  the  majority.  I  would  suggest  then,  that,  if  it  be 
possible,  each  group  of  animals  should  be  described  not  only  by 
an  all-embracing  monograph,  to  be  kept  for  reference  on  the 
shelves  of  societies  like  our  own,  but  by  a  book  that  would  deal 
only  with  a  moderate  number  ot  typical,  or  very  striking  forms  ; 
that  would  describe  ttiem  fully,  illustrate  them  liberally  from 
life,  and  give  an  ample  account  of  their  lives  and  habits. 

Such  a  book  should  give  as  little  of  the  classification  as 
possible  ;  it  should  aVoid  the  use  of  technical  terms,  and  above 
all,  It  stiould  be  written  with  the  earnest  desire  of  so  interesting 
tne  reader  in  the  subject,  that  he  should  fling  it  aside,  and  rush 
ott  to  find  the  animals  themselves.  By  this  means  we  should 
not  only  get  that  active  army  of  out-of-door  observers,  which 
science  so  greatly  needs  ;  but,  by  bringing  the  account  of  each 
group  into  a  reasonable  compass,  we  stiould  enable  students  of 
natural  tiistory  to  get  a  fair  knowledge  of  many  subjects,  and  so 
greatly  widen  their  ideas  and  multiply  their  pleasures. 

For  why  should  we  be  content  to  read  only  one  or  two 
chapters  ot  Nature's  book?  To  be  interested  in  many  things — 
1  had  almost  said  in  everything — and  thus  to  have  unfailing 
agreeable  occupation  for  our  leisure  hours,  is  no  bad  receipt  for 
nappiness.  But  life  is  short,  and  its  duties  leave  scant  time  for 
such  pursuits  ;  so  that  to  acquire  a  specialist's  knowledge  of  one 
suuject  would  often  be  to  exchange  the  choice  things  of  many 
subjects  lor  the  uninteresting  things  of  one.  And  how  uninter- 
esting many  of  them  are  !  How  is  it  possible  for  any  human 
oein^  to  take  pleasure  in  being  able  to  distinguish  between  a 
uozcii  similar  creatures,  that  differ  from  one  another  in  some 
tritling  matter ;  that  have  a  spike  or  two  more  or  less  on  their 
backs,  or  a  varying  number  ot  undulations  in  the  curve  of  their 
jaws,  or  differently  set  clumps  of  bristles  on  their  foreheads? 
Why  should  we  waste  our  time,  and  our  thoughts,  on  such 
matters  ?  The  specialist,  unfortunately,  must  know  these  things, 
as  well  as  a  hundred  others  equally  painful  to  acquire  and  to 
retain,  and  no  doubt  he  has  his  reward  ;  but  that  reward  is  not  the 
ucep  delight  that  is  to  be  found  in  the  varied  study  of  the  humbler 
animals  ;  of  those  beings  "whom  we  do  but  see,  and  as  little 
know  their  state,  or  can  describe  their  interests  or  their  destiny, 
as  we  can  tell  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  sun  and  moon  ;  .  .  crea- 
tures who  are  as  much  strangers  to  us,  as  mysterious,  as  if  they 
were  the  fabulous,  unearthly  beings,  more  powerful  than  man, 
ycL  his  slaves,  which  Eastern  superstitions  have  invented." 

those,  then,  who  are  blest  with  a  love  of  natural  history 
should  never  dull  their  keen  appreciation  of  the  wonders  and 
beauties  of  living  things,  by  studying  minute  specific  differences  ; 
or  by  undertaking  the  uninteresting  office  of  finding  and  record- 
ing animals,  that  may  indeed  be  rare,  but  which  difi'er  from  those 


already  known  in  points,  whose  importance  is   due   solely  tor 
arbitrary  rules  of  classification. 

This   eagerness,    to   find   something  new,    errs  not  only  in 
wasting  time  and  thought  on  m.atters  essentially  trivial  and  dull, 
but  in  neglecting  things  of  the  greatest  interest,  which  are  always 
and  everywhere  within   reach.     Take,  for  instance,  the  case  of 
Melicerta  ringens.     What  is  more  common,  what  more  lovely, 
than   this  well-known   creature  ?      And  yet   how  much   there 
remains  to  be  found  out  about  it.     No  one,  for  example,  has 
ever  had  the  patience  to  watch  the  animal  from  its  birth  to  its^ 
death ;   to  find  out  its  ordinary  length  of  life,  the  time  that  it 
takes  to  reach  its  full  growth,  the  period  that  elapses  between 
its  full  growth  and  death,  or,  indeed,  if  there  be  such  a  period. 
And  yet  even  these  are  points  which  are  well  worth  the  settling. 
For,  if  Meliceria  reaches  its  full  growth  any  considerable  time 
before  the  termination  of  its  life,  it  would  seem  probable  that, 
owing  to  the  constant  action  of  its  cilia,  it  would  either  raise  its 
tube   far  above   the   level   of  its   head,  or  else   be  constantly 
engaged  in  the  absurd  performance  of  making  its  pellets  and 
then  throwing  them  away.     Who  has  ever  found   it  in  such  a 
condition,  or  seen  it  so  engaged  ?  yet  the  uninterrupted  action  of 
the  pellet  cup  would  turn  out   the  six   thousand  pellets,  which 
form  the  largest  tube  that  I  am  acquainted  with,  in  about  eight 
days,  and  those  of  an  average  tube  in  less  than  three ;  while  the 
animal  will   live  (according   to   Mr.   J.    Hood)  ^   nearly   three 
months  in  a  zoophyte  trough,  and  no  doubt  much  longer  in  its 
natural  condition.       It   is  true  that   the  creature's  industry  in 
tube-making  is  not  continuous.  It  is  often  shut  up  inside  its  tube, 
when  all  ciliary  action  ceases  ;  and,  moreover,  when  expanded, 
it  may  be  seen  at  times  to  allow  the  formed  pellet  to  drift  a\yayf 
instead  of  depositing  it  ;  but,  allowing  for  this,  there  is  no  little 
difficulty  in  understanding  how  it  is  that,  with  so  vigorous  a 
piece   of   mechanism  as   the  pellet-cup,   the  tube  at  all  ages, 
except  the  earliest,  so  exactly  tits  the  animal.     I  am  aware  that 
it  has  been  stated  that  the  whole  of  the  cilia  (including  those  of 
the  pellet-cup)  are  under  the  animal's  control,  and  that  their 
action  can  be  stopped,  or  even  reversed,  at  pleasure.     But  this, 
I  think,  is  an  error.   Illusory  appearances,  like  those  of  a  turning 
cog-wheel,  may  be  produced  by  viewing  the  ciliary  wreath  from 
certain  points,  and  under  certain  conditions  of  illumination  ;  and 
these  apparent  motions  are  often  reversed,  or  even  stopped,  by  a 
slight  alteration  either  in  the  position  of  the  animal,  in  the  direction 
of  the  light,  or  in  the  focussing  of  the  objective.     When,  how- 
ever, under  any  circumstances,  the  cilia  themselves  are  distinctly 
seen,   they  are  invariably  found  to  be  simply  moving  up  and 
down  ;    now   turning   sharply  towards    their    base,    and    now 
recovering  their  erect  position.      Even   the  undoubtedly  real 
reversal  of  the  revolution   of  the  pellet  in  its  cup,  which   is- 
constantly   taking   place,    can   be    easily    explained    by  purely 
mechanical  considerations,  and  consistently  with  the  continuous 
up   and   down   motion    of  the   cilia.     Moreover,   of  the  actual 
stoppage   of   the   cilia,    in    the    expanded    Rotiferon,    I    have 
never  seen  a  single  instance.      In  all  cases,   on  the  slightest 
opening  of  the  corona,  the  cilia  begin  to  quiver,  and  they  are 
always  in  full  action,  even  before  the  disk  is  quite  expanded; 
I  while,  should  a  portion  of  the  coronal  disk  chance  to  be  torn  away, 
I  its  cilia  will  continue  to  beat  for  some  time  after  its  severance  : 
1  so  that  there  is  good  reason  for  believing,  that  the  ciliary  action 
j  is  beyond  the  animal's  control. 

It  IS  possible,  indeed,  that  Melicerta  may  continue  to  grow  (as- 
j  Mr.  Hood  says  that  the  Floscules  appear  to  do)  as  long  as  it 
'  lives  ;  or  it  may  adopt  the  plan  of  some  species  of  (Ecisies, 
which,  to  prevent  themselves  from  being  hampered  by  their 
ever-growing  tubes,  quit  their  original  station  at  the  bottom  of 
the  tube,  and  attach  themselves  to  it  above,  creeping  gradually 
upwards  as  the  tube  lengthens.  At  any  rate  it  would  be 
interesting  and  instructive  to  watch  the  growth  of  a  Melicerta, 
and  the  building  of  its  tube,  from  the  animal's  birth  to  its  death. 
An  aquarium,  in  which  Melicerta  would  live  healthily  and  breed 
freely,  could  easily  be  contrived,  and  a  little  ingenuity  would 
enable  the  observer  to  remove  any  selected  individual  to  a 
zoophyte  trough  and  back  again,  without  injury  ;  and  his  tfo^D'^ 
perhaps  would  be  further  repaid  by  such  a  sight  as  once  delighted 
my  eyes  at  Clifton,  where  I  picked,  from  one  of  the  tanks  of 
the  Zoological  Gardens,  some  Vallisneria,  whose  ribbon-like 
leaves  were   literally  furred   with   the  yellow-brown   tubes  of 

■  Mr.  Hood,  of  Dundee,  has  kept  in  his  troughs  Melicerta  ringens  for  79- 
days,  Limnias  ceratophylli  for  83  days,  Cephalosiplton  limntas  foj  89  days  . 
the  Floscnlarice  usually  lived  abjut  50  days  ;  but  F.  Hoodn  died,  before 
maturity,  in  16  days. 


378 


NATURE 


\Feb.  20,  1890 


Melicerta.  I  coiled  one  of  these  round  the  wall  of  a  deep  cell, 
and  thus  brought  into  the  field  of  view,  at  once,  more  than  a 
hundred  living  MeliccrtcB  of  all  ages  and  sizes,  and  all  with 
their  wheels  in  vigorous  action  ;  a  display  never  to  be  for- 
gotten. 

Such  a  tank,  so  stocked  and  managed,  would  probably  enable 
a  patient  and  ingenious  observer  to  decide  several  other  points, 
about  which  we  are,  at  present,  in  ignorance  :  to  say  whether  the 
same  individual  always  lays  eggs  of  the  same  kind,  or  whether 
it  may  lay  now  female  eggs,  now  male,  now  ephippial  eggs  ;  and 
to  say  what  determines  the  kind  of  egg  that  is  to  be  laid  ; 
whether  it  is  the  age  of  the  individual,  or  the  supply  of  food,  or 
temperature,  or  sexual  intercourse  that  is  the  potent  cause. 

It  would,  too,  hardly  be  possible  for  the  male,  to  escape  the 
observation  of  a  naturalist,  who  possessed  a  tank  in  which  were 
hundreds  of  Melicertce :  and  the  male  is  as  yet  almost  unknown. 

Judge  Bedwell  found  in  the  tubes  of  the  female,  in  winter,  a 
small  Rotiferon  resembling  the  supposed  male,  that  I  had  seen 
playing  about  M.  tubularia  ;  only  the  former  had  a  forked  foot, 
and  sharp  jaws  that  were  at  times  protruded  beyond  the  coronal 
disc.  Its  frequent  occurrence  in  the  tubes  in  various  stages  of 
development,  and  the  nonchalance  with  which  the  female  suf- 
fered it  to  nibble  at  her  ciliary  wreath,  inclined  the  observer  to 
conclude,  that  the  animal  was  the  long  sought-for  male.  Un- 
fortunately it  was  only  observed  when  in  motion,  so  that  its 
internal  structure  was  not  made  out  ;  and  the  matter  therefore 
still  rests  in  some  doubt. 

No  doubt  it  is  a  strong  argument  that  the  female  would 
probably  suffer  nothing  but  a  male  to  take  such  liberties  with 
her ;  but  it  would  seem,  from  the  following  account,  that  it  is 
possible  for  such  freedoms  to  be  pushed  too  far, 

Mr.  W.  Dingwall,  of  Dundee,  was  on  one  occasion  watching 
a  male  Fioscule  circling  giddily  round  a  female,  and  constantly 
annoying  her  by  swimming  into  her  fully  expanded  coronal  cup. 
Again  and  again  she  darted  back  into  her  tube,  only  to  find  her 
troublesome  wooer  blocking  up  her  cup,  and  sadly  interfering 
with,  what  to  a  Fioscule  is,  the  very  serious  business  of  eating — 
for  these  animals  will  often  eat  more  than  their  own  bulk  in  a 
few  hours.  It  was  clear  at  last  that  the  lady  would  not  tolerate 
this  persistent  interference  with  her  dinner  ;  for  when — after 
waiting,  rather  a  longer  time  than  usual,  closed  up  in  her 
tube — she  once  more  expanded,  only  to  find  him  once  more 
in  his  old  position,  she  lost  all  patience,  and  effectually 
put  an  end  to  his  absurdities,  by  giving  one  monstrous  gulp, 
and  swallowing  her  lover.  It  will  not  surprise  you  to  hear 
that  he  did  not  agree  with  her,  and  that  after  a  short  time 
she  gave  up  all  hope  of  digesting  her  mate,  and  shot  him 
out  into  the  open  again,  along  with  the  entire  contents  of  her 
crop.  He  fell  a  shapeless,  motionless  lump  ;  the  two  score  and 
ten  minutes  of  a  male  Rotiferon's  life  cut  short  to  five  ;  but, 
strange  to  say,  in  a  second  or  two,  first  one  or  two  cilia  gave  a 
flicker,  then  a  dozen  ;  then  its  body  began  to  unwrinkle  and  to 
plump  up  ;  and,  at  last,  the  whole  corona  gave  a  gay  whirl,  and 
the  male  shot  off  as  vigorous  as  ever,  but  no  doubt  thoroughly 
cured  of  its  first  attachment. 

I  have  taken  Melicerta  riiigens,  as  an  example  of  what  yet 
remains  to  be  done,  even  with  an  animal  which  is  as  common  in 
a  ditch,  as  a  fly  is  in  a  house  ;  but  almost  every  other  Rotiferon 
would  have  done  equally  well,  for  there  is  scarcely  a  single  species, 
whose  life-histoiy  has  been  thoroughly  worked  out. 

To  me,  natural  history  in  many  of  its  branches  seems  to 
resemble  a  series  of  old,  rich  mines,  that  have  been  just  scratched 
at  by  our  remote  ancestors,  and  then  deserted.  Our  predecessors 
did  their  best  with  such  feeble  apparatus  as  they  had  ;  it  was  not 
much,  perhaps,  but  it  was  wonderful  that  they  did  it  at  all  with 
no  better  appliances  ;  and  it  irks  me  to  think  that  we,  who  are 
equipped  in  a  way  which  they  could  not  even  dream  of,  should 
turn  our  backs  on  the  treasures  lying  at  our  feet,  and  go  off 
prospecting  in  new  spots,  contented  too  often  with  a  poor  result, 
merely  because  it  is  from  a  new  quarter. 

Besides,  the  love  of  novelty  is  a  force  too  valuable  to  be  wasted 
on  a  mere  hunt  for  new  species  in  any  one  group  of  animals, 
especially  unimportant  ones.  It  should  rather  be  used  to  make 
us  acquainted  with  the  more  striking  forms  of  many  groups. 
Let  us  have  no  fear  of  the  reproach  of  superficial  knowledge  ; 
everyone's  knowledge  is  superficial  about  almost  everything ; 
and  even  in  the  case  of  those  few  who  have  thoroughly  mastered 
some  one  subject,  their  knowledge  of  that  must  have  been 
superficial  for  a  great  portion  of  their  time.  Indeed,  the  taunt 
is  absurd.     I  can  imagine  that  a  superficial  knowledge  of  law. 


or  surgery,  or  navigation  may  bring  a  man  into  trouble ;  but 
what  possible  harm  can  it  do  himself,  or  anyone  else,  that  he  is 
content  with  knowing  five  Rotifera  instead  of  five  hundred? 
And  yet  if  any  naturalist  were  to  study  only  Flosctilaria, 
Philodina,  Copeus,  Brachionus,  and  Pedalion,  it  would  give  him 
the  greatest  possible  pleasure,  as  well  as  an  excellent  general 
notion  of  the  whole  class.  Let  any  tyro  at  the  seaside  watch  the 
ways  and  growth  of  a  Plumularia,  or  of  a  rosy  feather-star,  his 
knowledge  of  the  groups  to  which  they  belong  could  certainly 
not  be  dignified  even  with  the  term  "superficial" — "linear"  or 
"punctiform"  would  be  more  appropriate;  but  the  pleasure, 
that  he  would  derive  from  such  a  study,  could  not  be  gauged  by 
counting  the  number  of  animals  that  he  had  examined.  It 
would  depend  on  the  man  himself;  and  might,  I  should  readily 
imagine,  far  exceed  that  derived  by  the  study  of  a  hundred  times 
the  number  of  forms  in  books ;  especially  when  such  a  study 
had  been  undertaken,  not  from  a  natural  delight  in  it,  but  from 
some  irrelevant  reason,  such  as  to  support  a  theory,  to  criticize 
an  opponent,  to  earn  a  distinction,  or  to  pass  an  examination. 

In  truth  that  knowledge  of  any  group  of  animals,  which  would 
rightly  be  called  superficial  when  contrasted  with  the  knowledge 
of  an  expert,  is  often  sufficient  to  give  us  a  satisfactory  acquaintance 
with  the  most  interesting  creatures  in  it  ;  to  make  us  familiar 
with  processes  of  growth  and  reproduction  too  marvellous  to  be 
imagined  by  the  wildest  fancy ;  and  to  unfold  to  us  the  lives  of 
creatures  who,  while  possessing  bodily  frames  so  unlike  our  own 
that  we  are  sometimes  at  a  los;  to  explain  the  functions  of  their 
parts,  yet  startle  us  by  a  display  of  emotions  and  mental 
glimmerings,  that  raise  a  score  of  disquieting  questions. 

Moreover,  there  is  another  excellent  reason  why  we  should  not 
confine  our  attention  to  one  subject ;  and  that  is,  that  even  the 
most  ardent  naturalist  must  weary  at  times  of  his  special  pursuit. 
Variety  is  the  very  salt  of  life  ;  we  all  crave  for  it,  and  in 
natural  history,  at  all  events,  we  can  easily  gratify  the  craving.  If 
we  are  tired  of  ponds  and  ditches,  there  are  the  rock-pools  of  our 
south-western  shores,  and  the  surface  of  our  autumn  seas.  A 
root  of  oar-weed  torn  at  random  from  a  rocky  ledge,  an  old 
whelk  shell  from  deep  water,  a  rough  stone  from  low-water  mark, 
the  rubbish  of  the  dredge, — each  and  all  will  afford  us  delightful 
amusement.  It  is  wonderful,  too,  what  prizes  lurk  in  humble 
things,  and  how  often  these  fall  to  beginners.  The  very  first 
time  that  I  tried  skimming  the  sea  with  a  muslin  net,  I  picked  a 
piece  of  green  seaweed  off  the  muslin,  intending  to  throw  it 
away  ;  but,  seeing  a  little  brown  spot  on  it,  I  dropped  the  weed 
(not  a  square  inch)  into  a  bottle  of  sea-water,  instead.  At  once 
the  brown  speck  started  off  and  darted  wildly  round  the  bottle. 
It  was  too  small  to  be  made  out  with  the  naked  eye,  but  by  the 
time  I  had  brought  my  lens  to  bear,  it  had  vanished.  I  hunted 
all  over  the  bottle,  and  could  see  nothing,  neither  with  the  lens 
nor  without  it.  I  was  half  inclined  to  throw  away  the  water  ; 
but,  as  I  was  certain  that  I  had  seen  something  in  it  two  minutes 
before,  I  corked  up  the  bottle  and  took  it  home.  When  I  next 
looked  at  it,  there  was  the  little  brown  creature  flying  about  as 
wildly  as  ever.  I  soon  made  out,  now,  that  I  had  caught  a  very 
tiny  cephalopod — something  like  an  octopus — and  with  a  pipette 
I  fished  it  out,  and  dropped  it  into  a  glass  cell.  At  least  I 
dropped  the  water  from  the  pipette  into  the  cell  ;  but  the  animal 
itself  had  vanished  again  ;  I  could  not  see  it  either  in  the  bottle 
or  the  cell.  I  was  not  going  to  be  tricked  again ;  so  I  pushed 
the  cell  under  the  microscope,  and  there  was  my  prize  ;  motion- 
less, but  for  its  panting  ;  and  watching  me,  as  it  were,  up  the 
microscope  with  its  big  blue-green  eyes.  It  was  almost  colour- 
less, and  was  dotted  at  wide  intervals  with  very  minute  black 
spots,  set  quincunx  fashion — spots  absolutely  invisible  to  the 
sharpest  unaided  sight. 

As  I  looked  it  began  to  blush — to  blush  faint  orange,  then 
deeper  orange,  then  orange-brown  ;  a  patch  of  colour  here, 
another  there,  now  running  across  one  side  of  the  body,  now 
fading  away,  again  to  appear  on  a  tentacle  ;  till  at  last,  as  it  re- 
covered from  its  alarm,  each  black  spot  began  to  quiver  with 
rapid  expansions  and  contractions,  and  then  to  spread  out  in  ever 
varying  tints,  till  its  wavering  outlines  had  met  the  expansions 
of  its  neighbouring  spots  ;  and  the  little  creature,  regaining  its 
colour  and  its  courage  at  the  same  moment,  rush2d  off  once  more 
in  a  headlong  course  round  the  cell. 

I  was  the  merest  beginner  when  I  saw  this,  but  I  had  the  good 
luck,  knowing  nothing  whatever  about  it,  and  never  having  given 
the  subject  a  thought,  to  see,  with  my  own  eyes,  how  effectually 
cuttlefishes  are  protected  by  their  loss  of  colour,  and  also  to  see 
how  the  loss  takes  place. 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


379 


No  doubt  the  sea-side  of  our  south-western  coasts— I  mean 
its  creeks,  not  "the  thundering  shores  of  Bude  and  Bos" — is  a 
paradise  for  microscopists  ;  but  there  is  no  need  that  we  should 
travel  so  far  afield.  Our  inland  woods,  our  lanes  and  pasture-;, 
will  yield  to  us  a  thousand  beauties  and  wonders.  The  scarlet 
pimpernel  will  show  its  glorious  stamens,  the  flowers  of  the 
wound-wort  glow  like  a  costly  exotic  ;  wild  mignonette  will  rival 
in  its  fantastic  shape  the  strangest  orchid  ;  the  humblest  grass 
will  lift  a  tuft  of  glistening  crystals  ;  the  birch  and  salad-burnet 
shake  out  their  crimson  tassels  ;  the  Jungermanns  will  display 
their  mimic  volcanoes,  the  mosses  unfold  the  delicate  lacework 
of  their  dainty  urns.  But  the  time  would  fail  me  to  name  one 
tithe  of  those  sources  of  wonder  and  delight  that  lie  all  around 
us  ;  and  most  of  which,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Rotifera,  contain 
numberless  points  on  which  we  are  all  happily  ignorant,  and 
therefore  in  the  best  of  all  possible  conditions  for  deriving  end- 
less pleasure  and  instruction  from  them.  Besides,  my  time  and  your 
patience  must,  I  think,  be  drawing  to  a  close  ;  I  would  then  only 
once  more  suggest,  that  we  should  not  only  explore  for  ourselves 
all  these  "  pastures  new" — no  matter  how  imperfectly — but  that 
we  should  encourage  those,  who  can  be  our  most  efficient  guides, 
to  indulge  us  with  the  main  results  in  the  simplest  language. 
Surely  one  of  the  most  charming  subjects,  that  can  interest 
human  beings,  admits  of  being  so  treated  ;  and  there  can  be  no 
good  reason  why  the  Muse  of  Natural  History  (for  no  doubt  there 
is  such  a  Muse)  should  resemble  that  curious  nymph  among  the 
Oribatidce,  whom  Mr.  Michell  found  lying  under  the  moss  of 
an  old  tree,  half  smothered  in  a  heap  of  her  cast-off"  skins, 
admirable  types  ;of  successive  classifications,  and  abandoned 
nomenclature. 

Happily,  however,  books  in  such  matters  are  of  little  import- 
ance ;  and  names  and  classifications  of  still  less  :  both  these 
latter,  indeed,  are  of  ephemeral  interest ;  they  are  the  pride  of 
to-day,  and  the  reproach  of  to-morrow.  It  is  to  the  living 
animals  themselves  that  we  must  turn,  fascinated  not  only  with 
their  beauty  and  their  actions,  but  with  the  questions  which  the 
contemplation  of  them  perpetually  provokes,  and  very  rarely 
answers. 

For,  in  the  long  procession  of  the  humbler  creatures,  who  can 
tell  where  life  first  develops  into  consciousness,  and  why  it  does 
so  ;  where  consciousness  first  stretches  beyond  the  present  so  as 
to  include  the  past,  and  why  that  happens  ;  or  at  what  point, 
and  why,  memory  and  consciousness  themselves  are  lighted  up  by 
the  first  faint  flashes  of  reason  ? 

We  know  nothing  now  of  such  matters,  and  probably  we  never 
shall  know  much  ;  but  the  mere  fact  that  the  study  of  natural 
history  irresistibly  draws  us  to  the  consideration  of  these  ques- 
tions, gives  to  her  pleasant  features  an  undoubted  dignity,  and 
raises  the  charming  companion  of  our  leisure  hours  to  the  rank 
of  an  intimate  sharer  of  some  of  our  gravest  thoughts. 


THE  TOTAL  ECLIPSE. 

T^HE  U.S. S.  Pensacola  arrived  at  Saint  Paul  de  Loanda  on 
December  6,  after  a  voyage  of  51  days  from  New  York, 
having  made  the  ports  of  Horta,  Fayal,  in  the  Azores,  Nov- 
ember 2-3  ;  of  Saint  Vincent,  in  the  Cape  Verdes,  November 
10-12;  of  Saint  George's  Parish,  Sierra  Leone,  November  18- 
20  ;  and  of  Fllmina,  on  the  Gold  Coast,  November  26-28. 

Immediately  on  landing  at  Loanda,  it  was  found  that  the  Rio 
Quanza  steamer,  sailing  bi-weekly  for  Muxima,  had  left  two 
days  previously,  and  that  recent  washouts  along  the  line  of  the 
Caminho  de  Ferro  Trans-Africano  made  it  impracticable  for 
the  Expedition  to  reach  either  Muxima  or  Cunga  early  enough 
to  allow  sufficient  time  for  moun'.ing  and  adjusting  the  instru- 
ments for  the  eclipse. 

I  therefore  at  once  decided  to  locate  the  Expedition  at  or 
near  Cape  Ledo.  Mention  should  be  made  here  of  the  courteous 
civilities  of  His  Excellency  the  Governor  of  Loanda,  for  his 
kindly  interest  in  the  Expedition,  and  the  facilities  he  offered 
for  the  prosecution  of  the  various  fields  of  its  work. 

The  Pensacola  came  to  anchor  alongside  H.  M.  S.  Bramble  in 
the  little  bay  to  the  north  of  Cape  Ledo,  on  the  afternoon  of 
Sunday,  December  8.  The  Eclipse  Station  was  selected  in  a 
very  favourable  spot  close  to  the  shore  cliffs,  and  the  sites  of  the 
principal  instruments  were  determined  before  night. 

A  week  or  ten  days'  hard  work  sufficed  for  getting  a  large 
amount  of  the  apparatus  in  readiness  for  the  eclipse.  I  placed 
Prof.  Bigelow  in  charge  of  the  direct  photoheliograph  of  nearly 


40  feet  focal  length,  and  detailed  Mr.  Davis  to  assist  him. 
Mr.  Jacoby  was  intrusted  with  the  charge  of  the  time-determina- 
tions, and  longitude  and  latitude  work.  The  Bramble  was  at 
Cape  Ledo  on  a  mission  like  that  of  the  Pensacola,  and  attend- 
ing upon  the  English  Eclipse  Expedition  in  charge  of  Mr.  A. 
Taylor,  F.R.A.  S.  ;  and  through  the  courtesy  of  her  commanding 
officer.  Captain  Langdon,  R.N.,  advantage  was  taken  of  her 
run  to  St.  Paul  de  Loanda  and  return,  December  14-17,  to 
make  a  chronometric  determination  of  the  longitude,  by  com- 
parison with  the  time  at  Loanda  as  determined  by  Mr.  Preston, 
who  was  left  there  by  the  Expedition  for  the  gravity  and  mag- 
netic work.  Also,  on  the  Bramble's  second  return  to  Loanda, 
on  December  23,  another  comparison  was  made. 

Prof.  Abbe  was  in  charge  of  the  meteorological  work  and  of 
the  organization  of  parties  of  observers  from  the  ship's  company. 
A  large  amount  of  valuable  material  results  from  his  work. 

The  mounting  and  adjustment  of  the  extensive  apparatus  for 
the  total  eclipse,  I  reserved  for  myself.  A  duplex  polar  axis 
eleven  feet  in  length  had  been  constructed  of  six-inch  iron 
tubings,  and  mounted  with  great  stability.  This  axis  was 
driven  by  powerful  clock-work  of  extreme  precision,  made  by 
Mr.  Saegmueller,  of  Washington.  On  this  single  axis  was 
mounted  the  totality-battery,  consisting  of  2  Brashear  reflecting 
telescopes  of  8  inches  diameter,  four  Clark  telescopes  of  3J,  5, 
^\,  and  8  inches  aperture,  the  second  being  rigged  with  an  eye- 
piece enlarging  the  sun's  image  to  a  diameter  of  4^  inches,  the 
third  being  used  as  a  high  power  directing  telescope,  while  the 
fourth,  a  photographic  doublet  with  10  inch  back  lens,  loaned 
by  the  Harvard  College  Observatory,  was  arranged  for  a  series 
of  twelve  exposures,  two  of  which  were  made  through  an  ortho- 
chromatizing  screen  provided  by  Mr.  Carbutt ;  two  six-inch 
Dallmeyer  rapid  rectilinear  lenses  of  24  and  38  inches  focus  ; 
one  Schroeder  triple  objective,  of  6  inches  aperture  and  22 
inches  focus  ;  one  Gundlach  orthoscope  of  3  inches  aperture  and 
21  inches  focus  ;  two  flint  spectroscopes  and  one  quartz  spectro- 
scope loaned  by  Harvard  College  Observatory  ;  a  duplex  photo- 
meter of  75  inches  focus  also  provided  by  Prof.  Pickering,  and 
his  reversing  layer  spectroscope  for  photographing  a  spectrum, 
trail  for  fifteen  seconds  both  before  and  after  second  and  third 
contacts  ;  a  5  inch  Ross  lens  of  42  inch  focus  ;  a  4  inch  Spencer 
objective  of  36  inch  focus,  and  a  6 '4  inch  Merz-Clark  objective, 
both  rigged  with  the  means  of  automatic  variation,  of  aperture 
during  totality  ;  and  lastly,  two  duplex  cameras  provided  by  Dr. 
Wright  of  the  Sloane  Laboratory  of  Yale  University,  for  photo- 
graphic record  of  the  polarization  of  the  corona.  In  all  there 
were  23  f>bjectives  and  two  mirrors,  with  their  axes  adjusted; 
into  parallelism. 

With  the  exception  of  the  Gundlach  camera,  which  was  re- 
served for  a  special  investigation  of  the  extreme  outer  corona, 
all  this  apparatus  was  operated  automatically,  by  an  adaptation 
of  the  pneumatic  organ- valve  system  of  Mr.  Merritt  Gaily,  of 
New  York.  Exposing  shutters  were  opened  and  closed,  sensi- 
tised plates  were  exchanged  for  others  as  soon  as  exposed,  and 
all  the  mechanical  movements  were  accomplished  with  entire 
precision.  Also,  by  employing  an  ordinary  chronograph  in 
conjunction  with  the  valve  system,  the  exact  time  of  beginning 
and  end  of  each  exposure  became  a  matter  of  accurate  record. 

All  this  apparatus  was  brought  into  operation  during  the 
period  of  total  eclipse,  and  over  300  exposures  were  made  in  a 
period  of  3m.  losec.  ;  but  no  photographs  of  the  corona  were 
secured,  as  the  sun  was  completely  obscured  by  clouds.  How- 
ever, the  entire  success  of  the  pneumatic  movements  is  a  result 
of  no  little  value  in  view  of  eclipse  work  in  the  future. 

In  addition  to  this,  a  silver-on-glass  mirror,  of  20  inch  diameter 
and  75  feet  focal  length,  by  Brashear,  lent  to  the  Expedition  by 
Prof.  Langley,  was  so  mounted  as  to  throw  an  image  of  the 
corona  up  the  cliff"  and  just  underneath  the  sun  at  the  time  of 
totality.  At  the  focus  a  beauiiful  10  inch  image  of  the  sun  was 
formed,  and  20  x  24  inch  plates  of  the  highest  sensitiveness 
were  in  readiness  to  record  the  coronal  streamers.  This  unusual 
apparatus  was  also  rendered  inoperative  by  clouds. 

With  the  direct  photoheliograph,  however,  very  gratifying 
success  was  secured.  Seventy  pictures  of  the  partial  phases 
were  made  before  totality,  and  forty  after.  The  serious  obstacles 
to  the  operation  of  so  long  a  tube  were  successfully  overcome 
by  means  of  a  skeleton  mounting,  a  combined  form  of  an  equa- 
torial stand  and  tripod;  and  Prof.  Bigelow's  sand-clock  enabled 
the  precise  and  easy  following  of  the  sun.  The  revolving  plate 
holder,  of  22  inches  diameter,  actuated  automatically  by  com- 
pressed air,  in  which  the  principles  of  the  apparatus  of  the 


38o 


NATURE 


[Feb.  20,  1890 


TSfational  Electric  Service  Company  were  employed,  was  a 
thorough  success.  Exposures  were  made  at  intervals  of  six 
seconds. 

A  few  hours  before  the  eclipse  came  on,  the  Pensacola  went 
out  to  sea,  and  stood  in  the  centre  of  the  eclipse-track  at  the 
time  of  totality.  Atmospheric  conditions  were  slightly  more 
favourable  there  than  at  the  main  station  of  the  Expedition,  and 
some  interesting  results  were  obtained.  During  totality,  how- 
ever, the  clouds  were  so  thick  that  it  is  very  doubtful  whether 
the  true  solar  corona  was  seen  at  all. 

The  Eclipse  Station  was  completely  dismantled  by  December, 
27,  and  the  Pensacola  left  Cape  Ledo  on  the  afternoon  of  the 
■same  day. 

Returning  to  Loanda,  it  was  found  that  two  of  the  three 
detached  parties  of  the  Expedition  sent  into  the  interior  to 
observe  the  eclipse  were  unsuccessful  on  account  of  clouds. 
The  third  has  not  yet  been  heard  from. 

David  P.  Todd. 

U.S.S.  Pensacola,  December  31,  1889. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

Rendiconti  del  Keale  Istituto  Lombardo,  December. — Results 
obtained  from  Dr.  L.  VVeigert's  therapeutic  treatment  of  pul- 
monary phthisis,  by  Prof.  A.  Visconti.  Seven  patients  in  various 
stages  of  consumption  have  been  subjected  to  this  treatment  for 
the  purpose  of  testing  its  efficacy.  It  consists  in  administering 
superheated  dry  air  (150°  to  180"  C),  which  is  inhaled  through 
a  specially  prepared  apparatus,  for  which  Dr.  Weigert  claims 
that  it  acts  directly  on  Koch's  bacillus  of  tuberculosis.  In  the 
incipient  stages  of  the  disease  satisfactory  results  were  obtained 
in  some  respects,  such  as  relief  of  the  cough,  greater  freedom  of 
respiration,  less  profuse  perspiration,  and  increased  appetite. 
But  it  was  doubtful  whether  the  germ  itself  was  killed,  while  in 
the  advanced  stages  the  malady  continued  its  normal  development 
without  being  perceptibly  arrested  by  the  treatment.  Without 
actually  condemning  Weigert's  method.  Prof.  Visconti  cannot 
at  present  regard  it  as  an  efficacious  remedy  against  phthisis. — On 
the  determination  of  the  coefficient  of  dynamic  and  electromotor 
produce,  by  P.  Guzzi.  The  author  here  describes  a  method  of 
determining  this  coefficient,  for  which  he  claims  certain  advant- 
ages over  that  proposed  by  Dr.  J.  Hopkinson  in  the  Electrician 
of  December  3,  1886,  especially  in  the  case  of  engines  of  over 
100  horse-power.  His  method  of  calculating  the  yield  of  the 
dynamo  and  electric  motors  is  based  exclusively  on  electric 
measurements  made  with  safer  and  more  handy  instruments 
than  Hopkinson's  dynamometers.  Two  dynamos  of  about  the 
same  type  and  dimensions  are  connected  together  in  such  a 
way  that  one  moves  the  other  as  motor,  as  in  the  Hopkinson 
apparatus.  But  instead  of  communicating  to  the  system  the 
.dvna??iic  energy  required  to  maintain  it  in  motion  with  the 
velocity  and  intensity  of  the  normal  current,  Guzzi's  instrument 
communicates  the  equivalent  electric  energy  derived  from  any 
external  source  whatsoever. 

Rivista  Scietitifico-Industriale,  December  31,  1889. — Re- 
searches on  the  absorption  of  hydrogen  by  iron,  and  on  the 
tenacity  of  certain  metals  after  absorbing  gases,  by  Prof.  M.  Bel- 
lati  and  S.  Lussana.  It  has  already  been  shown  by  Hughes 
.(Nature,  vol.  xxi.,  1880,  p.  602)  that  steel  and  iron  immersed 
in  diluted  sulphuric  acid  become  very  brittle,  and  that  the  same 
phenomenon  is  produced  when  these  metals  are  used  as  negative 
electrodes  in  a  voltameter.  Prosecuting  the  same  line  of  re- 
search, the  authors  here  describe  a  series  of  experiments  tending 
to  show  that  the  action  of  electrolytic  oxygen  on  the  tenacity  of 
platinum,  and  of  hydrogen  on  that  of  copper  and  zinc,  is  un- 
certain ;  also,  that  the  absorption  of  hydrogen  produces  very 
probably  an  increase  of  tenacity  in  platinum,  as  it  certainly  does 
in  iron,  but,  on  the  contrary,  a  diminution  in  nickel.  Nor  can 
these  different  results  be  explained  by  the  simple  passage  of  the 
current,  Mobius  having  already  shown  that  the  elasticity  of  metals 
is  not  perceptibly  affected  by  this  cause. — Action  of  arsenate  of 
hydrogen  on  potassium  permanganate,  by  D.  Tivoli.  Some 
experiments  are  described,  from  the  results  of  which  the  author 
infers  that  the  solution  of  potassium  permanganate  is  capable  of 
rapidly  and  completely  absorbing  arsenate  of  hydrogen. — S. 
<jiuseppe  Terrenzi  gives  a  somewhat  complete  list  of  the  land 
and  fresh-water  mollusks  occurring  in  the  Narni  district,  Um- 
bria.  This  fauna  presents  nothing  remarkable,  all  the  species 
being  common  to  other  parts  of  Umbria.  and  generally  to  Central 


Italy.  All  are  described  or  mentioned  by  the  Marchese  Paolucci 
in  his  "  Etude  de  la  Faune  Malacologique  terrestre  et  fluviale 
de  ritalie  et  de  ses  iles  "  (Paris,  1878). 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  January  30. — "On  the  Germination  of  the 
Seed  of  the  Castor-oil  Plant  {Ricinus  communis)."  By  J.  R. 
Green,  M.A.,  B.Sc,  F.  L.S.,  Professor  of  Botany  to  the 
Pharmaceutical  Society  of  Great  Britain.  Communicated  by 
Prof.  M.  Foster,   Sec.  R.S. 

The  work  embodied  in  this  paper  deals  {a)  with  the  agencies 
which,  during  germination,  render  the  reserve  materials  available 
for  the  use  of  the  embryo,  {b)  with  the  forms  in  which  these  are 
absorbed  by  it  and  the  mode  of  their  absorption,  and  {c)  with 
the  parts  played  in  the  process  by  the  endosperm  and  the 
embryo  respectively. 

A  ferment  is  found  to  exist  as  a  zymogen  in  the  resting  seed, 
which  is  readily  developed  by  warmth  and  weak  acids  into  an 
active  condition.  The  results  of  its  activity  are  the  splitting  up 
of  the  fat  with  formation  of  glycerine  and  (chiefly)  ricinoleic 
acid.  Further  changes,  brought  about  by  the  protoplasm  of  the 
endosperm  cells,  form  from  the  latter  a  lower  carbon  acid  which, 
unlike  ricinoleic  acid,  is  soluble  in  water  and  is  crystalline. 
These  changes  do  not  take  place  in  the  absence  of  free  oxygen. 
A  quantity  of  sugar  also  is  formed,  which  appears  to  have  the 
glycerine  as  its  antecedent. 

The  proteids  of  the  seed,  which  consist  of  globulin  and 
albumose,  are  split  up  by  another  ferment,  with  formation  of 
peptone  and  asparagin. 

The  only  products  which  enter  the  embryo  are  a  crystalline 
acid,  sugar,  possibly  some  peptone,  and  asparagin.  Consider- 
ation of  the  structure  of  the  cotyledons,  which  are  the  absorbing 
organs,  shows  that  the  mode  of  absorption  is  always  dialysis. 

"Investigations  into  the  Effects  of  Training  Walls  in  an 
Estuary  like  the  Mersey."  By  L.  F.  Vernon  Harcourt,  M.A., 
M.Inst.C.E.  Communicated  by  A.  G.  Vernon  Harcouit, 
F.R.S. 

The  present  investigations  were  carried  out  with  a  working 
model  of  the  Mersey  estuary,  from  near  Warrington  to  the  open 
sea  beyond  the  bar.  The  experiments  were  directed  to  the 
solution  of  two  problems — namely,  (i)  the  influence  of  training 
walls  in  the  wide  upper  estuary  on  the  channel  below  Liverpool, 
and  across  the  bar  ;  and  (2)  the  effects  of  training  walls  in  the 
lower  estuary  on  the  channel  across  the  bar. 

The  experiments  indicate  that,  whereas  training  walls  in  the 
upper  estuary  would  be  injurious,  owing  to  the  resulting  accre- 
tion, training  walls  in  the  lower  estuary  would  improve  the 
depth  of  the  outlet  channel ;  and  that  such  training  walls, 
combined  with  dredging,  offer  the  best  prospect  of  forming  a 
direct,  stable,  and  deepened  channel  across  the  bar. 

February  6. — "  Memoir  on  the  Symmetrical  Functions  of  the 
Roots  of  Systems  of  Equations."  By  Major  P.  A.  MacMahon, 
Royal  Artillery.     Communicated  by  Prof.  Greenhill,  F.R.S. 

The  object  of  the  present  memoir  is  the  extension  to  systems 
of  algebraical  quantities  of  the  new  theory  of  symmetric  functions 
which  has  been  developed  by  the  author  in  regard  to  a  single 
system  in  vol.  xi.  and  succeeding  volumes  of  the  American 
journal  of  Mathematics.  In  the  theory  of  the  single  system 
the  conceptions  and  symbolism  are  to  a  large  extent  arithmetical, 
and  are  based  upon  the  properties  of  single  integral  numbers 
and  their  partitions  into  single  integral  parts.  In  this  sense  the 
former  theory  may  be  regarded  as  being  unipartite. 

In  the  present  generalization  to  the  case  of  m  systems  of 
quantities  the  fundamental  ideas  proceed,  not  from  a  single 
number,  but  from  a  collection  of  m  single  numbers.  In  regard 
to  number,  weight,  degree,  part,  and  suffix,  the  collection  of  vi 
numbers  invariably  replaces  the  single  number  of  the  theory  of 
the  single  system.  In  this  view  the  theory  of  the  m  systems  is 
;«-partiie. 

The  quantities,  to  which  the  symmetric  functions  relate  may 
be  regarded  as  the  solutions  common  to  m  non-homogeneous 
equations  each  in  m  variables.  Schliifli,  in  the  Vienna  Transac- 
tions {Denkschriften)  for  1852,  added  another  linear  non-homo- 
geneous equation  in  ;«  variables,  and  then  forming  the  eliminant 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


!8i 


of  the  m  +  I  equations,  thereby  obtained  an  identity  which  is 
fundamental  in  the  subject.  This  identity  involves  those  sym- 
metric functions  which  are  here  termed  fundamental,  and  marks 
the  starting-point  of  the  present  investigation. 

In  particular,  three  distinct  laws  of  symmetry  are  established, 
large  generalizations  of  those  established  by  the  author  in  the 
American  J ottrnal  of  Mathematics  (vol.  xi.).  Of  these  the  first 
two  are  of  fundamental  importance,  and  are  examined  in  detail. 
A  leading  idea  in  these  theorems,  as  in  the  whole  investiga- 
tion, is  the  "  separation"  of  a  partition  ;  the  separation  bearing 
the  same  relation  to  the  partition  as  the  partition  to  the  number 
or  collection  of  numbers. 

In  conclusion,  the  memoir  consolidates  and  largely  generalizes 
the  author's  recent  researches  alluded  to  above. 

February  13. — "  On  the  Unit  of  Length  of  a  Standard  Scale 
by  Sir  George  Shuckburgh,  appertaining  to  the  Royal  Society." 
By  General  J.  T.  Walker,  K.E.,  F.R.S. 

In  the  determinations  of  the  length  of  the  seconds  pendulum, 
which  were  made  in  London  by  Kater  and  at  Greenwich  by 
Sabine,  and  are  described  in  the  Philosophical  Transactions 
for  1818,  1829,  and  1831,  the  distance  between  the  upper  and 
lower  edges  of  the  pendulum  was  measured  off  on  a  standard 
scale  which  had  been  constructed  by  Sir  George  Shuckburgh. 
The  scale  had  not  yet  been  compared  with  any  of  the  modern 
standard  scales,  but  it  had  been  preserved  with  much  care  with 
the  instruments  appertaining  to  the  Royal  Society. 

In  the  autumn  of  1888,  M.  le  Commandant  Defforges,  an 
officer  of  the  French  Geodetic  Survey,  came  to  England  to 
take  a  share  in  operations  for  the  determination  of  the  difference 
in  longitude  between  Greenwich  and  Paris,  and  also  to  determine 
the  length  of  a  French  seconds  pendulum  at  Greenwich,  He 
kindly  undertook  to  comply  with  a  suggestion  which  was  made 
to  him  by  me,  to  compare  the  portion  of  Shuckburgh's  scale 
which  had  been  employed  by  Kater  and  Sabine  with  one  of  the 
standard  metre  bars  of  the  International  Bureau  of  Weights  and 
Measures  in  Paris.  The  Council  of  the  Royal  Society  assented, 
and  the  scale  was  sent  across  to  Paris  and  brought  back  again  by 
special  agent. 

The  details  and  results  of  the  comparison  are  given  in  a 
special  account  by  Commandant  Defforges,  from  which  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  scale  was  compared  with  the  French  metrical 
brass  scale,  N,  at  the  temperature  of  48° 7  F.,  at  which  the  dis- 
tance between  Kater  and  Sabine's  divisions,  o  and  39 '4,  of  the 
Shuckburgh  scale  was  found  equal  to  I '0006245  metre.  On 
reducing  to  the  temperature  of  62°  F.,  which  was  employed  by 
Kater  and  Sabine,  this  distance  becomes  i '0007619  metre,  which 
is  equivalent  to  39*400428  inches  if  we  adopt  the  relation 
I  metre  —  39 '370432  inches,  which  was  determined  by  Colonel 
Clarke,  C.B.,  of  the  Ordnance  Survey,  and  is  given  in  his 
valuable  work  on  the  comparisons  of  standards  of  length. 
Thus  the  actual  length  of  the  space  o  to  39*4  on  the  Shuckburgh 
scale  may  be  regarded  with  some  probability  as  differing  by  not 
more  than  about  0*0004  inch,  or,  say,  the  100,000th  part,  from 
the  quantity  which  the  scale  indicates. 

Physical  Society,  February  7. — Annual  General  Meeting. 
— Prof.  Reinold,  F.  R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  reports 
of  the  Council  and  of  the  Treasurer  were  read  and  adopted. 
The  former  stated  that  there  had  been  a  very  satisfactory  increase 
in  the  number  of  members  during  the  year.  The  number  now 
exceeds  360,  of  whom  80  are  Fellows  of  the  Royal  Society. 
During  the  year  the  Council  had  proposed  to  change  the  time  of 
meeting  of  the  Society  from  Saturday  afternoon  to  Friday 
evening.  The  change  was  adopted  by  the  members  by  a  vote  of 
129  to  30,  and  had  resulted  in  a  larger  attendance  at  the  meetings. 
During  the  year  the  second  part  of  vol.  i.  of  the  translations  of 
important  foreign  memoirs  had  been  issued  to  the  members,  and 
it  was  hoped  that  a  third  part  would  be  published  early  in 
the  present  session.  The  Council  had  to  regret  the  loss  by  death 
of  three  well-known  members — ^James  P.  Joule,  Warren  de  la 
Rue,  and  Father  Perry.  A  valuable  collection  of  books  had 
been  given  the  Society  by  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society. 
From  the  Treasurer's  report,  it  appeared  that  the  balance  of  the 
Society  had  been  increased  by  ;^I20  during  the  year.  Prof. 
Hittorf,  of  MUnster,  was,  at  the  recommendation  of  the  Council, 
elected  an  honorary  member  of  the  Society.  The  result  of  the 
new  election  of  officers  was  declared  as  follows : — President : 
Prof.  W.  E.  Ayrton,  F.R.S.  ;  Vice-Presidents  :  Dr.  E.  Atkin- 
son, Walter  Baily,  Shelford  Bidwell,  F.R.S,  and  Prof.  S.  P. 
Thompson  ;  Secretaries :  Prof.  J.  Perry  and  T.   H.  Blakesley ; 


Treasurer  :  Prof.  A.  W.  Riicker,  F.R.S.  ;  Demonstrator :  C.  V, 
Boys,  F.R.S.  ;  other  Members  of  Council  :  W.  H.  Coffin,  Sir 
John  Conroy,  Bart.,  Conrad  W.  Cooke,  Major-General  Festing, 
F.R.S.,  Prof.  J.  V.  Jones,  Prof.  O.  Lodge,  F.R.S.,  Prof.  W. 
Ramsay,  F.R.S.,  W.  N.  Shaw,  II.  Tomlinson,  F.R.S.,  and  G. 
M.  Whipple.  Votes  of  thanks  were  then  passed  (i)  to  the 
Lords  of  the  Committee  of  the  Council  on  Education  for  the 
use  of  the  room  in  which  the  Society  met  ;  (2)  to  the  auditors, 
Prof.  Minchin  and  Dr.  Fison  ;  (3)  to  the  President  and  officers- 
of  the  Society  for  their  services  during  the  year. — The  meeting 
was  then  resolved  into  an  ordinary  science  meeting.  Messrs.  E. 
W.  Smith  and  C.  E.  Holland  were  elected  members  of  the 
Society,  and  Mr.  Sidney  Evershed  was  proposed  as  a  member^ 
— The  paper  on  galvanometers,  by  Prof.  W.  E.  Ayrton,  F.R.S., 
Mr.  T.  Mather,  and  Dr.  W.  E.  Sumpner,  was  then  resumed  by 
Prof.  Ayrton.  A  long  table  of  numbers  accompanying  the 
paper,  and  representing  the  result  of  experiments  on  many 
galvanometers,  was  explained.  From  this  it  appeared  that 
galvanometers  of  the  D'Arsonval  type  were  exceedingly  efficient 
in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  wire  used  in  the  coils.  It  was 
for  this  reason  that  voltmeters  with  strong  permanent  magnets 
could  be  made  sensitive  even  with  an  exceedingly  large  external 
resistance  in  series  so  as  to  diminish  the  power  absorbed  by  the 
instrument.  The  space  occupied  by  the  wire  was  so  exeedingly 
valuable  that  the  extra  resistance  did  not  too  much  diminish  the 
sensibility.  The  most  sensitive  galvanometers  should  therefore 
be  made  of  the  permanent  magnet  type.  If,  however,  the  magnets- 
were  to  form  part  of  the  moving  system,  as  in  most  galvano- 
meters, the  experiments  showed  that  instruments  of  the  Rayleigh,. 
Gray,  or  Rosenthal  type  were  the  best.  The  coils  should  be 
numerous  and  small,  as  Mr.  Boys  had  previously  shown.  As  aI^ 
astatic  system  of  needles  sets  itself  perpendicular  to  the  earth's 
field,  it  was  recommended  that  astatic  galvanometers  should  be 
placed  so  that  the  needles  pointed  east  and  west.  The  controlling, 
magnet  would  then  not  need  to  be  turned  round  as  it  was  raised 
or  lowered.  It  was  recommended  to  calibrate  low-resistance 
ballistic  galvanometers  for  quantity  by  measuring  the  deflection 
for  a  known  current.  This  obviates  the  necessity  for  large 
condensers  or  high  potentials.  The  method,  although  not  new,  is 
not  described  in  text-books.  In  conclusion.  Prof.  Ayrton  asked 
for  information  with  regard  to  microscope  galvanometers. 
C.  V.  Boys,  F.R.S.,  thought  that  the  factor  of  merit  of  galvano- 
meters should  not  be  given  in  scale  divisions  per  micro-ampere- 
under  the  condition  of  constant  controlling  moment.  This  gave- 
too  great  an  advantage  to  instruments  of  the  Gray  or  Rosenthal* 
type.  Great  sensibility  could  be  obtained  by  diminishing  the 
moment  of  inertia  of  the  suspended  parts,  the  practical  limit 
being  determined  by  the  trouble  due  to  the  silk  fibre.  Spider 
lines,  when  used  in  place  of  silk  fibres,  gave  better  results.  It 
was  possible  by  using  a  good  suspending  arrangement  to  use 
needles  ^"  long  and  a  period  of  20  seconds,  and  to  gain  a 
sensibility  far  greater  than  those  indicated  in  the  paper.  Ballistic 
galvanometers  should  be  made  with  needles  as  light  as  possible.. 
The  method  proposed,  of  winding  the  central  part  of  the  coil  in 
the  opposite  sense  to  the  rest,  would  probably  not  be  good,  owing, 
to  the  unevenness  of  the  field  produced.  The  conclusion  come 
to  by  the  author,  that  D'Arsonval  galvanometers  of  great  sensi- 
bility should  be  made  with  small  coils  placed  in  a  very  strong  field,, 
was  one  he  had  himself  come  to,  but  had  finally  abandoned  owing 
to  difficulties  caused  by  diamagnetism  in  the  copper  and  to- 
excessive  damping  due  to  Foucault  currents.  Mr.  Swinburne 
thought  that  the  factor  of  merit  of  a  galvanometer  should  be 
determined  differently  according  as  it  was  to  be  used  for  the 
measurement  of  current,  or  quantity,  or  for  null  methods  merely. 
He  saw  no  great  advantage  in  making  practical  instruments 
proportional.  The  name  D'Arsonval  should  be  dropped,  as  the 
instrument  denoted  by  it  was  invented  by  Varley  years  ago. 
He  would  like  to  know  the  relative  sensibility  of  the  telephone 
and  the  Lippman  galvanometer.  Prof.  Fitzgerald  stated  that 
Lord  Rayleigh  had  shown  that  the  microscope  method  of 
observing  angular  deflections  was  as  sensitive  as  the  ordinary 
method  of  mirror  and  scale,  even  when  only  the  mirror  was  used 
as  a  pointer,  so  that  if  a  pointer  were  attached  it  would  be  far 
more  sensitive.  The  drawback,  however,  was  that  it  was 
impossible  to  distinguish  with  the  microscope  between  lateral 
displacements  of  the  needles  and  the  angular  motion  whose 
measurement  was  required.  To  get  over  this  error  it  was 
necessary  to  read  both  ends  of  the  pointer,  but  this  was  hard 
to  do.  Prof.  Ayrton  replied  to  the  different  points  raised 
in  the  discussion. 


382 


NATURE 


\_Feb.  20,  1890 


Entomological  Society,  February  5. — The  Right  Hon. 
Lord  Walsingham,  F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Presi- 
dent announced  that  he  had  nominated  Mr.  J.  W.  Dunning, 
Captain  H,  J.  Elwes,  and  Mr.  F.  D.  Godman,  F.R.S.,  Vice- 
Presidents  for  the  session  1890-91. — Mr.  F.  D.  Godman 
exhibited  a  specimen  of  Papilio  t/ioas,  from  Alamos,  Mexico, 
showing  an  aberration  in  the  left  hind  wing.  Mr.  R.  Trim  en, 
F.  R.S.,  remarked  that  butterflies  of  the  genus  Papilio  were 
seldom  liable  to  variation. — Mr.  C.  G.  Barrett  exhibited  a  series 
of  specimens  of  Phycis  subornatella,  Dup.,  from  Pembroke,  the 
east  and  west  of  Ireland,  the  Isle  of  Man,  and  Perthshire  ;  and 
a  series  of  Phycis  adornafella,  Tr.,  from  Box  Hill,  Folkestone, 
Norfolk,  and  Reading  ;  also  a  number  of  forms  intermediate 
between  the  above,  taken  in  the  Isle  of  Portland  by  Mr.  N.  M. 
Richardson.  He  said  that  these  forms  proved  the  identity  of 
the  two  supposed  species,  which  he  believed  were  both  referable 
to  P.  dilutella,  Hb.  He  also  exhibited  specimens  of  Hesperia 
lineola,  and  a  pale  variety  of  it  taken  in  Cambridgeshire  ; 
specimens  of  Epischnia  bankedella,  a  recently-described  species, 
taken  in  Portland ;  and  a  specimen  of  Retinia  margarotana, 
H.-S.,  a  species  new  to  Britain,  discovered  amongst  a  number 
of  Retinia  pinivorana,  which  had  been  collected  in  Scotland. — 
Mr.  W.  H.  B.  Fletcher  showed  a  series  of  Gelechia  fumatella, 
from  sandhills  in  Hayling  Island  and  near  Littlehampton,  and,  for 
■comparison,  a  series  of  G.  distinctella,  from  the  same  places. 
He  also  showed  a  few  bred  specimens  of  G.  terrella,  and  a  series 
of  preserved  larvae.  He  stated  that  on  the  downs  the  larvas  live 
in  the  middle  of  the  tufts  of  such  grasses  as  Festuca  ovina  and 
allied  species. — Mr.  H.  Goss  read  a  communication  from  Dr, 
■Clemow,  of  Cronstadt,  St.  Petersburg,  on  the  subject  of  the 
coincidence  of  vast  flights  and  blights  of  insects  during  the  years 
JSio,  1757,  1763,  1782,  1783,  1836,  and  1847,  and  the  epidemic 
of  influenza.  During  the  year  1889  no  unusual  activity  in  the 
insect  world  had  been  recorded.  Mr.  H.  T.  Stainton,  F. R. S., 
and  Mr.  McLachlan,  F.  R.S.,  made  some  remarks  on  the  subject, 
the  purport  of  which  was  that  there  was  no  connection  between 
epidemics  and  theoccurrenceof  swarms  of  insects. — Mr.  G.  A.J. 
Rothney  communicated  a  paper  entitled  "  Notes  on  Flowers 
avoided  by  Bees."  It  appeared,  according  to  the  author's 
observations,  made  in  India,  that  dahlias  were  exceptionally 
attractive,  but  that  the  passion-flower  was  only  resorted  to  by  a 
few  species  of  Xylocopa  ;  and  that,  with  one  exception,  he  had 
never  seen  any  insects  feeding  on  the  flowers  of  the  oleander. 
Mr.  Slater,  Colonel  Swinhoe,  Mr.  Trimen,  Lord  Walsingham,  and 
Mr.  McLachlan  took  part  in  the  discussion  which  ensued. — Dr.  D. 
Sharp  read  a  paper  entitled  "  On  the  Structure  of  the  Terminal 
Segment  in  some  male  Hemiptera." — Colonel  Swinhoe  read  a 
paper  entitled  "On  the  Moths  of  Burma,"  which  contained 
descriptions  of  several  new  genera  and  107  new  species. — 
Dr.  F.  A.  Dixey  read  a  paper  entitled  "On  the  Phylogenetic 
Significance  of  the  wing-markings  in  certain  genera  of  the 
Nymphalida."  A  discussion  ensued,  in  which  Lord  Walsingham, 
Mr.  Jenner-Weir,  Captain  Elwes,  and  Mr.  Trimen  took  part. 

Zoological  Society,  February  4. — Prof.  W.  H.  Flower, 
F.R.S. ,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  read  a  report  on 
the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's  Menagerie 
during  the  month  of  January  1890. — A  communication  was  read 
from  Mr.  W.  K.  Parker,  F. R. S.,  containing  an  account  of  the 
morphology  of  the  Hoatzin  {Opisthocomus  cristatus).  The 
author  treated  of  the  early  stages  of  the  development  of  this 
Reptilian  Bird,  and  its  shoulder-girdle,  sternum,  and  hind 
limbs. — A  communication  was  read  from  Mr.  A.  D.  Bartlett, 
containing  observations  on  Wolves,  Jackals,  Dogs,  and  Foxes. 
Mr.  Bartlett's  remarks  tended  to  show  that  all  the  varieties  of 
Domestic  Dogs  owe  their  origin  to  Wolves  and  Jackals,  and  that 
the  habit  of  barking  has  been  acquired  by,  and  under  the 
influence  of,  domestication  ;  also  that  the  Dog  is  the  most  per- 
fectly domesticated  of  all  animals. — A  communication  was  read 
from  Mr.  G.  E.  Dobson,  F. R.S.,  containing  a  synopsis  of  the 
genera  of  the  family  Soricidse.  The  author  recognized  nine 
genera,  and  divided  them  into  two  sub-families.  New  methods 
of  defining  the  genera  were  introduced,  each  genus  was  briefly 
characterized,  and  remarks  on  certain  genera,  not  admitted  in 
the  synopsis  (although  hitherto  generally  recognized),  were  ap- 
pended.— Mr.  F.  E.  Beddard  read  a  paper  containing  observa- 
tions upon  some  species  of  Earthworm  of  the  genus  Perichceta, — 
A  communication  was  read  from  Mr.  J.  M.  Leslie,  containing 
notes  on  the  habits  and  oviposition  of  the  clawed  Aglossal  Frog 
{Xenopus  lavis),  as  observed  at  Port  Elizabeth,  Cape  Colony, 
"where  this  species  was  said  to  be  of  ordinary  occurrence. — Mr. 


Oldfield  Thomas  read  an  account  of  a  collection  of  Mammals 
from  Central  Vera  Cruz,  Mexico,  made  by  a  scientific  expedi- 
tion organized  by  the  authorities  of  the  Mexican  Museum,  under 
the  superintendence  of  Dr.  F.  Ferrari- Perez.  The  collection 
consisted  of  about  100  specimens,  belonging  to  21  species. 
Amongst  these,  two  (a  Hare  and  a  Squirrel)  were  described  as 
new,  and  proposed  to  be  called  Sciurus  niger  melanonotus  and 
Lepics  verce-crticis. 

Geological  Society,  February  5.— W.  T.  Blanford,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
read  : — The  variolitic  rocks  of  Mont-Genevre,  by  Grenville  A. 
J.  Cole  and  J.  W.  Gregory. — The  propylites  of  the  Western 
Isles  of  Scotland,  and  their  relations  to  the  andesites  and 
diorites  of  the  district,  by  Prof.  John  W.  Judd,  F.R.S. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  January  27. — Rev.  Prof.  Flint,  Vice-Presi- 
dent, in  the  chair.- — Prof.  Calderwood  read  a  paper  on  evolution 
and  man's  place  in  Nature.     A  discussion  followed. 

February  3.  —  Sir  W.  Thomson,  President,  in  the  chair. — Dr. 
William  Peddie  read  a  paper  on  new  estimates  of  molecular 
distance.  He  showed  that  the  ratio  of  the  latent  heat  of 
vaporisation  of  a  liquid  to  six  times  its  surface-tension  gives  an 
approximation  to  the  number  of  molecules  per  linear  unit  in 
that  liquid.  The  liquids  water,  alcohol,  ether,  chloroform, 
carbon  bisulphide,  turpentine,  petroleum,  and  wood  spirit,  have, 
according  to  this  method,  50,  52,  30,  15,  19,  30,  40,  and  70 
millions,  respectively,  of  particles  per  linear  centimetre.  Of 
course  no  stress  is  to  be  laid  upon  the  relative  values  of  these 
numbers  ;  the  point  of  interest  is  the  complete  agreement  as  to 
the  order  of  the  unknown  quantity. — Prof.  Tait  communicated 
a  paper  by  Prof.  Dittmar  on  the  gravimetric  composition  of 
water.  — Mr.  John  Aitken  read  a  paper  on  the  number  of  dust- 
particles  in  the  atmosphere  of  certain  places  in  Great  Britain  and 
on  the  Continent,  with  remarks  on  the  relation  between  the 
amount  of  dust  and  meteorological  phenomena.  He  believes 
that  dust  condenses  moisture  before  the  air  is  saturated.  For  the 
same  number  of  dust-particles  per  cubic  centimetre,  the  atmo- 
spheric transparency  depends  upon  the  depression  of  the  wet 
bulb,  being  large  when  the  depression  is  large,  but  becoming 
small  before  the  depression  vanishes.  Increase  of  temperature 
also  reduces  transparency  when  the  number  of  particles  remains 
the  same,  for  increase  of  temperature  means  increase  of  vapour- 
pressure.  As  a  rule,  quantity  of  dust  decreases  when  the  wind 
increases.  When  calms  occur  dust  accumulates.  This  increases 
the  radiating  power  of  the  air,  so  that  it  cools  quickly  and  fog 
forms.  Thus  a  fog  may  be  regarded  as  a  suspended  dew. — The 
dust-measuring  instruments  intended  for  use  at  Ben  Nevis  were 
exhibited. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  February  10. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — Note  on  an  unpublished  memoir  of  Descartes',  indicating 
the  right  of  the  author  to  the  priority  of  a  discovery  in  the  theory 
of  polyhedrons,  by  M.  De  Jonquieres.  Some  passages  are 
pointed  out  in  the  memoir  which  show  that  Descartes  knew  and 
applied  the  formula  F-l-S  =  A4-2,  and  furnished  the  elements  of 
the  demonstration,  hence  his  name  should  be  associated  with 
that  of  Euler  as  an  independent  discoverer  of  the  famous  formula. 
— A  physical  process  for  the  measurement  of  the  inclination  of 
the  declination-thread  of  meridian-circles,  by  M.  Hamy.  With 
ordinary  astronomical  methods  this  value  can  be  determined  to 
within  half  a  degree,  but  using  the  process  described,  it  is  pos- 
sible to  obtain  it  within  a  few  seconds.  The  complete  descrip- 
tion will  be  given  in  the  coming  number  (January)  of  the  Bulletin 
Astronomique. — Upon  the  exponential  function,  by  M.  Stieltjes. 
A  demonstration  is  given  of  a  relation  of  the  form 

N-f£*Ni  +  ^*N2.   .   .   .  +e''l^n  =  o   .   .    .    .  .  (i) 

a,b,.  .  .  ,  h  being  whole  numbers,  N,  Nj,  Ng,  .  .  .  N„  coeffi- 
cients.    Starting  with  the  polynomial  function 

F(2)  =  zi^{z-  aY^^^  {z  -  bY+^"'  .    .    .    .{z-  /lY+^n 

the  author  deduces  that  assuming  (i)  to  hold 


/: 


{z)e-'F{zyz=o, 


and  then  proves  this  function  not  to  hold  if  ^  be  an  even  number. 
— Note  on  a  method  of  transformation  in  kinematic  geometry, 


Feb.  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


l^l 


by  M.  A.  Mannheim.  In  a  preceding  communication  the  author 
has  shown  how  t  o  transform  the  properties  relating  to  the  dis- 
placement of  a  straight  line,  of  which  the  points  describe  tra- 
jectory surfaces ;  he  now  extends  his  method  to  the  case 
where  the  points  of  the  movable  line  describe  trajectory 
lines  only,  and  taking  as  examples  several  theorems  relating 
to  the  former  case,  derives  therefrom  corresponding  theorems  in 
the  latter. — On  a  generalization  of  Euler's  theorem  relating  to 
polyhedrons,  by  M.  R.  Perrin.  Attention  is  drawn  to  some 
relations  bearing  upon  Euler's  formula,  published  by  the  author 
in  1882  {BtiUetin  de  la  Societe  Mathematique  de  France,  t.  x.  ).— 
On  bodies  which  give  a  tension  of  dissociation  equal  to  the 
tension  of  the  vapour  of  their  saturated  solutions,  by  M.  H.  Les- 
cceur.  Experiments  are  referred  to  which  are  antagonistic  to 
the  theory  of  M.  Bakhuis-Roozeboom.  According  to  experi- 
ment, the  curves  representing  the  tensions  referred  to  as  func- 
tions of  the  temperature  are  tangential,  and  do  not  intersect  at 
an  acute  angle  as  required  by  the  theory. — Action  of  fluorine 
upon  different  varieties  of  carbon,  by  M.  Henri  Moissan. — A 
general  method  for  the  preparation  of  fluorides  of  carbon,  by  M. 
C.  Cbabrie. — On  the  blue  flame  of  common  salt  and  the 
spectroscopic  reaction  of  copper  chloride,  by  M.  G.  Salet.  The 
author  finds  that  the  bands  seen  in  the  spectrum  of  salt  burning 
in  a  common  fire,  and  of  which  the  strongest  are  situated  in  the 
indigo  and  blue-green,  are  due  to  copper  chloride,  and  coincide 
with  bands  given  by  Lecoq  de  Boisbaudran  in  his  "  Spectres 
Lumineux." — On  the  electrical  resistance  of  iron  and  its  alloys 
at  high  temperatures,  by  M.  H.  Le  Chatelier.  The  electrical 
resistances  for  a  considerable  range  of  temperature  of  a  number 
of  iron  alloys  have  been  examined.  When  the  results  are 
graphically  shown,  the  curve  for  ferro-manganese  (13  per  cent. 
Mn)  is  found  to  be  regular,  just  as  is  the  case  with  platinum  or 
platinum-rhodium  alloy,  while  the  curves  for  mild  and  hard 
steels  show  distinctly  two  singular  points  at  820°  and  710°,  and  a 
silicon  steel  (Si  =  3  per  cent.)  shows  the  former  only.  Ferro- 
nickel  (25  per  cent.  Ni)  behaves  very  peculiarly,  as  below  550° 
two  modifications  having  quite  distinct  properties  exist,  and 
nickel  itself  shows  a  sudden  change  of  curvature  at  340°. — 
Thermochemical  researches  upon  silk,  by  M.  Leo  Vignon.  In- 
vestigations have  been  made  to  determine  the  heat  disengaged 
when  various  reagents  are  absorbed  by  raw  and  prepared  silk. 
A  discussion  of  the  results  seems  to  indicate  that  the  method 
may  be  employed  to  elucidate  the  theory  of  dyeing. — -Estimation 
of  potassium  and  humus  in  soil,  by  M.  J.  Raulin.  A  method 
of  estimating  potassium  by  weighing  it  on  a  tared  filter  as  phos- 
phomolybdate  is  described,  together  with  the  application  of  the 
modified  permanganate  process  of  J.  II.  Schmidt  to  the  deter- 
mination of  humus. — On  a  colouring-matter  from  Diaptomus, 
analogous  to  the  carotin  of  vegetables,  by  W.  Raphael  Blanchard. 
The  colouring-matter,  isolated  from  these  animal  organisms,  is 
shown  to  differ  considerably  in  spectroscopic  properties  and  in 
its  solubility  in  alcohol  from  the  lipochromes,  and  it  does  not 
prove  to  be  identical  with  any  of  the  red  pigments  from  the 
Coelenterata,  Echinodermata,  Bryozoa,  or.Mollusca;  while  on 
the  contrary  it  is  found  to  show  many  analogies  to  carotins 
(CjfiHsg),  which  are  so  marked  as  to  lead  to  the  conclusion  that 
it  is  itself  a  carotin  and  so  possesses  great  interest  as  a  colouring 
substance  common  to  both  the  animal  and  vegetable  kingdoms, 
and  as  an  instance  of  the  production  of  a  hydrocarbon  by  animal 
agency. — On  the  intercellular  substance,  by  M.  Louis  Mangin.  It 
is  shown  that  among  Phanerogams  and  Cryptogams  (with  the 
exception  of  Fungi  and  many  Algae)  the  tissues  of  the  softer  parts 
are  composed  of  cells  cemented  together  by  an  intercellular  sub- 
stance composed  of  insoluble  pectates. — On  the  localization  of 
colouring-matters  in  the  seminal  integuments,  by  M.  Louis 
Claudel. — Formation  of  quartz  at  the  spring  of  Maubourot  at 
Cauterets,  by  M.  Beaugey. — On  the  existence  of  leucite  rocks 
in  Asia  Minor,  and  on  some  hypersthene  rocks  from  the 
Caucasus,  by  M.  A.  Lacroix.  It  is  found  that  the  leucitic  rocks 
from  near  Trebizonde  fall  under  two  main  types,  leucitite  and 
leucotiphrite. — Upon  the  composition  of  some  pseudo-dolomitic 
chalks  from  the  north  of  France,  by  M.  L.  Cayeux. 

Berlin. 
Meteorological  Society,  January  7.— Dr.  Vettin,  Presi- 
dent, in  the  chair. — Dr.  Wagner  spoke  on  the  behaviour  of 
water  in  the  soil.  The  relationships  between  surface  water  and 
springs  and  deposits,  possessing  as  they  do  a  distinct  meteoro- 
logical interest,  have  as  yet  been  but  slightly  investigated,  probably 
because  the  behaviour  of  water  in  soil  occupies  the  border-land 


between  the  subjects  of  meteorology,  geology,  agriculture,  antf 
hygiene.  A  review  of  scientific  investigations  which  have  so 
far  been  made  on  the  subject  of  surface  water  and  the  formation- 
of  springs,  shows  that  the  problems  of  most  importance  are  still 
awaiting  their  solution.  In  the  speaker's  opinion  the  task  to 
be  undertaken  in  the  interests  of  meteorology  is  the  establishing 
of  as  many  lysimeters  as  possible,  so  that  by  keeping  a  con- 
tinuous record  of  their  indications  a  continued  set  of  observations 
on  surface  water  would  be  provided.  He  further  considered  it 
to  be  essential  that  the  relationship  of  water  to  the  soil  should  be 
investigated  at  depths  far  greater  than  has  as  yet  been  the  case. 
A  lengthy  discussion  followed  the  above  communication,  which 
turned  chiefly  upon  a  consideration  of  the  forces,  as  yet  but  little 
known,  which  determine  the  collecting  of  water  on  internal  im- 
pervious layers  of  the  earth.— Prof.  Sporer  gave  a  short 
statistical  statement  on  sun-spots  during  1889.  The  chief  point 
of  interest  was  that  the  spots  appeared  during  the  first  half  of 
the  year  in  the  lower  latitudes  and  in  the  second  half  in  the  higher. 
Taking  the  year  as  a  whole,  there  were  considerably  more  spots 
in  the  southern  than  in  the  northern  hemisphere  ;  this  has  been 
the  case  in  each  year  since  1883. — The  Secretary  then  handed 
in  his  annual  report,  and  the  Society  proceeded  to  elect  its 
officers  for  the  year  1890.   Prof.  Schwalbe  was  elected  President. 

Physical  Society,  January  27. — Prof.  Kundt,  President,  in 
the  chair. — The  President  opened  the  meeting  by  a  short  address 
in  memory  of  civil  engineer  G.  A.  Him,  who  died  recently  at 
Logelbach  in  Alsace. — Dr.  Lehmann  spoke  on  the  testing  of 
tuning-forks.  After  the  International  Congress  met  for  the 
establishing  of  a  uniform  standard  of  tone,  and  selected  for  this 
purpose  a  vibration  frequency  of  435,  it  devolved  upon  Govern- 
ment to  construct  a  standard  fork,  and  to  devise  some  ready 
method  for  testing  ordinary  forks  to  an  accuracy  within  half  a 
vibration  per  second,  and  standard  forks  within  o'l  of  a  vibra- 
tion. The  speaker  discussed  the  various  methods  in  use  for 
comparing  two  forks  and  for  counting  the  number  of  vibrations 
per  second  which  they  yield.  For  the  first  purpose  the  vibra- 
tions of  the  respective  forks  are  employed,  these  being  observed 
either  acoustically  or  optically  ;  a  further  means  of  effecting  the 
comparison  is  by  the  stroboscopic  method  or  by  the  acoustic 
wheel.  The  vibration  frequency  of  a  fork  is  determined  either 
graphically  or  by  means  of  a  tuning-fork  clock,  or  by  means  of 
the  undulations  obtained  by  oscillating  or  rotating  acoustical 
instruments.  An  important  factor  in  all  these  methods  is  the 
temperature  of  the  fork.  To  determine  this  a  special  thermostat 
is  employed,  by  means  of  which  the  fork  can  be  set  in  vibration 
in  an  air-bath  whose  temperature  is  constant  and  accurately 
known.  The  standard  fork  for  reference  is  one  of  Konig's, 
whose  vibration-frequency  has  been  accurately  determined  by 
several  methods.  The  comparison  of  any  new  fork  with  the 
standard  is  made  by  means  of  the  acoustic  wheel,  and  by  a 
simultaneous  graphic  recording  of  the  movements  of  the  fork 
which  is  vibrating  inside  the  thermostat,  and  of  the  magnetic 
interrupter;  the  latter  consists  of  a  tuning-fork  vibrating  to 
the  octave  below  the  note  yielded  by  the  standard  fork.  —  Dr. 
Eschenhagen  exhibited  curves  of  the  three  elements  of  terrestrial 
magnetism  recorded  by  the  new  instruments  in  the  Observatory 
of  Potsdam,  and  gave  a  short  description  of  the  an-angement  of 
the  apparatus.  The  curves  were  taken  on  white  photographic 
paper,  and  were  of  such  dimensions  that  the  greatest  variations 
which  have  as  yet  been  observed  were  completely  recorded. 
—  Prof.  Kundt  exhibited  some  quartz-fibres  which  he  had  re- 
ceived from  Prof.  Weinhold.  He  made,  in  addition,  some 
remarks  on  the  preparation  of  these  fibres  by  Boys's  method, 
and  gave  some  data  as  to  the  dimensions  of  an  apparatus  which 
Prof.  Weinhold  had  constructed  for  the  measurement  of  gravita- 
tion constants,  and  had  employed  in  several  determinations. 

Amsterdam. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  Dec.  28,  1889. — Prof,  van 
de  Sande  Bakhuyzen  in  the  chair. — M.  Hugo  de  Vries  related 
the  results  of  the  scientific  researches  made  by  the  Committee  of 
Advice,  appointed  in  July  1887  at  Rotterdam,  to  report  on  the 
appearance  of  Crenothrix  in  the  drinking-water  of  the  Rotterdam 
water-supply.  He  gave  an  account  of  the  organisms  met  with 
in  the  mains  and  basins  before  and  after  the  filtration  of  the 
water,  and  of  the  degree  of  the  pollution  caused  by  these 
creatures  in  the  colder  and  warmer  months  of  the  year.  He 
spoke  also  of  the  influence  of  darkness  on  the  water-organisms, 
which,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  live  in  the  sunlight ;  of  the 


384 


NA  TURE 


[Feb.  20,  1890 


proposals  made  by  the  Committee  to  mitigate  or  remove  the  evil  ; 
^and  of  the  improvements  effected,  or  about  to  be  effected,  in 
accordance  with  those  suggestions.- — M.  Kapteijn  treated  of 
chronographical  observations  for  the  purpose  of  determining 
parallaxes  of  fixed  stars.  After  having  explained  the  precautions 
taken  to  prevent  systematic  error,  he  gave  the  results  and  subjected 
them  to  several  tests  showing  their  absolute  trustworthiness 
within  the  limits  defined  by  the  probable  errors. 

Jan.  25. — Prof,  van  de  Sande  Bakhuyzen  in  the  chair. — M. 
Hoogewerff,  giving  an  account  of  joint  work  by  himself  and  M, 
van  Dorp,  spoke  of  the  action  of  potassium  hypobromite  on  suc- 
•cinphenylamide,  and  on  the  amide  of  cinchonic  acid. — M.  van 
Bammelen  communicated  certain  results  of  a  research  relating 
to  the  composition  of  volcanic  and  other  soils,  on  which,  in 
Deli  and  Java,  tobacco  is  cultivated.  The  extraordinary  fitness 
of  the  soil  of  the  cleared  forest  grounds  in  Deli  for  the  pro- 
duction of  exquisite  tobacco  is  to  be  attributed,  he  thinks,  to  the 
peculiar  composition  of  the  amorphous  silicate  occurring  therein, 
to  the  looseness  of  the  forest  soil,  and  to  the  auspicious  climate 
with  regard  to  the  rainfall.  He  concluded  by  insisting  on  the 
urgent  need  for  the  establishment  of  a  scientific  experimental 
station  at  Deli.  Such  an  establishment  would  be  favourable  to 
the  culture  of  tobacco,  and  would  enlarge  our  knowledge  of  the 
soil,  of  the  vegetable  world,  and  of  geological  formations. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  Feuruarv  20. 

;'R'5V\L  Society,  at  4.30. — A  Comparative  Study  of  Natural  and  Artificial 
Digestions  (Preliminary  Account):  Dr.  A.  Sheridan  Lea. — On  a  Fer- 
mentation causing  the  Separation  of  Cystin  ;  Sheridan  Delepine. — Some 
Stages  in  the  Development  of  the  Brain  of  Clupea  harengus  :  Ernest  W. 
L.  Holt. 

iLiNNBAN  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Fruit  and  Seed  of  Juglandia ;  on  the 
Shape  of  the  Oak-leaf;  and  on  the  Leaves  of  Viburnum;  Sir  John  Lub- 
bock, Bart.,  P.C,  M.P.,  F.R.S. 

•  Chemical  Society,  at  8. — The  Behaviour  of  the  most  Stable  Oxides  at 
High  Temperatures :  G.  H.  Bailey  and  W.  B.  Hopkins. — The  Influence 
of  Different  Oxides  on  the  Decomposition  of  Potassium  Chlorate  :  G.  J. 
Fowler  and  J.  Grant. 

Zoological  Society,  at  4. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 

S.OVAL  Institution,  at  3. — The  Three  Stages  of  Shakspeare's  Art :  Rev. 
Canon  Ainger. 

FRIDAY,  February  21. 

fiKOLOGiCAL  Society,  at  3. — Annual  General  Meeting. 

'Physical  Socibtv.  at  5. — On  a  Carbon  Deposit  in  a  Blake  Telephone 
Transmitter:  F.  B.  Havves. — The  Geometrical  Construction  of  Direct 
Reading  Scales  for  Reflecting  Instruments  :  A.  P.  Trotter.— A  Paralle 
Motion  Suitable  for  Recording-Instruments  :  A.  P.  Trotter. — On  Ber- 
trand's  Refractometer :  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson. 

'Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — Some  Types  of  American 
Locomotives,  and  their  Construction  :  C.  N.  Goodall. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Magnetic  Phenomena:  Shelford  Bidwell,  F.R.S. 

SATURDAY,  February  22. 
Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism :  Right  Hon. 
Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  February  23. 
S  "*DAV  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — Our  Ancestors,  the  Sea-Kings  :  Justin 
H.  McCarthy,  M.P. 

MONDAY,  February  24. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Stereotyping  :  Thomas  Bolas. 
TovxBEE  Philosophical  Society,  at  8. — Willand  Reason  :  B.  Bosanquet. 

TUESDAY,  February  25. 

Anthropological  Institute,  at  8.30. — Exhibition  of  Stanley's  Spiro- 
meter :  Dr.  J.  G.  Garson — Some  Borneo  Traps:  S.  B.  J.  Skertchly. — 
The  Dieri  and  other  Kindred  Tribes  of  Central  Australia ;  A.  W. 
Hewitt. 
NSTITUTION  OF  CiviL  ENGINEERS,  at  8. — The  Shanghai  Water-Works  : 
J.  W.  Hart. — ^The  Tytam  Water-Works,  Hong-Kong  :  Jas.  Orange. — The 
Construction  of  the  Yokohama  Water-Works :  J.  H.  T.  Turner.  (Dis- 
cussion.) 

^OYAL  Institution,  at  3. — The  Post-Darwinian  Period :  Prof.  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  February  25. 

.Geological  Society,  at  8. — On  a  Crocodilian  Jaw  from  the  Oxford  Clay 
of  Peterborough  :  R.  Lydekker. — On  the  Relation  of  the  Westleton  Beds 
or  "  Pebbly  Sands  "  of  Suffolk  to  those  of  Norfolk,  and  on  their  Extension 
Inland  ;  with  some  Observations  on  the  Period  of  the  Final  Elevation  and 
Denudation  of  the  Weald  and  of  the  Thames  Valley,  Pari  III.  :  Prof. 
Joseph  Prestwich,  F.R.S. — On  a  Deep  Channel  of  Drift  in  the  Valley  of 
the  Cam,  Essex:  W.  Whitaker,  F.R.S. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— The  English  in  Florida:  .Arthur  Montefiore, 


THURSDAY,  February  27. 
Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  5. — The  Northern  Shan  States  and  the  Burma-China 

Railway  :  Wilham  Sherriff. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3 — The  Three  Stages  of  Shakspeare's  Art :  Rev. 
Canon  Ainger. 

FRIDAY,  February  28. 

.\mateur   Scientii'ic    Society,    at    8. — Practical    Coal-mining:   H.    S. 

Streatfeild. 
R  JYAL  Institution,  at  9. — Evolution  in  Music  :  Prof.  C.  Hubert  H.  Parry. 

SATURDAY,  March  i. 

Essex  Field  Club,  at  7. — Micro-Fungi  of  Epping  Forest  ;  how  to  Collect, 

Preserve,  and  Study  Them  :  Dr.  M.  C.  Cooke. 
RovAL  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism:  Right  Hon.  Lord 

Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Elementary  Dynamics  of  Particles  and  Solids  :  Prof  W.  M.  Hicks  (Mac- 
millan). — La  Vie  des  Oiseaux  :  Baron  D'Hamonville  (Paris,  J.  B.  liailliere). 
— A  Naturalist's  Voyage  round  the  World,  new  edition,  illustr.ited  :  C. 
Darwin  (Murray).— A  Naturalist  among  the  Head  Hunters  :  C.  M.  Wood- 
ford (Philip). — Geology  of  the  (Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the  Pacific  Slope, 
and  Atlas  to  accompany  .same  :  G.  F.  Becker  (Washington). — Fossil  Fishes 
and  Fossil  Plants  of  the  Triassic  Rocks  of  New  Jersey  and  the  Connecticut 
Valley:  J.  S.  Newberry  (Washington). — 11  Teorema  del  Parallelogramma 
delle  Forze  Dimostrato  Erroneo :  G.  Casazza  (Brescia). — Materials  for  a 
Flora  of  the  Malayan  Peninsula :  Dr.  G.  King  (Calcutta). — Journal  of 
Physiology,  vol.  xi.  Nos.  i  and  2  (Cambridge). — Transactions  of  the  Wagner 
Free  Institute  of  Science  of  Philadelphia,  vol.  2  (Philadelphia).— Observa- 
ciones  Magneticas  y  Meteorolo'gicas  del  Real  Colegio  de  Belen  de  la  Comp. 
de  Jesus  en  La  Habana,  Julio-Die.  1887  (Habana). — Bulletin  of  the  U.S. 
Geological  Survey,  Nos.  48  to  53  (Washington). — Department  of  Agricul- 
ture, Melbourne,  Bulletin  No.  4  (Melbourne). — "Timehri,"  being  the 
Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  and  Commercial  Society  of  Br.tish 
Guiana,  December  1889  (Stanford). 


CONTENTS.  p.^GE 

The  Physics  and  Chemistry  of  the    "Challenger" 

Expedition 361 

The  Human  Foot 365 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Ettingshausen  :  "Das  australische  Florenelement  in 

Europa,"— W,  B.  H 365 

Cassedy  :  "Is  the  Copernican  System  of  Astronomy 

True?" 366 

Emerson  :   "  Naturalistic  Photography  " 366 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Acquired    Characters    and    Congenital    Variation. — 
The  Duke  of  Argyll,  F.R.S.  ;  The  Right  Rev. 

Bishop  R.  Courtenay;  Dr.  J.  Cowper   ....  366 
Easy    Lecture    Experiment    in    Electric    Resonance. 

(///«j^ra/^^.)— Prof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.  .    .  368 
African  Monkeys    in    the  West  Indies. — Dr.   P.  L. 

Sclater,  F.R.S 368 

Galls. — Prof.  George  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.     .    .    .  369 
The  Supposed  Earthquakes  at  Chelmsford  on  January 

7. — Charles  Davison 369 

Shining  Night-Clouds.  —Robert  B.  White   ....  369 

A  Greenish  Meteor. — T.  D.  A.  Cockerel!.    .    .    .    •  369 
The  Molecular   Stability  of  Metals,   particularly  of 

Iron  and  Steel.     By  Carl  Barus 369 

Christoforus  Henricus  Diedericus  Buys  Ballot     .    .  371 

Notes 371 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A,  Fowler 374 

Progress  of  Astronomy  in  1886 374 

The  Maximum  Light-Intensity  of  the  Solar  Spectrum  374 

Spectrum  of  Borelly's  Comet,  g  1889 374 

Spectra  of  5  and  ^u  Centauri 374 

On  the  Star  System  |  Scorpii 374 

Geographical  Notes 374 

On   some   Needless    Difficulties   in    the    Study   of 

Natural  History.     By  Dr.  C.  T.  Hudson,  F.R.S.  .  375 

The  Total  Eclipse,     By    Prof.  David  P.  Todd  ...  379 

Scientific  Serials 380 

Societies  and  Academies 380 

Diary  of  Societies 384 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 384 


NA TURE 


385 


THURSDAY,  FEBRUARY  27,  1890. 

THE  NEW  CODES,   ENGLISH  AND 
SCOTCH. 

THE  country  is  once  more  within  a  month  of  a  new 
Education  Code.  Once  more  the  Lord  President 
and  the  Vice-President  of  the  Council  are  being  besieged 
by  representatives  of  all  interests  and  opinions,  anxious 
to  impress  them  with  the  exclusive  importance  of  their 
particular  views.  Last  year,  it  will  be  remembered,  the 
Code — great  advance  as  it  was  on  its  predecessors — fell 
a  victim  to  the  fears  of  one  party  and  the  lukewarmness 
of  the  other.  The  extreme  School  Board  partisans  gave 
but  scant  support  to  any  scheme  which  did  not  prac- 
tically embody  the  recommendations  of  the  minority  of 
the  late  Royal  Commission,  while  the  champions  of 
voluntary  schools  shrank  from  any  changes  which,  by 
raising  the  standard  of  efficiency,  seemed  likely  to  ac- 
centuate the  difference  between  the  Board  school,  which 
has  the  ratepayers'  pocket  to  draw  on,  and  the  voluntary 
school,  which  depends  on  a  fast-shrinking  fund  of  private 
subscriptions.  And  so  the  Code  was  sacrificed,  and 
the  friends  of  education  were  condemned  to  wait  another 
year. 

This  is  what  is  constantly  happening,  and  what  will 
continue  to  happen,  so  long  as  there  are  ten  experts 
forthcoming  on  all  matters  relating  to  educational 
machinery  for  one  who  knows  and  cares  about  education 
itself.  Whether  elementary  schools  should  be  free  ; 
whether  they  should  be  under  representative  control ; 
whether  they  should  all  receive  rate-aid — these  and  the 
like  disputes  are  always  sure  to  gain  the  ear  of  the  public, 
while  the  problem  of  making  the  education  provided 
worth  disputing  about  is  passed  by  almost  unnoticed. 

How  few  among  our  so-called  "educationists"  (a 
newly-introduced  word  with  an  ominous  ring  about  it) 
ever  sit  down  deliberately  to  face  the  central  problem  of 
elementary  education — the  only  problem  of  fundamental 
importance :  Given  a  child  between  the  ages  of  5  and 
13,  with  the  limitations  imposed  by  its  age,  by  its  home 
surroundings,  by  the  pressing  necessity  that  it  should 
begin  to  earn  a  living  as  soon  as  possible,  and  by  the  fact 
(most  neglected  of  all  by  theorists)  that  there  are  only  a 
certain  number  of  school  hours  in  the  day — what  is  the 
best  kind  of  training  through  which  it  shall  pass  1  How 
can  those  few  precious  years  be  best  utilized  ? 

Theories,  indeed,  there  are,  enough  and  to  spare,  till 
we  could  wish  sometimes  that  all  those  in  high  places 
who  talk  of  education  were  made  to  go  through  an 
apprenticeship  as  school  managers,  in  order  to  gain  some 
practical  acquaintance  with  the  limits  imposed  on  the 
range  of  instruction  by  the  nature  of  the  child-material 
with  which  they  have  to  deal.  For  no  designer  trained 
to  make  "designs-in-the-abstract" — who  produces  pat- 
terns for  carpets  which  cannot  be  woven,  for  wall- 
papers which  cannot  be  printed,  for  copper  that  cannot 
be  beaten,  and  for  wood  that  cannot  be  carved — could 
be  more  out  of  touch  with  the  material  in  which  his 
designs  have  to  be  executed  than  the  educational  "re- 
former-in-the-abstract,"  who  sketches  fabulous  plans  for 
Universal  National  Systems  of  Education  which  have 
only  one  defect — that  they  are  impossible  to  carry  out. 
Vol.  xli. — No.  1061. 


And  now,  having  relieved  our  feelings,  we  may  turn  to 
the  question  of  immediate  importance— namely,  the  pro- 
spects of  educational  advance  under  the  new  Code  which 
is  so  eagerly  expected. 

It  is  rumoured  that  the  authorities  at  the  Education 
Department  are  earnestly  engaged  in  the  attempt  to  make 
the  Code  a  real  advance  on  former  efforts.     They  have 
many  difficulties.    If  they  can  successfully  run  the  gaunt- 
let of  the  Treasury,  they  have  to  reckon  with  the  factious 
criticism  of  political  partisans.  We  hope,  however,  that  we 
may  assume  that  the  draft  Code  as  it  issues  from  the 
Department  will  embody  at  least  all  the  purely  educational 
reforms  which  appeared  in  its  unlucky  predecessor.     The 
clause  requiring  English  as  a  class  subject  will  go,  the  cur- 
riculum and  regulations  for  evening  schools  will  be  made 
more  elastic,  an  attempt  will  be  made  to  spread  the  teaching 
of  drawing,  and  further  facilities  will  be  afforded  for  science 
instruction  at  central  schools  and  classes.     It  will  be  the 
task  of  outside  critics  to  see  that  these  proposals,  already 
made  in  last  year's  Code,  are  not  whittled  down,  and  that 
they  are  supplemented  by  other  changes  on  which  al 
educational  reformers  are  practically  agreed.   What  these 
changes    are    may    be    gathered    from    the    discussion 
on   elementary   education,  especially   in   its   relation   to 
scientific  and   technical  instruction,  which  followed  Dr. 
Gladstone's  paper  at  the  Society  of  Arts  last  November. 
The  programme  has  been   since    embodied   in   a  more 
definite  and  concrete  form  in  the  suggestions  which  have 
just   been   submitted  to  the  Education  Department   by 
the    Committee   of    the   National    Association    for    the 
Promotion    of    Technical     and    Secondary    Education. 
Among  other    suggestions    they   propose   that  drawing 
should  be  made  compulsory  in  boys'  schools,   of  course 
being   allowed    a    due    interval    before    the    regfulation 
comes  into  operation,  during  which  schools  may  adapt 
their  staff  for  the  purpose.     Elementary  drawing  should 
be  introduced   into   infant   schools   for   boys    to    corre- 
spond   to    needlework    for    girls,   as    proposed    in  last 
year's   Code.     The   absurd  minute  of  the  Science   and 
Art  Department — forced  on  them,  it  is  only  fair  to  say, 
by  the  Treasury — confining  grants  on  drawing  in  girls' 
schools  to  departments  where  cookery  is  taught,  ought  of 
course  to  be  repealed  ;  not  so  much  in  the  interests  of  the 
girls,  as  of  the  boys  in  mixed  schools,  for  whom  under  the 
existing  regulations  provision  for  drawing  cannot  well  be 
made.     Drawing  is  not  only  the  basis  of  all  technical  in- 
struction, but  is  a  subject  ofvery  high  educational  value,  and 
on  both  grounds  its  spread  is  much  to  be  desired.  A  further 
change    which   is  to  be  hoped  for  is  the   extension  of 
the  Kindergarten  methods  from  the  infant  school   into 
the  lower  standards,  and  their  continuation  by  means  of 
graduated  object-lessons  so  as  to  lead  up  to  more  dis- 
tinctive scientific  and  manual  instruction  for  the  more 
advanced  scholars  of  the  school.     Manual  instruction  of 
some   kind  ought   to   be  introduced    throughout    boys' 
schools  to  balance  needlework  instruction  for  girls. 

By  manual  instruction  we  do  not  merely  mean  instruction 
in  woodwork  (called,  rather  unhappily,  the  "  use  of  tools  " 
in  the  recent  Act),  which  is  evidently  only  suitable  for  the 
higher  standards,  say  the  sixth  and  seventh.  We  doubt  if 
it  can  be  profitably  given  to  children  below  the  age  of  11, 
and  even  in  the  case  of  these  it  can  of  course  only  take 
the  form  of  the  "  hand  and  eye  "  training — not  of  specific 

s 


386 


NATURE 


[Feb.  27,  1890 


instruction  in  carpentry.  For  younger  children,  however, 
much  might  be  done  in  the  way  of  modelHng  (or,  as  it  has 
been  called,  "  applied  drawing"),  designed  to  carry  on  the 
training  of  the  fingers  which  are  often  made  so  nimble 
by  the  paper-cutting  and  the  Kindergarten  exercises  of 
the  infant  school,  only  afpresent  to  lose  their  pliancy  and 
dexterity  by  want  of  practice  as  soon  as  the  child  emerges 
from  the  fairy-land  of  the  Kindergarten  into  the  dull, 
prosaic  atmosphere  of  Standard  I. 

To  introduce  this  change  it  will  doubtless  be  necessary 
to  abolish  individual  examination  in  the  lower  standards 
at  least,  and  assimilate  them  in  this  respect  to  the  infant 
school.  Another  change  will  also  be  necessary,  in  the 
mode  of  interpreting  the  Education  Acts  which  has 
hitherto  been  customary  at  Whitehall.  Up  to  the  present 
time  there  has  been  a  tendency  in  the  Government 
Departments  to  decline  to  recognize  manual  training  as 
a  form  of  instruction  contemplated  by  the  Acts,  and  in 
the  well-known  case  of  the  Beethoven  Street  Board 
School,  the  London  School  Board  were  surcharged  by  the 
auditor  with  the  cost  of  tools.  The  School  Board  failed 
to  carry  the  question  to  the  law  courts,  and  so  for  a  time 
the  matter  rested.  Since  then,  however,  the  question  has 
entered  on  a  new  phase.  The  Liverpool  School  Board, 
wishing  to  provide  manual  instruction  in  its  schools, 
has  obtained  the  opinion  of  Sir  Horace  Davey,  Q.C.,  to 
the  effect  that  such  provision  clearly  comes  within  the 
power  of  School  Boards.  The  Board  has  consequently 
taken  steps  to  make  the  necessary  provision,  has  appointed 
an  instructor,  and  now  only  waits  to  be  surcharged  in 
order  to  carry  the  whole  question  to  the  Queen's  Bench. 
Other  School  Boards  are  following  suit,  so  that  we  must 
very  shortly  see  the  matter  settled  in  one  way  or 
another.  The  legal  question  is  interesting,  not  only  in  its 
bearing  on  manual  training,  but  on  the  general  powers  of 
School  Boards  to  give  a7ty  extra  instruction  they  please, 
provided  they  comply  with  all  the  regulations  and  re- 
quirements of  the  Education  Department  for  the  time 
being.  If  Sir  Horace  Davey's  opinion  is  sustained,  it 
carries  with  it  the  right  of  School  Boards  to  provide  any 
form  of  technical  or  manual  instruction  that  can  be  given 
consistently  with  the  regulations  of  Whitehall.  Up  to 
the  present  year,  as  we  stated  above,  the  Education  De- 
partment was  not  altogether  favourable  to  the  views  of 
Sir  Horace  Davey.  But  it  is  rumoured  that  of  late  the 
views  of  the  authorities  on  the  subject  have  undergone  a 
change,  and  that  it  is  probable  that  manual  instruction 
may  not  only  be  recognized  as  legal,  but  actually  incor- 
porated as  a  grant-earning  subject  in  the  forthcoming 
Code.  The  rumour,  which  we  sincerely  hope  is  true,  is 
confirmed  by  the  fact  that  in  the  Scotch  Code  just  issued 
a  clause  is  inserted  for  the  first  time  inviting  school 
managers  to  submit  as  a  class  subject  (earning  a  grant 
of  2s.  or  IS.  a  head)  "a  course  of  manual  instruction  on 
a  graduated  system."  The  Scotch  Education  Department, 
therefore,  has  conceded  the  whole  principle,  and  though 
of  course  Scotland  has  a  separate  Act,  the  admission  is 
full  of  significance.  It  would  be  a  trifle  too  absurd  for 
the  English  Education  Department  to  refuse  to  "  recognize 
as  educational "  a  subject  which  the  Scotch  Office  thinks 
important  enough  to  be  encouraged  by  a  grant. 

In  other  respects  the  new  Code  just  issued  from  Mr. 
Craik's  office  is  a  valuable  index,  if  not  of  what  we  shall 


get,  yet  of  what  we  may  justly  press  for,  in  the  coming 
English  Code.  It  is,  indeed,  an  enormous  advance. 
Scotch  members  of  Parliament  sometimes  complain  that 
Scotch  business  attracts  no  attention  at  Westminster. 
The  evil,  however,  has  at  least  some  compensating  ad- 
vantages. Unchallenged — almost  unnoticed — the  officials 
at  the  Scotch  Education  Office  can  quietly  introduce  by  a 
stroke  of  the  pen  the  reforms  in  the  Code  for  which  we 
in  England  have  to  wait  year  after  year.  It  may  serve 
a  useful  purpose  if  we  recount  a  few  of  the  reforms  which 
Mr.  Craik  has  been  able  to  carry  out  this  year  in  Scotch 
education.  Of  the  abolition  of  fees  we  say  nothing,  for 
that  was  the  result  of  legislation  last  session. 

In  the  first  place,  individual  examination  in  the  ele- 
mentary subjects,  which  had  already  been  abolished  in 
the  first  three  standards,  is  now  replaced  by  collective 
examination  throughout  the  school.  This  change  gives 
much  greater  elasticity  and  liberty  of  classification  to  the 
teacher,  and  to  a  great  extent  modifies  the  pressure  of 
the  system  of  payment  by  results. 

In  the  next  place,  the  system  of  class  subjects  is  en- 
tirely revised.  Several  alternative  courses  in  elementary 
science  are  suggested,  including  courses  of  "  nature 
knowledge  "  in  "  animals,"  "  vegetables,"  and  "  matter," 
for  each  of  which  simple  and  suitable  suggestive  syllabuses 
are  laid  down.  Any  other  progressive  scheme  of  teach- 
ing may  be  submitted  to  the  inspector  for  approval. 
''In  elementary  science  this  scheme  may  be  so  framed 
as  to  lead  up  to  the  teaching  of  scientific  specific  subjects. 
It  may  include  the  subjects  of  navigation  or  the  ele- 
mentary principles  of  agriculture  ;  and  a  course  of 
manual  instruction  on  a  graduated  system  may  also  be 
submitted." 

At  the  same  time  the  regulation  requiring  either  Eng- 
lish or  elementary  science  to  be  taken  as  one  of  the  class 
subjects  is  rescinded.  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  in  Scot- 
land an  attempt  was  made  in  the  previous  Code  to 
encourage  science  teaching  by  making  it  alternative  to 
English  as  a  compulsory  class  subject.  It  is  somewhat 
disappointing  to  be  told,  as  we  are  in  the  last  Scotch 
Report,  that  the  change  has  as  yet  produced  but  little 
increase  in  science  teaching.  This  fact  seems  to  sup- 
port the  suggestion  of  the  Technical  Association  that 
science  instruction  (which  gives  more  trouble  and  re- 
quires more  appliances)  should  be  encouraged  by  a 
slightly  higher  scale  of  grant  than  that  allotted  to 
other  class  subjects.  But  it  also  tends  to  suggest  the 
possibility  that  part  of  the  price  which  Scotland  has 
to  pay  for  the  ease  with  which  it  can  get  educational 
changes  carried  out  is  a  certain  popular  indifference  to 
those  changes  which  may  go  far  to  make  them  nugatory. 
Thus  it  is  quite  possible  that  the  Departmental  invitation 
to  submit  courses  of  manual  instruction  may  produce  far 
less  effect  on  schools  in  Scotland  than  would  be  produced 
in  England  by  a  favourable  decision  of  the  law  courts  on 
a  hotly  disputed  case  such  as  that  which  may  come 
before  them  in  connection  with  the  Liverpool  School 
Board.  The  steam  which  has  to  be  got  up  on  this  side  of 
the  Tweed  in  order  to  get  a  reform  permitted  will  often 
supply  the  motive  force  which  will  get  that  reform  carried 
out.  The  different  fate  which  has  attended  the  Scotch 
and  the  English  Technical  Instruction  Acts  hitherto  is  a 
,  case  in  point.    The  Scotch  Act,  passed  with  ease  through 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


387 


an  apathetic  House,  has  fallen  flat,  while  the  English 
Act,  badly  drawn  as  it  is,  is  arousing  a  great  and  in- 
creasing amount  of  interest  in  the  country,  and  within 
the  first  six  months  is  already  in  full  swing  in  several 
districts. 

But  this  is  a  digression.  The  recasting  and  improve- 
ment of  the  system  of  class  subjects  in  Scotland  is  in- 
teresting not  only  in  itself  but  as  indicating  a  probable 
change  of  a  similar  kind  in  the  English  Code.  Underi 
these  circumstances  we  must  not  fail  to  note  the  paralle' 
change  carried  out  in  the  schedule  of  "  specific  subjects.' 
Almost  the  whole  of  the  schedule  which  relates  to 
science  subjects — chemistry,  mechanics,  electricity,  light 
and  heat,  physiology,  botany,  and  physical  geography — is 
entirely  cancelled,  and  for  the  detailed  syllabuses  of  these 
subjects  is  substituted  a  simple  invitation  to  school 
managers  to  submit  graduated  courses  in  subjects  not 
mentioned  in  the  schedule.  At  first  sight  this  seems  a 
loss  —as  though  the  Department  were  moving  in  the  direc- 
tion of  paying  less  instead  of  more  attention  to  science. 
The  alteration,  however,  must  be  read  in  conjunction  with 
the  reforms  in  class  schedules  and  the  observations  on 
class  and  specific  subjects  in  the  last  Report  of  the  Scotch 
Education  Department.  Commenting  on  the  fact  that 
''  the  general  development  of  class  subjects  tends  to  restrict 
the  specific  subjects,"  the  Report  proceeds  :  "  this  is  a 
result  not  altogether  to  be  regretted,  as  the  influence  of 
the  class  subjects  is  general,  while  that  of  the  specific 
subjects  is  restricted  to  a  few  selected  scholars." 

Again,  in  the  instructions  to  inspectors  just  issued,  Mr. 
Craik  explains  one  of  the  objects  of  the  Department  to 
be  "  to  spread  the  beneficial  results  of  any  such  higher 
teaching  as  may  be  given,  to  the  whole  school,  instead  of 
<:onfining  it  to  a  few  selected  scholars." 

It  is  clear,  therefore,  that  the  changes  in  the  fourth  and 
fifth  schedules  (which  are  probably  the  precursor  of 
similar  changes  in  the  English  Code)  are  dictated  by  a 
•desire  to  extend  class  instruction  in  science,  even  if  at  the 
expense  of  specific  subjects  ;  in  other  words,  to  transfer 
natural  science  from  its  former  position,  as  a  smattering  of 
a  few  special  branches  of  physics  imparted  to  a  few 
pupils,  to  its  proper  place  as  a  course  of  general  stimulat- 
ing instruction  in  the  elements  of  "nature  knowledge,'' 
given  as  an  integral  part  of  the  school  course  to  the 
school  as  a  whole.  More  specialized  science  teaching 
can  still  be  provided  if  desired  in  the  form  of  specific 
instruction  framed  to  suit  local  wants  by  the  various 
school  managers,  or  it  may  be  given,  as  is  already  the 
case  in  many  elementary  schools,  by  means  of  science 
classes  in  connection  with  the  Science  and  Art  De- 
partment. 

We  cannot  doubt  that  the  Scotch  Department  is  right 
in  its  policy,  but  the  probable  extension  of  class  teaching 
under  the  new  and  more  elastic  rt'gime  suggests  a  doubt 
whether  the  proper  way  of  introducing  manual  instruction 
is  by  means  of  including  it  among  the  class  subjects,  so 
long  at  least  as  the  possible  number  of  class  subjects  is 
restricted.  Drawing — the  only  form  of  manual  training 
previously  recognized  for  boys— has  already  been  put  out- 
side the  range  of  class  subjects.  Needlework — the  only 
other  manual  subject  in  the  Code — may  be  taught  either 
as  a  class  subject  or  as  part  of  the  ordinary  curriculum  of  the 
school.     Is  there  not  a  chance  that  in  including  manual 


instruction  among  the  class  subjects  an  unnatural  rivalry 
may  be  set  up  between  this  subject  and  elementary 
science,  which  may  restrict  the  spread  of  both  ?  All  this, 
however,  is  a  matter  for  the  future.  Meanwhile  we  have 
only  to  congratulate  the  Scotch  on  the  improvement  of 
the  conditions  under  which  in  the  future  their  schools 
will  be  carried  on,  and  to  express  the  hope  that  England 
will  not  lag  behind. 

One  word  in  conclusion.  It  may  be  wondered  why  in 
this  article,  dealing  with  scientific  and  technical  in- 
struction in  elementary  schools,  so  little  reference  is 
made  to  the  Technical  Instruction  Act  of  last  session, 
either  in  respect  of  the  powers  which  it  confers  on 
elementary  school  managers,  or  of  those  which,  much  to 
the  regret  of  many  politicians,  it  appears  to  withhold. 

The  real  fact  is  that  we  have  our  doubts  as  to  the 
need  of  any  general  Technical  Instruction  Act  for  ele- 
mentary schools,  and  have  a  suspicion  that  their  exclu- 
sion from  the  late  Act  was  in  reality  a  blessing  in  disguise. 
Of  course,  if  the  opinion  of  Sir  Horace  Davey  (and  now 
we  are  glad  to  be  able  to  add,  of  the  Scotch  Education 
Department)  should  be  upset  in  the  law  courts,  it  may 
be  necessary  to  rectify  the  anomaly  by  a  short  Act  of  a 
single  clause  recognizing  the  legality  of  manual  instruc- 
tion. But,  with  this  possible  exception,  no  new  powers 
are  required  by  School  Boards,  and  no  new  rate  need  be 
imposed.  Mr.  Mundella,  in  complaining  of  the  exclusion 
of  elementary  schools  from  the  late  Act,  compared  the 
scheme  to  an  educational  ladder  with  the  lower  rungs  left 
out.  Let  him  be  reassured — no  rung  is  wanting  so  far 
as  legislation  is  concerned.  As  at  present  advised,  we 
feel  clear  that  the  managers  of  a  public  elementary  school, 
so  long  as  they  comply  with  the  requirements  of  the  De- 
partment, may  teach  what  extra  subjects  they  please. 
The  rating  power  possessed  by  a  School  Board  is  limited 
only  by  the  wishes  of  the  ratepayers.  What  really  retards 
the  introduction  of  technical  and  manual  instruction  is 
the  want  of  imperial  grants  (which  may  and  ought  to  be 
given  through  changes  in  the  Code),  the  want  of  time,  the 
pressure  of  other  subjects,- the  ignorance  of  the  public, 
and  the  parsimony  of  the  ratepayers.  But  none  of  these 
obstacles  can  be  removed  by  legislation.  What  legislation 
could  and  probably  would  do,  would  be  to  restrict  the 
present  powers  of  School  Boards  by  defining  them  ;  and, 
perhaps,  even  to  confine  the  rate  for  technical  instruction 
within  the  limit  of  a  penny  in  the  pound.  But  this  can 
hardly  be'what  Mr.  Mundella  wants. 


A  DICTIONARY  OF  APPLIED  CHEMISTRY. 

A  Dictionary  of  Applied  Chemistry.  By  T,  E.  Thorpe, 
B.Sc.  (Vict),  Ph.D.,  F.R.S.,  &c.  Assisted  by  Eminent 
Contributors,  In  Three  Volumes,  Vol.  I.  (London  : 
Longmans  and  Co,,  1890.) 

THE  first  volume  of  the  "Dictionary  of  Applied 
Chemistry,"  edited  by  Prof.  Thorpe,  is  a  welcome 
addition  to  our  scientific  books  of  reference,  and  forms  an 
admirable  companion  to  the  "  Dictionary  of  Theoretical 
Chemistry,"  the  second  volume  of  which  was  reviewed 
some  weeks  ago. 

In  the  preface  Prof.  Thorpe  points  out   that,  as  this 


388 


NATURE 


S^Feb.  27,  1890 


work  has  special  reference  to  the  applications  of 
chemistry  to  the  arts  and  manufactures,  it  deals  but 
sparingly  with  the  purely  scientific  aspects  of  the  science, 
unless  these  have  some  direct  and  immediate  bearing  on 
the  business  of  the  technologist.  How  direct  and  how 
immediate  such  a  bearing  is  at  the  present  day,  and  how 
difficult,  not  to  say  impossible,  it  is  to  separate  theory 
front  practice,  may  be  judged  of  by  turning  over  the 
pages  of  this  most  useful  volume. 

Take,  for  example,  the  article  on  the  azines,  written  by 
the  most  competent  authority  on  that  subject,  Dr.  Otto 
Witt,  of  Berlin.  The  untrained  technologist  will  be  com- 
pletely at  sea  with  the  honeycomb  of  benzene  rings  with 
which  he  clearly  explains  the  constitution  of  such  well- 
known  compounds  as  the  safranenes,  the  splendid  yellow 
dyes  so  ably  investigated  by  Dr.  Witt  himself,  whereas 
the  manufacturer  who  has  the  theory  of  the  subject  at 
command  is  complete  master  of  the  situation.  Or,  again, 
let  us  turn  to  the  next  article,  on  the  azo-colouring  matters, 
communicated  by  another  equally  trustworthy  authority. 
Prof.  Meldola,  covering  28  thickly-printed  pages,  in  which 
the  same  necessary  connection  is  seen.  And  no  other 
example,  perhaps,  indicates  more  forcibly  the  enormous 
advance  which  applied  chemistry  has  made  in  the  last  ten 
years,  and  its  entire  dependence  upon  abstract  research. 
In  proof  of  this,  it  needs  only  to  be  pointed  out  that  the 
article  concludes  with  a  list  of  no  less  than  95  distinct 
patents  on  this  one  group  of  colouring  matters,  from 
March  12,  1878,  to  June  30,  1888,  all  of  which  are  the 
result  of  original,  chiefly  German,  research. 

An  examination  of  other  important  articles  written  by 
specially-qualified  contributors  indicates  that  each  sub- 
ject is  brought  up  to  the  level  of  the  present  state  of  our 
knowledge.  Let  us  look  for  a  moment  at  the  article  on 
ammonia,  contributed  by  Prof.  Lunge,  of  Zurich.  Here 
we  find  detailed  reference  to  the  newest  forms  of  appa- 
ratus for  the  manufacture  of  ammonium  salts,  illustrated 
by  excellent  woodcuts  of  the  Feldmann-still.  Again, 
turning  to  the  article  on  chlorine,  we  have  to  note  the 
same  completeness  and  technical  grasp  of  the  questions 
discussed.  Thus,  on  p.  526,  we  find  the  method  patented 
so  long  ago  as  1866  by  Mr.  Brock,  of  Widnes,  and  now 
for  the  first  time  coming  into  general  use,  which  has  for 
its  object  the  treatment  of  the  exit  gases  from  the 
bleaching-powder  chambers  by  means  of  a  dry  lime- 
sprinkler,  this  not  only  removing  a  serious  nuisance  in 
the  manufacture,  but  also  recovering  chlorine  otherwise 
wasted. 

Prof.  Hummel,  of  Leeds,  contributes  an  excellent 
article  on  bleaching;  and  here  again  we  see  that  the 
newest  processes  are  fully  described,  e.g.  on  p.  323  the 
Mather-Thompson  bleaching  process  is  fully  noticed,  and 
the  electrical  bleaching  process  of  Hermite  likewise  re- 
ferred to.  As  regards  this  latter,  the  conclusion  arrived 
at  is  that  now  generally  admitted  by  practical  authori- 
ties, viz.  that  electrolytic  bleaching  cannot  reasonably  be 
expected  to  replace  bleaching-powder  at  a  price  of  ^7 
per  ton. 

One  of  the  most  valuable  articles  in  the  book  is  written 
by  Mr.  John  Heron  on  brewing,  in  which  he  not  only 
describes  the  most  modern  forms  of  brewing  plant  and 
processes,  but  gives  a  clear  statement  of  the  important  re- 
searches of  Pasteur  and  Hansen  on  the  alcoholic  ferments. 


As  we  all  know,  it  was  Pasteur  who  first  directed  attention 
to  those  other  forms  of  Saccharomyces  known  as  "wild" 
yeasts  in  fermenting  yeasts  and  beer  ;  but  it  is  not  so- 
commonly  understood  that  it  was  Hansen  who  taught  us 
how  to  introduce  into  the  liquid  a  seed  yeast  really  free 
from  "  wild"  forms.  Since  1883  carefully  selected  types 
of  yeast  from  pure  cultures,  according  to  Hansen's  re- 
searches, have  been  introduced  into  Denmark,  Norway, 
and  Bavaria,  with  the  most  satisfactory  results,  whilst  in 
England  nothing  of  the  kind  has  yet  been  done,  although, 
at  Burton  several  experiments  have  been  made  in  this 
direction.  Sufficient  has  already  been  done  to  show  that 
several  varieties  of  Sacchai'omyces  cerevisicB  can  be 
separated,  which,  however,  do  not  differ  morphologically, 
but  may  be  distinguished  from  each  other,  inasmuch  as 
they  give  entirely  different  results,  both  as  to  flavour 
brightness,  attenuation  of  the  beer,  and  to  the  mode  of 
separation  of  the  yeast.  The  proportion  of  these  different 
varieties  in  various  breweries  seems  to  remain  constants 
and  to  give  the  peculiar  flavour  and  appearance  which 
the  various  fermented  liquors  possess. 

Another  article  is  that  by  Prof.  Noel  Hartley  on 
cements,  a  subject  which  though  of  great  importance  is 
not  usually  considered  of  great  chemical  interest,  but  it 
has  been  made  so  by  th  e  writer.  He  points  out  the  facty 
certainly  not  known  to  the  majority  of  chemists,  that  we 
owe  to  Lavoisier  the  first  explanation  of  the  phenomena 
of  the  baking  and  hardening  of  plaster  of  Paris.  At 
so  early  an  age  as  21,  he  published  a  short  note  in 
the  Comptes  rcndus  of  February  17,  1765,  in  which  he 
showed  that  water  is  removed  from  the  gypsum  in  two 
stages,  that  the  first  three-quarters  of  the  combined 
water  must  be  removed  in  order  that  the  plaster  shall 
afterwards  set,  but  that  if  the  whole  of  the  combined 
water  be  removed,  the  gypsum  becomes  overburnt  and 
loses  its  value  as  plaster. 

It  is  probable  that  this  volume  will  have  even  a  larger 
\  sale  than  that  of  the  corresponding  "  Dictionary  of  Pure 
i  Chemistry,"  and,  as  with  that  important  work,  so  with 
!  this,  the  public  may  well  be  congratulated  on  possessing 
j  such  a  valuable  book  of  reference  so  creditable  to  all 
concerned  in  its  production.  H.  E.  RoscOE. 


OATES'S  ORNITHOLOGY  OF  INDIA. 

The    Fauna    of  British  India,   including    Ceylon    and 

Bitrma.    Published  under  the  authority  of  the  Secretary 

of    State  for   India   in   Council.      Edited  by   W.   T. 

Blanford.      Birds.      Vol.    I.     By   Eugene   W.    Oates. 

Pp.    i. — XX.,   I — 556.     (London  :    Taylor  and  Francis, 

1889.) 
The  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian   Birds.     By   Allan   O. 

Hume,  C.B.    Second  Edition.    Edited  by  E.  W.  Oates. 

Vol.  I.     Pp.  i. — xii.,  I — 397,     (London  :  R.  H.  Porter, 

1889.) 

THE  two  volumes  on  the  birds  of  India,  which  Mr. 
Oates  has  recently  published,  will  supply  a  much 
needed  want.  The  period  of  twenty-six  years  which  has 
elapsed  since  the  publication  of  Jerdon's  *'  Birds  of  India" 
has  been  prolific  in  ornithological  work,  to  such  an 
extent  that  a  new  adjustment  of  the  scattered  details 
which  had  accumulated  since  that  time  had  become  an 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


189 


absolute  necessity.  Mr.  Gates  has  already  won  his  spurs 
in  the  field  of  Indian  ornithology  ;  for  his  "  Hand-book  of 
the  Birds  of  Burma,"  publibhed  in  1883,  has  always 
been  looked  upon  as  a  standard  work  ;  and  by  comi  .g  to 
Enijiand,  at  great  personal  sacrifice,  to  write  the  bird 
volumes  of  the  "  Fauna  of  British  India,"  he  has  deserved 
the  gratitude  of  all  zoologists.  Those  of  us  who  are 
acquainted  with  the  "  Hand-book"  before  mentioned,  will 
not  be  surprised  to  find  that  in  the  present  volumes  Mr. 
Gates  has  done  his  work  in  a  thoroughly  conscientious 
manner.  Without  commencing,  as  Jerdon  did,  with  a 
general  outline  of  ornithology,  for  which  space  was  not 
available,  Mr.  Gates  has  contrived  to  give  a  condensed 
introduction,  which  will  give  the  student  some  small  idea 
of  classification  of  passerine  birds,  with  which  this 
volume  deals.  We  could  have  wished  that  the  author 
had  followed  a  more  natural  arrangement  of  passerine 
families,  as  his  scheme  of  arrangement  results  in  some 
very  incongruous  affinities,  but  these  will  doubtless  be 
further  explained  when  the  author  gives  a  detailed 
arrangement  of  the  orders  and  families  of  birds  in  his 
third  volume.  As  the  furlough  which  has  been  granted 
to  Mr.  Gates  is  quite  insufficient  for  him  to  finish  the 
work  in  anything  like  a  reasonable  period,  we  are  glad  to 
learn  that  a  representation  has  been  made  to  the 
Government  of  India,  by  som*  of  our  leading  men  of 
science,  for  a  further  extension  of  leave,  to  enable  the 
author  to  finish  the  work,  which  he  has  begun  so 
creditably.  It  would  be  a  thousand  pities  to  see  the  com- 
pletion of  this  book  intrusted  to  less  capable  hands,  of 
which  there  seems  to  be  some  fear  expressed  in  Mr. 
Blanford's  preface. 

Since  Mr.  Seebohm,  in  the  fifth  volume  of  the  "  Cata- 
logue of  Birds  in  the  British  Museum,"  laid  stress  on  the 
importance  of  the  plumage  of  the  young  as  distinguish- 
ing characters  between  the  Thrushes  and  the  Warblers, 
this  character  has  been  thoughtfully  considered  by  many 
ornithologists  ;  but  Mr.  Gates  has  been  the  first  to  apply 
it  in  any  large  measure  to  the  bulk  of  the  passerine  birds, 
and  it  enables  him  to  divide  them  into  five  sections, 
characterized  by  the  plumage  in  the  nestling.  This 
arrangement  brings  about  so  ne  rather  startling  results, 
for  the  Titmice  {Paridce)  become  merged  in  the  family 
Corvid(c,  and  the  Dongns  {Dicrurida)  range  in  close 
proximity  to  the  Nuthaches  {Sitiidce)  and  the  Creepers 
{Ccrthiidce).  This  character  of  the  plumage  of  the  nest- 
lings, like  all  single  characters,  carries  the  author  too  far, 
and  it  is  becoming  more  and  more  plain  every  day  that 
the  natural  classification  of  birds  in  the  future  will  be 
founded  on  a  combination  of  characters,  not  on  any  single 
one  alone.  Mr.  Gates  himself,  in  his  arrangement  of  the 
Crateropodidce,  shows  how  this  can  be  done. 

It  is  impossible  to  praise  too  highly  the  method  in 
which  the  present  book  has  been  worked  out,  though  it 
is  to  be  regretted  that  four  volumes  were  not  allowed  for 
the  birds,  instead  of  three,  for  the  constriction  of  the 
work  has  compelled  the  author  to  treat  of  563  species 
in  544  pages,  which  is  an  allowance  of  less  than  a  page 
to  each  species,  including  the  space  necessary  for  family 
characters  and  "  keys  "  to  genera  and  species.  We  notice 
that  the  author  has  been  driven  to  create  a  good  many 
new  genera,  but  we  are  not  disposed  to  quarrel  with  him 
on  this  account,  though  we  notice  that,  like  ourselves, 


in  writing  the  "  Catalogue  of  Birds,"  he  has  found  it  hard 
to  be  consistent,  and  he  certainly  varies  somewhat  in  his 
estimate  of  characters  in  different  families.  Thus  he 
divides  the  Bulbuls  into  a  number  of  slenderly  defined 
genera,  yet  he  places  the  Rook  and  the  Jackdaw  in  the 
same  genus,  Corvns,  as  the  Raven.  What  was  sauce  for 
a  Bulbul  ought  to  have  been  sauce  for  a  Rook  !  It  is  very 
interesting  to  notice  the  immense  strides  which  our  know- 
ledge of  Indian  ornithology  has  made  in  the  last  twenty 
years.  This  is  mostly  due  to  the  energy  of  Mr.  Allan  Hume, 
whose  marvellous  collection  of  Griental  birds  was  given 
by  him  to  the  British  Museum  in  1885.  Since  that  date 
the  registration  and  arrangement  of  the  Hume  Collection,- 
has  occupied  the  bulk  of  our  own  time  and  that  of  our 
colleagues  in  the  Bird  Room,  so  that  the  whole  of  the 
Indian  Passeres  have  been  placed  conveniently  at  Mr. 
Gates's  disposal  for  the  present  work.  It  may,  indeed, 
be  said  that  Mr.  Hume  sowed,  the  officers  of  the  British 
Museum  watered,  and  Mr.  Gates  came  over  from  India 
in  time  to  gather  the  increase.  It  must  be  a  great 
pleasure  to  Mr.  Hume,  and  to  Major  Wardlaw  Ramsay, 
who  gave  the  Tweeddale  Collection  and  Library  to  the 
Museum  two  years  ago,  to  see  that  already  their  magni- 
ficent donations  have  been  turned  to  such  good  account. 

The  number  of  new  species  described  by  Mr.  Gates  is, 
as  might  be  expected,  small  ;  but  ornithology  has  now 
reached  a  stage  when  the  description  of  new  species  will 
be  surpassed  in  interest  by  the  study  of  greater  facts,  of 
which  the  geographical  distribution  of  birds  is  likely  to 
prove  the  most  absorbing.  For  this  purpose  the  splendid 
Collection  of  skins  amassed  by  Mr.  Hume  will  be  invalu- 
able, for  in  most  instances  the  specimens  in  the  Hume 
collection  trace  out  definitely  the  range  of  each  species, 
and  Mr.  Gates  has  shown  great  talent  in  condensing  into 
his  limited  space  the  large  amount  of  material  which  was 
at  his  command.  It  is,  in  fact,  impossible  to  speak  too 
highly  of  the  way  in  which  he  has  performed  his  task. 

The  volume  before  us  is  profusely  illustrated  with 
woodcuts,  which  will  undoubtedly  be  of  great  service  to 
the  student  in  enabling  him  to  identify  the  species  of 
birds  which  are  to  be  met  with  in  India.  These  wood- 
cuts are,  almost  without  exception,  well  executed,  and  are 
the  best  specimens  of  ornithological  work  which  we  have 
seen  from  the  pencil  of  Mr.  Peter  Smit.  We  are  not 
quite  able  to  grasp  the  plan  on  which  the  names  of  Indian 
localities  have  been  altered  in  the  present  book  to  bring 
them  into  a  recognized  system  of  correct  orthography, 
but  we  suppose  that  there  is  some  sound  reason  for  the 
changes.  If,  however,  our  old  friend  "Mooleyit"  is  to 
become  "  Muleyit,"  and  "  Malewoon  "  to  become  "  Mala- 
wun,"  why  does  not  "  Masuri  "  take  the  piace  of 
"  Mussoorie".''  Surely  it  is  pedantic  to  alter  the  specific 
name  of  "  nipalensis  "  to  "  nepalensis,"  because  it  suits 
modern  notions  to  speak  of  "  Nepal "  instead  of  "  Nipal."' 
As  this  mode  of  orthography  does  not  appear  in  any  of 
Mr.  Gates's  previous  writings,  we  suppose  that  the  editor 
is  responsible  for  the  changes  in  the  spelling  of  the  names 
of  places.  We  would  gladly  adopt  a  complete  method  of 
spelling  the  names  of  Indian  localities,  but  that  adopted 
in  the  present  work  seems  neither  one  thing  or  the 
other. 

It  was  a  happy  idea  of  Mr.  Gates's  to  issue  the  new 
edition   of  Mr.    Hume's   "  Nests    and    Eggs   of    Indian 


390 


NATURE 


{Feb.  27,  1890 


Birds"  in  volumes  of  simultaneous  issue  with  his 
volumes  of  birds.  This  egg-book  of  Mr.  Hume's  is  one 
of  the  best  oological  works  ever  published,  and  has  long 
been  out  of  print.  A  good  deal  of  the  additional  matter 
which  Mr.  Hume  had  accumulated  for  a  second  edition, 
was  stolen  by  a  dishonest  servant,  and  sold  for  waste 
paper  in  the  Simla  Bazaar,  but  enough  has  remained  to 
enable  Mr.  Oates  to  put  before  us  a  very  interesting 
record  of  the  breeding  habits  of  Indian  birds  ;  and  if  any 
tribute  be  wanted  to  Mr.  Hume's  energy  and  ability, 
the  reader  has  but  to  refer  to  the  present  work,  to  study 
the  oological  records  of  the  best  circle  of  field-ornitho- 
logists which  ever  rallied  round  the  central  figure  of  any 
zoologist.  The  portraits  of  naturalists  who  have  contri- 
buted to  the  development  of  our  knowledge  of  Indian 
birds  lend  an  additional  interest  to  Mr.  Oates's  volume 
on  the  "  Nests  and  Eggs  of  Indian  Birds." 

R.  BOWDLER  SHARPE. 


EPHEDRA. 

Die  Arten  der  Gattimg  Ephedra.  Von  Dr.  Otto  Stapf. 
Pp.  112,  I  Map  and  5  Plates.  (Vienna  :  R.  Tempsky, 
1889.) 

EPHEDRA  is  one  of  the  three  genera  of  the  small 
Gymnospermous  order  Gnetaceae,  the  two  others 
being  Gnetum  and  Welwitschia,  that  most  curious  of  all 
gymnospermous  plants.  Ephedra  is  a  type  of  remark- 
able habit,  specially  modified,  though  in  a  different  way 
from  Welwitschia,  to  inhabit  the  dry  and  sandy  regions 
of  the  world.  It  has  shrubby  stems,  with  copious  slender, 
whip-like,  straight  or  turning  branches,  foliar  organs  and 
flower-wrapper  reduced  to  a  minimum,  unisexual  mostly 
dioicous  flowers  in  small  catkins  with  dry  imbricated 
scales,  the  female  catkins  containing  one  or  two  flowers 
only,  and  the  males  several,  with  from  two  to  eight 
stamens  with  the  filaments  usually  joined  in  a  column. 
The  species  are  numerous  and  difficult  of  determination, 
partly  because  the  leaves  are  nearly  suppressed,  partly 
because  the  stems  of  all  the  species  are  very  similar,  and 
that  it  is  needful  to  have  both  staminate  and  pistillate 
flowers  to  study  before  any  given  plant  can  be  determined 
confidently. 

The  map  shows  clearly  at  a  glance  the  geographical 
range  of  the  genus.  It  surrounds  the  basin  of  the  Medi- 
terranean, climbs  the  lower  levels  of  the  Central  Euro- 
pean Alps,  attains  its  highest  development  in  Central 
Asia,  reaching  southward  to  the  north  of  India  and  all 
through  Arabia,  northward  to  Lake  Baikal  and  the  Ural 
Mountains,  and  eastward  to  the  western  provinces  of 
China  ;  and  reappears  in  the  New  World — in  North  Ame- 
rica in  California  and  Mexico,  and  in  South  America 
in  the  Andes  and  over  a  wide  area  south  of  the  tropic 
from  Chili  across  to  Buenos  Ayres.  Though  spread  so 
widely  over  extra-tropical  South  America,  it  does  not 
reach  either  the  Cape  or  Australia,  where  the  climate 
and  soil  seem  so  suitable  for  it.  None  of  the  single 
species  have  a  very  wide  range,  but  it  is  one  of  the  in- 
stances where  a  well-marked,  sharply  isolated  generic 
type  is  represented  in  many  different  geographical  areas 
by  distinct  specific  types. 

The  present  monograph  is  one  of  the  best  and  most 
complete  works  of  the  kind  that  have  lately  appeared. 


It  is  extracted  from  the  second  part  of  the  sixteenth- 
volume  of  the  DenkscJu'iften  der  Mathematisch-Natur- 
wisse7tschaftHchen  class  of  the  Kaiserlichen  Akademie 
der  Wissenschaften  in  Vienna.  Dr.  Stapf  is  one  of  the 
officials  of  the  Botanic  Garden  of  the  University  of 
Vienna,  and  has  had  the  advantage  of  full  command  of 
material,  both  in  the  way  of  specimens  and  books.  Two 
of  the  plates  and  a  large  proportion  of  the  letterpress 
are  devoted  to  the  anatomy  and  morphology  of  the 
vegetative  and  reproductive  organs  of  Ephedra.  In  the 
structure  of  the  woody  bundles  Gnetacese  establish  some 
links  of  transition  between  Coniferse  and  the  typical 
Dicotyledons.  Ephedra  approximates  in  some  points 
towards  Casuarina.  In  the  veining  of  its  well-developed 
leaves  Gnetum  recedesfrom  the  ordinary  Gymnospermous 
type.  In  Ephedra  there  is  an  unmistakable  perianth  to 
the  male  flower,  but  the  homology  of  the  outer  wrapper 
of  the  seed  is  not  so  clear.  Then  follows  the  systematic 
portion  of  the  monograph.  Dr.  Stapf  admits  twenty- 
eight  certain  and  three  imperfectly-known  species,  and 
for  each  of  these  he  gives  a  diagnosis,  a  figure  showing 
its  essential  characters,  an  extended  description,  and  a 
full  account  of  its  synonymy  and  geographical  distribu- 
tion. He  makes  three  sections,  Alatae,  Asarea,  and 
Pseudo-baccatas,  dependent  mainly  upon  whether  the  seed 
is  fleshy  in  a  mature  state,  or  dry  and  furnished  with  a 
wing.  Then  follows  a  list  of  local  names,  and  a  very  full 
list  of  the  books  in  which  the  genus  is  noticed,  extending 
from  Gerarde  and  Ray  down  to  the  present  time.  The 
monograph  is  one  that  deserves  to  be  studied  carefully,, 
both  by  structural  and  systematic  botanists. 

J.  G.  B. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Geological  Mechanism ;  or,  An  Epitome  of  the  History 
of  the  Earth.  By  J.  Spottiswoode  Wilson,  C.E. 
(London  and  Manchester  :  John  Heywood,  1890.) 

The  nature  of  this  little  work  of  135  pages  will  be  best 
indicated  by  a  brief  statement  of  its  contents.  The  book 
is  divided  into  three  portions  of  not  very  unequal  length. 

The  first  of  these  is  "  autobiographical,"  and  relates, 
with  much  circumstance,  the  author's  adventures  at  the 
Geological  Society  and  Club,  where,  on  the  invitation  of 
the  late  Sir  Roderick  Murchison,  he  read  a  paper  in  the 
year  1854.  This  is  followed  by  an  account  (his  own)  of 
the  causes  which  led  to  a  disagreement  between  himself 
and  the  leaders  of  an  exploring  expedition  of  which  he 
had  been  appointed  a  member.  This  part  of  the  book  is 
relieved  from  the  charge  of  being  prosaic,  however,  by 
the  introduction  of  some  very  remarkable,  and  undoubt- 
edly original  verses. 

Having  devoted  more  than  forty  pages  to  himself,  the 
author  has  left  for  the  earth  little  more  than  fifty  page^ 
more  ;  and  in  this  space  he  contrives  to  dispose  of  a 
great  number  of  highly  important  problems,  beginning 
with  "  intelligence  supreme  ;  the  nebular  theory  of  La- 
place ;  hypothesis  of  incandescence  ;  theory  of  the  crys- 
taUine  rocks  ;  hypothesis  of  metamorphism,"  &c.  ;  and 
finishing  up  with  "  the  lunar,  magnetic,  and  solar  tides  ^ 
the  progressive  desiccation  of  the  atmosphere  and  earth  ;. 
the  change  of  time  ;  and  the  theory  of  creation." 

Comprehensive  as  is  this  portion  of  the  book,  however, 
the  author  still  finds  much  to  put  into  his  third  part,  or 
appendix — such  as,  "  tails  or  atmospheres  of  planets  and 
comets ;  the  magnetic  pole  and  change  of  climate  ; 
the  magnetic  tide  of  the  atmosphere,  &c."  As  in  the 
first  .part  he  rose  into  poetry,  here,  in  the  appendix,  he 


Feb,  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


391 


soars  into  the  realms  of  prophecy,  and  tells  us  about 
the  climate  which  may  be  expected  in  these  islands  in 
the  years  1970,  2020,  and  2130  ! 

The  author  assures  us  that  he  writes  especially  for  civil 
engineers,  and  is  not  careful  to  conceal  his  contempt 
for  "  prominent  men  in  other  branches  of  science  "  and 
their  opinions.  But  as  there  are  some  works  "profit- 
able for  instruction,"  so  there  are  others  calculated  to 
afford  amusement  ;  and  it  is  very  hard  indeed  that  civil 
•engineers  should  have  a  monopoly  of  all  the  fun  that  is 
to  be  got  out  of  this  one. 

The  Scenery  of  the  Heavens.     By  J.  E.  Gore,  F.R.A.S. 
(London  :  Roper  and  Drowley,  1890.) 

The  title  of  this  work  is  so  suggestive  of  pictures  that 
one  cannot  help  feeling  disappointed  with  the  limited 
number  of  illustrations,  especially  as  the  book  is  designed 
for  general  readers.  We  look  in  vain,  for  example,  for 
representations  of  Saturn  and  Mars,  solar  prominences, 
and  many  other  celestial  objects,  of  which  no  descriptions 
can  convey  so  much  to  the  mind  as  good  illustrations. 
Some  of  the  illustrations  are  reproduced  more  or  less 
faithfully  from  photographs  by  Mr.  Roberts  and  the 
Brothers  Henry,  but  we  regret  to  note  that  the 
wonderful  photograph  by  Mr.  Roberts  of  the  Great 
Nebula  in  Orion  is  not  amongst  these.  We  may  suggest 
also  that  in  future  editions  some  account  be  given  of  the 
instrument  which  reveals  to  us  the  greater  part  of  the 
"  scenery  of  the  heavens." 

On  the  whole,  the  text  is  excellent,  and  will  no  doubt  [ 
greatly  interest  the  general  reader.  There  is,  however, 
a  very  loose  statement  on  p.  24 — namely,  "if  we  as- 
sume that  the  attraction  of  gravitation  at  the  earth's 
equator  is  32*2  feet,  we  have  the  accelerating  force  of 
gravity  on  the  sun  equal  to  895  feet  per  second."  One  of 
the  most  notable  features  of  the  book  is  the  large  number 
of  poetical  selections  having  reference  to  astronomical 
phenomena.  The  book  contains  a  good  deal  of  informa- 
tion, in  some  cases  perhaps  too  much  to  serve  the 
avowed  purpose  of  the  author,  unless  his  readers  intend 
to  become  amateur  observers.  The  long  lists  of  red 
stars,  doubles,  variables,  and  star  clusters,  for  example, 
are  much  too  detailed  for  general  readers,  although  not 
sufficiently  so  for  regular  observers.  The  chapter  on 
variable  stars,  as  might  be  expected  from  Mr.  Gore,  is 
especially  good.  There  is  also  an  excellent  chapter  on 
shooting-stars,  by  Mr.  Denning,  who  is  eminently  fitted 
for  such  a  task. 

We  may  remind  Mr.  Gore  that  probably  no  one  now 
supposes  that  the  so-called  "gaseous"  nebulas  consist 
of  nitrogen  (pp.  197,  206),  and  that  the  structure  of  the 
Great  Nebula  in  Andromeda  as  revealed  in  Mr.  Roberts's 
photograph  indicates  that  the  nebula  is  probably  not  "  a 
vast  cluster  of  very  small  stars  placed  at  an  immense 
distance  from  the  earth  "  (p.  204). 

No  attempt  is  made  to  touch  upon  any  theoretical 
astronomy,  and  the  scope  of  the  book  is  therefore 
correctly  described  by  the  title. 

A  Trip  through  the  Eastern  Caucasus.  By  the  Hon, 
John  Abercromby.  (London  :  Edward  Stanford,  1889.) 
Is  it  worth  while  for  a  traveller  to  make  a  six  weeks' 
tour  the  subject  of  a  book?  Probably  most  people 
would  answer  promptly  and  emphatically,  No  ;  but  any 
one  who  reads  Mr.  Abercromby's  work  will  see  that  the 
reply  may  be  wrong,  and  that  everything  depends  on  the 
nature  of  the  scenes  visited,  and  on  the  traveller's  ability 
to  give  an  account  of  his  impressions.  In  the  course  of 
six  weeks  Mr.  Abercromby  twice  crossed  the  main  chain 
of  the  Caucasus  by  passes  which  are  little  used  except 
by  natives.  He  was  fortunate  enough  to  secure,  through 
the  instrumentality  of  Prince  Dondukoff  Korsakoff,  the 
Governor-General  of  the  Caucasus,  a  circular  letter  in 
Russian  and  Arabic  to  all  in  authority  wherever  he  might 


wish  to  go.  This,  he  says,  acted  like  a  charm,  securing 
for  him  at  every  place  the  utmost  hospitality.  He  had, 
therefore,  the  best  possible  opportunities  of  seeing  what 
he  desired  to  see,  and  of  forming  just  opinions  as  to  the 
characteristics  of  the  people  whom  he  visited. 

Particularly  good  is  his  description  of  the  strange  village 
called  Kubachi,  in  which  there  was  at  one  time  a  flourish- 
ing school  of  the  higher  kinds  of  artistic  craftsmanship. 
The  village  is  "  a  long,  narrow,  extremely  compact  ag- 
glomeration of  houses,  built  on  the  southern  face  of  a  very 
steep  slope  with  a  shallow  ravine  on  both  sides."  A  high 
round  tower,  commanding  a  wide  view,  stands  at  the  top. 
All  the  roofs  are  flat,  and,  seen  against  the  sky,  the  profile 
of  the  village  is  not  unlike  "a  gigantic  staircase."  Before 
reaching  Kubachi,  Mr.  Abercromby  heard  all  sorts  of 
wonderful  stories  about  the  inhabitants,  and  was  assured 
that  they  were  of  Prankish  origin.  He  found  that  there 
was  nothing  specially  pAiropean-looking  in  the  type  of 
face  either  of  the  men  or  women.  They  appeared  to 
him  "quite  like  the  Lesgians,  though  milder  in  their 
manners,  and  less  wild-looking."  Their  speech  has  no 
sort  of  relation  to  the  Indo-European  languages,  but  be- 
longs to  the  Lesgian  family.  There  are  in  the  village 
many  sculptured  stones  and  other  relics  of  a  period  when 
the  workers  of  Kubachi  had  a  genuinely  artistic  impulse  ; 
and  of  these  remains  Mr.  Abercromby  gives  a  remark- 
ably clear  and  attractive  account.  Not  less  interesting 
in  its  way  is  his  description  of  the  extraordinary  wall  of 
Derbend,  which,  according  to  the  current  native  belief, 
is  3000  years  old.  For  this  idea  there  is  of  course  no 
real  foundation.  Mr.  Abercromby,  with  the  enthusiasm 
of  a  thorough  antiquary,  investigated  this  structure  with 
the  greatest  care,  and  even  readers  who  are  not  generally 
attracted  by  archaeological  research  will  find  much  to 
please  them  in  his  narrative.  Altogether,  the  work  is 
fresh  and  bright,  and  we  recommend  it  to  the  attention 
of  those  who  find  in  good  works  of  travel  intellectual  re- 
freshment and  stimulus. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[T^e  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  "^ 

The  Royal  Society's  Catalogue  of  Scientific  Papers  : 
a  Suggested  Subject-Index. 

The  method  advocated  by  Mr.  J.  C.  McConnel  (Nature, 
February  13,  p.  342)  would  undeniably  be  feasible.  But  I 
should  pity  the  fellow-craftsman  who  should  have  to  carry  it  out. 
The  idea  of  numerical  subdivision  has  been  worked  out  by  Prof. 
Dewey  with  great  ingenuity  and  industry  in  his  "  Decimal 
Classification  and  Relative  Index,"  1885.  We  find,  on  referring 
top.  31,  that  oi6'9289S5l  will  indicate  the  "Bibliography  of 
Persian  poets."  Natural  science  occupies  a  place  from  500-600, 
and  does  not  seem  to  have  been  as  yet  reduced  to  an  equal 
degree  of  elegant  simplicity,  for  the  subject  of  "observing 
chairs,  &c.,"  is  merely  denoted  by  522*28. 

After  this  it  does  not  seem  over  bold  to  pronounce  the  result 
one  of  the  most  amusing  things  in  cataloguing  literature.  It  is, 
however,  surpassed  by  Mr.  J.  Schwartz's  "  King  Aquila's 
Library,"  in  which  the  system  is  fairly  demolished.  But  the 
London  inquirer  into  the  actual  working  of  such  a  cumbrous 
device  may  gain  a  useful  hint  by  noting  that  at  the  Guildhall 
Library  there  is  an  alphabetical  index  to  these  totally  unnecessary 
numbers.  Indeed,  one  is  found  in  Prof.  Dewey's  own  book,  and 
would,  of  course,  be  an  absolute  necessity  in  the  proposed  case. 

No,  a  good  subject-index  can  be  constructed  on  much  simpler 
lines.  See,  for  example,  Poole's  "Index  to  Periodical  Litera- 
ture," which  includes  in  its  first  supplement  (1882-87)  some 
1090  volumes  (indexed  in  483  pages).  Another  example  may  be 
found  in  the  subject-index  at  the  end  of  the  "List  of  Books  of 
Reference  in  the  British  Museum  Reading  Room,"  1889.  In 
this  some  twenty  thousand  volumes  are  included,  which  would 


392 


NATURE 


[Feb.  27,  1890 


lead  one  to  suppose  that  the  size  Mr.  McConnell  suggests  is 
ample,  not  to  say  generous.  I  had  hitherto  supposed  that  a 
scientific  writer  does  not  necessarily  treat  of  a  fresh  subject  each 
time  he  writes. 

Might  I  add  that  an  index  is  not  a  pedigree  or  diagram,  any 
more  than  a  gazetteer  is  the  same  thing  as  a  map  ?  I  fear  that 
to  mix  up  such  distinct  things  would  merely  introduce  an 
altogether  needless  difficulty.  A  Cataloguer. 


The  Period  of  the  Long  Sea-Waves  of   Krakatao. 

In  connection  with  the  great  explosion  at  KrakatJib  at  10  a.m. 
on  August  27,  1883,  a  great  wave  was  generated,  which  at 
Batavia,  100  miles  distant,  reached  a  height  of  7^  feet  above  the 
ordinary  sea-level.  It  was  followed  by  a  fairly  regular  series 
of  fourteen  waves,  at  intervals  of  about  two  hours,  gradually 
diminishing  in  height.  Captain  Wharton,  who  writes  this  part 
of  the  Royal  Society  Report,  is  much  puzzled  by  the  long  period. 
He  says  : — "  If  the  wave  was  caused  by  any  sudden  displacement 
of  the  water,  as  by  the  falling  of  large  masses  of  ejected  matter 
and  huge  fragments  of  the  missing  portion  pf  Krakatao,  or  by 
the  violent  rush  of  steam  from  a  submarine  vent  through  the 
water,  it  is  hardly  to  be  conceived  that  two  hours  would  elapse 
before  the  following  wave,  the  second  of  the  series,  started  after 
it.  .  .  .  If,  however,  upheaval  of  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  more 
or  less  gradual,  and  lasting  fur  about  an  hour,  took  place,  we 
should  have  a  steady  long  wave  flowing  away  from  the  upheaved 
ai-ea,  which  as  it  approached  the  shore  would  be  piled  up  con- 
siderably above  its  normal  height.  Thus  these  waves  of  long 
period  would  be  set  up.  .  .  .  The  water  would  flow  back  on 
the  motion  cea-ing." 

I  do  not  understand  how  the  series  of  waves  would  be  pro- 
duced by  the  sea-bottom  being  upheaved  in  the  manner  described. 
When  the  upheaval  ceased,  the  water  would  probably  flow  back, 
and,  after  the  centre  of  disturbance  was  reached,  a  second  wave 
would  be  generated.  But  there  would  be  no  reason  for  the 
water  flowing  back  a  second  time,  and  no  more  waves  would  be 
generated.  Further,  in  another  part  of  the  Report,  we  find 
Prof.  Judd  expressing  the  opinion  that  no  upheaval  has  taken 
place  (p.  25). 

Another  explanation  has  occurred  to  me,  which  seems  satis- 
factory. Let  us  assume,  with  Prof.  Judd,  that  the  first  wave 
was  due  to  a  great  quantity  of  fragments  falling  into  the  sea. 
This  wave  would  be  reflected  by  the  shores  of  the  Straits  several 
times  backwards  and  forwards,  each  time  giving  rise  to  a  fresh 
disturbance,  travelling  out  towards  Batavia  through  the  narrow 
opening  to  the  east.  Opposite  Krakatao  both  on  the  northern 
and  on  the  southern  shore  of  the  Straits  is  a  great  bay.  The 
time  a  wave  would  take  to  travel  from  Krakatao  to  the  head  of 
the  bay  on  the  north  is  given  by  Captain  Wharton  at  sixty-one 
minutes,  and  the  distance  to  the  head  of  the  other  bay  is  much 
the  same.  This  agrees  very  well  with  the  two-hour  period. 
Moreover  the  first  disturbance  at  Batavia  would  be  a  rise  of 
ihe  water,  which  was  the  case. 

In  a  similar  way  some  of  the  short  periods  observed  at  distant 
stations  may  have  been  due  to  peculiarities  of  the  channels  in 
which  the  tide  gauges  were  placed. 

Hotel  Buol,  Davos.  James  C.  M.  McConnel. 

The  Distances  of  the   Stars. 

Your  note  of  Prof.  Eastman's  address  to  the  Philosophical 
Society  of  Washington  in  your  columns  of  February  13  (p.  351) 
raises  some  questions  of  interest  on  which  I  think  the  Professor 
is  mistaken. 

As  regards  the  nearness  of  particular  stars,  there  are  several 
indications  which  astronomers  have  sought  to  verify  by  observa- 
tion and  computation.  One  of  these  is  brightness  ;  a  second  is 
large  proper  motion,  and  a  third  is  a  bmary  system  easily 
separated  by  the  telescope  (especially  if  the  period  is  compara- 
tively short).  Some  persons  have  also  supposed  that  red  stars, 
variable  stars,  &c.,  are  nearer  than  most  of  their  neighbours. 
Stars  possessing  one  or  more  of  these  characteristics  have  been 
selected  for  parallax  measurements. 

One  of  these  characteristics  being  brightness,  almost  every 
bright  star  in  the  northern  hemisphere  and  a  good  many  of  those 
in  the  southern  have  been  at  one  time  or  another  measarel  for 
parallax.  But  no  one  has  attempted  to  measure  the  parallax  of 
all  stars  of  the  third,  fourth,  fifth,  or  sixth  magnitudes.  Astro- 
nomers have  selected  from  among  these  stars  those  which  afford 


some  striking  indication  of  nearness,  such  as  the  great  proper 
motion  of  6l  Cygni.  If,  therefore,  we  take  the  parallaxes 
arrived  at  in  this  manner  for  comparison,  we  are  comparing  the 
results  attained  for  all  stars  of  the  first  magnitude  with  those 
attained  for  a  small  number  of  exceptional  stars  of  the  fifth  or 
sixth. 

How  far  Prof.  Eastman's  data  are  otherwise  trustworthy  I  need 
not  consider.  I  may  refer  your  readers  to  a  very  full  list  of 
paraxalle>  hitheito  deteimined,  published  by  Mr.  Herbert  Sadler 
in  the  February  number  of  Knotoledge,  by  which  it  will  appear 
how  discordant  and  untrustworthy  these  results  are.  But  the 
exceptional  character  of  Prof.  Eastman's  faint  stars  is  sufficiently 
evident  from  the  table  itsel.f.  His  first  group,  with  mean  magni- 
tude 5 '57,  has  a  mean  proper  m<  tion  of  4" '93  ;  the  second  group, 
with  a  mean  magnitude  5 '59,  has  a  mean  proper  motion  2"'33. 
Surely  Prof.  Eastman  does  not  mean  that  the  average  pi'oper 
motion  of  stars  of  the  magnitude  5  "58  is  3" '63.  There  is  not 
one  star  in  a  hundred  of  this  degree  of  faintness  which  possesses 
such  a  proper  motion  as  this.  W.   H.   S.   MoNCK. 

Dublin,  February  15. 

P.  S. — It  is  possible  that  a  sphere  enclosing  the  thirty  nearest 
stars  to  us  would  include  more  faint  stars  than  bright  ones  ;  but 
I  think  it  certain  that  it  would  not  include  as  large  a  percentage 
of  fifth  magnitude  stars  as  of  first  magnitude  stars.  The  first 
magnitude  stars  do  not  exceed  twenty,  and  a  fe\y  of  them  seem 
to  be  very  distant.  The  fifth  magnitude  stars  are  reckoned  by 
hundreds,  and  a  few  of  them  are  comparatively  near. 


The  Longevity  of  Textural   Elements,  particularly 
in  Dentine  and  Bone. 

Whatever  views  we  may  take  of  the  theories  of  Weismann, 
which  at  present  occupy  the  attention  of  biologists,  they  may  be 
hailed  as  giving  new  directions  to  research,  and  one  of  the  sub- 
jects about  which  his  allusions  will  probably  lead  to  further 
inquiry  is  the  length  of  time  durin'^  which  textural  elements  con- 
tinue individually.  I  have  used  the  word  longevity  at  the  top  of 
this  letter  ;  but,  perfectly  admitting  the  justice  of  Weistnann's 
criticism — that  division  into  two,  each  of  which  is  a  unity  like  the 
first,  is  not  death — I  feel  driven  to  the  dire  necessity  of  invent- 
ing a  new  word,  permanunity,  to  denote  permanence  without 
division  ;  and  it  is  of  such  permanence  or  longevity  of  the  un- 
divided unit  that  I  wish  to  note  a  circumstance  which  has 
recently  presented  itself  to  my  mind. 

Every  anatomist  is  aware  that  the  living  elements  of  dentine 
are  nucleated  corpuscles  with  elongated  branches,  which  are 
embedded  in  the  matrix,  and  lengthen  as  the  dentine  increases 
in  thickness,  while  the  corpuscles  themselves  retire  inwards,  re- 
maining at  the  boundary  of  the  lessening  pulp-cavity.  The  con- 
tinuity of  the  tubes  containing  these  finres  furnishes,  as  soon  as 
one  thinks  of  it,  convincing  proof  that  they  are  the  same 
branches  and  the  same  dentine  corpuscles  which  are  found  when 
the  dentine  begins  to  be  deposited  and  when  it  is  completed. 
But  the  dentine  begins  in  childhood,  and  may  go  on  increasing 
in  thickness  in  old  age,  with  its  tubes  still  continuous,  though 
losing  their  retjularity  of  position.  Therefore,  dentine-corpuscles 
continue  alive  and  without  division  through  the  greater  part  of 
the  life  of  the  organism. 

The  interest  of  this  is  exceedingly  great,  if  the  relation  of 
dentine  to  bone  be  considered.  Bone  has  a  matrix  similar  to 
dentine,  and  has  branched  corpuscles  ;  but  the  bone-corpuscles 
ditfer  from  the  dentine-corpuscles  in  becoming  completely  em- 
bedded in  the  mineralized  matrix,  without  any  attempt  to  retire 
from  it,  and  thus  come  to  have  branches  on  every  side.  Under 
the  microscope  one  can  see  in  compact  bony  tissue  that  there  is 
a  continual  reabsorption  and  redeposition  of  bone  going  on  ;  and 
these  alternating  processes  are  brought  about  in  a  way  which  is 
easy  to  understand,  though  very  generally  misapprehended.  In 
consequence,  probably,  of  the  very  pressure  exercised  by  the 
bony  deposit  on  the  corpuscles,  the  corpuscles  are  excited  to 
absorb  it  ;  and  one  sees  absorption  spaces  commencing  sometimes 
in  the  centres  of  haversian  systems,  and  sometimes  in  individual 
lacunae.  The  activity  thus  aroused  in  the  corpuscles  causes  them 
to  enlarge  and  to  attempt  proliferation  ;  which  being  in  the  first 
instance  modified  by  their  close  surroundings  leads  to  their  being 
converted  into  large  multinucleated  masses,  the  so-called  giant- 
cells  or  osteoclasts.  But  when  a  greater  amount  of  room  has 
been  obtained,  these  masses  separate  up  into  corpuscles  with  ore 
nucleus  each,  bone-corpuscles  or  osteoblasts,  which,  arrayirg 
themselves  around  the    cavity,   initiate   the  formation  of  new 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


93 


ovo 


concentric  laminae  of  bone.  Thus  it  is  certain  that  the  per- 
manunity  of  the  bone-corpuscle  is  very  inconsiderable  indeed. 
It  may  be  difficult  to  define  it  exactly,  but  a  general  consideration 
of  the  rapid  changes  in  the  shafts  of  young  bones  leads  me  to 
think  it  probably  much  less  than  a  year. 

There  is  thus  a  very  surprising  contrast  between  the  undivided 
p»ersistence  or  permanunity  of  a  bone-corpuscle  and  that  of  a 
dentine-corpuscle,  which  is  in  various  respects  so  similar  to  it. 
While  there  are  numerous  instances  of  very  short-lived  c  >rpuscles 
in  the  bodv,  I  am  not  aware  that  until  now  proof  has  been 
offered  of  the  persistence  of  any  living  tissue-elements  throughout 
the  life  of  the  oi^anism.  John  Cleland. 

Some  Notes  on  Dr.  A.  R.  Wallace's  "  Darwinism." 

I  HAVE  just  read  this  most  interesting  work,  "  Darwinism  " — 
seeming  to  me  the  clearest  and  most  useful  account  of  the 
Darwinian  theory  of  evolution  ever  yet  published — and  while 
reading  it  I  have  made  note  of  a  few  matters  which  I  may, 
perhaps,  be  allowed  t  >  touch  on  here. 

On  p.  43  are  quoted  the  numbers  of  varieties  of  the  two  snails, 
HeUx  nemoralis  and  H.  hortcnsis,  enumerated  by  a  French 
author — no  doubt  Moquin-Tandon.  These  numbers,  however, 
fall  far  below  those  actually  known  at  the  present  day.  These 
snails  vary  in  many  ways,  but  taking  variations  of  handing  alone, 
I  know  of  252  varieties  of  H.  nemoralis,  and  128  of  H.  hortensis. 

To  further  illustrate  the  extreme  variability  of  the  MoIIusca, 
take  the  varieties  of  land  and  freshwater  Mollu'^ca  found  in  the 
British  Islands.  Of  the  88  species  of  land  shells  we  have  465 
named  varieties,  and  of  the  46  species  of  British  freshwater 
shells  are  251  varieties.  So  that,  excluding  probable  synonymy, 
we  have  about  5  named  varieties  in  Britain  to  every  species  of 
inland  mollusc. 

In  the  same  way,  the  numbers  of  Rosa  and  Rubus  quoted  on 
p.  77  are  below  the  mark.  Of  Rosa  canina,  33  varieties  are 
known  in  the  British  Islands,  while  the  British  Rubi  number  6^ 
supposed  species. 

A  tjood  example  of  a  species  "occupying  vacant  places  in 
nature  "  (p.  1 10),  is  afforded  by  the  little  mollusc  Ccecilianella 
acicula,  which  is  simply  organized,  and  lives  in  great  numbers 
\xnAe<^^TOVinA  {vide  NaCttralist,  1885,  p.  321). 

The  true  cause  (as  it  seems  to  me)  of  the  variability  of  fresh- 
water species  seems  hardly  indicated  on  p.  no.  All  freshwater 
productions,  except  those  inhabiting  large  river  basins  (as  the 
Mississippi),  present  these  peculiarities — they  are  exceedin^^ly 
variable  and  plastic,  so  that  we  get  few  but  polymorphic  species. 
Now,  for  the  successful  spread  of  freshwater  organisms,  it  is 
necessary  that  they  should  he.  plastic,  to  adapt  themselves  to  the 
new  environment  of  every  pond  or  river,  and  the  varieties  thus 
required  must  not  become  fixed  species,  because  it  is  their  very 
changeability  under  new  environment  that  makes  them  successful 
in  the  struggle  for  existence  and  increase.  Freshwater  forms 
migrate  more  than  is  commonly  supposed,  and  the  contents  of 
any  pond  or  river  are  ever  varying.  Hence  the  necessities  I 
have  indicated.  These  points  are  exceptionally  clear  in  the 
case  of  the  Unionidce  of  Europe  and  North  America  (see 
Science  Gossip,  1888,  pp.  182-184). 

Colorado  presents  an  exception  to  the  rule  (p.  112),  that  two 
species  of  Aquilegia  are  rarely  found  in  the  same  area.  In 
Colorado  we  \\z.\&  five  columbines,  viz.  A.  formosa,  A.  chrys- 
antha,  A.  brevistyla,  A.  ccerulea,  and  A.  canadensis.  But  A. 
Cicrulea  is  the  only  one  that  can  be  called  abundant. 

On  p.  139,  it  is  stated  that  specific  characters  are  essentially 
symmetrical.  Yet  the  ocelli  and  spots  on  the  butterflies  of  the 
families  SatyridcE  and  LycanidcB  surely  afford  specific  characters, 
and  they  are  frequently  asymmetrical  (see  Entomologist,  1889, 
p.  6). 

On  p.  151,  we  are  told  that  in  Ireland  hardly  one  of  the  land 
molluscs  has  undergone  the  slightest  change.  This  is  not  quite 
true,  as  the  following  forms  seem  to  be  peculiar  to  Ireland  : 
Arion  aler  van  fasciata,  Geomilacus  maculosus  vars.  allmani, 
verkruzeni,  and  andrewsi,  Limax  arborum  var.  maculata,  L. 
arborum  var.  decipiens,  Succinea  vitrea  var.  aurea,  and  S. 
Pfeifferi  var.  rtifescens.  But  these  peculiar  forms  are  not  more 
numerous  (but  less  so)  than  would  be  found  in  almost  any 
continental  area  of  equal  size. 

The  theory  (p.  206)  that  a  recent  change  of  food-plant  has 
to  do  with  ihe  presence  of  green  and  brown  varieties  of  the 
larva  of  Macroglossa  stellatarum  seems  hardly  tenable,  as  so 
many  larvae  of  different  species  and  genera  vary  in  the  same 
manner. 


I  have  thought  (Ent.  Mo.  Mag.,  1889,  p.  382)  that  asym- 
metrical variation  in  insects  occurred  most  often  on  the  left  side. 
On  p.  217  it  appears  that  the  same  thing  occurs  in  some  Verte- 
brata. 

On  p.  230  the  idea  of  environment  directly  influencing  the 
prevalent  colours  of  organisms  is  put  aside  as  improbable.  Yet 
it  has  seemed  that  moisture  was  the  cause  of  a  certain  phase 
of  melanism,  especially  among  Lepidoptera.  Evidence  bearing 
on  this  point  has  been  given  during  the  last  few  years  in  the 
Entomologist. 

The  land  shells  on  the  small  islands  off  the  coast  of  Kerry, 
Ireland,  are  pale  in  colour,  as  I  have  recorded  in  Proc.  South 
London  Entom.  and  N.H.  Soc.  for  1887,  pp.  97-98. 

The  point  on  p.  233,  about  the  conspicuous  colours  of  the 
Aculeate  Hymenoptera,  seems  open  to  question.  In  temperate 
regions,  at  least,  the  Aculiuta  are  mostly  of  very  dull  colours — 
as  the  Andrenida,  many  of  the  Apidcc,  and  hosts  of  others.  Even 
the  brilliant  green  Agapostem-jn  flies  among  bright  green  foliage 
and  yellow  flowers,  and  is  not  very  conspicuous  when  alive 
in  its  native  haunts.  On  the  other  hand,  the  non  aculeate 
ChrysididcE  and  Chalcidida  are  often  exceedingly  brilliant  in 
colouring. 

It  seems  quite  doubtful  whether  the  abundance  and  wide 
distribution  of  Danais  archippus  (p.  238)  is  due  to  immunity 
from  parasites,  &c.,  while  its  migratory  habits  are  a  quite  sufficient 
explanation  of  the  facts.  Besides,  it  has  at  least  one  parasite — 
the  Pteromalus  archif^pi. 

The  "progressive  change  of  colour"  (p.  298)  is  well  illustrated 
by  the  change  from  yellow  to  scarlet  exhibited  by  so  many 
groups  of  species.  Scarlet  species  nearly  always  occasionally 
revert  to  yellow,  and  there  are  generally  yellow  species  in  the 
same  genus.  For  details  see  Proc.  South  Lond.  Ent.  and  N.  H. 
Soc.  for  1887. 

Yellow  flowers  (see  p.  316)  seem  the  most  attractive  to  insects 
in  Colorado,  and  Mr.  F.  W.  Anderson  tells  me  that  the  same 
is  the  case  in  Montana.  From  reasons  given  in  Canadian 
Entomologist,  1888,  p.  176,  I  am  of  the  opinion  that  insects 
cannot  distinguish  red  from  yellow. 

It  has  seemed  to  me  (see  p.  359)  that  the  agency  of  wind  in 
distributing  insects  is  greatly  exaggerated,  1  believe  whirl- 
winds may  be  most  important  as  distributing  agents,  but  ordin- 
ary gales  less  so.  Many  species  of  insects  migrate,  but  usually 
during  calms.  Also  (p.  310)  the  opinion  that  insects  are  often 
carried  to  the  summits  of  mountains  by  winds  seems  to  me 
without  sufficient  support.  Many  species  of  insects  live  only 
or  habitually  at  high  altitudes,  and  their  presence  there  is  no 
proof  that  they  were  carried  there  by  winds,  especially  when 
they  are  specifically  distinct  fnm  the  species  of  lower  regions. 
Plusia  ganuna,  on  the  summit  of  Mont  Blanc,  is  not  very  re- 
markable, as  the  moth  is  a  great  wanderer,  and  quite  capable  of 
finding  its  own  way  to  high  altitudes.  Finally,  I  believe  winds  very 
rarely  blow  tip  mountain  slopes.  I  have  lived  some  time  at  the  base 
of  the  great  Sangre  de  Cristo  Range  in  Colorado,  and  although 
violent  winds  blow  doivn  very  frequently,  I  have  never  obsei-ved 
an  upzvard  wind,  and  residents  whom  I  have  questioned  are 
unanimous  in  saying  that  they  have  never  known  a  strong  wind 
blow  up  the  mountains.  And  the  way  the  trees  are  bent  and 
twisted  at  timber-line  (11,500  feet),  often  with  only  branches  on 
the  side  towards  the  valley,  well  indicates  the  direction  of  the 
winds. 

I  think,  perhaps,  the  scarcity  of  Monocotyledons  in  the  Rocky 
Mountains  (p.  4or)  as  compared  with  northern  regions,  is  more 
apparent  than  real — the  difference  indicated  in  the  books  being 
due  to  the  fact  that  the  western  grasses  are  not  so  well  known  as 
the  eastern  ones.  Ferns  are  rarer  on  continents  than  on  islands, 
and  the  dryness  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  region  is  unfavourable 
to  them. 

A  giod  instance  of  the  effect  of  environment  (see  p.  419) 
recently  came  under  my  notice.  The  polymorphic  snail  Helix 
nemoralis  was  introduced  from  Europe  into  Lexington,  Vir- 
ginia, a  few  years  ago.  Under  the  new  conditions  it  varied 
more  than  I  have  ever  known  it  to  do  elsewhere,  and  up  to  the 
present  date  I25^varieties  have  been  discovered  there.  Of  these, 
no  less  thxu^-^  are  netv,  and  unknown  in  Europe,  the  native 
country  of  the  species!  The  variation  is  in  the  direction  of 
divi-ion  of  the  batids.  An  incomplete  list  of  these  varieties  is 
given  in  Nautilus,  1889,  pp.  73-77. 

It  seems  doub'  ful  (see  p.  433)  how  far  prickles  are  a  protection 
from  snails  and  slugs.  I  found  prickles  in  the  stomach  of  Par- 
macella  (a  slug),  as  recorded  in  Journal  of  Conchology,  1886, 
pp.  26-27. 


394 


NATURE 


{Feb.  27,  1890 


It  is  a  minor  matter,  but  it  seems  a  pity  that  the  nomenclature 
of  the  species  in  a  standard  work  like  "Darwinism  "  should  not 
be  scrupulously  exact.  Thus  (p.  17),  " Phahena"  graminis 
should  be  Chancas  graminis.  ^^  Helisonia"  (p.  44)  should  be 
Helisoma,  and  it  is  only  a  section,  or  subgenus,  of  Planorbis. 
On  p.  235,  "Jilipendula"  and  '^jacobecz"  shoxAd read Jilipendu la; 
a.nd  jacobcea:.  ^^  Sphinx' fucif or  mis  "  of  Smith  and  Abbott 
(p.  203),  is  really  Hemaris  dijffinis,  while  on  p.  204,  *'  Sphinx" 
tersa  is  a  Chccrocampa,  and  '■^Sphinx  pampinatrix"  is  Ampelo- 
phaga  myron.  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell. 

West  Cliif,  Custer  Co.,  Colorado,  January  22. 


A  Formula  in  the  "Theory  of  Least  Squares." 
Some  time  ago,  having  had  occasion  to  investigate  the  rela- 
tion between  't{x'^)  and  tiv^)  in  the  "Theory  of  Least  Squares," 
I  found  a  simple  formula  which  connects  them,  and  which  I 
have  never  seen  given  in  any  of  the  text-books  on  the  subject. 
I  inclose  it,  and  hope  it  is  worth  publishing  in  your  journal. 
University  of  Toronto,  February  i.  W.  J.  Loudon. 

Let  a  number  of  observations  be  made  on  a  quantity  whose 
true  value  is  T.  If  these  observations  be  represented  by  M^, 
Mj,  M3,  .    .    .  M,i,  then  the  most  probable  value  is  A,  the  arith- 


metic mean,  and  A 


2(M) 


If,  moreover,  the  true  errors  be 


denoted  by  x-^,  x,^,   x<^,  .    .    .  .r„,  and  the  residuals  by  z/j,  v.^,  v.^, 
.    .    .  Vn,  then  'S,{v)  =  o  by  the  definition  of    the  arithmetic 
mean.     It  is  required  to  find  a  relation  between  Sf.t")  and  2(z'-). 
We  have — 


x^^T  - 

Ml 

and 

^1 

=  A 

- 

Ml 

x^  =  ^  - 

Mj 

v^ 

=  A 

- 

M, 

.r3  =  T  - 

M, 

'^3 

=  A 

- 

M3 

&c., 

&c 

from 

which  t[v)  =;  0. 

equating  equal  values  of  Mj,  Mj, 

M„  . 

■    •  » 

&c 

. ,  we  get — 

T  -  xj  =  A 

x^  = 

v^  + 

T 

-  A 

T  -  Xg  =  A 

or 

Xo  — 

v.,+ 

T 

-  A 

T  -  ^3  =  A 

-v,L 

0-3  = 

v.,  + 

r 

-  A 

&c. 

Again- 


and  adding     2(.r)  -  2{v)  +  «(T  -  A) 
and  l,(zj)  —  o. 

2(x)  =  «(T  -  A)    .    , 


(I) 


x^  = 

z^i  +  T 

-  A 

X.,  = 

v.,  +  T 

-  A 

&c. 

ring. 

we 

have — 

x{^ 

= 

z^i-     + 

2z^.(T  - 

A) 

-f 

(T- 

A)^ 

X,- 

= 

v.^     + 

2I',(T    - 

A) 

+ 

(T- 

A)'^ 

x./ 

^^ 

v.^     + 

2f3(T    - 

&c. 

A) 

-f 

(T- 

A)'^ 

2{.^r-)  =  ^(z'-)  +  2!2(z')J{T  -  A}  -(-  «(T  -  Kf 

But  2(2/)  =  o;  and  from  (i),  T  -  A  =  H^"^^ ; 

n 

.:      :^ix-)  =  2(z/-)  +  «  j^^  j' 

2(^:2)  =  2(z'-)  + 


■l2(.r)}-2 


This  is  the  exact  formula  ;  from  which  it  may  be  seen  that, 
as  positive  and  negative  eiTors  are  equally  likely,  a  close  ap- 
proximation will  be  obtained  by  taking  {2(x)}-  —  2(x-),  neglect- 
ing 2^{XX^). 

And  we  obtain  Gauss's  formula — 


2(.r2)  =  2(2''^)  + 


2(x'-') 


2(x^)   _    2(z'-) 


Galls. 


Admitting,  with  Prof.  Romanes  (Nature,  February  20,  p. 
369),  the  plausibility  of  Mr.  Cockerell's  view  that  galls  may  be 
attributed  to  natural  selection  acting  on  the  plants  directly,  I 
beg  leave  to  point  out  a  very  obvious  difficulty — viz.  the  much 
greater  facility  afforded  to  the  indirect  action  through  insects,  by 


the  enormously  more  rapid  succession  of  generations  with  the 

latter  than  with  many  of  their  vegetable  hosts — oaks,  above  all. 

Freiburg,  Badenia,  February  22.  D.  Wetterhan. 

The  Cape  "Weasel." 

In  Prof.  Moseley's  account  of  his  visit  to  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope  ("  Notes  of  a  Naturalist  on  the  Challenger"  p.  153),  the 
following  sentence  occurs  : — "  Again,  there  are  tracks  of  the 
Ichneumon  {Herpestes),  called  by  some  name  sounding  like 
'  moose  haunt.' " 

In  Todd's  "Johnson's  Dictionary,"  1827,  we  find  :  *'  Mouse- 
hunt,  a  kind  of  weasel;"  two  quotations  being  given: — (i) 
"You  have  been  a  mouse-hunt  in  your  time"  ("  Romeo  and 
Tu'iet,"  iv.  4).  (2)  "  The  ferrets  and  mouse-hunts  of  an  index  " 
(Milton,  "  Of  Ref.  in  Engl.,"  B.  i). 

Halliwell's  "Dictionary  of  Archaic  and  Provincial  Words" 
(1847)  gives,  on  p.  564:  ^^  Mouse  hound.  East.  A  weasel." 
Halliwell  denies  the  identity  of  this  word  with  Shakespeare's 
mouse-hunt ;  and  Nares  ("  Glossary  ")  inclines  to  a  similar  view. 
But  in  any  case  it  seems  clear  that  Prof.  Moseley's  "moose- 
haunt  "  is  a  dialectical  English  form — mouse-hunt  or  mouse- 
hound  ;  a  general  word  for  "  weasel."         E.  B.  Titchener. 

3  Museum  Terrace,  Oxford,  February  17. 

The  Chaffinch. 

The  chaffinch  sings  almost  throughout  the  year  in  this  locality. 
The  male  bird  never  leaves  us  in  winter  like  the  female,  and 
can  be  seen  in  large  flocks  daily.  A  singular  circumstance  that 
occurred  here  in  December  1888  with  regard  to  a  chaffinch 
may  be  of  interest.  At  one  o'clock  in  the  morning,  during  a 
gale,  a  chaffinch  tapped  at  my  study  window.  On  this  being 
opened,  it  flew  into  the  room  and  roosted  on  a  bookshelf ;  next 
morning  it  was  liberated.  This  was  repeated  on  two  subsequent 
gales.  Not  only  did  it  sing  each  time  on  being  liberated,  but 
all  through  the  winter  and  spring  it  followed  me  about  the 
garden,   singing.  E.  J.  Lowe. 

Shirenewton  Hall,  near  Chepstow,  February  11. 


ON  THE  NUMBER  OF  DUST  PARTICLES  IN 
THE  A  TMOSPHERE  OF  CER TAIN PLA CES  IN 
GREAT  BRITAIN  AND  ON  THE  CONTINENT, 
W/TH  REMARKS  ON  THE  RELATION  BE- 
TWEEN THE  AMOUNT  OF  DUST  AND 
METEOROLOGICAL  PHENOMENA.^ 

THE  portable  dust-counting  apparatus,  with  which  the 
observations  given  in  the  paper  were  taken,  was 
shown  to  the  meeting.  The  apparatus,  which  was  de- 
scribed in  a  previous  communication  to  the  Society,  is 
small  and  light.  It  is  carried  in  a  small  sling-case 
measuring  8x5x3  inches.  The  stand  on  which  it  is 
supported  when  in  use  packs  up,  and  forms,  when  capped 
with  india-rubber  ends,  a  handy  walking  stick,  ij  inch  in 
diameter  and  3  feet  long.  No  alterations  have  been  made 
in  the  original  design,  and  the  silver  mirrors  which  at  first 
gave  trouble  and  required  frequent  polishings,  have  been 
used  every  day  for  two  or  three  weeks  without  requiring 
to  be  polished,  when  working  in  fairly  pure  country  air. 

With  the  paper  is  given  a  table  containing  the  results 
of  more  than  two  hundred  tests  made  with  the  appa- 
ratus. In  addition  to  the  number  of  dust  particles  there  is 
entered  in  the  table  the  temperature  and  humidity  of  the 
air,  the  direction  and  force  of  the  wind,  and  the  trans- 
parency of  the  air  at  the  time. 

The  first  series  of  observations  were  made  at  Hyeres,  a 
small  town  in  the  south  of  France,  situated  about  2  miles 
from  the  Mediterranean.  The  observations  were  made  on 
the  top  of  Finouillet,  a  hill  about  1000  feet  high.  The 
number  of  particles  on  dififerent  days  varied  here  from 
3550  per  c.c.  to  25,000  per  c.c,  the  latter  number  being 
observed  when  the  wind  was  blowing  direct  from  Toulon, 
which  is  distant  about  9  miles. 

Cannes  was  the  next   station,  the  observations   being 

^  Abstract  of  Paper  read  before  th^  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh  on 
February  3.     Communicated  by  permission  of  the  Council  of  the  Society. 


F^b.  27,  1890J 


NATURE 


395 


made  on  the  top  of  La  Croix  des  Gardes.  The  number 
here  varied  from  1 550  per  cubic  centimetre,  when  the  wind 
was  from  the  mountainous  districts,  to  150,000  when  it 
came  from  the  town. 

At  Mentone  the  number  varied  from  1200  per  cubic 
centimetre  in  air  from  the  hills  to  7200  in  the  air  coming 
from  the  direction  of  the  town. 

Tests  were  made  of  the  air  coming  towards  the  shore 
from  the  Mediterranean  at  three  different  places — at  La 
Plage,  Cannes,  and  Mentone.  In  no  case  was  the  amount 
of  dust  small.  The  lowest  was  1800  per  cubic  centimetre, 
and  the  highest  10,000  per  cubic  centimetre. 

Observations  were  also  made  at  Bellagio  and  Baveno, 
on  the  Italian  lakes.  At  both  stations  the  number  was 
always  great — generally  from  3000  to  10,000  per  cubic  centi- 
metre. This  high  number  was  owing  to  the  wind,  during 
the  time  of  the  observations,  being  light  and  southerly — 
that  is,  from  the  populous  parts  of  the  country.  Smaller 
numbers  were  observed  at  the  entrance  to  the  Simplon 
Pass  and  at  Locarno,  at  both  of  which  places  the  wind 
blew  from  the  mountains  when  the  tests  were  being  made. 

A  visit  of  some  days  was  made  to  the  Rigi  Kulm.  On 
the  first  day,  which  was  May  21,  the  top  of  the  mountain 
was  in  cloud,  and  the  number  of  particles  was  as  low  as 
210  per  cubic  centimetre.  Next  day  the  number  gradually 
increased  to  a  little  over  2000  per  cubic  centimetre,  after 
which  the  number  gradually  decreased  till  on  the  25th 
the  number  was  a  little  over  500  per  cubic  centimetre  at 
10  a.m.  On  descending  the  mountain  to  Vitznau  the  same 
day,  the  number  was  found  to  be  about  600  per  cubic 
centimetre  at  midday,  and  in  the  afternoon  at  a  position 
about  a  mile  up  the  lake  from  Lucerne  the  number  was  650 
per  cubic  centimetre. 

Most  of  the  observations  taken  of  Swiss  air  show  it  to 
be  comparatively  free  from  dust.  This  is  probably  owing 
to  the  vast  mountainous  districts  extending  in  many 
directions.  It  is  thought  that  much  of  the  clearness  and 
brilliancy  of  the  Swiss  air  is  due  to  the  small  amount  of 
dust  in  it. 

Owing  to  the  kindness  of  M.  Eiffel  an  investigation  of 
the  air  over  Paris  was  made  on  the  Tower  on  May  29. 
The  day  was  cloudy  and  stormy,  with  southerly  wind. 
Most  of  the  observations  were  taken  at  the  top  of  the 
Tower,  above  the  upper  platform,  and  just  under  the 
lantern  for  the  electric  light.  The  number  of  particles 
was  found  to  vary  very  rapidly  at  this  elevation,  showing 
that  the  impure  city  air  was  very  unequally  diffused  into 
the  upper  air,  and  that  it  rose  in  great  masses  into  the 
purer  air  above.  Between  the  hours  of  10  a.m.  and  i 
p.m.  the  extreme  numbers  observed  were  104,000  per 
cubic  centimetre  and  226  per  cubic  centimetre.  This 
latter  number  was  obtained  while  a  rain-cloud  was  over 
the  Tower,  and,  as  the  shower  was  local,  the  descending 
rain  seems  to  have  beaten  down  the  city  air.  The  low 
number  continued  some  time,  and  was  fairly  constant 
during  the  time  required  for  taking  the  ten  tests  of  which 
the  above  low  number  is  the  average. 

The  air  of  Paris  was  tested  at  the  level  of  the  ground 
on  the  same  day,  the  observations  being  made  through 
the  kindness  of  M.  Mascart  in  the  garden  of  the 
Meteorological  Office  in  the  Rue  de  I'Universitd.  The 
number  on  this  day  varied  from  210,000  to  160,000  per 
cubic  centimetre. 

Very  few  tests  have  been  made  of  the  air  of  London. 
The  air  coming  from  Battersea  Park,  when  a  fresh  wind 
was  blowing  from  the  south-west,  on  June  i,  was  found 
to  vary  from  1 16,000  to  48,000  per  cubic  centimetre;.  The 
numbers  observed  in  cities  are  of  no  great  value,  as  so 
much  depends  on  the  immediate  surroundings  of  the 
position  where  the  tests  are  made  ;  so  that,  while  no 
ow  number  can  be  observed,  a  very  high  one  can  always 
be  obtained.  Those  recorded  were  taken  where  it  was 
thought  the  air  was  purest. 

Observations  have  been  made  in   Scotland  for  periods 


of  two  or  three  weeks  at  three  stations — namely,  at  Kin- 
gairloch,  which  is  situated  on  the  shore  of  Loch  Linnhe, 
and  about  fourteen  miles  to  the  north  of  Oban,  at  Alford 
in  Aberdeenshire,  the  observations  being  made  at  a 
distance  of  two  miles  to  the  west  of  that  village,  and  at  a 
situation  six  miles  north-west  of  Dumfries. 

At  Kingairloch  the  number  varied  from  205  per  cubic 
centimetre  to  4000  per  cubic  centimetre.  At  Alford  from 
530  to  5700  per  cubic  centimetre,  and  at  Dumfries  from 
235  to  11,500  per  cubic  centimetre.  These  three  stations 
were  in  fairly  pure  country  air — that  is,  pure  as  regards 
pollution  from  the  immediate  surroundings. 

Tests  were  also  made  of  the  air  on  the  top  of  Ben 
Nevis  on  August  i,  when  the  number  was  found  to  be 
335  per  cubic  centimetre  at  i  p.m.,  and  473  two  hours 
later.  On  the  top  of  Callievar,  in  Aberdeenshire,  on 
September  9,  the  number  was  at  first  262,  and  rose  in  two 
hours  to  475  per  cubic  centimetre. 

The  pollution  of  the  earth's  atmosphere  by  human 
agencies  is  then  considered,  and  it  is  pointed  out  that, 
while  on  the  top  of  the  Rigi  and  in  the  wilds  of  Argyll- 
shire air  was  tested  which  had  only  a  little  over  two 
hundred  particles  per  cubic  centimetre,  nqar  villages  the 
number  goes  up  to  thousands,  and  in  cities  to  hundreds 
of  thousands.  The  increase,  though  great,  is  shown  not 
to  be  in  proportion  to  the  sources  of  pollution,  and  it  is 
pointed  out  that  part  of  this  is  owing  to  the  impure 
stream  of  air  being  deepened  as  well  as  made  more 
impure. 

About  200  particles  per  cubic  centimetre  is  the  lowest 
number  yet  observed,  but  we  have  no  means  of  knowing 
whether  this  is  the  lowest  possible,  or  of  knowing  how 
much  of  this  is  terrestrial  and  how  much  cosmic,  formed 
by  the  millions  of  meteors  which  daily  fall  into  our  atmo- 
sphere. Even  in  the  upper  strata  there  seems  to  be  dust, 
as  clouds  form  at  great  elevations. 

The  effect  of  dust  on  the  transparency  of  the  atmo- 
sphere is  then  discussed  with  the  aid  of  the  figure  in  the 
table.  It  is  shown  that  the  transparency  of  the  atmo- 
sphere depends  on  the  amount  of  dust  in  it,  and  that  the 
effect  of  the  dust  is  modified  by  the  humidity  of  the  air. 
With  much  dust  there  is  generally  little  transparency,  but 
it  is  pointed  out  that  air  with  even  5000  particles  per  c.c. 
may  be  clear,  if  it  is  so  dry  as  to  depress  the  wet-bulb 
thermometer  10°  or  more.  By  comparing  days  on  which 
there  was  the  same  amount  of  dust,  it  is  seen  that  the 
transparency  varied  with  the  humidity  on  two  days  with 
the  same  amount  of  dust ;  but  the  one  with  a  wet-bulb 
depression  of  1 3°  was  very  clear,  while  the  other,  with  a 
wet-bulb  depression  of  only  2',  was  very  thick. 

To  show  the  effect  of  the  number  of  particles  on  the 
transparency,  a  number  of  days  are  selected  on  which  the 
humidity  was  the  same,  when  it  is  seen  that  when  the 
wet-bulb  was  depressed  /^,  with  550  particles  the  air 
was  clear,  medium  clear  with  814,  but  thick  with  1900. 
From  the  table  a  number  of  cases  are  taken  illustrating 
the  dependence  of  the  transparency  of  the  air  on  the 
number  of  particles  in  it,  and  on  the  humidity,  both  dust 
and  humidity  tending  to  decrease  the  transparency. 
Humidity  alone  seems  to  have  no  influence  on  the  trans- 
parency apart  from  the  dust,  but  it  increases  the  effect  of 
the  dust  by  increasing  the  size  of  the  particles. 

The  modifying  effect  of  the  humidity  is  shown  to  be 
influenced  by  the  temperature.  The  same  wet-bulb 
depression  which  will  give  with  a  given  number  of 
particles  a  thick  air  at  a  temperature  of  60°  will  give  a 
clearer  air  if  the  temperature  be  lower.  This  is  illustrated 
by  examples  taken  from  the  table.  The  increased 
thickening  effect  accompanying  the  higher  temperature 
will  be  due  to  the  increased  vapour-pressure  permitting 
the  dust  particles  to  attach  more  moisture  to  themselves. 
These  remarks  all  refer  to  what  takes  place  in  what  is 
called  dry  air— that  is,  air  which  gives  a  depression  of  the 
wet-bulb  thermometer. 


396 


NA  TURE 


{Feb.  27,  1890 


The  conclusion  come  to  from  the  consideration  of  all 
the  observations  is  that  the  dust  in  the  atmosphere  begins 
to  condense  vapour  long  before  the  air  is  cooled  to  the 
dew-point.  It  seems  probable  that  in  all  states  of 
humidity  the  dust  has  some  moisture  attached  to  it,  and 
that,  as  the  humidity  increases,  the  load  of  moisture 
increases  with  it.  i 

Another  method  of  testing  the  condensing  power  of 
dust  for  water-vapour  is  then  described.  In  working  this 
method  the  dust  is  collected  on  a  glass  mirror,  and  its 
condensing  power  is  determined  by  placing  the  mirror 
over  a  cell  in  which  water  is  circulated,  in  the  manner  of 
a  Dines  hygrometer.  The  temperature  at  which  con- 
densation takes  place  on  the  dust  and  on  a  cleaned  part 
of  the  glass  is  observed.  The  differenf^e  in  the  two 
readings  gives  the  condensing  power  of  the  dust.  One 
kind  of  dust  artificially  prepared  was  found  to  condense 
vapour  just  at  the  dew-point,  while  another  condensed  it 
at  a  temperature  17°  above  the  saturation-point.  The 
atmospheric  dust  was  collected  on  the  mirrors  on  the 
same  principle  as  that  used  in  the  thermic  filter  described 
by  the  author  in  a  previous  paper,  the  dust  being  deposited 
by  difference  of  temperature,  the  necessary  heat  being 
obtained  by  fixing  the  collecting  mirrors  on  a  window- 
pane.  Dust  was  also  collected  by  allowing  it  to  settle  on 
the  plates.  The  atmospheric  dust  was  found  to  condense 
vapour  at  temperatures  varying  from  i''"8  to  4'''5  above 
the  dew-point.  This  condensing  power  of  dust  explains 
why  glass  such  as  that  in  windows,  picture  frames,  &c., 
often  looks  damp  while  the  air  is  not  saturated  ;  and  in 
part  it  explains  why  it  is  so  necessary  to  keep  electrical 
apparatus  free  from  dust,  if  we  wish  to  have  good 
insulation. 

The  constitution  of  haze  is  then  considered.  It  is 
shown  that  in  many  cases  it  is  simply  dust,  on  which  there 
seems  to  be  always  more  or  less  moisture.  But  as  what 
is  known  as  haze  is  generally  seen  in  dry  air,  the  effect  is 
principally  due  to  dust. 

Some  notes  from  the  Rigi  Kulm  are  given,  where 
"  glories  "  and  coloured  clouds  were  seen.  The  condition  of 
the  transparency  of  the  lower  air  as  seen  from  the  top  of 
the  mountain  is  discussed  with  the  aid  of  the  observations 
made  by  observers  at  the  lower  levels.  These  observa- 
tions were  kindly  supplied  by  M.  Bilwiller,  of  the  Swiss 
Meteorological  Office.  The  difference  observed  at  the  top 
of  the  mountain  in  the  transparency  of  the  air  in  different 
directions  is  shown  to  have  been  caused  by  a  difference  in 
the  humidity  of  the  air  in  the  different  directions.  The 
variation  in  the  number  of  particles  on  the  top  of  the 
mountain  is  considered,  and  it  is  shown  that  the  great  in- 
crease in  the  number  which  took  place  on  the  sejondday 
was  probably  due  to  the  valley  air  being  driven  up  the 
slopes,  reasons  being  given  for  this  supposition.  The 
colouring  in  clouds,  and  on  scenery  at  sunrise  and  sunset, 
as  seen  from  the  tops  of  mountains  and  valleys,  is  re- 
marked upon,  and  it  is  shown  that  there  is  reason  for 
supposing  that  when  seen  from  the  lower  level  the  colours 
will  generally  be  the  more  brilliant  and  varied. 

The  relation  of  the  amount  of  dust  to  the  barometric 
distribution  is  then  investigated — as  to  whether  cyclonic 
or  anticy clonic  areas  have  most  dust  in  them.  It  is 
shown  that  there  is  most  dust  in  the  anticyclonic  areas. 
The  interpretation  of  this,  however,  is  shown  to  be  that 
the  amount  of  dust  depends  on  the  amount  of  wind  at  the 
time,  and  as  there  is  generally  little  wind  in  anticyclonic 
areas,  there  is  generally  much  dust.  Diagrams  are  given 
showing  by  means  of  curves  the  amount  of  dust  on  each 
day,  and  also  the  velocity  of  the  wind.  The  curves  are 
found  to  bear  a  close  relation  to  each  other — when  the  one 
rises  the  other  falls.  The  only  exceptions  to  this  are 
when  the  stations  where  the  observations  were  made  are 
not  equally  surrounded  in  all  directions  by  sources  of  pollu- 
tion. In  that  case,  even  with  little  wind,  if  it  blows  from 
an  unpolluted  direction  the  amount  of  dust  is  not  great. 


The  increase  in  the  dust  particles  which  takes  place 
when  the  wind  falls,  seems  to  point  to  a  probable  increase 
of  the  infection  germs  in  the  atmosphere  when  the  weather 
is  calm.  As,  however,  the  conditions  are  not  quite  the 
same,  the  organic  germs  being  much  larger  than  most  of 
the  dust  particles,  and  settling  more  quickly,  it  may  be 
as  well,  while  accepting  the  suggestion,  to  refrain  from 
drawing  any  conclusion. 

In  all  the  fogs  tested,  the  amount  of  dust  has  been 
found  to  be  great.  This  is  shown  to  be  what  might  now 
be  expected  from  a  consideration  of  the  conditions  under 
which  fogs  are  formed.  One  condition  necessary  for  the 
formation  of  a  fog  is  that  the  air  be  calm.  But  when  the 
air  is  calm  both  dust  and  moisture  tend  to  accumulate, 
and  the  dust,  by  increasing  the  radiating  power  of  the  air, 
soon  lowers  its  temperature  and  causes  it  to  condense 
vapour  on  the  dust  and  form  a  fog.  The  thickness  of  a 
fog  seems  to  depend  in  part  on  the  amount  of  dust 
present,  as  town  fogs,  apart  from  their  greater  blackness, 
are  also  more  dense  than  country  ones.  The  greater 
amount  of  dust  in  city  air,  by  increasing  its  radiating 
power,  it  is  thought,  may  be  the  cause  of  the  greater 
frequency  of  fogs  m  town  than  in  country  air. 

At  the  end  of  the  paper  some  relations  are  pointed  out 
between  the  amount  of  dust  and  the  temperature  at  the 
time  the  observations  were  made,  showing  that  when 
there  was  a  large  amount  of  dust  there  was  also  a  high 
temperature  ;  and  some  speculations  are  entered  into  as 
to  the  effect  of  dust  on  climate.  But  it  is  at  the  same 
time  pointed  out  that  the  observations  are  far  too  few 
and  imperfect  to  form  a  foundation  for  any  important 
conclusi  n  on  that  subject. 

In  a  short  appendix  is  given  the  result  of  some  tests  made 
between  January  23  and  29  of  this  year  at  Garelochead. 
During  the  gale  on  Saturday,  the  25th,  the  number  was 
rather  under  1000  per  cubic  centimetre.  On  Monday, 
though  the  wind  was  still  high,  the  number  fell  to  about 
250  ;  and  on  Tuesday,  when  the  wind  had  fallen  and 
veered  to  th.-  north,  the  number  fell  lower  than  had  been 
previously  observed.  The  number  varied  from  a  little 
over  100  to  about  90  per  cubic  centimetre.  On  this  day 
the  air  was  remarkable  for  its  clearness,  the  sun  was  very 
strong,  and  the  evening  set  in  with  a  sharp  frost. 

John  Aitken. 

P.S. — The  author  of  the  paper  also  showed  at  the  same 
meeting  of  the  Society  the  apparatus  which  have  just  been 
constructed  from  his  designs  for  the  Observatory  on  Ben 
Nevis.  The  apparatus  has  been  constructed  by  the  aid 
of  a  Government  grant,  obtained  by  the  Council  of  the 
Scottish  Meteorological  Society,  for  the  purpose  of  carry- 
ing on  the  investigation  on  the  dust  in  the  atmosphere  at 
the  top  of  Ben  Nevis.  Two  complete  sets  of  apparatus 
were  shown.  The  one  is  the  large  laboratory  form  of  the 
dust-counter,  and  is  to  be  fixed,  m  the  meantime,  in  the 
tower  of  the  Observatory  ;  the  air  being  taken  in  to  it  by 
means  of  a  pipe.  The  other  is  the  small  portable  form  of 
instrument,  to  be  used  when  the  direction  of  the  wmd  is 
such  as  to  bring  the  smoke  of  the  Observatory  towards  the 
tower.  This  latter  instrument  has  for  a  short  time  been 
in  the  hands  of  Mr.  Rankin,  one  of  the  Ben  Nevis 
observers,  who  has  been  practising  with  it  near  Edin- 
burgh before  beginning  regular  work  at  the  Observatory. 


A   UNIFORM  SYSTEM  OF  RUSSIAN 
TRANSLITERA  TION. 

P  to  the  present  time  no  one  system  of  transliterating 
Russian  names  and  titles  into  English  has  been 
generally  adopted.  Some  of  those  most  interested  in  the 
cataloguing  and  recording  of  Russian  scientific  literature 
have  therefore  arranged  the  following  scheme  in  order  to 
secure  the  general  use  of  a   system  which  will  enable 


U 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


397 


those  unacquainted  with  Russian,  not  only  to  transliterate 
from  that  language  into  English,  but  also  to  recover  the 
original  Russian  spelling,  and  so  to  trace  the  words  in  a 
■dictionary. 

RUSSIAN-ENGLISH. 


Roman. 

Written. 

s 

Roman. 

Written. 

^i 

3  s 

■«         = 

M~ 

■3      =: 

3     = 

.2  s. 

-  1 

S-          H 

»'i 

I      2 

2-     1 

»l 

U      *" 

U               CO 

0 

A    a 
B    0 

tA  a/ 

%'cr 

a 
h 

(1>     <1. 

X    X 

f 

kit 

B      K 

r  1 

V 

tz 
ch 

A  \ 

m^ 

d 

'il!   vx 

M^ 

sh 

E    e 

<oXy 

c 

iJJ.  Ill 

%u^ 

shell 

/K   Hi 

Mm 

zh 

^    t 

3    3 

h     ■!. 

V  % 

\  Not  in- 
■s  dicated 
/  at  end 

H   II 

I 

k'6c^ 

V  of  word. 

1     i 

J/. 

i 

h\      1,1 

Ul 

H     K 

A    .1 

/ 

h       I. 

6  6f 

\  Not  iv- 
■i  dicated  [ 
J  (if   end 

M  i\i 

•JC.^ 

m 

K  of  word. 

H   II 

Xft- 

11 

'li      li 

M^ 

ye 

0   0 

0  o- 

0 

9      3 

3  3 

e 

n  II 

jt^Tl/ 

V 

10  10 

70  iw 
0^ 

yu 

p  ,, 

Q  0 

r 
s 

0    0 

ya 

ill 

T     T 

y  y 

t 

n  i) 

11  -U/. 

(B 

ENGLISH-RUSSIAN. 

a 

A 

I     n   \  j>     H 

v.i 

LI 

h 

B 

I     ii       >•     p 

0 

h 

ch 

n 

k      K 

.•     c 

ya 

n 

d 

4 

H    X 

,h    111 

!!'■ 

v, 

e 

E 

I      J 

Hh-U      \\\ 

yu 

10 

e 

a 

m       >! 

t       T 

M 

3 

f 

a> 

n        W 

ik     0 

zh 

w; 

(fh 

r 

0       0 

fc     n 

' 

7> 

i 

I 

OB          \* 

'e     y 

' 

i> 

With  reference  to  some  of  the  letters  a  few  words  of 
explanation  are  necessary. 

^/i  is  adopted  in  preference  to  ^^  for  r,  since  this  letter 
is  also  the  equivalent  of  k  in  such  words  as  riijpa,  which, 
if  transliterated  gidra,  would  lose  its  resemblance  to  the 
word  hydra.,  with  which  it  is  identical. 

Although  i  and  n  have  the  same  sound,  and  with  a  few 
rare  exceptions  the  letter  used  in  the  original  may  be 
recognized  by  a  simple  rule,  it  is  recommended  that 
the  latter  should  be  distinguished  by  the  sign  — ,  since 
the  use  of  the  same  English  symbol  for  two  Russian 
characters  is  objectionable. 

The  semi-vowels,  i  and  i>,  must  be  indicated  when 
present,  except  at  the  end  of  a  word,  by  the  sign  '  placed 
above  the  line ;  otherwise,  the  transliteration  of  two 
Russian  characters  might  give  the  same  sequence  as  one 
of  the  compound  equivalents,  and  it  would  become  difficult 
to  trace  the  words  in  a  dictionary. 

As  regards  the  compound  equivalents,  nine  out  of  the 
twelve  may  be  at  once  recognized,  since  h  must  always 
be  coupled  with  the  preceding,  and  y  with  the  succeeding, 
letter. 

Where  proper  names  have  been  Russianized,  it  is 
better  whenever  possible  to  use  them  in  the  original 
form  rather  than  to  re-transliterate  them  ;  there  is  no 
reason  why  Wales  should  be  rendered  Uel's,  or  Wight 
written  as  Uait.  When  a  Russian  name  has  a  more 
familiar  transliterated  form,  it  is  advisable  to  quote  this 
as  well  as  an  exact  transliteration  with  a  cross  reference. 

The  system  will  be  adopted  without  delay  in  the  follow- 
ing publications  :  the  Catalogue  of  the  Natural  History 
Museum  Library;  the  Zoological  and  Geological  Records; 
the  publications  of  the  Royal  Society,  the  Linnean,  Zoo- 
logical, and  Agricultural  Societies,  and  the  Institution  of 
Civil  Engineers ;  the  Mineralogical  Magazine,  and  the 
Annals  of  Botany  ;  and  it  is  hoped  that  the  system  will  be 
generally  used. 

An  expression  of  grateful  thanks  is  due  to  those  who 
have  assisted  in  the  arrangement  of  this  system  by 
criticisms  and  suggestions  ;  more  especially  to  Madame 
de  Novikoffand  N.  W.  Tchakowbky. 

The  undersigned  either  accept  the  proposed  system  in 
the  publications  with  which  they  are  severally  connected, 
or  express  their  approval  of  the  same  : — 


W.  H.  Flower,  C.B. 

W.  R.  Morfill 

F.  Lo^vinson-Lessing 

S.  H.  Scudder 

W.  H.  Dall    

B.  Daydon  Jackson 

P.  L,  Sclater 

F.  E.  Be.idard 

W.  Topley      

C.  Davies  Sherborn 
I.  Bayley  Balfour  ... 

S.  H.  Vines    

H.  A.  Miers 

J.  T.  Naake 

B.  B.  Woodward  ... 
J.  W.  Gregory 


Director,  Natural  History  Museum. 
Reader  in  Russian,  &rc.,  Oxford. 
University,  St.  Petersburg. 
U.  S.  Geological  Survey. 
Smithsonian  institution. 
Bo'.  Sec. ,  Linnean  Society. 
Zoolofiical  Society. 
Zoological  Record. 

V  Geological  Record. 

y  Annals  of  Botany. 

Index  to  Mineralogical  Papers. 
BritisJi  Museum. 

Natural  History  Museum  Library. 
Natural  History  Museum. 


THE  BOTANICAL  INSTITUTE  AND  MARINE 
ST  A  TION  A  T  KIEL. 

PROF.  J.  REINKE  contributes  to  the  Botanisches 
Centralblati  a  very  interesting  account  of  the  Bota- 
nical Institute  at  Kiel,  and  of  the  Marine  Station  attached 
to  it,  as  far  as  they  are  employed  for  botanical  researches. 
The  harbour  of  Kiel  is  remarkably  favourable  for  the 
observation  of  marine  Algas  and  the  investigation  of  their 
life-history.  In  brown  seaweeds  the  immediate  neigh- 
bourho(^d  is  exceedingly  rich,  being  scarcely  inferior  in 
the  number  of  species  to  any  other  spot  on  the  coasts 
of  Europe.     One   important  order,  the  Dictyotaceae,  is 


398 


NA  TURE 


[Feb.  27,  1890 


altogether  wanting  ;  but  another  very  interesting  order, 
the  Tilopterideas,  is  well  represented.  In  green  Algae, 
the  large  Siphoneae  of  the  Mediterranean  and  other 
warmer  seas  are  represented  only  by  Bryopsis.  Of  red 
Algae,  the  number  of  species  and  genera  is  inferior  to 
that  found  in  the  Mediterranean  or  on  the  coasts  of  Eng- 
land and  France  ;  but  almost  all  the  different  types  of 
growth  are  well  represented.  Although  the  Baltic  has, 
like  the  Mediterranean,  no  tides,  the  sea-level  of  Kiel 
harbour  falls  so  considerably  with  a  south  wind,  that 
many  littoral  Algas  are  then  completely  exposed. 

The  growing-houses  consist  of  a  horse-shoe-shaped 
block  of  buildings,  on  one  side  of  which  is  a  long  low 
house,  and  of  a  detached  underground  house.  In  design- 
ing the  plan,  the  object  specially  kept  in  view  was  to 
furnish  favourable  conditions  for  the  cultivation  of 
all  the  important  types  of  warmer  climates ;  and  the 
houses  were  therefore  not  built  higher  than  seemed  abso- 
lutely necessary.  The  chief  part  of  the  block  consists 
of  a  higher  and  a  lower  cool-house,  a  higher  and  a 
lower  hot-house,  and  a  propagating-house.  The  higher 
houses  are  eight,  the  lower  four  metres  in  height, 
and  the  propagating-house  still  lower.  Each  of  the  lower 
houses  is  again  divided  into  two,  for  different  tempera- 
tures. The  warmer  division  of  the  lower  hot-house 
contains  three  basins  for  the  culture  of  tropical  fresh- 
water plants.  The  propagating-house  is,  in  the  same 
way,  divided  into  two.  The  underground  house  is  a  long 
building  entirely  buried,  the  glass  roof  alone  projecting 
above  the  surface  of  the  ground.  The  heating  is  effected 
by  hot-water  pipes. 

The  various  study-rooms  are  devoted  partly  to  morpho- 
logical and  systematic,  partly  to  physiological  work.  The 
former  comprise  a  large  herbarium  in  the  top  story,  and 
four  roomy  work-rooms  on  the  ground  floor,  in  which 
are  also  kept  those  portions  of  the  herbarium  which  are 
required  for  reference  for  the  work  in  hand,  and  the  whole 
of  the  dried  Algae.  The  first  story  is  devoted  to  the 
residence  of  the  Director.  One  of  the  work-rooms  is 
devoted  entirely  to  marine  Algaj  ;  each  is  fitted  up  with 
microscopical  apparatus,  and  they  are  furnished  with  a 
very  extensive  reference-library.  The  second  portion 
comprises  a  room  with  a  small  chamber  opening  out  of  it 
for  chemico-physiological  work  ;  a  room  with  stone  floor, 
facing  the  north,  for  physico-physiological  work ;  and  a 
dark  chamber  with  a  balcony  in  the  top  story.  Before 
the  balcony  a  large  sandstone  slab  is  let  into  the  wall  of 
the  building  for  the  erection  of  a  heliostat.  In  the  base- 
ment story  is  a  dynamo-machine. 

For  the  collection  of  the  seaweeds  both  row-boats  and 
steamers  are  employed.  For  scraping  the  larger  species 
off  the  rocks.  Dr.  Reinke  has  contrived  a  special  drag- 
net, of  which  a  drawing  is  appended,  furnished  with  a  row 
of  sharp  teeth  at  the  mouth. 

The  culture  of  seaweeds  presents  greater  difficulties 
in  summer  than  in  winter.  They  continue  to  grow  in  the 
Baltic  at  any  temperature  above  zero  C.  ;  and,  in  cultiva- 
tion, a  low  temperature  is  much  more  favourable  to  their 
growth  than  a  high  one.  In  the  Institute  they  continue 
to  fructify  through  the  winter  in  the  cool  houses  if  pro- 
tected from  actual  frost,  the  smaller  species  going  through 
their  complete  cycle  of  development  from  the  germinat- 
ing spore  ;  but  a  frequent  change  of  the  sea-water,  or 
the  addition  of  nutrient  substances,  is  desirable.  In 
summer  the  incidence  of  direct  sunlight  must  be  carefully 
avoided,  and  the  temperature  of  the  air  must  be  kept  as 
low  as  possible.  For  this  purpose  ice-cupboards  have 
been  built.  Prof.  Reinke  has  contrived  a  special  arrange- 
ment for  the  cultivation  of  seaweeds  in  their  native 
habitat.  In  the  harbour  near  to  the  Botanic  Garden,  a 
wooden  buoy  is  anchored,  from  which  is  suspended  a 
wire  basket  by  chains  from  3  to  4  metres  in  length.  In 
this  floating  aquarium  the  seaweeds  grow  exposed  to 
their  most  favourable  natural  conditions  of  currents  and 


variations  of  temperature  in  the  water  during  the^^summer 
months.  Next  spring  it  is  proposed  to  build  an  aquarium 
for  seaweeds  for  public  exhibition  in  connection  with^the 
Institute.  ^^ 

The  Government  of  Prussia  has  rendered  great  assist- 
ance in  the  establishment  of  the  Botanical  Institute  and 


Marine  Station  at  Kiel  through  its  Minister  for  Educa- 
tion. The  Director  is  very  anxious  that,  especially  in 
the  department  of  marine  Alga;,  the  herbarium  and 
library,  already  so  rich,  should  be  rendered  still  more 
complete,  by  the  addition  of  specimens  or  of  treatises 
published  in  journals  in  which  it  may  still  be  deficient. 


SIR  ROBERT  KANE,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 

CIR  ROBERT  KANE  was  born  on  September  24, 
*^  1 8 10,  in  Dublin.  This  was  the  fiftieth  year  of  King 
George  III.  and  the  tenth  of  the  Union.  Shortly  after- 
wards his  father  established  chemical  works  on  the  North 
Wall,  by  the  side  of  the  River  Liffey,  which  in  time 
developed  into  important  and  well-known  sulphuric  acid 
and  alkali  works.  His  mother  was  Ellen  Troy,  of  whose 
family  Dr.  Troy,  Roman  Catholic  Archbishop  of  Dublin, 
was  a  member.  Sir  Robert  Kane  very  early  in  his  life 
developed  a  taste  for  chemical  knowledge,  and  in  1828 
his  first  paper,  "  On  the  Existence  of  Chlorine  in  the 
Native  Peroxide  of  Manganese,"  was  published,  and  fol- 
lowed by  a  series  of  contributions  on  kindred  themes. 
He  entered  Trinity  College,   Dublin,  in   1829,  and  pro- 


i 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


(99 


ceeded  to  his  B.A.  degree  in  the  spring  commencements 
of  1835,  taking  the  LL.D.  in  the  summer  of  1868.  In 
1834  he  was  appointed  Professor  of  Natural  Philosophy 
to  the  Dublin  (now  the  Royal  Dublin)  Society,  and  he  at 
this  period  devoted  himself  with  great  ardour  to  original 
research  in  the  field  of  chemistry,  as  the  long  list  of  his 
papers  in  the  Royal  Society's  list  will  testify.  He  studied 
in  Germany  during  his  summer  vacations  under  both 
Liebig  and  Alitscherlich,  and  passed  some  time  under 
Dumas  at  Paris.  In  1831  he  was  elected  a  member  of 
the  Royal  Irish  Academy ;  he  was  Secretary  of  its 
Council  from  1842  to  1846,  and  was  elected  President  in 
1877.  In  1849  he  was  made  a  Fellow  of  the  Royal 
Society :  shortly  afterwards  he  was  selected  by  the 
Government  as  head  of  the  Museum  of  Irish  Industry, 
which  post  he  held  until  appointed  the  first  President  of 
the  Queen's  College,  Cork.  He  was  a  Fellow  of  the  King 
and  Queen's  College  of  Physicians,  Ireland,  a  Com- 
missioner of  National  Education,  and  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace,  Ireland. 

After  over  twenty-two  years  of  hard  and  earnest  work 
in  the  development  of  the  Cork  College,  he  resigned  the 
presidency  in  1873,  and  took  up  his  residence  in  Dublin, 
where  he  died  on  Sunday,  the  i6th  instant. 

Sir  Robert  Kane,  in  addition  to  the  very  numerous 
papers  above  referred  to,  was  the  author  of  a  large  and 
most  important  work  on  the  industrial  resources  of  Ire- 
land, a  theme  which  he  handled  in  a  painstaking  and 
judicious  manner.  In  his  very  early  days  he  had  acquired 
a  practical  knowledge  of  the  value  and  importance  of 
many  of  the  neglected  industries  of  Ireland,  and  from  his 
chair  in  the  lecture  theatre  of  the  Dublin  Society,  he 
often  called  attention  to  this  subject,  one  which  through- 
out his  long  life  he  never  lost  sight  of.  It  is  not  without 
interest  to  note  the  fact  that  much  is  owing  to  the  Royal 
Dublin  Society  for  the  ready  help  afforded  to  their  two 
Professors,  now  both  deceased.  Sir  Richard  Griffith  and 
Sir  Robert  Kane,  in  their  efforts  to  advance  the  industries 
of  Ireland. 

In  1841,  Sir  R.  Kane  was  awarded  by  the  Royal 
Society  a  Royal  Medal  for  his  researches  into  the  chemical 
history  of  archil  and  Htmus  ;  and  in  1843,  the  Cunningham 
Gold  Medal  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  for  his  researches 
on  the  nature  and  constitution  of  the  compounds  of  am- 
monia. These  memoirs  will  be  found  published  in  the 
Transactions  of  the  respective  institutions. 

In  recognition  of  his  scientific  labours,  and  on  his 
appointment  to  the  presidency  of  Queen's  College,  Cork, 
he  received  knighthood  in  1846  from  Lord  Heytesbury, 
the  then  Irish  Viceroy.  On  the  passing  of  Mr.  Fawcett's 
Act  in  1875,  which  altered  the  constitution  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Dublin,  and  appointed  a  Council,  Sir  Robert 
Kane  was  elected  one  of  the  first  Roman  Catholic 
members  of  that  body,  a  post  which  he  held  until  1885, 
when  the  late  Dr.  Maguire  was  elected. 

In  this  brief  obituary  notice,  it  is  not  necessary  to 
attempt  any  analysis  of  the  scientific  work  accomplished 
by  Sir  Robert  Kane,  but  it  is  impossible  to  conclude  it 
without  a  tribute  of  respect  and  affection  to  the  many 
high  and  excellent  qualities  of  the  man,  who  in  the 
various  positions  of  Professor,  head  of  a  young  educa- 
tional establishment,  or  President  of  an  Academy,  won 
equally,  from  all  with  whom  he  came  in  contact,  regard 
and  esteem. 


NOTES. 

Trof.  Schuster  has  been  elected  Bakerian  Lecturer  for  the 
present  year.  The  lecture  is  to  be  delivered  in  the  apartments 
of  the  Royal  Society  on  March  20, 

Last  week  Mr.  Justice  Kay  complained  that  judicial  time  is 
sadly  wasted  over  patent  cases,  and  he  declared  that  the  smaller 


and  more  petty  the  dispute  the  more  time  seemed  to  he 
expended.  Now,  as  we  have  pointed  out  more  than  once, 
enormous  waste  of  time  is  inevitable  where  the  suitors  in  patent 
cases,  especially  in  cases  which  involve  scientific  details,  as  most 
of  them  do  at  the  present  day,  have  to  appear  before  a  judge  who 
is  not  himself  a  man  of  science.  They  have  to  begin  by  teach- 
ing his  lordship  the  rudiments  of  that  branch  of  science  of  which 
the  disputed  patent  is  a  practical  application.  That  our  judges 
are  painstaking,  rapid,  and  acute  pupils  may  readily  be  granted, 
but  still  time  has  to  be  consumed  in  the  task,  and  there  is  some- 
thing pathetic  in  the  spectacle  of  an  able  and  conscientious 
lawyer  wrestling  with  the  problems  presented  by  the  highest 
applications  of,  say,  electricity  or  chemistry  to  industry,  while 
scientific  witnesses  are  contradicting  each  other  all  round  him. 
We  fear  that  judicial  time  will  continue  to  be  wasted  so  long  as 
judges  without  a  knowledge  of  science  are  left  unaided  to  decide 
questions  which  demand  long  scientific  training.  There  can  be 
no  change  for  the  better  until  judges  have  sitting  on  the 
bench  with  them  scientific  assessors  as  they  have  now  nava 
assessors,  or  until  scientific  cases  are  passed  on  as  a  matter  of 
course  to  qualified  referees  as  cases  involving  accounts  are.  It 
requires  at  least  as  much  special  training,  and  is  as  far  outside 
the  experience  of  ordinary  lawyers,  to  settle  a  scientific  case,  as 
to  decide  whether  a  ship  has  been  properly  navigated,  or  whether 
a  set  of  accounts  tell  in  favour  of  a  plaintiff  or  a  defendant. 

On  Tuesday  evening  there  was  some  discussion  in  the  House 
of  Commons  as  to  the  supplemental  vote  of  ;^ic>o,ooo  for  the 
purchase  of  a  site  at  South  Kensington  for  a  suitable  building 
for  the  housing  of  the  science  collections.  Mr.  Jackson  ex- 
plained that  the  extent  of  the  land  was  four  and  a  half  acres, 
and  the  sum  at  which  it  was  valued  included  a  building  for 
which  the  Government  now  paid  a  rent  of  ;^ 1 500  a  year,  which 
would,  of  course,  fall  out  of  the  Estimates  when  the  Government 
became  the  proprietors  of  the  land  in  question.  No  commission 
was  to  be  paid  to  any  person  on  either  side  in  respect  of  this 
transaction,  which  was  a  direct  one  between  the  Commissioners 
of  the  185 1  Exhibition  and  the  Government.  Sir  H.  Roscoe 
thought  it  desirable  that  the  money  should  be  voted  at  once. 
The  plot  of  land  was  the  only  one  ever  likely  to  be  available  for 
the  purpose.  Mr.  Mundella  said  that  as  he  had  been  pressing 
upon  Governments  for  the  last  ten  years  the  necessity  for  them 
to  acquire  this  laud,  he  thought  that  he  ought  to  say  something 
in  defence  of  what  the  Government  had  done  in  asking  for 
the  sum  on  the  present  occasion.  He  did  not  approve 
of  supplementary  estimates,  and  he  thought  that  no  one 
would  be  more  glad  to  get  rid  of  them  than  the 
Government  themselves.  This  question,  however,  had  been 
pressing  for  the  last  ten  years,  because  for  the  whole  of  that 
period  the  most  valuable  national  science  collections,  such  as  no 
other  country  in  the  world  possessed,  had  been  housed  in  the 
most  disgraceful  manner.  The  Treasury  had  all  along  resisted 
the  demands  made  upon  them  to  sanction  the  expenditure  neces- 
sary for  the  erection  of  a  Museum  to  hold  these  collections,  not- 
withstanding that  three  departmental  committees  had  reported 
in  favour  of  that  expenditure.  The  only  question,  therefore, 
was  whether  the  Government  were  getting  good  value  for  their 
money  in  making  this  purchase.  He  knew  something  of  the 
value  of  the  land,  which  had  been  fixed  by  eminent  surveyors  at 
;^ 200, 000,  while  the  Government  were  going  to  get  it  for 
;^ 70,000.  The  money  which  the  Commissioners  would  receive 
in  respect  of  the  sale  would  be  appropriated  to  providing 
scholarships  for  the  promotion  of  technical  education  to  the 
amount  of  ;!^5000  per  annum,  which  were  to  be  open  to  all 
schools  of  every  denomination  in  the  United  Kingdom.  He 
therefore  urged  the  Committee  to  agree  to  this  proposal  at 
once.  Sir  L.  Playfair  explained  that  the  Commissioners 
of   the    Exhibition    of    1851    had   formed    their    estimate    of 


400 


NATURE 


[Feb.  27,  1890 


the  value  of  the  land  upon  the  value  of  the  surrounding 
property.  The  Commissioners  had  been  pressed  year  after  year 
to  apply  their  surplus  revenues  to  educational  purposes.  They  had 
pressed  the  Government  to  come  to  some  conclusion  on  the  sub- 
ject, as  it  had  been  going  on  for  from  three  to  ten  years.  They 
could  rot  go  on  waiting  continually,  and  the  Government  at  last 
came  to  the  conclusion — and,  he  thought,  came  to  a  wise  con- 
clusion— to  accept  the  offer.  He  thought  the  Committee  would 
see  that  they  had  been  very  patient.  Mr.  W.  H.  Smith,  reply- 
ing to  the  objection  that  the  vote  ought  to  have  been  included 
in  the  ordinary  estimates,  pointed  out  that  if  the  vote  were  not 
taken  at  once,  probably  it  could  not  be  reached  before  June  or 
July,  or  even  August.  It  was  unreasonable  to  ask  the  Commis- 
sioners to  wait  until  that  time.  He  had  resisted  the  expenditure 
at  South  Kensington  as  long  as  he  could,  and  until  he  was  satis- 
fied that  in  the  interests  of  the  country  it  was  necessary.  He 
strongly  resisted  the  expenditure  before,  but  when  the  Commit- 
tee they  had  appointed  reported  that  further  accommodation  was 
required,  they  had  no  alternative  but  to  carry  out  their  recom- 
mendations. The  proposal  of  the  Government  was  accepted 
by  a  majority  of  77 — the  number  of  those  in  favour  of  the  re- 
duction of  the  vote  being  67,  while  144  voted  on  the  other  side. 

We  regret  to  notice  the  death,  on  February  2,  of  M.  Ch. 
Fievez,  the  assistant  in  charge  of  the  spectroscopic  department 
of  the  Royal  Observatory  of  Brussels,  at  the  comparatively  early 
age  of  45.  M,  Fievez  did  not  enter  the  Observatory  until  1877, 
having  been  originally  intended  for  the  military  profession.  M. 
Houzeau,  then  the  Director  of  the  Observatory,  being  desirous 
of  creating  a  spectroscopic  department,  sent  Fievez,  to  whom 
he  proposed  to  commit  its  management,  to  study  under  Janssen 
at  Meudon,  with  whom  he  remained  six  months.  Fievez's  most 
important  work  was  the  construction  of  a  chart  of  the  solar 
spectrum  on  a  scale  considerably  greater  than  that  of  Angstrom  ; 
but  besides  this  he  was  not  able  to  effect  much  in  astronomical 
spectroscopy,  owing  to  the  unfavourable  position  of  the  Obser- 
vatory for  such  observations.  He  therefore  turned  his  attention 
principally  to  laboratory  work,  and  in  this  department  made  a 
detailed  study  of  the  spectrum  of  carbon,  besides  numerous  ex- 
periments on  the  behaviour  of  spectral  lines  under  the  influences 
of  magnetism  and  of  changes  of  temperature.  M.  Fievez  was 
Correspondant  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  Belgium,  and  Foreign 
Member  of  the  Society  of  Italian  Spectroscopists. 

Students  of  palaeontology  heard  with  much  regret  of  the 
recent  death  of  Prof,  von  Quenstedt,  of  Tubingen.  He  was  the 
most  famous  of  German  palaeontologists,  and  did  much  im- 
portant work  in  mineralogy  also.  He  had  an  especially  profound 
knowledge  of  the  Lias  of  Wiirtemberg  and  its  fossils.  His  work 
on  "Der  Jura"  is  well  known,  and  so  recently  as  1885  a  new 
edition,  greatly  modified,  of  his  "  Handbuch  der  Petrefacten- 
kunde "  was  issued.  Dr.  von  Quenstedt  died  at  an  advanced 
age  on  December  21,  1889. 

A  WRITER  who  is  contributing  to  Industries  a  series  of 
articles  on  the  "Recent  Growth  of  Technical  Societies,"  infers, 
from  a  comparison  of  the  balance-sheet  for  1878  with  that  for 
1888,  that  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society  are  "evidently 
less  sought  after  than  they  were."  An  average  of  four  years 
would  have  pointed  to  an  opposite  conclusion.  For  the  years 
1876-79  the  average  sale  was  ;i^743  ic  Td  ,  while  that  of  1886-89 
was  ;^8lo  3^'.  3^/.  The  writer  leaves  out  of  account,  moreover, 
that  in  1878  the  Royal  Society,  according  to  their  published  list, 
presented  their  Transactions  and  Proceedings  to  276  institutions, 
while  at  present  they  give  them  to  no  fewer  than  363  insti- 
tutions. 

Much  interest  has  been  excited  by  the  announcement  of  the 
discovery  of  coal  in  Kent.  The  search  for  coal  at  a  point  near  the 
South-Eastern  Railway,  adjoining  the  experimental  heading  for 


the  Channel  Tunnel,  has  been  carried  on  for  several  years.  The 
following  report,  by  Mr.  Francis  Brady,  C.E.,  the  engineer-in- 
chief  of  the  South-Eastern  and  Channel  Tunnel  Companies,  was 
published  in  the  daily  papers  on  February  20 : — "  Coal  was 
reached  on  Saturday  last,  the  15th  inst.,  at  1 180  feet  below  the 
surface.  It  came  up  mixed  with  clay,  and  reduced  almost  to 
powder  by  the  boring  tools.  A  small  quantity  of  clean  bright 
coal  found  in  the  clay  was  tested  by  burning,  and  proved  to  be 
of  good  bituminous  character.  The  seam  was  struck  after  pass- 
ing through  20  feet  of  clays,  grits,  and  blackish  shales  belonging 
to  the  coal-measures,  which  at  this  point  lie  close  under  the 
Lias,  there  being  only  a  few  intervening  beds  of  sand,  limestone, 
and  black  clay  separating  them.  The  correspondence  of  the 
deposits  with  those  found  in  the  Somersetshire  coal-field  is  thus 
pretty  close,  the  difference  consisting  in  the  absence  of  the  red 
marl  at  the  Shakespeare  boring.  The  lines  of  bedding  in  the 
shale  are  distinctly  horizontal.  This  is  an  indication  that  the 
coal-measures  will  probably  be  found  at  a  reasonable  depth 
along  the  South-Eastern  Railway  to  the  westward.  I  beg  to 
hand  you  herewith  two  specimens  of  the  clay  containing  coal, 
one  taken  at  1180  feet,  and  the  other  at  11 82  feel.  I  also  in- 
close a  specimen  of  clean  coal  taken  to-day  at  1183  feet  6  inches 
from  the  surface."  With  regard  to  this  report.  Prof.  Boyd 
Dawkins  writes  to  us  : — "  As  the  enterprise  resulting  in  the 
discovery  of  coal  near  Dover  was  begun  in  1886,  and  is  now 
being  carried  on  under  my  advice,  I  write,  after  an  examination 
of  the  specimens  from  the  boring,  to  confirm  the  published 
report  of  Mr.  Brady,  so  far  as  relates  to  the  coal.  The  coal- 
measures  with  good  blazing  coal  have  been  struck  at  a  depth  of 
1 160  feet,  well  within  the  practical  mining  limit,  and  the  ques- 
tion is  definitely  answered  which  has  vexed  geologists  for  more 
than  thirty  years.  Further  explorations,  however,  now  under 
consideration,  will  be  necessary  before  the  thickness  of  the 
coal  and  the  number  of  the  seams  can  be  ascertained.  This 
discovery,  I  may  add,  with  all  the  important  consequences 
which  it  may  involve,  is  mainly  due  to  the  indomitable  energy 
of  Sir  Edward  W.  Watkin." 

The  second  meeting  of  the  Australasian  Association  for  the 
Advancement  of  Science  seems  to  have  been  in  every  way  most 
successful.  It  was  held  at  Melbourne,  and  began  on  January  7. 
At  the  Sydney  meeting  last  year  there  were  850  members.  This 
year  the  number  rose  to  1060.  Baron  von  Midler,  F.  R.S.,  was 
the  President.  Great  efforts  were  made  to  secure  that  members 
from  a  distance  should  enjoy  their  visit  to  Melbourne,  and  the 
serious  work  of  the  various  Sections  was  varied  by  pleasant  ex- 
cursions. An  excellent  "  Hand-book  of  Melbourne,"  edited  by 
Prof.  Baldwin  Spencer,  was  issued. 

This  year  the  University  of  Helsingfors  will  celebrate  its 
two  hundred  and  fiftieth  anniversary.  It  was  founded  at  Abo, 
but  transferred  to  Helsingfors  in  1820. 

At  a  recent  meeting  of  the  French  Meteorological  Society,  M. 
Wada,  of  the  Tokio  Observatory,  gave  a  resume  of  the  seismo- 
logical  observations  made  in  Japan  during  1887.  The  number 
of  earthquake  shocks  amounted  during  the  year  to  483.  The 
hourly  and  monthly  distribution  of  the  shocks  at  Tokio  during 
the  last  12  years  shows  a  slight  excess  in  favour  of  the  night- 
time, above  the  day  ;  and  also  an  excess  in  winter  and  spring, 
over  the  other  seasons.  The  area  affected  during  the  year  1887 
represented  five  times  the  superficies  of  the  empire.  M.  Wada 
gave  details  of  the  shocks,  their  direction,  intensity,  and 
distribution. 

Tidings  of  another  great  volcanic  eruption  have  come  from 
Japan.  Mount  Zoo,  near  the  town  of  Fukuvama,  in  the  Bingo 
district,  began  to  rumble  at  8  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  Jauuary 
16,  and  the  top  of  the  mountain  is  said  to  have  been  soon 
"lifted  off."     There  was  a  din  like  a  dynamite  explosion,  and 


Feb,  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


401 


sand  and  stones  were  belched  forth.  Stones  and  earth  also  fell 
at  Midsunoinimura,  a  village  six  miles  away.  No  previous 
eruption  of  Mount  Zoo  is  recorded.  Only  one  man  lost  his 
life,  but  some  cattle  were  killed,  and  55  houses  were  destroyed. 
The  total  loss  entailed  by  the  eruption  is  estimated  at  nearly 
$3,500,000. 

Two  rather  strong  shocks  of  earthquake  were  felt  at  Rome  on 
Sunday  last,  February  23,  shortly  after  11  p.m.  They  were 
more  distinct  in  the  environs  than  in  the  city  itself,  and  especially 
at  the  Rocca  di  Papa  in  the  Campagna.  The  Rome  corre- 
spondent of  the  Daily  Niivi  says  it  was  remarked  that  flocks 
of  sheep  "  showed  great  signs  of  fear  some  time  before  the  shocks 
were  felt."  The  correspondent  of  the  Standard  notes  that  in 
several  public  buildings  the  gas  was  almost  extinguished,  that 
electrical  apparatus  was  disturbed,  and  that  electric  bells  were 
set  ringing.  "My  own  experience,"  he  adds,  "was  that  of 
feeling  lifted  up  from  my  seat,  and  then  set  down  again  with  a 
slight,  but  sickening,  jar,  while  doors  rattled,  and  furniture  was 
moved  so  as  to  produce  noise  in  knocking  against  walls." 

AccoRDi  NG  to  a  telegram  sent  through  Reuter's  agency  from 
Lisbon,  a  slight  shock  of  earthquake  was  felt  on  February  24 
at  Leiria  and  places  between  it  and  the  sea  coast. 

The  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  for  February 
states  that  the  month  of  January  was  remarkable  for  the 
tempestuous  weather  that  prevailed  almost  uninterruptedly  over 
the  steamship  routes.  Storms  succeeded  each  other  in  rapid 
succession,  the  majority  of  them  having  developed  inland  and 
moved  east-north-east  on  very  similar  paths  from  Nova  Scotia 
and  across  southern  Newfoundland.  The  most  notable  storm  of 
the  month  was  probably  one  that  developed  in  the  St.  Lawrence 
/alley,  and  crossed  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle  early  on  the  3rd.  Tt 
hen  moved  nearly  due  east,  rapidly  increasing  in  intensity  until 
eaching  the  20th  meridian,  when  it  curved  to  the  north-eastward, 
ind  was  central  on  the  5th  about  lat.  55°  N.,  long.  17°  W.,  and 
iisappeared  north  of  Scotland.  The  barometric  pressure  in 
his  storm  was  remarkably  low,  27*93  inches  having  been  re- 
corded at  4  p.m.  on  January  4,  about  lat.  53°  N.,  long.  23°  W. 
There  was  a  slight  increase  in  the  amount  of  fog  experienced  ; 
It  was  confined  for  the  most  part  to  the  regions  west  of  the 
rand  Banks.  Much  ice  has  been  reported  since  the  5th  ;  the 
)ositions  and  dates  plotted  on  the  chart  indicate  that  the  ice 
eason  is  one  of  the  earliest  on  record — nearly  a  month  earlier 
han  usual.  This  is  due  in  a  great  measure  to  the  prevalence  of 
..  _  iiortherly  gales  east  of  Labrador,  coincident  with  the 
leavy  westerly  gales  of  December  and  January  along  the 
Transatlantic  route. 

The  Japanese  Government,  we  observe,  is  about  to  establish 
meteorological  observatory  in  the  Loochoo  Islands.  This  is 
ne  of  the  most  important  positions  in  the  East  for  meteoro- 
)gical  purposes,  for  it  fills  up  the  very  large  gap  at  present 
icisting  between  Shanghai  and  Manilla  in  one  direction,  and 
long  Kong  and  Tokio  in  the  other.  Besides,  the  Loochoo 
iTchipelago  is  a  specially  valuable  position  for  observing  the 
henomena  connected  with  the  course  of  the  typhoons  of  the 
hina  seas. 

I  iiK  meeting  of  the  International  Congress  of  Hygiene 
iid  Demography,  which  is  to  be  held  in  London  in  1891, 
ill  probably  be  thoroughly  successful.  An  organizing  com- 
littee,  with  Sir  Douglas  Gallon  as  President,  has  been 
)r,ned,  and  already  delegates  have  been  appointed  by  the 
ading  scientific  societies.  On  Tuesday,  February  18,  a  depu- 
tion  waited  upon  the  Lord  Mayor  to  discuss  the  arrangements 
lat  ought  to  be  made  for  the  meeting.  The  Lord  Mayor, 
wing  heard  what  Sir  Douglas  Galton,  Prof.  Corfield,  and  other 
lembers  of  the  deputation  had  to  say  as  to  the  importance  of 
le  Congress,  undertook  that  the  matter  should  be  brought  for- 


ward at  a  public  meeting  in  the  Mansion  House.  This  meeting, 
will  take  place  on  Thursday,  April  24,  and  the  Lord  Mayor  will 
preside. 

The  ninth  annual  meeting  of  the  members  of  the  Sanitary 
Assurance  Association  was  held  on  Monday,  February  17,  Sir 
Joseph  Fayrer,  F.R. S.,  in  the  chair.  Mr.  Joseph  Hadley, 
Secretary,  read  the  annual  report,  which  concluded  as  follows  : — 
"  Though  the  important  bearing  of  the  work  of  the  Association 
on  the  public  health  is  not  yet  fully  appreciated  by  the  general 
public,  the  financial  statement  for  the  past  year  proves  that  the 
Association  is  making  progress,  and  that  after  nine  years'  ex- 
perience its  work  continues  to  be  appreciated.  The  income  for 
the  year  was  ;^398  8j.  loa'.,  and  after  meeting  all  liabilities  a 
balance  is  carried  forward."  The  Chairman,  in  proposing  the 
adoption  of  the  report,  said  that  the  more  he  saw  of  the  work 
of  the  Association,  and  the  need  for  sanitary  improvement,  the 
more  was  he  interested  in  its  progress,  and  he  expressed  a  hope 
that  not  only  might  this  Association  prosper,  but  that  others 
might  be  formed,  so  great  was  the  work  to  be  done.  General 
Burne  and  Dr.  Danford  Thomas  were  re-elected  members  of  the 
executive  council,  and  Sir  Joseph  Fayrer  and  Prof.  T.  Roger 
Smith  were  re-elected  President  and  Vice-President  respectively. 

Some  time  ago  we  referred  to  the  fact  that  the  Manchester 
Field  Naturalists'  and  Archaeologists'  Society  had  appointed  a 
committee  for  the  purpose  of  promoting  the  planting  of  trees 
and  shrubs  in  Manchester  and  its  immediate  suburbs.  The  idea 
has  commended  itself  to  the  Corporation,  and  it  is  expected  that 
evergreen  shrubs,  planted  in  boxes  or  tubs,  will  soon  be  placed 
in  some  of  the  principal  squares.  Meanwhile,  the  committee 
are  trying  to  obtain  the  aid  of  experienced  practical  men.  They 
have  issued  a  circular  with  the  following  list  of  questions  :  — 
"  What  description  of  trees  would  you  especially  recommend  for 
open  spaces?"  "What  kind  of  shrubs,  especially  such  as 
would  succeed  in  tubs  or  boxes  ?"  "  What  suggestions  can  yovi- 
offer  as  to  soil,  treatment,  and  upon  any  important  point  relating 
to  tree  culture  in  towns?"  When  the  best  information  that 
can  be  obtained  has  been  brought  together,  it  will  be  embodied 
in  a  pamphlet,  which  may,  it  is  hoped,  serve  as  a  general  guide 
for  tree  planting  and  culture. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society  on  Saturday, 
the  Secretary  called  attention  to  several  plants  of  hygrometric 
club  moss  from  Mexico,  which  had  been  presented,  with  other 
specimens,  by  Mr.  A.  Gudgeon.  The  Secretary  stated  that 
these  plants  had  the  power,  ascribed  to  the  well-known  rose  of 
Jericho,  of  rolling  themselves  up  like  a  ball  when  dry,  and 
becoming  apparently  dead  ;  but  that  they  were  able  to  unfold  and 
grow  again  when  exposed  to  moisture.  The  specimens  shown 
had  been  kept  for  three  months  in  a  dry  place,  but  now  were 
green,  and  to  all  appearance  flourishing. 

The  following  lectures  will  be  given  at  the  Royal  Victoria 
Hall  during  March  : — March  4,  Mr.  F.  W.  Rudler,  on  "Geology 
in  the  Streets  of  London "  ;  nth.  Dr.  Dallinger,  on  "The 
Infinitely  Great  and  the  Infinitely  Small "  ;  i8ih,  Prof. 
Beare,  on  "Australia";  25th,  Mr.  W.  North,  on  "Rome." 

"Our  Earth  and  its  Story"  (Cassell  and  Co.)  consists  of 
three  volumes,  not  two,  as  inadvertently  stated  in  our  noti<:e  of 
the  work  on  February  13  (p.  341). 

A  series  of  new  compounds  of  hydroxylamine,  NHjOH,  with 
several  metallic  chlorides,  are  described  by  M.  Crismer  in  the 
current  number  of  the  Bulletin  de  la  SociHS  Chimiqne.  The 
first  member  of  the  series  obtained  was  the  zinc  compound 
ZnCIo  2NH2OH,  whose  existence  was  unexpectedly  discovered 
during  the  course  of  experiments  upon  the  action  of  metallic  zinc 
on  aqueous  hydroxylamine  hydrochloride.  A  ten  per  cent, 
solution  of  this  latter  salt  was  treated  with  an  excess  of  pure 
zinc  ;  no  evolution  of  gas  was  noticed  in  the  cold,  but  on  warming 


402 


NA  TURE 


[Feb.  27,  1890 


over  a  water-bath  a  slow  disengagement  of  bubbles  was  found  to 
occur.  After  allowing  the  reaction  to  complete  itself  during  the 
course  of  a  few  days,  the  liquid,  which  had  become  turbid,  was 
filtered,  allowed  to  cool,  and  again  filtered  from  a  little  more 
flocculent  material  which  separated  out,  and  finally  concentrated 
and  allowed  to  crystallize.  A  large  quantity  of  hemispherical 
crystal  aggregates  then  separated,  which  were  found  on  analysis  to 
consist  of  the  new  salt,  ZnCl2.2NH.,OH.  Several  other  methods 
of  obtaining  it  were  investigated ;  it  may  be  obtained  by 
treating  an  aqueous  solution  of  hydroxylamine  hydrochloride, 
NHgOH. HCl,  with  zinc  oxide  or  carbonate,  or  with  a  mixture 
of  zinc  sulphate  and  barium  carbonate,  or  by  treating  an  alcoholic 
solution  of  hydroxylamine  with  zinc  chloride.  But  the  best 
method,  and  one  which  gives  97  per  cent,  yield,  consists  in  dis- 
solving ten  parts  of  hydroxylamine  hydrochloride  in  300  c.c 
of  alcohol  in  a  flask  provided  with  an  inverted  condenser  ;  the 
liquid  is  then  heated  to  the  boiling-point  and  five  parts  of  zinc 
oxide  added,  the  boiling  being  continued  for  several  minutes 
afterwards.  The  clear  liquid  is  then  decanted  and  allowed  to 
cool.  After  the  deposition  of  the  first  crop  of  crystals,  the 
mother  liquor  may  be  returned  to  the  flask  and  treated  with  a 
further  quantity  of  zinc  oxide,  four  repetitions  of  this  treatment 
being  sufficient  to  obtain  an  almost  theoretical  yield  of  the  salt. 
The  white  crystals  are  then  washed  with  alcohol  and  dried  in  the 
air.  They  resist  the  action  of  most  solvents,  water  only  slightly 
dissolving  them,  and  that  with  decomposition.  Organic  solvents 
are  practically  without  action  upon  them.  When  heated  in  a 
narrow  tube,  as  in  attempting  to  determine  the  melting-point, 
the  salt  violently  explodes.  If  a  quantity  is  heated  to  about 
120°  C,  in  a  flask  connected  with  a  couple  of  U -tubes,  the  second 
containing  a  little  water,  gas  is  abundantly  liberated,  and  drops 
of  hydroxylamine  condense  in  the  first  U-tube  together  with  a 
little  nitrous  acid.  The  water  in  the  second  tube  is  found  to 
contain  hydroxylamine,  ammonia,  and  nitrous  acid,  while  fused 
zinc  chloride  remains  behind  in  the  flask.  A  similar  cadmium 
salt  was  also  obtained,  CdCl2.2NH20H,  in  brilliant  crystals 
which  separated  much  more  quickly  than  those  of  the  zinc  salt. 
This  cadmium  compound  is  much  more  stable  under  the  action 
of  heat,  gas  being  only  liberated  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
l9O°-20O°,  and  only  a  little  hydroxylamine  distils  over.  The 
barium  salt,  BaCU.2NH20H,  is  a  specially  beautiful  substance, 
crystallizing  from  water  in  large  tabular  prisms,  which  are  very 
much  more  soluble  in  water  than  either  of  the  salts  above 
described. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  an  Esquimaux  Dog  {Canis  familiaris  $  ), 
bred  in  England,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  Tournay  ;  two  Barbary 
Turtle-Doves  [Ttiriur  risorius)  from  North  Africa,  presented 
by  Miss  Teil ;  a  Bonnet  Monkey  {Macaciis  siniais  ? ),  a 
Macaque  Monkey  {Mmuciis  cynomolgiis  i )  from  India,  a 
Common  Raccoon  {Procyon  lot  or)  from  North  America,  de- 
posited ;  a  Green  Monkey  {CercopitJiccus  callitrichtis)  born  in 
the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal  Time  at  Greenwich  at   10  p.m.  on  February  27  = 


8h.  30m.  43s. 


Name. 

iMag. 

Colour. 

I 
R.\.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

(i)G.C.  1711      

(2)58  Hydrce,  U.A.  ... 

(3)fHydrae        

(4)  e  Hydra;         

(5)ii5Schj 

(6)  W  lauri        

7 
->. 

6 
Var. 

Yellowish-red. 
Yellowish-white. 
Yellowish-white. 

Yellowish-red. 
Reddish-yellow. 

h.  m.  s. 

8  45  37 
8  39  53 
8  43  36 
8  41     0 
8  49  II 
4   21  45 

+  51   44 
-10  45 
-r   6  22 
+  6  49 
+  17  39 
+  15  51 

Remarks. 
(i)  "Very  bright;  veiy  large;  at  first  very  gradually,  then 
very  suddenly  much  brighter  in  the  middle."     The  spectrum  of 
this  nebula  has  not  yet,  so  far  as  I  know,  been  recorded. 

(2)  Duner  classes  this  with  stars  of  Group  II.,  but  states  that 
the  spectrum  is  very  feebly  developed,  and  expresses  a  doubt  as 
lo  the  type.  As  I  have  before  remarked,  Mr.  Lockyer's  dis- 
cussion of  the  stars  of  this  group  seems  to  indicate  that  the 
spectra  which  are  described  as  "  feebly  developed  "  really  repre- 
sent stages  in  the  passage  from  one  group  to  another.  If,  for 
example,  we  consider  a  rather  faint  star  with  the  banded  spec- 
trum a  little  more  developed  than  in  the  case  of  Aldebaran,  its 
spectrum  would  no  doubt  be  described  as  "feebly  developed," 
if  classed  with  Group  II.  In  such  a  case  the  star  would  be 
more  condensed  than  those  in  which  the  spectrum  is  said  to  be 
well  developed,  and  the  flutings  would  have  almost  entirely 
given  way  to  lines.  Line  absorptions  would  therefore  indicate 
that  the  star  belonged  to  a  late  stage  of  the  group.  On  the 
other  hand,  if  the  star  be  at  a  very  early  stage  of  condensation, 
the  flutings  would  still  only  be  feebly  developed,  and  might  be 
accompanied  by  bright  lines.  In  any  case,  further  examination 
is  necessary,  as  the  star  may  belong  to  an  early  stage  of  Group 
VI.,  and  not  to  Group  II.  at  all. 

(3)  A  star  classed  by  Vogel  with  stars  of  the  solar  type.  The 
usual  differential  observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Vogel).  The  usual  observations 
are  required. 

(5)  A  "superb"  example  of  stars  of  Group  VI.  (Dimer). 
The  principal  bands  are  very  wide  and  dark,  and  the  secondary 
bands  4  and  5  are  also  well  seen.      Bands  7  and  8  are  doubtful. 

(6)  This  variable  will  reach  a  maximum  about  March  7.  The 
period  is  about  360  days,  and  the  magnitudes  at  maximum  and 
minimum  are  8"2  ±  and  <  13  respectively.  The  star  is  not 
included  in  Duner's  catalogue,  but  Vogel  states  that  the  si>ec- 
trum  is  of  the  Group  II.  type.  Observations  before  and  after 
maximum,  with  special  references  to  changes  of  spectrum, 
should  be  made. 

Note  on  the  Zodiacal  Light. — In  favourable  localities  the 
zodiacal  light  should  now  be  visible  in  the  evening,  and  as  further 
spectroscopic  observations  are  desirable,  it  may  be  convenient  to 
briefly  summarize  here  the  results  already  obtained.  Angstrom 
first  observed  the  spectrum  at  Upsala,  in  March  1887,  and  noted 
the  presence  of  the  chief  line  of  the  aurora  spectrum,  at  a  wave- 
length stated  as  5567.  Respighi,  in  1872,  also  observed  thisi 
line,  in  addition  to  a  faint  continuous  spectrum,  and  believed 
this  to  demonstrate  the  identity  of  the  aurora  and  zodiacal  light. 
He  found,  however,  that  at  the  same  time  the  bright  line  was 
visible  in  almost  every  part  of  the  sky,  and  this  led  to  the  sug- 
gestion that  it  originated  from  a  concealed  aurora.  Prof.  Piazzi 
Smyth,  in  Italy,  observed  nothing  but  a  faint  continuous  spec- 
trum, extending  from  about  midway  between  D  and  E  to  F. 
A.  W.  Wright's  observations  led  him  to  the  following  con- 
clusions : — "  (i)  The  spectrum  of  the  zodiacal  light  is  continuous, 
and  is  sensibly  the  same  as  that  of  faint  sunlight  or  twilight. 
(2)  No  bright  line  or  band  can  be  recognized  as  belonging  tc 
this  spectrum.  (3)  There  is  no  evidence  of  any  connection  be- 
between  the  zodiacal  light  and  the  Polar  aurora "  (Capron'^ 
"  Aurorae,"  p.  69).  Mr.  Lockyer  believes  the  zodiacal  light  tc 
be  due  to  meteoritic  dust,  which  is  to  a  certain  extent  self 
luminous,  as  indicated  by  the  bright  line  in  the  spectrum,  and 
argues  in  favour  of  a  connection  between  aurorse  and  the  zodiaca  j 
light  (Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  vol.  45,  p.  247).  He  says: — "Thtj 
observations  of  Wright  and  others,  showing  that  the  spectrun  ! 
is  continuous,  are  not  at  variance  with  Angstrom's  observation, ! 
for  we  should  expect  the  spectrum  to  be  somewhat  variable.  I  j 
is  probable  that  the  observations  showing  nothing  but  continuou  j 
spectrum  were  made  when  the  temperature  was  only  sufficien ; 
to  render  the  meteoritic  particles  red  hot.  That  the  zodiaca  | 
light  does  consist  of  solid  particles,  or,  at  all  events,  of  particle 
capable  of  reflecting  light,  is  shown  by  the  polariscope."  H 
also  quotes  from  a  letter  in  which  Mr.  Sherman,  of  Yale  Col  I 
lege,  states  that  he  has  reason  to  believe  that  the  appearance  c  j 
the  bright  line  in  the  zodiacal  light  has  a  regular  period.  { 

On  January  20  I  saw  the  zodiacal  light  very  well  at  Westgate( 
on-Sea,    but  was   unable  to    detect    anything    beyond  a  fain 
continuous  spectrum.  I 

Mr.  Maxwell  Hall's  observations  at  Jamaica  (see  NatUKI| 
February  13,  p.  351)  also  record  continuous  spectra,  but  wit  | 
remarkable  changes  in  the  region  of  maximum  intensity.  _  H  | 
suggests  comparative  observations  with  the  spectrum  of  twiligh  j 


i^eb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


403 


In  connection  with  the  suggestion  of  the  variability  of  the 
spectrum,  it  is  important  to  secure  further  observations.  If  the 
existence  of  the  bright  line  at  some  periods  be  established,  we 
may  then  safely  conclude  that  the  luminosity  of  the  zodiacal 
light  is  not  entirely  due  to  reflected  sunlight. 

A.  Fowler. 

Observations  of  C  Urs^  Majoris  and  y3  Aurig.e.— The 
periodic  duplicity  of  the  K  line  in  the  spectra  of  these  stars  before 
noted  (January  23,  p.  285)  led  Prof.  Pickering  to  conclude  that 
the  time  of  revolution  of  the  former  system  was  104  days.  In 
the  current  number  of  the  Sidereal  Messenger,  however,  Prof. 
Pickering  adds  a  note,  dated  January  II,  1890,  in  which  he 
records  that  later  observations  make  it  probable  that  the  period 
of  f  Ursae  Majoris  is  52  days  instead  of  104,  and  that  its  orbit  is 
noticeably  elliptical.  The  velocity  of  the  components  of  j8 
Aurigoe  seems  to  be  150  miles  per  second,  their  period  4  days, 
their  orbit  nearly  circular,  with  a  radius  of  8,000,000  miles, 
and  their  ma.sses  0"i  or  o'2,  that  of  the  sun  being  unity. 

Comet  Brooks  {d  1889). — The  following  ephemeris  is  given 
by  Dr.  Knopf  in  Edinburgh  Circular  No.  5,  issued  on  the 
22nd  inst.  : — 


1890. 

R.A. 

March 

h.  m.     s. 

I    .. 

2   22   54 

3  •• 

26  40 

5  •• 

30  26 

7  •■ 

34  13 

9 

38     I 

II  .. 

41  49 

13  •• 

45  37 

Decl. 


R.A. 


Decl. 


19 
21 

23 
25 


49  26 

53  17 

57    8 

o  59 

4  51 

8  43 


+  20    8*o 
20  25-3 

23   42  3 

20  59-1 

21  iS"6 
21  31-8 


017, 


1890. 
o        ,        '•  March. 
+  17   58-6   I    15    .. 
18    17-9   j    17    .. 
18   369 

18  55-6 

19  141 
19  323 
19  50*3  ' 

The  brightness  on  March  i  =  o'24,  and  on  March  25 
that  at  discovery  being  unity. 

New  Short-period  Variable  in  Oi'Hiuchus. — Mr.  Edwin 
F.  Sawyer  announces  the  discovery  that  the  star  175  {Uranome- 
tria  Argentina)  Ophiuchi,  R.A.  I7h.  45m.  57s.,  Decl.  -  6°  6'7 
(1875*0),  is  a  variable  of  short  period  {Astronomical  yournal, 
No.  -210).  The  range  of  variation  appears  to  be  from  6 •2m.  to 
6*95m.,  and  the  period  slightly  greater  than  17  days. 

Observations  of  the  Magnitude  of  Iapetus. — In  the 
January  number  of  Monthly  Notices  is  found  an  interesting  com- 
munication to  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society  by  Mr.  Barnard, 
of  the  Lick  Observatory,  on  the  eclipse  of  this  outermost  satel- 
lite in  the  shadows  of  the  globe,  crape  ring,  and  bright  ring  of 
Saturn.  By  frequent  comparison  of  the  light  of  Iapetus  with 
that  of  Tethys  and  Enceladus,  the  effect  of  the  shadow  of  the 
crape  ring  on  the  visibility  of  the  satellite  was  tested,  seventy- 
five  comparisons  being  made.  It  was  found  that,  after  passing 
through  the  sunlight  shining  between  the  ball  and  the  rings, 
Iapetus  entered  the  shadow  of  the  crape  ring.  As  it  passed 
deeper  into  this,  there  was  a  regular  decrease  in  light  until  it 
disappeared  in  the  shadow  of  the  inner  bright  ring.  From  the 
observations  it  appears  that  the  crape  ring  is  truly  transparent, 
the  sunlight  sifting  through  it.  The  particles  composing  it  cut 
off  an  appreciable  quantity  of  sunlight,  and  cluster  more  thickly, 
or  the  crape  ring  is  denser,  as  it  approaches  the  bright  rings. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

At  the  ordinary  meeting  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society, 
on  Monday,  Mr.  C.  M.  Woodford  read  a  paper  on  "  Further 
Explorations  of  the  Solomon  Islands."  He  has  visited  these 
islands  three  times,  and  in  the  present  paper  he  described  what 
he  saw  during  his  third  visit,  in  1888.  He  took  up  his  residence 
in  the  small  island  of  Gavotu,  off  the  coast  of  Gola,  or  Florida 
Island,  a  place  centrally  situated  for  visiting  Ysabel,  Guadal- 
canar,  and  other  islands.  He  stayed  with  a  trader  named  Lars 
Nielson,  who  had  since  been  killed  and  eaten  by  the  natives, 
as  had  also  three  of  his  boys.  Since  last  June  no  fewer  than 
six  white  men  had  been  murdered  by  the  natives  of  the  Solomon 
Group,  out  of  a  total  white  population  estimated  at  about  thirty. 
Mr.  Woodford's  principal  object  in  his  last  journey  was  to 
identify  the  places  visited  by  the  Spanish  Expedition  under 
Mendaiia  that  discovered  these  islands  in  the  year  1568.  In  this, 
he  thought  he  might  say,  he  had  been  entirely  successful.  The 
Spaniards  related  that  when  they  were  between  Florida  and 
Guadalcanar  they  passed  an  island  in  the  centre  of  which  was  a 
burning  volcano.     This  island  was  now  conclusively  identified 


with  the  Island  of  Savo.  The  lecture  was  illustrated  with 
photographs  of  natives  of  Guadalcanar  and  other  places,  as 
well  as  specimens  of  rude  architecture,  by  means  of  the 
dissolving-view  apparatus. 

According  to  the  Copenhagen  correspondent  of  the  Frank- 
furter Zeitung,  an  Expedition  for  the  exploration  of  Greenland 
will  start  next  summer  from  Denmark.  The  plan  of  work  has 
been  arranged  by  the  Naval  Lieutenant  Ryder.  The  party  will 
consist  of  nine  persons.  They  will  have  three  boats,  and  a 
steamer  will  convey  them  to  the  eastern  coast  as  soon  as  the 
condition  of  the  ice  will  allow  of  a  landing.  It  is  proposed  that 
the  region  lying  between  66°  and  73°  north  latitude  shall  be 
explored  in  the  course  of  the  summer,  and  that  the  party  shall 
push  as  far  as  possible  into  the  interior.  Sledges  will  be  em- 
ployed during  the  winter.  The  Expedition  will  be  provisioned 
and  equipped  for  two  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  the  steamer 
will  return  to  take  them  away,  cruising  along  the  east  coast  till 
they  get  down  to  the  shore.  The  expenses  have  been  estimated 
at  from  250,000  to  290,000  kroner  (equal  to  from  about  ;^i  3,900 
to  ;^i6, 100),  and  the  project  is  so  popular,  and  looked  on  so 
favourably  by  the  Government,  that  it  is  practically  certain  that 
the  Diet  will  grant  the  money. 

The  Geographical  Society  of  Vienna  issues  a  circular  letter, 
dated  February  1890,  announcing  the  election  of  officers  made 
last  December.  The  new  President  is  Herr  Hofrath  Ritter  von 
Hauer,  Intendant  des  naturhistorischen  Hofmuseums, 


LOCUSTS  nV  INDIA. 


I 


N  1889,  parts  of  Sind,  Guzerat,  Rajputana,  and  the  Punjab 
were  much  troubled  by  locusts.  A  report  on  these  de- 
structive creatures  is  being  prepared  under  the  direction  of  the 
trustees  of  the  Indian  Museum,  Calcutta  ;  and,  in  the  hope  that 
information  about  them,  with  specimens,  may  be  obtained  from 
persons  who  have  had  opportunities  of  observing  them,  Mr.  E. 
C.  Cotes,  of  the  Indian  Museum,  has  issued  a  preliminary  note, 
summing  up  some  of  the  principal  facts  that  have  already  been 
brought  together.  This  note  is  very  interesting,  and  has  been 
compiled  chiefly  from  the  records  of  the  Revenue  and  Agricul- 
tural Department  of  the  Indian  Government. 

The  generally  received  idea  is  that  the  locust  which  invades 
India  belongs  to  the  species  usually  spoken  of  as  Acriditim 
peregi'inuvi,  and  supposed  to  have  been  the  locust  of  the  Bible. 
The  identity  of  Indian  locusts  has  not  yet,  however,  been  defi- 
nitely ascertained,  and  this  is  one  of  the  points  which  require 
elucidation.  As  far  as  we  at  present  know,  there  seems  reason 
to  believe  that  while  Acriditim  peregrimim  extends  its  ravages 
into  the  dry  plains  of  the  Punjab  and  Rajputana,  the  locust 
which  proved  injurious  in  Madras  in  1878,  and  in  the  Deccan  in 
1882-83,  belongs  to  a  very  different  species,  which  is  probably 
Acriditim  sticcincttiin.  In  order  to  settle  the  question  it  will  be 
necessary  to  examine  further  specimens  taken  from  destructive 
flights  which  have  appeared  in  various  localities,  the  material  in 
the  Indian  Museum  being  at  present  insufficient. 

Dealing .  with  the  natural  history  of  locusts  generally,  Mr. 
Cotes  observes  that  all  the  different  species  which  occur  in 
various  parts  of  the  world  breed  permanently  in  barren  elevated 
tracts  where  the  vegetation  is  sparse.  In  years  when  they  in- 
crease inordinately  they  descend  in  flights  from  their  permanent 
breeding-grounds  upon  cultivated  districts,  where  they  destroy 
the  crops,  lay  their  eggs,  and  maintain  themselves  through  one 
complete  generation,  but  are  unable  to  establish  themselves  per- 
manently, usually  disappearing  in  the  year  following  the  invasion, 
to  be  succeeded,  after  an  interval  of  years,  by  fresh  swarms 
from  the  permanent  breeding-ground. 

Generally  speaking,  the  life  circle  of  a  locust  extends  through 
one  year,  in  which  period  it  passes  through  its  various  stages  of 
egg,  young  wingless  larva,  active  pupa,  and  winged  locust, 
which  dies  after  laying  the  eggs  that  are  to  produce  the  next 
generation.  The  eggs  are  laid  in  little  agglutinated  masses  in 
holes,  which  the  female  bores  with  her  ovipositor  in  the  ground. 
In  temperate  climates  the  eggs  are  usually  deposited  in  the 
autumn,  but  in  sub-tropical  countries,  such  as  India,  where  there 
is  but  little  winter,  the  winged  locusts  live  on  through  the  cold 
season,  and  only  die  off  after  depositing  their  eggs  in  the  follow- 
ing spring.  In  this  case  the  eggs  hatch  after  lying  in  the  ground 
for  about  a  month.     In  both  temperate  and  sub-tropical  regions- 


404 


NA  TURE 


\_Feb.  27,  1890 


alike,  the  young  wingless  locusts,  on  emerging  from  the  eggs  in 
the  spring  or  summer,  feed  voraciously  and  grow  rapidly  for  two 
or  three  months,  during  which  period  they  moult  at  intervals, 
finally  developing  wings  and  becoming  adult.  The  adult  insects 
fly  about  in  swarms,  which  settle  from  time  to  time  and  devour 
the  crops.  The  damage  done  by  locusts  is  thus  occasioned  in 
the  first  instance  by  the  young  wingless  insects,  and  afterwards 
by  the  winged  individuals  into  which  the  young  are  transformed 
after  a  couple  of  months  of  steady  feeding. 

In  R  tjputana  and  the  Punjab  in  1869  the  flights  were  said  to 
have  come  chiefly  from  the  vast  tract  of  sand  hills  {Teeiws)  be- 
tween the  Runn  of  Kutch  and  Bhawulpore,  and  partly  from  the 
Suliman  Range  in  Afghanistan.  Locusts  wen  reported  as 
usually  to  be  found  in  the  autumn  in  the  Teeburs,  and  it  is 
thought  that  this  tract  is  probably  a  permanent  breeding-ground. 
The  whole  question,  however,  of  the  permanent  breeding- grounds 
of  these  locusts  is  one  that  requi'  es  further  investigation.  The 
winged  flights  appeared  throughout  Central  Rajputana  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  hot  weather,  and  laid  eggs  which  hatched  as 
the  rains  set  in  ;  the  old  locusts  dying  after  they  had  deposited 
their  egg-<.  P'rom  these  eggs  were  hatched  young  locusts  which  be- 
came full  grown  and  acquired  wings  in  August  and  September. 
The  eggs  laid  by  the  original  flights  at  the  end  of  the  hot 
weather  were  distributed  throughimt  the  whole  of  Central 
Rajputana,  and  a  vast  amount  of  injury  was  done,  the  crops 
being  damaged,  in  the  first  instance,  by  the  young  locusts  before 
they  acquired  wings,  and  afterwards  by  the  winged  swarms  which 
flew  about  the  country  and  settled  at  intervals  to  eat  what  had 
escaped  the  ravages  of  the  young  wingless  locusts. 

In  the  Punjab,  flights  of  locusts,  from  the  Suliman  Range, 
Afghanistan,  appeared  in  the  western  border,  in  the  end  of 
April  and  in  May.  Eggs  and  young  locusts  were  also  found 
about  this  time  near  the  hills  in  the  sandy  tracts  of  the  same 
district.  The  flights  seem  generally  to  have  moved  from  west 
to  east,  and  by  July  to  have  spread  themselves  throughout  the 
Punjab  ;  but  the  laying  of  eggs  and  the  hatching  out  of  young 
went  on,  at  least  in  the  south-eist,  throughout  August  and 
September. 

In  Bombay,  locusts  were  noticed  in  May  and  June  1882,  in 
the  south-we^t  of  the  Presidency  ;  but  they  attracted  little  atten- 
tion, such  swarms  being  annual  visitors  of  th-  Kanarese  forests, 
and  neither  in  Kanara   nor   in    Dharwar   did   they  cau>e   any 
material  injury.    With  the  setting  in  of  the  south-west  monsoon, 
however,  they  spread  in  flights  over  the  Presidency  to  the  north 
and  north-east,  and  early  in  the  rains  proceeded  to  lay  their  eggs 
and  die.     These  eggs  hatched  in  the  end  of  July  and  beginning 
of  August,  and  the  young  locusts  did  a  large  amount  of  damage, 
over  a  wide  area,  through  the  mouths  of  August  and  September. 
In  the  early  part  of  October,  with    the  setting  in  of  the  north- 
east monsoon,  the  young  locusts,  which  had  by  this  time  acquired 
wings,  took  flight,  and  travelled  with  the  prevailing  wind  in  a 
south-westerly  direction,   doing  some  injury  in  the  Poona  Col- 
lectorate  as  they  passeil.     They  then  struck  the  Western  Ghats, 
and  spread  slowly  over  the   Konkan   in  November,  and  thence 
travelled  into  the  Native  States  of  Sawantvadi  and  the  Kanara 
district.     During   the  remainder   of   the  cold   season    and   the 
following  hot  weather  (December  1882,  to  the  end  of  M  ly  1883), 
the  flights  clung  to  the  Ghats,  occasionally  venturing  inland  into 
Belgau  n,  Dharwar,  the  Kolhapur  State,  and  Satara,  and  devour- 
ing the  spring  crops  in  the  Coast  Dis'ricts,  but  ordinarily  keeping 
in  the  vicmity  of  the  hill  ranges.     With  the  commencement  of 
the  south-west  monsoon,   in   the  latter  part  of  May  1883,  the 
flights  began  to  move  in  a  north-easterly  direction,  as  they  had 
done  the  preceding  yea--,  but  in  larger  numbers. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  rains  they  began  to  alight  in  vast 
numbers  over  an  immense  tract  of  country,  comprising  six  Deccan 
CoUectorates  and  three  Coast  Collectorates.  They  deposited 
their  eggs  and  died  ;  and  early  in  August  the  young  locusts 
hatched  out  in  countless  numbers,  but  were  apparently  more 
backward,  and  possessed  of  less  strength  and  stamina  than  were 
those  of  the  previous  year.  The  unusually  heavy  rainfall  killed 
vast  numbers  of  them  in  some  parts  of  the  country,  and  else- 
where the  insects  seemed  stunted  and  feeble,  and  grew  but 
slowly.  They  were  destroyed  in  vast  numbers  by  the  vigorous 
measures  initiated  by  (jovernment  officers,  and  were  also  said  to 
be  diseased  and  attacked  by  worms  and  other  parasites.  As  late 
as  November,  the  mass  of  the  young  locusts  appeared  still  unable 
to  fly,  and  made  no  general  move,  as  they  had  done  the  year 
before,  towards  their  permanent  home  in  the  south-west.  The 
invasion  was  in  fact  at  an  end,  and  though  swarms  appeared  in 


Sawantwadi  in  1883-84,  no  further  injury  of  a  serious  nature 
seems  to  have  occurred. 

The  injury  occasioned  to  the  rain  crops  by  the  locusts  was  very 
considerable,  over  a  great  portion  of  the  Deccan  and  Konkan, 
both  in  1882  and  1883.  But  it  was  found,  at  the  end  of  the 
invasion,  that  abundance  of  the  cold  weather  crops  had  com- 
pensated to  so  great  an  extent  for  the  injury  done  to  the  rain 
crops,  that,  on  the  whole,  no  very  widespread  suffering  had 
arisen. 

In  1878,  when  the  Madras  Presidency  was  invaded,  the  young 
locusts  began  to  appear  in  January,  and  were  found  in  great 
numbers  in  different  districts  from  then  on  till  September  and 
October,  the  earlier  swarms  being  found  in  the  west  and  south 
of  the  Presidency,  and  the  later  ones  in  the  north  and  east. 
Winged  locusts  were  first  observed,  in  the  end  of  March  and 
beginning  of  April,  in  the  hills  to  the  south-west  (Wynaad  and 
Nilgiri),  where  they  may  be  supposed  to  breed  permanently. 
Thence,  aided  by  the  south-west  monsoon,  they  gradually  worked 
their  way  over  the  Presidency  to  the  east  and  north,  finally 
disappearing  about  November  and  December. 

The  information  hitherto  obtained  hardly  justifies  any  very 
decided  conclusion  as  to  the  life  history  of  the  locust.  Rut  it 
may  be  noticed  that  locusts  were  observed  pairing  in  the  Salem 
District,  in  the  latter  part  of  June,  and  also  that  the  young 
locusts,  which  were  found,  in  the  early  part  of  May,  in  the 
Udamalpet  Taluk,  were  supposed  to  be  the  offspring  of  the 
large  flights  of  winged  locusts  which  had  appeared  in  the  pre- 
ceding February  in  the  same  taluk.  The  connection  between 
the  autumn  broods  of  locusts  and  those  which  appeared  in  the 
early  part  of  the  year  has  not  been  made  out  satisfactorily. 

Mr.  Cotes  ends  his  paper  with  an  account  of  the  chief 
measures  which  have  at  different  times  been  adopted  in  India 
against  locusts,  pointing  out  that,  the  locust  of  North- We-;t  India 
being  distinct  from  that  of  South- West  India,  measures  found 
useful  in  one  invasion  are  not  necessarily  applicable  in  another. 


FIELD  EXPERIMENTS  ON  WHEAT  IN 
ITAL  Y> 

pROF.  GIGLIOLI,  of  the  Agricultural  College  at  Portici,  a 
^  graduate  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  College,  Cirencester, 
has  given  to  the  Association  of  Proprietors  and  Farmers  of 
Naples  a  voluminous  and  most  carefully  compiled  Report  on 
the  results  of  the  first  year's  experiments  on  wheat-growing  at  the 
experimental  field  of  Suessola,  about  six  kilometres  fom  Acerra. 
The  field  is  on  the  estate  of  Count  Francesco  Spinelli,  who 
generously  lends  it  to  the  Association  for  experimental  purposes. 
The  district  was  celebrated  in  olden  time  for  its  fertility,  but 
was  afterwards  long  neglected  on  account  of  its  marshy  nature, 
and  the  land  became  sour  and  productive  of  disease.  Now, 
again,  drainage  and  improved  cultivation  have  changed  these 
marshes  into  some  of  the  best  land  of  a  fertile  district.  The 
soil  of  the  experimental  field  is  easily  worked,  friable,  and  bears 
a  good  natural  vegetation ;  no  analysis  of  it,  however,  is 
furnished.  Giglioli  points  out  that  it  is  in  too  high  condition  at 
present  for  comparative  manuring  experiments,  but  adrnirably 
suited  for  comparing  different  varieties  of  corn  and  different 
methods  of  sowing  and  cultivation,  as  by  dibbling  and  the  Lois- 
Weedon  system. 

There  are  in  all  102  plots  devoted  to  trying  the  effects  of 
different  manures,  each  plot  being  about  43  square  metres  ;  18 
unmanured  plots  of  a  similar  size  devoted  to  diliferent  varieties 
of  wheat ;  and  3  plots,  each  about  twice  the  above-mentioned 
size,  used  for  different  methods  of  seeding  and  cultivation. 
Paths  were  made  round  each  plot,  the  paths  being  at  rather  a 
lower  level  than  the  plots  themselves  The  author  discusses 
the  question  of  large  and  small  plots,  but  concluded  that  under 
the  conditions  obtaining,  small  plots  were  the  best  for  use  here. 

On  the  102  manured  plots,  Scholey  squarehead  wheat  was 
sown,  with  a  great  variety  ot'  manures — organic,  nitrogenous, 
phosphatic,  and  potassic ;  but  it  was  afterwards  found  this 
variety  of  wheat  was,  unfortunately,  not  well  suited  to  the 
climate  and  to  the  general  purpose  of  these  experiments. 

The  18  varieties  experimented  with,  on  the  second  series,  in- 
cluded several  well-known  English  varieties,  such  as  Hallett  f 
pedigree  white  and  red  wheats,  Chiddam,  golden  drop,  Hunter  ^ 
'  ■•  Resultati  del  Primo  Anno  di  Esperimento  sulle  Varieta  e  sui  Concim 
del  Frumento  al  Campo  Sperimentale  di  Suessola  nell"  ^Anno  Agrari' 
1887-88."     I'y  Italo  Giglioli.     Pp.  508.     (Naples,  1889.) 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


405 


white  and  Victoria  white,  also  some  Hungarian  wheats,  besides 
Italian  varieties. 

It  was  found  that  the  English  varieties  gave  very  poor  results  ; 
the  squarehead  was  a  very  poor  sample  indeed,  and  it  was  un- 
fortunate that  it  was  used  for  the  manuring  experiments.  The 
degeneration  of  English  wheats  during  the  first  year  is  probably 
due  to  the  great  amount  of  transpiration  taking  place  in  this 
climate,  especially  during  such  a  hot  and  dry  summer  as  that  of 
1888.  Giglioli  enters  into  an  interesting  discussion  of  this  im- 
portant physiological  result. 

The  most  productive  wheat  was  a  variety  known  as  Noe,  from 
the  South  of  France,  originally  from  Bessarabia — this  yielded  at 
the  rate  of  3485  kilograms  per  hectare  ;  next  in  order  were  two 
Italian  varieties,  Rieti  and  Puglia  grain,  yielding  at  the  rate  of 
about  3150  kilograms  per  hectare.  The  Puglia  wheat  was  the 
finest  in  quality  of  grain,  but  its  yield  of  straw  was  very  lo\v. 

The  great  importance  of  a  careful  selection  of  varieties  is 
pointed  out,  and  Giglioli  is  of  opinion  that  much  more  good 
will  be  done  by  improving  and  selecting  Italian  varieties  than 
by  importing  new  varieties  ;  which,  if  from  colder  countries, 
will  probably  not  be  able  to  stand  the  climate. 

Incidentally,  the  experiments  showed  the  great  benefit  of  good 
cultivation  and  of  surface  draining,  the  plots  being  above  the 
level  of  the  surrounding  paths,  for  the  produce  of  the  unmanured 
plot><  was  double  that  of  the  neighbouring  land  under  ordinary 
cultivation. 

From  the  manuring  experiments  it  was  shown  that  farm- 
yard manure  gave  fair  results,  but  the  season  was  un- 
favourable to  the  action  of  artificial  manures,  being  much  too 
dry.  Of  nitrogenous  manures,  acidified  urine  gave  the  best 
results,  but  nitrate  of  soda  and  sulphate  of  ammonia  were  often 
worse  than  useless.  Phosphates  had  some  good  effect,  and 
Thomas-Gilchrist  slag  was  useful.  Potash  salts  had  no  par- 
ticular effect ;  the  chloride  seemed  rather  better  than  the  sul- 
phate. 

The  results  of  the  manuring  experiments,  considering  the  great 
care  and  labour  bestowed  on  them,  must  be  disappointing  ;  but 
the  soil  is  in  too  high  condition  for  manures  to  show  great  effects, 
ai>o  the  variety  of  grain  sown  was  unsuitable  to  the  climate, 
and  the  season  was  against  manures,  especially  nitrogenous 
manures. 

In  this  Report  the  details  of  the  experiments  are  given  in  full, 
with  the  appearance  of  the  plots  at  different  dates,  and  the  whole 
results  tabulated  in  various  ways  in  nearly  a  hundred  tables.  All 
the  weighings  at  harvest  were  carried  out  under  the  personal 
!  superintendence  of  Prof.  Giglioli,  who  evidently  has  spared 
neither  time,  trouble,  nor  health,  in  conducting  these  important 
researches.  Already  the  results  have  yielded  important  infor- 
mation, especially  on  the  suitability  or  the  reverse  of  special 
varieties  of  wheat  to  the  climate  of  Southern  Italy,  and  with 
their  continuance  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  results  most 
valuable  to  the  Italian  farmer  on  the  cultivation  and  manuring 
of  wheat  will  be  obtained. 

Whilstheartily  congratulatingProf,  Giglioliand  the  Agricultural 
Association  of  Naples  on  having  inaugurated  these  experiments 
with  the  prospect  of  continuing  them  for  some  years,  we  cannot 
but  think  that  their  value  would  be  greatly  increased  if  the  plots 
were  larger  ;  or,  if  this  cannot  be  arrans^ed  with  the  appliances 
at  command,  if  the  experiments  were  always  in  duplicate,  or 
preferably  in  triplicate,  and  this  might  be  rendered  possible  by 
reducing  the  number  of  experiments  on  manures  in  future  seasons. 

E.  K. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  J oiirual  of  Science,  February.— The  magnetic  field 
in  the  Jefferson  Physical  Laboratory,  by  R.  W.  Willson.  One 
of  the  wings  of  this  Laboratory  in  Harvard  University  has  been 
constructed  wholly  without  iron  for  the  purpose  of  research,  and 
the  author  has  made  a  series  of  experiments  to  determine  how 
far  the  end  sought  has  been  gained.  He  has  found  the  magnitude 
of  the  disturbance  which  may  arise  in  practice  from  such  objects 
as  stoves  and  iron  pipes,  and  has  made  the  interesting  discovery 
that  the  brick  piers  of  the  building  have  a  sufficient  amount  of 
free  magnetism  to  produce  quite  an  appreciable  effect.  — On  Cre- 
taceous plants  from  Martha's  Vineyard,  by  David  White.  The 
author  has  studied  a  number  of  fossil  plants  collected  at  several 
localities  and  horizons  in  the  Vineyard  series  for  the  purpose  of 
solving  the  question  as  to  the  age    of  the   underlying   clays, 


lignites,  and  sands,  of  Martha's  Vineyard.     He  concludes  that 
the  evidence  from  the  fossil  plants  bespeaks  an  age  decidedly 
Cretaceous,  and  probably  Middle  Cretaceous,  for  the  terrane  in 
which  they  were  deposited. — Review  of  Dr.  K.  W    Ell's  second 
report  on  the  geol  'gy  of  a  portion  of  the  Province  of   Quebec, 
with  additional  notes  on  the    "  Quebec  group,"   by  Charles  D. 
Walcott.     The  geological  systems  recognized   in   the  area   re- 
ported upon  include   ti.e  Devonian,   Silurian,  Cambro-Silurian 
(Ordovician),  Cambrian,    and  preCambrian. — Measurement  by 
light- waves,    by    Albert    A.    Michelson.      The    telescope    and 
microscope  are  compared  with  the  refractometer,  some    remark- 
able  analogies    in    their    fundamental    properties    are     pointed 
out,    and   a   few    cases    in    which    the .  last-named    instrument 
appears  to  possess  a  very  important  advantage  over  the  others 
illustrated.      Previous  experiments  have  shown  that  the  utmost 
attainable  limit  of  accuracy  of  a  setting  of  the  cross-hair  of  a 
microscope  on  a  fine  ruled  line  was  about  two-millionths  of  an 
inch,  whereas  direct  measurements  of  the  length  of  a  wave  of 
green  light  emitted  by  incandescent  mercury  vapour,  show  that 
the  average  error  in  a  setting  was  only  about  one  ten-millionth  of 
an  inch.     The  method  is  also  extended  to  angular  and  spectro- 
meter   measurements. — On    lansfordite,    nesquehonite,    a   new 
mineral,  and  pseudomorphs  of  nesquehonite  after  lansfordite,  by 
F.  A.  Genth  and  S.  L.  Penfield.     The  authors  have  examined 
the    crystallization    of   lansfordite    (3MgCO:,.Mg(OH)j,2lH20), 
and  another  new  mineral  having  the  composition  MgCO3.3H.jO, 
which  has  been  named  nesquehonite.     A  crystallized  artificial' 
salt  of  the  same  composition   is  also  described.  —  Weber's  law 
of  thermal  radiation,   by  William  Ferrel.     An  examination  of 
Weber's  new  law,  and  a  test  of  liis  formula  by  means  of  experi- 
mental results,  in  which  the  absolute  rate  of  losing  heat  is  deter- 
mined from   the  observed  rate  of  cooling  of  heated  bodies  of 
known  thermal  capacity,  and  the  relative  rate  from  the  galvano- 
meter needle  of  the  thermopile. — Tracks  of  organic  origin  in  rocks 
of  the  Animikie  Group,  by  A.  R.  C.  Selwyn.     Traces  of  fossils,. 
or  what  are  supposed  to  be  such,  have  been  discovered  in  the 
Animikie  rocks  of  Lake  Superior.     The  fact  is  interesting  and 
important,  for,  if  the  black  Animikie  shales  represent  the  Lower 
Cambrian  of  the  Atlantic  border,  the  Paradoxides  and  Olenellus 
fauna  will  probably  be  found  in  them  sooner  or  later. 

In  the  numbers  of  the  yournal  of  Botafiy  for  January  and 
February,  two  important  monographs  are  commenced — by  Mr. 
E.  G.  Baker,  a  synopsis  of  genera  and  species  of  Malveae  ;  and 
by  Mr.  G.  Massee,  a  monograph  of  the  genus  Podaxis.  This 
last  genus  of  Fun>^i,  Mr.  Massee  proposes  to  transfer,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  mode  of  formation  of  the  spores,  from  the 
Gastromycetes,  where  it  has  hitherto  been  placed,  to  the 
Ascomycetes. 

The  Botanical  Gazette  for  October  1889  contains  an  in- 
teresting summary  of  our  present  knowledge  of  protoplasm,  by 
Prof.  Goodale,  in  the  form  of  an  address  to  the  Botanical 
Section  of  the  meeting  of  the  American  Association  for  the 
Advancement  of  Science  held  at  Toronto. 

With  the  exception  of  an  interesting  paper  by  Prof.  Mas' 
salongo,  descriptive  of  some  curious  instances  of  teratology  in  the 
floral  and  foliar  organs,  the  number  of  the  Nuovo  GiornaU 
Botanico  Italiano  for  January  is  chiefly  occupied  by  a  report  of 
the  proceedings  of  the  Italian  Botanical  Society.  Among  a 
number  of  short  papers,  is  one  on  the  fertilization  ol  Draciinctiltis 
vulgaris,  the  most  important  insect  agent  in  which  is  stated  by 
Prof.  Arcangell  to  be  Sapriniis  siibnitidns  ;  one  on  the  fertiliza- 
tion of  Arum  pictum,  by  Prof.  Martelli  ;  and  one  on  the 
development  of  the  picnids  of  Fungi,  by  Prof.  Baccarini. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London, 

Linnean  Society,  February  6. — Mr.  Carruthers,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair.— Referring  to  an  exhibition  at  a  previous 
meeting,  Prof.  Stewart  communicated  some  interesting  observa- 
tions on  the  habits  of  certain  seaweed-covered  crabs.  He  also 
made  some  remarks  on  the  "  pitchers  "  oi  Nepenthes  Mastersiana, 
upon  which  criticism  was  offered  by  Mr.  Thomas  Christy,  Prof. 
Howes,  and  Mr.  J.  Murray.  —  Prof.  G.  E.  Boulger  exhibited  a 
series  of  original  water-colour  drawings  of  animals  and  plants  of 
the  Falkland  islands. — Mr.  W.  H.  Beeby  exhibited  some  forms 
new  to  Britain  of  plants  from  Shetland. — Mr.  C.  B.   Clarke, 


4o6 


NATURE 


\_Feb.  27,  1890 


F.R.S.,  then  read  a  paper  on  the  stamens  and  setae  of  Scirpecc, 
illustrated  by  diagrams,  which  elicited  a  detailed  criticism  from 
Mr.  J.  G.  Baker,  to  which  Mr.  Clarke  replied. — A  paper  was 
then  read  by  Mr.  B.  D.  Jackson,  which  had  been  communicated 
by  the  late  Mr.  John  Ball  on  the  flora  of  Patagonia,  prefaced  by 
some  feeling  remarks  by  the  President,  on  the  loss  which  the 
Society  had  sustained  through  the  recent  death  of  this  able 
botanist. 

Zoological  Society,  February  18. — Dr.  St.  George  Mivart, 
F.  R.  S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  Tegetmeier  exhibited 
and  made  remarks  on  two  Cats'  skulls,  out  of  the  large  quantity 
of  remains  of  these  animals  recently  brought  to  this  country 
from  Egypt. — ^Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger  read  a  report  on  the 
additions  made  to  the  Lizard  collection  in  the  British  Museum 
since  the  publication  of  the  last  volume  of  the  British  Museum 
Catalogue  of  this  group.  A  list  was  given  of  91  species  new  or 
previously  unrepresented  in  the  collection.  Ten  species  and 
three  genera  were  described  as  new. — Mr.  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S., 
read  some  notes  on  a  Guinea-fowl  from  the  Zambesi,  allied  to 
Nuniida  cristata,  and  gave  a  general  account  of  the  recognized 
species  of  this  group  of  Gallinaceous  birds. — Dr.  Mivart,  F.  R.  S., 
read  some  notes  on  the  genus  Cyo)i,  mainly  based  on  an 
examination  of  the  specimens  of  this  genus  of  Canidse  contained 
in  the  British  Museum. — Mr.  P.  L.  Sclater,  F.R.S.,  read  a 
paper  containing  the  characters  of  some  new  species  of  the 
family  Formicariidas. — Dr.  Augustine  Henry  read  some  notes 
on  the  Mountain  Antelopes  of  Central  China  {Nemorhedus 
■ar  gyrochates  ■sxi^  N.  henry  anus).  \\l~^ 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  February  19. — The  follow- 
ing papers  were  read : — Observations  on  the  motion  of  dust, 
as  illustrative  of  the  circulation  of  the  atmosphere,  and  of  the 
development  of  certain  cloud  forms,  by  the  Hon.  Ralph  Aber- 
cromby.  The  author  has  made  numerous  observations  on  the 
motion  of  dust  in  various  parts  of  the  world,  especially  on  deserts 
■on  the  west  coast  of  South  America.  He  finds  that  the 
wind  sometimes  blows  dust  into  streaks  or  lines,  which  are 
analogous  to  fibrous  or  hairy  cirrus  clouds ;  sometimes  into 
transverse  ridges  and  furrows,  like  solid  waves,  which  are 
analogous  to  certain  kinds  of  fleecy  cirro-cumulus  cloud  ;  some- 
times into  crescent-shaped  heaps  with  their  convex  side  to  the 
wind,  which  are  perhaps  analogous  to  a  rare  cloud  form  called 
*'  mackerel  scales"  ;  sometimes  into  whirlwinds,  of  at  least  two 
if  not  of  three  varieties,  all  of  which  present  some  analogies  to 
atmospheric  cyclones  ;  sometimes  into  simple  rising  clouds,  with- 
out any  rotation,  which  are  analogous  to  simple  cumulus-topped 
squalls  ;  and  sometimes  into  forms  intermediate  between  the 
whirlwind  and  simple  jrising  cloud,  some  of  which  reproduce  in 
a  remarkable  manner  the  combination  of  rounded,  flat,  and  hairy 
clouds  that  are  built  up  over  certain  types  of  squalls  and 
showers.  Excessive  heating  of  the  soil  alone  does  not  generate 
whirlwinds  ;  they  require  a  certain  amount  of  wind  from  other 
■causes  to  be  moving  at  the  time.  The  general  conclusion  is, 
that  when  the  air  is  in  more  or  less  rapid  motion  from  cyclonic  or 
other  causes,  small  eddies  of  various  kinds  form  themselves,  and 
that  they  develop  the  different  sorts  of  gusts,  showers,  squalls, 
and  whirlwinds. — Cloud  nomenclature,  by  Captain  D.  Wilson- 
Barker.  The  author  proposes  a  simple  division  of  cloud-forms 
under  two  heads,  viz.  cumulus  and  stratus,  and  recommends  that 
a  more  elaborate  and  complete  division  should  be  made  of  these 
two  types.  A  number  of  photographs  of  clouds  were  exhibited 
on  the  screen  in  support  of  this  proposal. — An  optical  feature  of 
the  lightning  flash,  by  E.  S.  Bruce.  It  has  been  stated  in  the 
Report  of  the  Thunderstorm  Committee  of  the  Royal  Meteoro- 
logical Society,  that  there  is  not  the  slightest  evidence  in  the 
photographs  of  lightning  flashes  of  the  angular  zigzag  or  forked 
forms  commonly  seen  in  pictures.  The  author,  however,  believes 
that  this  is  an  optical  reality,  as  the  clouds  on  which  the  projec- 
tion of  the  flash  is  cast  are  often  of  the  cumulus  type,  which 
afford  an  angular  surface.  In  support  of  this  theory  he  exhibited 
some  lantern  slides  of  lightning  playing  over  clouds. 

Anthropological  Institute,  February  11.— Dr.  Garson, 
Vice-President,  in  the  chair.— Mr.  T.  W.  Shore  read  a  paper  on 

■  characteristic  survivals  of  the  Celts  in  Hampshire.  He  con- 
sidered the  round  huts  of  the  charcoal-burners  a  survival  of  the 
huts  which  were  common  in  the  Celtic  period  ;  and  some  of  the 
industries  of  the  Celtic  period  appear  to  have  survived  in 
Hampshire  to  the  present  day,  such  as  that  of  osier-working  or 

ibasket-making.      There    can    be    little    doubt    that    HaylTng, 


anciently  spelt  Halinge,  has  derived  its  name  from'the  Celtic 
word  //«/=:  salt  ;  the  salt  works  which  still  exist  there  are  in  all 
probability  an  example  of  a  survival  of  a  Celtic  industry.  Several 
instances  were  given  of  earthworks  which  must  be  ascribed  to 
the  Celts,  and  it  was  suggested  that  the  mounds  upon  which 
many  ancient  churches  in  Hampshire  are  built  may  have  been 
sacred  sites  of  the  same  people.  Reference  was  made  to  the 
peculiar  orientation  of  many  Hampshire  churches,  20°  north  of 
east,  and  it  was  explained  as  a  survival  of  a  reverence  for  the 
May  Day  sunrise  from  Celtic  pagan  time  to  Saxon  Christian 
time,  and  under  a  modification  to  a  later  date. — Dr.  Garson  ex- 
hibited and  described  some  skulls  dredged  from  the  bed  of  the 
Thames  by  Mr.  G.  F.  Lawrence,  who  afterwards  gave  an 
account  of  the  strata  in  which  they  were  found. 

Mathematical  Society,  February  13.— J.  J.  Walker, 
F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  S.  Roberts,  F.R.S., 
read  a  paper  concerning  semi-invariants. — Mr.  Tucker  (Hon. 
Sec.)  communicated  papers  by  Prof  K.  Pearson,  on  ether-squirts  ; 
by  Prof.  G.  B.  Mathews,  on  class-invariants  ;  and  a  note  on  the 
imaginary  roots  of  an  equation,  by  Prof.  Cayley,  F.  R.  S. 

Paris. 
Academy  of  Sciences,  February  17. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — Observations  of  minor  planets  made  with  the  great 
meridian  circle  and  Jardin's  meridian  circle  at  the  Paris  Ob- 
servatory during  the  first  three  months  of  1889,  by  Admiral 
Mouchez.  Comparisons  with  published  ephemerides  have  been 
made  in  the  following  cases  :  Victoria  (12),  Astrasa  (5), 
Parthenope  (11),  Hebe  (6),  and  Eugenia  (45). — On  the  move- 
ments of  planets,  supposing  their  attraction  represented  by  one 
of  the  electro- dynamic  laws  of  Gauss  or  Weber,  by  M.  F. 
Tisserand.  The  author  has  investigated  the  motions  of  Mercury 
and  Venus  on  the  hypothesis  that  they  were  not  governed  by 
Newton's  law  of  gravitation,  but  by  one  of  the  above  named. 
The  change  of  the  longitude  of  perihelion  for  a  given  time 
would  be  about  twice  as  great,  using  Gauss's  law,  than  by  using 
Weber's.  Taking  the  velocity  of  light  as  300,000  kilometres  per 
second,  it  is  found  that,  on  the  hypothesis  of  Weber's  law,  the 
major  axis  of  Mercury's  orbit  would  have  a  direct  motion  of 
14" '4  in  a  century  ;  for  Venus  the  variation  would  be  only  3"'o. 
Using  Gauss's  law,  the  value  for  Mercury  becomes  28" '2. — 
Posthumous  article  on  polyhedrons  by  Descartes ;  a  note 
by  M.  de  Jonquiemes,  in  which  he  shows  that  Descartes 
not  only  knew  and  employed  the  relation  S  -f  F  =  A  -I-  2, 
but  that  he  announced  it  explicitly,  and  prior  to  Euler. — 
On  a  new  reviving  plant,  by  M.  Ed.  Bureau.  Two  specimens 
of  a  supposed  new  plant  which  revived  when  placed  in  water, 
similar  to  the  Rose  of  Jericho,  have  been  investigated.  The 
change,  however,  is  not  simply  hydration,  as  in  the  latter  plant. 
The  specimens,  which  were  found  in  Arkansas,  prove  to  be 
the  Polypodium  incanuin.  Pluck,  but  the  above  property  does 
not  appear  to  have  been  previously  observed  in  it. — On  the 
distribution  of  pressures  and  velocities  in  the  interior  of  liquid 
sheets  issuing  from  weirs  without  lateral  contraction,  by  M. 
Bazin. — On  some  objections  to  the  theory  of  deep  vertical  circu- 
lation in  the  ocean,  by  M.  J.  Thoulet.  It  is  concluded  that  the 
circulation  of  water  between  the  equator  and  the  Poles  only 
aff"ects  a  depth  of  about  a  thousand  metres.  Below  this  the 
water  is  in  a  state  of  repose.  The  conclusion  has  been  arrived 
at  from  a  consideration  of  deep-sea  sediment  and  the  observa- 
tions of  the  density  of  water  at  great  depths  given  in  the  Chal- 
lenger Report. — On  the  St.  Petersburg  problem,  by  M.  Seydler. 
Two  solutions  are  given  of  this  "  probability "  problem. — On 
the  regular  surfaces  of  which  the  linear  element  is  reducible  to 
the  form  of  Liouville,  by  M.  Demartres. — On  the  surfaces  of 
which  the  linear  element  is  reducible  to  the  form  ds-  =  F(U  -f  V) 
{du-  +  dv"-),  by  M.  A.  Petot. — Summary  of  the  observations  of 
the  total  solar  eclipse  of  December  22,  1889,  by  M,  A.  de  la 
Baume  Pluvinel. — Note  on  the  calculation  of  the  compressibility 
of  air  up  to  3000  atmospheres,  by  M.  Ch.  Antoine.  In  the 
expression  p-j  =  D  (/3  -f  /)  (the  pressure,  /,  being  given  in 
atmospheres,  and  the  volume,  z',  in  litres),  for  air 

^=  273-6  -   s'A 
If    up   to   40   atmospheres  D  =  2"835, 
and  beyond  40  atmospheres  D  =  2'835  +  o"ooi8  (J>  -  40), 

the  table  given  for  air  at  <f  =  0°  is  found  to  agree  well  with  the 
experimental  results  of  Regnault  and  Amagat. — Extension  of  the 
theorems  relative  to  the  conservation  of  the  flux  of  force  and  of 
magnetic  induction,   by  M.    Paul  Janet. — Upon  batteries  with 


Feb.  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


407 


molten  electrolytes,  and  upon  the  K.  M.  F.  at  the  surface  of  con- 
act  of  a  metal  and  a  melted  salt,  by  M.  Lucien  Poincarc.  The 
author  finds  the  E.M.F.'s  in  this  case  to  be  nearly  the  same  as 
those  found  by  M.  Bouty  (Comptes  rendus,  t,  xc.  p.  217)  in  the 
case  of  saturated  solutions. — Electrolysis  by  igneous  fusion  of 
the  oxide  and  fluoride  of  aluminium,  by  M.  Adolphe  Miiiet. 
The  author  presents  the  result  of  three  years'  work  on  the 
electrolysis  of  the  fused  oxide  and  fluoride  of  aluminium,  in  a 
table  which  gives  the  quantity  of  metal  obtained  as  a  function  of 
the  time  and  of  the  quantity  of  electricity  used. — Note  by  MM. 
P.  Ilautefeuille  and  A.  Perrey,  on  the  silico-glucinates  of  soda. 
In  a  preceding  note,  the  authors  have  described  a  number  of 
silico-glucinates  of  potash,  obtained  by  heating  together  mixtures 
of  silica,  glucina,  and  the  alkali,  with  neutral  vanadate  of  potash. 
They  now  have  applied  the  same  method  of  mineralization  with 
mixtures  containing  soda,  heating  to  about  800°.  Five  forms,  of 
different  composition,  have  been  thus  obtained.  Substituting 
tungstate  for  vanadate  of  soda,  two  species  of  crystals  have 
been  obtained,  corresponding  in  composition  with  two  of 
those  obtained  with  vanadate  as  mineralizing  agent. — Upon 
the  rdle  of  foreign  bodies  in  iron  and  steel  ;  the  relation 
between  their  atomic  volumes  and  the  allotropic  transformations 
of  iron,  by  M.  F.  Osmond.  Prof.  W.  C.  Roberts-Austen, 
studying  the  effect  of  minute  percentages  of  foreign  elements 
upon  the  mechanical  properties  of  gold,  found  a  relation  between 
the  results  obtained  and  the  position  in  the  periodic  table  of  the 
introduced  elements,  and  has  predicted  a  similar  phenomenon  in 
the  case  of  iron.  Reviewing  his  former  work  in  the  light  of  this 
new  idea,  the  author  has  found  the  prediction  to  be  verified. 
Shortly,  it  may  be  said  that  foreign  bodies  of  small  atomic 
volume  tend  to  cause  iron  to  assume  or  remain  in  that  of  its 
molecular  forms  in  which  it  has  itself  the  smaller  atomic  volume, 
bodies  of  gr^at  atomic  volume  produce  the  opposite  effect. — M. 
J.  Ville,  on  dioxyphosphinic  and  oxyphosphinous  acids.  In 
two  preceding  notes  {Comptes  rendus,  t.  cvii.  p.  659,  t.  cix. 
p.  71),  and  in  the  present  communication,  it  is  shown  that  by 
the  reaction  of  aldehydes  upon  hypophosphorous  acid,  two  new 
classes  of  acids,  have  been  obtained,  with  the  general  formula;  : — 


/(R  .  CH  .  CH) 
(I)  PO(  (R  .  CH  .  OH) 

NOW 


^OH 


(2)  PO(-(R— CH  .  OH). 
^OH 


— Dibromo-carballylic  acid,  by  M.  E.  Guinochet.  This  acid 
has  been  obtained  by  the  reactions  of  4  equivalents  of  bromine 
upon  one  equivalent  of  aconitic  acid  in  a  sealed  tube,  heated  for 
thirty-six  hours  to  Ii5°-i20°. — Estimation  of  uric  acid  in  urine 
by  means  of  a  hot  solution  of  hypobromite  of  soda,  by  M.  Bayrac. 
The  principle  of  the  method  consists  in  separating  the  uric  acid 
from  the  urea  and  "creatinin  present  by  alcohol,  and  the  titration 
of  the  isolated  acid  with  sodic  hypobromite  at  90°-ioo°.  Results 
are  said  to  be  as  exact  as  those  obtained  by  the  best  known 
methods,  while  the  process  takes  much  less  time. — Researches 
upon  the  pathogenic  microbes  in  the  filtered  waters  of  the  Rhone, 
by  MM.  Lortet  and  Despeignes. — Upon  the  nutrition  ofthefungus 
of  the  mugiiet,  by  MM.  Gedrges'Lhiossierand  Gabriel  Roux.  A 
complete  study  of  the  mineral,  carbohydrate,  and  nitrogenous 
foods  required  and  the  substances  produced  by  this  fungus  is  given. 
— The  perception  of  luminous  radiations  by  theskin,  as  exemplified 
by  the  blind  Proteus  of  the  grottos  of  Carniola,  by  M.  Raphael 
Dubois.  By  a  number  of  experiments  upon  Proteus  anguinis, 
the  author  demonstrates  that  the  sensibility  of  its  skin  to  light  is 
about  half  of  the  sensibility  of  its  rudimentary  eyes,  and  further 
that  tliis  sensibility  varies  With  the  colour  of  the  light  employed, 
being  greatest  for  yellow  light. — The  wax-organs  and  the  secre- 
tion of  wax  in  the  bee,  by  M.  G.  Carlet.  The  author's  researches 
lead  him  to  conclude:  (i)  the  wax  is  produced  by  the  4  last 
ventral  arches  of  the  abdomen  ;  (2)  it  is  secreted  by  an  epithelial 
membrane  and  not  by  the  cuticular  layer  of  these  arches,  nor  by 
the  intra-abdominal  glands  ;  (3)  this  secretory  membrane  lies 
between  the  cuticular  layer  and  the  lining  membrane  of  the 
antero-lateral  part  of  the  ventral  arch  ;  (4)  the  wax  traverses  the 
cuticular  layer  and  accumulates  on  its  outer  surface. — Experi- 
mental plant  cultivation  in  high  altitudes,  note  by  M.  Gaston 
Bonnier.  The  modifications  produced  in  Alpine  plants  by  the 
climate  have  been  studied  and  some  general  conclusions  drawn, 
among  which  the  most  interesting  is  :  "  For  the  same  extent  of  leaf 
surface,  the  assimilation  is  much  more  considerable  in  Alpine 
plants  than  in  those  of  lower  stations,  on  account  of  the 
greater  thickness  of  (he  palisade  tissue  and  the  abundance  of 
chlorophyll." 


Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  January  31. — Prof,  du  Bois-Key- 
mond,  President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Grabower  spoke  on  root- 
area  of  the  motor  nerves  of  the  laryngeal  muscles. — Prof. 
Munk  made  a  further  communication  on  the  subject  of 
the  cortical  visual  areas.  His  earlier  researches  on  the  extir- 
pation of  these  areas  had  shown  that  the  retina  may  be  re- 
garded as  spatially  projected  on  to  the  visual  area  in  such  a 
way  that  its  external  portion  corresponds  to  the  external  part  of 
the  visual  area  of  the  same  side,  while  the  inner  portion  corre- 
sponds to  the  inner  part  of  the  area  of  the  opposite  side,  and  the 
middle  portion  to  the  middle  part  of  the  visual  area  of  the  opposite 
side.  The  upper  half  of  the  retina  corresponds  to  the  anterior 
part  of  the  visual  area,  and  the  lower  half  to  the  posterior. 
More  recently.  Prof.  Schafer,  of  London,  has  found  that,  when 
the  visual  areas  are  stimulated  electrically,  movements  result 
which  are  confined  entirely  to  the  eyes  ;  when  the  anterior  part 
of  the  area  is  stimulated,  the  eye  is  turned  downwards  and 
towards  the  opposite  side  ;  and  when  the  posterior  part  is 
stimulated,  the  movement  is  similarly  towards  the  opposite  side, 
but  now  upwards.  When,  however,  the  central  part  of  the 
area  is  stimulated,  the  result  is  merely  a  movement  towards  the 
opposite  side.  It  was  shown  by  the  speaker,  as  the  result  of  a 
large  number  of  experiments  on  dogs  which  he  had  performed  in 
conjunction  with  Dr.  Obregici,  that  these  movements  are  not 
dependent  on  the  stimulation  of  any  motor  centres  or  upon  any 
ordinary  reflex  movements,  but  that  they  are  really  movements 
which  accompany  visual  sensations.  They  were  shown  by  care- 
ful analysis  to  result  in  the  directing  of  the  eye  towards  that 
point  in  space  into  which  the  visual  perception  is  referred  when- 
ever any  definite  point  of  the  retina  is  stimulated  by  light,  the 
point  stimulated  in  this  case  being  the  corresponding  part  of  the 
electrically  stimulated  visual  area.  Thus  when  the  anterior 
part  of  the  area  is  stimulated,  the  lower  portion  of  the  retina  is 
stimulated,  the  resulting  visual  image  is  consequently  referred 
out  upwards,  and  the  eyes  accordingly  also  move  upwards  and 
towards  the  opposite  side.  Similarly  for  stimulations  of  other 
parts  of  the  visual  area.  These  experimental  stimulations  hence 
afford  an  evidence  of  the  detailed  spatial  projection  of  the  retina 
on  to  the  visual  areas,  which  is  as  certain  and  even  more  con- 
vincing than  the  evidence  obtained  from  localized  extirpations  of 
the  areas.  They  further  permitted  of  a  more  certain  delimitation 
of  the  visual  areas  than  had  been  possible  in  the  earlier  experi- 
ments. It  is  impossible  to  enter  here  into  the  many  interesting 
details  of  these  experiments,  or  to  give  any  account  of  the  lengthy 
discussion  which  followed  Prof.  Munk's  communication. 

Physical  Society,  February  7. — Prof.  Kundt,  President,  in 
the  chair. — Dr.  Budde  spoke  on  the  very  rapid  rotation  of  a 
solid  body,  possessed  of  three  unequal  moments  of  inertia,  about 
a  fixed  point.  He  developed  very  fully  the  equations  which 
hold  good  for  this  motion,  and  dealt,  at  the  end  of  his  communi- 
cation, with  the  physical  experiments  which  might  be  performed 
in  order  to  test  the  equations. — Dr.  Feussner  spoke  on  the 
methods  which  are  employed  at  the  Government  Physico-tech- 
nical  Institute  for  the  measurement  of  electrical  resistances. 
He  exhibited  and  explained  the  several  instruments  used,  point- 
ing out  that  in  their  arrangement  the  greatest  importance  must 
be  attached  to  the  very  accurate  measurements  of  temperature. 
For  this  purpose  the  wires  are  wound  upon  metallic  cylinders  in 
order  to  provide  for  the  rapid  cooling  of  the  wires  as  they  are 
warmed  by  the  passage  of  the  current :  these  are  then  submerged 
in  petroleum,  whose  temperature  is  recorded  by  a  thermometer 
immersed  in  the  liquid,  which  is  itself  kept  constantly  stirred, 
German-silver  wires  have  shown  themselves  to  be  unsuited  for 
the  purposes  of  constructing  the  standard  resistances,  since  their 
resistance  increases  regularly  with  lapse  of  time  ;  neither  could 
this  increase  be  done  away  with  by  heating  the  wires  until  they 
were  quite  soft.  This  tendency  was  attributed  to  the  occurrence 
of  a  gradual  crystallization,  which  depended  chiefly  upon  the  zinc 
in  the  alloy.  On  this  account  an  alloy  of  copper  and  nickel  was 
employed,  which  is  known  commercially  as  "patent  nickel," 
and  examined  as  to  its  suitability.  Wires  made  of  this  alloy 
possess  a  very  low  temperature-coefficient,  and  were  found  to  be 
.almost  absolutely  constant  after  being  heated  to  100°  C.  If 
they  are  kept  for  some  time  after  they  are  made  and  wound,  and 
are  then  heated,  they  may  be  used  as  standards  for  comparison. 
Several  other  alloys  were  also  tried,  as,  for  instance,  various 
combinations  of  copper  and  manganese.  The  speaker  described 
the  experimental  measurements  made  with  these  wires,  and 
stated  that  up  to  30  per  cent,  of  manganese,  above  which  amount 


4o8 


NATURE 


\Feb.  27,  189 


J 


it  was  not  possible  to  draw  a  wire  in  this  alloy,  they  have  yielded 
a  negative  coefficient  of  temperature.  When  the  alloy  contained 
only  a  small  percentage  of  manganese,  the  coefficient  was  very 
small,  so  that  such  wires  would  be  suitable  for  the  construction 
of  standard  coils.  In  conclusion,  he  described  how  the  resist- 
ances are  measured  in  the  Government  Institute.  The  method 
employed  is  that  of  compensation,  and  measurement  of  poten- 
tials.—  Dr.  Jiiger  announced  that  Dr.  de  Coudres,  in  Leipzig, 
had  succeeded  in  detecting  a  thermo-electric  tension  between 
<;ompressed  and  uncompressed  mercury.  The  compression  was 
produced  either  hydraulically  or  by  means  of  its  own  weight 
acting  through  a  column  of  mercury.  It  was  found  possible  to 
determine  with  certainty  the  direction  of  the  thermo-electric  cur- 
rent, and  to  measure  its  intensity  for  given  pressures  and  tem- 
peratures. The  investigation  is  not  yet  completed,  but  Dr.  de 
Coudres  hopes  to  be  soon  in  a  position  to  give  a  full  account  of 
his  experiments. 

In  the  report  of  the  meeting  of  the  Berlin  Physical  Society, 
January  27  (p.  383),  for  Dr.  Lehmann  read  Dr.  Leman. 
Stockholm. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  February  12.^ — Contributions 
to  the  flora  of  the  Hieracia  of  South-Eastern  Sweden,  by  Herr 
H.  Dahlstedt. — On  the  remains  of  a  bread-fruit  tree  from  the 
Cenoman  strata  of  Greenland,  by  Prof.  A.  G.  Nathorst. — Re- 
port on  researches  in  practical  pomology  and  horticulture  during 
a  tour  in  France  and  Germany,  by  Herr  C.  V.  Hartman. — On 
the  lichens  of  the  island  of  Bornholm,  by  Dr.  P.  J.  Hellbom.— 
Algae  aquae  dulcis  exsiccatse  quas  distribuerunt,  V.  Wittrock  et 
■O.  Nordstedt,  Parts  18-2 1,  exhibited  and  demonstrated  by  Prof. 
Wittrock. — The  results  of  a  determination  of  the  rotation  of  the 
sun,  executed  during  the  years  1887-89  in  the  Observatory  of 
Lund,  by  Prof.  Duner. — On  the  influence  of  the  duration  of  ex- 
posure for  a  photographic  image  of  a  star,  by  Dr.  Charlier. — 
Experimental  determination  of  the  principal  elements  of  a 
divergent  lens,  by  Dr.  C.  Mebius. — Derivatives  of  sulphur 
urates,  by  Dr.  Hector. — On  the  ^^  —  ^i  bromium  naphlhalin 
sulphon  acid,  and  on  the  constitution  of  the  acids  which  are 
formed  by  the  agency  of  conceAtraled  sulphuric  acid  on  ^• 
•naphthylamin,  by  S.  Forsling. — Experiments  on  the  humidity 
of  the  atmosphere,  by  Dr.  K.  H.  Sohlberg. — Anatomical 
-studies  on  the  floral  axes  of  diclinous  Phanerogams,  by  Herr  A. 
Crevillius. 

DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  February  27. 
■Royal  Society,  314.30. — The  Croonian  Lecture — The  Relations  between 

Host  and  Parasite  in   certain   Epidemic   Diseases   of   Plants :   Prof.  H. 

Marshall  Ward,  F.R.S. 
SociBTv  OK  Arts,  at  s — The  Northern  Shan  States  and  the  Burma-China 

Railway :  William  SherrifF. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — The  Theory  of  Armature 
,    Reaction  in  Dynamos  and   Motors  :  James  Swinburne. — Some  Points  in 

Dynamo  and  Motor  Design  :  W.  B.  Esson. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Three  Stages  of  Shakspeare's  Art  :  Rev. 

Canon  Ainger. 

FRIDAY,  February  28. 
Amateur   Scientific   Society,    at    8. — Practical    Coal-mining :   H.    S. 

Streatfeild. 
Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Evolution  in  Music  :  Prof.  C.  Hubert  H.  Parry. 

SATURDAY,  March  i. 
Essex  Field  Club,  at  7. — Micro- Fungi  of  Epplng  Forest  ;  how  to  Collect, 

Preserve,  and  Study  Them  :  Dr.  M.  C.  Cooke. 
RovAL  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism:  Right  Hon.  Lord 
Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  March  2. 
'Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — Apollonius   of  Tyana  ;    the  Story  of 
his  Life  and  Miracles  :  G.  Wotherapoon. 

MONDAY,  March  3. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Stereotyping  :  Thomas  Bolas. 
Aristotelian    Society,  at   8. — The  Psychological  Development    of   the 

Conceptions  of  Causality  and  Substance :  G.  F.  Stout. 
Victoria  Institute,  at  8. — Chinese  Chronology:  Rev.  James  Legge. 
Royal  Institution,  at  5. — General  Monthly  Meeting. 

TUESDA  V,  March  4. 

-Zoological  Society,  at  8.30. — On  the  classification  of  Birds  :  Henry 
Seebohm.— A  Revision  of  the  Genera  of  Scorpions  of  the  Family  Bathidss, 
with  Descriptions  of  some  New  Souh  African  Species  :  R.  I.  Pocock  — On 
some  Galls  from  Colorado  :  T.  D.  A.  Cockerell.— Report  on  the  Insect. 
House  for  1889  :  A.  Thomson. 

Unstitutton  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — The  Hawksbury  Bridge,  New 
South  Wales:  C.  O.  Barge.— The  Erection  of  the  Dufferin  Bridge  over 
the  Ganges  at  Benares  :  F.  T.  G.  Walton. -rThe  New  Blackfriars  Bridge 
on  the  London,  Chatham,  and  Dover  Railway  :  G.  E.  W.  Cruttwell. 

University  College  Biological  Society,  at  5  15. — A  Peculiar  Ferment 
in  Balan  glossus  :  Dr.  Halliburton.— The  Weather  Plant :  Mr.  Weiss. 

iRoYAL  Institution,  at  3. — The  Post-Darwinian  Period :  Prof.  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 


WEDNESDA  V,  March  s-. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Recent  Progress  in  British  Watch  and  CLck 
Making  :  J.  Tripplin. 

EntO'viological  Society,  at  7. — New  Longicornia  from  Africa:  C.  J. 
Gahan. — Notes  on  the  Lepidoptera  of  the  Region  of  the  Straits  of  Gib- 
raltar :  J.  J.  Walker,  R  N. — Some  Water  Beetles  from  Ceylon:  Dr.  D. 
Sharp. — The  Classification  of  the  Pyralidina  of  the  European  Fauna  :  E. 
Meyrick. — A  New  Species  of  Thymara  and  other  Species  allied  to  Hi- 
mantopterus  fuscinervis,  Wesm.  :  Captain  H.  J.  Elwes. — A  Catal  igue  of 
the  Pryralidae  of  S.kkim  collected  by  H.  J.  Elwes  and  the  late  Otto 
MoUer  :  Pieier  C.  T.  Snellen. 

TtiiiRSDAV  March  6. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — The  following  papers  will  probably  be  read: — 
On  a  Second  Case  of  the  Occurrence  of  Silver  in  Volcanic  Dust— namely, 
in  that  thrown  out  in  the  Eruption  of  Tunguragua,  in  the  Andes  of  Ecu.idor, 
January  11,  1886:  Prof.  J.  W.  Mallet,  F.K.S.— On  the  Tension  of 
Recently-formed  Liquid  Surfaces  :  Lord  Rayleigh  — (i)  On  the  Develop- 
ment of  the  Ciliary  or  Motor  (Jculi  Ganglion  ;  (2)  The  Cranial  Nerves  of 
the  Torpedo  (l^reliminary  Note)  :  Prof  J.  C.  Ewart. 

LiNMBAN  Society,  at  a.— On  the  Production  of  Seed  in  some  Varieties 
of  the  Commjn  Sugar-Cane  (Saccharum  officinarum)  :  D.  Morris.— An 
Investigation  into  the  True  Nature  of  Callus  ;  Part  i,  the  Vegetable 
Marrow,  and  Ballia  callitricha  :  Spencer  Moore. 

RjYAL  Institution,  ai  3. — The  Early  Developments  of  the  Forms  ot 
Instrumental  Music  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDAY,  March  7. 

Physical  Society,  at  5.— On  Bertrand's  Refractometer :  Prof.  S.  P. 
Thompson. 

Geologists'  Association,  at  8. 

lN-!TiruTioN  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7. — Telephonic  Switching:  C,  H 
Wordingham. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9.— Electrical  Relations  of  the  Brain  and  Spinal 
Cord :   Francis  Gotch. 

SATURDAY,  March  8. 

Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism:  Right  Hon 
Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  New  Codes,  English  and  Scotch 385 

A  Dictionary  of  Applied  Chemistry.     By  Sir  H.  E. 

Roscoe,  M.P.,  F.R.S 1^1 

Oates's    Ornithology    of    India.      By    R.    Bowdler 

Sharpe 388 

Ephedra.     ByJ.  G.  B 39° 

Our  Book  Shelf: — 

Wilson  :  "  Geological  Mechanism  " 39° 

Gore:   "  The  Scenery  of  the  Heavens  " 39' 

Abercromby  :    "A  Trip  through    the    Eastern   Cau- 
casus"   391 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

The  Royal  Society's  Catalogue  of  Scientific   Papers: 

a  Suggested  Subject-Index.— A  Cataloguer    ...  391 
The  Period  of  the  Long  Sea- Waves  of  Krakatab.— 

James  C.  McConnel      392 

The  Distances  of  the  Stars.— Dr.  W.  H.  S.  Monck  392 
The  Longevity  of  Textural  Elements,  particularly  in 

Dentine  and  Bone.— John  Cleland 392 

Some  Notes  on   Dr.  A.  R.  Wallace's  "Darwinism." 

— T.  D.  A.  Cockerell 393 

A  Formula  in  the  "Theory  of  Least  Squares."— W. 

J.  Loudon 394 

Galls.— D.  Weiteihctu 394 

The  Cape  "Weasel."— E.  B,  Titchener 394 

TheChaffinch.—E.  J.  Lowe,  F.R.S 394 

On  the  Number  of  Dust  Particles  in  the  Atmo- 
sphere of  certain  Places  in  Great  Britain  and  on 
the  Continent,  with  Remarks  on  the  Relation 
between  the  Amount  of  Dust  and  Meteorological  I 

Phenomena.     By  John  Aitken,  F.R.S 394  j 

A  Uniform  System  of  Russian  Transliteration  ...  396  | 
The  Botanical  Institute  and  Marine  Station  at  Kiel.  | 

(Illustrated.) 397  | 

Sir  Robert  Kane,  LL.D.,  F.R.S 39^^  I 

Notes 399  I 

Our  Astronomical  Column : —  I 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope.— A.  Fowler 402  | 

Note  on  the  Zodiacal  Light.— A.  Fowler 402 

Observations  of  C  Ursse  Majoris  and  j3  Aurigas  ....  4^3 

Comet  Brooks  {d  1889) • 403 

New  Short-Period  Variable  in  Ophiuchus 4^3 

Observations  of  the  Magnitude  of  lapetus 403 

Geographical  Notes 403 

Locusts  in  India 403 

Field  Experiments  on  Wheat  in  Italy.     By  E.  K.    .  404 

Scientific  Serials 405 

Societies  and  Academies 405 

Diary  of  Societies 40» 


■I 


NA  TURE 


409 


THURSDAY,  MARCH  6,  1890. 


THE  SCIENCE  COLLECTIONS  A  T  SOUTH 
KENSINGTON. 

IT  is  satisfactory  to  learn  that  the  Government  has 
taken  the  first  step  towards  carrying  out  the  recom- 
mendations of  the  recent  Commission  on  the  South 
Kensington  Museum.  The  Report  of  the  Commissioners 
was  to  the  effect  that  the  Science  Museums  contained 
valuable  apparatus  which  ought  to  be  exhibited  ;  that  the 
buildings  in  which  it  is  displayed  are  inadequate;  and 
that  the  area  of  the  exhibition  space  ought  immediately 
to  be  increased  by  50  per  cent.  Between  the  Natural 
History  Museum  in  Cromwell  Road  and  the  Imperial 
Institute  Road  lies  the  strip  of  ground  on  which  the  new 
buildings  must  be  erected.  It  belonged  to  the  Commis- 
sioners of  the  1 85 1  Exhibition,  and  they  were  willing  to 
sell  at  a  price  somewhat  less  than  the  valuation  of  the 
Office  of  Works,  or  at  ten  shillings  for  every  pound  of 
their  own  estimate. 

The  question  to  be  decided  was,  whether  the  country 
could  afford  ^100,000  to  purchase  the  land  necessary  to 
carry  out  the  Report  of  one  of  the  strongest  Commissions 
which  has  ever  investigated  such  a  subject,  or  whether 
the  great  group  of  Museums  for  which  South  Kensington 
is  famous  was  to  be  cut  into  two  by  rows  of  mansions. 

The  Government,  which  certainly  did  not  err  through 
undue  haste,  felt  that  a  case  had  been  made  out,  that 
further  delay  was  useless,  that  the  land  ought  to  be 
secured  before  time  and  labour  were  spent  in  discussing 
the  details  of  the  buildings  to  be  erected  upon  it,  and 
therefore  they  brought  in  a  supplementary  estimate  for 
the  sum  required. 

Then  followed  a  debate  of  the  kind  by  which  the 
prestige  of  ordinary  members  of  the  House  of  Commons 
has  been  reduced  to  its  present  level.  One  member 
"affirmed  that  there  were  empty  rooms  in  South  Kens- 
ington Museum  which  might  well  be  used  for  the 
display  of  exhibits,"  though  a  body  of  Commissioners 
appointed  to  investigate  the  state  of  the  collections  had 
reported  in  a  directly  opposite  sense.  Another  "could 
not  understand  why  all  these  educational  collections 
should  be  established  close  to  one  another  at  South 
Kensington."  In  other  words,  he  could  not  see  that  if 
there  is  to  be  at  South  Kensington  a  great  training  school 
for  teachers  of  science  and  art,  it  is  desirable  that  the 
students  should  have  ready  access  to  the  national  science 
and  art  collections,  and  that  the  collections  themselves 
should  benefit  from  the  advice  of  the  Professors  who  are 
familiar  with  them.  These  objections  were  not,  however, 
raised  by  men  who  knew  the  facts.  Approval  was  ex- 
pressed from  both  sides  of  the  House  by  those  who  have 
the  interests  of  education  at  heart.  Sir  Lyon  Playfair, 
Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  Mr.  Mundella,  and  Mr.  Chamberlain, 
all  spoke  in  favour  of  the  vote,  and  Mr.  Mundella  put 
clearly  what  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  Museum 
know  to  be  the  truth,  when  he  said  "  this  question  had  been 
pressing  for  the  last  ten  years,  because  for  the  whole  of 
that  period  the  most  valuable  national  science  collections, 
such  as  no  other  country  in  the  world  possessed,  had 
been  housed  in  the  most  disgraceful  manner." 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1062. 


The  vote  was  finally  carried  by  144  to  67,  and  it  is  to 
be  hoped,  now  that  the  Government  have  entered  upon 
the  path  of  progress,  they  will  pursue  it  with  determina- 
tion. 

No  one  would  urge  precipitancy.  Due  care  ought  to 
be  taken  that  money's  value  is  obtained  for  money  spent ; 
but  as  the  question  of  principle  has  been  decided  after 
ten  years'  debate,  we  have  a  right  to  demand  that  progress 
shall  not  be  delayed  by  mere  blind  obstruction  to  every 
proposal  which  involves  outlay,  but  that  those  in  whose 
hands  the  fate  of  the  science  collections  rests  shall  make 
up  their  minds  as  to  what  ought  to  be  done,  and  shall 
forthwith  do  it. 


THREE  RECENT  POPULAR  WORKS  UPON 

NATURAL  HISTORY. 

Glimpses  0/  Animal  Life.  By  W.  Jones,  F.S.A.  (London  : 

Elliot  Stock,  1889.) 
Toilers  in  the  Sea.      By   M.    C.   Cooke,   M.A.,   LL.D. 

(London:  S.P.C.K.,  1889.) 
Les  Industries  des  Animaux.     Par  F.  Houssay.     (Paris  : 

J.  B.  Baillidreet  Fils,  1890.) 

MR.  JONES'S  book  is  a  charming  little  volume  of 
229  pages,  with  one  illustration  forming  a  frontis- 
piece. There  are,  in  all,  seven  chapters ;  dealing,  in 
succession,  with  "  Playfulness  of  Animals,"  "  Animal 
Training,"  "Musical  Fishes"  (title  ill  chosen),  "Nest- 
Building  and  Walking  Fishes,"  "  Luminous  Animals," 
"Birds'  Nests  in  Curious  Places,"  and  "The  Mole." 
The  author  has  been  at  immense  pains  to  sift  the 
voluminous  literature  of  his  subject  (a  task  which  he 
admits  has  involved  a  "  somewhat  unprofitable  course  of 
romance  reading").  We  find,  as  might  be  expected, 
citations  of  the  old  old  stories  of  our  youth  ;  the  climbing 
perch,  Cowper's  hares,  and  other  time-honoured  (if  perhaps 
too  highly  coloured)  narratives  appear ;  the  luminous 
centipede  is  not  overlooked  ;  and  authorities  are  ap- 
pealed to,  from  Aristotle  and  the  ancient  classical  writers 
of  the  past,  down  to  Lubbock  and  Romanes  ("  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Romanes"  \sic\  p.  25)  of  to-day.  The  work  is  essen- 
tially a  compilation  ;  it  consists  mainly  of  a  collection  of 
lengthy  extracts,  and  the  author  has  left  himself  little 
room  for  originality.  There  results  from  this  an  occa- 
sional heaviness  of  style,  which  is  especially  noteworthy 
in  the  earlier  portions  of  the  volume.  Paragraphs 
too  frequently  lead  off  with  "  Broderip  mentions," 
"  Evelyn  records,"  "  Humboldt  saw,"  and  the  like  ; 
and  not  even  stories  of  the  gambols  between  a  rhinoceros 
and  an  elephant,  or  of  those  of  a  60-foot  whale,  serve  to 
relieve  the  monotony.  It  is  doubtful  whether  the  author 
has  not  occasionally  erred  in  the  placing  of  his  anecdotes. 
To  take  a  leading  instance  ;  on  p.  32  there  is  recorded 
the  story  of  a  parrot,  "  which,  when  a  person  said  to  it, 
'  Laugh,  Poll ;  laugh  ! '  laughed  accordingly,  and  the 
instant  after  screamed  out,  '  What  a  fool  to  make  me 
laugh  ! ' "  This  narrative  cannot  be  said  to  betray  any 
sense  of  playfulness  on  the  part  of  the  bird,  as  would  be 
inferred  from  its  position  in  the  text ;  it  surely  should 
have  found  a  place  under  "Animal  Training."  The 
most  serious  defect  in  the  book  is  the  absence  of  an 
inde.x.  The  author  has  brought  together  a  very  re- 
markable series  of  anecdotes  ;  and  if  he  would  give  us  an 

T 


4IO 


NATURE 


{March  6,  1890 


exhaustive  index,  together  with  a  complete  bibliography, 
his  book  would  befit  the  more  special  and  advanced 
student  of  animal  life.  Without  these  it  can  only  appeal 
to  the  dilettanti  J  and  we  shall  look  for  them  in  a  future 
edition.  We  would  point  out,  at  the  same  time,  that  the 
climbing  perch  is  referred  to  on  p.  151  as  Perca,  and  on 
157  zs  Anabas  {^^  latter  being  correct) ;  that"Willmoes" 
(p.  185)  should  read  Willemoes  Suhm;'*and  that  Mr. 
Romanes  does  not  lay  claim  to  the  distinction  accorded 
him  on  p.  25  {cf.  supra).  The  author,  as  he  enters  into 
details  not  usually  met  with  in  books  of  this  kind,  might 
advantageously  incorporate  with  his  account  of  the 
stickleback's  nest,  the  discovery  of  Mobius  and  Prince 
that  the  thread  employed  in  weaving  it  is  secreted  by 
the  animal's  kidney.  So  unique  a  fact  in  natural  history 
should  not  be  allowed  to  pass  unnoticed ;  and  that 
portion  of  the  work  which  deals  with  the  luminous  fishes 
might  well  be  brought  more  completely  up  to  date. 

Dr.  Cooke's  treatise  is  one  of  369  pages,  with  4  litho- 
graphic plates,  70  woodcuts,  and  an  index.  It  deals  with 
marine  invertebrata,  in  their  especial  relations  to  skeleton 
formation  ;  and  the  volume  is  especially  designed  to  make 
good  the  shortcomings  of  the  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood's  work, 
entitled  "  Homes  without  Hands."  The  book  has  its 
good  points  ;  the  chapter  on  "  Coral  Reefs  and  Islands," 
and  the  "  Introduction,"  are  fairly  well  done.  The  last- 
named  deals  with  generalities  as  affecting  life  and  the 
conditions  of  life  in  the  ocean  depths  ;  it  gives  a  record 
of  important  explorations,  from  that  of  Ross  in  Baffin's 
Bay,  to  the  Challenger;  the  Bathybius  controversy  is 
abstracted,  and  alternative  theories  of  reef- formation  are 
summarized,  both  being  presented  in  concise  and  impar- 
tial language.  On  perusal,  however,  of  the  main  portion 
of  the  book,  we  meet  with  a  preponderance  of  antiquated, 
and  often  erroneous  information.  Lengthy  citations  from 
the  writings  of  authorities  of  the  last  two  or  three  de- 
cades are  flaunted  as  if  expressive  of  current  knowledge 
and  opinion.  The  question  of  sponge  affinities  is  discussed 
as  though  settled  by  Clark  and  Kent ;  that  of  the  sig- 
nificance of  the  yellow  bodies  of  the  Radiolarians  as 
though  set  at  rest  by  the  misconceptions  of  Wallich.  We 
are  told  that  there  is  no  proof  that  the  Millepore  is  a 
Hydroid,  and  so  on.  Upon  the  ill-effects  which  must 
result  from  this  method  of  procedure  it  is  needless  to 
enlarge  ;  but  in  justice  to  the  author  it  must  be  admitted 
that  he  has  made  some  use  of  recent  literature.  He  ap- 
peals to  the  Challenger  volumes.  His  quotations  from 
these  are,  however,  very  capricious,  and  in  some  instances 
inaccurate.  It  cannot  be  said  that  the  spines  of  the 
Radiolaria  are  "  never  tubular,"  for  Haeckel  (whose  Re- 
port the  author  quotes)  has  given  their  tubular  character 
as  a  diagnosis  of  his  PhcBodaria.  Writing  of  "  sensation 
in  the  Radiolaria,"  the  author  indulges  (p.  103)  in  a  re- 
markable paragraph,  which  concludes  as  follows  : — • 

"  Prof.  Haeckel  considers  that  the  central  capsule  con- 
tains the  common  central  vital  principle,  which  he  terms 
the  '  cell-soul,'  and  that  it  may  be  regarded  as  a  simple 
ganglion  cell,  comparable  to  the  nervous  centre  of  the 
higher  animals,  whilst  the  pseudopodia  are  analogous  to 
a  peripheral  nervous  system." 

These  are  not  the  words  of  the  author  cited,  and,  even 
if  they  were,  the  introduction  of  such  silly  stuff  into  the 


pages  of  a  book  intended  for  "  the  large  and  increasing 
section  of  the  nature-loving  public  who  indulge  in  the 
use  of  the  microscope  as  a  source  of  instruction  and 
amusement "  (p.  3)  is  intolerable.  It  is  a  remarkable 
fact  that,  while  the  author  has  reproduced  the  more  com- 
monplace statements  of  the  earlier  writers  in  their  original 
form,  he  should  have  chosen  to  give  us  the  above,  his 
own,  rendering  of  the  lucubrations  of  a  Haeckel.  In 
doing  this  he  betrays  a  sad  want  of  sound  judgment. 
The  public  have  a  right  to  expect  that  a  work  of  this 
type,  intended  to  serve  (p.  3)  "  as  a  preliminary  to  more 
specific  knowledge,  the  direction  of  which  they  will  there- 
after be  better  able  to  choose,"  shall  be  up  to  date  ;  but^ 
to  fulfil  the  useful  purpose  aimed  at,  such  a  work  should 
rest  upon  a  more  authoritative  foundation  than  the  book 
now  under  review.  That  is  amusing  as  an  example  of 
editorial  piece-work  among  a  somewhat  antiquated  litera- 
ture, and  to  those  familiar  with  the  subjects  approached 
it  suggests  reflections. 

The  volume  by  M.  Houssay  is  one  of  312  pages,  with 
47  woodcuts  intercalated  in  the  text  (38  only  are  acknow- 
ledged on  the  title-page).  The  bulk  of  the  work  is  divided 
into  six  chapters,  dealing  respectively  with  modes  of  cap- 
ture of  prey,  of  defence,  of  transport  and  storage  of  food, 
of  provision  for  the  young  ;  of  constructing  or  acquiring 
nests  and  habitations,  and  of  preservation  and  protection 
of  the  same.  The  illustrations  are,  for  the  most  part, 
admirable  ;  some,  which  we  take  to  be  original,  are  fit  to 
rank  with  the  famous  woodcuts  in  Brehm's  "  Thier-Leben," 
while  others  are  already  familiar  to  us  from  the  pages  of 
that  work.  In  the  introduction  the  author  justly  asserts 
that  the  naturalist  of  to-day  lives  more  in  the  laboratory 
than  in  the  field,  that  the  scalpel  and  microtome  have  re- 
placed the  pins  of  the  collector,  and  that  the  magnifier 
pales  beside  the  microscope.  This  is,  alas  !  too  true.  It 
cannot  be  denied  that  our  present  systems  for  the  most 
part  take  insufficient  heed  of  field-work,  and  we  fully  en- 
dorse the  author's  further  remarks  upon  the  changed 
aspect  of  affairs.  The  introduction  as  a  whole  deals  with 
generalities  in  direct  bearing  upon  those  facts  which 
follow ;  and  by  no  means  its  least  satisfactory  feature  is 
that  it  clearly  sets  forth  what  the  author  would  have  his 
readers  understand  by  the  title  of  his  work.  The  main 
portion  of  the  book  is  confined  to  bare  records  of  ob- 
served fact,  systematically  arranged,  and,  where  necessary, 
brought  into  special  relationship  by  cross-references. 
That  "  talkee-talkee  "  so  often  forced  into  books  of  this 
kind  is  here  withheld.  Such  comments  as  are  indulged  in 
are  either  confined  to  the  introduction,  or  to  a  few  concise 
paragraphs  which  make  up  the  author's  "  conclusion  "  ; 
and  the  latter  is,  as  might  be  expected,  devoted  to  a  brief 
consideration  of  animal  intelligence.  In  place  of  an  index 
there  is  furnished  a  zoological  table,  in  which  the  generic 
names  of  the  animals  written  about  are  arranged  in 
classificatory  order,  each  being  accompanied  by  a  paged 
reference  and  a  mention  of  that  particular  habit  or 
industry  dwelt  upon.  It  is  a  pity  that  the  author  takes 
no  cognizance  of  animals  lower  in  the  scale  than  the 
Arthropods  ;  but  we  nevertheless  heartily  recommend 
his  book  to  our  readers.  It  is  throughout  popular,  and 
written  in  that  peculiarly  pleasing,  yet  didactic,  style,  so 
characteristic  of   the   works  of  the   more   successful  of 


I 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


411 


French  popularizers  of   science,  which  has  made  them 
masters  of  their  art. 

The  above-named  volumes  are  three  of  a  number  of 
similar  treatises  which  have  lately  appeared.  The  ap- 
preciation of  the  beautiful  and  generally  interesting  in 
Nature  must  always  precede  the  study  of  the  more  useful 
and  special,  and  it  is  the  highest  function  of  works  like 
the  present  to  awaken  this  preparatory  appreciation.  Of 
such  works  those  are  the  most  valuable  whose  authors 
can  claim  a  sound  elementary  knowledge  of  the  facts  with 
which  they  deal,  and  a  familiarity  with  current  research. 
Only  on  these  terms  can  a  popular  natural  history  rise 
above  the  level  of  the  too  well-known  type,  in  which  the 
scissors  supply  the  knowledge  and  the  paste  usurps  the 
place  of  the  co-ordinating  intellect.  G.  B.  H. 


A  GENERAL  FORMULA  FOR  THE  FLOW 
OF  WATER. 

A  General  Formula  for  the  Uniform  Flow  of  Water 
in  Rivers  and  other  Channels.  By  E.  Ganguillet 
and  W.  R.  Kutter.  Translated  from  the  German  by 
Rudolph  Hering  and  John  C,  Trautwine,  Jun.  (London  : 
Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 

THE  general  formula  devised  by  Messrs.  Ganguillet 
and  Kutter  for  caculating  the  flow  of  water  in  both 
large  and  small  channels,  under  varied  conditions,  was 
brought  under  the  notice  of  English-speaking  engineers 
by  the  publication,  in  1876,  of  a  translation  by  Mr. 
Jackson  of  some  articles  on  the  subject  written  by  Mr. 
Kutter,  which  appeared  in  the  foiirnal  der  Cultur- 
Ingenieur  in  1870.  This  translation,  however,  was  not 
authorized  by  Mr.  Kutter,  and  contained  some  incomplete 
tables  inserted  by  Mr.  Kutter  in  his  articles  at  the  request 
of  a  friend.  The  present  volume  is  a  translation  of  the 
second  edition  of  the  treatise  on  the  formula,  written  by 
Messrs.  Ganguillet  and  Kutter,  engineers  in  Berne,  who 
have  added  a  preface  to  the  translation.  Mr.  Kutter  died 
whilst  this  translation  was  in  progress ;  and  a  short 
memoir  of  him,  with  a  list  of  his  works,  is  appended  to 
the  translators'  preface. 

The  book  commences  with  an  historical  sketch  of  the 
attempts  to  arrive  at  a  formula  for  the  flow  of  water  in 
open  channels;  and  the  insufficiency  of  the  earlier  formulae 
is  pointed  out.  The  investigations  of  Messrs.  Darcy 
and  Bazin,  and  the  gaugings  of  the  Mississippi  by  Messrs. 
Humphreys  and  Abbot,  are  then  concisely  described,  and 
the  formulas  which  they  deduced  from  the  results  of  their 
experiments  are  given,  the  history  of  the  subject,  in  a 
brief  form,  being  thus  brought  down  to  the  period  at  which 
Messrs.  Ganguillet  and  Kutter  commenced  their  investiga- 
tions. This  forms  a  sort  of  introduction  to  the  account 
of  the  conception  and  development  of  the  general  formula, 
of  which  the  various  steps  are  described  in  detail.  The 
modifications  for  various  amounts  of  roughness  are  classi- 
fied ;  and,  finally,  the  formula  is  tested  by  the  comparison 
of  its  results  with  a  number  of  gaugings  under  very  differ- 
ent conditions  ;  and  these  results  indicate,  in  considerably 
the  greater  number  of  cases,  a  closer  approximation  to 
the  actual  measurements  than  those  obtained  with  the 
formula  of  either  Humphreys  and  Abbot,  or  Bazin.  A 
supplement  gives  a  more  direct  derivation  of  the  formula 


for  mathematical  readers  ;  and  the  appendices  contain 
numerous  tables  giving  the  flow  of  water  in  pipes  under 
pressure,  as  well  as  in  open  channels,  for  practical  use  in 
English  measures,  derived  from  the  formula,  and  also  a 
diagram  for  the  graphical  determination  of  the  values  of 
the  factors  in  the  formula,  adapted  to  English  measures 
by  the  translators. 

Most  of  the  hydraulicians  who  had  investigated  the 
question  before  Darcy  and  Bazin,  such  as  De  Prony, 
Dubnat,  Eytelwein,  D'Aubuisson,  Downing,  and  others, 
agreed  in  adopting  a  formula  of  the  form  V  =  t'v/RS, 
of  which  Brahms  and  Chezy  are  said  to  have  been  the 
authors  in  the  latter  half  of  the  last  century,  in  which  V 
is  the  velocity,  R  the  hydraulic  radius,  and  S  the  slope. 
Different  values  were  assigned  to  the  factor  c  by  the 
various  investigators  ;  but  it  was  always  regarded  as  a 
constant,  applicable  to  any  sized  stream  in  most  cases, 
to  any  slope,  and  to  any  state  of  the  bed.  Mr.  Darcy 
was  the  first  who  directed  attention  to  the  influence  the 
condition  of  the  sides  of  channels  and  pipes  exercised  on 
the  discharge  ;  and  he  instituted  a  series  of  experiments, 
carried  out  after  his  death  by  Mr.  Bazin,  by  which  the 
flow  of  water  in  regular  uniform  channels,  under  different 
conditions  of  slope,  form,  and  roughness  of  bed,  was 
measured  by  careful  gaugings  and  gauge-tubes.  A  few 
years  previously,  Messrs.  Humphreys  and  Abbot  had 
carried  out  their  well-known  gaugings  of  the  flow  of  the 
Mississippi  by  means  of  double  floats,  and  deduced  a 
formula  for  the  results  obtained.  Messrs.  Ganguillet  and 
Kutter  found  that  the  formula  derived  from  the  Missis- 
sippi experiments,  relating  to  a  large  river  with  a  very 
slight  slope,  was  not  applicable  to  the  small  streams  with 
steep  slopes  of  which  they  measured  the  flow  in  Switzer- 
land, and  also  that  Mr.  Bazin's  formula  was  not  suitable, 
in  its  original  form,  for  large  rivers  with  irregular  beds. 
This  led  Messrs.  Ganguillet  and  Kutter  to  search  for  a 
formula  applicable  to  very  different  slopes  and  sizes  of 
channel,  and  adaptable  to  various  conditions  of  bed. 
They  took  as  the  basis  of  their  formula  the  various  ex- 
perimental results  obtained  in  France  and  America, 
together  with  their  own  independent  observations  on 
channels  with  steep  slopes,  so  as  to  include  the  extreme 
varieties  of  flow  within  the  range  of  a  single  formula. 

Starting    from    Mr.   Bazin's     formula,   V  =      /  - 


+ 


/3' 


where  c 


v„;i' 


r 


they  eventually  found  it  expedient 


to  express  the  value  of  c  in  the  form 


JL 


I  + 


in  which. 


VR 


though  they  at  first  assumed  j  and  x  to  be  constant  for 
any  given  state  of  bed,  they  finally  modified  them  to 
expressions  varying  with  the  slope.  The  alterations  in 
the  formula  were  effected  by  aid  of  graphical  representa- 
tions of  the  various  sets  of  gaugings.  It  was  found,  in  in- 
vestigating the  various  experimental  results,that  the  factor  t' 
varied  generally  with  the  slope ;  but  a  somewhat  anomalous 
result  was  also  noted — namely,  that  whereas  in  the  Missis- 
sippi observations  c  increased  with  a  decrease  in  the 
slope,  it  on  the  contrary  decreased  with  a  decrease  of 
slope  in  the  gaugings  of  small  channels,  unless  the  wetted 


412 


NATURE 


\Marck  6,  1890 


perimeter  was  very  rough.  This  change  in  the  variation 
of  c  with  relation  to  the  s  lope  was  found  to  depend  upon 
the  hydraulic  radius.being  greater  or  less  than  3'28i  feet ; 
so  that  c  becomes  independent  of  the  change  in  slope 
when  R  approximates  to  this  value,  though  the  actual 
value  of  R  at  which  the  modification  occurs  varies  with 
the  degree  of  roughness  of  the  channel.  This  result  is 
attributed  to  the  conflicting  currents  and  eddies  in  large 
rivers  having  irregular  beds,  or  in  small  channels  with 
very  rough  beds,  which  are  intensified  by  an  increase  in 
the  slope  ;  whereas,  in  small  streams  flowing  in  confined 
channels  with  smooth  beds,  an  increased  velocity  tends  to 
dissipate  retarding  lateral   movements.     A  preliminary 

/ 


a  + 


form  adopted  for  the  value  of  c  was 


1  + 


an 


where 


a-\-  -  replaces  y  in  the  original  formula,  and  an  =  x,  or 
n 

X  =  ny  —  /,  in  which  a'ls  a.  constant  with  value  41 '66  in 
English  measures;  /is  another  constant,  equal  to  a/R 
when  R  has  the  special  value  3*281  referred  to  above, 
and  therefore  I'Sii  ;  and  n  is  the  coefficient  of  rough- 
ness, varying,  according  to  the  state  of  the  channel,  from 
0*009  to  0*040.  The  above  value  of  c  suffices  for  the  flow 
in  pipes  and  other  small  channels  with  steep  slopes, 
owing  to  the  small  influence  of  a  variation  of  slope  on  the 
coefficient  c  in  such  cases  ;  but  for  ordinary  channels 
allowance  has  to  be  made  for  variations  in  slope,  necessi- 
tating the  introduction  of  another  variable  factor  into  the 
expression  for  c.  The  final  shape  given  to  the  value  of  c 
by    Messrs.    Ganguillet    and    Kutter,    in    their  general 


formula,  was 


,    /    .in 
n       o 
m\  n 


where    ni  =  0*0028075, 


i-H  a  + 


S/VR 

for  English  measures,  is  a  constant  of  a  hyperbola  em- 
ployed in  constructing  the  formula.  The  general  formula, 
accordingly,  became,  for  English  measures— 


rSii 


+  41*6  + 


V 


0*00281 
S 


I    (  .,.c,    t     0*0028l\   t, 


n 


Vrs, 


where  V  is  the  mean  velocity  in  feet  per  second,  which 
multiplied  by  the  cross-section  would  give  the  discharge 
in  cubic  feet  per  second,  and  S  is  the  actual  slope. 

The  main  interest  of  the  book  consists  in  the  clear 
exposition  of  the  several  steps  by  which  the  formula  was 
reached ;  and  even  if  at  some  future  time,  by  the  aid  of 
fresh  observations  and  more  accurate  experiments,  the 
formula  should  be  superseded  by  a  more  comprehensive 
and  exact  one,  the  merit  of  this  work  as  an  elaborate 
scientific  investigation  for  a  general  empirical  formula 
must  always  remain  ;  and  the  book  would  deserve  to  be 
consulted  on  this  ground  alone.  The  formula  depends 
entirely  upon  the  exactness  of  the  observations  upon 
which  it  has  been  based.  Mr.  Rdvy  has  questioned  the  ac- 
curacy of  the  Mississippi  experiments,  owing  to  the  use  of 
double  floats  ;  and  if  fresh  investigations  should  establish 
the  inaccuracy  of  any  of  the  observations  made  use  of,  or 
if  further  experiments  should  extend  the  scope  of  the 
inquiry,  or  bring  new  facts  to  light,  a  modified  formula 


will  be  required.  The  authors,  however,  of  the  formula 
do  not  regard  it  as  final  or  complete,  nor  do  they  claim 
for  it  any  mathematical  precision  ;  they  only  consider 
that  it  agrees  more  closely  than  any  previous  formula 
with  the  results  of  recorded  observations.  The  formula 
has  naturally  been  objected  to  on  account  of  its  com- 
plicated appearance  ;  but  the  variation  due  to  change  of 
slope  renders  this  inevitable  ;  and  it  has  been  seen  that 
a  simpler  formula  may  be  adopted  for  pipes,  and  small  ' 
channels  with  steep  slopes  ;  and,  moreover,  graphical 
methods  and  tables  might  simplify  the  calculations.  At 
the  close  of  last  year,  Mr.  Robert  Manning,  Engineer  to 
the  Board  of  Works  in  Dublin,  presented  a  new  formula 
to  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers  of  Ireland,  which,  in 
its  general  form,  is  hardly  less  complicated  than  that  of 
Messrs.  Ganguillet  and  Kutter.     This  formula  is 

i  0*22/ 


V 


VS^|Ri  + 


i(R 


0*1 5 ;« 


)}• 


where  n  is  the  coefficient  of  roughness,  g  the  force 
gravity,  and  m  the  height  of  the  barometric  column  of 
mercury.  Mr.  Manning  puts  it  forward  as  simpler  and 
better  than  the  other,  and  claims  for  it,  in  a  simplified 
form,  a  closer  approximation  to  the  mean  of  the  results 
of  seven  of  the  best  known  formulae  than  any  other. 
Actual  observations,  however,  form  a  surer  basis  upon 
which  to  establish  a  general  formula  than  the  results  of 
previous  formulse  ;  and  it  is  upon  a  close  concordance  with 
very  varied  and  accurate  observations  that  any  general 
formula  must  claim  acceptance.  Whatever  position  may 
in  the  future  be  assigned  to  the  formula  of  Messrs.  Gan- 
guillet and  Kutter,  their  work  marks  a  notable  step  in 
advance,  and  must  rank  with  the  researches  of  Messrs. 
Darcy  and  Bazin,  and  Messrs.  Humphreys  and  Abbot,  as 
a  record  of  important  hydraulic  investigations  ;  and  the 
translators  have  performed  a  valuable  service  in  placing 
clearly  before  English  readers  the  successive  steps  by 
which  this  general  formula  has  been  established. 


THE  COMPASS  ON  BOARD. 

Der  Kompass  an  Bord  :  Ein  Handbuch  fiir  Fiihrer  von 
eisernen  Schiffen.  Herausgegeben  von  der  Direktion 
der Deutschen Seewarte.  (Hamburg:  L.  Friederichsen 
and  Co.,  1889.) 

THE  important  subject  of  the  magnetism  of  iron  ships 
and  the  resulting  deviations  of  their  compassesr 
has,  during  the  last  fifty  years,  received  marked  attention 
in  England  from  eminent  men  of  science,  attended  with 
most  valuable  results  for  the  safe  navigation  of  our  Royal 
and  mercantile  navies. 

During  the  last  thirteen  years  this  same  subject  has 
been  one  of  continuous  inquiry  at  the  German  Naval 
Observatory  in  Hamburg,  and  papers  have  been  published 
from  time  to  time  in  the  annual  report  of  that  institutionr 
showing  what  had  been  accomplished.  Combining  the 
results  of  this  work  with  those  obtained  from  the  extensive 
literature  chiefly  produced  in  England,  Dr.  Neumayer,. 
the  Director  of  the  Observatory,  has  compiled  the  present 
work  for  the  use  of  officers  commanding  the  iron  ships  of 
the  German  mercantile  navy. 

Of  the  six  chapters  into  which  the  work  is  divided,  the 
first  is  devoted  to  information  on  the  magnetism  of  iron 


March  6,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


413 


and    steel,    terrestrial    magnetism,    and    the  means   of 
obtaining  the  three  magnetic  elements. 

In  the  second  chapter,  the  various  modern  forms  of  the 
mariner's  compass,  and  instruments  for  adjusting  com- 
passes without  sights,  are  described  with  illustrations. 
There  is  much  here  which  should  be  of  value  to  com- 
manders of  ships  anxious  to  know  as  much  as  possible 
of  their  best  friend  in  navigation. 

It  is,  however,  to  be  regretted  that  in  some  particulars 
both  text  and  illustrations  belong  to  the  past,  for  in  Fig. 
38  an  imperfect  idea  is  given  of  Sir  W.  Thomson's  com- 
pass. The  drawing  was  correct  for  1877,  but  important 
improvements  were  made  ten  years  ago  in  the  substitu- 
tion of  the  wire  grummet  suspension  for  india-rubber,  a 
change  attended  with  marked  success  in  vessels  propelled 
and  severely  shaken  by  powerful  engines  ;  also,  in  1881, 
the  adoption  of  a  total  reflection  prism  in  the  azimuth 
mirror  instead  of  an  ordinary  piece  of  looking-glass. 

Prominence  is  given  to  the  Hechelmann  compass  card, 
which  is  intended  to  combine  the  principles  of  the 
Thomson  card  (which  consist  chiefly  of  a  long  period 
of  oscillation  and  great  lightness),  with  a  much  greater 
magnetic  moment  in  the  Thomson-Hechelmann  card,  as 
it  may  be  termed.  The  chief  difference  in  these  cards 
lies  in  the  arrangement  of  the  needles,  Hechelmann's 
idea  being  to  suspend  more  powerful  needles  than 
Thomson's  near  the  circumference,  thus  bringing  the 
weight  as  far  as  possible  from  the  centre  of  the  card  to 
produce  a  slow  period. 

In  bringing  powerful  needles  so  near  the  circumference, 
it  is  easy  to  see  that  something  has  been  lost  by  Hechel- 
mann when  the  quadrantal  deviation  is  to  be  corrected  as 
it  should  be — a  correction  so  perfectly  accomplished  by 
Thomson.  The  greater  weight  of  the  card,  too,  tends  to 
increase  friction  at  the  cap  and  pivot.  Under  these  con- 
siderations the  Thomson-Hechelmann  card  can  hardly  be 
considered  equal  to  the  modern  Thomson. 

In  the  next  chapter,  which  treats  of  the  magnetism  of 
ships  and  the  resulting  deviation,  it  is  satisfactory  to  find 
that  the  different  kinds  of  magnetism  which  careful 
investigation  has  shown  to  exist  in  modern  vessels  are 
specially  mentioned.     These  are — 

(i)  Permanent  magnetism. 

(2)  Sub-permanent  (termed  also  retentive)  magnetism. 

(5)  Transient  magnetism. 

These  definitions  are  accompanied  by  a  footnote  stating 
that  in  the  English  text-books  on  deviation  no  difference 
is  made  between  permanent  and  sub-permanent  mag- 
netism, but  that  the  two  are  combined  under  the  expres-  | 
sion  sub-permanent.  This  is  perhaps  rather  hard  upon 
some  English  books,  where,  by  careful  reading,  it  will  be 
found  that  the  distinction  is  really  made,  but,  it  must  be 
confessed,  with  a  want  of  that  clearness  of  division 
which  is  important  to  sound  knowledge.  Readers  of 
the  papers  published  by  the  Royal  Society,  and  more 
recently  by  the  Royal  United  Service  Institution,  will 
find  that  the  division  of  a  ship's  magnetism  into  the 
three  kinds  mentioned  above  is  strongly  insisted  upon. 

A  complete  analysis  of  the  deviations  of  any  given  com- 
pass in  a  ship,  and  of  the  changes  which  take  place  on 
a  change  of  latitude,  is  necessary  before  a  satisfactory 
compensation  of  the  deviation  by  magnets  and  soft  iron 
can  be  made.     In  the  "  Compass  on  Board,"  this  analysis 


has  a  chapter  devoted  to  it,  containing  information  which 
should  be  of  value  both  to  the  captains  of  ships  and  com- 
pass adjusters.     It  is  illustrated  by  many  examples. 

Values  of  the  coefficients  v  and  v' ,  representing  the 
temporary  deviation  caused  by  running  on  a  given  course 
for  some  days,  are  given  for  a  number  of  vessels  of  dif- 
ferent types,  steam  and  sailing.  They  clearly  show  the 
navigator  of  a  new  ship  the  need  of  caution  when  altering 
course,  and  some  idea  of  the  amount  of  change  of  devia- 
tion he  may  expect ;  whilst  it  should  be  understood  that 
no  careful  seaman  would  fail  to  learn  and  note  the  pecu- 
liarities of  the  iron  affecting  his  ship's  compasses  from 
personal  observation  under  the  varied  circumstances 
experienced  during  each  voyage. 

A  corrector  for  the  deviation  caused  by  sub-permanent 
magnetism  has  yet  to  be  discovered. 

Taking  a  general  view  of  this  book,  it  may  be  described 
as  calculated  to  provide  good  practical  information  for 
the  officers  of  the  German  mercantile  navy,  as  well  as 
a  certain  amount  of  a  theoretical  nature  for  those  inclined 
to  learn  something  of  a  ship's  magnetism  from  a  higher 
standpoint. 

The  maps  of  the  three  magnetic  elements  provided  at 
the  end  of  the  book  are  given  for  the  epoch  1885,  and  on 
a  larger  scale  than  those  usually  provided  in  hand-books. 
The  accompanying  map  of  values  of  the  secular  change 
is  somewhat  open  to  criticism  as  regards  the  figures  re- 
corded in  the  Red  Sea,  Bombay,  East  Indies,  and  Aus- 
tralia. This,  however,  will  not  prove  of  any  detriment 
to  safety  in  practical  navigation. 

The  difficulties  connected  with  the  compass  in  war- 
ships, with  their  armoured  deck,  thickly-plated  sides,  and 
conning-towers,  are  not  treated  of,  and  their  officers  must 
look  elsewhere  for  the  special  information  they  require  ; 
still,  there  is  much  to  be  found  in  this  book  that  will 
serve  their  purpose. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Library  Reference  Atlas  of  the  World.     By  John  Bartho- 
lomew, F.R.G.S.    (London:  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1890.) 

The  recognition  of  the  intimate  connection  that  exists 
between  physiography  and  geography  is  made  very 
manifest,  in  all  the  atlases  published  during  the  last  few 
years,  by  the  insertion  of  maps  indicating  the  physical 
features  of  the  earth's  surface. 

We  are  in  an  eminently  utilitarian  age,  and  a  collection 
of  maps,  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  day,  must  serve 
more  purposes  than  that  of  a  mere  index  to  the  positions 
of  places  ;  it  must  represent  the  most  permanent  features 
of  importance  in  commercial  geography,  and  the  dis- 
tribution of  commodities  as  explained  by  the  sciences 
of  physics,  geology,  meteorology,  biology,  &c.,  or  collec- 
tively by  physiography.  The  elegant  work  before  us 
satisfies  all  these  requirements,  it  is  as  complete  as  it  is 
a  trustworthy  atlas  of  modern  geography,  and  will  be 
equally  appreciated  by  the  student,  the  business  man, 
and  the  general  reader. 

The  atlas  contains  84  maps,  and  amongst  them  we  find 
plates  delineating  drainage  areas,  ocean  currents,  pre- 
vailing winds,  rainfall,  temperature,  climate,  and  com- 
mercial features.  A  characteristic  of  the  collection  is 
the  large  number  of  maps  that  have  been  devoted  to  the 
British  Empire,  eighteen  plates  being  given  of  the  United 
Kingdom  alone.  India  is  completed  in  eight  plates,  the 
Dominion  of  Canada  is  very  completely  represented  in 
seven  plates,  and  the  mapping  of  all  the  British  possessions 


414 


NATURE 


{March  6,  1890 


has  been  carried  out  on  the  same  elaborate  scale.  After 
the  British  Empire,  special  prominence  has  been  given 
to  the  United  States,  whilst  all  the  other  countries  of 
the  world  have  been  treated  in  a  very  comprehensive 
manner.  The  general  reference  index  comprises  the 
names  of  100,000  places  contained  in  the  maps,  and  for 
British  names  it  is  the  most  complete  ever  published. 
One  matter  of  regret,  however,  is  that  the  places  on  some 
of  the  maps  are  not  obviously  visible  because  of  the 
bright  and  superabundant  colouring  used  to  indicate  the 
divisions  of  a  country,  for,  generally  speaking,  these 
divisions  are  better  represented  by  coloured  lines.  The 
less  masking  there  is,  the  more  distinct  must  places 
appear,  and  therefore  the  purpose  of  an  atlas  will  be  the 
better  served.  This  is,  however,  but  a  minor  point.  The 
atlas  is  an  excellent  one,  it  is  complete  and  accurate, 
contains  all  the  results  of  recent  exploration  and  geo- 
graphical research,  and  is  issued  at  a  moderate  price  ;  its 
addition  to  every  library  therefore  is  a  thing  to  be  desired. 

The  Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caernarvonshire  and  As- 
sociated Rocks  J  being  the  Sedgwick  Prize  Essay  for 
1888.  By  Alfred  Harker,  M.A.,  F.G.S.,  Fellow  of  St. 
John's  College,  and  Demonstrator  in  Geology  (Petro- 
logy) in  the  University  of  Cambridge.  (Cambridge  : 
University  Press,  1889.) 

In  this  useful  little  work,  Mr.  Harker  has  given  an 
admirable  resume  of  the  results  which  have,  up  to  the 
present  time,  been  arrived  at  by  the  study  of  the  ancient 
igneous  rocks  of  North  Wales.  Besides  summarizing  the 
work  of  the  late  John  Arthur  Phillips  and  E.  B.  Tawney, 
of  Prof,  Bonney,  Mr.  Rutley,  Mr.  Cole,  Mr.  Teall,  Mr. 
Waller,  Miss  Raisin,  and  others  who  have  written  on  the 
petrography  of  the  district,  he  has  added  many  new  and 
often  judicious  notes  on  the  rocks  in  question.  A  number 
of  fresh  analyses,  and  the  description  of  hitherto  unrecog- 
nized varieties  of  rocks  and  minerals,  raise  the  work 
out  of  the  category  of  mere  compilations  ;  and  the  excel- 
lent classification  and  arrangement  of  his  materials  make 
the  book  one  eminently  useful  for  purposes  of  reference. 
It  is  unfortunate  that  it  has  no  index,  though  the  ''  table 
of  contents,"  which  is  very  full  and  carefully  paged, 
causes  the  want  to  be  less  felt  than  it  otherwise  would 
be.  Mr.  Harker  classifies  the  districts  of  Caernarvon- 
shire in  which  volcanic  rocks  are  found  as  the  Eastern, 
North-  Western,  and  Western,  the  latter  consisting  of  the 
Lleyn  peninsula.  He  groups  the  types  of  rocks  repre- 
sented under  the  headings  of  "  rhyolitic  lavas,"  "  nodu- 
lar rhyolites,"  "acid  intrusives,"  "intermediate  rocks," 
"  diabase  sills  and  basalts,"  and  "other  basic  intrusions." 
The  work  concludes  with  a  "  review  of  vulcanicity  in 
Caernarvonshire,"  in  which  we  find  discussions  of  the 
relation  of  the  volcanic  eruptions  to  the  earth-movements 
that  took  place  at  the  period  of  their  occurrence,  the  suc- 
cession of  lavas  in  the  district,  and  the  evidence  in  favour 
of  their  submarine  origin.  The  book  is  admirably 
printed,  and  is  illustrated  by  six  very  clearly-dra.wn 
sketch-maps.  The  essay  is  worthy  of  the  memorial  in 
connection  with  which  it  appears,  and  is  creditable  to  the 
University  under  whose  auspices  it  is  issued  ;  and  higher 
praise  than  this  it  would  be  difficult  to  give  to  any  work 
of  the  kind. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  fart  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  "X 

The  Inheritance  of  Acquired  Characters. 
Without  expressing  any  opinion  upon  the  question  recently 
discussed  in  your  columns  under  the  above  title,  I  think  it  may 


be  as  well  to  recall  the  belief  of  one  whose  judgment  was  not 
without  weight,  and  to  give  some  of  the  evidence  on  which  that 
belief  was  founded. 

In  the  first  chapter  of  the  "  Origin  of  Species"  (p.  8  of  the 
sixth  edition),  Mr.  Darwin  says,  respecting  the  inherited  effects 
of  habit,  that  "with  animals  the  increased  use  or  disuse  of  parts 
has  had  a  more  marked  influence  "  ;  and  he  gives  as  instances  the 
changed  relative  weights  of  the  wing-bones  and  leg-bones  of  the 
wild  duck  and  the  domestic  duck,  and,  again,  the  drooping  ears 
of  various  domestic  animals.  Here  are  other  passages  taken 
from  subsequent  parts  of  the  work  :  — 

"  I  think  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  use  in  our  domestic 
animals  has  strengthened  and  enlarged  certain  parts,  and  disuse 
diminished  them  ;  and  that  such  modifications  are  inherited " 
(p.  108).  And  on  the  following  pages  he  gives  five  further 
examples  of  such  effects.  "  Habit  in  producing  constitutional 
peculiarities,  and  use  in  strengthening  and  disuse  in  weakening 
and  diminishing  organs,  appear  in  many  cases  to  have  been 
potent  in  their  effects "  (p  131).  "When  discussing  special 
cases,  Mr.  Mivart  passes  over  the  effects  of  the  increased  use 
and  disuse  of  parts,  which  I  have  always  maintained  to  be  highly 
important,  and  have  treated  in  my  '  Variation  under  Domestica- 
tion '  at  greater  length  than,  as  I  believe,  any  other  writer " 
(p.  176).  "Disuse,  on  the  other  hand,  will  account  for  the  less 
developed  condition  of  the  whole  inferior  half  of  the  body,  in- 
cluding the  lateral  fins  "  (p.  188).  "  I  may  give  another  instance 
of  a  structure  which  apparently  owes  its  origin  exclusively  to  use 
or  habit"  (p.  188).  "  It  appears  probable  that  disuse  has  been 
the  main  agent  in  rendering  organs  rudimentary  "  (pp.  400-401). 
"  ( >n  the  whole,  we  may  conclude  that  habit,  or  use  and  disuse, 
have,  in  some  cases,  played  a  considerable  part  in  the  modifica- 
tion of  the  constitution  and  structure  ;  but  that  the  effects  have 
often  been  largely  combined  with,  and  sometimes  overmastered 
by,  the  natural  selection  of  innate  variations"  (p.  114). 

In  his  subsequent  work.  "The  Variation  of  Animals  and 
Plants  under  Domestication,"  he  writes  :  — 

"  The  want  of  exercise  has  apparently  modified  the  propor- 
tional length  of  the  limbs  in  comparison  with  the  body "  [in 
rabbits]  (p  116).  "  We  thus  see  that  the  most  important  and 
complicated  organ  [the  brain]  in  the  whole  organization  i- 
subject  to  the  law  of  decrease  in  size  from  disuse  "  (p.  129).  He 
remarks  that  in  birds  of  the  oceanic  islands  "not  persecuted  by 
any  enemies,  the  reduction  of  their  wings  has  probably  been 
caused  by  gradual  disuse."  After  comparing  one  of  these,  the 
water-hen  of  Tristan  D'Acunha,  with  the  European  water-hen, 
and  showing  that  all  the  bones  concerned  in  flight  are  smaller, 
he  adds  : — "  Hence  in  the  skeleton  of  this  natural  species  nearly 
the  same  changes  have  occurred,  only  carried  a  little  further,  as 
with  our  domestic  ducks,  and  in  this  latter  case  I  presume  no 
one  will  dispute  that  they  have  resulted  from  the  lessened  use  of 
the  wings  and  the  increased  use  of  the  legs  "  (pp.  286-87).  "  As- 
with  other  long-domesticated  animals,  the  instincts  of  the  silk- 
moth  have  suffered.  The  caterpillars,  when  placed  on  a  mulberry 
tree,  often  commit  the  strange  mistake  of  devouring  the  base  of 
the  leaf  on  which  they  are  feeding,  and  consequently  fall  down  ;. 
but  they  are  capable,  according  to  M.  Robinet,  of  again  crawling 
up  the  trunk.  Even  this  capacity  sometimes  fails,  for  M.  Martins- 
placed  some  caterpillars  on  a  tree,  and  those  which  fell  were  not 
able  to  remount  and  perished  of  hunger ;  they  were  even  in- 
capable of  passing  from  leaf  to  leaf"  (p.  304). 

Here  are  some  instances  of  like  meaning  from  vol.  ii.  : — 

' '  In  many  cases  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  lessened  use 
of  various  organs  has  affected  the  corresponding  parts  in  the  oil- 
spring.  But  there  is  no  good  evidence  that  this  ever  follows  in 
the  course  of  a  single  generation.  .  .  .  Our  domestic  fowls, 
ducks,  and  geese  have  almost  lost,  not  only  in  the  individual  but 
in  the  race,  their  power  of  flight ;  for  we  do  not  see  a  chicken, 
when  frightened,  take  flight  like  a  young  pheasant.  .  .  .  With 
domestic  pigeons,  the  length  of  sternum,  the  prominence  of  its 
crest,  the  length  of  the  scapulas  and  furcula,  the  length  of  the 
wings  as  measured  from  tip  to  tip  of  the  radius,  are  all  reduced 
relatively  to  the  same  parts  in  the  wild  pigeon."  After  detailing 
kindred  diminutions  in  fowls  anri  ducks,  Mr.  Darwin  adds, 
"The  decreased  weight  and  size  of  the  bones,  in  the  foregoing, 
cases,  is  probably  the  indirect  result  of  the  reaction  of  the 
weakened  muscles  on  the  bones"  (pp.  297-98).  "Nathusius  has 
shown  that,  with  the  improved  races  of  the  pig,  the  shortened 
legs  and  snout,  the  form  of  the  articdar  condyles  of  the  occiput, 
and  the  position  of  the  jaws  with  the  upper  canine  teeth  project- 
ing in  a  most  anomalous  manner  in  front  of  the  lower  canines, 
may  be  attributed  to  these  parts  not  having  been  fully  exercised. 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


415 


.  .  .  These  modifications  of  structure,  which  are  all  strictly 
inherited,  characterize  several  improved  breeds,  so  that  they 
■cannot  have  been  derived  from  any  single  domestic  or  wild  stock. 
With  respect  to  cattle.  Prof.  Tanner  has  remarked  that  the  lungs 
and  liver  in  the  improved  breeds  '  are  found  to  be  considerably 
reduced  in  size  when  compared  with  those  possessed  by  animals 
having  perfect  liberty.'  .  .  .  The  cause  of  the  reduced  lungs  in 
highly- hred  animals  which  take  little  exercise  is  obvious"  (pp. 
299-300).  And  on  pp.  301,  302,  and  303,  he  gives  facts  showing 
the  effects  of  use  and  disuse  in  changing,  among  domestic  animals, 
the  characters  of  the  ears,  the  lengths  of  the  intestines,  and,  in 
various  ways,  the  natures  of  the  instincts. 

Clearly  the  first  thing  to  be  done  by  those  who  deny  the 
inheritance  of  acquired  characters  is  to  show  that  the  evidence 
Mr.  Darwin  has  furnished  by  these  numerous  instances  is  all 
worthless.  Herbert  Spencer. 


Let  me  remind  the  readers  of  Nature  that  the  discussion 
which  has  been  going  on  in  these  columns,  between  the  Duke  of 
Argyll  and  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer,  arose  out  of  a  reference  in  Mr. 
Wallace's  book  on  "  Darwinism"  to  the  dislocation  of  the  eyes 
of  flat-fishes.  Two  views  have  been  expressed  as  to  the  origin 
of  this  arrangement — the  one  endeavouring  to  explain  it  as  a 
«ase  in  which  a  "sport"  or  congenital  variation,  had  been 
selected  and  intensified  ;  the  other  attributing  it  to  the  direct 
action  of  the  muscles  of  ancestral  flat-fishes  which  had  pulled 
the  eye  out  of  its  normal  position,  the  dislocation  thus  estab- 
lished being  transmitted  to  offspring,  and  its  amount  increased 
by  like  action  in  each  succeeding  generation.  In  common 
with  Mr.  Wallace  and  other  naturalists,  I  spoke  of  this  latter 
hypothesis  as  one  of  transmission  of  an  "acquired  character." 
The  term  "  acquired  character "  was  clearly  enough  defined  by 
this  example  ;  it  has  been  used  in  England  for  some  years,  and 
its  equivalent  in  German  (ef~cVorbene  E'genschaften)  has  been 
defined  and  used  for  the  purpose  of  indicating  the  changes  in 
a  parent  referred  to  by  Lamarck  in  the  following  words 
("Philosophic   Zoologique,"   tome    i.    p.    235,    edition    Savy, 

''*  Premiere  Loi. — Dans  tout  animal  qui  n'a  point  depasse  le 
terme  de  ses  developpements,  I'emploi  plus  frequent  et  soutenu 
d'un  organe  quelconque,  fortifie  peu  a  peu  cet  organe,  le 
developpe,  I'agrandit,  et  lui  donne  une  puissance  proportionnee 
a  la  duree  de  cet  emploi ;  tandis  que  le  defaut  consant  d'usage 
<le  tel  organe,  I'affaiblit  insensiblement,  le  deteriore,  diminue 
progressivement  ses  facultes,  et  finit  par  le  faire  disparaitre. 

*^  Deuxicnie  Loi.— TonK  ce  que  la  nature  a  fait  acqiiirir  o\x 
perdre  aux  individus  par  I'influence  des  circonstances  ou  leur 
race  se  trouve  depuis  longtemps  exposee,  et  par  consequent  par 
I'influence  de  I'emploi  predominant  de  tel  organe,  ou  par  celle 
d'un  defaut  constant  d'usage  de  telle  partie,  elle  le  conserve  par 
la  generation  aux  nouveaux  individus  qui  en  proviennent, 
pourvu  que  les  changements  acquis  soient  communs  aux  deux 
sexes  ou  a  ceux  qui  ont  produit  ces  nouveaux  individus." 

The  meaning  of  the  term  "acquired  characters"  is  accord- 
ingly perfectly  familiar  to  all  those  who  have  any  qualification 
for  discussing  the  subject  at  all.  It  is  used  by  Lamarck,  and  has 
been  used  since  as  Lamarck  used  it.  Naturalists  are  at  present 
interested  in  the  attempt  to  decide  whether  Lamarck  was  justi- 
fied in  his  statement  that  acquired  changes  are  transmitted  from 
the  parents  so  changed  to  their  offspring.  Many  of  us  hold  that 
he  was  not  ;  since,  however  plausible  his  laws  above  quoted  may 
appear,  it  has  not  been  possible  to  bring  forward  a  single  case 
in  which  the  acquisition  of  a  character  as  described  by  Lamarck 
and  its  subsequent  transmission  to  offspring  have  been  con- 
clusively observed.  We  consider  that,  until  such  cases  can  be 
produced,  it  is  not  legitimate  to  assume  the  truth  of  Lamarck's 
second  law.  We  admit,  of  course,  the  operation  of  the  environ- 
ment and  of  use  and  disuse  as  productive  of  "  acquired  charac- 
ters "  ;  but  we  do  not  find  any  evidence  that  these  particular 
characters  so  acquired  are  transmitted  to  offspring.  Ace  )rdingly 
it  has  been  held  by  several  naturalists  recently  (whom  I  will  call 
the  anti-Lamarckians,  and  among  whom  I  include  myself)  that  it 
is  nece-sary  to  eliminate  from  Mr.  Darwin's  teachings  that  small 
amount  of  doctrine  which  is  based  on  the  admission  of  the 
validity  of  Lamarck's  second  law.  As  everyone  knows,  Mr. 
Darwin's  own  theory  of  the  natural  selection  of  congenital  varia- 
tions in  the  struggle  for  existence  is  entirely  distinct  from 
Lamarck's  theory,  and  the  latter  was  only  admitted  by  Darwin 
as  being  possibly  or  probably  true  in  regard  to  some  cases,  and  of 
minor  importance.     Although  Darwin  expressly  states  that  he 


was  more  inclined  to  attach  importance  to  Lamarck's  theory  in 
the  later  editions  of  the  "  Origin  of  Species,"  the  anti-Lamarckians 
are  convinced  that  it  is  conducive  to  the  progress  of  knowledge 
to  reject  that  theory  altogether  until  (if  ever)  it  is  placed  on  a 
solid  basis  of  observed  fact ;  and  in  the  meantime  to  try  if  it  is 
possible  to  explain  the  cases  which  seem  most  favourable  to 
Lamarck's  view  by  the  application  of  Darwin's  own  theory. 

It  is  essential  for  those  who  are  not  thoroughly  familiar  with 
Darwin's  writings  to  note  that  this  does  not  involve  a  rejection 
of  the  conclusion  that  the  action  of  external  conditions  upon  a 
parent  may  be  such  as  to  modify  the  offspring.  That  is  an 
important  part  of  Mr.  Darwin's  own  theory,  and,  as  I  recently 
pointed  out  in  Nature,  it  is  to  such  action  of  the  environment 
upon  the  parent  that  Mr.  Darwin  attributed  the  origin  of  those 
congenital  variations  upon  which  natural  selection  acts.  This 
disturbance  of  the  parental  body  (I  cojipared  it  to  the  shaking 
up  of  a  kaleidoscope),  and  with  it  of  the  germs  which  it  carries, 
resulting  in  "sporting "or  "variation"  in  the  offspring,  is,  it 
should  hardly  be  needful  to  state,  a  totally  different  thing  to  the 
definite  acquirement  of  a  structural  character  by  a  parent  as  the 
result  of  the  action  upon  it  of  the  environment,  and  the  trans- 
mission to  offspring  of  that  particular  acquired  structural  character. 
I  am  not  concerned  to  inquire  here  whether,  or  how  far.  Prof. 
Weismann's  theory  of  the  continuity  of  the  germ-plasm  admits  of 
the  action  of  external  forces  on  a  parental  body  in  such  a  way  as  to 
disturb  the  germ-plasm  and  induce  variation.  Prof.  Weismann 
can  very  well  defend  his  own  views.  All  that  I  am  concerned 
with — and  that  quite  independently  of  the  conclusions  of  Prof. 
Weismann — is  whether  it  is  or  is  not  reasonable,  useful,  or  indeed 
legitimate,  to  assume  the  truth  of  Lamarck's  second  law,  in  the 
absence  of  any  direct  proof  that  any  such  transmission  as  it 
postulates  takes  place.  Those  who  think  Lamarck's  second  law 
to  be  true  have  been  urged  to  state  (i)  cases  in  which  the  trans 
mission  of  acquired  characters  is  directly  demonstrated,  or  (2) 
cases  in  which  it  seems  impossible  to  explain  a  given  structure 
except  on  the  assumption  of  the  truth  of  that  law.  If  they  fail  to 
do  this,  they  are  asked  to  admit  that  Lamarck's  second  law  is 
unproven  and  unnecessary. 

The  response  which  has  been  made  to  this  attempt  to  arrive  at 
facts  is  beside  the  mark.  Mr.  Cope  writes  to  Natitre  merely 
assercing,  "  If  whatever  is  acquired  by  one  generation  were  not 
transmitted  to  the  next,  no  progress  in  the  evolution  of  a  character 
could  possibly  occur," — an  opinion  peculiar  to  himself,  and  cer- 
tainly one  which  cannot  be  taken  in  place  of  fact.  The  Duke  of 
Argyll  then  "interpolates"  (to  use  his  own  word)  a  general 
statement  of  his  beliefs,  and  in  the  last  of  his  letters  a  statement 
of  "  what  his  position  is."  We  really  are  not  concerned  in  this 
matter  with  beliefs  or  positions.  We  want  well-ascertained  facts 
and  straightforward  reasoning  from  facts.  The  Duke  of  Argyll 
has  not  assisted  us.  When  on  a  recent  occasion  he  was  asked  to 
cite  an  instance  of  what  he  called  "a  prophetic  germ"  in  the 
adult  structure  of  a  plant  or  animal  having,  in  his  opinion,  such 
claims  to  this  title  as  he  had  ascribed  to  the  electric  organ  of 
skates,  the  Duke  was  unable  to  reply.  He  wrote  as  a  substitute 
something  about  embryological  phenomena,  which  had  nothing 
to  do  with  the  case.  He  has  not  yet  ventured  to  stake  his  ofi- 
asserted  right  to  offer  an  opinion  upon  zoological  topics,  on  the 
reception  which  his  attempt  to  deal  with  the  details  of  a  par- 
ticular case  of  organic  structure  would  obtain  :  in  this,  I  think,  he 
is  wise. 

The  Duke  similarly  tries  to  evade  the  appeal  to  facts  when  he 
is  pressed  by  Mr.  Dyer  to  state  cases  of  the  transmission  of 
acquired  characters.  In  doing  so,  however,  he  has,  it  must  be 
admitted,  revealed  an  astonishing  levity.  He  answers  (par.  9 
of  his  letter)  that  in  all  domesticated  animals,  and  especially  in 
dogs,  we  have  constant  proof  that  many  acquired  characters  may 
become  congenital.  This  is  mere  assertion  ;  we  require  details. 
It  is  maintained,  on  the  contrary,  by  anti-Lamarckians  that  the 
whole  history  of  artificial  selection,  and  of  our  domesticated 
animals,  furnishes  a  mass  of  evidence  against  the  theory  of  the 
transmission  of  acquired  characters,  since  if  such  cases  occurred 
they  would  be  on  record,  and  moreover  would  have  been  utilized 
by  breeders. 

The  subsequent  proceeding  of  the  Duke  is  almost  incredible. 
In  the  following  paragraphs  of  his  letter  he  gives  up  his  con- 
tention that  acquired  characters  are  transmitted,  coupling  his 
retreat  with  unwarrantable  charges  against  those  who  have 
lately  raised  the  question  as  to  whether  this  is  the  case  or 
not.  He  correctly  states  what  is  meant  by  the  term  "acquired 
characters,"  and  declares  that  this  meaning  has  been  expressly 
invented  for  the  purposes  of  the  present  discussion  by  "for- 


4i6 


NATURE 


{March  6,  1890 


tuitists,"  and  is  "irrational."  A  more  baseless  charge  was  never 
yet  made  in  controversy,  nor  a  more  obvious  attempt  to  alter  the 
terms  of  discussion  so  as  to  give  some  appearance  of  plausibility 
to  a  lost  cause.  The  Duke,  in  fact,  now  at  length  tells  us  that 
/le  does  not  mean  by  "  acquired  characters "  what  7ue  mean. 
Why  then  did  he  "  interpolate  "  his  remarks  on  the  subject  and 
make  use  of  the  term  ? 

If  the  meaning  which  the  phrase  has  for  the  scientific  world 
generally  be  insisted  upon,  we  are  now,  it  appears,  to  understand 
that  the  Duke  of  Argyll  agrees  with  us  :  what  Ti>e  mean  by 
•'acquired  characters"  are  not,  he  admits,  shown  to  be  trans- 
mitted. 

"  Fortuitists,"  the  Duke  says,  "have  invented  a  new  verbal 
definition  of  what  they  mean  by  'acquired.'  "  I  have  shown  at 
the  commencement  of  this  letter  that  the  term  "  acquired  "  is  used 
to-day  as  it  was  by  Lamarck.  To  the  Duke  this  meaning  is 
"  new  " — because  he  has  either  never  read  or  has  forgotten  his 
Lamarck.  If  this  be  so,  the  Duke  has  been  writing  very  freely 
about  a  subject  with  which  his  acquaintance  is  very  small.  The 
alternatives  are  as  clear  as  possible  :  either  the  Duke  of  Argyll 
knew  the  significance  of  the  term  "acquired  characters"  as  em- 
ployed by  Lamarck,  in  which  case  it  would  have  been  impossible 
that  he  should  charge  those  whom  he  calls  "  fortuitists  "  with 
having  invented  a  new  verbal  definition  of  what  they  mean  by 
"  acquired  "  ;  or  he  did  not  know  Lamarck's  use  of  the  phrase, 
and  was  therefore  not  qualified  to  offer  an  opinion  in  the  dis- 
cussion, nor  to  press  his  "  beliefs"  and  "position  "  upon  public 
attention. 

I  have  no  time  and  you  have  no  space  to  devote  to  a  full 
exposure  of  the  character  of  other  assertions  made  in  the  Duke 
of  Argyll's  "statement  of  his  position"  which  are  as  reckless 
and  demonstrably  erroneous  as  that  concerning  the  meaning  of 
the  term  "acquired." 

Perhaps  the  most  flagrant  of  these  is  the  assertion  that  ' '  the 
theory  of  Darwin  is  essentially  unphilosophical  in  so  far  as  it 
ascribes  the  phenomena  of  variation  to  pure  accident  or  fortuity  " 
(paragraph  4).  Of  course  the  Duke  cannot  be  acquainted  with  the 
following  passage  from  the  "  Origin  of  Species,"  sixth  edition, 
p.  106  ;  but  if  he  has  to  plead  ignorance  of  the  writings  not  only  of 
Lamarck,  but  also  of  Darwin,  what  is  the  value  of  his  opinions 
and  beliefs  on  Lamarckism  and  Darwinism  ?  The  words  of 
Mr.  Darwin  referred  to  are  these : — "  I  have  hitherto  sometimes 
spoken  as  if  the  variations,  so  common  and  multiform  with 
organic  beings  under  domestication,  and  in  a  lesser  degree  with 
those  under  nature,  were  due  to  chance.  This,  of  course,  is  a 
wholly  incorrect  expression,  but  it  serves  to  acknowledge  plainly 
our  ignorance  of  the  cause  of  each  particular  variation. " 

Whatever  meaning  the  Duke  may  attach  to  the  word 
"fortuity,"  it  is  mere  empty  abuse  on  his  part  to  call  the 
later  Darwinians  "fortuitists,"  and  still  less  justifiable  to  insinu- 
ate that  their  investigations  and  conclusions  are  not  guided  by  a 
simple  desire  to  arrive  at  truth,  but  by  the  intention  of  propping 
up  a  worship  of  Fortuity.  It  is  natural  for  the  Duke  to  suppose 
it  impossible  to  write  on  Darwinism  without  some  kind  of  theo- 
logical bias. 

In  conclusion,  I  venture  to  point  out  that  the  Duke  of  Argyll 
has  (l)  failed  to  cite  facts  in  support  of  his  assertions  of  belief 
in  "prophetic  germs,"  and  "transmission  of  acquired  cha- 
racters "  when  challenged  to  do  so  ;  (2)  that  he  displays  ignor- 
ance of  two  of  the  most  important  passages  in  the  works  of 
Lamarck  and  of  Darwin,  whom  he  nevertheless  criticizes,  and 
in  consequence  of  his  ignorance  completely,  though  uninten- 
tionally, misrepresents  ;  and  (3)  that  he  has  introduced  into  these 
columns  a  method  of  treating  the  opinions  of  scientific  men,  viz. 
by  insinuation  of  motive  and  by  rhetorical  abuse,  which,  though 
possibly  congenial  to  a  politician,  are  highly  objectionable  in  the 
arena  of  scientific  discussion. 

February  22.  E.  Ray  Lankester. 


Physical  Properties  of  Water. 

As  you  inform  me  that  my  anonymous  critic  {ati^e,  p.  361) 
does  not  intend  to  avail  himself  of  the  opportunity  I  gave  him 
(through  you)  of  correcting  his  misstatements  about  my  Challenger 
Report,  I  must  ask  to  be  permitted  to  correct  them  myself. 

(i)  There  is  nothing  whatever  in  my  Report  to  justify  the 
critic's  statement  that  I  '■'had  never  heard  0}  Ya.n  der  Waals' 
work  .  .  .  till  the  end  of  the  year  1888."  Yet  this  is  made  the 
basis  of  an  elaborate  attack  on  me  ! 

What  I  did  say  was  to  the  effect  that  I  was  not  aware,  till  Dr. 


Du  Bois  told  me,  that  Van  der  Waals  had  given  numerical  esti- 
mates of  the  value  of  Laplace's  K.  I  had  long  known,  from 
the  papers  of  Clerk-Maxwell  and  Clausius,  the  main  features  of 
Van  der  Waals'  investigation.  But  I  also  knew  that  Maxwell 
had  shown  it  to  be  theoretically  unsound ;  and  that  Clausius 
had  taken  the  liberty  of  treating  its  chief  formula  as  a  mere 
empirical  expression,  by  modifying  its  terms  so  as  to  make  it 
better  fit  Andrews'  data.  This  paper  of  Clausius  is  apparently 
unknown  to  my  critic,  as  is  also  my  own  attempt  to  establish 
(on  defensible  grounds)  a  formula  somewhat  similar  to  that  of 
Van  der  Waals. 

(2)  I  said  nothing  whatever  about  the  "  Volume  of  Matter  in 
unit  volume  of  Water."  Hence  the  critic's  statement,  "  Prof. 
Tait's  value  is  0717,"  is  simply  without  foundation. 

I  merely  said  that  the  empirical  formula 

p{v  -  o)  =  constant, 

if  assumed  to  hold  for  all  pressures,  shows  that  o  is  the  volume 
when  the  pressure  is  infinite.  I  still  believe  that  to  be  the 
case.  If  not,  Algebra  must  have  changed  considerably  since  I 
learned  it. 

My  critic  speaks  of  a  totally  different  thing  (with  which  I  was 
not  concerned),  which  may  be  0/4  or  0/4  ^2,  or  (as  I  think  is 
more  plausible)  a/8.  But  he  says  that  liquids  can  be  compressed 
to  o*2  or  0'3  of  their  bulk  at  ordinary  temperatures  and  pres- 
sures. I  was,  and  remain,  under  the  impression  that  this  could 
be  done  only  at  absolute  zero,  and  then  no  compression  is 
required. 

There  are  other  misrepresentations  of  my  statements,  quite  as 
grave  as  those  cited.  But  it  would  be  tedious  to  examine  them 
all.  I  have  no  objection  to  a  savage  review,  anonymous  or  not; 
on  the  essential  condition,  however,  that  it  he  fair.  It  is  clear 
from  what  I  have  shown  that  this  essential  condition  is  absent. 

But  my  critic,  when  his  statements  are  accurate,  finds  fault 
with  the  form  of  my  work.  I  will  take  two  examples  of  this 
kind,  and  examine  them. 

(3)  He  blames  me  for  not  using  C.G.S.  units.  The  Chal- 
lenger Reports  are,  as  a  rule,  written  in  terms  ' '  understanded 
of  nautical  men.  I  wonder  what  such  men  would  have  said 
of  me,  in  their  simple  but  emphatic  vernacular,  if  I  had  spoken 
of  a  pressure  of  154,432,200  C.G.S.  units,  when  I  meant  what 
they  call  a  "ton"  ;  or,  say,  of  185,230  C.G.S.  units,  when  I 
meant  a  "  naut." 

(4)  I  am  next  blamed  for  "mixing  units." 

I  should  think  that  if  we  could  find  a  formula  expressing,  in 
terms  of  a  man's  age,  the  average  rate  at  which  he  can  run,  say 
for  instance 

^^  _  A,ar(B  -  x) 
X-  +  (^ 

even  my  critic  would  express  A  in  feet  per  second,  and  take  x  as 
the  mere  number  denotmg  the  age  in  years.  Would  he,  alone 
in  all  the  world,  insist  on  expressing  x  as  denoting  the  age  in 
seconds  in  order  to  prevent  what  he  calls  the  mixing  of  units? 
This  is  a  case  precisely  parallel  to  the  one  in  question. 

Generally,  1  would  remark  that  my  critic  seems  to  have 
written  much  more  for  the  purpose  of  displaying  his  own 
knowledge  than  of  telling  the  reader  what  my  Report  contains. 
For  at  least  three  of  the  most  important  things  in  my  Report 
are  not  even  alluded  to : — the  compressibility  of  mercury,  the 
nature  of  Amagat's  grand  improvement  of  the  Alanomctre 
Desgoffes,  and  (most  particularly)  the  discussion  of  the  wonder- 
ful formula  for  the  compressibility  of  water  given  in  the 
splendid  publications  of  the  Bureau  International. 

P.  G.  Tait- 


The  last  V9lume  of  the  Challenger  ReYtorts  contains  papers  on 
various  branches  of  science.  The  review  which  appeared  in 
Nature  was  not  the  work  of  one  writer,  and  was  therefore  not 
signed,  but  I  have  no  desire  to  avoid  taking  full  responsibility 
for  the  part  of  which  I  am  the  author. 

It  will  be  convenient  to  reply  to  Prof.  Tait  in  paragraphs 
numbered  to  correspond  with  his  own. 

(i)  Of  course  I  fully  accept  Prof.  Tait's  account  of  his  know- 
ledge of  Van  der  Waals'  theory  at  the  time  when  his  Challenger 
Report  was  written,  but  I  entirely  dissent  from  his  statement 
that  what  he  said  about  it  in  the  Addendum  referred  to  in  the 
review  was  "to  the  effect  "  described  above. 

It  is  hardly  possible  to  do  justice  to  my  own  case  without 
quoting  freely,  but  I  will  compress  as  much  as  possible.     He 


II 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


417 


says  (p.  60)  that  he  "  was  informed  "  (which  implies  that  he 
did  not  previously  know)  that  "  one  of  Van  der  Waals'  papers  .  .  . 
contains  an  elaborate  study  of  the  molecular  pressure  in  fluids." 

Again  he  says,  "  I  have  left  the  passages  .  .  .  which  refer  to  this 
subject  in  the  form  in  which  they  stood  before  I  became  ac- 
quainted with  Van  der  Waals'  work.  I  have  not  sufficiently 
studied  his  memoir  to  be  able  as  yet  to  form  a  definite  opinion 
whether  the  difficulty .  . .  which  is  raised  in  Appendix  E.  can, 
or  cannot,  be  satisfactorily  met  by  Van  der  Waals'  methods." 

Further,  he  states  that  he  "had  been  under  the  impression 
.  .  .  that  Laplace's  views  had  gone  entirely  out  of  fashion — 
having  made,  perhaps,  their  final  appearance  .   .  .  about  1850." 

As  a  matter  of  fact.  Van  der  Waals  adopted  Laplace's  views 
in  1873,  and  his  formula  diflfers  from  the  expression /z'  ==  RT, 
only  by  the  introduction  of  two  terms,  one  of  which  is  obviously 
an  additional  pressure  such  as  is  deduced  from  Laplace's  theory. 

I  do  not  think  that  any  reader  could  be  expected  to  conclude 
from  these  passages  in  Prof.  Tait's  Addendum  that  when  writing 
the  paper  he  had  long  known  the  "  main  features  of  Van  der 
Waals'  investigation."  To  me  they  seemed  to  mean  that  he  had 
not  previously  been  acquainted  with  Van  der  Waals'  work,  nor 
with  his  methods,  nor  with  the  facts  that  he  studied  molecular 
pressure  and  adopted  Laplace's  ideas. 

While,  therefore,  I  willingly  submit  to  Prof.  Tait's  correction 
of  the  phrase  that  he  had  "  never  heard  of  Van  der  Waals,"  I 
cannot  admit  that,  on  the  evidence  then  before  me,  I  did  him  any 
substantial  injustice. 

(2)  I  very  much  doubt  whether  the  distinction  between  the  ulti- 
mate volume  and  the  molecular  volume  can  be  maintained  if  the 
equations  are  treated  as  empirical ;  and  even  if  they  are  not,  I 
doubt  whether  the  ultimate  volume,  as  defined  by  Prof.  Tait,  has 
any  real  physical  meaning.  The  value  of  v  when  /  —  00  is  inde- 
pendent of  the  temperature,  whether  deduced  from  the  theoretical 
formula  to  which  Prof.  Tait  refers  (p.  48),  or  from  those  of  Van 
der  Waals  or  Clausius  :  hence  it  must  (from  this  point  of  view) 
be  the  molecular  volume.  In  the  case  of  Prof  Tait's  new 
equation,  which  was  published  after  his  Report  was  completed, 
and  which  is  the  only  one  I  had  not  seen  when  I  wrote  the 
review,  the  results  when  we  put  /  =  00  or  T  =  o,  are  such  as  to 
show  that  its  application  to  these  extreme  cases  is  not  legitimate. 
My  own  view  is  that  such  algebraical  solutions  are  worth  very 
little,  and  I  only  discuss  them  because  I  wish  to  show  that  if  we 
admit  them  at  all  they  justify  my  treating  Prof  Tait's  number  as 
an  estimate  of  the  molecular  volume. 

(3)  I  cannot  say  that  I  think  that  Prof.  Tait's  reason  is 
adequate.  The  Royal  Naval  College  at  Greenwich  has  done 
more  for  our  naval  officers  than  he  would  have  us  believe,  and, 
if  it  were  not  so,  the  Challenger  Reports  are  not  addressed  to 
members  of  any  one  profession,  nor  intended  for  English-speak- 
ing scientific  men  alone.  Their  cosmopolitan  character  is  shown 
by  the  fact  that  bound  up  in  the  same  volume  with  Prof.  Tait's 
Report  is  another  by  a  distinguished  Belgian  geologist. 

Foreigners  have  helped  to  describe  the  specimens  which  our 
Expedition  collected;  they  will  read  the  Reports  which  our  experts 
have  written.  It  would  have  required  but  a  few  minutes'  work, 
and  a  few  additional  lines  of  print,  to  have  given  the  final 
results  in  terms  which  they  would  have  understood  at  a  glance. 

(4)  The  analogy  is  fallacious.  Prof.  Tait  has  devise:!  a 
formula  into  which  he  introduces  two  quantities  (age  and  speed), 
which  are  commonly  expressed  with  reference  to  different  units 
of  time. 

I  pointed  out  that  he  had  expressed  in  the  same  formula  (con- 
trary to  common  usage)  the  same  quantity  (pressure)  in  terms  of 
two  different  units,  of  which  one  is  not  ordinarily  used  by 
many  of  those  who  will  make  use  of  his  work. 

As  to  the  last  paragraph,  I  have  only  two  remarks  to  make. 
First,  that  I  think  Prof.  Tait  does  himself  injustice  in  re- 
garding a  description  of  apparatus  devised  by  another,  and  the 
discovery  of  a  blunder  of  the  Bureau  International,  as  two  of 
the  most  important  things  in  his  Report.  Secondly,  that  I 
think  the  imputation  of  motives  should  be  banished  from 
scientific  discussions. 

In  conclusion,  I  wish  to  add  that  probably  I  should  have  left 
Prof.  Tait's  defence  unanswered  if  he  had  not  accused  me  of 
unfairness,  I  have  no  desire  for  any  controversy,  and  no  wish 
to  impugn  his  knowledge  of  the  theory  of  gases.  But  he  will 
forgive  my  reminding  him  of  the  old  saying,  *'  Noblesse  oblige." 
A  classical  research  should  not  be  published  in  a  state  which 
leads  the  reader  to  the  conclusion  that  the  author  was  only  just 
becoming  acquainted  with  facts  which  bear  upon  his  work  and 
have  been  long  before  the  world.     As  a  reviewer,  I  formed  the 


opinion  that  the  Report  under  discussion  was  open  to  this 
criticism.  As  a  reviewer,  it  was  my  duty  to  express  my  opinion 
in  all  honesty,  and,  as  I  hope,  in  all  courtesy. 

Arthur  W.  Rucker. 


Visualized  Images  produced  by  Music. 

In  the  annexed  paper,  and  in  her  own  words,  are  related  the 
very  curious  effects  produced  on  a  lady  friend  by  certain  musical 
tones  and  orchestral  combinations.  They  are  so  very  singular, 
so  entirely  outside  my  experience,  and,  withal,  so  inexplicable, 
that  I  shall  be  glad  if  you  will  give  them  a  place  in  your 
columns,  in  the  hope  that  some  of  your  readers — physiological 
or  psychological — may  be  able  to  throw  some  light  on  them. 

I  should  state  that  the  lady  is  in  perfect  health,  is  very  intelli- 
gent, an  accomplished  musician,  and  not  at  all,  in  this  or  any 
sense,  the  victim  of  a  disordered  imagination.  She  is  quite 
conscious  that  these  spectral  images  have  only  a  subjective  exist- 
ence, though  visually  they  have  all  the  vividness  of  presentment 
which  belongs  to  realities. 

At  the  first  blush  it  would  seem  as  though  these  apparitions 
were  in  some  way  a  response  to  stimuli  sent  through  the  auditory 
nerve  ;  but  this,  if  any,  is  an  imperfect  explanation,  since  it  will 
be  noticed  that  occasionally  these  visualized  pictures  slightly 
precede  the  instrument  they  belong  to. 

This  fact  suggests  that  a  state  of  unconscious  expectancy  may 
be  a  factor  in  their  reproduction,  but  it  fails  entirely,  I  think,  to 
account  for  their  initial  appearance.  Geo.  E.  Newton. 

25  Woodland  Road,  Gipsy  Hill,  S.E. 

"  The  sound  of  an  oboe  brings  before  me  a  white  pyramid  or 
obelisk,  running  into  a  sharp  point  ;  the  point  becoming  more 
acute  if  the  note  is  acute,  blunter  if  it  is  grave.  The  obelisk 
appears  to  be  sharply  defined  and  solid  if  the  note  is  loud,  and 
vague  and  vaporous  if  it  is  faint.  All  the  notes  of  the  'cello, 
the  high  notes  of  the  bassoon,  trumpet,  and  trombone,  and  the 
low  notes  of  the  clarionet  and  viola,  make  me  see  a  flat  un- 
dulating ribbon  of  strong  white  fibres. 

"The  tone  of  the  horn  brings  before  me  a  succession  of  white 
circles  of  regularly  gradated  sizes,  overlapping  one  another. 
These  circles  and  the  ribbon  float  past  me  horizontally,  but  the 
point  of  the  obelisk  seems  to  come  at  me. 

"  In  an  orchestra,  when  the  violins  strike  up,  after  the  wind 
band  has  been  prominent  for  a  time,  1  see  often,  but  not  always, 
a  shower  of  bright  white  dust  or  sand,  very  crisp  and  glittering. 
I  am  taking  note  of  the  recurrence  of  this  impression,  and  think 
it  is  becoming  more  frequent,  but  it  is  not  invariable  like  the 
others. 

"  I  have  heard  a  great  deal  of  orchestral  music  all  my  life, 
but  I  have  only  noticed  these  effects  for  four  or  five  years.  They 
gained  gradually  in  frequency  and  clearness,  and  now  the  first 
three  are  invariable. 

"  If  I  know  the  scoring  of  a  piece  well,  the  various  effects 
slightly  precede  the  instrument  they  belong  to  ;  only  the  objects 
are  vague  and  faint  till  the  sound  begins. 

"  Sometimes,  if  an  oboe  passage  has  an  intense  and  yearning 
character,  the  white  point  comes  so  near  me,  and  moves  so 
rapidly,  that  I  think  it  must  wotmd  tiie. 

' '  I  am  very  anxious  to  make  it  clear  that  I  am  not  trying 
to  describe  a  mental  state  by  symbols,  but  that  /  actually  see 
the  point,  the  fibres,  and  the  circles.  Generally  they  seem  to 
float  half-way  between  me  and  the  orchestra. 

"If  only  one  class  of  instruments  is  used,  the  effect  does  not 
extend  beyond  the  opening  bars  :  for  instance,  in  a  string 
quartette  I  only  see  the  white  sand  for  a  moment  at  the  begin- 
ning ;  if,  however,  wind  and  stringed  instruments  are  combined, 
I  see  the  various  effects  again  and  again  in  one  piece." 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

In  your  issue  of  December  26,  1889  (p.  176),  Mr.  Pascoedrew 
attention  to  the  cases  of  certain  crabs  which  are  frequently  found 
covered  with  sponges,  algae,  shells,  &c.,  and  brought  forward 
also  the  well-known  case  of  the  Gastropod  Phorus.  He  at  the 
same  time  confessed  that  he  could  not  see  "  where  protection 
came  in"  in  any  of  the  cases  which  he  cited.  Mr.  A.  O.  Walker, 
on  the  other  hand  (Nature,  January  30,  p.  296),  regards  it  as 
obvious  that  the  attachment  of  these  foreign  substances  is  a 
useful  adaptation  for  purposes  of  concealment.  Pn  if.  Herdman 
also   (Nature,    February   13,    p.    344)  bears   witness   to   the 


4i8 


NATURE 


[March  6,  1890 


"scarcely  recognizable"  appearance  of  the  crab  Ilyas  when 
covered  with  algse,  &c.  Indeed,  no  one  who  has  seen  one  of  these 
crabs  brought  up  with  the  dredge,  or  has  found  a  well-covered 
Stcnorhynchus  on  our  own  shores,  can  seriously  doubt  the  useful- 
ness of  the  habit  in  rendering  the  animal  inconspicuous.  In 
Stenoj-hynchus  and  Iiiachus  the  process  of  "dressing"  with 
weeds  and  zoophytes  has  been  described  by  Bateson  (Journ. 
Mar.  Biol.  Association,  vol.  i.  1889,  p.  213),  and  it  is  seen  from 
his  description  that,  as  also  in  the  cases  of  Dorippe,  Pagurus, 
Di-otnia  vulgaris,  &c.,  the  foreign  substances  or  animals  become 
attached  to  the  body  not  by  accident  but  by  the  act  of  the  crabs 
themselves. 

Now  Mr.  Walker,  in  regarding  all  these  cases  as  instances  of 
adaptation  for  concealment,  has  overlooked  the  fact  that  in  two 
of  our  British  species  of  hermit  crab  {^Pagurus  bernhardtis  and 
P.  prideauxii)  it  is  the  habit  of  the  animals  to  prefer,  and  often 
to  fight  for,  shells  which  are  rendered  conspicuous  by  the  attach- 
ment to  them  of  species  of  Anemone,  in  the  one  case  Adumsia 
rondeletii  (Sagartia  parasitica),  in  the  other  Adajttsia  palliata. 
Another  British  species  {Pagurus  cuanensis)  is  almost  invariably 
found  inhabiting  a  shell  enveloped  in  the  sponge  Suberites 
domuncula,  which  is  frequently  of  a  conspicuous  orange-red 
colour  Only  in  the  smallest  species  of  Pagurus  {e.g.,  P.  lavis) 
does  the  animal  depend  invariably  upon  an  inconspicuous  ap- 
pearance for  its  safety. 

The  value  to  the  crabs  of  a  preference  for  shells  to  which 
Actinians  are  attached  is  found  in  the  fact  that  these  gaily- 
coloured  animals  are  carefully  shunned  by  fishes  on  account  of 
their  stinging  powers  ;  and  although  hermit  crabs  themselves 
are  very  palatable  to  fishes,  their  association  with  Actinians, 
while  rendering  them  conspicuous  as  they  move  about,  is  at  the 
same  time  an  efficient  protection  from  the  persecution  of  their 
enemies. 

This  also  explains  the  habits  of  the  two  Mauritian  crabs, 
which,  according  to  Mobius,  carry  about  a  sea-anemone  in  each 
claw. 

The  sponge  with  which  Pagurus  cuanensis  is  associated  is  (like 
all  other  sponges  with  which  I  have  experimented)  exceedingly 
obnoxious  to  fishes  on  account  of  its  bad  smell  and  taste.  I 
have  never  succeeded  in  inducing  a  fish  of  any  species  to  swallow 
a  fragment  of  the  sponge  ;  but  on  the  contrary  the  smell  is  in 
most  cases  quite  sufficient  to  drive  the  fish  away.  The  associa- 
tion with  the  sponge  is  therefore  here  also  an  efficient  protection, 
for  I  know  of  no  fish  capable  of  extracting  the  crab  from  its 
retreat.  It  is  seen  from  this  that  the  case  of  Dromia  vulgaris 
should  probably  be  removed  from  the  category  of  adaptations  for 
concealment,  and,  like  the  cases  of  P.  bernhardus,  &c.,  be  in- 
cluded in  a  special  group  of  warning  adaptations. 

There  yet  remains  the  interesting  case,  adduced  by  Dr.  R.  von 
Lendenfeld,  of  Drofjiia  excavata  associated  with  a  Compound 
Ascidian  of  the  genus  Atopogaster  {\\&xdsa2,Ti).  This,  I  believe, 
will  be  found  to  belong  to  the  same  category  of  warning  adapta- 
tions, for  after  repeated  experiments  with  Compound  and  other 
Tunicata  at  the  Plymouth  Laboratory  I  can  state  that  these 
animals  are  essentially  inedible  to  fishes.  The  inedibility  is  in 
large  part  due,  as  in  the  case  of  sponges,  to  the  characteristic 
odour  which  Tunicata,  and  more  especially  Compound  Tunicata, 
give  out,  and  in  no  family  (excepting  perhaps  the  BotryUida;) 
is  this  better  marked  than  in  the  Polyclinida,  the  group  to  which 
Atopogaster  belongs.  Bearing  in  mmd  also  the  fact  that  Com- 
posite Ascidians  frequently  vie  with  sponges  and  Actinians  in  the 
possession  of  varied  and  conspicuous  colours,  it  is  rendered 
practically  certain  that  the  case  of  Dromia  excavata  is  another 
instance  of  this  same  type  of  adventitious  warning  contrivances. 

Thus  the  edible  (the  edibility  is  not  yet  proved  for  foreign 
species)  Crusacea  which  attach  foreign  substances  to  their  bodies 
may  be  divided  into  two  groups  : — 

(a)  Those  which  are  rendered  inconspicuous  in  relation  to  their 
natural  surroundings  by  the  habit  ;  e.g. ,  Stenorhynchus,  Ilyas, 
Dorippe,  Pagurus  Levis,  and  young  forms  of  Pagurus  bernhardus, 
&c. 

(;8)  Those  which  associate  themselves  with  animals,  easily 
recognizable  by,  and  possessing  qualities  offensive  to,  their  chief 
enemies  ;  e.g.,  Dromia  vulgaris  and  excavata,  Pagurus  bern- 
hardus, prideauxii,  and  cuanensis.  Walter  Garstang. 

Laboratory  of  the  Marine  Biological  Association, 
Plymouth,  February  21. 

P.S. — From  facts  which  Mr.  Weldon  and  Mr.  Harmer  have 
communicated  to  me,  it  would  appear  that  Dromia  vulgaris  fre- 
quently attaches  Compound  Ascidians  {Leptoclinum  maculosum. 


Botrylloides  Gasconice)  to  its  back  instead  of  sponges,  a  variation 
of  habit  which  is  very  interesting  in  connection  with  the  appa- 
rently fixed  habit  of  the  Australian  species. — W.  G. 


A  Key  to  the  Royal  Society  Catalogue. 

"A  Cataloguer"  appears  to  have  misunderstood  me  in 
two  points.  In  the  index  that  I  propose,  the  heads  would  not 
be  numbered.  Again,  in  forming  an  estimate  of  the  size  of  the 
work,  I  made  the  supposition  that  the  8  papers  of  an  author 
could  be  grouped,  not  under  8,  but  under  3  heads. 

James  C.  McConnel. 

A  Meteor. 

Last  night  (Monday,  the  3rd),  as  I  was  crossing  the  Old 
Deer  Park  to  Richmond,  I  witnessed  the  flight  of  an  exception- 
ally fine  meteor,  which  shone  out  with  great  brilliancy  notwith- 
standing the  presence  of  a  bright  moon,  which  was  almost  at 
the  full. 

It  appeared  to  start  from  the  constellation  of  Leo,  and  travelled 
across  the  sky  to  the  westward,  vanishing  some  10°  or  15°  above 
the  horizon. 

The  night  was  very  quiet  at  the  time,  and  I  heard  no  report. 

T.  W.  Baker. 

Kew  Observatory,  Richmond,  Surrey,  March  4. 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  COAL  NEAR  DOVER. 

THE  question  of  the  existence  of  coal  under  the  newer 
rocks  of  Southern  England,  which  has  engaged  the 
attention  of  some  of  our  leading  geologists  since  the  year 
1 85  s,  has  found  its  final  answer  in  the  discovery  announced 
last  week  in  the  daily  press.  The  story  of  the  discovery 
is  a  striking  example  of  the  progress  of  a  scientific  idea, 
passing  through  various  phases,  and  growing  more  clearly 
defined  through  opposition  and  failure,  until  ultimately  it 
has  been  proved  to  be  true,  and  likely  to  lead  to  industrial 
changes  of  national  importance. 

The  question  was  originally  started  35  years  ago  by 
Mr.  Godwin-Austen  in  a  memorable  paper  brought  before 
the  Geological  Society  of  London,  in  which  it  was  argued, 
from  the  character  and  arrangement  of  the  coal-fields  and 
associated  rocks  of  Somersetshire  and  South  Wales  on 
the  west,  and  of  the  Belgian  and  North  French  coal-fields 
on  the  east,  that  similar  coal-fields  lie  buried  beneath  the 
newer  strata  of  the  intervening  regions.  Mr.  Godwin- 
Austen  pointed  out  that  the  general  direction  of  the 
exposed  coal-fields  was  ruled  by  a  series  of  great  east 
and  west  folds,  running  parallel  to  the  great  line  of  dis- 
turbance— "  the  axisof  Artois," — from  the  south  of  Ireland, 
through  South  Wales  and  Northern  Somerset  on  the 
west,  eastwards  through  Belgium  and  Northern  France, 
into  the  valley  of  the  Rhine,  near  Diisseldorf.  Through- 
out this  area  the  exposed  coal-fields  lie  in  long  east  and 
west  troughs.  This  series  of  folded  Carboniferous  and  older 
rocks  formed  also  an  east  and  west  ridge  along  the  line 
of  the  axis  of  Artois,  which  gradually  sank  beneath  the 
waves  of  the  Triassic,  Liassic,  Oolitic,  and  Cretaceous 
seas.  Against  this  the  strata  of  the  three  first  of  these 
rocks  gradually  thin  off,  while  the  coal-measures  and 
other  rocks  of  the  ridge  have  repeatedly  been  struck  in 
France  and  Belgium,  and  are  now  being  worked  imme- 
diately underneath  the  Cretaceous  strata  over  a  wide 
area. 

The  axis  of  Artois  also,  where  it  is  concealed  by  the 
newer  rocks  in  the  south  of  England,  is  marked  from 
Somerset  eastwards  by  the  anticlinal  of  the  chalk  of 
North  Wiltshire,  and  the  line  of  the  North  Downs,  the 
general  law  seeming  to  be  "  that  when  any  great  folding 
and  dislocation  of  the  earth's  crust  has  taken  place,  each 
subsequent  disturbance  follows  the  very  same  lines,  and 
that  simply  because  they  are  lines  of  least  resistance." 

Mr.  Godwin-Austen,  by  combining  all  these  observa- 
tions, finally  concluded  that  there  were  coal-fields  beneath 
the  Oolitic  and  Cretaceous  rocks  of  the  south  of  England, 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


419 


and  that  they  were  sufficiently  near  the  surface  to  allow 
of  their  being  of  great  economic  value.  He  further 
specified  the  line  of  the  Thames  Valley,  and  the  region 
of  the  Weald,  as  possible  places  where  they  might  be 
discovered. 

These  important  conclusions  were  during  the  next  ii 
years  generally  received  by  geologists,  with  the  exception 
of  Sir  Roderick  Murchison.  The  next  important  step  in 
the  direction  of  their  verification  was  that  taken  by  the 
Coal  Commission  of  1866-67,  by  whom  Mr.  Godwin- 
Austen  and  Sir  R.  Murchison  were  examined  at  length, 
and  the  results  of  the  inquiry  embodied  in  the  Report  by 
Mr.  Prestvvich.  In  the  Report,  Mr.  Godwin-Austen's 
views  are  accepted,  and  fortified  by  a  vast  number  of 
details  relating  both  to  the  coal-fields  of  Somersetshire 
and  of  France  and  Belgium.  Mr.  Prestwich  also  calls 
special  attention  to  the  physical  identity  of  the  coals  of 
these  two  regions,  and  to  the  fact  that  the  Carboniferous 
and  older  rocks  in  both  are  similarly  disturbed.  He  con- 
cludes, further,  that  the  coal-fields  which  now  lie  buried 
beneath  the  newer  rocks  are  probably  equal  in  value  and 
in  extent  to  those  which  are  exposed  in  Somerset  and 
South  Wales  on  the  west,  and  in  Belgium  and  France  on 
the  east. 

In  1872  the  Coal  Commission  Report  was  published, 
and  in  the  same  year  the  Sub-Wealden  Exploration 
Committee  was  organized  ^  by  Mr.  Henry  Willett  to  test 
the  question  of  the  existence  of  coal  in  the  Wealden  area 
by  an  experimental  boring.  The  site  chosen  was  Nether- 
field,  near  Battle,  in  Sussex,  where  the  lowest  rocks  of  the 
Wealden  formation  form  the  bottom  of  the  valley.  It 
was  resolved  to  go  down  to  the  older  Palaeozoic  strata, 
which  were  thought  to  occur  at  about  1000  feet  from  the 
surface,  or  to  carry  the  bore-hole  to  2000  feet  if  they  were 
not  struck  before.  The  work  was  carried  on  under  con- 
siderable difficulties  for  the  next  three  years,  until  in  1875 
it  had  to  be  abandoned  at  a  depth  of  1905  feet,  because 
of  the  breakage  of  many  hundred  feet  of  lining-pipes, 
coupled  with  the  loss  of  the  boring-tool  at  the  bottom. 
The  section  of  the  strata  passed  through  is  as  follows  : — 


Netherfield  Section. 


Purbeck  strata 
Portland  strata 
Kimmeridge  Clay  - 
Corallian  rocks  - 
Oxford  Clay 


Feet. 
200 

57 

107.-? 

515 

60 

1905 


This  section,  although  it  yielded  no  information  as  to 
the  Palaeozoic  rocks,  showed  that  in  this  particular  dis- 
trict they  are  more  than  1900  feet  beneath  the  surface, 
and  revealed  the  great  thickness  of  the  Kimmeridge  Clay 
and  Corallian  rocks,  sufficiently  distant  from  the  ridge  of 
coal-measures  and  older  rocks,  against  which  the  Oolitic 
strata  thin  away  to  the  north,  to  allow  of  an  accumulation 
of  Oolitic  sediments  to  a  thickness  of  more  than  1 700  feet. 
In  this  respect,  therefore,  it  afforded  unmistakable  evi- 
dence that  the  search  for  the  ridge  in  question  might  be 
carried  on  with  much  greater  chance  of  success  further 
to  the  north,  in  the  direction  of  the  North  Downs.  The 
great  and  increasing  thickness  of  the  successive  newer 
rocks  of  the  Wealden  formation,  which  form  the  surface 
of  the  ground  between  Netherfield  and  the  North  Downs, 
rendered  it  undesirable  to  repeat  the  experiment  within 
the  Wealden  area  proper.  Close  to  Battle,  the  Secondary 
strata  were  of  great  thickness,  and  where  the  whole  series 

r  'The  Committee  consisted  of  Profs.  Ramsay  and  Phillips,  Sir  John  Lub- 
bock,  b^  Hhilip  Egerton.  and  Messrs.  Thomas  Hawicsley,  Warington 
.^myth.  Prestwich,  Bristow.  Etheridge,  Boyd  Dawkins,  and  Topley. 

f  1  he  precise  boundary  between  these  two  groups  is  uncertain.  If  the 
K.immendge  Clay  series  be  taken  down  to  the  Coralline  Oolite,  its  thickness 
will  be  151a  feet. 


of  Wealden  rocks  were  present,  they  were   more  than 
1000  feet  thick. 

For  the  next  eleven  years  the  problem  remained  where 
it  was  left  by  the  results  of  the  Netherfield  boring ;  while 
in  the  district  of  London,  evidence  was  being  collected 
in  various  sinkings  for  water,  which  proved  the  existence 
of  the  Palaeozoic  ridge  of  rocks,  Silurian  and  old  red 
sandstones,  older  than  the  Carboniferous,  at  about  1000 
feet  from  the  surface.  Here,  too,  the  Oolitic  strata  were 
not  more  than  87  feet  in  thickness,  at  their  thickest  point 
in  the  well  at  Richmond.  The  older  rocks,  moreover, 
were  inclined  at  a  very  high  angle,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
similar  rocks  underlying  the  coal-fields  of  Somerset,  and 
of  Northern  France  and  Belgium,  and  this  implied  the 
existence  of  troughs  of  coal-measures  in  the  synclinal 
folds,  in  neighbouring  areas. 

I  come  now  to  the  last  experiment,  which  has  been  so 
fortunately  crowned  with  success.  In  1886,  I  reported 
to  Sir  Edward  Watkin  that  it  was  desirable,  both  on 
scientific  and  commercial  grounds,  for  a  boring  to  be  put 
down  in  South-East  Kent,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Dover, 
and  that  the  Channel  Tunnel  works  under  the  Shake- 
spear  Cliff  would  be  the  best  site  for  the  experiment.  It 
was  almost  within  sight  of  Calais,  where  the  coal-mea- 
sures had  been  proved  at  a  depth  of  1092  feet.  It  was 
also  not  many  miles  away  from  the  spot  where  a  large 
mass  of  bituminous  material — which,  according  to  Mr. 
Godwin-Austen,  was  the  result  of  the  distillation  of  coal 
from  the  measures  beneath — had  been  discovered  in  the 
chalk.  Sir  Edward  Watkin  acted  with  his  usual  energy 
on  my  report,  and  the  work  was  begun  in  1886,  and 
carried  on,  under  my  advice,  down  to  the  present  time. 
The  boring  operations  have  been  under  the  direction  of 
Mr.  F.  Brady,  the  chief  engineer  of  the  South-Eastern 
Railway,  to  whose  ability  we  owe  the  completion  of  the 
work  to  its  present  point,  under  circumstances  of  great 
difficulty.  The  strata  passed  through  may  be  generalized 
as  follows : — 


Section  at  Shakespear  Cli^,  Dover. 


Feet. 


■500- 


660. 


Lower  Grey  Chalk,  and  Chalk-Marl 

Glauconitic  Marl  ... 

Gault  

Neocomian 

Portlandian 

Kimmeridgean 

Corallian    ... 

Oxfordian  ... 

Callovian    ... 

Bathonian  ... 

Coal-measures,  sandstones,  and  shales  and  clays,  with      1 

one  seam  of  good  blazing  coal,  struck  at   ilSo  feet      >    20. 

from  the  top  of  the  bore-hole  ...         ...         ..  ...      ) 

The  coal-measures  were  struck  at  a  depth  of  1160  feet, 
or  68  feet  below  the  point  where  the  coal-measures  were 
met  with  in  the  boring  at  Calais.  It  may  also  be  noted 
as  a  remarkable  confirmation  of  Mr,  Godwin-Austen's 
views  as  to  the  abrupt  thinning  off  of  the  Wealden  strata, 
that,  although  along  the  line  of  the  North  Downs  the 
Weald  clay  strikes  towards  the  French  coast,  and  is  seen 
at  low  water  between  Hythe  and  Folkestone,  it  and  the 
underlying  Wealden  strata  are  not  represented  in  the 
section  at  the  Shakespear  Cliff. 

It  is  too  soon  as  yet  to  measure  the  full  value  of  this 
discovery  near  Dover,  while  our  work  is  as  yet  unfinished. 
We  may,  however,  remark  that  the  coal-fields  of  the 
Continent,  which  have  been  proved  beneath  the  newer 
rocks  in  Northern  France  and  Belgium,  some  60  miles  to 
the  west  of  their  eastern  outcrops,  have  now  been  traced 
across  the  Channel,  that  they  are  at  a  workable  depth, 
and  that  we  have  now  a  well-defined  base  for  further 
researches  in  Southern  England. 

W.  Boyd  Dawkins. 


420 


NATURE 


\_March  6,  1890 


TH]^  RELATION  BETWEEN  THE  ATOMIC 
VOLUMES  OF  ELEMENTS  PRESENT  IN 
IRON  AND  THEIR  INFLUENCE  ON  ITS 
MOLECULAR  STRUCTURE. 

IN  a  lecture  on  the  Hardening  and  Tempering  of  Steel, 
published  in  November  last  (Nature,  vol.  xli.  pp.  1 1, 
32),  an  attempt  vi^as  made  to  set  forth  the  prominent  facts 
developed  in  recent  researches,  more  especially  those  of 
M.  Osmond,  which  tend  to  prove  that  iron,  like  many 
other  elements,  can  pass  from  the  normal  state  to  an 
allotropic  one.  It  was  shown  that  as  a  mass  of  iron  or 
steel  cools  down,  there  are  at  least  two  distinct  evolutions 
of  heat,  one  occurring  at  a  variable  temperature  not  higher 
than  855°  C,  the  other  at  a  more  constant  temperature, 
near  650°  C.  From  a  long  series  of  most  patient  investi- 
gations, Osmond  argues  that  there  are  two  kinds  of  iron, 
one  [hard]  /3  iron,  and  the  other  [soft]  a  iron.  The 
molecular  change  from  ^  to  a  iron  is  indicated  by  the 
first  evolution  of  heat  in  the  cooling  mass  of  iron  or  steel, 
and  at  this  point  the  cooling  mass  of  iron  regains  the 
magnetic  properties  which  it  loses  at  higher  tempera- 
tures. The  second  evolution  of  heat  only  occurs  in  car- 
burized  iron  or  steel,  and  marks  the  point  at  which  carbon 
itself  changes  from  the  dissolved  or  '  hardening-car- 
bon,'  to  the  state  of  combined  or  '  carbide-carbon.' 
In  highly  carburized  steel,  the  two  points  at  which 
heat  is  evolved  coincide,  and  experimental  evidence 
has  been  given  {loc.  cit.  p.  34)  as  to  the  abnormal 
molecular  weakness  which  is  exhibited  when  a  very  hot 
bar  of  such  steel  cools  down  to  about  660°  C.  In  a  recent 
communication  to  Nature  (February  20,  p.  369),  Prof. 
Carl  Barus,  of  Washington,  has  pointed  out,  with  refer- 
ence to  this  molecular  weakness,  "  that  when  iron  passes 
through  the  temperature  of  recalescence  its  molecular 
condition  is  almost  chaotic " ;  whilst  with  regard  to 
Osmond's  view  that  a  iron  passes  to  /3  iron  when  sub- 
mitted to  any  stress  which  produces  permanent  deforma- 
tion of  the  mass.  Prof  Barus  says  that  "  there  is  reason 
to  be  urged  even  in  favour  of  the  extreme  view  "  that  such 
molecular  change  may  be  produced  in  most  metals.  In 
the  lecture  at  Newcastle,  I  expressed  the  belief  (Nature, 
loc.  cit.)  that  it  would  be  shown  that  the  influence  of 
small  quantities  of  other  elements  on  masses  of  iron 
would  be  found  not  to  be  at  variance  with  the  periodic 
law.  I  had  already  given  experimental  evidence  to  show 
that  the  action  of  small  quantities  of  impurity  on  the 
tenacity  of  gold  was  closely  in  accordance  with  that  law, 
but  in  the  case  of  iron  it  was  difficult  to  say  what  pro- 
perty of  the  metal  would  be  most  affected  by  the  added 
matter.  It  appeared  safe,  however,  to  point  to  the  pos- 
sibility that  the  direct  connection  with  the  periodic  law 
would  "be  traced  by  the  effect  of  a  given  element  in 
retarding  or  promoting  the  passage  of  ordinary  iron  to 
the  allotropic  state,"  a  point  of  much  importance,  as  the 
mechanical  properties  of  the  metal  must  depend  on  the 
atomic  arrangement  in  the  molecules. 

I  am  glad  that  so  eminent  an  authority  and  admirable 
experimenter  as  M.  Osmond  has  satisfied  himself  as  to 
the  probable  accuracy  of  this  view.  In  two  recent  papers 
communicated  to  the  Acad(^mie  des  Sciences,  the  results 
of  his  experiments  are  given,  and  the  following  is  a 
translation  of  the  later  of  these  {Cojtiptes  rendus,  vol.  ex. 
p.  346)  :— 

"  Within  the  last  few  years  and  quite  recently  {Comptes 
rendus,  Stances  des  26  octobre  et  6  decembre  1886,  4 
avril  1887,  et  3  fdvrier  1890),  I  have  had  the  honour  to 
submit  to  the  Academy  facts  relating  to  the  allotropic 
modifications  of  iron,  and  to  the  part  played  in  such 
changes  by  foreign  bodies  alloyed  with  the  mass.  Prof. 
Roberts- Austen,  by  studying  the  effect  produced  on  the 
mechanical  properties  of  gold  by  the  addition  of  the  same 
weight  (about  02  per  cent.)  of  seventeen  foreign  metals, 
has  discovered  a  curious  relation  between  the  results  ob- 


tained and  the  position  occupied  by  the  added  metals  in 
the  periodic  classification  (Phil.  Trans.  Roy.  Soc,  vol. 
clxxix.  p.  339,  1888).  Prof  Roberts-Austen  has  deduced 
from  this  that  an  analogous  relation  should  exist  for  iron, 
but  the  irons  and  steels  of  commerce  are  such  complex 
products,  and  the  same  metal  may  assume  such  different 
aspects,  that  the  relation  in  question  is  not  readily  apparent 
from  a  study  of  their  mechanical  properties. 

"  In  reviewing  my  former  experiments  with  these  new 
ideas  as  guides,  it  appeared  to  me  that  the  law  of  Roberts- 
Austen  was  well  based,  and  new  experiments  undertaken 
to  verify  it  have  only  confirmed  my  first  view. 

"  The  foreign  elements  whose  action  on  the  critical  points 
of  iron  I  have  studied  experimentally  with  more  or  less 
completeness,  are  ranged  as  follows  in  two  columns  in  the 
order  of  their  atomic  volumes  : — 


Atomic 

Atomic 

volume. 

volume 

Carbon     ... 

...     3-6 

Chromium 

...     77 

Boron 

...     4-1 

Tungsten  ... 

...     9-6 

Nickel 

...     67 

Silicon 

...    11*2 

Manganese 

...     6-9 

Arsenic 

...    13-2 

Copper     ... 

...     7-1 

Phosphorus 

•••    13-5 

Sulphur     ... 

...    157 

"  The  elements  in  column  I.,  whose  atomic  volumes  are 
smaller  than  that  of  iron  (7 '2),  delay  during  cooling, 
ccBteris  paribus,  the  change  of  iS  [hard]  iron  to  a  [soft]  iron, 
as  well  as  that  of  'hardening-carbon'  {carbone  de  trempe) 
into  *  carbide-carbon  '  {carbone  de  reeuit).  For  these 
two  reasons  they  tend  to  increase,  with  equal  rates  of 
cooling,  the  proportion  of  /3  iron  that  is  present  in  the 
cooled  iron  or  steel,  and  consequently  the  hardness  of  the 
metal.  Indeed,  their  presence  is  equivalent  to  a  more  or 
less  energetic  hardening.^ 

"  On  the  other  hand,  the  elements  of  column  II.,  whose 
atomic  volumes  are  greater  than  that  of  iron,  tend  to 
raise  or  at  least  to  maintain  near  its  normal  position, 
during  cooling,  the  temperature  at  which  the  change  of 
/3  to  a  iron  takes  place  ;  further,  they  render  the  inverse 
change  during  heating  more  or  less  incomplete,  and 
usually  hasten  the  change  of  '  hardening-carbon '  to 
'  carbide-carbon.'  ^ 

"  Thus  they  maintain  the  iron  in  the  a  [soft]  state  at  high 
temperatures,  and  must  therefore  have  the  same  effect  in 
the  cooled  metal.  In  this  way  they  would  act  on  iron  as 
annealing  does,  rendering  it  soft  and  malleable,  did  not 
th -ir  individual  properties,  or  those  of  their  compounds, 
often  intervene  and  partially  mask  this  natural  conse- 
quence of  their  presence. 

"The essential  part,  therefore,  played  by  foreign  elements 
alloyed  with  iron,  is  either  to  hasten  or  delay  the  passage 
of  iron,  during  cooling,  to  an  allotropic  state,  and  to 
render  the  change  more  or  less  incomplete  in  one  sense 
or  the  other,  according  to  whether  the  atomic  volume  of 
the  added  impurity  is  greater  or  less  than  that  of  iron. 
In  other  words,  foreign  elements  of  low  atomic  volume 
tend  to  make  iron  itself  assume  or  retain  the  particular 
molecular  form  that  posses  es  the  lowest  atomic  volume, 
whilst  elements  with  large  atomic  volume  produce  the 
inverse  effect. 

"  It  should  be  noted  that  carbon,  whilst  obeying  the 
general  law,  possesses  on  its  own  account  the  property  of 
undergoing,  at  a  certain  critical  temperature,  a  change  the 
nature  of  which  is  still  disputable,  although  its  existence  is 
acknowledged.  It  is  this  property  which  gives  carbon  a 
place  by  itself  in  the  metallurgy  of  iron." 

M.  Osmond  has  shown  me  the  curves  which  represent 
the   results  of  his  experiments,  and  these  will  doubtless 

'  To  the  elements  of  column  I.  hydrogen  may  be  added.  As  is  well 
known,  this  element  renders  electro-deposited  iron  hard  and  brittle  ;  perhaps 
it  would  be  better  to  say  with  Graham  hydrogenimtt ,  for  hydrogen  gas  does 
not  appear  to  have  a  marked  influence  on  the  critical  temperature. 

^  I'ungsten  alone  presents  certain  anomalies. 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


421 


soon  be  published.  Whatever  may  ultimately  prove  to 
be  the  true  nature  of  the  molecular  change  which  accom- 
panies the  thermal  treatment  of  iron  and  determines  its 
mechanical  properties,  there  is  little  doubt  but  that  there 
is  a  close  relation  between  the  action  of  foreign  elements 
and  their  atomic  volume.  F'ew  metallurgial  questions 
are  of  greater  interest  at  the  present  time  than  those 
which  relate  to  the  molecular  structure  of  metals,  and  the 
admirable  work  of  M.  Osmond  has  shown  it  to  be  very 
probable  that  the  presence  of  a  small  quantity  of  a  foreign 
metal  may  cause  a  mass  of  another  metal  to  pass  into  an 
allotropic  state.  In  relation  to  iron  and  steel  the  problems 
are  of  great  industrial  importance,  and  it  is  fortunate 
that  we  appear  to  be  nearing  the  discovery  of  a  law  in 
accordance  with  which  all  metallic  masses  are  influenced 
by  "  traces."  W.  C.  Roberts- Austen. 


SEDGWICK  AND  MURCHISON :   CAMBRIAN 
AND  SILURIAN?- 

ERRONEOUS  impressions  have  long  existed  among 
American  geologists  with  regard  to  the  relations  to 
one  another,  and  to  Cambrian  and  Silurian  geology,  of 
Sedgwick  and  Murchison.  The  Taconic  controversy  in 
this  country  served,  most  unreasonably,  to  intensify  feel-  j 
ings  respecting  these  British  fellow-workers  in  geology, 
and  draw  out  harsh  judgments.  Now  that  right  views  on 
the  American  question  have  been  reached,  it  is  desirable 
that  the  facts  connected  with  the  British  question  should 
be  understood  and  justly  appreciated. 

Sedgwick  and  Murchison  were  literally  fellow-workers 
in  their  earlier  investigations.  Prof.  John  Phillips,  in  a 
biographical  sketch  of  Sedgwick  (Nature,  vol.  vii.  p.  257), 
whose  intimate  friendship  through  fifty  years  "  he  had 
the  happiness  of  enjoying,"  speaks  thus,  in  1873,  of  their 
joint  work : — 

"  Communications  on  Arran  and  the  north  of  Scotland, 
including  Caithness  (1828)  and  the  Moray  Firth  ;  others 
on  Gosau  and  the  Eastern  Alps  (1829-31)  ;  and  still 
later,  in  1837,  a  great  memoir  on  the  Palaeozoic  strata  of 
Devonshire  and  Cornwall,  and  another  on  the  coeval 
rocks  of  Belgium  and  North  Germany,  show  the  labours 
of  these  intimate  friends  in  the  happiest  way — the  broad 
generalizations  in  which  the  Cambridge  professor  delighted, 
well  supported  by  the  indefatigable  industry  of  his  zealous 
companion." 

Prof.  Phillips  then  speaks  of  the  Cambrian  and  Silurian 
labours  "  of  two  of  the  most  truly  attached  and  mutually 
helpful  cultivators  of  geological  science  in  England." 

Of  these  Cambrian  and  Silurian  labours  it  is  my  purpose 
to  give  here  a  brief  history  derived  from  the  papers  they 
published.  They  were  begun  in  1831,  without  concert — 
Sedgwick  in  Wales,  Murchison  along  the  Welsh  and 
English  borders. 

In  September  of  183 1,  the  summer's  excursions  ended, 
Murchison  made  his  first  report  at  the  first  meeting  of 
the  British  Association.  It  was  illustrated  by  a  coloured 
geological  map  representing  the  distribution  of  the 
■"  Transition  Rocks,"  the  outlying  Old  Red  Sandstone, 
and  the  Carboniferous  limestone  (Murchison,  Report  of 
the  British  Association,  i.  91, 1831). 

These  "Transition  Rocks"  (of  Werner's  system),  up- 
turned semi-crystalline  schists,  slates,  and  other  rocks, 
passing  down  into  uncrystalline,  and  regarded  as  mostly 
non-fossiliferous,  the  ^' agnotozoic"  of  the  first  quarter  of 
the  century,  were  the  subject  of  Sedgwick's  and  Murchi- 
son's  investigations— the  older  of  the  series,  as  it  turned 
out,   being    included  in   Sedgwick's   part^     They   were 

'  Printed  from  advance  sheets  kindly  supplied  by  Prof.  Dana.  The 
article  appears  in  the  current  number  of  the  American  Journal  of  Science. 

^  Murchison  says,  in  the  introductory  chapter  of  his  ''Silurian  System," 
p.  4,  "  No  one  [in  Great  Britain,  before  his  investigations  began]  was  aware 
■of  the  existence  below  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  of  a  regular  series  of  deposits 
containing  peculiar  organic  remains."     "  From  the  days  of  De  Saussure  and 


early  resolved  into  their  constituent  formations  by 
Murchison,  and  later  as  completely  by  Sedgwick  in  his 
more  difficult  field.^ 

Already  in  March  and  April  of  1833,  Murchison  showed, 
by  his  communications  to  the  Geological  Society  of 
London,  that  he  had  made  great  progress  ;  for  the  re- 
port says  -.'^ — He  "separated  into  distinct  formations,  by 
the  evidence  of  fossils  and  the  order  of  superposition,  the 
upper  portion  of  those  vast  sedimentary  accumulations 
which  had  hitherto  been  known  only  under  the  common 
terms  of  Transition  Rocks  and  Grauwacke."  And  these 
"  distinct  formations  "  were  :  (i)  the  Upper  Ludlow  rocks  ; 
(2)  the  Wenlock  limestone  ;  (3)  the  Lower  Ludlow  rocks  ; 
(4)  Shelley  sandstones,  "which  in  Shropshire  occupy 
separate  ridges  on  the  south-eastern  flanks  of  the  VVrekin 
and  the  Caer  Caradoc " ;  (5)  the  Black  Trilobite  flag- 
stone whose  "  prevailing  Trilobite  is  the  large  Asaphus 
Buchii,  which  with  the  associated  species,"  he  observed, 
"  is  never  seen  in  any  of  the  overlying  groups " ;  and 
below  these,  (6)  Red  Conglomerate  sandstone  and  slaty 
schist  several  thousand  feet  in  thickness. 

By  the  following  January,  1834,  Murchison  was  ready 
with  a  further  report,^  in  which  he  described  the  "  four 
fossiliferous  formations"  in  detail,  and  displayed,  on  a 
folded  table  arranged  in  columns,  their  stratigraphical 
order,  thickness,  subdivisions,  localities,  and  "  charac- 
teristic organic  remains."  The  subdivisions  of  the  rock- 
series  in  the  memoir  are  as  follows,  commencing  above  : 
(I.)  Ludlow  rocks,  2000  feet ;  (II.)  Wenlock  and  Dudley 
rocks,  1800  feet  ;  (III.)  Horderley  and  May  Hill  rocks 
(afterward  named  Caradoc),  2500  feet ;  (IV.)  Builth  and 
Llandeilo  flags,  characterized  by  Asaphus  Buchn,  1200 
feet ;  and,  below  these,  (V.)  the  Longmynd  and  Gwas- 
taden  rocks,  many  thousand  feet  thick,  set  down  as 
unfossiliferous. 

Thus  far  had  Murchison  advanced  in  the  development 
of  the  Silurian  system  by  the  end  of  his  third  year. 
Upper  and  Lower  Silurian  strata  were  comprised  in  it, 
but  these  subdivisions  were  not  yet  announced. 

During  the  interval  from  183 1  to  1834,  Sedgwick  pre- 
sented to  the  British  Association  in  1832  a  verbal  com- 
munication  on  the  geology  of  Caernarvonshire,  and 
another  brief  report  of  progress  in  1833.  A  few  lines  for 
each  are  all  that  was  published.  The  difficulties  of  the 
region  were  a  reason  for  slow  and  cautious  work. 

In  1834,  as  first  stated  in  the  Journal  of  the  Geological 
Society  for  the  year  1852,  the  two  geologists  took  an 
excursion  together  over  their  respective  fields.  Sedgwick 
says  (Quarterly  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society,  viii. 
152,  1852)  :  "  I  then  studied  for  the  first  time  the  Silurian 
types  under  the  guidance  of  my  fellow-labourer  and 
friend  ;  and  I  was  so  struck  by  the  clearness  of  the 
natural  sections  and  the  perfection  of  his  workmanship, 
that  I  received,  I  might  say,  with  implicit  faith  everything 
which  he  then  taught  me."  And  further,  "  the  whole 
'Silurian  system'  was  by  its  author  placed  above  the 
great  undulating  slate-rocks  of  South  Wales."  The  geo- 
logists next  went  together  over  Sedgwick's  region,  and 

Werner,  to  our  own,  the  belief  was  impressed  on  the  minds  of  geologists  that 
the  great  dislocations  to  which  these  ancient  rocks  had  been  subjected  had 
entirely  dissevered  them  from  the  fossiliferous  strata  with  which  we  were 
acquainted." 

The  term  "  Transition  "  early  appeared  in  American  geological  writings. 
Sixty  to  seventy-five  years  ago  it  was  applied  by  Maclure,  Dewey,  and  Eann, 
to  the  rocks  ot  the  Taconic  region  and  their  contiauation  ;  for  these  were 
upturned,  apparently  unfossiliferous,  semi-crystalline  to  uncrystalline,  and 
extended  eastward  to  a  region  of  gneisses.  The  study  of  the  rocks  u  as  com- 
menced ;  but  in  1842,  before  careful  work  for  the  resolution  of  them  had  been 
d<ine — like  that  in  which  Murchison  and  Sedgwick  were  engaged — they  were, 
unfortunately,  put,  as  a  whole,  into  a  "Taconic  system"  of  assumed  pre- 
Potsdam  age  ;  at  the  same  time  "Transition"  was  shoved  west  of  the  Hud- 
son, over  rocks  that  were  horizontal,  and  already  resolved.  Owing  to  this 
forestalling  of  investigation,  and  partly  also  to  inherent  difficulties,  the  right 
determination  of  the  several  formations  comprised  in  this  Tac  -nic  or  "Tran- 
sition "  region  was  very  long  delayed. 

2  Murchison,  Proceedings  of  the  Geol.  Soc.  London,  i.  470,  474,  1833,  in  a 
paper  on  the  sedimentary  deposits  of  Shropshire  and  Herefordshire. 

3  Murchison,  Proc.  Geol.  Soc,  ii.  13,  1834.  The  subject  was  also  before 
the  British  Association  ;  Report  for  1S34,  p.  652. 


422 


NATURE 


\March  6,  1890 


the  sections  from  the  top  of  the  Berwyns  to.  Bala. 
Murchison  concluded,  after  his  brief  examination,  and 
told  Sedgwick,  that  the  Bala  group  could  not  be  brought 
within  the  limits  of  his  system.  He  says  :  "  I  believed  it 
it  to  plunge  under  the  true  Llandeilo  flags  with  Asaphus 
Buchii,  which  I  had  recognized  on  the  east  flank  of  that 
chain,"  "  Not  seeing,  on  that  hurried  visit,  any  of  the 
characteristic  Llandeilo  Trilobites  in  the  Bala  limestone, 
I  did  not  then  identify  that  rock  with  the  Llandeilo  flags, 
as  has  since  been  done  by  the  Government  surveyors " 
(O.  J.  G.  Soc,  viii.  175). 

~In  1835,  the  terms  "Silurian"  and  "Cambrian"  first 
appear  in  geological  literature.  Murchison  named  his 
system  the  "  Silurian  "  in  an  article  in  the  Philosophical 
Magazine  for  July  of  that  year,  and  at  the  same  time 
defined  the  two  grand  subdivisions  of  the  system :  (I.) 
the  Upper  Silurian,  or  the  Ludlow  and  Wenlock  beds  ; 
and  (11.)  the  lower  Silurian,  or  the  Caradoc  and  Llandeilo 
beds  {Phil.  Mag.,  vii.  46,  July  1835). 

During  the  next  month,  August,  the  fourth  meeting  of 
the  British  Association  was  held  at  Edinburgh,  and  in 
the  Report  of  the  meeting  (Brit.  Assoc,  v.,  August  1835), 
the  two  terms,  "  Silurian  "  and  "  Cambrian,"  are  united 
in  the  title  of  a  communication  "by  Prof  Sedgwick  and 
R.  I.  Murchison,"  the  title  reading,  "  On  the  Silurian  and 
Cambrian  Systems,  exhibiting  the  order  in  which  the 
older  sedimentry  strata  succeed  each  other  in  England 
and  Wales."  Murchison,  after  explaining  his  several 
subdivisions,  said  that  "  in  South  Wales"  he  had  "traced 
many  distinct  passages  from  the  lowest  member  of  the 
"  Silurian  system "  into  the  underlying  slaty  rocks  now 
named  by  Prof.  Sedgwick  the  Upper  Cambrian."  Sedg- 
wick spoke  of  his  "  Upper  Cambrian  group  "  as  including 
the  greater  part  of  the  chain  of  the  Berwyns,  where,  he 
said,  "  it  is  connected  with  the  Llandeilo  flags  of  the 
Silurian  and  expanded  through  a  considerable  part  of 
South  Wales";  the  "Middle  Cambrian  group"  as 
"  comprising  the  higher  mountains  of  Caernarvonshire 
and  Merionethshire";  the  "Lower  Cambrian  group"  as 
occupying  the  south-west  coast  of  Caernarvonshire,  and 
consisting  of  chlorite  and  mica  schists,  and  some  serpen- 
tine and  granular  limestone  ;  and  finally,  he  "  explained 
the  mode  of  connecting  Mr.  Murchison's  researches  with 
his  own  so  as  to  form  one  general  system." 

Thus,  in  four  years  Murchison  had  developed  the  true 
system  in  the  rocks  he  was  studying ;  and  Sedgwick  like- 
wise had  reached  what  appeared  to  be  a  natural  grouping 
of  the  rocks  of  his  complicated  area.  Further,  in  a  united 
paper,  or  papers  presented  together,  they  had  announced 
the  names  Silurian  and  Cambrian,  and  expressed  their 
mutual  satisfaction  with  the  defined  limits.  Neither  was 
yet  aware  of  the  unfortunate  mischief-involving  fact  that 
the  two  were  overlapping  series. 

It  is  well  here  to  note  that  tJie  term  "  Cambrian  "  ante- 
dates "  Taconic"  of  Enwions  by  seven  year^j  and  also 
that  Emmons  did  not  know — any  more  than  Sedgwick 
with  regard  to  the  Cambrian — that  his  system  of  rocks 
was  in  part  Lower  Silurian,  and  of  Llandeilo  and  Caradoc 
age. 

In  May  of  1 838,  nearly  three  years  later,  Sedgwick 
presented  his  first  detailed  memoir  on  North  Wales  and 
the  Cambrian  rocks  to  the  Geological  Society.^  Without 
referring  to  the  characteristic  fossils,  he  divides  the  rocks 
below  the  Old  Red  Sandstone,  beginning  below,  into  (I.) 
the  Primary  Stratified  Groups,  including  gneiss,  mica- 
schist,  and  the  Skiddaw  slates,  giving  the  provisional 
name  of  "  Protozoic  "  for  the  series  should  it  prove  to  be 
fossiliferous,  and  (II.)  the  Palaeozoic  Series  ;  the  latter 
including  (i)  the  Lower  Cambrian  (answering  to  Middle 
Cambrian  of  the  paper  of  1835),  (2)  the  Upper  Cambrian, 
and  (3)  the  "  Silurian,''  or  the  series  so  called  by  Muithi. 

^  An  abstract  appeared  in  the  Proc.  Geo].  Soc,  ii.  675,  1838.  A  continua- 
tion of  the  paper  appeared  in  i8ii,  ibid.,  iii.  541.  See  also  Q.  J.  Geol.  Soc, 
viii.,  1852. 


son.  Without  a  report  on  the  fossils,  no  comparison  was 
possible  at  that  time  with  Murchison's  Silurian  series. 
Yet  Sedgwick  goes  so  far  as  to  say  that  the  "  Upper 
Cambrian,"  which  "commences  with  the  fossiliferous 
beds  of  Bala,  and  includes  all  the  higher  portions  of  the 
Berwyns  and  all  the  slate-rocks  of  South  Wales  which 
are  below  the  Silurian  System,"  "appears  to  pass  by 
insensible  gradation  into  the  lower  division  of  the  Upper 
System  (the  Caradoc  Sandstone)  ; "  and  that  "  many  of 
the  fossils  are  identical  in  species  with  those  of  the 
Silurian  System."  '  Respecting  the  Silurian  System  he 
refers  to  the  abstracts  of  Mr.  Murchison's  papers  and 
"  his  forthcoming  work." 

The  Protozoic  division  included  the  "  Highlands  of 
Scotland,  the  crystalline  schists  of  Anglesea,  and  the 
south-west  coast  of  Caernarvonshire."  It  is  added  : 
"  The  series  is  generally  without  organic  remains  ;  but 
should  organic  remains  appear  unequivocally  in  any  part 
of  this  class  they  may  be  described  as  the  Protozoic 
System." 

In  the  later  part  of  the  same  year,  1838,  Murchison's 
"  Silurian  System  "  was  published  ^ — a  quarto  volume  of 
800  pages,  with  twenty- seven  plates  of  fossils,  and  nine 
folded  plates  of  stratigraphical  sections,  besides  many 
plates  in  the  text— the  outcome  of  his  eight  years  of 
work.  Five  hundred  pages  are  devoted  to  the  Silurian 
System. 

The  dedication  is  as  follows  : — 

"  To  you,  my  dear  Sedgwick,  a  large  portion  of  whose 
life  has  been  devoted  to  the  arduous  study  of  the  older 
British  rocks,  I  dedicate  this  work. 

"  Having  explored  with  you  many  a  tract,  both  at  home 
and  abroad,  I  beg  you  to  accept  this  offering  as  a  memorial 
of  friendship,  and  of  the  high  sense  I  entertain  of  the  value 
of  your  labours." 

Through  Murchison's  investigations  here  recorded,  as 
he  remarks  in  his  introduction  with  reasonable  satisfac- 
tion, "a  complete  succession  of  fossiliferous  strata  is 
interpolated  between  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  and  the 
oldest  slaty  rocks."  He  observes  as  follows  of  Sedg- 
wick : — "  In  speaking  of  the  labours  of  my  friend,  I  may 
truly  say,  that  he  not  only  shed  an  entirely  new  light  on 
the  crystalline  arrangement  or  slaty  cleavage  of  the  North 
Welsh  mountains,  but  also  overcame  what  to  rnost  men 
would  have  proved  insurmountable  difficulties  in  deter- 
mining the  order  and  relations  of  these  very  ancient 
strata  amid  scenes  of  vast  dislocation.  He  further  made 
several  traverses  across  the  region  in  which  I  was  em- 
ployed ;  and,  sanctioning  the  arrangement  I  had  adopted, 
he  not  only  gave  me  confidence  in  its  accuracy,  but 
enhanced  the  value  of  my  work  by  enabling  me  to  unite 
it  with  his  own  ;  and  thus  have  our  joint  exertions  led  to 
a  general  view  of  the  sequence  of  the  older  fossiliferous 
deposits."  In  accordance  with  these  statements  many  of 
the  descriptions  and  the  very  numerous  sections  represent 
the  Cambrian  rocks  lying  beneath  the  Silurian— though 
necessarily  with  incorrect  details,  since  neither  Murchi- 
son nor  Sedgwick  had  then  any  appreciation  of  the 
actual  connection  between  the  so-called  Cambrian  and 
Silurian. 

The  Silurian  System,  as  here  set  forth,  is  essentially 
that  of  Murchison's  earlier  paper  of  1835  ;  and  through 
the  work,  as  each  region  is  taken  up,  the  rocks  of  the 
Upper  and  Lower  divisions,  and  their  several  subdivisions, 
are  described  in  order,  with  a  mention  of  the  character- 
istic fossils.  As  to  the  relations  of  the  two  grand  divi- 
sions, he  says  that,  "  although   two  or  three  species  of 

'  Of  these  fossils,  he  had  mentioned  '' BelleroJ>hon  bilobatits,  Frodiida 
sericea,  and  several  species  of  Orthis"  as  occurring  in  the  Bala  limestone, 
"  all  of  which  are  common  to  the  Lower  Silurian  System,  in  a  syllabus  oi 
his  Cambridge  lectures,  published  in  1837.  ■      ,  .      a  „ 

-  Murchison's  "  Silurian  System  "  bears  on  its  title-page  the  date  i8:,9. 
He  states  m  the  Q.J.  Geol.  Soc,  viii.  177,  1852,  that  the  work  was  really 
issued  in  1838.  The  fossil  fishes  of  the  volume  were  described  by  Agassi/, 
the  Trilobites  by  Murchison,  and  the  rest  of  the  species  by  Sowerby. 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


423 


shells  of  the  Upper  Silurian  rocks  may  be  detected  in  the 
Lower  Silurian,  the  mass  of  organic  remains  in  each 
i^roup  is  very  distinct."  Later  he  makes  the  number  of 
identical  species  larger  ;  but  even  the  newest  results  do 
not  increase  it  so  far  as  to  set  aside  Murchison's  general 
statement  of  1838. 

Sedgwick,  with  all  the  light  which  the  fossils  of  the 
"  Silurian  System "  were  calculated  to  throw  on  his 
Upper  Cambrian  series,  found  in  the  work  no  encroach- 
ments on  his  field  or  on  his  views.  They  were  still  side 
by  side  in  their  labours  among  the  hitherto  unfathomed 
British  Palaeozoic  rocks. 

In  1840  and  1841,  Murchison  was  in  Russia  with  M.  de 
Verneuil  and  Count  Keyserling,  and  also  in  Scandinavia 
and  Bohemia,  seeking  to  extend  his  knowledge  of  the 
older  fossiliferous  rocks  and  verify  his  conclusions  ;  and 
in  1845  the  great  work  on  the  "  Geology  of  Russia  and 
the  Urals"  came  out,  with  a  further  display  of  Upper  and 
Lower  Silurian  life.  In  his  Presidential  addresses  of 
1842  and  1843,  reviewing  the  facts  in  the  light  of  his  new 
observations,  he  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  the  Lower 
vSilurian  rocks  were  the  oldest  of  fossiliferous  rocks,  and 
that  the  fossiliferous  series  of  North  Wales  seemed  to 
exhibit  no  vestiges  of  animal  life  different  from  those  of 
the  Lower  Silurian  group. 

Still  Sedgwick  made  no  protest.  He  states  definitely 
on  this  point  in  his  paper  of  1852  (O.  J.  Geol.  Soc,  viii. 
153,  1852),  that  from  1834,  the  time  of  the  excursion  with 
Murchison,  until  1842,  he  had  accepted  Murchison's  con- 
clusions, including  the  reference  of  the  Meifod  beds  to 
the  Caradoc  or  Silurian,  without  questioning  ;  but  that 
from  that  time,  1842,  he  began  to  lose  his  confidence  in 
the  stability  of  the  base-line  of  the  "  Silurian  System." 
He  adds  that  in  1842,  Mr.  Salter,  the  palaeontologist,  in- 
formed him  that  the  Meifod  beds  were  on  the  same 
horizon  nearly  with  the  Bala  beds  ;  and  he  accepted  this 
conclusion  to  its  full  extent,  using  the  words,  "  if  the 
Meifod  beds  were  Caradoc,  the  Bala  beds  must  also  be 
Caradoc  or  very  nearly  on  its  parallel."  Thus  the  infer- 
ence of  Murchison  was  adopted,  and  discrepancy  between 
them  deferred.  And  on  the  following  page  he  acknow- 
ledges that  all  his  papers  of  which  there  is  any  notice  in 
the  Proceedings  or  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society 
between  1843  and  1846  admit  this  view  as  to  the  Bala 
beds  and  certain  consequences  of  it — "mistakes,'' as  he 
pronounced  them  six  years  later,  in  1852  (Q.J.  Geol.  Soc, 
viii.  154,  1852). 

In  1843,  Sedgwick  read  before  the  Geological  Society 
in  June,  a  paper  entitled  "An  Outline  of  the  Geological 
Structure  of  North  Wales,"  which  was  published  in 
abstract  in  the  Proceedings  (iv.  251)  ;  and  in  November 
of  the  same  year,  one  "  On  the  Older  Palaeozoic  (Proto- 
zoic)  Rocks  of  North  Wales  "  (from  observations  by  him- 
self in  company  with  Mr.  Salter),  which  appeared,  with  a 
map,  in  the  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society  (i.  i).  The 
abstract  in  the  Proceedings  was  prepared  by  Mr.  War- 
burton,  the  President  of  the  Geological  Society,  and  the 
paper  of  the  following  November  makes  no  allusion  to 
this  fact,  or  any  objection  to  the  abstract. 

A  remarkable  feature  of  the  November  paper  is  that  it 
nowhere  contains  the  term  "  Upper  Cambrian  "  or  even 
*'  Cambrian,"  although  the  rocks  are  Sedgwick's  Upper 
Cambrian,  together  with  Murchison's  Upper  Silurian. 

A  second  fact  of  historical  interest  is  the  use  of  the 
term  "  Protozoic,"  not  in  the  sense  in  which  it  was  intro- 
duced by  him  in  1838,  but  in  that  in  which  introduced  in 
1838  by  Murchison,  on  p.  11  of  his  "Silurian  System," 
where  he  says  : — 

"  But  the  Silurian,  though  ancient,  are  not,  as  before 
stated,  the  inost  ancient  fossiliferous  strata.  They  are,  in 
truth,  but  the  upper  portion  of  a  succession  of  early 
deposits  which  it  may  hereafter  be  found  necessary  to 
describe  under  one  comprehensive  name.  For  this  pur- 
pose I   venture  to  suggest  the  term  *  Protozoic  Rocks 


thereby  to  imply  the  first  or  lowest  formations  in  which 
animals  or  vegetables  appear." 

These  facts  are  in  accordance  with  Sedgwick's  ac- 
knowledgment, already  mentioned. 

The  map  accompanying  the  paper  as  originally  pre- 
pared, had  colours  corresponding  to  five  sets  of  areas, 
those  of  the  "  Carboniferous  Limestone,"  "  Upper  Silu- 
rian," "  Protozoic  Rocks,"  "  Mica  and  Chlorite  Slate," 
"  Porphyritic  Rocks"  ;  and  here  again  Cambrian,  Upper 
or  Lower,  does  not  appear,  the  term  Protozoic  being 
substituted.  The  map,  as  it  stands  in  the  Journal  of  the 
Geological  Society,  has,  in  place  of  simply  "  Protozoic,"' 
the  words  "  Lower  Silurian  (Protozoic)."  Sedgwick  com- 
plains, in  his  paper  of  1852,  pp.  154,  155,  of  this  change 
from  his  manuscript,  and  attributes  it  to  Mr.  Warburton, 
saying  that  "  the  map  with  its  explanations  of  the  colours 
plainly  shows  that  Mr.  Warburton  did  not  comprehend 
the  very  drift  and  object  of  my  paper."  "  I  gave  one 
colour  to  this  whole  Protozoic  series  only  because  I  did 
not  know  how  to  draw  a  clear  continuous  line  on  the  map 
between  the  Upper  Protozoic  (or  Lower  Silurian)  rocks 
and  the  Lower  Protozoic  (or  Lower  Cambrian)  rocks." 
"  Nor  did  I  ever  dream  of  an  incorporation  of  all  the 
Lower  Cambrian  rocks  in  the  system  of  Siluria."  Sedg- 
wick also  says  on  the  same  point :  "  I  used  the  word 
'  Protozoic '  to  prevent  wrangling  about  the  words  Cam- 
brian and  Silurian."  But  this  is  language  he  had  no 
disposition  to  use  in  1843,  as  the  paper  of  1843  shows. 

Page  155  has  a  footnote.  In  it  the  aspect  of  the 
facts  is  greatly  changed.  He  takes  back  his  charges, 
saying,  "  I  suspect  that,  in  the  explanation  of  the  blank 
portion  of  the  rough  map  exhibited  in  illustration  of 
my  paper  I  had  written  '  Lower  Silurian  and  Protozoic,' 
and  that  Mr.  Warburton,  erroneously  conceiving  the 
two  terms  identical,  changed  the  words  into  Lower 
Silurian  (Protozoic)."  "  I  do  not  by  any  means  accuse 
Mr,  Warburton  of  any  ititcntional  injustice — quite  the 
contrary  ;  for  I  know  that  he  gave  his  best  efforts  to  the 
abstract.  But  he  had  undertaken  a  task  for  which  he 
was  not  prepared,  inasmuch  as  he  had  never  well  studied 
any  series  of  rocks  like  those  described  in  my  papers." 
Sedgwick  here  uses  Protozoic  in  the  Sedgwick  sense, 
not,  as  above,  in  the  Murchison  sense.  Sedgwick  again, 
in  1854,  speaks  of  "the  tampering  with  the  names  of  my 
reduced  map."  But  these  explanations  of  his  should 
take  the  harshness  out  of  the  sentence,  as  it  was  in  1843 
to  1846  out  of  all  his  words. 

The  paper  has  further  interest  in  its  long  lists  of  fossils 
in  two  tables  :  (I.)  "  Fossils  of  the  Older  Palaeozoic  (Pro- 
tozoic) Rocks  in  North  Wales,  by  J.  W.  Salter  and  J. 
de  C.  Sowerby,"  showing  their  distribution  ;  and  (2)  "  Fos- 
sils of  the  Denbigh  Flagstone  and  Sandstone  Series." 

Thus,  until  1846,  no  serious  divergence  of  views  had 
been  noted  by  Sedgwick.  This  is  manifested  in  his 
paper  on  the  "  Slate-rocks  of  Cumberland,"  read  before  the 
Geological  Society  on  January  7  and  21,  1846  (Q  J.  Geol. 
Soc,  ii.  106,  122,  1846),  which  says,  on  the  la^t  page  but 
one :  "  Taking  the  whole  view  of  the  case,  therefore,  as 
I  know  it,  I  would  divide  the  older  Palaeozoic  rocks  of 
our  island  into  three  great  groups — (3)  the  upper  group, 
exclusively  Upper  Silurian;  (2)  the  middle  group,  or 
Lower  Silurian^  including  Llandeilo,  Caradoc,  and  per- 
haps Wenlock  ;  (i)  the  first  group,  or  Cambrian;"  dif- 
fering in  this  arrangement  from  Murchison  only  in  the 
suggestion  about  the  Wenlock.  The  italics  are  his  own. 
He  adds :  — 

"This  arrangement  does  no  violence  to  the  Silurian 
system  of  Sir  R.  Murchison,  but  takes  it  up  in  its  true 
place  ;  and  I  think  it  enables  us  to  classify  the  old  rocks 
in  such  a  way  as  to  satisfy  the  conditions  both  of  the 
fossil  and  physical  as  well  as  mineralogical  development." 

But  before  the  year  1846  closed,  not  only  the  overlap- 
ping of  their  work  was  recognized,  but  also  the  conse- 
quences ahead,  and  divergence  of  opinion  began. 


1 


424 


NA  TURE 


[March  6,  1890 


In  December  a  paper  was  presented  by  Sedgwick  to 
the  Geological  Society,  on  "  The  Fossiliferous  Slates 
of  North  Wales,  Cumberland,  Westmoreland,  and  Lanca- 
shire "  (Q.  J.  Geol.  Soc,  iii.  133,  December  1846),  which 
contains  a  protest  against  the  downward  extension  of  the 
Silurian  so  as  to  include  the  Cambrian.  It  is  excellent 
in  spirit  and  fair  in  argument.  Many  new  facts  are  given 
respecting  sections  of  the  rocks  in  South  Wales  and  North 
Wales,  in  some  of  which  occur  the  Lingula  flags,  and 
characteristic  fossils  are  mentioned.  In  describing  some 
South  Wales  sections,  Sedgwick  uses  the  term  "  Cambro- 
Silurian  "  to  include,  beginning  below:  (i)  "  conglomerates 
and  slates,  (2)  Lower  Llandeilo  flags,  (3)  slates  and  grits 
(Caradoc  sandstone  of  Noeth  Grug,  &c.),  (4)  Upper 
Llandeilo  flag,  passing  by  insensible  gradations  into  Wen- 
lock  shale."  The  Cambrian  series  is  made  to  include  : 
(i)  the  Festiniog  or  Tremadoc  group  ;  (2)  roofing-slates, 
&c.,  the  "  Snowdonian  group,"  fossiliferous  in  Snowdon, 
&c. ;  (3)  the  Bala  group;  andthen(4)"theCambro-Silurian 
group,"  comprising  "  the  lower  fossiliferous  rocks  east  of 
the  Berwyns  between  the  Dee  and  the  Severn — the  Cara- 
doc sandstone  of  the  typical  country  of  Siluria — and  the 
Llandeilo  flags  of  South  Wales,  along  with  certain  asso- 
ciated slates,  flags,  and  grits."  The  extension  of  the 
term  Silurian  down  to  the  Lingula  flags,  or  beyond,  is 
opposed,  because  the  beds  below  the  Llandeilo  are  not 
part  of  the  Silurian  system  ;  the  term  Silurian  [derived 
from  the  Silures  of  South-East  Wales  and  the  adjoining 
part  of  England]  is  not  geographically  applicable  to  the 
Cambrian  rocks  ;  and  because  the  only  beds  in  North 
Wales  closely  comparable  "  with  the  Llandeilo  flags  are 
at  the  top  of  the  whole  Cambrian  series."  This  last 
reason  later  lost  its  value  when  it  was  proved,  as  Sedg- 
wick recognized  years  afterward,  that  Murchison's  Llan- 
deilo flags  were  really  older  than  Sedgwick's  Bala  rocks. 

Sedgwick's  paper  was  followed,  on  January  6,  with  one 
by  Murchison  (O.  J.  Geol.  Soc,  iii.  165,  January  1847) 
objecting  to  this  absorption  of  the  Lower  Silurian,  and 
reiterating  his  remark  of  1843  that  the  fossiliferous  Cam- 
brian beds  were  Lower  Silurian  in  their  fossils,  and 
arguing,  thence,  for  the  absorption  of  the  Cambrian,  to 
this  extent,  by  the  Silurian.  Having,  eight  years  before, 
in  his  great  work  on  the  "  Silurian  System,"  described 
the  Lower  Silurian  groups  with  so  much  detail,  and 
with  limits  well  defined  by  sections  and  by  long  lists  of 
fossils,  over  a  hundred  species  in  all,  many  of  them 
figured  as  well  as  described,  and  having  thus  added  a 
long  systematized  range  of  rocks  to  the  lower  part  of  the 
Palaeozoic  series,  he  was  naturally  unwilling  to  give  up  the 
name  of  Lower  Silurian  for  that  of  Upper  Cambrian  or 
Cambro- Silurian.  Moreover,  the  term  "  Silurian,"  with 
the  two  subdivisions  of  the  system,  the  Upper  and  Lower, 
had  gone  the  world  over,  having  been  accepted  by  geo- 
logists of  all  lands  as  soon  as  proposed,  become  affixed 
to  the  rocks  to  which  they  belonged,  and  put  into  use  in 
memoirs,  maps,  and  geological  treatises. 

In  1852,  the  controversy,  begun  by  encroachments,  not 
intended  on  either  part,  reached  its  height.  Sedgwick's 
earnest  presentation  of  the  case  (Q.  J.  Geol.  Soc,  viii. 
152),  and  appeal  before  the  Geological  Society  in 
P^ebruary  of  that  year — making  the  latter  part  of  a 
memoir  by  him  on  the  "  Classification  and  Nomen- 
clature of  the  Lower  Palaeozoic  Rocks  of  England  and 
Wales" — argues,  like  that  of  1846,  for  the  extension  of 
the  Cambrian  from  below  upward  to  include  the  Bala 
beds,  and  thereby  also  the  Llandeilo  flags  and  Caradoc 
sandstone,  although  he  says,  "  my  friend  has  published  a 
magnificent  series  of  fossils  from  the  Llandeilo  flag- 
stone." Sedgwick  also  expresses  dissatisfaction  with 
Mr.  Warburton's  abstract  of  his  paper  of  June  1843, 
and  with  the  change  made  in  his  map  of  November 
1843,  but,  as  shown  above,  he  has  no  blame  for 
Murchison  and  little  for  Mr.  Warburton.  He  also  points 
out   some   errors   in   the   stratigraphical  sections  of  the 


"  Silurian  System  " — since  the  pubhcation  of  which 
fourteen  years  had  passed.  He  closes  with  the  words 
(p.  168) :- 

"  I  affirm  that  the  name  '  Silurian,'  given  to  the  great 
Cambrian  series  below  the  Caradoc  group,  is  historically 
unjust.  I  claim  this  great  series  as  my  own  by  the  un- 
doubted right  of  conquest  ;  and  I  continue  to  give  it  the 
name  '  Cambrian '  on  the  right  of  priority,  and,  moreover, 
as  the  only  name  yet  given  to  the  series  that  does  not 
involve  a  geographical  contradiction.  The  name  'Silurian' 
not  merely  involves  a  principle  of  nomenclature  that  is  at 
war  with  the  rational  logic  through  which  every  other 
Palaeozoic  group  of  England  has  gained  a  permanent 
name,  but  it  also  confers  the  presumed  honour  of  a  con- 
quest over  the  older  rocks  of  Wales  on  the  part  of  one 
who  barely  touched  their  outskirts,  and  mistook  his  way 
as  soon  as  he  had  passed  within  them. 

"  I  claim  the  right  of  naming  the  Cambrian  rocks  be- 
cause I  flinched  not  from  their  difficulties,  made  out  their 
general  structure,  collected  their  fossils,  and  first  com- 
prehended their  respective  relations  to  the  groups  above 
them  and  belov/  them,  in  the  great  and  complicated 
Palaeozoic  sections  of  North  Wales.  Nor  is  this  all,  — I 
claim  the  name  Cambrian,  in  the  sense  in  which  I  have 
used  it,  as  a  means  of  establishing  a  congruous  nomencla- 
ture between  the  Welsh  and  the  Cumbrian  mountains,  and 
bringing  their  respective  groups  into  a  rigid  geological 
comparison  ;  for  the  system  on  which  I  have  for  many 
years  been  labouring  is  not  partial  and  one-sided,  but 
general  and  for  all  England." 

Sedgwick  does  not  seem  to  have  recognized  the  fact 
that  Muichison  had  the  same  right  to  extend  the  Silurian 
system  to  the  base  of  the  Llandeilo  beds,  whatever  its 
horizon,  that  he  had  to  continue  the  Cambrian  to  the  top' 
of  the  Bala  beds.^ 

Murchison's  reply  was  made  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Geological  Society  in  June  (O.  J.  Geol.  Soc,  viii.  173, 
1852).  He  remarked,  with  regard  to  Sedgwick's  allusion 
to  the  excursion  of  1834,  that,  "if  I  lost  my  way  in  going 
downward  into  the  region  of  my  friend,  it  was  under  his 
own  guidance  ;  I  am  answerable  only  for  Silurian  and 
Cambrian  rocks  described  and  drawn  as  such  within  my 
own  region." 

In  his  closing  remarks  Murchison  says  : — 

"  I  am  now  well  pleased  to  find  that,  with  the  exceptiork 
of  my  old  friend,  all  my  geological  contemporaries  in  my 
own  country  adhere  to  the  unity  of  the  Silurian  System,, 
and  thus  sustain  its  general  adoption. 

"  No  one  more  regrets  than  myself  that  Cambrian 
should  not  have  proved,  what  it  was  formerly  supposed  to- 
be,  more  ancient  than  the  Silurian  region,  and  thus  have 
afforded  distinct  fossils  and  a  separate  system  ;  but  as 
things  which  are  synonymous  cannot  have  separate  names,, 
there  is  no  doubt  that,  according  to  the  laws  of  scientific 
literature,  the  term  'Silurian'  must  be  sustained  as 
applied  to  all  the  fossiliferous  rocks  of  North  Wales. 

"  Lastly,  let  me  say  to  those  who  do  not  understand  the 
nature  of  the  social  union  of  the  members  of  the  Geo- 
logical Society,  that  the  controversy  which  has  prevailed 
between  the  eloquent  Woodwardian  Professor  and  myself 
has  not  for  a  moment  interrupted  our  strong  personal 
friendship.  I  am  indeed  confident  we  shall  slide  down 
the  hill  of  life  with  the  same  mutual  regard  which  animated 
us  formerly  when  climbing  together  many  a  mountain 
both  at  home  and  abroad." 

Murchison  was  right  in  saying  that  all  British  geologists 
were  then  with  him,  even  in  the  extension  of  the  name 
Silurian  to  the  lower  fossiliferous  Cambrian  rocks  ;  and 
this  was  a  chief  source  of  irritation  to  Sedgwick.  It  was 
also,  with  scarcely  an  exception,  true  of  geologists  else- 

'  One  important  fact  is  pointed  out  in  this  paper  in  a  letter  from  M'Coyr 
on  p.  143 — that  the  May  Hill  group,  which  Murchison  had  referred  t°  V*-^ 
Caradoc  series,  really  belonged  by  its  fossils  to  the  Upper  Silurian.  T**'* 
point  was  the  subject  of  a  paper  by  Sedgwick  in  the  next  volume  (vol.  ix.)  ot 
the  Journal  of  the  Geological  Society. 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


425 


where.  This  state  of  opinion  was  partly  a  consequence 
of  Murchison's  early  and  wonderfully  full  description  of 
the  Silurian  rocks  and  their  fossils,  which  made  his  work 
a  key  to  the  Lower  Palaeozoic  of  all  lands.  Sedgwick's 
Cambrian  researches  and  the  palaeontology  of  the  region 
were  not  published  in  full  before  the  years  1852-55, 
when  appeared  his  "  Synopsis  of  the  Classification  of  the 
British  Palaeozoic  Rocks,"  along  with  M'Coy's  "  Descrip- 
tions of  British  Palaeozoic  Fossils.'" 

But  this  general  acceptance  was  further  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  discovered  fossils  of  the  Cambrian,  from  the 
Lingula  flags  downward,  or  the  "  Primordial,"  were  few, 
and  differed  not  more  from  Silurian  forms  than  the 
Silurian  differed  among  themselves  ;  and  also,  because 
the  beds  were  continuous  with  the  Silurian,  without  a 
break.  Geologists  under  the  weight  of  the  evidence, 
American  as  well  as  European,  naturally  gravitated  in 
the  Murchisonian  direction,  while  applauding  the  work  of 
Sedgwick. 

In  1853,  Mr.  Salter  showed,  by  a  study  of  the  fossils 
(Q.  J.  Geol.  Soc,  X.  62),  that  the  Bala  beds  from  Bala  in 
Merioneth,  the  original  Bala,  were  included  within  the 
period  of  the  Caradoc.  Sedgwick  subsequently  (in  the 
preface  to  the  Catalogue  of  the  Woodwardian  Museum 
by  J.  W.  Salter)  divided  his  Upper  Cambrian  into  (i) 
the  Lower  Bala,  to  include  the  Llandeilo  flags  (Upper 
Llandeilo  of  the  Geological  Survey,  the  Arenig  being  the 
Lower) ;  (2)  the  Middle  Bala,  corresponding  to  the 
Caradoc  sandstone,  the  Bala  rocks,  and  the  Coniston 
limestone  (Geological  Survey) ;  and  the  Upper  Bala  or 
the  Caradoc  shales,  Hirnant  limestone,  and  the  Lower 
Llandovery  (cited  from  Etheridge,  in  Phillips's  "  Geology," 
ii.  Ti,  1885). 

In  1854,  the  Cambrian  system  not  having  secured  the 
place  claimed  for  it,  Sedgwick  brought  the  subject  again 
before  the  Geological  Society.  Besides  urging  his  former 
arguments,  he  condemned  Murchison's  work  so  far  as  to 
imply  that  none  of  his  sections  "give  a  true  notion  of  the 
geological  place  of  the  groups  of  Caer  Caradoc  and 
Llandeilo  "  ;  and  to  speak  of  the  Llandeilo  beds,  in  a 
note,  as  "  a  remarkable  fossiliferous  group  (about  the  age 
of  the  Bala  limestone)  of  which  the  geological  place  was 
entirely  mistaken  in  the  published  sections  of  the  Silurian 
System."  There  were  errors  in  the  sections,  and  that 
with  regard  to  the  May  Hill  group  was  a  prominent  one  ; 
but  this  was  sweeping  depreciation  without  new  argument ; 
and,  in  consequence  of  it,  part  of  the  paper  was  refused 
publication  by  the  Geological  Society. 

The  paper  appeared  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine  for 
1854  (fourth  series,  vol.  viii.  pp.  301,  359,  481).  It 
contains  no  bitter  word,  or  personal  remark  against 
Murchison.  Sedgwick  was  profoundly  disappointed  on  find- 
ing, when  closing  up  his  long  labours,  that  the  Cambrian 
system  had  no  place  in  the  geology  of  the  day.  He  did 
not  see  this  to  be  the  logical  consequence  of  the  facts  so 
far  as  then  understood.  It  was  to  him  the  disparagement 
and  rejection  of  his  faithful  work  ;  and  this  deeply  moved 
him,  even  to  estrangement  from  the  author  of  the  success- 
ful Silurian  system. 

Conclusion. 
The  ground  about  which  there  was  reasonably  a 
disputed  claim  was  that  of  the  Bala  of  Sedgwick's  region 
and  the  Llandeilo  and  Caradoc  of  Murchison's.  Respect- 
ing this  common  field,  long  priority  in  the  describing  and 
defining  of  the  Llandeilo  and  Caradoc  beds,  both  geo- 
logically and  palaeontologically,  leaves  no  question  as  to 
Murchison's  title.  Below  this  level  lie  the  rocks  studied 
chiefly  by  Sedgwick  ;  and  if  a  dividing  horizon  of  suffi- 
cient geological  value  had  been  found  to  exist,  it  should 
have  been  made  the  limit  between  a  Cambrian  and  a 
Silurian  system. 

The  claim  of  a  worker  to  affix  a  name  to  a  series  of 
rocks  first  studied  and  defined  by  him  cannot  be  disputed. 
But  science  may  accept,  or  not,  according  as  the  name  is. 


or  is  not,  needed.  In  the  progress  of  geology,  the  time 
finally  was  reached,  when  the  name  Cambrian  was  be- 
lieved to  be  a  necessity,  and  "  Cambrian  "  and  "  Silurian" 
derived  thence  a  right  to  follow  one  another  in  the 
geological  record. 

"  To  follow  one  another  ;  "  that  is,  directly,  without  a 
suppression  of  "  Silurian  "  from  the  name  of  the  lower 
subdivision  by  intruding  the  term  "  Ordovician,"  or  any 
other  term.  For  this  is  virtually  appropriating  what  is 
claimed  (though  not  so  intended),  and  does  marked  in- 
justice to  one  of  the  greatest  of  British  geologists. 
Moreover,  such  an  intruded  term  commemorates,  with 
harsh  emphasis,  misjudgments  and  their  consequences, 
which  are  better  forgotten.  Rather  let  the  two  names, 
standing  together  as  in  1835,  recall  the  fifteen  years  of 
friendly  labours  in  Cambria  and  Siluria  and  the  other 
earlier  years  of  united  research.  James  D.  Dana. 


THE  WEATHER  IN  JANUARY. 

THE  month  of  January,  which  is  generally  the  coldest 
month  of  the  year,  was  so  exceptionally  warm  this 
year,  and  in  other  ways  the  whole  period  was  so  un- 
usual, that  a  few  of  the  leading  features  in  connection 
with  the  weather  may  not  be  without  interest.  The  month 
opened  with  a  short  spell  of  frost,  but,  after  the  first  few 
days,  mild  weather  set  in,  and  continued  until  the  close 
of  the  month. 

The  stations  used  by  the  Meteorological  Office  in  the 
compilation  of  the  Daily  Weather  Report  scarcely  repre- 
sent sufficiently  the  weather  at  inland  stations,  but  yet 
they  will  give  an  approximate  idea  of  the  prevailing  con- 
ditions. These  reports  show  that  the  warmest  weather 
was  experienced  in  the  south-western  parts  of  the  King- 
dom, the  stations  in  the  north-east  of  Scotland  being 
about  5°  colder  than  in  the  south-west  of  England.  On^ 
the  east  coast  the  mean  temperatures  of  Wick,  Aberdeen, 
Spurn  Head,  and  Yarmouth  were  each  about  41°  o. 

The  following  table  gives  the  mean  temperature  results 
for  a  number  of  stations  in  all  parts  of  the  British 
Islands: — 


« 

lU 

t) 

°0 

°« 

c 

tm 

be  . 

M 

"s 

1 

^  in 

s  p. 

3 
.1 

is 

6 

3 

^0 

J2    0 

Station. 

i" 

000 

■g 

0  00 

■Si 

be" 

E 

V  wT 

M    W 

u  oT 

'o'a 

i^-O 

0 

0  fc. 

e 

St 

s 

S 

0  c 

u  « 

% 

s 

Q 

(3 

2; 

4 

3 

Wick 

40-5 

+  2-8 

45-2 

+  3-0 

357 

+  27 

8 

Nairn 

41  6 

+4-3 

47-1 

+  5-2 

36-1 

+  3-4 

13 

4 

Aberdeen 

41-1 

+  3-2 

45-6 

+  3-2 

365 

+  32 

7 

4 

Leith 

42'2 

+  3-0 

48-2 

+  3-6 

362 

+  2-5 

15 

9 

Shields       

42-3 

+  3*4 

+7-8 

+  47 

368 

+  2-1 

14. 

5 

York 

41-8 

+  3-6 

47-9 

+  47 

35-6 

+  2-5 

15 

8 

Loughborough 

42*2 

+  4'o 

48-4 

+  4*9 

36-0 

+  31 

17 

6 

Ardrossan 

43 '6 

+  3-2 

47-3 

+  2-9 

39-8 

+  3-4 

6 

3 

Donaghadee       

42-6 

+  2-2 

477 

+  3-3 

375 

+  1-2 

15 

2 

Holyhead 

447 

+  2-2 

487 

+  2-8 

407 

+  17 

18 

0 

Liverpool 

43-2 

+  3-4 

48-5 

+  4'6 

37-8 

+  2-2 

16 

4 

Parsonstown      

42*2 

+  1-9 

48-8 

+  2-8 

35-5 

+  0-9 

16 

7 

Valencia     

45-6 

+  0-4 

51-1 

+  1-3 

40 'O 

-0-5 

21 

3 

Roche's  Point    

457 

+  1-9 

50-2 

+  2-3 

41-2 

+  1-5 

23 

I 

Pembroke 

46-0 

+  3-1 

49-2 

+  3-4 

42-8 

+  29 

17 

0 

Scilly 

48-3'  +  2-i 

515 

+  2-4 

45 'O 

+  17 

25 

0 

Jersey 

46  "6  +4-2 

50-5 

+4-5 

42 '6 

+  3-9 

24 

I 

Hurst  Castle      

45 '4; +4-2 

49-8 

+  4-5 

409 

+  3-9 

23 

2 

London       

437,  +  4i 

49  "5 

+  47 

37-8 

+  3-4 

20 

5 

Oxford        

42-5; +3*4 

48  I 

+  4-3 

36-8 

^-2•4 

15 

4 

Cambridge..       

41 -9, +  36 

489 

+  5-0 

34 '9 

+  2-3 

19 

10 

Yarmouth 

40  "Si  +2*6 

45-6 

+  37 

36-0 

+  1-5 

6 

7 

426 


NATURE 


\March  6,  1690 


From  this  it  is  seen  that  the  excess  of  temperature  was 
least  at  the  extreme  western  stations,  the  mean  at  Valencia 
only  exceeding  the  average  for  1 5  years  by  o°'4,  whilst 
the  night  temperature  was  even  below  the  average.  In 
nearly  every  case  it  is  seen  that  the  excess  of  the  day 
temperatures  over  the  average  was  larger  than  that  of  the 
night  temperatures.  A  feature  of  especial  interest  in  the 
table  is  the  large  number  of  days  on  which  the  tempera- 
ture reached  50°  or  above. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  very  great  difference 
between  the  temperature  in  January  this  year,  in  com- 
parison with  that  which  occurred  in  January  1881, 
when  the  weather  was  exceptionally  cold.  At  Lough- 
borough, the  mean  temperature  this  year  exceeded  that 
in  1 88 1  by  17°,  which  is  4°  in  excess  of  the  difference 
between  the  average  temperature  for  January  and  May  ; 
there  were  also  several  stations  in  nearly  all  parts  of  the 
Kingdom  with  an  excess  of  12°  and  13°. 

At  Greenwich  Observatory  the  mean  temperature  ob- 
tained from  the  mean  of  the  maximum  and  minimum 
readings  was43°"4  ;  and  with  the  exception  of  43°*5  in  1884 
and  43°'6  in  1846,  this  has  not  been  exceeded  in  January 
during  the  last  half-century.  The  mean  of  the  highest 
day  temperatures  was  48°-5,  which  is  higher  than  any 
January  during  the  last  fifty  years,  and  the  only  other 
instances  of  48",  or  above,  were  48°* i  in  1877  and  185 1, 
and  48° "o  in  1846.  There  were  six  years  with  the  mean 
maximum  between  47°  and  48°,  but  only  eighteen  in  all 
above  45°,  whilst  in  January  1879  the  mean  of  the  maxima 
was  only  35°"i,  or  I3'"4  colder  than  this  year,  and  in  x88i 
it  was  only  36°'2.  There  have  been  three  Januaries 
during  the  last  half-century  with  a  higher  mean  night 
temperature,  but  in  no  year  was  the  excess  more  than  i.° 
In  January  this  year  the  mean  minimum  was  38"'2,  and 
in  1884  it  was  39°'2.  The  Greenwich  observations  also 
show  that  there  were  in  January  17  days  with  a  tempera- 
ture of  50°  or  above,  whereas  in  the  corresponding  period 
during  the  last  50  years  there  has  been  no  similarly  high 
number  of  days  with  this  temperature.  It  was  reached 
14  times  in  1877,  1853,  and  1846;  13  times  in  1873  and 
1849  ;  12  times  in  1884;  11  times  in  1874, 1869,  1852,  and 
1851  ;  and  in  28  Januaries  50°  or  above  was  only  attained 
5  times  or  less. 

The  warm  weather  was  very  intimately  connected  with 
the  heavy  wind  storms  which  occurred  throughout  the 
month,  the  storm  systems  which  so  frequently  arrived  on 
our  coasts  from  ofT  the  Atlantic  being  the  natural  carriers 
of  warm  moist  air.  Scarcely  a  day  passed  during  the 
month  without  the  arrival  of  some  fresh  disturbance  from 
the  westward,  but  with  one  or  two  exceptions  the  central 
areas  of  the  storm  systems  skirted  the  western  and 
northern  coasts  and  did  not  pass  directly  over  our  islands. 
The  disturbances,  however,  passed  sufficiently  near  to  us 
to  cause  winds  of  gale  force,  and  there  was  scarcely  a 
day  throughout  the  month  that  a  gale  was  not  blowing  in 
some  part  of  the  United  Kingdom.  In  the  North  Atlantic 
the  month  was  exceptionally  stormy,  and  vessels  trading 
between  Europe  and  America  experienced  unusually 
heavy  weather. 

The  month  was  also  marked  by  the  prevalence  of  in- 
fluenza, and,  in  addition  to  this,  a  general  unhealthiness 
pervaded  all  classes  of  the  community.  The  death-rate, 
from  all  causes,  in  London,  for  the  four  weeks  ending 
January  25,  corresponded  to  an  annual  rate  of  297  per 
1000  of  the  total  population,  which  is  excessively  high. 
The  rates  for  the  corresponding  period  in  the  last  four 
years  were  217  in  1889,  23*2  in  1888,  227  in  1887,  and 
226  in  1886.  Chas.  Harding. 

NOTES. 
The  subject  of  the  Bakerian  Lecture,  which,  as  we  announced 
ilast  week,  is  to  be  delivered  by  Prof.  Schuster  on  March  20,  will 
•be  ' '  The  Discharge  of  Electricity  through  Gases. " 


The  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Berlin  has  presented  the  follow- 
ing sums  of  money  :  £()0  to  Dr.  Kohde,  of  Breslau,  for  a  journey 
to  Naples  to  continue  his  observations  on  the  central  nervous 
system  of  sharks  and  echinoderms  at  Prof.  Dohrn's  zoological 
station  ;  ;^8o  to  Prof.  Matthiessen,  of  Rostock,  to  further  his 
researches  on  the  eyes  of  whales  at  the  stations  of  the  North  Sea 
fisheries ;  £2'^  to  Prof.  Dr.  Winkler,  of  Breslau,  for  a  journey 
to  St.  Petersburg  to  make  researches  on  the  Turkish,  Samoyedi 
and  Tungusian  languages ;  ;^30  to  Dr.  Schellong,  the  New 
Guinea  traveller,  to  publish  the  results  of  his  anthropological 
studies. 

It  is  proposed  that  the  following  address  shall  be  presented 
to  Prof  Stuart  on  the  occasion  of  his  resignation  of  his  Professor- 
ship at  Cambridge  : — "We,  the  undersigned  resident  members 
of  the  Senate,  having  learned  from  your  letter  to  the  Vice- 
Chancellor  your  intention  of  resigning  your  Professorship  in  the 
University,  desire  to  express  our  sense  of  the  great  public  service 
which  you  have  rendered  in  connection  with  the  University  Ex- 
tension movement.  By  yourself  first  delivering  specimen  courses 
of  lectures,  and  afterwards  strenuously  advocating  and  ably 
organizing  their  wide-spread  establishment,  you  did  for  the 
country  at  large,  and  for  our  own  and  other  Universities,  work 
which  we  regard  with  sincere  respect  and  admiration.  The 
degree  in  which  Cambridge  has,  during  the  last  twenty  years, 
come  into  useful  relations  with  sections  of  the  community  which 
were  previously  regarded  as  beyond  the  sphere  of  its  influence  is, 
we  hold,  largely  attributable  to  your  inspiring  initiative,  and  to 
the  wise  principles  of  administration  which,  mainly  under  your 
guidance,  the  University  laid  down." 

Among  the  lectures  to  be  delivered  at  the  Royal  Institution 
of  Great  Britain  after  Easter  we  note  the  following  : — On  Tues- 
days, April  15,  22,  29,  three  lectures  on  the  place  of  Oxford 
University  in  English  history,  by  the  Hon.  George  C.  Brod- 
rick  ;  on  Tuesdays,  May  27,  June  3,  10,  three  lectures  on  the 
natural  history  of  society,  by  Mr.  Andrew  Lang ;  on  Thurs- 
days, April  17,  24,  May  i,  three  lectures  on  the  heat  of  the 
moon  and  stars  (the  Tyndall  Lectures),  by  Mr.  C.  V.  Boys, 
F.R.S.  ;  on  Thursdays,  May  8,  15,  22,  29,  June  5,  12,  six 
lectures  on  flame  and  explosives,  by  Prof.  Dewar,  F.R.S.  ; 
on  Saturdays,  April  19,  26,  May  3,  three  lectures  on  colour 
and   its  chemical  action,  by  Captain  W.^de  W.  Abney,  F.R.S. 

The  De  Candolle  Prize  has  been  awarded  to  Prof.  F. 
Buchenau,  of  Bremen,  for  his  monograph  of  the  Juncaginese. 

A  Congress  for  Viticulture  will  be  held  in  Rome  from'the  23rd 
to  the  27th  of  the  present  month.  The  principal  object  of  the 
Congress  will  be  the  discussion  of  remedies  for  the  Peronospora 
viticola  and  other  diseases  of  the  vine  caused  by  vegetable  para- 
sites. There  will  be  an  International  Exhibition  of  apparatus  for 
the  cure  of  these  diseases,  and  numerous  prizes  will  be  awarded. 

The  annual  general  meeting  of  the  members  of  the  German 
Botanical  Society  is  to  be  held  this  year  in  Bremen  late  in 
September. 

Appendix  I.  of  the  Kew  Bulletin,  just  issued,  contains  a  list 
of  such  hardy  herbaceous  annual  and  perennial  plants  and 
of  such  trees  and  shrubs  as  matured  seeds  under  cultivation  in 
the  Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  during  the  year  1889.  It  is  explained 
that  these  seeds  are  available  for  exchange  with  Colonial,  Indian, 
and  Foreign  Botanic  Gardens,  as  well  as  with  regular  corre 
spondents  of  Kew.  The  seeds  are  for  the  most  part  only  available 
in  moderate  quantity,  and  are  not  sold  to  the  general  public. 

The  Nachtigal  Gesellschaft  of  Berlin,  for  German  research 
in  Africa,  has  just  completed  its  second  year  of  business.  It  was 
announced  at  the  last  general  meeting  that  the  list  of  members 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


427 


had  been  doubled  during  the  last  year.  The  Society's  library 
contains  200  books  on  Africa.  Herr  Schiller-Tietz  was  elected 
President  of  the  Society  in  place  of  Councillor  Engelke. 

A  CURIOUS  phenomenon  is  reported  from  Batoum.  On  January 
23,  at  4  p.m.,  during  a  complete  calm,  the  sea  is  said  to  have 
suddenly  receded  from  the  shore,  leaving  it  bare  to  a  depth  of  ten 
fathoms.  The  water  of  the  port  rushed  out  to  sea,  tearing  many 
of  the  ships  from  their  anchorage,  and  causing  a  great  amount 
of  damage.     After  a  short  time  the  sea  assumed  its  usual  level. 

An  important  addition  to  our  knowledge  of  the  meteorology 
of  Central  America  has  been  made  by  the  publication  of  Parts 
1-4  of  the  Boletin  trimestral  of  the  National  Meteorological 
Institute  of  San  Jose,  Costa  Rica,  for  the  year  1888,  under  the 
direction  of  Prof.  E.  Pittier.  The  Observatory  is  situated  in 
latitude  9°  56'  N.,  longitude  84°  8'  W.,  and  its  importance  may 
be  judged  from  the  fact  that  no  other  station  of  the  first  order 
possessing  self-recording  instruments  is  to  be  found  between 
Mexico,  in  latitude  19°  N.,  and  Rio  de  Janeiro,  in  latitude  23° 
S.  The  bulletin  contains  observations  made  several  times  daily, 
and  hourly  observations  of  rainfall  for  five  months,  also  a  sum- 
mary of  the  observations  formerly  made  in  Costa  Rica.  The 
older  series  of  observations  show  that  the  mean  yearly  ex- 
tremes of  temperature  at  San  Jose  were  78°'8  and  56°7,  while 
the  mean  difference  of  the  monthly  means  amounted  only  to  about 
4°.  The  daily  period  of  rainfall  is  very  marked.  From  sunrise 
to  noon  scarcely  any  rain  falls,  while  between  noon  and  6h. 
p.m.  about  75  per  cent,  of  the  whole  amount  falls.  The  mean 
duration  of  rain  on  a  wet  day  is  2h.  9m.  Only  two  months  of 
anemometrical  observations  are  given ;  these  show  that  the 
maximum  velocity  at  noon  is  twice  as  great  as  the  mean  velocity 
during  the  night.  An  interesting  summary  of  the  observations 
has  been  published  by  Dr.  Hann  in  the  Meteorologisc/ie 
Zcitschrijt  for  February. 

x\.T  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Paris  Geographical  Society  an 
interesting  lecture  was  delivered  by  Dr.  Hamy,  on  the  history 
of  scientific  missions  in  France  under  the  old  monarchy.  He 
commenced  practically  with  the  reign  of  Francis  I.,  and  de- 
scribed many  missions  abroad,  with  purely  scientific  aims,  which 
are  now  either  forgotten,  or  the  results  of  which  have  never 
been  published.  Thus,  the  apothecary  to  Henri  IV.  went  all 
over  the  globe  in  search  of  the  peculiar  products  of  each  country, 
especially  medicinal  and  food  plants  ;  still  earlier,  another  ex- 
plorer went  to  Brazil  to  study  dyeing  woods ;  and,  in  the  last 
century,  Condamine,  Dombey,  Bougainville,  and  La  Perouse 
went  on  their  well-known  expeditions.  The  President,  Comte 
de  Bisemont,  mentioned  that  there  were  still  in  the  archives  of 
the  Ministry  of  Marine  copies  of  the  instructions  given  to 
travellers  and  navigators  in  past  centuries,  and  that  these  were 
"  positively  models  of  their  kind,  which  could  not  be  followed 
too  closely  now."  Prof.  Bureau,  of  the  Museum  of  Natural 
History  in  Paris,  observed  that  a  botanical  collection  made  by 
Paul  Lucas  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  still  existed  in  the 
Museum,  and  he  referred  especially  to  Tournefort,  of  the  same 
period,  whom  he  described  as  the  scientific  traveller  of  former 
times  who  perhaps  most  nearly  approached  moderns  in  his 
methods  of  observation.  He  was  sent  by  the  King  on  a  bota- 
nical expedition  to  the  Levant,  with  very  precise  instructions, 
amongst  others,  to  collect  and  observe  the  plants  mentioned  by 
the  ancients.  He  did  not  confine  himself  to  this,  but  formed  a 
complete  herbarium,  which  is  still  preserved  at  the  Museum, 
and  is  one  of  its  treasures.  He  was  accompanied  by  an  artist 
named  Aubriet,  who  brought  back  a  large  collection  of  coloured 
sketches,  which  forms  an  important  part  of  the  unrivalled  col- 
lection in  the  library  of  the  Museum. 

A  NEWand  very  simple  method  of  measuring  small  elonga- 
tions of  a  bar  under  any  influence  has  been  devised  by  Signer 
Cardani  {Cosmos).     To  one  end  of  the  bar  is  attached  a  metallic 


wire  stretched  so  as  to  give  a  determinate  number  of  vibrations^ 
When  the  bar  expands,  the  wire  becomes  less  tense,  and  gives 
fewer  vibrations,  and  there  is  a  simple  relation  between  the 
number  of  vibrations  and  the  elongation  of  the  bar.  The  author 
cites  a  case  in  which  a  variation  of  one  hundredth  of  a  milli- 
metre in  a  bar  lessens  the  double  vibrations  from  99  to  96 "5. 
Now,  a  practised  ear  will  appreciate  a  difference  of  one  vibration 
per  cent.  ;  hence  it  suffices  to  ascertain  variations  of  length  less 
than  001  millimetre.  With  other  methods  of  measuring 
change  of  vibration,  elongations  of  thousandths  of  a  millimetre 
may  be  ascertained. 

The  first  careful  determination  of  latitude  in  Tokio  (according 
to  the  Japan  Weekly  Mail)  was  made  in  1876  by  Captain- 
Kimotsuki,  at  that  time  Director  of  the  Naval  Observatory. 
In  18S8,  soon  after  the  transfer  of  the  Naval  Observatory  to  the 
Imperial  University,  and  its  reorganization  as  the  Astronomical 
Observatory  of  Tokio,  the  new  Director,  Prof.  Terao,  resolved 
upon  a  redetermination  of  the  latitude.  The  work  was  en- 
trusted to  Mr.  Watanabe,  a  skilled  observer,  and  the  result  has 
been  published  as  the  first  of  the  "  Annales  de  I'ObservatOire 
Astronomique  de  Tokio  (Universite  Imperiale  du  Japon,  College 
des  Sciences)."  The  determination  was  madein  two  distinct  ways : 
first,  by  observations  of  the  upper  and  lower  transits  of  the 
Pole  star  across  the  meridian  ;  second,  by  observations  of  the 
zenith  distances  of  38  different  stars,  arranged  in  couples 
according  to  Talcott's  method.  This  latter  method  only  was 
used  by  Captain  Kimotsuki  in  this  earlier  determination.  The 
earlier  mean  value  for  the  latitude  was  35°  39'  17" '492  ;  while 
the  recently  obtained  mean  values  were  35°  39'  15" '05  by  the  first 
method,  and  35°  39'  15" '41  by  the  second  method.  This  dis- 
crepancy of  fully  2"  is,  in  the  circumstances,  too  large  to  be 
regarded  as  an  accidental  error,  and  mast  be  due  to  some 
systematic  error  in  either  the  earlier  or  the  later  determination. 
More  weight  will  be  attached  to  the  new  determination,  since 
Mr.  Watanabe  had  much  superior  instruments  at  his  disposal. 

The  stay  of  some  306  natives  from  various  French  colonies, 
&c.,  for  about  six  months,  in  Paris  last  year,  in  connection  with 
the  Exhibition,  was  an  interesting  experiment  in  acclimatization. 
Owing  to  wise  hygienic  measures  (such  as  vaccination,  good 
water-supply,  isolation  of  closets,  and  surveillance  of  food), 
these  Annamites,  Tonquinese,  Senegalese,  &c.,  seem  to  have 
escaped  most  of  the  common  endemic  disease.  According  to 
the  Seinaine  Medicale,  they  had  no  typhoid  fever,  scarlatina, 
or  measles,  though  these  were  in  Paris  at  the  time.  Some  68 
natives  were  attacked  by  mumps.  The  fatigues  of  a  voyage  and 
the  change  of  climate  led  to  a  recurrence  of  intermittent  fever, 
with  grave  symptoms,  in  twenty  cases.  It  was  thought  at  first  to- 
be  typhoid  fever  of  a  severe  type ;  but  the  rapid  and  durable 
efficacy  of  sulphate  of  quinine,  given  in  doses  of  2  to  3  grammes 
a  day,  proved  the  paludine  nature  of  the  disorder.  It  is  note- 
worthy that  most  illnesses  of  this  population,  especially  that  just 
noticed,  and  those  from  cold,  appeared  during  the  first  part  of 
the  time,  when  the  weather  was  mild  ;  while  in  the  second 
period,  with  unfavourable  atmospheric  conditions,  the  illness 
diminished,  whether  owing  to  precautions  in  the  matter  of  dress, 
and  food,  or  to  more  complete  acclimatization.  The  negroes 
of  Senegal  and  the  Gaboon  seem  to  have  been  the  greatest 
sufferers,  while  the  Indo-Chinese  race  acclimatized  the  best. 

The  first  Bulletin  issued  this  year  by  the  Academie  Royale  de 
Belgique  contains  a  note  by  M.  Van  Beneden,  on  a  Ziphius 
which  was  stranded  in  the  Mediterranean,  and  a  list  of  the  prize 
subjects  for  1891.  The  subjects  dealt  with  are  architecture,  en- 
graving, painting,  and  music.  Four  gold  medals  are  given, 
having  values  looo,  two  800,  and  600  francs  respectively.  The 
dissertations  may  be  written  in  French,  Flemish,  or  Latin,  and 
must  be  sent  before  June  i,  1891,  to  M.  J.  Liagre,  Secretary  of 
the  Academy. 


428 


NATURE 


[March  6,  1890 


A  SHORT  note  on  diethylene  diamine,  C2H4^  ;C2H4,  is 

■contributed  to  the  new  number  of  the  Berichte  of  the  German 
Chemical  Society  by  Dr.  J.  Sieber,  of  Breslau.  It  was  obtained 
by  the  action  of  ethylene  dibromide,   CoH4Br,,  upon  ethylene 

diamine,  C«Ha  ,  a  liquid  boiling  at  123°  C.     Upon  treat- 

\NH2 
ing  the  product  of  this  reaction  with  caustic  potash,  an  oily 
liquid  separated,  consisting  of  a  mixture  of  bases.  The  separ- 
ated liquid  was  next  dehydrated  as  completely  as  possible,  and 
then  submitted  to  fractional  distillation,  when  the  portion  boiling 
between  l68"'-l75°  was  found  to  consist  of  diethylene  diamine 
admixed  with  a  little  water.  The  affinity  of  the  base  for  water  is, 
in  fact,  so  great  that  it  was  found  impossible  to  remove  the  last 
traces  of  moisture.  Diethylene  diamine,  however,  readily  forms 
salts  which  can  be  isolated  in  a  state  of  purity,  and  the  analyses 
of  which  prove  the  composition  of  the  base  itself.  The  hydro- 
NH.HCl 

chloride,  CoH4<^  pCjHj  ,  crystallizes  in  beautiful  white  needles, 

NH.HCl 
very  soluble  in  water,  but  insoluble  in  alcohol.  The  platino- 
chloride,  C4HjoN2(HCl)oPtCl4,  forms  fine  yellow  needle-shaped 
crystals,  readily  soluble  in  hot  water,  but  difficultly  soluble  in 
boiling  alcohol.  A  very  beautiful  salt  is  also  formed  with  mercuric 
chloride,  C4HijNo(HCl)2HgCl2,  consisting  of  star-like  aggregates 
of  acicular  crystals,  also  soluble  in  hot  water,  but  reprecipitated 
by  the  addition  of  alcohol. 

Drs.  Will  and  Pinnow  communicate  to  the  same  journal 
their  report  upon  the  analysis  of  the  remarkable  meteorite  of 
Carcote,  Western  Cordilleras,  Chili.  The  great  mass  of  this 
meteorite,  80  per  cent.,  is  found  to  consist  of  two  silicates. 
One  of  them  is  readily  decomposed  by  hydrochloric  acid,  and 
possesses  the  composition  and  optical  characters  of  olivine, 
(MgFe)2Si04.  The  other  is  unattacked  by  hydrochloric  acid, 
and  exhibits  the  chemical  and  crystallographical  characters  of  a 
member  of  the  diopside  group.  Interspersed  among  the  silicates 
are  smaller  quantities  of  chrome  ironstone,  bronze-like  sulphide 
of  iron,  probably  troilite,  and  light  steel-grey  nickeliferous  iron. 
The  latter  is  not  only  found  in  minute  particles,  but  also  fre- 
quently in  small  plates  which  show  the  Widmannstadt  figures  in 
the  form  of  an  extremely  fine  rectangular  network.  Here  and 
there  are  found  silver- white  crystals  of  rhabdite,  one  of  the  forms 
of  nickeliferous  iron.  By  far,  however,  the  most  interesting 
substance  contained  in  the  meteorite,  is  a  form  of  crystalline 
elementary  carbon,  dull  black  in  appearance  and  of  extreme 
hardness,  at  least  9.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  variety  of  black  diamond, 
and  its  presence  in  the  meteorite  affords  considerable  ground  for 
speculation.  Carbon  is  further  present  in  the  form  of  organic 
substances  soluble  in  ether,  and  these  substances  carbonize  upon 
heating,  evolving  the  usual  odour  of  burning  organic  matter. 
Hence  this  meteorite  is  an  extremely  interesting  one,  and  forms 
another  addition  to  the  fast-accumulating  list  of  those  in  which 
carbon  forms  a  not  insignificant  ingredient. 

OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal    Time   at    Greenwich   at   10  p.m.  on    March  6  = 
5h.  58m.  19s. 


(i)  G.C.  1713     ... 

(2)  120  Schj. 

(3)  a  Hydrae 

(4)  a  Cancri 

(5)  124  Schj. 

it)  T  Monocerotis 


Mag.  1 


Colour. 


R.A.  I  ago.    Decl.  1890 


6-5 
3 


5  "4 
Var. 


Reddish-yellow. 

Yellow. 
Yellowish-white. 
Reddish-yellow. 

Yellow. 


Remarks. 
(r)  This  bright  oval  nebula  is  now  in  a  very  convenient  posi- 
tion for  observation.  I  am  not  aware  that  the  spectrum  has 
been  recorded.  It  is  about  8'  long,  and  3'  broad,  and  is  thus 
described  in  the  General  Catalogue  :  ' '  Very  bright,  very  large, 
very  much  elongated  40°  "9,  gradually  much  brighter  in  the 
middle."  The  description  is  very  suggestive  of  the  Great 
Nebula  in  Andromeda,  and  if,  as  in  that  case,  the  spectrum  at 
first  appears  continuous,  closer  scrutiny  may  reveal  irregularities. 
The  brighter  parts,  assuming  that  they  exist,  should  be  compared 
with  the  spectrum  of  carbon. 

(2)  According  to  the  observations  of  D'Arrest,  Secchi,  and 
Vogel,  this  is  a  fine  example  of  the  stars  of  Group  II.  Duner 
states  that  all  the  bands  i  to  10  inclusive  are  excessively  wide 
and  dark,  and  that  the  spectrum  is  totally  discontinuous.  The 
star,  therefore,  affords  a  good  opportunity  for  further  observa- 
tions of  the  bright  carbon  flutings  with  the  object  of  establishing 
the  cometary  character  of  the  stars  .of  this  group.  It  may  be 
remarked  that  the  citron  band  of  carbon  need  not  enter  into  this 
comparison,  as  it  will  be  masked  by  the  dark  fluting  of 
manganese  (band  4). 

(3)  A  star  of  the  solar  type  (Konkoly).  The  usual  differential 
observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Vogel).  The  usual  observations  are 
required. 

(5)  This  star  has  a  "very  fine"  spectrum  of  the  Group  VI. 
type,  notwithstanding  its  low  altitude  in  our  latitude  (Duner). 
The  principal  bands,  6,  9,  and  10,  are  very  dark,  and  the 
secondary  bands,  4  and  5,  are  also  well  seen.  Further  observa- 
tions, with  special  reference  to  line  or  other  absorptions,  are 
suggested. 

(6)  A  maximum  of  this  short-period  variable  will  occur  on  March 
8.  Gore  gives  the  period  as  26'76  days,  and  the  magnitudes  at 
maximum  and  minimum  as  6 '2  and  7  "6  respectively.  There  is 
still  a  little  doubt  with  regard  to  its  spectrum.  In  his  spectroscopic 
catalogue,  Vogel  writes  it  Il.a?  Ill.a,  giving  the  magnitude  at 
the  time  of  observation  as  7'3.  In  all  probability  the  spectrum 
is  intermediate  between  Group  II.  and  Group  III.,  perhaps 
something  like  Aldebaran,  A.  Fowler. 

The  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  December  22,  1889. — 
M.  A.  De  La  Baume  Pluvinel,  who  was  located  in  Royal  Island, 
about  30  miles  north  of  Cayenne,  during  this  eclipse,  communi- 
cated his  results  to  the  Paris  Academy  on  the  17th  ult. 
(Comptes  retidus.  No.  7,  1890).  An  examination  of  the  pheto- 
graphs  of  the  corona  which  were  obtained  leads  to  the 
conclusions  that — 

(1)  The  corona  presented  the  same  general  aspect  as  on 
January  I,  1889. 

(2)  The  extension  of  the  corona  was  small,  being  about  18'  at 
the  solar  equator,  and  about  6'  at  the  poles,  and  in  this  respect 
resembled  the  coronae  of  1867  and  1878,  thus  confirming  the 
intimate  relation  that  exists  between  the  intensity  of  extra-solar 
phenomena  and  the  frequency  of  sun-spots. 

(3)  The  aspect  of  the  luminous  aigrettes  which  constitute  the 
corona,  and  notably  the  curved  form  of  the  aigrettes  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  poles,  seem  to  prove  the  existence  of 
streams  of  matter  submitted  to  two  forces — a  force  of  projection 
normal  to  the  solar  sphere,  and  a  centrifugal  force  developed  by  « 
the  sun's  rotation.  1 

Comets  and  Asteroids  discovered  in  1889. —  * 

Comet  a  1889. — Discovered  on  January  15,  a  little  before 
dawn,  by  Mr.  W.  Brooks  at  Geneva,  N.Y.,  U.S.A.  The  comet 
was  moving  rapidly  from  east  to  west,  and  was  not  afterwards 
observed. 

Comet  b  1889. — Discovered  by  Mr.  Barnard,  of  the  Lick 
Observatory,  on  March  31  ;  it  was  then  very  feeble  and  difficult 
to  see.  After  perihelion  passage,  the  comet  was  observed  at 
Ann  Arbor  on  July  22,  near  the  position  assigned  to  it  by  M. 
E.  Millosevich. 

Comet  c  1889. — Also  discovered  by  Mr.  Barnard,  on  June 
23,  as  a  faint  nebulosity  without  condensation  or  tail.  Not 
observed  after  August  6.  Dr.  Berberich  determined  the  ele- 
ments of  this  comet  on  the  hypothesis  of  an  elliptic  orbit,  and 
found  that  its  period  was  128  years. 

Comet  d  1889. — This  comet,  the  most  interesting  of  those 
observed  last  year,  was  discovered  by  Mr.  Brooks,  of  Geneva, 
U.S.,  on  July  6.  It  is  periodic,  the  time  of  revolution  being 
7 '04  years.  On  August  i,  Mr.  Barnard  found  that  the  principal 
comet  was  accompanied   by  four  companions.      Mr.  Chandler 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


429 


has  found  that  in  1 886  this  comet  must  have  approached  near  to 
Jupiter,  and  his  investigations  seem  to  show  that  it  is  identical 
with  the  lost  comet  of  Lexeli. 

Comet  e  1889. — Discovered  by  Mr.  Davidson  at  Branscombe, 
Mackay  (Queensland),  on  July  22,  and  visible  to  the  naked  eye 
at  first  as  a  star  of  the  fourth  magnitude.  It  moved  rapidly 
towards  the  north,  and  at  the  same  time  diminished  in  bright- 
ness, remaining  visible,  however,  up  to  November. 

Comet  f  1889. — Discovered  by  Mr.  Lewis  Swift  at  Rochester, 
U.S.,  on  November  17.  From  observations  extending  over 
twenty  days,  Dr.  Zelbr  was  led  to  conclude  that  the  comet  was 
periodic,  the  time  of  revolution  being  6'9i  years. 

Comet  g  1889. — Discovered  by  M.  Borrelly  at  Marseille,  on 
December  12.  It  was  then  feeble,  but  rapidly  increased  in 
brightness.  Although  the  declination  of  this  comet  on  discovery 
was  +  48°  55',  it  moved  so  quickly  towards  the  south,  that  it  was 
lost  to  our  latitudes  about  January  10,  1890.  The  first  observa- 
tions fixed  the  perihelion  passage  at  January  26,  1890. 

Six  asteroids  were  discovered  in  1889,  viz.  : — 

y^  Discovered  by  M.  Charlois  at  Nice  on  January  28. 
(^        ,,  ,,  ,,  ,,  February  8. 

@        .,  ,,  „  »  May  29. 

@        „  ,,  „  ,,  August  3. 

^•wy        ,,  ,,  M.  J.  Palisa  at  Vienna  on  August  3. 

(^        ,,  ,,  Dr.  Peters  at  Clinton,  U.S.,  October  13. 

Mass  of  Saturn. — The  Transactions  of  the  Astronomical 
Observatory  of  Yale  University,  vol.  i.  part  ii.,  contains  some 
researches  with  the  heliometer  by  Mr.  Asaph  Hall,  for  the 
•determination  of  the  orbit  of  Titan  and  the  mass  of  Saturn. 

From  observations  made  at  the  oppositions  of  1885-86,  18S6- 
87,  the  mean  value  of  the  semi- major  axis  of  Titan's  orbit  was 
determined  as — 

1 76" -570  ±  o"-0243  ; 

and  the  mass  of  Saturn — 

I 

3500-5  ±  Vi^ 
the  sun  being  unity. 

Struve  showed  that  the  value  found  by  Bessel  from  Titan 
should  be  3502*5,  while  the  values  found  by  Struve  himself  from 
lapetus  and  Titan  are  respectively  35oo'2  ±  0*82  and  34957 
±;i"43.  Prof.  Hall,  with  the  great  Washington  refractor,  found 
from  lapetus  by  means  of  differences  of  right  ascension  and 
declination,  the  mass  3481 '2  ±  0*65,  and  by  distances  and  posi- 
tion-angles 348i'4  ±  0'97  ;  from  Titan  the  values  corresponding 
to  the  same  methods  are  3496*3  ±  1*84,  and  3469*9  ±  i*49,  but 
there  seem  to  be  grounds  for  questioning  these  results,  so 
discordant  with  those  found  by  Struve,  and  at  Yale  College. 


THE  OPENING  OF  THE   FORTH  BRIDGE. 

A/rUCH  interest  was  excited  all  over  the  country  by  the  open- 
ing  of  the  Forth  Bridge  onjTuesday.  The  ceremony  was 
simple,  and  all  the  arrangements  were  carried  out  successfully. 
There  was  no  rain,  and  although  the  wind  blew  stiffly,  it  was 
"  comparatively  mild."  The  special  train  conveying  the  directors 
and  invited  guests  left  the  Waverley  Station,  Edinburgh,  in  two 
portions,  the  first  at  10.45,  the  second,  to  which  the  Royal 
carriages  were  attached,  ten  minutes  later.  At  the  Forth  Bridge 
Station  Sir  John  Fowler,  Mr.  Benjamin  Baker,  Mr.  William 
Arrol,  Mr.  Phillips,  and  other  gentlemen  connected  with  the 
building  of  the  bridge,  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  Royal  party 
from  Dalmeny.  By  the  special  desire  of  the  Prince  of  Wales, 
who  wished  to  have  an  opportunity  of  examining  some  details  of 
the  structure,  the  Royal  train  steamed  very  slowly  across  the 
bridge.  As  seen  from  the  shore,  the  long  train  of  large  saloon 
carriages  is  said  to  have  looked  like  ' '  a  mere  toy  as  it  passed 
through  the  stupendous  framework  of  tubes  and  girders  at 
Inverkeithing."  From  the  North  Queensferry  Pier  the  steam 
launch  Dolphin  conveyed  the  Royal  party  and  the  directors 
over  the  Firth,  so  that  the  bridge  might  be  seen  from  the 
sea ;  and  another  vessel  followed,  containing  the  rest  of 
the  company.  Both  vessels  steamed  out  to  the  middle 
of  the  Firth ;  and,  according  to  the  Times,  the  view 
was  much  enjoyed  "as  each  cantilever  was  passed  in  suc- 
cession, the  junction  of  the  girder  bridges  with  the  cantilever 


arms  being  specially  noted."  Afterwards,  the  bridge  was  re- 
crossed,  and  in  the  middle  of  the  north  connecting  girder  the 
train  stopped  to  allow  the  Prince  of  W'ales  to  perform  the  cere- 
mony of  driving  the  last  rivet.  "  A  temporary  wooden  staging," 
says  the  Times,  "  had  been  erected  there,  and  upon  it  His  Royal 
Highness  stepped,  along  with  Lord  Tweeddale,  Lord  Rosebery, 
and  Mr.  Arrol.  The  hydraulic  rivetter  was  swung  from  one  of 
the  booms,  the  pressure  being  supplied  from  an  accumulator  at 
Inchgarvie.  Two  men  were  placed  on  the  boom  below  to 
manipulate  the  machine.  The  gilded  rivet  having  been  placed 
in  the  bolt-hole,  and  the  silver  key  having  been  handed  to  His 
Royal  Highness  by  Lord  Tweeddale,  the  Prince,  with  Mr. 
Arrol's  assistance,  finished  the  work  in  a  few  seconds,  amid 
cheers.  The  rivet  is  in  the  outside  of  the  boom,  and  holds 
together  three  plates.  Around  its  gilded  top  there  is  an  inscrip- 
tion stating  that  ;  it  is  the  'last  rivet,  driven  in  by  His  Royal 
Highness  the  Prince  of  Wales,  4th  March,  1890.'  The  train 
stopped  a  second  time  at  the  south  great  cantilever  pier,  where 
another  platform  had  been  erected,  upon  which  several  ladies 
were  standing.  Here  the  Prince  again  left  the  train,  at  half-past 
I  o'clock,  to  make  the  formal  declaration  of  the  opening  of  the 
bridge.  As  the  wind  was  blowing  a  perfect  gale,  so  that  His 
Royal  Highness  had  difficulty  in  retaining  a  steady  foothold,  it 
was  impossible  to  make  a  speech.  He  therefore  simply  said  i 
*  Ladies  and  Gentlemen,  I  now  declare  the  Forth  Bridge  open. ' 
Hearty  cheers  greeted  the  announcement,  and,  the  Prince  having 
returned  to  his  carriage,  the  train  moved  slowly  along  to  the 
Forth  Bridge  Station." 

At  2  o'clock  a  banquet  was  given  in  the  model-room  at  the 
bridge  works,  the  chair  being  occupied  by  Mr.  M.  W.  Thomp- 
son. The  Prince  of  Wales,  responding  to  the  toast  of  '*  The 
Prince  of  Wales  and  other  members  of  the  Royal  Family,"  spoke 
as  follows  : — 

"  I  feel  very  grateful  for  the  kind  words  which  have  fallen  from' 
the  chairman  in  proposing  the  toast,  and  I  thank  you  all  most 
heartily  for  the  cordial  way  in  which  you  have  received  it.  The 
day  has  been  a  most  interesting  day  to  all  of  us,  and  especially 
so  to  me,  and  I  feel  very  grateful  that  I  have  been  asked  to  take 
part  in  so  interesting  and  important  a  ceremony  as  the  one  at 
which  we  have  all  assisted.  I  had  the  advantage,  nearly  five 
and  a  half  years  ago,  of  seeing  the  Forth  Bridge  at  its  very  com- 
mencement, and  I  always  looked  forward  to  the  day  when  I 
should  witness  its  successful  accomplishment.  I  may  perhaps 
say  that  in  opening  bridges  I  am  an  old  hand.  At  the  request 
of  the  Canadian  Government  I  performed  the  opening  ceremony 
30  years  ago  of  opening  the  Victoria  Bridge  over  the  St.  Law- 
rence at  Montreal,  putting  in  the  last  rivet,  the  total  of  rivets 
being  one  million.  To-day  I  have  performed  a  similar  ceremony 
for  the  Forth  Bridge,  but  on  this  occasion  the  rivets  number 
nearly  eight  millions  instead  of  one  million.  The  construction 
of  the  bridge  has  been  on  the  cantilever  principle,  which  has 
been  known  to  the  Chinese  for  ages,  and  specimens  of  it  may  be 
seen  likewise  in  Japan,  Tibet,  and  the  North-West  Provinces  of 
India.  .Work  of  this  description  has  hitherto  been  carried  out- 
on  small  dimensions,  but  in  this  case  the  engineers  have  had  to 
construct  a  bridge  in  30  fathoms  of  water,  at  the  height  of  1 50  feet 
above  high  water  mark,  and  crossing  two  channels,  each  one- 
third  of  a  mile  in  width.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  intervening 
island  of  Inchgarvie  the  project  would  have  been  impracticable 
It  may  perhaps  interest  you  if  I  mention  a  few  figures  in  con- 
nection with  the  construction  of  the  bridge.  Its  extreme  length,, 
including  the  approach  viaduct,  is  2765  yards,  one  and  one-fifth 
of  a  mile,  and  the  actual  length  of  the  cantilever  portion  of  the 
bridge  is  one  mile  and  20  yards.  The  weight  of  steel  in  it 
amounts  to  51,000  tons,  and  the  extreme  height  of  the  steel 
structure  above  mean  water-level  is  over  370  feet ;  above  the 
bottom  of  the  deepest  foundation  452  feet,  while  the  rail-level 
above  high  water  is  156^  feet.  Allowance  has  been  made  for 
contraction  and  expansion  and  for  changes  of  temperature  to  the 
extent  of  one  inch  per  100  feet  over  the  whole  bridge.  The  wind- 
pressure  provided  for  is  56  lb.  on  each  square  foot  of  area,  amount- 
ing in  the  aggregate  to  about  7700  tons  of  lateral  pressure  on 
the  cantilever  portion  of  the  bridge.  About  25  acres  of  surface 
will  have  to  be  painted  with  three  coats  of  paint.  As  I  have 
said,  about  eight  millions  of  rivets  have  been  used  in  the  bridge,, 
and  42  miles  of  bent  plates  used  in  the  tubes,  about  the  distance 
between  Edinburgh  and  Glasgow.  Two  million  pounds  have 
been  spent  on  the  site  in  building  the  foundations  and  piers  ;  in 
the  erection  of  the  superstructure ;  on  labour  in  the  preparation 
of  steel,  granite,  masonry,  tinber,  and  concrete  ;  on  tools,  cranes, 
drills,  and  other  machines  required  as  plant  ;  while  about  two- 


4  30 


NATURE 


{March  6,  1890 


and  a  half  millions  has  been  the  entire  cost  of  the  structure, 
of  which  ;^8oo,ooo  (nearly  one-third  of  this  amount)  has 
been  expended  on  plant  and  general  charges.  These  figures 
will  give  you  some  idea  of  the  magnitude  of  the  work,  and 
will  assist  you  to  realize  the  labour  and  anxiety  which  all 
those  connected  with  it  must  have  undergone.  The  works 
"were  commenced  in  April  1883,  and  it  is  highly  to  the  credit 
of  everyone  engaged  in,  the  operation  that  a  structure  so 
stupendous  and  so  exceptional  in  its  character  should  have  been 
■completed  within  seven  years.  The  opening  of  the  bridge  must 
necessarily  produce  important  results  and  changes  in  the  railway 
service  of  the  east  coast  of  Scotland,  and  it  will,  above  all,  place 
the  valuable  manufacturing  and  mineral-producing  district  of 
Fife  in  immediate  communication  with  the  south  side  of  the 
Firth  of  Forth.  When  the  Glenfarg  line,  now  nearly  completed, 
is  opened  for  traffic,  the  distance  between  Edinburgh  and  Perth 
will  be  reduced  from  69  to  47  miles,  and  instead  of  the  journey 
occupying,  as  at  present,  two  hours  and  20  minutes,  an  express 
will  be  able  to  do  it  in  an  hour.  Dundee,  likewise,  will  be 
brought  to  within  59  miles  of  Edinburgh,  and  Aberdeen  130 
miles,  and  no  sea  ferries  will  have  to  be  crossed.  The  construc- 
tion of  the  bridge  is  due  to  the  enterprise  of  four  important 
railway  companies — (i)  North  British  (the  bridge  is  in  its  district), 
(2)  North-Eastern,  (3)  Midland,  and  (4)  Great  Northern — and 
the  design  is  that  of  two  most  eminent  engineers,  Sir 
John  Fowler  and  Mr,  Benjamin  Baker.  The  contractor  was 
Mr.  William  Arrol,  and  the  present  Tay  Bridge,  and  the 
bridge  which  I  have  inaugurated  to-day,  will  be  last- 
ing monuments  of  his  skill,  resources,  and  energy.  I  have 
much  pleasure  in  stating  that,  on  the  recommendation  of 
the  Prime  Minister,  the  Queen  has  been  pleased  to  create  Mr. 
Matthew  William  Thomp-^on,  Chairman  of  the  Forth  Bridge 
Company  and  of  the  Midland  Railway  Company,  and  Sir 
John  Fowler,  engineer-in-chief  of  the  Foith  Bridge,  baronets  of 
the  United  Kingdom.  The  Queen  has  also  created,  or  intends 
to  create,  Mr,  Benjamin  Baker,  Sir  John  Fowler's  colleague^  a 
Knight  Commander  of  the  Order  of  St.  Michael  and  St.  George, 
and  to  confer  on  Mr.  William  Arrol,  the  contractor,  the  honour 
of  a  knighthood.  I  must  not  allow  this  opportunity  to  pass 
without  mentioning  the  valuable  assistance  which  has  been 
rendered  to  the  companies  by  Mr.  Wieland,  their  able  and  in- 
defatigable secretary,  who  deserves  especial  praise  for  the 
admirable  way  in  which  he  has  carried  out  the  important  finan- 
cial arrangements  essential  in  a  scheme  of  such  magnitude. 
Before  concluding  I  must  express  my  pleasure  at  seeing  here 
Major-General  Hutchinson  and  Major  Marindin,  two  of  the 
nspecting  officers  of  the  Board  of  Trade.  Although  in 
this  country  great  undertakings  of  the  kind  which  we  are 
celebrating  this  day  are  wisely  wholly  left  to  the  enterprise 
and  genius  of  private  individuals  without  aid  or  favour  from  the 
State  ;  yet,  in  connection  with  these  particular  works,  Parlia- 
ment, I  am  informed,  for  the  first  time  associated  officers  of  the 
Board  of  Trade  with  those  practically  engaged  in  the  construc- 
tion of  this  magnificent  bridge  from  its  commencement  by  re- 
quiring the  Board  of  Trade  to  make  quarterly  reports  to  be  laid 
before  Parliament  as  to  the  nature  and  progress  of  the  works. 
This  most  important  and  delicate  duty  has  been  performed  by 
Major-General  Hutchinson  and  Major  Marindin  ;  and  I  now 
congratulate  them  on  the  completion  of  their  responsible  duties, 
which  they  have  carried  out  in  a  way  that  redounds  credit  to 
themselves  and  to  the  department  which  they  so  ably  serve. 
Allow  me  again,  gentlemen,  in  thanking  you  for  the  kind  way 
in  which  you  have  received  this  toast,  to  assure  you  of  the  great 
pleasure  and  gratification  it  has  been  to  me  to  have  been  present 
on  this  occasion  to  inaugurate  this  great  success  of  the  skill  of 
engineering." 

Sir  John  Fowler,  in  acknowledging  the  toast  of  the  Forth 
Bridge,  said  he  begged  to  return  his  most  grateful  thanks  to  His 
Royal  Highness  the  Prince  of  Wales  for  the  flattering  manner 
in  which  he  had  spoken  of  their  work.  It  was  now  seven  years 
ago  since  the  foundations  of  the  bridge  were  commenced,  but  up 
to  two  years  ago  they  had  to  endure  not  only  the  legitimate 
anxieties  of  their  duties,  but  the  attacks  and  evil  predictions 
which  were  always  directed  against  those  who  undertook  en- 
gineering work  of  novelty  or  exceptional  magnitude.  It  was 
very  curious  to  watch  the  manner  of  retreat  of  these  prophets  of 
failure.  The  results  had  proved  them  to  be  mistaken.  But  he 
•could  tell  some  very  curious  stories  connected  with  the  bri  ige. 
He  pointed  out  how,  from  the  nature  of  the  materials  which  had 
been  used  in  the  construction  of  the  bridge,  and  from  the  na- 


tionality of  the  men  who  had  been  engaged  in  that  construction, 
the  bridge  possessed  an  international  character.  He  also  pre- 
dicted that  the  bridge  would  last  for  many,  many  years,  and  he 
cordially  acknowledged  the  workmanship  and  ability  of  all  who 
had  assisted  in  its  erection.  As  to  the  workmen  themselves, 
he  said  they  had  done  admirable  work,  and  had  never  knowingly 
scamped  a  rivet. 

Mr.  Arrol  also  acknowledged  the  toast,  and  Mr.  Baker,  in 
response  to  calls  from  the  audience,  made  a  few  remarks. 

Mr.  John  Dent,  Deputy-Chairman  of  the  Forth  Bridge  Rail- 
way Company,  in  proposing  the  toast  of  "  The  Guests,"  con- 
gratulated the  recipients  of  the  special  honours  bestowed  by  the 
Queen,  and  he  spoke  of  the  universal  reputation  which  had 
become  attached  to  the  bridge,  which  stood  as  a  monument  of 
industry,  of  genius,  and  of  ability. 

After  a  clever  speech  from  Lord  Rosebery,  Herr  Mehrtens, 
of  the  Prussian  Railway  Department,  replied  for  himself  and 
in  the  name  of  his  companions  from  Saxony,  Austria,  and 
Hungary.  He  expressed  their  feelings  of  thankfulness  that  they 
had  been  permitted  to  be  present  on  so  interesting  an  occasion, 
and  their  admiration  at  all  the  wonderful  things  they  had  seen 
that  day.  Ttiat  day,  he  said,  marked  the  commencement  of  a 
new  era  in  iron  bridge  building.  He  congratulated  Great 
Britain,  which  had  led  the  way  in  iron  bridge  building,  on  now 
having  the  largest  span  bridge  and  the  strongest  bridge  in  the 
world. 

M.  Picot,  on  behalf  of  the  railway  engineers  of  France,  also 
replied  in  a  speech  in  which  he  eulogized  the  bridge  and  its 
engineers  and  contractors. 


UNIVERSITY  AND  EDUCATIONAL 
INTELLIGENCE. 

Cambridge. — The  General  Board  of  Studies  announce  that 
they  will  this  term  appoint  an  additional  Lecturer  in  Botany  for 
three  years,  from  the  beginning  of  the  Easter  term  1890.  The 
stipend  is  ;((^ioo  a  year.  Names  of  candidates  are  to  be  sent  to 
the  Vice-Chancellor  on  or  before  March  8. 

The  Syndics  of  the  Press  propose  that  a  gift  of  books  pub- 
lished by  them  shall  be  made  to  the  Library  of  the  University  of 
Toronto,  lately  destroyed  by  fire. 

The  discussion  by  the  Senate  of  the  proposal  to  accept  the 
Newall  telescope  was  on  the  whole  favourable  to  the  proposal, 
though  the  difficulty  of  finding  the  funds  required  for  its  adequate 
maintenance  and  use  has  not  yet  been  made.  From  remarks 
made  by  members  of  the  Observatory  vSyndicate,  it  appears  that 
it  regards  the  purchase  of  a  large  reflecting  telescope  as  the  first 
claim  on  the  Sheepshanks  Fund  ;  and  it  is  unwilling  to  deplete 
the  fund  until  this  purchase  can  be  effected.  Prof.  Liveing 
referred  to  the  recent  development  of  astronomical  physics,  and 
said  the  University  was  bound  to  further  it.  The  Newall  tele- 
scope was  specially  suited  for  physical  researches,  and  to  reject 
it  as  a  "  white  elephant  "  would  damage  the  University  by  dis- 
couraging other  benefactors.  The  matter  is  to  be  referred  to  the 
Financial  Board. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Philosophical  Society  on  March  10,  the 
following  papers  are  promised  : — W.  Gardiner,  on  the  germina- 
tion of  Acacia  sphcErocepkala  ;  M.  C.  Potter,  the  thickening  of 
the  stem  in  Cucurbitacese  ;  Dr.  Lea  and  W.  L.  Dickinson,  note 
on  the  action  of  rennin  and  fibrin-ferment  ;  W.  Bateson,  on  some 
skulls  of  Egyptian  mummified  cats. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  February  20. — "A  Comparative  Study  of 
Natural  and  Artificial  Digestions  "  (Preliminary  Account).  By 
A.  Sheridan  Lea,  Sc.D.,  Fellow  of  Gonville  and  Caius  College, 
Cambridge,  University  Lecturer  in  Physiology.  Communicated 
by  Prof.  Michael  Foster,  Sec.  K.S, 

The  objects  of  the  investigation  were  (i.)  to  obtain  in  artificial 
digestions  some  closer  approximation  to  the  general  conditions 
under  which  natural  digestion  is  carried  on  in  the  body,  and  (ii. ) 
to  apply  the  improved  methods  of  carrying  on  artificial  diges- 
tions to  the  elucidation  of  some  special  differences,  which  so  far 
have  appeared  to  exist  between  the  natural  and  artificial  pro- 
cesses. 


March  6,  1890] 


NATURE 


431 


An  apparatus  was  described  by  means  of  which  digestions  can 
be  carried  on  in  a  dialyzer  in  such  a  way  as  to  provide  for  the 
constant  motion  of  the  digesting  mixture  and  the  removal  of 
digestive  products  :  by  this  method  a  partial  reproduction  of 
two  of  the  most  important  factors  in  natural  digestion  is 
provided. 

So  far  the  method  has  been  employed  for 

I.  The  salivary  digestion  of  starch.  Experiments  conducted 
under  otherwise  similar  conditions  in  the  dialyzing  digester  and 
a  flask,  showed  that— (i.)  The  rate  of  digestion  in  the  former  is 
always  greater  than  in  a  flask,  and  at  the  same  time  the  tendency 
to  the  development  of  bacteria  is  greatly  lessened,  (ii.)  The 
amount  of  starch  converted  into  sugar  is  always  greatest  in  the 
dialyzer.  (iii. )  The  total  sugar  formed  and  small  residue  (4"29 
percent.)  of  dextrin  left  during  an  active  and  prolonged  diges- 
tion in  the  dialyzer  justify  the  assumption  that,  under  the  more 
favourable  conditions  existing  in  the  body,  the  whole  of  the 
starch  taken  is  converted  into  sugar  before  absorption. 

The  above  results  afford  an  explanation  of  the  existing  dis- 
cordant statements  as  to  the  nature  and  amount  of  products 
formed  during  starch  digestion. 

II.  The  tryptic  digestion  of  proteids.  The  experiments  made 
dealt  chiefly  with  the  formation  of  leucin  and  tyrosin,  and  were 
undertaken,  initially,  in  order  to  find  out  why  these  crystalline 
products  are  formed  in  large  amount  during  an  artificial  diges- 
tion, while  they  have  so  far  been  described  as  occurring  in  mere 
traces  during  natural  digestion.  The  results  of  the  experiments 
made  it  probable  that  leucin  and  tyrosin  should  be  formed 
during  natural  digestion.  Examination  of  the  contents  of  the 
small  intestine  during  proteid  digestion  showed  that,  contrary 
to  existing  statements,  leucin  and  tyrosin  are  formed  in  not  in- 
considerable quantities  during  the  natural  process. 

The  last  part  of  the  communication  dealt  with  the  probable 
physiological  importance  of  the  formation  of  amidated  bodies 
during  tryptic  digestion,  and  a  view  was  put  forward  as  to  the 
possible  and  probable  importance  of  amides  in  the  chemical 
cycle  of  animal  metabolism. 

The  experiments  are  being  extended  to  the  pancreatic  digestion 
of  starch. 

Linnean  Society,  February  20. — W.  Carruthers,  F.  R.  S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  G.  C.  Druce  exhibited  specimens 
of  Agrostis  canina,  var.  Scotica,  and  a  small  collection  of  flower- 
ing plants  dried  after  treatment  with  sulphurous  acid  and  alcohol, 
and  showing  a  partial  preservation  of  the  natural  colours  of  the 
flowers. — Mr.  F.  P.  Pascoe  exhibited  a  series  of  Coleopterous 
and  Lepidopterous  insects  to  show  the  great  diversity  between 
insects  of  the  same  family. — The  Right  Hon.  Sir  John  Lubbock, 
Bart.,  M.P.,  P.C.,  then  gave  an  abstract  of  four  memoirs  which 
he  had  prepared  :  (i)  on  the  fruit  and  seed  of  the  Juglandise  ; 

(2)  on  the  shape  of  the  oak-leaf:  (3)  on  the  leaves  of  Viburnum  ; 
and  (4)  on  the  presence  and  functions  of  stipules.  An  interest- 
ing discussion  followed,  in  which  Mr.  J.  G.  Baker,  Mr.  John 
Fraser,  Mr.  D.  Morris,  and  Prof.  Marshall  Ward  took  part. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  February  17.— Sir  W.  Thomson,  President, 
in  the  chair. — Prof.  Crum  Brown  communicated  a  paper,  by 
Mr.  Tolver  Preston,  on  Descartes'  idea  of  space  and  Sir  W. 
Thomson's  theory  of  extended  matter. — The  following  communi- 
cations from  the  chemical  laboratory  of  the  University  were 
read  : — (a)  Prof.  Crum  Brown,  on  a  new  synthesis  of  dibasic 
organic  acids.  The  method  proposed  was  the  electrolysis  of 
potassium  ethyl  salts  of  lower  dibasic  acids  which  would  take 
place  according  to  the  scheme 

2EtOOC.R".COOK  =  EtOOC.R".R".COOEt  +  2C02  +  2K, 

thus  giving  the  diethyl  ether  of  a  higher  acid  of  the  same  series. 

(3)  Prof.  Crum  Brown  and  Dr.  James  Walker,  on  the  electrolysis 
of  potassium  ethyl  malonate,  and  potassium  ethyl  succinate. 
The  reaction  actually  takes  place  in  great  measure  in  the  above 
indicated  sense,  the  yields  of  pure  succinic  ether  and  of  adipic 
ether  respectively  being  from  20  to  30  per  cent,  of  the  theoretic- 
ally obtainable  quantities.  The  method  is  thus  proved  to  be  of 
practical  as  well  as  of  theoretical  importance,  {c)  Dr.  John 
Gibson,  on  the  action  of  bromine  and  carbonate  of  soda  in 
solutions  of  cobalt  and  nickel  salts. — Mr.  W.  Calderwood  read 
a  paper  on  the  swimming  bladder  and  flying  powers  of  Dactylo- 
pteriis  volitans. 


Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  February  24. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — The  proofs  of  the  separation  of  the  south-east  extremity 
of  the  Asiatic  continent  during  recent  times,  by  M.  £mile 
Blanchard.  The  author  advances  proofs  from  the  resemblance  of 
animal  and  vegetable  life  in  Further  India,  on  the  peninsula  of 
Malacca,  and  Sunda  Islands.— The  Dryopithecus,  by  M.  Albert 
Gaudry.  The  relation  of  Dryopithectts  to  the  ape  and  to  mar* 
has  been  investigated. — A  contribution  to  the  chemical  study  of 
the  truffle,  by  M.  Ad.  Chatin.  The  researches  have  been 
directed  to  the  quantitative  determination  of  the  organic  and 
other  matter  in  truffles. — Scrotal  pneumoceles,  by  M.  Vemeui). 
— On  the  anatomy  and  the  physiological  pathology  of  the  re- 
tention of  urine,  by  M.  F.  Guyon. — Transformations  in  kine- 
matic geometry,  by  M.  A.  Mannheim. — On  the  constitution  of 
the  line  spectra  of  elements,  by  M.  J.  R.  Rydberg.  This  is  a 
note  on  the  periodic  recurrence  of  doubles  and  triplets  in  the 
spectrum  of  an  element.  It  is  shown  how  this  periodicity 
enables  the  spectrum  of  an  element  to  be  found  by  interpolation 
when  the  spectra  of  elements  of  the  same  group  are  known,  the 
case  of  gallium  being  given  as  an  example  of  the  verification  of 
the  principle. — Electrical  oscillations  in  rarefied  air,  without 
electrodes ;  demonstration  of  the  non-conductivity  of  the^ 
vacuum,  by  M.  James  Moser.  It  is  well  known  that  vacuum- 
tubes  become  luminous  when  near  an  induction  coil  in  action. 
The  author,  by  enveloping  one  vacuum-tube  with  another,  in. 
which  the  rarefaction  could  be  varied,  finds  that  the  excitation 
may  take  place  without  any  electrode.  If  the  pressure  in  the 
outer  tube  be  equal  to  760  mm.,  the  inner  tube,  under  the 
influence  of  the  coil,  becomes  luminous  and  of  a  clear  blue 
colour  ;  if,  however,  the  pressure  be  diminished  to  i  mm.  of 
mercury,  the  air  in  the  outer  tube  becomes  luminous  and  of  a 
pronounced  red  colour,  thus  reversing  the  phenomena. — Upon 
the  variation,  with  the  temperature,  of  the  bi-refractions  of 
quartz,  barytas,  and  kyanite,  by  MM.  Er.  Mallard  and 
H.  Le  Chatelier.  This  variation  has  been  studied  by  the 
aid  of  a  photographic  spectroscopic  method  :  with  quartz 
a  singular  point  is  detected  at  570°,  at  which  temperature  the 
law  of  variation  suddenly  changes  ;  a  similar  phenomenon  is 
indicated  as  occurring  in  the  case  of  kyanite  somewhere  between 
300°  and  600°. — The  vapour-pressure  of  acetic  acid  solutions,  by 
MM.  F.  M.  Raoult  and  A.  Recoura.  It  has  been  previously 
shown  by  one  of  the  authors  {Comptes  rendus.  May  23,  1887  ; 
Annales  de  Chimie  et  de  Physique,  6th  series,  t.  xv.,  1888)  that, 
if/ represents  the  vapour-tension  of  a  solvent  for  a  certain  tem- 
perature, /'  the  vapour-tension  under  similar  conditions  when  a 
non- volatile  body  is  in  solution,  P  the  weight  of  substance  dis- 
solved in  100  grms.  of  the  solvent,  M  the  molecular  weight  of 
the  dissolved  body,  and  M'  the  molecular  weight  of  the  solvent, 
then  for  dilute  solutions — 

/'P 

K  being  a  constant  generally  near  to  unity.  Employing  the 
dynamical  method,  the  mean  value  of  K  for  acetic  acid  is  found 
to  be  I '61,  taking  60  as  the  molecular  weight  of  acetic  acid; 
but  if  the  molecular  weight  of  a  liquid  be  the  same  as  that  of  the 
saturated  vapour,  the  apparent  anomaly  disappears,  for  with 
molecular  weight  97  (deduced  from  density  of  saturated  acetic 
acid  vapour  at  118°,  viz.  3"35),  the  above  formula  gives  K=l. — 
Theaction,  in  the  dry  way,  of  various  arseniates  of  potassium  and 
sodium  upon  the  oxides  of  the  magnesia  series,  by  M.  C.  Lefevre. 
— Note  on  the  volumetric  estimation  of  copper,  by  MM.  A.  Etard 
and  P.  Lebeau.  A  method  of  titration  is  given  by  the  authors, 
for  which  they  claim  a  rapidity  and  accuracy  comparable  to  the 
permanganate  method  for  iron  ;  it  is  based  upon  the  formation 
of  a  characteristic  violet  coloration  on  the  addition  of  concen- 
trated hydrobromic  acid  to  a  solution  of  the  copper  salt,  and 
the  subsequent  decoloration  of  the  solution  by  standardized 
stannous  chloride  solution  containing  much  hydrochloric  acid  ; 
thus — 

2CuBr„  +  «HBr  +  SnBr,  =  SnBr4  +  CugBra  +  ?/HBr. 


M 
M'' 


Coloured. 


Uncoloured. 


— Preparation  of  hydroxycamphocarbonic  acid  from  campho- 
carbonic  acid,  by  MM.  A.  Haller  and  Minguin. — Upon  the  or- 
ganization of  left-handed  Prosobranchiate  Gastropoda  (Neptunea 
contraria,  Linnceus),  by  MM.  P.  Fischer  and  E.  L.  Bouvier. — 


432 


NATURE 


\_Marck  6,  1890 


"Upon  the  initial  cells  of  the  ovary  in  fresh-water  Hydrse,  by  M. 
Joannes  Chatin. — Note  on  a  new  putrefaction  ptomaine,  ob- 
tained by  the  culture  oi  Bacterium  allii,  by  Mr.  A.  B.  Griffiths. 
The  author  gives  analyses  of  an  alkaloid,  produced  by  the  de- 
composition of  albuminoids  by  this  organism,  showing  it  to  be- 
long to  the  hydropyridine  series,  and  to  possess  the  formula  of 
hydrocoridine,  CjoH^yN. — On  the  chromogenous  functions  of 
the  pyocyanic  bacillus,  by  M.  C.  Gessard,  —Fossil  Radiolarians 
inclosed  in  albite  crystals,  by  M.  A.  Issel.  The  author  con- 
cludes from  the  data  given — (i)  that  a  sedimentary  fossiliferous 
rock  has  become  crystalline  and  rich  in  plagioclastic  crystals, 
without  the  stratification  being  sensibly  altered  ;  {2)  that  this 
change  has  been  produced  in  a  Tertiary  formation  ;  (3)  that  a 
hydrothermal  action  is  indicated. — A  contribution  to  the  history 
of  chrome-iron,  by  M.  Stanislas  Meunier. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 
London. 

THURSDAY,  March  6. 

■Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — On  a  Second  Case  of  the  Occurrence  of  Silver  in 
Volcanic  Dust — namely,  in  that  thrown  out  in  the  Eruption  of  Tunguragua, 
in  the  Andes  of  Ecuador,  January  11,  1886  :  Prof.  J.  W.  Mallet,  F.  R.S.— 
On  the  Tension  of  Recently-formed  Liquid  Surfaces  :  Lord  Rayleigh, 
Sec.R.S. — (i)  On  the  Development  of  the  Ciliary  or  Motor  Oculi 
Ganglion;  (2)  The  Cranial  Nerves  of  the  Torpedo  (Preliminary  Note): 
Prof.  J.  C.  Ewart. 

LiNNKAN  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Production  of  Seed  in  some  Varieties 
of  the  Common  Sugar-Cane  (Saccharum  officinarum)  :  D.  Morris. — An 
Investigation  into  the  True  Nature  of  Callus ;  Part  i,  the  Vegetable 
Marrow,  and  Ballia  callitricha  :  Spencer  Moore. 

'Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Early  Developments  of  the  Forms  ot 
Instrumental  Music  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDAY,  March  7. 
Physical  Society,  at  5. — On    Bertrand's    Refractometer :    Prof.    S.    P. 
Thompson. 

-Geologists' Association,  at  8. — On  some  Pleistocene  (non-Marine)  Mol- 
lusca  of  the  London  District  :  B.  B.  Woodward. — Notes  on  some  Pleisto- 
cene Sections,  in  and  near  London :  W.  J.  Lewis  Abbott. — Note  on  a 
Curious  Appearance  produced  by  the  Natural  Bisection  of  some  Spherical 
Concretions  in  a-Yoredale  Stone  Quarry  near  Leek  :  Dr.  Wheelton  Hind. 

'Institution  OF  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30.— Telephonic  Switching:  C.  H. 
Wordingham. 

Royai  Institution,  at  9. — Electrical  Relations  of  the  Brain  and  Spinal 
Cord :   Francis  Gotch. 

SATURDAY,  March  8. 
Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism :  Right  Hon 
Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  March  9. 
Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4 — Pasteur,    and    his    Discoveries    (with 
Oxyhydrogen   Lantern    Illustrations):    Sir    Henry    E.    Roscoe,    M.P., 
F  R  S 

MONDAY,  March  10. 
Royal  Geographical  Sociktv,  at  8.30.— On  Lieut.  H.  B.  Vaughan's 
Recent  Journey  in  Eastern  Persia :  Major-General  Sir  Frederic  J.  Gold- 
smid,  K. C.S.I. 
--Victoria  Institute,  at  8. — On  the  Monism,  Pantheism,  and  Dualism  of 
Brahmanical  and  Zaroastrian  Philosophers:  Sir  M.  Monier-WilUams, 
IC  C  I  E 

TUESDAY,  March  ii.  « 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — The  Claims  of  the  British  School  of  Painting  to  a 

Thorough  Representation  in  the  National  Gallery  :  James  Orrock. 
Anthropological   Institute,   at   8.30. — Exhibition  of   the   Skull  of  a 
Carib,  from  a  Cave  in  Jamaica:  Prof.   Flower,  C.B.,  F.R.S.— Manners, 
Customs.  Superstitions,  and  Religions  of  South   African   Tribes  :    Rev. 
James  Macdonald. 
'Jn.stitution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8.— The  Hawksbury  Bridge,  New 
South  Wales:  C.  O.  Buree.— The  Erection  of  the  Dufferin   Bridge  over 
the  Ganges  at  Benares:  F.  T.  G.  Walton.— The  New  Blackfriars  Bridge 
on  the   London,  Chatham,   and  Dover  Railway:  G.    E.    W.    Cruttwell. 
(Discussion.) 
Royal  Institution,  at    3.— The  Post-Darwinian   Period :  Prof.    G.   J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  March  12. 
•  Geological  Society,  at  8.— On  a  Deep  Channel  of  Drift  in  the  Valley  of 
the  Cam,  Essex:  W.  Whitaker.  F.R.S.— On  the  Moiiian  and  Basal 
Cambrian  Rocks  of  Shropshire  :  Prof.  J.  F.  Blake.— On  a  Crocodilian  Jaw 
from  the  Oxford  Clay  of  Peterborough  :  R.  Lydekker.— On  Two  New 
Species  of  Labyriiuhodonts  :  R.  Lydekker. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — The  Chemin  de  Fer  Glissant,  or  Sliding  Railway  : 
Sh-  Douglas  Galton,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S. 

THURSDAY,  March  13. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

Mathematical  Society,  at  8.— Som-i  Groups  of  Circles  connected  with 
Three  given  Circles:  R.  Lachl.an.- Perfect  Numbers:  Major  P.  A.  Mac- 
Mahon,  R.A.  _  •        ir     t. 

'SociKTY  of  Arts,   at   5. — Agriculture  and   the   State   in   India  :  W.    R. 

Robertson. 
'Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — The  Theory  of  Armature 
Reactions  in  Dynamos  and  Motors;    lames  Swinburne. — Some   Points  in 
Dynamo  and  Motor  Design  :  VV.  B.  Esson.     (Discussion.) 


Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The    Barly   Development    of   the    Forms  ol 
Instrumental  Music  (wiih  Musical  Illustrations)  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDAY,  March  14. 
Royal  Astronomical  Sociktv.  at  8. 

Rf^VAL  Institution,  at  9. — The  Glow  of  Phosphorus:  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe, 
F  R  S 

SATURDAY,  March  15. 
.Society  of  Arts,  at  3. — The  .Atmosphere :  Prof.  Vivian  Lewes. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism  :  Right  Hon.  Lord 
Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Prodromus  Faunae  Mediterranea;,  Part  2  :  J.  V.  Carus  (Stuttgart,  Koch). 
— The  Elements  of  Laboratory  Work:  A.  G.  Earl  (Longmans). — History 
of  Botany  (1530-1860):  J.  vim  Sachs;  translated  by  H.  E.  F.  Garnsey  ; 
revised  by  I.  B.  Balfour  (Clarendon  Press). — Traite  Encyclopedique  de 
Photographie,  neuv.  fasc.  :  C.  Fabre  (Paris,  Gauthier-Villars). — A  Syllabus 
of  Elementary  Dynamics  :  Prof  W.  N.  Stocker  (Macmillan). — Synoptical 
Tables  of  Inorganic  and  Organic  Chemistry  :  C.  J.  Leaper  (Gill). — The 
Growth  of  Capital :  R.  Giffen  (Bell).— Coal  Gas  as  a  Fuel :  T.  Fletcher 
(Warrington,  Mackie). — The  Zoological  Record  for  1888  (Gurney  and  Jack- 
son).— An  Elementary  Treatise  on  Light  and  Heat,  2nd  edition  :  Rev.  F. 
W.  Aveling  (Relfe).— Demoids  :  J.  B.  Sutton  (Bailliere).— The  Railways  of 
Scotland  :  W.  M.  Ackworth  (Murray).- Electrical  Engineering  :  W.  Slingo 
and  A.  Brooker  (Longmans).— Un  Viaggio  a  Nias  :  E.  Modigliani  (Milano, 
Fratelli  Treves).— Transactions  of  the  Astronomical  Observatory  of  Yale 
University,  vol.  i.  Part  2  (New  Haven). — Cycles  of  Drought  and  Good 
Seasons  in  South  Africa  :  D.  E.  Hutchins  (Wesley).— How  to  Know  Grapes 
by  the  Leaves:  A.  N.  M'Alpine  (Edinburgh,  Douglas). — Boilers,  Marine 
and  Land,  2nd  edition :  T.  W.  Traill  (Griffin).— Four-Figure  Mathematical 
Tables,  2nd  edition  :  J.T.  Bottomley  (Macmillan).— The  Cultivated  Oranges 
and  Lemons,  &c.,  of  India  and  Ceylon,  text  and  plates  :  Dr.  E.  Bonavia 
(Allen). — Elementary  Manual  of  Magnetism  and  Electricity,  Part  2  :  Prof 
Jamieson  (Griffin) —Quarterlv  Journal  of  Microscopical  Science,  February 
(Churchill).— Zeitschrift  fur  Wissenschaftliche  Zoologie,  49  Band,  3  Heft 
(Williams  and  Norgate).— Foumal  of  the  Royal  Microscopical  Society,  1S89, 
Part  6a,  1890.  Part  i  (Williams  and  Norgate).— Studies  from  the  Biological 
Laboratory,  Johns  Hopkins  University,  vol.  4,  No.  6  (Baltimore).— Trans- 
actions and  Proceedings  of  the  Botanical  Society,  vol.  xvii.  Part  3  (Edin- 
burgh).—Annual  Report  of  the  Canadian  Institute,  Session  1888-89 
(Toronto). 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

The  Science  Collections  at  South  Kensington    .    .    409 
Three     Recent     Popular     Works     upon     Natural 

History.      By  G.  B.  H 409 

A  General  Formula  for  the  Flow  of  Water     ...    411 

The  Compass  on  Board 412 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Bartholomew  :     "  Library    Reference    Atlas    of    the 

World" 413 

Harker  :   "  The  Bala  Volcanic  Series  of  Caernarvon- 
shire and  Associated  Rocks  " 4^4 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

The  Inheritance  of  Acquired   Characters.— Herbert 

Spencer  ;  Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.S.  .    .    414 
Physical  Properties  of  Water.— Prof.    P.    G.  Tait  ; 
Prof.  Arthur  W.  RUcker,  F.R.S.         .....    416 

Visualized    Images  produced   by    Music— Geo.     E. 

Newton 4^7 

Foreign    Substances     attached    to    Crabs.— Walter 

Garstang 4' 7 

A  Key  to  the  Royal  Society's  Catalogue.— James  C 

McConnel 4i8 

A  Meteor.— T.  W.  Baker     .    .    .    .  ' 4^8   . 

The   Discovery  of  Coal  near  Dover.     By  Prof.  W. 

Boyd  Dawkins,  F.R.S 418 

The  Relation  between  the  Atomic  Volumes  of  Ele- 
ments present  in  Iron  and  their  Influence  on  its 
Molecular  Structure.  By  Prof.  W.  C.  Roberts- 
Austen,  F.R.S 420 

Sedgwick  and  Murchison  :  Cambrian  and  Silurian. 

By  Prof.  James  D.  Dana 421 

The  Weather  in  January.     By  Chas.  Harding  ...    425 

Notes 42a 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope.— A.  Fowler 428 

The  Total  Solar  Eclipse  of  December  22,  1889    ...    428 

Comets  and  Asteroids  discovered  in  1889 428 

Mass  of  Saturn 429 

The  Opening  of  the  Forth  Bridge 429 

University  and  Educational  Intelligence 43° 

Societies  and  Academies 43° 

Diary  of  Societies 432 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received     ....       432 


NA TURE 


433 


THURSDAY,  MARCH  13,  1890. 


GERMAN  CONTRIBUTIONS   TO  ETHNOLOGY. 

!-.thnographische  Beitrdge  zur  Kenntniss  des  Karolinen 
Archipeh.  Von  J.  S.  Kubary.  i  Heft,  mit  15  Tafeln. 
(Leyden  :  P.  W.  M.  Trap,  1889.) 

SINCE  1868,  when  Herr  Kubary  first  entered  upon  a 
course  of  inquiry  among  the  Polynesians,  which  he 
had  undertaken  for  the  Godeffroy  Museum  in  Hamburg, 
to  which  institution  he  was  then  officially  attached,  he 
has  made  the  archipelago  of  the  Carolines  the  chief  seat 
and  object  of  his  observations.  These  islands,  lying 
between  5°  and  10°  N.  lat.,  midway  between  the  Ladrones 
and  New  Guinea,  and  stretching  from  138^-160^  E.  long., 
have  been  visited  by  few  white  men  excepting  the  traders 
who  occasionally  touch  there  for  purposes  of  barter,  or 
with  the  object  of  securing  workmen  for  some  more  or 
Jess  remote  labour-market  on  terms  of  hire  which  are 
usually  misunderstood  by  the  natives  themselves.  To 
this  drain  on  the  numbers  of  able-bodied  men,  and  to 
continual  tribal  wars  among  the  different  members  of  the 
group,  the  rapid  diminution  of  the  population  of  the 
Carolines  is  probably  mainly  due.  In  some  of  the 
islands  the  author  found  that  the  once  numerous  families 
of  the  kings  or  chiefs  had  either  wholly  died  out  in 
recent  years,  or  were  only  represented  by  a  single  male 
descendant,  who,  in  the  absence  of  any  other  woman  of 
pure  native  race,  would  have  to  take  a  half-sister  for  his 
wife,  if  he  would  avoid  the  alternative  of  making  a 
prohibited  exogamic  marriage. 

The  probably  imminent  extermination  of  these  Northern 
Polynesians  gives  more  than  common  interest  to  Herr 
Kubary's  narrative  of  his  long  sojourn  in  the  island  Yap, 
and  in  the  Pelew  group,  or  Western  Carolines,  where  he 
had  the  good  fortune  to  obtain  previously-unknown  in- 
formation regarding  the  various  indigenous  moneys  in 
use,  and  thus  to  establish  the  hitherto  unsuspected  fact 
that  among  these  people  a  carefully-adjusted  and  rigidly- 
prescribed  monetary  system  has  been  long  in  force. 
Thus  in  the  island  of  Yap  he  found  that  each  distinct 
kind  of  money  could  only  be  used  for  specially-defined 
purposes,  the  form  known  as  gau,  which  consists  of 
strings  of  equally-sized  polished  disks  of  the  spondylus, 
constituting  what  we  may  term  the  gold  of  the  district. 
This  is  not  current  among  the  general  public,  but  is 
carefully  accumulated  by  the  chiefs,  who  keep  it  in  reserve 
to  be  exchanged  with  other  chiefs  for  canoes  or  weapons 
of  all  kinds,  to  be  used  when  they  are  preparing  to  make, 
or  to  resist,  a  hostile  attack.  This  spondylus  currency  has 
considerable  ethnological  interest,  for  we  find  that  the 
shell  can  only  be  procured  to  the  east  or  the  north  of 
Yap,  and  that  it  is  traditionally  the  most  ancient  form  of 
money  in  use  in  that  and  some  of  the  neighbouring 
islands,  while  its  discovery  in  old  graves  of  chiefs  in  the 
Ladrones  seems  to  point  to  a  common  origin  of  the 
natives  of  the  latter  group  and  those  of  the  Carolines. 
Next  in  value  is  the  palan,  which  consists  of  round 
disks  of  arragonite  of  various  degrees  of  thickness,  which 
is  obtained  by  the  people  of  Yap  at  considerable  risk  and 
with  much  labour  from  certain  islands  of  limestone- 
formation  in  the  Pelew  group.  The  supply  of  this  money 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1063. 


in  Yap  is  mainly  dependent  on  the  enterprise  of  the 
young  men  of  the  villages,  who,  from  time  to  time  com- 
bine together  to  procure  a  canoe,  in  which,  with  the  con- 
sent of  their  chief,  they  repair  to  the  arragonite  rocks  to 
extract  as  much  of  the  stone  as  their  boat  will  hold.  On 
returning  to  their  native  village,  they  are  bound  to  pre- 
sent their  chief  with  all  the  larger  blocks,  after  which 
they  dispose  of  the  remainder  to  the  villagers  at  the  rate 
of  the  market  value  of  the  stone,  which  is  estimated 
according  to  its  width.  Thus,  while  a  fragment  measur- 
ing an  inch  or  two  in  diameter  is  the  recognized  price  of 
a  basket  of  taro,  consisting  of  a  definite  number  of  roots, 
the  scale  of  values  rises  gradually  until  it  requires  a  mass 
six  feet  in  width  to  purchase  a  good-sized  canoe,  or  a 
gaii-hQXi  adorned  with  two  whale's  teeth,  which  ranks 
in  the  eyes  of  a  Yap  dandy  as  the  most  precious  of  all 
personal  ornaments.  The  arrival  of  a  cargo  in  which 
there  are  several  of  these  exceptionally  large  blocks,  is 
generally  soon  followed  by  the  breaking  out  of  hostilities 
between  the  village  chief  and  his  neighbours,  as  the 
former  seldom  loses  a  chance  of  making  speedy  use  of 
these  sinews  of  war  ;  and  hence  perhaps  palan  is  popu- 
larly known  as  "  men's  money."  Next  in  value  to  it  comes 
yar,  which  consists  of  small  threaded  nacreous  shells  that 
serve  as  small  change,  and  are  known  as  "women's 
money." 

In  the  Pelew  Islands,  another  form  of  money,  known 
as  audoicth,  is  current,  whose  origin  and  history  are  un- 
known, although  the  traditions  regarding  it  suggest  that  it 
may  have  been  obtained  through  early  trading  relations 
between  these  islands  and  remote  eastern  and  western 
nations.  Audouth  is  divided  into  numerous  groups,  con- 
sisting of  coloured  or  enamelled  beads  or  disks,  some  of 
which  present  a  vitreous  or  earthy  character,  recalling 
objects  of  Chinese  or  Japanese  art  ;  while  others,  to  judge 
by  the  coloured  illustrations  in  Herr  Kubary's  work,  are 
almost  identical  with  the  glass  beads  still  largely  manu- 
factured in  Venice.  Each  variety  of  bead  has  a  fixed 
place  on  the  scale  of  values,  which,  beginning  from  the 
/'rt^t'-basket  unit,  gradually  rises,  until  it  finally  reaches 
so  large  an  amount  that  each  of  the  still  existing  forty  or 
fifty  beads,  which  rank  as  the  highest  in  the  series,  and 
which  are  all  accumulated  in  the  hands  of  one  or  two  of 
the  kings,  actually  represents  a  sum  equal  to  ten  or  twelve 
pounds  sterling.  The  extremely  limited  number  of  the 
audotith-hesidis,  and  the  obligation  of  making  payments 
with  only  specially  prescribed  forms  of  these  coins,  have 
led  to  the  establishment  of  a  regularly  organized  system 
of  loans.  By  the  rules  of  this  system,  a  man  who  re- 
quires to  make  a  payment  in  a  coin  of  which  he  is  not 
possessed,  and  who  has  to  borrow  it  from  his  chief,  or 
some  neighbour,  is  compelled  to  give  in  pledge  certain 
definite  objects,  only  redeemable  by  repayments  at  fixed 
periods  and  rates  of  interest,  while  he  is,  moreover, 
obliged  to  refund  his  debt  in  the  same  coin  which  he 
originally  borrowed. 

In  his  comments  on  the  singular  fact  that  the  un- 
clothed, tattooed  natives  of  a  remote  Polynesian  archi- 
pelago should  possess  well-organized  systems,  based  on 
fixed  principles,  not  only  for  regulating  loans,  but  also 
for  conducting  exchange  and  barter  on  equitable  terms, 
Herr  Kubary  adduces  apparently  good  grounds  for  as- 
suming that  the    people    have  derived    these  methods, 

U 


434 


NA  TURE 


[March  13,  1890 


together  with  the  principal  features  of  their  political  and 
social  institutions,  through  their  early  acquaintance  with 
the  higher  civilization  of  the  great  Malayan  States,  with 
whose  inhabitants  they  probably  share  one  common 
origin.  Like  these  races,  the  people  of  the  Carolines 
attach  an  extraordinary  importance  to  money,  which  is 
made  the  pivot  on  which  everything  in  the  State  turns. 
Thus,  the  sole  penalty  for  all  crimes  and  misdemeanours 
is  a  fixed  payment  in  some  definite  form  of  money  ;  and, 
as  among  our  own  northern  ancestors,  every  injury  done 
to  man  or  beast  has  its  recognized  price,  while  every  act 
or  event  in  a  man's  life  from  his  birth  to  his  death,  and 
beyond  it,  is  charged  with  a  definite  payment.  Similarly, 
the  favour  of  the  gods  in  sickness,  and  the  good-will  of  a 
chief,  would  seem  to  be  regarded  as  only  attainable  by 
money  offerings  to  priests  or  rulers.  Strangely  enough, 
however,  the  chiefs  themselves  are  compelled  to  make 
certain  prescribed  payments  in  their  various  transactions 
with  the  people,  by  which  means  an  excessive  accumula- 
tion of  money  in  the  hands  of  a  few  is  prevented,  and  a 
free  circulation  of  the  various  coins  insured  ;  and  thus, 
these  uncivilized  Polynesians  have  attempted,  after  their 
own  fashion,  to  solve  a  problem  involved  in  the  question 
of  capital  and  labour. 

The  author's  copiously  illustrated  descriptions  of  the 
dwellings  and  other  buildings  erected  by  the  islanders 
show  how  closely  they  approximate  in  structure  and 
ornamentation  to  the  Malayan  type.  The  arrangements 
of  the  interior,  however,  where  the  quiet  and  solitude  of 
the  owner  of  a  house  are  provided  for  by  various  portions 
of  the  building  being  tabooed  to  all  strangers,  and  at 
certain  times  to  the  women  and  children  of  the  family, 
afford  strong  evidence  that  in  their  social  usages  the 
people  have  been  strongly  influenced,  probably  in  recent 
ages,  by  intercourse  with  Polynesians  occupying  the  re- 
moter eastern  archipelagoes.  This  is  shown  by  the 
uniformity  in  various  practices  followed  both  by  the 
natives  of  some  of  the  Carolines,  and  those  of  other  far 
distant  groups. 

Nothing,  however,  is  more  remarkable  than  the  di- 
versity presented  by  contiguous  islands,  for  while  in  the 
one  we  find  some  form  of  textile  art  or  some  method  of 
elaborate  tattooing,  characteristic  of  the  inhabitants  of  a 
far  distant  archipelago,  not  a  trace  of  either  is  to  be  met 
with  in  the  neighbouring  islands.  Even  more  inexplic- 
able are  the  differences  in  stature,  appearance,  and  general 
physical  character  among  the  natives  of  one  island,  or 
one  group  ;  and  hence  it  is  impossible  to  arrive  at  any 
firmly-based  conclusions  as  to  the  true  ethnic  history  of 
the  present  occupants  of  the  Caroline  archipelago. 

Herr  Kubary  has  devoted  much  attention  to  the  study 
of  the  various  maladies  from  which  the  natives  suffer, 
with  a  view  of  determining  how  far  these  are  indigenous 
or  imported  ;  and,  while  he  highly  commends  the 
patience  under  suffering  of  these  gentle,  unsophisticated 
natives,  he  shows  that  various  specific  forms  of  disease, 
which  are  usually  malignant  among  civilized  communities, 
here  present  a  benign  character.  His  remarks  on  this 
subject  are  full  of  interest,  as  are  also  his  descriptions  of 
the  various  local  remedies  employed,  among  which  it 
would  appear  that  some  possess  such  well-marked  specific 
properties  as  to  merit  the  careful  attention  of  our  own 

harmacologists. 


The  present  volume,  which  is  to  be  followed  by  a  further 
series  of  Herr  Kubary's  contributions,  is  edited  by  Dr. 
Schmeltz,  on  behalf  of  the  directors  of  the  Imperial 
Museum  of  Ethnology  in  Berlin,  where  the  most  valuable 
of  the  author's  collections  are  deposited. 


ENGLISH  AND  SCOTTISH  RAIL  WA  YS. 

The  Railways  of  England.  By  W,  M.  Acworth.  Second 
Edition.     (London  :  John  Murray,  1889.) 

T/ie  Railways  of  Scotland.  By  W.  M.  Acworth. 
(London  :  John  Murray,   1890.) 

BEYOND  the  comparatively  small  railway  circle,  there 
are  many  persons  who  take  great  interest  in  the 
railway  system  of  this  country.  Any  particularly  fast 
train  is  carefully  noted,  and  compared  detail  for  detail 
with  its  predecessor ;  and  its  particular  virtues  are 
pointed  out.  To  such  persons  the  works  before  us  will 
be  most  welcome.  To  railway  men  we  need  only  say 
that  not  to  read  these  books  will  be  a  great  loss  and 
a  mistake.  Mr.  Acworth  has  evidently  had  excellent 
opportunities  for  observation,  and  he  has  not  failed  to 
make  good  use  of  the  chances  thus  obtained  for  careful 
study  of  the  many  different  phases  of  railway  life.  The 
author  confesses  to  have  written  anonymously  not  a  few 
criticisms  on  the  management  of  certain  English  railways, 
which  were  meant  to  be  particularly  scathing.  In  the 
present  books  we  can  find  nothing  of  the  kind  ;  in  fact,  in 
most  cases  the  author  uses  language  of  almost  unvarying 
panegyric,  even  the  hunting-ground  of  the  "  Flying 
Watkin  Express  "  coming  in  for  nothing  but  praise.  This 
is  certainly  as  it  should  be,  for  those  who  know  anything 
of  the  subject  are  aware  that  the  English  railway  system 
taken  as  a  whole  is  second  to  none  in  the  world,  either  in 
management,  rolling-stock,  or  permanent  way. 

The  volume  on  the  railways  of  England  deals  princi- 
pally with  the  railways  terminating  in  London.  An 
historical  sketch  of  the  early  railways  is  given,  and  we 
find,  besides  much  useful  matter,  many  amusing 
anecdotes.  The  author  deals  at  length  with  the  change 
wrought  by  the  introduction  of  railways  in  the  various 
trades  affected  by  the  withdrawal  of  the  stage-coach,  and 
the  consequent  loss  of  trade  to  many  towns  and  villages 
on  the  old  turnpike  roads,  as  well  as  the  birth  of  new 
trades  and  occupations  caused  by  the  advance  of  the 
railway  system. 

The  London  and  North-Western  Railway  is  the  first 
one  noticed,  in  Chapter  II.  The  territory  of  this  railway 
extends  from  London  in  the  south  to  Carlisle  in  the 
north,  and  from  Cambridge  in  the  east  to  Swansea  and 
Holyhead  in  the  west.  The  description  naturally  begins 
at  Crewe,  for  at  this  station  are  the  main  locomotive  and 
other  works  of  the  Company,  employing  about  6ock> 
men.  Here  also  are  the  head-quarters  of  the  locomotive 
staff,  under  Mr.  F.  W.  Webb,  the  able  mechanical  super- 
intendent. The  author  gives  an  excellent  description  of 
the  works,  and  the  many  special  manufactures  carried  on. 
The  illustration  of  the  Webb  transverse  steel  sleeper 
shows  how  a  steel  sleeper  can  be  designed  to  suit  the 
English  mongrel-sectioned  rail  known  as  the  "  Bullhead." 
It  is  a  pity  some  enterprising  railway  manager  in  England 
does  not  give  the  Indian  all-steel  permanent  way  a  trial. 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


435 


viz.  a  Vignoles  or  flanged  rail  with  a  transverse  steel 
sleeper  formed  out  of  a  ribbed  plate,  with  lugs  or  clips 
formed  out  of  the  solid  to  take  the  rail  flange,  and  fastened 
with  a  steel  key.  In  this  system  there  is  nothing  that  can 
get  loose,  and  excellent  results  are  obtained  in  India, 
where  several  millions  are  now  in  use. 

In  Chapter  IV.  we  find  the  Midland  Railway  thoroughly 
discussed.  The  growth  of  this  enterprising  and  pushing 
Company  is  carefully  and  vividly  delineated.  This  large 
system,  like  most  others,  is  the  result  of  the  amalgamation 
of  many  small  companies,  and,  under  an  enlightened 
■management,  it  has  long  been  considered  the  most  pro- 
gressive railway  in  this  country.  The  author  gives  a 
capital  description  of  this  large  system,  and  many  inter- 
esting statistics.  Among  the  many  special  details,  perhaps 
the  Lickey  incline  on  the  Birmingham  and  Gloucester 
section  is  of  most  interest.  On  this  incline,  having 
a  gradient  of  i  in  37,  the  traffic  has  always  been  worked 
iDy  locomotives,  even  in  the  days  when  stationary  engines 
were  used  to  haul  the  trains  out  of  Euston  Station  and 
Lime  Street  Station  at  Liverpool ;  and  further,  in  these 
early  days  (1839),  the  EngHsh-built  locomotive  was  unable 
to  be  of  much  use  on  this  incline,  and  some  American 
locomotives  were  imported  and  succeeded  in  working  the 
traffic.  Derby  is  the  "Crewe"  of  the  Midland.  Here 
the  Company  builds  the  locomotives,  carriages,  and  most 
of  the  waggons.  The  travelling  public  owe  much  to  the 
^lidland  Company.  On  this  line  the  author  tells  us  most 
of  the  new  departures  in  rolling-stock  and  details  were 
originally  tried,  the  Pullman  car  and  many  other  equally 
important  novelties,  down  to  the  diminutive  but  most 
useful  apparatus,  the  sand-blast,  for  sanding  the  rails 
under  the  treads  of  the  driving-wheels  of  the  locomo- 
tive. The  efifects  of  this  apparatus  are  very  inter- 
esting, and  its  use  is  becoming  universal.  So  much 
does  it  add  to  the  effectiveness  of  a  single-wheeled 
locomotive  that  it  is  possible  to  use  it  on  trains  in 
place  of  the  four-coupled  engine,  a  saving  evident  to 
those  familiar  with  the  subject.  The  single-wheeled 
engines,  running  at  high  speeds,  are  more  free  ;  which 
means  less  wear  and  tear  to  the  engine  itself,  and  prob- 
ably the  permanent  way.  With  an  express  train  the 
sand-blast  apparatus  uses  about  nine  ounces  of  sand  per 
mile,  giving  a  continuous  supply  to  the  driving-wheels  ; 
and,  be  the  rails  ever  so  greasy,  the  wheels  seldom  slip 
half  a  turn.  The  testing  of  the  materials  used  at  Derby 
AVorks  appears  to  be  very  efficient ;  the  steel,  particularly 
for  plates,  axles,  tyres,  &c.,  being  thoroughly  tested  by 
tensile  and  bending  tests,  and  by  chemical  analysis. 

Chapter  V.  deals  with  the  Great  Northern,  North- 
Eastem,  and  Manchester,  Sheffield,  and  Lincolnshire 
Railways,  In  any  description  of  the  Great  Northern 
system  it  would  be  impossible  to  pass  over  the  splendid 
running  of  the  Company's  express  trains.  Some  of 
these  are,  without  doubt,  the  fastest  in  the  world.  The 
105I-  miles  between  Grantham  and  London  are  continu- 
ously "done"  in  117  minutes,  or  at  the  rate  of  54  miles 
per  hour ;  and  both  up  and  down  trains  are  known  to 
get  over  60  consecutive  miles  in  as  many  minutes.  On 
one  occasion,  the  author  states,  the  105^  miles  were  "reeled 
off"  in  112  minutes— a  result  worthy  of  Mr.  Stirling's 
splendid  locomotives.  The  description  of  driving  the 
■"  Flying  Scot "  is  very  true,  and  we  are  glad  to  observe 


that  the  author  combats  the  nonsense  written  to  the  daily 
press  concerning  the  drivers  and  firemen  of  the  Scotch 
expresses  "being  paralyzed  with  fear  at  the  awful  speeds." 
No  two  men  are  prouder  of  their  positions,  nor  would  they 
exchange  into  any  other  link.  Their  position  is,  in  fact, 
the  blue  ribbon  of  the  foot-plate. 

In  dealing  with  the  North-Eastern  Railway,  the  author 
gives  much  useful  information  on  the  subject  of  the  com- 
pound locomotive.  The  locomotive  superintendent  of  that 
railway,  Mr.  T.  W.  Worsdell,  uses  probably  the  best 
arrangement  of  cylinders,  &c.,  possible  to  fulfil  the  many 
conditions  under  which  3  satisfactory  locomotive  must  be 
constructed,  and  the  results  obtained  appear  tc  point  to  a 
great  saving  in  fuel.  We  would  commend  to  our  readers 
the  description  of  the  snow-block  on  this  railway  in  the 
year  1886  ;  it  is  well  written. 

With  reference  to  the  electric  lighting  of  trains  on  the 
Glasgow  underground  section  of  the  North  British  Rail-' 
way,  it  should  be  noted  that  the  current  is  taken  off  the 
third  insulated  rail,  not  by  a  brush,  as  stated  by  the 
author,  but  by  means  of  a  wheel  in  a  swing  frame  under 
each  coach.  This  wheel  runs  on  the  central  elevated 
and  insulated  rail,  and  each  coach  is  electrically  inde- 
pendent of  any  other.  The  system  appears  to  work  very 
well.  To  the  Manchester,  Sheffield,  and  Lincolnshire 
Railway  the  author  gives  little  attention,  for  reasons  stated 
on  p.  193.  Probably  no  line  in  this  country  is  more 
handicapped  by  heavy  gradients  on  its  main  line,  and 
the  locomotive  stock  has  had  to  be  designed  to  satisfy 
the  conditions,  more  especially  on  the  section  between 
Manchester  and  Sheffield.  The  late  Mr.  Charles  Sacrc, 
the  eminent  engineer  and  locomotive  superintendent  of 
that  railway,  designed  some  particularly  fine  four-coupled 
bogie  engines  for  the  passenger  service,  and  his  goods 
engines  did  good  work  on  the  heavy  sections. 

The  Great  Western  Railway  loses  nothing  by  the 
description  given  in  Chapter  VI.  This  historical  line  is 
well  described,  and  the  "  battle  of  the  gauges  "  thoroughly 
gone  into.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  some  compromise  was 
not  made  between  the  rival  gauges  ;  for  it  is  now  evident 
that  the  four  feet  eight  and  a  half  inches  gauge — the 
standard  one  in  this  country — is  not  wide  enough.  Loco- 
motives and  rolling  stock  have  grown  so  much  that 
locomotive  engineers  are  in  difficulties  when  trying  to 
design  more  powerful  engines.  Take,  for  instance,  the 
Indian  or  the  Irish  broad  gauge  ;  in  these  cases  the 
engines  are  not  limited  in  width  so  much,  and  can  have 
ample  bearing  surfaces ;  as  well  as,  for  inside  cylinder 
engines,  crank  axles  not  tied  down  by  considerations 
of  cylinder  centres  and  the  like.  A  ride  on  the 
"  Dutchman  "  express  locomotive  is  well  enough  described 
to  make  many  young  locomotive  engineers  long  to  have 
shared  with  the  author  that  thoroughly  enjoyable 
experience.  The  Severn  Tunnel  is  well  treated  in  this 
chapter.  Chapter  VI 1.  deals  with  the  South- Western 
Railway,  and  the  following  one  gives  much  useful  in- 
formation of  that  model  of  all  southern  railways — 
the  London,  Brighton,  and  South  Coast  Railway.  In 
noticing  the  latter  we  cannot  but  express  our  regret  for 
the  loss  that  Company  and  locomotive  engineering  gener- 
ally have  sustained  by  the  recent  death  of  Mr.  William 
Stroudley.  Without  doubt  one  of  our  ablest  railway 
engineers,  he  brought  the  designing  of  locomotives  and 


436 


NATURE 


[March  13,  1890 


rolling-stock  to  the  highest  pitch  ;  his  engines  are  patterns 
to  be  used  with  advantage,  and  their  coal  consumption  is 
the  lowest  on  record.  Chapter  IX.  describes  the  South- 
Eastern  and  Chatham  Railways ;  and  the  volume  concludes 
with  Chapter  X.,  on  the  Great  Eastern  Railway.  These  last 
chapters  lack  none  of  the  interest  to  be  found  in  the 
earlier  ones  in  the  book. 

The  second  volume,  on  Scottish  railways,  is  merely  a 
continuation  of  the  first,  and  is  written  in  the  same  lucid 
style.  Its  most  interesting  part  is  a  description  of  the 
Forth  Bridge.  Mr.  Acworth  gives  a  good  account  of  the 
bridge  and  the  earlier  schemes  proposed  for'crossing  the 
Forth. 

Mr.  Acworth  has  written  two  most  interesting  books, 
which  will  be  of  great  use  to  all  in  any  way  connected 
with,  or  interested  in,  the  British  railway  system. 

N.  J.  L. 


DISEASES  OF  PLANTS. 

Diseases  of  Plants.  By  Prof.  H.  Marshall  Ward,  F.R.S., 
M.A.  (London :  Society  for  Promoting  Christian 
Knowledge.) 

THIS  little  book  is  an  excellent  popular  introduction 
to  the  study  of  the  diseases  of  plants,  in  so  far  as 
they  are  due  to  the  attacks  of  parasitic  Fungi  or  similar 
organisms.  The  author,  who  has  inade  this  field  of  re- 
search especially  his  own,  succeeds  in  being  intelligible 
and  interesting  to  ordinary  readers,  without  in  any  degree 
sacrificing  the  scientific  character  of  his  work. 

The  book  is  illustrated  by  fifty-three  woodcuts,  which 
have  been  very  well  selected,  many  of  them  from  the 
author's  own  papers.  In  certain  cases,  however,  the 
engraving  leaves  something  to  be  desired,  and  scarcely 
does  justice  to  the  original  figures. 

An  introductory  chapter  explains  what  is  here  meant 
by  disease  in  plants,  namely  "  those  disturbances  of  the 
structure  and  functions  of  the  plant,  which  actually 
threaten  the  life  of  the  plants,  or  at  least  their  existence 
as  useful  objects  of  culture."  The  two  factors  of  disease? 
the  external  cause  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  condition  of 
the  patient  on  the  other,  are  clearly  distinguished. 

The  second  chapter  gives  a  general  account  of  Fungi 
as  saprophytes  and  parasites.  Mucor  is  described  as  an 
example  of  the  former,  and  vine-mildew  {Peronospora 
viticold)  of  the  latter  group. 

The  succeeding  nine  chapters,  forming  the  bulk  of  the 
book,  are  occupied  with  the  consideration  of  special 
diseases. 

First  comes  the  "  dam  ping-off "  of  seedlings,  a  disease 
only  too  well  known  to  gardeners,  due  to  the  attacks  of 
various  species  of  Pythium.  The  whole  life-history  of 
the  parasite  is  described.  In  Fig.  9  it  is  a  pity  that  the 
point  of  attachment  of  the  antheridium  is  not  more 
clearly  shown. 

Next,  we  have  an  account  of  the  very  interesting 
disease  of  cabbages  and  other  Crucifers,  known  as 
"  fingers  and  toes,"  "  club-root,"  &c.  Here  the  cause  of 
the  mischief  is  a  Myxomycete,  and  this  is  the  only  case 
of  a  non-fungoid  disease  described  in  the  book.  Happily, 
a  satisfactory  cure  can  here  be  prescribed. 


Chap.  V.  is  on  the  potato-disease.  An  account  of  the 
normal  mode  of  nutrition  of  the  plant  in  health  is  in- 
troduced in  order  to  show  the  exact  nature  of  the 
deadly  injury  which  is  wrought  by  the  Phytophthora. 
As  a  preventive  measure,  the  selection  of  resistant 
varieties  of  the  potato  is  especially  recommended. 
Chap.  vi.  is  devoted  to  the  "  smut "  of  corn.  The 
cause  of  the  frequent  failure  of  protective  dressings 
applied  to  the  ripe  grain  is  discussed.  If,  however,  as 
Jensen  believes,  the  ovule  may  be  infected  at  the  time  of 
flowering,  an  altogether  new  light  is  thrown  on  this 
question. 

After  a  chapter  on  the  disease  known  as  "  bladder- 
plums,"  caused  by  the  yeast-like  Fungus  Exoascus,  we 
come  to  the  lily-disease.  The  Fungus  which  is  here 
responsible  has  been  shown  by  Prof.  Ward  to  afford  an 
excellent  example  of  a  saprophyte  which  can  become  a 
parasite  on  occasion. 

The  next  three  chapters  describe  the  ergot  of  rye,  the 
mildew  of  hop  (Podosphaera),  and  the  rust  of  wheat.  In 
the  case  of  the  hop-disease,  a  figure  of  the  conidia  might 
have  been  added  with  advantage.  The  now  familiar  but 
always  interesting  story  of  the  hetercecism  of  rust  is 
well  told. 

With  a  caution  which  in  the  case  of  a  popular  work 
cannot  be  too  highly  commended,  the  author  avoids 
expressing  any  opinion  on  the  subjects  of  fertilization  in 
Podosphasra,  and  of  the  function  of  the  spermogonia  in 
^cidium. 

In  the  concluding  chapter,  Prof.  Ward  endeavours  to 
interest  his  readers  in  the  wider  questions  of  mycology, 
so  fascinating  to  the  botanist,  such  as  the  phylogenetic 
origin  and  relationships  of  the  Fungi. 

The  book  should  have  a  wide  circulation  among  the 
numerous  classes  interested  in  the  important  group  of 
diseases  of  plants  with  which  it  deals. 

D.  H.  S. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

The  Physicia7i  as  Naturalist.     Addresses  and   Memoirs 

bearing  on  the  History  of  and  Progress  of  Medicine 

chiefly  during   the    last   hundred  years.      By   W.   T. 

Gairdner,    M.D.      (Glasgow :     Maclehose  and   Sons^ 

1889.) 

A  SUCCESSFUL  physician,  during  a  long  and  busy  life,  is 

frequently  called  upon  to  preside  and  deliver  addresses 

at  meetings  at  which  he  is  expected  to  treat  his  subjects 

in  a  more  or  less  popular  manner. 

Dr.  Gairdner  has  brought  together  a  most  interesting 
series  of  such  addresses,  which  fall  into  two  main  groups. 
First,  those  in  which  he  has  contrasted  the  treatment 
of  the  present  day  with  that  in  vogue  among  our  pre- 
decessors of  more  or  less  remote  times ;  and  in  which 
he  has  attempted  to  present  the  answer  to  that  ever- 
interesting  question,  "  Is  the  treatment  of  disease 
adopted  at  the  present  day  superior  to  that  in  vogue 
formerly  ?  And  if  so,  in  what  does  its  superiority  consist .?  '^ 
Second,  those  in  which  he  lays  down  the  lines  on 
which  he  considers  the  medical  education  of  the  future 
should  be  conducted,  in  order  to  lead  to  still  greater 
advances. 

The  dependence  of  modern  treatment  upon  the  dis- 
cussion of  accumulations  of  facts,  and  not  solely  upon 
theory,   and   the    necessity   of  making  experience   and 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


437 


not  authority  the  arbiter  in  cases  of  doubt,  are  the 
conclusions  which  the  author  inculcates  throughout. 

A  century  ago  it  was  considered  a  fundamental  principle 
that  venesection  was  essential  in  most,  if  not  all,  serious 
illnesses  ;  and,  to  such  an  extent  was  this  carried,  that 
200  ounces  of  blood  were  sometimes  drawn  off  during 
a  week,  and  even  half  that  amount  in  24  hours.  Next 
came  a  reaction,  and  the  theory  that  fever  patients 
required  stimulation,  rather  than  venesection,  led  to  the 
administration  of  enormous  quantities  of  alcohol,  espe- 
cially at  the  hands  of  Dr.  Todd,  who  at  times  administered 
more  than  four  gallons  of  brandy  to  young  girls  during  an 
illness.  Finally,  to  Dr.  Gairdner  himself  is  due  much 
of  the  credit  of  the  modern  treatment ;  for  in  1864  he 
showed  that  in  fevers,  especially  typhus,  the  mortality  is 
f;ir  less  when  the  patients  are  supported  with  milk  and 
not  with  alcohol.  Quackery  and  humbug  meet  with  but 
little  mercy  at  the  author's  hands,  and  the  hollowness  of 
the  pretensions  of  homoeopathy  is  well  brought  out  in  an 
essay  contributed  thirty  years  ago,  which  is  reprinted  in 
this  collection. 

The  volume  should  meet  with  a  large  circle  of  readers 
outside  the  medical  profession,  as  it  is  eminently  read- 
able and  touches  upon  many  points  in  the  past  history 
of  medicine  as  well  as  in  modern  practice,  which  are  of 
interest  to  all. 


Materials  for  a  Flora  of  the  Malayan  Peninsula.  Part  I. 
By  Dr.  George  King,  F.R.S.,  Calcutta.  Pp.  50. 
(Reprinted  from  the  Journal  of  the  Asiatic  Society  oj 
Bengal,  1889,  No.  4.) 

Sir  J.  D.  Hooker's  "  Flora  of  British  India,"  of  which 
five  volumes  out  of  seven  are  now  printed,  marks  an  era 
in  tropical  botany,  inasmuch  as  it  will  probably  contain 
descriptions,  with  their  synonymy,  of  half  the  tropical 
plants  of  the  Old  World.  It  furnishes,  therefore,  a  broad 
platform  for  his  successors  to  build  upon.  It  is  not  likely 
that  within  the  bounds  of  India  proper  many  new  plants 
still  remain  to  be  described  ;  but  it  is  not  so  in  the 
wonderfully  rich  flora  of  the  Malay  peninsula.  During 
the  last  ten  years  large  collections  have  been  accumu- 
lated at  Calcutta  from  this  region,  gathered  mainly  by 
Scortechini  and  other  collectors  who  have  been  sent 
out  by  the  authorities  of  the  Calcutta  Botanic  Garden. 
In  the  present  pamphlet,  which  is  reprinted  from  the 
Journal  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal,  Dr.  King,  the 
Director  of  the  Calcutta  Garden,  begins  a  synopsis  of  the 
plants  which  are  indigenous  to  the  British  provinces  of 
the  Malay  peninsula,  including  the  islands  of  Singapore, 
Penang,  and  the  Nicobar  and  Andaman  groups. 

In  this  present  paper  he  deals  with  the  orders  Ranun- 
culaceas,  Dilleniaceae,  Magnoliaceae,  Menispermaceae, 
Nymphasaceas,  Capparideae,  and  Violaceae,  leaving  over 
the  intricate  and  largely  represented  order  Anonaceas  for 
another  time.  In  these  seven  orders  there  are  35  Malayan 
genera  and  90  species,  of  which  32  are  here  described  for 
the  first  time.  Amongst  the  novelties  are  included  a 
Magnolia,  a  Manglietia,  3  Talaumas,  an  Illicium,  4  species 
of  Capparis,  and  no  less  then  1 1  new  Alsodeias.  Besides 
the  species  here  described  for  the  first  time,  there  are 
several  others,  known  previously  in  Java  and  China, 
which  are  new  to  British  India.  It  will  be  seen  that  the 
work  will  add  materially  to  our  knowledge  of  Indian 
plants,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  Dr.  King,  in  the  midst 
of  his  multifarious  official  duties,  may  be  able  to  go  on 
with  it  quickly  and  steadily.  It  is  hardly  worth  while, 
we  think,  in  a  series  of  papers  of  this  kind,  to  take  up 
space  and  time  by  recapitulating  in  detail  the  characters 
of  the  orders  and  genera,  as,  from  the  nature  of  the  case, 
it  is  essentially  a  supplement  to  Hooker's  "  Flora  of 
British  India,"  in  which  they  are  already  fully  worked 
•out.  J.  G.  B. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  Tht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  NatuRK, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communiccUions.\ 

Panmixia. 

Seeing  that  the  whole  structure  of  Prof.  Weismann's  theory 
is  founded — both  logically  and  historically — upon  the  doctrine 
of  "  panmixia,"  and  seeing  that  in  some  important  respects  his 
statement  of  the  doctrine  appears  to  me  demonstrably  erroneous, 
I  propose,  to  supply  a  paper  on  the  subject. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  principal  evidence  on  which 
Mr.  Darwin  relied  to  prove  the  inheritance  of  acquired  cha- 
racters was  that  which  he  derived  from  the  apparently  inherited 
effects  of  use  and  disuse — especially  as  regards  the  bones  of  our 
domesticated  animals  when  compared  with  the  corresponding 
bones  of  ancestral  stocks  in  a  state  of  nature.  Now,  in  all  his 
investigations  regarding  this  matter,  the  increase  or  decrease  of 
a  part  was  estimated,  not  by  directly  comparing,  say,  the  wing 
bones  of  a  domesticated  duck  with  the  wing-bones  of  a  wild 
duck,  but  by  comparing  the  ratio  between  the  wing  and  leg 
bones  of  a  tame  duck  with  the  ratio  between  the  wing  and  leg 
bones  of  a  wild  duck.  Consequently,  if  there  l)e  any  reason  to 
doubt  the  supposition  that  a  really  inherited  diminution  of  a 
part  thus  estimated  is  due  to  the  inherited  effects  of  diminished 
use,  such  a  doubt  will  also  require  to  extend  to  the  evidence  of 
a  really  inherited  augmentation  of  a  part  being  due  to  the 
inherited  effects  of  augmented  use.  Now,  there  is  the  gravest 
possible  doubt  lying  against  the  supposition  that  any  really 
inherited  decrease  is  due  to  the  inherited  effects  of  disuse. 
For  it  may  be — and,  at  any  rate  to  a  large  extent,  must  be — 
due  to  another  principle  which  it  is  remarkably  strange  that  Mr. 
Darwin  should  have  overlooked.  This  is  the  principle  of  what 
Prof.  Weismann  has  called  panmixia.  If  any  structure  which 
was  originally  built  up  by  natural  selection  on  account  of  its  use, 
ceases  any  longer  to  be  of  so  much  use,  in  whatever  degree  it  so 
ceases  to  be  of  use,  in  that  degree  will  the  premium  before  set 
upon  it  by  natural  selection  be  withdrawn.  And  the  consequence 
of  this  withdrawal  of  selection  as  regards  that  particular  part 
will  be  to  allow  the  part  in  a  corresponding  measure  to  degenerate 
through  successive  generations.  Weismann  calls  this  principle 
panmixia,  because,  oy  such  withdrawal  of  natural  selection  from 
any  particular  part,  promiscuous  breeding  ensues  with  regard  to 
that  part.  And  it  is  easy  to  see  that  this  principle  must  be  one 
of  great  importance  in  nature,  inasmuch  as  it  must  necessarily 
come  into  operation  in  all  cases  where  a  structure  or  an  instinct 
has  ceased  to  be  useful.  It  is  likewise  easy  to  see  that  its  effects 
- — viz.  of  inducing  degeneration — must  be  precisely  the  same  as 
those  which  were  attributed  by  Mr.  Darwin  to  the  inherited 
effects  of  disuse  ;  and,  therefore,  that  most  of  the  evidence 
on  which  he  relied  to  prove  the  inherited  effects  both  of 
use  and  of  disuse  is  vitiated  by  the  fact  that  the  idea  of 
panmixia  never  happened  to  occur  to  him.  In  this  connection, 
however,  it  requires  to  be  stated  that  the  idea  first  of  all 
occurred  to  myself,  unfortunately  just  after  the  appearance  of 
his  last  edition  of  the  "  Origin  of  Species."  I  then  published  in 
these  columns  a  somewhat  detailed  exposition  of  the  subject  (see 
Nature,  vol.  ix.  pp.  361,  440,  vol.  x.  p.  164).  I  called  the  prin- 
ciple the  cessation  of  selection — which  still  seems  to  me  a 
better,  because  a  more  descriptive,  term  than  panmixia — and  at 
first  it  appeared  to  me,  as  it  now  appears  to  Weismann,  entirely 
to  supersede  the  necessity  of  supposing  that  the  effects  of  use 
and  of  disuse  are  ever  inherited  in  any  degree  at  all.  Thus  it 
obviously  raised  the  whole  question  touching  the  admissibility  of 
the  Lamarckian  principles  in  any  case,  or  the  question  which  is 
now  being  so  much  discussed  concerning  the  possible  inheritance 
of  acquired  as  distinguished  from  congenital  characters.  But 
Mr.  Darwin  satisfied  me  that  this  larger  question  could  not  be 
raised.  That  is  to  say,  although  he  fully  accepted  the  principle  of 
panmixia,  and  as  fully  acknowledged  its  obvious  importance, 
he  left  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  there  was  independent 
evidence  for  the  transmission  of  acquired  characters  sufficient  in 
amount  to  leave  the  general  structure  of  his  previous  theory 
unaffected  by  what  he  nevertheless  recognized  as  a  necessarily 
additional  factor  in  it.  And  forasmuch  as  no  further  facts 
bearing  upon  the  subject  have  been  forthcoming  since  that  time,. 
I  see  no  reason  to  change  the  judgment  that  was  then  formed. 


NA  TURE 


[March  13,  1890 


There  is,  however,  one  respect -in  which  Prof.  Weismann's 
statement  of  the  principle  of  panmixia  differs  from  tliat  which 
was  considered  by  Mr.  Darwin  ;  and  it  is  this  difference  of  state- 
ment— which  amounts  to  an  important  difference  of  theory — that 
I  now  wish  to  discuss. 

The  difference  in  question  is,  that  while  Prof.  Weismann 
believes  the  cessation  of  selection  to  be  capable  of  inducing  de- 
generation down  to  the.  almost  complete  disappearance  of  a 
rudimentary  organ,  I  have  argued  that,  unless  assisted  by  some 
other  principle,  it  can  at  most  only  reduce  the  degenerating 
organ  to  considerably  above  one-half  its  original  size — or  probably 
not  through  so  much  as  one-quarter.  The  ground  of  this  argu- 
ment (which  is  given  in  detail  in  the  Nature  articles  before 
alluded  to)  is,  that  panmixia  depends  for  its  action  upon 
fortuitous  variations  round  an  ever-diminishing  average — the 
average  thus  diminishing  because  it  is  no  longer  sustained  by 
natural  selection.  But  although  no  longer  sustained  by  natural 
selection,  it  does  continue  to  be  sustained  by  heredity  ;  and  there- 
fore, as  long  as  the  force  of  heredity  persists  unimpaired,  fortui- 
tous variations  alone — or  variation  which  is  no  longer  controlled 
by  natural  selection — cannot  reduce  the  dwindling  organ  to  so 
much  as  one-half  of  its  original  size  ;  indeed,  as  above  fore- 
shadowed, the  balance  between  the  positive  force  of  heredity 
and  the  negative  effects  of  promiscuous  variability  will  probably 
be  arrived  at  considerably  above  the  middle  line  thus  indicated. 
Only  if  for  any  reason  the  force  of  heredity  begins  to  fail,  can 
the  average  round  which  the  cessation  of  selection  works  become 
a  progressively  diminishing  average.  In  other  words,  so  long 
as  the  original  force  of  heredity  as  regards  the  useless  organ 
remains  unimpaired,  the  mere  withdrawal  of  selection  cannot 
reduce  the  organ  much  below  the  level  of  efficiency  above 
which  it  was  previously  maintained  by  the  presence  of  selection. 
If  we  take  this  level  to  be  70  per  cent,  of  the  original  size, 
cessation  of  selection  will  reduce  the  organ  through  the  30  per 
cent  ,  and  there  leave  it  fluctuating  about  this  average,  unless 
for  any  reason  the  force  of  heredity  begins  to  fail — in  which 
case,  of  course,  the  average  will  progressively  fall  in  proportion 
to  the  progressive  weakening  of  this  force. 

Now,  according  to  my  views,  the  force  of  heredity  under  such 
circumstances  is  always  bound  to  fail,  and  this  for  two  reasons. 
In  the  first  place,  it  must  usually  happen  that  when  an 
organ  becomes  useless,  natural  selection  as  regards  that 
organ  will  not  only  cease,  but  become  reversed.  For 
the  organ  is  now  absorbing  nutriment,  causing  weight,  oc- 
cupying space,  and  so  on,  uselessly.  Hence,  even  if  it  be 
not  also  a  source  of  actual  danger,  "economy  of  growth"  will 
determine  a  reversal  of  selection  against  an  organ  which  is  now 
not  merely  useless,  but  deleterious.  And  this  degenerating 
influence  of  the  reversal  of  selection  will  throughout  be  assisted 
by  the  cessation  of  selection,  which  will  now  be  always  acting 
round  a  continuously  sinking  average.  Nevertheless,  a  point 
of  balance  will  eventually  be  reached  in  this  case,  just  as  it  was 
in  the  previous  case  where  the  cessation  of  selection  was 
supposed  to  be  working  alone.  For,  where  the  reversal  of 
selection  has  reduced  the  diminishing  organ  to  so  minute  a  size 
that  its  presence  is  no  longer  a  source  of  detriment  to  the 
organism,  the  cessation  of  selection  will  carry  the  reduction  a 
small  degree  further ;  and  then  the  organ  will  remain  as  a 
"rudiment."  And  so  it  will  remain  permanently,  unless  there 
be  some  further  reason  why  the  still  remaining  force  of  heredity 
should  be  abolished.  This  further  reason  I  found  in  the  con- 
sideration that,  however  enduring  we  may  suppose  the  force  of 
heredity  to  be,  it  would  be  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  it  is 
actually  everlasting  ;  and,  therefore,  that  we  may  reasonably 
attribute  the  eventual  disappearance  of  rudimentary  organs  to  the 
eventual  failure  of  heredity  itself.  In  support  of  this  view  there  is 
the  fact  that  rudimentary  organs,  although  very  persistent,  are 
not  everlasting.  That  they  should  be  very  persistent  is  what  we 
should  expect,  if  the  hold  which  heredity  has  upon  them  is  great 
in  proportion  to  the  time  during  which  they  were  originally  use- 
ful, and  so  firmly  stamped  upon  the  organization  by  natural 
selection  causing  them  to  be  strongly  inherited  in  the  first  in- 
stance. Thus,  for  example,  we  might  expect  that  it  would  be 
more  difficult  finally  to  eradicate  the  rudiment  of  a  wing  than 
the  rudiment  of  a  feather  ;  and  accordingly  we  find  it  a  general 
rule  that  long-enduring  rudiments  are  rudiments  of  organs  dis- 
tinctive of  the  higher  taxonomic  divisions — i.e.  of  organs  which 
were  longest  in  building  up  in  the  first  place,  and  longest  sus- 
tained in  a  state  of  working  efficiency  in  the  second  place. 
Again,  that  rudimentary  organs,  although  in  such  cases  very 


persistent,  should  not  be  everlasting,  is  also  what  we  should 
expect,  unless  (like  Weismann)  we  have  some  argumentative 
reason  to  sustain  the  doctrine  that  the  force  of  heredity  is 
inexhaustible,  so  that  never  in  any  case  can  it  become  enfeebled 
by  a  mere  lapse  of  time — a  doctrine  the  validity  of  which  in  the 
present  connection  I  will  consider  later  on. 

Thus,  upon  the  whole,  my  view  of  the  facts  of  degeneration 
remains  the  same  as  it  was  when  first  published  in  these  columns 
sixteen  years  ago,  and  may  be  summarized  as  follows. 

The  cessation  of  selection  when  working  alone  (as  it 
probably  does  work  in  our  domesticated  animals,  and  during 
the  first  centuries  of  its  working  upon  structures  or  colours 
which  do  not  entail  any  danger  to,  or  perceptible  drain  upon 
the  nutritive  resources  of,  the  organism)  cannot  cause  degenera- 
tion below,  probably,  some  20  to  30  per  cent.  But  if  from 
the  first  the  cessation  of  selection  has  been  assisted  by  the 
reversal  of  selection  (on  account  of  the  degenerating  structure 
having  originally  been  of  a  size  sufficient  to  entail  a  perceptible 
drain  on  the  nutritive  resources  of  the  organism,  having  now 
become  a  source  of  danger,  and  so  forth),  the  two  principles 
acting  together  will  continue  to  reduce  the  ever-diminishing 
structure  down  to  the  point  at  which  its  presence  is  no  longer  a 
perceptible  disadvantage  to  the  species.  When  that  point  is 
reached,  the  reversal  of  selection  will  terminate,  and  the  cessa- 
tion of  selection  will  not  then  be  able  of  itself  to  reduce  the 
organ  through  more  than  at  most  a  very  few  further  percentages 
of  its  original  size.  But,  after  this  point  has  been  reached,  the 
now  total  absence  of  selection,  either  for  or  against  the  organ, 
will  sooner  or  later  entail  this  further  and  most  important 
consequence — viz.  a  failure  of  heredity  as  regards  the  organ. 
So  long  as  the  organ  was  of  use,  its  efficiency  was  constantly 
maintained  by  the  presence  of  selection — which  is  merely  another 
way  of  saying  that  selection  was  constantly  maintaining  the  force 
of  heredity  as  regards  that  organ.  But  as  soon  as  the  organ 
ceased  to  be  of  use,  selection  ceased  to  maintain  the  force  of 
heredity  ;  and  thus,  sooner  or  later,  that  force  began  to  waver 
or  fade.  Now  it  is  this  wavering  or  fading  of  the  force  of 
heredity,  thus  originally  due  to  the  cessation  of  selection,  that  in 
turn  co-operates  with  the  still  continued  cessation  of  selection 
(panmixia)  in  reducing  the  structure  below  the  level  where  its 
reduction  was  left  by  the  actual  reversal  of  selection.  So  that 
from  that  level  downwards  the  cessation  of  selection  and  the 
consequent  failing  of  heredity  act  and  react  in  their  common 
work  of  causing  obsolescence.  In  the  case  of  newly  acquired 
characters  the  force  of  heredity  will  be  lass  than  in  that  of  more 
anciently  acquired  characters  ;  and  thus  we  can  understand  the 
long  endurance  of  "vestiges"  characteristic  of  the  higher 
taxonomic  divisions,  as  compared  with  those  characteristic  of  the 
lower.  But  in  all  cases,  if  time  enough  be  allowed,  under  the 
cessation  of  selection  the  force  of  heredity  will  eventually  fall  to 
zero,  when  the  hitherto  obsolescent  structure  will  finally  become 
obsolete.^ 

Let  us  now  turn  to  Weismann's  view  of  degeneration.  First 
of  all,  he  has  omitted  to  perceive  that  "panmixia"  alone  (if 
unassisted  either  by  reversed  selection  or  an  inherent  diminish- 
ing of  the  force  of  heredity)  cannot  reduce  a  functionless  organ, 
to  the  condition  of  a  rudiment.  Therefore  he  everywhere 
represents  panmixia  (or  the  mere  cessation  of  selection)  as  of 
itself  sufficient  to  cause  degeneration,  say  from  loo  to  5,  instead 
of  from  100  to  80  or  70,  which,  for  the  reasons  above  given,  ap- 
peared (and  still  appears)  to  me  about  the  most  that  this  principle 
alone  can  accomplish,  so  long  as  the  original  force  of  heredity 
continues  unimpaired.  No  doubt  we  have  here  what  must  be 
regarded  as  a  mere  oversight  on  the  part  of  Prof.  Weismann  ;. 
but  the  oversight  is  rendered  remarkable  by  the  fact  that  he  does 
invoke  the  aid  of  reversed  selection  ///  order  to  explain  the  final 
disappearance  op  a  rudiment.  Yet  it  is  self-evident  that  the 
reversal  of  selection  must  be  much  more  active  during  the  initial 
than  during  the  final  stages  of  degeneration,  seeing  that,  ex 
hypothesi,  the  greater  the  degree  of  reduction  which  has  been 
attained  the  less  must  be  the  detriment  arising  from  any  useless- 
expenditure  of  nutrition,  &c. 

And  this  leads  me  to  a  second  oversight  in  Prof.  Weismann's 
statement,  which  is  of  more  importance  than  the  first.     For  the 

'^  It  may  not  be  needless  to  add  that  in  the  case  of  newly  acquired  and 
comparatively  trivial  characters,  with  regard  to  which  reversal  of  selection  is 
not  likely  to  take  place  (e.g.  slight  differences  of  colour  between  allied  species), 
cessation  of  selection  is  likely  to  be  very  soon  assisted  by  a  failure  in  the 
force  of  heredity  ;  seeing  that  such  newly  acquired  characters  will  not  be  so 
strongly  inherited  as  are  the  more  ancient  characters  distinctive  of  higher 
taxonomic  groups. 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


439 


place  at  which  he  does  invoke  the  assistance  of  reversed  selec- 
tion is  exactly  the  place  at  which  reversed  selection  must  neces- 
sarily have  ceased  to  act.  This  place,  as  already  explained,  is 
where  an  obsolescent  organ  has  become  rudimentary,  or,  as 
above  supposed,  reduced  to  5  per  cent,  of  its  original  size  ;  and 
the  reason  why  he  invokes  the  aid  of  reversed  selection  at  this 
place  is  in  order  to  save  his  doctrine  of  "the  stability  of  germ- 
plasm."  That  the  force  of  heredity  should  finally  become  ex- 
hausted if  no  longer  maintained  by  the  presence  of  selection,  is 
what  Darwin's  theory  of  perishable  gemmules  would  expect  to 
be  the  case,  while  such  a  fact  would  be  fatal  to  Weismann's 
theory  of  an  imperishable  germ-plasm.  Therefore  he  seeks  to 
explain  the  eventual  failure  of  heredity  (which  is  certainly  a  fact) 
by  supposing  that  after  the  point  at  which  the  cessation  of  selec- 
tion alone  can  no  longer  act  (and  which  his  first  oversight  has 
placed  some  70  per  cent,  too  low),  the  reversal  of  selection  will 
begin  to  act  directly  against  the  force  of  heredity  as  regards  the 
diminishing  organ,  until  such  direct  action  of  reversed  selection 
will  have  removed  the  organ  altogether.  Or,  in  his  own  words, 
"The  complete  disappearance  of  a  rudimentary  organ  can  only 
take  place  by  the  operation  of  natural  selection  ;  this  principle 
will  lead  to  its  diminution,  inasmuch  as  the  disappearing  struc- 
ture takes  the  place  and  the  nutriment  of  other  useful  and  im- 
portant organs."  That  is  to  say,  the  rudimentary  organ  finally 
disappears,  not  because  the  force  of  heredity  is  finally  exhausted, 
but  because  natural  selection  has  begun  to  utilize  this  force 
against  the  continuance  of  the  organ — always  picking  out  those 
congenital  variations  of  the  organ  which  are  of  smallest  size, 
and  thus,  by  its  now  reversed  action,  reversing  the  force  of 
heredity  as  regards  the  organ. 

Now,  the  oversight  here  is  that  the  smaller  the  disappearing 
structure  becomes,  the  less  hold  must  "this  principle"  of 
reversed  selection  retain  upon  it.  As  above  observed,  during  the 
earlier  stages  of  reduction  (or  while  co-operaling  with  the 
cessation  of  selection)  the  reversal  of  selection  will  be  at  its 
maximum  of  efficiency ;  but,  as  the  process  of  diminution  con- 
tinues, a  point  must  eventually  be  reached  at  which  the  reversal  of 
selection  can  no  longer  act.  Take  the  original  mass  of  a  now 
obsolescent  organ  in  relation  to  that  of  the  entire  organism  of 
which  it  then  formed  a  part  to  be  represented  by  the  ratio 
I  :  ICXD.  For  the  sake  of  argument  we  may  assume  that  the  mass 
of  the  organism  has  throughout  remained  constant,  and  that  by 
"  mass  "  in  both  cases  is  meant  capacity  for  absorbing  nutriment, 
causing  weight,  occupying  space,  and  so  forth.  Now,  we  may 
further  assume  that  when  the  mass  of  the  organ  stood  to  that  of 
its  organism  in  the  ratio  of  I  :  too,  natural  selection  was  strongly 
reversed  with  respect  to  the  organ.  But  when  this  ratio  fell 
to  I  :  icxx),  the  activity  of  such  reversal  must  have  become 
enormously  diminished,  even  if  it  still  continued  to  exercise  any 
influence  at  all.  For  we  must  remember,  on  the  one  hand,  that 
the  rever.-al  of  selection  can  only  act  so  long  as  the  presence  of  a 
■diminishing  organ  continues  to  be  so  injurious  that  variations  in 
its  size  are  matters  of  life  and  death  in  the  struggle  for  existence  ; 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  that  natural  selection  in  the  case  of  the 
diminishing  organ  does  not  have  reference  to  the  presence  and 
the  absence  of  the  organ,  but  only  to  such  variations  in  its  mass 
as  any  given  generation  may  supply.  Now,  .the  process  of  re- 
duction does  not  end  even  at  l  :  1000.  It  goes  on  to  i  :  10,000, 
and  eventually  i  :  cc.  Consequently,  however  great  our  faith  in 
natural  selection  maybe,  a  point  must  eventually  come  for  all  of 
us  at  which  we  can  no  longer  believe  that  the  reduction  of  an 
obsolescent  organ  is  due  to  this  cause.  And  I  cannot  doubt 
that  if  Prof.  Weismann  had  sufficiently  considered  the  matter, 
he  would  not  have  committed  himself  to  the  statement  that 
"the  complete  disappearance  of  a  rudimentary  organ  can  only 
take  place  by  the  operation  of  natural  selection." 

According  to  my  view  of  the  matter,  the  complete  disappear- 
ance of  a  rudimentary  organ  can  only  take  place  by  the  cessation 
of  natural  selection,  which  permits  the  eventual  exhaustion  of 
heredity,  when  heredity  is  thus  simply  left  to  itself.  During  all 
the  earlier  stages  of  reduction,  the  cessation  of  positive  selection 
■was  assisted  in  its  work  by  the  activity  of  negative  or  reversed 
selection  ;  but  when  the  rudiment  became  too  small  for  buch 
assistance  any  longer  to  be  supplied,  the  rudiment  persisted  in 
that  greatly  reduced  condition  until  the  force  of  heredity  with 
regard  to  it  was  eventually  woin  out.  This  appears  to  me,  as 
it  appeared  to  me  in  1874,  the  only  reasonable  conclusion  that 
can  be  drawn  from  the  facts.  And  it  is  because  this  conclusion 
is  fatal  to  Prof.  Weismann's  doctrine  of  the  permanent  "sta- 
bility "   of   germ-plasm,    while   quite   in   accordance   with    all 


theories  which  belong  to  the  family  of  pangenesis,  that  I  deem 
the  facts  of  degeneration  of  great  importance  as  tests  between 
these  rival  interpretations  of  the  facts  of  heredity.  It  is  on  this 
account  that  I  have  occupied  so  much  space  with  the  foregoing 
discussion  ;  and  I  shall  be  glad  to  ascertain  whether  any  of  the 
followers  of  Prof.  Weismann  are  able  to  controvert  the  view.s 
which  I  have  thus  re-published. 
London,  February  4.  George  J,  Romanes, 

P.S. — Since  the  above  article  was  sent  in.  Prof.  Weismann 
has  published  in  these  columns  (February  6)  his  reply  to  a 
criticism  by  Prof.  Vines  (October  24,  1889).  In  this  reply  he 
appears  to  have  considerably  modified  his  views  on  the  theory 
of  degeneration  ;  for  while  in  his  essays  he  says  (as  in  the  pas- 
sage above  quoted)  that  "  the  complete  disappearance  of  a  rudi- 
mentary organ  can  only  take  place  by  the  operation  of  natural 
selection  " — i.e.  only  by  the  reversal  of  selection, — in  his  reply 
to  Prof.  Vines  he  says,  "I  believe  that  I  have  proved  that 
organs  no  longer  in  use  become  rudimentarj',  and  must  finally 
disappear,  solely  by  'panmixia'  ;  not  through  the  direct  action 
of  disuse,  but  because  natural  selection  no  longer  sustains  their 
standard  structure" — i.e.  solely  by  the  cessation  of  selection. 
Obviously,  there  is  here  a  flat  contradiction.  If  Prof.  Weis- 
mann now  believes  that  a  rudimentary  organ  "  must  finally  dis- 
appear solely "  through  the  zvithdrawal  of  selection,  he  has 
abandoned  his  previous  belief  that  "the  complete  disappear- 
ance of  a  rudimentary  organ  can  only  take  place  by  the  operation 
of  selection. "  And  this  change  of  belief  on  his  part  is  a  matter  of 
the  highest  importance  to  his  system  of  theories  as  a  whole,  since 
it  betokens  a  surrender  of  his  doctrine  of  the  "stability  "of  germ- 
plasm — or  of  the  virtually  everlasting  persistence  of  the  force  of 
heredity,  and  the  consequent  necessity  for  a  reversal  of  this  force 
itself  (by  natural  selection  placing  its  premium  on  minus  instead 
of  on  plus  variations)  in  order  that  a  rudimentary  organ  should 
finally  disappear.  In  other  words,  it  now  seems  he  no  longer 
believes  that  the  force  of  heredity  in  one  direction  (that  of  sus- 
taining a  rudimentary  organ)  can  only  be  abolished  by  the  active 
influence  of  natural  selection  determining  this  force  in  the  oppo- 
site direction  (that  of  removing  a  rudimentary  organ).  It  seems 
he  now  believes  that  the  force  of  heredity,  if  merely  left  to  itself 
by  the  withdrawal  of  natural  selection  altogether,  will  sooner  or 
later  become  exhausted  through  the  mere  lapse  of  time.  This,  of 
course,  is  in  all  respects  my  own  theory  of  the  matter  as  origin- 
ally published  in  these  columns  ;  but  I  do  not  see  how  it  is  to 
be  reconciled  with  Prof.  Weismann's  doctrine  of  so  high  a  degree 
of  stability  on  the  part  of  germ-plasm,  that  we  must  look  to  the 
Protozoa  and  the  Protophyta  for  the  original  source  of  congenital 
variations  as  now  exhibited  by  the  Metazoa  and  Metaphyta. 
Nevertheless,  and  so  far  as  the  philosophy  of  degeneration  is 
concerned,  I  shall  be  very  glad  if  (as  it  now  appears)  Prof. 
Weismann's  more  recent  contemplation  has  brought  his  prin- 
ciple of  panmixia  into  exact  coincidence  with  that  of  my  cessa- 
tion of  selection. — G.  J.  R, 


Newton  in  Perspective, 

The  interesting  modern  science  termed  by  the  Germans  Geo- 
metrie  der  Lage,  and  by  the  French  and  other  Latin  peoples 
giometrie  de  position,  may  be  traced  in  germ  to  that  part  of 
Newton's  "Principia"  which  deals  with  the  construction  of 
curves  of  the  second  order,  and  to  what  has  survived  in  tradi- 
tion of  Pascal's  lost  manuscript  entitled  "  Trait e  complet  des 
Coniques."  The  more  recent  developments  of  this  important 
subject  cast  much  new  light  upon  Newton's  propositions,  many 
of  which  we  are  now  enabled  to  solve  by  easier  and  more  direct 
methods.  A  noteworthy  example  is  here  fully  worked  out,  in 
order  to  show  how  problems  which  Newton  solved  by  indirect 
and  circuitous  processes  may  be  solved  more  simply  by  the  aid 
of  modern  graphics. 

Problem. — Given  the  four  tangents  EA,  AB,  BC,  C'D  (Fig. 
l),  as  well  as  a  point  of  contact ;  to  construct  the  conic. — First 
it  will  be  necessary  to  give  some  faint  idea  of  Newton's  solution 
of  this  problem,  without  entering  upon  details  which  can  be 
found  in  the  Latin  edition  of  the  "Principia"  edited  by  Sir 
William  Thomson  and  Prof.  H.  Blackburn.  Having  expounded 
at  great  length  a  general  theorem  for  the  transformation  of 
curves,  Newton  transforms  the  quadrilateral  figure  formed  by 
the  four  tangents  into  a  parallelogram.  Then  he  joins  the  given 
point  of  contact  y,  transformed  according  to  the  same  principle 
as  the  given  four  tangents,  to  the  centre  O  of  the  parallelogram 


440 


NATURE 


[March  13,  1890 


— which  is  also  the  centre  of  the  conic — and  producing  the  line 
yO  to  y,  so  that  Oy'  may  be  equal  to  Oy,  he  determines  a 
second  point  of  contact  y'  on  the  conic,  by  which  means  the 
problem  is  reduced  to  the  case  dealt  with  in  the  preceding  pro- 
position, showing  how  to  construct  the  curve  when  three  tangents 
and  two  points  are  given.  Having  in  this  way  found  five  points 
on  the  transformed  conic,  Newton  next  proceeds  to  retransform 
the  whole  of  the  figure  to  its  original  shape,  in  order  to  apply 
his  well-known  method  of  constructing  a  conic  of  which  five 
points  are  known. 


Fig.  I. 


Now  all  these  transformations  and  retransformations  of  lines 
and  quadrangles  involve  very  tedious  and  laborious  operations, 
which  can  be  avoided  by  borrowing  a  few  simple  principles  of 
modern  geometry.  The  following  two  original  solutions  of  the 
above  problem  will  serve  to  illustrate  this  statement. 

Solution, — Casel.  When  the  given  point  of  contact  x  lies 
on  one  of  the  given  four  tangents. — Assume  the  given  point  of 
contact  X  and  the  neighbouring  aisex  B  of  the  quadrangle  as 
centres  of  projection,  and  the  given  tangent  lines  EA  and  C'T> 
as  punctuated  lines.  The  meaning  of  the  term  "punctuated 
line,"  familiar  to  students  of  modern  geometry,  will  appear  in 
the  sequel. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  fourth  tangent  AB  cuts  the  first  punc- 
tuated line  EA  in  A  and  the  second  punctuated  line  CD  in  A'. 
Now,  according  to  a  proposition  of  modern  geometry,  if  the 
points  A  and  A',  in  which  the  tangent  AB  intersects  the  two 
punctuated  tangents  EA  and  CD,  be  projected  by  rays  -rA  and 
BA'  issuing  from  their  respective  centres  of  projection  x  and  B, 
those  rays  will  meet  in  a  point  A,  situate  on  what  is  termed  the 
perspective  line  of  the  pencils  x  and  B. 

Next  imagine  the  tangent  AB  to  revolve  upon  the  curve 
so  as  gradually  to  approach  the  limiting  position  BC.  In  that 
case  A  will  approach  C,  B  will  fall  upon  C,  and  the  inter- 
section of  the  projecting  rays  xC  and  BC  will  coincide  with  C, 
which  is  therefore  a  second  point  on  AC,  the  required  perspec- 
tive line  of  the  pencils  .r  and  B.  Wherefore,  in  order  to  find  a 
fifth  or  any  number  of  tangents  to  the  curve,  choose  any  point 
E  on  the  punctuated  line  EA,  and  project  this  point  from  x,  the 
corresponding  centre  of  projection,  upon  the  perspective  line 
AC  in  e  ;  and  then  project  e  from  the  second  centre  of  projec- 
tion B  upon  the  corresponding  punctuated  line  CD  in  D.  The 
line  ED  is  a  fifth  tangent  to  the  conic,  and  any  number  of 
tangents  can  be  drawn  in  precisely  the  same  way.  Then,  let  F 
be  any  other  point  on  EA.  Join  and  produce  ¥x,  intersecting 
the  perspective  line  AC  in/;  and  from  the  centre  B  project  / 
upon  the  punctuated  tangent  C'T>  in  F'.  Then  the  line  FF' 
will  be  a  sixth  tangent  to  the  conic. 

Cor.  I. — Since  the  lines  AC,  BD,  and  xE  all  meet  in  the 
same  point  e,  it  follows  that,  in  any  pentagon  ABCDE  circum- 
scribed to  a  conic,  the  opposite  diagonals  AC  and  BD  and  the  line 
joining  the  fifth  point  E  to  the  opposite  point  of  contact  x  all 
meet  in  the  same  point. 


Case  II.  When  the  given  point  of  contact  z  lies  otitside  of  the 
four  tangeitts  AEDC'B. — By  the  corollary.  Case  I.,  if  AB  be 
the  fifth  tangent,  it  must  pass  through  the  given  point  of  con- 
tact z  in  such  a  direction  that  the  diagonals  CA  and  EB  may 
intersect  in  a  point  I  situate  on  a  given  line  T>z. 

Now  let  AB  revolve  about  the  fixed  point  of  contact  s  as  a 
fulcrum,  whilst  A  and  B  describe  the  lines  EC  and  CC  (Figs. 
I  and  2).  Then,  necessarily,  s  will  be  the  centre  of  perspectivity 
of  the  punctuated  lines  EC  and  CC,  whose  centres  of  projection 
are  respectively  C  and  E.  But,  by  a  well-known  proposition  of 
geometry  of  position,  when  the  points  of  two  converging  punc- 
tuated lines,  such  as  EC  and  CC,  are  projected  from  opposite 
centres  in  this  fashion,  the  locus  of  the  successive  intersections 
of  the  rays  CA  and  EB,  or  in  other  words  the  variable  position 
of  the  point  I,  will  describe  a  conic,  which  in  the  present 
instance  is  a  hyperbola.  But  the  problem  is  how  to  find  the 
point  I  on  the  transversal  Ls  without  constructing  the  hyperbola, 
four  points  on  which  are  already  known.  For  it  will  be 
observed  that,  when  A  coincides  with  E,  the  point  B  will  lie 
on  the  prolongation  of  Ez,  and  the  corresponding  projecting 
rays  Y.z  and  CE  will  meet  in  E,  a  point  on  the  hyperbola. 
Similarly  C  is  a  second  point  on  the  hyperbola.  Again,  as  AB 
continues  to  revolve  about  the  fixed  centre  of  perspectivity  z,  its 
intersections  A  and  B  with  the  punctuated  lines  EC  and  CC 
will  ultimately  coalesce  in  the  point  C,  common  to  both  those 
lines.  Hence,  since  in  that  case  the  rays  projecting  the  double 
point  C  from  the  centres  E  and  C  meet  in  C,  this  point  must  lie 
on  the  hyperbola. 

Fourthly,  if  the  line  Co  be  produced  tp  intersect  the  line  EC 
in  N,  it  can  be  easily  shown  that  i,  the  third  point  in  the 
harmonic  ratio  Gjsj'N,  is  a  fourth  point  on  the  hyperbola.  A  fifth 
point  can  be  found  by  simply  drawing  AB  in  any  direction 
traversing  z  and  intersecting  EC  in  A'  and  CC  in  B',  and  then 
projecting  A'  and  B'  from  the  centres  C  and  E  respectively  by 
rays  CA'  and  EB'  which  will  meet  in  a  fifth  point  upon  the 
hyperbola. 

Thus,  given  these  or  in  fact  any  five  points  EDi'TH  (Fig.   2} 


Fig. 


on  the  hyperbola,  it  is  possible  to  find  the  point  of  intersection  I 
of  the  given  transversal  Ls  with  the  hyperbola  without  con- 
structing the  curve.  First  describe  any  circle  in  the  plane  of 
the  five  points,  choosing  two  of  these,  such  as  E  and  i,  as 
centres  of  projection  from  which  to  project  the  remaining  three 
points  DHT  upon  the  given  transversal  L:  in  the  points  dht 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


441 


and  ith'f  respectively.  Then,  from  any  point  S  on  the 
circumference  of  the  circle,  reproject  the  six  points  dht,  d'h'i', 
upon  the  same  circumference  in  the  points  similarly  lettered. 

By  means  of  this  double  projection  from  the  centres  E  and  i  the 
points  DHT  have  been  transferred  in  duplicate  from  the  hyperbola 
to  the  circle,  or  from  one  conic  to  another  of  a  different  species  ; 
and  it  is  proved  in  treatises  on  modern  geometry  that  points  so 
transferred  lose  none  of  their  projective  properties.  Hence  the 
points  dhi  and  d'/i't"  on  the  circumference  of  the  circle  are  allied 
projective  systems.  Therefore,  in  order  to  find  the  perspective 
line  common  to  both  systems,  choose  one  point  t  of  the  first  set 
as  the  centre  of  projection  of  the  second  system  ;  and  make  f, 
the  correlative  point  of  the  second  set,  the  centre  of  projection 
of  the  system  dht. 

From  t  project  the  points  d'  and  h'  by  rays  td'  and  tk',  and 
from  f  project  the  correlative  points  d  and  h  by  rays  i'd  and  t'/i. 
Then  the  correlative  rays  td'  and  t'd  will  intersect  in  a  point  d^ 
on  the  required  perspective  line ;  and  the  correlative  rays  th' 
and  t'h  will  meet  in  h^,  a  second  point  on  the  same  line.  This 
perspective  line  d(^h^^  will  intersect  the  circumference  in  two 
points  ?■(,  and  ^^  which,  being  joined  to  S  and  produced,  will 
determine  the  double  points  I  and  g  common  to  the  hyperbola 
and  transversal  Lz.  The  complete  quadrangle  ECTC  shows 
that  the  harmonic  ratios  Czi'N  and  gzlL.  are  segments  of  the 
same  harmonic  pencil  P. 

The  lines  Es  and  C'z  are  tangents  to  the  curve  at  E  and  C 
respectively  ;  and  z  is  the  pole  of  the  polar  EC  with  respect  to 
the  hyperbola.  The  proofs  of  these  last  two  deductions  may  be 
found  in  any  good  text-book  on  geometry  of  position. 

Robert  H.  Graham. 


Thought  and  Breathing. 

Prof.  Max  MUller's  article  on  thought  and  breathing,  in 
your  issue  of  February  6  (p.  317)  has  just  come  into  my 
hands.  In  it  he  states  that  the  power  of  retaining  the  breath 
is  practised  largely  by  Hindus  as  a  means  towards  a  higher  object, 
viz.  the  abstraction  of  the  organs  of  the  human  body  from  their 
natural  functions.  The  same  custom  prevails  amongst  a  certain 
sect  of  Mahometans  also — the  so-called  Softas. 

In  1878,  when  in  the  Central  Provinces  of  India,  I  came 
across  a  native  Christian — Softa  Ali,  as  he  was  called — who  had 
a  history.  His  father  had  been  a  Cazi — or  religious  judge — and  a 
wealthy  man,  who  through  scruples  of  conscience  fell  into  dis- 
grace with  a  certain  native  ruler,  lost  his  all,  and  was  banished. 
His  son  was,  or  became,  a  Softa,  and  after  some  years  embraced 
Christianity  from  conviction,  and  at  great  cost  to  himself — for 
his  wife  and  children  would  no  longer  consort  with  him.  When 
describing  to  me  the  practices  formerly  enjoined  upon  him  by 
his  religion,  this  man  stated  that  a  Softa  is  required  to  draw  in 
and  retain  his  breath  and  respire  it  again  in  various  manners. 
He  did  not  give  full  details  as  to  how  this  should  be  effected, 
but  said  that  the  object  of  this  procedure  was  to  worship  with 
every  organ  of  one's  body — heart,  lungs,  &c.,  in  turn.  He 
added  that  this  practice  was  a  fruitful  source  of  heart-disease. 

The  following  year,  when  staying  at  Futtehpore  Sikri,  near 
Agra,  I  saw  and  heard  a  Mahometan,  unknown  to  himself,  make 
his  evening  devotions  near  the  tomb  of  Suleem  Chisti  in  the 
way  above  described  ;  his  movements,  and  the  sounds  he  uttered, 
were  most  peculiar. 

It  has  been  often  related,  from  well-attested  evidence,  that  in 
the  case  of  those  who  have  been  recovered  from  drowning,  or  of 
those  who  have  been  hung  and  cut  down  before  life  was  extinct, 
a  kind  of  automatic  consciousness  seems  to  be  extraordinarily 
active  in  them  at  the  time  of  their  peril.  It  would  appear  that, 
as  regards  Hindu  and  Mahometan  devotees,  and  the  drowning 
or  partially  hung  man,  a  kind  of  asphyxia  is  the  result,  and 
that,  when  sensation  is  almost  gone,  the  intelligence  acquires 
increased  activity.  In  our  ordinary  life,  if  our  minds  are  in- 
tently fixed  upon  a  subject,  we  instinctively  and  involuntarily 
retain  the  breath. 

When  in  Rajputana,  and  again  when  on  the  frontier  of 
Chinese  Tibet,  I  saw  in  each  place  a  man  who,  to  all  appear- 
ance, seemed  to  have  attained  the  power  of  perfect  abstraction. 
In  the  former  case,  the  villagers  asserted  that  the  devotee  rose 
only  once  a  week  from  his  most  uncomfortable  and  constrained 
position  ;  in  the  second  instance,  the  man — a  most  singular-look- 
ing person — remained  absolutely  immovable  the  whole  day. 
Both  seemed  to  be  in  a  kind  of  cataleptic  trance. 

Harriet  G.  M.  Murray-Aynsley. 


Former  Glacial  Periods. 

I  HAVE  long  felt  convinced  that  geologists  are  being  misled  in 
reference  to  former  glacial  epochs  by  failing  to  give  due  thought 
to  a  consideration  referred  to  on  former  occasions,*  viz.  that 
when  the  present  surface  of  the  globe  has  been  disintegrated, 
washed  into  the  sea,  and  transformed  into  rock,  there  will  un- 
doubtedly then  be  about  as  little  evidence  that  there  had  been 
a  glacial  epoch  during  post-Tertiary  times  as  there  is  at  present 
that  there  was  one  during  Miocene,  Eocene,  Permian,  and  other 
periods.  James  Croll. 

Perth,  March  6. 


A  USTRALASIAN  ASSOCIA  TION  FOR  THE 
ADVANCEMENT  OF  SCIENCE. 

THE  formation  of  this  Association,  mainly  by  the 
efforts  of  Prof.  Liversidge,  of  Sydney  University,  and 
its  first  meeting  in  Sydney  in  August  1888,  were  noticed 
at  the  time  in  Nature  (vol.  xxxviii.  pp.  437,  623).  One 
of  the  chief  rules  of  the  Association  is  that  it  shall  meet 
in  turn  in  the  capital  cities  of  the  various  colonies  ;  and 
Melbourne  was  agreed  upon  as  the  second  meeting-place. 
It  was  found  inconvenient,  however,  to  hold  the  Mel- 
bourne meeting  during  1889,  as  should  have  happened  in 
due  course,  for  it  is  only  after  Christmas  that  all  the 
Universities  are  simultaneously  in  vacation  ;  and  accord- 
ingly it  was  commenced  on  the  7th  of  January  in  the 
present  year,  and  was  continued  through  the  following 
week.  Some  anxiety  was  felt  as  to  the  result  of  this  choice 
of  date,  for  there  is  always  a  risk  in  January  of  such  con- 
tinuous heat  as  would  hinder  the  work  and  destroy  the 
pleasure  of  the  meeting  ;  but  the  Association  proved  to 
be  specially  favoured  in  the  matter  of  weather. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  the  officers  of  the 
Association  and  of  the  Sections.  With  regard  to  the 
latter,  the  rule  obtains  that  Presidents  are  chosen  from 
other  colonies,  while  Vice-Presidents  and  Secretaries  are 
chosen  from  the  colony  in  which  the  meeting  is  held. 

President,  Baron  von  Mueller,  K.C.M.G.,  F.R.S. 

Local  Treasurer,  R.  L.  J.  Ellery,  C.M.G.,  F.R.S. 

General  Secretaries  :  Prof.  Archd.  Liversidge,  F.R.S., 
Permanent  Hon.  Secretary  ;  Prof.  W.  Baldwin  Spencer, 
Hon.  Sec.  for  Victoria. 

Assistant  Secretary  for  Victoria,  J.  Steele  Robertson. 

Sectional  Officers : — Section  A  (Astronomy,  Mathe- 
matics, Physics,  and  Mechanics) — President,  Prof.  Threl- 
fall,  Sydney  University.  Vice-President,  Prof.  Lyle, 
Melbourne  University.  Secretaries  :  W.  Sutherland,  E. 
F.  J.  Love. 

Section  B  (Chemistry  and  Mineralogy) — President, 
Prof.  Rennie,  Adelaide  University.  Vice-President,  C. 
R.  Blackett,  Government  Analyst,  Melbourne.  Secretary, 
Prof.  Orme  Masson,  Melbourne  tlniversity. 

Section  C  (Geology  and  Palaeontology — President, 
Prof.  Hutton,  Canterbury  College,  New  Zealand.  Vice- 
President,  Prof.  McCoy,  C.M.G.,  F.R.S.,  Melbourne 
University.     Secretary,  James  Sterling, 

Section  D  (Biology) — President,  Prof.  A.  P.  Thomas, 
Auckland.  Vice-Presidents  :  J.  Bracebridge  Wilson  ; 
P.  H.  MacGillivray.  Secretaries  :  C.  A.  Topp,  Arthur 
Dendy. 

Section  E  (Geography) — President,  W.  H.  Miskin, 
President  of  the  Queensland  Branch  of  the  Royal  Geo- 
graphical Society  of  Australasia.  Vice-Presidents  :  Com- 
mander Crawford  Pasco,  R.N.;  A.  C.  Macdonald. 
Secretary,  G.  S.  Griffiths. 

Section  F  (Economic  and  Social  Science  and  Statistics 
— President,  R.  M.  Johnson,  Registrar-General,  Hobart. 
Vice-President,  Prof.  Elkington,  Melbourne  University. 
Secretaries  :   A.  Sutherland,  H.  K.  Rusden. 

Section  G  (Anthropology)— President,  Hon.  J.  Forrest, 
C.M.G.,     Commissioner    for     Crown     Lands,    Western 

'  Quart.  Joum.  Geol.  Soc.  for  May  1889  ;  "  Climate  and  Time,"  p.  266. 


442 


NA  rURE 


\jVIarch  i2>^  '  S90 


Australia.     Vice-President,  A.  W.  Howitt,  Secretary  for 
Mines,    Melbourne.     Secretary,  Rev.    Lorimer  Fison. 

Section  H  (Sanitary  Science  and  Hygiene) — President, 
Dr.  J.  Ashburton  Thompson,  Sydney.  Vice-Presidents : 
A.  P.  Akehurst,  President  of  the  Central  Board  of  Health, 
Melbourne  ;  G.  Gordon.      Secretary,   G.  A.  Syme. 

Section  I  (Literature  and  Fine  Arts) — President,  Hon. 
J.  W.  Agnew,  Hobart.  Vice-Presidents :  Prof.  Tucker, 
Melbourne  University  (Literature  Sub-Section) ;  J. 
Hamilton  Clarke  (Music  Sub-Section).  Secretaries  :  Dr. 
Louis  Henry  (Music  Sub-Section)  ;  Tennyson  Smith 
(Literature  Sub-Section). 

Section  J  (Architecture  and  Engineering) — President, 
Prof.  Warren,  Sydney  University.  Vice-Presidents :  A. 
Purchas,  H.  C.  Mais.     Secretary,  A.  O.  Sachse. 

All  arrangements  for  the  meeting  were  made  by  the 
Local  Committee,  of  which  Mr.  R.  L.  J.  Ellery,  the 
Government  Astronomer,  was  chairman,  and  Prof.  W. 
Baldwin  Spencer  secretary.  The  greater  share  of  the 
work  devolved  on  Prof.  Spencer,  and  to  his  indefatigable 
energy  is  mainly  due  the  undoubted  success  of  the  meet- 
ing. The  buildings  and  grounds  of  the  University  were 
placed  at  the  service  of  the  Association,  and  nothing 
could  have  been  better  than  the  accommodation  thus 
afforded.  A  lecture  theatre  was  set  apart  for  each  of  the 
ten  Sections ;  and,  as  these  theatres  are  situated  in 
different  parts  of  the  grounds,  and  some  distance  apart, 
they  were  all  connected  by  telephone,  so  that  the  advent 
of  each  paper  in  any  Section  could  be  signalled  in  every 
other.  The  large  Wilson  Hall  was  used  as  a  reception- 
room  ;  and  a  luncheon-hall,  smoking-rooms,  reading-  and 
writing-rooms,  a  press-room,  &c.,  were  also  provided,  as 
also  a  special  post-  and  telegraph-office.  An  official 
journal  of  the  proceedings  was  published  each  morning, 
and  every  member  was  supplied  with  a  copy  of  a  special 
hand-book  compiled  for  the  occasion,  and  containing  the 
following  chapters : — 

(i)  "  History  of  Victoria,"  by  Alexander  Sutherland. 

(2)  "  Geology  of  Melbourne,"  by  G.  S.  Griffiths. 

(3)  "  Aborigines  of  Victoria,"  by  Lorimer  Fison. 

(4)  "Zoology,  Vertebrata,"  by  A.  H.  S.  Lucas. 

(5)  "  Zoology,  Invertebrata,"  by  A.  Dendy. 

(6)  "  Entomology,"  by  C.  French,  Government  Ento- 
mologist. 

(7)  "  Botany,"  by  C.  A.  Topp. 

(8)  "  Commerce  and  Manufactures,"  by  W.  H.  Thodey. 

(9)  "Climate,"  by  R.  L.  J.  Ellery,  C.M.G.,  F.R.S., 
Government  Astronomer. 

Over  six  hundred  members,  representing  all  parts  of 
Australasia,  were  in  actual  attendance,  the  total  member- 
ship roll  numbering  more  than  a  thousand.  Some 
hundred  and  fifty  papers  in  all  were  set  down  for  reading 
in  the  various  Sections.  All  these  figures  show  a  large 
increase  since  the  first  meeting,  and  give  gratifying  evi- 
dence of  the  growing  interest  taken  in  science  throughout 
the  colonies  ;  further  proofs  of  which  are  to  be  found  in 
the  facts  that  the  Government  of  Victoria  voted  the  liberal 
sum  of  ^1000  towards  defraying  the  expenses  of  the 
meeting,  and  that  the  entertainments  provided  by  the 
hospitality  of  prominent  citizens  were  numerous  and  on 
a  most  sumptuous  scale.  Many  visits  to  places  of  scien- 
tific interest  were  also  arranged  for — short  afternoon 
excursions  for  those  who  might  not  care  for  continuous 
Sectional  work,  and  longer  excursions  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  meeting,  under  special  leaders,  to  the  Australian 
Alps,  the  Black  Spur  and  Marysville,  Gippsland  Lakes, 
Ferntree  Gully,  Ballarat,  and  Sandhurst,  all  of  which 
proved  highly  successful. 

At  the  opening  meeting  in  the  Town  Hall — presided 
over  by  His  Excellency  the  Governor,  the  Earl  of  Hope- 
toun— the  President,  Baron  Sir  Ferdinand  von  Mueller, 
delivered  his  address,  after  being  introduced  by  his 
predecessor  in  office,  Mr.  Russell,  the  Government 
Astronomer  of  New  South  Wales.     Baron  von  Mueller 


undoubtedly  stands  at  the  head  of  the  scientific  workers 
in  Australia.  He  has  been  a  colonist  since  1848,  and 
since  1852  has  held  the  position  of  Government  Botanist 
in  Victoria.  His  fame,  which  is  based  not  only  on  the 
immense  amount  of  work  he  has  done  in  his  special 
subject,  the  botany  of  Australia,  but  on  his  early  achieve- 
ments as  an  explorer,  may  be  indicated  in  the  words  used 
by  Mr.  Russell  :- — "  In  1861  he  was  made  a  Fellow  of  the 
Royal  Society ;  he  received  from  Her  Majesty  the  Oueen 
the  Knight  Companionship  of  St.  Michael  and  St.  George  ; 
was  made  a  Commander  of  the  Orders  of  St.  lago  of 
Portugal,  of  Isabella  of  Spain,  and  of  Philip  of  Hesse  ; 
was  created  hereditary  Baron  by  the  King  of  Wiirtem- 
berg  in  1871  ;  and  is  honorary  or  corresponding  member 
of  a  hundred  and  fifty  learned  societies."  To  this  enu- 
meration may  be  added  what  is,  perhaps,  the  most 
honourable  award  of  all — that  of  a  Royal  Medal  by  the 
Royal  Society  at  the  end  of  1888.  Throughout  the 
colonies  "  the  Baron  "  is  known :  a  unique  personality, 
not  always  wholly  understood,  but  always  recognized  as 
a  proud  possession.  His  address,  therefore,  was  listened 
to  with  peculiar  interest,  and  perhaps  all  the  more  so 
that  he  did  not  confine  himself  to  any  special  branch, 
but  dealt  generally  with  the  past  and  future  of  Austral- 
asian science. 

The  Presidents  of  Sections  also,  in  many  cases,  chose 
for  their  addresses  subjects  of  particular  interest  in  Aus- 
tralia. Prof.  Rennie  spoke  of  the  work  that  has  been 
done  in  the  investigation  of  the  chemistry  of  native  plants 
and  minerals,  and  made  suggestions  as  to  how  this  work 
may  in  future  be  encouraged  and  facilitated.  Prof. 
Thomas  discussed  the  problems  here  a  .vaiting  the  bio- 
logist, and  the  local  desiderata  in  scieii*ific  education. 
Mr.  Miskin  spoke  principally  of  exploration  in  Australia 
and  New  Guinea,  and  of  the  importance  to  the  colonies 
of  Antarctic  exploration  ;  but  he  also  discussed  the  chief 
geographical  work  now  being  done  in  other  parts  of  the 
world.  Mr.  Forrest's  address  dealt  with  the  present  con- 
dition of  the  Australian  aboriginal  races.  Dr.  Ashburton 
Thompson  discussed  the  sanitary  organizations  of  Victoria 
and  New  South  Wales,  and  the  modes  of  obtaining  and 
interpreting  health  statistics.  Prof.  Warren  spoke  of  the 
education  of  engineers,  with  special  reference  to  the  local 
conditions  and  requirements.  Dr.  Agnew  reviewed  the 
literature  and  art  of  Australia.  In  the  other  Sections  the 
Presidents  chose  subjects  that  do  not  owe  their  interest 
to  local  colour.  Prof.  Threlfall  gave  an  account  of  the 
present  state  of  electrical  knowledge  ;  Prof.  Hutton's 
address  was  on  the  oscillations  of  the  earth's  surface  ; 
and  Mr.  Johnston  spoke  generally  of  current  social  and 
economic  problems.  A  large  proportion  of  the  papers 
read  by  members  in  the  various  Sections  were  also 
Australian  in  their  character.  This  was  specially  the  case 
in  the  Sections  of  Geology  and  Anthropology ;  where, 
perhaps,  the  most  valuable  original  work  was  communi- 
cated. As  the  Transactions  will  soon  be  published,  the 
individual  papers  need  not  now  be  noticed  ;  but  reference 
may  be  made  to  the  work  done  in  the  form  of  reports 
from  Committees  appointed  at  the  previous  meeting. 
The  most  bulky  and  perhaps  the  most  valuable  of  these 
reports  is  that  by  a  Committee  which  undertook,  with 
Prof.  Liversidge  as  its  secretary,  to  prepare  a  census  of 
the  known  minerals  of  the  Australasian  colonies.  It 
disposes  of  New  South  Wales  (only  such  information 
being  given  as  was  required  to  supplement  Prof. 
Liversidge's  published  work),  Queensland,  and  New* 
Zealand.  The  portions  dealing  with  Victoria  anc 
Tasmania  are  in  process  of  completion  ;  and,  the 
Committee  having  been  re-appointed,  it  is  hoped  thai 
by  next  year  the  whole  census  will  be  complete.  The 
publication  will  probably  be  delayed  till  then,  and  it  wiJ| 
if  possible  take  the  form  of  a  separate  volume.  A  verj 
important  recommendation  was  made  by  another  Com'^ 
mittee  (Prof.  Hasvvell,  of  Sydney,  secretary),  which  whenl 


March  13,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


44: 


it  is  carried  out  will  do  much  for  biological  research,  viz. 
that  steps  be  taken  to  establish  and  endow  a  central 
biological  station  at  Port  Jackson.  Among  the  other 
reports  may  be  mentioned  one  on  the  Polynesian  races 
and  Polynesian  bibliography. 

At  the  final  meeting  of  the  General  Committee  of  the 
Association  new  special  Committees  were  appointed  to 
investigate  and  report  on  the  following  subjects  :  wheat 
rust,  the  manner  of  laying  out  towns,  the  preparation  of 
geological  maps,  the  arrangement  of  museums,  the 
fertilization  of  the  fig,  Australian  tides,  and  the  present 
state  of  knowledge  with  regard  to  Australasian  palaeonto- 
logy. A  Committee  was  also  appointed  to  formulate  a 
scheme  for  obtaining  practical  assistance  from  the  various 
Colonial  Governments  in  the  collection  of  material  for 
research — chemical,  geological,  or  biological.  Other 
special  Committees  were  appointed  for  the  publication 
of  the  Transactions  and  for  the  revision  of  the  -laws  of  the 
Association. 

The  next  meeting  is  to  be  held  in  Christchurch,  New 
Zealand,  probably  in  January  1891  ;  and  Sir  James  Hector 
has  been  elected  President,  and  Prof.  Hutton,  Secretary. 
It  has  also  been  decided  to  hold  the  fourth  meeting  in 
Hobart,  Tasmania,  so  that  the  Association  will  not  again 
meet  on  the  mainland  for  three  years.  To  adventure  so 
far  as  Christchurch  is  somewhat  bold  in  so  young  an 
Association  ;  but  the  success  of  the  Melbourne  meeting 
has  demonstrated  its  usefulness  and  popularity,  and  war- 
rants the  belief  that  many  will  cross  the  water  next  year. 
There  is  even  a  strong  hope  felt  by  some  that  the  occa- 
sion and  the  place  may  tempt  a  few  of  the  members  of 
the  parent  British  Association  to  make  the  longer  voyage 
from  home,  and  see  for  themselves  what  is  being  done 
and  what  waits  to  be  done  for  science  at  the  antipodes. 

Orme  Masson. 


METEOROLOGICAL  REPORT  OF  THE 
"  CHALLENGER  "  EXPEDITION} 

"PREVIOUS  to  1872,  discussions  of  the  fundamental 
-*■  problems  of  meteorology  relating  to  diurnal  changes 
in  atmospheric  pressure,  temperature,  humidity,  wind, 
and  other  phenomena,  may  be  regarded  as  restricted  to 
observations  made  on  land.  It  had  then,  however,  be- 
come evident  that  data  from  observations  made  on  land 
only,  which  occupies  about  a  fourth  part  of  the  earth's 
surface,  were  quite  inadequate  to  a  right  conception  and 
explanation  of  meteorological  phenomena  ;  and  hence, 
when  the  Challenger  Expedition  was  fitted  out,  arrange- 
ments were  made  for  taking,  during  the  cruise,  hourly  or 
two-hourly  observations.  These  observations  were  pub- 
lished in  detail  in  the  "  Narrative  of  the  Cruise,"  Vol.  II. 
PP-  305-74)  and  are  still  by  far  the  most  complete  yet 
made  on  the  meteorology  of  the  ocean. 

Elaborate  observations  were  likewise  made  on  deep- 
sea  temperatures,  which  were  at  once  recognized  as 
leading  to  results  of  the  first  importance  in  terrestrial 
physics,  and  opening  for  discussion  the  broad  question  of 
oceanic  circulation,  on  a  sound  basis  of  authentic  facts. 
Preliminary,  however,  to  any  such  inquiry,  a  full  discus- 
sion of  atmospheric  phenomena  was  essential,  requiring 
for  its  proper  handling  maps  showing  the  mean  tem- 
perature, mean  pressure,  and  prevailing  winds  of  the 
globe  for  each  month  of  the  year,  with  tables  giving  the 
data  from  which  the  maps  are  constructed.  In  other 
words,  what  was  required  was  an  exhaustive  revision  and 
ratification  of  Dove's  isothermals,  1852  ;  Buchan's  iso- 
bars and  prevailing  winds,  1869 ;  and  Coffin's  winds  of 
the  globe,  1875. 

'  "  Report  of  the  Scientific  Results  of  the  Voyage  of  H.M.S.  Challenger 
during  the  Years  1873-76.-'  Prepared  under  the  superintendence  of  John 
Murray.  LL.D.  "  Physics  and  Chemistry,"  Vol.  II.,  Part  V.  "Report  on 
Atmospheric  CircuLition. "     By  Alexander  Kuchan,  M.A.,  LL.D. 


The  work  was  entrusted  to  Mr.  Buchan,  of  the  Scottish 
Meteorological  Society,  in  1883,  and  was  published  in  the 
beginning  of  this  year.  In  addition  to  the  tables  of  the 
appendices,  giving  the  results  of  the  Challenger  observa- 
tions, the  more  important  are  those  giving  the  mean 
diurnal  variation  of  atmospheric  pressure  at  147  stations 
in  all  parts  of  the  world  ;  the  mean  monthly  and  annual 
pressure  at  1366  stations  ;  a  similar  table  of  temperatures 
at  1620  stations  ;  and  tJie  mean  monthly  and  annual 
direction  of  the  wind  at  746  stations.  It  is  believed 
that  these  tables  include  all  the  information  at  present 
existing  that  is  required  in  the  discussion  of  the  broad 
questions  raised  in  the  Report,  which  includes,  with  the 
exception  of  the  rainfall,  all  the  important  elements  of 
the  climates  of  the  globe. 

The  Report  itself  is  divided  into  two  parts,  the  first 
dealing  with  diurnal,  and  the  second  with  monthly, 
annual,  and  recurring  phenomena.  This  is  the  first 
attempt  yet  made  to  deal  with  the  diurnal  phenomena  of 
meteorology  over  the  ocean — the  temperature,  pressure, 
and  movements  of  the  atmosphere,  together  with  such 
phenomena  as  squalls,  precipitation,  lightning,  and 
thunderstorms. 

In  equatorial  and  subtropical  regions,  the  mean  tem- 
perature of  the  surface  of  the  sea  falls  to  the  daily 
minimum  from  4  to  6  a.m.,  and  rises  to  the  maximum 
from  2  to  4  p.m.,  the  amount  of  the  diurnal  variation 
being  only  o''9  F.  In  the  higher  latitudes  of  the 
Antarctic  Ocean,  the  diurnal  variation  was  only  o°"2.  Of 
the  four  great  oceans,  the  greatest  variation  was  i°'o  in 
the  North  Pacific,  and  the  least  o°'8  in  the  Atlantic.  This 
small  daily  variation  of  the  temperature  of  the  surface  of 
the  sea,  shown  by  the  Challenger  observations,  is  an 
important  contribution  to  physical  science,  being  in  fact 
one  of  the  prime  factors  in  meteorology,  particularly  in 
its  bearings  on  the  daily  variations  of  atmospheric 
pressure  and  winds.  The  diurnal  phases  of  the  tem- 
perature of  the  air  over  the  open  sea  occur  at  the  same 
times  as  those  of  the  temperature  of  the  surface,  but  the 
amount  of  the  variation  is  about  3°'o,  and  when  near  land 
the  amount  rises  to  4°'4.  The  greater  variation  of  the 
temperature  of  the  air,  as  compared  with  that  of  the 
surface  of  the  sea  on  which  it  rests,  is  a  point  of  much 
interest  from  the  important  bearings  of  the  subject  on 
the  relations  of  the  air,  and  its  aqueous  vapour  in  its 
gaseous,  liquid,  and  solid  states,  and  the  particles  of 
dust  everywhere  present,  to  solar  and  terrestrial  radia- 
tion. Thus  the  air  rises  daily  to  a  higher  and  falls  to  a 
lower  temperature  than  does  the  surface  of  the  sea  on 
which  it  rests. 

The  diurnal  variation  in  the  elastic  force  of  vapour  in 
the  air  is  seen  in  its  amplest  form  over  the  open  sea,  the 
results  giving  a  curve  closely  coincident  with  the  diurnal 
curve  of  temperature.  But  near  land,  the  elastic  force 
instead  of  rising  towards,  and  to,  the  daily  maximum  at 
noon  and  2  p.m.,  shows  a  well-marked  depression  at 
these  hours,  and  indicates  no  longer  merely  a  single,  but 
a  double  maxima  and  minima.  In  other  words,  the  curve 
now  assumes  the  characteristics  of  this  vapour  curve  as 
observed  at  all  land  stations,  or  where  during  the  warmest 
hours  of  the  day  ascending  currents  rise  from  the  earth's 
surface,  and  down-currents  of  drier  air  take  their  place. 
An  important  point  specially  to  be  noted  here  is  that  over 
the  open  sea,  hygrometric  observations  disprove  the 
existence  of  any  ascending  current  from  the  surface  of 
the  sea  during  the  hours  when  temperature  is  highest. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  curve  of  relative  humidity  is 
simply  inverse  to  that  of  the  temperature,  falling  to  the 
minimum  at  2  p.m.  and  rising  to  the  maximum  early  in 
the  morning. 

As  regards  the  diurnal  variation  of  the  barometer,  it  is 
shown  that  the  special  forms  of  the  monthly  curves  are, 
in  their  relations  to  the  sun,  direct  and  not  cumulative 
as  is  the  case  with  most  of  the  monthly  mean  results  of 


444 


NATURE 


{March  13,  1890 


meteorology.  The  movement  of  the  daily  barometric 
oscillations  from  east  to  west  is  only  quasi-tidal,  being 
quite  different  from  the  manner  in  which  the  tides  of  the 
ocean  are  propagated  from  place  to  place  over  the  earth's 
surface ;  these  oscillations  being,  undoubtedly,  directly 
generated  by  solar  and  terrestrial  radiation  in  the  regions 
where  they  occur,  and  it  is  thus  only  that  the  striking 
variations  in  the  curves  of  restricted  districts  compara- 
tively near  each  other  are  to  be  explained.  These 
peculiarities  do  not  occur  over  the  open  sea. 

As  illustrating  these  variations,  reference  is  made  to 
the  retardation  of  the  time  of  occurrence  of  the  morning 
maximum,  which  is  delayed  as  the  year  advances,  the 
latest  retardation  being  in  June ;  and  the  curves  of  14 
stations  are  given,  these  stations  being  situated  in  the 
middle  and  higher  latitudes,  and  in  localities  which,  while 
strongly  insular  in  character,  are  at  the  same  time  not 
far  from  extensive  tracts  of  land  to  eastward  or  south- 
eastward. These  barometric  curves  for  June  present  a 
graduated  series,  the  two  extremes  being  Culloden,  where 
the  morning  maximum  occurs  at  7  a.m.,  and  Sitka,  where 
the  same  phase  of  pressure  is  delayed  till  3  p.m.,  there 
being  thus  eight  hours  between  them.  Another  set  of 
curves  is  given  from  lower  latitudes,  showing  the  diurnal 
variation  in  mid-ocean  from  the  Challenger  observations, 
together  with  a  series  of  land  stations  representing  the 
influence  of  a  land  surface  in  increasing  the  amount  of 
the  variation,  which  reaches  the  maximum  in  the  driest 
climates.  Latitude  for  latitude,  the  maximum  daily  varia- 
tion occurs  in  such  arid  climates  as  Jacobabad  on  the  Indus, 
and  the  minimum  over  the  anticyclonic  regions  of  the 
great  oceans.  At  Jacobabad  the  variation  from  the 
morning  maximum  to  the  afternoon  minimum  reaches 
01 87  inch,  whereas  in  the  South  Pacific  it  is  o-036  inch, 
and  in  the  North  Atlantic  only  0014  inch. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  other  types  of  barometric 
curves  discussed — the  curves  at  high-level  stations  on 
true  peaks,  and  down  the  sides  of  the  mountain ;  the 
curves  in  deep  contracted  valleys  ;  those  in  high  latitudes 
in  the  interior  of  continents  where  the  morning  minimum 
disappears ;  and  those  in  high  latitudes  over  the  ocean 
where  the  afternoon  minimum  disappears.  In  the  two 
last  cases,  the  curve  is  reduced  to  a  single  maximum 
and  minimum,  which  as  regards  the  times  of  occurrence 
are  the  reverse  of  each  other. 

The  atmosphere  over  the  open  sea  rests  on  a  floor  or 
surface,  subject  to  a  diurnal  range  of  temperature  so 
small  as  to  render  that  temperature  practically  constant 
both  night  and  day;  but  notwithstanding  this,  the  diurnal 
oscillations  of  the  barometer  occur  over  the  open  sea, 
equally  as  over  the  land  surfaces  of  the  globe.  Hence 
the  vitally  important  conclusion  is  drawn  that  the  diurnal 
oscillations  of  the  barometer  are  not  caused  by  the 
heating  and  cooling  of  the  earth's  surface  by  solar  and 
terrestrial  radiation  and  by  the  effects  following  these 
diurnal  changes  in  the  temperature  of  the  surface,  but 
that  they  are  primarily  caused  by  the  direct  heating  by 
solar  radiation  and  cooling  by  terrestrial  radiation  of  the 
molecules  of  the  air  and  of  its  aqueous  vapour,  and  the 
changes  consequent  on  that  cooling.  It  follows  that 
these  changes  of  temperature  are  instantly  communicated 
through  the  whole  atmosphere,  from  its  lowermost  stratum 
resting  on  the  surface  to  the  extreme  limit  of  the  at- 
mosphere. There  are  important  modifications  of  the 
barometric  curves  affecting  the  amplitude  and  times  of 
occurrence  of  the  principal  phases  of  the  phenomena, 
over  land  surfaces,  for  example,  which  are  superheated 
during  the  day  and  cooled  during  the  night  according  to 
the  amount  of  aqueous  vapour  present  in  the  atmo- 
sphere. But  it  is  particularly  insisted  on  that  the  baro- 
metric oscillations  themselves  are  independent  of  any 
change  in  the  temperature  of  the  floor  of  the  earth's 
surface  on  which  the  atmosphere  rests.  It  scarcely 
requires   to  be  added  that  these  results  of  observation 


will  necessitate  the  revision  of  all  theories  of  the 
diurnal  oscillations  of  the  barometer  that  have  assumed 
a  diurnal  change  of  the  temperature  of  the  sur- 
face on  which  the  atmosphere  rests  as  a  necessary 
cause  of  these  oscillations.  The  theory  of  the  diurnal 
oscillations  of  the  barometer  submitted  by  Mr.  Buchan 
may  be  thus  stated  :  Assuming  that  aqueous  vapour,  in 
its  purely  gaseous  state,  is  as  diathermanous  as  the 
dry  air  of  the  atmosphere,  it  is  considered  that  the 
morning  minimum  of  pressure  is  due  to  a  reduc- 
tion of  tension  brought  about  by  a  comparatively 
sudden  lowering  of  the  temperature  of  the  air  itself  by 
terrestrial  radiation  through  all  its  height,  and  by  a 
change  of  state  of  a  portion  of  the  aqueous  vapour  from 
the  gaseous  to  the  liquid  state  by  its  deposition  on  the 
dust  particles  of  the  air.  The  morning  minimum  is  thus 
due,  not  to  any  removal  of  the  mass  of  air  overhead,  but 
to  a  reduction  of  the  tension  by  a  lowering  of  the  tem- 
perature and  change  of  state  of  a  portion  of  the  aqueous 
vapour. 

As  the  heating  of  the  air  proceeds  with  the  ascent  of 
the  sun,  evaporation  takes  place  from  the  moist  surfaces 
of  the  dust  particles,  and  tension  is  increased  by  the  simple 
change  from  the  fluid  to  the  gaseous  state  ;  and  as  the  dust 
particles  in  the  sun's  rays  rise  in  temperature  above  that  of 
the  air-films  in  contact  with  them,  the  temperature  of  the 
air  is  thereby  increased,  and  with  it  the  tension.  Under 
these  conditions  the  barometer  steadily  rises  with  the 
increasing  tension  to  the  morning  maximum  j  and  it  is 
to  be  noted  that  the  rise  of  the  barometer  is  not  oc- 
casioned by  any  accessions  to  the  mass  of  air  overhead, 
but  only  to  increasing  temperature  of  the  air  itself  and 
change  of  state  of  a  portion  of  its  aqueous  vapour. 

By  and  by  an  ascending  current  of  the  warm  air  sets 
in,  and  pressure  gradually  falls  as  the  mass  of  air  over- 
head is  reduced  by  the  ascending  current  flowing  back  as 
an  upper  current  to  eastward — in  other  words,  over  the 
section  of  the  atmosphere  to  eastward  whose  temperature 
has  now  fallen  considerably  lower  than  that  of  the  region 
from  which  the  ascending  current  is  rising  ;  and  this 
continues  till  pressure  falls  to  the  afternoon  minimum. 

The  back  flow  to  eastward  of  the  current,  which  has 
ascended  from  the  longitudes  where  pressure  at  the  time 
is  at  the  minimum,  increases  pressure  over  the  longitudes 
where  temperature  is  now  rapidly  falling,  and  this  atmo- 
spheric quasi-tidal  movement  brings  about  the  evening 
inaximum  of  pressure,  which  occurs  from  9  p.m.  to 
midnight  according  to  latitude  and  geographical  position. 
As  the  early  hours  of  morning  advance  these  contributions 
through  the  upper  currents  become  less  and  less,  and 
finally  cease,  and  the  effects  of  terrestrial  radiation  now 
going  forward  again  introduce  the  morning  minimum  as 
already  described.  It  is  during  the  evening  maximum 
that  the  diurnal  maximum  of  periods  of  lightning  without 
thunder  and  of  the  aurora  take  place ,  it  being  during 
this  phase  of  the  pressure  that  the  atmospheric  conditions 
result  in  an  abundant  increase  of  ice  spicules  in  the  upper 
regions  of  the  atmosphere,  which  thus  serve  as  a  screen 
for  the  better  presentation  of  any  magneto-electric  dis- 
charges that  may  occur. 

It  is  interesting  to  note,  in  this  connection,  that  the 
amount  of  the  diurnal  barometric  tide  falls  conspicuously 
to  the  minimum,  latitude  for  latitude,  within  the  anti- 
cyclonic  regions  of  the  great  oceans,  where,  owing  to  the 
descending  currents  which  there  prevail,  deposition  from 
the  aqueous  vapour  is  less  abundant  on  the  dust  particles. 

From  a  discussion  of  the  whole  of  the  two-hourly 
observations  of  the  wind  made  during  the  cruise,  sorted 
into  those  made  over  the  open  sea  and  those  made  near 
land,  it  is  shown  that  the  velocity  of  the  wind  is  greater 
over  the  open  sea  than  at  or  near  land,  the  difterence 
being  from  4  to  5  miles  per  hour.  The  most  important 
result  is  that  there  is  practically  no  diurnal  variation  in 
the  wind's  velocity  over  the  open  sea.     But  as  respects 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


445 


the  winds  observed  near  land,  the  velocity  at  the  different 
hours  of  the  day  gives  a  curve  as  clearly  and  decidedly 
marked  as  that  of  the  temperature,  the  minimum  occur- 
ring from  2  to  4  a.m.,  and  the  maximum  from  noon  to 
4  p.m.,  the  absolute  maximum  being  at  2  p.m.  The  dif- 
ference between  the  hour  of  least  and  that  of  greatest 
velocity  is  for  the  Southern  Ocean  6^  miles ;  South 
Pacific,  4i  miles ;  South  Atlantic,  3J  miles  ;  and  North 
and  South  Atlantic,  each  3  miles.  It  is  also  to  be  noted 
that  even  the  maximum  of  the  day  near  land  in  the  case  of 
none  of  the  oceans  attains  to  the  velocity  observed  over  the 
open  sea.  The  curve  near  land  is  substantially  the  same 
as  the  curves  characteristic  of  stations  on  land.  Thus, 
over  the  sea,  where  surface  temperature  is  practically  a 
constant  day  and  night,  the  velocity  of  the  wind  shows 
no  diurnal  variation  ;  whereas  over  land,  and  also  near 
it,  where  the  temperature  of  the  surface  is  subject  to  a 
diurnal  variation,  the  wind's  velocity  is  also  subject  to  an 
equally  well-marked  diurnal  variation.  On  the  other 
hand,  at  high-level  observatories  situated  on  true  peaks, 
the  maximum  velocity  occurs  during  the  night,  and  the 
minimum  during  the  day.  In  deep  valleys  in  mountain- 
ous regions,  an  abnormally  high  barometer  obtains  during 
the  night,  which  is  the  result  of  cold  currents  from  the 
adjoining  slopes  that  the  cooling  effects  of  terrestrial 
radiation  set  in  motion.  Now  since  these  down-flowing 
winds  must  be  fed  from  higher  levels  than  those  of  the 
mountain  itself,  the  winds  prevailing  on  their  tops  are 
really  the  winds  of  a  higher  level,  and  blow  therefore 
with  the  increased  velocity  due  to  that  greater  height. 
On  the  other  hand,  during  the  warmer  hours  of  the  day, 
the  barometric  pressure  in  deep  valleys  is  abnormally 
low,  owing  to  the  superheating  of  these  valleys  as  con- 
trasted with  the  temperature  of  the  surrounding  region, 
thus  giving  rise  to  a  warm  wind  blowing  up  the  valleys, 
and  an  ascending  current  close  to  the  sides  of  the  moun- 
tain up  to  the  summit.  Now,  since  no  inconsiderable 
portion  of  this  ascending  current,  whose  horizontal  velo- 
city is  necessarily  much  retarded,  mingles  with  the  air- 
current  proper  to  the  level  of  the  peak,  the  wind  on  the 
peak  is  retarded,  and  falls  to  the  minimum  of  the  day 
when  the  temperature  is  highest. 

The  results  of  the  averaging  of  the  squalls  over  the 
open  sea  entered  in  the  Challenger'' s  log  show  a  strongly 
marked  diurnal  maximum  early  in  the  morning,  when 
the  effects  of  terrestrial  radiation  are  at  the  maximum. 
But  over  land  the  diurnal  curves  for  whirlwinds,  torna- 
does, and  allied  phenomena,  show  the  minimum  at  these 
hours,  and  the  maximum  at  the  hours  when  insolation  is 
strongest.  It  is  probable  that  the  daily  maximum  occurs 
in  each  case  at  those  hours  when  temperature  decreases 
with  height  at  a  greatly  more  rapid  rate  than  the  normal. 

The  distribution  during  the  day  of  thunderstorms,  and 
of  lightning  without  thunder,  is  very  remarkable.  During 
the  cruise  26  thunderstorms  occurred  over  the  open 
sea,  of  which  22  occurred  during  the  10  hours  from 
10  p.m.  to  8  a.m.,  and  only  4  during  the  other  14  hours  of 
the  day.  Hence,  over  the  open  sea,  the  diurnal  curve  of 
thunderstorms  is  precisely  the  reverse  of  what  obtains  on 
land.  Of  the  209  reported  cases  of  lightning  without 
thunder,  188  occurred  during  the  10  hours  from  6  p.m.  to 
4  a.m.,  and  only  21  during  the  other  14  hours  of  the  day. 
The  following  are  the  hours  of  the  maxima  of  these 
phenomena  in  the  warmer  months  over  land  and  the 
open  sea  respectively.  Thunderstorms  over  land,  2  to 
6  p.m.  ;  lightning  over  land,  8  p.m.  to  midnight ;  lightning 
over  the  open  sea,  8  p.m.  to  4  a.m.  ;  and  thunderstorms 
over  the  open  sea,  10  p.m.  to  8  a.m.  These  facts  are  a 
valuable  contribution  to  the  science,  from  their  intimate 
connection  with  the  ascending  and  descending  currents 
of  the  atmosphere. 

The  second  part  of  the  Report,  dealing  with  the  monthly 
and  annual  phenomena,  aims  at  giving  a  comparative 
view  of  the  climatologies  of  the  globe  to  a  degree  of  com- 


pleteness not  previously  attempted.  The  distribution  of 
the  temperature  and  pressure  of  the  atmosphere  and 
prevailing  winds  is  illustrated  by  52  newly  constructed 
maps,  of  which  26  show  by  isothermals  the  mean  monthly 
and  annual  temperature  on  hypsobathymetric  maps, 
first  on  Gall's  projection,  and  second  on  north  circum- 
polar  maps  on  equal  surface  projection ;  and  26  show, 
by  isobars,  for  each  month  and  for  the  year,  the  mean 
pressure  of  the  atmosphere,  with  the  gravity  correction  to 
lat.  45°  applied,  and  by  arrows  the  prevailing  winds  of  the 
globe.  Two  other  maps  are  given  in  the  text,  one  show- 
ing for  July  the  geographical  distribution  of  the  amount 
of  the  barometric  oscillation  from  the  morning  maximum 
to  the  afternoon  minimum ;  and  the  other,  the  annual 
range  of  the  mean  monthly  pressure,  which,  in  a  sense, 
may  be  regarded  as  indicating  the  relative  stability  of  the 
atmospheric  pressure  in  different  regions  of  the  earth. 

For  the  details  of  this  discussion,  we  must  refer  to  the 
Report  itself,  the  broad  results  of  which  Mr.  Buchan  thus 
summarizes : — 

"  The  isobaric  maps  show,  in  the  clearest  and  most 
conclusive  manner,  that  the  distribution  of  the  pressure 
of  the  earth's  atmosphere  is  determined  by  the  geo- 
graphical distribution  of  land  and  water  in  their  relations 
to  the  varying  heat  of  the  sun  through  the  months  of  the 
year ;  and  since  the  relative  pressure  determines  the 
direction  and  force  of  the  prevailing  winds,  and  these  in 
their  turn  the  temperature,  moisture,  rainfall,  and  in  a 
very  great  degree  the  surface  currents  of  the  ocean,  it  is 
evident  that  there  is  here  a  principle  applicable  not 
merely  to  the  present  state  of  the  earth,  but  also  to 
different  distributions  of  land  and  water  in  past  times. 
In  truth,  it  is  only  by  the  aid  of  this  principle  that  any 
rational  attempt,  based  on  causes  having  a  purely  ter- 
restrial origin,  can  be  made  in  explanation  of  those 
glacial  and  warm  geological  epochs  through  which  the 
climates  of  Great  Britain  and  other  countries  have 
passed.  Hence  the  geologist  must  familiarize  himself 
with  the  nature  of  those  climatic  changes  which  neces- 
sarily result  from  different  distributions  of  land  and 
water,  especially  those  changes  which  influence  most 
powerfully  the  life  of  the  globe." 

It  is  evident  from  what  has  been  said  that  many  of  the 
results  of  the  diurnal  and  seasonal  phenomena  of  ocean 
meteorology  are  equally  novel  and  important,  and,  when 
combined  with  the  analogous  results  obtained  from  land 
observations,  enable  us  to  take  a  more  intelligent  and 
comprehensive  grasp  of  atmospheric  phenomena  in  their 
relations  to  the  terraqueous  globe  taken  as  a  whole  than 
has  hitherto  been  possible. 

THE  BOTANICAL  LABORATORY  IN  THE 
ROYAL    GARDENS,   PERADENIYA,    CEYLON. 

'"PHE  attention  of  the  readers  of  Nature  has  been 
■'■  drawn  more  than  once  (vol.  xxxi.  p.  460,  vol.  xxxiv. 
p.  127)  to  the  opportunities  which  are  before  botanists 
for  the  study  of  plants  other  than  those  of  our  own  flora. 
But  since  the  latter  of  these  articles  appeared,  a  step  has 
been  taken  which  will  justify  a  return  once  more  to  this 
important  subject. 

It  is  certainly  one  of  the  most  healthy  signs  of  the 
present  time  that  our  younger  botanists  desire  not  merely 
to  pore  over  minute  details  of  microscopical  structure  in 
the  laboratory  at  home,  but  to  become  personally  ac- 
quainted with  plants  in  the  open.  When  the  somewhat 
sudden  reversion  occurred  some  fifteen  years  ago,  from 
taxonomy  as  an  academic  study,  to  the  more  detailed 
examination  of  the  tissues  of  plants  in  the  laboratory,  and 
the  study  of  their  functions,  those  who  took  a  large  view 
of  the  progress  of  the  science  must  have  seen  with  regret 
that  the  change,  however  valuable  in  itself,  brought  with 
it  a  new  danger.  Those  who  as  students  were  first 
introduced  to  plants  as  subjects  of  microscopic  study  ran 


446 


NA  TURE 


[March  13,  1890 


the  risk  of  failing  to  appreciate  the  importance  of  external 
form  :  they  acquired  a  knowledge  of  the  minute  structural 
details  of  certain  plants,  but  did  not  acquire  a  strong 
grasp  of  the  external  characters  of  plants  as  a  whole. 
But  the  pendulum  which  thus  swung  rapidly  over  to  an 
extreme  position  is  now  returning  to  the  mean.  While 
duly  appreciating  the  value  of  microscopic  examination, 
the  younger  botanists  are  awake  to  the  advantage,  or 
even  the  necessity,  of  a  wide  knowledge  of  plants.  The 
whole  area  of  facts  upon  which  those  who  are  now 
engaged  in  teaching  draw  in  the  course  of  their  lectures 
is  much  wider  than  it  was  ten  years  ago,  and  the  exten- 
sion has,  perhaps,  been  most  marked  in  the  province  of 
external  morphology. 

This  being  so,  there  will  be  no  need  to  press  upon  the 
men  who  are  starting  upon  a  career  as  botanists  the 
importance  of  a  visit  to  the  tropics  :  they  will  look  upon 
the  collections  in  our  Botanic  Gardens,  which  they  are 
hardly  allowed  to  touch,  as  only  a  temporary  substitute 
for  a  tropical  jungle,  where  they  may  cut  down  plants 
as  they  please,  in  order  to  obtain  specimens  illustrating 
mature  or  developmental  characters.  Moreover,  those 
characters  of  a  tropical  flora  which  are  the  most  striking 
and  characteristic  are  often  those  which  must  remain 
entirely  unrepresented  in  our  glass  houses  at  home.  An 
expedition  to  the  tropics  should,  in  fact,  become  a  recog- 
nized item  in  the  programme  of  preparation  for  a  career 
as  a  teacher  of  botany. 

The  advantages  offered  by  the  Royal  Gardens  at 
Peradeniya  have  already  been  pointed  out  in  Nature 
(vol.  xxxiv.  p.  127)  ;  but  since  that  article  was  written 
steps  have  been  taken  by  a  Committee  of  the  British 
Association  to  add  to  them.  Backed  by  a  grant  of 
money,  they  have  undertaken  the  establishment  of  a  per- 
manent laboratory  in  which  visitors  may  carry  on  their 
work.  A  room  has  been  set  apart  for  this  purpose  in  the 
official  bungalow  by  the  directorate  of  the  Royal  Garden. 
It  has  every  advantage  of  position,  being  placed  centrally 
in  the  garden,  and  within  easy  reach  of  the  herbarium, 
&c.;  while,  since  it  is  under  the  same  roof  as  the  Director's 
office,  visitors  would  have  the  great  advantage  of  the 
presence  of  Dr.  Trimen  himself  as  a  referee  in  recognition 
of  the  plants  of  the  rich  native  flora.  In  this  room  are  to 
be  found  such  apparatus  and  reagents  as  are  ordinarily 
required  for  laboratory  work,  and  steps  are  being  taken 
to  add  other  facilities. 

The  mere  mention  of  these  facts  will  probably  suffice 
to  attract  those  who  were  not  previously  aware  of  them. 
The  chief  deterrent  will  be  the  cost  of  the  journey.  It 
has  already  been  stated  that  ^200  to  ;i^25o  will  suffice  for 
all  expenses  of  an  expedition  of  six  months'  duration, 
while  if  two  club  together  the  individual  cost  would  be 
considerably  smaller.  Though  the  Committee  of  the 
British  Association  have  no  power  to  use  the  money 
entrusted  to  them  as  a  personal  grant,  still  it  is  wc.I 
known  that  there  are  sources  from  which  such  grants  may 
be  obtained  in  order  to  assist  those  who  are  engaged  on 
a  definite  line  of  research.  Bearing  all  these  facts  in 
mind,  the  value  of  such  an  expedition  as  that  to  Peradeniya 
cannot  be  too  strongly  urged  on  those  who  are  about  to 
enter  definitely  on  a  career  as  professed  botanists.  The 
widening  of  view,  and  opportunity  for  research,  which  any 
man  of  originality  would  obtain  by  it  would  amply  repay 
him  for  his  expenditure  of  time  and  money.  Applications 
for  the  use  of  the  laboratory,  which  is  at  present  vacant, 
should  be  made  to  Prof.  Bower  (University,  Glasgow), 
who  is  the  secretary  to  the  Committee. 

THE  ASTRONOMICAL  0BSE:IVAT0RY  OF 
HARVARD  COLLEGE. 

PROF.  EDWARD  C.  PICKERING  has  presented  to 
the   Visiting    Committee    the    forty-fourth   Annual 
Report  of  the  Director  of  the  Astronomical  Observatory  of 


Harvard  College.  The  following  are  the  more  important 
passages : — 

Henry  Draper  Alemorial. — The  first  research  on  the 
spectrum  of  over  ten  thousand  of  the  brighter  stars  is  now 
nearly  completed  and  is  partially  in  print.  The  photo- 
graphs required  for  the  second  research  on  the  spectrum 
of  the  fainter  stars  are  also  nearly  complete.  The  eleven- 
inch  telescope  has  been  in  constant  use  throughout 
nearly  every  clear  night  in  photographing  the  spectrum 
of  the  brighter  stars.  This  work  is  approaching  com- 
pletion for  all  stars  bright  enough  to  be  photographed  by 
means  of  our  present  appliances,  with  the  large  dispersion 
now  employed.  Good  progress  has  also  been  made  with 
the  classification  of  the  spectra,  and  the  study  of  the 
slight  differences  in  different  stars.  By  the  use  of  an 
improved  process  for  staining  plates  with  erythrosin,  the 
yellow  and  green  portions  of  the  spectrum,  even  of  the 
fainter  stars,  can  be  advantageously  studied.  Numerous 
experiments  have  been  made  with  a  device  for  measuring 
the  approach  and  recession  of  stars,  by  means  of  an 
achromatic  prism  in  front  of  the  object-glass.  Several 
peculiar  spectra  have  been  studied,  especially  that  of 
C  Urste  Majoris.  The  periodic  doubling  of  its  lines  seems 
to  be  due  to  the  rotation  of  two  components  too  close  to 
be  distinguished  by  direct  observation.  The  detection  of 
bright  lines  in  one  of  the  stars  in  the  Pleiades  suggests  a 
possible  explanation  of  the  legend  that  seven  stars  were 
formerly  visible  in  this  group. 

During  last  spring  an  expedition  was  sent  to  Peru  in 
charge  of  Mr.  S.  I.  Bailey,  assisted  by  Mr.  M.  H.  Bailey. 
A  station  was  selected  on  a  mountain  about  six  thousand 
feet  high  and  about  eight  miles  from  Chosica.  All 
supplies  for  the  station,  including  water,  must  be  carried 
by  mules  for  this  distance.  Two  frame  buildings  covered 
with  paper  have  been  erected,  one  for  an  observatory,  the 
other  for  a  dwelling-house.  Since  May  9  the  Bache 
telescope  has  been  kept  at  work  during  the  whole  of 
every  clear  night.  1236  photographs  have  been  obtained. 
The  plan  proposed  will  cover  the  sky  south  of  -15^  four 
times,  once  with  photographs  of  spectra  having  an  ex- 
posure of  an  hour,  which  will  include  stars  to  about  the 
eighth  magnitude  ;  secondly,  with  an  exposure  of  ten 
minutes,  giving  the  brighter  stars ;  thirdly,  with  charts 
having  an  exposure  of  one  hour,  permitting  a  map  of  the 
southern  stars  to  the  fourteenth  magnitude  inclusive ; 
and  fourthly,  with  charts  having  an  exposure  of  ten 
minutes,  including  stars  to  about  the  tenth  magnitude. 
The  weather  for  the  first  four  or  five  months  was  ex- 
cellent, being  clear  nearly  every  evening.  Fogs  and 
cloud  which  often  covered  the  adjacent  valleys  and  the 
city  of  Lima  did  not  reach  to  the  top  of  the  mountain. 
The  cloudy  season  is  now  beginning  and  the  work  will 
be  more  interrupted.  But  nearly  one-half  of  the  entire 
programme  has  already  been  carried  out.  A  large 
number  of  interesting  objects  have  been  detected,  among 
others  several  stars  having  bright  lines  in  their  spectra. 
Including  the  photometric  work  described  below,  the 
amount  of  material  so  far  collected  is  unexpectedly  large. 

Boyde?i  Fund. — The  climate  of  Southern  California 
seems  especially  favourable  to  the  undertaking  desired  by 
Mr.  Boyden.  An  expedition  under  the  direction  of  Prof. 
William  H.  Pickering  was  accordingly  sent  in  November 
1888  to  the  summit  of  Wilson's  Peak,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Los  Angeles.  In  order  that  as  much  useful  work  as 
possible  might  be  accomplished,  the  thirteen-inch  tele- 
scope and  the  eight-inch  telescope  now  in  Peru  were  sent 
to  Willows,  California,  where  the  total  solar  eclipse  of 
January  i,  1889,  was  successfully  observed.  Forty-seven 
photographs  were  obtained  by  the  party  during  the  three 
minutes  of  totality,  and  the  instrumental  equipment  was 
much  superior  to  any  previously  used  for  such  a  purpose. 
It  was  not  until  May  1 1,  that  the  large  telescope  was  suc- 
cessfully mounted  on  Wilson's  Peak,  by  Messrs.  E.  S. 
King  and  Robert  Black,  but  since  then  it  has  been  kept 


March 


Oi 


1890] 


NATURE 


447 


at  work  throughout  every  clear  night.  The  number  of 
photographs  obtained  is  1155.  The  objects  photographed 
are  selected  from  a  list  of  625  double  stars,  143  clusters 
and  other  celestial  bodies,  such  as  the  moon  and  planets. 
As  these  same  objects  have  been'repeatedly  photographed 
at  Cambridge  with  the  same  instrument,  an  accurate  com- 
parison of  the  atmospheric  conditions  of  the  two  places 
may  be  made.  It  will  of  course  be  impossible  to  derive  a 
final  conclusion  until  the  observations  have  extended  over 
at  least  a  year,  but  the  evidence  already  secured  shows 
that  in  summer  results  can  be  obtained  at  Wilson's  Peak 
which  cannot  be  obtained  here.  The  difference  is  very 
pronounced  for  such  objects  as  the  markings  on  Jupiter. 
Clusters  like  that  in  Hercules  are  well  resolved,  so  that 
the  individual  stars  are  easily  measured,  which  cannot  be 
done  with  the  best  Cambridge  photographs.  As  a  test- 
object  the  sixth  star  in  the  trapezium  of  the  Orion  nebula 
is  clearly  photographed  for  the  first  time.  A  new  variable 
star  has  been  discovered  in  the  midst  of  the  cluster  G.  C. 
3636.  A  beginning  has  been  made  of  the  measurements  of 
the  position  and  brightness  of  the  double  stars,  and  it  is 
hoped  to  extend  this  work  to  the  clusters,  and  thus  furnish 
an  extensive  addition  to  this  department  of  micrometic 
astronomy. 

Much  experimental  work  has  also  been  done  at  Cam- 
bridge, as  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  nearly  a  thousand 
photographs  have  also  been  taken  there.  Moreover,  the 
expedition  to  Peru  is  largely  supported  by  the  Boyden 
Fund.  The  meridian  photometer  will  be  used  to  extend 
two  large  series  of  observations  to  the  south  pole.  These 
are  the  "  Harvard  Photometry,"  and  the  zones  used  in  the 
revision  of  the  Dtcrchniusteriing.  This  work  will  furnish 
photometric  magnitudes  of  stars  as  bright  as  the  ninth 
magnitude  in  all  parts  of  the  sky.  The  Messrs.  Bailey 
have  observed  67  series,  one  of  them  including  293  stars. 
In  all,  during  less  than  six  months,  about  6700  stars  have 
been  observed,  which  have  required  26,800  settings. 

The  Bruce  Photographic  Telescope. — For  the  last  six 
years  experiments  have  been  in  progress  here  on  the  use 
of  a  photographic  doublet  in  the  preparation  of  maps  of 
the  stars.  The  eight-inch  telescope  now  in  Peru  is  of  this 
form  and  was  mounted  here  in  1885.  Since  then  4500 
photographs  have  been  taken  with  it.  With  an  exposure 
of-an  hour  twice  as  many  stars  can  be  photographed  as 
are  visible  with  a  telescope  having  an  aperture  of  fifteen 
inches,  and  as  many  stars  as  can  be  photographed  in  the 
same  time  with  a  telescope  of  the  usual  form  having  an 
aperture  of  thirteen  inches.  Moreover  with  a  doublet  a  por- 
tion of  the  sky  covering  twenty-five  square  degrees  can  be 
photographed  with  good  definition,  while  only  three  or 
four  degrees  can  be  covered  equally  well  with  telescopes 
of  the  usual  form.  The  time  required  to  photograph  the 
entire  sky  will  be  reduced  in  the  same  proportion.  With 
a  doublet  each  hemisphere  could  be  covered  in  one  year 
with  eight  hundred  plates.  In  1885  it  was  proposed  to 
photograph  the  entire  sky  with  the  eight-inch  telescope, 
enlarging  the  plates  three  times.  The  results  would 
resemble  in  scale  and  size  the  charts  of  Peters  and  Cha- 
cornac.  The  generous  aid  of  Miss  Bruce  mentioned 
above  will  permit  this  result  to  be  attained  in  the  original 
photographs,  without  enlargement.  A  contract  has  been 
made  with  Messrs.  Alvan  Clark  and  Sons  for  a  telescope 
having  an  aperture  of  twenty-four  inches  and  a  focal 
length  of  eleven  feet.  Meanwhile  nineteen  foreign  Ob- 
servatories have  united  in  an  Astrophotographic  Congress 
to  prepare  a  map  of  the  stars  to  the  fourteenth  magnitude 
with  telescopes  of  the  usual  form  having  apertures  of 
thirteen  inches.  The  plans  have  been  matured  with 
great  care  and  skill.  The  courteous  reference  to  the 
Bruce  telescope  and  its  proposed  work  by  Admiral 
Mouchez  shows  that  both  plans  can  be  carried  out  with- 
out disadvantageous  duplication.  Doubtless  each  plan 
will  possess  certain  advantages  over  the  other.  The 
Bruce  telescope  will  be  especially  adapted  to  studying  the 


very  faint  stars.  It  is  hoped  that  those  of  the  sixteenth 
magnitude  and  fainter  can  be  photographed.  Its  principal 
use  will  probably  be  for  the  study  of  the  distribution  of  the 
stars,  for  complete  catalogues  of  clusters,  nebula;,  and 
double  stars,  and  for  the  spectra  of  faint  stars.  The 
amount  of  material  accumulated  will  be  enormous,  and  the 
best  method  of  discussion  will  form  a  very  difficult  and 
important  problem. 


NOTES. 

The  bulletins  relating  to  the  health  of  Sir  Richard  Owen, 
who  is  suffering  from  a  paralytic  stroke,  have  called  forth  many 
expressions  of  sympathy  from  the  general  public,  as  well  as  from 
men  of  science.  Hopes  of  his  recovery  are  entertained,  but  at 
his  advanced  age  the  process  must  necessarily  be  slow. 

A  CIRCULAR  letter  from  the  Conseil  General  des  Facultes  de 
Montpellier,  issued  March  i,  1890,  and  addressed  to  the  chief 
learned  bodies,  sets  forth  that  on  October  26,  1289,  a  Bull  of 
Pope  Nicolas  IV.  "  erigeait  en  Studium  gcnerale  les  Facultes  de 
Droit,  de  Medecine  et  des  Arts,  qui  existaient  deja  depuis  long- 
temps  dans  notre  ville."  It  is  proposed,  therefore,  as  we  have 
already  noted,  that  during  the  present  year  the  University  shall 
commemorate  its  entry  upon  its  seventh  century.  The  fcle  will 
probably  be  held  towards  the  end  of  May. 

After  the  reading  of  the  papers  at  the  ordinary  meeting  of 
the  Royal  Meteorological  Society  on  Wednesday,  March  19, 
the  Fellows  and  their  friends  will  have  an  opportunity  of  in- 
specting the  Exhibition  of  Instruments  illustrating  the  aiiplication 
of  photography  to  meteorology,  and  of  such  new  instruments  as 
have  been  invented  and  first  constructed  since  the  last  Exhibition. 
The  Exhibition  will,  at  the  request  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  be  open  in  readiness  for  their 
meeting  on  Tuesday  evening  the  iSth  instant,  and  will  remain 
open  till  Friday  the  2rst  instant. 

An  International  Exhibition  of  Mining  and  Metallurgy  will 
be  held  this  year  at  the  Crystal  Palace  from  July  2  to  September 
30.  The  Lord  Mayor  is  the  patron,  the  Duke  of  Fife  the  Hon. 
President,  and  the  list  of  Hon.  Vice-Presidents  contains  the 
names  of  Lord  Wharncliffe,  Lord  Brassey,  Lord  Thurlow,  Sir 
Frederick  Abel,  Sir  Alexander  Armstrong,  Sir  F.  Dillon  Bell, 
Sir  Graham  Berry,  Sir  Charles  Clifford,  Sir  James  Kitson,  Sir 
Roper  Lethbridge,  M.P.,  Sir  John  Lubbock,  M.P.,  Sir  John 
Pender,  Sir  E.  J.  Reed,  M.  P.,  Sir  Saul  Samuel,  Sir  VVarington 
W.  Smyth,  Sir  Charles  Tennant,  M.P.,  Sir  Edward  Thornton, 
Sir  Charles  Tupper,  Sir  H.  Hussey  Vivian,  and  Prof.  Roberts- 
Austen.  Mr.  Pritchard  Morgan,  M.P.,  is  chairman,  and  Mr. 
Henry  Cribb  deputy-chairman  of  the  Executive  Council,  which 
consists  of  20  gentlemen  well  known  in  engineering  and  mining 
matters.  The  following  are  the  subjects  likely  to  be  included 
within  the  scope  of  the  Exhibition  : — Machinery,  mining  in 
gold  and  silver,  diamonds  and  precious  stones,  ironstone  and 
iron-ore  mining,  the  manufacture  of  iron  and  steel,  lead,  tin, 
copper,  and  coal  mining,  petroleum  and  salt  industries,  and  a  • 
number  of  other  kindred  subjects.  Ambulance  practice  and 
the  condition  of  miners  will  also  be  illustrated. 

A  general  meeting  of  the  Society  for  the  Preservation  of 
Ancient  Monuments  in  Egypt  will  be  held  at  the  rooms  of  the 
Royal  Archaeological  Institute  to-morrow  (Friday),  at  5  p.m. 
Attention  will  be  specially  called  to  the  wanton  excision  of  por- 
tions of  the  well-known  fresco  paintings  in  the  tomb  of  the 
Colossus  on  a  sledge,  dating  from  the  Twelfth  Dynasty,  or 
between  2000  and  3000  years  B.C.,  at  Der-el-Barsha,  the 
chipping  out  of  cartouches  of  different  Sovereigns  from  the  Sixth 


448 


NATURE 


{March  13,  1890 


Dynasty  tombs  at  the  same  place,  the  mutilations  of  tombs  at 
Beni  Hassan,  the  malicious  removal  of  curious  bas-reliefs  at  Tel- 
el-Armana,  and  other  recent  acts  of  vandalism.  Such  outrages 
as  these  ought  surely  to  be  made  practically  impossible.  All 
that  is  needed  is  that  the  matter  shall  be  seriously  taken  in  hand 
by  the  Foreign  Office. 

An  attempt  is  being  made  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
London  to  raise  a  fund,  the  interest  of  which  shall  be  used  from 
time  to  time  to  defray  the  expense  of  excavations,  or  to  advance 
archaeological  knowledge  in  such  other  ways  as  may  seem  suitable 
to  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Society.  The  object  is  one 
which  ought  to  commend  itself  to  all  who  interest  themselves  in 
archaeology.  The  Society  wants  a  capital  sum  of  only  £'yyoo. 
Subscriptions  should  be  sent  to  the  treasurer,  Dr.  E.  Freshfield, 
5  Bank  Buildings,  E.G. 

Mr.  Gladstone  has  consented  to  open  the  new  Residential 
Medical  College  at  Guy's  Hospital  on  Wednesday,  March  26, 
at  2  p.m. 

The  treasures  of  the  Ruskin  Museum  at  Sheffield  are  being 
transferred  from  the  small  building  at  Walkley,  in  which  they 
have  hitherto  been  kept,  to  more  convenient  premises.  The 
Museum  will  be  reopened  by  Lord  Carlisle  on  July  15. 

The  March  number  of  the  Kew  Bulletin  opens  with  an  account 
of  Indian  Yellow,  or  Purree,  about  the  origin  of  which  there  used 
to  be  much  uncertainty.  Some  time  ago,  in  consequence  of 
inquiries  made  in  India  at  the  request  of  the  authorities  at  Kew, 
the  mystery  was  cleared  up  ;  and  full  information  on  the  subject 
will  be  found  in  the  present  paper.  Another  paper  deals  with 
Bombay  aloe  fibre,  and  there  are  sections  on  the  commercial 
value  of  loxa  bark,  and  on  barilla. 

An  industrial  and  artistic  Exhibition  will  shortly  be  opened 
in  Oueno,  the  most  beautiful  park  in  Tokio.  M.  de  Lezey, 
writing  to  La  Nature  on  the  subject  from  Tokio,  says  that  the 
Exhibition  will  be  particularly  rich  in  collections  of  Japanese 
antiquities. 

On  February  22  the  Johns  Hopkins  University  celebrated  the 
twelfth  anniversary  of  its  opening.  It  was  announced  that,  of 
the  various  pressing  needs  of  the  University  for  expansion,  that 
of  the  chemical  laboratory  was  to  be  met  by  turning  over  to  it 
for  reconstruction  the  ill-ventilated  Hopkins  Hall, 

The  collections  belonging  to  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences 
of  Philadelphia  grow  so  rapidly  that  the  accommodation  provided 
for  them  is  wholly  inadequate.  A  new  building  is  to  be  erected, 
and  the  State  Legislature  has  voted  $50,000  as  a  contribution 
towards  the  expenditure.  It  is  hoped  that  another  "appropria- 
tion "  of  the  same  amount  will  be  made,  and  that  the  rest  of  the 
money  required  will  be  privately  subscribed. 

German  papers  announce  the  death  of  Dr.  Karl  Emil  von 
Schafhautl,  Professor  of  Geology,  Mining,  and  Metallurgy  at 
Munich  University,  keeper  of  the  geognostic  collection  of  the 
Bavarian  State,  and  member  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences.  He  was 
not  only  an  eminent  physicist  and  geologist,  but  also  a  theoretical 
musician  of  some  note.  He  was  born  at  Ingolstadt  on  February 
26,  1803,  and  died  at  Munich  on  February  25  last. 

The  death  of  Victor,  Ritter  von  Zepharovich,  is  also  announced. 
He  was  Professor  of  Mineralogy  at  the  German  University  of 
Prague,  a  member  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences  at  Vienna,  and 
author  of  the  "  Mineralogical  Dictionary  of  the  Austrian 
Empire,"  and  many  valuable  mineralogical  and  crystallo- 
graphical  works.  He  was  born  at  Vienna  on  April  13,  1830, 
and  died  at  Prague  on  February  24  last. 

On  Tuesday  evening,  Dr.  Dallinger  delivered  an  interest- 
ing lecture  at  the  Royal  Victoria  Hall,  on  "  The  Infinitely  Great 


and  the  Infinitely  Small,"  to  an  audience  numbering  about  400, 
composed  principally  of  working  men.  The  lecture  was  illus- 
trated by  numerous  lantern-views,  and  was  evidently  much 
appreciated. 

In  the  Engineer  oi  the  7th  inst.,  there  is  an  excellent  article 
on  the  latest  express  compound  locomotive  on  the  North-Eastern 
Railway.  This  engine  is  for  the  east  coast  Scotch  traffic  on  the 
section  between  Newcastle  and  Edinburgh — about  125  miles. 
A  trial  was  made  with  a  train  of  thirty-two  coaches  (total 
weight  of  train  270  tons)  between  Newcastle  and  Berwick,  a 
distance  of  sixty-seven  miles ;  and  the  time  was  seventy-eight 
minutes,  or  three  minutes  less  than  the  Scotch  express.  With 
the  heaviest  loads  an  assistant  engine  will  not  be  necessary.  In 
another  trial  with  a  special  train  of  eighteen  six-wheeled  coaches, 
a  speed  of  about  ninety  miles  per  hour  was  obtained.  This  is  the 
highest  recorded  speed  by  several  miles.  Diagrams  were  taken 
at  various  speeds,  one  set  at  a  speed  of  eighty-six  miles  per  hour 
on  the  level.  This  speed  was  carefully  measured  by  stop-watch 
and  mile-posts  ;  the  highest  speed  observed  was  just  over  ten 
seconds  per  quarter  mile  run.  It  is  evident  from  these  facts  that 
passengers  to  the  north  will  not  waste  much  time  on  the  journey 
when  the  summer  traffic  begins  on  the  east  coast  route. 

Some  time  ago  we  referred  to  a  paper  in  which  Dr.  Daniel  G. 
Brinton  developed  the  theory  that  the  ancient  Etruscans  were 
an  offshoot  or  colony  of  the  Libyans  or  Numidians  of  Northern 
Africa — the  stock  now  represented  by  the  Kabyles  of  Algeria^ 
the  Rifians  of  Morocco,  the  Touaregs  of  the  Great  Desert,  and 
the  other  so-called  Berber  tribes.  This  paper  Dr.  Brinton  has 
followed  up  by  another,  in  which  he  compares  the  proper  names 
preserved  in  the  oldest  Libyan  monuments  with  a  series  of 
similar  names  believed  to  be  genuine  Etruscan.  The  resem- 
blances in  many  cases  are  certainly  striking,  and  Dr.  Brinton's 
ideas  on  the  subject  deserve  to  attract  the  attention  of  scholars. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Royal  Botanic  Society  on  Saturday, 
reference  was  made  to  a  very  interesting  collection  of  seeds  of 
economic  and  food  plants,  timber  trees,  &c.,  of  Uruguay,  pre- 
sented by  Consul  Alex.  K.  Mackinnon.  On  the  table  were 
plants  in  flower  of  Narcissus poeticus,  lately  received  from  Qhina, 
and  several  varieties  of  the  same  flower  from  the  Scilly  Isles, 
illustrating  the  cosmopolitan  nature  of  this  family  of  plants.  In 
the  Scilly  Isles  narcissi  are  grown  by  the  acre,  and  over  ten  tons 
of  the  flowers  are  sent  off  weekly  to  market. 

In  the  current  number  of  the  Revue  des  Sciences  natu7-elles 
appliquees,  M.  Megnin  has  a  valuable  paper  on  the  existence  of 
tuberculosis  in  hares.  About  two  years  ago  he  described  a 
peculiar  disease  brought  on  by  the  presence  of  some  species  of 
Strongylus  in  the  lungs  of  hares.  The  disease  dealt  with  in  the 
present  paper  is  wholly  different. 

M.  H.  Beauregard,  aide-naturaliste  in  the  Paris  Museum  of 
Natural  History,  has  published  an  elaborate  monograph  on  the 
Vesicant  tribe  of  insects.      It  is  illustrated  by  many  fine  plates. 

The  skeleton  of  a  mammoth  has  been  discovered  in  the 
Russian  province  of  Tula,  and  the  Moscow  Society  of 
Naturalists  have  sent  a  commission  to  excavate  it. 

Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co.  are  issuing  a  thoroughly 
revised  edition  of  "A  Treatise  on  Chemistry,"  by  Sir  H.  E. 
Roscoe,  F.R.S.,  and  C.  Schorlemmer,  F.R.S.,  and  have  just 
published  Part  II.  of  Vol.  III.,  dealing  with  the  chemistry  of  the 
hydrocarbons  and  their  derivatives.  Since  this  part  of  the  work 
was  published  in  1884,  many  additions  have  been  made  to  our 
knowledge  of  this  department  of  organic  chemistry  ;  and  the 
authors,  as  they  themselves  explain,  have  sought  to  represent 
the  present  position  of  the  science  by  introducing  the  results  of 
the  latest  and  more  important  researches,  with  the  effect  that 
the  greater  part  of  the  volume  has  been  re-written. 


March  13,  iSgoJj 


NATURE 


449 


Mr.  John  Murray  has  published  the  nineteenth  edition  of 
"  The  Reign  of  Law,"  by  the  Duke  of  Argyll. 

The  Amateur  Photographer  has  issued  its  fourth  "home 
portraiture  number."  It  reproduces  one  photograph  each  from 
the  work  contributed  by  sixty  competitors  for  prizes. 

In  the  Report  of  the  U.S.  Commissioner  of  Education  for 
the  year  1887-88  it  is  stated  that  48  educational  institutions  in 
the  United  States  receive  the  benefit  of  the  national  land  grant 
of  1862.  Among  these  institutions  are  the  Arkansas  Industrial 
University,  the  State  Agricultural  College  at  Colorado,  the 
Maine  State  College  of  Agriculture  and  the  Mechanic  Arts,  the 
Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  the  Missouri  School  of 
Mines  and  Metallurgy,  and  the  Scientific  School  of  Rutgers 
College.  In  38  of  the  Colleges  an  oflScer  of  the  Army  or  Navy 
is  detailed  to  act  as  professor  of  military  science  and  tactics. 
If  a  State  has  more  than  one  school  endowed  by  the  national 
land  grant  of  1862,  the  school  which  is  reported  by  the 
Governor  of  the  State  as  most  nearly  meeting  the  requirements 
of  existing  law  is  held  to  have  the  first  claim  to  the  officer 
allotted  to  the  State. 

M.  A.  Angot,  of  the  French  Meteorological  Office,  has 
published  in  the  Annates  of  that  office  a  very  careful  discussion 
of  the  diurnal  range  of  the  barometer,  based  upon  the  best 
available  data  for  all  parts  of  the  globe.  After  having  given  the 
mean  range  for  each  month  and  for  the  year,  he  has  calculated 
the  amplitudes  and  phases  of  the  first  four  simple  harmonic 
oscillations  into  which  the  complex  oscillation  of  the  barometric 
diurnal  range  may  be  resolved,  and  which  may  be  considered  as 
the  resultant  of  the  superposition  of  two  waves  of  different  origin 
and  character.  One  of  these,  which  the  author  terms  the 
thermic  wave,  is  of  a  more  or  less  complicated  form  in  appear- 
ance, and  is  easily  explained  as  being  produced  by  the  diurnal 
variation  of  temperature  and  by  the  differences  that  this  variation 
presents  between  neighbouring  stations.  The  other,  the  principal 
semi-diurnal  wave,  for  which  he  has  given  the  numerical  law, 
presents  a  much  more  simple  form,  and  is  not  at  all  affected  by 
local  conditions.  It  is  possibly  produced  by  the  calorific  action 
of  the  sun  upon  the  upper  strata  of  the  atmosphere  ;  but,  as  the 
author  states,  this  is  still  only  an  hypothesis,  and  the  theory  of 
this  part  of  the  phenomenon  remains  to  be  established.  His 
conclusions  upon  the  effect  of  the  thermic  wave  are  very  interest- 
ing, and  the  whole  discussion  will  well  repay  a  careful  study. 

Mr,  T.  W.  Baker  writes  to  us  that,  in  his  note  regarding 
the  meteor  of  March  3,  he  omitted  to  state  the  time  of  its 
appearance,  which  was  7.28p.m. 

An  important  paper  upon  the  crystalline  allotropic  forms  of 
sulphur  and  selenium  is  contributed  by  Dr.  Muthmann,  of 
Munich,  to  the  latest  number  of  the  Zeitschrift  fiir  Krystallogra- 
phie.  Besides  the  well-known  rhombic  pyramids  and  monoclinic 
prisms,  sulphur  may,  under  certain  conditions,  be  obtained  in 
a  third  crystalline  modification,  which  has  been  termed  by 
Gernez  "  soiifre  nacre."  This  third  modification  has  been  fully 
investigated  by  Dr.  Muthmann,  and,  in  addition,  a  new  fourth 
totally  distinct  variety  has  been  discovered.  The  third  form  is 
best  obtained  by  boiling  about  five  grams  of  powdered  sulphur 
with  750  c.c.  of  absolute  alcohol  in  a  flask  provided  with  an 
inverted  condenser  for  one  hour,  filtering  through  a  warmed 
funnel  into  a  large  flask  heated  to  70°  C.  in  a  water-bath,  and 
allowing  the  alcohol  to  slowly  evaporate.  After  about  twelve 
hours  a  large  deposit  of  brilliant  tabular  crystals  is  formed. 
Similar  crystals  of  the  third  variety  may  be  obtained  by  agitating 
a  saturated  alcoholic  solution  of  ammonium  sulphide  with  excess 
of  powdered  sulphur,  filtering,  diluting  with  a  little  alcohol  and 
allowing  to  stand  in  a  loosely  covered  cylinder.  In  a  few  hours 
crystals  are  found  deposited,  often  measuring  a  couple  of  centi- 


metres in  length  and  1-2  mm.  thick.  Another  method  which 
yielded  very  beautiful  crystals  ofthis  modification  consisted  in  allow- 
ing a  solution  of  acid  potassium  sulphate  to  slowly  diffuse  into  a 
solution  of  sodium  thiosulphate.  In  about  four  weeks'  time,  perfect 
crystals,  almost  white  in  appearance,  and  exhibiting  strongly  the 
mother-of-pearl  lustre,  were  obtained.  This  third  variety  of 
sulphur  also  crystallizes  in  the  monoclinic  system.  The  ratio  of 
its  axes  \%  a:b  -.c  —  i'o6o9  :  i  :  07094.  The  axial  angle  ^  = 
88°  13'.  The  symmetry  plane,  b  =  (010)00^00,  is  so  largely 
developed  as  to  give  the  crystals  the  appearance  of  plates.  At 
the  edges  of  the  plates  the  two  primary  pyramids  (iii)  -  P  and 
(Iii)  +  P,  a  prism  (210)00  ?  2,  and  a  clinodome  (oi2)i'l?oo  are 
well  developed.  These  crystals  are  totally  distinct  from  those 
of  the  second  modification  ;  the  axial  ratios  of  the  latter  are 
a:b:c  =  0*9957  :  I  :  0-9998  and  fi  =  84°  14'.  Uyon  the  sides  of 
the  vessel  containing  the  alcoholic  ammonium  sulphide  solution 
prepared  as  above.  Dr.  Muthmann  noticed  curious  tabular  crys- 
tals of  hexagonal  section,  which  immediately  became  altered 
upon  contact  with  a  disturbingbody,  such  as  a  platinum  wire  or  glass 
rod.  They  were  likewise  found  to  consist  of  pure  sulphur,  and, 
on  optical  and  goniometrical  examination,  were  found  to  consist 
of  a  distinct  fourth  modification,  also  monoclinic.  They  greatly 
resemble  a  rhombohedron  with  predominating  basal  plane. 
They  are  best  obtained  by  allowing  to  slowly  evaporate  in  a  tall 
cylinder  a  saturated  solution  of  sulphur  in  alcoholic  ammonium 
sulphide  diluted  with  four  times  its  volume  of  alcohol.  The 
temperature  during  this  crystallization  must  not  exceed 
14°  C.  Occasionally  in  this  experiment  all  four  forms  of  sulphur 
are  obtained  ;  the  surface  is  covered  with  crystals  of  the  third 
variety,  tables  of  the  fourth  modification  are  deposited  upon  the 
sides,  and  the  base  of  the  cylinder  is  spangled  with  rhombic 
pyramids  interspersed  with  monoclinic  needles  of  the  second 
form.  If  crystals  of  the  third  variety  are  suspended  in  their 
mother  liquors  and  left  for  some  days,  they  are  converted  into  a 
voluminous  mass  of  minute  rhombic  pyramids.  The  conversion 
into  the  more  stable  rhombic  form  is  almost  instantaneous  if  a 
rhombic  crystal  be  dropped  into  the  liquid  containing  suspended 
third  variety  crystals.  The  immediate  alteration  of  crystals  of 
the  fourth  kind  is  even  more  remarkable,  the  mere  movement  of 
the  cover-glass,  when  examining  them  under  the  microscope, 
being  sufficient  to  instantly  change  the  optical  properties  to 
those  of  the  rhombic  form.  It  is  interesting  that  this  fourth 
form  of  sulphur  is  isomorphous  with  the  form  of  selenium 
obtained  by  evaporation  of  a  hot  saturated  solution  in  carbon 
bisulphide. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  two  Badgers  {Metes  iaxus)  from  Ireland, 
presented  by  Mr.  P.  Bicknell  ;  a  Grey  Hypocolius  {Hypocotius 
ampetimis  i  )  from  Scinde,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  D.  Cumming  ; 
a  Rhesus  Monkey  {Macacus  rhesus  <? )  from  India,  a  Spotted 
Ichneumon  {Herpestes  nepatensis)  from  Nepal,  deposited  ;  an 
Axis  Deer  {Cervus  axis),  born  in  the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 
Sidereal  Time   at    Greenwich   at   10  p.m.  on  March   13  = 


9h.  25m.  5SS. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

,  V  rO.C.  1861 

('>  IG.C.  1863 

(2)  8  Leo  Minoris 

(3)  t  Hydrae        

(4)  0  Leonis 

(5)132  Schj 

5 '7 
4 

White. 

\yhite. 

Reddish-yellow. 

Whitish-yellow. 

Yellowish-white. 

Red. 

h.  m.  s. 
9  25  47 
9  25  58 
9  24  "51 
9  34  12 
9  35  i8 

10  32     7 

+2*1  58 
+  22    0 
+35  35 
-   0  39 
+  10  24 
- 12  25 

450 


NATURE 


\March  13,  1890 


Remarks. 
(i)  Described  by  Herschel  as  a  bright  extended  nebula  with 
two  nuclei,  the  north  following  one  being  very  faint.  In  1848, 
Lord  Rosse  observed  that  the  nebula  was  distinctly  spiral,  and 
his  drawing  represents  it  as  elliptical  in  shape.  The  nebula  is 
about  3'  long  and  is  situated  about  2°  south  of  the  star  \  Leonis. 
I  am  not  aware  that  any  record  of  the  spectrum  has  been 
published. 

(2)  A  star  of  Group  II.  Duner  states  that  the  bands  2,  3,  7, 
8  are  visible,  but  are  rather  weak  and  not  very  wide.  The 
bands  4  and  5  are  very  delicate.  The  star  belongs  to  species 
5  of  the  subdivision  of  the  group,  which  means  that  the  meteor- 
swarm  of  which  the  "star"  is  probably  composed  is  somewhat 
sparse.  The  bright  carbon  fliutings  should  therefore  be  well 
developed.  Bright  lines  may  possibly  also  be  present,  if  the 
swarm  is  not  too  far  condensed. 

(3)  Konkoly  and  Vogel  both  describe  the  spectrum  of  this 
star  as  a  well-developed  one  of  the  solar  type.  The  usual 
differential  observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Vogel).  The  usual  observations 
of  the  relative  thicknesses  of  the  hydrogen  and  other  lines  are 
required. 

(5)  A  star  of  Group  VI.,  with  a  spectrum  of  extraordinary 
beauty  (Duner).  The  spectrum  consists  of  four  zones,  and  all 
the  bands  i-io  are  strongly  developed.  Band  6  is  not  very 
dark.  The  specific  differences  in  stars  of  this  group  have  not 
yet  been  fully  investigated.  The  principal  variations  so  far 
observed  are:  (i)  the  length  of  continuous  spectrum,  as  indi- 
cated by  the  number  of  zones  visible  ;  (2)  the  number  and 
intensities  of  the  secondary  bands  ;  (3)  the  intensity  of  band  6 
as  compared  with  bands  9  and  10. 

Gould  believes  this  star  to  be  variable,  his  estimates  of  the 
magnitude  varying  between  4'3  and  6"i.  Birmingham's  values 
vary  from  4*5  to  6  "3.  The  star  appears  to  be  U  Hydrse,  and, 
if  so,  a  maximum  will  be  reached  about  March  i8  {Observatory 
Companion,  1890).  Espin  believes  the  period  to  be  about 
195  days. 

As  yet,  we  have  no  information  as  to  changes  of  spectrum 
accompanying  changes  of  magnitude  in  stars  of  this  group, 

A,  Fowler. 

The  Solar  and  the  Lunar  Spectrum. — Prof.  Langley's 
second  memoir  on  this  subject,  which  was  read  before  the 
National  Academy  of  Science  in  November  1886,  has  been 
received.  In  a  previous  memoir  it  was  demonstrated  that 
evidence  of  heat  had  been  found  in  the  invisible  spectrum  of  the 
sunlit  side  of  the  moon,  and  the  experiments  indicated  that  this 
heat  was  chiefly  not  reflected  but  radiated  from  a  surface  at  a 
low  temperature.  The  amount  of  heat,  however,  was  excessively 
minute,  even  when  compared  with  the  feeblest  part  of  the  solar 
spectrum  known  in  1882,  yet  it  was  easily  recognizable  because 
of  the  fact  that,  whereas  in  the  typical  solar  spectrum  heat  is 
greatest  in  the  short  wave-lengths,  in  the  typical  lunar  spectrum 
heat  is  greatest, in  the  long  wave-lengths. 

In  this  second  memoir  the  results  of  further  observation  of  the 
infra-red  solar  spectrum  are  given,  the  newly  investigated  region 
being  close  to  that  which  contains  a  large  part  of  the  lunar  heat. 
The  researches  considerably  extend  those  previously  made.  In 
passing  from  the  visible  part  of  the  spectrum  into  the  infra-red 
region,  wider  regions  of  absorption  occur.  To  an  eye  which 
could  see  the  whole  spectrum,  visible  and  invisible,  the  luminous 
part  would  be,  as  is  well  known,  interrupted  by  dark  lines,  the 
lower  part  to  5  ^tt  would  appear  to  consist  of  alternate  dark  and 
bright  bands,  and  the  part  below  5  jw  be  nearly  dark,  but  with 
feeble  "  bright  "  bands  at  intervals.  This  appearance  is  shown 
in  a  plate  accompanying  the  memoir.  It  is  noted  as  a  curious 
fact  that  the  centres  of  several  of  the  bands  or  lines  are  under 
some  conditions  found  to  be  shifted  to  a  recognizable  extent, 
and  hence  their  wave-lengths  are,  within  certain  limits,  variable. 
This  apparent  shift  is  found  to  be  because  the  absorption  does 
not  mcrease  symmetrically  with  the  centre  of  the  band,  but  more 
on  one  side  than  another,  so  as  to  considerably  modify  the 
position  of  greatest  absorption. 

The  Corona  of  1889  December  22.— The  March  number 
of  the  Observatory  contains  a  Woodburytype  reproduction  of 
this  corona  taken  by  the  late  Father  Perry  with  a  short  focus 
reflector  of  Mr.  Common's,  and  a  note  by  Mr.  W.  H.  Wesley, 
assistant  secretary  of  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society,  upon  its 
prominent  features.  Mr.  Wesley  finds  that,  as  in  the  eclipse  of 
January  I,  1889,  the  extension  is  greatest  towards  the  equatorial 


regions,  and  on  the  longest  exposed  plate  it  can  be  traced  tu 
nearly  a  diameter  from  the  limb.  A  wide  rift  at  the  north  pole, 
extending  60"  or  70"  along  the  limb,  contains  several  fine  straight 
rays  similar  to  the  polar  rays  in  1878  and  1889  January  i,  but  not  so 
numerous,  regular,  or  distinct.  The  usual  polar  rays  are  scarcely 
distinguishable  at  the  south  pole.  A  remarkable  fact  is  that  the 
general  mass  of  the  corona  on  the  eastern  side  is  considerably 
broader  from  north  to  south  than  on  the  western  side.  This  was 
also  the  case  in  1878.  Numerous  prominences  are  seen  on  the 
eastern  limb,  and  plates  taken  near  the  end  of  totality  show  a 
range  of  low  prominences  on  the  western  limb.  An  interesting 
feature  in  the  plates  taken  with  the  reflector  is  the  photographic 
reversal  of  the  prominences  and  the  brighter  parts  of  the  corona. 
In  the  larger  exposed  negatives  the  prominences  and  the  corona 
near  the  limb  are  bright  instead  of  dark,  whilst  the  limb  itself 
is  bounded  by  a  very  definite  dark  line  indicating  a  double 
reversal. 

The  Nebular  Hypothesis. — Mr.  Herbert  Spencer  con- 
tributed an  essay  on  Laplace's  famous  theory  to  the  Westminster 
Review  for  July  1858.  With  the  assistance  of  Mr.  Thynne 
Lynn,  a  new  edition  of  this  essay  has  been  prepared  and 
distributed  amongst  leading  astronomers  at  home  and  abroad. 

The  revised  calculations  bring  out  more  strongly  than  ever 
Mr.  Spencer's  views  of  the  nebular  hypothesis,  and  in  particular 
the  portion  referring  to  Mars.  When  the  essay  first  appeared 
the  density  of  this  planet  was  taken  as  o'9S,  but  recent  and 
more  exact  determinations  show  the  value  to  be  much  too  high, 
and  taking  this  into  account  the  fact  comes  out  that  to  agree 
with  Mr.  Spencer's  views  Mars  should  have  from  one  to  four 
satellites  as  it  has  since  1877  been  known  to  have. 

Olbers's  theory  that  the  asteroids  are  fragments  of  an  exploded 
planet  is  favoured,  and  the  genesis  of  the  thirteen  short- pei'iod 
comets  is  found  in  the  same  catastrophe.  It  is  needless  to 
say  that  the  theory  is  defended  in  a  most  masterly  manner, 
although  the  arguments  against  its  acceptation  are  overwhelming. 

Nebula,  General  Catalogue  No.  4795. — The  Journal 
of  the  Liverpool  Astronomical  Society  for  December  1889, 
which  has  just  been  issued,  contains  a  note  by  Mr.  W.  E. 
Jackson  on  this  nebula,  R.A.  22h,  24m.,  N.P.D.  iii"  24'. 
It  is  described  in  the  General  Catalogue  as  "  Remarkable, 
pretty  faint,  very  large,  extended  or  binuclear."  Mr.  Jackson 
has  carefully  observed  the  nebula  several  times,  and  finds  that 
there  are  several  stars  involved,  although  no  mention  of  them  is 
made  in  the  Catalogue,  and  that  there  is  a  strong  suspicion  of 
others  beyond  the  reach  of  his  6  inch  Grubb  telescope.  A  sketch 
of  the  appearance  accompanies  the  note. 

A  New  Asteroid. — Minor  planet  (S^  was  discovered  by 
Prof.  Luther  (Hamburg)  on  February  24. 


CAMBRIDGE  ANTHROPOMETRY. 

A  BOUT  two  years  ago  the  results  were  published,  in  the 
■^*-  Journal  of  the  Anthropological  Society,  of  the  first  batch 
of  measurements  taken  at  Cambridge.  These  comprised  rather 
more  than  1 100  cases.  During  the  last  two  years  a  nearly  equal 
number  have  been  obtained,  and  it  therefore  becomes  important 
to  compare  the  results  yielded  by  these  distinct  batches. 

The  measurements  proposed  by  Mr.  Gallon,  and  adopted  by 
the  Cambridge  Committee,  were  the  following  : — (i)  A  test  for 
the  eyesight.  The  extreme  distance  at  which  a  man  could  read 
"diamond  type"  (viz.  the  print  employed  in  the  little  pocket 
Common  Prayer-books)  was  noted  with  each  eye  separately  ; 
the  figures  given  in  our  tables  indicate  the  mean  of  the  two.  It 
may  be  remarked  that,  as  this  instrument  would  only  record  up 
to  35  inches,  and  as  about  ten  per  cent,  of  the  men  could  read 
at  this  distance,  it  is  certain  that  many  could  have  seen  further. 
The  arithmetical  mean,  therefore,  though  good  enough  for  our 
present  purposes,  is  here  less  scientifically  appropriate  than  the 
"median."  (2)  A  test  of  the  muscular  strength  of  the  arms 
when  employed  in  an  action  similar  to  that  of  pulling  a  bow. 
Two  handles,  connected  at  a  convenient  distance  apart,  are 
pulled  away  from  each  other  against  the  pressure  of  a  spring. 
(3)  A  test  of  the  power  of  "  squeeze  "  of  each  hand  separately. 
In  this  case  two  handles  stand  a  short  distance  apart,  and  are 
then  pressed  towards  each  other  against  the  action  of  a  spring. 
The  figures  here  given  denote  the  mean  of  the  two  results.  (4) 
Measurement  of  the  size  of  the  head.  This  is  taken  in  three 
different  directions,   viz.  from  front  to  back,  between  the  two 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


451 


sides,  and  upwards  from  a  line  between  the  eye  and  the  ear. 
The  product  of  these  three  measurements  is  what  is  given  in 
the  annexed  tables  as  "head- volumes."  It  need  hardly  be  said 
that  these  numbers  do  not  assi,c;n  the  actual  magnitudes  of  the 
heads  ;  but  they  do  all  that  is  wanted  for  our  purpose,  viz.  they 
are  proportional  to  these  magnitudes,  on  the  assumption,  of 
course,  that  the  average  shape  of  the  head  is  the  same  through- 
out. (5)  A  test  of  the  breathing  capacity.  The  volume  of  air, 
at  ordinary  pressure,  that  can  be  expired  is  measured  by  the 
amount  of  water  displaced  from  a  vessel.  The  result  is  given 
in  cubic  inches.  (6)  The  height  ;  deducting,  of  course,  the  thick- 
ness of  the  shoes.  (7)  The  weight,  in  ordinary  indoor  clothing. 
This  is  assigned,  in  our  tables,  in  pounds. 

As  regards  the  persons  measured,  they  are  exclusively  students 
— that  is,  undergraduates,  with  a  small  sprinkling  of  bachelors 
and  masters  of  arts.  Nine-tenths  of  them  were  between  the 
ages  of  19  and  24  inclusive.  Statisticians  will  understand  the 
importance  of  this  fact  in  its  bearing  upon  the  homogeneity  of 
our  results  ;  since  a  comparatively  small  number  of  measure- 
ments, in  such  cases,  will  outbalance  in  their  trustworthiness  a 
very  much  larger  number  which  deal  with  miscellaneous  crowds. 
But  it  is  not  so  much  to  the  above  characteristics  that  I  wish 
to  direct  attention  here  as  to  one  in  respect  of  which  our  Uni- 
versity offers  an  almost  unique  opportunity.  No  previous  at- 
tempt, it  is  believed,  has  ever  been  made  to  determine  by  actual 
statistics  the  correlation  between  intellectual  and  physical  capa- 
cities. What,  however,  with  the  multiplicity  of  modern  exa- 
minations, and  the  intimate  knowledge  possessed  by  many  tutors 
about  the  character  and  attainments  of  their  pupils,  this  could 
here  be  effected  to  a  degree  which  could  not  easily  be  attempted 
anywhere  else.  By  appeal  to  these  sources  of  information,  the 
students  were  divided  into  three  classes  (here  marked  as  A,  B, 
and  C),  embracing  respectively  (i)  scholars  of  their  College,  and 
those  who  have  taken,  or  doubtless  will  take,  a  first  class  in  any 
tripos  ;  (2)  those  who  go  in  for  honours,  but  fall  short  of  a  first 
class  ;  and  (3)  those  who  go  in  for  in  for  an  ordinary  degree,  to 
which  class  also  are  assigned  those  who  fail  to  pass.  It  is  not 
for  a  moment  pretended  that  such  a  classification  is  perfect,  even 
within  the  modest  limits  which  it  hopes  to  attain.  Very  able 
men  may  fail  from  indolence  or  ill-health,  and  very  inferior  ones 
may  succeed  through  luck  or  drudgery.  But  it  must  be  remem- 
bered that  we  only  profess  to  deal  with  averages,  and  not  with 
individuals,  and  on  average  results  such'  influences  have  little 
power.  There  are  probably  few  cricket  or  football  clubs  in 
which  one  or  more  men  in  the  second  eleven  or  fifteen  are  not 
really  better  than  some  in  the  first,  but  no  one  supposes  that  the 
second  team  would  have  much  chance  of  beating  the  first.  All 
that  is  maintained  here  is  that  our  A,  B,  C  classes,  as  classes, 
stand  out  indisputably  distanced  from  each  other  in  their  intel- 
lectual capacities.  The  average  superiority  of  one  over  the 
next  is  patent  to  all  who  know  them,  and  would  be  disputed 
by  very  few  even  of  the  men  themselves. 

The  plan  adopted  has  been  to  classify  the  A,  B,  C  men  separ- 
ately, arranging  each  of  these  in  sub-classes  according  to  their  age. 
On  the  last  occasion  about  1 100  were  thus  treated,  and  it  is  very 
important  to  observe  that  the  new  batch  (of  about  locxj)  inde- 
pendently confirms  the  conclusions  based  on  the  previous  set. 
Space  can  scarcely  be  afforded  for  these  tables  separately,  so  I 
only  give  here  the  results  of  grouping  the  entire  two  sets  toge- 
ther. But  as  a  matter  of  evidence,  it  must  be  insisted  upon  that 
the  two  separate  tables  tell  the  same  tale. 

The  following,  then,  are  the  results  of  thus  tabulating  the 
measurements  of  2134  of  our  students  : — 


Table  I. 
Class  A  (487). 

No.     Age.'Eyes.      Pull.       Squeez-.     He.id.       Breath. 


10 

18 

21-3 

75-8 

42 

19 

22'6 

75-3 

99 

20 

237 

81-2 

104 

21 

23-6 

81 -6 

94 

22 

24  "6 

83-9 

48 

23 

21  q 

82-0 

33 

24 

236  j 

84-9 

57 

25 

23  •Qj 

80-9 

Aver 

age.. 

23'4 

81-5 

75 '3 
809 

83-5 
82-8 
87-1 
84-2 
84-0 
827 


235-8 
242-9 
242-8 
242' I 

2443 
242-9 

245 '9 
247-2 


244-0 

255-5 
252  7 
255-2 
257-2 
262-8 
261-5 
251-0 


Class  B  (913). 


38 

18 

24-4 

77-4 

82-1 

236-7  1 

136 

19 

25-4 

78-7 

80-3 

238-0 

280 

20 

24-0 

82-5 

84-2 

237-3  I 

212 

21 

23-5 

83-7 

83-7 

235-5 

136 

22 

24-6 

84-7 

85-3 

239-2  1 

54 

23 

22-7 

81 -5 

83-5 

234-4 

21 

24 

26-1 

90-6 

87-4 

245-5  1 

36 

25 

22*6 

»5-8 

86-1 

237-1  i 

Average. . 

24-1 

83-2 

84-4 

237-3 

235*0 

2498 

255-1 
257-2 

257-2 
259-0 
261-5 

264-5 


68-92 
68-78 
69-08 
68-84 
69-17 
69-31 

68-93 
68-83 


148-5 
1497 
153-5 
153-0 

153*3 
154-0 

157-7 
157-2 


254-9     69-00     152-8 


83-5     243-6  i  255-6 


Height. 

Weight. 

68-13 

142-6 

69-04 

148-0 

69  00 

152-I 

68-82 

152-3 

68-71 

154-0 

69-11 

149-7 

68-90 

154-8 

68-59 

154-6 

6885 

152-5 

These  tables  may  be  looked  at  from  two  points  of  view,  which 
would  commonly  be  called  the  practical  and  the  theoretical.  By 
the  former,  to  speak  in  the  more  accurate  language  of  statistics, 
I  understand  any  conclusions  to  be  involved  which  do  not  re- 
cognize distinctions  of  less  than  about  4  or  5  per  cent,  of  the 
totals  in  question.  Looked  at  with  this  degree  of  nicety,  the 
main  fact  that  the  tables  yield  is,  that  there  is  no  difference 
whatever  (with  a  single  exception,  to  be  presently  noticed)  be- 
tween the  physical  characteristics  of  the  different  intellectual 
grades.  Whether  in  respect  of  height,  weight,  power  of  squeeze, 
eyesight,  breathing  capacity,  or  head-dimensions, -there  is  no 
perceptible  distinction.  There  arc  differences,  of  course,  but 
to  say  whether  or  not  these  are  of  any  significance  requires  an 
appeal  to  the  theory  of  statistics  and  to  tests  beyond  the  reach 
of  the  "practical"  standard. 

The  one  exception  is  in  the  power  of  "pull."  I  called  atten- 
tion to  this  two  years  ago  ;  but,  with  the  bulk  of  statistics  at 
that  time  at  our  command,  I  felt  somewhat  doubtful  as  to  its 
real  significance.  But  there  can  scarcely  be  any  doubt  as  to  the 
non-casual  nature  of  a  difference  of  power  between  the  A  and 
C  classes  amounting  to  4-6  per  cent.,  when  this  difference  dis- 
plays itself  between  the  averages  of  such  large  numbers  as  487 
and  734  respectively.  At  least,  if  there  were  any  doubt,  it 
would  be  removed  by  another  mode  of  displaying  the  results,  to 
explain  which  a  brief  digression  must  be  made.  In  the  preced- 
ing tables  the  primary  division  into  three  classes  was  based  on 
intellectual  differences.  Let  us  make,  instead,  one  based  on 
physical  differences.  Let  the  first  class,  in  respect  of  each  kind 
of  measurement,  embrace  "the  best  in  ten"  ;  in  other  words, 
select  the  top  200,  or  thereabouts,  in  each  separate  list.  Such  a 
table  will  show,  for  one  thing,  the  extent  to  which  one  kind  of 
physical  superiority  is  correlated  with  another  ;  and  also,  by 
reference  to  the  triposes  and  tutors'  information,  it  will  show- 
how  these  classes  are  composed  in  respect  of  their  A,  B,  C  con 
stituents.  The  following  is  such  a  table,  arranged  to  show  how 
such  "  first  classes  "  in  one  physical  department  stand  in  relation 
to  the  principal  other  such  departments. 

Table  II. 
Comparative  Excellence  in  Different  Physical  Capacities. 

Eyes.  Pull.       Squeeze.    Breath.  I  Height.  |  Weight. 


1st  Class,  Eyes 

34*6 

86-6 

83-5 

263-2 

69-40 

157-1 

Pull 

25-4 

113-0 

93-9 

280*2 

69-82 

167-3 

,,  Squeeze 

24-2 

96-5 

103-7 

278-7 

70-45 

170-1 

,,     Breath 

24-9  j 

94-3 

92-4 

320-5 

71-19 

167-3 

„    Height 

25-3  ' 

88-0 

90-4 

286-7 

73-25 

171-5 

Average  student.. I     24-1    I      83-5         84-2      254-5   !  68-94  j    153-4 


452 


NATURE 


\_Afarck  13,  1890 


I  shall  call  attention  hereafter  to  certain  conclusions  furnished 
by  this  table  as  to  the  correlation  of  these  various  physical 
characteristics.  At  present  they  are  only  appealed  to  in  con- 
firmation of  the  fact  alluded  to  above.  It  is  rather  curious 
that,  when  we  sort  out  these  first  classes  into  their  A,  B,  C  con- 
stituents, we  find  that,  with  the  same  single  exception,  the 
distribution  is  about  what  it  would  be  on  a  chance  arrangement. 
That  is,  the  men  of  exceptional  height  or  breathing  capacity  are 
just  as  likely  to  be  found  amongst  the  A's  as  amongst  the  B's  or 
C's.  This  is  the  case  even  with  the  eyesight.  Ihe  first  class 
here  was  confined  to  men  who  could  read  distinctly  the  small 
print  (diamond)  employed,  at  a  distance  of  at  least  35  inches  ; 
with  the  additional  restriction  that  the  weaker  eye  of  the  two 
could  read  the  same  at  33  inches.  Of  such  men  there  were  196 
out  of  2134.  Now  had  these  been  taken  indiscriminately  from 
the  three  classes  A,  B,  C,  the  most  likely  proportions  would  have 
been  respectively  44,  84,  and  68.  The  actual  numbers  were  46, 
88,  and  62.  But  when  we  select  in  the  same  way  a  first  class 
(consisting  of  182)  of  the  strongest  "pullers,"  we  find  that 
whereas  A,  B,  C,  should  contribute  respectively  41,  78,  and  63, 
they  actually  contribute  28,  78,  and  83.  Taken  in  connection 
with  our  previous  results,  the  conclusion  seems  inevitable  that 
this  particular  kind  of  physical  superiority  is,  to  a  certain  extent, 
for  some  reason  or  other,  hostile  to  intellectual  superiority. 

The  question  why  this  is  so  is  one  which  it  is  not  easy  to 
answer  with  confidence,  but  the  following  suggestion  may  be 
offered.  The  action  of  "  pulling  "  is  the  only  one  in  the  above 
list  of  physical  tests  which  is  much  practised  in  any  popular 
games  :  it  obviously  is  so  in  rowing,  whilst  in  cricket  a  similar 
set  of  muscles  appear  to  be  exerted.  But  no  known  game  ap- 
pears much  to  practise  our  "squeezing  "  power  ;  and,  as  regards 
the  height,  weight,  breathing,  and  seeing  powers,  probably  any 
form  of  exercise  which  keeps  a  man  in  good  health  offers 
sufficient  scope  for  development.  It  would  therefore  seem  to 
meet  all  the  observed  facts  if  we  suppose  that  our  hard-reading 
men  take  amply  sufficient  exercise  to  develop  their  general 
physical  powers  fully  up  to  the  same  relatively  high  standard 
found  amongst  the  others  ;  but  that  the  non-reading  men,  or  a 
certain  proportion  of  them,  are  rather  apt  to  devote  themselves 
to  certain  kinds  of  exercise  which  develop  a  proportional 
^  uperiority  in  one  special  muscular  development. 

I  should  not  have  directed  so  much  attention  to  this  second 
tab'e  if  it  were  not  that  such  considerations  have  a  very  direct 
bearing  upon  a  question  of  importance  at  the  present  day.  As 
some  readers  of  this  journal  probably  know,  it  has  been  seriously 
discussed,  in  influential  quarters,  whether  it  is  not  advisable  to 
take  some  account  of  physical  qualifications  in  our  Civil  Service 
or  other  State  examinations.^  By  this,  we  may  presume,  is  not 
to  l)e  understood  any  mere  pass  examination.  The  necessity  of 
so  Be  test  of  that  kind  may  be  taken  for  granted,  and  would 
naturally  be  secured  by  a  medical  certificate.  Something  much 
more  serious  than  this  may  plausibly  be  defended,  and  on  the 
following  grounds. 

In  rnost  of  the  examinations  of  any  magnitude  with  which  the 
State  is  concerned,  it  may  be  taken  as  a  fact  of  experience  that 
the  number  of  selected  candidates  bears  some  moderate  ratio  to 
that  of  those  who  compete.  If  two  hundred  men  are  found  to 
go  in  and  try,  it  will  seldom  be  the  case  that  there  were  very 
many  more  or  less  than  fifty  vacancies.  Supply  and  demand, 
in  a  country  in  the  present  social  and  economic  condition  of 
England  at  any  rate,  will  generally  obviate  any  extreme  dispro- 
portion between  the  two  quantities.  Now  it  is  well  known  that 
where  many  aims  of  any  kind  are  made  at  an  object  the  so-called 
"law  of  large  numbers,"  or  "law  of  error,"  comes  into  play. 
At  the  two  ends  of  our  list  of  competitors  the  discrepancies  in 
their  performances  will  be  very  great.  But,  for  a  wide  range  on 
both  sides  of  the  middle,  the  differences  will  be  comparatively 
small.  A  glance  at  any  one  of  the  lists,  which  are  published 
m  the  papers  from  time  to  time,  of  the  selected  candidates  for 
the  army,  with  the  number  of  marks  gained  by  each,  will 
illustrate  this.  Near  the  top  the  difference  between  one  can- 
didate and  the  next  may  be  measured  by  hundreds  of  marks, 
whilst  towards  the  bottom  of  the  selected  candidates  {i.e.  to- 
wards the  middle  of  the  cornpetitors)  the  difference  will  be  given 
in  tens  only,  or  even  in  units.  So  marked  is  this  tendency  that 
any  well-informed  statistician  could  often  give  a  very  shrewd 
guess,  from  the  mere  inspection  of  such  a  list,  as  to  the  number 

'  See  Mr.  Gallon's  paper  on  this  subject  at  the  last  meeting  of  the  British 


of  candidates  who  had  failed  to  pass,  and  whose  names  therefore 
were  not  mentioned. 

Now,  this  being  so,  it  follows  that  the  differences  between, 
say,  the  last  20  per  cent,  who  succeeded,  and  the  first  20  per 
cent,  who  failed,  are  extremely  slfght,  in  respect  of  the  qualities 
thus  tested.  Might  it  not  then  be  wise  to  take  account  of  some 
other  quality,  and  what  better  could  be  found  than  the  physical  ? 
If  by  sacrificing  little  or  nothing  of  mental  superiority  we 
can  gain  a  good  deal  of  physical  superiority,  there  is  much 
to  be  said  in  favour  of  such  a  final  appeal.  If,  for  instance, 
we  accepted,  in  the  first  instance,  20  per  cent,  more  than  we 
wanted  to  retain,  and  then  subjected  the  whole  number  to  some 
physical  test,  for  which  a  moderate  amount  of  marks  were 
assigned,  the  men  finally  excluded  would  at  worst  necessarily  be 
those  who  were  only  just  admitted  on  the  customary  plan,  and 
those  finally  admitted  would  at  worst  necessarily  be  those  who 
otherwise  would  only  just  have  been  rejected. 

There  is  not  space  here  to  discuss  fully  any  such  proposal,  but 
if  any  scheme  of  this  kind  is  ever  introduced  its  justification  must 
rest  on  considerations  such  as  those  displayed  in  our  second 
table.  One  or  two  results  may  be  pointed  out.  In  the  first 
place,  it  must  be  insisted  thatthe  whole  merit  of  any  such  scheme 
rests  upon  the  assumption  that  mental  superiority  may  be  con- 
sidered as  perfectly  "independent"  (in  the  mathematical  sense) 
of  physical.  This  we  find  is  not  quite  the  case  as  regards  the 
"pulling"  power,  but  is  the  case  as  regards  every  one  of  the 
other  qualities  here  displayed.  If  we  set  much  store  upon  tall 
men,  or  upon  men  with  good  eyes,  we  may  rest  assured  that 
little  or  nothing  will  be  sacrificed  in  the  way  of  mental  results  by 
giving  reasonably  good  marks  for  such  excellence.  Again,  it 
may  be  remarked  to  what  extent  these  different  kinds  of  physical 
superiority  are  correlated.  It  appears  that  great  superiority  in 
any  one  kind  of  physical  power  is  accompanied  by  considerable 
superiority  in  every  other.  It  is  a  striking  fact  that  in  only  one 
of  the  thirty  subdivisions  there  indicated,  do  we  fail  to  find  the 
"first  class"  man,  in  any  one  department,  standing  above  the 
average  man  in  every  department. 

This  being  so,  it  is  rather  for  the  physiologist,  or  for  the  man 
of  affairs,  to  select  the  particular  physical  test  which  is  likely 
best  to  serve  the  public  interest.  So  far  as  mere  statistics  are 
concerned,  I  should  give  the  preference  to  the  breathi)ig  power. 
For  one  thing,  this  appears,  in  my  judgment,  to  be  correlated, 
on  the  whole,  with  a  higher  general  physical  superiority  than  is 
the  case  with  the  other  qualities.  I  apprehend  also  that  good 
breathing  power  could  not  readily  be  "  crammed,"  so  to  say,  by 
attendance  at  a  gymnasium,  and  by  aid  of  professional  advice 
and  direction,  as  can  be  done  to  some  considerable  extent  in  the 
case  of  muscular  power. 

It  has  been  already  remarked  that  high  excellence  in  one 
physical  capacity  seems  correlated  with  decided  superiority  in  all 
the  others.  This  is  evident  from  a  glance  at  the  tables.  But  it 
deserves  notice  that  equally  high  excellence  is  not  by  any  means 
implied.  The  chance  of  a  man  who  is  in  one  of  these  physical 
first  classes  being  also  in  another  such  class  is  not  very  much 
more  than  what  it  would  be  if  the  two  capacities  were  distributed 
at  random.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  four  men  only  out  of  the  entire 
number  are  in  every  one  of  these  first  classes.  As  between  the 
exertions  of  muscular  strength  apparently  so  closely  similar  as 
those  of  pulling  and  squeezing,  it  is  found  that  only  44,  out  of 
the  total  of  195  in  the  latter,  also  secured  a  place  in  the  former  ; 
whereas  a  purely  chance  distribution  might  have  been  expected 
to  secure  as  many  as  about  20.  As  between  the  corresponding 
selections,  of  about  equal  numbers,  from  the  best  in  respect  of 
eyesight  and  breathing,  it  appears  that  not  more  than  30  obtain 
a  place  in  both  classes. 

Turn  now  to  some  of  the  less  obviously  certain  conclusions. 
Comparing  the  "  head- volumes  "  of  the  students,  two  facts 
claim  notice,  viz.  first,  that  the  heads  of  the  high-honour  men 
are  distinctly  larger  than  those  of  the  pass  men  ;  and,  second, 
that  the  heads  of  all  alike  continue  to  grow  for  some  years  after 
the  age  of  19. 

The  actual  amount  of  difference  as  between  the  A  and  C 
students  is,  of  course,  small.  On  our  scale  it  is  just  about  7 
inches — that  is  3  per  cent,  on  the  real  size  of  the  head.  Is 
this  small  difference  to  be  regarded  as  significant  ?  The  answer 
can  only  be  given  by  an  appeal  to  the  theoiy  of  statistics,  which 
yields  the  following  conclusions. 

I  must  premise  that  the  figures  given  here  as  average  head- 
volumes  were  thus  obtained.  The  average  was  taken  of  each  of 
the  three  separate  head-measurements  (in  the  three  directions 


March  13,  1890] 


NATURE 


45. 


already  explained)  of  each  sub-class  of  students — e.g.  of  those  of 
the  A  class  who  were  19  years  of  age  ;  these  three  were  then 
multiplied  together,  and  the  product  resulting  (in  the  case  in 
question,  242*9)  was  entered  in  the  table.  What  we  have, 
therefore,  is  not  strictly  the  mean  of  the  products,  but  the  pro- 
duct of  the  means.  Theoretically,  I  apprehend,  the  former 
should  have  been  preferred  ;  but  as  the  extra  labour  entailed 
would  have  been  very  great,  and  as  the  difference,  when  dealing 
with  large  numbers  of  cases  and  small  amounts  of  divergence,  is 
extremely  small,  I  have  been  content  with  the  latter.  It  may 
be  added  that  the  actual  computation  was  made  in  both  of  these 
ways  for  a  sample  number  of  cases,  and  the  insignificance  of 
the  difference  for  our  purposes  of  comparison  was  statistically 
verified. 

What  theory  directs  us  to  do  is  of  course  to  begin  with  deter- 
mining the  probable  error  of  the  individual  head-volumes  of  the 
men  generally.  This  is  found  to  be,  on  the  scale  in  question, 
about  17  inches.  The  usual  formula  for  the  difference  between 
the  means  of  734  and  of  487  would  then  assign  to  this  difference 


a  probable  error  of  17  x 


V  734        487' 


viz.  nearly  one  inch. 


The  actual  observed  difference,  of  nearly  7  inches,  thus  lies 
enormously  outside  the  bounds  of  probability  of  production  from 
mere  statistical  chance  arrangement.  But  in  this  calculation 
there  is  a  source  of  error  omitted  to  which  attention  was  directed 
not  long  ago  by  a  correspondent  in  Nature,  viz.  the  actual 
errors  (in  the  literal  sense  of  that  rather  unfortunate  technical 
term)  committed  by  the  observer,  or  involved  in  the  mechanism 
of  the  instrument.  Two  years  ago  I  had  taken  it  for  granted 
that  these  were  insignificant  ;  and,  had  it  been  otherwise,  the 
materials  at  our  disposal  would  hardly  have  enabled  us  to  make 
the  due  allowance.  But,  as  the  correspondent  pointed  out,  the 
error  is  by  no  means  to  be  neglected,  and  we  have  now  the 
means  of  fairly  estimating  it.  A  considerable  number  of  men 
have  been  measured  five  or  six  times,  and  some  even  oftener, 
whilst  one  man,  who  seems  to  have  had  a  morbid  love  of  this 
physical  inspection,  has  actually  had  his  various  dimensions  and 
capacities  tested  no  less  than  eighteen  times  during  the  course  of 
some  three  years.  These  cases  have  furnished  a  fair  basis  of 
determination.  They  show  that  these  personal  errors  are 
certainly  greater  than  they  should  be  (they  seem  to  arise  in  part 
from  a  certain  looseness  in  the  machine,  which  will  be  remedied 
in  future),  amounting  in  certain  extreme  cases  to  as  much  as 
even  half  an  inch  on  the  single  measurement,  and  therefore  to 
much  more  in  what  appears  here  as  a  "  head- volume."  The 
resultant  "probable  error  "  from  this  fresh  source  of  disturbance 
amounts  to  about  five  (cubic)  inches.  Those  unfamiliar  with 
probability  may  perhaps  be  staggered  by  such  an  admission,  but 
they  may  be  assured  that  the  healing  tendency  of  the  averages 
of  large  numbers  is  very  great,  and  that  the  results  remain  sub- 
stantially unaffected.  The  problem  appears  to  be  simply  one  of 
the  superposition  of  two  independent  sources  of  error,  and  may 
be  stated  thus :  Given  a  large  number  (over  2000)  of  magni- 
tudes, with  a  mean  of  239,  and  a  "probable  error,"  about  this 
mean,  of  1 7  ;  and  assume  that  these  magnitudes  are  inaccurately 
measured  with  a  further  probable  error  of  5  inches  (as  seems  to 
be  the  fact),  what  is  the  probable  error  of  the  divergence  be- 
tween the  two  averages  obtained  respectively  from  734  and  487 
of  these  results  ?  The  answer  is  still  a  little  less  than  one  inch. 
It  is,  that  is  to  say,  an  even  chance  that  the  two  averages  will 
not  differ  by  more  than  this  ;  and  it  is,  consequently,  thousands 
to  one  that  they  will  not  differ  by  so  much  as  seven  inches. 
The  conclusions,  therefore,  previously  drawn,  lose  little  of  their 
force. 

It  seems  to  me  almost  as  certain  that  the  size  of  the  head 
continues  to  increase  up  to  at  any  rate  the  age  of  24.  This  will 
be  made  clear  by  looking  at  the  following  diagram,  which  is 
drawn  to  show  the  sum  of  the  figures  of  the  head-measurements 
as  contained  in  Table  III. 

As  regards  the  comparative  physical  endowments,  in  the  other 
respects,  of  the  different  classes  of  students,  there  does  not  seem 
to  be  much  to  say.  The  differences — sometimes  one  way  and 
sometimes  the  other — between  them  in  respect  of  height,  weight, 
breathing,  and  squeezing  power,  are  so  small  as  to  be  statistically 
insignificant,  averaging  only  about  I  per  cent.  That  the  first- 
class  honour  men,  however,  have  slightly  inferior  eyesight 
seems  established,  especially  when  we  bear  in  mind  that  each 
batch  of  about  1000  cases  tells  the  same  tale  ;  the  only  evidence 
telling  the  other  way  is  the  fact,  already  adverted  to,  that  when 
a  class  comprising   "the  best  in  ten,"  as  regards  eyesight,  is 


selected  from  the  whole  number,  we  do  not  find  any  appreciable- 
intellectual  selection  to  be  thereby  entailed. 

An  equally  trustworthy  basis  of  comparison  is  found  by  ob- 
serving the  distribution  of  the  short-sighted  men.  Let  us  take 
as  the  limit  of  what  shall  be  termed  "short  sight"  the  ina- 
bility to  read  the  diamond  print  with  both  eyes  at  a  distance 
greater  than  ten  inches.  Adopting  this  test,  we  find  that  the 
A,  B,  C  classes  furnish  respectively  14,  11,  and  11  per  cent.,, 
indicating  a  very  small  difference  between  them. 


The  general  conclusion  to  be  drawn  here  seems,  then,  to  be 
this.  With  the  single  exception  of  eyesight — and  this  to  a  very 
slight  extent — it  does  not  appear  that  intellectual  superiority  is 
in  the  slightest  significant  degree  either  correlated  with  any  kind 
of  natural  physical  superiority  or  inferiority,  or  that  it  tends 
incidentally  to  produce  any  general  superiority  or  inferiority.  I 
emphasize  the  word  "general"  in  the  last  clause  in  order  to 
allow  for  the  difference  shown  in  respect  of  pulling  power.  It 
seems  probable,  as  has  been  already  suggested,  that  the  superi- 
ority of  the  non-honour  men  does  not  point  to  the  slightest 
superiority  of  their  general  bodily  development — as  would  be 
indicated  perhaps  if  it  displayed  itself  in  respect  of  their  height, 
weight,  or  breathing  capacity — but  is  solely  brought  about  by 
greater  muscular  exercise  in  the  pursuit  of  certain  athletic 
games. 

So  much  as  regards  the  first  and  second  tables.  As  regards 
the  third — which  is  arranged  in  order  to  show  the  development 

Table  III. 

Physical  Development  of  Students  from   18  to  25. 

A,  B,  C  combined  (2134). 


No. 

Age. 

Eyes. 

Pull. 

Squeeze. 

Head. 

Breath. 

Height. 

Weight, 

80 

18 

24*0 

79-2 

81-9 

235-6 

237-3 

68-72 

150-8 

276 

19 

24-8 

79'3 

81 -6 

236-4 

250-8 

68-93 

150-5 

564 

20 

24-2 

82-6 

83-6 

237-5 

253-9 

69-05 

153-3 

479 

21 

236 

84-0 

83-8 

238-3 

257-0 

68-96 

154-1 

353 

22 

24-6 

86-2 

86-2 

239-7 

256-6 

68-91 

1542 

159 

23 

22-8 

84-0 

85-0 

238-4 

259-4 

69-12 

153-5 

80 

24 

24-8 

88-4 

85-6 

243-6 

255-8 

68-73 

156-0 

143 

25 

233 

827 

84-1 

243-3 

253-2 

68-53 

155 -I 

of  the  physical  powers  between  18  and  25 — there  is  very  little 
to  be  said,  as  statistics  of  this  character  offer  no  particular 
novelty.  Such  merit,  therefore,  as  this  may  possess  must  depend 
mainly  on  the  homogeneity  of  the  class  of  men  concerned.  As 
indicated  at  the  commencement  of  this  paper,  this  homogeneity 
is  equivalent  to  a  considerable  increase  in  the  total  numbers 
where  more  heterogeneous  materials  are  dealt  with.  They 
appear  to  indicate  that  the  physical  powers,  as  a  whole,  cul- 
minate at  the  age  of  22  or  23,  and  thence  begin  to  steadily 
decline.  Too  much  stress,  however,  must  not  be  laid  upon  the 
rate  of  decline  here,  since  the  last  subdivision  is  of  a  somewhat 
less  homogeneous  character  than  the  others.  For  one  thing, 
the  men  of  twenty-five  really  include  those  also  who  are  over 
that  age,  though  these  are  relatively  but  few.  Again,  whilst  the 
men  up  to  24  remain  (for  all  statistical  purposes)  identically  the 
same  individuals,  with  a  year  or  two  more  added  on  to  their 


454 


NATURE 


\_March  13,  1890 


-age,  it  would  probably  be  found  that  a  not  insignificant  propor- 
tion of  those  marked  as  25  were  men  who  were  already  older 
when  they  came  into  residence.  J.  Venn. 

About  eighteen  months  ago  a  brief  memoir  of  mine — "  Head 
Growth  in  Students  at  the  University  of  Cambridge  "—read 
before  the  Anthropological  Institute,  was  published  in  Nature 
(vol.  xxxviii.  p.  IS).  T^vt  means  obtained  by  Dr.  Venn,  of 
the  "  head-products  "  of  Cambridge  students  between  the  ages 
of  nineteen  and  twenty-five  were  there  thrown  into  the  form 
of  a  diagram,  and  discussed.  The  head-product,  I  may  agam 
mention,  is  the  maximum  length  of  the  head,  x  its  maximum 
breadth,  x  its  height  above  the  plane  that  passes  through  the 
following  three  points  :  i  and  2,  the  apertures  of  the  ears  ;  3, 
the  average  of  the  heights  of  the  lower  edges  of  the  two  orbits. 
I  drew  curves  that  appeared  to  me  to  approximately  represent 
the  true  average  rate  of  growth,  and  deduced  from  them  the 
•following  conclusions,  in  which  I  have  now  interpolated  a  few 
words  in  brackets,  not  because  any  criticism  has  been  founded 
on  their  omission,  but  merely  as  a  safeguard  against  the  pos- 
sibility of  future  misapprehension. 

(i)  Although  it  is  pretty  well  ascertained  that  in  the  masses 
of  the  population  the  brain  ceases  to  grow  after  the  age  of  nine- 
teen, or  even  earlier,  it  is  by  no  means  so  with  University 
students. 

(2)  That  men  who  have  obtained  high  honours  have  had  [on 
the  average]  considerably  larger  brains  than  others  at  the  age  of 
nineteen. 

(3)  That  they  have  [on  the  average]  larger  brains  than  others, 
but  not  to  the  same  extent,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five  ;  in  fact, 
their  predominance  is  by  that  time  diminished  to  [about]  one- 
half  of  what  it  was. 

(4)  Consequently,  "  high  honour  "  men  are  presumably,  as  a 
class,  both  more  precocious  and  more  gifted  throughout  than 
others.  We  must  therefore  look  upon  eminent  University  suc- 
cess as  [largely  due  to]  a  fortunate  combination  of  these  two 
lielpful  conditions. 

These  conclusions  have  been  latterly  questioned  by  two  of 
your  correspondents,  partly  on  the  ground  of  discordance  among 
the  data,  and  partly  on  that  of  insufficient  accuracy  of  the  indi- 
vidual observations.  To  this  I  replied,  that  materials  had  since 
been  accumulating,  and  that  a  second  batch  of  observations, 
about  equally  numerous  with  those  in  the  first,  were  nearly  ripe 
■for  discussion,  and  that  I  thought  it  better  to  defer  discussion 
until  these  had  been  dealt  with  ;  then,  their  agreement  or  dis- 
agreement with  the  first  batch  would  go  a  long  way  towards 
settling  the  doubt. 

This  second  batch  of  observations  has  now  been  discussed  by 
Dr.  Venn  on  exactly  the  same  lines  as  the  first  one,  and  I  give 
the  results  of  both  in  the  annexed  diagram.     The  data  from  the 


first  batch,  which  formed  the  basis  of  the  above-mentioned 
memoir,  are  here  shown  by  dots  with  little  circles  round  them  ; 
those  from  the  second  batch  by  crosses. 

To  the  best  of  my  judgment,  the  conclusions  that  were  reached 
before  are  now  confirmed.  No  person  can,  1  think,  doubt  that 
the  swarm  of  the  A  dots,  and  that  of  the  C  dots,  are  totally 
distinct  in  character.  I  have  avoided  drawing  curves  through 
-either  of  them,  lest  by  doing  so  the  effect  of  the  marks,  when 
standing  alone,  should  be  overpowered,  and  it  might  be  pre- 
judiced. In  their  place,  small  arrow-heads  are  placed  outside 
each  diagram,  to  indicate  the  direction  of  the  stretched  thread 
ithat  seemed  most  justly  to  represent  the  general  trends  of  the 


two  swarms  of  dots.  Then,  for  the  sake  of  convenient  com- 
parison, lines  corresponding  to  these  threads  have  been  placed 
on  the  third  diagram.  It  must,  however,  be  understood  that  I 
have  supposed  the  lines  to  be  drawn  straight,  merely  for  con- 
venience. In  making  my  own  final  conclusions,  I  should  take 
into  account  not  only  what  the  swarms  of  dots  appear  by  them- 
selves to  show,  but  also  the  strong  probability  that  the  rate  of 
head-growth  diminishes  in  each  successive  year,  and  I  should 
interpret  the  true  meaning  of  the  dots  with  that  bias  in  my 
mind.  Francis  Galton. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 

London. 

Chemical  Society,  February  6. —Dr.  W.J.  Russell,  F.R.S., 
in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read  : — Observations 
on  nitrous  anhydride  and  nitric  peroxide,  by  Prof.  Ramsay, 
F.R.  S.  The  author  recommends  as  the  best  method  of  pre- 
paring pure  nitrogen  peroxide  that  the  deep  blue-green  liquid, 
supposed  to  be  a  mixture  of  this  oxide  with  nitrous  anhydride, 
which  is  obtained  by  condensing  the  products  of  the  interaction 
of  arsenious  oxide  and  nitric  acid,  be  added  to  a  solution  of 
nitric  anhydride  in  nitric  and  phosphoric  acids,  prepared  by 
adding  phosphoric  anhydride  to  well-cooled  nitric  acid  ;  after 
agitating  the  mixture,  the  upper  layer  is  decanted  and  distilled. 
He  assumes  that  the  two  oxides  interact  according  to  the 
equation  :  N0O3  +  N^Oj  =  2N2O4.  The  melting-point  of  the 
peroxide  was  found  to  be  10°' 14,  in  agreement  with  Deville  and 
Troost's  statement.  The  depression  of  the  freezing-point  caused 
by  one  part  of  chloroform  in  lOO  parts  of  the  peroxide  was 
o'''35,  and  by  one  part  of  chlorobenzene  o'''37  ;  the  molecular 
depression  is  therefore  41^  The  heat  of  fusion,  W,  of  the  per- 
oxide,   calculated   from   this   number  and  the  observed  fusing- 

point,  by  Van't  Hoff's  formula  W  =  ^^^2?!^,  where   T   is  the 

freezing-point  of  the  solvent  in  absolute  degrees  and  t  the  mole- 
cular depression,  is  33  "7  cals. ;  a  direct  determination  gave  32 '3 
cals.  To  determine  the  molecular  weight  of  nitrous  anhydride, 
a  known  quantity  of  nitric  oxide  was  passed  into  the  peroxide, 
and  the  depression  of  the  freezing-point  determined.  Assuming 
that  an  amount  of  nitrous  anhydride  equivalent  to  the  nitric 
oxide  was  formed,  the  results  gave  the  values  of  80*9,  927,  and 
8 I'D  against  74,  the  value  corresponding  with  the  formula  N^O^. 
The  author  was  unsuccessful  in  freezing  nitrous  anhydride  even 
at  -  90"  by  means  of  liquefied  nitrous  oxide.  It  was  found  to 
be  soluble  in  this  liquid,  and  it  was  further  observed  that  as 
evaporation  took  place  nitric  oxide  gas  was  given  off"  together  with 
the  nitrous  oxide  ;  it  would  therefore  appear  that  NjOj  is  unstable 
even  at  the  very  low  temperature  at  which  nitrous  oxide  is  liquid. 
In  the  discussion  which  followed  the  reading  of  the  paper,  Mr. 
Pickering  pointed  out,  with  reference  to  Prof.  Ramsay's  deter- 
mination of  the  heat  of  fusion  of  nitric  peroxide,  that  observations 
on  substances  which  exercise  an  appreciable  influence  on  each 
other  cannot  safely  be  used  in  deducing  the  heat  of  fusion. 
Thus  in  the  case  of  mixtures  of  water  and  sulphuric  acid,  solu- 
tions containing  29*5,  i8'5,  8'6,  I'o,  and  0*07  per  cent,  of  acid, 
gave  respectively  the  values  37*4,  58-3,  79*9,  74-9,  and  56-3  as 
the  heat  of  fusion  of  water,  instead  of  79 "6.  In  reply  to  Mr, 
Wynne,  who  remarked  that  nitric  oxide  alone  should  interact 
with  nitric  anhydride  in  the  way  attributed  to  N2O3,  Prof. 
Ramsay  stated  that  he  had  not  examined  the  action  of  nitric 
oxide  on  nitric  anhydride.  — Note  on  the  law  of  the  freezing- 
points  of  solutions,  by  Mr.  S.  U.  Pickering. — The  action  of 
chromium  oxychloride  on  nitrobenzene,  by  Messrs.  G.  G. 
Henderson  and  Mr.  J.  M.  Campbell. — Studies  on  the  constitution 
of  the  tri-derivatives  of  naphthalene  ;  No.  i,  The  constitution 
of  )3-naphthol-  and  /3-naphthylaminedisulphonic  acids  R.  and  G.  ; 
naphthalenemetadisulphonic  acid,  by  Prof.  H.  E,  Armstrong, 
F.R.S,,  and  Mr,  W.  P.  Wynne.  After  alluding  to  the  great 
theoretical  importance  of  a  study  of  the  tri-derivatives  of  naphtha- 
lene, the  authors  draw  attention  to  the  necessity  of  determining 
the  constitution  of  those  tri-derivatives  which  are  employed 
technically  in  the  manufacture  of  azo-dyes  in  order  that  the 
dependence  of  colour  and  tinctorial  properties  on  structure  may 
be  determined  ;  and  especially  is  this  the  case,  since  all  are  not 
equally  valuable — )3-naphtholdisulphonic  acid  G.  (Gelb),  like 
Bayer's  ^-naphtholmonosulphonic  acid,    interacting  but  slowly 


March  13,  1890 


NATURE 


455 


with  diazosalts,  whilst  the  corresponding  j3-naphthylamine- 
disulphonic  acid  G,  like  the  Badische  modification  of  )8-napnthyl- 
aminemonosulphonic  acid,  is  incapable  of  forming  azo-dyes  with 
the  majority  of  diazosalts.  The  method  adopted  in  this  and  the 
following  papers  consists  firstly  in  displacing  the  NH,  radicle  by 
hydrogen  by  v.  Baeyer's  hydrazine  method  and  determining  the 
constitution  of  the  resulting  naphthalenedisulphonic  acid,  and 
secondly  insubstituting  chlorine  fortheNHoradiclebySandmeyer's 
method,  and  characterizing  the  resulting  chloronaphthalene- 
disulphonic  acid  and  the  trichloronaphthalene  derived  from  it  by 
treatment  with  phosphorus  pentachloride.  j3-naphthylamine- 
disulphonic  acid  R  is  in  this  way  found  to  have  the  constitu- 
tion [NHj  :  SO;,n  :  SO3H  =  2:3:3'  (for  nomenclature,  see 
Nature,  vol.  xxxix.  p.  598)],  and  ;8-naphthylaminedisulphonic 
acid  G,  the  constitution  [NHg  :  SO3H  :  SO3H  =  2:1':  3'J. 
From  the  latter  acid  by  the  hydrazine  method  naphthalenemeta- 
disulphonic  acid,  the  fifth  known  naphthalenedisulphonic  acid, 
has  been  prepared  ;  this  yields  a  disulphochloride  melting  at 
137°,  and  I  :  3-dichloronaphthalene  melting  at  6i°'5.  The  further 
investigation  of  derivatives  of  this  acid  is  expressly  reserved  by 
the  authors.  The  results  obtained  in  the  case  of  the  G  acid 
make  it  evident  that,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Bayer  iS-naphthol- 
sulphonic  acid  [OH  :  SO3H  =  2:1']  and  Badische  /3-naphthyl- 
aminesulphonic  acid  [NHj  :  SO3H  =  2  :  i'],  the  action  of  diazo- 
salts is  either  retarded  or  prevented  by  the  "  protecting  influence  " 
exercised  by  an  o-i'-sulphonic  group. — Studies  on  the  constitution 
of  the  tri-derivatives  of  naphthalene  ;  No.  2,  o-amido-i  :  3'- 
naphthalenedisulphonic  acid,  by  the  same.  The  constitution  of 
the  acid  known  technically  as  a-naphthylamine-edisulphonic 
acid  is  found  to  be  [NH,  :  SO3H  :  SO3H  =  i'  :  i  :  3'],  a  result 
agreeing  with  that  arrived  at  by  Bernthsen  {Ber.  der.  detit. 
chem.  Gesellsch  .22,  3327). — Studies  on  the  constitution  of  the 
tri-derivatives  of  naphthalene  ;  No.  3,  o-naphthylaminedisul- 
phonic  acid,  Dahl,  No.  iii.,  The  constitution  of  naphthol-yellow 
S.,  by  the  same,  a-naphthylaminedisulphonic  acid  No.  iii.  of 
Dahl's  patent  (Germ.  pat.  No.  41,957),  which  when  diazotised 
and  warmed  with  nitric  acid  yields  naphthol-yellow  S.,  is  found 
to  have  the  constitution  [NHj  :  SO3H  :  SO3H  =  1:4:  2'], 
whence  it  follows  that  naphthol-yellow  S.  has  the  constitution 
[OH  :  NO2  :  NOo  :  SO3H  =  1:2:4:2'].  The  trichlo'ro- 
naphthalene  prepared  from  the  o-naphthylaminedisulphonic  acid 
alifords  a  remarkable  case  of  dimorphism  :  it  is  sparingly  soluble 
in  hot  alcohol  from  which  it  crystallizes  in  slender  needles  melting 
at  66° ;  if  the  melting-point  be  redetermined  as  soon  as  solidifi- 
cation has  taken  place,  it  is  found  to  be  56°,  but  if  determined 
after  a  longer  interval,  66°,  as  in  the  first  instance.  The  tri- 
chloronaphthalenes  prepared  by  Cleve  from  nitro-i  :  3'-dichloro- 
naphthalene  (m.p.  given  as  65°),  and  by  Widman  from  i  :  4- 
dichloronaphthalene-)8-sulphochloride  (m.p,  given  as  56°)  are 
found  to  be  identical  with  this  compound,  and  to  behave  in  the 
same  way  on  fusion. 

Geological  Society,  Febniary2i. — Annual  General  Meeting. 
—Dr.  W.  T.  Blanford,  F.R.S.,  President,  in  the  chair.— After 
the  reading  of  the  reports  of  the  Council  and  of  the  Library  and 
Museum  Committee  for  the  year  1889,  the  President  handed  the 
WoUaston  Medal  to  Prof.  J.  W.  Judd,  F.R.S.,  for  transmission 
to  Prof.  W.  Crawford  Williamson,  F.R.S.  ;  the  Murchison 
Medal  to  Prof.  E.  Hull,  F.R.S.  ;  the  Lyell  Medal  to  Prof.  T. 
Rupert  Jones,  F.  R.  S.  ;  the  balance  of  the  Wollaston  Fund  to  Mr. 
W.  A.  E.  Ussher  ;  the  balance  of  the  Murchison  Geological 
Fund  to  Mr.  E.  Wethered  ;  the  balance  of  the  Lyell  Geological 
Fund  to  Mr.  C.  Davies  Sherborn  ;  and  a  grant  from  the  proceeds 
of  the  Barlow-Jameson  Fund  to  Mr.  W.  Jerome  Harrison. — The 
President  then  read  his  anniversary  address,  in  which,  after 
giving  obituary  notices  of  several  Fellows,  Foreign  Members,  and 
Foreign  Correspondents  deceased  since  the  last  annual  meeting, 
including  the  Venerable  Archdeacon  Philpot  (who  was  the  senior 
Fellow  of  the  Society,  having  joined  it  in  1821),  Dr.  H.  von 
Dechen  (the  oldest  Foreign  Member,  elected  in  1827),  Mr. 
Robert  Damon,  Mr.  J.  F.  La  Trobe  Bateman,  Mr.  W.  H.  Bristow, 
Dr.  John  Percy,  the  Rev.  J.  E.  Tenison  Woods,  Mr.  Thomas 
Hawkins,  Prof.  F.  A.  von  Quenstedt,  Prof.  Bellardi,  Dr.  Leo 
Lesquereux,  and  Dr.  M.  Neumayr,  he  referred  briefly  to  the 
condition  of  the  Society  during  the  past  twelve  months,  and  to  a 
few  works  on  palseontological  subjects  published  in  the  same 
period.  He  also  mentioned  the  finding  of  coal  in  situ  in  a 
boring  at  Shakespear  Cliff,  and  then  proceeded  with  the  main 
subject  of  his  address — namely,  the  question  of  the  permanence 
of  continents  and  ocean-basins.     After  [reviewing  the  evidence 


derived  from  the  rocks  of  oceanic  islands,  and  the  absence  o^ 
deep-sea  deposits  in  continental  strata  of  various  ages,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  the  points  connected  with  the  geographical  distribution 
of  animals  and  plants,  and  gave  reasons  for  believing  that 
Sclater's  zoological  regions,  founded  on  passerine  birds,  were 
inapplicable  to  other  groups  of  animals  or  plants,  and  that  any 
evidence  of  continental  permanence  based  on  such  regions  was 
worthless.  He  also  showed  that  both  elevations  and  depressions 
exceeding  1000  fathoms  had  taken  place  in  Tertiary  times,  and 
gave  an  account  of  the  biological  and  geological  facts  in  support 
of  a  former  union  between  several  lands  now  isolated,  and 
especially  between  Africa  and  India  via  Madagascar,  and' 
between  Africa  and  South  America.  From  these  and  other 
considerations  it  was  concluded  that  the  theory  of  the  permanence 
of  ocean-basins,  though  probable,  was  not  proved,  and  was 
certainly  untenable  to  the  extent  to  which  it  was  accepted  by 
some  authors. — The  ballot  for  the  Council  and  Officers  was 
taken,  and  the  following  were  duly  elected  for  the  ensuing  year  : 
—President:  A.  Geikie,  F.R.S.  Vice-Presidents:  Prof.  T.  G. 
Bonney,  F.R.S.,  L.  Fletcher,  F.R.S.,  W.  H.  Hudleston, 
F.R.S.,  J.  W.  Hulke,  F.R.S.  Secretaries:  H.  Hicks,  F.R.S., 
J.  E.  Marr.  Foreign  Secretary :  Sir  Warington  W.  Smyth, 
F.R.S.  Treasurer:  Prof.  T,  Wiltshire.  Council  :  Prof.  J.  F. 
Blake,  W.  T.  Blanford,  F.R.S.,  Prof.  T.  G.  Bonney,  F.R.S.,. 
James  Carter,  John  Evans,  F.R.S.,  L.  Fletcher,  F.R.S., 
A.  Geikie,  F.R.S.,  Prof.  A.  H.  Green,  F.R.S.,  A.  Harker, 
H.  Hicks,  F.R.S.,  Rev.  Edwin  Hill,  W.  H.  Hudleston,  F.R.S., 
J.  W.  Hulke,  F.R.S.,  Major-General  C.  A.  McMahon,  J.  E. 
Marr,  H.  W.  Monckton.  E.  T.  Newton,  F.  W.  Rudler,  Sir 
Warington  W.  Smyth,  F.R.S.,  W.  Topley,  F.R.S.,  Rev.  G.  F. 
Whidborne,  Prof.  T,  Wiltshire,  H.  Woodward,  F.R.S. 


Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  March  3. — M.  Hermite  in  the  chair. 
— On  the  absorption  of  atmospheric  ammonia  by  soils,  by 
M.  Th.  Schloesing.  Experiments  were  made  on  the  quan- 
tities of  ammonia  absorbed  in  a  given  time  by  various  soils — viz. 
non- calcareous  earths,  similar  to  those  previously  used  in 
the  fixation  of  free  nitrogen,  earths  containing  40  per  cent, 
of  calcareous  matter,  and  entirely  calcareous  earths.  The 
analytical  results  are  given  for  each  case. — Contribution  to- 
the  chemistry  of  the  trufHe,  by  M.  Ad.  Chatin. — Upon  the  ' 
method  of  using,  and  the  theory  of,  seismographic  apparatus  ;. 
note  by  M.  G.  Lippmann.  The  theory  of  the  deduction  of  the 
true  movement  of  the  soil  from  the  apparent  movement,  as  in- 
dicated by  the  instruments,  is  mathematically  discussed.  A 
general  solution  of  the  problem  is  given,  and  applied  to  some 
special  cases. — An  historical  note  on  batteries  with  molten  elec 
trolytes,  by  M.  Henri  Becquerel.  It  is  shown  that  M.  Lucien 
Poincare  was  not  justified  in  claiming  the  invention  of  such 
batteries,  as  M.  Jablochkoff,  so  long  ago  as  1877,  proposed  the 
combustion  of  carbon  in  the  nitrates  as  a  source  of  electricity  ; 
and  still  earlier,  thirty-five  years  ago,  M.  A.  C.  Becquerel 
studied  similar  methods. — A  facsimile  atlas  to  illustrate  the 
history  of  the  earliest  period  of  cartography,  by  M.  A.  E. 
Nordenskiold. — Observations  of  the  new  minor  planet,  Luther 
^s)  (Hamburg,  February  24,  1890),  made  at  the  Paris  Obser- 
vatory (equatorial  of  eastern  tower),  by  Mdlle.  D.  Klumpke. 
— ^On  the  transversal  magnetization  of  magnetic  conductors, 
by  M.  Paul  Janet. — On  the  localization  of  interference  fringes 
produced  by  Fresnel  mirrors  ;  note  by  M.  Charles  Fabry. — 
Researches  upon  the  dispersion  of  aqueous  solutions,  by  MM. 
Ph.  Barbier  and  L.  Roux.  The  authors  find,  for  concentrated 
solutions,  that,  if  B  be  the  dispersive  power  and  /  the  weight  of 
anhydrous  substance  dissolved  in  unit  of  volume  of  the  solution, 
the  relation  B  =  K/  +  b  holds,  b  being  always  sensibly  equal  to 
the  dispersive  [power  of  water.  The  specific  dispersive  power 
is  practically  a  constant  quantity  for  each  substance. — On 
the  vapour-density  of  the  chlorides  of  selenium,  by  M.  C. 
Chabrie.  — Upon  some  derivatives  of  erythrite,  by  MM.  E. 
Grimaux  and  Ch.  Cloez.  The  writers,  by  investigating  the 
transformations  of  hydrofurfural,  have  attempted  to  establish 
its  constitution  and  the  method  whereby  it  is  formed  from 
erythrite.    They  conclude  that   hydrofurfurane  may   be  repre- 

CH  .  CHov 
sented  by  the  formula  1 1  '  >0.— Derivatives    of    hepta- 

CH . ch/ 
methylene  ;   note   by  M.   Markownikoff. — Researches   on    the 


456 


NATURE 


[March  13,  1890 


preparation  and  properties  of  aricine,  by  MM.  H.  Moissan  and 
Ed.  Landrin. — Influence  of  light  and  of  the  leaves  upon 
the  development  of  the  tubers  of  the  potato,  by  M.  Pagnoul. — 
The  comparative  physiology  of  the  sensations  of  taste  and  touch  ; 
note  by  M.  Raphael  Dubois. — A  method  of  studying  the  nuclei 
■of  white  corpuscles,  by  M.  Mayet. — On  the  localization,  in 
plants,  of  the  principles  w^hich  yield  hydrocyanic  acid,  by  M. 
Leon  Guignard. — On  the  intensification  of  sexuality  in  a  hybrid 
{Ophrys  tenthredinifero-scolopax),  note  by  M.  L.  Trabut. — 
On  the  relations  which  appear  to  exist  between  the  Cretaceous 
Mammalia  of  America  and  the  Mammalia  of  the  Cernaysienne 
fauna  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Rheims. — Remarks  by  M.  Albert 
Gaudry  on  the  communication  of  M.  Lemoine  ;  appearances  of 
inequality  in  the  development  of  the  beings  of  the  Old  and  New 
Worlds. — New  anthropological  discoveries  at  Cham pigny  (Seine), 
by  M.  ^mile  Riviere. — Note  on  the  formation  of  the  delta  of  the 
Neva,  according  to  the  latest  researches,  by  M.  Venukofif. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 

London. 

THURSDAY,  March  13. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — On  the  Organization  of  the  Fossil  Plants  of  the 
Coal-Measures,  Part  17:  Prof.  W.  C.  Williamson,  F.R.S.— The  Nitri- 
fying Process  and  its  Specific  Ferment,  Part  i  :  Prof.  P.  F.  Frankland 
and  Grace  C.  Frankland. 

Mathematical  Society,  at  8. — Some  Groups  of  Circles  connected  with 
Three  given  Circles :  R.  Lachlan.— Perfect  Numbers:  Major  P.  A.  Mac- 
Mahon,  R.A. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  5. — Agriculture  and  the  State  in  India :  W.  R. 
Robertson. 

Institution  oi'  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. — The  Theory  of  Armature 
Reactions  in  Dynamos  and  Motors;  James  Swinburne. — Some  Points  in 
Dynamo  and  Motor  Design  :  W.  B.  Esson.     (Discussion.) 

Royal  Institution,  at  3— The  Early  Development  of  the  Forms  of 
Instrumental  Music  (with  Musical  Illustrations)  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDAY,  March  14. 

Royal  Astronomical  Society,  at  8. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9. — The  Glow  of  Phosphorus  :  Prof.  T.  E.  Thorpe, 

SATURDAY,  March  15. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  3. — The  Atmosphere :  Prof.  Vivian  Lewes". 
RovAL  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism:  Right  Hon.  Lord 
Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

SUNDAY,  March  16. 

Sunday  Lecture  Society,  at  4. — A  Trip  to  British  Columbia — the  Life 
of  an  Emigrant  iff  North-West  Canada  (with  Oxyhydrogen  Lantern  Illus- 
trations) :  Dr.  James  Edmunds. 

MONDAY,  March  17. 

Society  of  Arts,    at  8. — Some   Considerations   concerning  Colour   and 

Colouring  :  Prof.  A.  H.  Church,  F.R.S. 
Aristotelian  Society,  at  8. — Symposium — The  Relation  of  the  Fine 

Arts  to  one  another :  B.  Bosanquet,  E.  W.  Cook,  and  D.  G.  Ritchie. 

TUESDAY,  March  18. 

Zoological  Society,  at   8.30. — On  the  South  American    Canidae :  Dr. 

Mivart,  F.R.S. — A  Revision  of  the  Genera  of  Scorpions  of  the  Family 

Buthidee,  with  Descriptions  of  some  New  South  African   Species :  R.  I. 

Pocock  — On  some  Points  in  the  Anatomy  of  the  Condor  :  F.  E.  Beddard. 
Society  of  Arts,  Jat  5. — Brazil :  James  Wells. 
Mineralogical    Society,   at  8.-^An  Account  of  a  Visit  to  the  Calcite 

Quarry  in  Iceland  :  J.  L.  Hoskyns  Abrahall. — Mineralogical  Notes  :  H. 

A.  Miers. — The  History  of  the  Meteoric   Iron   of  Tucson :  L.    Fletcher, 

F.R.S. 
Royal  Statistical  Society,  at  7.45. — On  Marriage-Rates  and  Marriage- 
Ages,  with  Special  Reference  to  the  Growth  of  Population  :  Dr.  William 

Ogle. 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — Lough  Erne  Drainage :  James 

Price,  Tun. 
Royal  Institution,  at    3. — The  Post- Darwinian  Period :  Prof.   G.  J. 

Romanes,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  March  19. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8.— Commercial  Geography  :  J.  S.  Keltie. 

Royal    Meteorological    Society,    at   7. — A   Brief   Notice   respecting 

Photography  in  Relation  to  Meteorological  Work  :   G.   M.  Whipple. — 

Application    of   Photography    to    Meteorological    Phenomena :   William 

Marriott. 
Royal  Microscopical  Society,  at  8. — On  the  Variations  of  the  Female 

Reproductive   Organs,   especially  the  Vestibule,    ih  different    Species  of 

Uropoda :  A.  D.  Michael. 
University  College  Chemical    and    Physical  Society,   at  5. — The 

Manufacture    of  Aluminium   by    the    Deville-Caslner    Process :    F.    A. 

Anderson. 

THURSDAY,  March  20. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. 

LiNNBAN  Society,  at  8. — The  External  Morphology  of  the  Lepidopterous 
Pupa  ;  Part  2,  the  Antennae  and  Win^s  :  E.  B.  Poulton,  F.R.S.— On  the 
Intestinal  Canal  of  the  Ichthyopside  with  especial  Reference  to  its  Arterial 
Supply  :  Prof.  G.  B.  Howes. 


Chemical  Society,  at  8. — The  Evidence  afforded  by  Petrographical 
Research  of  the  Occurrence  of  Chemical  Change  under  Great  Pressures  : 
Prof.  Judd,  F.R.S. 

Zoological  Society,  at  4. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Early  Developments  of  the  Forms  ot 
Instrumental  Music  (with  Musical  Illustrations)  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDAY,  March  21. 

Physical  Society,  at  5. — On  the  Villari  Critical  Point  of  Nickel : 
Herbert  Tomlinson. — On  Bertrand's  Idiocycloph.inous  Prism  :  Prof. 
Silvanus  Thompson. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — Economy  Trials  of  a  Com- 
pound Mill-Engine  and  Lancashire  Boilers  :  L.  A.  Legros. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Electro-magnetic  Radiation :  Prof.  G.  F. 
Fitzgerald,  F.R.S. 

SATURDAY,  March  22. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  3. — The  Atmosphere  :   Prof.  Vivian  Lewes. 
Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism :  Right  Hon. 
Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

The  Reign  of  Law,  19th  Edition:  Duke  of  Argyll  (Murray). — Recherches 
sur  les  Tremblements  de  Terre  :  J.  Girard  (Paris,  Leroux). — The  English 
Sparrow  in  North  America:  Dr.  C.  H.  Merriani  and  W.  B.  Barrows 
(Washington). — Facsimile-Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of  Cartography  :  A. 
E.  Nordenskiold  ;  translated  by  J.  A.  Ekelof  and  C.  R.  Markham  (Stock- 
holm).—Birds'  Nests,  Eggs,  and  Egg-Collecting  :  R.  Kearton  (Cassell). — 
Force  as  an  Entity  with  Stream,  Pool,  and  Wave  Forms:  Lieut-Colonel 
W.  Sedgwick  (Low). — Notes  on  Indian  Economic  Entomology  (Calcutta). — 
National  Academy  of  Sciences,  vol.  4  ;  Second  Memoir,  the  Solar  and  the 
Lunar  Spectrum ;  S.  P.  Langley. — Erliiuterungen  zu  der  Geologischen 
Uebersichtskarte  der  Alpen :  Dr.  F.  Noe  (Wien,  Holzel). — Journal  of 
Morphology,  vol.  3,  No.  3  (Collins). — North  American  Fauna,  No.  3  :  C. 
H.  Merriam  (Washington). — Himmel  und  Erde,  Heft  6  (Berlin). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

German  Contributions  to  Ethnology 433 

English  and  Scottish  Railways.     By  N.  J.  L.     ...  434 

Diseases  of  Plants.     By  D.  H.  S 436 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Gairdner  :   "  The  Physician  as  Naturalist  " 436 

King:     "Materials    for    a    Flora    of    the    Malayan 

Peninsula."— J.  G.  B 437 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Panmixia. — Prof.  George  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.     .  437 
Newton  in  Perspective.     {Illustrated.) — Robert    H. 

Graham 439 

Thought    and    Breathing. — Mrs.    J.    C.    Murray- 

Aynsley 441 

Former  Glacial  Periods. — Dr.  James  CroU,  F.R.S.  441 
Australasian  Association  for  the  Advancement  of 

Science.     By  Prof.  Orme  Masson 441 

Meteorological  Report  of  the  Challenger  Expedition  443 
The  Botanical   Laboratory  in  the   Royal  Gardens, 

Peradeniya,  Ceylon 445 

The  Astronomical  Observatory  of  Harvard  College  446 

Notes 447 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 449 

The  Solar  and  the  Lunar  Spectrum 450 

The  Corona  of  1889  December  22 450 

The  Nebular  Hypothesis 450 

Nebula,  General  Catalogue  No.  4795 450 

A  New  Asteroid 450 

Cambridge    Anthropometry.     ( With  Diagrams.)     By 

Dr.  John  Venn,  F.R.S.  ;  Francis  Galton,  F.R.S.  450 

Societies  and  Academies 454 

Diary  of  Societies 456 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 456 


NA TURE 


457 


THURSDAY,  MARCH  20,  1890. 


A  NATURALIST  IN  NORTH  CELEBES. 

A  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes.  By  Sydney  J.  Hickson, 
M.A.  (Cant),  D.Sc.  (Lond.),  M.A.  (Oxon.  Hon.Caus.). 
With  Maps  and  Illustrations.  Pp.  392.  (London : 
John  Murray,  1889.) 

THIS  book  is  the  outcome  of  the  residence  of  a 
specialist  for  nearly  a  year  upon  a  small  island 
off  the  extreme  north  point  of  Celebes.  Of  books  of  travel 
there  is  in  these  days  no  lack,  and  so  beaten  are  the 
paths  along  which  authors  for  the  most  part  lead  us,  that 
the  reader  in  search  of  amusement  or  instruction  not 
infrequently  arrives  at  the  index  without  having  met 
with  either.  But  Dr.  Hickson's  is  not  a  book  of  travel: 
it  is  a  record  of  a  naturalist's  life  with  an  almost  bound- 
less submarine  field  for  observation  close  at  hand — albeit 
terrestrially  somewhat  limited — and  when  he  leaves  his 
coral-girt  island,  it  is  to  wander  in  that  little-known  archi- 
pelago which  links  Celebes  to  the  Philippines,  the  Sangir, 
Nanusa,and  Talaut  groups,  whither  few  but  adventurous 
Dutchmen  have  penetrated. 

Of  the  fourteen  chapters,  three  are  devoted  to  Talisse^ 
the  island  on  which  Dr.  Hickson  conducted  his  observa- 
tions. Four  are  descriptive  of  his  wanderings  in  the 
groups  just  mentioned,  and  the  remainder  for  the  most 
part  treat  of  the  Minahassa  district,  its  natives,  and  their 
mythology  and  customs.  Of  these,  the  author  tells  us  in 
his  preface  that  "  the  greater  part  of  the  ethnological 
portion  of  the  book  is  borrowed  from  the  valuable  writings 
to  be  found  in  many  of  the  reports  of  missionary  and 
other  societies,  and  in  Dutch  periodicals." 

Dr.  Hickson  owing  his  voyage  almost  entirely  to  a 
desire  to  study  the  corals  of  the  Malay  Archipelago,  it  is 
naturally  to  that  part  of  the  book  which  treats  of  them 
that  we  first  turn.  No  one  has  ever  yet  done  justice  to 
the  wonderful  beauties  of  coral-land,  and  the  author,  in 
common  with  his  predecessors,  has  failed — as  everyone 
must  fail — to  convey  to  the  untravelled  reader  an  adequate 
idea  of  the  appearance  of  a  vigorous  reef.  Perhaps  the 
very  fact  of  being  an  authority  has  lessened  his  chance  of 
success.  The  description  is  nevertheless  a  good  one,  and 
the  chapter  (vi.)  the  most  important  in  the  book.  Dr. 
Hickson  has  wisely  relegated  his  technical  work  to  the 
publications  of  the  various  learned  societies,  but  he  tells 
us  much  of  interest.  The  first  sight  of  a  coral  reef  at 
close  quarters  astonished  him — specialist  as  he  was  :  — 

"  I  could  not  help  gazing  with  wonder  and  admiration 
on  the  marvellous  sight.  ...  I  had  expected  to  see  a 
wonderful  variety  of  graceful  shapes  in  the  branching 
madrepores  and  the  fan-like,  feather-like  alcyonarians, 
.  .  .  but  I  was  not  prepared  to  find  such  brilliancy  and 
variety  of  colour"  (p.  15). 

That  vexed  and  most  important  question,  the  growth 
of  coral  reefs — a  question  upon  which  it  was  to  be  hoped 
that  Dr.  Hickson  might  be  able,  from  the  length  of  his 
stay  and  his  varied  opportunities,  to  enlighten  us — is  left 
pretty  much  where  it  was.  We  should  be  able  to  pre- 
dict with  certainty  the  direction  and  the  rapidity  of 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1064. 


growth.  As  it  is  now,  charts  of  coral  islands  and  reefs 
become  almost  valueless  in  the  course  of  a  few  years. 
But  the  causes  both  of  growth  and  erosion  are  still  un- 
determined. Much,  no  doubt,  depends  upon  the  rapidity 
of  the  tides.  In  strong  tide-races  no  true  coral  reef  is 
ever  formed.  "  Flowing  water,  which  is  neither  too  swift 
nor  too  stagnant,  bearing  the  kind  of  food  necessary  for 
the  proper  nourishment  of  the  corals,"  is,  as  Dr.  Hick- 
son justly  remarks,  a  strongly  predisposing  element  to 
vigorous  growth.  Yet  this  is  not  always  the  case,  neither 
does  the  converse  always  hold  good  ;  and  we  cannot 
agree  entirely  with  the  author  when  he  says,  "in  deep 
bays  or  inlets,  where  tidal  and  ocean  currents  are 
scarcely  felt,  there  is  but  little  vigour  in  the  reef."  The 
inner  harbour  of  Amboyna  displays  as  rich  a  "  sea 
garden,"  perhaps,  as  any  in  Malayan  seas. 

Dr.  Hickson's  'daily  work  on  the  reefs  led  him  to  the 
certain  conclusion  that  but  one  true  species  of  Tubipora 
exists.  The  size  of  the  tubes  and  the  character  of  the 
septa — upon  which  most  of  the  species  are  founded— are 
shown  to  be  utterly  without  specific  value  ;  these  differ- 
ences depending  entirely  upon  the  position  of  the  coral 
on  the  reefs.  The  following  remarks  upon  a  fact  which 
must  have  struck  most  naturalists  in  tropic  seas,  but 
which  we  do  not  remember  ever  to  have  seen  in  print 
before,  are  worthy  of  quotation.  Talking  of  sunrise  and 
early  morning,  he  says  : — 

"  Not  only  are  the  birds  and  insects,  which  disappear 
as  the  sun  becomes  more  powerful,  particularly  visible  at 
that  hour,  but  it  is  the  time  of  day  above  all  others 
when  the  surface  of  the  sea  teems  with  animal  life.  I 
remember  well  my  disappointment  when  I  first  got  into 
tropical  waters  at  finding  that  my  surface-net  invariably 
came  up  almost  empty.  It  was  not  until  I  had  been  at 
work  some  time  that  I  made  the  very  simple  discovery 
that  in  the  early  morning  hours  every  sweep  of  the  net 
brings  up  countless  pelagic  forms  of  all  sizes  and  descrip- 
tions "  (p.  58). 

The  question  of  the  food  of  corals  is  yet  unsettled  ;  but 
the  author,  after  careful  examination  of  polypes  of  various 
kinds,  is  inclined  to  the  behef  that  many  of  them  may  be, 
partially  at  least,  vegetable  feeders.  No  doubt  the  water 
in  the  vicinity  of  mangrove-swamps  is  very  largely  charged 
with  the  debris  of  leaves  and  fruit  and  wood,  some  of 
which,  sinking  to  the  bottom,  must  enter  the  mouths  of 
the  polypes.  Upon  the  mesenterial  filaments  of  the 
Alcyonarians,  indeed,  particles  of  vegetable  fibre  are 
frequently  found.  It  is  suggested  that  the  vigorous  reefs 
frequently  seen  near  extensive  swamps,  may  be  explained 
by  such  an  hypothesis.  Upon  Darwin's  theory  of  the 
formation  of  atolls.  Dr.  Hickson  had  little  opportunity  of 
forming  an  opinion — little,  at  least,  until  he  visited  the 
archipelagos  already  mentioned.  He  ultimately  came  to 
a  disbelief  in  the  general  subsidence  theory,  and  is  not 
opposed  to  Mr.  Murray's  view — that  coral  reefs  can, 
under  favourable  circumstances,  grow  out  into  deep  sea- 
water  upon  the  talus  of  their  own  ddbris. 

Among  many  references  to  birds  occurs  an  account 
(p.  41)  of  the  existence  of  the  maleo,  or  brush-turkey,  in 
Ruang  Island.  Unfortunately,  we  are  not  told  whether 
this  is  Mei^acephalo?t  maleo,  or  the  smaller  Megapodius 
gilberti.  They  were  most  probably  the  latter ;  but  it 
would  be  interesting  to  know,  for  the  true  Megacephalon 
of  Celebes  has   never,  we  believe,  been    recorded  as 

■     ■         X        ■ 


45< 


NATURE 


\_March  20,  1890 


occurring  in  the  smaller  islands.  Meyer's  story  of  the 
whimbrels  nesting  on  trees  (probably  Numenins  tiro- 
pygialis,  Gould,  by  the  way — not  A",  phcsopus)  is  quoted, 
but  without  comment,  and  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that  no 
naturalist  has  as  yet  confirmed  it.  Dr.  Hickson  is  not  quite 
accurate  in  his  statement  that  there  are  only  two  Celebean 
birds  which  are  likewise  English.  He  must  often  have 
noticed,  in  his  rambles  along  shore,  not  only  the  common 
sandpiper,  but  also  the  wide-ranging  Strepstlas  interpres 
and  one  or  more  of  the  genus  Totanus,  which  are  not 
unfamiliar  to  us  at  home. 

Perhaps  one  of  the  best  passages  in  the  book  is  that 
describing  a  mangrove-swamp,  where  the  extraordinary 
conditions  of  life  obtaining  within  its  limits,  and  the 
interdependence  of  that  tree  and  the  coral  reef,  are  well 
illustrated.  The  scenery  of  Talisse  Island  is  not  par- 
ticularly beautiful,  although  the  author  does  not  tell  us 
so  ;  but  that  of  the  district  of  Minahassa  on  the  main- 
land is  strikingly  lovely,  and  he  describes  the  view  of  the 
Tondano  Lake  as  one  without  an  equal.  It  was  unspoilt 
to  him  even  by  the  thought  of  the  "  heerendienst" — that 
system  of  compulsory  service  which  has  acted  as  a  red 
rag  to  so  many  Englishmen.  Dr.  Hickson  is  not  so  pre- 
judiced, and  is  wise  enough  to  recognize — as  did  Wallace 
— the  enormous  advantage  which  it  has  conferred  upon 
the  people. 

"  I  cannot  help  thinking,"  he  says  (p.  208),  "  that  every- 
one who  is  really  acquainted  with  the  circumstances  of 
these  colonies  and  the  character  and  condition  of  the 
people  must  admit  that  it  is  a  service  both  necessary  and 
just.  The  Dutch  Government  has  brought  to  the  people 
of  Minahassa  not  only  the  blessings  of  peace  and  security, 
but  also  the  possibilities  of  a  very  considerable  civiliza- 
tion and  commercial  prosperity.  ...  In  return  for  all 
this,  it  is  only  just  that  every  able-bodied  man  should  be 
compelled  to  lend  a  hand  in  maintaining  this  happy  con- 
dition of  affairs.  In  a  land  where  the  necessities  of  life 
are  so  easily  obtained,  ...  it  would  be  impossible  for 
the  Government  to  obtain  a  sufficient  number  of  them  to 
labour  on  the  roads  at  a  reasonable  wage." 

The  consequence  is  that  they  would  be  neglected. 
The  heerendienst,  then,  as  Dr.  Hickson  shows,  is  the 
only  system  possible,  without  overburdening  the  Ex- 
chequer, or  increasing  the  taxation  beyond  the  endurance 
of  the  people. 

We  have  not  space  to  dwell  upon  the  description  of 
the  Sangir  Islands,  or  on  the  mythology  and  customs  of 
the  natives  of  Minahassa,  which  Dr.  Hickson  has  done 
well  to  put  within  the  grasp  of  those  who  are  unacquainted 
with  the  Dutch  language.  Among  the  folk-lore  it  is 
interesting  to  notice  (p.  241)  the  story  of  Lumimuiit's 
impregnation  by  the  west  wind — a  story  which,  if  we 
mistake  not,  is  almost  identical  with  one  of  Egyptian 
source.  The  "  swan-maiden  "  tale — which,  perhaps,  has 
as  wide  a  distribution  over  the  surface  of  the  globe  as 
any  other— again  occurs  in  Celebes.  Enough  has  been 
said  to  show  that  "  a  naturalist  in  North  Celebes "  had 
a  varied  interest  in  his  surroundings,  which  he  has  con- 
trived to  communicate  to  his  readers  with  success.  A 
little  more  care,  perhaps,  would  have  purged  the  volume 
of  several  misprints,  and  one  or  two  instances  of  involved 
diction. 

The  woodcuts  with  which  the  book  is  furnished  are 
well  enough.     We  wish  that  anything  could  be  said  in 


favour  of  the  "process  "  illustrations.  That  at  p.  33  is 
bad,  and  another  at  p.  137  still  worse.  But  anything- 
mOre  muddy  and  meaningless  than  that  facing  p.  45  we 
confess  never  to  have  seen. 

F.  H.  H.  GUILLEMARD. 


SAINT-  VENANT'S  ELASTIC AL 
RESEARCHES. 

The  Elastical  Researches  of  Barre  de  Saint-Venanf. 
(Extract  from  Vol.  II.  of  Todhunter's  "  History  of  the 
Theory  of  Elasticity.")  Edited,  for  the  Syndics  of  the 
University  Press,  by  Karl  Pearson,  M.A.,  Professor  of 
Applied  Mathematics,  University  College,  London. 
(Cambridge  :  At  the  University  Press.  London :  C. 
J.  Clay  and  Sons.     1889.) 

OUR  fears  lest  this  "  History  of  the  Theory  of  Elasti- 
city "  should,  like  Thomson  and  Tait's  "  Natural 
Philosophy,"  remain  a  magnificent  mathematical  torso 
have  been  agreeably  falsified  by  the  early  appearance  of 
this  instalment  of  the  second  volume.  It  is  devoted 
entirely  to  the  work  of  Saint-Venant,  the  distin  guished 
French  mathematical  engineer. 

Saint-Venant  is  one  of  the  rare  examples  of  a  writer 
who  is  equally  popular  with  the  mere  mathematician  and 
with  the  practical  engineer.  To  quote  from  the  author's 
preface  to  this  part  of  the  "  History  of  Elasticity,"  "we 
live  in  an  age  when  the  physicist  awaits  with  not  un- 
reasonable excitement  for  greater  revelations  than  even 
those  of  the  past  two  years  about  the  ether  and  its 
atomic  offspring ;  but  we  live  also  in  an  age  when  the 
engineer  is  making  huge  practical  experiments  in  elasti- 
city, and  when  true  theory  is  becoming  an  absolute 
necessity  for  him,  if  his  experiments  are  to  be  of  prac- 
tical as  well  as  of  theoretical  value."  This  is  the 
opinion  of  the  theorist ;  but  the  engineer  points  to  his 
work  as  magnificent  experiments  on  a  gigantic  scale,  to 
which  he  invites  the  theorist  to  an  inspection,  for  him  to 
deduce  his  theoretical  laws. 

So  far  as  pure  theory  is  concerned,  the  engineer  trusts 
only  to  Hooke's  law,  and  Euler's  theory  of  the  beam, 
which  neglects  the  warping  of  the  cross-sections.  But 
Hooke's  law  is  shown  by  the  testing-machine  to  be 
only  a  working  hypothesis  within  very  narrow  limits  of 
extension  and  compression,  after  which  the  baffling  phe- 
nomena of  plasticity  make  their  appearance,  and  destroy 
all  the  simple  mathematical  harmony  ;  while  as  to  Euler's 
theory  of  the  flexure  of  the  beam,  the  editor.  Prof  Pear- 
son, is  at  present  engaged  on  the  mathematical  discussion 
of  the  permissible  limits  of  the  application  of  the  ordinary 
theory,  and,  so  far,  the  result  of  his  investigations  (in  the 
Quarterly  Journal  of  Mathematics)  is  such  as  to  strike 
dismay  in  the  heart  of  the  practical  man  who  would  be 
willing  to  apply  his  conclusions. 

The  purely  mathematical  theory  of  Elasticity  is,  at  the 
present  moment,  in  a  very  curious  condition,  for  a  subject 
in  the  exact  science  par  excellence.  Not  only  are  elasti- 
cians  divided  into  opposite  camps  of  viulti-constancy  and 
rari-constancy,  but  we  find  a  war  of  opinion  raging  among 
the  most  recent  investigators — Lord  Rayleigh,  Chree, 
Love,  Basset,  and  others.  All  are  compelled  to  violate 
apparently  the  most  fundamental  rule  of  mathematical 
approximation ;    and,  in  considering  the  elasticity  of  a 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


459 


curved  plate,  to  begin  by  neglecting  the  terms  depending 
on  the  stretching  of  the  material,  which  involve  the  first 
power  of  the  thickness  of  the  plate,  in  comparison  with 
the  terms  depending  on  the  bending,  involving  the  cube 
of  the  thickness  ;  thus  apparently  neglecting  the  first 
power  compared  with  the  third  power  of  small  quan- 
tities. But,  if  we  take  a  thin  sheet  of  brass  or  iron  in  our 
hands,  we  shall  find  it  quite  easy  to  bend,  but  apparently 
impossible  to  stretch  or  shear  in  its  own  plane,  showing 
that  the  stretching  stresses  may  be  considered  as  non- 
existent, by  reason  of  requiring  such  large  forces  to  pro- 
duce them. 

Before  pure  mathematical  treatment  can  make  much 
progress  in  Elasticity,  much  more  experimental  demon- 
stration is  required  of  the  behaviour  of  pieces  of  metal  of 
mathematical  form  under  given  applied  forces  ;  and  such 
experiments  can  be  carried  out  in  testing-machines,  now 
forming  an  indispensable  part  of  a  physical  laboratory. 

Saint- Venant's  memoir  on  torsion,  analysed  in  Section 
I.,  is  familiar  to  us  through  its  incorporation  by  Thomson 
and  Tait,  and  shows  that  Saint- Venant  carried  out,  with 
the  comparatively  crude  methods  at  his  disposal,  valuable 
experiments,  from  which  much  theoretical  deduction  has 
been  made  ;  the  analogues  of  the  mathematical  analysis 
in  the  problem  of  the  torsion  of  the  cylindrical  beam  of 
given  cross  section,  and  of  the  flow  of  viscous  liquid 
through  a  pipe  of  the  same  section,  or  of  the  rotational 
motion  of  a  frictionless  liquid  filling  the  cylinder  being 
very  striking.  Prof  Pearson  introduces  great  elegance 
and  interest  into  the  series  which  arise  by  a  free  use  of 
the  notation  of  hyperbolic  functions,  and  we  think  there 
is  still  some  interesting  work  for  pure  mathematicians  in 
the  identification  of  those  series  which  are  expressible  by 
elliptic  functions.  But  it  certainly  looks  curious  to  find 
in  §  [287]  the  old  familiar  polar  co-ordinates  treated  as 
mere  conjugate  functions,  without  reference  to  their  geo- 
metrical interpretation. 

Section  II.  is  occupied  with  the  analysis  of  Saint- 
Venant's  memoirs  of  1854  to  1864,  in  which  he  attacks 
such  questions  in  practical  elasticity  as  the  longitudinal 
impact  of  bars,  illustrated  by  very  ingenious  graphic 
diagrams,  and  also  the  conditions  of  stress  of  a  cylindrical 
shell,  in  equilibrium  under  given  applied  internal  and 
external  pressures.  This  is  the  problem  required  in  the 
scientific  design  of  modern  built-up  artillery  ;  and  it  is 
noticeable  that  Saint- Venant's  solution  differs  materially 
from  Lamd's,  subsequently  popularized  by  Rankine,  the 
theory  employed,  as  far  as  it  will  go,  by  scientific  gun- 
designers  all  over  the  world. 

The  researches  in  technical  Elasticity  of  Section  III. 
arose  in  the  annotations  of  Navier's  "  Lemons  sur  la 
Resistance  des  Corps  solides "  ;  the  mantle  of  Navier 
descended  on  the  shoulders  of  Saint- Venant,  and  ulti- 
mately the  notes  of  Saint- Venant  overwhelmed  the  original 
text  of  his  master  Navier  ;  and,  according  to  Section  IV., 
Saint-Venant  has  practically  done  the  same  thing  with 
Clebsch's  "  Elasticitat." 

Being  the  mathematical  referee  for  all  the  difficult 
theoretical  problems  arising  with  the  extensive  use  of 
the  new  materials  iron  and  steel  in  architecture  and 
engineering,  Saint-Venant  was  provided  with  a  number 
of  useful  problems  on  which  to  exercise  his  ingenuity  ; 
such  as  the  impact  of  bars,  the  flexure  of  beams  due  to  a 


falling  weight  or  a  travelling  load,  the  critically  dangerous 
speeds  of  fly-wheels  and  piston-rods,  and  so  on ;  all 
problems  hitherto  solved  by  practical  rule  of  thumb,  the 
practical  constructor  encountering  and  opposing  the 
difficulties  without  knowing  why  and  how  they  arose. 

Saint- Venant's  investigations  urgently  need  extension 
and  application  to  the  critically  dangerous  conditions 
which  can  arise  in  the  stresses  in  artillery,  when  the 
dynamical  phenomena  are  analysed,  due  to  the  sudden 
and  periodic  application  of  the  powder  pressure,  and  to 
the  wave-like  propagation  and  reflection  of  the  stresses  in 
the  material.  At  present,  we  can  only  investigate  the 
theoretical  strain  set  up  in  the  material  of  the  gun  by  a 
steady  hydrostatic  pressure  equal  to  the  maximum  pres- 
sure of  the  powder,  employing  Lamd's  formulas,  and  then 
employ  an  arbitrary  factor  of  safety,  say  10,  in  the  design 
of  the  gun,  to  provide  against  the  contingencies  of  the 
dynamical  phenomena  we  have  not  yet  learnt  how  to 
discuss. 

In  the  old  times,  before  the  Cambridge  Mathematical 
Tripos  was  reduced  to  its  present  meagre  curriculum,  the 
examiner  would  have  found  the  present  volume  very 
useful  in  suggesting  good  ideas,  capable  of  testing  rea- 
sonably the  mathematical  power  of  the  candidates  ;  at 
present,  the  chief  class  to  profit  by  the  present  work  are 
the  practical  constructors,  who  will  learn  where  to  look 
for  the  useful  information  on  the  narrow  technical  point 
which  concerns  them. 

Prof  Pearson  has  brought  his  onerous  task  one  step 
nearer  to  completion  in  this  interesting  volume,  a  monu- 
ment of  painstaking  energy  and  enthusiasm. 

A.  G.  Greenhill. 


GLOBES. 

Hues' s  Treatise  on  the  Globes  (1592).  Edited  by  Clements 
R.  Markham,  C.B.,  F.R.S.  (London  ;  Reprinted  by 
the  Hakluyt  Society,  1889.) 

THE  Hakluyt  Society  has  for  its  object  the  reprinting 
of  rare  or  unpublished  voyages  and  travels,  and 
few  are  worthier  of  this  honour  than  the  *'  Tractatus  de 
Globis  "  of  Robert  Hues.  The  author  of  this  work  was 
an  intimate  friend  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and  combined 
book-learning  with  practical  knowledge  gained  by  joining 
in  some  of  the  voyages  to  the  New  World  with  navigators 
whose  names  have  made  the  sixteenth  century  famous. 
He  strongly  urged  that  his  countrymen  would  have  still 
further  surpassed  their  Spanish  and  Portuguese  rivals 
if  they  had  "but  taken  along  with  them  a  very  reasonable 
competency  and  skill  in  geometry  and  astronomy."  In 
those  days  logarithms  were  unknown,  and  the  solution  of 
the  problems  of  nautical  astronomy  required  advanced 
mathematical  knowledge.  It  was  hoped  that  this  diffi- 
culty would  be  overcome  by  the  extended  use  of  globes, 
which  at  once  reduces  these  complex  questions  to  approxi- 
mate solution  by  inspection.  After  the  construction  of 
the  Molyneux  globes,  Hues's  treatise  came  into  very 
general  use,  and  no  doubt  played  an  important  part  in 
the  explorations  of  the  succeeding  century. 

It  seems  strange  in  these  days,  when  a  globe  can  be 
purchased  for  a  few  shillings,  to  read  that  only  three 
centuries  ago  the  construction  of  globes  entailed  such 
great  expense  that  the  liberal   patronage  of  a  merchant 


460 


NA  TURE 


[March  20,  1890 


prince  was  required  before  such  an  undertaking  could  be 
entered  upon.  Readers  of  Kingsley's  masterpiece  will 
not  need  to  be  reminded  that  the  funds  were  suppHed  by 
"Alderman  Sanderson,  the  great  geographer  and  setter 
forth  of  globes."  Emery  Molyneux,  a  mathematician  of 
whom  little  is  known,  was  entrusted  with  the  construc- 
tion of  the  globes,  but  although  several  were  manufactured 
and  sold,  only  one  set  has  been  preserved,  and  this  has 
found  a  strange  resting-place  in  the  library  of  the  Middle 
Temple. 

From  the  admirable  introduction  by  the  editor,  we 
learn  that  the  celestial  preceded  the  terrestrial  globe  by 
many  centuries.  It  has  been  asserted  that  Atlas,  of 
Libya,  discovered  the  use  of  the  globe,  and  thus  gave 
origin  to  the  fable  of  his  bearing  up  the  heavens  on  his 
shoulders.  There  are  several  allusions  to  globes  by  the 
ancient  writers,  and  on  the  medallion  of  the  Emperor 
Commodus  a  celestial  globe  is  clearly  represented. 
None  of  the  Greek  or  Roman  globes,  however,  have  been 
preserved.  Amongst  the  oldest  in  existence  are  those 
made  by  the  Arabian  astronomers,  dating  from  the 
thirteenth  century.  These  are  made  of  metal,  on  which 
the  stars  are  engraved,  and  five  of  them  are  still  with 
us,  one  belonging  to  the  Royal  Astronomical  Society. 
The  oldest  globe,  now  at  Florence,  was  constructed  in 
1070  ;  and,  though  it  is  only  yS  inches  in  diameter,  1015 
stars  are  engraved  upon  it. 

The  terrestrial  globe  apparently  dates  from  1492. 
Baron  Nordenskiold  points  out  that  this  is  the  first 
adoption  of  the  notion  of  antipodes,  and  the  first  to  show 
a  sea-passage  from  Europe  to  India.  The  first  map  on 
which  the  name  of  America  appears  was  found  amongst 
the  papers  of  Leonardo  da  Vinci  at  Windsor  Castle  ;  it 
is  drawn  on  eight  gores,  and  was  probably  intended  for  a 
globe.  The  next  terrestrial  globe  of  interest  was  that 
completed  by  Mercator  in  1541,  having  a  diameter  of  16 
inches.  Others  succeeded,  and  finally  we  come  to  the 
enlarged  and  improved  globes  constructed  by  Molyneux. 
These  are  twenty-six  inches  in  diameter,  and  differ  little 
in  construction  from  our  modern  globes,  but  the  geography, 
of  course,  differs  very  considerably. 

The  original  work  of  Hues  was  in  Latin,  and  went 
through  several  editions.  Nine  editions  in  Dutch  and 
French  followed,  the  most  important  being  the  Dutch 
one  annotated  by  Isaac  Pontanus.  The  latter  was  trans- 
lated into  English  by  John  Chilmead  in  1638. 

The  treatise  is  divided  into  five  parts,  the  first  dealing 
with  things  common  to  both  globes,  the  second  with 
planets  and  stars,  thp  third  with  the  geography  of  the 
terrestrial  globe,  the  fourth  with  the  use  of  the  globes  for 
purposes  of  navigation,  and  the  fifth  is  a  treatise  on  the 
use  of  rhumb  lines,  by  Thomas  Herriot.  The  book  is 
especially  interesting  on  account  of  the  many  references 
to  the  theories  of  the  ancients  and  contemporaries,  the 
whole  forming  a  valuable  history.  The  discussions  of 
the  size  and  shape  of  the  earth  are  particularly  striking. 
After  giving  the  diverse  opinions  as  to  the  length  of  a 
degree,  the  measures  varying  from  480  to  700  furlongs, 
the  author  concludes  with  the  remark :  "  Let  it  be  free 
for  every  man  to  follow  whomsoever  he  please." 

A  geographical  index  at  the  end  gives  a  long  list  of 
places,  with  their  latitudes  and  longitudes,  which  has 
been  reprinted  with  the  hope  that  it  may  be  of  use  in 


identifying  old  names.  Longitudes  in  those  days  were 
measured  from  a  point  in  the  Azores,  London  thus  having 
a  longitude  of  about  26°. 

Two  other  indices  have  been  added,  one  a  biographical 
index,  and  the  other  an  index  to  the  names  of  stars  and 
constellations.  Both  of  these  are  very  complete,  and  will 
be  of  great  interest  to  those  wishing  to  learn  a  little  about 
ancient  astronomers  and  the  origins  of  astronomical 
names.  A.  F. 


THE  PSYCHOLOGY  OF  ATTENTION. 

The  Psychology  of  Attentiott.  ByTh.  Ribot.  Authorized 
Translation.  (Chicago  :  The  Open  Court  Publishing 
Company,  1890.) 

IN  this  neat  little  volume  of  little  more  than  a  hundred 
pages  we  have  a  very  careful  and  lucid  consideration 
of  attention  from  the  standpoint  of  scientific  psychology. 
Adopting  the  division  of  attention  into  two  well-defined 
forms — the  one  spontaneous  or  natural  (non-voluntary  or 
reflex  of  Mr.  Sully's  "  Outlines"),  the  other  voluntary  or 
artificial — Prof.  Ribot  devotes  his  first  chapter  to  the 
former  and  his  second  to  the  latter.  In  a  third  he  deals 
with  "  morbid  forms  of  attention."  These,  with  a  short 
introduction  and  a  short  conclusion,  constitute  the  com- 
pact little  work.  Although  there  is  not  very  much  that 
is,  strictly  speaking,  new — and  is  this  to  be  expected  ?— 
there  is  scarcely  a  page  without  some  apt  illustration, 
some  pithy  epigram,  or  some  well-expressed  generaliza- 
tion. It  is  a  closely-reasoned  and  luminous  exposition  of 
a  genuine  piece  of  psychological  work. 

The  four  points  on  which  the  author  lays  most  stress 
are  the  following  : — (i)  Attention  is  caused  by,  or  has  its 
origin  in,  emotional  states.  (2)  Under  both  its  sponta- 
neous and  voluntary  manifestations  it  is,  "  from  its  origin 
on,  bound  up  in  motory  conditions."  (3)  Intellectually 
it  is  a  state  of  relatively  perfect  monoideism.  (4)  It  has 
a  biological  value.  Of  these,  the  second  is  the  most 
essential.  The  motor  element  in  attention  is  the  keynote 
of  the  whole  argument.  The  emotions  from  which  we 
start  are  not  merely  complexes  of  pleasurable  or  painful 
elements  floating  free  in  a  purely  mental  atmosphere. 
They  are  the  psychological  accompaniments  of  certain 
activities  or  tendencies  to  activity.  The  pleasure  and 
pain  associated  with  these  activities  are  "  the  hands  of 
the  clock,  not  its  works"— or,  to  change  the  analogy, 
"  they  follow  tendency  as  the  shadow  follows  the  body." 

And  as  the  motor  element  is  present  at  the  emotional 
initiation  of  attention  so  too  is  it  present  through  every 
phase  of  its  existence.  The  motor  effect  may,  however, 
be  manifested  under  either  of  two  forms :  it  may  be 
impulsive  and  produce  movement ;  or  it  may  be  inhi- 
bitory and  withhold  movement.  Attention  accordingly 
means  the  concentration  or  the  inhibition  of  movements  ; 
while  its  converse,  distraction,  means  diffusion  of  move- 
ments. Steadily  applied  work  is  the  concrete,  the  most 
manifest  form  of  impulsive  attention  ;  steadily  applied 
thought  the  ultimate  goal  of  inhibitive  attention  ;  for,  as 
Prof.  Bain  has  well  said,  "  To  think  is  to  refrain  from 
speaking  or  acting."  Such  movements  as  are  still  re- 
quisite for  continued  life,  such  as  those  of  respiration,  are 
under   strict    control.      The    master-idea,   so    far  as  is 


I 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


461 


possible,   drains    for   its    own   use    the   entire    cerebral 
activity. 
Attention  from  the  first  has  had  a  biological  value. 

"Any  animal  so  organized  that  the  impressions  of  the 
external  world  were  all  of  equal  significance  to  it,  in 
whose  consciousness  all  impressions  stood  upon  the  same 
level,  without  any  single  one  predominating  or  inducing 
an  appropriate  motory  adaptation,  were  exceedingly  ill- 
equipped  for  its  own  preservation." 

Attention  has  thus  been  a  factor  in  the  progress  of  life, 
or,  as  Prof.  Ribot  puts  it  epigrammatically,  attention  is  a 
condition  of  life.  In  the  lower  animals,  under  normal 
conditions,  attention  is  for  the  most  part  spontaneous  ; 
or,  to  use  the  author's  alternative  term,  natural.  One 
may  perhaps  say  that  in  natural  or  spontaneous  attention 
the  motive  or  interest  is  inherent,  while  in  voluntary  or 
artificial  attention  it  is  extraneous.  And  the  process  by 
which  voluntary  attention  is  developed  is  by  rendering 
attractive  by  artifice  what  is  not  attractive  by  nature  ; 
by  giving  an  artificial  interest  to  things  that  have  not  a 
natural  interest.  This,  too,  is  a  factor  in  progress  ;  this, 
too,  has  a  biological  value. 

•'In the  course  of  man's  development  from  the  savage 
state,  so  soon  as  (through  whatever  actual  causes,  such 
as  lack  of  game,  density  of  population,  sterility  of  soil, 
or  more  warlike  neighbouring  tribes)  there  was  only  left 
the  alternative  of  perishing  or  of  accommodating  oneself 
to  more  complex  conditions  of  life — in  other  words,  going 
to  work— voluntary  attention  became  a  foremost  factor 
in  this  new  form  of  the  struggle  for  existence.  So  soon 
as  man  had  become  capable  of  devoting  himself  to  any 
task  that  possessed  no  immediate  attraction,  but  accepted 
as  only  means  of  livelihood,  voluntary  attention  put  in 
an  appearance  in  the  world.  It  originated,  accordingly, 
under  the  pressure  of  necessity,  and  of  the  education 
imparted  by  things  external." 

We  have  thought  it  more  just  to  our  author,  and  more 
satisfactory  to  our  readers,  to  give  some  account  of  Prof. 
Ribot's  main  theses  with  which  we  are  in  full  sympathy, 
than  to  select  minor  points,  of  which  there  are  but  few,  in 
which  we  differ  from  his  conclusions.  The  translation  is, 
on  the  whole,  satisfactory,  but  some  expressions,  such  as 
^*  the  marrow  and  the  bulb "  (for  the  spinal  cord  and 
medulla),  "  moderatory  centres,"  and  "  the  fundament  of 
emotional  life  rests  in  tendencies,"  &c.,  strike  one  as 
somewhat  unusual.  C.  Ll.  M. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Handleiding  tot  de  Kennis  der  Flora  van  Nederlandsch 
Indie :  Beschrijving  van  de  Families  en  Geslachten  der 
Nederl.  Indische  Phanerogamen.  Door  Dr.  J.  G. 
Boerlage.  Eerste  Deel,  Eerste  Stuk.  "  Ranunculaceae 
— Moringaceae.''  Pp.  312.  With  an  Index.  ("  Intro- 
duction to  a  Knowledge  of  the  Flora  of  the  Dutch  East 
Indies."     (Leyden:  E.  J.  Brill,  1890.) 

This  is  the  first  part  of  a  work  consisting  of  descriptions 
of  the  natural  orders  and  genera  of  flowering  plants  repre- 
sented in  the  Dutch  East  Indies.  A  work  thus  limited 
must  necessarily  be  of  limited  utility ;  but  we  have  Dr. 
Treub's  testimony  in  a  preface  thereto  that  he  regards  it 
as  a  highly  useful  forerunner  of  a  new  Flora  of  the 
country.  It  is  nearly  five-and-thirty  years  since  Miquel 
began  publishing  his  "  Flora,"  and  the  last  part  of  it 
appeared  in  i860,  before  Bentham  and  Hooker's  "  Genera 
Plantarum  "  commenced ;  and  systematic  botany  gener- 


ally has  experienced  extraordinary  development  since 
then.  Further,  one  of  the  great  advantages  claimed  for 
the  present  work  is  that  it  is  wholly  in  Dutch.  It  is 
based  on  Bentham  and  Hooker's  *'  Genera  Plantarum," 
and  we  find  on  comparison  that  the  ordinal,  tribual,  and 
generic  definitions  are  to  a  great  extent  translations, 
though  later  additions  to  the  flora,  both  in  genera  and 
species,  have  not  been  neglected.  Dr.  Boerlage' s  book 
will  also  be  useful  to  the  phytographer,  as  it  is  already 
something  to  have  a  synopsis  of  the  genera  found  in 
the  large  eastern  area  under  Dutch  dominion.  Geo- 
graphically, the  next  descriptive  "Flora"  of  the  region 
should  include  the  whole  of  "  India  aquosa,"  which 
means,  at  least,  an  examination  of  the  plants  of  the 
whole  of  tropical  Asia,  of  tropical  Australia,  and  of  Poly- 
nesia. Such  a  work,  on  lines  similar  to  Hoolcer's  "  Flora 
of  British  India,"  would  be  of  immense  value ;  but  it 
requires  qualified  men,  with  sufficient  time,  money,  and 
ample  materials  from  the  whole  area.  W.  B.  H. 

The  Elements  of  Laboratory  Work.    By  A.  G.  Earl,  M.A., 
F.C.S.     (London  :    Longmans,  Green,  and  Co.,  1890.) 

This  volume  is  of  such  a  character  that  the  reader  is  at 
once  tempted  to  seek  for  its  excellences  rather  than  for  its 
weak  points.  It  aims  at  presenting  "  an  introduction  to 
all  branches  of  natural  science,"  and  is  intended  to  be 
used  as  a  hand-book  in  the  laboratories  of  public  schools 
that  have  well-equipped  rooms  devoted  to  practical  science. 
The  author  says  in  his  preface  that  such  rooms  "  are  now- 
adays considered  a  necessary  part  of  all  public  schools  and 
colleges."  Granting  that  this  is  the  case,  that  the  teacher 
is  good,  and  that  his  pupils  are  already  highly  trained 
and  anxious  to  learn  pure  science  for  its  own  sake,  this 
volume  might  be  accepted  as  an  excellent  guide.  It  is 
marked  by  a  total  absence  of  the  "  familiar  examples  " 
which  we  have  hitherto  associated  with  elementary 
scientific  works.  The  student  is  made  to  accustom  him- 
self to  technical  language  from  the  very  first.  For  example, 
"  a  set  of  weights^''  is,  on  p.  2,  explained  as  being  "  a 
number  of  bodies  so  arranged,"  &c.  ;  and  a  few  paragraphs 
further  on  the  student  is  directed  to  "  verify  the  graduation 
of  a  burette,"  and  is  introduced  to  reading  telescopes  and 
cathetometers.  The  first  introduction  of  the  student  to 
chemical  changes  is  an  experiment  consisting  of  the  igni- 
tion of  silver  nitrate  with  quantitative  observations,  the 
second  experiment  is  similar  but  with  silver  iodate,  and 
the  third  is  the  heating  of  silver  nitrate  in  a  closed  tube 
over  a  small  Bunsen  flame.  In  an  explanation  of  the 
significance  of  what  are  commonly  known  as  atomic 
weights  and -molecular  weights,  the  expressions  atomic 
masses  and  molecular  masses  are  used.  We  do  not  see 
the  advantage  of  this  novel  nomenclature.  If  the  volume 
had  an  index,  we  should  be  prepared  to  recommend  it  in 
unqualified  terms  for  the  use  of  school-boys  who  can 
carry  out  such  instructions  as  the  following  :  "  Perform  ex- 
periments illustrating  the  law  that  chemical  combination 
takes  place  between  definite  quantities  of  different  kinds 
of  matter." 

Magnetism  and  Electricity.  Part  II.  Voltaic  Electricity. 
By  Prof.  Jamieson,  M.Inst.C.E.,  &c.  (London  :  Griffin 
and  Co.,  1890.) 

If  the  third  part  of  this  work  prove  equal  in  excellence 
to  the  two  already  pubhshed.  Prof.  Jamieson  may  claim 
to  have  produced  one  of  the  best  introductory  text-books 
on  the  subject.  Like  its  predecessor.  Part  II.  treats  the 
subject  in  an  essentially  practical  way.  A  competent 
electrician  himself,  the  author  is  well  able  to  understand 
the  difficulties  which  beginners  are  Hkely  to  meet  with, 
and  his  attempts  to  make  obscure  things  clear  will  prob- 
ably be  found  highly  successful.  The  theoretical  side  of 
the  subject  is  carefully  considered,  and  no  important 
application  of  a  principle  is  passed  over  without  reference. 


462 


NATURE  ^\ 


[March  20,  1890 


Instruments  in  actual  use  for  what  have  now  become 
every-day  purposes  are  fully  illustrated  and  described. 

The  book  is  well  up  to  date  both  in  the  experimental 
and  applied  branches.  Mr.  Shelford  Bidwell's  apparatus 
for  studying  the  changes  in  length  of  a  bar  during  mag- 
netization is  described  in  such  a  way  as  to  make  the 
object  of  the  experiment  and  the  method  of  carrying  it 
out  easily  understood.  More  of  this  kind  of  thing  in  our 
text-books  is  very  desirable  as  showing  that  progress  in 
a  science  is  not  made  by  chance,  but  is  the  outcome  of 
careful  thought  on  the  part  of  patient  investigators. 

As  a  text-book  for  classes  where  experimental  work  is 
encouraged  it  is  especially  suitable,  but  we  recommend 
it  to  the  notice  of  all  beginners.  Numerous  questions  and 
specimen  answers  follow  the  various  chapters,  and  an 
appendix  gives  instructions  for  making  simple  apparatus. 

Astro7totny  with  an  Opera-Glass.  By  Garrett  P. 
Serviss.  (London  and  New  York:  D.  Appleton  and 
Co.,  1889.) 

We  are  glad  to  welcome  this,  the  second  edition  of  a 
popular  introduction  to  the  study  of  the  heavens.  The 
author  has  surveyed,  with  the  simplest  of  optical  instru- 
ments, all  the  constellations  visible  in  the  latitude  of 
New  York,  and  carefully  noted  everything  that  seemed 
of  interest  to  amateur  star-gazers.  In  addition  to  the 
map  and  directions  given  to  facilitate  the  recognition  of 
the  constellations  and  the  principal  stars  visible  to  the 
naked  eye,  many  facts  are  stated  concerning  the  objects 
described  which  render  the  work  a  compendium  of  useful 
and  interesting  information — an  astronomical  text-book 
as  well  as  a  star-atlas.  Similar  combinations  are  very 
desirable  introductions  to  every  science,  and  offer  the 
best  means  of  extending  true  knowledge.  To  lead  the 
student  to  Nature,  and  direct  his  attention  to  some  of 
her  marvellous  works,  to  make  him  see  natural  pheno- 
mena intellectually,  should  be  the  basis  of  all  scientific 
instruction,  and  works  constructed  on  these  lines  read 
like  story-books.  With  such  works  the  one  before  us 
should  be  included,  and  there  could  hardly  be  a  more 
pleasant  road  to  astronomical  knowledge  than  it  affords  ; 
replete  with  information,  elegant  in  design,  easy  of 
reading,  and  practical  throughout,  it  deserves  to  rank 
high  among  similar  guides  to  celestial  phenomena.  A 
child  may  understand  the  text,  which  reads  more  like 
a  collection  of  anecdotes  than  anything  else,  but  this 
does  not  mar  its  scientific  value,  and  if  the  work  multi- 
plies the  number  of  observers,  as  it  is  calculated  to 
do,  the  dearest  wish  of  every  astronomer  will  be  gratified. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  e^  - 
pressed  by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertaii 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Natukk, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  ] 

Electrical  Radiation  from  Conducting  Spheres,  an 
Electric  Eye,  and  a  Suggestion  regarding  Vision. 

I  DO  not  know  how  far  the  description  of  little  isolated  ex- 
periments is  serviceable,  but  I  am  tempted  to  communicate  a 
simple  plan  I  use  for  exciting  electric  oscillations  in  dumb-bells, 
ellipsoids,  elliptical  plates,  .spheres,  or  other  conducting  bodies 
of  definite  geometrical  shape  unhampered  by  a  bisecting  spark- 
gap.  I  do  it  by  supplying  electricity  to  opposite  ends  of  the 
conductor  by  means  of  Leyden  jar  knobs  brought  near  enough 
to  spark  to  it  :  said  knobs  being  likewise  connected  with  the 
terminals  of  a  small  Ruhmkorff  coil.  The  charge  thus  supplied 
or  withdrawn  at  every  spark  settles  down  in  the  conductor 
after  a  few  oscillations,  and  these  excite  radiation  in  surrounding 
space. 

There  are  many  ways  of  arranging  the  Leyden  jars  :  some 
more  effective  than  others.     The  outer  coats  of  the  two  jars  may 


or  may  not  be  connected  together.  Connecting  them  in  some 
cases  brightens  the  sparks  at  short  range,  but  seems  to  have  a 
tendency  to  weaken  them  at  long  ranges.  It  is  not  difficult  to 
surmise  why  this  is  so. 

Of  course,  when  the  outer  coats  are  disconnected,  only  an 
insignificant  portion  of  the  capacity  of  the  jars  is  utilized  ;  but 
unless  the  thing  to  be  charged  has  too  large  a  capacity  it  works 
perfectly  well. 

The  receiver  or  detector  is  a  precisely  similar  conductor 
touched  to  earth  by  a  point  held  in  the  hand.  The  distance  at 
which  such  a  receiver  responds  is  surprising.  Or  one  may  use  a 
pair  of  similar  conductors  and  let  them  spark  into  each  other; 
but  this  plan  is  hardly  so  sensitive,  and  is  more  trouble. 

The  fact  of  being  able  in  actual  practice  to  get  radiation  from 
a  sphere,  is  interesting,  inasmuch  as  the  subject  of  electrical 
oscillations  in  a  perfectly  conducting  sphere  has  been  worked  out 
accurately  by  Prof.  J.  J.  Thomson  in  the  London  Mathematical 
Society's  Proceedings.  I  have  not  the  volume  by  me,  but  I 
think  he  reckons  the  period  of  oscillation  as  the  time  required  by 
light  to  travel  i  '41  diameters  of  the  sphere. 

The  case  of  spheres  of  ordinary  metal  will  not  be  essentially 
diflferent,  with  these  rapid  oscillations,  for  the  electric  currents 
keep  to  a  mere  shell  of  surface  in  either  case  ;  and  in  so  far  as 
damping  affects  the  period,  the  dissipation  of  energy  by  radiation 
(which  is  common  to  both)  is  far  greater  than  that  caused  by 
generation  of  heat  in  the  skin  of  a  metal  sphere. 

I  happen  to  have  four  similar  spheres  of  nickel-plated  metal 
on  tall  insulating  stems;  each  sphere  12  "i  centimetres  in  dia- 
meter. Applying  spark  knobs  to  each  end  of  a  diameter  of  one 
of  them,  and  applying  the  point  of  a  penknife  to  another  one 
standing  on  the  same  table  at  a  distance  of  two  and  a  half 
metres,  I  am  able  to  get  little  sparks  from  it  without  using  any 
reflector  or  intensifier. 

Or  arranging  three  spheres  in  a  row,  with  intervals  between 
and  knobs  outside,   5  short,  spaikgaps  in  all  (see  figure),  andi 


using  a  fourth  sphere  as  detector  of  this  triple-sourced  radiation^ 
I  draw  little  sparks  from  it  to  a  touching  penknife  at  a  distance 
of  12  feet  (366  centimetres,  actual  measurement). 

In  this  case  it  may  be  a  trifle  better  to  hold  one's  hand  near 
the  receiving  sphere  at  the  side  opposite  to  the  penknife,  and 
thus  vary  its  capacity  by  trial  so  as  to  imitate  the  disturbing 
effect  of  the  contiguous  spheres  in  the  transmitter. 

The  complete  waves  thus  experimented  on  and  detected  are 
only  17  centimetres  (six  and  a  half  inches)  long,  and  I  imagine 
are  about  the  shortest  yet  dealt  with. 

But  we  do  not  seem  near  the  limit  set  by  lack  of  absolute 
suddenness  in  sparks  yet,  and  are  going  on  to  try  a  large 
number  of  little  globes. 

Exciting  a  lot  of  little  spheres  by  a  coil  in  this  way  forcibly 
recalls  to  mind  the  excitation  of  a  phosphorescent  substance  by 
a  coil  discharge. 

And  a  receiver  not  very  unlike  the  rod- and- cone  structure  of 
the  retina  can  likewise  be  made.  My  assistant  has  been  experi- 
menting on  a  sort  of  gradated  receiver  which  he  made  himself. 
I  have  recently  had  made  a  series  of  long  cylinders  with 
diameters   ranging   above   and    below    12   centims.  ;    and   the 


March  20,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


46, 


length  of  each  which  responds  to  radiation  is  a  kind  of  measure 
of  specific  intensity.  They  form  (speaking  sensationally)  an 
electric  eye  with  a  definite  range  of  colour  sensation.  It  would 
be  easy  to  supply  it  with  a  pitch  or  paraffin  lens. 

There  is  no  need  to  suppose  the  retinal  bodies  to  be  conduct- 
ing :  a  body  of  high  refractive  index  should  be  subject  to 
electric  vibrations,  and  its  surface  to  spurious  electrifications, 
when  radiation  falls  upon  it ;  and  the  optical  density  of  the  rods 
and  cones  is  known  to  be  high.  They  may,  however,  be 
electrolytic  conductors ;  and  I  find  that  a  liquid  sphere — e.g.  a 
flask  of  inky  water — responds  to  radiation,  giving  a  glow  to 
a  point  touching  its  glass. 

The  diameters  of  the  rods,  as  measured  by  various  physio- 
logists, are  not  very  different  from  dimensions  adapted  to 
respond  to  actual  light-vibration  frequency  ;  and  if  this  idea 
substantiates  itself,  these  bodies  can  be  supposed  to  constitute 
a  sort  of  Corti's  organ  responding  to  etherial  instead  of  to 
aerial  vibrations,  and  stimulating  in  some  still  unknown,  but 
possibly  mechanical,  manner,  the  nerve-fibre  and  ganglion  with 
■which  each  appears  to  be  associated.  Oliver  J.  Lodge. 

University  College,  Liverpool,  March  ii.J 


"  Peculiar  Ice-forms." 

May  I  add  another  to  the  long  series  of  communications 
which  from  time  to  time  have  been  addressed  to  you  under  the 
above  heading?  Most  of  them  have  described  and  discussed 
the  occurrence  of  ice  in  the  form  of  filaments.  One  signed  by  J. 
D.  Paul  (Nature,  vol.  xxxi.  p.  264)  seems  (the  description  is 
somewhat  vague)  to  refer  to  a  mode  of  ice  formation  which  is  of 
somewhat  frequent  occurrence  here,  and  is  the  only  reference  to 
this  mode  which  I  can  find  in  that  portion  of  the  literature  of 
physics  which  is  accessible  to  me. 

It  happens  now  and  again  in  our  variable  climate  that  a  loose 
porous  soil  which  has  been  thoroughly  soaked  with  rain  is  made 
by  a  sudden  and  a  sharp  frost  to  produce  a  crop  of  little  columns 
of  ice.  I  observed  a  striking  instance  lately  on  a  piece  of  hard 
compact  ground,  which,  not  being  quite  smooth,  had  been 
■covered  with  an  inch  or  so  of  loose  pebbly  soil  for  levelling  pur- 
poses. Before  the  loose  soil  had  been  rolled  or  trampled  upon, 
it  becai*e  saturated  with  water  through  two  days  of  continuous 
rain  ;  and  while  it  was  still  saturated,  a  sharp  frost  set  in  at 
night.  In  the  morning  the  ground,  to  the  extent  of  60  square 
yards,  was  found  to  be  covered  with  little  columns  of  ice,  some 
of  them  about  two  inches  in  length.  They  were  roughly  circular 
in  section  ;  and  each  column  had  approximately  the  same  section 
throughout.  Their  diameters  ranged  from  one-tenth  to  one-third 
of  an  inch.  They  were  not  transparent,  but  were  whitish  inap-. 
pearance,  and  carried  on  their  summits  pebbles  or  frozen  earth. 
They  were  thus  obviously  not  ice  crystals,  such  as  Brewster  de- 
scribes in  the  Edinburgh  Journal  of  Science,  vol.  ix.  p.  122,  as 
occurring  in  similar  circumstances.  The  columns  started  from 
the  ground  at  various  inclinations  to  the  vertical,  and  in  the 
great  majority  of  cases  they  curved  upwards  to  a  greater  or  less 
■extent.  I  had  never  noticed  this  upward  curving  of  the  ice 
columns  before,  but  other  persons  familiar  with  the  phenomenon 
iissure  me  they  have  observed  it. 

Tlie  explanation  of  this  mode  of  ice  formation  seems  pretty 
obvious.  The  sudden  frost  solidifies  the  crust  of  the  soil ;  and 
it  may  therefore  sometimes  happen  (in  the  above  case  it  clearly 
must  happen)  that  water  becomes  imprisoned  between  the  frozen 
crust  and  the  impervious  sub-soil.  Further  freezing  enables 
nature  to  perform  Major  Williams's  experiment  for  us.  If  the 
crust  does  not  give  way  as  a  whole,  it  must  at  its  weak  points  ; 
and  the  internal  pressure  is  relieved  by  the  protrusion  of  ice 
■columns  through  apertures  formed  at  these  points.  Theje 
columns  would  naturally  carry  portions  of  the  crust  on  their 
summits,  and  during  their  protrusion  might  be  expected  to  have 
innumerable  minute  fissures  or  cracks  produced  in  them  so  as  to 
■exhibit  a  whitish  snowy  appearance.  At  the  base  of  any 
column,  at  points  where  the  freezing-point  has  been  lowered  by 
ihe  pressure  to  the  actual  temperature,  melting  is  continually 
occurring,  and  the  water  thus  formed  will  flow  into  the  fissures 
referred  to.  If  the  axis  of  the  column  is  inclined  to  the  vertical, 
and  if  we  assume  that  the  fissures  and  the  points  at  which  melt- 
ing occurs  are  pretty  uniformly  distributed,  more  water  will  flow 
into  the  fissures  of  the  lower  side  of  the  column  than  into  those 
of  the  upper  side.  When  the  water  re-freezes  therefore,  the 
jower  side  must  elongate  more  than  the  upper,  and  the  column 


must    consequently    in     general    curve    upwards.       That    in 
exceptional  cases  the  upward  curving  may  not  occur  is  obvious. 

J.  G.  MacGregor. 
Dalhousie  College,  Halifax,  N.  S.,  March  i. 


On  a  Certain  Theory  of  Elastic  After-Strain. 

In  a  recent  paper  (Proc.  Lond.  Math.  Soc,  April  11,  1889), 
Prof.  Karl  Pearson  has  discussed  at  some  length  the  possible 
forms  of  the  additional  terms  which  may  be  introduced  into  the 
general  equations  of  elasticity  by  a  consideration  of  the  mutual 
action  of  the  molecules  and  the  ether,  and  has  examined  what 
physical  phenomena  may  admit  of  explanation  in  this  way.  In 
particular,  certain  terms  which  thus  appear  admissible  are  made 
to  yield  a  theory  of  the  phenomenon  known  as  '^ elastische 
Nachwir/cung,"  or  "after-strain."  The  attempt  to  explain  such 
a  comparatively  slow  process  by  the  intervention  of  the  ether 
certainly  invites  scrutiny,  and  in  fact  a  very  slight  examination 
serves,  I  think,  to  show  that  the  theory  in  question  rests  on  a 
mistake.  The  author,  after  writing  down  the  equations  which 
(on  his  view)  represent  the  steady  application  of  stress  to  a 
portion  of  matter,  proceeds  to  integrate  them  in  the  usual  way 
by  assuming  a  time-factor  e"'\  and  arrives  at  a  quadratic  in  m" 
whose  roots  are  /i//*'  and  (3A  -f  2/*)/(3\'  -f  2;u'),  where  A,  jit  are 
the  ordinary  elastic  constants  of  Lame,  and  A.',  /*'  are  the  co- 
efficients of  the  additional  terms  referred  to.  He  continues  : — 
"  Now  m  cannot  be  positive,  so  long  at  least  as  we  are  dealing 
with  elastic-strain.  For  A.'  and  jx'  are  small  as  compared  with 
A  and  n,  the  effects  we  are  considering  being  only  of  the  second 
order.  Hence  niP'  is  large,  and  if  m  were  positive  the  strain 
would  rapidly  grow  immensely  large,  which  is  contrary  to  ex- 
perience. Thus,  we  must  give  m  the  negative  values  -  /^{ft/fi) 
and  -  VKSA  +  2/i)/(3A'  +  2/)'."  The  positive  values  of  m 
are  certainly  inconvenient,  but  they  are  on  the  same  footing  with 
the  negative  ones ;  all  are  solutions  of  the  author's  equations, 
and  all  are  required  for  the  purpose  of  satisfying  arbitrary  initial 
conditions.  The  proper  inference  is  surely  that  the  substance 
is  unstable,  so  long  as  the  constants  fi/ij.'  and  3A'  +  2^'  are  (as 
the  author  has  tacitly  assumed  them  to  be)  positive.  If,  to  avoid 
this  disaster,  we  change  the  signs  of  these  constants,  we  get 
circular  instead  of  exponential  functions,  and  all  analogy  to 
elastic  after-strain  of  course  disappears.  In  its  place  we  have 
vibrations  (not  molecular,  but  "  molar")  whose  period  is  intrin- 
sic to  the  substance  and  independent  of  the  dimensions  of  the 
portion  considered.  To  what  physical  reality  these  may  corre- 
spond I  do  not  undertake  to  say.  Horace  Lamb. 

The  Owens  College,  March  4. 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs, 

If,  as  Mr.  Garstang  seems  to  suppose,  the  presence  of  tuni- 
cates  on  a  crab  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  danger-signal  to  its  ene- 
mies, then  Hyas  must  belong  equally  to  both  his  groups  a  and  3. 
I  have  found  simple  tunicates  {A.  sordidd)  on  two  small  speci- 
mens of  .^.  coarctatus.  In  one  example  they  almost  completely 
hid,  and  several  were  larger  than, .the  crab.  I  do  not  know  if 
anyone  has  observed  Hyas  "dressing"  itself  with  tunicates.  I 
should  think  it  was  an  operation  of  some  difficulty,  at  least  in 
the  case  of  A.  sordida,  which  adheres  pretty  tighily  to  stones 
and  shells.  It  cannot  be  said  to  be  brilliantly  coloured,  so  that 
its  assumption  by  Hyas  might  be  regarded  as  only  an  adaptation 
for  concealment,  as  in  the  case  of  Algcc — belonging,  therefore, 
to  group  o.  It  seems  to  me,  however,  very  doubtful  whether  a 
small  Hyas  would,  even  if  it  could,  willingly  burden  itself  with 
such  a  serious  incubus  as  half  a  dozen  tunicates.  Probably  their 
presence  is  in  no  way  due  to  any  act  of  the  crab's. 

The  shore-crab,  as  pointed  out  long  ago  by  Prof.  Mcintosh, 
frequently  suffers  loss  of  sight  by  the  usurpation  of  its  orbit  by 
a  growing  mussel,  and  the  Norway  lobster  has  been  found  with 
one  eye  grown  over  by  a  Polyzoan.  Such  foreign  bodies  are 
surely  rather  hurtful  than  protective,  and  the  same  may  perhaps 
be  said  of  the  tunicates  on  Hyas.  It  is  also  a  question  whether 
the  crab  likes  the  smell  of  tunicates  any  better  than  its  neigh- 
bours. 

I  think  Mr.  Garstang  is  wrong  in  assuming  the  inedibility  of 
tunicates.  Prof.  Mcintosh,  in  "  The  Marine  Invertebrata  and 
Fishes  of  St.  Andrews,"  speaks  of  Molgula  arenosa  as  being 
found  abundantly,  and  of  Pelonaia  corrugata  as  occasionally  in 
the  stomach  of  the  cod  and  haddock  ;  and  Mr.  W.  L.  Calder- 


464 


NATURE 


[March  20,  1890 


wood  has  found  Pelonaia  in  some  numbers  in  the  intestine  of 
the  common  dab. 

Amongst  anemones,  A.  meiembryanthemum  is  certainly  a 
favourite  food  of  the  cod,  and  is  not  uncommon  on  the  carapace 
of  Cancer  pagurns.  It  is  difficult  to  see  in  what  way  the  ane- 
mone is  there  protective  to  the  crab.  Both  young  crabs  and 
anemones  (of  this  and  some  other  species)  are  equally  preyed 
on  by  the  cod  ;  and  though  the  crab  may  perhaps  be  big  enough 
(as  in  a  recent  specimen  5  inches  broad)  to  enjoy  immunity  from 
the  cod's  attack,  yet,  by  parading  such  a  gaudy  bait,  it  must  at 
least  run  the  risk  of  a  severe  shaking.  It  may  be  added  that, 
in  the  last-named  case,  the  anemone  quitted  the  crab,  when 
moribund,  for  a  more  desirable  basis. 

Ernest  W.  L.  Holt. 

St.  Andrews  Marine  Laboratory,  N.B.,  March  9. 


Abnormal  Shoots  of  Ivy. 

The  accompanying  sketch  represents  a  condition  which  is  ex- 
hibited by  a  certain  group  of  ivy  plants  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Plymouth.  The  plants  are  rooted  upon  the  top  of  a  high  bank, 
which  bounds  the  southern  side  of  the  road  from  Mount  Edg- 
cumbe  to  Tregantle  ;  the  branches  pass  downwards  from  the  top 
of  the  bank  on  to  its  northern  side. 

The  young  shoots  of  each  plant  are  conspicuous,  because 
their  leaves  appear  red,  and  so  contrast  strongly  with  the  green 
of  the  older  leaves.  This  appearance  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
lower  surface  of  each  leaf  is  uppermost. 

The  sketch  represents  the  terminal  portion  of  a  young  shoot. 
The  growing  point  is  directed  downwards.  The  three  terminal 
leaves,  a,b,c,  have  their  upper  surfaces  directed  upwards.     The 


J    \-i 


leaves  beyond  these,  however  (d,e,  Ac),  are  twisted  in  a  two- 
fold way.  First,  each  leaf-stalk  is  twisted  on  its  own  axis,  so 
that  the  lower  side  of  the  leaf  is  directed  upwards ;  and 
secondly,  the  apex  of  each  leaf  is  rotated  through  180°,  so  that  it 
points  away  from  the  growing  point  of  the  shoot  which  bears  it, 
towards  the  root. 

This  twisted  condition  is  exhibited  by  about  twelve  or  fourteen 
leaves  on  every  young  shoot — say,  through  a  dozen  inches  from 
the  growing  point.  The  older  leaves  lose  both  kinds  of  torsion, 
so  that  each  old  leaf  has  its  upper  side  uppermost,  and  its  apex 
is  directed  towards  the  growing  point  of  the  stem.  The  under 
sides  of  the  older  leaves  have  completely  lost  their  red  colour. 

The  condition  described  is  exhibited  by  all  the  shoots  of  a 
plexus  of  ivy  plants  just  beyond  the  fifth  milestone  from  Mount 
Edgcumbe,  on  the  road  above  mentioned.  It  is  absent  in  all 
the  many  bushes  and  creeping  masses  of  ivy  which  grow  on  the 


same  bank  of  the  road  between  this  point  and  Mount  Edgcumbe. 
Whether  all  the  plants  composing  the  abnormal  plexus  are  the- 
offspring  of  a  single  parent  cannot  now  be  determined. 

Plymouth,  March  10.  W.  F.  R.  Weldon. 


Earth-Currents  and  the  Occurrence  of  Gold. 

Gold  has  been  so  large  a  factor  in  the  prosperity  and  great- 
ness of  Australia,  that  the  interesting  subject  of  the  origin  of  gold 
drifts  and  reefs  must  always  possess  to  us  something  more  than 
a  purely  scientific  attraction.  In  the  earlier  days  of  the  gold- 
fields  there  was  among  the  diggers  much  speculation,  of  a 
scientific  and  semi-scientific  nature,  as  to  the  processes  by  which 
Nature  had  produced  the  accumulations  of  coarse  and  fine  gold 
dust  which  it  was  their  business  to  extract  from  the  alluvial  drifts. 
The  most  obvious  explanation,  of  course,  was  that  the  grains  of 
gold  had  an  origin  similar  to  that  of  the  debris  and  detritus  of 
various  characters  which  made  up  the  alluvium  itself ;  and  this 
explanation  seemed  to  harmonize  so  completely  with  the  general 
processes  of  Nature  that  at  one  time  it  was  almost  universally 
accepted  as  the  correct  one.  But  many  thoughtful  mining 
authorities  had  their  doubts  upon  the  subject,  and  these  doubts 
were  not  founded,  as  so  frequently  happens,  upon  mere  prejudice, 
but  were  fortified  by  the  fact  that  certain  phenomena  character- 
istic of  the  occurrence  of  drift  gold  were  not  only  not  explained 
by  the  "  detrital  hypothesis,"  as  it  is  called,  but  were  absolutely 
inconsistent  with  it.  Chief  among  these  objections  may  be 
mentioned  the  undoubted  generalization  that  drift  gold  is  nearly 
always  purer  than  the  gold  in  the  reefs  of  the  neighbourhood 
in  which  it  occurs.  No  explanation  as  to  the  long  distances  to 
which  grains  of  gold  might  be  conveyed,  or  to  the  possible 
purifying  effects  of  natural  chemical  action,  made  up  any  satis- 
factory explanation  of  the  known  facts,  and  accordingly  under 
the  detrital  theory  these  facts  had  to  remain  shrouded  in  mystery. 
Then,  again,  it  was  a  frequent  occurrence  for  gold  to  be  found  so 
peculiarly  embedded  in  pieces  of  wood,  or  in  conjunction  with 
natural  crystals  of  minerals,  such  as  the  sulphides,  that  those  who 
were  constantly  being  brought  into  contact  with  such  phenomena 
were  firmly  convinced  that  at  all  events  there  was  a  certain  pro- 
portion of  the  gold  found  in  alluvial  drifts  which  had  its  origin 
in  some  other  source  than  the  breaking  down  of  quartz  reefs  by 
the  ordinary  processes  of  Nature.  The  majority  of  those  who 
held  to  this  belief  had  at  first  but  little  scientific  knowledge  of 
natural  reactions  ;  and  when  questioned  as  to  their  theory  on  the 
subject,  they  were  accustomed  to  say  of  the  alluvial  drift-gold, 
that  it  appeared  to  be  actually  growing — a  statement  which 
sometimes  provoked,  not  unnaturally,  a  smile  of  pity  for  mis- 
placed credulity. 

These  objectors,  however,  were  right.  Of  this  there  is  now 
scarcely  the  shadow  of  a  doubt.  It  would  be  tedious  to  trace 
the  steps  by  which  such  a  strange  conclusion  has  come  to  be 
virtually  established.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  at  the  present  day 
there  are  but  few  scientific  men  in  Australia  who  have  studied 
the  subject  who  do  not  hold  that  by  some  agency  or  another  the 
gold  that  is  in  our  alluvial  drifts  has  been  formed,  and  probably 
is  at  present  accumulating  at  the  present  moment,  in  its  present 
position.  It  seems  probable,  indeed,  that  drift  gold  has  its 
origin  in  the  salts  held  in  solution  by  the  water  by  which  it  was 
formerly  supposed  to  have  been  merely  carried  from  one  place 
to  another.  The  most  common  salt  of  the  precious  metal  is 
chloride  of  gold  ;  and  of  this  salt  there  is  an  appreciable  quantity 
present  in  sea  water  along  with  the  common  sea  salt,  which,  of 
course,  is  mainly  chloride  of  sodium.  In  geological  epochs,  when 
the  rocks  of  our  present  gold-fields  were  submerged  below  the 
ocean,  and  later  on,  when  they  held  upon  their  surfaces  vast  im- 
prisoned lakes  of  salt  water,  it  is  probable  that  they  became 
saturated  with  sea  water  and  retained  large  amounts  of  gold  in 
solution.  According  to  a  computation  quoted  by  Mr.  Skey,  the 
Government  Geological  Analyst  for  New  Zealand,  it  is  probable 
that  every  cubic  mile  of  rock  contains  something  like  a  million 
ounces  of  gold.  Hence  the  underground  streams  of  Australia, 
in  certain  districts,  are  particularly  rich  in  salts  of  the  precious 
metal,  and  there  is  an  enormous  area  over  which  slight  quantities 
of  gold  can  always  be  obtained,  while  surface  streams  which  are 
fed  by  deep-seated  springs  accumulate  gold  upon  alluvial  flats 
and  hollows.  Some  of  the  gold  found  in  such  streams  may 
undoubtedly  be  ascribed  to  the  destruction  of  quartz  reefs.  It 
stands  to  reason  that  these  reefs,  like  other  rocks,  must  contri- 
bute to  the  debris  in  the  beds  of  rivers  and  streams.  But  most  of 
the  purer  alluvial  coarse  gold  has  evidently  a  different  origin. 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


465 


Up  to  this  point,  the  new  explanation  of  the  origin  of  drift 
gold  seems  feasible,  and,  indeed,  almost  conclusive.  The  gold 
is  present  in  minute  quantities  in  the  water  of  the  drift,  and  this 
fact  has  been  conclusively  demonstrated  experimentally  by 
various  investigators,  among  whom  may  be  mentioned  Messrs. 
Newberry  and  Skey.  But  it  is  one  thing  to  prove  that  chloride 
of  gold  exists  in  the  drift  waters,  and  quite  another  thing  to  sug- 
gest in  what  manner  and  by  what  agency  the  precious  metal  has 
been  reduced  from  its  salt,  and  deposited  in  the  form  of  coarse 
or  fine  grains  or  in  that  of  large  and  strangely-shaped  nuggets. 
Precipitation  was  the  first  and  most  obvious  suggestion.  The 
addition,  for  instance,  of  a  minute  quantity  of  sulphjjite  of  iron  to 
a  solution  of  chloride  of  gold  would  cause  the  formation  of 
minute  particles  of  metallic  gold,  and  sulphate  of  iron,  of  course, 
is  present  in  Nature  abundantly.  But  such  an  explanation 
would  only  account  for  the  formation  of  the  very  finest  gold 
dust.  It  would  give  no  solution  of  the  origin  of  coarse  gold 
and  nuggets,  nor  would  it  account  for  any  of  the  many  peculiar 
anomalies  of  which  I  shall  presently  mention  some  striking 
examples. 

In  order  to  afford  a  possible  extension  of  this  purely  chemical 
theory  which  might  give  a  clue  to  the  origin  of  nuggetty  gold,  it 
has  been  pointed  out  that  if  a  crystal  of  some  sulphide,  such  as 
iron  pyrites,  be  immersed  in  a  solution  of  chloride  of  gold,  it  will 
be  covered  with  a  film  of  metallic  gold.  Following  the  track 
of  investigation  thus  apparently  opened  up,  it  has  been  in- 
geniously suggested  that  possibly  the  material  of  the  metallic  sul- 
phide, and  that  of  the  golden  film,  may  be  regarded  as  a  sort  of 
miniature  electric  battery,  in  which  the  gold  would  form  one 
anode  and  the  pyrites  the  other.  A  current  would  pass  between 
the  two,  and  the  result  would  be  the  deposition  of  metallic 
gold  upon  the  film,  at  the  same  time  that  the  material  of  the 
pyrites  would  continually  become  decomposed.  The  electro- 
plater,  in  his  laboratory,  places  the  salt  of  gold  in  his  bath,  and 
uses  an  ordinary  battery  from  which  to  obtain  a  current  suffi- 
ciently strong  to  deposit  gold  upon  the  articles  to  be  plated. 
But  in  this  case  it  was  suggested  that  the  article  to  be  plated, 
which  was  the  film  of  gold  itself,  might  be  regarded  as  one  of 
the  elements  supplying  the  current.  The  theory  seems  from  the 
outset  somewhat  far-fetched,  and  it  is  open  to  very  strong  objec- 
tions on  the  ground  of  improbability.  The  amount  of  material 
which  the  electroplater  has  to  use  up  in  order  to  deposit  an  ounce 
of  gold  is  very  considerable,  even  in  the  most  efficient  forms  of 
batteries  known  to  science.  It  is  scarcely  conceivable  that  a 
piece  of  pyrites,  weighing  about  two  pennyweights,  would,  by 
its  decomposition,  afford  sufficient  current  to  deposit  an  ounce  of 
gold.  Yet  something  of  the  sort  would  have  to  be  established 
before  it  could  be  proved  that  electro-chemical  action  in  situ 
supplies  the  electric  current  as  a  reducing  agent. 

In  seeking  for  an  explanation  of  the  deposition  of  gold  which 
would  affiDrd  a  surer  or  more  probable  basis  for  conjecture,  I 
was  at  first  mainly  influenced  by  two  remarkable  facts  which 
could  hardly  be  referred  to  any  imaginable  phenomena  of  a 
chemical  or  electro -chemical  origin.  These  were  that  in  a  drift 
supplying  gold  in  abundance  it  is  by  no  means  uncommon  to 
find  a  patch  in  which  the  gold  gives  out  altogether,  and  is  picked 
up  further  along  the  line  ;  and  the  second  was  that  there  has 
always  been  observed  at  many  of  the  leading  goldfields  a  certain 
correspondence  between  the  richness  of  the  alluvial  drifts  and 
reefs  and  the  points  of  the  compass.  The  direction  in  which 
the  richest  drifts  run  may  vary  from  one  locality  to  another.  But 
no  matter  how  broken  in  contour  the  country  may  be,  there  is 
almost  always  a  marked  parallelism  between  the  richest  drifts. 

Taking  these  and  one  or  two  other  facts  as  a  starting-point, 
I  was  led  to  form  the  hypothesis  that  the  probable  origin  of  the 
deposition  of  gold  is  to  be  found  in  thermo-electric  earth-currents, 
probably  generated  by  the  unequal  heating  of  the  surface  of  the 
earth  by  the  sun's  rays  in  passing  from  east  to  west.  This  theory 
of  earth-currents  has  attracted  a  good  deal  of  attention  in  Aus- 
tralia, and  it  is  remarkable  how  rapidly  facts  in  support  of  it 
have  been  brought  forward  during  the  past  few  months.  It 
would  be  impossible  for  me,  within  brief  limits,  to  refer  to  all  of 
these  ;  but  it  will  be  of  interest  to  summarize  a  few  of  the 
leading  points : — 

( i)  The  existence  of  earth-currents  has  been  frequently  demon- 
strated, and  has  attracted  special  attention  since  the  invention 
of  the  telephone.  In  1880,  Prof.  Trowbridge,  of  Harvard,  con- 
ducted a  series  of  experiments  at  the  Observatory,  and  recorded 
it  as  one  of  his  results  that  these  currents  appeared  to  be  most 
pronounced  along  the  water-courses. 


(2)  In  Victoria  remarkable  instances  of  deflection  of  the  com- 
pass have  been  particularly  numerous,  hinting  at  the  presence  of 
strong  currents,  more  especially  at  the  lines  of  junction  between 
permeable  and  impermeable  rocks. 

(3)  There  is  a  remarkable  relation  between  the  conductivity 
of  the  adjacent  rock  country  and  the  richness  of  an  alluvial  drift. 
Thus,  in  passing  through  slate  or  below  an  overhanging  mass  of 
basalt,  the  drift  is  generally  richer  than  in  passing  through  moist 
sandstone,  suggesting  that,  where  an  earth-current  is  concentrated 
along  the  line  of  the  water  in  consequence  of  the  presence  of 
rocks  of  low  conductivity,  the  process  of  deposition  has  been 
facilitated. 

(4)  There  are  places  at  which  the  gold  gives  out  altogether, 
although  no  discernible  change  has  taken  place  in  the  nature  of 
the  country.  These  places  seem  to  be  the  localities  of  a  sort  of 
short-circuiting,  which  we  may  readily  suppose  to  take  place 
very  frequently  in  earth-currents. 

(5)  At  particular  pinched  localities  the  current  would  be 
peculiarly  strong,  and  would  lead  to  the  formation  of  nodules  or 
nuggets  of  gold,  the  existence  of  which  cannot  be  satisfactorily 
explained  by  any  chemical  theory  hitherto  advanced. 

(6)  Nuggets  of  an  alloy  of  gold  and  copper  have  sometimes 
been  met  with,  and  the  two  metals  have  even  been  found  to  lie 
in  alternate  layers,  suggesting  that  at  one  time  a  copper  salt, 
and  at  another  a  gold  salt,  has  been  subjected  to  the  action  of  a 
reducing  current. 

(7)  In  presence  of  a  large  amount  of  organic  matter,  it  is 
almost  invariably  found  that  a  drift  becomes  especially  rich. 
The  formation  of  acid  by  decomposition  is  what  would  be 
peculiarly  required  to  facilitate  the  passage  of  an  earth-current 
through  the  water  of  an  underground  drift,  the  existence  of 
free  acid  being  the  requirement  for  an  artificial  electro-depositing 
bath. 

(8)  Conversely,  the  vicinity  of  large  masses  of  calcite  has  been 
observed  to  be  most  inimical  to  the  richness  of  a  drift,  and,  of 
course,  this  could  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  the  carbonate  of 
lime  would  destroy  the  free  acid,  and  reduce  the  conductivity 
of  the  water  so  as  to  impede  the  transmission  of  a  current. 

(9)  The  peculiar  shapes  of  the  grains  of  what  is  known  as 
coarse  gold,  are  very  suggestive  of  the  action  of  a  feeble  current 
in  piling  up  the  metal  upon  the  prominent  portions,  and  leaving 
deep  indentations  between.  Electric  action  of  an  extraneous 
nature  is  also  strongly  indicated  by  the  strange  strings  and  fila- 
ments which  are  constantly  being  met  with. 

(10)  If  we  accept  the  crenitic  theory  of  the  origin  of  quartz 
reefs,  the  theory  of  earth-currents  would  at  once  apply  with 
particular  force  to  show  how  the  action  of  such  currents  in  hot 
siliceous  solutions  would  produce  a  formation  of  gold  simultaneous 
with  that  of  quartz,  thus  accounting  for  the  finely  divided  state 
of  the  gold  in  such  reefs. 

(11)  At  the  same  time  it  is  necessary  to  account  for  the  exist- 
ence of  the  large  masses  of  gold  which  are  sometimes  found 
associated  with  quartz,  at  places  where  the  reefs  become  narrow 
in  pinched  localities.  The  theory  of  precipitation  cannot  account 
for  these.  But  that  of  earth-currents  would  naturally  lead  us  to 
expect  the  phenomenon,  because  in  such  a  locality,  while  the 
formation  of  quartz  would  be  retarded,  the  formation  of  gold 
would  be  accelerated  by  the  concentration  of  the  current  as 
already  explained. 

The  hypothesis  is  thus  well  supported  hyprimd  facie  evidence. 
For  the  experimental  detection  of  earth-currents  on  goldfields  I 
have  strongly  recommended  the  close  observation  of  the  most 
minute  deflections  of  the  magnetic  needle,  especially  in  under- 
ground workings.  I  believe  also  that  the  use  of  the  telephone, 
as  in  Prof.  Trowbridge's  experiments,  will  be  of  great  service  in 
indicating  the  lines  of  greatest  conductivity  in  the  earth's  crust, 
and  in  enabling  us  to  decide  whether  these  are  identical  in  gold- 
fields  with  those  lines  in  which  the  drifts  contain  the  richest 
gold.  George  Sutherland. 

Angas  Street,  Adelaide,  South  Australia. 


THE  PRIMITIVE   TYPES   OF  MAMMALIAN 
MOLARS. 

SO  much  light  has  recently  been  thrown  on  the  origin 
and  mutual  relations  of  the  Mammalia  by  the 
labours  of  the  Transatlantic  palaeontologists,  that  in  the 
case  of  the  limbs  we  have  long  since  been  able  to  trace 
the  evolution  of  the  specialized  foot  of  the  Horse  from 


466 


NA  TURE 


[March  20,  1890 


that  of  the  five-toed  Phenacodus  (see  Nature,  vol.  xl. 
p.  57).  Till  quite  lately,  however,  -we.  have  been  unable 
to  follow  the  mode  of  evolution  of  the  more  complicated 
forms  of  molar  teeth  from  a  common  generalized  type, 
although  Prof.  Cope,  by  his  description  of  the  so-called 
"  tritubercular "  type  of  molar  structure,  paved  the  way 
for  the  true  history  of  this  line  of  research. 

The  common  occurrence  of  this  tritubercular  type  of 
dentition  among  the  mammals  of  the  Lower  Eocene  at 
once  suggests  that  we  have  to  do  with  a  very  generalized 
form  of  tooth-structure  ;  and  by  a  long  series  of  observa- 
tions Prof.  H.  F.  Osborn,  of  Princeton,  New  Jersey,  has 
succeeded,  to  a  great  extent,  in  showing  how  the  more 
complicated  modifications  of  molars  may  have  been 
evolved  from  this  generalized  type.  These  observations 
are  of  so  much  importance  towards  a  right  understanding 
of  the  phylogenetic  relationships  of  the  Mammalia  that 
a  short  summary  cannot  fail  to  be  interesting  to  all 
students  of  this  branch  of  zoology. 


The  tritubercular  molar  (Fig.  A,  6),  consists  of  three 
cusps,  cones,  or  tubercles,  arranged  in  a  triangle,  and  so 
disposed  that  those  of  the  upper  jaw  alternate  with  those 
of  the  lower.  Thus,  in  the  upper  teeth  (Fig.  A,  7),  there 
are  two  cusps  on  the  outer  side,  and  one  cusp  on  the 
inner  side  of  the  crown  ;  while  in  the  lower  teeth  (Fig.  A, 
8,  2>a)  we  have  one  outer  and  two  inner  cusps.  This  type, 
when  attained,  appears  to  have  formed  a  starting-point 
from  which  the  greater  number  of  the  more  specialized 
types  have  been  evolved.  The  Monotremes,  the  Eden- 
tates, perhaps  the  Cetaceans,  and  the  extinct  group  of 
Multituberculata  {Plagiaulax  and  its  aUies),  must,  how- 
ever, be  excepted  from  the  groups  whose  teeth  have  a 
tritubercular  origin. 

It  appears  probable,  indeed,that  "trituberculism,"  as  this 
type  of  tooth-structure  may  be  conveniently  termed,  was 
developed  from  a  simple  cone-like  tooth  during  the 
Mesozoic  period,  and  that  in  the  Jurassic  period  it  had 
developed  into  what  is  termed  the    primitive   sectorial 


Pig.  a. — Types  of  Molar  Teeth  of  Mesozoic  Mammals.  1-5,  Triconodont  Type  (i,  Droiiiailicrium  ;  2,  Alicroconodon  ;  3,  Amphilesies  ;  4,  Phascolotheriuiii ; 
5,  Triconodon).  6,  7,  10,  Tritubercular  Type  (6,  Peralestes ;  7,  Spalacotlierium ;  10,  Asthenodoti).  8-9,  11-15,  Tuberculo-Sectorial  Type  (8, 
Ainphitherium ;  9,  Peramns  ;  11,  Dryolestes ;  12,  13,  Aiiihlotherinm ;  14,  Achyrodon ;  15,  Kiirtodon).  6  and  15  are  upper,  and  the  remainder 
lower  molars,    pa,  paraconid  ;  pr,  protoconid  ;  >//e,  metaconid  ;  hy,  hypoconid.     In  the  upper  teeth  the  termination  ends  in  cone. 


type  (Fig.  A,  9).  The  stages  of  the  development  of  1 
"  trituberculism "  may,  according  to  Prof.  Osborn,  be  | 
characterized  as  follows  : — 

(i)  The  Haplodont  type. — This  is  a  hypothetical  type  ; 
at  present  undiscovered,  in  which  the  crown  of  the  tooth  i 
forms  a  simple  cone,  while  the  root  is  probably  in  most  \ 
cases  single,  and  not  differentiated  from  the  crown.  | 

(a)  The  Protodont  sub-type. — This  sub-type  is  a  slight 
advance   on   the   preceding,  and   is   represented  by  the 
American  Triassic  genus  Dromatherium.     The  crown  of  | 
the  tooth  (Fig.  A,  i)  has  one  main  cone,  with  fore-and-aft 
accessory  cusps,  and  the  root  is  grooved. 

(2)  The  Trico7todont  type.— In  this  Jurassic  type  the 
crown  (Fig.  A,  4,  5)  is  elongated,  with  one  central  cone, 
and  a  smaller  anterior  and  posterior  cone  situated  in  the 
same  line  ;  the  root  being  differentiated  into  double  fangs. 
Triconodon,  of  the  English  Purbeck,  is  the  typical 
example. 

(3)  The  Tritubercular  type. — In  this  modification  the 
crown  is  triangular   (Fig.  A,  7),  and  carries  three  main 


cusps  or  cones,  of  which  the  central  one  is  placed  in- 
ternally in  the  upper  teeth  (Fig.  A,  6),  and  externally  in 
the  lower  molars  (Fig.  A,  7).  The  teeth  of  the  Jurassic 
Spalacotheriu7n  are  typical  examples.  In  the  first  and 
second  types  the  molars  are  alike  in  both  the  upper  and 
lower  jaws  ;  but  in  the  third  or  tritubercular  type,  the 
pattern  is  the  same  in  the  teeth  of  both  jaws,  but  with  the 
arrangement  of  the  homologous  cusps  reversed.  These 
features  are  exhibited  in  Fig.  B. 

These  three  types  are  regarded  as  primitive,  but  in  the 
following  sub-types  we  have  additional  cusps  grafted  on 
to  the  primitive  tritubercular  triangle,  as  it  is  convenient 
to  term  the  three  original  cusps. 

(a)  Tuberculo-sectorial  sub-type. — This  modification  of 
the  tritubercular  type  is  found  in  the  lower  molars,  like 
those  of  Didelphys.  Typically  the  primitive  tritubercular 
triangle  is  elevated,  and  the  three  cusps  are  connected  by 
cross  ridges,  while  a  low  posterior  talon  or  heel  is  added 
(Fig.  A,  9).  This  modification  embraces  a  quinque- 
tubercular  form,  in  which  the  talon  carries  an  inner  and 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


467 


an  outer  cusp  ;  while  by  the  suppression  of  one  of  the 
primitive  cusps  we  arrive  at  the  quadritubercular  tooth, 
bunodont  tooth  (Fig.  C),  hke  that  of  the  Pigs.  In  the 
upper  molars  the  primitive  triangle  in  what  is  termed  the 
secodont  series  may  remain  purely  tricuspid.  But  by 
the  development  of  intermediate  tubercles  in  both  the 
secodont  and  bunodont  series  a  quinquetubercular  form 
is  reached  ;  while  the  addition  of  a  postero-internal  cusp 
in  the  bunodont  series  gives  us  the  sextubercular  molar. 

There  is  no  doubtas  to  the  homologyof  the  three  primary 
cusps  in  the  upper  and  lower  molars  ;  and  Prof.  Osborn 
proposes  the  following  series  of  terms  for  all  the  cusps 
above  mentioned.  The  first  secondary  cusps  (hypocone 
and  hypoconid)  respectively  added  to  the  upper  and  lower 
molars  are  also  evidently  homologous,  and  modify  the 
crown  from  a  triangular  to  a  quadrangular  form  ;  but 
there  is  no  homology  between  the  additional  secondary 
cusps  of  the  upper  molars  termed  protoconule  and  meta- 
conule  with  the  one  termed  ectoconid  in  the  lower  molars. 


Protocone 
Hypocone 
Paracone 
Metacone 
Protoconule'  — ml 
Metaconule  — pi. 


•pr. 
hy. 
pa, 
•me. 


Terms  applied  to  the  cusps  of  molars : 

Upper  Molars. 

Antero-internal  cusp 

Postero-     ,,  ,,      or  6th  cusp 

Antero-extemal   ,,  . 

Postero-     ,,  »> 

Anterior  intermediate  cusp 

Posterior  ,,  ,, 

Lower  Molars. 
Antero-external  cusp 
Postero-        ,.         i» 
Antero-internal  or  5th  cusp 
Intermediate,  or  antero-internal  cusp 

(in  quadritubercular  molars) 
Postero-internal  cusp 

Having  thus  worked  out  the  homology  and  relations  of 
the  tooth-cusps.  Prof.  Osborn  gives  some  interesting 
observations  on  the  principles  governing  the  development 


=     Protoconid    — pr"* 
=     Hypoconid   — hy'' 


Paraconid 

Metaconid 
Entoconid 


-pa'' 


^ 
(^ 


Fig.   B. — Upper  and   Lower   Molars   in   mutual   apposition,     i,   Delphimis ;    2,   Droiiiatherium ;   3,    Tricoyf.iion;   4,  Peralcstcs  and   Spalacotheriiim ; 

Si  Didyinictis ;  €,  Mioclaniis ;  7,  Hyopsodits.     Letters  as  in  preceding  figure. 


of  these  cusps.  It  is  considered  that  in  the  earliest 
Mammalian,  or  sub-mammalian,  type  of  dentition  (Haplo- 
dont),  the  simple  cones    of  the    upper  and  lower  jaws 


-'Yvl 


ml 


fir  'hf 


Fig.  C;. — Diagram  of  two  upper  and  lower  quadritubercular  molars  in  appo- 
sition The  cusps  and  ridges  of  the  upper  molars  are  in  double  lines, 
and  those  of  the  lower  ones  in  black.  The  letters  refer  to  the  table  given 
above.     The  lower  molars  are  looked  at  from  below,  as  if  transparent. 

interlocked  with  one  another,  as  in  the  modern  Dolphins 
(Fig.  B,  i).  The  first  additions  to  the  primitive  protoconid 


appeared  upon  its  anterior  and  posterior  borders,  and  the 
growth  of  the  para-  and  metaconids  involved  the 
necessity  of  the  upper  teeth  biting  on  the  outer  side  of 
the  lower  (Fig.  B,  2),  this  condition  being  termed  anisogna- 
thism,  in  contrast  to  the  isognathism  of  the  simple  inter- 
locking cones.  In  the  typical  tritubercular  type  (Fig,  A, 
7)  it  has  been  suggested  that  the  para-  and  metaconids 
were  rotated  inwards  from  the  anterior  and  posterior 
borders  of  the  triconodont  type  ;  but  it  is  quite  possible 
that  they  may  have  been  originally  developed  in  their 
present  position.  By  the  alternation  of  the  primitive 
triangle  in  the  upper  and  lower  jaws  of  the  tritubercular 
type,  the  retention  of  an  isognathous  arrangement  is 
permitted,  the  upper  and  lower  teeth  biting  directly 
against  one  another. 

Finally,  Fig.  C  shows  the  mutual  relations  of  the  upper 
and  lower  teeth  of  the  complicated  quadritubercular 
molars,  with  the  positions  held  by  the  primitive  tri- 
tubercular triangles. 


OXFORD  "PASS"  GEOMETRY. 

ajeciifierpTriTos  fxr)Sfls  iuravdui  elalrw. 

WHETHER  poultry  are  to  be  regarded  as  descended 
from  a  primeval  egg  or  a  primeval  hen,  is  a 
question  on  which  some  amount  of  scholastic  ingenuity 
is  supposed  to  have  been  exercised,  and  whether  teachers 
or  examiners  are  responsible  for  defective  trainine  in 
geometry  is  a  question  on  which  much  might,  more  or 
less  unprofitably,  be  said,  and  on  which  teachers  and 
examiners  may  be  expected  to  take  different  views. 
Happily  for  the  mental  equipment  of  the  present  genera- 
tion of  students,  many  teachers  and  examiners,  avoiding 
barren  controversy,  have  both  laboured,  as  far  as  in  them 
lies,  to  encourage  soundness  and  thoroughness. 

Probably,  the  old-world  teachers  who,  hearing  a 
"  Euclid "  lesson  with  the  open  Simson  in  their  hand, 
looked  upon  "  therefore  "  as  an  unwarrantable  substitute 
J  or  "  wherefore,"  and   could   not   be   induced  to  accept 


"  angle  CAB "  as  a  legitimate  equivalent  for  what  they 
saw  in  the  text  presented  as  "  angle  BAC,"  are  fast  dis- 
appearing, if  not  already  extinct.  Unfortunately,  we  are 
still  under  the  influence  of  bad  examination  papers. 
Take,  for  instance,  the  papers  set  last  year  at  Respon- 
sions.  The  sole  directions  from  the  examiner  to  the 
printer,  necessary  for  getting  these  set  up,  might  have 
been,  and  very  likely  were,  as  follows  : — 


Trinity. 

i                 Hilary. 

Michaelmas. 

(i)I.    4 

(2)  L  14 

(3)1.21 

(4)  I.  22 

(5)  I.  42 

(6)  L46 

(7)  If.    S 
(8)n.    7 
(9)11.  12 

(10)  II.  14 

(i)I.     5 
i     (2)  I.  10 
i     (3)  I.  17 
i     (4)I-3« 
!    (5)  I.  39 

(6)    1.48 

(7)ir.   3 

(8)n.    6 

(9)11.    9    j 

(10)  II.  14    I 

(i)  I.    2 

(2)  I.    7 

(3)  I.  26 

(4)  I.  34 

(5)  I.  46 

(6)    1.45 
(7)11.    6 

(8)  II.  10 

(9)  11.  12 
(10)  II.  14 

'  The  symbols  >«/.  and//,  should  properly  apply  respectively  to  themeta- 
conule  and  protoconule,  but  since  they  bear  the  opposite  .signification  in 
Fig.  C,  they  are  placed  as  above. 


468 


NATURE 


{March  20,  1890 


We  believe  that  those  qualified  to  give  an  opinion  w^ill 
agree  as  to  the  tendency  of  papers  like  these.  They  are 
direct  incentives  to  learning  propositions  by  rote — a 
practice  to  which  beginners  are  by  nature  only  too  prone, 
without  being  encouraged  by  the  grave  authority  of  an 
ancient  University  :  and  they  tend  to  paralyse  any  efforts 
a  tutor  may  make  to  teach  his  subject  intelligently.  How 
is  he  to  get  pupils  to  listen  to  any  discussion  of  difficulties, 
or  to  care  for  any  deductions  from  the  propositions,  when 
they  know  as  well  as  he  does  that  not  a  mark  can  be 
gained  by  anything  which  goes  beyond  a  bare  knowledge 
of  the  Simsonian  text  ? 

Well  might  the  Council  of  the  Association  for  the  Im- 
provement of  Geometrical  Teaching,  in  its  last  Report, 
"  regret  to  notice  that  the  Euclid  papers  set  for  Responsions 
at  Oxford  still  consist  exclusively  of  bookwork,"  and  re- 
mark that  "the  entire  absence  of  riders  or  other  questions 
designed  to  test  the  real  knowledge  of  the  student  seems 
calculated  to  foster  '  cram.' "  The  Council  confined  itself, 
as  we  have  done,  to  the  "  Responsions  "  papers,  but  its 
remarks  apply  with  equal  force  to  "  Moderations."  The 
Euclid  paper  in  the  "  First  Public  "  and  "  Second  Public" 
of  Michaelmas  1 889  are,  in  effect : — 

"Write  out  IV.  i,  III.  10,  3rd  case  of  III.  35,  III,  2, 

III.  25,  III.  28,  III.  12,  III.  17,  IV.  4,  IV.  7. 

"  Define  plane  superficies,  rhomboid,  sector,  similar 
segments,  ratio,  ex  aequali. 

"  Write  out  the  three  postulates  and  the  twelfth  axiom. 
"Write  out  I.  7,  I.  29,   I.  48,   II.  12,  III.  15,  III.  26, 

IV.  6,  VI.  5,  VI.  18." 

Though  we  regret  the  absence  of  "  riders,"  we  do  not 
attach  so  much  importance  to  it  as  to  that  of  "  other " 
questions  arising  naturally  from  the  definitions,  axioms, 
postulates,  and  propositions  set  to  be  written  out  :  ques- 
tions, for  instance,  on  the  redundancy  of  the  definitions  ; 
on  the  distinction  between  the  general  and  the  geome- 
trical axioms  ;  on  the  axioms  tacitly  assumed  by  Euclid  ; 
on  the  truth  or  falsehood  of  the  converse  of  a  given  pro- 
position ;  on  the  interdependence  of  two  contrapositives  ; 
or  on  the  difficulties  of  Euclid's  treatment  of  parallels. 

It  is  instructive  to  contrast  the  Mathematical  Respon- 
sions papers  with  those  set  in  the  classical  part  of  the 
same  examination.  In  these  the  University  is  by  no 
means  satisfied,  as  in  the  mathematical,  with  a  know- 
ledge which  may  be  obtained  by  efforts  of  the  memory 
alone,  but  applies  the  sharp  test  of  prose  composition 
and  "unseens."  To  this  inequality  we  draw  the  special 
attention  of  readers  of  Nature.  Compare  the  course 
open  to  a  classical  man  with  that  which  lies  before  one 
who  intends  to  take  his  degree  in  science  or  mathe- 
matics. The  classical  man  appears  to  have  everything 
in  his  favour  :  he  most  likely  knows  enough  mathematics 
to  feel  quite  comfortable  as  to  the  paltry  modicum  re- 
quired at  Responsions.  The  other  is  in  a  very  different 
position.  If  he  has  attained  to  anything  like  scholarship 
in  his  own  subject,  it  will  only  be  in  rare  cases  that  he 
can  hope  to  get  through  Responsions  without  devoting  a 
large  amount  of  valuable  time  towards  the  acquirement 
of  some  facility  in  prose  composition.  We  should  like 
to  see  a  vigorous  protest  by  the  science  graduates  against 
this  anomaly. 


PRZEWALSKY'S 
ZOOLOGICAL   DISCOVERIES} 

■\17'ITH  great  satisfaction  naturalists  will  observe  that 
^^      a  complete  account  of  Przewalsky's  zoological  ob- 
servations and  discoveries  is  to  be  given  to  the  world,  and 
has  in  fact  been  for  some  time  in  course  of  publication. 

'  "  Wissenschaftliche  Resultate  der  von  N.  M.  Przewalski  nach  Central- 
Ajien  unternommenen  Reisen  :  auf  Kosten  einer  von  seiner  Kaiserlichen 
Hoheit  dem  Grossfiirsten  Thronfolger  Nikolai  Alexandrowitsch  gespendeten 
Summe."  Herausgegeben  von  der  Kaiserlichen  Akademie  der  Wissen- 
schaften.     Zoologischer  Theil.     (St.  Petersburg,  1888-89.) 


The  great  Russian  explorer,  although  perhaps  best  known 
in  Western  Europe  as  a  geographical  traveller,  was  at 
heart  a  naturalist,  and  one  of  no  mean  rank.  Those  who 
have  read  the  narratives  of  his  four  great  journeys  will 
recollect  how  full  they  are  of  notes  on  the  animals  and 
plants  met  with  during  his  routes.  The  specimens  ob- 
tained by  him  and  his  companions  were  carefully  pre- 
served, and  deposited  in  the  Museum  of  the  Imperial 
Academy  of  Sciences  at  St.  Petersburg.  Up  to  the 
present  time  these  collections  have  only  been  made 
known  to  the  public  by  various  fragmentary  accounts  of 
them  in  scientific  journals,  and  in  the  appendices  to  Prze- 
walsky's volumes  of  travels,  which  were  in  many  cases  of 
the  most  unsatisfactory  character.  The  Imperial  Crown 
Prince  Nicolas  of  Russia  has  now,  however,  placed  at 
the  disposal  of  the  Imperial  Academy,  in  whose  Museum 
Przewalsky's  collections  are  stored,  a  sum  sufficient  to 
cover  the  cost  of  the  publication  of  a  connected  account 
of  them.  To  no  more  worthy  object  could  Royalty  devote 
its  income,  and  the  resulting  volumes  promise  to  be  alike 
a  credit  to  the  great  nation  to  which  Przewalsky  belonged, 
and  to  form  a  very  material  contribution  to  zoological 
science. 

As  is  almost  the  universal  and  necessary  custom  now- 
adays, the  different  branches  of  the  collections  to  be 
investigated  have  been  placed  in  the  hands  of  different 
specialists.  The  mammals  had  been  undertaken  by 
Eugene  Biichner,  the  Conservator  of  the  Division  of 
Mammals  in  the  Academy's  Zoological  Museum.  Herr 
Theodor  Pleske,  who  has  lately  succeeded  Herr  Russow 
in  the  charge  of  the  birds  of  the  same  Museum,  supplies 
the  portion  of  the  work  relating  to  the  objects  under  his 
care.  Similarly,  to  Herr  S.  Herzenstein  have  been  as- 
signed the  fishes.  Each  section  is  prepared  on  a  similar 
plan.  The  text  is  given  in  parallel  columns  of  Russian 
and  German.  We  cannot  complain  of  a  great  national 
work  like  the  present  being  published  primarily  in  the 
national  language,  but  our  thanks  should  be  given  to  the 
learned  Academy  for  letting  us  have  it  also  in  a  tongue 
generally  understood  by  scientific  men.  The  work  is 
well  illustrated,  and  the  plates  are  excellently  drawn, 
those  of  the  mammals  and  birds  mostly  by  Miitzel,  the 
well-known  German  lithographic  artist.  Up  to  the  pre- 
sent time  we  have  seen  three  parts  of  the  mammals,  one 
of  the  birds,  and  two  of  the  fishes  of  this  important  work, 
which  is  a  credit  alike  to  the  Academy  which  has  pro- 
duced it,  and  to  the  distinguished  personage  who  has 
supplied  the  necessary  means. 


NOTES. 
The  Chemical  Society  will  this  year  for  the  first  time  hold  its 
anniversary  meeting  (March  27)  in  the  afternoon  at  4  p.m.,  and 
the  Fellows  and  their  friends  will  dine  together  in  the  evening  at 
the  Whitehall  Rooms,  Hotel  Metropole.  It  is  hoped  that  the 
Fellows  will  signify  their  approval  of  this  alteration  by  attending 
in  considerable  numbers. 

A  MEETING  was  held  in  Berlin  on  Monday,  March  10,  under 
the  auspices  of  the  German  Chemical  Society,  to  celebrate  the 
25th  anniversary  of  the  promulgation  of  Prof.  Kekule's  theory 
of  the  constitution  of  the  aromatic  compounds.  A  very  large 
number  of  chemists  assembled  in  the  Rathhaus  in  the  afternoon. 
After  an  introductory  address  by  the  President,  Prof.  v.  Hof- 
mann,  Prof.  A.  Bayer  delivered  a  lecture  in  which  he  pointed 
out  how  completely  modern  investigations  had  confirmed 
Kekule's  views.  A  congratulatory  address  from  the  German 
Chemical  Society  was  then  presented  to  Prof.  Kekule.  Prof. 
Armstrong  attended  on  behalf  of  the  London  Chemical  Society, 
Prof.  Korner  on  behalf  of  the  Italian  chemists,  Prof.  Bischof  on 
behalf  of  the  Russian  chemists  ;  and  besides  the  addresses  pre- 
sented by  those  representatives,  there  were  very  numerous  letters 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


469 


and  telegrams  of  congratulation  from  various  sources.  Dr. 
Glover,  on  behalf  of  German  artificial  dye-stuff  manufacturers, 
then  presented  a  most  admirable  portrait  of  Prof  Kekule 
which  had  been  painted  by  the  celebrated  painter  Angeli  ;  this 
is  to  be  placed  in  the  Berlin  galleries.  Prof.  Kekule  returned 
thanks  in  an  eloquent  address.  Subsequently  a  banquet  was 
held  which  was  very  numerously  attended. 

Lord  Rayleigh  has  been  elected  a  correspondent  of  the 
Paris  Academy  of  Sciences  in  the  department  of  physics. 

The  discourse  to  be  given  by  Lord  Rayleigh  at  the  Royal 
Institution  on  Friday  evening,  March  28,  will  be  on  "Foam." 

Mr,  H.  Carrington  Bolton,  the  eminent  American 
bibliographer,  wishes  to  associate  himself  with  those  who 
recommend  the  system  of  Russian  transliteration,  explained 
lately  in  Nature  (p.  397).  His  letter  was  not  received  in  time 
to  permit  of  his  name  being  included  in  the  list  of  signatures. 

The  visit  of  the  Iron  and  Steel  Institute  to  America  is  likely 
to  be  remarkably  successful.  At  a  meeting  held  the  other  day 
at  New  York,  upon  the  invitation  of  Mr.  Andrew  Carnegie,  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  arrange  a  reception  for  the  members. 
The  Philadelphia  Correspondent  of  the  Times  says  so  many  in- 
vitations have  been  received  from  various  parts  of  the  country 
that  the  belief  is  that  the  month  given  to  the  visit  will  be  in- 
sufficient. The  members  will  meet  in  New  York.  There 
will  also  be  an  international  session  at  Pittsburg. 

A  STATED  meeting  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  was  held  in 
Dublin  on  the  15th  inst.,  at  which  the  President  and  Council 
for  the  ensuing  year  were  elected.  Prof.  Sollas,  F,R.  S.,  read  a 
paper  on  the  mica  which  occurs  in  well-formed  crystals  in  the 
famous  geodes  of  the  Mourne  Mountain  granite  :  it  was  described 
as  a  lithium  mica  of  the  species  Zinnwaldite.  Most  of  the  crystals 
possessed  an  exquisitely  defined  zonal  structure,  and  in  a  single 
crystal  a  change  in  colour,  density,  composition,  and  in  the 
magnitude  of  the  angle  of  the  optic  axes  could  be  traced  on 
passing  from  the  centre  to  the  surface ;  this  gradual  transition 
from  a  more  ferro-magnesian  character  near  the  centre  to  a  more 
alumino-alkaline  one  near  the  surface  was  compared  to  the 
change  from  a  more  anorthite-like  to  a  more  albitic  character, 
which  accompanies  the  growth  of  many  zonal  felspars.  This 
subject  is  also  referred  to  in  Prof.  Sollas's  paper  on  the  granites 
ofLeinster,  which  is  to  appear  in  the  Academy's  Transactions. 
The  Report  of  the  Council,  giving  the  details  of  work  done 
by  the  Academy  during  the  past  year,  with  notices  of  deceased 
members— among  these  John  Ball,  F.R.S,,  Sir  Robert  Kane, 
F.R.S.,  and  Robert  McDonnell,  F.R.S.,— was  read  and 
adopted.  Dr.  E.  Perceval  Wright,  Secretary  to  the  Academy 
was  elected,  in  the  place  of  the  late  Sir  R.  Kane,  a  visitor  to 
the  Museum  of  Science  and  Art,  Dublin, 

The  Royal  Society  of  Medical  and  Natural  Sciences  of 
Brussels  offers  a  gold  medal  of  the  value  of  200  francs  for  the 
best  essay  on  the  influence  of  temperature  on.  the  progress, 
duration,  and  frequency  of  karyokinesis  in  an  example  belonging 
to  the  vegetable  kingdom.  The  essay  must  be  written  in  French, 
and  must  be  sent  in  before  July  i  to  Dr,  Stienon,  5  Rue  du 
Luxembourg,  Brussels, 

Mr.  J.  Wertheimer,  head  master  of  the  Leeds  School 
of  Science  and  Technology,  has  been  elected  to  the  head 
mastership  of  the  Merchant  Venturers'  School,  Bristol,  the 
largest  technical  school  in  the  West  of  England, 

Recognizing  the  difficulty  experienced  by  Western  natural- 
ists in  following  the  valuable  scientific  work  now  carried  on 
in  Russia,  a  number  of  influ  ential  men  of  science  of  that  country 


have  arranged  for  the  publication  of  a  monthly  review — the 
Vyestnlk  Estestvoziianiya.  This  will  consist  of  original  articles 
and  short  reports,  with  French  rSsumh,  and  an  index,  in  French, 
to  Russian  periodical  scientific  literature  ;  the  subjects  included 
will  be  zoology,  botany,  physiology,  geology,  and  microscopical 
technology,  with  the  allied  sciences.  As,  with  the  exception  of 
Nlkitin's  admirable  geological  bibliography,  no  adequate  attempt 
has  been  made  to  record  Russian  general  scientific  literature, 
this  review  will  supply  a  very  general  want.  The  facts  that  it  is  pub- 
lished under  the  auspices  of  the  St,  Petersburg  Society  of  Natural- 
ists, and  that  the  list  of  promised  contributors  includes  most  of  the 
leading  Russian  naturalists,  are  sufficient  guarantee  for  its  value. 
The  bibliographical  index  commences  in  the  second  number. 
The  first  consists  of  eight  original  articles.  W.  Wagner  treats  of 
the  Infusoria  of  the  body-cavity  of  Sipunculus  and  Phascolosoma  ; 
J,  Wagner  of  some  points  in  the  development  of  Schizopods  ; 
Schlmkevlch  of  the  alternation  of  generation  in  the  Hydro- 
medusae  ;  Borodin  and  Tanfll'ev  contribute  botanical  articles, 
the  former  discussing  the  nature  and  distribution  of  dulcite,  and 
the  latter  the  causes  of  the  extinction  of  Trapa  nutans.  Geology 
is  represented  by  an  account  of  the  Devonian  rocks  of  Mughod- 
zhares,  a  criticism  of  Levy's  classification  of  the  eruptive  rocks 
by  Polyenov,  and  an  interesting  account  of  the  formulae  and 
relations  of  the  different  chemical  types  of  the  eruptive  rocks  by 
F,  Levinson-LessTng.  The  subscription  to  the  review,  it  may 
be  added,  is  3  roubles  5o_kopecks,  and  the  office  of  publication, 
the  Society  of  Naturalists,  St,  Petersburg  University, 

The  Vienna  correspondent  of  the  Standard  telegraphed  as 
follows  on  Monday: — '*Dr,  Eder,  Professor  of  the  Photogra- 
phic Institute  of  Vienna,  has  announced  that  a  photographer 
named  Verescz,  living  in  Klausenburg,  Transylvania,  has  suc- 
ceeded in  solving  the  problem  of  photographing  in  natural 
colours.  Up  to  the  present,  only  the  shades  between  deep  red 
and  orange  can  be  retained,  and  even  these,  if  exposed  to  the 
light,  fade  in  from  two  to  three  days  ;  but  the  experiments  are 
being  continued,  with  good  prospects  of  complete  success." 

Recently  Lord  Reay,  the  Governor  of  Bombay,  laid  the 
foundation-stone  at  Poona  of  a  Bacteriological  Laboratory,  which 
is  to  be  annexed  to  the  College  of  Science  in  that  town.  Dr. 
Cooke,  the  Principal  of  the  College,  to  whose  efforts  the 
establishment  of  the  Laboratory  is  due,  stated  that  it  was 
originally  intended  that  the  study  of  the  diseases  of  the  lower 
animals  in  Poona  should  be  directed  to  check  the  losses  from 
anthrax  in  cattle  by  the  introduction  into  India  of  protective 
inoculation.  With  this  object  two  Bengal  students  at  the 
Cirencester  Agricultural  College  underwent  a  course  of  study 
at  M.  Pasteur's  laboratory  in  Paris,  One  of  these  gentlemen 
devoted  his  attention  entirely  to  sericulture,  the  other  studied 
M,  Pasteur's  system  of  vaccination  against  anthrax.  He  re- 
turned to  India,  and  has  since  conducted  some  experiments  on 
cattle  in  Calcutta,  Subsequently,  Mr,  Cooper,  of  the  Veterinary 
Service,  was  deputed  to  M.  Pasteur's  Institute  for  instruction  in 
the  system  of  inoculation  against  anthrax.  While  in  Paris,  Mr. 
Cooper  submitted  a  report,  and  explained  that  for  the  work  in 
question  a  special  laboratory  would  be  required.  At  the  same  time 
he  advocated  the  adoption  of  artificial  gas  for  the  culture-stoves 
and  glass-blowing,  and  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  the  high 
temperature  required  for  sterilizing  vessels,  instruments,  &c. 
Subsequent  inquiry  showed  that  anthrax  is  not  the  only  con- 
tagious disease  of  a  fatal  nature  with  which  the  Indian  cattle- 
owner  has  to  contend.  He  has  also  to  take  into  account  rinderpest, 
tuberculosis,  pleuro-pneumonia,  and,  in  a  minor  degree,  foot  and 
mouth  disease.  It  was,  therefore,  evident  that  if  an  institution 
was  established  for  the  preparation  of  an  anthrax  vaccine  its 
value  would  be  greatly  enhanced  if  diseases  other  than  anthrax 
could   receive   attention.      The  main    objects    of   the   Poona 


470 


NATURE 


{March  20,  1890 


Laboratory  therefore  are  : — {a)  The  preparation  of  anthrax 
vaccine  for  despatch  to  districts  where  anthrax  prevails,  {b)  The 
conduct  of  experiments  in  rinderpest  with  a  view  to  the  discovery 
of  the  pathogenic  micro-organism  of  the  malady,  its  cultivation 
in  broth  and  other  media,  and  attenuation,  so  as  to  provide  a 
vaccine  that  shall  give  immunity  to  animals  in  rinderpest-infected 
districts,  (c)  Experimental  research  into  the  epizootic  diseases 
generally  of  the  ox  and  horse,  {d)  The  instruction  of  trained 
native  veterinarians  in  a  proper  method  of  performing  vaccina- 
tion and  of  the  precautions  necessary  to  avoid  risk  of  septic 
infection. 

On  March  17,  at  six  minutes  past  il,  a  severe  shock  of  earth- 
quake was  felt  at  Bonn,  and  reports  from  the  surrounding 
districts  on  the  following  morning  showed  that  it  was  very 
generally  perceived  in  the  vicinity  of  the  town.  On  March  18, 
in  the  morning,  a  strong  shock  of  earthquake  was  felt  at  Malaga 
and  the  neighbouring  towns.  The  inhabitants  were  greatly 
alarmed,  but  no  damage  is  reported. 

According  to  a  telegram  sent  from  New  York  by  Reuter's 
Agency  on  March  15,  the  captain  of  the  steamer  Slavonia  re- 
ported having  encountered  a  waterspout  during  the  voyage  from 
Europe.     The  vessel  sustained  no  damage. 

The  Pilot  Chart  of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  for  the  month 
of  March  states  that  the  weather  during  February  was  much 
more  moderate  than  during  the  two  preceding  months.  An  area 
of  very  high  barometer  extended  over  nearly  the  entire  length 
of  the  Transatlantic  steamship  routes  during  the  first  five  days. 
After  this  date  the  pressure  fell,  and  gales  of  varying  force  were 
experienced  from  time  to  time.  The  most  important  of  these 
storms  was  one  south  of  Newfoundland  on  the  21st,  whence  it 
moved  rapidly  eastward.  The  storm  on  the  nth  in  about  lat. 
49°  30'  N.,  long.  22°  W.,  was  also  of  considerable  energy.  The 
most  extensive  fog  bank  reportei  during  the  month  occurred  on 
the  coast  from  the  24th  to  the  26th,  fron  Boston  to  Norfolk. 
Theunprecedentedly  large  amount  of  ice  this  season  has  been  the 
cause  of  considerable  delay  and  damage  to  vessels  ;  there  are  not 
only  vast  fields  of  ice,  but  also  a  very  large  number  of  bergs, 
some  of  which  are  of  enormous  dimensions.  The  importance  of 
the  knowledge  of  ice  movements  to  navigation  is  recognized  to 
be  so  great,  that  the  Navy  Department  has,  at  the  request  of  the 
U.S.  Hydrographer,  despatched  an  officer  to  Halifax  and  St. 
John's  to  collect  information  upon  the  ice  movements  during  this 
season  and  past  years,  for  the  purpose  of  facilitating  predictions 
of  the  general  movements  in  future.  A  petition  is  also  being 
drawn  up  for  transmission  to  the  Canadian  Government  to  take 
such  steps  as  they  may  deem  advisable  to  obtain  as  thorough  a 
knowledge  as  possible  of  the  currents  in  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence 
and  adjacent  waters,  on  account  of  their  dangerous  character 
during  thick  weather. 

In  the  summary  of  a  meteorological  journal  kept  by  Mr.  C. 
L.  Prince,  at  his  observatory,  Crowborough,  Sussex,  during 
1889,  he  draws  attention  to  the  great  preponderance  of  north- 
east wind  over  all  other  "wind  currents,  and  more  particularly 
over  that  fro  n  the  south-west,  which  has  obtained  during  the 
last  five  years.  He  has  examined  his  registers  for  the  thirty-one 
years  ending  with  1889,  and  finds  that  between  1859  and  1883 
there  were  only  two  years,  viz.  1864  and  1870,  in  which  the 
north-east  wind  has  been  in  excess.  In  1884  the  north-east  and 
south-west  winds  were  nearly  balanced,  but  during  the  last  five 
years  the  average  frequency  has  been  north-east  102,  south-west 
72.  Comparative  observations  would  be  interesting  with  the 
view  of  seeing  whether  this  reversal  of  the  ordinary  conditions 
holds  good  for  other  stations.  The  Greenwich  observations 
show  that  this  great  preponderance  of  north-east  wind  is  not 
borne  out  there,  at  all  events  in  all  of  the  years  mentioned. 


Technical  instruction,  according  to  the  Times  of  India, 
now  takes  a  leading  place  in  the  educational  programme  of  the 
Central  Provinces.  A  year  ago  an  entirely  new  curriculum  was 
devised,  whereby,  among  other  changes,  agricultural  and  engi 
neering  classes  were  established  at  Nagpore  ;  the  scholarship 
rules  were  revised  with  special  reference  to  technical  education  ; 
drawing-masters  were  appointed  at  a  large  number  of  schools, 
and  every  encouragement  was  given  to  the  study  of  that  subject  ; 
and  new  subjects  of  a  technical  and  scientific  character  were 
grafted  on  to  old  school  programmes.  When  the  fact  is  taken 
into  consideration  that  the  year  was  one  of  transition,  the 
progress  made  may  be  pronounced  most  satisfactory.  Eleven 
students  out  of  thirty  who  applied  were  admitted  into  the 
engineering  class  after  a  test  as  to  general  education.  These 
did  well,  and  most  of  them  have  entered  on  a  second  year's 
course.  The  agricultural  class  had  an  average  strength  of 
twenty-five  throughout  the  year,  the  pupils  working  on  the 
model  farm  and  in  the  laboratory  established  in  connection  with 
this  technical  education  scheme.  No  fewer  than  seventeen  of 
the  lads  came  through  the  ordeal  of  a  strict  examination  at  the 
end  of  the  session.  When  it  is  remembered  how  largely  the 
economic  future  of  India  will  depend  on  the  development  of  her 
agricultural  resources,  the  value  of  this  work,  now  fairly  initiated 
in  the  Central  Provinces,  cannot  be  over-estimated. 

In  the  current  number  of  the  American  Naturalist  Mr. 
R.  E.  C.  Stearns  continues  his  interesting  series  of  papers  on 
the  effects  of  musical  sounds  on  animals.  One  of  his  corre- 
spondents writes  : — "  Some  time  since  I  had  an  ordinary  tortoise- 
shell  cat,  which  had  a  peculiar  fondness  for  the  tune  known  as 
'  Rode's  Air.'  One  day  I  chanced  to  whistle  it,  when,  without 
any  previous  training,  she  jumped  on  my  shoulder,  and  showed 
unmistakable  signs  of  pleasure  by  rubbing  her  head  against 
mine,  and  trying  to  get  as  near  my  mouth  as  possible.  I  have 
tried  many  other  tunes,  but  with  no  avail."  Captain  Noble,  of 
Forest  Lodge,  Maresfield,  England,  testifies  that  he  formerly 
had  a  cat  which  displayed  a  corresponding  sensitiveness,  but  it  was 
only  by  plaintive  tunes  that  she  was  affected.  When  such  an  air 
was  whistled,  she  would  climb  up,  and  try  to  get  her  mouth  as 
close  as  possible  to  that  of  the  whistler.  "  I  used  as  a  rule,"  says 
Captain  Noble,  "to  whistle  the  'Last  Rose  of  Summer,'  when 
I  wished  her  to  perform.  I  never  could  satisfy  myself  as  to  her 
motive  in  putting  her  mouth  to  mine.  The  most  feasible  con- 
jecture that  I  was  able  to  make  seemed  to  be  that  she  imagined 
me  to  be  in  pain,  and  in  some  way  tried  either  to  soothe  me,  or 
to  stop  my  whistling. " 

A  PAPER  on  forestry  in  India  and  the  colonies  was  read  last 
week  by  Dr.  W.  Schlich  before  the  Royal  Colonial  Institute. 
He  said  that  for  700  years  a  gradual  destruction  of  the  forests  of 
India  had  gone  on.  Under  British  rule  the  process  had  been 
hastened  by  the  extension  of  cultivated  and  pasture  land,  and  by 
the  laying  down  of  railways.  After  a  time  difficulty  was  ex- 
perienced in  meeting  demands  for  timber,  and  in  the  early  part 
of  the  century  a  timber  agency  was  established  on  the  west 
coast,  while,  in  1873,  a  teak  plantation  on  a  large  scale  was 
made  at  Nilambui-.  Through  the  energy  of  a  few  officials  the 
matter  was  kept  before  the  public,  and  in  1882  the  Forests 
Department  of  Madras  was  entirely  reorganized.  Several  Acts 
were  passed  to  provide  for  the  management  of  the  forests  under 
the  protection  of  the  State,  and  a  competent  staff  of  officers  was 
provided,  to  be  reinforced  from  time  to  time  by  those  educated 
at  Cooper's  Hill  College.  Under  the  charge  of  the  Department 
were  some  55,000,000  acres  of  forest  lands,  and  the  figures  re- 
lating to  the  cost  of  the  work  done  were  very  satisfactory.  Dr. 
Schlich  then  gave  an  account  of  the  action  of  the  Australian 
colonies  with  regard  to  the  regulation  of  wooded  lands  by  the 
State,  contending  that  in  no  case  had  sufficient  steps  been  taken 
to  ensure  a  lasting  and  continuous  supply  of  timber. 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


471 


We  print  to-day  a  review  of  Dr.  Sydney  J.  Hickson's  valu- 
able work,  "  A  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes."  It  may  be  well 
at  the  same  time  to  call  attention  to  an  "Album"  which  has 
been  sent  to  us,  containing  reproductions  of  photographs  taken 
in  Celebes.  The  collection  has  been  formed  by  Dr.  A.  B. 
Meyer,  director  of  the  Zoological  and  Ethnographical  Museum  of 
Dresden,  and  includes  37  plates,  on  which  about  250  reproduc- 
tions are  printed.  In  iSyoand  iSyiDr.  Meyer  spent  some  time  in 
Celebes,  and  the  greater  number  of  the  photographs  which  have 
been  reproduced  he  brought  back  with  him.  Others  he  has  re- 
ceived from  friends.  We  cannot  say  that  the  process  employed 
has  always  yielded  perfectly  satisfactory  results  ;  nevertheless, 
the  "Album"  contains  many  representations  that  cannot  fail  to 
interest  students  of  anthropology  and  ethnography.  There  are 
groups  of  portraits  from  northern,  central,  and  southern  Celebes, 
and  any  one  who  carefully  studies  them  will  find  that  tliey  give 
him  a  very  vivid  idea  of  the  various  types  of  the  native  popula- 
tion. The  tables  are  accompanied  by  short  explanatory  notices, 
some  of  the  best  of  which  are  by  Dr.  J.  G.  F.  Riedel,  Utrecht. 
The  work  is  edited  by  Dr.  Meyer,  and  issued  by  Messrs.  Stengel 
and  Markert,  Dresden. 

Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co.  have  published  a  second  edition 
of  Sir  John  Lubbock's  well-known  "  Scientific  Lectures."  The 
author  includes  in  this  edition  the  Presidential  address  read  by 
him  before  the  Institute  of  Bankers  in  1879.  The  address  con- 
tains many  interesting  suggestions  as  to  the  development  of 
coinage,  and  is  illustrated  by  two  excellent  plates  representing 
ancient  coins. 

We  have  received  the  fifth  volume  of"  Blackie's  Modern  Cyclo- 
pitdia,"  edited  by  Dr.  Charles  Annandal.e.  The  volume  includes 
words  from  "  Image  ''  to  "  Momus,"  and  the  articles,  so  far  as 
we  have  tested  them,  are,  like  those  of  the  preceding  volumes, 
concise  and  accurate. 

The  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  of  Liverpool  has 
published  Nos.  41,  42,  and  43  of  its  Proceedings.  Among  the 
papers  printed,  we  may  note  "  Life  and  Writings  of  the  Hon. 
Robert  Boyle,"  by  Mr.  E.  C.  Davies ;  "An  Ideal  Natural 
History  Museum,"  by  Prof.  Herdman  ;  "On  the  Remains  of 
Temperate  and  Sub-Tropical  Plants  found  in  Arctic  Rocks,"  by 
the  Rev.  H.  H.  Higgins :  "Notes  on  the  Cooke  Collection  of 
British  Lepidoptera,"  by  Mr.  J.  W.  Ellis;  "Lake  Lahontan, 
an  Extinct  Quaternary  Lake  of  North- West  Nevada,  U.S.A.," 
by  Mr.  R.  McLintock  ;  "On  the  Individuality  of  Atoms  and 
Molecules,"  by  the  Rev.  H.  H.  Higgins  ;  note  on  the  foregoing, 
by  Prof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge  ;  "  The  Complete  Analysis  of  Four 
Autopolar  lO-Edra,"  by  the  Rev.  T.  P.  Kirkman  ;  and  "  On  the 
Cradle  of  the  Aryans,"  by  Principal  Rendall. 

Mr.  Fletcher,  the  well-known  manufacturer  of  gas  appli- 
ances, has  just  \ssued  a  little  work  of  70  pages  on  "Coal  Gas  as 
a  Fuel"  (Warrington  :  Mackie  and  Co.).  Perhaps  no  one  has 
given  more  attention  to  the  subject  than  Mr.  Fletcher,  and  his 
book  is  therefore  of  considerable  importance.  He  gives  an 
account  of  the  precautions  necessary  to  obtain  the  greatest 
efficiency  in  every  case  where  coal  gas  can  be  applied — in  the 
kitchen,  bath-room,  greenhouse,  workshop,  and  laboratory. 
There  is  a  useful  chapter  giving  instructions  to  fitters  with 
respect  to  flues  and  dimensions  of  service  pipes.  All  who  con- 
sume gas  for  purposes  other  than  ordinary  house  illumination, 
will  do  well  to  read  Mr.  Fletcher's  book. 

A  CURIOUS  observation  relating  to  influenza  is  quoted  in 
La  Nature  from  a  Copenhagen  journal.  At  the  Royal  Institu- 
tion for  education  of  deaf-mutes  there,  the  pupils  (about  70  boys 
and  girls)  have  for  seven  years  been  regularly  weighed  every 
day  in  groups  of  15  and  under.  This  new  experiment  has 
yielded  some  interesting  results.  Thus  it  has  been  found  that 
the  children's  growth  in  weight  has  occurred  chiefly  in  autumn  \ 


and  in  the  first  part  of  December ;  there  is  hardly  any  in 
the  rest  of  winter  and  in  March  and  April,  and  a  diminution 
then  occurs  till  the  end  of  summer.  Last  year  proved  an  ex- 
ception. The  curves  of  weight  were  quite  like  those  of  previous 
years  till  November  23.  In  the  four  weeks  thereafter,  while 
each  child  has  usually  gained  on  an  average  over  500  grammes, 
the  gills  last  year  gained  nothing,  and  the  boys  only  200  grammes 
each  (less  than  two-fifths  of  the  normal  amount).  The  contrast 
with  1888  was  even  more  remarkable,  700  grammes  having  been 
the  average  four-weeks'  gain  in  that  year.  There  was  no  modifi- 
cation as  regards  food  or  other  material  conditions.  Now,  the 
influenza  epidemic  appeared  in  Copenhagen  towards  the  end  of 
November.  W'hile  six  of  the  professors  at  this  institution  were 
attacked,  there  were  no  pronounced  cases  among  the  pupils  ; 
but  it  is  supposed  that  germs  of  the  disease  having  entered  the 
place,  the  struggle  with  these  on  the  part  of  the  children  ab- 
sorbed so  much  vital  force  that  the  organs  of  nutrition  failed  to 
give  the  normal  increase  of  weight  after  November  23. 

A  remarkable  fall  of  a  miner  down  100  metres  of  shaft  (say 
333  feet)  without  being  killed,  is  recorded  by  M.  Reumeaux  in 
the  Bulletin  de  V Industrie  Minirale.  Working  with  his  brother 
in  a  gallery  which  issued  on  the  shaft,  he  forgot  the  direction  in 
which  he  was  pushing  a  truck,  so  it  went  over  and  he  after  iti 
falling  into  some  mud  with  about  3  inches  of  water.  He  seems 
neither  to  have  struck  any  of  the  wood  debris,  nor  the  sides  of 
the  shaft,  and  he  showed  no  contusions  when  he  was  helped  out 
by  his  brother  after  about  ten  minutes.  He  could  not,  however* 
recall  any  of  his  impressions  during  the  fall.  The  velocity  on 
reaching  the  bottom  would  be  about  140  feet,  and  time  of  fall 
4'I2  seconds;  but  it  is  thought  he  must  have  taken  longer.  It 
appears  strange  that  he  should  have  escaped  simple  suff'ocation 
and  loss  of  consciousness  during  a  time  sufficient  for  the  water  to 
have  drowned  him. 

An  extremely  useful  piece  of  apparatus  has  been  devised  by  Prof. 
Lunge,  and  is  described  in  the  current  number  of  the  Berichte,  by 
useof  which  all  the  troublesome  reductions  to  standard  temperature 
and  pressure  in  the  measurement  of  gas  volumes  maybe  avoided, 
the  volume  being  actually  real  off"  corrected  to  0°  C.  and  760  mm. 
pressure.  The  arrangement  is  at  once  simple  and  capable  of 
adaptation  to  any  form  of  gas  apparatus.  It  consists  essentially 
of  three  glass  tubes.  A,  B,  and  C,  arranged  parallel  to  each 
other  vertically,  and  all  connected  with  each  other  below  by 
means  of  a  glass  T  tube  and  stout  caoutchouc  tubing.  A  is  the 
measuring  vessel,  graduated  in  cubic  centimetres  ;  any  gas 
measuring  vessel,  such  as  that  of  a  nitrometer,  or  of  a  Hempel 
or  other  gas  analysis  apparatus,  may  be  used  for  this  purpose. 
It  is  closed  at  the  top  by  the  usual  well- fitting  stopcock,  through 
which  the  gas  to  be  m.easured  is  introduced  in  the  ordinary 
manner.  Below,  the  gas  is  enclosed  by  mercury  which  is 
poured  down  the  tube  C  ;  Prof.  Lunge  terms  this  latter  the 
pressure  tube.  The  pressure  tube  is  simply  an  ordinary  straight 
glass  tube  of  similar  diameter  and  length  to  the  measuring  tube 
A,  and  open  at  the  top.  The  tube  B,  called  the  reduction 
tube,  is  of  about  the  same  length,  but  of  somewhat  greater 
diameter  in  its  upper  half.  This  cylindrical  expansion  nar.  ows 
again  at  the  top,  and  terminates  with  a  well-greased  stopcock. 
A  is  firmly  clamped  to  the  stand,  while  B  and  C  are  held  in 
spring  clamps  which  permit  of  ready  lowering  or  raising.  The 
reduction  tube  B  is  then  prepared  as  a  reference  tube,  once  for 
all,  in  the  following  manner.  The  stopcocksof  AandB  are  opened, 
and  mercury  is  poured  down  C  until  it  rises  nearly  to  the  ex- 
panded portion  of  B.  A  drop  of  water  is  then  introduced  into 
B  so  that  the  enclosed  air  is  saturated  with  aqueous  vapour. 
The  thermometer  and  barometer  are  next  observed,  and  the 
apparent  volume  calculated  of  100  c.c.  of  gas  at  0°  and  760  mm. 
A  mark  is  then  made  upon  the  reduction  tube  B  so  that  the 
volume  of  the  tube  between  this  mark  and  the  stopcock  is  the 


472 


NATURE 


[March  20,  1890 


calculated  apparent  volume  of  the  standard  loo  c.c.  The  size 
of  the  tube  is  so  arranged  that  this  mark  falls  on  the  narrower 
portion  of  the  tube,  just  below  the  expanded  part.  The  pres- 
sure tube  C  is  then  raised  or  lowered  until  the  mercury  in 
B  stands  at  the  mark,  when  the  stopcock  at  the  top  of  B  is 
closed.  Thus  a  volume  of  air  is  enclosed  which  at  o°  and 
760  mm.  and  in  the  dry  state  would  occupy  exactly  lOO  c.c. 
In  order  to  determine  the  corrected  volume  of  a  gas  it  is  then 
only  necessary  to  introduce  it  into  the  measuring  tube  A,  allow 
it  to  cool  to  the  temperature  of  the  room,  and  then  adjust  B 
until  the  mark  is  a  little  higher  than  the  mercury  meniscus  in 
A  ;  C  is  next  raised  until  the  mercury  in  B  rises  to  the  mark, 
when  B  and  C  are  finally  simultaneously  lowered  until  the  level 
of  the  mercury  in  A  and  B  is  the  same.  The  gas  in  A  and  the 
air  in  B  are  evidently  equally  compressed,  and  thus  the  volume 
read  off  upon  the  measuring  tube  A  represents  the  corrected 
volume  at  o°  and  760  mm.  The  simplicity  of  the  arrangement 
and  the  rapidity  with  which  it  can  be  worked  are  sure  to  recom- 
mend it  for  general  use  ;  and  its  applicability  to  the  estimation  of 
nitrogen  in  organic  substances,  which  Prof.  Lunge  discusses  in 
detail,  will  doubtless  be  especially  appreciated  by  those  who 
employ  the  volumetric  method. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  two  Red  Tiger  Cats  {Felis  planiceps  ]v.)  from 

Malacca,  a  Fish  Eagle  {Polioaetiis  ichtliyactiis)  from  the 

Himalayas,  deposited  ;  a  Gayal  {^Bibos  frontalis  9  ),  bom  in  the 
Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 
Objects  for  the  Spectroscope, 
Sidereal    Time    at    Greenwich   at  10  p.m.  on  March  20  = 


9h.  53m.  31S. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1S90. 

Dec!.  1890. 

n.  m.  s. 

(i)G.C.  2008      

■r- 

— 

9  59  44 

-   7  II 

(2)  It  Leonis        

s 

Yellowish-red. 

9  54  24 

-f  8  34 

(3)  a  Ursas  Majoris  ... 

2 

Yellow. 

10  57     0 

-f-62  21 

(4)  ^  Ursse  Majoris  ... 

2 

White. 

10  5S  12 

-(-56  59 

(5)D.M.  +68"  617   ... 

6 

Red. 

10  37  26 

+  67  59 

(6)  R  Virginis     

Var. 

Red-yellow. 

12  32  55 

-1-  7  35'6 

(7)  U  Bootis       

Var. 

~ 

14  49  15 

-I-18     8-6 

Remarks. 

(i)  This  nebula  is  described  in  the  General  Catalogue  as 
' '  Very  bright  ;  large  ;  very  much  extended  in  a  direction  45°  ; 
at  first  very  gradually,  then  very  suddenly  much  brighter  in  the 
middle  to  an  extended  nucleus."  The  spectrum  of  the  nebula 
was  observed  by  Lieut.  Herschel  in  1868,  but  his  observations 
are  not  quite  complete.  He  states  that  a  continuous  spectrum 
was  suspected,  and  that  there  were  probably  no  lines  present. 
Further  observations  are  obviously  required. 

(2)  A  star  of  Group  II.  Duner  states  that  the  bands  2-8  are 
well  seen,  but  that  4  and  5  are  somewhat  feeble.  The  spectrum 
is  not  strongly  marked.  The  star  is  probably  approaching  the 
temperature  at  which  the  bands  will  be  replaced  by  lines,  and 
affords  an  opportunity  of  studying  the  order  of  the  appearance 
of  the  lines. 

(3)  A  star  of  the  solar  type  (Gothard).  The  usual  differential 
observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Gothard).  The  usual  observations 
are  required. 

(5)  One  of  the  finest  examples  of  stars  with  spectra  of  Group 
VI.  Duner  states  that  the  four  bright  zones  and  all  the  bands 
which  he  has  numbered  l-io  are  visible.  In  this  star,  band  6 
is  weaker  than  the  other  carbon  bands.  Band  5  is  strong  :  I,  2, 
and  3  are  weaker ;  and  7  and  8  are  visible  with  difficulty. 

(6)  This  variable  will  reach  a  maximum  on  March  28.  The 
period  is  about  146  days  and  the  magnitudes  at  maximum  and 
minimum  6 "5-7 '5  and  io-lo"9  respectively  (Gore).  The  spec- 
trum is  a  remarkable  one  of  the  Group  II.  type,  and  the 
great  range  suggests  the  possible  appearance  of  bright  lines  at 


maximum,  as  in  R  Andromedse,  &c.,  observed  by  Mr.  Espin. 
Mr.  Espin  has  noticed  that  in  the  variables,  where  F  is  very 
bright,  the  bright  lines  do  not  appear  until  some  time  afte>-  the 
maximum.  It  is  therefore  important  to  continue  observations 
for  a  considerable  period. 

(7)  No  record  of  the  spectrum  of  this  variable  appears  to 
have  been  published.  The  period  is  about  176  days.  The 
magnitude  at  maximum  is  9-9 '5,  and  that  at  minimum  1 3  "5 
(Gore).     A  maximum  will  be  reached  about  March  23, 

A.  Fowler. 

The  M^gueia  Meteorite.— This  meteorite  was  observed 
to  fall  at  Megueia,  in  Russia,  on  June  18,  1889,  and  a  short 
account  of  Prof.  Simaschko's  analysis  of  it  is  found  in  the 
current  number  of  L'Astronomie.  It  is  noted  that  the  meteorite 
belongs  to  that  remarkable  division  containing  carbon  in  com- 
bination with  hydrogen  and  oxygen.  The  meteorites  of  this  class 
are  Alais,  1806,  Cold  Bokkeveldt,  1838,  Kaba,  1857,  Orgueil, 
1864,  and  Nogoya,  1880.  The  Megueia  meteorite  is  covered  with  a 
thin  (o'5  mm.)  crust,  is  black,  partly  dull  and  partly  shiny,  and 
somewhat  friable.  A  microscopical  examination  showed  dark  grey 
specks  distributed  through  the  black  mass,  varying  in  size  from  a 
mustard-seed  to  a  hemp-seed.  These  grey  specks  have  a  more  or 
less  chondritic  structure,  and  are  different  in  composition  from 
the  mass  of  the  meteorite.  Besides  these  chondrules,  the 
greenish,  semi-transparent  particles  of  olivine  are  seen  as  in 
almost  all  other  meteorites,  whilst  nickel-iron  is  disseminated 
through  the  mass  in  small  grains,  and  occurs  in  a  half-fused  state 
on  the  crust.  Account  is  also  given  of  white  angular  scales, 
much  resembling  certain  fossils,  but  this  is  not  the  first  time  that 
the  chondrules  with  their  eccentrically  radiating  crystallization 
have  been  mistaken  for  organisms.  Like  other  carbonaceous 
meteorites,  that  of  Megueia  has  a  bituminous  smell. 

The  Velocity  of  the  Propagation  of  Gravitation. 
— M.  J.  Van  Hepperger,  in  a  paper  read  before  the  Vienna 
Academy  of  Science,  has  assigned  an  inferior  limit  to  the  velo- 
city of  propagation  of  gravitation.  It  results  from  this  limit 
that  the  time  taken  by  gravitation  to  travel  the  radius  of  the 
earth's  orbit  does  not  exceed  a  second. 

The  Vatican  Observatory.— The  work  to  be  undertaken 
at  this  new  Observatory  will  be  in  connection  with  meteorology, 
terrestrial  magnetism,  seismology,  and  astronomy.  The  astro- 
nomical portion  will  mainly  be  directed  to  the  photography  of 
the  sun  and  other  celestial  bodies,  and  to  take  part  in  the  con- 
struction of  the  photographic  map  of  the  heavens,  under  the 
direction  of  the  International  Committee. 

Double-star  Observations. — Mr.  S.  W.  Burnham,  of  the 
Lick  Observatory,  gives  his  sixteenth  catalogue  of  double-stars 
in  Astronomische  Nachrichten,  Nos,  2956-57.  The  observa- 
tions were  made  in  May,  June,  and  July  1889,  and  62  new  pairs 
have  been  discovered  and  measured  during  this  period. 

Sun-spot  in  High  Latitudes. — The  Comptes  rendus  of  the 
Paris  Academy  of  Sciences  for  March  10  contains  a  short  note 
by  M.  G.  Dierckx,  in  which  he  states  that  he  observed  a  sun- 
spot  on  March  4  in  N.  lat.  65°.  If  this  were  substantiated,  it 
would  be  an  almost  unprecedented  observation.  But  the  photo- 
graph of  the  sun  taken  at  the  Royal  Observatory,  Greenwich, 
on  that  day,  shows  no  trace  of  a  spot  in  so  high  a  latitude.  A 
fine  group  did  indeed  appear  on  the  sun  on  March  4,  but  its 
latitude  was  only  34°.  This,  however,  is  a  very  interesting 
circumstance,  for  though  spots  have  been  observed  at  consider- 
ably greater  distances  from  the  equator,  they  have  usually  been 
only  small,  and  have  lasted  but  a  few  hours,  or  two  or  three 
days  at  most.  It  would  seem  probable,  therefore,  this  is  the 
group  which  M.  Dierckx  observed,  but  that  he  made  some 
error  in  determining  its  latitude. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

The  limits  of  the  ever-frozen  soil  in  Siberia  are  the  subject 
of  a  paper  by  M.  Yatchevsky,  in  the  Izvestia  of  the  Russian 
Geographical  Society  (vol.  xxv.  5).  It  is  now  generally  ad- 
mitted that  Karl  Baer's  criticism  of  Middendorff's  measure- 
ments in  the  Sherghin  shaft  at  Yakutsk — from  which  measure- 
ments Middendorff  concluded  that  the  depth  of  frozen  soil  at 
Yakutsk  reaches  600  feet — are  well  founded.  The  walls  of  the 
shaft,  which  was  pierced  seven  years  before  Middendorff  came 
to  Yakutsk,  had  cooled  in  the  meantime  through  the  free  access 
of  cold  air,  and  therefore  a  smaller  increment  of  increase  of 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


473 


temperature  with  depth  was  found  by  Middendorff  than  would 
have  been  found  if  the  measurements  had  been  made  in  a  shaft 
immediately  after  its  being  pierced.  Nevertheless,  the  fact  of 
the  frozen  soil  extending  to  a  great  depth,  especially  in  the  val- 
ley of  the  Lena,  is  not  to  be  contested  ;  nor  can  there  be  any 
doubt  as  to  the  extension  of  frozen  soil  over  large  parts  of 
Siberia.  M.  Yatchevsky  attempts  to  determine  its  limits  from 
general  considerations  about  the  average  yearly  temperature  of 
separate  regions,  and  the  thickness  of  their  snow-covering  ;  and 
he  gives  a  map  of  the  probable  southern  limits  of  the  frozen  soil 
in  Siberia,  which  do  not  differ  much  from  the  yearly  isotherm  of 
-  2°  C.  It  must,  however,  be  remarked  that  though  the  map 
approximately  shows  where  the  ever-frozen  soil  may  be  found 
beneath  the  thin  layer  of  soil  which  thaws  every  summer,  it 
ought  not  to  be  concluded  that  ever-frozen  soil  -will  be  found 
everywhere  within  those  limits.  For  instance,  the  granite  rocks 
on  the  surface  of  the  Vitrin  plateau  being  immediately  covered 
with  immense  marshes,  the  water  from  these  marshes  infiltrates 
into  the  rocks,  and,  while  the  marshes  are  covered  during  the 
winter  with  a  crust  of  ice,  their  depths  remain  unfrozen.  It 
may  thus  be  considered  certain  that  immense  spaces  will  be 
found  within  the  theoretical  limits  marked  on  the  map,  where 
no  ever-frozen  soil  will  be  discovered.  The  Russian  Geogra- 
phical Society  is  sending  out  a  series  of  questions,  in  the  hope  of 
obtaining  accurate  information,  and  it  would  be  well  if  the  same 
thing  were  done  in  Canada. 

According  to  a  letter  from  Iceland,  dated  Reykjavik,  Feb- 
ruary 5,  1890,  a  translation  of  which  is  printed  in  the  current 
number  of  the  Board  of  Trade  Journal,  the  population  of  Iceland 
during  the  four  years  from  1885  to  1888  inclusive  has  diminished 
by  about  2400,  the  total  number  at  the  close  of  each  of  these 
years  having  been,  in  1885,  71,613  ;  in  1886,  71,521  ;  in  1887, 
69,641  ;  and  in  1888,  69,224.  This  diminution  was  greatest 
(1880)  in  1887,  the  explanation  for  which  may  be  sought  in  the 
enormous  emigration  to  America  which  took  place  in  that  year. 
The  diminution  in  the  remaining  years,  though  less  sensible, 
must  be  attributed  to  the  same  cause,  as  in  these  years  the 
number  of  births  exceeded  that  of  deaths.  The  chief  diminution 
has  been  shown  by  the  northern  and  eastern  districts.  The 
prefecture  of  Hunavatn  in  particular  has  fallen  off  in  respect  to 
inhabitants  from  4800  in  1885  to  3785  in  1888.  In  Reykjavik, 
the  capital,  the  population  has  risen  from  3460  to  3599. 


ATMOSPHERIC  DUST.^ 

'T'HE  infinitely  small  particles  of  matter  we  call  dust,  though 
possessed  of  a  form  and  structure  which  escape  the  naked 
eye,  play,  as  you  are  doubtless  aware,  important  parts  in  the 
phenomena  of  nature.  A  certain  kind  of  dust  has  the  power  of 
decomposing  organic  bodies,  and  bringing  about  in  them 
definite  changes  known  as  putrefaction,  while  others  exert  a 
baneful  influence  on  health,  and  act  as  a  source  of  infectious 
diseases.  Again,  from  its  lightness  and  extreme  mobility,  dust 
is  a  means  of  scattering  solid  matter  over  the  earth.  It  may 
float  in  the  atmosphere  as  mud  does  in  water,  and  blown  by 
the  wind  will  perhaps  travel  thousands  of  miles  before  again 
alighting  on  the  earth.  Thus  Ehrenberg,  in  1828,  detected 
in  the  air  of  Berlin  the  presence  of  organisms  belonging  to 
African  regions,  and  he  found  in  the  air  of  Portugal  fragments 
of  Infusorise  from  the  steppes  of  America.  The  smoke  of  the 
burning  of  Chicago  was,  according  to  Mr.  Clarence  King 
(Director  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey),  seen  on  the 
Pacific  coast. 

Dust  is  concerned  in  many  interesting  meteorological  pheno- 
mena, such  as  fogs,  as  it  is  generally  admitted  that  fogs  are 
due  to  the  deposit  of  moisture  on  atmospheric  motes.  Again, 
the  scattering  of  light  depends  on  the  presence  of  dust,  and  you 
may  remember  ray  showing  you  on  a  former  occasion  that 
beautiful  experiment  of  Tyndall,  illustrating  the  disappearance 
of  a  ray  of  light  when  made  to  travel  through  a  glass  receiver 
free  from  dust,  whilst  reappearing  as  soon  as  dust  is  admitted 
into  the  vessel.  There  is  no  atmosphere  without  dust,  although 
it  varies  largely  in  quantity,  from  the  summit  of  the  highest 
mountain,  where  the  least  is  found,  to  the  low  plains,  at  the 
seaside  level,  where  it  occurs  in  the  largest  quantities. 

The  origin  of  dust  may  be  looked  upon,  without  exaggeration. 

An  Address  delivered  to  the  Royal  Meteorological  Societj',  January  15, 
1890,  by  Dr.  William  Marcet,  F.R.S.,  President. 


as  universal.  Trees  shed  their  bark  and  leaves,  which  are 
powdered  in  dry  weather  and  carried  about  by  ever-varying 
currents  of  air,  plants  dry  up  and  crumble  into  dust,  the  skin  of 
man  and  animal  is  constantly  shedding  a  dusty  material  of  a 
scaly  form.  The  ground  in  dry  weather,  high  roads  under  a 
midsummer's  sun,  emit  clouds  of  dust  consisting  of  very  fine 
particles  of  earth.  The  fine  river  and  desert  sand,  a  species  of 
dust,  is  silica  ground  down  into  a  fine  powder  under  the  action 
of  water. 

If  the  vegetable  and  mineral  world  crumbles  into  dust,  on  the 
other  hand  it  is  highly  probable  that  dust  was  the  original  state 
of  matter  before  the  earth  and  heavenly  bodies  were  formed ; 
and  here  we  enter  the  region  of  theory  and  probabilities.  In  a 
science  like  meteorology,  where  a  wide  door  is  open  to  specu- 
lation, we  should  avoid  as  much  as  possible  stepping  out  of  the 
track  of  known  facts  ;  still  there  is  a  limit  to  physical  observa- 
tion, and  in  some  cases  we  can  do  no  more  than  glance  inlo  the 
possible  or  probable  source  of  natural  phenomena.  Are  we  on 
this  account  to  give  up  inquiring  for  causes  ?  This  question  I 
shall  beg  to  leave  you  to  decide,  but  where  we  have  such  an  expe- 
rienced authority  as  Norman  Lockyer,  I  think  the  weight  attached 
to  possibilities  and  theories  is  sufficiently  great  to  warant  my 
drawing  your  attention  for  a  few  moments  to  the  probable  origin 
of  the  stars  and  of  our  earth. 

I  dare  say  many  of  you  have  read  the  interesting  article  in  the 
Nineteenth  Century  of  November  last,  by  Norman  Lockyer,  and 
entitled  "The  History  of  a  Star."  The  author  proposes  to 
clear  in  our  imagination  a  limited  part  of  space,  and  then  set 
possible  causes  to  work  ;  that  dark  void  will  sooner  or  later  be 
filled  with  some  form  of  matter  so  fine  that  it  is  impossible  to 
give  it  a  chemical  name,  but  the  matter  will  eventually  condense 
into  a  kind  of  dust  mixed  with  hydrogen  gas,  and  constitute 
what  are  called  nebulce.  These  nebulae  are  found  by  spectrum 
analysis  to  be  made  up  of  known  substances,  which  are  mag- 
nesium, carbon,  oxygen,  iron,  silicon,  and  sulphur.  Fortunately 
for  persons  interested  in  such  inquiries,  this  dust  comes  down  ta 
us  in  a  tangible  form.  Not  only  have  we  dust  shed  from  the  sky 
on  the  earth,  but  large  masses,  magnificent  specimens  of  meteor- 
ites which  have  fallen  from  the  heavens  at  different  times,  some 
of  them  weighing  tons,  may  be  submitted  to  examination. 
From  the  spectroscopic  analysis  of  the  dust  of  meteorites  we  find 
that  in  addition  to  hydrogen  their  chief  constituents  are  mag- 
nesium, iron,  silicon,  oxygen,  and  sulphur. 

There  are  swarms  of  dust  travelling  through  space,  and 
their  motion  may  be  gigantic.  We  know,  for  instance,  some 
stars  to  be  moving  so  quickly  that,  from  Sir  Robert  Ball's 
calculations,  one  among  them  would  travel  from  London  to 
Pekin  in  something  like  two  minutes.  From  photographs  takett 
of  the  stars  and  nebulae,  we  are  entitled  to  conclude  that  the 
swarms  of  dust  meet  and  interlace  each  other,  becoming  raised 
from  friction  and  collision  to  a  very  high  temperature,  and 
giving  rise  to  what  looks  like  a  star.  The  light  would  last  so 
long  as  the  swarms  collide,  but  would  go  out  should  the 
collision  fail ;  or,  again,  such  a  source  of  supply  of  heat  may  be 
withdrawn  by  the  complete  passage  of  one  stream  of  dust- 
swarms  through  another.  We  shall,  therefore,  have  various 
bodies  in  the  heavens,  suddenly  or  gradually  increasing  or  de- 
creasing in  brightness,  quite  irregularly,  unlike  those  other 
bodies  where  we  get  a  periodical  variation  in  consequence  of  the 
revolution  of  one  of  them  round  the  other.  Hence,  as  Norman 
Lockyer  expresses  it  clearly,  "  it  cannot  be  too  strongly  insisted 
upon  that  the  chief  among  the  new  ideas  introduced  by  the 
recent  work  is  that  a  great  many  stars  are  not  stars  like  the  sun, 
but  simply  collections  of  meteorites,  the  particles  of  which  may 
be  probably  thirty,  forty,  or  fifty  miles' apart." 

The  swarms  of  dust  referred  to  above  undergo  condensation 
by  attraction  or  gravitation ;  they  will  become  hotter  and 
brighter  as  their  volume  decreases,  and  we  shall  pass  from  the 
nebulae  to  what  we  call  true  stars. 

The  author  of  the  paper  I  am  quoting  from  imagines  such 
condensed  masses  of  meteoric  dust  being  pelted  or  bombarded 
by  meteoric  material,  producing  heat  and  light,  which  effect  will 
continue  so  long  as  the  pelting  is  kept  up.  To  this  circumstance 
is  due  the  formation  of  stars  like  suns.  Our  earth  originally 
belonged  to  that  class  of  heavenly  bodies,  but  from  a  subsequent 
process  of  cooling  assumed  its  present  character. 

While  apologizing  for  this  digression  into  extra-atmospheric 
dust,  I  shall  propose  to  divide  atmospheric  dust  into  organic, 
or  combustible,  and  mineral,  or  incombustible.  The  dust  scat- 
tered everywhere  in  the  atmosphere,  and  which  is  lighted  up  in 


474 


NATURE 


\_March  20,  1890 


a  sunbeam,  or  a  ray  from  the  electric  lamp,  is  of  an  organic 
nature.  It  is  seen  to  consist  of  countless  motes,  rising,  falling, 
or  gyrating,  although  it  is  impossible  to  follow  any  of  them  with 
the  eye  for  longer  than  a  fraction  of  a  second.  We  conclude 
that  their  weight  exceeds  but  very  slightly  that  of  the  air,  and 
moreover,  that  the  atmosphere  is  the  seat  of  multitudes  of 
minute  currents,  assuming  all  kinds  of  directions.  Similar  cur- 
rents, though  on  a  much  larger  scale,  are  also  met  with  in  the 
air.  One  day  last  June,  from  the  top  of  Eiffel's  Tower  in  Paris, 
I  amused  myself  throwing  an  unfolded  newspaper  over  the  rail 
carried  round  the  summmit  of  the  tower.  At  first  it  fell  slowly, 
carried  away  by  a  light  breeze,  but  presently  it  rose,  and,  de- 
scribing a  curve,  began  again  to  fall.  As  it  was  vanishing  from 
sight,  the  paper  seemed  to  me  as  if  arrested  now  and  then  in  its 
descent,  perhaps  undergoing  again  a  slight  upheaval.  Here 
was,  indeed,  a  gigantic  mote  floating  in  the  atmosphere,  and 
subject  to  the  same  physical  laws,  though  on  a  larger  scale,  as 
those  delicate  filaments  of  dust  we  see  dancing  merrily  in  a 
sunbeam. 

I  recollect  witnessing  at  one  of  the  Friday  evening  lectures  of 
the  Royal  Institution  in  the  year  1870  the  following  beautiful 
experiment  of  Dr.  Tyndall,  illustrative  of  the  properties  of 
atmospheric  dust : — If  we  place  the  flame  of  a  spirit-lamp  or  a 
red-hot  metal  ball  in  the  track  of  a  beam  of  light,  there  will  be 
seen  masses  of  dark  shadows  resembling  smoke  emitted  in  all 
directions  from  the  source  of  heat.  At  first  sight  this  appears 
as  if  due  to  the  dust-particles  being  burnt  into  smoke  ;  but  by 
substituting  for  the  spirit- flame  or  red-hot  metal  ball  an  object 
heated  to  a  temperature  too  low  to  burn  the  motes,  the  same 
appearance  of  smoke  is  observed,  hence  the  phenomenon  is 
not  owing  to  the  combustion  of  the  dust.  The  explanation, 
'however,  is  obvious.  The  source  of  heat,  by  warming  the  air 
in  its  contact,  and  immediate  proximity,  made  the  air  lighter 
and  the  motes  relatively  heavier,  consequently  they  fell,  and 
left  spaces  free  from  dust.  These  spaces  in  the  track  of  the 
electric  ray  appeared  dark,  or  looked  as  if  full  of  a  dense  smoke, 
because  the  light  of  the  ray  could  no  longer  be  scattered  in  them 
from  the  absence  of  dust. 

The  motes  were  next  examined  by  Tyndall,  to  determine 
whether  they  were  organic  or  mineral.  This  was  done  by 
driving  a  slow  current  of  air  through  a  platinum  tube  heated  to 
redness,  and  examining  this  air  afterwards  in  a  beam  of  light ; 
it  was  then  found  to  darken  the  ray,  having  lost  the  power  of 
scattering  light ;  therefore  the  dust  had  been  destroyed  or  burnt 
lay  passing  through  the  red-hot  platinum  tube,  clearly  showing 
its  organic  nature. 

We  breathe  into  our  lungs  day  and  night  this  very  finely- 
divided  dust,  and  yet  it  produces  no  ill  effect,  no  bronchial 
irritation.  Tyndall  has  again  shown  by  the  analytical  power  of 
a  ray  of  light  what  becomes  of  the  motes  we  inhale. 

Allow  me  to  return  to  the  experiment  with  the  red-hot  metal 
ball  placed  in  the  beam  of  the  electric  light.  Should  a  person 
breathe  on  the  heated  ball,  the  dark  smoke  hovering  around  it 
will  at  first  disappear,  but  it  will  reappear  in  the  last  portions  of 
the  air  expired.  What  does  this  mean?  It  means  that  the 
first  portions  of  air  expired  from  the  lungs  contain  the  atmo- 
spheric motes  inhaled,  but  that  the  last  portions,  after  reaching 
the  deepest  recesses  in  the  organs  of  respiration,  have  deposited 
there  the  dust  they  contained. 

It  is  difficult  to  say  how  much  of  the  dust  present  in  the  air 
may  become  a  source  of  disease,  and  how  much  is  innocuous. 
Many  of  the  moles  belong  to  the  class  of  micro-organisms,  and 
the  experiment  to  which  we  have  just  referred  shows  how  easily 
these  micro-organisms,  or  sources  of  infectious  diseases,  can 
reach  the  lungs  and  do  mischief  if  they  should  find  a  condition  of 
the  body  on  which  they  are  able  to  thrive  and  be  reproduced. 
Atmospheric  motes,  although  it  has  been  shown  that  they  are 
really  deposited  in  the  respiratory  organs,  do  not  accumulate  in 
the  lungs  and  air-passages,  but  undergo  decomposition  and 
disappear  in  the  circulation.  Smoke,  which  is  finely-divided 
coal-dust,  is  clearly  subjected  to  such  a  destructive  process ; 
otherwise  the  smoky  atmosphere  of  many  of  our  towns  would 
soon  prove  fatal,  and  tobacco  smoke  would  leave  a  deposit 
interfering  seriously  after  a  very  short  time  with  the  phenomena 
of  respiration. 

Dust,  however,  in  its  physical  aspect  is  far  from  being  always 
innocuous,  and,  as  you  are  aware,  many  trades  are  liable  to 
suffer  from  it.  The  cutting  of  chaff,  for  horses'  food,  is  one  of 
the  most  pernicious  occupations,  as  it  generates  clouds  of  dust  of 
an  essentially  penetrating  character.     Those  engaged  in  needle 


manufactures  and  steel-grinders  suffer  much  from  the  dust  of 
metallic  particles.  Stone-cutters,  and  workmen  in  plaster  of 
Paris,  coal-heavers,  cotton  and  hemp  spinners  are  also  engaged 
in  trades  injurious  to  health  because  of  the  dust  these  men  un- 
avoidably work  in.  Those  engaged  in  cigar  and  rope  manu- 
factures, or  in  flour-mills,  hat  and  carpet  manufacturers,  are  also 
liable  to  suffer  for  the  same  reason.  A  number  of  methods  have 
been  adopted,  more  or  less  successfully,  to  rid  these  trades  of 
the  danger  due  to  the  presence  of  dust.  I  shall  not  detain  you 
on  this  subject,  which  would  carry  me  too  far,  but  merely  bring 
to  your  notice  the  fact  I  observed  many  years  ago,  that  charcoal 
has  the  power  of  retaining  dust  in  a  remarkable  degree.  I  had 
charcoal  respirators  made  of  such  a  form  as  to  cover  both  the 
mouth  and  nose,  and  containing  about  ^-inch  thick  of  charcoal 
in  a  granular  state.  I  could  breathe  through  such  a  respirator 
in  the  thickest  cloud  of  dust  made  by  chaff-cutting  without  being 
conscious  of  inhaling  any  of  the  dust. 

The  subject  of  micro-organisms  belongs  to  the  science  known 
as  micro-biology.  As  meteorologists  we  are  chiefly  concerned 
with  their  distribution  in  the  atmosphere.  Micro-organisms  are 
dust-like  particles  capable  of  cultivation  or  reproduction  in 
certain  media  and  at  certain  temperatures.  If  a  particle  of 
matter  known  to  contain  micro-organisms,  also  called  bacilli,  be 
placed  on  a  clear  surface  of  gelatine  and  maintained  at  a  tem- 
perature favourable  to  its  development,  in  a  short  time  the 
gelatine  will  be  found  to  contain  a  colony  of  those  same  bacilli. 
A  fact  so  often  stated  as  to  become  a  medical  truism  is  that  there 
can  be  no  infectious  disease  without  the  presence  of  the  micro- 
organism special  to  that  disease.  Open  cesspools,  putrid  meat 
or  vegetable  matter,  accumulations  of  refuse,  have  no  ill  effects 
on  health  unless  the  micro-organisms  of  a  certain  disease,  as  those 
of  typhoid  fever  or  cholera,  be  present.  On  such  foul  decom- 
posing matters  these  organisms  thrive.  They  are  reproduced 
with  great  activity,  and  become  virulent  in  their  effects. 

Micro-organisms  are  scattered  everywhere  in  the  atmosphere. 
Dr.  Miguel,  at  the  Montsouris  Observatory  at  Paris,  has  made 
an  extensive  inquiry  into  their  distribution  in  air  and  water. 
In  this  country  Dr.  Percy  Frankland  has,  with  praiseworthy 
labour  and  perseverance,  investigated  the  subject  of  micro- 
organisms, and  ascertained  their  number  in  various  localities. 
The  result  of  his  inquiry  is  that  in  cold  weather,  especially  when 
the  ground  is  covered  with  snow,  the  number  of  organisms  in 
the  air  is  very  much  reduced,  and  presents  a  very  striking  con- 
trast with  that  found  in  warmer  weather.  The  experiments 
made  on  March  9  show  that  during  cold  and  dry  weather,  with 
a  strong  east  wind  blowing  over  London,  a  large  number  of 
micro-organisms  may  still  be  present  in  the  air.  It  is  particularly 
noticeable  that  even  after  an  exceedingly  heavy  rain,  and  within 
a  few  hours  afterwards,  the  number  of  micro-organisms  in  the 
air  should  be  as  abundant  as  usual.  Taking  an  average  of  the 
experiments  made  on  the  roof  of  the  Science  Schools  of  the 
South  Kensington  Museum,  the  mean  number  of  organisms 
found  in  10  litres  of  air  amounted  to  35,  while  an  average  of  279 
fell  on  one  square  foot  in  one  minute.  Other  experiments  made 
near  Reigate  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Norwich  present  a  marked 
contrast  with  those  undertaken  in  the  South  Kensington  Museum. 
There  was  a  remarkable  freedom  from  micro-organisms  of  the 
air  collected  on  the  heath  near  Norwich  during  the  compara- 
tively warm  April  weather,  when  the  ground  was  dry.  The  air 
in  gardens  at  Norwich  and  Reigate  was  richer  in  micro-organisms 
than  that  of  the  open  country.  Again,  the  number  of  organisms 
found  in  the  air  of  Kensington  Gardens,  Hyde  Park,  and  Prim- 
rose Hill  was  less  than  in  that  taken  from  the  roof  of  South 
Kensington,  but  greater  than  in  the  country. 

Experiments  made  in  inclo-ed  places,  where  there  is  little 
or  no  aerial  motion,  show  the  number  of  suspended  organisms 
to  be  very  moderate,  but  as  soon  as  any  disturbance  in  the 
air  occurs,  from  draughts  or  people  moving  about,  the  number 
rapidly  increases  and  may  become  very  great.  Experiments 
made  in  a  railway  carriage-  afford  a  striking  example  of  the 
enormous  number  of  micro-organisms  which  become  suspended 
in  the  air  when  many  persons  are  brought  together. 

Micro-organisms  being  slightly  heavier  than  air,  have  an  in- 
variable tendency  to  fall,  and  on  that  account  frequently  collect 
on  the  surface  of  water  ;  hence  rivers,  lakes,  and  ponds  are 
constantly  being  thus  contaminated.  Micro-organisms  in  very 
pure  water  are  not  readily  disposed  to  multiply,  but  traces  of 
decomposing  organic  matter  will  induce  their  reproduction.  One 
remarkable  case  occurs  to  me  illustrating  this  fact.  In  1884  a 
severe   epidemic   of  typhoid  fever  broke  out    in  the   town   of 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


475 


Geneva,  in  Switzerland.  The  water  of  the  lake  in  the  harbour, 
which  is  surrounded  by  houses  on  three  sides,  was  then  examined 
by  a  distinguished  micro-biologist,  M.  Fol,  who  discovered  it 
to  be  full  of  micro-organisms  ;  the  water  supplied  to  the  town 
for  drinking-purposes  was  taken  from  the  River  Rhone  im- 
mediately as  it  flowed  out  of  the  harbour.  The  inquiry  was 
pursued  further,  and  it  was  found  that  just  outside  the  harbour, 
on  the  surface  of  the  water,  there  were  still  a  number  of  micro- 
organisms, though  less  than  in  the  harbour  ;  but  a  few  feet 
below  the  surface,  say  3  or  4  feet,  they  had  greatly  diminished 
in  number,  indeed  to  such  an  extent  that  there  were  very  few 
present.  The  obvious  remedy  was  at  once  carried  out.  A 
wooden  aqueduct  was  constructed,  opening  into  the  lake  about 
150  yards  outside  the  harbour,  and  some  3  or  4  feet  under  the 
surface.  As  stated  by  Dr.  Dunant,  a  Geneva  physician  who  has 
given  a  very  interesting  account  of  this  epidemic,^  eighteen  days 
after  the  source  of  the  water-supply  had  thus  been  altered,  a 
marked  decline  took  place  in  the  epidemic,  and  it  was  clearly 
being  mastered.  A  similar  epidemic  due  to  a  like  cause  occurred 
about  the  same  time  at  Zurich. 

There  is  one  point  connected  with  the  properties  of  dust  of 
organic  origin  which  I  think  cannot  fail  to  be  of  interest  on  the 
present  occasion.  I  mean  its  inflammability,  and  its  liability  to 
explode  when  mixed  with  air.  By  explosion  is  meant  that  the 
propagation  of  flame  by  a  very  finely-divided  material,  such  as 
coal-dust,  mixed  in  due  proportion  with  air,  may  proceed  with 
a  rapidity  approaching  the  transmission  of  explosion  by  a  gaseous 
mixture. 

An  interesting  lecture  was  delivered  on  this  subject  at  the 
Royal  Institution,  in  April  1882,  by  Sir  Frederick  Abel,  en- 
titled "  Some  of  the  Dangerous  Properties  of  Dust."  The 
lecturer  refers  to  instances  of  explosions  in  flour-mills,  due  in  all 
probability  to  a  spark  from  the  grinding  mill-stones,  occurring  in 
consequence  of  a  deficient  supply  of  grain  to  the  stones. 

Messrs.  Franklin  and  Macadam,  who  investigated  the  subject, 
found  that  accidents  of  this  nature  were  of  frequent  occurrence. 
In  May  1878  a  flour-mill  explosion,  quite  unparalleled  for  its 
destructive  effects,  occurred  at  Minneapolis,  Minnesota.  Eighteen 
lives  were  lost,  and  six  distinct  corn-mills  were  destroyed. 
Persons  who  were  near  the  scene  of  the  calamity  heard  a 
succession  of  sharp  hissing  sounds,  doubtless  caused  by  the 
very  rapid  spread  of  flame  through  the  dust-laden  air  of  the 
passages  inside  the  mill.  The  nearest  mill  to  that  first  fired  was 
25  feet  distance,  and  exploded  as  soon  as  the  flames  burst 
through  the  first  mill.  The  explosion  of  the  third  mill,  25  feet 
from  the  second,  followed  almost  immediately  ;  and  the  other 
three  mills,  about  150  feet  distance  in  another  direction,  were  at 
once  fired.  The  fire  was  attributed  to  a  spark  from  friction  of 
the  mill-stones. 

Coal-dust  in  coal-mines  is  a  cause  of  accident  from  explosions, 
which  has  been  closely  investigated  in  this  country,  in  Germany, 
and  other  mining  districts.  Sir  Frederick  Abel  has  given  this 
subject  especial  attention,  and  brings  it  prominently  forward  in 
his  valuable  and  exhaustive  paper  on  "Accidents  in  Mines,"  read 
to  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers  in  1888.  Some  mines  are, 
of  course,  more  dusty  than  others,  and  coal-dusts  are  not  all 
equally  inflammable.  That  which  is  deposited  upon  the  sides, 
top  timbers,  and  ledges  in  a  dry,  dusty  mine-way  is  much  finer 
ami  more  inflammable  than  the  coarser  dust  which  covers  the 
floors.  The  lecture  I  have  referred  to  alludes  to  the  case  of  a 
considerable  quantity  of  coal-dust  accidentally  thrown  over  some 
screens  at  a  pit  mouth  bursting  into  flame  as  the  dust  cloud  came 
into  contact  with  a  neighbouring  fire,  and  burning  a  man  very 
severely.  There  appears  good  ground  for  believing  that  fire  may 
travel  to  a  considerable  extent  through  the  workings  of  a  mine 
from  the  ignition  of  coal-dust,  as  will  be  seen  in  the  following 
account,  extracted  from  Messrs.  W.  W.  and  J.  B.  Atkinson's 
book  on  "Explosions  in  Mines": — "An  appalling  accident 
happened  at  the  Seaham  Colliery,  in  the  county  of  Durham,  on 
September  8,  1880,  at  2.20  a.m.,  causing  the  death  of  24  men. 
An  explosion  occurred  in  the  mine,  and  a  loud  report  was  heard 
at  the  surface,  accompanied  with  a  cloud  of  dust  from  the  shaft, 
but  no  fire  was  seen.  Owing  to  damage  to  the  shaft  it  was  more 
than  twelve  hours  before  a  descent  could  be  effected,  and  then  a 
scene  of  destruction  was  witnessed  by  the  explorers.  Doors  and 
air-crossings  destroyed  ;  tubs  broken  to  pieces,  and  hurled  one 
over  the  other  ;  timber  blown  out,  attended  with  heavy  falls 
from  the  roof  ;  and  the  bodies  of  men  and  horses  in  many  cases 

'  '■  Epidemic  de  fievre  typhoide  a  Geneve  en  1884,"  par  P.  L.  Dunant, 
Rnme  Mcdicale  de  la  Suisse  Romande,  1887. 


terribly  mutilated.  The  explosion  was  found  to  have  extended 
over  roads  of  an  aggregate  length  of  about  7500  yards,  the 
greatest  distance  between  the  extreme  points  reached  being 
about  3800  yards." 

When  discussing  the  cause  of  this  terrible  accident,  Messrs. 
Atkinson  remark  that  it  was  apparently  impossible  to  account 
for  the  eff'ects  of  the  explosion  on  the  assumption  that  it  was  due 
to  fire-damp,  as  the  presence  of  fire-damp  was  most  unlikely  to 
occur  at  any  part  at  which  the  explosion  could  have  happened  ; 
and  therefore  attention  must  be  turned  to  coal-dust.  There 
was  coal-dust  on  all  the  roads  traversed  by  the  explosion,  and 
there  was  coal-dust  at  the  supposed  point  of  origin.  These  facts 
are  of  striking  significance.  After  the  explosion,  all  parts  of  the 
mine  in  which  its  effects  could  be  traced  were  covered  on  the 
bottom  and  on  flat  surfaces  with  a  coating  of  fine  dust,  which, 
when  examined  under  the  microscope,  appeared  to  have  been 
acted  on  by  great  heat.  This  fine  dust  covered  the  surface  for  a 
depth  of  from  \  to  ^  an  inch  and  under.  Dust  of  this  kind  was 
entirely  absent  on  those  roads  over  which  the  explosion  had  not 
extended.  With  reference  to  the  original  ignition,  a  shot  had 
been  fired  apparently  simultaneously  with  the  explosion.  The 
road  at  the  place  was  of  stone,  and  would  probably  be  coated 
with  the  finest  coal-dust  ;  and,  moreover,  just  above  the  spot 
where  the  fatal  shot  was  fired  were  large  baulks  of  timber,  on 
which  dust  was  plentifully  stored.  The  shock  caused  by  the 
explosion  would  throw  the  dust  into  the  air,  and  the  flame  set 
fire  to  it.  Thus  initiated,  the  flame  would  extend  through  all 
the  roads  on  which. there  was  an  uninterrupted  supply  of  coal- 
dust  to  support  it. 

The  second  part  of  this  address  relates  to  inorganic  or 
mineral  dust.  When  on  the  Peak  of  Tenerife  in  1878,  engaged 
in  a  pursuit  mostly  of  a  physiological  kind,  I  had  occasion  to 
use  a  very  delicate  chemical  balance.  My  object  was  to  deter- 
mine the  amount  of  aqueous  vapour  given  out  of  the  lungs  while  in 
the  shallow  crater  at  the  summit  of  the  Peak,  12,200  feet  above 
the  sea.  The  heat  was  intense,  as  the  sun  shed  its  nearly  vertical 
rays  at  midday  on  the  fine  white  volcanic  sand  spread  over  the 
floor  of  the  crater.  At  various  places  rocks  projected,  covered 
here  and  there  with  crystals  of  sulphur,  and  so  hot  that  the  hand 
could  scarcely  bear  coming  in  contact  with  them.  Anticipating 
some  difficulty  in  the  use  of  the  balance  frorli  the  action  of  the 
wind,  I  had  brought  up  with  me  a  hamper  and  a  blanket.  After 
placing  the  hamper  sideways,  with  the  lid  off,  I  proceeded, 
though  not  without  some  little  trouble,  to  dispose  the  balance 
satisfactorily  inside  the  basket ;  then,  having  thrown  the  blanket 
over  the  hamper,  I  stretched  out  at  full  length  on  the  burning 
sand,  nestling  under  the  blanket,  much  as  a  photographer 
would  cover  himself  and  camera  with  a  dark  cloth.  On  trying 
to  use  the  balance,  it  refused  to  act ;  its  beam  would  not  oscil- 
late. A  careful  examination  showed  the  instrument  to  be 
apparently  in  perfect  order,  when  it  occurred  to  me  to  wipe  the 
knife-edges  at  the  points  of  suspension  of  the  beam  and  pans. 
The  balance  then  worked  quite  well,  though  but  for  a  few 
minutes  only,  again  most  provokingly  declining  to  oscillate  j. 
indeed,  it  was  only  by  constant  wiping  of  the  knife-edges  that  I 
succeeded  with  my  experiment.  The  cause  of  my  trouble  was 
clearly  the  presence  of  very  fine  mineral  dust  in  the  air,  of  which 
my  senses  were  utterly  unconscious.  Hence  it  is  that  extremely 
fine  particles  of  mineral  dust  may  exist  in  the  atmosphere,  while 
escaping  detection  by  our  senses,  and  such  an  occurrence  is 
probably  more  frequent  than  generally  thought. 

Prof.  Piazzi  Smyth,  while  on  the  Peak  of  Tenerife,  witnessed 
strata  of  dust  rising  to  a  height  of  nearly  a  mile,  reaching  out  to 
the  horizon  in  every  direction,  and  so  dense  as  to  hide  frequently 
the  neighbouring  hills.  The  Report  of  the  KrakatjTo  Commis- 
sion of  the  Royal  Society  contains  the  following  interesting 
account,  p.  421  (Mr.  Douglas  Archibald's  contribution  to  the 
Report): — "In  1881,  Prof.  S.  P.  Langley  ascended  Mount 
Whitney,  in  Southern  California,  with  an  expedition  from  the 
Alleghany  Observatory  ;  at  an  altitude  of  15,000  feet  his  view 
extended  over  one  of  the  most  barren  regions  in  the  world. 
Immediately  at  the  foot  of  the  moimtain  is  the  Inyo  Desert,  and 
in  the  east  a  range  of  mountains  parallel  to  the  Sierra  Nevada, 
but  only  about  10,000  feet  in  height.  From  the  valley  the 
atmosphere  had  appeared  beautifully  clear,  but,  as  stated  in 
Prof.  Langley's  own  words,  "from  this  aerial  height  we  looked 
down  upon  what  seemed  a  kind  of  level  dust  ocean,  invisible 
from  below,  but  whose  depth  was  six  or  seven  thousand  feet,  as 
the  upper  portion  only  of  the  opposite  mountain  range  rose 
clearly  out  of  it.     The  colour  of  the  light  reflected  to  us  from 


476 


NATURE 


[March  20,  1890 


this  dust  ocean  was  clearly  red,  and  it  stretched  in  every  direc- 
tion as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  although  there  was  no  special 
wind  or  local  cause  for  it.  It  was  evidently  like  the  dust  seen  in 
mid-ocean  from  the  Peak  of  Tenerife — something  present  all  the 
time,  and  a  permanent  ingredient  of  the  earthy  atmosphere." 

Dust  Storms. — These  storms,  as  suggested  by  Dr.  Henry 
Cook,  from  whose  paper  to  the  Quarterly  Journal  of  the  Royal 
Meteorological  Society,  in  1880,  I  am  now  quoting,  may  be  con- 
sidered under  three  heads,  according  to  their  intensity — atmo- 
spheric dust,  dust  columns,  and  dust  storms.  Dr.  Cook,  allud- 
ing to  occurrences  in  India,  observes  that  there  are  some  days 
on  which,  however  hard  and  violently  the  wind  may  blow,  little 
or  no  dust  accompanies  it ;  while  on  others,  every  little  puff  of 
air  or  current  of  wind  forms  or  carries  with  it  clouds  of  dust.  If 
the  wind  which  raises  the  dust  is  strong,  nothing  will  be  visible 
at  the  distance  of  a  few  yards,  the  sun  at  noon  being  obscured. 
The  dust  penetrates  everywhere,  and  cannot  be  excluded  from 
houses,  boxes,  and  even  watches,  however  carefully  guarded. 
The  individual  particles  of  sand  appear  to  be  in  such  an  elec- 
trical condition  that  they  are  ever  ready  to  repel  each  other,  and 
are  consequently  disturbed  from  their  position  and  carried  up 
into  the  air. 

Dust  columns  are  considered  by  Dr.  Cook  as  due  to  electrical 
causes.  On  calm,  quiet  days,  when  hardly  a  breath  of  air  is 
stirring,  and  the  sun  pours  down  its  heated  rays  with  full  force, 
little  eddies  arise  in  the  atmosphere  near  the  surface  of  the 
ground.  These  increase  in  force  and  diameter,  catching  up  and 
whirling  round  bits  of  sticks,  grass,  dust,  and,  lastly,  sand,  until 
a  column  is  formed  of  great  height  and  considerable  diameter, 
which  usually,  after  remaining  stationary  for  some  time,  sweeps 
away  across  country  at  great  speed.  Ultimately  it  loses  gradu- 
ally the  velocity  of  its  circular  movement  and  disappears.  In 
the  valley  of  Mingochar,  which  is  only  a  few  miles  in  width, 
and  surrounded  by  high  hills.  Dr.  Cook,  on  a  day  when  not  a 
breath  of  air  stirred,  counted  upwards  of  twenty  of  these 
columns.  They  seldom  changed  their  places,  and,  when  they 
did  so,  moved  but  slowly  across  the  level  tract.  They  never 
interfered  with  each  other,  and  appeared  to  have  an  entirely 
independent  existence.  , 

Dr.  Cook  describes  as  follows  a  dust  storm  which  took  place 
at  Jacobabad  : — "The  weather  had  been  hot  and  oppressive, 
with  little  or  no  breeze,  and  a  tendency  for  dust  to  accumulate 
in  the  atmosphere.  On  the  evening  of  the  storm  heavy  clouds 
gathered  and  covered  the  sky.  About  9  p.m.  the  sky  had 
cleared  somewhat,  and  the  moon  shone.  A  breeze  sprang  up 
from  the  west,  which  increased  and  bore  along  with  it  light 
clouds  of  sand.  At  9.30  p.m.  the  storm  commenced  in  all  its 
fury.  Vast  bodies  of  sand  were  drifted  violently  along.  The 
stars  and  moon  were  totally  obscured.  It  became  pitch  dark, 
and  it  was  impossible  to  see  the  hand  held  close  to  the  face. 
The  wind  blew  furiously  in  gusts,  and  heaped  the  sand  on  the 
windward  side  of  obstacles  in  its  course.  Lightning  and  thunder 
accompanied  it,  and  were  succeeded  by  heavy  rain.  The  storm 
lasted  about  an  hour,  when  the  dust  gradually  subsided.  The 
sky  again  became  clear,  and  the  moon  shone  brightly.  The 
storm  appeared  to  have  entirely  relieved  the  electrical  condition 
of  the  atmosphere.  A  pleasant  freshness  followed,  and  the 
oppressive  sensation  before  mentioned  was  no  longer  experienced. 
This,  indeed,  is  the  general  effect  of  storms  in  Upper  Scind. 
The  air  is  cooled,  the  atmosphere  cleared,  and  the  dusty  con- 
dition of  the  atmosphere  which  usually  precedes  them  for  several 
days  completely  disappears." 

In  the  case  of  a  memorable  sand  storm  which  occurred  at 
Aden  on  July  i6,  1878,  and  recorded  by  Lieutenant  Herbert 
Russell,  there  was  a  remarkable  play  of  light  on  the  objects 
which  remained  within  sight.  The  sudden  darkness  from  the 
storm  gave  a  peculiar  and  ghastly  tint  to  the  white  sand  and 
neighbouring  plain,  while  the  curling  masses  of  sand  drifted 
before  the  gale,  resembling  a  dark  yellow  smoke.  The  varied 
lights,  quickly  changing,  were  curious  and  most  grand  ;  the  sea 
a  clear  green,  and  Slave  Island  and  Shum-Shum,  usually  of  an 
arid  brown  colour,  became  of  an  ashy  white. 

In  a  dust  storm  I  experienced  myself  at  Luxor,  on  the  Nile, 
the  suffocating  effect  of  the  sand  as  it  drove  into  the  lungs  and 
air  passages  was  very  trying.  People  rushed  to  the  immediate 
river  side,  where  some  relief  was  found. 

A  book  on  "  Whirlwinds  and  Dust  Storms  in  India,"  by 
P.  L.  H.  Baddeley,  Surgeon,  Bengal  Army,  i860,  gives  some 
interesting  information  on  the  electrical  character  of  dust  storms 
and  dust  pillars.     When  at  Lahore  in  1847,  this  gentleman  was 


desirous  of  experimenting  on  the  electrical  state  of  the  atmo- 
sphere in  a  dust  storm,  and  with  this  object  he  projected  into 
the  air,  on  the  top  of  his  house,  an  insulated  copper  wire  fixed 
to  a  bamboo  ;  the  wire  was  brought  through  the  roof  into  his  room, 
and  connected  with  a  gold-leaf  electrometer,  a  detached  wire  com- 
municating with  the  earth.  A  day  or  two  after,  during  the 
passage  of  a  small  dust  storm,  he  observed  the  occurrence  of 
vivid  sparks  from  one  wire  to  the  other,  and,  of  course,  strongly 
affecting  the  electrometer.  He  subsequently  witnessed  at  least 
sixty  dust  storms  of  various  sizes,  all  presenting  the  same  kind 
of  phenomena. 

Volcanic  Dust. — This  dust  consists  mainly  of  powdered  vitri- 
fied substances,  produced  by  the  action  of  intense  heat.  It  is 
interesting  in  many  respects.  The  so-called  ashes  or  scories 
shot  out  in  a  volcanic  eruption  are  mostly  pounded  pumice,  but 
they  also  originate  from  stones  and  fragments  of  rocks  which, 
striking  against  each  other,  are  reduced  into  powder  or  dust. 
Volcanic  dust  has  a  whitish-grey  colour,  and  is  sometimes 
nearly  quite  white.  Thus  it  is  that,  in  summer,  the  terminal 
cone  of  the  Peak  of  Tenerife  appears  from  a  distance  as  if 
covered  with  snow  ;  but  there  is  no  snow  on  the  mountain  at 
that  season  of  the  year ;  the  white  cap  on  the  Peak  is  entirely 
due  to  pumice  ejected  centuries  ago.  It  is  probably  to  this 
circumstance  that  the  island  and  Peak  owe  their  name,  as  in  the 
Guelph  language  the  words  Tener  Ifa  mean  zvhite  mountain. 

The  friction  caused  by  volcanic  stones  and  rocks  as  they  are 
crushed  in  their  collision  develops  a  mass  of  electricity  which 
shows  itself  in  brilliant  displays  of  branch  lightning  darting  from 
the  edges  of  the  dense  ascending  column.  During  the  great 
eruption  of  Vesuvius,  in  1822,  they  were  continually  visible,  and 
added  much  to  the  grandeur  of  the  spectacle.  It  not  unfre- 
quently  happens  that  dust  emitted  from  Vesuvius  falls  into  the 
streets  of  Naples  ;  but  this  is  nothing  in  comparison  with  the 
mass  of  finely-powdered  material  which  covered  and  buritd  the 
towns  of  Pompeii,  Herculaneum,  and  Stabiae  in  the  year  79. 

On  this  occasion,  according  to  the  younger  Pliny,  total  dark- 
ness from  the  clouds  of  volcanic  ashes  continued  for  three  day-, 
during  which  time  ashes  fell  like  a  mantle  of  snow  all  over  the 
surrounding  country.  When  the  darkness  cleared  away,  the 
calamity  was  revealed  in  all  its  awful  extent,  the  three  towns 
having  disappeared  under  the  showers  of  dust. 

The  eruption  of  Krakatab,  a  mountain  situated  on  an  island 
in  the  Straits  of  Sunda,  exceeded,  in  all  probability,  in  its 
deadly  effects,  and  as  a  wonderful  phenomenon  of  Nature,  the 
outburst  of  Vesuvius  in  the  year  69.  The  KrakatjTo  Committee 
of  the  Royal  Society  have  collected  and  published  in  their  inter- 
esting Report  particulars  of  that  memorable  eruption,  all  of 
them  thoroughly  authenticated  and  reliable.  The  following  is 
extracted  from  a  communication  to  the  Report  by  Prof.  Judd: — 
"  On  August  26,  1883,  it  was  evident  that  the  long-continued 
moderate  eruptions  of  Krakatab  had  passed  into  the  paroxysmal 
stage.  That  day,  about  i  p.m.,  the  detonations  caused  by  the 
explosive  action  attained  such  a  violence  as  to  be  heard  at 
Batavia  and  Buitzsenborg,  about  100  English  miles  away.  At 
2  p.m.  Captain  Thompson,  of  the  Medea,  then  sailing  at  a  point 
76  miles  eastnorth-east  of  KrakatsTo,  siw  a  black  mass  like 
smoke  rising  into  the  clouds  to  an  altitude  which  has  been 
estimated  at  no  less  than  seventeen  miles  (nearly  six  times  the 
height  of  Mont  Blanc)." 

If  this  surmise  be  correct,  some  idea  of  the  violence  of  the 
outburst  can  be  formed  from  the  fact  that  during  the  eruption  of 
Vesuvius  in  1872  the  column  of  steam  and  dust  was  propelled  to 
a  height  of  from  4  to  5  miles  only. 

At  3  p.m.  the  explosions  were  loud  enough  to  be  heard  150 
miles  away.  At  Batavia  and  Buitzsenborg  the  noise  is  described 
as  being  like  the  discharge  of  artillery  close  at  hand.  Windows 
rattled,  pictures  shook,  but  there  was  nothing  in  the  nature  of 
earthquake  shocks — only  strong  air  vibrations. 

Captain  Wooldridge,  of  the  Sir  R.  ^'a/^, viewing  the  volcano 
at  sunset  on  the  26th,  describes  the  sky  as  presenting  a  most 
terrible  appearance,  the  dense  mass  of  cloud  of  a  murky  tinge 
being  rent  with  tierce  flashes  of  lightning.  At  7  p.m.,  when 
from  the  vapour  and  dust  clouds  intense  darkness  prevailed,  the 
whole  scene  was  lighted  up  by  electrical  discharges,  and  at  one 
time  the  cloud  above  the  mountain  presented  the  appearance  of 
an  immense  pine-tree,  with  the  stem  and  branches  formed  of 
volcanic  lightning.  The  air  was  loaded  with  excessively  fine 
ashes,  and  there  was  a  strong  sulphurous  smell.  The  steamer 
G.  G.  Loudon,  within  20  or  30  miles  of  the  eruption,  passed 
through  a  rain  of  ashes  and  small  bits  of  stone. 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


477 


Captain  Watson,  of  the  ship  Charles  Bal,  at  a  spot  about  a 
dozen  miles  off  the  island,  records  the  phenomena  of  chains  of 
fire  appearing  to  ascend  between  the  volcano  and  the  sky,  while 
on  the  south  side  there  seemed  to  be  a  "  continual  roll  of  balls 
of  white  fire."  These  appearances  were  doubtless  caused  by 
the  discharge  of  white-hot  fragments  of  lava  rolling  down  the 
sides  of  the  mountain.  From  midnight  till  4  a.m.  explosions 
continually  took  place,  the  sky  one  second  being  intense 
blackness,  the  next  a  blaze  of  fire. 

All  the  eye-witnesses  agree  as  to  the  splendour  of  the  electrical 
phenomena.  Captain  Woolridge,  viewing  the  eruption  from  a 
distance  of  40  miles,  speaks  of  the  great  vapour  cloud  resembling 
an  immense  wall,  with  outbursts  of  fork  lightning,  like  large 
luminous  serpents,  rushing  through  the  air.  After  sunset,  this 
dark  wall  assumed  the  appearance  of  a  blood-red  curtain,  with 
the  edges  of  all  the  shades  of  yellow — the  whole  of  a  murky 
tinge,  and  attended  with  fierce  flashes  of  lightning.  It  was 
reported  from  the  Lotidon  that  lightning  struck  the  mast-head 
conductor  five  or  six  times,  and  that  the  mud-rain  which  covered 
the  masts,  rigging,  and  decks  was  phosphorescent.  The  rigging 
presented  the  appearance  of  St.  Elmo's  fire,  which  the  native 
sailors  were  busily  engaged  putting  out  with  their  hands, 
alleging  that,  if  any  portion  found  its  way  below,  a  hole  would 
burst  in  the  ship  ;  not  that  they  feared  the  ship  taking  fire, 
but  they  thought  the  light  was  the  work  of  evil  spirits,  and 
that  if  it  penetrated  the  hold  of  the  vessel,  the  evil  spirits  would 
triumph  in  their  design  to  scuttle  the  ship. 

By  these  grand  explosive  outbursts  the  old  crater  of 
Krakatab  was  completelyeviscerated,  and  a  cavity  formed  more 
than  1000  feet  in  depth  ;  while  the  solid  materials  thrown  out 
frorn^  the  crater  were  spread  over  the  flanks  of  the  volcano, 
forming  considerable  alterations  in  their  forms. 

The  sea  disturbance  which  accompanied  the  eruption  of 
Krakatab  was  carefully  investigated  by  Captain  Wharton, 
Hydrographer  to  the  Admiralty  :— "The  rush  of  the  great  sea 
wave  over  the  land,  caused  by  the  violent  abrasion  in  the  crater, 
aided  by  the  action  on  the  water  of  enormous  masses  of  fallen 
material,  caused  great  destruction  of  life  and  poverty  in  the 
Straits  of  Sunda.  By  the  inrush  of  these  waves  on  land,  all 
vessels  near  the  shore  were  stranded,  the  towns  and  villages  near 
the  coast  devastated,  two  of  the  lighthouses  were  swept  away, 
and  the  lives  of  36,380  of  the  inhabitants  sacrificed.  It  was 
estimated  that  the  wave  was  about  50  feet  in  height  when  it 
broke  on  the  shore." 

On  the  morning  of  the  27th,  between  10  and  11  a.m.,  three 
vessels  at  the  eastern  entrance  of  the  Straits  encountered  the  fall 
of  mingled  dust  and  water,  which  soon  darkened  the  air,  and 
covered  their  decks  and  sails  with  a  thick  coating  of  mud. 
Some  of  the  pieces  of  pumice  falling  on  the  Sir  R.  Sale  were 
said  to  have  been  of  the  size  of  a  pumpkin.  All  day  on  the  27th, 
the  three  vessels  were  beating  about  in  darkness,  pumice-dust 
falling  upon  them  in  such  quantities  as  to  employ  the  crew  for 
hours  in  shovelling  it  from  the  decks  and  in  beating  it  from  the 
sails  and  rigging.  At  Batavia,  100  miles  from  Krakatab,  the 
sky  was  clear  at  7  a.m.,  but  at  11  a.m.  there  fell  a  regular  dust- 
rain  ;  at  ir.20  complete  darkness  pervaded  the  city.  The  rain 
of  dust  continued  till  i,  and  afterwards  less  heavily  till  3  p.m. 

The  speed  and  distance  attained  by  the  pumice  ejected  from 
the  volcano  may  be  conceived  from  the  fact  staled  in  Mr. 
Douglas  Archibald's  contribution  to  the  Report,  that  dust  fell  on 
September  8,  more  than  3700  English  miles  from  the  seat  of 
the  eruption. 

The  great  mass  of  the  pumice  thrown  out  during  the  eruption 
presented  a  dirty  greyish- white  tint,  being  very  irregular  in  size. 
It  was  undoubtedly  due  to  the  collision  of  fragments  of  pumice 
as  they  were  violently  ejected  from  the  crater  ;  the  noise  pro- 
duced was  even  more  striking  than  the  sound  of  the  explosion. 

The  dust  ejected  from  Krakata~o  did  not  all  fall  back  at  the 
same  time  upon  the  sea  and  earth ;  as  the  lightest  portions 
formed  into  a  haze,  which  was  propagated  mostly  westward. 
Mr.  Archibald  states  in  the  Report  that  most  observers  agree 
upon  considering  this  haze  as  the  proximate  cause  of  the  twilight 
glows,  coloured  suns,  and  large  corona,  which  were  seen  for  a 
considerable  time  after  the  eruption.  The  haze  was  densest  in 
the  Indian  Ocean  and  along  the  equatorial  belt,  and  was  often 
thick  enough  to  hide  the  sun  entirely  when  within  a  few  degrees 
from  the  horizon. 

And  now,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  must  bring  this  address  to  a 
conclusion,  and  thank  you  for  having  followed  me  over  a  long, 
dusty  track.     I  hope  I  have  succeeded  in  showing  that  infinitely 


small  objects,  no  larger  than  particles  of  dust,  act  important 
parts  in  the  physical  phenomena  of  Nature,  just  as  small  and 
apparently  unimportant  events  occasionally  lead  to  others  of  the 
greatest  magnitude. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 
Royal   Society,  March   6.— "The   Cranial   Nerves  of  the 
Torpedo"  (Preliminary  Note).     By  J.  C.  Ewart,  M.D.     Com- 
municated by  Prof.  M.  Foster,  Sec.  R.S. 

The  cranial  nerves  of  the  torpedo  agree  in  their  general 
arrangement  with  those  of  the  skate.'  The  ophthalmicus  ))ro- 
fundus  occupies  the  usual  position,  but  its  ganglion  lies  in  close 
contact  with  the  Gasserian,  and  not  on  a  level  with  the  ciliary, 
ganglion.  The  trigeminus  has  the  usual  distribution,  for,  not- 
withstanding the  statements  in  the  most  recent  text-books,'-'  the 
trigeminus  sends  no  branch  to  the  electric  organ.  The  facial 
complex  includes  the  superficial  ophthalmic,  the  buccal,  and  the 
hyomandibular  nerves,  all  of  which  have  the  same  distribution 
as  the  corresponding  nerves  in  the  skate  ;  but  the  hyomandibular 
includes  or  is  accompanied  by  a  large  bundle  of  nerve  fibres 
which  supply  the  anterior  and  inner  portion  of  the  electric 
organ.  This  large  nerve  cord  (the  first  electric  nerve)  has 
hitherto  almost  invariably  •'  been  described  as  a  branch  of  the 
trigeminus.  When  traced  backwards,  it  is  found  to  spring  from' 
the  anterior  portion  of  the  electric  lobe. 

The  glossopharyngeus,  a  slender  nerve  in  the  skate,  is  repre- 
sented in  the  torpedo  by  a  thick  cord  which  escapes  by  a  large 
foramen  in  the  outer  wall  of  the  auditory  capsule.  This  large 
nerve  consists  of  two  portions,  one  of  which  is  small  and  com- 
pletely covered  by  the  large  superficial  division.  The  small  deep 
division,  which  in  its  course  and  distribution  closely  resembles 
the  glossopharyngeal  in  the  skate,  presents  on  leaving  the 
auditory  capsule  a  distinct  ganglionic  swelling,  beyond  which  it 
breaks  up  into  the  branchial  and  other  branches.  The  large 
superficial  division  emanates  from  the  electric  lobe  behind  the 
origin  of  the  first  electric  nerve,  and  at  once  runs  outwards  to 
reach  and  supply  the  majority  of  the  columns  of  the  anterior 
half  of  the  electric  organ. 

The  va.gus  complex  consists  of  the  nervus  lateralis,  the  nervus 
intestinalis,  and  of  five  branchial  nerves,  of  which  the  two 
anterior  are  accompanied  by  the  third  and  fourth  electric  nerves. 
The  nervus  lateralis,  lying  superficial  to  all  the  other  nerves, 
arises  on  a  level  with  the  root  of  the  glossopharyngeus,  and  then 
curves  backwards  dorsal  to  the  posterior  electric  nerve  to  reach 
the  canal  of  the  lateral  line.  Shortly  after  leaving  the  cranium  it 
presents  a  distinct  ganglionic  swelling,  which  is  crowded  with 
large  cells.  The  four  branchial  nerves  for  the  four  vagus 
branchiae,  the  slender  filament  which  represents  a  sixth  branchial 
nerve,  and  the  intestinal  nerve  lie  at  first  in  contact  with  each 
other  under  cover  of  the  third  and  fourth  electric  nerves.  When, 
the  branchial  and  intestinal  nerves  are  carefully  examined,  they 
are  found  to  present  four,  sometimes  five,  ganglionic  enlarge- 
ments, and  in  addition  ganglionic  cells  can  sometimes  be  detected 
at  the  proximal  end  of  the  slender  sixth  branchial  nerve.  The 
third  and  fourth  electric  nerves  lie  over  and  are  especially  related 
to  the  second  and  third  branchial  nerves.  These  large  electric 
nerves  spring  from  the  posterior  half  of  the  electric  lobe,  and  find 
their  way  outwards  partly  behind  and  partly  under  the  auditory 
capsule,  to  terminate  in  the  posterior  half  of  the  electric  organ. 
It  thus  appears  that  all  the  electric  nerves  spring  from  the 
electric  lobe,  that  the  first  accompanies  the  hyomandibular 
division  of  the  facial  complex,  the  second  the  glossopharyngeus, 
and  the  third  and  fourth  the  first  two  branchial  nerves  of  the 
vagus  complex.  It  remains  to  be  seen  whether  the  electric 
nerves  have  been  derived  from  motor  branches  of  the  nerves 
with  which  they  are  respectively  associated  by  an  enormous 
increase  in  the  number  of  their  fibres,  as  the  muscular  fibres- 
were  gradually  transformed  into  electric  plates. 

Physical  Society,  Feb.  21.— Prof.  G.  Carey  Foster,  F.  R.S.,. 
Past- President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications 
were  read  :— On  a  carbon  deposit   in  a  Blake  telephone  trans- 

'  Ewart,  "  On  the  Crani.il  Nerves  of  Elasmobranch  Fishes,"  Roy.  Soc. 
Proc,  vol.  45,  1889. 

^  Eg-,  McKendrick,  "  Text-book  of  Physiology,"  1888,  and  Wiedersheim, 
"  Grundriss  der  vergleichenden  Anatomic,"  1888. 

3  Fritsch  is  the  only  author  I  am  acquainted  with  who  does  not  describe 
the  first  electric  nerve  .is  a  branch  of  the  trigeminus,  "  Untersuchungen 
ueber  den  feineren  Ijau  des  Fischgehirns,"  Berlin,  1878. 


478 


NA  TURE 


[^Marck  20,  1890 


mitter,  by  Mr.  F.  B.  Hawes.     The  author  exhibited  photographs 
of  the  interior  portions  of  the  transmitter  on  which  the  deposit 
had  taken  place.     These  portions  consist  of  a  -metal  diaphragm, 
a  highly-polished  carbon  button,  and  a  platinum  contact  piece 
carried  by  a  German  silver  spring  placed  between  them.     The 
diaphragm  presented  a  mottled  appearance  due  to  the  deposit, 
but  the  part  which  had  been  behind  the  German  silver  spring 
seemed  comparatively  clean.     The  deposits  on  the  carbon  button 
and  German  silver  spring  were  much  less  dense  than  that  on  the 
exposed  parts  of  the  diaphragm,  and  the  space  near  the  point  of 
contact  between  the  platinum  and  carbon  was  free  from  deposit. 
The  deposit   was  fairly  adherent,    some   rubbing  being  neces- 
sary  to  remove  it,   and  on  examination  under  the  microscope 
particles  of  copper  and  metallic  crystals  could   be  seen.     The 
author  believes  the  deposit  due  to  some  kind  of  bombardment 
of  carbon  particles,  but  was  unable  to  say  why  it  should  occur, 
or   why   the   varnished   diaphragm    should  receive  the  greater 
deposit  although  it  was  further  from  the  carbon  than  the  German 
silver  spring.     Mr.  C.  V.  Boys  said  the  photographs  reminded 
him  of  a  phenomenon  he  observed  some  time  ago  on  a  glass 
sheet  against  which  one  terminal  of  a  dry  pile  had  been  resting 
for  some  weeks.     Just  as  on  the  carbon  button,  the  glass  near 
the  point  of  contact  was  clean  and  had  a  comet-shaped  deposit 
formed  around  it.     He  could  offer  no  explanation  of  the  appear- 
ance.— The  geometrical  construction  of  direct- reading  scales  for 
reflecting  galvanometers,   by  Mr.    A.   P.    Trotter.     In  a  recent 
paper   on   galvanometers,    by   Prof.    W.    E.    Ayrton,    F.  R.S., 
T.  Mather,  and  Dr.  W.  E.    Sumpner,  read  before  the  Society, 
the  opinion  was  expressed  that  proportionality  of  scale  reading 
to  current  was  very  desirable,  and  the  present  paper  shows  how 
to  bend  a  scale  of  equal  divisions  so  as  to  give  the  required  pro- 
portionality.    Suppose  the  currents  required  to  produce  several 
deflections  have   been  experimentally   determined.     A  full-size 
plan  of  the  scale  is  then  drawn,  and  radial  lines  from  the  points 
on  the  scale  at  which  the  observations  were  taken  are  drawn 
towards  the  centre  of  the  mirror.     Let  these  radii  be  numbered 
o,  I,  2,  3,  &c.,  commencing   from  zero  azimuth.     According  to 
the  procedure  recommended,  distances  proportional  to  the  several 
current  strengths  are  marked  off  along  the  edge  of  a  strip  of 
paper,  a  few  inches  being  left  over  at  each  end.     Call  the  marks 
a,  h,  c,  d,  &c.,  a  being  the  zero  point.     Two  points  on  the  radii 
o,  I,  and  equidistant  from  the  mirror  are  now  found  such  that  the 
distance  between  them  is  equal  to  that  between  a  and  b  on  the 
strip,  and  the  points  marked  by  fine  needles  stuck  in  the  board. 
The  zero  end  of  the  strip  is  now  fixed  so  that  the  marks  a  and  b 
lie  against  the  needles,  and  the  strip  is  swept  round  until  the 
mark  c  coincides  with  the  radius  2,  where  also  a  needle  is  placed. 
Repeating  the  process  gives  a  series  of  points  which  on  being 
joined  form   part  of  a  polygon.      A  line  can  then   be  drawn 
between  the  inscribed  and  circumscribing  curves  which  has  the 
same  length  as  the  sum  of  the  straight  lines,  and  this  is  the  curve 
to  which  the  original  scale  may  be  bent  so  as  to  give  proportional 
readings.     Diagrams  showing  such  curves,  constructed  from  the 
calibrations  of  instruments  given  in  the  paper  above  referred  to, 
accompany   the   paper.     The   author  showed  that  a  family  of 
curves  may  be  drawn,  each  of  which  satisfies  the  required  con- 
dition.    Of  the  two  limiting  curves,   one  is  tangential  to  the 
usual  scale  line  at  zero  azimuth,  and  the  other  passes  through  the 
vertical  axis  of  the  mirror.     The  flattest  of  the  various  curves  is 
generally  the  most  convenient.  Mr.  J.  Swinburne  asked  whether 
good  definition  could  be  obtained  when  such  curved  scales  not 
equidistant  from  the  mirror  were  used,  and  also  whether  it  was 
not  easier  to  divide  a  flat  scale  unequally  so  that  the  readings  are 
proportional  to  the  current.     Mr.   Trotter,    in  reply,  said  Dr. 
,    Sumpner  thought  there  would  be  no  difficulty  as  regards  definition 
with  the  flat  curves  shown.     He  (Mr.  Trotter)  also  added  that 
a  curved  scale  might  be  advantageous  in  reading  the  deflections 
from  one  side  of  a  table,  as  the  more  distant  part  of  the  scale 
could  be  more  nearly  perpendicular  to  the  line  of  sight.     For 
such  an  arrangement,  however,  a  parallel  beam  of  light  would  be 
required, — A  parallel  motion  suitable  for  recording  instruments, 
ty  Mr.  A.  P.  Trotter.     This  is  a  modification  of  Watt's  parallel 
motion,  in  which  the  two  fixed  centres  are  on  the  same  side  of 
the  line  described  by  the   "parallel  point."     The  arrangement 
consists  of  two  vibrating  arms,  one  of  which  is  twice  the  length 
cf  the  other,  and  whose  outer  ends  are  jointed  respectively  to 
the  niiddle  and  end  of  a  short  lever  ;  the  free  end  of  the  latter 
describes  an  approximate  straight  line.     The  motion  was  arrived 
at  by  considering  the  curve  traced  out  by  a  point  on  the  radius 
of  a  circle,  such  that  its  distance  from  the  circumference  measured 


towards  the  centre  is  equal  to  the  radial  intercept  between 
the  circle  and  a  tangent  line.  The  equation  to  the  curve  is 
r  —  2  -  sec  Q  (conchoid  of  Nicomedes)  and  the  radius  of  the 
osculating  circle  at  the  point  where  the  intercept  is  zero  is  given 
as  half  that  of  the  initial  circle.  This  osculatory  circle,  the 
author  finds,  practically  coincides  with  the  curve  over  a  consider- 
able angle  (40°),  and  thus  may  replace  this  part  of  the  curve ; 
hence  the  motion.  The  author  thinks  the  motion  will  be  useful 
for  recording  barometers,  ammeters,  and  voltmeters,  as  it  is  more 
compact  than  that  of  Watt,  and  needs  no  fixed  point  beyond  the 
straight  path. — Owing  to  the  absence  of  Prof.  S.  P.  Thompson, 
his  paper  on  Bertrand's  refractometer  was  not  read. 

Linnean  Society,  March  6. — Mr.  Carruthers,  F.R.S.,  Pre- 
sident, in  the  chair. — Mr.  Thomas  Christy  exhibited  a  dried  speci- 
men of  Picramnia  antidesma,  the  plant  from  the  bark  of  which 
a  medicine,  known  as  cascara  amarya,  a  useful  alterative  in 
diseases  of  the  blood  and  skin,  is  believed  to  be  prepared. — 
Mr.  J.  E.  Harting  exhibited  a  series  of  horns  of  the  American 
Prongbuck  {Antilocapra  americana),  to  illustrate  the  mode 
in  which  the  shedding  and  new  growth  of  horn  is  effected 
in  this  animal. — A  paper  was  read  by  Mr.  D.  Morris,  on  the 
production  of  seed  in  certain  varieties  of  the  sugar-cane  {Sac 
charum  ojfficinarum).  It  was  pointed  out  that,  although  well 
known  as  a  cultivated  plant,  the  sugar-cane  had  nowhere  been 
found  wild; 'nor  had  the  seed  {caryopsis)  been  figured  or  de- 
scribed ;  it  being  the  generally  received  opinion  that,  having 
been  propagated  entirely  by  slips,  or  cuttings,  it  had  lost  the  power 
of  producing  seed.  Spikelets,  however,  received  at  Kew,  had 
been  carefully  examined,  and  the  seed  found,  which  was  now 
for  the  first  time  exhibited  by  Mr.  Morris.  He  anticipated  that, 
by  cross-fertilization  and  selection  of  seedlings,  the  sugar-cane 
might  be  greatly  improved,  and  much  importance  was  attached 
to  the  subject,  as  it  opened  up  a  new  field  of  investigation  in 
regard  to  sugar-cane  cultivation.  Mr.  J.  G.  Baker  and  Mr.  Christy 
concurred. — A  paper  was  then  read  by  Mr.  Spencer  Moore, 
on  the  true  nature  of  callus  ;  Part  i,  the  vegetable-marrow  and 
Ballia  callitricha.  It  was  shown  that  the  callus  of  sieve-tubes 
of  the  vegetable-marrow  gives  marked  proteid  reactions ;  and 
since  it  is  dissolved  in  a  peptonizing  fluid  there  can  be  no  doubt 
of  its  being  a  true  proteid,  and  not  a  kind  of  starchy  mucilage, 
as  is  usually  supposed.  The  "stoppers"  of  Ballia  also  yield 
proteid  reactions,  but  inasmuch  as  they  resist  gastric  diges- 
tion, the  substance  cannot  be  a  true  proteid,  and  may  perhaps 
be  allied  to  lardacein.  Mr,  Moore  maintained  the  view  of 
Russow,  Strassburger,  and  others — that  callus  is  deposited  upon 
the  sieve — to  be  correct  in  the  case  of  the  vegetable-marrow  ; 
since  a  peptonizing  fluid  clears  the  sieve-plates  and  leaves  them 
in  their  pristine  condition,  which  would  not  be  the  case  if  callus 
were  formed  by  a  swelling  up  of  the  sieves.  A  discussion  fol- 
lowed, in  which  Dr.  F.  W.  Oliver,  Dr.  D,  H.  Scott,  Prof. 
Reynolds  Green,  and  Mr.  George  Murray  took  part. 

Zoological  Society,  March  4. — Prof.  W.  H.  Flower, 
F.R. S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretaiy  read  a  report 
on  the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's  Menagerie 
during  the  month  of  February  1890. — Mr.  F.  E.  Beddard  ex- 
hibited and  made  remarks  on  some  living  specimens  of  an  Indian 
Earthworm  {PericJiceta  indica),  obtained  from  a  greenhouse  in 
Scotland. — Mr.  A.  Thomson  exhibited  a  series  of  insects  reared 
in  the  Insect  House  in  the  Society's  Gardens  during  the  past 
year,  and  read  a  report  on  the  subject.  Particular  attention  was 
called  to  specimens  of  a  South  African  Mantis  {Harpax  ocellata) 
and  of  a  Canadian  Stick  Insect  {Diaphemora  femoratd). — Mr. 
Henry  Seebohm  read  a  paper  on  the  classification  of  birds,  being 
an  attempt  to  diagnose  the  sub-classes,  orders,  sub-orders,  and 
some  of  the  families  of  existing  birds.  The  characters  upon 
which  the  diagnoses  were  based  were  almost  entirely  derived 
from  points  in  the  osteology,  myology,  and  the  pterylosis  of  the 
groups  diagnosed. — A  communication  was  read  from  Mr.  T.  D. 
A.  Cockerell,  describing  some  Galls  from  Colorado,  of  which 
specimens  were  transmitted  for  exhibition. 

Edinburgh. 
Royal  Society,  February  28. — Sir  Douglas  Maclagan,  Vice- 
President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  Rutherford  communicated  a  paper 
on  the  structure  and  contraction  of  striped  muscular  fibre  of 
crab  and  lobster. — Prof.  Haycraft  read  a  paper  on  the  histology, 
functions,   and  development  of  the   carapace  of  the  Chelonia, 
and  also  another  paper  on  the  rate  at  which  muscles  contract : 
when  the  motor  paths  are  stimulated  by  interrupted  electrical  j 
currents.  t 


I 


March  20,  1890] 


NATURE 


479 


March  3. — Sir  W.  Thomson,  President,  in  the  chair. — Prof. 
Tait  communicated  a  note  on  ripples  in  a  viscous  liquid.  He 
investigates  in  it  the  motion  of  a  continuous  set  of  ripples,  and 
discusses  the  effects  of  gravity,  surface-tension,  surface-stiffness, 
and  viscosity. — Dr.  Thomas  Muir  communicated  a  paper  by 
Mr.  D.  Maver,  on  a  geometrical  method  based  on  the  principle 
of  translation. — Prof.  J.  Stuart  Blackie  read  a  paper  on  the 
phases  of  the  living  Greek  language. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  March  10. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — ,Note  on  the  life  and  works  of  George  Henry  Halphen, 
by  M.  Emile  Picard. — On  the  phenomena  seen  about  the  sun  on 
March  3,  1890,  by  M.  A.  Cornu.  Halos  and  parhelia  were 
seen  about  the  sun  on  this  date,  and  observations  of  the  aqueous 
Jiands  of  the  solar  spectrum  made  at  the  time  when  the  first  halo 
of  22°  appeared,  showed  that  warm  and  moist  currents  existed  in 
the  higher  regions  of  the  atmosphere  in  spite  of  the  exceptional 
cold  (-  11°  C.)  at  Paris. — Thermal  researches  on  the  allotropic 
modifications  of  arsenic,  by  MM.  Berthelot  and  Engel.  The 
amount  of  heat  evolved  on  treatment  with  bromine  and  water 
was  found  to  be  nearly  the  same  in  both  the  forms  ;  arsenic,  in 
this  respect,  behaving  like  carbon.— Second  note  on  the  absorp- 
tion of  atmospheric  ammonia  by  soils,  by  M.  H.  Schlcesing. 
From  the  experiments  described  in  this  and  the  previous  note, 
the  author  finds  that  calcareous,  acid  or  neutral,  dry  or  wet 
soils,  absorb  atmospheric  ammonia.  Moist  earth,  however, 
favours  the  fixation  of  ammonia,  and  dry  earth  retards  it. — The 
muscular  and  elastic  elements  of  the  retrolingual  membrane  of 
the  frog,  by  M.  L.  Ranvier.  The  problems  investigated  are  : 
the  attachment  of  the  elastic  fibres  to  the  muscular  bundles,  and 
whether  a  fibril  terminates  in  a  thick  or  thin  disc  or  a  clear 
space,  all  of  which  occur  in  the  muscular  bundles. — On  the 
microbes  of  acute  osteomyelites  called  infectious,  by  MM. 
Lannelongue  and  Achard. — Study  of  the  errors  of  observation, 
by  M.  J.  E.  Estienne. — Sun-spot  in  very  high  latitude,  by  M. 
Dierckx.  To  this  note  we  refer  elsewhere  (p.  472). — On  Stirling's 
formula,  by  M.  E.  Rouche. — On  regular  surfaces  which  pass 
through  a  given  curve,  by  M.  Ch.  Bioche.— On  the  compounds 
of  phosphoretted  hydrogen  and  ammonia  with  boron  chloride 
and  silicon  hexachloride,  by  M.  A.  Besson. — Note  on  the  com- 
pounds of  the  metals  of  the  alkalies  with  ammonia,  by  M.  J. 
Moutier.— On  the  estimation  of  free  halogens  and  of  iodides  in 
presence  of  chlorine  and  bromine,  by  M.  P.  Lebeau.  Iodine  is 
estimated  by  liberation  from  its  compound  in  aqueous  solution 
by  a  standard  solution  of  bromine,  the  iodine  being  dis- 
solved out  from  the  water  by  CSj  as  soon  as  liberated  :  the  end 
of  the  reaction  is  indicated  by  the  decoloration  of  the  supernatant 
aqueous  solution,  to  which  a  few  drops  of  indigo  solution  has 
been  previously  added.— On  the  formation  of  thiosulphate  of 
lead,  note  by  M.  J.  Fogh.— Decomposition  of  thiosulphate  of 
lead  by  heat,  Trithionate  of  lead,  byjhe  same  author.  It  is 
shown  that,  by  the  prolonged  action  of  boiling  water,  thio- 
sulphate of  lead  decomposes  according  to  the  equation 
aPhSgOj  —  PbS  +  PbSsOg.- On  a  new  iodide  of  bismuth  and 
potassium,  M.  L.  Astre. — Note  on  the  molecular  increase  of  dis- 
persion of  saline  solutions,  by  MM.  Ph.  Barbier  and  L.  Roux. 
If  the  constant  K  given  in  a  previous  communication  be  multi- 
plied by  the  molecular  weight  of  the  dissolved  salt,  what  the 
authors  term  the  molecular  increase  of  dispersion  is  obtained. 
MK  for  chlorides  of  the  type  MCI  is  shown  to  have  the  mean 
value  0020,  for  chlorides  MCU  the  mean  value  is  0-044. — l^e- 
searches  upon  the  application  of  measurements  of  the  rotatory 
power  to  the.  determination  of  compounds  resulting  from  the 
action  of  malic  acid  upon  the  neutral  molybdates  of  lithium 
and  magnesium,  by  M.  D.  Gernez.— The  volumetric  estimation 
of  tannin,  by  M.  E.  Guenez.— Estimation  of  acetone  in  methyl 
alcohol  and  in  the  raw  methyl  alcohol  used  for  methylation,  by 
M.  Leo  Vignon. — On  the  diminution  of  fermenting  power  of 
the  ellipsoidal  wine-yeast,  in  presence  of  salts  of  copper,  by  M. 
A.  Kommier. — On  a  Coleopterous  insect  attacking  the  vine  in 
Tunis  {Ligniperda  framisca,  Fabricius),  by  M.  A.  Laboulbene. 
—The  preparation  of  crystallized  basic  nitrate  of  copper  and  its 
identification  with  gerhardtite,  by  M.  L.  Bourgeois. 

Berlin. 

Meteorological  Society,  February  11.— Prof.  Schwalbe, 
President,  m  the  chair.— Dr.  Danckelmann  spoke  on  the 
meteorological  conditions  which  exist  on  the  Gold  and  Slave 


Coast.  General  observations  had  been  started  in  New  Guinea,  but 
were  soon  reduced  to  observations  of  rainfall  only  ;  during  the 
ye^rs  1886  to  1889,  they  had  yielded  some  interesting  results  on 
the  connection  between  rainfall  and  the  direction  of  the  mon- 
soons and  trade-winds.  No  trustworthy  data  are  as  yet  to  hand 
of  the  meteorological  conditions  of  Southern  Africa,  Cameroon, 
and  East  Africa,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  a  mass  of  material 
accumulated  at  many  stations  on  the  Guinea  coast.  P"rom  the 
latter  it  appears  that  the  atmospheric  pressure  varies  but  slightly, 
and  shows  a  maximum  in  July  and  August.  In  Bismarckburg  the 
wind  blows  from  the  north  and  north-east  from  the  Sahara  in 
December,  January,  and  February  ;  in  June,  July,  and  August 
it  blows  west  and  south-west.  Variations  of  temperature  are 
but  slight,  presenting  a  maximum  in  December  to  February, 
and  a  minimum  in  July  and  August.  The  amount  of  rainfall  is 
very  variable,  being,  in  some  places,  as  low  as  575  mm.  per 
annum  ;  in  others,  1000,  1500,  or  even  3500.  The  speaker 
concluded  by  describing  the  climatic  conditions  of  this  region, 
pointing  out  that  they  may  be  explained  with  reference  to  the 
contiguity  of  the  Sahara  Desert.— Dr.  Eschenhagen  gave  a  de- 
tailed description  of  the  Magnetic  Observatory  at  Potsdam, 
dealing  with  its  structural  arrangements  and  the  internal  loca- 
tion of  the  instruments.  "While  exhibiting  the  photographically 
recorded  curves  of  the  previous  fortnight,  he  dealt  with  the 
breaks  in  these  which  result  from  any  more  than  usually  severe 
shock  of  earthquake.  These  he  attributed  to  purely  mechanical 
causes  rather  than  to  magnetic,  basing  his  views  on  observations 
of  the  movement  of  the  surface  of  mercury  at  the  time.  He 
pointed  out  that  the  opposite  view,  urged  by  French  meteoro- 
logists, as  based  upon  observation  of  a  copper  rod  with  a  bifilar 
suspension,  is  inconclusively  supported  by  such  observations, 
inasmuch  as  the  equilibrum  of  a  copper  rod  is  relatively  stable, 
while  that  of  a  bifilar  magnet  is  unstable. — The  President  re- 
ferred, in  conclusion,  to  the  loss  which  meteorology  had  sustained 
in  the  death  of  Buys  Ballot. 

Physiological  Society,  February  14.— Prof,  du  Bois  Rey- 
mond.  President,  in  the  chair.  —Prof.  Zuntz  gave  an  account  of 
experiments  conducted  in  his  laboratory  by  Dr.  Katzenstein,  on 
the  influence  of  bodily  labour  on  the  metabolism  of  man.  After 
giving  an  historical  rhuTiic  of  previous  researches,  he  described 
the  methods  employed  in  the  present  research.  The  experi- 
ments were  conducted  in  a  very  convenient  form  of  respiration- 
apparatus,  the  analysis  of  the  gases  being  made  by  Hempel's 
method.  Great  stress  was  laid  on  the  accurate  determination 
of  the  work  done  ;  the  latter  consisted  in  either  turning  a  wheel 
against  a  graduated  resistance,  or  else  in  motion  on  either  a 
plane  or  inclined  surface.  In  the  latter  form  of  work  an  appa- 
ratus was  used  which  had  previously  been  employed  in  experi- 
ments on  a  horse.  The  oxygen  consumed  in  each  experiment 
was  taken  as  a  measure  of  the  metabolism.  It  was  found  that 
this  was  permissible,  from  the  fact  that  the  respiratory  quotient 
was  observed  to  be  constant  during  the  three  conditions  of  rest, 
walking,  and  climbing.  From  this  it  appeared  that  the  energy 
required  for  any  given  work  was  the  outcome  of  the  union  of 
oxygen  and  carbon  in  the  formation  of  carbonic  acid  gas.  The 
increased  respiratory  interchange  which  accompanied  any  extra 
work  fell  to  the  normal  some  two  or  three  minutes  after  the 
work  ceased.  In  each  experiment  the  distance  covered  and 
height  through  which  the  body  was  raised  was  measured  in 
kilogram-metres ;  the  oxygen  simultaneously  absorbed  was 
determined,  and  from  this  the  amount  of  oxygen  which  would 
have  been  absorbed  if  no  work  had  been  done  was  subtracted, 
so  that  the  amount  of  oxygen  required  for  the  given  work  was 
obtained.  It  was  found  that,  as  in  Smith's  experiments,  the 
metabolism  might  be  increased  to  two  or  three  times  the  normal 
during  work.  The  experiment  was  then  repeated,  employing  a 
different  rate  of  motion  and  steepness  of  ascent,  so  that  it  was 
readily  possible  to  calculate  the  oxygen,  in  cubic  centimetres, 
required  for  a  progression  of  one  metre  or  the  raising  of 
one  kilogram ;  the  former  was  then  reduced  to  a  unit  of 
one  kilogram  of  body-weight.  The  result  obtained  from 
the  person  on  whom  most  of  the  experiments  were  made 
was  that  the  moving  of  one  kilogram  of  body-weight  over 
one  metre  of  space  on  the  level  involved  a  consumption  of 
I'll  c.c.  of  oxygen,  and  for  the  raising  of  one  kilogram  through 
one  metre,  a  consumption  of  I  "438  c.c.  In  conclusion,  the 
speaker  drew  some  interesting  comparisons  between  the  results 
of  these  experiments  and  those  previously  made  on  a  horse. — 
Dr.  Benda  exhibited  several  preparations  of  sense-organs  of 
mammals;  and  Dr.  Katz  showed  some  specimens  of  the  organ 


480 


NATURE 


\_March  20,  1890 


of  Corti. — Dr.  Hausemann  spoke  on  unsymmetrical  karyokinesis 
met  with  in  epitheliomata.  Ordinarily  the  chromatin-fiiaments 
divide  into  two  equal  parts,  but  in  cancer-cells  they  do  not,  .and 
from  this  results  the  polymorphism  of  the  nuclei. 

Physical  Society,  Febuary  21. — Prof,  du  Bois-Reymond, 
President,  in  the  chair. — Prof,  von  Bezold  made  a  short  speech 
in  memory  of  Buys  Ballot,  pointing  out  with  chief  prominence 
that  he  was  the  first  to  draw  attention  to  the  necessity  of  co- 
operation between  the  meteorologists  of  different  nations,  and 
that  he  had  been  chiefly  instrumental  in  establishing  the  existing 
International  Meteorological  Congress.  He  further  showed  that 
Buys  Ballot  was  the  first  to  give  a  survey  of  the  meteorological 
■conditions  existing  simultaneously  at  different  places  on  the 
earth's  surface,  the  pioneer  in  the  production  of  the  synoptic 
charts  which  are  now  published  (see  Foggendorff's  Annalen  for 
1847),  ^°^  the  first  to  thoroughly  grasp  and  state  with  precision 
the  difference  between  weather  and  climate. — Dr.  E.  Pringsheim 
spoke  on  Kirchoff's  law  and  gaseous  radiation.  During  the  ex- 
perimental verification  of  the  above,  the  speaker  was  chiefly 
interested  in  the  behaviour  of  gases  and  vapours,  and  selected 
for  his  experiments  sodium  vapour.  It  was  impossible  to  obtain 
any  answer  to  the  question  "  Does  a  gas  acquire  the'power  of 
emitting  light-rays  when  its  temperature  is  raised?"  by  the  mere 
introduction  of  sodium  or  its  salts  into  the  non-luminous  flame  of 
a  Bunsen  burner,  since  it  was  not  possible  to  exclude  the  occur- 
rence of  chemical  changes  during  such  an  experiment.  Thus  he 
employed  rather  the  method  of  Lockyer,  Liveing,  and  Dewar, 
heating  the  metal  in  a  sealed  tube.  In  this  way  he  verified  the 
appearance  of  the  bright  emission-line  and  of  the  absorption-line 
of  sodium.  The  lowest  temperature  at  which  they  make  their 
lappearance  was  determined  and  measured  thermo-electrically, 
but  the  speaker  did  not  deduce  any  absolute  value  from  his  data. 
He  further  considered  that  the  radiation  of  gases  when  heated  is 
not  yet  definitely  proved,  since  the  nitrogen  in  which  he  heated 
the  sodium  contained  minute  traces  of  oxygen,  and  the  method 
he  employed  for  closing  the  ends  of  his  tube  permitted  of  the 
probable  entry  of  small  quantities  of  air.  He  had,  therefore, 
additionally  made  experiments  with  thallium,  and  on  the  in- 
troduction of  air  into  the  metallic  vapours  ;  these  experiments 
yielded  a  distinctly  affirmative  answer  to  the  original  question, 
but  require  further  extension.  So  also  do  some  experiments  on 
the  occurrence  of  a  fluted  spectrum  of  sodium,  which  the  speaker 
had  made  during  the  course  of  the  above  work. 


DIARY  OF  SOCIETIES. 

London. 

THURSDAY,  March  20. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — The    Bakerian  Lecture — On  the  Discharge   of 

Electricity  through  Gases  :  Prof.  A.  Schuster,  F.R.S. 
LiNNEAN  Society,  at  8. — The  External  Morphology  of  the  Lepidoptcrous 

Pupae  ;  Part  2,  the  Antennae  and  Wings  :  E.  B.  Poulton,  F.R.S. — On  the 

Intestinal  Canal  of  the  Ichthyopside  with  especial  Reference  to  its  Arterial 

Supply  :  Prof.  G.  B.  Howes. 
■Chemical    Society,    at   8. — The    Evidence    afforded    by    Petrographical 

Research  of  the  Occurrence  of  Chemical  Change  under  Great  Pressures' : 

Prof.  Judd,  F.R.S. 
Zoological  Society,  at  4. 
Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 
RavAL   Institution,  at  3. — The  Early  Developments  of  the    Forms  ot 

Instrumental  Music  (with  Musical  Illustrations)  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDAY,  March  21. 

Physical  Society,  at  5. — On  the  Villari  Critical  Point  of  Nickel : 
Herbert  Tomlinson. — On  Bertrand's  Idiocyclophanous  Prism  ;  Prof. 
Silvanus  Thompson. 

Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7.30. — Economy  Trials  of  a  Com- 
pound Mill-Engine  and  Lancashire  Boilers  :  L.  A.  Legros. 

Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Electro-magnetic  Radiation :  Prof.  G.  F. 
Fitzgerald,  F  R.S. 

SATURDAY,  March  22. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  3. — The  Atmosphere  :   Prof.  Vivian  Lewes. 

Royal  Botanic  Society,  at  3.45. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — Electricity  and  Magnetism :  Right  Hon. 
Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

MONDAY,  March  24. 

Royal  Geographical  Society,  at  8.30. — North  American  Trans-Conti- 
nental Pathways,  Old  and  New  :  Augustus  Allen  Hayes. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Some  Considerations  concerning  Colour  and 
Colouring:  Prof.  A.  H.  Church,  F.R.S. 

TUESDAY,  March  25. 
Anthropological  Institute,  at  8.30. — Exhibition  of  a  Skull,  dredged 
up  on  the  Manchesler  Ship  Canal  Works  :  Isidore  Spielman. — The  Old 
British  "Pibcorn,"  or  "Hornpipe."  and  its  Affinities  :  Henry  Balfour. — 
The  Ancient  Peoples  of  Ireland  and'v  Scotland  considered :  Hector 
Maclean. 


Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Engraving  in  Wood,  Old  and  New :  W.  J. 
I^inton. 

In<!titution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  8. — Lough  Erne  Drainage:  James 
Price,  Jun.     (Discussion.) — Barry  Dock  and  Railway :  John  Robinson. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Post-Darwinian  Period :  Prof.  G.  J. 
Romanes,  F.R.S. 

WEDNESDAY,  March  26. 

Geological  Society,  at  8. — On  a  New  Species  of  Cyphaspis  from  the 
Carboniferous  Rocks  of  Yorkshire  :  Miss  Coignou.  Communicated  by 
Prof.  T  McKenny  Hughes,  F.R.S. — On  Composite  Spherulites  in 
Obsidian  from  Hot  Springs  near  Little  Lake,  California  :  F.  Rutley. — A 
Monograph  of  the  Pryozoa  (Polyzoa)  of  the  Hunstanton  Red  Chalk  ;  G  R. 
Vine.  Communicated  by  Prof.  P.  Martin  Duncan,  F.R.S. — Evidence 
furnished  by  Quaternary  Glacial- Epoch  Morainic  Deposits  of  Penn- 
sylvania, U.S.A.,  for  a  Similar  Mode  of  Formation  of  the  Permian 
Breccias  of  Leicestershire  and  South  Derbyshire  :  W.  S.  Gresley. 

Society  of  Arts,  at  8. — Carriage-Building  and  Street  Traffic  in  England 
and  France  :  G.  N.  Hooper. 

THURSDAY,  March  27. 

Royal  Society,  at  4.30. — The  following  papers  will  probably  be  read  : — 
On  Black  Soap-films:  Profs.  Reinold  and  Riicker,  F.R.S.— The  Varia- 
bility of  the  Temperature  of  the  British  Isles,  1869-83  inclusive  :  R.  H. 
Scott,  F.R.S. — Preliminary  Note  on  Supplementary  Magnetic  Surveys  of 
Special  Districts  in  the  British  Isles:  Profs.  Riicker  and  Thorpe,  F.R.S. 
— The  Rupture  of  Steel  by  Longitudinal  Stress  :  C.  A.  Cams- Wilson. — 
Measurements  of  the  Amount  of  Oil  necessary  in  order  to  check  the 
Motion  of  Camphor  upon  Water:  Lord  Rayleigh,  Sec. R.S — On  the 
Stability  of  a  Rotating  Spheroid  of  Perfect  Liquid  :  G.  H.  Bryan.— A 
Determination  of  v,  the  Ratio  of  the  Electromagnetic  Unit  of  Electricity 
to  the  Electrostatic  Unit:  Prof.  J.  J.  Thomson,  F.R.S.,  and  G.  F.  C. 
Searle. 

Chemical  Society,  at  4. — Anniversary  Meeting. — Election  of  Office- 
Bearers  and  Council. 

Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  at  8. 

Royal  Institution,  at  3. — The  Early  Development  of  the  Forms  ot 
Instrumental  Music  (with  Musical  Illustrations)  :  Frederick  Niecks. 

FRIDA  Y,  March  28. 
Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  at  7  30. — Deflection  of  Spiral  Springs: 

Alfred  E.  Young. 
Royal  Institution,  at  9. — Foam  :  Right  Hon.  Lord  Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 

^SATURDAY,  March  29. 
Society  of  Arts,  at  3. — The  Atmosphere :  Prof.  Vivian  Lewes. 
Royal  Institution,  at  3.— Electricity  and  Magnetism:  Right  Hon.  Lord 
Rayleigh,  F.R.S. 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

A  Naturalist  in  North  Celebes.     By  Dr.   F.   H.   H. 

Guillemard 457 

Saint- Venant's  Elastical  Researches.     By  Prof.  A. 

G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S 458 

Globes.     By  A.  F 459 

The  Psychology  of  Attention.     By  C.  LI.  M 460 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Boerlage  :   "  Handleiding  totde  Kennis  der  Flora  van 

Nederlandsch  Indie." — W.  B.  H 461 

Earl :   "  The  Elements  of  Laboratory  Work  "      ...  461 

Jamieson  :   "  Magnetism  and  Electricity  " 461 

Serviss  :   "  Astronomy  with  an  Opera-Glass  "  .    .    .    .  462 
Letters  to  the  Editor : — 

Electrical    Radiation    from   Conducting    Spheres,  an 
Electric  Eye,  and  a   Suggestion   regarding  Vision. 

{Illustrated.)     Prof.  Oliver  J.  Lodge,  F.R.S.      .  462 

"  PecuHar  Ice- Forms." — Prof.  J.  G.  MacGregor     .  463 
On  a  Certain  Theory  of  Elastic  After-Strain. — Prof. 

Horace  Lamb,  F.R.S 463 

Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — Ernest  W. 

L.  Holt 463 

Abnormal  Shoots  of  Ivy.     {Illustrated.') — W.  F.  R. 

Weldon 464 

Earth-Currents  and  the  Occurrence  of  Gold. — George 

Sutherland 464 

The  Primitive  Types  of  Mammalian  Molars.  {Illus- 
trated.)      465 

Oxford  "Pass"  Geometry 467 

Przewalsky's  Zoological  Discoveries    .......  468 

Notes 468 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 472 

The  Megueia  Meteorite 472     j 

The  Velocity  of  the  Propagation  of  Gravitation  .    .    .  472     I 

The  Vatican  Observatory 472     j 

Double- Star  Observations 472     ! 

Sun-spot  in  High  Latitudes 472 

Geographical  Notes 472     I 

Atmospheric  Dust.    By  Dr.  William  Marcet,  F.R.S.  473     j 

Societies  and  Academies 477     | 

Diary  of  Societies 480 


NA TURE 


481 


THURSDAY,  MARCH  27,  1890. 


A  SOUTH  LONDON  POLYTECHNIC.^ 

SOME  little  time  ago  we  expressed  our  view s  on  the 
general  scheme  put  forward  by  the  Charity  Com- 
missioners for  the  establishment  of  Polytechnics  (we 
must  use  the  word,  however  inapplicable)  in  various 
parts  of  London.  Since  then  we  have  received  a 
copy  of  the  architect's  report  on  the  requirements 
of  a  Technical  Institute  for  Battersea.  It  may  be  well 
to  recall  to  the  minds  of  readers  the  main  features  of  the 
proposed  scheme.  The  Polytechnic  in  Regent  Street, 
and  the  People's  Palace  at  Mile  End,  are  to  receive  large 
endowments  to  enable  them  to  continue  and  develop  the 
work  on  which  they  are  already  engaged,  a  large  sum  is 
to  be  given  to  found  a  City  Polytechnic,  and  series  of 
three  new  Institutes  are  to  be  established  in  various 
parts  of  South  London  ;  whilst  others,  at  present  more 
or  less  shadowy  and  prospective,  are  talked  of  for  other 
parts  of  the  metropolis. 

Of  the  three  new  Institutes,  the  plans  for  which  may 
be  said  to  be  in  an  advanced  condition,  two  will  be 
housed  in  buildings  already  established.  The  Gold- 
smiths' Company  have  bought  the  Royal  Naval  School 
at  New  Cross,  and  are  adapting  and  altering  it  so  as  to 
be  ready  to  be  opened  for  its  new  purpose  in  October 
next.  The  premises  of  the  Borough  Road  Training  Col- 
lege have  been  secured  for  the  second  of  the  Institutes, 
which  is  probably  to  be  partly  endowed  by  the  Iron- 
mongers' Company.  The  scheme  in  this  case  is  not, 
we  believe,  yet  published,  and  some  delay  may  take 
place  ;  but,  if  all  goes  smoothly,  this  Institute  also  may 
be  ready  to  begin  work  before  very  long. 

The  third  of  the  proposed  South  London  Polytechnics 
is  the  Battersea  Institute,  for  which  we  have  received  the 
draft  plans.  Here  there  is  no  existing  building  to  be 
adapted.  Everything  must  start  de  novo,  and  only  the 
limits  of  the  funds  at  their  command,  and  their  un- 
certainty as  to  the  future  tastes  and  wants  of  the  district, 
need  restrict  the  trustees  in  their  efforts  to  make  the 
Institute  in  every  way  worthy  of  its  purpose. 

And  here  we  may  at  the  outset  congratulate  the 
trustees  on  the  mode  in  which  they  have  determined  to 
proceed.  They  have  intrusted  to  Mr.  Rowland  Plumbe 
the  task  of  visiting  other  technical  schools,  obtain- 
ing necessary  information,  and  preparing  a  detailed 
statement  of  the  requirements  of  the  Battersea  Institute, 
and  have  since  circulated  his  draft  Report  among  various 
experts,  with  requests  for  criticisms  and  suggestions. 
The  plans  with  which  the  Report  is  illustrated  are  not 
intended  to  be  in  any  way  final,  but  merely  to  suggest 
the  nature  of  the  requirements  of  the  Institute  to  the 
architect,  whoever  he  may  be,  who  is  ultimately  selected 
to  design  the  building.  It  is  clear  that  no  stone  will  be 
left  unturned,  so  far  as  the  Committee  are  concerned,  to 
make  the  Battersea  Institute  a  model  Polytechnic. 

We  may  congratulate  the  Committee  on  another  matter. 
In  our  former  article  we  pointed  out  the  inexpediency  of 
attempting  too  much  at  once,  while  the  whole  question 

'  "  South  London  Polytechnic  Institutes — Report  on  Requirements  for  the 
Battersea  Institute."     By  Rowland  Plumbe,  F.R.I.B.A. 

Vol.  xll— No.  1065. 


of  the   future   of    Polytechnics   is   in    an    experimental 
stage.     Since  then,  Sir  Bernhard  Samuelson  and  other 
members  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Technical 
Association  have  publicly  impressed  similar  views  upon 
the  Vice-President  of  the  Council,  into  whose  hands  the 
Commissioners'  scheme  has  now  passed.     We  are,  there- 
fore, glad  to  see  that  Mr.  Plumbe  expressly  states  that 
his  plans  are  drawn  up  so  that  the  proposed  building 
may  be  gradually  constructed  as  the  need  arises;  and 
though  he  does  not  conceal  his  own  desire  to  have  the 
whole  building  erected  at  once,  we  are  glad  to  learn  that 
the  Committee  have  decided  to  let  the  institution  grow 
as  the  number  of  students  increases,  and  not  to  erect  a 
great  shell  until  they  see  more  clearly  the  extent  of  the 
demand  which  it  is  to  supply.     We  gather  further  that  the 
sum  required  for  the  endowment  of  the   Institute  is  not 
yet  complete,  and  we  may  take  it  for  granted  that  no 
attempt    will    be    made   to    start    operations    until    this 
necessary   preliminary   step   is   completed.     Thus  those 
who  are  anxious  that  the  whole  scheme  for  Polytechnics 
should  not  be  imperilled  by  hastily  founding  too  many  at 
once  before  one  new  Institute  has  been  made  a  success, 
may  feel  assured  that  the  necessary  interval  which  must 
elapse  before  the  foundation-stone  of  the  Battersea  Insti- 
tute can  be  laid  will  give  some  further  opportunity  to  the 
promoters  to  profit  by  the  experience  which  accumulates 
every  day  of  the  working   of  similar  institutions    else- 
where. 

To  quote  Mr.  Plumbe's  Report,  "  The  combined  form 
of  Institute  ...  is  a  growth  almost  of  the  present  day,  and 
the  subject  as  now  presented  is,  with  the  hereinafter  men- 
tioned exception,  comparatively  new  and  without  pre- 
cedent.'' The  exception  referred  to  is  Mr.  Hogg's  Poly- 
technic, and  as  this  is  the  product  of  the  gradual  growth 
of  seventeen  years,  the  argument  for  going  "slow  and' 
sure"  is  irresistible.  The  promoters  of  the  Goldsmiths 
Institute  at  New  Cross  are,  we  understand,  equally  alive 
to  this  necessity. 

Mr.  Plumbe  has  made  inquiries,  for  the  purpose  of  his 
Report,  into  the  nature  of  the  industries  of  Battersea, 
and  has  visited  several  of  the  chief  Technical  Institutes 
in  London,  from  the  Bow  and  Bromley  Institute  up  to  the 
Central  Institution  of  the  City  and  Guilds  Institute.  He 
might,  perhaps,  with  advantage  have  extended  his  visit 
to  some  of  the  more  important  provincial  centres,  which 
in  some  ways  offer  examples  which  are  not  to  be  found 
in  the  metropolis  of  the  kind  of  equipment  required  for 
a  popular  technical  school.  London  has  long  been 
behindhand  in  the  matter,  except  for  the  higher  Colleges 
at  South  Kensington,  which  are  intended  to  serve  a  pur- 
pose so  different  that  their  example  may  be  disregarded. 
There  are,  indeed,  the  two  existing  Polytechnic  Insti- 
tutes, and  apparently  Mr.  Plumbe  has  derived  from  them 
almost  all  his  information  as  to  the  requirements  of  the 
Battersea  Institute.  The  Regent  Street  Polytechnic  he 
considers  "  most  undoubtedly  must  serve  as  a  model  to 
all  succeeding  institutions."  He  presumes  that  the  Com- 
mittee will  "  follow  to  some  extent  the  curriculum  of 
study  adopted  at  Mr.  Quintin  Hogg's  Polytechnic  and 
the  People's  Palace." 

Without  in  any  way  challenging  these  conclusions,  it  is 
only  fair  to  point  out  that  the  first-hand  inquiries  on 
which  they  are  based  are  mostly  derived  from  these  very 

Y 


482 


NA  TURE 


{March  27,  1890 


institutions.  Now  it  is  important  that  in  a  new  departure 
like  that  which  it  is  proposed  to  make  at  Battersea  we 
should  not  blindly  follow  in  the  rut  of  any  one  existing 
institution,  and  the  only  way  to  avoid  this  is  to  profit  by 
the  experience  of  other  technical  institutes  in  various 
parts  of  the  country.  Mr.  Plumbe  quotes  the  Report  (now 
nearly  six  years  old)  of  the  Royal  Commission  on  Technical 
Instruction,  but  many  of  the  more  important  provincial 
schools  have  sprung  up  since  that  date,  and  the  Com- 
mission on  Elementary  Education  to  which  he  refers  only 
dealt  with  elementary  schools.  He  is  consequently  led 
to  the  very  doubtful  conclusion  that  provincial  schools 
offer  no  example  for  London  because  of  the  "  thorough- 
ness and  great  cost  of  the  education  given  (which 
further  required  the  whole  time  of  the  pupils  for  a  num- 
ber of  years)."  "  I  have  not,"  he  continues,  "  thought  it 
necessary  to  spend  any  further  time  on  the  examination 
of  buildings  of  this  character,  particularly  as  I  found 
those  of  most  experience  with  whom  I  conferred  on  the 
subject  were  distinctly  of  my  opinion." 

Who  these  experts  were  we  are  not  told,  but  the  above 
remarks  are  scarcely  applicable  to  such  technical  schools 
as  those  at  Bradford,  Huddersfield,  Keighley,  Manchester, 
Bristol,  and  other  large  centres,  which  are  doing  for  the 
artisan  population  of  those  districts  much  the  same  service 
as  is  expected  from  the  Battersea  Institute. 

Whether  instruction  be  elementary  or  advanced, 
whether  it  be  intended  for  masters  or  for  workmen,  it 
ought  to  be  "  thorough,"  and  thoroughness  implies  to 
some  extent  costliness.  "  To  educate  the  industrial 
classes  on  a  large  scale  at  a  comparatively  nominal 
cost '"  is  an  attempt  which  looks  better  on  paper  than  in 
practice. 

And  this  brings  us  to  the  question  of  the  financial  aspect 
of  the  scheme.  Mr.  Plumbe  states  that  his  estimate  of  the 
cost  of  a  given  amount  of  accommodation  is  based  on  a  me- 
morandum by  Mr.  H.  Cunynghame,  in  which  he  calculates 
that  the  building,  including  land,  &c.,  ought  to  be  erected 
and  fitted  up  for  ^ii  per  student  or  member  and  that  the 
cost  of  annual  maintenance,  in  addition  to  fees  and 
grants,  will  amount  to  15.?.  per  head  per  annum.  This 
estimate  is  naturally  considered  by  Mr.  Plumbe  to  be 
"  moderate  in  the  extreme."  It  is  much  to  be  desired 
that  the  basis  of  Mr.  Cunynghame's  calculation  should  be 
made  public,  so  that  the  materials  should  exist  for  the 
formation  of  a  sound  judgment  thereon. 

As  regards  the  cost  of  building,  all  depends  of  course 
on  the  kind  of  building  proposed  ;  but  it  would  be 
melancholy,  indeed,  if  an  institution  directly  designed 
to  elevate  the  ideas  and  refine  the  taste  of  the  population 
of  dismal  and  ugly  South  London,  were  to  be  housed  in 
a  building  "  of  the  plainest  and  most  utilitarian  character  " 
—to  say  nothing  of  the  quality  of  materials  used  in  its 
construction. 

But  from  an  educational  point  of  view  an  even  more 
important  consideration  is  the  necessary  amount  of  en- 
dowment. The  allowance  of  15^'.  a  head,  "including 
repairs  and  maintenance,"  seems  very  meagre,  if  fees  are 
to  be  low,  and  at  the  same  time  first-class  teaching  power 
and  management  are  to  be  secured,  and  paid  for.  To 
base  an  estimate  on  the  current  expenses  of  the  Regent 
Street  Polytechnic  is  to  run  the  risk  of  serious  error,  for  it 
is  well-known  that  much  of  the  work  of  organization  and 


direction  has  there  been  performed  gratis,  or  at  far  below 
market  value,  thanks  to  the  enthusiasm  of  a  few  devoted 
workers.  Can  the  Committees  of  the  new  Institutes  call 
into  existence  a  similar  amount  of  enthusiasm  among  men 
of  leisure  and  means  in  connection  with  each  of  the  pro- 
posed Institutes  (not,  be  it  remembered,  of  a  religious 
character),  which  will  justify  them  in  relying  on  being 
permanently  saved  the  bulk  of  the  expenses  of  manage- 
ment ?  If  not,  it  is  clear  that  a  good  deal  will  have  to 
be  added  to  the  estimate  of  15^.  a  head. 

Another  matter  which  is  of  importance  from  a  financial 
point  of  view  is  the  question  of  the  position  to  be  occu- 
pied by  the  day-school  with  respect  to  other  sections  of 
the  new  Institute.  On  this  point,  the  language  of  the 
Commissioners'  scheme  is  vague  almost  to  the  point  of 
unintelligibility.  There  are  evident  advantages  in  utiliz- 
ing the  Polytechnic  buildings  in  the  day-time  for  the  pur- 
pose of  a  school  which  may  afterwards  serve  as  a  feeder 
to  the  evening  classes.  But  it  should  be  an  organic  part 
of  the  Institute  ;  not  a  mere  appendage,  the  existence  of 
which  may  be  tolerated  so  long  as  it  interferes  with  no 
other  department  of  work  and  claims  no  share  in  the 
endowment.  Yet  such  seems  to  be  the  present  intention 
of  the  Charity  Commission,  so  far  as  we  can  gather 
from  their  published  statements.  The  language  of  Mr. 
Plumbe's  Report  confirms  this  conclusion,  against  which 
it  is  time  to  record  an  emphatic  protest.  In  our  opinion, 
the  day-school,  if  properly  conducted,  should  ultimately 
become  the  corner-stone  of  the  whole  educational  work 
of  the  Institute,  for  much  more  systematic  teaching  can 
be  done  in  the  case  of  boys  working  all  their  time  than 
can  be  hoped  for  with  students  devoting  a  couple  of 
evenings  a  week  to  instruction  and  recreation.  Doubt- 
less, in  Regent  Street  a  secondary  school  can  be  made 
self-supporting,  and  even  profitable,  by  its  fees  ;  but  such 
an  attempt  would  be  undesirable,  and  indeed  impossible, 
in  the  case  of  a  school  for  the  "  poorer  classes  "  in  a  poor 
district.  A  high-fee'd  school  might  perhaps  fill  itself  at 
the  expense  of  emptying  other  schools  in  the  neighbour- 
hood, but  it  would  not  fill  the  gap  which  wants  filling. 
Under  these  circumstances,  to  condemn  the  day-school 
to  pay  its  way  is  to  condemn  it  to  become  a  mere  grant- 
earning  machine,  neglecting  all  subjects  which  do  not 
pay,  and  constructing  its  curriculum  strictly  on  the  lines 
of  the  South  Kensington  Directory.  What  is  wanted  is 
a  good  modern  school  with  a  low  fee,  and  a  large  number 
of  scholarships  for  competition  among  the  scholars  of  j 
elementary  schools.  But  such  a  school  cannot  be  made  f 
self-supporting,  and  the  Battersea  Committee  would  do 
well  to  induce  the  Charity  Commissioners,  before  it  is 
too  late,  to  recognize  this  fact  frankly  in  the  scheme 
which  they  are  about  to  draw. 

Again,  we  should  be  glad  to  know  how  wide  a  margin 
Mr.  Cunynghame's  estimate  allows  for  the  cost  of  what 
we  may  term  "  local  adaptation."     For  example,  in  Mr. 
Plumbe's  list  of  local  industries  we  find  chemical  works,  j 
match  factories,  and  gas-works.    From  this  it  would  seem  j 
that  there  is  room  for  the  teaching  of  chemistry  in  its  | 
application  to  various  industries.     But  such  instruction, 
though   it  is   one  of  the  chief  objects  with  which  the 
technical  side  of  the  Institute  is  started,  must  involve  extra 
cost,  for  it  will  not  produce  grant ;    and  Mr.  Plumbe's 
conclusion  from  his  inquiry,  that  the  "  science  and  art 


March  27,  18 90 J 


NATURE 


483 


classes  should  be  carried  on  so  that  the  Government 
^rant  be  earned,"  is  a  nott  sequitur;  at  all  events  until  the 
Science  and  Art  Department  award  grants  for  distinctively- 
technical  subjects  under  the  new  Technical  Instruction 
Act. 

We  cannot  help  thinking  that  if  due  weight  is  allowed 
to  these  considerations  the  estimate  of  15^-.  a  head  will  be 
largely  raised  (unless  compensation  be  sought  by  cutting 
down  some  of  the  more  expensive  trade  classes)  ;  and  as 
we  suppose  the  endowment  cannot  be  much  increased, 
the  number  of  students  to  be  provided  for  must  be 
necessarily  diminished.  In  fact,  the  whole  scale  on 
which  Mr.  Plumbe  has  calculated  the  requirements  of 
the  Institute  may  have  to  be  somewhat  revised.  To 
those  who  consider  large  numbers  all-important,  this  may 
seem  deplorable,  but  we  are  convinced  that  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  South  London  Polytechnic  will  prefer  the 
interests  of  efficiency  to  those  of  temporary  display. 

One  other  matter  which  we  notice  with  some  sur- 
prise and  regret  is  the  apparent  omission  in  the  plans 
to  provide  committee-rooms  and  other  accommodation 
which  can  be  utilized  by  local  working  men's  organiza- 
tions. We  referred  in  our  former  article  to  the  importance 
of  making  the  Institutes  real  working-class  centres,  and 
the  reply  of  the  Charity  Commissioners  to  the  deputation 
from  the  London  Trades  Council  on  the  subject  was 
supposed  to  be  favourable  to  the  provision  in  connection 
with  each  Institute  of  rooms  which  could  be  utilized  on 
moderate  payment  by  various  working-class  societies 
which  now  too  often  have  to  meet  in  public-houses.  The 
omission  of  any  such  provision  in  the  plans  for  Battersea 
is  a  serious  blemish  on  the  scheme,  which,  however,  can 
easily  be  corrected,  as  soon  as  pointed  out. 

The  Committee  will  have  a  great  opportunity,  which  it 
is  to  be  hoped  they  will  use  aright,  of  providing  the  in- 
habitants of  South  London  with  a  technical  and  recreative 
Institute,  which  in  its  close  adaptation  to  local  needs  may 
serve  as  model  for  all  such  Institutes  in  the  future. 


A  GEOLOGICAL  MAP  OF  THE  ALPINE  CHAIN. 

Geologische  Ubersichtskarte  der  Alpen.  Entworfen  von 
Dr.  Franz  Noe.  Mit  einem  Begleitworte.  (Wien  :  Ed. 
Holzel,  1890.) 

GOOD,  and  in  some  cases  even  elaborate,  geological 
maps  exist  for  parts  of  the  Alps  ;  but  one  to  exhibit 
the  chain  as  a  whole,  without  being  on  a  scale  so  large  as 
to  be  unwieldy  or  so  small  as  to  be  indistinct,  has  been 
hitherto  a  desideratum.  This  has  now  been  supplied  by 
Dr.  Noe.  The  scale  adopted  is  i  in  1,000,000,  or  about 
16  miles  to  the  inch,  which  very  well  satisfies  both  the 
above  conditions.  A  glance  at  the  list  of  authorities 
which  have  been  consulted  indicates  that  Dr.  Noe  has 
had  no  easy  task  ;  for  in  Alpine  geology  there  are  indeed 
consellors  enough,  but  their  multitude  is  not  strength,  for 
they  are  so  often  at  variance. 

At  the  present  stage  of  knowledge,  the  chartographer 
must  be  content,  in  dealing  with  the  crystalline  schists 
(using  that  term  in  a  rather  wide  sense),  to  colour  his  map 
petrographically — that  is  to  say,  he  must,  as  far  as  possible, 
record  facts  and  avoid  theories.  Dr.  Noe  has  endea- 
voured, though  not  with  complete  success,  to  render  his 
maps  petrographical  in  the  parts  where  doubt  might  arise, 


viz.  those  occupied  by  that  crystalline  series  which, 
whatever  may  be  its  age,  in  the  Alps  always  underlies 
any  sedimentary  rock  to  which  a  date  can  be  assigned. 
The  principle  of  coloration  agrees  very  nearly  with  that 
suggested  by  the  International  Geological  Congress  at 
Bologna.  Crimson  denotes  the  deep-seated  igneous  rocks 
of  the  more  acid  type,  dull  green  the  more  basic  ; 
two  slightly  different  shades  of  red  represent  respectively 
the  older  (and  in  most  cases  more  acid)  volcanics  and  the 
newer  volcanics.  Four  colours  are  employed  to  express 
the  "  crystalline  schist"  series  :  one,  for  the  Central  gneiss 
and  some  of  the  oldest  mica-schists  ;  another,  for  the  less 
coarsely  crystalline  (and  probably  newer)  mica-schists, 
together  with  calc-schists,  chlorite-schists,  &c.  ;  a  third, 
for  certain  crystalline  schists,  phyllite;,  and  clay-slates 
of  uncertain  geological  age  ;  and  marbles  are  indicated 
by  a  deep  blue.  Palaeozoic  rocks  (exclusive  of  Permian) 
are  coloured  purple,  the  different  series  being  distin- 
guished by  symbols  ;  pale  brown  denotes  Permian  ;  tints 
of  blue  represent  the  Triassic  and  Jurassic  strata  ;  green 
signifies  Neocomian  and  Cretaceous  ;  orange  the  older 
Tertiary,  flysch  having  a  separate  tint  ;  one  shade  of 
yellow  is  used  for  Miocene  and  Pliocene  ;  another  for 
Diluvial  and  Alluvial  deposits — the  former  a  word  of 
misleading  origin,  which  ought  to  have  long  since  disap- 
peared from  geological  nomenclature. 

Very  wisely,  Dr.  Noe  has  included  in  his  map  some- 
thing more  than  the  Alps.  Not  only  do  we  find  the 
Jura,  but  also  this  region  is  extended  far  enough  in  the 
direction  of  Dole  to  exhibit  the  remarkable  exposure 
of  the  old  crystalline  floor,  north  of  that  town. 
On  the  right  bank  of  the  Rhine,  in  the  neighbourhood^ 
of  Sackingen,  a  considerable  strip  of  crystalline  rock  is 
shown,  the  end  of  the  great  Schwarzwald  massif;  and 
north  of  the  Eastern  Alps  we  find  the  crystalline  rocks 
indicated  as  they  uprise  from  beneath  the  Miocene  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  Danube,  as,  for  example,  near  Linz,  and 
again  at  Pressburg.  The  geological  colours  also  are 
carried  down  the  east  coast  of  the  Adriatic  as  far  as 
Spalato,  so  that  the  connection  of  the  Istrian  and  Dal- 
matian Alps  with  the  main  chain  is  made  perfectly  clear. 
Unfortunately,  however,  Dr.  Noe  has  not  applied  the  same 
treatment  to  the  Apennines,  though  their  connection  with 
the  Alpine  chain  cannot  be  of  less  geological  importance, 
for  he  brings  the  colours  to  an  abrupt  end  a  few  miles 
west  of  Savona. 

In  one  or  two  respects  the  above  system  of  coloration 
seems  open  to  criticism.  The  tint  and  the  lines  used  to 
indicate  mountain  land  are  productive  of  some  confusion, 
and  increase  the  difficulty  of  identifying  the  colours,  with- 
out, as  we  think,  producing  a  compensating  advantage. 
The  use  of  three  colours  for  the  Trias-Rhaetic  seems  a 
disproportionate  subdivision  when  only  one  is  allotted 
to  Neocomian-Cretaceous.  We  are,  however,  disposed 
to  differ  more  seriously — though  only  occasionally— from 
Dr.  Noe  as  to  his  use  of  the  colours  for  the  divisions  of  the 
crystalline  schists.  One  of  these  is  made  too  inclusive, 
because  it  is  applied  to  clay-slates  and  phyllites  as  well  as 
to  rocks  which  must  be  admitted  to  be  crystalline  schists. 
Granted  that  there  is  sometimes  a  difficulty  in  separating 
these  in  the  field,  we  fail  to  see  the  propriety  of  deli- 
berately effacing  the  distinction.  Fortunately,  however, 
this  confusion,  owing  to  the  scale  of  the  map,  does  not 


4«4 


NA  TURE 


{March  27,  1890 


seriously  mislead  the  student,  but  we  are  more  perplexed 
to  discover  the  reasons  which  have  led  in  some  cases  to 
the  separation  of  the  crystalline  members  of  this  group 
from  certain  of  those  in  the  other,  and  presumably  older 
group,  which  is  defined  as  consisting  of  "mica-schists 
calc-mica-schists,  chlorite-schist,  &c.  To  the  latter  are 
referred  the  schists — calcareous,  micaceous,  and  chloritic 
— near  Windisch-Matrei  ;  to  the  former  the  great  belts 
north  and  south  of  the  Tauern  range,  which,  for  instance, 
occur  respectively  near  Mittersill  and  Lienz.  We  cannot 
understand  on  what  grounds  these  are  distinguished. 
Further,  the  great  group  of  schists  which  sweeps  along  on 
the  eastern  flank  of  the  watershed  of  the  Franco- Italian 
Alps,  as,  for  example,  near  the  Mont  Genevre,  has  the  same 
colour  as  those  of  Windisch-Matrei ;  but  petrographically 
they  appear  to  us  inseparable  from  the  other  group. 
By  some  geologists,  as  is  well  known,  the  "lustrous 
schists  "  have  even  been  mapped  (erroneously  no  doubt)  as 
altered  Trias. 

Still,  though  we  venture  to  dissent  occasionally  from 
Dr.  Noe,  and  think  that  in  all  probability  a  wider 
personal  knowledge  of  the  Alps  would  have  led  him 
occasionally  to  modify  a  conclusion  and  to  avoid 
some  slight  inconsistencies,  we  cannot  conclude  this 
notice  without  expressing  our  sense  of  the  very  great 
value  of  his  work.  He  has  placed  a  really  good  general 
map  of  the  Alps  within  the  reach  of  all  students,  for  the 
price  at  which  it  is  sold  is  surprisingly  low.  The  map  is 
accompanied  by  a  useful  descriptive  pamphlet,  to  which 
Prof.  Suess  has  written  a  short  preface. 

T.  G.  BONNEY. 


OLD  AGE. 

Old  Age.     By  George  Murray  Humphry,  M.D.,  F.R.S 
(Cambridge  :  Macmillan  and  Bowes,  1889.) 

IN  spite  of  pessimistic  philosophies,  man  still  regards 
life  as  worth  living,  and  trusts  to  attain  to  a  good  old 
age,  however  miserable  his  life  may  seem  to  impartial 
critics.  This  desire,  of  course,  is  a  necessary  condition 
of  human  existence,  and  the  destruction  of  it  would  entail 
the  extinction  of  the  human  race — a  contingency,  however, 
which  is  never  likely  to  arise.  Hence,  we  have  no  doubt 
that  this  volume  will  be  eagerly  scanned  by  innocent 
persons  who  are  still  in  hopes  of  finding  some  panacea 
which  will  enable  them  to  attain  the  desired  length  of 
days. 

But,  alas,  the  number  of  their  somatic  cell  generations 
is  already  fore-ordained  in  the  germ  from  which  they 
were  developed  ;  and  no  rule  of  life  can  increase  this. 
No  man  by  taking  much  thought  can  add  a  cubit  to  his 
stature,  nor  a  decade  to  the  predestined  span  of  his  exist- 
ence. Yet  the  facts  gathered  together  in  this  book  may 
afford  some  hints  as  to  the  best  way  of  attaining  just 
this  limit. 

On  p.  135,  et  seq.,  Prof.  Humphry  reviews  the  chief 
characteristics  in  the  mode  of  life  of  the  favoured  subjects 
of  the  work.  He  begins  by  saying  that  the  results  of  the 
collective  investigation  respecting  old  age,  "  have  not 
been  such  as  to  evolve  anything  very  novel  or  startling 
or  to   give  rise   to   any   fresh   theories   with   regard  to 


longevity  and  the  means  of  attaining  it,"  but  only  to 
"  show  that  the  maxims  and  laws  which  common-sense 
would  dictate  hold  good,  that  the  real  elixir  vitce  is  to 
be  found  in  the  observance  of  them,  and  that,  as  a  general 
rule,  those  persons  live  the  longest  who  might  be  expected 
to  do  so." 

The  author  also  emphasizes  the  fact  of  the  all-import- 
ance of  inherited  predisposition  among  the  factors  that 
tend  towards  producing  longevity,  and  shows  that  nearly 
all  the  subjects  of  the  returns  came  of  a  long-lived  stock. 
In  most  of  them,  too,  the  body  was  well-proportioned 
and  developed,  brain  development  fair,  and  there  was 
a  remarkable  absence  of  degenerative  changes  in  the 
arteries  and  cartilages.  According  to  the  author,  their 
essential  characteristic  is  that  all  parts  of  the  body  are 
so  well  balanced,  that  the  senile  decay  of  function  goes  on 
in  them  all  simultaneously,  and  at  an  equal  rate,  so  that, 
e.g.,  the  vascular  system  is  not  overloaded  and  over- 
worked by  a  too  vigorous  digestive  apparatus,  nor  the 
vessels  worn  out  by  an  over-excitable  nervous  and 
cardiac  mechanism,  so  that  if  we  could  induce  all  our 

organs 

"  to  arrange 
This  not  to  be  avoided  change, 
So  as  to  change  together," 

we  should  have  gone  far  towards  attaining  the  secret  of 
long  life. 

Most  of  the  persons  described  were  temperate,  taking 
little  alcohol  and  meat,  and  lived  active  open-air  lives. 
There  are  one  or  two  startling  exceptions  to  the  former 
rule,  however  ;  such  as  the  centenarian  who  "  drank  like 
a  fish  all  his  life,"  and  several  others  who  had  always 
indulged  pretty  freely  in  stimulants. 

Another  point  that  Prof.  Humphry  lays  stress  on  is  the 
fact  that  most  of  these  people  were  early  risers,  and 
could  do  with  little  sleep.  It  seems  that  the  anabolic 
processes  are  more  complete  and  regular  when  they  are 
accomplished  quickly.  Apropos  of  this,  he  quotes  with 
approval  the  dictum  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington  :  "  When 
one  turns  in  bed,  it  is  time  to  turn  out." 

In  discussing  the  general  aspects  of  his  subject,  he 
shows  that  old  age  may  be  said  to  be  a  product  of 
civilization,  the  law  of  the  "  weakest  to  the  wall  "  being 
altered  by  the  growth  of  sympathy,  and  of  love  for  others. 
But  the  continued  existence  of  old  people  among  com- 
munities may  (partly,  at  all  events)  be  accounted  for  on 
more  utilitarian  principles.     Weismann  remarks  : — 

"  It  [old  age]  is  obviously  of  use  to  man,  for  it  enables 
the  old  to  care  for  their  children,  and  is  also  advantageous 
in  enabling  the  older  individuals  to  participate  in  human 
affairs,  and  to  exercise  an  influence  upon  the  advancement 
of  intellectual  powers,  and  thus  to  influence  indirectly  the 
maintenance  of  the  race." 

Thus  we   see  the  production  of  old  age  could   be 
counted    for    simply   on  the   laws   of  natural   selecti^ 
among  nations. 

The  fertility  of  these  long-lived  individuals  is  a* 
above  the  normal  (the  average  of  children  born  to  ea^ 
whether  man  or  woman,  being  six),  and  many  of  the 
seem  to  have  borne  or  begotten  children  to  an  advanc 
age.  This,  again,  is  in  accordance  with  the  view  ad\ 
cated  by  the  biologist  just  quoted — viz.  that  a  lengthen!^ 
of  life  is  connected  with  the  increase  in  the  duration 


March  27,  18 90 J 


NA  TURE 


4^5 


reproduction.  The  effects  of  this  fertility  of  long-lived 
people  must  give  their  stock  an  advantage  in  the  race 
for  existence,  so  that  one  would  expect  their  number,  in 
proportion  to  the  rest  of  the  population,  gradually  to 
increase. 

The  last  chapter  gives  a  short  account  of  the  maladies 
of  old  people,  and  is  chiefly  of  medical  interest. 

Besides  the  general  account  of  the  subject,  Prof. 
Humphry  gives  all  the  analyses  of  the  British  Medical 
Association  returns,  which  furnish  the  material  for  the 
book.  There  are  several  good  photographic  illustrations  : 
the  frontispiece,  portraits  of  a  man  and  his  wife  (both 
over  loi  years),  and  others,  representing  sections  through 
the  neck  of  the  thigh-bone,  and  the  jaw  of  old  people. 
With  regard  to  the  femur,  Prof.  Humphry  points  out 
that  there  is  no  foundation  for  the  generally  accepted 
idea  that  the  head  in  old  people  sinks  to  or  below  the  level 
of  the  great  trochanter,  and  the  illustration  certainly  bears 
out  his  criticism. 

Perhaps  the  happiest  feature  of  the  book  is  its 
optimism.  "  It  is  satisfactory  to  note  how  many  of  the 
very  aged  are  in  good  possession  of  their  mental  faculties 
— taking  a  keen  interest  in  passing  events,  forming  a 
clear  judgment  upon  passing  events,  and  full  of  thoughts 
for  the  present  and  future  welfare  of  others." 

An  old  age  like  this  is  worth  striving  to  attain,  although 
one  may  never  be  free  from  the  dread  of  dying  "  from 
the  head  downwards,"  and  so  lingering  on  in 

"  Second  childishness  and  mere  oblivion, 

Sans  teeth,  sans  eyes,  sans  taste,  sans  everything." 

E.  H.  S. 


THE  ELEMENTS  OF  ASTRONOMY. 

The  Elements  of  Astronomy.  By  Prof.  C.  A.  Young, 
Ph.D.,  LL.D.  (Boston  and  London:  Ginn  and  Co. 
1890.) 

'"T^HIS  is  a  valuable  addition  to  the  existing  text-books 
^  of  astronomy  for  the  use  of  those  who  intend  to 
study  the  subject  seriously.  It  has  much  in  common 
with  the  same  author's  larger  work  on  "  General 
Astronomy  "  (see  Nature,  vol.  xxxix.  p.  386),  but  we  are 
assured  that  it  is  not  merely  an  abridgment,  but  has 
been  worked  over  with  special  reference  to  a  high-school 
course.  It  is  assumed  that  the  students  have  mastered 
the  ordinary  elementary  subjects,  and  are  acquainted  with 
elementary  algebra  and  geometry. 

The  book  covers  quite  as  much  ground  as  can  be 
expected  for  an  elementary  course,  although  many  of  the 
subjects  are  merely  glanced  at.  Practically  everything, 
with  the  exception  of  the  more  difficult  problems  of 
mathematical  astronomy,  is  considered  more  or  less. 
The  opening  chapters  deal  with  definitions,  the  geometry 
of  the  sphere,  and  the  determination  of  latitude  and  longi- 
tude. Chapters  on  the  earth's  dimensions  and  motions, 
the  moon,  sun,  planets,  comets,  stars,  and  nebulas,  then 
follow.  An  appendix  includes  topics  which  might  be 
considered  beyond  an  elementary  book,  but  are  still  of 
sufficient  importance  to  form  part  of  a  high-school 
course. 

Astronomical  physics  receives  a  fair  share  of  attention, 
but  here  the  book  is  necessarily  more  open  to  criticism 


than  in  the  parts  dealing  with  well-established  facts  and 
principles.  There  are  few  general  text-books  which  treat 
this  important  branch  of  astronomy  in  a  satisfactory 
manner,  and  it  is  perhaps  not  to  be  wondered  at,  as  the 
constantly  increasing  number  of  new  observations  neces- 
sitate considerable  changes  in  our  ideas.  As  far  as  a 
consideration  of  the  facts  is  concerned,  however,  Prof. 
Young  has  done  his  work  admirably,  but  this  cannot  be 
said  of  his  treatment  of  the  various  conclusions  which 
have  been  drawn  from  them.  In  his  introduction.  Prof. 
Young  tells  us  that  he  has  tried  to  treat  every  subject  in 
such  a  way  as  "  to  discourage  narrow  and  one-sided  ways 
of  looking  at  things,  and  to  awaken  a  desire  for  further 
acquisition."  However  he  may  succeed  with  his  readers, 
it  does  not  seem  that  he  has  altogether  taken  this  lesson 
to  heart  himself,  for  we  find  him  dismissing  suggestions 
without  a  complete  hearing.  For  instance,  in  connection 
with  the  theory  that  sun-spots  are  formed  by  the  down- 
rush  of  cool  materials  into  the  photosphere  (p.  130),  he 
states  that  it  is  not  easy  to  reconcile  this  view  with  the 
distribution  of  the  spots  over  the  sun's  surface.  Further 
enquiry  on  his  part,  however,  would  have  shown  him 
that  the  theory  in  its  extended  form  suggests  that  the 
spot-forming  material  is  mainly  formed  of  vapours  which 
have  condensed  in  the  cool  outer  layers  of  the  sun's 
atmosphere  (in  the  same  way  as  water-vapour  condenses 
in  our  own),  and  also  gives  an  explanation  of  the  way  in 
which  the  material  may  be  localized  over  the  spot-zones. 
The  author  is  notably  cautious  with  regard  to  new  things, 
but  we  are  surprised  to  find  that  he  continues  to  adopt 
Secchi's  classification  of  star  spectra  (p.  317),  seeing  that 
it  does  not  satisfactorily  treat  bright-line  stars  like  y 
Cassiopeiae,  and  those  of  Orion  which  give  almost  con- 
tinuous spectra.  The  classifications  suggested  by  Vogel 
and  Lockyer  both  have  the  advantage  of  detail,  and  the 
latter  is  certainly  the  most  philosophical.  On  p.  318  it  is 
stated  that  stars  of  Secchi's  fourth  type  usually  "  show  a 
few  bright  lines,"  in  addition  to  the  carbon  absorption 
bands,  an  idea  of  Secchi's  which  was  shown  to  be 
erroneous  several  years  ago. 

The  book  is  abundantly  illustrated,  and  most  of  the 
diagrams  are  excellent.  Fig.  119,  however,  gives  a  very 
bad  impression  of  the  spectrum  of  a  nebula,  the  three 
bright  green  lines  being  represented  as  almost  equidistant, 
whereas  they  practically  form  a  triplet.  A  useful 
"  Uranography  "  is  given  at  the  end.  This  embraces  the 
more  important  celestial  objects  in  the  northern  hemi- 
sphere and  some  degrees  south,  and  is  accompanied  by  a 
series  of  star  maps.  In  the  maps  a  convenient  system  of 
indicating  magnitudes  is  adopted,  but  it  has  the  dis- 
advantage of  destroying  the  appearances  of  the  constella- 
tions for  rapid  identification.  A.   F. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Physiology  of  Bodily  Exercise.  By  Fernand  Lagrange, 
M.D.  (London  :  Kegan  Paul,  Trench,  and  Co.,  1889.) 
This  book  at  first  sight  reminds  one  of  the  saying  that  a 
German  takes  a  year  to  make  a  research,  and  a  week  to 
write  an  account  of  it,  while  a  Frenchman  takes  a  year 
to  write  a  book  on  one  week's  work.  The  only  original 
part  consists  of  a  few  experiments  on  the  influence  of 
fatigue  in  producing  increased  excretion  of  urates  in  the 
urine.     The  author  ascribes  most   of  the   ill  effects  of 


486 


NATURE 


[March  27,  1890 


fatigue  to  the  presence  of  uric  acid  in  the  blood — in  fact, 
considers  a  fatigued  man  to  be  in  exactly  the  same  con- 
dition as  a  gouty  man.  His  observations,  however, 
seem  to  have  been  very  few  in  number,  and  the  analyses 
were  all  made  for  him  by  a  friendly  chemist.  Still,  it  is 
unfair  to  the  book  to  regard  it  as  a  contribution  to  the 
advance  of  physiological  science.  It  is  really  an  excel- 
lent little  account  of  the  physiology  of  bodily  exercise, 
and  its  role  in  the  maintenance  of  health,  by  a  medical 
practitioner.  It  seems  to  be  chiefly  culled  from  the 
standard  French  works  on  general  physiology,  and  on 
the  physiology  of  movement.  The  author  has  digested 
his  materials  well,  and  so  produced  a  very  readable  and 
lucid  account  of  his  subject.  For  a  book  of  its  class,  it  is 
remarkably  free  from  mistakes,  though  physiologists 
might  not  agree  with  him  in  his  account  of  the  produc- 
tion of  breathlessness  or  the  causation  of  gout. 

The  style  is  simple,  and  the  book  is  well  adapted  for 
popular  use,  and  ought  to  find  favour  with  our  exercise- 
loving  countrymen.  E.  H.  S. 

Boilers — Marine  and  Land.  By  Thomas  W.  Traill, 
F.E.R.N.,  M.Inst.C.E.  Second  Edition.  (London: 
Charles  Griffin  and  Co.,  1890.) 

This  volume  is  a  second  edition  of  a  work  noticed  in 
these  columns  last  year.  It  was  then  a  pleasure  to  ex- 
press the  opinion  that  the  work  would  be  useful  to  all 
connected  with  this  particular  branch  of  mechanical 
engineering.  The  author  has  found  it  necessary  to  extend 
the  tables  of  scantlings,  &c.,  from  160  to  200  pounds 
pressure  per  square  inch.  This  in  itself  is  sufficient 
evidence  of  the  continued  increase  of  steam  pressures 
used  in  marine  and  stationary  engines— probably  the  only 
practicable  direction  in  which  greater  economy  of  fuel  is  to 
be  obtained.  These  increased  steam  pressures  have  also 
the  advantage  of  diminishing  the  gross  weight  of  machinery 
on  board  ship. 

•  The  greater  use  made  of  mild  steel  by  engineers 
generally  is  interesting,  considering  the  fight  the  steel 
manufacturers  had  a  few  years  ago  to  get  it  used  at  all  in 
place  of  iron  for  many  purposes.  Mr.  Traill  observes 
that,  "  notwithstanding  the  peculiarities  of  mild  steel,  it 
is  a  material  which  may  be  used  with  safety  and  advan- 
tage, if  proper  precautions  be  taken  and  due  consideration 
given  to  these  peculiarities  ;  possibly  it  has  fewer  in- 
firmities than  iron  ;  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  it  is 
a  better  and  more  serviceable  material  for  general  use  in 
the  construction  of  boilers.'^  This  is  the  experience  of 
most  engineers  intimate  with  the  general  behaviour  of 
the  material  when  being  worked  up  into  boilers  and  other 
constructions.  To  the  many  tests  and  safeguards  specified 
to  prevent  the  use  of  a  brittle  and  bad  steel  in  any  erection 
is  due  the  present  excellence  of  this  material,  nor  should 
they  now  be  in  any  way  relaxed,  for  to  accept  material, 
either  iron  or  steel,  on  any  particular  brand  is  a  mistake. 

The  general  utility  of  the  work  has  been  increased  by 
the  addition  of  other  matter  and  tables.  The  volume 
cannot  fail  to  be  of  very  great  use  to  engineers.  It  is 
nicely  printed,  got  up  in  a  handy  size,  and  strongly  yet 
pliably  bound.  N.  J.  L. 

The  History  and  Pathology  of  Vaccination.  Edited  by 
Edgar  M.  Crookshank,  M.B.  Two  Vols.  (London: 
H.  K.  Lewis,  1889.) 

The  arguments  adopted  in  this  work  belong  to  a  mental 
attitude  identical  with  that  displayed  by  anti- vaccinators 
in  their  clamorous  treatment  of  the  subject.  They  are 
sophistical  from  beginning  to  end,  and  even  as  a  book  of 
reference  the  volumes  are  not  without  drawbacks. 

Firstly,  the  argument  is  that  cow-pox  is  to  be  regarded 
as  akin  to  syphilis  rather  than  to  small-pox,  and  that 
therefore  cow-pox  is  no  protection  against  small-pox.  On 
this  hypothesis  ulcerated  arms  sometimes  occurring  after 
vaccination  are  to  be  regarded    as   reversions   to  type, 


rather  than  as  due  to  the  ill-treatment  by  over-anxious 
mothers  not  content  to  let  Nature  alone  in  her  progress 
towards  recovery.  Having  assumed  that  vaccination  is 
no  protection  against  small-pox,  the  book  goes  on  to  show 
that  the  only  means  we  have  of  controlling  the  devasta- 
tions of  this  disease  is  by  attention  to  sanitary  arrange- 
ments and  by  isolation,  perhaps  combined  with  judicious 
inoculation.  The  latter,  the  book  assures  us,  is  a  more 
scientific  procedure  than  the  inoculation  of  cow-pox. 
Next,  the  author  is  very  angry  with  Jenner  for  caUing 
vaccinia,  "cow-pox"  or  "variola  vaccinia."  To  this 
stroke  of  dexterity  by  Jenner  is  to  be  attributed,  says 
Prof.  Crookshank,  all  the  credit  that  vaccination  has 
attained  ;  thus  for  a  single  happy  thought  Parliament 
gave  Jenner  ^30,000  as  a  consequence  of  his  conceit,  and 
England  has  been  made  to  submit  to  the  most  tyrannical 
of  laws. 

This  carping  at  the  pioneer  of  new  knowledge,  and 
more  especially  at  those  forecasts  of  his  which  necessarily 
could  only  be  verified  by  the  lapse  of  time,  is  certainly 
not  calculated  to  shake  the  faith  of  those  who  now  fully 
comprehend  not  only  the  immense  value  of  vaccination, 
but  also  the  small  amount  of  mischief  which  it  has  ever 
done. 

The  best  that  can  be  said  for  Prof.  Crookshank's  work 
is  that  it  is  well  published.  The  printing  is  bold  and 
clear,  and  the  lithographs,  such  as  they  are,  well 
reproduced. 

Vol.  ii.  contains  reproductions  of  original  papers,  most 
if  not  all  of  which  are  out  of  print,  and  cannot  now  be 
obtained  except  at  fancy  prices. 

Had  Prof.  Crookshank  been  satisfied  with  editing  these, 
and  had  he  refrained  from  expressing  his  opinions,  we 
should  have  been  grateful  to  him.  The  book  does  not 
pretend  to  be  a  practical  work  on  the  subject  of  which  it 
treats  ;  and  for  the  rest  it  might  have  been  compiled  by 
the  average  anti-vaccinator.  Robert  Cory. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  The  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex  - 
pressed  by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertaki 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejectee 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  NATURE, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  \ 

The   Transmission   of  Acquired  Characters, 
and  Panmixia. 

I  SUPPOSE  that  a  correspondent  has  no  claim  to  limit  the 
scope  of  a  discussion  in  such  a  journal  as  Nature.  At  the 
same  time  I  feel  it  to  be  a  rather  severe  burden  when  I  am  called 
upon  to  expound,  in  answer  to  one  letter  after  another,  the  merest 
common-places  of  the  subject  under  discussion,  and  to  retail  in 
this  place  the  substance  of  books  like  Weismann's  "Essays" 
and  Wallace's  "  Darwinism  "  (to  which  the  attention  of  your 
readers  has  been  already  drawn  by  reviews),  not  to  mention  the 
"Philosophic  Zoologique"  and  the  "Origin  of  Species."  It 
seems  to  me  that  there  might  be  interest  and  profit  in  opening 
your  columns  to  the  statement  of  newly  observed  cases  which 
seem  to  tell  in  favour  of  either  the  Lamarckian  or  the  anti- 
Lamarckian  theories,  or  to  novel  criticisms  of  any  cases  which 
have  already  been  discussed  elsewhere  ;  but  surely  the  repeated 
citation  of  familiar  exploded  "cases,"  and  the  reiteration  of 
arguments  and  beliefs  which  have  long  since  received  attention, 
is  not  fair  to  the  writers  who  have  dealt  with  these  cases  and  these 
arguments  in  admirable  treatises  which  are  well  known  (I  am 
happy  to  think)  to  nearly  all  serious  students  of  these  questions. 

"When  I  saw  the  distinguished  name  of  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer 
at  the  end  of  a  letter  in  your  issue  of  March  6,  I  anticipated 
some  real  contribution  to  the  discussion  as  to  whether  acquired 
characters  are  transmitted  or  not.  Mr.  Spencer  some  few  years 
ago  expounded  his  convictions  in  favour  of  Lamarck  in  one 
of  the  monthly  reviews.  His  present  letter  is  not  only  dis- 
appointing, but  is  unfortunately  likely  to  mislead  the  unin- 
formed. Mr.  Spencer  states  what  we  all  know,  viz.  that  Mr. 
Darwin  considered  that  the   effects  of  habit  and   of  u=e   and 


March  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


487 


disuse  are  transmitted  from  the  affected  generation  to  its  off- 
spring. He  refers  by  chapter  and  page  to  the  instances  which 
Mr.  Darwin  considered  as  examples  of  the  transmission  of  the 
effects  of  habit  or  of  use  and  disuse.  He  then  says  :  "  Clearly 
the  first  thing  to  be  done  by  those  who  deny  the  inheritance  of 
acquired  characters  is  to  show  that  the  evidence  Mr.  Darwin 
has  furnished  by  these  numerous  instances  is  all  worthless,"  I 
entirely  disagree  with  this  way  of  putting  the  matter.  It  is  not 
necessary  to  show  that  anything  Mr.  Darwin  wrote  was  "  worth- 
less," but  it  is  necessary  to  show  that  certain  facts  cited  by  Mr. 
Darwin  admit  of  another  interpretation  or  explanation  than  that 
which  he  gave  to  them.  Naturally  those  who  have  taken  up 
the  anti-Lamarckian  position  have  done  long  ago  what  Mr. 
Herbert  Spencer  says  is  the  first  thing  for  them  to  do.  Of 
course  the  cases  cited  by  Darwin  were  the  first  to  be  dealt  with. 
It  is  extremely  unfortunate  that  Mr.  Spencer  has  not  come 
across  the  work  in  which  this  is  done.  Otherwise,  instead  of  a 
well-meant  direction  from  Mr.  Spencer  as  to  what  we  ought  to 
do,  we  might  have  the  advantage  of  reading  what  he  has  to  say 
after  considering  what  has  been  done.  It  is  seven  years  since 
Prof.  Weismann  published  his  essay  on  heredity  ;  last  spring 
this  and  other  essays  appeared  in  English  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Clarendon  Press.  In  that  particular  essay  Darwin's  cases 
are  dealt  with  at  length.  Am  I  to  reproduce  Prof.  Weismann's 
essay  or  a  precis  of  it  in  this  letter?  "Will  not  Mr.  Spencer 
and  others  who  are  interested  in  these  matters  read  Weismann's 
"  Essays  "  ?  I  think  that  those  who  will  take  the  trouble  to  do 
so  will  see  that  Mr.  Spencer's  injunction  was  superfluous. 

It  is,  however,  apart  from  other  branches  of  the  question, 
important  that  a  correct  appreciation  of  Mr.  Darwin's  position 
in  this  matter  of  the  "  transmission  of  acquired  characters  " 
should  be  arrived  at.  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer's  letter  is,  I  think, 
likely  to  produce  an  erroneous  conception  on  this  matter.  We 
know  from  his  letters  published  since  his  death  that  Darwin 
held  the  "  Philosophic  Zoologique"  to  be  "veritable  rubbish" — 
"extremely  poor  ;  I  got  not  a  fact  nor  an  idea  from  it."  The 
notion  that  his  own  view  was  a  modification  of  Lamarck's 
appeared  to  Darwin  absurd.  The  "  obvious  view  "  was  pro- 
pounded by  Lamarck,  he  says,  *'  that  if  species  were  not  created 
separately  they  must  have  descended  from  other  species,  and  I 
can  see  nothing  else  in  common  between  the  '  Origin '  and 
Lamarck."  This  was  Mr.  Darwin's  attitude  of  mind  to 
Lamarck's  theory,  and  the  cases  in  which  he  attributes  import- 
ance to  the  effects  of  use  and  of  disuse,  and  to  acquired  habit, 
and  consequently  to  the  Lamarckian  principle  of  the  trans- 
mission of  acquired  characters,  are  clearly  to  be  regarded  as 
concessions  or  admissions  on  his  part,  given  with  increasing 
generosity  in  the  later  editions  of  the  "  Origin  "  ;  but  always 
treated  as  of  quite  subordinate  importance.  It  is  not  going  too 
far  to  say  that  Mr.  Darwin  never  troubled  himself  very  much 
with  the  question  as  to  whether  acquired  characters  are  trans- 
mitted or  not.  It  was  the  object  of  his  works  to  show  that  the 
main  effective  principle  in  the  origin  of  species  is  the  natural 
selection  in  the  struggle  for  existence  of  congenital  characters. 
He  explicitly  states  that  he  believes  other  causes  to  be  at  work  ; 
one  of  which  at  least,  viz.  sexual  selection,  he  himself  investi- 
gated at  length.  It  must  be  remembered  that  no  evolutionist 
in  Darwin's  life-time  had  prominently  challenged  the  truth  of  the 
Lamarckian  assumption  that  acquired  characters  are  transmitted. 
For  Darwin  it  was  sufficient  to  show  that,  granting  such  a 
process  to  take  place,  it  would  not  account  for  much  ;  he 
was  content  to  accept  it  as  a  subordinate  factor.  His  view  is 
best  stated  in  his  own  words  in  the  "Origin  of  Species": 
"  On  the  whole  we  may  conclude  that  habit,  or  use  and  disuse, 
have,  in  some  cases,  played  a  considerable  part  in  the  modi- 
fication of  the  constitution  and  structure." 

Whilst  it  is  true  that  Mr.  Darwin  in  various  parts  of  his 
works  alludes  to  cases  which  he  interprets  as  due  to  the  trans- 
mission of  characters  acquired  by  parents  through  habit,  use,  or 
disuse,  it  is  obvious,  when  we  read  what  he  has  to  say  in  each 
case  (as  in  the  examples  cited  by  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer),  that 
he  preferred,  where  it  occurred  to  him  another  interpretation. 
Thus,  after  referring  to  the  wings  of  the  logger-headed  duck 
and  the  domestic  Aylesbury  duck  as  dwindled  by  the  trans- 
mission in  successive  generations  of  the  effects  of  disuse,  he 
interposes  his  own  explanation  by  natural  selection  of  the  wing- 
less beetles  of  Madeira,  prefaced  by  the  words  :  "  in  some  cases 
we  might  easily  put  down  to  disuse  modifications  of  structure 
which  are  wholly  or  mainly  due  to  natural  selection."  He 
refuses  to  regard  the  defective  anterior  tarsi  of  dung-beetles  as 


due  to  inherited  mutilation,  though  he  supposes  they  may  have 
become  deficient  through  disuse.  He  regards  the  defective 
eyes  of  cave-animals  as  due  to  the  inheritance  of  the  effects  of 
disuse.  I  can  scarcely  doubt  that,  had  it  occurred  to  him,  he 
would  have  preferred  an  explanation  similar  to  that  given  by 
him  of  the  wingless  island  beetles,  viz.  that  a  natural  selection 
of  animals  with  defective  eyes  takes  place  in  a  cave  ;  since 
ultimately  only  those  remain  in  a  cave  and  breed  in  it  which, 
in  the  course  of  their  wanderings,  are  unable  to  see  the  faint 
light  which  penetrates  to  a  great  distance  from  the  mouth,  and 
must  guide  all  those  but  the  congenitally  blind  or  weak-sighted 
to  the  exterior.  The  defective  eyes  of  moles  are  ascribed  by 
him  not  merely  to  disuse  but  to  the  selective  action  of  inflam- 
mation. The  case  of  the  silkworm  caterpillars  with  defective 
instincts  (which  is  one  of  those  given  by  Mr.  Spencer)  does  not 
appear  to  me  to  bear  on  the  present  question.  Of  acquired 
characters,  other  than  those  due  to  disuse,  Mr.  Darwin  accepts 
very  few  as  being  transmitted.  He  accepts  the  statements  of 
Brown-Sequard  as  to  the  transmission  of  the  effects  of  mutila- 
tions of  guinea-pigs  only  so  far  as  to  "  make  us  cautious  in 
denying  such  transmission."  He  regards  the  dislocation  of 
the  eye  of  flat-fishes  as  due  to  the  inheritance  in  successive 
generations  of  an  increasing  displacement  caused  by  muscular 
effort.  Besides  these  two  instances  (noted  by  Mr.  Spencer) 
there  is  one  other  prominent  passage  in  which  Darwin  asserts  his 
belief  in  the  inheritance  of  an  acquired  character  which  is  not 
merely  the  result  of  disuse.  I  am  anxious  to  separate  those  cases 
which  Darwin  speaks  of  as  "due  to  the  effects  of  disuse," 
for  a  reason  which  will  appear  below.  The  additional  passage 
not  noted  by  Mr.  Spencer  is  this  ("  Origin  of  Species,"  p.  206, 
sixth  edition) : — "  If  we  suppose  any  habitual  action  to  become 
inherited — and  it  can  be  shown  that  this  does  sometimes  happen 
—  then  the  resemblance  between  what  originally  was  a  habit  and 
an  instinct  becomes  so  close  as  not  to  be  distinguished.  If 
Mozart,  instead  of  playing  the  pianoforte  at  three  years'  old  with 
wonderfully  little  practice,  had  played  a  tune  with  no  practice  at 
all,  he  might  be  truly  said  to  have  done  so  instinctively.  But  it 
would  be  a  serious  error  to  suppose  that  the  greater  number  of 
instincts  have  been  acquired  by  habit  in  one  generation  and  then 
transmitted  by  inheritance  to  succeeding  generations.  It  can 
be  clearly  shown  that  the  most  wonderful  instincts  with  which 
we  are  acquainted — namely,  those  of  the  hive  bee  and  of  many 
ants — could  not  possibly  have  been  acquired  by  habit." 

The  cases  of  the  epileptic  guinea-pigs,  the  eyes  of  flat-fishes, 
and  of  some  acquired  habits,  have  been  discussed  by  Weismann 
and  by  Wallace.  I  will  not  now  allude  further  to  those  classes 
of  cases.  But  I  am  anxious  to  draw  attention  to  the  special 
subject  of  the  "effects  of  disuse"  as  set  forth  by  Mr.  Darwin. 
This  phrase  is  not  only  used  by  him  in  regard  to  special  in- 
stances, but,  in  treating  of  the  large  subject  of  rudimentary 
organs,  he  frequently  refers  to  the  "effects  of  disuse."  He 
says,  "  It  appears  probable  that  disuse  has  been  the  main  agent 
in  rendering  organs  rudimentary  "  ("  Origin,"  p.  401). 

Now  I  am  anxious  to  point  out  three  things  in  regard  to  the 
"effects  of  disuse."  (i)  There  are  other  possible  effects  of 
disuse  of  an  organ  than  the  dwindling  of  that  organ  in  one 
generation,  and  the  inheritance  of  the  organ  in  a  diminished  size 
by  the  next  generation.  (2)  The  anti-Lamarckians  attribute  a 
very  great  effect  to  disuse,  although  they  do  not  attribute  to  it 
the  particular  result  which  Lamarck  did.  (3)  The  particular 
way  in  which,  according  to  the  anti-Lamarckians,  disuse  acts  so 
as  10  lead  to  the  dwindling  or  complete  loss  of  the  di«used  organ 
has  been  called  by  Weismann  by  a  convenient  name — "panmixia." 
The  doctrine  of  panmixia  is  already  indicated  by  Darwin  him- 
self, and  in  view  of  this  fact  we  must  suppose  that,  when  he 
attributed  the  loss  or  dwindling  of  an  organ  to  "disuse"  or  the 
"effects  of  disuse,"  he  did  not  necessarily  (though  probably  he 
frequently  did)  refer  to  the  Lamarckian  modus  operandi  of 
disuse,  but  may  very  well  have  had  in  mind  the  results  which 
are  attributed  to  disuse  by  the  anti-Lamarckian  doctrine  of 
panmixia. 

The  doctrine  of  panmixia  is  this.  When  there  is  no  longer, 
owing  to  changed  conditions  of  life,  any  use  for  an  organ,  it 
will  cease  to  be  the  subject  of  natural  selection.  Consequently 
all  possible  variations  of  the  organ  will  have  (so  far  as  the  now 
lapsed  use  of  the  organ  is  concerned)  an  equal  chance.  Amongst 
the  possible  variations  there  will  be  the  variation  in  the  direction 
of  increased  size,  and  its  exact  complement — the  variation  in  the 
direction  of  diminished  size.  Prof.  Weismann  has  stated  briefly 
that  this  equal  survival  of  all  possible  variations  must  lead  to  the 


488 


NATURE 


\_March  27,  1890 


dwindling  and  ultimate  loss  of  the  organ.  I  would,  however, 
venture  to  supplement  what  he  has  said  by  the  following  :  viz., 
given  the  state  of  panmixia,  it  is  apparent  that  variations  in  the 
direction  of  excessive  size  will  be  injurious — both  as  taxing 
the  nutriment  of  the  organism,  and  often  as  mechanical  en- 
cumbrance. On  the  other  hand,  variations  in  the  direction 
of  greatly  diminished  size  will  be  advantageous,  as  causing 
a  diminished  tax  on  the  resources  of  the  organism.  Now 
it  is  a  demonstrable  fact  that  excessive  variations  in  both  direc- 
tions do  naturally  though  rarely  occur — probably  more  often  than 
is  supposed,  since  we  do  not  see  all  the  young  born.  If  the  varia- 
tions in  the  direction  of  excessive  diminution  of  a  useless  organ 
(as,  for  instance,  tailless  cats  or  hornless  sheep)  survive  as  being 
less  taxed — whilst  the  complementary  variations  in  the  direction 
of  excessive  size  tend  in  the  struggle  to  die  without  reproducing, 
owing  to  their  awkwardness  and  their  relatively  greater  burden 
in  life —then  it  is  clear  that  panmixia  may  lead  rapidly  to  the 
dwindling  and  eventual  extinction  of  a  disused  organ  without 
any  transmission  of  acquired  parental  character.  The  fact  that 
there  is  no  use  for  an  organ — or,  in  other  words,  the  "  effect  of 
disuse" — is  that  the  congenitally  small  varieties  of  the  organ 
survive,  and  are  even  favoured  in  the  struggle  for  existence. 

Whilst  Weismann  has  the  merit  of  having  insisted  on  a  form  of 
his  doctrine  as  the  effective  reply  to  those  who  argue  in  favour  of 
Lamarck's  theory  of  the  transmission  of  acquired  qualities  from 
instances  of  "  disuse,"  it  is  yet  the  fact  that  Mr.  Darwin  him- 
self recognized  and  formulated  the  doctrine  of  panmixia  in  the 
last  (sixth)  edition  of  the  "Origin  of  Species,  "published  in  1872  ; 
and  he  even  went  further  than  Weismann,  for  he  associated  the 
principle  of  the  economy  of  material  with  the  principle  of  the 
cessation  of  selection.  It  is  therefore,  it  seems  to  me,  not  at  all 
improbable  that  when  Darwin  refers,  here  and  there  throughout 
his  works,  to  a  reduced  or  rudimentary  condition  of  an  organ  as 
"  due  to  disuse,"  or  "  explained  by  the  effects  of  disuse,"  he  does 
not  necessarily  mean  such  effects  as  the  Lamarckian  second  law 
asserted  and  assumed  (though  often  he  does  appear  to  mean  such) ; 
but  he  may  mean,  and  probably  had  in  his  mind,  the  effects 
of  disuse  as  worked  out  through  panmixia  and  economy  of 
growth. 

The  passages  in  Darwin  which  seem  to  me  to  have  been 
missed  or  neglected  by  those  who  think  panmixia  altogether  a 
new  idea  are  as  follows  : — 

(1)  "If  under  changed  conditions  of  life  a  structure  before 
useful,  becomes  less  useful,  its  diminution  will  be  favoured 
for  it  will  profit  the  individual  not  to  have  its  nutriment 
wasted  in  building  up  a  useless  structure."  After  an  example 
in  point  from  the  group  of  the  Cirripedia,  Darwin  con- 
ttinues  ;  "Thus,  as  I  believe,  natural  selection  will  tend  in  the 
long  run  to  reduce  any  part  of  the  organization  as  soon  as  it 
becomes,  through  changed  habits,  superfluous,  without  by  any 
means  causing  some  other  part  to  be  largely  developed  in  a 
corresponding  degree"  ("Origin  of  Species,"  sixth  edition, 
p.    118). 

(2)  "  Organs,  originally  formed  by  the  aid  of  natural  selection, 
when  rendered  useless,  may  well  be  variable,  for  their  variations 
can  no  longer  be  checked  by  natural  selection.  ...  It  is 
scarcely  possible  that  disuse  can  go  on  producing  any  further 
effect  after  the  organ  has  once  been  rendered  functionless. 
Some  additional  explanation  is  here  requisite,  which  I  cannot 
give.  If,  for  instance,  it  could  be  proved  that  every  part  of  the 
organization  tends  to  vary  in  a  greater  degree  towards  diminu- 
tion than  towards  augmentation  of  size,  then  we  should  be  able 
to  understand  how  an  organ  which  has  become  useless  would 
be  rendered,  independently  of  the  effects  of  disuse,  rudimentary, 
and  would  at  last  be  wholly  suppressed  ;  for  the  variations 
towards  diminished  size  would  no  longer  be  checked  by  natural 
selection.  The  principle  of  the  economy  of  growth  explained  in 
a  former  chapter  [cited  in  quotation  No.  i],  by  which  the 
materials  forming  any  part,  if  not  useful  to  the  possessor,  are 
saved  as  far  as  possible,  will  perhaps  come  into  play  in  rendering 
a  useless  part  rudimentary  "  ("Origin  of  Species,"  sixth  edition, 
pp.  401-402), 

I  had  written  thus  far,  and  intended  to  finish  this  letter  by 
asking  if  the  anti-Lamarckians  are  not  really  carrying  out  the 
spirit  of  Darwin's  doctrines,  although  not  the  absolute  letter, 
when  I  received  your  issue  of  March  13,  containing  a  long  letter 
from  Mr.  George  Romanes,  headed  "Panmixia."  In  that  letter 
Mr.  Romanes,  whilst  amending  (as  I  have  done  above)  Prof. 
Weismann's  statement  of  the  principle  of  panmixia,  makes  the 
definite  assertion  that  "  it  is  remarkably  strange  that  thisi prin- 
ciple should  have  been  overlooked  by  Mr.  Darwin." 


Probably  your  readers  will  be  as  much  astonished  as  I  waS 
when  they  read  the  extracts  I  have  above  given  from  the  "  Origin 
of  Species  "  by  the  side  of  Mr.  Romanes's  letter. 

After  dismissing  Mr.  Darwin,  Mr.  Romanes  proceeds  to  say: 
"  In  this  connection,  however,  it  requires  to  be  stated  that  the 
idea  first  of  all  occurred  to  myself,  unfortunately  just  after  the 
appearance  of  his  last  edition  of  the  'Origin  of  Species.'" 

Now,  inasmuch  as  the  idea  in  question  is  (as  I  have  shown 
above)  formulated  in  the  last  edition  of  the  "  Origin  of  Species," 
I  confess  that  I  do  not  think  it  requires  to  be  stated  that  the 
idea  occurred  to  Mr.  Romanes  shortly  after  the  publication  of 
that  work.  What  more  natural?  The  idea  occurred  to  me 
also  shortly  after  the  passages  above  quoted  from  Mr.  Darwin 
were  published.  It  certainly  never  appeared  to  me  "unfor- 
tunate "  that  this  was  the  case,  and  I  cannot  see  where  the  mis- 
fortune comes  in  in  regard  to  Mr.  Romanes.  As  soon  as  the 
matter  had  taken  root  in  his  mind,  Mr.  Romanes  published  in 
Nature,  March  12,  April  7,  and  July  2,  1874,  an  exposition  of 
the  importance  of  the  principle  of  cessation  of  selection  as  a 
commentary  upon  a  letter  by  Mr.  Darwin  himself  (Nature, 
vol.  viii.  pp.  432,  505)  in  which  Mr.  Darwin  had  suggested  that, 
with  organisms  subjected  to  unfavourable  conditions,  all  the 
parts  would  tend  towards  reduction.  Mr.  Darwin,  with  his  usual 
kindly  manner  towards  the  suggestions  of  a  young  writer,  gives  at 
p.  309  of  vol.  ii.  of  "  Animals  and  Plants  under  Domestication  " 
(second  edition),  Mr.  Romanes's  view,  "  as  far  as  it  can  be  given 
in  a  few  words.'*  The  view,  as  it  there  appears  in  Mr.  Darwin's 
words,  is  certainly  not  the  same  as  that  which  Mr.  Romanes  has 
expounded  in  Nature  of  March  13,  1890  (p.  437),  and  since  it 
represents  what  Mr.  Darwin  had  been  able  to  gather  from  Mr. 
Romanes's  letters  to  Nature  of  1874,  it  is  not  at  all  surprising 
that  Mr.  Darwin  did  not  recognize  any  resemblance  between  it 
and  his  own  statement,  viz.  that  "  the  materials  forming  any 
part,  if  not  useful  to  the  possessor,  are  saved  as  far  as  possible, " 
thus  "  rendering  a  useless  part  rudimentary."  Whether  this 
is,  or  was,  Mr.  Romanes's  view  or  not,  it  is  Darwin's,  and  is  the 
essence  of  the  anti-Lamarckian  view  of  the  effects  of  disuse. 

March  15.  E.  Ray  Lankester. 

Exact  Thermometry. 

Shortly  after  the  publication  of  my  second  letter  on  this 
subject  (Nature,  January  23,  p.  271)  I  received  a  letter  from 
M.  Guillaume,  who  very  kindly  called  my  attention  to  a  paper 
by  Prof  J.  M.  Crafts  {Comptes  rendtis,  xci.  p.  370),  in  which 
the  "plastic  theory  "  is  discussed.  Prof  Crafts  states  that  he 
has  subjected  thermometers  to  prolonged  heating  at  355°  C, 
under  various  conditions  as  regards  pressure,  the  internal  pres- 
sure being  in  many  cases  considerably  greater  than  the  external, 
but  that  there  was  invariably  a  rise  of  the  zero-point.  The  ex- 
periments were  carried  out  in  very  much  the  same  manner  as 
that  described  in  my  first  letter  (Nature,  December  19,  1889, 
p.  152),  and  had  I  known  at  the  time  of  the  earlier  work  of 
Prof.  Crafts,  I  should  of  course  have  referred  to  it.  Prof  Crafts 
also  describes  and  quotes  experiments  with  air-thermometers, 
the  temperature  in  one  determination  by  Regnault  being  as  high 
as  511°  C,  and  the  internal  greater  than  the  external  pressure  ; 
in  every  case  the  bulb  diminished  in  volume.  From  these  re- 
sults, Prof  Crafts  concludes  that  it  is  not  proved  that  pressure 
plays  any  part  in  the  contraction  of  the  glass. 

My  experiments  can  therefore  be  regarded  as  little  more  than 
confirmatory  of  the  earlier  work  of  Prof  Crafts  and  others,  but 
as  such  it  may  be  worth  while  to  give  the  results.  The  method 
adopted  was  fully  described  in  my  first  letter,  and  it  is  therefore 
only  necessary  to  repeat  that  in  thermometer  A  the  external 
pressure  exceeded  the  internal,  while  in  thermometer  C  there 
was  considerable  internal  pressure,  but  no  external.  According 
to  the  plastic  theory,  therefore,  the  zero-point  of  A  should  have 
risen,  while  that  of  C  should  have  fallen.  The  results  previously 
described  were  regarded  as  insufficient  by  Prof  Mills,  and  I 
have  therefore  continued  the  heating  for  a  much  longer  time. 

I  have  also  made  similar  experiments  with  two  other  thermo- 
meters belonging  to  the  same  batch,  at  a  temperature  of  about 
356°,  the  thermometers  being  heated  in  the  vapour  of  boiling 
mercury.  During  the  first  three  hours,  the  two  thermometers 
a  and  b  were  treated  in  precisely  the  same  manner,  as  regards 
pressure,  as  A  and  C,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  zero-point  of 
b  showed  a  slightly  greater  rise  than  that  of  a.  Afterwards,  air 
was  admitted  into  thermometer  a,  so  that  there  was  an  excess  of 
internal  over  external  pressure  in  both  thermometers,  but  the 
excess  was  greater  by  one  atmosphere  in  b  than  in  a. 


March  27,  1890] 


NA  TURK 


489 


The  results  obtained  are  given  in  the  following  table  : — 
Temperature  280°. 


Totol 

Duration 

Zero- 

Rise 

Z-ro- 

Rise 

Mean 

time 

of 

point 

of 

point 

of 

rise  of 

in 

each 

of  A. 

zero. 

of  C. 

zero. 

zero  per 

hours. 

heating. 

hour. 

0      .. 

— 

..  o°i5  . 

.      — 

..-o°i     . 

.     —      . 

— 

2      .. 

2 

..  0-5    . 

•  0-3S 

..+0-3     . 

.   0-4      . 

..   0-187 

VS.. 

5*5 

..  1-3    • 

..  08 

..     I'l 

..  0-8     . 

..  OI4S 

12       .. 

4*5 

..    2*0      . 

.  07 

..     1-8     . 

..  07     . 

..  0156 

17       .. 

5 

..    23      . 

.  0-3 

..     2-05  . 

..  0*25  . 

..  0-055 

22-5  .. 

§■5 

..  2-6     . 

..  0-3 

..    2-15  . 

..    O'l      . 

..  0-036 

29       .. 

6-5 

■  •  2-95  . 

■  0-3S 

..     2-5     . 

••  0-3S  . 

..  0-054 

35     •• 

6 

••  3-15  • 

.    0*2 

..     2-8     . 

..  03     . 

..  0-042 

86     .. 

SI 

..  4-1     . 

•    0-95 

••     3-95  • 

.  115  • 

..    0-02f 

•33     •• 

47 

..  4-8     . 

..   07 

..    4-9     . 

..  0-95  . 

..  o-oi8 

201     .. 

68 

••  5-25  • 

•    0-45 

••     5-5     • 

..  0-6     . 

..  0-008 

369     •• 

168 

..  6-5     . 

.   I -25 

..     6-8     . 

..  1-3     • 

..  o-oo8 

Temperature  356° 


0     . 

—     . 

..  0-4     . 

.  — 

0-05  . 

.     —    . 

— 

3 

3     • 

..  6-0     . 

..  5-6     . 

.     6-1     . 

..  605  . 

..  1-942 

6     . 

3     • 

..  8-0     . 

.  2-0     . 

.     8-1     . 

..  2-0     . 

..  0-667 

12-5. 

.        6-5. 

.10-3     . 

..  2-3     . 

•  10-35  • 

..    2-25    . 

..  0-350 

IS     • 

2-5. 

.10-95  • 

■  0-65  . 

.  ir-i 

.•    0-75    . 

..  0-280 

66     . 

.      SI    . 

..i6-i     . 

S'lS  • 

.  16-1     . 

.  S'o    . 

.  o-ioo 

113     . 

.      47     • 

..18-45  • 

•  2-35  . 

.  18-3     . 

.    2-2      . 

.  0-048 

181     . 

.       68     . 

..20-I       . 

.  1-65  . 

.  20-0 

..    1-7      . 

.  0025 

205-5. 

.       24-5 . 

..20-75    . 

..  0-65  . 

.  20-6    . 

.    0-6      . 

.  0025 

221-5  • 

16     . 

..20-9 

0-15  . 

.  20-7 

.    O'l       . 

.  0-008 

292     . 

.       70-5 . 

..21-8      . 

.  0-9     . 

.21-7     . 

.    I'O       . 

.  0013 

The  last  result  at  356°  is  a  little  uncertain,  owing  to  a  breakage 
of  the  apparatus. 


I  may  also  mention  that  M.  Guillaume  has  informed  me  that 
M.  Tonnelot  has  heated  several  thermometers  to  450°,  and  that, 
notwithstanding  a  considerable  internal  pressure,  a  rise  of  the 
zero-point  was  observed  in  every  case. 

All  these  results  seem  to  lead  unmistakably  to  the  conclusion 
that  pressure  has  little  or  no  effect  on  the  rise  of  the  zero-point. 

Three  questions  remain  to  be  discussed — 

(i)  Would  the  total  rise  of  the  zero-point  be  different  if  two 
similar  thermometers  were  subjected  to  sufficiently  prolonged 
heating  at  different  temperatures  ?  At  first  sight,  it  would  cer- 
j  tainly  appear  that  at  356"  the  total  rise  with  my  thermometers 
I  must  be  greater  than  at  280°,  but  I  do  not  feel  satisfied  that  the 
proof  is  sufficient.  If  we  map  the  observations  of  zero-point 
against  the  time  of  heating,  curves  are  obtained  which  appear 
as  if  they  might  become  horizontal  after  a  few  weeks  or,  pos- 
sibly, months  ;  but  if,  instead  of  the  actual  times,  we  take  their 
logarithms — as  in  the  diagram — as  abscissae,  there  is  no  appear- 
ance of  an  approach  to  the  final  state  at  either  temperature. 
But  while  at  356°  the  curve  has  become  almost  a  straight  line, 
at  280°  there  appears  to  be  an  increasing  tendency  towards  the 
vertical  direction.  I  do  not  for  a  moment  argue  that  the  curves 
indicate  that  the  maximum  rise  would  be  the  same  at  both  tem- 
peratures if  the  experiments  were  carried  on  for  a  sufficiently 
long  time  ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  I  do  not  think  that  they 
afford  any  convincing  proof  that  the  total  rise  would  be  different. 
The  re.sults  merely  tend  to  increase  my  scepticism  as  to  the 
value  of  the  determination  of  the  maximum  rise  at  0°  obtained 
by  extrapolation  of  the  curve  constructed  from  observations  at 
that  temperature.  It  does  not  appear  to  me  that  it  would  be 
justifiable  to  extrapolate  these  curves  at  all,  and  I  am  afraid  that 
they  do  not  throw  much  light  on  the  total  rise  of  zero-point  at 
either  temperature.  Very  much  more  prolonged  heating  would 
be  necessary  before  arriving  at  a  definite  conclusion. 

(2)  With  regard  to  the  causes  of  the  contraction  of  the  bulb, 
I  have  no  hesitation  in  admitting  that — as  shown  by  M.  Guil- 
laume— the  removal  of  the  condition  of  strain  caused  by   the 


■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ 


■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■I 


!■■■■■■■■■■■■■■ 


■■■■  mmwam  ■■■■■ 

■■■■BBBHI 


LOGARITHM    OF   TIME    (IN   HOURS) 


more  rapid  cooling  of  the  outer  parts  of  the  glass,  is  insufficient 
to  account  for  the  results.  No  doubt  we  must  also  take  into 
account  the  too  rapid  cooling  of  the  glass  as  a  whole,  which 
prevents  the  molecules  from  assuming  the  position  of  greatest 
stability,  perhaps  In  the  same  sort  of  way  that  the  assumption  by 
sulphur  of  the  monoclinic  or  the  more  stable  rhombic  form  de- 
pends on  the  rate  at  which  solidification  takes  place.  That 
there  are  other  causes  besides  these  two  does  not  at  present 
appear  to  me  to  be  Jproved. 


(3)  Lastly,  there  is  the  question  raised  by  Mr.  Tomlinson,  as 
to  whether  repeated  heating  and  cooling  between  wide  limits  of 
temperature  is  more  effective  in  raising  the  zero-point  than  pro- 
longed heating  at  the  higher  temperature.  The  points  repre- 
senting the  individual  observations  fall  very  fairly  on  the  curves 
constructed  from  them,  and  do  not  seem  to  indicate  any  notice- 
able difference  in  the  effect  of  long  or  short  heating.  The  results 
can  hardly,  however,  be  regarded  as  decisive. 

University  College,  Bristol,  March  I.         Sydney  Young. 


490 


NATURE 


{March  27,  1890 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs, 

Since  Hyas  is  one  of  the  most  abundant  Crustaceans  found 
off  the  east  coast  of  Scotland,  Mr.  Holt  must  adduce  consider- 
ably more  than  two  instances  before  it  can  be  admitted  that  the 
attachment  of  Simple  Ascidians  to  this  crab  is  at  all  a  usual 
occurrence.  Tf  it  is,  I  should  still  be  anxious  to  inquire  whether 
the  crab  does  not — in  spite  of  the  apparent  difficulty  of  the 
operation — place  the  Ascidians  upon  its  back  with  its  own  nip- 
pers. I  may  cite  Gosse's  well-known  experiment  with  Pagurus 
pn'deauxii  and  Adamsia  palliata,  described  in  his  "Year  at 
the  Shore,"  for  the  purpose  of  analogy.  But  Mr.  Holt  will 
find  a  case,  probably  quite  similar  to  that  which  he  mentions,  in 
Bell's  "Stalk-eyed  Crustacea."  Two  specimens  of  Hyas  ara- 
neus  were  found  with  oysters  attached  to  their  backs,  that  on  the 
larger  crab  being  three  inches  in  length,  and  five  or  six  years 
old,  probably  a  much  more  "serious  incubus  "  than  Mr,  Holt's 
Tunicates.  The  crab's  carapace  was  but  two  and  a  quarter 
inches  in  length.  Hence,  despite  the  "world  of  weight  upon 
its  shoulders,  '  Mr,  Thompson  concluded  that  "the  presence  of 
this  oyster  affords  interesting  evidence  that  the  Hyas  lived 
several  years  after  attaining  its  full  growth,"  Probably  the 
larvae  of  the  oysters,  and  of  the  Ascidians  also,  happened 
to  alight  upon  the  crabs  at  the  end  of  their  free-swimming 
existence,  although  six  or  seven  years  seems  to  me  to  be  a 
remarkably  long  age  for  a  Hyas. 

Barnacles  upon  the  backs  of  Maia,  Carcinus,  &c,,  are  also 
due  to  the  same,  as  it  were,  accidental  cause. 

But,  whatever  the  explanation,  these  exceptional  cases  do  not 
alter  the  fact  that  the  foreign  bodies  found  upon  Hyas  are  usually 
fixed  there  by  the  crab  itself.  The  specimens  I  have  seen  have 
been  covered  with  fragments — not  living  colonies — of  Algas, 
Hydroids  and  Polyzoa,  which  are  fastened  by  the  hairs  of  the 
crab's  carapace  and  legs  exactly  as  in  Stenorhynchus,  and  in 
this  crab  the  process  of  attachment  has  been  frequently  observed 
here  and  accurately  recorded. 

At  the  same  time  I  by  no  means  hold  that  the  two  groups 
which  were  defined  in  my  previous  letter  are  absolutely  marked 
off  from  one  another.  The  hermit  crabs  make  use  of  both 
methods  of  protection.  Bits  of  Sponges  may  frequently  be  seen 
upon  the  carapace  of  Maia,  Sienorhynchtis,  and  Inachus,  and  I 
have  occasionally  found  colonies  of  Leptoclinum  and  Didemnum 
upon  both  Maia  and  Inachus.  In  these  cases  the  inconspicuous 
appearance  is  not  lost,  but  the  attachment  of  small  Sponges  and 
Didemnids  is  probably  an  additional  protection  against  the 
numerous  night-feeding  fishes,  which  hunt  their  prey  by  the 
senses  of  smell  and  touch. 

As  to  the  inedibility  of  Tunicata,  I  did  not — as  Mr.  Holt 
states — "assume  "it.  I  have  experimentally  found  it  to  be  a 
fact  (as  I  stated  in  my  letter)  that  the  odour  and  taste  of  "  Tuni- 
cata, and  especially  Compound  Tunicata"  are  almost  invariably 
sufficient  to  prevent  fishes  from  eating  them.  Exceptions  do 
not  disprove  the  rule,  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  Pelonaia  is 
not  distasteful.  But  this  is  not  established  by  a  few  specimens 
having  been  taken  on  one  or  two  occasions  from  the  stomachs  of 
Cod,  Haddock,  and  Dab  ;  and  although  Mr.  Holt  quotes  Prof. 
Mcintosh  as  speaking  of  the  "abundant  "  occurrence  oi  Molgula 
arenosa  in  the  stomachs  of  Cod  and  Haddock,  he  will  find  upon 
reading  Prof.  Mcintosh's  words  again,  that  they  are  open  to  a 
different  interpretation. 

In  my  previous  letter  I  omitted  to  mention  that  a  species  of 
hermit  crab  also,  Eupagurus  lucasii,  takes  advantage  (regu- 
larly?) of  the  distastefulness  of  Compound  Ascidians.  Mr. 
Harmer  has,  with  much  kindness,  examined  for  me  a  specimen 
in  the  Cambridge  Museum.  The  crab  inhabits  a  univalve  which 
is  covered  with  Distaplia  magnilarva. 

Mr.  Holt's  statenient  that  '^^  Actinia  mesenibryanthemum  is 
certainly  a  favourite  food  of  the  Cod "  is  so  astonishing  that  I 
hope  he  will  adduce  the  evidence  for  his  assertion.  Mr.  Brook 
had  not  found  this  to  be  so  when  he  reported  upon  the  food  of 
this  fish  for  the  Scottish  Fishery  Board,  and  indeed  only  the 
youngest  Cod  ever  frequent  the  tidal'  waters  to  which  A.  viesem- 
bryanthet.um  is  confined.  P'urther,  although  Paguiiis  bej-n- 
hardus,  when  not  associated  wiih  an  Anemone,  is  very  frequently 
found  in  the  stomachs  of  Cod  and  Haddock,  I  do  not  know  a 
single  instance  of  its  having  been  found  in  the  stomachs  of  the 
same  fish  when  associated  with  one. 

I  am  informed  by  Mr.  Poulton  that,  in  a  work  which  is  shortly 
to  appe?r,  he  has  included  such  animals  as  Stenorhynchus  and 
Caddi-  •orms,  which  disguise  their  appearance  with  foreign 
bodie   simply  in  order  lo  escape  identification  by  enemies,  in  a 


group  to  which  he  gives  the  very  convenient  name  "  allo- 
cryptic."  Animals  which  trust  rather  to  the  offensive  than  to 
the  inconspicuous  character  of  the  foreign  bodies  with  which 
they  associate  themselves  he  terms  "allosematic"  (crTjyuo,  a 
sign)._ 

It  is  obvious  that  the  allosematic  method  of  protection  is  all 
but  perfect,  since  it  is  largely  free  from  the  loss  due  to  experi- 
mental tasting  attendant  upon  the  method  of  a  purely  warning 
appearance  ("autosematic").  Walter  Garstang. 

Plymouth,  March  21, 


Sea-bird  Shooting. 

Is  it  not  time  that  something  more  was  done  to  stop  the 
wholesale  slaughter  of  our  sea-birds  ?  During  the  past  winter 
the  havoc  has  been  terrible,  and  unless  some  restraint  is  imposed 
we  may  expect  before  long  to  find  our  shores  denuded  of  their 
white  wings.  When  the  birds  had  no  value,  there  was  a  limit, 
though  a  wide  one,  to  their  destruction,  because  of  the  'cost  of 
killing  them  ;  but  recently  a  large  demand  has  sprung  up  for 
their  skins,  and  an  organized  traffic  is  now  carried  on  in  the 
carcases. 

The  shooter  gets  from  threepence  to  sixpence  per  bird  from  the 
amateur  dealer,  and  for  the  sake  of  this  paltry  sum  (surely  the 
birds  are  worth  more  to  us  alive  than  this  !)  there  is  not  a 
sporting  lounger  on  the  coast  who  can  possess  himself  of  a  gun 
who  does  not  kill  every  bird  which  can  be  reached  either  from 
the  shore  or  from  a  boat.  The  gulls  are  pursued,  I  am  told, 
even  as  far  as  the  Dogger  Bank. 

The  beautiful  kittiwake  is  the  greatest  sufferer.  One  of  the 
dealers  boasted  to  me  the  other  day  that  he  had  passed  "  nearer 
ten  than  nine  thousand  dead  birds  through  his  hands  this 
season,  chiefly  kittiwakes,"  He  added  that  he  had  got  804. 
carcases  in  one  batch  from  one  sportsman. 

From  inquiries,  I  judge  that  this  person's  trade  represents 
about  one-third  of  the  dead  birds  which  have  been  sent  away  from 
our  little  town  this  season.  I  know  the  traffic  is  carried  on  at 
other  points,  and  no  doubt  this  is  but  an  example  of  what  is 
going  on  all  round  our  coast.  When  we  consider  that  the  car- 
cases which  can  be  secured  represent  only  a  fraction  of  the  birds 
killed  or  injured,  we  gain  some  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  mis- 
chief. Indeed,  during  the  past  month  it  has  been  possible  to 
take  a  long  walk  along  our  shore  without  seeing  a  single  sea- 
gull.    Who  wishes  to  see  a  blank  seascape  ? 

Now,  surely,  we  all  have  equal  rights  in  these  graceful  birds, 
and  the  numerous  class  who  love  to  see  them  alive  deserve 
as  much  consideration  as  the  mischievous  minority  whose  plea- 
sure it  is  to  destroy  them  !  It  is  not  as  though  these  latter 
were  worthy  persons,  compelled  \to  a  cruel  employment  for 
their  daily  bread  :  they  are,  on  the  contrary,  nearly  all  of  a 
class  who  deserve  no  sympathy — of  a  comfortable  class  who,  1 
verily  believe,  would  shoot  their  next-door  neighbours  if  they 
could  do  so  with  impunity,  and  could  dispose  of  the  carcases  I 
Just  imagine  the  new  variety  of  "sport"  which  one  of  them 
described  to  me  not  long  ago  !  He  said  you  could  catch  the 
gulls  at  sea  by  baiting  a  floating  fishing-line  with  liver,  and  in 
this  way,  though  you  did  not  get  quite  so  many  as  with  a  gun, 
you  had  far  better  yi<«,  especially  from  the  kittiwakes,  as  they 
are  wonderfully  "game,"  and,  when  they  feel  the  hook, 
"  flacker  about  and  scream  like  a  child"! 

Is  it  too  much  to  ask  that  our  Legislature,  which  has  spent  so 
much  time  in  the  past  on  laws  in  the  interests  of  the' so-called 
"preservers"of  game,  will  do  something,  and  that  speedily,  in  the 
interests  of  those  who  would  fain  be  truly  preservers  of  the  sea- 
birds  ?  At  least  they  should  extend  the  protection  afforded  to 
"  game"  to  these  noiile  birds,  and  order  that  those  who  shoot 
them  shall  pay  a  heavy  license  for  their  despicable  sport,  and 
those  who  deal  in  the  dead  carcases  a  still  heavier. 

And  nothing  in  this  matter  must  be  left  to  local  authorities. 
In  seaside  places  self-interest  vitiates  the  sentiment  on  this  ques- 
tion. The  fisherman  finds  it  easier  t«  earn  money  by  letting  his 
boat  to  the  "  sportsman  "  than  by  his  legitimate  productive  in- 
dustry ;  the  tradesman  fears  to  lose  these  men's  custom  ;  and  the 
gentry,  mostly  supporters  of  "sport,"  are  perhaps  not  sorry  to 
have  such  an  excellent  safety-valve  for  guns  which  might  other- 
wise poach  on  their  preserves  ;  and  besides,  there  is  in  Yorkshire 
a  semi-political  aspect  to  the  matter.  Thus  it  has  happened  that 
of  late  years  the  clause  in  the  (so  far  as  it  goes)  excellent  '"  Sea- 
birds  Preservation  Act  "  of  1869,  which  permits  a  lengthening 
of  the  close  time  under  certain  conditions,  has  been  rendered 


March  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


491 


■nugatory  through  the  action  of  our  county  magistrates,  who  have 
refused  to  present  the  requisite  petition  to  the  Home  Office. 
They  must  have  been  aware  that  their  action  doomed  innumer- 
able young  birds  to  death  by  starvation,  since  the  cHff-climbers 
collect  the  eggs  until  July  (a  perfectly  legitimate  industry,  by 
the  way,  carried  on  by  hard-working  men,  and  producing 
valuable  food),  and  thus  render  it  impossible  for  the  majority  of 
the  birds  to  get  their  young  reared  by  the  ist  of  August. 

And,  in  consequence,  whenever  during  August  I  go  on  the 
shore  under  the  great  cliflfs  where  the  birds  breed,  my  ears  are 
filled  with  the  melancholy  "piping"  of  the  starving  helpless 
young,  dying  slowly  on  the  ledges,  whose  parents  have  been 
shot — for  sport,  or  threepence.  G.  W.  Lamplugh. 

Bridlington  Quay. 

Locusts. 

With  reference  to  the  flight  of  locusts  which  passed  over  the 
steam-ships  Golconda  and  Clyde  in  the  Red  Sea  about  November 
25  last,  it  would  be  interesting  to  ascertain  to  what  species 
they  belong.  The  past  year,  1889-90,  has  been  marked  in 
India  by  the  invasion  of  locusts  belonging  to  the  species  Acriditim 
peregrimim,  which,  starting,  it  is  believed,  about  the  end  of  the 
hot  weather  (May  or  June),  from  the  sand-hills  of  Western 
Rajputana,  have,  during  the  past  six  months,  spread  in  vast 
numbers  over  the  whole  of  Sind,  Rajputana,  the  Punjab,  North- 
West  Provinces,  and  Oudh,  besides  penetrating  sporadically  into 
Guzerat,  Ahmedabad,  Baroda,  Khandesh,  and  parts  of  Central 
India,  a  stray  flight  even  appearing  in  the  Kistna  district  of  the 
Madras  Presidency. 

This  insect,  which  is  supposed  to  be  the  locust  of  the  Bible, 
and  which  is  undoubtedly  the  one  that  periodically  invades 
Algeria  from  the  Sahara,  though  it  is  altogether  distinct  from 
the  locust  Slaui-onoUts  maroccanus,  of  which  so  much  has  been 
heard  in  Algeria  during  the  past  two  years,  is  likely  to  be  the 
species  which  was  observed  in  the  Red  Sea.  To  ascertain  the 
point,  however,  with  certainty,  it  is  essential  that  specimens, 
which  I  am  told  fell  upon  the  deck  of  the  ship  Clyde  in  con- 
siderable numbers,  should  be  examined  and  determined  entomo- 
logically,  and  my  object  therefore  in  addressing  you  is  to 
endeavour  to  obtain  some  of  the  specimens  for  comparison  with 
those  which  have  invaded  India. 

It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  in  1869  when  Rajputana  suffered 
considerably  from  locusts,  vast  swarms  were  also  observed  by 
ships  passing  through  the  Red  Sea,  and  it  would  therefore  be 
interesting  to  learn  to  what  extent  1869  and  1889  were  years  of 
locust  invasion  in  the  intervening  countries  of  Arabia,  Persia, 
and  Biluchistan.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  in  1869  neither 
the  locusts  found  in  Rajputana  nor  in  the  Red  Sea  appear  to  have 
been  preserved  or  determined,  and  their  identity  therefore  cannot 
be  definitely  established.  E.  C.  COTES. 

Indian  Museum,  Calcutta,  February  28. 


THE  ROYAL  METEOROLOGICAL   SOCIETY'S 
EXHIBITION. 

'T^HE  eleventh  Annual  Exhibition  of  the  Royal 
-*■  Meteorological  Society  was  held  at  the  Institution 
of  Civil  Engineers  on  March  18  and  three  following  days. 
Each  Annual  Exhibition  is  devoted  to  some  special  branch 
of  meteorology,  which  is  illustrated  by  specimens  of  all 
known  instruments  (or  drawings  and  descriptions  of  the 
same)  that  have  been  employed  in  its  investigation. 
This  year's  Exhibition  was  illustrative  of  the  application 
of  photography  to  meteorology.  Photographic  meteoro- 
logical instruments  are  not  numerous,  and  those  used  for 
recording  the  indications  of  the  barometer,  thermometer, 
and  electrometer  are  very  costly  and  delicate,  and  are 
only  made  to  order.  The  number  of  instruments  in  the 
Exhibition  was  consequently  less  than  in  previous  years, 
but  this  deficiency  was  fully  made  up  by  the  large  and 
highly  interesting  collection  of  photographs  of  meteoro- 
logical phenomena. 

The  earliest  application  of  photography  for  the  con- 
tinuous registration  of  the  barometer,  &c.,  was  made  by 
Mr.  T.  B.  Jordan,  of  Falmouth,  in  1838.  His  plan  was  to 
furnish  each  instrument  with  one  or  more  cylinders  con- 


taining scrolls  of  photographic  paper.  These  cylinders 
were  made  to  revolve  slowly  by  a  very  simple  connection 
with  a  clock,  so  as  to  give  the  paper  a  progressive  move- 
ment behind  the  index  of  the  instrument,  the  place  of 
which  was  registered  by  the  representation  of  its  own 
image. 

In  1846,  Mr,  Charles  Brooke  and  Sir  Francis  Ronalds 
each  brought  forward  a  method  for  the  registration  of 
magnetic  and  meteorological  instruments  by  means  of 
photography.  The  methods  are  those  now  in  use,  the 
former  at  the  Royal  Observatory,  Greenwich,  and  the 
latter  at  the  Observatories  of  the  Meteorological  Office. 

Although  these  instruments  were  not  shown,  they 
were  fully  illustrated  by  photographs  and  drawings.  A 
number  of  the  barograms  and  thermograms  were  ex- 
hibited by  the  Astronomer-Royal  and  the  Meteorological 
Council,  showing  the  passage  of  storm  centres,  and  sudden 
changes  of  temperature  and  humidity.  A  set  of  baro 
grams  from  various  parts  of  the  world  was  exhibited  by 
the  Meteorological  Council,  showing  the  barometric 
oscillation  due  to  the  Krakatab  eruption,  August  1883. 
The  thermogram  at  Kew  on  May  8,  187 1,  showed  a  fall 
of  about  20'  of  temperature  during  a  thunderstorm 
at  4  p.m. 

Mr.  Symons  exhibited  a  photographic  scale  showing 
the  intensity  of  sunlight  during  the  solar  eclipse  of  July 
18,  i860  ;  and  the  Kew  Committee  showed  the  chemical 
photometer  devised  by  Sir  H.  Roscoe  in  1863.  Mr. 
J.  B.  Jordan  exhibited  his  experimental  instrument  for 
recording  the  intensity  of  daylight,  and  also  the  three 
patterns  of  his  sunshine  recorder.  Similar  instruments 
designed  by  Dr.  Maurer,  of  Ziirich,  and  Prof.  McLeod, 
were  also  shown.  Prof.  Pickering  sent  a  photograph  of 
his  Pole-star  recorder,  in  use  at  the  Harvard  College 
Observatory,  U.S.A.,  for  registering  the  cloudiness  during 
the  night.  This  instrument  consists  of  a  telescopic 
objective  attached  to  a  photographic  camera  and  directed 
to  the  Pole-star ;  the  camera  is  provided  with  very 
sensitive  plates  which  are  inserted  in  the  evening,  and  a 
shutter,  worked  by  an  alarm  clock,  is  closed  before  dawn. 
If  the  sky  be  clear  during  the  night,  the  plate,  after 
development,  shows  a  semicircle  traced  by  the  revolution 
of  the  star  around  the  North  Pole,  but  if  clouds  have 
passed  across  the  star,  the  trace  is  broken. 

The  photo-nephograph  designed  by  Captain  Abney 
for  the  registration  of  the  velocity  and  direction  of  motion 
of  clouds  was  exhibited  by  the  Meteorological  Council,  as 
well  as  a  model  showing  the  manner  in  which  the  pair 
of  photo-nephographs  are  mounted  for  use  at  the  Kew 
Observatory.  One  of  the  instruments  is  placed  on  the 
roof  of  the  Observatory,  the  other  being  at  a  distance  of 
800  yards  ;  the  observers  at  each  end  are  in  telephonic 
communication.  Both  cameras  being  oriented  with  refer- 
ence to  the  same  point  of  the  horizon,  the  distant  observer 
is  instructed  as  to  the  direction  and  elevation  of  his  in- 
strument. The  chief  observer  controls  the  exposure,  both 
cameras  being  exposed  simultaneously  ;  another  pair  of 
plates  are  exposed  after  an  interval  of  one  minute.  A 
slide  rule  designed  by  General  R.  Strachey  for  obtaining 
the  height  and  distance  of  clouds  from  the  pictures 
yielded  by  the  cloud  cameras  was  also  exhibited,  as  well 
as  photographs  of  an  experimental  apparatus  designed 
by  Mr.  G.  M.  Whipple  for  the  same  purpose. 

The  Exhibition  Included  a  large  and  interesting  col- 
lection of  photographs  of  clouds.  Padre  F.  Denza  sent 
a  set  of  80  cloud  photographs  which  had  been  taken 
during  the  past  twelve  months  at  the  Specula  Vaticana. 
Rome.  M.  Paul  Gamier  exhibited  a  magnificent  set 
of  17  large  photographs  of  clouds  taken  at  his  ob- 
servatory, Boulogne-sur-Seine,  Paris.  These  are  the 
best  photographs  of  clouds  that  have  been  seen  in  th's 
country,  and  they  were  consequently  very  much  admired. 
M.  Gamier  has  not  yet  explained  the  method  he 
adopts  for  obtaining  5uch  beautiful  pictures.    Dr.  Riggen- 


492 


NATURE 


\Marck  27,  1890 


bach,  of  Basle,  showed  some  photographs  of  cirrus  clouds 
taken  by  reflection  from  the  surface  of  the  Lake  of 
Sarnen.  In  this  case  the  surface  of  the  water  acts  like 
a  polarizing  mirror,  and  extinguishes  the  skylight.  Photo- 
graphs of  clouds  were  also  exhibited  by  Mr.  Clayden, 
Dr.  Drewitt,  Dr.  Green,  Mr.  Gwilliam,  Mr.  Harrison, 
Mr.  McKean,  Messrs.  Norman  May  and  Co.,  Mr.  H.  C. 
Russell,  and  Mr.  Symons.  Mr.  H.  P.  Curtis,  of  Boston, 
U.S.A.,  sent  a  valuable  and  highly  interesting  collection 
of  photographs,  showing  the  devastation  caused  by  the 
tornadoes  at  Rochester,  Minnesota,  on  August  21,  1883, 
and  at  Grinnell,  Iowa,  on  June  17,  1884.  After  seeing 
these  photographs,  some  idea  can  be  formed  of  the 
immense  destruction  wrought  by  these  terrible  scourges, 
which  so  frequently  visit  various  parts  of  the  United 
States.  Mr.  Curtis  also  exhibited  three  photographs  of 
the  tornado  cloud ;  two  of  these  were  taken  at  James- 
town, Dakota,  on  June  6,  1887,  when  the  cloud  funnel 
was  12  miles  to  the  north  ;  the  third,  which  was  taken 
in  New  Hampshire,  during  the  storm  on  June  22,  1888, 
shows  the  spiral-shaped  funnel  trailing  at  a  considerable 
altitude  in  the  air. 

Many  interesting  photographs  illustrating  meteoro- 
logical phenomena  were  exhibited.  These  included  floods, 
snow-drifts,  hoar-frost,  frozen  waterfalls,  &c.  A  large 
number  of  photographs  of  flashes  of  lightning  taken 
during  the  last  twelve  months  were  also  shown,  as  well 
as  some  photographs  of  electric  sparks,  taken  by  Mr. 
Clayden  and  Mr.  Bidwell,  which  explain  the  formation 
of  dark  images  of  lightning-flashes. 

Mr.  Clayden  exhibited  a  very  interesting  and  instruc- 
tive working  model,  showing  the  connection  between  the 
monsoons  and  the  currents  of  the  Arabian  Sea  and  the 
Bay  of  Bengal. 

Mr.  Dines  showed  a  model  of  the  whirling  machine 
used  by  him  at  Hersham  for  testing  anemometers  and 
for  experiments  on  wind-pressure  ;  he  also  exhibited  a 
remarkable  curve  showing  the  normal  component  of  the 
wind-pressure  upon  a  sloping  surface  i  foot  square,  the 
normal  pressure  being  taken  as  100,  and  the  pressure  at 
various  angles  of  inclination  being  expressed  proportion- 
ately. Mr.  Munro  sent  two  instruments  which  he  has 
recently  constructed  in  conjunction  with  Mr.  Dines. 
The  first  is  for  showing  the  velocity  of  the  wind.  The 
shaft  of  an  anemometer  is  connected  with  the  shaft  of  the 
instrument,  and  in  turning  works  a  small  centrifugal 
pump,  thus  raising  the  level  of  the  mercury  in  the  long 
cistern.  The  deflection  of  the  pendulum  from  the  vertical 
position  is  proportional  to  the  rate  of  turning,  and  thus 
gives  a  uniform  scale.  The  second  instrument  is  for 
showing  the  pressure  of  the  wind  from  a  velocity  anemo- 
meter. The  arrangement  is  the  same  as  in  the  preceding 
instrument,  but  the  fall  of  the  float  in  the  small  circular 
cistern  is  proportional  to  the  square  of  the  velocity  and 
therefore  to  the  wind-pressure,  thus  giving  a  scale  of 
pressure  with  the  divisions  at  uniform  distances. 

Mr.  Hicks  exhibited  Draper's  self-recording  metallic 
thermometer  ;  a  mercurial  minimum  thermometer  with 
lens  front ;  and  a  radial  scale  thermometer.  Mr.  Long 
showed  Trotter's  compensating  thermometer  for  taking 
temperatures  at  any  distance  ;  and  Mr.  Denton  exhibited 
his  clinical  thermometer  case  with  new  spring-catch. 

William  Marriott. 


THE  ORIGIN  AND  COMPOSITION  OF  THE 
FLORA  OF  THE  KEELING  ISLANDS. 

A  T  intervals  I  have  contributed  to  Nature  the  results 
-^*-  of  the  more  recent  investigations  of  insular  floras, 
more  especially  in  relation  to  the  dispersal  of  plants  by 
ocean  currents,  birds,  and  winds  ;  and  now,  through  the 
courtesy  of  the  author  and  Captain  Petrie,  Honorary 
Secretary  of  the  Victoria  Institute,  I  am   able  to  furnish 


a  commentative  summary  of  a  lecture^  by  Dr.  H.  B. 
Guppy,  on  the  flora  of  the  Keeling  Islands. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  mention  that  Darwin  visited 
these  islands  in  1836,  except  in  connection  with  the  fact 
that  Dr.  Guppy's  visit  was  in  a  measure  an  outcome  of 
that  event.  In  1878,  Mr.  H.  O.  Forbes  spent  some  time 
there,  and  extended  our  knowledge  of  the  flora.  Primarily, 
no  doubt,  the  coral-reef  question  took  Dr.  Guppy  to  the 
scene  of  Darwin's  early  labours,  though  he  was  probably 
not  less  interested  in  the  flora,  having  been  stimulated  by 
practical  botanizing  in  the  Solomon  Islands  a  few  years 
previously ;  and  a  stay  of  nearly  ten  weeks  enabled  him 
to  elucidate  many  points  that  were  either  obscure  or 
conjectural. 

Mr.  John  Murray,  of  the  Challenger  Expedition,  found 
funds  for  Dr.  Guppy's  mission,  and  he  presented  to  the 
Kew  Herbarium  the  collections  made  of  dried  plants  and 
drifted  seeds  and  fruits  ;  and  there,  such  of  them  as  were 
not  already  familiar  to  Dr.  Guppy,  and  of  which  the  mate- 
rial was  sufficient,  were  named,  and  a  set  incorporated. 

For  the  sake  of  brevity  it  will  be  better  to  describe 
what  Dr.  Guppy  has  accomplished,  rather  than  follow 
him  through  his  account  of  it. 

Specimens  were  taken  of  all  the  different  species  of 
plants  found  in  a  wild  state  in  the  islands ;  notes  made 
of  the  conditions  under  which  they  occurred,  of  their 
relative  frequency,  of  their  chances  of  propagation,  and 
of  their  natural  enemies,  besides  other  particulars.  In 
addition  to  seeds,  or  fruits  containing  the  seeds,  of  the 
plants  actually  established  on  the  islands,  many  others 
were  picked  up  on  the  beach,  where  they  had  been  de- 
posited by  the  waves.  Whilst  most  of  these  were  in 
various  stages  of  decay,  others  were  actually  germinat- 
ing, and  the  question  arose.  Why  had  they  not  succeeded 
in  obtaining  a  footing  ?  As  we  shall  presently  learn,  this 
question  was  easily  answered. 

Another  point  on  which  we  had  little  trustworthy  in- 
formation was  the  length  of  time  various  seeds  of  essen- 
tially littoral  and  insular  plants  would  bear  immersion, 
or,  rather,  flotation,  in  sea-water  without  losing  their 
vitality.  With  the  exception  of  a  few  isolated  instances 
of  seeds  having  germinated  after  having  been  carried 
across  the  Atlantic  to  the  western  coast  of  Europe,  very 
little  was  known,  because  the  majority  of  the  seeds  ex- 
perimented with  by  botanists  at  home  did  not  belong  to 
this  class  of  widely-spread  plants.  Dr.  Guppy  instituted 
experiments  on  the  spot,  and  although  his  time  was  too 
short  to  determine  the  extreme  limits  of  endurance  of 
the  various  seeds,  he  was  able  to  prove  that  certain  kinds 
germinated  freely  after  being  thirty,  forty,  or  fifty  days  in 
sea-water.  Again,  he  observed  that  some  seeds  that  do 
not  readily  float,  or  only  for  quite  short  periods,  are  con- 
veyed hither  and  thither  in  a  variety  of  ways — such  as  in 
the  cavities  of  pumice-stone,  and  in  the  crevices  of  drift- 
wood. 

From  all  available  evidence,  it  is  almost  absolutely 
certain  that  there  were  no  permanent  inhabitants  of  the 
Keeling  Islands  till  about  the  end  of  the  first  quarter  of 
the  present  century ;  and  from  the  most  trustworthy  ac- 
counts the  islands  were  covered  with  vegetation,  the 
coco-nut  largely  preponderating  in  the  arboreous  ele- 
ment. Indeed,  as  the  outer  part  was  almost  entirely 
coco-nut,  it  seemed,  as  Darwin  says,  at  first  glance  to 
compose  the  whole  wood.  But  there  is  evidence  that 
there  were  large  "forests"  in  the  interior  of  the  islands, 
consisting  mainly  of  the  iron-wood,  Cordia  siibcordata. 
The  largest  island  is  said  to  be  only  about  five  miles  long; 
and  the  group  is  between  600  and  700  miles  from  the 
nearest  land,  excluding  the  small  Christmas  Island. 

Already  at  the  time  of  Darwin's  visit  in  1836,  the 
islands  were    in  the    possession    of   Captain    Ross,  the 

'  "  The  Dispersal  of  Plants,  as  illustrated  by  the  Flora  of  the  Keeling  or 
Cocos  Islands."  A  Paper  read  at  a  meeting  of  the  Victoria  Institute  on 
Monday,  February  3,  1890,  by  Dr.  H.  B.  Guppy. 


March  27,  1890] 


NA  rURE 


493 


grandfather  of  the  present  proprietor,,  and  coco-nut 
planting  was  progressing.  Since  then  most  of  the  avail- 
able ground  has  been  cleared  of  other  vegetation  and 
planted  with  coco-nut  trees,  so  that  the  wild  vegetation 
is  nearly  limited  to  an  external  fringe,  and  this  often 
broken.  In  North  Keeling,  about  fourteen  miles  distant 
from  the  main  group,  which  was  not  visited  either  by 
Darwin  or  Forbes,  there  was  still  sufficient  of  the  original 
vegetation  left  for  Dr.  Guppy  to  form  an  idea  of  what  it 
was  generally  before  it  was  cleared  away  for  cultivation. 
Darwin's  investigations  had  the  effect  of  arousing  the 
interest  of  Captain  Ross  in  the  natural  history  of  the 
group,  and  this  interest  has  been  inherited  by  his  de- 
scendants, who  have  greatly  aided  subsequent  travellers 
by  their  hospitality  and  by  their  knowledge  of  local 
phenomena.  Darwin  collected  or  noted  about  a  score  of 
different  species  of  wild  plants,  and  this  number  has  now 
been  doubled  by  Forbes  and  Guppy. 

This  brings  us  to  the  results  of  Guppy's  own  investiga- 
tions, the  most  interesting  and  important  being  those 
relating  to  the  capabihties  of  certain  plants,  notably  the 
coco-nut,  to  establish  themselves  on  coral  islands,  as 
some  writers  of  repute  have  strongly  contested  the  possi- 
bility of  it,  and  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  coco-nut 
and  other  plants  having  large  seeds  obtain  a  footing  only 
under  exceptional  circumstances,  such  as  being  buried  by 
the  sands  washed  over  them  in  heavy  gales. 

Foreign  coco-nuts  are  frequently  cast  ashore  on  the 
Keeling  Islands,  where  they  sometimes  germinate,  but 
the  crabs  invariably  destroy  the  sprouting  nut.  Suppose, 
however,  a  period  when  crabs  were  less  numerous,  and 
the  chances  are  not  so  very  remote  of  some  of  the 
growing  nuts  escaping  them.  Again,  Mr.  Forbes  cites 
an  instance  in  which  the  crabs  may  even  facilitate  the 
establishment  of  the  coco-nut,  for  he  observed  that  the 
crabs  sometimes  burrow  so  near  the  surface  that  the  nuts 
occasionally  break  through  and  find  favourable  condi- 
tions for  growth.  Should  they  escape  the  crabs  in  their 
earliest  infancy,  they  are  safe.  Many  other  plants  are 
now  prevented  by  the  crabs  from  establishing  themselves 
on  the  Keeling  Islands.     Dr.  Guppy  says  : — 

"  I  have  been  informed  by  the  proprietor  that  some- 
times when  a  large  amount  of  vegetable  drift  has  been 
stranded  on  the  beach,  a  line  of  sprouting  plants  may  be 
shortly  observed  just  above  the  usual  high-tide  mark  ; 
but  the  tender  shoots  are  soon  eaten  by  the  crabs,  and  in 
a  little  time  every  plant  is  gone.  Many  of  the  seeds  that 
germinate  on  the  beach  are  beans,  varying  in  size  from 
those  of  Entada  scandens  downward.  They  form  one- 
third  of  the  vegetable  drift." 

Indeed,  the  crabs  are  so  numerous  that  Mr.  Ross  has 
failed  in  many  attempts  to  raise  plants  of  some  of  these 
things  in  his  garden.  One  flourishing  Entada  scandens 
and  a  sickly  Calophyllum  Inophyllum  were  all  the 
reward  of  much  trouble  in  this  direction.  The  huge 
square  fruits  of  Barringtonia  speciosa  are  often  thrown 
up,  and  the  seed  germinates,  but  very  few  escape  the 
crabs.  This  tree  had  not  established  itself  in  North 
Keeling,  though  in  August  1888,  Dr.  Guppy  observed  two 
seedlings  about  eighteen  inches  high,  and  they  owed  their 
preservation,  it  was  supposed,  to  the  circumstance  of  the 
fruits  having  been  concealed  when  the  seeds  germinated 
by  the  bed  of  fine  drift  pumice  that  had  been  deposited 
on  the  shores  of  the  lagoon  after  the  Krakatao  eruption. 

Particulars  are  given  of  the  incipient  germination  and 
early  destruction  of  Carapa,  Nipa,  Cycas,  and  other 
seeds.  Of  course,  the  clearing  of  the  original  vegeta- 
tion and  subsequent  cultivation,  and  the  incidental  or 
intentional  introduction  of  various  birds  and  animals, 
and  the  migration  of  the  myriads  of  sea-birds  that 
formerly  inhabited  the  islands  must  all  be  taken  into 
consideration.  Yet  no  species  of  plant  ever  known  to 
grow  wild  there  has  become  quite  extinct,  an  evidence  of 
their  tenacity  of  hfe  under  unfavourable  conditions. 


Dr.  Guppy's  additions  to  the  Keeling  flora  include  the 
following  plants,  which  he  regards  as  having  formed  part 
of  the  original  vegetation,  judging  from  the  conditions 
under  which  he  found  them  :  Calophyllum  Inophyllum, 
Thespesia  populnea,  Triunifetta  subpabnata,  Suriana 
maritima,  Canavaliaobtusifolia,  Terminalia  Catappa, Bar- 
ringtonia speciosa,  Sesuvium  Portulacastrum,  Ipomcea 
grandiflora,  I.  biloba  {I.  pes-caprcc),  Premna  obtusifolia, 
and  Hernandia  peltata.  Their  general  distribution  fully 
justifies  this  deduction. 

The  experiments  on  the  vitality  of  seeds  after  forty  to 
fifty  days  in  sea-water  were  necessarily  of  a  limited 
character,  but  they  established  the  fact  that  the  following 
germinated  :  Cordiasubcordata,  Hernandia  peltata,  Gtiet- 
tarda  speciosa,  Thespesia  populnea,  Sccevola  Koenigii, 
Morinda  citrifolia,  and  Tournefortia  argentea.  Every 
seed  of  the  last  named  germinated  after  forty  days',  and 
half  of  the  seeds  of  Morinda  after  fifty-three  days'  immer- 
sion. Dr.  Guppy  calculates  that  a  surface  current  of 
only  one  knot  an  hour  would  convey  drift  a  distance  of 
loco  to  1200  miles  during  these  periods.  From  the  fact 
that  almost  all  the  drift  is  thrown  up  on  the  eastern  and 
southern  coasts,  it  is  assumed  that  the  bulk  of  it  comes 
from  the  Malay  Archipelago,  and  perhaps  some  from  the 
north-west  coast  of  Australia.  This  is  borne  out  by  the 
general  distribution  of  the  established  Keeling  plants,  as 
well  as  by  the  other  seeds  and  fruits  that  are  stranded 
there. 

Among  the  latter  may  be  mentioned  Patigium  edule, 
Heritiera  littoralis,  Erythrina  indica,  Mucuna  spp., 
Dioclea  reflexa,  CcEsalpinia  Bonducella,  Cerbera  Odollam, 
Quercus  spp.,  and  Caryota. 

Carpophagous  pigeons  have  played  no  recognizable 
part  in  the  flora  of  the  Keeling  Islands. 

In  his  forthcoming  book  Dr.  Guppy  will  doubtless  give 
all  the  details  of  his  observations  in  a  more  connected 
and  systematic  form. 

W.    BOTTING    HEMSLEY. 


NOTES. 

To-DAY  the  honorary  freedom  and  livery  of  the  Turners 
Company  are  to  be  conferred  on  Sir  John  Fowler,  K.C.M.G., 
and  Sir  Benjamin  Baker,  K.C.M.G.,  "in  recognition  of  their 
distinction  and  eminence  as  engineers,  earned  by  many  great 
works  at  home  and  abroad,  especially  the  design  and  construction 
of  the  Forth  Bridge,  one  of  the  greatest  triumphs  of  British 
engineering  in  the  Victorian  age." 

Sir  John  Kirk,  F.R.S.,  and  Sir  William  Turner, 
F.R.  S.,  Professor  of  Anatomy  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh, 
have  been  elected  members  of  the  Athenaeum  Club,  under  the 
rule  which  provides  for  the  annual  election  of  a  certain  number 
of  persons  of  distinguished  eminence  in  science,  literature,  or 
the  arts,  or  for  public  services. 

Mr.  T.  Kirke  Rose,  Associate  of  the  Royal  School  of 
Mines,  has  obtained  the  appointment  of  Assistant  Assayer  at 
the  Royal  Mint,  by  competition  among  selected  candidates.  It 
is  a  post  of  some  importance,  and  the  salary  rises  from  £'^$0  to 
£^S^t  with  an  official  residence  in  the  Mint.  After  an  unusually 
briUiant  career  at  the  Royal  School  of  Mines,  Mr.  Rose  was 
engaged  as  metallurgist  and  assayer  to  the  Colorado  Gold  and 
Silver  Extraction  Company  in  Denver.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
he  will  afford  valuable  assistance  to  Prof.  Roberts-Austen  in 
preserving  the  standard  fineness  of  our  coinage  with  the  remark- 
able degree  of  accuracy  that  generations  of  assay  masters  have 
attained. 

Sir  Henry  Roscoe  has  introduced  into  the  House  of 
Commons  a  Technical  Education  Bill,  which  is  intended  to 
clear  up  any  doubt  as  to  the  legality  of  the  provision  of  technical 


494 


NATURE 


S^March  27,  1890 


and  manual  instruction  in  public  elementary  schools.  The 
following  are  the  provisions  of  the  measure  : — (i)  The  managers 
of  any  public  elementary  school  may  provide  technical  or  manual 
instruction  for  the  scholars  in  that  school,  either  on  the  school 
premises  or  in  any  other  place  approved  by  the  inspector,  and 
attendance  by  the  scholars  of  the  school  at  such  instruction 
shall  be  deemed  to  be  attendance  at  the  public  elementary 
school.  (2)  The  conditions  on  which  Parliamentary  grants  shall 
he  made  in  aid  of  technical  or  manual  instruction  in  public  ele- 
mentary schools,  shall  be  those  contained  in  the  Minutes  of  the 
Education  Department  and  of  the  Science  and  Art  Department 
in  force  for  the  time  being.  (3)  The  expression  "technical  in- 
struction" and  "manual  instruction"  shall  have  the  same  mean- 
ing as  in  the  Technical  Instruction  Act  (1889). 

Last  week  Dr.  Farquharson  asked  the  President  of  the  Board 
of  Trade  whether  he  was  aware  that  much  dissatisfaction  existed 
among  scientific  men  as  to  the  sufficiency  of  the  tests  used  in  the 
mercantile  marine  for  the  detection  of  colour-blindness,  and 
whether  he  would  appoint  a  committee  of  experts  to  advise  the 
Government  on  this  important  question.  In  reply.  Sir  Michael 
Hicks-Beach  said  he  was  sensible  of  the  importance  of  the 
matter,  and  had  been  in  communication  with  the  Royal  Society 
upon  the  subject  ;  and  he  was  happy  to  state  that  "that  valuable 
institution  had  appointed  a  committee  to  consider  the  whole 
question  of  colour-blindness." 

The  meetings  of  the  Institution  of  Naval  Architects  are  now 
being  held  in  the  hall  of  the  Society  of  Arts  ;  the  chair  being 
occupied  by  Lord  Ravensworth,  the  President  of  the  Institution. 
The  following  is  the  programme  of  proceedings  : — Wednesday, 
March  26,  morning  meeting,  at  12  o'clock  :  (i)  Annual  Report 
of  Council  ;  (2)  election  of  Officers  and  the  Council  ;  (3) 
alteration  of  rules  relating  to  election  of  Vice-Presidents  . 
^4)  Address  by  the  President  ;  the  following  papers  were  then  to 
be  read  and  discussed — notes  on  recent  naval  manoeuvres,  by 
W.  H.  White,  F.R.S.,  Director  of  Naval  Construction,  Vice- 
President  ;  the  Maritime  Conference,  by  Rear- Admiral  P.  H. 
Colomb,  R.N.  Thursday,  March  27,  morning  meeting,  at  12 
o'clock  :  on  leak-stopping  in  steel  ships,  by  Captain  C.  C. 
Penrose  Fitzgerald,  R.N.  ;  strength  of  ships,  with  special 
reference  to  distribution  of  shearing  stress  over  transverse 
section,  by  Prof.  P.  Jenkins ;  steatite  as  a  pigment  for  anti- 
corrosive  paints,  by  Frank  C.  Goodall.  Evening  meeting  at 
7  oclock  :  on  the  evaporative  efficiency  in  boilers,  by  C.  E. 
Stromeyer ;  on  the  application  of  a  system  of  combined  steam 
and  hydraulic  machinery  to  the  loading,  discharging,  and  steering 
of  steam-ships,  by  A.  Betts  Brown  ;  the  revolving  engine  applied 
on  board  ship,  by  Arthur  Rigg.  Friday,  March  28,  morning 
meeting,  at  12  oclock  :  on  the  variation  of  the  stresses  on 
vessels  at  sea  due  to  wave-motion,  by  T.  C.  Read ;  spontaneous 
combustion  in  coal  ships,  by  Prof  Vivian  Lewes.  Evening 
meeting,  at  7  o'clock  :  on  the  screw  propeller,  by  James 
Howden  ;  experiments  with  life-boat  models,  by  J.  Corbett. 

The  Geologists'  Association  have  made  arrangements  for  an 
Easter  excursion  to  North  Staffordshire.  It  will  last  from  April 
3  to  8,  and  the  head-quarters  will  be  the  North  Staffordshire 
Hotel,  Stoke-on-Trent,  except  on  Saturday  and  Sunday  nights, 
when  the  Association  will  stay  at  the  Red  Lion,  Leek. 

A  Conference  of  the  Camera  Club,  under  the  presidency 
of  Captain  de  W.  Abiiey,  was  held  last  week  at  the  Society  of 
Arts.  Lord  Rayleigh  gave  an  account  of  instantaneous  photo- 
graphy by  the  light  of  the  electric  spark.  He  stated  that  he  had 
been  experimentalizing  in  taking  photographs  of  minute  jets  of 
water  as  from  a  bottle.  He  exhibited  on  the  sheet,  by  means  of 
the  electric  light,  photographs  of  jets  of  water  taken  in  less  than 
he  100,000th  part  of  a  second.  In  the  course  of  the  discussion 
ollowing  the  demonstration  and  explanations  by  Lord  Rayleigh, 


Mr.  Trueman  Wood  spoke  of  the  new  application  of  electricity 
to  the  photographic  art  in  fixing  for  study  natural  phenomena. 
The  chairman,  in  giving  the  thanks  of  the  meeting  to  Lord 
Rayleigh,  referred  to  some  photographs  taken  in  less  than  the 
100,000th  part  of  a  second  under  the  name  of  a  "photographic 
untruth."  Captain  Abney  dealt  with  the  untruth  of  form, 
which  photography  gave  when  judged  by  light  and  shade,  a 
subject  which  could  only  be  explained  by  series  of  drawings  on 
the  black-board  and  shadows  cast  upon  the  sheet. 

The  Royal  Microscopical  Society  has  received  from  Dr.  E. 
Abbe,  of  Jena,  one  of  the  new  apochromatic  ^Vth  microscope 
objectives  recently  produced  at  Zeiss's  optical  works,  Jena, 
under  Dr.  Abbe's  superintendence.  The  aperture  is  the  highest 
hitherto  attained,  being  i'6  N.A.,  whereas  the  highest  point 
previously  reached  by  Dr.  Zeiss  was  1*4  N.A.,  so  that  the  clear 
gain  of  aperture  is  20  per  cent.  The  advantage  of  this  increase 
is  shown  by  the  perfection  of  the  images  obtained  in  photomicro- 
graphs produced  by  the  new  objective  in  the  hands  of  Dr.  Henri 
Van  Hewick,  Director  of  the  Jardin  Botanique,  Antwerp, 
specimens  of  whose  work  were  exhibited  at  the  last  meeting 
of  the  Royal  Microscopical  Society.  At  this  meeting  it  was 
announced  that  Dr.  Dallinger,  F.R.S.,  had  consented  to  join  a 
committee  appointed  by  the  Council  of  the  Royal  Microscopical 
Society,  to  make  a  special  report  on  the  new  objective. 

At  the  fortnightly  meeting  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society, 
on  Tuesday,  M.  Henri  de  Vilmorin,  President  of  the  Botanical 
Society  of  France,  delivered  a  lecture  on  salads,  mentioning 
that  in  England  we  neither  eat  nor  grow  so  many  plants  for 
salad  as  in  France.  He  dwelt  upon  the  nutritive  value  of  salads 
due  to  the  potash  salts,  which,  though  present  in  vegetables 
generally,  are  eliminated  in  the  process  of  cooking.  He  then 
enumerated  the  various  plants  which  are  used  in  salads  in  France 
— namely,  the  leaves  of  lettucef  corn-salad,  common  chicory, 
barbe  de  capucin,  curled  and  Batavian  endives,  dandelion  in  its 
several  forms  of  green,  blanched,  and  half-blanched,  water- 
cresses,  purslane  in  small  quantities,  blanched  salsify-tops  of  a 
pleasant  nutty  flavour,  witloof  or  Brussels  chicory,  the  roots  of 
celeriac,  rampion,  and  radish,  the  bulbs  of  stachys,  the  stalks 
celery,  the  flowers  of  nasturtium  and  yucca,  the  fruit  of  cap- 
sicum and  tomato,  and,  in  the  south  of  France,  rocket,  picri- 
dium,  and  Spanish  onions.  Various  herbs  are  added  to  a  French 
salad  to  flavour  or  garnish  it,  such  as  chervil,  chives,  shallot, 
and  borage  flowers.  In  addition,  many  boiled  vegetables  are 
dressed  with  vinegar  and  oil.  M.  de  Vilmorin  then  showed 
specimens  of  dandelion,  barbe  de  capucin,  and  witloof,  both 
varieties  of  chicory,  which  he  recommended  to  the  notice  of 
English  gardeners  as  most  useful  and  palatable.  He  mentioned 
that  from  a  ton  to  a  ton  and  a  half  of  witloof  is  daily  brought  to 
the  Paris  market  from  Brussels,  where  it  is  grown  in  the  greatest 
perfection.  Specimens  of  English  salads  grown  in  the  month 
of  March,  and  consisting  of  corn-salad,  lettuce,  and  blanched 
chicory,  were  sent  from  the  Marquis  of  Salisbury's  gardens  at 
Hatfield.  Among  the  other  exhibits  was  a  quaint  orchid 
{Ccelogyne  panduratd),  a  native  of  Borneo,  sent  from  Kew 
Gardens.  The  flower  is  bright  green,  like  the  colour  of  forced 
lilac-leaves,  with  a  dull  jet  black  blotch  and  lines  on  the  lip. 

At  the  meeting  of  I  he  Royal  Botanic  Society  on  Saturday, 
it  was  announced  that  the  donations  received  included  an 
interesting  collection  of  seeds  from  the  gardens  of  Mr.  Thomas 
Hanbury,  at  Mortola,  on  the  coast  near  Ventimiglia,  Italy,  with 
printed  catalogues  of  the  great  variety  of  plants  and  trees  from 
all  climes  growing  in  the  garden — more  than  4000  named 
species. 

Baron  de  Lissa,  the  pioneer  planter  of  British  North 
Borneo,  arrived  at  Sandakan  in  January  last.  The  official 
Gazette  of  British  North  Borneo  says  that  the  Royal  Geographical 


March  27,  18 90 J 


NA  TURE 


495 


Society  of  Australia  have  forwarded  to  the  Baron  a  draft  for  j^ioo 
towards  the  expenses  of  obtaining  some  information  regarding 
the  fauna  and  flora  of  Kina  Balu  and  its  neighbourhood.  Baron 
de  Lissa  has  placed  himself  in  communication  with  the  Governor 
on  the  subject,  and  is  endeavouring  to  secure  the  services  of 
a  well-known  geologist  and  naturalist  who  is  residing  at 
Sandakan. 

The  following  science  lectures  will  be  delivered  at  the  Royal 
Victoria  Hall  : — April  i,  an  hour  with  the  telescope,  by  J.  D. 
McClure  ;  April  15,  the  colours  of  a  soap  bubble,  by  John  Cox. 

It  is  pleasant  to  turn  over  the  pages  of  the  handsome  new 
edition  of  Darwin's  famous  "  Voyage  of  a  Naturalist "  (Murray). 
The  text  is  well  printed,  and  no  one  can  fail  to  enjoy  the  admir- 
able illustrations  contributed  by  Mr.  R.  T.  Pritchett.  In  a 
prefatory  note  Mr.  Murray  explains  that  most  of  the  views  given 
in  the  work  are  from  sketches  made  on  the  spot  by  Mr.  Pritchett, 
with  Mr.  Darwin's  book  by  his  hand. 

In  a  few  days  the  first  part  of  a  new  work  on  the  theory  of 
determinants,  by  Dr.  Muir,  of  Glasgow,  will  be  published  by 
Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co.  It  presents  the  subject  in  the  his- 
torical order  of  its  development,  beginning  with  the  brilliant 
but  unfruitful  conceptions  of  Leibnitz  in  1693,  and  carrying  the 
record  forward  to  1841,  the  year  of  the  appearance  of  Cayley's 
first  paper. 

Mr.  H.  a.  Miers,  of  the  Natural  History  Museum,  is 
engaged  upon  a  text-book  of  mineralogy,  which  will  be 
published  by  Messrs.  Macmillan  and  Co. 

Last  week  (p.  478)  we  noted  that  at  the  meeting  of  the  Royal 
Society  of  Edinburgh,  on  February  28,  Dr.  John  Berry  Haycraft 
had  communicated  the  results  of  some  recent  investigations  on 
voluntary  muscular  contraction.  Dr.  Haycraft's  observations 
are  interesting  both  to  physiologists  and  to  physicists.  Where 
a  muscle  is  stimulated  by  an  electrical  shock,  all  the  fibres  of 
the  nerve  receive  the  same  stimulus,  and  all  the  fibres  of  the 
muscle  to  which  the  nerve  passes  contract  together,  and  in  the 
same  way.  This  is  not  the  case  when  a  muscle  contracts  on 
receiving  a  natural  nerve  stimulation,  starting  either  as  a  result 
of  volition  or  of  reflex  action.  The  central  nervous  system 
seems  unable  to  affect  all  the  fibres  of  a  muscle,  through  the 
numerous  nerve  fibres  passing  to  it,  in  such  a  manner  that  they 
all  shall  contract  exactly  in  the  same  way.  The  reason  for 
supposing  this  to  be  the  case  is  the  fact,  observed  by  the  author, 
that  fascicular  movements  are  always  present  within  a  muscle 
during  a  voluntary  or  a  reflex  contraction,  so  that  tracings  taken 
from  different  parts  of  the  same  muscle  invariably  differ  from 
each  other.  The  experiments  were  conducted  both  upon  the 
human  masseter  and  the  gastrocnemius  muscle  of  the  frog.  These 
fascicular  movements  occurring  within  it  will  prevent  any  muscle 
Irom  pulling  with  perfect  steadiness  on  an*y  lever  or  other 
registering  apparatus,  and  the  tracings  taken  by  means  of  such 
apparatus  will  show  oscillatory  waves,  often  very  rhythmical  in 
their  appearance.  Many  observers  have  concluded  from  an 
examination  of  these  tracings  that  they  indicate  that  the  central 
nervous  system  discharges  impulses  into  the  muscle  at  a  rate 
corresponding  with  that  of  the  oscillations  observed.  Thus  some 
observers  find  20,  others  10  oscillations  per  second  in  the  muscle 
curve,  and  they  consider  that  the  nervous  system  discharges  into 
the  muscle  at  these  rates.  The  author  finds  that  the  fascicular 
movements  just  described  as  occurring  within  the  muscle  itself 
account  fully  for  the  oscillations  seen,  the  irregular  aperiodic 
movements  of  the  muscle  compounding  themselves  with  the 
period  of  oscillation  proper  to  the  registering  apparatus  itself, 
for  by  varying  the  instruments  used,  the  resultant  curves 
may  be  varied  at  will,  slow  oscillations   appearing  when  using 


instruments  of  slow  period,  quick  oscillations  when  using 
instruments  of  quick  period.  The  author  suggests  that  these 
fascicular  movements  probably  account  for  the  production  of  the 
muscle  sound,  which  Helmholtz  long  ago  pointed  out  was  chiefly 
an  ear-resonance  sound.  This,  of  course,  could  readily  be 
evoked  by  any  slow  aperiodic  movement,  and  the  fascicular 
movements  within  the  muscle  must  at  any  rate  assist  in  pro- 
ducing it.  These  fascicular  movements  may,  perhaps,  account 
for  the  results  obtained  by  Loven,  with  the  capillary  electro- 
meter, for  it  is  more  probable  that  he  was  registering  the 
period  of  his  own  instrument  than  that  the  muscles  were  twitch- 
ing at  the  slow  rate  of  8  times  per  second.  If  these  conclusions 
are  correct,  there  remains  little  to  be  said  in  support  of  the 
theory  generally  accepted  that  the  nervous  system  normally 
discharges  nerve  impulses  into  the  muscles  like  shots  quickly  fired 
from  a  revolver.  It  may  be  that  this  is  the  case,  but  the  sub- 
ject requires  more  extended  investigation  before  any  definite 
conclusions  can  be  arrived  at. 

The  St.  Petersburg  Academy  of  Sciences  has  issued  the 
Report  for  1889,  which  was  read  at  the  annual  meeting  on 
January  12.  The  Report  contains  a  valuable  analysis  of  the 
scientific  work  done  by  the  members  during  the  year.  In 
mathematics.  Prof.  Tchebysheff's  applications  of  simple  fractions 
to  the  investigation  of  the  approximate  value  of  the  square  root, 
and  M.  Ishmenetsky's  work  on  the  integration  of  symmetrical 
differential  equations,  are  especially  worthy  of  note.  In  astro- 
nomy, we  notice  O.  A.  Backlund's  researches  on  the  influence  of 
temperature  upon  refraction.  In  physics,  M.  Khwolson  made 
an  attempt  at  a  mathematical  investigation  of  the  extremely 
complicated  laws  of  dispersion  of  light  in  milk-coloured  glasses. 
The  exploration  of  earth  magnetism  has  made  marked  progress, 
both  as  regards  the  theory  of  diurnal  variations  and  the  measure- 
ment of  magnetical  elements  in  Caucasia  and  Siberia.  Besides 
theoretical  work  in  meteorology,  the  Central  Physical  Observa- 
tory has  extended  its  system  of  weather-forecasts.  Much  interest- 
ing work  has  been  accomplished  in  geology.  Baron  Toll  having 
brought  out  the  first  volume  of  the  geological  part  of  the  work  of 
the  expedition  to-  the  New  Siberia  Islands.  In  the  botanical 
department  the  chief  event  was  the  publication  of  two  parts  of 
Prof.  Maximowicz's  description  of  the  plants  brought  from 
Central  Asia  by  Przewalsky,  as  well  as  the  flora  of  Western 
China,  as  represented  in  the  valuable  collections  brought  by 
M.  Potanin.  Highly  interesting  work  was  done  in  zoology  by 
Prof.  Famintzyn. 

When  the  sun  sets  in  the  sea,  a  curious  appearance,  as  of  a 
bluish-green  flame,  is  sometimes  observed.  This  has  been 
thought  to  be  due  to  the  light  passing  through  the  crests  of 
waves.  But  Prof.  Sohncke  (^Met.  Zeits.)  considers  this  view 
disproved  by  such  an  observation  as  that  recently  made  by  Prof. 
Lange  at  a  watering-place  on  the  Baltic.  Shortly  before  sunset, 
the  disk  was  divided  in  two  by  a  thin  strip  of  cloud  ;  and  just  as 
the  upper  part  disappeared  under  the  cloud,  the  blue  flame  was 
observed.  Thus  the  cause  appears  to  be  in  the  air,  not  in  the 
sea.  It  is  a  case  of  atmospheric  refraction.  And  as  a  planet, 
seen  near  the  horizon  with  a  good  telescope,  appears  drawn  out 
into  a  spectrum,  with  the  more  refracted  blue-violet  end  higher 
than  the  red,  so  the  last  visible  part  of  the  sun  furnishes  the 
blue-violet  end  of  a  spectrum.  But  it  would  be  interesting, 
Herr  Sohncke  remarks,  to  determine  more  precisely  the  condi- 
tions of  this  not  very  frequent  phenomenon.  Perhaps  it  requires 
merely  great  transparency  of  air,  as  only  in  this  case  would  the 
last  ray  be  able  to  give  a  spectrum  sufficiently  intense  in  its  blue 
region. 

The  Report  of  the  Meteorological  Council  for  the  year  ending 
March  31,  1889,  has  been  published,  and  describes  the  work  of 
the  Office  under  three  heads,     (i)  Ocean  Meteorology.     The 


496 


NA  TURE 


[March  27,  1890 


number  of  logs  received  from  ships  was  189  ;  of  these  80  per 
cent,  were  classed  as  "excellent,"  being  a  greater  percentage  of 
excellence  than  has  been  reported  for  some  years.  The  dis- 
cussion of  the  meteorology  of  the  Red  Sea  is  still  in  progress, 
and  the  work  is  well  advanced.  Charts  of  barometrical  pressure 
for  four  representative  months  for  the  various  oceans  have  been 
issued,  together  with  charts  showing  the  mean  barometrical 
pressure  for  the  year,  and  the  extent  of  range  of  irregular 
fluctuations,  and  considerable  progress  has  been  made  in  the 
construction  of  the  current  charts  for  the  various  oceans.  As 
these  works  are  cleared  off,  it  is  intended  to  undertake  a  dis- 
cussion of  the  meteorology  of  the  region  from  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope  to  New  Zealand.  (2)  Weather  Telegraphy.  The 
work  of  this  branch  continues  to  increase,  and  the  Daily  and 
Weekly  Weather  Reports,  in  particular,  have  been  extended 
and  improved.  Forecasts  continue  to  be  prepared  three  times 
daily,  and  special  forecasts  were  issued  during  the  hay-making 
season  ;  the  highest  percentage  of  success  of  the  latter  was  in 
the  southern  part  of  England,  and  the  lowest  in  the  north-east 
district.  Storm  warnings  are  issued  to  those  places  on  the  coast 
that  desire  to  receive  them.  (3)  Land  Meteorology  of  the 
British  Isles.  The  records  from  the  Observatories  and  Stations 
of  the  Second  Order  are  discussed  and  published.  The  Council 
have  continued  the  annual  grant  of  ^100  towards  the  expenses 
of  the  Ben  Nevis  Observatory,  and  have  received  copies  of  the 
observations  made  there.  They  have  also  agreed  to  allow  ;!^25o 
a  year  to  the  [proposed  Observatory  at  Fort  William,  for  five 
years,  and  to  supply  an  outfit  of  an  Observatory  of  the  First 
Order,  to  be  equipped  with  self-recording  instruments.  The 
Report  also  contains  interesting  notes  on  some  results  of  an 
examination  of  the  Atlantic  charts  published  by  the  Office,  and 
on  the  measurement  of  squalls  shown  on  the  traces  of  Robinson's 
anemometers. 

A  NEW  alkaloid,  to  which  the  name  taxineis  applied,  has  been 
extracted  and  isolated  by  Drs.  Hilger  and  Brande,  of  Erlangen, 
from  the  leaves,  seeds,  and  young  shoots  of  the  yew  tree  ( Taxus 
baccata).  Lucas  some  time  ago  pointed  out  the  existence  of  a 
narcotic  partaking  of  the  nature  of  an  alkaloid  in  the  yew  tree, 
and  Marme  has  since  described  a  mode  of  extracting  it,  Drs. 
Hilger  and  Brande  have  lately  prepared  large  quantities  of  this 
alkaloid,  and  have  at  length  satisfactorily  determined  its  com- 
position and  its  more  important  chem'ical  properties.  The  leaves 
and  seeds  were  first  repeatedly  treated  with  ether  in  order  to 
extract  as  much  of  the  alkaloid  as  possible.  The  extract  was 
then  subjected  to  distillation  to  remove  the  ether,  and  the  residue 
agitated  with  water  acidified  by  a  little  sulphuric  acid.  The  acid 
washings  were  noticed  to  be  strongly  coloured,  and  this  was 
found  to  be  due  to  the  high  tinctorial  power  of  a  compound  of 
taxine  with  sulphuric  acid.  The  acid  solution  was  then  rendered 
alkaline  by  ammonia,  and  the  precipitated  alkaloid  dried  over 
sulphuric  acid.  After  dissolving  in  ether,  re-washing  with  acid 
and  precipitating  with  ammonia  several  times,  the  alkaloid  was 
obtained  as  a  perfectly  white  powder  of  extremely  bitter  taste, 
and  melting  at  82°  C.  On  heating  in  a  glass  tube  the  melted 
taxine  partly  sublimes  as  a  white  cloud  which  condenses  in  the 
colder  part  of  the  tube  in  the  form  of  drops  of  oil  which  solidify 
on  cooling.  At  the  same  time  it  evolves  a  most  characteristic 
odour.  It  is  very  difficultly  soluble  in  water,  chloroform,  or 
benzene,  but  readily  in  alcohol  and  ether.  Concentrated  sulphuric 
acid  produces  an  intense  purple  coloration.  Dilute  acid  solutions 
give  precipitates  with  gold  chloride,  platinum  chloride,  and  picric 
acid,  and  also  even  in  very  dilute  solutions  yield  precipitates  on 
the  addition  of  caustic  alkalies  or  ammonia  insoluble  in  excess. 
Analyses  show  that  the  formula  of  taxine  is  most  probably 
C37H52O10N.  It  forms  with  acids  salts  readily  soluble  in  water. 
The  hydrochloride,  sulphate,  acetate,  oxalate,  and  tartrate,  have 
been  prepared,  likewise  the  double  salts  with  the  chlorides  of 


platinum  and  gold.  The  hydrochloride  is  best  obtained  by 
passing  hydrochloric  acid  gas  through  a  solution  of  taxine  in 
anhydrous  ether,  when  the  salt  is  at  once  deposited  in  good 
crystals.  Analysis  indicates  the  formula  C37H52O10N.HCI.  The 
sulphate  possesses  the  composition  (C37Hg20ioN)2H2S04,  the 
platinochloride  (C37Hg20ioN.HCl)2PtCl4,  and  the  aurochloride 
(C37Hg20ioN.HCl)AuCl3.  A  compound  of  taxine  with  ethyl 
iodide,  of  the  composition  C37HgoOioN.C2H5l,  was  also 
obtained  by  heating  equal  molecules  of  the  alkaloid  and  ethyl 
iodide  to  100°  C.  under  pressure.  This  compound  is  also  a 
crystalline  solid  soluble  in  water.  As  regards  the  constitution  of 
the  alkaloid,  which  from  its  high  molecular  weight  must  of 
necessity  be  extremely  complex,  it  has  only  yet  been  ascertained 
that  it  belongs  to  the  class  of  nitrile  bases.  The  leaves  of  the 
yew  tree  were  found  to  contain  the  largest  quantity  of  taxine,  the 
seeds  containing  a  smaller  but  still  by  no  means  inconsiderable 
quantity  of  the  alkaloid. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Rhesus  Monkey  {Macacus  rhesus  ?  )  from 
India,  presented  by  Mr.  McDowall  Currie ;  a  Ring-necked 
Parrakeet  {Palccornis  torquatus  i )  from  India,  presented  by 
Miss  Thornton  Smith  ;  two  West  African  Love  Birds  {Agapornis 
pullaria  <5  $  )  from  West  Africa,  presented  by  Mrs.  Cyril 
Tatham  ;  a  Black-necked  Stork  {Xenorhynchus  atistralis)  from 
Malacca,  two  Peacock  Pheasants  {Polyplectron  chinquis  <J  ? ) 
from  Burmah,  purchased. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal    Time    at    Greenwich   at  10  p.m.  on  March  27  = 
loh.  2im.  7s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R  A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

h.  m.  s. 

(i)G.C.  2102      

— 

Blue. 

10  19  29 

-18     5 

(2)  37  Leonis      

5 '7 

Yellowish-red. 

10  10  47 

+  1*  17 

(3)  7  Leonis 

2 

Yellowish- white. 

10  13  54 

-t-20  24 

(4)  a  Leonis 

I 

White. 

10    2  30 

-1-12    30 

(5)i36Schj 

6 

Very  red. 

10  46  17 

-20    46 

(6)  X  Bootis 

Var. 

Dull  orange. 

14  18  59 

-f  16    49 

Remarks. 
(i)  This  is  a  very  bright  planetary  nebula  in  the  constellation 
Hydra.  From  its  size  and  equable  light,  Smyth  compared  it 
to  Jupiter.  It  is  about  32"  in  diameter,  and  its  spectrum  con- 
sists of  bright  lines.  In  1868,  Dr,  Huggins  recorded  the  pre- 
sence of  the  three  characteristic  nebula  lines,  but  Lieutenant 
Herschel  only  saw  two  of  them.  The  spectra  of  planetary 
nebulae  are  by  no  means  difficult  to  observe,  notwithstanding 
their  generally  small  diameters.  If  no  cylindrical  lens  be  em- 
ployed, the  lines  in  some  cases  are  considerably  bright,  and 
their  shortness  is  no  great  drawback.  Now  that  we  know  that 
there  are  a  good -number  of  lines  in  the  nebula  of  Orion,  it 
seems  reasonable  to  expect  that  a  careful  search  will  reveal  a 
greater  number  in  other  nebulae.  D3  and  a  line  about  A  447 
are  the  next  in  order  of  brightness  to  the  three  chief  lines  and 
G  in  the  visible  part  of  the  spectrum  of  the  nebula  in  Orion, 
and  these  should  therefore  be  first  looked  for.  It  should  also 
be  particularly  noted  whether  the  brightest  line  is  perfectly 
sharp  on  both  edges,  or  otherwise. 

(2)  This  star  has  a  spectrum  of  the  Group  II.  type.  Duner 
states  that  the  spectrum  is  rather  feebly  developed,  all  the  bands 
being  narrow.  The  bands  2  and  3  in  the  red  are  the  strongest. 
The  character  of  the  spectrum  indicates  that  the  temperature  of 
the  star  is  probably  higher  than  that  of  most  of  the  members  of 
the  group,  the  spectrum  approaching  that  of  Aldebaran.  In 
that  case,  a  considerable  number  of  lines  may  be  expected.  It 
will  be  remembered  that  in  Aldebaran  there  is  mainly  a  line 
spectrum,  together  with  the  remnants  of  the  bands  in  the  red, 

(3)  A  star  of  the  solar  type  (Gothard).  The  usual  observa- 
tions are  required. 


March  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


497 


(4)  This  is  a  star  of  Group  IV.,  showing  several  fine  metallic 
lines  in  addition  to  those  of  hydrogen.  The  usual  observations 
are  required. 

(5)  The  spectrum  of  this  star  is  a  fine  one  of  Group  VI.  The 
usual  carbon  bands  are  wide  and  dark,  and  the  subsidiary  bands 
4  and  5  are  perfectly  well  seen  (Duner).  It  seems  probable 
that  favourable  conditions  of  observation,  which,  unfortunately, 
are  not  common  for  low  stars  in  our  latitude,  may  reveal  other 
secondary  bands. 

(6)  This  is  another  variable  star  of  which  the  spectrum  has 
apparently  not  been  recorded.  The  period  as  determined  by 
Baxendell  is  121 '4  days,  and  the  magnitudes  at  maximum  and 
minimum  are  9*2  and  io'2  respectively.  The  maximum  will  be 
reached  about  April  5.     (This  is  Baxendell's  V  Bootis.)*^ 

A.  Fowler. 

Charles  Marie  Valentin  Montigny. — It  is  with  regret 
that  we  have  to  announce  the  death  of  Prof  Montigny,  at 
Schaerbeek,  on  the  i6th  inst.  Prof  Montigny  was  born  on 
January  8,  1819,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Royal  Academy  of 
Belgium,  Astronomical  Correspondent  of  Brussels  Observatory, 
an  officer  of  the  Order  of  Leopold,  and  decorated  with  the 
civil  cross  of  the  first  class.  He  is  best  known  for  his  interesting 
researches  on  the  scintillation  of  stars,  which  form  the  subject- 
matter  of  a  series  of  papers  communicated  to  the  Brussels 
Academy.  In  the  January  number  of  Himmel  und  Erde 
:i  long  description  is  given  of  the  results  of  Montigny's  ob- 
servations, and  the  instrument  he  devised  and  used  for  the 
determination  of  the  amount  of  scintillation  on  different 
nights,  and  for  the  same  stars  at  different  altitudes.  It  is 
well  known  that  if  a  scintillating  star  is  observed  by  means 
of  an  opera-glass  or  small  telescope,  and  the  instrument 
tapped,  the  star  appears  to  move  and  not  the  instrument  ;  if  the 
instrument  is  kept  vibrating,  the  star  will  appear  to  move  in  a 
closed  curve,  along  which  different  colours  repeat  themselves. 
The  scintillometer  devised  by  the  late  Prof  Montigny  for  in- 
vestigating these  appearances  consisted  of  a  small  disk  which 
could  be  whirled  round  in  front  of  the  eye-piece  so  that  the  star 
appeared  to  describe  a  circle  in  the  field  of  the  telescope.  The 
circumference  of  this  circle  was  made  up  of  a  regular  sequence  of 
colours,  of  which  blue,  yellow,  and  red  were  predominant.  If 
the  rate  of  motion  of  the  disk  be  known,  then  by  counting  the 
number  of  times  the  colours  were  repeated  the  number  of  changes 
of  colour  a  second  may  be  found.  All  the  causes  affecting  the 
scintillation  of  stars  were  investigated,  and  the  relation  of  the 
amount  to  the  character  of  the  spectrum,  the  state  of  the  atmo- 
sphere, and  the  colour  of  the  star,  made  the  subject  of  inquiry. 
The  results  obtained  by  means  of  this  ingenious  instrument  are 
important,  and  the  whole  work  on  scintillation  done  by  the 
deceased  astronomer  stands  as  a  fitting  monument  to  his  memory. 

An  Observatory  at  Madagascar. — A  new  Observatory 
has  been  established  at  Tananarivo  under  the  direction  of  the 
Jesuit  fathers,  and  with  the  concurrence  of  the  French  Govern- 
ment. The  site  chosen  is  a  hill  a  short  distance  to  the  east  of 
the  town,  and  about  4400  feet  above  sea-level,  making  the 
Observatory  one  of  the  highest  in  the  world.  It  already  pos- 
sesses an  equatorial,  a  meridian  instrument,  and  all  necessary 
apparatus  for  meteorological  observations  ;  and  a  photographic 
telescope  will  shortly  be  provided  for  solar  observations. 


THE  ADMINISTRATION  OF  FOREIGN 
FISHERIES. 

'T'HE  following  notes  ^  were  drawn  up  at  the  request  of  the 
late  Lord  Dalhousie  just  before  he  became  seriously  ill.  The 
failure  of  his  health  and  his  absence  from  home — before  the  sad 
bereavement  and  shock  which  terminated  in  his  death — prevented 
him  perusing  them,  though  the  substance  of  much  that  appears 
in  the  subsequent  pages  formed  the  theme  of  several  conversa- 
tions with  him.  His  familiarity  with  the  sea,  his  wide  know- 
ledge of  the  fisheries,  his  upright  and  generous  bearing,  and  his 
sound  judgment,  would  undoubtedly,  if  he  had  been  spared,  have 
been  of  infinite  service  to  the  Department  (which,  probably, 
sooner  or  later,  he  would  have  reorganized  very  thoroughly).  No 
greater  loss,  indeed,  has  happened  to  the  fisheries  in  recent 
times. 

For  information  on  various  points  relating  to  the  subject,  I  have  to  thank 
Profs.  Alex.  Agassiz,  Hubrecht,  Mobius,  Lovdn,  and  G.  O.  Sars,  Herr  von 
Behr,  Drs.  Anton  Dohrn,  Lindeman,  Nansen^  and  Sauvage  ;  while  Mr.  Hoyle 
Kindly  aided  me  with  thi  Norwegian  statistics. 


The  United  States  Fish  Commission  is  managed  by  a 
Director,  who  is  more  or  less  autocratic  and  irresponsible  ; 
though  in  the  case  of  the  late  Prof  Baird  the  Americans  were 
extremely  fortunate  in  having  a  Director  possessed  of  great 
administrative  power  and  tact,  and  who  never  utilized  the  re- 
sources at  his  disposal  for  personal  display  or  advancement. 
However  able  this  Director  may  be,  the  system  has  its  dis- 
advantages, and  is  less  suitable  than  a  mixed  Commission  of  men 
of  position,  who  would  have  an  opportunity  of  expressing  their 
views  as  to  the  work  to  be  carried  out.  Moreover,  the  American 
plan  is  less  safe  than  a  responsible  head — that  is,  a  chief  under 
the  control  of  a  Board  or  Commission  of  those  who  are  not 
necessarily  specially  skilled.  It  is  possible,  indeed,  that,  as  the 
fisheries  are  at  present  administered  in  the  United  States,  a  con- 
siderable expenditure  of  money  and  of  time  annually  takes  place, 
which  under  other  methods  might  be  curtailed.  The  practical 
advances  made  by  the  Americans  have  in  the  main  been  confined 
to  the  fresh-water  fisheries — that  is,  the  propagation  of  the 
salmon-tribe,  carp,  and  other  fluviatile  and  lacustrine  forms. 
The  Marine  Department  has  not  yet  succeeded  in  making  any 
noteworthy  improvement  in  sea-fisheries,  though  much  money 
has  been  spent,  and  a  large  Annual  Report  is  regularly  issued. 
This  Report  contains  not  only  the  work  accomplished  by  the  staff 
of  the  Department,  but  reprints  and  translations  of  papers  relating 
to  the  fisheries  of  other  countries.  There  is,  therefore,  a  wide 
difference  between  the  condition  in  this  country  (where  the 
observations  connected  with  the  fisheries  have  often  to  be  pub- 
lished by  Societies  or  independent  journals)  and  the  lavish 
expenditure  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic, 

In  France,  again,  the  management  of  the  fisheries  is  exclu- 
sively vested  in  the  Minister  of  Marine  at  the  Bureau  des 
Peches.  At  the  head  is  a  Director  charged  by  the  State  with 
the  inspection  of  the  fisheries.  For  the  scientific  study  of  the 
questions  pertaining  to  the  marine  fisheries  the  chief  station  is 
at  Boulogne — though  the  Minister  of  Agriculture,  under  whom  the 
station  was  constructed,  also  gave  a  small  subsidy  to  the 
Zoological  Laboratory  at  Villefranche  (Alpes  Maritimes)  for  the 
study  of  d iverse  questions  concerning  fishes  and  oys  ters — and  this 
was  founded  by  a  subsidy  from  the  town  and  the  Chamber  of 
Commerce.  The  advances  made  by  M.  Coste  and  others  in  the 
fresh-water  fisheries  of  France  are  too  well  known  to  need  further 
attention.  France  is  fortunate  in  having  a  series  of  excellent 
marine  laboratories,  at  which  considerable  advances  have 
already  been  made  in  regard  to  the  food-fishes,  and  in 
collateral  scientific  subjects.  The  names  of  MM.  Lacaze 
Duthiers,  Giard,  Marion,  Barrois,  Pouchet,  Sauvage,  and  others, 
are  sufficient  guarantees  that  the  work  of  the  fisheries  and 
connate  subjects  will  be  worthily  carried  out. 

In  Norway  there  is  no  special  Fishery  Board,  but  the 
Governmental  Department  of  the  Interior  manages  both  the 
marine  and  fresh- water  fisheries.  As  yet  only  a  general  inspector 
for  the  latter  has  been  appointed  at  a  fixed  salary.  For  each  of 
the  more  important  marine  fisheries,  however,  a  so-called 
opsynschef  'vi  engaged  by  the  Government,  to  see  to  the  adminis- 
tration of  justice  during  the  time  the  fishery  is  going  on.  More- 
over, an  annual  grant  of  16, coo  kr.  is  granted  to  the  Society  for 
the  Advancement  of  Norwegian  Fisheries  in  Bergen.  The  aims 
of  this  Society,  which  has  various  branches  in  towns  along  the 
coast,  are  chiefly  practical,  such  as  the  improvement  of  fishing 
implemefits,  the  most  suitable  and  successful  preparation  of  the 
fishery  products,  and  other  features.  It  also  has  a  special 
department  for  the  artificial  hatching  of  the  food-fishes,  in  con- 
nection with  the  laboratory  at  Arendal,  on  the  southern  coast. 
The  expenses  of  this  establishment  are  partly  borne  by  the 
Society  just  mentioned,  and  partly  by  private  subscription.  It  is 
at  this  laboratory  that  M.  Dannevig  has  done  so  much  good 
work  in  the  artificial  rearing  of  cod,  oysters,  and  lobsters,  in  the 
former  case  having  succeeded  in  keeping  the  fishes  till  the  end 
of  the  second  year,  and  when  of  considerable  size](i4-i6  inches). 
For  strictly  scientific  investigations  in  connection  with  the 
marine  fisheries  the  Storthing  grants  an  annual  sum  of  4800 
kr.  These  investigations  have  for  many  years  been  chiefly 
carried  out  by  Prof  G.  O.  Sars,  whose  observations  on  the 
Lofoten  cod-fisheries,  and  the  development  of  the  cod,  are  well 
known  and  justly  esteemed,  while,  as  a  worthy  son  of  a  dis- 
tinguished father,  he  has  in  other  departments  of  zoology 
contributed  largely  to  our  knowledge.  Other  naturalists  have 
also  been  engaged  in  the  work,  chiefly  in  regard  to  the  herring- 
fisheries.  Prof  Sars,  moreover,  with  a  view  of  protecting  the 
marine  fisheries,  has  to  report  on  every  contrivance  proposed, 


498 


NATURE 


{March  27,  1890 


and  in  regard  to  restriction  in  the  use  of  certain  fishing  imple- 
ments, besides  giving  his  advice  concerning  the  regulation  of 
close  seasons  and  similar  subjects.  He  has  to  present  to  the 
Department  his  opinions  on  these  matters  before  the  proposals 
are  brought  in  for  the  Storthing.  In  1886  much  discussion  took 
place  in  the  latter  assembly  concerning  a  more  central  manage- 
ment of  the  Fishery  Department,  and  the  establishment  of  a 
special  office  for  a  chief  director  for  all  the  fisheries,  together 
with  a  staff  of  subordinate  inspectors.  This  arrangement  is 
considered  in  Norway  to  be  of  considerable  importance,  but 
unfortunately  no  individual  is  known  who  unites  in  himself  all 
the  many  qualifications  for  this  important  office.  The  following 
are  the  grants  sanctioned  for  the  financial  year  from  July  I,  1886, 
to  June  30,  1887,  for  the  Fishery  Institutions  : — 

(i)  For  practical  scientific  investigaUon  regarding  the  sea 
fisheries,  the  last  Parliament  voted  4800  kr.-^ 

It  is  proposed  to  increase  this  by  2400  kr.,  to  be  given  to  Hr. 
Lumholtz, 

(2)  As  a  contribution  to  the  Society  for  the  Encouragement 
of  the  Norwegian  Fisheries,  the  last  Parliament  voted  16,000  kr., 
of  which  4000  kr.  were  to  be  given  to  the  affiliated  Societies  of 
Tromso,  Stift,  and  2000  kr.  to  the  Institution  for  Pisciculture  in 
Arendal. 

It  is  desired  to  increase  this  sum  to  32,000  kr.  for  the  coming 
year  ;  the  work  of  the  Society  depends  upon  this  grant,  because 
the  fishermen  cannot  be  expected  to  contribute  much,  and  the 
needs  of  the  Society  are  always  increasing.  The  expenses  for 
the  coming  year  are  estimated  at  34,910  kr.,  of  which  12,000  kr. 
will  be  needed  for  the  regular  expenses  of  the  Society.  It  is 
proposed  that  the  fisheries  should  be  under  a  central  direction 
with  subordinate  officials,  and  thus  the  Society  would  be  relieved 
of  a  large  part  of  its  expenses. 

The  Department  decided,  however,  that  the  grant  should  be 
retained  at  its  original  amount,  16,000  kr. 

(3)  For  inspection  and  administration  of  the  law  at  Lofoten 
cod-fishery,  31,950  kr.  were  voted. 

(4)  For  increased  police  inspection  of  the  mackerel-fishery  at 
Uleholmene  200  kr.  were  voted. 

(5)  For  increased  police  inspection  of  the  spring  cod-fishery  in 
Namdal  1000  kr.  were  voted. 

(6)  For  increased  police  inspection  of  the  spring  cod-fishery  in 
Finmark  7200  kr.  were  voted. 

(7)  For  increased  police  inspection  of  the  spring  cod-fishery  in 
Sondmore  3600  kr.  were  voted. 

(8)  For  inspection  and  administration  of  the  law  at  the  herring- 
fishery  12,000  kr,  were  voted. 

(9)  For  the  encouragement  of  fresh-water  fisheries  24,040  kr. 
were  voted. 

This  sum  it  is  desired  to  increase  to  31,000  kr. 


A.  Expenditure. 

I.  For  practical  scientific  investigations  into  the 
sea  fisheries,  of    which   2400   kr,    form    an 
honorarium  for  Hr.  Lumholtz 
II.   Contribution  to  the  Society  for  the  Encourage- 
ment of  Norwegian  Fisheries 

III.  For  inspection,  &c.,  of  cod- fisheries  at  Lofoten 

(1200  kr.  only  in  the  event  of  there  being  a 
congregation  of  fishermen  at  Raftsund) 

IV.  For  increased  police  inspection  at :  — 

(i)  Mackerel-fishery  at  Uleholmene 

(2)  Spring  cod-fishery  at  Namdal  ... 

(3)  ,,  ,,  Finmark  ... 

(4)  ,,  ,,         Sondmore 

V.  For  inspection,   &c.,   at  the  herring-fishery  in 

1887      

VI.  For  the  encouragement  of  fresh- water  fisheries  : 
(i)  To  salary  and  office  help  for  the 
inspector  (400  kr.  for  personal 
expenses  of  present  inspector)..     3,640 

(2)  To  two  permanent  assistants     ...     3,400 

(3)  To   travelling   expenses    of    the 

above  officials  in  the  fishing 
districts,  and  for  travelling  ex- 
penses of  temporary  assistants .     5,000 

(4)  Inspection  of  salmon-fishery      ...     7,600 

(5)  For    experimental    transport    of 

Wener  salmon  ...         ...         ...         200 

'  About  18  kronas  =  £1  sterling. 


Kronas. 


7,200 
16,000 


31,950 


12,000 


12,000 


(6)  For     experimental    marking    of 

salmon  and  sea-trout  ... 

(7)  For   encouragement   of  artificial 

spawning 

(8)  Contribution  : — 

a.  For  erection  of  salmon 

ladders  at  water-fails 
in  accordance  with 
plans  given  by  the 
inspector  in  1884    ...  1,667 

b.  For     erection     of     a 

salmon  ladder  at 
Haaelven  in  accord- 
ance, &c.     ...  ..      300 


B.  Income. 
Salvage  of  nets  and  apparatus  at  Lofoten 


Kronas. 


400 
1, 000 


1,967 


23.207 
102,357 


600 


In  Sweden  there  is,  strictly  speaking,  no  Central  Government 
Office  for  the  fisheries.  The  fishery  laws,  and  other  special 
measures  relating  to  the  fisheries,  are  decreed  by  the  Governors 
of  the  provinces  or  by  the  Department  of  the  Interior.  Pre- 
viously, however,  to  the  promulgation  of  any  new  law,  the 
Governor  must,  pursuant  to  the  Royal  Ordinance  of  November 
7,  1867,  consult  the  Intendant  of  the  Fisheries,  who,  conjointly 
with  two  assistants  and  one  Instructor  in  Fish  breeding,  are  the 
public  functionaries  in  connection  with  the  fisheries  in  this 
country.  Before  the  appointment  of  these  officials,  in  1864, 
there  was  (from  the  year  1855)  a  special  Fishery  Overseer 
{Fiskeritillsyningsman),  or  Inspector  of  the  Sea  Fisheries,  in 
the  province  of  Gothenburg  and  Bohus.  He  receives  a  salary 
from  the  Agricultural  Society  of  that  province,  with  subvention 
from  the  Crown,  and  is  subordinate  to  the  Governor  of  the 
province.  The  Intendant  of  the  Fisheries  and  his  assistants 
are  under  the  control  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  Agriculture  in 
Stockholm.^ 
The  duties  of  the  Intendant  of  the  Fisheries  are  :  — 
(i)  To  investigate,  with  the  aid  of  his  assistants,  the  fisheries 
of  the  country. 

(2)  To  propose  or  examine  drafts  of  fishery  laws  or  other 
measures  for  the  improvement  of  the  fisheries. 

(3)  To  assist  proprietors  of  fisheries  with  advice  for  hatching 
fishes,  or  with  other  measures  for  a  rational  management  of  the 
fisheries. 

(4)  To  prepare  and  elaborate  the  fishery  statistics. 

{5)  To  control  and  direct  the  labours  of  the  assistants  and  the 
fishery  overseers. 

Persons  desiring  the  assistance  of  the  fishery  officials  have  to 
lodge  intimation  with  the  Royal  Academy  of  Agriculture,  and 
then  the  Intendant  submits  to  the  Academy  a  plan  for  the 
labours  and  the  journeys  of  the  fishery  officials  for  the  ensuing 
year.  K  fixed  sum  of  3500  kr.  (about  ;i^i98,  or  ^^83  for  the 
Intendant  and  ,^55  for  each  assistant)  is  assigned  for  the 
travelling  expenses  of  the  fishery  officials.  Those  requesting 
assistance  have  to  pay  ds.  per  day. 

The  Intendant  has  to  present  annually  a  brief  report  on  the 
labours  of  the  fishery  officials,  and  from  time  to  time  more 
detailed  notices  of  the  fisheries  of  the  country.  The  Inspector 
of  the  Sea  Fisheries  of  Gothenburg  and  Bohus  submits  an  annual 
report  on  those  fisheries  to  the  Agricultural  Society  of  the 
province. 

The  legal  proceedings  relating  to  the  fisheries  are  briefly  as 
follow  : — If  one  or  more  proprietors  of  fisheries  desire  new  or 
modified  laws  for  the  fisheries  in  their  waters,  or  the  Intendant 
of  the  Fisheries  proposes  such,  the  matter  is  submitted  to  the 
Governor  of  the  province.  The  Governor  then  convokes  all 
persons  interested  to  meet  and  discuss  the  question.  If  the 
Governor,  after  having  consulted  the  Intendant  of  the  Fisheries, 
judges  the  proposals  of  the  majority  of  the  fishery  proprietors 
suitable  for  the  improvement  of  the  fishery,  those  proposals  are 
sanctioned,  either  as  they  stand,  or  with  the  necessary  modifica- 
tions. Anyone  who  dissents  from  the  judgment  may  appeal  to 
the  Department  of  the  Interior. 

•  The  allowances  of  these  officiak  from   the  Treasury  are  as  follow  : 
Intendant,  £i'io  ;  two  assistants,  respectively,  £tii  and  ^£83. 


March  27,  18 90 J 


NATURE 


499 


Germany,  likewise,  has  no  special  central  or  chief  authority 
for  the  management  of  the  fisheries.  The  Empire  has  no  right 
of  control  or  even  of  cognizance  of  the  fisheries.  The  State, 
however,  gives  annually  a  small  sum  to  the  German  Fisheries 
Union  (Fresh-water  Fisheries).  The  control  and  management  of 
the  fisheries  is  therefore  a  matter  for  the  different  States  which 
form  the  Empire.  All  these  (Prussia  included)  have  Inspectors 
of  Fisheries  \()berfisckmeister)  and  master-fishers  {Fischmeister), 
but  their  duty  only  relates  to  the  fiscal  interests  of  the  States 
and  the  rigorous  observance  of  the  fishery  laws.  They  also  give 
directions  to  the  fishermen  concerning  the  use  of  new  and 
suitable  fishing  apparatus. 

The  control  of  the  fresh-water  fisheries  of  Prussia  is  vested  in 
the  Minister  for  Agriculture,  Woods,  and  Forests,  but  there  is 
no  special  Board  for  Fisheries.  The  various  questions  are 
worked  up  by  clerks  as  they  arise,  as  also  is  the  preparation  of 
Bills  for  the  Prussian  Chambers.  In  like  manner  the  provincial 
control,  the  district  {Regieriing)  control,  and  the  Kreiss  or 
•county  control,  are  carried  out  respectively  by  the  Oberprasi- 
dent,  the  Regierungs  Priisident,  and  the  Landrath. 

The  Deutsche  P  isherei  Verein,  of  which  Herr  von  Behr  is 
-chairman,  is  an  independent  association.  It  receives  occa- 
sionally money  grants  from  the  Prussian  Minister  from  a  fund 
voted  by  the  Prussian  Chambers,  and  a  regular  grant, 
amounting  at  present  to  ;^i50O  a  year,  from  the  German  Parlia- 
ment, towards  the  encouragement  of  fish-breeding  throughout 
■Germany. 

Prussia  for  a  series  of  years  has  had  at  Kiel  a  Commission  for 
scientific  researches  in  the  German  seas.  It  consists  of  four 
members,  viz.  a  zoologist,  a  botanist,  a  physiologist,  and  a 
physicist.  The  present  members  are  Professors  in  the  University 
of  Kiel,  and  Prof.  Mobius  (zoologist)  is  chairman.  This  Com- 
mission is  placed  under  the  control  of  the  Ministry  of  Agricul- 
ture, and  from  that  body  it  receives  annually  a  sum  of  9600 
marks  (^480)  for  general  and  personal  expenses.  The  Commis- 
sion publishes  meteorological  observations,  statistics  of  the 
fisheries  on  the  Baltic  stations,  and  reports  on  scientific 
researches. 

Much  valuable  work  has  been  accomplished  by  this  Commis- 
sion in  regard  to  the  life-histories  and  development  of  fishes 
and  the  pelagic  animals  of  the  Baltic.  Amongst  other  recent 
suggestions  is  one  regulating  the  saleable  size  of  certain  fishes  in 
special  localities,  e.g.  the  salmon  and  salmon-trout  being  fixed 
at  19^  and  11  inches  respectively,  the  flounder  at  6  inches,  and 
the  plaice  at  7. 

The  Fishery  Board  of  the  Nethedands  (Collegie  voor  de 
Zeevisscherijen)  is  composed  of  fifteen  members,  one  of  whom  is 
president,  and  a  secretary,  who  is  not  actually  a  member.  All 
are  nominated  by  the  Crown,  and  the  president  out  of  a  leet  of 
two  drawn  up  by  the  Board  itself.  The  president  and  secretary 
form  a  kind  of  standing  Committee  by  whom  the  every-day 
business  is  managed.  All  important  affairs,  however,  have  to 
come  before  the  meetings  of  the  Board,  of  which  there  are  at 
least  two  yearly,  viz.  one  in  summer  and  one  in  winter.  Very 
often  the  meetings  are  more  numerous. 

The  majority  of  the  members  must  be  free  from  any  direct 
interest  in  the  fishing  trade  or  the  fisheries  industries.  The 
minority  may,  on  the  contrary,  represent  such  interests. 
Actually  the  minority  is  composed  (i)  of  a  specialist  for  the 
herring- fishery — a  great  shareholder  and  head  of  a  large  fishing 
firm  ;  (2)  a  member  for  the  line-fishing  ;  (3)  one  for  the  oyster 
industries ;  (4)  one  for  the  salmon  and  fresh-water  fisheries  ; 
(5)  one  for  the  herring  and  cod  fisheries ;  and  (6)  one  for  the 
fisheries  of  the  Zuyder  Zee. 

Further,  there  are  on  the  Board  one  shipowner  and  ship- 
builder ;  one  naval  officer ;  several  lawyers,  several  local 
authorities  ;  and  two  zoologists.^ 

The  members  receive  no  salary — only  their  travelling  ex- 
penses. Whenever  a  question  is  laid  before  the  Board  either 
by  Government  or  at  its  own  invitation,  the  President  selects  a 
special  committee  of  three  or  five  members  to  study,  discuss  it, 
and  to  draw  up  a  report,  which  is  then  circulated,  and  after- 
wards, if  necessary,  discussed  and  voted  about.  All  questions 
concerning  fishery  legislation  are  thus  brought  before  the  Board, 
and  generally  settled  according  to  its  advice. 

There  is  a  yearly  grant  (dating  back,  however,  only  a  few 

This  account  does  not  quite  correspond  with  the  view  published  by 
the  Fishery  Board  in  their  Sixth  Annual  Report,  Part  III.,  p.  305,  for  it 
is  theie  stated  that  in  Holland  ''There  is  a  Stale  Commission  for  Sea 
Fisheries,  chiefly  composed  of  naturalists  and  scientific  men." 


years)  of  about  ^^250  for  experiments  on  the  fishing  indus- 
tries, fish-culture,  &c.  Another  ;^iooo  are  yearly  devoted  to 
salmon-culture,  this  sum  being  disbursed  to  the  most  successful 
fish-culturists  at  the  rate  of  i,d.  for  a  salmon  a  year  and  a  half 
old  (smolt),  and  two-fifths  of  a  penny  for  one  a  few  months 
old  (parr).  If  the  number  of  parr  offered  exceeds  the  sum 
which  is  available  after  the  full  value  has  been  paid  for  the 
smolts,  the  culturists  must  either  acquiesce  in  a  reduction  of 
price  or  keep  their  fishes.  One  or  more  members  of  the  Board 
are  always  present  when  the  fishes  are  set  free  into  the  rivers. 

Since  188 1  certain  legal  restrictions  have  been  made  with  regard 
to  the  fisheries  of  the  Zuyder  Zee,  and  a  staff  of  police  organized 
on  the  inland  sea,  the  chief  officer  being  directly  under  the 
orders  of  the  President  of  the  Board.  The  same  is  the  case 
with  the  police  on  part  of  the  oyster  territories.  Those  in  Zea- 
land have  been,  since  the  fresh  start  in  1870,  under  a  special 
local  I5oard. 

In  Italy  the  affairs  relating  to  the  fisheries  are  managed  by 
the  Minister  of  Agriculture,  &c.  The  Minister  nominates  a 
Central  Committee  of  twenty-four  members.  These  consist  of 
scientific  men,  magistrates,  persons  industrially  interested  in  the 
fisheries,  and  some  members  of  the  Legislature  (M.P. 's).  Twelve 
members  are  elected  or  reappointed  every  year.  The  meetings 
of  this  Committee  do  not  take  place  at  certain  fixed  periods,  but 
only  by  invitation  of  the  Minister,  who  submits  to  the  Committee 
the  material  to  be  discussed. 

Besides  the  Central  Committee  there  are  a  series  of  local  Com- 
mittees throughout  the  kingdom.  These  consist  of  the  Captain 
of  the  Port,  a  zoologist,  and  technically  experienced  men.  Their 
term  of  office  lasts  for  three  years  from  the  date  of  appointment. 
The  Regulation  is  published  in  the  Annali  dcW  Industtia, 
1882,  by  the  Ministry  of  Agriculture,  Direzione  dell'  Industria 
e  Commercio. 

The  duties  of  these  local  Committees  are  as  follow  : — 

(i)  To  study  and  to  propose  all  new  regulations  rendered 
necessary  by  experience. 

(2)  To  collect  the  material  for  annual  statistics. 

(3)  i'o  give,  on  the  demand  of  the  Government,  the  Provmces, 
and  the  Communes,  their  opinion  on  matters  directly  or  in- 
directly connected  with  the  fisheries. 

(4)  To  further  the  diffusion  of  the  best  methods  of  fishing  and 
the  advancement  of  the  industries  connected  with  them. 

(5)  To  "  render  popular  "  the  knowledge  regarding  the  pro- 
duction, food,  and  diffusion  of  fishes  and  other  useful  marine 
animals. 

From  d  consideration  of  the  foregoing  reinarks  on  the  Com- 
missions, Boards,  or  Departments  of  foreign  countries,  it  would 
appear  that  a  central  authority  composed  of  a  single  individual, 
as  in  America,  has  certain  disadvantages  which  can  only  be 
overcome  by  a  rare  combination  of  scientific  eminence,  adminis- 
trative skill,  and  unbiassed  judgment.  It  has,  moreover,  been 
a  costly  experiment  ;  and  it  cannot  be  said  that  the  Americans — 
even  in  the  case  of  the  cod— have  succeeded  so  well  as  Dannevig 
at  Arendal,  in  Norway,  with  the  moderate  resources  at  his  dis- 
posal. It  cannot  be  questioned,  however,  that  the  liberality  of 
the  Government  of  the  United  States  has  greatly  aided  scientific 
inquiry  into  marine  life  in  general.  Moreover,  their  efforts  to 
increase  the  fresh-water  fishes  are  most  praiseworthy,  and  indeed 
in  this  they  give  us  a  good  example,  for  there  are  still  many 
fresh-water  streams  and  lochs  that  would  be  of  great  value  to  the 
country  if  scientific  fish-culture  were  put  on  a  proper  footing. 
The  instance  of  the  Outer  Hebrides,  e.g.  North  Uist,  is  sufficient 
in  our  own  country.  From  the  top  of  the  Lee  Hills  the  eye  rests 
on  a  multitude  of  lochs — fresh-water  and  salt — which  seem  to  be 
almost  as  extensive  in  superficial  area  as  the  shreds  of  land 
between  them.  In  many  of  these,  trout,  salmon-trout,  and  salmon 
are  found,  so  that  one  familiar  with  the  agri:altural  poverty  of 
these  regions  would  not  hesitate  to  place  the  cultiire  of  the 
water  far  before  that  of  the  land  in  regard  to  remuneration.  A 
well-organized  system  of  pisciculture  in  connection  with  these 
lochs  would  effect  a  revolution  in  the  financial  affairs  of  the 
people,  and  greatly  supplement  the  food-supply  for  the  com- 
munity. 

The  French  system  does  not  seem  to  offer  any  suggestion  of 
note  in  regard  to  the  administration  of  the  marine  fisheries. 
The  early  labours  of  M.  Coste  and  others  in  the  culture  of  trout 
and  salmon  have,  however,  been  of  great  service  both  to  the 
adjoining  Continental  States,  tons,  and  to  America.  It  must  not 
be  forgotten  also  that  M.  Coste  was  one  of  those  who  took  much 
interest  in  the  Stormontfield  experimental  station  on  the  Tay, 


500 


NA  TURE 


[March  27,  1890 


and  personally,  along  with  Mr.  R.  Buist,  aided  its  establishment 
under  the  Committee  of  Proprietors. 

Much  that  is  useful  for  the  purposes  of  administration  may  be 
learned  from  Norway,  especially  in  connection  with  the  Society 
for  the  Advancement  of  Norwegian  Fisheries  in  Bergen,  a  place 
so  classic  to  marine  zoologists,  from  the  days  of  Michael  Sars 
to  those  of  Fridtjof  Nansen.  Nowhere  in  Scotland  can  we  point 
to  a  series  of  open-air  reservoirs  of  pure  sea-water,  such  as  at 
Arendal,  in  which  larval  fishes  can  be  raised  to  post-larval  and 
subsequent  stages ;  though  at  Stonehaven  an  enclosure  of  this  kind 
formerly  existed,  and  was  used  about  thirty  years  ago  in  experi- 
menting with  young  salmon  (smolts).  Yet  no  place  is  better 
fitted — both  scientifically  and  economically — for  such  an  arrange- 
ment than  St.  Andrews,  as  has  indeed  been  often  pointed  out. 
The  Norwegians  are  also  fortunate  in  having  the  services  of  an 
able  and  original  naturalist — trained  from  boyhood  in  marine 
zoology,  besides  others  of  European  reputation.  Sweden,  though 
rich  in  names  well  known  wherever  zoology  is  studied,  e.g. 
Loven,  places  the  direction  of  the  fisheries  under  the  Academy 
of  Agriculture,  the  Governors  of  the  provinces,  and  the  Intendant ; 
while  the  Inspector  of  the  Sea-fisheries  of  Gothenburg  and 
Bohus  submits  a  special  report  to  the  Academy.  The  arrange- 
ments seem  to  work  fairly,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  any  feature  of 
the  system  would  be  of  advantage  to  this  country. 

No  central  authority  for  the  whole  of  Germany  yet  exists,  each 
of  the  States  having  Inspectors  of  Fisheries.  Prussia,  however, 
has  the  Special  Commission  at  Kiel,  the  scientific  work  of  this 
body  being  very  much  in  its  own  hands.  It  has  done  good  ser- 
vice in  regard  to  the  scientific  aspects  of  the  marine  fisheries. 
The  encouragement  held  out  by  the  Deutsche  Fisherei  Verein 
to  fresh-water  fisheries  is  noteworthy  and  commendable. 

One  of  the  most  satisfactory  arrangements  is  seen  in  the 
Fishery  Board  of  the  Netherlands,  in  the  composition  of  which 
all  interests  have  been  consulted.  Moreover,  the  recent  ap- 
pointment of  a  scientific  Superintendent  of  the  Fisheries  (viz. 
Dr.  P.  Hoek,  an  able  zoologist)  is  important.  The  names  of 
Hubrecht  and  Hoffman,  who  represent  scientific  zoology  on  the 
Board,  are  a  sufficient  guarantee  that  both  tact  and  talent  are  at 
the  service  of  the  State.  The  solid  scientific  work  done  in  the 
department  by  Profs.  Hubrecht  and  Hoffman  would  alone  give  the 
Dutch  Board  a  reputation,  and  when  we  add  the  names  of 
other  workers  who  have  aided  it,  the  position  is  considerably 
enhanced.  Further,  the  mode  by  which  scientific  questions  are 
referred  to  special  committees — say  of  zoologists  or  physicists — 
and  their  reports  thereon  dispassionately  discussed  at  meetings  of 
the  whole  Board,  obviates  the  possibility  of  the  mistakes  caused 
by  a  commiltee  having  perhaps  only  a  single  head  to  direct  it 
in  a  particular  inquiry. 

The  Italian  system  is  satisfactory  so  far  as  the  composition  of 
the  Board  goes,  though  it  seems  to  be  a  large  one  for  efficiency, 
and  the  somewhat  irregular  nature  of  the  meetings  would  hardly 
suit  the  methodical  system  generally  followed  in  this  country. 
The  short  period  of  office  (three  years),  is  perhaps  not  of  much 
moment  if  re-election  of  the  right  men  takes  place.  The  fine 
Zoological  Station  at  Naples  under  Dr.  Dohrn  (who,  however,  is 
too  closely  occupied  to  serve  on  the  Central  Committee  of  the 
Fisheries),  gives  the  Italian  Government  a  source  of  independent 
and  reliable  information,  and  of  a  different  kind  from  that 
derived  from  the  servants  of  a  Board.  The  establishment  of 
hatching  stations,  and  the  series  of  local  committees  throughout 
the  country  are  features  worthy  of  note,  especially  if  due  care  be 
taken  in  the  composition  of  the  latter,  so  as  to  avoid  the  entrance 
of  those  who  trade,  it  may  be,  on  the  credulity  or  ignorance  of 
the  fishing  population.  W.   C.  McIntosh, 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

V Anthropologie,  paraissant  tous  les  deux  mois,  tome  i.  No.  i, 
1890  (Paris). — The  first  number  of  the  new  French  review  of 
anthropology,  formed  by  the  amalgamation  of  the  older 
Revue  d' Anthropologie  and  the  Revue  d' Ethnogrdphie,  begins 
with  an  article  by  Dr.  Topinard,  one  of  its  joint  editors,  on  the 
skull  of  Charlotte  Corday,  which  ranked  among  the  most  interest- 
ing of  the  curious  contents  of  the  anthropological  section  of  the 
Paris  Exhibition,  to  which  it  was  presented  by  Prince  Roland 
Bonaparte,  The  author  explains  that,  in  making  choice  of  this 
special  skull,  his  object  is  not  to  compare  its  craniological 
characteristics  with  the  moral  disposition  historically  attributed 
to  the  individual  to  whom  it  had  belonged,  but  simply  to  make 


it  the  text  for  an  exposition,  which  might  serve  our  own  and 
future  students  as  a  lesson  for  the  examination  and  description 
of  an  isolated  skull  after  the  precise  methods  taught  by  Broca, 
and  having  regard  to  the  present  condition  of  our  science.  In 
accordance  with  this  object.  Dr.  Topinard,  confining  himself 
almost  entirely  to  craniometrical  determinations,  of  which  he 
gives  a  most  comprehensive  series,  together  with  several  well- 
drawn  illustrations,  only  occasionally  enters  into  the  comparative 
relations  presented  by  this  cranium  to  other  isolated  crania. 
From  this  exhaustive  lesson  in  craniometry  it  would  appear  that 
the  skull  of  Charlotte  Corday  closely  accords  with  the  typical 
form  of  the  female  skull,  established  by  Broca  as  characteristic 
of  Parisian  women,  deviating  only  from  the  normally  perfect 
feminine  cranial  type  in  presenting  a  certain  flatness  of  the 
frontal  region,  and  some  traces  of  jugular  apophysis. — The  Bronze 
Age  in  Egypt,  by  M.  Montelius.  The  author,  in  opposition  to 
the  opinions  of  Lepsius  and  Maspero,  believes  that  the  use  of 
iron  was  not  known  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile  as  early  as  bronze, 
which  was  probably  fabricated  6000  B.C.,  and  that  the  use  of  the 
former  metal  was  not  sufficiently  common  to  justify  us  in  speak- 
ing of  an  Iron  Age  in  Egypt  before  2000  B.  c.  He,  moreover, 
believes  that  we  must  consider  the  era  of  Egyptian  civilization  as 
belonging  mainly  to  the  Bronze  Age. — A  short  notice  of  the  works 
of  Alexander  Brunias,  by  Dr.  E.  T.  Hamy. — On  the  rock- 
sepulchre  of  Vaphio,  in  the  Morea,  by  M.  S.  Reinach.  The  ex- 
ploration of  this  tumulus  was  undertaken  last  year  at  the  cost  of 
the  Archaeological  Society  of  Athens  under  the  direction  of  M. 
Tsountas,  and  although  the  contents  have  not  yet  been  fully 
examined,  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  their  extreme  importance  to 
archaeology,  as  it  has  been  proved  beyond  question  that  this 
rock-sepulchre  had  remained  intact  till  the  present  time.  It  ap- 
pears from  the  report  of  M.  Tsountas  that  the  poniards  and  other 
implements,  together  with  many  of  the  numerous  funereal  objects 
brought  to  light  by  the  explorations  at  Vaphio,  are  similar  to 
the  remains  obtained  at  Mycenae.  Among  these  finds  special 
interest  attaches  to  two  golden  goblets  carved  in  strong  relief, 
representing  both  clothed,  and  almost  nude,  figures,  engaged  in 
the  hunting  and  taming  of  wild  bulls.  M.  Reinach  proposes  in 
a  future  number  of  this  journal  to  discuss  the  Vaphio  tumulus 
more  fully,  but  in  the  meanwhile  he  appeals  to  English  arch<Teo- 
logists  to  test  the  accuracy  of  a  statement  published  in  181 3  by 
the  German  traveller  Baron  von  Stackelberg,  that  the  so-called 
Treasury  of  Atreus  at  Mycenae  had  a  few  years  earlier  been 
ransacked  by  Veli  Pasha,  who  was  said  to  have  disposed  of  part 
of  its  treasures  to  Lord  North.  Dr.  Schliemann  questions  the 
truth  of  this  report,  but  M.  Reinach  is  of  opinion  that  it  bears 
evidence  of  authenticity,  deserving  the  notice  of  Englishmen,  and 
he  hopes,  in  the  interests  of  archaeological  science,  that  some  of 
these  precious  objects  may  yet  be  found  in  one  or  other  of  the 
great  English  collections. — We  may  remark,  in  conclusion,  that 
the  present  review  surpasses  its  predecessors  in  the  excellence  of 
its  printing  and  its  illustrations,  while  it  has  the  great  advantage 
of  being  edited  by  MM.  Cartailhac,  Hamy,  and  Topinard.  In 
the  space  allotted  to  the  consideration  of  the  scientific  literature 
of  various  countries,  to  which  more  than  half  the  entire  volume 
is  devoted,  there  are  various  notices  of  Russian,  Hungarian,  and 
other  works,  not  generally  accessible  to  the  ordinary  reader  ;  but 
we  trust  that  in  future  numbers  the  reports  of  English  works 
and  memoirs  will  not,  as  in  the  present  number,  be  drawn  ex- 
clusively from  the  Quarterly  Journal  of  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society  of  London. 

American  journal  of  Science,  March  1890. — Sedgwick  and 
Murchison  :  Cambrian  and  Silurian,  by  Prof.  James  D.  Dana. 
The  relations  of  these  two  geologists  to  one  another,  and  to 
Cambrian  and  Silurian  geology  is  given.  The  full  paper 
appeared  in  Nature  of  March  6  (p.  421). — Notes  on  the  Cre- 
taceous of  the  British  Columbian  regions  ;  the  Nanaimo  group, 
by  George  M.  Dawson. — Celestite  from  Mineral  County,  West 
Virginia,  by  George  H.  Williams.  A  large  number  of  celestite 
crystal-,  from  an  extensive  railroad  cutting  into  a  bluff  of  lower 
Helderl3erg  limestone,  has  been  investigated. — A  method  for 
the  determination  of  iodine  in  haloid  salts,  by  F.  A.  Gooch  and 
P.  E.  Browning. — On  the  mineral  locality  at  Branchville,  Con- 
necticut, fifth  paper,  by  George  J.  Brush  and  Edward  S.  Dana ; 
with  analyses  of  several  manganesian  phosphates,  by  Horace  L. 
Wells.  A  new  member  of  the  triphylite  group — a  sodium- 
manganese  phosphate,  which  has  been  called  natrophilite — has 
been  found,  and  the  rare  mineral  hureaulite  identified  in  the 
Branchville  minerals. — A  simple  interference  experiment,  by 
Albert  A.  Michelson.     Two  pieces  of  plane  glass,  silvered  on 


March  27,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


\o\ 


the  front  surfaces,  are  fixed  against  a  block  of  wood,  so  that  the 
angle  between  the  two  surfaces  is  slightly  less  than  90°.  This 
simple  apparatus  will  give  the  interference  phenomena  produced 
by  means  of  Fresnel's  mirror  or  bi-prism. — An  improved  wave 
apparatus,  by  John  T.  Stoddard.  This  is  a  method  of  demon- 
strating to  a  class  the  formation  of  the  compound  curves  repre- 
senting the  combination  of  two  simple  sound  waves. — On  a 
recent  rock-flexure,  by  Frank  Cramer. — On  the  origin  of  the 
rock-pressure  of  the  natural  gas  of  the  Trenton  limestone  of 
Ohio  and  Indiana,  by  Edward  Orton.  By  the  rock-pressure  of 
gas  is  meant  the  pressure  in  a  well  which  is  locked  in  so  that  no 
gas  can  escape  ;  and  the  author  concludes  that  the  rock-pressure 
of  the  gas  of  the  Trenton  limestone  is  due  to  the  pressure  of  a 
water  column  under  which  it  is  held  in  the  arches  of  the  rocks. 
This  explanation  seems  applicable  to  all  gas  fields. 

The  American  Meteorological  Journal  for  January  contains 
a  continuation  of  Faye's  theory  of  storms,  and  of  Ferrel's  con- 
vectional  theory  of  tornadoes,  both  of  which  have  been  already 
referred  to  ;  the  latter  paper  is  concluded  in  the  number 
for  February.  Of  the  other  articles  in  these  two  months  the 
principal  are  : — The  mathematical  elements  in  the  estimation 
of  the  Signal  Service  Reports,  by  W.  S.  Nichols.  He  points 
out  that  attempts  to  measure  the  accuracy  of  the  daily  weather 
forecasts  are  liable  to  give  rise  to  a  confusion  of  ideas,  and,  con- 
fining his  attention  to  rainfall,  he  lays  down  certain  rules  for 
testing  the  value  of  the  predictions  to  the  community  when 
judged  from  the  stand-points  of  quantity  and  quality,  as  well  as 
the  accuracy  of  the  information. — On  the  use  of  the  "sling" 
thermometer  in  the  prediction  of  frosts,  by  Prof.  H.  A.  Hazen. 
With  the  view  of  protecting  delicate  plants  from  destruction  by 
frost,  the  author  advocates  the  determination  of  the  dew-point 
in  the  evening,  and  if  it  is  found  to  be  as  low  as  25°,  and  the 
air-temperature  at  45°  or  lower,  with  a  clear  sky,  frost  may  be 
expected,  and  the  plants  should  be  protected  by  smoke  from 
burning  straw,  before  the  early  morning. — On  globular  lightning, 
by  Dr.  T.  C.  Mendenhall.  The  author  quotes  many  interesting 
instances  of  this  rare  phenomenon,  the  earliest  case  recorded 
being  at  Stralsund  in  June  1670 ;  and  he  describes  several 
instances  in  which  it  has  been  observed  at  sea.  Photographs  of 
the  phenomenon  are  much  wanted. — Diminution  of  temperature 
with  height,  by  Prof.  PI.  A.  Hazen.  He  has  recently  spent 
several  weeks  on  the  summit  of  Mount  Washington  (6300  feet 
above  sea-level),  and  finds  that  the  diurnal  range  of  tempera- 
ture, which  is  very  small,  is  not  due  to  the  heating  of  the  air 
by  the  sun,  but  only  to  the  convection  currents  caused  by  the 
warm  rocks.  The  object  of  the  paper  is  to  endeavour  to  throw 
light  on  the  true  explanation  of  storm  phenomena. — An  interest- 
ing summary,  by  A.  L.  Rotch,  of  the  Meteorological  Conference 
held  at  Paris  in  September  last,  in  connection  with  the  Interna- 
tional Exhibition.  This  is  the  first  general  account  which  has 
appeared  in  English. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  March  6. — "On  the  Development  of  the 
Ciliary  or  Motor  Oculi  Ganglion."  By  J.  C.  Ewart,  M.D. 
Communicated  by  Prof.  M.  Foster,  Sec.  R.  S. 

The  most  conflicting  views  have  for  some  time  been  held  as 
to  the  origin,  relations,  and  homology  of  the  ciliary  (motor 
oculi,  ophthalmic,  or  lenticular)  ganglion.  By  Remak, 
Schwalbe,  Marshall,  and  others,  the  ganglion  of  the  ophthal- 
micus profundus  has  been  described  as  the  ciliary  ganglion,  and 
this  ganglion  has  frequently  been  regarded  as  the  ganglion  of 
the  motor  oculi  nerve,  and  hence  as  homologous  with  the 
Gasserian  and  other  cranial  ganglia.  The  ciliary  ganglion 
having  been  shown  by  van  Wijhe  to  be  quite  distinct  from  the 
ganglion  of  the  ophthalmicus  profundus,  the  old  view  of  Arnold 
has  been  recently  revived,  and  already  van  Wijhe,  Hoffmann, 
Onodi,  Dohrn,  and  Beard  have  indicated  that  they  regard  the 
ciliary  as  a  sympathetic  ganglion.  Hoffmann  bases  his  belief 
on  certain  observations  on  the  development  of  the  ciliary 
ganglion  in  reptiles,  while  Onodi  has  adopted  this  view  chiefly 
because  in  the  higher  vertebrates  the  ciliary  ganglion  receives  a 
communicating  branch  from  the  sympathetic.  But  Beard, 
while  considering  the  ciliary  a  sympathetic  ganglion,  states 
that  in  sharks  he  has  seen  nothing  in  support  of  "  the  mode  of 


origin   for  the   ciliary  ganglion   described   by   Hoffmann,"   in 
reptiles. 

In  studying  the  ciliary  ganglion  in  Elasmobranchs  I  have 
been  specially  struck  with  its  tendency  to  vary  not  only  in  the 
same  genus  or  species,  but  in  the  same  individual.  Of  the 
numerous  specimens  examined,  I  have  only  once  found  the 
ganglion  entirely  absent  (in  an  adult  Raia  radiata),  while  I 
have  occasionally  (in  Acanthias)  found  two  well-developed 
ganglia  on  each  side.  Usually  in  sharks  I  found  the  ganglion 
lying  in  connection  with  the  inferior  branch  of  the  motor  oculi, 
while  in  skates  it  was  generally  in  contact  with  the  ophthalmicus 
profundus,  or  lying  midway  between  the  motor  oculi  and  the 
ganglion  of  the  profundus.  In  form  the  ganglion  varies 
extremely,  rounded  or  conical  in  some  cases,  in  others  it  was 
represented  by  two  or  three  groups  of  cells  lying  parallel  to  or 
in  contact  with  the  motor  oculi. 

In  some  cases  ganglionic  cells  had  wandered  from  the  gang- 
lion a  considerable  distance  along  the  ciliary  nerves  towards  the 
eyeball. 

Although  in  sharks  the  ciliary  ganglion  often  lay  in  close  con- 
tact with  the  motor  oculi  nerve,  no  ganglionic  cells  were  ever 
found  either  in  the  trunk  of  that  nerve  or  on  any  of  its  branches. 
In  skates  the  ganglion  was  usually  more  intimately  related  with 
the  ophthalmicus  profundus  than  the  oculo-motor.  In  all  cases 
the  ciliary  ganglion  had  at  least  two  roots,  one  from  the  motor 
oculi,  and  one  or  two  from  the  ophthalmicus  profundus.  In 
skates  the  profundus  root  always  proceeded  directly  from  the 
profundus  ganglion,  and  the  profundus  ganglion  was  frequently 
found  to  be  connected  by  a  communicating  branch  with  the 
Gasserian  ganglion. 

Both  in  sharks  and  skates,  in  addition  to  the  ciliary  nerves 
from  the  ciliary  ganglion  there  were  ciliary  nerves  proceeding 
from  the  ganglion  and  from  the  trunk  of  the  profundus,  and  in 
some  cases  large  ganglionic  cells  had  wandered  from  the  pro- 
fundus ganglion  along  the  ciliary  nerves  ;  occasionally  a  few 
large  cells  had  migrated  some  distance  along  the  main  trunk  of 
the  profundus.  In  all  cases  the  majority  of  the  cells  of  the 
ciliary  ganglion  were  only  about  half  the  size  of  the  cells  of  the 
profundus  ganglion. 

In  skate  embryos  under  two  inches  in  length  no  indication  of 
the  ciliary  ganglion  was  discovered,  and  in  shark  embryos  about 
ten  inches  in  length  the  ganglion  was  frequently  represented  by 
small  groups  of  cells  in  the  vicinity  of  the  inferior  branch  of  the 
oculo-motor  nerve.  In  sharks  the  first  steps  in  the  development 
of  the  ganglion  were  not  observed,  but  in  skates  it  was  possible 
to  make  out  all  the  stages.  The  first  indication  of  the  ganglion 
was  in  the  form  of  a  slender  outgrowth  from  the  inferior  border 
of  the  large  ophthalmicus  profundus  ganglion,  which  met  and 
blended  with  fibres  from  the  descending  branch  of  the  motor 
oculi.  The  outgrowth  from  the  profundus  ganglion  was  crowded 
with  cells  ;  the  fibres  from  the  motor  oculi,  like  its  root  and 
trunk,  were  absolutely  destitute  of  cells.  At  a  somewhat  later 
stage  the  cells  had  accumulated  at  the  junction  of  the  outgrowth 
from  the  profundus  ganglion  with  the  fibres  from  the  motor  oculi. 
It  looked  as  if  the  blending  of  the  two  sets  of  fibres  had  formed 
a  network  which  resisted  the  further  migration  of  the  ganglionic 
cells.  In  typical  cases,  at  a  still  later  stage,  all  the  ganglionic  cells 
had  left  the  outgrowth  from  the  profundus  ganglion  to  form  a 
rounded  mass  from  which  the  ciliary  nerves  took  their  origin.  In 
some  cases  some  of  the  fibres  which  connected  the  profundus  gang- 
lion with  the  Gasserian  seemed  to  reach  and  end  in  the  ciliary 
ganglion.  It  thus  appears  that  the  ciliary  ganglion  stands  in  the 
same  relation  to  one  of  the  cranial  nerves  (the  ophthalmicus 
profundus)  as  the  sympathetic  ganglia  of  the  trunk  stand  to  the 
spinal  nerves,  and  that  the  ciliary  ganglion  may  henceforth  be 
considered  a  sympathetic  ganglion.  Further  investigations  may 
show  that  the  ganglia  in  connection  with  the  branches  of  the 
trigeminus  (fifth)  nerve  may  also  be  considered  as  belonging  to 
the  sympathetic  system.  In  conclusion,  I  may  say  that  I  have 
found  the  vestiges  of  the  ophthalmicus  profundus  ganglion  in  a 
five-months  human  embryo  lying  under  cover  of  the  inner 
portion  of  the  Gasserian  ganglion,  and  satisfied  myself  that  the 
ophthalmicus  profundus  of  the  Elasmobranch  is  represented  in 
man,  as  suggested  by  several  writers,  by  the  so-called  nasal  branch 
of  the  ophthalmic  division  of  the  fifth.  To  as  far  as  possible 
clear  up  the  confusion  that  has  arisen  from  mistaking  the 
ophthalmicus  profundus  nerve  for  a  branch  of  the  oculo-motor 
or  of  the  trigeminus  nerve,  and  the  ganglion  of  the  ophthalmicus 
profundus  for  the  ciliary  ganglion,  it  might  be  well  in  future  to 
speak  of  the  profundus  as  the  oculo-nasal  nerve  and  its  ganglion 
as  the  oculo-nasal  ganglion. 


;o2 


NATURE 


{March  27,  1890 


Chemical  Society,  February  20. — Dr.W.  J.  Russell,  F.R. S., 
in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were  read  : — The  behaviour 
of  the  more  stable  oxides  at  high  temperatures,  by  Dr.  G.  H. 
Bailey  and  Mr.  W.  B.  Hopkins.  Previous  experimenters  have 
found  that  cuprous  oxide  is  obtained  when  cupric  oxide  is  heated 
to  redness.  The  authors  find  that  at  higher  temperatures  a  further 
quantity  of  oxygen  is  given  off,  and  an  oxide  having  the  com- 
position CU3O  is  formed.  This  is  insoluble  in  mineral  acids  and 
even  in  aqua-regia,  but  can  be  converted  into  a  soluble  form  on 
fusion  with  caustic  potash,  from  which  it  separates  on  treatment 
with  water.  The  oxides  of  lead  and  tin  seem  to  behave  similarly 
at  high  temperatures. — The  influence  of  different  oxides  on  the 
decomposition  of  potassium  chlorate,  by  Messrs.  G.  J.  Fowler 
and  J.  Grant.  The  authors  have  systematically  examined  the 
influence  of  the  chief  metallic  oxides  and  certain  unstable  salts 
on  the  decomposition  of  potassium  chlorate  by  heat,  and  the 
chief  results  obtained  may  be  summarized  as  follows  :^i)  Acid 
oxides,  such  as  VgOg,  WO3,  and  V.jOg,  cause  the  evolution  of 
oxygen  at  a  much  reduced  temperature  with  the  formation  of  a 
metavanadate,  tungstate,  or  uranate.  Chlorine  is  evolved  in 
large  quantity  in  these  cases,  but  the  whole  of  the  oxygen  of  the 
chlorate  is  not  liberated,  since  the  compound  of  KjO  with  the 
oxide  is  not  decomposed  by  heat  or  by  chlorine — 

4KCIO3  +  aVoOg  =  2K2O,  V2O3  +  2CI2  +  sOj. 

(2)  Alumina  acts  similarly  but  less  energetically.  (3)  Chromium 
sesquioxide  causes  the  evolution  of  oxygen  at  a  lower  tempera- 
ture, chlorine  also  being  liberated — 

8KCIO3  -f  2Cr203  =  4KCr04  +  4CI2  +  7O2. 

(4)  The  sesquioxides  of  iron,  cobalt  and  nickel,  cupric  oxide,  and 
manganese  dioxide  cause  the  evolution  of  oxygen  at  a  compara- 
tively low  temperature  accompanied  by  only  a  small  percentage 
of  chlorine  ;  the  oxide  is  left  but  little  altered  at  the  end  of  the 
experiment.  The  authors  find  that  their  results  are  in  harmony 
with  the  theory  of  the  action  of  manganese  dioxide  advanced  by 
McLeod(Chem.  Soc.  Trans.,  1889,  184).  (5)  The  monoxides  of 
barium,  calcium,  and  lead  cause  no  evolution  of  oxygen  when 
heated  with  potassium  chlorate,  but  the  latter  breaks  up  below 
its  normal  temperature  with  the  formation  of  potassium  chloride 
and  a  peroxide.  (6)  In  the  presence  of  such  oxides  as  silver 
oxide  and  the  peroxides  of  barium  and  lead,  potassium  chlorate 
acts  as  a  reducing  agent.  No  oxygen  is  liberated,  but  a  per- 
chlorate  is  form.ed.  (7)  Oxides  such  as  those  of  zinc  and  mag- 
nesium are  completely  inactive.  The  authors  find  that  the 
physical  condition  of  the  oxide  is  of  importance,  thus  copper 
oxide  prepared  in  the  dry  way  is  almost  inactive  ;  and  further, 
that  certain  substances,  as  powdered  glass,  sand,  and  kaolin,  assist 
the  decomposition,  although  apparently  they  undergo  no  chemical 
change. — The  interaction  of  hypochlorites  and  ammonium  salts  ; 
ammonium  hypochlorite,  by  Messrs.  C.  F.  Cross  and  E.  J.  Bevan. 
The  authors  bring  forward  evidence  of  the  formation  and  existence 
of  ammonium  hypochlorite  in  solution,  but  have  failed  to  isolate 
the  compound  when  produced  by  the  action  of  an  ammonium  salt 
on  a  dilute  solution  of  bleaching  powder,  or  by  the  electrolysis  of 
ammonium  chloride  solutions.  It  exhibits  curious  anomalies  in 
oxidizing  properties  in  comparison  with  other  hypochlorites.  It 
is  without  action  on  many  colouring  matters — for  example,  those 
of  the  vegetable  fibre  ;  it  does  not  decolorize  a  solution  of  indigo  in 
sulphuric  acid,  although  it  at  once  liberates  iodine  from  potassium 
iodide,  and  it  does  not  peroxidize  hydrated  lead  oxide.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  oxidizes  sulphites  and  arsenites,  and  its  effect  on 
aniline  salts  is  identical  with  that  of  ordinary  hypochlorites.  In 
the  discussion  which  followed  the  reading  of  the  paper,  Prof. 
Armstrong  suggested  that  probably  the  authors  were  dealing 
with  a  chlorinated  derivative  of  ammonia,  e.g.  NHgCl  ;  such 
compounds,  according  to  Gattermann's  experiments,  being  more 
stable  than  is  usually  supposed. — The  action  of  phosphoric  anhy- 
dride on  stearic  acid,  by  Dr.  F.  S.  Kipping.  One  of  the  products 
of  the  reaction  is  stearone,  (0171133)200,  and  the  yield  appears  to 
be  as  good  or  better  than  that  obtained  when  salts  of  stearic  acid  are 
submitted  to  dry  distillation. — Semithiocarbazides,  by  Prof  A.  E. 
Dixon. — Note  on  the  production  of  ozone  by  flames,  by  Mr.  J.  T. 
Cundall.  Ilosva  {Ber.  der  deut,  chem.  Gesellsch.,  Referate 
1889,  791)  states  that  when  all  the  products  of  combustion  of 
various  kinds  of  flames  are  collected,  they  do  not  exhibit  the 
smell  or  taste  of  ozone.  This  is  confirmed  by  the  results  of  some 
unpublished  experiments  made  by  the  author  in  1886,  but  re- 
cently he  has  found  that  the  air  aspirated  through  a  tube,  3  mm. 
in  bore,  whose  mouth  is  fixed  about  5  mm.  above  the  tube,  and 


5  mm.  away  from  the  flame  of  a  Bunsen  burner,  both  tastes  and 
smells  strongly  of  ozone.  Similar  results  were  obtained  both 
with  luminous  and  hydrogen  flames.  It  was  not  found  possible 
to  confirm  this  fact  by  any  other  test  for  ozone,  owing  to  the  im- 
possibility of  finding  any  sufficiently  sensitive  reaction  which  was 
not  common  to  dilute  nitrogen  oxides.  The  author  agrees  with 
Ilosva  that  the  smell  and  taste  of  ozone  are  the  only  trustworthy 
tests  for  it  when  it  is  present  in  small  quantities,  and  that 
Houzeau's  papers  (impregnated  with  red  litmus  and  potassium 
iodide),  which  at  first  sight  should  give  the  necessary  distinction, 
since  an  acid  gas  would  not  be  expected  to  give  an  alkaline 
product,  are  useless,  inasmuch  as  nitrogen  oxides  also  turn 
them  blue. 

Geological  Society,  February  26. — Mr.  J.  W,  Hulke, 
F. R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  com- 
munication was  read : — On  the  relation  of  the  Westleton 
Beds  or  "Pebbly  Sands"  of  Suffolk  to  those  of  Norfolk, 
and  on  their  extension  inland,  with  some  observations  on  the 
period  of  the  final  elevation  and  denudation  of  the  Weald 
and  of  the  Thames  Valley ;  Part  3,  on  a  Southern  Drift  in 
the  valley  of  the  Thames,  with  observations  on  the  final  ele- 
vation and  initial  sub-aerial  denudation  of  the  Weald,  and  on 
the  genesis  of  the  Thames,  by  Prof.  Joseph  Prestwich,  F.R.S. 
In  this  third  part  of  his  paper  the  author  gave  a  description  of 
the  characters  of  the  Southern  Drift,  showing  how  it  differs  from 
the  Westleton  Beds  in  the  nature  of  its  included  pebbles,  which 
consist  of  flints  from  the  Chalk  with  a  large  proportion  of  cherf 
and  ragstone  from  the  Lower  Greensand,  while  there  is  a  total 
absence  of  the  Triassic  pebbles  and  Jurassic  debris  characterizing 
the  Northern  Drift.  He  traced  the  drift  through  Kent,  Surrey, 
Berkshire,  and  Hampshire,  and  described  its  mode  of  occur- 
rence. Another  pre-glacial  gravel  was  then  discussed  under  the 
title  of  the  Brentwood  group,  and  its  age  was  admitted  to  be 
doubtful.  The  author  then  entered  into  an  inquiry  as  to  the 
early  physiographical  conditions  of  the  Wealden  area,  and  gave 
reasons  for  supposing  that  a  hill-range  of  some  im.portance  was 
formed  in  the  Pliocene  period  after  the  deposition  of  the  Diestian 
beds.  From  the  denudation  of  this  ridge,  he  supposes  that  the 
material  was  furnished  for  the  formation  of  the  Southern  Drift, 
which  may  have  been  deposited  partly  as  detrital  fans  at  the 
northern  base  of  the  range.  The  relation  of  the  Southern  Drift 
to  the  Westleton  Shingle  and  other  pre-glacial  gravels  was  con- 
sidered, and  the  Westleton  Beds  were  referred  to  a  period  sub- 
sequent to  that  of  the  formation  of  the  Southern  Drift.  The 
influence  of  the  meeting  of  the  earlier  Wealden  axis  with  that  of 
the  folding  which  produced  the  escarpments  of  central  England 
was  discussed,  and  it  was  suggested  that  the  result  would  be  the 
genesis  of  the  Thames  valley  and  river.  The  following  summary 
gives  the  results  of  the  author's  inquiry  as  developed  in  the  other 
parts  of  the  paper.  He  holds  : — (i)  That  the  Westleton  Shingle 
ranges  from  Suffolk  to  Oxfordshire  and  Berkshire,  rising  gra- 
dually from  sea-level  to  600  feet.  (2)  That  the  lower  Tertiary 
strata  were  co-extensive  with  this  shingle.  (3)  That  the  up- 
raising of  the  Westleton  sea-floor,  with  its  shingle,  preceded  the 
advance  of  the  Glacial  deposits,  and  that  the  latter  become 
discordant  to  the  former  when  traced  westward,  occupying 
valleys  formed  after  the  rise  of  the  Westleton  Beds.  (4) 
That  the  Tertiary  strata  and  Westleton  Beds  on  the  north 
border  of  the  Chalk  basin  were  continuous  until  the  insetting  of 
the  Glacial  period,  when  they  were  broken  through  by  denuding 
agencies.  (5)  That  none  of  the  present  valleys  on  the  north  of 
the  Thames  Tertiary  basin  date  back  beyond  the  Pre-glacial 
period.  (6)  That  the  same  date  may  be  assigned  to  the  Chalk 
and  probably  to  the  Oolite  escarpments.  (7)  That  in  the  Thames 
basin,  besides  the  Northern  Drift,  there  is  a  Southern  Drift  de- 
rived from  the  Lower  Greensand  of  the  Wealden  area,  and  from 
the  Chalk  and  Tertiary  strata  formerly  extending  partly  over  it. 
(8)  That  during  the  Diestian  period  the  Weald  was  probably 
partly  or  wholly  submerged,  and  that  between  this  and  the  in- 
setting of  the  Glacial  period,  the  Wealden  area  and  the  Boulou- 
nais  underwent  upheaval  resulting  in  the  formation  of  an  anti- 
clinal range  from  2000  to  3000  feet  high,  (9)  That  from  the 
slopes  of  this  range  the  materials  of  the  Southern  Drift  were 
derived,  and  spread  over  what  is  now  the  south  side  of  the 
Thames  basin.  (10)  That  this  denudation  commenced  at  the 
time  of  the  Red  Crag,  and  went  on  uninterruptedly  through 
successive  geological  stages.  (11)  That  consequently,  though 
the  Southern  Drift  preceded  the  Westleton  Shingle,  the  two 
must  at  one  time  have  proceeded  synchronously.  (12)  That  the 
valley-system  of  the  Wealden  area  dates  from  Pliocene  times — 


March  27,  1890] 


NATURE 


503 


the  initial  direction  of  the  transverse  valleys  from  pre-Glacial 
times — and  of  the  longitudinal  valleys  from  Glacial  times.  (13) 
That  the  Thames  basin  results  from  the  elevation  of  the  Weald 
and  the  flexures  of  the  Chalk  and  Oolites  of  the  Midland  coun- 
ties, and  dates  from  a  period  subsequent  to  the  Westleton  Beds. 
(14)  That  the  genesis  of  the  Lower  Thames  similarly  dates  from 
early  Pleistocene  times,  whilst  its  connection  with  its  upper 
tributaries  and  the  Isis,  which  possibly  flowed  previously  north- 
eastward, took  place  at  a  rather  later  period.  After  the  reading 
of  the  paper  there  was  a  discussion,  in  which  the  Chairman,  Mr. 
Whitaker,  Dr.  Irving,  Mr.  Topley,  Dr.  Evans,  and  the  author, 
took  part.  Dr.  Evans  congratulated  the  Society  and  Prof. 
Prestwich  on  his  having  been  able  to  sum  up  the  results  of  the 
observations  of  so  many  years  in  the  series  of  papers  which  he 
had  lately  read. 

Entomological  Society,  March  5. — Captain  Henry  J. 
Elwes,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  C.  G.  Barrett 
exhibited  a  number  of  specimens  of  Dianthecia  carpophaga, 
Bork.,  bred  by  Mr.  W.  F.  H.  Blandford  from  larvae  collected 
near  Tenby  on  flowers  of  Silene  maritima.  He  remarked  that 
the  series  included  a  number  of  forms  intermediate  between  D. 
carpophaga  and  D.  capsophila,  and  establish  the  fact  that  the 
latter  is  only  a  local  variety  of  the  former.  Mr.  W.  H.  B. 
Fletcher,  Mr.  Blandford,  and  Mr.  McLachlan  took  part  in  a 
discussion  as  to  the  identity  of  the  supposed  species. — Mr. 
Barrett  further  exhibited  a  specimen  of  Dianthecia  hiteago,  var. 
Barrettii,  Db.,  also  bred  by  Mr.  Blandford  from  a  larva  found 
at  Tenby,  and  he  remarked  that  the  species  had  not  previously 
been  taken  in  England  ;  also  a  long  series  of  forms  intermediate 
between  Catoptria  scopoliana,  Hw.,  and  its  small  variety 
parvitlana,  Wilk.,  collected  by  Mr.  E.  Bankes,  Mr.  Fletcher 
and  Mr.  Vine,  in  Sussex,  the  Isle  of  Wight,  and  Pembroke- 
shire ;  also  a  specimen  of  Botys  mtitualis,  Zell., — a  species 
widely  distributed  in  Asia  and  Africa, — taken  by  Mr.  C.  S. 
Gregson  near  Bolton,  Lancashire. — Mr.  H.  Goss  exhibited 
several  abnormal  specimens  of  Arctia  caja,  bred  last  December. 
The  object  of  the  exhibition  was  to  show  the  effect  produced  by 
forcing  the  larvae,  and  subjecting  them  to  unusual  conditions. 
It  was  stated  that  the  peculiarity  of  the  colour  of  the  hind 
wings  of  the  female  parent  had  not  been  transmitted  to  any  of 
the  offspring. — Mr.  Blandford  referred  to  two  specimens  of  a 
species  of  Cardiophorus,  from  Tenby,  which  he  had  ex- 
hibited at  the  August  meeting  of  the  Society  as  Cardiophorus 
cinerais,  and  stated  that  subsequent  investigation  had  led  him  to 
hand  them  to  Mr.  Champion  for  determination.  Mr.  Champion 
was  of  opinion  that  they  did  not  belong  to  the  same  species  ; 
that  one  of  them  was  C.  asellus,  Er.,  and  the  other,  probably,  C. 
eqtiiscti,  Hbst.,  a  species  new  to  this  country. — Mr.  C.  J.  Gahan 
read  a  paper  entitled  "New  Longicornia  from  Africa  and 
Madagascar. " — Captain  Elwes  read  a  paper  entitled  "  On  a  new 
species  of  Thymara  and  other  species  allied  to  Himantopteriis 
fuscinervis,  Wesmael." — Dr.  Sharp  read  a  paper  entitled  "  On 
some  Water  Beetles  from  Ceylon." — Mr.  J.  J.  Walker  communi- 
cated a  paper  entitled  "  Notes  on  Lepidoptera  from  the  Region 
of  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar."  Mr.  F.  Merrifield,  Mr.  B.  G. 
Nevinson,  Captain  Elwes,  and  Mr.  G.  Lewis  took  part  in  the 
discussion  which  ensued. — It  was  announced  that  papers  had 
also  been  received  from  Mr.  E.  Meyrick,  Prof,  Westwood,  and 
Mynheer  P.  C.  T.  Snellen. 

Royal  Meteorological  Society,  March  19.— Mr.  H.  F.  Blan- 
ford,  F.R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers 
were  read  : — A  brief  notice  respecting  photography  in  relation 
to  meteorological  work,  by  Mr.  G.  M.  Whipple.  The  first  person 
to  use  photography  for  obtaining  meteorological  records  was  Mr. 
T.  B.  Jordan,  of  Falmouth,  in  1838.  Some  years  later,  Sir  F. 
Ronalds  and  Mr.  C.  Brooke  devised  more  complete  and 
elaborate  apparatus  ;  the  arrangement  of  the  former  being  now 
in  use  at  the  Observatories  of  the  Meteorological  Office,  and  that 
of  the  latter  at  the  Royal  Observatory,  Greenwich.  Reference 
was  also  made  to  Mr.  J.  B.  Jordan's  form  of  sunshine  recorder, 
and  to  Captain  Abney's  photo-nephograph.  The  various  photo- 
graphic processes  which  have  been  employed  in  connection  with 
these  instruments  were  fully  described. — Application  of  photo- 
graphy to  meteorological  phenomena,  by  Mr.  W.  Marriott.  The 
author  showed  how  photography  could  be  most  usefully  em- 
ployed for  the  advancement  of  meteorological  knowledge.  Much 
valuable  information  had  been  recently  obtained  from  photographs 
of  lightning  and  clouds.  An  interesting  collection  of  such 
photographs  was  shown  on  the  screen,    together  with   others 


illustrating  floods,  whirlwinds,  tornadoes,  hailstorms,  frost,  snow, 
&c, — After  the  reading  of  these  papers,  the  meeting  was  ad- 
journed to  allow  the  Fellows  to  inspect  the  Exhibition  of 
Instruments,  &c.,  an  account  of  which  we  print  elsewhere. 

Mathematical  Society,  March  13.— J.  J.  Walker,  F.R.S. 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
made: — Perfect  numbers,  by  Major  P.  A.  MacMahon,  R. A. — 
The  relation  of  distortio  n  in  prismatic  images  to  dispersion,  by 
Dr.  J.  Larmor. — On  the  satellite  of  a  line  relatively  to  a  cubic, 
by  the  President  (Prof.  Greenhill,  F.R.S.,  V.P,,  in  the  chair).— 
An  approximate  relation  connecting  successive  terms  of  the 
expansion  for  tan  x,  by  G.  Heppel. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  March  17. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — M.  Maurice  Levy  communicated  a  paper  on  the  applica- 
tion of  electro-dynamical  laws  to  planetary  motions.  In  a  com  - 
munication  of  February  17,  M.  Tisserand  applied  Gauss's  for- 
mula of  electro-dynamical  attraction  to  the  movement  of  celestial 
bodies  without  at  all  asserting  it  to  be  true.  M.  Levy  concludes 
that  the  formula  is  contrary  to  the  doctrine  of  energy  and  to  the 
facts,  and  shows  that  Riemann  gave  a  law  which,  like  that  of 
Weber,  is  in  accord  with  both. — On  the  photographic  halo,  and 
a  method  of  making  it  disappear,  by  M.  A.  Cornu.  The  author 
has  investigated  the  appearance  and  cause  of  the  halos  which  sur- 
round intense  points  of  light  on  a  photographic  plate,  and  the 
conditions  necessary  to  remove  them. — Under  agricultural 
chemistry,  M.  Berthelot  discusses  the  facts  relating  to  observa- 
tions on  the  reactions  between  the  soil  and  atmospheric  ammonia. 
— M.  P.  Schutzenberger,  in  researches  on  some  phenomena  pro- 
duced during  the  condensation  of  gases  containing  carbon  under 
the  influence  of  the  silent  discharge,  has  investigated  the  com- 
position of  the  brown  solid  formed  together  with  carbonic  acid 
from  the  condensation  of  carbonic  oxide.  The  experi- 
mental results  give  a  formula  intermediate  between  CjjHjOio 
and  C12H2O11. — Method  of  determining  the  pole  of  an  ellipsoid  of 
three  unequal  axes  by  the  observation  of  its  catoptric  images,  by 
M.  D.  E.  Sulzer. — On  a  new  system  of  electrical  accumulators 
and  some  accessory  apparatus,  note  by  M.  Charles  Pollak. — On 
the  double  thiosulphates  of  lead  and  sodium,  by  M.  J.  Fogh. 
— The  action  of  sulphuric  acid  on  aluminium,  by  M.  A.  Ditte. 
The  author  finds  aluminium  to  behave  much  like  amalga- 
mated zinc.  With  a  smooth  plate  of  this  metal  immersed 
in  dilute  cold  sulphuric  acid  for  some  time  but  little  hydro- 
gen is  liberated  owing  to  the  formation  of  a  protecting 
film  of  the  free  gas,  and  that  any  circumstances  tending  to 
facilitate  the  removal  of  this  film  increase  the  rapidity  of  action 
of  the  acid ;  for  instance,  a  trace  of  a  chloride  of  any  metal 
reduced  by  aluminium  causes  the  plate  to  be  comparatively 
rapidly  attacked  owing  to  the  roughening  of  the  surface  due  to 
the  deposition  of  a  metallic  film  ;  again  a  similar  effect  is 
obtained  when  the  reaction  is  caused  to  occur  in  a  vacuum, 
because  of  the  freer  disengagement  of  hydrogen.  The  product  of 
the  reaction  is  in  the  first  place  neutral  sulphate  of  aluminium, 
but  the  reaction  continues  further,  a  basic  sulphate  being  pro- 
duced with  further  evolution  of  hydrogen.  The  conclusion 
is  drawn  that  aluminium  acts  normally,  in  accordance  with  the 
heat  of  formation  of  its  salts,  when  in  contact  with  sulphuric 
acid  or  metallic  sulphates,  and  that  the  slowness  of  the  reaction 
is  due  to  the  mechanical  interference  of  the  liberated  hydro- 
gen.— On  a  new  crystalline  form  of  ammonium  chloride,  by 
MM.  G.  Geisenheimer  and  F.  Leteur.  M.  Le  Bel  has  shown 
the  possibility  of  a  second  form  of  ammonium  chloride  ( Comptes 
rendus,  January  20,  1890)  ;  the  authors  give  data  leading 
them  to  conclude  that  they  have  probably  obtained  the  second 
form,  rendered  stable  by  the  presence  of  a  slight  impurity. — 
Note  by  M.  J.  Meunier,  on  the  mono-  and  di-benz-acelals 
of  sorbite. — On  the  o  dextro-  and  laevo-rotatory  borneol  cam* 
phorates,  by  M.  A.  Haller.  The  author  draws  the  conclu- 
sions— (i)  that  the  total  etherification  of  camphoric  acid  is  only 
effected  at  a  relatively  high  temperature  and  with  the  anhydride  ; 
(2)  that  isomeric  bodies  are  certainly  produced  under  these  con- 
ditions ;  (3)  that  camphoric  acid,  in  the  acid  ethers  studied 
in  this  note,  is  analogous  to  phenol  in  its  reactions. — On 
oxytetric  acid,  by  M.  Ch.  Cloez. — On  the  value  of  the  heat  of 
hydration  of  malic  acid,  by  M.  Iw.  Ossipoff. — Note  by  M.  J.  A, 
MuUer,  on  the  dissociation  of  the  hydrochlorides  of  amines  and 
dissolved  salts  of  fatty  acids.  Using  phenolphthalein  as  in- 
dicator, the  author  has  been  enabled  to  trace  the  dissociation  of 


504 


NA  TURE 


^March  27,  1890 


these  bodies  on  diluting  or  heating  their  solutions. — A  botanical 
note,  by  M.  Leon  Guignard,  on  the  formation  and  differentia- 
tion of  the  sexual  elements  which  take  part  in  fertilization. — 
Another  botanical  paper,  by  M.  A.  Prunet,  on  the  comparative 
structure  of  the  nodes  and  internodes  in  the  trunk  of  the  Di- 
cotyledones. — Under  geology,  M.  de  Folin  has  a  paper  on  the 
formation  of  nummulitic  rocks.  He  concludes  that  these  rocks 
are  formed  by  the  work  of  an  organism  of  the  same  order  as  the 
Rhisopodes. — Also  under  geology,  M.  Stanislas  Meunier  con- 
tributes some  chemical  researches  on  the  fossil  shells  of  Fora- 
minifera,  Mollusks,  and  Crustacea.  He  has  investigated  the 
composition  of  the  flocculent  organic  residue  formed  when  ihese 
fossil  shells  are  dissolved  in  acid.  —  On  Pyrenean  kersanton,  its 
age  and  affinities  with  ophite,  by  M.  J.  Caralp. 

Berlin. 

Physiological,  Society,  February  28. — Dr.  Rosenstein  ex- 
hibited a  patient  with  di.stension  of  the  lymphatics  in  the  leg,  and 
fistulous  openings  which  discharged  an  albuminous  fluid  some- 
times amounting  to  11 00  c.c.  in  a  day.  Dr.  J.  Munk  has  made 
observations  on  this  fluid.  It  is  sometimes  transparent,  but  is 
always  milky  after  a  meal  containing  fat.  It  thus  resembles  chyle 
rather  than  lymph,  and  probably  really  is  chyle.  At  least  two- 
thirds  of  the  fat  given  at  any  one  meal  reappeared  in  the  fluid  from 
the  fistula.  On  giving  olive  oil,  fat  appeared  in  the  fluid  in  two 
hours,  increased  steadily  till  its  maximum  after  five  hours,  then 
diminished,  and  in  ten  or  twelve  hours  disappeared.  With  a 
harder  fat,  e.g.  mutton  fat,  the  phenomena  were  the  same,  but 
were  longer  in  appearing.  Erucic  acid  given  to  the  patient  ap- 
peared as  a  neutral  fat,  and  not  as  free  acid,  synthesis  having 
been  effected  in  the  body.  No  appreciable  absorption  of  fat 
occurs  from  the  rectum.  Large  doses  of  starch  or  sugar  scarcely 
increased  the  percentage  of  sugar,  nor  did  large  meals  of  albumen 
increase  that  of  proteids  in  the  fluid.  Thus  the  only  food-stuff 
which  leaves  the  intestine  by  the  lacteals  is  fat. 

Meteorological  Society,  March  4. — Dr.  Vettin,  President, 
in  the  chair. — Dr.  Wagner  spoke  on  fire-damp  explosions  in 
mines  in  their  relationship  to  cosmic  and  meteorological  con- 
ditions. He  discussed  the  collection  of  the  gas,  the  conditions 
necessary  for  its  explosion,  the  part  played  by  coal-dust,  and  the 
several  chance  circumstances  which  may  lead  to  the  non-dis- 
covery of  the  gas  in  the  workings.  He  next  discussed  the 
various  means  available  for  avoiding  and  removing  accumulations 
of  fire-damp,  and  gave  an  account  of  researches  on  the  relation- 
ship of  its  explosion  to  varying  barometric  pressures.  His  own 
work  had  consisted  in  working  up  the  statistics  of  the  Dortmund 
mining  district  in  which  explosions  are  more  frequent  than  in 
any  other  state  of  Prussia.  The  reports  cover  a  period  of  21 
years  and  give  a  record  of  7000  explosions.  He  first  compared 
the  numerical  relationship  of  the  explosions  with  the  phases  of 
the  moon,  and  concluded  that  there  is  no  connection  between  the 
two.  He  then  made  a  similar  comparison  of  their  frequency 
with  the  rotational  period  of  the  sun,  taking  the  latter  as  25  "5 
days  :  the  result  was  again  negative.  He  finally  compared  their 
frequency  with  periods  of  27^9  days,  this  being,  according  to 
Buys-Ballot,  the  cycle  of  temperature  variations  resulting  from 
the  sun's  rotation.  In  this  case  the  curves  he  obtained  were 
quite  uniform  and  regular,  showing  a  maximum  on  the  third  day 
and  a  second  maximum  on  the  twentieth.  He  refrained  from 
drawing  any  definite  conclusions  from  this  last  observation  in 
view  of  the  numberless  chance  circumstances  which  may  lead  to 
explosions. 

Physical  Society,  March  7. — Prof.  Kundt,  President,  in 
the  chair. — Dr.  Rubens  spoke  on  the  employment  of  the 
bolometer  for  observing  the  electrical  radiations  of  Hertz  as 
carried  out  by  himself  and  Dr.  Ritter.  Up  to  the  present  it 
had  not  been  found  possible  to  measure  the  intensity  of  the 
radiation  owing  to  the  extraordinarily  minute  amplitude  of  the 
oscillations ;  but  the  speaker  had  been  able  to  carry  out  the 
determination  by  means  of  a  bolometer  whose  construction 
and  working  he  fully  described.  It  consists  essentially  of  an 
accurately  balanced  primary  Wheatstone  bridge,  two  of  whose 
arms  are  again  converted  into  secondary  Wheatstone  bridges.  If 
a  current  passes  through  one  of  them  its  resistance  is  altered  by 
the  rise  of  temperature,  and  the  galvanometer  gives  a  proportion- 
ate throw.  A  similar  effect  is  produced  by  a  wave  of  electrical 
radiation,  and  hence  its  amplitude  can  be  measured  by  this 
bolometer  when  once   it  has  been   calibrated.     When   experi- 


menting with  the  polarizing  wire-grating  it  was  found  that  there 
is  a  constant  relationship  between  the  intensity  of  the  rays  which 
pass  the  grating  and  the  angle  of  inclination  of  the  wires  to  the 
plane  of  oscillation  of  the  rays.  It  was  further  observed  that 
the  energy  which  does  not  pass  the  grating  is  reflected,  and  to 
the  extent  of  98  per  cent.,  when  the  wires  are  at  right-angles  to 
the  plane  of  oscillation.  Experiments  in  illustration  of  the 
above  were  shown  at  the  end  of  the  communication. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Report  of  the  Meteorological  Service  of  Canada,  1886:  C.  Carpmael 
(Ottawa). — The  Mammalia  of  the  Uinta  Formation  :  W.  B.  Scott  and  H.  F. 
Osborn  (Philadelphia). — A  Monograph  of  Oriental  Cicadidae,  Part  2  :  W.  L. 
Distant  (West,  Newman). — II  Monismo:  E.  dal  Pozzo  di  Monibello  (Cas- 
tello,  Lapi). — British  Fossils  and  whereto  seek  them;  J.  W.  Williams 
(Sonnenschein). — Poems,  complete  edition  :  W.  Leighton  (Stock). — Classifica- 
tion of  Birds:  H.  Seebohm  (Porter).  —  Personal  and  Social  Evolution 
CUnwin). — Proceedings  of  the  Physical  Society  of  London,  Vol.  x.  Part  3 
(Taylor  and  Francis). — The  Asclepiad,  vol.  vii.  No.  25  (Longmans). — Tra- 
vaux  de  la  Societe  des  Naturalistes  de  St.  Petersbourg,  Section  de  Zoologie 
et  de  Physiologic,  Tome  xx.  Livr.  2. — Supplement  auxTravaux  dela  Societe 
des  Naturalistes  de  St.  Petersbourg. — An  International  Idiom;  A  Manual 
of  the  Oregon  Trade  Language  :  H.  Hale  (Whittaker). — Second  Melbourne 
General  Catalogue  of  1211  Stars  for  the  Epoch  1880  (Melbourne,  Brain). — 
Essays  of  an  Americanist:  Dr.  D.  G.  Brinton  (Philadelphia.  Porter  and 
Coates). — Days  and  Hours  in  a  Garden,  7th  edition  :  E.  and  B.  (Stock). — 
Weather  and  Tidal  Forecasts.  i8go  :  D.  De  war  (Glasgow,  Brown). — Royal 
University  of  Ireland  Calendar  for  1890  (Dublin,  Thom). — Report  of  the 
Rugby  School  Natural  History  Society,  1S89  (Rugby,  Lawrence). — The 
Signing  of  the  Treaty  of  Waitangi  :  W.  Colenso  (Wellington,  Didsbury). — 
Mekrolog  auf  Theodor  Kirsch  (Berlin,  Friedlander). — Journal  of  the  Che- 
mical Society,  March  (Gurney  and  Jackson). — Journal  of  Physiology,  vol. 
xi.,  No.  3  (Cambridge). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

A  South  London  Polytechnic 481 

A  Geological  Map   of  the  Alpine  Chain.     By   Prof. 

T.  G.  Bonney,  F.R.S 483 

Old  Age.     By  E.  H.  S 484 

The  Elements  of  Astronomy.     By  A.  F 485 

Our  Book  Shelf: — 

Lagrange  :     "  Physiology     of     Bodily     Exercise." — 

E.  H.  S 485 

Traill :  "  Boilers— Marine  and  Land."— N.  J.  L.  .    .    486 
Crookshank  :   "The   History  and  Pathology  of  Vac- 
cination."— Dr.  Robert  Cory 486 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

The  Transmission  of  Acquired  Characters  and  Pan- 
mixia.—Prof.  E.  Ray  Lankester,  F.R.S.    .    .    .    486 
Exact  Thermometry.  {With  Diagram.)— Tit.  Sydney 

Young 488 

Foreign     Substances     attached    to     Crabs. — Walter 

Garstang •  .    .    .    490 

Sea-bird  Shooting.— G.  W.Lamplugh 490 

Locusts.— E.  C.  Cotes 491 

The  Royal  Meteorological  Society's  Exhibition.  By 

William  Marriott 49^ 

The   Origin  and  Composition  of  the   Flora    of  the 
Keeling     Islands.      By     W.     Botting     Hemsley, 

F.R.S 492 

Notes 493 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 496 

Charles  Marie  Valentin  Montigny 497 

An  Observatory  at  Madagascar 497 

The  Administration  of  Foreign  Fisheries.    By  Prof. 

W.  C.  Mcintosh,  F.R.S 497 

Scientific  Serials 5°° 

Societies  and  Academies 5°' 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 504 


NA TURK 


505 


THURSDAY,  APRIL  3,  1890. 


TECHNICAL  EDUCATION  IN  THE  CODE. 

MR.  KEKEWICH  is  to  be  congratulated  on  the  recep- 
tion which  his  Code  has  hitherto  met  with.  From 
all  sides  it  has  been  received  with  a  unanimous  chorus  of 
congratulation,  tempered  only  by  the  difficulty  which  has 
been  experienced  in  distinguishing  clearly  what  is  new 
from  what  is  old.  Many  parts  of  the  Code  have  in  fact 
been  entirely  re-cast  and  re-arranged,  and  in  the  absence 
of  the  schedule  of  alterations  which  it  is  customary  to 
issue  as  an  appendage  to  the  Code,  the  compilers  of 
abstracts  for  the  daily  papers  have  this  year  had  a 
terrible  time  of  it.  They  have  been  unable  to  criticise 
the  alterations  without  reading  the  document  through, 
and  even  this  unwonted  exercise  has  not  prevented  them 
in  more  than  one  case  from  reproducing  as  [new,  old 
and  familiar  articles,  the  order  of  which  has  been 
changed. 

But  these  trials,  and  the  further  difficulty  of  picturing 
at  once  the  effect  on  various  classes  of  schools  of  the 
action  and  reaction  of  numberless  modifications,  addi- 
tions, and  omissions  both  small  and  great,  fortunately 
afifect  us  but  little.  A  great  part — some  would  say  the 
most  important  part — of  the  alterations,  deal  with  matters 
of  finance,  management,  and  control,  rather  than 
directly  with  the  education  given  in  the  schools.  And  it 
is  with  this  that  we  are  chiefly  concerned  in  the  present 
article. 

So  far  as  regards  the  changes  in  curriculum  there  is  no 
ambiguity.  We  may  fairly  congratulate  the  Government 
on  a  solid  and  unequivocal  advance  in  the  right  direc- 
tion. In  fact,  the  framers  of  the  Code  have  gone  a  very 
long  way  (without  the  aid  of  Sir  Henry  Roscoe's  new 
Bill)  to  enable  elementary  school  managers  to  provide 
technical  education,  or  more  strictly  to  provide  the 
general  educational  basis  on  which  all  specialised 
technical   instruction  must  be  founded. 

A  few  weeks  ago,  when  dealing  with  the  changes  in  the 
new  Scotch  Code,  we  ventured  on  two  forecasts  regarding 
the  coming  changes  in  English  elementary  schools.  The 
first  was  that  the  English  Education  Office  would  be 
unable  to  maintain  its  previous  non  posstimus  attitude  on 
the  subject  of  manual  instruction  after  the  Scotch  Depart- 
ment had  virtually  assented  to  Sir  Horace  Davey's  now 
famous  opinion  by  including  manual  training  among  the 
grant-earning  subjects  of  the  Code.  The  second  was  that 
the  policy  of  the  Department  would  be  found  to  lean  (as 
in  Scotland)  towards  the  encouragement  and  extension  of 
"class  subjects,"  taught  throughout  the  whole  school, 
even  at  the  expense  of  "  specific  subjects "  which  only 
affect  a  small  minority  of  picked  scholars. 

Both  these  forecasts,  as  we  shall  see,  have  been  verified, 
but  this  does  not  by  any  means  exhaust  the  new  pro- 
visions by  which  the  range  of  study,  especially  of  technical 
and  scientific  instruction,  is  extended.  We  will  consider 
some  of  the  changes  in  order. 

To  take  first  the  most  striking  change,  the  clause  by 
which  manual  instruction  for  the  first  time  is  recognized 
as  a  part  of  elementary  education  will  come  to  many  as  a 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1066. 


surprise.  It  indicates  a  change  of  front  on  the  part  of 
the  Department  on  a  matter  of  interprettition  of  the 
Education  Acts.  Hitherto  the  authorities  at  Whitehall  have 
declared  that  the  recognition  of  manual  training  without  a 
new  Act  of  Parliament  was  impossible.  They  asserted  that 
their  hands  were  tied  by  statute.  That  was  the  position  a 
few  months  ago.  And  now  no  statute  has  been  altered,  and 
manual  instruction  is  in  the  Code.  It  may  be  taught 
either  in  or  off  the  school  premises,  and  either  by  the 
ordinary  teachers  of  the  school  or  by  special  instructors, 
provided  "  special  and  appropriate  provision  approved 
by  the  inspector  is  made  for  such  instruction  and  the 
times  for  giving  it  are  entered  on  the  approved  time- 
table." In  a  later  clause  manual  instruction  is  specially 
recognised  as  an  object  to  which  part  of  the  school  funds 
may  be  devoted. 

Thus  the  aim  of  the  Bill  just  drafted  by  the  Technical 
Association  is  virtually  attained  without  it.  One  omis- 
sion, however,  may  attract  notice.  No  special  grants  are 
provided  in  aid  of  manual  training.  In  Scotland,  it  be- 
comes a  "class  subject,"  and  is  paid  for  accordingly,  but 
no  grant  is  attached  to  it  in  the  English  Code.  We  pre- 
sume, however,  that  there  is  nothing  to  prevent  it  being 
paid  for  as  a  specific  subject  under  the  clauses  which 
provide  for  grants  in  aid  of  any  subject  "  if  sanctioned  by 
the  Department,"  provided  that  "  a  graduated  scheme 
for  teaching  it  be  submitted  to,  and  approved  by  the 
inspector."  ^ 

There  is,  however,  yet  another  way  in  which  grants  for 
manual  instruction  may  be  made,  and,  reading  between 
the  lines  of  the  Code,  it  looks  not  unlikely  that  the  Go- 
vernment mean  to  adopt  it.  Drawing  is  already  paid  for 
by  the  Science  and  Art  Department,  and  in  Art.  85  {b)  of 
the  new  Code  we  find  drawing  and  manual  training 
coupled  together.  Boys  in  a  school  for  older  scholars 
must  be  taught  drawing  "  with  or  without  other  manual 
training."  Unless,  then,  the  present  confusion  of  over- 
lapping authorities  is  to  be  made  worse  confounded,  it  is 
reasonable  to  expect  that  both  these  subjects  will  be 
under  the  same  Department,  and  we  shall  look  with  in- 
terest for  the  inclusion  of  manual  instruction  in  the  next 
Science  and  Art  Directory.  There  is  this  further  induce- 
ment to  the  Government  to  take  this  course,  that  pay- 
ments made  by  the  Science  and  Art  Department  fall 
outside  the  i^s.  6d.  limit.  In  any  case,  two  main  con- 
ditions should  be  fulfilled  in  making  grants  for  manual 
instruction  :  first,  that  they  should  not  be  given  on  re- 
sults of  examination  ;  secondly,  that  they  should  be 
dependent  on  a  really  effective  inspection.  The  first 
condition  is  necessary  because  no  satisfactory  scheme 
of  individual  examination  in  such  a  subject  can  be  de- 
vised so  as  to  be  a  real  test  of  efficiency ;  the  second  is 
necessary  to  guard  the  public  purse  from  being  depleted 
to  enable  small  children  to  construct  bad  soap-boxes 
when  they  ought  to  be  in  school. 

But  if  the  official  recognition  of  manual  instruction 
(which  we  assume  includes,  as  in  the  Technical  Instruc- 
,  tion  Act,  "modelling  in  wood,  clay,  and  other  material "), 
is  the  most  striking  victory  of  the  advocates  of  technical 
instruction,  there  are  other  changes  of  greater  importance 
from  an  educational  point  of  view. 
The  Department  has  at  last  screwed  itself  up  to  the 

'  .\rts.  16  and  roi  {/). 


5o6 


NATURE 


{April  3,  1890 


point  of  refusing  to  acknowledge  any  boys'  school  as 
efficient  which  does  not  include  drawing  in  its  curriculum. 
This  is  an  enormous  advance — how  great  will  be 
seen  if  we  remember  that  less  than  a  million  out  of 
the  five  million  scholars  of  our  elementary  schools  are 
receiving  instruction  in  drawin,'  at  the  present  time.  It  is 
a  great  advance,  also,  on  the  halting  proposal  of  last  year, 
when  the  requirement  was  restricted  to  large  schools 
which  aimed  at  the  maximum  grant.  When  a  radical 
change,  such  as  the  present  one,  is  proposed,  it  is  only 
reasonable  that  the  transition  stage  should  be  made  easy 
for  schools  which  have  to  adapt  themselves  to  the  new 
requirements.  We  make  no  complaint,  therefore,  of  the 
year  of  grace  granted  before  the  regulation  comes  into 
force,  nor  even  of  the  power  given  to  the  inspector  to 
dispense  with  it  altogether  in  cases  where  the  "  means  of 
teaching  drawing  cannot  be  procured."  This  provision 
would,  indeed,  seriously  cripple  the  usefulness  of  the 
change  if  it  were  intended  to  be  permanent.  But  clearly 
it  is  only  meant  to  obviate  temporary  hardships  in  small 
schools ;  and  we  may  congratulate  ourselves  that  within  a 
short  space  of  time,  every  boy  (or  at  least  every  boy 
among  the  working  classes)  will  be  receiving  instruc- 
tion in  what  is  stated  by  all  authorities  to  be  the  in- 
dispensable basis  of  almost  all  technical  instruction. 
As  a  corollary  to  the  change,  there  is  another  of  less 
importance,  but  of  value  in  its  way,  which  makes  drawing 
an  alternative  to  needlework  for  boys  in  infant  schools. 

While  thus  the  manual  instruction  of  boys  is  provided 
for,  a  useful  extension  is  given  to  the  curriculum  for  girls, 
by  the  provision  of  a  grant  for  laundry  work  calculated 
on  much  the  same  principle  as  that  for  cookery. 

Passing  to  science  teaching,  the  reforms  introduced  are 
no  less  satisfactory.  In  the  first  place,  science  instruction 
(as  well  as  manual  training)  is  placed  on  the  same  foot- 
ing as  cookery  as  regards  facilities  for  the  grouping  of 
schools  for  central  instruction,  and  attendance  at  such 
centres  will  count  as  attendance  at  school. 

A  still  more  important  change  is  the  extension  of  the 
range  of  class  subjects.  Under  former  Codes  a  single 
course  of  elementary  science  was  sketched  out  meagrely 
enough  in  Schedule  II.,  while  managers  were  invited  if 
they  pleased  to  submit  alternative  courses  to  the  inspector. 
The  result  might  have  been  expected.  Science  teaching 
gives  in  any  case  more  trouble  than  geography,  and  the 
additionalnecessity  of  framing  their  own  courses  of  instruc- 
tion was  quite  enough  to  deter  managers  from  taking  up 
the  subject.  Now,  however,  while  still  giving  permission  to 
managers  to  draw  up  other  courses  of  instruction,  the 
Department  gives  a  lead  by  suggesting  as  examples  no 
fewer  than  eight  different  courses  in  various  branches  of 
science,  which  are  embodied  in  a  supplement  to  Schedule 
II.  The  subjects  thus  treated  are  mechanics,  physiology, 
botany,  agriculture,  chemistry,  sound,  light,  and  heat, 
electricity  and  magnetism,  and  domestic  economy  ;  while 
the  model  course  still  retained  in  the  main  schedule  em- 
bodies a  scheme  of  elementary  instruction  in  "  nature 
knowledge  "  of  a  more  mixed  and  varied  character. 

In  each  of  the  first  two  standards  the  instruction  is  to 
consist  of  thirty  object-lessons  in  common  things,  designed 
to  lead  on  to  the  more  specialised  instruction  in  the  third 
and  higher  standards,  the  courses  for  which  follow 
(perhaps  somewhat  too  closely)  the  syllabus  laid  down  for 


the  corresponding  subjects  in  the  schedule  of  specific 
subjects.  It  has,  of  course,  been  necessary  somewhat 
to  simplify  and  curtail  the  schemes  of  instruction  in 
adapting  courses  framed  for  picked  pupils  to  suit  the 
capacity  of  the  whole  school.  It  seems  to  us  that 
the  process  of  simplification  might  in  some  cases  be 
carried  still  furtherwithadvantage.  Elementary  physics  for 
children  should  consistof  a  general  view  of  the  properties  of 
matter  and  the  forces  which  act  upon  it,  rather  than  a  more 
detailed  study  of  one  out  of  many  branches  of  the  subject. 
This  was  the  line  taken  up  by  Michael  Faraday  in  his 
inimitable  lectures  to  children  on  the  "  Physical  Forces." 
This  too  is  the  view  of  the  Scotch  Department,  which 
has  laid  down  a  course  of  class  instruction  in  "  Matter," 
designed  to  give  general  preliminary  notions  of  the 
whole  range  of  physics.  And,  we  may  add,  this  also  is 
the  view  taken  by  the  Science  and  Art  Department  in 
framing  the  alternative  course  in  physics  for  those  wha 
(like  the  vast  majority  of  elementary  school  children)  are 
not  likely  to  carry  their  study  of  physics  to  a  higher  stage. 

This,  however,  is  a  matter  of  detail,  while  the  sug- 
gestion of  alternative  courses  in  science,  linked  to  the 
instruction  of  the  Kindergarten  by  graduated  object- 
lessons  in  the  first  two  stand  ards,  is  a  reform  which  we 
cannot  praise  too  highly. 

Other  changes  to  be  noticed  are  the  inclusion  among 
class  subjects  of  history,  and  the  disappearance  of  the 
requirement  that  English  grammar  should  be  compulsory 
as  a  class  subject. 

Turning  to  the  schedule  of  specific  subjects,  we  find 
less  alteration.  Mensuration  is  separated  from  Euclid 
and  the  alternative  course  of  mechanics  disappears. 
There  are  a  few  slight  changes  in  the  syllabus  of  the 
various  subjects.  Thus  the  law  of  conservation  of  energy 
drops  out  of  the  course  on  mechanics,  presumably  be- 
cause the  idea  is  thought  too  hard  for  young  children  to 
grasp.  But  if  it  be  too  difficult  lax  picked  scholars  in  the 
fifth  and  higher  standards,  how  conies  it  that  in  the  new 
Scotch  Code  this  very  law  appears  in  the  syllabus  for  the 
"  <r/aj'i' "  subject  of  "  matter  "  (which  we  have  alluded  to 
above),  as  part  of  the  course  suitable  for  the  whole  of 
Standard  IV.  ?  Are  Scotch  children  so  very  far  in  advance 
of  English  as  this  difference  would  seem  to  imply  ? 

If,  however,  the  fourth  schedule  presents  few  changes 
worthy  of  note,  considerable  additions  are  made  to  the 
list  of  specific  subjects  for  which  no  special  syllabus  is 
suggested,  such  as  book-keeping,  shorthand,  German, 
and  (in  Wales)  Welsh.  In  this  way  the  demand  for  com- 
mercial instruction  is  met,  though  how  far  advantage  will 
be  taken  of  the  permission  to  present  scholars  in  these 
new  subjects  remains  to  be  seen.  And  lastly,  payments 
will  be  made  on  account  of  any  other  spe  ific  subject 
which  the  Department  may  sanction,  provided  a 
graduated  scheme  of  instruction  be  submitted  to  the 
inspector. 

We  have  now  completed  the  survey  of  the  purely  educa- 
tional changes  of  the  Code.  Henceforth  (assuming,  as^ 
we  do,  that  the  provisions  of  the  Code  will  come  into 
force  much  in  their  present  form)  there  can  be  little 
complaint  on  the  part  of  advocates  of  scientific  or  tech- 
niral  instruction  that  its  introduction  into  elementary 
schools  is  hindered  by  the  action  of  the  Department. 
There  need  be  no  longer  any  talk  of  an  educational  ladder 


April  3,  1890] 


NATURE 


507 


with  its  lower  rungs  wanting.  How  far  managers  will 
take  advantage  of  their  powers  remain  to  be  seen.  The 
changes  which  are  compulsory,  such  as  that  which  makes 
drawing  universal  for  boys'  schools,  will,  of  course,  take 
effect  widely  at  once.  Those  which  are  merely  per- 
missive may  be  slow  in  their  operation.  Meanwhile, 
those  who  are  in  earnest  about  the  introduction  of  such 
subjects  as  manual  training  into  elementary  schools 
could  not  better  occupy  the  time  which  intervenes  before 
the  new  Code  comes  into  force,  at  the  end  of  August 
next,  than  in  perfecting  a  graduated  scheme  of  instruction 
such  as  may  be  confiden;ly  recommended  to  school 
managers  to  submit  to  the  Education  Department. 

We  have  laid  stress  in  this  article  on  the  proposed 
changes  in  the  elementary  school  curriculum,  because, 
important  as  these  are,  they  are  likely  to  be  overshadowed 
in  the  coming  discussions  on  the  Code  by  other  questions 
which  appeal  more  directly  to  party  politicians.  We 
have  thus  left  ourselves  no  room  to  do  more  than  allude 
to  other  reforms  which  will  affect  as  powerfully  the 
educational  character  of  our  schools  as  the  widening  of 
the  course  of  study.  After  all,  the  main  guarantee  of 
efficiency  is  the  quality  of  the  teaching  staff.  The 
new  Code  raises  the  requirements  of  the  Department 
as  to  minimum  staff,  improves  the  regulations  regarding 
the  examination  and  training  of  pupil  teachers,  and  pro- 
vides for  the  creation  (on  a  very  limited  scale  it  is  true) 
of  day  Training  Colleges  attached  to  the  Universities  or 
Higher  Local  Colleges,  as  well  as  for  the  attendance  of 
day  students  at  the  existing  Training  Colleges.  The  Code 
further  revises  the  system  under  which  the  Parliamentary 
grant  is  paid,  and  almost  entirely  abolishes  payment  on 
results  of  individual  examination.  It  gives  freedom  to 
teachers  to  classify  their  scholars  as  they  please,  so  that 
a  child  may  be  in  three  different  standards  in  the  three 
R's,  and  in  two  different  standards  again  in  the  two  class 
subjects.  All  these  and  other  changes,  which  demand 
much  more  notice  than  we  can  give  them,  make  the 
Minute  of  the  Department  which  has  just  seen  the  light 
emphatically  a  "  Teachers'  Code." 


THE  CAVE  FAUNA  OF  NORTH  AMERICA. 

The  Cave  Fauna  of  North  America,  with    Remarks  on 
the  Anatomy  of  the  Bi'ain  and  Origin  of  the  Blind 
Species.      By  A.    S.    Packard.      Pp.    1-156,     with    27 
Plates. 
"■  I  ^HIS  important  memoir  is  the  first  of  vol.  iv.  of  the 
-»-      "  Memoirs  of  the  National  Academy  of  Sciences," 
and  contains  the  results  of  an  examination  of  the  Mam- 
moth Caves  in  Kentucky  made  during  the  months  of  April 
and  May  1874,  and  of  some  other  caves  in  Indiana  and 
Virginia  which  were  visited  by  the  author  at  a  later  date. 
A  description  of  eighteen  caves,  with  notes  on  their 
hydrography  and  geological  age,  and  an  account  of  the 
fauna  of  those  which  are  better  known,  form  the  first 
section  of  the  memoir.  The  caves  form  the  natural  drains 
of  the  country,  all   the  surface  drainage  being  at  once 
carried  down  into  them  through  the  innumerable  "  sink- 
holes" which  pierce  the  thin  stratum  overlying  the  Car- 
boniferous Limestone,  in  which  the  caves  are  excavated. 
The  Mammoth  Cave  is  the  largest  and  best  known,  with 


its  150  miles  of  passages  and  avenues,  frequently  crossing 
one  another  at  different  levels. 

Their  geological  age  is  uncertain,  but  there  is  very 
little  doubt  but  that  they  assumed  their  present  propor- 
tions long  after  the  melting  of  the  glacial  ice  and  are 
coaeval  with  the  Niagara  river-gorge.  And  as  the  caves 
must  have  been  incapable  of  supporting  life  while  flooded, 
their  preglacial  fauna-,  if  they  had  one,  must  have  been 
killed  off,  and  they  could  not  have  become  ready  for  their 
present  fauna  until  comparatively  recent  times  ;  therefore, 
they  must  have  been  colonized  by  members  of  the  existing 
fauna.  The  mode  of  colonization  is  very  simple.  :  Tracks 
of  bears,  wolves,  and  smaller  animals  occur  in  nearly  all 
those  caves  which  are  easily  accessible  from  without,  and 
clinging  to  the  skins  of  these  animals  various  small  Arthro- 
pods may  have  been  carried  in  ;  other  species  of  insects 
and  Myriopods  which  naturally  lead  a  subterranean  life 
may  voluntarily  enter  the  fissures  and  sink-holes  which 
abound  in  this  region  ;  others,  again,  get  carried  in  by  the 
agency  of  torrents  which  flow  in  during  certain  seasons 
of  the  year,  as,  for  instance,  the  eyed  fishes  and  species 
of  Crustacea  which  abound  in  the  surface  waters. 

That  cave  animals  have  entered  the  caves  from  without 
is  further  corroborated  by  the  fact  that  in  the  case  of  very 
many  cave  species  closely  allied  outdoor  species  are 
found  in  great  numbers  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
caves.  Also  caves  situated  near  one  another  are  popu- 
lated by  a  similar  fauna,  which  allows  us  to  classify  them 
in  groups  closely  corresponding  to  the  various  zoo-geo- 
graphical regions  of  the  country. 

The  author  then  proceeds  to  the  systematic  detailed 
description  of  the  fauna,  a  section  which  constitutes 
more  than  one-third  of  the  memoir.  As  in  the  case  of 
the  fauna  of  the  outside  world,  the  species  of  Arthropoda 
form  a  very  large  percentage  of  the  total  number  of  cave 
species  ;  but,  however  different  the  groups  to  which  the 
various  species  belong  may  be,  they  possess  the  common 
characteristics  of  slenderness  of  body  and  appendages 
and  of  the  absence  of  functional  eyes.  The  systematic 
description  is  followed  by  lists  of  all  the  North  American 
and  European  cave  species  known  at  present,  showing 
that  the  European  species  are  by  far  the  most  numerous. 
It  is  therefore  argued  that  the  European  caves  have  been 
inhabited  for  a  longer  period  than  the  American. 

Although  the  animal  kingdom,  at  any  rate  as  far  as 
certain  groups  are  concerned,  is  comparatively  well  re- 
presented, vegetable  life  is  almost  absent,  evidently  owing 
to  the  dryness  and  the  absence  of  light ;  in  fact,  so  far  as 
is  known  at  present,  it  is  only  represented  by  a  few  Fungi 
and  two  or  three  Moulds.  The  air  must  also  be  com- 
paratively free  from  the  germs  of  bacteria  of  putrefac- 
tion, as  the  decay  of  organic  refuse  is  very  slow,  and  meat 
hung  up  in  the  cave  will  keep  a  long  time.  But  though 
bacteria  are  absent,  their  office  is  performed  by  larvae  of 
the  blind  beetle  (Adelops  hirtus)  and  of  flies. 

Cave  animals  are  mostly  carnivorous.  The  blind  fish 
{Amblyopsis)  lives  on  Crustacea,  and  especially  on  the 
blind  crayfish,  which  in  its  turn  preys  upon  living  C(cci- 
dotea,  but  how  they  and  other  small  aquatic  Crustaceans 
maintain  an  existence  is  unknown.  The  Myriopods, 
which  are  very  common,  feed  on  decayed  wood  and 
fungous  growths. 

However,  in  all   cases,  as  a  rule,  food  must  be  very 


5o8 


NATURE 


[April  3,  1890 


scanty,  and  "  lack  of  food  as  well  as  the  absence  of  light 
was  one  of  the  factors  concerned  in  the  diminution  of 
size  and  in  the  slenderness  of  blind  cave  animals  as  com- 
pared with  their  lucicolous  allies." 

The  effect  of  total  darkness  upon  animals  is  twofold. 
Firstly,  colour  is  either  entirely  or  partially  bleached, 
and,  secondly,  the  sense  of  sight  is  lost.  Eyesight  may 
be  lost  in  various  ways.  Either  the  optic  lobes  and 
nerves  may  atrophy,  while  the  retina,  pigment,  and  lens 
remain  more  or  less  persistent ;  or  the  optic  lobes  and 
nerves  may  persist,  while  the  retina  and  eye-facets 
atrophy  ;  or,  again,  the  whole  of  the  optic  apparatus  may 
atrophy.  Examples  of  all  these  cases  are  given  in  the 
important  chapter  which  is  devoted  to  a  description  of 
the  anatomy  of  the  brain  and  eyes  of  certain  blind 
Arthropods,  and  illustrated  by  numerous  drawings  of 
sections  through  various  regions  of  the  head. 

It  is  argued  that  this  atrophy  must  be  comparatively 
sudden  and  wholesale,  because  no  series  of  individuals 
has  been  found  with  the  optic  lobes  or  nerves  in  different 
stages  of  disappearance.  Transitional  forms  have  been 
observed  with  eyes  with  a  varying  number  of  crystalline 
lenses,  as  in  the  case  of  Chthoniiis ;  those  individuals 
which  live  near  the  mouth  of  the  cave  have  better  deve- 
loped eyes  than  those  which  live  far  in.  And  surely, 
on  further  examination,  more  transitional  forms  will  be 
discovered,  as  animals  must  be  continually  getting  into 
the  caves  from  the  outside  ;  their  descendants  becoming 
gradually  adapted  for  cave  life,  until  they  finally  reach  the 
degree  of  modification  of  the  present  older  occupants. 

As  the  sense  of  sight  diminishes,  it  is  compensated  by 
an  increase  of  the  delicacy  of  other  senses.  The  tactile 
and  olfactory  senses  are  rendered  more  sensitive,  the 
appendages  become  much  more  slender,  and  the  blind 
form  is  altogether  more  timid  and  cautious  than  its  eyed 
allies,  as  has  been  particularly  noticed  in  the  blind  cray- 
fish. 

The  last  part  of  this  memoir  deals  with  what  is  of 
most  general  interest  to  the  biologist,  viz.  the  bearing  of 
these  facts  upon  the  theories  of  evolution.  The  author 
states  that  here  the  term  "  natural  selection  "  expresses 
the  result  of  a  series  of  causes  rather  than  any  one  cause 
in  itself.  The  most  important  of  these  causes  are  :  the 
change  of  etivironment,  from  light  to  partial  or  total  dark- 
ness, involving  diminution  of  food,  the  disuse  and  loss  of 
certain  organs,  with  compensation  as  has  been  mentioned 
above  ;  adaptation,  enabling  the  more  plastic  forms  to 
survive  and  perpetuate  the  stock  ;  heredity ,\i\\\<^  operates 
to  secure  the  future  permanence  of  the  newly  originated 
forms— the  longer  it  acts,  the  earlier  will  the  inherited 
characters  appear  in  the  development  of  the  animal ; 
and,  lastly,  isolation,  which,  after  adaptation  and  heredity 
have  established  the  typical  characters,  prevents  inter- 
crossing with  out-door  forms,  and  thus  insures  the 
permanence  of  these  characters. 

The  author  adduces  facts  which  seem  to  prove  that  the 
organic  adaptations  to  a  life  in  darkness  may  have  been 
induced  after  but  a  few  generations,  perhaps  one  or  two 
only,  resulting  in  the  comparatively  rapid  evolution  of 
cave  species.  -If  that  be  the  case,  then,  there  is  no 
reason  why  they  should  not  be  produced  artificially,  but 
at  present  no  experiments  have  been  made  to  prove  the 
mutual  convertibility  of  cave  species  and  their  lucicolous 


allies.  If  a  cave  species  could  be  made  to  revert  to  an 
epigean  form  by  keeping  it  for  a  number  of  generations 
in  a  gradually  increasing  amount  of  light  ;  and  if,  on  the 
other  hand,  a  lucicolous  species  could  be  changed  into  a 
cave  form  by  a  converse  process,  the  theory  of  occasional 
rapid  evolution  due  to  sudden  changes  in  the  environ- 
ment would  receive  its  final  proof. 

Mr.  Packard  draws  attention  to  the  interesting  parallel 
between  the  life  of  the  abysses  of  oceans  and  lakes  and 
that  of  caves.  In  both  cases  vegetable  life  is  almost 
absent,  and  a  large  proportion  of  the  animal  forms  have 
become  similarly  modified  with  regard  to  the  degeneration 
of  the  optic  organs  and  corresponding  development  of 
other  organs  as  compensation.  But  while  caves  have 
only  been  populated  comparatively  recently,  the  ocean 
abysses  have  had  inhabitants  for  a  very  much  longer  time, 
and  consequently  these  have  had  time  to  become  much 
more  highly  specialized  than  the  inhabitants  of  caves. 

This  most  valuable  ,  contribution  terminates  with  a 
bibliography  containing  the  titles  of  previous  publications 
on  the  subject,  and  we  must  not  omit  to  mention  that  in 
a  separate  chapter  a  list  is  given  of  the  known  non- 
cavernicolous  blind  animals.  As  far  as  the  higher  classes 
are  concerned,  this  list  contains  about  the  same  number 
of  species  as  the  one  of  the  blind  cave-dwelling  forms. 

R.  T.  G. 


LINEAR  DIFFERENTIAL  EQUATIONS. 
A     Treatise    on    Linear    Differential    Eqtcations.       By 
Thomas  Craig,  Ph.D.     Vol.    I.    Equations  with  Uni- 
form  Coefficients.      (New    York :     John    Wiley    and 
Sons,  1889.) 

TREATISES  on  this  subject  have  been  somewhat 
numerous  of  late.  We  recently  noticed  in  these 
columns  an  excellent,  but  fairly  elementary  work,  "  On 
Ordinary  and  Partial  Differential  Equations,"  by  Prof. 
Woolsey  Johnson.  The  student  who  wishes  to  enter  on 
the  profitable  perusal  of  the  book  before  us  must  be  well 
versed  in  all  the  ordinary  modes  of  procedure,*  and  then 
he  will  find  that  Dr.  Craig  is  well  qualified  to  lead  him 
through  the  intricate  windings  of  this  difficult  branch  of 
mathematics.  The  advanced  student  will  find  the  author's 
analysesof  usetohimwhilstreadingthevariousoriginal  me- 
moirs here  introduced  to  him,  for  the  first  time,  in  English. 
Some  may  remember  that  Mr.  Forsyth,  in  his  classical 
treatise,  omitted  the  investigations  of  Fuchs,  the  recent 
researches  of  Hermite  and  Halphen.  contented  himselt 
with  a  slight  sketch  of  Jacobi's  method  for  partial  differ- 
ential equations,  and  did  not  at  all  touch  upon  the 
methods  of  Cauchy,  Lie,  and  Mayer.  The  consideration 
of  these  matters  he  reserved  for  a  future  volume. 

The  theory  of  the  subject  before  us,  i.e.  of  linear  differ- 
ential equations,  almost  owes  its  origin,  in  Dr.  Craig's 
opinion,  to  two  memoirs  by  Fuchs,  published  in  vols. 
Ixvi.  and  Ixviii.  of  Crelle's  Journal {id,66,  1868)  :  — 

"Previous  to  this  the  only  class  of  linear  differential 
equations  for  which  a  general  method  of  integration  was 
known,  was  the  class  of  equations  with  constant  coeffi- 
cients, including,  of  course,  Legendre's  well-known  equa- 
tion, which  is  immediately  transformable  into  one  with 

'  "  The  reader  is  of  course  supposed  to  be  familif  r  with  the  ordinary 
ele  nentary  the  jry  of  diflf  ;rential  equations  "  (p.  32).  ^^_^  _ 


April 'i^,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


509 


constant  coefficients.  After  the  appearance  of  Fuchs's 
second  memoir,  many  mathematicians,  particularly  in 
France  and  Germany,  including  Fuchs  himself,  took  up 
the  subject,  which,  though  still  in  its  infancy,  now  pos- 
sesses a  very  large  literature." 

As  happens  in  such  cases,  these  memoirs  have  to  be 
dug  out  of  journals  and  publications  of  learned  Societies 
before  the  student  can  be  put  in  possession  of  results 
obtained.  It  is  for  this  labour  of  research,  and  then  for 
the  arrangement  in  due  sequence  of  theorems,  that  the 
reader  has  to  thank  Dr.  Craig.^  Even  in  the  first  two 
chapters,  where  most  of  the  results  are  old,  the  treatment 
is  comparatively  new,  being  founded  upon  papers  by 
Laguerre  {Comptes  reiidus,  1879),  and  upon  memoirs,  or 
works,  by  Briot  and  Bouquet  and  Jordan  ;  reference  is 
also  made,  in  connection  with  a  proof  by  Jordan,  to  a 
paper  by  Picard  (^Bulletin  des  Sciences  Math.,  1888). 
Here  we  may  note  that  the  author  reserves  an  account  of 
the  investigations  of  Laguerre,  Halphen,  and  others,  from 
a  still  higher  point  of  view,  to  a  subsequent  volume. 

This  first  instalment  discusses  principally  Fuchs's  type 
of  equations,  but  accounts  are  given  of  the  researches  of 
Frobenius  (chapters  iv.,  viii.),  Markoff,  Heun,  Riemann, 
and  Humbert  (chapter  vi.),  Thome  (chapter  ix.),  Halphen 
(chapter  xii.),  Forsyth's  canonical  form  and  associate 
equations,  Brioschi,  Lagrange's  adjoint  equation,  Hal- 
phen's  adjoint  quantics  and  Appell's  theorem  (chapter 
xiii.),  and  Picard  (chapter  xiv.).  An  account,  due  to 
Jordan,  is  given  of  the  application  of  the  theory  of  sub- 
stitutions to  linear  differential  equations  (chapter  iii.). 
Many  points  are  touched  lightly  here,  a  fuller  develop- 
ment being  held  in  reserve.  A  prominent  feature  is  the 
reproduction  (chapter  vii )  of  a  thesis  by  M.  E.  Goursat 
on  equations  of  the  second  order  satisfied  by  the  hyper- 
geometric  series.  This  consists  of  two  parts.  The  first 
part  gives  an  application  of  Cauchy's  theorem,  and  rela- 
tions between  Kummer's  (24)  integrals,  an  application  to 
the  complete  elliptic  integral  of  the  first  kind,  and 
Schwarz's  results.  The  second  part  discusses  the  trans- 
formations of  the  hypergeometric  series.  Tannery's 
theorem,  and  some  other  points,  the  article  closing  with  a 
collection  of  137  transformations  due  (apparently)  to 
Kummer. 

The  pages  bristle  with  references  to  original  sources, 
so  that,  as  we  have  already  indicated,  this  treatise  is  an 
invaluable  handy-book  to  what  has  been  done  in  this 
field. 

One  more  word  :  there  is  no  collection  of  examples  for 
solution  on  the  Cambridge  model,  but  the  work  is  strictly 
on  the  lines  of  a  French  or  German  treatise. 

The  book  itself  is  very  elegantly  turned  out. 


THE  BACTERIA  OF  ASIATIC  CHOLERA. 
The  Bacteria  of  Asiatic  Cholera.     By  E.   Klein,  M.D 
(London  :  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1889.) 

SO  masterly  and  complete  was  the  account  which 
Koch  gave  in  1884  of  the  comma-bacillus,  which 
he  held  to  be  the  virus  of  cholera,  that  but  little,  if  any- 
thing, has  been  added  to  our  knowledge  of  its  mode  of 

'  For  instance,  he  obtains  certain  forms  in  the  same  way  that  Fuchs 
•obtained  them,  ''  if  for  no  other  reason  than  that  of  the  desirability  of. 
■developing  the  subject  in  historical  order  "  (p.  64). 


growth,  of  its  reaction  to  dyes,  or  of  its  life-history.  As 
might  be  expected,  the  assiduity  of  many  observers,  now 
it  has  been  directed  to  the  subject,  has  led  to  the  dis- 
covery of  many  other  bacilli,  whieh  may  be  described  as 
comma- shaped.  But,  so  far,  no  bacteriologist,  who  has 
had  his  observations  corroborated  by  other  observers, 
has  proved  that  any  of  them  are  indistinguishable  in  all 
their  physical  characters,  whether  in  appearance,  in  re- 
action to  dyes,  or  in  their  mode  of  growth,  &c.,  from  the 
^choleraic  bacillus.  So  far  as  is  known,  animals  are  i  ot 
susceptible  to  cholera.  If  Asiatic  cholera  could  be  in- 
duced by  inoculating  with  pure  cultivations  of  choleraic 
comma-bacilli,  then  beyond  a  doubt  they  would  be  the 
nera  causa,  or,  in  other  words,  the  contagium  of  cholera  ; 
but  this  step  in  Koch's  argument  was  wanting,  probably 
for  the  above-named  reason,  and  is  likely  to  remain  so  : 
the  experimental  inoculations  of  guinea-pigs  which  have 
taken  place  being  by  no  means  conclusive. 

The  present  volume  is  a  valuable  and  most  trenchant 
criticism  of  every  step  of  Koch's  argument,  and  may  be 
said  to  contain  everything  that  can  at  present  be  said 
against  Koch's  theory,  of  which  the  author  is  the  most 
active  opponent. 

The  author  commences  with  an  account  of  the  various 
comma-shaped  bacilli  which  are  at  present  known,  and 
there  are  well- recognized  characteristics  which  distinguish 
them  from  the  first  form,  in  all  of  them,  except  in  those 
which  depend  upon  solitary  observations. 

The  following  is  the  list  of  comma- shaped  bacilli  with 
the  names  of  their  discoverers  : — 

(i)  Koch,  in  Asiatic  cholera ;  ^  to  |  the  length  of 
tubercle  bacilli,  but  thicker  and  curved.  (2)  Finkler  and 
Prior,  in  cholera  nostras  ;  but  Koch  and  Frank  failed  to 
demonstrate  these  in  typical  cases.  They  are  thicker 
and  longer  than  (i).  In  10  per  cent,  gelatine,  the  growth 
is  broad  and  conical,  liquefying  the  gelatine  more  rapidly- 
(3)  Lewis,  in  the  fluid  of  the  mouth,  thicker  than  (1) 
Klein  only  twice  has  succeeded  in  growing  them  ;  every 
one  else  has  failed.  (4)  Miller,  in  some  cases  of  caries 
of  the  teeth,  similar  to  (2).  (5)  Kuisl,  in  human  faeces 
similar  to  (2).  (6)  Deneke,  in  stale  cheeses.  The  growth 
on  gelatine  is  similar,  but  they  will  not  grow  on  potatoes. 
(7)  Klein,  in  some  cases  of  diarrhoea,  especially  in  mon- 
keys. They  grow  differetly  in  gelatine,  and  cause  it  to 
smell  offensively.  (8)  Ermengen  and  others,  in  the  in- 
testines of  guinea-pigs,  pigs,  rabbits,  horses,  &c.,  but  they 
will  not  grow  in  10  per  cent,  gelatine.  (9)  Lingard,  two 
kinds  in  a  case  of  noma,  the  smaller  of  which  is  said  to 
have  been  very  similar  to  the  choleraic  one.  (10)  Weibel, 
various  forms  in  mucus,  but  their  mode  of  growth  is 
distinct,  (il)  Gamaleia,  in  a  fatal  fowl  disease,  which 
was  prevalent  at  Odessa.  He  did  not  distinguish  them 
from  (l).-  (12)  Klein,  in  the  intestines  of  a  monkey  with 
diarrhoea.  The  organisms  were  smaller,  but  the  growth 
was  similar  to  (i). 

Klein  lays  great  stress  upon  the  difficulty  there  is  in 
demonstrating  the  presence  of  the  bacilli  in  the  walls  of 
the  intestine  in  cases  of  cholera,  and  thinks  that  they 
are  not  present  in  the  parts  which  are  still  alive,  but  only 
where  the  tissue  has  died  ;  moreover  they  are  absent 
from  the  blood. 

The  bacilli  are  most  readily  found  in  the  mucous 
flakes  ;   and  in  the  presence  of  faecal   matter  they   are 


lO 


NATURE 


\_April  5,  1 890 


readily  destroyed,   which    may    explain    why  they   are 
sometimes  not  easily  detected. 

The  avithor  has  done  good  service  in  threshing  put  all 
the  evidence  afresh,  but  the  matter  remains  very  much 
where  Koch  left  it.  The  detection  of  the  bacilli  may 
enable  us  more  readily  to  diagnose  the  earliest  cases  in 
an  epidemic  of  cholera  ;  and,  as  one  result  of  his  experi- 
ments, we  may  expect  soiled  linen  to  be  most  efficiently 
sterilized  by  drying  it  ;  at  the  same  time,  until  the 
disease  has  been  reproduced  by  inoculation  with  the 
organism,  it  cannot  be  said  to  be  conclusively  proved 
that  this  is  the  true  virus. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Manuel  de  V Analyse  des    Vins.      Par    Ernest    Barillot. 
Pp.  xii  -131.     (Paris  :  Gauthier-Villars  et  Fils,  1889.) 

The  student  of  practical  chemistry  will  find  in  this  book 
a  handy  guide  to  the  examination  of  wines.  Works  on 
the  same  subject  are  frequently  rendered  both  unwieldy 
and  tiresome  by  a  multiplicity  of  analytical  methods  and 
the  introduction  of  a  bulky  collection  of  tables  embodying 
the  composition  of  various  classes  of  wine,  a  knowledge 
of  which  is  deemed  necessary  in  forming  an  opinion  of 
the  quality  or  purity  of  a  particular  sample.  Here, 
however,  details  of  this  l<ind  are  reduced  to  a  minimum. 
One  or  two  methods,  only,  of  carrying  out  any  estimation 
are  given,  and  free  use  is  made  of  such  empirical  relations 
between  the  proportions  of  the  constituents  of  a  wine  as 
seem  warranted  by  the  results  of  previous  analyses. 

The  book  consists  of  two  parts  and  an  appendix.  Part 
1.  is  concerned  with  the  determination  of  the  normal 
constituents  of  wines,  alcohol,  total  solids,  ash,  grape 
sugar,  &c.  Part  II.  deals  with  adulterations.  In  its 
opening  sections  are  placed  the  indications  traceable  to 
the  presence  of  added  water,  added  alcohol,  cane  sugar 
dextrine,  &c.,  but  the  greater  bulk  of  the  part  is  devoted 
to  the  detection  of  foreign  colouring  matters.  The 
subject  of  colour  reactions  is  very  fully  treated,  and  by 
the  arrangement  of  the  experiments  in  tabular  form  their 
nature  and  interpretation  can  be  readily  appreciated.  It 
seems  a  pity  that  in  connection  with  these  tests  no  notice 
is  taken  in  the  text  of  the  absorption  spectrum  of  the 
colouring  agents,  as  a  clue  to  their  identification  ;  in  a 
footnote  the  author  contents  himself  by  merely  referrmg 
the  reader  to  the  works  of  \'ogel  and  Wurtz  for  inform- 
ation on  this  subject.  In  the  appendix  is  a  statement  of 
the  chemical  constitution'of  the  colouring  matters  men- 
tioned, followed  by  an  account  of  some  recent  work  of 
the  author  on  the  detection  of  added  alcohol.  His 
method  is  based  on  the  effect  of  the  alcohol  introduced 
on  the  proportion  of  volatile  acid  which  distils  from  the 
wine,  and  the  result  is  shown  to  be  consistent  with  the 
theory  of  the  rate  of  etherification  of  organic  acids. 

The  book  is  intended  to  be  useful  for  commercial 
purposes,  and  for  such  the  analytical  processes  described 
are  sufficiently  accurate.  The  apparatus  emplo)ed,  as  is 
stated  in  a  footnote,  has  been  constructed  by  the  Societe 
Centrale  de  Produits  Chimiques,  and  judging  from  the 
illustrations,  is  in  some  cases,  to  English  eyes  at  least,  a 
trifle  antiquated.  The  occasional  reference  to  vessels 
provided  with  marks,  and  to  which  no  numerical  values 
are  attached,  detracts  somewhat- from  the  general  useful- 
ness of  the  book,  and  is  unintelligible  to  a  reader  who  has 
failed  to  notice  the  explanatory  footnote. 

The  graduation  of  alcoholometers,  the  maximum 
amount  of  alcohol  permissible  in  wines,  &c.,  are  of 
course  in  accordance  with  the  regulations  of  the  French 
Excise. 


Synoptical  Tables  of  Organic  and  Inorganic-.  Chemistry 
Compiled  by  Clement  J.  Leaper,  F.C.S.  (London: 
George  Gill  and  Sons,  1890.) 

The  compiler  says  in  his  preface  that  "the  mass  of  facts 
presented  to  the  mind  of  the  beginner  in  chemistry  is  scv 
large  that  he  often  experiences  a  difficulty  in  distinguish- 
ing the  useful  from  the  ornamental,  and  is  apt,  conse- 
quently, to  neglect  fundamental  principles  and  reactions 
for  comparatively  useless  minutiae.  These  tables  are 
intended  to  prevent  this  error.  .  ,  .  The  experience  of 
many  years  has  convinced  the  author  that  the  student 
who  honestly  commits  these  tables  to  memory  will  lay 
for  himself  a  solid  groundwork  for  future  reading  and 
research  1"  Whatever  may  be  meant  therefore  by  the 
expression  "future  reading  and  research,"  it  appears  that 
the  compiler  aims  no  higher  than  to  give  a  series  of 
unconnected  statements  which  if  learned  will  enable  the 
would-be  student  to  begin  his  study  of  chemistry.  We 
do  not  think  this  committing  to  memory  will  make  the 
study  more  easy,  and  should  fear  that  the  learner  might 
imagine  after  his  memory  exercise  that  he  thereby  knew 
something  of  chemistry.  The  separation  of  "the  useful 
from  the  ornamental  "  is  always  difficult,  and  it  is  rare  to 
find  two  authorities  at  one  in  such  a  matter.  It  is 
doubtful,  for  example,  whether  any  chemist  will  agree 
with  the  compiler  when  he  states  as  Charles's  law  that 
"All  gases  expand  or  contract  .l..;  of  their  volume  for 
each  rise  or  fall  of  i'  C.,''  and  omits,  presumably  as 
ornamental,  the  limitation  of  this  proportion  to  the  volume 
of  the  gas  at  o   C. 

The  British  Journal  Photographic  Almanac,  1890.  Edited 
by  J.  Traill  Taylor.  (London  :  Henry  Greenwood 
and  Co.,  1890.) 
In  this  year's  volume  we  find  a  most  interesting  collection 
of  notes  and  articles  relating  to  almost  every  branch  of 
the  subject.  Captain  Abney  contributes  an  article  in 
which  he  warns  photographers  to  beware  of  their  principal 
enemy — dust — and  concludes  with  the  best  method  of 
exclusion.  The  Rev.  S.  J.  Perry  gives  a  short  summary 
of  the  instruments  used  in  celestial  photography  during 
the  past  year,  and  of  the  work  accomplished,  including- 
the  wonderful  photographs  taken  by  Isaac  Roberts  of 
the  nebula  of  Andromeda,  nebuke  in  the  Pleiades,  &c. 
Mention  is  also  made  of  the  success  of  Mr.  Common  in 
rendering  still  more  perfect  the  reflecting  surface  of  his 
magnificent  five-foot  glass  mirror.  Amongst  the  other 
articles  we  may  refer  to  that  on  halation  by  Chapman 
Jones,  hydroquinone  by  W.  B.  Bolton,  and  celluloid  films 
by  Colonel  J.  Waterhouse.  An  epitome  of  the  year's 
progress,  with  notes  on  passing  events,  original  and 
selected,  is  given  by  the  editor,  who  marks  the  great 
advance  made  in  film  photography,  and  also  the  tendency 
to  diminish  the  bulk  of  cameras,  as  shown  by  the  innu- 
merable hand  or  detective  cameras  that  have  appeared 
during  the  last  twelve  months.  Allusion  also  is  made  to 
the  new  developer,  eikonogen,  which  can,  it  is  believed, 
develop  into  full  printing  density  a  plate  that  has  beei> 
impressed  by  feeble  radiations. 

No  alteration  has  been  made  as  regards  the  genera) 
order  of  the  work  ;  there  are  only  slight  additions  to  the 
tables,  formuht,  &c.  The  specimens  of  processes  which 
illustrate  the  volume,  especially  that  of  Mrs.  Sterling  from 
a  negative  by  Vander  Weyde,  are  very  fine. 

Four-Figure  Mathematical  Tables.  By  J.  T.  Bottomley, 
M.A.,  F.R.S.,  &c.  Second  Edition.  (London:  Mac- 
millan  and  Co.,  1890  ) 
This  useful  collection  of  tables  has  been  considerably 
enlarged  and  revised  since  its  first  appearance.  It  com- 
prises logarithmic  and  trigonometrical  tables,  tables  of 
squares,  scjuare  roots,  and  reciprocals,  and  a  collection  of 
useful  formulae  and  constants.     The  introduction  is  suffi- 


April  3,  1890] 


NATURE 


II 


■ciently  detailed  to  make  the  construction  of  the  table 
readily  understood,  assuming  a  knowledge  of  the  use  of 
logarithms.  The  book  will  prove  a  handy  substitute  for 
more  bulky  volumes  in  cases  where  extreme  accuracy  is 
not  required,  such  as  computations  in  chemistry  and 
physics. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

{TAe  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. '\ 

Panmixia. 

Mv  letter  of  March  6  commenced  with  the  remark  that, 
•without  entering  into  controversy,  I  proposed  to  draw  attention 
to  the  opinions  expressed  concerning  the  inheritance  of  acquired 
•characters  by  Mr.  Darwin.  The  reasons  for  my  own  beliefs  on 
the  questions  at  issue  I  have  given  in  "The  Principles  of 
'Biology,"  §  166,  and,  with  other  illustrations,  in  "The  Factors 
of  Organic  Evolution."  Here  it  must  suffice  to  say  that  1  have 
seen  no  reason  to  abandon  the  conclusions  there  set  forth. 

Respecting  the  doctrine  of  "  panmixia,"  either  as  enunciated 
by  Prof.  VVeismann,  or  as  recently  presented  in  modified  forms, 
I  will  say  no  more  than  that  I  should  like  to  see  its  adequacy 
discussed  in  connection  with  a  specific  instance—say  the  drooping 
•ears  of  many  domesticated  animals.  "Cats  in  China,  horses  in 
parts  of  Russia,  sheep  in  Italy  and  elsewhere,  the  guinea-pig  in 
•Gtrmanv,  goats  and  cattle  in  India,  rabbits,  pigs,  and  dogs  in  all 
long-civilized  countries,  have  dependent  ears." 

Here  the  influence  of  natural  selection  is  almost  wholly 
■excluded  ;  nor  can  artificial  selection  be  supposed  to  have 
•operated  in  most  of  the  cases  :  save,  perhaps,  in  some  pet 
animals,  selection  has  been  carried  on  to  develop  othej-  traits. 
In  the  cases  of  most  of  these  creatures,  too,  artificially  fed  and 
often  over-fed,  it  does  not  sem  that  individual  fates  can  have 
been  affected  by  economy  of  nutrition,  either  general  or 
special  ;  since  there  has  been  no  struggle  for  existence  to  cause 
the  survival  of  those  in  which  nutriment  was  most  advantageously 
distributed.  Further,  the  parts  in  question  are  not  of  such  sizes 
that  economy  in  nutrition  of  them  could  sensibly  affect  the  fates 
of  individuals,  even  had  the  struggle  for  existence  been  going  on. 
Again,  it  seems  that  in  respect  of  the  ears  themselves  (though 
not  in  respect  of  their  motor  muscles)  there  has  been  extravagance 
of  nutrition  rather  than  economy  of  nutrition  ;  since  even  where 
selection  has  been  carried  on  for  increasing  other  traits,  the  ears 
have  not  dwindled  but  rather  increased.  Lastly,  at  the  same 
time  that  there  has  been  this  surperfluity  of  nutrition  in  the  ears 
themselves,  their  motor  muscles  appear  to  have  dwindled  either 
relatively  or  absolutely— at  least  relatively,  we  must  suppose, 
where  the  weight  of  the  ears  has  increased,  and  absolutely 
where  the  weight  of  the  ears  has  not  increased. 

The  question  presented  by  these  facts  is  one  in  the  solution  of 
■which  the  theory  of  "  panmixia  "  may,  I  think,  be  satisfactorily 
tested  ;  and  without  expressing  any  opinion  upon  the  matter 
myself,  I  should  be  glad  to  see  it  discussed. 

Herhert  Spencer, 

I  AM  not  aware  how  far  Prof  Ray  Lankester  is  disposed  to 
acknowledge  his  obligations  to  Prof.  Weismann  for  what  I  am 
glad  to  see  he  now  calls  his  "anti-Lamarckian  "  (as  distinguished 
from  "  pure  Darwinian")  proclivities.  Therefore  I  do  not  know 
how  far  he  professes  to  be  one  of  "  the  followers  of  Prof. 
Weismann,"  to  whom  my  previous  letter  on  this  subject  was 
addressed.  But  it  seems  desirable  that  I  should  take  some 
notice  of  the  altogether  distinct  question  which  he  has  now 
raised— viz.  whether,  or  how  far.  Prof.  Weismann's  anti- 
Lamarckian  views  were  anticipated  by  Mr.  Darwin. 

His  argument  is  that  Darwin  must  have  been  a  Lankesterian 
anti-Lamarckian  in  disguise;  and,  more  particularly,  that  "the 
doctrine  of  panmixia  is  recognized  ani  formulated  in  the  last 
(sixth)  edition  of  the  'Origin  of  .Species'  published  in  1872." 

Taking  the  most  general  statement  first,  Prof.  Lankester 
represents  it  as  not  improbable  that  "  when  Darwin  refers,  here 
and  there  throughout  his  works,  to  a  reduced  or  rudimentary 


condition  of  an  organ  as  'due  to  disuse,'  or  'explained  by  the 
effects  of  disuse,'  he  does  not  ncicssarily  mean  such  effects  as 
the  Lamarckian  second  law  asserted  and  assumed  (though  often 
he  does  appear  to  mean  such) ;  but  he  may  mean,  and  probably 
had  in  his  mind,  the  effects  of  disuse  as  worked  out  through 
panmixia  and  economy  of  growth." 

Now,  here  we  have  a  specimen  of  Prof.  Lankester's  dialectic 
at  its  worst.  Truly,  with  such  an  interpreter,  Darwin  ^' may" 
be  made  to  "mean"  anything.  First  it  is  represented  as 
seeming  "not  at  all  improbable  that  when  Darwin  refers  "  to  one 
principle,  "he  does  not  necessarily  mean"  what  he  says  ;  and 
then  it  is  concluded  that  "  he  may  mean,  and  probably  had  in  his 
mind  a  totally  different  principle."  Moreover,  what  is  re- 
presented as  mere  references,  "  here  and  there  throughout  his 
works,"  are,  as  all  the  world  knows,  one  whole  and  "highly 
important  "  (though  still  subordinate)  side  of  Darwin's  system. 
Yet  again,  in  all  passages  where  the  meaning  assigned  to  his  term 
"  disuse  '  is  explained,  there  can  be  no  shadow  of  ambiguity 
attaching  to  it,  and  everywhere  it  is  alluded  to  as  a  principle 
wholly  distinct  from  the  "economy  of  growth"  ;  while  pan- 
mixia, as  I  shall  presently  prove,  is  nowhere  mentioned  at  all. 
This,  indeed,  is  clearly  shown  even  in  the  passages  quoted  by 
Prof  Lankester,  and  now  re-quoted  below.  For  it  is  there  said 
that,  could  a  certain  explanation  be  found,  "then  we  should  be 
able  to  understand  how  an  organ  which  has  become  useless  would 
be  rendered,  independently  of  the  effects  of  disiise,  rudimentary." 
Obviously,  in  this  context,  "the  effects  of  disuse"  cannot 
possibly  mean  "the  effects  of  disuse  as  worked  out  through 
panmixia  and  economy  of  growth  "  :  they  can  only  mean  the 
direct  effects  of  disuse  itself  in  causing  inherited  atrophy.  And 
now,  lastly,  "the  effects  of  disuse"  are  habitually  pointed  to  by 
Mr.  Darwin  in  association  with  the  "  effects  of  increased  use"  ; 
and  how  he  can  "  seein  "  to  have  "explained"  th  se  either  by 
the  economy  of  growth  (which  he  fully  recognized),  or  by 
panmixia  (which  he  never  recognized),  I  must  leave  Prof. 
Lankester  to  indicate. 

It  will  be  observed,  from  the  point  last  mentioned,  that  this 
attempt  to  read  the  doctrines  of  Weismann  into  the  writings  of 
Darwin  must  equally  ollapse,  whether  or  not  any  other  human 
being  can  be  found  to  follow  Prof.  Lankester  in  his  commentary 
on  Darwin's  "here  and  there"  references  to  "  the  effects  of 
disuse  "  :  the  equally  constant  and  as  frequently  detailed  re- 
ferences to  ' '  the  effects  of  the  increased  use  of  parts,  which  I 
have  always  maintained  to  be  highly  important,"  are  of  them- 
selves sufficient  to  dispose  of  the  Lankesterian  gloss.  Never- 
theless, it  remains  worth  while  to  see  whether  there  is  any  shred 
of  evidence  in  support  of  the  narrower  or  more  particular  state- 
ment, that  the  principle  of  panmixia  is  to  be  found  "already 
indicated  "  in  the  "  Origin  of  Species."  The  following  are  the 
passages  upon  which  this  statement  is  founded — passages,  I  may 
remark,  which  have  certainly  neither  been  "missed"  nor 
"neglected  "  by  me. 

(i)  "If  under  changed  conditions  of  life  a  structure  before 
usefid,  becomes  less  useful,  its  diminution  will  be  favoured,  yi?;-  it 
7Ciill  profit  the  individual  not  to  have  ifs  nulri?nent  wasted  in 
building  tip  a  useless  structure.  .  .  .  Thus,  as  1  believe,  natural 
selection  will  tend  in  the  long  run  to  reduce  any  part  of  the 
organization  as  s  )on  as  it  becomes,  through  changed  habits, 
superfluous,  without  by  any  means  causing  some  other  part  to 
be  largely  developed  in  a  corresponding  degree"  ("Origin  of 
Species,"  sixth  edition,  p.  118). 

(2)  "  Organs,  originally  formed  by  the  aid  of  natural  selection, 
when  rendered  useless,  may  well  be  variable,  for  their  variations 
can  no  longer  be  checked  by  natural  selection.  ...  It  is 
scarcely  possible  that  disuse  can  go  on  producing  any  furthe 
effect  after  the  organ  has  once  been  rendered  functionless. 
Some  additional  explanation  is  here  requisite,  which  I  cannot 
give.  If,  for  instance,  it  could  be  proved  that  every  part  of  the 
organization  tends  to  vary  in  a  greater  degree  towards  diminu- 
tion than  towards  augmentation  of  size,  then  we  should  be  able 
to  understand  how  an  organ  which  has  become  useless  would 
be  rendered,  independently  of  the  effects  of  disuse,  rudimentary, 
and  would  at  last  be  wholly  suppressed  ;  for  the  variations 
towards  diminished  size  would  no  longer  He  checked  by  natural 
selection.  IVie  principle  of  the  economy  of  growth  explained  in 
a  former  chapter  [cited  in  quotation  No.  l],  by  which  the 
materials  forming  any  part,  if  not  useful  to  the  possessor,  are 
saved  as  far  as  possible,  will  perha  )S  come  into  play  in  rendering 
a  useless  part  rudimentary  "  ("  Origin  of  Species,"  sixth  edition, 
pp.  401-402^ 


512 


NATURE 


\April  3,  i8go 


Can  it  be  that  Prof.  Lankester  has  not  even  yet  perceived  the 
significance  of  "the  idea"  of  panmixia?  Such  certainly  seems 
to  be  the  case  from  his  use  of  the  above  quotations.  For  the 
words  which  I  have  italicized  render  it  most  obvious  that  the 
only  principle  under  consideration  is  the  economy  of  growth  or 
nutrition,  i.e.  the  reversal  oi  selection:  there  is  no  allusion  to 
panmixia,  or  the  cessation  of  selection.  In  the  second  passage 
it  is  shown  that,  because  "  no  longer  checked  by  natural  selec- 
tion," useless  organs  will  become  variable ;  and  hence  that  if 
there  were  any  other  cause  tending  to  degeneration  (such  as  the 
"impoverished  conditions"  subsequently  suggested),  natural 
selection  would  not  interfere  vi'iih — /.^.prevent  or  "check" — 
the  degenerating  process  thus  induced.  But  there  is  no  hint 
that  the  mere  cessation  of  natural  selection  must  be  itself,  and  in 
all  cases,  a  cause  of  degeneration. 

Similarly,  at  the  end  of  his  letter,  Prof.  Lankester  again  fails 
to  distinguish  between  the  cessation  and  the  reversal  of  selection. 
For,  after  endeavouring  to  represent  that  Mr.  Darwin  did  not 
understand  my  "view,"-'  he  says,  "  it  is  not  at  all  surprising  that 
Mr.  Darwin  did  not  recognize  any  resemblance  between  it  and 
his  own  statement,  viz.  that  '  the  materials  forming  any  part,  if 
not  useful  to  the  possessor,  are  saved  as  far  as  possible,'  thus 
'rendering  a  useless  part  rudimentary.'"  Not  surprising,  in- 
deed. But  it  is  surprising  that  Prof.  Lankester,  even  at  this 
time  of  day,  should  thus  appear  incapable  of  clearly  distinguish- 
ing between  natural  selection  as  withdrawn  and  as  reversed. 
For  this  is  the  whole  point,  and  the  only  point  so  far  as  "  the 
doctrine  of  panmixia  "  is  concerned.  It  is  a  matter  of  familiar 
knowledge  that  Mr.  Darwin  at  all  times  and  through  all  his 
works  laid  considerable  stress  upon  the  "economy  of  growth," 
(or,  more  generally,  reversed  selection) ;  but,  most  emphatically, 
this  is  not,  as  Prof.  Lankester  now  says  it  is,  "  the  essence  of  the 
anti-Lamarckian  view  of  the  effects  of  disuse."  The  essence  of 
this  view  is,  and  can  only  be,  the  cessation  of  selection,  as  Prof. 
Weismann  has  clearly  perceived.^ 

In  order  that  there  shall  be  no  doubt  upon  this  point,  I  must 
here  explain  the  importance  of  the  cessation  of  selection,  as 
distinguished  from  the  reversal  of  selection,  in  regard  to  "the 
essence  of  the  anti-Lamarckian  view  " — even  though  in  so  doing 
"I  feel  it  rather  a  severe  burden  when  1  am  called  upon  to 
expound  the  merest  commonplaces  of  the  subject  under  dis- 
cussion." 

As  stated  in  my  previous  letter,  "  the  principal  evidence  on 
which  Mr.  Darwin  relied  to  prove  the  inheritance  of  acquired 
characters  was  that  which  he  derived  from  the  apparently  in- 
herited effects  of  use  and  disuse — especially  as  regards  the 
bones  oj  onr  domesticated  animals."  Now,  the  reason  why  our 
domesticated  animals  appeared  to  furnish  the  most  unequivocal 
proof  of  the  inherited  effects  of  disuse  (and  so,  likewise,  of  the 
inherited  effects  of  use,  as  explained  in  my  last  letter)  was  this. 
In  the  case  of  all  species  in  a  state  of  nature,  it  is,  as  Darwin 
observed,  impossible  to  eliminate  the  effects  of  natural  selection 
(acting  through  the  economy  of  growth,  or  otherwise)  from 
those  of  disuse,  supposing  disuse  to  be  a  cause  of  degeneration 
in  species  as  it  is  in  individuals.  Therefore,  in  order  to 
estimate  what,  if  any,  is  the  proportional  part  that  is  played  in 
degeneration  by  the  inherited  effects  of  disuse,  it  is  necessary  to 
find  cases  where  disuse,  if  it  ever  acts  at  all,  must  be  acting 
alone.  Such  cases  Mr.  Darwin  took  to  be  furnished  by  our 
domesticated  animals,   seeing   that    they   are    so    largely   pro- 

'  There  is  something  comical  to  me  in  this  endeavour,  in  view  of  all  the 
conversations  and  correspondence  which  I  had  with  Mr.  Darwin  upon  the 
cessation  of  selection.  Moreover,  I  do  not  in  the  least  agree  with  Prof. 
Lankester  where  he  says  that  my  "view,  as  it  appears  in  Mr.  Darwin's 
words  ('Variation,'  &c  ,  vo'.  ii.  p.  309),  is  certainly  not  the  same  as  that 
which  Mr.  Romanes  has  e.xpounded  in  Nature  of  March  13.  1890."  That 
my  "  view"  is  not.  fully  given,  Mr.  Darwin  himself  affirms  ;  but,  "as  far  as 
it  can  be  given  in  a  few  Wurds,"  it  is  given  as  correctly  as  I  could  wish. 

-  It  appears  to  me  that  Prof.  Lankester  cannot  have  read  Prof.  Weis- 
niann's  expositi  m  of  "the  doctrine  of  panmi.xia."  For,  not  only  does  he 
make  this  otherwise  unaccountable  (and,  in  relation  to  his  "anti-Lamarckian 
view,"  suicidal)  blunder  of  seeking  to  unite,  if  not  virlu^lly  to  identify,  the 
principles  of  panmixia  and  economy  of  growth  ;  but  he  alludes  to  Weismann 
as  having  "stated  briefly"  the  former  principle.  "Stated  briefly"  it 
certainly  is  in  "the  translated  essays  "  ;  but  this  is  only  because  it  is  set  out 
at  length  in  one  of  the  untran.slated  essays,  which  is  entirely  devoted  to  ex- 
pounding the  matter_("  Ueber  den  Kiickschritt  in  der  Natur").  And  this  re- 
minds me  that  in  his  review  of  Mr.  Wallace's  "  Darwinism  "  there  is  a 
passage  which  similarly  indicates  that  Prof.  Lankester  has  either  not  read, 
or  has  strangely  forgotten,  another  of  Weismann's  unpublished  essays. 
Therefore,  seeing  how  ready  he  is,  on  account  of  a  precisely  sim.lar  omission, 
to  jump  upon  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer — whose  recent  and  protracted  illness  is 
notorious — one  can  scarcely  refra.n  from  asking  in  his  own  words,  "Will 
not  Mr.  Spencer  and  others  who  are  interested  in  these  matters  read 
Weismann's  essays  ?  " 


tected  from  the  struggle  for  existence  on  the  one  hand, 
while,  "on  the  other  hand,  with  highly-fed  domesticated 
animals,  there  seems  to  be  no  economy  of  growth,  nor  any 
tendency  to  the  elimination  of  superfluous  details."  Having 
found  in  such  cases  material  for  ascertainingthe  effects  apparently 
caused  by  disuse  alone,  Darwin  concluded  that  he  was  able  to 
estimate  the  degree  in  which  these  effects  occurred  elsewhere, 
or  generally  ;  even  though  in  all  wild  species  they  must  usually 
be  more  or  less  associated  with  the  effects  of  reversed  selection. 
Therefore  it  was  that  he  chose  domesticated  animals  for  all  his 
weighings  and  measurings  of  comparatively  disused  parts — with 
the  result  of  appearing  to  obtain  good  evidence  of  a  high  degree 
of  reduction  as  due  to  the  inherited  effects  of  disuse  alone. 
But  it  did  not  occur  to  him  that  the  amount  of  reduction  thus 
proved  might  be  equally  well  explained,  not  indeed  by  the 
reversal  of  selection  (as  in  wild  species),  but  by  the  cessation  of 
selection,  or  panmixia.  And  it  is  just  because  the  cessation  of 
selection  thus  applies  with  even  more  certainty  to  the  ease  of 
domesticated  animals,  than  does  the  reversal  of  selection  to  the 
ca?e  of  wild  animals,  that  the  former  principle  is  of  such  unique 
importance  to  "  the  essence  of  the  anii-Lamarckian  view  "  :  by 
its  means,  afid  by  its  means  alone,  can  the  apparent  evidence  of 
the  inherited  effects  of  disuse  be  overthrown. 

Therefore,  by  seeking  to  assimilate  the  distinct  principles  of 
selection  as  withdrawn  and  selection  as  reversed,  Prof.  Lankester 
is  performing  but  a  sorry  service  to  his  anti-Lamarckian  cause. 
Weismann  may  well  cry,  "  Save  me  from  my  friends,"  when  he 
finds  them  thus  playing  into  the  hands  of  his  opponents.  For 
on  all  the  logical  bearings  of  his  principle  of  panmixia,  Weis- 
mann has  perfectly  clear  and  accurate  views  ;  and  although  he 
was  not  accurate  in  representing  the  relations  which  obtain 
between  this  principle  and  that  of  reversed  selection,  such  is 
but  a  small  error  compared  with  Lankester's  identification  of 
the  two  principles — with  the  necessary  result  of  again  bringing 
into  court  the  whole  body  of  direct  evidence  on  which  Darwin 
relied  in  his  apparent  proof  of  Lamarck's  "second  law." 

We  shall  now,  perhaps,  be  able  to  understand  what  Prof 
Lankester  means  when  he  says  :  "The  idea  [of  panmixia]  oc- 
curred to  me  also  shortly  after  the  passages  above  quoted  from 
Mr.  Darwin  were  published."  If  this  is  the  case,  "the  idea" 
in  question  must  have  "occurred"  to  Prof.  Lankester  before  he 
had  reached  his  teens,  seeing  that  one  of  "the  passages"  in 
question  is  not  confined  to  "the  last  edition  of  the  '  Origin  of 
Species,'"  but  runs  through  them  all.  Allowing  this  to  pass, 
however,  what  I  have  now  to  remark  is,  that  if  the  idea  which 
occurred  to  Prof.  Lankester  "shortly  after  the  publication  of 
that  work  "  (1872)  was,  as  he  alleges,  the  idea  of  panmixia,  it 
becomes  a  most  unaccountable  fact  that  in  his  laborious  essay 
on  "  Degeneration  "  (1880)  there  is  no  hint  of,  or  even  the  most 
distant  allusion  to,  this  idea.  Yet,  in  the  presence  of  this  idea, 
"  Hamlet "  without  the  Prince  of  Denmark  would  be  a  highly 
finished  work  compared  with  an  essay  on  "Degeneration" 
without  any  mention  of  panmixia.  Therefore,  here  again,  I  can 
only  understand  that  Prof.  Lankester  has  not  even  yet  assimi- 
lated "  the  idea  in  question."  He  confounds  this  idea  with  that 
of  the  economy  of  growth  :  he  fails  to  perceive  the  very 
"  essence  "  of  the  idea,  in  the  all-important  distinction  between 
selection  as  withdrawn  and  selection  as  reversed.  Without  ques- 
tion, his  essay  on  "  Degeneration  "  proves  a  familiar  acquaintance 
with  the  doctrine  that  "the  materials  forming  any  part,  if  not 
useful  to  the  possessor,  are  saved  as  far  as  possible  "  ;  but,  most 
emphatically,  this  is  not  "  the  idea  of  panmixia,"  while  it  is  the 
idea  that  is  definitely  "formulated  "  scores  and  scores  of  times 
through  all  the  editions  of  Mr.  Darwin's  works — an  "idea," 
therefore,  which  must  necessarily  have  "occurred"  to  every 
reader  of  those  works  since  the  time  when  Prof.  Lankester 
was  at  school. 

As  this  letter  has  already  run  to  an  inordinate  length,  I  will 
relegate  to  a  footnote  my  discussion  of  the  merely  personal 
criticisms  which  Prof.  Lankester  has  passed  upon  my  former 
communication.  1  George  J.  Romanes. 

London,  March  28. 

'  Prof.  Lankester  says: — "As  soon  as  the  matter  had  taken  root  in  his 
mind,  Mr.  Romanes  published  in  N.^tuub,  March  12,  April  7,  and  July  2, 
1874,  an  exposition  of  the  importance  of  the  principle  of  cessation  of  selec- 
tion as  a  commentary  upon  a  letter  by  Mr.  Darwin  himself  (Nati;re,  vol. 
viii.  pp.  432,  505),  in  which  Mr.  Darwin  had  suggested  that,  w.th  organisms 
subjected  to  unfavourable  conditions,  all  the  parts  would  tend  towards  reduc- 
tion. Mr.  Darwin,  with  his  usual  kindly  manner  towards  the  suggestions  of 
a  young  writer,  gives,  at  p.  309  of  vol.  ii.  of  'AiOiimals  and  Plants  under 
Domestication,'  Mr.  Romanes's  view,  '  as  fiir  as  it  can  be  given  in  a  few 
Wjrds.'"     Now,  as  it  is  only  a  few  days  ago.  that   I   myself  directed  Prof^ 


April  2),  1890] 


NATURE 


513 


The  Spectrum  of  Subchloride  of  Copper. 

It  is  noticed  in  Nature  (vol.  xli.  p.  383),  as  the  substance 
of  a  paper  read  to  the  Academy  of  Sciences  in  Paris,  on  the 
loth  ult.,  by  M.  G.  Salet,  on  the  blue  flame  of  common  salt, 
and  on  the  spectroscopic  reaction  of  copper-chloride,  that  the 
strongest  lines  of  the  former  flame,  in  the  indigo  and  blue,  are 
due  to  copper-chloride,  and  coincide  with  bands  given  in  M. 
Lecoq  de  Boisbaudran's  "  Spectres  Lumineux." 

Copper  and  chlorine  appear,  from  the  easy  formation  of 
copper- subchloride,  to  have  a  very  unstable  affinity  for  each 
other  ;  and  the  readiness  with  which  copper  itself  seems  to 
volatilize,  as  shown  by  Mr.  John  Parry,  in  his  spectroscopic 
experiments  for  the  Ebbw  Vale  Steel-making  Company  in 
Wales,  on  the  detection  of  impurities  in  iron  and  steel,  by  the 
free  and  wide  diffusion  of  its  vapours  compared  with  those  of 
other  metals  to  a  distance  from  a  blowpipe  flame,  would  per- 
haps tend  to  promote  dissociation  and  to  the  production  of  sub- 
chloride from  chloride  of  copper,  at  least  in  the  presence  of 
reducing-gases,  in  a  flame. 

There  is  a  considerable  general  resemblance  in  respect  of 
place  and  brightness  between  the  groups  of  lines  belonging  to 
chlorine,  and  those  belonging  to  copper-chloride,  as  those  two 
spectra  are  represented  in  M.  Lecoq  de  Boisbaudran's  work. 
But  the  two  spectra  are  of  course  very  far  from  showing  any 
precise  coincidences  with  each  other.  My  attention  was  drawn 
some  time  ago  (in  July  1878,  Nature,  vol.  xviii.  p.  300)  to  a 
set  of  line  bands  of  this  same  description,  in  very  near  corre- 
spondence, apparently  with  the  chief  lines  of  the  copper- 
chloride  spectrum,  which  presented  itself  in  a  violet-blue  flame 
seen  very  frequently  in  ordinary  fires  when  they  have  been  fed 
with  almost  any  kind  of  household  dust  and  rubbish.  But  the 
remarkably  neat  triplet  of  line-pairs — green,  blue,  and  indigo — 
in  this  blue  fire-flame's  spectrum  could  only  be  recognized  as 
very  indistinctly  matched  by  those  chief  lines  of  the  spectrum 
of  copper-chloride,  as  those  are  produced,  for  instance,  by  in- 

Lankester's  attention  to  this  passage,  and  as  it  appears  evident  that  he  has 
not  referred  to  my  original  letters  in  Nature,  I  conclude  that  he  does  not 
know  how  completely  I  there  recorded  my  obligation  to  the  article  by 
Darwin  which  really  first  did  eneender  the  doctrine  of  panmixia.  But,  be  this 
as  It  may,  the  following  is  what  I  wrote  :  — 

"  In  a  former  communication  I  promised  to  advance  what  seemed  to  me 
a  probable  cause -additional  to  those  already  known— of  the  reduction  of 
useless  structures.  As  before  stated,  it  was  suggested  to  me  by  the  pene- 
trating theory  proposed  by  Mr.  Darwin,  to  which,  indeed,  it  is  but  a 
supplement"  (1874). 

Again,  in  1887,  while  anticipating  and  greatly  extending  Prof.  Lankester's 
present  criticism  touching  Mr.  Spencer's  attitude  with  respect  to  panmixia, 
1  said: —  ' 

"The  leading  idea  in  Mr.  Darwin's  suggestion  was  that  impoverished  con. 
ditions  of  life  would  accentuate  the  principle  of  economy  of  nutrition,  and 
so  assist  in  the  reduction  of  useless  structures  by  free  intercrossing.  N  )W, 
in  this  idea,  that  of  the  cessation  of  selection  was  really  implied  ;  but  neither 
m  his  own  article,  nor  in  a  subsequent  letter  by  Mr.  George  Darwin  on  the 
same  subject  (^fATURe,  October  16,  1873),  was  it  exhibited  as  an  inde- 
pendent principle.  Ic  was  inarticulately  wrapped  up  with  the  much  less 
significant  principle  of  impoverished  nutrition." 

The  simple  history  of  the  matter,  therefore,  is  as  follows.  Even  up  to  the 
time  of  publishing  his  article  in  Naturr,  Mr.  Darwin  had  not  perceived  the 
principle  of  panmixia  as  an  "independent  principle  "—any  more  than  Dr. 
Dohrn  perceived  it  in  1875,  or  Prof.  Lankester  perceived  it  in  1880,— which 
niust  act  in  all  cases  of  degeneration,  whether  with  or  without  the  co-operation 
of  reversed  selection  in  the  economy  of  growth,  "impoverished  conditions," 
&c.  Iherefore,  in  the  sixth  edition  of  the  "Origin  of  Species,"  after 
having  explamed  the  phenomena  of  degeneration  by  the  inherited  effects  of 
disuse,  combined  with  ihe  economy  of  growth,  he  proceeds  to  give  very  good 
reasons  for  concluding  that  '"some  additional  explanation  is  here  requisite 
which  I  cannot  give  "  ;  and  he  suggests  that,  "  if  it  could  be  proved  that 
every  part  of  the  organization  tends  to  vary  in  a  greater  degree  towards 
diininution  than  towards  aug  nentation  of  size,  then  iv?  should  be  able  to 
understand  how  an  organ  which  has  become  useless  would  be  rendered, 
tniependently  of  the  effects  of  disuse,  rudimentary,"  &c.  But  although  he 
thus  saw  the  "explanation"  that  was  "requisite,"  he  said  he  was  unable  to 
give  it ;  therefore  at  that  time  he  could  not  have  seen  that  the  cessation  of 
selection  was  exactly  the  explanation  of  which  he  was  in  search— to  wit,  a 
principle  which  must  always  make  every  unused  part  of  the  organization  tend 
to  degenerate.  Later  on,  however,  it  occurred  to  him  that  "  impoven.shed  con- 
ditions, combined  with  intercrossing,  might  lead  to  this  re^ult.  But,  al- 
though he  thus  came  to  such  close  quarters  with  the  idea  of  panmixia  that 
he  immediately  suggested  it  to  me  on  reading  his  exposition,  the  idea  was  still 
entangled  with  that  of  "  impaveri'hed  conditions  "  being  required  in  order  to 
starve  the  degeneratine;  parts.  Therefore,  the  only  hand  that  I  had  in  the 
niatter  was  to  liberate  the  all-important  principle  of  panmixia  from  the  toils 
ot  this  entanglement,  and  thus  to  show  that  it  must  necessarily  act  in  the 
case  K>\all  unused  structures,  with  the  result  of  destroying  the  evidence  of 
the  effects  of  disuse." 

Such  is  a  simple  history  of  the  facts ;  and  my  only  object  in  previously 
alluding  to  the  part  which  I  had  played  in  the  matter  was  not  that  of  claiming 
priority  touchmg  so  very  obvious  an  "idea,"  but  in  order  to  show  h  .w  it 
was  that  Mr.  Uarwin,  through  all  the  editions  of  the  "  Origin  -f  Speues," 
c  mtinued  to  attribute  important  weight  to  a  line  of  ev.d-nce  in  favour  of  the 
innerited  effects  of  disuse,  which  the  doctrine  of  panmixia,  and  the  doctrine 
oj  panmixia  alone,  has  entirely  destroyed. 


troducing  into  a  Bunsen-flame  a  piece  of  copper-foil  well  wetted 
with  hydrochloric  acid  ;  and  no  counterpart  at  all  to  them, 
any  more  than  to  the  ordinary  chloride  of  copper  spectrum, 
could  be  traced  in  the  well  known  blue  fire-flame  of  common 
salt,  in  whose  spectrum,  when  pure,  as  well  as  in  that  of  the 
equally  familiar  blue  fire- flame  (when  pure  also)  of  carbonic 
oxide,  I  do  not  remember  to  have  ever  detected  any  lines  or 
bands  of  greatest  brightness  so  obviously  discernible  and  distinct 
as  to  admit  of  measurements. 

In  the  case  of  a  copper-melting  furnace,  round  the  loose 
junction  of  whose  lid  small  escaping  bodies  of  blue  flame,  on 
one  of  the  days  on  which  I  analyzed  them,  showed  the  well- 
defined  triplet  spectrum  very  neatly,  it  was  afterwards  mentioned 
to  me  (when  that  observation  had  been  noted  at  the  above  place 
in  Nature),  that  pieces  of  ships'  old  copper- sheathings  were 
sometimes  put  into  the  copper-meltiiig  pot  ;  and  just  as  the  use 
of  logs  of  broken-up  ship-timber  (as  was  also  stated  at  that 
place  in  Nature)  explained  a  gorgeous  blaze  of  this  flame's 
fine  blue  colour  in  a  London  house-fire  very  satisfactorily,  so 
foreign  importations  by  salt  into  waste-materials  from  seaworn 
ships,  might  by  such  a  practice's  occurrence  as  this  in  the 
melting  furnace,  account  very  well  for  the  presence  of  chlorine 
along  with  copper  in  the  furnace  efflagrations  which  showed  the 
neat  and  easily  recognized  line-spectrum  on  one  of  the  days  of 
my  spectroscopic  examinations  of  them,  very  plainly.  Neglected 
scraps  of  brass  and  copper  become,  however,  so  soon  contamin- 
ated with  chlorine  in  nearly  all  situations,  that  it  suflices,  in 
general,  to  throw  any  rusty  piece  of  them,  sujh  as  an  old,  dirty 
piece  of  thin  brass  or  copper  wire,  among  the  glowing  coals  of 
a  bright  fire,  to  produce  this  peculiar-spectrumed  blue  flame  in 
the  hottest  crevices  of  the  fuel. 

The  nature  of  this  flame,  since  it  differs  very  materially,   by 
the  simplicity  of  its  spectrum,  from  the  ordinary  one  of  chloride 
of  copper,  although  in  the  strong  point  of  line-positions  there  is 
a  partial  feature  of  similitude  in  the  spectra  of  the  two  flame-;  by 
which  they   agree    very   nearly   with    each    other,    remained  a 
mystery  to  me  for  several  years  ;  but  about  four  years  ago   I 
chanced  by  good  fortune  to  hit  upon  a  compound,  in  some  ex- 
periments on  subchloride  of  copper,  which  yielded  in  a  flame, 
at  least  a  successful  imitation,  if  not,    as  seems  most   probable, 
the  really  natural  and  perfectly  exact  reproduction  of  it.    Copper 
subchloride  is  easily  obtained  by  evaporating  hydrochloric  acid 
to  dryness  in  an  open  dish  on  an  excess  of  wire  clipping-;  or 
other  small  fragments  of  metallic  copper.     It  is  a  dark  greenish- 
brown  powder,   which  easily  deliquesces,    and    by    absorbing 
oxygen,  if  exposed  to  the  air,  is  soon  converted  into  the  green 
chloride  of  copper.     For  the  spectroscopic  purpose  it  should  be 
dissolved  when  first  formed,  and  dry,  in  about  its  own  weight  of 
hot  glycerine,  and  the  solution  be  allowed  to  cool  in  a  well- 
corked  bottle.     This  pasty  solution  inflames,  when  heated  on  a 
wire,  and  burns  with  the  peculiar-spectrumed  violet-blue  flame 
which  is  observable  in  common  fires  when  contaminations  of 
copper  by  chlorine  are  introduced  among  the  fuel,  in   its  hottest 
parts.     Although  these  contaminations  in  the  state  of  exposure 
to  common   air    probably  all    consist   of  ordinary   chloride   of 
copper,  yet  among  the  interstices  of  the  fire,  by  the  presence  of 
hot  fuel  and  great  abundance  of  carbonic  oxide,  they  doubtless 
undergo  reduction  to  subchloride,  and,  in  place  of  the  many 
lined  and  banded  green-flaming  spectrum  of  ordinary  copper- 
chloride,    the  far    simpler    and    symmetrically  grouped    one  nf 
three  line-pairs — green,   blue,    and    indigo — belonging  to  sub- 
chloride   of   copper    vapour    presents    itself  in    the  fine    bluu 
tint   which   the   fire's    flames   assume,   one    may  suppose,    by 
chloride's  reduction  to  subchloride,  and  by  the  infinitesimal  ad- 
mixture in  them  of  this  latter  foreign  substance.     The  varieties 
of  tint,  from  blue  below  to  green  above,  which  a  Bunsen-flame 
exhibits  when   chloride  of  copper   is    introduced   into   it,    are 
probably  due  to  the  same  chemical  conversion,  in  dependence 
on  the  reducing  or  oxidizing  constitution  of  the  flame  in  its  inner 
and  outer  layers,  which  most  purely  exhibit  the  two  different 
colorations. 

To  produce  the  subchloride  of  copper  spectrum  very  purely, 
the  thinnest  possible  smear  of  its  pasty  solution  in  glycerine, 
on  one  side  of  a  narrow  strip  of  paper,  suffices  very  amply, 
since  its  colouring  effect  upon  the  flame,  when  the  strip  is  rolled 
up  into  a  spill  and  lisjhted,  is  very  powerful.  Chlorate  of 
potash  powder,  kneaded  up  with  the  glycerine  solution,  burns 
also  self-supportingly  with  the  characteristic  rich  blue  colour, 
but  the  spectrum  in  this  case,  and  also  when  the  paper  stain  of 
the  glycerine  solution  is  left  long  exposed  to  air  upon  the  strip 


514 


NATURE 


yApril  3,  1690 


of  paper,  is  apt  to  lose  its  purity  and  acquire  confusing  lines 
nnd  bands  of  ordinary  copper-chloride,  by  oxidation,  which  the 
preparation  then  undergoes  spontaneously,  before  igniting  it. 
For  pyrotechnists,  therefore,  it  seems  scarcely  probable  that  the 
subchloride  of  copper,  with  its  pure  cerulean  flame,  will  ever 
be  of  any  very  useful  valae.  Bat  as  a  parallel  example  of  a 
coloured-fire  composition,  it  may  be  mentioned  here,  that 
powdered  V.al  Traversite  (a  bituminous  linestone  found  near 
Neuchatel,  in  Switzerland),  on  account  of  its  prodigious  natural 
richness  ia  bitumen,  when  mixed  with  sufficient  chlorate  of 
])otash,  also  burns  self-supportingly,  with  a  fine  orange-red 
flame  in  which  the  familiar  spectrum  of  calcic  oxide  is,  of 
course,  most  vivid.  Were  hot  asphalt,  pitch,  or  bitumen,  instead 
of  hot  glycerine,  used  to  dissolve  or  to  "masticate"  the  dry  sub- 
chloride  of  copper  when  it  is  freshly  made,  a  copper-chlorinated 
mass  would  be  produced  which  would  probably  be  capable  of 
resisting  atmospheric  action,  and  whose  mixture  with  chlorate  of 
potash  would,  like  the  similar  Val-Traversite  mixture,  probably 
also  not  suffer  by  keejiing  and  exposure,  and  would  furnish  a 
source  of  blue  flame  and  of  the  significantly  simple  spec  rum  of 
subchloride  of  copper,  not  less  vividly  true  and  fixed  in  their 
distinctness,  than  the  orange.-red  light  and  strongly  pronounced 
calcic-oxide  spectrum  of  the  other  combination  of  chlorate  of 
potash  with  a  bituuien-contnining  substance. 

As  regards  the  blue  salt-flaine,  whose  spectrum  in  its  purity 
shows  no  conspicuous  lines,  or  bands  of  greatest  brightness, 
it  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  the  element  chlorine,  from  the 
positions  of  its  own  principal  line  groups,  contributes  mainly  to 
produce  the  blue  color.uion,  at  a  temperature,  in  the  fire,  which 
is  not  high  enough  to  dissoci'te  the  sodic  chloride  and  liberate 
sodium  vapour,  with  its  tell-tale  yellow  line,  from  its  chemical 
union.  In  the  green  flame  of  chloride  of  copper  the  colour- 
ing groups  of  lines  show  a  more  detailed  resemblance  than  this 
to  the  chief  colorific  lines  in  the  elementary  chlorine  spectrum,' 
while  in  copper  subchloiide's  "bluest  of  blue"  flames,  the 
wide  green  light-bands  of  copper  chloride  fade  out,  leaving  the 
colorific  light  concentrated  almost  entirely  in  three  close  pairs, 
or  in  six  bright  lines,  which,  if  they  do  not  coincide  in  place 
with,  are  at  least   not   far  distant   in   position   from,  three  chief 

'  A  very  suggestive  example  of  a  substance's  detect!  m  by  rec  gnition  of 
its  spectrum  was  described,  with  a  drawm^;  of  'he  rec  Tied  spectra,  by  Mr. 
A.  Percy  Smith,  in  a  short  notice  uf  a  series  i>f  observations  on  the  sp-ictra 
of  chlorides,  and  on  the  h\\xt  fla  ne  .  f  c  imm  n  sa't.  in  the  Chemical  News, 
V  )1.  39,  p.  14'  (1S79).  An  examination  of  the  flime-spectra  ^f  several 
different  chlorides,  e  .abled  the  author  of  that  noti  e  to  recognize  a  comnon 
similarity  am  >ng  them  a'l  to  the  spark-  or  flame-spectnim  >  f  hydroch'oric 
acid  gas.  This  gas  showed  a  belt  of  green  line-ban  Is  which  ajrerd  in  ih-ir 
man  positions  with  the  green  portio.i  of  a  long  array  of  ban  l-pair  shown 
with  much  constancy  by  several  different  alka  in-  and  earthy  chlorides,  and 
especially  by  ammonium  chio  ide,  and  by  merciirous  chloride  (or  ca'omel. 
where  tlie  agreement  was  also  verified  by  a  direct  c  imparison),  in  a  Bun.sen 
flame  ;  but  no  lin--c  lunterpar  s  to  the  equally  bright,  blue-lined  portion  of 
the  same  constant  spectral  striaiion  were  obs-^rvable  in  the  hydrochi  ric  acid 
spectrum. 

From  the  easy  conveision  of  ch'orides  into  the  correspinding  oxides  in  a  1 
air-gas  flame,  when  the  flam:  is  not  kept  artific  ally  saturated  with  hydro- 
chloric acid  gas,  we  might  prety  certainly  assume  that  in  the  flame's 
ordinary  condition,  the  heated  chl  irides  would  always  di^eng  ge  suffic.ent 
chlorine  to  produce  by  comb  na  ion  wiih  hydr  gen  in  tlie  coal-gas  of  the 
flame,  traces  of  the  stable  product,  hydrochloric  acid  gas.  among  the  gaes 
of  the  flame's  combustion  ;  and  the  different  chlorides  would  thus,  by  sup- 
positions whic'n  may  not  perhaps  be  unlike  y  an  i  ina  imis.sib  e,  all  supply  the 
flame  alike  with  the  ^ub.stantlal  fac.or  needed,  for  tlie  appearance  of  the 
green  line  portion  of  the  constant  .spe  trum. 

At  the  same  time  new  carbon-compounds  w.  u'd  be  formed  by  dehydration 
of  the  flame's  gaseous  hydrocarbons,  to  furnish  hydrogen  10  the  liberated 
chlorine,  and  ■■ome  constant  carbon-gases  then,  of  11  t  yet  known  descrip- 
tions, might  be  conjecturel  just  as  comprehens'blv  and  fi  ly,  10  be  c  n- 
currently  productive  in  the  constant  chloride-r.uik's  illumination,  of  the  blue- 
line  porti  Ml  of  its  bands,  •  f  which  no  spectral  counterparts  could  be  detected 
in  the  hydrochloric  aCid  sjectruni. 

But  whether  ihe  interestii'u  figure  and  decrlption  given  by  Mr.  A.  Percy 
Sm'th  in  the  ab  ve  paper,  of  his  long  series  of  experiment-,  may  or  may  not 
admit  of  such  a  simple  spectro  ch-m  cal  int  rpre.ation  the  conflicts  <f  con- 
tending chemiral  affinities  of  wh.ch  the  spectro.scopic  recognition  ot  hydro- 
chi .ric  acid  in  flames  fed  with  d  ff  rcn.  chlorides  lurnLshes  such  a  wonderful 
example,  give  weight  and  va'ue  to  the  notes  of  the  discovery  recorded  by 
Mr.  A.  Percy  S  uith,  in  a  ne*-  wide  field  T  the  .spectroscope's  utility,  wh  ch 
areof  much  deep=rinteres'  tban  any  single  theory  to  account  only  f  jr  th.s 
particular  reiogn't'on  and  discovery  itself. 

Mr.  A.  Percy  Smth'sowii  c  ipitally  based,  and  clearly  prjved  deductions 
from  his  numerous  expert. ne. its,  were  acco-dingly.  in  prospect  of  their 
further  pro.ecuti  jn,  expressed  thus,  quite  ge.ierally  :— that  the  blue  flime  of 
common  salt  in  a  hot  fire  owe;  its  col  ritio  1  to  reactions  eiiher  exactly  or 
very  neai-ly  sim  lar  to  those  which  produce  resemblance  uf  a  nearly  constant 
spectral  type  in  different  chloride  flames,  to  that  of  iiydrochljric  acid  ;  and 
that,  aga  n,  among  the  partly  undetermined,  an  i  perhaps  t)  some  ex;ent 
variable  re<ctims  which  pr  iduce  tne  similar.ty,  there  appear  to  be  .so  ne 
which  disturb  and  mo  tify  th;  odiaa'y  app-.aranc;  of  ih;  h  .'drochloric 
acid  spectrum,  and  wh.ch  would  appear  t>  superadd  to  it  a  series  of 
blue  line-bands  which,  as  it  is  presented  in  a  fl  ime,  or  elec  rically  in  vacuum 
tii'^ps.  the  spectrum  of  pure  hydrochloric  acid  gas  a^one  does  not  usuilly 
exhibit. 


line-pairs  in  the  ordinary  spectrum  of  chloride  of  copper.  There 
is  much  in  these  resemblances  which  betokens  some  kind  of 
continuity  of  connection  with  the  primary  features  of  the  chlorine 
spectrum  itself;  the  evidences  of  "hich,  although  thus  displayed 
by  cop  er  and  chlorine  in  the  spectroscope,  may  perhaps  be 
sensibly  regarded  as  having  some  near  relation  of  analogy  to  the 
appearance  of  variable  chemical  combining  power  under  the  in- 
fluence of  light,  between  silver  and  chlorine,  presented  in 
photography.  But  there  is  also,  undoubtedly,  a  very  marked 
distinctioT  between  the  "spectroscopic  reactions"  of  these  two 
different  copper  chlorides  ;  and,  similarly,  there  are  in  the 
apparently  mutable  photochemical  affinity  between  silver  and 
chlorine  in  photography,  two  fairly  stable  delimitations  of  its 
range,  in  the  "subchloride"  (or  as  it  has  been  termed  by  Mr. 
Clement  Lea,  the  "  photochloride  ")  of  silver,  and  inordinary 
silver-chloride.  Further  discriminations  of  the  copper-chloride 
spectra  in  intermediate  forms  which  they  seem  to  comprise 
transitionally  between  the  two  definite  ones  of  the  chloride  anrl 
subchloride,  would  perhaps  extend  and  strengthen  this  analogy, 
and  may  not  impossibly  help,  at  some  future  time,  to  explain  and 
illustrate  it,  if  there  is  any  real  soundness  in  it,  more  fully  and 
completely. 

The  example  of  fluoride  of  calcium  is  a  curious  one  in  spectrum 
analysis,  where  s])rinkling  fluor-spar  dust  in  a  Bunsen-flame 
produces,  in  addition  to  the  normal  calcic  oxide  spectrum  of  one 
orange  red  and  one  green  band,  a  second  bright  and  narrow 
green  one  at  a  distance  from  the  first  about  equal  to  that  of  the 
red  band  from  it.  There  are  no  other  distinguishable  bands. 
But  if  the  pair  of  normal  ones  is  reallv  due  to  calcium-oxide 
vapour  produced  by  decomposition  in  the  flame,  it  is  not  very 
easy  to  conjecture  to  what  other  product  of  decompositi  )n  the 
adclitional,  sharj^ly  defined  and  brilliant,  solitary  green  band  can 
be  ascribed.  The  spectrum  of  hydroflunsilicic  acid  gas  presents 
a  very  gorgeous  band-array  of  violet-blue  lines,  whose  lustrous 
group  is  pr.  ibably  indicaive  of  near  neighbourhood  in  place  to 
some  bright  line  concentration  in  the  spec  rum  of  fluorine  itself; 
but  if  so,  the  collection  of  its  colorific  strength  in  the  single 
additional  green  line  of  the  fluor-spar  spectrum,  seems  to  imply 
a  freedom  from  uniformity  in  fluorine's  power  of  imparting 
spectral  coloration  to  its  C'unpounds,  jut  opposite  to  the  sensible 
continuity  and  kinship  o{  spectral  clusterings,  above  described, 
which  the  presence  of  chlorine  appears  to  impose  upon  its  com- 
pounds by  common  resemblances  discernible  in  the  blue  light- 
ascendencies  of  the  fire-flames  of  common  salt,  chloride  and 
subchloride  of  copper,  when  they  are  spe^trosc<)]:)ically  analyzed. 

A.  S.  Hei-ischel. 

Observatory  House,  Slough,  March  3. 

Brush-Turkeys  on  the  Smaller  Islands  North  of 
Celebes. 
The  reviewer  of  Dr.  Hickson's  book,  "A  Naturalist  in  North 
Celebes"  (March  20,  p.  458),  believes  that  the  brush-turkey  or 
moleo,  Megacephalon  inalto,  has  never  been  recorded  as  occurring 
in  the  smaller  islands  north  of  Celebes.  I  beg  to  remark  that  in 
the  year  1879  I  recorded  this  species  from  Siao,  and  in  the  year 
18S4  from  Great  Sangi,  on  botli  of  which  islands,  besides,  occuis 
a  Alegapodhis  peculiar  to  them,  viz.  M.  sanghirens's,  Schlegel, 
representing  there  iVl.  gUberti,  Gray,  from  Celebes  (see  the  Ibis, 
1879,  p.  139  ;  his,  1884,  pp.  6  and  53,  &c.).  Perhaps  Mr. 
GuiHemard  did  not  c  mprise  Siao  and  Great  Sangi  under  the 
head  of  "smaller  islands,"  but  Dr.  Hickson  himsell  ([>.  95)  re- 
cords two  brush-turkeys  from  the  smaller  island  of  Tagulanclang, 
a  larger  and  a  smaller  one,  and  these  must  be  Aiegaccphalon 
maleo  and  a  Megapodiiis,  Tagulandang  is  situated  between 
Celebes  and  Siao,  and  much  nearer  t  >  the  latter  island.  F'rom 
the  volcano  islet  of  Ruang,  o|jposi;e  and  within  about  a  mile 
from  Tagulandang,  he  only  records  (p.  41)  one  brush-turkey,  and 
this,  of  course,  may  be  either  the  Megacephalon  or  a  Megapodiiis, 
if  both  do  not  occur,  as  appears  rather  probable.  When  I 
visited  Ruang  in  1871  after  the  heavy  eruption  in  March  of  that 
year  (see  Nature,  vol.  iv.  p.  286),  ne.irly  the  whole  of  its 
forest  was  destroyed  and  burnt  down,  and  I  do  not  believe 
that  a  living  brush-turkey  then  remained  on  the  islet  ;  but  it  has 
since  been  repeopled  froin  its  near  neighbour,  Tagulandang,  where 
both  species  occur,  and  therefore,  if  the  one  could  reach  Ruang,, 
the  other  may  have  reached  it  loo.  This  is  of  no  consequence  at 
all.  Dr.  Hickson's  follov\ing  remark  as  to  brush-turkeys  on 
Tagulandang  (p.  95),  "The  larger  bird  is  perhaps  the  Megapo- 
dius  sanghirctnis  of  Schlegel,  a  brush  turkey,  which  is  l>igger 
than  the  AJegarepIia'on,  and  extends  over  the  Sangir  Islands," 
contains  a  mistake,  as  M.  sanghirensis  is  much  smaller  than 


April  3,  1890] 


NATURE 


D^D 


Megacephalon  milco.  The  reviewer  corrects,  by  the  way,  my 
calling  the  Celebean  whimbrel  Ntiineniiis  plueopus,  saying  that  it 
is  probably  N.  uropvgialis,  but  these  two  names  are  synonymical, 
cf.  for  instance,  Salvadori,  Orn.  Pap.,  ill.,  332,  1882,  sub  N. 
varicgatiis.  As  to  its  nesting  on  small  trees  "small  brushes" 
were  intended  to  be  implied  (see  I-egge,  "Birds  of  Ceylon," 
1880,  p.  913).  A.  B.  Meyer. 

Royal  Zoological  Museum,  Dresden,  March  22. 

Crystals  of  Lime. 

It  was  pointed  out  to  me  by  Mr.  W.  J.  Pope,  of  the  City 
and  Guilds  of  London  Institute,  that  a  lime  cylinder  which  had 
been  used  in  the  lantern  during  a  lecture  had  become  distinctly 
crystalline  where  affected  by  the  oxyhydrogeu  flame. 

Examined  under  the  microscope  hy  polarized  light,  the  crystals 
are  seen  to  be  well-definetl  cubes  with  striated  faces.  When 
immersed  in  water  they  break  up  and  give  rise  10  minute  doubly 
refracting  plates  of  rhombic  outline,  behaving  in  this  respect  like 
ordinary  lime ;  the  cubic  crystals,  however,  are  less  rapidly 
affected  by  exposure  either  to  air  or  water  than  is  amorphous 
lime. 

Lime  is  commonly  stated  to  be  infusible  at  the  temperature  of 
the  oxyhydrogen  blow-pipe  ;  and  the  only  crystals  previously 
recorded,  so  far  as  I  know,  are  those  obtained  by  Briigelmann, 
by  fusing  calcium  nilra'e  {Annalen  der  Pliysik  und  Ckemie, 
ii.  p.  466,  iv.  p.  277,  1877-78).  It  seems,  therefore,  worthy 
of  notice  that  they  are  possibly  always  formed  upon  the  surface 
of  the  lime  cylinders  by  the  action  of  the  oxyhydrogen  flame. 

The  crystals  resemble  in  all  respects  those  described  by 
Brilgelmann.  The  jet  used  on  the  present  occasion  was  an 
ordinary  blow-through  jet.  II.   A.  Miiius. 

Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

I  AM  glad  to  see  that  Mr.  Garstang  agrees  with  me  in  regard- 
ing the  presence  of  the  Ascidians  on  Hyas  as  accidental. 

I  had  no  intention  of  decrying  the  value  of  Mr.  (iarstang's 
experiments  with  Ascidians,  but  his  rule  might,  perhaps,  be 
limited  to  those  members  of  the  group  to  which  it  can  be  proved 
to  apply.  Under  natural  conditions  it  apparently  fails  to  apply 
to  /■'.  cornigafa  and  AP.  arenosa.  As  to  the  latter,  Prof.  Mclnto  h 
assures  me  that  he  has  frequently  found  it  in  the  stomach  of  the 
cod  and  haddock. 

The  appreciation  of  the  cod  for  A.  meseinbryanthe/num  is,  I 
think,  sufficiently  proved  by  the  fact  that  the  latter  is  one  of  the 
most  successful  cod-baits  used  here. 

Ernest  W.   L.  Holt. 

St.  Andrews  Marine  Laboratory,  March  29. 

Wimshurst  Machine  ani  Hertz's  Vibrator. 

It  may  interest  those  who  wish  to  repeat  Hertz's  experiments 
on  electro-magnetic  radiation  to  kmw  ihat  many  of  these  can  be 
done  very  well  by  using  a  small  Wimshurst  machine  in  place 
of  the  usual  induction  coil  and  battery.  The  vibrator  and  re- 
sonator which  we  used  were  like  those  described  in  Nature 
(vol.  xxxix.  p.  548),  and  the  Wimshurst  machine  had  two 
12-inch  plates  (giving  at  most  with  the  jars  on  a  4-inch  spark). 
The  wires  from  the  vibrator,  instead  of  being  connected  with  an 
induction  coil,  were  connected  with  the  two  ouier  coatings  of  the 
jars  of  the  machine.  The  machine  spark  gap  and  the  vibrator 
spark-gap  should  be  so  adjusted  that  when  a  spark  occurs  at 
the  former  one  also  occurs  at  the  latter.  With  the  apparatus 
described  we  got  good  results  when  the  spark-gaps  were  38  mm. 
and  3  mm.  respectively.  The  outer  coatings  of  the  jars  are  only 
connected  together  by  the  wood  of  the  machine,  but  it  is  some- 
times an  advantage  to  put  a  few  inches  of  damp  string  between 
the  balls  of  the  vibrator. 

This combination.is  obviously  a  modification,  adapted  to  work 
a  Hertz  vibrator,  of  one  of  Dr.  Lodge's  well-known  Leyden  jar 
arrangements. 

No  doubt  many  persons  have  connected  the  vibrator  direct'y 
with  the  terminals  of  the  machine,  but  this  arrangement  does  not 
work  nearly  so  well.  T.  A.  Garrett. 

W.  Lucas. 

THE  INSTITUTION  OF  NAVAL  ARCHITECTS. 

HTHE  annual  meeting  of  the  Institution  of  Naval  Ar- 

-*•       chitects   was  held  under  the   presidency  of   Lord 

Raven  sworth,  on  Wednesday,  Thursday,  and   Friday  of 


last  week.  There  was  a  fair  list  of  papers  on  the  pro- 
gramme, although  at  one  time,  shortly  before  the  meeting,  • 
it  was  leared  that  there  would  be  a  sad  lack  of  contribu- 
tions from  meinbers.  At  the  last  minute,  however,  one' 
or  two  papers  came  in,  and  the  list,  although  perhaps 
below  the  average  in  the  importance  of  the  memoirs, 
was  of  passable  interest. 

The  following  is  a  consecutive  enumeration  of  the 
business  that  was  transacted  at  the  meeting:  — 

Wednesday,  March  26th  :  inorning  sitting — Annual 
Report  of  the  Council,  an  J  other  routine  business ;  Address 
by  the  President.  Paper  read  and  discussed — Notes  on 
the  recent  naval  manteuvres,  by  Mr.  W.  H.  White, 
F.R.S.,  Director  of  Naval  Construction. 

Thursday,  March  27th  :  morning  sitting— The  Mari- 
time Conference,  by  Rear-Admiral  P.  H.  Colomb ; 
strength  of  ships,  with  special  reference  to  distribution  of 
shearing  stress  over  transverse  section,  by  Prof.  P. 
Jenkins  ;  steatite  as  a  pigment  for  anti-corrosive  paints, 
by  Mr.  F.  C.  Goodall.  Evening  sitting — ^On  the  evapora- 
tive efficiency  of  boilers,  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Stromeyer  ;  on 
the  application  of  a  system  of  combined  sleain  and 
hydraulic  machinery  to  the  loading,  discharging,  and 
steering  of  steam-ships,  by  Mr.  A.  B.  Brown  ;  the 
revolving  engine  applied  on  ship-board,  by  Mr.  Arthur 

Friday,  March  28th  :  morning  sitting — On  leak  stopping 
in  steel  ships,  by  Captain  C.  C.  Penrose  Fitzgerald,  R.N.  : 
on  the  variation  of  stresses  on  vessels  at  sea  due  to  wave 
motion,  by  Mr.  T.  C.  Read  ;  spontaneous  combustion  in 
coal  ships,  by  Prof.  Vivian  Lewes.  Evening  sitting- 
Experiments  with  life-boat  models,  by  Mr.  J.  Corbett ;  on 
the  screw  propeller,  by  Mr.  James  Howden. 

The  annual  dinner  was  held  on  the  evening  of 
Wednesday. 

Out  of  the  above  list  of  a  dozen  papers  there  were  fewer 
than  usual  of  scientific  interest,  and,  indeed,  in  one  or 
two  instances  they  were  not  either  distinguished  by  prac- 
tical interest.  Mr.  White's  paper,  which  formed  \\\^  piece 
de  resistance  of  the  meeting,  was  of  military  rather  than 
scientific  importance,  and  was  chiefly  notable  from  the 
number  of  admirals  that  took  part  in  the  discussion  ; 
indeed,  the  whole  naval  contingent  of  the  Board  of 
Admiralty  was  present  to  hear  the  paper  read.  Admiral 
Colomb's  paper  on  the  recent  Washington  Maritime  Con- 
ference was  practically  reduced  to  a  consideration  of  the 
rule  of  the  road  at  sea.  The  general  opinion  of  the 
authorities  assembled  appeared  to  be  that  the  present  rule 
of  the  road  is  very  well  as  it  stands,  with  the  exception 
that  the  "  holding-on  ship"  should  not  be  required,  or 
even  allowed,  to  slacken  her  speed.  This  seems  in 
conformity  with  common  sense.  If  two  ships  arc- 
converging  towards  a  point,  say  at  right  angles 
to  each  other,  and  one  shifts  her  helm  to  go  under 
the  other's  stern,  if  the  second,  or  holding-on  ship, 
slacken  speed,  the  probability  will  be  that  the  giving-way 
ship  will  crash  into  the  other's  broadside  or  cross  her 
bows  ;  in  the  latter  case,  there  is  probability  that  the 
holding-on  ship  will  give  the  other  her  stem.  What  \=> 
most  wanted  when  danger  of  collision  arises,  is  certainty 
on  each  vessel  as  to  what  the  oih.r  may  be  going  to  do. 
If  the  holding-on  ship  never  slacken  speed— is  not 
allowed  to  slacken  speed— then  the  other  vessel  knows 
exactly  what  course  to  take  ;  as  the  law  stands,  the 
quartermaster,  or  officer  in  charge,  is  never  quite  sure 
until  the  last  minute,  e-pecially  at  night,  whether  the 
other  ship  considers  there  is  danger  of  collision  or  not, 
and,  therefore,  whether  she  will  slacken  or  keep  to  fiill 
speed.  We  anticipate  the  proposed  alteration,  if  put  in 
force,  will  greatly  lessen  the  list  of  collisions. 

The  memoir  contributed  by  Prof.  Jenkins  on  the 
strength  of  ships  was  decidedly  the  most  important 
contribution  to  naval  science  of  this  year's  meeting. 
The  paper  will  open  up  to  the  majority  of  those  pract.- 


5'6 


NA  TORE 


[April  3,  1890 


cally  engaged  in  the  design, of  ships  a  new  field  of  research, 
the  investigation  of  which  will  enable  tfiem  to  solve 
some  problems  which  have  hitherto  been  without  ex- 
planation. T  hat  is,  speaking  generally — for  the  influence 
of  longitudinal  bending  moment  on  shearing  stress  has 
before  been  investigated  by  naval  architects  ;  notably 
by  Mr.  W.  H.  White,  the  Director  of  Naval  Construc- 
tion, and  Mr.  W,  John.  This,  however,  was  many 
years  ago,  and  in  connection  with  wooden  ships  with 
no  longitudinal  connection  between  the  planking  except 
that  supplied  by  dowells,  the  friction  of  the  edge?,  and 
the  ■'  anchor-stock "  shape  of  the  pieces.  It  will  be 
evident,  therefore,  that  previous  investigations  must 
have  been  of  a  qualitative,  rather  than  of  a  quantita- 
tive, form  ;  and  the  world  of  naval  architecture  is  much 
indebted  to  the  occupant  of  the  John  Elder  Chair  at 
Glasgow  for  putting  the  problem  on  a  practical  quanti- 
tative basis. 

The  paper  contributed  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Stromeyer  had  a 
most  attractive  title,  "  The  Evaporative  Efficiency  of 
Boilers " ;  and  a  good  many  of  the  working  marine 
engineer  members  of  the  Institution,  who  were  acquainted 
with  the  thorough  manner  in  which  the  author  follows  up 
all  his  work,  had  assembled  to  hear  the  paper  read,  and 
take  part  in  the  discussion.  We  are  afraid  it  must  have 
been  somewhat  of  a  disappointment  to  several  of  these 
gentlemen  when  they  turned  over  the  leaves  of  the  paper 
as  it  was  placed  in  their  hands,  and  found  that  the  matter 
was  rather  of  a  suggestive  than  of  a  conclusive  character. 
There  is  so  much  business  to  be  crowded  into  the  three 
days'  annual  meeting  of  this  Institution  that  it  is  necessary 
the  papers  should  be  read  with  despatch  ;  and  we  quite 
sympathize  with  the  engineer  whose  daily  task  js  of  an 
administrative  rather  than  a  contemplative  nature,  when 
he  is  asked  to  assimilate  at  a  galloping  pace  two  or  three 
pages  of  mathematical  formula;  of  by  no  means  an 
every-day  character. 

Mr.  Stromeyer  cor  fined  himself  chiefly  to  a  considera- 
tion of  the  relative  distribution  of  efficie;  cy  in  the  tubes. 
He  points  out  that  the  distribution  is  governed  partly  by 
the  temperatures  in  the  combustion-chamber  and  smoke 
box,  and  partly  by  the  resistance  of  gas  in  the  tubes  and 
this  again  depends  upon  the  velocity  and  temperature 
of  the  gas,  and  on  the  loss  of  heat  experienced  by  it. 
Mr.  Longridge  has  found  that  the  coefficient  of  trans- 
mission of  heat  through  boiler-tubes  or  combustion- 
chamber  plates  is  eleven  calories  of  heat  per  square  foot 
per  hour  for  every  degree  F.  of  difference  between  the 
gas  and  the  water  :  0*09 1  is  the  reciprocal  value,  and  is 
the  resistance  offered  to  the  flow  of  heat  under  the  above 
condition.  This  resistance  is  offered  when  heat  passes 
from  one  medium  to  another,  as,  for  instance,  from  the 
gas  to  the  metal,  from  the  metal  to  the  boiler  scale,  or  to 
the  water,  and  it  also  includes  the  resistance  offered  by 
the  metal  to  the  scale.  For  iron  and  boiler  scale  the  re- 
sistances are  o"oo202  and  0207  per  inch  thickness  ;  so 
that  a  clean  |-inch  plate  would  offer  o  001  resistance;  or, 
if  covered  with  scale  one-tenth  inch  thick,  the  resistance 
would  be  o"ooi  +  0*02 1  —  0*022. 

Arguing  from  these  facts  the  author  concludes  that  the 
chief  resistance,  about  80  per  cent,  is  encountered  at  the 
surfaces  ;  and  he  doubts  whether  the  change  of  medium 
from  iron  to  scale,  and  to  water,  influences  the  values  very 
much.  The  chief  difficulty  in  transmitting  heat  from  the 
gas  to  the  tubes  is  want  of  circulation,  or  admixture  of  gas 
in  the  tubes.  He  speaks  favourably  of  draught  retarders, 
corrugated  tubes,  and  ribbed-tubes  for  the  purpose. 

Mr.  Stromeyer  next  refers  to  the  experiments  of 
Haverez  (see  Ann.  du  Genie  Civil,  1874),  by  whom  it  was 
shown  that  more  heat  is  absorbed  in  the  fire-box  with 
flaming  material  than  with  flameless  coke.  It  is  well 
known  that  a  luminous  flame  radiates  more  heat  than 
one  which  is  non-luminous  ;  and  it  is  for  this  reason  that 
the  latter  may  not  be  used  in  the  Siemens-Martin  furnace. 


For  reasons^iven,  Mr.  Stromeyer  would  prefer  that,  in 
the  formulcTeused  by  Mr.  Longridge  for  heating  boiler 

tubes,  the  coefficient  of  resistance       should  be  somewhat 

in 

increased  ;  say  from  o'ogi  to  o-i.  This  the  author  works 
out  in  detail.  We  have  stripped  Mr.  Stromeyer's  argu- 
ments of  their  mathematical  aspect,  as,  howei^er  interest- 
ing the  matter  may  be,  we  have  not  space  to  do  it  justice. 
We  must  refer  those  of  our  readers  who  are  sufficiently 
interested  in  the  subject  to  the  Transactions  of  the 
Institution. 

Mr.  Macfatlane  Gray,  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  was  the 
chief  speaker  in  the  discussion  which  followed.  He  said 
he  could  not  pretend  at  one  reading  to  follow  the  author 
in  all  his  reasoning.  Mr.  Fothergill,  who  is  the  superin- 
tending engineer  to  a  north  country  line  of  steamers, 
gave  the  meeting  the  benefit  of  his  practical  knowledge 
upon  the  subject.  Mr.  Fothergill  is  well  qualified  to 
speak  on  the  question  of  the  evaporative  efficiency  of 
marine  boilers,  as  he  has  made  an  especial  study  of  the 
matter  in  the  actual  v/orking  of  vessels  in  connection  with 
his  well-known  researches  on  the  subject  of  forced 
draught  on  ship-board. 

Mr.  Brown's  paper  was  one  of  unusual  interest  to  the 
members  of  the  Institution.  In  it  he  described  the  most 
recent  development  of  that  beautiful  system  by  which  he 
has  so  vastly  improved  the  loading  and  discharging  of 
cargo  on  steam-ships,  and  the  steering  of  vessels.  The 
paper  was  illustrated  by  several  diagrams  without  the  aid 
of  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  make  clear  the  details 
of  the  very  ingenious  methods  by  which  the  author  has 
applied  his  combined  steam  and  hydraulic  practice  to  the 
purposes  named.  Briefly  stated,  it  may  be  said  that,  in 
place  of  the  usual  deck  winches,  there  is  placed  at  every 
hatch  a  derrick,  having  mounted  upon  it  the  hydraulic 
cylinder  which  supplies  the  motive  power  to  lift  the 
goods.  The  steering  motor  is  placed  directly  on  the 
quadrant  of  the  tiller,  and  is  actuated  from  the  bridge  by 
means  of  what  the  author  describes  as  a  telemotor.  The 
transmission  of  the  controlling  force  which  governs  the 
steering  motor  is  through  hydraulic  pipes  ;  a  vast  im- 
provement on  the  rattling  chains  and  rods  now  in  com- 
mon use.  In  fact  the  great  virtue  of  Mr.  Brown's  system 
is  its  quiet  working. 

Mr.  A.  Rigg's  revolving  engine  is  an  ingenious  device, 
perhaps  better  suited  to  water  than  steam.  It  was  fully 
described  in  Section  G  at  the  last  Birmingham  meeting 
of  the  British  Association. 

"Leak  Stopping  in  Steel  Ships"  was  the  somewhat 
misleading  title  of  a  rather  weak  paper  by  Captain 
Fitzgerald.  The  only  point  the  author  suggested  was 
that  war-ships  should  be  outside  sheathed  with  wood  in 
order  that  there  might  be  some  attachment  to  which  leak 
stoppers  could  be  affixed.  The  contention  that  the  swell- 
ing of  wood  by  moisture  that  takes  place,  or  used  to  take 
place,  when  a  shot  cut  through  the  side  of  an  old  man-of- 
war  is  quite  beside  the  mark,  as  we  suppose  no  one  pro- 
poses to  make  the  wood  sheathing  of  a  modern  steel 
steamer  as  thick  as  the  sides  of  our  old  wooden  walls. 
Three  or  four  inches  of  elm  would  do  very  little  swelling 
when  pierced  by  a  modern  projectile  of  any  considerable 
size. 

Mr.  T.  C.  Read's  paper  on  the  variation  of  stresses  at  sea 
is  another  of  those  contributions  which  are  the  despair  of 
the  practical  naval  architect,  not  over-given  to  abstruse 
science,  who  attends  the  meetings  of  his  Institution,  hoping 
to  take  part  in  the  discussions.  We  are  quite  at  one  with 
the  speaker,  Mr.  Alexander  Taylor,  who  proposed  that  a 
rule  should  be  passed  compelling  contributors  to  send  in 
their  papers  sufficiently  early  for  them  to  be  printed  and 
distributed  to  members  before  the  meetings.  The  exe- 
cutive say  it  cannot  be  done,  but  it  would  be  worth 
trying  for  a  time. 


April  3,  1893] 


NATURE 


517 


Prof.  Lewes's  paper  on  the  ignition  of  coal  cargoes  was 
quite  a  new  departure  in  the  practice  of  the  Institution. 
When  the  members  assembled  they  found  an  array  of 
bottles,  flasks,  and  chemical  apparatus,  that  was  not  a  little 
puzzling  to  those  not  in  the  secret,  and  must  have  reminded 
many  of  the  dear  old  Polytechnx  days  and  Prof.  Pepper. 
However,  the  lecture,  and  the  experiments  by  which  it 
was  illustrated,  were  of  a  thoroughly  sound  and  prac- 
tical nature.  The  question  of  spontaneous  ignition  of  coal 
cargoes  is  one  for  the  ship-owner  rather  than  the  ship- 
builder ;  excepting  that  ship-builders  have  to  replace  the 
vessels  which  are  destroyed  by  reason  of  such  spon- 
taneous ignition.  The  lecturer  illustrated  the  influence 
of  carbon  in  producing  heating  by  the  power  it  possesses 
■of  attracting  and  condensing  gases  upon  its  surface.  The 
action  of  the  bituminous  constituents  of  the  coal  in  spon- 
taneous ignition  was  next  dealt  with,  and  the  author  then 
proceeded  to  point  out  the  important  part  the  action  of 
iron  disulphide,  pyrites,  or  coal-brasses  played  in  pro- 
moting spontaneous  ignition.  The  remedy  Prof.  Lewes 
advises  for  the  evils  of  spontaneous  ignition  are  : 
firstly,  non-ventilation  of  holds,  so  that  oxygen  may 
not  be  admitted  to  carry  on  the  chemical  processes  by 
which  heat  is  generated  ;  secondly,  by  placing  thermo- 
meters, suitably  protected,  in  the  mass  of  coal,  so  that, 
by  electrical  communication,  warning  may  be  given  when 
the  temperature  rises  to  a  dangerous  point ;  and,  thirdly, 
by  placing  flasks  of  liquid  carbonic  anhydride  in  the 
coals,  the  flasks  to  be  sealed  by  an  alloy  with  a  low 
melting-point.  This  would  be  fused  when  the  dangerous 
temperature  was  reached,  and  the  carbonic  acid,  in 
expanding  to  its  gaseous  state,  would  cool  the  mass  of 
coal  to  a  safe  temperature. 

At  the  last  sitting  of  the  meeting,  Mr.  Corbett's  paper 
on  lifeboat  models  raised  a  lively  controversy.  The  Royal 
National  Lifeboat  Institution  had  brought  Mr.  G.  L. 
Watson  all  the  way  from  Glasgow  to  meet  the  bold 
innovator  who  proposed  to  abolish  their  cherished  self- 
righting  boats.  Of  course,  who  is  right  remained  an 
-open  question,  as  it  always  does  when  the  properties  of 
lifeboats  are  concerned. 

Mr.  Howden's  paper  on  the  screw  propeller  was  of 
great  length,  containing  no  less  than  twenty-four  pages 
without  the  appendix.  Mr.  Howden,  like  many  other 
people,  has  a  theory  of  his  own  on  the  screw  propeller, 
which  is  opposed  to  that  of  all  other  authorities  on  the 
subject ;  for  he  believes  that  Rankine,  Froude,  Cotterill, 
and  others,  have  based  their  conclusions  on  erroneous 
premises.  It  will  be  evident  that  we  cannot  enter  into 
this  vast  subject  at  the  end  of  a  notice  such  as  this,  but 
^ve  may  briefly  record  our  opinion  that  the  older  authori- 
ties were  right. 

On  the  whole,  the  meeting  passed  off  very  well.  The 
attendance  was  good,  and  Mr.  Holmes,  the  secretary, 
had  made  his  arrangements  so  that  the  business  pro- 
ceeded without  a  hitch,  as,  indeed,  is  invariably  the  case 
at  this  well-managed  institution. 


BOURDON'S  PRESSURE  GAUGE. 

]\/r  R.  WORTHINGTON'S  letter  to  Nature,  January 
■'■*-*•  30  (p.  296),  on  the  theory  of  this  instrument,  has 
excited  some  criticism  and  disagreement  of  opinion  ;  so 
it  is  proposed  to  examine  here  how  far  it  is  possible  to 
•construct  a  theory  which  shall  be  quantitative,  in  addition 
to  giving  a  general  explanation  of  the  action. 

The  instrument  is  in  very  extensive  use,  hardly  a 
steam-boiler  being  in  existence  which  is  not  provided 
with  one  ;  and  the  simplicity  and  strength  of  the  con- 
struction are  such  that  it  does  not  easily  get  out  of  repair, 
while  it  can  be  made  to  register  either  the  highest  pressure 
of  the  hydraulic  press,  or  to  record  in  the  form  of  a  baro- 
meter the  minute  fluctuations  of  atmospheric  pressure. 


The  principle  of  the  instrument  was  discovered  by 
accident,  and  the  account  of  this  had  best  be  given  in 
the  inventor's  own  words,  taken  from  the  paper  read  by 
him  before  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers,  printed  in 
the  Proce6dings  I.C.E.,  vol.  xi.,  p.  14,  1851  : — 

"  The  author  had  occasion  to  construct  a  worm-pipe  for 
a  still,  by  bending  a  cylindrical  tube  into  a  spiral  or 
helical  form.  The  workman  performed  the  operation 
awkwardly,  and  partially  flattened  a  considerable  portion 
of  the  tube.  In  order  to  restore  its  form,  one  end  was 
closed  and  the  other  was  connected  with  a  force- pump,  by 
which  water  was  forced  into  the  tube  ;  as  the  flattened 
portion  of  the  tube  resumed  its  cylindrical  form,  it  was 
observed  that  the  spiral  uncoiled  itself  to  a  certain  extent, 
and  it  was  immediately  perceived  that  this  action  might 
be  applied  to  the  construction  of  a  pressure  gauge." 

To  construct,  then,  a  Bourdon  gauge  to  register  high 
pressures  {vu/e  figure,  representing  a  gauge  fitted  to  an 
indicator,  not  shown)  a  steel  tube  bored  out  of  the  solid 
bar  to  the  requisite  thickness  for  strength  is  taken,  and 
purposely  flattened,  and  then  bent  round  into  the  arc  of 
a  circle  so  that  the  longer  axis  of  a  cross-section  stands 
at  right  angles  to  the  plane  of  the  circle  :  one  end  of  the 


tube  is  screwed  to  a  pipe  which  communicates  with  the 
liquid  whose  pressure  is  to  be  measured,  while  the  other 
end  is  closed  and  joined  by  levers  and  racks  to  a  shaft 
and  a  pointer,  which  traverses  a  dial  on  a  box  in  which 
the  curved  tube  is  enclosed. 

As  the  pressure  in  the  tube  is  increased,  the  circular 
axis  uncoils  into  a  larger  circle  of  smaller  curvature,  and 
the  corresponding  indications  of  the  pointer  on  the  dial 
are  marked ;  and  thus  the  instrument  is  graduated 
empirically  by  reference  to  some  standard  pressure  gauge. 
As  the  pressure  is  again  diminished,  the  elasticity  of  the 
tube  brings  it  back  to  its  original  form,  and  the  pointer 
retraverses  the  dial. 

Lord  Rayleigh  gives  an  -elementary  explanation  of  the 
action  of  Bourdon's  gauge  in  the  Proc.  Royal  Society, 
No.  274,  December  13,  1888;  treating  the  movement  of 
the  walls  of  the  tube  as  one  of  pure  bending,  he  says :  — 

"  In  this  instrument  there  is  a  tube  whose  axis  lies  along 
an  arc  of  a  circle  and  whose  section  is  elliptical,  the 
longer  axis  of  the  ellipse  being  perpendicular  to  the 
general  plane  of  the  tube.  If  we  now  consider  the 
curvature  at  points  which  lie  upon  the  axial  section, 
we  learn  from  Gauss's  theorem  (that  in  the  bend- 
ing without  stretching   of   an  inextensible   surface,  the 


5k« 


NA  TURE 


[April  3,  1890 


product  of  the  principal  radii  of  curvature  of  the 
surface  at  any  point  remains  constant)  that  a  diminished 
curvature  along  the  axis  will  be  accompanied  by  a  nearer 
approach  to  a  circular  section,  and  reciprocally.  Since  a 
circular  form  has  the  largest  area  for  a  given  perimeter, 
internal  pressure  tends  to  diminish  the  eccentricity  of  the 
elliptic  section,  and  with  it  the  general  curvature  of  the 
tube.  Thus,  if  one  end  be  fixed,  a  pointer  connected  with 
the  free  end  may  be  made  to  indicate  the  internal  pres- 
sure." Lord  Rayleigh  adds,  "  It  appears,  however,  that 
the  bending  of  a  curved  tube  of  elliptical  action  cannot 
be  pure  {i.e.  unaccompanied  by  stretching),  since  the 
parts  of  the  walls  which  lie  furthest  from  the  circular 
axis  are  necessarily  stretched.  The  difficulty  thus 
arising  may  be  obviated  by  replacing  the  two  halves 
of  the  ellipse,  which  lie  on  either  side  of  the  major  axis, 
by  two  symmetrical  curves  which  meet  on  the  major  axis 
at  2i  finite  angle ^^ 

In  fact  some  Bourdon  gauges,  notably  those  required 
for  low  pressures  only,  and  requiring  great  sensibility 
but  not  much  strength,  are  constructed  in  this  manner, 
and  the  difficulty  of  manufacture  is  thereby  considerably 
reduced.  Barometers  are  constructed  in  this  way,  and 
give  good  results  ;  the  tube  is  partially  exhausted  of 
air,  and  closed  at  both  ends  ;  and  now  an  increase  of 
external  atmospheric  pressure  tends  to  flatten,  and  thus 
curl  up  the  tube. 

In  constructing  any  theory,  we  are  then  immediately 
brought  up  by  the  great  difficulty  at  present  engaging  the 
attention  of  our  mathematical  elasticians,  such  as  Ray- 
leigh, Basset,  Pearson,  and  Love  ;  who  are  not  agreed  as 
to  how  far  it  is  legitimate  to  theorize  on  the  equilibrium 
of  elastic  shells,  by  treating  separately  the  bending  and 
the  stretching  as  independent  of  each  other,  and  con- 
sidering the  first — the  bending — of  the  most  importance. 
If  we  take  a  piece  of  thin  sheet  metal  in  our  hands,  we 
find  we  can  bend  it  with  comparative  ease,  but  any 
stretching  we  can  produce  is  quite  insensible ;  and  it  is 
thence  argued  that  bending  only  is  likely  to  take  place, 
as  so  easily  produced  ;  and  apparently  reversing  the 
ordinary  mathematical  procedure,  the  large  stresses  due 
to  any  stretching  are  neglected,  as  not  likely  to  be  in 
existence.  These  difficulties  confront  us  in  any  attempt 
at  a  rigorous  theory  of  the  instrument,  which  would  give 
quantitative  results,  enabling  us  to  graduate  the  instru- 
ment from  a  formula. 

The  Rev.  E.  Hill  has  given  in  the  Messenger  of  Mathe- 
matics, vol.  i.,  1872,  an  explanation  of  the  Bourdon 
metallic  barometer,  treating  the  question  as  one  of  pure 
bending,  and  giving  a  quantitative  formula  for  the  change 
of  .curvature  a  of  the  total  curvature  Q  in  terms  of  the 
change  .i"  in  the  semi-minor  axis  b,  viz.  alQ  =  xjb.     But 


wall  will  cause  this  wall  to  elongate  ;  and  thus  an  increase 
of  internal  pressure  would  cause  the  tube  to  curl  up,  the 
opposite  effect  to  what  happens  when  the  bending  effect 
due  to  the  outward  bulging  of  the  flat  walls  is  considered 
the  leading  phenomenon. 

Even  with  a  circular  cross-section  the  stretching 
hypothesis  would  prove  that  the  tube  curls  up  under 
internal  pressure  ;  but  this  effect  would  be  so  small 
as  to  be  imperceptible,  because  of  the  enormously 
greater  stresses  required  for  stretching  than  for  bending 
in  a  thin  tube  ;  and  this  is  found  to  be  practically  the 
case,  inasmuch  as  the  circular  cross-section  of  the  tube 
destroys  all  indications  ;  and  further,  that  che  indications 
of  the  tube  are  reversed  in  direction  when  the  axes  of  the 
elliptical  cross-section  are  interchanged  so  that  the  minor 
axis  is  perpendicular  to  the  plane  of  the  circular  axis  of 
the  tube. 

The  action  of  Bourdon's  gauge  is  a  differential  effect ;. 
the  bending  of  the  surface  changes  the  curvature  one 
way,  and  the  stretching  produced  by  the  same  pressure 
the  other  way  ;  but  the  bending  effect  is  so  much  greater 
than  that  of  stretching,  that  the  latter  may  be  left  out  of 
account. 

In  Gunnery  we  have,  in  a  similar  manner,  two  ant- 
agonistic causes  producing  a  tendency  for  an  elongated 
rifled  projectile  to  deviate  from  a  vertical  plane  of  motion. 
If  fired  from  a  gun  rifled  with  a  right-handed  screw,  the 
vortex  set  up  in  the  air  by  the  spinning  of  the  projectile 
causes  difterences  of  pressure,  tending  to  deviate  the 
projectile  to  the  left,  and  this  effect  is  sometimes  very 
noticeable  with  golf  or  tennis  balls  ;  but,  in  addition,  the 
forces  set  up  by  the  tendency  of  the  projectile  to  fly  with 
its  axis  in  the  tangent  of  the  trajectory  urge  the  projectile 
to  the  right,  and  these  latter  forces  are  found  to  prepon- 
derate in  practice. 

A  mathematician  might  be  tempted  to  apply  to  the 
problem  of  Bourdon's  gauge  the  formulas  on  the  equi- 
librium of  elastic  plates  and  their  change  of  curvature, 
anticlastic  and  synclastic,  which  are  given  in  Thomson 
and  Tail's  "  Natural  Philosophy"  (§§  711-720),  but  these 
formulas  apply  only  to  a  plate  originally  plane  ;  and, 
besides,  the  applied  pressures  of  the  liquid  complicate 
the  analysis  of  the  question  to  an  extent  which  has  not 
yet  been  overcome  by  elasticians. 

The  final  conclusion  would  thus  appear  to  be,  that  any 
quantitative  formula  cannot  be  hoped  for  yet,  for  a  long 
time  ;  but  that  Lord  Rayleigh's  reasoning,  quoted  above, 
gives  a  clear  and  concise  descriptive  explanation  of  the 
action. 

The  analogous  practical  problem  of  the  resistance  of 
flues  to  collapse  still  stands  in  need  of  a  rational  theory, 
when  the  supporting  influence  of  the  ends  or  of  collapse 


the  determination  of  xjb  for  a  given  change  of  pressure     rings  is  taken   into  account.      When   this   question  has 


is  as  yet  an  intractable  mathematical  problem,  even  for 
the  simplification  of  supposing  the  tube  a  straight  elliptic 
cylinder. 

When  we  attempt  to  determine  mathematically  the 
pure  bending  produced  in  an  elliptic  cylinder  by  an 
increase  of  internal  pressure  and  consequent  tendency  of 
the  cross-section  to  the  circular  form,  we  are  baffled  by 
the  analytical  difficulties  of  determining  the  change  in 
the  length  of  the  axes  of  the  section,  subject  to  the  con- 
dition of  keeping  the  peiimeter  unchanged  in  length, 
this  length  being  expressed  by  a  complete  elliptic  integral 
of  the  second  kind,  of  which  the  modulus  is  the  eccen- 
tricity of  the  ellipse.  This  problem  was  mentioned  by 
Sir  W.  Thomson  at  the  British  Association  in  1888  ;  but 
we  have  not  yet  seen  any  development  of  it  published  by 
him. 

Mr.  Worthington,  on  the  other  hand,  treats  the  ques- 
tion from  the  point  of  view  of  pure  stretching  ;  and  now, 
with  rectangular  cross-section  of  the  tube,  as  he  supposes, 
a  thrust  in  the  inner  wall  due  to  the  internal  pressure  will 
cause  this  wall  to  contract,  while  the  pull  in  the  outer 


received  satisfactory  treatment  at  the  hands  of  theorists, 
we  may  hope  to  pass  on  to  the  far  more  difficult  quanti- 
tative theory  of  Bourdon's  gauge. 

A.  G.  Greeihhill. 


NOTES. 
The  half-yearly  general  meeting  of  the  Scottish  Meteoro- 
logical Society  was  held  in  the  hall  of  the  Royal  Scottish 
Society  of  Arts,  Edinburgh,  on  Monday  afternoon.  The  follow 
ing  papers  were  read  : — Influenza  and  weather,  with  special 
reference  to  the  recent  epidemic,  by  Sir  Arthur  Mitchell  and 
Dr.  Buchan  ;  the  temperature  of  the  high  and  low-level  Ob- 
servatories of  Ben  Nevis,  by  T.  Omond,  Superintendent; 
thunderstorms  at  the  Ben  Nevis  Observatory,  by  R.  C. 
Mossmann.  In  the  last  Report  presented  by  the  Council,  refer- 
ence was  made  to  a  proposed  systematic  observation  of  the 
numbers  of  dust-particles  in  the  atmosphere  with  the  instrument 
recently  invented   by  Mr.    John    Aitken,  and   an    opinion  was 


April  3,  1890] 


NATURE 


519 


■expressed  that,  for  many  reasons,  Ben  Nevis  Observatory  was 
the  place  where  such  observations  could  be  most  sati>factorily 
conducted.  From  the  Report  presented  on  Monday,  we  learn 
that  a  grant  of  ^50  has  been  obtained  from  the  Government 
Research  Fund  for  commencing  this  novel  and  important  in- 
vestigation. Two  instruments,  constructed  by  Mr.  White,  of 
Glasgow,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Aitken,  have  been  obtained 
— one  to  be  placed  permanently  within  the  Observatory  itself, 
and  the  other,  a  portable  instrument,  for  outdoor  observation. 
Both  instruments  are  now  at  the  Observatory,  and  the  regular 
work  of  observation  has  begun.  The  Report  also  states  that 
the  delay  in  completing  the  buildings  of  the  low-level  Ob- 
servatory at  F"ort  William  turned  out  to  be  more  serious  than 
was  contemplated.  This  has  arisen  from  various  causes,  chiefly 
from  the  great  drought  in  the  West  Highlands  last  summer 
rendering  it  necessary  that  the  ships  conveying  the  stones  for 
the  building  from  Elgin  be  sent  round  the  north  and  west  coast 
instead  of  through  the  Caledonian  Canal,  which  for  the  time 
was  closed  for  through  traffic  ;  and  also  from  the  wet,  broken 
weather  of  the  past  winter.  In  about  three  weeks  the  Observa- 
tory will  be  completed,  and  immediately  thereafter  the  Meteoro- 
logical Council  will  erect  the  self-registering  instruments  which 
were  originally  at  Armaijh,  and  otherwise  supply  a  complete 
outfit  of  instruments  for  a  first-class  Meteorological  Observatory. 
An  additional  observer  has  been  engaged,  and  the  staff  of  the 
two  Observatories  now  consists  of  Mr.  Omond,  superintendent, 
and  three  assistants.  By  arrangement  with  the  Post  Office,  direct 
•communication  will  be  opened  between  the  two  Obssrvatories. 
The  regular  work  of  recording  the  continuous  observations  will 
be  begun  in  May.  The  Directors  of  the  Ben  Nevis  Observatory 
will  thus  so;)n  be  in  a  position  to  put  scientific  men  in  possession 
of  two  sets  of  hourly  observations  of  the  completest  description, 
one  at  the  tup  and  the  other  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain.  With 
these  observations,  the  changes  of  the  conditions  of  the  weather 
may  be  followed  hour  by  hour  ;  particularly  those  great  changes, 
so  vital  and  essential  to  the  advancement  of  our  knowledge  of 
storms,  which  take  place  in  the  lowermost  stratum  of  the  atmo- 
sphere between  the  two  Observatories.  It  is  within  this  aerial 
Stratum,  of  a  vertical  height  of  4406  feet,  that  the  gradual 
development  of  many  weather  changes  from  hour  to  hour  may 
be  satisfactorily  investigated. 

The  Chemical  Society  held  its  first  anniversary  dinner  at  the 
Hotel  Metropole  on  Thursday  evening  last.  Among  those 
present  were  the  Presidents  of  the  Royal  Society,  the  Institute 
of  Civil  Engineers,  the  Society  of  Chemical  Industry,  the 
Institute  of  Chemistry,  the  Pharmaceutical  and  the  Physical 
Societies,  Sir  F.  Abr],  Sir  Henry  Roscoe,  Sir  F.  Bramwell, 
Mr,  Tnisehon-Dyer,  Prof.  J.  Dewar,  Dr.  J.  H,  Gladstone,  and 
Mr.  W,  Crookes  Dr.  W.  J,  Russell,  the  President,  in  pro- 
posing posperity  to  the  Chemical  Society,  sketched  briefly  the 
history  of  its  rise  and  development.  Sir  Frederick  Abel  gave 
the  toast  of  "Kindred  Societies  and  Institutions,"'  referring  to 
the  far-reaching  character  of  the  science  of  chemistry.  There 
was  not,  he  said,  a  single  society  or  institution  which  was  not 
dependent  up  m  chemists  for,  at  any  rate,  some  amount  of  the 
usefulness  which  it  exercised.  The  Royal  Society  vas  the  great 
parent  of  thein  all ;  and  the  Royal  Institution  demanded  special 
homage  on  account  of  the  splendid  discoveries  made  under  its 
auspices,  so  many  of  which  were  specially  interesting  to  chemists. 
Sir  G.  Stokes,  in  response,  said  that  though  specialism  had  been 
gaining  ground  very  widely  of  late  years,  and  though  each 
branch  of  science  had  its  own  particular  exponents  enrolled  in 
their  own  association,  yet  the  old  society,  with  which  he  had  the 
honour  to  be  closely  connected,  was  not  altogether  effete.  He 
thought  that  chemistry  had  as  much  need  of  cognate  societies  as 
any  other  branch  of  scientific  research.  Sir  Lowthian  Bell  also 
replied.       Prof.    M.    Foster,    secretary   to    the    Royal    Society, 


proposed  "  The  Visitors,"  and  the  toast  was  responded  to  by 
Sir  F,  Bramwell  and  by  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer,  The  health  of 
the  chairman  was  proposed  by  Sir  H.  Roscoe. 

On  Friday  evening  last  the  learned  societies  of  Newcastle 
held  their  second  annual  gathering  at  the  Durham  College  of 
Science,  Among  the  societies  represented  were  the  following  : 
the  Durham  College  of  Science,  Engineering  Students'  Club, 
Foremen  Engineers  and  Draughtsmen,  Geographical  Society, 
Institute  of  Mining  and  Mechanical  Engineers,  Literary  and 
Philosophical  Society,  Medical  Society,  Microscopical  Society, 
Natural  History  Society,  N.E.C,  Institution  of  Engineers  and 
Shipbuilders,  Pharmaceutical  Association,  Photographic  Associa- 
tion, Society  of  Antiquaries,  and  Society  of  Chemical  Industry. 
The  Newcaitle  D.iily  Journal  says  that  the  professors  of  the 
Durham  College  of  Science  "  worked  hard  for  the  success  of 
the  gathering,"  and  that  "the  exhibits  which  they  explained  in 
the  chemical,  physical,  geographical,  botanical,  and  other 
departments  in  the  building,  afforded  a  vast  amount  of  pleasure." 

By  permission  of  the  trustee?  of  the  British  Museum,  the 
conversazione  of  the  Society  of  Arts  will  be  held  this  year  at 
the  Natural  History  Museum,  South  Kensington, 

Mr,  Wragge,  Government  Meteorologist,  Queensland,  hag 
been  dangerously  ill  with  fever  caught  some  time  since  in  his 
tours  of  inspection.  He  has  now  gone  to  the  Darling  Downs 
to  recruit  his  heath,  which  has  been  seriously  undermined. 

The  following  lectures  on  scientific  subjects  will  probably  be 
delivered  at  the  Friday  evening  meetings  at  the  Royal  Institu- 
tion after  Easier  : — Friday,  April  18,  Sir  Frederick  Bramwell, 
F, R.S.,  welding  by  electricity;  Friday,  April  25,  Sir  John 
Lubbock,  Bart.,  M.P,,  F.R.S.,  the  shapes  of  leaves  and 
cotyledons  ;  Friday,  May  9,  Mr.  R.  Brudenell  Carter,  colour- 
vision  and  colour-blindness  ;  Friday,  May  16,  Prof.  Raphael 
Meldola,  F. R. S. ,  the  photographic  image;  Friday,  May  23, 
Prof.  A.  C.  Iladdon,  manners  and  customs  of  the  Torres 
Straits  islanders;  Friday,  May  30,  A.  A.  Common,  F.R.S., 
astronomical  telescopes ;  Friday,  June  6,  Prof.  W.  Boyd 
Dawkins,  F.  R.S.,  the  search  for  coal  in  the  South  of  England. 

At  the  twenty-first  annual  meeting  of  the  Norfolk  and 
Norwich  Naturalists'  Society,  held  at  the  Norwich  Museum  on 
March  25,  Mr.  Henry  Seebohm  was  elected  president  for  the 
ensuing  year.  The  treasurer's  report  showed  that  the  financial 
condition  of  the  Society  was  very  satisfactory,  and  that  during 
the  past  year  there  had  been  an  increase  of  several  members. 
The  retiring  president,  Dr.  Taylor,  after  briefly  reviewing  the 
work  of  the  Society  during  the  past  year,  delivered  an  address 
on  "  Microbes." 

The  London  Geological  Field  Class,  under  the  direction  of 
Prof.  H.  G.  Seeley,  F. R. S.,  has  made  arrangements  for  a  num- 
ber of  excursions,  in  which  many  students  might  find  it  pleasant 
and  profitable  to  take  part.  One  set  of  excursions  is  specially 
arranged  for  the  practical  study  of  geography.  Others  are 
planned  for  the  illustration  of  the  geological  structure  of  the 
London  district. 

A  VIOLENT  earthquake  shock  was  felt  at  Trieste  on  March  26 
at  20  minutes  past  9  p.m. 

At  the  last  meeting  of  the  Scientific  Committee  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society,  Mr.  Morris  alluded  to  the  peculiar 
vegetation  of  Si.  Helena,  now  confined,  for  the  most  part,  to  a 
small  area  in  the  central  ani  higher  part  of  the  island.  Many 
of  the  trees  forjaerly  native  to  the  island  are  now  all  but,  or 
quite,  extinct.  Among  them  is  a  species  of  Trochetia,  or 
Melhaiiia.  The  trunks  of  this  tree  are  embedded  in  the  clifTs 
of  the  island,  and  are  dug  out  by  the  inhabitants  for  the  sake  of 
manufactuiing  ornaments.  The  following  quotation  from  Melliss's 


520 


NATURE 


[April  3,  1890 


exhaustive  work  on  St.  Helena  refers  to  this  plant: — "The 
Native  Ebony  of  St.  Helena. — This  plant  I  believe  to  be  now 
extinct.  It  formerly  grew  on  the  outer  portions  of  the  island, 
near  the  coast,  at  altitudes  of  2  to  4,  where  the  weather- 
beaten  stems  are  still  found  deeply  embedded  in  the  surface- 
soil.  The  last  plant  I  saw  was  a  small  one  growing  in  the 
garden  at  Oakbank,  about  twenty-five  years  ago,  but  it  is  not 
there  now,  and  I  have  searched  the  whole  island  over  for 
another,  but  in  vain.  The  leaves  were  dark  green,  and  the 
flowers  white ;  the  wood  is  very  hard,  heavy,  black  in  colour, 
and  extremely  brittle.  It  is  still  collected  and  turned  into 
ornaments,  which  are  much  prized  on  account  of  its  rarity. 
That  this  tree  once  formed  a  considerable  portion  of  the  vegeta- 
tion clothing  the  island  on  those  parts  that  are  now  quite 
barren,  is  strongly  evidenced  by  the  many  references  to  it  in 
the  local  records.  PL  29.  It  is  the  Dofiibeya  erythroxylon  of 
Andr.,  Bot.  Repos.^  vi.,  t.  389,  not  of  Willdenow."  It  is 
interesting  to  know  that  the  plant  is  still  in  existence  under 
cultivation  at  Kew  (and  perhaps  elsewhere),  under  the  name  of 
Dombeya  erythroxylon.  At  the  present  time  the  plant,  which 
was  obtained  from  the  gardens  at  Herrhausen,  is  in  flower  at 
Kew.  Mr.  McLachlan  called  attention  to  the  interesting 
remark  on  the  rare  plants  of  St.  Helena,  contained  in  Mr. 
Wollaston's  book  on  the  Coleoptera  of  the  Atlantic  islands. 

Capt.  Delporte,  Professor  of  Topography,  Astronomy,  and 
Geodesy,  at  the  Military  School  of  Brussels,  has  just  started 
for  the  River  Congo,  for  the  purpose  of  making  geodetic 
researches. 

The  Geographical  Society  of  Berlin  has  presented  the 
sum  of  looo  marks  (;^5o),  to  Dr.  Hettner  for  a  journey  of 
research  in  the  southern  provinces  of  Brazil. 

Some  prehistoric  German  tombs  were  recently  excavated  on 
the  road  leading  from  Apolda  to  Jena.  About  20  skeletons 
were  found  (two  being  without  skulls),  and  a  number  of 
ornaments  and  weapons. 

In  the  course  of  some  excavations  lately  made  at  Ludwigs- 
hafen,  on  the  Rhine,  the  tibia  and  two  teeth  of  a  mammoth, 
and  the  jaw  of  a  stag,  were  found.  The  skeleton  of  another 
"antediluvian"  animal  was  discovered  in  the  limestone  near 
Oberhildesheim.     The  researches  are  being  continued. 

The  Zoologist  for  1884  announced  a  proposed  supplement  to 
Thompson's  "Natural  History  of  Ireland,"  and  contributions 
of  information  were  invited  from  persons  interested  in  the  sub- 
ject. A  considerable  amount  of  fresh  material  has  been  accu- 
mulated, but  as  it  relates  chiefly  to  birds,  it  is  now  intended  that 
the  supplement  shall  deal  only  with  ornithology.  The  new 
work  will  be  published  by  Messrs.  Gurney  and  Jackson,  and 
an  appeal  for  additional  facts  has  been  issued  to  students  who 
may  be  able  and  willing  to  supply  notes.  Anyone  who  is  in  a 
position  to  respond  to  this  appeal  is  requested  to  communicate 
with  Mr.  R.  J.  Usher,  Cappah,  Lismore,  Ireland. 

Mr.  Elliot  Stock  has  issued  the  seventh  edition  of  "  Days 
and  Hours  in  a  Garden,"  by  E.  V.  B.  The  volume  is  prettily 
printed  and  bound,  and  lovers  of  the  country  will  find  much  to 
interest  them  in  the  writer's  bright  and  pleasant  descriptions. 

The  Royal  University  of  Ireland  has  issued  its  Calendar  for 
the  year  1890,  and  a  supplement  consisting  of  the  examination 
papers  of  1 889. 

The  first  edition  of  the  life  of  the  Rev.  J.  G.  Wood,  by  his 
son,  the  Rev.  Theodore  Wood,  has  been  already  exhausted  ; 
and  a  second  edition  is  about  to  be  issued. 

A  FACT  noted  by  Mr.  T.  H.  Hall  in  the  new  number  of  the 
Entomoloiiist'' s  Monthly  Magazine  indicates  the  extraordinary 
variety  of  conditions  in  which  beetles  may  thrive.     The  men 


employed  in  breaking  up  an  old  disused  gasometer  at  Home 
Park  Mills,  King's  Langley,  spoke  to  him  of  some  "  very  curious 
beetles,"  which  were  living  in  the  rusty  water  at  the  bottom  of 
the  hole  left  when  the  iron  casing  had  been  removed.  Both 
the  water  and  mud  were  strongly  impregnated  with  gas.  The 
beetles  proved  to  be  of  the  D.  marginalis  species,  and  were 
there  in  some  numbers.  Many  were  carried  away  when  the 
water  was  pumped  off,  but  Mr.  Hall  secured  specimens  from  the 
mud  and  shallow  water  left.  He  says  : — "They  carry  with  them 
a  strong  odour  of  gas,  even  after  two  or  thr^^  .  eshwater  baths, 
and  the  grooves  in  the  elytra  of  the  females  are  filled  with  a 
ferruginous  mud  which  is  difficult  to  remove.  In  other  respects 
they  appear  to  be  quite  normal  in  form  and  colour.  I  think 
this  old  gas-holder  must  have  been  their  home  for  a  long  period 
of  beetle  life,  judging  from  the  time  of  year  when  they  were 
found,  a  fortnight  ago,  and  from  the  n  imber  of  both  sexes  seen. 
The  water  was  partly  enclosed  and  quite  stagnant,  being 
unconnected  with  any  other  water.  Wc^e  they  there  by  choice  ? 
If  not,  why  did  they  not  emigrate?  Most  likely  they  came 
there  by  chance,  as  they  are  plentiful  in  the  canal  not  far  away, 
and  lacking  the  inclination  to  depart,  '  made  them  selves  at  home.' 
Had  the  water  been  disagreeable  to  them,  we  may  presume 
they  would  not  have  done  so  ;  they  were  quite  active  when 
disturbed," 

According  to  a  French  journal,  the  number  of  foreign 
students  now  studying  in  Paris  is  about  lOoo,  of  whom  729 
(107  of  them  women)  are  studying  medicine,  and  182  law. 
Literature  has  66  (including  9  women),  science  60,  and  pharmacy 
23.  It  is  remarkable  that  Russia  furnishes  the  largest  contingent 
of  the  foreign  medical  students,  viz.  150,  America  coming  next 
with  139.  We  find  no  mention  of  England.  The  foreign 
element  is,  on  the  above  estimate,  about  one-tenth  of  the 
whole. 

The  Punjab  Forest  Administration  Report  for  1888-89  was 
recently  published.  During  the  year,  nine  thousand  acres  were 
added  to  the  area  of  gazetted  forests  in  the  Multan  district. 
This  area  was  taken  up  in  pursuance  of  the  policy  of  establishing 
irrigated  plantations  in  connection  with  several  new  canals  con- 
structed in  what  are  known  as  the  "  Bar  "  tracts — that  is,  the  dry 
upland  deserts  of  the  Punjab.  The  number  of  forest  fires  in- 
creased during  the  year,  and  17,617  acres  were  burnt  as  against 
10,324  during  1888.  The  financial  results  are  satisfactory.  The 
net  revenue  amounted  to  Rs.  4,52,846,  or  nearly  half  a  lakh  in 
excess  of  the  net  revenue  of  the  preceding  year.  The  Conservator 
complains  that  the  Working  Plans  Branch  cannot  get  on  with 
their  work  on  account  of  the  undermanning  of  the  Department. 
As  a  consequence,  working  plans  are  only  in  force  over  364 
square  miles,  out  of  a  total  of  two  thousand  square  miles  gazetted 
and  six  thousand  controlled  by  the  Forest  Department.  Experi- 
ments with  exotics  were  made,  but  the  result  was  not  encourag- 
ing. European  fruit-trees  have  been  introduced  in  many  places 
with  great  success. 

The  first  Report  published  by  the  Marine  Fisheries  Society  of 
Great  Grimsby  is  a  mo4est  record  of  work  done  and  investiga- 
tions decided  on  by  an  institution  which,  by  employing  scientific 
methods,  will  probably  amass  information  of  great  value  to  the 
biologist,  and  improve  our  fisheries  in  their  commercial  aspects. 
The  Society  was  incorporated  in  June  1888.  It  has  already 
established  an  aquarium  and  hatchery  which  is  37  feet  by  21 
feet,  and  a  small  museum  and  library.  The  building  has  a 
frontage  of  50  feet,  and  is  situated  at  Cleethorpes,  facing  the 
Promenade,  two  miles  distant  from  Gri  tisby.  The  tanks  are  set 
on  concrete  walls  ;  they  were  purchased  from  the  National  Fish- 
Culture  Association,  and  originally  formed  the  aquarium  at  the 
Fisheries  Exhibition  at  South  Kensington.  They  form  a  reser- 
voir storing  4000  gallons  of  sea-water,  from  which  the  water  is 


April  3,  1890] 


NATURE 


521 


pumped  into  a  wooden  tank  10  feet  above  the  hatchery,  holding 
1200  gallons.  Thus  a  constant  circulation  of  the  water  in  the 
tanks  is  maintained.  The  water  is  pumped  from  the  sea  at  high 
water,  and  left  to  settle  some  days  in  a  storage  reservoir  before 
use ;  each  hatching  tank  has  room  for  twelve  wooden  trays, 
measuring  16  inches  by  10  inches,  by  9  inches  in  depth,  with  a 
canvas  strainer  at  the  bottom  to  prevent  the  eggs  escaping.  The 
Society  aims  at  recording  observations  respecting  marine  life, 
and  the  improvement  of  the  fisheries  of  the  United  Kingdom, 
by  the  artificial  propagation  of  marine  fishes  and  Crustacea,  by 
the  pursuit  of  scientific  observations  and  investigations  respecting 
the  natural  history,  habitat,  migration,  spawning  food,  and  the 
effect  of  weather,  temperature,  and  conditions  of  the  water,  cur- 
rents, tides,  light,  and  darkness  upon  the  fauna  of  the  sea  ;  by  the 
protection  of  young  fish,  and  the  introduction  of  practical  appli- 
ances for  the  capture  of  mature  fish  ;  by  endeavouring  to  ascer- 
tain the  best  methods  of  transporting  fish  in  a  fresh  condition, 
and  economically  preserving  them.  By  admitting  fishermen 
into  the  Society,  at  a  nominal  subscription,  they  hope  to  get 
numerous  observers  and  collectors  from  amongst  those  who 
spend  their  life  reaping  the  harvest  of  the  sea. 

At  the  last  meeting  of  the  Societe  Chimique  de  Paris  a  paper 
by  M.  Meslans  was  presented  by  M.  Moissan,  announcing  the 
isolation  of  fluoroform,  CHF3,  the  fluorine  analogue  of  chloro- 
form, CHCI3.  A  brief  abstract  of  this  preliminary  communica- 
tion will  be  found  in  the  Chemiker  Zeitung  for  March  26. 
During  the  course  of  the  work  recently  published  concerning 
propyl  and  isopropyl  fluorides,  M.  Meslans  had  occasion  to  study 
the  action  of  silver  fluoride  upon  iodoform.  The  result  of  this 
action  was  found  to  vary  according  to  the  conditions  of  experi- 
ment, liquid  products  being  obtained  under  certain  conditions, 
and  gaseous  products  under  others.  The  end  result,  however, 
was  always  the  production  of  a  gas,  which  turns  out  to  be 
fluoroform.  Chloroform,  as  is  well  known,  is  readily  attacked 
by  a  warm  alcoholic  solution  of  potash,  potassium  chloride  and 
potassium  formate  being  produced  :  CHCI3  -}-  4KOH  - 
H  .  COOK  +  3KCI  +  2H2O.  It  is  interesting  to  learn  that 
fluoroform  behaves  in  precisely  the  same  manner,  for  the  gas  is 
decomposed  by  either  aqueous  or  alcoholic  potash  with  formation 
of  fluoride  and  formate  of  potassium.  On  being  heated  to 
redness  in  a  glass  tube  fluoroform  is  also  decomposed,  with 
production  of  gaseous  silicon  tetrafluoride  and  a  deposit  of 
carbon.  The  gas  is  only  very  slightly  absorbed  by  water,  but 
it  dissolves  readily  in  chloroform  or  alcohol.  Fluoroform  has 
also  been  prepared  by  substituting  chloroform  or  bromoform 
for  the  iodoform  used  in  the  first  experiments. 

At  the  same  meeting  M.  Chabrie  reported  that  he  also  had 
obtained  a  gas  by  heating  silver  fluoride  with  chloroform  in  a 
sealed  tube,  which  yielded  potassium  formate  with  potash,  and 
was  evidently  identical  with  the  fluoroform  described  by  M. 
Meslans.  The  density  of  the  gas  was  determined,  and  found  to 
be  2 '4 14.  Fluoroform  possesses  the  density  2*43,  so  there  can 
be  no  doubt  as  to  the  identity  of  the  gas.  Although  so  readily 
attacked  by  warm  potash,  it  was  found  that  a  cold  alcoholic 
solution  of  potash  was  almost  incapable  of  acting  upon  it. 

M,  Moissan  also  presented  another  interesting  paper  in  the 
names  of  MM.  Guenez  and  Meslans,  describing  the  isolation  of 
fluoral,  CF3.CHO,  the  analogue  of  chloral,  CCI;,.CIiO,  the 
tri-chlor  derivative  of  common  aldehyde,  CH3  .  CHO,  and  the 
hydrate  of  which  has  recently  become  so  famous  as  a  drug. 
Fluoral,  like  fluoroform,  is  a  gas,  and  has  been  obtained  by 
heating  silver  fluoride  with  anhydrous  chloral.  The  gas  dissolves 
to  only  a  very  slight  extent  in  water,  but  is  absorbed  by  aqueous 
or  alcoholic  potash  with  formation  of  formate  and  fluoride  of 
potassium,  thus  again  resembling  its  chlorine  analogue.  To 
complete  the  proof  of  its  identity,  the  density  of  the  gas  was 


determined  and  found  to  agree  very  closely  with  the  calculated 
density  of  anhydrous  fluoral. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  two  Ring-necked  Pheasants  {Phasianus 
iorquatns  (J  ?  ),  British,  presented  by  H.  R.  H.  the  Prince  of  Wale?, 
K.G.  ;  a  Chacma  Baboon  (Cynoccp/talus  porcarius  ?)  from 
South  Africa,  two  Indian  Pythons  {PytJion  molurtis)  from 
India,  five  Common  Boas  {Boa  constrictor)  from  South  America 
deposited  ;  three  Red-footed  Ground  '6o^\xx&\%{Xerus erythropm) 
from  West  Africa,  two  Himalayan  Monauls  {Lophophorus 
impeyanus  9  9)  from  the  Himalayas,  two  Diuca  Finches 
{Ditica  grisea),  a  Black-chinned  Siskin  {Chrysomitris  barbata)i 
two  Field  Saffron  Finches  {Sycalis  arvensis),  an  Alaudine  Finch 
{Phrygilus  alaudinus)  from  Chili,  purchased;  a  Hog  Deer 
{Cervus porcinns  i  ),  born  in  the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal    Time    at    Greenwich   at    10   p.m.    on   April  3  = 
I  oh.  48m.  43s. 


Name. 

Mag. ;            Colour. 

I 

R  A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

(')G.C.2343     : 

(2)  44  Leonis      

(3)  58  Leonis      

(4)  0  Leonis 

(5)  T45  Schj 

(6)  S  Coronse      

6 

4'S 

3 

8 

Var. 

Greenish. 

Yellowish-red 

Whitish  yellow. 

White. 

Red. 

Reddish-yellow. 

h.  m.  s. 
II     8  10 

10  19  27 

I"  54  54 

11  8  30 

12  19  36 
15  16  55 

+  5*S  36 
-f   9  20 

+  4  13 
-l-i6     2 
+   I  23 

+  31  46 

Remarks. 

(i)  This  is  the  well-known  nebula  97  M,  near  3  Urste 
Majoris.  In  the  General  Catalogue  it  is  described  as  "a 
planetary  nebula,  very  bright,  very  large,  round  ;  at  first  very 
gradually,  then  very  suddenly  brighter  in  the  middle  to  a 
planetary  disk ;  19 'os.  in  diameter."  Lord  Rosse's  draw- 
ing of  the  nebula  indicates  a  very  complex  structure.  I 
examined  the  nebula  recently  with  Prof.  Lockyer's  30-inch 
reflector  at  Westgate-on-Sea,  but  was  unable  to  see  ail  the 
details  shown  in  Lord  Rosse's  drawing.  The  nebula  appeared 
to  be  a  large  disk,  ill-defined  at  the  edges,  and  equally  illumin- 
ated, with  the  exception  of  two  darker  disks  situated  diametric- 
ally opposite  to  each  other,  each  being  about  half  a  radius  in 
diameter.  Dr.  Huggins  observed  the  spectrum  in  1866,  and 
found  it  to  consist  of  bright  lines.  The  two  lines  near  W  500 
and  495,  and  possibly  a  little  continuous  spectrum  were  re- 
corded. On  the  occasion  above  referred  to  I  saw  the  three 
usual  nebula  lines  and  the  hydrogen  line  at  G,  but  was  unable 
lo  continue  the  observations  on  account  of  clouds.  In  further 
o'iservations,  additional  lines  ought  to  be  looked  for,  and  the 
character  of  the  chief  line  near  K  500  particularly  noted,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  nebula  G.C.  2102,  given  last  week. 

(2)  A  star  of  Group  II.  Duner  states  that  the  bands  2-8  are 
well  seen,  but  that  they  are  not  strongly  marked.  It  is  im- 
portant to  secure  further  observations  of  stars  like  this,  as  there 
may  very  well  be  other  differences  besides  the  weakening  of  the 
bands  as  compared  with  those  in  which  the  banded  spectrum  is 
more  fully  developed. 

(3)  This  has  a  fine  spectrum  of  the  solar  type  (Vogel).  The 
usual  differential  observations  are  required.  , 

(4)  The  spectrum  of  this  star  is  a  typical  one  of  Group  IV. 
(Vogel).  The  hydrogen  lines  are  probably  therefore  very  thick, 
and  the  metallic  lines  very  thin,  if  visible  at  all.  The  thicker 
the  hydrogen  line  the  hotter  the  star,  and  the  higher  therefore  its 
place  on  the  "temperature  curve." 

(5)  Vogel  and  Duner  agree  in  describing  the  spectrum  of  this 
star  as  a  very  fine  one  of  Group  VI.  The  three  carbon  bands  are 
stated  to  be  visible,  but  the  intensity  of  the  band  near  \  564  re- 
latively to  the  others  is  not  given.  This  point  should  therefore 
receive  attention.  The  secondary  bands  4  and  5,  and  possibly 
2  and  3  are  visible.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  this  star  shows 
considerably  more  detail  than  several  brighter  ones  of  the  same 
group. 


522 


NAT  J  RE 


[April  3,  1890 


(6)  This  variable  will  reach  a  maximum  about  April  9.  Its 
j-ieriod  is  about  360  days,  and  the  rnagniludes  at  maximum  and 
qninimucn  are  6i-7'8  and  I  i'9-i2'5  respectively  (Gore).  Tne 
spectrum  is  a  very  fine  one  of  Group  II.,  and  the  great  range  of 
variation  makes  it  extremely  probably  that  bright  lines  will 
appear  at  maximum  or  soon  after,  as  already  observed  by  Mr. 
Espin  in  variables  with  similar  spectra.  Variations  in  the 
intensities  of  the  bright  carbon  flutings  should  also  be  noted. 

A.  Fowler. 

The  Great  Comet  of  1882. — The  Bulletin  Astronomiijuc 
for  February  1890  reproduces  with  some  additions  a  paper  pre- 
sented t;y  M.  F.  Tisserand  to  the  Academy  of  Sciences  on 
February  3.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  segmentation  of 
\.\t  nucleus  of  this  comet  was  observed  on  September  30,  1882 
— that  is,  thirteen  days  after  perihelion  passage,  and  that  Mr. 
Common  in  January  1883  saw  five  nuclei  in  a  line.  From  an 
elaborate  investigation  into  the  conditions  necessary  for  the 
development  of  these  secondary  nuclei,  M.  Tisserand  concludes 
that  the  cause  existed  in  the  comet  itself,  and  was  not  the  result 
■of  external  influence.  The  minimum  relative  variation  required 
for  the  dis  iggregation  of  the  nucleus  is  ikftt^o »  of  'he  perihelion 
velocity.  And  it  is  suggested  that  this  variation  may  be  pro- 
duced by  interior  actions,  collisions,  mutual  attractions,  ex- 
plosions, because  of  an  excessive  increase  of  temperature  or  the 
.rotation  of  the  head. 

Melbourne  Star  Catalogue.— In  1874  the  First  Mel- 
I'ourne  General  Catalogue  of  1227  stars  for  the  epoch  1870  was 
issued.  The  Second  General  Catalogue  has  just  been  received, 
and  contains  121 1  stars  for  the  epoch  1880,  deduced  from 
observations  made  at  the  Melbourne  Observatory  under  the 
direction  of  Mr.  Ellery  from  i87ro  to  1884-7.  1"he  separate 
results  and  the  details  of  the  observation^  from  which  this  Cata- 
Jogue  has  been  compiled  are  contained  in  vols,  v.,  vi.,  and  vii., 
•■(if  the  Melbourne  Observations,  and  in  the  present  Catalogue 
•explanations  are  given  of  the  processes  used  in  forming  the  stars' 
jjlaces  and  the  corrections  applied.  The  whole  of  the  observa- 
« ions  were  reduced  and  prepared  for  publication  by  Mr.  E.  J. 
AVhite,  the  First  Assistant  Astronomer. 

Comet  a  1890. — The  first  comet  of  this  year  was  dis- 
<overed  just  before  sunrise  on  March  21  by  Mr.  Brooks,  at 
"Cambridge,  U.S.     Its  exact  place  was  found  to  be — 


Cambridge  Mean  Time. 

R..'\. 

Decl. 

h.      in. 

h.   m.       s. 

0     /       // 

21  March     ...     16  57-5 

•      21    9    34-07      . 

.     6  25  30    N 

The   daily   movement    in    right    ascension    is   -f  163.,    and    in 
<leclination  +  25'. 

Discovery  of  Asteroids.— On  March  20,  Dr.  P.ilisa,  at 
Vienna,  discovered  another ,  minor  planet,  and  the  telegram 
announcing  his  discovery  was  received  at  the  AstronjiniscJtc 
Nachrichten  office  at  midday  on  March  21.  This  c  )met  is  of 
interest,  for,  from  its  rapid  movement  in  R.A.  -  25',  in  N.  P.  D. 
+  10',  it  appears  to  be  near  to  the  earth. 

M.  Charlois,  of  Nice  Observatory,  discovered  a  minor  planet 
-on  March  10,  and  re-observed  it  on  March  2x  This  brings  the 
number  of  asteroids  up  to  290. 

The  asteroid  (^  discovered  by  Prof  Luthur  on  February 
24  has  received  the  name  of  Glauke. 

Solar  Activity  in  1889.— The  record  of  the  past  year  aS 
<o  .solar  phenomena  presents  several  noteworthy  features,  (i) 
The  number  of  days  on  which  the  sun  appeared  to  be  free  from 
•<'ither  spots  or  faculae  ;  the  days  without  spots  being  211  as  com- 
ij.ared  with  158  in  1888  ;  and  the  days  when  neither  spots  nor 
^iculoe  were  seen  being  more  than  twice  as  numerous  last  year 
iis  in  the  year  previous.  (2)  The  distinct  but  temporary  revival 
of  spat  activity  during  the  months  of  June,  July,  August,  and 
September.  (3)  The  appearance  of  spots  in  high  latitudes  ;  and 
listly,  the  remarkable  falling  off  in  chromospheric  phenomena, 
j)articularly  during  the  last  months  of  the  year.  It  is,  therefore, 
>till  difficult  to  be  certain  whether  we  have  yet  r.^ached  the  actual 
minimum  or  no  ;  the  revival  of  the  spots  during  last  summer, 
■connected  as  it  was  with  so  remarkable  an  increase  in  their 
mean  distance  from  the  equator,  seemed  to  point  to  theminimun 
iiiaving  been  passed  ;  but  the  almost  perfect  season  of  quiet  which 
iollowed  it,  together  with  the  decrease  in  the  number  and  size  of 
i4he  prominences,  favour  the  opposite  concKisi  m.  The  mean 
<laily  spotted  area  for  1889  was  less  than  that  for  1888,  bat  only 
4)y  about  one-seventh. 


The  three  most  remarkable  groups  of  1889  were  those  first 
seen  on  June  16,  June  29,  and  August  2  respectively.  The  first- 
named  was  the  largest  group  of  the  year  ;  it  formed  and  dis- 
appeared on  the  further  side  of  the  sun,  and  was  seen  during 
three  rotations.  The  third  was  also  seen  during  three  rotations, 
but  formed  and  died  out  in  the  visible  hemisphere.  It  was  the 
second  group  as  to  dimensions,  and  lay  in  S.  lat.  20",  whilst  the 
spot  of  June  16  was  in  S.  lat.  6°.  The  spot  of  June  29  was  only 
a  very  small  one,  and  lasted  but  a  couple  of  days,  but  was 
noticeable  from  its  high  latif,ude,  40"  S.  A  fourth  group,  that 
first  seen  on  August  9,  though  not  attaining  so  large  a  mean 
area  as  the  spot  of  June  16,  exceeded  it  on  one  particular  day, 
August  15. 

The  following  table  gives  the  monthly  numbers  for  spots  and 
faculae  as  sui^plied  by  Prof.  Tacchini  in  the  Comptes  rendiis,  vol. 
cviii.  No.  2[,  vol.  cix.  No.  4,  and  vol.  ex.  No.  5,  and  may  l)e 


compared  with  those 

given  in  N 

A.TUR1;  for  I 

389  March 

7,  and 

in  previous 

volumes  : 

— 

Proportion 

Sun-spots. 

FacuUu. 

1889. 

witliout 

Rel.-Uive 

Kelati\e 

Mean  daily 

Relative 

.spots. 

frequence. 

size. 

number  of 
groups. 

size. 

January 

..       I'OO 

...       0  00 

. .      0  'OO      . . 

000       .. 

6'00 

February    . 

..      0-50 

...       3-26 

..       812       .. 

0-56       .. 

1-56 

March 

..       0  62 

...       1*69 

..       3-64       .. 

050       .. 

6-8i 

April 

..     o'6o 

...       065 

••     4'35     •• 

0-40       .. 

•     7-25 

May 

..     096 

...       004 

...     065     .. 

0  04      . . 

•     5 '30 

]une 

•  •     056 

...     1-97 

...  2522     .. 

0-45       •• 

•     9-63 

July 

..     0-39 

••■     275 

..    1697     .. 

087       .. 

•   14-35 

August 

..     o'i9 

...     6-97 

..   2003     .. 

1-26       .. 

•  1777 

September 

..     0-48 

...     118 

...       8-22       .. 

.       061        .. 

.  28-48 

October 

••     073 

...     0-64 

••■     1-55     " 

.       027       .. 

.  i8-i8 

November 

I  00 

...     000 

...    0  00    . . 

000       .. 

0-62 

December 

..     o'6i 

...     1-68 

...    4-09     .. 

•       0-65       .. 

•  29-55 

The  table  shows  that  as  in  1888  the  faculte  did  not  vary  quite 
in  accordance  with  the  spots,  September  and  December  being 
heavy  months  for  the  former,  their  relative  area  then  exceeding 
that  for  any  month  since  July  1886.  The  prominences  on  the 
other  hand  showed  a  very  marked  falling  off  towards  the  end  of 
the  year  ;  February  and  March,  light  months  for  spots  and 
facula-,  being  much  the  most  prolific  as  to  the  flames.  The 
following  are  the  mean  numbers  for  the  prominences  resulting 
from  Prof.  Tacchini's  monthly  reports.  It  must  be  borne  in 
mind  that  the  difference  in  the  atmospheric  conditions  of  Eng- 
land and  Italy  renders  it  impossible  to  compare  Prof.  Tacchini's 
results  with  those  formerly  given  by  the  late  Rev.  S.  J.  Perry, 
and  which  have  been  incorporated  in  former  annual  summaries 
in  Nature. 

Prominences. 


iJays  of 
observa'.ion. 


Mean 

daily 

number. 

8-26 

7  94 
3-20 


Moan 
heiiiht. 


Wolf's  relative 
numbers  (Zurich). 


12'0 


1887  ...       214       ...       8-26        ...       45-2 

1888  ...        227       ...       7  94       ...       45-9 

1889  ...       247       ...       3-20       ...        T,^-j 

The  variations  in  the  magnetic  elements  accor 
more  general  features,  though  not  in  details,  with 
sunspots,  as  the  folio  win.;  table  given  by  Dr.  R. 
Comptes  rcndus,  vol.  cc.  No.  3,  sufficiently  shows  : 

Variation 
declinati 
r 

175  ■• 

399  •• 

6-17  .. 

885  .. 

8ig  .. 

8-86  .. 

825  .. 

8-99  .. 

684  .. 

610  .. 

2-55  •• 
I '96     .. 

6  04     . . 


Mean 
extent. 


17 

I '5 


January 
February  .. 
March 
April 

May 

]une 

July 

August    ... 

.September 

October 

November 

December 

Mean    .. 


I  'o 

7 '9 
6-3 

4"9 
24 
7-0 
80 
20 '6 
6-3 

O'O 
CO 

57 
5-8 


-f  0-9 

■+-    CO 

-f  10 

-  8-4 

n-     0-5 

+    6-1 

-f  18  7 

-  15 

-  20 

-  129 

-■4-2 

-  o-y 


ded  in  their 
those  of  the 
Wolf  in  the 


m  magnetic 
jn  (Milan). 

.       -1-28 
+  097 

•  -  o  94 

.       +0-58 
.        -0"29 

-0-41 
-0-32 

.    -018 
■    -047 

-  O  22 

•  +0-37 
-f-0"20 

o'i7 


Dr.  Wolfs  formula  for  Milan,  v  =  5'  62  4-  0-045  ''»  ^'^^ 
r=  5'8,  would  give  v  =  5' '88,  a  much  closer  accord  than  for 
the  two  preceding  years. 


April  3,  1890] 


^m  THE  GLOW  OF  PHOSPHORUS} 

^^hUE  -woxA  phosphorus,  originally  applied  to  any  substance, 
solid  or  liquid,  which  had  the  property  of  shining  in  the 
dark,  has  gradually  lost  its  generic  sense,  and  is  nowadays 
practically  restricted,  as  a  designation,  to  the  wax-like  inflam- 
mable substance  which  plays  such  an  important  part  in  the  com- 
position of  an  ordinary  lucifer  match.  Phosphorus,  indeed,  is  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  of  the  many  remarkable  substances 
known  to  the  chemist.  The  curious  method  of  its  discovery, 
the  universality  of  its  distribution,  its  intimate  connection  with 
ihe  phenomena  of  animal  and  vegetable  life,  its  extraordinary 
physical  properties  and  chemical  activity,  its  abnormal  mole- 
cular constitution,  the  Protean  ease  of  its  allotropic  trans- 
formations— all  combine  to  make  up  a  history  which  abundantly 
justifies  its  old  appellation  of  phosphorus  mirabilis.  Godfrey 
Ilankewitz  more  than  150  years  ago  wrote  :  "  This  phosphorus 
is  a  subject  that  occupies  much  the  thoughts  and  fancies  of  some 
alchymists  who  work  on  microcosmical  substances,  and  out  of  it 
they  promise  themselves  golden  mountains."  Certainly  no  man 
of  his  time  made  more  in  the  way  of  gold  out  of  phosphorus 
than  Mr.  Hankewiiz,  for  at  his  Utile  shop  in  the  Strand  he  en- 
joyed for  many  years  the  monopoly  of  its  sale,  guarding  his 
Arcana  with  all  the  jealousy  of  a  modern  manufacturer  of  the 
element. 

Phosphorus,  or,  as  it  was  then  called,  the  noctiluca,  was  first 
.seen  in  this  country  in  1677.  It  was  shown  to  Robert  Hoyle, 
who  had  already  worked  on  phosphorescence  in  general,  and  who 
seems  to  have  been  specially  struck  with  the  remarkable  pecu- 
liarity of  a  faciitious  body  which  could  be  made  "  to  shine  in 
the  dark  without  having  been  befo  e  illumined  by  any  lucid 
substance  and  without  being  hot  as  to  sense."  Tn  these  respects 
the  substance  differed  from  all  the  phosphori  hitherto  known. 
The  conditions  which  determine  its  glow  were  the  subject  of  the 
Earliest  observations  on  phosphorus,  and  Boyle  has  left  us  a 
minute  account  of  his  work  on  the  point.  In  the  first  place,  he 
noticed  that  the  substance  was  only  luminous  in  presence  of  air. 
He  accurately  describes  the  nature  of  the  light,  and  noticed  that 
the  water  in  which  the  phosphorus  was  partially  immersed  ac- 
quired "a  strong  and  penetrant  ta^le,  .  .  .  and  relished 
a  little  like  vitriol."  On  evaporation  it  would  not  "shoot  into 
crystals,  .  .  .  but  coagulated  into  a  substance  like  a  Gelly,  or 
the  Whites  of  Eggs  which  would  be  easily  melted  by  heat."  On 
heating  this  "  Gelly  "  it  gave  off  "  flashes  of  fire  and  light,"  and 
had  a  "garlick  smell."  He  also  found  that  the  noctiluca  was 
soluble  in  certain  oils,  and  he  particularly  mentions  oil  of  cloves 
as  a  convenient  means  of  showing  the  luminosity,  as  it  is 
"rendered  more  acceptable  to  the  standers-by  by  its  grateful 
.  smell."  "  In  Oyl  of  Mace  it  did  not  appear  luminous  nor  in  Oyl  of 
Aniseeds."  Boyle  describes  a  number  of  experiments  showing 
how  small  a  quantity  of  the  phosphorus  is  required  to  produce  a 
luminous  effect.  "  .\  giain  of  the  noctiluca  dissolved  in 
Alkohol  of  Wine  and  shaken  in  Water  ;  it  render'd  4CO,oco  times 
its  weight  luminous  throughout.  And  at  another  Tryal  1  found 
that  it  impregnated  500,000  times  its  weight  ;  which  was  more 

•  than  one  part  of  Cochineel  could  communicate  its  colour  to." 
"And  one  thing  further  observable  wr.s  that  when  it  had  been  a 
long  time  exposed  to  the  air  it  emitted  strong  and  odorous  Exhala- 
tions distinct  from  the  visible  Fumes."     The  strong  and  odorous 

•  exhalations  we  now  know  to  be  ozone. 

The  earlier  volumes  of  the  Philosophical  Transactions  contain 
.  several  papers  on  the  luminosity  of  phosphorus,  and  one  by  Dr. 
Frederic  Slare  is  noteworthy  as  giving  one  of  the  earliest,  if  not 
actually  the  earliest  account  of  what  is  one  of  the  most  para- 
doxical phenomena  connected  with  the  luminosity  of  phosphorus, 
namely  its  increase  on  rartfying  the  air.  "It  being  now  gener- 
ally agreed  that  the  fire  and  flame  [of  phosphorus]  have  their 
pabulum  out  of  the  air,  I  was  willing  to  try  this  matter  in  -vacuo. 
To  eflect  this,  I  placed  a  considerable  lump  of  this  matter  (phos- 
phorus) under  a  glass  which  I  fixed  to  an  engine  for  exhausting 
the  air  ;  then  presently  working  the  engine,  I  found  it  grow 
lighter  \i.e.  more  luminous]  though  a  charcoal  that  was  well 
kindled  would  be  quite  extinguished  at  the  first  exhaustion  ;  and 
upon  the  third  or  fourth  draught  which  very  well  exhausted  the 
glass,  it  much  increased  its  light,  and  continued  so  to  shine  with 
its  increased  light  for  a  long  time;  on  re-admitting  the  air,  it 
returns  again  to  its  foin.er  dulness."  This  observation  was 
repeated  and  its  result  confirmed  by  Hawksbee  in  this  country 

Lecture  detivered  on   Friday  evming.  March  14,  at  the  Royal  lastitu- 
tn.  11,  by  Prof.  Thorpe,  F.R.S. 


NATURE 


523 


and  by  Homberg  in  France,  and  seems  subsequently  to  have  letl* 
Berzelius,  and  after  him  Marchand,  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
luminosity  of  phosphorus  was  altogether  independent  of  the  air 
{i.e.  the  oxygen)  but  was  solely  due  to  the  volatility  of  the  body. 
Many  facts,  however,  combine  to  show  that  the  air  (oxygen)  is 
necessary  to  the  phenomenon.  Lampadius  found  that  phos- 
phorus would  not  glow  in  the  Torricellian  vacuum  ;  and  Lavoisier, 
in  1777,  showed  that  it  would  not  infianoe  under  the  same  con- 
ditions ;  and. the  subsequent  experiments  of  Schiotter,  Meissner, 
and  M tiller  are  decisive  on  the  point  that  the  glow  is  the  con- 
comitant of  a  chemical  process  dependent  upon  the  presence  of 
oxygen..  It  is,  however,  remarkable  that  phosphf  rus  will  not 
glow  in  oxygen  at  the  ordinary  atmospheric  piessure  and  tem- 
perature, bur  that  if  the  oxygen  be  rarefied  the  glow  at  or.cebejiins, 
but  ceases  again  immediately  the  oxygen  is  compressed,  Indeer'^. 
phosphorus  will  not  glow  in  compressed  air,  and  the  flame  ot 
feebly  burning  phosphorus  may  be  extinguished  by  suddenly  in- 
creasing the  pressure  of  the  gas.  Phosphorus,  however,  can  l;e 
made  to  glow  in  oxygen  at  the  ordinary  pressure  or  in  compressed 
air  if  the  gases  be  gently  warmed.  In  the  case  of  oxygen  tl^e 
glow  begins  at  25°  and  becomes  very  bright  at  36''.  In  com- 
.  pressed  air  the  temperature  at  which  the  glow  is  initiated  depend.s 
upon  the  tension.  If  the  oxygen  be  absolutely  deprived  of 
moisture  the  phosphorus  refuses  to  glow  under  any  conditions. 
This  fact,  strarge  as  it  may  seem,  is  not  without  analogy  ;  the  pre- 
sence of  traces  of  moisture  appears  to  be  necessary  for  the 
initiation  or  continuance  of  chemical  combination  in  a  number 
of  instances,  , 

It  was  observed  by  Boyle  that  a  minute  quantity  of  the  vapour 
of  a  number  of  essential  oils  extingui  hed  iheglow  of  phosphonis. 
The  late  Prof.  Graham  confirmed  and  extended  these  ol:>serva- 
tions  ;  he  showed  that  relatively  small  quantities  of  olefiant  ;;ns 
and  of  the  vnpours  of  ether,  naphtha,  and  oil  of  turpentine 
entirely  jirevented  the  glow  ;  and  subsequent  observers  have 
found  that  many  essential  oils,  such  as  those  of  peppermint  at^d 
lemon  and  the  vapours  of  camphor  and  asafcetida,  even  when- 
present  in  very  small  quantity,  stopthe  absorption  of  oxygen  anck 
the  slow  combustion  of  phosphorus  in  air. 

It  has  been  established  that  whenever  phosphorus  glows  ii> 
air  or  in  rarefied  oxygen,  ozone  and  hydrogen  peroxide  are 
formed,  but  it  is  not  definitely  known  whether  the  formation  of 
these  substances  is  the  cause  or  the  effect  of  the  chemical  pro- 
cess of  which  the  glow  is  the  visible  sign.  That  there  is  some 
intimate  connection  between  the  luminosity  of  the  phosphorus- 
and  the  production  of  these  bodies  is  highly  probable.  Schiin- 
bein,  as  far  back  as  1848,  sought  to  demonstrate  that  the  glow 
depends  on  the  presence  of  ozone.  It  is  certainly  true  that 
many  of  the  substances,  such  as  the  essential  oils,  which  prevent 
the  glow  of  phosphorus,  also  destroy  ozone.  At  a  low  tem- 
perature, phosphorus  produces  no  ozone  in  contact  with  air,, 
neither  does  it  glow.  It  has  been  found,  in  fact,  that,  with  air, 
ozone  is  produced  in  largest  quantity  at  2^",  at  which  tempera- 
ture phosphorus  glows  brightly.  On  the  assumption  that  the 
oxidation  of  the  phophorus  consists  in  the  immediate  formation 
of  the  highest  oxide,  the  production  of  the  ozone  and  the 
hydrogen    peroxide    has    been    represented    by   the    following. 


equations  : — 


P,  + 
O"  -f 
O    -f 


H.,0 


P.P5    +    O. 
O3. 

HoO.,. 


Both  these  reactions  may,  of  course,  go  on  simultaneously  ; 
ozone  and  hydrogen  peroxide  are  not  inmually  inct-mpatihle;  the 
synthesis  of  hydrogen  peroxide  by  the  direct  oxidation  of  water 
seems  to  occur  in  a  number  of  processes.  But  such  symbolic 
expressions  can  at  most  be  only  very  partial  representations  of 
what  actually  occurs.  It  is  highly  probable  that  the  combina- 
tion which  gives  rise  to  the  glow  only  occurs  between  the  vapour 
of  phosphorus  and  the  oxygen.  Phosphorus  is  sensibly  volatile  at 
ordinary  temperatures,  and  by  rarefying  the  atmosphere  in  which 
it  is  placed  its  volatilization  is  increased,  which  serves  to  account 
for  the  increased  glow  when  the  pressure  of  the  gas  is  diminished. 
When  phosphorus  is  placed  in  an  atmosphere  of  hydrogen, 
nitrogei',  or  carbonic  acid,  these  gases,  when  brought  into  con- 
tact with  oxygen,  become  luminous  from  the  oxidation  of  the 
vapour  of  phos^phorus  diffused  through  them.  The  rapidity  of 
volatilization  varies  with  the  particular  gas  ;  it  is  greatest  in  the 
case  of  hydiogen,  and  least  in  that  of  carbonic  acid.  Indeed,, 
a  stream  of  hydrogen  gas  at  ordinary  temperatures  carries  away 
comparatively  large  cpiantities  of  phosphorus,  which  may  be 
collected  by  appropriate  solvents.     No  ozone  and  no  glow  is. 


5^4 


NATURE 


\April  3,  1890 


produced  in  oxygen  gas  at  ordinary  temperatures  and  pressures, 
but  on  warming  the  oxygen,  both  the  ozone  and  the  glow  are 
formed.  On  passing  ozone  into  oxygen  at  temperatures  at 
which  phosphorus  refuses  to  glow, 'the  phophorus  at  once 
becomes  luminous,  oxygen  is  absorbed,  and  the  characteristic 
cloud  of  oxide  is  produced,  and  the  effect  continues  so  long  as 
the  supply  of  ozone  is  maintained.  A  drop  of  ether  at  once 
extinguishes  the  glow.  The  ether  is  in  all  probability  converted 
into  vinyl  alcohol  with  simultaneous  formation  of  hydrogen  per- 
oxide by  the  reaction  indicated  by  Poleck  and  Thiimmel :  — 


CH3CII0 

ch..ch; 


)0  +  O.,  = 


CH.,CHOH 


3  ~  CHXHOH 


HO 
HO 


}■ 


A.  W.  Wright  has  shown  that  formic,  acetic,  and  oxalic  acids 
are  also  formed  by  the  action  of  ozonized  oxygen  on  ether. 

Phosphorus  combines  with  oxygen  in  several  proportions,  and 
the  study  of  the  mode  of  formation  and  properties  of  these 
oxides  is  calculated  to  throw  light  upon  the  nature  of  the  che- 
mical process  which  attends  the  glow  of  phosphorus.  Certain 
of  these  oxides  have  recently  been  the  subject  of  a  considerable 
amount  of  study  in  the  chemical  laboratories  of  the  Normal 
School  of  Science.  When  phosphorus  is  slowly  burned  in  air, 
there  is  produced  a  considerable  quantity  of  a  volatile  substance, 
having  a  charactefristic  garlic-like  smell,  which  solidifies,  when 
cooled,  in  beautiful  arborescent  masses  of  white  crystals.  It  melts 
at  about  23°,  and  boils  at  173°.  In  a  sealed  tube  kept  in  the  dark, 
it  may  be  preserved  unchanged,  but  on  exposure  to  light,  and 
especially  to  bright  sunshine,  it  rapidly  becomes  deep  red.  It 
slowly  absorbs  oxygen  at  the  ordinary  temperature  and  pressure, 
but  from  the  mode  in  which  the  solid  product  of  the  reaction 
(PgOj)  is  deposited,  it  is  evident  that  the  union  only  takes  place 
between  the  vapour  of  the  oxide  and  the  oxygen  gas.  Under 
diminished  pressure  the  act  of  combination  is  attended  with  a 
glow  which  increases  in  brilliancy  if  ozone  be  present.  On 
compressing  the  oxygen,  the  glow  ceases.  No  ozone  is  formed 
during  the  act  of  oxidation.  The  degree  of  rarefaction  needed 
to  initiate  the  glow  depends  upon  the  temperature  of  the  oxide 
— the  warmer  the  oxide  the  less  is  the  diminution  of  pressure 
required.  By  gradually  warming  the  oxide,  the  luminosity 
steadily  increases  both  in  area  and  intensity,  until  at  a  certain 
temperature  the  mass  ignites.  The  change  from  glow  to  actual 
flame  is  perfectly  regular  and  gradual,  and  is  unattended  with 
any  sudden  increase  in  brilliancy.  In  this  respect  the  process 
of  oxidation  is  analogous  to  the  slow  and  barely  visible  burning 
of  fire-damp  which  is  sometimes  seen  to  occur  in  the  Davy 
lamp,  or  to  the  slow  combustion  of  ether  and  other  vapours, 
which  has  been  specially  studied  by  Dr.  Perkin.  Other  in- 
stances of  what  may  be  called  degraded  combustion  are  known 
to  chemists.  Thrown  into  warm  oxygen,  the  substance  bursts 
into  flame  at  once  and  burns  brilliantly,  and  it  also  takes  fire  in 
contact  with  chlorine.  Alcohol  also  ignites  it,  and  when  it  is 
warmed  with  a  solution  of  potash  or  with  water  it  evolves  spon- 
taneously inflammable  phosphoretted  hydrogen.  In  contact  with 
cold  water  it  suffiers  only  a  very  gradual  change,  and  many  days 
may  elapse  before  even  a  comparatively  small  quantity  is  dissolved. 
This  substance  has  long  been  known  ;  it  was  discovered,  in  fact, 
by  the  French  chemist  Sage,  but  its  true  nature  has  only  now  been 
determined.  Its  chemical  formula  is  found  to  be  P4O,;  ;  hence 
its  composition  is  similar  to  that  of  its  chemical  analogue, 
arsenious  oxide. 

The  study  of  the  properties  of  this  remarkable  substance 
enables  us  to  gain  a  clearer  insight  into  the  nature  of  the  che- 
mical process  attending  the  glow  of  phosphorus.  When  phos- 
phorus is  placed  in  oxygen,  or  in  an  atmosphere  containing 
oxygen,  under  such  conditions  that  it  volatilizes,  the  phosphorus 
oxidizes,  partly  into  phosphoric  oxide  and  partly  into  phosphor- 
ous oxide.  Ozone  is  formed,  possibly  by  the  reaction  already 
indicated,  and  this  reacts  upon  the  residual  phosphorus  vapour 
and  the  phosphorous  oxide  with  the  production  of  the  luminous 
effect  to  which  the  element  owes  its  name.  The  glow  itself  is 
nothing  but  a  slowly-burning  flame  having  an  extremely  low 
temperature,  caused  by  the  chemical  union  of  oxygen  with  the 
vapours  of  phosphorus  and  phosphorous  oxide.  By  suitable 
means  this  glow  can  be  gradually  augmented,  until  it  passes  by 
regular  gradation  into  the  active  vigorous  combustion  which  we 
ordinarily  associate  with  flame.  Many  substances,  in  fact,  may 
be  caused  to  phosphoresce  in  a  similar  way.  Arsenic,  when 
gently  heated,  glows  in  oxygen,  and  sulphur  may  also  be  ob- 
served to  become  luminous  in  that  gas  at  a  temperature  of  about 
200°. 


''BEFORE  AND  AFTER  DARWIN." 

r\^  Tuesday,  March  25,  Prof.  G.  J.  Romanes,  F.R.S.,  con- 
^^  eluded  his  course  of  between  thirty  and  forty  lectures,  which, 
under  the  above  title,  he  lias  been  deliveiing  at  the  Royal 
Institution  during  the  last  three  years.  At  the  close  of  the 
lecture  he  announced  his  intention  of  publishing  the  whole 
course  in  November  next,  and  distributed  among  the  audience 
printed  slips,  conveying  in  the  form  of  twelve  propositions  the 
"general  conclusions  "  to  which  his  lectures  for  the  present  year 
have  led.     The  following  is  a  copy  of  this  printed  slip  : — 

(1)  "Natural  selection  has  been  the  main,  but  not  the  ex- 
clusive means  of  modification,"  both  as  regards  species  and  all 
the  higher  taxonomic  divisions. 

(2)  Of  the  other  factors  of  organic  evolution  it  is  not  improb- 
able that  we  are  still  to  a  large  extent  ignorant.  Whether,  or  to 
what  extent,  sexual  selection  and  the  I.amarckian  principles 
have  co-operated,  is  a  matter  with  which  I  am  not  specially 
concerned  ;  but  I  think  there  is  abundant  evidence  to  establish 
the  high  importance  in  this  connection  of  amixia,  or  independent 
variability, — at  all  events  as  regards  the  evolution  of  species. 

(3)  Natural  selection  is  primarily  a  theory  of  the  cumulative 
development  of  adaptations  wherever  these  occur,  and  therefore 
is  only  incidentally,  or  likewise,  a  theory  of  the  o.igin  of  species 
in  cases  where  allied  species  differ  from  one  another  in  respect 
of  peculiar  characters,  which  are  also  adaptive  characters. 

(4)  Hence  it  does  not  follow  from  the  theory  of  natural 
selection  that  all  species — much  less  all  specific  characters — 
must  necessarily  have  owed  their  origin  to  natural  selection, 
since  it  cannot  be  proved  deductively  from  the  theory  that  no 
"means  of  modification  "  other  than  natural  selection  is  com- 
petent to  produce  such  slight  degrees  of  modification  as  go  to 
constitute  diagnostic  distinctions  between  closely-allied  species  ; 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  there  is  an  overwhelming  mass  of 
evidence  to  prove  the  origin  of  "  a  large  proportional  number  of 
specific  characters  "  in  causes  of  modification  other  than  natural 
selection. 

(5)  Even  if  it  were  true  that  all  species  and  all  specific  characters 
must  necessarily  owe  their  origin  to  natural  selection,  it  w  ould 
still  remain  illogical  to  define  the  theory  of  natural  selection  as 
indifferently  a  theory  of  species  or  a  theory  of  adaptations  ;  for, 
even  upon  this  erroneous  supposition,  specific  characters  and 
adaptive  characters  would  remain  very  far  indeed  fiom  being 
conterminous — by  far  the  larger  number  of  adaptations  which 
occur  in  organic  nature  being  the  common  property  of  many 
species. 

(6)  In  no  case  can  natural  selection  have  been  the  cause  of 
mutual  infertility  between  allied  or  any  other  species. 

(7)  Without  isolation,  in  the  sense  of  either  separate  or 
segregate  breeding,  organic  evolution  is  in  no  case  possible  ; 
and  hence,  heredity  and  variability  being  given,  the  whole 
theory  of  organic  evolution  may  be  regarded  as  a  theory  of  the 
causes  and  conditions  which  have  led  to  isolation,  or  the  mating 
of  similar  variations  to  the  exclusion  of  dissimilar. 

'8)  Natural  .'election  is  one  among  sundry  distinct  kinds  of 
isolation,  and  presents  in  this  relation  the  following  peculiari- 
ties :  [a)  the  isolation  is  with  reference  to  superiority  of  filne.'S  ; 
(l>)  is  effected  by  destruction  of  the  excluded  individuals  ;  and 
{c)  unless  assisted  by  some  other  kind  of  isolation,  can  only 
effect  monotypic  as  distinguished  from  polytypic  evolution. 

(9)  It  is  a  general  law  of  organic  evolution  that  the  number 
of  possible  directions  in  which  divergence  may  occur  can  never 
be  more  than  equal  to  the  number  of  cases  of  efficient  isolation  ; 
but,  excepting  natural  selection,  any  one  kind  of  isolation  need 
not  necessarily  require  the  co-operation  of  another  kind  in  orderf 
to  create  an  additional  case  of  isolation,  or  to  cause  polytypic  asj 
distinguished  from  monotypic  evolution. 

(10)  Where  common  areas  are  concerned,  the  most  general' 
and  most  efficient  kind  of  isolation  has  been  the  physiological — I 
and  this  whether  the  mutual  infertility  has  been  the  antecedent! 
or  the  consequent  of  morphological  changes  on  the  part  of! 
the  types  concerned,  and  whether  or  not  these  changes  are  of  an| 
adaptive  character.  I 

(11)  This  form  of  isolation — which  in  regard  to  incipient] 
species  I  have  called  physiological  selection — may  act  either! 
alone,  or  in  conjunction  with  other  kinds  of  isolation  on 
common  areas:  in  the  former  case  its  agency  is  of  most  im-i 
portance  among  plants  and  the  lower  classes  of  animals  ;  in  the: 
latter  case  its  importance  consists  in  its  greatly  intensifying  the; 
segregating  power  of  whatever  other  kind  of  isolation  it  may  bej 
with  which  it  is  associated. 


April  3,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


525 


(12)  Although  physiological  selection  must  in  all  cases  refer 
primarily  to  first  crosses,  its  activity  as  a  cause  of  segregation  is 
intensified  in  cases  where  it  extends  also  to  second  ciosses. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

American  Journal  of  Mathematics,  vol.  xii.,  No.  3  (Balti- 
more, March  1890.) — A  memoir  "  Sur  les  equations  aux  dcrivees 
partielles  de  la  physique  mathematique,"  by  that  brilliant 
mathematician,  M.  Poincare,  occupies  pp.  211  294.  Some  idea 
of  the  writer's  aim  will  be  gained  from  the  following  passages  :— - 
*'(}uand  on  envisage  les  divers  pr  jbiomes  de  calcul  integral  qui 
se  posent  naturellement  lorsqu'on  vent  approfondir  les  parties 
les  plus  diffc-rentes  de  la  physique,  il  est  impossible  de  n'ctre  pas 
frappc  des  analogies  que  tous  ces  problcmes  prcsentent  entre 
eux."  "  Cette  revue  rapide  des  diverses  parties  de  la  physique 
mathematique  nous  aconvaincus  que  tous  ces  problcmes,  maljjre 
I'extreme  varietc  des  conditions  aux  limites,  et  mcme  des  equa- 
tions difforentielles,  ont,  pour  ainsi  dire,  un  certain  air  de  famille 
qu'il  est  impossible  de  meconnaitre.  On  doit  done  s'attendre  a 
leur  trouver  un  tres  grand  nombre  de  proprietcs  communes." 
The  concluding  sentence  is  :  "  Je  pourrai  dire  alors  que  les  con- 
clusions sont  dcmontrees  d'une  fac^  on  rigoureuse  au  point  de  vue 
physique.  Peut  ctre  mcme  est-il  permis  d'espt'rer  que,  par  une 
sorte  de  passage  a  la  limite,  on  pourra  fonder  sur  ces  principes 
une  demonstration  rigoureuse  meme  au  point  de  vue  analytique." 
■ — The  remaining  article  of  the  number  is  one  on  singular 
sblutions  of  ordinary  differential  equations,  by  11.  B.  Fine  (pp. 
295-322).  Following  the  lead  of  Briotand  Bouquet,  this  memoir 
bases  the  theory  of  singular  solutions  on  the  differential  equa- 
tion, and  avoids  all  use,  direct  or  indirect,  of  the  notion  of  the 
complete  primitive. 

In  Jhilletin  No.  2  of  the  Brussels  Academy  of  Science, 
M.  E.  Ronkar  criticizes  a  paper  by  M,  J.  Liagre,  on  the  mutual 
impulse  of  the  earth's  surface  and  centre  because  of  interior 
friction.  The  paper  in  question  dealt  with  the  interior  structure 
of  the  earth,  and  the  conclusions  drawn  have  some  bearing  on 
diurnal  nutation. — In  a  paper  on  the  venous  pulse.  M.  l.eon 
Fredericq  gives  his  investigations  into  the  form  of  various  pulses 
— ^jugular,  venous,  and  carotid  ;  traces  the  identity  of  the  pulse  of 
the  jugular  vein  and  that  of  the  right  auricle  ;  and  discusses 
generally  the  phenomena  of  circulation  and  respiration.  The 
same  author  adds  a  note  on  the  preservation  of  oxyhemoglobin. 
—  M.  A.  F.  Renard  has  examined  phillipsite  crystals  from  the 
deposits  obtained  from  the  centre  of  the  Pacific  Ocean.  These 
microscopical  crystals  were  discovered  by  Mr.  Murray,  and  a 
brief  description  of  them  published  by  him  in  conjunction  with 
the  author  in  1884  (Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh).  A  more  par- 
ticular description  and  determination  of  the  character  of  these 
zeolites,  and  the  deposits  in  which  they  occur,  is  now  given.  A 
plate  containing  four  drawings  of  the  crystals  accompanies  the 
paper. — M.  G.  van  der  Mensbrugghe,  in  a  paper  on  the  con- 
densation of  water-vapour  in  capillary  spaces,  reviews  the 
principal  facts  owing  their  origin  to  such  condensation,  and 
shows  that  they  are  in  confirmation  of  the  theory  propounded 
by  Sir  William  Thomson  in  1874,  in  a  paper  on  the  equilibrium 
of  vapour  at  a  curved  surface  of  liquid.  The  experimental 
verification  of  the  formula  there  given  will  form  the  subject  of 
a  second  communication. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES. 
London. 

Royal  Society,  February  20. — "  Some  Stages  in  the  Deve- 
lopment of  the  Brain  of  Clupea  hareiigi/s."  By  Ernest  W. 
L.  Holt,  Marine  Laboratory,  St.  Andrews.  Communicated  by 
Prof.  Mcintosh,  F.R.S. 

The  stages  described  are  (i)  newly-hatched  or  early  larval ; 
(ii)  early  post-larval  ;  (iii)  h  inch  long  ;  (iv)  i,'  inch  long. 

The  development  of  the  pineal  region  is  treated  separately, 
and  in  this  a  fifth  stage — ij\  inch  long— is  introduced. 

In  the  early  larval  stage  the  downward  flexure  of  the  fore  part 
of  the  brain  is  very  noticeable.  It  appears  due  to  the  general 
conformation  of  the  head  at  this  stage.  A  diverticulum  of  the 
3rd  ventricle  extends  downwards  and  backwards,  its  distal  ex- 
tremity underlying  the  optic  commissure.     The  broad   ventral 


commissure  of  the  infundibulum,  noticed  by  Mcintosh  and 
Prince  in  Anarr/iicas,  is  well  marked.  A  commissure  shuts  oft 
the  lumen  of  the  infundibulum  from  the  hind  part  of  the  3rd 
ventricle  immediately  in  front  of  the  splitting  off  of  the  infundi- 
bulum. The  valvula  appears  in  transverse  section  as  a  pair  of 
ridges  externally  to  the  tori,  before  it  shuts  off  the  aqueduct  of 
Sylvius.     The  cerebellar  fold  is  very  short. 

In  the  early  post-larval  stage  "an  apparent  rectification  of  the 
cranial  axis'  has  taken  place,  by  the  upward  rotation  of  the 
cerebrum  on  its  posterior  end,  doubtless  owing  to  the  rapid 
development  of  the  oral  and  trabecular  cartilages,  and  con- 
sequent forward  rotation  of  the  mouth.  The  same  causes  have 
also  operated  so  as  to  withdraw  the  diverticulum  of  the  3rd  ven- 
tricle from  its  position  below  the  optic  commissure.  The  infundi- 
bulum has  undergone  vertical  flattening.  The  future  lobi  inferiores 
are  indicated  as  lateral  expansions,  behind  which  the  3rd  oculo- 
nnotor  nerves  pass  outwards  from  the  centre  of  the  ventral  surface 
of  the  cerebral  mass.  The  infundibulum  extends  some  way  back 
above  the  notochord  as  a  thin-walled  sac.  Its  walls  are  little 
plicated  compared  with  those  in  some  other  forms,  e.g. ,  Rhombus, 
Anarrhicas. 

In  the  iinch  stage  the  olfactory  lobes  appear  as  bulbous  masses 
projecting  from  the  front  end  of  the  cerebrum.  A  pale  median 
septum  appears  between  the  anterior  extremities  of  the  lateral 
optic  ventricles,  its  base  resting  on  the  fibrous  tract  over  the  hind 
part  of  the  3rd"  ventricle.  The  tip  of  the  valvula  now  appears 
in  transverse  section  before  its  connection  with  the  cerebral  mass 
can  be  made  out,  having  thus  grown  forward.  The  cerebellum 
has  greatly  increased  in  size  ;  instead  of  terminating  as  before  on 
the  surface  of  the  brain,  it  is  now  continued  into  a  thick  fold 
bent  sharply  down  on  the  anterior  portion  ;  its  posterior  end 
passes  at  once  into  the  thin  roof  of  the  4th  ventricle.  Two 
fibrous  bands  cross  over  the  aqueduct  of  Sylvius  in  the  substance 
of  the  cerebellum  ;  their  lateral  extremities  are  fused.  The  lobi 
inferiores  are  better  marked  than  in  earlier  stages.  Longitudinal 
bands  of  fibres  pass  back  from  the  roots  of  the  oculomotor  nerves 
through  the  medulla  oblongata.  Groups  of  large  ganglionic  cells 
appear  on  either  side  of  these  bands,  and  are  connected  by  a  fine 
commissure  passing  through  both  bands.  At  the  origin  of  the 
8th  auditory  nerves,  this  commissure  is  replaced  by  a  St. 
Andrew's  cross  of  fibres,  the  dorsal  limbs  of  the  cross  passing  to 
the  nerve  roots,  and  the  ventral  to  the  ganglionic  areas. 

In  the  ij-inch  stage  the  olfactory  lobes  are  more  elongated. 
The  olfactory  nerves  pass  outwards  from  their  anterior  extremi- 
ties. The  septum  behind  the  pineal  body,  after  losing  its  ventral 
connection  with  the  fibrous  tract  over  the  3rd  ventricle,  persists 
for  some  way  back  as  a  cellular  leaf-like  appendage  of  the  thin 
median  roof  of  the  optic  ventricle  ;  a  few  fibres  pass  back  into 
this  appendage. 

Large  ganglionic  cells  appear  in  the  tori  semicirculares  about 
the  region  of  the  splitting  off  of  the  infundibulum. 

From  behind  the  region  of  the  auditory  nerves  a  ganglionic 
area  on  either  side  persists  backwards  through  the  medulla 
oblongata. 

Pineal  Region. 

The  roof  of  the  thalamencephalon  in  the  early  stages  is  a 
single  layer  of  large  columnar  cells  passing  forward  from  the 
front  wall  of  the  pineal  stalk.  It  passes  into  the  roof  of  the 
cerebrum,  the  cells  diminishing  greatly  in  size.  The  superior 
commissure  of  Osborn  is  present  from  the  early  post-larval  stage  ; 
it  it  also  present  in  the  larval  and  post-larval  Zoarces  viviparnsy 
where  it  is  distinctly  double.  The  first  signs  of  the  infrapineal 
recess  of  Hoffman  are  seen  in  the  Vinch  stage.  It  is  thus  much 
later  in  developing  than  in  Sahno,  and  the  fold  forming  its  front 
wall  never  extends  backwards  to  the  same  degree  as  in  that  form 
and  in  Anarrhicas .  This  fold,  in  the  post-larval  Zoarces,  is 
thickened  in  its  apex,  and  lodges  a  fine  commissure.  As  pointed 
out  by  Balfour  in  Elasmobranchs  the  fold  is  due  to  the  upward 
rotation  of  the  cerebrum. 

The  fibrous  tract  over  the  3rd  ventricle  in  the  herring  is  well 
marked  in  the  4-inch  stage.  It  is  seen  to  consist  of  fibres  passing 
upwards  and  inwards  from  the  optic  thalami  to  the  middle  line 
above  the  3rd  ventricle,  and  then  running  forward  to  the  stalk  of 
the  pineal  body.  'Jhe  tract  has  a  double  nature,  as  is  readily 
seen  in  vertical  longitudinal  sections  of  a  herring  i^'._,  inch  long. 
It  is  seen  here  to  be  a  backwardly  directed  fold  of  the  brain  roof,, 
continuous  ventrally  with  the  back  wall  of  the  pineal  stalk,  and 
dorsally  with  the  roof  of  the  optic  ventricle,  the  apex  of  the  fold 
being  the  posterior  commissure.  Its  length  in  this  form  is  due 
to  the  flattening  of  the  brain,   the  tract   being   very  s'^.ort   in 


526 


NA  TURE 


{April  3.   1890 


I 


-Zoarces,  where  the  brain  is  not  flattened.  Tn  Zoarces,  also,  from 
the  same  cause,  the  limbs  of  the  fold  are  less  closely  applied  to 
-each  other  and  much  thicker. 

.The  pineal  body  is  roundish  and  solid  in  the  early  larval  stage 
in  the  herring.  It  is  vertically  flattened  in  the  early  post-larval 
stage.  In  the  i-inch  sta^e  it  is  much  larger  and  contains  a 
lumen  ;  it  shows  signs  of  constriction  into  proxinnal  and  distal 
elements,  and  the  lumen  contains  a  coagulable  albuminous  fluid, 
as  in  P.ti'omyzon.  In  the  ifV-inch  stage  the  constriction  is  still 
visible,  and  the  walls  are  generally  crenated.  The  tissues  of  the 
pineal  wall  are  now  divided  into  three  layers,  and  a/e  of  varying 
thickness.  The  cartilage  of  the  te<junien  cranii  overlies  the  body 
at  this  stage.  The  constriction  of  the  body  appears  to  be  an 
exaggeration  of  the  crenation  of  the  pineal  wall  met  with  in 
Sa'mo ;  it  has  not,  probably,  the  morphological  value  of  the 
constriction  of  the  body  in  Pdroviyzon. 

March  27. — "On  the  Stability  of  a  Rotating  Spheroid  of 
Perfect  Liquid."  By  G.  H.  liryan.  Communicated  by  Prof. 
G.  H.  Parwin. 

.The  investigations  of  Riemann,  Basset,  and  ■  others  have 
proved  that  Maclaurin's  spheroid,  when  composed  of  ftictionless 
liquid,  ceases  to  be  stable  for  an  "  ellipsoidal  "  type-  of  .disturb- 
ance when  its  eccentricity  attains  the  value  o'9528867.  The 
■object  of  the  present  paper  is  to  discuss  the  cmditions  of 
stability  with  reference  to  disturbances  of  a  general  type 
expressible  in  terms  of  spheroidal  harmonics,  with  the  view  of 
examining  whether  Riemann's  condition  is  sufficient  to  ensure 
stability  for  displacements  other  than  ellipsoidal. 

Taking  the  criteria  of  stability  determined  in  a  previous 
communication  (Phil.  Trans.,  A.,  1889),  the  author  shows 
by  numerical  calculation  that  the  form  which  is  critical  for 
an  ellipsoidal  disturbance  is  stable  for  disturbances  determined 
by  several  of  the  lower  harmonics.  These  results  are  then 
extended  by  a  perfectly  general  investigation  to  all  other  types 
of  displacement. 

The  c  )nclusion  is  that  Riemann's  and  Basset's  condition 
of  stability  is  sufficient  to  ensure  the  absolute  stability  of 
Maclaurin's  rotating  spheroid  for  eviry  possil)le  displacement. 
Also  that,  unless  the  liquid  is  subject  to  hypothetical  constraints, 
we  cannot  initially  obtain  any  form  other  tha'i  ellipsoidal  from 
the  instability  of  the  spheroidal  form.  In  the  case  considered  of 
perfect  liquid  this  ellipsoid  does  not  rotate  as  if  rigid,  but  its 
principal  axes  rotate  with  half  the  an.jular  velocity  of  the  liquid. 

Physical  Society,  March  7.  —Prof.  W.  E.  Ayrton,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  S.  P.  Thompson  described  Ber- 
trand's  refractometer,  and  exhibited  the  capabilities  of  the 
instrument  before  the  Society.  Its  action  depends  on  total 
reflection.  The  refractometer  consists  of  a  hemisphere  of  glass, 
about  8  mm.  diameter,  set  at  the  end  of  a  tube,  the  plane  face 
being  outwards  and  inclined  at  about  30°  with  the  axis.  One 
side  of  the  convex  surface  of  the  hemisphere  is  illuminated 
through  a  piece  of  ground  glass  set  about  perpendicular  to  the 
plane  face.  The  hemisphere  is  viewed  through  an  eye-piece 
focussed  on  a  scale  divided  to  tenths  of  millimetres  placed  within 
the  tube.  The  instrument  is  particularly  useful  for  minera- 
logical  specimens  and  liquids.  The  procedure  in  the  latter  case 
is  to  smear  a  film  of  the  liquid  over  the  plane  face  of  the  hemi- 
-sphere,  and  by  looking  through  the  eye-piece  determine  the  scale 
reading  of  the  line  which  separates  the  light  and  darker  portions 
of  the  field.  A  reference  to  a  calibration  ta!)le  gives  the  refrac- 
tive index.  In  experimenting  with  solids  a  thm  film  of  a  very 
■dense  liquid  (supplied  with  the  instrument)  is  placed  between  the 
specimen  and  the  glass,  and  the  procedure  is  then  as  above.  The 
refractive  index  of  opaque  solids  can  be  determined  in  this  way. 
In  using  the  instrument  for  minerals  great  care  must  be  taken 
not  to  scratch  the  glass.  The  handiness  of  the  refracto- 
meter and  its  perfect  portability  (its  dimensions  being  about  5 
eentimetres  long  by  2^  cm.  diameter)  are  great  recommenda- 
tions. Mr.  Biakesley  asked  to  what  accuracy  the  scale  could  be 
read,  and  whether  the  sensitiveness  of  the  instrument  was  at 
all  comparable  with  that  of  other  methods.  Prof.  Dunstan 
inquired  if  it  could  be  used  with  volatile  liquids.  In  reply  Dr. 
Thompson  said  that  with  non-homogeneous  light  the  scale  could 
be  read  to  i  division,  but  with  a  sodium  flame  one-tenth  of  a 
<iivi  ion  could  be  estimated.  For  volatile  liquids,  a  drop  may 
be  used  instead  of  a  film,  or  the  evaporation  of  a  thick  film  may 
be  retarded  by  a  cover-glass. — Mr.  H,  Tomlinson's  paper,  on 
the  Villari  critical  point  in  nickel,  was  postponed. — Prof, 
Dunstan   described   an   apparatus   for  distilling   mercury  in   a 


vacuum,  devised  by  himself  and  W.  Dymond,  and  showed  the 
worl-ing  of  the  arrangement.  It  consists  of  a  3  mm.  soft  glass 
tube  rather  more  than  a  metre  long,  having  an  oblate  spheroidal 
bulb  blown  at  the  upper  end.  The  bulb  is  placed  over  a  ring 
burner.  At  the  top  of  the  bulb,  a  tube  of  l'5  mm.  diameter  is  ■ 
attached,  and  this  passes  outside  the  bulb,  and  descends  close  to 
the  larger  tuVie.  The  part  of  the  smaller  or  fall  tube  just  below 
the  bulb  is  enlarged  so  as  to  firm  a  condensation  chamber,  and 
the  lower  part  serves  as  a  Sprengel  tube.  A  conical  reservoir 
containing  the  mercury  to  be  distilled  is  in  flexible  connection 
with  the  lower  end  of  the  large  tube  as  in  Clark's  well-known 
apparatus.  The  advantages  claimed  for  the  new  apparatus  are, 
its  relative  shortness  and  portability,  the  small  quantity  remain- 
ing, undistilled,  and  its  non-liability  to  damage  or  derangement  if 
left  unsupplied  with  mercury.  To  ensure  satisfactory  working  a 
constant  pressure  of  gas  is  necessary,  and  this  is  obtained  by 
inserting  a  Sugg's  dry  governor  in  the  sujiply  pipe.  During 
distillation,  peculiar  green  flashes  are  seen  within  the  condensa- 
tion chamber,  and  these  are  intensified  by  bringing  it  near  an 
electric  machine  in  action.  The  apparatus  also  serves  well  to 
show  the  character  of  an  electric  discharge  through  mercury 
vapour,  for  the  mercury  in  the  two  tubes  may  be  used  as  elec- 
trodes. Prof.  Thompson  said  he  devised  a  simple  form  of 
distilling  apparatus  some  time  ago  which  answered  fairly  well, 
and  could  be  made  by  any  amateur  glass-worker.  It  cons'sted 
of  a  double  barometer,  one  leg  of  which  was  of  small  bore,  so 
as  to  act  as  a  Sprengel  tube.  The  rising  part  of  the  bend  at  the 
top. of  the  larger  tube  was  expanded  and  served  as  the  evaporat- 
ing chamber,  below  which  a  burner  was  placed.  The  President 
asked  why  Clark's  apparatus  is  made  so  lengthy.  In  reply  to 
this  question  Mr,  Boys  said  that  as  the  fall  tube  goes  down 
within  the  rising  one,  the  mercury  near  the  top  of  the  latter  is 
heated  by  the  condensing  mercury  (thus  'economising  gas)  and 
hence  condensation  dues  not  take  place  until  the  vapour  has 
passed  a  considerable  distance  down  the  fall  tube. — Prof.  S.  U. 
I'ickering  read  a  paper  on  the  theory  of  osmotic  pressure 
and  its  bearing  on  the  nature  of  solution.  The  author  said 
that  considerable  doubt  exists  as  to  the  accuracy  of  the  premises 
on  which  the  theory  is  based,  and  if  the  theory  is  to  be  regarded 
as  true  and  not  merely  a  rough  working  hypothesis,  the  lollow- 
ing  conditions  must  be  fulfilled  by  weak  solutions — (i)  The 
molecular  depression  of  the  freezing-point  must  be  independent 
of  the  nature  of  the  dissolved  substance.  (2)  Any  deviations 
from  (i)  must  be  in  the  direction  indicated  by  the  theory.  (3) 
the  depression  must  be  independent  of  the  nature  of  solvent. 
(4)  The  depression  must  be  independent  of  the  amount  of 
solvent  (all  solutions  being  weak).  (5)  The  deviations  with 
strong  solutions  should  be  in  the  theoretical  direction.  (6) 
They  should  be  regular.  Prof.  Pickering  proceeded  to  show 
that  experiment,  instead  of  confirming  the  above  statements, 
disproves  them  all.  As  regards  (i),  without  counting  abnormally 
low  (half)  values,  Raoult's  results  show  variations  of  60,  40,  30, 
&c.,  per  cent,  in  different  cases,  and  the  author  quoted  other 
values  where  the  variations  were  500,  260,  230,  &c.,  per  cent. 
These  variations,  he  considered,  were  too  great  to  be  explained 
by  the  fact  of  the  solutions  used  being  3  or  4  times  too  strong. 
Referring  to  (2),  he  said  that  low  values  are  reasonably  ex- 
plained by  the  polymerization  of  the  dissolved  molecules,  high 
values  by  their  dissociation  into  ions.  He  then  argued  that 
there  are  no  abnormally  high  values,  for  the  view  that  such 
exist,  and  that  they  are  explainable  by  dissociation  involves  the 
following  conclusions  :  {a)  that  the  more  stable  a  subistance  is, 
the  more  easily  is  it  dissociated  ;  {b)  that  solution  dissociates 
molecules  which  we  know  can  exist  undissociated  as  gases ;  {c) 
that  water  must  consist  of  igHjO,  and  the  atomic  theory  is 
wrong  ;  {d)  that  energy  can  be  created,  and  therefore  the  theory 
of  its  conservation  is  untenable.  With  respect  to  (3),  it  was 
pointed  out  that  in  many  instances  the  same  dissolved  substance 
gives  the  full  depression  with  one  solvent  and  half  depression 
with  another.  Cases  were  quoted  where  the  depression  pro- 
duced by  the  same  dissolved  body  in  different  solvents  showed 
variations  of  36,000,  21,000,  and  28,000  per  cent.  In  discussing 
(4),  the  author  >aid  that  even  with  solutions  weaker  than  that 
corresponding  to  a  gas,  the  law  is  not  fulfilled.  Taking  the 
case  of  sulphuric  acid  (the  only  one  at  present  fully  investi- 
gated), the  variations  amount  to  40  per  cent.,  or  about  28 
times  the  experimental  error.  With  reference  to  (5),  it  was  stated 
that  with  strong  solutions  the  molecular  depression  should 
become  smaller,  but  in  every  known  case  (9  were  qu  )ted) 
it  becomes  larger,  the  increase  in  one  instance  being  3,200  per 


April  2,,  i8$o] 


NA  TURE 


527 


cent.  As  regards  (6),  all  experimental  data  available,  especially 
those  relating  to  sulphuric  acid,  show  that  the  deviations  are 
neither  regular  nor  always  in  the  same  direction.  Mr  T.  II. 
Blakesley  said  he  was  greatly  interested  with  Prof.  Pickering's 
paper,  for  some  time  ago  he  was  induced  to  make  experiments 
on  the  volume  of  salts  in  solution  by  reading  Joule's  papers  on 
that  subject.  Some  of  the  results  confirmed,  but  others  did 
not  agree  with,  Joule's  theory  that  the  molecular  volume  in  solu- 
tion was  a  whole  number.  If  this  theory  was  true,  then  (he 
said)  it  would  be  possible  to  predetermine  the  density  of  solu- 
tions, and  from  the  measured  density  of  any  known  solution  we 
could  determine  the  water  of  crystallization  of  the  salt  from  the 
formula 


^(D-,) 


D 


(h;u  +  ^ )' 


where  W  and  w  are  the  masses  of  the  water  and  salt  respectively, 
D  the  density  of  the  solution  relative  to  water  at  the  same 
temperature,  A  the  molecular  weight  of  the  dehydrated  portion 
of  the  salt,  x  the  number  of  molecules  of  water,  and  n  the 
molecular  volume  of  ihe  salt  in  solution,  the  two  latter  being 
whole  numbers. 

Chemical  Society,  March  6. — Dr.  W.  J.  Russell,  President 
in  the  chair. — The  President  announced  that  the  senior 
Secretary  would  attend  the  meeting  to  be  held  in  Berlin  on 
March  il  to  celebrate  the  25th  ainiversary  of  the  promulgation 
of  Prof  Kekule's  benzene  theory,  and  would  present  a  con- 
gratulatory address  from  the  Society. — The  following  papers 
were  read : — Some  crystalline  substances  obtained  from  the  fruits 
of  various  spt-cies  of  Cilrtis,  by  Prof.  W.  A.  Tilden,  F.  R.S., 
-and  Mr.  C.  R.  Beck.  The  authors  have  examined  the  solid 
matters  which  are  de|»osited  from  freshly  extracted  oils  of  limes, 
lemons,  and  berganot  made  by  hand.  The  substance,  limettin, 
obtained  from  oil  of  limes  (C  limetta)  has  the  composition 
Ci,jHj40g,  and  crystallizes  in  tufts  of  needles  melting  at  I2i°-I32°. 
It  is  neither  an  acid  nor  a  glucoside,  is  not  acted  upon  by  acetic 
chloride  or  phenylhydrazine,  and  yields  phloroglucol,  and  acetic 
and  formic  acids  on  fusion  with  potash.  Essence  of  lemons 
yields  a  substance,  C]4Hj40g,  very  similar  to  limettin  in  appear- 
ance, though  the  crystals  are  more  lustrous  and  melt  at  116°. 
Bergamot  yields  a  compound  which  crystallizes  in  colourless 
prisms  and  melts  at  270°-27i°. — Reduction  of  adiketones,  by 
Prof.  F.  R.  Japp,  F.K.S.,  and  Dr.  F.  Klingemann.  Benzil, 
when  reduced  by  I'oiling  with  fuming  hydriodic  acid  for  a  few 
minutes,  gives  an  excellent  yield  of  deoxybenzoin.  Phenanthra- 
quinone,  unHer  like  conditions,  gives  so-called  phenanthrone, 
which,  contrary  to  Lachowicz's  view,  is  not  the  deoxybenzoin  of 
phenanthraquinone,  but  a  mono-hydroxyphenanthrene. — Studies 
on  isomeric  change,  No.  IV;  halogen  derivatives  of  quinone, 
by  Mr.  A.  R.  Ling.  The  experiments  of  Hantzsch  and  of 
Nietzki  have  proved,  in  opposition  to  those  of  Levy,  that  the 
"anilic"  acids  are  paradihydroxy-derivatives  of  quinone,  and 
Hantzsch  and  Schniier  have  shown  that  an  isomeric  change 
occurs  when  paradichloroquinone  is  brominated,  the  product 
being  nieiadichlorometadibromoquinone.  The  author  has  in- 
vestigated the  aciion  of  bromine  on  paradichloroquinone  and 
diacetylparadichloroquinol,  and  the  action  of  chlorine  on  para- 
dibromoquinone,  and  has  obtained  results  which  confirm 
Hantzsch    and    Schniter's    conclusion,    since   all    attempts    to 

/CBr.CCK 
prepare  paradichloroparadibromoquinone,  C0<^  /CO, 

^CCl.CBr/ 
have     been     unsuccessful,    the    product    in    every   case     con- 
sisting    of      the     isomeric     metadichlorometadibromoquinone, 

yCCl.CBr 
CO<^  ^CO. — Note  on  a  phenylic  salt  of  phenylthio- 

^CCl.CBr/ 
carbamic  acid,   by  Prof.  A.   E.  Dixon. — Contributions   to   the 
chemistry  of  thiocarbimides  ;  interaction  of  benzyl  chloride  and 
of  allyl    bromide   with  thiocarbamide,   phenyl-   and   diphenyl- 
thiocarbamides,  by  Mr.  E.  A.  Werner, 

Geological  Society,  March  12.— Mr.  J,  W.  Hulke,  F.R.S., 
Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  comnunica  ions 
were  read  : — <  "n  a  dt-ep  channel  of  drift  in  the  valley  of  the  Cam, 
Essex,  by  W.  Wh'iiaker.  In  Scotland  and  in  Northern  Eng- 
land long  and  deep  channels  filled  with  drift  have  been  noticed, 


but  not  in  Southern  England.  For  some  years  one  detp  well- 
section  has  betn  known  which  showed  a  most  um  xpectcd  thick- 
ness of  Glacial  drift  in  the  higher  j^^art  of  the  valley  of  the  Caro^ 
where  that  drift  occurs  mostly  on  the  higher  grounds  and  is  of 
no  very  great  thickness.  Lately,  further  evidence  has  come  to- 
hand,  showing  that  the  occurrence  in  question  is  not  confined  to- 
one  spot,  but  extends  for  some  miles.  The  beds  found  are  for 
the  most  part  loamy  or  clayey.  At  the  head  of  the  valley- 
various  wells  at  Quendon  and  Kicklingshow  irregularities  in  the 
thickness  of  the  drift,  the  chalk  coming  to  or  near  the  surface  ii> 
some  places,  whilst  it  is  nearly  100  feet  below  it  .sometimes. 
Further  north,  at  Newport,  we  have  the  greatest  thickness  of 
drift  hitherto  recorded  in  the  South  of  England,  and  then  with- 
out reaching  the  base.  At  one  spot  a  well  reached  chalk  at  75 
feet;  whil.-t  about  150  feet  off  that  rock  crops  out,  showing  a 
slope  of  the  chalk  surface  of  i  in  2.  In  the  most  interesting  of 
all  the  wells,  after  boring  to  the  depth  of  340  feet,  the  work  was- 
abandoned  without  reaching  the  chalk,  the  drift  in  this  case 
reaching  to  a  depth  of  about  140  feet  below  the  level  of  the- 
sex,  though  the  place  is  far  inland.  The  chalk  crops  out  about 
1000  feet  eastward,  and  at  but  little  lower  level,  so  that  there  is 
a  fall  of  about  i  in  3  over  a  long  distance.  At  and  near  Wei'den 
the  abrupt  way  in  which  drift  comes  on  against  chalk  has  beei> 
seen  in  open  sections.  Two  wells  have  shown  a  thickness  of 
210  and  296  feet  of  drift  respectively  ;  and  as  the  chalk  comes- 
to  the  surface,  at  a  level  certainly  not  lower,  only  140  yards  fron> 
the  latter,  the  chalk  surface  must  have  a  slope  of  i  in  less  thai* 
l|,  and  this  surface  must  rise  again  on  the  other  side,  as  the 
chalk  again  cropis  out.  The  drift  here  reaches  to  a  depth  of  6(> 
or  70  feet  below  the  sea-level.  At  Littlebury,  in  the  centre  of 
the  villai;e,  a  boring  218  feet  deep  has  not  pierced  through  the 
drift,  which  reaches  to  60  feet  below  the  sea-level.  As  in  a 
well  only  60  yards  west  and  slightly  higher,  the  chalk  was 
touched  at  6  feet",  there  must  here  be  a  fall  of  the  chalk  surface 
of  about  I  "2  in  i.  Eastward,  too,  on  the  other  side  of  the 
valley,  the  chalk  rises  to  the  surface.  The  places  that  have  been 
mentioned  range  over  a  distance  of  6  miles.  How  much  further 
Ihe  drift-channel  may  go  is  not  known,  neither  can  \ve  say  to- 
what  steepness  the  slope  of  the  underground  chalk  surface  may 
reach  ;  the  slopes  given  in  each  case  are  the  lowest  possible. 
The  author  thinks  that  the  channel  has  been  formed  by  erosion 
rather  than  by  disturbance  or  dissolution  of  the  chalk.  After 
the  reading  of  the  paper  there  was  a  discussion,  in  which  Dr. 
Evans,  Mr.  Clement  Reid,  Mr.  Topley,  Mr.  J.  Allen  Brown, 
Dr.  G.  J.  Hinde,  and  the  author  took  part. — On  the 
Monian  and  ba^al  Cambrian  rocks  of  Shropshire,  by  Prof. 
J.  F.  Blake. — On  a  crocodilian  jaw  from  the  Oxford  Clay  ot 
Peterborough,  by  R.  Lydekker. — On  two  new  species  of  Laby- 
rinthodonts,  by  R.  Lydekker. 

Linnean  Society,  March  20. — Mr.  W.  Carruthers,  F.K.S.,. 
President,  in  the  chair. — After  reading  the  minutes  of  the  last 
meeting,  the  following  resolution,  moved  from  the  chair,  was- 
unanimously  adopted  :  — "  On  the  occasion  of  a  gift,  from  Mr.. 
Crisp,  of  a  handsome  oaken  table  for  the  meeting-room,  the 
Society  desires  to  record  its  deep  sense  of  the  valuable  services- 
rendered  by  that  gentleman,  not  only  as  Treasurer,  but  by 
numerous  acts  which  are  not  generally  appreciated  because 
they  are  practically  unknown  to  the  Fallows." — Prof.  P.  Martin- 
Duncan,  K.  R.S.,  exhibited  several  specimens  of  Desviophylltitn 
cristagalli  obtained  from  an  electric  cable  at  a  depth  of  550« 
fathoms.  Though  showing  great  variation  in  the  shape  and 
nature  of  the  wall,  the  specific  characters  of  the  septa  were  main- 
tained. The  core,  extending  as  a  thin  lamina  far  beyond  the 
peduncle,  had  no  connection  with  the  septa.  A  section  of 
Caryophyliia  claviis  showed  theca  between  the  septa,  and  a 
section  of  Lophohelia  proUfera  exhibited  a  true  theca  extending 
beyond  the  sepia. — Mr.  E.  B.  Poulton,  F.K.S.,  exhibited  some 
Lepidopterous  larva.'  showing  the  variation  in  colour  induced  by- 
natural  surroundings ;  and  some  lizards,  in  spirit,  from  the 
West  Indies,  showing  the  pineal  eye  very  distinctly. — In  con- 
tinuation of  a  former  paper  on  the  external  morphology  of  the 
Lepidopterous  pupa,  Mr.  Poulton  gave  a  detailed  and  interest- 
ing account  of  the  sexual  differences  observed  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  antenna'  and  wings.  —  Prof.  G.  B.  Howes  read  a 
paper  on  the  intestinal  canal  of  ihe  Ichthyopsida,  with  especial 
reference  to  its  arterial  supply.  He  described  certain  arieries 
hitherto  unrecorded,  and  some  variations  he  had  found  in  them 
in  the  Frog  and  Salamander.  The  artery  known  in  the  Elasmo- 
branchii  as  the  inferior   mesenteric,   was  shown   to   belong  to 


528 


NATURE 


\April  T^,  i8co 


the  superior  mesenteric  series.  Discussing  the  morphology  of  the 
intestine  and  its  derivates,  the  author  defined  the  large  intestine 
of  the  Pisces  more  precisely  than  had  hitherto  been  done,  and 
showed  that  the  appendix  digitiformis  of  the  Elasmobranchs 
must  be  regarded  as  homologous  with  the  appendix  vermiformis 
of  mammals,  and  that  a  short  caecum  coli  is  present  at  any  rate 
in  the  Batoidei.  The  anatomical  relationships  of  the  appendix 
digitiformis  were  described  in  certain  Elasmobranchs  for  the 
first  time,  and  some  notes  were  added  upon  the  caecum  and 
large  intestine  among  Teleosteans. — An  interesting  paper  was 
then  read  by  Mr.  R.  A.  Grimshaw,  on  heredity  and  sex  in  the 
honey-bee. 

Paris. 

Academy   of  Sciences,  March  24, — M.    Hermite   in   the 
chair. — M.  Mascart  presented  a  note  on  a  direct  reading  trans- 
mission dynamometer  with  a  photographic  registering  arrange- 
ment, and  also  one  on   the   Observatory  at  Tananarivo,  setting 
forth  some  of  the  meteorological  work  to  be  undertaken  in  this 
new  Observatory. — M.  Berthelot,  in  a  paper  on  the  condensa- 
tion of  carbonic  oxide,  and  on  the   penetrability  of  glass  by 
water,  says  that  he  has  been  unable  to  obtain  evidence  of  the 
transmission  of  water  through  glass  under  the  influence  of  the 
silent  discharge,  and  finds  that  the  carbonic  oxide  is  truly  con- 
densed into  a  body  which  rapidly  takes  up  moisture  from  the 
air. — Underagricultural  chemistry,  M.  Th.  Schloesing  makes  some 
remarks  relative  to  the  subject  of  M.  Berthelot's  observations  on 
the    reactions   between    soils    and   atmospheric   ammonia,  and 
discusses  the  differences  of  opinion  existing   between  them. — 
M.  L.  Ranvier,  in  microscopical  observations  of  the  contraction 
of  living  muscular  fibres  striated  and  unstriated,  has  contrived  a 
method  by  which  muscles  may  be  excited  whilst  being  viewed 
under  a  microscope,  and  from  comparative  observations  of  mus- 
cular elements  in  repose  and  contracted,  finds  that   the  homo- 
geneous period    and  the  inversion  imagined  by  Merckel  does 
not  exist. — On  the  regulation  of  the  motion  of  governors  by  an 
auxiliary  dynamo,  by  M.  A.  I^edieu. — On  the  Cretaceous  Echino- 
dermata  of  Mexico,  by  M.  Cotteau.     Descriptions  are  given  of 
six  specimens  received  from  Mexico.     The  specimens  are  inter- 
esting both  from  a  zoological  and  geological  point  of  view,  since 
they  determine  the  age  of  the  strata  in  which  they  were  found. — 
In  studies  on   the  capture  theory  of  periodic  comets,   M.  O. 
Callandreau  extends  the  elaborate  work  done  by  M.  Tisserand 
on  the  same  subject. — On  the  discovery  of  a  remarkable  trans- 
cendental  function,   by  M.   Fredholm. — On    the    invariants    of 
a   class   of  equations   of  the    first  order,    by   M.   Z.   Elliot. — 
Relation  between  the  volume,  the  pressure,  and  the  temperature 
of  different  vapours,  by   M.  Ch.  Antoine. — Comparative  study 
of  specific  inductive  power,  and  of  the  conductibility  of  spaces 
filled  with  rarefied  air,  by  M.  James  Moser.     From  the  study  of 
these  properties  with  spaces  containing  air  in  three  states  of 
rarefaction — namely,  (i)at  a  pressure  of  10  mm.  of  mercury,  (2)  at 
I  mm.  pressure,  (3)  with  an  extreme  vacuum — the  author  deduces 
that  while  the  conductibility  varies  the  specific  inductive  power 
remains   constant. — Electrolysis  of  a  mixture  of  two   salts  in 
aqueous  solution,  note  by  M.  L.  BouUevigne.     Using  a  mixture 
of  Zn  and  Cu  salts,  it  is  found  that  the  composition  of  the  brass 
deposited  varies  rapidly  with  the  intensity  of  the  current  em- 
ployed, contrary  to  Buffs  law.     Considering  the  variation  to  i 
be  due  to  the  chemical  action  of  the  sulphate  of  copper  upon  the  ! 
zinc  in  the  alloy  deposited,  and  that  the  amount  of  this  action  I 
is  proportional  to  the  time,  an  expression  is  found  which  allows 
the  composition  of  the  alloy  obtained  with  any  given  intensity 
to  be  calculated  with  a  fair   degree  of  accuracy  as  tested  by 
experimental    results.  —  A    new    method    of    preparation    of 
betaines,   by    M.   E.    Duvillier.     The   author  uses  a   reaction 
similar     to     that    by    means    of    which     M.    Schiitzenberger 
obtained    the    leucines    synthetically ;   an   ethereal    iodide    is 
caused    to   act   upon   the  zinc   salt  of  an   amide  acid   in   the 
presence  of  zinc  oxide. — Titration  of  acetone  by  the  iodoform 
reaction,  by  M.  G.   Arachequesne. — On  callose,  a  new  funda- 
mental substance  existing  in  cell  membranes,  by  M.  Louis  Mangin, 
— The  estimation  of  fatty  matter  in  milk,  by  M.  Leze.     100  parts 
of  milk  are  heated  in  a  flask  with  a  graduated  neck  till  the  mix- 
ture becomes  brown,  ammonia  is  added  till  the  whole  becomes 
clear,  the  fatty  matter  rising  to  the  top  and  its  volume  being 
read  off  on  the  graduated  neck. — On  new  forms  of  crystallized 
silica,  note  by  MM.  Michel-Levy  and  Munier-Chalmas. — The 
solubility  of  some  substances  in  sea-water,  by  M.  J.  Thoulet. — 
On  the  development  of  siliceous  sponges  and  the  homologation 


of  leaflets  among  the  sponges,  by  M.  Yves  Delage.— On  the 
physiological  mechanism  of  hatching,  sloughing,  and  meta- 
morphosis among  Orthopterous  insects  of  the  Acridean  family, 
by  M.  J.  Kunckel  d'Herculais,— On  the  great  sand  dunes  of  the 
Sahara,  note  by  M.  G.  Rolland. — On  the  gypseous  formations 
of  the  Paris  basin,  and  on  the  siliceous  deposits  which  have 
replaced  the  gypsum,  by  M.  Munier-Chalmas.— On  the  physio- 
logical action  of  arsenietted  hydrogen,  by  MM.  F.  Joly  and  B. 
de  Nabias. — On  the  diarrhoeic  action  of  cholera  cultures,  by  M. 
N.  Gamaleia. — On  the  vibration  of  the  earth  at  Chung-Hai  and 
the  movements  of  the  compass  at  Zi-Ka-Wei  during  this  vibra- 
tion, by  M.  Chevalier.  It  is  remarked  from  observations  that 
the  vibrations  of  the  earth  are  unaccompanied  by  magnetic 
disturbances. 

Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  March  14.— Prof,  du  Bois-Reymond, 
President,  in  the  chair. — Dr.  Heymans  spoke  on  myelin,  giving 
a  concise  account  of  the  numerous  chemical  and  scanty  micro- 
scopical investigations  of  what  Virchow  had  designated  as  myelin- 
formations  in  peripheral  nerves.  From  a  chemical  point  of  view 
the  controversy  had  turned  chiefly  upon  the  existence  or  non- 
existence of  Liebreich's  protagon.  The  speaker  had  made  in- 
vestigations on  frogs'  nerves,  from  which  he  concluded  that  both 
protagon  and  lecithin  are  present  in  them,  and  that  myelin- 
formations  are  due  to  imbibition,  with  simultaneous  production 
of  an  external  membrane. — Dr.  Goldscheider  gave  an  account  of 
his  researches  on  the  sensitiveness  of  the  articular  surfaces  of 
joints,  based  upon  experiments  on  the  tibial  and  metatarsal  joints 
in  rabbits.  It  appeared  that  the  sensitiveness  was  dependent  not 
so"much  upon  the  irritability  of  the  surfaces  of  the  joints,  as  of  that 
of  the  epiphyses.  The  greatest  effect  was  produced  by  direct 
stimulation  of  the  marrow  of  the  respective  bones,  while  stimula- 
tion of  the  compact  bone-substance  showed  that  this  was  quite 
insensitive. 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

Technical  Education  in  the  Code 505 

The  Cave  Fauna  of  North  America.     By  R.  T.  G.  .  507 

Linear  Differential  Equations 508 

The  Bacteria  of  Asiatic  Cholera 509 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Barillot :   "  Manuel  de  1' Analyse  des  Vins  "      ....  510 
Leaper  :  ' '  Synoptical  Tables  of  Organic  and  Inorganic 

Chemistry" 510 

Taylor  :  "  The  British  Journal  Photographic  Almanac, 

1890  " 510 

Bottomley  :   "  Four-Figure  Mathematical  Tables  "  .    .  510 
Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Panmixia. — Herbert    Spencer ;    Prof.    George  J. 

Romanes,  F.R.S 511 

The  Spectrum  of  Subchloride  of  Copper. — Prof.  A. 

S.  Herschel,  F.R.S 513 

Brush-Turkeys    on    the    Smaller    Islands    North    of 

Celebes. — Dr.  A.  B.  Meyer 514 

Crystals  of  Lime.— H.  A.  Miers 515 

Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — Ernest  W. 

L.  Holt •  .    .    .  515 

Wimshurst  Machine  and    Hertz's  Vibrator. — T.   A. 

Garrett  and  W.  Lucas 515 

The  Institution  of  Naval  Architects 515 

Bourdon's  Pressure  Gauge.     {Illustrated.)     By  Prof, 

A,  G.  Greenhill,  F.R.S 517 

Notes 518 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A,  Fowler 521  : 

The  Great  Comet  of  1882 522  | 

Melbourne  Star  Catalogue 522  | 

Comet  a  1890 522! 

Discovery  of  Asteroids 5  ^2  ^ 

Solar  Activity  in  1889 522 

The  Glow  of  Phosphorus.    By  Prof,  T.  E.  Thorpe, 

F.R.S 523 

"Before  and   after  Darwin,"     By    Prof.   G.  J.    Ro-  j 

manes,  F.R.S 524  | 

Scientific  Serials 525 

Societies  and  Academies 525  1 


NA TURE 


529 


THURSDAY,  APRIL  10,  1890. 


NEW  LIGHT  FROM  SOLAR  ECLIPSES. 

New  Light  from  Solar  Eclipses;  or  Chronology  corrected 
by  the  Rectification  of  Errors  in  the  received  Astro- 
nomical Tables.  By  William  M.  Page.  With  an  Intro- 
duction by  the  Rev.  J.  Brookes,  D.D.  (St.  Louis  :  Barns 
Publishing  Co.,  1890.) 

THIS  is  a  book  with  a  considerable  portion  of  which 
we  can  have  no  concern,  for  it  treats  largely  of 
theological  matters  of  a  disputed  kind.  It  is  the  produc- 
tion, no  doubt,  of  a  devout  and  pious  mind,  but  of  one  not 
scientifically  trained.  Indeed,  we  are  informed,  in  an  in- 
troduction by  a  St.  Louis  divine,  that  it  is  "  written  by 
a  brother  actively  engaged  in  the  ordinary  pursuits  of 
life,"  and  an  attempt  is  made  to  enlist  our  sympathies 
with  the  author  on  that  account.  This  appeal  would  have 
been  more  effectual  if  the  scientific  conclusions  at  which 
the  author  has  arrived,  and  for  which  he  hopes  to  gain 
attention,  were  put  forward  either  with  more  modesty  on 
his  own  part,  or  with  greater  respect  for  recognized 
authorities. 

But  the  contrary  is  the  case.  Our  prejudices  are  not 
respected,  and  while  the  crudest  statements  are  made  on 
the  smallest  possible  evidence,  the  work  so  bristles  with 
errors  that  it  is  difficult  to  present  typical  examples.  We 
should  have  been  tempted  to  leave  this  volume  to  the 
obscurity  it  merits  from  a  scientific  point  of  view,  but  for 
two  circumstances.  One  is,  that  this  book  will  probably 
circulate  largely  among  readers  not  qualified  to  judge  of 
the  rashness  of  statement  and  inaccuracy  of  detail  that 
characterize  its  astronomical  portion,  and  that  con- 
sequently a  very  erroneous  and  exaggerated  opinion  may 
be  formed  of  the  character  and  amount  of  the  errors  that 
still  exist  in  one  of  the  most  exact  of  sciences.  The  second 
inducement  to  look  a  little  closely  into  its  pages  is  this  : 
that  another  and  more  instructed  class  of  readers  may 
imagine  that  on  matters  of  chronology  astronomy  speaks 
with  an  uncertain  sound,  and  consequently  be  led  to 
undervalue  the  very  substantial  advantages  that  history 
has  derived  from  astronomical  sources. 

The  main  object  of  the  book  is  the  arrangement  of  a 
system  that  shall  bring  the  narrative  contained  in  the 
Gospels  into  the  chronological  order  conceived  by  the 
author  as  correct,  and  to  render  consistent,  the  facts  re- 
corded in  sacred  and  secular  history,  with  this  system. 
How  far  this  method  and  system  will  satisfy  competent 
theological  critics  it  is,  as  we  have  said,  not  our  duty  to 
inquire  ;  we  can  only  hope  that  the  service  rendered  to 
religion  is  greater  than  that  to  science,  for  from  the  latter 
point  of  view  we  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  his 
theory  is  erroneous  in  its  conception  and  unwarranted  in 
its  application. 

The  means  employed  to  produce  this  chronological 
harmony  is  based  on  the  assumption  that  the  places  of 
the  sun  and  moon  cannot  be  correctly  computed  for 
distant  dates  from  the  existing  tables,  and  that  con- 
sequently additional  terms,  empirically  determined,  must 
be  introduced.  This  new  theory  had  best  be  described 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1067. 


in  the  author's  own  words,  for  fear  we  should  not  do  it 
justice : — 

"  Our  present  lunation  is  too  long  by  a  fraction  of  a 
second,  amounting  in  the  course  of  a  century,  to  about 
six  minutes  of  time.  In  the  same  length  of  time,  the 
sun's  anomaly  is  too  long  by  about  seven  minutes  ten 
seconds  of  space,  the  moon's  anomaly  too  long  by  eight 
minutes  twenty  seconds  of  space,  and  the  sun's  mean 
distance  from  the  node  is  too  short  by  about  eight 
minutes  thirty- five  seconds  of  space." 

After  an  attentive  perusal  we  have  not  been  able  to 
discover  any  additional  explanation  or  reason  for  the  in- 
troduction of  these  terms.  Neither  have  we  discovered 
to  what  assumed  values  of  the  mean  longitude,  the  mean 
anomaly,  and  the  argument  of  latitude  these  corrections 
are  to  be  applied.  The  only  references  to  authorities  are 
apparently  those  of  Baily's  "  Tables  "  and  Fergusson's  "  As- 
tronomy," and  the  author  does  not  appear  to  have  had  ac- 
cess or  thought  it  worth  while  to  examine  more  modern  and 
trustworthy  sources.  We  cannot  be  quite  sure  that  vvc 
have  described  correctly  the  elements  of  the  lunar  and 
solar  orbits  to  which  these  corrections  are  to  be  made,  but 
it  is  asserted  that,  when  introduced  into  the  tables,  all 
the  eclipses  recorded  by  the  ancients  can  be  represented 
correctly  within  a  few  minutes  of  time.  It  is  much  to  be 
regretted  that  no  rigorous  comparison  between  the 
observed  and  computed  times  of  all  the  ancient  eclipses 
has  been  attempted,  in  order  that  a  correct  judgment 
might  be  formed  of  the  value  of  this  assertion.  This  was 
the  more  necessary  as  the  few  cases  selected  are,  we  think, 
very  infelicitous,  and  the  incapacity  of  modern  tables  to 
represent  these  eclipses  is  unjustifiably,  but  ho  doubt  unin- 
tentionally, exaggerated. 

It  is  curious  to  notice  that  the  author  does  not  recognize 
any  other  criterion  of  accuracy  than  the  possibility  of 
satisfying  these  ancient  eclipses,  the  records  of  which  are 
so  imperfect,  and  the  interpretation  so  doubtful,  that  they 
are  gradually  being  discarded  in  the  discussion  of  the  one 
question  for  which  they  at  one  time  seemed  peculiarly 
fitted — namely,  the  determination  of  the  amount  of  the 
secular  acceleration  of  the  moon's  mean  motion.  The 
whole  mass  of  modern  observation  is  ignored.  The  care- 
ful records  of  eclipses  made  at  Bagdad  and  Cairo  in  the 
ninth  and  tenth  centuries  share  the  same  fate.  It  would 
seem  that  any  observation  made  after  the  first  half  of  the 
first  century  does  not  appear  to  the  author  to  possess  any 
value. 

It  will  scarcely  be  believed  that  this  is  a  correct  descrip- 
tion of  the  author's  method.  No  one  will  imagine  that 
any  sane  man  would  attempt  to  construct  a  lunar  theory 
from  ancient  eclipses  alone,  and  expect  that  the  results  at 
which  he  has  arrived  will  be  generally  admitted,  because, 
forsooth,  he  is  able  to  represent  a  few  facts  by  the  intro- 
duction of  nearly  as  many  variables.  It  is  true  that  the 
tables  founded  on  this  vicious  reasoning  do  not  appear  in 
their  integrity,  and  probably  do  not  exist  ;  but  there  are 
given  many  pages  of  computation,  which  are  well  calcu- 
lated to  mislead  the  uninstructed,  and  to  give  an  air  of 
accuracy  to  the  results,  to  which  they  are  not  entitled. 
We  can  imagine  nothing  better  adapted  to  bring 
astronomy  into  disrepute  with  thoughtful,  but  not  mathe- 
matically trained  minds,  than  the  unwarranted  conclusions 
presented  in  the  slovenly  manner  in  which  they  appear 
here. 

A  A 


530 


NATURE 


[April  lo,  1890 


Some  grounds  must  be  given  for  the  severe  stricture 
here  passed,  and  the  only  difficulty  is  to  select  the  most 
fitting  examples  from  so  much  worthless  matter.  On 
p.  18  the  author  says  :  "  It  is  considered  sufficiently  near 
to  the  truth,  if  our  calculations  came  within  a  fc^v  hours 
of  the  time  and  near  enough  to  the  quantity  of  the  eclipse 
to  identify  it  as  being  in  all  probability  the  obscuration 
mentioned  by  the  historian  in  connection  with  a  certain 
event."  The  italics  are  our  own,  and  the  statement  to  which 
they  call  attention  is  absolutely  a  misrepresentation.  It 
is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  in  these  columns  that  no 
astronomer  of  repute  would  be  satisfied  with  a  dis- 
crepancy of  anything  like  this  amount  between  history 
and  computation  in  any  case  in  which  the  phenomenon 
is  clearly  indicated  and  accurately  described.  In  the 
annexed  table  is  given  the  comparison  of  the  computa- 
tions of  various  astronomers  of  the  times  of  historic 
eclipses  with  the  recorded  times.  To  keep  the  table  to 
a  moderate  length  it  is  confined  to  those  dates  between 
which  the  examples  have  been  worked  out  by  the  writer. 
In  estimating  the  accuracy  of  representation,  there  are 
two  circumstances  to  be  taken  into  account.  One  is 
that  an  eclipse,  being  a  phenomenon  the  exact  time  of 
whose  occurrence  could  not  be  accurately  predicted  by 
the  observer  or  recorder,  must  have  been  in  progress 
some  time  before  detection,  or,  all  observations  of  the  first 
geometrical  contact,  the  phase  computed  from  the  tables, 
would  be  observed  too  late  ;  and  though  the  error  from  this 
cause  would  not  be  so  large  in  the  observation  of  the  end 
of  the  total  phase,  it  is  probable  that  this  phenomenon 
would  be  recorded  too  soon.  The  other  circumstance  is 
that  we  cannot  regard  Ptolemy,  from  whose  work  the 
times  here  given  have  been  taken,  as  a  totally  unpre- 
judiced witness.  He  was  anxious  to  establish  a  theory, 
and  it  is  probable  that  he  selected  those  instances  which 
most  nearly  fitted  his  preconceived  system.  In  other 
words  he  may  have — what  is  not  unknown  in  these  days 
— rejected  a  discordant  observation. 


j: 

■| 

Greenw'ch  mean  time 

Phase  given  in 

computed  by 

Date. 

"  Almagest." 

?i 

J3 

s 

« 

_• 

0    ~ 

0 

t 

c 

:z 

N 

a. 
0 

b 

h.   m. 

h.   m 

h.  m. 

h.  m. 

h.   m. 

-490,  April  25    ... 

Middle 

827 

817 

750 

7  53 

7  35 

-382,  Dec.   22   ... 

Beginning 

15  35 

15  52 

16  19 

16  15 

16    7 

-381,  June   18    ... 

Beginning 

5    8 

425 

4  54 

5    9 

440 

-381,  Dec.    12    ... 

Beginning 

556 

4  57 

6  30 

6  18 

6  14 

-  200,  Sept.  22     J 

Beginning 

323 

257 

— 

— 

— 

PInd 

6  25 

5  55 

6  29 

6  24 

6  14 

-  199,  Mar.   19   ... 

Beginning 

929 

8  5« 

9  22 

9  20 

9    9 

-199,  Stpt.  II    ... 

Middle 

12  22 

12    3 

1234 

12  28 

12  18 

-  173,  April  30 

Beginning 
End 

1048 
13  31 

10    4 

1245 

lo  36 
13  12 

10  16 
13  20 

10  24 
13    3 

-  140,  Jan.    27    ... 

Beginning 

8    7 

644 

7    8 

7    6 

7    5 

+  125,  April    5    ... 

Middle 

6  30 

636 

659 

654 

651 

It  is  needless  to  point  out  there  are  no  discrepancies 
of  a  few  hours  between  the  tabular  and  observed  facts, 
and  that  the  grave  charge  of  the  lack  of  accuracy  is  un- 
sustained.  The  circumstances  of  two  of  these  eclipses 
have  been  worked  out  by  the  author  with  some  pretence 


of  detail,  employing  his  '•'  new  and  corrected  tables."  For 
these  two  echpses,  -  382,  Dec,  and  -  200,  Sept.,  he  gives 
the  London  mean  times  of  the  true  full  moon  i5h.  56m. 
and  3h.  i6m.  respectively.  There  is  no  attempt  to  deter- 
mine the  e.xact  phase  observed,  and  it  may  be  remarked 
that  the  longitude  given  for  Babylon  is  grievously  in 
error.  Tliese  two  eclipses  have  been  selected  with  the 
particular  purpose  of  demonstrating  that  no  secular 
acceleration  of  the  moon's  motion  exists.  This  selection, 
with  this  view,  is  unhappy.  With  regard  to  the  earlier 
eclipse,  it  is  very  doubtful  if  it  was  really  seen  at 
Babylon.  The  account  given  in  the  "  Almagest " 
("Halma,"  p.  275)  rather  suggests  that  Athens,  or  one 
of  the  Ionic  colonies,  was  the  place  of  observation,  since 
the  description  of  the  date  is  by  means  of  the  Greek 
calendar  ;  and  Hipparchus  says  that  this  eclipse  with  the 
two  immediately  following  are  added  to  the  catalogue  of 
the  Babylonian  eclipses  as  though  they  had  been  observed 
in  that  place  (ws  tfcct  TfTrjprjfievas  yeyovivai).  This  sugges- 
tion that  the  record  of  the  eclipse  was  made  elsewhere 
than  at  Babylon  is  strengthened  by  the  addition  of  the 
note  that  "the  moon  set  eclipsed."  In  an  eclipse  which 
commenced  only  half  an  hour  before  the  setting  of  the 
moon,  these  words  would  have  little  meaning,  but  if  the 
note  was  added  by  the  observer  at  Athens,  its  purpose  is 
intelligible,  for  the  eclipse  would  be  more  than  half  over 
before  the  moon  touched  the  horizon.  It  is  very  possible, 
therefore,  that  some  allowance  for  longitude  was  made  by 
Hipparchus,  but  with  such  a  doubt  overhanging  the  re- 
corded time  of  observation,  the  selection  of  this  eclipse 
from  the  long  catalogue  collected  by  Ptolemy  gives  a  very 
doubtful  support  to  any  hypothesis.  The  second  eclipse 
quoted  was  doubtless  observed  at  Alexandria,  but  if 
Hipparchus  is  correctly  rendered  by  Ptolemy,  he  is  made 
to  say  that  the  eclipse  began  half  an  hour  before  the 
moon  rose.  The  record,  therefore,  refers  to  a  calculated, 
and  not  an  observed,  phenomenon,  and  on  that  ground 
alone  should  not  have  been  selected. 

But  it  is  in  solar  eclipses,  the  total  phase  being  confined 
to  a  comparatively  narrow  zone  of  country,  that  the 
feebleness  of  the  author's  method  is  most  conspicuously 
exhibited.  The  eclipse  known  as  that  of  Xerxes  will 
serve  for  an  example.  To  adequately  explain  the  cir- 
cumstances as  recorded  by  Herodotus  and  Aristides  has 
exercised  the  ingenuity,  but  baffled  the  efforts,  of  many 
experts.  It  offers  no  difficulties  to  Mr.  Page,  though  we 
cannot  think  that  his  rendering  will  be  generally  appre- 
ciated. Herodotus's  description  runs,  "  The  army  having 
come  out  of  their  winter-quarters  in  the  opening  of  spring."' 
In  the  latitude  of  Sardis  the  opening  of  spring  could 
hardly  be  put  as  late  as  April  18,  but  this  is  the  date 
selected  by  Mr.  Page,  because  on  that  day  -480  there 
was  undoubtedly  a  total  eclipse  of  the  sun.  The  writer 
does  not  mention,  what  is  equally  the  fact,  that  the  shadow 
of  the  moon  first  touched  the  earth  in  the  Indian  Ocean, 
passed  over  the  Himalayan  peninsula,  through  China, 
and  disappeared  in  the  Pacific.  Such  a  path  is  totally 
inadequate  to  explain  the  further  description  of  Herodotus, 
that  "  night  came  on  instead  of  day." 

A  still  greater  absurdity  is  introduced  when  the  autl 
wishes  to  prove  that  the  death  of  Augustus  happened! 
the  year  13,  by  means  of  a  solar  eclipse  which  is  saidj 
have  occurred  iust  before  the  death  of  that  Emperor. 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


531 


finds  that  there  was  a  solar  eclipse  on  13,  April  28,  and  an 
attractive  woodcut  is  given  showing  the  track  of  the  shadow 
passing  over  Rome.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  this  eclipse 
began  in  the  Pacific,  touched  the  continent  of  America 
about  Vancouver,and  passed  over  Canada  to  the  Atlantic  : 
the  whole  of  its  path  is  confined  to  "  regions  Caesar  never 
knew."  But  the  list  of  false  deductions  is  too  long  and 
too  uninteresting  to  pursue  any  further  :  exact  astronomy 
can  lend  no  support  to  the  chronological  system  here 
developed.  William  E.  Plummer. 


THE  EVOLUTION  OF  SEX. 

The  Evolution  of  Sex.  By  Prof.  Patrick  Geddes  and  J. 
Arthur  Thomson.  With  104  Illustrations.  (London: 
Walter  Scott,  1889.) 

THIS  book,  say  the  authors  in  the  preface,  has  "the 
difficult  task  of  inviting  the  criticism  of  the  biologi- 
cal student,  although  primarily  addressing  itself  to  the 
general  reader  or  beginner."  In  attempting  to  meet  these 
two  interests  the  authors  have  aimed  high  :  they  have 
aimed  at  producing  a  classic.  They  have  brought  to  the 
task— as  indeed  their  names  guarantee — a  wealth  of  know- 
ledge, a  lucid  and  attractive  method  of  treatment,  and 
a  rich  vein  of  picturesque  language.  The  illustrations  are 
pertinent,  and  sometimes  very  good.  The  index  and  table 
of  contents  are  copious,  and  the  summaries  and  references 
to  literature  at  the  end  of  each  chapter  are  most  useful. 
In  matters  of  history  they  are  especially  good,  and 
advanced  biological  students  will  find  the  abstracts  of  the 
views  of  Eimer,  Weismann,  Brooks,  Hertwig,  Haeckel, 
Wallace,  Spencer,  Geddes,  and  many  others  exceedingly 
useful.  But  as  writers  for  the  general  public  the  authors 
have  serious  if  not  prohibitive  disadvantages. 

General  readers  demand,  with  right,  that  those  who 
speak  to  them  with  the  voice  of  authority  shall  give 
them  the  authoritative  views.  Controversial  matter 
they  are  only  remotely  interested  in,  and  when  it 
cannot  be  avoided  they  must  have  it  carefully  distin- 
guished from  matter  beyond  controversy.  These  authors 
are  controversialists  from  the  first  page  of  their  book  to 
the  last ;  they  are  partisan  controversialists  offering  their 
wares  and  their  wisdom  as  accredited  doctrine  and 
•determined  result.  This  is  no  quarrel  with  the  views  of 
the  authors.  Prof.  Geddes  and  Mr.  Thomson  are  workers 
well  able  to  command  the  attention  of  biologists  for  their 
contributions  to  any  controversy.  It  is  a  quarrel  with  the 
offering  of  personal  views,  generalizations,  and  theories  as 
final,  in  a  series  "  designed  to  bring  within  the  reach  of 
the  English-speaking  public  the  best  that  is  known  and 
thought  in  all  departments  of  modern  scientific  research." 

As  is  the  fashion  with  neo-Lamarckians,  the  authors 
"delight  in  obtruding  their  misconceptions  of  Darwin. 
Take,  for  instance,  the  following  statements : — 

"  Arguing  from  the  bad  effects  of  close-breeding  amwig 
higher  animals,  Darwin  and  others  have  called  attention 
to  the  numerous  contrivances  among  plants  which  are  said 
to  render  self-fertili/ation  impossible.  It  must  again  be 
said  that  this  survival  of  a  very  old  way  of  explaining  facts 
—in  terms  of  their  final  advantage — is  not  really  a  causal 
explanation  at  all"  (p.  74). 


Or,  again,  on  p.  27  ; — 

"As  a  special  case  of  natural  selection  Darwin's  minor 
theory  {i.e.  sexual  selection)  is  open  to  the  objection  of 
being  teleological,  i.e.  of  accounting  for  structures  in  terms 
of  a  final  advantage.  It  is  quite  open  to  the  logical  critic 
to  urge,  as  a  few  have  done,  that  the  structures  to  be  ex- 
plained have  to  be  accounted  for  before,  as  well  as  after, 
the  stage  when  they  were  developed  enough  to  be  useful. 
The  origin,  or  in  other  words,  the  fundamental  physio- 
logical import,  of  the  structures,  must  be  explained  before 
we  have  a  complete  or  adequate  theory  of  organic 
evolution." 

Now  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  question  here  at  issue. 
Readers  of  Natur?;  may  remember  that  some  time  ago 
(Nature,  December  12,  1889,  p.  129)  Prof.  Ray  Lankester 
a  propos  of  Cope's  supposed  contribution  to  the  theory  of 
natural  selection,^  asked:  "  How  can  Mr.  Cope  presume 
to  tell  us  this  ?  Who  has  ignored  it  ?  When  ?  and  where .' " 
It  is  clear  that  Prof.  Geddes  and  Mr.  Thomson  imagine 
that  Darwin  has  ignored  this,  and  that  he  has  done  so  in 
his  theory  of  sexual  selection,  and  in  his  accounts  of 
contrivances  in  plants  to  prevent  self-fertilization.  In  a 
set  of  works  the  definite  and  reiterated  purpose  of  which 
is  to  show  (i)  that  variations  do  occur,  (2)  that  from  these, 
by  selection,  varieties,  species,  organs  are  elaborated 
and  adapted,  it  is  fortunately  easy  to  find  chapter  and 
verse  conclusive  against  the  view  that  Darwin  could  have 
imagined  that  selection  teleologically  causes  the  variations 
that  give  it  scope.  Will  Prof.  Geddes  and  Mr.  Thomson 
refer  to  the  "Descent  of  Man"  (the  writer  has  the  second 
edition  before  him) .'     On  p.  240  it  is  written  :  — 

"  Not  only  are  the  laws  of  inheritance  extremely  com- 
plex, but  so  are  the  causes  which  induce  and  govern 
variability.  The  variations  thus  induced  are  preserved 
and  accumulated  by  sexual  selection." 

Will  Prof.  Geddes  and  Mr.  Thomson  refer  to  the 
"Fertilization  of  Orchids"  (also  second  edition) .-'  On 
p.  284  it  is  written  : — 

"  Thus  throughout  nature  almost  every  part  of  each 
living  being  has  probably  served  in  a  slightly  modified 
condition  for  diverse  purposes,  and  has  acted  in  the  living 
machinery  of  many  ancient  and  distinct  specific  forms,'' 

Or,  again,  on  the  same  page  :  — 

"  This  change  "  (labellum  assuming  its  normal  position) 
*•  it  is  obvious  might  be  simply  effected  by  the  continual 
selection  of  varieties  which  had  their  ovaries  less  and  less 
twisted  ;  but  if  the  plant  only  afforded  varieties  with  the 
ovarium  more  twisted,  the  same  end  could  be  attained  by 
the  selection  of  such  variations  until  the  flower  was  turned 
completely  round  on  its  axis." 

Can  there  be  the  faintest  suspicion  that  the  man  who 
wrote  these  sentences  did  not  distinguish  between  the 
material  for  selection  and  the  causes  producing  that 
material  t  One  more  quotation  from  the  authors  to 
show  how  they  misunderstand  Darwin's  spirit  and 
writings  :  — 

"  The  first  of  these  is  the  still  curiously  prevalent  opinion 
that,  when  you  have  explained  the  utility  or  the  advantage 
of  a  fact,  you  have  accounted  for  the  fact,  an  opinion 
ivhich  the  theory  of  natural  selection  has  done  more  to 
foster  than  to  rebuff.  Darwin  was  indeed  himself  char- 
acteristically silent  in  regard  to  the  origin  of  sex  as 
well  as  of  many  other  '  big  lifts '  in  the  organic  series  " 
(p.  126). 

'  'I'he  key-note  of  Cope's  imagined  contribution  was,  ''Selection  cannot 
explain  the  origin  of  anyiliing." 


532 


NATURE 


[April  lo,  1890 


What  do  the  authors  mean?  Their  erudite  and  care- 
ful statements  of  the  position  of  many  foreign  writers 
emphasize  their  failure   to  represent  the  position  of  the 

author  of  the  "  Origin  of  Species." 
The  authors  think  that  the  problems  and  questions  re- 

ating  to  sex,  problems  and  questions  carefully  and  in- 
geniously analyzed  by  them,  "are  in  final  synthesis  all 
answerable  in  a  sentence."  Morphological  questions  are 
at  base,  they  say,  physiological ;  and  physiological  ques- 
tions are  ultimately  referable  to  the  metabolism  of  proto- 
plasm, as  Prof.  Burdon-Sanderson  pointed  out  last  autumn. 
This  metabolism  is  double  :  it  consists  on  the  one  hand  of 
anabolic,  constructive,  elaborative  processes — processes 
attended  with  the  storage  of  energy  ;  and  on  the  other 
hand  of  katabolic,  destructive,  disintegrating  processes- 
processes  attended  with  the  liberation  of  energy.  These 
processes  are  complementary  ;  in  living  protoplasm  they 
seem  for  the  most  part  coincident.  Losing  sight  of  the 
coincidence  the  authors  have  seized  on  the  antithesis  ;  the 

dea  has  grown  upon  them  till  they  see  a  rhythm  of 
anabolism  and  katabolism  swinging  through  organic 
nature  and  producing — well,  producing  nearly  everything. 
Take,  for  instance,  secondary  sexual  characters.  Males 
are  frequently  lithe,  active,  aggressive,  gorgeously  coloured 
and  decorated.  Females  are  often  sluggish,  vegetative, 
passive,  and  soberly  coloured.  These  characters,  according 
to  Cleddes  and  Thomson,  occur  because  males  have  a  male 
or  katabolic  diathesis,  because  females  have  a  female  or 
anabolic  diathesis. 

"  Brilliancy  of  colour,  exuberance  of  hair  and  feathers, 
activity  of  scent  glands,  and  even  the  development  of 
weaports,  are  not  and  cannot  be  (except  teleologically)  ex- 
plained by  sexual  selection,  but  in  origin  and  continued 
development  are  outcrops  of  a  male  as  opposed  to  a 
female  constitution  "  (p.  22). 

It  is  impossible  to  follow  in  detail  and  state  the  in- 
numerable objections  to  this  explanation.  Do  the  authors 
suppose  a  male  diathesis  explains  the  ascending  series  of 
horn  and  antler  development  ?  Can  it  in  any  way  account 
for  "  interference  "  colours,  which  play  so  large  a  part  in 
the  adorning  of  males .'  Are  women  less  female  when  they 
have  radiant  complexions  and  abundant  tresses  ?  What 
physiological  reason  is  there  for  believing  that  skeletal 
weapons  and  scent  glands,  or  the  crystals  in  anthers,  are 
due  to  the  katabolism  of  "  exuberant  maleness,"  while 
menstruation  and  lactation  are  means  of  getting  rid  of 
"  anabolic  surplus?" 

Parthenogenesis  occurs  in  groups  of  animals  where  the 
anabolic  rhythm  is  dominant.  Sex  itself  appears  when 
katabolic  conditions  preponderate.  And  this  is  why 
flowers  so  often  are  situated  at  the  end  of  the  vegetative 
axis  ;  this  is  furthest  from  the  source  of  nutrition  ;  the 
flower  occupies  a  katabolic  position,  and  is  often  the 
plant's  dying  effort  (p.  226).  Alternation  of  generations 
is  a  special  example  of  the  rhythm.  Thus,  but  the  authors 
do  not  cite  this  example  in  this  connection,  the  tiny  sexless 
and  spore-bearing  stalk  parasitic  on  the  moss-plant  is  the 
anabolic  vegetative  generation,  while  the  conspicuous 
moss-plant  is  the  sexual  or  katabolic  generation — the 
generation  peculiarly  connected  with  starvation  !  It  is 
obvious  that  the  authors  are  nothing  if  not  original.  But 
the  real  value  of  the  book  must  not  be  lost  sight  of  in 
quotations  from  it.     The  chapters  on  the  "  Determination 


of  Sex,"  on  "  Sex  Elements,"  and  on  "  Growth  and  Re- 
production," are  very  suggestive.  But  indeed,  to  biolo- 
gists the  greater  part  of  the  book  and  its  theories  must  be 
useful  and  suggestive.  It  is  only  the  general  public  that 
must  be  warned  off. 

It  is  very  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  authors  have 
included  a  discussion  of  certain  social  and  ethical 
problems  absolutely  unconnected  with  the  title  of  their 
book.  If  such  matters  are  to  be  discussed  coram  popi/h, 
it  is  only  fair  that  explicit  information  should  appear  on 
the  title-page.  P.  C.  M. 


THE  QUICKSILVER  DEPOSITS   OF   THE 
PACIFIC  SLOPE. 

Geology  of  the  Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the  Pacific  Slope- 
By  G.  F,  Becker.  Pp,  486,  and  Atlas  of  xiv.  folio 
Plates.  (Washington  :  Government  Printing  Office, 
1888.) 

AMONG  the  numerous  mineral  treasures  of  California 
none  are  of  more  interest  than  the  deposits  of 
mercury  ore  which  occur  at  intervals  along  the  greater 
part  of  the  Coast  Range  from  the  Mexican  boundary  to 
Clear  Lake,  in  lat.  39°  N.,  a  distance  of  more  than  200 
miles.  This  region,  together  with  the  district  of  Steam- 
boat Springs  in  Nevada,  has  been  carefully  examined  by 
the  division  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey  under 
the  charge  of  Mr.  G.  F.  Becker,  and  the  results  are  now 
presented  in  another  of  the  handsome  qu  arto  series  of 
monographs  published  by  Major  Powell,  the  head  of  the 
Survey. 

The  discovery  of  mercury  in  California  preceded  that 
of  gold  ;  the  most  productive  locality.  New  Almaden,  near 
San  Jose,  at  the  south  end  of  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco, 
having  been  known  for  about  65  years,  while  the  actual 
mining  was  commenced  under  a  grant  from  the  Mexican 
Government  shortly  before  the  cession  of  the  country  to 
the  LTnited  States.  In  its  earlier  years  the  mine  was 
extremely  profitable,  and  the  long  judicial  controversy 
that  ensued  before  the  title  was  satisfactorily  established 
occupies  a  prominent  place  among  the  records  of 
American  mining  litigation.  The  maximum  production 
of  47,194  flasks  of  76^  pounds  each  was  realized  in  1865, 
but  in  1886  it  was  reduced  to  18,000  flasks,  the  total  for 
the  period  1850-86  being  853,259  flasks,  or  about  two- 
thirds  of  the  produce  of  the  Spanish  Almaden.  The 
total  produce  of  the  Californian  mines,  which  was  about 
80,000  flasks  in  1877,  declined  to  30,000  in  1886, 

The  second  mine  in  point  of  importance,  known  as 
New  Idria,  is  about  70  miles  in  a  south-easterly  direction 
from  New  Almaden,  the  ore,  cinnabar,  occurring  under 
conditions  similar  to  those  in  the  latter  mine — namely,  m 
very  irregular  groups  of  fissures  in  metamorphic  strata, 
which  pass  into  others  containing  Neocomian  fossils  of 
the  genus  Aucclla.  These  were  succeeded  by  other  Cre- 
taceous and  Tertiary  formations  up  to  the  Miocene,  the 
close  of  the  latter  period  being  marked  by  an  upheaval  ■ 
and  the  commencement  of  volcanic  activity.  The  ore  ! 
deposits  are  closely  related  to  the  latter,  and  are  probably 
nearly  all,  if  not  entirely,  of  jxvst-Pliocene  origin. 

In  the  Clear  Lake  region,  in  lat.  39°  N.,  which  ad- 
joins   the  group    of    volcanic   cones   known   as    Mount 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


533 


Konocte  (or  Uncle  Sam)  hot  springs  and  solfataras  are 
abundant  in  a  small  area  of  basalt  of  comparatively 
recent  origin.  The  most  important  of  these,  known  as 
the  Sulphur  Bank,  was  at  first  worked  for  sulphur,  but, 
on  getting  below  the  surface,  cinnabar  was  found  in  the 
decomposed  basalt,  and  for  some  years  it  produced  large 
quantities  of  mercury,  up  to  11,152  flasks  in  1881  ;  but 
latterly  the  yield  has  fallen  off, being  only  1449  flasks  in  1886. 
The  Redington  Mine,  adjoining  Knoxville,  about  25 
miles  south-east  of  Clear  Lake,  was  discovered  in  making 
a  cutting  for  a  road,  and  has  been  worked  since  1862,  and 
has  produced  nearly  100,000  flasks  of  mercury,  a  quantity 
which  has  only  been  exceeded  by  the  mines  of  New 
Almaden  and  New  Idria.  In  1886  the  yield  had  fallen 
to  409  flasks,  the  immense  irregular  body  of  ore  at  the 
surface  having  changed  in  depth  to  some  narrow  veins 
following  fissures  in  the  metamorphic  Neocomian  strata. 
These  are  to  a  large  extent  converted  into  serpentine  ;  and 
a  black  opal,  known  as  quicksilver  rock,  accompanied  the 
ore,  which  was  remarkable  as  consisting  largely,  in  the 
upper  workings  at  least,  of  amorphous  black  sulphide  of 
mercury,  or  meta-cinnabar,  a  mineral  that  was  there 
recognized  in  quantity  for  the  first  time.  This  deposit  is 
considered  to  be  the  result  of  the  action  of  hot  springs 
in  connection  with  an  adjacent  mass  of  basalt — springs 
which  are  now  dormant  except  in  so  far  that  sulphur  gases 
are  given  off  and  sulphur  crystals  are  deposited  in  the  old 
workings,  where  a  comparatively  high  temperature,  ex- 
ceeding 100°  F.,  prevails. 

The  Steamboat  Springs  in  Nevada,  near  the  Comstock 
lode,  have  been  also  studied  by  the  author.  These, 
although  presenting  no  deposits  of  commercial  value, 
are  interesting  from  the  light  they  cast  upon  the  pheno- 
mena of  the  formation  of  mineral  veins,  and  have  there- 
fore been  carefully  investigated  by  several  observers, 
including  the  late  Mr.  J.  A.  Phillips,  F'.R.S.,  and  M. 
Laur,  of  the  Ecole  des  Mines.  The  author  considers 
that  the  main  source  of  the  ore  in  the  Comstock  lode  is 
the  diabase  forming  the  hanging  wall,  and  that  the  mine- 
ral contents  were  extracted  from  this  pre-Tertiary  erup- 
tive mass  by  intensely  heated  waters  charged  with  alkaline 
carbonates  and  sulphides  rising  from  great  depths,  and 
that  a  similar  origin  may  properly  be  attributed  to  all  the 
cinnabar,  pyrites,  and  gold  found  in  the  mercury-mines  of 
the  Pacific  slope,  having  been  brought  in  as  solutions 
as  double  sulphides  of  metal  and  alkalies.  The  original 
source  must  have  been  either  the  fundamental  granite  of 
the  country,  or  some  ////ra-granitic  mass,  it  being  ex- 
tremely improbable  that  they  were  extracted  from  any 
volcanic  rock  at  or  near  the  surface.  In  connection  with 
this  subject,  the  author  has  made  a  series  of  interesting 
experiments  on  the  relations  of  the  sulphide  of  mercury 
to  that  of  sodium,  which  show  that  mercuric  sulphide 
is  freely  soluble  in  aqueous  solutions  of  sodium  sulphide, 
although  the  contrary  has  repeatedly  been  asserted. 
Mercuric  sulphide  may  be  precipitated  from  sulpho-salt 
solutions  in  many  ways,  particularly  by  excess  of  sul- 
phuretted hydrogen,  by  borax  and  other  mineral  salts  ; 
by  cooling,  especially  in  the  presence  of  ammonia,  and 
by  dilution.  In  the  latter  case,  a  certain  quantity  of 
metallic  mercury  separates  as  well  as  the  sulphide,  in- 
dicating one  of  the  methods  by  which  the  native  metal 
has  been  produced  in  Nature. 


In  addition  to  the  mines  specially  described,  the  author 
has  extended  his  study  of  the  subject  to  a  consideration 
of  the  principal  mercury-mines  other  than  those  of  Ame- 
rica, partly  from  personal  investigation  in  Spain  and 
Italy,  and  partly  with  the  help  of  other  observers  and 
published  accounts.  He  expresses  a  very  decided  opinion 
against  the  supposed  substitution  origin  of  the  Almaden 
deposits,  considering  them  to  be  essentially  of  a  vein-like 
character,  the  cinnabar  being  deposited  in  fissures  or 
interstitial  cavities  in  sandstone  previously  existing.  This 
latter  conclusion  is  substantially  similar  to  that  arrived 
at  by  the  late  Mr.  J.  A.  Phillips  and  the  present  writer,  in 
a  microscopic  study  of  the  Almaden  ores  made  some 
years  since.  The  details  of  the  foreign  deposits  have 
been  very  carefully  collected,  the  comparatively  new  dis- 
coveries of  Avala  in  Servia,  and  Bakmuth  in  Southern 
European  Russia,  being  included.  The  latter  mine, 
which,  at  the  time  the  book  was  completed,  was  not  at 
work,  has  since  become  of  considerable  importance.  The 
ore,  cinnabar,  occurs  as  an  impregnation  of  a  bed  of  car- 
boniferous sandstone  from  14  to  17  feet  thick,  with  an 
average  yield  of  1 54  pounds  per  ton — about  7  per  cent. — 
and  the  reduction  works  have  a  productive  capacity  of 
about  10,000  flasks  annually. 

In  conclusion,  it  is  scarcely  necessary  to  state  that  the 
whole  of  the  details  illustrating  the  subject  have  been 
worked  out  with  the  care  and  fulness  which  have  charac- 
terized the  author's  former  monograph  on  the  Comstock 
lode.  Whether  mercury-mining  in  California  may  be  in 
a  declining  state,  or  destined  to  a  revival  of  its  former 
prosperity  at  a  future  time,  there  can  be  no  question  of 
the  high  value  of  the  record  of  the  results  hitherto 
obtained,  which  is  contained  in  the  volume  it  has  been 
our  pleasant  task  to  notice.  H.  B. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Illustrations  of  some  of  the  Grasses  of  the  Southern  Pun- 
jab, being  Photo-lithographs  of  some  of  the  Principal 
Grasses  found  at  Hissar.  By  William  Coldstream, 
B.A.,  Bengal  Civil  Service.  With  38  Plates  and  8  pages 
of  Introduction.  (London:  Thacker  and  Co.  Calcutta: 
Thacker  and  Spink.  1889.) 
This  work  contains  a  series  of  thirty-eight  photo-htho- 
graphs  of  the  grasses  used  for  agricultural  purposes  in  the 
southern  portion  of  the  Punjab.  The  tract  of  country  to 
which  it  relates  lies  to  the  west  of  Delhi,  between  the 
Jumna  on  the  east  and  the  Sutlej  on  the  west.  It  con- 
stituted till  recently  the  civil  district  of  Hissar,  which  has 
now  been  broken  up.  It  has  an  area  of  8500  square 
miles,  and  a  population  of  a  million  and  a  half  Except 
along  the  streams  and  canals  the  soil  is  sterile  and  sandy, 
and  the  crops  depend  upon  the  periodical  rains.  The 
staple  cereals  are  Sorghum  vulgarc  and  Penicillaria 
spicata.  In  its  centre  is  situated  the  great  Government 
cattle-farm  of  Hissar,  where  for  many  years  cattle  of  the 
finest  Indian  breeds  have  been  reared  by  Government, 
principally  for  the  supply  of  the  ordnance  and  transport  de- 
partments, but  also  to  some  extent  for  distribution  through 
the  country,  with  the  aim  of  improving  the  commoner 
indigenous  kinds.  The  Bir,  or  grass-lands,  of  this  great 
farm  are  of  very  wide  extent,  and  in  the  rainy  season  a 
large  number  of  grasses,  of  more  or  less  value  as  fodder, 
grow  luxuriantly  over  its  vast  parks.  The  farm  has  alto- 
gether an  area  of  above  sixty  square  miles,  and  it  is 
mainly  from  this  that  the  species  figured  by  Mr.  Cold- 
stream are  taken. 


534 


NATURE 


{April  lo,  1890 


The  book  is  modelled  upon  the  "  Fodder-grasses  of 
India,"  published  not  long  ago,  in  two  volumes,  by  Mr. 
Duthie,  the  director  of  the  botanical  department  of 
Northern  India,  and  to  Mr.  Duthie  the  author  is  indebted 
for  the  botanical  determination  of  the  species.  He  gives 
the  native  name  of  each  plant,  and  a  short  account  of 
the  extent  and  manner  in  which  it  is  used,  and  as  most 
of  them  have  a  wide  dispersion,  this  will  be  found 
useful  in  other  dry  sub-tropical  regions.  Out  of  thirty- 
seven  species,  the  two  great  tropical  tribes  are  represented, 
PanicecB  by  twelve  species,  and  AndropogonecB  by  ten,  and 
only  three  species  fall  under  Festncccc,  the  tribe  to  which 
most  of  our  North  European  pasture  grasses  belong.  The 
plates  are  lithographed  from  photographs,  and  do  not 
contain  any  dissections.  Plate  III.,  called  Panicum 
Criisgalli,  is  clearly  not  that  species,  but  a  .form  of  P. 
colonu7n,  another  variety  of  which  is  figured  on  Plate  II. 
Mr.  Coldstream  also  has  got  entirely  wrong  with  his 
two  species  of  Cyperiis,  figured  on  p.  38.  The  left-hand 
figure,  called  Cypertts  species,  is  evidently  Cyperus  Ivia, 
Linn.,  a  common  weed  throughout  India  in  rice-fields. 
The  left-hand  figure,  labelled  Cyperus  Tria,  is  not  in 
flower.  There  is  no  such  plant  known  to  botany  ;  Tria 
is  doubtless  a  mistake  for  7via.  The  figure  is  quite 
unrecognizable,  but  from  the  native  name  appended, 
"  Motha,"  it  is  most  likely  Cyperus  rotundus. 

J.  G.  B. 

Eletnentary  Dynamics  of  Particles  and  Solids.  By  W.  M. 
Hicks,  M.A.,  F.R.S.  (London  :  Macmillan  and  Co., 
1890.) 

In  this  excellent  treatise,  extending  over  nearly  400  pages, 
the  author  introduces  to  the  student  the  principles  of 
dynamics.  Although  the  book  is  issued  under  the  latter 
title,  it  will  be  found  to  differ  considerably  in  its  treat- 
ment from  the  majoi-ity  of  text-books  on  the  same  subject. 
For  instance,  the  two  subjects  of  statics  and  kinetics  have 
been  considered  together,  the  former  being  regarded  as  a 
special  case  of  the  latter.  Again,  the  discussion  of  force 
is  reserved  until  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  give  an 
idea  of  mass  and  its  measurement ;  thus  a  preliminary 
study  of  momentum  finds  an  early  place. 

Although  the  mathematical  acquirements  of  the  stu- 
dent of  these  pages  may  be  limited  to  a  knowledge  of  the 
elements  of  algebra  and  geometry,  he  will  be  able  to 
readily  follow  the  methods  adopted  in  establishing  the 
various  results.  This  the  author  has  kept  in  view  through- 
out his  work,  except  in  a  few  cases  where,  in  the  hope  of 
rendering  it  useful  to  a  larger  circle  of  readers,  he  has 
had  recourse  to  the  trigonometrical  ratios  for  examples 
which  he  has  worked  out. 

The  volume  is  divided  into  three  portions  (i)  recti- 
linear motion  of  a  particle  ;  (2)  forces  in  one  plane  ; 
(3)  plane  motion  of  a  rigid  body. 

One  cannot  read  the  first  few  chapters  without  observing 
the  care  taken  by  the  writer  in  trying  to  impart  to  the 
student  a  correct  and  precise  idea  of  the  fundamental 
units.  That  this  is  a  very  important  matter  all  will  agree 
who  have  had  any  experience  in  teaching  or  testing 
students.  The  most  deplorable  state  of  ignorance  some- 
times exhibited  by  them,  in  giving  their  results  in  all 
manner  of  absurd  units,  should  encourage  both  teacher 
and  author  to  make  a  special  effort  when  dealing  with  the 
question  of  units,  fundamental  or  otherwise. 

As  the  subject  of  statics  is  included,  an  opportunity  has 
been  taken  of  introducing  the  method  of  drawing  stress 
diagrams  for  loaded  framework  ;  this  will  be  valuable  to 
engineering  students. 

Notwithstanding  that  the  writer  has  forbidden  himself 
the  use  of  the  integral  calculus,  he  has  been  able  to 
establish  (in  some  cases  very  neatly)  many  useful  results 
in  the  two  chapters  on  centre  of  gravity  and  moment  of 
inertia,  which  should  be  read  with  care. 

Neatness  in  method  characterizes  the  book  throughout 


and  an  unusually  large  number  of  examples  will  be  found 
at  the  end  of  each  chapter. 

The  work  is  based  on  a  series  of  lectures  delivered  by 
the  author  at  the  Firth  College,  Sheffield,  and  many 
details  for  which  time  can  generally  be  found  at  the 
lecture  table  have  in  this  case  found  their  way  into  the 
book. 

These  will  help  to  lessen  the  individual  difficulties  ot 
students,  and  their  views  of  the  subject  will  be  enlarged 
thereby.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  text-book 
will  have  a  deservedly  favourable  reception. 

G.  A.  B. 

Catalogue  of  the  Fossil  Reptilia  and  Amphibia  in  the 
British  Museum  {Natural  History).  Part  III.,  con-' 
taining  the  Order  Chelonia.  By  Richard  Lydekke'r,. 
B.A.,  F.G.S.,  &c.  (London:  Printed  by  Order  of  the; 
Trustees,  1889.) 

Mr.  Lydekker  is  to  be  congratulated  on  having  added' 
one  more  to  the  valuable  series  of  catalogues  of  ther 
pala^ontological  collections  in  the  British  Museum  which 
he  has  compiled  during  the  last  {^w  years.  Like  his 
previous  catalogues,  the  present  work  indicates  an  enor-' 
mous  amount  of  careful  and  accurate  work,  which,  how- 
ever, is  of  such  a  special  kind  that  it  cannot  easily  be 
summarized  in  a  short  review. 

The  extreme  difficulty  of  correlating  the  fossil  forms, 
of  Chelonia  with  the  recent,  on  account  of  the  frag- 
mentary character  of  many  of  the  remains,  is  indicated 
by  the  fact  that,  out  of  the  52  genera  and  131  species 
or  varieties  described,  the  author  has  only  been  able  to 
place  with  certainty  18  genera  and  10  species  amongst 
existing  forms.  The  classification  adopted  is  to  a  great, 
extent  that  followed  by  Mr.  Boulenger  in  his  catalogue 
of  recent  Chelonians.  The  work  is  illustrated  by  55 
woodcuts,  and  abundant  references  to  the  bibliography 
of  the  group  are  given.  It  must  be  added,  as  stated  in 
the  preface,  that  "  the  collection  which  forms  the  subject 
of  this  Catalogue  is  particularly  rich  in  Chelonians  from 
the  Purbeck  Beds  of  Swanage,  the  Cretaceous  of  England 
and  Holland,  the  Eocene  Tertiaries  of  Warwick,  Sheppey, 
Hampshire,  the  Isle  of  Wight,  and  the  older  Pliocene  of 
the  Siwaliks  of  India."  The  last-named  beds  have  yielded 
the  largest  tortoise  known  {Testudo  [Colossochelys']  atlas 
of  Falconer),  the  carapace  of  which  measures  about  si.\ 
feet  in  length. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  TTit  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents  ■  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  cf  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications. "[ 

Systems  of  "  Russian  Transliteratio-n." 

As  one  who  takes  an  interest  in  the  Russian  tongue,  quite  apart 
from  the  value  of  the  scientific  papers  published  in  that  language, 
I  may  perhaps  be  allowed  to  express  my  regret  that  the  author 
of  "  A  Uniform  System  of  Russian  Transliteration,"  publishecl 
in  your  issue  of  February  27  (p.  397),  has  departed  in  almost 
every  point  where  it  is  possible  to  do  so  from  the  system  of 
transliteration  which  has  been  in  use  in  England  for  about  a 
century,  and  which  has,  moreover,  the  advantage  of  being  almost 
identical  with  that  current  in  France. 

A  system  of  transhteration  may  be  founded  on  one  of  two 
bases — namely,  the  empirical,  in  which  little  or  no  account  is 
taken  of  the  sound  of  the  letters  in  the  foreign  language,  and  the 
rational ;  in  the  latter  the  letters  of  the  foreign  language  are, 
where  possible,  represented  by  letters  or  groups  of  letters  which 
have  as  nearly  as  may  be  the  same  sound  as  the  original.  For 
instance,  B  in  Russian  would  be  represented  by  B  in  English, 
these  two  having  the  same  sound.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  latter 
is  the  most  convenient  .system,  and  the  one  which  ought  to  be 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


535 


generally  adopted;  the  author  of  this  new  "uniform  system," 
however,  has  chosen  the  other  course. 

If  the  author  of  the  "uniform  system  "  had  been  contented 
with  tabulating  the  system  of  transliteration  which  has  been  so 
long  in  use,  he  would  have  earned  the  gratitude  of  those  devoted 
to  literature,  as  well  as  of  those  who  cultivate  science.  As  it  is, 
I  am  afraid  he  has  merely  given  the  world  of  art  and  letters  an 
opportunity  for  gibes  at  what  they  are  sometimes  pleased  to  call 
the  narrowmindedness  and  pedantry  of  scientific  men. 

I  may,  perhaps,  be  permitted  to  give  a  few  examples  of  the 
defects  of  the  new  system  ;  r  in  Russian  has  three  sounds,  one 
nearly  resembling  the  English  g,  another  very  like  //,  and  a  third 
guttural  sound,  to  which  there  is  nothing  analogous  in  our 
tongue.  The  author  proposes  to  get  over  this  by  transliterating 
r  by  gh!!  The  eminent  chemist  Hemilian  thus  becomes 
masked  as  Ghemilian,  whilst  Gustavson  appears  as  Ghustavson, 
and  a  well-known  political  character,  Gortchakofif,  is  altered  to 
Ghorchakov'.  For  comparison,  I  give  these  names,  and  a  few 
others,  as  transliterated  in  accordance  with  the  two  systems  : — 


Present  system, 

Hemilian 

Gustavson 

Gortchakoff     .. 

Alexeeff 

Gregoreff 

Ogloblin 

Mendeleeff 

Chroushtchoff .. 

Michael 

Joukovsky 


New  system. 

Ghemilian. 

Ghustavson'. 

Ghorchakov', 

Aleksyeev'. 

Ghrighor'ev'. 

Oghloblin. 

Mendelyeev'. 

Khrushchov'. 

Mikhail. 

Zhukovskic. 


Geographical  names  are  even  more  weird  ;  for  example,  it 
Ijecomes  somewhat  difificull  to  recognize  under  the  disguise  of 
Nizhnii  Novghorod  and  Volgha,  the  town  of  Nijni  Novgorod  and 
the  River  Volga.  Such  words  as  "Journal"  and  "Chemie," 
when  occurring  in  titles,  can  be  at  once  recognized  ;  this  can 
scarcely  be  said  of  them  if  the  new  system  of  transliteration  is 
used,  as  they  become  "zhurnal"  and  "Khimi?"  respectively. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  the  Royal  Society,  the  Linnean 
Society,  and  the  Geological  Society  should  have  pledged  them- 
selves to  adopt  this  novel  "system  of  transliteration,"  instead 
of  adhering  to  the  one  which  has  been  so  long  in  use.  As  a 
Fellow  of  the  Royal  Society,  I  feel  very  great  regret  that  the 
Council  are  going  to  adopt  this  system  in  their  publications,  as 
it  will  seriously  detract  from  the  value  of  their  supplementary 
"  Catalogue  of  Scientific  Papers"  now  in  the  press,  at  all  events 
as  far  as  Russian  literature  is  concerned. 

No  protest  of  mine,  however,  can  be  half  so  forcible  as  the 
unconscious  sarcasm  of  the  author  himself,  in  his  paper,  where 
he  says  that  "an  expression  of  grateful  thanks  is  due"  to  two 
Russians  "  who  have  assisted  in  the  arrangement  of  the  system." 
The  names  of  the  Russians  are  then  given,  and  if  my  readers 
will  take  the  trouble  to  study  them  by  the  light  of  the  table  for 
transliteration  by  the  new  system,  he  will  see  how  they  express 
their  appreciation  of  the  author's  labours  by  carefully  avoiding 
■every  one  of  the  novelties  he  has  introduced. 

Charles  E.  Groves, 
Editor  of  the  yournal  of  the  Chemical  Society. 

Hurlington  House,  March  17. 


Having  in  view  the  increasing  importance  of  Russian  to 
literary  and  scientific  men,  it  becomes  very  desirable  to  have  a 
uniform  system  of  transliteration,  such  as  that  recently  proposed 
in  your  columns. 

IJut,  in  order  to  be  useful,  everyone  must  agree  to  conform  to 
it,  nor  should  any  such  system  be  adopted  off-hand  without  full 
discussion  of  any  points  which  may  seem  susceptible  of 
improvement. 

It  seems  to  me  objectionable  to  indicate  the  semi-vowels  (i.  and 
!•)  by  a  simple  ',  and  to  omit  them  altogether  at  the  end  of  a  word. 
They  really  correspond,  to  a  certain  extent,  to  our  c  (mute)  ; 
and  1  would  suggest  that  it  would  be  better  to  indicate  them  by 
a  full  letter — perhaps  c  for  one  and  I  for  the  other. 

March  11.  W.  F.  KiRBY. 

One  or  two  points  in  the  criticisms  on  this  subject  call  for 
some  notice  before  the  publication  of  a  more  detailed  account  of 
the  system. 


As  regards  Mr.  Kirby's  suggestion,  the  transliteration  of  the 
semi-vowels  was  discussed,  but  it  was  not  thought  advisable  to 
exaggerate  their  importance  by  using  two  letters  for  them, 
especially  as  their  use  is  becoming  discontinued  in  Russia. 

When  recommending  a  uniform  system,  we  did  not  imagine 
that  Mr.  Groves  or  anyone  else  would  infer  that  this  was 
intended  to  limit  the  right  of  Russians  who  d^^  ell  in  England 
or  who  write  in  English  to  spell  their  names  as  they  please  ; 
we  have  not  asked  Messrs.  Kelly  to  apply  it  to  all  Russian 
names  in  the  Post  Office  Directory  or  the  Court  Guide ;  we 
should  never  think  of  altering  such  names  in  ordinary  corre- 
spondence. Even  in  catalogues  and  records,  for  which  this 
system  is  intended,  the  familiar  form  should  of  course  be  quoted 
with  a  cross  reference,  as  recommended  by  us  in  the  clause 
dealing  with  proper  names. 

Mr.  Groves  asks  why  we  have  not  tabulated  "  the  system  which 
has  been  in  use  in  England  for  about  a  century. "  Our  eflforts  began 
with  an  attempt  to  discover  such  a  system,  and  resulted  in  the 
tabulation  of  a  large  number  of  systems,  including  that  employed 
by  Mr.  Groves  in  the  Journal  of  the  Chemical  Society ;  since, 
however,  no  two  authors  agree  in  the  English  symbols  intended 
to  represent  either  the  sounds  or  letters  of  Russian  words,  we 
endeavoured  to  frame  a  system  combining  as  far  as  possible  the 
features  of  those  already  in  use  in  England  and  America. 

We  are  much  obliged  to  Mr.  Groves  for  supplying  further 
illustrations  of  the  desirability  of  using  gh  for  r  ;  the  letter  has, 
of  course,  more  than  the  three  sounds  to  which  he  limits  it. 

The  uniformity  of  "the  system  which  has  been  so  long  in 
use  "  may  be  illustrated  by  the  following  examples,  in  which  we 
confine  ourselves  to  the  names  of  chemists,  and  to  the  words 
quoted  by  Mr.  Groves  : — 

Consulting  the  "  Imperial  Gazetteer,"  Lippincott's  "Gazet- 
teer," and  Keith  Johnston's  "  Atlas  "  alone,  we  find  Nijni,Nijnei, 
Nishnii,  Nizhnee,  Nijnii,  and  Nischnii-Novgorod. 

One  journal  is  given  in  Bolton's  "Catalogue  of  Chemical 
Journals  "  as 

Zhurnal  russkova  khimicheskova  i  fiztcheskova  ; 
in  the  Geological  Record  as 

Jurnal  rosskoi  chimiteheskago  i  phizitcheskago  ; 

and  in  Scudder's  "  Catalogue  of  Serials  "  as 

Zhurnal ;  russkoye  khimitcheskoye  i  fizitcheskoye. 

Hence  it  is  difficult  to  see  why  Nizhnii  and  Zhurnal  should  be 
unintelligible. 

In  the  Royal  Society  Catalogue,  the  Geological  Record,  and 
Chemical  Society's  Journal,  the  same  name  is  spelt  Jeremejew, 
JeremejefT,  JeremeefT.  Which  of  these  words  represents  the 
pronunciation  ? 

In  the  Chemical  Society's  Journal,  Wroblewski  and  Flawitzky 
correspond  to  the  Wroblevsky  and  Flavitzsky  of  Armstrong  and 
Groves'  "  Organic  Chemistry." 

The  same  journal  frequently  quotes  the  name  MarkownikofT 
where  the  same  Russian  letter  (and  sound)  '\>  denoted  both  by  re 
and^  while  in  the  examples  of  Mr.  Groves  it  is  also  repre- 
sented by  V  ;  here,  of  course,  and  in  similar  cases,  the  name 
comes  through  a  German  channel. 

Mr.  Groves  transliterates  a  few  names  ;  since,  however,  in 
his  "  rational  "  system  one  Russian  letter  has  more  than  one 
English  equivalent  {i\  ff),  and  one  English  letter  {e)  has  more 
than  one  Russian  equivalent,  while  the  sound  is  not  correctly 
represented  {o,  e),  it  is  obvious  that  this  is  neither  "rational  " 
nor  a  system  (it  does  not  profess  to  be  "empirical";  perhaps 
Mr.  Groves  will  now  call  it  the  "  graphic  method"). 

Since,  moreover,  the  system  recommended  by  Mr.  Groves  is 
not  used  by  him  in  the  Chemical  Society's  Journal,  we  hope 
that  he  may  yet  see  his  way  to  adopting  the  one  which  has  now 
been  accepted  by  so  many  of  the  leading  English  Societies. 

II.  A.  M. 
J.  W.  G. 


"  Like  to  Like  " — a  Fundamental  Principle  in  Bionomics. 

The  following  letter  has  been  intrusted  to  me  for  seeing 
through  the  press,  and  therefore  I  deem  it  desirable  to  state  that 
it  does  not  constitute  the  writer's  reply  to  Mr.  Wallace's  criticism 
of  his  paper  op  "Divergent  Evolution."  This  reply,  as  pre- 
viously stated  (Nature,  vol.  xl.  p.  645),  will  be  published  by 
him  on  some  future  occasion. 


536 


NA  TURE 


[April  lo,  1890 


I  cannot  allow  the  present  communication  to  appear  in  these 
columns  without  again  recording  my  conviction  that  the  writer 
is  the  most  profound  of  living  thinkers  upon  Darwinian  topics, 
and  that  the  generalizations  which  have  been  reached  by  his 
twenty  years  of  thought  are  of  more  importance  to  the  theory  of 
evolution  than  any  that  have  been  published  during  the  post- 
Darwinian  period.  George  J.  Romanes. 

London,  March  10. 

I  FOLLOW  Prof.  Lankester  in  the  use  of  bionomics  to  designate 
the  science  treating  of  the  relations  of  species  to  species.  If 
the  theory  of  evolution  is  true,  bionomics  should  treat  of  the 
origin,  not  only  of  species,  but  of  genera,  and  the  higher  groups 
in  which  the  organic  world  now  exists. 

In  his  very  suggestive  review  of  "  Darwinism,"  by  Mr.  A.  R. 
Wallace,  in  Nat  ure  of  October  10,  1889  (p.  566),  Prof.  Lankester 
refers  to  "  his  (Mr.  Wallace's)  theory  of  the  importance  of  the 
principle  of  '  like  to  like'  in  the  segregation  of  varieties,  and  the 
consequent  development  of  new  species."  Prof.  Lankester  has 
here  alluded  to  a  principle  which  I  consider  more  fundamental 
than  natural  selection,  in  that  it  not  only  explains  whatever 
influence  natural,  selection  has  in  the  formation  of  new  species, 
but  also  indicates  combinations  of  causes  that  may  produce 
new  species  without  the  aid  of  diversity  of  natural  selection. 
The  form  of  like  to  like  which  Mr.  Wallace  discusses  is  "  the 
constant  preference  of  animals  for  their  like,  even  in  the  case  of 
slightly  different  varieties  of  the  same  species,"  which  is  con- 
sidered not  as  an  independent  cause  of  divergence,  hut  as  pro- 
ducing isolation  which  facilitates  the  action  of  natural  selection. 
If  he  had  recognized  this  principle,  which  be  calls  selective 
association,  as  capable  of  producing  in  one  phase  of  its  action 
sexual  and  social  segregation,  and  in  another  phase  sexual  and 
social  selection,  he  would  perhaps  have  seen  that  its  power  to 
produce  divergence  does  not  depend  on  its  being  aided  by 
natural  Felection. 

Mr.  Wallace's  view  is  very  clearly  expressed  in  the  following 
passages,  though  I  find  other  passages  which  lead  me  to  think 
that  the  chief  reason  he  does  not  recognize  segregation  as  the 
fundamental  principle  in  divergence  is  that  he  has  not  observed 
its  relations  to  the  principle  of  like  to  like.  He  says  : — "  A  great 
body  of  facts  on  the  one  hand,  and  some  weighty  arguments  on  the 
other,  alike  prove  that  specific  characters  have  been,  and  could 
only  have  been,  developed  and  fixed  by  natural  selection  because 
of  their  utility  "  ("  Darwinism,"  p.  142).  "  Most  writers  on  the 
subject  consider  the  isolation  of  a  portion  of  a  species  a  very 
important  factor  in  the  formation  of  new  species,  while  others 
maintain  it  to  be  absolutely  essential.  This  latter  view  has 
arisen  from  an  exaggerated  opinion  as  to  the  power  of  inter- 
crossing to  keep  down  any  variety  or  incipient  species,  and 
merge  it  in  the  parent  stock  "  ("  Darwinism,"  p.  144). 

I  think  we  shall  reach  a  more  consistent  and  complete  ap- 
prehension of  the  subject  by  starting  with  the  fundamental  laws 
of  heredity,  and  refusing  to  admit  any  assumption  that  is  opposed 
to  these  principles,  till  sufficient  reasons  have  been  given.  Laws 
which  have  been  established  by  thousands  of  years  of  experiment 
in  domesticating  plants  and  animals,  should  be,  it  seems  to  me, 
consistently  applied  to  the  general  theory  of  evolution.  P'or 
example,  if  in  the  case  of  domesticated  animals,  "it  is  only  by 
isolation  and  pure  breeding  that  any  specially  desired  qualities 
can  be  increased  by  selection  "  (see  "Darwinism,"  p.  99),  why  is 
not  the  same  condition  equally  essential  in  the  formation  of  natural 
varieties  and  species?  If  in  our  experiments  we  find  that  careful 
selection  of  divergent  variations  of  one  stock  does  not  result  in 
increasingly  divergent  varieties  unless  free  civssing  be  ween  the 
varieties  is  prevented,  why  should  it  be  considered  an  exaggeration 
to  hold  that  in  wild  species  "  the  power  of  intercrossing  to  keep 
down  any  variety  or  incipient  species,  and  merge  it  in  the  parent 
stock,"  is  the  same.  Experience  shows  that  segregation,  -which  is 
the  bringing  of  like  to  like  in  groups  that  arc  prevented  from 
crossing,  is  the  fundamental  principle  in  the  divergence  of  the 
various  forms  of  a  given  stock,  rather  than  selection,  which  is  like 
to  like  throrigh  the  pr,vcnticn  of  certain  forms  from  propagating : 
and  I  think  we  introduce  confusion,  perplexity,  and  a  network 
of  inconsistencies  into  our  exposition  of  the  subject,  whenever  we 
assume  that  the  latter  is  the  fundamental  factor,  and  especially 
when  we  assume  that  it  can  produce  divergence  without  the  co- 
operation of  any  cause  of  segregation  dividing  the  forms  that  propa- 
gate into  two  or  more  groups  of  similars,  or  when  we  assume  that 
segregation  and  divergence  cannot  be  produced  without  the  aid 
of  diverse  forms  of  selection  in  the  difierent  groups.     The  theory 


of  divergence  through  segregation  states  the  principle  through 
which  natural  selection  becomes  a  factor  promoting  sometimes 
the  stability  and  sometimes  the  transformation  of  types,  but  never 
producing  divergent  transformation  except  as  it  co-operates  with 
some  form  of  isolation  in  producing  segregation  ;  and  it  main- 
tains that,  whenever  variations  whose  ancestors  have  freely  inter- 
generated  are  from  any  combination  of  causes  subjected  to 
persistent  and  cumulative  forms  of  segregation,  divergence  more 
or  less  pronounced  must  be  the  result.  The  laws  of  heredity  on 
which  this  principle  rests  may  be  given  in  the  three  following 
statements : — 

(i)  Unlike  to  unlike,  or  the  removal  of  segregating  influences, 
is  a  principle  that  results  either  in  extinction  through  failure  to 
propagate,  or  in  the  breaking  down  of  divergences  through  free 
crossing. 

(2)  Like  to  like,  when  the  individuals  of  each  intergeneVating 
group  represent  the  average  character  of  the  group,  is  a  principle 
through  which  the  stability  of  existing  types  is  promoted. 

(3)  Like  to  like,  when  the  individuals  of  each  group  represent 
other  than  the  average  character  of  the  group,  is  a  principle 
through  which  the  transformation  of  types  is  effected. 

In  my  paper  on  "  Divergent  Evolution"  (Linn.  Soc.  Journ., 
Zoology,  vol.  XX.  pp.  189-274),  I  pointed  out  that  sexual  and 
social  instincts  often  conspire  together  to  bring  like  to  like  in 
groups  that  do  not  cross,  and  that  in  such  cases  there  will  be 
divergence  even  when  there  is  no  diversity  of  natural  selection  in 
the  different  groups,  as,  for  example,  when  the  different  groups 
occupy  the  same  area,  and  are  guided  by  the  same  habits  ir> 
their  use  of  the  environment.  There  is  reason  to  believe  that 
under  such  circumstances  divergence  often  arises  somewhat  in 
the  following  way.  Local  segregation  of  a  partial  nature  results 
in  some  diversity  of  colour  or  in  some  peculiar  development  of 
accessory  plumes,  and  through  the  principle  of  social  segregation,, 
which  leads  animals  to  prefer  to  associate  with  those  whose 
appearance  has  become  familiar  to  them,  the  variation  is  pre- 
vented from  being  submerged  by  intercrossing.  There  next 
ari  es  a  double  process  of  sexual  and  social  selection,  whereby 
both  the  peculiar  external  character  and  the  internal  instinct 
that  leads  those  thus  characterized  to  associate  together  are 
intensified.  The  instinct  is  intensified,  because  any  member  of 
the  community  that  is  deficient  in  the  desire  to  keep  with  com- 
panions of  that  kind  will  stray  away  and  fail  of  breeding  with  the 
rest.  This  process  I  call  social  selection.  The  peculiarity  of 
colour  or  plumage  is  preserved  and  accumulated,  because  any 
individual  deficient  in  the  characteristic  is  less  likely  to  succeed 
in  pairing  and  leaving  progeny.  This  latter  process  is  sexual 
selection.  It  can  hardly  be  questioned  that  both  these  principles 
are  operative  in  producing  permanent  varieties  and  initial 
species  ;  and  in  the  circumstances  I  have  supposed,  I  do  not  see 
how  the  process  can  be  attributed  to  natural  selection.  Varieties 
thus  segregated  may  often  develop  divergent  habits  in  their  use 
of  the  environment,  resulting  in  divergent  forms  of  natural 
selection,  and  producing  additional  changes  ;  but  so  long  as 
their  habits  of  using  the  environment  remain  unchanged,  their 
divergencies  cannot  be  due  to  natural  selection. 

Mr.  Wallace's  very  interesting  section  on  "Colour  as  a 
Means  of  Recognition,"  taken  in  connection  with  the  section 
on  "  Selective  Association,"  already  referred  to,  and  another 
on  "  Sexual  Characters  due  to  Natural  Selection,"  offers  an 
explanation  of  "the  curious  fact  that  p  ominent  differences  of 
colour  often  distinguish  species  otherwise  very  closely  allied  to 
each  other"  (p.  226).  Ilis  exposition  differs  from  mine  in  that 
he  denies  the  influence  of  sexual  selection,  and  attributes  the 
whole  process  to  natural  selection,  on  the  ground  that  "means 
of  easy  recognition  must  be  of  vital  importance  "  (p.  217).  The 
reasoning,  however,  seems  to  me  to  be  defective,  because  the 
general  necessity  for  means  of  easy  recognition  is  taken  ai^ 
equivalent  to  the  necessity  for  a  specialization  of  recognition 
marks  that  shall  enable  the  different  varieties  to  avoid  crossing. 
In  the  cases  I  am  considering,  there  is,  however,  no  advantage 
in  the  separate  breeding  of  the  different  varieties,  and  even  in 
cases  where  there  is  such  an  advantage  (as  there  would  be  if  the 
variety  had  habits  enabling  it  to  escape  from  competition  with 
the  parent  stock,  but  only  partially  preventing  it  from  crossing 
with  the  same),  it  does  not  appear  how  this  advantage  can  pre- 
vent the  individual  that  ii  defective  in  the  special  colouring  from 
following  and  associating  with  those  that  are  more  clearly  marked. 
The  significant  part  of  the  process  in  the  development  of  recogni- 
tion marks  must  be  in  the  failure  of  such  individuals  to  secure 
mates,  which  is  sexual  selection  ;  or  in  the  unwillingness  of  th« 


t  bw 

I 


April  lo,  1890] 


NA  rURli 


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community  to  tolerate  the  company  of  such,  which  might  be 
called  social  selection. 

It  is  often  assumed  by  writers  on  evolution  that  permanent 
differences  in  the  methods  in  which  a  life-preserving  function  is 
performed  are  necessarily  useful  differences.  That  this  is  not  so 
may  be  shown  by  an  illustration  drawn  from  the  methods  of 
language.  The  general  usefulness  of  language  is  most  apparent, 
and  it  is  certain  that  some  of  the  laws  of  linguistic  development 
are  determined  by  a  principle  which  may  be  called  "the  survival 
of  the  fittest  ;  "  but  it  is  equally  certain  that  all  the  divergences 
which  separate  languages  are  not  useful  divergences.  That  one 
race  of  men  should  count  by  tens  and  another  by  twenties  is  not 
detennined  by  differences  in  the  environments  of  the  races,  or  by 
any  advantage  derived  from  the  difference  in  the  methods.  So 
easy  recognition  of  other  members  of  the  species  is  of  the  highest 
importance  for  every  species;  but  difference  in  "recognition 
marks"  in  portions  of  a  species  separated  in  different  districts  of 
the  same  environment  is  no  advantage.  Under  the  same  condi- 
tions, habits  of  feeding  may  become  divergent  ;  but,  since  any 
new  habit  that  may  be  found  advantageous  in  one  district  would 
be  of  equal  advantage  in  the  other  district,  the  divergence  must 
be  attributed  to  some  initial  difference  in  the  two  portions  of  the 
species. 

I  have  recently  observed  that,  of  two  closely  allied  species  of 
flat-fish  found  on  the  coasts  of  Japan,  one  always  has  its  eyes 
on  the  right  side,  and  the  other  always  on  the  left.  As  either 
arrangement  would  be  equally  useful  in  the  environment  of  either 
species,  the  divergence  cannot  be  considered  advantageous. 

Osaka,  Japan.  John  T.  Gulick. 

Self-Colonization  of  the  Coco-nut  Palm. 

The  question  whether  the  coco-nut  palm  is  capable  of 
establishing  itself  on  oceanic  islands,  or  other  shores  for  the 
matter  of  that,  from  seed  cast  ashore,  was  long  doubted  ;  and  if 
the  recent  evidence  collected  by  Prof.  Moseley,  Mr.  II.  O. 
Forbes,  and  Dr.  Guppy,  together  with  the  general  distribution  of 
the  palm,  be  not  sufficient  to  convince  the  most  sceptical  person 
on  this  point,  there  is  now  absolutely  incontrovertible  evidence 
that  it  is  capable  of  doing  so,  even  under  apparently  very 
unfavourable  conditions. 

In  the  current  volume  of  Nai  ure  (p.  276)  Captain  Wharton 
describes  the  newly-raised  Falcon  Island  in  the  Pacific  ;  and  in 
the  last  part  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Geographical 
Society,  Air.  J.  J.  Lister  gives  an  account  of  the  natu  ral  history  of 
the  island.  From  this  interesting  contribution  to  the  sources  of 
insular  floras  we  learn  that  he  found  two  young  coco-nut  palms, 
not  in  a  very  flourishing  condition,  it  is  true  ;  but  they  were 
there,  and  had  evidently  obtained  a  footing  unaided  by  man. 
There  were  also  a  grass,  a  leguminous  plant,  and  a  young 
candle-nut  (Aleurites),  on  this  new  volcanic  island — a  very 
good  start  under  the  circumstances,  and  suggestive  of  what 
might  happen  in  the  course  of  centuries. 

W.  BOTTING  HeMSI.EY. 

On  Certain  Devonian  Plants  from  Scotland. 

I  AM  indebted  to  Mr.  James  Reid,  of  Allan  House,  Blair- 
gowrie, Scotland,  for  the  opportunity  to  examine  a  collection  of 
fossil  plants  obtained  by  him  from  the  Old  Red  Sandstone  of 
Murthly  and  Blairgowrie  in  Perthshire,  some  of  which  have 
been  noticed  by  Dr.  Geikie  in  his  "  Text-book  of  Geology." 

The  collection  is  remarkable  for  the  striking  resemblance  of 
the  matrix  and  the  contained  vegetable  debris  to  those  of  the 
lower  part  of  the  Gaspe  sandstones  of  Logan,  and  the  species  of 
plants  are,  so  far  as  can  be  determined,  the  same.^ 

Psilophyton  princeps  largely  predominates,  as  in  Gaspe,  and 
is  represented  by  a  profusion  of  fragments  of  stems  and  branches, 
and  more  rarely  by  specimens  of  the  rhizoma  and  of  the 
sporocarps.  F.  robiistius  is  represented  by  fragments  of  stems, 
but  is  less  abundant,  and  Arthrostigma  gracile  by  some  portions 
of  stems.  On  the  whole  the  assemblage  is  exactly  those  of  the 
sandstone  beds  of  the  lower  division  of  the  Gaspe  sandstones. 
There  is  nothing  distinctively  Upper  Devonian  in  the  collection. 

The  collection  also  contains  two  slabs  of  dark-coloured 
sandstone  from  Caithness,  one  of  which  contains  what  appears 
to  be  a  fern  stipe  similar  to  those  of  the  genus  Rhodea.  Another 
shows  a  remarkable  plant  having  apparently  a  short  stem  giving 

'  See  p.apers  by  the  author,  Journal  Geol.  Society,  London,  1859,  and 
I'rQceedings  Geol.  Society,  Edinburgh,  1877. 


origin  to  a  quantity  of  crowded  leaves  which  are  long,  narrow, 
and  parallel-sided,  and  show  only  a  very  faint  linear  striation. 
This  plant  is  identical  both  in  the  form  and  arrangement  of  the 
leaves  with  that  found  in  the  Devonian  of  Canada,  and  which  I 
have  named  Cordaites  angttstifolia.  I  have,  however,  already 
stated  in  my  Reports  on  the  Flora  of  the  Erian  of  Canada 
(Geological  Survey  of  Canada,  1871  and  1882),  that  I  do  not 
consider  this  plant  as  closely  related  to  the  true  Cordaites,  and 
that  I  have  not  changed  the  generic  name  merely  because  I  am 
still  in  doubt  as  to  the  actual  affinities  of  the  plant.  Mr.  Reid's 
specimens  would  rather  tend  to  the  belief  that  it  was,  as  I  have 
already  suggested  in  the  reports  above  cited,  a  Zostera-like 
plant  growing  in  tufts  at  the  bottom  of  water. 

Some  of  the  sandstone  slabs  from  Murthly  contain  specimens 
of  rounded  olijects  referable  to  Fachytheca  (Hooker),  a  genus 
of  uncertain  affinities  but  characteristic  of  .Silurian  and  Lower 
Devonian  beds  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  One  of  these  is 
perfectly  spherical  with  a  shining  surface,  and  275  mm.  in  dia- 
meter, the  others  have  been  broken  so  as  to  show  a  central 
cavity  or  nucleus  about  I  mm.  in  diameter,  and  with  a  thick 
carbonaceous  wall  partly  pyritised  and  showing  obscure  radiating 
fibres.  Prof.  Penhallow,  of  McGill  University,  has  kindly  ex- 
amined these,  and  has  compared  them  with  slices  of  Pachytheca 
from  the  Wenlock  limestone,  kindly  communicated  by  Mr. 
Barber,  of  Cambridge,  and  with  specimens  presented  by  Prof. 
Hicks  from  the  Silurian  of  Corwen  and  with  specimens  in  the 
author's  collection  from  the  Silurian  of  Cape  Bon  Ami  ;  and 
also  with  the  excellent  figures  in  Mr.  Barber's  paper  in  the 
Annals  of  Botany.  He  has  not  been  able,  however,  to  arrive  at 
any  conclusions  beyond  the  probable  general  similarity  in  struc- 
ture of  the  various  forms,  which  may,  however,  as  Mr.  Barber 
suggests,  have  differed  in  their  naUue  and  origin.  The  only 
thing  certain  at  present  seems  to  be  that  these  puzzling 
organisms  had  a  thicker  outer  coat  of  radiating  fibres,  and  of  so 
great  density  that  it  was  less  liable  to  compression  than  the 
other  vegetable  tissues  with  which  it  is  associated. 

A  few  small  specimens  sent  more  recently  by  Mr.  Reid  con- 
tain some  curious  but  not  very  intelligible  objects  from  the  same 
beds.  One  is  a  stem  coiled  at  the  end  very  closely  in  a  circinate 
manner.  In  form  it  resembles  the  circinate  vernation  of 
Psilophyton  princeps,  but  is  much  larger.  It  may  belong  to  /'. 
robtistins,  or  possibly  to  a  fern,  but  is  too  obscure  for  certain 
determination.  Several  others  appear  to  represent  flattened 
fruits  or  sporangia  of  obovate  form  and  of  large  size.  One  has 
a  stalk  attached  with  what  seems  a  rudiment  of  a  bract,  and 
another  shows  obscure  indications  of  having  contained  round  or 
disk-shaped  bodies  about  2  mm.  in  diameter.  All  show  minute 
longitudinal  striation.  I  have  not  previously  met  with  bodies  of 
this  kind  in  the  Devonian,  and  can  only  suggest  that  they  may 
represent  the  fructification  of  some  unknown  plant,  possibly  that 
to  which  Pachytheca  belonged.  J.  W.M.  Dawson. 

Montreal,  March  5. 


Exact  Thermometry. 

I  AM  glad  to  observe  that  Prof.  Sydney  Young  and  myself 
are  now  in  substantial  agreement  as  regards  the  tension  theory 
of  the  ascent  of  the  zero  in  thermometers,  and  approximately 
in  agreement  as  regards  the  actual  cause  of  the-  ascent  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  ordinary  temperature. 

Some  time  ago,  in  connection  w  ith  an  investigation  of  melting- 
point,  I  devoted  three  years  to  an  examination  of  the  properties 
of  the  mercurial  thermometer.  Among  other  conclusions  which 
then  seemed  to  me  probable,  the  application  of  the  known 
plasticity  of  glass  under  pressure  to  account  for  the  enormous 
ascent  (in  lead-glass)  of  the  zero  at  high  temperatures 
appeared  of  some  value.  I  have  never  advanced  it  as  a  mature 
theory,  and  am  perfectly  open  to  correction  on  the  subject  ;  but 
neither  Prof.  Crafts  (with  whom  I  at  that  time  discussed  the 
matter),  nor  any  subsequent  experimenter,  has  submitted  the 
suggestion  to  a  crucial  examination. 

Prof.  Young's  experiments  (Nature,  March  27,  p.  489)  are  very 
interesting  as  far  as  they  go  ;  but  the  kind  of  glass  of  which  his 
thermometers  are  constructed  is  not  that  which  brings  out  the 
peculiarities  of  the  material  in  their  most  striking  develop- 
ment. This,  indeed,  has  long  been  known.  It  may  well  be  that, 
in  German  soda-glass,  the  plasticity  is  masked  by  a  preponderat- 
ing tendency  of  the  harder  or  more  crystalline  silicates  of  the 
bulb  to  set.  Much  could  be  done  towards  settling  the  question 
as  to  plasticity,  if  three  thermometers  of  lead-glass — one  vacuous, 


NATURE 


\April  lo,  1890 


one  open  to  the  air,  and  one  with  air  sealed  in— were  heated 
together  and  successively  to  100°  C,  120°,  150°,  200°,  250°,  270°, 
and  300°,  and  the  zeros  observed.  Even  then,  there  still  would 
remain  to  be  explained  the  strange  depression  which  I  noticed 
in  several  sealed  thermometers  of  lead-glass  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  270°.  At  present,  I  regard  the  suggestion  as  neither  proved 
nor  disproved. 

We  are,  in  fact,  only  beginning  to  learn  what  silica  and 
silicates  are.  I  have  quite  lately,  for  example,  found  a  critical 
|3oint  in  the  action  of  heat  upon  fire-clays,  similar  to  the  270' 
point  in  the  zeros  (before  referred  to)  of  my  lead-glass 
thermometers  ;  and  a  similar  point  is  known  to  exist  in  the 
relation  of  the  refractive  index  of  quartz  to  temperature. 
Results  of  this  kind  show  clearly  that  thermometry  is  by  no 
means  an  easy  subject.  Indeed,  I  might  define  it  as  a  rnixture 
of  very  complicated  chemistry  with  very  complicated  physics. 

Glasgow,  March  28.  Edmund  J.  Mills. 

The  Shuckburgh  Scale  andsKater  Pendulum. 

By  permission  of  Prof.  T.  C.  Mendenhall,  Superintendent 
of  the  United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey,  and  of 
AVeights  and  Measures,  I  enclose  to  you  for  publication,  if 
deemed  suitable,  a  note  relating  to  an  abstract  of  a  paper  by 
■(General  J.  T.  Walker,  R.E.,  F.R.S.,  published  in  Nature 
of  February  20  (p.  381). 

As  the  subject-matter  refers  to  U.S.C.  and  G.S.  Bulletin 
Is^o.  9,  I  take  the  liberty  of  enclosing  it  also. 

O.   H.   TiTTMANN. 

United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey,  Office  of  Weights 
and  Measures,  Washington,  D.C.,  March  13. 

Last  summer  the  United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey 
published  an  investigation.  Bulletin  No.  9,  on  the  relation  of 
the  yard  to  the  metre. 

As  the  re.'-ult  of  this  investigation,  values  were  deduced  for 
the  length  of  certain  historic  standards  in  England  which 
differed  very  materially  from  the  values  previously  assigned  to 
them  in  metric  measures. 

Thus  the  length  of  the  Royal  Society's  platinum  metre, 
certified  by  Arago  to  be  i7'59/i  too  short,  was  found  to  be  only 
7  /u  too  !-hort. 

This  metre  was  compared  by  Captain  Kater  with  a  certain 
space  (0-39-4  inches)  on  the  Shuckburgh  scale,  and  this  space 
was  in  turn  compared  with  his  pendulum.  It  is  therefore  of 
interest  to  know  whether  the  value  deduced  in  the  investigation 
referred  to  is  accurate.  It  is  the  object  of  this  note  to  call 
attention  to  a  surprising  verification  of  the  deductions  contained 
in  Bulletin  No.  9.  Using  the  equation  for  the  platinum  metre 
found  in  that  paier,  namely — 

Platinum  Metre  =  I  m.  -  7  /^  -h  9  "126  /t,  /  C°, 
we  find 

at  I5°-98C.,  P.M.  :=  i  -f-  138 -8 /x; 

but  at  this  temperature  Captain  Kater  found  the  space  on  the 
Shuckburgh  scale 

(o~39'4i"ches)  =  P.M.  +  o"0240oinch,  or  o"6o96mm., 
•whence    the    space    in    question     of    the    Shuckburgh    scale 
=    I  •CXD7484  m. ,    and    using    for    the     coefficient     expansion 
1885  X   10"^  for  1°  C,  we  have  at  i6°'67 

the  space  =  i"ooo76i4m. 

Nature  of  February  20  (p.  381)  publishes  an  abstract  of  a 
paper  by  General  J.  T.  Walker,  K.E.,  F.R.S.,  "On  the  Unit 
of  Length  of  a  Standard  Scale  by  Sir  George  Shuckburgh, 
appertaining  to  the  Royal  Society,"  in  which  he  states  that 
the  Shuckburgh  scale  was  taken  to  Paris  and  compared  with 
one  of  the  standard  bars  of  the  International  Bureau  of 
Weights  and  Measures,  by  Commandant  Defforges.  The  result 
of  this  comparison  reduced  to  16° "67  C,  and  as  given  by 
General  Walker  is 

the  space  =  i  •0007619  m, 

This  agreement  is  perfect,  more  so,  in  fact,  than  the  circum- 
stances allow  one  to  expect. 

The  agreement  implies  the  correctness  of  the  new  values 
deduced  in  Bulletin  No.  9  for  the  Ordnance  metre  and  the 
platinum  metre  of  the  Royal  Society,  and  gives  the  value  of  the 
■metre  as  equal  to  39 '3699  inches  as  therein  computed  from 
Baily's  and  Sheepshank's  comparisons,  which  established  the 
relation  between  the  Imperial  yard  and  the  space  on  the 
Shuckburgh  scale. 

It  is  to  be  no:ed  that  General  Walker,  ignoring  Baily's  and 


Sheepshank's  comparisons,  and  adhering  to  the  Clarke  value 
39*3704+  inches,  deduces  the  (the  wriier  of  this  thinks)  erroneous 
conclusion,  that  the  space  on  the  Shuckburgh  scale  equals 
39*400428  inches,  the  value  according  to  their  comparisons 
being  39*399896  inches.  If  to  this  value  be  added  0*04090  inch, 
the  amount  by  which  the  distance  between  the  knife-edges  of 
the  Kater  pendulum  exceeds  the  space  0-39^4  inches,  the  resulting 
length  of  the  Kater  pendulum  at  16° '67  C.  is  39*44080  inches, 
a  value  practically  identical  with  that  published  by  Kater,  which 
is  39^44085  inches. 


The  Green  Flash  at   Sunset. 

The  explanation  of  the  bluish  (?)  green  flash  of  light  some- 
times seen  at  sunset  given  in  your  note  last  week  (p.  495)  does  not 
seem  to  me  to  be  a  sufficient  explana' ion  of  all  the  observations. 
If  the  phenomenon  were  due  simply  10  refraction  it  would  last 
for  only  a  fraction  of  a  second,  and  the  colour  would  be  much 
more  blue  than  green.  But,  so  far  as  my  own  observations  go, 
the  colour  may  last  for  several  seconds,  and  is  a  bright  pea- 
green,  exactly  similar  to  that  shown  by  the  sun  many  degrees 
above  the  horizon  in  South  India  in  Se  itember  1883.  To 
produce  that  green,  as  I  have  shown  elsewhere,  all  that  is 
required  is  the  absorption  due  to  a  great  thickness  of  vapour, 
combined  with  a  certain  amount  of  dust — water  dust  or  other. 

I  siw  a  very  pretty  example  of  this  last  July  when  off  the 
coast  of  Vancouver,  B.C.  The  air  was  very  moist  and  the  rain- 
band  correspondingly  strong,  while  fine  da^t  was  supplied  by 
the  la'id  breeze  carrying  with  it  particles  from  the  burning 
forests  inland.  The  sky  was  cloudles>,  but  the  haze  was  thick 
enough  to  allow  one  to  look  at  the  sun  while  it  was  still  some 
degrees  above  the  horizon,  and  the  disk  appeared  of  a  brilliant 
golden-red,  gradually  changing  to  yellow,  and,  finally,  while 
part  was  still  above  the  horizon,  it  became  a  bright  pea-green. 
The  spectrum  was  similar  to  that  figured  in  my  paper  on  the 
green  sun  (R.S.E.  Trans.,  xxxii.  389). 

A  few  days  later  I  had  a  view  of  the  sunset  fmm  the  Selkirks, 
where  the  air  was  very  dry,  the  rain-band  flight,  l)ut  the  haze 
considerable.  The  colours  of  the  sun's  disk  were  much  less 
brilliant,  and  never  passed  beyond  the  stage  of  a  reddish-copper 
tint.  C.  MicHiE  Smith. 

73  George  Street,  Edinburgh,  March  31. 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

I  MUST  of  course  accept  Prof.  Mcintosh's  interpretation  of 
his  own  statement,  and  admit  that  he  has  found  Molgiila  arcnosa 
frequently  in  the  stomachs  of  Cod  and  Haddo  k.  This  Ascidian 
differs  from  the  majority  of  its  class  in  having  allocryptic  habits, 
but  I  have  not  yet  made  a  sufficient  number  of  experiments  to 
be  satisfied  as  to  its  edibility.  It  has  also  been  a  considerable 
difficulty  to  me  that  the  extensive  investigations  of  Brook  and 
Ramsay  Smith  lend  no  support  at  all  to  the  opinion  that  this 
Ascidian  forms  an  article  of  food  for  ground-feeding  fish.  In 
any  case  the  matter,  though  of  much  interest,  is  not  one  for 
discussion  here,  since  A/o/gu/a  arenosais  never  one  of  the  "foreign 
substances  attached  to  crabs. " 

The  statement  made  by  Mr.  Holt  that  "Actinia  mesembry- 
anthennun  is  a  favourite  food  of  the  Cod,"  was  so  inconsistent 
with  our  knowledge  of  the  habits  and  distribution  of  the  two 
species  that,  as  I  expected,  the  grounds  for  his  assertion  prove 
to  be  entirely  fallacious.  My  statement  with  regard  to  the 
offensiveness  of  Actinians  to  fishes  was  made  after  prolonged 
observation  of  the  habits  of  the  living  animals  and  after  ex- 
periment, while  Mr.  Holt  bases  his  objection  on  the  ground  that 
the  St.  Andrews  fishermen  find  A.  mesetnbryanthemum  to  be  a 
successful  bait  for  Cod.  One  might  as  well  arguo  that  because 
bits  of  red  flannel  or  of  tobacco-pipe  are  highly  successful  baits 
in  whiffing  for  Mackerel,  therefore  these  substances  form  a 
"favourite  food"  of  this  fish.  A  moment'^  reflection  also 
would  have  shown  Mr.  Holt  thai  an  A-.emonc  impaled  upon  a  fish- 
hook is  a  much  less  dangerous  creature  than  une  under  natural 
conditions  and  with  tentacles  expanded. 

During  the  past  week  an  interesting  ob>ervaiion  of  Eisig'shas 
come  under  my  notice  which  C)rroborates  the  view  that  the 
association  between  Crabs  and  Anemones  is  of  primary  import- 
ance for  the  protection  of  the  Crabs.  Eisig  observed  (see  journ. 
R.M.S.,  iii.,  1883,  p.  493)  that  an  Octopus  in  i's  attacks  upon  a 
Hermit  Crab  would  instantly  retreat  up  <ii  being  touched  by  the 
stinging  organs  of  the  Actinian  associated  with  it. 

Plymouth,  April  5.  Walter  Garstang. 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


539' 


THE  THAMES  ESTUARY. 

A  LTHOUGH  it  is  not  practicable  to  say  precisely 
-^*'  where  the  river  ends  and  the  estuary  commences, 
it  will  be  sufficient  for  general  purposes  if  the  westward, 
or  inner,  boundary  of  the  Thames  estuary  is  assumed  to 
be  a  line  from  Southend  to  Sheerness,  the  northern 
boundary  as  the  coast  of  Essex,  and  the  southern  the 
roast  of  Kent  ;  and  it  may  be  said  to  extend  eastward  to 
the  meridian  of  the  Kentish  Knock  light-vessel.  The 
area  inclosed  between  these  lines  is  upwards  of  800 
square  nautica]  miles,  and  the  whole  of  the  space  is  en- 
cumbered with  banks,  between  which  are  the  several 
channels  leading  to  the  river. 

As  the  shores  of  Essex  and  Kent  are  low,  and  have  no 
natural  features  by  which  they  may  be  distinguished  at  a 
distance,  and  as  a  great  part  of  the  estuary  is  out  of  sight 
of  land,  even  in  the  clear  weather  so  rare  in  this  country, 
it  is  evident  that  artificial  marks  in  considerable  number 
are  required  to  make  navigation  at  all  practicable  between 
the  banks.  In  early  times,  when  vessels  were  small  and 
of  light  draught,  few  marks  were  necessary,  but  with  in- 
creasing trade,  necessitating  vessels  of  heavy  draught, 
new  channels  have  to  be  marked  farther  from  shore,  and 
the  demand  for  additional  security  to  navigation  has  espe- 
cially increased  of  late  years,  so  that  now  there  are  no 
less  than  3  lighthouses,  11  light-vessels,  8  gas  buoys,  10 
beacons,  and  117  ordinary  buoys  marking  the  channels 
at  present  in  use  ;  and  the  demand  for  additional  marks 
is  likely  to  increase  rather  than  diminish,  for  the  deepest 
channels  through  the  estuary  have  not  yet  been  buoyed, 
and  the  changes  in  progress  seem  to  favour  the  opinion 
that  before  many  years  some  of  them  will  have  to  be 
opened  up  to  facilitate  traffic. 

In  endeavouring  to  give  an  account  of  the  changes  in 
the  channels  of  the  estuary,  it  is  difficult  to  obtain  any 
authentic  records  earlier  than  the  commencement  of  the 
present  century.  If  such  records  exist,  they  are  not  at 
the  Admiralty  or  Trinity  House,  the  earliest  surveys 
worthy  of  notice  being  those  of  Mackenzie,  Graeme 
Spence,  and  Thomas,  between  1790  and  1810;  but  no 
thorough  investigation  appears  to  have  been  taken  up 
until  Sir  Francis  Beaufort  was  Hydrcgrapher,  when,  under 
his  instruction?,  Captain  Bullock  surveyed  the  whole  estu- 
ary between  1 835  and  1 845.  Since  then,  Calver  re-surveyed 
the  whole  of  the  southern  part  in  1862-63,  and  examined 
the  northern  banks  in  1864,  and  lately  the  Tritoii  has  re- 
surveyed  all  ihe  important  channels  and  delineated  the 
banks,  and  from  these  several  surveys  some  idea  can  be 
obtained  of  the  condition  of  the  estuary  at  different 
epochs,  and  of  the  changes  that  are  taking  place. 

These  changes  seem  to  be  of  two  kinds  ;  viz.  permanent 
changes  and  periodic  changes. 

Before,  however,  des^cribing  the  changes  in  progress,  it 
will  be  well  to  give  a  general  description  of  the  estuary  ; 
and,  to  render  the  description  more  intelligible,  three  plans 
have  been  constructed,  the  first  showing  the  whole  estuary 
on  a  small  scale  with  the  tracks  followed  by  vessels  ;  the 
second  being  a  diagram  showing  the  state  of  an  obstruc- 
tion in  a  channel  at  different  epochs,  a  characteristic 
permanent  change  ;  whilst  the  third  plan  shows  the  state 
of  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  Channel  from  the  time  of  its 
first  opening  out  to  the  present  date,  to  illustrate  what 
seems  to  be  a  channel  opening  and  closing  periodically. 

It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  all  the  banks  of  the  estuary 
are  of  sand  intermixed  with  shells  ;  even  the  foreshore 
consists  mostly  of  sand,  between  high  and  low  water 
marks  ;  in  two  places  only  is  it  of  shingle  (viz.  off  Whit- 
stable  and  at  Garrison  Point,  Sheerness) ;  and  in  a  few 
places,  rear  the  entrance  of  the  rivers  discharging  into 
the  estuary,  there  is  a  little  mud,  whilst  in  the  vicinity  of 
Margate  there  are  some  ledges  of  chalk.  The  sand  is 
very  fine,  and  although,  when  dry,  it  possesses  a  tolerably 
bard  surface,,directly  it  begins  to  be  covered  it  is  all  alive. 


When  beacons  are  erected  on  any  of  the  banks,  or  a  ship' 
gets  on  shore,  the  tidal  streams  scour  out  the  sand  in  the 
immediate  neighbourhood,  and  cause  the  wrecks  to  sink 
and  finally  disappear.  Although  without  actual  boring  it 
is  not  possible  to  give  the  exact  depth  of  these  sands,  it 
is  probable  that  they  are  upwards  of  60  feet  thick,  for 
channels  of  that  depth  have  opened  out  across  the  sands 
and  again  closed  up,  so  that  the  bank  has  been  dry  at 
low  water  where  60  feet  formerly  existed  ;  and  the  Good- 
win Sands,  in  the  Downs,  which  have  been  bored,  proved 
to  be  80  feet  in  thickness.  All  the  banks,  and  the  channels 
between  them,  trend  in  a  north-east  and  south-west  direc- 
tion :  this  is  doubtless  due  to  the  fact  that  the  stream 
outside  the  estuary  is  running  to  the  northward  whilst 
the  tide  is  ebbing  from  the  river,  and,  consequently,  the 
ebb  stream  in  the  estuary  is  deflected  to  the  north-east- 
ward. 

The  channels  into  the  estuary,  therefore,  must  be  classed 
under  two  headings  :  {a)  those  which  follow  the  main  line 
of  the  flood  and  ebb  streams,  and  [b)  those  which  do  not 
follow  the  general  stream  of  the  tide. 

In  the  former  category  are  the  Warp,  West  Swin, 
Middle  Deep,  East  Swin,  Barrow  Deep,  Oaze  Deep,  and 
Black  Deep  ;  in  the  latter  are  the  Middle  Swin,  (2ueen'& 
Channel,  Prince's  Channel,  Alexandra  Channel,  Duke  of 
Edinburgh  Channel,  Gore  Channel,  &c.,  which  are  all 
more  or  less  of  the  nature  of  swatchways  across  the  main 
line  of  the  sand-banks  of  the  estuary.  In  the  Black  and 
Barrow  Deeps,  which  are  the  deepest  and  straightest 
channels  through  the  estuary,  the  ebb  stream  runs  7  hours 
and  the  flood  5  hours,  and  the  ebb  is  much  stronger  than 
the  flood,  the  stream  setting  fairly  through.  In  the  Duke 
of  Edinburgh  Channel,  the  deepest  swatchway  of  the 
estuary,  the  streams  at  the  north  and  south  ends  are  of 
a  rotatory  character,  revolving  with  the  hands  of  the 
clock. 

I  would  here  explain  that  in  a  large  space  like  the 
Thames  estuary  the  difficulty  of  buoying  the  various 
channels  increases  very  considerably  with  their  distance 
from  the  shore.  With  permanent  marks  erected  on  the 
shore,  it  is  easy  to  place  buoys  in  selected  positions,  not 
far  from  land,  in  fairly  clear  weather.  But  when  the  dis- 
tance from  the  shore  has  increased  so  that  the  marks 
erected  on  the  land  cannot  be  seen,  we  have  either  ta 
erect  other  marks  on  the  sand-banks  and  carry  out  a  tri- 
angulation,  or  we  are  dependent  on  floating  bodies  (fixed 
by  land  objects)  to  fix  other  floating  bodies  farther  off. 
That  this  is  an  eminently  unsatisfactory  method  will  be 
evident  when  it  is  stated  that  each  time  the  Kentish 
Knock  light-vessel  has  been  satisfactorily  fixed,  the  posi- 
tion has  been  very  different  from  that  supposed.  When 
fixed  by  Calver  in  1864,  she  was  found  to  be  one  mile 
N.E.  ^  N.  of  her  charted  position  ;  and  when  fixed  by  the 
Triton  last  year,  she  was  found  to  be  one  mile  and  a  half 
S.E.  by  E.  of  her  supposed  position. 

The  errors  probably  creep  in  somewhat  in  the  following 
way.  Something  goes  wrong  with  the  light- vessel  after  she 
has  been  satisfactorily  fixed  :  a  collision  takes  place,  the 
fog-siren  gets  out  of  order,  or  one  of  the  many  things  hap- 
pens which  necessitates  the  vessel  being  taken  into  port.  A 
temporary  light-vessel  is  substituted,  and  she  is  anchored 
in  almost  precisely  the  same  position  as  the  other,  but 
probably  before  her  mushroom  bites  the  ground  it  has 
dragged  somewhat.  By  the  time  the  other  vessel  is 
repaired  and  brought  out,  the  temporary  one  may  be  a 
cable  or  so  away  from  the  original  position.  As  the 
weather  is  usually  thick,  the  permanent  vessel  has  to  be 
anchored  as  nearly  as  practicable  in  the  position  of  the 
temporary  craft,  and  her  mushroom  may  drag  somewhat 
before  biting  the  ground,  &c.  Thus  a  series  of  errors 
creep  in  without  there  being  adequate  means  of  checking 
the  position  of  the  light-vessel,  and  within  the  last  few 
years  the  Triiofi  has  found  the  Leman  and  Ower  light- 
vessel  one  mile  away  from  her  charted  position,  the 


540 


NATURE 


[April  lo,  1890 


Dudgeon  light-vessel  about  one  mile  from  her  supposed 
position,  and  the  Outer  Downing  hght-vessel  nearly  two 
miles  from  the  charted  position. 

All  these  light-vessels  are  either  out  of  sight  of  land,  or 
can  only  be  seen  from  an  elevated  position  on  the  shore 
on  rare  occasions. 

It  is  therefore  naturally  the  object  of  the  Elder  Brethren 
of  the  Trinity  House  to  utilize  the  channels  closest  to 
the  shore,  and,  as  these  channels  are  also  the  most  direct 
into   the   Thames,   the   northern    channel   following   the 


general  trend  of  the  Essex  coast,  and  the  southern  that 
of  the  Kentish  coast,  no  other  channels  would  require 
marking  if  the  depth  in  these  was  sufficient  for  the  traffic. 
Hitherto  the  one  northern  channel  has  been  enough,  but 
this  is  steadily  shoaling,  as  will  be  described  further  on  ; 
but  the  southern  channels  are  mostly  shoal,  and  one  after 
another  has  had  to  be  opened  up  as  the  size  of  the  vessels 
and  their  draught  of  water  increased,  until  there  are  now 
five  buoyed  channels  off  the  Kentish  coast,  two  of  which 
are  lit ;  but  only  one  can  be  termed  a  deep-water  channel, 


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PLAN  I. — Thames  Estuary.     (Depths  in  Fathoms. ) 


and  this  would  seem  to  be  the  very  channel  which  opens 
and  closes  periodically,  as  will  be  shown  subsequently. 
Should  this  prove  to  be  the  case,  there  will  be  intervals 
during  which  there  will  be  no  deep-water  channel  into  the 
river  on  the  south  side  of  the  estuary. 

By  a  reference  to  Plan  I.,  showing,  on  a  small  scale,  the 
whole  estuary,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  northernmost 
channel,  viz.  that  close  to  the  coast  of  Essex,  is  named  the 
Wallet,  and  that  this  is  separated  by  a  series  of  banks, 
termed  Buxey  and  Gunfleet,  from  the  channel  next  it. 


These  banks,  which  are  collectively  i8  miles  long,  are  dry 
for  the  most  part  at  low  water ;  there  are,  however,  two 
narrow  passages  across  them,  one  separating  the  Buxey 
from  the  Gunfleet,  called  the  Spitway,  and  the  other 
separating  the  Buxey  from  the  Dengie  flat  (extending 
from  the  Essex  coast).  The  Spitway,  which,  when 
sounded  in  1800,  had  a  depth  of  nine  feet,  has  remained 
at  that  depth  until  recently,  but  now  has  only  a  depth  of 
5  feet  at  low  water  ;  the  channel  between  the  Buxey 
sand  and  Dengie  flat  has  about  12  feet,  and  is  merely  an 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


541 


outlet  for  the  River  Crouch.  It  will  therefore  be  seen  that 
the  Wallet  is  really  only  a  channel  to  the  Rivers  Colne, 
Blackwater,  and  Crouch,  and  is  of  no  importance  as  a 
channel  towards  the  Thames.  It  was  last  surveyed  by 
Staff-Captain  Parsons  in  1877,  and  as  its  features  have 
not  materially  changed  since  1800,  it  will  probably  not  be 
surveyed  again  for  many  years,  unless  the  swatchways 
across  the  Gunfleet  should  deepen  or  others  open  up  of 
sufficient  importance  to  render  the  Wallet  useful  as  a 
traffic  channel.  There  were  formerly  other  swatchways 
across  the  Gunfleet,  but  these  are  now  closed. 

The  channel  next  the  Wallet  is  named  the  King's 
Channel,  or  Swin  ;  the  eastern  part  is  named  East 
Swin,;  the  central  part  Middle  Swin,  and  the  inner 
part  West  Swin.  This  is  the  channel  through  which 
all  the  traffic  between  London  and  the  northern  ports 
of  the  Kingdom  passes,  and  it  is  almost  always 
crowded  with  shipping.  The  East  Swin  is  bounded  at 
first  by  the  Gunfleet  sand  to  the  north-westward  and  the 
.Sunk  sand  to  the  south-eastward,  and  is  3  miles  wide  ; 
but  8  miles  within  its  entrance  two  other  banks  com- 
mence— one,  the  IJarrow,  being  very  extensive,  upwards 
of  13  miles  in  length  and  2  in  breadth  ;  and  the  other, 
the  Middle  or  Hook  sand,  a  narrow  ridge  about  6  miles 
long,  extending  along  the  north-west  face  of  the  Barrow 
sand,  and  leaving  a  channel  nowhere  less  than  r!  of  a  mile 
wide  between  them.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  8  miles 
within  the  entrance  of  the  East  .Swin  it  is  split  up  into 
3  channels  ;  the  northernmost  retaining  the  same  name, 
the  channel  between  the  Middle,  or  Hook  sand,  and  the 
Barrow  being  known  as  the  Middle  Deep,  whilst  the 
channel  between  the  Barrow  and  Sunk  sands  is  known 
as  the  Barrow  Deep.  The  Middle  Deep  rejoins  the  Middle 
.Swin,  but  the  Barrow  Deep  and  West  Swin  bothriin  into 
what  is  known  as  the  Warp.  The  Swin  is  well  buoyed 
and  lighted  throughout,  but  the  Middle  and  Barrow  Deeps 
have  not  yet  been  buoyed.  In  fact,  it  has  hitherto  not 
been  necessary  to  do  so,  as  the  least  water  in  the  main 
channel  of  the  Swin  has,  up  to  recently,  been  ample  for 
all  that  has  been  required  ;  but  a  steady  shoaling  has 
been  taking  place  in  a  critical  part  of  this  channel  since 
1800,  and  it  now  seems  to  be  only  a  question  of  time 
before  the  Middle  Deep  will  have  to  be  marked. 

To  illustrate  the  changes  in  progress  here.  Plan  II.  has 
been  constructed,  showing  the  condition  of  the  critical 
part  of  the  navigation  in  the  Swin  each  time  it  has  been 
thoroughly  surveyed.  By  this  diagram  it  will  be  seen 
that  in  1800  the  ruling  depth  in  the  channel  between 
Foulness  sand  and  the  Middle  or  Hook  sand  was  35  feet  at 
low  water.  Forty-three  years  later,  a  bar,  on  which  the 
depth  at  low  water  was  28  feet,  had  formed  between  the 
Foulness  sand  and  the  Middle.  In  1864  the  depth  had 
decreased  to  24  feet,  and,  in  1889,  to  21  feet,  showing  a 
steady  decrease  since  1800  of  about  one  foot  in  every  six 
years.  The  deposit  is  of  sand,  shells,  and  mud.  This  is 
the  only  shallow  part  of  the  Swin  ;  and  as  it  is  evident 
that,  so  far  as  our  knowledge  extends,  we  may  expect  it 
to  continue  to  decrease  in  depth,  and  as  even  now,  with 
strong  south-west  winds  prevailing  in  the  North  Sea,  it  is 
by  no  means  rare  for  the  tide  to  fall  3  feet  below  the  level 
of  low  water  ordinary  springs,  so  that  the  depth  would  be 
reduced  to  18  feet,  it  is  clear  that  vessels  of  heavy  draught 
will  either  have  to  wait  for  tide  or  use  another  channel. 
Already  our  small  armoured  vessels  of  war  have  to  time 
themselves  to  reach  this  obstruction  by  half-tide.  For- 
tunately, the  Middle  Deep  is  an  alternative  channel  with 
ample  depth  in  it,  which  only  requires  to  be  buoyed,  and 
this  can  readily  be  done.  This  Deep  seems  to  be  in  a 
better  condition  now  than  it  has  been  for  50  years,  for, 
when  surveyed  by  Bullock,  in  1843,  there  was  a  bar  of 
25  feet  at  its  east  end.  This  had  oisappeared  when  it 
was  surveyed  by  Calver  in  1864,  and  there  was  then  a 
channel  of  two  cables  in  width  between  the  edges  of  the 
30  feet  contour  lines  of  soundings  surrounding  the  Middle 


sand  and  Barrow.  There  is  now  a  channel  four  cables  in 
width  between  those  contour  lines  in  the  narrowest  part 
of  the  Deep. 

The  Barrow  Deep,  referred  to  as  the  third  channel 
branching  away  from  the  East  Swin,  is  deep  throughout, 
and  without  obstruction.  It  varies  somewhat,  as  shown 
by  the  different  surveys,  but  is  an  excellent  highway, 
which  only  requires  buoying  to  be  available  for  traffic.  At 
present  the  London  County  Council  are  allowed  to  empty 
rubbish  in  this  Deep,  which  seems  rather  a  pity,  as  there 
is  no  knowing  what  may  be  the  result  eventually,  more 
especially  as  we  have  at  present  no  observations  to  show 
to  what  depth  the  tidal  scour  is  of  service.  .Any  inter- 
ference with  the  channels,  likely  to  cause  an  obstruction, 
should  be  avoided. 

The  Sunk  sand,  which  is  the  south-eastern  boundary 
of  the  Barrow  Deep  and  the  north-western  boundary  of 
the  Black  Deep,  has  undergone  great  alterations  since 
originally  surveyed  in  1800.  In  that  year  it  is  shown  as 
a  long  sand  which  really  extended  from  the  present  north- 
east end  in  one  continuous  line  of  shallow  water  to  the 
inner  end  of  the  Oaze  sand,  a  distance  of  26  miles.  On 
it  were  many  dry  patches,  named  Great  Sunk,  Little 
Sunk,  Middle  Sunk,  Knock  John,  &c.,  and  the  only  pas- 
sage across  was  a  three-fathoms  channel  at  low  water  at 
the  eastern  end  of  the  Oaze.  When  surveyed  by  Bullock, 
1835-45,  this  chain  of  sands  had  altered  very  consider- 
ably, and  had  several  channels  or  swatchways  across  it 
— a  swatchway  of  22  feet  at  low  water  between  the  Great 
and  Little  Sunk  smds  :  a  swatchway  of  60  feet  at  low 
water  between  the  South-West  Sunk  and  the  Knock  John 
sands  ;  a  35'-feet  channel  i^  mile  wide  between  the  Knock 
John  and  North  Knob  sands  ;  and  a  swatchway  of  26 
feet  between  the  North  Knob  and  the  Oaze.  When 
surveyed  by  Calver,  1862-64,  this  series  of  banks  had 
again  altered  :  the  swatchway  between  the  Great  and 
Little  Sunk  sands  had  only  12  feet  in  it  at  low  water; 
the  swatchway  between  the  South-West  Sunk  and  the 
Knock  John  had  shoaled  to  40  feet ;  but  the  channel  be- 
tween the  Knock  John  and  North  Knob  had  deepened 
to  45  feet,  and  a  narrow  channel  of  40  feet  at  low  water 
had  opened  out  between  the  Oaze  and  North  Knob. 

In  1888-89,  when  surveyed  by  the  Triton,  the  swatch- 
way between  the  Great  and  Little  Sunk  sands  had  en- 
tirely disappeared ;  the  swatchway  between  the  South- 
West  Sunk  and  the  Knock  John  sands  had  narrowed  and 
shoaled  to  29  feet ;  the  channel  between  the  Knock  John 
and  North  Knob  shoals  had  decreased  to  24  feet,  whilst 
the  channel  between  the  North  Knob  and  the  Oaze  had 
increased  its  width  to  one  mile,  with  about  the  same 
depth  (viz.  40  feet)  at  low  water.  In  fact,  the  chain  of 
sands  known  as  the  Sunk,  Knock  John,  Knob,  and  Oaze, 
which  were,  in  1800,  one  continuous  bank,  after  breaking 
up  into  separate  patches,  again  show  signs  of  resuming 
the  form  they  possessed  when  originaliy  surveyed,  the 
only  deep  channel  across  them  now  being  between  the 
Oaze  and  North  Knob. 

The  Black  Deep  is  the  channel  bounded  to  the  north- 
westward by  the  chain  of  sands  just  described,  and  to 
the  south-eastward  by  another  chain  of  sands  named 
Long  Sand  :  Shingles,  Girdler,  and  the  flats  extending 
from  the  Kentish  shore.  It  is  a  deep-water  channel,  the 
inner  part  of  which  has  been  buoyed  since  1882,  and  lighted 
since  December  last,  as  it  communicates  by  a  deep-water 
swatchway,  named  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  Channel, 
with  the  deep  water  off  the  North  Foreland,  and  so  forms 
a  convenient  outlet  for  the  heavy-draught  vessels  bound 
southward  from  the  Thames.  There  seems  to  be  some 
tendency  to  shoal  in  the  north-east  end  of  the  Black 
Deep,  but  it  has  only  once  been  sounded — viz.  by  Bullock, 
in  1843 ;  and  we  have  not  yet  quite  completed  our  examina- 
tion of  it  throughout,  so  that  no  thorough  comparison  is 
yet  practicable. 

The  chain  of  sands  which  bound  the  south-east  side  of 


542 


NA  TURE 


\At)ril  TO.  t8qo 


PLAN  II. 


Atril  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


543 


DUKE    OF  EDINBURGH 

CHANNEL 

e\X,     different     EpocTis 
Depths  in   J^et 


Tbaznas  WW 


■^  L  -Vensel 


4i      ^s 

4S  V^         Zl^-ss^iia 


PLAN  III. 


544 


NA  TURE 


\April  lo,  1890 


the  Black  Deep  formerly  extended  in  one  continuous  line 
from  the  Kentish  coast  to  the  Long  Sand  Head,  a  distance 
of  over  30  miles.  Across  this  chain  of  sands  there  have 
always  been  shallow  swatchways  which  communicated 
by  somewhat  circuitous  channels  with  the  deep  water  of 
the  estuary.  These  are  now  5  in  number  :  (i)  the  Gore 
Channel,  which  passes  close  to  Margate  and  then  across 
the  Kentish  flats  ;  (2)  the  Queen's  Channel,  which,  passing 
between  the  Margate  sand  and  Tongue  sand,  also  leads 
across  the  Kentish  flats  ;  (3)  the  Prince's  Channel,  which 
leads  between  the  Tongue  sand  on  the  south  side,  and 
the  Shingles  and  Girdler  sands  on  the  north  side,  into 
the  Black  Deep  ;  (4)  the  Alexandra  Channel,  which  leads 
from  the  Prince's  Channel  to  the  Black  Deep;  and  (5) 
the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  Channel,  which  leads  from  the 
deep  water  of  the  North  Sea  into  the  Black  Deep.  All 
these  channels  are  buoyed.  In  the  Gore  Channel  (some- 
times called  the  South  Channel),  which  has  been  in  use 
from  early  times,  the  depth  at  low  water  is  10  feet.  The 
shallow  grounds  shift  backwards  and  forwards,  but  there 
seems  to  have  been  always  as  little  as  10  feet  at  low 
water  in  some  parts  of  this  channel.  In  the  Queen's 
Channel,  which  was  buoyed  in  the  last  century,  the  least 
depth  in  passing  over  the  Kentish  flats  is  13  to  14  feet  at 
low  water.  In  Prince's  Channel,  which  was  buoyed  in 
1846,  and  lighted  in  1848,  the  least  depth  is  20  feet  at 
low  water,  but  theie  is  a  patch  of  17  feet  at  its  western 
end  in  the  centre  of  the  channel  which  seems  to  be 
always  in  this  channel  though  not  always  in  the  same 
position.  It  is  shown  by  Bullock  in  1839,  by  Calver 
in  1862,  and  by  the  Triton  in  1880.  The  Alexandra 
Channel,  which  is  a  swatchway  between  the  Shingles  and 
Girdler  sands,  had  no  existence  in  1800,  the  Girdler  and 
Shingles  forming  with  the  Long  Sand  a  continuous  chain 
at  that  date.  In  Bullock's  survey  of  1839,  the  Alexandra 
is  shown  as  a  blind  inlet  on  the  north  side  of  the  Prince's 
Channel,  which  was  cut  off  from  the  Black  Deep  by  a 
ridge  over  which  the  depth  was  7  feet  at  low  water. 
When  surveyed  by  Calver  in  1862,  the  least  depth  in  the 
channel  was  20  feet ;  and  when. surveyed  by  the  Triton  in 
1888,  the  least  depth  was  23  feet.  It  is,  however,  much 
narrower  now  than  in  1862,  and  if  it  continues  to  decrease 
in  width  will  not  be  available  for  traffic,  as  there  is  not 
now  much  more  than  room  for  two  large  vessels  to  pass 
each  other,  and  bad  steerage  might  cause  an  accident. 

Of  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  Channel,  which  is  a  broad 
swatchway  at  present  dividing  the  Long  Sand  from  the 
Shingles  Sand,  we  have  a  tolerably  complete  history  ;  and 
as  this  would  seem  to  be  a  channel  which  opens  and 
closes  periodically,  Plan  III.  has  been  constructed  to  show 
its  condition  each  time  it  has  been -surveyed.  The  first 
record  we  have  of  it  is  on  an  old  chart  of  1794,  when  it  is 
shown  as  a  9-feet  swatchway,  and  is  named  "  Smugglers' 
swatch."  When  surveyed  by  Thomas,  in  18 10,  it  was 
named  "Thomas's  New  Channel,"  and  there  was  then  a 
narrow  passage  carrying  30  feet  at  low  water  between  the 
Long  Sand  and  Shingles.  In  1839,  when  surveyed  by 
Bullock,  and  named  "  Bullock  Channel,"  this  30-feet 
swatchway  of  Thomas  s  was  obstructed  by  a  bank  in  the 
middle,  which  dried  at  its  north  end,  leaving  a  passage  of 
15  feet  on  its  east  side,  and  a  very  narrow  gat  of  25  feet 
on  its  west  side,  but  one  mile  farther  west  a  new  channel 
was  opening  out,  the  shoalest  water  in  which  was  16  feet. 
This  appears  as  an  inlet  into  the  sand-bank  on  Thomas's 
chart. 

The  next  time  it  was  surveyed  was  by  Calver,  in  1862,  at 
which  date  Thomas's  Channel  had  closed  completely,  but 
the  channel  west  of  it  had  opened  out  and  become  a  wide 
deep-water  swatchway,  the  least  depth  in  which  was  42 
feet  at  low  water.  Early  in  1882  it  was  thought  advisable 
to  buoy  this  channel,  and  the  Triton  was  ordered  to  ex- 
amine it,  when  a  30-feet  patch  was  discovered  near  its 
centre.  In  the  autumn  of  1887,  this  patch  was  reported 
to  have  shoaled  ;  and  in  1 888,  when  examined  again  by  the 


Triton,  it  was  found  to  be  upwards  of  a  mile  in  length 
with  22  feet  on  it.  In  October  1889,  the  channel  was 
again  examined,  when  the  least  depth  on  the  central 
patch  was  found  to  be  21  feet,  and  it  had  a  tendency 
to  shallow  to  the  eastward.  The  channel  was  buoyed  in 
the  summer  of  1882,  and  re-named  by  the  Elder  Brethren 
of  the  Trinity  House  "  Duke  of  Edinburgh,"  after  the 
Master  of  the  Trinity  House.  It  was  lighted  in  December 
1889. 

The  various  surveys  seem  to  show  that  the  estuary 
has  a  tendency  for  the  most  part  to  return  to  the  con- 
dition it  was  in  about  1800.  In  that  year  there  were 
no  deep-water  swatchways  across  the  banks,  and  the 
channels  that  opened  up  subsequently  seem  now  to  be 
all  closing  again.  At  any  rate,  those  in  use  as  ship' 
channels  evidently  will  require  constant  watching. 

Should  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  Channel  close,  and  none 
other  open  out,  it  will  materially  interfere  with  the  heavy 
traffic  into  the  estuary  from  the  southward,  for  it  will 
necessitate  either  waiting  for  high  water  or  passing  round 
outside  into  the  Black  or  Barrow  Deeps,  which  will  have  to 
be  buoyed  and  lighted  to  make  them  readily  accessible. 

There  is  one  other  shoal,  the  ''  Kentish  Knock,"  which 
may  be  said  to  belong  to  the  estuary.  This  is  a  sand- 
bank about  6  miles  in  length  and  2  in  breadth,  on  the 
south-east  side  of  the  outer  part  of  the  Long  Sand.  Its 
shape  and  area,  within  the  contour-line  of  five  fathoms, 
would  appear  to  be  fairly  constant  ;  but  it  had  a  swatch- 
way across  the  north  end,  when  surveyed  by  Calver  in 
1864,  which  has  now  entirely  disappeared.  Between  the 
Kentish  Knock  and  Long  Sands  is  a  channel,  two  miles- 
wide,  named  the  Knock  Deep.  At  the  north  end  of  this 
channel  the  soundings  arc  much  shoaler  than  when 
surveyed  by  Bullock.  In  some  cases  the  difference  is  as 
much  as  12  feet. 

Although  the  general  tendency  of  the  banks  in  the 
estuary  seems  to  be  to  revert  to  the  condition  they  were 
in  about  the  year  1800,  it  is  not  possible  to  predict  that 
this  will  certainly  be  the  cise.  If,  as  seems  probable,  the 
condition  of  the  estuary  is  due  to  the  action  of  the  sea 
in  casting  up  banks,  and  of  the  tidal  flow  in  cutting 
channels  through  the  banks  thus  formed,  it  is  evident  that 
much  will  depend  on  prevailing  types  of  gales.  There 
can,  however,  hardly  be  a  doubt  that  any  diminution  of 
the  volume  of  the  water  running  into  and  out  of  the 
estuary  would  diminish  its  power  of  making  deep-water 
channels,  so  that  any  action  tending  to  decrease  the  flow 
into  and  out  of  the  various  rivers  should  be  avoided  if 
possible  ;  as  although  it  is  conceivable  that  a  given  type 
of  strong  winds,  extending  over  a  lengthened  period, 
might  have  the  effect  of  closing  the  various  swatchways 
across  the  banks,  it  does  not  follow  that  a  cessation  of 
these  winds  would  cause  the  channels  to  be  again  opened 
out  if  the  volume  of  the  tidal  flow  was  seriously 
diminished.  T.  H.  Tizard. 


NOTES. 
The  respect  in  which  science  is  held  in  France  was  once  more 
exhibited  in  a  very  striking  way  at  Saint  Sulpice,  Paris,  on  Tues- 
day, in  connection  with  the  funeral  service  of  M.  Hebert,  Professor 
of  Geology,  member  of  the  Institute,  and  honorary  doyen  of  the 
Faculty  of  Sciences.  Deputations  from  the  Institute  and  Faculty 
of  Sciences  were  present,  and  the  Paris  correspondent  of  the 
Times  says  ihat  all  the  great  scientific  and  literary  institutions 
of  Paris  were  represented.  At  the  cemetery  of  Montparnasse, 
where  the  interment  took  place,  speeches  were  delivered  by  M. 
Gardry,  in  the  name  of  the  Institute  ;  M.  Darboux,  in  the  name 
of  the  Faculty  of  Sciences  ;  M.  Marcel  Bertrand,  in  the  name 
of  the  Geological  Society  ;  M.  Jannery,  in  the  name  of  the 
Normal  School  ;  and  M.  Bergeron,  in  the  name  of  the  old 
pupils  of  M.  Hebert. 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


545 


German  papers  announce  the  death  of  Dr.  Karl  Jacob  Loewig, 
Professor  of  Chemistry  at  the  University  of  Breslau,  Director  of 
the  Chemical  Laboratory,  and  author  of  many  eminent  works  on 
chemistry.  He  was  born  at  Kreuznach  on  March  17,  1803,  and 
died  at  Breslau  on  March  27. 

The  "Inspectors'  Instructions"  relating  to  the  Code  of  1890 
have  been  issued  this  year  with  remarkable  promptitude.  The 
document  is  one  of  great  importance,  and  it  is  satisfactory  that  all 
who  are  interested  in  popular  education  will  have  ample  time  to 
study  it  before  the  various  questions  connected  with  the  new 
Code  are  discussed  in  Parliament, 

This  week  the  National  Union  of  Teachers  has  been  holding 
its  2 1  St  Annual  Conference  at  the  Merchant  Taylors'  School, 
London.  The  meetings  began  on  Monday,  when  the  President, 
Mr.  H.  J.  Walter,  (delivered  his  inaugural  address.  Speaking 
of  the  new  Code,  Mr.  Walter  said  the  teachers  of  the  country 
would  accept  and  welcome  it  ;  and  although  they  reserved  their 
right  to  criticize  the  details  freely,  and  unhesitatingly  to  state 
that  in  many  points  the  Code  was  capable  of  improvement, 
"they  would  work  loyally  with  the  Education  Department  in 
the  endeavour  to  show  such  an  improvement  in  the  education  of 
the  country  that  the  public  would  be  ready  to  listen  with  atten- 
tion and  respect  when  teachers  made  suggestions  for  further 
changes  and  advance  in  the  same  direction." 

M.  Gaston  Bonnier  h^s  been  elected  President  of  the 
Botanical  Society  of  France  for  the  year  1890,  and  MM.  E. 
Roze,  A.  Michel,  J.  Poisson,  and  J.  Vallot,  Vice-Presidents. 

The  International  Exhibition  of  Geographical,  Commercial, 
and  Industrial  Botany,  proposed  to  be  held  at  Antwerp,  has 
been  postponed  till  next  year. 

An  International  Exhibition  of  Horticulture,  which  will  be 
largely  of  a  scientific  character,  will  be  held  in  Berlin  from 
April  25  to  May  5. 

An  Electro-technical  Exhibition  is  to  beheld  at  Frankfort-on- 
the-Main  next  year.     It  will  be  divided  into  twelve  sections. 

Some  exhibits  in  the  Science  Department  (under  the  direction 
of  the  Rev.  Dr.  West  and  Mr.  C.  Carus- Wilson)  of  the  Bourne- 
mouth Industrial  and  Loan  Exhibition,  opened  on  the  7th 
inst.,  are  worthy  of  special  notice.  Among  these  are  a  collec- 
tion of  British  and  foreign  oysters  lent  by  the  Poole  Oyster - 
fishing  Company,  and  a  collection  of  birds'  eggs,  for  which  Mr. 
R.  G.  H.  Gray  has  received  a  special  prize.  The  first  prize  has 
been  awarded  to  Mr.  E.  H.  V.  Davies,  who  exhibits  an  inter- 
esting collection  of  recent  and  fossil  local  shells.  The  various 
stages  in  the  process  of  developing  photographs  are  illustrated 
in  a  series  exhibited  by  Mr.  Jones.  In  the  Geological  Section, 
large  specimens  of  fluor-spar  have  been  lent  by  Dr.  West,  who 
also  contributes  a  collection  of  Eocene  fossils  from  the  Lindon, 
Hampshire,  and  Paris  basins.  Mr.  C.  Carus- Wilson  shows  a 
case  of  remarkably  well-preserved  fossils  of  various  geological 
ages,  including  a  gigantic  shark's  tooth  {Carcharodon)  from  Rio  ; 
also,  garnets  in  quartz,  and  samples  of  musical  sands.  Leaves 
from  the  Bournemouth  Beds  are  well  represented  by  Mr.  Ben- 
nett's collection.  In  the  Entomological  Section,  Mr.  McRae's 
collection  of  British  Lepidoptera  attracts  much  attention  ;  the 
Rhopalocera  and  Macro- Heterocera  are  nearly  all  represented, 
a  large  number  having  been  bred  by  Mr.  McRae  from  larvre 
obtained  in  or  near  Bournemouth.  A  special  prize  has  been 
awarded  to  Mr.  Harding  for  a  large  astronomical  telescope  con- 
structed entirely  by  himself.  The  Exhibition  will  close  on  the 
2 1st  inst.,  when  the  prizes  will  be  distributed  by  the  Duchess  of 
Albany. 

The  Royal  Microscopical  Society  will  hold  its  first  evening 
soiree  in  its  new  rooms,  20  Hanover  Square,  on  Wednesday, 
April  30,  at  8  p.m. 


M.  Leclerc  I)U  Saislon  has  been  appointed  to  a  Professor- 
ship of  Botany  at  Toulouse,  and  is  succeeded  in  his  post  of 
assistant  naturalist  to  the  chair  of  Organography  and  Vegetable 
Physiology  at  the   Museum  of  Natural  History  at  Paris,  by  M 
Morot. 

Dr.  LunwiG  Klein  has  been  appointed  Professor  of  Botany 
in  the  University  of  Freiburg-in-Breisgau. 

M.  Paul  Maury  has  been  attached  to  the  Geographical  Ex- 
ploring Commission  of  the  Mexican  Republic  in  the  capacity  of 
botanist,  and  is  about  lo  depart  for  Mexico  on  a  botanical 
expedition. 

The  plans  of  the  Danish  expedition  to  the  east  coast  of 
Greenland  are  now  complete.  Lieut.  Ryder  will  command  a 
party  of  nine,  and  during  next  summer,  as  soon  as  the  ice  per- 
mits, they  will  go  by  steamer  to  the  east  coast,  and  then  devote 
two  years  to  the  investigation  of  the  district  between  lat.  N. 
66°  and  73°.  At  the  end  of  that  time  they  will  be  fetched  by 
the  steamer  from  Denmark. 

The  French  Society  "Scientia"  informs  its  members  that  its. 
next   dinner,  on   Apiil   30,   will   be  presided  over  by   M.   C. 
Richet   and  by    M.  de  Lacaze-Duthiers,  in  whose  honour  the 
dinner  is  to  be  given.     The  last  dinner  was  given  in  honour  of 
Francis  Darwin. 

At  the  general  monthly  meeting  of  the  Royal  Institution^ 
on  April  7,  the  special  thanks  of  the  members  were  returned  for 
the  following  donations  to  the  fund  for  the  promotion  of  experi- 
mental research  :  Mr.  Ludwig  Mond,  ;^ioo;  Mr.  Lachlan  M. 
Rate,  ;^5o. 

At  the  Royal  Institution  the  Hon.  George  C.  Brodrick  wilt 
begin  a  course  of  three  lectures,  on  the  place  of  Oxford  Uni- 
versity in  English  history,  on  Tuesday  (April  15);  Prof.  C.  V. 
Boys  will  begin  a  course  of  three  lectures,  on  the  heat  of  the 
moon  and  stars,  on  Thursday  (April  17);  and  Captain  Abney 
will  begin  a  course  of  three  lectures,  on  colour  and  its  chemical' 
action,  on  Saturday  (April  19).  The  evening  meetings  will  be 
resumed  on  Friday  (April  18),  when  Sir  Frederick  BramwelF 
will  give  a  discourse  on  welding  by  electricity. 

The  Marlborough  College  Natural  History  Society,  according 
to  its  latest  Report,  is  in  a  most  flourishing  condition.  The 
year  1889  was  for  the  Society  "one  of  continued  prosperity  and 
progress."  On  April  9,  1889,  the  Society  completed  its 
twenty-fifth  year,  and  the  members  afterwards  commemorated 
the  occasion  by  an  excursion  to  Stonehenge. 

Dr.  vo.n  Daxckelman  has  contributed  to  Mitllieiluiigcnaus- 
den  detitschen  Scliutzgcbieteu,  vol.  iii.,  an  important  paper  on  the 
climate  of  German  Togoland,  and  of  the  neighbouring  districts 
of  the  Gold  and  Slave  Coasts.  The  observations  are  drawn  from, 
all  available  sources,  from  those  first  made  by  Dr.  Isert  at  the 
then  Danish  settlements  in  1783-85,  down  to  the  most  recent 
observations  by  English,  French,  and  German  observers.  A 
good  deal  of  information  exists,  comparatively  speaking,  from 
this  part  of  West  Africa,  and  among  the  best  of  the  observa- 
tions are  those  made  in  1888-89  by  the  German  oflicials  at 
Bismarckburg  (lat.  8"  12'  N.,  long,  o'  34'  E.),  at  an  altitude  of 
about  2330  feet  above  the  sea.  A  comparison  of  the  tables- 
given  for  the  various  colonies  shows  that  the  highest  air  pressure 
occurs  in  July  and  August,  and  the  lowest  in  February  and 
March.  The  monthly  range  is  small,  amounting  to  less  than 
0"2  inch.  Temperature  varies  considerably  with  the  position' 
relatively  to  the  coast.  While  at  Akassa,  on  the  coast,  the 
mean  daily  range  is  only  about  lo\  at  Bismarckburg  it  is  double 
that  amount.  And  during  the  h)t  season  the  range  is  double 
what  it  is  in  the  cool  season.  Rainfall  also  varies  with  position 
relatively  to  the  coast.     The  rainy  seasons  are  March  to  Juncy 


I 


546 


NA  TURE 


{April  lo,  1890 


and  September  to  November.  Dr.  von  Danckelman  gives  valu- 
able statistics  about  the  harmaltan,  which  is  generally  under- 
stood to  be  a  cold  wind.  He  shows,  however,  that  during  the 
periods  of  this  wind  the  temperature  both  in  the  morning  and 
•evening  is  warmer  than  on  other  days,  and  that  the  mean  daily 
temperature  is  nearly  2°  warmer.  The  air  on  these  occasions 
is  so  dry  that  the  hygrometric  tables  are  not  low  enough  for 
the  reduction  of  the  observations.  On  one  occasion  the 
relative  humidity  was  only  9  per  cent.,  with  a  temperature  of 
94°. 

We  have  received  from  Mr.  D.  Dewar  his  "  Weather  and 
Tidal  Forecasts  for  1890."  The  author  has  previously  published 
similar  forecasts  for  past  years,  and  they  are  said  to  be  mainly 
•based  upon  the  simple  idea  that  the  prevailing  westerly  move- 
ment of  the  air  in  the  two  great  belts  in  the  north  and  south 
temperate  zones  is  due  to  the  continued  westerly  (west  to  east) 
movement  of  the  sun  and  the  moon,  and  it  is  claimed  that  the 
probable  weather,  while  referring  generally  to  the  northern 
hemisphere,  is  chiefly  applicable  to  the  British  Isles  and  neigh- 
■bourhood.  We  have  made  a  rough  comparison  of  the  forecasts 
■with  the  actual  weath  er  experienced  in  the  British  Isles  during 
the  first  three  months  of  this  year.  The  weather  predicted  by 
Mr.  Dewar  for  January  largely  consists  of  cold  and  anticyclones, 
whilst  the  actual  weather  experienced  was  conspicuous  for  the 
absence  of  cold,  with  the  exception  of  the  first  two  or  three  days, 
■and  its  mildness  probably  exceeded  that  of  any  January  during  the 
■last  half-century.  At  Greenwich  the  thermometer  did  not  once 
fall  below  the  freezing-point  after  the  3rd,  Considering  Feb- 
ruary as  a  whole,  the  forecasts  were  rather  more  successful.  In 
March,  the  early  part  of  the  month  was  lo  have  been  mild, 
except  in  the  north.  The  first  few  days  were  colder  than  in  any 
March  during  the  last  half-century,  except  in  the  north,  where 
milder  weather  was  experienced.  The  weather  predicted  for  the 
1  remainder  of  the  month  consists  almost  wholly  of  cold  and  snow, 
whereas  the  weather  was  exceptionally  mild,  and  the  Greenwich 
temperature  on  the  28th  has  only  twice  been  exceeded  in  March 
•during  the  last  fifty  years. 

Ii\  the  current  number  of  the  Zoologist  it  is  stated  that  a 
wealthy  Berlin  manufacturer  has  a  shooting  near  Luckenvvald, 
where  the  Wapiti,  Cervus  canadensis,  has  been  acclimatised. 
Between  January  20,  1889,  and  January  20,  1890,  seven  of  these 
:animals  were  shot  there,  one  of  them  having  a  head  of  fourteen 
ipoints. 

Dr.  W.  King,  Director  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  India, 
'has  commenced,  in  the  current  number  of  the  Records  of 
'the  Survey,  the  publication  of  the  provincial  index  of  the 
minerals  of  India,  which  is  intended  as  a  help  towards  the 
•compilation  of  an  annual  statement  showing  the  quantities  and 
value  of  mineral  products  in  British  India,  for  the  publication 
•of  the  mining  and  mineral  statistics  of  the  Empire.  Dr,  King's 
■classification  is  of  a  broad  and  popular  nature.  The  provinces 
or  Presidencies  and  Native  States  are  taken  in  alphabetical 
•order,  and  the  mineral  products  of  each  are  set  down  with  notes 
as  to  the  quantity,  quality,  and  output.  The  mineral  products 
themselves  are  divided  into  "Important  Minerals,"  "Mis- 
cellaneous Minerals,"  "  Gem  Stones,"  and  "Quarry  Stones." 
Under  the  first  head  are  included  only  coal,  iron  ores,  gold, 
petroleum,  and  salt.  Under  the  second  head  come  metallic  ores, 
borax,  gypsum,  asbestos,  soapstone,  sulphur,  and  the  like. 
"Gems"  include  amber,  beryl,  diamond,  garnet,  jade  and 
jadeite  ;  while  clays,  limestones,  marbles,  kunkar,  slate,  &c., 
are  grouped  as  quarry  stones.  The  first  instalment  of  the  list 
ends  with  the  Central  Provinces.  This  index  may  help  to  dispel 
the  common  idea  that  India  is  rich  in  minerals.  The  greater 
part  of  the  entries  are  mere  indications  of  the  Reported  existence 


of  ores,  while  those  which  note  a  regular  production  of  any 
commercial  importance  are  few  and  far  between. 

In  one  of  the  Bombay  Natural  History  Society's  papers,  Mr. 
G.  Carstensen,  Superintendent  of  the  Victoria  Gardens,  Bombay, 
makes  a  bold  suggestion  for  facilitating  the  study  of  botany  in 
India.  His  experience,  he  says,  has  taught  him  that  the  study 
of  botany  is  far  more  popular  in  the  northern  countries  of  the 
European  Continent  than  in  British  possessions,  and  he  cannot 
help  thinking  that  this  fact  may  be  clearly  attributed  to  the 
difference  in  the  botanical  terminology.  While  the  terms  used 
in  English  works  on  botany  are  too  frequently  quite  unintelligible 
for  the  layman,  because  they  are  in  most  cases  Anglicized  Latin 
words,  the  terms  used  by  German  and  Danish  authors  are 
generally  easily  comprehended,  because  they  are  translated  into 
the  mother  language,  refer  to  objects  of  daily  life,  or  are  derived 
from  the  language  itself.  He  therefore  proposes  that  the 
Botanical  Committee  of  the  Bombay  Society  be  requested  to 
revise  the  existing  terminology,  and  to  substitute  English  and  in- 
telligible terms  for  the  more  unintelligible  ones.  He  gives  a  few 
examples  of  the  English  substitutes  he  proposes.  The  natural 
arrangement  of  plants  consists  of  two  large  divisions.  Phanero- 
gams, or  "flower-plants,"  and  Cryptogamous  plants,  or  "  spore- 
plants."  "  Flower- plan ts  "  are  again  divided  into  Dicotyledons, 
or  "two-seed-leaved."  The  "  twoseed-leaved "  in  the  same 
way  are  divided  into  Angiosperms,  or  "seed- vessel- plants,"  and 
Gymnosperms,  or  "  naked-seeded  plants,"  and  so  on.  For  the 
"natural  orders  "  he  would  substitute  existing  or  new  English 
names,  and  for  "genera  "  he  would  substitute  "forms."  In  a 
complete  flower  the  calyx  would  become  the  "  cup,"  the  sepals 
"cup-leaves,"  the  corolla  the  "crown,"  the  petals  "crown 
leaves  ; "  the  cup  and  crown  together,  now  known  as  the 
perianth,  would  be  the  "  floral  cover,"  and  so  on  through  the 
andrgecium  and  gynsecium,  and  the  whole  anatomy  of  the  plant. 
The  adoption  of  this  method  would,  Mr.  Carstensen  thinks, 
"vastly  increase  the  number  of  students  of  botany,  and  in  the 
end  would  materially  further  the  progress  of  this  unfortunately 
neglected  science." 

The  subject  of  dreams  seems  to  demand  more  thorough  study 
than  it  has  yet  received  from  science.  An  American,  Dr.  Julius 
Nelson,  of  New  York,  has  lately  published  the  results  of  an 
examination  he  made  of  some  4000  of  his  dreams.  He  finds 
that  the  dreams  of  evening  generally  follow  great  physical  or 
mental  fatigue,  and  are  associated  with  the  events  of  the  day. 
The  same  applies  to  night  dreams,  which,  however,  have  more 
of  a  terrifying  element  in  them.  The  most  remarkable  and 
pleasant  are  the  morning  dreams,  occurring  after  complete  rest 
of  the  brain.  Fancy  then  appears  to  have  its  widest  range  and 
activity,  working  marvellous  transformations,  and  giving  clear 
vision  of  the  past  and  the  future.  Dr.  Nelson  further  finds 
that  the  vividness  of  his  dreams  is  subject  to  regular  fluctuations 
of  28  days,  and  that  they  also  vary  with  the  seasons,  so  that 
they  are  very  vivid  in  December,  and  least  vivid  in  March  and 
April.  An  old  popular  superstition  attaches  special  importance 
to  dreams  in  the  twelve  nights  from  Christmas  to  January  6,  and 
it  is  suggested  that  this  is  perhaps  because  dreams  at  that  time 
have  been  faund  very  vivid  and  distinct. 

The  skin  of  Arctic  voyagers,  after  the  long  night  of  winter, 
often  appears  pale,  with  a  tinge  of  yellowish-green,  on  return  of 
sunlight.  The  nature  of  this  phenomenon,  was,  at  the  instance 
of  Prof.  Holmgren,  studied  by  Dr.  Gyllencreutz,  in  the  ex- 
pedition of  1882-83,  ^nd  the  results  are  given  in  a  German 
physiological  journal.  Holmgren  pointed  out  that  the  phe- 
nomenon might  be  subjective,  due  to  a  change  in  colour-sense 
through  the  long  darkness  ;  or  objective,  due  to  changes  in 
pigment  of  the  blood  ;  or  both.  An  examination  of  the  colour- 
sense  of  the  men  before  and  after  the  polar  night  revealed   no 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


547 


change  in  this.  The  blood  was  examined  by  measuring  the 
position  of  absorption  bands  of  haemoglobin  with  a  given  thick- 
ness o(  layer,  and  estimating  their  darkness.  No  change  in  the 
(juality  of  haemoglobin  was  detected,  but  the  quantity,  in  some 
individual?,  judging  by  changes  in  the  width  and  darkness  of 
the  bands,  was  les«ened  towards  the  end  of  winter.  Holmgren 
suggested,  as  an  experitiientum  cruets  with  regard  to  the  question 
of  a  subjective  or  objective  cause,  that  someone  should  exclude 
himself  from  sunlight  a  month  longer  than  the  others  :  and  to 
this  infliction  the  engineer  Andree  submitted.  When  he  left  his 
prison,  his  skin  had  a  greyish-yellow  tint.  The  conclusion 
arrived  at  is  that  the  change  of  skin  is  due  to  an  anxmic- 
chlorolic  condition,  possibly  that  of  incipient  scurvy. 

We  have  received  Tylar's  "Photographic  Calendar"  for  the 
year  1890.  It  comprises,  among  other  advantages,  practical  hints 
selected  from  the  best  contributors,  and  various  reproductions  of 
severalof  the  pictures  that  gained  prizes  in  the  competition 
held  last  year.  There  is  also  an  extended  list  of  the  author's 
specialities,  as  well  as  those  of  other  dealers  ;  and  throughout 
there  is  a  variety  of  useful  information  handy  for  reference. 
The  prize  list  is  more  varied  and  comprehensive  than  that  given 
last  year. 

The  "Photographers'  Diary  and  Desk-book"  for  the  year 
1890,  which  is  issued  by  the  proprietors  of  the  Camera,  is  a  very 
handy  and  useful  volume.  Developing  and  other  formulae  are 
printed  in  large  type,  capable  of  being  read  in  the  dim  light  of 
the  dark  room.  A  series  of  dark-room  procedures  has  been 
added,  including  the  work  of  developing  the  negative,  silver 
printing  and  toning,  platinotype  printing  (cold,  hot,  and  sepia 
processes),  Blanchard's  platinum  black  process,  and  bromide 
printing.  A  selection  of  the  most  important  and  useful  of  the 
recent  improvements  in  photographic  apparatus  is  given,  with 
several  illustrations,  preceded  by  some  particulars  of  the  objects 
of  the  Photographic  Convention  of  Great  Britain,  with  a  list 
of  its  officers.  The  diary  portion,  interleaved  throughout  with 
blotting-paper,  gives  ample  space  for  the  daily  record  of 
photographic  work. 

The  Royal  Horticultural  Society  has  issued  the  first  part  of 
vol.  i.  of  its  Journal.  This  part  includes  reports  of  the 
Vegetable  Conference  held  at  Chiswick  on  September  24,  25, 
and  26,  1889,  and  of  the  Chrysanthemum  Conference  held  at 
Chiswick  on  November  5  and  6,  1889. 

The  Transactions  of  the  Congres  Colonial  and  the  Congres 
d'Hygiene  et  de  Demographic,  held  in  Paris  last  summer,  have 
been  issued.  The  Transactions  of  the  latter  Congress  cover  over 
1200  octavo  pages,  and  include  many  really  useful  papers. 

Michel  Troja  was  one  of  the  first  surgeons  who  experi- 
mented (1775)  on  the  regeneration  of  bone.  His  book,  "De 
Ossium  Kegeneratione,"  has  just  been  published,  for  the  first 
time,  in  French. 

The  last  Annual  Report  of  the  Dutch  Colonies  in  the  East 
Indies  contains  references  to  several  subjects  of  scientific 
interest.  The  military  surveys  were  carried  out  on  the  west 
coast  of  Sumatra  and  in  Dutch  Borneo.  In  the  former  a  large 
area  was  mapped  on  a  scale  of  I  ;  20,000,  and  in  Borneo  a 
flying  survey  of  I  :  200,000  was  made  over  a  considerable  district. 
Triangulation  and  cartographical  work  were  continued  in 
Sumatra  ;  various  maps  were  finished  in  Batavia  ;  and  the  parts 
of  the  great  map  of  Netherlands  India,  including  the  Residencies 
of  Madura  and  Pasuruan,  were  put  in  hand  at  the  Hague.  The 
members  of  the  Hydrographic  Department  were  busy  on  the 
coasts  of  Java  and  Madura  ;  an  astronomical  station  was  estab" 
lished  on  the  Sunda  Islands  ;  and  the  study  of  the  languages  of 
the  archipelago  was  continued  by  gentlemen  appointed  for  the 
purpose— Balin,  Javanese,  Old  Javanese,  Macassar,  Bugin,  &c. 
There  are  182  meteorological  stations  in  working  order,  100  in 


Java  and  Madura,  34  in  Sumatra,  6  in  Billiton  and  Banka,  9  irr 
Borneo,  17  in  Celebes,  2  in  Bali,  and  the  remainder  at  other 
points  in  the  archipelago.  Of  scientific  expeditions  of  various- 
kinds  a  long  list  is  given.  These  include  geological  investiga- 
tions in  Sumatra  and  Flores,  botanical  on  Key  Islands,  ethno- 
logical in  the  Balta  region  of  Sumatra,  ethnological,  botanical,, 
and  zoological,  on  the  east  coast  of  Borneo.  An  arrangement 
has  been  made,  by  which  in  each  year  one  student  from  home 
will  be  able  to  spend  some  months  in  the  famovs  Buitenzorg. 
Botanical  Gardens. 

Another  paper  by  Drs.  Curtius  ^and  Jay  upon  hydrazine, 
NjHj,  describing  a  new  .ind  very  simple  method  of  obtaining 
this  recently  isolated  base  from  the  ammonia  addition  compound 

/-H 
pfaldehyde,  CH.,.Cv   OH  ,  is  communicated  to  the  latest  num- 

^NH.^ 
ber  of  the   Berichte.     The   first  step  consists  in   acting  with 
sodium  nitrite  upon  a  cold  slightly  acidified  aqueous  solution  of 
aldehyde-ammonia,  by  which  a  nitroso-compound  of  the  com-i 

/"         . 
position  CgHjjOa  •  C  a  is  formed.   The  reaction  probably 

^N.NO 
completes    itself    on     the    lines   of   the   following   equation — 

.H  /H 

SCHg.C^OH  -fNO.OH^CsHjiOo.C^  +2H2O  + 

\NHo  "■       ^N— NO 

2NH3.  About  300  grams  of  aldehyde  ammonia  are  dissolved  in 
a  little  ice-cold  water,  and  neutralized  with  cold  dilute  sulphuric 
acid.  About  40  c.c,  more  of  the  dilute  acid  are  then  added, 
and  afterwards  a  concentrated  solution  of  70  grams  sodium 
nitrite  in  iced  water.  The  liquid  at  once  becomes  turbid  owing 
to  separation  of  minute  yellow  globules  of  the  nitroso-compound, 
termed  nitroso-paraldimine,  on  account  of  its  derivation  from 
paraldehyde,  the  triple  polymer  of  common  aldehyde.  This 
nitroso-paraldimine  is  a  lemon-yellow  liquid  possessing  an  in- 
tense camphor-like  odour.  Its  molecular  weight  has  been 
determined  by  Ilofmann's  density  method,  and  found  to  cor- 
respond with  the  formula  above  quoted.  It  decomposes  at  its 
boiling-point,  but  may  be  readily  distilled  in  steam  or  in  vacuo 
without  suffering  change.  The  imine  itself,  corresponding  to 
the  nitroso-compound,    has   also    been    isolated.     The   hydro- 

chloride,  C3Hn02  .  C^  ,    is   obtamed   when   moist 

^NH.HCl 
hydrochloric   acid   gas    is    passed    through   an    ethereal   solu- 
tion of  nitroso-paraldimine,  in    the  form  of  a  mass  of  white 
needles.     From  this  hydrochloride  the  free  base,  paraidimine, 

CrHi,0.,  .CV  ,   may    be  obtained  by    treating   its   ether 

^-NH 
solution   with  silver  oxide.     Paraldimine    is  a  clear  colourless, 
liquid   of  a  sharp  odour  resembling  that  of  paraldehyde.     It 
solidifies   to   while   crystals  jn   a   freezing    mixture.     It    boils- 
almost  without  change  at   140°  C,  but  polymerizes  to  a  white 
solid  on  standing  in  a  sealed     tube  for  some  weeks.     Water 
or  alcohol  decompose  it  into  paraldehyde  and  ammonia.     Its 
hydrochloride,    which    is    readily  formed   from   the  base  with 
great    evolution   of    heat    by    leading    dry    hydrochloric    acid 
gas  over  the  pure  liquid,    may  be  converted  into  the  nitroso- 
compound  by  treating  with  a  strong  solution  of  sodium  nitrite. 
The  nitroso-compound  itself,   on  reduction  with  zinc  dust  and 
dilute    sulphuric    acid,    at     once    yields    hydrazine    sulphate, 
N„H4  .  H0SO4.      The   course   of  the   reaction   is   better  seert 
when    the    gentler    reducing    mixture,  zinc   dust    and    glacial 
acetic  acid,   is  allowed    to    act  upon  an   ethereal  solution  of 
nitroso  paraldimine.       An    amide    termed    amidoparaldimine,. 

/\\ 
CsHi.O.,  .  Ca  ,   is   then    first   formed,    and  may  be 

^N.NHa 


548 


NATURE 


\_April  lo,  1890 


isolated  as  a  strongly  basic  volatile  liquid,  which  yields  a  very 
hygroscopic  hydrochloride  with  hydrochloric  acid.  On  boiling 
this  hydrochloride  with  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  it  is  decomposed, 
with  assimilation  of  the  elements  of  water,  into  paraldehyde  and 
hydrazine — 

/n  /w 

^N  .  NH.,  ^O 

The  hydrate  of  hydrazine  is  readily  obtained  from  the  sulphate 
by  simple  distillation  with  alkalies. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  an  Egyptian  Cat  {Felis  chaus)  from  North 
Africa,  presented  by  Mrs.  Florence  J.  Waghorn  ;  a  Stoat  {Mus- 
■tela  erminea  i ),  British,  pre->ented  by  Mr.  Cuthbert  Johnson  ; 
two  Mantchurian  Cranes  {Grus  viridirostris)  from  Corea,  pre- 
sented by  Mr.  Campbell  ;  three  Long-eared  Owls  {Asio  oius), 
British,  presented  by  Mr.  W.  Geoffrey  N.  Powell ;  a  Black  faced 
Weaver- Bird  {Hyphantornis  sp.  inc.),  from  South  Africa,  pre- 
sented by  Commander  W.  M.  Latham,  R.N.,  F.Z.S. ;  a  Three- 
toed  Sand  Skink  [Seps  tridactylus),  European,  presented  by  Mr. 
J.  C.  Warburg  ;  two  Hybrid  Deer  (between  Ccrviis  elaphus  6 
and  Ccrvus  sika  ?  ),  deposited  ;  a  Diana  Monkey  {Cercopilhecics 
■diana  $  )  from  West  Africa,  eight  Undulated  Grass  Parrakeets 
{Melopsittacus  tcndulatus)  from  Australia,  purchased  ;  a  Rhesus 
Monkey  {Macacus  rhesus),  born  in  the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  -T.ma   at    Greenwich   at    10   p.m.    on    April 
iih.  1 6m.  1 8s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

(i)  G.C.  2386      

(2)  72  Leonis      

(3)  V  Leonis        

(4)  5  Leonis 

(s)i52Sclij 

(6)  k  Hydra;      

1 

5 
4 

Yellowish-red. 

Yellowish-white. 

White. 

Red. 

Very  red. 

h.  m.   s. 

II   15  47 
II     9  22 

11  31   18 
n     8  18 

12  39  58 

13  ?3  43 

+  "3  so 
+  23  42 
-   0  13 
-i-2l      8 
+46     3 
-22  43 

Remarks. 
(i)  The  General  Catalogue  description  of  this  nebula  is  as 
follows :  "  Bright,  pretty  large,  round,  pretty  suddenly  much 
brighter  in  the  middle."  In  1869,  Prof.  Wmlock  observed  the 
spectrum  at  Harvard  College  Observatory,  and  stated  that  it 
was  continuous,  with  a  possible  bright  line  near  A  525.  The 
nebula  does  not  appear  to  have  been  spectroscopically  examined 
'by  any  other  observer,  so  that  further  observations  are  required 
to  confirm  this  result.  If  there  really  be  a  bright  line  as  re- 
corded, others  may  certainly  be  expected.  Comparisons  with 
■the  carbon  flutings  in  the  Bunsen  or  spirit-lamp  flame  spectrum 
should  be  made.  It  seems  highly  probable  that  many  of  the 
■so-called  "continuous"  spectra  of  nebula;  really  consist  of 
bright  lines  or  flutings  superposed  upon  a  continuous  spectrum, 
as  Dr.  Huggins  has  stated  that  brighter  parts  have  been  sus- 
pected in  some  cases,  and  I  myself  have  often  noted  irregulari- 
'ties,  notably  in  the  Great  Nebula  of  Andromeda.  In  1866  Dr. 
Huggins  was  careful  to  point  out  that  his  use  of  the  term 
"  continuous "  was  not  to  be  understood  to  mean  more  than 
that,  when  the  slit  was  made  as  narrow  as  the  feeble  light 
ipermitted,  the  spectrum  was  not  resolved  into  bright  lines. 

(2)  This  star  has  a  very  fine  spectrum  of  Group  II.  Accord- 
ing to  Duner,  the  bands  2-8  are  wide  and  dark,  especially  those 
in  the  red.  This  indicates,  as  I  have  pointed  out  on  previous 
•occasions,   that  the   star    is    probably    considerably    advanced 

towards  Group  III.,  in  which  the  bands  will  be  replaced  by 
lines.  It  will  be  interesting  to  know  if  any  lines  exist  in  the 
-spectrum  of  the  star  at  present,  and,  if  so,  what  lines  they  are. 

(3)  A  star  of  the  solar  type  (Konkoly).  The  usual  differential 
observations  are  required. 

(4)  A  star  of  Group  IV.  (Gothard).  Usual  observations 
•required. 

(,5)  It  is  generally  agreed  that  152  Schj.  is  one  of  the  finest 
■exaoiples  of  stars  of  Group  VI.     It  shows  the  usual  bands  of 


carbon  very  strongly  marked,  and  all  of  the  secondary  bands 
are  well  visible.  We  have  certainly  still  a  great  deal  to  learn 
about  stars  of  this  group,  and  the  present  favourable  position  of 
a  typical  example  may  therefore  be  taken  advantage  of  for 
further  inquiry. 

(6)  At  the  last  maximum  of  this  interesting  variable,  Mr. 
Espin  found  that  the  F  line  was  bright  in  its  spectrum,  the 
general  spectrum  being  a  very  fine  one  of  Group  II.  Mr.  Espin 
also  noted  that  the  bright  bands  (probably  the  bright  flutings  of 
carbon)  were  relatively  brighter  as  the  star  was  on  the  increase, 
and  weaker  when  its  luminosity  was  decreasing.  It  is  very  im- 
portant that  a  recurrence  of  these  phenomena  at  the  approaching 
maximum  of  April  11  should  not  escape  observation,  even 
though  the  star  is  not  one  which  rises  early  in  the  evening  at 
this  time  of  the  year.  The  period  of  the  variable  is  about  434 
days,  but  is  apparently  decreasing.  In  1708  it  was  about  500 
days.  It  varies  from  magnitude  4-5  at  maximum  to  about  10  at 
minimum.  A.  Fowler. 

The  Ai'ex  or  the  Sun's  Way.— A  determination  of  the 
amount  and  direction  of  solar  motion  is  given  by  Mr.  Lewis 
Boss  in  Astronomical  yournal  No.  213.  This  determination  is 
an  important  one,  because  of  the  fact  that,  out  of  the  253  stel- 
lar motions  used,  only  49  are  known  to  have  been  previously 
employed  in  a  similar  research,  and  it  is  by  means  of  new  mate- 
rial and  variations  of  arrangements  in  its  use  that  any  general 
facts  or  laws  are  likely  to  be  discovered.  The  stars  whose 
proper  motions  have  been  utilized  were  given  in  No.  200  of  the 
above  journal,  and  are  all  contained  in  the  Albany  zone,  which 
is  4°  20'  in  breadth,  and  at  a  mean  declination  of  3°  north  of 
the  celestial  equator. 

The  method  employed  is  substantially  that  proposed  by  Airy, 
and  in  the  first  solution  five  stars  haviiig  proper  motion  greater 
than  100"  in  a  century  were  excluded,  with  the  following 
results  : — 


825 


First  series  ) 
(135  stars)   j 

.Second  series  | 
(144  stars)  j 

Both  series  ( 
combined     J 

Probable  errors 


6  6         21  9 


8  '6         20  '9 


7'6         21-4 


—  —  ±   I'OO 


6/^  '-•o'-o 

.5  "  c  C  .J 
rf  «»  IS  ■*  - 


12-39 


1373 


1309 


o  J3 


280-4 
2857 

283-3 
±  69 


-f-  42-8 

+  45-1 

+  44*1 
±    3-2 


When  stars  are  excluded  whose  proper  motions  per  century 
amounted  to  40"  or  more,  the  following  are  the  resulting 
values  : — 


Single  series    ) 

(253  stars)   j 

Probable  errors 


77 


17-80 


10-58 
±  0-60 


288-7 
±  7-2 


+  5i"S 
±    3-2 


The  values  of  the  several  elements  of  solar  motion,  as  deter- 
mined by  Struve  and  Bischof,  are  as  follows  .• — 


Struve 
Bischof 


6-0 


8-O0 
47-58 


(using  Argelander's  method) 


4-36 
33-67 


273-3 
290-8 

2857 


+  273 
+  43-5 
+  48-5 


By  using  the  present  declinations  of  the  American  ephemeris, 
Mr.  Boss  finds  that  the  value  given  by  Struve  for  the  declination 
of  the  sun's  way  requires  a  correction  of  -I-  10^-4,  thus  making 
^t  +  37'-7>  which  is  more  in  accordance  with  the  other  values 
given  above. 

The  most  probable  co-ordinates  of  solar  motion  might  there- 
fore be  assumed  to  be — 

R.A.  =  280°;  Decl.  =   +  40°. 

Stability  of  the  Rings  ok  Saturn. — The  Bulletin  Astro- 
nofnique  for  February  1890  contains  an  interesting  paper  by  M. 
O.  Callandreau,  on  the  calculations  of  the  late  Clerk-Maxwell, 
relative  to  the  movement  of  a  rigid  ring  around  Saturn.  It  is 
well  known  that  Laplace  found  it  impossible  for  a  homogeneous 
and  uniform  ring  surrounding  a  planet  to  be  in  a  state  of  stable 
equilibrium,  and  remarked  that  irregularities  must  exist  in  the' 


April  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


549 


form  of  the  ring,  which,  in  coriibination  with  a  slight  eccentricity, 
secured  its  stability.  Maxwell  found  that  the  irregularities  of  a 
ring  possessing  a  permanent  movement  ought  to  be  very  sensible, 
and  that  the  appearance  of  the  rings  of  Saturn  was  incompatible 
with  that  required  by  his  demonstration.  He  considered  the 
case  of  a  planet  occupying  the  centre  of  the  ring,  whereas 
Laplace's  hypothesis  required  a  slight  eccentricity.  This  ques- 
tion was  not,  however,  treated  sej)arately,  and  M.  Callandreau 
has  subjected  it  to  mathematicil  analysis.  First,  taking  the  case 
of  a  symmetrical  ring  when  the  centre  of  gravity  will  be  on  a 
symmetrical  axis,  and  then  the  case  required  by  I.aplace,  viz.  that 
the  centre  of  gravity  is  not  exactly  coincident  with  the  geometrical 
centre,  the  author  shows  that  the  conditions  stated  by  Laplace 
are  not  sufficient  to  ensure  stability. 

Brooks's  Comet  {a  1890). — This  comet  was  observed  at 
Paris  on  March  28.  It  was  seen  as  a  round  nebulosity, 
about  40"  or  50"  in  diameter,  with  a  very  jironounced  central 
condensation,  a.nd  was  about  the  tenth  magnitude. 

Bright  Lines  in  Stki.lak  SrixTR.\.— The  Rev.  J.  E. 
Espin  reports  the  discovery  of  bright  lines  in  the  spectrum  of 
0,  as  well  as  in  that  of  Q.^.  Orionis,  and  possibly  in  that  of  S 
Coronx  as  well. 


ON  THE  DEFORMATION  OF  AN  ELASTIC 
SHELU 

Trills  paper  treats  of  the  deformation  of  an  elastic  shell  whose 
■^  radii  of  curvature  are  everywhere  great  in  comparison  with 
the  thickness,  which  is  supposed  uniform.  The  subject  has  been 
dealt  with  in  a  very  able  manner  by  Mr,  A.  E,  H.  Love  in  a 
recent  paper  (Phil.  Trans.,  1885),  but  it  seemed  desirable,  on 
various  grounds,  that  it  should  be  attacked  from  an  independent 
point  of  view.  The  method  here  followed  is  that  explained  in 
a  former  communication,  "  On  the  Flexure  of  an  Elastic  Plate" 
(December  1889).  The  results,  as  regards  the  general  theory, 
are  closely  analogous  with  those  of  Mr.  Love,  and  a  comparison 
of  the  two  investigations  gives  a  physical  interpretation  to  the 
various  groups  of  terms  which  enter  into  his  equations.  There 
are  some  differences  of  detail,  arising  from  a  slight  difference  in 
the  quantities  chosen  to  express  the  flexural  strains,  but  they 
are  not  practically  important. 

The  great  difficulty  of  the  present  subject,  as  contrasted  with 
the  theory  for  a  plane  plate,  is,  that  we  cannot  draw  an  absolute 
line  of  demarcation  between  the  deformations  in  which  the 
cardinal  feature  is  the  extension  of  the  middle  surface,  and  those 
which  involve  flexure  with  little  or  no  extension.  This  appears 
to  arise  mainly  from  the  fact  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Love,  that  it 
is  in  general  impossible  to  satisfy  the  boundary  conditions  by  a 
deformation  in  which  the  middle  surface  is  absolutely  unextended. 
But,  this  being  admitted,  the  question  remains  in  any  specific 
problem,  as  to  the  amount  and  distribution  of  the  extension, 
and,  in  particular,  whether  there  are  any  modes  of  deformation 
(or  of  free  vibration)  in  which,  after  all,  it  plays  only  a  sub- 
ordinate part.  Mr.  Love  answers  this  question  in  the  negative, 
in  opposition  to  the  views  advocated  by  Lord  Rayleigh  in  two 
well-known  papers.  In  the  present  communication  Mr.  Love's 
argument  is  examined,  and  it  is  pointed  out  that  cases  may  occur 
in  which  the  extensions  (though  comparable  with  the  flexural 
strains)  may  be  confined  to  so  small  a  region  of  the  shell  (near 
the  edges)  that  their  contribution  to  the  total  energy  of  deforma- 
tion is  insignificant. 

In  order  to  bring  the  matter  to  an  issue  in  a  definite  instance, 
1  have  chosen  the  case  of  a  cylindrical  plate  (such  as  a  boiler- 
plate) bent  by  a  proper  application  of  force  over  its  straight 
edges,  so  that  the  strained  form  remains  a  surface  of  revolution, 
the  circular  edges  being  free.  The  analytical  work  in  this  case 
is  very  simple,  and  the  physical  meaning  of  the  various  terms 
which  occur  is  easily  recognized.  In  the  interpretation  of  the 
result  it  appears  that  a  good  deal  turns  upon  the  ratio  which  the 
breadth  of  the  plate  (in  the  direction  of  the  generating  lines) 
bears  to  a  mean  proportional  between  the  radius  and  the  thick- 
ness. If  this  ratio  is  large,  the  bending  forces  may  be  prac- 
tically replaced  by  two  equal  and  opposite, couples  uniformly 
distributed  over  the  straight  edges,  and  having  these  edges  as 
axes.  The  strained  form  is  almost  accurately  cylindrical ;  near 
tlie  circular  edges  we  have  extensions  of  the  same  order  as  the 
flexural  strains,    but    these  rapidly  die  out  (at   the  same  time 

'  Abstractor  a  Paper  read  by  Prof.  Horace  Lamb,  F. R.S.,  before  the 
Mathematical  Society  on  January  9. 


fluctuating  in  sign)  as  we  press  inwards,  and  the  anticipation 
that  their  total  energy  would  be  small  compared  with  that  due 
to  flexure  is  confirmed.  In  such  a  case,  then,  the  approximate 
methods  used  by  Lord  Rayleigh,  in  which  no  account  is  taken 
of  the  conditions  at  a  free  edge,  are  fully. justified.  But  if, 
keeping  the  radius  and  the  thickness  constant,  we  diminish  the 
breadth  of  the  plate  until  it  is  comparable  with  the  mean  pro- 
portional aforesaid,  we  get  a  sort  of  transition  case  between  a 
plate  and  a  bar,  which  cannot  be  satisfactorily  treated  except  on 
the  basis  of  the  general  equations.  Finally,  when  the  breadth 
becomes  small  in  comparison  with  the  mean  proportional,  the 
plate  behaves  like  a  curved  bar,  and  an  approximate  treatment 
is  again  applicable. 

In  an  appendix  I  have  worked  out,  from  the  general  equations 
of  elasticity,  the  uniform  flexure  of  an  infinitely  long  cylindrical 
plate  ;  this  being,  at  present,  the  only  case  of  flexure  in  which 
it  appears  easy  to  carry  out  the  solution  (on  these  lines)  to  a  fulf 
interpretation. 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

Timehri,  being  the  Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  and 
Commercial  Society  of  British  Guiana  (printed  at  the  Argosy 
Press,  Demerara,  vol.  iii.,  part  ii.,  new  series). — This  in- 
teresting brochure  contains  matter  of  general  interest,  as  well  as^ 
information  which  might  be  expected  in  an  agricultural  and 
commercial  journal.  Specialization  cannot  be  pushed  to  its 
extreme  limits  in  a  colony,  and  a  Society  of  this  nature  naturally 
admits  matter  into  its  Journal  which  are  not  strictly  either 
agricultural  or  commercial.  Thus  the  papers  on  primitive  games 
and  on  the  wild  flowers  of  Georgetown  must  be  regarded, 
respectively,  as  of  ethnological  and  purely  botanical  interest,  but, 
nevertheless,  occupy  a  great  part  of  the  number,  especially  if  we 
leave  out  of  consideration  the  reports  of  meetings  and  other 
official  matter  connected  with  the  working  of  the  Society.  Fruit- 
growing in  the  Gulf  States  of  America,  Caracas  as  a  place  of 
resort,  and  a  short  paper  on  some  scale  insects  inimical  to  vegeta- 
tion are  the  principal  topics  of  a  distinctly  economic  value. 
The  paper  entitled  the  "  Letters  of  Aristodemus  and  Sincerus" 
is  a  review  of  an  old  book  published  in  1785-88  in  twelve  volumes, 
dealing  with  the  colonies  of  Demerara  and  Essequibo,  and  are 
therefore  of  great  interest  to  the  present  population.  In  1785 
the  colonies  had  just  been  given  over  by  the  French,  who  held 
them  on  behalf  of  the  Dutch  for  about  three  years.  No  town 
existed  up  to  that  date  in  Demerara,  but  during  the  French 
occupation  a  little  village  had  grown  up  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Brandwagt,  which  they  called  la  twuvelk  ville,  or  Longchamps. 
The  fort  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Demerara  River  (now  called 
Fort  William  Frederick)  was  also  built  at  the  time,  and  named 
Le  Dauphin,  while  another  on  the  opposite  side  was  called  La 
Raine.  From  such  historical,  social,  scientific,  and  economic 
materials  a  most  interesting  although  somewhat  diffusive  number 
has  been  produced,  showing  evidence  of  mental  activity  and 
high  culture,  pleasant  to  see  far  away  from  the  main  centres  of 
civilization.  The  style  of  the  writing,  the  printing,  and  the 
illustrations  are  all  of  a  high  class,  llovv  far  the  London 
publisher,  Mr.  E.  Stanford,  of  Cockspur  Street,  is  responsible 
for  the  excellent  "get  up"  of  the  volume  we  are  unable  to  even 
conjecture ;  but  we  trust  we  may  be  permitted  to  say,  without 
oiTence,  that  the  number  of  Timehri  before  us  is  highly  creditable 
to  the  literary  talent  and  tastes  of  British  Guiana. 

Quarterly  y  onriial  oj  Microscopical  Science,  February. — On  the 
anatomy  of  the  Madreporia  ;  V.,  by  Dr.  G.  Herbert  Fowler  (plate 
xxviii.).  Gives  an  account  of  the  anatomy  oi  Diiiicania  barbadensis, 
Galaxca  esperi,  Hctcropsainiiiia  mttltilobata,  and  Bathyactis 
symmetrica,  and  gives  a  figure  of  the  typical  stnicture  of  the 
genus  Madrepora.  — Contributions  to  the  anatomy  of  earthworms, 
with  descriptions  of  some  new  species,  by  Frank  E.  Beddard 
(plates  xxix.  and  xxx.).  This  paper  gives  an  account  of  the 
structure  of  three  new  species  of  Acanthodrilus,  with  remarks 
on  other  species  of  the  genus.  The  new  species  are  A.  atitarc- 
ticiis,  yi.  rosce,  and  A.  dalei.  Further  remarks  on  the  reproductive 
organs  of  Eudrilus,  with  special  reference  to  the  continuity  of 
ovary  and  oviduct. — On  the  certain  points  in  the  anatomy  of 
Perichaeta,  with  description  of  Perichcvta  intermedia,  n.sp. — On 
the  phagocytes  of  the  alimentary  canal,  by  Armand  Ruffer 
(plate  xxxi. ).  Concludes  that  the  wandering  cells  of  the  lymphoid 
tissues  of  the  alimentary  canal  have  the  power  of  proceeding  to 
the  free  surfaces  of  such  tissues,  and  of  taking  into  their  interior 


550 


NATURE 


\April  lo,  1890 


lower  micro-organism?  and  foreign  matter  (charcoal,  &c. ):  there 
are  both  macro-  and  micrjphages  ;  these  are  stages,  the  larger  can 
swallow  the  smiller  and  di:je5t  them. — Notes  on  the  hydroid 
phase  of  Lim>io:o.iiuin  soiv;rhyi,  by  Dr.  G.  Herbert  Fowler  (plate 
xxxii.)>  records  observations  made  durin^  May  188S  ;  neither 
medusoid  or  hydroid  appeared  in  1889  ;  two  hydroids  and  a 
budding  medusoid  are  figured. — Note  on  certain  terminal  organs 
■resembling  touch  corpuscles  or  end  bulbs  in  intramuscular 
connective  tissue  of  the  skate,  by  Dr.  G.  C,  Purvis  (plate  xxxiii. ). 
— Note  on  the  transformation  of  ciliated  into  stratified  squamous 
•epithelium  as  the  resalt  of  the  application  of  friction,  by  Drs.  J.  B. 
Elaycroft  and  E.  W.  Carlier  (plate  xxxiii.). — On  the  development 
■of  the  ear  and  accessory  organs  in  the  common  frog,  by  Francis 
Villy  (plates  xxxiv.  and  xxxv. ). — On  I'helaceros  rhizophora:, 
in.g.  et  sp.,  an  Actinian  from  Celebes,  by  P.  C.  Mitchell  (plate 
xxxvi. ).  The  Actinian  here  described  was  obtained  by  Dr. 
llickson  in  a  mangrove  swamp  in  Celebes,  by  the  side  of  one  of 
the  roots  of  a  Rhizophora  ;  the  tentacles  have  compound  hollow 
protuberances  round  the  margins  of  the  oral  surface,  with 
'numerous  small  simple  or  compound  hollow  protuberances 
(rudimentary  accessory  tentacles)  in  radial  lines  on  the  oral  disk. 
— Notes  on  the  genus  Monstrilla,  Dana,  by  Gilbert  C.  Bourne 
'(plate  xxxvii.).  Gives  details  of  all  the  known  species  of  this 
aberrant  genus  of  Copepods. — On  the  maturation  of  the  ovum, 
:and  the  early  stages  in  the  development  of  Allopora,  by  Dr. 
Sydney  J.  Hickson  (plate  xxxviii.).  Gives  a  general  summary  of 
events  ;  the  formation  and  fate  of  the  trophodisc,  the  changes 
of  the  germinal  vesicle,  the  formation  of  the  embryonic  ectoderm 
the  history  of  the  yolk,  and  general  considerations. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES 
London. 

Royal  Society,  March  27. — "  The  Variability  of  the  Tem- 
rperature  of  the  British  Isles,  1859-83  inclusive."  By  Robert  H. 
Scott,  F.R.S. 

The  material  discussed  has  been  the  daily  mean  temperature 
<lerived  from  twenty-four  hourly  measurements  of  the  thermo- 
-tframs  at  the  seven  British  observatories  during  the  period  of 
their  continuance,  1869-83. 

The  differences  between  the  successive  daily  means  have 
been  extracted,  irrespective  of  sign,  and  these  values  averaged 
■monthly. 

To  the  figures  for  the  7  observatories  certain  values  have  been 
iidded  from  Dr.  Hann's  paper  in  the  Sitzungsberichte  of 
^he  Vienna  Academy  for  1875  for  Makerstoun  and  Oxford, 
■the  only  British  stations  in  Hann's  list,  and  for  Vienna,  St. 
Petersbursj,  and  Barnaul,  as  instances  of  Continental  climates, 
as  well  as  for  Georgetown,  Demerara,  as  an  instance  for  a 
tropical  station. 

•^The  figures  for  the  7  stations  are  much  lower  than  those  for 
Makerstoun  and  Oxford,  probably  owing  to  the  fact  that  the 
means  used  in  the  two  latter  cases  were  not  twenty-four  hourly, 
nor  for  as  many  as  fifteen  years. 

The  highest  variability  on  the  mean  of  the  year  is  at  Kew 
(2*7).  Then  follow  Armagh,  Glasgow,  and  Stonyhurst  (2°'5), 
Aberdeen  (2°-4),  and  Falmouth  and  Valencia  (l°-9).  The 
greatest  absolute  monthly  value  is  5° "4  for  Glasgow,  November 
1880  ;  the  least,  o°-7,  for  Valencia,  July  1879. 
llgThe  mean  values  for  each  month  are  given. 

The  question  of  whether  great  changes  are  more  frequently 
positive  or  negative  has  been  investigated.  Mr.  Blanford  states 
("Climate  of  India")  that  in  India  (Calcutta  and  Lahore) 
sudden  falls  of  temperature  are  more  frequent  and  greater  than 
sudden  rises. 

A  preliminary  inquiry  showed  that  it  was  not  interesting  to 
investigate  all  changes,  as  the  numbers  showing  +  and  -  signs 
respectively  were  nearly  equal. 

The  changes  above  5°  in  the  twenty-four  hours  were  all 
examined,  and  the  result  showed  that  in  these  islands  sudden 
rises  of  large  amount  are  more  frequent  and  more  extensive  in 
amount  than  sudden  falls — the  reverse  to  what  obtains  in  India. 

One  instance  of  a  rise  of  23°-8  at  Aberdeen,  December  16, 
4882,  was  ihe  greatest  recorded,  and  this  disturbance  was  con- 
fined to  the  east  of  Scotland. 

The  figures  were  then  examined  for  frequency.  The 
values  were  arranged,  irrespective  of  sign,  according  to  their 
-magnitude,    in   six   subdivisions :— 0-0° -9,    i-c-4°"9,    5"o-9°*9, 


io-o-i4°-9,  is-o-ig^-g,  20-o-24°-9,  and  the  totals  divided  by  15. 
The  first  two  intervals  taken  together  are  equal  to  one  of  the 
others,  but,  as  by  far  the  greater  number  of  the  changes  fell 
below  5°"0,  it  seemed  well  to  see  how  many  fell  below  i°"o. 

The  range  of  changes  is  least  at  Falmouth  and  Valencia. 
In  all  cases  the  mean  "number  of  changes  between  i°'0  and  4°'9 
exceeds  half  the  number  of  days  in  the  month. 

The  daily  mean  values  have  also  all  been  examined,  with  the 
view  of  discovering  their  distribution  on  the  thermometer  scale. 

Seven  columns  were  taken,  covering  the  space  from  10°  to  So", 
of  10°  each,  excepting  that  the  space  from  20°  to  40°  was  not 
divided  equally. 

In  1881,  Stonyhurst  had  four  days  in  January  with  a  mean 
below  20°,  and  nineteen  days  in  which  the  mean  temperature 
was  below  32°.  At  Aberdeen  and  Glasgow  the  cold  was  not  so 
intense.  Neither  at  F"alm6uth  nor  Valencia  did  the  mean  tem- 
perature ever  fall  below  20^.  The  hottest  station  is  Kew.  In 
the  fifteen  years  it  shows  in  all  thirty-five  days  with  a  mean 
above  70". 

The  figures  were  then  divided  by  15,  to  obtain  frequency,  as 
Ijefore,  and  the  results  shown.  They  are  also  shown  graphically 
in  a  plate,  but  there  all  the  curves  do  not  appear.  Those  for 
Valencia  and  Falmouth  agree  almost  exactly,  except  in  July  and 
August.  Those  for  Armagh,  Glasgow,  and  Stonyhurst  are  so 
close  to  each  other,  that  one  curve  is  taken  to  represent  all. 

Royal  Microscopical  Society,  March  19.— Prof.  Urban 
Pritchard,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — A  letter  from  the 
President,  regretting  his  inability  to  attend  in  consequence  of  a 
fall,  was  read. — Mr.  J.  Mayall,  Jun.,  read  a  letter  from  Prof. 
E.  Abbe,  of  Jena,  announcing  the  donation  of  one  of  Zeiss's  new 
apochromatic  ,V  objectives  of  i-6  N.A.  He  also  sent  a 
condenser  of  I  "6  N.A.,  and  a  flint  glass  slide  containing  mixed 
diatoms  mounted  by  Dr.  H.  van  Heurck,  of  Antwerp,  together 
with  a  supply  of  flint  glass  slips  and  cover-glasses  for  use  in 
mounting  objects  for  examination  with  the  new  objective.  It 
was  of  course  understood  that  in  order  to  exhibit  the  full  power 
of  the  increased  aperture  it  was  necessary  to  employ  a  condenser 
of  corresponding  aperture,  and  the  objects  to  be  viewed  must  be 
mounted  on  slips  with  covers,  and  mounting  and  immersion 
fluids  of  correspondingly  high  refractive  power.  In  order  to 
further  test  this  lens,  a  committee  has  been  appointed.  Mr. 
Mayall  called  attention  to  and  described  two  microscopes  by 
MM.  Nachet  and  Pellin,  of  Paris,  which  were  exhibited  by  Mr. 
Crisp. — Mr.  Rousselet  exhibited  a  number  of  Rotifers  to  show 
iheir  abundance  at  this  season  of  the  year. — A  specimen  sent  by 
Colonel  O'Hara,  supposed  to  be  some  kind  of  entozoon  which 
had  been  passed  in  urine,  was  exhibited. — Prof.  Bell  gave  a 
resume  of  Mr.  A.  D.  Michael's  paper  on  the  variations  of  the 
female  reproductive  organs,  especially  the  vestibule,  in 
different  species  of  Uropoda,  the  author  being  unavoidably 
absent  through  illness. — Mr.  C.  H.  Wright  exhibited  and 
described  specimens  of  a  new  British  Hymenolichen,  Cyconema 
interruptum. — Mr.  E.  M  Nelson  read  a  short  note  on  the 
images  of  external  objects  produced  from  the  markings  of 
P.  formosiim. — A  note  was  read  from  Dr.  II.  van  Heurck 
correcting  an  error  in  his  recent  communication  to  the  Society 
relating  to  the  structure  of  diatoms. — Mr.  Mayall  read  a 
translation  of  an  article  by  Prof.  E.  Abbe  on  the  use  of 
fluorite  for  optical  purposes,  in  which  it  appeared  that  the 
special  qualities  of  the  new  apochromatic  lenses  were  due 
to  the  employment  of  this  mineral  in  their  construction. — ■ 
Mr.  C.  H.  Gill  read  a  paper  on  some  methods  of  preparing 
diatoms  so  as  to  exhibit  clearly  the  nature  of  the  workings, 
which  was  illustrated  by  numerous  photomicrographs. — Mr.  P. 
Braham  exhibited  and  descrilied  a  new  form  of  oxyhydrogen 
lamp  adapted  for  microscopical  purposes,  the  lamp  being  so 
mounted  as  to  be  used  in  any  position  above  or  below  the 
object.  Its  application  to  photomicrography  was  demonstrated 
in  the  room. — Mr.  Clarkson  also  exhibited  one  of  the  same 
lamps  separate  from  the  photomicrographic  arrangement. — 
The  next  conversazione  was  announced  to  take  place  on 
April  30. 

Zoological  Society,  March  18. — Prof,  W.  H.  Flower, 
F.R. S.,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  Secretary  exhibited  (on 
behalf  of  the  Rev.  G.  H.  R.  Fisk)  a  specimen  of  a  White  Bat, 
obtained  at  Somerset  West,  near  Cape  Town,  believed  to  be  an 
albino  variety  of  Vesperus  capcnsis. — Captain  Percy  Armitage 
exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  two  heads  of  the  Panolia  Deer 
{Cervtis  eldi),  obtained  on  the  Sittang  River,  Burmah.     One  of 


A'bril  lo,  1890] 


NATURE 


551 


these  was  of  an  abnormal  form. — Mr.  Sclaler  exhibited  (on  behalf 
of  Mr.  Robert  B.  White)  examples  of  four  species  of  Mammals, 
obtained  in  the  Upper  Magdalena  Valley,  in  the  department  of 
Tolima,  U.S.  of  Colombia. — Dr.  Mivart,  K.  R.  S.,  read  a  paperon 
the  South- American  Canida?.  The  author  called  attention  to  the 
difficulties  in  the  way  of  the  correct  discrimination  of  these 
animals,  and  to  what  appeared  to  him  to  be  the  unsatisfactory 
character  of  some  of  Burmeister's  determinations  and  de^ 
scriptions.  Forms  to  which  the  names  ftdvipes,  griseiis, 
patagonicus,  entreriauiis,  gracilis,  vetultis,  unA  fulvicaudtis  had 
been  assigned  were  declared  to  be  quite  insufficiently  discrimin- 
ated from  Canis  azar,,:  On  the  other  hand,  two  very  marked 
varieties,  or  possibly  species,  were  noted  and  distinguished 
under  the  appellations  Canis fatTidens  and  Canis  uroslictus,  the 
type  of  each  of  which  wAs  in  the  British  Museum,  both  the 
skin  and  the  skull  extracted  from  it  in  each  case.— Mr.  R.  I. 
I'ocock  read  a  revision  of  the  genera  of  Scorpions  of  the  family 
Buthidte,  and  gave  descriptions  of  some  new  South  African 
species  of  this  family. — Mr.  F.  K.  Beddard  read  a  paper  on 
some  points  in  the  anatomy  of  the  Condor  [Sai-corhaniphus 
gry pints). — A  communication  was  read  from  Prof.  R,  Collett, 
containing  the  description  of  a  new  Monkey  from  North  East 
.Sumatra,  proposed  to  be  called  Scmnopithecits  thomasi. 

Geological  Society,  March  26.— J.  W.  Hulke,  F.R.S., 
Vice-President,  in  the  chair.— The  following  communications 
were  read  : — On  a  new  species  of  Cyphaspis  from  the  Car- 
boniferous rocks  of  Yorkshire,  by  Miss  Coignou,  Cambridge. 
Communicated  by  Prof.  T.  McK.  Hughes,  F.R.S. —On  com- 
posite spheruliies  in  obsidian  from  hot  springs,  near  Little  Lake, 
California,  by  Frank  Rutley,  Lecturer  on  Mineralogy  in  the 
Royal  School  o(  Mines.  The  spherulites  which  form  the  subject 
of  the  present  communication  have  been  previously  noticed, 
and  it  was  then  suggested  that  a  smaller  spherulitic  structure  was 
set  up  in  the  large  spherules  after  their  formation.  In  the  present 
paper  evidence  was  adduced  in  favour  of  a  different  mode  of 
origin.  It  was  argued  that  the  small  spherulitic  bodies  (primitive 
spherulites)  were  developed  in  the  obsidian  before  it  assumed  a 
condition  of  rigidity,  and  that  they  floated  towards  certain' 
points  in  the  still  viscid  lava,  and  segregated  in  more  or  less 
spherical  groups,  though  there  is  no  evidence  to  show  what 
determined  their  movements ;  furthermore,  that  from  a  point  or 
points  situated  at  or  near  the  centre  of  each  group,  crystallization 
was  set  up,  giving  rise  to  a  radiating  fibrous  structure,  which 
gradually  developed  zone  after  zone  of  divergent  fibres  until 
the  entire  mass  of  primitive  spherulites  was  permeated  by  this 
secondary  slructure^ — a  structure  engendering  a  molecular  re- 
arrangement of  the  mass,  such  as  would  obliterate  any  trace  of 
structure  which  the  primitive  spherulites  might  have  originally 
]>ossessed.  In  a  supplementary  note  the  views  of  Mr.  J.  P. 
Iddings  with  reference  to  the  spherulites  in  question  were  given. 
Mr.  Iddings  considers  that  the  structures  here  described  as 
primary  are  of  secondary  origin.  The  author  stated  in  detail 
his  reasons  for  adhering  to  the  conclusions  given  in  this  paper. 
The  Chairman  said  that  the  sequence  of  the  different  portions 
brought  forward  with  so  much  care  by  the  author  is  one  which 
admits  of  much  discussion.  Rev.  E.  Hill  said  that  the  explana- 
tion of  the  divergence  of  these  crystallizations  was  extremely 
interesting.  As  to  which  structure  came  first,  it  is  difficult  to 
determine.  In  the  section  exhibited  under  the  microscope  he 
agreed  with  Mr.  Rutley  as  to  the  sequence.  The  question  of 
molecular  motion  alter  consolidation  in  igneous  rocks  is  a  subject 
of  great  importance. — A  monograph  of  the  Bryozoa  (Polyzoa)  of 
the  Hunstanton  Red  Chalk,  by  George  Robert  Vine.  Com- 
municated by  Prof.  P.  Martin  Duncan,  F.R.S. — Evidence 
furnished  by  the  Quaternary  glacial-epoch  morainic  deposits  of 
Pennsylvania,  UiS.A.,  for  a  similar  mode  of  formation  of  the 
Permian  breccias  of  Leicestershire  and  South  Derbyshire,  by 
William  S.  Gresley. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  March  31. — M.  Hermite  in  the 
chair. — M.  dejonquieres,  having  presented  a  memoir  containing 
the  complete  text  and  review  of  a  posthumous  work  of  Des- 
cartes, ••  De  Solidorum  Elementis,"  with  the  translation  and 
commentary  of  the  work,  addressed  a  note  giving  some  brief 
explanations  of  the  matter  contained  in  it.  In  communications 
made  on  February  10  and  17,  the  author  endeavoured  to  show 
that  Descartes  knew  and  applied  the  relation  between  the  faces, 
apices,  and  ed^es  of  a  polyhedron,  known  as  Euler's  formula, 
and  expressed  as  F  +  S  =  A  +  2.     The  present  communication 


seems  to  put  the  maHer  beyond  doubf. — M,  P.  Schulzenbergerr 
in  reply  lo  criticisms  of  M.  Berthelot,  adduces  experiments^ 
pointing  to  the  conclu.sion  that  the  condensation  of  carbonic 
oxide  by  the  siltnt  discharge  cannot  be  effected  without  the 
presence  of  water. — Some  further  remarks  on  the  preceding 
communication,  and  on  the  desiccation  of  gases,  by  M.  Berthe- 
lot. The  author  still  holds  the  opinion  that  the  water  shown  by 
M.  Schutzenberger  to  be  present  in  his  condensed  carbonic  oxide- 
may  have  passed  through  the  glass  tube  under  the  action  of  the 
electric  discharge. — A  new  method  for  the  microscopical  study 
of  warm-blooded  animals  at  their  physiological  temperatures  has 
been  devised  by  M.  L.  Ranvier,  and  consists  of  placing  the 
microscope  and  the  preparation  under  examination  in  a  bath  of 
warm  water  (36°  C.  to  39°  C). — Defoimities  of  the  feel 
and  toes  following  phlebitis  of  inferior  members ;  phlebilic 
club-feet,  by  M.  Verneuil. — Observations  of  Brooks's  new 
comet  {a  1890),  made  at  the  Paris  Observatory,  by  M.  G. 
Bigourdan. — Observations  of  the  same  comet,  made  with  the- 
great  equatorial  of  Bordeaux,  by  MM.  Kayet  and  L.  Picart. — 
Observations  and  elements  of  the  new  minor  planet  (^  dis- 
covered at  the  Nice  Observatory  on  March  10,  by  M.  Charlois. 
— On  the  position  of  the  sun-spot  of  March  4,  by  M.  Spoerer. — 
On  the  graphic  sialics  of  elastic  arcs,  by  M.  Bert  rand  de  Fontvio- 
lant. — Theoretical  and  expeiimental  researches  on  Ruhmkorff's 
coil,  by  M.  R.  Colley.  The  author  has  investigated  the  current 
which  results  from  the  superposition  of  two  currents — one  non- 
periodic,  diminishing  according  to  the  law  of  an  exponential' 
curve  ;  the  other  periodic,  ard  with  progressively  decreasing 
amplitude. — On  the  conductivities  of  the  phenols  and  of  oxy- 
benzoic  acids,  by  M.  Daniel  Berthelot.  In  this  important  paper 
the  author  gives  the  results  of  an  examination  of  the  three  oxy- 
benzoic  acids  by  means  of  their  electrical  conductiviiies,  and  a 
research  into  the  way  they  behave  in  the  presence  of  one,  two, 
or  three  molecules  of  soda.  These  acids  having  both  phenol  and 
acid  function?,  the  conductiviiies  of  alkaline  phenates  were  first 
determined. — 1  he  laws  of  annealing,  and  their  consequei  ces 
from  the  point  of  view  of  the  mechanical  properties  of  metals,  by 
M.  Andre  Le  Chalelier.  These  laws  have  been  studied  by  heal- 
ing metallic  wires,  hardened  by  a  series  of  passages  through  a 
draw  plate,  to  different  temperatures  and  during  different  periods 
of  time. — On  the  indices  cf  refraction  of  salt-solutions,  by  M.  B. 
Walter. — Action  of  hyposulphite  of  soda  on  silver  salts,  by  M.  J. 
Fogh.  The  amount  of  heat  disengaged  during  the  action  of 
hyposulphite  of  silver  upon  various  silver  salts  has  been  investi- 
gated.—  M.  V.  Marcano,  from  his  anthropological  researches  at 
Venezuela,  gives  evidence  of  the  existence  of  metallurgy  in  South 
America  previous  to  Columbus. — Influence  of  the  chemical  con- 
stitution of  compounds  of  carbon  on  the  senses  and  variations  in. 
their  rotary  power,  by  M.  Philippe  A.  Guye. — On  the  prepara- 
tion and  some  of  the  properties  of  fluoroform,  by  M.  Meslans. 
The  density  of  the  gas  obtained  is  2-44,  and  it  is  found  to  liquefy 
at  20°  under  a  pressure  of  40  atmospheres. — On  some  sulpho- 
conjugues  phenols  derived  from  ordinary  camphor,  by  M.  P. 
Cazeneuve.  —  On  the  stranding  of  a  whale  on  the  island  of  Re, 
by  MM.  Georges  Pouchet  and  Beauregard. — On  the  blood  and 
the  lymphatic  gland  of  the  Aphysia  (sea-hare),  by  M.  L.  Cuenot. 
— On  the  method  of  union  of  sexual  cells  in  the  act  of  fecunda- 
tion, by  M.  Leon  Guignard. — On  a  new  and  dangerous  parasite- 
of  the  vine,  by  M.  G.  de  I.agerheim.  The  description  of  the- 
parnsite  is  here  given: — '' UreJo  Via  he :  Soris  hypophyllis, 
solitariis  majoribus  vel  dense  gregariis  minimis,  soliiariis  in 
pagina  superiore  foliorum  maculas  parvas  forroaniibus  ;  uredo- 
sporis  pyriformibus  vel  ovoideis  20/1-27^  longis,  I5;u-i8/i  latis,. 
membrana  hyalina  tenui  aculeata  et  contentu  aurco  praedilis,. 
paraphysibus  cylindricis  curvatis  incoloribus  circumdatis,  Hab 
in  foliis  vivis  Vitis%^.  parasitica  in  insula  Jamaica,  inter  Kingston 
et  Rockfort,  Octob.  1889."— On  the  series  of  eruptions  of 
Mezenc  and  Meygal  (Velay) ;  also  a  note  on  the  existence  of 
segyrine  in  the  phonolithes  of  Velay,  by  M.  P.  Termier.— Com- 
position of  some  rocks  from  the  north  of  France,  by  M.  Henri 
Boursault.  — General  results  of  a  study  of  the  carboniferous  earths- 
of  the  central  plateau  of  France,  by  M.  A.  Julien. 

Berlin. 

Physical  Society,  March  21. — Prof,  du  Bois  Reymond,. 
President,  in  the  chair.— Dr.  Brodhun  described  a  re"  contrast- 
photometer,  based  on  the  principle  of  one  he  and  Dr.  Lummer 
had  previously  constructed  (see  Nature,  vol.  xxxix.  p.  336), 
and   intended   to   compare   by   contrast    the    intensity  of  any 


552 


NA  TURE 


[April  lo,  1890 


illumination  with  that  of  the  standard  light.  Experiment  had 
shown  that  the  sensitiveness  of  the  instrument  is  greatest  when 
the  difference  of  the  contrasted  illuminations  is  3  per  cent.,  and 
amounts  then  to  \  per  cent.  He  further  gave  an  account  of 
experiments  which  he  and  Dr.  I.ummer  had  made  on  the 
utilization  of  glow-lamps  as  standards  of  comparison.  When  fed 
by  accumulators  these  lamps  yield  a  light  which  only  varies  by  i 
per  cent,  during  a  period  of  200  hours  provided  the  E.  M.  F.  of  the 
accumulators  is  kept  constant.  The  authors  are  now  busy  with 
the  endeavour  to  construct  a  standard  glow-lamp  for  comparison 
with  unknown  sources  of  light.  Dr.  Lummer  demonstrated 
Abbe's  apparatus  for  testing  transparent  films  with  plane- 
parallel  surfaces.  After  briefly  describing  the  interference 
phenomena  produced  by  thick  plane-parallel  glass  plates,  he 
explained  how  Tizeau's  bands  and  Newton's  rings  are  employed 
for  testing  the  plates,  using  monochromatic  sodium-light.  The 
light  passes  through  a  reflecting  prism  and  through  a  lens,  and 
then  falls  on  the  plate,  from  which  it  is  reflected  and  passes  back 
by  the  same  path  to  the  eye,  being  now  passed  through  a  second 
lens  by  means  of  which  the  bands  or  rings  may  be  seen.  The 
occurrence  of  interference-bands  is  entirely  dependent  upon  the 
thickness  of  the  plate  :  if  this  is  absolutely  uniformly  thick 
throughout,  the  interference  phenomena  show  no  change  if  the 
plate  is  moved  from  side  to  side  in  its  own  plane,  and  by  so 
doing  the  parallelism  of  its  sides  may  be  rapidly  tested. 

Amsterdam. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  February  22. — Prof,  van  de 
Sande  Bakhuysen,  in  the  chair.- — Prof.  Behrens  added  a  number 
of  reagents  for  microscopical  analysis  to  those  already  known 
from  former  publications  by  himself  and  MM.  Streng  and 
Haushofer  : — 

For  K  and  Na  :  sulphate  of  bismuth. 

,,  Ba,  Sr,  Ca  :  chloride  of  tin  and  oxalic  acid. 

,,  Ba,  Sr  :  bichromate  of  ammonium. 

,,  Sr,  Ca,  Mg  :  tartrate  of  sodium  and  potassium. 

,,  Al :  fluoride  of  ammonium  and  sulphate  of  thallium. 

,,  Be  :  chloride  of  mercury  and  oxalic  acid. 

, ,  Ce,  La,  Di :  oxalic  acid,  ferrocyamide  of  potassium. 

,,  Zn,  Ca  :  acetate  of  aluminium  and  oxalic  acid. 

,,  Zn,  Cn,  Co:  sulphocyanide  of  mercury  and  ammonium. 

,,  Co,  Ni  :  nitrite  of  potassium  and  acetate  of  lead. 

,,  Pb,  Bi,  Fe  :  bichromate  of  potassium  and  potash. 

,,  Bi,  Sb,  Sn  :  oxalic  acid,  chloride  of  rubidium. 

,,  Sb,  Sn,  Ti :  chloride  of  barium  and  oxalic  acid. 

Details  will  soon  be  published,  when  the  necessary  finish  has 
been  given  to  the  methods  for  separation,  hitherto  somewhat 
neglected. — M.  Martin  read  a  paper  on  the  geology  of  the  Kei 
Islands,  and,  in  connection  therewith,  on  the  Australian-Asiatic 
boundary  line.  In  accordance  with  the  fact  that  in  Great  Kei 
we  meet  with  nothing  but  a  Tertiary  formation,  and  that  the 
nature  of  the  rocks  of  Great  Kei  agrees  with  that  of  the  coast  of 
New  Guinea,  M.  Martin  inferred  that  this  boundary  line  must 
be  drawn  geognostically,  to  the  west  of  Great  Kei  and  to  the 
north-west  of  Timor.- — Dr.  Beyerinck  treated  of  the  luminous 
food  and  the  plastic  food  of  phosphorescent  Bacteria.  Of  the 
six  species  of  phosphorescent  Bacteria  hitherto  known,  four — viz. 
the  alimental  gelatine  non-melting  Bacterium  phosphorescens  and 
B.  PJliigeri  of  luminous  fish,  and  the  Baltic  phosphorescent 
Bacteria,  B.  Fischeri  and  B.  balticum,  require,  besides  peptone, 
a  second  carbonic  combination,  as  glycerine,  glucose,  or  aspa- 
ragine,  for  their  complete  nourishment,  i.e.  to  "phosphoresce" 
and  grow.  They  may  be  called  peptone-carbon- bacteria.  The 
gelatine  quick-melting  phosphorescent  bacteria  from  the  West 
Indian  Sea  and  the  North  Sea,  B.  indicum  and  B.  luminosum, 
can  phosphoresce  and  grow  on  peptone  alone.  They  are,  there- 
fore, peptone-bacteria.  Again,  other  bacteria  can  derive  their 
nitrogen  either  from  amids,  the  amid-bacteria,  or  from  ammoniac, 
the  ammoniac-bacteria.  Also  moulds,  yeasts,  and  some 
Protozoa  may  be  classed  in  this  system.  The  Bacterium  PJliigeri 
does  emit  light  with  peptone  and  glucose,  but  not  with  peptone 
and  maltose,  while  the  Bacterium  phosphorescens  emits  light 
both  with  glucose  and  maltose.  Now  if  we  mix  some  starch  in 
a  phosphorescens-peptone-gelatine,  obtained  by  mixing  this 
gelatine  with  a  very  great  number  of  B.  phosphorescens,  and 
place  upon  this  some  ptyaline,  pancreas-diastase,  or  urindiastase 
(nefrozymase),  fields  of  light  make  their  appearance  ;  if,  however, 
we  placed  these  same  sorts  of  diastase  on  a  Pfliigeri-peptone- 
starch-gelatine,  then   no   fields   of  light  would  appear,  which 


proves  that  in  this  instance  no  glucose  whatever  is  formed,  as 
was  lately  believed  to  be  the  case.  The  development  of 
luminosity  is  constantly  accompanied  by  the  transition  of  pep- 
tones into  organized,  living  matter,  under  the  influence  of  free 
oxygen,  with  or  without  the  concurrence  of  another  carbonic 
combination. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Among  the  Selkirk  Glaciers :  W.  S.  Green (Macmillan). — Flora  Tangutica, 
fasc.  i.  :  C.  J.  Maxiniowicz  (Petropoli). — Enumeratio  Plantarum  Hucusque 
in  Mongolia,  fasc.  i.  :  C.  J.  Maxiraowicz  (Petropoli). — The  Human  Epic, 
Canto  i. :  J.  F.  Rowbotham  (K.  Paul). — Agende  de  Chimiste,  Salet,  Girard 
and  Pabst  (Hachette). —  1  he  Theory  of  Determinants  in  the  Historical  Order 
of  its  Development ;  Part  i..  Determinants  in  General  :  T.  Muir(  Macmillan). 
— The  Microtomist's  Vade-Mecum,  2nd  Edition  :  A.  B.  Lee  (Churchill). — 
Guide  Pratique  de  L'Am.ateur  !^lectricien :  E.  Keignart  (Paris,  Michelet). — 
Musiconomia  o  Leggi  Fondamentali  della  Scienza  Musicale :  P.  Crotti 
(Parma,  Battei). — I/Eclairage  Electrique  Actuel,  2nd  Edition  :  J.  Couture 
(Paris,  Michelet). — Das  Reizleitende  Gewebesystem  der  Sinnpflanze  ;  Dr.  G. 
Haberlandt  (Leipzig,  Engelmann). — Traite  Ency.  de  Photographic,  15  Mars  : 
C.  Fabre  (Paris,  Gauihier-Villars). — Proceedmgs  of  the  Aristotelian  Society, 
vol.  i.  No.  3,  Part  i  (Williams  and  Norgate). — Mind,  April  (Williams  and 
Norgate). — Geological  Magazine,  April  (K.  Paul). — Quarterly  Journal  of 
Microscopical  Science,  April  (Churchill). — Journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural 
Society  of  England,  3rd  Series,  Part  i  (Murray). — Journal  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society,  vol.  xii.  Part  i  (London). 

CONTENTS.  PAGE 

New  Light  from   Solar  Eclipses.     By  William   E. 

Plummer 529 

The  Evolution  of  Sex.     By  P.  C,  M 531 

The  Quicksilver  Deposits  of  the  Pacific  Slope.     By 

H.  B 532 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Coldstream  :  "  Illustrations  of  some  of  the  Grasses  of 

the  Southern  Punjab,"— J.  G.  B 533 

Hicks :     "  Elementary    Dynamics    of    Particles    and 

Solids."— G.  A.  B 534 

Lydekker :   "  Catalogue  of   the    Fossil    Reptilia   and 

Amphibia  in  the  British  Museum  " 534 

Letters  to  the  Editor  : — 

Systems  of  "  Russian  Transliteration." — Charles  E. 
Groves,  F.R.S. ;  W.  F.  Kirby  ;  H,  A.  M.  and 

J.  W.  G 534 

"Like  to  Like" — a   Fundamental  Principle  in  Bio- 
nomics.— Prof.    George  J.    Romanes,  F.R.S.  ; 

John  T.  Gulick 535 

Self-Colonization      of     the      Coco-nut     Palm. — W. 

Botting  Hemsley,  F.R.S 537 

On  Certain    Devonian  Plants  from   Scotland. — Sir  J, 

Wm.  Dawson,  F.R.S 537 

Exact     Thermometry.  —  Dr.     Edmund    J.     Mills, 

F.R.S 537 

The  Shuckburgh  Scale  and  Kater  Pendulum. — O.  H. 

Tittmann 538 

The  Green  Flash  at  Sunset.— C.  Michie  Smith    .    .    538 
Foreign    Substances     attached     to    Crabs. — Walter 

Garstang 538 

The  Thames  Estuary.     ( With    Maps.)     By   Captain 

T.  H.  Tizard,  R.N 539 

Notes 544 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 548 

The  Apex  of  the  Sun's  Way 548 

Stability  of  the  Rings  of  Saturn 548 

Brooks's  Comet  (a  1890) 549 

Bright  Lines  in  Stellar  Spectra 549 

On  the  Deformation  of  an   Elastic  Shell.     By  Prof. 

Horace  Lamb,  F.R.S .    549 

Scientific  Serials 549 

Societies  and  Academies 550 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 552 


NA  TURE 


553 


i 


THURSDAY,  APRIL  17,  1890. 


THE  GROWTH  OF  CAPITAL. 
The  Growth  of  Capital.     By  Robert  Gififen.     (London : 
G.  Bell  and  Sons,  1889.) 

THE  popular  conception  of  what  statistics  are  is 
happily  caricatured  by  a  contemporary  novelist, 
who  describes  an  adept  in  that  science  stationing  himself 
early  in  the  morning  at  the  entrance  to  a  bridge, 
and,  after  scrutinizing  the  passengers  for  several  hours, 
triumphantly  reporting  that  exactly  2371  widows  have 
crossed  during  the  day.  This  arithmetic  of  the  street  is 
not  the  type  of  Mr.  Giffen's  calculations.  His  purpose  is 
more  philosophical,  his  method  more  elaborate. 

The  object  which  he  seeks  to  measure  is  nothing  less 
than  the  whole  property,  the  accumulated  exchangeable 
wealth,  of  the  United  Kindom.  In  this  problem,  to  appre- 
hend even  the  question  requires  an  effort  of  intelligence. 
"  Imagination  shrinks  from  the  task  of  framing  a  cata- 
logue or  inventory  of  a  nation's  property,  as  a  valuator 
would  make  it."  Reason  points  out  that  the  grand  total 
is  not  so  much  the  value  of  the  whole,  which  in  its 
entirety  cannot  be  considered  saleable,  as  the  sum  of 
the  values  of  all  the  parts,  any  one  of  which  may  be  sold 
by  its  proprietor.  The  attribute  of  accumulation,  as  well 
as  that  of  exchange,  requires  careful  definition.  Mr. 
Giffen,  differing  from  some  of  his  predecessors  and  con- 
temporaries, does  not  regard  the  labourer  himself  as  a 
species  of  capital.  He  does  not,  with  Petty,  attempt  to 
determine  the  "  value  of  the  people,"  nor,  with  De  Foville, 
to  effect  "the  evaluation  of  human  capital."  However, 
some  items  which  are  of  an  incorporeal  nature  seem  to 
enter  into  his  account.  Presumably,  that  part  of  the 
national  capital  which  he  reckons  by  capitalizing  the 
income  of  public  companies — multiplying  it  by  a  certain 
number  of  years'  purchase — represents  the  value,  not  only 
of  land  and  plant,  but  also  of  an  immaterial  something, 
which,  in  a  broad  sense,  may  be  described  as  '*'  custom  " 
or  "good  will."  Mr.  Gififen  doubts  whether  public  debt 
should  be  admitted  as  an  item  of  capital.  He  is  certain 
that  tenant-right  should  be  excluded. 

The  uses  of  such  a  valuation  are  manifold.  Mr.  Gififen 
devotes  a  chapter  to  their  enumeration.  In  the  first 
place,  it  is  desirable  to  compare  our  resources  with  our 
liabilities.  It  is  satisfactory  to  find  that  the  national 
debt  compared  with  the  national  fortune  is  but  a  "  baga- 
telle." The  amount  of  a  country's  accumulations,  and 
the  rate  of  their  increase,  afford  some  measure  of  its 
capacity  to  endure  the  burdens  of  taxation,  and,  we  may 
add,  other  kinds  of  pecuniary  strain.  It  is  observed  by 
Newmarch,  one  of  Mr.  Giffen's  predecessors  in  this 
department  of  statistics,  that  the  investment  in  railways, 
which  produced  such  convulsions  in  1847-48,  would  have 
been  in  1863  almost  unfelt  and  insignificant  in  com- 
parison with  the  yearly  savings  which  were  being  made 
at  the  later  epoch. 

One  use  to  which  Mr.  Giffen  gives  prominence  may  be 
thus  described.  The  comparative  growth  of  capitalat 
different  epochs  serves  as  a  sort  of  barometer  of  national 
prosperity.  Of  course  those  who  use  a  barometer  must 
remember  that  its  indications  of  fair  weather  are  but 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1068. 


indirect  and  inferential.  He  who  trusts  the  rising  of  the 
mercury  when  the  north-east  wind  is  blowing  may  get  a 
wetting.  So  also  with  the  metaphorical  weather-glass. 
"  The  property  test  is  useful  as  far  as  it  goes,  but  it  is  not 
the  only  test,"  says  Mr.  Gififen.  Elsewhere,  in  his  address 
to  the  British  Association,  he  has  acted  the  part  of  a 
Fitzroy  in  considering  together  and  interpreting  in  their 
connection  the  various  tests  and  signs  which  economic 
meteorology  affords.  His  object  here  is  rather  to  perfect 
one  particular  instrument. 

This  barometrical  use  of  capital  may  involve  the  ne. 
cessity  of  correcting  the  estimates  so  as  to  take  account 
of  changes  in  the  value  of  money.  It  may  happen,  it  has 
happened,  that  in  the  last  decade,  as  compared  with  the 
preceding  period,  the  growth  of  capital  estimated  in 
money  shows  a  falling  off,  while  the  increase  of  money's 
worth,  of  things,  has  not  declined  proportionately.  To 
complete  our  measurement  we  must  correct  the  measur- 
ing-rod. This  is  no  easy  or  straightforward  task.  In 
the  case  of  a  real  barometer  we  can  mark  the  inches  by 
reference  to  the  standard  yard  measure,  which  is  kept  in 
the  Tower.  But  a  similarly  perfect  measure  of  value  is, 
in  the  phrase  of  an  eminent  living  economist,  "  unthink- 
able." The  present  generation  finds  itself,  with  respect 
to  the  variations  in  the  value  of  money,  in  the  sort  of 
difficulty  which  must  have  occurred  to  the  primaeval  man 
when  first  he  may  have  noticed  that  a  perfect  measure  of 
time  was  not  afforded  by  the  length  of  day  and  night, 
and  before  there  had  been  constructed  a  more  scientific 
chronometer.  Even  Mr.  Giffen  has  to  content  himself 
with  such  rough  and  rather  arbitrary  corrections  as  the 
present  state  of  monetary  science  affords. 

As  the  object  sought,  the  measure  of  accumulation,  is 
somewhat  hazy  and  difficult  to  envisage,  so  the  method 
by  which  it  is  approached  is  indirect  and  slippery 
The  business  man  must  not  suppose  that  the  estimates 
of  a  nation's  capital  can  be  totted  up  with  the  precision 
of  a  commercial  account.  The  physicist  is  better  pre- 
pared to  appreciate  the  character  of  the  computation, 
conversant  as  he  is  with  observations  which  individually 
are  liable  to  a  certain  error,  while,  put  together,  they 
afford  certainty.  But  even  physical  observations,  liable 
to  a  considerable  yet  calculable  extent  of  error,  hardly 
parallel  the  fallibility  of  these  economic  or,  if  we  might 
coin  a  required  word,  metastatistical  computations.  In 
estimating  that  fallibility,  we  may  usefully  employ  the 
analogy  suggested  by  the  theory  of  errors  ;  but  we  must 
bear  in  mind  the  criticism  to  which  this  theory,  even  in 
its  application  to  physics,  was  subjected  by  a  witty  mathe- 
matician :  "  After  having  calculated  the  probable  error, 
it  is  necessary  to  calculate  the  probability  that  your 
calculation  is  erroneous." 

The  characteristic  to  which  we  draw  attention  is  fully 
recognized  by  Mr.  Giffen.  Again  and  again  he  dwells  on 
the  rough  and  approximative  character  of  his  method, 
"  the  wide  margin  of  error,"  and  the  "  limit  of  informa- 
tion available."  His  cautions  against  reasoning  too  finely 
might  have  seemed  superflous  in  their  iteration,  but  that 
he  doubtless  anticipated  the  irrelevant  criticism  which 
each  departmental  statistician  might  direct  against  details 
— like  the  specialist  in  sculpture  who,  according  to  Horace, 
represents  with  peculiar  accuracy  the  hair  or  nails,  but 
nescit  componere  totiwi. 

B  B 


554 


NA  TURE 


{April  17,  1890 


The  futility  of  a  penny-wise  precision,  and  even  of  that 
criticism  which  sticks  at  a  few  thousand  pounds  where 
millions  or  tens  of  millions  are  the  units  of  the  scale,  will 
be  apparent  when  we  consider  the  construction  of  the 
colossal  account.  The  starting-point  of  the  computation 
is  afforded  by  the  income-tax  returns.  The  income  under 
each  head  thus  evidenced  is  multiplied  by  a  certain  num- 
ber of  years'  purchase  to  form  the  corresponding  item  of 
capital.  Thus,  in  the  valuation  of  1885  there  is,  under 
the  head  of  "Houses,"  the  income  ^128,459,000,  which, 
being  multiplied  by  15,  the  number  of  years'  purchase, 
gives  ^1,926,885,000  as  the  corresponding  entry  of  capi- 
tal. Again,  under  "  F"armers'  Profits,"  the  income  is 
;^65, 233,000,  which,  being  capitalized  at  8  years' purchase, 
makes  ^521,864,000  capital.  Now,  of  course,  neither 
are  the  income-tax  returns  perfectly  accurate,  nor  can  the 
number  of  years'  purchase  proper  to  each  category  be 
assigned  with  precision.  A  further  element  of  uncertainty 
is  introduced  when,  in  the  case  of  "  Trades  and  Profes- 
sions," we  reduce  the  income-tax  return  by  a  somewhat 
arbitrary  factor,  one-fifth,  in  order  to  take  account  only  of 
that  income  which  results  from  accumulated  property  as 
distinguished  from  personal  exertion.  Where  the  in- 
come-tax is  no  longer  available  for  our  guidance,  the 
procedure  becomes  even  more  precarious.  Thus  "  Movable 
Property  not  yielding  Income,"  such  as  furniture  of  houses 
and  works  of  art,  is  estimated  as  amounting  to  half  the 
value  of  "  Houses,"  that  is,  ^960,000,000.  Even  the 
most  faithful  follower  of  Mr.  Giffen  may  be  staggered 
when  with  reference  to  such  entries  he  reads — 

"  The  estimates  of  the  income  of  non-income-tax 
paying  classes  derived  from  capital  of  movable  property 
not  yielding  income,  and  of  Government  and  local  pro- 
perty, are  put  in  almost /r^  T^rwa  and  to  round  off  the 
estimates,  and  not  with  any  idea  that  any  very  exact 
figures  can  be  stated." 

But  whoever  carefully  considers  the  principles  on  which 
Mr.  Giffen  has  assumed  the  different  coefficients  entering 
into  his  computation — principles  set  forth  more  fully  in 
a  former  essay — will  be  satisfied  that  he  has  in  no  case 
run  a  risk  of  overrating.  We  may  therefore  accept  his 
estimate  of  the  national  capital  in  1885  as  a  figure 
round  indeed,  but  not  exaggerated.  That  figure  is 
£  1 0,000,000,000. 

Greater  precision  may  be  attainable  where  there  is 
required,  not  the  absolute  amount  of  capital  in  1885,  but 
the  ratio  of  that  amount  to  the  corresponding  estimate 
for  1875,  in  order  to  compare  the  growth  of  the  national 
resources  during  that  decade  with  the  growth  at  a  pre- 
vious period.  We  shall  now  be  assisted  by  the  important 
principle  which  Mr.  Giffen  thus  notices  : — 

"According  to  well-known  statistical  experience,  the 
comparison  of  the  growth  or  increment  may  be  reason- 
ably successful,  if  the  same  method  is  followed  on  each 
occasion  in  working  out  the  data  for  the  comparison, 
although  these  data  themselves  may  be  unavoidably  in- 
complete." 

Let  us  put  our  qucEsitum  in  the  form  of  a  fraction, 
thus : — 

Lands  in  1885  -f  Houses  in  1885  -j-  &c. 
Lands  in  1875  +  Houses  in  1875  -^  &c. 

(using  lands,  &c.,  as  short  for  value  of  lands,  &c.).     It  is 
evident  that  any  source  of  inaccuracy  which  exaggerates 


or  diminishes  both  the  numerator  and  denominator  \n 
the  same  proportion  is  not  operative  on  the  result.  If 
all  the  data  were  based  on  income-tax  returns,  and  the 
same  proportion  of  property  escaped  the  net  of  the 
collectors  at  each  epoch,  the  result  would  be  undisturbed. 
But  all  the  data  are  not  based  on  the  income-tax  ;  nor 
even  if  there  were  no  increased  stringency  in  the  collection 
of  the  tax  as  a  whole,  or  any  other  general  derangement,^ 
could  it  be  supposed  that  the  defalcations  under  each 
head  observed  an  exactly  uniform  proportion.  To  esti- 
mate the  effects  of  this  unequal  distortion,  it  will  be 
convenient  to  alter  our  statement  by  putting  in  the 
numerator,  instead  of  lands  in  1885,  the  expression^ 


Lands  in  1875  X 


Lands  in  1885 
Lands  in  1875' 


with  corresponding  changes  for  the  other  entries. 
Thus  the  qucesitutn  may  be  considered  as  a  sort 
of  mean — a  weighted  mean — of  the  ratios  between 
the  several  items  for  the  two  years.  In  this  ex- 
pression the  influence  which  the  two  elements,  the 
absolute  quantities  used  as  weights  and  the  ratios,  exer- 
cise upon  the  error  of  the  result  is  different.  The  influ- 
ence of  error  in  the  absolute  quantities  would  be 
comparatively  small,  if  those  quantities  were  tolerably 
equal  and  the  ratios  not  more  unequal  than  they  are. 
But,  unfortunately,  the  absolute  quantities  are  extremely 
unequal.  Out  of  the  twenty-six  items,  "  Lands "  and 
"  Houses  "  together  make  up  more  than  a  third  of  the 
sum-total.  By  a  formula  adapted  to  the  case,  it  may  be 
calculated  that,  if  each  of  the  twenty-six  quantities  be 
liable  to  an  assigned  error  per  cent,  (exclusive  of  such 
mistakes  as,  affecting  the  numerator  and  denominator  of 
the  result  in  an  equal  proportion,  disappear  in  the  division), 
then  the  percentage  of  error  incident  to  the  total  result  is 
not  likely  to  be  less  than  fths  of  the  error  affecting  each 
of  the  parts.  That  is,  abstracting  the  inaccuracy  of  the. 
ratios,  which  are  of  the  form —  a 


Lands  in  iJ 


Lands  in  1875. 


Now  any  error  in  the  ratios  is  more  directly  operative  on 
the  result  than  the  same  degree  of  error  in  the  absolute 
quantities.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  it  may  be  that  the  error 
actually  affecting  the  ratios  is  particularly  small,  owing  to 
the  favourable  operation  of  that  general  principle  which 
we  have  just  now  cited  from  Mr.  Giffen's  pages.  The  esti- 
mate of  inaccuracy  must,  however,  be  increased  to  some 
extent  by  the  error  of  the  ratios.  Altogether  it  would 
seem  that  the  whole  chain  or  coil  is  not  so  much  stronger 
than  the  particular  links  or  strands  as  is  usual  in  the  cal- 
culation of  probabilities.  It  would  be  a  moderate  esti- 
mate that  the  percentage  error  of  the  compound  ratio  is 
not  less  than  a  half  of  the  error  on  an  average  affecting 
each  of  the  components — lands,  houses,  &c. — in  either 
year. 

What  degree  of  error,  then,  shall  we  attribute  to  each 
of  these  items  ?  A  precise  determination  of  this  co- 
efficient is,  as  we  have  already  observed,  impossible.  It 
would  be  interesting  to  collect  the  estimates  of  competent 
authorities.  As  a  mere  conjecture,  for  the  sake  of  illus- 
tration, let  us  entertain  the  supposition  that  the  error  (the 
effective  error  in  the  sense  above  explained)  of  any  one 
item  is  as  likely  as  not  to  be  as  much  as  5  per  cent.,  and 


I 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


555 


may  just  possibly  be  20  per  cent.  Then  we  should 
ascribe  half  this  degree  of  inaccuracy  to  the  figure  1175, 
which,  according  to  Mr.  Giffen's  computation,  is  the  ratio 
of  the  total  capital  in  1885  to  the  total  capital  in  1875.  It 
would  be  conceivable  that  the  real  increase,  as  measured 
by  some  superior  being,  is  not  17^  per  cent.,  but  as  little 
as  7,  or  as  much  as  27,  per  cent.  Perhaps  the  defect  is 
a  little  more  likely  than  the  excess,  if  there  exist  any 
■constant  cause  making  for  depression  such  as  the  in- 
creased stringency  of  the  tax-collectors  in  later  years. 

The  growth  of  17  percent,  in  the  decade  under  con- 
sideration may  appear  surprisingly  small  compared  with 
the  40  per  cent,  recorded  for  the  preceding  decade.  The 
general  accuracy  of  the  contrast  is,  however,  confirmed 
by  a  comparison  of  the  growths  in  each  item  for  the  two 
decades.  Mr.  Giffen  points  out  that  in  the  former  decade, 
unlike  the  latter,  there  are  no  growths  downwards.  Also 
the  percentages  which  measure  increase  run  mostly  at  a 
higher  level  for  the  earlier  period.  His  detailed  examina- 
tion of  the  figures  leaves  nothing  to  desire.  For  a  sum- 
mary contrast  between  the  two  sets  of  percentages  we 
might  submit  that  a  proper  course  would  be  to  compare 
the  medians  of  the  respective  sets  of  figures  (the  arith- 
metic means  would  not  be  suitable  owing  to  the  very 
•unequal  importance  of  the  figures  relating  to  such  miscel- 
laneous items).  Operating  in  the  manner  suggested,  we 
find  as  the  median  of  the  first  set  of  percentage  growths 
50,  and  of  the  second  25,  thus  confirming  Mr.  Giffen's 
conclusion  that  the  former  movement  is  about  double  the 
latter. 

The  conclusion  that  in  the  last  decade  our  progress  has 

been  only  half  what  it  was  in  the  preceding  decade  is  at 

first  sight  disappointing.     But  we  must  remember  that  as 

yet  we  have  accomplished  only  part  of  our  calculation. 

We  have  still  to  make  a  correction  for  the  change  in   the 

value  of  money  which  may  have  occurred  between    the 

two  periods.     This  is  a  problem  familiar  to  Mr.   Giffen. 

In  his  classical  computations  of  the  changes  in  the  volume 

of  our  foreign  trade  he  encountered  and  surmounted  a 

similar  difficulty.     In  that  case  he  ascertained  the  change 

in  the  level  of  prices  at  which  exports  and  imports  ranged 

in  different  years  without  going  beyond  the  statistics  of 

foreign  trade,  and  by  operating  solely  on  the  prices  and 

quantities  of  exports  and  imports.     It  might  be  expected^ 

perhaps,  that  he  would  pursue  an  analogous  course  in 

constructing  a  measure  for  the  change  of  prices  affecting 

the  volume  of  capital.     He  would  thus  have  been  led  to 

adopt  the  very  ingenious  method  of  measuring  changes 

in  the  value  of  money  which  has  been  proposed  by  Prof. 

J.  S.  Nicholson.     But,  however  cognate  that  original  idea 

may  be  to  the  theory  of  the  subject,  it  will  be  found  in 

practice  not  easy  to  apply  to  the  present  computation. 

At  any  rate,  Mr.  Giffen  has  taken  his  coefficients  for  the 

correction  in  question,  not,  as  before,   from  the  subject 

itself,  but  ab  extra,  from  Mr.  Sauerbeck,  Mr,  Soetbeer, 

and  the  Economist.    Averaging  their  results,  he  finds  that 

money  has   appreciated   to   the  extent  of   17    per  cent. 

•during  the  interval  under  consideration.     This  correction 

being  made,  the  growth  of  capital  in  the  period  1875-85 

proves  to  be  about  the  same  as  the  growth  in  1865-75. 

The  soundness  of  this  conclusion  is  confirmed  by  some 
reflections  which  at  first  sight  might  appear  open  to 
criticism.      After  using  the  fall  of  prices  tQ  prove  the 


increase  of  capital,  Mr.  Giffen  turns  round  and  seems 
to  reason  from  the  increase  of  capital  to  the  fall  of 
prices. 

*'  If  two  periods  are  compared  in  which  the  increase 
of  population  is  known  to  be  at  much  the  same  rate 
throughout,  and  the  increase  of  productive  capacity  may 
be  assumed  to  be  at  the  same  rate,  or  not  less,  in  one  of 
the  periods  than  in  the  other,  then,  if  the  apparent  accu- 
mulation of  capital  in  the  one  period  proved  to  be  less 
than  in  the  other,  it  must  be  ascribed  to  some  change  in 
the  money  values." 

This  reasoning  may  appear  circular  to  the  formal  logi- 
cian. But,  in  the  logic  of  induction,  we  submit  that  it  is 
very  proper  for  two  arguments  archwise  to  support  each 
other.  The  consilience  of  different  lines  of  proof  is 
indeed  an  essential  feature  of  the  logic  of  fact,  as  formu- 
lated by  J.  S.  Mill.  We  venture  to  interpret  Mr.  Giffen's 
double  line  of  proof  by  the  following  parable.  Has  it 
never  occurred  to  you,  reader,  on  looking  at  your  watch, 
and  finding  the  hour  earlier  than  you  expected,  to  suspect 
that  the  instrument  has  played  you  false?  You  review 
what  you  have  been  doing ;  recollect,  perhaps,  that  you 
began  work  or  got  up  earlier  than  usual ;  and,  on  reflec- 
tion, see  no  reason  to  distrust  your  watch.  You  test  the 
watch  by  the  time,  and  you  measure  the  time  by  the 
watch.  Similarly,  Mr.  Giffen  is  quite  consistent  when 
he  measures  the  extent  of  the  growth  of  capital  by  the 
extent  of  the  fall  in  prices  :  and  confirms  the  fact  of  a 
fall  in  prices  by  the  independently  inferred  fact  of  a 
considerable  growth  of  capital. 

In  connection  with  the  fall  of  prices  we  should  notice 
an  important    contribution   which    Mr.  Giffen  makes  to 
monetary  science  by  defining  the  ambiguous  term  "appre- 
ciation."    The  readers  of  Nature  who  may  be  more 
familiar  with  physical  than  social  science  will  smile  when 
they  understand  that  there  has  been  in  economical  circles 
a  stiff  controversy  on  the  following  question  :    Whether, 
if  there  is  not  now  in  circulation  a  sufficient  amount  of 
money — in   proportion   to  the  quantity  of  commodities 
circulated — to  keep  up  prices  to  a  former  level,  the  cause 
of  the  fall  is  the  scarcity  of  gold  or  the  abundance  of 
goods.     It  is  as  if,  when  the  shoe  pinched,  people  should 
dispute  whether  the  shoe  is  too  small,  or  the  boot  too 
large.      The  mirth  of  the  physicist  seems  for  the  most 
part  justified.     However,  as  Coleridge  or  somebody  said, 
before  we  can  be  certain  that  a  controversy  is  altogether 
about  words,  there  is  needed  a  considerable  knowledge  of 
things.     The  better  class  of  controversialists  in  the  matter 
before  us  have  doubtless  had  a  meaning,  but  a  latent 
and    undeveloped    one,   which    it    required    our  author, 
like    another   Socrates,   to   bring   to   birth.      The    issue 
appears  unmeaning,  as  long  as  you  consider  the  question 
in  Mr.  Giffen's  phrase  "  statically,"  without  reference  to 
the  rate  at  which  the  quantity  of  goods  and  gold  are 
growing.     But  "  dynamically,"  if  goods  and  gold  cease  to 
move  abreast,  it  is  intelligible  to  attribute  the  separation 
between  the  two  to  the  operation  of  one  rather  than  the 
other.      As  we  understand  the   matter,   using  our  own 
illustration,  let  us  liken  the  constant  growth  of  goods  to 
the  uniform  velocity  of  a  boat  carried  onward  by  a  steady 
stream  ;  and  the  parallel  increase  of  money  to  the  move- 
ment of  a  pedestrian  on  the  bank.     If  the  pedestrian, 
after  keeping  abreast  with  the  boat  for  some  time,  is  at 


556 


NATURE 


{April  17,  1890 


length  found  to  be  behind  it,  it  is  reasonable  to  attribute  the 
change  to  the  man,  and  not  the  stream.  But  all  turns  upon 
the  assumed  steadiness  of  the  stream's  onward  move- 
ment. Looking  back  on  past  experience,  Mr.  Giffen 
entertains  the  hypothesis  of  a  constant  or  "normal" 
growth  of  property.  But  with  respect  to  recent  years, 
it  would  be  possible  to  cite,  from  other  high  authorities, 
expressions  of  a  contrary  opinion.  But,  if  the  steady 
motion  of  goods  is  not  accepted,  presumably  the  issue 
between  "  scarcity  of  gold  "  and  the  opposed  theory  of 
appreciation  will  turn  upon  a  comparison  of  the  rates  at 
which  the  rate  of  increase  varies  for  money  and  com- 
modies  respectively — an  investigation  of  second  differ- 
entials which  we  could  not  regard  as  serious. 

The  difficulties  of  monetary  theory  do  not  attend  some 
of  the  uses  to  which  the  estimate  of  national  capital  may 
be  appHed.  It  is  not  necessary  to  make  a  correction  for 
the  variation  of  money  when  we  compare  our  own  with  a 
foreign  country  in  respect  of  absolute  quantity,  and  even 
growth,  of  accumulation.  Our  colossal  capital  compares 
not  unfavourably  with  the  capital  of  the  United  States, 
perhaps  equal  in  amount,  but  much  less  per  head.  The 
;^ 1 0,000,000,000  of  the  United  Kingdom  compares  favour- 
ably with  the  ^7,200,000,000  of  France  weighted  by  a 
heavy  debt,  and  the  surprisingly  small  ^1,920,000,000  of 
Italy. 

The  comparison  of  provinces,  as  well  as  nations,  is 
also  instructive.  Mr.  Giffen  finds  that  Ireland  has  less 
than  a  twentieth  of  the  property  belonging  to  the  United 
Kingdom.  The  property  per  head  in  Ireland  is  less  than 
a  third  of  what  it  is  in  England,  and  not  much  more  than 
a  third  of  what  it  is  for  Scotland.  Upon  these  facts  Mr. 
Giffen  remarks  : — 

"  Reckoning  by  wealth,  England  should  have  86  per 
cent,  of  the  representation  of  the  United  Kingdom,  or  576 
members  out  of  670  ;  Scotland,  by  the  same  rule,  should 
have  about  64  only  ;  and  Ireland  no  more  than  30.  .  .  . 
There  should  be  a  representation  of  forces  in  Parliament, 
if  we  had  perfectly  just  arrangements,  and  not  merely  a 
counting  of  heads.  Nothing  can  be  more  absurd  to  the 
mind  of  any  student  of  politics,  who  knows  how  forces 
rule  in  the  long  run,  than  the  system  now  established,  as 
between  the  metropolitan  community  of  England  and  its 
companions  in  sovereignty,  by  which  one  of  the  com- 
panion communities,  and  that  the  least  entitled  to  privi- 
lege, obtains  most  disproportionate  power." 

One  of  the  most  legitimate  uses  to  which  estimates  of 
national  capital  can  be  put,  is  to  ascertain  the  progress  of 
wealth  from  age  to  age.  In  an  historical  retrospect,  Mr. 
Giifen  reviews  the  work  of  his  predecessors,  rescuing 
from  an  undeserved  neglect  more  than  one  writer  who 
h.id  the  courage  and  sagacity  to  employ  what  Colquhoun 
calls  "  approximating  facts."  The  succession  of  estimates, 
from  the  age  of  Petty  to  the  present  time,  appears  to 
justify  the  hypothesis  of  a  constant  increase  of  property — 
a  five-fold  multiplication  per  century.  Contemplating 
the  long  series  of  records,  Englishmen  may  reflect  with 
pride  that  the  increased  estimates  are  matched  by  an 
ncreasing  power  of  handling  them,  that  the  growth  of 
material  prosperity  has  not  been  attended  by  a  decline 
in  statistical  genius,  and  that  the  work  of  Petty  is  con- 
tinued by  one  who  is  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the 
founder  of  Political  Arithmetic.  F.  Y.  E. 


MERGUI. 

Contributions  to  the  Fat/na  of  Mergidandits  Archipelago. 
2  Vols.     (London:  Taylor  and  Francis,  1889.) 

THE  materials  which  have  been  brought  together  in 
these  volumes  are  now  made  accessible  to  those 
specially  interested  in  the  fauna  of  this  group  of  islands 
in  a  connected  form.  The  collections  were  made  in  1881- 
82  by  Dr.  John  Anderson,  F.R.S.,  till  recently  Director  of 
the  Indian  Museimi  at  Calcutta,  who  brought  the  speci- 
mens to  England  with  him,  and  placed  the  different 
groups  in  the  hands  of  specialists  for  their  proper  identi- 
fication and  description.  The  result  has  been  the  publica- 
tion ot  a  number  of  faunistic  papers  in  the  Journal  of  the 
Linnean  Society  and  elsewhere,  and  these  papers  are 
now  published  in  the  form  of  two  volumes,  well  illus- 
trated with  plates,  and  containing  altogether  nearly  two 
dozen  distinct  memoirs  by  recognized  authorities  in  the 
different  departments. 

In  the  first  volume  Prof.  P.  Martin  Duncan  writes  on 
the  Madrepores,  and  in  his  concluding  remarks  calls  atten- 
tion to  the  remarkable  distinctness  of  the  existing  as 
compared  with  the  Miocene  corals  of  the  same  area. 
Prof.  F.  Jeffrey  Bell's  paper  on  the  Holuthuria  comes 
next  in  order,  and  is  followed  by  Mr.  F.  Moore's  paper 
on  the  Lepidoptera,  the  collection  in  the  last  order  con- 
taining 208  species  of  butterflies,  and  64  species  of  moths. 
The  Sponges  are  described  by  Mr.  H.  J.  Carter,  F.R.S., 
and  the  Ophiuridae  by  Prof.  Martin  Duncan,  who  contri- 
butes also  a  special  paper  on  the  anatomy  of  Ophiothrix 
variabilis  and  Op hiocampsis  pellicula.  The  Polyzoa  and 
Hydroida  are  taken  in  hand  by  the  Rev.  Thomas  Hincks. 
The  Coleoptera  have  come  off  badly,  if  Mr.  Bate's  de- 
scription of  one  new  species  {Brachyoftychus  andersoni) 
represents  the  whole  of  the  material  collected  in  this 
order.  We  suspect,  however,  that  more  will  be  heard 
about  the  Mergui  beetles  at  some  future  period. 

Dr.  Anderson  himself  contributes  the  list  of  birds, 
which  he  regards  "  merely  as  a  small  supplementary 
contribution  "  to  Messrs.  Hume  and  Davison's  labours  in 
the  same  field.  The  list  chiefly  records  the  distribution 
in  the  outer  islands  of  the  archipelago  of  a  few  of  the 
species  recorded  by  these  last  authors.  Dr.  Hoek,  of 
Leyden,  writes  on  a  Cirriped  {Dichelaspis  pellucida), 
which  does  not  appear  to  have  been  observed  since 
Darwin  published  his  original  description  in  his  mono- 
graph. The  shells — marine,  estuarine,  freshwater,  and 
terrestrial — form  the  subject  of  a  paper  by  Prof.  E.  v. 
Martens,  of  Berlin.  Mr.  Stuart  Ridley  has  been  en- 
trusted with  the  Alcyonaria,  and  Prof.  A.  C.  Haddon 
describes  two  species  of  Actiniae.  The  Annelids  are 
treated  of  by  Mr.  Frank  E.  Beddard,  who  includes  in  his 
paper  an  important  section  on  the  structure  of  the  eyes 
in  one  of  the  species  described.  The  Pennatulida  are 
treated  of  by  Prof.  Milnes  Marshall  and  Dr.  G.  H. 
Fowler,  and  the  Myriopoda  by  Mr.  R.  I.  Pocock,  this 
being  the  first  list  of  species  recorded  from  the  archi- 
pelago. The  Comatulae  are  described  by  Dr.  P.  Herbert 
Carpenter,  the  Echinoidea  by  Prof.  P.  Martin  Duncai> 
and  Mr.  W.  P.  Sladen,  and  the  Asteroidea  by  this  last 
author.  These  organisms,  when  referable  to  known 
species,  "  show  variations  which  are  sufficient  to  impart 
a  character  to  the  collection  as  a  whole^  and  to  indicate 


April  17,  1890J 


NATURE 


557 


the  existence  of  local  conditions  whose  action  upon  types 
of  a  more  plastic  nature  than  that  of  the  series  of  forms 
so  far  collected  would  probably  result  in  new  morpho- 
logical developments."  Mr.  Sladen  further  throws  out 
the  suggestion  that  the  Mergui  area  "  may  be  looked 
upon  as  a  moulding  ground  wherein  Malayan  types 
assume  a  modified  form."  A  description  of  the  physical 
conditions  prevailing  in  the  localities  where  the  Asteroidea 
were  collected  is  contributed  by  Dr.  Anderson,  and  adds 
much  to  the  value  of  this  paper.  The  paper  on  the 
Mammals,  Reptiles,  and  Batrachians  is  by  Dr.  Anderson, 
the  three  classes  being  represented  by  23,  53,  and  12 
species  respectively.  The  whole  of  the  second  volume, 
containing  over  300  pages  and  19  plates,  is  devoted  to 
the  Crustacea,  the  .author  entrusted  with  this  order 
being  Dr.  J.  G.  de  Man,  of  Middleburg,  Netherlands. 
It  should  be  added  that  this  part  of  the  work  relates 
only  to  the  stalk-eyed  Crustacea. 

The  names  of  the  different  specialists  who  stand  re- 
sponsible for  their  respective  contributions  are  sufficient 
guarantee  that  Dr.  Anderson  and  the  Calcutta  Museum 
have  been  the  means,  aided  largely  by  the  Linnean 
Society,  of  giving  to  the  public  a  substantial  and  trust- 
worthy contribution  to  the  natural  history  of  a  much- 
neglected  group  of  islands.  The  proximity  of  the  archi- 
pelago to  the  main  land  of  course  precludes  the  possibility 
of  expecting  much  in  the  way  of  insular  forms.  There  is 
one  paper,  however,  contributed  by  Dr.  Anderson,  and 
forming  the  second  part  of  the  first  volume,  which  wiil  be 
read  with  interest  by  anthropologists,  as  it  contains  a  de- 
scription of  a  peculiar  race  of  sea  gipsies  called  "  Selungs," 
who  frequent  the  archipelago  and  inhabit  many  of  its 
islands.  These  people  appear  to  be  sufficiently  distinct 
from  those  of  the  main  land  to  warrant  their  being  re- 
garded as  an  insular  race,  probably  having  Malayan 
affinities.  At  any  rate,  all  that  we  know  about  them  at 
the  present  time  is  contained  in  the  paper  referred  to, 
which  is  accompanied  by  two  photographic  groups  of  the 
people,  a  photograph  of  their  boats,  and  a  lithographed 
plate  of  their  weapons  and  utensils.  There  is  also  a 
vocabulary  of  their  language,  which,  according  to  General 
Browne,  bears  not  the  slightest  affinity  to  Burmese,  but 
which  Dr.  Rest  reports  to  be  distinctly  Malayan. 

R.  M. 


HO  W  TO  KNO  W  GRASSES  B  Y  THEIR  LEA  VES. 
How  to  know  Grasses  by  their  Leaves.    By  A.  N.  M'Alpine. 

(Edinburgh  :  David  Douglas,  1890.) 
nPHIS  little  book  will  be  a  valuable  aid  to  agriculturists 
*-  and  agricultural  students.  It  is  small,  and  adapted 
for  carrying  in  a  side  pocket.  It  comes  out  seasonably, 
as  the  time  is  fast  approaching  in  which  its  teaching  may 
be  verified  in  the  field.  It  fills  a  gap  in  our  know- 
ledge of  grasses,  as  botanists  usually  decide  species  by 
the  inflorescence,  rather  than  by  the  leaves.  Colour,  habit 
of  growth,  and  form  of  leaf,  are,  we  know,  somewhat 
variable  characters,  and  cannot  always  be  relied  upon  ; 
and  in  questions  relating  to  the  absolute  identification  of 
species,  no  doubt,  inflorescence  is  of  first  importance. 
There  is,  however,  a  practical  knowledge  which  derives 
immense  benefit  from  the  kind  of  information  contained 
in  Mr.    M'Alpine' s   work,   and  after  having  determined 


approximately  the  component  parts  of  a  pasture  in  the 
young  state,  it  is  open  to  the  observer  to  wait  for  further 
proof  in  the  spike  or  panicle,  which  will  in  due  time  appear. 
A  grass-field  contains  a  larger  number  of  species,  not  only 
of  grasses  but  of  clovers,  other  leguminous  plants,  and 
miscellaneous  herbage,  belonging  to  the  Cornpositce, 
Umbellifer<£,  Rosacece,  and  other  natural  orders.  This 
book  treats  solely  of  the  grasses,  and  clearly,  and  with  the 
help  of  200  figures,  shows  how  any  person  may  identify 
grasses  in  the  leafy  stage.  "  The  difficulties  connected 
with  the  identification  of  grasses  in  the  flowerless  con- 
dition," says  Mr.  M'Alpine,  "  are  not  at  all  so  great  as 
usually  supposed."  This  is  good  news  from  the  botanist 
of  the  Highland  and  Agricultural  .Society  of  Scotland, 
Professorof  Botany  in  the  New  Veterinary  College,  Edin- 
burgh,and  translator  of  Stebler's  "  Best  Forage  Plants."  The 
great  and  varied  knowledge  of  Mr.  M'Alpine,  is  in  itself  a 
guarantee  that  the  distinctions  he  has  traced  between  the 
blades  and  stems  of  grasses  are  not  of  a  hasty  or  flimsy 
character.  Many  of  them  are  new  to  us,  but  others  we  have 
noticed  ourselves,  and  know  them  to  be  correct.  Any  one 
furnished  with  a  copy  of  this  little  book,  and  a  small 
magnifier,  will  find  that  an  additional  interest  will  be  com- 
municated to  walks  in  the  fields,  and  the  question  as  to 
the  nature  of  the  growing  herbage  of  pastures  may  be 
satisfactorily  answered.  An  eye  trained  to  observation 
will  be  able  to  detect  slight  differences  better  than  the  eye 
which  sees  not,  but  we  feel  confidence  that  a  careful 
examination  of  the  plates  and  the  letterpress  of  this  little 
book  will,  if  used  in  the  field,  be  in  itself  a  training  in 
habits  of  observation.  The  book  should  be  in  the  hands 
of  every  agricultural  student,  as  it  in  due  time  will  become 
the  basis  of  questions  at  examinations.  T.he  facts  that 
Mr.  M'Alpine  is  himself  a  teacher,  and  that  Prof.  Wallace, 
of  Edinburgh  University,  has  written  the  preface,  point  to 
this  conclusion. 

The  price  for  so  small  a  book  (3^.  6d.)  certainly  appears 
very  heavy ;  but  if  it  is  called  for  in  sufficient  numbers, 
we  shall  doubtless  soon  hear  of  a  cheaper  edition.  The 
demand  for  books  of  this  class  is  small,  as  most  farmers 
do  not  read  more  than  is  good  for  them,  and  the  subject 
is  not  of  great  interest  to  the  general  reading  public. 

The  classification  adopted  by  Mr.  M'Alpine  is  not 
that  of  genera  and  species.  For  example,  rye-grasses 
{Lolium)  and  meadow  fescue  {Festuca)  are  grouped  to- 
gether, as  having  red  bases  to  their  stems  ;  crested 
dog's-tail  grass  is  peculiar  for  a  yellow  stem  base  ;  meadow 
fox-tail,  for  a  dark  or  almost  black  stem  base  ;  Yorkshire 
fog,  for  having  a  white  sheath,  with  red  veins.  These 
colours  at  the  base  of  the  stem,  taken  together  with 
other  characters,  are  used  to  identify  the  species,  and  the 
grasses  which  are  known  by  the  colours  just  enumerated 
form  a  group  described  as  "  characteristically  coloured 
grasses."  Group  II.  includes  variegated  grasses,  whose 
leaf-blades  are  composed  of  alternate  strips  of  white  and 
green  tissue.  Group  III.  includes  bulbous  grasses,  with 
low,  flat  ribs,  such  as  Timothy  grass  and  false  oat  grass. 
Group  IV.,  cord-rooted  grasses  in  hill  pastures,  such  as 
mat  grass  and  purple  Molinia.  Group  V.,  acute  sheathed 
grasses,  so  named  on  account  of  their  sharp  edges.  The 
shoots  are  quite  flat  on  the  sides  and  the  edges  acute 
— such  are  cocksfoot  and  rough-stalked  meadow  grass. 
Group  VII.,  bitter  tasted  grasses.     Group  VIII.,  bristle- 


558 


NATURE 


[April  17,  1890 


bladed  grasses.  Group  X.,  hairy  glasses.  Group  XII., 
ribless  bladed  grasses.  Groups  VI.,  IX.,  and  XI.  are 
separately  dealt  with,  but  those  above-mentioned  will 
sufficiently  show  the  principle  upon  which  the  classification 
is  made. 

The  figures  (diagrams),  showing  the  tapering,  obtuse, 
flat,  involute,  or  imbricate  character  of  the  herbage,  are 
exceedingly  plain  and  characteristic,  and  will  be  of  great 
assistance  to  the  observer  in  the  field.  The  leaf-blades, 
stems,  ligules,  sheaths,  &c.,  are  well  shown  in  cross- 
sections,  and  at  length.  John  Wrightson. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History  of  Cartography ,  with 
Reproductions  of  the  most  iinportant  Maps  printed 
in  the  Fifteenth  and  Sixteenth  Centuries.  By  A.  E. 
Nordenskiold.  Translated  from  the  Swedish  original 
by  J.  A.  Ekelof  and  Clements  R.  Markham.  (Stock- 
holm, 1889.) 

In  this  handsome  volume  there  are  142  pages  of  letter- 
press in  imperial  folio,  and  51  plates  in  double  folio.  It 
contains  reproductions  of  about  160  of  the  rarest  and 
most  important  maps  printed  before  the  year  1600. 
Among  these  are  the  27  maps  of  Ptolemy,  edited  by 
Schweinheim-Buckinck  in  Rome,  1478  and  1490 ;  maps 
from  Berlinghieri's  "Geographia,"  Firenze,  c.  1478  ;  Aesch- 
ler's  and  CJbelin's  "Ptolemy"  of  1513  :  Reisch  Marga- 
rita Philosophica,  of  1503  and  151 5;  Lafreri's  "  Atlas," 
Romae,  c.  1570;  Richard  Hakluyt's  "  Petrus  Martyr," 
Paris,  1587,  and  "  Principal  Navigations,"  London,  1599  ; 
maps  of  the  world,  by  Ruysch,  1508,  Bernardus  Sylvanus, 
1511,  Hobmicza,  1512,  Apianus,  1520,  Laurentius  Frisius, 
1522,  Robert  Torne,  1527,  Orontius  Finacus,  1531,  Gry- 
ncEus,  1532,  Mercator,  1538,  Girava,  1556,  de  Judaeis,  1593. 
We  find  also  the  first  modern  printed  maps  of  the  northern 
regions,  of  the  Holy  Land,  of  Central  Europe  (by  Nicolas 
a  Cusa),  of  France,  of  Spain,  of  England,  of  Russia  ;  the 
first  charts  for  the  use  of  mariners  published  in  print  ;  82 
general  maps,  or  maps  referring  to  the  New  World  ;  the 
first  modern  printed  maps  of  Africa  ;  the  first  map  illus- 
trating the  distribution  of  religious  creeds,  &c. 

As  regards  the  text,  chapters  i.-iii.  contain  researches 
relating  to  the  influence  of  Ptolemy  on  modern  carto- 
graphy, his  merits  and  defects,  and  the  different  editions 
of  his  geography.  Of  the  editions  enumerated  in 
bibliographical  works,  27  spurious  ones  are  neglected.  In 
chapter  iv.  a  review  is  given  of  ancient  maps  other  than 
Ptolemaic,  of  the  portolanos  and  their  influence  on 
modern  geography.  Chapter  v.  treats  of  the  extension  of 
Ptolemy's  C>//^i^;«^«^  towards  the  north  and  north-west, 
the  pre-Columbian  maps  of  Scandinavia  and  Greenland, 
the  most  remarkable  of  which  is  one  discovered  by 
Nordenskiold  himself  in  a  library  at  Warsaw  (reproduced 
on  Tab.  xxx.)  Chapter  vi.  deals  with  the  first  maps  of  the 
New  World,  and  the  then  recently  discovered  parts  of 
Africa  and  Asia.  Here  the  author  draws  attention  to  the 
hitherto  neglected  fact  that  maps  from  Vasco  de  Gama's 
second  voyage  were  printed  as  early  as  15 13  (reproduced 
in  the  letterpress.  Figs.  8-10).  Chapter  vii.  gives  an 
account  of  early  terrestrial  globes,  and  in  chapter  viii. — 
on  map  projection— the  author  corrects  several  errors 
generally  adopted  in  the  history  of  this  part  of  carto- 
graphy. In  chapter  ix.  he  deals  with  the  end  of  the  early 
period  of  cartography,  and  in  chapter  x.  with  the 
transition  to,  and  the  beginning  of,  the  modern  period. 
He  brings  out  the  importance  of  the  work  of  Jacopo 
Gastaldi,  Philip  Apianus,  Abraham  Ortelius,  and  Gerhard 
Mercator,  in  the  development  of  cartography.  He  also 
gives,  besides  a  catalogue  of  the  maps  in  Lafreri's  "  Atlas," 
a  critical  review  of  Ortelius's  celebrated  "  Catalogus  Auc- 
torum  tabularum  geographicarum." 


The  work  is  based  on  Baron  Nordenskiold's  private 
collection  of  ancient  printed  maps.  This  collection  he 
began  to  make  many  years  ago,  and  it  is  now  rich  in 
documents  from  the  periods  reviewed  in  the  present 
"  Atlas." 

The  maps  have  been  excellently  copied  and  printed, 
and  the  great  care  taken  by  the  librarian,  Mr.  W.  E. 
Dahlgren,  has  secured  the  correctness  of  the  citations. 
All  geographers  who  have  a  right  to  an  opinion  on  the 
subject  will  agree  that  the  work  is  indispensable  to 
every  library  in  which  there  is  a  department  devoted  to 
geography. 

Light  and  Heat.   By  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Aveling,  M.A.,  B.Sc. 
Second  Edition.     (London:  Relfe  Bros.,  1890.) 

This  is  a  new  edition  of  a  text-book  intended  to  prepare 
candidates  for  one  of  the  science  subjects  of  the  London 
matriculation.  It  has  been  much  improved  since  its 
first  appearance,  but  it  still  treats  the  subject  in  a  very 
superficial  way.  Although  no  one  could  seriously  study 
the  subject  with  this  as  a  guide,  it  is  certainly  a  useful 
summary  of  the  main  facts,  and  will  probably  be  found 
serviceable  by  intending  candidates.  The  coloured  plate 
of  spectra  has  been  corrected,  but  surely  this  is  superflous 
in  a  book  which  does  not  even  describe  an  ordinary 
student's  spectroscope.  The  author  has  fallen  into  the 
very  common  error  of  stating  that  the  electric  arc  gives 
a  continuous  spectrum,  and  he  also  states  that  the  hnes 
in  the  spectra  of  the  fixed  stars  are  different  from  those 
which  characterize  sunlight ;  whereas  in  a  great  many 
cases  they  are  practically  identical. 

There  are  numerous  diagrams,  but  they  are  barely  of 
a  quality  equal  to  those  which  would  be  produced  by  a 
student   at   an  examination.      The   large    collection    of  y. 
questions  and  answers  will  be  very  useful.  aJ 

IVarren's   Table  and Forjmila  Book.     By  the  Rev.  Isaac 
Warren.     (London  :  Longmans,  Green,  and  Co.,  1889.) 

We  have  in  this  small  work  a  compact  and  trustworthy 
set  of  tables,  facts,  and  formula;  which  come  within  the 
scope  of  an  ordinary  education.  As  a  reference  book,  it 
should  prove  most  useful,  the  information  it  conveys  ' 
being  concise  and  to  the  point.  In  addition  to  the  usual 
tables  of  weights  and  measures,  &c.,  we  have  an  account 
of  the  physical  and  electrical  units  now  in  use,  followed 
by  the  most  important  formulae  used  in  algebra,  mensura- 
tion and  trigonometry,  and  tables  of  exchange,  principal 
units  of  value  throughout  the  world,  and  comparative 
average  values  of  some  important  coins,  the  last  of  which 
will  doubtless  be  found  useful  to  those  travelling  abroad. 
Some  of  the  most  important  business  forms,  such  ^s 
"  Form  of  a  Joint  Promissory  Note,"  "  Form  of  Foreign 
Bill  of  Exchange,"  &c.,  are  printed  in  full ;  and  the  work 
concludes  with  postal  and  telegraph  rates.  On  the  back 
of  the  cover  are  printed  diagrams  of  a  square  decimetre 
and  centimetre  and  a  square  inch,  together  with  scales  of 
centimetres  and  inches. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  TTie  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents.  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature, 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.  \ 

"  Panmixia." 

The  somewhat  strained  argumentation  which  Mr.  Romanes 
has  devoted  in  your  issue  of  AjDril  3  (p.  511)  to  my  defence 
of  Mr.  Darwin's  position  in  regard  to  "cessation  of  selec- 
tion" and  "  economy  of  growth  "  does  not  convince  me  of  the 
justice  of  the  former's  claim  to  have  originated  new  principles  "un- 
fortunately "  (to  use'his  own  expression)  too  late  for  Mr.  Darwin  to 
liave  the  advantage  of  correcting  himself  by  their  aid.  In  his 
letter  of  March   13   (p.  437)  Mr.   Romanes  lays  great  stress  in 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


559 


•criticizing  Weismann  upon  what  he  calls  "  reversal  of  selection," 
which  he  now  tells  us  is  the  same  principle  as  "  economy  of 
growth."  Yet  in  the  earlier  letter  he  entirely  omits  to  credit  Mr. 
Darwin  with  the  recognition  of  that  principle,  and  after  carefully 
asserting  that  Mr.  Darwin  had  overlooked  the  principle  of 
"  panmixia,"  he  gives  in  an  historical  form  what  he  (Mr.Romanes) 
had  argued  some  years  ago,  and  what  his  views  were — including 
herein  the  principle  of  economy  of  growth,  or  more  generally, 
reversed  selection.  Now  that  the  oversight  has  been  pointed 
out  to  him  Mr.  Romanes  allows  that  "it  is  a  matter  of  familiar 
knowledge  that  Mr.  Darwin  at  all  times,  and  through  all  his 
works,  laid  considerable  stress  upon  the  economy  of  growth  (or 
more  generally,  reversed  selection)." 

Mr.  Romanes  makes  an  unreal  separation  between  "  cessa- 
tion of  selection  "  and  "reversal  of  selection  "  ;  at  the  same 
time,  for  the  mere  purpose  of  badinage,  he  affects  to  suppose 
that  I  do  not  perceive  any  difference  between  them — a  suppo- 
sition which  cannot  be  sincere  in  view  of  the  statements  in  my 
letter  of  March  27.  Cessation  of  selection  is  not  a  "  principle  " 
at  all.  It  is  a  condition  which  alone  cannot  produce  any  im- 
portant result.  At  the  same  time,  what  Mr.  Romanes  mislead- 
ingly  calls  "reversal  of  selection,"  viz.  "economy  of  growth," 
cannot  become  operative  in  causing  the  dwindling  of  an  organ 
until  the  condition  of  "  cessation  of  selection  "  exists.  The  fact 
is — as  Mr.  Romanes  insisted  before  it  was  pointed  out  in  these 
pages  that  it  was  no  new  principle  of  his  own  discovery,  and 
when  he  wished  to  lay  claim  to  an  improvement  upon  Weis- 
mann's  exposition  of  "panmixia" — cessation  of  selection  must 
be  supplemented  by  economy  of  growth  in  order  to  produce  the 
results  attributed  to  "panmixia."  And  inasmuch  as  economy 
of  growth  as  a  cause  of  degeneration  involves  the  condition  of 
cessation  of  selection,  Mr.  Darwin,  in  recognizing  the  one 
recognized  the  other. 

By  the  use  of  the  term  "  the  principle  of  the  cessation  of 
selection  "  Mr.  Romanes  has  created  an  unnecessary  obscurity. 
To  say  that  a  part  has  become  "useless,"  or  "has  ceased 
to  be  useful  to  its  possessor"  as  Mr.  Darwin  does,  is  clearly  the 
same  thing  as  to  say  that  it  "  has  ceased  to  be  selected  " — selec- 
tion and  use  being  inseparable.  Mr.  Darwin  states  that  such 
parts  "  may  well  be  variable,  for  their  variations  can  no  longer 
be  checked  by  natural  selection."  That  is  panmixia.  It  is 
true  that  Mr.  Darwin  did  not  recognize  that  such  unrestricted 
variation  must  lead  to  a  diminution  in  size  of  the  varying  part 
without  the  operation  of  the  principle  of  "economy  of 
growth."  This  was  no  strange  oversight  :  he  would  have  been 
in  error  had  he  done  so.  On  the  other  hand,  he  did  recognize 
that,  given  the  operation  of  that  principle,  the  result  would 
amount  to  the  dwindling  and  degeneration  of  parts  which  are 
referred  to  as  rudimentary. 

"  Panmixia  "  as  a  term  clearly  refers  to  the  unrestricted  inter- 
breeding of  all  varieties  which  may  arise,  when  selection  in 
regard  to  a  given  part  or  organ  is  no  longer  operative.  The 
term,  like  its  correlative  "cessation  of  selection,"  does  not 
indicate  a  principle  but  a  natural  condition  :  it  does  not  involve 
the  inference  that  a  dwindling  in  the  size  of  the  organ  must 
result  from  the  inter-breeding  ;  but  simply  points  to  a  precedent 
condition. 

I  am  by  no  means  prepared  to  admit  that  pinmixia  alone 
{i.e.  without  economy  of  growth  or  other  such  factors)  can  be 
relied  upon,  2%  it  is  by  Mr.  Romanes,  to  explain  the  reduction  in 
size  of  the  disused  organs  of  domesticated  animals.  I  observe 
that  in  his  letter  on  this  subject  to  Nature  of  April  9,  1874, 
Mr.  Romanes  does  not  attempt  to  attribute  a  dwindling  action 
to  "  panmixia  "  alone,  but  assumes  a  limitation  by  economy  of 
growth  to  any  increase  beyond  the  initial  size  of  the  organ  which 
has  become  useless.  Given  this  limitation  and  the  condition  of 
panmixia,  the  dwindling  follows  ;  but  it  is  absurd  to  attribute 
the  result,  or  any  proportion  of  it,  to  the  panmixia  or  cessation 
of  selection  alone.  On  the  other  hand,  when  we  consider  shape 
and  structure,  and  not  merely  size,  it  is  clear  that  panmixia 
without  economy  of  growth  would  lead  to  a  complete  loss  of  that 
complex  adjustment  of  parts  which  many  organs  exhibit,  and 
consequently  to  degeneration  without  loss  of  bulk.  That  the 
principle  of  economy  of  growth  is  ever  totally  inoperative  has 
not  been  demonstrated.  E.  Ray  Lankes ter. 

April  9. 


Heredity,  and  the  Effects  of  Use  and  Disuse. 
All  biologists  will,  I  am  sure,  agree  as  to  the  desirability  of  a 
thorough  testing  of  the  hypotheses  relative  to  the  inheritance  of 


the  effects  of  use  and  disuse.  As  Mr.  Spencer  says,  in  the  pre- 
face to  "  The  Factors  of  Organic  Evolution,"  "Considering  the 
width  and  depth  of  the  effects  which  acceptance  of  one  or  other 
of  these  hypotheses  must  have  on  our  views  of  Life,  Mind, 
Morals,  and  Politics,  the  question — Which  of  them  is  true  ?  de- 
mands, beyond  all  other  questions  whatever,  the  attention  of 
scientific  men." 

As  experiments  suggested  by  those  who  believe  in  the  in- 
herhance  of  the  effects  of  use  and  disuse  would  hardly  carry  the 
weight  to  those  who  do  not  believe  in  this  inheritance  which  ex- 
periments proposed  by  themselves  would,  I  write  to  suggest 
the  desirability  of  undertaking  an  investigation  which,  Prof. 
Weismann  thinks,  would  prove  one  or  other  hypothesis.  He 
states  it  in  the  following  words  on  p.  90  of  the  English  edition 
of  his  "  Essays"  : — 

"If  it  is  desired  to  prove  that  use  and  disuse  produce 
hereditary  effects  without  the  assistance  of  natural  selection,  it 
will  be  necessary  to  domesticate  wild  animals  (for  example,  the 
wild  duck),  and  preserve  all  their  descendants,  thus  excluding 
the  operation  of  natural  selection.  If,  then,  all  individuals  of 
the  second,  third,  fourth,  and  later  generations  of  these  tame 
ducks  possess  identical  variations,  which  increase  from  generation 
to  generation,  and  if  the  nature  of  these  changes  proves  that 
they  must  have  been  due  to  the  effects  of  use  and  disuse,  then 
perhaps  the  transmission  of  such  effects  may  be  admitted  ;  but 
it  must  always  be  remembered  that  domestication  itself  in- 
fluences the  organism, — not  only  directly,  but  also  indirectly,  by 
the  increase  of  variability  as  a  result  of  natural  selection.  Such 
experiments  have  not  yet  been  carried  out  in  sufficient  detail." 

If  Profs.  Weismann,  Romanes,  and  Lankester,  would  agree 
to  some  such  experiment  as  the  above  as  definitely  proving  the 
point  in  question  (I  say  "definitely,"  for  the  sentence  which 
reads  "  if  the  nature  of  these  changes  proves  that  they  must  have 
been  due  to  the  effects  of  use  and  disuse,"  seems  to  leave  a  loop- 
hole for  escape,  even  if  the  experiment  were  carefully  carried 
out),  there  are  two  ways  in  which  it  might  be  effected.  One  is, 
that  the  British  Association,  which  by  devoting  time  to  the  dis- 
cussion of  the  hypothesis  has  shown  an  appreciation  of  its  worth, 
should  at  its  next  meeting  appoint  a  committee,  with  a  small 
grant  for  necessary  expenses,  to  carry  out  the  investigation.  The 
other  is,  that  rit  should  be  undertaken  independently  by  the 
foremost  of  those  on  both  sides  who  are  interested  in  the  ques- 
tion, and  who  would  no  doubt  subscribe  among  themselves 
enough  for  the  purpose  in  view — at  least,  speaking  for  myself, 
I  should  not  object  to  contribute  to  the  expenses  of  a  properly 
planned  investigation. 

Regarding  the  place  where  the  "wild  ducks,"  or  possibly 
some  animal  with  a  more  frequent  recurrence  of  broods,  should 
be  located  for  observation,  I  would  suggest  that  the  Zoological 
Society  should  be  asked  to  afford  space  in  their  Gardens  at 
Regent's  Park.  F.  Howard  Collins. 

Churchfield,  Edgbaston. 

Galls. 

The  difficulty  raised  by  Mr.  Wetterhan  (Nature,  February 
27,  p.  394)  appears  at  first  sight  a  serious  one,  but  I  think  it 
vanishes  on  examination.  Supposing  the  attacks  of  the  insects 
to  be  constant,  trees  in  their  evolution  would  have  to  adapt 
themselves  to  these  circumstances,  just  as  they  have  adapted 
themselves  to  the  environment  of  soil,  air,  light,  wind,  and  so 
forth.  But  the  fallacy  (as  it  seems  to  me)  of  Mr.  Wetterhan's 
argument  lies  in  the  supposition  that  the  life  of  an  oak-tree  as 
such,  and  the  life  of  an  insect,  may  rightly  be  compared.  A  tree 
is  really  a  sort  of  socialistic  community  of  plants,  which 
continually  die  and  are  supplanted  by  fresh.  Bud-variation  is 
a  well-known  thing,  and  in  oaks  A.  de  Candolle  found  many 
variations  on  the  same  tree.  Now  is  it  unreasonable  to  suppose 
that  internal-feeding  insects  might  fake  advantage  of  such 
variation — or  rather,  be  obliged  to  take  advantage  of  it,  if  it 
were  in  a  direction  to  benefit  the  tree  ?  I  will  give  two 
purely  hypothetical  instances,  to  illustrate  the  points  involved. 
Imagine  two  oak-trees,  each  with  three  branches,  and  each 
attacked  by  three  internal-feeding  insects.  The  insects  infesting 
one  tree  are  borers  ;  those  on  the  other  tree  are  gall-makers. 
The  borers  bore  into  the  branches,  which  they  kill  while 
undergoing  their  transformations  :  the  tree  posibly  does  not 
die  that  year,  but  next  year  the  progeny  of  the  three,  being 
more  numerous  while  the  tree  is  weaker,  effect  its  destruction, 
and  finally  the  insects  perish  for  want  of  food.  On  the  other 
tree,  the  gall-makers  do  no  appreciable  damage,  and  the  tree  is 


56o 


NA  TURE 


{April  17,  1890 


able  to  support  them  and  their  progeny  without  great  difficulty. 
Now  a  little  consideration  will  show  that  the  longer  the  life  and 
the  slower  the  reproduction  of  the  trees,  the  greater  will  be 
the  contrast.  If  the  plant  infested  by  the  borers  had  been  an 
annual  herb,  it  might  have  contrived  to  perfect  its  seeds,  and 
the  death  of  the  old  stem  would  be  but  a  natural  and  inevitable 
process,  and  fresh  plants  might  have  been  produced  in  suffi- 
cient numbers  to  continue  the  species  in  spite  of  all  insect- 
attacks..  But  in  the  case  of  trees — oak-trees  especially,  the  rate 
of  growth  and  reproduction  is  such  that,  unless  the  insect-borers 
can  live  in  galls,  they  will  destroy  the  plants  entirely,  and 
themselves  in  consequence.  Indeed,  I  have  no  doubt,  that  if 
all  the  gall-makers  now  existing  could  suddenly  be  transformed 
into  stem-borers,  the  genera  Querctis,  Rosa,  and  Salix,  now  so 
dominant,  would  shortly  disappear  from  off  the  face  of  the  earth. 
The  other  hypothesis — here  assuming  that  the  production  of 
galls  is  due  more  to  the  tree  than  the  insect — is  this.  Suppose 
an  oak-tree  with  four  branches,  all  attacked  by  internal- feeding 
insects.  Two  of  the  branches  produce  swellings  in  which  the 
insects  live,  while  the  other  two  produce  none,  and  the  insects 
have  to  devour  the  vital  parts.  Now  the  two  branches  which 
produced  no  swellings  would  quickly  be  killed  by  the  insects, 
but  those  which  produced  galls  would  live,  and  the  more 
perfect  the  galls,  the  greater  the  insect-population  they  would  be 
able  to  support.  Hence  the  tree  would  finally,  by  the  survival 
of  its  gall-producing  branches,  become  purely  gall-producing, 
and  we  may  assume  that  its  progeny  would  inherit  the  pecu- 
liarity. 

I  am  aware  that  the  above  arguments  will  sound  a  little  like 
those  of  the  Irishman,  who  said  he  ought  not  to  be  hanged,  be- 
cause, "in  the  first  place,  he  did  not  kill  the  man;  in  the 
second  place,  he  killed  him  by  accident;  and  thirdly,  he  killed 
him  in  self-defence," — but  I  do  not  represent  either  of  the 
above  hypotheses  as  the  precise  truth  of  the  matter,  and  I  think 
they  sufficiently  illustrate  the  principles  involved. 

T.   D.  A.  COCKERELL. 

West  Cliff,  Custer  Co.,  Colorado,  March  16. 

On  the  Use  of  the  Edison  Phonograph  in  the  Preserva- 
tion of  the  Languages  of  the  American  Indians. 

The  present  state  of  perfection  of  the  Edison  phonograph  led 
me  to  attempt  some  experiments  with  it  on  our  New  England 
Indians,  as  a  means  of  preserving  languages  which  are  rapidly 
becoming  extinct.  I  accordingly  made  a  visit  to  Calais,  Maine, 
and  was  able,  through  the  kindness  of  Mrs.  VV.  Wallace  Brown, 
to  take  upon  the  phonograph  a  collection  of  records  illustrating 
the  language,  folk-lore,  songs,  and  counting-out  rhymes  of  the 
Passamaquoddy  Indians,  My  experiments  met  with  complete 
success,  and  I  was  able  not  only  to  take  the  records,  but  also  to 
take  them  so  well  that  the  Indians  themselves  recognized  the 
voices  of  other  members  of  the  tribe  who  had  spoken  the  day 
before. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  records  which  was  made  was  the 
song  of  the  snake  dance,  sung  by  Noel  Josephs,  who  is  recog- 
nized by  the  Passamaquoddies  as  the  best  acquainted  of  all  with 
this  song  "of  old  time."  He  is  always  the  leader  in  the  dance, 
and  sang  it  in  the  same  way  as  at  its  last  celebration. 

I  also  took  upon  the  same  wax  cylinder  on  which  the  im- 
pressions are  made  his  account  of  the  dance,  including  the 
invitation  which  precedes  the  ceremony. 

In  addition  to  the  song  of  the  snake  dance  I  obtained  on  the 
phonograph  an  interesting  "trade  song,"  and  a  "Mohawk  war 
song  "which  is  very  old.  Several  other  songs  were  recorded. 
Many  very  interesting  old  folk-tales  were  also  taken.  In  some 
of  these  there  occur  ancient  songs  with  archaic  words,  imitation 
of  the  voices  of  animals,  old  and  young.  An  ordinary  conversa- 
tion between  two  Indians,  and  a  counting-out  rhyme,  are  among 
the  records  made.  ' 

I  found  the  schedules  of  the  United  States  Bureau  of  Ethno- 
logy of  great  value  in  my  work,  and  adopted  the  method  of 
giving  Passamaquoddy  and  English  words  consecutively  on  the 
cylinders. 

The  records  were  all  numbered,  and  the  announcement  of  the 
subject  made  on  each  in  English.  Some  of  the  stories  filled 
several  cylinders,  but  there  was  little  difficulty  in  making  the 
changes  necessary  to  pass  from  one  to  the  other,  and  the  Indians, 
after  some  practice,  were  able  to  "make  good  records"  in  the 
instrument.  Thirty-six  cylinders  were  taken  in  all.  One  apiece 
is  sufficient  for  most  of  the  songs  and  for  many  of  the  short 
stories.     The  longest  story  taken  was  a  folk-tale,  which  occupies 


nine  cylinders,  about  "  Podump  "  and  "  Pook-jin-Squiss,"  the 
"Black  Cat  and  the  Toad  Woman,"  which  has  never  been 
published.  In  a  detailed  report  of  my  work  with  the  phono- 
graph in  preserving  the  Passamaquoddy  language,  I  hope  to  give 
a  translation  of  this  interesting  story. 

Boston,  U.S.A.,  March  20.  J.  Walter  Fewkes. 

Solar  Halos  and  Parhelia. 

A  magnificent  display  of  solar  halos  and  parhelia  was 
witnessed  here  this  afternoon,  exceeding  in  beauty  and  brilliancy 
that  observed  on  January  29,  1890,  and  described  in  Nature, 
February  6,  p.  330. 

The  phenomenon  was  similar  to  the  one  of  January  29, 
except  that  the  mock  suns  were  distinctly  outside  the  first  circle 
or  halo,  at  a  distance  of  5°  or  6°,  and  were  when  first  seen 
at  3  p.m.  aboz'e  the  level  of  the  true  sun  ;  a  handkerchief  stretched 
at  arm's  length  from  one  to  the  other  gave  the  blurred  image  of 
the  sun  several  degrees  lower. 

At  3.49  the  patch  of  white  light  appeared  about  90°  from  the 
right  mock  sun  and  connected  to  it  with  a  curved  band  of  white 
light,  concave  side  upwards.  The  right  mock  sun  must  then 
have  been  below  the  level  of  the  sun,  as  the  band  appeared  to 
pass  upwards  through  it  to  the  sun.  This  band  only  remained 
a  few  minutes  ;  the  right  sun  and  zenith  arc  at  the  time  were 
most  intensely  brilliant,  with  the  colours  exceptionally  clear  and 
vivid.  The  zenith  arc,  and  the  patch  of  white  light,  were  the 
last  to  disappear  at  4. 22, 

The  cirro-stratus  cloud  during  and  after  the  display  was 
rapidly  advancing  from  the  north, 

Driffield,  April  9,  J.  Lovell. 

Cambridge  Anthropometry. 

I  have  read  with  much  interest,  in  Nature  of  March  13 
(p.  450),  Mr.  Venn's  very  interesting  article  on  anthropometry 
at  Cambridge. 

There  is  in  his  tables  one  rather  peculiar  feature,  of  which  I 
fiad  no  notice  taken  in  the  text.  It  will  be  seen  on  reference  to 
the  tables  that,  while  the  other  physical  characteristics  increase 
from  A  to  B,  and  from  B  to  C  (weight  and  height  being  irregular, 
however),  the  breath  is  highest  in  A,  less  in  B,  and  least  in  C  ; 
thus  falling  with  the  intellectual  fall. 

It  is  true  that  the  difference  in  this  as  in  most  of  the  other 
characteristics  is  so  slight  as  to  be — as  Mr.  Venn  says — 
practically  negligible  ;  but  still  the  fact  that  this  should  steadily 
fall  instead  of  rising  with  the  other  physical  characteristics 
strikes  me  as  peculiar.  I  should  be  glad  therefore  to  hear  if 
Mr.  Venn  has  any  comment  to  make  on  this  phenomenon,  or 
any  explanation  thereof  to  suggest.  F.  H.  P,  C, 

April  4. 


A  Remarkable    Meteor. 

On  Thursday,  April  10,  at  10.40  p.m.,  I  observed  a  meteor 
of  extraordinary  brilliancy  shoot  from  a  point  just  east  of  i8 
Leonis.  It  travelled  over  about  10°  in  a  north-westerly  direction, 
and  was  visible  for  fully  two  seconds.  Its  apparent  diameter,  as 
nearly  as  I  can  judge,  was  about  a  quarter  of  that  of  the  full 
moon  ;  its  colour,  a  very  vivid  pale  green.  J.  Dunn. 

Much  Marcle,  Herefordshire,  April  li. 

Earthworms  from  Pennsylvania. 

Nearly  twenty  years  ago,  a  very  aberrant  earthworm  was 
described  by  a  French  naturalist,  who  obtained  it  from  Pennsyl- 
vania. I  should  be  greatly  indebted  to  any  naturalists  or  travel- 
lers who  may  find  themselves  in  that  part  of  the  United  States, 
if  they  would  collect  some  of  these  worms  and  send  them  to  me. 
The  most  convenient  mode  of  transmission  would  be  to  pack 
the  living  worms  in  moist  earth  with  moss  or  grass,  in  a  tin  box 
perforated  at  one  end :  this  should  be  inclosed  in  a  wooden  box. 
Both  small  and  large  worms  should  be  collected :  some  might  be 
preserved  in  strong  spirit,  but  living  specimens  would  be  the 
most  useful.  W.  Blaxland  Benham. 

University  College,  London,  April  10. 


Crystals  of  Lime. 
Since  the  appearance  of  my  letter  on  this  subject  (p,  515)  I 
have  found  that  similar  crystals  have  been  recently  observed  ' 
Mr.  J.  Joly,  and  were  described  by  him  in  the  Proceedings j 
the  Royal  Dublin  Society,  vol.  vi.  p.  255.        H,  A.  MlERS.] 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


561 


SAMPLES  OF  CURRENT  ELECTRICAL 
LITERATURE."^ 

'X'HESE  four  books  are  samples  of  the  different  classes 
■*■  of  text-books  of  the  present  day.  The  first,  as  its 
title  implies,  is  intended  for  workmen  actually  engaged 
in  the  electrical  industries,  and  is  therefore  of  the  non- 
mathematical  technical  order.  The  second,  on  the  other 
hand,  is  intended  for  the  practical  man  who  is  not  afraid 
of  a  differential  equation,  and  is  a  very  suitable  book  for 
a  student  of  one  of  the  higher  technical  colleges.  The 
third  is  a  mathematical  treatise  of  the  University  type  ; 
while  the  fourth  is  intended  for  the  general  public  unac- 
quainted with  mathematical  or  scientific  principles,  but 
anxious  to  learn  something  about  this  electricity  and  its 
distribution,  which  are  now  constantly  being  referred  to 
even  in  the  daily  newspapers. 

Of  the  four  books,  the  second,  on  "  Absolute  Measure- 
ments in  Electricity  and  Magnetism,"   is  the  most  valu- 
able, because  the  information  it  contains  is  correct,  and 
much  of  it  is  not  to  be  found  in  other  books.    On  opening 
the  first  book,  "  Short  Lectures  to  Electrical  Artisans," 
we  anticipated  seeing  how  Dr.  Fleming  had  struck  out 
an  entirely  new  line  ;  but  we  must  confess  our  disappoint- 
ment at  finding  that  the  author  has  such  a  veneration  for 
the  authority  of  antiquity  that  he  felt  compelled  to  com- 
mence this  book  with  a  description  of   the  loadstone. 
These  lectures,  we  are  told  in  the  preface  to  the  first 
edition,  are  on  "subjects  connected  with  the  principles 
underlying    modern    electrical    engineering,"  and    were 
delivered  "  to  the  pupils  and  workmen  associated  with  " 
Mr.  Crompton's  firm  at  Chelmsford.     We  presume,  then, 
that  the  lectures  were  intended  to  enable  workmen  to 
make  better  dynamo  machines,  electromotors,  &c.,  but 
as  we  never  yet  met  with  a  piece  of  loadstone  in  any 
electrical  factory  in  England  or  the  Continent,  we  fail  to 
see  how  the  purpose  of  the  lectures  was  served  by  their 
starting  with  an  account  of  the  "  native  oxide  of  iron  " 
called  the  loadstone.      Neither  the    loadstone   nor   the 
classical  lump  of  amber,  so  dear  to  the  hearts  of  the 
writers  of  electrical  text-books,  are  workshop  tools.    The 
latter  a  workman  may  perhaps  come  into  contact  with 
as  a  mouthpiece  to  his  pipe,  but  a  piece  of  loadstone  he 
will  probably  never  even  see  out  of  the  lecturer's  hand. 
Apart  from  this  academic  start.  Lecture   L  is   decidedly 
good  ;  the  author,  for  example,  not  merely  mentions  that 
an  alloy  of  steel  with  12  per  cent,  of  manganese  is  nearly 
non-magnetic,  but  he  gives  the  name  and  address  of  the 
firm  from  whom  manganese  steel  can  be  obtained,  and 
he  follows  the  same  wise  course  when  explaining  how 
ferro-prussiate    photographic   paper   may   be    used    for 
obtaining  permanent  records  of  magnetic  lines  of  force. 

But  why  give  Rowland's  curve  connecting  permeability 
and  magnetic  induction,  since  later  experiments  have 
shown  that  this  curve  is  quite  wrong  for  large  magnetic 
inductions.?  The  same  mistake  is  made  in  Lecture  I IL, 
where  it  is  assumed  that  for  a  certain  magnetizing  force 
iron  becomes  saturated,  so  that  no  greater  induction  can 
be  produced,  no  matter  how  much  the  magnetic  force  is 
increased. 

Lectures  I L  and  IIL  have  many  blemishes.  The  ex- 
pression 50  amperes  of  current,  on  p.  24,  is  misleading  ; 
you  cannot  have  50  amperes  of  anything  else  but  current. 
An  ampere  is  the  English  name  for  a  unit  of  current; 
why,  then,  put  a  grave  accent  over  the  name  1  One  might 
as  well  in  speaking  of  so  many  metres  give  this  last  word 
its  French  pronunciation.?     In  justice,  however,  to  Dr. 

'  "Short  Lectures  to  Electrical  Artisans."  2nd  Edition.  By  J.  A 
Fleming;.     (London  :  E.  and  F.  N.  Spon,  1888.) 

"Absolute  Measurements  in  Electriciiy  and  Magnetism."  2nd  Edition 
Revised  and  greatly  Enlarged.  By  Andrew  Gray.  (London  :  Macmillan 
and  Co..  1889  ) 

"  The  Theory  and  Practice  of  Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity  and 
Magnetism.       By  Andrew  Gray.     (London:  Macmillan  and  Co.,  1888) 
,Tr    Electricity  in  Modern   Life."     By  G.   W.  de  Tunzelmann.     (London : 
Walter  Scott,  i88q.) 


Fleming,  we  should  mention  that  the  use  of  the  grave 
accent  over  the  word  ampere,  when  used  in  English,  is 
not  peculiar  to  him.  We  wish,  however,  that  he  had 
been  bold  enough  to  Anglicize  this  word.  In  describing 
the  construction  of  a  simple  mirror  galvanometer,  the 
technical  reader  ought  to  have  been  warned  that,  unless, 
in  sticking  the  three  magnets  on  the  back  of  the  mirror 
with  shellac  varnish,  the  shellac  be  put  just  at  the 
middle  only  of  each  magnet,  the  mirror  will  be  distorted 
and  rendered  useless.  To  say,  when  speaking  of  the  in- 
duction of  a  current  in  a  secondary  coil  by  the  starting  or 
stopping  of  a  current  in  the  primary,  that  the  interposition 
of  "  a  plate  of  iron  prevents  it  altogether,"  shows  that 
the  author  has  never  tried  the  experiment. 

On  p.  30  is  given  a  picture  of  the  apparatus  the 
author  employs  for  ascertaining  the  laws  of  the  pro- 
duction of  a  current  in  a  coil  by  the  insertion  or 
withdrawal  of  a  magnet.  The  magnet  that  is  being 
moved  has,  judging  from  the  figure,  at  least  looo  times 
the  mass  of  the  needle  of  the  galvanometer,  which  is 
attached  by  two  very  short  wires  to  the  coil  in  which  the 
current  is  induced.  If  an  electrical  artisan  were  to  per- 
form this  experiment  with  the  apparatus  placed  as  in  Fig. 
17  of  Dr.  Fleming's  book,  he  would  probably  ascertain 
the  laws  of  magneto-electric  induction  with  the  same 
amount  of  accuracy  as  we  once  saw  obtained  at  a  lecture 
where  the  decisive,  and  applause-producing,  swings  of 
the  galvanometer  needle,  on  suddenly  bringing  up  the 
magnet  to  the  coil  and  removing  it  again,  were  certainly 
produced  by  the  direct  action  of  the  magnet  on  the 
galvanometer  needle,  since  it  was  observed  at  the  close  of 
the  lecture  that  one  of  the  wires  going  from  the  coil  to  the 
galvanometer  had  never  been  connected  with  the  galvano- 
meter terminal.  And  the  same  sort  of  criticism  applies 
to  Fig.  28,  p.  57,  representing  the  arrangement  of  ap- 
paratus for  measuring  the  magnetization  of  the  iron  core 
of  an  electro  magnet  by  a  current  passing  round  its  coil. 
The  reader  is  told  that  the  magnetometer,  which  is,  of 
course,  to  be  directly  affected  by  the  magnetism  of  the 
iron  bar,  is,  for  some  reason  unexplained  in  the  book,  to 
be  put  at  a  considerable  distance  from  the  bar,  but  he  is 
not  warned  that  the  meter  used  for  measuring  the  current 
passing  round  the  electro-magnet  (and  which,  of  course, 
ought  not  to  be  directly  affected  by  the  magnetism  of  the 
bar)  must  on  no  account  be  placed,  as  in  this  figure, 
close  to  the  powerful  magnet. 

On  p.  32  the  author  says  that  a  core  of  soft  iron  "acts 
like  a  lens,  and  concentrates  or  focusses  more  lines  of 
force  from  the  magnet  on  the  primary  coil  through  the 
aperture  of  the  secondary."  But  this  simile  with  a  lens 
is  but  a  repetition  of  an  old  error  ;  a  lens  simply  bends 
rays  of  light,  and,  so  far  from  adding  to  the  total  amount 
of  light,  actually  slightly  diminishes  this  amount  by  ab- 
sorption. A  lens  for  light  is  like  a  funnel  for  a  fluid,  it 
directs  the  stream  along  a  narrow  channel,  so  that  while 
the  flow  is  on  the  whole  diminished  by  friction  the  flow 
along  a  certain  cross-section  is  much  increased.  But  the 
insertion  of  an  iron  core  into  a  coil  traversed  by  a  current 
vastly  increases  the  total  number  of  lines  of  force.  The 
solenoid  without  the  iron  core  is  like  a  cistern  with  water 
in  it  which  is  being  emptied  with  a  pipe  full  of  dirt, 
through  which  the  water  can  only  trickle  ;  and  the  inser- 
tion of  the  iron  core  into  the  solenoid  is  like  the  cleaning 
out  of  the  pipe,  so  that  the  stream  of  water  now  becomes 
vigorous  and  rapid.  Even  Dr.  Fleming  knocks  his 
own  simile  on  the  head,  for  he  states  27  pages 
further  on,  "  The  joint  effect  of  the"  (iron)  "  bar  and  coils 
is  the  sum  of  the  effects  of  each  separately."  Fancy  any- 
one saying  that  the  joint  effect  of  a  lens  and  a  candle  was 
the  sum  of  the  effects  of  each  separately. 

We  consider  it  archaic  for  Dr.  Fleming  to  define  the 
volt  for  practical  men  as  the  E.M.F.  generated  in  one 
centimetre  of  wire  moving  with  a  velocity  of  one  centimetre 
per  second  in  a  magnetic  field  of  unit  force.      As  well 


■562 


NATURE 


[April  17,  1890 


might  a  kilogramme  be  defined  for  a  French  butcher  as 
the  weight  of  a  cubic  decimetre  of  distilled  water  at  4°  C, 
and  the  butcher's  business  be  absolutely  stopped  because 
he  did  not  possess  any  distilled  water  and  because  the 
temperature  of  his  shop  was  20^  and  not  4°  C.  In  fact, 
Lectures  II.  and  III.,  although  containing  a  large  amount 
of  valuable  information,  are  professorial  rather  than 
practical. 

On  p.  74  a  Ruhmkorfif  induction  coil  is  correctly 
described,  but  in  Fig.  36  on  the  same  page  the  primary 
coil,  with  the  vibrating  interrupter  and  four  cells  in  its 
circuit,  is  shown  as  consisting  of  many  convolutions  of 
fine  wire,  and  the  secondary  of  a  few  turns  of  thick  wire. 
On  p.  83  one  centimetre  is  given  as  equal  to  o"0328o87  of 
afoot — that  is,  correct  io  six  significant  figures — while  even 
in  the  second  edition,  "  the  call  "  for  which  "  has  afforded 
the  opportunity  to  erase  several  typographical  errors  and 
to  remove  some  other  blemishes  which  had  escaped 
notice  and  correction  in  the  first  edition,"  the  previous 
statement  is  immediately  followed  by  the  announcement 
that  one  inch  equals  2 "500  centimetres,  an  equation  which 
is  only  correct  to  two  significatit  figures,  the  number  ex- 
pressed correctly  to  six  significant  figures  being  2"53995. 
But  why  not  use  2'54oo,  the  value  commonly  adopted,  and 
which  is  correct  to  four  places  of  decimals  1  As  a  further 
example  of  the  want  of  precision  which  runs  through 
this  book,  it  may  be  mentioned  that  on  p.  9  a  falling  body 
acquires  per  second  a  velocity  of  981  centimetres  per 
second.  Throughout  the  whole  of  p.  85,  where  the  number 
is  frequently  mentioijed,  the  body,  as  if  a  little  tired 
cannot  get  up  a  velocity  of  more  than  980  centimetres  a* 
second.  Proceeding,  however,  to  the  next  page,  the  body, 
like  the  reader,  turns  over  a  new  leaf,  and  hurries  up  its 
speed,  for  it  acquires  per  second  a  velocity  of  981  centi- 
metres per  second  all  through  this  page.  Further  on, 
however,  in  the  book,  the  poor  falling  body  gets  tired 
again,  for  on  p.  97  it  cannot  do  more  than  the  980.  On 
p.  87  we  find  the  statement,  "  Hence  one  foot-pound 
=  i'2)S^  joules,  or  one  joule  =  7373  foot-pound,"  whereas 
a  simple  division  shows  that  if  the  first  part  of  the  state- 
ment be  correct,  the  second  is  not. 

To  say  that  "  the  work  is  numerically  measured  by  the 
product  of  the  displacement  and  the  mean  stress  estimated 
in  the  direction  of  the  displacement"  is  learned  and 
academical,  but  might  not  the  poor  electrical  artisan  mix 
this  up  with  the  displacement  of  the  factory  hands  that 
usually  occurs  when  there  is  no  stress  of  work  ? 

On  p.  99  it  is  stated  that  the  "E.M.F.  of  Clark's  cell 
=  I  "435  true  volt,"  but,  as  no  indication  has  been  given  in 
this  book  that  there  is  more  than  one  volt,  we  are  left  in 
ignorance  of  the  reason  why  the  volts  used  to  measure 
the  E.M.F.  of  a  Clark's  cell  have  to  be  so  especially  true, 
and  why  10'''  C.G.S.  units,  which  is  the  volt  that  has  been 
previously  used,  is  not  good  enough  for  this  sort  of  measure- 
ment. On  looking  in  the  index  for  the  definition  of  the 
"  Ohm  British  Asssociation,"  we  find  ourselves  referred  to 
p.  136,  and  the  reader  is  left  to  wonder  what  is  a  "  B.A.U." 
of  resistance  used  some  forty  pages  previous  to  this. 
Similarly  the  "  Legal  Ohm  "  is  spoken  of  and  its  value 
given  in  terms  of  a  "  B.A.U."  thirty-seven  pages  before  the 
reader  is  told  what  a  "  Legal  Ohm  "  is.  For  this  the 
arrangement  of  the  book  and  not  the  index  is,  of  course, 
to  blame.  And  while  on  this  subject  we  should  like  to 
point  out  that  the  indexes  of  scientific  books  appear  to 
furnish  a  conclusive  proof  of  the  inherent  modesty  of 
scientific  writers.  Take  up  some  large  and  important 
treatise,  and  turn  to  the  index.  There  you  are  told  that 
the  book  contains  almost  nothing.  On  the  title-page  the 
publisher  may  have  indiscreetly  added  after  the  author's 
name  line  after  line  of  small  print  enumerating  the  various 
scientific  and  unscientific  societies  to  which  the  author 
belongs,  but  in  the  index  all  pretension  to  such  a  wide 
acquamtance  with  science  is  disclaimed.  You  may  have 
a  distinct  recollection  of  reading  in  this  very  book  many 


pages  on  some  special  subject,  but  rack  your  brains  as 
you  will  to  discover  under  what  heading  in  the  index  this 
subject  may  have  been  entered,  not  a  reference  to  it  can 
you  find.  Accumulators,  storage  cells,  transformers,  the 
volt,  voltmeters,  &c.,  seemed  likely  subjects  to  be  treated 
on  in  "  Short  Lectures  to  Electrical  Artisans,"  but  the 
index  says  no  ;  and  it  is  only  by  carefully  reading 
through  the  book  that  you  discover  that  it  contains  much 
valuable  information  on  these  very  points.  We  would 
suggest  to  the  writers  of  scientific  treatises,  and  also  to 
those  who  communicate  scientific  papers  to  learned 
societies,  that  the  practical  man  of  to-day  cannot  possibly 
afford  the  time  to  read  through  ninety-nine  things  that 
he  does  not  want  to  know  about,  before  he  can  light 
on  the  one  thing  regarding  which  he  is  searching  for 
information. 

In  speaking  of  Messrs.  Crompton  andKapp's  meter,  on 
p.  115,  Dr.  Fleming  says  : — 

"  The  only  difficulty  which  arises  in  connection  with 
such  an  instrument  as  this,  is  the  tendency  of  a  long  thin 
iron  wire  of  this  kind  to  retain  strongly  residual 
magnetism  and  fail  to  de-magnetize  itself,  but  this  effect 
would  only  prevent  the  return  of  the  indicating  needle  to 
zero  when  the  current  was  stopped,  but  would  not  prevent 
the  instrument  from  giving  a  definite  and  fixed  deflection 
corresponding  to  a  definite  and  fixed  current  passing 
through  the  coils."  It  was  no  doubt  a  somewhat  delicate 
task  for  Dr.  Fleming  when  lecturing  to  Mr.  Crompton's 
staff  to  fully  criticize  Mr.  Crompton's  meters,  but  since 
actual  published  experiments  on  some  of  these  meters 
show  that,  for  the  low  readings,  the  apparent  value  of  a 
given  current  differs  by  as  much  as  10  per  cent.,  depend- 
ing on  whether  the  current  is  ascending  or  descending, 
we  fail  to  see  how  the  scientific  knowledge  of  any  artisans 
can  be  improved  by  their  being  toldthatnosuch  error  exists. 

Fig.  50,  p.  122,  showing  the  level  of  the  columns  of 
water  in  stand-pipes  attached  to  a  horizontal  tube  through 
which  water  is  flowing,  was  never  drawn  from  an 
actual  apparatus.  The  author  has  forgotten  that  the 
water  has  not  merely  to  flow  through  the  horizontal  tube 
h.a,  but  through  the  much  longer  vertical  tube  CA,  and 
therefore,  there  is  a  much  greater  difference  of  level 
between  the  height  of  the  water  in  the  cistern  and  in  the 
first  stand-pipe,  aa',  than  there  is  between  the  level  in 
this  stand-pipe  and  in  the  next,  bb' .  If  Fig.  50  were 
correct,  it  would  follow  that  when  a  battery  of  even  large 
internal  resistance  was  sending  a  considerable  current 
the  difference  of  potentials  at  its  terminals  was  equal  to 
the  E.M.F.  of  the  battery.  Not  merely,  then,  is  this 
opportunity  lost  of  explaining  to  the  readers  that  the 
difference  of  potentials  at  the  terminals  of  a  battery  may 
be  very  much  less  than  the  E.M.F.,  but  the  information 
conveyed  by  the  diagram  is  actually  contrary  to  fact. 

The  statement  that  "  Storage  cells  for  lighting  purposes 
cease  to  give  a  useful  discharge  when  the  electromotive 
force  falls  below  two  volts"  is  hardly  consistent  with  the 
fact  that,  when  storage  cells  are  discharged  at  the  current 
that  is  considered  quite  safe  by  the  Electrical  Storage 
Power  Company,  the  E.M.F.  for  nine-tenths  of  the 
period  of  the  discharge  is  slightly  below  two  volts. 

We  have  said  enough  to  show  that,  although  the  book 
called  "Short  Lectures  to  Electrical  Artisans"  is  written  by 
one  who,  from  his  University  and  factory  experience,  has 
a  large  amount  of  valuable  information  at  his  command, 
the  second  edition  reads  far  too  much  like  an  uncorrected 
proof  of  the  first  edition  ;  and  instead  of  the  statements  it 
contains  possessing  weight  because  they  are  made  in  the 
book,  there  is  an  uneasy  feeling  when  reading  its  pages 
that  any  statement  may  be  wrong,  and  requires  to  be 
checked.  We  trust,  however,  that  the  sale  of  this,  the 
second  edition,  may  be  large  and  rapid,  so  that  the 
author  may  have  an  opportunity  of  shortly  bringing  out 
as  a  third  edition  a  book  more  worthy  of  his  acknowledged 
power. 


April  I  J,  1890] 


NATURE 


56J 


''Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity  and  Magnetism," 
by  Prof.  A.  Gray,  is  a  most  interesting  book  to  read. 
It  opens  with  a  detailed  description  of  (Jauss's  methods  for 
determining  the  horizontal  intensity  of  the  earth's  mag- 
netism, and  with  an  account  of  the  results  of  the  measure- 
ment of  the  variation,  produced  by  a  unit  field,  on  the 
magnetic  moments  of  steel  magnets  of  different  sizes 
tempered  to  different  degrees  of  hardness.  If  it  be 
desired  to  determine  the  magnetic  moment  of  a  bar- 
magnet  as  well  as  the  horizontal  intensity  of  the  earth's 
magnetism,  which  is  of  course  necessary  when  variations 
of  the  magnetic  moment  of  a  bar  are  in  question.  Gauss's 
methods  are  admirable.  But  if  the  value  of  H  is  all  that 
is  needed,  then  the  simpler  method  of  employing  an 
earth  inductor  with  a  ballistic  galvanometer,  which  is 
described  on  pp.  317-21,  might  well  be  employed.  It 
would,  therefore,  have  been  well  to  give  a  reference  to 
this  method  in  the  first  two  chapters,  which  are  mainly 
devoted  to  the  determination  of  H. 

Next  follows  a  concise  statement  of  the  various  ways 
of  defining  the  absolute  current,  and  a  fairly  complete 
chapter  on  standard  galvanometers.  In  Chapters  IV, 
and  v.,  and  in  Chapter  XL,  to  which  reference  is  made, 
there  is  given  the  ablest  description  of  the  dimensions  of 
the  electric  and  magnetic  units  that  we  have  ever  read. 
It  is  both  correct  and  comprehensible,  which  is  saying  a 
very  great  deal  for  an  exposition  of  a  subject  which,  as 
usually  explained,  generally  leaves  even  a  thoughtful 
student  semi-dazed  as  to  whether  the  dimensions  are  the 
dimensions  of  the  unit,  or  the  dimensions  of  a  quantity 
measured  in  the  unit.  Indeed,  the  early  reports  of  the 
Electrical  Standards  Committee  of  the  British  Associa- 
tion were  actually  wrong  on  the  very  subject  of  dimen- 
sions, so  that  "  V  "  was  regularly  defined  as  the  ratio  of 
the  electrostatic  to  the  electromagnetic  unit  of  quantity 
instead  of  as  the  reciprocal  of  that  expression. 

The  volt,  ohm,  ampere,  coulomb,  watt,  and  joule  are 
also  explained  and  defined  in  Chapter  V.,  and  Prof.  Gray 
gives  Sir  W.  Thomson's  expression  "activity"  for  the 
rate  of  doing  work.  He  does  not  mention,  however,  that 
the  equally  short  word  "  power "  is  regularly  employed 
with  this  signification. 

Chapter  VI.  is  devoted  to  the  laws  of  the  currents  sent 
by  galvanic  cells  through  single  and  parallel  circuits,  and 
through  any  branch  of  a  network  like  that  of  the  Wheat- 
stone's  bridge.  A  neat  proof  is  given  of  the  arrangement 
of  a  given  number  of  cells  that  sends  the  greatest  current 
through  a  fixed  resistance,  and  the  reader  is  very  properly 
warned  against  confusing  the  arrangement  which  develops 
maximum  power  with  the  most  economical  arrangement. 

In  Chapter  VII.  we  have  a  complete  description  of  Sir 
William  Thomson's  meters,  but,  as  the  book  is  a  scientific 
treatise  (in  fact,  a  very  good  scientific  treatise)  and  not  an 
instrument-maker's  catalogue,  we  think  that  the  author 
would  have  done  himself  more  justice  had  he  described, 
in  addition,  some  of  the  other  many  forms  of  electric 
meters  in  common  use  at  the  present  day  for  carrying  out 
the  same  measurements.  Further,  in  view  of  the  large 
experience  that  the  author  of  this  book  has  probably  had 
with  Sir  W.  Thomson's  meters,  it  would  have  been  well 
had  there  been  a  description  not  merely  of  the  advantages 
of  these  instruments,  but  also  of  their  disadvantages,  a 
subject  no  one  would  be  more  willing  to  discuss  than  the 
inventor  himself  On  pp.  133-35  is  given  a  very  simple 
proof  of  the  ordinary  formula  for  the  quadrant  electro- 
meter, but  the  reader  is  not  here  warned  that  the  formula 
may  give  an  answer  many  per  cent,  wrong  in  practice. 
On  p.  302  it  is  stated  that  this  formula  may  be 
slightly  wrong  if  the  aluminium  needle  of  the  electrometer 
be  not  accurately  adjusted  relatively  to  the  quadrants,  but 
this,  we  fear,  is  rather  misleading,  since  it  is  further  stated 
that  "  if  the  needle  hangs  at  its  proper  level,  and  is  other- 
wise properly  adjusted,  and  the  quadrants  are  close,  the 
equation  may  be  taken  as  accurate  enough  for  practical 


purposes,"  a  conclusion  regarding  which  we  understand 
there  is  grave  doubt.     In  this  chapter  the  very  importawS^ 
subject  of  calibrating  instruments  by  the  use  of  the  sii^wr" 
or  the  copper  voltameters  is  fully  entered  into.     The  Ikrge- 
amount  of  valuable  work  done  on  this  subject  by  the 
author's  brother.  Prof,  T,  Gray,  of  which  a  description  is- 
given,  endows  this  chapter  with  an  authoritative  character. 
Chapter  VIII.  commences  with  the  construction  amd^ 
use  of  the  various  forms  of   Wheatstone's   bridges,  th«r 
description  of  the  modes  of  using  them,  and  hints  as  to 
the  care  of  a  resistance  box.   The  methods  for  calibratii^ 
relatively  and  absolutely  the  wire  of  a  bridge  devised  by 
Matthiessen  and   Hockin,  Foster,   T.   Gray,  and  D.  M. 
Lewis  are  discussed  at  length,  and  specimens  given  of 
the  actual  results  obtained  at  University  College,  North 
Wales,by  the  use  of  these  methods.  The  ingenious  bridges, 
which  have  been  arranged  by  Sir  W.  Thomson,  Matthies- 
sen and  Hockin,  Tait  and  T.  Gray,  for  measuring  very  low 
resistances,  are  fully  entered  into,  and  the  construction  of 
standard  coils,  the  measurement  of  high  resistances,  and 
of  the  resistance  of  a  battery  finish  a  chapter  of  especial 
interest.     The  method  of  measuring  the  resistance  of  a 
battery,  proposed  several  years  ago  by  Sir  Henry  Mance, 
is  condemned  by  Prof  Gray  as  being  "  so  troublesome  as 
to  be  practically  useless,"  on  account  of  "  the  variation  of 
the  effective  electromotive  force  of  the  cell  produced  by 
alteration  of  the  current  through   the  cell  which  takes 
place  when  the  key  is  depressed."  We  think  that  it  should 
have  been  stated  that  this  is  not  a  defect  especially  of 
Mance's  method,  but  of  all  methods  for  measuring  the 
resistance  of  a  battery  based  on  the  alteration  of  a  steady 
current  by  the  alteration  of  the  resistance  in  the  battery 
circuit.      Would   it  not   also   here    have    been   well    to 
describe  and  discuss  the  condenser  method  of  measuring 
a  battery  resistance,  as  it  is  the  one  to  which  the  fewest 
objections  can  be  raised .'' 

Good  as  are  all  the  chapters  in  this  book,  the  next  one. 
Chapter  IX.,  on  "  The  Measurement  of  Energy  in  Electric 
Circuits,"  is  so  good  that  it  takes  the  palm.  It  com- 
mences with  the  practical  methods  of  measuring  the 
power  and  efficiency  of  motors  and  secondary  batteries  ; 
the  construction  and  employment  of  activity  meters  (watt- 
meters) ;  and  then  discusses  very  fully  the  laws  of  alternate 
currents,  the  mathematical  theory  of  alternate  current 
generators  singly,  or  coupled  in  parallel  or  in  series  ;  the 
theory  of  the  action  of  an  alternate  current  generator 
supplying  current  to  an  alternate  current  motor  ;  the  true 
method  of  measuring  the  power  given  to  any  circuit  by 
an  alternate  current ;  and  the  error  produced  when  an 
ordinary  watt-meter  is  employed.  The  work  of  Joubert, 
Hopkinson,  Potier,  Ayrton  and  Perry,  and  Mordey  on  this 
subject  is  summed  up  in  a  masterly  fashion.  Chapter 
IX.  is,  in  fact,  the  most  complete  exposition  of  many 
problems  connected  with  the  all-important  subject — the 
electrical  transmission  of  energy  by  alternate  currents — 
that  is  to  be  found  in  any  existing  text-book,  and  espe- 
cially in  a  small  octavo  text-book,  that  can  be  easily 
carried  in  one's  coat  pocket. 

In  Chapter  X.  the  measurement  of  intense  magnetic 
fields  is  dealt  with,  and  a  description  is  given  of  ingenious 
methods  proposed  by  Sir  W.  Thomson  for  measuring  the 
force  on  a  conductor  conveying  a  known  current  placed 
in  the  magnetic  field,  and  so  determining  the  strength  of 
the  field.  The  ordinary  method  of  ascertaining  the 
strength  of  a  magnetic  field  by  suddenly  withdrawing  a 
coil,  of  known  area  and  number  of  convolutions,  attached 
to  a  ballistic  galvanometer,  is  described.  But  in  order  to 
ascertain  the  constant  of  the  ballistic  galvanometer,  the 
author  only  gives  the  old  method  of  observing  the  swing 
of  the  needle  when  a  large  coil  is  turned  in  the  earth's 
field,  a  method  which  necessarily  requires  for  its  employ- 
ment a  previous  knowledge  of  the  strength  of  the  earth's 
field  at  the  place.  A  far  simpler  method  of  ascertaining 
the  constant  of  a  ballistic  galvanometer  js  to  charge  a 


564 


NA  TURE 


{April  17,  1890 


condenser  of  known  capacity  with  one  or  more  Clark's 
cells,  of  which  the  E.M.F.  at  any  ordinary  temperature 
is  now  well  known,  and  discharge  the  condenser  through 
the  ballistic  galvanometer  ;  or,  if  a  sufficiently  delicate 
ampere-meter  be  available,  the  ballistic  galvanometer 
may  be  very  accurately  calibrated  for  steady  currents,  and 
then  its  constant  for  a  sudden  discharge  is  at  once  known 
by  simply  measuring,  in  addition,  the  periodic  time  of 
vibration  of  the  needle  and  its  logarithmic  decrement. 

The  book  concludes  with  an  appendix  giving  the  de- 
cisions arrived  at  in  1886  by  the  Electrical  Standards 
Committee  of  the  British  Association,  and  the  further 
resolutions  which  were  passed  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Electrical  Congress  in  Paris  last  year,  and  subsequently 
agreed  to  by  the  British  Association  Committee.  Then 
follow  twelve  sets  of  useful  tables. 

Although  we  have  made  a  few  suggestions  that  the 
author  may  perhaps  like  to  adopt  in  publishing  the  third 
edition  of  his  "  Absolute  Measurements  in  Electricity 
and  Magnetism,"  we  desire  to  emphasize  our  warm 
appreciation  of  this  the  second  edition.  On  every  page 
may  be  seen  evidences  of  the  firm  grip  of  the  subject  so 
characteristic  of  the  author's  teacher— the  teacher,  in  fact, 
of  us  all — Sir  William  Thomson  ;  and  did  we  know  of 
higher  praise  than  this  we  would  give  it. 

"  The  Theory  and  Practice  of  Absolute  Measurements 
in  Electricity  and  Magnetism,  Vol.  I.,"  also  by  Prof. 
A.  Gray,  is  a  mathematical  expansion  of  the  elec- 
trical portion  of  his  book  on  "Absolute  Measure- 
ments, &c.,"  the  mathematical  treatment  of  the  mag- 
netic portion  being  reserved  for  Vol.  II.  of  the  larger 
work.  As  many  of  the  remarks  that  we  have 
already  made  regarding  the  smaller  work  apply  equally 
well  to  the  larger,  it  is  unnecessary  to  criticize  the 
larger  book  at  any  considerable  length.  The  two 
books  may  be  read  quite  independently  of  one  another, 
since  much  of  the  descriptive  matter  is  the  same  in  both. 
If  there  be  a  fault  in  the  larger  work,  we  think  that  it 
arises  from  the  author  forgetting  that  a  book  intended 
initially  for  the  University  student  can  also  be  made 
of  great  value  to  the  more  practical  electrician  if  first 
the  subject-matter  be  arranged  in  propositions,  or  with 
distinct  headings  to  the  paragraphs,  so  that  it  is  easy 
to  find  the  proof  of  any  particular  fact';  and,  secondly, 
if  complete  proofs  be  given  of  important  practical 
problems,  instead  of  simply  deducing  them  as  special 
cases  of  more  general  problems.  For  example,  a  prac- 
tical electrician  may  desire  to  see  how  the  logarithmic 
formula  for  the  capacity  of  a  cable  is  arrived  at.  Now, 
there  is  no  difficulty  in  giving  a  fairly  short  complete 
proof  of  this  ;  but,  on  turning  to  Prof.  Gray's  "  Theory 
and  Practice,  &c.,"  the  electrician  finds  that  he  must  first 
master  the  theory  of  charged  ellipsoids  ;  he  sees  several 
double  integrals  and  several  lines  of  long  mathematical 
formula  in  small  print,  and  he  probably  decides  that  he 
had  better  pass  by  that  subject  for  the  present.  We  hold 
that,  since  the  pure  science  of  electricity  owes  so  much 
to  its  practical  development,  it  is  but  fair  that  the  pure 
mathematician  should  endeavour  to  repay  this  debt  by 
stating  his  results  and  methods  of  proof  in  such  a  form 
that  they  can  be  most  easily  grasped  by  anyone  who 
desires  to  use  them,  and  not  merely  to  get  up  the  subject 
for  examination  purposes.  The  general  mathematical 
investigations  are  also,  of  course,  of  great  value,  and  we 
are  therefore  glad  to  see  in  this  book  a  fairly  complete 
mathematical  treatment  of  Green's  theorem,  inverse 
problems,  electric  images,  problems  of  steady  flow  in 
non-linear  conductor,  and  variable  linear  flow,  with  its 
application  to  the  speed  of  signalling  in  submarine 
conductors. 

Very  interesting  information  is  given  regarding  the 
strength  and  torsional  rigidity  of  the  fine  silk  fibres  used 
in   suspending  galvanometer  needles,   followed    by    the 


mathematical  theory  of  oscillations,  the  description  of 
the  practical  methods  of  measuring  periodic  times  of 
oscillation  and  moments  of  inertia,  and  concluding  with  a 
comparison  of  unifilar  and  bifilar  suspensions.  The  suc- 
ceeding chapters  on  electrometers,  the  general  measure- 
ment of  resistance,  the  calibration  of  the  wire  of  a  metre 
bridge,  the  measurement  of  very  low  resistances,  the 
measurement  of  very  high  resistances,  the  determination 
of  specific  resistance,  contain  what  is  given  on  these 
subjects  in  the  smaller  book  amplified. 

The  last  chapter.  No.  VIII.,  in  this  larger  treatise,  on 
capacity,  is  very  complete.  It  gives  a  description  of  the 
most  important  investigations  that  have  been  made  on  the 
specific  inductive  capacity  of  solids,  liquids,  and  gases, 
together  with  the  mathematical  theory  of  each  experiment. 

Although  we  cannot  but  feel  that  the  smaller  of  the  two 
books  published  by  Prof.  A.  Gray  is  the  more  unique,  the 
larger  is  a  very  creditable  production,  and  will  be  valu- 
able as  a  book  of  reference  for  those  who  desire  to  con- 
sult a  shorter  book  on  mathematical  electricity  than  that 
of  Messrs.  Mascart  and  Joubert. 

We  now  come  now  to  the  fourth  book,  "  Electricity  in 
Modern  Life,"  by  Mr.  de  Tunzelmann,  which  is  written 
on  an  excellent  basis,  and  contains  a  great  deal  of  useful 
popular  information,  but  it  unfortunately  also  contains 
many  unnecessary  errors.  For  example,  the  statement 
on  p.  II,  that  "  a  single  cell  of  this  kind,"  potash  bichro- 
mate, "  holding  about  a  quart  of  solution,  is  capable  of 
maintaining  the  light  of  a  small  incandescent  lamp  for 
some  three  or  four  hours,"  would  rather  disappoint  a 
purchaser  of  a  quart,  or  any  size,  bichromate  cell,  as  he 
would  find  it  most  difficult  to  purchase  an  incandescent 
lamp  that  would  glow  with  so  small  a  difference  of  poten- 
tial as  one  cell  could  produce.  Again,  to  say  in  Chapter 
II.,  on  "What  we  Know  about  Magnetism,"  "Weber's 
theory  of  magnetism  may  now  be  considered  as  raised 
from  the  rank  of  an  hypothesis  to  that  of  an  established 
fact,"  gives  a  totally  wrong  idea  as  regards  our  knowledge, 
or,  rather,  as  regards  our  ignorance,  of  the  mechanism 
of  magnetism.  "  The  face  of  the  magnet  that  before 
pointed  to  the  north,'  &c.,  is  not  exactly  wrong  ;  but  can 
a  face  point  towards  anything?  "If  a  current  goes 
round  the  solenoid  in  the  direction  of  the  hands  of  a 
watch  with  its  face  directed  towards  the  end  from  which 
the  current  flows,  the  end  of  the  steel  bar  within  the  end 
of  the  solenoid  at  which  the  current  leaves  will  be  found 
to  be  a  north  pole  and  the  other  end  a  south  pole,"  would 
lead  the  reader  to  imagine  that  the  polarity  of  the  core 
of  an  electromagnet  depended  partly  on  the  direction  in 
which  the  current  flows  parallel  to  the  core,  instead  of 
depending,  as  is  the  fact,  wholly  on  the  way  it  flows 
round  the  core. 

Chapter  IV.,  on  "  Force,  Work,  and  Power,"  is  good, 
and  the  careful  distinction  drawn  between  yvork  and 
power  is  forcible  and  apt.  But  why  does  the  author 
limit  the  definition  of  a  horse-power,  33,000  pounds 
raised  i  foot  per  minute,  to  the  "  indicated  horse-power  " 
of  a  steam-engine. 

Chapter  V.  deals  with  the  "  Sources  of  Electricity." 
In  describing  the  chemical  action  of  a  galvanic  cell 
formed  "  of  a  plate  of  zinc  and  a  plate  of  copper  partly 
immersed  in  sulphuric  acid,"  it  is  an  obvious  mistake  to 
speak  of  the  action  as  a  simple  liberation  of  hydrogen  at 
the  copper  plate,  and  oxygen  at  the  zinc,  ard  to  omit  all 
reference  to  the  formation  of  zinc  sulphate.  The  first 
part  of  the  following  statement  has  been  experimentally 
disproved  some  fifteen  years  ago  : — "  If  either  the  copper 
or  zinc  is  immersed  alone  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  a  differ- 
ence of  potential  will  be  produced  between  the  metal  and 
the  liquid  ;  but  if  the  two  metals  are  immersed  side  by 
side  into  the  liquid,  then  no  electrification  can  be  de- 
tected." A  galvanic  battery  is  defined  by  the  author  as 
"  a  series  of  galvanic  cells  so  arranged  that  the  zinc  of 


April  1 7,  1 890] 


NATURE 


565 


each  cell  is  connected  with  the  copper  of  the  next  cell." 
What,  then,  is  a  collection  of  galvanic  cells  arranged  in 
parallel,  in  which  the  zinc  of  every  cell  is  connected  with 
the  zinc  and  not  with  the  copper  of  the  next  ?  Excluding 
these  mistakes,  this  chapter  is  fairly  good  ;  the  matter, 
however,  is  rather  too  condensed  to  be  intelligible  to  a 
reader  not  previously  acquainted  with  the  subject. 

Chapter  VI.  deals  with  ''  Magnetic  Fields,"  and  in  order 
to  lead  up  to  the  mapping  out  of  a  magnetic  field,  the 
mapping  out  of  the  gravitation  field  of  force  in  which  a 
comet  moves  is  first  explained.  But  it  appears  to  us 
that,  since  the  magnetic  field  can  be  easily  mapped  out 
with  iron  filings  in  the  well-known  way,  while  the  con- 
ception of  a  gravitation  field  of  force  is  a  less  simple 
matter  to  grasp,  Mr.  de  Tunzelmann  has  in  this  case 
explained  the  easy  by  means  of  the  difficult. 

The  next  chapter,  on  "  Electrical  Measurement,''  is 
quite  correct,  but,  in  view  of  the  great  difficulty  that  is 
always  experienced  by  a  beginner  in  grasping  the  idea  of 
measuring  so  intangible  a  thing  as  electricity,  would  not 
this  subject  have  been  made  clearer  if  not  merely  the 
scientific  definitions  of  the  electrical  units  had  been  given, 
but  in  addition  an  illustrated  description  of  the  meters 
used  to  measure  amperes,  volts,  &c.  .>* 

Chapter  VII.,  on  "  Magneto  and  Dynamo  Electric 
Machines,''  gives  a  short  comprehensive  description  of 
the  principles  of  these  machines,  but,  in  order  that  the 
reader  might  understand  what  a  real  dynamo  was  like, 
we  think  it  would  have  been  better  if  the  author  had 
given  in  this  chapter  at  least  some  one  of  the  illustrations 
representing  real  dynamos  which  appear  in  other  parts 
of  this  book.  The  symbolical  figures  that  are  given  are, 
as  the  author  mentions,  taken  from  Dr.  Thompson's 
book  on  dynamo  machinery,  and  are  very  clear,  with  one 
exception,  that  while  in  each  case  the  direction  of  the 
current  in  the  wires  attached  to  the  brushes  is  indicated 
by  arrows,  the  direction  in  which  the  wire  is  coiled  on  the 
armature  is  omitted,  hence  such  statements  as  "  the 
arrows  show  the  current  in  the  circuit  when  the  armature 
revolves  as  indicated  by  the  position  of  the  brushes,"  are 
just  as  likely  to  be  wrong  as  right,  and  tell  the  reader 
nothing.  When  comparing  the  series  dynamo  with  the 
shunt  dynamo,  the  author  says  that  the  former  "  will  not 
begin  to  excite  itself  until  a  certain  speed  has  been 
obtained  depending  on  the  resistance  of  the  circuit." 
From  this  the  reader  might  easily  be  misled  into  thinking 
that  the  shunt  machine  did  not  possess  a  similar  defect. 
Further,  he  states,  as  "  the  principal  objection  to  shunt- 
wound  machines,"  that  the  self-induction  of  the  field- 
magnet  coils  leads  to  the  result  that  "  any  variation  in 
the  speed  produces  its  effect  upon  the  lamps  before  the 
current  in  the  existing  circuit  has  had  time  to  undergo  a 
sensible  change."  But,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  self- 
induction  of  the  field-magnet  coils  of  a  shunt  machine  is 
an  advantage^  not  a  disad^ia/itage  j  for  suppose  that  the 
speed  increases,  then  the  E.M.F.  increases,  this  causes 
the  difference  of  potentials  between  the  lamp-mains  to 
increase,  which  not  only  sends  a  larger  current  through 
the  lamps,  but  also  through  the  shunt  coils.  This 
strengthening  of  the  field  causes  an  additional  rise  in  the 
E.M.F.  of  the  machine,  and  therefore  in  the  terminal 
difference  of  potentials.  Consequently  the  second  ob- 
jectionable rise  is  hindered,  and  not  accelerated,  by  the 
self-induction  of  the  shunt  coils  ;  hence  self-induction  of 
the  field-magnet  coils  of  a  shunt  machine  makes  the 
difference  of  potentials  between  the  lamp-mains  less 
quickly,  and  not  more  quickly,  affected  by  a  change  in 
the  speed  of  driving.  In  speaking  of  alternate-current 
dynamos,  it  is  stated  that  "  in  some  machines  the  arma- 
ture remains  at  rest,  and  the  field-magnets  are  made 
to  rotate  ;  and  in  this  case  no  slidmg  contact  is  required, 
the  terminals  of  the  main  circuit  being  attached  per- 
manently to  the  armature."  But  the  statement  is  mis- 
leading, since  at  least  one  sliding  contact  must  always 


be  used ;  only  when  the  armature  is  fixed  it  is  to  lead  the 
exciting  current  into  and  out  of  the  rotating  field-mag- 
nets that  one,  and  in  some  cases  two  sliding  contacts  are 
employed. 

Chapters  IX.,  X.,  and  XI.,  on  "  The  Story  of  the  Tele- 
graph," "  Overhind  Telegraphs,"  and  on  "  Submarine 
Telegraphs,"  are  excellent,  we  may  almost  say  exciting, 
and  they  lead  the  reader  on  like  the  pages  of  a  well- 
written  novel.  It  is  not  right,  however,  on  p.  112  to 
say,  when  speaking  of  telegraphing  with  sounders,  *'  The 
dots  are  formed  by  giving  a  sharp  stroke  to  the  key  ;  the 
dashes  by  depressing  it  more  slowly,"  since  a  dash  is 
formed  not  by  depressing  the  key  slowly,  but  by  holding 
it  down  for  a  time  when  depressed.  Whether  a  key  be 
depressed  slowly  or  quickly  makes  no  difference  in  the 
signal  received  ;  what  the  receiver  listens  for  is  the  in- 
terval between  the  commencement  of  the  current  pro- 
duced when  the  key  is  fully  depressed  and  its  termination 
when  the  key  is  caused  to  begin  to  rise  again.  We  pre- 
sume that  when  the  author  says,  on  p.  129,  ''  The  cups  " 
of  insulators  "  are  made  of  such  a  form  as  to  expose  the 
upper  portions  freely  to  the  cleansing  action  of  the  rain 
while  the  lower  portions  are  shielded  from  the  rain  so  as 
to  keep  them  fairly  dry,"  he  means  by  "  upper  portions  " 
the  outside  of  the  cup  of  the  insulator,  and  by  the  "  lower 
portions"  the  inside ;  but  if  so,  he  has  a  curious  way  of 
expressing  himself.  The  "  speaking  galvanometer  "  used 
in  receiving  the  message  sent  through  a  submarine  cable 
is  not,  as  the  author  describes  it  on  p.  150,  an  astatic 
galvanometer  ;  and  even  if  two  magnets  were  employed  so 
as  to  form  an  astatic  combination,  it  would  be  quite 
wrong  to  say  "  each  of  them  is  attached  to  the  back  of 
a  small  mirror,"  since,  unnecessary  as  it  would  be  to  use 
two  suspended  magnets  in  a  speaking  galvanometer,  it 
would  be  still  more  useless  to  employ  two  suspended 
mirrors.  But  these  are  not  very  serious  errors  in  chapters 
that  are  so  good. 

Chapters  XII.  and  XIIL,  on  "The  Telephone  "  and 
"The  Telephone  Exchange  System,"  appear  to  us  to  be  too 
much  of  the  newspaper  special  correspondent  order,  the  de- 
scriptions in  several  cases  being  very  meagre,  suggestive 
rather  than  descriptive,  in  consequence  of  the  author 
having  attempted  to  touch  on  too  many  different  things. 
For  instance,  if  the  photophone  had  to  be  described  at 
all,  it  required  more  than  one  page  and  a  quarter,  in- 
clusive of  the  illustration,  to  make  it  intelligible  ;  in  fact, 
unless  the  framework  of  the  telephones  and  the  gentle- 
man's head  which  is  betwien  them  in  Fig.  53  are  all 
composed  of  electrically  conducting  material,  we  fail  to 
see  how  the  instrument,  as  there  depicted,  works  at  all. 
Some  very  interesting  information  is  given  on  the  subject 
of  telephone  exchanges,  and  we  should  have  liked  to  have 
had  much  more  information  on  this  electrical  subject ;  for 
example,  greater  details  regarding  the  switches,  the  reasons 
of  the  babble  of  many  conversations  that  everyone  hears 
who  tries  to  use  the  telephone  in  London,  &c.  ;  space,  if 
necessary,  being  economized  by  the  omission  of  the  de- 
scription of  the  non-electrical  instruments,  the  grapho- 
phone  and  phonograph. 

Chapter  XIV.,  on  the  "  Distribution  and  Storage  of 
Electrical  Energy,"  is  very  good  and  forcible.  We  fail, 
however,  to  see  how  the  use  of  the  three-wire  system 
leads  to  the  result  stated  on  p.  199,  that  "  a  variation 
of  5  percent,  in  the  E.M.F.  in  the  mains  would  produce 
a  variation  of  only  2^  per  cent,  at  the  lamp  terminals." 

The  next  chapter,  XV.,  on  "  Electric  Lighting,"  is  also 
very  good  ;  "flashing"  the  filament  of  an  incandescent 
lamp,  however,  does  not  mean  sending  a  current  through 
the  filament  while  the  lamp  is  attached  to  the  Sprengel 
pump,  but  sending  a  current  through  the  filament  and 
making  the  filament  incandescent  when  in  a  hydro- 
carbon atmosphere  before  it  is  placed  inside  the  glass 
bulb  of  the  lamp.  Is  it  a  fact  that  "the  Shaftesbury 
theatre  "  is  "  now  lighted  by  incandescent  electric  lamps  ?  " 


566 


NA  TURE 


\_April  17,  1890 


The  chapter  on  "Eleccro- Motors  and  their  Uses"  is 
good  considering  how  much  may  be  said  on  this  subject 
and  how  short  a  space  is  14  pages  to  say  it  in.  By  what 
means,  however,  Messrs.  Immisch  have  succeeded  in 
making  the  dogcart  for  the  Sultan  of  Turkey  go  "ten 
miles  an  hour  for  about  five  hours  "  by  means  of  "  twenty- 
four  small  accumulators  which  weigh  about  seven 
hundredweight"  we  are  at  a  loss  to  conceive,  since  the 
weight  of  accumulators,  according  to  our  calculation,  must 
be  much  greater  than  this  in  order  that  they  may  have 
anything  like  a  reasonably  long  life. 

Chapter  XVII.,  on"  Electro-Metallurgy,"  is  interesting 
although  very  brief,  but  the  descriptions  of  the  electrical 
circuit-closers  for  torpedoes  in  the  next  chapter,  on 
"  Electricity  in  Warfare,"  we  find  too  short  to  be  in- 
telligible. A  chapter  of  5  pages  then  follows  on 
"  Medical  Electricity,"  and  another  chapter  of  the  same 
length  on  "  Miscellaneous  Applications  of  Electricity,"  in 
which  a  very  interesting  account  is  given  of  the  electrical 
method  employed  in  America  for  protecting  furnished 
dwelling-houses  that  have  been  left  locked  up  during  the 
absence  of  the  tenants. 

On  closing  this  book  one  certainly  cannot  deny  that  one 
has  had  one's  money's  worth,  even  if  the  entertainment 
has  been  of  the  "  variety  order  "  so  characteristic  of  the 
amusements  of  the  present  day.  If  a  member  of  the 
general  public  will  read  the  book  right  through,  as  we 
have  done,  he  may  perhaps  feel  with  exultation  that  he 
has  mastered  the  whole  subject  of  electrical  engineering  ; 
indeed,  even  a  well-trained  electrician  can  learn  from  it 
many  things  that  he  did  not  know  before,  concerning 
those  branches  of  the  subject  to  which  he  has  not  given 
special  attention.  But  we  fear  that,  if  even  a  general 
reader  were  to  turn  up  any  particular  subject  to  study  in 
detail,  he  would  probably  wish  he  had  been  told  a  good 
deal  more  about  what  was  most  important,  and  not  so 
much  about  everything  electrical  whether  important  or 
not.  The  best  features  of  "Electricity  in  Modern  Life" 
are  the  many  interesting  scientific  narratives,  in  the 
writing  of  which  Mr.  dc  Tunzelmann  appears  to  excel ; 
the  worst  are  the  mistakes  in  the  science,  which  more 
knowledge,  or  more  care,  ought  to  have  eliminated. 

ON  THE   TENSION  OF  RECENTL  V  FORMED 
LIQUID  SURFACES} 

TT  has  long  been  a  mystery  why  a  few  liquids,  such  as 
■*•  solutions  of  soap  and  saponine,  should  stand  so  far 
in  advance  of  others  in  regard  to  their  capability  of 
extension  into  large  and  tolerably  durable  lamina;.  The 
subject  was  specially  considered  by  Plateau  in  his  valuable 
researches,  but  with  results  which  cannot  be  regarded  as 
wholly  satisfactory.  In  his  view  the  question  is  one  of 
the  ratio  between  capillary  tension  and  superficial  viscosity. 
Some  of  the  facts  adduced  certainly  favour  a  connection 
between  the  phenomena  attributed  to  the  latter  property 
and  capability  of  extension  ;  but  the  "  superficial  viscosity  " 
is  not  clearly  defined,  and  itself  stands  in  need  of 
explanation. 

It  appears  to  me  that  there  is  much  to  be  said  in  favour 
of  the  suggestion  of  Marangoni  (''  Nuovo  Cimento,"  vols, 
v.-vi.,  1871,  p.  239),  to  the  effect  th,at  both  capability  of 
extension  and  so-called  superficial  viscosity  are  due  to 
the  presence  upon  the  body  of  the  liquid  of  a  coating  or 
pellicle  composed  of  matter  whose  inherent  capillary 
force  is  less  than  that  of  the  mass.  By  means  of  varia- 
tions in  this  coating,  Marangoni  explains  the  indisputable 
fact  that  in  vertical  soap  films  the  effective  tension  is 
different  at  various  levels.  Were  the  tension  rigorously 
constant,  as  it  is  sometimes  inadvertently  stated  to  be, 
gravity  would  inevitably  assert  itself,  and  the  central 
parts   would   fall    16   feet   in   the   first   second  of  time. 

«  A  l^aperreatl  by  I.orJ  Rayleigh,  SiC.R.S.,  before  the  Rjyal  Sjciety, 
on  March  6. 


By  a  self-acting  adjustment  the  coating  will  everywhere 
assume  such  thickness  as  to  afford  the  necessary  tension, 
and  thus  any  part  of  the  film,  considered  without  dis- 
tinction of  its  various  layers,  is  in  equilibrium.  There  is 
nothing,  however,  to  prevent  the  interior  layers  of  a 
moderately  thick  film  from  draining  down.  But  this 
motion,  taking  place  as  it  were  between  two  fixed  walls^ 
is  comparatively  slow,  being  much  impeded  by  ordinary 
fluid  viscosity. 

In  the  case  of  soap,  the  formation  of  the  pellicle  is 
attributed  by  Marangoni  to  the  action  of  atmospheric 
carbonic  acid,  liberating  the  fatty  acid  from  its  combina- 
tion with  alkali.  On  the  other  hand,  Sondhauss  {Po^gen- 
dorff's  Annaleti,  Ergiinzungsband  viii.,  1878,  p.  266)  found 
that  the  properties  of  the  liquid,  and  the  films  themselves, 
are  better  conserved  when  the  atmosphere  is  excluded  by 
hydrogen  ;  and  I  have  myself  observed  a  rapid  deteriora- 
tion of  very  dilute  solutions  of  oleate  of  soda  when 
exposed  to  the  air.  In  this  case  a  remedy  may  be  found 
in  the  addition  of  caustic  potash.  It  is  to  be  observed, 
moreover,  that,  as  has  long  been  known,  the  capillary 
forces  are  themselves  quite  capable  of  overcoming  weak 
chemical  affinities,  and  will  operate  in  the  direction 
required. 

A  strong  argument  in  favour  of  Marangoni's  theo'ry  is 
afforded  by  his  observation,^  that  within  very  wide  limits 
the  superficial  tension  of  soap  solutions,  as  determined 
by  capillary  tubes,  is  almost  independent  of  the  strength. 
My  purpose  in  this  note  is  to  put  forward  some  new 
facts  tending  strongly  to  the  same  conclusion. 

It  occurred  to  me  that,  if  the  low  tension  of  soap 
solutions  as  compared  with  pure  water  was  due  to  a 
coating,  the  formation  of  this  coating  would  be  a  matter 
of  time,  and  that  a  test  might  be  found  in  the  examination 
of  the  properties  of  the  liquid  surface  immediately  after 
its  formation.  The  experimental  problem  here  suggested 
may  seem  difficult  or  impossible ;  but  it  was,  in  fact, 
solved  some  years  ago  in  the  course  of  researches  upon 
thecapillary  phenomena  of  jets  (Roy.  Soc.  Proc,  May  15, 
1879).  A  jet  of  liquid  issuing  under  moderate  pressure  from 
an  elongated,  e.g.  elliptical,  aperture  perforated  in  a  thin 
plate,  assumes  "a  chain-like  appearance,  the  complete 
period,  X,  corresponding  to  two  hnks  of  the  chain,  being 
the  distance  travelled  over  by  a  given  part  of  the  liquid  in 
the  time  occupied  by  a  complete  transverse  vibration  of 
the  column  about  its  cylindrical  configuration  of  equi- 
librium. Since  the  phase  of  vibration  depends  upon  the 
time  elapsed,  it  is  always  the  same  at  the  same  point  in 
space,  and  thus  the  motion  is  steady  in  the  hydrodynamical 
sense,  and  the  boundary  of  the  jet  is  a  fixed  surface. 
Measurements  of  X  under  a  given  head,  or  velocity, 
determine  the  time  of  vibration,  and  from  this,  when  the 
density  of  the  liquid  and  the  diameter  of  the  column  are 
known,  follows  in  its  turn  the  value  of  the  capillary 
tension  (T)  to  which  the  vibrations  are  due.  Cceieris 
Paribus,Toz\-';a.nd\.h\s  relation,  which  is  very  easily 
proved,  is  all  that  is  needed  for  our  purpose.  If  we  wish 
to  see  whether  a  moderate  addition  of  soap  alters  the 
capillary  tension  of  water,  we  have  only  to  compare  the 
wave-lengths  X  in  the  two  cases,  using  the  same  aperture 
and  head.  By  this  method  the  liquid  surface  may  be 
tested  before  it  is  ^Jg  second  old. 

Since  it  was  necessary  to  be  able  to  work  with  moderate 
quantities  of  liquid,  the  elliptical  aperture  had  to  be 
rather  fine,  about  2  mm.  by  l  mm.  The  reservoir  was 
an  ordinary  flask,  8  cm.  in  diameter,  to  which  was  sealed 
below  as  a  prolongation  a  (i  cm.)  tube  bent  at  right 
angles  (Figs,  i,  2).  The  aperture  was  perforated  in  thin 
sheet  brass,  attached  to  the  tube  by  cement.  It  was 
about  15  cm.  below  the  mark,  near  the  middle  of  the 
flask,  which  defined  the  position  of  the  free  surface  at  the 
time  of  observation. 

'  Poggendorff'i  Annalcn,  vol.  cxliii.,  1871,  p.  342.  The  original  pamphlet 
dates  from  1865. 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


567 


The  arrangement  for  bringing  the  apparatus  to  a 
•fixed  position,  designed  upon  the  principles  laid  down 
by  Sir  W.  Thomson,  was  simple  and  effective.  The 
body  of  the  flask  rested  ont  hree  protuberances  from  the 
ring  of  a  retort  stand,  while  the  neck  was  held  by  an 
india-rubber  band  into  a  V-g''oove  attached  to  an  upper 
ring.  This  provided  five  contacts.  The  necessary  sixth 
■contact  was  effected  by  rotating  the  apparatus  about  its 
vertical  axis  until  the  delivery  tube  bore  against  a  stop 
situated   near   its   free   end.     The   flask   could   thus   be 


Figs,  i  and  2. 

removed  for  cleaning  without  interfering  with  the  com- 
parability of  various  experiments. 

The  measurements,  which  usually  embrace  two  com- 
plete periods,  could  be  taken  pretty  accurately  by  a  pair 
of  compasses  with  the  assistance  of  a  magnifying  glass. 
But  the  double  period  was  somewhat  small  (16  mm.),  and 
the  little  latitude  admissible  in  respect  to  the  time  of 
observation  was  rather  embarrassing.  It  was  thus  a 
great  improvement  to  take  magnified  photographs  of  the 
jet,  upon  which  measurements  could  afterwards  be  made  at 
leisure.     In  some  preliminary  experiments  the  image  upon 


the  ground  glass  of  the  camera  was  utilized  without  actual 
photography.  Even  thus  a  decided  advantage  was 
realized  in  comparison  with  the  direct  measurements. 

Sufficient  illumination  was  afforded  by  a  candle  flame 
situated  a  few  inches  behind  the  jet.  This  was  diffused 
by  the  interposition  of  a  piece  of  ground  glass.  The  lens 
was  a  rapid  portrait  lens  of  large  aperture,  and  the  ten 
seconds  needed  to  produce  a  suitable  impression  upon  the 
gelatine  plate  was  not  so  long  as  to  entail  any  important 
change  in  the  condition  of  the  jet.  Otherwise,  it  would 
have  been  easy  to  reduce  the  exposure  by  the  introduction 
of  a  condenser.  In  all  cases  the  sharpness  of  the  result- 
ing photographs  is  evidence  that  the  sixth  contact  was 
properly  made,  and  thus  that  the  scale  of  magnification 
was  strictly  preserved.  Fig.  3  is  a  reproduction  on  the 
original  scale  of  a  photograph  of  a  water-jet  taken  upon 
November  9.  The  distance  recorded  as  2X  is  between 
the  points  marked  A  and  B,  and  was  of  course  measured 
upon  the  original  negative.  On  each  occasion  when 
various  liquids  were  under  investigation,  the  photography 
of  the  water-jet  was  repeated,  and  the  results  agreed 
well. 

After  these  explanations  it  will  suffice  to  summarise  the 
actual  measurements  upon  oleate  of  soda  in  tabular  form. 
The  standard  solution  contained  i  part  of  oleate  in  40 
parts  of  water,  and  was  diluted  as  occasion  required.^ 
All  lengths  are  given  in  millimetres. 


Water. 

Oleate 

Oleate 

Ole,ite 

Oleate 

1/40. 

1/80. 

1/400. 

1/4000. 

2\... 

...      40-0      . 

•■     45-5     ■ 

••      440 

••      390 

•  •     39-0 

h... 

-      315       • 

iro 

..     iro 

. .       1 1  0 

•  •     23-0 

Fig.  3. 

In  the  second  row  h  is  the  rise  of  the  liquid  in  a 
capillary  tube,  carefully  cleaned  before  each  trial  with 
strong  sulphuric  acid  and  copious  washing.  In  the  last 
case,  relating  to  oleate  solution  jxj'oWj  the  motion  was 
sluggish  and  the  capillary  height  but  ill-defined.  It  will 
be  seen  that  even  when  the  capillary  height  is  not  much 
more  than  one-lhird  of  that  of  water,  the  wave-lengths 
differ  but  little,  indicating  that,  at  any  rate,  the  greater 
part  of  the  lowering  of  tension  due  to  oleate  requires  time 
for  its  development.  According  to  the  law  given  above, 
the  ratio  of  tensions  of  the  newly-formed  surfaces  for 
water  and  oleate  (s^^)  would  be  merely  as  6  :  5.^ 

Whether  the  slight  differences  still  apparent  in  the  case 
of  the  stronger  solutions  are  due  to  the  formation  of  a 
sensible  coating  in  less  than  yJo  second,  cannot  be 
absolutely  decided  ;  but  the  probability  appears  to  lie  in 
the  negative.  No  distinct  differences  could  be  detected 
between  the  first  and  second  wave-lengths ;  but  this 
observation  is,  perhaps,  not  accurate  enough  to  settle  the 
question.  It  is  possible  that  a  coaiing  may  be  formed  on 
the  surface  of  the  glass  and  metal,  and  that  this  is  after- 
wards carried  forward. 

•  Although  I  can  find  no  nate  of  the  fact,  I  think  I  am  right  in  sayinp; 
thai  large  bubbles  could  be  blown  with  the  weakest  of  the  solutions  experi- 
mented upon.  1      1       r     o 

^  Curiously  enough,  I  find  it  already  recorded  la  my  note-fiook  of  1879, 
that  A.  is  not  influenced  by  the  addition  tj  water  of  s  jap  suflicient  to  render 
impossible  the  rebound  of  colliding  jets. 


568 


NATURE 


\April  17,  1890 


As  a  check  upon  the  method,  I  thought  it  desirable  to 
apply  it  to  the  comparison  of  pure  water  and  dilute 
alcohol,  choosing  for  the  latter  a  mixture  of  10  parts  by 
volume  of  strong  (not  methylated)  alcohol  with  90  parts 
water.     The  results  were  as  follows  : — 


2\  (water)  =  38-5, 
h  (water)  =  30:0, 


2\  (alcohol)  =  46-5, 
h  (alcohol)  =  22 'o  ; 


but  it  may  be  observed  that  they  are  not  quite  comparable 
with  the  preceding  for  various  reasons,  such  as  displace- 
ments of  apparatus  and  changes  of  temperature.  It  is 
scarcely  worth  while  to  attempt  an  elaborate  reduction  of 
these  numbers,  taking  into  account  the  differences  of 
specific  gravity  in  the  two  cases  ;  for,  as  was  shown  in  the 
former  paper,  the  observed  values  of  X  are  complicated 
by  the  departure  of  the  vibrations  from  isochronism, 
when,  as  in  the  present  experiments,  the  deviation  from 
the  circular  section  is  moderately  great.     We  have — 


(46  •5/38-5)2  =  1-46, 


30/22  =  1-36; 


and  these  numbers  prove,  at  any  rate,  that  the  method  of 
wave-lengths  is  fully  competent  to  show  a  change  in 
tension,  provided  that  the  change  really  occurs  at  the 
first  moment  of  the  formation  of  the  free  surface. 

In  view  of  the  great  extensibility  of  saponine  films  it 
seemed  important  to  make  experiments  upon  this  material 
also.  The  liquid  employed  was  an  infusion  of  horse 
chestnuts  of  specific  gravity  i  '02,  and,  doubtless,  contained 
other  ingredients  as  well  as  saponine.  It  was  capable 
of  giving  large  bubbles,  even  when  considerably  diluted 
(6  times)  with  water.  Photographs  taken  on  November 
23  gave  the  following  results  : — 


2\  (water)  =  39*2, 
h  (water)  =  30-5, 


2\  (saponine) 
h  (saponine) 


39'5. 
207. 


Thus,  although  the  capillary  heights  differ  considerably, 
the  tensions  at  the  first  moment  are  almost  equal.  In 
this  case  then,  as  in  that  of  soap,  there  is  strong  evidence 
that  the  lowered  tension  is  the  result  of  the  formation  of 
a  pellicle. 

Though  not  immediately  connected  with  the  principal 
subject  of  this  communication,  it  may  be  well  here  to 
record  that  I  find  saponine  to  have  no  effect  inimical  to 
the  rebound  after  mutual  collision  of  jets  containing  it. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  gelatine,  whose  solutions  froth 
strongly.  On  the  other  hand,  a  very  little  soap  or  oleate 
usually  renders  such  rebound  impossible,  but  this  effect 
appears  to  depend  upon  undissolved  greasy  matter.  At 
least  the  drops  from  a  nearly  vertical  fountain  of  clear 
solution  of  soap  were  found  not  to  scatter  (Roy.  Soc.  Proc, 
June  15,  1882).  The  rebound  oi  jets  is,  however,  a  far 
more  delicate  test  than  that  of  drops.  A  fountain  of 
strong  saponine  differs  in  appearance  from  one  of  water  ; 
but  this  effect  is  due  rather  to  the  superficial  viscosity, 
which  retards,  or  altogether  prevents,  the  resolution  into 
drops. 

The  failure  of  rebound  when  jets  or  drops  containing 
milk  or  undissolved  soap  came  into  collision  has  rot  been 
fully  explained  ;  but  it  is  probably  connected  with  the 
disturbance  which  must  arise  when  a  particle  of  grease 
from  the  interior  reaches  the  surface  of  one  of  the  liquid 
masses. 

P.S. — I  have  lately  found  that  the  high  tension  of 
recently  formed  surfaces  of  soapy  water  was  deduced  by 
A.  Dupr^  ("  Thdorie  Mecanique  de  la  Chaleur,"  Paris, 
i869),aslongagoas  i869,from  some  experiments  upon  the 
vertical  rise  of  fine  jets.  Although  this  method  is  less 
direct  than  that  of  the  present  paper,  M.  Dupre  must  be 
considered,  I  think,  to  have  made  out  his  case.  It  is 
remarkable  that  so  interesting  an  observation  should  not 
have  attracted  more  attention. 


NOTES. 


It  is  stated  that  the  committee  to  be  appointed  to  inquire  into 
colour-blindness  in  seamen,  railway  guards,  and  others,  will  not 
be  exclusively  confined  to  members  of  the  Royal  Society.  Some 
gentlemen  who,  like  Dr.  Farquharson,  M.P.,  and  Mr.  Bickerton, 
of  Liverpool,  have  taken  special  interest  in  the  question  will,  it 
is  said,  be  asked  to  join  the  committee.  A  further  question  on 
the  subject  will,  in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  be  put  to  the 
President  of  the  Board  of  Trade. 

We  regret  to  have  to  record  the  death  of  Sir  John  Henry 
Lefroy,  F.  R.  S.  lie  died  on  Friday  evening  last  at  his  residence, 
Lewame,  a  few  miles  from  Liskeard.  He  was  seventy-three 
years  of  age.  He  entered  the  Royal  Artillery  in  1834,  and  was 
Director  of  the  Magnetical  and  Meteorological  Observatory  at 
St.  Helena  from  1840  to  1841,  whence  he  moved  to  a  similar 
position  at  Toronto  in  1842.  During  the  next  year  he  made  a 
magnetic  survey  of  the  interior  of  North  America  from  Montreal 
to  the  Arctic  Circle.  From  1854  to  1855  he  was  scientific 
adviser  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  at  the  War  Office  on  subjects  of 
artillery  and  inventions,  and  in  1855  he  was  sent,  as  lieutenant- 
colonel,  on  a  special  mission  to  the  seat  of  war.  Afterwards  he 
held  several  high  military  appointments.  In  1882  he  was  made 
a  general,  and  retired.  He  had  been  elected  a  Fellow  of  the 
Royal  Society  in  1848. 

Mr.  Thomas  Johnson,  Demonstrator  in  Botany  at  the 
Normal  School  of  Science  and  Royal  School  of  Mines,  has 
been  appointed  to  succeed  the  late  Prof.  McNab,  as  Professor  of 
Botany  at  the  Royal  College  of  Science,  Dublin,  Prof.  Johnson 
begins  lecturing  this  term. 

An  International  Medical  Congress  was  opened  at  Vienna  on 
Tuesday,  and  will  continue  its  sittings  until  to-morrow  (Friday). 
Many  physicians  from  the  principal  Europe  an  countries  are  taking 
part  in  the  proceedings. 

At  the  next  meeting  of  the  Anthropological  Institute,  on 
Tuesday,  April  22,  M.  Jacques  Bertillon  will  give  a  lecture, 
with  demonstrations,  on  the  method  now  practised  in  France 
of  identifying  criminals  by  comparing  their  measures  with  those 
of  convicted  persons  in  the  prison  registers.  The  registers  con- 
tain the  measures  of  many  tens  of  thousands  of  persons,  with 
their  photographs ;  yet  M.  Bertillon's  method  enables  the 
reference  to  be  rapidly  effected.  It  is  thought,  therefore,  that 
the  authorities  in  England  who  are  concerned  with  the  police,  or 
with  the  identification  of  deserters  from  the  army  or  the  navy, 
may  be  glad  of  the  opportunity  of  hearing  M.  Bertillon's 
exposition. 

The  Meteorological  Office  has  adopted  a  new  way  of  spread- 
ing information  as  to  the  condition  of  the  weather  on  our  coasts. 
On  Monday  it  began  to  exhibit,  at  63  Victoria  Street,  West- 
minster, outside  the  building,  a  series  of  boards,  showing  the 
state  of  the  wind,  weather,  and  sea  at  Yarmouth,  Dover,  the 
Needles,  Scilly,  Valentia  (Ireland),  and  Holyhead.  The  in- 
formation given  is  for  8  o'clock  in  the  morning  and  2  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  and  the  notice,  are  posted  up  at  about  9.30  a.m. 
and  3  p.m.  respectively.  The  words  are  printed  in  clear  type, 
and  can  be  read  by  those  having  ordinarily  good  sight  from  the 
pavement  or  roadway. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Institution  of  Civil  Engineers  on 
Tuesday  evening,  Sir  Frederick  Bramwell  read  a  paper  on 
the  application  of  electricity  to  welding,  stamping,  and  other 
cognate  purposes. 

There  has  been  some  talk  lately  about  a  scheme  for  the  con- 
struction of  a  bridge  across  the  Bosphorus.  The  Turkish  news- 
paper Hakikat  gives  some  particulars  of  the  project  a  propos   of 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


569 


an  offer  by  a  French  syndicate  to  build  a  bridge  of  8oo  metres 
in  length  and  70  metres  high  between  Roumeli  and  Anatoli 
Hissar.  The  bridge  would  consist  of  one  span,  and  this  would 
exceed  in  length  by  one-half  the  longest  span  of  the  Forth  Bridge. 
The  Anatolian  railway,  it  is  thought,  will  make  the  coastruction 
of  such  a  bridge  a  necessary  and  feasible  undertaking  before 
many  years. 

Madame  Rosa  Kirschbaum,  who  has  taken  the  degree  of 
Doctor  of  Medicine  at  a  Swiss  University,  has  been  authorized 
by  a  special  imperial  decree  to  conduct  a  hospital  for  eye  diseases 
at  Salzburg.  The  Vienna  Correspondent  of  the  limes  says 
this  is  the  first  case  of  a  lady  physician  being  admitted  to  medical 
practice  in  Austria. 

The  new  number  of  the  Kew  Bulletin  begins  with  a  section 
on  canaigre,  the  root  of  which  seems  likely  to  take  an  important 
place  as  a  tanning  material.  This  is  followed  by  sections  on 
pistachio  cultivation  in  Cyprus,  Indian  sugar,  and  mites  on 
sugar-cane.  The  section  on  Indian  sugar  consists  chiefly  of  a 
selection  from  a  file  of  documents  sent  to  Kew  from  the  India 
Office,  containing  much  valuable  information  as  to  the  production 
of  cane  sugar  in  India. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  Scientific  Committee  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society  on  April  8,  Mr.  Wilson  exhibited  a  plant 
of  a  primrose,  a  seedling  from  Scott  Wilson,  showing  a 
greater  advance  to  a  deep  blue  colour  thanh  as  yet  been  made. 
A  series  of  intermediate  forms  were  also  shown. 

The  Prefect  of  Savoy  has  recently  prohibited  the  gathering  of 
the  Cyclamen  in  the  woods  of  his  department.  Notwithstanding 
its  abundance  in  the  locality,  this  beautiful  plant  had  been 
threatened  with  total  extinction,  from  the  enormous  numbers 
gathered  each  year  for  sale  in  the  markets  of  Chambery  and 
Aix-les- Bains. 

A  singular  fact  is  related  by  M.  Lagatu  in  the  Feuille  cies 
Jeunes  Nattiralistcs.  In  the  year  1884  a  large  number  of  cattle 
died  after  having  browsed  in  a  particular  pasture  in  the  depart- 
ment of  rOise.  M.  E.  Prillieux  found  the  cause  of  death  to  be 
poisoning  by  ergotized  Lolium  ;  and  he  attributes  it  to  the  fact 
that  the  cattle  were  sent  to  the  pasture  about  10  days  later  than 
usual.  M.  Prillieux  frequently  found  ergot  on  tufts  of  grass 
refused  by  the  cattle,  which  marked  the  spots  where  dejecta  had 
been  left  without  being  scattered. 

Dr.  G.  B.  De  Toni  has  retired  from  the  editorship  of  the 
Italian  bi-monthly  journal  Notarisia,  devoted  to  cryptogamic 
botany,  which  will  in  future  be  conducted  by  Dr.  David  Levi 
Morenos. 

At  the  last  meeting  of  the  Natural  History  Society  of  Kiel, 
Major  Reinhold  read  a  paper  on  the  botanical  condition  of 
the  German  Ocean.  According  to  researches  recently  made, 
the  eastern  part  is  almost  wholly  bare  of  vegetation.  This  is 
believed  to  be  owing  to  the  strong  tidal  currents,  which  so  dis- 
turb the  sea  bottom  as  to  prevent  the  germs  and  spores  of  marine 
plants  from  settling. 

A  ZOOLOGICAL  floating  station  is  now  in  working  order  at 
Isefiord  on  the  Danish  coast,  under  the  direction  of  Dr. 
Petersen. 

The  Proceedings  of  the  International  Congress  of  Zoology, 
held  last  August  in  Paris,  were  issued  a  few  days  ago.  Among 
the  contributors  are  Messrs.  Bogdanow,  Bowdler  Sharpe, 
D'Arcy  Thompson,  E.  P.  Wright,  C.  V.  Riley,  V.  Wagner, 
Ray  Lankester,  A.  S.  Packard,  Trimen,  Riitimeyer,  Retzius, 
Hubrecht,  de  Selys-Longchamps,  Agassiz,  Blanford,  L.  Netto, 
W.  A.  Conklin,  A.  Fritsch,  and  McLachlan.  This  list  of 
names  suffices  to  show  that  the  meeting  was  really  of  an 
international  character. 

A  shock  of  earthquake  was  felt  in  Maine,  U.S.A.,  on 
April  II. 


Reports  of  an  earthquake  felt  on  March  26,  between  9.15  and 
9.20  p.m.,  have  been  received  from  Innsbruck,  the  Ziller  Valley, 
Sterzing,  Bozen,  Meran,  the  Puster  Valley,  Salurn,  Arco, 
Ampezzo,  and  the  Weiten  Valley.  The  direction  of  the  shocks 
was  from  north  to  south. 

Two  papers  on  "  The  Cradle  of  the  Semites,"  read  before  the 
Philadelphia  Oriental  Club,  have  just  been  published.  The  first 
is  by  Dr.  Daniel  G.  Brinton,  who  contends  that  the  Semitic 
stock  came  originally  from  '*  those  picturesque  valleys  of  the 
Atlas  which  look  forth  toward  the  Great  Ocean  and  the  setting 
sun."  Prof.  Jastrow,  the  author  of  the  second  paper,  agrees 
generally  as  to  the  probability  of  a  Semitic  migration  from  Africa 
into  Asia,  but  thinks  that  Dr.  Brinton  goes  farther  than  the 
evidence  warrants  when  he  tries  to  indicate  the  particular  region 
of  Africa  from  which  the  migration  started. 

During  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1888,  and  the  following 
winter,  Mr.  Albert  Koebele  carried  on  researches  in  Australia 
for  the  purpose  of  determining  whether  it  would  not  be  possible 
to  introduce  into  California  the  most  efficient  of  the  Australian 
natural  enemies  of  the  fluted  scale  (Icerya  purchasi,  Maskell).  A 
report  on  his  investigations  has  just  been  issued  by  the  U.S. 
Department  of  Agriculture ;  and  from  this  it  seems  that  the 
results  achieved  by  him  are  highly  satisfactory.  Prof.  Riley, 
who  contributes  an  introduction  to  the  report,  says  that  one  of 
the  insects  imported,  the  Cardinal  Vedalia  ( Vedalia  cardinalis, 
Mulsant),  has  multiplied  and  increased  to  such  an  extent  as- 
to  rid  many  of  the  orange-groves  of  Icerya,  and  to  promise 
immunity  in  the  near  future  for  the  entire  State  of  California. 

Some  interesting  notes  on  the  archaeology  and  ethnology  of 
Easter  Island,  by  Mr.  Walter  Hough,  appear  in  the  new  number 
of  Ihe  American  Naturalist.  One  of.  the  last  acts  of  the  late 
Prof.  Spencer  F.  Baird  was  to  induce  the  American  Navy 
Department  to  send  a  vessel  to  explore  the  island  and  bring  back, 
representative  specimens.  The  U.S.S.  Mohican,  then  at  Tahiti, 
was  detailed,  and  the  fruits  of  the  successful  twelve  days' explora- 
tion are  now  to  be  seen  in  the  north  and  west  halls  of  the 
American  National  Museum.  They  consist  of  several  stone 
images,  carved  stones,  painted  slabs,  and  a  fine  collection  of 
smaller  objects  obtained  by  Paymaster  W.  J.  Thomson,  U.S.N.. 
In  his  article  Mr.  Hough  makes  good  use  of  the  materials  thus 
brought  together,  and  of  information  placed  at  the  disposal  of 
the  National  Museum  by  Mr.  Thomson,  and  by  Surgeon  G.  H,_ 
Cooke,  U.S.N. 

Two  interesting  papers  on  primitive  architecture,  by  Mr. 
Barr  Ferree,  have  been  reprinted  together,  one  from  the 
American  Naturalist,  the  other  from  the  American  Anthropo- 
logist. In  the  first  article  the  author  deals  with  sociological 
influences,  in  the  second  with  climatic  influences. 

From  the  reports,  for  the  past  official  year,  of  the  Directors  of 
Public  Instruction  and  their  subordinates  in  various  Indian, 
districts,  on  vernacular  literature,  it  appears  that,  on  the  wholes 
but  very  little  scientific  work  of  an  original  character  is  being 
performed  by  natives  of  India,  and  that  the  taste  for  scientific 
literature,  original  or  translated,  can  scarcely  be  said  to  exist.  In. 
Bengal,  the  Director  says  that,  "while  physiology  keeps  in  old 
grooves,  medicine  seems  to  be  trying  to  return  to  them.' 
In  Madras  scientific  works  appear  to  have  been  confined  to  the 
translation  of  an  old  Sanskrit  work  on  medicine,  unless  indeed 
"a  collection  of  a  thousand  stanzas  in  Tamil  verse,  treating  of  the 
Yoga  philosophy,  can  be  called  scientific."  In  the  North- West 
Provinces  eleven  works  on  medicine  were  registered  during  the 
year,  some  of  them  being  translations,  while  others  are  described 
as  original  works  of  some  merit.  The  great  mass  of  Indian, 
literature  appears  to  be  composed  of  fiction,   poetry,   and  the 


570 


NATURE 


[April  17,  1890 


-drama,  and,  in  Bengal  especially,  is  described  as  for  the  most 
part  worthless  and  immoral. 

It  is  well  known  that  a  connection  has  been  observed  (in 
Munich  and  other  towns)  between  ground-water  and  typhus  ; 
the  disease  gaining  force  as  the  water  goes  down,  and  declining 
as  the  water  rises.  (It  is  thought  that  certain  decompositions 
are  favoured  by  air  taking  the  place  of  water  in  the  ground.) 
While  in  former  years  Hamburg  has  exemplified  this  effect,  the 
last  typhus  epidemic  there,  according  to  Prof.  Bruckner,  was 
quite  in  discordance  with  the  variations  of  ground-water.  From 
1838,  it  is  stated,  the  typhus  mortality  in  Hamburg  steadily  fell 
from  19  to  2  or  3  per  1000  ;  but  from  1885  it  rose  again  to  9  ; 
and  whereas  before  1885  the  epidemic  was  a  summer  one,  with 
its  maximum  in  August,  it  now  became  a  winter  one,  with 
maximum  in  December.  The  curve  of  ground-water  continued 
to  have  the  same  course  as  before.  Prof.  Bruckner  points  out 
that  this  epidemic  of  1884-87  corresponded  in  time  with  certain 
harbour  works  being  carried  out  at  Hamburg,  and  he  attributes 
it  to  the  upturning  of  enormous  masses  of  earth,  the  abode  of 
•numberless  bacteria,  whose  diffusion  among  the  inhabitants  was 
thus  facilitated. 

The  volume  of  Results  of  the  Magnetical  and  Meteoro- 
logical Observations  made  at  the  Royal  Observatory,  Green- 
wich, in  the  year  1887,  contains  an  appendix  of  considerable 
importance  to  meteorologists,  viz.  the  hourly  reduction  of  the 
photographic  records  of  the  barometer  for  1874-76,  and  of  the 
■dry  and  wet  bulb  thermometers  for  1869-76.  This  appendix, 
which  is  also  published  separately,  continues  the  results  for  the 
twenty  years  published  in  1878.  The  tables  now  given  complete 
the  reduction  of  the  photographic  records  nearly  to  the  present 
time,  commencing  with  the  year  1 854  for  the  barometer,  and 
with  the  year  1849  for  the  thermometers.  The  means  for  the 
two  periods  are  given  separately,  but  their  value  would  be  farther 
■enhanced  if  the  results  for  the  whole  period  were  also  given  in 
a  combined  form. 

With  the  month  of  January,  the  Monthly  Weather  Review 
of  the  United  States  Signal  Service  entered  upon  its  eighteenth 
year  of  publication.  The  Review  is  based  upon  reports  from 
1934  observers,  a  large  majority  of  whom  belong  to  the  State 
Weather  Services.  This  number  is  exclusive  of  the  reports  which 
are  usually  supplied  by  the  Central  Pacific  Railway  Company,  but 
which  couldnot  be  forwarded  for  January,  owing  to  snowblockades 
and  floods.  One  hundred  and  twenty  miles  of  the  railroad 
•crossing  the  Sierra  Nevada  range  of  mountains  was  blockaded 
by  snow,  being  the  heaviest  blockade  ever  known  there,  and  it 
s  estimated  that  fully  50  per  cent,  of  the  live  stock  was  lost 
from  exposure  and  starvation.  The  paths  of  twelve  depressions 
that  appeared  over  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  are  plotted  on  a 
chart.  Of  the  nine  depressions  that  moved  eastwards  from  the 
American  continent,  four  were  traced  to  the  British  Isles.  Three 
storms  first  appeared  over  the  ocean,  and  two  of  these  were  alsi 
traced  to  the  British  Isles.  Among  the  "  Notes  and  Extracts  "  is 
an  article  on  the  recent  comparison  of  anemometers,  by  Prof. 
Marvin.  The  results  obtained  show  that  of  the  anemometers 
exposed  to  the  same  wind,  those  with  short  arms  gave  a  lower 
velocity  than  those  with  long  arms.  No  experiments  were  made 
beyond  32  miles  per  hour,  and  although  various  formulas  were 
given  for  the  reduction  of  wind  velocities,  Prof.  Marvin  states 
that  they  cannot  be  depended  on  for  velocities  beyond  the 
•experimental  values,  so  that  much  more  information  has  yet  to 
be  gained,  as  to  the  action  of  anemometers  with  high  velocities, 
from  careful  experiments  with  whirling  machines.  We  take  this 
•opportunity  of  pointing  out  that  a  general  subject-index  to  the 
Monthly  Weather  Reviews  and  the  Annual  Reports  of  the  Chief 
Signal  Officsr,  to  1887,  has  been  published,  and  affords  easy 
reference  to  the  valuable  information  contained  in  these 
publications. 


A  RECENT  writer  in  the  North  China  Herald  of  Shanghai 
says  that  the  climate  of  Asia  is  becoming  colder  than  it  formerly 
was,  and  its  tropical  animals  and  plants  are  retreating  southwards 
at  a  slow  rate.  This  is  true  of  China,  and  it  is  also  the  case  in 
Western  Asia.  The  elephant  in  a  wild  state  was  hunted  in 
the  eighth  century  B.C.  by  Tiglath  Pileser,  the  King  of  Assyria, 
near  Carchemish,  which  lay  near  the  Euphrates  in  Syria.  Fou 
or  five  centuries  before  this  Thothmes  III.,  King  of  Egypt, 
hunted  the  same  animal  near  Aleppo.  In  high  antiquity  the 
elephant  and  rhinoceros  were  known  to  the  Chinese,  they  had 
names  for  them,  and  their  tusks  and  horns  were  valued.  South 
China  has  a  very  warm  climate  which  melts  insensibly  into  that 
of  Gochin-China,  so  that  the  animals  of  the  Indo-Chinese 
peninsula  would,  if  there  were  a  secular  cooling  of  climate, 
retreat  gradually  to  the  south.  This  is  just  what  seems  to  have 
taken  place.  In  the  time  of  Confucius  elephants  were  in  use  for 
the  army  on  the  Yangtze  River.  A  hundred  and  fifty  years  after 
this,  Mencius  speaks  of  the  tiger,  the  leopard,  the  rhinoceros,  and 
the  elephant,  as  having  been,  in  many  parts  of  the  empire,  driven 
away  from  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Chinese  inhabitants  by  the 
founders  of  the  Chou  dynasty.  Tigers  and  leopards  are  not  yet 
by  any  means  extinct  in  China.  The  elephant  and  rhinoceros 
are  again  spoken  of  in  the  first  century  of  our  era.  If  to  these 
particulars  regarding  elephants  be  added  the  retreat  from  the 
rivers  of  South  China  of  the  ferocious  alligators  that  formerly 
infested  them,  the  change  in  the  fauna  of  China  certainly  seems 
to  show  that  the  climate  is  much  less  favourable  for  tropical 
animals  than  it  formerly  was.  In  fact  it  appears  to  have  become 
drier  and  colder.  The  water  buffalo  still  lives,  and  is  an  extremely 
useful  domestic  animal,  all  along  the  Yangtze  and  south  of  u,  but 
is  not  seen  north  of  the  old  Yellow  River  in  the  province  of 
Kiangsu.  The  Chinese  alligator  is  still  found  in  the  Yangtze, 
but  so  rare  is  its  appearance  that  foreign  residents  in  China  knew 
nothing  about  it  till  it  was  described  by  M.  Fauvel.  The  flora 
is  also  affected  by  the  increasing  coldness  of  the  climate  in  China. 
The  bamboo  is  still  grown  in  Peking  with  the  aid  of  good  shelter, 
moisture,  and  favourable  soil,  but  it  is  not  found  naturally  grow- 
ing into  forest  in  North  China,  as  was  its  habit  two  thousand 
years  ago.  It  grows  now  in  that  part  of  the  empire  as  a  sort  o 
garden  plant  only.  It  is  in  Szechuan  province  that  the  southern 
flora  reaches  farthest  to  the  northward. 

Some  interesting  experiments  on  the  physiology  of  sponges 
have  been  recently  made  by  Dr.  Lendenfeld,  of  Innsbruck 
{Humboldt).  He  operated  with  eighteen  different  species, 
putting  carmine,  starch,  or  milk,  in  the  water  of  the  aquarium, 
and  also  trying  the  effect  of  various  poisons — morphine,  strych- 
nine, c&c.  The  following  are  some  of  his  results  :  Absorption 
of  food  does  not  take  place  at  the  outer  surface,  but  in  the 
interior  ;  only  foreign  substances  used  for  building  up  the  skeleton 
enter  the  sponge  without  passing  into  the  canal-system.  Grains 
of  carmine  and  other  matters  often  adhere  to  the  flat  cells  of 
the  canals,  but  true  absorption  only  takes  place  in  the  ciliated 
cylindrical  cells  of  the  ciliated  chamber.  These  get  quite  filled 
with  carmine  grains  or  milk  spherules,  but  starch  grains  prove 
too  large  for  them.  Remaining  in  these  cells  a  few  days,  the 
carmine  cells  are  then  ejected  ;  while  milk  particles  are  partly 
digested,  and  then  passed  on  to  the  migratory  cells  of  the  inter- 
mediate layer.  Any  carmine  particles  found  in  these  latter  cells 
have  entered  accidentally  through  external  lesions.  The  sponge 
contracts  its  pores  when  poisons  are  put  in  the  water  ;  and  the 
action  is  very  like  that  of  poisons  on  muscles  of  the  higher 
animals.  Especially  remarkable  is  the  cramp  of  sponges  under 
strychnine  ;  and  the  lethargy  (to  other  stimuli)  of  sponges  treated 
with  cocain.  As  these  poisons,  in  the  higher  animals,  act  in- 
directly on  the  muscles  through  the  nerves,  it  seems  not  without 
warrant  to  suppose  that  sponges  also  have  nerve-cells  which 
cause  muscular  contraction. 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


571 


The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  a  Black-eared  Marmoset  {Ha(>ale  penicillata) 
from  South-east  Brazil,  presented  by  Mr.  J.  A.  Watson,  F.Z.S  ; 
a'Lesser  White-nosed  Monkey  {Cercopithecus petaurisia  $  )  from 
West  Africa,  presented  by  Mr.  E.  B.  Parfitt  ;  a  Macaque 
Monkey  {Macacus  cynomolgus  ? )  from  India,  presented  by 
Mrs.  H.  F.  Batt  ;  a  Sambur  Deer  {Cervus  aristotelis  i  )  from 
India,  presented  by  Capt.  George  James  ;  a  Common  Badger 
{Meles  taxus,  white  variety),  British,  presented  by  the  Hon. 
Morton  North  ;  a  Jackdaw  {Corvus  monedula),  British,  pre- 
sented by  Mrs.  Bowden  ;  a  Blessbok  {Alcelaphus  albifrons  i  ) 
from  South  Africa,  four  Undulated  Grass  Parrakeets  {Melo- 
psittactis  undulatus  2  cJ  2  9 )  from  Australia,  deposited  ;  an 
Australian  Crane  {Grus  aitstralasiana),  two  Chestnut-eared 
Finches  {Amadina  casianoHs)  from  Australia,  three  European 
Flamingoes  (Phcxnicopterus  antiquorum),  four  Great  Bustards 
{Otis  tarda),  European,  purchased. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time   at    Greenwich   at    10   p.m.    on   April  17  = 
lih.  43m.  5Ss. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl,  1890. 

(i)G.C.  2841      

(2)i37Schj 

(^)  <^  Leonis 

(4)  ^  Leonis         

(5)i55*Schj 

(6)  U  Virginia     

6 

4 
a 

vL. 

White. 

Yellowish-red. 

Yellowish-white. 

White. 

Red. 

Reddish. 

h.  tn,  s. 
12  13  33 

10  54     5 

11  II     6 

11  43  30 

12  52    6 

12  45  31 

+4*7  55 
-15  52 

-  3     3 
+  15  11 
+66  35 

-  6     9 

Remarks. 

(i)  This  large  white  nebula  is  situated  in  the  constellation  of 
Ursa  Major,  and  is  thus  described  in  the  General  Catalogue  : — 
"  Very  bright,  very  large,  suddenly  brighter  in  the  middle  to  a 
nucleus."  According  to  Smyth,  it  is  oval  in  shape,  the  lateral 
edges  being  better  defined  than  the  ends.  Lord  Rosse's  tele- 
scope showed  it  to  be  much  mottled.  In  1866  Dr.  Huggins 
described  its  spectrum  as  continuous,  with  "  a  suspicion  of 
unusual  brightness  about  the  middle  part."  No  observations  of 
the  spectrum  appear  to  have  been  made  since  then,  but  it  is  im- 
portant that  it  should  be  re-examined.  The  spectra  of  the  white 
nebuljE  are  usually  almost  entirely  wanting  in  red  light,  and  it  is 
therefore  quite  possible  that  the  brightening  in  the  middle  is 
nothing  more  than  the  green  carbon  fluting  near  A517.  Direct 
comparisons  with  the  spectrum  of  a  spirit-lamp  flame  would 
soon  decide  this  point.  In  any  case,  if  there  be  one  or  more 
brightenings,  some  attempt  should  be  made  to  determine  their 
positions. 

(2)  The  spectrum  of  this  star  has  not  yet  been  completely 
described.  Secchi  stated  that  it  was  of  the  type  of  o  Orionis, 
and  Duner  states  that  it  is  most  probably  a  star  of  Group  XL, 
but  very  feebly  developed.  As  I  have  previously  pointed  out,  it 
is  these  "feebly  developed"  stars  of  Group  II.  which  require 
further  examination  rather  than  those  which  are  described  as 
"fully  developed,"  as  they  are  piobably  transition  stages  between 
Groups  I.  and  II.,  or  Groups  II.  and  III. 

(3)  According  to  Konkoly,  this  star  has  a  well-developed 
spectrum  of  the  solar  type.  Differential  observations  as  to 
whether  the  star  belongs  to  Group  III.  or  to  Group  V.  are 
required.     (For  criteria  so  far  determined,  see  p.  20.) 

(4)  The  spectrum  of  this  star  is  a  very  fine  one  of  Group  IV. 
The  usual  observations  are  required. 

(5)  D'Arrest  and  Duner  both  describe  the  spectrum  of  this 
star  as  a  magnificent  one  of  Group  VI.  According  to  Duner, 
the  principal  bands  are  very  dark,  and  the  subsidiary  bands 
4  and  5  are  well  visible,  while  the  bands  i,  2,  3  are  very  weak. 
He  also  states  that  the  spectrum  is  rendered  unique  by  the  fact 
that  the  least  refrangible  part  of  the  sub-zone  in  the  yellow  is 
considerably  weaker  than  the  other.  Further  observations,  as 
previously  suggested  for  similar  stars,  should  be  made. 

(6)  This   star  affords  another  opportunity   of  searching  for 


bright  lines  in  the  spectrum  of  a  variable  of  Group  II.  near 
maximum.  Vogel  states  that  the  spectrum  is  a  fine  one  of 
Group  II.,  but  we  have  as  yet  no  detailed  description  of  the 
bands  present.  The  period  of  the  variable  is  about  207  days, 
and  it  ranges  in  magnitude  from  7 •7-8*1  at  maximum  to- 
I2'2-I2'8  at  minimum.  The  maximum  will  occur  on  April  21, 
but  as  Mr.  Espin  has  noticed  that  the  bright  lines  sometimes  do 
not  appear  until  after  the  maximum,  it  will  be  desirable  to  con- 
tinue the  observations  for  some  days  after.  The  variations  of 
the  bright  carbon  flutings  should  also  receive  attention. 

A.  Fowler. 

Comet  Brooks  {a  1890). — The  following  elements  have  been 
computed  by  Dr.  Bidschof,  of  the  Imperial  Observatory,  Vienna, 
from  observations  at  Cambridge,  U.S.,  March  21  ;  Vienna^ 
March  4  and  28  {Astr.  Nach.,  No.  2962):  — 

T  =  1890  June  3*6399  Berlin  mean  time. 


0,  =     71     7*5 
a   =  320  44*9 
I  =  121   17  2 
log  q  =  0*27189 


Mean  Eq.  1890*0. 


Ephevuris  for  Bertin  Midnight. 


1890. 


R.A 


Decl.     I      1890. 


R.A. 


Decl. 


April  16. ..21    9  21.. 

.  +  19  2I*0 

April  26. ..21 

4    5" 

+  26  15*1 

17... 

9    c. 

•     19  59*2 

27... 

3  18... 

27    0-9. 

18... 

837.. 

.    20  38  0 

28... 

2  27... 

27476 

19... 

813.. 

.      21   17*5 

29... 

I  33- 

28  35*0- 

20  .. 

7  47- 

•     21  577 

30... 

0  34-- 

29  33 '3 

21... 

718.. 

.     22386 

May      I. ..20 

59  3'-- 

30  12-4 

22... 

646.. 

.     23  20*3 

2... 

58  23... 

31    2*3 

23... 

6  10.. 

.     24    2*8 

3-- 

57  10... 

31  52-9- 

24... 

532.. 

24  46*1 

4... 

5551- 

32  44'3- 

25... 

450.. 

.     25  30*2 

Brightness, 

that  at  d 

scovery  being  unity — 

18 

April  = 

1*81. 

30  April 

=  2*39. 

22 

)>      ^^ 

1*99. 

4  May 

=  2*62. 

26 

>>      ^^ 

2*18. 

New  Variable  in  C^lum. — Prof.  Pickering,  in  a  com- 
munication to  Astr.  Nack.,  No.  2962,  notes  that  an  examination 
of  a  plate  taken  by  Mr.  S.  J.  Bailey  at  the  Closica  station  in 
Peru,  shows  that  the  G  and  h  lines  of  hydrogen  are  bright  in 
the  spectrum  of  a  star  whose  position  for  1875  ^^  R.A.  4h. 
36*2m.,  Decl.  -  38°  29'.  An  inspection  of  photographic  chart 
plates  indicates  that  the  star  is  variable,  and  its  spectrum  seems 
to  place  it  in  the  same  class  as  o  Ceti,  R  Hydrae,  R  Leonis, 
and  other  long-period  variables.  The  date  on  which  the  plate 
was  taken  is  not  given,  but  it  is  observed  that  the  spectrum  is  as 
bright  photographically  as  that  of  Cordoba  Catalogue  No.  1077,. 
which  is  of  the  magnitude  l\,  and  since  the  former  is  a  red  star, 
it  was  probably  much  brighter  visually.  Eye  observations  at 
Cambridge,  U.S.,  on  February  20  and  21  of  this  year  show  that 
the  star  was  then  about  magnitude  105.  It  seems,  therefore, 
that  the  bright  lines  of  hydrogen  were  photographed  in  the 
spectrum  of  this  object  when  it  was  near  a  maximum. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  NOTES. 

The  Council  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society  met  on 
Monday,  and  finally  decided  upon  the  awards  of  the  honours 
for  the  year.  One  of  the  Royal  Medals  has  been  awarded  to 
Emin  Pasha,  in  recognition  of  the  services  rendered  by  him  to 
geography  and  the  allied  sciences  by  his  explorations  and 
researches  in  the  countries  east,  west,  and  south  of  the  Upper 
Nile  during  his  administration  of  the  Equatorial  Province  of 
Egypt.  The  other  Royal  Medal  has  been  awarded  to  Lieut.  F. 
E.  Younghusband,  for  his  journey  across  Central  Asia  in  1886- 
87,  from  Manchuria  and  Pekin  viA  Hami  and  Kashgar,  and 
over  the  Mushtagh  to  Cashmere  and  India,  a  distance  of  7000 
miles.  The  Cuthbert  Peek  grant  has  been  awarded  to  Mr.  E. 
C.  Hare  for  his  observations  on  the  physical  geography  of 
Tanganyika  made  during  his  many  years'  residence  on  that  lake. 
The  Murchison  grant  has  been  awarded  to  Signor  Vittoria  Sella, 
in  consideration  of  his  recent  journey  in  the  Caucasus,  and  the 
advance  made  in  our  knowledge  of  the  physical  characteristics 
and  the  topography  of  the  chain  by  means  of  his  series  of 
panoramic  photographs  taken  above  the  snow  level.     The  G  ilk 


572 


NATURE 


\  April  17,  1890 


memorial  has  been  given  to  Mr.  C.  M.  Woodford,  for  his  three 
expeditions  to  the  Solomon  Islands,  and  the  additions  made  by 
him  to  our  topographical  kno  vledge  and  the  natural  history  of 
the  islands.  The  new  honorary  corresponding  members  are 
Prof.  Davidson,  of  San  Francisco  ;  Dr.  Junker,  the  friend  of 
Emin  Pasha,  and  Central  African  explorer ;  and  Senhor  Santa 
Anna  Nery,  of  Rio  Janeiro. 

At  the  evening  meeting  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Society  on 
Monday,  Sir  M.  E.  Grant  DufF  in  the  chair,  Dr.  Hans  Meyer 
read  a  paper  on  his  journey  to  the  summit  of  Kilima-Njaro. 
After  giving  a  short  account  of  his  expedition  in  1887,  and  the 
discouragements  to  which  he  had  been  subjected  on  two  sub- 
sequent efforts  to  carry  out  his  programme,  Dr.  Meyer  proceeded 
to  say  that,  while  the  main  portion  of  the  caravan  encamped  in 
Marangu,  he  ascended  with  Herr  Purtscheller  and  eight  picked 
men  through  the  primjeval  forest  to  a  stream  beyond,  where  he  had 
encamped  in  the  year  1887,  at  an  altitude  of  9200  feet.  There 
their  large  tent  was  pitched,  straw  huts  were  built  for  the  men, 
and  firewood  collected.  Accompanied  by  four  men  they  travelled 
for  two  more  days  up  the  broad,  grassy,  southern  slopes  of 
Kilima-Njaro  to  the  fields  of  rapilli  on  the  plateau  between 
Kibo  and  Mawenzi,  and  found  there  to  the  south-east  of  Kibo, 
imder  the  protection  fforded  by  some  blocks  of  lava,  a  spot,  at 
an  altitude  of  14,270  feet,  well  suited  for  the  erection  of  their 
small  tent.  As  soon  as  the  instruments  and  apparatus  bad  been 
placed  under  cover,  three  of  the  men  returned  to  the  camp  on 
the  edge  of  the  forest,  and  only  one,  a  Pangani  negro,  Mwini 
Amani  by  name,  remained  to  share,  uncomplainingly,  their 
sixteen  days'  sojourn  on  the  cold  and  barren  heights.  With 
regard  to  their  maintenance,  it  had  been  arranged  that  every 
third  day  four  men  should  come  up  with  provisions  from  the 
lower  camp  in  Marangu  to  the  central  station  on  the  edge  of  the 
forest,  and  that  two  of  the  men  stationed  there  should  thence 
convey  the  necessary  food  to  them  in  the  upper  camp,  returning 
immediately  afterwards  to  their  respective  starting-places.  And 
this  accordingly  was  done.  Firewood  was  supplied  by  the  roots  of 
the  lowbushes  still  growing  there  in  a  few  localities,  and  theirnegro 
fetched  adailysupplyof  waterfrom  a  spring  rising  belowthecamp. 
Tn  that  manner  they  were  enabled,  as  if  from  an  Alpine  Club  hut, 
to  carry  out  a  settled  programme  in  the  ascent  and  surveying  of  the 
upper  heights  of  Kilima-Njaro.  The  ice-crowned  Kibo  towered 
up  steeply  another  5000  feet  to  the  west  of  their  camp,  itself  at 
an  altitude  of  14,300  feet.  On  October  3  they  undertook  their 
first  ascent.  The  previous  day  they  had  resolved  to  make  the 
first  attempt,  not  in  the  direction  chosen  by  him  in  1887,  but 
up  a  large  rib  of  lava  which  jutted  out  to  the  south-east,  and 
formed  the  southern  boundary  of  the  deepest  of  the  eroded 
ravines  on  that  side  of  the  mountain.  Their  simple  plan  of 
operations,  which  they  succeeded  in  carrying  out,  was  to  climb 
up  this  lava-ridge  to  the  snow-line,  to  begin  from  its  uppermost 
tongue  the  scramble  over  the  mantle  of  ice,  and  endeavour  to 
reach  by  the  shortest  way  the  peak  to  the  south  of  the  mountain, 
-which  appeared  to  be  the  highest  point.  It  was  not  till  half- 
past  7  o'clock  that  they  reached  the  crown  of  that  rib  of  lava 
which  had  been  their  goal  from  the  very  first,  and,  panting  for 
breath,  they  began  to  pick  their  way  over  the  boulders  and  debris 
<;overing  the  steep  incline  of  the  ridge.  Every  ten  minutes  they 
had  to  pause  for  a  few  moments  to  give  their  lungs  and  beating 
hearts  a  short  breathing  space,  for  they  had  now  for  some  time 
been  above  the  height  of  Mont  Blanc,  and  the  inc-easing  rare- 
faction of  the  atmosphere  was  making  itself  gradually  felt.  At 
an  altitude  of  17,220  feet  they  rested  for  half  an  hour;  appar- 
ently they  had  attained  an  elevation  superior  to  the  highest 
point  of  Mawenzi,  which  the  rays  of  the  morning  sun  were 
painting  a  ruddy  brown.  Below  them,  like  so  many  mole- 
Tieaps,  lay  the  hillocks  rising  from  the  middle  of  the  saddle.  A 
few  roseate  cumulus  clouds  floated  far  over  the  plain,  reflecting 
the  reddish-brown  laterite  soil  of  the  steppe  ;  the  lowlands, 
however,  were  but  dimly  visible  through  the  haze  of  rising 
-vapour.  The  ice-cap  of  Kibo  was  gleaming  above  their  heads, 
appearing  to  be  almost  within  reach.  Shortly  before  10  o'clock 
they  stood  at  its  base,  at  an  elevation  of  18,270  feet  above  sea- 
■level.  At  that  point  the  face  of  the  ice  did  not  ascend,  but 
almost  immediately  afterwards  it  rose  at  an  angle  of  35°,  so  that, 
without  ice-axes,  it  would  have  been  absolutely  impracticable. 
The  toilsome  work  of  cutting  steps  in  the  ice  began  about  half- 
•past  10  ;  slowly  they  progressed  by  the  aid  of  the  Alpine  rope, 
the  brittle  and  slippery  ice  necessitating  every  precaution 
They  made  their  way  across  the  crevices  of  one  of  the  glaciers 


that  projected  downwards  into  the  valley  which  they  had  tra- 
versed in  the  early  morning,  and  took  a  rest  under  the  shadow 
of  an  extremely  steep  protuberance  of  the  ice-wall  at  an  altitude 
of  19,000  feet.  On  recommencing  the  ascent  the  difficulty  of 
breathing  became  so  pronounced  that  every  fifty  paces  they  had 
to  halt  for  a  few  seconds,  bending  their  bodies  forward  and 
gasping  for  breath.  The  oxygen  of  the  air  amounted  there,  at 
an  elevation  of  19,000  feet,  to  only  40  per  cent.,  and  the 
humidity  to  15  per  cent,  of  what  it  was  at  sea  level.  No  wonder 
that  their  lungs  had  such  hard  work  to  do.  The  surface  of  the 
ice  became  increasingly  corroded  ;  more  and  more  it  took  the 
form  which  Giissfeldt,  speaking  of  Aconcagua,  in  Chili,  called 
nieve  penitent e.  Honeycombed  to  a  depth  of  over  6  feet,  in  the 
form  of  rills,  teeth,  fissures,  and  pinnacles,  the  ice-field  presented 
the  foot  of  the  mountaineer  with  difficulties  akin  to  that  of  a 
"  Karrenfeld."  They  frequently  broke  through  as  far  as  their 
breasts,  causing  their  strength  to  diminish  with  alarming  rapidity. 
And  still  the  highest  ridge  of  ice  appeared  to  be  as  distant  as 
ever.  At  last,  about  2  o'clock,  after  eleven  hours'  climb,  they 
drew  near  the  summit  of  the  ridge.  A  few  more  hasty  steps  in 
the  most  eager  anticipation,  and  then  the  secret  of  Kibo  lay  un- 
veiled before  them.  Taking  in  the  whole  of  Upper  Kibo,  the 
precipitous  walls  of  a  gigantic  crater  yawned  beneath  them.  The 
.first  glance  told  that  the  most  lofty  elevation  of  Kibo  lay  to  their 
left,  on  the  southern  brim  of  the  crater,  and  consisted  of  three 
pinnacles  of  rock  rising  a  few  feet  above  the  southern  slopes  of 
the  mantle  of  ice.  They  first  reached  the  summit  on  October  6, 
after  passing  the  night  below  the  limits  of  the  ice,  in  a  spot 
sheltered  by  overhanging  rocks,  at  an  altitude  of  15,160  feet,  an 
elevation  corresponding  to  that  of  the  summit  of  Monte  Rosa. 
Wrapped  up  in  their  skin  bags,  they  sustained  with  tolerable 
comfort  even  the  minimum  temperature  of  12°  F.,  experienced 
during  the  night,  and  were  enabled,  about  3  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing of  October  6,  to  start  with  fresh  energy  on  their  difficult 
enterprise  of  climbing  the  summit  ;  and  this  time  Njaro,  the 
spirit  of  the  ice-crowned  mountain,  was  gracious  to  them — they 
reached  their  goal.  At  a  quarter  to  9  they  were  already  standing 
on  the  upper  edge  of  the  crater,  at  the  spot  from  which  they  had 
retraced  their  steps  on  October  3.  Their  further  progress,  from 
this  point  to  the  southern  brim  of  the  crater,  although  not  easy, 
did  not  present  any  extraordinary  difficulty.  An  hour  and  a 
half's  further  ascent  brought  them  to  the  foot  of  the  three  highest 
pinnacles,  which  they  calmly  and  systematically  climbed  one 
after  another.  Although  the  state  of  the  atmosphere  and  the 
physical  strain  of  exertion  remained  the  same  as  on  the  previous 
ascent,  yet  this  time  they  felt  far  less  exhausted,  because  their 
condition  morally  was  so  much  more  favourable.  The  central 
pinnacle  reached  a  height  of  about  19,700  feet,  overtopping  the 
others  by  50  to  60  feet.  He  was  the  first  to  tread,  at  half- 
past  10  in  the  morning,  the  culminating  peak.  He  planted  a 
small  German  flag,  which  he  had  brought  with  him  in  his  knap- 
sack, upon  the  rugged  lava  summit,  and  christened  that — the 
loftiest  spot  in  Africa — Kaiser  Wilhelm's  Peak.  After  having 
completed  the  necessary  measurements,  they  were  free  to  devote 
their  attention  to  the  crater  of  Kibo,  of  which  an  especially  fine 
view  was  obtainable  from  Kaiser  Wilhelm's  Peak.  The  diameter 
of  the  crater  measured  about  6500  feet,  and  it  sank  down  some 
600  feet  in  depth.  In  the  southern  portion  the  walls  of  lava 
were  either  of  an  ash-grey  or  reddish-brown  colour,  and  were 
entirely  free  from  ice,  descending  almost  perpendicularly  to  the 
base  of  the  crater  ;  and  in  its  northern  half  the  ice  sloped  down- 
wards from  the  upper  brim  of  the  crater  in  terraces,  forming  blue 
and  white  galleries  of  varying  steepness.  A  rounded  cone  of 
eruption,  composed  of  brown  ashes  and  lava,  rose  in  the  northern 
portion  of  the  crater  to  a  height  of  about  500  feet,  which  was  partly 
covered  by  the  more  than  usually  thick  sheet  of  ice  extending 
from  the  northern  brim  of  the  crater.  The  large  crater  opened 
westwards  in  a  wide  cleft,  through  which  the  melting  water  r^n 
off",  and  the  ice  lying  upon  the  western  part  of  the  crater  and  the 
inner  walls  issued  in  the  form  of  a  glacier.  What  a  wonderful 
contrast  between  this  icy  stream  and  the  former  fiery  incandes- 
cence of  its  bed  !  And  above  all  this  there  reigned  the  absolute 
silence  of  inanimate  nature,  forming  in  its  majestic  simplicity  a 
scene  of  the  most  impressive  grandeur.  An  indelible  impression 
was  created  in  the  mind  of  the  traveller  to  whom  it  had  once  been 
granted  to  gaze  upon  a  scene  like  that,  and  all  the  more  when  no 
human  eye  had  previously  beheld  it.  And  certainly  as  they  sat 
that  evening  in  their  little  tent,  which  they  finally  reached  at 
nightfall,  after  a  most  arduous  return  march  through  the  driving 
mist,  and  carried  their  thoughts  back  to  the  expeditions  of  1887 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


573 


and  1888,  they  would  indeed  have  changed  places  with  no  one. 
After  giving  further  details  of  the  expedition,  the  lecturer  said 
that  on  October  30  they  sorrowfully  bade  farewell  to  Kilima- 
Njaro,  the  most  beautiful  and  interesting,  as  well  as  the  grandest, 
region  in  the  dark  continent.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  paper  a 
series  of  photographs  illustrative  of  some  features  of  the  expedition 
was  exhibited  by  lime-light,  and  explained  by  Mr.  Ravenstein. 
A  vote  of  thanks  to  Dr.  Meyer  was  proposed  by  Mr.  Joseph 
Thomson,  seconded  by  Mr.  Douglas  Freshfield,  and  heartily 
accorded. 


A    NEW    GREEN    VEGETABLE    COLOURING 
MA  TTER.  1 

'T'HE  seeds  of  the  7 richosanthes  palmata  are  inclosed  in  a 
rounded  scarlet  fruit  and  embedded  in  a  green  bitter  pulp. 
The  bitter  principle  has  been  shown  by  Mr.  D.  Hooper  to  be  a 
glucoside  differing  from  colocynthin,  and  he  has  named  it  tricho- 
santhin.  The  green  colouring  matter,  when  freed  from  the 
trichosanthin  and  fatty  matter,  yields  a  solution  closely  resem- 
bling a  solution  of  cholorophyll.  It  is  green  in  thin  and  red  in 
thick  layers,  and  has  a  red  fluorescence.  The  spectrum,  how- 
ever, is  very  different.  Taking  the  thickness  and  strength 
yielding  the  most  characteristic  spectrum,  it  may  be  described 
thus  : — The  first  band  begins  (penumbra)  at  W.  L.  654  and 
ends  about  W.  L.  615  ;  from  this  there  is  a  small  amount  of 
absorption  till  the  second  band  begins  at  W.L.  593'4,  and  con- 
tinues to  W.L.  566  8,  with  the  maximum  absorption  near  the 
less  refrangible  end  ;  from  this  there  is  no  perceptible  absorption 
till  the  third  band,  which  extends  from  W.L.  548*4  to  534"8  ; 
there  is  a  fourth  band,  very  faint,  with  its  centre  about  W.L. 
5io'6,  and  a  fifth  extending  from  about  W.L.  485  to  W.L. 
473 "4.  Comparing  this  with  the  chlorophyll  spectrum,  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  first  band  has  its  centre  almost  midway  between 
the  two  chief  chlorophyll  bands,  but  that  bands  IIL,  IV.,  and 
V.  are  probably  coincident  with  chlorophyll  bands.  When  the 
trichosanthes  colouring  matter  is  treated  with  ammonia  sulphide 
the  spectrum,  is  completely  changed.  The  first  and  most  pro- 
minent band  slowly  decreases  in  strength  and  finally  disappears, 
two  new  bands  appear  in  the  space  between  bands  I.  and  11.  of 
the  original  spectrum  ;  band  II.  is  apparently  displaced  towards 
the  violet  end  and  intensified  ;  and  band  IV.  is  greatly  widened. 
Chlorophyll  under  the  same  treatment  behaves  in  a  totally 
different  manner,  and  the  two  spectra  become  almost  comple- 
mentary. When,  however,  the  trichosanthes  colouring  matter 
and  chlorophyll  are  both  treated  with  hydrochloric  acid  the 
result  is  very  diff'erent,  for  the  two  spectra  have  now  three  bands 
in  common.  The  first  band  in  the  trichosanthes  spectrum  has 
disappeared,  and  the  spectrum  is  practically  reduced  to  one 
of  three  bands  corresponding  in  position  with  bands  II.,  III., 
and  IV.  of  the  altered  chlorophyll  spectrum.  Band  I.  of  the 
chlorophyll  spectrum  has  no  representative  in  the  trichosanthes 
spectrum.  The  conclusions  to  be  derived  from  a  study  of  these 
spectra  seem  to  be  that  we  have  in  the  trichosanthes  colouring 
matter  a  substance  in  which  the  "  blue  chlorophyll "  of  Sorby 
or  the  "  green  chlorophyll "  of  Stokes  is  replaced  by  some  other 
substance  easily  decomposed  by  reducing  agents  and  acids. 
Farther,  if  we  assume  with  Schunck  that  the  product  obtained 
by  acting  on  chlorophyll  with  hydrochloric  acid  is  the  same  as 
Fremy's  phyllocyanin,  this,  too,  must  be  a  mixture,  one  con- 
stituent of  which  is  obtained  by  acting  on  the  trichosanthes 
colouring  matter  with  acid,  while  the  other  is,  apparently, 
the  unaltered  substance  yielding  band  I.  in  the  chlorophyll 
spectrum. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES 

London. 

Royal  Society,  March   13. — "On  the  Organization  of  the 

Fossil  Plants  of  the  Coal-measures.     Part  XVII."     By  William 

Crawford   Williamson,   LL.  D. ,  F.  R.  S.,  Professor  of  Botany  in 

the  Owens  College,  Manchester. 

In  1873  Ifie  author  described  in  the  Phil.  Trans,  an  inter- 
esting stem  of  a  plant  from  the  Lower  Carboniferous  beds  of 

'  Abstracted  ■  from  a  paper  by  C.  Michie  Smith,  "On  the  Absorption 
Spectra  of  Certain  Vegetable  Colouring  Matters,"  read  before  the  Royal 
Society  of  Edinburgh,  March  17,  1890,  and  communicated  by  permission  of 
the  Council. 


Lancashire,  under  the  name  of  Lyginodendron  Oldhamium. 
He  also  called  attention  to  some  petioles  of  ferns,  more  fully 
described  in  1874,  under  the  name  of  Kachiopteris  aspera.  The 
former  of  these  plants  possessed  a  highly  organized,  exogenously 
developed  xylem  2one,  whilst  the  Rachiopteris  was  only  supplied 
with  what  looked  like  closed  bundles.  Since  the  dates  referred 
to,  a  large  amount  of  additional  information  has  been  obtained 
respectii  g  both  these  plants.  Structures,  either  not  seen,  or  at 
least  ill- preserved,  have  now  been  discovered,  throwing  fresh 
light  on  their  affinities  ;  but  most  important  of  all  is  the  proof 
that  the  Kachiopteris  aspera  is  now  completely  identified  as  the 
foliar  rachis  or  petiole  of  the  Lyginodendron  :  hence  there  is  no 
longer  room  for  doubting  that,  notwithstanding  its  indisputable 
possession  of  an  exogenous  vascular  zone,  the  bundles  of  which 
exhibit  both  xylem  and  phloem  elements  along  with  medullary 
and  phloem  rays,  it  has  been  a  true  Fern.  Though  such 
exogenous  developments  have  now  been  long  known  to  exist 
amongst  the  Calamitean  and  Lycopodiaceous  stems,  as  well  as 
in  other  plants  of  the  Carboniferous  strata,  we  have  had  no 
evidence  until  now  that  the  same  mode  of  growth  ever  occurred 
amongst  the  Ferns.  Now,  however,  this  Cryptogamic  family  is 
shown  to  be  no  longer  an  exceptional  one  in  this  respect.  All 
the  three  great  divisions  of  the  Vascular  Cryptogams — the 
Equisetaceae,  the  Lycopodiacere,  and  the  Homosporous  Filices 
of  the  primaeval  world — exhibited  the  mode  of  growth  which  is 
confined,  at  the  present  day,  to  the  Angiospermous  plants.  A 
fui-ther  interesting  feature  of  the  life  of  this  Lyginodendron  is 
seen  in  thehistory  of  the  development  of  its  conspicuous  medulla. 
In  several  of  his  previous  memoirs,  notably  in  his  Part  IV.,  the 
author  has  demonstrated  a  peculiarity  in  the  origin  of  the  medulla 
of  the  Sigillarian  and  Lepidodendroid  plants.  Instead  of  being 
a  conspicuous  structure  in  the  youngest  state  of  the  stems  and 
branches  of  these  plants^  as  it  is  in  the  recent  Ferns,  and  as  in 
most  of  the  living  Angiosperms,  few  or  no  traces  of  it  are  ob- 
servable in  these  fossil  Lycopodiacere.  In  them  it  develops  itself 
in  the  interior  of  an  apparently  solid  bundle  of  tracheae  (within 
which  doubtless  some  obscure  cellular  germs  must  be  hidden), 
but  ultimately  it  becomes  a  large  and  conspicuous  organ.  The 
author  has  now  ascertained  that  a  similar  medulla  is  developed, 
in  precisely  the  same  way,  within  a  large  vascular  bundle 
occupying  the  centre  of  the  very  young  twigs  of  the  Lyginoden- 
dron. But  in  this  latter  plant  other  phenomena  associated  with 
this  development  make  its  history  even  yet  more  clear  and 
indisputable  than  in  the  case  of  the  Lycopods.  The  entire 
history  of  these  anomalous  developments  adds  a  new  chapter  to 
our  records  of  the  physiology  of  the  vegetable  kingdom. 

Further  light  is  also  thrown  upon  the  structure  of  the  Heter- 
anglum  Grievii,  originally  described  in  the  author's  memoir. 
Part  IV.  This  plant  presents  many  features  in  its  structure 
suggesting  that  it  too  will  ultimately  prove  to  be  a  Fern.  The 
specimens  described  in  the  above  memoir,  published  in  1873,  all 
possessed  a  more  or  less  developed  exogenous  xylem  zone.  But 
the  author  has  now  obtained  other,  apparently  younger  examples 
in  which  no  such  zone  exists. 

He  has  discovered  the  stem  of  a  genus  of  plants  {Bownianites)y 
hitherto  known  only  by  some  fruits,  the  detailed  organization  of 
which  was  originally  described  by  him  in  the  Transactions  of 
the  Literary  and  Philosophical  Society  of  Manchester,  in  1 87 1. 
The  structure  of  this  new  stem  corresponds  closely  with  what  is 
seen  in  Sphenophyllum  and  in  some  forms  of  Asterophyllites 
(Memoir  v.,  Phil,  Trans.,  1874,  p.  Afl.,  et  seq.).  This  discovery 
makes  an  addition  to  our  knowledge  of  the  great  Calamarian 
family,  to  which  the  plant  obviously  belongs. 

Further  demonstrations  are  also  given  by  the  author,  illus- 
trating some  features  in  the  history  of  the  true  Calamites. 
Attention  is  called  to  the  fact  that,  whilst  the  large,  longitudin- 
ally-grooved and  furrowed  inorganic  casts  of  the  central  medullary 
cavities  of  these  plants  are  extremely  common,  we  never  find 
similar  casts  of  the  smaller  branches.  The  cause  of  this  is 
demonstrated  in  the  memoir.  In  these  young  twigs  the  centre 
of  the  branch  is  at  first  occupied  by  a  parenchymatous  medulla. 
The  centre  of  this  medulla  becomes  absorbed  at  a  very  early  age, 
leaving  the  beginnings  of  a  small  fistular  cavity  in  its  place  ; 
but,  if  any  plastic  mud  or  sand  entered  this  cavity  when  the 
plant  was  submerged,  the  surface  of  such  a  cast  would  exhibit 
no  longitudinal  groovings,  because  there  would  be  nothing  in 
the  remaining  medullary  cells  surrounding  the  cast  to  produce 
such  an  effect.  It  was  only  when  the  further  growth  of  the 
branch  was  accompanied  by  a  more  complete  absorption  of  th«> 
remaining  medullary  cells,  causing  the  cavity  thus  produced  tr 


574 


NATURE 


{April  iy,  1890 


be  bounded  by  the  inner  wedge-shaped  angles  of  the  longitudinal 
-vascular  bundles  constituting  the  xylem  zone,  that  such  an  effect 
■could  be  produced.  After  that  change  any  inorganic  substance 
finding  its  way  into  the  interior  of  this  cavity  had  its  surface  so 
moulded  by  the  wedges  as  to  produce  the  superficial  ridges  and 
furrows  so  characteristic  of  these  inorganic  casts. 

March  27. — "The  Rupture  of  Steel  by  Longitudinal  Stress." 
By  Chas.  A.  Carus- Wilson.  Communicated  by  Prof.  G.j  H. 
Darwin,  F.R.S. 

This  paper  gives  an  account  of  experiments  made  with  a  view 
to  determining  the  nature  of  the  resistance  that  has  to  be  over- 
come in  order  to  produce  rupture  in  a  steel  bar  by  longitudinal 
stress. 

The  stress  required  to  produce  rupture  is  in  every  case  com- 
puted by  dividing  the  load  on  the  specimen  at  the  moment  of 
breaking  by  the  contracted  area  at  the  fracture  measured  after 
rupture  ;  this  stress  is  called  the  "  true  tensile  strength  "  of  the 
material. 

It  is  well  known  that  any  want  of  uniformity  in  the  distribu- 
tion of  the  stress  over  the  ruptured  section  causes  the  bar  to 
break  at  a  lower  stress  than  it  would  if  the  stress  was  uniformly 
distributed.  Hence  anything  that  causes  want  of  uniformity  is 
prejudicial  ;  for  instance,  a  groove  turned  in  a  cylindrical  steel 
bar  will  produce  want  of  uniformity,  and  will  consequently  be 
prejudicial,  the  stress  at  rupture  being  lower  according  as  the 
angle  of  the  groove  is  more  acute.  The  most  favourable  con- 
dition of  test  might  appear  to  be  that  in  which  a  bar  of  uniform 
section  throughout  its  length  was  allowed  to  draw  out  freely  before 
breaking,  since  in  this  case  the  stress  must  be  most  uniformly 
distributed. 

Experiment,  however,  shows  that  the  plain  bar  is  not  always 
the  strongest.  So  long  as  the  want  of  uniformity  of  stress  is 
■considerable,  owing  to  the  groove  being  cut  with  a  very  sharp 
angle,  the  plain  bar  is  stronger  than  the  grooved  bar  ;  but,  if 
the  groove  be  semicircular  instead  of  angular,  the  grooved  bar 
is  considerably  stronger  than  the  plain,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that 
the  stress  is  more  uniformly  distributed  in  the  latter. 

It  would  seem,  then,  that  we  can  strengthen  a  bar  over  any 
given  section  by  adding  material  above  and  below  it,  the  change 
in  section  being  gradual  ;  but  such  an  addition  of  material 
cannot  strengthen  the  bar  if  rupture  is  caused  by  a  certain  in- 
tensity of  tensile  stress  over  the  ruptured  section;  the  added 
material  cannot  increase  the  resistance  of  the  ruptured  section  to 
■direct  tensile  stress,  but  it  can  increase  the  resistance  to  the 
shearing  stress. 

The  resistance  of  a  given  section  of  a  steel  bar  doss  not,  then, 
depend  on  its  section  at  right  angles  to  the  axis,  but  on  its  section 
at  45°  to  the  axis,  for  in  that  direction  the  shearing  stress  is  a 
maximum.  From  this  it  would  seem  that  the  resistance  over- 
come at  rupture  is  the  resistance  of  the  steel  to  shear. 

Experiments  were  made  to  see  whether  the  resistance  of  steel 
to  direct  shearing  bore  to  its  resistance  to  direct  tension  the  ratio 
•required  by  the  above  theory  ;  since  the  greatest  shearing  stress 
is  equal  to  one-half  the  longitudinal  stress,  we  should  expect  to 
find  the  resistance  to  direct  shearing  equal  to  one-half  of  the 
resistance  to  direct  tension. 

A  series  of  experiments  were  made,  with  the  result  that  the 
ultimate  resistance  to  direct  shearing  was  within,  on  the  average, 
3  per  cent,  of  the  half  of  that  to  direct  tension. 

The  appearance  of  the  fracture  of  steel  bars  is  next  discussed. 
It  would  appear  that  when  the  stress  is  uniformly  disturbed  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  the  ruptured  section,  the  fracture  is  at  45° 
to  the  axis,  the  bar  having  sheared  along  that  plane  which  is  a 
plane  of  least  resistance  to  shear.  The  tendency  to  rupture 
along  a  plane  of  shear  may  be  masked  by  a  non-uniform  dis- 
tribution of  stress. 

Two  plates  of  photographs  are  added,  showing  examples  of 
steel  bars  broken  by  shearing  under  longitudinal  stress. 

Physical  Society,  March  21.— Prof.  W.  E.  Aryton,  F.R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
read : — The  Villa-i  critical  points  in  nickel  and  iron,  by  Herbert 
Tomlinson,  F.R.S.  Villari  has  shown  that  the  permeability  of 
iron  is  increased  by  longitudinal  traction  provided  the  magnet- 
izing force  does  not  exceed  a  certain  limit,  but  beyond  this  limit 
traction  produces  a  decrease  of  permeability.  The  value  of  the 
force  for  which  traction  produces  no  change  in  the  permea'iility 
is  known  as  the  Villari  critical  point.  As  far  as  the  author  is 
aware,  no  previous  observer  has  found  a  similar  critical  point  for 
nickel,  but  by  confining  his  attention  \.o  temporary  magnetization 


he  has  detected  such  a  point  with  comparative  ease.      He  has 
also  examined  the  variation  of  the  Villari  critical  points  in  iron 
and   nickel   with   change   of    load,    and   has    investigated    the 
influence  of  permanent  strain  on  these  points.     The  experiments 
were   niade   by  the   ballistic   method,    using   wires  about   400 
diameters  long.     In  each  set  of  observations  the  permeability 
was  obtained  with  various  loads,  the  magnetizing  force  being 
kept  the  same,  and  with  each  load  the  circuit  was  closed  and. 
opened  until  the  swings  on  make  and  break  were  equal  ;    this 
swing  was  taken  as  a  measure  of  the  induction  under  the  given 
load.     Several  diagrams  accompany  the  paper,   in  which  load 
and  percentage  change  of  permeability  are  plotted,  regard  being 
had  to  sign.     The  author  finds  that  for  annealed  unstrained  iron 
the  critical  value  of  the  force  decreases  as  the  load  increases, 
and  that  the  Villari  point  is  much  lower  for  temporary  than  for 
/^/rt/ magnetization.     With  a  load  of  47  kilos  on  a  i  mm.  wire, 
the  value  of  the  force  giving  the  temporary  point  was  2-8  C.G.S. 
units.     He  also  found  that  for  a  given  magnetizing  force  there 
are  generally  two  loads  which  have  no  effect  on  the  temporary 
magnetization.     With  unstrained  nickel  the  critical  value  of  the 
force  is  much  greater  than  in  iron,  being  about  114  C.G.S.  units 
for  a  load  of  10  kilos  on  a  wire  0"8  mm.  diameter,  and  67  for  a 
load  of  (id  kilos.     For  a  force  of  21    units  no  critical   point 
exists.     Experiments  on  a  permanently  strained  iron  wire  show 
that  for  magnetizing  forces  ranging  from  0*03  to  0*3  there  is  no 
critical  point,  and  all  the  resulting  curves  are  identical.     There 
is,  however,  considerable  difference  in  the  observations  taken 
during  loading   and  those  taken   on   unloading.     For   greater 
magnetizing  forces   the   curves  cease  to  be  identical,   and  the 
maximum  increase  of  permeability  becomes  less  and  less  until 
for  a  certain  force  the  curves  begin  to  cut  the  load  line.     As 
the  force  increases  beyond  this  value  the  point  of  cutting  ap- 
proaches  the   origin,    and  the  curves   begin   to    cut  the    load 
line   in  two  points.     Further   increase   of  force   to  3    C.G.S. 
units    causes    the    first    point   to   disappear,    and   the    second 
point  recedes  from  the  origin.     Finally,  with  sufficiently  high 
magnetizing  forces  the  second  point  cannot  be  reached  before  the 
wire  breaks,   and  the  curve  lies  entirely  below  the  load   line. 
With  nickel  the   curves  for  very  minute  forces,  like   those  of 
iron,  are  exactly  the  same  for  different  values  of  the  force,  but 
they  lie  below  the  load  line,  i.e.  the  permeability  is  diminished 
by   loading ;    there  is  no  difference,    however,    in    the  loading 
and   unloading   curves.      Beyond  a  certain  value  of  the  force 
the  identity  of  the  curves  ceases,    and  that  part  of  the  curve 
near  the   origin    bulges   towards  the   load    line.     For   a  force 
a  little  over  21  C.G.S.  units  the  permeability  begins  to  increase 
with  load,  and  the  curve  cuts  the  line  in  one  point,  which  point  re- 
cedes from  the  origin  as  the  force  increases.    Mr.  Shelford  Bidwell 
said  that  Prof.  J.  J,   Thomson,   reasoning  from  the  change  of 
length  by  magnetization,  had  predicted  a  Villari  point  in  cobalt 
when  compressed,  and  this  was  verified  experimentally.     On 
applying  similar  reasoning  to  nickel  he,  (the  speaker)  did  not 
expect  to  find  a  Villari  point,  and  both  S  r  William  Thomson 
and  Prof.  Ewing  had  searched  in  vain  for  one.     In  some  experi- 
ments,  not  yet  completed,  he  had  examined  the   behaviour  of 
nickel,   both  loaded  and  unloaded,    when  subjected  to  various 
magnetizing  forces.     These  show  that  the  metal  always    con- 
tracts when  magnetized.     For  no  load   the  contraction  at   first 
increased  with  the  magnetizing  force,  but  attains  a  maximum. 
With  a  moderate  load  the  contraction  is  less  for  small  forces,  but 
for  larger  forces  becomes  equal  and  then  exceeds  the  contrac- 
tion of  the  unloaded  wire.     For  greater  loads  the  contraction  is 
less  than    when  unloaded    for   all   values   of    the   force. — On 
Bertrand's  Idiocyclophanous  prism  by  Prof.  S.  P.   Thompson. 
This  hitherto  undescribed  prism  is  a  total  reflection  one  made 
of    calc-spar,    which   shows   to   the  naked   eye    the  rings   and 
crosses  such  as  are  seen  when  a  slice  of  spar  is  examined  by 
convergent  light  in  a  polariscope.     The  spar  is  cut  so  that  the 
light  after  the  first  reflection  passes  along  the  optic  axis,  and  after 
a  second  reflection  emerges  parallel  to  the  incident  lijiht.      The 
rings  and  brushes  are  present  in  pairs,  but  two  pairs  may  be 
seen  by  tilting  the  prism  to  one  side  or  the  other.     This  was 
demonstrated  before  the  Society.     Prof.  Thompson  also  exhibited 
a  similar  prism   cut  from  quartz.     Owing  to  the  feeble  double- 
refracting  of  the  substance,  no  conspicuous  rings  could  be  seen, 
but    when  examined  by  the  lantern   traces  of   such  rings  were 
visible. — On  the  shape  of  the  movable  coils  used  in  electrical 
measuring  instruments,  by  Mr.  T.  Mather.     The  object  of  this 
note  is  to  determine  the  best  shape  of  the  horizontal  section  of 
swinging  coils  such  as  are   used  in  D'Arsonval  galvanometers, 


April  17,  1890] 


NATURE 


575 


electro-dynamometers,  wattmeters,  &c.  Assuming  constant 
period  and  constant  moment  of  inertia  about  the  axis  of  rotation, 
it  is  shown  that  for  zero  instruments,  the  best  shape  of  the  section 
is  two  circles  tangential  to  the  direction  of  the  deflecting  field  at 
the  point  about  which  the  coil  turns.  A  table  accompanies  the 
paper,  in  which  various  forms  of  section  are  given,  together  with 
their  relative  deflecting  moments  per  unit  moment  of  inertia ; 
the  coils  being  taken  of  equal  lengths  and  the  current  density 
constant.  From  this  table  it  appears  that  ordinary  D'Arsonval 
coils  only  give  about  45  per  cent,  of  the  maximum  deflecting 
moment,  and  ordinary  Siemens'  dynamometers  from  40  to  53 
per  cent.  The  various  assumptions  made  in  the  paper  are  shown 
to  be  justifiable  in  commercial  instruments,  and  the  modifications 
necessary  in  special  cases  are  pointed  out.  Mr.  C.  V.  Boys 
said  he  had,  when  working  at  his  radio-micrometer,  arrived  at  a 
shape  similar  to  that  recommended  in  the  paper.  He  also 
noticed  a  peculiar  relation  true  for  all  shapes  where  the  length 
parallel  to  the  axis  of  rotation  is  great  compared  with  the  breadth. 
Suppose  a  coil  of  any  dimensions,  then  another  coil  of  half  the 
breadth  and  double  the  length  and  cross-section  will  be 
dynamically,  electrically,  and  magnetically  the  same  as  the 
original  ;  for  the  moment  of  inertia,  the  electric  resistance,  and 
the  enclosed  magnetic  field  are  equal.  The  above  relation  is 
also  true  when  the  breadth  is  not  small,  if  the  cross  pieces  be 
thickened  near  the  axis  so  as  to  make  their  moment  of  inertia 
proportional  to  their  length.  He  inquired  whether  the  author 
had  considered  the  subject  of  grading  movable  coils  ;  he  himself 
was  of  opinion  that,  unlike  fixed  galvanometer  coils,  the  wire 
near  the  axis  should  be  thicker  than  that  further  away.  The 
President  remarked  that  in  1881  Prof.  Perry  and  himself  ex- 
hibited a  wattmeter  at  the  Society  of  Arts,  whose  movable  coil 
somewhat  resembled  one  of  those  in  the  paper,  which  gave  a 
deflecting  moment  of  95  per  cent,  of  the  maximum.  In  design- 
ing the  instrument  they  had  felt  that  the  ordinary  method  of 
using  a  comparatively  large  swinging  coil  was  not  the  best,  and 
this  led  them  to  the  shape  adopted. 

Entomologrcal  Society,  April  2.— Mr.  Frederick  DuCane 
Godman,  F.R.S.,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — Mr.  Godman 
announced  the  death  of  Dr.  J.  S.  Baly,  of  Warwick,  the  well- 
known  Goleopterist,  who  had  been  a  member  of  the  Society  for 
the  last  forty  years. — Dr.  Sharp  exhibited  and  made  remarks 
on  a  female  specimen  of  Temnochila  quadricollis,  Reitt.,  which 
was  the  subject  of  a  very  unusual  malformation  of  the  nature 
termed  "  ectromelie  "  by  Lacordaire. — Mr.  R.  W.  Lloyd  ex- 
hibited three  specimens  of  Elater pomonce,  taken  at  Brockenhurst 
about  the  middle  of  March  last. — Colonel  Swinhoe  exhibited, 
and  read  notes  on,  a  number  of  butterflies  of  the  genus  Etithalia. 
He  pointed  out  that  the  specimens  described  as  a  species  by  the 
name  of  Euthalia  sedeva  were  only  the  females  of  E.  balarama. 
— Mr.  T.  R.  Billups  exhibited  male  and  female  specimens  of 
Cecidomyia  salicis-siliqua,  Walsh,  which  had  just  emerged  from 
galls  received  from  Mr.  Cockerell,  who  had  collected  them  on  a 
species  of  sallow  in  Colorado.  He  also  exhibited  three  species 
of  IchneumonidiE  new  to  Britain,  viz.  Ichneumon  haglundi, 
Holmgr.  ;  Phygadeuon  rufo-niger,  Bridg.  ;  and  Phygadetion 
sodalis,  Tasch. — Mr.  C.  G.  Barrett  exhibited  specimens  of 
Pryotropha  ohscurella,  Hein,  and  Doryphora  elongella,  Hein,  two 
species  of  Mic  o  Lepidoptera  new  to  Britain. — Dr.  Thallwit?:, 
of  Dresden,  contributed  a  paper  entitled  "  Notes  on  some 
species  of  the  genus  Hilipus."  These  notes  had  reference  to  a 
paper  on  the  genus  Hilipus,  by  Mr.  F.  P.  Pascoe,  published  in 
the  Transactions  of  the  Society  for  1889. — Mr.  E.  Meyrick 
read  a  paper  entitled  "  The  Classification  of  the  Pyralidina  of 
the  European  Fauna." — Prof.  Westwood  communicated  a  paper 
entitled  "Notes  on  certain  species  of  Cetoniidse." — Mynheer 
P.  C.  T.  Snellen,  of  Rotterdam,  contributed  a  paper  entitled 
"A  Catalogue  of  the  Pyralidae  of  Sikkim  collected  by  H.  J. 
Elwes  and  the  late  Otto  MoUer,"  and  Captain  Elwesread  notes 
on  the  foregoing  paper  as  an  appendix.  Mr.  W.  L.  Distant, 
Colonel  Swinhoe,  Mr.  McLachlan,  and  Mr.  Jacoby  took  part  in 
the  discussion  which  ensued. 

Zoological  Society,  April  i.— Dr.  A.  Giinther,  F.R.S., 
Vice-President,  in  the  chair, — The  Secretary  read  a  report  on 
the  additions  that  had  been  made  to  the  Society's  Menagerie 
during  the  month  of  March  1890  ;  and  called  special  attention 
to  a  fine  example  of  a  rare  Passerine  ^vcA\Hypocolms  amplmus) 
from  Karachi,  presented  to  the  Society  by  Mr.  W.  D.  Gumming, 
Curator  of  the   Museum,    Karachi ;  and   to  two  Mantchurian 


Cranes  (Grus  viridirostris),  presented  to  the  Society  by 
Mr.  C.  W.  Campbell,  of  H.B.  M.'s  Consular  Service,  Corea. 
— Mr.  J.  H.  Gurney,  Jun.,  e.\hibited  and  made  remaiks  on  a 
hybrid  between  the  Tree-Sparrow  (Passer  montanus)  and  the 
flouse- Sparrow  {P.  domestict(s),  bred  in  captivity  at  Norwich. — 
Mr.  W.  B.  Tegetmeier,  exhibited  a  specimen  of  a  Greek  Par- 
tridge, shot  in  the  Rhone  Valley,  and  of  an  abnormal  Viper. — 
Mr.  A.  Smith- Woodward  exhibited  and  made  remarks  on  a 
specimen  of  a  Mesozoic  Palaeoniscid  Fish  from  New  South  Wales, 
and  pointed  out  that  the  structure  of  its  pelvic  fins  seemed  to 
confirm  the  recent  opinion  that  the  Palaeoniscidae  are  related  to 
the  Acipenseridae  and  not  to  the  Lepidosteidse.  The  author  be- 
lieved the  specimen  exhibited  to  be  the  only  one  of  the  kind  in 
existence. — Mr.  C.  M.  Woodford  made  some  remarks  on  the 
fauna  of  the  Solomon  Islands  ;  and  exhibited  a  large  number  of 
photographs  in  illustration  of  his  remarks  and  of  his  recent  ex- 
plorations in  these  islands. — A  communication  was  read  from 
Dr.  R.  W.  Shufeldt,  entitled  "  Contributions  to  the  Study  of 
Helodernia  suspectum,"  containing  a  complete  account  of  the 
osteology  and  anatomy  of  this  venomous  Lizard.  A  list  of  the 
literature  on  the  subject  was  added. — Dr.  A.  Giinther,  F.  R.S., 
read  the  descriptions  of  new  species  of  Deep-sea  Fish  from  the 
Cape  {Lophotes fiski),  based  on  a  specimen  sent  to  the  British 
Museum  by  the  Rev.  G.  H.  R.  Fisk. — Mr.  Edgar  A.  Smith, 
read  a  report  on  the  Marine  Molluscan  Fauna  of  the  Island  of 
St.  Helena,  based  principally  on  a  large  series  of  specimens 
collected  by  Captain  Turton,  R.E.,  and  presented  to  the  British 
Museum. — A  second  paper  by  Mr.  Edgar  A.  Smith  contained 
a  report  on  the  Marine  Mollusca  of  Ascension  Island. 

Mathematical  Society,  April  3.— J.  J.  Walker,  F.  R.S., 
President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  communications  were 
made  : — On  the  properties  of  some  circles  connected  with  a 
triangle  formed  by  circular  arcs,  by  Mr.  Lachlan. — Some  pro- 
perties of  numbers,  by  Mr.  Christie. — The  modular  equations 
for  «  =  17,  29,  by  Mr.  R.  Russell.  Communicated  by  Prof. 
Greenhill,  F.R.S. 

Edinburgh. 

Royal  Society,  March  17. — Sir  W.  Thomson,  President,  in 
the  chair. — The  President  read  a  paper  on  an  accidental  illustra- 
tion of  the  effective  ohmic  resistance  to  a  transient  electric 
current  through  an  iron  bar. — Prof.  C.  Michie  Smith  read  a 
paper  on  the  absorption  spectra  of  certain  vegetable  colouring 
matters,  the  most  interesting  of  which  was  a  green  colouring 
matter  extracted  from  the  pulp  surrounding  the  seeds  tricosanthes 
palmata.  This  substance  is  not  chlorophyll,  but  is  allied  to  it. 
—Prof.  Smith  also  described  a  method  of  determining  surface 
tensions  by  measurement  of  ripples.  Ripples  are  set  up  on  the 
surface  of  the  liquid  by  means  of  a  tuning-fork  and  the  surface 
is  then  photoj^raphed  along  with  a  suitable  scale.  The  lengths 
of  the  ripples  can  thus  be  obtained  by  micrometric  measurements 
of  the  negative.  The  results  obtained  for  mercury  were  very 
concordant,  andagreed  with  the  mean  value  obtained  by  Quincke. 
Strong  electrification  of  the  surface  was  found  to  reduce  the 
value  of  the  surface  tension  by  more  than  20  per  cent.  A  few 
measurements  of  the  surface  tension  of  water  also  gave  very  fair 
results. — The  Hon.  Lord  M'Laren  read  a  paper  on  the  solution  of 
the  three-term  numerical  equation  of  the  «lh  degree. — The  Presi- 
dent read  a  paper,  illustrated  by  a  model,  on  a  mechanism  for 
the  constitution  of  ether. 

Pa:iis. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  April  8. — M.  Duchartre  in  the 
chair. — M.  Maurice  Levy,  in  a  note  on  theories  of  electricity, 
shows  that  the  formula  given  in  his  communication  on  March  17, 
representing  the  action  between  two  moving  electric  particles, 
includes  all  the  theories  of  electricity  yet  proposed,  and  that  the 
values  of  an  arbitrary  constant  required  to  satisfy  each  of  the 
known  theories  are  none  of  them  competent  to  explain  the  move- 
ment of  the  perihelion  of  Mercury,  whereas  the  latter  is  com- 
pletely in  accordance  with  the  formula  when  another  suitable 
value  is  chosen  for  the  constant.  — M.  R.  Lepine,  in  a  note  on 
the  normal  presence  in  chyle  of  a  ferment  destroying  sugar, 
suggests  that  in  the  majority  of  cases  of  diabetes  the  disease  is 
probably  due  to  a  defect  in  the  production  of  this  necessary 
body. — Observations  of  Brooks's  comet  (a  1890),  made  with  the 
great  equatorial  of  Bordeaux  Observatory,  by  MM.  Rayet,  Picart, 
and  Couriy.     The  comet  was  observed  on  March  30  and  31,  and 


576 


NA  TURE 


{April  17,  1890 


April  2  and  3. — Elements  and  ephemeris  of  Brooks's  comet,  by 
M.  E.  Viennet.  Elements  have  been  computed  from  observa- 
tions at  Cambridge,  U.S.,  March  21  ;  Kremsmunster,  March  26  ; 
and  Paris,  March  31. — Observations  of  Brooks's  comet,  made  at 
l^aris  Observatory,  by  Mdlle.  D.  Klumpke. — Fundamental 
■common  property  of  the  two  kinds  of  spectra,  lines  and  bands  ; 
•distinct  characteristics  of  each  of  the  classes  ;  periodic  variations 
to  three  parameters,  by  M.  H.  Deslandres.  The  facts  relating 
to  the  periodic  recurrence  of  doubles  and  triplets  in  spectra  were 
previously  given  by  M.  Rydberg,  and  reduced  to  some  .simple 
laws  {Comptes  rendus,  February  24).  It  was  noted  that  the  lines 
corresponding  to  doubles  and  triplets  are  represented  by  a  function 

of  whole  numbers  of  the  form  N  =  A  — , --. ., ;  where  N  is 

the  number  of  waves  ;  A,  o,  two  constants  ;  p  a  constant  less 
than  one,  and  m  a  whole  number.     This  function  has  for  a  limit 

the  more  simple  one  N  =  A ,  which,  when  A  and  o  have 

m- 

proper  values,  represents  exactly,  as  was  shown  by  Balmer,  the 
unique  series  of  the  simple  lines  of  hydrogen.  The  author  states 
that  the  distribution  of  bands  is  in  general  more  complex,  the 
complete  series  of  groups  being  represented  by  a  function  of 
three  variable  parameters,  ;;;,  «,  ^  —  N  —  f^tf-p"-)  x  m"^  +  B«'  + 
(j){/>-)  ;  where  m,  n,  and  /,  are  whole  numbers  ;  B,  a  constant ; 
/and  <^  some  simple  functions  the  study  of  which  is  not  com- 
])leted.  N  is  a  function  of  three  parameters,  but  in  certain 
spectra  it  is  reduced  to  two  or  even  one.  This  distribution  de- 
pending on  three  parameters  is  a  distinct  characteristic  of  a  band 
spectrum. — On  the  suppression  of  halos  in  photographic  plates, 
by  MM.  Paul  and  Prosper  Henry.  A  propos  of  a  communication 
by  M.  Cornu  {Comptes  rendus,  March  17),  the  authors  note 
that  in  order  to  get  rid  of  halos  which  occur  around  bright 
stars  on  an  ordinary  photographic  plate  they  cover  the 
backs  of  plates  with  collodion  containing  a  small  quantity 
of  chrysoidine  in  solution. — Discharge  of  the  two  elec- 
tricities by  the  action  of  ultra-violet  light,  by  M.  Edouard 
Branly.  The  author  has  obtained  new  results  by  using  the  in- 
duction spark  as  his  source  of  light  in  place  of  the  electric  arc 
used  by  previous  observers. — On  phosphotrimetatungstic  acid 
and  its  derived  salts,  note  by  M.  E.  Pechard. — On  a  nitroso- 
platinichloride,  by  M.  M.  Vezes.  By  the  action  of  an  excess  of 
hydrochloric  acid  on  a  concentrated  solution  of  potassium  plati- 
nonitrite,  a  body  is  obtained  of  the  composition  PtCl3(NO),2KCl, 
analogous  to  but  much  less  stable  than  the  nitrosoruthenichloride, 
RuCl3(NO),2KCl,  described  by  M.  Joly  {Comptes  rendus,  t. 
cvii.  p.  994).  It  is  distinguished  from  the  platinichloride  under 
the  microscope  by  its  form  and  by  its  action  on  polarized  light. — 
Glycollic  nitrile  and  the  direct  synthesis  of  glycoUic  acid,  by  M. 
Louis  Henry.  The  nitrile  is  formed  by  the  addition  of  formic 
aldehyde  to  hydrocyanic  acid,  HCOH  -f  HCN  =  CN— CHgOH. 
The  glycollic  nitrile  obtained  is  a  very  mobile,  odourless,  colour- 
less liquid;  its  density  at  12°  is  I'loo,  it  boils  at  759  mm. 
pressure  at  183°  with  partial  decomposition.  By  hydrolysis  with 
fuming  hydrochloric  acid,  it  yields  glycollic  acid,  which  may  be 
separated  as  the  calcium  salt.  This,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
author,  is  the  best  method  for  the  preparation  of  glycollic  acid. 

Stockholm, 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  March  13.— On  the  Inter- 
national Zoological  Congress  in  Paris  in  1889,  by  Prof.  F.  A. 
Smitt. — A  continuation  of  the  Report  of  the  Ornithological  Com- 
mittee, by  Prof.  F.  A.  Smitt. — On  the  results  of  the  recent  winter 
expedition  forhydrographic  researchesin  Skager  Rack,  by  Prof.  S. 
O.  Pettersson.' — Analytical  deduction  of  the  equations  of  the  sur- 
faces and  lines  which  are  invariants  to  the  generalized  substitution 
of  Poincare,  and  some  geometrical  properties  of  such  invariant 
surfaces  and  lines,  by  F.  de  Brun. — On  a  special  class  of  singular 
surfaces,  by  T.  Fredholm. — On  the  solutionof  a  system  of  linear 
resemblances  between  an  infinite  number  of  unknown  quantities, 
by  H.  von  Koch. — On  a  paper  by  H.  Weber,  entitled  "Ein 
Beitrag  zu  Poincare's  Theorie  der  Fuchs'schen  Functionen," 
by  G.  Cassel. — On  the  conform  representation  of  a  plane  on  a 
prism  with  some  correlated  problems,  by  the  same. — Researches 
on  mustard-oil-acetic  acid  and  on  thiohydantoin,  by  Prof. 
Klason. — Derivates  of  i  :  3  dichlornaphthalin,  by  Prof.  Cleve. — 
On  the  cyclic  system  of  Ribaucour,  by  Prof.  Backlund. — Contri- 
bution to  the  knowledge  of  the  Ascomycetas  of  Sweden,  by  C. 


Starbiick. — Determination  of  the  optical  rotation  of  some 
resinous  derivates,  by  A.  W.  Svensson. — Studies  on  the  influence 
of  the  irritation  of  the  spinal  chord  and  the  nervus  splanchnicus 
on  the  pressure  of  the  blood  with  inductions  of  different 
frequency  and  intensity,  by  J.  E.  Johansson. 


BOOKS,  PAMPHLETS,  and  SERIALS  RECEIVED. 

Evolution,  Antiquity  of  Man,  Bacteria,  &c.  :  W.  Durham  (Edinburgh, 
Black). — Le  Premier  Etablissement  des  Neerlandais  a  Maurice  ;  Prince 
Koland  Bonaparte  (Paris). — Le  Glacier  de  I'Aletsch  et  le  Lac  de  Marjelen  : 
Prince  Roland  Bonaparte  (Paris)  — Pocket  Meteorological  Tables,  4th  edi- 
tion :  G.  J.  Symons  (Stanford).— The  School  Manual  of  Geology,  5th  edi- 
tion :  A.  J.  Jukes  Browne  (Edinburgh,  Black).— The  Two  Kinds  of  Truth  : 
T.  £.  S.  T.  (Unwin) — The  Art  of  Paper-making:  A.  Watt  (Lockwood). — 
Catalogue  of  Books  in  the  Library  of  the  Indian  Museum  :  R.  L.  Chapman 
(Calcutta). — Ueber  die  Liasischen  Brachiopoden  des  Hierlatz  bei  HalUtatt  : 
G.  Oeyer  (Wien,  Holder) — Die  Liburnische  Stufe  und  deren  GrenzHori- 
zjnte.  I  Heft,  Erste  Abthg.  :  G.  Stache  (Wien,  Holder).— Advanced  Physio- 
graphy :  J.  Thornton  (Longmans) — Ferrel's  Convectional  Theory  of  Tor- 
nadoes ;  Davis  and  Curry. — The  Root-Knot  Disease  of  the  Peach,  Orange, 
and  other  Plants  in  Florida  (Washington). — The  Fossil  Butterflies  of 
Florissant :  S.  H.  Scudder  (Washingt  m). — The  Photographic  Quarterly, 
April  (Hazell). — Journal  of  the  Institution  of  Electrical  Engineers,  No.  85, 
vol.  XIX.  (Spon). — Journal  of  the  Chemical  Society,  April  (Gurney  and 
Jackson). — Societe  d' Encouragement,  Paris,  Annuaire  i8go  (Paris). — Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences,  Philadelphia,  Part  3,  1889 
(Philadelphia). — Insect  Life,  vol.  2,  Nos.  7,  8,  9  (Washington)  — Journal  of 
the  Bombay  Natural  History  Society,  vol.  4,  Nos.  3  and  4  (Bombay). — 
Ergebnisse  der  raeteorologischen  Beobachtungen,  Jahrg.  xi.  (Hamburg). — 
Journal  of  Anatomy  and  Physiology,  April  (Williams  and  Norgate). — Jahr- 
buch  der  k.k.  geologischen  Reichsanstalt,  Jahrg.  1889,  39  Band,  3  und  4 
Heft  (Wien.  Holder). 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Growth  of  Capital.     By  F.  Y.  E 553 

Mergui.     By  R.  M 556 

How  to  know  Grasses  by   their  Leaves.     By  Prof. 

John  Wrightson 557 

Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Nordenskiold  :  "  Facsimile  Atlas  to  the  Early  History 

of  Cartography " ■  .    .    .    .  558 

Aveling  :  "  Light  and  Heat "  .    .     • 558 

Warren:  "  Table  and  Formula  Book  " 558 

Letters  to  the  Editor : — 

"  Panmixia."— Prof.    E.   Ray  Lankester,    F.R.S.  558 
Heredity,   and  the  Effects  of  Use  and   Disuse. ^ — F. 

Howard  Collins 559 

Galls.— T.  D.  A.  Cockerell 559 

On  the  Use  of  the   Edison  Phonograph  in  the   Pre- 
servation of  the  Languages  of  the  American  Indians. 

— ^J.  Walter  Fewkes 560 

Solar  Halos  and  Parhelia. — ^J.  Lovell 560 

Cambridge  Anthropometry. — F.  H.  P.  C 560 

A  Remarkable  Meteor. — ^J.  Dunn 560 

Earthworms     from     Pennsylvania. — W.      Blaxland 

Benham 560 

Crystals  of  Lime. — H.  A.  Miers 560 

Samples  of  Current  Electrical  Literature 561 

On  the  Tension  of  recently  formed  Liquid  Surfaces. 

{Illustrated.)     By  Lord  Rayleigh,  Sec.R.S 566 

Notes 568 

Our  Astronomical  Column: — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. — A.  Fowler 571 

Comet  Brooks  {a  1890) 571 

New  Variable  in  Caelum • 571 

Geographical  Notes 571 

A  New  Green  Vegetable   Colouring  Matter.     By  C. 

Michie  Smith 573 

Societies  and  Academies 573 

Books,  Pamphlets,  and  Serials  Received 576 


NA TURE 


577 


THURSDAY,  APRIL  24,  1890. 


THE    REVISED   INSTRUCTIONS    TO 
INSPECTORS. 

LAST  year  it  was  a  matter  of  considerable  complaint 
against  the  Education  Department  that  the  Draft 
Code  was  presented  to  Parliament  unaccompanied  by 
the  new  instructions  to  inspectors,  without  which  it 
could  neither  be  satisfactorily  interpreted  nor  adequately 
discussed.  No  such  complaint  can  be  made  this  year. 
The  issue  of  the  new  Code,  which  promises  to  place 
elementary  schools  under  what  is  practically  a  new  system 
of  regulations,  has  been  followed  within  a  few  days  by 
a  revised  edition  of  the  instructions  to  inspectors,  in 
which  the  changes  are  correspondingly  large.  Indeed, 
more  than  half  of  the  document  consists  of  new  matter. 

On  the  whole,  the  approbation  which  has  greeted  Mr. 
Kekewich's  Code  may  be  extended  to  the  instructions 
by  which  it  is  explained.  So  far  as  we  can  see,  there 
is  no  shuffling,  no  attempt  to  minimise  or  to  alter  the 
practical  effect  of  the  reforms  which  are  conceded  on 
paper  in  the  Code. 

The  main  alterations  occur  in  those  parts  of  the  instruc- 
tions which  are  to  guide  the  inspector  in  awarding  the 
Parliamentary  grant  under  the  new  regime.  It  will  be 
remembered  that  the  system  of  payment  on  the  results 
of  individual  examination  disappears  almost  completely, 
and  is  replaced  by  a  grant  made  up  of  three  parts — a 
"principal  grant"  of  \2s.  6d.  or  145'.,  a  grant  of  \s.  6d.  or 
IS.  for  discipline  and  organization,  and  a  payment  as 
before  on  results  of  examination  in  the  so-called  "  addi- 
tional subjects."  The  mode  of  examination  to  be  adopted 
in  future  in  the  elementary  subjects  on  which  the  "prin- 
cipal grant  "  depends  is  substantially  that  already  in  use 
for  "class  subjects."  That  is  to  say,  there  will  be  a 
collective  examination  by  sample,  a  certain  proportion 
of  children  out  of  each  class  being  chosen  at  random 
for  examination  by  the  inspector,  the  teacher  being 
always  invited  to  add  a  few  of  his  most  forward  scholars, 
so  that  the  school  may  not  be  injured  by  any  accident  in 
the  selection.  Several  alternative  modes  of  selection 
are  suggested,  and  the  inspector  is  expressly  asked  to 
vary  his  method  from  time  to  time,  rather  than  to  adopt 
any  uniform  plan.  Teachers  and  managers  may  hear 
the  oral  examination  and  see  the  papers,  but  they  are  to 
be  warned  that  "  it  is  not  by  studying  past  questions,  nor 
by  trying  to  forecast  the  kind  of  questions  likely  to  be 
set  hereafter,  but  by  teaching  the  subject  with  good  sense 
and  thoroughness  that  the  requirements  of  the  Depart- 
ment will  be  best  fulfilled,  and  the  truest  educational 
success  achieved." 

The  higher  "  principal  grant "  is  not  to  be  awarded  unless 
a  high  standard  of  proficiency  is  reached  in  all  three  ele- 
mentary subjects.  If  the  scholars  do  not  reach  the 
standard  required  for  the  lower  "  principal  grant,"  the 
managers  are  to  be  warned  that  next  year  the  grant  may 
be  discontinued  ;  and,  in  all  cases  where  the  higher 
grant  is  not  awarded,  the  points  in  which  the  school  is 
deficient  are  to  be  clearly  indicated  to  the  managers. 

These   regulations,  if  wisely  carried   out,  must  be  a 
great  improvement  on  those  under  which  the  grant  is  at 
Vol.  xli.— No.  1069. 


present  assessed.  The  old  barbarous  system  of  bleeding 
a  bad  school  to  death  by  diminishing  its  grant  below  the 
minimum  required  for  its  efficient  maintenance  will  be 
discontinued.  In  place  of  this  a  school,  so  long  as  it 
receives  anything,  will  receive  enough  to  enable  it  to  be 
efficient  if  the  teachers  and  managers  are  up  to  their 
work.  If  such  a  school  fails  to  reach  the  required 
standard,  though  supplied  with  public  aid  on  as  liberal  a 
scale  as  that  on  which  multitudes  of  schools  do  contrive  to 
be  efficient,  it  will  simply  be  removed  from  the  list  of  grant- 
earning  schools.  This  is  the  rational  course,  if  carried  out 
in  practice,  but  very  much  will  depend  on  the  inspector. 
It  is  sincerely  to  be  hoped  that  the  instructions  will  be 
carried  out  in  such  a  way  as  to  ensure  that  the  "  liberal 
grant  now  offered  to  comparatively  humble  schools  shall 
serve  as  an  aid  and  stimulus  to  improvement,  and  not  as 
a  pretext  for  remaining  content  with  a  low  standard  of 
duty." 

With  the  disappearance  of  payment  on  individual  re- 
sults in  the  elementary  subjects,  the  necessity  for  many 
of  the  minute  regulations  as  to  the  exact  meaning  of 
a  "pass"  in  each  subject  disappears  also.  But  the 
necessity  still  remains  for  the  inspector  to  keep  in  mind 
the  standard  of  an  individual  pass  for  such  purposes  as 
that  of  the  scholar  requiring  a  "  labour  pass  "  either  for 
half-time  or  whole-time  exemption. 

A  few  modifications  are  made  in  the  instructions  re- 
specting the  three  elementary  subjects.  The  justice  of  the 
oft-repeated  complaints  which  have  been  made  of  the 
excessive  time  devoted  to  English  grammar  is  recognized, 
not  only  in  the  altered  regulations  for  English,  but  in 
a  great  reduction  in  the  "  spelling "  requirements.  As 
regards  reading,  it  is  suggested  that  a  class  of  older 
scholars  should  be  set  to  read  a  passage  to  themselves 
while  another  class  is  being  examined,  and  then  be 
questioned  as  to  its  matter.  Writing  will  be  partly 
tested  by  examination  of  school  copy-books,  not  merely 
by  a  piece  of  writing  executed  during  the  anxious  and 
nervous  hours  of  the  inspector's  visit. 

But  the  most  important  changes  bearing  on  the  school 
curriculum — indeed,  perhaps,  on  the  whole,  the  most 
important  changes  in  the  whole  document — are  those 
passages  in  which  an  attempt  is  made  to  link  the  in- 
struction of  the  school  to  the  life  of  the  home.  On  the 
one  hand,  the  co-operation  of  the  parents  is  to  be  expressly 
invited  ;  on  the  other  hand,  their  special  wants  are  to  be 
more  directly  consulted.  For  example,  it  is  pointed  out 
that  "  in  some  good  schools  the  aid  of  the  parents  has 
been  successfully  enlisted,  and  they  have  been  urged  to 
hear  their  children  read  aloud  from  a  newspaper  or  from 
a  book  for  a  few  minutes  at  home  in  every  day.  The 
amount  of  oral  practice  which  any  one  child  can  obtain 
in  a  large  class  is  obviously  insufficient  ;  and  a  little 
home  exercise  in  reading  aloud  is  often  found  to  have  an 
excellent  effect."  On  the  other  hand,  the  elder  girls  are 
to  be  allowed  to  bring  from  home  garments  that  want 
mending,  and  to  repair  them  in  school  under  the  teachers' 
supervision — an  arrangement  which  will  "connect  the 
school-work  usefully  with  the  every-day  life  of  the 
scholars."  There  are  other  hints  to  a  similar  effect,  as  in 
the  concluding  paragraphs  of  the  instructions,  which 
enumerate  the  ways  in  which,  besides  conforming  to  the 
requirements  of  the  Code,  a  school  may  seek  "  to  render 

c  c 


78 


NATURE 


{April  24,  1890 


service  to  the  children  who  attend  it  and  to  their  parents." 
Taken  one  by  one,  the  suggestions  may  seem  unimportant ; 
collectively,  however,  they  indicate  a  policy  of  taking  the 
parents  frankly  into  confidence,  and  so,  if  possible,  of 
establishing  a  new  link  of  interest  between  the  parent 
and  the  school,  besides  the  mere  "  cash-nexus "  of  the 
school  pence,  which  are  destined  so  soon  to  disappear. 

Under  the  head  of  "  class  subjects  "  an  explanation  is 
given  of  the  object  of  the  great  changes  in  Schedule  II., 
which,  we  learn,  have  been  introduced  in  order  to  allow 
of  greater  freedom  to  teachers  of  different  tastes  and 
capacities,  and  to  localities  of  different  industries  and 
requirements.  "  One  good  teacher  of  geography  may 
attach  special  value  to  physical  facts  and  phenomena  ; 
another  who  lives  in  a  manufacturing  or  maritime  town 
prefers  to  make  commercial  and  industrial  geography  and 
the  interchange  of  productions  the  leading  features  of 
his  lessons."  The  same  standard  is,  so  far  as  possible, 
to  be  kept  in  view,  in  estimating  the  teaching  of  all  the 
various  alternative  courses  ;  but,  subject  to  this  one  con- 
sideration, complete  freedom  of  choice  and  treatment  is 
to  be  given  to  teachers  and  managers.  "  In  sanctioning 
any  modification  of  the  printed  schemes  it  will  be 
necessary  to  have  regard  to  the  experience  and  qualifica- 
tions of  the  teacher,  and  to  any  special  opportunities 
afforded  in  the  town  or  district  for  instruction  by  a  skilled 
demonstrator,  who  visits  several  schools  in  succession, 
or  who  gives  collective  lessons  at  suitable  centres." 

The  instructions  further  confirm  the  view  we  expressed 
when  commenting  on  the  Code,  that  the  policy  of  the  De- 
partment will  be  to  encourage  class  teaching  at  the  expense 
of  specific  subjects.  "  Those  managers  and  teachers  who 
desire  to  continue  the  object-lessons  of  the  infant  school 
in  due  order  through  all  the  lower  standards,  and  so  to 
lead  up  to  the  regular  study  of  natural  history  or  physics 
in  the  higher,  will  probably  think  it  better  to  treat  science 
as  a  class  subject  than  to  postpone  specific  instruction 
until  the  fifth  standard." 

The  recognition  of  continuity,  and  the  idea  of  the  school 
course  as  a  connected  whole,  strikes  us  as  a  new  and 
valuable  feature  in  the  instructions.  From  the  infant 
school  the  child  is  to  be  led  on  through  a  series  of 
object-lessons  to  the  scientific  class-teaching  of  the  upper 
school,  and  thence  in  some  cases  to  specific  instruction 
in  the  higher  standards.  But  all  this  is  but  the  beginning. 
"  Teachers  should  not  be  satisfied  unless  the  instruction 
in  specific  subjects  awakens  in  the  scholar  a  desire  for 
further  knowledge,  and  makes  him  willing  to  avail  himself 
of  such  opportunities  as  are  afforded  locally  by  a  Science 
Class,  a  Polytechnic  Institute,  a  course  of  University  Ex- 
tension Lectures,  a  Free  Library,  or  a  Home-Reading 
Circle."  All  this  is  a  truism,  it  may  be  said  ;  but  it  is  un- 
usual language  for  an  olificial  document,  and  carries  us 
forward  in  imagination  to  the  time,  which  must  come 
sooner  or  later,  when  such  fragmentary  and  scattered  in- 
stitutions as  are  here  enumerated  will  take  their  proper 
place  as  parts  of  a  great  scheme  of  national  education. 

We  fear  that  the  realization  of  the  aims  of  the  Depart- 
ment may  be  materially  impeded  if  a  literal  construction 
is  to  be  placed  on  the  clause  providing  that  the  same 
subject  may  not  be  taken  both  as  a  "class"  and  as  a 
"specific"  subject.  Does  this  restriction  merely  mean 
that  no  child  is  to  be  presented  in  the  same  subject  under 


both  heads — an  obviously  reasonable  stipulation — or  that 
no  children  in  a  school  may  take  as  a  specific  subject  any 
branch  of  study  which  is  taken  as  a  class  subject  by  any 
other  children  in  the  school  ?  If  the  latter  is  the  case,  we 
are  informed  that,  in  some  cases  at  least,  managers  will 
find  themselves  seriously  hampered. 

Provision  is  made  for  the  assistance  of  experts  in  the 
examination  of  scholars,  in  cases  where  the  managers 
choose  an  "additional"  subject  with  which  neither  the 
inspector  nor  his  assistants  are  fully  conversant.  But  un- 
fortunately this  assistance,  which  will  be  given  by  a 
colleague,  on  application  to  the  chief  inspector,  will  be 
confined  to  the  framing  of  suitable  questions,  and  marking 
the  answers,  and  hence  will  be  inapplicable  to  the  case  of 
oral  examination,  in  which  it  is  most  wanted. 

Those  interested  in  manual  instruction  will  turn  with 
interest  to  the  thirty-fifth  section,  which  lays  down  the 
duties  of  inspectors  with  respect  to  this  newly  recognized 
branch  of  instruction.  It  explains  that  the  difficulty 
which  has  hitherto  prevented  the  recognition  of  manual 
instruction  as  part  of  the  ordinary  course  of  instruction  in 
a  public  elementary  school  has  been  removed  by  the 
alteration  in  the  terras  of  Art.  12  (/),  though  how  such  a 
change  in  Departmental  regulations  can  alter  the  sense  of 
an  Act  of  Parliament  we  are  left  to  conjecture.  The  in- 
structions suggest  such  exercises  as  "modelHng,  the 
cutting,  fixing,  and  inventing  of  paper  patterns,  the  form- 
ing of  geometrical  solids  in  cardboard,  and  the  use  of 
tools  and  instruments,"  which  are  in  use  in  some  foreign 
schools,  and  are  found  to  be  "  not  without  a  useful  reflex 
influence  on  all  the  ordinary  school  studies."  The  inspector 
is  to  report  on  the  working  of  any  system  of  manual  in- 
struction which  may  be  adopted,  though  "no  special 
grant  is  made  by  this  Department."  The  words  we  have 
italicized  clearly  tend  to  confirm  our  impression  as  to  the 
intention  of  the  Science  and  Art  Department  to  include 
manual  instruction  in  their  next  Directory. 

It  is  rather  strange  that  under  the  head  of  "  drawing  "  no 
reference  is  made  to  the  change  by  which  in  future  draw- 
ing will  be  made  compulsory  in  boys'  schools  and  optional 
in  infant  departments.  It  is  true  that  drawing  in  ordinary 
schools  will,  as  now,  be  paid  for  by  the  Science  and  Art 
Department,  but  power  is  given  by  the  new  Code  to  Her 
Majesty's  Inspector  to  exempt  schools  from  the  necessity 
of  taking  the  subject  where  the  means  of  teaching  it  can- 
not be  procured.  We  should  like  to  know  what  standard 
the  inspector  will  adopt  in  using  this  dispensing  power. 
Will  the  standard  be  the  same  in  all  districts  ? 

This  is  the  question  to  which  we  return  again  and  again 
after  examining  in  detail  the  various  changes  in  the  Code 
and  the  instructions.  All  will  depend  on  the  inspectors. 
What  will  their  action  be  ?  We  agree  on  the  whole  in 
the  praise  accorded  in  the  instructions  to  the  "  ability, 
discretion,  and  fairness  with  which  Her  Majesty's  In- 
spectors discharge  their  arduous  duties,"  but  nevertheless, 
in  particular  cases,  complaints  of  their  action  have  not  been 
wanting.  The  inspectors  have  hitherto  been  burdened  with 
an  amount  of  routine  work  which  has  to  some  extent 
hindered  them  from  forming  a  really  intelligent  estimate 
of  the  value  of  the  school  work  which  they  have  to  assess. 
This  burden  is  now  lightened,  more  visits  may  be  paid 
without  notice,  and  thus  more  intimate  knowledge  may 
be  acquired  of  the  real  work  of  the  school.     "  It  will  be 


April  2/^,  1890] 


NATURE 


579 


largely  owing,"  we  read,  "  to  your  influence  if  all  who  are 
concerned  with  the  management  of  schools  habitually 
regard  the  officers  of  this  Department  not  merely  as 
critics  and  examiners,  but  as  advisers  and  helpers,  in  the 
performance  of  an  important  public  work."  That  is  the 
idfeal  to  aim  at,  though  there  is  a  good  deal  of  lee-way  to 
make  up  before  it  is  realized. 


ORANGES  IN  INDIA. 

The  Cultivated  Oranges  and  Lemons  of  India  and  Ceylon. 
By  E.  Bonavia,  M.D.  Pp.  384,  with  an  Atlas  of  259 
Plates  7  inches  long  by  9  inches  broad.  (London : 
W.  H.  Allen,  1890.) 

FOR  twenty  years  past  Dr.  Bonavia  has  been  distin- 
guished in  India  as  a  horticulturist.  He  has  been  in 
charge  of  the  Horticultural  Gardens  at  Lucknow,  where 
he  has  conducted  many  valuable  experiments.  Of  late  years 
he  has  tried  oranges,  and  he  has  also  collected  information 
concerning  oranges  from  various  parts  of  India.  India, 
taken  as  a  whole,  is  very  poorly  supplied  with  fruit  ;  really 
good  mangoes  and  litchis  are  nearly  everywhere  dear, 
and  remain  in  season  but  a  short  time.  Oranges  in 
several  parts  of  India  are  cheap  and  excellent  ;  improve- 
ment in  their  cultivation  and  extension  in  their  circulation 
are  matters  of  importance.  The  book  of  Dr.  Bonavia 
contains  his  own  experiences  and  notes,  which  are 
valuable.  His  second-hand  information,  which  he  has 
collected  in  the  fashion  of  an  Indian  Secretary  to  Govern- 
ment or  Minister  of  Agriculture,  is  of  very  small  value, 
but  is  certainly  superior  to  many  secretarial  compilations 
about  hemp,  jute,  cotton,  &c. 

The  first  ninety  pages  treat  of  the  various  groups  of 
oranges,  lemons,  limes,  citrons,  &c.,  with  their  sub- 
varieties  ;  the  next  fifty  pages  treat  of  their  cultivation  in 
India  ;  fifteen  pages  treat  of  their  uses  ;  eleven  of  the 
orange  trade  in  India ;  twenty-one  of  the  morphology  of 
Citrus  ;  forty  of  the  origin  of  the  Citrus  and  the  derivation 
of  its  Indian  names.  Then  follow  120  pages  of  appendix, 
containing  a  miscellaneous  collection  of  "  cuttings " 
relating  in  some  way  to  the  subjects  in  the  book,  with  a 
translation  of  the  chapters  relating  to  Citrus  in  Rumphius's 
"  Herbarium  Amboinense."  The  greater  part  of  this 
appendix  appears  of  small  importance  ;  while  Dr.  Bonavia 
has  by  no  means  exhausted  what  first-rate  authorities 
have  written  regarding  oranges.  The  atlas  of  plates 
gives  hardly  anything  but  outline  drawings  of  oranges 
and  their  leaves  ;  a  very  small  selection  of  these  would 
have  served  every  useful  purpose. 

Dr.  Bonavia  has  summed  up  for  us  the  conclusions 
of  his  book  under  seven  heads  (p.  245)  : — 

{a)  The  pummelo  {Citrus  decumana,  Willd.),  is  not 
specifically  separable  from  the  orange  (C  Aurantium, 
Linn.). — This  is  a  point  of  no  possible  importance,  when 
naturalists  know  no  line  between  a  well-marked  variety 
and  a  dubious  "  species"  ;  but  Lowe  ("  FI.  Madeira,"  p.  73) 
agrees  with  Dr.  Bonavia. 

ip)  The  sweet  orange  of  Europe  (C  Aurantium,  Linn.) 
is  a  distinct  race  from  the  Mandarin  orange  (C  nobilis, 
Lour.). — This  is  correct,  and  well  brought  out  by  Dr. 
Bonavia  ;  but  it  is  also  done  very  clearly  by  Lowe  ("  Fl. 
Madeira"[i857],  pp.  73,  74). 


{c)  The  India  name  "  suntara,"  for  C.  nobilis,  is  not  a 
corruption  merely  of  Cintra. 

(rf)  The  European  words  "  lime,"  "  lemon,"  are  prob- 
ably derived  from  Malay  words. 

{e)  Huge  forms  of  Citrus  fruit  may  have  risen  from  a 
fusion  of  two  ovaries  [p.  187,  "  My  view  would  require 
that  the  Citrus  fruit  should  have  originated  in  two  whorls 
of  carpels,  the  outer  or  rind-whorl  and  the  inner  or 
pulp-whorl''^\ 

(/)  The  true  lime  (C  acida,  Roxb.)  has  more  probably 
descended  from  C.  hystrix,  Kurz,  than  from  C.  medica, 
Linn. 

{g)  The  juice- vesicles  of  the  Citrus  pulp  are  probably 
homologous  with  the  oil-cells  of  the  rind  and  leaves,  and 
perhaps  with  the  ovules. 

It  will  be  best  to  reverently  draw  a  veil  over  the  con- 
clusions [e)  and  {g)  and  over  the  whole  chapter  on  morpho- 
logy. And  the  other  five  "  conclusions,"  except  {b),  do 
not  conclude  anything.  The  foregoing  is  Dr.  Bonavia's 
own  summary  of  what  he  has  proved,  but  he  has  done 
more  than  he  claims  ;  his  account  of  his  own  horticultural 
observations  is  of  value,  and  his  deductions  very  generally 
correct.     Of  these  only  a  few  can  be  given  here. 

(i)  The  Khatta  or  Kama  orange  of  Upper  India  pro- 
duces two  kinds  of  fruit  on  the  same  tree  and  on  the  same 
branch,  viz.  (i)  the  regular  crop,  of  smooth  oranges,  ripe 
at  the  end  of  the  dry  season,  and  (2)  the  after  crop,  of 
grossly- warted  oranges,  ripe  at  the  beginning  of  the 
rains. 

(2)  The  European  orange  (C.  Aurantium)  is  only 
known  in  India  as  a  cultivated  foreign  orange,  and  is  not 
common.  It  has  been  probably  introduced  into  India  in 
modern  times — possibly  from  the  West. 

(3)  The  C.  nobilis  is  the  sweet  orange  of  India  ;  it  has 
been  in  India  from  ancient  times,  and  is  possibly  in- 
digenous on  the  north-east  frontier.  It  has  only  been 
brought  to  Europe  in  modern  times.  The  Tangerine 
orange  is  a  small  form  of  it.  (This  C.  nobilis  is  a  more 
slender  tree  than  C.  Aurantium ;  its  oranges  are  de- 
pressed at  the  poles ;  the  rind  is  very  full  of  large  oil- 
glands,  and  separates  easily  from  the  pulp,  which  lies 
more  or  less  loosely  in  the  rind  as  in  a  bag.) 

(4)  The  pummelo  (i.e.  Pompel-moes)  of  India  and 
Ceylon  is  in  flavour,  structure  of  carpels,  colour  ot 
pulp,  &c.,  very  distinct  from  the  Syrian  shaddock,  i.e.  the 
shaddock  of  English  fruit-shops. 

(5)  In  the  plains  of  Upper  India  (Delhi,  Lucknow,  &c.) 
the  Indian  orange  (C.  nobilis)  can  be  successfully  culti- 
vated, but  requires  irrigation  (well-water  being  better 
than  canal-water),  budding,  trenching,  shade,  special  pre- 
paration of  the  soil  by  lime  or  manure,  &c. 

Every  page  of  Dr.  Bonavia's  book  offers  opportunity 
of  comment :  the  remaining  space  here  available  is 
devoted  to  the  practical  subject  of  the  Indian  sweet 
orange,  C.  nobilis,  which  we  shall  call  the  "  Mandarin," 
and,  for  shortness,  state  first  our  own  beliefs  concern- 
ing it. 

There  are  (according  to  Dr.  Bonavia)  three  great 
centres  of  cultivation  of  the  "  suntara  "  in  India,  viz.  (i) 
Sylhet,  z.^.  South  Khasia  ;(2)  Central  India  ;  (3)  Delhi  and 
Oudh.  From  Khasia  {fide  Bonavia)  about  4000  tons, 
worth  ^4  a  ton,  are  exported  to  Bengal,  mainly  to 
Calcutta.     From  Central  India  about  800  tons  go  by  rail 


58o 


NA  TURE 


\April  24,  1890 


to  Bombay.  The  export  from  Delhi  is  small.  Besides 
this  many  stations  have  a  few  orange  orchards  for  local 
consumption — "a  mere  nothing." 

It  is  evident  from  this  that  Khasia  is  the  most  im- 
portant orange  centre,  and  unfortunately  Dr.  Bonavia  has 
had  to  treat  this  part  of  the  subject  second-hand.  He. 
hardly  says  anything  about  the  Central  Indian  cultivation, 
except  the  remark  (p.  127),  "  I  do  not  know  what  the 
composition  is  of  the  black  soil  of  the  Central  Provinces," 
This  soil,  which  produces  such  excellent  Mandarins, 
everybody  knows  to  be  disintegrated  trap,  i.e.  the  same 
soil  which  alone  produces  them  in  Khasia. 

Dr.  Bonavia  spends  much  space  in  attempting  to  show 
that  the  suntara  orange  is  not  a  Mandarin  ;  he  maintains 
that  the  suntara  and  Mandarin  are  nearly  allied,  and 
together  form  the  distinct  race  (or  species)  C.  nobilis. 
He  admits  that  people  in  Ceylon  and  elsewhere  will  call 
the  suntara  the  Mandarin,  but  he  strongly  denies  that  the 
Mandarin  is  a  suntara  ;  he  may  as  strongly  deny  that  the 
greengage  is  a  plum.  The  best  Khasi  oranges  run  very 
close  on  the  true  Mandarin.  The  C  nobilis  now  grows 
as  if  wild  from  the  hills  of  Southern  China,  probably  to 
Assam  (Khasia);  it  is  also  scattered  along  the  outer 
Himalaya  of  Sikkim  and  Nepal.  The  centre  of  this  area 
is  almost  certainly  its  "  origin."  Dr.  Bonavia  speaks  of 
the  Butwal  (south  of  Nepal)  orange  as  the  sweetest 
or?.nge  in  India  :  he  has  not  tasted  from  the  tree  the 
Khasi  orange  at  the  end  of  January,  which  is  considered 
too  sweet  by  many  Europeans.  The  Khasi  orange  is  in 
fact  larger  than  the  Butwal  ;  and  for  a  sweet  orange  there 
is  no  finer  in  India  or  elsewhere. 

Dr.  Bonavia  lays  stress  on  the  fact  that  the  true 
Mandarin  is  when  dead  ripe  a  "  varnished  green,"  while 
the  suntara  is  "  from  orange-yellow  to  lobster-red  " ;  he 
found  that  the  green  oranges  of  Ceylon  in  travelling  to 
Etawah  (21  days'  journey)  had  turned  or  were  turning 
yellow ;  and  he  decides  triumphantly  that  "  the  green 
orange  has  no  locus  standi.^'  The  fact  is  otherwise  :  the 
best  Khasi  oranges  when  dead  ripe  on  the  tree  are  an 
intense  "  varnished  green."  Picked  somewhat  unripe, 
and  carried  in  a  native  boat  (21-30  days)  to  Calcutta, 
they  arrive  a  dull  yellow  or  turning  yellow.  And  perhaps 
Dr.  Bonavia  could  prove  by  prolonging  the  journey  that 
their  true  colour  is  black.  The  withered,  unripe-picked, 
dull  yellow,  mawkish,  Calcutta  orange  is  a  very  different 
thing  from  the  orange  ripe  on  the  tree  above  Chela. 

The  Mandarin  grows  best  in  steaming  valleys  just  within 
the  hills  (and  above  all  on  disintegrated  trap)  at  an 
elevation  of  250-2000  feet :  here  it  grows  from  seed 
without  any  trouble.  In  the  plains,  the  fruit  is  worse  the 
farther  you  recede  from  the  hills,  and  great  pains  must  be 
taken  with  the  culture.  Dr.  Bonavia  was  unfortunate  in 
having  to  experiment  with  the  orange  at  Lucknow  ;  free- 
trade  principles  would  suggest  that  the  most  promising 
plan  would  be  to  improve  the  communications  between 
the  orange  districts  and  the  great  centres  of  consumption. 
It  was  not  the  fault,  however,  of  Dr.  Bonavia  that  he  had 
to  try  to  grow  oranges  where  they  naturally  will  not  grow. 
But  Dr.  Bonavia  does  not  seem,  with  all  the  extensive 
cuttings  in  his  appendix,  to  have  got  from  the  literature 
the  help  in  his  task  that  he  should  have  got.  He 
hazards,  for  example,  a  speculation  (p.  1 16)  that "  the  stock 
on  which   the    Mandarin   is   grafted    mav    have    some 


influence  "  ;  apparently  unaware  that  the  regular  practice 
is  to  graft  the  Tangerine  on  the  common  orange,  as  it 
then  becomes  a  larger  tree  giving  a  more  certain  crop  of 
larger  fruit. 

Quite  apart  from  the  question  of  oranges,  it  is  well 
worth  while  to  examine  in  some  detail  the  method  of  Dr. 
Bonavia  in  obtaining  information  about  the  Khasi  orange 
and  its  results,  because  it  throws  a  flood  of  light  on 
Indian  reports  in  general.  Dr.  Bonavia  appears  to  have 
tried  three  sources  of  information,  viz.  (a)  a  description  of 
the  orange-groves  by  Mr.  Brownlow,  (/3)  the  answers  to 
his  questions  returned  by  the  Deputy-Commissioner  of 
Sylhet,  (y)  similar  answers  from  the  Rev.  Jerman  Jones. 
Dr.  Bonavia  does  not  refer  to  the  "  Himalayan  Journals  "  of 
Sir  J.  D.  Hooker,  vol.  ii ;  nor  to  Medlicott  in  Mem.  Geol. 
Survey  Ind.,  vol.  vii.  Art.  3.  From  these  two  latter 
sources,  a  very  fair  idea  of  the  circumstances  of  the  orange- 
groves  of  Khasia  can  be  gained.  Dr.  Bonavia  appears 
not  to  have  the  wildest  notion  of  the  country,  climate,  or 
soil. 

Turning  to  Medlicott's  map,  we  see  that  there  are 
three  large  valleys  (Chela,  Umwai,  and  Sobhar),  at  the 
south  extremity  of  the  Khasi  Hills,  which  are  occupied 
by  the  "  Sylhet  trap."  This  trap  extends  in  the  Chela 
valley  from  the  debouchement  of  the  river  at  Chela  up 
to  2800  feet  at  the  head  below  Mamloo.  This  trap 
decomposes  into  a  reddish  earth,  and  there  occur  soft 
ashy  beds  very  like  forms  of  the  Deccan  trap.  All  three 
valleys  are  excessively  steep,  the  undecomposed  trap 
standing  in  huge  masses.  The  rain-fall  varies  from  300 
to  500  inches  per  annum.  These  valleys  are  thus  rough 
and  broken,  and  full  of  precipices  inaccessible  but  by 
ladders  and  ropes.  Intensely  hot  and  steamy,  and  pro- 
tected from  winds,  they  exhibited  a  richer  vegetation  to 
Sir  Joseph  Hooker  than  he  had  seen  in  the  Himalaya. 

In  the  Chela  valley,  at  the  present  time,  the  Mandarin 
orange  occupies  the  whole  area  of  the  trap.  The  two 
other  valleys  are  less  completely  occupied.  There  is  also 
an  orange-grove  on  a  small  trap  area  a  few  miles  east, 
behind  Jynteapore. 

The  Khasi  cultivation  is  simple.  The  pips  of  the  orange 
are  raised  without  difficulty  in  a  damp  seed-bed,  often  in 
a  nook  shaded  by  a  boulder  of  trap.  A  piece  of  the  jungle 
is  half  cleared  {i.e.  most  of  the  larger  trees,  some  of  the 
smaller)  ;  and  the  young  orange-trees,  3-5  feet  high,  are 
stuck  out  promiscuously  in  the  partial  shade  left  ;  the  root 
of  each  is  pushed  if  possible  under  the  heel  of  a  block  of 
trap.  When  the  young  trees  have  got  hold  enough  to 
bear  the  sun,  the  other  half  of  the  jungle  is  roughly  cut. 
The  trees  require  no  further  labour.  The  orange-groves 
in  the  cold  weather  form  a  monkeys'  paradise,  and  it  is 
necessary  to  destroy  these.  Sometimes  two  or  three 
villages  unite,  enclose  the  monkeys,  and  drive  them 
down  to  an  angle  of  the  main  stream,  where  they  are 
slaughtered  pitilessly.  The  sight  of  a  single  monkey  is 
always  sufficient  to  exasperate  a  Tyrna  man  to  fury. 

The  crop  is  enormous  ;  the  river  at  Chela  flows  some- 
times covered  apparently  with  oranges.  Before  the  season 
is  half  over,  the  pigs  are  so  surfeited  that  their  oranges 
have  to  be  peelfed  for  them.  The  valley  has  enormously 
increased  in  wealth  in  the  last  half-century.  It  is  a  Khasi 
saying  that  a  man  here  may  work  for  three  days  and  eat 
for  a  month. 


April  24,  1890] 


NA  TURE 


Now  let  us  see  what  Dr.  Bonavia  says.  He  has  the  speci- 
men soil  collected  by  Mr.  Brownlovv  analyzed  by  a  trust- 
worthy chemist,  who  finds  no  lime  in  it.  Dr.  Bonavia 
argues  (p.  94)  "  that  either  Mr.  Brownlow  took  his  sample 
from  one  particular  spot,  or  did  not  reach  the  calcareous 
soil."  "  Orange  wood  requires  considerable  lime.  In 
Chela  oranges  grow  very  well ;  therefore  the  soil  of  Chela 
contains  lime.  Moreover,  it  is  incredible  as  the  district 
exports  lime  that  no  lime  detritus  is  ever  washed  down 
by  the  floods  which  flood  the  orange-groves  of  Chela  to 
the  depth  of  6  feet." 

Nothing  can  be  wider  of  the  mark.  Mr.  Brownlow 
would  have  had  to  go  very  deep  into  the  Sylhet  trap,  a 
very  hard  rock,  to  get  any  lime.  It  is  true  that  there  is 
limestone  at  Mamloo,  and  that  the  water  that  comes  down 
has  some  lime  in  it— but  very  little.  The  floods  at  Chela 
rise  sometimes  60  feet  (instead  of  6),  but  they  cannot  in- 
undate even  then  much  of  the  orange  groves  which  run 
up  to  2000  feet.  Perhaps  the  most  extraordinary  state- 
ment in  Mr.  Brownlow's  description  is  that  (above  Chela) 
"  no  vacancies  are  left  in  the  planting  of  the  orange-trees." 
The  trap  boulders  are  as  big  as  cottages  all  over  the 
valley. 

We  turn  to  the  second  source  of  information — the 
Deputy-Commissioner  of  Sylhet.  Fifty  years  ago 
^'  Khasia  "  was  attached  to  Sylhet,  and  known  as  North 
Sylhet ;  and  the  oranges  are  still  known  as  Sylhet 
oranges.  Dr.  Bonavia  applies,  therefore,  to  the  Deputy- 
Commissioner  not  of  the  Khasi  Hills,  but  of  Sylhet.  The 
Deputy-Commissioner  cannot  possibly  leave  his  own 
Sylhet  government  and  his  own  station  ;  but,  being  a  very 
amiable  man,  he  sends  Juggaish  Babu,  Deputy-Magistrate 
of  Chunamgunj,  to  collect  the  information  for  Dr. 
Bonavia.  This  gentleman  commences  his  report,  "  I  met 
with  the  greatest  difficulty  in  compiling  these  statistics. 
The  Khasis  received  my  inquiries  with  suspicion,  and 
tried  to  mislead  me  as  much  as  possible."  The  Khasis 
would  doubtless  be  most  hostile  to  a  Bengali  Babu  from 
Sylhet.  But  a  BengaH  Babu  is  not  exactly  the  man  to 
collect  scientific  information  anywhere.  Juggaish  Babu 
commences,  "  The  soil  must  be  sandy."  "  The  gardens 
being  situated  on  river-sides,  their  soil  naturally  retains 
some  moisture  even  in  the  dry  season.  Hence,  perhaps, 
artificial  irrigation  becomes  unnecessary."  How  the  idea 
of  the  possibility  of  artificially  irrigating  the  Chela  valley 
can  have  occurred  to  the  Babu's  mind  is  marvellous  ; 
unless  his  report  is  in  reply  to  some  leading  question  by 
Dr.  Bonavia. 

"  The  garden  is  never  hoed  or  harrowed  before  receiving 
the  orange  plants."  It  would  not  be  possible  to  harrow 
such  a  country  at  any  season.  The  Babu  finally  speaks 
of  the  land  tenure.  He  does  not  mention  the  fact  that 
Chela  and  its  12  associated  villages  form  a  republic  under 
the  protection  of  the  English  Government ;  their  ad- 
ministrative Government  consists  of  4  councillors  elected 
for  four  years  by  universal  manhood  suffrage.  This 
constitution  was  established  half  a  century  ago  by  a 
Bengal  civilian,  and  is  unique. 

We  now  turn  to  the  third  source  of  information  to  Dr. 
Bonavia,  viz.  the  Rev.  Jerman  Jones,  a  missionary  who 
has  been  in  Khasia  more  than  25  years,  and  could  have 
told  much.  But  he  appears  only  to  have  been  consulted 
about  the  names  of  oranges  in  Khasi,  and  he  replied  that 


the  name  (for  the  Khasi  Mandarin)  is  U  soh  niam-tra ; 
which  Dr.  Bonavia  writes  Usoh  niamtra ;  and  states  (p. 
228)  that  Usoh  is  the  generic  Khasi  name  for  oranges. 
[In  a  footnote,  backed  up  by  an  appendix,  No.  43,  Dr. 
Bonavia  carefully  and  amusingly  notes  that  the  word  he 
got  from  the  Deputy-Commissioner  of  Sylhet  was  santra, 
not  niavitra.  Dr.  Bonavia  evidently  thinks  the  testimony 
of  a  missionary  doubtful  as  against  that  of  a  Deputy- 
Commissioner.  But  the  excellent  Deputy-Commissioner 
in  question  has  an  extremely  limited  knowledge  of  Khasi, 
and  would  certainly  not  set  himself  up  against  Mr.  Jerman 
Jones.] 

Dr.  Bonavia  having  got  the  word  tisoh  for  orange  in 
Khasi,  goes  on  to  connect  it  with  the  Amboina  words 
aussi  and  iissi.  He  proceeds  (in  tracing  the  origin  of 
the  Mandarin),  p.  229  : — 

"  We  have  here,  I  think,  something  tangible  to  go  by. 
The  community  of  the  generic  name  usoh^  ussi,  or  usse 
to  the  Khasi  Hills  and  the  Malay  Archipelago  indicates, 
&c.,  &c." 

In  Appendix  No.  58,  the  afHnity  of  usoh  is  pushed 
further  with  the  aid  of  Prof.   Dr.  T.  de  Lacouperie. 

Now  we  come  to  the  smash  of  the  whole.  Soh  means 
"  fruit  "  in  Khasi,  as  see  Hooker,  "Himalayan  Journal," 
vol.  ii.  p.  268,  in  note  ;  in  which  language  every  noun 
must  have  the  article  prefixed,  and  soh  being  masculine, 
takes  the  masculine  article  U.  Throughout  Khasia,  usoh 
so  far  from  being  the  generic  term  for  orange,  would  be 
understood  to  he  potatoes.  It  is  probable  that,  at  Chela, 
if  an  Englishman  pointed  at  a  basket  of  oranges  and  said 
"  usoh,"  they  would  guess  which  fruit  he  meant  ;  but  it  is 
not  Khasi.  (Not  the  least  ciriosity  in  this  book  is  that 
Mr.  Jerman  Jones  should  say  that  he  had  never  found  a 
Khasi  who  could  offer  the  remotest  suggestion  as  to  the 
derivation  or  meaning  of  niam-tra.  Some  Khasis  have 
an  explanation  ;  it  might  be  worth  Dr.  Bonavia's  while 
to  ask  Mr.  Stevens  of  Chela,  or  Mr.  Roberts  of  Nongsow- 
lia,  about  it  before  publishing  the  corrected  edition.) 

The  sum  of  the  matter  is  that,  if  Dr.  Bonavia  had  con- 
fined his  book  to  his  own  observations  and  his  own  part 
of  the  country,  with  half  a  dozen  plates  showing  properly 
the  main  types  of  Indian  oranges,  it  would  have  been  a 
handy  inexpensive  book  of  200  pages  at  most.  But,  un- 
fortunately, in  Indian  style.  Dr.  Bonavia's  ambition  has 
been  to  include  all  India  in  his  book,  to  put  forward  his 
own  extremely  peculiar  views  of  morphology,  and  to  revel 
in  linguistic  and  ethnological  speculations,  some  of  which 
are  absolutely  bad,  and  many  of  which  can  be  but  of 
little  use.  On  top  of  the  book  thus  weighted  come  the 
120  pages  of  appendix,  with  the  final  result  that  the 
work  bears  a  painful  resemblance  to  the  ordinary  Secret- 
arial Report,  though  it  possesses  really  an  amount  of 
original  observation  and  experience  which  such  Reports 
often  entirely  want. 

In  one  respect,  Dr.  Bonavia  hardly  comes  up  to  the 
Secretarial  Report :  he  spells,  on  one  page,  Shalla, 
Mhowmloo,  Mostock,  though  those  words  were  correctly 
spelt  Chela,  Mamloo,  Mousto,  as  long  ago  as  iS54by 
Sir  J.  D.  Hooker  ;  or  Dr.  Bonavia  might  have  referred 
to  the  fine  map  of  the  district  by  Godwin-Austen. 
Similarly,  Dr.  Bonavia  states  (p.  30),  "The  Bengalis 
have  no  v  in  their  language."     It  is  true  that  in  vulgar 


582 


NATURE 


{April  24,  1890 


Bengali  the  v  is  often  degraded  into  b — a  linguistic 
change  that  runs  from  Hebrew  to  Spanish.  But  Dr. 
Bonavia  might  as  well  maintain  there  is  no  h  in  English 
because  a  Cockney  pine-grower  "eats  is  ouses  by  ot 
,  water." 

Turning  lastly  to  the  question  how  far  Dr.  Bonavia's 
book  assists  the  cultivation  of  the  orange  in  India,  we 
may  doubt,  with  every  admission  of  his  horticultural 
skill  and  assiduity,  whether  he  is  on  the  right  tack.  The 
Khasi  Mandarin  can  be  grown  almost  without  labour, 
and  of  a  quality  that  is  not  likely  to  be  approached  by 
any  horticultural  skill  and  labour  on  non-volcanic  soil  in 
the  plains.  These  oranges  are  now  picked  unripe,  and 
occupy  a  month  (often  more)  in  reaching  Calcutta  in  a 
native  boat.  A  fruit-steamer  would  take  them  down  in 
2  or  3  days  from  Chattuck  to  the  rail  at  Goalundo. 
Bombay  would  surely  take  many  more  oranges  from 
Nagpore  if  the  railway  rates  were  lowered,  and  the 
"  perishable  fruit "  accelerated  in  transit. 

Mr.  Medlicott  made  only  a  hurried  march  across  the 
Khasi  Hills  when  he  laid  in  his  three  patches  of  Sylhet 
trap,  and  he  only  visited  a  very  narrow  strip  of  country. 
More  of  this  trap  certainly  exists — perhaps  at  a  low  level, 
suitable  for  oranges  ;  and  the  Government  Geologist  at 
Shillong  might,  in  the  cold  weather,  possibly  discover 
some  more  patches.  For  the  present,  however,  the  known 
area  of  Sylhet  trap  is  by  no  means  nearly  covered  with 
oranges,  except  in  the  Chela  valley,  where  the  boundary 
of  the  orange-groves  coincides  very  closely  with  the 
outcrop-line  of  the  trap.  C.  B.  Clarke. 

A  NATURALIST  AMONG  THE  HEAD- 
HUNTERS. 

A  Naturalist  among  the  Head-himters.  Being  an 
Account  of  Three  Visits  to  the  Solomon  Islands  in  the 
years  1886,  1887,  and  1888.  By  Charles  Morris  Wood- 
ford, F.R.G.S.,  &c.  (London  :  George  Philip  and  Son 
1890.) 

'  I  "ILL  within  the  last  twenty  years  the  Solomon  Islands 
-*-  were  almost  unknown  to  Europeans,  and  their  inhab- 
itants were  considered  to  be  exceptionally  uncivilized  and 
treacherous.  Whatever  they  may  have  been  originally, 
they  were  not  likely  to  be  improved  by  their  first  contact 
with  civilization,  in  the  form  of  chance  visits  of  whalers 
and  vessels  engaged  in  the  "  labour  trade  " — which  in  its 
early  days  meant  kidnapping  and  slavery,  ofcen  leading  to 
murder  or  to  wholesale  massacres.  With  such  experi- 
ences of  the  resources  of  civilization  we  are  not  surprised 
to  hear  from  Mr.  Woodford  that  they  are  "  suspicious  of 
strangers,"  or  that  they  are  "treacherous  when  they  see 
their  opportunity"  ;  yet  the  fact  that  he  lived  among  them 
for  several  months,  often  quite  alone  and  unprotected,  and 
that  Mr.  Lars  Nielsen,  a  trader,  lived  on  good  terms  with 
them  for  ten  years,  leads  us  to  suppose  that,  under  more 
favourable  circumstances,  their  character  might  have  been 
found  to  compare  not  unfavourably  with  that  of  the 
Fijians.  There  is  now,  however,  no  chance  for  them,  as 
they  are  certainly  doomed  to  speedy  extinction.  The 
numerous  distinct  tribes  found  on  each  of  the  islands  live  I 
in  a  state  of  chronic  warfare,  incited  by  the  ordinary 
causes  of  the  quarrels  of  savages,  intensified  by  a  general 
mania  for  head-hunting  and  in  some  cases  by  the  habit  1 


of  cannibalism.  So  long  as  they  fought  with  native 
weapons,  spears  and  wooden  clubs,  the  destruction  of  life 
was  not  very  great ;  but  the  traders  have  armed  them  all 
with  Snider  rifles  and  steel  tomahawks,  the  result  being 
that  entire  villages  and  tribes  are  sometimes  massacred  ;. 
j  and  this  wholesale  destruction,  aided  by  infanticide  and 
other  causes,  is  leading  to  a  steady  decrease  of  the 
population. 

The  excellent  reproductions  of  photographs  with  which 
the  book  is  illustrated  show  that  the  Solomon  islanders  are 
typical  Papuans,  hardly  distinguishable  physically  from 
those  of  the  western  and  central  portions  of  New  Guinea. 
Their  state  of  civilization  appears  to  be  about  the  same. 
They  cultivate  the  ground  assiduously,  growing  chiefly 
yams,  taro,  and  plantains,  and  they  even  terrace  whole 
hill-sides  for  the  taro,  a  stream  of  water  being  admitted 
at  the  top,  and  conducted  down  from  level  to  level  with 
considerable  ingenuity.  As  domestic  animals  they  keep 
dogs,  pigs,  and  fowls,  and  they  had  all  these  animals  when 
first  visited  by  the  Spaniards  in  1568.  The  dog  Mr. 
Woodford  believes  to  be  the  dingo  of  Australia ;  the  pig 
the  Sus  papiiensis  of  New  Guinea  ;  while  the  fowl  was 
no  doubt  derived  from  the  Malays.  They  build  excellent 
canoes,  fifty  or  sixty  feet  long;  of  planks  hewn  out  of  solid 
trunks,  beautifully  fitted  together  and  fastened  with  rattan. 
Their  houses  are  fairly  built  and  comfortable  ;  and  they 
construct  baskets,  shields,  wooden  bowls,  and  various 
weapons  and  ornaments,  with  the  usual  savage  ingenuity. 

Mr.  Woodford's  chief  occupation  in  the  islands  was 
the  collection  of  specimens  of  natural  history,  and  his 
account  of  the  zoology  of  the  group  presents  several 
points  of  interest.  It  is  here  we  find  the  eastern  limit  of 
the  marsupials,  which  are  represented  by  a  species  of 
Phalanger  hardly  distinguishable  from  one  inhabiting 
New  Guinea.  Bats  are  numerous,  seventeen  species 
being  described,  of  which  six  are  peculiar  ;  and  there  are 
four  species  of  native  rats,  one  of  which  is  the  largest 
species  known.  About  the  two  large  rats,  Mus  ivtperator 
and  Mus  rex,  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas,  who  described  them, 
makes  the  following  interesting  remarks  : — 

"  It  is,  however,  in  their  relation  to  each  other  that 
their  chief  interest  lies,  for  they  seem  to  be  clearly  the 
slightly  modified  descendants  of  one  single  species  that, 
once  introduced,  has  been  isolated  in  Guadalcanar  for 
some  considerable  time,  while  it  has  apparently  died 
out  elsewhere.  Of  this  original  species,  some  individuals 
would  have  adopted  a  terrestrial  and  others  an  arboreal 
life,  and  their  respective  descendants  would  have  been 
modified  accordingly.  In  this  way  I  would  explain  the 
fact  that  at  the  present  time  we  have  in  Guadalcanar 
two  genuine  species,  agreeing  with  each  other  in  their 
essential  structure,  and  yet  separated  by  a  considerable 
number  of  characters,  all  having  a  more  or  less  direct 
relation  to  a  climbing  or  non-climbing  habit  of  life.  Of 
these,  of  course,  by  far  the  most  striking  are  the  broad 
foot-pads  and  the  long  rasp-like  probably  semi-prehensile 
tail  of  Mus  rex  as  compared  with  the  smaller  pads  and 
short  smooth  tail  of  Mus  iniperator." 

This  description  well  illustrates  the  fact  of  the  import- 
ance of  insular  faunas  as  showing  us  how  species  may  be 
modified  under  the  least  complex  and  therefore  most  easily 
understood  conditions.  On  a  continent  the  modification 
to  an  arboreal  mode  of  life  would  have  brought  the  species 
into  competition  with  a  number  of  other  arboreal  organ- 
isms, and  would  have  exposed  it  to  the  attacks  of  a  distinct 


Atril  24,  1890] 


NATURE 


583 


set  of  enemies,  requiring  numerous  modifications  of  form, 
structure,  and  habits,  the  exact  purpose  of  which  we  should 
have  found  it  difficult  to  interpret.  But  here,  where  both 
competitors  and  enemies  are  at  a  minimum,  we  are  able 
distinctly  to  see  the  i&'fi  and  simple  modifications  which 
have  adapted  the  species  to  its  changed  mode  of  life. 
We  have  here,  too,  a  case  in  which  the  isolation  supposed 
to  be  essential  in  the  production  of  new  species  has  been 
effected  solely  by  a  change  of  habits  within  the  same 
limited  area,  and  it  is  evident  that  this  mode  of  isolation 
would  be  equally  effective  in  the  case  of  a  continental  as 
of  an  insular  species. 

Lizards,  snakes,  and  frogs  are  tolerably  abundant,,  and 
the  proportion  of  species  peculiar  to  the  islands  is  in  the 
order  in  which  they  are  here  named  ;  and  this  also 
indicates  the  increasing  difficulty  of  transmission  across 
an  ocean  barrier.  Birds  seem  to  be  fairly  abundant, 
parrots  and  pigeons  forming  the  most  conspicuous  groups, 
while  birds  of  paradise  appear  to  be  absent.  Although 
insects  decrease  in  number  of  species  as  we  go  eastward 
from  New  Guinea,  yet  two  of  the  grandest  of  butterflies — 
Ornithoptcra  Urvilleana  and  O.  Victoria — are  found  in 
the  Solomon  Islands,  and  were  among  the  greatest 
treasures  of  Mr.  Woodford's  collections.  The  latter 
species  was  only  known  by  a  female  specimen  obtained 
by  Macgillivray,  the  naturalist  to  the  Herald,  in  1854,  till 
Mr.  Woodford  again  found  it  in  1886,  and  discovered  also 
the  beautiful  green  and  black  male.  Many  fine  Papilios 
are  also  found,  among  them  a  splendid  blue  and  black 
species  allied  to  the  well-known  P.  Ulysses  of  the 
Moluccas,  ttere,  as  elsewhere  in  the  tropics,  some 
striking  cases  of  mimicry  occur,  three  species  of  Euplaea 
being  so  closely  imitated  by  three  species  of  Diadema,  as 
to  be  undistinguishable  on  the  wing ;  and  each  pair 
appeared  to  be  confined  to  a  separate  island. 

The  following  is  an  interesting  observation  on  the 
habits  of  pigeons  : — 

"  The  small  islands  on  the  reefs  are  much  frequented 
by  pigeons.  They  resort  to  them  during  the  day,  but 
mostly  towards  sunset,  when,  at  some  islands  that  I  know 
of,  the  pigeons  may  be  seen  arriving  by  twos  and  threes, 
or  in  flocks  of  ten  or  a  dozen  each,  to  roost  on  the 
islands,  until  each  tree  is  crowded  with  birds.  The  only 
reason  that  I  can  assign  for  this  habit  is,  that  on  these 
small  islands  the  pigeons  are  freer  from  the  attacks  of 
the  large  monitor  lizards  that  abound  on  all  the  large 
islands.  I  do  not  consider  this  at  all  a  satisfactory 
reason,  but  it  is  the  only  one  I  am  able  to  suggest. 
Certain  it  is  that  this  habit  of  the  pigeons  plays  an 
important  part  in  the  distribution  of  seeds  from  island  to 
island.  On  any  of  these  small  islands  the  large  seeds  of 
the  Canarium  nut  tree  may  be  found,  after  being  dis- 
gorged by  the  pigeons,  while  young  trees  in  different 
stages  of  growth  may  often  be  seen." 

Mr.  Woodford's  explanation  of  the  pigeons'  roosting  on 
the  small  islands  appears  to  be  a  highly  probable  one, 
and  quite  in  accordance  with  other  facts  relating  to 
this  tribe  of  birds.  They  are  exceptionally  abundant  in 
tropical  archipelagoes,  and  most  so  in  those  where,  as  in 
the  Antilles,  the  Mascarene  group,  the  Moluccas,  and  the 
Pacific  islands,  arboreal  carnivorous  mammals  are  very 
scarce  or  altogether  wanting.  An  analogous  fact  to  that 
noted  by  Mr.  Woodford  is,  that  although  the  beautiful 
Nicobar  pigeon  has  an  enormous  range,  from  the  Nicoba 


Islands  to  New  Guinea,  it  is  almost  unknown  in  the 
larger  islands,  especially  in  the  western  half  of  its  area 
where  mammals  abound,  but  is  more  especially  confined 
to  the  smaller  islets  and  reefs,  where  it  is  comparatively 
free  from  enemies.^ 

Although  the  natives  of  the  Solomon  Islands  are  well 
supplied  with  Bryant  and  May's  wax  vestas  in  metal 
boxes — the  only  kind  of  matches  that  can  be  kept  in  the 
damp  atmosphere— they  still  make  fire  in  the  native  way, 
by  friction,  on  certain  ceremonial  occasions,  or  at  other 
times  when  matches  are  not  forthcoming ;  and  their 
method  of  proceeding  is  well  described  by  Mr.  Woodford. 
It  consists  in  rubbing  a  hard  piece  of  wood  in  a  groove 
formed  on  a  soft  dry  piece — the  method  used  in  the 
Moluccas  and  Australia — and  he  tells  us  that,  though  a 
native  will  usually  produce  fire  in  less  than  a  minute,  he 
has  himself  rubbed  till  his  elbows  and  shoulders  have 
ached  without  ever  producing  more  than  smoke. 

The  following  extract  gives  a  fair  idea  of  the  author's 
style  : — • 

"  It  is  amusing  to  see  a  mere  child  paddle  alongside  in 
a  crazy  trough  of  a  canoe,  only  just  capable  of  supporting 
its  weight.  The  water  splashes  into  the  canoe  at  every 
stroke  of  the  paddle,  and  at  intervals  the  small  child 
kicks  it  overboard  with  its  foot — a  novel  kind  of  baler. 
Three  or  four  mouldy-looking  yams,  ostentatiously  dis- 
played, are  rolling  about  in  the  water  at  the  bottom  of 
the  canoe.  The  unsuspecting  stranger  takes  pity  on  the 
tender  years,  and  apparent  anxiety  of  the  small  native 
to  trade,  and  gives  him  probably  four  times  the  proper 
price  for  his  rusty  yams.  The  child  eagerly  seizes  the 
coveted  stick  of  tobacco,  and  immediately  stows  it  for 
safety  through  a  hole  in  his  ear,  where  at  least  it  will  be 
in  no  danger  of  getting  wet.  He  next  whisks  aside  a 
dirty-looking  piece  of  matting  that  has  apparently  got 
accidentally  jammed  in  one  end  of  the  canoe,  and 
displays  some  more  yams,  of  a  slightly  better  quality 
than  the  last.  For  the  sake  of  consistency  you  cannot 
well  offer  him  less  than  you  did  before,  and  another  stick 
of  tobacco  changes  hands,  and  is  transferred  to  the  other 
ear.  You  think  now  that  he  must  have  finished,  as  there 
is  no  place  in  the  canoe  to  hide  anything  else,  but  with  a 
dexterous  jerk  that  nearly  upsets  the  canoe  he  produces 
a  single  yam  that  he  has  been  sitting  upon.  How  it 
managed  to  escape  notice  before  is  a  puzzle.  For  this  he 
demands  a  pipe,  but  is  not  satisfied  with  the  first  or 
second  that  is  shown  him.  No  ;  he  must  have  dipiala 
tinoni  or  have  his  yam  back.  The  piala  tinoni  is  a  pipe 
with  a  man's  face  upon  the  bowl.  But  again  the  young 
trader  is  particular,  it  must  also  have  a  knob  at  the 
bottom  or  he  will  have  none  of  it." 

The  book  is  well  got  up,  well  illustrated,  and  very 
pleasantly  written.  It  is  full  of  information  as  regards 
the  natives,  the  scenery,  and  the  natural  history  of  these 
little-known  but  very  interesting  islands,  and  can  therefore 
be  confidently  recommended  to  all  who  care  for  books 
of  travel  in  little-known  countries. 

A.  R.  W. 


OUR  BOOK  SHELF. 

Rechcrches  sur  les    Tremblevients  de    Terre.      By  Jules 
Girard.     (Paris:   Ernest  Leroux,  1890.) 

The  scientific  study  of  earthquake  phenomena  has  of 
late  years  made  great  progress,  and  we  are  glad  to 
welcome  a  book  which  brings  together  the  new  matter 

'  See  "  The.  Malay  ArchipelaKO,"  p.  3S0. 


584 


NA  TURE 


{April  24,  1890 


which  has  hitherto  been  published  only  in  various  Journals 
and  Transactions  of  Societies.  The  book  commences  with 
a  chapter  on  ancient  traditions,  giving  a  chronological 
table  of  the  more  important  shocks  which  have  occurred 
since  79  A.D.  The  second  chapter  briefly  discusses  the 
connection  between  earthquakes  and  volcanoes,  a  subject 
of  which  we  have  apparently  a  good  deal  still  to  learn. 
Then  follow  descriptions  and  illustrations  of  various 
seismometers  and  seismographs,  including  the  latest  forms 
devised  by  Profs.  Gray  and  Milne.  In  this  chapter 
there  are  given  several  interesting  comparisons  of  earth- 
quake curves  automatically  recorded  by  the  instruments, 
and  curves  artificially  produced  by  the  application  of 
forces  of  known  direction  and  magnitude.  The  pro- 
pagation of  shocks  through  land  and  water,  and  their 
destructive  effects,  are  also  considered,  the  latter  being 
illustrated  by  sketches  of  some  of  the  more  remarkable 
fractures  and  displacements  which  have  been  observed. 
The  last  chapter  summarises  the  suggestions  which  have 
been  made  as  to  possible  connections  between  earth- 
quakes and  astronomical  and  meteorological  phenomena. 
In  conclusion,  M.  Girard  points  out  the  necessity  for 
continued  systematic  observations,  and  enumerates  the 
chief  points  on  which  further  information  is  required. 

To  those  who  know  little  or  nothing  of  the  subject, 
M.  Girard's  little  book  will  form  an  admirable  intro- 
duction ;  and  to  the  initiated  it  will  be  a  handy  book  of 
reference  to  its  latest  developments. 

La  Photographic  a  la  Lumiere  du  Magnesium.  By  Dr. 
J.  M.  Eder.  Translated  by  Henry  Gauthier-Villars. 
(Paris  :  Gauthier-Villars  and  Son,  1890.) 

This  is  a  translation  of  a  very  interesting  Httle  German 
work  on  the  employment  of  magnesium  light  for  the 
purposes  of  photography,  and  will  form  a  useful  addition 
to  our  photographic  literature.  The  author  first  gives  a 
brief  account  of  the  earlier  stages  of  the  subject,  taking  us 
back  to  the  time  when  Bunsen  and  Roscoe,  in  the  year 
1859,  indicated  the  considerable  advantages  the  light  of 
magnesium  presented  for  photo-chemical  studies  and 
lighting.  He  then  shows  how  Crookes  afterwards 
employed  the  light  for  photographic  purposes. 

Amongst  the. very  first  attempts  of  artificial  lighting,  the 
wire  of  magnesium  was  used.  It  was  burnt  in  a  specially- 
made  lamp,  and  the  light  thus  produced  answered  fairly 
well  for  interiors,  but  was  useless  for  portrait  work,  being 
too  harsh.  The  next  advance  was  the  employment  of  a 
mixture  consisting  of  the  powder  of  magnesium,  chlorate 
of  potassium,  and  a  sulphide  of  antimony  ;  the  light  was 
produced  by  igniting  the  mixture,  which  flared  up  instan- 
taneously. The  chief  drawback  to  this  method  was  the 
great  precaution  that  had  to  be  taken  during  the  mixing, 
as  the  slightest  blow  caused  an  explosion.  Saltpetre  in 
place  of  potassium  was  sometimes  used  so  as  to  lessen 
the  chances  of  explosion. 

The  methods  described  in  chapters  v.  and  vi.  were 
those  which  gave  the  best  results.  They  consisted  in 
blowing  powdered  magnesium  through  a  tube  and  allow- 
ing this  powder  to  come  out  at  the  other  extremity  into  a 
gas  or  candle  flame ;  the  light  thus  produced  was  ex- 
tremely actinic,  and  did  not  present  any  danger.  The 
lamps  of  Schirm  and  Loehr,  illustrations  of  which  are 
given  in  these  chapters,  were  on  this  principle,  and  gave 
great  satisfaction  for  portraiture,  being  worked  by 
means  of  a  pneumatic  india-rubber  ball.  Chapter  vii. 
treats  of  the  combustion  of  magnesium  in  Oxygen,  and  in 
it  is  described  Piffard's  apparatus  for  the  production  of 
this  light,  which  was  found  to  be  enormously  increased 
by  the  presence  of  the  oxygen.  The  remaining  chapters 
deal  with  methods  of  taking  groups  by  this  artificial  light ; 
and  there  is  a  very  interesting  illustration  of  the  pupil  of 
the  human  eye,  photographed  in  a  dark  room  by  means 
of  the  flash  light,  the  exposure  of  which  was  so  short  that 
the  pupil  had  no  time  to  contract.     The  book  concludes 


with  some  hints  on  the  precaution  necessary  to  insure 
successful  development  of  the  negatives  taken  by  these 
processes,  and  with  a  short  appendix  by  M.  Alexandre. 


LETTERS  TO  THE  EDITOR. 

[  Tht  Editor  does  not  hold  himself  responsible  for  opinions  ex- 
pressed by  his  correspondents .  Neither  can  he  undertake 
to  return,  or  to  correspond  with  the  writers  of,  rejected 
manuscripts  intended  for  this  or  any  other  part  of  Nature. 
No  notice  is  taken  of  anonymous  communications.} 

Panmixia. 

But  for  his  statement  that  I  "cannot  be  sincere,"  I  should 
not  have  deemed  it  necessary  again  to  answer  Prof.  Lankester  ; 
anyone  who  is  read  in  the  literature  of  Darwinism  must  already 
have  perceived  that  a  further  reply  on  my  part  is  needless.  An 
accusation  of  insincerity,  however,  ought  not  to  pass  unnoticed  ; 
and  therefore  I  will  ask  your  more  general  readers  to  observe 
the  ground  on  which  it  has  been  made. 

In  my  answer  to  his  original  criticism  I  endeavoured  to  show 
that  Prof.  Lankester  "  fails  to  distinguish  between  the  cessation 
and  the  reversal  of  selection,"  or,  more  particularly,  between 
panmixia  and  the  economy  of  growth  ;  and  this  is  the  point 
with  regard  to  which  insincerity  is  charged.  Yet  this  is  just 
the  point — and  the  only  point  — in  dispute.  I  have  always 
represented  that  the  cessation  of  selection  is  per  se  a  cause  of 
degeneration,  whether  or  not  it  be  associated  with  the  economy 
of  growth.  Prof.  Lankester,  on  the  other  hand,  represented 
that  the  cessation  of  selection  is  not  per  se  a  cause  of  degenera- 
tion ;  but  merely  a  "state,"  which  is  precedent  to,  and  contem- 
poraneous with,  the  economy  of  growth — the  latter  being  the 
cause,  while  the  former  is  but  a  condition  to  the  occurrence  of 
this  cause.  Such,  at  any  rate,  appeared  to  me  the  only  meaning 
that  could  be  gathered  from  his  paragraph  at  the  top  of  p.  488  ; 
and  it  is  now  over  and  over  again  repeated  in  his  last  letter. 
For  instance  : — "  Cessation  of  selection  must  be  supplemented  by 
economy  of  growth  in  order  to  produce  the  results  attributed  to 
'panmixia.'  And  inasmuch  as  economy  of  growth  as  a  cause 
of  degeneration  involves  the  condition  of  cessation  of  selection, 
Mr.  Darwin  in  recognizing  the  one  recognized  the  other.  .  .  . 
It  is  true  that  Mr.  Darwin  did  not  recognize  that  such  unre- 
stricted variation  must  lead  to  a  diminution  in  size  of  the  varying 
■psiTt  without  the  operation  of  the  principle  of  ^  economy  of  growth  J 
This  was  no  strange  oversight  :  he  would  have  been  in  error  had 
he  done  so.  .  .  .  The  term  ['  panmixia '],  like  its  correlative 
'cessation  of  selection,'  does  not  indicate  a  principle,  but  a 
natural  condition:  it  does  not  involve  the  inference  that  a 
dwindling  in  the  size  of  the  organ  must  result  from  inter-breed- 
ing ;  but  simply  points  to  a  precidcnt  condition"  (p.  559: 
italics  mine).-^ 

Where,  then,  is  the  insincerity  in  saying  that  Prof.  Lankester 
does  not  perceive  the  distinction  between  the  cessation  of  selec- 
tion and  the  economy  of  growth  as  two  totally  different  causal 
"  principles  "  ?  Or  what  remains  for  me  but  to  repeat,  with  all 
sincerity,  "  he  confounds  the  'idea'  of  panmixia  with  that  of  the 
economy  of  growth,"  and  "fails  to  perceive  the  '  essence  of  the 
idea'  in  the  all-important  distinction  between  selection  as  with- 
drawn and  selection  as  reversed  "  ? 

It  is  true  that  at  the  close  of  his  last  letter  Prof.  Lankester 
admits,  "  when  we  consider  shape  and  structure,  and  not  merely 
size,  it  is  clear  that  panmixia  without  economy  of  growth  would 
lead  to  a  complete  loss  of  that  complex  adjustment  of  parts 
which  many  organs  exhibit,  and  consequently  to  degeneration 
without  loss  of  bulk."  But  how  was  it  possible  to  surmise  from 
his  first  letter  that  he  had  in  his  mind  such  reservations  as  to 
"shape"  and  "structure?"  Or,  indeed,  how  is  it  possible  to 
reconcile  such  reservations  with  the  passages  above  quoted  from 
his  last  letter,  to  the  effect  that  the  cessation  of  selection  is  "  not 
a  principle  at  all,"  but  merely  "  a  condition  which  alone  cannot 
produce  any  important  result "  ?  Are  we  to  conclude  that  in 
Prof  Lankester's  opinion  neither  "a  complete  loss  of  complex. 

'  I  may  remark  that  the  term  "cessation  of  selection  "  is  not  the  "  cor- 
relative," but  the  synonym  of  the  term  "panmixia."  And  I  may  further 
remark  that  the  term  "reversal  of  selection  "  is  not,  as  Prof  Lankester 
suppo.ses,  the  synonym  of  the  term  "economy  of  growth."  Economy  of 
growth,  where  useless  structures  are  concerned,  may  determine  a  reversal  of 
selection  ;  but  the  reversal  of  selection  may  also  be  determined  by  many 
other  causes  and  conditions,  which  gre  equally  potent- or  even  very  much 
more  pote.nt — in  this  respect. 


April  24,  1890] 


NATURE 


585 


adjustment,"  nor  any  amount  of  change  as  to  "shape,"  deserves 
to  be  regarded  as  "  any  important  result "  ?  Must  we  not  rather 
conclude  that  when  he  first  wrote  upon  "the  state  of  panmixia," 
he  had  not  sufficiently  considered  the  subject  ;  and,  in  now 
endeavouring  to  trim,  ends  by  contradicting  himself? 

The  only  issue  being  as  to  whether  panmixia  is  itself  a  cause, 
or  merely  the  precedent  condition  to  the  occurrence  of  a  totally 
different  cause,  nothing  more  remains  to  be  said.  As  a  result 
of  his  further  consideration,  Prof.  Lankester  now  admits  "it  is 
clear"  that,  "  without  economy  of  growth,"  panmixia  is  a  cause 
of  degeneration  where  "  shape"  and  "  structure"  are  concerned. 
And,  when  he  considers  the  matter  a  little  more,  he  will  doubt- 
less perceive  the  contradiction  in  saying  that,  where  degeneration 
as  to  "size  "is  concerned,  "it  is  absurd  to  attribute  the  result, 
or  any  proportion  of  it,  to  the  panmixia  or  cessation  of  selection 
alone."  Variations  round  an  average  mean  occur  in  "size"  or 
"bulk,"  just  as  they  do  in  "shape"  and  "structure":  there- 
fore, if  on  this  account  panmixia  is  conceded  to  be  a  true  cause 
of  degeneration  as  regards  the  latter,  it  must  likewise  be  so  as 
regards  the  former.  The  fact  that  in  the  former  case — as  I 
showed  in  1874— it  must  always  be  more  or  less  associated  with 
the  economy  of  growth,  is  no  proof  that  it  then  loses  its  due 
"proportion"  of  causal  agency;  while,  with  the  now  single 
exception  of  Prof.  Lankester,  everyone  who  has  since  writien 
upon  this  "principle"  takes  the  same  view  as  I  did — viz.  that 
the  phenomena  of  "  dwindling  "  in  our  own  domesticated  ani- 
mals furnish  as  good  evidence  of  the  operation  of  panmixia  as 
is  furnished  by  the  other  forms  of  degeneration  to  which  he  now 
alludes.  Therefore,  if  he  really  believes  it  is  in  this  case  "  absurd 
to  attribute  the  result,  or  any  proportion  of  it,  to  the  panmixia,"  he 
becomes  opposed,  not  only  to  me,  but  to  Galton,  to  Weismann, 
to  Poulton,  and  to  everybody  else  who  has  ever  considered  the 
subject.  In  short,  it  is  now  a  matter  of  general  recognition 
that  what  he  calls  my  "  unreal  separation  between  '  cessation  of 
selection '  and  '  reversal  of  selection,'  "  is  a  separation  so  funda- 
mentally real,  that  it  is  the  means — and  the  only  means— of 
abolishing  the  evidence  of  Lamarckian  factors  where  this  once 
appeared  to  be  most  conclusive  ;  seeing  that  "  with  highly-fed 
domesticated  animals  there  seems  to  be  no  econofny  of  gi-oivth,  nor 
any  tendency  to  the  elimination  of  superfluous  details."  ^ 

April  19.  George  J.  Romanes. 

In  Nature  of  April  3  (p.  511)  Mr.  Herbert  Spencer  suggests 
an  interesting  subject  for  discussion  on  the  effects  of  use  and 
disuse  of  organs,  asking  for  an  explanation  on  the  theory  of 
panmixia  of  the  well-known  tendency  of  domesticated  animals  to 
droop  the  ears.  Many  of  the  ruminants  in  a  wild  state  have  iheir 
ears  set  on  horizontally  with  an  inclination  to  droop ;  for 
instance,  the  gnu,  sable,  antelope,  zebu,  gaur  (Central  India), 
Cape  buffalo,  &c.  The  American  bison  has  completely  drooping 
ears ;  there  is  also  at  the  Natural  History  Museum,  South 
Kensington,  in  Case  57,  a  specimen  of  a  smooth-haired 
sheep  from  Turkey  in  Asia,  Ovis  aries,  which  has  dependent 
ears.  Pathologically,  though  as  yet  not  physiologically  proved, 
the  discussion  of  the  transmission  of  acquired  characters  possesses 
a  deep  interest. 

Evolution  seems  impossible  without  variation,  and  until  the 
latter  can  be  explained  on  other  grounds  than  those  of  the  in- 
heritance of  accumulated  minute  changes  in  character  acquired 
through  ages  of  slowly  varying  climate  and  conditions  of  life, 
preserved  by  natural  selection,  this  transmission  would  seem  a 
reasonable  conclusion  so  long  as  the  characters  acquired  were 
of  service  to  the  inheritor  in  the  struggle  for  existence. 

Though  Weismann  disbelieves  most  of  the  evidence  Darwin 
collected  on  heredity,  and  doubts  the  possibility  of  the  com- 
munication of  external  influences  by  the  somatic  cells  to  the 
germ  cell,  he  suggests  no  other  hypothesis  to  account  for  the 
phenomena  of  change,  beyond  the  vague  expression  "predis- 
position of  the  germ-plasm."  R.  Haig  Thomas. 

April  5. 

*  Darwin,  "  Variation.  &c.,"  ii.  p.  289.  Seeing  the  importance  of  "the 
idea  of  panmixia"  in  this  connection,  I  must  still  be  permitted  to  regard  it 
^,  ,.""'?'''""^'^  "  '''*'  "  ^^^  "°'  present  to  Mr.  Darwin's  mind  before  the 
pubhcation  of  his  last  edition  of  the  "Origin  of  Species."  But  this  does 
not  mean,  as  Prof.  Lankester  "  affects  to  suppose,"  that  I  regard  the  un- 
fortunate nature  of  such  a  circumstance  as  due  to  the  fact  that  I  happened 
Jp  OS  the   first  who  perceived  it.     One  can  only  assign  so  petty  a  form  of 

badinage"  to  ihe  same  argumentative  level  as  "pointing  out  the  over- 
sight "  that  in  my  first  letter  I  "omitted  to  credit  Mr.  Darwin  with  the 
recognition  of  the  economy  of  growih."  Prof.  Lankester  has  committed 
about  as  grave  an  oversight  in  his  own  letter,  by  omitting  to  credit  Mr. 
Darwin  with  the  recognition  of  natural  selection. 


The  "Rollers  "  of  Ascension  and  St,  Helena. 

You  probably  know  that  the  United  States  Scientific  Expedi- 
tion under  Prof  Todd  has  had  occa.sion  to  stop  here  during  the 
past  two  weeks.  I  have  resided  during  this  time  continuously 
at  the  signal  station  on  Cross  Hill  (altitude  870  feet),  studying 
the  clouds  and  winds  with  many  important  results.  I  have  had 
an  excellent  opportunity  to  observe  the  "rollers"  for  which 
Ascension  and  St.  Helena  are  famous,  and  I  have  been  able  to 
demonstrate  convincingly  to  myself  their  nature  and  origin.  I 
should  be  obliged  to  anyone  who  will  tell  me  whether  my 
following  views  have  perhaps  been  arrived  at  by  previous 
observers. 

The  south-east  trade  blows  with  very  various  intensities  over 
different  parts  of  the  South  Atlantic,  and  the  regions  of  light 
trade,  no  trade,  fresh  and  strong  trade,  vary  from  day  to  day,  as 
shown  by  comparing  the  logs  of  vessels.  A  limited  region  of 
strong  south-east  trade  is  a  region  whence  spreads  in  all  directions 
the  corresponding  strong  south-east  swell  of  the  ocean  surface — 
very  distant  storm  winds  or  very  near  regions  of  high  south-east 
winds  produce  similar  results  on  the  ocean  swell :  the  locality  of 
these  winds  will  determine  whether  any  point  shall  be  experienc- 
ing a  light  or  heavy  swell.  What  causes  the  variations  in  the 
south-east  trades,  and  in  what  direction  the  regions  of  strong 
trade  move,  are  questions  for  further  study.  My  present  data 
would  show  that  these  latter  regions  move  against  the  trade 
winds,  i.e.  from  Ascension  towards  St.  Helena,  but  there  need 
be  no  uniformity  in  this  respect. 

Now  if  a  south-east  swell  surrounds  such  an  island  as  Ascension 
it  is  not  directly  felt  on  the  lee  side,  but  the  long  rectilinear 
swells,  that  advance  faster  in  deep  than  in  shoal  water,  are  seen 
from  my  elevated  station  to  assume  the  new  curved  shapes  that 
result  from  the  retardations  on  the  shoals.  So  that  finally  in 
typical  cases  we  have  off  the  lee  of  the  i.'-land  a  series  of  cross- 
ing and  interfering  swells  producing  at  one  point  a  quiet  spot,  at 
the  next  a  double  .swell  and  great  breakers. 

The  rollers  are  a  magnificent  example  of  deflection  by  shoals, 
and  of  interference  and  of  composition  of  waves.  Their  severity 
at  St.  Helena  and  Ascension  is  apparently  due  to  the  proportions 
of  the  dimensions  of  the  swell  to  that  of  the  islands,  just  as  in 
the  interference  phenomena  of  sound  and  light  everything 
depends  on  the  size  of  obstacle  and  length  of  wave.  I  have  a 
number  of  measures  that  will,  I  hope,  enable  me  in  the  future 
to  give  more  accurate  details,  but  for  the  present  I  can  only 
inquire  as  to  the  bibliography  of  the  subject.  The  correct 
explanation  of  the  rollers,  and  of  the  swell  on  the  West  African 
coast,  will  undoubtedly  lead  us  to  further  steps  in  marine 
meteorology.  Cleveland  Abbe. 

U.S.S.  Pensacola,  Ascension,  April  2. 


Self- Colonization  of  the  Coco-nut  Palm. 

With  reference  to  Mr,  Hemsley's  note  on  this  subject  to 
Nature  (p.  537),  I  regret  to  have  to  inform  him  that  the  two 
young  palms  found  on  Falcon  Island  were  placed  there  by  a 
Tongan  chief  of  Namuka,  who,  in  1887,  had  the  curiosity  to 
visit  the  newly-born  island,  and  took  some  coco-nuts  with  him. 
This  information  I  received  from  Commander  Oldham,  who  had 
been  much  interested  at  finding  these  sprouting  nuts  at  some  12 
feet  above  sea-level  and  well  in  from  the  shore  of  the  island,  but 
who  found  out  the  unexpected  facts  in  time  to  save  me  from 
making  a  speculation  somewhat  similar  to  Mr.  Hemsley's. 

W.  J.  L,  Wharton. 

Nessler's  Ammonia   Test    as  a  Micro-chemical 
Reagent  for  Tannin. 

In  most  cases  the  presence  of  tannin  is  immediately  shown  by 
all  the  ordinary  reagents  used  by  the  botanist  for  its  discovery. 
This  does  not  happen  sometimes,  however  ;  as,  for  instance,  in 
the  tannin-cells  found  in  the  epidermis  on  the  dorsal  side  of  the 
leaves  of  some  plants.  As  a  good  typical  example  the  common 
primrose  may  be  cited.  Of  all  the  ordinary  tests,  including 
iron  salts,  potassium  bichromate,  Moll's  test  (copper  acetate  and 
iron  acetate),  ammonium  molybdate,  and  osmic  acid  in  i  per 
cent,  solution,  the  latter  alone  acts  immediately  upon  the 
tannin  in  the  primrose  leaf's  epidermis.  It  may  hence  be  worth 
while  recording  the  discovery  of  a  second  reagent  capable  of 
acting  rapidly  and  effectively  ;  and  one  which  is  easily  made  and 
will  keep  for  some  time  should  be  especially  valuable  Such  a 
reagent  is  Nessler's  test  for  ammonia. 


586 


NA  TURE 


\_Apru  24,  1890 


Nessler's  test  is  made,  as  all  the  world  knows,  by  saturating  a 
solution  of  potassium  iodide  with  mercuric  iadide,  and  adding 
an  excess  of  caustic  potash.  Ammonia  gives  with  this  a  reddish 
precipitate  ;  tannin  a  brown,  and  when  in  considerable  quantity 
a  deep  black  one  ;  but  if  little  tannin  be  present,  the  brown  may 
tend  towards  purple.  It  goes  without  saying  that  much  experiment 
must  be  undertaken  before  one  can  be  sure  of  the  substance 
giving  the  brown  precipitate  being  really  tannin.  To  be  con- 
clusive, such  experiment  should  be  carried  out  in  four  different 
directions  : — 

(i)  The  reaction  ought  to  be  given  in  all  cases  when  the 
ordinary  reagents  make  their  presence  immediately  felt. 

(2)  Cells  which  will  not  immediately  give  the  tannin  reaction 
with  ordinary  tests,  but  which  will  do  so  with  Nessler's  test, 
must  also  do  so  under  the  former  conditions  if  time  be  allowed. 

(3)  Tissues  which  will  not  yield  the  reaction  with  Nessler's 
test,  must  not  give  it  with  any  other  reagent  even  after  the  lapse 
of  some  time. 

(4)  Solutions  of  tannin  must  give  a  brown  precipitate  with 
Nessler's  test. 

Under  the  first  of  these  headings  may  be  mentioned  growing 
shoots  of  the  garden  rose.  On  laying  a  radial  longitudinal  or  a 
tangential  section  of  this  in  Nessler's  fluid  a  copious  black-brown 
precipitate  is  obtained,  and  the  same  thing  occurs  with  the 
beautiful  tannin-sacs  of  Musa  sapienttim.  In  all  other  instances 
where  tannin  has  betrayed  its  presence  by  the  use  of  ordinary 
reagents,  the  brown  colour  has  been  obtained  upon  treatment 
with  Nessler's  test. 

The  primrose  leaf  may  be  again  cited  as  an  example  of  the 
time  sometimes  necessary  to  show  up  tannin  with  the  usual 
reagents,  of  which  it  must  here  suffice  to  particularize  ammonium 
molybdate.  On  laying  in  the  molybdate  a  small  piece  of  epidermis 
torn  off  the  lower  side  of  the  leaf,  one  first  sees  a  cell  here  and 
there  coloured  the  characteristic  and  beautiful  yellow  given  by 
this  test :  these  coloured  cells  are  usually  situated  among  the 
elongated  more  or  less  rectangular  cells  overlying  the  vascular 
bundles.  Re-examination  after  half  an  hour  or  so  shows 
several  more  of  the  cells  similarly  coloured,  but  it  is  usually  not 
till  after  a  couple  of  hours  that  one  can  safely  declare  all 
the  tannin-containing  cells  to  have  been  stained.  With  variations 
in  respect  of  time,  and  with  the  sole  exception  of  osmicacid,  all 
the  other  tests  act  in  precisely  the  same  way  ;  even  Moll's,  pre- 
ferred to  all  others  by  some  of  our  Continental  confreres,  being 
as  unsatisfactory  as  the  rest.  But  sooner  or  later  its  charac- 
teristic colour  is  imparted  to  these  cells  by  every  reagent,  thus 
proving  tannin  to  be  present. 

For  the  negative  experiment — the  absence  of  the  brown  colour 
from  tissues  treated  with  Nessler's  fluid,  and  iLs  absence  from  the 
same  tissues  when  acted  upon  by  ordinary  tannin  reagents — re- 
course was  again  had  to  epidermis.  The  experiment  succeeded 
in  all  cases  :  among  these  may  be  cited  Fatsia  japonica,  wall- 
flower, box,  Stellaria  media,  and  Pelargonium  zonale.  In  none 
of  these  did  tannin  show  up,  although  twenty-four  hours  were 
allowed  to  elapse  before  the  preparations  were  destroyed. 

Lastly,  Nessler's  fluid  gives  a  rich  brown  precipitate  with  solu- 
tions of  tannin.  Moreover,  with  gallic  acid  a  grey-green  one  is 
thrown  down,  thus  affording  an  easy  means  of  distinguishing 
between  these  bodies. 

For  these  reasons,  therefore,  viz.  the  rapidity,  certainty,  and 
distinctness  of  its  action  ;  the  ease  with  which  it  can  be  made  ; 
its  permanence  when  made  ;  and  lastly,  the  difference  in  its  be- 
haviour towards  tannin  and  towards  gallic  acid — for  these  reasons 
I  am  bold  enough  to  anticipate  the  time  when,  to  adapt  a 
hackneyed  expression,  Nessler's  fluid  will  be  regarded  as  a  reagent 
which  no  botanical  laboratory  should  be  without. 

Spencer  Moore. 


The  Moon  in  London. 

Some  years  ago  a  weekly  paper  represented  a  young  rustic 
asking  his  mother,  "  Be  that  the  same  moon  they  have  up  to 
Lunnon  ? "  to  which  question  the  mother  evasively  replied, 
"You  leave  the  moon  alone  and  go  to  bed."  The  boy  was 
satisfied  by  retorting,  "I  baint  a  touching  on  it."  But  his 
question  is  this  month  brought  once  more  to  the  front  by  the 
following  passage,  which  will  be  found  in  one  of  our  most  im- 
portant monthly  magazines.  "  But  if,"  says  the  writer,  "there 
is  an  abuse  of  the  deductive  method  of  reasoning,  there  is  also 
an  abuse  of  the  inductive  method.  One  who  refused  to  believe 
that  a  new  moon  would  in  a  month  become  full,  and,  disre- 


garding observations  accumulated  throughout  the  past,  insisted 
on  watching  the  successive  phases  before  he  was  convinced, 
would  be  considered  inductive  in  an  irrational  degree."  We 
cannot,  of  course,  presume  to  dictate  to  or  for  the  moon  "up 
to  Lunnon,"  but  here  in  the  country  the  new  moon  becomes  full 
inhalf  a  month,  and  we  have  convinced  ourselves  by  watching 
the  successive  phases  that  a  new  moon  will  in  a  month  become 
a  new  moon  again.  Nevertheless  we  willingly  admit  that  life  is 
far  too  short  and  too  encumbered  to  allow  of  any  man's  repeat- 
ing more  than  a  small  fraction  of  the  accumulated  observations 
on  which  his  scientific  beliefs  are  founded.  Yet,  on  the  other 
hand,  taking  things  for  granted  is  probably  the  source  of  nine- 
tenths  of  the  errors  that  fill  our  minds,  while  the  men  of  genius 
seem  to  be  just  those  who  know  best  what  and  how  to  observe 
for  themselves,  and  how  much  to  trust  in  the  observations  of 
others.  T.  R.  R.  Stebking. 

Tunbridge  Wells. 


Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. 

There  is,  of  course,  no  analogy  between  whiffing  for 
mackerel  with  red  flannel,  and  fishing  for  cod  on  the  bottom 
with  any  kind  of  bait. 

If  Actinians  are  offensive  to  fish,  it  is  a  singular  fact  that, 
when  a  cod-line  is  baited  with  mussels,  herring,  sand-eels,  and 
anemones  (viz.  /.  crassicornis  and  A.  mesembryanthemum),  the 
latter  prove  by  far  the  most  successful  baits. 

Impalement  on  a  hook  by  no  means  kills  an  anemone,  whose 
powers  of  offence  are,  perhaps,  little  lessened  thereby  ;  and 
under  natural  conditions  the  tentacles  are  not  always  expanded. 
Though  the  full-grown  cod  does  not  affect  the  tidal  waters  of 
the  coast,  yet  the  "rock"  cod,  by  no  means  the  youngest  of  its 
species,  ventures  close  inshore  ;  and  the  largest  cod  abound 
amongst  the  tidal  waters  of  the  Bell  Rock. 

The  cuidas  of  an  anemone  seem  very  efficient  weapons  against 
a  soft-skinned  Cephalopod,  but  they  are  not  necessarily  so 
against  a  tough-skinned  fish. 

Prof.  Mcintosh,  in  the  work  referred  to  in  a  previous  letter, 
records  Icalia  and  Peackia  from  the  stomach  of  the  cod,  and 
Edzvardsia  (in  swarms)  from  that  of  the  flounder.  He  also  in- 
forms me  that  he  has  found  Stomphia  in  the  stomach  of  the  cod. 
I  may  add  that  the  practice  of  baiting  here  with  anemones  is 
much  more  recent  than  the  work  referred  to. 

Of  all  British  Coelenterates,  Cyanaa  is,  perhaps,  the  most 
deadly  ;  yet  many  trustworthy  observers  have  found  young  cod 
sheltering  themselves  beneath  its  umbrella — a  fact  which  seems 
to  indicate  that  they  hold  its  stinging  powers  in  some  contempt ; 
and  Dr.  Collingwood,  in  "A  Naturalist's  Rambles  in  the 
China  Seas"  (p.  150),  has  recorded  the  discovery  of  an  immense 
fish-sheltering  anemone.  Ernest  W.  L.  Holt. 

St.  Andrews  Marine  Laboratory. 


The  Relative  Prevalence  of  North-east  and  South-west 
Winds. 

In  a  note  at  p.  470  (Nature,  March  20),  attention  is  drawn 
to  the  statement  by  Mr.  Prince  contained  in  his  meteorological 
summary  of  observations  taken  at  Crowborough,  Sussex,  in 
1889,  concerning  the  greater  prevalence  of  north-east  as  com- 
pared with  south-west  winds  which  he  finds  to  exist  in  recent 
years.  The  writer  of  the  note  mentions  that  this  is  not  borne 
out  by  the  Greenwich  observations,  but  some  definite  statistics 
as  regards  Greenwich,  and  distinct  comparison  with  the  Crow- 
borough  numbers,  may  perhaps  not  be  unacceptable  to  your 
meteorological  readers. 

Mr,  Prince  remarks  that  in  previous  years  he  finds  only  two 
years  in  which  north-east  winds  have  been  in  excess  of  south- 
west. In  the  first,  1864,  the  days  of  north-east  wind  were  104, 
of  south-west  wind  89 ;  in  the  second  instance,  1870,  the  days 
of  north-east  wind  were  107,  of  south-west  wind  88.  The 
corresponding  Greenwich  numbers  were,  in  1864,  43  and  108  ; 
and  in  1870,  65  and  96. 

On  the  average  of  the  years  1859  to  1883  Mr.  Prince  gives 
north-east  wind  on  63  days,  south-west  wind  on  99  days.     The 
corresponding  Greenwich  values  are  43  and  iii  respectively. 
For  the  years  1885  to  1889  he  gives  the  average  frequency  of 
different  winds  as  follows,  to  which  I  have  added  the  values  for 
Greenwich.     C.  indicates  Crowborough,  and  G.  Greenwich. 
N.    N.E.      E.      S.E.      S.     S.W.    W.    N.W.    Calm. 
C.      41     102      21      22      38      72      50      17      —      days. 
G.      49      52      35      23      37    100      40      19      10      days. 


April  24,  1890] 


NATURE 


587 


He  further  gives  the  averages  for  47  years,  to  which  I  have 
added  those  for  Greenwich  for  49  years. 

N.    N.E.   E.    S.E.    S.      S.W.  W.    N.W.  Calm. 
C.(47y.)     33    63    29    27    28      91     59     35      —      days. 
G.  (49  y.)     40    45     27     22     35     lo6     46     22       22      days. 

The  Greenwich  values  are  determined  from  numbers  derived 
from  the  records  of  the  self- registering  Osier  anemometer  of  the 
Royal  Observatory  as  given  in  the  annual  Greenwich  volumes. 
The  preponderance  of  south-west  wind  over  north-east  seems  to 
have  been,  throughout,  less  at  Crowborough  than  at  Greenwich. 
But  it  is  only  in  recent  years  that  the  difference  has  become  so 
pronounced,  the  Crowborough  numbers  for  each  year  1885  to 
1889  being  largely  in  excess  for  north-east  wind,  whilst  the 
Greenwich  numbers  are  greatly  in  excess  for  south-west,  as  in 
former  years.  At  Greenwich  during  the  first  24  years  of  the 
49  years  series,  the  average  nurpber  of  days  of  north-east  wind 
was  46,  of  south-west  wind  107  ;  during  the  last  25  years,  of 
north-east  wind  44,  of  south-west  wind  106. 

It  would  be  very  interesting  if  a  similar  comparison  could  be 
made  with  some  other  station  in  the  south  of  England. 

Greenwich,  April  16.  William  Ellis. 


Science  at  Eton. 

In  the  Illustrated  London  Neivs  for  March  29  I  find  an 
account  (with  illustration)  of  an  astronomical  lecture  at  Eton. 
It  appears  that  the  scholars  •'  were  allowed  "  to  listen  the  other 
day,  in  the  new  lecture-room,  to  a  lecture  by  Major- General  A. 
W.  Drayson,  R.A,,  on  the  second  rotation  of  the  earth  and  its 
effects. 

General  Drayson  has  written  some  books  on  this  subject  which 
possibly  no  one  has  answered,  for  the  simple  reason  that  they 
answer  themselves  ;  but  it  seems  now,  that  he  is  permitted, 
under  the  auspices  of  their  teachers,  to  urge  his  paradoxes  on 
the  students  of  our  largest  public  school. 

Is  Eton  without  any  science  teacher?  or  is  the  so-called 
teacher  incapable  of  preventing  absurdities  being  put  forward 
with  authority  ?  Are  the  lecture-rooms  of  Eton  College  open  to 
"Parallax  "  and  the  circle-squarers ?  J.  F.  Tennant. 


MODIGLTANrS  EXPLORATION  OF  NIAS 
ISLAND. 

A  BOUT  two  years  ago,  on  his  return  to  Florence,  I 
•■^^-  gave  a  brief  account  of  Dr.  Elio  Modigliani's 
very  successful  and  interesting  exploration  of  Pulo  Nias 
(Nature,  vol.  xxxv.  p.  342).  We  have  now  before  us  the 
general  results  of  that  exploration,  embodied  in  a  portly 
volume  most  elegantly  got  up,  rich  in  maps  and  illustra- 
tions, and,  what  is  better,  full  of  interesting  facts,  care- 
fully collated  notices,  and  well  pondered  and  carefully 
drawn  deductions  ;  in  short,  one  of  the  best  books  of  its 
kind.^ 

Judging  from  what  he  has  done,  Dr.  Modigliani  is 
evidently  made  of  the  stuff  which  produces  the  best  ex- 
plorers. Resolute  and  perseverinir,  moved  by  what  we  in 
Italy  call  //  fuoco  sacro,  ever  ready  to  put  up  with  priva- 
tions of  all  kinds,  although  accustomed  to  a  very  different 
sort  of  life,  a  quick  and  keen  observer,  he  has  indeed 
done  wonders ;  and  considering  that  he  has  not  had  the 
advantage  of  any  special  training  in  natural  science,  he 
has  shown  himself  to  be  a  good  geographer  and  ethno- 
logist, and  a  clever  naturalist. 

Dr.  ModigHani's  choice  of  the  island  of  Nias  as  the 
field  of  his  explorations  was  a  singularly  happy  one,  in 
which  he  was  guided  by  no  less  a  man  than  Odoardo 
Beccari.  Few  indeed  of  the  hundreds  of  islands  of  that 
wonderland,  the  Malayan  Archipelago,  present  such  an 
accumulation  of  interesting  problems  as  Nias.  Lying  off 
the  ocean  seaboard  of  Sumatra,  and  partaking  naturally 
of  the  characteristic  features  of  its  big  neighbour,  it  has 
a  flora  and  fauna  with  a  remarkable  number  of  special 

'  Elio  Modigliani,  "  Un  ViagEio  a  Nias."  Illustrato  da  195  incision!, 
26  tayole  tirate  a  parte  e  4  carte  geografiche.  Pp.  XV.-726.  (Milano : 
tratelh  Treves,  1890.)  f  /  \ 


characteristics,  whilst  its  human  inhabitants  show  strange 
afifinities  with  people  of  other  races  and  of  distant  lands. 

I  shall  now  endeavour  to  give  a  concise  account  of  Dr. 
Modigliani's  exploration  of  Nias,  and  of  the  results  he 
obtained,  as  given  in  his  book.  Dr.  Modigliani  left  Italy 
at  the  end  of  1885;  he  paid  a  rapid  visit  to  India,  crossing 
overland  from  Bombay  to  Calcutta,  via  Delhi  and  Agra, 
and  visiting  Darjiling ;  he  touched  at  Rangoon,  and  after 
a  short  stay  at  Singapore  and  a  lengthened  one  in  Java, 
where  at  Batavia  and  Buitenzorg  he  prepared  his  local 
equipment,  and  engaged  Javanese  hunters  and  collectors, 
he  reached  Siboga,  Sumatra,  early  in  spring,  1 886.  Thence 
he  started  for  Gunong  Sitoli,  the  only  civilized  port  of 
Nias,  on  one  of  the  Dutch  Government  Kruis  boats  on 
April  14.  Dr.  Modigliani  spent  five  months  on  the 
island,  which  he  left  in  the  middle  of  September.  On  his 
way  back  to  Italy  he  completed  the  tour  of  Sumatra, 
touching  at  Kota  Rajah  and  Olelek  (Acheen),  visited 
Singapore  again,  touched  at  Colombo,  and  crossed  India 
a  second  time  from  Madras  to  Calicut,  visiting  the 
Todas  and  some  of  the  hill  tribes  of  Southern  India, 
which  had  a  special  interest  for  him  in  his  researches  on 
the  origin  and  affinities  of  the  people  of  Nias.  Dr. 
Modigliani  brought  back  with  him  from  Nias  extensive 
and  important  collections — ethnological,  zoological,  and 
botanical — and  whilst  these  were  being  studied  by 
specialists,  he  actively  set  to  work  arranging  and 
sorting  his  notes  and  the  material  for  his  book.  Under- 
taking to  deal  with  all  the  ethnological' part  himself,  he 
visited  the  more  important  ethnographical  museums 
of  Europe,  and  even  the  minor  ones  where  he  knew  that 
specimens  from  Nias  were  to  be  seen.  To  complete  his 
historical  and  geographical  researches  regarding  Nias, 
Dr.  Modigliani  paid  a  lengthy  visit  to  Holland,  working 
in  the  Libraries  and  Government  Archives  at  the  Hague 
/ind  Leyden.  I,  who  have  had  many  opportunities  of 
observing  and  admiring  his  untiring  energy  and  activity, 
could  hardly  feel  surprised,  on  reading  his  book,  to  find 
it  so  full  of  information  and  so  excellently  well  done. 

Dr.  Modigliani  has  divided  his  work  on  Nias  into  two 
parts.  The  first  contains  three  chapters,  and  is  entirely 
introductory  and  historical ;  the  second,  in  twenty-three 
chapters,  with  appendices  and  bibliography,  contains  the 
narrative  of  his  sojourn  in  Nias,  and  his  own  personal 
observations  and  studies  on  men  and  things  in  that  island. 
I  have  little  to  say  on  the  first  part  of  Dr.  ModigHani's 
book  except  that  it  embodies  the  results  of  much  erudition 
and  careful  and  patient  collation.  From  the  earliest  semi- 
fabulous  notices  of  Al-Neyan,  El-binan,  Neya,  Niha, 
Nia,  in  ancient  Arabic  and  Persian  manuscripts,  we  are 
brought  to  European  intercourse  with  Tano  Niha,  as  the 
natives  call  their  island,  and  thence  on  through  the 
modern  vicissitudes  of  Dutch  domination,  which  to  this 
day  is  little  more  than  nominal,  except  at  Gunong  Sitoli 
and  in  the  northern  portion  of  the  island,  where,  however, 
German  missionaries  appear  to  have  done  more  to  spread 
the  influence  of  civilization  than  the  colonial  authorities. 

Part  II.  occupies  by  far  the  greater  portion  of 
Modigliani's  bulky  volume.  After  telling  us  how  he 
travelled  to  Nias  from  Siboga — an  adventurous  crossing 
with  a  Malayan  crew,  a  bad  boat,  and  dirty  weather — 
Dr.  Modigliani  devotes  a  chapter  to  the  geography, 
meteorology,  and  geology  of  Nias.  The  island  is  hilly, 
but  can  hardly  be  called  mountainous.  A  notable  feature 
is  the  frequency  of  earthquakes,  easily  explained  by  the 
proximity  of  the  volcanic  chain  of  Sumatra.  Rivers  and 
watercourses  are  numerous,  but  few  are  of  notable  size. 
Geologically,  Nias  is  evidently  of  recent  formation  ;  a 
collection  of  rock  samples  brought  together  by  Dr. 
Modigliani  might  have  shed  much  light  on  this  interesting 
subject,  but  it  was  unfortunately  lost.  Madreporic  lime- 
stone and  clams  {Tridacnd)  were  noted  on  the  hill-tops; 
true  lignite  has,  however,  been  found  in  various  parts.  The 
Dutch  colonial  authorities  deserve  much  praise  for  their 


588 


NATURE 


S^April  24,  1890 


widely-spread  and  efficiently  organized  service  of  meteoro- 
logical observations  ;  even  in  the  less  important  stations 
these  are  regularly  recorded,  and  this  has  been  the  case 
for  a  long  series  of  years  at  Gunong  Sitoli.  This  is  at 
present  the  residence  of  the  Dutch  civil  and  military 
authorities  in  Nias  ;  the  principal  magistrate  is  a  Con- 
troleur,  who,  with  the  officer  in  command  of  the  native 
garrison,  the  medical  officer,  and  the  missionaries  and 
their  wives,  form  the  sum-tolal  of  the  European  residents 
at  Nias.  Gunong  Sitoli  is  mostly  peopled  with  Malays, 
Klings,  and  Chinamen,  the  trade  of  the  island  being 
chiefly  in  the  hands  of  the  latter.  Here,  overcoming  not 
a  few  serious  difficulties,  Modigliani  made  his  prepara- 
tions for  visiting  the  southern  parts  of  Nias,  freer  from 
external  contact,  and  therefore  more  interesting  ;  and 
for  this  purpose,  a  Malay  boat — pe?icialcmg — was  char- 
tered. Whilst  these  preparations  were  being  completed. 
Dr.  Modigliani  visited  a  large  cave  near  Hili  Sabegno, 
and,  besides  other  interesting  animals,  collected  speci- 
mens of  a  bat  {Eniballonura  semicaudatd)  previously 
known  only  from  Polynesia.  Meanwhile,  his  hunters  were 
not  inactive,  and,  amongst  other  interesting  specimens, 
four  new  species  of  birds,  a  singular  new  earthworm,  and 
several  new  insects  were  collected  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Sitoli ;  the  birds  have  been  recently  described  by 
Salvadori  as  Gracula  robusta,  Calornis  aliirostris,  Mig- 
lyptes  infiiscatus,  and  Syrnitim  niasensc. 

Tobacco  is  the  principal  article  for  barter  with  the 
wilder  inhabitants  of  Nias,  therefore  Modigliani  provided 
himself  with  a  large  stock,  mostly  Sumatra  grown,  and 
called  wz/i-^-zy  Javanese  tobacco,  called  ^^zVi'w, has  a  greater 
value.  He  provided  himself,  besides,  with  cotton  cloth 
of  different  colours,  and  brass  wire,  also  much  sought  by 
the  Nias  people. 

At  last  the  jzJ^;/r/«/W«^  was  ready,  and  Modigliani  sailed 
in  her  to  the  south  end  of  the  island,  and  anchored  in  the 
Luaha  Vd.ra  Bay.  His  first  sight  of  the  Nias  Southerners 
was  rather  forbidding,  and  seemed  to  confirm  de- 
cidedly the  many  stories  he  had  heard  of  their  in- 
domitable hostility  and  ferocity.  A  large  number  of 
warriors,  armed  with  lances  and  rattling  their  big  shields 
with  a  peculiar  movement  of  the  hand  on  the  forearm, 
crowded  on  the  beach  at  his  landing,  to  the  no  small  alarm. 
of  his  followers.  With  much  pluck  and  presence  of 
mind,  Modigliani  overcame  the  momentary  anxious 
suspense,  and  in  a  few  minutes  he  was  on  his  way  to  the 
village  of  Bawo  Lowalani,  surrounded  and  followed  by 
the  excited  warriors.  Here  he  soon  made  friends  with 
Faosi  Aro,  the  chief,  the  tallest  and  most  crafty  of 
Southern  Niassers,  who  appeared  with  two  immense  ear- 
rings resting  on  his  right  shoulder.  A  liberal  distribution 
of  tobacco  soon  made  Modigliani  popular  all  round. 
Bkwo  Lowaldni  is  a  good  type  of  a  South  Nias  village, 
placed  on  a  height  and  defended  by  a  stout  stockade  ;  the 
incessant  wars  between  village  and  village  render  such 
precautions  necessary.  Our  traveller  passed  several  days 
here,  having  taken  up  his  quarters  in  the  house  of  Faosi 
Aro,  built  as  usual  on  stout  piles  ;  he  was  thus  able  to 
gather  much  information  on  the  ways  and  manners  of  the 
Niassers.  His  Javanese  collectors,  although  much  afraid 
of  the  natives,  who  were  constantly  armed  and  on  the 
alert,  being  then  at  war  with  two  neighbouring  villages, 
did  some  good  work,  and  some  new  and  rare  insects  and 
a  new  species  of  bird  {jOittocincla  ?nelanura,  Salvad.)  were 
added  to  the  collections. 

At  Bkwo  Lowalani,  Dr.  Modigliani  received  a  special 
invitation  to  visit  Hili  Dgiono,  a  village  further  inland  to 
the  west.  A  deputation  awaited  him  outside  Bawo 
Lowalini,  not  trusting  themselves  inside  ;  a  live  fowl 
packed  in  a  singularly  neat  manner  (see  Fig.  i)  was 
presented  to  him,  and  the  knife  of  the  chief  of  Hili 
Dgiono — the  latter  to  be  returned.  Faosi  Aro  did  all  in 
his  power  to  dissuade  Modigliani  from  going,  telling  him 
he  would  certainly  be  killed,  as  the  Hili  Dgionans  were 


a  bad  lot ;  but  our  traveller  decided  to  keep  his  promise, 
and  the  evening  of  the  next  day  saw  him  at  Hili  Dgiono, 
where  he  met  with  a  most  cordial  reception,  especially 
from  the  old  chief,  Sidiiho  Gheo.  At  this  place  Modigli- 
ani passed  pleasant  days,  was  able  to  take  a  fine  series  of 
photographs,  and  saw  more  of  the  natives  and  learnt 
more  of  their  customs  than  anywhere  else.  The  women 
alone,  as  in  most  parts  of  Nias,  kept  aloof,  and  would  not 
be  photographed.  Here  Modigliani  saw  palpable  proofs 
of  the  well-known  head-hunting  propensities  of  the 
Niassers.     The  big  council  house,  or  osale,  was  adorned 


Fig.  i.^ — How  a  foul  travels. 

with  numerous  skull  trophies,  hanging  under  the  low  roof. 
Heads  are  taken  not  only  in  war,  but  on  many  other 
occasions,  for  reasons  amply  given  in  Modigliani's  book, 
most  of  which  are  similar  to  those  which  send  the  Dayaks 
of  Borneo  on  their  head-himting  expeditions  ;  neither  age 
nor  sex  are  spared.  No  youngster  in  Nias  is  proclaimed  a 
man  and  a  warrior  until  he  has  cut  off  a  head  ;  he  then 
assumes  the  ^nztdcnlabi'ibo  (Fig.  2), a  beautiful  collar  made 
ot  thin  circular  sections  cut  out  of  the  double  nut  of  the 
Lodoicea  scychellaruin  (which  is  often  cast  by  the  sea  on 
the  island),  neatly  strung  on  a  brass  wire  with  a  circular 


Fig.  2. — A  calabiibo. 

brass  disk  at  the  junction.  The  sections  of  the  nut 
diminish  gradually  from  about  an  inch  in  diameter  to  less 
than  half  at  both  ends,  where  the  circular  collar  is  closed 
with  the  disk  ;  they  are  polished  so  as  to  present  a  uni- 
form surface.  None  of  the  trophy  skulls  seen  by  Dr. 
Modigliani  were  in  any  way  ornamented,  but  in  his  book 
he  gives  the  drawing  of  a  very  singular  one  with  artificial 
hair,  beard,  and  ears,  communicated  by  the  late  Baron 
von  Rosenberg,  who  saw  it  in  a  house  in  Nias  ;  I  should 
fancy  that  it  represents  a  European  (Dutchman),  for  the 
beard  hardly  grows  on  a  Niasser's  chin  in  such  luxuriance 


April  2  ^^  1893] 


NATURE 


1S9 


(F'ig-  3).  When  old  Sidiiho  Gh6o  heard  that  Modigliani 
desired  skulls  (for  his  anthropological  collection),  he  of 
course  concluded  that  he  wanted  to  get  fresh  ones  as 
trophies,  and  at  once  offered  to  organize  an  expedition 


Fig.  3. — Ornamented  trophy  skull. 

with  chosen  warriors";  he  would  not  give  away  any  of 
those  hung  under  the  osale. 

At  Hili  Dgiono,  Modigliani  was  able  to  add  largely  to 
his  ethnological  collections,   especially  weapons.      The 


defensive  armour  of  the  Niassers  is  peculiar.  Formerly 
they  made  singular  helmets  of  rotang  and  arenga-fibre, 
with  beard  and  mustachios  ;  now  the  chiefs  are  provided 
with  curious  iron  helmets,  pot-shaped,  ornamented  with  a 
large  plume  or  palm-leaf  cut  in  a  thin  iron  lamina,  usually 
gilt ;  they  wear,  with  this,  curious  iron  spur-like  mustachios 
passing  under  the  nose  and  secured  to  the  ear.  The 
head-dress  of  the  warrior  of  "  old  J  apan "  was  a  very 
similar  contrivance  ;  to  complete  the  parallel  I  will  add 
that  the  ceremonial  war-jacket,  often  a  regular  cuirass 
in  buffalo-leather,  pangolin-skin,  and  scales  or  twisted 
rope  tissue  of  tough  Gnetum  fibres,  usually  projects 
widely  over  each  shoulder.  It  is  thus  with  the  war-jacket 
of  some  of  the  Dayak  tribes,  and  was  thus  with  the 
ceremonial  kamiscimo  of  the  Nippon  samurai.  The 
Nias  shield,  baluse,  is  peculiar,  and  made  in  a  single 
board  of  tough  light  wood  ;  in  the  northern  parts  of  the 
island  a  heavier  one,  called  dagne,  more  akin  to  Bornean 
and  Celeban  shields,  is  used.  The  characteristic  weapons 
of  the  Niassers  are  the  spear  {toho)  and  sword  {balldtii), 
the  latter  not  unlike  the  Ti'a.yz^  parang.  The  iron  spear- 
heads are  generally  small  and  narrow,  simple,  or  more  or 
less  provided  with  barbs  ;  the  wood  is  from  the  NibcSng 
palm,  and  usually  ornamented  with  rings  of  rotang,  brass, 
or  wire,  and  often  with  tufts  of  hair  from  an  enemy's  head. 
The  sword  is  still  more  characteristic.  Its  sheath  is  made 
with  two  halves  neatly  fitted  and  bound  together  with 
plaited  rotang  ;  the  big  sword  {balldtu  sebua,  "  number 
one  ")  is,  especially  in  the  south  of  Nias,  the  favourite 
weapon  ;  much  trouble  is  taken  in  ornamenting  it,  and  the 
carved  handle  is  often  a  remarkable  specimen  of  wood- 
carving.  Modigliani  was  fortunate  enough  to  secure 
a  series  of  these  swords  with  carved  handles,  giving  a 
most  interesting  instance  of  modification  of  a  figure,  in 
this  case  a  boar's  head,  in  the  opposite  directions  of  a 
simplified  and  a  complicated  conventionalism  (Fig.  4). 
Moreover,  the  balldtu  sebua  of  the  Southern  Niassers  is 


Fig.  4.— Carved  sword-handles. 


:  always  provided  with  a  singular  appendage,  with  which 
the  owner  never  parts  willingly  :  it  is  an  amulet  and  idol- 
ibearer  in  the  shape  of  a  spherical  basket  of  twisted 
•rotang,  with  various  and  heterogeneous  contents,  such  as 
teeth,  pieces  of  stone  and  bone,  &c.,  alwaysseveral  small 


idols  roughly  carved  and  anthropomorphous.  All  these 
are  tied  together  and  more  or  less  wrapped  up  in  a  bit  of 
cotton-cloth  ;  their  spherical  hoeldr  is  securely  fastened 
to  the  scabbard.  Dr.  Modigliani  has  given  some  highly 
interesting  details  on  this  subject ;  the  ere,  or  "  medicine 


590 


NATURE 


[April  24,  1890 


man,"  of  the  Niassers  possesses  a  special  talismanic  sword 
with  special  idols  and  charms  attached  to  the  scabbard. 
Quite  a  number  of  old  flint-lock  muskets  have  found  their 
way  to  Nias,  but  are  fortunately  often  rendered  useless 
from  want  of  ammunition.  The  Niassers  are  able  smiths, 
but  they  receive  the  iron  and  brass  they  use  from  Chinese 
and  Malay  traders. 

On  his  way  back,  at  Bawo  Lowalani,  Modigliani  was 
able  to  buy  from  Faosi  Aro  eleven  human  skulls.  He 
next  sailed  to  Luaha  Giindre  Bay,  wishing  to  visit  the 
important  village  of  Hili  Sendreche.isi,  and  possibly  to 
proceed  thence  inland.  He  was  well  received  by  the 
chief  and  notabihties,  who,  however,  promised  much  and 
did  little.  Another  new  bird  was  obtained  here — Terpsi- 
fhone  insularis,  Salvad.  Meanwhile,  the  head-man  of 
another  neighbouring  village,  Hili  Simaetano,  sent  mes- 
sengers to  invite  him  to  go  there,  promising  that  he  might 
stay  and  collect  as  much  he  liked.  The  death  of  a  warrior 
at  Sendrechedsi  gave  Modigliani  an  opportunity  of  wit- 
nessing the  funereal  ceremonies  of  the  Niassers,  on  which 
subject  he  gives  much  important  information.  He  was 
not  able,  however,  to  confirm  Piepers's  assertion  {Bat. 
Genoot-  v.  Kuns.  en  IVettensch.,  1887)  regarding  the 
horrid  and  singular  custom  of  putting  the  body  upright 
in  a  hollow  tree,  tapping  this  below,  inserting  a  bamboo 
tube,  and  forcing  a  slave  to  drink  the  putrid  liquid  which 
flowed.  The  unfortunate  man's  head  was  afterwards  cut 
off,  and  hung  to  the  tree  as  an  offering  to  him  whose  body 
was  inclosed  therein.  I  may  mention  that  a  similar  cus- 
tom is  attributed  to  certain  Dayak  tribes  of  Borneo  by 
Perelaer,  and  that  it  recalls  the  ancient  Javanese  s^tra. 
It  appears,  however,  that  human  lives  are  still  sacrificed 
at  the  death  of  a  chief.  The  author  has  also  brought 
together  highly  interesting  information  as  to  "animism,' 
belief  in  a  future  state,  and  ancestor -worship  amongst  the 
Niassers. 

Although  lamed,  and  suffering  from  a  bad  foot,  he 
left  Luaha  Gundre  for  Hili  Simaetdno  on  June  I. 
His  reception  there  was,  however,  the  reverse  of  what 
he  expected :  the  people  were  not  only  diffident,  but 
evidently  hostile,  notwithstanding  the  invitation  sent  by 
their  chief.  Amongst  the  interesting  things  seen  were 
two  elaborately  carved  stone  thrones  of  honour,  used 
by  the  chief  on  solemn  occasions ;  opposite  one,  on  a 
pole,  was  a  human  skull.  These  two  differed  widely,  the 
smaller  one  in  the  centre  of  the  village  being  a  sort  of 
arm-chair,  the  back  of  which  represented  the  bust  of  a 
warrior  with  a  crocodile  climbing  up  behind  him.  These 
singular  stone  seats  of  honour  recall  those  found  in  faroff 
Ecuador.  After  a  couple  of  days'  stay,  the  hostility  of 
the  villagers  was  so  evident  that  Modigliani  decided  to 
leave;  and  if  he  was  not  actually  attacked,  he  owed  it  not 
only  to  his  firmness  and  forbearance,  but  probably  to  the 
fear  caused  by  his  repeating-rifle,  and  to  the  villagers 
being  short  of  ammunition.  Anyway,  he  was  able  to  get 
safely  back  to  his  pencialang.  Wishing,  however,  to 
penetrate  into  the  interior  of  the  island,  he  sailed  to  the 
Nacco  Islands  off  the  opposite  coast  of  Nias,  where  he 
hoped  to  get  guides  and  information.  Mdra  Ali,  chief  of 
Ndcco,  received  him  well,  and  after  much  palavering 
and  a  liberal  distribution  of  presents,  he  was  able  to 
obtain  a  guide  in  the  person  of  Sanabahili,  brother  of  the 
local  ere,  and  bearers.  His  intention  was  to  land  on  the 
opposite  coast  of  Nias,  and  penetrate  inland  to  one  of 
the  higher  mountains,  known  as  Matgiiia,  where  he  hoped 
to  make  interesting  collections.  Having  landed,  after  a 
narrow  escape  from  shipwreck,  at  Cape  Serombu,  he 
proceeded  boldly  inland.  There  were  no  roads,  and 
his  progress  was  not  easy  or  pleasant  ;  moreover,  his 
guide  was  hardly  up  to  the  office  he  had  undertaken, 
and  conducted  him  by  mistake  to  the  village  of  Iddno 
Dowu.  Thence  he  marched  to  Mount  Burudssi,  before 
reaching  which  most  of  his  bearers  had  deserted  ;  small 
villages  were  passed,  and  the  sites  of  bigger  ones  which 


had  been  destroyed  during  the  incessant  wars.  Halam- 
bava,  a  strongly  fortified  village,  was  next  visited  ;  here 
he  found  a  singular  and  grotesque  idol,  Adu  Fangiiru, 
carved  in  a  cocoa-palm  trunk  on  the  occasion  of  an  epi- 
demic which  had  decimated  the  village.  Crossing  next 
the  nearly  unknown  district  of  Iraono-Una,  peopled  by 
ferocious  head-hunters,  he  continued  on  to  Hili  Lowa- 
lani ;  here  he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  Mount  Mat- 
giiia had  been  purposely  missed,  or  more  probably  was 
sadly  out  of  place  even  in  the  best  maps  of  Nias,  and 
decided  to  return  to  the  north.  Travelling  on  by  Hili 
Horo,  he  came  again  to  Hili  Simaetdno,  where  he  was 
well  received  this  time,  and  able  to  buy  some  skulls.  At 
the  Luaha  Gundre  he  was  rG]o\r\&dhyh.is pencialang — not 
until  after  long  waiting,  anxious  moments,  and  the  risk 
of  starvation,  having  finished  his  provisions— and  sailed 
back  to  Gunong  Sitoli.  This  voyage  across  the  south- 
west end  of  Nias  was  an  adventurous  one,  but  hardly 
equal  in  results  to  the  trouble  it  had  cost. 

After  his  return  to  Sitoli,  Modigliani  decided  to  spend 
what  time  he  had  left  to  remain  in  Nias  in  some  favour- 
able locality  in  the  north,  where,  amongst  quieter  people, 
he  might  better  complete  his  observations  and  collec- 
tions. He  selected  the  village  Ombaldta,  or  rather  the 
neighbouring  hill  called  Hili  Zabobo  ;  here  he  passed 
pleasant  days  and  was  able  to  do  much.  Amongst  the 
interesting  species  collected  I  may  mention  :  Pteropus 
nicobaricus,  Chiropodoniys  gliroides,  a.  rare  and  singular 
rodent  lately  collected  by  Fea  in  Burma ;  Macropygia 
modiglianii,  SaXvdid. ,  drnd  Carpophaga  consobrina  Salvad., 
new  pigeons  ;  a  rare  and  beautiful  lizard,  Gonyocephalus 
grandts,  and  the  hitherto  unknown  Aphaniotis  acuti- 
rostris,  Modigl.  ;  and  several  new  species  of  Coleoptera 
and  ants.  It  is  worth  notice  that  in  more  than  4000 
specimens  of  Lepidoptera  collected  by  Dr.  Modigliani  no 
novelties  were  found,  but  he  secured  some  fine  specimens 
of  the  rare  and  peculiar  Hebomoia  vossi,  Maitl.  Dr. 
Modigliani  purposes  publishing  complete  lists  of  the 
animals  of  Nias  ;  meanwhile  he  has  given  in  an  appendix 
listsof  the  specieshecollected,havingdetermined  somehim- 
self,  whilst  others  have  been  studied  by  several  specialists. 
He  obtained  15  species  of  mammals,  62  of  birds,  39  of 
reptiles,  8  of  batrachians,  71  of  fishes,  and  lists  of  over 
400  species  of  insects  have  already  been  published.  The 
bulk  of  these  zoological  collections  are  in  the  Civic 
Museum  of  Genoa.  Modigliani  was  not  able  to  do  as 
much  in  botany  as  he  wished,  but  he  was  able  to  gratify 
Beccari  with  some  choice  specimens  of  his  favourite 
Myrmecodia  and  Hydnophytum,  those  strange  epiphytal 
ant-harbouring  plants  first  noticed  by  Jack  at  Nias. 

The  last  chapters  of  Dr.  Modigliani' s  book  are  entirely 
devoted  to  the  ethnology  of  Nias,  and  great  and  important 
is  the  amount  of  information  which  he  has  gathered 
on  this  interesting  subject.  I  will  merely  mention  one 
or  two  of  the  principal  items.  Discussing  the  origin 
and  affinities  of  the  Niassers,  he  finds  them  not  only 
different  from  the  ordinary  Malay,  but  partaking  of  the 
characters  of  the  Mongoloids  (in  a  restricted  sense)  and 
even  of  the  Arianoid  races  ;  and  at  the  same  time  he  notes 
physical  differences  between  the  natives  of  Northern  and 
Southern  Nias.  I  confess  that  I  cannot  quite  follow  our 
author  in  this  :  the  Niassers  most  evidently  belong  to  the 
great  Malayan  family,  and  perhaps  resemble  some  of  the 
Dayak  tribes  more  than  any  others.  The  ancient  and  con- 
stant contact  with  Chinese  may  have  slightly  mongolized 
them,  always  in  the  more  restricted  sense  of  that  term 
(some  of  Modigliani's  photographs  recalled  to  my  mind 
portraits  of  Kwei-yings  of  North  Formosa  shown  to  me 
years  ago  by  my  lamented  friend  Robert  Swinhoe).  But 
I  fail  to  see  traces  of  Arianoid  features  in  any  of 
the  Niassers  photographed  by  Dr.  Modigliani.  At  the 
same  time,  I  can  quite  understand  how  he  found  points 
of  resemblance  between  them  and  natives  of  Southern 
India,  who  evidently  have  Malayan  blood  in  their  veins. 


April  24,  1890] 


NATURE, 


591 


Modigliani  mentions  seeing  in  South-West  Nias  natives 
with  Arianoid  Semitic  features  and  curly  or  wavy  hair,  but 
he  himself  suspects  in  such  cases  the  influence  of  Arabo- 
Malay  immigrants  from  Acheen. 

Amongst  the  many  peculiarities  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Nias,  is  the  custom  of  the  women  going  about  with  a 
long  slender  stick  called  sioj  it  is  of  Nibong  palm  wood, 
has  a  heavy  leaden  knob,  and  is  more  or  less  ornamented 
with  rings  of  lead  and  brass  ;  it  is  found  only  in  the  pos- 
session of  women.  Great  is  the  variety  of  ornaments  worn 
by  the  Niassers,  male  and  female.  They  often  denote  dis- 
tinctions of  rank  and  sex.  Ear-rings  and  bracelets  are  espe- 
cially varied  ;  singularly  beautiful  are  the  bracelets  (Fig.  5) 
carved  and  polished  by  a  long  and  tedious  process  out  of 
a  solid  block  taken  from  the  stony  shell  of  the  giant  clam 
{Tridacna),  more  elegant  in  shape  than  the  equally 
notable  armlets  of  the  same  material  made  by  the  in- 


FiG.  5. — Bracelets  cut  in  Tridacna  shell. 

habitants  of  the  Solomon  Islands.  The  Niassers  also 
carve  big  solid  ear-drops  out  of  the  Tridacna  shell.  Their 
principal  articles  of  dress  are  still  made  with  the  beaten 
and  manipulated  inner  bark  of  a  Ficus  or  Arctocarpus^  a 
kind  of  tappa  or  masi,  called  by  them  sambo  salowo. 

Dr.  Modigliani  did  not  find  or  hear  of  stone  or  shell 
implements  in  Nias  ;  possibly  the  first  men  who  peopled 
that  island  were  already  provided  with  iron  tools.  Yet 
one  of  the  commonest  amongst  these,  the  axe,  fdto,  has  a 
singularly  archaic  form :  the  iron  blade,  very  similar  to 
the  earlier  forms  of  copper  and  bronze  implements  of  the 
kind,  is  let  into  a  slot  in  a  short  club-shaped  wooden 
handle  (Fig.  6).  A  yet  more  singular  fact  is  that  the  pHo 
of  the  Niassers  is  a  typical  axe,  and  quite  distinct  from 
the  adze  used  right  across  Malesia  from  the  Nicobar 
Islands  to  New  Guinea,  being,  instead,  remarkably  like 
the  iron  axe  of  some  of  the  wilder  tribes  of  Central  Africa. 


Fig.  6. — Iron  axe  of  Nias 

I  may  mention  here  that  the  rich  and  important  anthro- 
pological and  ethnological  collections  made  at  Nias  by 
Dr.  Modigliani  have  mostly  been  presented  by  him  to 
the  National  Anthropological  and  Ethnological  Museum 
in  Florence. 

Dr.  Modigliani  has  collected  quite  a  host  of  interesting 
facts  relating  to  the  myths  and  superstitions  of  the 
natives  of  Nias,  which  all  appear  to  centre  in  a  well- 
developed  form  of  "  ancestor  worship."  The  ancestors 
more  or  less  remote  are  spirits  good  and  evil,  and  as 
mediators  between  them  and  the  living  are  numerous 
ad?i,  or  idols  (Fig.  7).  Amongst  the  numerous  spirits 
more  or  less  divine  venerated  by  the  Niassers  is  San- 
garbja,  the  sea-god,  and  Modigliani  justly  calls  attention 
to  the  strange  similarity  in  name  and  attributes  to 
Tanga-roa,  the  sea-god  of  the  Maories  and  other  Poly- 
nesians.    The  principal  good  spirit  is  Lowaldnij  the  bad 


ones  are  classified  in  two  grades  as  Bhhu  and  Blla^ 
these  being,  however,  generic  terms.  The  adii  or  idols, 
whose  Nias  name,  by  the  way,  is  singularly  like  the 
equivalent  Polynesian  term  atua,  are  very  numerous ; 
those  which  represent  dead  relations  or  immediate  an- 
cestors are  called  generically  Adi'i  zatua.  They  appear  to 
have  great  affinities  with  similar  carved  wooden  anthro- 
pomorphic figures  common  throughout  Papuasia  and 
Melanesia,  and  known  as  karwars  in  Western  New 
Guinea. 


Fig.  7. — Images  of  ancestors. 

In  one  of  the  last  chapters  of  his  book,  Modigliani 
gives  an  account  of  the  spoken  language  of  the  Niassers, 
which  has  many  peculiarities  ;  adding  an  alphabetically 
arranged  collection  of  words  with  their  ItaUan  equivalents. 

But  my  task,  which  has  been  to  endeavour  to  give  an 
idea  of  the  work  done  by  Dr.  Modigliani,  must  now  come 
to  an  end.  His  book,  containing  a  very  complete  mono- 
graphic study  of  one  of  the  most  interesting  islands  of  the 
Indian  Archipelago  and  its  inhabitants,  is,  and  will  long 
remain,  one  of  the  standard  works  on  that  beautiful 
region  Malesia.  Henry  H.  Giglioli. 


NOTES. 

The  ne.Kt  general  meeting  of  the  Institution  of  Mechanical 
Engineers  will  be  held  on  Thursday  evening,  May  i,  and 
Friday  evening,  May  2,  at  25  Great  George  Street,  West- 
minster. The  chair  will  be  taken  at  half-past  seven  on  each 
evening  by  the  President,  Mr.  Joseph  Tomlinson.  On  Thursday 
evening  the  President  will  deliver  his  inaugural  address,  after 
which  the  following  paper  will  be  read  and  discussed,  and  the 
discussion  will  be  continued  on  Friday  evening : — Research 
Committee  on  Marine-Engine  Trials  :  Report  upon  Trials  of 
three  Steamers,  Fusi  Yama,  Colc/iestcr,  Tartar,  by  Prof. 
Alexander  B.  W.  Kennedy,  F.  R.S.,  Chairman.  The  anni- 
versary dinner  will  take  place  on  Wednesday  evening,  April  30. 

The  first  annual  meeting  of  the  Museums'  Association  will  be 
held  in  Liverpool  on  June  17,  18,  and  19.  The  business  of  the 
meeting  will  consist  of  (i)  the  reading  of  papers  on  the  manage- 
ment, arrangement,  and  working  of  Mdseums  ;  (2)  the  discus- 
sion of  the  objects  set  forth  by  the  meeting  of  June  20,  1889, 
with  special  reference  to  the  following  points  :  the  means  of 
interchange  of  duplicates  and  surplus  specimens  ;  schemes  for  a 
general  supply  of  labels,  illustrations,  &c.  ;  the  indexing  of  the 
general  contents  of  Museums  ;  concerted  action  for  obtaining 
Government  publications,  and  also  specimens  on  loan  or  other- 
wise ;  and  the  issue  of  a  journal  devoted  to  the  discussion  of 
practical  topics.  At  this  meeting  the  scheme  for  the  constitution 
of  the  Association  will  be  submitted.     All  engaged  or  interested 


592 


-NATURE 


\April  24,  1890 


in  Museum  work  are  cordially  invited  to  join  the  Association. 
The  conditions  of  membership  are  as  follows : — Each  Museum 
contributing  not  less  than  one  guinea  a  year  becomes  a  member 
of  the  Association,  and  can  send  three  representatives  to  the 
meetings.  Individuals  interested  in  scientific  work  are  admitted 
as  Associates  on  payment  of  \os.  6d.  annually.  The  following 
are  the  officers  of  the  Association : — President :  Rev.  H.  H. 
Higgins ;  General  Secretaries :  H.  M.  Platnauer,  Museum, 
York,  T.  J.  Moore,  Museum,  Liverpool ;  Local  Secretaries  : 
R.  Paden,  Museum,  Liverpool,  H.  A.  Tobias,  Museum, 
Liverpool. 

The  next  conversazione  of  the  Royal  Microscopical  Society 
will  be  held  on  Wednesday,  the  30lh  inst. ,  at  eight  o'clock, 

Herr  O.  Jesse  sends  us  from  Steglitz,  near  Berlin,  some  very 
beautiful  photographs  of  luminous  night  clouds.  The  photographs 
of  each  pair  were  taken  simultaneously  at  Nanen  and  Steglitz. 
Steglitz  lies  8  kilometres  south-west,  Nanen  38  kilometres  west- 
north-west,  of  the  Berlin  Observatory.  Herr  Jesse  would  add 
greatly  to  the  value  of  his  work  if,  the  next  time  he  has  an 
opportunity  of  undertaking  it,  he  would  photograph  the 
spectrum. 

La  Nature  (April  12,  p.  303)  notes  the  following  curious  and 
interesting  phenomena  : — Two  railways,  one  the  Sceaux  line  and 
the  other  the  Ceinture,  pass  within  a  comparatively  short  distance 
of  the  Montsouris  Observatory,  Paris,  the  former  line  being  about 
80  metres  distant,  and  the  latter  but  some  60  metres.  During  the 
passage  of  trains  on  the  Ceinture  line,  which  is  nearest  to  the 
Observatory,  the  bifilar  magnet  is  found  to  be  disturbed,  and 
its  oscillations  are  registered  photographically  ;  indeed  the  move- 
ments are  so  regular  that  the  curve  clearly  indicates  the  exact 
time  of  each  train  passing  the  Observatory.  This  phenomenon  is 
due  to  the  fact  that  as  the  line  crosses  the  direction  of  the 
magnetic  meridian  the  wheel-tires  of  the  carriages  become 
magnetized  by  induction,  and  so  produce,  in  consequence  of  the 
laws  of  magnetism,  a  deviation  of  the  bifilar  magnet.  The 
trains  on  the  Sceaux  line  give  rise  to  a  phenomenon  not  less 
curious.  Whenever  the  engine-driver  blows  off  steam,  the  electro- 
meter is  partly  discharged,  the  electrical  potential  of  the  air  falling 
to  about  one-half  of  its  original  value.  These  disturbances  are 
brought  forward  by  the  Director  of  the  Paris  Observatory  in 
order  to  oppose  the  scheme  which  is  now  proposed  of  extending 
the  railway  from  Sceaux  to  la  Place  de  Medicis. 

On  Tuesday  evening,  M.  Jacques  Bertillon  (head  of  the 
Municipal  Bureau  of  Statistics  in  Paris)  delivered  a  lecture 
before  the  Anthropological  Institute  of  Great  Britain  and  Ire- 
land, on  the  method  now  practised  in  France  of  identifying 
criminals  by  comparing  their  measures  with  those  of  convicted 
persons  in  the  prison  registers.  Mr.  Bertillon,  who  spoke  in 
French,  said  that  the  system  which  he  had  come  there  to  ex- 
plain had  for  its  object  the  recognition  of  a  person  10,  15,  20, 
or  even  100  years  after  he  had  been  measured,  for  by  that 
method  it  was  possible  to  recognize  a  person  after  death,  if 
access  could  be  had  to  his  skeleton.  Photography  was  now 
used  only  as  an  aid  to  identification  established  by  other  means. 
The  basis  of  the  anthropometic  system  was  to  obtain  measure- 
ments of  those  bony  parts  of  the  body  which  underwent  little 
or  no  change  after  maturity,  and  could  be  measured  with  ex- 
treme accuracy  to  within  so  small  a  figure  as  to  be  practically  exact. 
These  parts  were  the  head,  the  foot,  the  middle  finger,  and  the 
extended  forearm  from  the  elbow.  To  clearly  illustrate  the 
system,  let  them  suppose  90,000  photographs  of  men  to  have 
been  collected.  These  would  be  divided  into  three  groups  of 
30,000,  according  to  the  height  of  the  men.  There  would  be 
short  men,  men  of  medium  height,  and  tall  men.  That  these 
three  classes  might  be  approximately  equal,  it  was  evident  that 


the  limits  of  the  class  of  me"n  of  medium  height  must  be  re- 
stricted more  than  those  of  the  other  two  classes.  Each  of 
these  primary  divisions  should  again  be  divided  on  the  same 
principle,  without  taking  any  further  notice  of  the  height,  into 
three  classes,  according  to  the  length  of  the  head  of  each  in- 
dividual. The  three  classes  of  short,  medium,  and  long 
heads  would  each  again  be  subdivided  into  three,  accord- 
ing to  the  width  of  the  heads,  and  would  contain  narrow, 
medium,  and  wide  heads.  Experience  had  proved  that  with 
most  people  the  breadth  of  the  head  varied  independently  of 
the  length — that  was,  given  that  an  individual  had  a  certain 
length  of  head,  it  by  no  means  followed  that  the  breadth  of  his 
head  could  be  determined  a  priori.  The  length  of  the  middle 
finger  gave  a  fourth  and  still  more  precise  indication  by  which 
to  divide  again  each  one  of  the  packets  of  photographs  ;  and 
these  might  be  divided  again  according  to  the  length  of  the 
foot,  the  length  of  the  arms  outstretched  at  right  angles  to  the 
body,  and  also  according  to  the  colour  of  the  eyes.  Thus  by 
these  anthropometrical  coefficients  they  would  be  able  to  divide 
their  collection  of  90,000  photographs  into  very  small  groups 
of  about  15  each,  which  they  could  easily  and  rapidly  examine. 
M.  Bertillon  then  proceeded  to  give  a  practical  demonstration 
of  the  way  in  which  the  measurements  were  taken.  He  laid 
stress  on  the  importance  of  the  hand  and  the  ear  as  marks  of 
cogniti  on.  The  hand,  because  it  was  the  organ  in  most  con- 
stant use  in  almost  every  calling  and  in  many  trades  and  pro- 
fessions, became  modified  according  to  the  particular  character 
of  the  work  which  it  had  to  do.  The  ear  was  the  precise 
opposite  to  this.  It  changed  very  slightly,  if  at  all,  except, 
perhaps  in  the  case  of  prize-fighters,  who  developed  a  pecu- 
liarity of  the  ear  which  it  was  easy  to  recognize.  The  ear,, 
therefore,  was  an  important  organ  to  measure,  inasmuch  as  the 
results  were  not  likely  to  be  nullified  by  a  change  in  its  con- 
formation. 

The  following  telegram  was  sent  through  Renter's  agency 
from  New  York  on  April  21  : — "Despatches  from  Mexico  state 
that  observations  show  that  the  height  of  the  active  volcano  of 
Popocatepetl  has  decreased  by  3000  feet  since  the  last  measure- 
ment was  taken." 

In  the  new  quarterly  statement  of  the  Palestine  Exploration 
Fund,  the  Committee  announce  that  they  have  obtained  a  firman 
granting  permission  to  excavate  at  Khiirbet  'Ajlan,  the  Eglon  of 
Joshua.  It  is  understood  that  all  objects,  except  duplicates, 
found  in  the  course  of  the  excavations  shall  be  forwarded  to  the 
Museum  at  Constantinople,  but  that  the  Committee's  agents 
shall  have  the  right  of  making  squeezes,  sketches,  models,  photo- 
graphs, and  copies  of  all  such  objects.  The  Committee  have 
been  so  fortunate  as  to  secure  the  services  of  Mr.  Flinders 
Petrie,  who  is  now  in  Syria  making  arrangements  to  start  the 
excavations. 

The  death  of  Dr.  Gottlob  Friederich  H.  Kiichenmeister  is 
announced.     He  was  a  great  authority  on  Entozoa. 

In  the  official  outline  of  the  principal  arrangements  at 
the  Crystal  Palace  for  the  summer  of  1890,  reference  is 
made  to  the  International  Exhibition  of  Mining  and  Metal- 
lurgy which  is  to  be  held  there  from  July  2  to  September 
30.  The  subjects  embraced  within  the  scope  of  the  Exhi- 
bition comprise  machinery  in  motion  and  at  rest ;  gold,, 
silver,  diamond,  iron  stone,  and  iron  ore  mining  ;  manufacture 
of  iron  and  steel ;  lead  mining  and  manufacture  ;  tin  mining 
and  smelting  ;  copper  and  coal  mining  ;  the  petroleum  and  salt 
industries ;  mining  for  precious  stones,  &c.  There  is  every  ■ 
reason  to  expect,  through  the  co-operation  of  colonial  and  foreign 
Governments,  many  valuable  exhibits  from  abroad. 

The  Engineer  and  Engineering  of  last  week  publish  long: 
illustrated  accounts  of  the  recent  disaster  to  the  City  of  Paris 


April  24,  1890] 


NATURE 


593 


This  accident  is  without  a  parallel  in  the  history  of  steam  navi- 
gation ;  the  circumstances  were  so  remarkable  that  many  con- 
flicting explanations  of  the  cause  have  been  suggested.  The 
ship  is  propelled  by  twin  screws,  and  the  engines  are  placed  side 
by  side  in  separate  compartments.  When  she  was  off  the  coast 
of  Ireland,  at  half-past  five  on  the  evening  of  the  25th  ult.,  the 
low-pressure  cylinder,  with  the  whole  of  its  gear,  of  the  star- 
board engine,  went  to  pieces,  and  fell  to  the  bottom  of  the 
engine  -  room  in  a  confused  mass,  the  debris  of  the  top 
cylinder  cover  being  apparently  at  the  bottom  of  the  wreck. 
The  smashing  of  the  condenser  allowed  an  enormous  rush  of 
water  to  flood  the  starboard  engine-room,  and  the  longitudinal 
bulkhead  between  the  engines,  being  also  damaged,  allowed  the 
port  engine-room  to  become  flooded,  and  of  course  slopped  that 
engine  from  working.  Our  contemporaries  say  that,  in  the 
opinion  of  experts  in  Liverpool,  the  accident  did  not  originate 
in  the  engine,  but  in  the  tail  shaft,  as  follows  :  the  brass  liner 
on  the  tail  shaft  burst ;  then  the  lignum-vitoe  strips  were  torn 
out,  bringing  metal  to  metal.  This,  naturally,  would  allow  the 
steel  shaft  to  grind  itself  and  the  bracket  away,  and  the  shaft 
dropped.  Then  the  continual  bending  of  the  shaft  resulted  in  its 
fracture.  The  engines,  being  relieved  of  the  resistance  of  the 
screw,  raced,  with  the  result  shown  in  the  engravings.  The 
Engineer  at  present  neither  accepts  nor  rejects  this  theory  of 
the  cause  of  the  disaster. 

The  Manchester  Field  Naturalists'  Society  opened  the 
summer  excursion  session  on  the  19th  inst.,  by  a  visit  to  the  well- 
known  herbaceous  garden  of  Mr.  Wm.  Brockbank,  Withington, 
near  Manchester.  The  grounds,  of  about  six  acres  in  extent, 
are  laid  out  in  woodland,  shrubbery,  rockeries,  and  fernery,  with 
a  patch  of  wilderness,  and  are  entirely  devoted  to  the  growth  of 
the  native  flowers,  and  the  horticulturists'  modifications,  so  far 
as  they  will  thrive.  The  special  feature,  at  the  time  of  the 
visit,  was  the  display  of  daffodils,  over  a  hundred  varieties  being 
included  in  the  gardens,  several  of  them  locally  raised.  Mr. 
Brockbank  explained  that  the  double  variety  of  the  daffodil  is 
not  obtained  by  the  absorption  of  the  essential  organs,  as  gener- 
ially  supposed  ;  the  pistils  and  stamens  remain,  and  specimens 
were  shown,  in  vigorous  health,  obtained  from  their  seeds. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  the  epidemic  of  influenza  was  in 
the  last  resort  due  to  floods  in  China.  The  fertile  land  in  the 
valley  of  the  Yellow  River,  it  has  been  said,  was  covered  with  a 
deposit  of  alluvial  mud,  and  in  this  mud  countless  numbers  of 
organic  spores  were  developed  from  the  refuse  of  a  dense  popula- 
tion. These  germs  were  carried  by  merchandise  to  Russia, 
whence  they  spread  to  Europe  generally.  Dealing  with  this 
theory,  ihc Shanghai  Mercury  points  out  (l)  that  there  has  been 
no  epidemic  of  influenza  in  China.  (2)  There  is  no  valley  what- 
ever of  the  Yellow  River,  the  peculiarity  of  that  stream  being 
that  it  flows  on  the  surface  of  the  ground,  which  actually  slopes 
down  on  both  sides  from  the  river  bed,  so  that  in  case  of  a 
breach  of  either  embankment  the  river  is  free  to  flow  to  the  sea 
almost  anywhere  between  Tientsin  in  the  north,  and  Shanghai 
in  the  south.  (3)  The  plain  of  the  Yellow  River  is  by  no  means 
fertile,  and  is  rapidly  deteriorating.  (4)  So  far  from  the  deposit 
left  after  a  breach  being  alluvial  mud,  it  is  unmitigated  sand,  and 
for  years  refuses,  to  grow  any  crops  whatever  ;  and  it  is  only  after 
an  exposure  of  some  fifteen  or  twenty  years  that  the  phosphates 
which  enter  sparingly  into  its  composition  begin  to  break  up, 
and  the  land  is  restored  to  cultivation.  (5)  There  are  no  exports 
of  any  sort  from  the  plain  of  the  lower  Yellow  River.  Almost 
the  only  product  exported  to  Europe  from  districts  anywhere 
near  the  river  is  straw  braid,  which  is  shipped  not  to  Russia  but 
to  England  and  the  United  States  ;  and  this  not  from  the  plain, 
but  from  the  highlands  of  Shantung,  far  removed  from  any 
communication  with  the  river. 


The  Ballarat  School  of  Mines,  in  the  University  of  Mel- 
bourne, presented  its  annual  report  at  a  meeting  of  governors 
and  subscribers  on  Monday,  January  20.  The  general  efficiency 
and  usefulness  of  the  school  have  been  greatly  promoted  by  ex- 
tensive additions  to  the  buildings  and  plant,  and  the  numerous 
improvements  effected  in  connection  with  the  mining  and 
metallurgical  departments.  That  the  institution  now  affords 
a  superior  training  in  scientific  and  mining  subjects  is  shown 
by  the  attendance  of  a  more  advanced  class  of  students,  and  by 
the  better  results  obtained  at  the  examinations.  It  attracts  to 
its  classes  students  from  all  the  neighbouring  colonies,  including 
Queensland,  New  South  Wales,  South  Australia,  and  Tas- 
mania, as  well  as  from  distant  places  within  Victoria.  The 
total  number  of  enrolments  in  the  various  classes  held  during 
the  year  was  982,  and  of  individual  pupils  who  attended  the 
elementary  science  lectures  delivered  in  the  State  schools,  723. 
The  mean  average  number  of  students  in  attendance  at  the 
school  classes  for  the  whole  year  was  526,  whilst  during  the 
same  period  286  lectures  on  elementary  chemistry  were  de- 
livered in  nine  of  the  State  schools  in  the  city  and  town,  with  an 
average  attendance  of  53  at  each  lecture. 

Mr.  a.  J.  Campbell  has  returned  to  Melbourne  after  a  three 
months'  trip  in  Western  Australia.  The  Victorian  Naturalist 
says  he  has  been  very  successful  in  his  observations  and  col- 
lections. He  obtained  about  80  different  species  of  eggs,  13  of 
which  it  will  be  necessary  to  describe  as  new.  The  number  of 
eggs  obtained  altogether  was  about  400.  About  100  skins 
of  birds  were  collected,  though  Mr.  Campbell  made  no  special 
effort  to  secure  them.  With  regard  to  geographical  range  of 
birds  he  was  particularly  successful  in  his  observations.  No  less 
than  17  species  will  be  recorded  as  new  for  Western  Australia. 
Possibly  one  or  two  may  be  deemed  new  varieties,  while  others 
will  be  restored,  having  been  omitted  from  a  lately  issued  tabular 
list.  Baron  von  Mueller  has  examined  the  plants,  and  finds  that 
two  ferns,  Asplenium  marinum  and  A.  trichomanes  (both 
British  species,  by  the  way)  are  recorded  for  the  first  time  from 
the  western  colony.  Of  30  lichens  collected,  the  Rev.  F.  R.  M, 
Wilson  has  identified  20  as  new  for  the  same  colony.  Specimens 
of  characteristic  lizards  and  frogs  {e.g.,  Heleioporus  albo-punctatus) 
were  secured.  About  three  dozen  photographs  turned  out  fairly 
well,  those  of  the  remarkable  flights  of  sea-birds  being  of  great 
interest.  Mr.  Campbell  considers  that  he  brought  nearly  1000 
natural  history  specimens  back  to  Melbourne. 

In  the  latest  of  his  series  of  instances — printed  in  the  American 
Naturalist — of  the  effect  of  musical  sounds  upon  animals,  Mr.  R. 
E.  C,  Stearns  mentions  the  case  of  a  canary  "  who  is  particularly 
fond  of  music."  This  interesting  bird  belongs  to  the  Rev,  Mr. 
James,  who  writes  as  follows: — "Immediately  I  begin  to  play 
upon  the  flute  she  chirps  about  as  if  enjoying  the  music.  If  I 
open  the  cage-door  and  leave  her,  she  will  come  as  near  to  me 
as  possible,  but  not  attempt  to  fly  to  the  music  ;  but  if  I  put  her 
upon  my  desk,  and  lay  the  flute  down,  she  will  perch  upon  the 
end,  and  allow  me  to  raise  the  instrument  and  play.  I  often 
take  her  into  the  church  and  play  there  upon  the  organ,  and  she 
will  perch  upon  my  fingers,  notwithstanding  the  inconvenience 
of  the  motion  of  the  hands,  and  chirp  in  evident  delight  at  the 
sweet  sounds." 

Last  week  Prof.  Strieker  submitted  to  the  International 
Medical  Congress  at  Vienna  a  new  electrical  lantern  which  will, 
it  is  expected,  be  of  great  service  to  lecturers  and  medical 
students.  According  to  the  Vienna  correspondent  of  the  Times, 
Prof.  Strieker,  by  an  ingenious  combination  of  lenses,  contrives 
to  project  the  magnified  images  of  objects  on  a  white  screen  in 
their  natural  colours,  so  that,  for  instance,  a  small  pimple  on  a 
patient  can  be  shown  in  its  real  appearance  to  an  audience  of 
many  hundred  students. 


594 


NATURE 


\April  24,  1890 


At  the  seventh  Congress  of  the  American  Ornithologists' 
Union,  Dr.  R.  W.  Shufeldt  read  a  report  on  progress  in  avian 
anatomy  for  the  years  1888-89.  Towards  the  end  of  this  report, 
which  has  now  been  reprinted  separately,  Dr.  Shufeldt  said  he 
had  greatly  felt  the  need  of  a  good  hand-book  to  the  muscles  of 
birds.  In  looking  about  him,  he  soon  found  that  there  was  no 
such  manual  in  the  English  language  ;  at  least,  there  was  not  the 
kind  of  work  that  the  thorough  dissector  required.  To  meet 
this  want  he  undertook  the  preparation  of  a  volume  devoted  to 
the  subject.  A  thoroughly  cosmopolitan  form,  or  rather  a  form 
well  representing  a  cosmopolitan  group  of  birds,  the  raven,  was 
selected.  He  carefully  dissected  out  on  many  specimens  every 
muscle  of  this  type,  and  figured  them  in  a  careful  series  of 
drawings.  These  he  supplemented  by  a  series  of  drawings  of 
the  skeleton  of  the  same  form,  and  on  the  bones  indicated  the 
origin  and  insertion  of  all  the  muscles.  Full  descriptions  were 
written  out,  and  the  groups  of  muscles  classified  ;  and  finally 
some  comparative  work  was  added.  Both  the  drawings  of  the 
muscular  system,  as  well  as  the  skeleton,  were  life-size,  which 
made  ihe  parts  very  clear  and  convenient  for  use.  "To  my 
sui-prise,"  says  Dr.  Shufeldt,  "when  it  was  all  completed,  the 
manuscripts  for  a  small  volume  were  on  my  hands."  The  work  is 
inow  in  the  press,  and  will  be  published  shortly  by  Messrs. 
Macmillan  and  Co. 

Two  volumes  of  the  I ntei- national es  Archiv  fiir  Ethttographie 
have  now  been  completed.  With  the  current  number,  just 
issued,  the  third  volume  begins.  In  a  prefatory  note,  the  editor, 
Dr.  Schmeltz,  refers  with  satisfaction  to  the  help  he  has  received 
from  eminent  contributors  ;  and  he  is  able  to  promise  that  the 
periodical  shall  be  not  less  instructive  and  interesting  in  the 
future  than  it  has  been  in  the  past.  In  the  present  number 
there  are  several  valuable  papers.  One  of  them,  by  Dr»  Franz 
Boas,  deals  with  the  use  of  masks  and  head-ornaments  on  the 
north-west  coast  of  America.  Herr  Strebel,  of  Hamburg,  con- 
tributes the  first  of  a  series  of  "studies  "on  a  peculiar  kind 
of  stone  implements  found  in  Mexico  and  Central  America. 
Hitherto  it  has  been  generally  supposed  that  these  implements 
were  put  on  the  necks  of  human  victims  destined  for  sacrifice. 
The  author  undertakes  to  show  that  this  view  is  mistaken. 

The  Journal  of  the  Anthropological  Institute  (vol.  xix.  No.  3) 
contains  an  elaborate  and  most  interesting  paper,  by  Prof.  A.  C. 
Haddon,  on  the  ethnography  of  the  western  tribe  of  Torres 
Strait.  The  other  contributors  to  this  number  are  Dr.  Beddoe, 
who  writes  on  the  natural  colour  of  the  skin  in  certain  Oriental 
races  ;  and  the  Rev.  James  Macdonald,  who  has  a  paper 
on  the  manners,  customs,  superstitions,  and  religions  of  South 
African  tribes. 

Tu^  Photographic  Quarterly,  of  which  three  numbers  have  been 
published,  meets  a  need  which  must  often  have  been  felt  by 
those  who  specially  devote  themselves  to  photography.  It  in- 
cludes among  its  contributors  many  eminent  students,  and  deals 
freely  with  all  important  questions  in  which  photographers  are 
interested.  The  third  number  opens  with  an  article  on  photo- 
graphy of  the  sky  at  night,  by  Captain  W.  de  W.  Abney. 
Among  the  other  contents  are  papers  on  the  limits  and  possi- 
bilities of  art  photography,  by  George  Davison  ;  photogravure 
and  heliogravure,  by  P.  G.  Hamerton ;  the  optical  lantern  as  an 
aid  in  teaching,  by  C.  H.  Bothamley  ;  and  a  phase  of  naturalistic 
■focussing,  by  H.  Dennis  Taylor. 

A  COMPLETE  index  of  the  papers  printed  in  the  Proceedings 
of  the  London  Mathematical  Society  has  been  issued.  It  will 
■be  of  great  service  to  all  who  have  occasion  to  refer  to  the  series, 
which  now  includes  twenty  volumes. 

A  CATALOGUE  of  the  books  in  the  library  of  the  Indian 
-Museum  has  been  issued  by  the  trustees.  It  has  been  compiled 
iby  Mr.  R.  Leonard  Chapman.     The  number  of  separate  works 


in  the  library  is  about  3500,  and  every  facility  is  given  to  students 
consulting  them.  In  a  prefatory  note  Mr.  J.  Wood-Mason, 
superintendent  of  the  Indian  Museum,  says  that  most  of  the 
books  are  on  zoology  and  kindred  subjects,  and  he  has  no  doubt 
that  "the  gradual  spread  of  scientific  education  in  India  will 
largely  extend  the  field  of  usefulness  of  the  Museum  library  in 
the  future." 

CH., 


CB./    ^CHg 
A  NEW  acid,  '        I  ,  the   first  member   of   a  series 

CIIox      .HC, 


CH 

I 
COOH 

possessing   the  generic  formula    CnH.jn-oOg,  derived  from  the 

CH, 


saturated  hexa-hydride  of  benzene, 


CH, 


CH 


CH, 


CHo 


CH, 


the  so-called 


naphthene  and  its  homologues  of  the  generic  formula  CnH2n, 
has  been  isolated  by  Dr.  Ossian  Aschan,  of  the  University  of 
Helsingfors,  from  the  natural  oil  of  Baku  [Berichte,  1890,  No. 
6,  p.  867).  The  acid  may  be  considered  as  a  saturated  hexa- 
hydride  of  benzoic  acid  ;  it  is  a  very  stable  liquid  substance  of 
strongly  acid  properties,  readily  decomposing  calcium  chloride 
with  evolution  of  hydrochloric  acid  and  formation  of  a  calcium 
salt.  The  raw  mixture  of  acids  obtained  by  treating  the  oil 
with  alkali,  and  subsequent  decomposition  of  the  sodium  salts 
by  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  was  first  distilled  and  the  lower  bjiling 
portion  specially  examined.  Upon  partially  saturating  this 
fraction  with  caustic  soda  solution,  and  again  decomposing  with 
sulphuric  acid,  a  colourless  oil  separated.  In  order  to  separate 
the  various  acids  contained  in  this  oil,  they  were  converted  into 
methyl  esters  by  the  action  of  methyl  alcohol  and  strong 
sulphuric  acid.  These  esters  were  then  submitted  to  fractional 
distillation,  when  a  large  quantity  of  an  ester  boiling  constantly 
at  l65°'5-i67°'5  C.  was  eventually  isolated,  possessing  the  com- 
position CgHu-COOCHg.  This  was,  in  fact,  the  methyl  ester 
of  the  new  acid,  the  first  member  of  the  series,  of  which  other 
higher  members  have  previously  been  obtained  by  Markovnikoff 
and  others.  The  methyl  ester  is  a  highly  refractive  colourless 
oil  of  pleasant  fruit-like  odour.  By  saponification  with  alcoholic 
potash,  crystals  of  the  potassium  salt  of  the  acid  itself  were  ob- 
tained. On  acidification  of  the  aqueous  solution  of  these 
crystals,  the  free  acid  separates  as  an  oil,  which  after  rectification 
boils  constantly  at  2I5°-2I7°.  It  is  a  colourless  thick  liquid 
of  unpleasant  and  very-  persistent  odour,  and  does  not  solidify  at 
-  10°.  Its  strength  as  an  acid  has  already  been  alluded  to  as 
evidenced  by  the  turning  out  of  hydrochloric  acid  from  chlorides 
of  the  alkaline  earths ;  moreover,  the  calcium  and  barium  salts 
are  not  decomposed  by  carbonic  acid.  Strong  sulphuric  acid 
readily  dissolves  it,  with  decomposition  upon  heating.  Its  specific 
gravity  at  1 8° '4  is  o '95025.  This  acid  is  isomeric  with  the  methyl 
pentamethylenic  acid  synthesized  by  Messrs.  W.  H.  Perkin, 
Jun.,  andColman,  the  latter  boiling  a  little  higher,at  2I9''-2I9°'5, 
and  possessing  a  higher  specific  gravity,  r '02054  at  15°.  The 
potassium  salt  C,;HjjCOOK  is  a  soft  soap-like  substance,  which 
may  sometimes  be  obtained  in  distinct  crystals.  It  is  readily 
soluble  in  water  and  alcohol  and  is  strongly  hygroscopic.  The 
sodium  salt  much  resembles  its  potassium  analogue,  and  may  be 
obtained  crystallized  in  flat  prisms  from  alcohol.  It  likewise 
deliquesces  very  rapidly  in  the  air.  The  calcium  salt  dissolves 
readily  in  alcohol,  but  is  more  difficultly  soluble  in  water.  If  an 
aqueous  solution  is  allowed  to  evaporate  over  oil  of  vitriol,  the 
salt,  {CBHiiCOO)._jCa  -t-  4H2O,  is  obtained  in  long  needles.  If  a 
solution  saturated  at  the  ordinary  temperature  is  heated  to  boil- 
ing, it  becomes  turbid  and  viscous  drops  begin  to  separate  ;  these 


April  24,  1890] 


NATURE 


595 


again  dissolve  on  cooling.  This  behaviour  is  very  character 
istic  of  the  acid,  the  barium  salt  showing  the  phenomenon 
also  in  a  striking  manner.  It  is  due  to  the  different  amounts  of 
water  of  crystallization  in  the  salts  separating  at  different  tem- 
peratures. The  chloride  of  the  acid  radical,  the  amide,  and  the 
anilide  of  the  acid  have  also  been  prepared,  and  found  to  resemble 
the  corresponding  derivatives  of  the  fatty  acids. 

The  additions  to  the  Zoological  Society's  Gardens  during  the 
past  week  include  two  Indranee  Owls  {Syniiiim  iiidraiwc)  from 
Ceylon,  presented  by  Mr.  A.  R.  Lewis  ;  two  Lataste's  Frogs 
{Rana  latasti)  from  Italy,  presented  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger, 
F.Z.S.  ;  a  Common  Moorhen  {Gallinula  chloropus),  British, 
two  Moorish  Toads  {Bufo  jnauritanica)  from  North  Africa, 
presented  by  Mr.  Cuthbert  Johnson  ;  an  Indian  White  Crane 
(Gnts  leitcogeranos),  two  Black-gorgeted  Jay  Thrushes  {Garrulax 
pectoralis),  an  Indian  Muntjac  {Cervultis  nnintjac  <J )  from 
India,  deposited;  a  Pacific  Fruit  Pigeon  {Carpophaga pacifica) 
from  the  Solomon  Islands,  four  Madagascar  Weaver  Birds 
{Foudia  madagascaj-iensis,  2629)  from  Madagascar,  six 
Common  Cormorants  {Phalacrocorax  carbo),  European,  two 
Adelaide  Parrakeets  {Platycercus  adelaidic)  from  South  Australia, 
purchased  ;  a  Puma  {Fclis  concolor),  born  in  the  Gardens. 


OUR  ASTRONOMICAL  COLUMN. 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope. 

Sidereal  Time   at    Greenwich   at    10   p.m.    on   April  24  = 
I2h.  iim.  30s. 


Name. 

Mag. 

Colour. 

R.A.  1890. 

Decl.  1890. 

i 

h.  m.  s. 

(OG.CzSjS      ...     . 

.'     — 

— 

12  13   13 

-I-15     7 

(2)G.C.  3035      ...    . 

.'     — 

— 

12  25  15 

+  12  59 

(3)  G.C.  3092     ...    . 

.'     — 

— 

12  29  50 

-    3   11 

(4)  Canum  Venat.     . 

.       6 

Yellowish-red. 

12  14  23 

+  49  35 

(5)  0  Virginis      ...     . 

•1      4 

Yellow. 

II  59     7 

+  9  24 

(6)  ri  Virginis      ...     . 

•1      3 

White. 

"  13  47 

-  0     0 

(7)  B.D.  -f  i°-2694    . 

.1      8 

Red. 

12   19     7 

+   I  27 

(8)  S  Ursa  Majoris  . 

.,  Var. 

1 

Strong  red-yellow. 

12  39     7 

+61  42 

Remarks. 

(i,  2,  3)  Although  the  constellation  Virgo  is  so  exceptionally 
rich  in  nebulas,  comparatively  few  of  thehi  have  been  submitted 
to  spectroscopic  examination.  Smyth  remarks  that  "the  situa- 
tion of  the  extraordinary  conglomerate  of  nebulae  and  com- 
pressed spherical  clusters  which  crowd  the  Virgin's  left  wing 
and  shoulder  is  pretty  well  pointed  out  to  the  practised  naked 
eye  by  e,  5,  7,  r;,  and  j8  Virginis,  forming  a  semicircle  to  the 
east,  whilst,  due  north  of  the  last-mentioned  star,  $  Leonis 
marks  the  north-west  boundary."  As  it  is  not  possible  to  give 
anything  like  a  complete  list,  three  of  the  brighter  ones  which 
have  not  yet  been  spectroscopically  observed  have  been  selected. 
No.  I  is  the  remarkable  spiral  nebula  of  99  M  Virginis,  and  is 
thus  described  in  the  General  Catalogue: — "A  very  remark- 
able object  ;  bright ;  large  ;  round  ;  gradually  brighter  in  the 
middle;  three-branched  spiral."  No.  2  is  87  M  Virginis,  and 
is  described  as  "  Very  bright  ;  very  large  ;  round  ;  much 
brighter  in  the  middle."  No.  3  is  described  as  "  Very  bright  ; 
considerably  large  ;  pretty  much  elongated  in  a  direction  about 
63°  ;  very  suddenly  much  brighter  in  the  middle  to  a  nucleus." 
It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  all  the  nebulae  in  Virgo,  which  have 
so  far  been  examined,  exhibit  so-called  "  continuous  "  spectra. 
D'Arrest  observed  the  nebulae  G.C.  2930  (84  M  Virginis),  2961 
(86  M),  3021  (49  M),  and  Lieutenant  Herschel  observed  G.C. 
3021,  3132,  3227,  3229,  and  3397.  Some  of  these  may  be 
re-examined  for  bright  maxima  in  the  continuous  spectra. 

(4)  The  spectrum  of  this  (Group  II.)  star  is  thus  described  by 
Duner : — "The  bands  2-8  are  well  marked  by  strong  lines 
which  terminate  them  on  the  violet  sides.  But,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  2  and  3,  they  are  rather  narrow,  and  the  spectrum  ap- 
proaches to  the  type  of  Aldebaran."  The  star  is  obviously  at  a 
transition  stage  between  Groups  II.  and  III.,  and  a  special 
detailed  study  of  the  lines  and  bands  should  be  made. 


(5,  6)  The  spectra  of  these  two  stars  have  been  observed  by 
Vogel,  who  states  that  the  first  has  a  spectrum  of  the  solar 
type,  whilst  the  second  is  one  of  Group  IV.  The  usual  further 
observations  are  required  in  each  case. 

(7)  Notwithstanding  the  small  magnitude  of  this  star,  it  has, 
according  to  Vogel,  a  magnificent  spectrum  of  Group  VI.  The 
star  is  not  included  in  Duner's  Catalogue,  and  Vogel  gives  no 
particulars  as  to  the  number  and  character  of  the  bands  present. 
Further  detailed  observations  are  obviously  required.  The 
intensity  of  the  carbon  band  near  X564,  as  compared  with  the 
other  bands,  should  be  particularly  noted. 

(8)  This  variable  will  reach  a  maximum  about  April  27.  Its 
period  is  about  225  days,  and  it  varies  from  7"2-8'2  at  maximum' 
to  io"2-i2'8  at  minimum.  According  to  Duner,  the  spectrum 
is  one  of  Group  II.,  but  very  fully  developed.  As  no  details  of 
the  spectrum  are  given,  it  seems  probable  that  the  observation 
was  made  near  minimum,  and  the  present  maximum  may  afford 
an  opportunity  of  securing  further  observations.  As  in  similar 
variables,  bright  lines  may  also  be  looked  for. 

A.  Fowler. 

Mathe.matical  Study  of  the  Solar  Corona. — The 
Smithsonian  Institution,  Washington,  has  published  a  paper  by 
Prof.  Frank  H.  Bigelow  in  which  the  solar  corona  is  discussed 
by  spherical  harmonics.  The  subject  is  treated  by  this  theory 
on  the  supposition  that  the  phenomenon  seen  is  similar  to  that 
of  free  eleectricity,  the  rays  being  lines  of  force  and  the  coronal 
matter  being  discharged  from  the  body  of  the  sun,  or  arranged 
and  controlled  by  these  forces.  In  order  to  give  the  solution 
a  general  foundation  the  important  parts  of  the  theory  of  har- 
monics specially  relating  to  the  case  are  recapitulated,  and  the 
corresponding  geometrical  solution  given  in  a  notation  adapted 
to  the  sun.  An  analysis  of  the  lines  of  force  demonstrates  the 
applicability  of  the  formulae  of  statical  electricity  to  the  coronal 
structure,  hence  some  repulsive  force  must  exist  on  the  surface 
of  the  sun  which  acts  upon  the  corona  according  to  the  laws  of 
electric  potential.  It  is  shown  how  the  concentration  of  potential 
at  each  pole  throws  vertical  lines  of  force  at  the  polar  region, 
which  gradually  bend  each  side,  and  finally  close  on  the  equator  at 
a  certain  distance  from  the  centre.  Similarly  other  lines  are  traced 
which  leave  the  sphere  at  various  angles  to  the  vertical  axis  and 
have  diminished  potentials  ;  these  therefore  close  on  the  equator 
at  a  less  distance  from  the  centre  than  the  high  potential  vertical 
lines  thrown  out  at  the  polar  region.  «•.-*—< 

Applying  these  electrical  principles  to  the  solar  corona,  the 
author  thinks  that  the  straight  polar  rays  of  high  tetision  carry 
the  lightest  substances,  such  as  hydrogen,  meteoritic  matter, 
debris  of  comets  and  other  coronal  material  away  from  the  sun, 
and  they  soon  become  invisible  by  dispersion.  The  strong  quadri- 
lateral rays  which  form  the  appendages  conspicuously  seen  at 
periods  of  great  solar  activity  are  produced  by  four  lines  of 
force  having  potential  0*9,  08,  07,  and  06,  of  the  potential  at 
each  pole,  and  the  explanation  of  the  long  equatorial  wings,  with 
absence  of  well-marked  quadrilaterals,  seen  at  periods  of  mini- 
mum, is  that  they  are  due  to  the  closing  of  the  lines  of  force 
about  the  equator.  The  theory  is  tested  by  applying  it  to  two 
photographs  taken  by  Messrs.  Barnard  and  Pickering  on  January  I, 
1889,  and  Prof  Langley  submits  it  to  astronomers  and  physicists 
as  a  possible  clue  to  the  explanation  of  the  corona  and  as  sug- 
gesting the  direction  to  be  taken  in  future  o^servations  and 
investigations. 

Solar  Observations. — The  following  is  the  ;V.f«W  of  solar 
observations  made  at  Rome,  by  Prof.  Tacchini,  during  the  first 
three  months  of  this  year  : — 

Spots  and  Facultc. 


No.  of       Relative  frequency       Relative  magnitude 

Number 
of  spot- 

1890.           obser-              of 

of  days              of 

of 

groups 

vation.          spots. 

without          spots 
spots. 

faculee. 

per  day. 

Jan.  ...       20           I '40 

0-55          2-35 

33'5o 

060 

Feb....       23          0-13 

o"95          0*09 

1 3  26 

004 

Mar...       20           100 

070           275 
Prominemes. 

2575 

0-30 

No.  of  days 

Mean 

Mean 

Mean 

1890.                     of 

number. 

height. 

extension.. 

observation. 

// 

„ 

Jan.    ...            12 

1-92 

336 

17 

Feb.  ...           16 

I  "69 

37-8 

09 

Mar....           14 

2-21 

35 '5 

I"I 

596 


NATURE 


[April  24,  1890 


Astronomical  Society  of  France. — The  following  officers 
have  been  elected  for  the  session  1890-91  : — President,  M. 
H.  Faye,  Member  of  the  Institute.  Vice-Presidents  :  MM. 
Bouquet  de  la  Grye,  Member  of  the  Institute  ;  Camille  Flam- 
marion,  Laussedat,  and  Trouvelot,  of  Meudon  Observatory. 
Secretaries  :  MM.  Ph.  Gerigny,  Armelin,  and  Bertaux. 

The  Society  meets  at  the  Hotel  des  Societes  Savants,  28  Rue 
Serpente,  Paris,  and  there  is  an  Observatory  and  a  Library  open 
to  the  members. 

D'Arrest's  Comet. — The  following  ephemeris  for  the 
search  for  this  periodic  comet  on  its  return  this  year  is  given 
by  M.  G.  Leveau  in  Ast7'.  Nach.,  No.  2959  : — 

Ephemeris  for  Paris  Mean  Time. 


1890. 

R.A. 

N.P.D. 

1890. 

R.A. 

N.P.D. 

h.      m. 

0          / 

h.      m. 

Q 

April  26  .. 

•   16  47'4  . 

•   84  30 

June 

I  .. 

.  16  31-1  . 

..  78    3 

30.. 

•   16  47-3  . 

•  83  39 

5  •• 

.  16  277  . 

•  77  43 

May      4  .. 

.   16  46-8  . 

.  82  48 

4  •• 

.  16  24*2  . 

•77  31 

8  .. 

•   16  45-9  . 

..  81  58 

13  •• 

.  16  207  . 

..  77  27 

12  .. 

•   16  44-5  . 

..  81   10 

17  .. 

.  16  173  • 

..  77  33 

16  .. 

.   16  42-6  . 

..  80  24 

21  .. 

.    16    I4'2    . 

•  •  77  49 

20  .. 

.    16   40'2    . 

•■  79  41 

25  •• 

.  16  11-4  . 

..  78  14 

24  .. 

•  16  37-4  • 

••  79     3 

29  . 

.  16    90  . 

-  78  48 

28  . 

•  16  34-4 

..  78  30 

INFLUENZA  AND  WEATHER,  WITH  SPECIAL 
REFERENCE  TO  THE  RECENT  EPIDEMICS 

T  N  this  inquiry  the  authors  deal  only  with  deaths  recorded  by 
the  Registrar- General  as  due  to,  or  caused  by,  influenza  in 
London  between  the  years  1845-90.  The  statistics  for  London 
are  selected  because  there  is  there  a  vast  population  in  a  small 
area,  all  subject  to  the  same  climatic  conditions,  and  because 
there  is  also  there  a  weekly  record  of  deaths  and  their  causes 
for  a  long  period,  which  they  discussed  with  some  fulness  of  detail 
some  years  ago. 

After  making  allowance  for  certain  errors  to  which  such  an 
inquiry  is  liable,  arising  chiefly  from  the  methods  of  registration, 
it  is  found  that  the  figures  recorded  disclose  certain  phenomena 
with  such  emphasis  that  the  lessons  taught  by  the  phenomena 
stand  altogether  unaffected.  Thus,  as  regards  the  distribution  of 
deaths  over  the  year,  during  the  45  years,  the  results  show  a 
strongly  marked  winter  maximum  and  an  equally  marked 
summer  minimum  ;  along  with  which  there  is  also  a  small 
secondary  maximum  in  the  second  half  of  March  and  first  half 
of  April.  Thus,  broadly  considered,  the  distribution  of  deaths 
from  influenza  is  inversely  as  the  temperature,  being  at  the 
maximum  during  the  winter  months  when  temperature  is  lowest, 
and  at  the  minimum  in  the  summer  months  when  temperature  is 
highest.  Hence  the  curve  showing  the  distribution  of  deaths 
from  influenza  is  closely  congruent  with  the  curve  for  diseases  of 
the  respiratory  organs,  with  the  addition  of  a  slight  rise  in  spring, 
thus  suggesting  a  connection  between  influenza  and  diseases  of 
the  brain  and  the  nervous  system. 

During  the  last  45  years,  4690  deaths  are  registered  as  having 
occurred  from  influenza,  or  104  per  annum.  There  is  no  year 
in  which  there  has  not  been  some  deaths  recorded  as  due  to 
influenza;  but  during  the  12  years  ending  with  1889,  the 
registered  deaths  have  been  decidedly  fewer  than  during  the 
preceding  33  years,  the  mean  number  for  these  12  years  being 
only  6|,  falling  in  some  of  the  years  as  low  as  3.  There  have 
been  five  periods  during  these  years  in  which  the  figures  point 
to  the  prevalence  of  an  epidemic  of  influenza,  the  exact  periods 
of  which,  with  the  number  of  deaths  registered  as  due  to  in- 
fluenza, are  these  : — 

Deaths. 

December  1847  to  April  1848  1631 

March  to  May  185 1       258 

January  to  March  1855  ...         ...         ...  130 

November  1857  to  January    1858       123 

January  to  March  1890  545 


Total 


2687 


Thus   the   five   epidemics  yielded   2687   of  the  4690  deaths 
registered,   or   about  57   per   cent.     From  a   discussion  of  the 

'  Abstract  of  a  Paper,  by  Sir  Arthur  Mitchell  and  Dr.  Buchan,  read  at  the 
half-yearly  meeting  of  the  Scottish  Meteorological  Society,  March  31,  1890. 


details  of  each  epidemic  and  the  weather  which  prevailed  during 
each  of  them,  it  was  shown  that  in  each  case  the  rise  to  the 
maximum  was  strikingly  rapid  after  the  disease  was  recognized 
as  existing.  It  was  further  concluded  that  the  epidemics  of 
influenza  in  this  country  were  not,  though  they  occurred  during 
the  winter,  connected  with  exceptionally  cold  weather,  especially 
at  their  commencement,  but  on  the  contrary  rather  with  ex- 
ceptionally warm  weather,  which  manifested  itself  generally 
both  before  and  during  the  epidemic.  In  no  case  that  has 
occurred  was  any  exceptionally  cold  weather  intercalated  in  the 
period  of  the  epidemic,  accompanied  with  an  increase  of  deaths 
from  influenza,  or  even  with  an  arresting  of  the  downward 
course  of  the  curve  of  mortality,  if  the  cold  occurred  at  the  time 
the  epidemic  was  on  the  wane.  This  fact  presents  influenza 
under  widely  different  relations  to  temperature  as  compared  with 
all  diseases  of  the  respiratory  organs. 

During  the  first  four  weeks  of  1890,  when  the  mortality  from 
influenza  was  at  the  maximum,  the  total  mortality  from  all  causes 
was  2258  above  the  average  of  these  weeks,  and  of  this  number 
influenza  only  accounted  for  303,  thus  leaving  1955  deaths  due 
to  other  causes  ;  and  it  is  here  to  be  noted  that  during  the  time 
there  were  no  weather  conditions,  such  as  excessively  low 
temperature  or  ctense  persistent  fogs,  which  could  account  for 
this  very  large  increase  of  the  death-rate.  It  thus  became  a 
point  of  interest  to  ascertain  what  the  diseases  were  which  had 
an  exceptionally  high  mortality  during  the  period,  and  on  the 
other  hand  whether  there  had  been  any  diseases  with  a  mortality 
for  the  time  much  under  the  average. 

The  statistics  from  the  various  diseases  were  minutely  ex- 
amined, from  which  it  was  shown  that  those  which  yielded  an 
exceptionally  high  death-rate  during  the  influenza  epidemic  were 
diseases  of  the  respiratory  organs,  phthisis,  diseases  of  the 
circulatory  system,  rheumatism,  and  diseases  of  the  nervous 
system.  These  diseases,  particularly  those  of  the  respiratory 
organs,  produced  a  very  large  excess  above  their  averages,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  on  the  whole  temperature  had  been  par- 
ticularly high,  and  dense  fogs  absent,  which,  being  contrary  to 
all  rule,  plainly  indicated  that  during  the  period  something  of 
an  exceptional  character  had  been  operating  to  increase  the 
deaths  from  diNcases  of  the  respiratory  organs.  The  strong 
manifestation  of  nervous  symptoms  in  the  severe  headaches  and 
prostration  which  attended  the  attacks  of  influenza,  make  the 
increase  of  deaths  from  diseases  of  the  nervous  system  and  of 
phthisis  deeply  interesting,  as  suggestive  of  a  relation  to  the 
secondary  spring  maximum.  So,  also,  the  increased  number 
of  deaths  from  rheumatism  is  interesting  in  connection  with 
the  muscular  pains  which  were  .so  constant  a  symptom  of 
influenza. 

The  diseases  which  yielded  a  mortality  under  the  average 
during  the  prevalence  of  the  epidemic  were  diarrhoea  and 
dysentery,  liver  disease,  measles,  scarlet  fever,  typhoid  fever, 
and  erysipelas.  It  is,  however,  necessary  to  remark  that  the 
figures  refer  only  to  London,  and  that  in  other  places  where 
epidemics  of  measles  and  scarlet  fever  prevailed  at  the  time 
these  epidemics  might  show  a  mortality  above  the  average. 

On  the  question  of  age,  the  point  of  interest  centred  in  the 
fact  that  the  death-rate  of  all  persons  above  the  age  of  20 
rose  considerably  above  the  average  during  the  four  or  five 
weeks  immediately  preceding  the  commencement  of  the  regis- 
tration of  deaths  due  to  the  epidemic.  Thus,  though  deaths 
from  influenza  were  not  registered  in  November  and  December, 
there  appeared  to  have  been  something  then  present,  apart  from 
weather,  which  increased  the  mortality  of  all  persons  above  the 
age  of  20  much  above  the  mean.  At  ages  under  20  years, 
the  death-rate  rose  above  the  mean  only  in  the  first  three  weeks 
of  the  year. 

From  a  list  of  twenty-three  recorded  epidemics  of  influenza 
since  the  year  15 10,  it  appeared  that  spring  epidemics  were  more 
frequent  and  better  marked  than  they  would  be  if  the  figures  for 
the  past  forty-five  years  were  accepted  as  revealing  the  whole 
truth  ;  and  it  also  appeared  that  the  epidemic  of  influenza  has 
occurred  in  early  summer  and  continued  to  the  end  of  July. 
Facts,  however,  are  too  scanty  to  show  whether  the  increased 
mortality  during  this  early  summer  epidemic  extended  to  the 
classes  of  diseases  which  have  their  annual  maximum  mortality  in 
early  summer,  in  a  manner  similar  to  the  greatly  increased 
mortality  from  diseases  of  the  respiratory  organs  or  of  the 
nervous  system  according  as  the  epidemic  falls  during  the  winter 
or  the  spring  months. 

In  conclusion  it  was  remarked  that  in  discussions  regarding 


April  ?4,  1 890 J 


NATURE 


597 


the  spread  of  the  germs  of  diseases  from  one  country  to  another 
by  the  intervention  of  winds,  it  had  been  perhaps  universally 
assumed  that  it  is  only  the  winds  blowing  over  or  near  the  surface 
of  the  earth  which  were  concerned  in  the  dissemination  of  these 
germs.  Generally  it  has  been  concluded  that,  if  the  surface 
winds  do  not  account  for  the  successive  appearances  of  the 
epidemic  at  different  points,  the  germs  have  not  been  transported 
by  the  winds.  This,  however,  is  only  a  mode  of  looking  at 
the  subject  which  ignores  the  recent  developments  of  meteoro- 
logy and  its  teachings  regarding  atmospheric  circulation  through 
cyclones  and  anticyclones.  As  is  now  virtually  proved,  the  winds 
in  a  cyclone  are  drawn  inwards  towards  its  centre,  and  thence 
ascend  in  a  vast  aerial  column  to  the  upper  regions  of  the  atmo- 
sphere, whence  again  they  flow  as  an  upper  current  towards  any 
anticyclone  or  anticyclones  that  may  be  in  the  surrounding  region. 
Thereafter  they  slowly  descend  down  the  centre  of  the  anti- 
cyclone to  the  earth's  surface,  over  which  they  are  carried  in 
every  direction.  Thus,  for  example,  from  a  cyclone  in  Russia,  a 
vast  column  of  air  rises  from  the  surface,  carrying  with  it  particles 
of  dust,  germs,  and  other  light  impurities.  These  are  then 
conveyed  by  the  upper  current  to  the  anticyclone  that  may  zX  the 
time  overspread  Western  Europe,  and  thereafter  descend  to  the 
surface,  and  are  then  distributed  over  Western  and  Central 
Europe  by  winds  from  all  points  of  the  compass.  Owing  to  the 
rapidity  of  these  aerial  movements,  two  or  at  most  three  days  aie 
amply  sufficient  for  this  distribution. 


MATHEMATICAL  TEACHING  AT  THE 
SORBONNE,    1809-1889. 

T^HE  following  brief  sketch  of  the  illustrious  Professors  who 
-*■      have  during  the  last    eighty   years   occupied   the   mathe- 
matical chairs   at   the   Sorbonne  is  founded  upon    an  interest- 
ing address  by  the  veteran  mathematician,  M.  Ch.  Hermite.^ 

The  occupants,  in  1809,  of  the  respective  chairs,  wereiLacroix 
(Differential  and  Integral  Calculus),  Poisson  (Mechanics),  Biot 
(Astronomy),  Francoeur  (the  Higher  Algebra),  and  Hachette 
(Descriptive  Geometry).  Each,  in  his  respective  department, 
has  left  traces  of  his  power  which  are  still  in  evidence.  "  Nous 
evoquons  le  souvenir  de  ces  hommes  eminents  qui  ont  honore 
la  Faculte  des  Sciences  a  son  origine  ;  nous  voulons  rendre 
rhommage  qui  est  du  a  leur  memoire,  et  dans  cette  circonstance 
rappeler  leurs  litres  a  la  reconnaissance  du  pays."  M.  Hermite 
then  proceeds  to  analyze  in  turn  the  work  of  the  above  Pro- 
fessors. 

(1)  Of  Lacroix,  he  says:  "La  constante  preoccupation  de 
I'auteur  a  ete  d'etablir  entre  tant  de  theories  qu'il  expose,  s-ur 
des  matieres  si  diverses,  une  succession 'naturelle,  un  enchaine- 
ment  qui  en  facilite  I'etude  et  contribue  a  I'intelligence  generale 
de  I'analyse."     He  was  well  followed  by  Lefebure  de  Fourcy. 

(2)  Francceur  occupied  his  chair  down  to  1847  ;  he  was  the 
author  of  a  long  list  of  works.  "  La  concision  que  s'est  imposee 
I'auteur  pour  reunir  tant  de  matieres  dans  un  court  espace  ne 
porte  jamais  atteinte  a  la  clarte."  A  sketch  of  the  "  Urano- 
graphie  "  is  furnished  by  M.  Tisserand. 

(3)  Biot  was  also  a  long  occupant  of  his  chair,  "dont  il  est 
resle  titulaire  jusqu'en  1846."  M.  Wolf  furnishes  , a  note  (pp. 
36-40)  which  gives  a  full  account  of  the  "Traite  Elementaire 
d' Astronomic  physique."  "Biot  etait  un  erudit  et  un  ecrivain," 
in  M.  Hermite's  judgment. 

(4)  Poisson  is  a  Colossus  : — "  II  figure  parmi  eux  a  cote  de 
Laplace,  de  Lagrange,  et  de  Fourief.  C'est  surtout  de  I'auteur 
de  la  '  Mecanique  Celeste '  qu'il  se  rapproche  par  la  nature  de 
ses  travaux,  son  genie  analytique,  sa  puissance  pour  mettre  en 
ceuvre  toutes  les  ressources  du  calcul.  Lagrange,  a  qui  Ton  doit 
la  '  Mecanique  Analytique,'  et  de  grandes  decouvertes  dans  la 
theorie  du  son  et  la  mecanique  celeste,  avait  consacre  une  part 
importante  de  ses  efforts  aux  mathematiques  abstraites  ;  apres 
avoir  fonde  le  calcul  des  variations,  il  a  laisse  la  trace  de  son 
genie  dans  I'algebre  et  la  theorie  des  nombres.  Pour  Laplace  et 
Poisson,  I'analyse  pure  n'est  point  le  but,  mais  instrument ;  les 
applications  aux  phenomenes  physiques  sont  leur  objet  essentiel, 
et  Fourier,  en  annon^ant  a  I'Academie  des  Sciences  les  travaux 
de  Jacobi,  a  exprime  le  sentiment  qui  dominait  a  son  epoque, 
dans  ces  termes  que  nous  reproduisons  :  '  Les  questions  de  la 

'  "  Discours  prononce  devant  le  President  de  la  Republique,  le  5  Aout,  a 
rinaug'iration  de  la  nouvelle  Sorbonne,  par  M.  Ch.  Hermite,  Professeur  a 
la  Faculie  des  Sciences,  Membre  de  I'lnstitut,"  Bulletin  des  Sciences 
jUai/te>/tati</ttes,  }a.n\inry  iSgo  (pp.  £-36).     (Paris:  Gauthier-Villars.) 


philosophic  naturelle  qui  ont  pour  but  I'etude  mathematique  de 
tous  les  grands  phenomenes  sont  nussi  un  digne  et  principal 
objet  des  meditations  des  geometres.  On  doit  desirer  que  les 
personnes  les  plus  propres  a  perfectionner  la  science  du  calcul 
dirigent  leur  travaux  vers  ces  hautes  applications,  si  necessaires 
aux  progrei  de  I'intelligence  humaine.'  Mais,  en  ayant  un  autre 
but,  Poisson  et  Fourier  contribuent  au  developpement  de  I'ana- 
lyse, qu'ils  enrichissent  de  methodes,  de  resultats  nouveaux,  de 
notions  fondamentelles.  Nous  allons  essayer  de  montrer  I'im- 
portance  des  decouvertes  de  Poisson  dans  la  domaine  de  la 
physique  mathematique,  en  jetant  un  coup  d'oeil  rapide  sur 
quelques-uns  de  ses  memoires." 

(5)  Poisson  was  succeeded  by  Sturm,  whose  reputation  is 
founded  upon  his  well-known  theorem  in  the  theory  of  equa- 
tions. M.  Hermite  alludes  to  Prof.  Sylvester's  discovery  in 
this  branch. 

(6)  In  1838,  a  Chair  of  Mecanique  Physique  et  Experi- 
mentale  was  founded,  of  which  the  first  occupant  was  the  illus- 
trious Poncelet.  Commencing  with  an  account  of  the  "Traite 
des  Proprietes  Projectives  des  Figures,"  the  writer  goes  on  to 
describe  the  other  contributions  of  this  eminent  mathematician, 
who  was  succeeded  (7)  in  185 1  by  Delaunay.  Here,  ^ain, 
M.  Tisserand  comes  to  the  help  of  his  colleague  with  an  account 
of  Delaunay's  astronomical  work. 

(8)  A  short  and  highly  appreciative  account  follows  of  Le 
Verrier.  "  II  a  ete  donne  a  I'illustre  auteur  de  ne  point  laisser 
son  ceuvre  inachevee  ;  Le  Verrier  a  corrige  sur  son  lit  de  mort 
les  dernieres  feuilles  de  la  theorie  de  Neptune,  leguant  a  I'as- 
tronomie  un  monument  imperissable  qui  sera  I'honneur  de  son 
nom  ct  de  la  science  de  notre  pays." 

(9)  The  various  works  of  Lame  come  next  under  review. 
"  Lame  est  un  des  plus  beaux  genies  mathematiques  de  notre 
temps.  Des  decouvertes  capitales  qui  ont  ouvert  de  nouvelles 
voies  dans  la  theorie  de  la  chaleur,  la  theorie  de  I'elasticite, 
I'analyse  generale,  le  placent  au  nombre  des  grands  geometrei 
dont  la  trace  reste  a  jamais  dans  la  science." 

(10)  Liouville  ;  (ii)  Serret  ;  and  (12)  Duhamel  are  rapidly 
examined,  the  notice  of  this  last  "being  contributed  by  M. 
Bertrand. 

(13)  "  Chasles  est  I'une  des  plus  grandes  illustrations  de  la 
Faculte ;  ses  decouvertes  en  geomotrie,  les  ouvrages  qu'il  a 
publics  sur  cette  science  I'ont  place  au  premier  rang  parmi  les 
savants  de  I'Europe,  et  rendu  son  nom  a  jamais  celebre.  De 
grandes  et  belles  decouvertes  en  mecanique  se  sont  ajoutees  a 
son  oeuvre  principale,  ainsi  que  des  recherches  d'erudition  sur  les 
mathematiques  et  I'astronomie  des  Indiens  et  des  Arabes  ;  nous 
indiquerons  succinctement  ces  travaux  qui  ont  jete  tant  d'eclat, 
et  sont  presents  a  toutes  les  memoires."  The  notice  closes  with 
the  following  touching  sentence  :  "  il  nous  reste  a  dire  que  ses 
amis  et  tous  ceux  qui  ont  connu  notre  cher  et  venere  collegue 
gardent  I'inalterable  souvenir  de  la  bonte  qui,  chez  le  grand 
geometre,  etait  la  compagne  du  genie." 

(14)  Cauchy  is  also  treated  at  some  length.  "La  vie  du 
grand  geometre,  remplie  par  des  decouvertes  immortelles  qui 
sont  I'honneur  de  la  science  fran^aise,  I'a  ete  aussi  par  les 
oeuvres  de  la  charite  chretienne  et  une  inepuisable  bien- 
faisance." 

(15),  (16),  and  (17).  In  a  few  words  are  summed  up  the  principal 
results  obtained  by  other  colleagues  :  "  Nos  collegues  Puiseux, 
Briot,  et  Bouquet,  morts  il  y  a  peu  d'annees,  et  dont  nous  gardons 
si  affectueusement  le  souvenir,  se  sont  inspires  de  son  genie,  et  ont 
consacre  des  travaux  de  premier  ordre  k  poursuivre  dans  le 
domaine  de  I'analyse  les  consequences  de  ses  decouvertes." 

The  speaker  had  a  grand  theme,  and  perhaps  does  not  exalt 
too  highly  the  very  distinguished  mathematicians  who  have  pre- 
ceded, or  been  associated  with,  him  in  his  labours  at  the  Sorbonne. 
One  can  pardon  an  occasional  high-flown  expression  of  his 
admiration  for  them  and  for  their  achievements  :  to  ourselves 
the  perusal  of  his  discourse  has  furnished  much  pleasure,  and 
we  trust  there  will  be  as  distinguished  a  roll  of  Professors  to  be 
celebrated  when  the  work  of  the  new  Sorbonne  has  to  be 
narrated  by  M.  Hermite's  successor.  We  conclude  with  the 
closing  words  of  the  address  : — 

"Nousvenons  d'evoquer  le  souvenir  de  nos  predecesseurs, 
nous  a.vons  voulu  rendre  hommage  a  leur  memoire,  rappeler  leurs. 
travaux,  leurs  decouvertes,  les  grands  exemples  qu'ils  nous  ont 
laisses.  Notre  mission  est  de  continuer  leur  oeuvre,  et  d'ajouter 
a  leur  glorieux  heritage  ;  ce  devoir  nous  est  rendu  plus  sacre  par 
le  don  magnifique  que  nous  tenons  du  pays,  par  sa  genereuse 
assistance  pour  notre  enseignement  et  nos  travaux.  Tous,  maitres- 


598 


NATURE 


[April  24,  1890 


•de  conferences  et  professeurs,  nous  y  consacrerons  notre  dtivoue- 
ment,  nos  efforts  :  nous  avons  la  confiance  que,  pour  I'honneur 
•de  la  Science  et  de  la  France,  nous  saurons  fidelement  le 
remplir." 


SCIENTIFIC  SERIALS. 

The  American  lournal  of  Science,  April  1890. — On  the 
seolian  sandstones  of  Fernando  de  Noronha,  by  John  C.  Bran- 
ner.  These  sandstones  lie  upon  the  eastern  or  south-eastern 
sides  of  the  island,  at  an  elevation  of  70  feet  on  Ilha  do  Meio,  90 
feet  on  Sao  Jose,  and  about  100  feet  on  the  Ilha  Rapta,  and  at 
the  base  of  Atalaia  Grande.  The  author  has  closely  investigated 
the  formation,  and  finds  that  the  material  was  originally  de- 
posited in  the  form  of  sand-dunes  blown  up  by  winds  from 
the  south  or  south-east.  Analyses  of  several  specimens  of  the 
rock  are  given. — A  mountain  study  of  the  spectrum  of  aqueous 
vapour,  by  Charles  S.  Cook.  The  author  has  devised  a  means 
of  producing  an  artificial  line  whose  intensity  can  be  varied  at 
will  alongside  the  line  whose  intensity  is  required.  The  varia- 
tions in  the  blackness  of  the  artificial  line  are  effected  by  the  use 
of  a  micrometer  screw,  the  readings  of  which  constitute  an 
arbitrary  value  of  intensities.  It  is  found,  (l)  that  the  spectro- 
scope studies  vapour  height  primarily,  and  humidity  only 
secondarily ;  (2)  during  stormy  weather  vapour  ascends  to  alti- 
tudes greater  than  is  usually  supposed  ;  (3)  the  great  absorption 
of  storm  clouds  is  due  to  their  great  thickness,  or  to  extensive 
strata  of  damp  air  associated  with  them,  more  than  to  any 
peculiar  behaviour  as  clouds. — On  the  occurrence  of  basalt  dykes 
in  the  Upper  Palseozoic  series  in  Central  Appalachian  Virginia, 
by  Nelson  H.  Darton  ;  with  nates  on  the  petrography,  by  J. 
S.  Diller. — Additional  notes  on  the  tryolite  from  Utah,  by  W. 
F.  Hillebrand  and  E.  S.  Dana.  The  composition  and  crystal- 
line form  of  this  mineral  are  considered.  — W.  S.  Bayley,  on  the 
origin  of  the  soda-granite  and  quartz-keratophyre  of  Pigeon 
Point,  Minnesota.  These  rocks  have  been  previously  described 
by  the  author  {Amer.  yourn.,  January  1889).  In  the  present 
■note  the  reasons  are  pointed  out  which  lead  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  red  rock  is  of  contact  origin,  and  produced  by  the  action 
of  the  gabbro  upon  the  slate  and  quartzites. — Frank  Waldo,  in 
recent  contributions  to  dynamical  meteorology,  gives  a  general 
idea  of  the  nature  of  each  of  fourteen  papers  on  meteorology  ; 
most  of  the  papers  being  by  German  physicists.  The  attitude  of 
the  writers  towards  meteorology  is  also  indicated  by  reference  to 
other  work  done  in  the  same  direction. — Two  methods  for  the 
direct  determination  of  chlorine  in  mixtures  of  alkaline  chlorides 
and  iodides,  by  F.  A.  Goochand  F.  W.  Mar. — ^On  the  occurrence 
of  polycrase,  or  of  an  allied  species,  in  both  North  and  South 
Carolina,  by  W.  E.  Hidden  and  J.  R.  Mackintosh.  The 
analyses,  so  far  as  they  go,  show  that  a  mineral  previously 
noticed  (^w^r.  yourn.,  November  1888)  is  very  closely  allied  to, 
if  not  identical  with,  the  polycrase  from  Hitteroe,  Norway, 
analyzed  by  Rammelsberg. — Origin  of  some  topographic  features 
of  Central  Texas,  by  Ralph  S.  Tarr.— On  the  formation  of 
silver  silicate,  by  J.  Dawson  Hawkins.  A  simple  method  for 
the  preparation  of  this  compound  is  described.  The  reaction 
made  use  of  is  NaoSiOg  +  aAgNOj  =  AgjSiOg  +  2NaN03. 


SOCIETIES  AND  ACADEMIES 
London. 

Royal  Society,  April  17, — "Preliminary  Note  on  Sup- 
plementary Magnetic  Surveys  of  Special  Districts  in  the  British 
Isles."  By  A.  W.  Riicker,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  and  T.  E.  Thorpe, 
Ph.D.,  B.Sc,  (Vict.),  F.R.S. 

During  the  summer  of  1889  we  carried  out  additional  mag- 
netic surveys  of  the  Western  Isles  and  the  West  Coast  of  Scot- 
land, and  of  a  tract  of  country  in  Yorkshire  and  Lincolnshire. 

Both  districts  were  selected  with  special  objects  in  view.  We 
had  found  that  powerful  horizontal  disturbing  forces  acted  west- 
wards from  the  Sound  of  Islay,  from  lona,  and  from  Tiree,  and 
we  had  deduced  a  similar  direction  for  the  disturbing  force  at 
Glenmorven  from  Mr.  Welsh's  survey  of  Scotland  in  1857-58. 
The  whole  district  presents  peculiar  difficulties,  partly  from  the 
fact  that  local  disturbance  is  likely  to  mask  the  effects  of  the 
regional  forces,  partly  because  the  normal  values  of  the  elements 


must  be  especially  uncertain  at  stations  on  the  edge  of  the  area 
of  our  survey. 

If,  then,  the  general  westward  tendency  of  the  horizontal 
disturbing  forces  was  due  to  some  source  of  error,  stations  in  the 
extreme  south  of  the  Hebrides  would  in  all  probability  be  simi- 
larly affected.  If  the  directions  of  the  forces  were  due  to  a 
physical  cause,  such  as  a  centre  of  attraction  out  at  sea  to  the 
west  of  Tiree,  then  the  disturbing  forces  in  the  Southern 
Hebrides  would  almost  certainly  be  directed  southwards 
towards  it. 

The  observations  made  last  summer  prove  (i)  that  the  direc- 
tion of  the  disturbing  horizontal  force  at  Bernera,  which  is  the 
southernmost  island  of  the  Hebridean  group,  is  due  south  ;  and 
(2)  that,  as  this  point  is  approached  from  the  north,  the  down- 
ward vertical  disturbing  attraction  on  the  north  pole  of  the 
needle  regularly  increases,  which  exactly  agrees  with  the  sup- 
position that  a  centre  of  attraction  is  being  approached. 

There  is,  therefore,  now  no  doubt  that  there  is  a  centre  of 
attraction  on  the  north  pole  of  the  needle  to  the  south  of  the 
Hebrides  and  to  the  west  of  Tiree. 

(2)  In  one  of  the  maps  communicated  to  the  Society  last  year 
we  drew  two  lines,  bounding  a  district  about  150  miles  long 
and  40  miles  broad,  in  Yorkshire  and  Lincolnshire,  and  gave 
reasons  for  the  belief  that  a  ridge  line  or  locus  of  attraction  lay 
between  them. 

This  conclusion  has  now  been  tested  by  means  of  thirty-five 
additional  stations,  with  the  following  results  : — 

(i)  At  all  stations  (with  one  exception)  on  or  near  the  two 
lines,  the  horizontal  disturbing  forces  tend  towards  the  centre 
of  the  district  they  bound. 

(2)  The  downward  vertical  disturbing  forces  are  greater  in 
the  centre  of  the  district  than  at  its  boundaries.  In  particular, 
there  are  two  well-marked  regions  of  very  high  vertical  force. 

(3)  The  greatest  vertical  force  disturbances  occur  at  Market 
Weighton,  where  the  older  sedimentary  rocks  are  known  to 
approach  the  surface,  and  at  Harrogate,  which  is  on  the  apex  of 
an  anticlinal. 

(4)  The  central  ridge  line  runs  from  the  Wash  parallel  to  the 
line  of  the  Wolds  to  Brigg.  Thence  it  appears  to  turn  west, 
and  reaches  Market  Weighton  vid  Butterwick  and  Howden. 
One  or  two  additional  stations  are,  however,  required  to  deter- 
mine whether  this  bend  is  real,  or  whether  the  line  runs  direct 
from  Brigg  to  Market  Weighton.  From  the  latter  town  it 
passes  to  the  limestone  district  of  Yorkshire  and  traverses  its 
centre.  It  has  not  yet  been  traced  west  of  the  line  of  the  Mid- 
land Railway  between  Settle  and  Hawes,  but  there  is  ground  for 
believing  that  it  continues  to  the  Lake  District. 

Although,  therefore,  one  or  two  points  of  detail  remain  for 
further  investigation,  the*  existence  of  a  line  of  attraction  150 
miles  long  is  proved  beyond  the  possibility  of  doubt,  and  for 
about  90  miles  its  position  is  known  to  within  5  miles. 

There  are,  then,  even  in  those  parts  of  England  where  the 
superficial  strata  are  not  magnetic,  regions  of  high  vertical  force 
comparable  in  size  with  small  counties,  and  ridge  lines  or  loci  of 
attraction  as  long  and  almost  as  clearly  defined  as  the  rivers. 
Their  course  is  closely  connected  with  the  geology  of  the 
districts  through  which  they  run. 

Royal  Meterological  Society,  April  16. — Mr.  Baldwin 
Latham,  President,  in  the  chair. — The  following  papers  were 
read  : — The  cold  period  at  the  beginning  of  March  1890,  by  Mr. 
C.  Harding.  At  the  commencement  of  the  month  a  rather 
heavy  fall  of  snow  was  experienced  in  many  parts  of  England, 
and  very  cold  weather  set  in  over  the  midland,  eastern,  and 
southern  districts,  the  temperature  on  the  3rd  and  4th  falling 
to  a  lower  point  than  at  any  time  in  the  previous  winter.  The 
lowest  authentic  thermometer  readings,  in  approved  screens, 
were  5^  at  Beddington,  6"  at  Kenley  in  Surrey  and  Hillington 
in  Norfolk,  7°  at  Chelmsford  and  Beckenham,  8°  at  Addiscombe, 
9°  at  Reigate  and  Brockham,  and  10°  in  many  parts  of  Kent  and 
Surrey.  At  Greenwich  Observatory  the  thermometer  registered 
13°,  which  has  only  once  been  equalled  in  March  during  the  last 
100  years,  the  same  reading  having  occurred  on  March  14,  1845. 
During  the  last  half-century  the  temperature  in  March  has  only 
previously  fallen  below  20°  in  three  years,  whilst  during  the 
whole  winter  so  low  a  temperature  has  only  occurred  in  eight 
years. — Note  on  the  whirlwind  which  occurred  at  Fulford,  near 
York,  March  8,  1890,  by  Mr.  J.  E.  Clark.  A  sharp  and  heavy 
thunderstorm  occurred  at  York  about  2.30  p.m.  At  the  same  time, 
or  shortly  afterwards,  a  whirlwind  passed  a  little  to  the  south  of 
the  city,  from  Bishopthorpe  to  Heslington,  a  distance  of  about 


April  24,  1890] 


NATURE 


599 


4  miles,  its  width  varying  from  3  or  4  to  250  yards.  The  author 
made  a  careful  survey  of  the  track  of  the  whirlwind,  and  de- 
scribed the  damage  done  by  it  to  trees,  buildings,  &c. — On  the 
possibility  of  forecasting  the  weather  by  means  of  monthly 
averages,  by  Mr.  A.  E.  Watson.  The  author  is  of  opinion  that 
the  averajje  values  of  meteorological  phenomena  are  constant 
quantities,  and  that  any  variation  from  them  is  sure  to  be  met  by 
a  compensating  variation  in  the  opposite  direction. 

Zoological  Society,  April  15. — Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger,  in 
the  chair. — Mr.  A.  Smith-Woodward,  read  a  paper  on  some  new 
fishes  from  the  English  Wealden  and  Purbeck  Beds,  referable  to 
the  genera  Oligopleurus,  Strobilodus,  and  Mesodon.  Detailed 
descriptions  of  several  fossils  of  these  genera,  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  were  given.  Olizoplettrus  was  stated  to  be  represented 
by  a  single  species  in  the  Wealden  of  the  Isle  of  Wight,  occurring 
also  in  the  Purbeck  of  Dorsetshire  ;  and  the  latter  formation  had 
yielded  at  least  one  species  both  of  Sirolnlodiis  and  Mesodon. 
Previous  researches  had  already  indicated  a  close  connection 
between  the  fish-fauna  of  the  English  Purbeck  Beds  and  that  of 
the  Upper  Jurassic  Lithographic  Stones  of  France,  Bavaria,  and 
Wiirtemberg  ;  and  the  new  forms  now  described  tended  to  demon- 
strate that  alliance  even  more  clearly. — Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger 
read  the  second  of  a  series  of  reports  on  the  additions  to  the 
Batrachian  Collection  in  the  Natural  History  Museum.  Since 
1886,  when  the  first  report  was  made  on  this  subject,  examples 
of  74  additional  species  of  Batrachians  had  been  acquired. 
Amongst  these  was  a  remarkable  new  form  allied  to  the  family 
Engystomatidas,  proposed  to  be  called  Genyophryne  thomsoni, 
based  on  a  single  specimen  obtained  by  Mr.  Basil  Thomson  on 
Sudest  Island,  near  South-East  New  Guinea.  The  form  was 
stated  to  be  unique  in  having  teeth  in  the  lower,  but  none  in  the 
upper  jaw. — Mr.  Frank  E.  Beddard  read  a  paper  on  the  structure 
of  Psop/iia,  and  on  its  relations  to  other  birds.  The  author  was 
inclined  to  consider  Psophia  most  nearly  allied  to  Cariama  and 
Ckunga,  and  more  distantly  to  Rhinochettis,  but  entitled  to  stand 
as  a  distinct  family  in  the  group  of  Cranes  and  their  allies. — Mr. 
Henry  Seebohm  gave  an  account  of  a  collection  of  birds  from  the 
northern  part  of  the  province  of  Fokien,  South-Eastem  China. 
Several  interesting  species  were  represented  in  the  series, 
amongst  which  was  a  new  Hemixos,  proposed  to  be  called  H. 
canipennis. 

Linnean  Society,  April  3.— Mr.  Carruthers,  F.R.S.,  Presi- 
,  dent,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  P.  Martin  Duncan  exhibited  a  trans- 
verse section  of  a  coral,  Caryophyllia  clavus,  showing  septa  and 
irregular  theca  between  them. — Mr.  B.  D.  Jackson  exhibited 
some  seeds  of  Mystacidium  filicormi,  an  epiphytic  Orchid  for- 
warded from  South  Africa  by  Mr.  Henry  Hutton,  of  Kimberly. — 
A  paper  by  Prof.  W.  II.  Parker,  on  the  morphology  of  the 
GallinacecE,  in  the  unavoidable  absence  of  the  author  was  read 
by  Mr.  W.  P.  Sladen  ;  and  a  discussion  followed,  in  which  Dr. 
St.  George  Mivart,  Prof.  Duncan,  and  Mr.  J.  E.  Harting  took 
part. 

Paris. 

Academy  of  Sciences,  April  14. — M.  Hermite,  President, 
in  the  chair. — On  the  theory  of  the  optical  system  formed  by  a 
telescope  and  a  plane  mirror  movable  about  an  axis,  by  MM. 
Lccwy  and  Puiseux.     One  of  the  problems  studied  is  to  deter- 
mine the  exact  co-ordinates   of  a  star  with  a  telescope  and  a 
plane  mirror  placed  in  front  of  the  object-glass.  —On  the  elements 
of    peritoneal   serum,  by  M.   L.   Ranvier.      The  humour  was 
obtained  from  the  domestic  rabbit,  the  rat  {Mus  decumamis),  and 
the  cat.     Microscopical  examination  of  the  preparations  showed 
the  presence  of  red  globules  of  blood  (hrematics)  whatever  pre- 
cautions were  taken.     It  is  therefore  considered   as   a   normal 
element,     physiological,    not    accidental,   of   peritoneal  serum. 
Colourless  spherical  lymphatic  cells,  having  dimensions  from  ao^u 
to   100^,   are   also   described ;    the   volume,  structure,  and  re- 
actions of  these  cells  from  the  three  animals,  however,  is  found 
to  vary.— On  the  artificial  production  of  silk,  by  M.  Emile  Blan- 
chard. — /I'/fMw/ of  solar  observations  made  at  the  Royal  Obser- 
'  vatory  of  the  College  of  Rome  during  the  first  three  months  of 
1  the  year   1890,  by  M.  P.  Tacchini.— Observations  of  sun-sp  its 
I  made  in  1 889  at  the  Lyons  Observatory,  by  M.  Em.  Marchand. 
f.  The  first  three  months  of  this  year  are  also  included  in  the  list. 
V  Tables  are  given  showing  the  number  of  days  without  spots,  the 
'  duration  and  latitude  of  spots,  and  their  mean  total  surface  (umbra 
and  penumbra)  expressed  in  millionths  of  the  sun's  visible  surface. 
— Approximate  rectification  of  an  arc  of  a  curve,  by  M.  A.  E. 
rdlet.— Construction  for  the  radius  of  curvature  of  symmetrical 


triangular  curves,  of  plane  anharmonic  curves, 'and  of  asymptotic 
lines  of  Steiner's  surface,  by  M.  G.  Fouret. — A  paper  by  M.  A. 
Ditte,  on  the  action  of  nitric  acid  on  aluminium,  shows  that  this 
acid  acts  upon  aluminium  in  much  the  same  way  as  sulphuric 
acid.     The  slowness   of  the  reaction  is  due  to  the   formation 
of   a  protecting   covering   of  gas.     As   in   the    case    of   zinc, 
when  weak  nitric  acid  is  employed  the  gases  produced  consist  of 
nitric     oxide    and  nitrogen,    together    with    some    ammonia ; 
with  3  per  cent,  acid  in  presence  of  a  little  platinum  chloride, 
ammonia  is  almost  the  sole  product.     Just  as  with  the  sulphate, 
the  nitrate  forms  with  aluminium  in  presence  of  water  a  basic 
nitrate  with   liberation    of  hydrogen. — On  the  preparation    of 
hydrobromic  acid,   by  M.   A.  Recoura.     The  author   passes  a 
stream  of  H2S  through  bromine,  and  washes  the  gaseous  HBr 
produced  by  passing  it  through  a  solution  of  HBr  containing  a 
little  red  phosphorus  in  suspension.     The  method  admits  of  the 
production  of  gaseous  HBr  at  any  desired  rate,  and  without  the 
necessity  of  the  continual  watching  required  by  the   methods 
formerly  employed. — On  the  oxidation  of  hypophosphorous   acid 
by  hydrogenized  palladium  in  the  absence  of  oxygen,  by  M.   R. 
Engel.     In  the  precipitation  of  palladium  by  hypophosphorous 
acid  according  to  the  method  followed  by  Wurtz  and  Graham, 
the  author    finds    that    the    product,    contrary    to   the    state- 
ments of  those  investigators,  contains  hydrogen.     The   spongy 
palladium  produced  decomposes  an  unlimited  quantity  of  phos- 
phorous   acid,   hydrogen    being    evolved. — M.    P.    Cazeneuve 
contributes  a  paper  on  the  oxidizing   and  decolorizing   proper- 
ties of  charcoal. — M.   E.  Jungfleisch,   in  a  note   on  camphoric 
acids,  shows   that   the  separation  of   several    acids   is  possible 
when  advantage   is   taken   of    their    differing    solubilities. — A 
note   on    the    acid    malonate,    the    quadromalonate,    and    the 
quadroxalate  of  potassium,  by  M.  G.  Massol,  gives  the  thermal 
properties   of    these   salts,    and     an    analysis  of    the    quadro- 
malonate.— M.  L,  Lindet  describes  a  method  for  the  extraction 
of  raffinose  from  molasses,  and  for  the  separation  of  raffinose 
from  saccharose,    the  separation  depending  upon   the  greater 
solubility  of  raffinose  in  absolute  methyl  alcohol,   and  its  much 
inferior  solubility  in  80  per  cent,  ethyl  alcohol,  as  compared  with 
the  solubility  in  each   medium  of  saccharose. — On    a   pseudo- 
typhoid  bacillus  found  in  river  water  by  M.  Cas^ederat.     The 
author  has  found  in  Marseilles  drinking-water  a  bacillus  having 
a  great  resemblance  to  that  of  typhoid  fever.  The  investigations, 
so  far  as  they  have  gone,  seem  to  fully  establish  the  identity  of 
the  two  bacilli. — On  the  microbes  of  hsemoglobinuria  of  the 
bull,  by  M.  V.  Babes.     An  examination  of  the  character  of  this 
organism  shows  that  it  has  no  well-established  place  in  the  classi- 
fication of  microbes,  and  that  the  conditions  of  culture  are  not 
yet  well  determined.     Nevertheless,    its   special    reactions,    its 
localization  in   the   red   globules,   and   its    transmissibility    to 
animals,  leave  no  room  for  doubt  as  to  its  pathological  sig- 
nificance.— Nutrition  in  hysteria,  by  MM.  Gilles  de  la  Tourette 
and  H.  Cathelineau.     It  is  noted  that  in  hysteria,  notwithstand- 
ing nervous   pathological  manifestations  other  than  permanent 
affections,    nutrition    is   effected   normally. — On    operation    for 
strabismus  without  tenotomy,   by    M.   H.   Parinaud. — On   the 
function  of  air  in  the   physiological   mechanism   of  hatching, 
sloughing,  and  metamorphosis  among  Orthopterous   insects  of 
the  family  Acridides,  by  M.  J.  Kunckel  d'Herculais. — On  a  new 
Lycopodium  of  the  Coal-measures  [Lycopodiopsis  Derbyi),  by  M. 
B.  Renault, — Pebble  impressions,  by  M.  Ch.  Contejean.     The 
paper  refers  to  Tertiary  pudding-stones  found  near  Montbeliard. 

Berlin. 

Physiological  Society,  March  28. — Prof  du  Bois-Reymond, 
President,  in  the  chair. — Prof.  Salkowski  spoke  on  fermentative 
processes  which  occur  in  animal  tissues,  employing  chloroform- 
water  to  discriminate  between  the  action  of  ferments  (organized) 
and  enzymes  (unorganized).  He  had  thus  found  that  a  fermentation 
(zymolysis)  occurs  in  yeast-cells,  by  which  their  cellulose  is  partly 
c(mverted  into  a  Isevo  rotatory  sugar  and  the  nuclein  into  sub- 
stances of  the  xanthin  series.  He  had  further  isolated  from 
yeast-cells,  apart  from  their  cellulose,  two  other  carbohydrates, 
one  belonging  to  the  gum  series  and  one  resembling  glycogen  ; 
either  of  these  might  have  been  the  source  of  the  above- 
mentioned  sugar.  In  a  similar  way  he  had  studied  the 
fermentative  changes  which  take  place  in  liver  and  muscle,  and 
found  them  to  yield  a  series  of  distinct  products  which  could  be 
determined  both  qualitatively  and  quantitatively.  He  concluded 
fr  .m  his  researches  that  fermentative  (zymolytic)  processes  are 
continually  taking  place  in   living  tissues,    and   play  a    most 


6oo 


NATURE 


[April  24,  1890 


important  part  in  the  chemistry  of  their  metabolism.— Dr. 
Rosenberg  demonstrated  a  new  reaction  of  uric  acid.  When 
urine  is  made  faintly  alkaline,  it  yields  a  dark  blue  colouration 
on  the  addition  of  phosphotungstic  acid,  which  he  had  satisfied 
himself  was  due  to  the  presence  of  uric  acid  alone  among  the 
other  constituents  of  the  excretion. — Dr.  Goldscheider  gave  an 
account  of  some  experiments  which  he  had  made  some  five  years 
ago,  to  show  that  the  principle  of  "specific  nerve  energy  "  holds 
good  for  the  sense  of  taste.  By  isolated  stimulation  of  separate 
taste-papillae  he  succeeded  in  showing  that  there  exist,  in  all,  four 
kinds  or  qualities  of  taste — sour,  sweet,  bitter,  and  salt ;  and  that 
specific  end-organs  exist  for  each  kind  of  taste.  By  electrical 
stimulation  there  arises  at  the  anode  not  only  the  sensation 
of  sour,  but  also  of  bitter  and  sweet  ;  at  the  kathode  purely 
sensory  impulses  are  aroused  in  addition  to  the  gustatory,  and 
to  the  fusion  of  these  two  is  due  the  "alkaline"  taste  of  which 
some  authors  speak.  It  appeared  from  his  researches  that  the 
hard  palate  contained  end-organs  chiefly  for  the  perception  of 
sweet  tastes. — Dr.  I.  Munk  spoke  on  muscular  work  and 
nitrogenous  metabolism.  He  criticized  the  recent  work  of 
Argutinsky,  according  to  which  the  work  done  in  climbing  a 
mountain,  and  the  heat  produced,  are  the  outcome  of  a  breaking 
down  of  nitrogenous  material.  Having  recalculated  Argutinsky's 
results,  he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  (l)  his  body  was  not  in 
nitrogenous  equilibrium  even  during  rest ;  (2)  the  amount  of 
carbohydrate  which  he  took  was  insufficient  to  account  for  the 
heat-production  during  rest.  As  is  well  known,  both  these 
factors  lead  to  an  increased  nitrogenous  metabolism  when  extra 
work  is  done,  the  energy  required  for  the  excess  of  work  being 
obtained  from  the  breaking  down  of  proteids  ;  hence  no  con- 
clusions as  to  what  normally  takes  place  can  be  drawn  from 
Argutinsky's  experiments.  He  further  pointed  out  that 
Oppenheim's  experiments  have  shown  that  dyspncea  leads  to 
increased  nitrogenous  metabolism,  and  that  hence  dyspnoea  may 
very  probably  have  played  some  part  during  the  exertion  of 
excessive  climbing.  While  not  doubting  the  accuracy  of  the 
experiments,  he  did  not  feel  that  the  conclusions  which 
Argutinsky  had  drawn  from  them  were  justifiable. 

GOTTINGEN. 

Royal  Society  of  Sciences,  Oct.  15,  1889. — On  the  granular 
pigments  occurring  in  man,  by  Dr.  F.  Maas.  Two  chemically 
distinct  groups  of  pigments  occur  :  (i)  melanin,  (2)  the  granu- 
lar colouring  matters  here  referred  to.  The  latter  are  found  at 
all  periods  of  life,  but  increase  in  quantity  and  in  the  size  of  the 
granules  with  age.  They  are  normal  products,  not  morbid. 
They  are  not  only  transformed  but  produced  by  the  corpuscle- 
carrying  cells.  They  are  not  wholly  derived  from  the  blood  : 
the  pigment  found  in  the  heart  is  derived  from  a  fatty  body.  The 
several  pigments  can  be  distinguished  by  their  reactions  with 
hydrochloric  and  acetic  acids,  and  with  caustic  potash. — On  the 
analogue  of  Kummer's  surface  for  ^  =  3,  by  W.  Wirtinger. 
The  author  investigates  the  continuum  obtained  by  taking,  as 
the  eight  homogeneous  point-co-ordinates  of  a  7-dimension 
space,  eight  linearly  independent  squares  of  theta-functions  of 
three  variables.  It  appears  that  this  possesses  collineations 
analogous  to  the  system  for  Kummer's  surface,  as  also  the  cor- 
responding system  of  reciprocal  transformations  into  itself. 

October  23,  1889. — Determination  of  the  elastic  constants  of 
Iceland  spar,  by  W.  Voigt.  The  author  uses  the  refraction 
observations  of  G.  Baumgarten,  and  gives  elaborate  tables  of  his 
own  measurements.  I  He  discusses  the  property  of  spar  by 
which  the  crystal  can  be  forced  by  shearing  into  its  twin  form, 
and  gives  diagrams  illustrating  the  changes  in  the  traction  and 
torsion  coefficients. — Determination  of  the  elastic  constants  of 
certain  dense  minerals,  by  W.  Voigt  and  P.  Drude.  The 
minerals  are  dense  fluor  spar,  Solenhofen  stone,  and  dense 
barytes. 

December  3, 1889. — On  thermo-electric  currents  in  crystals,  by 
Th.  Liebisch.  The  author  confirms  some  of  Biickstrom's  results, 
and  finds  that,  in  a  rectangular  parallelepiped  of  homogeneous 
conducting  crystal  of  the  triclinic  system,  embedded  in  homo- 
geneous isotropic  "  normal  "  metal,  "  the  thermo-electric  force 
in  the  direction  of  the  steepest  temperature  gradient  is  repre- 
sented by  the  squared  reciprocal  of  the  parallel  radius  vector  of 
a  certain  ellipsoid  E."— On  contrast-phenomena  resulting  from 
suspended  attention,  by  Dr.  F.  Schumann.  Psycho-physical 
experiments  on  the  estimation  of  short  periods  of  time,  &c. 

December  25, 1889. — On  the  fertilization  of  the  owaoi  Agelastica 
alni,  L.,  by  Dr.  H.  Henking.     In  this  insect  it  is  observed  that 


in  ova  taken  from  the  oviducts  a  number  of  spermatozoa  pene- 
trate deeply  among  the  yolk-masses  as  far  as  the  level  of  the 
female  pronucleus.  Peculiar  karyokinetic  appearances  are 
described. — Contribution  to  the  theory  of  the  even  Abelian 
sigma-function  of  three  arguments,  by  Ernst  Pascal.  This  is  a 
continuation  of  the  author's  previous  work  on  the  odd  sigma- 
function.  The  terms  of  the  developments  are  combinants  of  a 
net  of  quaternary  quadratic  forms. — On  a  hyperelliptic  multi- 
plication equation,  by  H.  Burkhardt.  This  equation  for  hyper- 
elliptic functions  (/  =  2)  is  the  generalisation  of  Jacobi's 
equation  for  elliptic  functions, 

Amsterdam. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  March  29, — Prof,  van  der 
W^aals,  Vice-President,  in  the  chair. — M.  H.  A.  Lorentz  dealt 
with  the  molecular  theory  of  diluted  solutions.  He  showed  how 
the  known  formula  for  the  vapour-pressure  of  such  solutions  may 
be  derived  from  considerations  on  molecular  motion  and  attrac- 
tion, and  how  a  similar  theory  applies  to  a  conceivable  mechanism 
of  osmotic  pressure, — M.  Baehr  gave  some  observations  on  the 
herpolhodie  of  Poinsot,  and  explained  that  this  cannot  have  any 
points  of  inflexion,  unless  the  ellipsoid  be  not  a  central  one. — M. 
Pekelharing  spoke  of  "the  destruction  of  anthrax  spores  by 
rabbits'  blood." 

Stockholm. 

Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  April  9. — On  the  researches 
in  zoology  made  at  the  Zoological  Station  of  the  Academy  during 
1889,  by  Prof.  S.  Loven. — On  the  possibility  of  the  triangulation 
of  Spitzbergen,  by  Prof.  Rosen. — An  analysis  of  the  liquid 
inclosures  in  topaz,  or  the  so-called  Brewsterlinite,  by  Otto 
Nordenskiold. — On  the  use  of  invariants  and  seminvariants  for 
the  solution  of  common  algebraic  equations  of  the  four  lowest 
degrees,  by  Dr.  A.  Bergen. — On  the  structure  of  the  fruit-wall 
in  the  Labiatas,  by  Miss  A.  Olbers. — Some  researches  on  acci- 
dental double  refraction  of  gelatinous  substances,  by  Dr.  G. 
Bjerken. — On  the  action  of  iodohydric  acid  on  1-5  nitronaph- 
thalin-sulphon-acid-amid,  by  A.  Ekbom. 


CONTENTS.  PAGE 

The  Revised  Instructions  to  Inspectors 577 

Oranges  in  India.     By  C.  B.  Clarke,  F.R.S 579 

A  Naturalist  among  the  Head-hunters.  By  A.  R,  W,    582 
Our  Book  Shelf:— 

Girard :     "  Recherches    sur     les     Tremblements    de 

Terre " 583 

Eder :    "La   Photographic    a   la   Lumiere   du   Mag- 
nesium " 584 

Letters  to  the  Editor : — 

Panmixia. — Prof.   George  J,   Romanes,   F.R.S.  ; 

R.  Haig  Thomas 584 

The  "  Rollers"  of  Ascension  and  St,  Helena. — Prof. 

Cleveland  Abbe 585 

Self-Cclonization   of  Coco-nut  Palm. — Captain  W. 

J.  L.  Wharton,  R.N.,  F.R.S 585 

Nessler's  Ammonia  Test  as  a  Micro-chemical  Reagent 

for  Tannin. — Spencer  Moore 585 

The  Moon  in  London.— T.  R.  R.  Stebbing  ....    586 
Foreign  Substances  attached  to  Crabs. — Ernest  W. 

L.  Holt 586 

The  Relative  Prevalence  of  North-east   and    South- 
west Winds.— William  Ellis     586 

Science  at  Eton.— Lieut. -General  J.  F.  Tennant, 

R.E.,  F.R.S 587 

Modigliani's    Exploration   of  Nias   Island.      {Illus- 
trated.)    By  Prof.  Henry  H.  Giglioli 587 

Notes 591 

Our  Astronomical  Column : — 

Objects  for  the  Spectroscope.— A.  Fowler 595 

Mathematical  Study  of  the  Solar  Corona 595 

Solar  Observations 59'» 

D'Arrest's  Comet • 59^ 

Influenza  and  Weather,  with   Special  Reference  to 
the  Recent  Epidemic.    By  Sir  Arthur  Mitchell  and 

Dr.  Buchan 

Mathematical  Teaching  at  the  Sorbonne,  1809-1889      ^, 

Scientific  Serials 598 

Societies  and  Academies 598 


BINDING  SECT.  MAR  23 1972 


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