1893. NEWS OF UNIVERSITIES, ETC. 477 



We have received the third part of the second volume of the Actes de la Sociite 

 Scicntifique dii Chili. Dr. Fernand Lataste contributes most of the small zoological 

 notes, and another instalment of Borne's memoir on Latrodectus is published. 



An excellent summary of the work of the Scientific Societies of Australia 

 during the past year appears in the recently-issued Year Book of Australia for 1893. 

 One new society was founded at Bathurst, New South Wales. 



The Cothenius Medal of the German Leopold-Caroline Academy of Naturalists 

 has been awarded to Professor Dr. Adolf Fick of Wiirzburg, in acknowledgment of 

 his researches in the physiology of muscle. 



The Geographical Society of Berlin has bestowed the Humboldt medal upon. 

 Dr. John Murray, of Edinburgh ; and the Geographical Society of Paris has. 

 awarded a gold medal to Dr. Fridjof Nansen. 



The two gold medals of the Royal Geographical Society have been awarded' 

 this year to Mr. Frederick C. Selous and Mr. Woodville Rockhill. Mr. Selous is 

 the well-known hunter who has contributed so much to our knowledge of the " big 

 game" of Africa. Mr. Rockhill is an American who has made many careful 

 surveys of the "Land of the Lamas." The other awards of the Society are as 

 follows : — The Murchison grant to Mr. R. W. Senior, of the Indian Survey ; the 

 Gill memorial to Mr. H. O. Forbes, for researches in New Guinea and the Malay 

 Archipelago ; and the Cuthbert Peek grant to Mr. Charles Hose for his explorations, 

 in Sarawak, Borneo. 



Some months ago we referred to the fact that the Royal Geographical Society 

 had opened its doors to women Fellows. This innovation, which was decided by 

 the Council, instead of by a Special General Meeting of the Fellows, was looked upon- 

 as illegal and outside the jurisdiction of the Council under the Charter. A Special 

 General Meeting, therefore, was called on April 24 last to consider the matter. Some 

 250 Fellows were present, and after an animated discussion, the question of admission 

 of women as Fellows was negatived by 145 to 104. Although we heartily approve 

 of the action of the Fellows, we are sorry to hear of this result, as we feel that the 

 women who have been already elected Fellows of the Society have considerably 

 more claims to the Fellowship than one-half of the male existing members. There 

 has been for some time past much grumbhng with regard to the difficulty e.vpe- 

 rienced in getting a seat when some distinguished traveller is discoursing for their 

 information, the reason being that so many ladies are admitted as visitors that 

 numbers of the Fellows themselves are crowded out. Several circumstances, 

 account for this, one of which is that most of the meetings of the Geographical 

 Society partake more of the evening " At Home " than of the scientific nature. At 

 the Annual Meeting of the Society on May 29, we understand that Sir Jvlountstuart 

 Grant-Duff resigns the Presidency, and Mr. Clements Markham is nominated to 

 succeed him. 



In the list of fifteen candidates selected this year by the Council of the Royal 

 Society of London for election to the Fellowship, Natural Science is represented by 

 the following names : — Professor J. Cossar Ewart, Dr. W. T. Gairdner, Sir Henry 

 H. Howorth, Mr. E. T. Newton, Mr. C. S. Sherrington, Professor E. C. Stirling, 

 Professor J. W. H. Trail, and Dr. A. R. Wallace. The list will be submitted to a. 

 meeting of the Fellows on June i. 



