TKA.NSACTIOXS OF SOCIET[i:S. 239 



youthful age. The hltle l)0()k* reccntl\ pubhshed by Miss M. 

 A. On" (Mrs. John b'vershed ) will sureh' awaken such an 

 interest amongst the young, and even on the part of many who 

 are no longer youthful. It may have the effect of recruiting 

 several for the army of observers, which the various sections 

 of the British Astronomical Association will gladh' enlist in 

 their ranks. How the relative ages of various stars may be 

 gauged is one of the fascinating sul)ject> which the authoress 

 makes plain, and the future astronomical specialist may find 

 himself in an eiiibarras dc richcssc when he reads of star 

 clusters, of nebuhe, of the milk\- wa\ . cjf variable and eclipsing 

 stars, and of double and multiple stars, snlijects which are at 

 the same time dead}- and concisely explained. The book is 

 written for those who have not read nmch about astrononn*. and 

 who have only an opera-glass or small telescope, or perhaps no 

 instrument but their unaided eyes for examining the stars, but 

 one may safely predict that all who thus practically ap])ly the 

 chapter on double star^ will be strongh- tempted to ac(juire more 

 ])Owerful instruments. Amongst the southern doul)le sta.rs 

 enumerated is, of course, a Centauri. our nearest star neigh- 

 bour, and. in addition, the reader is impelled to personal obser- 

 vation by reading of such tine coloured ])airs of stars as a 

 Scorpii. one of whicli is white, and its neighbour blue; ^ 

 Corvi. pale yello\\- and bluish ; 32 Eridani. yellow and blue- 

 green ; /3 Capricorni. orange yellow and blue; 7 T.eporis 

 with its crimson companion, and so on. From these the observer 

 may be led to the study of such coloured doubles (not neces- 

 sarily southern) as 7 Andromedie. orange and green; a Canum 

 Venatici, golden and lilac ; a Herculis, ruby and emerald ; 94 

 Aquarii, rose and greenish ; 77 Cassiopeit'e, golden and purple. 

 From the mere popular point of view, there is scarcely a more 

 attractive pursuit for the embrycj astronomer than the study of 

 the great number of coloured double stars, and here, as in other 

 respects, he will find sufficient in Airs. Evershed's little book 

 to stir him up to seek further knowledge. 



TRANSACTIONS OF SOCIETIES. 



GEor.OGrcAL Societv of South Afric.x. — Mondav, June T4th : Mr. D. 

 Wilkinson in the chair. — ''The Upper Jl'ificatcisrand System": Dr. E. T. 

 Melfor. The general features of the Upper Witwatersrand System are 

 well known : the author, however, considered that there were uncertainties 

 in several directions that needed clearing up, and tliis was Mie main object 

 of the paper. Particular consideration was given to the degree of conti- 

 nuity of the various members of the system, and the variations in thick- 

 ness which they exhibit when followed from end to end of the Rand. 

 The author's descriptions and conclusions were mainly based upon 

 ol)servations made during five years occupied in mapping the whole 

 Witwatersrand area, during which period the underground workings of a 

 large number of mines were visited. 



*M. A. Orr: "Stars of the Southern Skies." pp. xii, g2. 8 X 4]in-. 

 illus. London : Longmans, Green & Co. iQi.S- 2s. 6d. 



