436 



GEOGEAPHICAL EXPLORATIONS. 



insurrection in Poland has led to the publica- 

 tion of some maps and descriptions of that 

 country, and the agitation of the Schleswig- 

 Holstein question, which in the beginning of 

 1864 has developed into a war, caused in the 

 closing months of 1863 the issue of some de- 

 scriptions and maps of the country in dispute. 

 Rev. Fortescue Anderson has published in 

 London " Seven Months' Residence in Russian 

 Poland in 1863," which gives a graphic account 

 of a portion of the country. 



In July, 1863, a submarine volcanic eruption 

 took place accompanied by the formation of a 

 new island, off the coast of Sicily, in the Med- 

 iterranean, about twenty-five miles from the 

 shore, and near the island of Pantillaria. It is 

 on what is said to have been the site of a for- 

 mer volcano, and in an old chart of 150 years 

 ago there is a reef laid down on this spot ; but 

 for many years past the water over the present 

 site of the island has been 135 fathoms deep. 

 The island is now about three fourths of a mile 

 in circumference, and seems to stand on a broad 

 base. It is at its summit about 200 feet high, 

 and is composed of cinders of all sizes heaped 

 loosely together. There is a crater on the 

 island thirty or forty yards in diameter con- 

 taining boiling water, and emitting steam and 

 sulphurous vapors. Severe earthquake shocks 

 were experienced in Rhodes in April and May, 

 1863, destroying entire villages and causing a 

 loss of some hundreds of lives. They were pre- 

 ceded by great commotion of the sea, which, 

 for a time, receded from its ancient level ; but 

 after the shock, regained more than its former 

 territory. 



Turkey and Greece have been explored both 

 for geographical and archa3ological purposes, 

 and one of the latest books of travels in refer- 

 ence to both is Mr. Chr. Oooke's "Journey 

 Due East," which was made in 1862-'3. 



The Prussian General Bayer has issued a 

 circular to the most eminent physicists of the 

 different nations of Europe, proposing the 

 measuring of an arc of meridian from Palermo to 

 Christiania. The progress toward completion 

 of most of the topographical surveys of the 

 European states is rapid. The survey of France 

 on a scale of 1-80,000 is completed ; but it will 

 be several years before the map engravers will 

 have finished their work upon it. It is to be re- 

 gretted that the scales on which these surveys 

 are made differ so much in the different states. 

 They range from 1-20,000 to 1-288,000 ; whereas 

 if the scale of 1-100,000, which is that of Prus- 

 sia, Belgium, Hanover, Switzerland, Sweden, 

 Norway, and Portugal, or of 1-50,000, which is 

 that of Holland, Italy, and most of the smaller 

 German states, or even of 1-80,000, which is 

 that of France, Naples, Denmark, and Belgium, 

 were generally adopted, the maps of the con- 

 tinental countries might easily be brought 

 together, and a map of uniform scale of all 

 made. The number of geographical maps pub- 

 lished in Europe during the past year is very 

 great, amounting to several thousands, most of 



them of local interest mainly. The geographical * 

 periodicals are also numerous. The following are 

 the principal : " Journal and Proceedings of the 

 Royal Geographical Society," London; "All 

 round the World," edited by M. W. Ainsworth, 

 London ; Bulletin de la Societe de Geographic, 

 Paris ; " Mittheilungen," edited by Dr. Peter- 

 mann, Gotha ; Zeitschrift fur Erdkunde, edited 

 by Dr. Keuer, at Berlin, and serving as the bulle- 

 tin of the Geographical Society of Berlin ; An- 

 nuaire of the Society of Friends of Geography at 

 Leipzic; Mittheilungen of the Geographical 

 Societies of Vienna, of Darmstadt and of Frank- 

 furt-am-Main ; Bulletin and Memoires <jf the 

 Geographical Society of Geneva ; Comptes 

 rendus and Memoires of the Russian Geograph- 

 ical Society ; the Memoires of the Italian Geo- 

 graphical Society at Turin ; The Nautical and 

 Geographical Bulletin of Rome, edited by 

 Prof. E. Fabri Scarpellini; Bibliothcca geo- 

 graphico Statistica of "W. Muldner, at Flor- 

 ence (?) ; the " Nautical Magazine," London ; 

 Tour du Monde, edited by M. Charton, Paris ; 

 Glol>us, edited by Dr. K. Andree, Paris ; Nou- 

 velles Annales des Voyages, Paris; Revue Ma- 

 ritime Coloniale, Paris; Archives des Sciences 

 de Russie, edited by Dr. Erman, St. Peters- 

 burg ; Bulletin and Annales of the Foreign 

 Council at Lisbon ; the Annuario Maritimo of 

 the Austrian Lloyds at Trieste. 



ASIA is, as it has been for many years past, one 

 of the favorite haunts of geographers, and in its 

 vast table lands, deserts, and mountain ranges, 

 its inland seas, and its dense but isolated popula- 

 tions, they are sure of finding much that is in- 

 teresting to the scientific and often to the gen- 

 eral reader. Beginning with its western states, 

 we find that the Sinaitic Peninsula, in Arabia, ' 

 has been visited in 1862 and 1863 by two geog- 

 raphers, Rev. T. J. Prout, an English clergy- 

 man, and M. W. Hewlett, each of whom as- 

 cended the mountain Oum Chamar, the highest 

 peak of the Sinaitic Mountains. It is situated 

 about 11 miles S. "W. of Djebel Katherin, and 

 according to M. Hewlett is 9,100 feet high. 

 Another English traveller, Mr. Charles Foster, 

 has applied the photographic art to the repre- 

 sentation of this region, and has given views 

 of the sacred mountains of the peninsula, under 

 the title of " Sinai Photographed." 



The intellectual apathy of the Turks has 

 given way under the pressure of European 

 scientific enterprise, and early in the year there 

 was published a volume of travels in the Turkish 

 capital, by an Osmanli scholar, the narrative of 

 a journey of exploration along the Turko-Pcr- 

 sian frontier, entitled SiaJiatnamel Hodud. 



English commercial enterprise is making 

 itself felt on the Euphrates and Tigris as well 

 as in Asia Minor. Steamboats now ply be- 

 tween Bassorah and Bagdad, and a line of 

 steamships has been established between Bas- 

 sorah and Bombay. A railway is also said to 

 be in progress from Smyrna toEphesns. Syria 

 has been very thoroughly explored by the 

 French Government since 1861, and several 



