ASSOCIATIONS FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE. (AUSTRALASIAN.) 



45 



present the condition of the observatories hardly 

 permitted the astronomers to engage in adventur- 

 ous explorations of the heavens. The time that the 

 astronomers could take from their many public 

 functions for purposes of exploration was relatively 

 very small, and consequently the work of discovery 

 progressed but slowly. Sidereal astronomy was well 

 advanced in the Southern Hemisphere. In all other 

 respects our knowledge of the southern heavens was 

 deficient. Celestial photography and astronomy of 

 position and fundamental investigations for the im- 

 provement of both these branches should be the 

 objects of their endeavors in the future. He then 

 described the aid which photography had brought 

 to astronomy, and predicted great results from its 

 use. By the year 1900 they hoped to have formed 

 a photographic catalogue of some 12,000 or 13,000 

 stars fundamentally observed with transit circles. 

 He did not think that the Adelaide and Perth 

 observatories could have a better opportunity of 

 rendering valuable service, the one by continuing 

 and the other by joining in the observation of zero 

 stars for their astrophotographic plates and to carry 

 on every investigation which might tend to improve 

 the observations and free the results from error. 

 There was still a wide field for amateur astrono- 

 mers to help singly to widen the knowledge of the 

 science, but co-operation of those working toward 

 the same end must be beneficial to the majority of 



the persons concerned. In regard to terrestrial 

 magnetism, he said scientists were not yet able to 

 tell whether the earth acted as a great magnet or a 

 great electro-magnet. He mentioned the varied 

 theories on the subject, and urged that more care- 

 ful and systematic observations should be made of 

 the earth's currents with a view of obtaining a more 

 correct and complete knowledge of the distribution 

 of terrestrial magnetism and of its variations. He 

 thought that the establishment of an observatory in 

 the interest of this science was a duty New Zealand 

 owed to the scientific world. He pointed out many 

 other avenues in which research was necessary, and 

 in conclusion expressed the hope that great success 

 would result from such labors. 



The following papers were read and discussed 

 before the section : " Measurement of Cloud Heights 

 and Velocity," by Pietro Baracehi ; " Four Theo- 

 rems in Spherical Harmonics " and " Some Expres- 

 sions for the Component of the Magnetic Force 

 Perpendicular to the Axis in the Interior of Solen- 

 oids," by C. Coleridge Farr ; " The Tides of South 

 Australia," by 11. W. Chapman and A. Inglis ; " The 

 Trigonometi'ical Survey of New South Wales, with 

 "'ention of Similar Surveys in the Other Colonies," 

 >y T. F. Furber ; " The Description of a New Tide- 

 Predicting Machine/' by A. Inglis; "On the Con- 

 tact Force between Different Varieties of Sulphur" 

 and " On the Question of the Effect of Light on the 

 Electrical Resistance of Sulphur," by Richard 

 Threlfall and J. Bernard Allen; "On Magnetic 

 Hysteresis Losses in Feebly Magnetic and in Di- 

 magnetic Substances," by Richard Threlfall and 

 Miss F. Martin : " Results from Various-Sized Rain 

 Gauges," by H. C. Kiddle ; " Notes on the Vertical 

 Component of the Motion of the Earth's Atmos- 

 phere, and an Exhibit, viz., a Wind Vane showing 

 Vertical Motions of the Air," by Gen. Shaw ; " The 

 Source of the Periodic Waves, sometimes called 

 Earthquakes, which reached Sydney from Time to 

 Time,' by H. C. Russell ; " A "General Expression 

 for ' Flow in Tubes,' " by G. H. Knibbs ; and "' Notes 

 on Comparisons of Steel and Iron Lineal Standards 

 for Geodetic Purposes," by D. M. Maitland. 



Also the following report was presented before 

 the section : " On our Knowledge of the Thermo- 

 dynamics of the Voltaic Cell." and one from the 

 Committee on Seismological Phenomena. 





B. Chemistry. The presiding officer of this sec- 

 tion was Mr. William M. Hamlet, who fills the 

 place of Government analyst to the colony of New 

 South Wales. He chose as the subject of his ad- 

 dress "The Molecular Mechanism of an Electro- 

 lyte." 



As indicated by the title, this paper was exceed- 

 ingly technical. In part Mr. Hamlet said that he 

 offered the suggestions as to the mechanism of the 

 electrolyte that is, of a body in solution or state 

 of fusion, capable of being instantaneously decom- 

 posed by a current of electricity, and he claimed 

 that if the explanation he offered was adequate for 

 the electrolyte, it must hold good for the constitu- 

 tion of the matter in the universe, so that the 

 treatise on the electrolyte has a most important 

 scientific bearing. The method of investigating 

 the action of one body upon another, he observed, 

 was brought to a high degree of accuracy by the 

 immortal work of Sir Isaac Newton. He alluded 

 to some observations of the late Prof. William K. 

 Clifford, made over twenty years ago, this authority 

 remarking, almost prophetically, " We can look 

 forward to the time when the structure and mo- 

 tions in the inside of a molecule will be so well 

 known that some future Kant or La Place will be 

 able to make an hypothesis about the history and 

 formation of matter." 



The following papers were read and discussed 

 before the section : "The Coloring Matter of 

 Wines," by M. Bruno; "Notes on the Coloring 

 Matter of the Ericoccus Coriaceus and the Wax 

 of Ceroplastes Rubens," by E. H. Gurley; "The 

 Russell Process in Australia." by Edgar Hall and 

 Edward S. Simpson ; " Metallurgical Methods in 

 Use at Broken Hill, New South Wales," by G. H. 

 Blakemore ; "The Water of the Water Vine," " On 

 the Estimation of Wheat Meal in Oatmeal," and 

 " On Manganese Nodules found at Onybygambah," 

 by W. M. Doherty ; " On the Mineral Waters of 

 Australasia," by George Gray ; " On the Red Rain 

 Dust," by Thomas Steel ; " On Modern Methods 

 of teaching Chemistry," by W. J. Clunies Ross; 

 and " Notes on the Constitution of Gluten," by 

 F. B. Guthrie. 



C. Geology and Mineralogy. Prof. F. W. Hutton, 

 of Canterbury College, Christchurch, New Zealand, 

 was the presiding officer of this section, and he de- 

 livered an address on " Early Life on the Earth." 



Palaeontologists in search of fossils began with the 

 younger fossils and worked downward. Their sub- 

 sequent discoveries were traced through Cenozoic, 

 Mesozoic, and Palaeozoic periods. Fossils were sub- 

 sequently discovered at the base of the Cambrian 

 and then in the pre-Cambrian rocks. Recently Dr. 

 C. Barrois, in Brittany, had discovered what seemed 

 to be a palaeontological base. He had found radio- 

 larians and sponge spicules in a rock which ap- 

 peared to be much older than any other fossiliferous 

 rock known. They knew as a fact that the earth 

 was a hot body traveling through space which was 

 intensely cold. The earth must therefore be cool- 

 ing. It must once have been molten, and the 

 water of the ocean must once have been in a state 

 of vapor. After traversing the various stages 

 through which the earth passed namely, the Lau- 

 rentian period, the Huronian life, the Algentrian 

 life, and the Cambrian life the lecturer gave some 

 speculations regarding the pre-Ordivician life. Of 

 the origin of life he said : It was highly probable 

 that the first living organisms were evolved near 

 the surface of a warm ocean. They might safely 

 assume that the first protoplasm was not so compli- 

 cated a substance as it had since become. Ordivi- 

 cian and Silurian life followed, and he said in clos- 

 ing : " We have thus arrived at the conclusion that 

 the ocean was the mother of life ; that on its sur- 



