Sept. 7, 1876] 



NATURE 



417 



weeks, or even days, may attract gereral interest. I refer to 

 accounts of our Arctic expedition. It is possible that while I 

 am now addressing you, the ships Alert and Disccn'ery, favoured 

 by fine seasons, may have, in their endeavours to reach high 

 noithern latitudes, accomplished all that human skill and energy 

 can dc, and by fortuitous circumstances secured their return 

 southward through Smith Sound, with the same facilities, as we 

 have reason to hope, they entered what we suppose to be that 

 notable gateway to the Pole. If so, they are now fairly in Davis 

 Strait, homeward bound. We must not regard this estimate of 

 progress as visionary, for, the conditions being favourable, the 

 time at the disposal of the voyagers is ample. It is the varying 

 conditions of Arctic seasons, we must remember, that baffle the 

 forecasts of the most experienced Arctic experts. 



Should unfavourable conditions, or the decision of the chief, 

 detain the ships another year in their icy quarters, we have rea- 

 son to hope that advices will reach us of their whereabouts in 

 the spring of next year. The spirited enterprise of the well- 

 trained Arctic navigator, Allan Young, supported as he has been 

 by the Government, offers a sure guarantee that theleaders, Nares 

 and Stephenson, will be ably seconded in their efforts to keep up 

 communication with their countrymen. Here, again, we must 

 not forget that baffling conditions may defeat the intentions of 

 the commanders to communicate in time with the depots at the 

 portals of Smith Sound. 



This prolonged banishment from intercourse with the outer 

 world was, however, a contingency anticipated and provided for 

 by that able. CoiKmittee of Arctic Officers who, with a full sense 

 of their responsibility, so fully advised the Government in every 

 phase of this national undertakirg. A parliamentary paper, 

 published during this session, [gives the fullest particulars relating 

 to the progress of the expedition and the stei s which have been 

 taken to communicate with their depots. There is a long chain 

 of contingencies to be attended to, as will be seen on reference 

 to the interesting details therein given, but I venture to think 

 that not a litk is missing, either in the conception, or in the 

 means provided to bring the undertaking to a successful issue. 



There is one feature to be kept in view, which from the excep- 

 tional conditions of ship navigation in the icy regions of the 

 far north is rarely realized, unless by those who have had actual 

 experience in polar service, and it is this, that between the time 

 of the disruption of the old ice in August and the formation of 

 the new in September, there exists a very short period when 

 ships are free to move. This period of open or partially open 

 water may be shortened by unfavourable circumstances, and vice 

 versA ; it may be assumed, however, that in a straight fairway 

 channel such as Smith Sound it almost always does occur, and 

 as the return southward, on account of the drift, is alw ays more 

 easily accomplished than the advance north, the great probability 

 is that, if the ships remain out another year, it will be the result 

 of design rather than accident. 



By the parliamentary papers relating to the expedition it will 

 be seen that, in the event of the non-arrival of the Alert and 

 Discovery during the autumn of this year, a relief ship will be 

 despatched to a rendezvous in Smith Sound during the summer 

 of 1877. 



With regard to Africa, exploration and discovery have pro- 

 ceeded with accelerated strides during the past few years. Even 

 since the recent date of Cameron's remarkable journey across the 

 continent, important additions have been made to the rapidly 

 filling-up map of the interior. Most of these additions relate to 

 the great lakes, regarding which our knowledge was previously 

 very incomplete and unsatisfactory. Thus, Mr. Young, the 

 experienced Zambesi traveller, who undertook last year to lead 

 the Scotch Missionary party to Lake Nyassa, has succeeded, 

 after establishing the missionary settlement " Livingstonia," at 

 the southern end of the lake, in reaching in a steam-launch the 

 northern end of this great fresh-water sea, finding it to be fully 

 one hundred miles longer than was previously believed. His 

 journey was made in February of the present year, and in the 

 following month the still more imperfectly known lake, Albert 

 Nyarza, was successfully navigated by two boats under Signor 

 Gessi, who was despatched for this purpose by Colonel Gordon, 

 the present Governor of the new Equatorial Province of the 

 Khedive's dominions. The details of Signor Gessi's interesting 

 exploration, communicated by himself to the President of the 

 Royal Geographical Society, have only recently reached England, 

 and it is proposed to read them in the course of the present 

 meeting. 



A third, and equally important exploration of the same class 

 is that perfoimed during the same early months of the present 



year by that energetic traveller Mr. Stanley. After circumnavi- 

 gating the much larger neighbouring lake, Victoria, and proving 

 Speke's much disputed estimate of its dimensions to be approxi- 

 mately correct, he pushed his way across the difficult tract of 

 country separating the Victoria and the Albert lakes, reaching 

 the shores of the latter in the middle of January. Less fortu- 

 nately situated than Signor Gessi, who embarked on the lake 

 two months later, Stanley was unable to launch his boat on the 

 then unexplored southern portions of its waters. A comparison 

 of the accounts of the two travellers shows that we are yet far 

 from knowing the true dimensions of this great sheet of water. 

 Signor Gessi in fact did not reach its southern extremity ; and 

 as Mr. Stanley appears to have struck its shores at a point about 

 thirty miles further south than the limits marked by the Italian 

 traveller, the lake must be considerably longer than 140 miles, 

 as estimated by the latter. Stanley subsequently proceeded 

 south and explored the Kitangule river of Speke ; thence striking 

 for Lake Tanganyika, the examination of which he intended to 

 complete. 



New Guinea has of late attracted some attention both at home 

 and in the Australian colonies ; rather, however, from political 

 than geographical considerations. Our interest is of course in 

 the latter, and I am glad the meeting will have the advantage 

 of the presence of a gentleman, Mr. Octavius Stone, recently 

 arrived in England, who has distinguished himself in the ex- 

 ploration of the south-eastern shores of this distant, little known, 

 and barbarous region ; to him we must refer for the latest geo- 

 graphical facts. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN 



The Cordoba " Uranometria." — Dr. Gould has in- 

 formed us, during his flying visit to this country in the 

 last week, on his return to Cordoba from the United 

 btates, that he intends to give his Uranomeiria first and 

 undivided attention, with the view to its early publication. 

 It contains 8,000 stars to seventh magnitude inclusive, the 

 whole estimated by not less than two observers, and often 

 by more, each observer making his determination on not 

 less than two nights, and often more, all cases of discord- 

 ance between different observers being subsequently exa- 

 mined. The greater number of the stars have been 

 observed with the meridian circle, and always in 

 cases of doubt as to identification. The magnitudes 

 are intended to be given to o'lm by comparisons 

 with previously established standards, on a most care- 

 fully-considered system. The manuscript charts are 

 drawn to the scale of a globe of one metre radius, 

 and the magnitudes of the stars are represented by 

 dots of size proportional to the brilliancy to nearest 

 two-tenths of a magnitude. Though this part of the 

 work appears to have been completed to Dr. Gould's 

 entire satisfaction, he expresses himself much disturbed 

 as to the means of reproducing these manuscript charts 

 with the necessary accuracy and delicacy ; his hopes of 

 success from the use of photography having been thus far 

 disappointed. The Uranometria will include every star 

 to the seventh magnitude inclusive, from the south pole of 

 the heavens to ten degrees of north declination. Great 

 care has been taken to secure accurate delineation of the 

 course of the Milky Way and of the Magellanic Clouds. 



The Zones, another most important work to which 

 attention has been directed at Cordoba, are complete ; 

 they are 754 in number, and contain 105,000 stars. 



In addition, materials have been obtained for the 

 formation of a numerous catalogue of the brighter stars, 

 each one observed several times with the meridian circle. 



Dr. Gould is to be congratulated on the extraordinary 

 energy he has displayed in his management of the new 

 Observatory of the Argentine Republic, and the discri- 

 minating skill with which he has selected and worked his 

 subjects of observation, which must undoubtedly result in 

 his leaving a name lastingly associated with the astronomy 

 of the southern hemisphere ; and not less is the Govern- 

 ment of that comparatively new country to be honoured 

 for the constant and unstinted support they have afiforded 



