Sept. 14, 1876] 



NATURE 



443 



incapable of being referred to either the Aryan or Semitic 

 families, but which are found in the Arrow-headed texts. These 

 languages he styled Susi-Medic, which, he said, were spoken in 

 Iran and Khusistan centuries before the Persians bore rule in 

 these countries. A series of questions was discussed relative 

 to Central Asia, proposed by the Organising Committee in a 

 general list of problems issued before the opening of the Con- 

 gress. One of these was, "Was there a Mongol Tribe or 

 People before Genghis Khan ? or is the name Mongol nothing 

 more than a dynastic one adopted by Genghis to denote the 

 Empire which he founded?" The loose use of the term 

 " Turanian " was much criticised. The Russian Government 

 has given the Congress a hearty welcome. 



On Tuesday the Geographical Congress, convened by the 

 King of the Belgians, met in the Palace, at Brussels, under the 

 presidency of his Majesty. The King said that in calling the 

 Congress he had no ambitious aims in view, but that his sole 

 object was to accelerate the introduction of civilisation into 

 Africa, He afterwards dwelt upon the necessity of establishing 

 hospices and scientific stations on the confines of the unexplored 

 territories there, and the formation of an international committee 

 to carry out the work. Nachtigall, Schweinfurth^ Rohlfs, 

 Grant, and Cameron gave a brief resume of their travels ; Negri 

 also spoke. The Congress, on the King's proposition, then 

 divided into sections by nations. The English met at four with 

 the French, and recommended a station from which the Lakes 

 could be reached. Admiral de la Ronciere le Noury and M. 

 Mounoir are present as representatives of France, and Sir Bartle 

 Frere, Sir John Kennaway, Commander Cameron, Sir Henry 

 Rawlinson, Sir Rutherford Alcock, Sir Harry Verney, and 

 others represent Great Britain. The convening of this Congress 

 is highly creditable to King Leopold, and may be regarded as 

 significant of his zeal for science and the spread of civilisation. 

 This kind of work, like mercy, of which, indeed, in the highest 

 and truest sense, it is but an outcome, "becomes the throned 

 monarch better than his crown." 



We notice with pleasure the appearance of the first number of 

 the Bulletin of the newly-founded Zoological Society of France, 

 which came into existence this summer. The present number of 

 the Bulletin contains six papers, the first being by the president 

 of the Society, M. Jules Vian, treating of the Phaleris psittacula 

 in Sweden, and of the occurrence in France of the small Puffin 

 (Mormott grabce of Brehm), to which the author is inclined to 

 grant specific rank. Of the Phaleris a description and figure of 

 the skeleton is given. The second paper is by M. E. Simon, 

 and describes two new species of spiders from the Congo. The 

 third contribution is by Dr. Jousseaume, on the " Faune Mala- 

 cologique des Environs de Paris." Mr. Bowdler Sharpe, of the 

 British Museum, in conjunction with M. A. Bouvier, next de- 

 scribes a collection of birds sent from the Congo district by M. 

 Petit, A new swallow, Psalidoprocne Petiti, is figured (PI. II.), 

 but perhaps the less said about this plate the better, as the 

 artist, M. Bevalet, appears unable to distinguish between the 

 characteristic habit of a swallow and a humming-bird, to the 

 drawing of which latter group he has been for some time devoted 

 in connection with M. Mulsant's work on the Trochilidcc. M. L. 

 Bureau communicates an abstract of his essay on the Booted 

 Eagle {Aquila pennata), which he had lately read before the 

 French Association for the Advancement of Science at Nantes ; 

 and lastly. Prof. Perrier gives an account of the star-fishes col- 

 lected in the Cape Verd Islands by M, Bouvier, We wish 

 every success to the Society, whose address is at present No, 55, 

 Quai des Grands Augustins, Paris. 



The death is announced, at the age of eighty-one years, of the 

 German naturaUst, Christian Ehrenberg, doyen of the Professors 

 of the University of Berlin. He was bom in 1 795. By the age 



of thirty-two he had published numerous works, and was made 

 professor extraordinary of the University. In 1829 Humboldt 

 chose Ehrenberg to accompany him in his expedition to Siberia. 

 He was made titular professor in 1839. Ehrenberg has done 

 much to popularise the use of the microscope. His great 

 treatise on ,the Infusoria, for which he collected the materials 

 during his journey with Humboldt and Gustav Rose, is well 

 known to naturalists. 



Prof. Huxley, we learn from Harper's Weekly of the 9th 

 inst., made an auspicious start on his tour through the United 

 States. After a notable dinner given to him at New Haven, by 

 Prof. Marsh, he departed with Governor Ingersoll, Prof. Marsh, 

 President Bishop of the New Haven Railroad, and a few friends, 

 in a palace-car for a trip through Canada and westward to the 

 Mississippi. On his return, after visits to Prof. Agassiz and 

 Prof. Gray, of Harvard, he was on Tuesday to deliver an address 

 at the opening of the Johns Hopkins University at Baltimore, and 

 then betake himself to England again. " All this, of course, on 

 the basis that American citizens do not in the mean time kill the 

 British savant with the beef, the birds, and the multitudinous 

 bibbles for which America is famous." 



We are glad to see that the Yorkshire College of Science is 

 so far advanced and established as to publish a Calendar, a copy 

 of which has been sent us. It contains ample information as to 

 the classes, resources, aims, and work of the College, and, to 

 judge from the programmes of the various classes, a great 

 amount of valuable instruction must be given during the session. 

 We hope to see the Calendar enlarged each year, and the 

 number of professors and classes increased, until the College 

 becomes a great centre of liberal culture for Yorkshire. Any 

 one wishing to learn what is the present position of the College 

 should get this Calendar and the Prospectus of day and evening 

 classes for 1876-77. 



The arrangements for the South African International Ex- 

 hibition, to be opened at Cape Town in February next, are 

 making satisfactory progress. Everything intended for exhibition 

 must be shipped from London not later than the first week ot 

 December, The European Commissioner is Mr, Edmund John- 

 son, 3, Castle Street, Holborn. 



We have received a catalogue of the Industrial Exhibition 

 which is being held at Helsingfors. It contains 3,290 entries in 

 the various departments of industry represented ; so far as 

 we can judge from the catalogue, the exhibition is highly credit- 

 able to the Finlanders. 



The programme for the next French International Exhibition, 

 1878, has been published in the Journal Officiel. The regu. 

 lations are subs tantially the same as in former exhibitions. The 

 building is to be a long parallelogram, and will be divided into 

 rectangular stripes, two of these stripes being allotted to special 

 divisions, one for France, and the other for foreign countries. 

 Fine arts will enjoy the central stripe, and consequently be an 

 exception. Right and left will be placed the two stripes allotted 

 to scientific industries, under the name "Education, Teaching, 

 Methods and Materiel of Liberal Arts." Amongst the principal 

 attractions of the Exhibition will rank a gigantic Giffard steam 

 captive balloon. It will measure 21,000 cubic metres, and 

 exceed by 10,000 the former captive balloon at Ashburnham 

 Park. The rope will weigh 20 pounds per yard, and the eleva- 

 tion will be 500 yards. The steam-engine will have 200 horse- 

 power ; thirty persons will ascend at once, and in calm weather, 

 100. The new captive balloon will require no circus for protec- 

 tion, and will stand in the midst of a large square fronting the 

 bridge in the central alley of the gardens. Meteorological ob- 

 servations with special instruments will be made during the 

 ascents for the instruction of excursionists, and recorded for the 

 benefit of science. 



