500 



NA TURE 



[Sept. 28, 1876 



by M. Briosclii. — M. Moriggia presented the famous tattooed 

 mar, Konstantinos, a native ot Albania, who was long a prisoner 

 of war in Chinese Tartary. He was then tattooed from head to 

 foot, with figures of men, tigers, crocodiles, apes, &c. The work 

 was continued for four months. The tactile sensibility of the skin 

 is diminished ; sensibility to thermal stimuli is good, and to 

 electrical perhaps increased ; muscular force low ; a difficulty of 

 breathing and lassitude ; sense of strain and smart in the skin, 

 greatest in the feet and seat ; considerable insomnia, vision and 

 hearing affected, frequent dysentery and abdominal pains, blood 

 rich in leucocytes, urine with traces of albumen, free perspiration 

 still, intelligence not much affected, morale depressed, &c. — 

 Historico-critical note on the theory of the electrophorus, by M. 

 Cantoni. His results closely agree with those of Neyreneuf. — 

 M. Ponzi presented the second part of a catalogue of fossils found 

 in the lower marls of the Vatican Hill (141 animal species).— 

 — Observations on the solar diameter at the Royal Observatory 

 of Campidoglio in 1875, byM. Respighi. These confirm former 

 conclusions. — New researches on the fine structure of the elec- 

 trical plates in the torpedo, by M. Boll. — Anatomical and phy- 

 siological researches on the arms of cephalopods, by M. Colosanti. 

 — On some recent palaiontological discoveries in the territory 

 of Massa Marittima, by M. Lotti. — On Zoppi's method of 

 cementation of cupriferous solutions in Agordo, by M. Pellati. 

 — M. Volpicelli criticised a recent experiment of Govi's {Journal 

 de Physique). An inductor is brought under two light pen- 

 dula suspended from a metallic ring on insulating support. 

 There is sudden divergence, and this increases if the induced 

 bodies be connected an instant with the ground. If the 

 inductor be brought sufficiently near the ends of the pendula, 

 the previous divergence is diminished ; on then suppressing the 

 induction, the divergence increases. Govi infers the induced 

 electricity causing tfie divergence to be of the first species 

 (heteronymous to that of the inductor) ; M. Volpicelli says if he 

 will examine it, he will find it to be homonymous. — M. Gastaldi 

 presented the first part of a memoir entitled "Fragments of 

 Italian Palaeoethnology."— On the Vatican fauna (continued), by 

 M. Tonzi. — On the non-petiodical movement of a system of 

 material points, by M. Valentino.— On strata with Aspido- 

 cerra acanthicum, Opp., of Sicily, and their cephalopoda. — On 

 the porphyroid quartziferous diorite of Cossato in Biellese, by 

 M. Cossa. — On some products of putrefied cerebral substance, 

 by M. Selmi. He finds among these the volatile alkaloid tri- 

 methylamine. 



May 7. — M. Capellini presented some fragments of BaUvo- 

 nottis, found along with flint implements in the valley of 

 Fiore, in a marl of the Lower Pliocene. In a memoir he 

 discusses the distribution of land and water at that epoch, 

 and offers some new views on the origin of fauna and flora, 

 of the Miocene and Pliocene formation in Italy (which origin 

 he places in the north-west). He shows that many fossil plants 

 found in northern regions appear in Italy in more recent forma- 

 tions.— On the scintillation of stars, by M. Respighi, He 

 affirms (in opposition to Montigny) that this in its essence is in- 

 dependent of the quality of the light of the star. Montigny's ob- 

 servations regard merely the modality of the phenomenon, and 

 the question carried into that field belongs rather to physiology 

 than to physics. The spectroscope shows that, rigorously speak- 

 ing, the variations of colour, especially in .low stars, are innu- 

 merable, even in a second, and it is only by the limited power of 

 our senses, the persistence of sensations, &c. , that we succeed 

 in perceiving distinctly a limited number of the variations, which 

 naturally must depend on the greater or less brightness of the 

 star, the varied proportion of rays composing its light, the 

 means used to diminish the influence of persistence of the images, 

 and other causes which render the eye less apt to perceive varia- 

 tions of colour.— On the latitude of the Royal Observatory of 

 Campidoglio, by M. Respighi. This is 41° 50' 33". M. 

 Respighi stated that the great work of revision of the declina- 

 tion of stars of the first to the sixth magnitude, in the zone 21° 

 to 62° N., was well advanced, both as regards observations and 

 reductions. — M. Volpicelli presented a second note on the m 

 chines invented by M. Belli, and called Duplicators. — On palse- 

 ontological discoveries in the Vatican marl, which geologist 

 refer to the Tertiary period, by M. Ponzi, He describes car- 

 bonised trunks of Finus sylveslris, eaten into by an insect, which 

 he names Hylobium torionianum, resembling the //. iini of the 

 present. 



Paris 



Acadeniy of Sciences, Sept. 11. — Vice- Admiral Paris in 

 the chair. The following papers were read ; — On preventive 



trepanation in fractures with displacement of splinters of the 

 internal or vitreous table of the cranium, by M. Sedillot. — Note 

 on intra-mercurial planets, by M. Leverrier. — On the recent 

 trombe of Coinces in the.Loiret, by M. Faye, This was very 

 violent, damaging a large number of houses, and lifting and 

 throwing many people down. — Process for detecting wines 

 coloured artificially, by M. Lamattina. The simplest way is to 

 mix 100 grammes of wine with 15 grammes of peroxide of man- 

 ganese roughly pulverised, stirring the mixture twelve or fifteen 

 minutes, and filtering through a double filter. If the wine is 

 pure it passes colourless, if it retains its colour it has been 

 coloured artificially. If the peroxide is not pure, but ferruginous, 

 the iron is dissolved ; the fuchsine, if present, forms an insoluble 

 combination, which remains in the filter, and the filtered liquid 

 has a slightly yellow colour. The residual peroxide is treated with 

 alcohol, acetic acid, and ammonia. — On the orbit of the planet 127, 

 by M. Renan. — Note on a lunar rainbo^v observed at Roche, com- 

 mune of Saint Just ( Haute- Vienne), by M. Martin de Brettes. This 

 was at 9'50 p.m. on September 2 ; the day had been showery, 

 and a mist rose over the river. The centre of the rainbow was 

 north ; mean horizontal diameter about 25°, apparent width of 

 bow 2°, colour green yellow ; on close attention it was seen to 

 be red exteriorly and violet in the interior. The bow was 

 slightly elliptical, the vertical semi-diameter longer than the 

 horizontal ; this was likely due to the obliquity (45°) of direction 

 of the river. The bow seemed very near, a few hundred metres off. 

 It was enveloped by a second, 5° off. — Observation of the partial 

 eclipse of the moon, September 3, 1876, at the Observatory ot 

 Toulouse, by M. Perrotin. — Note on the radiometer, by Mr. 

 Crookes. He says that most of the experiments recently de- 

 scribed to the Academy are a repetition of those he himself has 

 made, and he has also discussed fully the various theories offered ; 

 but his researches had not become known, owing to memoirs 

 to the Royal Society not being published in the Philosophical 

 Transactions till twelve or eighteen months after presenta- j 

 tion. — Researches on some Calamodendreoe, and on their pro- 

 bable botanical affinities, by M. Renault. — On a block of mill- 

 stone found in the eruptive sand of the environs of Beynes, by 

 M. Meunier. This confirms the opinion that the eruptive sand 

 is artesian, and constitutes a vertical alluvium. — On the distinct- 

 ness with which one can see the bottom of the sea from a balloon 

 situated at a great height, by M. Moret. In an ascent from 

 Cherbourg with M. Duruof, they observed, at a height of 1,700 

 metres, the bottom of the channel most clearly, though the 

 depth there must be 60 or 80 metres. The submarine rocks 

 and currents were distinctly revealed. This method might be 

 utilised for purposes of navigation. 



CONTENTS Page 



The Intra-Mkkcurial Planet or Planets. By J. R. Hind, 



F.RS 4^ 



University College, Bristol 470 



Field Gkologv 471 



The Bats of Asia 47^ 



Lbttkrs to the Editor :— 



Sun-spots suspected to be Identical with an Inter-Mercurial 



Planet.— Rtv. Robert Main, F.RS 473 



Erratum in Mr. Wallace's Address.— Alfred R. Wallace; 



Prof. W. Thiselton Dver, F.L.S 473 



Zittel's Palaeontology.— Henry B. Brady, F.R.S 474 



Visual Phenom-na.— Thos. Wm, Backhouse 474 



Antedated Books. — D. Sharp 474 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



The Binary Star f Bootis 474 



Diameter of Vesta 475 



Pigott's Comet of 1783 • 475 



The Self-Fertilisation of Plants 475 



The British Association : — 



Reports . • 47^ 



Section A. — Mathematical and Physical 477 



Section C— Geology 480 



Section D.— Biology.— Department of Anatomy and Physiology. 

 —Address by John G. McKendrick. M.D., F.R.S.E., Vice- 

 President 482 



Section E.— Geography 489 



Section F. — Economic Science and Statistics 49' 



Section G. — Mechanical Science 49' 



The "Challenger" Extedition. By Sir Wvville Thomson, 



F.R.S 492 



Notes 49^ 



Scientific Serials 498 



Societies and Acabemies 499 



