December 14, 191 1] 



NATURE 



219 



Dr. J. P. van der Stok to the Proceedin£;s of tlie 

 Royal Academy at Amsterdam, "On the diurnal varia- 

 tion of the wind and the atmospheric pressure and 

 their relation to the variation of the gradient." He 

 criticises the method, adopted in previous investiga- 

 tions, of attempting to determine tiie variation of tne 

 wind from the variation of the gradient of pressure, 

 and, regarding it as too laborious and affected with 

 uncertain errors, attempts to determine the gradient 

 frona the observed variation of the wind. It would 

 be interesting to institute a comparison between this 

 method, that of utilising hourly observations of pres- 

 sure at three stations, adopted by Tsuiji, and the 

 general method based upon tlie regularity of the semi- 

 diurnal wave of pressure. 



Dr. van der Stok finds it convenient to assume that 

 the semi-diurnal variation of the wind has the same 

 phase angle as would be indicated by the theoretical 

 application of the general method, and deduces the 

 value of the coefficient of friction, }i, which will ensure 

 agreement between observation and theory in this 

 respect. He then utilises this value of the coefficient 

 to deduce the diurnal variation of the gradient of 

 pressure from the observed diurnal variation of the 

 wind. It seems desirable to consider in this applica- 

 tion the difference, emphasised in a recent paper by 

 Sandstrom, between friction due to motion over the 

 rough surface of the earth and sea and the frictional 

 effect which arises from the difference in direction 

 and velocity between the wind at the surface and that 

 at some distance above it. The results used in the 

 investigation are the hourly observations, presumably 

 estimates and not instrumental records, at de Bilt for 

 five years 1903-1908, and the four-hourly observations 

 at the Terschellingerbank Lightship for 25 years 

 1884-1908. The values found for fe show a general 

 agreement with those found by van Everdingen from 

 the incurvature of the wind at de Bilt, but the value 

 for Terschellingerbank is 50 per cent, larger. The 

 coefficient shows a regular annual variation, with the 

 maximum during autumn and winter, the minimum 

 during spring and summer, an interesting result which 

 ought to be compared with the values for inland 

 stations. The author criticises the results of the 

 analysis at St. Helena, on the ground that the wind- 

 vector turns in a clockwise instead of in a counter- 

 clockwise direction, but a reference to Dines 's discus- 

 sion of these results shows that, except for certain 

 small irregularities in the night, the vector rotates in 

 a counter-clockwise direction throughout the year. 

 The vector of the variation of the horizontal magnetic 

 force at St. Helena rotates in a clockwise direction 

 except in July. E. Gold. 



REPORT OF THE GOVERNMENT .CHEMIST. 

 jTN his report upon the work of the Government 

 '•*■ Laboratory for the year ended March 31, 191 1, 

 the principal chemist notes that the laboratory has 

 now been constituted a distinct establishment under 

 the Treasury. This is certainly a more appropriate 

 arrangement than the previous one, under which 

 the control was vested in the revenue authorities, for 

 since the laboratory now serves many other State 

 departments besides the fiscal ones, the control in 

 question had become somewhat of an anachronism. 



Last year the total number of samples dealt with 

 was 186,044. as compared with 170,033 in the preced- 

 ing year. The report describes the nature of these, 

 with explanatory notes and statistics. As usual, they 

 included the most diverse kinds of articles, from 

 " standard " b^ead to poisoned salmon. From among 

 the items of more or less general interest mentioned 

 in the report we extract the following. 



NO. 2198, VOL. 88] 



Beer and brewing materials are reguiariy tested 

 for the presence of arsenic, and 41 out 01 03S sampl.- 

 were lound to contain arsenic in excess ui the pre- 

 scribed limit. Steps were taken in these cases to 

 prevent the contaminated article being sent into cun- 

 sumption, and to trace the source of the arsenic. 

 Usually this was found in the luel used for drying 

 the malt. 



Two interesting cases of fish-poisoning are noted. 

 In one instance dead trout were lound (Kensey Brook, 

 Tamar and Plym District), and analysis of the water 

 showed that the brook had been contaminated with 

 ammonia from a gas works. In the other case, dead 

 salmon had been found in the Conway district, and 

 as there are lead mines near it was thought that the 

 fish might have been poisoned by drainage containing 

 lead. On analysis, however, zinc, and not lead, was 

 discovered in the salmon, as also in the river water; 

 this served to indicate the source of the pollution and 

 explain the destruction of the fish. 



One curious question referred to the laboratory was 

 whether the composition of a particular clay was such 

 as to distinguish it from the exempted "common clay " 

 of the Finance Act of 1909-10; the report is silent as 

 to the conclusion arrived at. Questions connected with 

 the pigments, paper, and gum used in making postage 

 and other fiscal stamps were also investigated. At 

 the house of a coiner, it is stated, a plate and apparatus 

 were found, all ready for the production of illegal 

 stamps. " His productions were somewhat crude," 

 the principal chemist remarks ; " but were sufficiently 

 good to deceive an unobservant person, especially in 

 a poor light." 



In connection with dangerous trades a number of 

 pottery glazes were examined. They included a series 

 of forty-eight taken from works where lead-poisoning 

 had occurred, and it is a significant fact that except 

 in two or three cases, practically the whole of the lead 

 in these samples was " soluble " lead. Large propor- 

 tions of lead were also found in dust collected from 

 various factories, other than potteries. 



Space allows mention of only one more of the many 

 interesting matters to be found in the report. A ques- 

 tion arose respecting the authenticity of a portion of 

 an "Account Book of Revels" of the years 1604-5, 

 preserved in the Public Record Office. This document 

 is a manuscript containing details of expenses in- 

 curred in producing certain plays, including Othello, 

 respecting the production of which at so early a date 

 there has been much controversy. Suspicion had been 

 cast upon the manuscript, the suggestion being that 

 the entries in question had been made about forty 

 years ago, just before the book had passed into the 

 custody of the Record Office. "After a searching 

 microscopical and chemical examination of the ink and 

 paper in different parts of the document," the principal 

 chemist was able to report that in the character of 

 the ink, the depth to which it had penetrated, or thr 

 degree of fading, there was no evidence whatever of 

 any difference between the impugned writing and that 

 in other parts of the document. C. S. 



PRINCE BONAPARTE'S AIDS TO SCIENTIFIC- 

 WORK. 

 THE announcement of the gift of 250,000 francs to 

 the Paris Academy of Sciences by Prince Roland 

 Bonaparte has already been made in these columns. 

 The issue of the Conipics rendus of the Academy for 

 November 27 incliuli < a copy of the Ir'ttcr from 

 Prince Bonaparte to the president ot tin Academy. 

 M. Armand Gautier, announcing his intention, and 

 also the remarks of the president after reading this 

 letter to the meeting of the Academy. A free trans- 

 lation of both is subjoined. 



