282 



NATURE 



[December 28, 191 1 



and described. A« they are bemg "cut in" 

 it is possible to make a fairly detailed study 

 0/ the fr«$h skeleton and other parts of the 

 anatomy- if the investigator is not afraid of blood and 

 jjrcnsc. 



Moreover, the ffrcat number of whales of a single 

 species %vhich are taken facilitates in an unequalled 

 way the study of individual variation in colour. and 

 proportions, which evidently is greater among some 

 of the large cetaceans than in any other group of 

 mammals. 



The opportunities for the observation and collection 

 of specimens given at the shore-stations, which are 

 located in widely separated parts of the world, has 

 made it possible to investigate the theory, advanced 

 some years ago, that most of the species of large 

 whales are cosmopolitan in distribution ; that is, that 

 the humpbacks found in the Atlantic dilTer in no 

 essential respects from those of the Pacific, and that 

 all belong to a single widespread species. 



is a good tailor. From the deck the movements of the 

 whalcs can be easily seen and studied, and many 

 opportunities arc given to secure photographs of 

 living animals. Often such picfiirr5 show many 

 things that would otherwise have ^ i. 



The directors of the shore-whali. nrsd 

 the managers of the stations have always ; 

 willing to assist in the study of the animals v. : > 



the basis of their industry, and have gene: 

 allowed the use of their ships and statwns. 

 only this, but they have in many instances gone to 

 considerable trouble to secure specimens that could 

 be prepared and presented to museums for the pur- 

 pose of exhibition and osteological study. Thus thf 

 old saying that " It is an ill wind that blows good to 

 no one " applies very decidedly to the whaling in- 

 dustPi'. It is, however, deeply to be regrf'' ''"'t 

 the wholesale slaughter of whales will inevit. 

 in their early commercial extinction; but i;. Ne- 

 science is profiting by the opportunities given for the 

 study of these strange and interest- 

 ing animals. 



Roy C. Andrews. 



THE IMPROVEMENT OF 

 INDIAN WHEAT.' 



Dr. F. W. True, assistant secretary of the Smith- 

 sonian Institution, published in 1904 a great work 

 entitled "The Whalebone Whales of the Western 

 North .'Atlantic," in which he discussed the relationship 

 of the Atlantic whales; this book was made possible 

 in its present complete form only by study at the 

 Newfoundland shore-stations. Other shorter papers, 

 too numerous to mention, which have greatly increased 

 our knowledge of these interesting anirnals, have 

 appeared within the last ten or fifteen years, many 

 of them illustrated with photographs of the whale's 

 described. 



The Norwegian method of capture has also made 

 possible, and, in fact, comparatively easy, a study of 

 the habits of the large whales. 



The ships which hunt from these shore-stations are 



trim little vessels, about 90 or 100 feet in length, and 



although they can scarcely be called comfortable, they 



furnish a not uninviting home for a short stay, if one 



NO. 2200, VOL. 88] 



T^HE idea prevails that Indian 

 *■ wheats are weak and do not 

 behave well in milling; their chief 

 points of excellence are their gr«rat 

 dryness and, owing to the thinness 

 of the bran, the large proportion of 

 flour obtained from them when 

 milled. Mainly as the result of 

 trials, carried out by Messrs. Mac- 

 Dougal in 1882, the cultivation of 

 weak, soft white wheats for the pur- 

 pose of export has been consistently 

 advocated in India. Inquiry 

 amongst the natives has shown, 

 however, that a stronger t\-pe ol 

 wheat is preferred for their own 

 use. 



During the past few years ih- 

 scientific selection and cultivation 01 

 these native strong wheats has been 

 carried out at the Agricultural Re- 

 search Institute, Pusa, on lines 

 similar to the experiments of Prof. 

 Biffen at Cambridge. The results 

 have established beyond doubt that 

 strong, free-milling wheats, but 

 little inferior, to Manitoba wheats, 

 can be grown at Pusa. The selected varieties have 

 been submitted to Mr. A. E. Humphries during each 

 of the last three years, and his report, which is 

 included in the bulletin, indicates that they possess 

 great potentialities as regards baking value. They 

 are particularly adapted for special treatment with 

 malt extract and yeast foods, behaving in this respect 

 as Manitoban good-grade whej^HJteroduced in a dry 

 season. ^^P 



From the cultivator's point of view the yield of 

 a variety of wheat is of more importance than the 

 quality of its grain. Much attention has been paid 

 to this point at Pusa, and it has been established that 

 the limiting factors affecting yield in India are the 

 length of the growth period, the water supply, and, 

 particularly in dr\' districts, the strength of the straw. 



J "The Milling and Baking Qaalities of Indian \Vheat." By Albert 

 Howarti and Gabri^lle L. C Howard. Bulletin No. 22. .^gricultun* 

 Research Institute, Pusa. Pritx 8d. 



