552 



NATURE 



[April 7, 1898 



conic structures, which appear to have been formed out of layers 

 of shale and ironstone. The bending-up of the shale above the 

 nodules and down below them, the close but unconformable 

 covering of Permian breccia, and the staining of the whole 

 section suggests, if indeed it does not demonstrate, to the author 

 that the growth of the cone-in-cone took place subsequently to 

 the deposit of the Permian breccia. Several American and 

 other examples are described, and a series of conclusions are 

 appended to the paper. 



Paris, 

 Academy of Sciences, March 28.— M. Wolf in the chair. 

 — Preliminary study of a method of estimating carbon monoxide 

 diluted with air, by M. Armand Gautier. It has been shown 

 in previous papers on the same subject, that carbon monoxide is 

 completely oxidised by passing over iodic anhydride at 6o°-65°. 

 The present study is concerned with the dilution at which this 

 action ceases. Known volumes of carbon monoxide were mixed 

 with large quantities of air, and the resulting mixture passed 

 over iodic anhydride ; the carbon dioxide product was measured 

 by the method of Miintz. It was found that even at dilutions 

 of I in 30,000, the quantity of CO present could be accurately 

 determined. Both acetylene and ethylene are oxidised under 

 the same conditions, but only partially, experiments showing 

 that some 10 to 24 per cent, of the former, and 40 to 60 per 

 -cent, of the latter were converted into carbon dioxide. — On the 

 •use of palladium chloride as a reagent for the detection of 

 ^minimal quantities of carbon monoxide in the air, and on the 

 transformation of this gas into carbonic acid at the ordinary 

 ^temperature, by MM. Potain and Drouin. One part of carbon 

 -monoxide in 10,000 of air can be detected by this reagent, if it 

 "'be assumed that no other reducing gas is present, but the method 

 does not yield quantitative results. Atmospheric air containing 

 y^^nth part of carbonic oxide, after remaining in sealed flasks 

 -for forty-two days, showed no trace of the monoxide, but a 

 t'oearly equal volume of carbon dioxide. From this it would 

 appear that the monoxide can be slowly oxidised by air at 

 ordinary temperatures. — Observations of Perrine's comet (1898 

 March 19) made at the Observatory of Paris, by MM. G. 

 Bigourdan and G. Fayet. — Observations of the same comet, 

 . made with the large equatorial at the University of Bordeaux, by 

 M. L. Picart. — Observations of Perrine's comet, made at the 

 Toulouse Observatory with the Brunner equatorial, by M. F. 

 Rossard. — Elements of Perrine's comet, by M. J. Lagarde. — 

 fundamental theorem on the birational transformations with com- 

 iplete coefficients, by M. S. Kantor. — On certain linear functional 

 'equations, by M. Lemeray. — Researches of precision on the 

 infra-red dispersion of Iceland spar, by M. E. Carvallo. The 

 measurements agree well with the results of earlier researches, 

 but are accurate to another decimal place. — On the rigorous 

 determination of molecular weights of gases, starting from their 

 ■densities, and the deviations which they exhibit from Boyle's 

 iaw, by M. Daniel Berthelot. — Gas engines with high com- 

 pression, by M. A. Witz. A discussion of the theory of the 

 Diesel engine. — On the Hertzian field, by M. Albert 

 Turpain.--<>n an iodide of tungsten, by M. Ed. Defacqz. 

 The hexacbloride is first prepared by the action of 

 ■chlorine upon the metal, and this heated to about 

 .400° C. in a current of hydriodic acid. The iodide has 

 the composition WIj. — Quinolinic bases, by M. Marcel 

 Delepine. Heats of combustion and formation of quinoline, 

 tetrahydroquinoline, quinaldine, and tetrahydroquinaldine. 

 . Combination of organic bases with certain oxygen salts. Double 

 salts are described of aniline and toluidine with cadmium, zinc, 

 magnesium, nickel, cobalt, and copper sulphates. — New observ- 

 . ations on the evolution of the Urnes, by MM. J. Kunstler and 

 A. Gruvel. — On the encephalon of the Glycerse, by M. Ch. 

 V Gravier. In spite of certain peculiarities which are related to 

 ttiie considerable length of the prostomium, the encephalon of 

 'tTie Glycerse present the same fundamental characters as those 

 of other allied Annelids of which the nervous system has been 

 specially studied. — On the relation between centrosomes and 

 yjbratile cilia, by M. L. F. Henneguy. — On the structure of the 

 niycorhizia, by M. Louis Mangin. — On the replacement of a 

 principal stem by one of its ramifications, by M. Auguste 

 Boirivant, When a lateral branch replaces a portion of a 

 principal stem which has been destroyed, it undergoes modi- 

 fications so profound as to finally more nearly resemble, both in 

 its structure and external appearance, the axis which it replaces, 

 rather than the branch to which it is homologous. — Biochemical 

 preparation of crystallised dioxyacetone, by M, Gabriel 



NO. T484, VOL. 57] 



Bertrand. By the action of the sorbose bacteria upon glycerine 

 under suitable conditions laid down in this paper, excellent 

 yields of crystallised dioxyacetone are obtained (25 gr. of the 

 latter from 100 gr. of glycerine). — On the treatment of mania 

 by the injection of normal nerve substance, by M. V. Babes. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLET, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



Books.— Outlines of Descriptive Psychology : Prof. G. T. Ladd (Long- 

 mans). — The Diseases of the Lungs : Dr. J. K. Fowler and Prof. R. J. 

 Godlee (Longmans). — Nippur, or Explorations and Adventures on the 

 Euphrates : Dr. J. P. Peters, 2 Vols. (Putnam).— Simple Lessons in 

 Cookery : M. Harrison (Macmillan). — A Text-Book of Botany : Stras- 

 burger, Noll, Schenck, and Schimper, translated by Dr. H. C. Porter 

 (Macmillan).— The Process of Creation discovered: J. Dunbar (Watts). — 

 Respiratory Exercises in the Treatment of Disease : Dr H. Campbell 

 (Bailliere). — Biomechanik erschlossen aus dem Principe der Organogenese : 

 Dr. E. Mehnert (Jena, Fischer). — Fossil Plants for Students of Botany 

 and Geology : A. C. Seward, Vol. i (Cambridge University Press). — Bibli- 

 ogiaphy of the Metals of the Platinum Group (Washington). — Philip's 

 Artistic Animal Studies (Outline and Coloured Series), ditto, Fruit Studies, 

 (Philip). 



Pamphlet. — Report of S. P. Langley, Secretary of the Smithsonian 

 Institution, for the Year ending June 30, 1897 (Wai^mgton). 



Serials. — Natural Science, April (Dent). — The Atoll of Funafuti, Part 6 

 (Sydney). — Sunday Magazine, April (Isbister). — Good Words, April (Is- 

 bister). — An Illustrated Manual of British Birds : H. Saunders, 2nd edition, 

 March and April (Gurney). — Contemporary Review, April (Isbister). — 

 National Review, April (Arnold). — Transactions of the Edinburgh Geo- 

 logical Society, Vol. vii. Part 3 (Edinburgh). — Fortnightly Review, April 

 (Chapman). — Psychological Review, Index for 1897 (Macmillan). — Century 

 Magazine, April (Macmillan). — L'Anthropologie, Tome ix. No i (Paris, 

 Masson). — Zeitschrift fiir Physikalische Chemie, xxv. Band, 3 Heft 

 (Leipzig, Engelmann). — Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of 

 England, Vol. ix. Part i (Murray). — Bulletin of the American Museum of 

 Natural History. Vol. ix , 1897 (New York). — Proceedings and Transac- 

 tions of the N.S. Institute of Science, Halifax, N.S., Vol. ix. Part 3 

 (Halifax). — Journal of Botany, April (West). 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



A Malpighi Bicentenary Volume. By Prof. M. 



Foster, Sec.R.S 529 



The Aryo-Semitic School of Mythology 530 



Developmental Mechanics 531 



British Vertebrates. By R. L 533 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Roberts- Austen : "Canada's Metals" 533 



Brlickner : " Hann, Hochstetter, Pokorny — Allge- 

 meine Erdkunde, Fiinfte, neu-bearbeitete Auflage." 



-H. R. M 534 



Groom: " Elementary Botany " 534 



" Alembic Club Reprints " 534 



Robert : " Practical Toxicology for Physicians and 



Students."— F. W. T, 535 



Hovenden : ' ' What is Life ? or, Where are we ? What 

 are we ? Whence did we come ? and Whither do 



we go?" .-535 



Merklen : " La Tuberculose et son Traitement hygi- 



enique" 535 



Hutchinson : ** Marriage Customs in Many Lands " . 535 

 Letters to the Editor :— 



Misleading Applications of Familiar Scientific Terms. 



— Lady Welby 536 



The Kinetic Theory and Radiant Energy. — Prof, 



G. H. Bryan, F.R.S 536 



Note on Mr. Wood's Method of Illustrating Planetary 



Orbits. — Prof. Louis W. Austin 536 



An Extraordinary Heron's Nest. {Illustrated.) — G. 



W. Murdoch 537 



" The Story of Gloucester."— Alex. Wheeler; The 



Writer of the Article 537 



The South Kensington Science Buildings .... 539 



Photography and Travel. {Illustrated.) 539 



The Heights of Meteors. By W. F. Denning . . . 540 



Rudolf Leuckart 542 



Notes 542 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



Spectrum Analysis of Meteorites 546 



Stellar Parallaxes 54^ 



James Watt, and the Discovery of the Composition 

 of Water. By Prof. T, E. Thorpe, F.R.S. ... 546 



Scientific Serials . 551 



Societies and Academies 551 



Books, Pamphlet, and Serials Received ..... 552 



