Feb. lo, 1876] 



NATURE 



297 



table givdng the mean temperature of Paris for each day of the 

 year, calculated from sixty years' observations, a comparison of 

 the mean hourly observations from March to September, between 

 the thermometer in shade and Becquerel's electric thermometer, 

 fixed at a height of sixty- five feet above the ground ; and a 

 variety of tables, partly chemical and partly meteorological, 

 bearing on agriculture. 



Dr. E. Perceval Wright, M.A., F.L.S., was, on the 5th 

 inst, re-elected Professor of Botany and Keeper of the Herbarimn 

 in the University of Dublin. 



The Royal Irish Academy has lately shown a large amount of 

 literary life. Its publications consist, like those of most of our 

 chartered societies, of Transactions and Proceedings. Of the 

 Academy Transactions during the last twelve months twelve 

 parts have been published ; it is noteworthy that these parts, 

 each containing a single memoir, have been published within 

 a few weeks after they have been read. Among them we 

 notice Mr. Jellet's memoir on Chemical Optics, Mr. Stoney's 

 report on Riveted Joints, Dr. Macalister's report on the Anatomy 

 of Insectivorous Edentates, Mr. Baker's report on the Seychelles 

 Fern Flora, Dr. Doberck's four memoirs on -i-arious Binary Stars, 

 and on the first Comet of 1845, I^"". Hart's memoir on the Nine- 

 point Contact of Cubic Curves, Mr. Mackintosh on Echini 

 Spines, and Prof. King on Jointing. The Scientific Proceedings 

 during the same period have been published quarterly, and the 

 four parts contain thirty-seven memoirs, not of siifficient import- 

 ance for the Transactions, which are illustrated by thirty-four 

 plates and many woodcuts. One long report by Rev. E. 

 O'Meara on Irish Diatomaceae will be of interest to all micro- 

 scopists, while many of the papers by Dr. Macalister, Mr. 

 Archer, Mr. Mackintosh, Mr. Burton, Dr. McNab, Dr. Leith 

 Adams, are^of very considerable importance. Speedy publica- 

 tion is the very life of science, and we trust the Irish Academy 

 will indulge, in this respect, in a generous rivalry with the 

 cognate London societies. The separate pubUcation of the 

 memoirs is a boon to the working student, who cannot always 

 afford to buy a large volume of some 600 pages for the sake of 

 perhaps one small memoir. 



The Royal Commissioners on Vivisection have signed their 

 report, which vrill forthwith be despatched to her Majesty. 



M. Berthelot, the celebrated chemist, is a candidate in the 

 moderate Republican interest for the representation in the French 

 Chamber of Deputies, of the district in which the Institute is 

 situated. 



With this month's number of Petermann's Miilheilungen is a 

 map of the African west coast from 3° to 6° S. laL, showing the 

 results obtained by the German African Expedition. A short 

 paper by Dr. Giissfeldt states briefly the bases on which the map 

 is constructed. Its special value Ues in the fact that it is almost 

 whoUy constructed from materials obtained by the personal ob- 

 servation of Dr. Giissfeldt. The same number contains the 

 continuation of the account of the recent Paris Geographical 

 Exhibition. Dr. A. Schreiber, who lived six years in Sumatra, 

 contributes an important paper on the Southern Batta Lands of 

 that island ; the paper is accompanied by an excellent and full 

 map of that portion of the island between the equator and 2^5° 

 lat, and westward of the 1 00th degree of E, long. The 

 —mber contains what may be regarded as a complete geogra- 

 phical necrology for 1875. It comprises thirty-six names, and 

 how wide Dr. Petermann's interpretation of the word geography 

 is may be learned from the fact that among these names are 

 those of Sir Charles Lyell, Sir W. E. Logan, and Dr. von 

 Willemoes-Suhm. The number concludes with the continuation 

 of Dr. Conto de Magelhaes' account of his travels in Uruguay. 



The Geographical Magadne for February contains a brief but 

 dear account of the work accomplished by Cameron. Major 



Wood's paper on former physical aspects of the Caspian is con- 

 tinued, and Prot Giglioli contributes translations of letters from 

 Dr. Beccari, the Italian explorer of New Guinea ; a map accom- 

 panies these letters. 



The December number of the Bulletin of the French Geo- 

 graphical Society contains the abstract of the diary of a Rabbi 

 who recently journeyed from Mogador in Morocco to the 

 Djebel Tabayoudt. The Abbe Durand's valuable paper on the 

 basin of the Madeira, S. America, is concluded, and M. Foumier 

 contributes some recent information on Mozambique and 

 the production of the basin of the ZambesL M. V. A. 

 Malte-Brun reports on Dr. Van Raemdonck's work on the 

 terrestrial and celestial spheres of Mercator. In coimection with 

 the proposed erection of a Central Meteorological Observatory 

 on J.Iont Pie, Abbe Perrier gives some account of that mountain. 

 It is in the middle of the Graian Alps, 3,593 metres above the 

 sea, nine kilometres firom the town of Aosta. 



Among the notices of motion in the House of Commons on 

 the opening day of Parliament, were one by Sir John Lubbock 

 to introduce his National Monuments' Bill, and another by Mr. 

 Mundella of a BiU for the establishment of Free Libraries, Mu- 

 seums, and Institutions for the Teaching of Science and Art. 



The French Association for the Advancement of Science 

 opens its next Congress at Clermont-Ferrand on August 17 next. 



VOL.iV, Part II. of the Natural History Transactions of North- 

 umberland and Durham contains the Presidential Addresses for 

 1874 and 1875. The most important cont^bution to the part is 

 an interesting Memoir of the Life of the late Albany Hancock, 

 by Dr. Embleton, which ought to prove acceptable to all natu- 

 ralists. A beautifully- executed steel portrait accompanies the 

 memoir, and appended is a list of seventy-three works, mostly 

 contributions to various journals, written either wholly by 

 Mr. Hancock, or in conjunction with some one else. Dr. 

 Embleton also contributes a paper on the Vendace (Coregonus 

 VVilhughbii, Yarrell, C. Marcenula, Jardine and Jenyns), and 

 Mr. G. C. Atkinson a second instalment of a Catalogue of 

 the more remarkable Trees of Northumberland and Durham. 



Another catastrophe' has befallen the Island of Reunion. 

 On Dec. 22, 1875, a terrific cyclone, accompanied by a thunder- 

 storm, deluged St Denis, the chief town. The whole island, fifty 

 miles long, by thirty miles broad, was more or less damaged ; 

 but the loss of life has been smaller than when the landslip 

 occurred a month previously. 



We have received a copy of the first number of Th< American 

 Journal of Microscopy, a new monthly paper published at New 

 York, which has commenced in an unpretentious manner, the 

 object of the editor evidently being to increase it if he finds that 

 the plan of its construction suits it to the wants of a sufficiently 

 large circle of contributors. 



At the last meeting of the Eastbourne Natural History 

 Society, Dr. Ogier Ward read a paper on the Hill-Forts of 

 Sussex. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Panda (y£lurus fuJgms) from Nepal, de- 

 posited ; a Hobby {Hyfotriorchis subbuteo), and a Common 

 Kestrel ( Tinnunulus alaudarius), captured in the Red Sea, 

 presented by Mr. S. Baton ; a Bonnet Monkey {A/acacus radiatus) 

 from India, presented by Mr. E. Darwell ; two Snowy Egrets 

 {Ardea candidissima) from America, purchased ; a Red-crested 

 Cardinal (Paroaria cucullata) fiom S. America ; two Amaduvade 

 Finches {Estrelda amadaza) from India, presented by Mr. Peter 

 W. Barlow, jun. ; a Swainson's Lorikeet {Trichoglossus swain- 

 soni) from Aostralia, presented by Mrs. G. F. Aogas. 



