94 



NA 7 URE 



YNov, 28, 1889 



Geological Society, November 6. — W. T. Blanford, F. R. S., 

 President, in the chair. — The following communications were 

 "read : — Contributions to our knowledije of the Dinosaurs of the 

 Wealden and the Sauropterygians of the Purbeck and Oxford 

 Clay, by R. Lydekker. The first section of this paper was 

 devoted to the description of the remains of Iguanodonts from 

 the Wadhurst Clay near Hastings collected by Mr. C. Dawson. 

 They were considered to indicate two species, for which the 

 names Tguaiiodon hollingtoniensis and /. Fittoni had been 

 proposed in a preliminary notice. In the second section an 

 imperfect metatarsus of a species of Afegalosaiirns from the 

 Hastings Wealden was described, and shown to in iicate a 

 species quite distinct from the one to which a metatarsus from the 

 Wealden of Cuckfield bel )nged. Two cervical vertebrae of a 

 Sauropterygian from the Purbeck of the Isle of Portland were 

 next described, and referred to Ciinoliosanriis portlandkiis, 

 Owen, sp. The concluding section described an imperfect 

 skeleton of a large Pliosaur from the Oxford Clay, in the collec- 

 tion of Mr. A. N. Leeds, which indicated a species intermediate 

 between the typical Kimeridgian forms and the genus Peloneustes. 

 Tliese specimens were considered as probably referable to 

 Plioiatiriis ferox. Evidence was adduced to show that Plio- 

 saurus Evansi, Seeley, should be transferred to rdoneiistes. 

 — Notes on a "dumb fault" or "wash-out" found in the 

 Pleasley and Teversall Collieries, Derbyshire, by J. C. B. 

 Hendy ; communicated by the President. — On some Palaeozoic 

 Ostracoda from North America, Wales, and Ireland, by Prof 

 T. Rupert Jones, F. R.S. The specimens were de-cribed as 

 nearly as possible in the order of their natural relationship, and 

 4hus, besides adding to the known forms, they were shown to 

 illustrate the modifications exhibited by the genera and species 

 of these minute bivalved Crustaceans, both in limited districts 

 and in different regions. Amongst the forms described were the 

 following new species and variety : — Priinitia nmndula, Jones, 

 var. cambric%, nov. ; P. hiimilior, sp. nov. ; P. Morgani, sp. 

 nov. ; P. Ulrichi, sp. nov. ; P. Whitficldi, sp. nov. ; Entomis 

 ■rhoin''oidea, sp. nov. ; Strepula sigmoidalis, sp. nov. ; Beyrkhia 

 Hailii, sp. nov. ; Isochilina lineata, sp. nov. ; /. ? fabacea, sp. 

 ■nov. ; Leperditia Claypolei, sp. nov. ; Xestoleberis Wriijhtii, 

 sp. nov. 



Zoological Society, November 5. — Prof. W. H. Flower, 

 F. R.S., President, in the chair. — The Secretary read a Report 

 •on the additions that had been made to the Society's Menagerie 

 •during the months of June, July, August, and September, 18S9, 

 and called attention to certain interesting accessions which had 

 been received during that period. Amongst these were specially 

 noted a Short Python [Python ciirius), from Malacca, presented 

 ■on July 2 by Mrs. Bertha M. L. Bonsor ; and a Preire's Amazon 

 {Chrysotis pratrii), purchased July 23 : bjth new to the collec- 

 tion. — Mr. J. H. Gurney, Jun., exhibited and made remarks on 

 a hybrid Wagtail, bred in confinement, between the Grey Wag- 

 tail {Motacilla melanope) and the Pied Wagtail [M. higjibris). — 

 Mr. W. B. Tegetmeier exhibited and made remarks on some 

 variations in the plumage of the Partridge (Pcrdixciiierea). — Prof. 

 Bell exhibited and made remarks on two specimens of Virgiilaria 

 .mirabilis, recently dredged by the Hon. A. E. Gathorne Hardy, 

 M.P. , in Loch Craignish. He also exhibited two young living 

 specimens of Palinurus vulgaris, received from Mr. Spencer, of 

 Guernsey, in which the stridulating-organs were still capable of 

 making sounds. — A communication was read from the Rev. 

 Thomas R. R. Stebbing, containing an account of the Amphi- 

 podous Crustaceans of the genus UrothoS, and of a new allied 

 genus p oposed to be called Urothoides. — A communication was 

 read from Colonel C. Swinhoe, containing descriptions of a large 

 number of new Indian Lepidoptera, chiefly Heterocera. — Mr. P. 

 L. Sclater gave an account of the birds collected by Mr. Ramage 

 in St. Lucia, West Indies, which were referred to thirty species. 

 — Mr. G. A. Boulenger read a note on the Short Python {Python 

 curtus), a specimen of which was stated to be living in the 

 Society's reptile house. — A communication was read from Dr. E. 

 C. Stirling, of the University of Adelaide, on some points in the 

 anitomy of the female organs of generation of the Kangaroo, 

 especially in relation to the acts of impregnation and parturition. 

 — Mr. F. E. Beddard read some notes on the anatomy of an Oligo- 

 chsetous Worm of the genus Dero, relating principally to its re- 

 productive system. — A communication was read from Mr. Scott 

 B, Wilson, in which were given the descriptions of four new 

 species of Hawaiian birds, propos3d to be called Chrysometridops 

 ■cczmleirostris, Loxops flammea, Himatione montana^ and H. 

 Mejnegeri, 



Mathematical Society, November 14. — Sir J. Cockle, 

 P\R. S., Vice-President, in the chair. — The following gentle- 

 men were elected to form the Council for the ensuing session : — 

 President : J. J. Walker, F.R.S. Vice-Presidents: Sir J. Cockle, 

 F.R.S., E. B. Elliott, and Prof Greenhill, F.R.S. Treasurer: 

 A. B. Kempe, F.R.S. Honorary Secretaries: M. Jenkins 

 and R. Tucker. Other members : A. B. Basset, F.R.S., Prof. 

 W. Burnside, Prof. Cayley, F.R.S., Dr. Glaisher, F.R..S., J. 

 Hammond, Dr. Larmor, C. Leudesdorf, Major Macmahon, 

 R. A., and S. Roberts, F.R.S. — The following papers were 

 read : — Isoscelian hexagrams, by Mr. R. Tucker. — On Euler's 

 0-function, two notes by Mr. H. F. Baker and Major Macmahon 

 (the former communicated by Mr. Jenkins). — On the extension 

 and flexure of a thin elastic plane plate, by Mr. A. B. Basset, 

 F.R.S. 



Paris. 



Academy of Sciences, November 18. — M. Hermite in the 

 chair. — On animal heat and the heats of formation and of com- 

 bustion of urea, by MM. Berthelot and P. Petit. In connection 

 with the production of animal heat the study of urea is of 

 special interest, for next to carbon dioxide it is the chief form 

 under which carbon is eliminated from the system, while almost 

 all the nitrogen is eliminated as urea. Hence it is important 

 to know how the production of urea in the organs is related to 

 the heat of formation of urea, and of the substances from which 

 it is derived. In the present paper the authors deal with the 

 first problem, for the heat of combustion of urea ia free oxygen 

 has not yet been measured. Three concordant combustions in 

 the calorimetric bomb yielded I5i'8 C. per gram-molecule, 

 and the molecular heat of solution of urea at about 1 1° C. is found 

 to be - 3'58 C, whence the heat of formation of urea is 808 C, 

 and of its solution in water or urine is found to be -f 77 2 C. — On 

 the orbit of Winnecke's periodical comet, by M. II. Faye. These 

 remarks are made in connection with a memoir presented to the 

 Academy by Baron von Ilaerdtl, on the movements of Win- 

 necke's periodical comet. He arrives at the conclusion that 

 there is no trace of acceleration in the mean movement. He 

 finds that the mass of Jupiter must be raised to i : I047'I52, and 

 determines that of Mercury in round numbers at i : 5,010,000 ± 

 700,000. This agrees pretty closely with the value i : 5,310,000 

 already obtained by Le Verrier. — Experimental study of the 

 transits and occultations of Jupiter's satellites, by M. Ch. Andre. 

 These observations have been made by means of an apparatus 

 specially constructed by MM. Brunner, and here fully described. 

 Particular attention was paid to the phenomenon of the luminous 

 ligament which is formed near the point of contact. It begins to 

 appear when the satellite is about i\ minutes from real contact, 

 gradually increasing in size and intensity as the two bodies draw 

 near, so that at the instant of geometrical contact they appear to 

 be connected by a veritable luminous bridge about one-third 

 the breadth of the diameter of the satellite. The moment of 

 geometrical contact is accompanied by optical appearances 

 sufficiently distinct to serve as a base for the direct observation 

 of the phenomenon — Re:^earches on the application of the 

 measurement of rotatory power to the study of compounds 

 resulting from the action of malic acid on sodium molybdate, 

 by M. D. Gernez. In a previous communication {jOomptes 

 rendus, cix. p. 151) the author showed that solutions of malic 

 acid, with molybdate of ammonia added, show sundry changes 

 in rotatory power, which may easily be explained by assuming 

 that definite compounds are formed between the substances. 

 His present researches, made with the same acid and neutral 

 sodium molybdate, lead to still more varied results, clearly 

 showing the product'.on of compounds between simple numbers 

 of molecules of these bodies. The results, which are here tabu- 

 lated and described, demonstrate that definite compounds are 

 formed in solution on increasing the amount of one of the 

 compounds regularly. They also show the defect of analytical 

 methods claiming to deduce the composition of an active liquid 

 from the measurement of its rotation, at least so far as regards 

 substances analogous to those here under consideration. — On 

 the ophthalmoscopic examination of the base of the eye in 

 hypnotic subjects, by MM. Luys and Bacchi. Nine subjects 

 (six women and three men) were examined, first in the normal 

 state and then in various phases of catalepsy, lucid soamam- 

 bulism, and hallucination. In some instances the iris was 

 found to be excessively dilated and almost insensible to 

 light. Other appearances are described, but no general in- 

 ferences are drawn from these preliminary observations. — The 

 second part of vol. i. of MM. Houzeau and Lancaster's "Bib- 



