112 



NATURE 



{Dec. 5, 1889 



rise to will be settled, I hope, by this Expedition before 

 it returns to the sea. If at all near my line of march, its 

 length, height, and local history will be ascertained. My 

 young officers will like to climb to the summit, and I 

 shall be glad to furnish them with every assistance." 



At the time when this letter was written, Mr. Stanley 

 was uncertain as to the destination of the streams flowing 

 between "the two Muta Nzigds" :— 



" Many rivers will be found to issue from this curious 

 land between the two Muta Nzigcs. What rivers are 

 they ? Do they belong to the Nile or the Congo ? There is 

 no river going east or south-east from this section, except 

 the Katonga and Kafur, and both must receive, if any, but 

 a very small supply from Gordon Bennett and Ruwenzori. 

 The new mountain must therefore be drained principally 

 south and west. If south, the streams have connection 

 with the Lake South ; if west, the Semliki tributary of 

 Lake Albert, and some river flowing to the Congo must 

 receive the rest of its waters. Then, if the Lake South 

 receives any considerable supply, the interest deepens. 

 Does the lake discharge its surplus to the Nile or to the 

 Congo ? If to the former, then it will be of great interest 

 to you, and you will have to admit that Lake Victoria is 

 not the main source of the Nile ; if to the Congo, then 

 the lake will be the source of the River Lowwa or Coa, 

 since it is the largest tributary to the Congo from the east 

 between the Aruwimi and the Luama. For your comfort 

 I will dare venture the opinion even now that the lake is 

 the source of the Lowwa, though I know nothing positive 

 of the matter. But I infer it, ftom the bold manner in 

 which the Aruwimi trenches upon a domain that anyone 

 would have imagined belonged to the Nile. It was only 

 ten minutes' march between the head of one of its streams 

 to the crest of the plateau whence we looked down upon 

 the Albert Nyanza. 



'* From the mouth of the Aruwimi to the head of this 

 stream is 390 geographical miles in a straight line. Well, 

 next to the Aruwimi in size is the Lowwa River, and from 

 the mouth of the Lowwa to the longitude of Ugampaka 

 post in a direct line is only 240 geographical miles." 



NOTES. 



The Gilbert Club, to which we referred last week, was 

 formally founded on Thursday, November 28. The following 

 officers were appointed at the first general meeting : — President, 

 Sir William Thomson. Vice-Presidents : Lord Rayleigh, Prof. 

 D. E, Hughes, Prof. Reinold, Mr. Jonathan Hutchinson 

 (President of the Royal College of Surgeons), Dr. B. W. 

 Richardson, and Mr. H. Laver, of Colchester. Mr. Latimer 

 Clark was elected Treasurer, and Mr. Conrad Cooke, Prof R. 

 Meldola, and Prof. S. P. Thompson, Hon. Secretaries. The 

 resolution finally adopted by the meeting was : — " That the 

 objects of the Gilbert Club be as follows :— (i) To produce and 

 issue an English translation of ' De Magnete ' in the manner of 

 the folio edition of 1600. (2) To arrange hereafter for the 

 tercentenary celebration of the publication of ' De Magnete ' in 

 the year 1900. (3) To promote inquiries into the personal 

 history, life, works, and writings of Dr. Gilbert. (4) To have 

 power, after the completion of the English edition of 'De 

 M^nete,' to undertake the reproduction of other early works 

 on electricity and magnetism, provided at such date a majority 

 of the members of the Club so desire." At the time of the 

 inaugural meeting eighty-seven members had joined the Club. 



Prof. J. Bryce's speech (read by Prof. Holland) at the pre- 

 sentation of Mr. A. R. Wallace for the degree of D.C.L., 

 honoris causd, at Oxford, on November 26, was one of unusual 

 interest. We may note especially the very masterly way in which 

 the doctrine of the survival of the fittest was expressed. After 

 describing Mr. Wallace's travels in Brazilian forests, and among 



the islands, " quje ultra Chersonesum aureum soli nimium pro- 

 pinque subjacent," the speech referred to his discovery of the 

 theory according to which new species are evolved, which was 

 shortly stated as, "ea corpora vigere magis prolemque ex iis 

 Isetiorem surgere quae ipsa nescio quo pacto natura vitoe periculis 

 subeundis aptissima creaverit : sic stirpeja a caateris stirpibus dis- 

 similem et in dies longius discrepantem propagari." The con- 

 temporaneous discovery of natural selection by Charles Darwin, 

 and his cordial recognition of Mr. Wallace's merits, were 

 mentioned: "tanta et in hoc et in illo inerat animi nobilitas 

 veritatis quam glorise propriae studiosior." Reference was made 

 to Mr. Wallace's various writings. 



We regret to announce the sudden death of Dr. W. R. 

 McNab. He died at his residence in Dublin on Tuesday 

 morning, the 3rd inst. Dr. McNab was Professor of Botany 

 in the Royal College of Science, Dublin, having succeeded 

 Prof. Thiselton Dyer, F.R. S. He was also Scientific Super- 

 intendent and Referee to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Glas- 

 nevin, under the Science and Art Department. He appears 

 to have been in his usual health on Monday, and on St. 

 Andrew's Day (Saturday) took an energetic part in the meeting 

 and banquet held by the Scotch residents in Dublin. 



The Colonies and India reports the death, in Melbourne, of 

 Mr. Robert Brough Smyth, who was for sixteen years Secretary 

 of Mines in Victoria. He was well known in Australia for 

 his contributions, especially on geological questions, to scientific 

 literature. 



The new Natural Science Museum of Berlin was opened on 

 Monday. The Berlin Correspondent of the Standard, describing 

 the proceedings, says that the ceremony was striking. A hand- 

 some tent, surmounted by an imperial crown, was erected for the 

 Emperor and Empress, who were present with the Princess 

 Frederick Charles, Prince Alexander, the Hereditary Prince and 

 Princess of Meiningen, and a brilliant suite. Nearly all the 

 Ministers, including Count Bismarck, who has just returned from 

 Friedrichsruh, and the Mmister of War, were in attendance. 

 Count Waldersee, representatives of the Academy of Art, and 

 the Professors of the University, were also present. Dr. von 

 Gossler, Minister of Education, delivered an eloquent address, 

 in which he mentioned that the collections were founded a hun- 

 dred years ago, and expressed the hope that both science and the 

 State would derive equal benefit from the new institution. Prof. 

 Beyrich, the first Curator of the Museum, pledged himself to 

 keep abreast with the progress of science. Their Majesties 

 were conducted through the building by the keepers of the 

 various collections. 



The Paris Museum of Natural History is about to elect a 

 successor to M. Chevreul in the Chair of Chemistry. 



At the general monthly meeting of the Royal Institution, 

 on December 2, the managers reported that they had re- 

 appointed Prof. James Dewar, F.R.S., as Fullerian Professor 

 of Chemistry. 



The Academy of Sciences of Vienna has appointed Prof G. 

 Niemann, of Vienna, and Major Steffan, of Cassel, to be present 

 as impartial witnesses at the excavations at Hissarlik, begun, 

 on November 25, under the direction of Dr. H. Schliemann and 

 Dr. W. Dorpfeld. Captain Ernst Botticher, who has often 

 called in question the utility of Dr. Schliemann's archaeological 

 investigations, has been requested to take part in the excava- 

 tions. 



Mr. Hugh G. Barclay, in his Report as to the fund for the 

 preservation of birds in the Fame Islands, says he has every 

 reason to believe that the birds were very well protected this 

 season. He visited the islands twice, and each time he satisfied 

 himself, by his own personal investigations, that the birds had 



