Jan. 9, 1890J 



NATURE 



231 



of Vyernyi also suffered very much. At Przevalsk (formerly 

 Karakol, on the southern shore) and the surrounding villages 

 many houses were destroyed ; while amidst the Taranchis of 

 the district of Vyernyi 21 persons were killed and 2 severely 

 injured. At Vyernyi itself (50 miles north of the lake) the 

 earthquake was relatively feeble ; but at Jarkend all houses 

 were rendered uninhabitable. In the west of Lake Issyk-kul 

 the shocks were feeble, but in the north the wave of the earth- 

 quake spread as far as Kopal (180 miles from Issyk-kul, as the 

 crow flies), and even as far as Sergiopol, which is 380 miles 

 distant from the northern shore of the lake. 



The Council of the Italian Meteorological Society, publishes 

 an Anmiario Meteorologico, in which will be found much useful 

 information for general readers. The volume for 1890 contains 

 276 small octavo pages, and is divided into four parts: — (l) 

 Ephemerides and astronomical tables. This part also contains a 

 special appendix giving the concordance of the calendars and 

 other particulars of the 17 eastern nations. (2) Tables for the 

 reduction of meteorological observations, by Padre Denza, with 

 useful examples of how the corrections are applied, and also 

 meteorological and magnetical statistics. (3) Geographical and 

 topographical elements, together with an instructive paper on 

 recent electrical terms and measurements. (4) A series of short 

 articles on various sciences, among which we may specially 

 mention one by Padre Denza, on the mode of determining the 

 meridian line and time, for the use of observers who have only 

 simple instruments. The most recent ideas upon the formation 

 of hail, by Prof L. Bombicci. On the types of isobars which 

 favour frosts, by Prof. P. Busin, with suggestions for any ob- 

 servers willing to work at this subject. And, on the cause of 

 earthquakes, in which the various theories are discussed, by Dr. 

 C. De Giorgi. 



The Deutsche Seewarte has published, in a separate memoir, 

 the results of the meteorological observations taken at its nine 

 coast stations for the two lustra 1876-80 and 1881-85, together 

 with summaries for the whole decade. The work contains very 

 useful information relating to the climate of Northern Germany, 

 and the hope is expressed that other institutions will publish 

 similar results for their respective systems. In Syinons's Monthly 

 Meteorological Magazine for November it is pointed out that the 

 years begin with December, in opposition to the regulations of 

 the Vienna Congress that the years should begin with January, 

 and an explanation of this is asked for. The explanation is given 

 in the introduction : by this method the Seewarte has been able 

 to give seasonal means, as well as monthly means. The Decem- 

 ber observations, which precede those for January, are for the 

 same year as all the other months, not 'for the preceding year. 

 The greatest annual range of temperature is I07°-I at Neufahr- 

 wasser. The greatest daily rainfall occurred at Hamburg — viz. 

 3*37 inches. The annual percentage of rainy days varies from 

 41-6 to 597, 



The Annual Report of the Chief Signal Officer of the United 

 States, for the year 1889, sets forth the extended and important 

 character of the meteorological work that is carried on. Apart 

 from weather forecasts, and storm warnings, the duties include 

 the gauging and reporting of rivers, the reporting of temperature j 

 and rainfall conditions for the cotton interests, frost warnings in 

 the interest of agriculture, and the notification of advancing cold 

 waves for the benefit of the general public. The Chief Signal 

 Officer estimates that the gratuitous distribution of meteorological 

 data in the United States in a single week is greater than in all 

 Europe in the entire year. The weather forecasts are issued 

 twice daily, at 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., for a period of twenty-four 

 hours, and the percentage of success shows a general average of 

 81. The present system of flag signals gives clear and definite 

 information as to whether a storm is to be light or severe, 



! whether its centre is approaching or has passed the station, and 

 from what quarter high winds are expected. With regard to 

 scientific researches, systematic observations of atmospheric 

 electricity have been made, to determine whether these could be 

 made use of in weather forecasting, the result being that negative 

 electricity may be observed without being in any way related to 

 precipitation, past, present, or future, and that such observations 

 do not promise to be of practical use. Prof. C. Abbe has 

 prepared a popular and non-mathematical exposition of the laws 

 of storms, with a view to their better prediction. The Chief 

 Signal Officer states that the Report brings together many new 

 results, and that Prof. Abbe finds the source and maintaining 

 power of a storm in the absorption by the cloud of solar heat, 

 and in the liberation of heat in the cloud by those particles that 

 subsequently fall to the ground as rain or snow, and endeavours 

 to show that the movement of the storm centre is principally 

 influenced by the location and amount of such precipitation. 



Remarkable electrical phenomena are witnessed at the new 

 observatory on the steep and isolated Santis (821 5) in Northern 

 Switzerland. Thunderstorms are extremely frequent ; thus in 

 June and July last year, only three days were without them. 

 As a rule, thunder peals from midday till evening. The noise is 

 short, partly owing to shortness of flashes and partly to the 

 small amount of echo. The thunderstorms come on quite 

 suddenly, in a clear sky. One of the surest indications of their 

 approach is the bristling of the observer's hair. During hail, 

 the iron rods of the house give a hissing sound, associated with 

 luminous effects. 



M. E. HospiTALiER, the electrician, has begun the publica- 

 tion of a work in two volumes, entitled " Traite Elementaire 

 de I'Energie electrique." The first volume, comprising the 

 definition, principles, and general laws, has been issued. 

 Vol. II., on industrial applications, will be issued during the 

 present year. 



In the current number of the American Naturalist Mr. 

 Clement L. Webster gives an interesting account of various 

 " mound-builder mounds " near Old Chickasaw, Iowa. Speaking 

 of three human skeletons found in one of these mounds, the 

 writer says that the crania show "an extremely low grade of 

 mental development. " They are smaller than the Neanderthal 

 skull. 



M. Vayssi^re has published the second part of his monograph 

 of the Opisthobranchiate Mollusca of the Gulf of Marseilles. 

 It contains many fine plates. 



The origin of the very extensive pampas-formation in South 

 America, a humus-covered loess of fine dust-like material, from 

 100 to 160 feet thick, with limestone concretions, and numerous 

 fine passages, has attracted the attention of several geologists- 

 From an important recent contribution to the subject by Roth 

 (German Geological Society), it would appear that wind, river, 

 lag oon, and coast deposits may all be distinguished in the 

 pampas. The coast deposits are chiefly recognized by sand and 

 marine shells. The lagoon formations are darker in colour and 

 of small extent and thickness. The deposits from rivers are 

 either from those rising in the mountains, or from those rising in 

 the pampas themselves. The former contain, near the moun- 

 tains, blocks of stone rolled down, and the granular nature of 

 the deposit grows ever finer in the course of the rivers, which 

 lose themselves in the pampas, in a region rich in lagoons, with 

 a pretty abundant vegetation under recurrent rains. The deposits 

 from the poor streams rising in the pampas have round, smooth, 

 lime concretions, with smooth bone fragments of mammals. 

 But most extensive are the aeolic or air formntions, of which the 

 vertical root- like tubes and irregularly- formed lime concretions 

 are characteristic. Violent winds carry the fine water-deposited 



