Nw. 14. 1878] 



NATURE 



45 



eyaal to the light of twelve ordinary gas jets. The key was 

 ;a turned to another of the keyholes, and another of the 

 . ..nps was lighted up. In the same way the fourth and fifth 

 burners were ignited, and there resulted an exceedingly brilliant 

 white light, yet so soft and steady that it did not pain the eyes. 

 The lights were easily turned to any desired degree of brilliancy 

 — from that of a mere spark to a light of six times the intensity 

 of the common gas jet, that being the maximum power of 

 the lights in use. The company asserts its ability to easily fit 

 up lights equal to thirty gas-burners. By a very simple 

 "switch" in the wall the current of electricity is divided and 

 subdivided to supply any number of burners desired, the elec- 

 tricity reaching the switch from the generator through a single 

 wire. The light is turned on or ofif or regulated to any degree 

 ttierely by turning a key which operates upon the switch. The 

 plan is similar to that proposed by Edison. The diiSculty of a 

 meter has been overcome by the invention of a meter which will 

 record the number of burners used in any given house and the 

 number of hours each burner is lighted. 



The Institution of Civil Engineers have, as usual, issued a 

 circular inviting communications on a number of subjects con- 

 nected with their department ; for such as meet with their 

 approval they award several valuable prizes. The circular may 

 be obtained by applying to 25, Great George Street, West- 

 minster. 



Prof. S. P. Thompson lectured to an audience of 2,600 per- 

 sons in the Colston Hall, Bristol, on November 8, on the 

 Electric Light. The JablochkofiF candle and Wallace lamp were 

 amongst the systems shown in operation. The lecture is to be 

 repeated on the 13th inst. to the Avorking-men of Bristol. 



We are glad to notice a little work which is being done at 

 Winchester, and which deserves commendation as a step in the 

 right direction by a corporation. Mr. P. S. Abraham, M.A., 

 B.Sc, who has for two months been engaged in naming, 

 arranging, and cataloguing the different objects in the Winchester 

 City Museum, has sent in a report to the Committee, from which 

 we glean the following : — The zoological portion of the museum 

 contains some 1,700 objects, which have been labelled and placed 

 in their proper scientific positions by Mr, Abraham, This 

 number is made up of 70 mammalian animals, 430 birds, 50 rep- 

 tiles and frogs, 80 fishes, 50 specimens of corals, sponges, &c., 

 and about 1,000 molluscs. There are, in addition, a few speci- 

 mens of articulated animals, and a small cabinet of insects. 

 .There is also a valuable collection of lichens — many from Hamp- 

 shire — and comprising 227 varieties. In the mineralogical room 

 Mr. Abraham has classified, labelled, and arranged two large 

 cases of minerals, which now contain above 1,200 specimens, 

 one case of rocks, with 300 specimens, and two cases of fossils 

 containing nearly 1,300 specimens. There are, besides, large and 

 valuable collections in various other departments, though Mr. 

 Abraham states they are very insecurely cased. We hope the 

 Corporation will adopt his recommendations. He observes that 

 the museum contains an excellent nucleus of specimens. The 

 collection coiild be easily improved and enlarged by a judicious 

 curator, by the exchange of duplicate specimens, of which there 

 are many, and by filling up gaps by purchase of the wanting 

 representative forms. In this manner, and without very great 

 expense, the museum might be made well worthy of the city of 

 Winchester. The Committee conveyed to Mr. Abraham their 

 *' unanimous expression of approval at the able manner in which 

 he has arranged, labelled, and catalogued the collection in the 

 City Museum." 



Violent volcanic eruptions are reported from several of the 

 Aleutian Isles in the North Pacific. The news was brought to 

 Honolulu by whalers returning from the Arctic Seas through 

 Behring's Straits. The high volcanoes upon Amukta and 



Tshegula sent forth gigantic columns of smoke and copious 

 streams of lava, and the same was the case with the mountain 

 upon Umnak, which reaches a height of 2,800 metres. On the 

 island of Unalashka an earthquake accompanied by a tidal wave 

 totally destroyed the village of Makushin on August 29. 



A LARGE sea- and fresh-water aquarium is now in course of 

 construction at Leipzig. It will consist of about twenty tanks, 

 of whi ch nine are to contain marine animals. The capacity of 

 the tanks wiU vary from 350 to 800 litres. 



Remarkable discoveries of Roman structures have recently 

 been made at Bonn, on the Rhine. It has been found that the 

 Castrum the Romans had established there by far exceeded in 

 extent and importance the celebrated Saalbm-g near Hombmrg. 

 Unfortunately the directors of the Provincial Museum of Bonn, 

 by whose orders the excavations were begim, were not able to 

 acquire the ground upon which the discovery was made, so 

 that archseologists must remain satisfied with the mere fact of 

 the discovery and the measiu-ements taken. 



Near the Norwegian town of Hamar, at a farm called Stor- 

 hammer, some 1 70 silver coins have been found in the ground, 

 none of which are dated later than the year 1530. They are all 

 of Danish, Swedish, or Norwegian origin. At the same time 

 two silver spoons, a gold ring, and several small silver hooks, 

 were found. All the objects have been purchased by the Chris- 

 tiania Museum. 



In 1880 there will be an international exhibition of sea and 

 river fishing-tackle at Berlin. The programme of the exhibition, 

 which will contain no less than nine subdivisions, wiU shortly be 

 sent to all interested in fisheries, both in Germany and abroad. 



From the twenty-second annual report of the Sheffield Free 

 Libraries and Museum we are glad to see that in the reference 

 department a large increase has taken place in the demand for 

 books in the class of arts and science. Considerable additions 

 have been made to the museum. 



The Natural History Journal, " conducted by the Societies 

 in Friends' Schools," for October 15 contains several interesting 

 papers on various scientific subjects. A new feature is the illus- 

 trations, which have been made by an ingenious, simple, and 

 inexpensive process, described in the first paper. One of these, 

 "Societies in Friends' Schools," is the Lisbum School Asso- 

 ciation, which sends us a very favourable " Fourth Annual Re- 

 port." We have also received a creditable Annual Report (the 

 eleventh) from the Metropolitan Scientific Association, which 

 meets at the Ward Schools, Aldersgate Street, on the fourth 

 Tuesday in each month. 



We have received a well-arranged list of lectures to be given 

 in connection with the Hull Literary and Philosophical Society, 

 in which scientific subjects are given a large place. 



The Gardener's Chronicle publishes the following abstract 

 from a letter recently received from Dr. Beccari, from Suma- 

 tra : — "I have very little time to spare, only to tell you of a 

 botanical discovery which I think is of some interest. It is a 

 gigantic Aroid, which can only be compared with the Godwinia 

 discovered by Secmann in Nicaragua, I have no books with 

 me, and I am not able to ascertain the genus to which it belongs, 

 especially as I have seen it only in fruit. I believe it to be a 

 Conophallus, and if so, I propose to name it Conophallus tita- 

 num. The tuber of a plant that I dug up is 1*40 m. in 

 circumference. Two men could hardly carry it ; they fell 

 down and the tuber was broken. I will secure some more, 

 and I hope to be able to forward them to Florence in good 

 state. Meanwhile I send you some seeds. From this tuber, 

 as in the genus Amorphophallus, only one leaf is produced, 

 which in form and segments does not much differ from those of 

 the above-named genus. But what different dimensions ! The 

 stalk at the base was 90 ctm. in girth, it was slightly attenuated 



