288 



NATURE 



\yan. 30, 1879 



is a series of stories, told with raciness and touches of sar- 

 casm and humour, of the many impostures which have 

 been perpetrated on the pubUc by those who knew how 

 to turn to account some of the results of science. Of 

 course spiritualism comes in for a large share of notice, 

 while the real miracles of science are pleasantly described 

 in one or two concluding chapters. The book is alto- 

 gether a very curious one, and evidences considerable 

 research in out-of-the-way corners on the part of its 

 author. 



On Foot in Spain; a Walk from the Bay of Biscay to the 

 Mediterranean. By J. S. Campion. Illustrated by 

 Original Sketches. (London : Chapman and Hall, 

 1879.) 



Major Campion has already proved his power as a 

 charming raconteur in his " On the Frontier," and 

 although in artistic finish and exciting incident the present 

 work is not equal to the former, still it is a well-told 

 story of a free and easy walk through a comparatively 

 little-known country. Major Campion did not encumber 

 himself with more baggage than he could carry himself, 

 and with his gun and genial manners and tact he got on 

 without difficulty wherever he went. We should think his 

 work is likely to increase the number of pedestrian tourists 

 in Spain, about the obstacles to travel in which many 

 delusions exist. Major Campion has much to tell in his 

 own way about the places and people he saw, and every 

 now and then we are glad to stumble on a scrap of infor- 

 mation about the geology or natural history of the countiy. 

 His book ought to have many readers. 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 



\The Editor does not hold himself responsible for opinions expressed 

 by his correspondents. Neither can he undertake to return, or 

 to correspond with the writers of, rejected manuscripts. No 

 notice is taken op anonymous communications. 



[The Editor urgently requests correspondents to keep their letters as 

 short as possible. The pressure on his space is so great t/mt it 

 is impossible otherwise to ensure the appearance even of com- 

 munications containing interesting and novel facts ^ 



Leibnitz's Mathematics 



Tempora mutantur, et nos, &c., seems to hold true for Dr. 

 Ingleby, though not for myself, in this matter. His tone has 

 completely changed since December 4, 187 1 ; and he now puts 

 " scientist " (in quotation marks) where you had written 

 "scientific man," although in his former letter he said he 

 •" hated" the far less obnoxious word " physicist." 



That I did not reply to his former letter was mainly because 

 he said that "the question is not susceptible of proof nni^i. the 

 Council of the Royal Society, who so grossly disgraced them- 

 selves in 1 712, shall do" a certain "simple act of justice." 

 Recourse to the spiritualists is our only chance in such a matter, 

 and these have now an admirable opportunity for demonstration 

 of their tjlaims. 



All I said of Leibnitz was "who, I fear, was simply a thief 

 as regards mathematics." This was completely justified to my 

 mind at the time, partly by my own reading, mainly by some 

 curious documents which Sir David Brewster once showed me. 

 These appeared to me to leave no doubt whatever as to the dis- 

 honesty, not only of Leibnitz, but of several of those who have 

 been, at different times, connected with his side of the dispute. 



Your allusion to Gregory's series seems to me to bring in no 

 "collateral question" but a very important central one: — it 

 seems to go, in fact, to the root of the matter. For, if Leibnitz 

 was dishonest, this was probably his first (known) offence. Mr. 

 Bottomley's apt quotation looks like a desperate attempt at 

 justification of conduct which the writer felt to be, to say the 

 least, suspicious. 



Instead of appealing to the Royal Society Council of 1712, 

 Dr. Ingleby should demand from the proper authorities the pub- 

 lication of that conclusive MSS. of Leibnitz for which Dr. 

 Sloman asked in vain in 1858. P. G. Tait 



The Magnetic Storm of May 14, 1878, Observed in North 

 America 



Noticing in Nature (vol. xviii. p. 617, and vol. xix. pp. 148, 

 173, 220) references to the "magnetic storm" of May 14, 1878, 

 I have had prepared by Mr. C. A. Schott, the assistant having 

 direction of our magnetic observatory at Madison, Wisconsin, 

 the inclosed memoranda relative to observations made at that 

 point, as an item of interest to your readers, illustrating the 

 general character and almost simultaneous action of that great 

 magnetic disturbance. C. P. Patterson, 



Supt. Coast and Geodetic Survey 



Washington, January 6 



The extensive magnetic disturbance of May 14, 1878, of 

 which accounts have been given in Nature, vol. xviii. pp. 617, 

 641, 668, and which was observed in China, Australia, and 

 England, was also making its record in North America at our 

 magnetic observatory, established at Madison, Wisconsin, in 

 the winter of 1876-77. This observatory is in latitude 43° 4' 

 29"'5, and in longitude Sh. 57m. 36*5s, W. of Greenwich ; in it 

 are mounted a set of Brooke's magnetographs, and daily photo, 

 graphic traces of the changes in magnetic declination and in 

 the horizontal and vertical forces have been produced since 

 March, 1877, and are intended to be kept up for some years. 

 The declination traces for several days preceding the 14th were 

 normal, but about midnight. May 13-14, a series of disturbances 

 commenced consisting in part of some large oscillations to the 

 eastward and westward, and in part of a great number of small 

 and rapid oscillations. The characteristic features of the trace 

 may be given as follows : — 



Madison Greenwich 



mean time. mean time. 



The disturbances in declination com- h. m. h. m. 



menced about „. ... 14th, o 00 a.m. ... 14th, 5 58 A.M. 



A principal westerly 'extreme reached... ,, i 05 „ ... „ 703 ,, 

 ,, easterly ,, ,, ... „ 2 36 ,, ... „ 8 34 „ 



Range of motion i6"s ; after this a series 



of smaller oscillations continue to past 



noon ; a maximum westerly position is 



reached about ,, o 16 p.m. ... „ 6 14 p.m. 



And aa easterly extreme at ... ... ,, o 53 ,, ... ,, 6 $1 „ 



Extreme westerly deflection at ■ ,, 3 26 „ ... ,, 9 24 „ 



A sharp motion to eastward commences 



at ••• •' I. 5 40 .. — „ II 38 „ 



A principal easterly extreme reached at ,, 6 24 „ ... 15th, o 22 a.m. 

 Range of motion of principal disturbance 



. , 3i''7- 



There is also a westerly extreme about... „ 7 10 „ ... „ i 08 ,, 



And an easterly extreme about „ 9 16 ,, ... ,, 3 14 „ 



After 10 P.M. the irregularities gradually 



subside. 

 Last extreme easterly position 15th, i 10 a.m. ... ,, 708 ,, 



It will be noticed that at the Greenwich Observatory the 

 storm commenced on May 14 at 6h. 5m. a.m., at Stonyhmrst 

 Observatory at 6h, 4m., at Ti-ka-wei, near Shanghai, also at 

 6h. 4m. (G. T.), and at Melbourne, supposed at 6h. 20m. ; 

 the storm may therefore be taken as simultaneous at these places. 

 At Greenwich the north end of the needle moved eastward 

 between 6 and 9 A.M., but at Madison the general motion was 

 westerly. Again, the sharp deflection commencing at 5h. 40m. 

 Mad. T. (iih. 38m. p.m. G. T.) was to the eastward at Madi- 

 son and to the westward after iih. 45m. at Greenwich, thus 

 deflecting the magnets in opposite directions. 



Madison Greenwich 



mean time. mean time. 



The northern component of the horizon- 

 tal force was sharply affected at h. m. h. m. 

 Madison, the force diminishing at ... 14th, o 05 a.m. ... 14th, 6 03 a.m. 



The disturbance continued, but between 

 2.30 and 7.30 A.M. 



The trace is too indistinct to be read ; 

 the small oscillations continue to about 

 iih. 4Sm., when they become super- 

 seded by a series of larger waves cul- 

 minating in a maximum extreme at ... ,, 1 30 p.m , 8 28 P.M. 



And in a minimum at ,, 3 58 ,, ... ,, 9 56 ,, 



The large disturbances continue till about 

 loh. 2om. P.M., having reached a max- 

 imum extreme about „ 4 50 ,, ... ,, 10 48 „ 



And a minimum extreme at „ 903 ,, ... 15th, 3 01 a.m. 



Range between max. at 2h. 30m. and min. at Qh. 3m = y|^ 

 of the horizontal force, nearly. 



In the Greenwich account it is stated " The first start in the 

 trace of the declination magnet- at i8h. 5m. (A.K.) is most dis- 

 tinct ; " now, within two minutes of this time occurs the first and 

 sharpest deflection in our horizontal force trace at Madison, thus 

 » Referring to the end of the magnet. 



