April 17, 1879] 



NATURE 



555 



penetrating to the Independent Indians of Eastern Yucatan from 

 the western part of the peninsula, which remains Mexican. But 

 should this not be possible from Belize (British Honduras) ? I 

 have heard that the coloured people of the colony trade with the 

 Mayas. Would it be possible then to obtain some information 

 in this way ? 



As to the interest of a visit to the Maya country by an educated 

 traveller it would bear especially (i) on the condition of the 

 people since they are free from their white masters. How does 

 it compare with the condition of the Mayas of Western Yucatan, 

 who live in a de facto serfdom to the large landowners ? (2) The 

 antiquities, of which we have a description by Stephens, but 

 certainly would know more. Very likely the Mayas will allow 

 a white man who is not a Spanish- American to travel in their 

 country ; they have no special reason to hate anybody except 

 the latter. A. WOEIKOF 



Jurschtatskaya, 9, St. Petersburg, March 25 



Deltaic Growth 



In reference to the question as to the amount of sediment 

 brought down by Delta Rivers, I had occasion in 1877 to 

 ascertain the amount of sediment carried by the waters of the 

 River Plate, and found it to amount to the -Jj-^nd part by weight. 

 Mr. J. F. Bateman, the well-known hydraxilic engineer, in his 

 report on the proposed harbour of Buenos Ayres, fixes the 

 minimum flow of the River Plate at 670,000 cubic feet per 

 second. Assuming its mean volume at 700,000 cubic feet per 

 second (a quantity very much under the mark), it would appear 

 that this river carries seaward some 224,000 tons of sediment 

 every twenty-four hours — or say, in round numbers, 82,000,000 

 tons every year. 



Some portion of this sediment is deposited in the 100 miles of 

 river that intervene between Buenos Ajtcs and the sea, forming 

 the great banks that render the navigation of the River Plate so 

 troublesome, but a large portion is carried out to sea and 

 deposited beyond the mouth. 



I have been informed by captains of steamers trading with 

 Buenos Ayres that the soundings shown on the chart of the coast 

 of Uruguay vary considerably, in many places, from the actual 

 ones now existing, and I have little doubt that a correct re- 

 survey of this coast would show changes as marked as those 

 discovered by Mr. Doyle near Rangoon. 



The subject is one of great importance, as the coast of 

 Uruguay is a difficult and dangerous one to make, and from the 

 low character of the coast, the frequency of fogs, and the great 

 uncertainty of the currents, captains have frequently to depend 

 a great deal on the lead to ascertain their position when making 

 this land. During the last few years several fine steamers — 

 French, German, and English — have been lost on this coast near 

 the Castillos, when making the land. George Higgin 



3, Great George Street, Westminster, S.W., April 10 



Temperature Equilibrium in the Universe in Relation to 

 the Kinetic Theory 



My attention has been called to an ambiguous phrase in my 

 recent paper ^ on the above subject (Nature, vol. xix. p. 460) 

 which it is necessary to rectify. On page 461 is the sentence 

 ' ' Let us suppose nmo the excessive tenipiratiire to fall, or, in 

 other words, the total energy to diminish.'" This is meant as a 

 supposition, not as a possible case. The imaginary rise and fall 

 of temperature in the universe are given merely for the sake of 

 aiding the conceptions of the actual fact^, by affording imaginary 

 cases to show what the effects would be if such cases were 

 possible. S. ToLVER Preston 



London, April 15 



Transportation of Seeds 



The penetration of seeds of the so-called " flechilla " grasses 

 into the flesh of Australian sheep is too well known to squatters. 

 On some " runs " these grasses are so abundant that the annual 

 loss of stock is a very serious matter. The ripe seed falls upon 

 the wool, and, owing to the re-curved barbules with which it is 

 armed, easily penetrates to the skin, when, its point being as 

 sharp as a needle, every movement of the animal tends to drive 



» " On the Pcssibility of Explaining the Continuance of Life in the 

 Universe Consistent with the Tendency to Temperature-EquiUbrium." 



it into the flesh. I have found the internal organs so crowded 

 with seeds that they felt like a bag of needles if squeezed in the 

 hand. Arthur Nicols 



Earthquakes 



A SHOCK of earthquake was felt in this neighbourhood on the 

 evening of Tuesday, April 8, at 8*35 (about). We were sitting 

 in the drawing-room of this house, when we heard a sound like 

 the rumbling of a heavy waggon, or distant thunder. It in- 

 creased in loudness till the room slightly vibrated and the 

 window rattled, as it seemed to pass the house. From the 

 peculiar nature of the sound, and the fact that we are some 

 50 feet above the road, and 80 or 100 yards from it, I felt 

 certain the disturbance was due to an earthquake and not a 

 passing waggon, but walked to the window to listen, when I 

 heard the sound dying away in the distance. It seemed to come 

 from the south-east, and travel towards the north-west, and to 

 be audible, from first to last, for some seconds, perhaps five or 

 six, because we spoke one to another during the time. I find 

 that the shock was noticed by other people in the neighbour- 

 hood, and that in a cottage near Bettws Gormon, a mile or so 

 from here, two glass bottles were thrown down fi-om a high shelf 

 and broken. T. G. BoNNEY 



Bron Celyn, near Bettws y Coed, North Wales, April 10 



We were visited by an earthquake of some violence this 

 morning at 2 A.M. (Cadiz mean time). The shock was preceded 

 by a profound subterraneous noise like that of a distant carriage, 

 and it extended to Port St. Mary and Port Royal (six miles). 

 The earthquake travelled from south to north approximately; 

 some clocks stopped. AuGUSTO T. Arcimis 



Cadiz, April 3 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN 



Bessel's Nebula ix Perseus.— On November 8, 

 1832, in zone 527, Bessel observed an object, which he 

 recorded as a nebula, distant about one degree from 

 20 Persei. It is No. 1,063 of Weisse's second Cata- 

 logue, where, though called a nebula, it has 9m. attached. 

 D'Arrest, in his "Resultate aus Beobachtungen der 

 Nebelflecken und Sternhaufen," has two observations, ia 

 January, 1856,10 the first of which he attaches a note 

 that no nebulosity was visible in Bessel's position, and 

 that possibly a comet was observed ; the second observa- 

 tion records a star 9*iom., without trace of nebulosity or 

 diameter, the place of which was found to be within a 

 few seconds of arc from Bessel's position, preceded 

 24"22s. by a star 9m., 76" to the north. In " Siderum 

 Nebulosorum,"' &c., D'Arrest remarks : "Star 9m. quae 

 Besselio quondam nebulosa apparuit . . . Argelandro in 

 Perlustratione ceu fixa 9*3 magn. apparuit ; nobis saepius 

 inspicientibus nunquam nebulosa visa." This refers to 

 the star in the " Durchmusterung," at 2h. 43m. 56'5s. -f- 

 36^ 54'"2 ; Argelander has another star of the same mag- 

 nitude, 9"3, 10' south. Are we to infer that Bessel's star 

 was surrounded in 1832 by nebulosity so conspicuous that 

 it was caught at once in his zone observations, which had 

 wholly disappeared in 1856, or, as appears the more 

 probable conclusion, that at the time of his meridian 

 observation a comet happened to be centrally over the 

 star ? In this case the observation gives its place for 

 1832 November 8 at loh. lom. 25s. G.M.T. ; the cata- 

 logued 'position for i825"o is in R.A. 2h. 42m. 5"56s., 

 Decl. + 36° 46' 46"7. 



This observation of Bessel's might at first sight appear 

 of some interest, considering that the comet of the No- 

 vember meteors (1866 I.) must have been near perihelion 

 about November 1832, but upon further examination it 

 will be found that with the elements of 1866 it is not 

 possible to bring the comet near the observed position of 

 the " nebula," upon any assumption as to the time of its 

 arrival in perihelion. 



Brorsen's Comet.— Comparing the second of the two 

 observations on April 4, in Major Tupman's letter pub- 



