Avgiist 8/1878] 



NATURE 



393 



shire." Mr, W. A. E. Ussher, F.G.S. (Geological Snrvey), 

 read papers on " The Geology of Paignton," and " The Mouth 

 of the River Exe ; " Mr. R. N. Worth, F.G.S., " On the Origin 

 of the Ossiferous Deposits at Oreston;" Mr. A.R. Hunt, F.G.S. , 

 "Notes on Torbay," the Rev. W. Downes " On the Fossils of 

 the Culm Measures about Holcombe Regis," while Mr. E. Parfitt 

 contributed another important instalment to his fauna of Devon 

 — a list of the Lepidoplera. There were several other papers of 

 a more general character. Some of the papers gave rise to lively 

 discussions, and incidental to one by Mr. Ussher, Mr. Cham- 

 pemo\^-ne, F.G.S., entered upon a brief exposition of his views 

 of the Devonian question. The whole of the papers read will 

 appear in the Transactions. The membership of the Society 

 continues highly satisfactory, approaching 400. 



After a lapse of some twenty years the Oreston quarries have 

 yielded another ossiferous fissure, the contents of which were 

 removed under the direction of Mr. R. N. Worth, F.G.S., and 

 will be deposited in the museum of the Plymouth Institution. The 

 quantity of remains is not large, and they are almost wholly of 

 Bos and Cei-vus, but the find is valuable inasmuch as it adds to 

 the Oreston cave fauna the Aurochs {Bison prisats) and Great 

 Irish Elk {Megaceros), and thus reduces the points of difference 

 between the Kent's Hole fauna and that of Oreston. The relics 

 of the Aurochs include a very fine horn core in an excellent state 

 of preservation. 



In its last session the Municipal Council of Paris voted a suffi- 

 cient sum to defray the expenses of a laboratory for the detec- 

 tion of adulterations in articles of food, a want the necessity of 

 which has long been felt. At the same session 6,000 francs was 

 appropriated for the purchase of tickets to the Exhibition, to be 

 placed at the service of the teachers of the city. 



The Royal Archaeological Institute commenced its annual meet- 

 ing this year at Northampton on Tuesday last week. Lord Talbot 

 de Malahide, president of the Society, presided, and congratu- 

 latory addresses were read from the mmiicipality, the local clergy, 

 and Architectural Society. Lord Malahide then vacated the chair 

 in favour of the Ven. Lord Aiwyne Compton, president of the 

 Northampton meeting, who delivered an address. The week 

 was devoted to visits to places of archaeological and historical 

 interest and to sectional meetings. 



The British Medical Association commenced its forty-sixth 

 annual meeting at Bath on Tuesday, when it was calculated that 

 upwards of 1,000 members were present. The proceedings 

 commenced in the nlorning with Divine Service at the Abbey. 

 During the afternoon some business meetings were held, and in 

 the evening Dr. Falconer, of Bath, the president for the year, 

 delivered his opening address. 



M. Leverrier established at the Paris Observatory a daily 

 journal which published not only the wai'nings of the meteorological 

 service, but also all the astronomical news of general interest. 

 The separation principle having prevailed, the Bulletin Interna- 

 tional is now entirely devoted to meteorological piu-poses, and 

 the Observatory has no means at its disposal for conveying to 

 the public the observations it 'receives, except by the channel of 

 daily papers. It was only by chance that information as to 

 Watson's discovery of an intra-Mercurial planet was obtained by 

 the papers from Admiral Mouchez. The Admiral is preparing 

 to establish at the Observatory a course of lectiures on astro- 

 nomical observations during the winter months. During summer 

 the pupils will be admitted to practise with instniments be- 

 longing to the establishment. The pavilion in the Paris Obser- 

 vatory in which has been placed the transit instrument given 

 by M. Bischofsheim, will be called Bischofsheim Pavilion. 

 Admiral Mouchez has decided that the public shall be 

 admitted twice a month to the Paris Obsei^vatory instead of 



once as usual. Letters requesting admission are to be directed 

 to the Secretary of the Observatory. 



On Sunday next a monument will be inaugurated at Cha- 

 mounix to Jacques Balmat, who was the first to ascend Mont 

 Blanc. The fete is due to the co-operation of the Geological 

 Society of France and the French Alpine Club. The pro- 

 gramme is a very brilliant one, comprising an ascent of Buet 

 and various rejoicings at Chamounix. 



The Helvetic Society of Natural Sciences meets at Berne on 

 August 12, 13, and 14. 



The monuments to Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt, 

 the former by Prof. Begas, the other by Herr Otto, will soon be 

 erected one on each side of the entrance gate to the Berlin Uni 

 versity. Both monuments are in marble and the figures are 

 represented in a sitting position. 



Senor Raimondy, one of the first scientific authorities of 

 Peru, has just published a new work on the minerals of Peru 

 which is specially intended for the use of those who v. ish to 

 examine more closely the rich and valuable collection of Peru- 

 vian minerals sent to the Paris Exhibition. 



We recently referred to Dr. Siemens' idea that the Falls of 

 Niagara might be utilised to supply industrial wants. This idea 

 seems likely to be realised, as we learn that a company has 

 been formed in America to make use of the Falls to transmit to 

 Buffalo, twenty-two miles distant, a constant supply of com- 

 pressed air, which it is expected will be used as a substitute for 

 steam in the principal establishments at Buffalo. 



An earthquake is reported from Jenbach (Tyrol) ,* it occurred 

 on July 19, at 10.32 a.m., and lasted for ten seconds. 



M. Elis£e Reclus, the eminent geographer, who had been 

 sentenced to 'transportation for the part taken in the com- 

 munistic troubles, but hati his sentence mitigated to exile, has, 

 by a recent decree of the President of the French Republic, 

 been authorised to return to Paris. 



The great Trocadero lift is in full operation. The num- 

 ber of persons that can be elevated at once is fifty. In a 

 single day 1,200 persons have used it. The time re- 

 quired for ascending is about four minutes for an altitude of 

 fifty-three metres. The velocity is rather great at first, but 

 gradually diminishes, and is veiy slow at the end. The dis- 

 tance run is about x'oth of the elevation reached by the captive 

 baUoon. 



The ascent of the Giffard captive balloon was stopped on 

 July 31, owing to the wind-pressure suddenly increasing to 

 eighteen pounds per square yard. No attempt was made during 

 the two following days, but the wind having diminished it 

 ascended again on August 3, at two o'clock. The air was so 

 humid that the balloon seen from the earth appeared almost lost 

 in clouds. Various interesting observations have been made. 



We have received a specimen sheet of a catalogue of books 

 and papers on Electricity and Magnetism, compiled by the late 

 Sir Francis Ronalds, F.R.S., which' will shortly be published by 

 the Society of Telegraph Engineers. This catalogue, which 

 contains more than 12,000 entries, and will probably extend to 

 over 600 pages, is believed to include every important work and 

 almost every paper which has been published upon the subject of 

 Electricity and Magnetism up to the date of its author's death in 

 1873. It also forms a valuable catalogue of [scientific works 

 generally. Sir Francis Ronalds devoted the gi-eater part of his 

 lifetime to its coriipilation and in the formation of the valuable 

 library now in the possession of this society. It is proposed, 

 should the number of subscribers be sufficient to cover the extra 

 cost for printing, &c., to issue a separate librarian's edition, 



