208 



NATURE 



{Jan. 4, 1877 



of land covered with ponds and marshes, and yearly overflown, 

 whilst the right shore faces the water with abrupt crags from 

 70 to 150 feet hie;h. The same thing is also observed on 

 the Obi. The hills of Belogorie, a short way below the mouth 

 of the Irtysh, have now the main bed of the river to their 

 right, while some time ago it was on their left, there being 

 now on the latter side only a secondary arm. These arms of 

 the Obi — remains of its former beds— form on the left flat 

 shore a series of elongated ponds and channels, connected with 

 the main body of the river by a labyrinth of smaller water- 

 courses. 



In the article in last week's number on Dr. Schliemann's Dis- 

 coveries, Amydtr was misspelt Amychi, Sir R. Colt Hoare's 

 name was given as Home ; Arena should be Anna Heroum, 

 Miomedia should be Nicomedia, and Caprea, Caprea:. 



The first number of a new quarterly scientific journal, devoted 

 to zoology, botany, geology, and mineralogy, will be published 

 at Buda-Pest this month. It will be in German, though its first 

 title is " Termeszetrajzi Fiizelek" ("Naturhistorische Hefte"). 

 Prof. Otto Herman is the principal editor. 



The death is announced of the Rev. Barnard Smith, the 

 author of many well-known educational works in'arithmetic and 

 algebra, 



A WELL-DESERVED pension of 50/. a-year has been bestowed 

 upon Mr. Thomas Edwards, the " Scottish Naturalist," whose 

 life Mr. Smiles has written. 



Dr. Petermann has been informed that the Portuguese 

 Government has granted a subsidy of 20,000/. in aid of the pro- 

 posed great scientific expedition for the exploration of Central 

 Africa. The expedition is already organised and will start with- 

 out delay, commencing its operations by proceeding up the 

 Congo. 



The New York Herald oi'Dtctxabtic 2 and 11, contains letters 

 on our Arctic Expedition, by Dr. Hayes. 



In the last report of the Berlin Akademte der Wissenschaften, 

 J. Bernstein describes an exceedingly simple and ingenious appa. 

 ratus for determining the position of the nodal point of the eye 

 of a living person. Experiments with his right eye gave 7*2 1- 

 7 '38 inm. as the distance of the rear nodal point from the vertex 

 of the cornea. 



The Royal Museum at Berlin has received a valuable donation 

 of about 8,000 ethnographical objects from Dr. Jagor. They 

 are the results of extensive journeys through East Turkestan, 

 Burmah, and portions of India, and afford a most complete pic- 

 ture of the domestic and military life of the widely diversified 

 tribes inhabiting the less known parts of these countries. 



The gorilla in the Berlin Aquarium which excited so much 

 interest among German naturalists, has lately recovered from a 

 serious illness, and is now more than ever demonstrative and 

 humanlike in his movements. With the approach of winter a 

 soft silky fur has made its appearance. The weight of this young 

 gorilla has increased from thirty-three to forty-three pounds 

 during his six months' residence in Europe, a fact which would 

 seem to show that confinement is, after all, not so unendurable 

 for him as was supposed. 



A series of new rooms has been opened at the Mtisce 

 d'ArtiUerie of Paris, in which a set of guns is arranged showing 

 the various models used since the artillery was introduced for the 

 first time in warfare 600 years ago. 



The Annuaire dti Bureau des Longitudes is publishing for 

 the first time two interesting tables ;— first, the situation of the 

 several radiant points of falling ^tars, second, the catalogue of 

 all variable stars, with a calendar of their variations during the 

 year 1877. 



Mr. M'Lachlan gives^ a fewj details in the Entomologist's 

 Monthly Magazine concerning Capt. Feilden's collection of the 

 insects of the Arctic expedition, which he has seen. The greater 

 number of the insects were collected near Discovery Bay in 

 81° 42' N. latitude ; some of the Lepidoptera are even from 

 82° 45'. The most interesting fact is the occurrence of five or 

 six species of butterflies within a few hundred miles of the North 

 Pole, especially when taken into consideration with the fact that 

 Iceland and the large islands of the Spitzbergen group, although 

 in lower latitudes, have apparently no butterflies. In Lepidoptera 

 Mr. 1 M 'Lachlan observed four examples (2 cj , 2 9 ) of the 

 genus Colias, possibly two species (? Boothii and Hecla). Appa- 

 rently three species of Argynnis or Melitcea (or both). A Chry- 

 sophanus apparently identical with phlceas. In the Nociuidce, 

 only one individual — an Acronycta. In the Geometridce, one 

 Amphidasis or Biston, and several Cheimatobioid forms with 

 apterous females. Of the Crafnbites, one Phycis, perhaps our 

 fusca. The Hymenoptera are represented by a Bombus, and one 

 of the Lchneumonidcc of considerable size. In the Diptera there 

 is one large fly, probably belonging to the Tachinidix^ and 

 perhaps parasitic on the larvse of some of the Lepidoptera. One 

 species of Tipulidce ; and a considerable number of CuLridcr, and 

 of what looks like a Simulium, which, however, do not appear 

 to have annoyed the members of the expedition in these high 

 latitudes. Of Coleoptera, LLemipiera, and Neuroptera, Mr. 

 M'Lachlan saw none ; but the bird-lice are naturally well repre- 

 sented. 



The second International Congress of Americanists, organised 

 for the Study of American Antiquities, will be held at Luxem- 

 bourg on September 10-13, when all English students and savans 

 will be cordially welcomed. Information and tickets may be 

 obtained from Mr. Francis A. Allen, 15, Fitzwilliam Road, 

 Clapham, S.W., one of the delegates for England. 



The December session of the Deutsche Geologische Gesellschaft 

 was devoted to a long address from Herr Lohsen upon the 

 Rammelsberg, in the neighbourhood of Goslar. The peculiar 

 deposits of ore in this mountain he regarded as belonging to a 

 much later epoch than that in which the surrounding slate was 

 formed, while he explained the lens-shaped form of the cavities 

 in which the deposits are formed as due to the enormous pressure 

 of the overlying strata of sandstone. 



The recent death of Mr. James Drummond, of Comrie, 

 deprives us of a local geologist. He had devoted much 

 time and attention to the Comrie earthquakes, on which he 

 had published many articles and a little book. His views 

 were generally in disaccord with those of the observers ap- 

 pointed by the British Association, against whom he held out 

 manfully. 



The large number of fossil plants brought home from Green- 

 land and Spitzbergen by the two Swedish expeditions of 1870 

 and 1872 have been carefully examined by Dr. Oswald Heer, 

 and th ey appear to throw important light on the geological deve- 

 lopment of the plant world. An account of his study of the re- 

 mains from the chalk period appears in a recent number of the 

 N^aturjoi-scher, and in the summary of his results Dr. Heer 

 points out that the facts are against a gradual imperceptible 

 transformation of plant types ; from the upper chalk the dicoty- 

 ledons appear suddenly in great variety, without any transition, 

 whereas other forms at this period wholly disappear from the 

 scene. Further, these researches make it very probable that a 

 whole series of genera have had their origin in the Arctic zone, 

 and have thence "radiated" southwards. Lastly, Dr. Heer 

 shows that the facts at present known of plant palaeontology do 

 not point to any alternation of climate or repeated ice-periods 

 in these regions {'k vi^.w which has also been developed by Prof. 

 Nordenskjold). 



Dr. Lauder Lindsay has sent us a well drawn up programme 



