304 



NATURE 



{Feb. I, 1877 



Clinton, U.S. On January 13, M. Borrelly, at Marseilles, 

 also found a small planet distinct from that of Perrotin 

 and Peters. It is remarked in M. Leverrier's Bulletin, that the 

 first of these planets is unlikely to be Frigga, since the rough 

 ephemeris in the Berliner yahrbuch gives a contrary motion in 

 declination. The object found by M. Borrelly, however, presents 

 indications of identity, though a considerable correction of the 

 elements of Frigga, brought up to 1874, December, by Dr. Pow- 

 alky, would be required. If we employ these elements it will be 

 found that with 5M = — 3° 17' "67, the computed and observed 

 longitudes of Borrelly's planet on January 13 will agree, but 

 there is an outstanding difference of + i° 39' between the lati- 

 tudes. The comparisons with the observation on this date and 

 one on January 15, are as follow : — 



January 13 

 » IS 



Long, 

 c- o 



o''o 

 4' "4 



Lat. 

 c-o 



+ i*39''i 

 + 1° 36'"9 



NOTES 

 The eminent physicist, Prof. J. C. Poggendorff, for many 

 years professor in the Berlin University and editor of Poggen- 

 dorff^ s Annalen, has died in Berlin, in his 8ist year. "We 

 hope to be able to give a memoir of Prof. Poggendorff next 

 week. 



The eminent Belgian botanist, Prof. Bellynck, died at Namur 

 in December. 



The first four names in the Cambridge Mathematical Tripos 

 list, are Messrs. Donald McAlister, St. John's, Frederick M. de 

 M. Gibbons, of Gonville and Caius College, R. C. Rowe and 

 Mr. James Parker Smith, both of Trinity College. The Senior 

 Wrangler, who was born at Perth in May, 1854, has had a most 

 distinguished career as a student. 



The Society of German Naturalists and Physicians holds 

 its annual session at Munich, February 18, and celebrates at the 

 same time its fiftieth anniversary. 



The Council of the Royal Dublin Society have elected 

 William Archer, F.R. S., Secretary for Foreign Correspondence 

 to the Royal Irish Academy, as head of their Library Depart- 

 ment, and the members of the Society, as well as the literary 

 and scientific public in Dublin are to be congratulated on the 

 occasion. 



The Russian Archaeological Society holds its Annual Con- 

 gress at Kasan, July 31. 



According to a Report of the French Minister of Public 

 Instruction, the salaries of the Inspectors-General of Public 

 Instruction, the Professors of the College de France, and the 

 Professors of the Museum of Natural History, have been raised 

 to 10,000 frances, and of the Professors of the School of Living 

 Oriental Languages, to 7, 500 francs. 



In 1855 Napoleon III. proposed a prize of 50,000 francs for 

 the most important improvement made in the use of voltaic elec- 

 tricity during the previous ten years. The prize was last awarded 

 to M. Ruhrokorff, who, it is known, is a German physician es- 

 tablished in Paris. M. Waddington has recently appointed a 

 jury to award the prize for the third time. Any improve- 

 ment in any industry using voltaic electricity comes within the 

 competition, consequently the sphere is a very wide one. Regu- 

 lations will shortly be issued. 



Prof, Nordenskjold proposes to take command of an ex- 

 pedition next year which will examine the Siberian coast from 

 the mouth of the Jenissei to Behring Straits. The return journey 

 will be by way of China, India, and the Suez Canal. 



The remarkable entomological collections of the late Dr. 

 Breyer are to be purchased for the Royal Museum for Natural 

 History of Brussels, for the very low price of 240/. They con- 

 tain above 21,000 specimens of insects, classified by the late 

 eminent entomologist. 



We observe that the following honorary members have been 

 elected by the New York Academy of Sciences : — In this 

 country, Mr. G. Bentham and Prof. Boyd Dawkins ; on the 

 Continent, Profs. Brandt, De Candolle, Milne-Edwards, Hoff- 

 mann, M. de Verneuil, and Herr von Siebold. 



We have lately alluded to the very large ethnographical addi- 

 tions made to the Berlin Museum by Dr. Lenz, Dr. Bastian, 

 and Dr. Jagor. A still more valuable collection has lately been 

 presented by Dr. Nachtigal, and is now in process of arrange- 

 ment. It embraces a vast variety of objects gathered amidst 

 widely-diversified tribes by this well-known traveller during his 

 last extensive tour through Africa, and affords a rare opportunity 

 for comparative ethnographical study. 



A credit of 13,668/. has been requested from the Belgian 

 Chamber of Representatives by the Minister of the Interior, for the 

 astronomical and meteorological observatory of Brussels. Be- 

 sides the construction of new astronomical and magnetical instru- 

 ments, this sum will be used for the enlargement of observations 

 upon the periodical phenomena of vegetation. Special arrange- 

 ments will be made for carrying on the observations in the 

 garden of the observatory, on plants especially selected for the 

 purpose from the double point of view of the botanical geography 

 of the present time, and of the study of former climates of the 

 earth. 



The Belgian Chamber of Representatives passed, on Janu- 

 ary 26, a resolution of great importance to geologists, allowing 

 the necessary sums for the publication, first, of the beautiful 

 coloured maps of the soils and sub-soils of Belgium, prepared 

 about thirty years ago by Andre Dumont, on the scale of 

 1 : 160,000, and which are long ago out of print ; and second, of 

 the MSS. of Dumont, with his numerous geological sketches 

 and drawings, and of the numerous notes he took during his 

 travels in Belgium, The MSS., which were purchased by 

 Government, are already arranged for publication, and their 

 appearance, as well as that of the maps, is expected about the 

 end of this year. 



The Belgian Geological Society is engaged in the elabo- 

 ration of a scheme for the preparation and publication of a 

 detailed geological map of Belgium, on a large scale. The idea 

 of such a publication being already approved by the government, 

 the point under discussion now is the best means of engraving 

 the work, and the Society proposes to entrust the task to two 

 special committees, geological and cartographical ; both com- 

 mittees will be placed under a common directorship. 



At the session of the Berlin Anthropological Society on 

 January 20 Prof. Virchow gave an extended account of a large 

 collection of diluvial remains found in the neighbourhood of 

 Weimar. They consisted of the bones of such animals as the 

 elephant, rhinoceros, arctic bear, deer, wild swine, &c. Apart 

 from their palaeontological value, they are extremely important 

 from an anthropological point of view, as among the bones are 

 several flints, remains of fires, and peculiarly divided fragments 

 of bone, all indicating the presence of man in company with the . 

 animals mentioned. Dr. C. Jung described the superstitious 

 observances and use of charms and amulets among the aborigines 

 of Australia. The bones of animals which have been eaten, or 

 the bones of dead relatives are regarded with peculiar reverence 

 by almost all of the tribes. There was also a discussion on the 

 supposed Phoenician inscription lately found on a block of stone 



