March 22, 1877] 



NATURE 



461 



the horizon. It was travelling with great velocity from west to 

 east. No detonation was heard. 



It is stated that on the 5th instant a rather severe earthquake 

 was felt in the districts of Ilallsback, Lerback, Bodame, and 

 Skollersha, in the county of Nerike, Sweden, a distance of about 

 ten English miles. The shocks were strong enough to shake 

 the houses and make china and even heavier objects tumble 

 down. The earthquake was also felt in the Province of Oster- 

 gotland. It is stated also that the island of Mull has been visited 

 by an earthquake, which, although it lasted only a minute, 

 caused much commotion in the island. 



The Sedgwick Prize Essays must be sent in to the Registrary 

 on or before October i, i8jg, not as stated in last week's 

 Nature (p. 439) on or before October i, 1880. The award is 

 to be made in the Lent Term, 1880. 



At the meeting of the Swedish Academy on February 14, 

 Prof. Nordenskjold read a paper by Dr. Kjelman, on "The 

 Algae of the Kara Sea," from which it appears that the sea, 

 contrary to current opinion, is full of algoe, which sometimes 

 attain gigantic sizes. The professor exhibited also photographic 

 views of glaciers of the interior of Greenland, taken in 1870, 

 by M. Berggion. They are true representations of views of the 

 glacial peiiod now prevailing in Greenland. 



The Stockhohn Dagladct states that recently Prof. Norden- 

 skjold and the companions of his last travel, Messrs. Kjelman 

 Lundstrom, Tribom, Stucksberg, and Theel, as well as Mr 

 Oscar Dickson, were entertained by the King of S >veden at 

 dinner, where the question as to Prof. Nordenskjold's expe- 

 dition in 1878 was discusstd. The king promised to place at 

 Prof. Nordenskjold's disposal the steamer Sophia on the same 

 terms as in 1868, and the pecuniary means for the expedition are 

 promised by Mr. Dickson. The expedition proposes to explore 

 the Arctic Ocean east of the Yenissei as far as Behring's Strait. 

 Some Russian naturalists have applied to Prof. Nordenskjold to 

 be permitted to take part in the explorations. 



Prof. Ahlquist and students Bohm and Bergroth started on 

 February 24 from Helsingfors on their ethnographical journey to 

 the mouth of the Obi (Nature, vol. xv., p. 207). 



At the last meeting of the St. Petersburg Society of Natu- 

 ralists the programme of a botanical excursion to the Fergana 

 province and the Pamir plateau, to be undertaken this year by 

 M. Smirnof, was discussed and agreed to. 



We regret to notice the death of Admiral Sir Edward Belchei' 

 whose name is so well known in connection with the Arctic 

 exploration of about a generation ago. Sir Edward was in his 

 seventy-ninth year, and began his naval career sixty-six years 

 ago. He did a great amount of surveying work in various parts 

 of the world. He had almost retired from active work when, in 

 1852, he was sent out in command of one of the expeditions in 

 search of Sir John Franklin. Although the search was unsuc- 

 cessful, and the vessel had to be abandoned in 1854, the work 

 then done by Sir Edward Belcher was sufficient to win for him a 

 worthy place among Arctic heroes. 



We notice in the seventh volume of the Memoirs of the St. 

 Petersburg Society of Naturalists a paper, by M. Alenitzin, on 

 the existence, In the Aralo-Caspian region, of a rise of land in a 

 direction fiom south-east to north-west, and on the causes of the 

 change of bed of the Amu-darya. Combining some observations 

 relative to the structure of the shores of lakes Aral and Balkhash, 

 the author proves that the south-eastern shores of both lakes have, 

 during the recent geological period, been rising ; and he explains by 

 this circumstance the rapid undermining by the Amu of its right 

 bank, at the point where the river turned in former times sharply 

 to the west. This undermining, assisted by a relative rising of 



the upper parts of the river, resulted in an excavation of a bed 

 directed to the north. Whatever may be thought of his theories 

 the reader will find in M. Alenitzin's paper interesting informa- 

 tion on the structure of the shores of both Central Asian interior 

 seas. 



The same volume contains an interesting note, by Prof. 

 Feofilaktoff, on the diluvial deposits in Kieff and Pohava govern- 

 ments, containing the general results arrived at by the author 

 during his many years' explorations, the details of which will be 

 found in the Memoirs of the Kharkof Society of Naturalists for 

 1874. 



The latest news received by the St. Petersburg Geographical 

 Society from M. Pot^nin, announces that the expedition was 

 stopped at Khobdo by the arrival of winter. The proposed 

 further route of the expedition is across the great ridge which 

 runs between the Altai and the Khangai, but the masses of snow 

 which usually accumulated in the mountain-passes south of the 

 Djabgan River made any further advance during winter impos- 

 sible. Staying at Khobdo the expedition will make many im- 

 portant ethnographical observations, and collect information as 

 to the trade of this place. As to Col. Prjevalsky, no news has 

 been received from him, and probably will not for a long time. 

 In November he was at Korleh, on his way to Lob-nor, entering 

 thus on a country which has no communication with Russia. 

 News may be expected only when he returns to Kuldsha, before 

 undertaking his journey to Thibet. 



The secretary of the St. Petersburg Geographical Society 

 announces the return to the capital of M. Wojeikoff from his 

 meteorological journey round the world. The countries he 

 visited last were India, Java, and Japan. The visit to Japan 

 was especially interesting, as M. Wojeikoff made an excursion 

 into a part of the interior never visited before by Europeans, and 

 collected very valuable information as to the Ainos tribe. The 

 observations made during the journey will be the subject of com- 

 munications to the Geographical Society. 



At a sectional meeting of the Chester Society of Natural 

 Science held last month Mr. J, D. Siddall read a paper on 

 Foraminifera and other Microzoa in neighbouring limestone 

 rocks, during the course of which he announced his discovery of 

 Radiolarians, first, in the Halkin, and afterwards in the Minera 

 limestone?. Mr. Siddall had prepared several polished blocks 

 to illustrate his lecture. Two of these showed specimens of 

 beautifully preserved Radiolarians. Other members of this 

 flourishing society have since obtained similar results by follow- 

 ing his method of preparing these interesting microscopic objects- 

 In £ome of the best pieces most of the types to be seen in thin slices 

 of Barbadoes earth are represented, and in as great abundance. 

 This discovery furnishes a capital example of the rewards which 

 sooner or later follow patient scientific investigations. By this 

 discovery Mr. Siddall has thrown back our knowledge of the 

 distribution of Radiolarians in timejrom Mesozoic, if no from 

 Tertiary, to Palaeozoic formations. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include two Orang-outangs (Simia satyrus) from 

 Borneo, presented by Dr. R. Sim, F.Z.S. ; a Green Monkey 

 {Ccrcopithecus callilrichtis) from West Africa, presented by Mr, 

 J. Mason Allen ; a Grivet Monkey {Cercopithecus griseo-viridis) 

 from North-east Africa, presented by Mr. J. Walter Richardson ; 

 a Cape Hyrax {Hyrax capensis) from South Africa, a Chinese 

 Blue Magpie {(Jrocissa sinensis) from China, a Red- capped Parrot 

 (Pionopsitla pileata) from Brazil, three Red- eared Conures 

 [Conurus cruentatus) from South America, a Sarus Crane {Gtus 

 antigone) from North India, an Arabian Baboon {Cynocephalus 

 hamadryas) from Arabia, purchased; an American Jabiru 

 (Mycteria americatm) from South America, deposited ; a 

 Common Badger {Meles taxus), born in the Gardens. 



