May 3, 1888] 



NA TURE 



1 1 



The line at 636 is in the red just at the end of the con- 

 tinuous spectrum, and as yet no origin has been found for 

 it, although it has been observed as a bright line in the 

 Limerick meteorite at the temperature of the oxyhydrogen 

 blow-pipe. 



This star therefore gives a continuous spectrum due to 

 radiation from meteorites, and on this we get bright 

 carbon (with one carbon band appearing separate in the 

 blue), with bright lines of iron, manganese, sodium, and 

 some as yet undetermined substance giving a line at 636 

 in the oxyhydrogen blow-pipe. 



Wolf and Rayet's results are given in the Comptcs 

 re tutus, vol. lxv. p. 292. 



Dr. Vogel's are from the Publicationen des Astrophy- 

 sikalischen Obscrvatoriums zu Potsdam, vol. iv. No. 14, 

 p. 19. 



The above are only given as examples of the seven 

 bright-line stars explained in the lecture. 



(To be confirmed) 



THE ROYAL SOCIETY SELECTED 

 CANDIDA TES. 



HPHE following fifteen candidates were" selected on 

 A Thursday last by the Council of the Royal Society 

 to be recommended for election into the Society. The 

 ballot will take place on June 7, at 4 p.m. We print 

 with the name of each candidate the statement of his 

 qualifications :— 



Thomas Andrews, F.R.S.E., 



F.C.S., Assoc. M. Inst. C.E. Ironmaster and Metallurgist. 

 Awarded by the Institution of Civil Engineers, for original 

 metallurgical and physical researches, a Telford Medal and a 

 Telford Premium, Session 1884 ; again a Telford Premium, 

 Session 1885 : and another Telford Premium, Session 1886. 

 Author of the following eighteen papers : — In Proc. Roy. Soc. 

 Lond. (four papers), " Electromotive Force from difference of 

 Salinity in Tidal Streams," "Action of Tidal Streams on 

 Metals during diffusion of Salt and Fresh Water," "Reversals 

 of Electromotive Force between Metals of High Temperatures 

 in Fused Salts," "Observations on Pure Ice and Snow" (a 

 determination of their relative conductivity for heat, and the 

 great contraction of ice at extremely low temperatures, &c.) ; 

 Trans, and Proc. Roy. Soc. Edin. (four papers), "On 

 Relative Electro- chemical Positions of Iron, Steels, and Metals 

 in Sea Water," "Apparent Lines of Force on passing a 

 Current through Water," " Resistance of Fused Halogen 

 Salts," " Electromotive Force between Metals at High Tem- 

 peratures " ; Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. (four papers), " On Galvanic 

 Action between Metals long exposed in Sea Water," "Cor- 

 rosion of Metals long exposed in Sea Water. " Author of an 

 investigation on " Effects of Temperature on Strength of 

 Railway Axles," Part I., II., and III., conducted by the author 

 at a cost of nearly .£800, to determine on a large scale the 

 resistance of metals to a sudden concussion at varying tempera- 

 tures down to zero F. Author also of papers "On Variations 

 of Composition of River Waters" (Chem. Soc, 1875), and 

 "On Curious Concretion Balls from Colliery Mineral Waters" 

 (Brit. Assoc. Rep., Chemical Section, 1879), and "On Strength 

 of Wrought Iron Railway Axles" (Trans. Soc. Eng., 1879 ; a 

 premium of books awarded for this paper). At present engaged 

 on a research "On some Novel Magneto-Chemical Effects on 

 Magnetizing Iron," and " On the Construction of Iron, Steels, 

 and Cast Metals at Low Temperatures, —50° F.," and " On the 

 Viscosity of Pure Ice at - 50 F., &c." 



James Thomson Bottomlev, M.A., 



Demonstrator of Experimental Physics in the University of 

 Glasgow. After being several years with' Dr. Andrews in 

 Belfast, as pupil, and as assistant afterwards, he acted as 

 Demonstrator in Chemistry in King's College, London, under 

 Dr. W. A. Miller, and subsequently as Demonstrator and 

 Lecturer in Natural Science, under Prof. W. G. Adams, til! 

 1870, when he came to his present post in the University of 

 Glasgow. Author of "Dynamics," for the Science and Art 



Department; "Hydrostatics," ditto; "Mathematical Tables 

 for Physical Calculations ;" Essay on the Progress of Science 

 since 1833 ("Conversations-Lexicon"); all the artii 

 Electricity and Magnetism in Moxon's " Dictionary of Science." 

 Also of many scientific articles describing his own experimental 

 researches, including "Thermal Conductivity of Water" (Phil. 

 Trans., 1881) ; "Permanent Temperature of Conductors, &c." 

 (Proc. Roy. Soc. Edin.), &c. 



Charles Vernon Boys, 



A.R.S.M. Demonstrator of Physics Normal School of Science 

 and Royal School of Mines. Author and joint-author of the 

 following: — "Magneto-Electric Induction" (Proc. Phys. Soc, 

 1879 and 1880) ; " An Integrating Machine" (Proc. Phys. Soc, 

 1881) ; "Integrating and other Apparatus for the Measurement 

 of Mechanical and Electrical Forces" (Proc Phys. Soc, 1882) ; 

 "Apparatus for Calculating Efficiency' (Proc. Phys. Soc, 

 1882); "Measurement of Curvature and Refractive Index" 

 (Proc. Phys. Soc, 1882); "Vibrating Electric Meter" (Proc. 

 Roy. Inst. 1883); "New Driving Gear" (Soc Art. Lect., 

 1884) > ar| d other papers. 



Arthur Herbert Church, M.A. (Oxon.), 



F.C.S , F.I.C. Professor of Chemistry in the Royal Academy 

 of Arts. Sometime Pro r essor of Chemistry in the Royal 

 Agricultural College, Cirencester. Researches in Animal, 

 Vegetable, and Mineral Chemistry, e.g. Turacin, an animal 

 pigment containing copper (Phil. Trans., 1869); Colein, the 

 pigment of Coleus Vcrschajfeltii (Journ. Chem. Soc , 1877) ; 

 Aluminium in certain Cryptogams {Chemical News, 1874) ; 

 Vegetable Albinism (Journ. Chem. Soc, 1879, 1880, 1886, 

 Pts. I. -III.); New Mineral Species, Churchite, Tavistockite, 

 Bayldonite {ibid., 1865) ; Namaqualite (ilrii/., 1870) ; Analysis 

 of Mineral Phosphates and Arseniates (ibid., 1868, 1870, 1873, 

 1875, &c, Proc. Roy. Irish Acad., 1882), &c 



Alfred George Greenhill, M.A., 



Professor of Mathematics for the Advanced Class of Artillery 

 Officers at Woolwich. Was Second Wrangler and bracketed 

 Smith's Prizeman in 1870.- Has been Moderator and Examiner 

 for the Mathematical Tripos, University of Cambridge, in 

 1 %1S> '77> '7 8 » '8it '83, '84. Author of " Differential and In- 

 tegral Calculus " (1886) ; Article on Hydromechanics in the 

 " Encyclopaedia Britannica." Also of the following papers, in 

 the Proceedings of the Royal Artillery Institute : — " Rotation 

 required for Stability of Elongated Projectiles" (vol. x); 

 " Motion in Resisting Medium" (ibid.) ; "Trajectory for Cubic 

 Law of Resistance" (vol. xiv.) ; "Reduction of Bashforth's 

 Experiments" (vol. xv.) ; " Siacci's Method for solving Ballistic 

 Problems" (vol. xiv.). In the Journal de Physique : — " Sur le 

 Magnetisme induit d'un Ellipsoide creux" (1881). Ameriean 

 Journal of Mathematics : — " Wave Motion in Hydrodynamics " 

 (vol. ix. ). In the Engineer: — "Screw-propeller Efficiency" 

 (1886). In the Quarterly Journal of 'Mathematics : — " Precession 

 and Nutation'' (vol. xiv.) ; " Plaie Vortex Motion " (vol. xv.) ; 

 "Motion of Top" (ibid.); "Motion of Water in Rotating 

 Parallelopiped " (ibid.); "Fluid Motion between Confocal 

 Ellipsoids" (vol. xvi.) ; "Solution by Elliptic Functions of 

 Problems in Heat and Electricity" (vol. xvii.) ; "Functional 

 Images in Cartesians" (vol. xviii.) ; "Complex Multiplication 

 of Elliptic Functions " (vol. xxii. ), and others. In Messenger 

 of Mathematics : — "Fluid Motion" (vols, viii.-x.) ; "Lord 

 Rayleigh's Theory of Tennis Ball" (vol. ix.) ; "Period Equation 

 of Lateral Vibrations " (vol. xvi.); "Sumner lines on Mercator's 

 Chart "(ibid.) ; "Solution of Cubic and Quart ic" (vol. xvii.). 

 In the Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society: — 

 "Rotation of Liquid Ellipsoid" (vols, iii., iv.) ; "Green's 

 Function for Rectangular Parallelopiped "(vol. iii ) ; " Integrals 

 expressed by Inverse Llliptic Functions (iHd.) ; "Conjugate 

 Functions of Cai tesians " (vol. iv. ); "Greatest Height a Tree 

 can grow " (ibid.) ; "Complex Multiplication of Elliptic Func- 

 tions" (vols, iv., v.). In Proceedings Institution Mechanical 

 Engineers: — " Stability of Shafting" (1883). 



Lieut.-General Sir William Francis Drummond 

 Jervois; R.E., G.C.M.G., 



Governor and Commander-in-Chief of New Zealand. Distin- 

 guished as a Military Lngineer. From 1841 to 1S4S employed 

 in South Africa, during which time he erected important military 



