August 30, 1888] 



NATURE 



4i5 



Fire-ball of August 13 — August Meteors. 



A comparison of several good observations of this brilliant 

 visitor shows that the point of its first appearance was over a 

 place near Masham, in Yorkshire, at a height of 79 miles. The 

 disappea ranee occurred over Gisburn, in the same county, after 

 the meteor had traversed a course of about 48 miles, and when 

 it had descended to within 47 miles of the earth's surface. It 

 was directed to a point covered by the River Mersey a few miles 

 west of Liverpool. 



By a clerical error the figures representing the real paths of 

 three of the seven doubly-observed meteors seen on August 5 

 and 8 last (Nature, August 23, p. 395) were incorrectly stated. 

 The lengths of Nos. 1, 3, and 7 in the list should be 41, 41, 

 and 36 miles respectively. 



Including the fire-ball mentioned above, the mean length of 

 path of eight meteors seen during the present month was 37 

 miles. Seven of these bodies were Perseids, with an average 

 radiant at 46 + 57 , which nearly corresponds with the best 

 determinations for the emanating centre of this shower. 



W. F. Dewing. 



Bristol, August 25. 



Sonorous Sand in Dorsetshire. 



It may be interesting to know that I have discovered the 

 existence of " musical " sand on the sea-beach at a spot between 

 Studland Bay and Poole Harbour. 



This sand, though not emitting sounds quite so loud as those 

 produced in the Eigg sand, answers all the usual tests, r.nd gives 

 out a distinct note when walked upon or when agitated by the 

 hand or a stick. 



Briefly, I may state that I have been investigating the pheno- 

 menon for the last two years, and that an examination of this 

 Dorsetshire sand gives fresh evidence in support of my theory 

 (shortly to be published) as to the cause of the sounds. I may 

 add that I had reasons for thinking that the sand on this par- 

 ticular beach ought to be sonorous under cerlain favourable 

 conditions, but that I had visited it before without success. 



It is now over thirty years since Hugh Miller discovered this 

 sand at Eigg, and up to the present instance I am not aware that 

 it has again been found in any other part of Europe. 



Cecil Carus-Wilson. 



Bournemouth, August 18. 



A Column of Dust. 



The following account of a somewhat unusual phenomenon 

 may not be uninteresting to some of your readers. As Mr. Emil 

 Trechmann, lecturer at Bangor University, and myself were 

 walking in the vicinity of Stockton-on-Tees on Sunday last, 

 about half-past one o'clock, we observed a small column of dust 

 to rise suddenly on the road about 40 or 50 yards in front of us. 

 There was not a breath of wind stirring at the time, yet it was 

 evidently raised by the action of what would popularly be called a 

 small whiriwind. This column of dust moved quickly across the 

 road, ceasing when it reached the other side ; and had the 

 incident terminated there, we should doubtless have exhibited a 

 passing surprise and have forgotten about it. Fortunately, how- 

 ever, there was a hay-field on the other side of the road, and we 

 presently saw several large wisps of hay lifted off the tops of 

 some haycocks, to the amount of perhaps a small-sized armful, 

 and carried across the fields for a distance of a quarter of a mile 

 or more, at the height of 40 or 50 feet. 



Trivial as the incident may seem, it was to us singularly 

 startling and impressive, and it was easy to imagine how, in a 

 superstitious age, such phenomena would be attributed to super- 

 natural agency. The mind instantly recurred to stories of 

 witches transporting haystacks through the air, and it was 

 difficult not to believe that, with increased force of current 

 almost an) thing rui^ht have been carried aloft in a similar 

 way. 



The atrrosphere remained perfectly undisturbed for at least five 

 minutes after the occurrence, when a single "sough" of wind 

 passed by, and it then resumed its former stillness. The general 

 aspect of the weather was somewhat thunderous, th mgh it 

 remained fine until night. 



Hugh Taylor. 



20 Fraser Terrace, Gateshead- on -Tyne, August 22. 



THE INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGICAL 

 CONGRESS. 



T7XACTLY ten years have passed since the Intcr- 

 ■*— ' national Geological Congress held its first meeting 

 It was on the 29th of August, 1878, that the Congress was 

 inaugurated at the Palace of the Trocadero in Paris ; 

 this meeting having been the direct result of a suggestion 

 made by the American Association for the Advancement 

 of Science at Buffalo, on the close of the Philadelphia 

 Exhibition of 1876. A Committee was then formed, with 

 Prof. James Hall, of Albany, as President, and Dr. Sterry 

 Hunt as Secretary, for the purpose of organizing an 

 International Congress of Geologists to be held in Paris 

 during the Universal Exhibition in 1878. The prime 

 object of the Congress was to discuss, and if possible 

 settle, questions of geological classification and nomen- 

 clature, and to formulate rules for securing uniformity in 

 geological cartography. The original American Com- 

 mittee — Comitc fondateur — applied in due course to the 

 Geological Society of France for assistance in carrying 

 their suggestions into effect, and an influential organizing 

 Committee was formed in Paris, under the presidency of 

 Prof. Hubert. By the action of this Committee the 

 arrangements were carried to a successful issue. The 

 Paris Congress numbered 304 members ; it apnointed 

 Committees for the unification of stratigraphical and 

 pala?ontological nomenclature, and for systematizing the 

 colours and signs on geological maps. Ultimately its 

 proceedings were published in a Compte rendu of 313 

 pages. 



After an interval of three years, the Congress held 

 its second session. This was in Bologna, under Prof. 

 Capellini as President. One of the chief results of this 

 meeting was the nomination of a Committee for the 

 purpose of preparing an International Geological Map 

 of Europe, on a scale of 1 to 1,500,000. On this Com- 

 mittee, as at present constituted, Germany is represented 

 by Prof. Beyrich and M. Hauchecorne, France by M. 

 Oauhrde, Great Britain by Mr. Topley, Austria-Hungary 

 by M. Mojsisovics, Italy by M. Giordano, Russia by M. 

 Karpinsky, and Switzerland by Prof. Renevier. The 

 Report of the Bologna meeting was issued as a handsome 

 volume of 660 pages. 1 



As the meetings of the Congress are triennial, the next 

 gathering was due in 1884, but an outbreak of cholera 

 on the Continent rendered it advisable to postpone the 

 session for another year. It was therefore in 1885 that 

 the Congress assembled for the third time — Berlin being 

 the place of meeting, and Prof. E. Beyrich the President. 

 The meeting was eminently successful, but it is to be 

 regretted that no official volume, containing a full report 

 of the proceedings, has yet been published. 



Three years have again passed, and the Congress is 

 about to hold its fourth session. London has been selected 

 as the meeting-place, and by permission of the Senate of 

 the University of London the sittings will be held in the 

 University buildings in Burlington Gardens. The first 

 general assembly of the Congress will take place in the 

 theatre of the University at 8 o'clock on Monday 

 evening, September 17, when the inaugural address will 

 be delivered in French by Prof. Prestwich, as President. 

 French is the official language of the Congress, but 

 considerable latitude is allowed in the discussions, and 

 much English and German will probably be spoken at 

 the forthcoming meetings. 



On Tuesday morning the Congress will meet at 

 10 o'clock, for the purpose of discussing questions bear- 

 ing upon geological nomenclature and classification. A 

 full and valuable Report on these subjects will be pre- 

 sented by the American Committee. This Report, which 

 has been printed in advance, forms a volume of 220 

 pages, edited by Prof. Persifor Frazer. Although written 



1 For report of the Bologna Congress see Natcre, vol. xxv. p. 34. 



