Jan. 5, 1888] 



NATURE 



233 



in Ireland was in all respects a most exceptional one. Some of 

 the migrants appeared unusually early, and all in much larger 

 numbers than Mr. Ellison had ever before observed. On 

 October 8 he saw the first flocks, both of starlings and redwings. 

 On the same day, and for about a week after, immense numbers 

 of golden plovers were passing over, flying towards the west and 

 south-west in large V-shaped strings. This was about the usual 

 time for starlings and redwings, but early for golden plover. On 

 the nth again both redwings and starlings were constantly 

 passing. On the i6th he observed a great host of fieldfares, 

 many thousands in number, winging their way across the sky 

 towards the south-west. From October 17 to the beginning of 

 November the starling migration was at its height, the flocks 

 being much larger and more numerous than he had ever observed 

 in for.ner years. He saw four within a quarter of an hour on 

 the afternoon of the i8th. At 4 p.m. on the 22nd, the largest 

 flock he ever saw passed over. It was in the form of a column, 

 perhaps nearly a mile long, and must have numbered thousands, 

 spanning the sky from horizon to horizon for more than half 

 a minute, and was followed in a short time by two smaller 

 flocks. All the latter part of October skylarks were from lime 

 to time flying over, generally large straggling flocks or scattered 

 individuals, flying nearly out of sight, but their call-notes being 

 distinctly audible. Mr. Ellison hopes that those who are 

 favourably situated for observing the arrival of winter birds will 

 report whether they have noticed a corresponding abundance of 

 migrant this season. 



The new number of Mind opens with an able and sug- 

 gestive article on pleasure, pain, desire, and volition, by Mr. 

 F. H. Bradley. Mr. J. McK. Cattell has an interestin;); paper on 

 the Psychological Laboratory at Leipzig. Mr. T. Whittaker 

 writes on individualism and S;ate action ; and Mr. D. G. Ritchie 

 on origin and validity. 



Paris is soon to have a Museum of Religions. M. Guimet, 

 of Lyons, who has been a great traveller, has been engaged for 

 years past in collecting altars, priests' robes, and otner objects 

 relating to religious ceremonies. These objects hi presented 

 some time ago to Paris on condition that a building should be 

 specially devoted to them. This building, close to the Trocadero 

 Palace, has just been finished, and the collection will soon be 

 transferred to it. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Ga^-dens during the 

 past week include two Spotted Ichneumons (Herpestes tidpalen- 



sis), a ■ Fox {Canis ) from Afghanistan, presented by 



Lieut. -Colonel Sir Oliver B. C. St. John, K.C.S.L ; a Com- 

 mon Otter (^Liilra vulgaris), British, presented by Mr. Edward 

 Hart ; a Red-throated Diver {Colymbus septentrionalis), British, 

 presented by Mr. Charles A. Howell ; two Greater Sulphur- 

 crested Cockatoos {Cacatui galerita) from Australia, presented 

 by Master Rankin. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



Brazilian Results from the Transit ok Venus. — M. 

 Cruls, in a note to the Paris Academie des Sciences, states that 

 the reports of the various expeditions sent out by the Brazilian 

 Goyernmeat to observe the transit of Venus in 1882 are almost 

 entirely printed, and will shortly appear. Three stations were 

 occupied, viz. S. Thomas in the Antilles, Olinda in Brazil, and 

 Punta-Arenas in the Straits of Magellan. The Baron de Teffe 

 was in command of the first expedition ; M. J. d'O. Lacaille of 

 the second, and M. Cruls himself of the third. The duration of 

 the transit at Punta-Arenas was nearly the mean duration, both 

 ingress and egress being slightly accelerated. The two more 

 northern stations had the duration much shortened, ingress being 

 retarded, and egress accelerated. The chief observer at each 

 •station was supplied with an equatorial of 6*3 inches aperture ; 

 and at S. Thomas two other telescopes of 4-5 and 4'i inches 



respectively were also used. At Olinda likewise there was a 

 second telescope in use, of 4*5 inches aperture. The method of 

 projection was employed in order to get rid of the physiological 

 effects produced by the intensity of the solar light, and in com- 

 bining the observations made with telescopes of different 

 apertures, weights were given to them proportional to the square 

 ot the diameters of the object-glasses, in accordance with the 

 results obtained from the experiments of MM. Wolf and Andre, 

 The resulting parallax from the internal contacts is 8" "808. 



The Asteroids. — Prof, Daniel Kirkwood, of the Indiana 

 University, has just issued a short essay on the asteroids or minor 

 planets, this group of tiny bodies being entitled on many grounds 

 to more particular consideration than it has yet generally 

 received. The first part of the essay gives a brief sketch of the 

 history of the discovery of the first five asteroid-, together with 

 the names of the discoverers and date of discovery of all as yet 

 known to us, and a table giving the elements of their orbits. 

 Prof. Kirkwood makes it clear that the numbers of those still 

 unknown are practically inexhaustible, for if Leverrier's estimate 

 be correct, that the quantity of matter contained in the group 

 cannot be greater than one-fourth the mass of the earth, it would 

 yet require no fewer than 72,000,000 bodies as large as Menippe 

 to make up this amount. Fortunately the rate of discovery 

 appears limited to ten or a dozen per annum, so that there is no 

 immediate dangerof our being overwhelmed by the impossibility 

 of following up some few millions of orbits. The second part of 

 the work deals with questions relating to the origin of the 

 group, and with certain relationships apparent in their orbits, 

 particularly with regard to the irregular distribution of the 

 asteroids in their ring, certain districts being left entirely void, 

 viz. those where the asteroid would have a period commensur- 

 able with that of Jupiter. Prof. Kirkwood has on former 

 occasions repeatedly shown how Jupiter would tend to 

 eliminate bodies revolving in these positions by increasing the 

 eccentricities of their orbits until their perihelion distances fell 

 within the body of the sun itself, and he has accounted for the 

 gaps in the ring of Saturn upon a similar principle. Prof Kirk- 

 wood is of opinion that several of our periodic comets may 

 have been originally members of the asteroid family. All the 

 thirteen comets whose periods correspond to mean distances 

 within the asteroid zone have direct motion, and inclinations 

 similar to those of the minor planets, and their eccentricities 

 are generally less than that of other known comets ; whilst five 

 of these comets have periods respectively corresponding to some 

 of the most marked gaps in the asteroid zone. 



Prof. Kirkwood makes no reference to the importance of 

 certain members of the group as affording means for the deter- 

 mination of the solar parallax, which many astronomers will 

 consider to be their most useful function, and as compensating 

 for the enormous labour, both of observation and c imputation, 

 involved in following the paths of so great a number of wan- 

 derers. And it would have been exceedingly useful if he had 

 supplemented his other tables by one showing those asteroids 

 which have only been observed during one opposition. Some 

 of those theoretically the most interesting have not been ob- 

 served for several years, and are practically lost to us, and it 

 would seem a matter of more pressing importance at the pre- 

 sent time that these should be picked up again, if possible, 

 rather than fresh additions should be made to a list already 

 unmanageably long. 



Olbers' Comet. — The following ephemeris for Berlin mid- 

 night, by Dr. Krueger {Astr. Nach. No. 2818), is in continuation 

 of that given in Nature for 1887 December 15 : — 



Jan. 



The brightness on August 27 is taken as unity. 



Dr. E. Lamp succeeded in seeing the comet for a short time 

 on December I2, and concludes, from a very rough comparison 

 with a star that the ephemeris then required a correction of 

 + 8s. in R. A., but was practically right in Decl. 



