lOO 



NATURE 



[ytine 2,, 1875 



cussed by members. There are now 161 names on the book?, 

 twenty-two new members having been elected since January 

 1874. Seven general meetings were held, and thirty-two pa,pers 

 read on the following s,\xh]&cis i—Gtvlogy.—i. Did the Great 

 Cook River run N.W. or S.E. ? Mr. Crawford. 2. On the 

 Tertiary Series of Wanganui, Mr. Purnell. 3. On the micro- 

 scopic structure of the igneous rocks of New Zealand, Richard 

 Daintree. 4. On the Pleistocene glaciation of New Zealand, 

 Mr. Travers. 5. Changes in the physical geography of New 

 Zealand since the arrival of the Maoris, Mr. Hood. Zoology.— 

 I. Description of fish, presented to the Museum by Prof. 

 Wyville Thomson, Dr. Hector. 2. On new fish from Chatham 

 Islands, Dr. Hector. 3. On certain disputed points in New 

 Zealand Ornithology, Dr. BuUer. 4. On New Zealand whales, 

 Dr. Hector. 5. On FMus nova: hollandut. Dr. Buller. Botany. 

 —I. On a new species of Rubiis, by Mr. Buchanan. 2. On 

 the durabihty of New Zealand timber, Mr. Buchanan. 3. On 

 Juticus camprocarpus and a new species of Isoetes, Mr. Kirk. 

 4. On new specits of mosses, Dr. Knight. 5. Flowering plants 

 and ferns of Chatham Islands, Mr. Buchanan. 6. Description 

 of New Zealand lichens, Dr. Knight. 7. Two plants new to 

 New Zealand, Lepilccna preissii zxA Carex chlorantka, Mr. Kirk. 

 Meteorology. — I. On solar radiation in New Zealand, Mr. Rous 

 Marten. 2. On the hot winds of Australia and their influence 

 on the climate of I^ew Zealand, Mr. Plood. 3. On the hot 

 winds of Canterbury, Mr. M'Kay. Chemistry.— ¥ivQ papers 

 pointing out certain new discoveries in chemistry, Mr. Skey. 

 Miscellaneous.— I. On ergot in rye. Dr. Hector. 2. On portion 

 of a wreck found at the Haast River, Capt Turnbull. 3. On 

 the identity of the Moa hunters with the present Maori race, Mr. 

 M'Kay. 4. On Maori traditions respecting the Moa, Mr. 

 Hamilton. 5. On the longitude of Wellington Observatory, 

 Capt. Nares, of H.M.S. Challenger. 6. On the Duplex system of 

 telegraphy, Mr. Lemon. These papers will all appear in the 

 seventh volume of the " Proceedings and Transactions of the New 

 Zealand Institute," which is now going through the press. The 

 balance-sheet showed a credit of 162/., of which Dr. Hector was 

 requested to expend 100/. in purchasing standard works of refer- 

 ence in England.— The Chairman announced that Prof. Wyville 

 Thomson, Prof. Newton of Cambridge, and Robert M'Lachlan, 

 all of whom had taken great interest in New Zealand science 

 and added much to its literature, had been elected honorary 

 members of the New Zealand Institute. Dr. Buller, F.C.S., 

 F.G.S., was elected president (lor the ensuing two years. Mr. 

 Traver.«, F.L.S., vice-president, then took the chair, and the 

 following papers were read : — Further proofs of the former 

 existence oi the Great Cook River, by J. C. Crawford, 

 F.G.S.— Notes on Hutton's "Catalogue of Marine Mollusca 

 of New Zealand," by Dr. Ed. von Martens.— On some 

 additions to the collection of birds in the Colonial Museum, 

 by Dr. Buller.— Additional notes on New Zealand fishes, 

 by Dr. Hector.— Further notes on New Zealand whales, 

 by Dr. Hector.— Mr. Travers said that the visit of Dr. Hector 

 to Europe with a valuable collection of specimens of natural 

 history and other objects would materially advance the cause of 

 science in New Zealand. 



Philadelphia 

 Academy of Natural Sciences, Sept. 15, 1874.— Dr. 

 Ruschenberger, president, in the chair.— Prof. Leidy made 

 some remarks on the moving power of diatomes, desmids, 

 and other Algae. While the cause of motion remains ua- 

 known, some of the uses are obvious. The power is con- 

 siderable, and enables these minute organisms, when mingled 

 with mud, readily to extricate themselves and rise to the surface, 

 where they may receive the influence of light and air. In ex- 

 amining the surface-mud of a shallow rainwater pool, in a recent 

 excavation in brick clay, he found little else but an abundance of 

 minute diatomes. He was not sufficiently familar with the dia- 

 tomes to name the species, but it resembled Navicula radiosa. 

 The little diatomes were very active, gliding hither and thither, 

 and knocking the quartz sand-grains about. Noticing the latter, 

 he made some comparative measurements, and found that the 

 Naviculse would move grains of sand as much as twenty-five 

 times their own superficial area, and probably fifty times their 

 own bulk and weight, or perhaps more. — Dr. J. Gibbons Hunt 

 remarked that in the vegetable kingdom it is exceedingly rare to 

 meet with glands which have distinct excretory ducts. Some 

 authors deny their existence entirely ; but in Nepenthes raffle- 

 siana, N. distillatoria, and N. phyllamphora, and probably in 

 all the species, are large cylindrical glands which pour out their 

 secretion through distinct excretory ducts. 



Paris 

 Academy of Sciences, May 20. — M. Frcmy in the chair. — 

 The following papers were read : — Observations of the moon, 

 made with the meridian instruments of the Paris Observatory 

 during 1874, communicated by M. Leverrier. — Some remarks 

 on the discussion with regard to cyclones, by M. Faye. — Re- 

 searches on sun-spots and solar protuberances made during the 

 years 1871 to 1875, by Father Secchi. — Conditions of the maxi- 

 mum amount of work produced by heat-engines, by M. A. 

 Ledieu. — M. Andre read a paper on the scientific results ob- 

 tained at Noumea by the Transit party. — On the determination 

 of singularities of the left curve, at the intersection of two sur- 

 faces of any order that have a certain number of multiple points 

 in common, by M. L. Saltel. — A note by M. V. Cornil, on the 

 dissociation of the violet of methylaniline and its separation into 

 two colours under the influence of normal and pathological 

 tissues, particularly by tissues inclined to amyloid degeneration. 

 — Application of the graphical method to the study of the mecha- 

 nism of swallowing, by M. S. Arloing. — On a new proceeding 

 in the operation of the cataract (extraction by means of a peri- 

 pherical piece of cloth), by M. L. de Wecker. — Sulphuration of 

 copper and of iron by a prolonged presence in the thermal 

 source of Bourbon-l'Archambault, by M. de Gouvenain. — On 

 the wanderings of the oak Phylloxera, by M. Lichtenstein. — On 

 some reactions of chromium salts, by M. A. Etard. — On Cam- 

 phenes, by.M. J. Riban.— A note by MM. C Saint-Pierre and 

 G. Jeannel,' on a reaction of carbon bisulphide ; conversion of 

 carbon bisulphide into hydro-sulphocyanic acid. — On the influ- 

 ence of the pressure in the atmosphere upon the life of man, by 

 M. CI. Bernard. — Researches on the respiration of birds, by the 

 same and M. Campana. 



BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS RECEIVED 



British.— The Pebbles in a Bolton Brick field. A Lecture by Rooke 

 Pennington, B.A., LL D. (Bolton Daily C/iro»icte).— Report of the Rugby 

 School Natural History Society for 1874. -Notes on the Fertihsation of 

 Cereals (Botanical Society of Edinburgh). — On the Graphical representation 

 of the movements of the Chest Wall in Respiration: A. Ransome, M.D., 

 MA. (Taylor and Francis). — Arctic Papers ior the Expedition. A selection 

 of Papers on Arctic Geography and Ethnology. Printed and presented to 

 the Arctic Expedition of 1875 by the Royal Geographical Society (John 

 Murray). — A Compendious Statement of the Nature and Cost of certain 

 Sewage Processes : Major-General Scott, C.B. — Ornithology of the btraits 

 of Gibraltar : Lieut.-Col. L. Howard and L. Irby, F.Z.S. (R. H. Porters- 

 Contributions to Natural History and Papers on other Subjects : James 

 Simpson (Edinburgh Publishing Company). — Recreative Science : David 

 Page, LL.D. (Wm Blackwood). — Transactions of the Norfolk and Norwich 

 Naturalists' Society, 1874-75. Vol. li. Part i — The Potato Disease : Eccles 

 Haigh (G. Philip and Son). — Chapters on Sound : C. A. Alartineau (Sunday 

 School Association) — The Zoological Record for 1873 (John Van Voorst). 



Colonial. — General Report on the Operations of the Great Trigono- 

 metrical Survey of India during 1873-74 : Col. J. T. Walker, R.E., F.R S., 

 &c., Superintendent of the Survey (Dehra Dun, M. J. O'Connor). — Proceed- 

 ings of the Annual Meeting of the Members of the Agri-Horticultural 

 Society of Madras on the 24i.h and 27th of March, 1875. 



American. — Centrifugal Force and Gravitation. Part I. : John Harris 

 (Lovell Printing and Publishing Company). — The Surface Geology of Ohio, 

 U. S. (Columbus, O. ; Nevins and Myers). 



CONTENTS Page 



The Arctic Manual 81 



Lawson's " New Guinea." By Alfked R. Wallace, P'.Z.S. ... 83 



Our Book Shelf: — 



Green's " Vestiges of the Molten Globe " 85 



Stanford's Elementary Atlases . ; 85 



Letters to the Editor : — 



The Meteors of November 14. — Daniel Kihkwood 85 



Systems ot Consanguinity. — Lewis H. Morgan 86 



The Migration of Specics.—W. L. Distant 86 



Muraenopsis tridactyla. — P. L. Sclater, F.R.S 87 



Hardened Glass. — James H. Logan 87 



Yorkshire Exhibition " Guide." — H. Pocklington 87 



Primroses and Cowslips.— H. George Fordham 87 



Our Astronomical Column :— 



The Melbourne Catalogue 87 



The Comet of 1533 88 



Occultation of Venus 88 



Our Botanical Column : — 



Phenomena of Plant Life 88 



Physics in Germany (tVtlA lllmtration) 88 



Magneto-Electric Machines. By Dr. Andrews, F.R.S. (With 



I llustralions) go 



Lectures at the Zoological Gardens, V.: Mr. Garrod on Camels 



and Llamas 92 



The Line between Highlands and Lowlands 93 



The U.S. Government Board FOR Testing Iron AND Steel. . . 94 



GUSTAVK ThURET 95 



Notes 95 



Scientific Serials 97 



Societies and Academies 98 



Books and Pamphlets Received 100 



