198 



NATURE 



\July 8, 1875 



The Geographical Magazine, July. — This is a particularly in- 

 teresting number of this magazine. The first article is an abstract 

 of the narrative of Captain the Hon. G. C. Napier, who has 

 recently returned to India after an adventurous tour in Northern 

 Persia. An article on ' ' Recent Russian Explorations in Western 

 Mongolia," accompanied by a map, gives some account of (i) 

 Sosnovski's and Miroshnichenko's explorations on the Upper 

 Irtysh in 1872-73 ; (2)Matusovski's journey into the Ektag- Altai 

 in 1873 ; (3) A Russian caravan journey to Kobdo, Uliassutai, 

 and Baikul in 1872. In an article on Paraguay the leading 

 features of the history of that country are traced. In " A Trip 

 up the Congo or Zaire " river, Selim Agha gives an interesting 

 account of his joui-ney from Fernando Po to that river in com- 

 pany with Capt. Burton ; the latter prefaces the narrative with 

 a few words of personal notice of his old factotum and com- 

 panion. To those whose interest in Zanzibar has been awakened 

 by the present visit of its sovereign to this country, the account 

 of the dominions of the Seyyid Burghash, along with the good 

 map which accompanies it, will be welcomed. The usual reviews 

 and reports fill up the number. 



Journal of Proceedings 0/ the Winchester and Hampshire 

 Scientific and Literary Society, vol. i. part iv., 1874. — We are 

 glad to see from the president's address that this Society is doing 

 much real work, and especially that it is devoting itself with 

 considerable zest and good lesults to field-work. The Society 

 includes in its programme a wide variety of subjects, aiid its 

 Journal contains good papers in various departments of science. 

 The president, the Rev. C. Collier, after reviewing tlie Society's 

 work for the year, gives an interesting address on the archfeology 

 of Winchester and its neighbourhood. Other papers in the part 

 are "Selections from the Sanskrit Poets," by Mr. W. Water- 

 field ; " Sarsens, grey wethers, or Druid Stones," by Mr. Joseph 

 Stevens; " Two- winged Plagues," a paper on CKstrids, Tabanids, 

 and Hippoboscids, by the Rev. W. W. Spicer ; "The Chalk 

 Formation," by Mr. C. Griffith j and "A Gossip about Mites," 

 by the Rev. W. W. Spicer. 



Zeitschrift der Oesterreichischen Gesellschafi fiir Meteorologie, 

 May I. — This number contains an account of Mr. Colding's 

 work on the behaviour and relations of atmospheric currents, 

 consisting mainly of mathematical reasoning based upon a study 

 of the movements of water, which he considers analogous to 

 those of air. With regard to hurricanes, he observes that just as 

 in a water eddy the velocity of rotation increases from the cir- 

 cumference towards the centre, until at the inner surface it be- 

 comes imaginary, so the velocity of the wind increases from the 

 circumference of a revolving storm towards the centre, but at a 

 certain distance from the centre, the boundary of the calm space, 

 falls suddenly to stillness. He beheves the following formula, 

 which applies to water, to be good for air also, both being 

 bounded by a resisting medium. Let water circulate in a 

 cylinder, where // = depth of current at the circumference, 

 V ~ velocity_of,current at the surface ; then at a depth x below 

 the surface : 



».=;.(. -o.433(i)') 



when the resistance at the base is equal to that which would be 

 exercisedby a substratum of water. If water flows in at one 

 point in- "a vessel containing water, and flows out at another 

 point, and the inflowing and outflowing quantities are equal, the 

 surface remains at a constant level. Let the supply be in the 

 middle and the outflow round the circumference, the water will 

 descend towards the circumference. If the contained water be 

 rotator)', its condition will be similar when a constant stream 

 flows in ; there will be an increase of pressure at all points, and 

 the water will attain a higher level, descending in the directions 

 of its escape. A whirlwind can withstand pressure from without 

 only when the rotation has a certain velocity, and although a 

 considerable quantity of air must flow to the whirlwind along the 

 surface of the earth, on the other hand a permanent current must 

 flow outwards in the direction of the surface level. In moving oyer 

 the surface of the earth it encounters many obstacles, v/hich 

 reduce the velocity of rotation, so that an inrush of the air at 

 higher pressure takes place, and immediately the condensed air 

 in the lower strata forces outwards a quantity of air at the top 

 proportionate to that which streams towards the centre below. 

 This action of course diminishes the fury and increases the 

 diameter of a hurricane, and exhibits the twisting motion so 

 often observed in small whirlwinds and waterspouts. The rest of 

 the article will be given in the next number of the Zeitschrift. 



Der Naturforscher, May 1875. — From this part we notice the 

 following papers : — On the atomicity of nitrogen, by Victor 

 Meyer and M. Lecco. These gentlemen arrive at the conclusion 

 that nitrogen is not a triad, as thought by some chemists, but a 

 pentad.— On the process of fertilisation with fungi (Basidiomy- 

 cetes) by Van Tieghem. — On the evaporation of moisture 

 through the human skin, by Fried. Erismann. — On the cause of 

 luminosity or non-luminosity of carboniferous flames, by F. 

 Wibel. — On the artificial imitation of native polar-magnetic 

 platinum, by Daubree. — On the tenor of nitrogen in soil-acid, by 

 E. Simon. — On the behaviour of some solutions in polarised 

 light, by O. Hesse. — On the marine flora existing at Spitzber- 

 gen during winter, by Herr Kjellman. — On the temperatures 

 in the southern and northern Atlantic Ocean, by Herr von 

 Schleinitz. — On melting points, by Herr Midler. — On the de- 

 pendence of the action of emulsine upon physical conditions, by 

 Herren E. Marckurst and G. Hiifner. — On hardened glass, by 

 Herr Bauer, — On the so-called " Riesenkessel " (gigantic kettles) 

 near Christiania and their origin, by Herren Brogger and Reusch. 

 — On the immunity of Gytnnotus electricus against its own electric 

 shock, by Herr J. Steiner. — On the influence of light on the weight 

 of animals, by Dr. Fubini. — On the dependence of the specific heat 

 of carbon, boron, and silicon upon temperature, by Friedrich 

 Weber. — On the action of the central organs of the nerves, by 

 Herr Frensberg. — On the spectrum of Encke's comet, by Herr 

 von Konkoly. — On the action of the electric current on fused 

 amalgama and alloys, by Eugen Obach. 



Monthly Notices of Papers and Proceedings of the Royal 

 Society of Tasmania for 1873. — This has only just come to hand, 

 and the subject matter of some of the papers has lost in interest, 

 inasmuch as some of the phenomena discussed- — the Transit of 

 Venus, for instance — have since taken place. Mr. F. Abbot's 

 paper on the Transit of Venus, with special reference to the 

 importance of determining the true distance of the sun in con- 

 nection with meteorology, is a most interesting contribution. 

 Speaking of the effects of conjunctions, he alludes to the 

 fearful storm which took place Nov. 27, 1703, when five 

 of the planets were in conjunction. The storm swept over 

 the continent of Europe, causing an immense amount of 

 damage. It was on that day the whole structure of the first 

 Eddystone Lighthouse, together with its architect, Winstanley, 

 and other inmates, was blown into the ocean. — The principal 

 other contributions are on the Mersey coal-measures, by T. 

 Stephens, M.A. ; on the Tertiary Beds in and around Laun- 

 ceston, by R. M. Johnston ; Contributions to the Phytography 

 of Tasmania, by Baron F. Mueller ; and Law of Weather and 

 Storms, by the Right Rev. Bishop Bromby. 



Reale Istituto Lombardo. — Rendiconti : vol. viii., fasc. x. and 

 xi. — These parts contain the following papers :— On scientific 

 association, by Prof. G. Sangali. — On the " Jaborandus," by 

 Prof. S. Garovaglio.— On the importance of the study of meteor- 

 ology to agrici3turists, by Prof. Gaetano Cantoni. — On the 

 reasons why sulphur destroys the Oidio (a cryptogamic parasite) 

 of the vine, and on the emission of free hydrogen from plants, by 

 Prof. E. Pollacci.— On two questions relating to chimneys, by 

 Prof. R. Ferrini. — On hydrostatic pressure in relation to the 

 molecular motion of gravitation, by Dr. G. Grassi. — The re- 

 maining papers in this part relate to political and moral 

 sciences. 



The Journal de Physique Theorique et AppUquie, May 1875, 

 contains the following original paper? : — Researches on the 

 modifications which light undergoes in consequence of the 

 motion of the luminous source and of that of the observer, by 

 M. Mascart. — On the currents of mechanical origin, by E. 

 Bouty. — On the combustion of explosive mixtures, by M. 

 Neyreneuf. — ^On the apparatus used for the explanation of the 

 laws and formula of elementary optics, by C. M. Gariel. — On 

 the determination of the electric capacity of bodies and of their 

 condensing power by means of Thomson's electrometer, by M. 

 A. Turquen. — A note by M. C. Daguenet, on the electric light 

 in rarefied gases. 



Verhandlungen des Vereins fiir Naturwissenschaftliche Unter- 

 haltungzu Hamburg, 1871-74. — This is the Vereins' first publi- 

 cation, and contains an account of the formation and of the first 

 year's doings of the Society, together with a copy of the laws 

 and regulations, and a list of members. Further on we have 

 several well-written articles, viz. : — On the preparation of cater- 

 pillars for collections, by G. J. Wittmack. — On some attempts 

 at silk -culture with j5^/w^>'.y mori, by Georg Semper. — Researches 



