;86 



NATURE 



[Sept. 2, 1875 



at the end of one of his logical treatises (Soph. Elench. cap. 

 xxxiv. 6). These are his words : — 



" No other writer has surveyed the same field, or any great 

 part ot it, from a similar point of view. . . . The lucubrations 

 of Herder and other diffuse writers of the same description, while 

 some of them possess a merit of their own, are not concerned in 

 the same design, or directed towards the same scope. Their 

 object is to portray national character as resulting from combined 

 influences — physical, moral, and political. They abound in 

 generalisations, often in the speculative flights of a discursive 

 fancy, and afi"ord little or no aid for the close induction from 

 facts, which is the aim of the present work. Nor have these 

 inquiries often come within the view of writers on geography, 

 though the history of the globe is very incomplete without that 

 of its human inhabitants." A generation has scarcely passed 

 away since these words were published in 1841 ; we are living in 

 1875 ; yet what a change has been eff'ected in the condition of 

 anthropological literature ! The existence of such a dignified 

 quarterly as the "Archiv fiir Anthropologie, " bearing on its title- 

 page in alphabetical order the honoured names of V. Baer, of 

 Desor, of Ecker, of Hellwald, of His, of Lindenschmidt, of 

 Lucte, of Rutimeyer, of Schaafhausen, of Semper, of Virchow, 

 of Vogt, and of Welcker, is in itself perhaps the most striking 

 evidence of the advance made in this time, as being the most 

 distinctly ponderable and in every sense the largest anthropological 

 publication of the day. 



ArchcEology, which but a short time back was studied in a 

 way which admirably qualified its devotees for being called 

 "connoisseurs," but which scarcely qualified them for being 

 called men of science, has by its alliance with natural history 

 and its adoption of natural history methods, and its availing 

 itself of the light afforded by the great natural history principles 

 just alluded to, entered on a new career. There is, as regards 

 natural history, anatomy, and pathology, nothing left to be 

 desired for the conjoint scheme represented by the periodical 

 just mentioned, where we have V. Baer for the first and Virchow 

 for the last, and the other names specified for the rest of these 

 subjects ; whilst archa;ology, the other party in the .alliance, is 

 very adequately represented by Lindenschmidt alone. But when 

 I recollect that Prichard published a work " On the Eastern 

 Origin of the Celtic Nations " ten years before the volume of 

 "Researches," from which I have just quoted, and that this 

 work has been spoken of as the work "which has made the 

 greatest advance in Comparative Philology during the present 

 century," I cannot but feel that the Redaction of the "Archiv 

 fiir Anthropologie " have not as yet learnt all that may be leamt 

 from the Bristol Ethnologist ; and they would do well to add to 

 the very strong staff represented on their title-page the name of 

 some one, or the names of more than one comparative 

 philologist. This the Berlin " Zeitschrift " has done. 



Prof. Rolleston concluded by a few words on the possible 

 curative application of some of the leading principles of modem 

 Anthropology to some of the prevalent errors of the day. 



MEETING OF THE ASTRONOMISCHE 

 GESELLSCHAFT AT LEYDEN, AUGUST 13-16. 



The sixth biennial meeting of the Astronomische Gesell- 

 schaft, founded in the year, 1863, at Heidelberg took place this 

 year at Leyden, according to the international character of the 

 Society, and in conformity with the resolution of the last meet- 

 ing at Hamburg. The first session was opened by the President, 

 O. Struve, in the rooms of the magnificent Observatory at 

 Leyden. Besides him were present the following members : Auer- 

 bach,'.Bruhns,iEngelmann, Scheibner, and Zollner from Leipzig; 

 "Winnecke, and Hartwig from Strassburg ; H. G. Bakhuyzen, 

 E.F. Bakhuyzen, Kaiser, Schlegel and Valentiner, from Leyden ; 

 Gyldenfrom Stockholm, Repsold from Hamburg, v, d. Willigen 

 from Harlem, Forster and Tietjen from Berhn, Seeliger from 

 Bonn, Bruns from Dorpat, Kortazzi from Nikolajew, Palisa 

 from Pola, Bosscha from the Hague, Block from Odesa. 



After an address from the Curator of the Leyden University, 

 Baron Gevers van Endegeest, in which he spoke of the great 

 merits of the late Director of the Leyden Observatory, the 

 eminent Kaiser, and his exertions in promoting astronomical 

 studies in Netherland, the usual statistical notices were read. 

 The President stated that after the conclusion of the Ham- 

 urg meeting the number of members was 231, that 28 new 



members had been admitted, while the loss by death or other- 

 wise had been 24, so that the actual number of members was 

 235. He gave biographical notices of some of the deceased 

 members, Hoek, Modler, Argelander, "Winlock, and d'Arrest. 

 The treasurer, Auerbach, read the balance of the two last years' 

 income and expenses ; the secretary, Prof. Winnecke, reported 

 that the publications of the Gesellschaft published were : 

 Publicatiop No. xiii. ; Sporer, " Beobachtungen der Sonnen- 

 flecken zu Anelam mit 23 Tafeln," and " Vierteljahrsschrifc der 

 Astron. Gesellschaft," (vol. viii., 3, 4, vol. ix., vol. x., i, 2, 3). 

 Prof. Scheibner reported on the library and mentioned, amongst 

 others, the very valuable gift of all the manuscripts of the great 

 astronomer of Gotha, Hansen, made by his widow to the 

 society. 



Prof. Bruhns gave an account of the progress of work on 

 comets, undertaken by the Society. Of especial interest was 

 the communication and discussion on Encke's comet. 



Prof. Scheibner presented the first copy of a posthumous 

 memoir of Hansen on the Pertubations of Jupiter, and explained 

 the present state of the undertaking. 



Prof. Bruhns exhibited an apparatus for the graphical solu- 

 tion of Kepler's problem, and explained its use. The same 

 communicated a description of a new photometer, the execution 

 of which was in progress. Prof. Zollner explained then, by a 

 model, some improvements of his well-known photometer, 

 through which it becomes more easily adapted to all kinds of 

 telescopes. Some observations of Mars, made by Kononewitsch, 

 appear to indicate a real diminution in the brightness of 

 Mars. 



Prof. Bakhuyzen laid before the Society two manuscript 

 volumes, bought lately ^by the Leyden Observatory, "the Areo- 

 graphischen Fragmente by Schroter" long reputed to be losf. 

 Besides these, he exhibited the very interesting diagrams of 

 Mars made two centuries ago by the celebrated Huyghens. 



Dr. Engelmann of Leipzig announced that he is preparing ft r 

 press an edition of Bessel's various smaller papers. 



At the second meeting, August 14, the members Astrar.<I 

 (Bergen), Gelmuyden (Christiania), Hohwii (Amsterdam), Neu- 

 mayer (Berlin) were present, and six new members were 

 admitted . 



The Council gave the Report on the progress of the Meri- 

 dional Zone work by which all stars down to the 9th inclination 

 between 80° north and 2 south declination are catalogued. The 

 following observatories partake in this great work : Kasan, 

 Dorpat, Christiania, Helsingfors, Cambridge (U.S.), Bonn, 

 Chicago, Leyden, Cambridge (England), Berlin, Leipzig, 

 Neuenbu rg, Nikolajew. 



It was then to be decided where the Gesellshaft would meet 

 the next time. After an invitation by Prof. Gylden from Stock- 

 holm, the Gesellshaft decided on Stockholm for the seventh 

 biennial meeting. 



Prof. Forster of Berlin ihade a detailed communication on the 

 situation of different- Astronomical Institutions of Berlin, including 

 those which are in the course of construction. The erection of 

 the Astro-physical Observatory near Potsdam is in good progress. 

 It has not yet been possible to appoint a Director for this ex- 

 tensive institution ; meanwhile the services of Prof. Sporer, Dr. 

 Vogel, and Dr. Lohse are secured for it. This new institution 

 is intended to promote science principally in the higher optics, 

 and their application to astronomy, while the Observatory at 

 Berlin and the Institution for exact Numerical Computation 

 under the direction of Prof. Tietjen will pursue their given 

 ways. 



Proi. Bakhuyzen exhibited a new wire micrometer, sent by 

 Merz, and explained its pecularities. Prof. Gylden gave a new 

 solution of Kepler's problem with the aid of elliptical functions, 

 and distributed some copies of a memoir on the use of elliptical 

 integrals in the theory of the motion of the heavenly bodies. 

 Dr. Palisa explained the construction of the new meridian circle 

 at Pola by many large plates. Different papers sent to the 

 meeting by Astrand, Covarrubias, Lockyer, and Struve were laid 

 on the table. ' 



The Observatory at Brussels appears, after the loss of its 

 founder and genial director, Professor Quetelet, to be in a critical 

 position. The Astronomische Gesellsshaft resolvediunanimously, 

 that it is to, be wished that the distinguished activity exhibited 

 by the Brussels Observatory in the determination of the places of 

 stars with sensible proper motion, may be maintained, and if 

 pcssible, improved by completing its instrumental means. It is 

 in the interest of science to reduce and print the results of the 

 measures in question as soon as possible. 



