536 



NATURE 



\Pct. 2, 1879 



observations on the changes of levels of rivers, as well as 

 for meteorological observations and for weather-warnings. 

 The official Report on the Forests in the South and 

 West of the Island of Cyprus, by Mr. A. E. Wild, of the 

 Indian Forest Department, goes far to explain the un- 

 healthy climatic conditions now existing in the island, 

 and of which so much was recently said. In the region 

 named the forests are now mostly confined to the chain 

 of hills running east and west, and even there the more 

 dense and better growth is confined to the more inacces- 

 sible spots of the higher ranges. Round the villages and 

 in suitable localities for transport the forest is already so 

 thinned as to be unworthy of the name. This unfortunate 

 state of things, which has had a serious effect on the 

 climate, has been brought about by the most reckless 

 improvidence in the felling of trees, aided by fires and the 

 ruinous mode of extracting resin. Mr. Wild appears to 

 be of opinion that by a careful system of forest preserva- 

 tion, which need not involve us in a large expenditure of 

 money, the damage caused under the Lusignan and 

 Turkish rule, may be to a material extent repaired in the 

 course of fifty or sixty years. 



M. E. F. Berlioux, Professor of Geography at Lyons, 

 has just issued a second edition, revised and enlarged, of 

 his brochure, entitled " Les Anciennes Explorations et les 

 Futures Decouvertes de I'Afrique Centrale," which is 

 illustrated with a curious map of the northern portion of 

 the continent. 



A PARTY of forty-seven persons, am.ongst whom there 

 are twelve married couples, and fourteen children, sailed 

 last week from Bergen (Norway), with the intention of 

 colonising the Aldabra Islands in the Indian Ocean (in 

 about 9° lat. S. and 46° long. E.). The idea resulting in 

 this undertaking was first conceived by two Norwegians, 

 who had repeatedly visited Madagascar, where they had 

 learnt that the Aldabra Islands are uninhabited at present, 

 and excellently adapted for colonisation. 



Much attention is just now being attracted in Queens- 

 land to the proposed scheme for a Transcontinental 

 railway to Port Darwin on the northern coast, of the 

 suggested route for which a flying survey has recently 

 been made by Mr. Faveuc and a party who started from 

 Blackall, in Queensland. The present idea is to com- 

 mence the line at Roma on the existing system, whence 

 it would be taken by way of Blackall to the South 

 Australian frontier, a distance of 750 miles. From that 

 point it would still follow a north-westerly direction to 

 Port Darwin. 



A MEMBER of the Japanese mission now at the capital 

 of Corea writes to the Osaka Nippo that the new ports, 

 which it is proposed to open in that country, are Jin-sen, 

 in Kei-ki-do, and Gen-san, in Kan-kiyo-do, the former of 

 which is only eight rz distant from the capital. A Japanese 

 surveying officer has also been engaged in making inves- 

 tigations at the port of Dai-on, in Kei-ki-do, about eighteen 

 ri from the capital, along the road to which there are 

 many royal tombs. Partly on this account, and also 

 because the road is considered a very important one, the 

 Coreans for some time obstinately refused to permit the 

 surveying officer to travel over it ; eventually, however, 

 they gave way. Great benefit, it is thought, would accrue 

 to commerce if this overland route were opened. The 

 Corean capital numbers among its residents many nobles 

 and wealthy men, and several of the latter, who hold pro- 

 gressive ideas, are said to have ordered European articles 

 at the open port of Fusan in the south. When the port 

 of Jin-sen comes to be opened, it is beUeved that foreign 

 merchandise will be in great demand. 



Official statistics respecting the population of Nether- 

 lands India at the end of 1876 have lately been issued, 

 from which it appears that exclusive of the army, there 

 were then in Java and Madura 18,515,414 people, being 

 an increase of about 170,000 over the previous year. The 



natives figure for 18,278,998, of whom 8,921,348 were 

 males, while the remainder is made up of Europeans, 

 Chinese, Arabs, and other foreign Orientals, the Celestials 

 being, of course, in a large majority. This remark also 

 applies to the other possessions in Netherlands India, 

 including Sumatra, Celebes, &c. Owing to the incom- 

 pleteness of the returns of natives in these islands, no 

 estimate of their total population can be arrived at. 



WILLIAM WILSON SAUNDERS 



WILLIAM WILSON SAUNDERS, F.R.S., F.L.S., 

 &c., who, as we stated last week, died on Sep- 

 tember 13, was born June 4, 1809, the son of the Rev. 

 James Saunders, Vicar of Kirtlington. He was educated 

 at Addiscombe, and went to India as an engineer officer 

 in the Hon. East India Company's service. While there 

 he published his first scientific paper, in Cleanings in 

 Science "On Hydraulic Cements," in 1831, and also 

 devoted a great part of his leisure to the study of plants 

 and insects, and made collections, which he brought back 

 with him in 1832. Having left the service, he settled at 

 Wandsworth, and shortly after joined his father-in-law in 

 business at Lloyds, still continuing his natural history 

 studies. He was one of the original members of the 

 Entomological Society, and read his first paper, " On the 

 Habits of some Indian Insects," in April, 1834. This w< s 

 followed by many others, mostly of a descriptive natun;. 

 He was President of the Society in 1841, 1856, and 1857, 

 and many times served as vice-president. He was also 

 elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society in 1833, and wss 

 vice-president from 1856 to 1874, and treasurer from 1861 

 to 1873. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 

 1853, and was also a Fellow of the Zoological Society 

 and Royal Horticultural Society, and on the Council of 

 the latter he took an active part. His natural history col- 

 lections gradually increased in extent from the time of 

 his return from India, and he devoted himself principally 

 while at Wandsworth to horticulture and entomology and 

 to the formation of an extensive herbarium and collection 

 of woods, with notes of the density and weight per cubic 

 foot of each, which latter was exhibited at the great 

 Exhibition of 1851. The Report of the Juries for the 

 Exhibition gives a classified catalogue of them, with 

 remarks as to their uses, &c. 



In 1857 he went to reside at Hallfield, Reigate, and 

 removed there his various collections, largely extending 

 them, and adding collections of birds, shells, vegetable 

 products, &c. His attention, however, was always mainly 

 given to horticulture and entomology, and especially to 

 the study and cultivation of the aloes, Crassulaceae, Cacti, 

 and other succulent plants which could not be duly studied 

 in an herbarium, and to the smaller and more obscure 

 species of orchids ; and it was to bring these interesting 

 and curious plants more prominently before the botanical 

 world that he resolved on the publication of the " Rc- 

 fugium Botanicum," the first number of which appeared 

 in April, 186S. In this work he had the valuable assist- 

 ance of Prof. H. G. Reichenbach for the descriptions ofj 

 the orchids, and of INIr. J. G. Baker, of Kew, for tha 

 other families, the plates being chiefly from the 

 drawings of the well-known botanical artist Mr. Fitch 

 although some were from drawings of his own. The 

 Fungi also attracted a good deal of his attention, and he 

 made a series of very accurate drawings of all he was able 

 to obtain, some of which have been reproduced in the 

 "Mycological Illustrations," edited by him with the 

 assistance of Mr. Worthington G. Smyth and Mr. A. W. 

 Bennett; the first part of this appeared in 1871. Un- 

 fortunately neither the " Refugium " nor the " Mycological 

 Illustrations" have ever been completed. 



His entomological collection included insects of all 

 orders, and though perhaps he gave more special atten- 

 tion to the Lepidoptera and Coleoptera, he was always 



