Oct. 16, 1879] 



NATURE 



5^1 



mode of traasit between Sliema and Valetta, except that he had 

 ohsei-iiid people performing the journey by that route. 



One of your correspondents some time ago gave as an instance 

 of sagacity the case of a monkey returning to him a nut for the 

 obvious purpose of having it cracked. It recalled to me that, 

 several years since, I gave a nut to a monkey in the Zoological Gar- 

 dens, London, whereupon the said monkey, having put the nut 

 into his mouth and moved his jaw s about with a sort of theatrical 

 effect indicative of the hardness of the shell, returned it to me, 

 as any child might have done under similar circumstances, with 

 the evident object of getting me to crack it. I declined, and, at 

 the same time, I gave back the nut. The monkey descended to 

 the ground, laid the nut down, picked up a stone, and at once 

 cracked it for himself, showing an intelligent idea of resources, 

 that as my teeth were not available as a substitute for his, he 

 could utilise a stone for a hammer. 



Chas. Popham Miles 



Chateau de St. Leger, Dametal, Seine Inferieure, October 7 



Butterfly Swarms 



IN'CLOSED is a specimen of butterfly which, about the middle 

 of December, 1S78, flew past my bungalow in crowds, all 

 making for north-west, and going down-hill. In about four 

 weeks afterwards, that is, well into January, 1879, the same 

 butterfly began to return, this time flying to south-east, and up- 

 hill. Starting from the bungalow, I rode four miles to north- 

 west, and went about l,coo feet down-hill, and found the 

 butterfles still ascending. They came from beyond a hill about 

 300 feet higher than the bungalow, and they went back over the 

 same range. 



On both occasions the temperature stood at about 80° F. in 

 the shade, the winds moderate and variable, and as often against 

 as in favour of the flight, which, on its going and coming, lasted 

 for two to three days both ways. 



On the return journey I found the butterflies settled in " swarms " 

 on damp, sandy spots near ravines, and so thickly settled that 

 with one sweep of a circular butterfly net fifteen inches in 

 diameter I caught about 150. M. B. 



Hill Country of Ceylon, 3,000 feet above Sea-level, 

 September 14 



[The butterfly is one of the Pieridce, and in all probability is 

 identical with Appias albina, Boisduval. The habit of settling 

 in swarms on damp spots is common to mauy butterflies, and 

 even to several of the few species that occur in Britain. — En.] 



The Hunting Spider 



This arachnid is very common out here, a ver)- tiger amongst in- 

 sects, and very interesting to watch. Its poison must be intensely 

 virulent. If two are placed together under a finger bowl, and 

 one happens to be the .^mailer, a very little manccuvring soon 

 brings him within the instantaneously fatal grip of the larger 

 animal; but if f f equal size, a most interesting series of watch- 

 ful movements and counter movements commences, each 

 anxious to secure tlie first and fatal bite. Leap after leap is 

 parried, advance of one is accompanied by a wide awake back- 

 ward retreat of tlie other, and so on for a long time. When the 

 fatal spring is made, the victim is at once hon de combat, and 

 the conqueror carries it off rejoicingly. I once gave a spider a 

 blue-bottle fly, and then learned for the first time that these 

 insects were viviparous, for the fly in its death throes protruded 

 a heap of active little maggots which soon died from want of a 

 pvoi)cr nidus in which to develop. On another occasion I 

 found a hunting spider on a looking glass, and as from its move- 

 ments it was evidently aftergame, 1 drew near quietly to watch. 

 To my surprise and amusement 1 found that the sjjider was 

 stalking its own reflection, and its cautious movements on tip toe, 

 looking downwards, opened up to me a wide field of thought. 

 What feeling was at work in that small breast ? Was it the 

 natural instinct after prey, or the burnings of jealousy in the 

 apparent presence of a rival, or pleasure in scrutinising its own 

 charms, now for the fir.st time exhibited to it ? If the latter, then 

 the hunting spider is, 1 fancy, the lowest animal in the .scale, 

 which has been deceived or flattered by a looking glass. 



Dogs, monkeys, and cats, are easily impo ed on by a glass, 

 and, a^ the first thing a monkey does on seeing a mirror, is to 

 pass its hand round to the other monkey, you can soon originate 

 a fight by grasping the hand behind the gla^s ; and then hastily 



dropping it, watch the amazement of Jacko at the sudden and 

 mysterious disappearance of his rival. 

 Peshawar H. F. Hutchinson 



GEOGRAPHICAL NOTES 



On Saturday evening the Berlin Geographical Society, 

 presided over by Dr. Nachtigal, celebrated the birthday 

 anniversary of Carl Ritter, the famous German geo- 

 grapher — a ceremony which had been postponed from 

 August. Ritter himself founded this society in 1828, and 

 presided over it till i860. "Those days," said Dr. 

 Nachtigal, in opening the proceedings, " on which their 

 intellectual princes are presented to the nations are land- 

 marks of their life and development, and to honour them 

 is a duty of honour." The University, the Army, and 

 the other kindred societies throughout Germany, were all 

 largely represented, and handsome subscriptions were 

 announced for a memorial to tlie hero of the evening. 



Amongst the resolutions passed at the Brussels Inter- 

 national Congress for Commercial Geography we point 

 out the following : — l. The Congress is of opinion that, 

 in the interest of all nations it is desirable that one or 

 more lines of railway should connect the coasts of Afric 

 with its interior. 2. Complete freedom of trade should 

 reign there. 3. In the expectation of a complete abolition 

 of custom-houses, it is desirable that as many commercial 

 treaties as possible should be concluded. It is particu- 

 larly necessary that a treaty of this kind should be preli- 

 minarily entered into between Belgium and Holland. 

 4. The Congress expresses the wish that everywhere 

 instruction in history should be separate from that in 

 geography. The Congress expressed some further wishes 

 which related to an expedition for discovering the shortest 

 route from) Mandalay to) Mekong ; the speedy execution 

 of the Panama Canal project, the rendering safe of the 

 commercial routes leading to Inner Africa, the further- 

 ance of free trade, the amelioration of the system of 

 representation of countries by consuls, the commercial 

 route from Tong King to the south-west of China, the 

 introduction of the same meridian for all countries, the 

 construction of railways on the Balkan peninsula and in 

 Asia Minor, the introduction of a uniform system of 

 measures, weights, and moneys for all civilised peoples, 

 the abolition of slavery in countries where it continues to 

 be officially countenanced. Next year's congress will 

 take place at Lisbon. 



An International Geographical Congress will be held 

 at Nancy in August, 1880. 



The International Congress of Americanists was opened 

 at Brussels on September 23. The King of the Belgians 

 and many persons of rank were present. 



The boundary between British Guiana and Venezuela 

 is a very vexed question, and in consequence of Mr. 

 Boddam-Whetham having included in his recent work 

 some notes on it from a Venezuelan source, Mr. E. F. im 

 Thurn, a well-known authority on matters relating to 

 British Guiana, has gone carefully into the matter. He 

 has just embodied the results of his investigations in a 

 little brochure, which contains a good deal of geographical 

 information. Mr. im Thurn regards the following as the 

 best settlement of the c|ucstion. The mouth of the 

 Morooca should be taken as the northernmost point of 

 our colony, and from there to the old Dutch post on the 

 Cuyani, the boundary should be as in Cordazzi's map. 

 Thence it should be carried to the nearest point of the 

 Mazaruni, and then up the course of that river to the 

 junction of the River Cako, and along the latter river to 

 Mt. Rorainia. From that central and well-marked point, 

 southward to the source of the Corentyne, and then 

 northward along the course of the river, it should follow 

 the line laid down in Sir R. Schomburgk's map. 



