3o8 



NATURE 



[July 28, 1887 



staff of the Scientific and Industrial Competition which is to be 

 held in Brussels ncKt year. M. Charles Mourlon is the Chief 

 Secretary. 



Mr. Hilcken, Librarian of the Bethnal Green Free Library, 

 writes to us that the Library is greatly in need of one or two 

 microscopes. "We have received," he says, "a present of 

 interesting 'objects,' but they are useless without microscopes. 

 Many of our readers would gladly avail themselves of the use of 

 such instruments." 



Dr. R. H. Gunning, of Rio de Janeiro and Edinburgh, has 

 made the following munificent gifts in connexion with Her 

 Majesty's Jubilee : — To the Council of the Royal Society of 

 Edinburgh, a triennial prize of ;i^io5, to be named " The Vic- 

 toria Jubilee Prize for the Advancement of Science." To the 

 Council of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, £\o yearly, 

 or ;^I20 every three years, as they may prefer, to be named 

 " The Victoria Jubilee Gift," the object of the founder being to 

 assist experts to travel, with the view of " examining other col- 

 lections, and keeping the Edinburgh Museum as completely 

 furnished with information and examples as possible." To the 

 Senatus of the University of Edinburgh, ;^200 per annum, to 

 provide eleven post-graduation triennial prizes of j(^y3 each. 

 These are to be named the Monro, Sir Charles Bell, Edward 

 Forbes, Hutton Balfour, Joseph Black, Christison, Lister, 

 Gregory, John Thomson, Simpson, and Alison Prizes, and are 

 to be administered by the Senatus, the incumbent of the Chair 

 in connexion with which the prize is to be awarded having a 

 wide choice in the subjects of examination. To the Royal Col- 

 lege of Physicians of Edinburgh, £100 triennially, for a prize to 

 bear the title "Dr. Gunning's Cullen Prize for the greatest 

 benefit done to Practical Medicine." To the Royal College of 

 Surgeons of Edinburgh, ;^I20 triennially, for a prize to be 

 called "The Liston Victoria Jubilee Prize," which shall be 

 open to all Fellows and Licentiates of the College, and shall be 

 awarded for the greatest benefit done to practical surgery. To the 

 Edinburgh Association for the University Education of Women, 

 ;^40 annually for a bursary to be called " The Victoria Jubilee 

 Bursary." In addition to the above, Dr. Gunning has intimated, 

 through Lord Maclaren, a gift of ;i^ioo for the Ben Nevis 

 Observatory. Dr. Gunning, who was long resident in Brazil, 

 is a Dignitary of the Brazilian Empire, a Fellow of the Royal 

 Society of Edinburgh, and a Fellow of the Society of Anti- 

 quaries of Scotland. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Bonnet Monkey {Macacus siniais S ) from 

 India, presented by Mr. Francis Yare ; a Cape Zorilla {Ictonyx 

 zorilla) from Cape Colony, presented by Mr. J. A. Willet ; a 

 Spotted Ichneumon {Herpestes nepalensis) from Nepal, presented 

 by Mr. T. C. Bacon ; two Spotted Cavys (Ccelogenys paca) from 

 South America, presented by Mr. William F. Kirton ; an Arizona 

 Squirrel [Scitirtis arizinensis) from New Mexico, U.S.A., pre- 

 sented by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt ; a Common Cuckoo {Cuculus 

 canorus\, British, presented by Mr. W. M. Alexander ; a Lesser 

 Kestrel (Tinnunculus cenchris), South European, presented by 

 Mrs. M. Travers ; two Corn Crakes {Crex pratensis), British, 

 presented by Mr. S. C. Hincks ; two Cardinal Grosbeaks {Car- 

 dinalis virginiamis) from North America, presented by Mr. 

 Samuel Nicholson ; two Hybrid Herring Gulls (between Lants 

 argentatus and Larus dominicanus), presented by Lord Lilford ; 

 two Viperine Snakes {Tropidonotus viperinus) from North 

 Africa, a Bordeaux Snake {Coronella girondica). South Euro- 

 pean, presented by the Rev. T. W. Haines ; a Grey Ichneumon 

 {Herpestes griseus) from India, an Aldrovandi's Skink {Plestiodon 

 auratus) from North Africa, deposited ; a Crested Porcupine 

 (Hystrix cristatd), born in the Gardens ; two Slender Ducks 

 {Anas gibberifrons), bred in the Gardens. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



The Total Solar Eclipse of 1886. — Mr. W. H. Pickering, 

 who observed the total solar eclipse of August 1886 at Grenada, 

 W. I., communicates to Science, vol. x. No. 230, a brief account 

 of his results, in order that it may be published in time to be ol 

 service to the observers of the approaching eclipse on August 18. 

 It was found that, by using rapid gelatine plates, an exposure 

 of one or two seconds was sufficient to show the details of the 

 inner corona satisfactorily with an ordinary telescope-lens. With 

 a portrait-lens, the ratio of whose aperture to its focus was as 

 one to five, the same exposure showed the outer corona satis- 

 factorily as far as a distance of 15' to 30' from the limb of the 

 moon. Beyond that the light was very decidedly fainter, and 

 was shown best by exposures of from eight to forty seconds. The 

 corona showed the usual short rays proceeding from the sun'j 

 poles, and from the south-western quadrant a very conspicuous 

 ray, appearing like a hollow cone, projected to a distance ol 

 about 20'. A number of prominences were seen near the equa- 

 tor, on both sides of the moon ; but the most conspicuous one 

 was situated in the north-western quadrant. It extended to the 

 height of about 100,000 miles, and had apparently a somewhat 

 spiral structure. The spectra of the various prominences were 

 shown very clearly by the prismatic camera. In the equatorial 

 ones the hydrogen and H and K lines were prominent, super- 

 posed on a background of continuous spectrum ; but in the 

 large prominence the hydrogen lines were absent, although the 

 H and K lines were strongly marked. The position of the 

 maximum density in the continuous spectrum of the prominences 

 was found to be quite different from that of the corona ; in the 

 former it is not far from G, whilst in the latter it lies between 

 G and F. A large number of persons observed the shadow- 

 bands, which appeared before and after totality. The general 

 result of their observations indicated that the bands were about 

 5 inches wide and 8 inches apart, that they we re coloured like 

 the spectrum, and that they moved with a velocity comparable 

 with that of an express train ; at all events much faster than a 

 man could run. Before totality the bands lay N. 12° W. and 

 S. 12° E., and travelled west ; after totality they lay N. 60° E. 

 and S. 60° W., and travelled north-west. 



ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA FOR THE 



WEEK 1887 JULY 2,1— AUGUST 6. 



/pj*OR the reckoning of time the civil day, commencing a 



* *■ Greenwich mean midnight, counting the hours on to 24, 



is here employed. ) 



At Greenwich on July 31 

 Sun rises, 4h. 24m. ; souths, I2h. 6m. 9"is. ; sets, igh. 48m. 

 decl. on meridian, 18" 18' N. : Sidereal Time at Sunset, 

 i6h. 24m. 

 Moon (Full on August 3) rises, I7h. 15m. ; souths, 2ih. 36m,; 

 sets, ih. S6m.* ; decl. on meridian, 19° 37' S. 



Sets. DecL on meridian 

 h. m. o / 



19 6 ... 14 35 N. 



21 5 ... I 42 N. 

 1838 ... 2335N. 



22 24 ... 9 45 S, 

 19 22 ... 20 47 N. 



* Indicates that the setting is that of the following morning. 



Variable Stars. 

 Star. R.A. Decl. 



h. m. „ / h. ra. 



U Cephei o 52-3 ... 81 16 N. .. Aug. i, 21 30 m 



,, 6, 21 9 m 



Algol 3 0-8 ... 40 31 N. . ,, I, 22 54 OT 



V Bootis 14 25-2 ... 39 23 N. ... ,, 5, M 



5 Librae 14 54-9 ... 8 4 S. . ,, 5, 22 24 m 



V Coronae 15 45-5 ... 39 55 N. ... ,, 4, M 



R Ursae Minoris ... 16 31-5 ... 72 30 N. ... ,, 5, nt 



U Ophiuchi 17 lO'S ... i 20 N. ... July 31, 4 2 m 



and at intervals of 20 8 



W Sagittarii ... 17 57-8 ... 29 35 S. ... Aug. 2, i o m 



T Herculis 18 4-8 ... 31 o N. ... ,, 2, M 



Tj Aquilse 19467... o 43 N. ... ,, 2, 2 o -^ 



6, 21 o pt 



S Sagittae 19 50-9 ... 16 20 N. ... ,, 5, 21 o m 



5 Cephei 22 25-0 ... 57 50 N. ... July 31, 4 o M 



Aug. 3, 22 o m 

 M signifies maximum ; vt minimum. 



A 



