November i, 19 17] 



NATURE 



17: 



journals and several books, including a notable volume 

 on " Japanese Education," consisting of a series of 

 lectures delivered at the University of London in 1907. 



At the meeting of the Optical Society to be held on 

 November 8 at the Imperial College of Science and 

 Technology. South Kensington, Lt.-Col. A. C. Wil- 

 liams will describe certain optical stores which have 

 been captured from the enemy. Among the instru- 

 ments to be shown will be a one-man range-finder, 

 director for field artillery, director for heavy artillery, 

 •dial sights, clinometer, sight clinometer, gun-sights or 

 sighting arcs, stereoscopic telescopes, periscopes, Gali- 

 lean binocular, anci sighting telescopes for machine- 

 guns. 



Prof. E. S. Reynolds will deliver the Bradshaw 

 lecture of the Royal College of Physicians of London 

 on Thursday, November 8. The subject will be "The 

 Causes of Disease." On the same day the Bradshaw 

 lecture of the Royal College of Surgeons of England 

 will be given by Sir John Bland-Sutton, who will take 

 as his subject " Misplaced and Missing Organs." The 

 FitzPatrick lectures of the Royal College of Physicians 

 of London will be delivered on November 13-15 by Dr. 

 A. Chaplin. The subject chosen is "Medicine in Eng- 

 land during the Reign of George IIL" 



Dr. T. Brailsford Robertson, professor of bio- 

 chemistry and pharmacology in the University of Cali- 

 fornia, has executed a deed giving to the University 

 of California all his patent rights in the growth-con- 

 trolling substance, "Tethelin," isolated by him from 

 the anterior lobe of the pituitary body, and employed 

 to accelerate repair in slowly healing wounds. All 

 profits from this discovery are to constitute an endow- 

 ment, the income to be applied to medical research. 

 It is felt by the University of California that one 

 especial value of the establishment of this foundation 

 is the example which it seits for a procedure by which 

 other investigators may dedicate the results of their 

 scientific discoveries to the benefit of mankind as a 

 whole. 



We regret to announce the death of Sir W. J. 

 Herschel, Bart., grandson of the famous discoverer 

 of Uranus, and son of the no less distinguished Sir 

 John Herschel. In 1823 Purkinje, the eminent physio- 

 logist of Breslau, had directed attention to the subject 

 of finger impressions. There has been some con- 

 troversy on the part taken by Sir William Herschel 

 in utilising this discovery for the practical purpose of 

 the identification of criminals, but the history of the 

 subject is given by him in "The Origin of Finger- 

 printing," published last year (see Nature, vol. xcviii., 

 pp. 268, 388). In 1859 Sir William directed the atten- 

 tion of the Indian Government to the importance of 

 the question. His advice was neglected, and it was not 

 until 1897, nearly twenty years after he had left India, 

 that the matter was investigated by a committee of 

 experts, and Mr. (now Sir Edward) Henry, then 

 Inspector of Police in Bengal, was associated with 

 the introduction of the system into that province. 

 Under him, as Commissioner of the London Police, 

 the invention has been fully and scientifically applied 

 to the investigation of crime. It is remarkable that 

 Herschel was overlooked in the distribution of Indian 

 honours. On his retirement from India he settled at 

 Oxford, where he took a useful pant in local affairs. 



A conference of representatives of provincial 

 'museums was held in the Town Hall, Sheffield, on 

 ' October 16 and 17. Alderman W. H. Brittain, chair- 

 man of the Library and Museums Committee, pre- 

 sided. The first day was devoted to papers and dis- 

 cussions on the relation of museums to all grades of 

 schools and education generally, an account being 



NO. 2505, VOL. 100] 



given of the work done in that direction by various 

 museums, with practical suggestions as to its exten- 

 sion and more direct co-ordination. Mr. H. A. L. 

 Fisher, who was unable to be present, expressed his 

 interest in the conference, and arranged for four of the 

 chief divisional inspectors for the Board of Education 

 to attend, representing art, technical, elementary, and 

 secondary schools. The exchange of views which took 

 place should help towards a more vital connection 

 between the museums and the schools. The second 

 day was devoted to war museums, the proceedings 

 being opened with a letter from Sir Whitworth Wallis 

 on the subject, his absence being due to indisposition. 

 Mr. Herbert Bolton read a paper outlining the pur- 

 poses of war museums, and Mr. R. F. Martin, of 

 the Victoria and Albert Museum, followed with a 



I practicable scheme for their establishment in country 

 villages. A full report was taken of the proceedings, 



I and a committee, with Mr. E. Howarth as editor, was 

 appointed to arrange for its publication in extenso. 



One of the consequences of the increasing shortage 

 of shipping, caused not only by actual losses due to 

 submarine attacks, but also by still expanding war 

 requirements which monopolise more and more of the 

 depleted fleets of merchant shipping, has been to 

 stimulate the production of pig-iron in this country 

 from ore won in its own mines. The product of the 

 smelting of this ore is known as basic pig-iron, be- 

 cause it requires to be treated by the basic, as con- 

 trasted with the acid, process for its conversion to 

 steel. The Ministry of Munitions has been charged by 

 the Government with the duty of increasing the supply 

 of this iron, and has called upon various firms to 

 j co-operate. On one hand increased supplies of ore 

 have been mined. On the other existing furnaces 

 have been adapted to the new requirements and new 

 blast-fumaoes have been built. One of these was 

 "blown in" on October 20 at the Stanton Ironworks, 

 near Ilkeston, Derbyshire, and Mr. G. H. Roberts, 

 M.P., Minister of Labour, was present at the cere- 

 mony. Before the war ithe nine furnaces of this com- 

 pany were engaged in making foundry pig-iron. To- 

 day two of these have been diverted from this purpose 

 and are making basic pig for steel sheets. To these 

 must be added the new furnace which has been erected 

 by the company. In this way the necessity of import- 

 ing ores from abroad is being reduced in a highly 

 satisfactory manner. 



Another, the eighth, set of public lectures during 

 the war has been arranged by the Chadwick trustees. 

 The course (began on October 29 at the Hampstead 

 Central Library, when Dr. Charles Porter lectured on 

 the prevention of the common infectious ailments. 

 The programme also includes the following forth- 

 coming lectures : — During the current quarter, at 

 Gretna, Prof. H. J. Spooner on fatigue and the worker 

 — causes, effects, and reliefs, and Sir John Stirling 

 Maxwell, Bart., on forestry as an after-the-war em- 

 ployment. During November, Dr. Woods Hutchin- 

 son will lecture at the Robert Barnes Hall, Royal 

 Society of Medicine, Cavendish Square, W.i, on the 

 part of hygiene in the European war. At Leicester, in 

 November and December, Mr. H. T. Davidge will 

 lecture on electricity and national welfare. In Febru- 

 ary next Prof. Spooner will discourse at Huddersfield 

 on the powers of man as a worker. On October 26 

 Prof. D. Noel Paton lectured at Gretna on food in 

 war-time. He pointed out that a man doing an aver- 

 age day's work requires about 3000 Calories supplied 

 in his food. The food as purchased must contain 

 about 15 per cent, more than this because there is 

 loss in distribution and cooking and in the process 

 of digestion. Women and children at different ages re- 

 quire proportionately less energy and therefore less food. 



