NATURE 



[April 8, 1920 



tion, the wonderful products of Nature by which we 

 are still surrounded. The destruction of a work of 

 art would be condemned as vandalism by all educated 

 people, and it is difficult to believe that any intelligent 

 woman would willingly be a party to the destruction 

 of some of Nature's finest masterpieces. It has taken 

 many millions of years to produce a humming-bird 

 or a bird of paradise, and what work of art can com- 

 pare with these living gems? Their destruction, once 

 accomplished, would be irrevocable, and future genera- 

 tions of zoologists, with all their science of genetics, 

 might strive in vain to produce anything to replace 

 them. 



Should such wantonness be permitted merely to 

 satisfy the greed and vanity of a few human beings? 

 I think not, and therefore I hope the Plumage Bill 

 now before Parliament will be passed, and that other 

 nations will follow our example in endeavouring to put 

 a stop to a practice which is a dark blot on civilisation. 



Possibly an even more hopeful method of accom- 

 plishing this aim would be by the formation of 

 women's societies for the express purpose of discoun- 

 tenancing the fashion of wearing plumage derived 

 from wild birds, except in the case of those the 

 destruction of which is demanded for other and 

 sufficient reasons. Such societies might do much 

 useful work in enlightening the ignorant and thought- 

 less and in fostering a wholesome public opinion. 

 Possibly they exist already; if so, now is their oppor- 

 tunity. Arthur Dendy. 



The Magnetic Storm of March 22-23 and Associated 

 Phenomena. 



The magnetic storm of March 22-23 was one of 

 the most considerable recorded at Eskdalemuir during 

 the last nine years throughout which continuous 

 records have been obtained. It began with the abrupt 

 disturbance known as a "sudden commencement" at 

 gh. 12m. G.M.T. on March 22, the rapidity of the 

 change in the horizontal components at that time 

 being so great that the photographic impression of 

 the moving light-spot was too faint to enable its 

 details to be traced. The main features, however, 

 began to develop immediately afterwards. On the 

 traces recording the changes in declination and the 

 westerly component there were no very large motions 

 in the interval between the sudden commencement 

 and i4ih., but there occurred the intense agitation 

 due to oscillations of short period. At the same time 

 the northerly component of force gradually rose, 

 having superposed upon it several large, slow motions 

 as well as numerous short-period oscillations. 



The larger motions of both horizontal components 

 began soon after i6h., and by lyh. the declination 

 trace had passed beyond the edge of the recording 

 sheet. At this time, when the extreme westerly 

 declination was reached, its value must have been 

 at least 1° 43' beyond its undisturbed value. The 

 north component trace was similarly off the sheet 

 upwards (i.e. with increased value) from i6h. to 2oh. 

 From 2oh. until midnight the disturbance in the 

 horizontal field was on a lesser scale, but during the 

 four hours after oh. 30m. there occurred a series of 

 large and rapid oscillations. For example, in six 

 minutes from ih. 20m. to ih. 26m. the declination 

 shifted eastwards through 2^°. The northerly com- 

 ponent fell rapidlv in value after midnight, and the 

 trace was off the sheet downwards several times 

 betvi^een oh. and 4h. The total range of this com- 

 ponent must, therefore, have exceeded 7007— an un- 

 usually high value. From 4h. to loh. on March 23 

 the motions were smaller, but extremely rapid, the 

 period averaging about four minutes. After loh. no 

 further considerable disturbance occurred, but a 

 NO. 2632, VOL. 105] 



notable sudden change, in a direction north-east- 

 downwards, took place with its maximum at igh. 17m. 



The vertical force magnetogram for the storm is 

 of more than usual interest. So far as this com- 

 ponent is concerned, the ordinary course of events 

 during a magnetic storm which begins before mid- 

 night includes a gradual increase in downwards force 

 towards a maximum which is reached before mid- 

 night, followed by a fall for an hour or more ; then 

 a check, followed by a further fall, and a gradual 

 recovery to nearly normal value, which may be 

 reached about 8h. In the present case four pro- 

 minent maxima are shown before midnight — at 

 i4h. 27m., i7h. 24m., 2oh. lom., and 23h. 49m. The 

 range of disturbance between the second and highest 

 maximum and the second minimum (at igh. 6m.) was 

 5657. Soon after midnight there occurred an ex- 

 tremely rapid fall in value which sent the trace off 

 the sheet for nearly six hours. The subsequent 

 recovery was characterised by well-marked pulsations 

 the period of which was irregular, but averaged about 

 five minutes, and were of unusually large amplitude. 

 The occurrence of these pulsations in vertical force 

 ai the end of a storm is a feature requiring attention 

 in any theory attempting to explain magnetic storms. 



The disturbance was accompanied by an auroral 

 display, including the " curtain " form at a consider- 

 able altitude, and extending, at oh. 50m. on March 23, 

 to within 30° of the southern horizon. There was 

 little cloud at the time, but low mist made observa- 

 tion of details difficult. 



A. Crichton Mitchell. 



Eskdalemuir Observatory, March 26. 



Science and the New Army. 



Nature of March 25 publishes a leading article 

 "Knowledge and Power," a letter from Col. E. H. 

 Hills, and a paragraph in the " University and 

 Educational Intelligence," all dealing with related 

 subjects. A sentence in the last-named paragraph 

 throws light on the other communications. It reads : 

 " Every officer in command of a company will be held 

 responsible for the instruction of his men." The 

 paragraph neglects to state, however, that the majority 

 of these officers entered Sandhurst or Woolwich at an 

 immature age, probably without competition, and are 

 almost as ignorant as the men whose education they 

 are to supervise. 



During the war the lack of scientific knowledge 

 and of habits of exact thought of these officers was 

 shown not only by their persistent attempts to prevent 

 the use of scientific means, but also by their child- 

 like faith in a formula or parrot-cry. " Follow the 

 barrage," "Counter-attack," "Defence in depth," are 

 some that come to mind — formulae passed down 

 through the official channels to be applied without 

 thought to all possible situations. 



In this country war is still looked upon as an- art, 

 whereas it is rapidly becoming an exact science. 



The firing of millions of projectiles, involving an 

 enormous expenditure of energy, not only in lives, 

 but, what counts almost as much in the long run, also 

 of labour, is a matter for exact calculation if the 

 maximum probable results are to be obtained. At 

 the present time such problems are solved by intuitive 

 methods, and will be so whilst the present svstem of 

 officering the Army obtains. 



All hope of any real progress must be abandoned 

 until a change is made; then, perhaps, we shall no 

 longer see directors of research absolutely ignorant 

 of the problems that are being solved or await solu- 

 tion. A. R. Richardson. 



Imperial College of Science, South 

 Kensington, S.W,7, March 31. 



