Ii6 



NATURE 



[October 9, 1919 



and eastern bays of Icefjord. In the Klaas Billen 

 district valuable seams have been opened up at 

 various heights. Varying from a few inches to 

 about 3 ft. in thickness, they total 6 ft. Early 

 analyses of Carboniferous coal were vitiated by 

 the samples being taken from weathered slip 

 masses, in consequence of which they showed a 

 high proportion of ash. Now, however, that the 

 coal has been reached m situ, it proves to be of 

 high quality, clean and lustrous, and, unlike the 

 Tertiary coal, fit for coking. I'rojects are on 

 foot for extensive mining operations in these 

 fields. 



Jurassic coal is widely spread, but less 

 accessible than the other kinds. It was the first 

 coal to be mined, but turned out to be of rela- 

 tively poor quality, and is now no longer worked. 



Mining is continued throughout the year, 

 although the export season at present extends 

 only from June to September. The miners 

 winter in comfortable timber houses, and are 

 well supplied with fresh food, brought from 

 the European mainland in the autumn. There 

 is wireless communication throughout the 

 winter. The restriction of export to four 

 months in the year necessitates good storage 

 facilities for the winter coal and rapid loading 

 in summer both from the dump and direct 

 from the mine, but these problems are being 

 satisfactorily solved. The total coal export 

 of Spitsbergen, which in 191 3 was 35,000 

 tons, rose last year to 65,000 tons, and this 

 year must have reached about 100,000 tons. These 

 figures are, of course, comparatively small, but 

 they will be much increased as several new mines 

 get into working order. The shortage of labour, 

 material, and tonnage still affected the output this 

 season, but it may be said that the prejudice 

 against mining in the Arctic has now been over- 

 come, and Spitsbergen will soon take its due place, 

 as one of the important coal-producing countries 

 of Europe. R. N. R. B. 



HOTES. 



The Ministry of Munitions has published as a con- 

 fidential document a highly interesting report of the 

 Commission appointed to visit the iron and steel 

 works of the occupied areas of Germany, also of 

 Lorraine, Luxemburg, and certain portions of Belgium 

 and France. The object of the Commission was to 

 ascertain what developments in iron and steel manu- 

 facture have taken place during the war, the present 

 condition of the plants, the future prospects of these 

 areas, and to what extent fuel economy has been 

 advanced therein. As regards the last-named item, 

 Messrs. Cosmo Johns and Lawrence Ennis com- 

 municated to the recent autumn meeting of the Iron 

 and Steel Institute a report on the present status of 

 fuel economy in the German iron and steel industry of 

 the occupied territory. This report is now public pro- 

 perty, and contains very much interesting material ; 

 it may be taken as an indication of the importance 

 of the valuable information which the Commission 

 itself has collected. It is to be hoped that the 

 Ministry of Munitions will see its way to publish 

 the entire report as an ordinary Government publica- 

 tion purchasable in the usual way, so that it may be 

 NO. 2606, VOL. 104] 



known by all engaged in the iron and steel industries 

 in this country, as there is no reason why our indus- 

 tries should not be allowed the benefit of the careful 

 studies of this Commission. Such an important 

 document should be made available as widely 

 as possible to all those interested in the subject- 

 matter. 



The future of the Royal Botanic Society at Regent's 

 Park has for long been a matter of anxiety, and the 

 recent appointment by Lord Ernie, when President of 

 the Board of .\griculture and Fisheries, of a strong 

 Committee to inquire and report as to what steps should 

 be taken to render the work of the society as useful 

 as possible, from the scientific and educational points 

 of view, was a most welcome step. The Committee, 

 under the chairmanship of Sir David Prain, Director 

 of Kew Gardens, has taken evidence from representa- 

 tive botanists and others, and its report is now avail- 

 able. ;\part from the establishment of the gardens 

 at Regent's Park, the primary object of the society, 

 which was incorporated in 1839, was "the promotion 

 of botany and its application to medicine, arts, and 

 rhanufactures." It is interesting and satisfactorv, 

 therefore, to note that the Committee is of the opinion 

 that the usefulness of the work of the society would 

 be enhanced bv the organisation and development of 

 botanical w-ork essentially economic in its bearing. 

 The chief suggestions made by the Committee are : — 

 (i) The establishment of a school of econorhic botany 

 at which a knowledge of economic plants and their 

 products could be obtained; (2) an institute which 

 might be made a centre for research, especially 

 in plant physiology; and (3) a centre for teaching 

 practical horticulture. The first is the most notable 

 and valuable recommendation. The establishment of 

 such a school would supply an undoubted want in 

 this country, where organised instruction in economic 

 botanv, especially as regards tropical crop plants, is 

 almost impossible to obtain. The Committee is to be 

 congratulated on. so accurately judging the need :if 

 the situation. It is greatly to be hoped that the 

 financial means necessary for the successful carrying 

 out of the Committee's recommendations will be 

 forthcoming. 



.\ MEETING of the Executive Committee of tlie 

 United States National Research Council was held 

 at the National Research Council Building, Washing- 

 ton, on April 15 last, and according to an abstract, 

 21 pages in length, of the minutes, which appears in 

 the July issue of the Proceedings of the National 

 Academy of Sciences, the Council has already made 

 great progress in initiating and co-ordinating research 

 in pure and applied science in the States. It has 

 organised divisions for physical science, chernical 

 science, geology and geography, biology and agricul- 

 ture, engineering, industrial, educational, and State 

 relations. Each division is presided over by a man 

 of note, and on it there are many representatives of 

 scientific and other societies. The Council will have 

 ample funds at its disposal, the Rockefeller Founda- 

 tion alone having undertaken to provide 100,000/. 

 during the next five years for the promotion,^f funda- 

 mental researches in' physics and chemistry primarily 

 in educational institutions. The chairman of the 

 Council receives 2000!., and chairmen of divisions 

 1500?.. per annum, with travelling expenses. The 

 Council is to be congratulated on the speed with which 

 it has accomplished so much. 



Dr. Theodore W. Richards, professor of chemistry 

 at Harvard University, has (Science announces) been 

 elected president of the American .\cademy of Arts 

 and Sciences. 



