;74 



NA TURE 



[August i8, 1898 



H. Munthe treats of the vexed question of the interglacial 

 submergence of Great Britain ; and being printed in English, it 

 will more readily attract the attention of British geologists. 

 The author first deals with the marine clay at Cleongart, on the 

 western coast of the Mull of Kintyre ; and he shows that the 

 idea of the mixed character of the fauna, both as to climate and 

 bathymetrical conditions, arose from considering the fauna 

 generally, whereas in reality there is a distinct series of layers 

 which were deposited under different conditions. He regards 

 the strata as in situ, and as indicating a maximum submergence 

 of over 300 feet. He gives reasons, also, for believing that the 

 marine clay at Clava, near Inverness, is likewise a marine 

 deposit in situ, and that it indicates a submergence of at least 

 540 feet. In other localities in Great Britain and Ireland he is 

 disposed to thjnk that certain shelly gravels may have been 

 transported by an ice-sheet from lower to higher levels. 



The water question being temporarily in abeyance, the 

 London County Council have employed the interval in issuing 

 a report on the " Bacteriological examination of London crude 

 sewage." It only purports to be an introduction to reports on 

 experiments which are in progress on the filtration of sewage 

 through coke, and contains nothing of significance from a 

 scientific point of view. The flora of sewage has been 

 repeatedly studied before, and that the B. colt cotiimunis is 

 present in great numbers is hardly news to those acquainted 

 with the subject ; on the other hand, some of the statements 

 made are liable to a highly misleading interpretation. We 

 would especially refer to the remark that the presence of the B. 

 coli coiiimunis in water maybe regarded as a " bacteriological 

 method of detecting the pollution of Water with minimal quan- 

 tities of sewage which is of very great delicacy." This organism 

 is, like the poor, always with us, and that its presence is neces- 

 sarily due to the access of sewage is a quite unwarranted assump- 

 tion. Again, because a liquid contains bacteria capable of 

 liquefying gelatine, does it follow that this liquid is " also 

 rich in ability to dissolve solid or suspended organic matter " ? 

 To justify such statements more than words are necessary, and 

 in a scientific report surely experiments should take precedence 

 of conclusions. Experiments on coke filters in relation to 

 sewage treatment are being vigorously prosecuted in various 

 parts of the country, and the London County Council are show- 

 ing their appreciation of the importance of the question in like- 

 wise directing investigations in this direction ; and we trust that 

 the united efforts of so many independent bodies will ultimately 

 yield data which will materially lessen the stupendous difficulties 

 now surrounding the satisfactory disposal of sewage. 



The Deutsche Seewarte has issued its twentieth yearly 

 volume of Aus dem Archiv, for 1897. Among the various in- 

 vestigations, which are always of a painstaking and valuable 

 character, we would refer to one by Dr. Neumayer and Dr. v. 

 Hasenkamp, entitled '"Anemometer Studies." The results 

 confirm those obtained by Mr. Dines and others, with regard to 

 the high values recorded by the Robinson cup-anemometer, and 

 also show that anemometers of similar pattern and size cannot 

 be depended upon to give precisely similar records, but that the 

 constants of each individual instrument must be separately 

 determined. Another important discussion, by Dr. G. Schott, 

 refers to the "bottle-notices" collected by the Seewarte up to 

 the end of the year 1896. The drift of 643 bottles has been 

 examined, and with one or two exceptions the routes have been 

 plotted on charts. Some of the tracks taken are very interesting, 

 and go to disprove the statement sometimes made that the bottles 

 are driven by the prevalent winds. Some instances are given 

 showing that the bottles follow even a weak current, against the 

 wind. About seventy per cent, of the notices refer to the North 

 Atlantic ocean. 



NO. I 503, VOL. 58] 



In Das Wetter for July,' Dr. R. Hennig, of Berlin, concludes 

 an interesting investigation of the well-known " cold days" of 

 May, which has appeared in the last four numbers of that journal. 

 In carrying on the discussion the author has examined all the 

 weather charts for the last twenty years,, and has given a summary 

 of the special conditions in each of those years. The principal 

 results are arrived at are : (1) That the " cold days " are, with 

 rare exceptions, a yearly recurring phenomenon, but by no means 

 affect the same parts of Europe, (z) The period of the occur- 

 rence varies considerably. It may embrace the whole month, 

 but most frequently takes place during the second decade, andl 

 mostly lasts for three or four days. (3) The phenomenon 

 generally commences during the occurrence of stormy north- 

 west winds, accompanied with frequent showers of rain^ 

 snow or hail. Night frosts and formation of hoar frost some- 

 times occur during the early period of this unsettled weather,, 

 but generally take place after the passage of areas of low 

 barometric pressure. (4) During this coW period an extensive 

 area of high barometric pressure obtains over the ocean, 

 adjacent to the western or north-western shores of Europe. 

 This subject has engaged the attention of meteorologists for a 

 number of years, and among the various investigations we would 

 especially refer to those of Dove in 185,6, and v. Bezold in 1882, 



In consequence of the great development which the study 

 of earthquakes has received in Europe, and especially in Italy, 

 during the last ten years, the need has- been felt of a journal 

 devoted exclusively to seismology. Accordingly, in the begin- 

 ning of 1895, Pi'of- Tacchini, the well-known Director of the 

 Central Office of Meteorology and Geodynamics at Rome^ 

 founded the Italian Seismological Society. Three volumes of 

 the Bollettino published by the Society are now complete. 

 Their value will be evident from the notes which we have 

 inserted from time to time. Besides the important notices of 

 earthquakes recorded in Italy, the three volumes contain alto- 

 gether seventy-six papers, chiefly on earthquakes, though the 

 active volcanoes of the country receive a large share of attention. 

 Most of the papers are in Italian, but a few are written in. 

 French ; and, as those in other languages are also admissible, 

 it is evident that the Bollettino possesses an international 

 character. The Society has at present fifty-three Italiar* 

 and foreign members, and stands in need of a considerable 

 increase in their number, in order that its usefulness may be 

 maintained and extended. 



The Report of Mr. W. E. Hoyle, Keeper of the Manchester 

 Museum, Owens College, shows that much useful work was 

 accomplished during the year 1897-8 in spite of inadequate 

 funds. Specimens of minerals and fossils which could be spared 

 were arranged by Mr. H. Bolton in sets and presented to- 

 schools in which they will prove of service. Series of short 

 addresses upon naturaU science topics were given on Saturday 

 and Sunday afternoons, and were so successful that similar 

 lectures will be delivered during the ensuing session. A museum 

 which carries on work of this character, in addition to publishing 

 useful handbooks — one on the nomenclature of the seams of the 

 Lancashire Lower Coal Measures, by Mr. Herbert Bolton, is now 

 before us — and furnishing material to aid naturalists in their 

 investigations, ought to be given every encouragement. In 

 regard to the acquisition of specimens, Mr. Hoyle points out 

 that the sum of 75/. a year, which has for some lime beerk 

 allotted for this purpose, is absurdly inadequate for the principal 

 museum of the city of Manchester, especially when compared 

 with the sum of 2000/. expended in the same manner by the 

 city of Liverpool. The Free Library Committee of the Man- 

 chester Corporation has shown its appreciation of the work of 

 the Museum by contributing the sum of 400/. per annum towards 

 its maintenance, but beyond this no assistance is received from 



